Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Actigraphy-defined measures of sleep and movement across the menstrual cycle in midlife menstruating women: Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation Sleep Study

ObjectiveThis study aims to evaluate patterns in actigraphy-defined sleep measures across the menstrual cycle by testing the hypothesis that sleep would be more disrupted in the premenstrual period (ie, within the 14 d before menses). MethodsA community-based longitudinal study of wrist actigraphy–derived sleep measures was conducted in 163 (58 African American, 78 white, and 27 Chinese) late-reproductive-age (mean [SD], 51.5 [2.0] y) women from the Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation Sleep Study. Daily measures of sleep (sleep efficiency [%] and total sleep time [minutes]) and movement during sleep (mean activity score [counts]) were characterized using wrist actigraphy across a menstrual cycle or 35 days, whichever was shorter. Data were standardized to 28 days to account for unequal cycle lengths and divided into four weekly segments for analyses. ResultsSleep efficiency declined gradually across the menstrual cycle, but the decline became pronounced on the fourth week (the premenstrual period). Compared with the third week, sleep efficiency declined by 5% (P < 0.0001) and mean total sleep time was 25 minutes less (P = 0.0002) on the fourth week. We found no significant differences between the mean for the second week and the mean for the third week. The association of weekly segments with sleep efficiency or total sleep time was modified by sociodemographic and lifestyle factors, including body mass index, race, study site, financial strain, marital status, and smoking. ConclusionsAmong late-reproductive-age women, sleep varies systematically across the menstrual cycle, including a gradual decline in sleep efficiency across all weeks, with a more marked change premenstrually during the last week of the menstrual cycle. These sleep changes may be modified by altering lifestyle factors.
A unified model of protein dynamics

Protein functions require conformational motions. We show here that the dominant conformational motions are slaved by the hydration shell and the bulk solvent. The protein contributes the structure necessary for function. We formulate a model that is based on experiments, insights from the physics of glass-forming liquids, and the concepts of a hierarchically organized energy landscape. To explore the effect of external fluctuations on protein dynamics, we measure the fluctuations in the bulk solvent and the hydration shell with broadband dielectric spectroscopy and compare them with internal fluctuations measured with the Mössbauer effect and neutron scattering. The result is clear. Large-scale protein motions are slaved to the fluctuations in the bulk solvent. They are controlled by the solvent viscosity, and are absent in a solid environment. Internal protein motions are slaved to the beta fluctuations of the hydration shell, are controlled by hydration, and are absent in a dehydrated protein. The model quantitatively predicts the rapid increase of the mean-square displacement above ≈200 K, shows that the external beta fluctuations determine the temperature- and time-dependence of the passage of carbon monoxide through myoglobin, and explains the nonexponential time dependence of the protein relaxation after photodissociation.
Differential Benefits?

This article investigates whether and how residential loans that accrue to neighborhoods in US urban areas vary in their influence on violent and property crime across distinct race–ethnic communities, and depend on neighborhood levels of socioeconomic disadvantage. Building on recent literature on residential loans and crime, and drawing on racial structure and social disorganization perspectives, we posit that non-White and more disadvantaged neighborhoods gain more “bang” (i.e., crime reduction) for the investment dollars that they accrue than White and less disadvantaged areas. Using data from the National Neighborhood Crime Study for over 8,000 neighborhoods across 87 US cities, our multilevel analyses of violent and property crime for four types of neighborhoods revealed support for these hypotheses. While all types of neighborhoods benefit from a larger influx of residential loans, the payoff for African American and Latino areas is considerably greater than for White communities, and this is especially true for reductions in violent crime. In addition, the more disadvantaged the community, the larger the negative association between lending and both violent and property crime.
A New Look at an Old Study on Information Display: Washburne (1927) Reconsidered

Washburne (1927) conducted the largest study to date on the display of quantitative information with tables and graphs. Measuring the accuracy of information recall, he concluded that bar graphs are particularly suited for complex comparisons between values, pictographs are best for simple comparisons, line graphs are best for identifying and comparing trends, and tables are best for specific values. These conclusions have intuitive appeal and were quoted in the literature on comparative displays. A reanalysis of the results indicates that only the claim that tables are best for recalling specific values is clearly supported by Washburne's data. The other conclusions were probably accepted without questioning because they appeal to intuition. Additional findings of the study, such as the importance of the logical ordering of items in a display, were not acknowledged in subsequent studies. In human factors, as in other fields, naive preconceptions exist which can impede the acquisition of new knowledge.
Study on the main problems and countermeasures of finance of small and SMEs in counties——A survey from Hunan Province

This paper has found that the financing desire of SMEs normally prefer the state-owned commercial banks and credit cooperatives.Also it has found that the financing approach and structure lack variety,being restricted to the expanding space of informal finance,complicated financing procedures,the low mortgaged rates in county and so on,by the questionnaires of 195 SMEs of county economy body in Hunan Province.Then the article suggests some countermeasures:accelerating construction of warranty system,innovation of new products and the credit market of SMEs in counties,and building the effective direct financing system to relieve the problems of financing of SMEs in counties.
Effect of Demographic Factors on Consumer Buying Behaviour of Durable Goods

The size of the consumer market in the country is vast and is constantly expanding. Billions of rupees are being spent on goods and services by millions of people. Consumer preferences are changing and are becoming highly diversified. At present, the demands for various consumer products are increasing day by day. In the markets, where the magnitude of competition is high, a marketer will be successful only when s/he identifies, analyzes, and responds suitably to the changing needs of the consumers. Holding this view, this study pertains to the assessment of the product uses and brand preferences among durables and ascertaining the sources of information, buying habits, and factors affecting product/brand choice of the consumer with respect to their demographic profiles. The durables considered for the study are limited to personal utilities - mobile phone and two-wheeler and home utilities - colour television, washing machine, and refrigerator. The demographic factors with reference to this study include age, gender, marital status, education, occupation, and income. A sample of 610 respondents from Dehradun District were surveyed using a self administered questionnaire. The statistical measures used for the study includes chi-square and t -test. Statistical test indicates support for significant and influence of demographics on consumer purchasing behavior. Limitations of this study include the use of convenience sampling and confinement to the selected branded consumer durables.
Isolation of human sequences that replicate autonomously in human cells

We have isolated a heterogeneous collection of human genomic sequences which replicate autonomously when introduced into human cells. The novel strategy for the isolation of these sequences involved cloning random human DNA fragments into a defective Epstein-Barr virus vector. This vector alone was unable to replicate in human cells, but appeared to provide for the nuclear retention of linked DNA. The human sequences persist in a long-term replication assay (greater than 2 months) in the presence of the viral nuclear retention sequences. Using a short-term (4-day) assay, we showed that the human sequences are able to replicate in the absence of all viral sequences. The plasmids bearing human sequences were shown to replicate based on the persistence of MboI-sensitive plasmid DNA in the long-term assay and the appearance of DpnI-resistant DNA in the short-term assay. The human sequences were shown to be responsible for the replication activity and may represent authentic human origins of replication.
An examination of the impact of cultural orientation and familiarity in service encounter evaluations

Purpose – Customers' judgment of service quality is by and large based on their evaluation of personal experiences during the service encounter. The purpose of this study is to investigate from a customer perspective, the impact of familiarity (of the individual service provider) and cultural orientation on evaluations of both successful and failed service encounters.Design/methodology/approach – The authors employ an experimental design with data collected from student samples in the USA (Western, individualist culture) and Thailand (Eastern, collectivist culture). Findings – Results show an individual customer's cultural orientation, as well as familiarity (with a focal service provider), have an impact on perceptions and post‐purchase evaluations of both successful and unsuccessful service encounters.Originality/value – This research contributes to the services marketing and consumer behavior literature by shedding light onto the role of familiarity and cultural value orientation in influencing consumer.
Remittance Needs and Opportunities in India

This report synthesises a national study on domestic migration and remittance flows, four migration corridor studies, and an analysis of the Indian payment system with respect to small money transfers. Their findings add knowledge about the needs of migrants and their relatives back home as well as about the advantages and disadvantages of different money transfer methods. This synthesis report offers conclusions and recommendations for improving and expanding the existing formal remittance channels, for designing innovative financial linkages, and for developing new delivery models offering remittances services in rural and remote areas to low-income clients. [NABARD].
RFID utilization and information sharing: the impact on supply chain performance

Purpose – The paper's aim is to theorize and assess a structural model that incorporates radio frequency identification (RFID) technology utilization and supply chain information sharing as antecedents to supply chain performance.Design/methodology/approach – Data from a sample of 155 manufacturing sector and service sector organizations were collected and the model was assessed following a structural equation methodology.Findings – RFID technology utilization does not directly impact supply chain performance. Adoption of RFID technology, however, leads to improved information sharing among supply chain members, which in turn leads to improved supply chain performance.Research limitations/implications – RFID technology utilization is in the introductory and growth stages of the technology utilization life cycle. Interpretation of the results should be tempered in light of this early stage of adoption.Practical implications – Practitioners can expect improved customer satisfaction through the implementatio.
β-Trcp couples β-catenin phosphorylation-degradation and regulates Xenopus axis formation

Regulation of β-catenin stability is essential for Wnt signal transduction during development and tumorigenesis. It is well known that serine-phosphorylation of β-catenin by the Axin–glycogen synthase kinase (GSK)–3β complex targets β-catenin for ubiquitination–degradation, and mutations at critical phosphoserine residues stabilize β-catenin and cause human cancers. How β-catenin phosphorylation results in its degradation is undefined. Here we show that phosphorylated β-catenin is specifically recognized by β-Trcp, an F-box/WD40-repeat protein that also associates with Skp1, an essential component of the ubiquitination apparatus. β-catenin harboring mutations at the critical phosphoserine residues escapes recognition by β-Trcp, thus providing a molecular explanation for why these mutations cause β-catenin accumulation that leads to cancer. Inhibition of endogenous β-Trcp function by a dominant negative mutant stabilizes β-catenin, activates Wnt/β-catenin signaling, and induces axis formation in Xenopus embryos. Therefore, β-Trcp plays a central role in recruiting phosphorylated β-catenin for degradation and in dorsoventral patterning of the Xenopus embryo.
Co-occurring mental illness and substance use disorder among Australian prisoners.

INTRODUCTION AND AIMS Estimate the prevalence of co-occurring substance use disorder and mental illness in a sample of Australian prisoners, and describe patterns of co-occurring substance use disorder and mental illness. DESIGN AND METHODS The sample comprised 1478 individuals (1208 men, 270 women) from two surveys of prisoners' mental health: the 2001 New South Wales Inmate Health Survey, and a consecutive sample of prison receptions. Individuals were drawn from all of the state's 29 prisons. Mental health and substance use disorders were assessed using the Composite International Diagnostic Interview. RESULTS The overall prevalence of any mental disorder was 42.7% and the prevalence of any substance use disorder was 55.3%. With the exception of alcohol use disorder, women had higher rates than men of mental illness and substance use disorders. The prevalence of a co-occurring mental illness and substance use disorder in the past 12 months was 29% (46% among women vs. 25% among men). The association between cannabis use disorder and psychosis was significant for men only [odds ratio (OR)=2.4]. Among women there was a significant association between affective disorder and co-occurring alcohol use disorder (OR=2.4), and stimulant use disorder (OR=2.4). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION The results highlight the high prevalence of co-occurring substance use and mental illness among prisoners. These results indicate that mental health services in prisons need to be adequately resourced to address co-occurring mental health and substance use problems, and these services need to be appropriately structured to effectively screen, manage and treat this group.
Awareness of cervical cancer and screening in a Nigerian female market population

Background : Cervical cancer, although largely preventable, remains a leading cause of cancer death among females in the developing world. The study was aimed at providing useful information on awareness of market women, who are from diverse social backgrounds, about cervical cancer and evaluate the extent of utilisation of Papanicolaou's smear by them. It was also aimed at determining the prevalence of risk factors for development of cervical cancer among the population. Methods : This cross-sectional descriptive survey was carried out among market women at Aleshinloye market in November 2003, among 483 randomly selected respondents. A questionnaire probing into their sexual history, awareness about cervical cancer and the extent of utilisation of Pap smear was the survey instrument. Results : The majority (79.5%) of the women were sexually active. One hundred and eighty-six (38.5%) had early sexual debut and 163 (33.7%) had multiple sexual partners. Only 197 respondents (40.8%) were aware of cervical cancer. Of these, 95 (19.7%) were aware of Pap smear as a screening test. The common media of awareness were radio and television (46.6%), public lecture (27.8%) and friends/ relatives (19.9%). However, only 25 respondents (5.2%) have had previous Pap smear done. Conclusion : Though the market women are at considerable risk of developing cancer of the cervix, they are poorly informed about the disease and its prevention. Therefore, there is need for continuous awareness campaign and well-organized screening programmes among this unique category of women. Keywords : cervical cancer, screening, awareness Annals of African Medicine Vol. 4(4) 2005: 160-163
Integrating National Culture into IS Research: The Need for Current Individual Level Measures

Cross-cultural IS research is beginning to mature; however, much is left to do. This article reviews the most popular conceptualization of National Culture and offers suggestions for improvements in measurement. While Hofstedefs culture dimensions uncertainty avoidance, power distance, masculinity/femininity, and individualism/collectivism are still widely used in many disciplines; it is not guaranteed that the measures still hold after over 30 years. Empirical evidence is presented from two studies that indicate that shifts might have occurred. Because the usual national culture constructs are measured at the national level, they also should not be used in individual models of behavior or technology acceptance.
Estimating Purchase Regularity with Two Interpurchase Times

Determining how regularly purchases occur is an elemental step in modeling and interpreting several aspects of purchase behavior. Methods that calculate regularity at the individual level lack power when the number of observations is small and are confounded by nonstationary behavior when the number of observations is large. The authors present a summary statistic to calculate purchase regularity across consumers, using at a minimum only two interpurchase times per customer.
Shift work at young age is associated with elevated long-term cortisol levels and body mass index.

BACKGROUND The incidence of obesity and other features of the metabolic syndrome is increased in shift workers. This may be due to a misalignment between the internal circadian rhythm and the behavioral rhythm. The stress hormone cortisol could play a role in this phenomenon because it is secreted in a circadian rhythm, and long-term elevated cortisol leads to components of the metabolic syndrome. We compared cortisol levels in scalp hair of shift and day workers to study changes in long-term cortisol due to shift work. METHODS Hair samples were collected from 33 shift workers and 89 day workers. Cortisol was extracted from the hair samples with methanol, and cortisol levels were measured using ELISA. Height and weight were measured, and body mass index (BMI) was calculated. RESULTS Shift workers had higher hair cortisol levels than day workers: 47.32 pg/mg hair [95% confidence interval (CI) = 38.37-58.21] vs. 29.72 pg/mg hair (95% CI = 26.18-33.73) (P < 0.001). When divided in age groups based on the median age, elevated cortisol levels were present only in younger shift workers: 48.53 pg/mg hair (95% CI = 36.56-64.29) vs. 26.42 pg/mg hair (95% CI = 22.91-30.55) (P < 0.001). BMI was increased in younger shift workers as well: 27.2 (95% CI = 25.5-28.8) vs. 23.7 (95% CI = 22.8-24.7) in young day workers (P = 0.001). Hair cortisol and BMI were positively correlated (β = 0.262; P = 0.005). CONCLUSION Shift work at a young adult age is associated with elevated long-term cortisol levels and increased BMI. Elevated cortisol levels and BMI may contribute to the increased cardiovascular risk found in shift workers.
On the Effect of Interference on the Average Degrees of Freedom in MIMO Fading Ad-Hoc Networks

We consider MIMO fading ad-hoc networks with Rayleigh co-channel interference (CCI) where, L transmitter/receiver pairs communicate independent information over the network, simultaneously. We investigate the effect of CCI on the system capacity using the concept of degrees of freedom (DOF), where DOF represents the number of valid subchannels formed by channel decomposition. We present a new definition of average degrees of freedom (ADOF). We study the impact of the number of interferers on ADOF of each user. We will show that as the number of users, L, increases the ADOF of each user decreases and as L tends to infinity, the ADOF approaches one. This supports our earlier results concerning the asymptotic optimality of beamforming in MIMO fading ad-hoc networks.
The Determinants of Value Creation in the Nigerian Banking Industry: Panel Evidence

This paper seeks to identify the determinants of value creation in the Nigerian banking industry. The data for the study are secondary (cross-sectional and time-series) data. All the 21 universal bankslisted on the Nigerian Stock Exchange(NSE)are selected for the study. The secondary data are analysed using the Ordinary Least Squares Method. It is found that in the Nigerian banking industry,profitability anddividend policy have significant relationships with the creation of shareholder value while financial policydoes not.It shows thatgiving the pursuit of the profitability objective a greater attention than other objectives may not necessarily be counter-productive. The study recommends, among other things, thatindustry regulators and practitioners in the Nigerian banking industry seeking to create value for shareholders should focus on the improvement of profitability and the development and adoption of sound dividend policiesas better determinants of shareholder value.
Assessment of a Bleeding Risk Index in Two Cohorts of Patients Treated with Oral Anticoagulants

Summary In two cohorts of patients on oral anticoagulant therapy, routinely treated by the Leiden Thrombosis Service, the frequency of major bleeding complications was assessed during two years (1988 and 1991). With Poisson regression analysis the influence of the risk factors age, sex, target zone, achieved INR and type of coumarin derivative used were determined. Subsequently, a bleeding risk index was calculated, combining the results of the two cohorts. For various types of patients the relative risk of major bleeding complications was assessed. Age and achieved INR were the most important and consistent risk factors: rate ratio (RR) for age in 1988 1.46 per 10 years increase (95% confidence interval [Cl] 1.20-1.78) and in 1991 1.57 per 10 years increase (95% Cl 1.23-2.00); RR per unit increase in achieved INR in 1988 1.42 (95% Cl 1.21-1.68) and in 1991 1.44 per unit increase in achieved INR (95% Cl 1.18-1.74). Two methods were used to combine the results of 1988 and 1991. In the first method the mean bleeding risk index was calculated: In (incidence) [natural logarithm of the incidence rate of major bleeding] = -5.64 +0.42 * age +0.26 % sex -0.29 * target range +0.36 % achieved INR -0.36 * coumarin type. In the second method only the consistent risk factors age and achieved INR were used: In (incidence) = -5.64 +0.42 % age +0.36 % achieved INR. These bleeding risk indexes can be used to assess the risk of major bleeding complications of individual patients and allow more individualized care by individual tailoring the desired anticoagulation.
Measuring Preferences for Really New Products

The goal of this research is to improve preference measurement for really new products. An initial assumption validated in the first study is that consumers have greater uncertainty when estimating the usefulness of really new products than they have with incremental new products. Consumers cope with this uncertainty by using certain inferential techniques that are not well captured by standard preference measurement techniques, such as conjoint. This research examines techniques for incorporating both mental simulation and analogies into an existing preference measurement technique and shows that some methods enhance and other methods hinder predictive accuracy.