Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Structural Filters for Monetary Analysis: The Inflationary Movements of Money in the Euro Area

The quantity theory of money predicts a positive relationship between monetary growth and inflation over long-run horizons. However, in the short-run, transitory shocks to either money or inflation can obscure the inflationary signal stemming from money. The spectral analysis of time series provides filtering tools for removing fluctuations associated with certain frequency movements. However, use of these techniques in isolation is often criticised as being an oversimplistic statistical exercise potentially void of economic content. The objective of this paper is to develop ‘structural’ filtering techniques that rely on the use of spectral analysis in combination with a structural economic model with well identified shocks. A ‘money augmented’ Phillips curve that links inflation to money tightness and demand shocks of medium to long-term persistence is presented. It is shown that medium to long-term movements in inflation are mostly associated with the estimated monetary indicators. JEL Classification: E31, E50, C32
Reading and Writing Difficulties Among Prison Inmates: A Matter of Experiential Factors Rather Than Dyslexic Problems

One common feature in research addressing the prevalence of dyslexic problems among prison inmates has been to ignore the impact of sociocultural and educational factors that might influence reading and writing skills among adults. As a consequence, prison inmates or juvenile delinquents have been consistently compared with norms obtained for either an adult population or same-age comparison groups with more favorable opportunities to develop reading and writing skills. This study was primarily designed to minimize these shortcomings. Data from a sample of 82 prison inmates derived from three different prisons were collected. They were compared to a group of adults equated on educational level, reading habits, and socioeconomic status. A reading-level matched group of students between the ages of 13 and 15 years was also included for comparisons. The results showed that prison inmates and adult controls performed almost identically on all tests used to measure reading and writing skills and that the prevalence of dyslexic problems among the inmates varied between 6.1% and 14.6%, depending on the definition employed. It was also observed that prison inmates performed better than or at the same level as the reading-level matched group on the same measures, including phonological-processing tasks. Less than 10% of the inmates exhibited phonological deficits assumed to be the core deficits in dyslexia. Our conclusion was that prison inmates in Sweden possess reading and writing skills that are comparable to those found in an adult population and that the occurrence of dyslexic problems is very close to population incidences.
Correlation between localization, age, and chromosomal imbalances in ependymal tumours as detected by CGH

Ependymal tumours (ETs) are gliomas that arise from the ependymal lining of the cerebral ventricles and from the remnants of the central canal of the spinal cord. Both clinical and genetic studies suggest that distinct genetic subtypes of ETs exist, the subtypes being correlated with patient age and/or tumour site. In the present study, the tumour genome of 20 ETs (15 adult and five paediatric cases) was screened for chromosomal imbalances by comparative genomic hybridization (CGH). The most frequently detected imbalances were −22q (75%), −10q (65%), −21 (50%), −16p (50%), −1p (45%), +4q (45%), −10p (45%), −2q (40%), −6 (40%), −19 (40%), −2p (35%), −3p (35%), and −16q (35%). Comparison of the chromosomal imbalances detected in ETs with those previously reported in oligodendroglial and astrocytic tumours revealed that in this respect ETs show similarities to these other gliomas. By combining these results with those of a recent study of Zheng et al. and Hirose et al., it was found that although ETs from different sites and from adult and paediatric patients show overlap at the CGH level, some chromosomal imbalances occur predominantly in a certain category. In adult patients, spinal ETs relatively often showed +2, +7, +12, and −14q; infratentorial ETs −22; and supratentorial ETs −9. In addition, in posterior fossa ETs, −6 and +9 were much more frequent in adults than in children. It is concluded that the genetic background of ETs is complex and partly determined by tumour site, histopathological subtype, and age of the patient. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Isokinetic Leg Strength and Power in Elite Handball Players

Abstract Isokinetic strength evaluation of the knee flexion and extension in concentric mode of contraction is an important part of the comprehensive evaluation of athletes. The aims of this study were to evaluate the isokinetic knee peak torque in both the extension and flexion movement in the dominant and non-dominant leg, and the relationship with jumping performance. Twelve elite male handball players from the top Spanish handball division voluntary participated in the study (age 27.68 ± 4.12 years; body mass 92.89 ± 12.34 kg; body height 1.90 ± 0.05 m). The knee extensor and flexor muscle peak torque of each leg were concentrically measured at 60°/s and 180°/s with an isokinetic dynamometer. The Squat Jump and Countermovement Jump were performed on a force platform to determine power and vertical jump height. Non-significant differences were observed between legs in the isokinetic knee extension (dominant= 2.91 ± 0.53 Nm/kg vs non-dominant = 2.70 ± 0.47 Nm/kg at 60°/s; dominant = 1.90 ± 0.31 Nm/kg vs non-dominant = 1.83 ± 0.29 Nm/kg at 180°/s) and flexion peak torques (dominant = 1.76 ± 0.29 Nm/kg vs non-dominant = 1.72 ± 0.39 Nm/kg at 60°/s; dominant = 1.30 ± 0.23 Nm/kg vs non-dominant = 1.27 ± 0.35 Nm/kg at 180°/s). Low and non-significant correlation coefficients were found between the isokinetic peak torques and vertical jumping performance (SJ = 31.21 ± 4.32 cm; CMJ = 35.89 ± 4.20 cm). Similar isokinetic strength was observed between the legs; therefore, no relationship was found between the isokinetic knee flexion and extension peak torques as well as vertical jumping performance in elite handball players.
Preparing Student Teachers for Curriculum-Making.

A dominant feature in the Nordic countries during the 1980s and the 1990s has been the process of decentralization and deregulation in different societal sectors. Within the educational sector this change has affected the steering system by offering the local schools new possibilities of acting autonomously. The aim of the reforms is radical because it implies far-reaching implications for teachers' daily work and for the preservice and in-service education of teachers. The focal point of the reform ambition is a school-based curriculum. From the perspective of teacher education, the new situation raises questions about the responsibility for and manner of preparing student teachers for remarkable changes in the educational system. This paper highlights characteristic features of the ongoing process of change with a focus on possible measures to be taken in teacher education in order to face a reform which might result in a restructuring of the profession. T he illustration of the move from a centralized .
New Tests of Spatial Segregation Based on Nearest Neighbour Contingency Tables

Abstract. The spatial clustering of points from two or more classes (or species) has important implications in many fields and may cause segregation or association, which are two major types of spatial patterns between the classes. These patterns can be studied using a nearest neighbour contingency table (NNCT) which is constructed using the frequencies of nearest neighbour types. Three new multivariate clustering tests are proposed based on NNCTs using the appropriate sampling distribution of the cell counts in a NNCT. The null patterns considered are random labelling (RL) and complete spatial randomness (CSR) of points from two or more classes. The finite sample performance of these tests are compared with other tests in terms of empirical size and power. It is demonstrated that the newly proposed NNCT tests perform relatively well compared with their competitors and the tests are illustrated using two example data sets.
The Politics of Inclusion: Black Political Incorporation and the Use of Lethal Force

Scholarship on the incorporation of Blacks in government and politics has focused on electoral gains and representational styles, but the broad, substantive benefits of inclusion have yet to be established. Utilizing data from 1994 to 2004 for 30 of the 60 largest U.S. cities, random-effects negative binomial regressions for panel data show that the political incorporation of Black elected officials reduces the likelihood of the incidence of lethal force over time, with significance reaching the . 01 level in each of 3 models. This study confirms that inclusion contributes to democratic policing by reducing enforcement costs and increasing legitimacy.
Police occupational culture: classic themes, altered times

Understandings of police culture rely heavily on ethnographies conducted several decades ago. In these classic accounts, authors have identified recurring themes within police dispositions and practices over time and space. There have, however, been important developments within policing contexts, some of which could be expected to transform the cultural ethos that has long underpinned the police identity. This article draws upon ethnographic research conducted in an English police force to explore how much of the classic characteristics of police culture have survived the period of transition. It shows that the underlying world view of officers displays remarkable continuity with older patterns, and argues that police culture endures because the basic pressures associated with the police role have not been removed. In light of this apparent durability of cultural themes, the article calls into question the increasingly accepted view that orthodox conceptions of police culture no longer make any sense.
The Effects of Motivation on Narrative Content and Structure

This study examined the effects of motivation on the content and structure of narratives. Forty triads of participants engaged in a 15-minute teamwork task. Following this task, participants were given either positive or negative feedback on their performance. Participants were then separated and told to write a narrative concerning their experiences. Participants were given instructions designed to induce either a self-interest motivation or an accuracy motivation when creating the narratives. Results showed that participants experiencing a self-interest motive constructed narratives emphasizing the participants’ positive contributions to the group task. Also, participants with a self-interest motive were more likely to emphasize self-related cognitions and actions. Narratives of accuracy-motivated participants included more details, were more focused on the consequences of actions, and had a tighter causal structure. Finally, feedback also affected both content and structure. Thus, motivation influences not just the content of a story but also how a story is constructed.
Effect of Trap Color, Height, and Orientation on the Capture of Yellow and Stick Tea Thrips (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) and Nontarget Insects in Tea Gardens

Abstract Two thrips species—the yellow tea thrips (Scirtothrips dorsalis Hood) and the stick tea thrips (Dendrothrips minowai Priesner)—are serious pests affecting tea plants in southern China. Although the stick tea thrips is primarily restricted to southern China, the yellow tea thrips is gradually proliferating worldwide. Colored sticky card traps may be useful for monitoring and capturing these species, but a systematic analysis has not been conducted to identify the most effective trap color, height, and orientation. We performed indoor experiments using an orthogonal experimental design, as well as field tests in tea gardens, to identify the color most attractive to the two thrips species. Field tests were then conducted using color-optimized traps—lawngreen (RGB: 124, 252, 0) for yellow thrips and lime (RGB: 0, 255, 0) for stick tea thrips—to determine the most effective trap height and orientation. The greatest numbers of both yellow and stick tea thrips were captured on traps positioned 0–20 cm above the tea canopy in an east–west orientation. We also evaluated the performance of the color-optimized sticky card traps compared with commercially available yellow ones. Significantly more yellow and stick tea thrips and fewer natural enemies were captured on the color-optimized traps than on commercial ones. Although additional research is needed to explain the responses of the two different species and to increase trap effectiveness, our findings should assist in the control of these harmful insects.
An evaluation of the preservation of residual hearing with the Nucleus® Contour Advance™ electrode

Conclusion. Our study results confirm that it is possible to preserve preoperative hearing levels in the majority of subjects when using the Nucleus 24 Contour Advance provided that there is adherence to the major principles of ‘soft surgery’. Our study group demonstrated that 71–86% of subjects showed preservation of preoperative hearing thresholds at 6 months to varying degree. Objectives. The aim of the study was to assess the degree of residual hearing preserved postoperatively in a group of standard cochlear implant (CI) candidates following implantation via soft surgery with a Nucleus® 24 Contour Advance™ CI. Surgical technique variations from the soft surgery guidelines provided were assessed and their potential impact upon the conservation of residual hearing was examined. Subjects and methods. A prospective multicentre study involving a within-subject repeated measures design with each subject acting as their own control was performed. Pure-tone audiometric thresholds were assessed and compared in both implanted and contralateral ears for each subject preoperatively as baseline measures and at 6 months postoperatively. Surgeons were asked to complete a questionnaire to capture various aspects of the surgical technique used for each subject. Variations in the surgical technique performed were examined for potential correlation with conservation of residual hearing. Twenty-eight adult subjects, with a severe to profound hearing impairment, were enrolled in the study across eight implant clinics in four countries. Results. In all, 36% of subjects demonstrated preservation of thresholds to within 10 dB of preoperative thresholds across the frequency range (0.25, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0 and 4.0 KHz) and for the low frequency range (0.25–1.0 KHz). Approximately two-thirds of subjects demonstrated preservation of preoperative thresholds to within 20 dB. Preservation of low frequency thresholds post-implant was shown to correlate moderately with cochleostomy site, being more likely for subjects with a site anterior-inferior to the round window but also possible with inferior locations; weakly with cochleostomy size, being more likely when smaller than 1.2 mm; and also with the use of Healon® as a sealant and lubricant. Preservation of hearing thresholds across up to 4000 Hz was shown to correlate weakly with the use of suction following opening of the endostium and with bone dust contamination, both having a negative effect upon preservation, while no correlation was observed with the preservation of thresholds for low frequencies alone.
Four-Year Trends in Cardiometabolic Risk Factors according to Baseline Abdominal Obesity Status in West-African Adults: The Benin Study

The study examined whether abdominal obesity (AO) according to waist circumference was associated with more unfavourable changes in other cardiometabolic risk (CMR) factors in sub-Saharan Africans. The study included 541 randomly selected and apparently healthy subjects (50% women) aged 25–60 years. Complete data at baseline, 24, and 48 months later was available in 366 subjects. AO was associated with higher CMR at baseline and over the follow-up period, except for high blood pressure. A significantly higher incidence of high ratio of total cholesterol : HDL-cholesterol (TC/HDL-C) was associated with AO. Controlling for WC changes, age, baseline diet, and lifestyles, the relative risk (RR) of low HDL-C and high TC/HDL-C was 3.2 (95% CI 1.06–9.61) and 7.4 (95% CI 2.01–25.79), respectively, in AO men; the RR was not significant in women. Over a four-year period, AO therefore appeared associated with an adverse evolution of cholesterolemia in the study population.
Teacher‐Pupil Interaction in Bulgarian Romani Classrooms

Abstract The aim of this paper is to present the manner in which teachers and pupils interact in Bulgarian primary schools that are characterised by Roma attendance. For this purpose research was conducted with three groups of Roma children — Romani‐speaking, Turkish‐speaking and Romanian‐speaking children, who live in different parts of Bulgaria. The research results showed that teachers use more or less the same oral instructions, approaches and methods for introducing Bulgarian to Roma children as they do for teaching Bulgarian to children who have Bulgarian as their mother tongue. The teachers fail to take into consideration the limited knowledge that Roma children have of the Bulgarian language and expect the children to understand their instructions. There are no special methods or approaches for introducing Bulgarian to Roma children that take into consideration the fact that they are bilingual, and they cannot be taught in the same manner as monolingual Bulgarian children.
Retention, persistence and success in on‐campus higher education, and their enhancement in open and distance learning

Terms such as retention and persistence reflect the interests of different parties. Much of the empirical and theoretical literature deals with retention from a ‘supply‐side’ perspective. This article has three main sections. The first consists of a summary of recent empirical findings from surveys of students who left their on‐campus programmes prematurely. The second section, which discusses a range of theoretical formulations, begins to shift the thrust of the article from on‐campus programmes towards open and distance learning. The third considers some implications for persistence in open and distance learning that follow from the preceding two main sections. The article concludes by stressing the importance of the student experience.
“Everything Changed”: Relational Turning Point Events in College Teacher–Student Relationships from Teachers' Perspectives

The purpose of this study was to investigate college teachers' experiences of relational turning points with their students, as well as how these turning point events may affect teacher outcomes. Teachers who were able to identify a relational turning point event with a student (n=306, 78.5% of the overall sample) completed open- and closed-ended questions about the event. Analysis of participants' responses yielded four distinct supracategories of relational turning point events, comprised of consultation, transgression, intimation, and realization of student potential or success. Teachers who reported intimation and realization of student potential or success turning point events also indicated increased liking for students, teacher–student interpersonal relationships, teacher self-efficacy, teacher motivation, and teacher job satisfaction. Teachers who reported transgression turning points indicated decreased liking for students, teacher motivation, and teacher job satisfaction. Teachers who reported consultation turning point events indicated either increased or decreased teacher outcomes depending on the nature of the event. At the end of the article, readers are invited to engage in reflective practice and move to action regarding the findings of this study.
Spatiotemporal specificity of contrast adaptation in mouse primary visual cortex

Prolonged viewing of high contrast gratings alters perceived stimulus contrast, and produces characteristic changes in the contrast response functions of neurons in the primary visual cortex (V1). This is referred to as contrast adaptation. Although contrast adaptation has been well-studied, its underlying neural mechanisms are not well-understood. Therefore, we investigated contrast adaptation in mouse V1 with the goal of establishing a quantitative description of this phenomenon in a genetically manipulable animal model. One interesting aspect of contrast adaptation that has been observed both perceptually and in single unit studies is its specificity for the spatial and temporal characteristics of the stimulus. Therefore, in the present work we determined if the magnitude of contrast adaptation in mouse V1 neurons was dependent on the spatial frequency and temporal frequency of the adapting grating. We used protocols that were readily comparable with previous studies in cats and primates, and also a novel contrast ramp stimulus that characterized the spatial and temporal specificity of contrast adaptation simultaneously. Similar to previous work in higher mammals, we found that contrast adaptation was strongest when the spatial frequency and temporal frequency of the adapting grating matched the test stimulus. This suggests similar mechanisms underlying contrast adaptation across animal models and indicates that the rapidly advancing genetic tools available in mice could be used to provide insights into this phenomenon.
Global patterns of terrestrial vertebrate diversity and conservation

Significance Identifying priority areas for biodiversity is essential for directing conservation resources. We mapped global priority areas using the latest data on mammals, amphibians, and birds at a scale 100 times finer than previous assessments. Priority areas have a higher—but still insufficient—rate of protection than the global average. We identify several important areas currently ignored by biodiversity hotspots, the current leading priority map. As the window of opportunity for expanding the global protected area network begins to close, identifying priorities at a scale practical for local action ensures our findings will help protect biodiversity most effectively. Identifying priority areas for biodiversity is essential for directing conservation resources. Fundamentally, we must know where individual species live, which ones are vulnerable, where human actions threaten them, and their levels of protection. As conservation knowledge and threats change, we must reevaluate priorities. We mapped priority areas for vertebrates using newly updated data on >21,000 species of mammals, amphibians, and birds. For each taxon, we identified centers of richness for all species, small-ranged species, and threatened species listed with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Importantly, all analyses were at a spatial grain of 10 × 10 km, 100 times finer than previous assessments. This fine scale is a significant methodological improvement, because it brings mapping to scales comparable with regional decisions on where to place protected areas. We also mapped recent species discoveries, because they suggest where as-yet-unknown species might be living. To assess the protection of the priority areas, we calculated the percentage of priority areas within protected areas using the latest data from the World Database of Protected Areas, providing a snapshot of how well the planet’s protected area system encompasses vertebrate biodiversity. Although the priority areas do have more protection than the global average, the level of protection still is insufficient given the importance of these areas for preventing vertebrate extinctions. We also found substantial differences between our identified vertebrate priorities and the leading map of global conservation priorities, the biodiversity hotspots. Our findings suggest a need to reassess the global allocation of conservation resources to reflect today’s improved knowledge of biodiversity and conservation.