Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
What is a cause and how do we know one? A grammar for pragmatic epidemiology.

In this paper, criteria used by many epidemiologists as aids in causal inference are reviewed and revised. The revised scheme emphasizes the distinction between essential properties of a cause and criteria useful for deciding on the presence of these properties in a given case. A systematic procedure for causal inference tests each essential causal property in turn against appropriate criteria. For a pragmatic epidemiology in which all determinants serve as causes, their essential properties are held to be association, time order, and direction, in an ascending hierarchy. Criteria for association are probabilistic and can be enhanced by strength and consistency. Given association, criteria for time order of the relevant variables follow from access to observation, which is dependent on design. Given association and time order, causal direction (or consequential change) calls on an array of criteria, namely, consistency and survivability, strength, specificity in cause and in effect, predictive performance, and coherence in all its forms (e.g., theoretical, factual, biologic, and statistical). The evolution of such criteria is traced through the epidemiologic literature in the light of historical context. Although Popper's philosophy cannot directly serve an inherently inductive judgmental process, his notion of survivability has here been added, alongside replicability, as a subclass of consistency. This criterion is proposed to bridge the gap between the particularity of designs and the generality required of causal relations. Designs are ordered and described in the framework of testing survivability. Finally, definitions are offered for the list of criteria deployed.
Why Do Corporations Give to Charity

This paper explores whether corporate contributions should be tax dedu ctible within the more general context of an examination of the profi t and utility maximization motives driving contributions. The theoret ical section develops a formal structural model of the contributions process, illustrates comparative statics, and derives a set of empiri cally-testable hypotheses. Using a new source of firm data, the empir ical results indicate that profit maximization is an important motive driving contributions. This finding supports the current tax-deducti ble status of contributions (up to a seldom-encoun-tered ceiling) and favors a reform that allows firms to treat contributions as ordinary business expenses. Copyright 1988 by the University of Chicago.
Modifying effects of phenotypic plasticity on interactions among natural selection, adaptation and gene flow

Divergent natural selection, adaptive divergence and gene flow may interact in a number of ways. Recent studies have focused on the balance between selection and gene flow in natural populations, and empirical work has shown that gene flow can constrain adaptive divergence, and that divergent selection can constrain gene flow. A caveat is that phenotypic diversification may be under the direct influence of environmental factors (i.e. it may be due to phenotypic plasticity), in addition to partial genetic influence. In this case, phenotypic divergence may occur between populations despite high gene flow that imposes a constraint on genetic divergence. Plasticity may dampen the effects of natural selection by allowing individuals to rapidly adapt phenotypically to new conditions, thus slowing adaptive genetic divergence. On the other hand, plasticity may promote future adaptive divergence by allowing populations to persist in novel environments. Plasticity may promote gene flow between selective regimes by allowing dispersers to adapt to alternate conditions, or high gene flow may result in the selection for increased plasticity. Here I expand frameworks for understanding relationships among selection, adaptation and gene flow to include the effects of phenotypic plasticity in natural populations, and highlight its importance in evolutionary diversification.
Issues Management: Corporate Fad or Corporate Function?

This article examines the history of issues management and assesses its current status at several large U. S. companies. Issues management is currently experiencing an identity crisis based on the conflicting interests of issues management as a process for filling a void in corporate decision making versus issues management as a professional activity for enhancing public policy involvement, corporate social performance, and strategic management. The future of issues management rests with the resolution of this identity problem. Issues managers need to reassess their purposes and objectives, definitions of success, and assumptions and techniques.
Barriers to International Involvement

Barriers exist, real or imaginary, regarding the internationalization of courses, departments, colleges and the university as a whole. This paper identified several inhibiting factors and categorized them into “internal” or external” factors. The identification of these barriers and their accompanying strategies for overcoming them will assist the sojourners in making their excursion abroad more enjoyable and fruitful.
University choice, peer group and distance

We analyze how authorizing a new university affects welfare when the students' education depends on the peer group effect. Students are horizontally differentiated according to their ability and the distance from the university. Comparing a monopolistic university with a two-universities model we find that allowing a "new" university is welfare improving when the monopolistic university is only attended by able students with less mobility constraints. This occurs when mobility costs are sufficiently high. When mobility costs are low, a negative externality arises and welfare decreases. The negative externality comes through the peer group effect - high ability students that would have gone to the monopolistic university go to the university with the lower average ability. These students end up in a university with students whose ability was not high enough to go to the monopolist. On the other hand, students remaining in the good university benefit from a lower average ability. Thus, a new university is welfare improving only for those with low ability that in the monopolistic scenario would remain unskilled. When, instead, the mobility cost is high, the monopolist leaves out a significative mass of individuals. In this case, no negative externality arises because no student swaps university therefore a "new" university is welfare improving. However, this welfare improvement makes the opportunities for a higher education less equal (according to Romer, 1998) because an "external circumstance" like mobility cost, rather than own ability, becomes the main determinant of the students' human capital.
The Pollution Terms of Trade

This paper introduces the concept of a ‘pollution terms of trade’ index. It measures the environmental gains or losses that a country sustains from engaging in international trade. The index distinguishes between the trade composition effect and the environmental technology effect. Calculations of the trade composition effect reveal a gap between developed and developing nations.
Tap, Dwell or Gesture?: Exploring Head-Based Text Entry Techniques for HMDs

Despite the increasing popularity of head mounted displays (HMDs), development of efficient text entry methods on these devices has remained under explored. In this paper, we investigate the feasibility of head-based text entry for HMDs, by which, the user controls a pointer on a virtual keyboard using head rotation. Specifically, we investigate three techniques: TapType, DwellType, and GestureType. Users of TapType select a letter by pointing to it and tapping a button. Users of DwellType select a letter by pointing to it and dwelling over it for a period of time. Users of GestureType perform word-level input using a gesture typing style. Two lab studies were conducted. In the first study, users typed 10.59 WPM, 15.58 WPM, and 19.04 WPM with DwellType, TapType, and GestureType, respectively. Users subjectively felt that all three of the techniques were easy to learn and considered the induced fatigue to be acceptable. In the second study, we further investigated GestureType. We improved its gesture-word recognition algorithm by incorporating the head movement pattern obtained from the first study. This resulted in users reaching 24.73 WPM after 60 minutes of training. Based on these results, we argue that head-based text entry is feasible and practical on HMDs, and deserves more attention.
Opportunistic Political Cycles in Social Spending: An Examination of Transition and Consolidated Democracies in Latin America

In this paper, we show that education, health and social security expenditures did not increase during elections. Based on a panel of fifteen Latin American democracies from 1973 to 2000, we show that there are important increases in social spending in the inaugural year of a new presidential administration. We argue that social policy is used by Latin American democracies as an instrument to reward voters after winners enter office and not as a tool to manipulate outcomes before elections as commonly argued in the literature.
Short-Run Analysis of Fiscal Policy in a Simple Perfect Foresight Model

This paper examines the short-run impact of current and future changes in fiscal policy on current investment in a simple representative-agent, perfect foresight model. We show that anticipated investment tax credits may depress current investment, as may an immediate income tax cut financed by f uture cuts in government expenditure. These impacts do result when we parameterize the model with current empirical estimates of the relevant parameters.
National Union Effectiveness in Organizing: Measures and Influences

The percentage of the U.S. work force that is unionized is at its lowest level in more than 50 years. Although many studies have sought the reasons for this decline, few have investigated characteristics of unions themselves as possible factors. This paper focuses on unions as organizations, and applies a model of national union effectiveness to union organizing. The authors propose a composite measure of organizing effectiveness that goes beyond union success in representation elections. An analysis of data from the 1990 National Union Survey and other sources, with controls for environmental influences, suggests that organizing effectiveness is enhanced by innovation and reduced by centralization of control at the national level. Some evidence is also found that internal union democracy enhances union success in organizing.
Characterization of iduronate‐2‐sulfatase gene–pseudogene recombinations in eight patients with Mucopolysaccharidosis type II revealed by a rapid PCR‐based method

Various types of complex genetic rearrangements involving the iduronate‐2‐sulfatase (IDS) and its homologous pseudogene (IDS2, IDSP1) have so far been reported as the cause of Mucopolysaccharidosis type II (MPS2 or MPS II; Hunter syndrome). When using conventional mutational analyses, the occurrence in intronic regions of these rearrangements can be misleading. Here, we describe a rapid PCR‐based method set up to detect possible gene/pseudogene recombinations among a series of Italian male patients who had negative results in the mutation analysis of the IDS gene. Our approach selected eight unrelated patients showing recombinations. The characterization of the proximal regions containing the breakpoints in the eight patients identified four different rearrangements due to both inversion and conversion events. Comparison of our data with previous publications confirmed that the recombinations between the IDS gene and the IDS2 pseudogene result from separate events, considering their occurrence at different positions within the same “hotspot” genomic region in unrelated patients. The RT‐PCR analysis of the available cDNAs pointed out the different effects of similar rearrangements on the expression of the IDS gene. This method can be utilized effectively in the absence of the patients' cDNA, as well as for carrier detection among female family members. This advantageous approach reduces costs, is less time‐consuming, and requires a smaller DNA quantity in comparison to the Southern blot hybridization technique often utilized for such complex rearrangements. Hum Mutat 25:491–497, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
An HSV LAT null mutant reactivates slowly from latent infection and makes small plaques on CV-1 monolayers.

A Herpes simplex virus type I (HSV-I) strain 17 mutant deleted between the NotI and HpaI restriction sites of the latency associated transcript (LAT) region has been constructed. The mutant, therefore, contains a deletion of the putative LAT promoter and is called 17N/H. The 17N/H isolate established latent infections in mice nearly as efficiently as its wildtype parent. However, like other LAT null mutants, 17N/H reactivates from explanted ganglia with much slower kinetics than its LAT competent parent. In tissue culture, although 17N/H produces as much virus per cell as its strain 17 parent, it produces small plaques. The small plaque phenotype appears to be due to the inability of the virus to be released from the infected cell into the medium, following low but not high multiplicities of infection (m.o.i.). The mutant was also shown to produce an aberrant LAT homologous transcript of 1.1 kb as well as overproduce an approximately 29,000-Da HSV-specific polypeptide, which is barely detectable in wildtype infected cells. Rescuants of the 17N/H defect were constructed using a 10-kb restriction fragment containing viral sequences spanning the deletion, make large plaques, and have reactivation patterns and infected cell gene product profiles indistinguishable from the 17 parent. This shows that the phenotypes observed in 17N/H are reversed when the deletion, or at most sequences within 5 kb of each side of the deletion, is corrected. The possibilities that the defect in viral egress from infected cell, the small LAT homologous transcript, and the accumulation of the 29,000 Da polypeptide are related to the delayed reactivation kinetics are discussed.
Comparison of prevalence of depression in mothers of twins and mothers of singletons.

OBJECTIVE--To determine whether the apparent additional and exceptional stresses associated with bearing and parenting twins affect the emotional wellbeing of mothers. SETTING--Great Britain, 1970-5. DESIGN--Cohort study of 13,135 children born between 4 April and 11 April 1970. Mothers of all children, both singletons and twins, were interviewed by health visitors (providing demographic data) and completed a self report measure of emotional well-being (the Rutter malaise inventory) when the child was 5 years of age. The malaise scores of mothers of twins were compared with those of all mothers of singletons and then with those of mothers categorised by the age spacing of their children (only one child, widely spaced, or closely spaced), taking account of maternal age, social class, and whether the study child had a disability, by using logistic regression. SUBJECTS--139 mothers of twins--122 pairs of twins and 17 twins whose cotwin had died--and 12,573 controls, who were mothers of singletons. RESULTS--A significantly higher proportion of mothers of twins at 5 years had malaise scores indicative of depression than mothers of singletons at the same age. Mothers who had borne twins, one of whom had subsequently died, had the highest malaise scores and were three times more likely than mothers of singletons to experience depression. Both mothers of twin pairs and mothers of singletons closely spaced in age were at significantly higher risk of experiencing depression than mothers of children widely spaced in age or mothers of only one child (p less than 0.0001). Odds ratios indicated that the risk of depression in mothers of twins was higher than that in mothers of closely spaced singletons. CONCLUSION--Mothers of twins are more likely to experience depression. This suggests a relation between the additional and exceptional stresses that twins present and the mother's emotional wellbeing.
Increasing Beach Recreation Benefits by Using Wetlands to Reduce Contamination

Abstract The public swimming beach at Maumee Bay State Park (MBSP) on Lake Erie is often posted for occurrences of unsafe levels of bacteria. The main source of bacteria derives from a drainage ditch that discharges near the beach. We have conducted a comprehensive study to determine the feasibility of using a constructed wetland to filter the ditch water, prior to its entry into Maumee Bay. As part of this study, we administered an on-site non-market valuation survey of beach visitors, in which observed and contingent trips to the beach were used to estimate the potential welfare benefits of the restored wetlands. The data were analyzed using three versions of the multivariate Poisson-lognormal (MPLN) model, a random effects count data model. We conclude version one, with flexible covariance structure and vehicle costs of $0.25 per mile, is the preferred version and use it to estimate an average annual willingness to pay (WTP) of $166 to construct wetlands and improve water quality. The aggregate annual benefit to an estimated 37,300 annual beach visitors is estimated as $6.19 million. The robustness of this estimate to a variety of alternative assumptions is examined. JEL Classification Code: Q51
An investigation into the influence of the benefits sought by visitors on their quality evaluation of historic houses’ service provision

The conceptualisation of satisfaction and quality in tourism consumption has always been the object of an unresolved debate questioning whether satisfaction should be evaluated upon the achievement of psychological/emotional needs or on its utilitarian/quality components. The paper details a study which combines both these approaches with the aim of clarifying how an understanding of tourists’ motivations can provide a better appreciation of their quality evaluations. Results show that when subdividing consumers along their motivational profiles, a clearer evaluation of quality perception is achieved: each segment displays different quality perceptions of the service offered and the relative importance attached to various quality dimensions also differs. The study concludes that an understanding of quality evaluations can be greatly enhanced by segmenting consumers rather than assuming that all consumers have similar quality perceptions and prioritisation. It also confirms that consumers’ quality perceptions are influenced by both utilitarian and psychological components, thereby justifying the necessity for a multidisciplinary approach to tourist quality conceptualisation and measurement.
VALUE AT RISK PERFORMANCE IN DEVELOPED AND EMERGING STOCK MARKETS

The aim of this paper is to investigate stock returns stylized facts of both developed and emerging capital markets and to validate market risk measurement models in circumstances of global financial crisis. In order to analyze characteristics of stock returns we employ descriptive statistic, normality tests, white-noise and ARCH effect test. We present results on both VaR 1% and VaR 5% on a one-day horizon for the following indices: S&P 500, DAX, SAX, PX and Belex 15, which show us potential maximum expected losses that investors can suffer on daily basis. To examine the validity of VaR results we employ three backtest: unconditional coverage, independence and conditional coverage. Our results show that Historical Simulation and EWMA VaR methodology during the crisis period underestimate the true level of market risk, because both methodologies failed to satisfy unconditional coverage and independence properties of backtest at same time. We believe that our findings and contribution can help investors to make appropriate decisions when investing in emerging stock markets in volatile times.
Zero-Tolerance Policing, Stealth Real Estate Development, and the Transformation of Public Space

Rising criminality and violence in key neighborhoods surrounding Mexico City’s historic center have limited easy access to downtown public spaces that used to host much of the city’s social, commercial, and political life. In 2002 a group of powerful local businessmen hired the international security consultant Rudolph Giuliani to design security measures that might remedy the city’s crime problems. The Giuliani plan not only called for restrictions on free movement and intense scrutiny of public behavior associated with the strategy of “zero tolerance” but also suggested the criminalization of certain behaviors and made recommendations for police reform that called into question the distinction between public and private police. One of the principal consequences of its implementation was to circumscribe public access to downtown space. Stated simply, the widening of downtown’s public sphere brought a narrowing of access to it along class lines. An examination of the context in which the plan was pursued traces the Giuliani invitation to the dynamics of downtown real estate development and land-use collusion between elected officials and private developers in the name of security policy. El alza del crimen y la violencia en barrios claves rodeando el centro histórico de la Ciudad de México han limitado el acceso a los espacios públicos céntricos que antes recibían una gran parte de la vida social, comercial y política de la ciudad. En el 2002, un grupo de poderosos empresarios locales contrataron al asesor de seguridad internacional, Rudolph Giuliani para que volvieran a diseñarse medidas de seguridad que pudieran remediar los problemas del crimen de la ciudad. El plan Giuliani no solo recomendaba la restricción de la movilidad libre y escrutinio intenso del comportamiento público asociado con la “cero tolerancia” sino que también la criminalización de ciertos comportamientos y en donde se hicieron recomendaciones de reforma policiaca que cuestionan la distinción entre la policía pública y la particular. Una de las consecuencias principales de su implementación fue la forma en que se circunscriba el acceso público al espacio céntrico. Puesto simplemente, el anchar de la esfera pública del centro urbano conllevo al estrechar del acceso al mismo según líneas de clase. Un examen del contexto en el cual se prosigue en el plan traza la invitación que se le hizo a Giuliani con la dinámica del desarrollo urbano en bienes raíces y la colusión en uso de la tierra entre oficiales electos y empresarios urbanizadores en nombre de la seguridad.
Is the Routine Examination of Surgical Specimens Worthwhile in Primary Total Knee Arthroplasty?

Two thousand two hundred eighty-nine consecutive primary total knee arthroplasties performed between 1993 and 1996 were reviewed retrospectively to assess the utility and cost effectiveness of the routine examination of surgical specimens. In those cases where a discrepancy was seen between the clinical and pathologic diagnoses, the records were reviewed carefully and those patients were contacted to determine whether their subsequent treatment was altered as a result of the pathologic findings. In 10 cases there was a potentially important discrepancy between the clinical and pathologic diagnoses. In none of those 10 cases was the subsequent treatment of the patient altered as a result of the pathologic findings. This study suggests a reexamination of regulations that mandate the routine pathologic review of surgical specimens from primary total knee arthroplasties.