Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Distribution of nosocomial infections caused by Klebsiella pneumoniae ESBL strain

Objectives: Hospital outbreaks of multidrug-resistant Klebsiella spp. , especially those in neonatal wards, are often caused by new types of strains, the so-called extended-spectrum-beta-lactamase (ESBL) producers. Methods: The aim of this study was to determine the distribution of nosocomial infections caused by Klebsiella pneumoniae ESBL strain by location and kind of infections in the University Clinical Centre Tuzla during a period of one year. A prospective study was implemented for all patients who developed hospital infections caused by Klebsiella pneumoniae ESBL strain during the period from 1st of January to 31st of December 2010 year. Determination of nosocomial infections was performed using standardized CDC criteria. Mandatory registration of hospital infections was done via a written application form which is used for surveillance. Results: Hospital infections caused by Klebsiella pneumoniae ESBL strain were reported 141 times, during the year 2010. Most common hospital infection were urinary tract infections 52 times (36,9%), followed by respiratory tract infections 43 times (30,5%), infection of the gastrointestinal system 20 times (14,2%), infections of surgical sites 12 times (8,5%), 10 times (7,1%) the bloodstream infection and other infections 4 times (2,8%). Nosocomial infection was mostly reported in the Clinic of anesthesiology and reanimation 37 times (26,2%) and Clinic for children\'s diseases 33 times (23,4%). Regarding age, 41 (29,1%) of nosocomial infections were detected in patients below the age of one year and 35 (24,8%) in patients above the age of 65 years. Conclusion: Respiratory tract infections were reported more frequently in the intensive care unit than in the wards. However, infection of the urinary tract and gastrointestinal infections were reported more frequently in the wards than in intensive care units.
Do Income Status and Mobility Determine Demand for Income Redistribution? Experimental Evidence

In this paper, demand for income redistribution is elicited through a discrete choice experiment performed with a representative sample of the Swiss population. Attributes include both the amount of redistribution as a share of GDP and its uses (working poor, the unemployed, old-age pensioners, families with children, people in ill health) as well as the nationality of beneficiaries. The paper investigates economic determinants of citizens’ willingness to pay for redistribution, using static and dynamic measures of well-being. Demand for redistribution is shown to increase rather than decrease with income and other static measures of well-being, contradicting the conventional Meltzer-Richard model. However, the dynamic Prospect of Upward Mobility hypothesis receives limited empirical support.
Trade-ins and Introductory Offers in a Monopoly

We model the commonly used marketing practices of offering discounts to either repeat buyers (trade-ins) or new buyers (introductory offers) of a quasi-durable good. We analyze these practices in terms of their potential for intertemporal and third-degree price discrimination. In our two-period model, the monopolist sets a first-period price that segments the second-period market optimally into holders and nonholders of the good. In the second period, different prices are quoted to the two market segments. We present three versions of the model with varying assumptions on consumers' rationality.
The Rate and Shape of Change in Binge Eating Episodes and Weight: An Effectiveness Trial of Emotionally Focused Group Therapy for Binge-Eating Disorder.

OBJECTIVE This study investigated the phases of change and the relationship between binge eating (BE) episodes and weight across 20 weeks of emotionally focused group therapy (EFGT) and combined therapy (CT) of EFGT plus dietary counselling for BE disorder. METHODS We used a non-randomized observational study design that included 118 obese adult patients with BE disorder who were treated by manualized therapy protocols. Participants were assigned to treatment condition (EFGT or CT) based on consensus among clinicians. Participants were assessed weekly during the 20 weeks of therapy for weight and BE episodes and at pre-treatment and 6 months post-treatment. RESULTS Binge eating episodes and weight significantly declined during EFGT and CT. Compared with EFGT, CT resulted in more rapid weight loss across weeks of therapy. BE episodes and weight significantly covaried, and their positive association increased as sessions progressed. Change in BE episodes and weight during treatment was best modelled by a cubic growth curve showing a slow rate of change in early sessions, a faster rate of change in middle sessions and a slower rate of change in late sessions. This cubic modelling of change was associated with better outcomes 6 months post-treatment. CONCLUSION Cubic modelling of change supported a three-stage model of EFGT and CT, and the cubic trajectory was associated with better outcomes at follow-up. The addition of dietary counselling to EFGT resulted in earlier response to treatment in terms of BE episodes and weight among those in the CT condition. KEY PRACTITIONER MESSAGE Decline in binge eating (BE) episodes is related to decline in weight, and this relationship was greater towards the end of treatment. Emotionally focused group therapy plus dietary counselling that targets both affect regulation and nutritional problems resulted in faster rate of response early in treatment both in terms of BE episodes and weight. Combined emotionally focused group therapy and dietary counselling may provide clinicians with an additional approach to treating BE disorder.
The economics of BitCoin price formation

ABSTRACT This is the first article that studies BitCoin price formation by considering both the traditional determinants of currency price, e.g., market forces of supply and demand, and digital currencies specific factors, e.g., BitCoin attractiveness for investors and users. The conceptual framework is based on the Barro (1979) model, from which we derive testable hypotheses. Using daily data for five years (2009–2015) and applying time-series analytical mechanisms, we find that market forces and BitCoin attractiveness for investors and users have a significant impact on BitCoin price but with variation over time. Our estimates do not support previous findings that macro-financial developments are driving BitCoin price in the long run.
How Technology–Based New Firms Leverage Newness and Smallness to Commercialize Disruptive Technologies

Although the survival of young firms is challenged by the liabilities of newness, there are numerous instances where these firms have been successful at commercializing disruptive technologies at the expense of much larger and stronger incumbents. This paper explores this phenomenon and argues that the characteristics that challenge young technology–venture survival are also potential sources of advantage when commercializing disruptive technologies. The propositions developed also identify the boundary conditions for the advantages by examining the context of commercialization that is created by four types of disruptive technologies. The contributions of this paper are relevant to the enhanced understanding of the liabilities of newness, as well as the commercialization of disruptive technologies.
Functional characterization of five CYP2C8 variants and prediction of CYP2C8 genotype-dependent effects on in vitro and in vivo drug–drug interactions

To analyze the polymorphic activities of CYP2C8 and evaluate their impact on drug inhibitory potential, three CYP2C8 allelic variants (CYP2C8.2, CYP2C8.3, and CYP2C8.4), two non-synonymous single nucleotide polymorphic variants (R139K and K399R, carried by CYP2C8.3), and wild-type CYP2C8 (CYP2C8.1) were heterologously expressed in yeast, and their enzymatic activities were characterized. CYP2C8 inhibition-based in vitro and in vivo drug–drug interactions (DDIs) in wild-type and variant CYP2C8s were then predicted. Functional characterization of five CYP2C8 variants revealed similar enzymatic activity in R139K and low activity in CYP2C8.2, CYP2C8.3, CYP2C8.4, and K399R compared with CYP2C8.1. The systematic analysis of these CYP2C8 variants can provide more homogeneous data for predicting CYP2C8 phenotypes and could be applied to personalized drug therapy. Prediction of DDIs indicated that CYP2C8.4, R139K, and K399R dramatically alter the IC50 values of nifedipine, troglitazone, and raloxifene, and R139K qualitatively and quantitatively reduces the risk of in vivo paclitaxel–raloxifene and paclitaxel–troglitazone interactions. The results provide the first evidence that CYP2C8 inhibition-based DDIs may be influenced by CYP2C8 genetic polymorphisms. These inhibition data can be used by pharmacologists in the design of in vivo studies to further assess and address the potential role of CYP2C8 genotype-dependent inhibition in clinical DDIs.
Social Work Education and Student Ideology: A Multivariate Study of Professional Socialization

Abstract Three socioideological measures were administered to 136 social work students, assessing their attitudes toward human nature and their etiological explanations of poverty and affluence in human lives. The study found that graduate students scored significantly more negatively and conservatively on the human nature scales than did undergraduates. Previous social work practice experience by students was found to be unrelated to the attitudinal traits measured. The study concludes with a discussion of both the theoretical and practical implications of the findings.
Are Auctions More Efficient Than Fixed Price Schemes When Bidders Learn?

Auctions are increasingly being considered as a mechanism for allocating conservation contracts to private landowners. This interest is based on the widely held belief that competitive bidding helps minimize information rents. This study constructs an agent-based model to evaluate the long-term performance of conservation auctions under settings where bidders are allowed to learn from previous outcomes. The results clearly indicate that the efficiency benefits of one-shot auctions are quickly eroded under dynamic settings. Furthermore, the auction mechanism is not found to be superior to fixed payment schemes except when the latter involve the use of high prices.
ASSESSMENT OF REGROWTH OF FLIGHT FEATHERS AFTER MANUAL REMOVAL IN AMERICAN KESTRELS (FALCO SPARVERIUS)

Abstract: The objective of this study was to evaluate if extraction of broken feathers outside the molting period was an efficient method to induce growth of new flight feathers as part of the rehabilitation process of raptors with damaged plumage. Primaries, secondaries, and rectrices (four of each) were removed under general anesthesia from 10 American kestrels (Falco sparverius) using two different protocols: with and without filling the follicle with bismuth subnitrate (Orbeseal) to prevent it from sealing. Birds were kept in large aviaries under natural daylight and outdoor temperatures. Rate and quality of growth of new feathers were assessed regularly for 4 mo. Results were significantly different between the types of feathers: 100% of rectrices, 58% of secondaries, and 8% of primaries started to grow within the 4 winter months, and 95% of rectrices, 30% of secondaries, and 0% of primaries completed their growth normally within this period. The use of Orbeseal did not improve the outcome. The tail feathers began to grow between the second and third weeks at about 2.7 mm/day, and growth was completed within 7 wk. Rate, starting time, and duration of remigial growth were less predictable and varied widely among individuals. Although the exact impact of these extractions on the natural molt is still unclear, most of the primaries that were plucked during this study failed to regrow normally during the following molt. In conclusion, plucking damaged tail feathers in kestrels can successfully decrease the duration of rehabilitation. However, this procedure would not be recommended for wing feathers.
Assessment of students' perception towards developing a course in environmental accounting

Purpose - The purpose of this study is to assess the students' perception about the importance of incorporating environmental reporting practices, standards, and other issues in Management Accounting course. Design/methodology/approach - Environmental issues provide a unique, timely, and important focus for developing a course in Indian management pedagogy, which shall help in demonstrating the usefulness of environmental accounting information in supporting corporate environmental strategies while assessing environmental performance. Assessment measurements that may capture the impact of reformed academic programs are necessary to judge the success and failure of management education reforms. This paper carries out such an assessment process by offering a course on environmental accounting as an intervention, to a sample of 28 management students enrolled in a higher educational institution in India imparting management education. A questionnaire is administered to these students before and after the intervention in order to understand the difference of their perception level. Findings - The results suggests a significant difference in the perception level of students about the utility of incorporating environmental reporting practices in Management Accounting course before and after the administration of the reformed program. Originality/value - The paper is unique in its attempt to understand the Indian management students' perception of knowledge and usefulness with environmental accounting in their regular course, from which a more detailed evaluation can be derived. Further work based on this preliminary finding may be used to develop a proposed environmental accounting course framework for management students in India.
An optimal IPO mechanism

We analyse the optimal Initial Public Offering (IPO) mechanism in a multidimensional adverse selection setting where institutional investors have private information about the market valuation of the shares, the intermediary has private information about the demand, and the institutional investors and intermediary collude. Theorem 1 states that uniform pricing is optimal (all agents pay the same price) and characterizes the IPO price in terms of conditional expectations. Theorem 2 states that the optimal mechanism can be implemented by a non-linear price schedule decreasing in the quantity allocated to retail investors. This is similar to IPO procedures used in the U.K. and France. Relying on French IPO data we perform a GMM structural estimation and test of the model. The price schedule is estimated and the conditions characterizing the optimal mechanism are not rejected.
WAGES, RENTS, AND AMENITIES: DIFFERENCES AMONG WORKERS AND REGIONS

What explains persistent regional earnings differences? This paper argues that regional differences in amenities can account for the wage differences; in contrast, cost-of-living va riations do not account for wage differences, but actually exacerbate them. This conclusion results from a model in which variations in re nts and wages are equalizing differences for amenity differences. Emp irical results are consistent with the model. The model also extends previous work by considering two types of workers instead of a homoge neous work force. The wages of one type of worker prove to be depende nt on the preferences of the other type. Copyright 1988 by Oxford University Press.
Issuer Credit Ratings and Warrant-Pricing Errors

This paper examines how issuer credit relates to the level of warrant-pricing errors in Taiwan. The results demonstrate that the premia of warrants with high credit ratings have fewer pricing errors, implying that warrants with higher credit ratings are more fairly priced in terms of the Black-Scholes model. Using more parameters than in traditional option-pricing models, this study contributes to the literature by demonstrating that the credit ratings of warrant issuers have a critical impact on the prices of covered warrants.
Seven days of doxycycline is an effective treatment for asymptomatic rectal Chlamydia trachomatis infection

There are no evidence-based guidelines for the specific management of rectal Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) infection. All men who have sex with men (MSM) diagnosed with asymptomatic rectal CT by nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT) at a large London genitourinary (GU) medicine clinic between September 2006 and September 2009 were offered oral doxycycline 100 mg twice daily for seven days and invited for a test of cure (TOC) by CT NAAT four weeks after treatment. A total of 487 asymptomatic rectal CT infections were diagnosed and analysis was restricted to 165 TOCs from men whose only treatment had been doxycycline for seven days. The median time post-treatment for TOC was 45 days (interquartile range [IQR], 34–88). Only two patients tested CT-positive at follow-up. One had taken doxycycline only for three days; the other attended for TOC 240 days after the completion of doxycycline treatment and at this time presented with new symptoms in the context of ongoing high sexual risk. Our findings show that doxycycline 100 mg twice daily for seven days is highly effective treatment for asymptomatic rectal CT infection, achieving clearance of CT in 98.8% (163/165; 95% CI 95.4–99.9%) of cases. We advocate doxycycline for seven days as first-line therapy for asymptomatic rectal CT.
Aspects of Global Economic Intergration: Outlook for the Future

This paper comments on five aspects of globalization: (1) the gains from international flows of goods and capital; (2) the role of foreign direct investment and reasons for its increase; (3) the preventions and management of currency crises; (4) the fluctuation of relative currency values; and (5) the segmentation of global capital market.
Non-employment, age, and the economic cycle

We describe the relationship between non-employment rates and age in Britain and consider how this relationship has been changing with the economic cycle. Using data from the British Household Panel Survey for survey years 1991–2008 and Understanding Society for 2009, we show that non-employment rates have changed most for people in the youngest and oldest age groups. Young people have been hit particularly hard by the current recession and non-employment rates are higher now than during the early-1990s recession, especially for those without educational qualifications. Among older men and women, non-employment rates have been in longer-term decline and the current recession has had a less marked effect. Hence the U-shaped non-employment/age relationship has rotated clockwise over the last decade.
Crystal structure of coproporphyrinogen III oxidase reveals cofactor geometry of Radical SAM enzymes

‘Radical SAM’ enzymes generate catalytic radicals by combining a 4Fe–4S cluster and S‐adenosylmethionine (SAM) in close proximity. We present the first crystal structure of a Radical SAM enzyme, that of HemN, the Escherichia coli oxygen‐independent coproporphyrinogen III oxidase, at 2.07 Å resolution. HemN catalyzes the essential conversion of coproporphyrinogen III to protoporphyrinogen IX during heme biosynthesis. HemN binds a 4Fe–4S cluster through three cysteine residues conserved in all Radical SAM enzymes. A juxtaposed SAM coordinates the fourth Fe ion through its amide nitrogen and carboxylate oxygen. The SAM sulfonium sulfur is near both the Fe (3.5 Å) and a neighboring sulfur of the cluster (3.6 Å), allowing single electron transfer from the 4Fe–4S cluster to the SAM sulfonium. SAM is cleaved yielding a highly oxidizing 5′‐deoxyadenosyl radical. HemN, strikingly, binds a second SAM immediately adjacent to the first. It may thus successively catalyze two propionate decarboxylations. The structure of HemN reveals the cofactor geometry required for Radical SAM catalysis and sets the stage for the development of inhibitors with antibacterial function due to the uniquely bacterial occurrence of the enzyme.
Uncertainty of the Sagnac interferometer-based measurement of the modal birefringence of polarization maintaining optical fibers

Presented is an analysis of the expanded uncertainty of an indirect measurement of modal birefringence of polarization maintaining fibers, based on the Sagnac interferometer and an optical spectrum analyzer. By using this method it is easy to achieve an expanded measurement uncertainty considerably lower than 1%, at a confidence level of 0.95, in measurements of fibers, whose birefringence is independent of the wavelength, as well as fibers, whose birefringence depends on the wavelength, including birefringent photonic crystal fibers (PCF). Guidelines are given, on how to minimize the measurement uncertainty of modal birefringence of these groups of birefringent fibers.
Information Asymmetry in Consumer Perceptions of Quality-Differentiated Food Products

type="main" xml:id="joca12053-abs-0001"> Increasing consumer demand for quality-differentiated food products has given rise to a large quantity of food product classifications related to production practices and locations. Some food product claims such as native have no clear definitions and may have ambiguous connotations for different consumers. We analyze whether asymmetry in information affects consumer preferences and willingness to pay for ambiguous claims using the native attribute. An empirical application of pecans is used in the analysis to compare native and improved pecan varieties. With no evidence in the literature of additional benefits of native varieties, the results showed that consumers preferred native varieties. Furthermore tastes and preferences for all product attributes were heterogeneous; heterogeneity in preference for the native attribute was only significant at the 10% level.
Evidence in Support of Shorter-TermMarket Timing

In this article, the authors provide evidence that market timing is possible over the shorter time periods that institutional asset allocation approaches typically consider. The evidence is based on the performance of components typically used in quantitative market timing approaches as well as the finding that hedge funds have successfully practiced market timing over the past 20 years and that market timing is the source of at least half of hedge fund alpha.
Currency competition and inflation convergence

All agree partial dollarization or currency substitution is a legacy of past inflation and exchange rate instability. Some argue partial dollarization contributes to exchange rate instability. However, if Central Banks respond to dollarization by lowering money growth and maximizing seigniorage revenue, inflation falls and converges on dollar inflation rates. We present a simple model of currency competition with open capital markets to illustrate these points. Empirical tests for Latin America and about twenty other countries suggest that dollarization is both a legacy of past inflation and a constraint on future inflation. Dollarization may complicate monetary policy and prudential regulation, but one silver lining is that currency competition appears to have accelerated the sharp fall in and convergence of Latin inflation rates over the past decade.
Setting Public Service Outcome Targets: Lessons from Local Public Service Agreements

Public agencies in the UK and elsewhere are increasingly required to set outcome targets as a strategy for improving their services. A crucial element of this ‘results orientation’ is a clear definition of the desired outcomes and a specification of appropriate performance indicators. A recent example of this policy in the UK—Local Public Service Agreements (LPSAs)—is examined in this article. The authors’ analysis of the first generation of LPSAs shows that just under half of the indicators used were measures of outcome. The authors explain the ‘wicked’ issues in outcome measurement that emerged from the research.