Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The G. L. Brown lecture. Adventures in anaesthesia

The results presented in this lecture show that anaesthetic agents impede the transfer of information from the periphery to the cerebral cortex. This is shown both as a reduction in the amplitudes of the initial positive and negative waves of the cerebral cortical response evoked by simulation of the periphery and as an increase in the latency of this response. This effect is most probably a prime effect of anaesthesia since (a) it is common to all the anaesthetics used, (b) the potency of the anaesthetics is directly proportional to their lipid solubility, and (c) the effect is reversed by high ambient pressures. The major site at which information transfer is most susceptible to the action of anaesthetics is at the level of the ventrobasal thalamus, although the cells in cortical layer V also appear to have an enhanced susceptibility to anaesthetic action. This latter observation is seen both in whole animal and cortical slice preparations. None the less, the first site of synaptic transfer at which anaesthetics exert a profound effect is upon the monosynaptically generated responses of ventrobasal thalamic neurones to cuneothalamic input. A possible mechanism of action for anaesthetic agents acting at this site would be upon a hypothetical cortico‐thalamic‐reticular‐thalamic loop with the theoretical ability to control the responsiveness of the ventrobasal thalamic cells. This action was proposed both from the activity of neurones in response to anaesthetic agents and the anatomical arrangement seen in the thalamus. The thalamic reticular nucleus is a curved sheath of cells situated between the internal capsule and the external medullary lamina, capping and bounding laterally the specific nuclei of the dorsal thalamus. There is both anatomical and physiological evidence that the thalamic reticular nucleus comprises part of the thalamic reticular formation: its cellular structure also resembles that of the brain stem regions of the reticular formation (Ramon‐Moliner, 1975). Early degeneration and Golgi studies showed that ascending fibres from the medial parts of the pontine and mesencephalic components of the brain stem reticular formation innervated the thalamic reticular nucleus ventrally, by penetrating the zona incerta, and dorsally, via the intralaminar and dorsal thalamic nuclei (Scheibel & Scheibel, 1958). These observations have been confirmed and extended more recently and it appears that the major innervation of the thalamic reticular nucleus occurs via the ventral route which follows the entire course of the reticular nucleus. No fibres ascending from the dorsal column lemniscal system, the spino‐cervico‐lemniscal system or the spinothalamic tract have been observed to terminate within the thalamic reticular nucleus. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Risk of pneumothorax in CT-guided transthoracic needle aspiration biopsy of the lung.

PURPOSE To determine risk factors for pneumothorax and chest tube placement associated with computed tomography (CT)-guided transthoracic needle aspiration biopsy (TNAB) of the lung. METHODS One hundred twenty-one consecutive CT-guided TNAB procedures were performed in 117 patients. Patient age, sex, number of needle passes and pleural planes traversed, lesion size, distance of lesion from the pleura, and results of pulmonary function tests were analyzed as single and multiple dependent variables for pneumothorax and chest tube placement. RESULTS Pneumothorax occurred in 54 of 121 procedures (44.6%); a chest tube was required in 18 cases (14.9%). Increased lesion depth was the most significant predictor of pneumothorax (P = .002). Smaller lesion size also correlated with increased risk of pneumothorax (P = .04). Among patients with pneumothorax, a significantly higher frequency of chest tube placement was seen in those with severe obstructive lung disease, as measured by percentage of predicted FEV1 (forced expiratory volume in 1 second) (51% in patients requiring a chest tube vs 81% in those not requiring a chest tube, P = .006) and FEV1/FVC (forced vital capacity) (x100) (45% vs 66%, P = .001). CONCLUSION Increased lesion depth and smaller lesion size correlated strongly with the development of pneumothorax. Once pneumothorax occurred, chest tube placement related to the severity of the patient's obstructive lung disease.
Crowding out intrinsic motivation in the public sector

Employing intrinsically motivated individuals has been proposed as a means of improving public sector performance. In this article, we investigate whether intrinsic motivation affects the sorting of employees between the private and the public sectors, paying particular attention to whether extrinsic rewards crowd out intrinsic motivation. Using British longitudinal data, we find that individuals are attracted to the public sector by the intrinsic rather than the extrinsic rewards that the sector offers. We also find evidence supporting the intrinsic motivation crowding out hypothesis, in that, higher extrinsic rewards reduce the propensity of intrinsically motivated individuals to accept public sector employment. This is, however, only true for two segments of the UK public sector: the higher education sector and the National Health Service. Although our findings inform the literature on public service motivation, they also pose the question whether lower extrinsic rewards could increase the average quality of job matches in the public sector, thus improving performance without the need for high-powered incentives.
Do Joint Audits Improve or Impair Audit Quality?

Conventional wisdom holds that joint audits would improve audit quality by enhancing audit evidence precision because “Two heads are better than one. ” Our paper challenges this wisdom. We show that joint audits by one big firm and one small firm may impair audit quality, because, in that situation, joint audits induce a free‐riding problem between audit firms and reduce audit evidence precision. We further derive a set of empirically testable predictions comparing audit evidence precision and audit fees under joint and single audits. This paper, the first theoretical study of joint audits, contributes to a better understanding of the economic consequences of joint audits on audit quality.
DNA double‐strand breaks caused by replication arrest

We report here that DNA double‐strand breaks (DSBs) form in Escherichia coli upon arrest of replication forks due to a defect in, or the inhibition of, replicative DNA helicases. The formation of DSBs was assessed by the appearance of linear DNA detected by pulse‐field gel electrophoresis. Processing of DSBs by recombination repair or linear DNA degradation was abolished by mutations in recBCD genes. Two E.coli replicative helicases were tested, Rep, which is essential in recBC mutants, and DnaB. The proportion of linear DNA increased up to 50% upon shift of rep recBTS recCTS cells to restrictive temperature. No increase in linear DNA was observed in the absence of replicating chromosomes, indicating that the formation of DSBs in rep strains requires replication. Inhibition of the DnaB helicase either by a strong replication terminator or by a dnaBTS mutation led to the formation of linear DNA, showing that blocked replication forks are prone to DSB formation. In wild‐type E.coli, linear DNA was detected in the absence of RecBC or of both RecA and RecD. This reveals the existence of a significant amount of spontaneous DSBs. We propose that some of them may also result from the impairment of replication fork progression.
Earnings Management and the Post-Earnings Announcement Drift

There is reliable evidence that managers smooth their reported earnings. If some firms manage earnings downwards (upwards) when they experience large positive (negative) earnings shocks and if investors have cognitive limits or are inattentive, then it is plausible that the post-earnings announcement drift could be related to earnings management. Consistent with this conjecture, we find that firms with large negative (positive) changes in operating cash flows manage their accruals substantially upwards (downwards). Most importantly, we find no evidence of a positive post-earnings announcement drift for those firms with large positive earnings changes that are least likely to have managed earnings downward or a negative post-earnings announcement drift for those firms with large negative earnings changes that are least likely to have managed earnings upward. That is, for these firms, there is no evidence of an underreaction to earnings changes. The underreaction is concentrated largely among those firms that are most likely to have smoothed their reported earnings, although this effect has weakened in recent years as investors started paying more attention to the anomalies and hedge funds were focusing on exploiting them. Finally, consistent with the earnings management hypothesis, we also find that the post-earnings announcement drift is generally associated with discretionary (or abnormal) accruals and not with nondiscretionary accruals. These findings reconcile PEAD with the (abnormal) accrual anomaly.
Strategic Amnesty and Credible Immigration Reform

Why do countries that impose employer sanctions to deter the illegal entry of foreign workers nevertheless grant amnesty to illegal immigrants? In this article, I provide a positive theory of amnesty provision in a model where the constrained optimal immigration reform, involving the joint use of employer sanctions and border interdictions, is time‐inconsistent. In particular, my framework demonstrates that host countries of immigration can enhance the credibility of their immigration reforms by “binding their own hands” and strategically granting a socially excessive amount of amnesty to illegal workers.
Social Institutions: Their Emergence, Maintenance, and Effects

This is the first book to present a synthesis of rational choice theory and sociological perspectives for the analysis of social institutions. The origin of social institutions is an old concern in social theory. Currently it has re-emerged as one of the most intensely debated issues in social science. Among economists and rational choice theorists, there is growing awareness that most, if not all, of the social outcomes that are of interest to explain are at least partly a function of institutional constraints. Yet the role of institutions is negligible both in general equilibrium theory and in most neoclassical economic models. There is a burgeoning substantive interest in institutions ranging from social movements, to formal organizations, to states, and even international regimes. Rational choice theorists have made great strides in elucidating the effects of institutions on a variety of social outcomes, but they have paid insufficient attention to the social dynamics that lead to the emergence of these institutions. Typically, these institutions have been assumed to be a given, rather than considered as outcomes requiring explanation in their own right. Sociological theorists, in contrast, have long appreciated the role of social structural constraints in the determination of outcomes but have neglected the role of individual agents.
Anatomic assessment of CAMEL in Nigerian banking

This study aims to compare the anatomy of Nigerian bank financial condition with the CAMEL (capital adequacy, assets quality, management quality, earnings, liquidity) tool, which bank regulators use to gauge bank financial condition as part of off-site surveillance. An earlier paper used factor analysis to cast bank anatomy in terms of market presence, macro-economic condition, deposit mobilisation, prudence, earnings quality, market power and capital confidence (Njoku and Inanga, 2008b). Factor selection and weighting under the CAMEL model is by subjective judgement in contrast with the empirical approach of the anatomic model. Therefore, profiling one model against the other should deliver insight. Accordingly, this study deploys discriminant analysis to indicate significant descriptors at the univariate level. By profiling the anatomic descriptors against CAMELS, the study reports additional viable variables outside the CAMELS framework, thereby contributing to the elusive search for factors that influence bank financial condition.
In Defense of Technical Analysis

Many investors occasionally receive what they believe to be nonpublic information about a security. Others feel that by applying superior analytical skills to public information, they are able to arrive at valuable insights that are not generally appreciated. In either case, there is a substantial opportunity for profit if the investor is correct. The investor must be correct on two counts. First, the estimate of the worth of the information must be reasonably accurate in terms of its impact on the price of the stock, and second, the investor must make a realistic assessment of the likelihood that the market already has received the information or insight in question. This paper is concerned only with the latter problem. The probability distribution of the date on which the market receives information already in the hands of the investor is calculated for a simple model of information propagation. It is then shown how this probability distribution can be brought to bear on the management of a portfolio.
Interindustry Variation in the Costs of Job Displacement

Job displacement entails a substantial wage reduction for most displaced workers. We show that the mean reduction, the tenure profile of reductions, and the experience profile of reductions all vary substantially across industries. We then link this interindustry variation to analogous variation in firm size, unionization, wage levels, and the incidence of employer-provided training. While these industry characteristics explain some of the interindustry variation in mean wage reductions, they do not explain variation in the tenure or experience profiles of wage reductions.
Corporate Governance, Principal‐Principal Agency Conflicts, and Firm Value in European Listed Companies

Manuscript Type: Empirical. Research Question/Issue: Using the conceptual framework of Aguilera, Filatotchev, Gospel, and Jackson, this study examines the impact of principal‐principal agency problems on the quality and effectiveness of corporate governance structures in listed companies from 14 European countries between 1999 and 2003. Specifically, we develop an index on the severity of the agency conflict and investigate whether this index explains the quality of governance structures. We also examine whether, given certain environmental complementarities, this index influences the effectiveness of good governance structures. Research Findings/Insights: Using a simultaneous equations model, we find that the conflict index affects the quality and effectiveness of corporate governance. When agency conflicts are severe, the costs of installing good governance are high for the majority shareholders and the quality is low. Once installed, however, good governance structures complemented with a high‐quality disclosure environment leads to higher firm value, especially in companies with a severe agency conflict. Theoretical/Academic Implications: Our study adds to the governance literature by focusing on the costs of installing good governance. Further, it contributes to principal‐principal agency studies by examining a number of developed countries and by developing a measure for the severity of the principal‐principal conflict. Finally, our study adds to institutional theory by showing how companies' corporate governance choices are affected by the severity of agency conflicts and the way corporate governance is regulated. Practitioner/Policy Implications: Our analyses suggest that regulatory approaches to corporate governance issues should move away from a “one‐size‐fits‐all” policy toward one that takes into account the organizational and environmental context. By demonstrating that the severity of principal‐principal agency conflicts results in significant differences in the existence and effectiveness of corporate governance, our empirical evidence can guide regulators in developing new regulations or laws intended to reduce private benefits of control or improve the disclosure environment.
Oral manifestations in patients with Sjögren's syndrome.

OBJECTIVE To investigate oral signs and symptoms in patients with Sjögren's syndrome (SS), and to compare results with a group of healthy individuals. METHODS. Each individual completed a questionnaire designed to investigate his/her perception of oral health and dryness, as well as a list of signs and symptoms associated with xerostomia. An oral clinical evaluation was performed. RESULTS A total of 81 subjects were studied, 21 with primary SS, 29 with secondary SS, and 31 healthy individuals. Patients with SS considered that their oral health was poor. Oral dryness was perceived as intense. Symptoms most commonly expressed were: sensitivity to acids (68%), difficulty eating dry foods (66%), and sensitivity to spicy foods (58%). Dryness of the lips (76%) and the tongue (68%) were also among the most frequent complaints. Oral findings of patients with SS included cervical or atypical caries in 83%, fissured erythematous tongue in 70%, and oral candidiasis in 74%. Significant differences were found when results obtained from patients with SS were compared with the healthy group. CONCLUSION The oral health of this group of patients with SS was deficient. Adequate management of dry mouth was not achieved, mainly for the modifiable components such as dental decay and oral candidiasis. Therefore. treatment and prevention plans are mandatory. These measures might help to reduce the discomfort associated with oral dryness and to reduce dental loss.
A case of polymyositis complicated with organizing pneumonia: case report and literature review

A 54-year-old man was admitted to hospital with fever, dyspnea, and polyarthralgia. A chest radiograph showed consolidations in the bilateral lungs, and histological examination of transbronchial lung biopsy samples revealed organizing pneumonia. He was also diagnosed with polymyositis because of muscle weakness, elevated muscle enzymes, myogenic findings on the electromyogram, and a positive test for the anti-Jo-1 antibody. Herein, we review 25 cases of organizing pneumonia with polymyositis/dermatomyositis with respect to their clinical features and treatment.
Qualitative Study of Transfer of Training of Student Employees in a Service Industry

It is estimated that organizations spend $200 billion annually on their workforce training. The focus of this qualitative exploratory study was to use Baldwin and Ford’s transfer of training model to explore which elements in the model would be perceived as most relevant by student front-line employees for transfer of training, which requires the transfer of information from trainer to trainee. Three focus groups made up of student workers from several dining service units on a university campus were used. Data were coded and analyzed according to the transfer of training model. Results in the three groups were similar. Three categories appeared recurrently and were perceived as relevant by the participants: on the job training, social support, and training content. Participants showed positive attitudes toward training, which was perceived as necessary. A relationship between the findings and the characteristics of Generation Y is suggested.
Understanding the Unique Impacts of Economic Growth Variables

The paper uses a computable general equilibrium (CGE) model for a small city to examine how expansions in export and local sectors, changes in total factor productivity (TFP), and growth in population impact an economy. We examine the effects of each source of growth and find that the level and distribution of economic activity vary considerably. We also evaluate each source of growth in the context of a variety of policy metrics, which provide guidelines to policy makers, including the types of firms to be recruited in specific regions.
Does the group make a difference? A look at the factors that impact perceptions of group deliberations and sentencing outcomes in capital trials

Title of Document: DOES THE GROUP MAKE A DIFFERENCE? A LOOK AT THE FACTORS THAT IMPACT PERCEPTIONS OF GROUP DELIBERATIONS AND SENTENCING OUTCOMES IN CAPITAL TRIALS Nadine Marie Connell, PhD 2006 Directed By: Professor Raymond Paternoster Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice Traditional research into the mechanisms by which jurors in capital cases make punishment decision focuses on one of two relationships: the relationship between a juror’s individual characteristics and a sentencing outcome or the relationship between trial level characteristics and a sentencing outcome. Many significant findings have come from this type of research, most notably that arbitrariness still exists in the application of capital punishment. This arbitrariness takes on various forms, including poor comprehension of sentencing instructions (Bowers and Foglia, 2003; Foglia, 2003), racial bias in sentencing decisions (Baldus et al,. 1998; Bowers et al., 2001; Bowers et al., 2004), and a homogenization of the jury pool through the process of death qualification (Haney. 1984). What this research has failed to address, however, is the role that the act of deliberation may have on the relationship between these individual and trial level characteristics and their ensuing impact on sentencing outcomes. The current study addresses this shortcoming by focusing on the role that the process of deliberation has on the juror’s perception of the group functioning, measured here through the construct of group climate. The predictors of group climate are examined and the subsequent impact of group climate on sentencing outcomes is explored. The results suggest individual juror level characteristics do not have a direct effect on sentencing outcome; rather, the level of group climate acts as a mediating variable between individual characteristics and sentencing outcomes. Trial level characteristics, however, both directly predict to sentencing outcome and indirectly operate through the level of group climate. Group climate is the strongest predictor of sentencing outcome, with juries who have more positive perceptions of group climate more likely to return the death penalty. These results and their implications are discussed in detail, as are suggestions for both future research and the future of capital punishment. DOES THE GROUP MAKE A DIFFERENCE? A LOOK AT THE FACTORS THAT IMPACT PERCEPTIONS OF GROUP DELIBERATIONS AND SENTENCING OUTCOMES IN CAPITAL TRIALS