Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Rise of Indirect Affirmative Action: Converging Strategies for “Promoting Diversity” in Selective Institutions of Higher Education in the United States and France

A growing trend in the comparative politics literature on patterns of minority incorporation emphasizes the emerging policy convergence in this area, conventional oppositions between national models notwithstanding. This convergence is further illustrated by drawing upon the cases of two countries often analyzed within an “exceptionalist” framework and generally viewed as polar opposites as far as the political legitimacy and legal validity of race-based classifications are concerned: the United States and France. The analysis of recent programs designed to increase the “diversity” of the student body in selective institutions of higher education demonstrates that indirect affirmative action is the instrument around which French and U.S. policies have tended to converge. This increasingly visible convergence obtains in part because of the current move toward color-blindness as a matter of law in the United States. Yet it is also a reflection of the fact that the ultimate purpose of affirmative action in liberal democracies requires a measure of indirection and/or implicitness.
Cardiovascular response to cycle exercise during and after pregnancy.

Our purpose was to determine if pregnancy alters the cardiovascular response to exercise. Thirty-nine women [29 +/- 4 (SD) yr], performed submaximal and maximal exercise cycle ergometry during pregnancy (antepartum, AP, 26 +/- 3 wk of gestation) and postpartum (PP, 8 +/- 2 wk). Neither maximal O2 uptake (VO2max) nor maximal heart rate (HR) was different AP and PP (VO2 = 1.91 +/- 0.32 and 1.83 +/- 0.31 l/min; HR = 182 +/- 8 and 184 +/- 7 beats/min, P greater than 0.05 for both). Cardiac output (Q, acetylene rebreathing technique) averaged 2.2 to 2.8 l/min higher AP (P less than 0.01) at rest and at each exercise work load. Increases in both HR and stroke volume (SV) contributed to the elevated Q at the lower exercise work loads, whereas an increased SV was primarily responsible for the higher Q at higher levels. The slope of the Q vs. VO2 relationship was not different AP and PP (6.15 +/- 1.32 and 6.18 +/- 1.34 l/min Q/l/min VO2, P greater than 0.05). In contrast, the arteriovenous O2 difference (a-vO2 difference) was lower at each exercise work load AP, suggesting that the higher Q AP was distributed to nonexercising vascular beds. We conclude that Q is greater and a-vO2 difference is less at all levels of exercise in pregnant subjects than in the same women postpartum but that the coupling of the increase in Q to the increase in systemic O2 demand (VO2) is not different. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Crystalline and Spherulitic Morphology of Polymers Crystallized in Confined Systems

Due to the effects of microphase separation and physical dimensions, confinement widely exists in the multi-component polymer systems (e.g., polymer blends, copolymers) and the polymers having nanoscale dimensions, such as thin films and nanofibers. Semicrystalline polymers usually show different crystallization kinetics, crystalline structure and morphology from the bulk when they are confined in the nanoscale environments; this may dramatically influence the physical performances of the resulting materials. Therefore, investigations on the crystalline and spherulitic morphology of semicrystalline polymers in confined systems are essential from both scientific and technological viewpoints; significant progresses have been achieved in this field in recent years. In this article, we will review the recent research progresses on the crystalline and spherulitic morphology of polymers crystallized in the nanoscale confined environments. According to the types of confined systems, crystalline, spherulitic morphology and morphological evolution of semicrystalline polymers in the ultrathin films, miscible polymer blends and block copolymers will be summarized and reviewed.
Why organizations fail: the view from the front‐line

The purpose of this research is to review the perceptions of 359 front‐line management personnel as to why their organizations fail to achieve desired results and to draw lessons for organizational practice on how to prevent failure and improve organizational performance. Managers from 30 organizations were asked to rate the impact that 25 different performance factors have on their ability to get desired results. The results of the study identified a variety of people and leadership factors as the primary causes of poor performance, while factors such as technology, finances, and government regulations ranked significantly lower in the rankings.
Effective techniques in healthy eating and physical activity interventions: a meta-regression.

OBJECTIVE Meta-analyses of behavior change (BC) interventions typically find large heterogeneity in effectiveness and small effects. This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of active BC interventions designed to promote physical activity and healthy eating and investigate whether theoretically specified BC techniques improve outcome. DESIGN Interventions, evaluated in experimental or quasi-experimental studies, using behavioral and/or cognitive techniques to increase physical activity and healthy eating in adults, were systematically reviewed. Intervention content was reliably classified into 26 BC techniques and the effects of individual techniques, and of a theoretically derived combination of self-regulation techniques, were assessed using meta-regression. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Valid outcomes of physical activity and healthy eating. RESULTS The 122 evaluations (N = 44,747) produced an overall pooled effect size of 0.31 (95% confidence interval = 0.26 to 0.36, I(2) = 69%). The technique, "self-monitoring," explained the greatest amount of among-study heterogeneity (13%). Interventions that combined self-monitoring with at least one other technique derived from control theory were significantly more effective than the other interventions (0.42 vs. 0.26). CONCLUSION Classifying interventions according to component techniques and theoretically derived technique combinations and conducting meta-regression enabled identification of effective components of interventions designed to increase physical activity and healthy eating.
Overview of the Author Obfuscation Task at PAN 2017: Safety Evaluation Revisited

We report on the second large-scale evaluation of style obfuscation approaches in a shared task on author obfuscation, organized at the PAN 2017 lab on digital text forensics. Author obfuscation means to automatically para-phrase a given text such that state-of-the-art authorship veriﬁcation approaches misjudge a given pair of documents as having been written by “different authors” if in fact they would have decided otherwise without obfuscation. This year, two new obfuscators are compared to the participants from last year’s task against a total of 44 authorship veriﬁcation approaches. The best-performing obfuscator successfully impacts the decision-making process of the authorship veriﬁers sig-niﬁcantly. However, as in the last year, the paraphrased texts are often not really human-readable anymore and have some changed context, indicating that there is still way to go to “perfect” automatic obfuscation that (1) tricks veriﬁcation approaches, (2) keeps the meaning of the original, and (3) is, regarding its obfus-cation, unsuspicious to a human eye.
No temporal association between influenza outbreaks and invasive pneumococcal infections

Objective: To assess whether the influenza peak in populations precedes the annual peak for invasive pneumococcal infections (IPI) in winter. Design: Ecological study. Active surveillance data on influenza A and IPI in children up to 16 years of age collected from 1997 to 2003 were analysed. Setting: Paediatric hospitals in Germany. Patients: Children under 16 years of age. Results: In all years under study, the influenza A season did not appear to affect the IPI season (p = 0.49). Specifically, the influenza peak never preceded the IPI peak. Conclusion: On a population level there was no indication that the annual influenza epidemic triggered the winter increase in the IPI rate or the peak of the IPI distribution in children.
Phase II evaluation of 24-h continuous infusion topotecan in recurrent, potentially platinum-sensitive ovarian cancer: A Gynecologic Oncology Group study.

OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to develop an alternative effective and more convenient administration schedule for intravenous topotecan when used as palliative treatment in ovarian cancer. METHODS The Gynecologic Oncology Group conducted a Phase II trial of 24-h infusional topotecan (8.5 mg/m(2)) with treatment repeated every 3 weeks in 29 patients with platinum-sensitive recurrent ovarian cancer (prior response to platinum-based chemotherapy with a minimum treatment-free interval >/=6 months). RESULTS The major toxicities of therapy were grade 4 neutropenia and thrombocytopenia which developed in 86 and 14% of patients, respectively. Other severe side effects were uncommon. Only 2 partial responses (7%) were observed in the 28 patients evaluable for response. CONCLUSIONS Despite the relatively favorable ovarian cancer patient population treated in this trial (platinum-sensitive recurrent disease), the response rate was disappointingly low. Considering the three- to fivefold higher objective response rates observed in other trials employing topotecan in individuals with platinum-sensitive ovarian cancer utilizing a 5-day treatment program (delivered every 3 weeks), the results of the current study provide strong support for the conclusion that clinically relevant antineoplastic activity of this agent is highly schedule dependent.
Validation of an oscillometric home blood pressure monitor in an end-stage renal disease population and the effect of arterial stiffness on its accuracy

ObjectivesIncreased arterial stiffness, common in end-stage renal disease patients, has been shown to affect the correspondence between oscillometric and mercury sphygmomanometer blood pressure readings. The purpose of this study was to validate an oscillometric home blood pressure monitor in an end-stage renal disease population and to determine the effect of arterial stiffness on its accuracy. MethodsBlood pressure measurements were taken with the Microlife 3AC1-1PC (Microlife; Taipei, Taiwan), an oscillometric home blood pressure monitor, and a mercury sphygmomanometer in 33 patients as specified by the European Society of Hypertension Validation Protocol. Radial pulse wave analyses were also performed. ResultsOn the basis of European Society of Hypertension criteria, the Microlife 3AC1-1PC received a passing score for systolic and diastolic blood pressures. On average, the oscillometric monitor overestimated diastolic blood pressure by 2.4 mmHg (P=0.005, SD=4.5 mmHg) and there was a trend towards overestimation of systolic blood pressure as well (1.3 mmHg, P=0.09, SD=4.4 mmHg). A positive correlation was found between arterial stiffness, as assessed by augmentation index and pulse pressure, and the diastolic blood pressure difference between the device and the mercury sphygmomanometer (r=0.54, P=0.003; and r=0.65, P=0.001, respectively). Diastolic blood pressure was negatively correlated with the diastolic blood pressure difference (r=−0.49, P=0.003). No significant relationship was found between the systolic blood pressure difference and augmentation index, pulse pressure or systolic blood pressure. ConclusionThe Microlife 3AC1-1PC was shown to accurately measure blood pressure in patients with end-stage renal disease. As arterial stiffness increased and diastolic blood pressure fell, diastolic blood pressure was increasingly overestimated.
Worldwide Dietary Therapies for Adults With Epilepsy and Other Disorders

During the 3rd International Symposium on Dietary Therapies held in Chicago, Illinois, there was a first-ever, half-day session devoted to the management of adults with epilepsy and other disorders with dietary treatments. Speakers from 3 different continents shared their successes, challenges, and future directions in their management of these patients. Diets used to treat adults included the classic ketogenic diet, the modified Atkins diet, and a low glycemic index treatment. The utility of dietary therapies was demonstrated not only in patients with epilepsy but also patients with propriospinal myoclonus, astrocytoma, type 2 diabetes, obesity, hyperlipidemia, and metabolic disorder. The session provided evidence that dietary therapies are safe and effective in adults.
Abnormal Glucose Tolerance and Other Coronary Heart Disease Risk Factors in an Isolated Aboriginal Community in Central Australia

OBJECTIVE To determine the age- and sex-specific prevalence of diabetes, impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), and coronary heart disease risk factors in a remote central Australian Aboriginal community maintaining some degree of traditional lifestyle, living in homeland communities on their ancestral land. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS A cross-sectional survey of 437 subjects ≥ 15 years of age (189 men, 248 women), representing 80% of the adult population residing in the community at the time of the survey, was performed and the following parameters measured: BMI, glucose tolerance, circulating insulin and lipids, and blood pressure. RESULTS The mean BMI for this population was 22.9 ± 4.8 kg/m2. The prevalence of diabetes in the age group of 15–34 years (103 men and 140 women) was 2 and 6% for men and women, respectively. In the 35-years-and-older age group (86 men and 108 women), diabetes prevalence was 19 and 13% for men and women, respectively. Over half the diabetic subjects did not exhibit fasting hyperglycemia. IGT occurred in 8 and 15% of younger men and women, respectively, and in 17 and 32% of older men and women, respectively. Smoking was common among men (53% current smokers) but rare among women (2% current smokers). The prevalence of hypercholesterolemia, hypertriglyceridemia, hypertension, and overweight rose with increasing degrees of glucose intolerance. The two communities adjacent to the only store in the area had a higher prevalence of abnormal glucose tolerance than did the more remote homeland communities (odds ratio for abnormal glucose tolerance: 2.92; 95% CI 1.51−5.63). CONCLUSIONS Despite their relative leanness, this Aboriginal population exhibited relatively high prevalences of IGT and diabetes without fasting hyperglycemia. The data suggest a protective effect of a decentralized mode of living, as opposed to a more urbanized lifestyle, on the occurrence of glucose intolerance. Abnormal lipid profiles (particularly high triglycerides and low HDL cholesterol) and the high prevalence of smoking in men indicated a high-risk profile for coronary heart disease in this population.
What drives enterprise training? Evidence from Australia

In Australia, as elsewhere, much research in the field of vocational education and training has focused on the supply side of the training market. Research has been driven by the perceived need to reform the public provision of training to create a more highly skilled national workforce upon which enterprises can draw to improve their competitiveness. Little, however, is known about the demand side. In particular, the processes of training within the enterprise, while often maligned publicly as being low in quantity and quality, have remained relatively unexplored. This paper reports the results from a two-year study of the determinants of training in a range of Australian privatesector enterprises. Forty-two case studies of enterprises from five industry sectors were undertaken and a national survey of 1,760 enterprises. The resulting data set is a unique record of the training arrangements that exist within contemporary Australian enterprises.
Resistance Training Recovery: Considerations for Single vs. Multi-joint Movements and Upper vs. Lower Body Muscles

International Journal of Exercise Science 8(1) : 85-96, 2015. This study examined muscle recovery patterns between single-joint (SJ) versus multi-joint (MJ), and upper-body (UB) versus lower-body (LB) exercises and the utility of perceptual measures (ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) and perceived recovery scale (PRS)) to assess recovery status. A 10 rep max (10RM) was determined for 6 SJ and 4 MJ exercises (5 UB and 5 LB) for male recreational weightlifters (n = 10). Participants completed a baseline protocol including 8 repetitions at 85% of 10-RM followed by a set to failure with 100% of 10-RM. In a counter-balanced crossover design, participants returned at 24 or 48 h to repeat the protocol. PRS and RPE were assessed following the first and second sets of each exercise respectively. Wilcoxon matched pair signed-rank tests determined performance improved (p < 0.05) for every lift type category from 24 to 48 h, but the only difference in ∆ repetitions from baseline at the same time point was between MJ (-1.7 ± 1.5 repetitions ) and SJ (-0.5 ± 1.8 repetitions ) at 24 h (p = 0.037). Higher RPE and lower PRS estimations (p < 0.05) support the utility of perceptual measures to gauge recovery as the only between group differences were also found between MJ and SJ at 24 h. Eighty percent of participants completed within 1 repetition of baseline for all exercises at 48 h except bench press (70%) and deadlift (60%); suggesting 72 h of recovery should be implemented for multi-joint barbell lifts targeting the same muscle groups in slower recovering lifters.
Policy Rate Decisions and Unbiased Parameter Estimation in Conventionally Estimated Monetary Policy Rules

The use of estimated policy rules has been on the rise over the past few decades as central banks have increasingly relied on them as policy benchmarks. While simple, conventionally estimated rules have proven insightful, their value is generally seen to depend, among other things, on the ability of the benchmark to accurately reflect the policy environment and on the relevance of the econometric assumptions behind the estimation method. This paper addresses a potential source of econometric bias that might naturally arise and adversely affect the accuracy of conventionally estimated policy rules as benchmarks. In particular, the discrete nature of the policy rate setting process at central banks leaves open the possibility that observed policy rate changes may include significant rounding errors. If so, parameter estimates using conventional econometric methods could be seriously biased; technically, this is an example of a censoring bias. To address this concern, the paper offers a new method for estimating monetary policy rules and demonstrates the ability of the resulting bias-adjusted policy rules to outperform conventionally estimated ones in characterizing the policy environments in the cases of the Czech Republic and the United States.
The Internet, News Consumption, and Political Attitudes – Evidence for Sweden

Abstract We investigate the effects of the rise of the Internet as an additional mass medium on news consumption patterns and political attitudes. We use Swedish survey data from 2002 to 2007, the period during which high-speed Internet (broadband) emerged. We find that broadband access is associated with online media consumption. The crowd out of offline consumption is, however, small. Furthermore, these altered news consumption patterns have no or small effects on political attitudes.
Canada's Dual Class Shares: Further Evidence on the Market Value of Cash Dividends

The Canada Income Tax Act of 1971 permitted Canadian corporations t o create two classes of equity: one paying ordinary cash income and the other paying capital gains income. Cash-paying shares have often sol d at a premium. Empirical results indicate that the premium is largely explained by the relative value of the dividends paid and by costs imposed on investors by stock dividend payment and share conversion procedures. Premiums for a few firms also reflect the relative liquidity of the two classes of shares. No evidence exists that investors prefer cash income to equal amounts of capital gains. Copyright 1988 by American Finance Association.
Fulfilling the promise of massive MIMO with 2D active antenna array

In this paper, we study practical 2-Dimensional (2D) active antenna array configurations for Massive MIMO systems and evaluate the system-level performance with the form factor at the base stations operating in cellular frequency band. To this end, we develop a 3-Dimensional Spatial Channel Model (3D SCM) to facilitate accurate performance evaluation and to build insights for system design. System-level simulation is conducted for various 2D antenna array configurations (8Hx8V, 8Hx4V) by using the 3D SCM developed. Simulation results show that 2-5 times cell average throughput gain and 1.5-9 times cell edge throughput gain can be achieved compared to the 4G LTE system.
Bargaining and Search with Incomplete Information about Outside Options

Abstract This paper considers a model of bargaining in which the seller makes offers and the buyer can search (at a cost) for an outside option; the outside option cannot be credibly communicated, and the seller's offer is recallable by the buyer for one period. There are essentially two equilibrium regimes. For sufficiently high search cost, the game ends immediately; otherwise the search occurs in equilibrium. Compared to the case where the buyer can communicate his outside option, the seller is worse off, and the game results in search for a smaller set of values of the search cost, i.e., less equilibrium delay.C72.
Esophageal Metal Stents with Concurrent Chemoradiation Therapy for Locally Advanced Esophageal Cancer: Safe or Not?

BACKGROUND The purpose of this study was to review the risks and benefits of concurrent chemoradiation therapy (CCRT) with esophageal self-expandable metal stents (SEMS) for the treatment of locally advanced esophageal cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS Between January 2014 and December 2016, the data from 46 locally advanced esophageal cancer patients who received CCRT at our institution were retrospectively reviewed. Eight patients who received CCRT concomitant with SEMS placement (SEMS plus CCRT group) and thirty-eight patients who received CCRT without SEMS placement (CCRT group) were identified. The risk of developing esophageal fistula and the overall survival of the two groups were analyzed. RESULTS The rate of esophageal fistula formation during or after CCRT was 87.5% in the SEMS plus CCRT group and 2.6% in the CCRT group. The median doses of radiotherapy in the SEMS plus CCRT group and the CCRT group were 47.5 Gy and 50 Gy, respectively. SEMS combined with CCRT was associated with a greater risk of esophageal fistula formation than CCRT alone (hazard ratio [HR], 72.30; 95% confidence interval [CI], 8.62-606.12; p < .001). The median overall survival times in the SEMS plus CCRT and CCRT groups were 6 months and 16 months, respectively. Overall survival was significantly worse in the SEMS plus CCRT group than in the CCRT group (HR, 5.72; 95% CI, 2.15-15.21; p < .001). CONCLUSION CCRT concomitant with SEMS for locally advanced esophageal cancer results in earlier life-threatening morbidity and a higher mortality rate than treatment with CCRT alone. Further prospective and randomized studies are warranted to confirm these observations. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE Patients treated with SEMS placement followed by CCRT had higher risk of esophageal fistula formation and inferior overall survival rate compared with patients treated with CCRT alone. SEMS placement should be performed cautiously in patients who are scheduled to receive CCRT with curative intent.