Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
CD4+ Target Cell Availability Determines the Dynamics of Immune Escape and Reversion In Vivo

ABSTRACT Infections with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and the closely related monkey viruses simian-human immunodeficiency virus (SHIV) and simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) are characterized by progressive waves of immune responses, followed by viral mutation and “immune escape. ” However, escape mutation usually leads to lower replicative fitness, and in the absence of immune pressure, an escape mutant (EM) virus “reverts” to the wild-type phenotype. Analysis of the dynamics of immune escape and reversion has suggested it is a mechanism for identifying the immunogens best capable of controlling viremia. We have analyzed and modeled data of the dynamics of wild-type (WT) and EM viruses during SHIV infection of macaques. Modeling suggests that the dynamics of reversion and immune escape should be determined by the availability of target cells for infection. Consistent with this suggestion, we find that the rate of reversion of cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) EM virus strongly correlates with the number of CD4+ T cells available for infection. This phenomenon also affects the rate of immune escape, since this rate is determined by the balance of CTL killing and the WT fitness advantage. This analysis predicts that the optimal timing for the selection of immune escape variants will be immediately after the peak of viremia and that the development of escape variants at later times will lead to slower selection. This has important implications for comparative studies of immune escape and reversion in different infections and for identifying epitopes with high fitness cost for use as vaccine targets.
Learning by Tweeting

Marketing professionals use Twitter extensively for communicating with and monitoring customers, for observing competitors, and for analyzing chatter concerning brands, products, and company image. Can professors use Twitter to engage students in conversation about a marketing course? The authors argue that Twitter has many benefits for marketing educators who are interested in engaging students in experiential learning. In a real-time environment for student learning, professors may use Twitter for direct communication with students to generate discussion and interest in the course topics and examples. Just as marketers use Twitter to generate interest, discussion, and brand image, educators can use Twitter to generate this interest in a course through social media. Furthermore, Twitter is a fast, easy method for making announcements, solving student issues, and performing course-related administrative duties. In three studies, both quantitative and qualitative data suggest that when students engage in Twitter use with the professor, students feel better prepared for future careers. In addition, students indicate that Twitter facilitates achieving traditional educational goals. The qualitative data offer insights into potential problems. Suggestions for educators interested in using Twitter are offered.
The financing of residential development in Australia

Summary: This project provided policy-makers with an understanding of the complexity of property finance, its role in the supply of all housing types and tenures and the impact of the Global Financial Crisis on property lending. Description The researchers interviewed property developers and financiers in Western Australia, New South Wales and Victoria who were involved in high density, medium density in-fill and affordable housing developments. Debt finance remains crucial for developers to finance projects since it opens development opportunities for those without up-front capital and allows them to reduce risk. While some larger developers (e.g. Australian Real Estate Investment Trusts) have adequate access to finance, small to medium sized developers have faced difficulties especially since the global financial crisis. This has negatively impacted housing supply especially in-fill development. Financing affordable housing for the not-for-profit sector is materially assisted through the National Rental Affordability Scheme (NRAS) although it does take time for lenders to understand such schemes. Financing further affordable housing development is limited, because banks treat loans to the sector as cash flow loans rather than loans against assets. Continued growth of the sector will make it easier to leverage finance in future. Policy-makers are unable to directly influence lending decisions but can make a difference to the general investment environment through: Recognising the diversity of developers in the industry and their differing responses to policy initiatives and the adverse effect planning uncertainty and excessive regulation can have on development feasibility. Involving the financial sector in planning reform to reduce uncertainty. Encouraging small and medium scale in-fill development by avoiding delays, equitable infrastructure charging, and flexibility around parking requirements. Partnering with developers through joint-venture arrangements (e.g. guaranteeing to purchase unsold units). Educating developers about low risk avenues for investment through demonstration programs, such as the Keystart shared home ownership scheme.
Audit Fees, Big Four Premium and Institutional Settings: The Devil is in the Details!

Compared to UK, we find significantly higher than expected audit fees in France and a very significant Big4 premium after controlling for well documented auditor, client and engagement attributes. While both now follow International Financial Reporting Standards, International Auditing Standards, the Eight Directive adopted in 2006, and recommendations of the European Commission to ensure audit quality in Europe (EC, 2000, 2002, 2003), our results contradict theoretical models and empirical results in cross country studies which suggest higher fees in countries such as the UK with a stronger legal liability regime, greater investor protection, greater ownership dispersion and greater audit concentration. We conjecture that France’s unique audit environment of two jointly responsible auditors and a fixed six-year mandate impose greater costs to firms as suggested by a number of market participants in recent years. Our research should add to the on-going debate by regulators in both the UK and France, but also the European Commission which, in its recent ‘Green Paper’ on audit policy (October 2010), suggest that joint audits might be a way of dealing with audit concentration.
Dynamic analysis of competition in marketing: strategic groups in Spanish banking

The analysis of strategic groups has important implications for marketing in order to identify a firm’s competitive position. Aims to analyse the development of the competence in an industry. Hypothesizes that the analysis of strategic groups is only meaningful when it is determined that the groupings obtained are not random events within a particular industry. Uses multivariate statistical tests to determine the stable sub‐periods, the strategic groups, and their dynamic characteristics over the years. Applies this technique to the Spanish banking sector and detects a relative intra‐industrial instability, and a significant change in the number and strategy of the identified groups with the passing of time.
Nonvolatile Poly-Si TFT Charge-Trap Flash Memory With Engineered Tunnel Barrier

Tunnel-barrier-engineered thin-film transistor (TFT) memory (TBE-TFT memory) devices on glass substrates were fabricated using low-temperature processes. An amorphous silicon film on the glass substrate was crystallized using excimer laser annealing for system-on-panel applications. The engineered tunnel barrier of VARIOT type (SiO<sub>2</sub>/Si<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub>/SiO<sub>2</sub>) with a high-<i>k</i> HfO<sub>2</sub> charge-trapping layer and an Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> blocking layer was applied to TBE-TFT memory devices in order to enhance the memory performance of TBE-TFT memory devices. As a result, the poly-Si TFT charge-trap Flash memory with an engineered tunnel barrier exhibited excellent memory characteristics, such as large memory window (9.5 V), long retention time, and endurance.
Autism and a deficit in broadening the spread of visual attention.

BACKGROUND This study examines if visual attention in autism is spatially overfocused (Townsend & Courchesne, 1994) and if there is an associated deficit in broadening the spatial spread of attention. METHOD Two crosshairs were presented on each trial separated by a brief (500 ms) interval. There was a modest difference in the lengths of the two hairs in each crosshair and participants had to decide which one was longest. Previous research (Mack & Rock, 1998) has revealed that in making this judgement people spread their visual attention to embrace the whole crosshair. Varying the overall size of each crosshair was intended to control participants' spread of attention. The impact of the size of the first crosshair gave an indication of participants' default setting for the spread of attention. The impact of the size transition between the first and second crosshair gave an indication of the fluency with which participants could change the spatial spread of visual attention. RESULTS Based on the first proposal it was predicted that individuals with autism (N = 13), relative to ability-matched moderately learning disabled (N = 15) and typically developing individuals (N = 15), would be more accurate and quicker to respond when the first crosshair was small rather than large. However, the results revealed no effects of the size of the first crosshair and no group differences. Based on the second proposal it was predicted that individuals with autism, relative to both control groups, would be less accurate and slower to respond to the second crosshair when the size transition from the first crosshair involved a change from small to large (in comparison with large to large), but would not differ when the change was from large to small (in comparison with small to small). This prediction was confirmed. CONCLUSION Autism is associated with a deficit in broadening the spatial spread of visual attention. The implications of this for other visual and attentional anomalies observed in autism are discussed.
High-performance sports medicine: an ancient but evolving field

The recognition of Sport and Exercise Medicine (SEM) as a new medical specialty in the UK in 2005 represented a landmark in an area of medicine that began its journey in Greco-Roman times, 2500 years ago. The fathers of our specialty, Herodicus (480 bc), Hippocrates (460–370 bc) and then Galen (ad 129–210), recognised the need to promote and prescribe exercise for health-related benefit, and the need to provide general medical care for the athletic individual.1 2 Such principles form the core components of our specialty today. High-performance sports medicine (HPSM) is a small area of SEM that is specifically focused upon high-performance (‘elite’) athletes—those competing at national or international level, and those involved in professional sports. It is clear from the writings of Hippocrates thatHPSM clearly did exist in Greco-Roman times.1 2 He described the use of medical approaches to optimise the effects of, and recovery from, training, and indeed he dedicated the second volume of his series ‘regimen’ to this subject.2 HPSM subsequently faded until the 19th century, re-emerging when a new era of formal competitive sport began. In those times, there was considerable medical debate relating to the needs of the athlete; there were views that intensive training represented serious adverse physical and physiological consequences. There was negativity towards the pursuit of athletic excellence, resistance to the concept that sports medicine was not ‘real medicine’ and disinterest in understanding the challenges of human physiology at the extremes.3 Some of these views persist in some of the less informed today. Nevertheless, in the modern era, high-performance sport plays a central role in our culture, society and our national identities, and with thatHPSM has an evolving identity and an increasingly prominent and positive profile. In this series of three short articles on HPSM, we aim to describe …
Oversight Issues in Mobile Payments

This paper examines oversight issues that underlie the potential growth and risks in mobile payments. International experience suggests that financial authorities can develop effective oversight frameworks for new payment methods to safeguard public confidence and financial stability by establishing: (i) a clear legal regime; (ii) proportionate AML/CFT measures to prevent financial integrity risks; (iii) fund safeguarding measures such as insurance, similar guarantee schemes, or “pass through” deposit insurance; (iv) contingency plans for operational disruptions; and (v) risk controls and access criteria in payment systems. Such measures are particularly important for low-income countries where diffusion is becoming more widespread.
A transdiagnostic investigation of emotional distress after traumatic brain injury

Emotional distress after traumatic brain injury (TBI) often presents as a range of neurobehavioural and emotional reactions rather than distinct disorders. This study adopted a transdiagnostic approach with the aim of identifying psychological processes common to depression, anxiety and global distress after TBI. Fifty participants with TBI (aged 19–66 years, 12–65 months post-injury) completed measures of threat appraisals and avoidance behaviour (Appraisal of Threat and Avoidance Questionnaire), self-discrepancy (Head Injury Semantic Differential Scale III), emotion dysregulation (Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale), worry (Penn State Worry Questionnaire), negative self-focused attention (Self-Focus Sentence Completion) and emotional distress (Depression Anxiety Stress Scales and Brief Symptom Inventory). Significant correlations were found among the proposed transdiagnostic variables (rs = .29–.82, p < .05). A principal components analysis revealed two underlying factors: (1) Threats to Self, and (2) Emotion Dysregulation. Only the Emotion Dysregulation factor accounted for significant unique variance in levels of depression, anxiety and global distress (sr2 = .12–.17). Such findings indicate the need for interventions to target difficulties in identifying and regulating emotions after TBI to facilitate emotional adjustment.
Identification of Effective Key Variables associated with Purchase Decision on Performance of the Buyers (Case Study: Construction Ironware Market of Guilan Province)

Buying behavior is a very sensitive phenomenon because people's behavior is not always obvious; their performance is often unpredictable. In many cases, the buyers express their wishes, but they act differently in decision making. They may be aware of their buying motives, but also responsive to the changes happened in their minds due to some factors in recent moments. The overall objective of this research is to identify the effective factors associated with the decision of buyers of constructional ironware in Guilan Province and measuring the relative importance of the factors for application of the results and the possible implementation of the presented proposals. In this study, to gather information on theoretical and literature principles of the research, library resources, articles, required books and electronic resources have been used. The data has also conducted for the analysis of effects of factors through field methods, questionnaires and study on factor analysis method using the SPSS software. Findings suggest that factors such as personal perception, maintaining loyal customers, particular costs, public perceptions, sales promotions, accessibility of customers and product knowledge are among the factors that have a significant impact on the buying decision of constructional ironware buyers. Practical Applications: This study identifies the effective variables that the ironware dealers by enjoying them, may have an emphasis on selling techniques based on customer satisfaction, sales promotion, ease of purchaser, etc.
MR imaging-guided breast localization system with medial or lateral access.

PURPOSE To evaluate the degree of error of the authors' magnetic resonance (MR) imaging-guided needle localization system for biopsy of suspicious lesions visualized only with MR imaging, by using both prospectively recorded and retrospectively reviewed data, including MR imaging lesion coordinates as the reference standard, and to determine whether any lesion or breast characteristics affect this error. MATERIALS AND METHODS Institutional review board approval, along with informed consent, was obtained as directed by the board. In 31 patients (age range, 34-64 years; mean age, 54.5 years), 38 wires were placed for 35 lesions by means of an MR-guided needle localization system with medial or lateral access and computer software assistance for needle placement calculation. Needle and wire placement error measurements were calculated before and after necessary placement correction, accounting for tissue shift in the z plane. The error was statistically correlated with MR imaging lesion variables, breast density, and histopathologic findings by means of univariate and multivariate linear regression analyses or two-tailed paired t test. Procedure times and the frequency of medial or lateral approaches were recorded. RESULTS Eleven of 35 localizations (31%) were medial, and 24 of 35 (69%) were lateral. The mean total magnet time was 61.6 minutes, and the mean needle deployment time was 9 minutes (range, 4-17 minutes). Sixteen of 35 lesions (46%) were malignant (seven ductal carcinoma in situ, six invasive ductal, two invasive lobular, and one lymphoma). The mean uncorrected needle placement error was 1.3 mm (range, 0-6 mm) for the x plane, 2.4 mm (range, 0-6.5 mm) for the y plane, and 5.6 mm (range, 0-15.6 mm) for the z plane. Fourteen of 38 needles (37%) required repositioning for z-plane error. The corrected z-plane error improved to 3.2 mm (range, 0-10.0 mm). Factors that significantly increased the uncorrected error included tissue shift in the z plane (R = 0.7), small lesion size (R = -0.59), and fatty breast density (P = .029). CONCLUSION The authors' system is accurate for performing MR-guided needle localizations for both medial and lateral approaches. Factors that increased the uncorrected needle placement error included small lesion size, fatty breast density, and tissue shift in the z plane.
The Significance of Ear Plugging in Localization‐related Epilepsy

Summary: Purpose: The localizing value of ear plugging in the treatment of auditory onset partial seizures, to our knowledge, has not been previously described. We propose that ear plugging is a clinical response to a sensory seizure manifested as an auditory hallucination and a tool for identifying the seizure focus in the auditory cortex on the superior temporal gyrus.
Continuation of Metformin Reduces Early Pregnancy Loss in Obese Pakistani Women with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome

Background: Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) is the most common cause of anovulatory infertility worldwide. In addition to a poor conception rate, pregnancy loss rates are significantly higher (30–50%) during the first trimester in women with PCOS. Insulin resistance (IR) in this syndrome is not only implicated toward early pregnancy loss (EPL) but also pathognomic for various obstetrical complications during pregnancy. We evaluated the role of Metformin in the reduction of EPL in women with PCOS who conceived spontaneously or after induction ovulation with or without Metformin. Objective: The primary objective was to evaluate the effectiveness of Metformin in the reduction of EPL in women with PCOS. Secondary outcomes like gestational diabetes, pregnancy-induced hypertension and intrauterine growth restriction were also analyzed at the end of the study. Material and Methods: This case-control study was conducted from March 2005 to March 2008 in the infertility and antenatal clinics of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan. A total of 197 infertile women with PCOS were included. ‘Cases’ were women with PCOS who conceived while taking Metformin and it whom it was continued throughout pregnancy. ‘Controls’ were women in whom Metformin was either stopped in first trimester after confirmation of pregnancy (by serum βHCG or by ultrasound) or they conceived spontaneously without the use of Metformin. Results: All 197 women in this study had a confirmed diagnosis of PCOS (Rotterdam criteria). These women were followed till the final outcome of pregnancy was achieved. Both groups were compared for risk of EPL. It was found that continuation of Metformin during pregnancy reduces EPL, i.e. 8.8 vs. 29.4% in cases and controls, respectively (p < 0.001). In the subset of women with a prior history of miscarriage, the pregnancy loss rate was 12.5% in the Metformin versus 49.4% in control group (p = 0.002). Conclusion: Metformin continuation during pregnancy significantly reduces EPL in women with PCOS. IR may play a significant role in EPL.
A framework for IT performance management Enabling organizational growth with IT performance management

This research provides insight into how organizations can achieve and optimize the benefits of IT performance management. The relevance of this research is the importance for organizations to achieve value from their investments and that there is little scientific literature available guiding them how to do this. To achieve value from investments a focus on IT performance management is required that takes care of the removal of non value-adding activities and processes. IT performance management can be defined as the area of setting goals, responsibility accounting and monitoring/ analyzing/ governing and improving the performance of IT. Benefits of IT performance management are that a focus on the realization of strategic, financial and non-financial goals is applied and that KPIs are made explicit and measurable. IT performance management requires effective IT management to meet business objectives. And an IT performance measurement process needs to be selected. Performance measurement frameworks need to be balanced, multidimensional, comprehensive and integrated into the organizational performance measurement framework. Performance measurement frameworks include metrics and a budgeting approach. Performance metrics are used to govern measures and need to match the goals of the organization. When they are not well implemented the planning and control of these metrics is impeded. The goals of budgeting system development are the development and maintenance of a process for the planning and management of activities. These activities are deducted from the strategic and tactical plans and the corresponding benefits and costs are translated into a financially formulated plan. In addition to a literature research that provided insight into what has been written about IT performance management a case study research was conducted. In this case study research organizations participated to provide insight into their IT performance management approach. Additionally their approaches were compared to determine their IT performance management maturity. The results showed that the organizations had very different IT performance management approaches and maturity levels. The majority of organizations did not seem to use their performance results when developing IT performance management plans for the next year.