Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Obfuscation and Shrouding with Network Effects: Big Data Strategies and the Limits of Competition

This article analyses Big Data strategies with network effects. An incumbent network can abuse its market dominance by implementing a Big Data strategy that “shrouds” data collection. Thereby, only “sophisticated” consumers understand that data collection yields a dis-utility while “naive” consumers do not. Shrouding only emerges after both, sophisticates and naives joined the incumbent network in the first place. This guarantees that naives become locked-in. Subsequent market entry by a network that does not collect data fails, as the naives’ inertia keeps sophisticates, too, from switching. Surprisingly, multihoming exacerbates data collection showing that competition cannot prevent abusive Big Data strategies.
Provider monitoring and pay-for-performance when multiple providers affect outcomes: An application to renal dialysis.

OBJECTIVE To characterize the influence of dialysis facilities and nephrologists on resource use and patient outcomes in the dialysis population and to illustrate how such information can be used to inform payment system design. DATA SOURCES Medicare claims for all hemodialysis patients for whom Medicare was the primary payer in 2004, combined with the Medicare Enrollment Database and the CMS Medical Evidence Form (CMS Form 2728), which is completed at onset of renal replacement therapy. STUDY DESIGN Resource use (mainly drugs and laboratory tests) per dialysis session and two clinical outcomes (achieving targets for anemia management and dose of dialysis) were modeled at the patient level with random effects for nephrologist and dialysis facility, controlling for patient characteristics. RESULTS For each measure, both the physician and the facility had significant effects. However, facilities were more influential than physicians, as measured by the standard deviation of the random effects. CONCLUSIONS The success of tools such as P4P and provider profiling relies upon the identification of providers most able to enhance efficiency and quality. This paper demonstrates a method for determining the extent to which variation in health care costs and quality of care can be attributed to physicians and institutional providers. Because variation in quality and cost attributable to facilities is consistently larger than that attributable to physicians, if provider profiling or financial incentives are targeted to only one type of provider, the facility appears to be the appropriate locus.
Effects of ventilation with 100% oxygen during early hyperdynamic porcine fecal peritonitis*

Objective: Early goal-directed therapy aims at balancing tissue oxygen delivery and demand. Hyperoxia (i.e., pure oxygen breathing) has not been studied in this context, since sepsis increases oxygen radical production, which is believed to be directly related to the oxygen tension. On the other hand, oxygen breathing improved survival in various shock models. Therefore, we hypothesized that hyperoxia may be beneficial during early septic shock. Design: Laboratory animal experiments. Setting: Animal research laboratory at university medical school. Subjects: Twenty domestic pigs of either gender. Interventions: After induction of fecal peritonitis, anesthetized and instrumented pigs were ventilated with either 100% oxygen or supplemental oxygen as needed to maintain arterial hemoglobin oxygen saturation ≥90%. Normotensive and hyperdynamic hemodynamics were achieved using hydroxyethyl starch and norepinephrine infusion. Measurements and Main Results: Before and at 12, 18, and 24 hrs of peritonitis, we measured lung compliance; systemic, pulmonary, and hepatosplanchnic hemodynamics; gas exchange; acid-base status; blood isoprostanes; nitrates; DNA strand breaks; and organ function. Gluconeogenesis and glucose oxidation were calculated from blood isotope and expiratory 13CO2 enrichments during continuous intravenous 1,2,3,4,5,6-13C6-glucose. Apoptosis in lung and liver was assessed postmortem (TUNEL staining). Hyperoxia did not affect lung mechanics or gas exchange but redistributed cardiac output to the hepatosplanchnic region, attenuated regional venous metabolic acidosis, increased glucose oxidation, improved renal function, and markedly reduced the apoptotic death rate in liver and lung. Conclusions: During early hyperdynamic porcine septic shock, 100% oxygen improved organ function and attenuated tissue apoptosis without affecting lung function and oxidative or nitrosative stress. Therefore, it might be considered as an additional measure in the first phase of early goal-directed therapy.
Serial-Position Effects in Paragraph Recall following Mild Closed-Head Injury

Serial-position effects were examined on a contextual memory task (paragraph recall) for patients with minor to mild closed-head injury and normal controls. Analysis indicated that at immediate recall, both normals and closed-head-injury patients have primacy and recency effects. With regard to total recall, however, the closed-head-injury patients remembered significantly fewer items than normal controls. The poorer performance of the minor to mild closed-head-injury group was not related to the duration from injury to neuropsychological evaluation and appears to be a lasting feature of memory performance following such injury. The pattern of serial-position effects was different between the groups. Normal controls showed slight recency and primacy effects and relatively better recall for the middle portions of the story, while patients with minor to mild closed-head injuries have prominent recency and primacy effects. Potential explanations for this pattern of performance are discussed.
Transgenic rice with inducible ethylene production exhibits broad-spectrum disease resistance to the fungal pathogens Magnaporthe oryzae and Rhizoctonia solani.

Rice blast (Magnaporthe oryzae) and sheath blight (Rhizoctonia solani) are the two most devastating diseases of rice (Oryza sativa), and have severe impacts on crop yield and grain quality. Recent evidence suggests that ethylene (ET) may play a more prominent role than salicylic acid and jasmonic acid in mediating rice disease resistance. In this study, we attempt to genetically manipulate endogenous ET levels in rice for enhancing resistance to rice blast and sheath blight diseases. Transgenic lines with inducible production of ET were generated by expressing the rice ACS2 (1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid synthase, a key enzyme of ET biosynthesis) transgene under control of a strong pathogen-inducible promoter. In comparison with the wild-type plant, the OsACS2-overexpression lines showed significantly increased levels of the OsACS2 transcripts, endogenous ET and defence gene expression, especially in response to pathogen infection. More importantly, the transgenic lines exhibited increased resistance to a field isolate of R. solani, as well as different races of M. oryzae. Assessment of the growth rate, generational time and seed production revealed little or no differences between wild type and transgenic lines. These results suggest that pathogen-inducible production of ET in transgenic rice can enhance resistance to necrotrophic and hemibiotrophic fungal pathogens without negatively impacting crop productivity.
ARE CONSUMER INFLATION EXPECTATIONS AN INTERNATIONAL PHENOMENON? Results of spatial panel regressions models

This study examines the potential drivers and their spatial components of inflation expectations of consumers in 22 European Union countries by using the spatial Durbin model. The potential determinants are drawn from the macrosphere (oil prices, food prices, house prices, industrial production), financial sphere (money market interest rates, nominal effective exchange rate, key policy rate), and economic favourable cognition variables (consumer confidence indicator, short-term inflation volatility, medium–term memory reversal of inflation expectations). The implemented binary spatial weight matrices are based on the geographical and economic distances. The economic distance weights define the European Union global trade partners as the most proximal neighbours. Our results confirm the existence of an inherent spatial component in short-term consumers’ inflation expectations even when excluding effect of inflation rate anchoring. This finding may provide a possible explanation for disruptions found in monetary policy transmission mechanism in small and open economies. From other perspective, the more interlinked consumers’ expectations may open the path to better business cycle synchronisation and strengthen the process of EA convergence, improving the conditions for efficient and effective monetary policy conduct.
Adipokines in NASH: Postprandial lipid metabolism as a link between adiponectin and liver disease

Circulating levels of four adipokines (adiponectin, TNF‐α, leptin, and resistin) and the postprandial lipid and adiponectin responses to an oral fat load were assessed in 25 non‐obese, non‐diabetic patients with biopsy‐proven nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and correlated with metabolic indices and liver histology. Circulating adiponectin was lower in NASH compared with controls (5,476 ± 344 vs. 11,548 ± 836 ng/mL; P = .00001) and on multiple regression analysis correlated negatively with liver steatosis, necroinflammation (OR = 5.0; P = .009), and fibrosis (OR = 8.0; P = .003). The magnitude of postprandial lipemia was significantly higher in NASH than in controls and was related to fasting adiponectin (β = −0.78; P = .00003). Controls showed a significant increase in serum adiponectin in response to the fat load, whereas patients with NASH showed a slight decrease. Postprandial free fatty acids response correlated inversely with adiponectin response in both groups and independently predicted the severity of liver steatosis in NASH (β = 0.51; P = .031). In conclusion, hypoadiponectinemia is present before overt diabetes and obesity appear and correlates with the severity of liver histology in NASH. Impaired postprandial lipid metabolism may be an additional mechanism linking hypoadiponectinemia and NASH and posing a higher cardiovascular risk to these subjects. The mechanism(s) underlying these differences are unknown, but the type of dietary fat seems to play a role. These findings may have important pathogenetic and therapeutic implications in both liver and metabolic disease. (HEPATOLOGY 2005.)
Magnetic resonance angiography with compressed sensing: An evaluation of moyamoya disease

Compressed sensing (CS) reconstructions of under-sampled measurements generate missing data based on assumptions of image sparsity. Non-contrast time-of-flight MR angiography (TOF-MRA) is a good candidate for CS based acceleration, as MRA images feature bright trees of sparse vessels over a well-suppressed anatomical background signal. A short scan time derived from CS is beneficial for patients of moyamoya disease (MMD) because of the frequency of MR scans. The purpose of this study was to investigate the reliability of TOF-MRA with CS in the evaluation of MMD. Twenty-two patients were examined using TOF-MRA with CS (CS-TOF) and parallel imaging (PI-TOF). The acceleration factors were 3 (CS3) and 5 (CS5) for CS-TOF, and 3 (PI3) for PI-TOF. Two neuroradiologists evaluated the MMD grading according to stenosis/occlusion scores using the modified Houkin’s system, and the visibility of moyamoya vessels (MMVs) using a 3-point scale. Concordance was calculated with Cohen’s κ. The numbers of MMVs in the basal ganglia were compared using Bland-Altman analysis and Wilcoxon’s signed-rank tests. MRA scan times were 4:07, 3:53, and 2:42 for PI3, CS3, and CS5, respectively. CS-reconstruction completed within 10 minutes. MMD grading and MMV visibility scales showed excellent correlation (κ > .966). Although the number of MMVs was significantly higher in CS3 than in PI3 (p < .0001) and CS5 (p < .0001), Bland-Altman analysis showed a good agreement between PI3, CS3, and CS5. Compressed sensing can accelerate TOF-MRA with improved visualization of small collaterals in equivalent time (CS3) or equivalent results in a shorter scan time (CS5).
Measurement error correction for logistic regression models with an "alloyed gold standard".

Recently, some authors have questioned the validity of methods which correct relative risk estimates for measurement error and misclassification when the "gold standard" used to obtain information about the measurement error process is itself imperfect. When such an "alloyed" gold standard is used to validate the usual exposure measurement, the bias in the "regression calibration" (Rosner et al., Stat Med 1989; 8:1051-69) measurement-error correction factor for relative risks estimated from logistic regression models is derived. This quantity is a function of the correlations of the "alloyed" gold standard (X) and the usual exposure assessment method (Z) with the truth, of the ratio of the variances of X and Z, and of the correlation between the errors in the "alloyed" gold standard and the errors in the usual exposure assessment method. In this paper, it is proven that if the errors between Z and X are uncorrelated, the regression calibration method has no bias even when the gold standard is "alloyed. " When a third method of exposure assessment is available and it is reasonable to assume that the errors in this method are uncorrelated with the errors in the other two exposure assessment methods, point and interval estimates of the correlation between the errors in X and Z are derived. These methods are illustrated here with data on the measurement of physical activity, vitamins A and E, and poly- and monounsaturated fat. In addition, when a third exposure assessment method is available, a modification of standard regression calibration is derived which can be used to calculate point and interval estimates of relative risk that are corrected for measurement error in both X and Z. This new method is illustrated here with data from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, a study investigating the associations between physical activity and colon cancer incidence and between vitamin E intake and coronary heart disease. It is shown that in these examples, correlations of the errors in X and Z tended to be small. Even when moderate, estimates of relative risk corrected for error in both X and Z were not very different from the estimates which assumed that X was a true gold standard.
Dynamic Assessment of Social Cognition in Individuals with Multiple Sclerosis: A Pilot Study

Abstract It has recently been reported that individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS) are impaired on tasks requiring emotional processing and social cognition, including tasks of Theory of Mind (ToM) and facial affect recognition. The current pilot study examined the ability of individuals with MS to understand and interpret lies and sarcasm using a dynamic task: The Awareness of Social Inference Test (TASIT). Fifteen individuals with MS and 15 healthy controls (HCs) performed the Social Inference-Enriched subtest of the TASIT, in which they viewed video-taped social interactions in which lies and sarcasm are presented. Additionally, tests of cognition were also administered to better understand the relationship between specific cognitive abilities and the ability to understand lies and sarcasm. The MS group showed impairments in the ability to interpret and understand lies and sarcasm relative to HCs. These impairments were correlated with several cognitive abilities including processing speed, working memory, learning and memory, and premorbid IQ. The results indicate that the TASIT is a sensitive measure of social cognition in individuals with MS. Furthermore, performance on the TASIT was related to cognitive abilities. Results are discussed in terms of social cognition deficits in MS and how they relate to cognitive abilities. (JINS, 2016, 22, 83–88)
Kinetic and temporal factors influence chilling injury to germinal vesicle and mature bovine oocytes.

In this study we examined the effects of low, above freezing temperatures on the viability and functionality of bovine oocytes. Germinal vesicle (GV) stage and in vitro matured oocytes (MII) were exposed to various combinations of time (15 and 60 min) and temperature (4, 16, 23, and 39 degrees C). After being treated, the ability of oocytes to undergo maturation and fertilization in vitro was examined, as well as their viability assayed by two fluorescent probes, fluorescein diacetate (FDA) and 5-carboxyfluorescein diacetate (cFDA). Cooling GV oocytes to 16 degrees C for 15 min reduced the fertilization rate by more than 40%, compared with those left at 39 degrees C. Surprisingly, cooling oocytes to 4 degrees C reduced the fertilization rate by only 10% compared with control. Exposing GV oocytes to temperatures below 23 degrees C reduced their viability. Similar to the reduction in fertilization, the viability of GV oocytes after exposure to 16 degrees C was reduced by more than 50%, whereas exposure to 4 degrees C reduced it by only 9%. Viability measurements using FDA and cFDA gave comparable results and showed a similar trend. The viability of MII oocytes and of GV oocytes pretreated with butylated hydroxytoluene, following exposure to low temperatures, was higher compared with that of GV controls. We interpret these results as indicating chilling effects on membrane integrity. Improving the chilling resistance of bovine oocytes may facilitate their short- and long-term preservation.
Effects of Contextual Interference and Age on Acquisition, Retention, and Transfer of Motor Skill

This experiment was designed to Investigate the varying conditions of contextual interference within three age groups. 40 5-yr. -olds, 40 7-yr. -olds, and 40 11-yr. -olds practiced the task of throwing beanbags under either low contextual interference (blocked practice), high contextual interference (random practice), or medium contextual interference (combined practice). All subjects performed 30 acquisition trials, 12 retention trials and 6 transfer trials. Analysis indicated that only the 7-yr. -old subjects differed in their performance in the various practice groups. As hypothesized and suggested by developmental theories, the combined and blocked practice groups acquired the task better. On the other hand, the 5- and 11-yr. -olds did not differ in performance in the different practice groups. Whether this is associated with difficulty of the task or the length of practice can be assessed in further study. Contextual interference in different age groups needs further investigation.
Reliving lifelong episodic autobiographical memories via the hippocampus: A correlative resting PET study in healthy middle‐aged subjects

We aimed at identifying the cerebral structures whose synaptic function subserves the recollection of lifetime's episodic autobiographical memory (AM) via autonoetic consciousness. Twelve healthy middle‐aged subjects (mean age: 59 years ± 2.5) underwent a specially designed cognitive test to assess the ability to relive richly detailed episodic autobiographical memories from five time periods using the Remember/Know procedure. We computed an index of episodicity (number of Remember responses justified by the recall of specific events and details) and an index of retrieval spontaneity, and additionally an index of semanticized memories (number of Know responses). The regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) was measured in the resting state, with H2O15 as part of an activation PET study. The indexes were correlated with blood flow using volumes of interest in frontotemporal regions, including hippocampus and voxel‐wise analyses in SPM. With both analyses, significant correlations were mainly found between the index of episodicity and rCBF in the medial temporal lobe, including hippocampus, across the five time periods (unlike the index of semanticized memories) and between the spontaneity index and rCBF in the prefrontal areas. These results highlight, in healthy subjects, the distinct role of these two structures in AM retrieval and support the view that the hippocampus is needed for reexperiencing detailed episodic memories no matter how old they are. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Molecular mechanisms of hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) typically has poor prognosis, because it is often diagnosed at an advanced stage. Heterogeneous phenotypic and genetic traits of affected individuals and a wide range of risk factors have classified it a complex disease. HCC is not amenable to standard chemotherapy and is resistant to radiotherapy. In most cases, surgical resection and liver transplantation remain the only curative treatment options. Therefore, development of novel, effective therapies is of prime importance. Extensive research over the past decade has identified a number of molecular biomarkers as well as cellular networks and signaling pathways affected in liver cancer. Recent studies using a combination of “omics” technologies, microRNA studies, combinatorial chemistry, and bioinformatics are providing new insights into the gene expression and protein profiles during various stages of the disease. In this review, we discuss the contribution of these newer approaches toward an understanding of molecular mechanisms of HCC and for the development of novel cancer therapeutics. (HEPATOLOGY 2008;48:2047‐2063.)
Organising for community-based tourism: Comparing attitudes of local residents and local tourism entrepreneurs in Ravna Gora, Croatia

Community-based tourism was developed as holistic and comprehensive approach to local sustainable tourism development with emphasis on all-inclusive community participation at all levels of development. If developed well, community-based tourism can significantly improve state of local communities through empowerment and promotes greater economic and social benefits to individuals and organisations. One of the important characteristics of community-based tourism is the establishment of an organising mechanism in charge of involving various community members and ensuring their active participation. The purpose of this paper is to contribute understanding of community-based tourism and local community participation by addressing issues associated with establishing new local community-based tourism organisation, more precisely, examining attitudes of key local tourism stakeholders towards the very idea of the establishment of a new community-based tourism organisation, its potential characteristics and their personal involvement. Mixed methods have been employed for the purpose of gaining deeper insight into attitudes of local residents and local tourism entrepreneurs in the region of Gorski kotar in Croatia – focusing specifically on Ravna Gora. Research findings reveal important differences between more socially oriented local residents and profit-seeking local tourism entrepreneurs in terms of personal involvement as well as the characteristics of hypothetical new community-based tourism organisation.
Design of a Class of P-Type Immune Controllers Based on T-B Cell and its Stability Analysis

The biological immune system can be regarded as a control system which has very strong robustness and self-adaptability in complex disturbances and uncertain environment. This paper presents an immune controller based on T-B interaction immune mechanism during the special immune process, and analyses the stability and boundedness of the control system which is formed by this kind of immune controllers. Immune PID controller is constructed by combining this immune controller with PID controller. Finally, the universal model for a class of P artificial immune controllers has been presented in this thesis, which is general form containing several proportional immune controllers proposed presently.