Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
No Questions Asked: News Coverage since 9/11

No Questions Asked: News Coverage Since 9/11. Lisa Finnegan. Westport, CT: Praeger, 2006. 189 pp. $49.95 hbk. Journalism students receive grades and comments on their reporting assignments. Journalists in general do not receive comprehensive feedback on their performance, at least not from observers outside their news organization. As part of the publisher's Democracy and the News series, this book is a timely and much-needed report card on U.S. journalists' unsatisfactory coverage of how the Bush administration responded to the September 11 attacks, focusing in particular on the war in Iraq. With such titles as "A Fearful Press," "An Obedient Press," and "An Indifferent Press," each of the chapters describes a facet of the press's failure to question the Bush administration regarding the Iraq War. Finnegan thoroughly documents events and facts to support her argument that journalists have not asked politicians tough questions about the war, including the buildup to it. Many of the facts in this book we already know, but there are a number that many readers probably have not heard of. Her solid research and enchanting writing style offer the reader a comprehensive picture of what was presented to us, as well as what was omitted, either intentionally or not, by the U.S. mainstream news media. Her contributions do not stop there. Lisa Finnegan is an independent journalist with a master's degree in educational psychology. Her background apparently gives her insights into how the psychology of journalists affects their political reporting. She cites social science research on groupthink, the tendency to obey authority, and patriotism to explain why reporters have not fulfilled their watchdog duty. She also discusses such factors as the concentration of media ownership and the news media's shortcomings. The author additionally specifies tactics used by politicians to influence or even silence journalists. Most criticisms of the media focus on the "what's. " Finnegan convincingly explains the "why's," which is a unique and important contribution. Another admirable achievement of this book is the author's suggestions on how to reform journalism to prevent the same mistakes in the future. Throughout the book, and especially in its conclusion, the author advises current and future journalists to be emotionally detached from their sources and social/cultural influences and to ask "all the questions that needed to be asked," which is a form of professional determination. A flawless study is always more an ideal than a reality. …
The Contribution of Particle Swarm Optimization to Three-Dimensional Slope Stability Analysis

Over the last few years, particle swarm optimization (PSO) has been extensively applied in various geotechnical engineering including slope stability analysis. However, this contribution was limited to two-dimensional (2D) slope stability analysis. This paper applied PSO in three-dimensional (3D) slope stability problem to determine the critical slip surface (CSS) of soil slopes. A detailed description of adopted PSO was presented to provide a good basis for more contribution of this technique to the field of 3D slope stability problems. A general rotating ellipsoid shape was introduced as the specific particle for 3D slope stability analysis. A detailed sensitivity analysis was designed and performed to find the optimum values of parameters of PSO. Example problems were used to evaluate the applicability of PSO in determining the CSS of 3D slopes. The first example presented a comparison between the results of PSO and PLAXI-3D finite element software and the second example compared the ability of PSO to determine the CSS of 3D slopes with other optimization methods from the literature. The results demonstrated the efficiency and effectiveness of PSO in determining the CSS of 3D soil slopes.
The effect of prenatal highly active antiretroviral therapy on the transmission of congenital and perinatal/early postnatal cytomegalovirus among HIV-infected and HIV-exposed infants.

BACKGROUND Before highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) rates were higher among human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-exposed infants than unexposed infants. This study examines congenital and perinatal/early postnatal (P/EP) CMV among HIV-exposed infants pre- and post- HAART. METHODS Infants born to HIV-infected women were evaluated for congenital CMV (CMV-positive culture in first 3 weeks of life) and P/EP CMV (positive culture in first 6 months of life). Prenatal maternal HAART was defined as triple antiretroviral therapy (ART) with at least 1 nonnucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitor or protease inhibitor. RESULTS Among 414 infants evaluated, 1678 CMV assessment days were completed (mean = 3 assessment days per infant). Congenital CMV rates did not differ by time period, HAART use, or infant HIV infection status. P/EP CMV rates were greater for the 1988-1996 birth cohort (17.9%) compared with the 1997-2002 birth cohort (8.9%) (P < .01), HIV-infected versus uninfected infants (P < .01), and infants with no maternal ART versus those with ART (P < .01). Controlling for potential confounders, P/EP CMV was associated with no maternal ART (odds ratio = 4.7; P < .01), and among those with no maternal ART, P/EP CMV was associated with maternal CD4 count ≤200 cells/μL (P < .01). For HIV-uninfected infants with P/EP CMV, symptoms including splenomegaly, lymphadenopathy, and hepatomegaly were associated with no maternal HAART versus those with HAART (41% vs 6%; P < .05). CONCLUSIONS Although congenital CMV rates did not change, the post-HAART era showed reduced P/EP CMV and occurrence of related clinical symptoms. These findings underscore the importance of prenatal HAART for all HIV-infected pregnant women.
Osteogenicity of autologous bone transplants in the goat

Background. Little is known about the specific mechanisms that make autologous graft bone (AG) superior to the current alternatives. A potential mechanism is the active bone formation by the osteoprogenitor cells within the AG. However, whether these cells survive the transplantation is questionable, especially in nonvascularized, clinically sized grafts. In the present study, we investigated the role of viability in AG implanted ectopically and orthotopically in the goat. Methods. Eight goats were operated on twice. At the first operation, pieces of vital or devitalized autologous cortical bone were implanted in the paraspinal muscles. Eight weeks later, corticocancellous plugs were taken from the femoral condyles, morselized, and reimplanted as either vital or devitalized orthotopic grafts. The goats received fluorochrome labels at 5, 7, and 9 weeks after the first operation. At 12 weeks, the goats were killed, and the samples were examined histologically. Results. Ectopically, new bone had formed in both the vital and devitalized grafts. In the vital grafts, all three fluorochrome labels were present, indicating an early osteogenic mechanism. Within the devitalized grafts, only the 9-week label was observed. Histomorphometry indicated significantly more new bone in the vital grafts (10.3% vs. 1.7% in the devitalized grafts, P <0.01). Orthotopically, both vital and devitalized grafts showed new bone. Again, graft viability was advantageous in terms of new bone formation (14.5% vs. 9.3%, P <0.02). Conclusion. The cells inside the autologous bone transplants most likely survived transplantation and were capable of initiating and sustaining new bone formation.
Who Is to Blame? : University Students' Perception of Lack of Improvement in Their English Ability

Drawing upon Attribution Theory (VVeiner, 1979, 1985, 1986, 1992), this survey research examined university students' perceived reasons why their English abillty had improved or not improved after they took required English classes. More specifically, this study attempted to answer the following questions: 1) how first year university students perceive their improvement in English ability after one year of instruction; 2) whether proficiency and teacher factors play any part in the development of students' perceived improvement; 3) to what students attribute their improvement and absences of improvement; and 4) if there is any relationship between their attributional beliefs and proficiency. The results of the statistical analyses imply that the majority of the students felt heir English ability had not changed or declined, especially in terms of grammar and vocabulary, and attributed internal factors such lack of effort, preparation for class, interest, and ability to absences of improvement. On the other hand, those who answered that their English ability had improved attributed external factors, especially their teachers, to the fatTorable results. These findings are in sharp contrast with two widely recognized psychological phenomena referred to as self protective and selfenhancement biases.
Marine low cloud sensitivity to an idealized climate change: The CGILS LES intercomparison

Subtropical marine low cloud sensitivity to an idealized climate change is compared in six large‐eddy simulation (LES) models as part of CGILS. July cloud cover is simulated at three locations over the subtropical northeast Pacific Ocean, which are typified by cold sea surface temperatures (SSTs) under well‐mixed stratocumulus, cool SSTs under decoupled stratocumulus, and shallow cumulus clouds overlying warmer SSTs. The idealized climate change includes a uniform 2 K SST increase with corresponding moist‐adiabatic warming aloft and subsidence changes, but no change in free‐tropospheric relative humidity, surface wind speed, or CO2. For each case, realistic advective forcings and boundary conditions are generated for the control and perturbed states which each LES runs for 10 days into a quasi‐steady state. For the control climate, the LESs correctly produce the expected cloud type at all three locations. With the perturbed forcings, all models simulate boundary‐layer deepening due to reduced subsidence in the warmer climate, with less deepening at the warm‐SST location due to regulation by precipitation. The models do not show a consistent response of liquid water path and albedo in the perturbed climate, though the majority predict cloud thickening (negative cloud feedback) at the cold‐SST location and slight cloud thinning (positive cloud feedback) at the cool‐SST and warm‐SST locations. In perturbed climate simulations at the cold‐SST location without the subsidence decrease, cloud albedo consistently decreases across the models. Thus, boundary‐layer cloud feedback on climate change involves compensating thermodynamic and dynamic effects of warming and may interact with patterns of subsidence change.
The Determinants of Capital Structure : Evidence from China

Purpose – This paper investigates the determinants of capital structure using a cross-section sample of 1481 non-financial firms listed on the Chinese stock exchanges in 2011. Design/methodology/approach – Employing four leverage measures (total leverage and long-term leverage in terms of both book value and market value, respectively), this study examines the effects of factors with proven influences on capital structure in literature, along with industry effect and ownership effect. Findings – We find that large firms favour debt financing while profitable firms rely more on internal capital accumulation. Intangibility and business risk increase the level of debt financing but tax has little impact on capital structure. We also observe strong industrial effect and ownership effect. Real estate firms borrow considerably more and firms from utility and manufacturing industries use more long-term debt despite Chinese firms generally employ significantly more short-term debt. On the other hand, firms with state ownership tend to borrow more, while firms with foreign ownership choose more equity financing. Practical implications – These results may provide important implications to investors in making investment decision and to firms in making financing decisions. Originality/value – this paper uses by far the largest and latest sample from the Chinese stock markets, offering the most complete picture of the financing behaviours in the Chinese firms, with known characters and the impact of ownerships.
Efficacy of antibiotic-coated catheters in preventing subcutaneous Staphylococcus aureus infection in rabbits.

Vascular catheters coated with antiinfective compounds were evaluated as to their ability to prevent Staphylococcus aureus catheter infection in a rabbit model. Zones of inhibition of agar surface-plated S. aureus demonstrated the following hierarchy: dicloxacillin and clindamycin were each better than fusidic acid or chlorhexidine, which were better than ciprofloxacin, cefotaxime, or cefuroxime. In vivo half-lives of inhibitory activity for clindamycin and dicloxacillin were 5.6 and 17.7 h, respectively, with apparent first-order kinetics. Chlorhexidine disappeared in vivo with apparent two-compartment kinetics: first-compartment t1/2, 16.8 h; second-compartment t1/2, 115.6 h. In a rabbit model, dicloxacillin, clindamycin, fusidic acid, and chlorhexidine decreased the risk of infection compared with uncoated control catheters (P < .05). For dicloxacillin, clindamycin, and chlorhexidine, this was true even if the S. aureus inoculation was delayed 48 or 96 h after catheter implantation. These data suggest that vascular catheters with antiinfective coatings should be investigated further in hospitalized patients.
The relevance of task-irrelevant sounds: hemispheric lateralization and interactions with task-relevant streams

The effect of unattended task-irrelevant auditory stimuli in the context of an auditory task is not well understood. Using human functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) we compared blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) signal changes resulting from monotic task-irrelevant stimulation, monotic task-relevant stimulation and dichotic stimulation with an attended task-relevant stream to one ear and an unattended task-irrelevant stream to the other ear simultaneously. We found strong bilateral BOLD signal changes in the auditory cortex (AC) resulting from monotic stimulation in a passive listening condition. Consistent with previous work, these responses were largest on the side contralateral to stimulation. AC responses to the unattended (task-irrelevant) sounds were preferentially contralateral and strongest for the most difficult condition. Stronger bilateral AC responses occurred during monotic passive-listening than to an unattended stream presented in a dichotic condition, with attention focused on one ear. Additionally, the visual cortex showed negative responses compared to the baseline in all stimulus conditions including passive listening. Our results suggest that during dichotic listening, with attention focused on one ear, (1) the contralateral and the ipsilateral auditory pathways are suppressively interacting; and (2) cross-modal inhibition occurs during purely acoustic stimulation. These findings support the existence of response suppressions within and between modalities in the presence of competing interfering stimuli.
Antioxidant and Vasodilatory Effects of Heme Oxygenase on Mesenteric Vasoreactivity Following Chronic Hypoxia

Objective: Chronic hypoxia (CH) results in impaired vasoconstriction associated with increased expression of heme oxygenase (HO). We hypothesized that enhanced HO activity minimizes reactive oxygen species (ROS) in arteries from CH rats, thereby normalizing endothelium‐dependent vasodilation and concurrently produces carbon monoxide (CO), resulting in tonic vasodilation.
Analysis of Electrical Property Variations for Composite Medium Using a Stochastic Collocation Method

In this paper, an efficient approach is used to evaluate the stochastic variations of the bulk permittivity for complex periodic composite material. This method is based on the stochastic collation method together with a periodic 3-D finite-difference approach. Based on the proposed method, the influence of the input uncertainties (e.g., mixture inclusion permittivity, conductivity, volume fraction, and host cell periodicity) on the complex bulk permittivity is discussed.
The Effect of Zinc and Selenium Supplementation Mode on Their Bioavailability in the Rat Prostate. Should Administration Be Joint or Separate?

It is thought that zinc and selenium deficiency may play a significant role in the etiology of prostate cancer. Although joint zinc and selenium supplementation is frequently applied in the prevention of prostate diseases, the bioavailability of these elements in the prostate after co-administration is still unknown. The study examines the effect of subchronic supplementation of zinc gluconate and selenium compounds (sodium selenite or selenomethionine), administered together or separately, on their bioavailability in the prostate, as well as the induction of metallothionein-like proteins (MTs) bound to zinc in the prostate and liver. Zinc concentration in the dorso-lateral lobe of the prostate was significantly elevated already after the first month of supplementation of zinc alone. In the supplementation period, the MTs level increased together with zinc concentration. In contrast, the ventral lobe of the prostate did not demonstrate significantly higher levels of zinc until after three months of supplementation, despite the MTs induction noted after one-month supplementation. Increased selenium levels in the dorsolateral lobe were observed throughout the administration and post-administration periods, regardless of the selenium compound used or whether zinc was co-administered. The results of our studies suggested for the first time that these elements should not be administered jointly in supplementation.
Managing ambiguity in mathematical matrices

In this paper we describe strategies for recognizing and using hand drawn matrices in a pen math system. This includes a new technique to recognize common short-forms of writing matrices using ellipsis (.). Ellipsis are commonly used in sketched matrices to illustrate the structure of a matrix without fully specifying the matrix. A second contribution of this paper is a new method to estimate the parameters of the hand drawn matrix, such as the number and position of the rows and columns. This is done using a modified clustering algorithm, allowing one to reduce the number of hard-coded constraints.
On the power of quantum computation

The quantum model of computation is a probabilistic model, similar to the probabilistic Turing Machine, in which the laws of chance are those obeyed by particles on a quantum mechanical scale, rather than the rules familiar to us from the macroscopic world. We present here a problem of distinguishing between two fairly natural classes of function, which can provably be solved exponentially faster in the quantum model than in the classical probabilistic one, when the function is given as an oracle drawn equiprobably from the uniform distribution on either class. We thus offer compelling evidence that the quantum model may have significantly more complexity theoretic power than the probabilistic Turing Machine. In fact, drawing on this work, Shor (1994) has recently developed remarkable new quantum polynomial-time algorithms for the discrete logarithm and integer factoring problems. <<ETX>>
Fibrillary glomerulonephritis presenting as crescentic glomerulonephritis

Fibrillary glomerulonephritis (FGN) is a rare primary glomerular disease that commonly presents clinically with hypertension, proteinuria, microscopic hematuria, and varying degree of renal insufficiency. Histologically, FGN can present with different patterns of glomerular injury, more commonly mesangioproliferative, membranoproliferative, and membranous nephropathy. While crescent formation has been described in some kidney biopsy series of FGN, crescentic glomerulonephritis pattern of glomerular injury has been rarely described. Optimal therapy and outcomes in FGN presenting with crescentic GN is not currently known. We report an adult patient who presented with massive proteinuria and severe renal failure. The kidney biopsy revealed crescentic FGN (C-FGN). The patient remained dialysis dependent despite immunosuppressive therapy. We also briefly review FGN, and the few reported cases of C-FGN that presented as rapidly progressive or advanced renal failure in the literature.
Reducing optimism bias in young novice drivers: The potential of accountability or insight experience interventions: Final report to the NRMA-ACT Road Safety Trust and VicRoads

Optimism bias, or the tendency to perceive oneself as more skilled or at llower riskr than oners peers, has been shown to occur in a range of different situations related to health risk. Optimism bias is particularly pertinent to road safety, as personal risk and ability perceptions underlie safe or risky driving behaviours. It has been consistently found that the majority of drivers consider themselves as being more skilled and less risky drivers and less likely to be involved in a crash than the average driver or their peers. The objectives of this project were: 1) To investigate whether novel computer-based accountability and insight interventions led to immediate reductions in driving-related optimism bias; 2) To investigate the immediate effect of insight and accountability interventions on driving-related attitudes; 3) To investigate whether any effects of accountability and insight interventions on optimism bias found immediately were sustained after three months and whether any new effects emerged; 4) To investigate whether any effects of accountability and insight interventions on driving-related attitudes found at Time 1 are sustained after three months and whether any new effects emerged over time.
Navigating Wall Street: Career Concerns and Analyst Transitions from Sell-Side to Buy-Side

Existing studies find that sell-side analysts who make less accurate and less optimistic forecasts are more likely to be terminated, suggesting that career concerns affect their forecasting decisions. Using employment data collected from LinkedIn, we find that 40% of equity analysts that exited the sell-side industry find immediate employment at buy-side institutions. These prospective buy-side analysts do not make less accurate or more biased forecasts than analysts who remain in the sell-side industry. In fact, those with superior forecasting ability ended up at a hedge fund or a private equity firm. We find that analysts with specialized education related to the industry they cover are more likely to switch to the buy-side. Relatedly, buy-side funds hire a sellside analyst for her expertise on stocks that the fund already holds relatively large positions. Our findings suggest that analysts’ exit from the sell-side industry is often a voluntary decision resulting from a worker-employer skill matching. For those leaving for the buy-side, their job turnover depends less on career-concern determinants.
User-adaptive interface based on mental model and symbol matching

We design a user-adaptive interface that is adapted to a driver considering his/her personal differences. This paper deals with the interactive adaptation interface based on probability model of hidden Markov model and symbol matching for in-vehicle information systems. This interface builds a user's navigation pattern model by navigation data and recommends symbols or clues which are affected by the user model. User's intention is inferred by the interactive behavior between the driver and the interface which is symbol matching. As an application example, we present a car navigation system and experiments were performed to confirm the effectiveness on the reduction of the response time.