Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Do Contextual Factors Matter? A Missing Link Between Competitive Strategies–Dynamic Capabilities Alignment and e-Business Value†

The holistic approach of the technological, organizational, and environmental (TOE) framework, which is based on resource-based theory (RBT), puts forward a valid theoretical background on how different contextual factors contribute to improve e-business value. TOE factors, except firm size, positively affect the ability of e-businesses to generate high value with regard to the strategic alignment between their competitive strategies and dynamic capabilities.
Teachers' Perceptions On The Effectiveness Of Women Leadership In Mutare District Schools

This study was designed to investigate teachersâ€™ perceptions on the effectiveness of women leadership in Mutare District schools, the research design was both quantitative and qualitative where the descriptive method was used. All the teachers in the 202 schools in Mutare District formed the target group. A total of one hundred primary and secondary school teachers were randomly selected from ten schools and used as respondents in the study. â€™ A structured questionnaire was used as a data collection instrument. An open comment at the end of the questionnaire accorded respondents an opportunity to freely express their opinions. The statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) was used for data processing and analysis. The results of the study showed that teachers in Mutare District perceived women leadership as effective. The results also showed that women leaders were confident in the discharge of their duties and that they were conversant with the demands of school headship. However, results on the question of motivational schools depicted some deficiencies. Teachers felt that women leaders did not sufficiently develop their subordinates for carrier advancement. Overall, women leadership was perceived as effective by the teachers considering the fact that most of the components, of effective leadership were found to be positive.
Five-year follow-up of patients treated for 1 year with octreotide long-acting release for enterochromaffin-like cell carcinoids

Abstract Background. Gastric carcinoids type 1 (GC1) are neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) arising from the enterochromaffin-like (ECL) cells in patients with chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG). The treatment of GC1 has been endoscopic polypectomy or surgical tumor excision and antrectomy. One year treatment with somatostatin analogs (SSAs) diminished tumor load and ECL cell density. The effect persisted 1 year after treatment was discontinued. However, the optimal SSA dose and treatment duration are unknown. Objectives. The aim of the present work was to study macroscopic and histopathological changes in the stomach and serum markers gastrin and chromogranin A (CgA) in GC1 patients 5 years after 1 year of octreotide long-acting release (LAR) treatment. Material and methods. Five patients with GC1 were included 5 years after the initial year of octreotide LAR treatment. All patients underwent upper gastrointestinal endoscopy including tumor and mucosal biopsies from oxyntic mucosa, chest and abdominal computer tomography and octreotide scintigraphy. Fasting serum gastrin and CgA were also measured. Results. At 5 years, one patient had a highly malignant gastric tumor, one patient had an increased number of GCs, regional and distant metastases and three patients had an increased number of GCs. Serum gastrin and CgA increased to pre-treatment levels after 1 year of follow-up and were unchanged at the 5-year follow-up. Conclusions. The disease had progressed in all five GCs patients treated with octreotide for 12 months at 5 years of follow-up. This suggests that, if started, octreotide treatment should not be discontinued in these patients.
Extrachromosomal and chromosomal gene conversion in mammalian cells

We constructed substrates to study gene conversion in mammalian cells specifically without the complication of reciprocal recombination events. These substrates contain both an insertion mutation of the neomycin resistance gene (neoX) and an internal, homologous fragment of the neo gene (neo-526), such that gene conversion from neo-526 to neoX restores a functional neo gene. Although two reciprocal recombination events can also produce an intact neo gene, these double recombination events occur much less frequently that gene conversion in mammalian cells, We used our substrates to characterize extrachromosomal gene conversion in recombination-deficient bacteria and in monkey COS cells. Chromosomal recombination was also studied after stable integration of these substrates into the genome of mouse 3T6 cells. All extrachromosomal and chromosomal recombination events analyzed in mammalian cells resulted from gene conversion. Chromosomal gene conversion events occurred at frequencies of about 10(-6) per cell generation and restored a functional neo gene without overall effects on sequence organization.
Prevalence and Correlates of Cryptococcal Antigen Positivity Among AIDS Patients — United States, 1986–2012

Cryptococcal meningitis (CM) is one of the leading opportunistic infections associated with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. The worldwide burden of CM among persons living with HIV/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) was estimated in 2009 to be 957,900 cases, with approximately 624,700 deaths annually. The high burden of CM globally comes despite the fact that cryptococcal antigen (CrAg) is detectable weeks before the onset of symptoms, allowing screening for cryptococcal infection and early treatment to prevent CM and CM-related mortality (2). However, few studies have been conducted in the United States to assess the prevalence of cryptococcal infection. To quantify the prevalence of undiagnosed cryptococcal infection in HIV-infected persons in the United States during 1986-2012, stored sera from 1,872 participants in the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study and the Women's Interagency HIV Study with CD4 T-cell counts <100 cells/µL were screened for CrAg, using the CrAg Lateral Flow Assay (LFA) (Immy, Inc.). This report describes the results of that analysis, which indicated the overall prevalence of CrAg positivity in this population to be 2.9% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.2%-3.7%).
What Do a Million Banks Have to Say About the Transmission of Monetary Policy?

In an effort to shed new light on the monetary transmission mechanism, we create a panel data set that includes quarterly observations of every insured commercial bank in the United States over the period 1976-1993. Our key cross-sectional finding is that the impact of monetary policy on lending behavior is significantly more pronounced for banks with less liquid balance sheets -- i.e., banks with lower ratios of cash and securities to assets. Moreover, this result is entirely attributable to the smaller banks in our sample, those in the bottom 95% of the size distribution. Among other things, our findings provide strong support for the existence of a lending channel
Cooperate or compete: the relationship of strategic orientation and firm performance for farmers' market vendors

While sustainable retailing continues to be a focal point in the United States for many businesses as a response to consumer demand, little research has considered the importance of strategic orientation within this domain and how it may affect performance. This study reviews the impact of strategic orientation on performance within one specific sustainable retailing domain – the farmers’ market. Using farmers’ market vendors for the study and employing a survey methodology that highlighted constructs of social capital and entrepreneurial orientation, a structural equations model was developed and tested that also included potential moderating effects of longevity of market vendors at their respective markets. Results indicated that a significant positive relationship existed between social capital and firm performance, while no significant relationship was found for entrepreneurial orientation and firm performance. No moderating effects of the construct longevity on the proposed relationships were found. Implications and future research directions are provided.
Improved Analytical Extraction and Clean-up Techniques for the Determination of PAHs in Contaminated Soil Samples

Development and optimisation of fast, efficient, quantitative, economic and environmentally friendly analytical extraction techniques for the extraction clean up, and pre-concentration in the quantification of 16 USEPA priority polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in contaminated soils have been carried out. Three different extraction methods (Soxhlet, ultra sonication and mechanical shaking) were investigated on a low-level PAH soil certified reference material (CRM131-100) and the results were compared to determine the technique with the highest extraction efficiency. The clean up and pre-concentration procedures were optimized using both the conventional method (i.e. column packing with silica gel) as well as the solid phase extraction (SPE). Chromatographic conditions for the separation of PAHs using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) using UV-DAD and fluorimetric detection with programmed excitation and emission wavelengths were also optimized. Six different extraction solvents: acetone, cyclohexane, 2- propanol, methanol, acetonitrile and dichloromethane, were tested to select the most suitable solvent for the extraction of the 16 PAHs from the certified soil reference material. Acetonitrile, dichloromethane and tetrahydrofuran were also tested as eluants for the optimisation of SPE clean up. The optimized ultrasonic extraction procedure utilizing four 15 minutes extraction cycles at 50 oC and SPE clean up with tetrahydrofuran: acetonitrile (1:1) and subsequent separation by gradient reversed phase HPLC with fluorimetric detection extracted the PAHs from the certified reference material with recoveries ranging from 63.6 % to over 100 % .
Appropriate Time for Post-Therapeutic I-131 Whole Body Scan

Iodine metabolism and kinetics in thyroid carcinoma cells may be different from that in normal thyroid tissue. The optimal time for performing post-therapeutic scans to detect metastatic lesions is still controversial. We retrospectively analyzed the images of 239 patients who received I-131 therapy at our hospital from January 2006 to May 2008. The therapeutic dose ranged from 1.1 GBq (30 mCi) to 7.4 GBq (200 mCi) and the patients received 3 sequential whole body scans on the third to fourth day, fifth to sixth day, and 10th-11th day after I-131 administration. We scored the I-131 avid lesions by visual assessment into 3 grades: 2 = clearly visible; 1 = visible; and 0 = not visible. We also compared the thyroglobulin levels and FDG uptake among the lesions with probably different kinetics of iodine metabolism. In this study, there was a trend of decreasing visualization of lesions in the sequential images. Twenty-eight percent of lymph node metastases, 17% of lung metastases, and 16% of bone metastases were missed on the late images on 10-11th day. On the other hand, only 5% of the remnants were missed. The ratio of early washout was different between remnants and metastatic lesions. The serum thyroglobulin levels and FDG uptake did not correlate with early washout of the I-131 avid lesions. We concluded that earlier imaging is necessary for detection of metastatic lesions.
Femtosecond Laser Processing as an Advantageous 3-D Technology for the Fabrication of Highly Nonlinear Chip-Scale Photonic Devices

The properties of highly nonlinear glasses for photonic devices and the advantages of processing these materials using femtosecond laser pulses are discussed in a brief review. A novel approach is proposed for the optimization of the modification process that takes into account the dispersion of the nonlinear coefficients of refraction and absorption. Numerical modeling of the pulse energy deposition into a sample of chalcogenide glass shows that the shapes and dimensions of the modified regions depend on the nonlinear coefficients.
Functional hamstrings: quadriceps ratios in elite women's soccer players

Abstract We compared starters and non-starters for various isokinetic strength variables in elite women’s soccer players. A convenience sample of 10 starters (mean ± s; age = 20 ± 2 years; height = 170 ± 4 cm; body mass = 65 ± 5 kg) and 7 non-starters (age = 20 ± 1 years; height = 164 ± 3 cm; body mass = 63 ± 4 kg) performed maximal voluntary muscle actions of the leg extensors (concentric) and flexors (eccentric) on an isokinetic dynamometer in order to measure concentric peak torque for the leg extensors, eccentric peak torque for the leg flexors, and the functional hamstrings:quadriceps (H:Q) ratio at 1.047 rad · s-1 and 4.189 rad · s-1 concentric peak torque for the leg extensors was not different between starters and non-starters. However, it was greater at 1.047 rad · s-1 than at 4.189 rad · s-1 in both groups. Eccentric peak torque for the leg flexors was greater for the starters versus non-starters at 4.189 rad · s-1. Eccentric strength of the leg flexors at fast movement velocities may be used as an effective physiological profile and may discriminate between playing status in elite women’s soccer players.
Quality of Life and Self-Esteem Outcomes Following Rhytidoplasty

To evaluate improvement in patients’ quality of life and self-esteem as a result of rhytidoplasty, 32 Caucasian female patients with facial rhytidosis, aged 46 to 68, were selected consecutively from a waiting list and underwent rhytidoplasty. The widely used health evaluation tool Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36), and the Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale, a specific tool for self-esteem assessment, were used. Evaluations were carried out preoperatively and in the second and sixth months postoperative. Significant improvements were observed in 4 out of 8 aspects evaluated through SF-36, as well as in self-esteem, 2 and 6 months after surgery. The results presented here indicate that rhytidoplasty confers substantial improvement in health status and psychologic functioning of patients by increasing both quality of life and self-esteem.
AGGREGATION AND OPTIMIZATION WITH STATE-DEPENDENT PRICING

The literature on the aggregation of (S,s) policies has generally ignored the impact of aggregates on individual decisions. In the case of pricing, the feedback effects are clear. Not only do pricing strategies determine the evolution of the price level, the evolution of the price level influences pricing strategies. The authors provide a consistent treatment of aggregation and optimization and study three issues in the pricing literature: the relationship between strategic complementarity and the real effects of money; the relationship between the variance of money and the correlation between money and output; and the relationship between the cost and size of price adjustment.
Health Information Technology Adoption in the Emergency Department.

OBJECTIVE To describe the trend in health information technology (IT) systems adoption in hospital emergency departments (EDs) and its effect on ED efficiency and resource use. DATA SOURCES 2007-2010 National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey - ED Component. STUDY DESIGN We assessed changes in the percent of visits to EDs with health IT capability and the estimated effect on waiting time to see a provider, visit length, and resource use. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS The percent of ED visits that took place in an ED with at least a basic health IT or an advanced IT system increased from 25.2 and 3.1 percent in 2007 to 69.1 and 30.6 percent in 2010, respectively (p < .05). Controlling for ED fixed effects, waiting times were reduced by 6.0 minutes in advanced IT-equipped EDs (p < .05), and the number of tests ordered increased by 9 percent (p < .01). In models using a 1-year lag, advanced systems also showed an increase in the number of medications and images ordered per visit. CONCLUSIONS Almost a third of visits now occur in EDs with advanced IT capability. While advanced IT adoption may decrease wait times, resource use during ED visits may also increase depending on how long the system has been in place. We were not able to determine if these changes indicated more appropriate care.
The Impact of Ethanol Plants on Surrounding Farmland Values: A Case Study

The expansion of the corn ethanol industry after 2003 increased corn prices throughout the United States, and, in some cases, prices were shown to be higher with proximity to individual ethanol plants. This leads to the hypothesis that the value of farmland in close proximity to ethanol plants is higher than comparable farmland located farther away. This hypothesis was explored by examining the sale of 961 farmland parcels during 2004–2008, in the vicinity of two corn ethanol plants in northeastern Nebraska. Hedonic models including land characteristics as well as spatial and plant proximity measures failed to show support for the hypothesis. (JEL Q15)
The Optimal Level of Deductibility in Insurance Contracts

This paper examines the choice of an insurance contract when insurance is of the deductible type. This optimal choice is shown to be directly related to the insured's degree of risk aversion. Under certain assumptions, it is shown that an individual with a higher loss probability, a higher degree of risk aversion, or a lower level of initial wealth will purchase more insurance. Conditions for the purchase of full coverage or no coverage are also examined.
Structural Characterization of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Prion-like Protein Ure2*

Sacchromyces cerevisiae prion-like protein Ure2 was expressed in Escherichia coli and was purified to homogeneity. We show here that Ure2p is a soluble protein that can assemble into fibers that are similar to the fibers observed in the case of PrP in its scrapie prion filaments form or that form on Sup35 self-assembly. Ure2p self-assembly is a cooperative process where one can distinguish a lag phase followed by an elongation phase preceding a plateau. A combination of size exclusion chromatography, sedimentation velocity, and electron microscopy demonstrates that the soluble form of Ure2p consists at least of three forms of the protein as follows: a monomeric, dimeric, and tetrameric form whose abundance is concentration-dependent. By the use of limited proteolysis, intrinsic fluorescence, and circular dichroism measurements, we bring strong evidence for the existence of at least two structural domains in Ure2p molecules. Indeed, Ure2p NH2-terminal region is found poorly structured, whereas its COOH-terminal domain appears to be compactly folded. Finally, we show that only slight conformational changes accompany Ure2p assembly into insoluble high molecular weight oligomers. These changes essentially affect the COOH-terminal part of the molecule. The properties of Ure2p are compared in the discussion to that of other prion-like proteins such as Sup35 and mammalian prion protein PrP.
Calculating ecological footprints at the municipal level: what is a reasonable approach for Canada?

No clear ecological footprint calculation strategy is available for small- and mid-sized communities within Canada. By adjusting provincial or national footprint findings using data sets available in the public domain, we develop and test a calculation strategy to estimate municipal ecological footprints. Because the calculation approach is consistent with the Global Footprint Network standardised methodology, it permits meaningful comparisons between communities and with global and national footprint estimates. It offers planners, policy-makers, and community leaders an accessible, straight forward, and cost effective strategy for estimating the ecological footprint at the community and municipal level. The suggested approach is best suited for using the ecological footprint as an awareness and education tool. The large number of limitations associated with calculating the municipal approach and limitations associated with calculating ecological footprints in general at the local level make it an unsuitable tool to inform community planning and policy development.
World Human Development: 1870–2007

How has wellbeing evolved over time and across regions? How does the West compare to the Rest? What explains their differences? These questions are addressed using an historical index of human development. A sustained improvement in wellbeing has taken place since 1870. The absolute gap between OECD and the Rest widened over time, but an incomplete catching up –largely explained by education- has occurred since 1913 but fading away after 1970, when the Rest fell behind the OECD in terms of longevity. As the health transition was achieved in the Rest, the contribution of life expectancy to human development improvement declined. Meanwhile, in the OECD, as longevity increased, healthy years expanded. A large variance in human development is noticeable in the Rest since 1970, with East Asia, Latin America and North Africa catching up to the OECD, while Central and Eastern Europe and Sub-Saharan Africa falling behind.
Auction Price Anomalies: Evidence from Wool Auctions in Australia

Using detailed Australian wool auction data we test for further evidence of pricing anomalies at sequential auctions. We find that an anomaly frequently exists and order is frequently endogenously determined. Moreover, prices increase through some sales and decrease through others. We examine whether it is possible to explain the variation in the anomaly across sales and conclude that there is no systematic relationship between the direction of the price anomaly and the characteristics of the wool or the auction. We do, however, find evidence that an anomaly is more likely in longer sales.
Marked HDL deficiency and premature coronary heart disease

Purpose of review Our purpose is to review recent publications in the area of marked human HDL deficiency, HDL particles, coronary heart disease (CHD), amyloidosis, the immune response, and kidney disease. Recent findings Lack of detectable plasma apolipoprotein (apo) A-I can be due to DNA deletions, rearrangements, or nonsense or frameshift mutations within the APOA1 gene resulting in a lack of apoA-I secretion. Such patients have marked HDL deficiency, normal levels of triglycerides and LDL cholesterol, and can have xanthomas and premature CHD. ApoA-I variants with amino acid substitutions, especially in the region of amino acid residues 50–93 and 170–178, have been associated with amyloidosis. Patients with homozygous Tangier disease have defective cellular cholesterol efflux due to mutations in the adenosine triphosphate-binding cassette transporter A1, detectable plasma apoA-I levels and preβ-1 HDL in their plasma. They have decreased LDL cholesterol levels and can develop neuropathy and premature CHD. Patients with lecithin: cholesterol acyltransferase deficiency have both preβ-1 and α-4 HDL present in their plasma and develop corneal opacities, anemia, proteinuria, and kidney failure. Summary Patients with marked HDL deficiency can have great differences in their clinical phenotype depending on the underlying defect.