Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Trash talking, respect for opponents and good competition

Trash talking, which is the North American term for verbal barbs directed at opponents during a sporting event in order to gain a competitive edge, is widely accepted by athletes and the athletic community as a legitimate part of sport. It is, however, morally indefensible. A simple Kantian injunction against treating opponents merely as objects to be overcome is sufficient to condemn this verbal abuse. Attempts to justify trash talking as a strategic ploy that implies no disrespect are disingenuous in view of the fact that its effectiveness depends on opponents' being offended by it. Nor can we defend trash talking as enhancing the goal of athletic competition, since the ability to verbally abuse opponents and remain impervious to their abuse are extraneous to the athletic excellence that contests are designed to measure. Attempts to deflect criticisms by partially immunizing sport from moral scrutiny are implausible. With few exceptions, we judge actions in sport by the same moral standards that we use in any other context. Moreover, the view that neither trash talking nor other actions in sport are fit subjects for strict moral scrutiny is inconsistent with the often-heard claim that sport promotes moral development.
Disability Risk, Disability Insurance and Life Cycle Behavior

This paper provides a life-cycle framework for weighing up the insurance value of disability benefits against the incentive cost. Within this framework, we estimate the life-cycle risks that individuals face in the US, as well as the parameters governing the disability insurance program, using indirect inference and longitudinal data on consumption, disability status, disability insurance receipt, and wages. We use our estimates to characterize the economic effects of disability programs and to consider how policy reforms would affect behaviour and standard measures of household welfare. Because of high levels of false rejections associated with the screening problem, average household welfare increases as the program becomes less strict, despite the worsening incentives that this implies. Incentives for false applications are reduced by reducing generosity and increasing reassessments and these policies also increase average household welfare, despite the worse insurance implied.
A Novel Strategy for Myocardial Protection by Combined Antibody Therapy Inhibiting Both P-Selectin and Intercellular Adhesion Molecule-1 Via Retrograde Intracoronary Route

Background— Antibody therapy to inhibit either P-selectin or intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) has been reported to provide myocardial protection against leukocyte-mediated reperfusion injury. Because these molecules play different roles in the leukocyte-endothelial interaction, co-inhibition of both may achieve further enhanced cardioprotection. In addition, the therapeutic efficacy of such antibody therapy may be affected by the delivery route used. Retrograde intracoronary infusion will offer an effective, direct access to the postcapillary venules, where the target event (leukocyte–endothelial interaction) takes place. We investigated the feasibility and efficiency of the combined antibody therapy targeting both P-selection and ICAM-1 via the retrograde intracoronary route to attenuate myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury. Methods and Results— Lewis rats underwent 30-minute left coronary artery occlusion. Just before reperfusion, anti-P-selectin monoclonal antibody (150 &mgr;g/kg), anti-ICAM-1 monoclonal antibody (200 &mgr;g/kg), both antibodies together, or control antibody were retrogradely infused into the left cardiac vein. At 24 hours after reperfusion, administration of either anti-P-selectin or anti-ICAM-1 antibody significantly (P<0.05) improved left ventricular ejection fraction and attenuated infarct size (40.6±3.2% and 34.8±3.5%, respectively) compared with the control (56.8±3.4%). This was associated with reduced leukocyte accumulation and improved regional blood flow in the ischemic area. Noticeably, co-administration of both antibodies achieved a much greater reduction in infarct size (19.1±3.6%), associated with greater attenuation in leukocyte infiltration, compared with administration of either single antibody. Conclusions— Combined antibody therapy inhibiting both P-selectin and ICAM-1 via the retrograde intracoronary route could be a promising new strategy for myocardial protection against ischemia-reperfusion injury.
Cumulative Tertiary Appraisals of Traumatic Events Across Cultures: Two Studies

Two studies compared the effects of cumulative trauma (CT) with those of cumulative negative (CNTA) and cumulative positive tertiary appraisals (CPTA). The first study was conducted with an adult clinical population in the U.S. (N = 399), while the second study was conducted with adolescent students in Gaza (N = 422). Among the effects found were that path analysis with comulative trauma, positive tertiary appraisal, and cumulative negative tertiary appraisals as independent variables and mental health measures as dependent variables, in both samples, found that CNTA and CPTA had direct positive and direct negative effects, respectively, on PTSD, depression, and anxiety. However, CT, independent from appraisals, had direct effects in producing the more complicated symptom clusters of cumulative trauma disorders.
Observing climate change trends in ocean biogeochemistry: when and where

Understanding the influence of anthropogenic forcing on the marine biosphere is a high priority. Climate change‐driven trends need to be accurately assessed and detected in a timely manner. As part of the effort towards detection of long‐term trends, a network of ocean observatories and time series stations provide high quality data for a number of key parameters, such as pH, oxygen concentration or primary production (PP). Here, we use an ensemble of global coupled climate models to assess the temporal and spatial scales over which observations of eight biogeochemically relevant variables must be made to robustly detect a long‐term trend. We find that, as a global average, continuous time series are required for between 14 (pH) and 32 (PP) years to distinguish a climate change trend from natural variability. Regional differences are extensive, with low latitudes and the Arctic generally needing shorter time series (<~30 years) to detect trends than other areas. In addition, we quantify the ‘footprint’ of existing and planned time series stations, that is the area over which a station is representative of a broader region. Footprints are generally largest for pH and sea surface temperature, but nevertheless the existing network of observatories only represents 9–15% of the global ocean surface. Our results present a quantitative framework for assessing the adequacy of current and future ocean observing networks for detection and monitoring of climate change‐driven responses in the marine ecosystem.
On dodgy ground? Problematics and ethics in educational research

This paper considers some of the decisions that researchers take and raises issues around researcher reflexivity, identity, values and ethics. It focuses attention on researchers and reflects on how the research they do, the topics they investigate, the methodologies they espouse, the methods they use and the writing/reporting styles they adopt, can have implications both in terms of their career development and with regard to their personal integrity and moral positioning. It is something of a truism to state that the sorts of research that get done depend upon the decisions researchers make. However, the relationship between research completed and in the public domain and individual researchers' choices is by no means a simple or straightforward one.
Habitat Fragmentation, Species Loss, and Biological Control

Fragmentation of habitats in the agricultural landscape is a major threat to biological diversity, which is greatly determined by insects. Isolation of habitat fragments resulted in decreased numbers of species as well as reduced effects of natural enemies. Manually established islands of red clover were colonized by most available herbivore species but few parasitoid species. Thus, herbivores were greatly released from parasitism, experiencing only 19 to 60 percent of the parasitism of nonisolated populations. Species failing to successfully colonize isolated islands were characterized by small and highly variable populations. Accordingly, lack of habitat connectivity released insects from predator control.
The seductiveness of agelessness

In recent years, many researchers in the study of ageing have adopted a terminology of ‘agelessness’. They argue that old age is nothing more than a social construct and that until it is eliminated as a conceptual category, ageism will continue to flourish. This article challenges this view, stating that the current tendency towards ‘agelessness’ is itself a form of ageism, depriving the old of one of their most hard-earned resources: their age. Specific theories of ageing (successful ageing, mask of ageing, continuity theory) are assessed in this light, and original data are presented as evidence of old age as a unique phase of the lifecycle replete with continued developmental possibilities.
Ecological significances of ontogenetic shifts in the stream‐dwelling catfish, Hatcheria macraei (Siluriformes, Trichomycteridae), in a Patagonian river

Abstract – The relationship between ontogenetic changes and both feeding and habitat preferences was studied in a stream catfish population of Argentine Patagonia. Fish capture, as well as habitat data recording, was performed during a 1-year long period. Larvae–juvenile transition was determined between 22.4 and 29.4 mm standard length (SL), on the basis of the relative growth changes and morphogenesis, and juvenile–adult shift was established between 61 and 65 mm SL using a macroscopic criterion of gonadal development and gonadosomatic index. Spawning period was estimated to be in the summer season, from December to February. Larvae preferred shallow marginal pools and fed mainly on small Chironomidae larvae, while juveniles and adults inhabited riffles and preyed on Ephemeroptera nymphs and Chironomid larvae. Morphological constraints during the larval period were related to habitat and feeding preferences. A complete development of fins allowed juveniles to colonise faster water habitats while a bigger mouth gape permitted them to prey on new items and on a larger size prey range.
Social Cost-benefit Analysis of a Watershed Development Project in Karnataka, India

Abstract Watershed Development Programmes (WDPs) have been initiated in India to improve and sustain productivity and the production potential of the dry and semiarid regions of the country at higher levels, through adoption of appropriate production and conservation techniques. The aim is also to meet the needs of rural communities for food, fuel, fodder, and timber and, thereby, reduce pressure on natural forests. In view of their potential for growth, for improving income, and the natural resource base of the disadvantaged regions of the country, WDPs are being accorded importance in the development plans for India and by donor agencies. This paper presents a social cost-benefit appraisal of a watershed development project in Karnataka, India. Using alternate viability measures, i.e. Net Present Value (NPV), Benefit-Cost Ratio (BCR) and Internal Rate of Return (IRR), and rigorous tests and sensitivity analyses, the results show that if expected full benefits are realized, the benefits derived from the watershed project are quite high, with the IRRs ranging from 19 to 96%. If, however, expected full benefits were to fall short by 25%, and net costs of (including the opportunity cost of grazing benefits foregone by the villagers on account of establishing community woodlots on degraded forestlands and village commons used earlier for free grazing of their cattle) the project will report losses. Even these losses can be contained if the direct benefits from some community woodlots, for which information was not available, and other indirect benefits, mostly of an environmental nature, are included. The findings of this study suggest that watershed development projects initiated to improve the economy and ecology of India's dry and semiarid regions are economically viable and socially desirable.
Magnetic MIMO Signal Processing and Optimization for Wireless Power Transfer

In magnetic resonant coupling (MRC) enabled multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) wireless power transfer (WPT) systems, multiple transmitters (TXs) are used to enhance the efficiency of simultaneous power transfer to multiple receivers (RXs) by constructively combining their induced magnetic fields, a technique termed “magnetic beamforming”. In this paper, we study the optimal magnetic beamforming design in a multiuser MIMO MRC-WPT system. We introduce and characterize the multiuser power region, which constitutes all the achievable power tuples for all RXs, subject to the given total power constraint over all TXs as well as their individual peak voltage and current constraints. For the special case without TX peak voltage and current constraints, we derive the optimal TX current allocation for the single-RX setup in closed-form and that for the multi-RX setup by applying the techniques of semidefinite relaxation (SDR) and time-sharing. In general, the problem is a nonconvex quadratically constrained quadratic programming (QCQP), which is difficult to solve. For the case of one single RX, we show that the SDR of the problem is tight and thus solve the problem efficiently. For the general case with multiple RXs, based on SDR we obtain two approximate solutions by applying the techniques of time-sharing and randomization, respectively. Moreover, we propose a new method to estimate the magnetic MIMO channel between TXs and RXs for practical implementation of magnetic beamforming. Numerical results show that our proposed magnetic channel estimation and adaptive beamforming schemes are practically effective and can significantly improve the power transfer efficiency and multiuser performance tradeoff in MIMO MRC-WPT systems compared with the benchmark scheme of uncoordinated WPT with fixed identical TXs' current.
From desires to behavior: Moderating factors in a fertility transition.

BACKGROUND Extensive research in both developed and developing countries has shown that preferences and intentions for future childbearing predict behavior. However, very little of this research has examined high-fertility contexts in sub-Saharan Africa. In particular, the factors that increase or decrease correspondence between fertility desires and behavior in these settings are not well understood. OBJECTIVE This article documents the degree to which the desire to stop childbearing predicts fertility behavior over the short term among married women in rural southern Mozambique, a context where fertility transition is still in the early stages. Analyses test the moderating powers of individual, household, and community characteristics. METHODS Analyses use data from a longitudinal survey of married women of reproductive age (N=1678) carried out in 2006 and 2009 in rural areas of southern Mozambique. Logistic regression models are estimated to predict childbearing between 2006 and 2009 based on desires to stop childbearing and characteristics measured in 2006. RESULTS As expected, the desire to stop childbearing is strongly predictive of fertility behavior. Household wealth, local adult AIDS mortality, and being married to an unsuccessful labor migrant are associated with higher correspondence between reported desire to stop childbearing and fertility behavior. CONCLUSIONS Both factors related to the ability to carry out desires to stop childbearing and factors related to the strength and consistency of these desires moderate the association between desires and behaviors. Future research should expand measurement of fertility preferences to incorporate their strength and consistency as well as direction.
A medication adherence and persistence comparison of hypertensive patients treated with single-, double- and triple-pill combination therapy

Abstract Objective: Fixed-dose combination therapy reduces pill burden and may, therefore, improve medication adherence and health outcomes. This study compared adherence to and persistence with single-, double-, and triple-pill treatment regimens among hypertensive patients in a US clinical practice setting. Methods: Adults with hypertension treated with three anti-hypertensive medications were identified. Index date was the first occurrence of a single-, double-, or triple-pill regimen with olmesartan or valsartan plus amlodipine and hydrochlorothiazide from July 2010 to September 2011. Patients were followed for 12 months to assess adherence (proportion of days covered [PDC] ≥ 80%) and time to discontinuation (medication gap ≥60 days) of the index regimen. Multivariate regression models were used to compare adjusted outcomes. Results: The number of prescribed pills in the index regimen was monotonically related to adherence with 55.3%, 40.4% and 32.6% of patients having PDC ≥80% in the single-, double- and triple-pill cohorts, respectively. In adjusted analysis, patients in the double- (odds ratio [OR]: 0.45; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.42–0.48) and triple-pill (OR: 0.26; 95% CI: 0.22–0.30) cohorts were less likely to be adherent to their index regimens than those in the single-pill cohort. Double-pill (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.89; 95% CI: 1.74–2.06) and triple-pill patients (HR: 2.49; 95% CI: 2.14–2.88) were more likely to discontinue treatment than single-pill patients. Conclusions: Greater pill burden was directly and significantly associated with decreased adherence and persistence with antihypertensive therapies in real-practice settings. Use of fixed-dose combinations that reduce pill burden could help patients to continue treatment and may result in improved clinical outcomes. Typical of observational studies, the potential for residual confounding of adherence estimates remains due to lack of randomization of treatment groups.
Collapse of the even-denominator fractional quantum Hall effect in tilted fields.

The newly discovered even-denominator fractional quantum Hall effect at filling factor ν=5/2 is found to collapse rapidly as the magnetic field is tilted away from the normal to the two-dimensional-electron-gas plane. No similar effect has been reported in tilted-field studies of the spin-polarized, odd-denominator effect at ν=2/3 and 1/3. Since a primary result of such tilting is increased spin splittings, the collapse of the ν=5/2 effect strongly suggests that the underlying state is not spin polarized. Condensation into such a quantum liquid must involve substantial spin reversal.
Student Weapon Possession and the “Fear and Victimization Hypothesis”: Unraveling the Temporal Order

Using longitudinal data from nearly 4,000 students across 113 public schools in Kentucky, we attempt to unravel the direction of the relationships between student weapon carrying and various objective and subjective school‐crime experiences, including victimization, perceived risk of school victimization, and fear of school victimization. Overall, we found little support for the idea that fear and victimization increase weapon carrying, controlling for other theoretically important predictors, including delinquent offending. While 7th‐grade victimization was modestly associated with increased non‐gun weapon carrying in 8th grade, high perceptions of individual victimization risk in 7th grade decreased both subsequent gun and non‐gun weapon carrying. Fear of criminal victimization in 7th grade did not predict either type of subsequent (8th‐grade) weapon carrying. Though fear, risk, and victimization were inconsistent predictors of gun and non‐gun weapon carrying, we found strong and consistent support for the effects of weapon carrying on subsequent fear, risk, victimization, and offending. However, contrary to the implications of fear and victimization hypotheses, both gun carrying and non‐gun weapon carrying in the 8th grade increased fear of school crime, perceived risk, and actual victimization in the 9th grade. Implications of these findings for the applicability of a “weapons” or “triggering” effect are discussed.
Good teaching: what matters to university students

Institutions assess teaching effectiveness in various ways, such as classroom observation, peer evaluation and self-assessment. In higher education, student feedback continues to be the main teaching evaluation tool. However, most of such forms include characteristics of good teaching that the institutions deem important and may not adequately reflect what students perceive to be good teaching. This study explored students' understandings of good teaching via a survey with students from two faculties at a Singapore university. Students were asked what characteristics they thought constituted the following categories of teaching: preparation and organization, knowledge, learning and thinking, enthusiasm and delivery. It was found that while distinct characteristics were highlighted for the first four categories, the last saw recurring characteristics of teacher attributes and teaching strategies. These two aspects weigh in significantly in the way students perceive whether the teacher is effective. The study has implications for teacher development programmes and the design of student evaluation forms for more accurate assessments of teacher ability and foci on areas of improvement. This study is potentially useful to teachers, as knowing the characteristics of teaching that matter to students could help teachers determine for themselves how to maintain or improve their performance in the classroom.
THE PERSONAL IS PATRILINEAL: NAMUS AS SOVEREIGNTY

In this article I propose a new model of namus, the concept recognized in some circum-Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, and Central and South Asian cultures and usually translated as “honor. ” One way to understand namus is to regard it as patrilineal sovereignty, particularly reproductive sovereignty. After an “honor killing,” a “defense of honor” explanatory narrative is told by both perpetrator and community alike. I argue that an honor killing represents a show of reproductive sovereignty by people who belong to a patrilineage. I first describe ethnographic contexts in which “honor killings” are operative, and then, relying on Delaney's (1991) model of namus as deeply bound up with patrogenerative theories of procreation, argue that a hymen is both a symbolic and real border to membership in the group. Finally, I apply this new conceptualization to statecraft, specifically to killings carried out in Iraqi Kurdistan following the founding of the Kurdish statelet there in 1991. Here, reproductive sovereignty and defense of borders were operative writ large as “honor killing” logic was expanded from lineage to state.