Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Photosynthesis and xanthophyll cycle-mediated photoprotection in leaves of Quercus rubra and Q. alba seedlings of different light environments

Two and three years after the outplanting of 1-O northern red oak (Quercus rubra, NRO) and white oak (Q. ulba, WO) nursery stocks, the highest net photosynthetic rates (A-) were observed from seedlings growing on a clearcut site followed by those under a pine stand. Both NRO and WO seedlings under a hardwood stand had A, less than 10% of the full sun seedling A,,. Oaks grown under hardwoods increased their A,, more in response to sunflecks than those under a pine stand. Besides NRO and WO seedIings, leaves of several hardwood seedlings and shrubs grown under different light environments were analyzed for pigments and the operation of the xanthophyll cycle. All species investigated shared the following characteristics: higher contents of chlorophyll a+b, a-carotene, lutein, and neoxanthin; smaller xanthophyll cycle pool (sum of violaxanthin V, antheraxanthin A, and zeaxanthin Z); and lower ratios of Z+A to Z+A+V in leaves of understory plants than leaves of the same species growing in full sun. The diurnal xanthophyll cycle (i.e., high Z+A/Z+A+V ratio in midday and low Z+A/Z+A+V ratio near dawn and dusk) was present in leaves of NRO and WO seedlings on the clearcut site. Almost no xanthophyll cycle was operating in understory leaves except that upon sunflecking NRO and WO under hardwoods increased their Z+A/Z+A+V ratio. For every unit of the xanthophyll cycle pool, twice as many chlorophylis must be protected in shade-grown leaves as in sun-grown leaves. The potential use of leaf a-carotene levels in silviculture is discussed.
Location, location, location: The importance of spatialization in modeling cooperation and communication

Most current modeling for evolution of communication still underplays or ignores the role of local action in spatialized environments: the fact that it is immediate neighbors with which one tends to communicate, and from whom one learns strategies or conventions of communication. Only now are the lessons of spatialization being learned in a related field: game-theoretic models for cooperation. In work on altruism, on the other hand, the role of spatial organization has long been recognized under the term ‘viscosity’. Here we offer some simple simulations that dramatize the importance of spatialization for studies of both cooperation and communication, in each case contrasting (a) a model dynamics in which strategy change proceeds globally, and (b) a spatialized model dynamics in which interaction and strategy change both operate purely locally. Local action in a spatialized model clearly favors the emergence of cooperation. In the case of communication, spatialized models allow communication to arise and flourish where the global dynamics more typical in the literature make it impossible. Simulations make a dramatic case for spatialized modeling, but analysis proves difficult. In a final section we outline some of the surprises of spatial dynamics but also some of the complexity facing attempts at deeper analysis.
Understanding How Student Organization Advisors Approach Advising

Danielle Marie De Sawal UNDERSTANDING HOW STUDENT ORGANIZATION ADVISORS APPROACH ADVISING The purpose of this study was to examine how advisors learn and develop their individual approach to advising. A lack of research exists that examines how the professionals responsible for advising student organizations on college campuses learn to approach their position. Resources available for professionals on advising student organizations from the institution are prescriptive, providing practitioners with a list of items to include or avoid when advising an organization and are most often found on the institutions web sites. This study used a mixed method research design and examined full-time institutional employees who are responsible for advising one or more student organizations on campus as part of their positional responsibilities. A two-phase sequential exploratory strategy (Creswell, 2003) was used and priority was given to the qualitative data. The decision to use this research design is grounded in the desire to understand the phenomenon associated with an advisor’s application of knowledge to practice. This research confirmed the anecdotal literature which identified the way in which advisors of student organizations learn to advise is through trial and error and vicarious learning (Bandura, 1986). Data from this study furthered our understanding of how
The Effect of Liquor Taxes on Heavy Drinking

In this article we present the strongest evidence to date that chronic heavy drinkers' consumption is responsive to changes in the price of liquor. We estimate that an increase in the liquor excise tax by one dollar (1967 prices) per proof gallon reduces the liver cirrhosis mortality rate by 5.4% in the short run and by perhaps twice that amount in the long run. (The liver cirrhosis mortality rate is a reliable proxy for the prevalence of chronic excess consumption.) Our estimate is based on an analysis of covariance of annual state-level data, for a 16-year panel of 30 states, with state excise taxes and per capita income as the covariates. Of course, our estimate is not sufficient to determine whether an increase in the liquor tax is worthwhile, much less to determine an "optimal" tax. It is, however, an important datum for making these determinations.
Differences in the Returns to Education for Males by Disability Status and Age of Disability Onset

We examine linkages between disability and the returns to education for males, incorporating the role that age of disability onset may play in these returns. Our analyses are based on the 1993 Panel of the Survey of Income and Program Participation and exploit detailed information regarding productivity-related functional limitations. We estimate a three-state switching regression model that includes a Heckman-type employment correction. The coefficient estimates vary by disability status—early-onset disability, late-onset disability, and non-disabled. Our research contributes to the disability literature by providing details on the role that education may play in the lives of persons with disabilities, depending on the age at which the disability first manifests itself. Overall, we find that males who experience disability onset after reaching adulthood experience substantial wage returns to education, larger than the returns for the non-disabled population. The average wages of individuals with poor health or disability, regardless of age of onset, are below those of the non-disabled, however, so education may serve as a buffer to protect against potential negative wage effects of becoming disabled, but this “insurance” is not sufficient to close the gap.
Competitive Strategies in Emerging Economies

ABSTRACT This paper reports on a survey of consumers in four emerging economies: Puerto Rico, Guatemala, Peru, and India. Results suggest that the purchase decision is influenced by factors directly related to the product or service such as price and quality and factors indirectly related to the product or service such as advertising and brand reputation. These business strategy factors were linked to marketing strategy factors such as price orientation, independence, and brand consciousness. In this sense, a firm's marketing perspective can be viewed as the basis for its competitive strategy. This link between strategies at the business and marketing levels is analyzed.
Performance analysis of cross-direction process control using multivariable and spectral models

The paper addresses two interrelated problems in cross-directional (CD) control of papermaking processes. The first problem is that of paper property streaks observed in many CD control installations. The streaks usually correspond to the high-resolution error profile harmonics with wavelength dose to twice the actuator spacing. Typically, the streaks of paper weight or moisture are very stable. A question, which often arises, is if the streaks can be compensated by better tuning of the CD controller. The second, related, problem addressed in this paper is how the achievable high-resolution error profile and its spectrum depend on the CD controller tuning. The paper compares the performances of a mapped controller and an optimal multivariable controller. It also describes spectral characteristics of CD error profile around the Nyquist frequency. Applications of the developed analysis methodology to a paper mill data where weight streaks are a problem are demonstrated.
An Economic Theory of the Fifth Amendment

The Fifth Amendment's due process clause requires the prosecution to share evidence with the defense, and its right to silence blocks the jury from drawing an adverse inference from the defendant's silence during trial. I examine the effect of the right to silence and the disclosure requirement on conviction rates and social welfare in an economic model of criminal trials. Many policy-relevant results emerge. The right to silence can only improve welfare if juries discriminate unduly against defendants. With the right to silence, mandatory disclosure always increases welfare. Mandatory disclosure always reduces the welfare-efficiency of the right to silence. The right to silence combined with mandatory disclosure is more likely to increase welfare than is the right to silence alone. The most efficient mechanism is either mandatory disclosure alone or mandatory disclosure combined with the right to silence.
A new approach to software key escrow encryption

The major deficiency ascribed to key escrow techniques when they are implemented solely in software is that they can be bypassed or subverted relatively easily and thus cannot be relied upon to meet the objectives of law enforcement that motivate the Clipper Initiative. Further, no technique has been proposed that addresses the issues associated with the implementation of a classified encyption algorithm, such as the Skipjack algorithm embodied in the Clipper chip, in a widely used software product.
Use of bone alkaline phosphatase to monitor alendronate therapy in individual postmenopausal osteoporotic women.

BACKGROUND Biochemical bone markers are sensitive to the changes in bone turnover that result from treatment of postmenopausal osteoporotic women with antiresorptive therapies. Although information is available on the use of bone markers in monitoring therapy in groups of subjects, less is known regarding how these markers perform in individual patients. METHODS Serum bone alkaline phosphatase (bone ALP) concentrations, measured with the Tandem(R) Ostase(R) assay, were used to monitor the biochemical response of bone in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis receiving either 10 mg/day alendronate therapy (n = 74) or calcium supplementation (n = 148) for 24 months. RESULTS Bone ALP decreased significantly from baseline at 3 months (P </=0.0001), reaching a nadir between 3 and 6 months of alendronate therapy. The magnitude of the bone ALP decrease in the treated osteoporotic population was consistent with normalization to premenopausal concentrations. Of the 74 alendronate-treated subjects, 63 (85.1%) demonstrated a decrease from baseline in bone ALP by 6 months that exceeded the least significant change of 25%. The bone ALP decrease from baseline exceeded 25% in 72 (97%) by the end of the study. CONCLUSION The bone ALP assay is a sensitive and reliable tool that may be used to monitor the reduction in bone turnover after alendronate therapy in individual postmenopausal osteoporotic women.
Animal Disease Pre-Event Preparedness versus Post-Event Response: When Is It Economic to Protect?

We examine the economic tradeoff between the costs of pre-event preparedness and post-event response to the potential introduction of an infectious animal disease. In a simplified case study setting, we examine the conditions for optimality of an enhanced pre-event detection system considering various characteristics of a potential infectious cattle disease outbreak, costs of program implementation, severity of the disease outbreak, and relative effectiveness of postevent response actions. We show that the decision to invest in pre-event preparedness activities depends on such factors as probability of disease introduction, disease spread rate, relative costs, ancillary benefits, and effectiveness of mitigation strategies.
Entry-Exit Timing and Profit Sharing

We analyze the effects of two compound investment options, a shut down and a reopening option, on a Aoki's pro¯t sharing ¯rm organization. Whilst the introduction of a credible threat of shutting down weakens labour's position in the bargaining and favors the shareholders on profit sharing, the option to reopen the plant acts in the opposite direction, reducing the abandoning threat and reinforcing the workers' bargaining power. More speci¯cally, as long as an increase in uncertainty leads to an increase in the bene¯t from reopening, and hence in the ¯rm's market value, the overall result implies a weakening of the shut down threat and the pro¯t distribution process becomes more favorable to workers.
Macroalgal responses to ocean acidification depend on nutrient and light levels

Ocean acidification may benefit algae that are able to capitalise on increased carbon availability for photosynthesis but is expected to have adverse effects on calcified algae through dissolution. Shifts in dominance between primary producers will have knock-on effects on marine ecosystems and will likely vary regionally, depending on factors such as irradiance (light vs shade) and nutrient levels (oligotrophic vs eutrophic). Thus experiments are needed to evaluate interactive effects of combined stressors in the field. In this study, we investigated the physiological responses of macroalgae near a CO2 seep in oligotrophic waters off Vulcano (Italy). The algae were incubated in situ at 0.2 m depth using a combination of three mean CO2 levels (500, 700-800 and 1200 µatm CO2), two light levels (100 and 70% of surface irradiance) and two nutrient levels of N, P, and K (enriched vs non-enriched treatments) in the non-calcified macroalga Cystoseira compressa (Phaeophyceae, Fucales) and calcified Padina pavonica (Phaeophyceae, Dictyotales). A suite of biochemical assays and in vivo chlorophyll a fluorescence parameters showed that elevated CO2 levels benefitted both of these algae, although their responses varied depending on light and nutrient availability. In C. compressa, elevated CO2 treatments resulted in higher carbon content and antioxidant activity in shaded conditions both with and without nutrient enrichment - they had more Chla, phenolic and fucoxanthin with nutrient enrichment and higher quantum yield (Fv/Fm) and photosynthetic efficiency (αETR) without nutrient enrichment. In P. pavonica, elevated CO2 treatments had higher carbon content, Fv/Fm, αETR, and Chla regardless of nutrient levels - they had higher concentrations of phenolic compounds in nutrient enriched, fully-lit conditions and more antioxidants in shaded, nutrient enriched conditions. Nitrogen content increased significantly in fertilised treatments, confirming that these algae were nutrient
Wealth effects of bank holding company securities issuance and loan growth under the risk-based capital requirements

This paper tests a two-part hypothesis: first, that during the period between publication of the risk-based capital requirements in early 1989 and the end of 1992, bank holding companies (BHCs) faced a statistically significant decrease in stock returns if they issued new common stock; second, that this discouraged new common stock issuance and therefore, in effect, forced BHCs with Tier 1 and/or leverage capital-to-assets ratios below the regulatory minima to decrease loans outstanding more than did BHCs deficient only in their total capital ratios. Empirical evidence supporting both parts of the hypothesis is presented.
A New Method for Forensic DNA Analysis of the Blood Meal in Chagas Disease Vectors Demonstrated Using Triatoma infestans from Chuquisaca, Bolivia

Background Feeding patterns of the vector are important in the epidemiology of Chagas disease, the leading cause of heart disease in Latin America. Chagas disease is caused by the parasite, Trypanasoma cruzi, which is transmitted by blood feeding insects. Historically, feeding behaviours of haematophagous insects have been investigated using serological reactions, which have detection limits in terms of both taxonomic resolution, and quantity and quality of the blood meal. They are labor intensive, require technical expertise, need fresh or frozen samples and antibodies often are either not available commercially or the resources for synthesis and purification are not available. We describe an assay to identify vertebrate blood meal sources, and the parasite T. cruzi using species-specific PCR assays from insect vectors and use the method to provide information regarding three questions: (1) Do domestic and peri-domestic (chicken coop and animal corral) habitats vary in the blood meals detected in the vectors? (2) What is the pattern of multiple blood meals? (3) Does the rate of T. cruzi infection vary among habitats and is it associated with specific blood meal types? Methodology/Principal Findings Assays based on the polymerase chain reaction were evaluated for identification of the blood meal source in the heamatophagous Chagas disease vector Triatoma infestans. We evaluate a technique to identify 11 potential vertebrate food sources from the complex mixture extracted from the vector's abdomen. We tested the assay on 81 T. infestans specimens collected from the Andean highlands in the department of Chuquisaca, located in central Bolivia, one of the regions in South America where sylvatic T. infestans have been reported. This area is suggested to be the geographic origin of T. infestans and has very high human infection rates that may be related to sylvatic vector populations. Conclusion/Significance The results of the assays revealed that a high percentage of insects collected in human dwellings had fed on peri-domestic animals. In contrast, one insect from a chicken coop but no bugs from corrals tested positive for human blood. Forty-eight percent of insects tested positive for more than one vertebrate species. T. cruzi infection was detected in 42% of the specimens. From the epidemiological point of view, the results reveal an overall pattern of movement from peri-domestic structures to human habitations for T. infestans in this region of Bolivia as well as the important role of pigs, dogs, chickens and guinea pigs in the dynamics of T. cruzi infection.
Bank Relationships and Firm Profitability

This paper examines how bank relationships affect firm performance. An empirical implication of recent theoretical models is that firms maintaining multiple bank relationships are less profitable than their single-bank peers. We investigate this empirical implication using a data set containing virtually all Norwegian publicly listed firms for the period 1979-1995. We find that sales profitability is substantially higher if firms maintain only a single bank relationship. Furthermore, we observe that firms switching a single bank relationship improve their sales profitability.
Extranodal NK/T Cell Lymphoma with Destruction of the Uvulae: A Case Report

Introduction: Extranodal Natural Killer (NK)/T-cell lymphoma (NKTCL) nasal type is a rare but well-known disease with poor prognosis. NKTCL is more prevalent in Asia and comprises about 7-10% of all non-Hodgkin lymphoma cases in this region. The characteristic clinical pattern of NKTCL is the destruction of the midline structures of the mid-face. Case Report: The present study examines a case of NKTCL in a 23-year-old man with a destructive ulcer of the palate and uvulae. Based on immunohistochemical results, after three months of delay, the definitive diagnosis was revealed to be Extranodal NK/T cell lymphoma. Following the third cycle of chemotherapy, the patient died due to sepsis and infection. Conclusion: It is very common to misdiagnose NKTCL with other clinical conditions such as necrotizing stomatitis, deep fungal ulcers, Wegener’s Granulomatosis disease, etc. Delay in diagnosis can worsen the course of the disease and its prognosis.
Corticosteroid injection in diabetic patients with trigger finger. A prospective, randomized, controlled double-blinded study.

BACKGROUND It is generally accepted that the initial treatment for trigger finger is injection of corticosteroid into the flexor tendon sheath. In this study, the efficacy of corticosteroid injections for the treatment of trigger finger in patients with diabetes mellitus was evaluated in a prospective, randomized, controlled, double-blinded fashion and the efficacy in nondiabetic patients was evaluated in a prospective, unblinded fashion. METHODS Thirty diabetic patients (thirty-five digits) and twenty-nine nondiabetic patients (twenty-nine digits) were enrolled. The nondiabetic patients were given corticosteroid injections in an unblinded manner. The cohort with diabetes was randomized into a corticosteroid group (twenty digits) or a placebo group (fifteen digits). Both of these groups were double-blinded. Additional injections, surgical intervention, and recurrent symptoms of trigger finger were recorded. Treatment success was defined as complete or nearly complete resolution of trigger finger symptoms such that surgical intervention was not required. RESULTS After one or two injections, twenty-five of the twenty-nine digits in the nondiabetic group had a successful outcome compared with twelve of the nineteen in the diabetic corticosteroid group (p = 0.03) and eight of the fifteen in the diabetic placebo group (p = 0.006). With the numbers studied, no significant difference was found between the diabetic groups. Surgery was performed in three of the twenty-nine digits in the nondiabetic group compared with seven of the nineteen in the diabetic corticosteroid group and six of the fifteen in the diabetic placebo group. There was a significant difference in the prevalence of surgery between the nondiabetic group and both the diabetic corticosteroid group and the diabetic placebo group (p = 0.035 and p = 0.020, respectively). With the numbers studied, no difference was found between the diabetic groups with regard to the persistence of symptoms. Nephropathy and neuropathy were significantly associated with the need for surgery (p = 0.008 and p = 0.03, respectively). CONCLUSIONS Corticosteroid injections were significantly more effective in the digits of nondiabetic patients than in those of diabetic patients. In patients with diabetes, corticosteroid injections did not decrease the surgery rate or improve symptom relief compared with the placebo. The use of corticosteroid injections for the treatment of trigger finger may be less effective in patients with systemic manifestations of diabetes mellitus.
Manipulative auction design

This paper considers an auction design framework in which bidders get partial feedback about the distribution of bids submitted in earlier auctions: either bidders are asymmetric but past bids are disclosed in an anonymous way or several auction formats are being used and the distribution of bids, but not the associated formats, is disclosed. I employ the analogy-based expectation equilibrium (Jehiel 2005) to model such situations. First-price auctions in which past bids are disclosed in an anonymous way generate more revenues than second-price auctions while achieving an efficient outcome in the asymmetric private values two-bidder case with independent distributions. Besides, by using several auction formats with coarse feedback, a designer can always extract more revenues than in Myerson's optimal auction, and yet less revenues than in the full information case whenever bidders enjoy ex post quitting rights and the assignment and payment rules are monotonic in bids. These results suggest an important role of feedback disclosure as a novel instrument in mechanism design.