Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Health-Related Quality of Life, Functional Status, and Cardiac Event-Free Survival in Patients With Heart Failure

Background:Health-related quality of life (HRQOL), functional status, and cardiac event-free survival are outcomes used to assess the effectiveness of interventions in patients with heart failure (HF). However, the nature of the relationships among HRQOL, functional status, and cardiac event-free survival remains unclear. Objective:The purpose of this study is to examine the nature of the relationships among HRQOL, functional status, and cardiac event-free survival in patients with HF. Methods:This was a prospective, observational study of 313 patients with HF that was a secondary analysis from a registry. At baseline, patient demographic and clinical data were collected. Health-related quality of life was assessed using the Minnesota Living With Heart Failure Questionnaire and functional status was measured using the Duke Activity Status Index. Cardiac event-free survival data were obtained by patient interview, hospital database, and death certificate review. Multiple linear and Cox regressions were used to explore the relationships among HRQOL, functional status, and cardiac event-free survival while adjusting for demographic and clinical factors. Results:Participants (n = 313) were men (69%), white (79%), and aged 62 ± 11 years. Mean left ventricular ejection fraction was 35% ± 14%. The mean HRQOL score of 32.3 ± 20.6 indicated poor HRQOL. The mean Duke Activity Status Index score of 16.2 ± 12.9 indicated poor functional status. Cardiac event-free survival was significantly worse in patients who had worse HRQOL or poorer functional status. Patients who had better functional status had better HRQOL (P < .001). Health-related quality of life was not a significant predictor of cardiac event-free survival after entering functional status in the model (P = .54), demonstrating that it was a mediator of the relationship between HRQOL and outcome. Conclusion:Functional status was a mediator between HRQOL and cardiac event-free survival. These data suggest that intervention studies to improve functional status are needed.
Delayed-Onset Muscle Soreness: Temporal Assessment With Quantitative MRI and Shear-Wave Ultrasound Elastography.

OBJECTIVE The objective of our study was to assess delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS) over time using quantitative MRI and shear-wave ultrasound (US) elastography. SUBJECTS AND METHODS Five male (mean age ± SD, 39.6 ± 4.6 years) and five female (30.6 ± 13.5 years) volunteers underwent 1.5-T MRI before and after (15 minutes, 1 day, 3 days, 7 days) performing unilateral eccentric resistance exercise of the elbow flexor muscles. The MRI examinations included fluid-sensitive, DWI, and diffusion-tensor imaging sequences of the distal upper arm. Muscle edema, apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), and fractional anisotropy (FA) were assessed. US of the brachialis muscle was performed before and after (15 minutes, 12 hours, 1 day, 2 days, 3 days, 7 days) exercise to measure mean shear-wave velocity (SWV). Pain and muscle tightness were assessed. RESULTS For men, muscle edema was moderate and peaked 3 days after exercise; for women, muscle edema was mild and peaked 1-3 days after exercise. ADC was highest 3 days after exercise in men (mean, 1809.22 × 10-6 mm2/s; before exercise, 1529.88 × 10-6 mm2/s) and women (1741.90 × 10-6 mm2/s; before exercise, 1475.80 × 10-6 mm2/s). FA dropped from 361.00 in men and 389.00 in women before exercise to a minimum of 252.12 and 321.28, respectively, 3 days after exercise. Mean SWV increased after exercise in men (before exercise, 3.00 ± 0.30 m/s; peak [15 minutes after exercise], 4.04 ± 0.90 m/s) and women (before, 2.82 ± 0.40 m/s; peak [1 day after exercise], 3.23 ± 0.40 m/s) and subsequently returned to normal. In men, the ADC values of the brachialis muscle positively correlated with mean SWV (r = 0.92, p = 0.028). FA negatively correlated with pain in men (r = -0.993, p = 0.001) Muscle edema outlasted clinical symptoms in most volunteers. CONCLUSION FA inversely correlates with pain and may be a useful imaging parameter for assessment of DOMS. Shear-wave US elastography shows a temporary increase of muscle stiffness after DOMS-inducing exercise but does not correlate with quantitative MRI parameters or clinical symptoms.
Universities and strategic knowledge creation

Taylor and Francis CEDE_A_414438. sgm 10.1080/09645290903142650 Education Eco omics 0964-5292 (pri t)/1469-5782 (online) Book Review 2 09 & Francis 7 3 000September 2 0 mmasoAgasisti tommas . ag s sti@polimi.it Universities and strategic knowledge creation, edited by Andrea Bonaccorsi and Cinzia Daraio, Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenam, UK and Northampton USA, 2007, xv + 512 pp., £95.00, ISBN 9-78-184720-110-2
Household Saving and Asset Valuations in Selected Industrialised Countries

Over the past decade, a fairly synchronised and steady decline in household saving rates has been witnessed in some OECD countries but not in others. In these English-speaking countries, which share many similar institutional and cultural features, declines in household or personal saving appear to have been correlated with large capital gains and rapid financial innovation. An empirical investigation based on quarterly macroeconomic data indicates that gains in the valuation of asset holdings have indeed been important as a substitute for traditional household saving (that is, personal saving as defined in the national accounts) in these countries over the last decades, and in some cases that this effect has been intensifying through time. Existing studies analysing private saving have tended to either focus on individual countries, finding the importance of wealth effects in certain cases, or a panel of OECD countries in which other common factors tend to dominate the wealth effect. In the latter case, it is possible that the lack of a significant wealth effect could be attributable to heterogeneity across countries.
Mesothelial cells activate the plasma kallikrein-kinin system during pleural inflammation

Abstract Pleural inflammation underlies the formation of most exudative pleural effusions and the plasma kallikrein-kinin system (KKS) is known to contribute. Mesothelial cells are the predominant cell type in the pleural cavity, but their potential role in plasma KKS activation and BK production has not been studied. Bradykinin concentrations were higher in pleural fluids than the corresponding serum samples in patients with a variety of diseases. Bradykinin concentrations did not correlate with disease diagnosis, but were elevated in exudative effusions. It was demonstrated, using a range of primary and transformed mesothelial and mesothelioma cell lines, that cells assembled high molecular weight kininogen and plasma prekallikrein to liberate bradykinin, a process inhibited by novobiocin, a heat shock protein 90 (HSP90) inhibitor, cysteine, bradykinin and protamine sulphate. Of the common plasma prekallikrein activators, mesothelial cells expressed HSP90, but not prolylcarboxypeptidase or Factor XII. Calcium mobilisation was induced in some mesothelium-derived cell lines by bradykinin. Des-Arg9-bradykinin was inactive, indicating that mesothelial cells are responsive to bradykinin, mediated via the bradykinin receptor subtype 2. In summary, pleural mesothelial cells support the assembly and activation of the plasma KKS by a mechanism dependent on HSP90, and may contribute to KKS-mediated inflammation in pleural disease.
Small enterprise relations with banks and accountants

Purpose – Through the dual analysis of small business‐owner relations with their banks and accountants, this paper aims to address conflicting interpretations of how small business owners may optimise their banking relationships.Design/methodology/approach – Site visits were made to 49 small firms which had been recruited from a random sample of 500 New Zealand firms that employed up to 50 full‐time equivalent staff. An interview was then carried out with the owner‐manager of the firm.Findings – The study identifies four bank relationship types: serial switching, independence, relationship chasing, and switched off. Consistent with previous research, dissatisfaction with existing relations is frequent but switching is infrequent. Rather than switch bank, the predominant reaction is to reduce the use of bank services. The disadvantage this creates is offset by the development of a closer relationship with business's accountant.Research limitations/implications – The findings are limited in their ability to.
Synergisms among Fire, Land Use, and Climate Change in the Amazon

Abstract The Amazon is being rapidly transformed by fire. Logging and forest fragmentation sharply elevate fire incidence by increasing forest desiccation and fuel loads, and forests that have experienced a low-intensity surface fire are vulnerable to far more catastrophic fires. Satellites typically detect thermal signatures from 40 000 to 50 000 separate fires in the Amazon each year, and this number could increase as new highways and infrastructure expand across the basin. Many are concerned that large-scale deforestation, by reducing regional evapotranspiration and creating moisture-trapping smoke plumes, will make the basin increasingly vulnerable to fire. The Amazon may also be affected by future global warming and atmospheric changes, although much remains uncertain. Most models suggest the basin will become warmer throughout this century, although there is no consensus about how precipitation will be affected. The most alarming scenarios project a permanent disruption of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation, leading to greatly increased drought or destructive synergisms between regional and global climate change in the Amazon.
Uncovering and Explaining Variance in the Features and Outcomes of Contingent Work

Existing research tends to depict contingent work either as having similar implications for firms and workers in all settings or as varying in its implications depending only on contingent workers' occupation or personal characteristics. In contrast, the author of this paper identifies systematic differences in contingent jobs across organizational contexts that are due to the strategies and practices of management. She uses internal labor market theory and data collected from two comparative case studies, both conducted in 1996–97, to develop four distinct models of how contingent work may be managed. Each of the contingent employment subsystems had distinct practices—related to job definitions, wage rules, and deployment through career ladders—put in place by management in response to technological factors and performance objectives. Each also raised challenges for integrating regular and contingent workers and generated trade-offs for both groups of workers as well as for the firm.
EPINEPHRINE METABOLITES AND PIGMENTATION IN THE CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM IN A CASE OF PHENYLPYRUVIC OLIGOPHRENIA

The biochemical lesion associated with mental deficiency in phenylpyruvic oligophrenia is a failure of an enzyme system in these individuals to hydroxy-late phenylalanine to tyrosine (Jervis, 1953). The biochemical ramifications of this single genetic loss are vast, but as yet no direct evidence has been forthcoming which specifically relates the appearance of the biochemical abnormality to the mental deficiency. Phenylalanine
Political Dilemmas and the Institutional Foundation of Economic Development

Differences in property rights institutions are often thought to contribute to explaining cross-national differences in economic development. If secure and universally enforced property rights help produce collectively beneficial economic results, the question is why there is so much variation in the institutions and rules that regulate property rights. Based on institutional analysis, the purpose of this article is to analyse why some states and governments establish and enforce property rights that are good for growth while others do not. The argument is that the incentive to enforce and protect property rights is shaped by particular political institutions, namely those that relate to the size of a governments supporting coalition and the extent of power sharing among veto players. The empirical analyses show that coalition institutions are strongly related to property rights while the impact of power sharing is less robust.
Controversial product advertisements in Lebanon: A study of Sunni-Shi’a sectarian disparities and similarities

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of religious sect on the Lebanese consumer’s perception of controversial product advertisements. Design/methodology/approach – The study used a quantitative survey that was administered to a purposive representative sample of respondents from the two main Muslim sects in the country, namely, Sunni and Shiite Muslims. Findings – The results indicated significant differences in perceptions between Sunni and Shiite Muslims with regards to the offensiveness of the advertising of controversial products. Briefly, Sunni Muslims found the advertising of social and political as well as health and care products more offensive, whereas Shiite Muslims found the advertising of gender and sex-related products more offensive, and no significant difference in offensiveness perception between the two sects was found with regards to the advertising of addictive products. Research limitations/implications – Two main limitations faced the researchers: the fact that.
The Effects of Teacher Training on Teacher Value Added

We study the effects of various types of education and training on teacherproductivity. Previous studies on the subject have been hampered by inadequatemeasures of teacher training and difficulties addressing the non-random selectionof teachers to students and of teachers to training. We address all of theselimitations by estimating models with student, teacher, and school fixed effectsusing an extensive database from the state of Florida. Our results suggest thatteacher training generally has little influence on productivity. One exception isthat content-focused teacher professional development is positively associatedwith productivity in middle and high school math. In addition, more experiencedteachers appear more effective in teaching elementary and middle school reading.There is no evidence that either pre-service (undergraduate) training or thescholastic aptitude of teachers influences their productivity. These results callinto question previous findings based on models that do not adequately control forthe various forms of selection bias.
Alternative Hypotheses Concerning Depreciation of Buildings

Ball, Walker and Whittred (1979) reported that companies receiving audit qualifications for non-compliance with the requirement to depreciate buildings earned higher than expected returns at the time of the release of the qualification. This paper examines the possibility that this result could be due to cash-flow effects related to the decision not to comply with the depreciation requirement. The results generally support the view that there are cash-flow effects associated with a company's decision not to depreciate buildings.
Evaluating residents' attitudes and intentions to act towards tourism development in regional Victoria, Australia

With the tourism industry expanding post-2001, research on the impacts of tourism development continues to be important. Previous research has focused both on the types of impacts on the residents and the segmentation of the host community. Most of these studies have used attitudes as the clustering base. Although the resultant cluster groups have been able to discriminate community groups who either support or oppose future tourism development, these groups are difficult to identify in the community and the influence these attitudes have on the behaviour of residents remains unknown. This research investigated the link between positive and negative attitudes and the residents' intentions to act either to support or protest future tourism development. The results found no significant relationship between negative intentions to act (protest) and demographics, attitudes or the various community cluster groups. However, positive intentions to act (support future development) were related to gender, age, education, life cycle, length of residence and tourism business connection. Further, positive intentions to become more involved in tourism development within the community were related to both positive and negative attitudes. Finally, this research found that residents who traditionally involved themselves in proactive community groups had the strongest intention to ensure future tourism development benefited the community. Implications for the tourism industry, local government and the management of future tourism development were explored. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The New Economic Development Role of the Community College

For many years, community colleges have been involved in workforce preparation and economic development in the form of the occupational education of students. But in the last two decades, community colleges have greatly broadened their economic development role to include contract training, small-business development, and local economic planning. These new activities promise to take the community college in a new direction: from an institution focused on educating students to one centered on meeting the needs of business and the local economy. This Brief analyzes the new role of the community college vis-a-vis five different industries: auto manufacturing, apparel-making, construction, banking, and auto repair. For each industry, we studied at least four community colleges with wellknown programs serving that industry. Information was drawn from interviews, site visits, and analysis of documents.
Seroprevalence of Leishmania infantum in Northwestern Spain, an Area Traditionally Considered Free of Leishmaniasis

Abstract: Northwestern Spain has traditionally been considered to be free from leishmaniasis. The aim of this work was to determine the prevalence of canine leishmaniasis in this area and to assess the influence of several risk factors on the incidence of this disease. A total of 479 dogs attended at different veterinary clinics in northwestern Spain were tested for L. infantum with the immunofluorescent antibody (IFA) test. The seroprevalence of L. infantum in this area was 3.7%. Most of the seropositive dogs lived in two locations: Valdcorras (seroprevalence of 29.2%) and Ourense (seroprevalence of 7.5%). The detection of high antibody titers in most of the seropositive dogs (many of which presented clinical signs) coupled with the certainity that some of these dogs had never been outside their home areas indicates the presence of this zoonosis in these two sites. On the other hand, companion dogs were significantly less likely to acquire the disease than sheep dogs, hunting dogs, and those from kennels.
The profits of unpaid work. ‘Assisting labour’ of women in the early modern urban Dutch economy

In the debates on the significance of women's work, wage labour attracted most attention. Women's unpaid assistance directed to a male relative or the family business was highly invisible and is often neglected by historians. This leads to the underestimation of women's work in the past. Even though in the Dutch Republic changes in labour relations reduced the opportunity for spouses to work in partnership, much work was carried out as unpaid ‘assistance’ within the context of the family economy. This article gives an overview of women's unpaid work, highlights the different activities carried out by women and shows that ‘assisting labour’ could be found in various sectors of the commercialized economy of the Dutch Republic. It points at the significance of unpaid work for both the family enterprise as well as the local economy. It is emphasized that, contrary to what is often believed, marriage opened up opportunities for women to be economically active.
Effect of selenium and vitamin E on antibody production by dairy cows vaccinated against Escherichia coli

Sixty clinically healthy Holstein cows were randomly assigned to one of four groups according to their age and parity and vaccinated in late pregnancy (day 190) with a multivalent vaccine against Escherichia coli. The 15 cows in the first group (SeE) were injeded intramuscularly with a solution of sodium selenite (0.1 mg Se/kg bodyweight) and vitamin E (α-tocopherol acetate, 8 U/kg bodyweight), the cows in the second group (Se) received only selenium and the cows in the third group (E) received only vitamin E at the same doses and by the same route of administration; the cows in the fourth group were used as controls. The vaccination and the injections of selenium and vitamin E were repeated 42 days later. The concentration of selenium in whole blood and of vitamin E in serum was determined by fluorometric methods. Specific antibody titres against E coli were determined in serum samples by ELISA. The results showed that the injection of selenium either alone or in combination with vitamin E significantly improved the production of specific antibodies against E coli, and that the production of specific antibodies was greater after the administration of selenium alone.
Role of Model Essays in Developing Students Writing Skills in Malaysian Schools: A Review of Literature

This study explored teachers’ beliefs and their experiences about language writing teaching in the context of Malaysian schools. More specifically, the paper discuses different perspectives that how model essay as a technique can be used to develop students’ writing skills effectively. Studies reveal that students in Malaysian classrooms have poor writing skills. The problem is that teaching of writing has been largely based on productive method which produces negative results for the Malaysian graduates. In recent times, a paradigm shift has occurred in language teaching and learning and teachers are turning towards process techniques for teaching writing skills. Despite this new motivation, research shows that teachers in Malaysian school resort to the traditional product approach. The main aim of this paper is to investigate into this phenomena that why teachers still follow the product approach for writing instruction. To investigate into this problem, the paper used systematic review of literature as a technique. The findings revealed that teachers in Malaysian schools use the product method. The research discovered several reasons behind this practice: more number of classes, motivation to cover the syllabus on time and teachers find it easier to provide feedback to students as it saves their time. On the basis of this review, the paper recommends that for effective writing, teachers must provide students with new strategies such as creative writing, self-evaluation and critical analysis practices. To achieve this goal, the use paper recommends the use of model essays as starting point to learn how to write. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2015. v6n2s1p56