Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ciliary body thickness and refractive error in children.

PURPOSE To determine whether ciliary body thickness (CBT) is related to refractive error in school-age children. METHODS Fifty-three children, 8 to 15 years of age, were recruited. CBT was measured from anterior segment OCT images (Visante; Carl Zeiss Meditec, Inc., Dublin, CA) at 1 (CBT1), 2 (CBT2) and 3 (CBT3) mm posterior to the scleral spur. Cycloplegic refractive error was measured with an autorefractor, and axial length was measured with an optical biometer. Multilevel regression models determined the relationship between CBT measurements and refractive error or axial length. A Bland-Altman analysis was used to assess the between-visit repeatability of the ciliary body measurements. RESULTS The between-visits coefficients of repeatability for CBT1, -2, and -3 were 148.04, 165.68, and 110.90, respectively. Thicker measurements at CBT2 (r = -0.29, P = 0.03) and CBT3 (r = -0.38, P = 0.005) were associated with increasingly myopic refractive errors (multilevel model: P < 0.001). Thicker measurements at CBT2 (r = 0.40, P = 0.003) and CBT3 (r = 0.51, P < 0.001) were associated with longer axial lengths (multilevel model: P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS Thicker ciliary body measurements were associated with myopia and a longer axial length. Future studies should determine whether this relationship is also present in animal models of myopia and determine the temporal relationship between thickening of the ciliary muscle and the onset of myopia.
Concrete Dropout

Dropout is used as a practical tool to obtain uncertainty estimates in large vision models and reinforcement learning (RL) tasks. But to obtain well-calibrated uncertainty estimates, a grid-search over the dropout probabilities is necessary—a prohibitive operation with large models, and an impossible one with RL. We propose a new dropout variant which gives improved performance and better calibrated uncertainties. Relying on recent developments in Bayesian deep learning, we use a continuous relaxation of dropout’s discrete masks. Together with a principled optimisation objective, this allows for automatic tuning of the dropout probability in large models, and as a result faster experimentation cycles. In RL this allows the agent to adapt its uncertainty dynamically as more data is observed. We analyse the proposed variant extensively on a range of tasks, and give insights into common practice in the field where larger dropout probabilities are often used in deeper model layers.
Liquidity Constraints and the Cyclical Behavior of Markups

During business-cycle expansions, wages appear to rise relative to output prices.1 This fact is easy to square with real-business-cycle models which are based on the assumption that labor is more productive during expansions. But it is inconsistent with standard business-cycle theories based on aggregate demand fluctuations. In these models, fixed technology and diminishing returns imply that labor becomes less productive as output rises. Thus, in an expansion, wages should fall relative to output prices. Julio Rotemberg and Michael Woodford (1991, 1992) argue that imperfect competition can help to reconcile aggregatedemand theories of business cycles with observed procyclical real wages. If firms compete more aggressively during expansions, reducing the markup of price over marginal cost, the real wage can be driven up even if labor's marginal product falls. Countercyclical markups can therefore induce procyclical real wages. The difficult issue is understanding why markups would be countercyclical. Rotemberg and Garth Saloner (1986) and Rotemberg and Woodford (1991, 1992)hereafter referred to as RSW-claim that markups are countercyclical because it is harder for oligopolistic firms to sustain collusive prices during booms. When current demand is high relative to future demand, the incentive for any firm to cut its price rises because it becomes more valuable to capture current sales than to maintain collusion in the future. RSW present evidence that markups are indeed more countercyclical in more concentrated industries (where collusion can be more easily sustained). While this finding is consistent with countercyclical collusion, it is also consistent with any other theory in which imperfect competition induces firms to compete more aggressively during booms. In this paper, we analyze an alternative theory of countercyclical markups based on imperfect competition and capital-market imperfections. This theory has been suggested by Bruce Greenwald et al. (1984), Nils Gottfries (1991), and Paul Klemperer (1993). We present some preliminary evidence in an effort to distinguish this explanation from countercyclical collusion.
Risk factors for Kaposi's sarcoma among HHV‐8 seropositive homosexual men with AIDS

Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) is a frequent complication of the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) in homosexual men. Risk factors for developing this malignancy are uncertain, other than immunosuppression and coinfection with human herpesvirus 8 (HHV‐8). We therefore examined factors associated with KS in a cross‐sectional analysis of 99 cases among 503 HHV‐8 seropositive homosexual men with AIDS. Data were collected by computer‐assisted personal interviews and medical chart reviews. HHV‐8 seroreactivity was determined by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay for antibodies against HHV‐8 K8.1 glycoprotein. KS was significantly less common in blacks compared to whites [risk ratio (RR) = 0.4; 95% CI = 0.2 =0.8] and more common in subjects who had completed college (RR = 1.7; 95% CI = 1.1–2.7) or had annual income greater than $30,000 (RR = 1.5; 95% CI = 1.1–2.2). KS was less common in cigarette smokers (RR = 0.6; 95% CI = 0.5–0.9) and users of crack cocaine (RR = 0.4; 95% CI = 0.1–0.8). KS was less common in bisexual men compared to men who were exclusively homosexual (estimated RR = 0.6; 95% CI = 0.4–0.9) and inversely associated with number of female partners. KS was also less common in men who had received pay for sex (RR = 0.6; 95% CI = 0.4–1.0). These cross‐sectional associations could be biased by potential differences in relative timing of HHV‐8 and HIV infection, a postulated determinant of KS risk. Alternatively, our findings may reflect factors protective against KS in individuals infected with HHV‐8. Future research should focus on identifying practical measures for countering KS that do not increase the risk of other diseases. Published 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Familial Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: Immunogenetic Studies in Eight Families

Familial SLE provides a unique opportunity to study the relationships of previously associated genetic factors (HLA and complement component deficiencies) to the occurrence of SLE, other immune disorders, and autoantibodies in families. Thus, eight families containing two or more affected members with SLE (n = 22) and their relatives (n = 40) were examined for HLA genotypes, complement components and autoantibodies. Among the 40 non-SLE relatives, 7 (18%) had other immune diseases, including thyroid disease in 2, rheumatoid arthritis in 2, ITP in 2, and Henoch-Schönlein purpura in one. This compared to 4 of the 22 SLE patients (also 18%) of whom 3 had thyroid disease and one PSS. Eleven non-SLE relatives (28%) had ANA, which was in high-titer in 5 (13%). Eleven (28%) had antibodies to ssDNA, and one had a BFP. Only the SLE patients had antidsDNA, Ro(SSA), Sm or nRNP. A heterozygous C2 deficiency (C2D) was found in only one of the seven kindreds studied, and followed an A25, B18 DR7 haplotype. Heterozygous C2D, however, was inherited by only one of three family members with SLE. HLA-DR2 occurred in 36% and DR3 in 36% of SLE patients, which was not significantly different from either non-SLE family members or unrelated local controls. Sib pair analysis of seven sets presented here and seven from two published reports, demonstrated only random distribution with SLE. Similarly, other immune disorders and autoantibodies followed no consistent HLA haplotypes or DR specificities. Interestingly, DR2 and/or DR3 were found in five of the six patients (83%) having anti-ro(SSA) antibodies (p = NS). These data strongly suggest that genetic factors (other than HLA and complement component deficiencies) and/or environmental factors are necessary for the expression of SLE and other immune abnormalities in lupus families.
Prevalence of Diabetes Mellitus in Alaskan Eskimos, Indians, and Aleuts

The prevalence of diabetes mellitus in Alaska Natives has been thought to be low, but no survey of this condition in all natives has been conducted. Medical records from 1979 to 1985 were reviewed to determine the prevalence of diagnosed diabetes mellitus in Alaska Natives. Computerized outpatient and inpatient medical record data and clinician reports were used to identify cases. As of December 1985, 610 living Alaska Natives fulfilled diagnostic criteria for diabetes. Type II diabetes mellitus was found in 564 subjects, type I diabetes was found in 15 subjects, and unspecified type of diabetes was found in 31 subjects. The overall age-adjusted prevalence of diabetes mellitus, 15.7/1000, was lower than the overall United States rate of 24.7/1000. However, age-adjusted prevalence varied considerably by ethnic group; the prevalence was 27.2/1000 among Aleuts, 22.0/1000 among Alaskan Indians, and 8.8/1000 among Alaskan Eskimos. Rates within the Eskimo subgroups varied by a factor of four. Compared with previous reports, the prevalence of diabetes mellitus in Alaskan Eskimos appears to have increased. Diabetes mellitus is no longer a rare condition among Alaska Natives.
Maya Blue: A Clay-Organic Pigment?

Maya Blue, a pigment used by the Mayas in Yucatan, is remarkably stable: the color is not destroyed by hot concentrated mineral acids or by heating to about 250�C. The principal constituent is the colorless mineral attapulgite. It is proposed that the pigment is an adsorption complex of attapulgite and natural indigo; a synthetic equivalent may be prepared from attapulgite and either indoxylester or indigo, or by applying the vat-dyeing technique, with reduced indigo.The low dye content of the pigment (less than 0.5 percent) indicates that the dye is absorbed only on the external surfaces of the attapulgite particles and not throughout the channels in their structures. The complex as such is not stable to acids, but the stability displayed by Maya Blue is achieved simply by heating the complex to from 75� to 150�C for several days. An analogous stable pigment can be prepared from sepiolite and indigo. No stable pigments could be prepared from clays with platelike structures or from zeolites.
Incidence and survival rates for young blacks with nasopharyngeal carcinoma in the United States.

OBJECTIVES To compare the incidence rates of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) among US black, white, and Asian/Pacific Islander (Asian) populations, with a focus on those diagnosed before age 20 years and between ages 20 and 29 years. Our secondary objective was to determine differences in survival rates between US blacks, whites, and Asians with NPC who were younger than 30 years. DESIGN Data from the National Cancer Institute Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) tumor registry system were used to determine incidence and survival rates for cases of NPC diagnosed in the specified age groups between 1973 and 2002. PATIENTS Blacks, whites, and Asians younger than 30 years with NPC. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Incidence rates and 2- and 5-year survival rates. RESULTS From 1973 to 2002, incidence rates per 1 million persons, adjusted to the 2000 standard population, for blacks, whites, and Asians younger than 20 years with NPC were 1.61 (n=43), 0.61 (n=99), and 0.95 (n=18), respectively. The incidence rate ratio of blacks to Asians younger than 20 years was 1.69 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.96-3.12) (P=.07), while the rate ratio for blacks to whites was 2.66 (95% CI, 1.82-3.85) (P<.001). From ages 20 to 29 years, rates increased slightly in blacks (1.87) and whites (0.96), while increasing dramatically in Asians (7.18). Two- and 5-year relative survival rates in blacks younger than 30 years were 84% and 64%, respectively, with little variation between races in this age group. CONCLUSIONS Blacks younger than 20 years have increased incidence rates of NPC relative to whites and may be the only group having a higher NPC incidence rate than Asians. Two- and 5-year survival rates of blacks, whites, and Asians younger than 30 years with NPC are similar.
Student Recruitment: Recommendations from an Applicant Survey

Schools of social work seek to influence individuals to apply for admission to graduate study in social work through a variety of recruitment efforts. In order to provide some direction for these efforts, a survey was conducted of 607 individuals who sought admission to a single school of social work inquiring about influences on the decision to apply. The results provide data on the differential merits of various recruitment approaches.
Eye position determines audiovestibular integration during whole‐body rotation

When a sound is presented in the free field at a location that remains fixed to the head during whole‐body rotation in darkness, it is heard displaced in the direction opposing the rotation. This phenomenon is known as the audiogyral illusion. Consequently, the subjective auditory median plane (AMP) (the plane where the binaural difference cues for sound localization are perceived to be zero) shifts in the direction of body rotation. Recent experiments, however, have suggested opposite AMP results when using a fixation light that also moves with the head. Although in this condition the eyes remain stationary in the head, an ocular pursuit signal cancels the vestibulo‐ocular reflex, which could induce an additional AMP shift. We tested whether the AMP is influenced by vestibular signals, eye position or eye velocity. We rotated subjects sinusoidally at different velocities, either in darkness or with a head‐fixed fixation light, while they judged the laterality (left vs. right with respect to the midsagittal plane of the head) of broadband sounds presented over headphones. Subjects also performed the same task without vestibular stimulation while tracking a sinusoidally moving visual target, which mimicked the average eye‐movement patterns of the vestibular experiments in darkness. Results show that whole‐body rotation in darkness induces a shift of the AMP in the direction of body rotation. In contrast, we obtained no significant AMP change when a fixation light was used. The pursuit experiments showed a shift of the AMP in the direction of eccentric eye position but not at peak pursuit velocity. We therefore conclude that the vestibular‐induced shift in average eye position underlies both the audiogyral illusion and the AMP shift.
Enterotoxin production by staphylococci isolated from healthy goats

The ability of 342 staphylococcal isolates from different anatomical sites in healthy goats to produce staphylococcal enterotoxins (SE) was investigated. SE were produced by 74.3% of the 70 coagulase-positive strains and by 22% of the coagulase-negative strains studied. Most enterotoxigenic strains were isolated from the skin of udders and teats and from milk. SEC was the SE type most frequently produced, either alone (67.9%) or in combination with others. Five coagulase-negative species not previously reported as SE producers were identified (Staphylococcus chromogenes, S. warneri, S. sciuri, S. saprophyticus, and S. lentus). SEA, SEB, and SEC were detected in the milk of 17 of the 133 healthy goats studied. These results suggest that the goat is an important reservoir of enterotoxigenic staphylococci, most of which produce SEC.
Political Cost Incentives for Managing the Property-Liability Insurer Loss Reserve

This paper examines the effect of rate regulation on the management of the property-liability insurer loss reserve. The political cost hypothesis predicts that managers make accounting choices to reduce wealth transfers resulting from the regulatory process. Managers may under-state reserves to justify lower rates to regulators. Alternatively, managers may have an incentive to report loss inflating discretionary reserves to reduce the cost of regulatory rate suppression. We find insurers over-state reserves in the presence of stringent rate regulation. Investigating the impact along the conditional reserve error distribution, we discover that a majority of the response occurs from under-reserving firms under-reserving less because of stringent rate regulation.
‘Japanese human resource management’ in post-bubble Japan

This paper assesses developments in Japanese human resource management (HRM) practices and employment relations since the country's ‘post-bubble’ economic decline and in particular following the global financial downturn of 2008. Our research findings are broadly consistent with others that have provided a mixed picture of continuity, change and diversification but the most recent financial crisis has made the negotiated nature of workplace relations more apparent. These characteristics are not readily explained by conventional understandings of Japanese HRM as a culturally or institutionally determined phenomenon. We present new empirical evidence of developments in eight automotive plants and interpret these through the application of a conceptual framework that distinguishes between the actors' orientations to action and social relations in specific exchange relations. This framing allows a better assessment of the agency involved in the emergence of a more differentiated articulation and manifestation of ‘Japanese HRM’. We explain these dynamics through reference to strategic choice and the negotiations both between local and corporate managers, and between managers and trade unions.
Portfolio Size and Information Disclosure: An Analysis of Startup Accelerators

We study the information-gathering role of a startup accelerator and consider the accelerator's incentives to choose a portfolio size and disclose information about participating ventures. We show that in a rational-expectations equilibrium, the resultant portfolio size is smaller than the first-best (efficient) level, consistent with some real-world observations. We further show that when some signals are uninformative and the portfolio consists of mostly high-quality ventures, the accelerator may choose to disclose only positive signals (and conceal negative signals) about its portfolio firms — a strategy we refer to as partial disclosure. Moreover, coupled with pursuing this strategy of partial disclosure, we demonstrate that the accelerator may possess incentives to exit its portfolio firms early.
Exploring Primary School Teachers’ Conceptions of “Assessment for Learning”

This paper presents primary school teachers’ conceptions of ‘assessment for learning’ in government schools in Brunei Darussalam. The Ministry of Education in Brunei introduced a 21 st century education system (codenamed SPN21) in 2007 and one of the initiatives brought by SPN21 was the implementation of School Based Assessment for Learning (SBAfL). Prior to SBAfL, assessment in primary government schools was highly examination oriented, which placed a great emphasis on ‘assessment of learning’ rather than ‘assessment for learning’. The current study sought to explore teachers’ experiences in implementing SBAfL in government primary schools in Brunei. A qualitative approach to research using phenomenographic methodology was applied to provide in-depth insights into the ways in which these teachers applied assessment for learning in their lessons, having been teaching for many years in an education system that was highly examination oriented. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were used as the main data collection instrument. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed to form categories of description depicting the qualitatively different ways in which these teachers experienced assessment for learning (SBAfL). A total of four categories of description emerged from the data analysis, and the findings suggest variations in the ways in which assessment for learning is conceptualised by the teachers, which in turn, may affect the effective implementation of SBAfL in promoting a 21 st century education system in Brunei.
Range of Motion in Children with Spastic Diplegia, GMFCS I-II Compared to Age and Gender Matched Controls

Measurements of passive range of motion are often used to define the degree of muscle shortening in children with spastic diplegic cerebral palsy. However, little is known about the expected values of passive range of motion measurements in children with spastic diplegia and how these might differ from age and gender matched norms taken from the same population. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to compare eight lower limb measurements of sagittal plane passive range of motion in 22 children with spastic diplegia, GMFCS I to II, with 22 matched controls. Children with spastic diplegia had minimal hip extension loss, but reduced hamstring length, with popliteal angle averaging −59.2 ± 10.6 degrees (control −38.8 ± 13.4 degrees, p < 0.001) and SLR averaging 52.7 ± 10.2 degrees (control 75.8 ± 11.1 degrees, p < 0.001). Ankle dorsiflexion with knee extension averaged −2.5 ± 8.4 degrees in children with spastic diplegia (control 8.6 ± 6.8 degrees, p < 0.001). These data confirmed that children with mild spastic diplegia had some restriction in passive range of motion compared to controls but that there was considerable variability between individuals.
Investment performance of shorted leveraged ETF pairs

ABSTRACT We analyze investment strategies involving triple-leveraged and inverse triple-leveraged ETF pairs by simulating daily returns over a 48-year period. Our results show that many such strategies significantly outperform the S&P 500 on a risk-adjusted basis. For example, when shorting the bear triple-leveraged ETF and the bull triple-leveraged ETF in a 2:1 proportion (while going long Treasuries), we find that the average annual Sharpe ratio is more than four times higher than for the S&P 500 and that the strategy outperforms the S&P 500 in 43 of the 48 years. Our results are robust to variations in bear/bull proportions, rebalance thresholds, and underlying parameters.
The Impact of Public Expenditures on Economic Growth in Jordan

This research aims to examine the impact of the public expenditures on economic growth in Jordan during the time period (1993–2013), by determining the contribution of the current and capital expenditures on Education, Health, Economic Affairs, and Housing and community Utilities as a percent of the total public expenditures, and then examining the impact of each one of them on economic growth in Jordan. Two mathematical models have been designed to measure this impact, the first one measures the impact of current functional expenditures, and the second model measures the impact of capital functional expenditures on economic growth in Jordan. The empirical results show that the impact of current and capital expenditures on education has failed to enhance economic growth, and that is due to the high cost of education, especially higher education in the private sector in Jordan, as well as the growing rate of unemployment, and expenditures on health and economic affairs should be encouraged due to their positive impact on economic growth.