Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Local Governance and Climate Change: Reflections on the Swedish Experience

Abstract The focus of this article is the Swedish experience of local governance and climate change, including mitigation and adaptation. The municipal response to these two challenges is set within a broader policy context that acknowledges Sweden as a pioneer in environmental governance, including its comparatively high ambitions with regard to the reduction of greenhouse ga emissions. Central–local relations in climate policy are analysed, and climate change mitigation and adaptation are exemplified by some snapshots of municipal initiatives, including the popular habit of networking between municipalities within as well as across national borders. In conclusion we briefly evaluate the Swedish local governance experience of climate change mitigation and adaptation to date as characterized by radical rhetoric and ambitious goals combined with a lot of promising initiatives, although still with fairly modest results in terms of tangible outcomes. Finally, we reflect upon what we consider to be the most important questions for future research on local governance and climate change.
Alkane degradation under anoxic conditions by a nitrate-reducing bacterium with possible involvement of the electron acceptor in substrate activation

Microorganisms can degrade saturated hydrocarbons (alkanes) not only under oxic but also under anoxic conditions. Three denitrifying isolates (strains HxN1, OcN1, HdN1) able to grow under anoxic conditions by coupling alkane oxidation to CO2 with NO3− reduction to N2 were compared with respect to their alkane metabolism. Strains HxN1 and OcN1, which are both Betaproteobacteria, utilized n-alkanes from C6 to C8 and C8 to C12 respectively. Both activate alkanes anaerobically in a fumarate-dependent reaction yielding alkylsuccinates, as suggested by present and previous metabolite and gene analyses. However, strain HdN1 was unique in several respects. It belongs to the Gammaproteobacteria and was more versatile towards alkanes, utilizing the range from C6 to C30. Neither analysis of metabolites nor analysis of genes in the complete genome sequence of strain HdN1 hinted at fumarate-dependent alkane activation. Moreover, whereas strains HxN1 and OcN1 grew with alkanes and NO3−, NO2− or N2O added to the medium, strain HdN1 oxidized alkanes only with NO3− or NO2− but not with added N2O; but N2O was readily used for growth with long-chain alcohols or fatty acids. Results suggest that NO2− or a subsequently formed nitrogen compound other than N2O is needed for alkane activation in strain HdN1. From an energetic point of view, nitrogen–oxygen species are generally rather strong oxidants. They may enable enzymatic mechanisms that are not possible under conditions of sulfate reduction or methanogenesis and thus allow a special mode of alkane activation.
Decision Utility Theory: Back to von Neumann, Morgenstern, and Markowitz

Prospect Theory (1979) and its Cumulative version (1992) argue for probability weighting to explain lottery choices. Decision Utility Theory presents an alternative solution, which makes no use of this concept. The new theory postulates a double S-shaped decision utility curve similar to the one hypothesized by Markowitz (1952), and applies the expected decision utility value similarly to the theory of von Neumann and Morgenstern (1944). This work is a PhD dissertation; it contains about 235 pages.
Cyst Wall Puncture and Aspiration During EUS-guided Fine Needle Aspiration May Increase the Diagnostic Yield of Mucinous Cysts of the Pancreas

Background Pancreatic cysts are common, however, their diagnosis and classification remains a challenge despite advances in cross-sectional imaging and endoscopic ultrasound with fine needle aspiration (EUS-FNA). Objective To determine the incremental yield of cytologic examination of material obtained from targeted fine needle aspiration (“puncture”) of the cyst wall after aspiration of fluid for CEA. Design Retrospective consecutive series. Patients and Setting Consecutive patients undergoing EUS-FNA of a pancreatic cyst by 2 expert endoscopists at a single tertiary care center between January 2006 and June 2008. Intervention Standard EUS-FNA of pancreatic cysts was carried out, and after cyst fluid aspiration the cyst wall was punctured and aspirated (CWP) to obtain epithelium for cytologic analysis. Main Outcome Measurements The diagnostic yields of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) obtained from cyst fluid and of cytology obtained from CWP. CEA greater than192 ng/mL was considered diagnostic of a mucinous cyst. Results One hundred seven patients underwent EUS-FNA with CWP. Sixteen (31%) of 52 patients with CEA <192 ng/mL had cytology positive for mucinous epithelium, whereas 15 (47%) of 32 cysts with an insufficient amount of fluid for CEA analysis had positive cytology from CWP. The additional, cumulative diagnostic yield for mucinous cysts was therefore, 37%. Of 55 cysts diagnosed as mucinous, more (56%) were diagnosed by CWP cytology alone than by CEA (P<0.05). Limitations Retrospective design and limited surgical pathology. Conclusions Cyst wall puncture and aspiration during routine EUS-FNA may be a safe, easily applied, and inexpensive technique for improving the diagnostic yield for mucinous cysts of the pancreas.
Comparison of Primary Human Fibroblasts and Keratinocytes with Immortalized Cell Lines Regarding their Sensitivity to Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate in a Neutral Red Uptake Cytotoxicity Assay

Abstract Cell lines present a valuable tool for in vitro assessment of skin damage caused by application of cosmeticals or pharmaceuticals. They form a reproducible test system under controllable test conditions and, in many cases, can be used as alternatives to animal testing in order to assess the compatibility of drugs or cosmetics and human skin. Yet, it can not necessarily be assumed that the behavior of cultured cells, when treated with different substances, is exactly consistent with the behavior of cells being part of a live organism. Becoming immortal, cells exhibit changes in genotype and/or phe-notype, possibly resulting in modified reactions to external influences. Therefore, to obtain results close to in vivo studies, it seems apparent to use primary cells for testing that have not yet undergone any modifications. To compare the properties of primary fibroblasts (Normal Human Dermal Fibroblasts, NHDF) and primary keratinocytes (Normal Human Epidermal Keratinocytes, NHEK) with those of immortal cell lines (3T3 (ACC 173) Swiss albino mouse fibroblasts and HaCaT (human, adult, low calcium, high temperature, human adult skin keratinocytes) cells), their sensitivities in cytotoxicity assays have been assessed. While both fibroblast cell cultures showed similar sensitivities towards sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), primary keratinocytes died at SDS concentrations about three times lower than the immortal HaCaT cells.
Estimation of Garch Models for Nigerian Exchange Rates Under Non-Gaussian Innovations

Financial series often displays evidence of leptokurticity and in that case, the empirical distribution often fails normality. GARCH models were initially based on normality assumption but estimated model based on this assumption cannot capture all the degree of leptokurticity in the return series. In this paper, we applied variants of GARCH models under non-normal innovations-t-distribution and Generalized Error Distribution (GED) on selected Nigeria exchange rates. The Berndt, Hall, Hall, Hausman (BHHH) numerical derivatives applied in the estimation of models converged faster and the time varied significantly across models. Asymmetric GARCH model with t-distribution (GARCH-t) was selected in most of the cases whereas for Nigeria-US Dollar exchange rate, GARCH-GED was specified. Both distributions showed evidence of leptokurticity in Naira exchange rate return series. The result is of practical importance to practitioners. Key Words: GARCH, Exchange rate, Model specification, Non-Gaussian distribution.
From Embodied to Disembodied Professionalism? Discussing the Implications of Medico-Managerial Management in Welfare Service Work

Welfare service work is traditionally understood to comprise embodied, situational and social practices of care that are central to a worker's professional self-image. Over the past few decades, public management reforms have called for reassessment of welfare service workers' professional accountability through practices of medico-managerial service management. These practices promote the production of transparency and accountability in welfare service work through checking-based trust and disembodied professional practices. This article argues that the changes in the nature of trust toward welfare service professionals have implications for care work cultures and workers' professional agency that has traditionally built on the idea of the embodied, situational and social practice of welfare service work. Drawing on an interview study with Finnish welfare service workers (n = 25), the article analyses frontline workers' descriptions of medico-managerial management in the social and healthcare sector. The results point to the significance of embodied practices of care in creation of client trust and for workers' professional self-images. The conclusion is that while disembodied professionalism offers opportunities for workers' self-management and evaluation of accountability and transparency of service processes, it may disregard the importance of embodied practices for the workers' professional self-images and client relations.
Tax Policy and the Dividend Puzzle

This paper offers a new explanation of the dividend puzzle, based upon a model in which firms attempt to signal profitability by distrubuting cash to shareholders. I assume that dividends and repurchases are identical, except that dividends are taxed more heavily. Nevertheless, I demonstrate that, under certain plausible conditions, corporations will pay dividends. Indeed, some firms will actually pay dividends, and then retrieve a portion of these payments by issuing new equity (perhaps through a dividend reinvestment plan), despite the fact that this appears to create gratuitous tax liabilities. In addition to providing an explanation for the dividend puzzle, I also derive a number of strong results concerning corporate payout decisions and government tax policy. Some of these results are surprising. For example, the relationship between repurchases and firm quality is hump-shaped. Moreover, despite the fact that a higher dividend tax rate depresses dividend payments, it does not affect either government revenue or welfare.
Early quantitative and functional deficiency of NK1+‐like thymocytes in the NOD mouse

An immunoregulatory role has recently been attributed to the discrete subset of major histocompatibility complex class I‐restricted NK1+ mature heat‐stable antigen− (HSA−) thymocytes expressing an unusual Vβ8‐biased T cell receptor repertoire. NK1+ T cells are the main interleukin (IL)‐4 producers upon priming. We have studied the size and the function of this subset in the nonobese diabetic (NOD) mouse, a model of spontaneous T cell‐mediated autoimmune insulin‐dependent diabetes. This study was complicated by the absence in this strain of the NK1.1 allele, the only one for which an antibody is available. To circumvent this difficulty, the cells, hereafter designated the NK1+‐like T subset, were characterized by the use of monoclonal antibodies which showed the Vβ8 bias in the CD44+ Ly‐49+ MEL‐14− 3G11− thymocyte subset of non‐autoimmune strains and of its absence in class I‐deficient (β2‐microglobulin−/−) mice. A clear deficit in the number of NK1+‐like cells was evidenced at 3 weeks of age in NOD mice. It was still present at 8 weeks of age in the double‐negative CD4−CD8− population. The functional anomaly was even more striking: NOD mouse NK1+‐like thymocytes virtually lacked the ability to produce IL‐4 at 3 weeks and still showed a very reduced capacity at 8 weeks. NK1+ T cell deficiency was also suggested in the periphery by the reduction of Ly‐49A+ cells in the spleen of 3‐ and 8‐week‐old NOD mice and the absence of short‐term production of IL‐4 in vitro by NOD mouse spleen cells 90 min after the administration of anti‐CD3 antibody, a response attributed to NK1+ T cells. Taken together, these data demonstrate a very early defect in NK1+‐like T cells which could be involved in the genesis of autoimmunity in NOD mice through a deficiency in Th2 cell function.
Transsphenoidal Surgery for Cushing Disease: Experience With 136 Patients

BACKGROUND This is a retrospective study of 136 patients with Cushing disease treated with transsphenoidal microsurgery. OBJECTIVE To evaluate factors influencing immediate postoperative results and long-term outcomes. METHODS Data regarding clinical presentation, endocrine evaluation, imaging studies, surgical technique, immediate postoperative biochemical remission (IPBR), and long-term results were entered into a database and analyzed statistically. IPBR was based on biochemical evidence of adrenal cortical insufficiency and clinical evidence of such insufficiency. RESULTS IPBR for the entire series was 83.4%. In microadenomas, IPBR was 89.8% with a mean immediate postoperative plasma cortisol (IPPC) of 2.1 &mgr;g/dL (range, <0.5-5.3). Positive magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was associated with 18 times greater odds of finding microadenoma at surgery (P < .001) and with 4.1 times greater odds of IPBR (P = .07). In patients with a negative MRI, a positive inferior petrosal sinus sampling (IPSS) test was associated with 93% of IPBR (P = .004). IPBR in macroadenomas was 30.7%. Of patients followed for 12 months or longer, 34.8% required glucocorticoid replacement for the duration of follow-up. The mean follow-up in microadenomas was 68.4 months with a 9.67% incidence of recurrences. The estimated actuarial incidence of recurrences increased with the passage of time and IPPC of greater than 2 &mgr;g/dL was associated with higher incidence of recurrences, although without statistical significance (P = .08). CONCLUSION In microadenomas, a positive MRI and positive IPSS test were associated with a higher incidence of IPBR. Recurrences increased with the passage of time, and an IPPC of greater than 2 &mgr;g/dL may be associated with higher incidence of recurrences.
Height and Earnings: The Role of Cognitive and Noncognitive Skills

We use large-scale register data on 450,000 Swedish males who underwent mandatory military enlistment at age 18, and a subsample of 150,000 siblings, to examine why tall people earn more. We show the importance of both cognitive and noncognitive skills, as well as family background and muscular strength for the height-earnings relationship. In addition, we show that a substantial height premium remains after these factors have been accounted for, which originates from very short people having low earnings. This is mostly explained by the sorting of short people into low-paid occupations, which may indicate discrimination by stature.
Changes in satellite cells in human skeletal muscle after a single bout of high intensity exercise

No studies to date have reported activation of satellite cells in vivo in human muscle after a single bout of high intensity exercise. In this investigation, eight individuals performed a single bout of high intensity exercise with one leg, the contralateral leg being the control. A significant increase in mononuclear cells staining for the neural cell adhesion molecule (N‐CAM) and fetal antigen 1 (FA1) were observed within the exercised human vastus lateralis muscle on days 4 and 8 post exercise. In addition, a significant increase in the concentration of the FA1 protein was determined in intramuscular dialysate samples taken from the vastus lateralis muscle of the exercising leg (day 0: 1.89 ± 0.82 ng ml−1; day 2: 1.68 ± 0.37 ng ml−1; day 4: 3.26 ± 1.29 ng ml−1, P < 0.05 versus basal; day 8: 4.68 ± 2.06 ng ml−1, P < 0.05 versus basal and control). No change was noted in the control leg. Despite this increase in N‐CAM‐ and FA1‐positive mononuclear cells, an increased expression of myogenin and the neonatal isoform of the myosin heavy chain (MHCn) was not observed. Interestingly, myofibre lesions resulting from extensive damage to the proteins within the myofibre, particularly desmin or dystrophin, were not observed, and hence did not appear to induce the expression of either N‐CAM or FA1. We therefore propose that satellite cells can be induced to re‐enter the cell growth cycle after a single bout of unaccustomed high intensity exercise. However, a single bout of exercise is not sufficient for the satellite cell to undergo terminal differentiation.
Macrophage Polarization in Lung Biology and Diseases

Lung is a major site of continuous immune reactions as it encounters various foreign particles and antigens entering the respiratory system. It is the main internal organ constantly exposed to the external environment that contains an array of microbes and particulate matter. Typically an adult exchanges 4.2 liters of air per minute amounting to almost 6000 liters per day [1In fact ventilation and respiration generates an environment where both inflammatory and anti-inflammatory response takes place continuously. However, a delicate balance is maintained between eliciting an immune response followed by resolution and repression of further immune reactions. Uncontrolled responses may result in injury or collateral damage to the lung whereas a subdued immune reaction may lead to unchecked infection. Hence, an efficient inflammatory reaction followed by precisely controlled resolution and fine-tuned remodeling process has evolved to minimize the effects of such challenges. The immune system of the lung is well developed to encounter this continuous challenge and disparate demands. Both innate and adaptive immune responses contribute to the surveillance of overall immune function in the lung. The respective immunological effector cells, T-lymphocytes, mast cells, dendritic cells (DCs) and macrophages are present within the lung interstitium, as early as from the pseudoglandular stage of development [2].
How Useful is the Sentiment Index

The Bearish Sentiment Index-the ratio of the number of investment advisers who are bearish to the total number of advisers who are either bearish or bullish-is promoted as a contrary indicator. That is, one should buy when investment advisers are bearish and sell when they are bullish. But is the Bearish Sentiment Index useful? Examination of the data from January 1963 (when the index was first compiled) to September 1985 indicates that the index is useless as an indicator of forthcoming stock price changes. The number of correct forecasts by the index is equaled by the number of incorrect forecasts. If the Bearish Sentiment Index is useless, why do people continue to use it? The persistence of the belief in the usefulness of the index results from errors in cognition that lead people to see patterns in random data and to neglect evidence that runs counter to their beliefs.
ORGANISATIONAL RESPONSE TO CRISIS: An Investigation of Australian Consumers' Purchase Intentions

The financial and practical implications of an organisational crisis remain a potential threat to the future viability of organisations involved in a crisis situation. In light of crisis events, organisations are encouraged to generate effective contingency plans that reduce, or eliminate negative repercussions. These plans often include the role of public relations and the implementation of appropriate crisis response strategies. This paper outlines a research study that investigates consumers’ purchase intentions post-organisational crises. This will be achieved by means of an experimental study assessing the effects of a selected organisational crisis, and five alternative organisational responses strategies, on Australian consumers’ subsequent purchase intentions. The research will measure participant’s perceptions of (a) organisational responsibility for the crisis, (b) impression toward the organisation post crisis and response, (c) degree of trust in the organisation, and (d) ultimately purchase intentions. As a result a path model depicting consumers’ evaluation processes post organisational crisis will be derived. The paper discusses the theoretical and practical elements employed in the study.
Communication characteristics of young children with HIV in South Africa as reported by some physicians

HIV has been shown to have significant effects on the development of a child. Currently, there is limited South African research regarding HIV and specific characteristics of communication development, and the treatment thereof, in the child infected with HIV. The objective of the research was to describe the communication characteristics of a group of children between the ages of 0 and 5 years infected with HIV at a hospital in Gauteng, South Africa. Clinic records of 203 children infected with HIV between the ages of 0 and 5 years were reviewed using a pre-designed checklist within the outreach clinic of a large regional hospital. A questionnaire was completed by four medical practitioners working with this population within the outreach clinic. A total of 91.62% of the infected children were diagnosed as being either in Stage III or IV of the disease (according to the WHO classification system of 2005), with all infants presenting with a CD4 count of ≤60. Most (75.37% of the total sample) were receiving Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART) at the time the data were collected. According to their medical, social, communication and general development, almost all the children qualified for Early Communication Intervention (ECI) but were not recorded as being referred for such services. A large proportion of the target population presented with opportunistic infections and/or HIV associated conditions. The results highlight the developmental characteristics of children living with HIV, and identify the need for medical doctors and allied health professionals to be provided with relevant literature or training regarding the communication development of children infected with HIV. This will facilitate appropriate referrals for ECI services.
Parents' perceptions of academic issues in composite classes

In a mixed-methods study, parents of children in a large regional Australian primary school were surveyed to ascertain their perceptions of and concerns about composite classes. Factor analysis revealed five factors perceived as relevant by the parents: Knowledge-experience of composite classes, their child's holistic Development (academic and social), grade Identity, and being in either the Younger or Older grade of the class. Path analysis identified three significant relationships between the factors. Descriptive and qualitative analyses shed light on how and why parents perceived these relationships as significant. In this article, I concentrate primarily on one conclusion from the literature review: Parents have a holistic concern for their child's development in a composite class; that is, they have both academic and social concerns which are at least in part related to age and grade. Specifically, I discuss parents' perceptions and concerns related to academic progress in a composite class. While they were not directly asked about the suitability of such classes for gifted students, in their written comments parents expressed definite views about composite classes, appropriate curriculum and the effect on academic progress of being in the younger or older grade of a composite class.