Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Transfer effects of errorless Goal Management Training on cognitive function and quality of life in brain-injured persons.

BACKGROUND Previous findings had shown that the addition of errorless learning to traditional Goal Management Training (GMT) resulted in superior results when training everyday tasks in persons with executive deficits after brain injury. OBJECTIVE To investigate the additional effects of an errorless GMT on cognitive function and quality of life after acquired brain injury. METHODS This is a supplementary analysis of findings from an RCT in which 67 patients with executive impairments after acquired brain injury were randomly allocated to an experimental errorless GMT (n = 33) or conventional GMT (n = 34) to train two individually chosen everyday tasks. Objective cognitive function using neuropsychological tests, subjective cognitive complaints and quality of life using questionnaires were assessed before and after training. RESULTS No significant interaction effects between these three types of outcome measures and the two forms of GMT were found. Irrespective of treatment, performance on two executive tests (Modified Six Elements Test; p = 0.006, Zoo Map test; p = 0.001) improved and daily executive function problems as reported by the participants (EFI; p = 0.001) and proxies (DEX; p = 0.01) diminished. CONCLUSIONS Besides the previously found superiority of errorless GMT when training everyday tasks, additional improvements in cognition and quality of life did not differ between the two treatments.
Toll‐like receptors 2 and 4 impair insulin‐mediated brain activity by interleukin‐6 and osteopontin and alter sleep architecture

Impaired insulin action in the brain represents an early step in the progression toward type 2 diabetes, and elevated levels of saturated free fatty acids are known to impair insulin action in prediabetic subjects. One potential mediator that links fatty acids to inflammation and insulin resistance is the Toll‐like receptor (TLR) family. Therefore, C3H/HeJ/TLR2‐KO (TLR2/4‐deficient) mice were fed a high‐fat diet (HFD), and insulin action in the brain as well as cortical and locomotor activity was analyzed by using telemetric implants. TLR2/4‐deficient mice were protected from HFD‐induced glucose intolerance and insulin resistance in the brain and displayed an improvement in cortical and locomotor activity that was not observed in C3H/HeJ mice. Sleep recordings revealed a 42% increase in rapid eye movement sleep in the deficient mice during daytime, and these mice spent 41% more time awake during the night period. Treatment of control mice with a neutralizing IL‐6 antibody improved insulin action in the brain as well as cortical activity and diminished osteopontin protein to levels of the TLR2/4‐deficient mice. Together, our data suggest that the lack of functional TLR2/4 protects mice from a fat‐mediated impairment in insulin action, brain activity, locomotion, and sleep architecture by an IL‐6/osteopontin‐dependent mechanism. —Sartorius, T. , Lutz, S. Z. , Hoene, M. , Waak, J., Peter, A. , Weigert, C. , Rammensee, H. ‐G. , Kahle, P. J., Häring, H. ‐U. , Hennige, A. M. Toll‐like receptors 2 and 4 impair insulin‐mediated brain activity by interleukin‐6 and osteopontin and alter sleep architecture. FASEB J. 26, 1799‐1809 (2012). www.fasebj. org
Banking services in Portugal: a preliminary analysis to the perception and expectations of front office employees

The banking sector offers high rates of employment in Portugal. This study aims to determine the degree of satisfaction and career expectations of bank branch employees in the Portuguese region of Santarem to inform graduated students who search for job opportunities and professional careers in the banking sector. It should be highlighted that the region of Santarem has been selected based on reasons of convenience. In terms of empirical results, a questionnaire has been developed and it should be mentioned that the degree of satisfaction has been considered as high, i.e. despite the effects of several variables, such as the strategic impact of information and communication technologies, bank branch employees revealed themselves to be optimistic about their future and generally satisfied with their job positions.
Usage Behavior Causal Model Construction for B&B-Owned Websites—from the B&B Owner/Operator Perspective

Previous studies on B&B (Bed and Breakfast) website usage behavior focused mainly on clients. It has been seldom researched to apply the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) to verify the owner/operator usage behavior on B&B websites. This study aims to validate the causal relationship among beliefs, usage attitude, and behavior intention in website usage of B&B owners/operators. The results revealed that the TAM was recognized and the perceived ease of usage of B&B websites plays the most important role on the behavioral intention of B&B owners/operators. An easy and effective B&B website may allow an owner/operator to improve a B&B’s operational performance. Age has a significantly negative influence on perceived ease of use for B&B websites and educational attainment has a positive impact on perceived ease of use for B&B websites. Finally, conclusions and implications were discussed. This study can be used as a theoretical foundation and reference for further exploring related issues.
Core capability and competitive strategy for construction SMEs in China

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between a number of variables pertaining to core capability, competitive strategy and performance of construction small to medium size enterprises (SMEs) in China.Design/methodology/approach – The paper consists of a quantitative survey. It involves mainly the development of instrument and testing of the hypotheses.Findings – Core capability and competitive strategy are found to influence construction SMEs' performance. Moreover, there are positive relationships between core capability and competitive strategy. This suggests a need to align core capability and competitive strategy as a precondition for superior performance.Research limitations/implications – The paper has limitations as a result of data collection. A somewhat larger sample would obviously permit firmer conclusions to be drawn from the results of the statistical analysis.Originality/value – This paper will contribute to the literature on SMEs, strategic management and resou.
Private investors' investment criteria: Insights from qualitative data

This paper provides an analysis of the acceptance and rejection criteria of private investors using formal qualitative analysis. The findings indicate that private investors view the overall business opportunity and the principals of the company as key criteria in the decision-making process. Active and occasional investors differ somewhat in the emphases that they place on particular criteria. Perhaps the single most important finding, however, is that the reasons that prompt investors to reject opportunities are not simply the converse of reasons that prompt them to invest.
Subanesthetic doses of ketamine stabilize the fusion pore in a narrow flickering state in astrocytes

Ketamine is an anesthetic that exhibits analgesic, psychotomimetic, and rapid antidepressant effects that are of particular neuropharmacological interest. Recent studies revealed astrocytic Ca2+ signaling and regulated exocytosis as ketamine‐targeted processes. Thus high‐resolution cell‐attached membrane capacitance measurements were performed to examine the influence of ketamine on individual vesicle interactions with the plasma membrane in cultured rat astrocytes. Ketamine evoked long‐lasting bursts of repetitive opening and closing of the fusion pore that were both time‐ and concentration‐dependent. Moreover, acute application and subanesthetic doses of ketamine elicited a significant increase in the occurrence of bursts that were characterized by a decreased fusion pore conductance, indicating that the fusion pore was stabilized in a narrow configuration. The time‐ and concentration‐dependent increase in burst occurrence was correlated with a decrease in full fission events. This study has demonstrated a novel effect of ketamine manifested as stabilization of a fusion pore incapable of transiting to full vesicle fission, suggestive of an inhibitory effect on vesicle retrieval. This until now unrecognized effect of ketamine on the vesicle fusion pore might play a role in astroglial release and (re)uptake of molecules, modulating synaptic activity.
Helminth Parasites of the Gastrointestinal Tracts and Lungs of Moose ( AIces alces ) and Wapiti ( Cervus elaphus } from Cypress Hills , Alberta , Canada

Gastrointestinal tracts and lungs of 140 moose (Alces alces) and 186 wapiti (Cervus elaphus) from Cypress Hills, Alberta, were examined for helminth parasites. Moose were infected with nine species of parasites, including six nematodes, two cestodes, and one trematode. Wapiti were infected with 10 species, including eight nematodes and two cestodes. Six of the total of 13 species found co-occurred in both wapiti and moose. An anoplocephalid tapeworm, Thysanosoma actinioides, was the most prevalent parasite in both hosts, occurring in 70% of moose and 56% of wapiti. Other parasites that co-occurred included Trichuris sp. , Dictyocaulus viviparus, Nematodirella alcidis, Orthostrongylus macrotis, and Taenia hydatigena. The Cypress Hills area is a plateau in the southeastern corner of Alberta that crosses the Saskatchewan border (49°30/N, 110°(yW) and comprises an area of approximately 531,000 ha. The hills range in elevation from 1,466 m at their western end in Alberta to 1,067 m in Saskatchewan. The area represents an island habitat of quaking aspen (Populns tremuloides), balsam poplar (Populus balsamifera), lodgepole pine (Pinus contortd), and white spruce (Picea glaucd) forests surrounded by and interdigitated with prairie grassland (for details see Newsome and Dix, 1968). Cervids, represented by moose (Alces alces), wapiti (Cervus elaphus), whitetailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), and mule deer (O. hemionus), are common. Several studies have been conducted on parasites of moose and wapiti in Alberta (Stelfox, 1962; Flook and Stenton, 1969; Samuel, 1972a, b), but these have either presented information on a particular parasite(s) or have provided only anecdotal, mainly qualitative, data. Samuel et al. (1976) presented quantitative parasite data on moose in Alberta, including 24 samples from Cypress Hills. During a herd reduction program in 1978, the gastrointestinal tracts and lungs of 140 moose and 186 wapiti were collected and later examined for helminth parasites. This permitted us to (1) provide basic quantitative data on parasites of sympatric populations of moose and wapiti; (2) compare the parasite faunas of hosts from this unique habitat with those reported from other parts of Alberta and North America; and (3) compare and contrast the findings of this study with those of Samuel et al. (1976) for moose that had been collected in 1970 from the Cypress Hills, in order to discern any major changes that might have occurred over a span of 8 yr. Materials and Methods Gastrointestinal tracts and lungs of hunter-killed moose and wapiti were collected in October, November, and December 1978. Samples were frozen on the day of collection for examination later. The contents of lungs, abomasa, the anterior 1.5 m of small intestine (Samuel et al., 1976), and intestinal material adhering to the cecal wall were flushed with tap water into pails. The material
REFORM OF THE INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL ARCHITECTURE: AN ASIAN PERSPECTIVE

This is a substantially revised version of the paper presented to the Symposium on Asian Economic Integration organized by Nanyang Technology University in Singapore, 4–5 September 2008. The author is grateful to Teresa Carpenter for providing comments on an earlier version and to Pradumna B. Rana for encouraging him to update the paper with the discussion of recent international financial architecture reforms in response to the global financial crisis of 2007–2009. He also acknowledges competent editorial assistance by Barnard Helman. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in the paper are entirely those of the author alone and do not necessarily represent the views of the Asian Development Bank, its Institute, its executive directors, or the countries they represent.
Effect of Treatment with the Cholinesterase Inhibitor Rivastigmine on Vesicular Acetylcholine Transporter and Choline Acetyltransferase in Rat Brain

A decline of cholinergic neurotransmission probably contributes to cognitive dysfunction occurring in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and vascular dementia (VaD). Acetylcholinesterase (AChE)/cholinesterase (ChE) inhibitors are the only drugs authorized for symptomatic treatment of AD and are also under investigation for VaD. The present study has investigated the influence of two doses of the AChE inhibitor rivastigmine (0.625 mg/Kg/day and 2.5 mg/Kg/day) on vesicular acetylcholine transporter (VAChT) and on choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) expression in frontal cortex, hippocampus, striatum and cerebellum of normotensive and spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). Cholinergic markers were assessed by immunochemical (Western blotting) and immunohistochemical techniques. In frontal cortex and striatum of normotensive rats, treatment with the lower dose (0.625 mg/Kg/day) of rivastigmine had no effect on VAChT immunoreactivity and increased slightly ChAT protein immunoreactivity. The higher dose (2.5 mg/Kg/day) of the compound increased significantly VAChT and ChAT protein immunoreactivity. In hippocampus rivastigmine induced a concentration‐dependent increase of VAChT protein expression and no significant changes of ChAT protein expression. A similar pattern of VAChT and ChAT protein expression was observed in control SHR, whereas treatment of SHR with rivastigmine induced a more pronounced increase of VAChT protein immunoreactivity in frontal cortex, hippocampus and striatum compared to normotensive rats. Our data showing an increase of VAChT after treatment with rivastgmine further support the notion of an enhancement of cholinergic neurotransmission by AChE/ChE inhibitors. The observation of a greater expression of this cholinergic marker in SHR suggest that AChE inhibition may provide beneficial effects on cholinergic neurotransmission in an animal model of VaD.
Gender and incidence of taxation: Evidence from Uganda

Since the 1990’s Uganda tax system has undergone various reforms. However, both tax policies and reforms have been formulated without clearly indicating the channels through which gender impacts on these policies/reforms. Using the national household survey of 2005/06, the paper provides insights how tax policies and reforms on indirect taxes impact differently on women and men. The incidence rate of tax by gender-based household typologies controlled by expenditure quintile brings out interesting findings. The incidence rate of indirect tax is significantly greater on households headed by male compared to their female counterparts regardless of income level. This also holds after controlling for the presence of children. More importantly, the impact on different household typologies is largely influenced by differences in consumption patterns. Our policy simulations yield some interesting results. Tax reforms on goods and services which are regressive in nature will significantly reduce the tax burden of households with female heads than comparable households with male heads; but at the same time will result in revenue losses to government. We have demonstrated that the recent announcement by government to drop taxes on salt is gender responsive. We have further demonstrated that removal of taxes on water benefits households in higher income levels; halving the current excise duties on paraffin benefits households with female heads especially in lower income quintiles. Dropping taxes on children’s clothing and footwear results into significant benefits to households in the lower quintiles especially those with female heads. While government stands to loss on foregone revenue as a result of reduction or removal of taxes, it will be important for government to revisit its expenditure prioritization. For instance, the need to reduce of luxurious expenditure, public administration costs cannot be overemphasized. The last resort option would be to keep the taxes on these items, but instead government provides assistance in terms of transfers to compensate households for high taxes.
Social Mobility and Redistributive Politics

Just like economists, voters have conflicting views about redistributive taxation because they estimate its incentive costs differently. We model rational agents as trying to learn from their dynastic income mobility experience the relative importance of effort and predetermined factors in the generation of income inequality and therefore the magnitude of these incentive costs. In the long run, "left-wing dynasties" believing less in individual effort and voting for more redistribution coexist with "right-wing dynasties. " This allows us to explain why individual mobility experience and not only current income matters for political attiitudes and how persistent differences in perceptions about social mobility can generate persistent differences in redistribution across countries.
Audit Partner Tenure and Audit Quality

Rotation of audit partners is one of the main policy initiatives that has been implemented in many jurisdictions around the world to deal with concerns about audit quality. The basis of any requirement limiting the tenure of audit partners is that there is a reduction in audit quality associated with long periods of tenure. Using data from Australia, where the audit partner can be identified and for a period where partner rotation was not mandatory, we examine the association between audit quality and long audit partner tenure. The three measures of audit quality examined are the auditor's propensity to issue a going‐concern audit opinion for distressed companies, the direction and amount of abnormal working capital accruals, and just beating (missing) earnings benchmarks. For long tenure observations we find a lower propensity to issue a going‐concern opinion and some evidence of just beating (missing) earnings benchmarks, consistent with deterioration in audit quality associated with long audit partner .
‘Hold on’ (Bambelela)! Lyrical interpretations of participation in an HIV prevention clinical trial

Abstract During a five-day workshop, former clinical trial participants and local musicians wrote the lyrics and recorded a song about an HIV prevention trial. Born of concerns about misconceptions regarding experimental drug trials, the aim was to engender engagement with medical researchers and open dialogue about the risks and benefits of trial participation. Composing lyrics that highlighted their credibility as communicators of medical scientific knowledge and their selfless sacrifice to stem the transmission of HIV, women performed their social positioning and cultural authority in contrast to men as well as other women not part of the trial. While involvement in HIV prevention initiatives often attracts stigma, scorn and criticism, the song’s lyrics highlighted women’s new-found identities as heroines searching for a solution to the spread of HIV, challenging these stereotypes. Methodologically, the paper describes a novel approach that uses artistic expression for public engagement with biomedical research.
Failure of multiple-cell power DMOS transistors in avalanche operation

We continued the work presented in (A. Icaza Deckelmann et al., Proc. of the 32nd Europ. Solid State Res. Conf. (ESSDERC), p.459-462, 2002), showing by multiple-cell device simulation that the failure mechanism found for a single DMOS transistor cell, indeed applies to a multiple-cell array, when the simplified model is extended to the whole device structure. Moreover, the current crowding phenomenon predicted by the model in the previous work is corroborated by experimental failure analysis. Current filamentation, which had already been indicated by 2D-simulation could now be demonstrated by means of 3D-simulation. In this context, it showed that a physically rigorous electrothermal transport model is mandatory in order to achieve a good agreement with experimental data.
The economics of British rail privatization: an assessment

The 1993 Railways Act proposes the re‐organization, privatization and deregulation of the rail industry in Great Britain. The economic case for these reforms has recently been put forward in an important paper by Sir Christopher Foster. In this paper, we assess the economics of rail privatization and identify four potential problem areas. Firstly, it is not clear whether the structural reforms being undertaken are appropriate for an industry of rail's technological complexity nor whether a system of negotiated contracts will lead to lower transactions costs than a system of administered commands. Secondly, the vertical separation of infrastructure and operations ignores the likelihood of economies of integration at strategic (investment planning, land‐use planning), tactical (maintenance planning) and operational (planning to deal with infrastructure and vehicle failure) levels. Furthermore, there are practical problems in determining infrastructure costs and hence price and of regulating the infrastructu.
Family‐assisted inference of the genetic architecture of major histocompatibility complex variation

With their direct link to individual fitness, genes of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) are a popular system to study the evolution of adaptive genetic diversity. However, owing to the highly dynamic evolution of the MHC region, the isolation, characterization and genotyping of MHC genes remain a major challenge. While high‐throughput sequencing technologies now provide unprecedented resolution of the high allelic diversity observed at the MHC, in many species, it remains unclear (i) how alleles are distributed among MHC loci, (ii) whether MHC loci are linked or segregate independently and (iii) how much copy number variation (CNV) can be observed for MHC genes in natural populations. Here, we show that the study of allele segregation patterns within families can provide significant insights in this context. We sequenced two MHC class I (MHC‐I) loci in 1267 European barn owls (Tyto alba), including 590 offspring from 130 families using Illumina MiSeq technology. Coupled with a high per‐individual sequencing coverage (~3000×), the study of allele segregation patterns within families provided information on three aspects of the architecture of MHC‐I variation in barn owls: (i) extensive sharing of alleles among loci, (ii) strong linkage of MHC‐I loci indicating tandem architecture and (iii) the presence of CNV in the barn owl MHC‐I. We conclude that the additional information that can be gained from high‐coverage amplicon sequencing by investigating allele segregation patterns in families not only helps improving the accuracy of MHC genotyping, but also contributes towards enhanced analyses in the context of MHC evolutionary ecology.