Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Back to Black … and Green? Location and policy interventions in contemporary neighborhood housing markets

The post-war flight from US central cities led to widespread decay and devaluation in downtown housing markets. In a reversal of fortunes, distant housing prices soared while the dense urban core lagged. However, over the course of the 2000–2006 housing bubble, we find that the markets in often ignored mid-sized cities shifted back to the downtowns. This research examines the factors influencing neighborhood housing values, including location and public policy interventions. Our analysis period begins with 2000 and has two end points: one at the close of the national housing bubble in 2006 and another in 2008 during the housing market collapse. Based on OLS and spatial regression analyses of percent increases in neighborhood housing values for Louisville, Kentucky, we find that higher downtown property increases are due in large part to historic preservation districts, a university–community partnership, and a HOPE VI site. We confirm that our findings hold even through the 2007–2008 housing crisis. We ultimately theorize that higher downtown appreciation is due to three factors: green urbanism, planning/policy successes, and the surprising non-significance of the traditionally negative predictor race (nonwhite percentage).
Predictors of Hospitalization among Children on ART in Ethiopia: a Cohort study

Background Substantial progress has been made in the management of pediatric HIV infection in Ethiopia with the implementation of mother-to-child-prevention programs. Since the introduction of HAART in 2005, mortality among HIV-infected children has reduced while the rate of hospitalization was expected to rise. The purpose of this study, therefore, was to assess predictors of hospitalization in children on ART in seven university referral hospitals in Ethiopia. Methods A prospective cohort study design was employed on children age 0–18 years as part of a multisite observational study. ART-experienced eligible and ART-naïve children with HIV/AIDS were enrolled into the Advanced Clinical Monitoring (ACM) till December 31, 2012 were included. From the database, information on hospitalization and other independent variables were extracted. Analysis was done using both SPSS for Windows version 16.0 and STATA. Descriptive analyses and modeling was done using logistic regression. Results Of the 405 children on ART (174 experienced, 231 naive), 86 (20.7%) were hospitalized for various reasons; two children were excluded since they were hospitalized for unrelated conditions (appendicitis and burn). Fifty one (60.7%) of the eighty four admitted children were hospitalized in the first six months of ART initiation. Of the independent variables, only the presence of opportunistic infections and duration on ART were significantly associated with hospitalization both on bi-variable and multivariable analyses (P-value <0.05). As the duration on ART increased by one month, the risk of hospitalization decreased by 5.4%, which is statistically significant (P < 0.001). Whereas the incidence (number) of OI's increased by one, the risk of being hospitalized increased by 35.2% (P = 0.002). Of the individual opportunistic infections, pneumonia was found to be the only predictor of hospitalization (P-value = 0.002). Conclusion This study showed that nearly two-third of the hospitalization was within 6 months of initiation of ART; and presence of OI and duration on ART were the only predictors of hospitalization.
Medical Hotel in the Growth of Global Medical Tourism

ABSTRACT This study was designed to identify international patient-travelers’ perceived advantages of staying at a medical hotel; to examine associations among perceived advantages, price perceptions, and willingness to stay by considering price perception as mediator; to investigate relative importance among advantage components; and to identify differences in study variables between first-time international medical tourists and experienced/repeat travelers. Eleven advantages were identified in a qualitative study. Findings from a quantitative analysis indicated that dimensions of perceived advantages, price perception, and willingness to stay are, in general, significantly associated. In particular, among advantage components, a decisive role was found for physical convenience in willingness to stay and time/effort savings in perceived price. In addition, level of perceived advantages, price perception, and stay willingness were found to differ significantly between first-timers and repeaters. There has been limited research on the medical hotel. The findings provided valuable insights for both medical-tourism researchers and practitioners.
Addressing genetics misconceptions with an educational game.

This dissertation describes the design, development and formative evaluation of an educational adventure game entitled Food for Thought to address student misconceptions in genetics within the context of a development research paradigm, and reflects on the lessons learnt during the process. The current investigation was a response to an assessment of learning misconceptions in genetics. Several factors were identified as contributing to these problems with a focus on the abstract nature of the subject and the decontextualised manner in which students encounter these concepts. The tenacity of the problem suggested the need for of a novel intervention. A constructivist concept of learning emphasises active learners internally constructing their own meaning in rich complex environments. While not a theory of teaching, it offers a number of principles to guide the design of learning environments. Elements from computer based adventure games embody aspects of these principles and offer possibilities of developing a tool to address student misconceptions. Here, learners may explore biological concepts as they engage in contextual problems embedded in the narrative structure of a detailed and immersive virtual world. The implementation of the design was guided by a number of conceptual models, namely the Game Object Model (GOM) and Game Achievement Model (GAM) which clarify the relationship between pedagogical principles and game design elements. The identification of specific learning misconceptions provided the basis for developing a set of learning objectives for the game which were used as a foundation for the design of the environment, which was then created using a combination of commercial and proprietary 3D graphic and image editing software. Both the GAM and GOM are effective tools for categorizing a variety of different components in a very complex development. A formative evaluation of the game was undertaken probing both expert and user (student) responses through post-gameplay questionnaires and interviews. The game was favourably received, with feedback and suggestions on improvements. Most notable was the need for greater guidance in the game environment. In addition Activity theory was employed as framework of analysis. Activity systems for both players and the designer were developed and contradictions within and between them analysed. These were used to modify the original designer activity system and in so doing refine the practice of game design in the context of the development research paradigm.
Flooding, vulnerability and coping strategies: local responses to a global threat

Recent scientific outputs suggest that climate change is likely to cause shifts in the global pattern and intensity of flood events, in some regions increasing the exposure of populations to severe flooding. Potential future risks underline the importance of research and intervention work aimed at strengthening local capacity to cope with flooding, especially for the poor in developing countries. This paper reviews recent theoretical and applied research on vulnerability and adaptive capacity of households and communities in flood-prone areas. It traces the growing tendency for interventions to prioritize action at the local scale and suggests directions for further research to deepen understanding of actual and potential coping strategies.
A Micro Level Analysis of Rent Premium, Price Determinants and Submarkets Using Hedonic Model

The malleability of the urban housing markets is an indication that price equalisation in the housing market would not hold, to the extent that, reliable housing price measurement would be a difficult task. This paper which is exploratory in nature attempts to examine house prices at a micro level by employing hedonic pricing model to empirically uncover the rent premium and price determinants of Federal University of Technology (FUT) residential staff housing units. The results of the market-wide hedonic model reveal a pecuniary advantage in form of rent premium (N87533) which tenants of FUT owned housing units benefit over tenants who are FUT staff but living in identical units in the free sector. By disaggregating house rental prices, the results of the hedonic model provide insights into the variables which are significant determinants of FUT residential quarters specific rental prices. This paper also provide evidence of a posit FUT owned residential submarket based on significant differential implicit prices which exist between FUT owned residential quarters and those properties which are occupied by FUT staff, but not owned by FUT. This result is considered appropriate as it is further reinforced by comparing the weighted standard error of FUT owned model with the standard error of market-wide model and assessing the significance of the reduction in standard error using chow test.
Algos Gone Wild: Risk in the World of Automated Trading Strategies

There are risks in automated trading strategies that can and have impacted the financial markets. Algo and high-frequency trading have taken two-thirds or more of our equity market's volumes and are expanding into other asset classes and beyond our borders. As a result, we are exposed to potentially significant errors resulting in market contagion far beyond just the initiator of the transaction. This article describes some recent examples and suggests some steps regulators can take to mitigate these risks.
Decline in maize and beans production in the face of climate change at Hai District in Kilimanjaro Region, Tanzania

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to show how climatic change in Africa is expected to lead to a higher occurrence of severe droughts in semiarid and arid ecosystems. Understanding how crop productions react to such events is, thus, crucial for addressing future challenges for food security and poverty alleviation. Design/methodology/approach – The authors explored how temperature and rainfall patterns determined maize and beans production in Hai District in Kilimanjaro Region, Tanzania. Findings – Annual food crops were particularly sensitive to the drought and maize and beans yields were lower than perennial crops during the years of drought. The authors also report strong and significant association between maize and beans production with temperature and rainfall patterns. Practical implications – This study highlights how severe droughts can dramatically affect yields of annual crops and suggests that extreme climatic events might act as a major factor affecting agriculture production and food se.
The education and training of employees in 12 counties in China

Developing competence in the workforce for a changing economy is a challenge to a nation’s education system. This study examines what education and training systems have been made available to the workforce. For this study, in 1998, 31,736 employees were surveyed from 401 firms in 12 counties across China: four in two eastern provinces, four in two central provinces and four in two western provinces. The analysis found that, in addition to hiring graduates from the state‐managed formal school system, employers assumed responsibility for providing on‐the‐job training and delivering job skills to their employees. At the same time, employees also paid to receive education and training offered by institutions outside of their firm to develop skills to meet their own needs. The study also found that the provision of education varied among the three regions according to the level of economic development in those areas.
USE OF DARBEPOETIN ALFA (ARANESP®) FOR ANEMIA TREATMENT IN CHILDREN WITH CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE – CLINICAL EXPERIENCE OF BULGARIAN PEDIATRIC GROUP

Darbepoetin alfa (DA) is indicated for treatment of symptomatic anemia related to chronic kidney disease (CKD) in adult and pediatric patients. In comparison with the recombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEpo), darbepoetin alfa has two additional carbohydrates containing sialic acid which prolong its half-life and enhance its biological activity in vivo. Herein, our clinical experience of using darbepoetin alfa (s.c.) for treatment of anemia in seven pediatric non-dialysis patients is presented. Subjects, aged 3-16 years were receiving (DA) for the period of 5 to 34 months to achieve and maintain hemoglobin levels between 100 and 120 g/l. Our secondary purpose was to establish whether the use of DA in children would reduce the frequency of painful injections, when administered subcutaneously, and improve the compliance of treatment. The early response of darbepoetin therapy was hemoglobin levels between 107 and 124 g/l. The subcutaneous administration of DA resulted in 2 dose corrections and showed that 86% of subjects achieved Hb level between 100 and 120 g/l.
On the Determinants and Dynamics of Dividend Policy

The authors study the dividend policy of 48 firms listed on the Tunisian Stock Exchange during the period 1996–2002. The study tests whether or not managers of Tunisian listed firms smooth their dividends. Moreover, the study outlines the main determinants that may drive the dividend policy of Tunisian quoted firms. To answer the first question, we use Lintner's model in a dynamic setting. The results clearly demonstrate that Tunisian firms rely on both current earnings and past dividends to fix their dividend payment. However, the study shows that dividends tend to be more sensitive to current earnings than prior dividends. To find out the determinants of dividend policy, dynamic panel regressions have been performed. First, profitable firms with more stable earnings can afford larger free cash flows and thus pay larger dividends. Furthermore, they distribute larger dividends whenever they are growing fast. However, neither the ownership concentration nor the financial leverage seems to have any impact on dividend policy in Tunisia. Also, the liquidity of stock market and size negatively impacts the dividend payment. The results are somewhat robust to different specifications.
Hydrogen Breath Test With Low-Dose Rice Flour for Assessment of Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency

Objectives: The hydrogen (H2) breath test is widely used in the assessment of carbohydrate malabsorption. Severe exocrine pancreatic insufficiency markedly diminishes pancreatic amylase production and results in malabsorption of complex carbohydrates. Thus, the H2 breath test with low-dose rice flour starch was tested to determine its value in detecting exocrine pancreatic insufficiency by comparison with a direct measurement of pancreatic function. Methods: Ten patients with clinically suspected pancreatic insufficiency confirmed with a duodenal perfusion technique and measurement of trypsin and lipase output after cerulein stimulation were included. An H2-rice flour breath test was performed by orally administering 30 g of rice flour. End-alveolar breath samples were obtained before rice load and at 30-minute intervals thereafter for the next 5 hours. Results: The results are expressed as median (percentile 25–75). Patients included 8 men and 2 women with moderate to severe exocrine pancreatic insufficiency due to chronic pancreatitis, pancreatectomy, or cystic fibrosis. Stimulated duodenal output of lipase and trypsin was abnormally low in all patients (median release, 1.7; range, 0.5–4.5 and 0.8, range, 0.1–11.3 KU/h, respectively). Basal H2 excretion was 9 ppm (range, 7–17) and delta increase over basal H2 excretion was 4 ppm (range, 1–6). Correlation between H2-rice breath test and basal or stimulated duodenal output of lipase and trypsin was not significant. Conclusion: In exocrine pancreatic insufficiency, an oral load of 30 g rice flour slightly raises H2 excretion in breath. This increase is not useful for detecting pancreatic insufficiency due to poor sensitivity and because it is influenced by extrapancreatic factors such as small bowel bacterial overgrowth.
Crowdsourcing content analysis for managerial research

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effectiveness of a novel method for performing content analysis in managerial research – crowdsourcing, a system where geographically distributed workers complete small, discrete tasks via the internet for a small amount of money. Design/methodology/approach – The authors examined whether workers from one popular crowdsourcing marketplace, Amazon's Mechanical Turk, could perform subjective content analytic tasks involving the application of inductively generated codes to unstructured, personally written textual passages. Findings – The findings suggest that anonymous, self-selected, non-expert crowdsourced workers were applied content codes efficiently and at low cost, and that their reliability and accuracy compared to that of trained researchers. Research limitations/implications – The authors provide recommendations for management researchers interested in using crowdsourcing most effectively for content analysis, including a discussion of the limi.
Na+/H+ exchanger 3 blockade ameliorates type 2 diabetes mellitus via inhibition of sodium‐glucose co‐transporter 1‐mediated glucose absorption in the small intestine

To elucidate the role of Na+/H+ exchanger 3 (NHE3) in sodium‐glucose co‐transporter 1 (SGLT1)‐mediated small intestinal brush border membrane (BBM) glucose absorption and its functional implications in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).
Derivatives Markets: From Bank Risk Management to Financial Stability

Dans sa premiere partie, cette these etudie l’utilisation optimale des produits derives par les intermediaires financiers dans leur gestion du risque, en pretant specifiquement attention au marche des derives de taux d’interet. En modelisant la structure de capital optimale d’une banque, le premier chapitre montre comment l’usage optimal des derives affecte certaines decisions souvent etudiees en finance d’entreprise : l’offre de credit, la transformation de maturite, la politique de dividendes ou les probabilites de defaut. La seconde partie de la these etudie au contraire le marche des derives comme un systeme a part entiere. Le second chapitre utilise une base de donnees nouvelle et unique d’expositions bilaterales sur des contrats CDS afin d’offrir une description detaillee de la structure du reseau des expositions. Le troisieme chapitre a pour objet la regulation des marches de produits derives. Il etudie la compensation centrale des produits derives standardises, et la demande de collateral induite par cette reforme a l’echelle mondiale, sous une variete d’hypotheses concernant la microstructure du marche.
Impact of Sildenafil on Survival of Patients With Eisenmenger Syndrome

The favorable effects of short‐term use of sildenafil on patients with Eisenmenger syndrome have been reported. We further studied the impact of long‐term use of sildenafil on survival of these patients. In this study, the baseline data of patients newly diagnosed as Eisenmenger syndrome in our hospital between January 2005 and December 2009 were retrospectively collected. Patients were followed‐up either by telephone contacts or during visits in our out‐patient clinic. A total of 121 patients (68 patients in conventional group and 53 patients in sildenafil group) were finally included and 29 patients were re‐evaluated after sildenafil therapy for 3–4 months. Compared with the baseline, a 6‐minute walk distance, functional classes, plasma hemoglobin level, and hemodynamics were significantly improved after sildenafil treatment. During a median follow‐up period of 35.8 months, 15 patients died (11 patients in conventional group). The 1‐ and 3‐year survival rates in sildenafil group were 97.0% and 95.2%, significantly higher than 90.6% and 82.9% in conventional group P = . 025). Multivariate analysis showed that sildenafil therapy, functional class and mean pulmonary arterial pressure were independently associated with survival. Therefore, long‐term sildenafil therapy improved survival in patients with Eisenmenger syndrome.
‘We care about you, but …’: the politics of EU trade policy and development

The European Union (EU) is one of the most important markets for developing countries, and trade policy has long been one of its most important instruments for promoting development. There is, however, a paradox at the heart of the relationship between the EU's trade policy and development. On the one hand the EU's trade as development policy has undergone a paradigm shift, the objective shifting from supporting the former colonies of the EU's member states to addressing poverty and with a greater emphasis on reciprocal liberalization. On the other hand, the EU's conventional trade policy initiatives—particularly its market access objectives in the Doha Round and in commercially motivated bilateral trade agreements—have adverse consequences for developing countries, as does its tendency to adopt stringent product regulations. We argue that this paradox is explained by differences in how much traction the emphasis on the development implications of trade has had in the EU's various trade policy subsystems.
Effect of Iron Supplementation on Haemoglobin Response in Children: Systematic Review of Randomised Controlled Trials

Objective: To evaluate the effect of iron supplementation on haemoglobin (Hb) in children through a systematic review of randomised controlled trials. Materials and Methods: Electronic databases, personal files, hand search of reviews, bibliographies of books, and abstracts and proceedings of international conferences were reviewed. Randomised controlled trials evaluating change in Hb levels with interventions that included oral or parenteral iron supplementation or iron-fortified formula milk or cereals were analysed. Results: A total of 55 trials (56 cohorts) provided relevant information. Publication bias was evident (P < 0.001). The pooled estimate (random-effects model) for change in Hb with iron supplementation (weighted mean difference) was 0.74 g/dL (95% CI, 0.61–0.87; P < 0.001; P < 0.001 for heterogeneity). Lower baseline Hb level, oral medicinal iron supplementation, and malarial nonhyperendemic region were significant predictors of greater Hb response and heterogeneity. Projections suggested that, on average, between 37.9% and 62.3% of baseline anaemia (Hb <11 g/dL) was responsive to iron supplementation among children under 6 years of age; the corresponding range for malarial hyperendemic regions was 5.8% to 31.8%. Conclusions: This systematic review indicates that iron supplementation increases Hb levels in children significantly but modestly. The increase is greater in subjects who are anaemic at the start of the trial and lower in malarial hyperendemic areas and in those consuming iron-fortified food. The projected reductions in prevalence of anaemia with iron supplementation alone highlight the need for additional area-specific interventions, particularly in malaria-prone regions.