Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Extracting respiratory information from seismocardiogram signals acquired on the chest using a miniature accelerometer

Seismocardiography (SCG) is a non-invasive measurement of the vibrations of the chest caused by the heartbeat. SCG signals can be measured using a miniature accelerometer attached to the chest, and are thus well-suited for unobtrusive and long-term patient monitoring. Additionally, SCG contains information relating to both cardiovascular and respiratory systems. In this work, algorithms were developed for extracting three respiration-dependent features of the SCG signal: intensity modulation, timing interval changes within each heartbeat, and timing interval changes between successive heartbeats. Simultaneously with a reference respiration belt, SCG signals were measured from 20 healthy subjects and a respiration rate was estimated using each of the three SCG features and the reference signal. The agreement between each of the three accelerometer-derived respiration rate measurements was computed with respect to the respiration rate derived from the reference respiration belt. The respiration rate obtained from the intensity modulation in the SCG signal was found to be in closest agreement with the respiration rate obtained from the reference respiration belt: the bias was found to be 0.06 breaths per minute with a 95% confidence interval of −0.99 to 1.11 breaths per minute. The limits of agreement between the respiration rates estimated using SCG (intensity modulation) and the reference were within the clinically relevant ranges given in existing literature, demonstrating that SCG could be used for both cardiovascular and respiratory monitoring. Furthermore, phases of each of the three SCG parameters were investigated at four instances of a respiration cycle—start inspiration, peak inspiration, start expiration, and peak expiration—and during breath hold (apnea). The phases of the three SCG parameters observed during the respiration cycle were congruent with existing literature and physiologically expected trends.
Essential amino acid supplementation in patients following total knee arthroplasty.

BACKGROUND By the year 2030, 3.48 million older U.S. adults are projected to undergo total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Following this surgery, considerable muscle atrophy occurs, resulting in decreased strength and impaired functional mobility. Essential amino acids (EAAs) have been shown to attenuate muscle loss during periods of reduced activity and may be beneficial for TKA patients. METHODS We used a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial with 28 older adults undergoing TKA. Patients were randomized to ingest either 20 g of EAAs (n = 16) or placebo (n = 12) twice daily between meals for 1 week before and 2 weeks after TKA. At baseline, 2 weeks, and 6 weeks after TKA, an MRI was performed to determine mid-thigh muscle and adipose tissue volume. Muscle strength and functional mobility were also measured at these times. RESULTS TKA patients receiving placebo exhibited greater quadriceps muscle atrophy, with a -14.3 ± 3.6% change from baseline to 2 weeks after surgery compared with -3.4 ± 3.1% for the EAA group (F = 5.16, P = 0.036) and a -18.4 ± 2.3% change from baseline to 6 weeks after surgery for placebo versus -6.2 ± 2.2% for the EAA group (F = 14.14, P = 0.001). EAAs also attenuated atrophy in the nonoperated quadriceps and in the hamstring and adductor muscles of both extremities. The EAA group performed better at 2 and 6 weeks after surgery on functional mobility tests (all P < 0.05). Change in quadriceps muscle atrophy was significantly associated with change in functional mobility (F = 5.78, P = 0.021). CONCLUSION EAA treatment attenuated muscle atrophy and accelerated the return of functional mobility in older adults following TKA. TRIAL REGISTRATION Clinicaltrials.gov NCT00760383.
Toward a green revolution in Africa: what would it achieve, and what would it require?

The current global food crisis has reemphasized the costliness of Africa's failure to achieve food security and poverty reduction. The instrument by which other more successful developing countries achieved these outcomes was a "Green Revolution" in agriculture. While previous research has provided largely discursive appraisals of the viability of an African Green Revolution, this article adopts a more rigorous methodology to address that question. First, an economy-wide multimarket model, augmented with existing poverty-growth elasticities, is developed to assess the likely impacts of a rapid acceleration in food production (of the kind witnessed in previous Green Revolutions) on food prices, consumption and demand, farmer revenue, and poverty. Our results suggest that a rapid growth in staple production, together with more integrated regional markets, would reduce food prices by roughly 20-40% for consumers and 10-20% for producers among the major crops. This translates into a large rise in farm revenues, annual agricultural growth rates of 6.5% or higher, broader income growth and food security, and over 70 million Africans being lifted out of poverty. The article concludes by emphasizing the kinds of fundamental policy actions and resources that would be required for achieving these outcomes. Copyright (c) 2008 International Association of Agricultural Economists.
The Conditional Convergence Properties of Simple Kaldorian Growth Models

Abstract Findings of conditional convergence are usually interpreted within a neoclassical growth framework. This follows from the methodology of testing for conditional convergence, whereby the estimating equation is explicitly derived from a neoclassical growth model. Given this explicit derivation, findings of conditional convergence might be thought to discriminate against alternative approaches to growth in general and the Kaldorian approach to growth in particular. This article shows, however, that this is not the case. It does so by examining the conditional convergence properties of the ‘core’ model of Kaldorian growth theory—the Kaldor‐Dixon‐Thirlwall (KDT) model. In particular, the paper demonstrates that this model predicts conditional convergence of a qualitatively identical nature to that predicted by the neoclassical growth model. A simple extension of the KDT model that is reconciled with quantitative estimates of the speed of conditional convergence is also presented.
Mapping local production systems in the UK: Methodology and application

De Propris, L. (2005) Mapping local production systems in the UK: methodology and application, Regional Studies 39 , 197–211. The paper outlines a possible methodology to map and study local production systems. The three‐level diagnostic methodology enables researchers to map, classify and analyse in depth firms' agglomerations in regions or countries where there is little information about the presence and location of local production systems. The spatial diagnostic procedure is applied to the UK to map local production systems.
New Sharp Gagliardo–Nirenberg–Sobolev Inequalities and an Improved Borell–Brascamp–Lieb Inequality

We propose a new Borell-Brascamp-Lieb inequality which leads to novel sharp Euclidean inequalities such as Gagliardo-Nirenberg-Sobolev inequalities in R^n and in the half-space R^n_+. This gives a new bridge between the geometric pont of view of the Brunn-Minkowski inequality and the functional point of view of the Sobolev type inequalities. In this way we unify, simplify and generalize results by S. Bobkov-M. Ledoux, M. del Pino-J. Dolbeault and B. Nazaret.
Determinants of environmental management and implications for firms' economic performance

There is considerable debate in the literature about the economic implications of firms' environmental management. The current study identifies the determinants and implications of environmental management and performance, using an empirical analysis of 187 hotels in the third most visited region of Spain – itself the second most important tourist destination in the world (2008). The study confirms the positive influence of environmental management and performance on an organisation's economic performance. Consequently, the study contributes to the natural resource-based view of the firm. For this purpose, starting from an exhaustive and critical review of the literature the study defines a valid and reliable model, adapted to the socio-economic context of the analysis, with which to evaluate firms' environmental protection actions and their outcomes.
Political Perceptions in the Obama Era

Using three national surveys from the Great Recession period in America, I demonstrate two aspects of group-based political attitudes beyond citizens’ partisanship preferences: (1) the economic scapegoating of African Americans by whites during the recession and (2) Latinos’ and African Americans’ use of their marginalized economic status as a lens for understanding how mortgage companies and bankers treated their communities during the downturn. I also discuss the broad impact of disparate economic opinions on citizens’ political outlook for the future. The key patterns of political attitudes are shown to be remarkably consistent from 2009 to 2012.
What Happens in Nevada? Self-Selecting into Lax Law

We find that Nevada, the second most popular state for out-of-state incorporations and a state with lax corporate law, attracts firms that are 30–40% more likely to report financial results that later require restatement than firms incorporated in other states, including Delaware. Our results suggest that firms favoring protections for insiders select Nevada as a corporate home, and these firms are prone to financial reporting failures. We provide some evidence that Nevada law also has a causal impact by increasing a Nevada firm's propensity to misreport financials after the firm has incorporated in Nevada.
The Anatomy of a Call Market

Abstract This paper provides a detailed analysis of the call auction procedure on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. We develop a direct measure of execution costs in a call auction that is comparable to the bid–ask spread in a continuous market. We find that transaction costs for small transactions in the call market are lower than the quoted spread in the continuous market, whereas transaction costs for large transactions in the call market are higher than the spread in the continuous market. An analysis of specialist (Makler) participation shows that Maklers provide a valuable service to the market. On average, their compensation is restricted to commission income rather than trading profits. Journal of Economic Literature Classification Number: G10.
Coalition Education Policy: Thatcherism's Long Shadow.

Coalition education policy threatens to transform the school system in England. A combination of public spending cuts, and the drive to making all schools Academies, represents a key moment in the restructuring of the education service along neo-liberal lines. This article argues that there is nothing distinctively ‘new’ about Coalition schools policy, but rather it represents a realisation of the ‘1988 project’ to break up and privatise state education in England. What took a major step forward in the form of the 1988 Education Reform Act is now reaching its logical conclusion in Coalition policy. This article identifies how such policy threatens to finally secure the dismantling of a democratic system by replacing it with a state-subsidised free market. The article also sets out the possibilities for a ‘coalition of resistance’ to emerge, capable of interrupting this latest and decisive stage in neo-liberal reform.
Coenzyme Q10 supplementation reduces oxidative stress and increases antioxidant enzyme activity in patients with relapsing–remitting multiple sclerosis

Background: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory disease of central nervous system in which a higher oxidative stress may contribute to its pathogenesis. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) supplementation on oxidative stress and antioxidant enzyme activity in patients with MS. Materials and methods: We performed a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trail to determine the effect of CoQ10 supplement (500 mg/day, n = 24) versus placebo (controls, n = 24) for 12 weeks. Fasting blood samples were taken before and after a 12-week intervention to analyze malondialdehyde (MDA), total antioxidant capacity (TAC) and antioxidant enzymes [superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPx)] activity. Results: Forty-five subjects with MS completed intervention study. After 12 weeks, CoQ10-treated patients had significant increase in SOD activity (p = 0.013); and decrease in MDA levels (P=0.003) compared with controls. Despite the significant effect of CoQ10 supplementation on plasma TAC (p = 0.010), no significant differences were found between the two groups. CoQ10 supplementation did not affect GPx activity. Conclusion: Present study suggests that CoQ10 supplements at a dose of 500 mg/day can decrease oxidative stress and increase antioxidant enzyme activity in patients with relapsing–remitting MS.
The Viking case

The decision of 3 November 2005 of the Court of Appeal in London in the Viking case, which it referred to the European Court of Justice, is of crucial importance in terms of indicating a direction for the future of the European social model. The issue involved is whether, and to what extent, industrial action by unions in order to prevent the imposition of very low wage rates is permissible when ships are transferred to flags of convenience within Europe. The relationship between rights of economic freedom of movement under the EC Treaty and collective freedom of activity for workers within the framework of their freedom of association has not as yet been definitively settled. Guarantees of transnational economic activity were assigned a prominent role in the EC Treaty from the outset, while the fundamental social rights of workers have acquired increased recognition in the EU only in the past 20 years. The success of European integration is dependent on effective limits for economic freedom being able to be set. La décision de la Cour d'appel de Londres du 3 novembre 2005, qui a porté l'affaire Viking devant la Cour européenne de justice, est d'une importance capitate dans la mesure ou elle pourrait déterminer l'orientation future du modèle social européen. L'enjeu est de savoir si, et dans quelle mesure, une action collective déclenchée par des syndicats afin d'empêcher l'imposition de taux salariaux très has est autorisée lorsque des navires passent sous pavillon de complaisance à l'intérieur de l'Europe. La question du lien entre le droit à la libre circulation économique reconnu par le Traité CE et la liberté d'action collective des travailleurs dans le cadre de la liberté syndicale n'a pas encore ete définitivement réglée. Dès le départ, le Traité CE attribuait un rôle majeur aux garanties relatives à factivite économique transnationale alors que ce n'est qu'au cours des vingt dernières annees que les droits sociaux fondamentaux des travailleurs ont été progressivement reconnus dans l'Union européenne. La réussite de l'intégration européenne serafonction de la capacitéde l'Union à imposer des limites concrètes à la liberté économique. Der Vorlage des Londoner Court of Appeal vom 3.11. 2005 an den EuGH im Viking-Fall kommt für die Zukunft des Europäischen Sozialmodells richtungsweisende Bedeutung zu. Es geht urn die Frage, ob und wie weit gewerkschaftliche Kampfmaβnahmen beim Wechsel von Schiffen zu innereuropäischen ‘Billigflaggen’ zulässig sind, um das Eingreifen ausländischer ‘Dumpingtarife’ zu verhindern. Das Verhältnis der wirtschaftlichen Freizügigkeitsrechte des EG-Vertrages zur kollektiven Betätigungsfreiheit der Arbeitnehmer im Rahmen ihrer Koalitionsfreiheit ist bislangnicht abschlieβend geklört. Den Garantien grenzüberschreitender Wirtschaftstätigkeit kam im EG-Vertrag von Anfang an eine prominente Rolle zu, während die grundlegenden sozialen Rechte der Arbeitnehmer erst in den vergangenen 20 Jahren in der EU verstärkte Anerkennung gefunden haben. Das Gelingen der europäischen Integration hängt davon ab, doss sie der ökonomischen Freiheit effektive Grenzen setzen können.
Modelling the supply of new residential construction in Aberdeen, UK

Purpose - – The purpose of this paper is to use local-level time series data to examine the determinants of housing starts and the price elasticity of supply for the Aberdeen local housing market. Design/methodology/approach - – Seven time series models are used in the analysis. The basic model treats housing starts as a function of the changes of current and lagged house prices, interest rate and construction cost. The other six models which are extensions of the basic model include other variables like time on the market, planning constraints and future expectations. Findings - – It is found that the local variables – changes in house prices, time on the market, planning regulation, lagged stock and lagged and future housing starts – are the main factors that influence new residential construction in Aberdeen. None of the national variables is significant, confirming the importance of limiting housing market analysis to the local level. The price elasticity of supply estimated is in the range of 2.0 to 3.2 for housing starts and 0.01 to 0.02 for housing stock. These estimates are higher than most of the elasticities for the other UK local markets. Originality/value - – There is the need to better understand the supply of housing at the various local housing markets. Unfortunately, however, most housing supply studies use national data. Because national data are aggregation of local data, using national studies results for local markets may be uninformative. Also, the few existing local studies use typically cross-section data or at least time series over relatively short time spans. This paper makes an effort to use quarterly time series data over a 25-year period for a local market and also include a planning variable which is different from local markets and often ignored in national or regional studies.
An Analysis of Intraday Patterns in Bid/Ask Spreads for NYSE Stocks

The behavior of time-weighted bid-ask spreads over the trading day are examined. The plot of minute-by-minute spreads versus time of day has a crude reverse J-shaped pattern. Schwartz identifies four determinants of spreads: activity, risk, information, and competition. Using a linear regression model, a significant relationship between these same factors and intraday spreads is demonstrated, but dummy variables for time of day have a reverse J-shape. For given values of the activity, risk, information, and competition measures, spreads are higher at the beginning and end of the day relative to the interior period. Copyright 1992 by American Finance Association.
Young children's construction of 'racial differences' in an Australian context

This thesis aims to explore how some young Australian children construct their racialised ideas of difference and social relations. It adopts a qualitative method of inquiry and is based on face-to face, semi-structured interviews with a small sample of twelve Western Australian children aged three, five and seven years. The study adopts a relatively recent perspective on children, within which they are viewed as having an active role in their own learning process and as possessing a certain level of competence (Lloyd-Smith and Tarr, 2000; James and James, 2004) that allows them to 'comprehend, process and articulate their needs and experiences' (Connolly, 1996, p.172). The study also adopts a perspective of the multiplicity of the forms of racism (Hall, 1986; Miles, 1989, 1993) and their dynamic, contingent nature, specific to different political and social contexts. Within this understanding children are viewed not just as passive recipients of racist discourses, but as active agents who, in order to make sense of their social world, strive to deal with the often contradictory nature of information received in relation to the racial Other (Rizvi, 1993a; Connolly, 1996). Bronfenbrenner's ecological perspective on human development adopted by this study, allows us to position the development of children's racialised thinking within the specific contexts of immediate environments (Microsystem), where children experience and create reality (Bronfenbrenner, 1979). At the same time, however, it helps us to see how the experiences within the child's environments are influenced, if not determined, by the broader social processes and institutions (Exosystem), which in many aspects reflect the ideologies (Macrosystem) of racism within Australian society (Jayasuriya, 1999). The study argues that young Australian children's racialised construction of difference needs to be addressed, possibly through the development of curricula and programs with an anti-racist rather than multicultural focus. Such curricula have a potential to provide children with opportunities to look critically at the dangers of racisms and to challenge everyday racist assumptions. Further qualitative research is needed to unearth the complexities of young Australian children's racialised thought.
Linked morphological changes during palate evolution in early tetrapods

We examined the shapes and sizes of dermal bones of the palate of selected Palaeozoic tetrapods in order to identify the ancestral states of palatal bone morphologies in the earliest tetrapods, to learn how the composition of the palate varies within and among early tetrapod radiations, and to recognize evolutionary correlations among the size and shapes of skeletal elements in this important group of animals. We find that whereas the palatal bones themselves and their arrangements are usually conserved, considerable correlated evolutionary change occurs in the shapes and sizes of the bones. Some of the changes in the bones are allometrically linked to overall palate size, which varies more than 100‐fold among the taxa in our sample. Often, these allometries were only hinted at in traditional independent contrasts‐based regressions of log transformed data, particularly because many allometries are subtle, their slopes may vary among subclades, and the scatter around some trendlines is high. Rather, the allometries showed up in analyses of size‐standardized palatal bone dimensions investigated using independent contrasts, bivariate phylomorphospace plots, and mirrored character reconstructions on the phylogenetic tree. We find negative allometry for parasphenoid lengths and widths essentially across the entire tree of Palaeozoic tetrapods, but with different trajectories characterizing the two largest clades, the temnospondyls and the lepospondyls. The lengths of several other elements may show positive allometries, either across the entire tree or in just a subclade. One possible positive allometry exists for the ectopterygoid, which appears to shorten allometrically in temnospondyls that evolve small body and palate size, and, as in Doleserpeton can be lost altogether. Both shortening and loss could be by the same developmental change, paedomorphosis, a form of heterochrony. Paedomorphosis might also account for evolution of relatively large parasphenoids in both lepospondyls and diminutive temnospondyls, but does not seem to explain evolution of ectopterygoid loss in lepospondyls. A regularity observed across nearly all taxa in our study set is an inverse correlation between the lengths of the vomer and pterygoid, bones that lie adjacent to one another along the long palatal axis. Further work is needed to learn whether such correlated evolution might be due to adaptation and/or to developmental bias, and particularly to learn how correlations and allometries themselves evolve.