Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Do art experts (bohemians) attract high-skilled professionals? Evidence from panel data in German regions

This paper provides evidence on the role of art experts (bohemians) in high-skilled professionals' locational choices in German regions (NUTS 3) over the period 1998–2008. In particular, it examines Richard Florida's thesis, which considers art experts as creative people who attract high-skilled labour force. Our panel data estimation results support the thesis that art experts have positive and significant impact on high-skilled experts and that these individuals flock where art experts are. We also find that regional per capita income and employment have positive and robust effect on the distribution of high-skilled professionals. The positive effects suggest that the distribution of the high-skilled labor force is a reflection of economic and non-economic factors.
Interregional Inequality and Civil Conflict: Are Spatial Disparities a Threat to Stability and Peace?

Abstract This article examines the link between interregional inequality and civil conflict in a panel of 125 countries over the period 1993–2013. The results show that the level of interregional inequality has a positive and statistically significant effect on the incidence of civil conflict, which implies that countries with higher regional income disparities are more likely to experience internal violence. This result is not driven by a specific group of influential countries and is robust to the inclusion in the analysis of a substantial set of covariates that may affect both interregional inequality and civil conflict. Likewise, the observed link between regional income disparities and internal violence does not depend either on the estimation strategy or the measures used to quantify the degree of interregional inequality and the incidence of civil conflict within the various countries. These results suggest that policies designed to decrease the magnitude of regional income disparities may contribute to reducing the incidence of civil conflict.
How Many Elders Receive Assistance?

Objectives:To examine models of informal support received by elders in the United States and Sweden and to test whether differences in informal support appear to stem from demographic differences between the nations alone or whether cultural and historical differences must also be considered. Methods:Samples with similar functional dependence, age 75 and older in the United States (n= 4,677) and Sweden (n= 1,378), were used to model cross-national differences in the association between country, age, sex, potential availability of kin support, and receipt of informal assistance. Results:Patterns of informal help were higher in the United States than in Sweden but were qualified by higher order interactions among age, sex, and availability of kin support. Discussion:Cultural differences predating current policies in both countries appear to influence informal support over and above what can be accounted for by demographic differences alone.
Progressive Independence in Clinical Training: A Tradition Worth Defending?

Background Progressive independence is a traditional premise of clinical training. Recently, issues such as managed care, work hours limitation, and patient safety have begun to impact the degree of autonomy afforded to clinical trainees. This article reviews empirical evidence and theory pertaining to the role of progressive autonomy in clinical learning. Method A computerized literature search was performed using Medline, PsycINFO, Social Sciences Citation Index, and Educational Resources Information Center. This article presents a synthetic review of relevant empirical and theoretical concepts from the domains of medicine, psychology, education, kinesiology, and sociology. Results The clinical psychology and medical education literatures provide evidence that clinical trainees act more independently as their training progresses, but have not yet evaluated the educational efficacy of providing progressive independence, or the consequences of failing to do so. The expertise and motor learning literatures provide some theoretical evidence (as yet untested in complex clinical environments) that the provision of too much guidance or feedback to trainees could be educationally detrimental in the long term. The sociology literature provides insight into the cultural values underlying the behavior of clinical teachers and trainees relating to issues of supervision and independence. Conclusions There is limited empirical support for the current model of progressive independence in clinical learning; however, diverse theoretical perspectives raise concern about the potential educational consequences of eroding progressive independence. These perspectives could inform future research programs that would create a creative and effective response to the social and economic forces impacting clinical education.
Effects of Different Plyometric Training Frequency on Measures of Athletic Performance in Prepuberal Male Soccer Players.

This study aimed to compare the effects of one vs. two sessions of equal-weekly volume plyometric training (PT) across 8 weeks on measures of athletic performance (i.e., sprint-time, change of direction [CoD], jumping ability, and muscle strength) in prepuberal male soccer players. Thirty participants were randomly assigned either to one session PT group (1SPT [n=15]) or two sessions PT group (2SPT [n=15]). Plyometric training was integrated into their regular soccer training routine. Pre- and post-training tests for the assessment of sprint-time (e.g., 5-m, 10-m, 20-m, and 30-m), CoD (e.g., T-test and modified Illinois change of direction test [MICODT]), jumping ability (e.g., standing long jump [SLJ], counter-movement jump [CMJ], and squat jump [SJ]), muscle strength (reactive strength index [RSI]), and kicking distance were conducted. Results showed a main effect of time for 5-m sprint-time performance (F(1,56)=4.00, ES=0.53 [medium], p=0.05), T-test (F(1,56)=23.19, ES=1.28 [large], p<0.001), MICODT (F(1,56)= 5.72, ES=0.94 [large], p=0.02), SLJ (F(1,56)=16.63, ES=1.09 [large], p<0.001), CMJ (F(1,56) =15.43, ES= 1.04 [large], p<0.001), SJ (F(1,56) =20.27, ES=1.20 [large], p<0.001), RSI (F(1,56)=26.26, ES=1.36 [large], p<0.001), and kicking distance (F(1,56)=47.19, ES=1.83 [large], p<0.001). There were no training group × time interactions in all the measured outcomes. In conclusion, when an equated moderate volume of jumps is performed, higher PT frequency across 8 weeks has no extra-effects on prepuberal male soccer players' measures of athletic performance. The present findings may help optimizing PT interventions dedicated to prepuberal male soccer players.
The P9 pocket of HLA-DQ2 (non-Aspbeta57) has no particular preference for negatively charged anchor residues found in other type 1 diabetes-predisposing non-Aspbeta57 MHC class II molecules.

Susceptibility and resistance to type 1 diabetes are associated with MHC class II alleles that carry non-Asp and Asp at residue 57 of their beta chain respectively. The effect of Asp or non-Aspbeta57 may relate to a differential ability of distinct class II molecules to bind specific immuno-pathogenic peptides. Recent studies in man and mouse have revealed that some type 1 diabetes-predisposing non-Aspbeta57 class II molecules (i.e. DQ8, DR4Dw15 and I-Ag7) preferentially bind peptides with a negatively charged anchor residue at P9. It has been suggested that this is a common feature of type 1 diabetes-predisposing class II molecules. The molecular explanation for such a phenomenon could be that class II beta chains with Aspbeta57 form a salt bridge between Aspbeta57 and a conserved Arg of the a chain, whereas in non-Aspbeta57 molecules the Arg is unopposed and free to interact with negatively charged P9 peptide anchor residues. We have investigated the specificity of the P9 pocket of the type 1 diabetes-associated DQ2 molecule and in particular examined for charge effects at this anchor position. Different approaches were undertaken. We analyzed binding of a high-affinity binding ligand and P9-substituted variants of this peptide, and we analyzed the binding of a set of synthetic random peptide libraries. The binding analyses were performed with wild-type DQ2 and a mutated DQ2 with Ala at beta57 substituted with Asp. Our results indicate that the wild-type DQ2 (non-Aspbeta57) prefers large hydrophobic residues at P9 and that there is no particular preference for binding peptides with negatively charged residues at this position. The specificity of the P9 pocket in the mutated DQ molecule is altered, indicating that the beta57 residue contributes to determining the specificity of the P9 pocket. Our data do not lend support to the hypothesis that all non-Asp beta57 class II molecules predispose to development of disease by binding peptides with negatively charged P9 anchor residues.
Radical right and radical left party ideologies: a pan-European mapping of necessary attributes, differences and similarities

ABSTRACT Radical parties, both to the right and to the left, have recently earned victories in a range of European countries. Previous efforts seeking to understand radical parties in general are, however, relatively rare. The present paper offers an examination of the possible necessary attributes of, as well as the differences and similarities between, radical right and radical left party ideologies in contemporary (Western, Central and Eastern) Europe. The expectation that nativism is a necessary attribute of radical right ideology while anti-capitalist socialism is a necessary attribute of radical left ideology receives partial support; although not present in all of the manifestos produced by these parties, these attributes are, from a broader perspective, necessary ingredients of the radical right and the radical left party ideology, respectively. The empirical examination also confirms that the two families clearly differ in their sociocultural and, to a lesser extent, socioeconomic views. Finally, it demonstrates that they take matching standpoints towards European integration and, more ambiguously, towards the political system.
Using a Hop-Constrained Model to Generate Alternative Communication Network Design

Designing the link topology and selecting capacities in a backbone network of a communication system involve complex tradeoffs between investment and operating costs and service considerations such as network reliability and vulnerability, delays, and blocking. Incorporating all these design criteria simultaneously in a comprehensive model results in a large-scale, nonlinear, discrete optimization problem that is intractable. This paper proposes an alternate optimization-based methodology to generate several cost-effective backbone network designs with varying cost and performance characteristics. Network planners can use this method together with detailed performance evaluation techniques to select a design that achieves the proper balance between conflicting objectives. To generate different configurations, the method parametrically varies a set of hop constraints that restrict the number of links over which messages can be transmitted. Reducing the maximum number of hops increases the number of alterna.
[Ecoepidemiology of urban schistosomiasis in Itamaracá Island, Pernambuco, Brazil].

INTRODUCTION In 1988, 22 autochthonous cases from accidental exposure were registered in Forte Orange beach, Itamaracá Island, Pernambuco, Brazil. All cases occurred in middle-to-upper class individuals who were vacationing in the island. After the cases were identified, the major objective was to find breeding sites of schistosomiasis vectors and correlate the biological factors with the environmental conditions. METHODS The environmental characteristics of the beach before human occupation were obtained from several documents. Also, a one-year malacological survey was conducted with monthly collection of mollusks, and the determination of their infectivity rates. RESULTS/CONCLUSIONS The malacological survey was able to identify 20 breeding sites of Biomphalaria glabrata and 28 capture station were set up. Snails were collected and examined each month throughout a whole year. The results show a seasonal variation in the mollusk population density associated with infection rates and types of breeding sites. The importance of this new epidemiological profile of schistosomiasis in the State of Pernambuco relies on the fact that it can be related with the drastic human interference on the environment. Ecological, environmental, and demographic factors as well as the epidemiological characteristics of the disease have social and economic repercussions.
Prochloraz effects on biomarkers activity in zebrafish early life stages and adults

Zebrafish early life stages (ELS) assays have been increasingly used to assess the toxicity of chemicals and waste waters, showing a great potential due to the wide variety of endpoints that can be incorporated in the test. Moreover, zebrafish ELS test have been proposed, mainly for ethical reasons, as a surrogate for tests with adults. In this work, the fungicide Prochloraz (PCZ) was used as a chemical model to compare sensitivities of embryos/larvae and adult zebrafish focusing on lethality and biomarkers as endpoints. Effects on embryo development were also assessed. Organization for economic cooperation and development (OECD) guidelines were followed and adapted to include the analyses of the biomarkers cholinesterase, glutathione S‐transferase, and lactate dehydrogenase. The acute toxicity of PCZ for zebrafish ELS and adults seemed to be similar with 96h‐LC50 values of 8.5 and 4.6 mg/L, respectively. However, biomarkers were only responsive in larvae indicating a higher sensitivity of this life stage at sublethal level. PCZ also proved to be teratogenic: at intermediate concentrations effects on embryo development could be noticed, including spine deformations, edemas, lack of pigmentation, slower heart rate, and complete hatching failure. At the lowest concentrations, the more relevant effects (edemas and abnormal absorption of the yolk sac) were observed after hatching. The measurement of biomarkers in the zebrafish ELS assay seems to a useful tool in the detection of chemical effects showing higher sensitivity than adults. Further research should focus on the link between biomarkers responses in larvae and effects at later life stages of zebrafish. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Environ Toxicol, 2013.
Stroke in Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease…: How do we Approach and Manage it?

Renal failure is a potent risk factor for stroke, which is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The risk of stroke is 5–30 times higher in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), especially on dialysis. Case fatality rates are also higher reaching almost 90%. It is therefore important to understand the factors that predispose to stroke in this vulnerable population to better apply preventive strategies. The heightened risk of stroke in CKD represents the interplay of the vascular co-morbidities that occur with renal impairment and factors specific to renal failure such as malnutrition-inflammation-atherosclerosis complex, the effect of uremic toxins, dialysis techniques, vascular access, and the use of anticoagulants to maintain flow in the extracorporeal circuit. Old age, hypertension, diabetes, and previous cerebrovascular disease are all risk factors for stroke with the period of dialysis initiation constituting the highest risk period for developing new stroke. Patients with CKD-stage 3–5 have worse survival and diminished functional outcomes following stroke. Thrombolytic therapy for stroke in CKD has shown an increased risk of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage or serious systemic hemorrhage, and the therapeutic effects may be attenuated. Benefit of statin therapy in dialysis patient as preventive therapy has not been shown to be beneficial. Control of hypertension and the judicious use of antiplatelet agents form the mainstay of stroke prevention. The benefit of antiplatelet therapies and oral anticoagulants has to be balanced against the real and increased risk of bleeding that is most evident in dialysis cohorts. An increased risk of vascular calcification particularly intracerebral vascular calcification has been seen in patientsreceiving warfarin as prophylaxis in atrial fibrillation. Newer anticoagulants have not been tested in patients with glomerular filtration rate <30 ml/min and hence have to be used with caution. This article is a review of stroke in patients with CKD and approach to managing it.
Income Inequality in Latin America and Eastern EU through the Great Recession: An Ordered Probit Analysis

Income distribution directly affects economic growth and the spending patterns in an economy. This paper employs an ordered probit panel to measure the effect of the Great Recession on income inequality in Latin American and Eastern EU members. The results suggest the crisis increased inequality in studied countries overall. However, those countries with low levels of inequality saw their Gini coefficients decrease further, while the crisis increased inequality in countries with already high inequality. Additionally, the results show that European Union membership on average contributed to lower likelihood of high Gini coefficients. Furthermore, marginal effects lend additional evidence of lower income gap for the Eastern EU members as they generally show negative marginal effects for countries with initially high inequality and positive for those with low Gini coefficients. Finally, we find no evidence that FDI and capital incentives have any direct impact on inequality, while GDP growth, poverty, and export incentives are associated with higher and tax revenues and export growth with lower income inequality.
Beggar-Thy-Neighbor Effects of Exchange Rates: A Study of the Renminbi

This paper estimates the effect of China’s exchange rate changes on exports of developing countries in third markets. The degree ofcompetition between China and its developing country competitors in specific products and destinations plays a key role in the identification strategy. The strategy exploits variation across exporters,importers, products and time—afforded both by disaggregated tradedata and bilateral exchange rates—to estimate this “competitor country effect. ” There is robust evidence of a statistically and quantitatively significant effect. A 10 percent appreciation of China’s realexchange rate boosts a developing country’s exports at the product level on average by about 1.5–2.5 percent.
Induction of apoptosis in head‐and‐neck squamous carcinoma cells by γ‐irradiation and bleomycin is p53‐independent

We have examined the ability of γ‐irradiation and bleomycin to induce apoptosis in a model system consisting of cell lines derived from naturally occurring human head‐and‐neck squamous‐cell carcinomas with contrasting p53 status and expression levels of pro‐ and anti‐apoptotic molecules. Following exposure to γ‐irradiation (20 Gy) or bleomycin (3.5 μM) for 0 to 96 hr, cells expressing either transcriptionally inactive mutant p53 (HN6) or a truncated p53 molecule (HN19) underwent apoptosis, as assessed by fluorescence‐activated cell sorting and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase‐mediated dUTP nick end‐labeling, in contrast to cells that express wild‐type p53 (HN30), suggesting that apoptosis induced by these agents occurs by p53‐independent mechanisms. Apoptosis in HN6 and HN19 cells was preceded by a G2/M cell‐cycle block, as analyzed by DNA content and BrdU staining. In contrast, HN30 cells remained blocked in both G1 and G2/M and failed to re‐enter the cell cycle. Levels of Bcl‐2 were elevated in 3 of 10 cell lines, and only marginal differences were observed for Bcl‐xL. Pro‐apoptotic proteins bax and Bcl‐xS were detectable in normal keratinocytes and 4 tumor cell lines. Bax‐δ (16 kDa) was highly represented in normal keratinocytes, and levels of bak were variable between cell lines. Elevated expression of Bcl‐2 failed to protect HN19 cells from either γ‐irradiation or bleomycin‐induced apoptosis. Our data support the existence of p53‐ and Bcl‐2–independent pathways regulating apoptosis in keratinocytes and suggest that efficacy of either radiotherapy or bleomycin treatment for oral squamous‐cell neoplasms may not, therefore, be influenced solely by endogenous p53 status. Int. J. Cancer 88:737–743, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
COURSE AND RISK FACTORS OF FUNCTIONAL IMPAIRMENT IN SUBTHRESHOLD DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY

Although persons with subthreshold depression or anxiety are known to be at risk for full‐syndromal disorders, little is known about their functioning over time. In this study, we investigate the functional impairment of persons with subthreshold depression or anxiety over time, compared to that of controls. Furthermore, we evaluate which illness, personal, and environmental risk factors influence its course.
The relationship between hostility and behavioral risk factors for poor health in women veterans.

BACKGROUND While previous research has generally supported a relationship between hostility and health risk behaviors, the majority of this research has been conducted in predominately male, highly educated, Caucasian samples. The current study was designed to further examine the relationship between hostility and health risk behaviors in a sample of women. METHODS Measures of health risk behavior and scores from the Cook-Medley hostility scale were obtained from 409 women veterans. Linear and logistic regression analyses were used to examine the relationship between hostility and health behaviors including tobacco smoking, alcohol use, body-mass index, caffeine use, and level of physical activity, after sociodemographic factors were accounted for. RESULTS In a cohort of women veterans using VA health care, ages 35-81, hostility was significantly associated with tobacco smoking (OR = 2.10; 95% CI = 1.34 to 3.30), caffeine use (OR = 2.12; 95% CI = 1.16 to 3.85), and the number of alcoholic beverages consumed by women who drink alcohol. Hostility was not associated with body mass index (OR = 1.15; 95% CI = 0.77 to 1.72) or a lack of physical exercise (OR = 0.89; 95% CI = 0.55 to 1.43). CONCLUSIONS Results are generally consistent with previous research and support the relationship between hostility and health risk behaviors. Awareness that hostility contributes to risk behaviors and disease may help in the design of interventions aimed at risk reduction.