Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Endogenous Public Policy and Long-Run Growth: Some Simple Analytics

We study the determinants of voting outcomes on the provision of public consumption through marginal income taxes in the context of the simple linear growth model. We provide analytical results on how the dynamic politicoeconomic equilibrium maps the economic fundamentals to policies and long-run growth. We find that in a deterministic growth environment voters internalize, although imperfectly, the deadweight losses of taxation and vote for lower taxes when the productivity of capital is higher. Therefore, the politicoeconomic channel reinforces the positive role of productivity for growth. In a stochastic linear-growth environment where business cycles are driven by productivity shocks, in line with existing evidence, we find that the level of endogenous public consumption is procyclical but its share of GDP is countercyclical.
A TALEN-Exon Skipping Design for a Bethlem Myopathy Model in Zebrafish

Presently, human collagen VI-related diseases such as Ullrich congenital muscular dystrophy (UCMD) and Bethlem myopathy (BM) remain incurable, emphasizing the need to unravel their etiology and improve their treatments. In UCMD, symptom onset occurs early, and both diseases aggravate with ageing. In zebrafish fry, morpholinos reproduced early UCMD and BM symptoms but did not allow to study the late phenotype. Here, we produced the first zebrafish line with the human mutation frequently found in collagen VI-related disorders such as UCMD and BM. We used a transcription activator-like effector nuclease (TALEN) to design the col6a1ama605003-line with a mutation within an essential splice donor site, in intron 14 of the col6a1 gene, which provoke an in-frame skipping of exon 14 in the processed mRNA. This mutation at a splice donor site is the first example of a template-independent modification of splicing induced in zebrafish using a targetable nuclease. This technique is readily expandable to other organisms and can be instrumental in other disease studies. Histological and ultrastructural analyzes of homozygous and heterozygous mutant fry and 3 months post-fertilization (mpf) fish revealed co-dominantly inherited abnormal myofibers with disorganized myofibrils, enlarged sarcoplasmic reticulum, altered mitochondria and misaligned sarcomeres. Locomotion analyzes showed hypoxia-response behavior in 9 mpf col6a1 mutant unseen in 3 mpf fish. These symptoms worsened with ageing as described in patients with collagen VI deficiency. Thus, the col6a1ama605003-line is the first adult zebrafish model of collagen VI-related diseases; it will be instrumental both for basic research and drug discovery assays focusing on this type of disorders.
Expression of paralogous SEP-, FUL-, AG- and STK-like MADS-box genes in wild-type and peloric Phalaenopsis flowers

The diverse flowers of Orchidaceae are the result of several major morphological transitions, among them the most studied is the differentiation of the inner median tepal into the labellum, a perianth organ key in pollinator attraction. Type A peloria lacking stamens and with ectopic labella in place of inner lateral tepals are useful for testing models on the genes specifying these organs by comparing their patterns of expression between wild-type and peloric flowers. Previous studies focused on DEFICIENS- and GLOBOSA-like MADS-box genes because of their conserved role in perianth and stamen development. The “orchid code” model summarizes this work and shows in Orchidaceae there are four paralogous lineages of DEFICIENS/AP3-like genes differentially expressed in each floral whorl. Experimental tests of this model showed the conserved, higher expression of genes from two specific DEF-like gene lineages is associated with labellum development. The present study tests whether eight MADS-box candidate SEP-, FUL-, AG-, and STK-like genes have been specifically duplicated in the Orchidaceae and are also differentially expressed in association with the distinct flower organs of Phalaenopsis hyb. “Athens. ” The gene trees indicate orchid-specific duplications. In a way analogous to what is observed in labellum-specific DEF-like genes, a two-fold increase in the expression of SEP3-like gene PhaMADS7 was measured in the labellum-like inner lateral tepals of peloric flowers. The overlap between SEP3-like and DEF-like genes suggests both are associated with labellum specification and similar positional cues determine their domains of expression. In contrast, the uniform messenger levels of FUL-like genes suggest they are involved in the development of all organs and their expression in the ovary suggests cell differentiation starts before pollination. As previously reported AG-like and STK-like genes are exclusively expressed in gynostemium and ovary, however no evidence for transcriptional divergence was found in the stage investigated. Gene expression suggests a developmental regulatory system based on the combined activity of duplicate MADS-box genes. We discuss its feasibility based on documented protein interactions and patterns of expression.
Simultaneous X-ray and optical observations of S5 0716+714 after the outburst of March 2004

At the end of March 2004, the blazar S5 0716+714 underwent an optical outburst that prompted for quasi-simultaneous target-of-opportunity observations with the INTEGRAL and XMM-Newton satellites. In this paper, we report the results of the XMM-Newton and INTEGRAL OMC data analysis. The X-ray spectrum is well-represented by a concave broken power-law model, with the break at about 2 keV. In the framework of the synchrotron self-Compton model, the softer part of the spectrum, which is described by a power law of index $\alpha \simeq 1.8$ ($f_\nu \propto \nu^{-\alpha}$), is probably due to synchrotron emission, while the harder part of the spectrum, which has $\alpha \simeq 1$, is due to inverse Compton emission. The blazar shows the long and short-term variability typical of low-frequency peaked BL Lac (LBL): the former is manifested by a gradual decrease in the optical flux from the peak as observed by ground telescopes at the end of March 2004, while the latter is characterized by soft X-ray and optical flares on time scales from a few thousand seconds to few hours. We can follow spectral variations on sub-hour time scales and study their correlation with the flux variability. We find evidence that the peak energy of the time-resolved spectra is increasing with flux. The modeling of the spectral energy distribution compared with archival observations suggests that the long-term variability (from outburst to quiescence or viceversa) could be due to a change in the injected power, while the short-term variability (flares) could be explained with changes in the slope of the distribution of the electrons.
Peri‐operative ketamine for acute post‐operative pain: a quantitative and qualitative systematic review (Cochrane review)

Background: Post‐operative pain management is usually limited by adverse effects such as nausea and vomiting. Adjuvant treatment with an inexpensive opioid‐sparing drug such as ketamine may be of value in giving better analgesia with fewer adverse effects. The objective of this systematic review was to evaluate the effectiveness and tolerability of ketamine administered peri‐operatively in the treatment of acute post‐operative pain in adults.
2D Affine-Invariant Contour Matching Using B-Spline Model

This paper presents a new affine-invariant matching algorithm based on B-spline modeling, which solves the problem of the nonuniqueness of B-spline in curve matching. This method first smoothes the B-spline curve by increasing the degree of the curve. It is followed by a reduction of the curve degree using the least square error (LSE) approach to construct the curvature scale space (CSS) image. CSS matching is then carried out. Our method combines the advantages of B-spline that are continuous curve representation and the robustness of CSS matching with respect to noise and affine transformation. It avoids the need for other matching algorithms that have to use the resampled points on the curve. Thus, the curve matching error is reduced. The proposed algorithm has been tested by matching similar shapes from a prototype database. The experimental results showed the robustness and accuracy of the proposed method in B-spline curve matching.
Factors Affecting Spectators' Decision in in Attending Minor League Baseball Home Games

There are many reasons as to why fans attend home game events. This study examined what motivates individuals to attend Lake County Captains Baseball events. Managers have some influence over many of the factors that affect attendance at the minor league baseball (MiLB) games such as budgeting, concessions, cleanliness or attractiveness of the stadium, and promotional activities. However, there are some factors that managers cannot control (e.g., weather and city population). Two hundred Lake County Captains fans participated in this study. Participants completed a two-sided survey questionnaire that has six different dimensions (29 items): Residual Preferences (6 items), Economics (5 items), Social Aspects (4 items), Enjoyment (5 items), Team Identification (4 items) and Team Affiliation (5 items). The survey questions are based on a 5-point Likert Scale, measuring factors that affect attendance from “strongly disagree,” “neutral,” to “strongly agree. ” The survey is also designed using ordinal and nominal scales for the demographic information of the participants in the survey. An exploratory factor analysis was used to examine the factor structure and items of the survey. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze all the demographic factors and items on the survey. Factorial MANOVAs were used to examine the mean vector scores of perfectionisms between the demographics and the seven factors. Significant age differences were found in Residual Preference-Environment and Team-Affiliation based on attendance, whereas significant annual household income differences were found in Economics and Enjoyment based on
To Culture or not to Culture, that is the Question!

Simply, culture might be described as a way of life or everything that a society forms and develops over its history. Since culture and language are seen to be inseparable, language teaching courses are supposed to contain some cultural elements. Considering this issue, language teaching curriculums are expected to cover cultural compounds from the target culture. The study was carried out through quantitative and qualitative methods of data collection. Based upon a comparative descriptive research design, the present study aimed to deal with cultural compounds by explaining the views of language teachers from different language majors and found out that though there are similarities and differences of perceptions on which cultural elements should be taken into account in language education, these cultural elements are seen to be of high significance to be often included in language learning process. Besides, regarding the use of cultural compounds in foreign language education, it was also found out that mostly there is a difference between the perceptions of English/German/French as a foreign language teacher and Turkish/Arabic as a foreign language teacher (western vs. eastern). The results obtained from this comparative descriptive study may supply valuable help for course book authors, program designers, instructors, and policy makers in terms of containing cultural elements in the course contents, and materials. Keywords: culture, language, language and culture, cultural elements
Electromagnetic navigation diagnostic bronchoscopy for small peripheral lung lesions

The present study prospectively evaluated the diagnostic yield and safety of electromagnetic navigation-guided bronchoscopy biopsy, for small peripheral lung lesions in patients where standard techniques were nondiagnostic. The study was conducted in a tertiary medical centre on 40 consecutive patients considered unsuitable for straightforward surgery or computed tomography (CT)-guided transthoracic needle aspiration biopsy, due to comorbidities. The lung lesion diameter was mean±sem 23.5±1.5 mm and the depth from the visceral-costal pleura was 14.9±2 mm. Navigation was facilitated by an electromagnetic tracking system which could detect a position sensor incorporated into a flexible catheter advanced through a bronchoscope. Information obtained during bronchoscopy was superimposed on previously acquired CT data. Divergence between CT data and data obtained during bronchoscopy was calculated by the system's software as a measure of navigational accuracy. All but one of the target lesions was reached and the overall diagnostic yield was 62.5% (25–40). Diagnostic yield was significantly affected by CT-to-body divergence; yield was 77.2% when estimated divergence was ≤4 mm. Three pneumothoraces occurred and chest drainage was required in one case. Electromagnetic navigation-guided bronchoscopy has the potential to improve the diagnostic yield of transbronchial biopsies without additional fluoroscopic guidance, and may be useful in the early diagnosis of lung cancer, particularly in nonoperable patients.
Resource-productivity , allocative efficiency and determinants of technical efficiency of rainfed rice farmers : A guide for food security policy in Nigeria

This paper analyses the resource-productivity, technical efficiency (TE) and allocative efficiency of rain fed farmers in nigeria. The results of the parameters that enter the production function shows that herbicide has the highest elasticities, then seeds, followed by fertilizer and land while labour has the least contribution to output. Also, the result for the allocative efficiency based on the computed MVPx = Px show that none of the respondents optimally allocated the inputs. however, a greater number of the respondents were found to underutilized variables like land, seeds, fertilizer and herbicide (MVPx < Px) while a greater number of the farmers over utilized labour (MVPx > Px). But in both cases, it was revealed that the use of more labour decreased the rice production from the study faster than any of the selected variables. The mean TE index was found to be 0.75. This suggests that 0.25 of rice yield is forgone due to inefficiency. The significant gamma (γ) value of 0.873 establishes the fact that a high level of technical inefficiency exists among the sampled farmers. Extension contact and access to credit are found to be significant determinants of TE among the farmers. hence, agricultural policy makers in nigeria should focus on how farmers could follow appropriate farm practices in the course of technology adoption to prevent under utilization of farm inputs via the intensification of extension activities in the country and accessibility to credit by farmers should be given more priority. Pursuing these will raise the productivity and efficiency of rice production in the country in the long run.
THE CLUSTER M − T RELATION FROM TEMPERATURE PROFILES OBSERVED WITH ASCA AND ROSAT

We calibrate the galaxy cluster mass - temperature relation using the temperature proﬁles of intracluster gas observed with ASCA (for hot clusters) and ROSAT (for cool groups). Our sample consists of apparently relaxed clusters for which the total masses are derived assuming hydrostatic equilibrium. The sample provides data on cluster X-ray emission-weighted cooling ﬂow-corrected temperatures and total masses up to r 1000 . The resulting M-T scaling in the 1-10 keV temperature range is 1 . 79 ± 0 . 14 with 90% conﬁdence errors, or signiﬁcantly (99.99% conﬁdence) steeper than the self-similar relation M ∝ T 3 / 2 . For any given temperature, our measured mass values are signiﬁcantly smaller compared to the simulation results of Evrard et al. (1996) that are frequently used for mass-temperature scaling. The higher-temperature subsample (kT ≥ 4 keV) is consistent with M ∝ T 3 / 2 , allowing the possibility that the self-similar scaling breaks down at low temperatures, perhaps due to heating by supernovae that is more important for low-temperature groups and galaxies as suggested by earlier works.
Tumor suppressor NDRG2 inhibits glycolysis and glutaminolysis in colorectal cancer cells by repressing c-Myc expression

Cancer cells use glucose and glutamine as the major sources of energy and precursor intermediates, and enhanced glycolysis and glutamimolysis are the major hallmarks of metabolic reprogramming in cancer. Oncogene activation and tumor suppressor gene inactivation alter multiple intracellular signaling pathways that affect glycolysis and glutaminolysis. N-Myc downstream regulated gene 2 (NDRG2) is a tumor suppressor gene inhibiting cancer growth, metastasis and invasion. However, the role and molecular mechanism of NDRG2 in cancer metabolism remains unclear. In this study, we discovered the role of the tumor suppressor gene NDRG2 in aerobic glycolysis and glutaminolysis of cancer cells. NDRG2 inhibited glucose consumption and lactate production, glutamine consumption and glutamate production in colorectal cancer cells. Analysis of glucose transporters and the catalytic enzymes involved in glycolysis revealed that glucose transporter 1 (GLUT1), hexokinase 2 (HK2), pyruvate kinase M2 isoform (PKM2) and lactate dehydrogenase A (LDHA) was significantly suppressed by NDRG2. Analysis of glutamine transporter and the catalytic enzymes involved in glutaminolysis revealed that glutamine transporter ASC amino-acid transporter 2 (ASCT2) and glutaminase 1 (GLS1) was also significantly suppressed by NDRG2. Transcription factor c-Myc mediated inhibition of glycolysis and glutaminolysis by NDRG2. More importantly, NDRG2 inhibited the expression of c-Myc by suppressing the expression of β-catenin, which can transcriptionally activate C-MYC gene in nucleus. In addition, the growth and proliferation of colorectal cancer cells were suppressed significantly by NDRG2 through inhibition of glycolysis and glutaminolysis. Taken together, these findings indicate that NDRG2 functions as an essential regulator in glycolysis and glutaminolysis via repression of c-Myc, and acts as a suppressor of carcinogenesis through coordinately targeting glucose and glutamine transporter, multiple catalytic enzymes involved in glycolysis and glutaminolysis, which fuels the bioenergy and biomaterials needed for cancer proliferation and progress.
Scale‐free and scale‐dependent modes of energy release dynamics in the nighttime magnetosphere

Based on a spatiotemporal analysis of POLAR UVI images, we show for the first time that energy, power, area and lifetime probability distributions of electron precipitation events in the nighttime auroral oval have a significant latitudinal dependence. The low‐latitude group of the events contains a distinct subpopulation of strong auroral disturbances violating the uniform power‐law behavior reported in previous publications, while the high latitude group is described by nearly perfect power‐law statistics over the entire range of scales studied, in agreement with earlier findings. The results obtained indicate that the inner and outer portions of the plasma sheet may be characterized by substantially different scaling regimes of bursty energy dissipation suggestive of different universality classes and/or driving conditions associated with multiscale turbulence in these regions.
Algebraic aspects of two-dimensional convolutional codes

Two-dimensional (2D) codes are introduced as linear shift-invariant spaces of admissible signals on the discrete plane. Convolutional and, in particular, basic codes are characterized both in terms of their internal properties and by means of their input-output representations. The algebraic structure of the class of all encoders that correspond to a given convolutional code is investigated and the possibility of obtaining 2D decoders, free from catastrophic errors, as,veil as efficient syndrome decoders is considered. Some aspects of the state space implementation of 2D encoders and decoders via (finite memory) 2D system are discussed. >
Analysis of a Hybrid Access Scheme for Buffered Users-Probabilistic Time Division

A new multiple access scheme is proposed and evaluated. The proposed scheme combines desirable features of the ordinary time-division (TDMA) and the random access (RA) schemes. It is shown that by adjusting the value of a single parameter a, the proposed access method can vary continuously from one extreme (TDMA) to the other (RA). The average delay per packet and the throughput can be improved for intermediate values of the load factor. Furthermore, the method can control the channel instability.
Interactive effects of guilt and moral disengagement on bullying, defending and outsider behavior

Abstract We examined the moderating effect of guilt on the associations between moral disengagement and bullying, defending and outsider behaviors in a sample of 404 students (203 boys; Mage = 11.09 years; SD = 1.48). Bullying, defending and outsider behavior were assessed through peer nominations, whereas guilt and moral disengagement were assessed by self-reports. Results showed that moral disengagement was associated with high levels of bullying and low levels of defending. Guilt was negatively associated with bullying and positively with defending. A moderating effect for guilt was also found: increasing levels of moral disengagement contributed to more bullying and outsider behavior, and to less defending, among students with low levels of guilt. The current research broadens the extant literature, showing the combined effects of guilt and moral disengagement on bullying-related behaviors.
A Theory-Based Hydrometeor Identification Algorithm for X-Band Polarimetric Radars

Abstract Although much work has been done at S band to automatically identify hydrometeors by using polarimetric radar, several challenges are presented when adapting such algorithms to X band. At X band, attenuation and non-Rayleigh scattering can pose significant problems. This study seeks to develop a hydrometeor identification (HID) algorithm for X band based on theoretical simulations using the T-matrix scattering model of seven different hydrometeor types: rain, drizzle, aggregates, pristine ice crystals, low-density graupel, high-density graupel, and vertical ice. Hail and mixed-phase hydrometeors are excluded for the purposes of this study. Non-Rayleigh scattering effects are explored by comparison with S-band simulations. Variable ranges based on the theoretical simulations are used to create one-dimensional fuzzy-logic membership beta functions that form the basis of the new X-band HID. The theory-based X-band HID is applied to a case from the Collaborative Adaptive Sensing of the Atmosphere (CA.