Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Understanding China's Growth: Past, Present, and Future

The pace and scale of China's economic transformation have no historical precedent. In 1978, China was one of the poorest countries in the world. The real per capita GDP in China was only one-fortieth of the U.S. level and one-tenth the Brazilian level. Since then, China's real per capita GDP has grown at an average rate exceeding 8 percent per year. As a result, China's real per capita GDP is now almost one-fifth the U.S. level and at the same level as Brazil. This rapid and sustained improvement in average living standard has occurred in a country with more than 20 percent of the worldâ€™s population so that China is now the second-largest economy in the world. I will begin by discussing briefly China's historical growth performance from 1800 to 1950. I then present growth accounting results for the period from 1952 to 1978 and the period since 1978, decomposing the sources of growth into capital deepening, labor deepening, and productivity growth. But the main focus of this paper will be to examine the sources of growth since 1978, the year when China started economic reform. Perhaps surprisingly, given China's well-documented sky-high rates of saving and investment, I will argue that Chinaâ€™s rapid growth over the last three decades has been driven by productivity growth rather than by capital investment. I also examine the contributions of sector-level productivity growth, and of resource reallocation across sectors and across firms within a sector, to aggregate productivity growth. Overall, gradual and persistent institutional change and policy reforms that have reduced distortions and improved economic incentives are the main reasons for the productivity growth.
How sustainable is the communalizing discourse of 'new' conservation?: the masking of difference, inequality and aspiration in the fledgling 'conservancies' of Namibia

Book synopsis: Wildlife conservation and other environmental protection projects can have tremendous impact on the lives and livelihoods of the often mobile, difficult-to-reach, and marginal peoples who inhabit the same territory. The contributors to this collection of case studies, social scientists as well as natural scientists, are concerned with this human element in biodiversity. They examine the interface between conservation and indigenous communities forced to move or to settle elsewhere in order to accommodate environmental policies and biodiversity concerns. The case studies investigate successful and not so successful community-managed, as well as local participatory, conservation projects in Africa, the Middle East, South and South Eastern Asia, Australia and Latin America. There are lessons to be learned from recent efforts in community managed conservation and this volume significantly contributes to that discussion.
Genetic Modifiers of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus in FcγRIIB−/− Mice

FcγRIIB is a potent lupus susceptibility gene as demonstrated by the observation that mice deficient in this molecule develop spontaneous antinuclear antibodies (ANA) and fatal glomerulonephritis when on the C57BL/6 background. To determine the mechanisms underlying the epistasis displayed by this gene we have constructed hybrids between FcγRIIB−/− and the systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) modifiers yaa and lpr and the susceptibility locus Sle1. Sle1 and B6.RIIB−/− are both physically and functionally coupled; compound heterozygotes of Sle1 and B6.RIIB−/− develop significant disease, while single heterozygotes display no evidence of autoimmunity or disease, indicating that these genes lie on the same genetic pathway resulting in the loss of tolerance to nuclear antigens. However, the generation of ANA in itself is insufficient to account for the severity of autoimmune disease in this model, as demonstrated by analysis of yaa and lpr hybrids. Thus, B6.RIIB−/−/lpr mice are protected from disease progression, despite equivalent titers of ANA. In contrast, B6.RIIB−/−/yaa mice have significantly enhanced disease despite reduced ANA titers. Yaa modifies the specificity and thus the pathogenicity of the B6. RIIB−/− ANA, by converting them to antinucleolar antibodies. In addition to these known modifier pathways, we have discovered two novel, recessive loci contributed by the C57BL/6 genome that are required for the ANA phenotype, further indicating the epistatic properties of this SLE model.
Can Neural Imaging Investigate Learning in an Educational Task

2 Abstract A methodology is described for using fMRI brain imaging to study how students learn with an intelligent tutoring system. Students were imaged while learning an algebra isomorph. A cognitive model, which is capable of learning the material, identified 6 predefined brain regions as reflecting various aspects of the problem-solving and learning process. The model predicted that the learning would be mainly manifested as reduced activation in a lateral inferior prefrontal region reflecting increased fluency in retrieving relevant declarative information. This prediction was confirmed but there was also decreased activation in a predefined fusiform region suggesting increased fluency in parsing the problem representations. Exploratory analysis also found an anterior prefrontal region whose activity predicted individual differences in error rates. The cognitive model was modified to include an increase in visual fluency. A careful assessment was made of the models' ability to predict the time course of the BOLD response over 1-minute problem-solving episodes. 3 Neural imaging has contributed to the understanding of many forms of learning. Most of this research has used relatively simple laboratory tasks involving such things as word memory, perceptual priming, or simple skill acquisition. The question of interest in this paper is whether neural imaging can inform an understanding of the kind of learning that takes place in school. Studies of school learning have tended to use data sources such as final test performance that are both very summary in nature and much removed from the time of the learning. Imaging data from the performance of an actual school task might provide information that would be informative about the critical learning events. We created a learning environment that reproduced the essential aspects of a Cognitive Tutor, an intelligent computer-based instructional system that which has been shown to have success in teaching high school mathematics (Anderson et al., 1995; Koedinger et al., 1997). These are deployed in over 1000 schools nationwide and interact with over 300,000 students in the United States (Koedinger & Corbett, 2006; Ritter et al., 2007, in press). These tutors interact with students as they solve problems providing instruction on an as-needed basis. The simplified system in this paper was designed to enable use in an fMRI scanner and to interact with a simulation of a cognitive model. Figure 1a illustrates its interface. The student selects parts of these equations by pointing and clicking with a mouse. As illustrated in Figure 1a, the …
The influences of power supply on lean NOx removal by plasma-facilitated selective catalytic reduction

Plasma-facilitated selective catalytic reduction(PF-SCR) was considered as a promising method to realize controlling of NOx in the lean-burn engine exhaust. But the influences of power frequency lack detailed description. Powers with frequency 50 Hz, 800 Hz and 10 kHz were applied respectively to produce plasma in the experiments, and two-stage process consisting of plasma pretreatment of the exhaust before flow over a lean NOx catalyst was studied. The results showed that 50 Hz power was more efficient on NOx removal than other two power supplies according to energy density. It may be attributed to that highest voltage was supplied by 50 Hz power in the three powers at the same energy density, which led to more NO and C2H4 oxidation after plasma. As a result, NO2, more active reactant than NO, was produced more by 50 Hz power. The gas components in the exit of plasma reactor were identified by GC-MS and GC, and the transforming routes of nitrogen element and carbon element were also concluded simply.
The effect of method of cooking and holding conditions on enterotoxin production by Staphylococcus aureus in two types of Saudi rice

Background: Of most widespread intoxication, which depends largely on sanitary practices is staphylococcal food poisoning. Mandy and Bokhary rice are two common traditional foods consumed in Saudi Arabia. Objectives: This study aims to determine the effect of some factors such as cooking method and holding temperature on growth and enterotoxin production by Staphylococcus aureus in Mandy and Bokhary rice. Materials and Methods: Twenty four Mandy and Bokhary rice samples were obtained from six Makkah restaurants at 12PM and 10PM. Samples were tested for total viable count and their ability to support growth and enterotoxin production by Staphylococcus aureus strains. Autoclaved rice specimens were inoculated with Staphylococcus and sampled every hour. Samples were tested for
Increased exhaled 8-isoprostane in childhood asthma.

STUDY OBJECTIVE To quantify lung oxidative stress in asthmatic children by measuring concentrations of 8-isoprostane, a marker of oxidative stress, in exhaled breath condensate (EBC), which is a noninvasive method of sampling airway secretions. Secondary objectives were as follows: (1) to measure levels of exhaled prostaglandin (PG) E(2), since impaired PGE(2) production has been implicated in the pathogenesis of asthma in adults; and (2) to measure levels of fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO), which is a marker of airway inflammation. DESIGN Single-center, cross-sectional study. PATIENTS Twelve healthy children, 12 steroid-naïve asthmatic children, and 30 children in stable condition with mild-to-moderate persistent asthma who were being treated with inhaled corticosteroids (ICSs) [average dose, 300 micro g per day] were studied. INTERVENTIONS Subjects attended the outpatient clinic on one occasion for the collection of EBC and FeNO measurements. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS 8-Isoprostane and PGE(2) concentrations in EBC were measured with specific radioimmunoassays. FeNO was measured online by a chemiluminescence analyzer. 8-Isoprostane was detectable in the EBC of healthy children (mean [+/- SEM], 34.2 +/- 4.5 pg/mL), and its concentrations were increased in both steroid-naïve asthmatic children (mean, 56.4 +/- 7.7 pg/mL; p < 0.01) and steroid-treated asthmatic children (mean, 47.2 +/- 2.3 pg/mL; p < 0.05). There was no difference in exhaled 8-isoprostane concentrations between the two groups of asthmatic children (p = 0.14). By contrast, exhaled PGE(2) concentrations were similar among the three study groups (p = 0.56). FeNO levels were higher in steroid-naïve children with asthma (49.2 +/- 9.6 parts per billion [ppb]; p < 0.05) and, to a lesser extent, in steroid-treated asthmatic children (37.8 +/- 6.6 ppb; p < 0.05) compared with healthy children (15.2 +/- 1.7 ppb). CONCLUSIONS Lung oxidative stress is increased in children who are in stable condition with asthma, as reflected by increased exhaled 8-isoprostane concentrations. This increase seems to be relatively resistant to treatment with ICSs. Decreased PGE(2) lung production is unlikely to play a pathophysiologic role in childhood asthma.
One-Sign Order Parameter in Iron Based Superconductor

The onset of superconductivity at the transition temperature is marked by the onset of order, which is characterized by an energy gap. Most models of the iron-based superconductors find a sign-changing (s±) order parameter (1-6), with the physical implication that pairing is driven by spin fluctuations. Recent work, however, has indicated that LiFeAs has a simple isotropic order parameter (7-9) and spin fluctuations are not necessary (7,10), contrary to the models (1-6). The strength of the spin fluctuations has been controversial (11,12), meaning that the mechanism of superconductivity cannot as yet be determined. We report the momentum dependence of the superconducting energy gap, where we find an anisotropy that rules out coupling through spin fluctuations and the sign change. The results instead suggest that orbital fluctuations assisted by phonons (13,14) are the best explanation for superconductivity.
Endocrine and metabolic effects of smoking cessation

ABSTRACT Background: Cardiovascular, pulmonary, and oncological hazards of tobacco smoking have been well studied. Smoking may also have multiple effects on endocrine and metabolic systems affecting pituitary, thyroid, and adrenal glands; testicular and ovarian function; as well as energy balance; lipid, and glucose metabolism; and insulin resistance. Less is known about hormonal and metabolic effects that patients may experience while quitting smoking. Scope: The objective of this article is to review systematically data on the endocrine and metabolic effects of smoking cessation. Articles based upon clinical trials, randomised controlled trials, and meta-analyses were obtained via a MEDLINE search (articles published between 1 August 1998 and 31 July 2008, inclusive; English language; human subjects; including abstracts) using key search terms relating to smoking cessation and endocrine or metabolic parameters. Additional studies were identified from the bibliographies of reviewed literature. Studies related to the search criteria were reviewed, 199 papers were identified, and 57 pertinent to this review were included. Findings: Limited data are available on the short- and long-term effects of smoking cessation on hypothalamic– and thyroid–pituitary–adrenal axes, sex hormones, energy homeostasis, and lipid and glucose metabolism. Initial data indicate that smoking cessation is associated with decreased cortisol levels and in the short-term, smoking cessation does not correct the diminished adrenocortical responses to stress caused by chronic smoking. Cessation reverses smoking's effects on thyroid disorders and may reduce the risk of osteoporosis. Finally, smoking cessation increases transiently food intake and sustained weight gain and is associated with increases in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels that occur rapidly on cessation. Conclusion: Further research may provide insight into post-cessation endocrine changes that may be caused by alterations to central and peripheral systems. Such research may increase the understanding of underlying biological mechanisms that lead to symptoms and clinical features of smoking cessation.
The El Cielo Biosphere Reserve: Forest Cover Changes and Conservation Attitudes in an Important Neotropical Region

This article combines approaches to better understand both forest cover changes and attitudes toward environmental conservation in the El Cielo Biosphere Reserve in northeastern Mexico. Satellite images are used to document the extent and response of forest cover in the reserve before and after its designation as a biosphere reserve. Ethnographic interviews are also employed to examine the attitudes of local people toward the costs and benefits of the biosphere reserve in their lives. Our research found that unlike many “paper parks,” large-scale deforestation has stopped and forest cover has expanded after the biosphere reserve was created. Our research also found that local people value both tangible and intangible benefits created by the biosphere reserve.
The equine herpesvirus 1 glycoprotein gp21/22a, the herpes simplex virus type 1 gM homolog, is involved in virus penetration and cell-to-cell spread of virions

Experiments to analyze the function of the equine herpesvirus 1 (EHV-1) glycoprotein gM homolog were conducted. To this end, an Rk13 cell line (TCgM) that stably expressed EHV-1 gM was constructed. Proteins with apparent M(r)s of 46,000 to 48,000 and 50,000 to 55,000 were detected in TCgM cells with specific anti-gM antibodies, and the gM protein pattern was indistinguishable from that in cells infected with EHV-1 strain RacL11. A viral mutant (L11deltagM) bearing an Escherichia coli lacZ gene inserted into the EHV-1 strain RacL11 gM gene (open reading frame 52) was purified, and cells infected with L11deltagM did not contain detectable gM. L11deltagM exhibited approximately 100-fold lower titers and a more than 2-fold reduction in plaque size relative to wild-type EHV-1 when grown and titrated on noncomplementing cells. Viral titers were reduced only 10-fold when L11deltagM was grown on the complementing cell line TCgM and titrated on noncomplementing cells. L11deltagM also exhibited slower penetration kinetics compared with those of the parental EHV-1 RacL11. It is concluded that EHV-1 gM plays important roles in the penetration of virus into the target cell and in spread of EHV-1 from cell to cell.
Molecular Communication Using Brownian Motion With Drift

Inspired by biological communication systems, molecular communication has been proposed as a viable scheme to communicate between nano-sized devices separated by a very short distance. Here, molecules are released by the transmitter into the medium, which are then sensed by the receiver. This paper develops a preliminary version of such a communication system focusing on the release of either one or two molecules into a fluid medium with drift. We analyze the mutual information between transmitter and the receiver when information is encoded in the time of release of the molecule. Simplifying assumptions are required in order to calculate the mutual information, and theoretical results are provided to show that these calculations are upper bounds on the true mutual information. Furthermore, optimized degree distributions are provided, which suggest transmission strategies for a variety of drift velocities.
Dietary vitamin K intake in relation to cancer incidence and mortality: results from the Heidelberg cohort of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC-Heidelberg).

BACKGROUND Anticarcinogenic activities of vitamin K have been observed in animal and cell studies. OBJECTIVE On the basis of the growth inhibitory effects of vitamin K as observed in a variety of cancer cell lines, we hypothesized that dietary intake of phylloquinone (vitamin K(1)) and menaquinones (vitamin K(2)) may be associated with overall cancer incidence and mortality. DESIGN In the prospective EPIC-Heidelberg (European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition-Heidelberg) cohort study, 24,340 participants aged 35-64 y and free of cancer at enrollment (1994-1998) were actively followed up for cancer incidence and mortality through 2008. Dietary vitamin K intake was estimated from food-frequency questionnaires completed at baseline by using HPLC-based food-composition data. Multivariate-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% CIs were estimated by using Cox proportional hazards models. RESULTS During a median follow-up time of >10 y, 1755 incident cancer cases occurred, of which 458 were fatal. Dietary intake of menaquinones was nonsignificantly inversely associated with overall cancer incidence (HR for the highest compared with the lowest quartile: 0.86; 95% CI: 0.73, 1.01; P for trend = 0.08), and the association was stronger for cancer mortality (HR: 0.72; 95% CI: 0.53, 0.98; P for trend = 0.03). Cancer risk reduction with increasing intake of menaquinones was more pronounced in men than in women, mainly driven by significant inverse associations with prostate (P for trend = 0.03) and lung (P for trend = 0.002) cancer. We found no association with phylloquinone intake. CONCLUSION These findings suggest that dietary intake of menaquinones, which is highly determined by the consumption of cheese, is associated with a reduced risk of incident and fatal cancer.
Canadian Precipitation Patterns Associated with the Southern Oscillation

Abstract Precipitation responses over Canada associated with the two extreme phases of the Southern Oscillation (SO), namely El Nino and La Nina, are identified. Using the best available precipitation data from 1911 to 1994, both the spatial and temporal behavior of the responses are analyzed from the El Nino/La Nina onset to several seasons afterward. Composite and correlation analyses indicate that precipitation over a large region of southern Canada extending from British Columbia, through the prairies, and into the Great Lakes region is significantly influenced by the SO phenomenon. The results show a distinct pattern of negative (positive) precipitation anomalies in this region during the first winter following the onset of El Nino (La Nina) events. During this same period, significant positive precipitation anomalies occur over the northern prairies and southeastern Northwest Territories in association with El Nino events. Statistical significance of the responses is tested by the Student’s t-test a.
Vertical structure of the midlatitude temperature from stratosphere to mesopause (30–105 km)

Data sets from Rayleigh lidar (1979–93) at the Observatory of Haute-Provence (44°N, 6°E) and at Biscarrosse (44°N, 1°W) of southern France, and from narrowband Na lidar (1991–4) at Fort Collins, Colorado (41°N, 105°W) are used to deduce the vertical temperature structure of the midlatitude middle atmosphere from 30–105 km. Nightly averaged temperatures measured across the Atlantic at comparable latitudes between 81 and 90 km showed seasonal variations tracking one another. Harmonic analyses of the measured profiles at these sites have been compared to the reference atmosphere, CIRA 1986. Considerable differences are noted in the annual mean temperatures in the mesopause region. Two temperature minima at 86 and 99 km are observed, suggesting heating and cooling mechanisms not previously incorporated into the reference atmosphere. Using the new 3D TIME-GCM of Roble and Ridley which includes both dynamical and chemical processes, we account for this anomalous behavior by model simulation for the first time. Except the existence of strong semi-annual oscillations, the observed annual and semi-annual temperature variations are compatible with CIRA 1986. Observed annual temperature and solar flux forcing are out-of-phase between 65 and 99 km, reflecting a dynamics dominated atmosphere at these altitudes.
Characterization of the W-weighted Drazin inverse over the quaternion skew field with applications

If k = 1, then X is called the group inverse of A, and is denoted by X = Ag. The Drazin inverse is very useful in various applications (see, e.g. [1]–[4]; applications in singular differential and difference equations, Markov chains and iterative methods). In 1980, Cline and Greville [5] extended the Drazin inverse of square matrix to rectangular matrix, which can be generalized to the quaternion algebra as follows. For A ∈ H and W ∈ H, the W-weighted Drazin inverse of A, denoted by Ad,W , is the unique solution to equations
The role of Ca-organic interactions in soil aggregate stability. I: Laboratory studies with 14C-glucose, CaCO3 and CaSO4-2H2O

14C-glucose with or without CaCO3 or CaS04.2H2O was incubated in a leached fine sandy loam under controlled temperature and humidity for 120 days. The addition of CaSO4.2H2O decreased the release of 14CO2, compared with soil with 14C-glucose and CaCO3 and 14C-glucose only. Addition of CaCO3 initially stimulated release of 14CO2 but subsequently the release of 14CO2 was inhibited compared with treatments with no calcium additions. Addition of both CaSO4.2H20 and CaCO3 resulted in more residual 14C in the soil at the end of the incubation period than in the control soil to which no calcium was added. The addition of CaSO4.2H2O and CaCO3 led to increases in water-stable aggregates 50-250 µm diameter, and decreased the amount of dispersible clay. In the presence of calcium and glucose, the stabilization of aggregates >1000µm occurred and they persisted for a longer time than when no additions of calcium were made.