Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fears, discrimination and perceived workplace promotion

Purpose Past research about workplace promotion has focussed on factors that shape employees’ perceptions for promotion. Yet, we still know little about how such undesirable factors as the fear of success (henceforth FoS) syndrome and perceived workplace discrimination affect perceived promotion and even less so how this relationship is mediated by self-efficacy and intrinsic motivation. The purpose of this paper is to propose a conceptual framework integrating these factors. Design/methodology/approach A structural equation modelling procedure was employed to empirically test the model using data collected from employees in wide-ranging Israeli industries (n=553). Findings The path model indicates that initially, FoS and perceived discrimination negatively affect perceived chances of promotion. When however, self-efficacy and intrinsic motivation mediate this relationship, subjects perceive their promotion chances positively. Practical implications Self-efficacy and intrinsic motivation may be employed to attenuate the potentially adverse effects of FoS and discrimination effects. Originality/value FoS and perceived workplace discrimination are common phenomena, yet the authors show that they may be mitigated by heightened self-efficacy and amplified intrinsic motivation that help in sustaining perceived workplace promotion.
Neck circumference, metabolic syndrome and obstructive sleep apnea syndrome; Evaluation of possible linkage

Background This study was performed to evaluate neck circumference (NC) and metabolic syndrome (MS) parameters in severe and non-severe (mild-moderate) obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) patients according to apnea-hypopnea index (AHI). Material/Method We enrolled 44 patients diagnosed with OSAS based on overnight polysomnography. The diagnosis of OSAS was based on AHI. Apnea is a pause of airflow for more than 10 seconds. and hypopnea is a decrease of airflow for more than 10 seconds and oxygen desaturation of 4% or greater. AHI score. per hour; below 5 normal. 5–29 mild-moderate. 30 and above were grouped as severe OSAS. Height. weight. neck circumference (NC). waist circumference (WC) and body mass index (BMI) of the patients were measured. MS was diagnosed by the Adult Treatment Panel (ATP) III criteria (≥3 of the following abnormalities): 1) WC ≥94 cm for males, ≥80 cm for females; 2) arterial blood pressure ≥130/85 mmHg; 3) fasting blood glucose ≥100 mg/dl; 4) high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol <40 mg/dl in man, <50 mg/dl in women; 5) triglycerides ≥150 mg/dl. Results Mean BMI and NC were higher in severe OSAS patients compared to non-severe patients (p=0.021. p<0.001). According to ATP III criteria. 64% of severe and 61.1% of non-severe OSAS patients were MS (p=0.847). A logistic regression model displayed an association with NC as a risk factor for severe OSAS (p=0.01). but not with MS. Conclusions In this study. NC in severe OSAS patients was significantly higher than in non-severe OSAS patients. The prevalence of metabolic syndrome was not correlated with OSAS severity. NC is an independent risk factor for severe OSAS.
Voluntary Disclosure of Information and Stock Returns

One of the accounting information goals is helping users in predicting investment return on investment. Some variables affecting firms’ stock returns in market result from financial information provided by management. Extent of effect of this information is complicated and somehow unknown. Investors , invest on an economic unit when they have enough information (including financial information). Thus using policies and plans of information disclosure may deliver top information and knowledge of managers to the capital market and be effective in communication between managers and investors. In this paper it is attempted to investigate Voluntary disclosure of information and evaluate its relevance to stock returns. In other words, the aim of this study is investigating market response to voluntary disclosure of information
A prospective study of impaired fasting glucose and type 2 diabetes in China

AbstractThe worldwide prevalence and incidence of diabetes and obesity are increasing in pandemic proportions. This is particularly relevant for China, where an extremely large population is growing, aging, and urbanizing. We thus conducted a prospective study to examine the prevalence and incidence of impaired fasting glucose (IFG) and diabetes, the rate at which fasting blood glucose rises, and the major modifiable risk factors associated with these outcomes in a large Chinese population from the Kailuan prospective study.A prospective cohort included 100,279 Chinese participants, aged 18 years or more, who had available information on fasting blood glucose concentrations at the start of the study (2006). Examination surveys were conducted every 2 years in 2008 and 2010. For the analyses of incident diabetes, we included 76,869 participants who were free of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and cancer at the baseline and participants in the 2008 and/or 2010 follow-up. Diabetes was defined by a fasting blood glucose concentration ≥7 mmol/L, self-reported history, or active treatment with insulin or any oral hypoglycemic agent. IFG was defined by a fasting blood glucose concentration between 5.6 and 6.9 mmol/L.During the 4-year study, the prevalence of diabetes and IFG rose from 6.6% to 7.7%, and 17.3% to 22.6%, respectively. There were 17,811 incident cases of IFG and 4867 incident cases of diabetes. The age-standardized incident rate of IFG and diabetes were 62.6/1000 person-years (51.2/1000 person-years in women and 73.8/1000 person-years in men) and 10.0/1000 person-years (7.8/1000 person-years in women and 12.1/1000 person-years in men), respectively. We observed steady increases in fasting blood glucose with body anthropometrics and in every defined category of body mass index, including in those traditionally considered to be well within the “normal” range.In this large longitudinal study of Chinese adults, we observed a high prevalence and incidence of IFG and diabetes over 4 years of follow-up. Our findings are alarming for Chinese public health since steady rises in fasting blood glucose were seen across all permutations of body habitus, even apparently very lean individuals.
Microbiological Culture Simplified Using Anti-O12 Monoclonal Antibody in TUBEX Test to Detect Salmonella Bacteria from Blood Culture Broths of Enteric Fever Patients

Definitive diagnosis of infectious diseases, including food poisoning, requires culture and identification of the infectious agent. We described how antibodies could be used to shorten this cumbersome process. Specifically, we employed an anti-Salmonella lipopolysaccharide O12 monoclonal antibody in an epitope-inhibition 10-min test (TUBEX TP) to detect O12+ Salmonella organisms directly from routine blood culture broths. The aim is to obviate the need to subculture the broth and subsequently identify the colonies. Thus, blood from 78 young outpatients suspected of having enteric fever was incubated in an enrichment broth, and after 2 or 4 days, broth samplings were examined by TUBEX TP as well as by conventional agar culture and identification. TUBEX TP was performed before the culture results. Eighteen isolates of S. Typhi (15 after 2 days) and 10 isolates of S. Paratyphi A (4 after 2 days) were obtained by conventional culture. Both these Salmonella serotypes, the main causes of enteric fever, share the O12 antigen. In all instances where either of these organisms was present (cultured), TUBEX TP was positive (score 4 [light blue] – to – score 10 [dark blue]; negative is 0 [pink-colored]) i.e. 100% sensitive. Identification of the specific Salmonella serotype in TUBEX-positive cases was achieved subsequently by conventional slide agglutination using appropriate polyclonal antisera against the various serotypes. Twelve Escherichia coli, 1 Alcaligenes spp. and 1 Enterobacter spp. were isolated. All of these cases, including all the 36 culture-negative broths, were TUBEX-negative i.e. TUBEX TP was 100% specific. In a separate study using known laboratory strains, TUBEX TF, which detects S. Typhi but not S. Paratyphi A via the O9 antigen, was found to efficiently complement TUBEX TP as a differential test. Thus, TUBEX TP and TUBEX TF are useful adjuncts to conventional culture because they can save considerable time (>2 days), costs and manpower.
Cellular and molecular mechanisms of IFN‐γ production induced by IL‐2 and IL‐12 in a human NK cell line

Interferon‐γ (IFN‐γ) is an important immunoregulatory protein produced predominantly by T cells and large granular lymphocytes (LGL) in response to different extracellular signals. In particular, two interleukins (ELs), IL‐2 and IL‐12, have been shown to be potent inducers of IFN‐γ gene expression in both T cells and LGL. Although it has been reported that there are some T cell lines that produce IFN‐γ in response to IL‐2 and IL‐12 stimulation, there has as yet been no report of a natural killer (NK) cell line that responds in a similar manner. In this report we present evidence that the cell line NK3.3 derived from human NK cells, responds to both IL‐2 and IL‐12, as measured by increases in IFN‐γ and granulocyte‐macrophage colony‐stimulating factor (GM‐CSF) cytoplasmic mRNA and protein expression. In addition, when used together EL‐2 and IL‐12 synergized in the induction of IFN‐γ and GM‐CSF and this synergy was attributed to an increased accumulation and stability of the IFN‐γ and GM‐CSF mRNAs. To investigate the signaling pathways involved in the gene induction, five inhibitors, cyclosporin A (CsA), transforming growth factor‐β, cydoheximide, genistein, and staurosporine A, were used in analyzing the effects of IL‐2 and IL‐12 on NK3.3 cells. The results suggest that activation of protein kinase C, but not new protein synthesis, is required for IL‐2 induction of IFN‐γ and GM‐CSF cytoplasmic mRNA. In contrast, IL‐12 induction of IFN‐γ cytoplasmic mRNA appears to only partially depend on activation of protein kinase C. Furthermore, both transforming growth factor‐β and genistein, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, could suppress IL‐2 and IL‐12 signaling but CsA was generally inactive. It also was observed that suppression of cytokine gene expression by these agents was independent of the inhibition of proliferation. In addition, IL‐2 but not IL‐12 induced nudear factors NF‐κB and API, and regulation of the nudear levels of these two DNA binding protein complexes is correlated with IFN‐γ and GM‐CSF gene expression. These data indicate that IL‐2 and IL‐12 may have distinct signaling pathways leading to the induction of IFN‐γ and GM‐CSF gene expression, and that the NK3.3 cell line may serve as a novel model for dissecting the biochemical and molecular events involved in these pathways. J. Leukoc. Biol. 58: 225–233; 1995.
The function of myths about great leaders in human culture: A cultural evolutionary perspective

The discussion takes an evolutionary–cultural perspective in which (a) humans are inherently attracted to large figures (i.e., leaders, heroes), perceived as competent and benevolent entities; (b) the large figure’s influence rests largely on evolutionary phylogenetic biases; (c) the large figure’s effects are expressed through a mechanism designed to transmit cultural knowledge vertically. The suggested view sheds a different light on the psychological and cultural functions of myths about great leaders, and allows us to examine issues such as charisma and culture, the place of the leader in creating collective identity and transmission of cultural norms and practices. Research directions derived from the suggested approach are discussed.
Low-Intensity Exercise Training Delays Heart Failure and Improves Survival in Female Hypertensive Heart Failure Rats

Exercise training improves functional capacity and quality of life in patients with heart failure. However, the long-term effects of exercise on mortality associated with hypertensive heart disease have not been well defined. In the present study, we investigated the effect of low-intensity exercise training on disease progression and survival in female spontaneously hypertensive heart failure rats. Animals with severe hypertension (16 months old) were treadmill trained (14.5 m/min, 45 min/d, 3 d/wk) until they developed terminal heart failure or were euthanized because of age-related complications. Exercise delayed mortality resulting from heart failure (P<0.001) and all causes (P<0.05) and transiently attenuated the systolic hypertension and contractile dysfunction observed in the sedentary animals but had no effect on cardiac morphology or contractile function in end-stage heart failure. Training had no effect on terminal myocardial protein expression of antioxidant enzymes, calcium handling proteins, or myosin heavy chain isoforms but was associated with higher cytochrome oxidase activity in cardiac mitochondria (P<0.05) and a greater mitochondrial content of cardiolipin, a phospholipid that is essential for optimal mitochondrial energy metabolism. In conclusion, low-intensity exercise training significantly delays the onset of heart failure and improves survival in female hypertensive heart failure rats without eliciting sustained improvements in blood pressure, cardiac function, or expression of several myocardial proteins associated with the cardiovascular benefits of exercise. The effects of exercise on cytochrome oxidase and cardiolipin provide novel evidence that training may improve prognosis in hypertensive heart disease by preserving mitochondrial energy metabolism.
Editorial: the 2 + n ecosophies

Contemporary ecological crises fundamentally threaten our ability to continue inhabiting earth, yet geographical research has only tentatively engaged with perspectives that seek to rethink the human– earth relationship. ‘Ecosophical’ theories, practices and politics recognize that ‘a global culture of a primarily techno-industrial nature is now encroaching upon all the world’s milieu, desecrating living conditions’ (Næss and Rothenberg 1989, 23) and that those who subscribe to its arguments ‘have an obligation directly or indirectly to participate in the attempt to implement the necessary changes’ (29). This collection of papers seeks to explore ecosophical theories and practices, analysing the relationship between techno-industrial global culture and the world. It offers understandings of attempts to change this relation. Although multiple geographical and social science theories – including feminist perspectives (Gibson-Graham 2006a, 2006b; Haraway 1991), post-human and actornetwork theory research (Latour 1993; Law 1994; Whatmore 2002), studies of the Anthropocene (Castree 2014; Clark 2013), and deconstructionist/phenomenological traditions (Morton 2007) – have worked hard to rethink the category of ‘human’ or ‘subject’, in their focus on forms of living, being and becoming with the world, environment and non-human, they have done less to rethink the ‘world’ part of that relationship. Ecosophy offers geography an approach to these questions which starts with how humans relate to nature and non-human at its core, alongside a strong ethical foundation for action. Specifically, it is the position of ecosophical theories that nature and the nonhuman are valuable independent of their human interaction, and that geography must contribute to ways of rethinking and practicing subjectivity that recognize this.
Helping the heart grow fonder during absence: Daydreaming about significant others replenishes connectedness after induced loneliness

People are known to engage in behaviours aimed at replenishing social connectedness after their sense of belonging is threatened. We explored whether the mental strategy of daydreaming about significant others could have similar effects by acting as an imaginary substitute when loved ones are unavailable. Following a loneliness induction, participants (N = 126) were asked to either daydream about a significant other, daydream about a non-social scenario or complete a control task. Social daydreamers showed significantly increased feelings of connection, love and belonging compared to non-social daydreamers and control participants. Consistent with the proposition that social daydreaming replenished connectedness, social daydreamers also behaved more pro-socially and expressed less of a desire to interact with others after daydreaming. These findings demonstrate that through imagination, social daydreaming can replenish connectedness providing a potential strategy for enhancing socio-emotional well-being.
Public Bads, Heterogeneous Beliefs, and the Value of Information

This paper develops a simple model of public bads where players have heterogeneous beliefs about the consequence of their collective action. Properties of equilibrium and its relation to beliefs and preference are examined, followed by a detailed investigation of the impacts of new information. Our analysis sheds light on an important trade-off associated with information policies in the presence of belief heterogeneity and ambiguity. In particular, we show that newly available information can unambiguously worsen the free-riding problem even when it better reflects the correct risk than the players’ beliefs. Adding information noise will never mitigate the public-bad nature of the problem if players are equally confident about their beliefs. When the beliefs are highly heterogeneous, however, a certain amount of information noise can be Pareto-improving, for which the degrees of risk and ambiguity aversion play asymmetric roles.
Peak C-Reactive Protein Level Predicts Long-Term Outcomes in Type B Acute Aortic Dissection

Acute aortic dissection (AAD) is associated with an inflammatory reaction, as evidenced by elevated inflammatory markers, including C-reactive protein (CRP). The association between the peak CRP level and long-term outcomes in type B AAD has not been systematically investigated. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the peak CRP level during admission predicts long-term outcomes in type B AAD. We conducted a clinical follow-up study of type B AAD. We divided the study population into 4 groups according to the tertiles of peak CRP levels (T1: 0.60 to 9.37 mg/dL; T2: 9.61 to 14.87 mg/dL; T3: 14.90 to 32.60 mg/dL; and unavailable peak CRP group). Multivariate Cox regression analysis was applied to investigate whether the tertiles of peak CRP predict adverse events even after adjusting for other variables. A total of 232 type B AAD patients were included in this analysis. The median follow-up period was 50 months. CRP reached its peak on day 4.5±1.7. Mean peak CRP values in T1, T2, and T3 were 6.4±2.4, 12.0±1.5, and 19.5±4.0 mg/dL, respectively. There were 65 events (39 deaths and 26 aortic events) during the follow-up. T3 and T2 (versus T1) were strong predictors of adverse events (T3: hazard ratio: 6.02 [95% CI: 2.44 to 14.87], P=0.0001; T2: hazard ratio: 3.25 [95% CI: 1.37 to 7.71], P=0.01) after controlling for all of the confounding factors. In conclusion, peak CRP is a strong predictor for adverse long-term events in patients with type B AAD.
Factors Affecting Intestinal Health in Poultry

Abstract The gastrointestinal (GI) tract has the most extensive exposed surface in the body and is constantly exposed to a wide variety of potentially harmful substances. The GI tract acts as a selective barrier between the tissues of the bird and its luminal environment. This barrier is composed of physical, chemical, immunological, and microbiological components. A wide range of factors associated with diet and infectious disease agents can negatively affect the delicate balance among the components of the chicken gut and, as a result, affect health status and production performance of birds in commercial poultry operations. Phasing out of antibiotic growth promoters from poultry diets in Europe and recent moves toward reduction or removal of these compounds in other parts of the world including North America will likely change the microbial profile of the GI tract environment in commercial poultry. This paper reviews the GI tract from developmental, immunological, and microbial standpoints and then discusses factors that can affect health status of this system. Necrotic enteritis and coccidiosis and their interactions, and possible consequences of antibiotic growth promoter removal from poultry diets with respect to these diseases, are discussed in more detail.
Efficient realization of classification using modified Haar DWT

The Haar discrete wavelet transform is used as inspiration for a new simple and fast algorithm to train multiclass dyadic decision trees. A localized ordering of the training data changes a multidimensional Haar transform into the one dimensional case, and avoids cache misses. The resulting tree has very simple structure convenient for direct implementation as a fixed-depth threshold network and very fast evaluation of the classification function. The simple structure of the tree is also conducive to good compression of the function. We implement and test the learning algorithm and threshold network but without incorporating sampled interpolated-value points for improved generalization. Compression appears good in low dimensions.
Leadership for social justice in Hong Kong schools: Addressing mechanisms of inequality

Purpose – This article aims to instigate a focused dialogue of social justice in Hong Kong schools and of the responsibilities this holds for school leaders.Design/methodology/approach – The authors draw on economic, psychological, and sociological research to illustrate how the unequal allocation of resources and school status hierarchies affects students and challenges leaders' understandings and actions.Findings – This article identifies several contextual factors prevalent in Hong Kong that maintain inequality and then applies research findings to explain how these discriminate against both disadvantaged and advantaged students. To address social justice issues, school leaders can start by understanding these inequality mechanisms, their own values and beliefs, and those prevalent in their communities. Then, they can introduce structural and cultural changes to reduce inequality.Originality/value – This article exposes several mechanisms that sustain inequality in Hong Kong schools and suggests how le.
Is the use of modafinil, a pharmacological cognitive enhancer, cheating?

Abstract Drugs used to provide improvement of cognitive functioning have been shown to be effective in healthy individuals. It is sometimes assumed that the use of these drugs constitutes cheating in an academic context. We examine whether this assumption is ethically sound. Beyond providing the most up-to-date discussion of modafinil use in an academic context, this contribution includes an overview of the safety of modafinil use in greater depth than previous studies addressing the issue of cheating. Secondly, we emphasize two crucial, but hitherto nearly overlooked, nuances to the issues: (a) the potential for modafinil to decrease inequality and disadvantage in academic settings, and (b) the fact that how modafinil is used dramatically impacts its effects on health, coercion, fairness, authenticity and effort. Finally, we explicitly defend the position that there are no qualitatively morally relevant differences between modafinil use and other enhancement modalities; any such differences are in degree, not kind.