Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Conditional Betas

Empirical evidence shows that conditional market betas vary substantially over time. Yet, little is known about the source of this variation, either theoretically or empirically. Within a general equilibrium model with multiple assets and a time varying aggregate equity premium, we show that conditional betas depend on (a) the level of the aggregate premium itself; (b) the level of the firm's expected dividend growth; and (c) the firm's fundamental risk, that is, the one pertaining to the covariation of the firm's cash-flows with the aggregate economy. Especially when fundamental risk (c) is strong, the model predicts that market betas should display a large time variation, that their cross-sectional dispersion should be pro-cyclical, and that investments in physical capital should be positively related to changes in betas. These predictions find considerable support in the data.
A UK survey of rehabilitation following critical illness: implementation of NICE Clinical Guidance 83 (CG83) following hospital discharge

Objective To determine the implementation of National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance (NICE CG83) for posthospital discharge critical illness follow-up and rehabilitation programmes. Design Closed-question postal survey. Setting Adult intensive care units (ICUs) across the UK, identified from national databases of organisations. Specialist-only and private ICUs were not included. Participants Senior respiratory critical care physiotherapy clinicians. Results A representative sample of 182 surveys was returned from the 240 distributed (75.8% (95% CI 70.4 to 81.2)). Only 48 organisations (27.3% (95% CI 20.7 to 33.9)) offered a follow-up service 2–3 months following hospital discharge, the majority (n=39, 84.8%) in clinic format. 12 organisations reported posthospital discharge rehabilitation programmes (6.8% (95% CI 3.1 to 10.5)), albeit only 10 of these operated on a regular basis. Lack of funding was reported as the most frequent (n=149/164, 90%) and main barrier (n=99/156, 63.5%) to providing services. Insufficient resources (n=71/164, 43.3%) and lack of priority by the clinical management team (n=66/164, 40.2%) were also highly cited barriers to service delivery. Conclusions NICE CG83 has been successful in profiling the importance of rehabilitation for survivors of critical illness. However, 4 years following publication of CG83 there has been limited development of this clinical service across the UK. Strategies to support delivery of such quality improvement programmes are urgently required to enhance patient care.
The DinI Protein Stabilizes RecA Protein Filaments*

When DinI is present at concentrations that are stoichiometric with those of RecA or somewhat greater, DinI has a substantial stabilizing effect on RecA filaments bound to DNA. Exchange of RecA between free and bound forms was almost entirely suppressed, and highly stable filaments were documented with several different experimental methods. DinI-mediated stabilization did not affect RecA-mediated ATP hydrolysis and LexA co-protease activities. Initiation of DNA strand exchange was affected in a DNA structure-dependent manner, whereas ongoing strand exchange was not affected. Destabilization of RecA filaments occurred as reported in earlier work but only when DinI protein was present at very high concentrations, generally superstoichiometric, relative to the RecA protein concentration. DinI did not facilitate RecA filament formation but stabilized the filaments only after they were formed. The interaction between the RecA protein and DinI was modulated by the C terminus of RecA. We discuss these results in the context of a new hypothesis for the role of DinI in the regulation of recombination and the SOS response.
Investigation into the promoter DNA methylation of three genes (CAMK1D, CRY2 and CALM2) in the peripheral blood of patients with type 2 diabetes

Promoter DNA methylation may reflect the interaction between genetic backgrounds and environmental factors in the development of metabolic disorders, including type 2 diabetes (T2D). Calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase 1D (CAMK1D), cryptochrome 2 (CRY2) and calmodulin 2 (CALM2) genes have been identified to be associated with a risk of T2D. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the contribution of promoter DNA methylation of these genes to the risk of T2D. Using bisulfite pyrosequencing technology, the DNA methylation levels of the CpG dinucleotides within the CAMK1D, CRY2 and CALM2 gene promoters were measured in 48 patients with T2D and 48 age- and gender-matched healthy controls. The results demonstrated that the promoters of these three genes were hypomethylated in the peripheral blood of all the subjects, and DNA methylation of these three genes did not contribute to the risk of T2D.
Addressing Cancer Disparities via Community Network Mobilization and Intersectoral Partnerships: A Social Network Analysis

Community mobilization and collaboration among diverse partners are vital components of the effort to reduce and eliminate cancer disparities in the United States. We studied the development and impact of intersectoral connections among the members of the Massachusetts Community Network for Cancer Education, Research, and Training (MassCONECT). As one of the Community Network Program sites funded by the National Cancer Institute, this infrastructure-building initiative utilized principles of Community-based Participatory Research (CBPR) to unite community coalitions, researchers, policymakers, and other important stakeholders to address cancer disparities in three Massachusetts communities: Boston, Lawrence, and Worcester. We conducted a cross-sectional, sociometric network analysis four years after the network was formed. A total of 38 of 55 members participated in the study (69% response rate). Over four years of collaboration, the number of intersectoral connections reported by members (intersectoral out-degree) increased, as did the extent to which such connections were reported reciprocally (intersectoral reciprocity). We assessed relationships between these markers of intersectoral collaboration and three intermediate outcomes in the effort to reduce and eliminate cancer disparities: delivery of community activities, policy engagement, and grants/publications. We found a positive and statistically significant relationship between intersectoral out-degree and community activities and policy engagement (the relationship was borderline significant for grants/publications). We found a positive and statistically significant relationship between intersectoral reciprocity and community activities and grants/publications (the relationship was borderline significant for policy engagement). The study suggests that intersectoral connections may be important drivers of diverse intermediate outcomes in the effort to reduce and eliminate cancer disparities. The findings support investment in infrastructure-building and intersectoral mobilization in addressing disparities and highlight the benefits of using CBPR approaches for such work.
Benefit from B-Lymphocyte Depletion Using the Anti-CD20 Antibody Rituximab in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. A Double-Blind and Placebo-Controlled Study

Background Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is a disease of unknown aetiology. Major CFS symptom relief during cancer chemotherapy in a patient with synchronous CFS and lymphoma spurred a pilot study of B-lymphocyte depletion using the anti-CD20 antibody Rituximab, which demonstrated significant clinical response in three CFS patients. Methods and Findings In this double-blind, placebo-controlled phase II study (NCT00848692), 30 CFS patients were randomised to either Rituximab 500 mg/m2 or saline, given twice two weeks apart, with follow-up for 12 months. Xenotropic murine leukemia virus-related virus (XMRV) was not detected in any of the patients. The responses generally affected all CFS symptoms. Major or moderate overall response, defined as lasting improvements in self-reported Fatigue score during follow-up, was seen in 10 out of 15 patients (67%) in the Rituximab group and in two out of 15 patients (13%) in the Placebo group (p = 0.003). Mean response duration within the follow-up period for the 10 responders to Rituximab was 25 weeks (range 8–44). Four Rituximab patients had clinical response durations past the study period. General linear models for repeated measures of Fatigue scores during follow-up showed a significant interaction between time and intervention group (p = 0.018 for self-reported, and p = 0.024 for physician-assessed), with differences between the Rituximab and Placebo groups between 6–10 months after intervention. The primary end-point, defined as effect on self-reported Fatigue score 3 months after intervention, was negative. There were no serious adverse events. Two patients in the Rituximab group with pre-existing psoriasis experienced moderate psoriasis worsening. Conclusion The delayed responses starting from 2–7 months after Rituximab treatment, in spite of rapid B-cell depletion, suggests that CFS is an autoimmune disease and may be consistent with the gradual elimination of autoantibodies preceding clinical responses. The present findings will impact future research efforts in CFS. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00848692
Noun–verb naming dissociation in neurosurgical patients

ABSTRACT Background: Dissociated impairment of noun and verb retrieval has been frequently reported after vascular brain lesions: selective damage of either grammatical class allowed to test models of lexical processing and of its neuroanatomical foundation. However, vascular lesions are often quite large and do not involve brain structures uniformly. Neurosurgical lesions do not undergo such apparent limitation, being usually smaller and better distributed across the cerebral cortex. Aims: We explored the neuroanatomical correlates of noun–verb naming processing and dissociations by means of the voxel-based lesion symptom mapping (VLSM) procedure and the subtraction of lesion volume of interests (VOIs) approach in a series of 99 neurosurgical patients. Methods and Procedures: The VOIs and behavioral data for noun and verb naming were analyzed in a VLSM procedure. The verb (or noun) naming performance was included as a covariate control variable, which allowed testing effects on noun (or verb) naming, controlling for the verb (or noun) naming performance. The total lesion volume was also included as a covariate to avoid spurious effects. Outcomes and Results: Eighteen patients showed a significant dissociation between noun and verb naming: seven patients showed disproportionate impairment in naming nouns, and eleven patients with disproportionate impairment in naming verbs. In addition, there were 27 undifferentiated patients, i.e. performing abnormally on nouns and/or verbs, but non-dissociating between the two word classes.VLSM in combination with the subtraction of lesion mask analyses revealed that verb naming impairments were related with lesions in the middle frontal gyrus, precentral gyrus, parietal and rolandic operculum, supplementary motor area, and the inferior parietal (supramarginal and angular gyri), whereas noun naming impairments were associated with basal temporo-occipital lesions. Furthermore, data indicate that noun and verb naming deficits also depend on a disconnection phenomenon: at subcortical level, noun naming impairments are related to damage to parts of the sagittal stratum (including the inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus and the inferior longitudinal fasciculus), the splenium of the corpus callosum, the posterior thalamic radiations (plus optic radiations), the retrorolandic part of the internal capsule, the tapetum and the fornix. On the contrary, verb naming impairments are related to damage to parts of the superior and posterior corona radiata, and of the anterior and posterior limb of the internal capsule. Conclusions: Summing up, results point to verb-specific areas in the superior frontal as well as the inferior parietal cortex, and noun-specific basal temporo-occipital and subcortical neural circuitries.
Convolutional Neural Networks for Text Categorization: Shallow Word-level vs. Deep Character-level

This paper reports the performances of shallow word-level convolutional neural networks (CNN), our earlier work (2015), on the eight datasets with relatively large training data that were used for testing the very deep character-level CNN in Conneau et al. (2016). Our findings are as follows. The shallow word-level CNNs achieve better error rates than the error rates reported in Conneau et al., though the results should be interpreted with some consideration due to the unique pre-processing of Conneau et al. The shallow word-level CNN uses more parameters and therefore requires more storage than the deep character-level CNN; however, the shallow word-level CNN computes much faster.
Distant Horizons: Marital Expectations May Be Dampened by Economic Circumstances

Many cohabitors desire to marry someday, though actual expectations for marriage, particularly for when one expects to marry, may change over time. Cohabitors’ expectations could be shaped by the characteristics of their relationship and their current socioeconomic circumstances. However, expectations to be wed within a certain time frame could also encourage behaviors to make marriage more attainable, such as by taking steps to increase financial security or improve the relationship. The present study drew on marital horizon theory and the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, 1979 Child and Young Adult Cohort and used autoregressive cross-lagged structural equation models to examine reciprocal associations between cohabiting individuals’ marital expectations, defined as years until they expected to marry, and relationship and socioeconomic characteristics. Cohabitors with greater education subsequently expected to marry sooner, and those who expected to marry later were subsequently more highly educated. Cohabitors with better educated partners also expected to marry sooner, as did cohabitors who were themselves employed full-time. Overall, results strengthened previous arguments for the importance of economic security for marriage, and extended these findings to suggest that even expectations for marriage may be hampered by poor socioeconomic status.
Knowledge management: London taxi cabs case study

There has been a resurgence in recent literature on the most effective way of managing organizational knowledge for competitive advantage. Such discussion (e.g. Covin and Stivers, 1997) usually includes the development of computer-based information systems for tracking collective knowledge. This paper considers an example of a successful ‘knowledge’ management activity, which has been in existence for the last 140 years and has not used any form of information technology. The activity concerns the legal requirement for London taxi cab drivers to learn what is colloquially described as ‘the Knowledge’, which comprises tacit knowledge of London streets and associated ‘places of interest’. This paper reviews the rigorous procedures necessary for aspiring cab drivers to acquire the much sought after status of a London cab driver, from both practical and theoretical perspectives. It also considers possible computer-based support tools for testing and learning purposes.
SNAREs in mammalian sperm: possible implications for fertilization.

Soluble N-ethylmalameide-sensitive factor attachment protein receptor (SNARE) proteins are present in mammalian sperm and could be involved in critical membrane fusion events during fertilization, namely the acrosome reaction. Vesicle-associated membrane protein/synaptobrevin, a SNARE on the membrane of a vesicular carrier, and syntaxin 1, a SNARE on the target membrane, as well as the calcium sensor synaptotagmin I, are present in the acrosome of mammalian sperm (human, rhesus monkey, bull, hamster, mouse). Sperm SNAREs are sloughed off during the acrosome reaction, paralleling the release of sperm membrane vesicles and acrosomal contents, and SNARE antibodies inhibit both the acrosome reaction and fertilization, without inhibiting sperm-egg binding. In addition, sperm SNAREs may be responsible, together with other sperm components, for the asynchronous male DNA decondensation that occurs following intracytoplasmic sperm injection, an assisted reproduction technique that bypasses normal sperm-egg surface interactions. The results suggest the participation of sperm SNAREs during membrane fusion events at fertilization in mammals.
Exploiting dialogue act tagging and prosodic information for action item identification

An important task for multiparty meeting understanding is extracting action items. Action items are a set of tasks that are agreed on by the participants for execution after the meeting, with specific due dates and owners. Dialogue acts, the pragmatic function of an utterance, such as question or backchannel, have been reported to be useful for various dialogue understanding tasks. On the other hand, prosodic information, such as pitch, volume, and speech rate, has been reported to be useful for segmenting a dialogue into utterances or detecting questions. In this paper we investigate the use of dialogue act tagging to improve the identification of action item descriptions and prosodic information to improve action item agreements. Our results indicate that dialogue act tagging improves the identification of action item descriptions by 5% over lexical information, and prosodic information helps discriminating backchannels from agreements with 25% absolute improvement over a baseline.
Globally stable quasistatic evolution for a coupled elastoplastic–damage model

We show the existence of globally stable quasistatic evolutions for a rate-independent material model with elastoplasticity and incomplete damage, in small strain assumptions. The main feature of our model is that the scalar internal variable which describes the damage affects both the elastic tensor and the plastic yield surface. It is also possible to require that the history of plastic strain up to the current state influences the future evolution of damage.
Examining the Association between Parent and Child Sport Participation in Canada: A General Social Survey Study

Research has shown a relationship between parent sport participation and child sport participation. With a sample of 1,064 respondents from the 2010 General Social Survey, this study examined how child sport participation is associated with parent sport participation, household income, parent education level, and parent sex. Results found that respondents with a child aged 5-12 who participated in sport over the past 12 months were more likely to have done so themselves too. (OR = 4.39, 95% CI = 2.44-7.89, p < 0.001). Significant differences ( p < 0.001) were additionally found for the respondent’s education, age, and total household income. However, no significant differences were found for sex ( p = 0.13). These results suggest that evidence-based interventions targeted at parents who do not participate in sport may increase children’s participation. Further research is encouraged to take a more holistic approach to analyzing childhood sport participation.
Unilateral trade liberalisation and the spatial distribution of economic activity within a country

Most of the literature dealing with the regional effects of trade liberalisation considers that each country or region engaged in the process is internally homogeneous (e.g. Krugman, 1991; Krugman and Venables, 1995 and 1996; Venables, 1996; Helpman, 1998; etc.). A related, but to some extent different question, is what would be the potential effects on the regional economic structure when a country opens or reduces barriers to external trade. Does the promotion of trade intensify or reduce regional disparities inside the country? Are these effects the same across agents in each region, or will there be different responses? Here the analysis is much more limited, some exceptions being Hanson (1994), Krugman and Livas Elizondo (1996) and Fujita, Krugman and Venables (1999).
Perspectives and Post-release Experiences of Convicted African American Women Drug Offenders

Perspectives and Post-release Experiences of Convicted African American Women Drug Offenders by Janet Olusola Fashakin LLM, Yeshiva University, 2005 LLB, Obafemi Awolowo University, 1990 Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Public Policy and Administration
Computation of bus current variance for reliability estimation of VLSI circuits

A novel technique for deriving the variance waveform for CMOS circuits is presented. Using this technique, the authors establish the importance of the variance waveform by showing that its contribution to the mean-time-to-failure estimate can be in the range of 100% to 200% relative to that of the expected waveform. The technique has been built into the probabilistic simulator CREST and has shown good agreement with SPICE, as well as excellent speedup. <<ETX>>
A metagenomic approach to characterize temperate bacteriophage populations from Cystic Fibrosis and non-Cystic Fibrosis bronchiectasis patients

Pseudomonas aeruginosa (Pa), normally a soil commensal, is an important opportunistic pathogen in Cystic Fibrosis (CF) and non-Cystic Fibrosis Bronchiectasis (nCFBR). Persistent infection correlates with accelerated decline in lung function and early mortality. The horizontal transfer of DNA by temperate bacteriophages can add gene function and selective advantages to their bacterial host within the constrained environment of the lower lung. In this study, we chemically induce temperate bacteriophages from clonal cultures of Pa and identify their mixed viral communities employing metagenomic approaches. We compared 92 temperate phage metagenomes stratified from these clinical backgrounds (47 CF and 45 nCFBR Pa isolates) using MG-RAST and GeneWise2. KEGG analysis shows the complexity of temperate phage accessory gene carriage increases with duration and severity of the disease. Furthermore, we identify the presence of Ig-like motifs within phage structural genes linked to bacterial adhesion and carbohydrate binding including Big_2, He_Pig, and Fn3. This study provides the first clinical support to the proposed bacteriophage adherence to mucus (BAM) model and the evolution of phages interacting at these mucosal surfaces over time.