Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Agency Theory, Evolution, and Austrian Economics

This paper analyzes the evolution of agency theory and shows how Austrian economists and, in particular, Mises largely anticipated these developments. We analyze how the agency literature has evolved since its first developments with the standard principal-agent models by integrating into the analytical framework the role played by implicit incentive mechanisms to develop more realistic models. We analyze how research in different fields has contributed to agency theory's evolution and we show that these developments can be traced back to the work of Austrian economists and, in particular, to Mises's works. We finally argue that despite the fact agency theory has largely improved its analysis of agency problems and of the remedies to mitigate these problems, it has not yet incorporated in its analyses a crucial contribution made by the Austrian economists, which is the role played by the entrepreneur. JEL Classification: D 820, L510, P510
Concentric evertor strength differences and functional ankle instability: a meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE To determine whether concentric evertor muscle weakness was associated with functional ankle instability (FAI). DATA SOURCES We conducted an electronic search through November 2007, limited to English, and using PubMed, Pre-CINAHL, CINAHL, and SPORTDiscus. A forward search was conducted using the Science Citation Index on studies from the electronic search. Finally, we conducted a hand search of all selected studies and contacted the respective authors to identify additional studies. We included peer-reviewed manuscripts, dissertations, and theses. STUDY SELECTION We evaluated the titles and abstracts of studies identified by the electronic searches. Studies were selected by consensus and reviewed only if they included participants with FAI or chronic ankle instability and strength outcomes. Studies were included in the analysis if means and SDs (or other relevant statistical information, such as P values or t values and group n's) were reported for FAI and stable groups (or ankles). DATA EXTRACTION Data were extracted by the authors independently, cross-checked for accuracy, and limited to outcomes of concentric eversion strength. We rated each study for quality. Outcomes were coded as either fast or slow velocity (ie, equal to or greater than 110 degrees /s or less than 110 degrees /s, respectively). DATA SYNTHESIS Data included the means, SDs, and group sample sizes (or other appropriate statistical information) for the FAI and uninjured groups (or ankles). The standard difference in the means (SDM) for each outcome was calculated using the pooled SD. We tested individual and overall SDMs using the Z statistic and comparisons between fast and slow velocities using the Q statistic. Our analysis revealed that ankles with FAI were weaker than stable ankles (SDM = 0.224, Z = 4.0, P < .001, 95% confidence interval = 0.115, 0.333). We found no difference between the fast- and slow-velocity SDMs (SDM(Fast) = 0.189, SDM(Slow) = 0.244, Q = 29.9, df = 24, P = . 187). Because of the small SDM, this method of measuring ankle strength in the clinical setting may need to be reevaluated.
Probing the Intergalactic Medium-Galaxy Connection toward PKS 0405–123. I. Ultraviolet Spectroscopy and Metal-Line Systems

We present results from an analysis of FUSE spectroscopy of the zem = 0.57 quasar PKS 0405-123. We focus on the intervening metal-line systems identified along the sight line and investigate their ionization mechanism, ionization state, and chemical abundances. Including Hubble Space Telescope STIS spectroscopy, we survey the entire sight line and identify six O VI absorbers to a 3 σ equivalent width (EW) limit of 60 mÅ. This implies an incidence dN/dz = 16 consistent with previous O VI studies. In half of the O VI systems we report positive detections of C III, suggesting that the gas is predominantly photoionized, has multiple ionization phases, or is in a nonequilibrium state. This contrasts with the general description of the warm-hot intergalactic medium (WHIM) as described by numerical simulations in which the gas is predominantly in collisional ionization equilibrium. An appreciable fraction of O VI absorbers may therefore have a different origin. We have also searched the sight line for the Ne VIII doublet (a better probe of the WHIM at T > 106 K) over the redshift range 0.2 < z < zem. We report no positive detections to an EW limit of 80 mÅ, giving dN/dz < 40 at 95% c.l. The photoionized metal-line systems exhibit a correlation between the ionization parameter (U ≡ Φ/cnH, with Φ the flux of hydrogen ionizing photons) and H I column density for N(H ) = 1014-1016 cm-2. Both the slope and normalization of this correlation match the prediction inferred from the results of Davé and Tripp for the low-z Lyα forest. In turn, the data show a tentative, unexpected result: five out of the six photoionized metal-line systems show a total hydrogen column density within a factor of 2 of 1018.7 cm-2. Finally, the median metallicity [M/H] of twelve z ~ 0.3 absorbers with N(H ) > 1014 cm-2 is [M/H] > -1.5, with large scatter. This significantly exceeds the median metallicity of C IV and O VI systems at z ~ 3 and indicates enrichment of the intergalactic medium over the past ≈10 Gyr.
CSP patches: an ensemble of optimized spatial filters. An evaluation study

Laplacian filters are widely used in neuroscience. In the context of brain–computer interfacing, they might be preferred to data-driven approaches such as common spatial patterns (CSP) in a variety of scenarios such as, e.g., when no or few user data are available or a calibration session with a multi-channel recording is not possible, which is the case in various applications. In this paper we propose the use of an ensemble of local CSP patches (CSPP) which can be considered as a compromise between Laplacian filters and CSP. Our CSPP only needs a very small number of trials to be optimized and significantly outperforms Laplacian filters in all settings studied. Additionally, CSPP also outperforms multi-channel CSP and a regularized version of CSP even when only very few calibration data are available, acting as a CSP regularizer without the need of additional hyperparameters and at a very low cost: 2–5 min of data recording, i.e. ten times less than CSP.
Could Statin Use Be Associated with Reduced Recurrence Rates following Coiling in Ruptured Intracranial Aneurysms?

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: A number of studies have examined the role of matrix metalloproteinases in aneurysm healing following endovascular coiling. Because ruptured aneurysms are known to express higher levels of matrix metalloproteinases, we hypothesized that patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage who were on a statin at the time of coil embolization would have lower aneurysm recanalization and retreatment rates than patients not on statins. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed a retrospective chart review of patients who underwent intrasaccular coil embolization of ruptured intracranial aneurysms of ≤10 mm with at least 6 months of imaging follow-up. Patients were separated into 2 groups: 1) those on an oral statin medication at the time of coiling, and 2) those who were not. Outcomes studied were aneurysm recurrence and aneurysm retreatment after endovascular coiling. Student t and χ2 tests were used for statistical significance of differences between groups. RESULTS: One hundred thirty-two patients with 132 ruptured aneurysms were included in our study. Sixteen were on statins (12.1%) and 116 were not (87.9%). The recurrence rate was 6.3% in the statin group (1/16) and 36.2% in the nonstatin group (42/107) (P = .02). Unplanned retreatment rates were 6.3% (1/16) for the statin group and 25.9% (30/116) for the nonstatin group (P = .08). CONCLUSIONS: Statins were associated with a lower rate of aneurysm recurrence following endovascular coiling of small- and medium-sized ruptured aneurysms in this small retrospective study. Further studies are needed to confirm this finding to determine whether statins can be used to reduce recurrence rates in these aneurysms.
ANALYSIS AND REGIONALIZATION OF THE DIURNAL DISTRIBUTION OF TORNADOES IN THE UNITED STATES

Abstract The central and eastern United States is divided into 157 overlapping square cells. Within each cell, the tornadoes that occurred from 1916 to 1964 are summed in 1-hr increments. The resulting histograms are subjected to harmonic analysis. The spatial distributions of the reduction of variance and phase angles of the harmonic components suggest substantial variation in the diurnal distribution of tornadoes. However, only two groups can be definitely isolated. The Fourier representations of the histograms are classified numerically. From this analysis, three main diurnal distribution types and eight subtypes emerge. A preliminary attempt to account for these diurnal distributions is made; however, the degree of success is not notable and much work remains to be done.
Blood Glucose Homeostasis in the Course of Partial Pancreatectomy – Evidence for Surgically Reversible Diabetes Induced by Cholestasis

Background and Aim Partial pancreatic resection is accompanied not only by a reduction in the islet cell mass but also by a variety of other factors that are likely to interfere with glucose metabolism. The aim of this work was to characterize the patient dynamics of blood glucose homeostasis during the course of partial pancreatic resection and to specify the associated clinico-pathological variables. Methods In total, 84 individuals undergoing elective partial pancreatic resection were consecutively recruited into this observational trial. The individuals were assigned based on their fasting glucose or oral glucose tolerance testing results into one of the following groups: (I) deteriorated, (II) stable or (III) improved glucose homeostasis three months after surgery. Co-variables associated with blood glucose dynamics were identified. Results Of the 84 participants, 25 (30%) displayed a normal oGTT, 17 (20%) showed impaired glucose tolerance, and 10 (12%) exhibited pathological glucose tolerance. Elevated fasting glucose was present in 32 (38%) individuals before partial pancreatic resection. Three months after partial pancreatic resection, 14 (17%) patients deteriorated, 16 (19%) improved, and 54 (64%) retained stable glucose homeostasis. Stability and improvement was associated with tumor resection and postoperative normalization of recently diagnosed glucose dysregulation, preoperatively elevated tumor markers and markers for common bile duct obstruction, acute pancreatitis and liver cell damage. Improvement was linked to preoperatively elevated insulin resistance, which normalized after resection and was accompanied by a decrease in fasting- and glucose-stimulated insulin secretion. Conclusions Surgically reversible blood glucose dysregulation diagnosed concomitantly with a (peri-) pancreatic tumor appears secondary to compromised liver function due to tumor compression of the common bile duct and the subsequent increase in insulin resistance. It can be categorized as “cholestasis-induced diabetes” and thereby distinguished from other forms of hyperglycemic disorders.
School corporal punishment, family tension, and students’ internalizing problems: Evidence from India

There is considerable evidence that parental corporal punishment (CP) is positively associated with children’s behavioral and mental health problems. However, there is very little evidence addressing whether CP perpetrated by teachers or school staff is similarly associated with problematic student functioning. To address this gap in the research literature, data were collected from students in a locale where school CP continues to be widely practiced. Participants were 519 adolescents attending public or private schools in Puducherry, a city in eastern India. Students completed surveys assessing school CP, internalizing problems, social support, and resilience. The results indicated that 62% of the students reported experiencing school CP in the past 12 months, with males and those attending public schools being significantly more likely to report school CP than females and those in private schools. Youth who reported school CP reported more anxiety and depression. That relation was more pronounced in youth who reported family tension. Social support and resilience did not moderate the relations. The findings add to the substantial evidence about negative associations regarding the use of CP but in a new venue—the school, and provide some evidence for the need to change how students are disciplined in schools in India and elsewhere.
Secret wisdom

Current models of spiritual development suggest that adolescents have limited capacity for spirituality and spiritual experiences. Adolescents are seen to have immature moral and ethical judgment and be incapable of deep spiritual experience due to lack of cognitive development. This mixed-methods study explored the existence of spiritual intelligence in adolescents using surveys to measure spiritual intelligence and spirituality: the spiritual intelligence self-report inventory (SISRI), the integrated spiritual intelligence scale (ISIS), and the intrinsic spirituality scale (ISS). High scorers were found on every survey, and all surveys were positively correlated. Top scorers were interviewed concerning their lived experience of spirituality. Thematic analysis revealed eight major categories: definition of spirituality, definition of God, importance of family, ways of connecting to the divine, spiritual experiences, role models, spiritual values, and skepticism of spirituality. Some adolescents display high levels of spiritual intelligence, which manifests as having spiritual values (e.g. altruism, compassion, openness), spiritual experiences, and practices to connect to the divine.
Political Memes as Tools of Dissent and Alternative Digital Activism in the Russian-language Twitter

This research has analysed the role of Internet memes in the contemporary Russian alternative discourse. It has identified memes as the Internet common language that users exploit to communicate on all topics and also utilise as the mind-bombs to influence the political discourse. This project focused on the employment of memes in the deliberation of the Crimean crisis in the Russian Twitter in 2014. Pro-government and anti-government activists have used this format of texts to promote their agenda and interpret the events, discuss political leaders, contest symbols of state propaganda and alternative narratives. The study is highly original as it followed the development of memes in real time; the interviews collected with the prominent meme makers and sharers stand out as the testaments of direct participants of this process. The subsequent in-depth analysis of the distributed memes unveiled the prevailing themes, narratives and symbols that shape the political and social discussion between the elites and resistance in contemporary Russia. This research on the role of the Internet memes in political deliberation of the Crimean crisis contributed to the under-studied field of political uses of memes in a non-Western authoritarian environment. The conceptual framework includes recent theory on the Internet memes, tactical activism, connective action, carnivalesque resistance, individual action frames and creativity for politics. Internet memes have proven to be a popular vehicle of critical political communication in Russian social networks due to the ease of producing and sharing, opportunity for self-expression and receiving feedback to one’s creativity and benefits of anonymity that escapes censorship and protects activists. My study has revealed that memes are limited in the sophistication of the ideas they can convey and in maintaining a long-term meaningful discourse; they serve as the in-jokes of digital communities; their ambiguity and anonymity challenges community building yet nurtures the spread of ideas; therefore, memes are more likely to serve as disruptive mind-bombs that connect ideas rather than individuals. This research has documented and analysed the media and political developments in Russia during 2011-2014 and provided suggestions for further research on the utilisation of entertaining artful texts for political deliberation, formation of the alternative discourse and political mobilisation in the restricted Russian media ecology.
Obesity and prostate cancer: making sense out of apparently conflicting data.

Both obesity and prostate cancer are epidemic in Western society. Although initial epidemiologic data appeared conflicting, recent studies, especially large prospective studies published in the past 6-12 months, have clarified the association between obesity and prostate cancer. The aim of this paper is to review the epidemiologic data linking obesity and prostate cancer, with an emphasis on new data published since 2005. A PubMed search was done on the keywords, "prostate cancer" and "obesity. " Relevant articles and their references were reviewed for data on the association between obesity and prostate cancer. Recent data suggest that obesity is associated with reduced risk of nonaggressive disease but increased risk of aggressive disease. This may in part be explained by an inherent bias in our ability to detect prostate cancer in obese men (lower prostate-specific antigen values and larger sized prostates making biopsy less accurate for finding an existing cancer). Ultimately, this leads to increased risk of cancer recurrence after primary therapy and increased risk of prostate cancer mortality. The biologic causes of these associations are likely multifactorial, although the lower testosterone levels among obese men appear to be one of the most promising explanations. The association between obesity and prostate cancer is complex. Emerging data suggest a differential effect of obesity by disease aggressiveness: obesity may reduce the risk of nonaggressive disease while it may promote aggressive disease.
Role of Extracellular Vesicles and microRNAs on Dysfunctional Angiogenesis during Preeclamptic Pregnancies

Preeclampsia is a syndrome characterized by hypertension during pregnancy, which is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in both mother and newborn in developing countries. Some advances have increased the understanding of pathophysiology of this disease. For example, reduced utero-placental blood flow associated with impaired trophoblast invasion may lead to a hypoxic placenta that releases harmful materials into the maternal and feto-placental circulation and impairs endothelial function. Identification of these harmful materials is one of the hot topics in the literature, since these provide potential biomarkers. Certainty, such knowledge will help us to understand the miscommunication between mother and fetus. In this review we highlight how placental extracellular vesicles and their cargo, such as small RNAs (i.e., microRNAs), might be involved in endothelial dysfunction, and then in the angiogenesis process, during preeclampsia. Currently only a few reports have addressed the potential role of endothelial regulatory miRNA in the impaired angiogenesis in preeclampsia. One of the main limitations in this area is the variability of the analyses performed in the current literature. This includes variability in the size of the particles analyzed, and broad variation in the exosomes considered. The quantity of microRNA targets genes suggest that practically all endothelial cell metabolic functions might be impaired. More studies are required to investigate mechanisms underlying miRNA released from placenta upon endothelial function involved in the angiogenenic process.
Low Prevalence of Pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP) but High Prevalence of Pneumocystis dihydropteroate synthase (dhps) Gene Mutations in HIV-Infected Persons in Uganda

Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia (PCP) is an important opportunistic infection in patients infected with HIV, but its burden is incompletely characterized in those areas of sub-Saharan Africa where HIV is prevalent. We explored the prevalence of both PCP in HIV-infected adults admitted with pneumonia to a tertiary-care hospital in Uganda and of putative P. jirovecii drug resistance by mutations in fungal dihydropteroate synthase (dhps) and dihydrofolate reductase (dhfr). In 129 consecutive patients with sputum smears negative for mycobacteria, 5 (3.9%) were diagnosed with PCP by microscopic examination of Giemsa-stained bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. Concordance was 100% between Giemsa stain and PCR (dhps and dhfr). PCP was more prevalent in patients newly-diagnosed with HIV (11.4%) than in patients with known HIV (1.1%; p = 0.007). Mortality at 2 months after discharge was 29% overall: 28% among PCP-negative patients, and 60% (3 of 5) among PCP-positive patients. In these 5 fungal isolates and an additional 8 from consecutive cases of PCP, all strains harbored mutant dhps haplotypes; all 13 isolates harbored the P57S mutation in dhps, and 3 (23%) also harbored the T55A mutation. No non-synonymous dhfr mutations were detected. PCP is an important cause of pneumonia in patients newly-diagnosed with HIV in Uganda, is associated with high mortality, and putative molecular evidence of drug resistance is prevalent. Given the reliability of field diagnosis in our cohort, future studies in sub-Saharan Africa can investigate the clinical impact of these genotypes.
Normativity and Epistemic Intuitions

In this paper we propose to argue for two claims. The first is that a sizeable group of epistemological projects – a group which includes much of what has been done in epistemology in the analytic tradition – would be seriously undermined if one or more of a cluster of empirical hypotheses about epistemic intuitions turns out to be true. The basis for this claim will be set out in Section 2. The second claim is that, while the jury is still out, there is now a substantial body of evidence suggesting that some of those empirical hypotheses are true. Much of this evidence derives from an ongoing series of experimental studies of epistemic intuitions that we have been conducting. A preliminary report on these studies will be presented in Section 3. In light of these studies, we think it is incumbent on those who pursue the epistemological projects in question to either explain why the truth of the hypotheses does not undermine their projects, or to say why, in light of the evidence we will present, they nonetheless assume that the hypotheses are false. In Section 4, which is devoted to Objections and Replies, we’ll consider some of the ways in which defenders of the projects we are criticizing might reply to our challenge. Our goal, in all of this, is not to offer a conclusive argument demonstrating that the epistemological projects we will be criticizing are untenable. Rather, our aim is to shift the burden of argument.
Do Product Market Regulations in Upstream Sectors Curb Productivity Growth? Panel Data Evidence For OECD Countries

Abstract We identify the impact of intermediate goods markets imperfections on productivity downstream. Our empirical specification is based on a model of multifactor productivity (MFP) growth in which the effects of upstream competition can vary with distance to frontier. This model is estimated on a panel of fifteen OECD countries and twenty industries over 1985 to 2007. Competitive pressures are proxied with industry product market regulation data. We find evidence that anticompetitive upstream regulations have significantly curbed MFP growth over the past fifteen years, and more strongly so for observations that are close to the productivity frontier.