Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
High-dose corticosteroids during bleomycin-induced alveolitis in the rat do not suppress the accumulation of hyaluronan (hyaluronic acid) in lung tissue.

A single intratracheal injection of bleomycin in rats induced, 4 days later, a considerable accumulation of hyaluronan (hyaluronate, hyaluronic acid) in the lung tissue. This connective tissue reaction was quantified biochemically by analysing hyaluronan (HA) in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BAL) and lung tissue extracts. The molecular weight of the HA recovered during lavage was 0.2-0.3 X 10(6) daltons. The HA accumulation was related to an increase in lung water content and associated with an increased influx of eosinophils, neutrophils and lymphocytes into BAL fluid. High-dose corticosteroid treatment (prednisolone 15 mg.kg-1 bw per day) to bleomycin injured rats had no effect on the lung tissue content of HA, the recovery of HA during BAL or the molecular weight of HA accumulated in the alveolar space. Furthermore, steroids did not influence the increased lung water content, or the appearance of inflammatory cells in lavage fluid. These findings indicate that the early connective tissue response to the bleomycin lung injury is mediated by a mechanism which is unaffected by systemic high-dose corticosteroids.
Achieving strategic alignment: a decision-making perspective

Beyond studies related to the importance of strategic alignment between business strategy and IS strategy as well as establishing a number of enablers and inhibitors, there is a paucity of research on how organizations actually achieve strategic alignment. We conceptualize the process of achieving strategic alignment from a decision-making perspective by deductively drawing upon extant literature on strategic alignment and decision-making. Preliminary data collection from two case studies, out of four theoretically selected research sites, followed by data analysis based on analytic induction uncovers evidence in support of the conceptual framework. New insights reveal that the structure of the decision-making process inherent in achieving strategic alignment is shaped by organizational and decisional factors. In addition, the nature of the IT artifact and the availability of slack resources at the organizational level shape the rigor and the due-diligence associated with achieving strategic alignment, potentially suggesting the existence of additional decision-making routines.
Ku Regulates the Non-Homologous End Joining Pathway Choice of DNA Double-Strand Break Repair in Human Somatic Cells

The repair of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) is critical for the maintenance of genomic integrity and viability for all organisms. Mammals have evolved at least two genetically discrete ways to mediate DNA DSB repair: homologous recombination (HR) and non-homologous end joining (NHEJ). In mammalian cells, most DSBs are preferentially repaired by NHEJ. Recent work has demonstrated that NHEJ consists of at least two sub-pathways—the main Ku heterodimer-dependent or “classic” NHEJ (C-NHEJ) pathway and an “alternative” NHEJ (A-NHEJ) pathway, which usually generates microhomology-mediated signatures at repair junctions. In our study, recombinant adeno-associated virus knockout vectors were utilized to construct a series of isogenic human somatic cell lines deficient in the core C-NHEJ factors (Ku, DNA-PKcs, XLF, and LIGIV), and the resulting cell lines were characterized for their ability to carry out DNA DSB repair. The absence of DNA-PKcs, XLF, or LIGIV resulted in cell lines that were profoundly impaired in DNA DSB repair activity. Unexpectedly, Ku86-null cells showed wild-type levels of DNA DSB repair activity that was dominated by microhomology joining events indicative of A-NHEJ. Importantly, A-NHEJ DNA DSB repair activity could also be efficiently de-repressed in LIGIV-null and DNA-PKcs-null cells by subsequently reducing the level of Ku70. These studies demonstrate that in human cells C-NHEJ is the major DNA DSB repair pathway and they show that Ku is the critical C-NHEJ factor that regulates DNA NHEJ DSB pathway choice.
Clinically significant depressive symptoms among a diverse sample of same-sex male couples in Atlanta, Boston, and Chicago: An analysis of individual- and dyadic-level factors

Abstract Psychosocial and relationship factors are associated with depression outcomes in heterosexual couples. No known research has examined these relationships statistically among both partners within a same-sex male dyad. This study examined how socio-demographics, psychosocial and relationship factors influence depressive symptoms in a large sample of same-sex male couples in Atlanta, Boston, and Chicago. Linear and logistic regression models indicated that, at the individual level, age, polydrug use, relationship length, perceived love, and partner communication were associated with depression scores. Multinomial logistic regression models showed that couples with no sexual agreement or an agreement with restrictions were likely to exhibit depressive symptoms.
Individualism, conservatism, and radicalism as criteria for processing political beliefs: A parametric fMRI study

Abstract Politics is a manifestation of the uniquely human ability to debate, decide, and reach consensus on decisions affecting large groups over long durations of time. Recent neuroimaging studies on politics have focused on the association between brain regions and specific political behaviors by adopting party or ideological affiliation as a criterion to classify either experimental stimuli or subjects. However, it is unlikely that complex political beliefs (i.e., “the government should protect freedom of speech”) are evaluated only on a liberal-to-conservative criterion. Here we used multidimensional scaling and parametric functional magnetic resonance imaging to identify which criteria/dimensions people use to structure complex political beliefs and which brain regions are concurrently activated. We found that three independent dimensions explained the variability of a set of statements expressing political beliefs and that each dimension was reflected in a distinctive pattern of neural activation: individualism (medial prefrontal cortex and temporoparietal junction), conservatism (dorsolateral prefrontal cortex), and radicalism (ventral striatum and posterior cingulate). The structures we identified are also known to be important in self–other processing, social decision-making in ambivalent situations, and reward prediction. Our results extend current knowledge on the neural correlates of the structure of political beliefs, a fundamental aspect of the human ability to coalesce into social entities.
Personality traits and expatriate adjustment in Malaysia

Purpose This paper aims to investigate and reflect upon the effects of personality traits on expatriate adjustment within the context of Malaysia’s multicultural society. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on the multicultural personality questionnaire (MPQ) and extrapolating from the literature on expatriate adjustment, the authors introduce five hypotheses, which are then tested based on data derived from 101 expatriates working in Malaysia. Findings The results indicate a positive relationship between both open-mindedness and adjustment as well as between flexibility and adjustment. However, the authors did not observe any significant positive relationship between the three remaining MPQ personality traits and expatriate adjustment. Originality/value While various studies have investigated the relationship between personality and expatriate adjustment in an Asian context, the majority have been conducted in largely monocultural settings, or at least on the implicit assumption of a single societal culture within the host country. This paper contributes to the literature by exploring the relationship in the context of a multicultural Asian host country.
Image‐based method for retrospective correction of physiological motion effects in fMRI: RETROICOR

Respiration effects and cardiac pulsatility can induce signal modulations in functional MR image time series that increase noise and degrade the statistical significance of activation signals. A simple image‐based correction method is described that does not have the limitations of k‐space methods that preclude high spatial frequency correction. Low‐order Fourier series are fit to the image data based on time of each image acquisition relative to the phase of the cardiac and respiratory cycles, monitored using a photoplethysmograph and pneumatic belt, respectively. The RETROICOR method is demonstrated using resting‐state experiments on three subjects and compared with the k‐space method. The method is found to perform well for both respiration‐ and cardiac‐induced noise without imposing spatial filtering on the correction. Magn Reson Med 44:162–167, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Empleo de las estrategias de aprendizaje en la universidad. Un estudio de caso

El objetivo de este estudio fue caracterizar las estrategias de aprendizaje utilizadas por los estudiantes de educación superior de una universidad de Lima. Para lograr este propósito, el enfoque es cualitativo, el cual nos permite interpretar la praxis misma de los alumnos. La metodología de esta investigación incluyó la observación directa y la entrevista a profundidad, cuyo propósito fue comprender las razones de la puesta en práctica de determinadas estrategias. La conclusión de la investigación es que las estrategias metacognitivas, el procesamiento de la información y el control del contexto se convierten en las aristas fundamentales al momento de aprender por parte de los estudiantes.
$W$ -Band Complex Permittivity Measurements at High Temperature Using Free-Space Methods

Free-space measurement techniques can be contactless and are able to accommodate large, flat sheets of dielectric material, making them useful for characterization of high-temperature, millimeter-wave, window and radome candidate materials. As part of the present work, a high-temperature, W-band (75–110 GHz), free-space measurement system was developed and used to characterize complex dielectric properties of bulk material samples at temperatures ranging from 25 °C to 600 °C. Two test cases, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and CoorsTek 92% alumina, were measured at 25 °C and found to have <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\boldsymbol {\epsilon }_{r}^\prime $ </tex-math></inline-formula> values of 2.731 ± 0.005 and 8.061 ± 0.027 at 95 GHz, respectively. The 25 °C PVC sample was measured to have a <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\boldsymbol {\epsilon }_{r}^{\prime \prime }$ </tex-math></inline-formula> value of 0.032 ± 0.007. At 25 °C, the <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\boldsymbol {\epsilon }_{r}^{\prime \prime }$ </tex-math></inline-formula> value of the 92% alumina sample was below the uncertainty threshold achievable with the present free-space measurement apparatus and could only be bounded to <0.009. As the alumina sample was heated to 600 °C, <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\boldsymbol {\epsilon }_{r}^\prime $ </tex-math></inline-formula> and <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\boldsymbol {\epsilon }_{r}^{\prime \prime }$ </tex-math></inline-formula> values increased to 8.501 ± 0.028 and 0.035 ± 0.008, respectively. The high-temperature behavior of the authors’ 92% alumina ceramic was found to be similar to that previously documented for Sumitomo AKP-50 alumina over the 25 °C–600 °C temperature range. In addition to the 92% alumina sample, three commercially available ceramic substrates (zirconium oxide, boron nitride, and silicon nitride) were also characterized at temperatures ranging from 25 °C to 600 °C.
The adventures of love in the social sciences : social representations, psychometric evaluations and cognitive influences of passionate love

Le but principal de cette these est d'explorer le sentiment d'amour passionnel dans les relations romantiques. L'amour passionnel est definit comme « un etat de desir intense a d'union avec un autre ». Ce construit est generalement considere comme une experience universelle fortement associee a l'attraction sexuelle et possedant un impact considerable sur les dimensions emotionnelles, cognitives et comportementales. Le but principal de cette these etait d'apporter de nouveaux elements montrant que les experiences subjectives de l'amour passionnel sont culturellement et contextuellement determinees et qu'il existe neanmoins une certaine universalite des cognitions et comportements lorsque les personnes declarent etre amoureuses. De plus, nous avons etudie l'effet de l'amour passionnel sur les processus cognitifs. Au total, 1000 etudiants ont participe a 4 etudes differentes. Des sujets francais et bresiliens ont repondu a l’Echelle d'Amour Passionnel (PLS) dans le but d'etudier leurs sentiments d'amour passionnel sur la base des composantes cognitive, emotionnelle et comportementale. Les representations sociales de l'amour passionnel de ces memes groupes ont ete explorees a partir d'analyses structurelles d'associations de mots. Les processus cognitifs de l'amour passionnel ont ete testes dans une etude sur la relation entre l'amour passionnel et les experiences sensorielles et une etude sur l'effet de l'amour passionnel sur les productions creatives. Les resultats obtenus avec la PLS ont montre les memes proprietes psychometriques en France et au Bresil. Dans les deux cas, l'analyse factorielle a revele une composante principale avec des consistances internes elevees. Les sujets qui ont declare etre amoureux ont semble aimer avec le meme niveau de passion dans les deux cultures mais des differences de genre ont ete retrouvees au Bresil. L'analyse des associations de mots a indique des differences contextuelles, culturelles et de genre. En ce qui concerne les processus cognitifs, l'amour passionnel a un effet positif sur l'attraction physique et l'experience sensorielle mais nous n'avons pas trouve de relation entre l'amour passionnel et la creativite (pensees divergentes et convergentes). Les resultats de ces differentes etudes sont presentes et discutes en s'appuyant sur les perspectives interculturelle, neuropsychologique et evolutionniste de l'amour romantique. L'amour passionnel peut etre vecu de plusieurs facons mais ses manifestations sont universelles. Nous concluons que l'amour passionnel est principalement un phenomene biologique qui peut etre influence par la culture, assurant des reproductions reussies de notre espece.
Predicting the electric field distribution in the brain for the treatment of glioblastoma

The use of alternating electric fields has been recently proposed for the treatment of recurrent glioblastoma. In order to predict the electric field distribution in the brain during the application of such tumor treating fields (TTF), we constructed a realistic head model from MRI data and placed transducer arrays on the scalp to mimic an FDA-approved medical device. Values for the tissue dielectric properties were taken from the literature; values for the device parameters were obtained from the manufacturer. The finite element method was used to calculate the electric field distribution in the brain. We also included a ‘virtual lesion’ in the model to simulate the presence of an idealized tumor. The calculated electric field in the brain varied mostly between 0.5 and 2.0 V cm − 1 and exceeded 1.0 V cm − 1 in 60% of the total brain volume. Regions of local field enhancement occurred near interfaces between tissues with different conductivities wherever the electric field was perpendicular to those interfaces. These increases were strongest near the ventricles but were also present outside the tumor’s necrotic core and in some parts of the gray matter–white matter interface. The electric field values predicted in this model brain are in reasonably good agreement with those that have been shown to reduce cancer cell proliferation in vitro. The electric field distribution is highly non-uniform and depends on tissue geometry and dielectric properties. This could explain some of the variability in treatment outcomes. The proposed modeling framework could be used to better understand the physical basis of TTF efficacy through retrospective analysis and to improve TTF treatment planning.
The Interaction Between Gabapentin and Amitriptyline in the Rat Formalin Test After Systemic Administration

We examined the effects of systemically administered gabapentin on flinching and biting/licking behaviors produced by 2.5% formalin in the rat, compared these with those of amitriptyline, and determined the effects of combinations of gabapentin with amitriptyline. Gabapentin produced a dose-related inhibition of Phase 2, but not Phase 1, flinching and biting/licking behaviors. In contrast, amitriptyline produced an increase in Phase 2 flinching behaviors while simultaneously decreasing biting/licking behaviors. Fifty percent effective dose (ED50) values against biting/licking behaviors were 22.9 ± 1.3 mg/kg and 8.5 ± 1.3 mg/kg for gabapentin and amitriptyline, respectively. Combinations of increasing fractional increments of ED50 doses of gabapentin and amitriptyline produced an additive effect against biting/licking behaviors, as revealed by isobolographic analysis. These increments had no effect on flinching behaviors except at the ED25 + ED25 doses, at which flinching was increased, again revealing additivity between the two drugs. Flinching behaviors in rats do not reflect the analgesic properties of systemically administered amitriptyline observed in humans and may not be useful for predicting an effect of combinations of drugs with amitriptyline. Biting/licking behaviors do reflect analgesic properties for both drugs and may be more useful in this regard.
Innovation in the Norwegian Rural Tourism Industry: Results from a Norwegian Survey

This paper focuses on innovation in the rural tourism industry. The data is a survey including 133 Norwegian rural tourism enterprises. The operational definition of innovation in this study is quite similar to the one used in the European innovation studies, the Community Innovation Survey, conducted by Eurostat. The seven hypotheses in this study are deduced from the review of the literature. The survey indicates rather high rates of innovations among rural tourism enterprises even if the rates are somewhat lower than the average of other tourism enterprises in Norway. The rural tourism enterprises' innovative capacity is closely associated with the enterprises' involvement in cooperation, use of market-information systems, and actions taken to increase the employees' competence. Additionally, the enterprises with an exporting orientation generate more product innovations than other enterprises. Enterprises that acquire public grants have also on average implemented more product and market innovations compared with the rest of the enterprises. The findings give grounds for some practical recommendations. Finally, more research is needed due to the fact that research on innovation has rarely focused on small-scale, rural tourism enterprises.
Comuting Core-Sets and Approximate Smallest Enclosing HyperSpheres in High Dimensions

We study the minimum enclosing ball (MEB) problem for sets of points or balls in high dimensions. Using techniques of second-order cone programming and “core-sets”, we have developed (1+ )-approximation algorithms that performwell in practice, especially for very high dimensions, in addition to having provable guarantees. We prove the existence of core-sets of size O(1/ ) , improving the previous bound of O(1/ 2) , and we study empirically how the core-set size grows with dimension. We show that our algorithm, which is simple to implement, results in fast computation of nearly optimal solutions for point sets in much higher dimension than previously computable using exact techniques.
Interfacial Reaction Dependent Performance of Hollow Carbon Nanosphere – Sulfur Composite as a Cathode for Li-S Battery

Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) battery is a promising energy storage system due to its high energy density, cost effectiveness and environmental friendliness of sulfur. However, there are still a number of technical challenges, such as low Coulombic efficiency and poor long-term cycle life, impeding the commercialization of Li-S battery. The electrochemical performance of Li-S battery is closely related with the interfacial reactions occurring between hosting substrate and active sulfur species which are poorly conducting at fully oxidized and reduced states. Here, we correlate the relationship between the performance and interfacial reactions in the Li-S battery system, using a hollow carbon nanosphere (HCNS) with highly graphitic character as hosting substrate for sulfur. With an appropriate amount of sulfur loading, HCNS/S composite exhibits excellent electrochemical performance because of the fast interfacial reactions between HCNS and the polysulfides. However, further increase of sulfur loading leads to increased formation of highly resistive insoluble reaction products (Li2S2/Li2S) which limits the reversibility of the interfacial reactions and results in poor electrochemical performances. These findings demonstrate the importance of the interfacial reaction reversibility in the whole electrode system on achieving high capacity and long cycle life of sulfur cathode for Li-S batteries.
Investigating the connection between consumer unethical behaivour and birthplace: Evidence from Pakistan

Few consumers are developed plans to cheat or by-pass the given systems as well as bought items and returned those items after using few days. The major objective of this research study is to investigate the relation between individual birthplace ( i.e. rural birthplace, urban birthplace) and the consumer unethical behavior. The study also aims to determine the relationship among consumer unethical behavior, moral ideology, and urban birthplace. To meet the objectives of study, data have been obtained from 355 respondents that are living in Lahore and Gujranwala. The results reveal that moral ideology is influenced by rural birthplace as well as urban birthplace. However, the results also exhibit thatconsumers of rural birthplace are found more ethical than urban birthplace. The results show that the role of individual birthplace is not influenced byconsumer unethical behaviour(CUB)but has a statistically significant relationship with moral ideology.
The Compositional Processes of Electroacoustic Composers: Contrasting Perspectives

This paper explores composers’ approaches to composition, organising their work, and attitudes to the tools and technology. This qualitative naturalistic study involved in-depth interviews with four composers, and inductive data analysis. It concludes that individual differences have software implications, and a challenge for composition software designers therefore lies in the heterogeneity of their user population.
Extension-Based Divorce Education: A Quasi-Experimental Design Study of the Parents Forever Program

ABSTRACT The field of divorce education is calling for greater rigor in evaluating program effectiveness and University Extension programs are no exception. Parents Forever, a University of Minnesota Extension divorce education program developed in the 1990s, conducted a quasi-experimental design study, with a sample of in-person class participants and a comparison sample of divorcing parents. Independent samples t tests were conducted between the unstandardized residuals of each group. In support of the program’s goals, results indicated positive program effects for several variables related to parenting practices, adult quality of life, self-efficacy, and parent report of child conduct problems and peer problems (p < .01). No effect was found for coparenting conflict, adult social health, and child hyperactivity, and marginal program effects (p < .05), both positive and negative, were found for coparenting alliance (–), positive parenting (+), child emotional symptoms (+), and child prosocial behavior (–).