Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Differentiation of C2D Macrophage Cells after Adoptive Transfer

ABSTRACT C2D macrophage cells protect immunocompromised mice from experimentally induced pneumonias after intraperitoneal (i.p.) adoptive transfer. These macrophage cells are immature and display minimal activity in vitro. Therefore, we wanted to understand how adoptive transfer affected these cells. We believe that the in vivo environment affects the phenotypic and functional characteristics of macrophages that help maintain the physiological integrity of the host. To test this hypothesis, we characterized the trafficking patterns and cellular changes of the established macrophage C2D cell line after adoptive transfer. We examined phenotypic changes of the C2D macrophage cells in vivo with and without stimulation with gamma interferon (IFN-γ). After in vivo i.p. adoptive transfer, C2D macrophage cells trafficked to the lungs, spleen, lymph nodes, and bone marrow of recipient mice. The cells were detected for as long as 2 months, and the cells expressed increased levels of CD11b, c-fms, and F4/80 on their surface, becoming more differentiated macrophages compared to cells maintained in vitro. Upon in vivo stimulation with IFN-γ, c-fms levels decreased while Gr-1 levels increased compared to in vivo, unstimulated, phosphate-buffered saline-injected controls. These responses were independent of the genetic backgrounds of the recipient mice. These data support the hypothesis and indicate that C2D macrophage cells respond to in vivo signals that are absent during in vitro culture.
Does leverage influence auditor choice? A cross-country analysis

This article investigates the impact of legal environment on the relationship between leverage and auditor choice in 10 European countries. We demonstrate that the relationship between the choice of a high-quality auditor and firm leverage varies significantly across countries. This finding suggests the absence of a systematic demand for auditing to mitigate agency problems between insiders and debtholders. These differences are explained through legal environment indicators. We create in this aim an index to measure auditor liability exposure. Our results provide evidence that the stronger the protection of creditor rights and disclosure requirements, the higher the demand for audit quality by highly-leveraged companies. Inversely, the auditor liability exposure has a negative impact on the link between leverage and auditor choice.
Influence of Culture on Indian Consumers’ Preference to Shop at Small Retail Stores

ABSTRACT Indian retail industry has grown exponentially in the past decade. Liberalization in the sector has brought in foreign investment. Earlier research on the Indian retail sector suggests that economic growth, rising income, consumption levels, and a large middle class segment have contributed toward the growth of organized retailing. Organized retail is supposed to bring drastic changes in the retail landscape. Malls, supermarkets, and large discount stores are likely to affect the existence of small retailers. The current research focuses on the impact of culture on Indian consumers’ preference to shop at small retail stores. The results suggest that demographics like education, age, and gender and cultural factors influence consumers’ preference to shop at small retail stores.
Factors inhibiting the economic growth of female owned small businesses in North West England

While the general trend in the UK is towards an increase in female owned small businesses, during the last few years the number of North West of England businesses owned by women has fallen by 12.5 per cent. Aims to investigate the barriers preventing women from entering into growth businesses in the North West. The research included discussions with 12 service providers as well as in‐depth interviews and focus groups with 99 potential and established female business owners. The main barriers blocking women’s ownership of small businesses involved the widely held stereotype of business owners as “white, middle class, males”, cultural differences, a shortage of premises for new businesses and the lack of appropriate childcare.
Reforms to Schooling in the UK: A Review of Some Major Reforms and their Evaluation

Abstract We aim to give a brief overview of some important reforms to the school system in the UK and existing evidence on their consequences. These reforms include a change in the type of secondary school open to pupils - from a selective to comprehensive system; a change in the examination system; quasi-market reforms; area-based initiatives; reforms to the content and structure of teaching; payments to encourage the pursuit of education beyond compulsory schooling.
Is money the panacea? Rewards for knowledge workers

Purpose – In this empirical study, the aim is to examine the relative effect of various rewards on performance of knowledge workers. It is predicted that non‐monetary rewards are associated with enhanced intrinsic motivation, which in turn is related to better performance and innovation.Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected from 288 research and development employees and their supervisors from 30 Fortune 500 companies. The authors tested the hypothesized relationships with mediated multiple regression.Findings – The results revealed that receiving non‐monetary rewards is a stronger predictor of intrinsic motivation manifested by longer work time in comparison to either group or individual monetary rewards. Furthermore, intrinsic motivation was found to fully mediate the relationships between received non‐monetary rewards and performance and innovation.Research limitations/implications – The paper offers a field test of the cognitive evaluation theory and the crowding theory that have been main.
Stress ulcer prophylaxis in the postoperative period.

PURPOSE The implications of recent studies for guidelines that pertain to stress ulcer prophylaxis in the postoperative period are discussed. SUMMARY The therapeutic guidelines on stress ulcer prophylaxis published by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) provided clinicians with recommendations regarding appropriate candidates for stress ulcer prophylaxis and selection of a pharmacologic agent. Since these guidelines were published in 1999, additional research has been completed to resolve some of the controversial issues surrounding stress ulcer prophylaxis. The frequency of stress-induced bleeding in recent investigations continues to be highly variable, depending on the definition used to describe bleeding. In general, investigations that evaluate overt bleeding or bleeding without hemodynamic changes or blood transfusion report higher frequencies of bleeding than those that evaluate clinically important bleeding. Similar to that reported in the initial ASHP guidelines, the frequency of clinically important bleeding in recent investigations is low. In addition, the majority of recently published prospective studies and a meta-analysis have been unable to demonstrate a reduction in clinically important bleeding with pharmacologic agents. As a result, some experts have suggested that advances in critical care are more influential in the development of stress-induced bleeding than the use of pharmacologic agents. Recently published investigations support the effectiveness of institution-specific guidelines to help clinicians identify appropriate candidates for stress ulcer prophylaxis. The selection of an optimal pharmacologic agent for stress ulcer prophylaxis continues to be debated. The majority of recent studies have involved the administration of proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs). In general, these studies have demonstrated that PPIs are at least as effective as histamine H2-receptor antagonists at increasing gastric pH, but adequately powered studies investigating the endpoint of clinically important bleeding are needed. Similar to the initial ASHP guidelines, the development of institution-specific guidelines is recommended to identify the most appropriate pharmacologic treatment. CONCLUSION The frequency of clinically important bleeding reported in recent studies is low. The majority of recently published prospective studies and meta-analyses found little significant reduction in bleeding with pharmacologic prophylaxis.
Measuring state dependence in individual poverty histories when there is feedback to employment status and household composition

This paper argues that the assumption of strict exogeneity, which is usually invoked in estimating models of state dependence with unobserved heterogeneity, is violated in the poverty context as important variables determining contemporaneous poverty status, in particular employment status and household composition, are likely to be influenced by past poverty outcomes. Therefore, a model of state dependence is developed that explicitly allows for possible feedback effects from past poverty to future employment and household composition outcomes. Empirical results based on data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP) suggest that there are indeed such feedback effects and that failure to take them into account may lead to biased estimates of the state dependence effect. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
What differentiates Internet shoppers from Internet surfers?

This work analyses the motivations behind consumers' online shopping intentions for specific tourism services, such as hotel reservations, across both Internet shoppers and Internet surfers (i.e. those who exit the website before completing the reservation). A structural equation analysis features a sample of 1289 Spanish Internet users (530 shoppers and 759 surfers). The results indicate that perceived usefulness is the most important aspect conditioning the intention to buy online for Internet shoppers, whereas the role of convenience is more significant for Internet surfers. The empirical findings suggest different managerial guidelines for encouraging online reservations by Internet surfers and can help facilitate decision making processes for managers in this industry.
Beyond Basic Education: Exploring Opportunities for Higher Learning in Kenyan Refugee Camps

This paper seeks to elucidate the socio-cultural and economic benefits of higher education in refugee contexts. NGO and UNHCR initiatives in Dadaab and Kakuma camps are used as a reference point for discussing the challenges, best practices, and potential of higher and adult learning in contexts of protracted exile. This small-scale, qualitative study seeks to understand what opportunities for higher education exist for those living in Kenyan refugee camps, and do existing opportunities yield “social benefits” beyond those accrued by the refugees themselves? Drawing upon interviews with practitioners, observation in schools and learning centres, and data from refugee-service providers, our findings are primarily descriptive in nature and explore the myriad ways in which opportunities for higher learning can strengthen refugee communities in countries of asylum. We contend that although Kenya’s encampment policies limit the potential economic and social benefits of refugee education on a national level, opportunities for refugees to pursue higher education are still immensely valuable in that they bolster refugee service provision in the camps and provide refugees with the skills and knowledge needed to increase the effectiveness of durable solutions at both an individual and societal level, be they repatriation, local integration, or third-country resettlement.
Stock return volatility in thinly traded markets. An empirical analysis of trading and non-trading processes for individual stocks in the Norwegian thinly traded equity market

This paper reports studies of the volatility of prices for individual stocks in the thinly traded Norwegian equity market during periods of trading and non-trading when the market is open for trading and closed. Building a model using Brownian motions, returns and variance ratios in trading and non-trading periods can be hypothesized. The model presents results that show an identical volatility in periods in which the market is open but no trades occur, and in periods of frequent trading. Furthermore, when the market is closed (weekends and holidays), the volatility is almost identical to consecutive days of trading. That is, the observed that on correspondence between return variance and transaction arrival is dependent on whether the market is open, and not simply on whether the stock is trading. This finding prevails after adjusting for non-synchronous trading using Poisson distributed trade arrivals.
Financial Innovation, Investment Opportunities, and Corporate Policy Choices for Large Bank Holding Companies

This study determines the effects of agency costs on bank management by investigating the relationship between investment opportunities and corporate policy choices for large bank holding companies from 1977 to 1985. The financial innovations in this period resulted in numerous investment opportunities for banks and their holding companies. The market-to-book ratio, a proxy for these opportunities or growth options, reveals significant differences in the opportunity sets of regional and money center banks. Since the growth options are negatively related to both debt financing and dividend payout, a policy prescription for reducing bank holding company (BHC) leverage is to allow bank/BHC investment opportunities to expand through product and geographic deregulation. Copyright 1994 by MIT Press.
The Effect of Tibial Curvature and Fibular Loading on the Tibia Index

The tibia index (TI) is commonly used to predict leg injury based on measurements taken by an anthropomorphic test device (ATD). The TI consists of an interaction formula that combines axial loading and bending plus a supplemental compressive force criterion. Current ATD lower limbs lack geometric biofidelity with regard to tibial curvature and fibular load-sharing. Due to differences in tibial curvature, the midshaft moments induced by axial loading are different in humans and ATDs. Midshaft tibial loading in the human is also reduced by load-sharing through the fibula, which is not replicated in current ATDs. In this study, tibial curvature and fibular load-sharing are quantified through CT imaging and biomechanical testing, and equations are presented to correct ATD measurements to reflect the loading that would be experienced by a human tibia.
Ambulatory Blood Pressure Comparison of the Anti-hypertensive Efficacy of Fixed Combinations of Irbesartan/hydrochlorothiazide and Losartan/hydrochlorothiazide in Patients with Mild-to-moderate Hypertension

This study examined whether the greater anti-hypertensive efficacy of irbesartan monotherapy over losartan monotherapy extends to the respective fixed-dose combinations with hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) in patients with mild-to-moderate hypertension. Patients were treated with either irbesartan 150 mg/HCTZ 12.5 mg or losartan 50 mg/HCTZ 12.5 mg over a 4-week period. Twenty-four hour daytime and night-time mean blood pressure (BP), BP load and duration of action were assessed using ambulatory BP monitoring. Both treatment regimens significantly reduced BP from baseline for all efficacy variables assessed. A significant difference was noted in adjusted mean changes from baseline in 24-h ambulatory diastolic BP with irbesartan/HCTZ versus losartan/HCTZ. Reduction in diastolic load was significantly greater with irbesartan/ HCTZ than with losartan/HCTZ as was mean ambulatory systolic BP during the last 4 h of the dosing interval. Both regimens were well tolerated, with no significant differences in terms of adverse event profile observed. Irbesartan 150 mg/HCTZ 12.5 mg resulted in greater reductions in ambulatory BP than losartan 50 mg/HCTZ 12.5 mg.
HEAT KERNEL MODELS FOR ASSET PRICING

A heat kernel approach is proposed for the development of a novel method for asset pricing over a finite time horizon. We work in an incomplete market setting and assume the existence of a pricing kernel that determines the prices of financial instruments. The pricing kernel is modeled by a weighted heat kernel driven by a multivariate Markov process. The heat kernel is chosen so as to provide enough freedom to ensure that the resulting model can be calibrated to appropriate data, e.g. to the initial term structure of bond prices. A class of models is presented for which the prices of bonds, caplets, and swaptions can be computed in closed form. The dynamical equations for the price processes are derived, and explicit formulae are obtained for the short rate of interest, the risk premium, and for the stochastic volatility of prices. Several of the closed-form models presented are driven by combinations of Markovian jump processes with different probability laws. Such models provide a basis for consistent applications in various market sectors, including equity markets, fixed-income markets, commodity markets, and insurance. The flexible multidimensional and multivariate structure on which the resulting price models are based lends itself well to the modeling of dependence across asset classes. As an illustration, the impact of spiraling debt, a typical feature of a financial crisis, is modeled explicitly, and the contagion effects can be readily observed in the dynamics of the associated asset returns.
The Impact of Implementation Issues on Data Warehousing Development Success: Experience from the UAE

This study is aimed at identifying the impact of system support and implementation factors on successful development of data warehousing in the United Arab Emirates. The theoretical framework of the study is formulated based on analysis of related literature coupled with the information gained from interviewing data warehousing experts. Five hundred and eighty data warehouse users in 34 companies were surveyed to obtain their perceptions of the extent that each of 132 items had actually contributed to their firms' DW success at different phases of development. Rigorous multivariate statistical analysis procedure has been followed to design and construct an overall model of DW success. The model has proven that all its independent variables have significant influence on the DW overall success and that system support and implementation factors have dominant impact on this success throughout the different phases of DW development.
Child Eating Behaviors and Caregiver Feeding Practices in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders.

OBJECTIVE This pilot study compared children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and typically developing children (TDC) on weight-related outcomes and caregiver-reported child eating behaviors and feeding practices. DESIGN AND SAMPLE Cross-sectional study. Caregivers of 25 children with ASD and 30 TDC, ages 4-6. METHODS Caregivers completed validated questionnaires that assessed child eating behaviors and feeding practices. Children's height, weight, and waist circumference were measured. RESULTS Children with ASD, when compared to TDC, showed significantly greater abdominal waist circumferences (p = .01) and waist-to-height ratios (p < .001). Children with ASD with atypical oral sensory sensitivity exhibited greater food avoidance behaviors, including reluctance to eat novel foods (p = .004), being selective about the range of foods they accept (p = .03), and undereating due to negative emotions (p = .02), than children with ASD with typical oral sensory sensitivity. Caregivers of children with ASD with atypical oral sensory sensitivity reported using food to regulate negative child emotions to a greater extent than caregivers of children with typical oral sensory sensitivity (p = .02). DISCUSSION Children with ASD, especially those with atypical oral sensory sensitivity, are at increased risk for food avoidance behaviors and may require additional support in several feeding domains.
Examining the role of entrepreneurial experience and entrepreneurial self-efficacy on SMTE performance.

This research examines how entrepreneurial experience and entrepreneurial self-efficacy (ESE) of tourism entrepreneurs affect the performance of small and medium tourism enterprises (SMTEs). The conceptual structural model reflecting these interrelationships is examined in terms of data collected from 298 SMTE entrepreneurs in regional South Australia. Contrary to the findings of studies conducted in nontourism contexts, entrepreneurial experience was not related to ESE nor to enterprise performance. How long one has been in a tourism enterprise or how many enterprises an individual has owned is not a good predictor of whether that entrepreneur will be able to develop a high performing SMTE that contributes toward economic wealth and job creation in the community. Entrepreneurial self-efficacy, rather than entrepreneurial experience, is a significant predictor of enterprise performance among SMTEs. This raises a number of questions. If experience gained through operating an SMTE does not contribute toward entrepreneurial confidence or entrepreneurial performance, what does? Are tourism entrepreneurs so different from entrepreneurs found in other industries that theories require modification when applied in tourism? The findings suggest that destination managers and policy makers need to understand the importance of entrepreneurial self-efficacy if they wish to enhance performance within the industry.
Factors Predicting Residential Mobility Among the Recipients of the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program

The Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program is the largest low-income federal housing program in the Unites States and has a policy goal of promoting mobility or "choice. " This study explored the factors that predict residential mobility among the recipients of the HCV program in Columbus, Ohio by including variables found to predict mobility among the general population and two new variables that are specific to the HCV program: total tenant payment (TTP); and fair market rent (FMR). Although the findings revealed that race, gender, age and number in family were significant in predicting residential mobility, the variables affected by the housing market and the program's policies and budgets (increase in TTP and increase or decrease in FMR) were more significant in predicting mobility. The findings indicate that residential mobility among HCV recipients had more to do with changes in the housing market and the program's policies and budgets than individual characteristics.