Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Bacteremia following dental implant surgery: Preliminary results

Objectives: The aims of this study were to investigate the incidence of bacteremia, bacteriology and antibiotic susceptibility against to causative bacteria associated with dental implant installation. Study Design: 30 generally healthy patients were enrolled in this study. Blood samples were collected at baseline and at 30 minutes after dental implant installation and 24 hours after dental implant surgery. Blood samples were cultured in a BACTEC system. The isolated bacteria were identified using conventional methods. Antimicrobial sensitivity tests were performed by disc diffusion. Results: No bacteria were isolated at the baseline and 24 hours after surgery, whereas the prevalence of bacteremia at 30 minutes after dental implant installation was 23%. The isolated bacteria species were Staphylococcus epidermidis, Eubacterium spp. , Corynebacterium spp. and Streptococcus viridans. The Staphylococcus epidermidis, which was isolated in three patients, was found to be resistant to penicillin which is first choice of many clinicians. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that installation of dental implants can produce bacteremia. Within the limitations of this study, it can be speculated that the resistance of antibiotics may compromise the routine prophylaxis against infective endocarditis. Therefore use of blood cultures and antibiograms may be suggested in risky patients. The outcome of the present study should be verified using a larger patient group with varying conditions. Key words: Dental implant, bacteremia, infective endocarditis, antibiotic prophylaxis.
An Introduction to the FRBNY Consumer Credit Panel

In this paper, we introduce the FRBNY Consumer Credit Panel, a new longitudinal database with detailed information on consumer debt and credit. The panel uses a unique sample design and information derived from consumer credit reports to track individuals’ and households’ access to and use of credit at a quarterly frequency. In any given quarter ranging from the first quarter of 1999 to the present, the panel can be used to compute nationally representative estimates of the levels and changes in various aspects of individual and household liabilities. In addition to describing the sample design, the use of sample weights, and the credit report information included in the database, we provide some comparisons of population statistics and consumer debt estimates derived from our panel with those based on data from the American Community Survey and the Flow of Funds Accounts of the United States.
Assessing the Ecological Risk of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Sediments at Langkawi Island, Malaysia

Tourism-related activities such as the heavy use of boats for transportation are a significant source of petroleum hydrocarbons that may harm the ecosystem of Langkawi Island. The contamination and toxicity levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) in the sediments of Langkawi were evaluated using sediment quality guidelines (SQGs) and toxic equivalent factors. Ten samples were collected from jetties and fish farms around the island in December 2010. A gas chromatography/flame ionization detector (GC/FID) was used to analyse the 18 PAHs. The concentration of total PAHs was found to range from 869 ± 00 to 1637 ± 20 ng g−1 with a mean concentration of 1167.00 ± 24 ng g−1, lower than the SQG effects range-low (3442 ng g−1). The results indicated that PAHs may not cause acute biological damage. Diagnostic ratios and principal component analysis suggested that the PAHs were likely to originate from pyrogenic and petrogenic sources. The toxic equivalent concentrations of the PAHs ranged from 76.3 to 177 ng TEQ/g d.w. , which is lower compared to similar studies. The results of mean effects range-median quotient of the PAHs were lower than 0.1, which indicate an 11% probability of toxicity effect. Hence, the sampling sites were determined to be the low-priority sites.
Gastroesophageal reflux disease and pulmonary function: A potential role of the dead space extension

Summary Background To evaluate the differences in the existence and size of dead space in patients with and without Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD and non-GERD) expressed through the size of intrapulmonary shunt (QS/QT). Material/Methods The study enrolled 86 subjects – 43 patients referred for endoscopy because of symptoms of GERD (heartburn, acid regurgitation, dysfagia) and 43 healthy subjects with similar anthropometric characteristics without GERD symptoms. Based on endoscopy findings, patients were classified into the erosive reflux disease (ERD) group and non-erosive reflux disease (NERD) group. Spirometry values, single-breath diffusing capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide (DLCO) and intrapulmonary shunt (venous shunt – QS/QT) determined by the oxygen method were measured in all participants. Results Statistically significant differences between GERD and non-GERD groups in FVC (p=0.034), FEV1 (p=0.002), FEV1/FVC (p=0.001), and PEF (p=0.001) were observed. There were no statistically significant differences in FEF 25% (p=0.859), FEF 50% (p=0.850), and FEF 75% (p=0.058). Values of DLCO (p=0.006) and DLCO/VA (p=0.001) were significantly lower and QS/QT was significantly higher (p=0.001) in the GERD group than in the non-GERD group. However, in both groups the average values of DLCO and DLCO/VA expressed as a percentage of predictive values were within normal range, while the value of QS/QT in the GERD group showed pathological (6.0%) mean value (normal value ≤5.0%). There were no significant differences in respiratory function test results between patients with ERD and NERD. Conclusions Our results suggest that microaspiration of stomach contents may cause surfactant damage, development of microatelectasis, and dead space expansion with consequent increase of intrapulmonary (venous) shunt.
Do Spouses Cooperate? And If Not: Why?

Models of household economics require an understanding of economic interactions in families. Social ties, repetition and reduced strategic uncertainty make social dilemmas in couples a very special case that needs to be empirically studied. In this paper we present results from a large economic experiment with 100 maritally living couples. Participants made decisions in a social dilemma with their partner and with a stranger. We predict behavior in this task with individual and couples' socio-demographic variables, efficiency preferences and couples' marital satisfaction. As opposed to models explaining behavior amongst strangers, the regressions on couples’ decisions highlight clear patterns concerning cooperation behavior which could inspire future household decision-making models.
Application of Pulsed Melodic Affective Processing to Stock Market Algorithmic Trading and Analysis

The application of Pulsed Melodic Affective Processing (PMAP) to stock market analysis and algorithmic trading is examined. PMAP utilizes musically-based pulse sets (“melodies”) for processing – capable of representing affective states. Affective processing and affective input/output is now considered to be a key tool in artificial intelligence and computing. However in the designing of processing elements (e.g. bits, bytes, floats, etc), engineers have primarily focused on the processing efficiency and power. Having defined these elements, they then go on to investigate ways of making them perceivable by the user/engineer. But the extremely active and productive area of Human-Computer Interaction and the increasing complexity and pervasiveness of computation in our daily lives – supports the idea of a complementary approach in which computational efficiency and power are more balanced with understandability to the user/engineer. PMAP provides the potential for a person to tap into the affective processing path to hear a sample of what is going on in that computation, as well as providing a simpler way to interface with affective input/output systems. In this paper PMAP will be applied to a simple algorithmic trading system based on an affective model of a simulated stock market.
Economic impacts of hurricanes on forest owners

We present a conceptual model of the economic impacts of hurricanes on timber producers and consumers, offer a framework indicating how welfare impacts can be estimated using econometric estimates of timber price dynamics, and illustrate the advantages of using a welfare theoretic model, which includes (1) welfare estimates that are consistent with neo-classical economic theory, and (2) wealth transfers among various market participants that can be evaluated. Timber producers in the Southern United States are faced with the regular risk of damages from intense hurricanes. Individual events can kill several million cubic feet of standing timber, with attendant losses for forest owners. One result of using a welfare theoretic model that is not apparent using simpler models is that timber producers with undamaged timber suffer economic losses in the short term because of a price depression, and they may be compensated in the long term by an enhancement of market prices owing to the loss of standing inventory. Catastrophic storms induce losses to timber producers holding damaged timber owing to quality degrade, price depression, and the inability to salvage all of the damaged timber. To minimize decayrelated losses, owners of damaged timber should salvage as quickly as possible and favor salvage of higher value trees. Owners of undamaged timber should delay harvesting until salvage wood is exhausted from the market. Evidence suggests that timberland investors under hurricane threat could benefit by diversifying their holdings geographically, favoring areas far enough from coastal counties to minimize catastrophic losses from such storms but close enough to benefit from market-level price enhancements resulting from regional inventory losses.
URL decay in MEDLINE - a 4-year follow-up study

MOTIVATION Internet-based electronic resources, as given by Uniform Resource Locators (URLs), are being increasingly used in scientific publications but are also becoming inaccessible in a time-dependant manner, a phenomenon documented across disciplines. Initial reports brought attention to the problem, spawning methods of effectively preserving URL content while some journals adopted policies regarding URL publication and begun storing supplementary information on journal websites. Thus, a reexamination of URL growth and decay in the literature is merited to see if the problem has grown or been mitigated by any of these changes. RESULTS After the 2003 study, three follow-up studies were conducted in 2004, 2005 and 2007. Unfortunately, no significant change was found in the rate of URL decay among any of the studies. However, only 5% of URLs cited more than twice have decayed versus 20% of URLs cited once or twice. The most common types of lost content were computer programs (43%), followed by scholarly content (38%) and databases (19%). Compared to URLs still available, no lost content type was significantly over- or underrepresented. Searching for 30 of these websites using Google, 11 (37%) were found relocated to different URLs. CONCLUSIONS URL decay continues unabated, but URLs published by organizations tend to be more stable. Repeated citation of URLs suggests calculation of an electronic impact factor (eIF) would be an objective, quantitative way to measure the impact of Internet-based resources on scientific research.
Consumer Preferences for Water Supply? : an Application of Choice Models to Urban India

This paper examines consumer preferences for the attributes of alternative sources of water supply in Chennai, based on a household survey where respondents were given the description of a set of options. Their decision to choose one of the options is examined using discrete choice models. Whether consumer preferences are hierarchical or lexicographic is also briefly examined. Access to a yard tap is considered to be a more important attribute than water quantity, quality and the provider (the private sector or public sector). In general, the estimated willingness to pay is substantially highe rthan the present monthly water expenditures. [DiscussionPaperNo.2001/145]
Parietal Area VIP Causally Influences Heading Perception during Pursuit Eye Movements

The ventral intraparietal area (VIP) of the macaque monkey brain is a multimodal area with visual, vestibular, somatosensory, and eye movement-related responses. The visual responses are strongly directional, and VIP neurons respond well to complex optic flow patterns similar to those found during self-motion. To test the hypothesis that visual responses in VIP directly contribute to the perception of self-motion direction, we used electrical microstimulation to perturb activity in VIP while animals performed a two-alternative heading discrimination task. Microstimulation systematically biased monkeys' choices in a direction consistent with neuronal preferences at the stimulation site, and these effects were larger while the animal was making smooth pursuit eye movements. From these results, we conclude that VIP is causally involved in the perception of self-motion from visual cues and that this involvement is gated by ongoing motor behavior.
A (partial) resolution of the Chinese discount puzzle: The 2001 deregulation of the B‐share market

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to examine the changes in Design/methodology/approach - On February 19, 2001, the Chinese Securities Regulatory Commission announced that Chinese residents would be allowed to own Findings - The paper finds that the largest declines in the Research limitations/implications - This surprising finding challenges the current wisdom about what influences the Originality/value - The paper offers an alternative interpretation for the
The Flow-Performance Relationship Around the World

We use a new dataset to study how mutual fund flows depend on past performance across 28 countries. We show that there are marked differences in the flow-performance relationship across countries, suggesting that US findings concerning its shape do not apply universally. We find that mutual fund investors sell losers more and buy winners less in more developed countries. This is because investors in more developed countries are more sophisticated and face lower costs of participating in the mutual fund industry. Higher country-level convexity is positively associated with higher levels of risk taking by fund managers.
PFAAs in Fish and Other Seafood Products from Icelandic Waters

Perfluorinatedalkyl acids (PFAAs) are of growing concern due to possible health effects on humans. Exposure assessments indicate that fish consumption is one of the major sources of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) exposure to humans, one of the major PFASs, whereas concerns of overestimation of this exposure source have been raised. Therefore, PFAAs concentrations in fish from the North Atlantic (Icelandic fishing grounds) in the flesh of different fish species were investigated along with more detailed analyses of tissue concentrations in cod (Gadus morhua) and lumpfish (Cyclopterus lumpus). Further, fish feed was investigated as a possible source of PFAAs in aquaculture by examining fish meal as feed ingredient. No PFAAs were detected in the edible part of all fish samples, except for PFOS in pollock (Pollachius virens, 0,05 ng/g wet weight). PFOS was the only PFAA detected in the fish meal samples with the exception of PFOSA in blue whiting (Micromesistius poutassou) meal (0,45 ng/g dry weight (d.w.)), where the PFOS concentration was 1,3–13 ng/g d.w. in the capelin (Mallotus villosus) and mackerel (Scomber scombrus) meal samples. The conclusions of the study are that fish commonly consumed from the Icelandic fishing grounds are unlikely to be an important source of PFAAs exposure.
An Assessment of 3G Internet Service Acceptance in Botswana: Technology Acceptance Model with Social Influence and Price Perception

Factors affecting the adoption of various technological innovations have been the subject of interest for researchers for many years. These issues have been studied using models from social psychology such as the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA), Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) and Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). TAM has been successfully used to study the adoption of Internet technology, and variables such as value-added services have been used to extend the model. In this study of 3G use, two variables, namely social influence and price perception, were included in an extended TAM model. The model was validated using data collected from a sample of 66 students at the University of Botswana and analysed using Partial Least Squares (PLS). The results of the analysis did not confirm a direct relationship between social influence and behavioural intention, unlike the results of several other studies, but found that social influence affects the ease of use, which is in line with the findings of others. Perceptions of price were found to influence perceptions of the usefulness of 3G, which impacts on the pricing strategy for operators that launch 3G services in African markets. The implications of this study are that the TAM variables of perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use mediate the effects of social influence and price perceptions on intention. This suggests that in formulating perceptions about new technologies, consumers are influenced by subjective and social norms as well as perceptions of the value of the services for which they pay.
RAR a-RegulatedmiR-181 a / b Cluster Targets the Tumor Suppressor RASSF 1 A in Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia

In acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL), all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) treatment induces granulocytic maturation and complete remission of leukemia. microRNAs are known to be critical players in the formation of the leukemic phenotype. In this study, we report downregulation of the miR-181a/b gene cluster in APL blasts and NB4 leukemia cells upon ATRA treatment as a key event in the drug response. We found that miR-181a/b expression was activated by the PML/RARa oncogene in cells and transgenic knock-in mice, an observation confirmed and extended by evidence of enhanced expression of miR-181a/b in APL patient specimens. RNA interference (RNAi)-mediated attenuation of miR-181a/b expression in NB4 cells was sufficient to reduce colony-forming capacity, proliferation, and survival. Mechanistic investigations revealed that miR-181a/b targets the ATRA-regulated tumor suppressor gene RASSF1A by direct binding to its 30-untranslated region. Enforced expression of miR-181a/b or RNAi-mediated attenuation of RASSF1A inhibited ATRA-induced granulocytic differentiation via regulation of the cell-cycle regulator cyclin D1. Conversely, RASSF1A overexpression enhanced apoptosis. Finally, RASSF1A levels were reduced in PML/RARa knock-in mice and APL patient samples. Taken together, our results define miR-181a and miR-181b as oncomiRs in PML/RARaassociated APL, and they reveal RASSF1A as a pivotal element in the granulocytic differentiation program induced by ATRA in APL. Cancer Res; 75(16); 1–14. 2015 AACR.
Disruption costs , learning by doing , and the choice of technology ∗

We study technology adoption in a dynamic model of price competition. Adoption involves disruption costs and learning by doing. Because of disruption costs, the adopting firm begins in a market disadvantage, which may persist if its rival captures the buyers it needs to learn the technology. The prospect of future rents by the rival results in: (i) a failure to adopt Pareto superior technologies; (ii) an equilibrium preference for the choice of technologies with smaller (discounted) social value but flow payoffs that are received earlier in time; (iii) more technologies being adopted as the adopting firm is exposed to more competition.
BODY OF KNOWLEDGE – A CITATION ANALYSIS IN RECENT IS TOP JOURNAL PUBLICATIONS

Information systems (IS) design science research (ISDSR) has received particular attention after the seminal MISQ article by Hevner et al. (2004). Since then, several articles on ISDSR have appeared in top IS journals. This paper examines the development of a common body of knowledge in ISDSR. To this end, a citation analysis in recently published ISDSR articles in top IS journals is conducted. According to Kuhn (1970), a common body of knowledge is important for each emerging scientific discipline. For the purposes of delineating ISDSR from other types of IS research, the author develops three criteria. Based upon these criteria, he identifies 50 ISDSR articles published in the journals of the basket of the six from 2007-2010. An analysis of the citations of these articles reveals that Hevner et al. (2004) is cited as a source in 70% of all articles. Moreover, six further specific publications are cited by more than 10% of all articles. The author argues that ISDSR is developing a common body of knowledge and does have a cumulative tradition.
Reversible cascades with minimal garbage

The problem of minimizing the number of garbage outputs is an important issue in reversible logic design. We start with the analysis of the number of garbage outputs that must be added to a multiple output function to make it reversible. We give a precise formula for the theoretical minimum of the required number of garbage outputs. For some benchmark functions, we calculate the garbage required by some proposed reversible design methods and compare it to the theoretical minimum. Based on the information about minimal garbage, we suggest a new reversible design method that uses the minimum number of garbage outputs. We show that any Boolean function can be realized as a reversible network in terms of this new approach by giving the theoretical method of finding such a network. Using a heuristics synthesis approach, we create a program and run it to compare results of our synthesis to the previously reported synthesis results for the benchmark functions with up to ten variables. Finally, we show that the synthesis for the proposed model can be accomplished with lower cost than the synthesis of EXOR programmable logic arrays.
Analysis of reversible image watermarking using bit plane coding and lifting wavelet transform with attacks

This paper proposes a distortionless image data hiding algorithm based on integer wavelet transform that can hide data into the original image. The data can be retrieved and the original image can be recovered without any distortion after the hidden data are extracted. This algorithm hides data into one or more middle bit-plane( s) of the integer wavelet transform coefficients in the LH, HL and HH frequency sub bands. It can embed more data into the bit planes and also has the necessary imperceptibility requirement. The image histogram modification may be used to prevent grayscales from possible overflow or underflow. Experimental results have demonstrated the performance of the algorithm. The performance of the algorithm under different types of noise and attacks is analysed.
Behavior in CHARGE syndrome: Introduction to the special topic

Challenging behavior in children with CHARGE syndrome has been increasingly a concern of parents, educators, and health professionals. This article introduces the special topic in the American Journal of Medical Genetics on behavior in individuals with CHARGE syndrome. It provides background on CHARGE syndrome, diagnostic criteria, and the relationship of sensory and other physical deficits with both development and behavior. Four themes related to our developing understanding of behavior in CHARGE are described: children with CHARGE have behaviors different from those seen in other syndromes with or without deafblindness. The behavior they display is often very adaptive to their environment and to their own disabilities. These behaviors may be partially related to problems with arousal and self‐regulation. And, finally, all papers point to behavior as communication, especially within relationships, where it is essential for maximizing intellectual and social outcomes. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.