Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Canine POMC Gene, Obesity in Labrador Retrievers and Susceptibility to Diabetes Mellitus

Background Diabetes mellitus (DM) in dogs is a common endocrinopathy with a complex genetic architecture. Disease susceptibility in several breeds is associated with polymorphisms in immune response genes, but in the Labrador retriever breed, no genetic associations with DM have been identified. A deletion in the pro‐opiomelanocortin (POMC) gene in Labrador retrievers is associated with increased appetite and risk of obesity. Hypothesis/Objectives To characterize the POMC deletion in Labrador retrievers, to develop a simple genetic test for this mutation, and to test the hypothesis that the POMC gene deletion is associated with an increased risk of DM in this breed. Animals Sixty‐one non‐diabetic Labrador retrievers aged >6 years and 57 Labrador retrievers with DM. Methods Case–control genotyping study to compare the frequency of the POMC deletion in dogs with and without DM. After polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing to characterize the mutation, a PCR‐based test was developed and validated using 2 different restriction fragment length polymorphism assays. Results A 14‐base‐pair deletion was confirmed and localized to exon 3 of the canine POMC gene. A PCR‐based test for the deletion was successfully developed. There was no association between the presence of the POMC deletion mutation and DM in this population of Labrador retriever dogs (P = .31). Conclusions and Clinical Importance This study adds to the existing scientific literature indicating that there is little evidence for a direct link between obesity and DM in dogs.
Links between Autism Spectrum Disorder Diagnostic Status and Family Quality of Life

Quality of life is often relatively lowered in families of children with additional needs, and this may be particularly the case where additional needs are accompanied by an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Here we explore the effects of diagnostic status specifically, comparing families with children with an ASD diagnosis with others who a) have additional needs but no signs of ASD; and b) have additional needs and signs of ASD but no diagnosis. Mothers (n = 76) of children with additional needs completed standardised questionnaires about quality of life, stress, service provision, child behaviour and presence and severity of ASD traits. In addition, a group of mothers of typically developing young people (n = 17) completed standardised questionnaires on individual and family quality of life and on the behaviour of their son or daughter. Mothers of typically developing young people had significantly higher individual and family quality of life scores than each of the three other groups. Increased severity of ASD was associated with increased maternal stress, which in turn was associated with decreased family and maternal quality of life. The group reporting the lowest quality of life and the highest stress were the mothers of individuals with signs of ASD but no diagnosis. This pattern did not seem to be explained by lack of access to services, or rates of intellectual disability or challenging behaviour in this sub-group. The finding that poor quality of life and high stress was most apparent in the sub-group of mothers with children who had signs of ASD but did not have a diagnosis of ASD suggests that an interesting topic for further investigation is whether receipt of a diagnosis itself can positively influence quality of life and levels of maternal stress.
Primary Grade Teachers' Conceptions of Giftedness and Talent: A Case-based Investigation.

Despite the ongoing, extensive focus on the more equitable representation of gifted students from diverse populations, poor and minority students remain underserved by gifted education proportional to their representation in the broader student population (Donovan & Cross, 2002; U.S. Department of Education, 1993). One possible factor contributing to the continued under-representation of poor and minority students in gifted programs is an inadequate understanding of the roots of the problem in the earliest years of schooling. Failure to identify and develop talent in very young children has been linked to subsequent negative outcomes in cognitive, academic, social, and affective development (Neihart, Reis, Robinson, & Moon, 2002). The National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented (NRC/GT) at the University of Virginia conducted a twophase, mixed-methods study designed to explore the beliefs and practices of teachers at the primary school level (grades K-2). Of particular interest were (a) teachers' beliefs about the nature of giftedness in young students; (b) teachers' beliefs about how giftedness is manifested and distributed across cultural and socioeconomic groups of young students; and (c) teachers' classroom practices related to talent development in the primary grades. In this way, the study considered both teachers' attitudes and beliefs about giftedness and the translation of these beliefs into instructional practices related to perceived student potential. In addition, the study explored the pedagogical potential of equipping teachers with context-specific lessons that incorporate strategies most likely to uncover and develop talent in previously unrecognized gifted students. The first phase of the project involved a multidisciplinary review of the relevant literature to determine those attributes, principles, and recommendations for identifying talent in at-risk, disadvantaged, and culturally diverse young children. The general themes from these literatures informed the development of a survey designed to assess primary grade teachers' beliefs, attitudes, and practices in regard to young gifted (or potentially gifted) students from diverse backgrounds. The second phase of the study involved intensive classroom observations by trained participant observers in primary grade classrooms in six diverse elementary schools. The purpose of this phase of the project was to extensively describe and document the classroom context and to determine the degree of consistency between teachers' philosophies about giftedness and talent and their classroom practices aimed at nurturing and developing talent in all students, particularly those from under-represented groups. Findings from both phases of this study revealed
Consistency of Data-driven Histogram Methods for Density Estimation and Classification

We present general sufficient conditions for the almost sureL1-consistency of histogram density estimates based on data-dependent partitions. Analogous conditions guarantee the almost-sure risk consistency of histogram classification schemes based on data-dependent partitions. Multivariate data is considered throughout. In each case, the desired consistency requires shrinking cells, subexponential growth of a combinatorial complexity measure, and sub-linear growth of the number of cells. It is not required that the cells of every partition be rectangles with sides paralles to the coordinate axis, or that each cell contain a minimum number of points. No assumptions are made concerning the common distribution of the training vectors. We apply the results to establish the consistency of several known partitioning estimates, including the kn-spacing density estimate, classifiers based on statistically equivalent blocks, and classifiers based on multivariate clustering schemes.
Evidence for BlowOut in the Low-Mass Dwarf Galaxy Holmberg I

We present radio and optical observations of Holmberg I (Ho I), a member of the M81 group of galaxies (distance ∼3.6 Mpc). Ho I is a low-mass, low surface brightness dwarf galaxy. High-resolution, multiarray, Very Large Array observations in the line of neutral hydrogen (H I) reveal a supergiant shell (diameter 1.7 kpc) that covers about half the optical extent of Ho I and that comprises 75% of the total H I content (total H I mass: 1.1 × 108 M⊙). We estimate the scale height of the H I layer to be 250 pc ≲ h ≲ 550 pc. We set a tentative upper limit to the dark matter content of ≲3.1 × 108 M⊙. The H I data are complemented by deep, optical UBV(RI)C observations and narrowband Hα imaging obtained at the Calar Alto 2.2 m telescope. We find MH I /LB = 1.1 M⊙/L. The total visible (stars plus gas) mass of Ho I adds up to 2.4 × 108 M⊙. This leads to a total mass of ≲5.5 × 108 M⊙ and an inclination for Ho I of 10° ≲ i ≲ 14°. The origin of Ho I's peculiar H I morphology is discussed in terms of a supergiant shell created by strong stellar winds and supernova explosions. We estimate that the energy deposited falls in the range of 1.2 × 1053 ergs ≲ E ≲ 2.6 × 1053 ergs (equivalent to 120–260 Type II SNe explosions). From a comparison with isochrones, as well as from dynamical modeling based on the H I data, we derive an age for the supergiant H I shell of ∼80 ± 20 Myr. The morphological center of Ho I (i.e., the center of the ring) is offset by 0.75 kpc with respect to the dynamical center. Within the interior of the shell, the light distribution is exponential with a rather shallow gradient and blue optical colors. Beyond a radius corresponding to an H I column density of ∼1021 cm-2, the putative star formation threshold, the disk becomes considerably redder and the slope for the exponential light distributions steepens. We attribute this to a uniform star formation activity in the recent past within the central 2 kpc of Ho I. Color-magnitude diagrams based on our CCD data show that young stars, with ages of 15–30 Myr, are situated along the inside of the rim of the giant H I shell. On the rim itself, we find even younger stars and some faint H II regions. It is speculated that these stars are the result of secondary star formation on the rim of the shell. Based on the global morphology and velocity dispersion, as well as the location of the H II regions, we find evidence for ram pressure within the M81 group. Finally, we discuss the likelihood of Ho I having lost some of its interstellar material to the intergalactic medium ("blow-out" scenario).
Brazil, empire and republic, 1822-1930

Introduction: from colony to Empire 1. The independence of Brazil Leslie Bethell Part I. Empire (1822-89): 2. 1822-1870 Leslie Bethell and Jose Murilo de Carvalho 3. 1850-1870 Richard Graham 4. 1870-1889 Emilia Viotti da Costa Part II. First Republic (1889-1930): 5. Economy Warren Dean 6. Society and politics Boris Fausto Bibliographical essays Index.
Tendon friction rubs in early diffuse systemic sclerosis: prevalence, characteristics and longitudinal changes in a randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVES To characterize the baseline tendon friction rubs (TFRs) in early dcSSc and to evaluate the association of change in TFR over 6 and 12 months with changes in modified Rodnan skin score (MRSS) and HAQ-Disability Index (HAQ-DI) over 12 and 24 months, respectively. METHODS We analysed data from the d-Pen study, a 2-year study in early dcSSc (< or =18 months from first non-Raynaud's symptom). TFR was scored as present/absent at seven anatomical sites at baseline and every 6 months thereafter. Multivariable linear regression models assessed associations between TFR and change in MRSS, and change in the HAQ-DI, over 12 and 24 months, respectively. Covariates included baseline TFR, change in the TFR over 6 and 12 months, age, sex, duration of SSc, MRSS, and tender joint count and swollen joint count (SJC). RESULTS Forty-nine (37%) of 134 patients had TFR at baseline, 50% had resolution of their TFR, whereas 21% developed new TFRs. Patients with baseline TFRs were likely to be Caucasian (86 vs 58%) and had a higher HAQ-DI score (P = 0.008). In regression analyses, change in TFR (P = 0.04) and baseline MRSS (P = 0.03) predicted change in MRSS over a 12-month period (Model R(2 )= 0.14). For the HAQ-DI model, independent predictors were change in TFR at 6 months (P = 0.008) and baseline SJC (P = 0.04, Model R(2 )= 0.19). Results were similar for 24-month models. CONCLUSIONS We document the presence of TFR very early in the course of dcSSc. Changes in TFR over 6 and 12 months predict changes in MRSS and HAQ-DI over 12 and 24 months, respectively.
Exchange Rate Pass-Through to U.S. Import Prices: Some New Evidence

This paper documents a sustained decline in exchange rate pass-through to U.S. import prices, from above 0.5 during the 1980s to somewhere in the neighborhood of 0.2 during the last decade. This decline in the pass-through coefficient is robust to the measure of foreign prices that is included in the regression (i.e., CPI versus PPI), whether the estimation is done in levels or differences, and whether U.S. prices are included as an explanatory variable. Notably, the largest estimates of pass-through are obtained when commodity prices are excluded from the regression. In this case, the pass-through coefficient captures both the direct effect of the exchange rate on import prices and an indirect effect operating through changes in commodity prices. Our work indicates that an increasing share of exchange rate pass-through has occurred through this commodity-price channel in recent years. While the source of the decline in pass-through is difficult to pin down with certainty, our work points to several factors, including the reduced share of (commodity-intensive) industrial supplies in U.S. imports and the increased presence of Chinese exporters in U.S. markets. We detect a particular step down in the pass-through coefficient around the time of the Asian financial crisis and document a shift in the export pricing behavior of emerging Asian firms around that time.
Big data privacy issues in public social media

Big Data is a new label given to a diverse field of data intensive informatics in which the datasets are so large that they become hard to work with effectively. The term has been mainly used in two contexts, firstly as a technological challenge when dealing with dataintensive domains such as high energy physics, astronomy or internet search, and secondly as a sociological problem when data about us is collected and mined by companies such as Facebook, Google, mobile phone companies, retail chains and governments. In this paper we look at this second issue from a new perspective, namely how can the user gain awareness of the personally relevant part Big Data that is publicly available in the social web. The amount of user-generated media uploaded to the web is expanding rapidly and it is beyond the capabilities of any human to sift through it all to see which media impacts our privacy. Based on an analysis of social media in Flickr, Locr, Facebook and Google+, we discuss privacy implications and potential of the emerging trend of geo-tagged social media. We then present a concept with which users can stay informed about which parts of the social Big Data deluge is relevant to them.
Correcting Brain-Wide Correlation Differences in Resting-State FMRI

Brain function in "resting" state has been extensively studied with functional magnetic resonance imaging (FMRI). However, drawing valid inferences, particularly for group comparisons, is fraught with pitfalls. Differing levels of brain-wide correlations can confound group comparisons. Global signal regression (GSReg) attempts to reduce this confound and is commonly used, even though it differentially biases correlations over brain regions, potentially leading to false group differences. We propose to use average brain-wide correlations as a measure of global correlation (GCOR), and examine the circumstances under which it can be used to identify or correct for differences in global fluctuations. In the process, we show the bias induced by GSReg to be a function only of the data's covariance matrix, and use simulations to compare corrections with GCOR as covariate to GSReg under various scenarios. We find that unlike GSReg, GCOR is a conservative approach that can reduce global variations, while avoiding the introduction of false significant differences, as GSReg can. However, as with GSReg, one cannot escape the interaction effect between the grouping variable and GCOR covariate on effect size. While GCOR is a complementary measure for resting state-FMRI applicable to legacy data, it is a lesser substitute for proper level-I denoising. We also assess the applicability of GCOR to empirical data with motion-based subject grouping and compare group differences to those using GSReg. We find that, while GCOR reduced correlation differences between high and low movers, it is doubtful that motion was the sole driver behind the differences in the first place.
Bandwidth scaling for fading channels

The issue of bandwidth scaling has always caused some confusion for channels subject to additive white Gaussian noise plus multipath fading. On the one hand, there is an old result saying that the capacity of the channel (under a power constraint but no bandwidth constraint) is the same as the infinite bandwidth capacity of the non-fading additive noise channel with the same average received power as the fading channel. On the other hand, it appears intuitively that when a CDMA system is spread too widely in bandwidth, it becomes increasingly difficult for a RAKE receiver to measure the channel and correspondingly difficult for detection to take place. Here the authors look at a particularly simple model of the fading channel, but the methodology appears to be extendable to more general models.
Whiplash associated disorders: a comprehensive review

This report is a compendium of papers on aspects of whiplash associated disorders (WAD). The aim of the report is to provide an overview of WAD from different perspectives: epidemiological, engineering, biomechanical, biopsychosocial, and treatment. Two recent studies on WAD in South Australia are also reported. The findings from studies published up until August 2005 are included in this report. Whiplash associated disorders are a complex phenomenon, triggered by a mechanical event but whose prognosis is affected by many factors including clinical and psychosocial factors. A thorough understanding of these factors provides a basis for dealing with the prevalence of WAD in the community and reducing the incidence of WAD. http://casr.adelaide. edu.au/casrpubfile/52/CASR016.pdf
The effect of marketing knowledge management on organizational performance: An empirical investigation of the telecommunications organizations in Jordan

Purpose – Appreciating the limited empirical research in the knowledge management (KM) field, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between marketing knowledge management (MKM) and performance in Jordanian telecommunications organizations (JTOs). Design/methodology/approach – A quantitative methodology is adopted in which a model is developed, and hypotheses are stated, in order to examine the proposed relationship between MKM assets and capabilities and JTOs' performance. A highly structured questionnaire is developed and distributed to a sample of 339 managers in JTOs. With a response rate of 92 percent, 312 questionnaires are returned; the number of valid and usable questionnaires is 292. Using exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, MKM assets are classified into built‐ and invested‐in marketing assets, while MKM capabilities are classified into internal and external marketing capabilities. Furthermore, JTOs' performance is classified into three dimensions: market, customer.
Social Return on Investment (SROI) and Performance Measurement

Abstract Social enterprises are being promoted as responsive and innovative way to deliver public services. As part of this promotion, these organizations are being required to demonstrate the social and economic value they generate. Social return on investment (SROI) is a performance measurement tool currently being encouraged to capture this impact. This paper draws on survey and interview data to analyse how SROI is used and understood in health and social care settings. It indicates that despite being accepted as an internationally recognized measurement tool for social enterprise, SROI is underused and undervalued due to practical and ideological barriers.
Secretion of the orgC Gene Product by Salmonella enterica Serovar Typhimurium

ABSTRACT HilA activates the transcription of genes on Salmonella pathogenicity island 1 (SPI1), which encodes a type III secretion system (TTSS). Previous studies showed that transposon insertions in orgC, a gene located on SPI1, increase hilA expression. We characterize the orgC gene product and show that it is secreted via the SPI1 TTSS. We propose a model whereby OrgC functions as a secreted repressor of the SPI1 virulence genes.
Why don’t (or do) organizations learn from projects?

Many different types of organizations use projects to accomplish specific tasks, especially tasks that involve innovation and change. However, there are often problems associated with both learning within projects and learning transfer from projects to the wider organization. Previous research suggests that these problems vary according to the organizational context, in particular the extent to which the organization is centred on the delivery of projects. Also, the link between project-based learning and organizational learning may be far from seamless, and may require the deployment of a range of learning mechanisms to be effective. In this article we explore and explain these problems through an empirical study which examined project-based learning across different organizational contexts. This study highlights the limitations of learning mechanisms based on reflection and codification. It suggests that firms generally only learn from projects, if at all, via the accumulation of experience amongst groups and individuals. The study suggests, however, that the accumulation of experience is most pronounced in organizational contexts which are project centred and where project management capabilities are well developed. In contrast, in organizations where projects are more varied and occasional, the struggle to exploit the highly heterogeneous forms of learning created within projects is greater.
First Draft for comments only Institutional Analysis of Financial Market Fragmentation in Sub-Saharan Africa-Risk-Cost Configuration Approach

The paper examines the source of financial market fragmentation in Sub-Saharan Africa, based on fieldwork data collected in four countries, Ghana, Malawi, Nigeria and Tanzania. We analyse lenders' perceptions of risks in financial transactions, looking at how they manage risk and the transaction costs involved in the process of loan screening and loan monitoring and contract enforcement. The paper analyses how, faced with various structural and institutional constraints, the range of clientele selected by formal and informal lenders becomes both narrow and at the extreme marketends. It argues that credit transactions in such institutional environments would lead to market fragmentation, including the proliferation of several types of informal lenders with limited groups for clients. The paper tries to evaluate policy implications of the prevailing state of managing risks for market structure and binding constraints for the development of financial systems in sub-Saharan Africa. In particular, it examines institutional measures and mechanisms to reduce the risk and costs associated with the transformation of informal activities into more formal institutional arrangements promising higher social and private returns, which would expedite the process of market expansion and deepening.