Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Collective Creativity and Brokerage Functions in Heavily Cross-Disciplined Innovation Processes

Abstract The centres of collective creativity tend to be at the intersections of different domains. Based on this, distances between innovating partners can be considered as sources of innovation. However, the literature usually emphasises the advantages of proximity. Proximity may, however, also have negative impacts due to the problem of lock-in – meaning a lack of openness and flexibility. This article takes the changed pattern of innovation as a point of departure: innovations are seen to emerge in nonlinear processes, often combining very diverse knowledge bases. Structural holes in networks of innovation systems are especially fruitful for innovation. In theoretical discussion, this article presents seven dimensions of distance: cognitive, communicative, organisational, functional, cultural, social, and geographical. In attempts to create innovation, different kinds of distances would need to be exploited knowingly. The study uses the experiences of the case study to answer how it is possible to span the structural holes in cross-disciplined multi-actor innova-tion. According to the experiences, the brokerage function is essential in exploiting the different kinds of distances. Indeed, it was necessary to define two brokerage functions: process brokerage and session brokerage.
Differential ERK1/2 Signaling and Hypertrophic Response to Endothelin-1 in Cardiomyocytes from SHR and Wistar-Kyoto Rats: A Potential Target for Combination Therapy of Hypertension

Extracellular signal regulated kinase½ (ERK1/2) signaling is critical to endothelin-1 (ET-1)-induced cardiomyocyte hypertrophy. This study was to investigate ERK1/2 signaling and hypertrophic response to ET-1 stimulation in cardiomyocytes (CMs) from spontaneous hypertensive rats (SHR) and normotensive Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKY). Primary neonatal SHR and WKY CMs were exposed to ET-1 for up to 24 hrs. Minimal basal ERK1/2 phosphorylation was present in WKY CMs, while a significant baseline ERK1/2 phosphorylation was observed in SHR CMs. ET-1 induced a time- and dose-dependent increase in ERK1/2 phosphorylation in both SHR and WKY CMs. However, ET-1-induced ERK1/2 activation occurred much earlier with significantly higher peak phosphorylation level, and stayed elevated for longer duration in SHR CMs than that in WKY CMs. ET-1-induced hypertrophic response was more prominent in SHR CMs than that in WKY CMs as reflected by increased cell surface area, intracellular actin density, and protein synthesis. Pre-treatment with ERK1/2 phosphorylation inhibitor PD98059 completely prevented ET-1-induced ERK1/2 phosphorylation and increases in cell surface area and protein synthesis in SHR and WKY CMs. The specific PI3 kinase inhibitor LY294002 blocked ET-1-induced Akt and ERK1/2 phosphorylation, and protein synthesis in CMs. These data indicated that ERK1/2 signaling was differentially enhanced in CMs, and was associated with increased cardiac hypertrophic response to ET-1 in SHR. ET-1-induced ERK1/2 activation and cardiac hypertrophy appeared to be mediated via PI3 kinase/Akt signaling in SHR and WKY. The differential ERK1/2 activation in SHR CMs by ET-1 might represent a potential target for combination therapy of hypertension.
Survey of Price-Setting Behaviour of Canadian Companies

In many mainstream macroeconomic models, sticky prices play an important role in explaining the effects of monetary policy on the economy. Various theories have been set forth to explain why prices are sticky. This study takes a firm-level survey approach, in a spirit similar to Blinder et al. (1998), to shed some light on the question of why prices are sticky. In particular, the Bank of Canada's regional offices surveyed 170 Canadian firms for their views on price dynamics. The authors find that the most important motivators of price changes are price changes by competitors, changes in domestic input costs, and changes in demand. Surprisingly, but consistent with the results reported in Bils and Klenow (2002), the survey evidence suggests that more than 50 per cent of firms change their prices more than four times a year. Moreover, the survey indicates that prices change more frequently than they did ten years ago, because of more intense competition and advances in information technology.
Statistical Analysis of Cointegrated VAR Processes with Markovian Regime Shifts

This paper suggests a new methodological approach to the analysis of cointegrated linear systems subject to changes in regime. We consider cointegrated vector autoregressive processes where Markovian shifts occur in the equilibrium mean and the drift of the system. A two-stage maximum likelihood estimation technique is proposed. In the first stage, based on a finite order VAR approximation of the cointegrated VARMA representation, the Johansen cointegration analysis is invoked to determine the cointegration rank and to estimate the cointegration matrix. An EM algorithm delivers the maximum likelihood estimates of the remaining parameters. The methodology is illustrated with an investigation of international and global business cycles.
Economic Consequences of Private Equity Investments on the German Stock Market

This paper investigates the wealth effects of private equity (PE) investor purchases of shares in German quoted companies. It is the first study to analyze these effects for the German market which is particularly interesting due to its distinct characteristics with regard to the ownership structure of publicly listed companies and the protection of minority shareholders. We find that PE investors generate positive wealth effects for target shareholders of 5.90% around the event day (t = -1 to t = 0). In addition, we find that the wealth effects of PE investor involvement in Germany are positively related to the target's tax liabilities and degree of undervaluation and negatively related to the target's leverage and the shareholding of the second largest ownership block. The latter effect can be interpreted as a supplementary monitoring effect of the management or a monitoring effect of the largest shareholder through which private benefits of control are reduced.
Performance evaluation of double gate junctionless field effect transistor with vertical Gaussian doping profile

This paper presents, a simulation based study of Double Gate Junctionless Field Effect Transistor (DG-JLFETs) with Vertical Gaussian Doping profile. The proposed device structure improves the ON to OFF drain current ratio (by ≈ 105), threshold voltage roll off (by ≈ 30 mV), Drain Induced Barrier Lowering (DIBL) (by ≈ 29 mV/V) and Sub-threshold swing (by ≈ 6 mV/dec) at straggle parameter σ ≈ 3.75 nm in comparison to uniformly doped channel double gate junctionless Field effect transistors.
Improvement of anemia after parathyroidectomy in Chinese patients with renal failure undergoing long-term dialysis.

HYPOTHESIS Most patients undergoing long-term dialysis are anemic because of underproduction of erythropoietin and its inhibition by high parathyroid hormone levels due to secondary hyperparathyroidism. Renal anemia can be improved by parathyroidectomy. DESIGN Retrospective cohort study. SETTING Regional hospital. PATIENTS Twenty-three Chinese patients without a previous functioning renal transplant underwent parathyroidectomy for severe secondary hyperparathyroidism in a 3-year period. INTERVENTION Total parathyroidectomy with or without parathyroid autograft at the forearm. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES The preoperative and 6-month postoperative hematological and biochemical variables were compared for any differences by means of a paired t test. RESULTS The mean +/- SD follow-up duration was 17.7 +/- 8.1 (range, 6-34) months. Three patients (13%) developed persistent or recurrent hyperparathyroidism and 2 patients (9%) were biochemically hypoparathyroid. The other 18 patients (78%) were euparathyroid. Surgical morbidity was minimal; only 1 patient had complications, consisting of a postoperative fever of unknown origin that resolved with conservative treatment. The mean +/- SD hemoglobin level (8.6 +/- 2.1 vs 9.4 +/- 2.1 g/dL) but not the mean platelet level was significantly (P = .04) increased 6 months postoperatively. Likewise, the following other mean +/- SD biochemical values improved after surgery: parathyroid hormone (2235 +/- 500 vs 151 +/- 312 pg/mL; P<.001), alkaline phosphatase (645 +/- 349 vs 123 +/- 82 U/L; P<.001), calcium (10.8 +/- 4.0 vs 9.3 +/- 1.0 mg/dL; P<.001), phosphate (1.93 +/- 0.73 vs 1.50 +/- 0.51 mmol/L; P = .02), and albumin (3.5 +/- 0.5 vs 3.8 +/- 0.6 g/dL; P = .006). CONCLUSIONS Parathyroidectomy is highly effective to control secondary hyperparathyroidism with an exceedingly low complication rate. The hemoglobin level was significantly elevated 6 months postoperatively. The long-term effect warrants future trials.
Factors Affecting the Transmission of Earnings across Generations: A Quantile Regression Approach

In this paper we estimate intergenerational earnings mobility models using quantile regressions. Quantile regression is a less restrictive estimation approach than more commonly used methods such as ordinary least squares and instrumental variables, which only estimate the mean effects of intergenerational earnings correlation. Further, we investigate the role of education as an intergenerational transmission mechanism for earnings. We find that the intergenerational earnings correlation is greater at the bottom of the son's conditional earnings distribution than at the top, and that controlling for son's education reduces the intergenerational earnings correlation. We also find that education is relatively more valuable at the bottom of the conditional earnings distribution and thus tends to compress the distribution.
Efficient design of a two-stage MPC system for dielectric test stand

Magnetic pulse compression (MPC) system has been used widely over the past decades as a technique for producing short duration, high peak power pulses reliably. Recently this technique has been used at higher and higher repetition rates. As repetition rate increases, losses become increasingly important. Magnetization losses in the MPC cores lead to core heating which degrades switching performance. An efficiency design strategy for a two-stage MPC system is introduced. In the strategy presented here, the total losses are minimized with respect to the individual core gains, and the resulting compression design has a lower overall loss and a better distribution of losses through the system. The gain of the final stage and hence its core volume are reduced. This allows low inductance geometries to be attained more easily, or lower loss/higher volume materials to be used. There is however an increase in the total volume of core material required in the traditional approach whose total core volume is minimized with equal gain obtained in each of the stages. However the traditional approach leads to an imbalance in the distribution of losses between stages, and at high pulse repetition rates the losses in the final stage become excessive. By optimizing the distribution of the compression ratio at each stage, the maximum energy transfer efficiency of the two stage MPC system was 87.6%. This approach can be applied to more than two-stage MPC. With this MPC and IGBT we obtained the MPC output power of 3kW at a repetition rate of 10 kHz.
Impact of Whole-Genome and Tandem Duplications in the Expansion and Functional Diversification of the F-Box Family in Legumes (Fabaceae)

F-box proteins constitute a large gene family that regulates processes from hormone signaling to stress response. F-box proteins are the substrate recognition modules of SCF E3 ubiquitin ligases. Here we report very distinct trends in family size, duplication, synteny and transcription of F-box genes in two nitrogen-fixing legumes, Glycine max (soybean) and Medicago truncatula (alfafa). While the soybean FBX genes emerged mainly through segmental duplications (including whole-genome duplications), M. truncatula genome is dominated by locally-duplicated (tandem) F-box genes. Many of these young FBX genes evolved complex transcriptional patterns, including preferential transcription in different tissues, suggesting that they have probably been recruited to important biochemical pathways (e.g. nodulation and seed development).
Essays on the financial crisis, financial regulation, and banks

The conventional wisdom was that the Capital Purchase Program (CPP), under the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), would benefit large banks over small sized banks, magnifying the claim that banks were “Too Big to Fail”. In my first chapter, I examine whether investors react differently to important news regarding the CPP, depending on the asset size of banks. Using returns to common stock shareholders, I analyze the CPP announcement, bank capital infusions, and repayments and find that large banks, regardless of whether or not they entered into the CPP program and received capital, had large and significant returns at the time of the program’s announcement (approximately 10% and 7%, respectively). Compared to returns for investors of small banks, investors of large banks received a 7.5% higher return, indicating that investors of large banks initially thought that the TARPCPP disproportionately helped larger banks. This “Too Big to Fail” reaction is also prevalent when examining systematic risk (market risk), as the betas of large banks increased the year after banks received CPP capital, indicating that the capital was not enough to cover possible capital shortfalls or the loaned government capital would lead banks to be riskier in the future. My second chapter investigates the empirical relationship between a bank’s involvement in various nontraditional activities and the likelihood that a bank fails or receives TARP capital. Using a probit analysis, I estimate that banks are more likely to receive TARP capital if they have lower tier one capital ratios, lower ROAs, more real estate loans, more standby letters of credit and commercial letters of credit. My probit estimates of bank failure from 2007-2011 also suggest that these balance sheet variables and off balance sheet variables affect bank failures similarly. Previous studies that independently analyze bank failure or entry into TARP only include balance
Volatile organic compound measurements at Trinidad Head, California, during ITCT 2K2: Analysis of sources, atmospheric composition, and aerosol residence times

[1] We report hourly in-situ observations of C(1)-C(8) speciated volatile organic compounds (VOCs) obtained at Trinidad Head CA in April and May 2002 as part of the NOAA Intercontinental Transport and Chemical Transformation study. Factor analysis of the VOC data set was used to define the dominant processes driving atmospheric chemical composition at the site, and to characterize the sources for measured species. Strong decreases in background concentration were observed for several of the VOCs during the experiment due to seasonal changes in OH concentration. CO was the most important contributor to the total measured OH reactivity at the site at all times. Oxygenated VOCs were the primary component of both the total VOC burden and of the VOC OH reactivity, and their relative importance was enhanced under conditions when local source contributions were minimal. VOC variability exhibited a strong dependence on residence time (s(lnX) = 1.55(tau)(-0.44), r(2) = 0.98; where s(lnX) is the standard deviation of the natural logarithm of the mixing ratio), and this relationship was used, in conjunction with measurements of (222)Rn, to estimate the average OH concentration during the study period (6.1 x 10(5) molec/cm(3)). We also employed the variability-lifetime relationship defined by the VOC data set to estimate submicron aerosol residence times as a function of chemical composition. Two independent measures of aerosol chemical composition yielded consistent residence time estimates. Lifetimes calculated in this manner were between 3 - 7 days for aerosol nitrate, organics, sulfate, and ammonium. The lifetime estimate for methane sulfonic acid ( similar to 12 days) was slightly outside of this range. The lifetime of the total aerosol number density was estimated at 9.8 days.
On cloud modelling and the mass accommodation coefficient of water

On cloud modelling and the mass accommodation coefficient of water A. Laaksonen, T. Vesala, M. Kulmala, P. M. Winkler, and P. E. Wagner Department of Applied Physics, University of Kuopio, P.O. Box 1627, FIN-70211 Kuopio, Finland Department of Physical Sciences, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 64, FIN-00014 Helsinki, Finland Institut für Experimentalphysik, Universität Wien, Boltzmanngasse 5, A-1090 Wien, Austria Received: 8 September 2004 – Accepted: 27 October 2004 – Published: 5 November 2004 Correspondence to: A. Laaksonen (ari.laaksonen@uku.fi)
THE IMMUNOGENICITY OF DINITROPHENYL AMINO ACIDS

Numerous dinitrophenyl amino acid preparations injected intradermally induced contact hypersensitivity to dinitrochlorobenzene, delayed type skin reactions to DNP-amino acids, and anti-DNP antibodies in guinea pigs. Some DNP-amino adds induced precipitating anti-DNP antibodies in rabbits as well. Some of the DNP-ammo acids studied were regularly immunogenic, possible immunogenic impurities having been excluded by extensive purification procedures. Others were either constantly nonimmunogenic or irregularly immunogenic, e.g., their immunogenicity varying from one preparation lot to another. By means of extensive chemical analyses and the establishment of dose-response curves, we were able to demonstrate in most cases that the immunogenicity was not due to contamination with unreacted dinitrofluorobenzene or other DNP derivatives, to photodecomposition or other degradation products, or to DNP-protein contaminants. Nevertheless, the irregular immunogenicity of several DNP-amino acid preparations can only be explained by a highly immunogenic impurity (or impurities) which we were unable to detect analytically. The regular immunogenicity of some other DNP-amino acids (e.g. di-DNP-L-histidine) appears to be based on a "transconjugation" phenomenon, the DNP group being able to split off from its amino acid carrier and to conjugate secondarily with proteins in vivo and in vitro. Accordingly, the interpretation of some recent data concerning the immunogenicity of low molecular weight hapten-amino acids may have to be reevaluated.
The Survival Profile of U.S. IPO Issuers

This article examines the survival profile of U.S. Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) for the 1985-2005 period. More specifically, the authors develop Multinomial Logit models based on the information contained in the prospectus and attempt to determine what factors influence the post-issue transition of the IPO firms into survivors, non-survivors or targets. The main findings of the article are that larger IPOs experience a lower probability of delisting, and higher underpricing increases the probability of failure or becoming a target. Further, the presence of venture capitalists and a prestigious underwriter at the IPO stage seems to influence the post-IPO transition state. They also estimate an accelerated-failure-time model as a robustness test and confirm their previous results. They also find that the survival time is negatively affected if the IPO is in the internet sector.
Benefits of short-term structured exercise in non-overweight women with polycystic ovary syndrome: a prospective randomized controlled study

[Purpose] The short-term effects of structured exercise on the anthropometric, cardiovascular, and metabolic parameters of non-overweight women diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome were evaluated. [Subjects and Methods] Thirty women with a diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome were prospectively randomized to either a control group (n=16) or a training group (n=14) for a period of 8 weeks. Anthropometric, cardiovascular, and metabolic parameters and hormone levels were measured and compared before and after the intervention. [Results] Waist and hip measurements (anthropometric parameters); diastolic blood pressure; respiratory rate (cardiovascular parameters); levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, total cholesterol, fasting glucose, and fasting insulin; and the homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance index (metabolic parameters) were significantly lower in the training group after 8 weeks of exercise compared to the baseline values. After exercise, the training group had significantly higher oxygen consumption and high-density lipoprotein levels and significantly shorter menstrual cycle intervals. The corresponding values for controls did not significantly differ between the start and end of the 8-week experiment. [Conclusion] Short-term regular exercise programs can lead to improvements in anthropometric, cardiovascular, and metabolic parameters of non-overweight women with polycystic ovary syndrome.
Encouraging Lecturers to Engage with New Technologies in Learning and Teaching in a Vocational University: The Role of Recognition and Reward

Bournemouth University faces the same challenges as many other universities. These arise from the sector-wide agendas, such as widening participation, regional partnerships and international collaboration, in addition to increasing research activity and managing with reduced funding. A key priority within Bournemouth’s Learning and Teaching Strategy is to use learning technologies to address these challenges. Several incentives are being used to encourage lecturers to adopt online learning. These have as their common focus the need to value teaching activity on an equal footing with research. The strategies used include funding for learning and teaching projects, a Learning and Teaching Fellowship Scheme, the creation of a Centre for Academic Practice to focus on pedagogic research, payment for membership of the Institute for Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, and a staff development programme for Programme Leaders. These initiatives are possible because the University has take a strategic approach to using government funds for learning and teaching and human resources development (HRD) policies. However, putting in place such incentives is only worthwhile if they work, and research suggests that successful and widespread implementation of online learning depends on a number of factors (Johnston and McCormack, 1996; Steel and Hudson, 2001; Somekh, 1998; Spotts, 1999). This article presents findings from research in progress by the author which is investigating factors affecting the adoption of online learning by lecturers at Bournemouth and their motivation to change their teaching methods. The methodology used is action research and the article ends by briefly illustrating some of the issues faced by the researcher conducting research in her own organisation.