Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Country Size and Public Good Provision

The paper studies the equilibrium size of countries. Individuals in small countries have greater influence over the nature of political decision making while individuals in large countries have the advantage of more public goods and lower tax rates. The model implies that (i) there exists excessive incentives to separate, though this need not be the case for all sets of secession rules studied; (ii) an exogenous increase in public spending decreases country size; (iii) countries with a presidential-congressional democracy are larger than countries with a parliamentary democracy. Unlike previous papers, a rise in public spending thus does not increase the equilibrium country size, which is consistent with the increase in the size of government and the number of countries observed in the last century. The discussion on secession rules puts the excessive incentives result widely found in the literature in a different perspective, and also has implications for organizations like the European Union.
Influence of isothermal solidification on microstructural development in Ni–Si–B filler metals

Abstract An examination is reported of the microstructure of joints between nickel substrates fabricated using Ni–Si–B filler metal (AWS classification BNi-3). This investigation was undertaken because the presence of residual boride and silicide phases after joining can affect the subsequent mechanical properties of the joint. The microstructures developed in the joints are compared with those formed in similarly heat treated filler metal. Various models of the transient liquid phase process are also considered and predicted times to complete isothermal solidification are compared with experimental values. An initial examination of the influence on filler metal microstructure of a ternary addition (chromium) to the substrate is included.MST/1506
A novel calcium‐binding protein is associated with tau proteins in tauopathy

Tauopathies are a group of neurological disorders characterized by the presence of intraneuronal hyperphosphorylated and filamentous tau. Mutations in the tau gene have been found in kindred with tauopathy. The expression of the human tau mutant in transgenic mice induced neurodegeneration, indicating that tau plays a central pathological role. However, the molecular mechanism leading to tau‐mediated neurodegeneration is poorly understood. To gain insights into the role that tau plays in neurodegeneration, human tau proteins were immunoprecipitated from brain lysates of the tauopathy mouse model JNPL3, which develops neurodegeneration in age‐dependent manner. In the present work, a novel EF‐hand domain‐containing protein was found associated with tau proteins in brain lysate of 12‐month‐old JNPL3 mice. The association between tau proteins and the novel identified protein appears to be induced by the neurodegeneration process as these two proteins were not found associated in young JNPL3 mice. Consistently, the novel protein co‐purified with the pathological sarkosyl insoluble tau in terminally ill JNPL3 mice. Calcium‐binding assays demonstrated that this protein binds calcium effectively. Finally, the association between tau and the novel calcium‐binding protein is conserved in human and enriched in Alzheimer’s disease brain. Taken together, the identification of a novel calcium‐binding protein associated with tau protein in terminally ill tauopathy mouse model and its confirmation in human brain lysate suggests that this association may play an important physiological and/or pathological role.
Increased Exchange Current but Normal Ca2+ Transport via Na+-Ca2+ Exchange During Cardiac Hypertrophy After Myocardial Infarction

Abstract— Hypertrophied and failing cardiac myocytes generally show alterations in intracellular Ca2+ handling associated with changes in the contractile function and arrhythmogenicity. The cardiac Na+-Ca2+ exchange (NCX) is an important mechanism for Ca2+ extrusion and cell relaxation. Its possible involvement in changes of excitation-contraction coupling (EC-coupling) with disease remains uncertain. We analyzed the NCX function in rat ventricular myocytes 5 to 6 months after experimental myocardial infarction (PMI) produced by left coronary artery ligation and from sham-operated (SO) hearts. Caged Ca2+ was dialyzed into the cytoplasm via a patch-clamp pipette and Ca2+ was released by flash photolysis to activate NCX and measure the associated currents (INaCa), whereas [Ca2+]i changes were simultaneously recorded with a confocal microscope. INaCa density normalized to the [Ca2+]i jumps was 2.6-fold higher in myocytes from PMI rats. The level of total NCX protein expression in PMI myocytes was also increased. Interestingly, although the INaCa density in PMI cells was larger, PMI and SO myocytes presented virtually identical Ca2+ transport via the NCX. This discrepancy was explained by a reduced surface/volume ratio (34.8%) observed in PMI cells. We conclude that the increase in NCX density may be a mechanism to maintain the required Ca2+ extrusion from a larger cell to allow adequate relaxation.
Innovation capacity comparison of China's information technology industrial clusters: The case of Shanghai, Kunshan, Shenzhen and Dongguan

Abstract The aim of this paper is twofold: first, to explore the effects of industrial cluster on innovation capacity, and second, to study the impact of external resources on firms' innovation capacity especially under Chinese regional economic policy. This is a critical subject that lacks sufficient analysis. Through years of investment and effort, several IT industrial clusters have developed in China with Shanghai, Kunshan, Shenzhen and Dongguan the better-known examples. These IT industrial clusters were chosen for an empirical study on the disparities in China's innovation capacity. All of the innovation capacity determinants at these four IT industrial clusters were different. It was confirmed that the regional dimension of Chinese economic policy affects firms' innovation capacity in the industrial cluster. The results also show whether the regional policy differences will moderate the cluster effect on innovation.
The association of socioeconomic disadvantage with postoperative complications after major elective cardiovascular surgery

Background: Understanding the mechanism by which both patient- and hospital level factors act in generating disparities has important implications for clinicians and policy-makers. Objective: To measure the association between socioeconomic position (SEP) and postoperative complications after major elective cardiovascular procedures. Design: Multicity hospital-based study. Subjects: Using Hospital Discharge Registries (ICD-9-CM codes), 19 310 patients were identified undergoing five cardiovascular operations (coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), valve replacement, carotid endarterectomy, major vascular bypass, repair of unruptured abdominal aorta aneurysm (AAA repair)) in four Italian cities, 1997–2000. Measures: For each patient, a five-level median income index by census block of residence was calculated. In-hospital 30-day mortality, cardiovascular complications (CCs) and non-cardiovascular complications (NCCs) were the outcomes. Odds ratios (ORs) were estimated with multilevel logistic regression adjusting for city of residence, gender, age and comorbidities taking into account hospital and individual dependencies. Main results: In-hospital 30-day mortality varied by type of surgery (CABG 3.7%, valve replacement 5.7%, carotid endarterectomy 0.9%, major vascular bypass 8.8%, AAA repair 4.0%). Disadvantaged people were more likely to die after CABG (lowest vs highest income OR 1.93, p trend 0.023). For other surgeries, the relationship between SEP and mortality was less clear. For cardiac surgery, SEP differences in mortality were higher for publicly funded patients in low-volume hospitals (lowest vs highest income OR 3.90, p trend 0.039) than for privately funded patients (OR 1.46, p trend 0.444); however, the difference in the SEP gradients was not statistically significant. Conclusions: Disadvantaged people seem particularly vulnerable to mortality after cardiovascular surgery. Efforts are needed to identify structural factors that may enlarge SEP disparities within hospitals.
Sarcopenia and sarcopenic obesity

Sarcopenia is an age-associated loss of muscle mass and decline in muscle strength; it is common in older adults and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Despite its prevalence, there is currently no universally adopted definition of sarcopenia. In addition to low muscle mass measurements, recent research has recognized the importance of muscle strength and physical performance. Aging induces changes in body composition, such as an increase in visceral fat and reduced muscle mass. Recently, the new concept of sarcopenic obesity has emerged, reflecting a combination of sarcopenia and obesity. The rapidly increasing prevalence and serious consequences of sarcopenic obesity are recognized as a critical public health risk in the aging society. Sarcopenia and obesity share several pathophysiological mechanisms, and they may potentiate each other. The present paper reviews the definitions and techniques used to measure sarcopenia, as well as the health outcomes of sarcopenic obesity. It also highlights the role of diminished muscle mass and strength in cardiometabolic disease mortality. Additional research may be needed to promote the identification and management of sarcopenia and sarcopenic obesity in the elderly population.
Net transfer of nutrients to the duodenum and disappearance of n-alkanes in the reticulo-rumen and the hindgut of sheep fed grass/legume combinations

An experiment was carried out to examine the effect of increasing the proportion of Wimmera ryegrass hay in a lucerne hay-based diet on net transfer of nutrients to the intestine, and on the disappearance of n-alkanes in the reticulo-rumen and the hindgut of sheep. Following a latin square design, four adult ewes were fed 1:0, 0·33:0·67, 0·67:0·33 and 0:1 proportions of legume and grass. Increasing the proportion of ryegrass in the diet linearly decreased the intake of DM (P= 0·017), organic matter (P= 0·021) and N (P= 0·001). However, neutral-detergent fibre intake was not affected (P= 0·148), nor was its digestibility coefficient (P>0·10). Diet had no effect on duodenal flows of nutrients (P>0·10), although the proportion of N intake (NI) recovered at the duodenum as non-NH3 N (NAN) increased linearly with Lolium rigidum in the diet (P= 0·002). Full recovery of NI as NAN was achieved at NH3 concentrations in the rumen below 110 g/l. Microbial N contribution to NAN varied in a quadratic manner (P< 0·05) with the proportion of grass in the diet, although efficiency of microbial synthesis was not affected (P>0·10). Duodenal recovery of consumed n-alkanes was not affected by diet and was complete for those present in higher concentrations in the forages. Isolated rumen bacteria contained significant amounts of n-alkanes, contributing to the duodenal flow of these hydrocarbons in variable proportions depending on the diet consumed.
Wallerian Degeneration and Recovery of Motor Nerves after Multiple Focused Cold Therapies

Introduction: A device has been developed to apply freezing temperatures to temporarily impede nerve conduction, resulting in inhibition of voluntary skeletal muscle contraction. This device was designed as an alternative to the neurotoxins usually used to treat movement disorders. Methods: We evaluated the effects of single and 3 repeat treatments with a cryoprobe device (−55°C) on a sciatic nerve rat model. Long‐term effects of repeated treatment were evaluated through assessments of physiological function and histological analysis. Results: There was consistent weakening of physiological function after each treatment, with recovery of normal function by 8 weeks posttreatment. Histological findings showed axonal degeneration with no disruption to the epineurial or perineurial structures. Progressive axonal regeneration was followed by normal recovery by 24 weeks post‐treatment. Conclusions: Low‐temperature treatment of motor nerves did not result in permanent or long‐term changes to nerve function or structure. Muscle Nerve 51: 268–275, 2015
Characterization of electroplated Ni/SiC and Ni/Al_2O_3 composite coatings bearing nanoparticles

Ultrafine SiC and Al_2O_3 particles with 30–50 nm sizes were used to codeposit with Ni in a sulfamate bath to form composite coatings. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the layers were investigated by x-ray diffractometry, scanning and transmission electron microscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, microindentation, and wear testing. The microstructural results revealed that 7 vol% of SiC or Al_2O_3 particles dispersed randomly in the Ni matrix. The addition of the ultrafine SiC or Al_2O_3powder into the Ni matrix apparently reduced the size of Ni grains during the electroplating and inhibited the grain growth during heat treatment. The microhardness and wear resistance were improved by the addition of SiC and Al_2O_3 particles, especially for SiC/Ni samples after heat treatment at 400 °C for 24 h. The mechanisms of hardening and wearing of Ni-based electroplated layers are discussed.
A Robust Two‐Step Procedure for Quad‐Dominant Remeshing

We propose a new technique for quad‐dominant remeshing which separates the local regularity requirements from the global alignment requirements by working in two steps. In the first step, we apply a slight variant of variational shape approximation in order to segment the input mesh into patches which capture the global structure of the processed object. Then we compute an optimized quad‐mesh for every patch by generating a finite set of candidate curves and applying a combinatorial optimization procedure. Since the optimization is performed independently for each patch, we can afford more complex operations while keeping the overall computation times at a reasonable level. Our quad‐meshing technique is robust even for noisy meshes and meshes with isotropic or flat regions since it does not rely on the generation of curves by integration along estimated principal curvature directions. Instead we compute a conformal parametrization for each patch and generate the quad‐mesh from curves with minimum bending energy in the 2D parameter domain. Mesh consistency between patches is guaranteed by simply using the same set of sample points along the common boundary curve. The resulting quad‐meshes are of high‐quality locally (shape of the quads) as well as globally (global alignment) which allows us to even generate fairly coarse quad‐meshes that can be used as Catmull‐Clark control meshes.
Validation of self diagnosis of high blood pressure in a sample of the Spanish EPIC cohort: overall agreement and predictive values

STUDY OBJECTIVE High blood pressure is a variable related to several chronic conditions whose repeated measurement in large cohort studies is often not feasible having to rely on the self reporting of the subjects. The aim of the study is to validate such self diagnosis in a sample of members from the Spanish EPIC cohort study. DESIGN Comparison of high blood pressure self diagnosis with the information provided by the personal medical record drawn from the primary health centre of reference for such population. SETTING A small town near the EPIC-Murcia centre, one of five Spanish EPIC centres located in the south east, where inclusion in the cohort was offered to the general population. PARTICIPANTS The agreement between self reported high blood pressure status and data from medical records was measured in a representative sample of men and women (n= 248) aged 30–69 years. Medical records were studied for a diagnosis of high blood pressure, an anti-hypertensive pharmacological treatment or subject's inclusion in a hypertension control programme run in the medical centre only for hypertensive people (definite high blood pressure cases). As well, in the absence of such a diagnosis, medical annotations of systolic or diastolic high blood pressure⩾ 140/90 mm Hg (possible high blood pressure cases) were considered. Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values and κ scores were calculated for all, definite and possible high blood pressure cases. Variables associated with the probability of having a true positive or negative self report of high blood pressure were also tested. MAIN RESULTS As expected, sensitivity was higher among definite cases (72.7%) than among possible cases (31.6%). Accordingly, the agreement between self report and medical record was higher for definite cases (κ = 0.65) than for possible (κ = 0.29) cases leading to a moderate overall agreement for all cases (κ = 0.58; 95% CI: 0.47, 0.69). Having some level of education (OR: 0.31; 95% CI: 0.09, 1.05) was negatively associated to a true self report of high blood pressure while being female was positively associated (OR: 4.01; 95% CI: 1.04, 16.8). No variable showed any association with having a true self report of being normotensive. CONCLUSIONS High blood pressure self report shows a moderate agreement with medical information in this cohort allowing it to be used, with caution, as a surrogate variable of actual blood pressure status. However, because of its moderate sensitivity, it is not possible to rule out some underestimation when using self reported high blood pressure information for high blood pressure frequency measurements such as prevalence or incidence rates. This underestimation will be higher among men and educated people.
Characterization of the Immune Status of CD8+ T Cells in Oral Lesions of Human Immunodeficiency Virus-Infected Persons with Oropharyngeal Candidiasis

ABSTRACT Oropharyngeal candidiasis (OPC) remains the most common oral infection in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease. In a high percentage of HIV+ persons with reduced CD4+ T cells, oral lesions with Candida present at the outer epithelium have an accumulation of CD8+ T cells at the epithelium-lamina propria interface associated with reduced expression of the mucosal cell-trafficking adhesion molecule E-cadherin. The purpose of the present study was to characterize the immune status of these CD8+ T cells. Immunohistochemical staining for phenotypic and activation and costimulation markers was performed on frozen biopsy tissue sections from HIV+ OPC+ persons with accumulated CD8+ T cells. CD8+ T cells consisted primarily of central memory cells by virtue of positive CD45RO (memory) and CD27 (central memory) expression. However, concomitant negative expression of CD62L and CCR7 (effector memory) was suggestive of a transitioning memory phenotype within the tissue. Despite this, the cells are considered to be activated on the basis of positive expression of CD69. The CD8+ T cells are not considered to be NK T cells or anti-HIV CD8+ T cells because of negative or low expression of CD161 and vascular cell adhesion molecule, respectively. These results suggest that the accumulated mucosal migratory-challenged CD8+ T cells are otherwise normal memory T cells in an activated state.
Explosively Driven Fragmentation Behavior for Structural Components and Shatterproof Effect of Wall Doubling

One-dimensional symmetrical explosive loadings are applied to expand structural components: tubular cylinders, spherical shells and rings of 304 stainless steel and double and single walled cylinders of an aluminum alloy, A5052 to fragmentation, and the effects of wall thicknesses, explosive driver diameters and the constant proportionality of the in-plane biaxial stretching rates are investigated on the deformation and fracture behavior of three types of single walled structures and shatterproof behavior for double walled cylinders experimentally and numerically. In the cylinder tests, the driver is a column of high explosive PETN, inserted coaxially into the bore of a cylinder and initiated by exploding a fine wire bundle at the column axis using a discharge current. In case of the ring tests, ring specimens are placed onto a cylinder charged with the PETN as an expansion driver, and for sphere tests, a specimen filled with the PETN is also initiated by exploding a fine copper wire line with small length located at the central point. Observation results of deformation have shown the final maximum in-plane stretching rate order of , and fracture evaluations on recovered fragments are discussed indicating the need of modified fragmentation model for the structural components. In the double walled cylinder tests, only for lowermost amount of the explosive the outer cylinder has almost caught the fragments of inner cylinder, revealing that the damage phenomena are much different from those for single walled ones.
Paraquat Prohibition and Change in the Suicide Rate and Methods in South Korea

The annual suicide rate in South Korea is the highest among the developed countries. Paraquat is a highly lethal herbicide, commonly used in South Korea as a means for suicide. We have studied the effect of the 2011 paraquat prohibition on the national suicide rate and method of suicide in South Korea. We obtained the monthly suicide rate from 2005 to 2013 in South Korea. In our analyses, we adjusted for the effects of celebrity suicides, and economic, meteorological, and seasonal factors on suicide rate. We employed change point analysis to determine the effect of paraquat prohibition on suicide rate over time, and the results were verified by structural change analysis, an alternative statistical method. After the paraquat prohibition period in South Korea, there was a significant reduction in the total suicide rate and suicide rate by poisoning with herbicides or fungicides in all age groups and in both genders. The estimated suicide rates during this period decreased by 10.0% and 46.1% for total suicides and suicides by poisoning of herbicides or fungicides, respectively. In addition, method substitution effect of paraquat prohibition was found in suicide by poisoning by carbon monoxide, which did not exceed the reduction in the suicide rate of poisoning with herbicides or fungicides. In South Korea, paraquat prohibition led to a lower rate of suicide by paraquat poisoning, as well as a reduction in the overall suicide rate. Paraquat prohibition should be considered as a national suicide prevention strategy in developing and developed countries alongside careful observation for method substitution effects.