Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The management perception of the strategic outsourcing of services: An empirical examination in the hotel sector

This work will analyse the strategy of outsourcing, or the predisposition on the part of a firm to entrust some of its services to a third party. The research will focus on discovering empirically the role that this strategy plays in hotels, and in order to do this we will carry out an analysis of hotel managers' perceptions regarding outsourcing based on the main advantages as well as the drawbacks and barriers which using the strategy can involve, with a view to determining which of these are related to a predisposition to outsource. The results of the research suggest that the main reasons which determine outsourcing are of a strategic rather that cost-reducing nature. Despite the fact that although current outsourcing is conditioned by the cost factor alone, any future increase in the use of the strategy will be determined exclusively by factors of a strategic nature. With respect to the disadvantages of outsourcing which tend to limit the use of the strategy, we will see that these are related to loss of control and autonomy together with a distrust of external suppliers. This work will enable us to assess the extent of the existing demand for outsourcing main services as well as those factors which determine and limit the outsourcing strategy and which have prevented a large number of services where outsourcing would be applicable from being outsourced to the present date. Finally we will present our main conclusions and recommendations.
Agricultural Education and Agricultural Communications: Striking a Proper Balance in the Academy.

From its beginnings in the early 1800s, the profession of agricultural communications was born out of the practical need to share important farm and home information with isolated rural audiences. Some 200 years later, agricultural communications has evolved into a diverse industry responsible for developing and disseminating news and marketing information related to food, agricultural, and environmental systems. Professional preparation for such careers is often provided through academic programs that are housed in departments of agricultural education. This administrative arrangement provides both benefits and challenges to the future development of agricultural communications programs, which need to strike important balances in teaching, outreach, and research programs and in collaborative relationships within and outside of the academy. The potential for success is greatly enhanced if agricultural communications development strategies are coordinated with agricultural education to build synergies between the programs while maintaining unique strengths. This philosophical paper uses elements of the sociology of education to address some of the benefits and challenges posed by agricultural communications’ close relationships with private industry and other academic departments, including agricultural education. The paper concludes with a list of implications and courses of action recommended for discussion by academicians in the two disciplines.
Neural correlates of dual task performance in patients with Parkinson’s disease

Background: Patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD) have great difficulty in performing two tasks simultaneously, but the neural contribution to this problem has not been identified. In the current study, we investigated the pathophysiology of dual task performance in PD. Methods: We studied 15 patients with PD and 14 healthy controls. Functional MRIs were obtained before and after practicing dual tasks with different complexities. Results: After practice, 12 normal subjects performed all dual tasks correctly. Twelve patients performed the simpler dual tasks correctly. However, only 3 patients could perform the more complex dual task correctly. Dual tasks activated similar brain regions in both groups. The bilateral precuneus was additionally activated during performance of dual tasks compared with the component tasks in both groups. Patients had greater activity in the cerebellum, premotor area, parietal cortex, precuneus and prefrontal cortex compared with normal subjects. Conclusions: Difficulty in performing two tasks simultaneously in patients with PD is probably due to limited attentional resources, defective central executive function and less automaticity in performing the tasks. Practice can diminish dual task interference and improve performance in patients with PD.
On the Division of Profit in Sequential Innovation

In markets with sequential innovation, inventors of derivative improvements might undermine the profit of initial innovators through competition. Profit erosion can be mitigated by broadening the first innovator's patent protection and/or by permitting cooperative agreements between initial innovators and later innovators. We investigate the policy that is most effective at ensuring the first innovator earns a large share of profit from the second-generation products it facilitates. In general, not all the profit can be transferred to the first innovator, and therefore patents should last longer when a sequence of innovations is undertaken by different firms rather than being concentrated in one firm.
Ablego: a function outlining and partial inlining framework

Frequently invoked large functions are common in non‐numeric applications. These large functions present challenges to modern compilers not only because they require more time and resources at compilation time, but also because they may prevent optimizations such as function inlining. Often large portions of the code in a hot function fhost are executed much less frequently than fhost itself. Partial inlining is a natural solution to the problems caused by including cold code segments that are seldom executed into hot functions that are frequently invoked. When applying partial inlining, a compiler outlines cold statements from a hot function fhost. After outlining, fhost becomes smaller and thus can be easily inlined. This paper presents Ablego, a framework for function outlining and partial inlining that includes several innovations: (1) an abstract‐syntax‐tree‐based analysis and transformation to form cold regions for outlining; (2) a set of flexible heuristics to control the aggressiveness of function outlining; (3) several possible function outlining strategies; (4) explicit variable spilling, a new technique that overcomes negative side‐effects of function outlining. With the proper strategy, partial inlining improves performance by up to 5.75%. A performance study also suggests that partial inlining's effect on enabling more aggressive inlining is limited. The performance improvement from partial inlining actually comes from better code placement and better code generation. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Planning and firm performance: effects of multiple planning activities and technology policy

Our concern in this paper is a longstanding one in the field of strategic management â€“ the effect of strategic planning on firm performance. However, we argue that strategic planning is best examined in the context of both its formal and informal aspects, as well as with operational planning and technology policy. From a survey of 150 manufacturing firms, planning and performance data were obtained from top managers. Our results provided support for the general argument that both formal and informal planning pay, and that both operational planning and technology policy have significant associations with firm performance.
Effect of expiratory flow increase technique on pulmonary function of infants on mechanical ventilation.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Although chest physiotherapy techniques are commonly used in the treatment of respiratory diseases, there are, however, few studies in the literature on the effectiveness of these techniques in paediatric patients. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effect of the expiratory flow increase technique (EFIT) on the pulmonary function of infants on invasive mechanical pulmonary ventilation. METHOD A prospective, non-randomized study design was used, with consecutive enrolment conducted in the paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) of a university hospital. All infants with acute obstructive respiratory failure who were on invasive mechanical pulmonary ventilation between April 2001 and April 2003 were included in this study. Respiratory rate, PaO2, PaCO2, SatO2, PaO2/FiO2, P(A-a)O2/PaO2, PaO2/PAO2, VD/VT, dynamic compliance, inspiratory and expiratory resistance values were compared before and after application of the EFIT. RESULTS Blood gas and pulmonary function measurements were recorded before and after EFIT. Repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used. The results were considered statistically significant when p values were < 0.05. Twenty-two infants were enrolled. There was a significant increase in respiratory rate, SatO2 and PaO2/PAO2 and a significant decrease in P(A-a)O2/PaO2 after application of the EFIT. CONCLUSION There was a short-term improvement in the oxygenation of infants who were submitted to the EFIT. Additional studies are necessary to establish the efficacy and effectiveness of this technique.
Structures and specificity of the human kallikrein-related peptidases KLK 4, 5, 6, and 7

Abstract Human kallikrein-related peptidases (KLKs) are (chymo)-trypsin-like serine proteinases that are expressed in a variety of tissues such as prostate, ovary, breast, testis, brain, and skin. Although their physiological functions have been only partly elucidated, many of the KLKs appear to be useful prognostic cancer markers, showing distinct correlations between their expression levels and different stages of cancer. Recent advances in the purification of ‘new type’ recombinant KLKs allowed solution of the crystal structures of KLK4, KLK5, KLK6, and KLK7. Along with these data, enzyme kinetic studies and extended substrate specificity profiling have led to an understanding of the non-prime-side substrate preferences of KLK4, 5, 6, and 7. The shape and polarity of the specificity pockets S1–S4 explain well their substrate preferences. KLK4, 5, and 6 exhibit trypsin-like specificity, with a strong preference for Arg at the P1 position of substrates. In contrast, KLK7 displays a unique chymotrypsin-like specificity for Tyr, which is also preferred at P2. All four KLKs show little specificity for P3 residues and have a tendency to accept hydrophobic residues at P4. Interestingly, for KLK4, 5, and 7 extended charged surface regions were observed that most likely serve as exosites for physiological substrates.
How important are CSR companies for nations’ growth?

The paper provides new empirical evidence on the positive link between corporate social responsibility and income growth. Using available data for 26 countries over 2000-2008 we investigate cross-country growth differences by adding new variable (corporate social responsibility) to the standard growth regression model. We show that corporate social responsibility impact on growth is statistically significant but limited in size. Moreover, the inclusion of corporate social responsibility variable improves the fit of the regression. Countries with higher corporate social responsibility penetration as India achieve higher income growth rates. Evidence of the positive link between corporate social responsibility presented in this study encourage but further research on mechanism how socially responsible behavior affects growth is necessary.
The Effects of Ownership Structure and Board Composition on the Audit Committee Meeting Frequency: Spanish Evidence

This paper examines the factors that affect the activity of the audit committees in Spain. The data used in the analyses are collected from the Spanish stock market in 2003. The results show the existence of a non-linear relationship between the managerial stock ownership and the activity of the audit committee. We have also verified the existence of a lower audit committee's activity in highly leveraged firms and when the ownership structure is concentrated in the hands of large shareholders. The large firms have more active committees than small firms. Finally, we have not found any evidence of a significant influence of the composition of the board or the audit committee on the activity of the latter.
Distributional Effects of a Minimum Wage in a Welfare State – The Case of Germany

A popular argument for a federal minimum wage is that it will prevent in-work poverty and reduce income inequality. We examine this assertion for Germany, a welfare state with a relative generous means-tested social minimum and high marginal tax rates. Our analysis is based on a microsimulation model that accounts for the interactions between wages, the tax-benefit system and net incomes at the household level as well as employment and price effects on the distribution of incomes induced by the introduction of a minimum wage. We show that the impact of even a relatively high federal minimum wage on disposable incomes is small because low wage earners are scattered over the whole income distribution and wage increases would to a large extent be offset by reductions in means-tested welfare transfers and high marginal tax rates. Taking into account negative employment effects and increases in consumer prices induced by the minimum wage would wipe out any positive direct effects on net incomes of households affected by the minimum wage.
Cutaneous Leukocytoclastic Vasculitis: Clinical and Laboratory Features of 82 Patients Seen in Private Practice

• Eighty-two patients, with pathologically confirmed cutaneous leukocytoclastic vasculitis (LV), were seen in private dermatology offices. An analysis of the group was made to determine the relationship of cutaneous to systemic disease, the incidence and importance of laboratory abnormalities, and the prognosis of patients with cutaneous LV and to compare these results with previously published data derived from medical centers. Systemic disease occurred in 42 patients, but was transient and mild in most. Two patients died as a result of systemic vasculitis. The morphologic type of skin lesions most commonly found were palpable purpura (51 patients), urticarial-like lesions (17 patients), ulcers (eight patients), erythematous plaques (five patients), and/or nodules (five patients). Possible causative agents could be identified in 38 patients and included drugs (eight patients), infections (eight patients), or collagen vascular disease (17 patients). The course of the disorder was acute in 46 cases, chronic in 24, and recurrent in 12. The patients described herein fared better and had less significant systemic disease than those described in studies from medical centers. The data support the usual benign course of cutaneous LV as seen by practitioners despite frequent systemic symptoms or findings. ( Arch Dermatol 1984;120:484-489)
Schooling and the Armed Forces Qualifying Test

How much can late schooling investments close racial and ethnic skill gaps? We investigate this question by exploiting the large differences in completed schooling that arise among teenagers with birthdays near school-entry cutoff dates. We estimate that an additional year of high school raises the Armed Forces Qualifying Test (AFQT) scores of minorities in the NLSY 79 by 0.31 to 0.32 standard deviations. These estimates imply that closing existing racial and ethnic gaps in schooling could close skill gaps by between 25 and 50 percent. Our approach also uncovers a significant direct effect of season of birth on test scores, suggesting that previous estimates using season of birth as an instrument for schooling are biased.
A Model of the Antecedents of Perceived Ease of Use: Development and Test†

The Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) has been widely used to predict user acceptance and use based on perceived ease of use and usefulness. However, in order to design effective training interventions to improve user acceptance, it is necessary to better understand the antecedents and determinants of key acceptance constructs. In this research, we focus on understanding the determinants of perceived ease of use. Data from three experiments spanning 108 subjects and six different systems supported our hypothesis that an individual's perception of a particular system's ease of use is anchored to her or his general computer self-efficacy at all times, and objective usability has an impact on ease of use perceptions about a specific system only after direct experience with the system. In addition to being an important research issue in user acceptance research, understanding antecedents of perceived ease of use is also important from a practical standpoint since several systems in which millions of dollars are invested are rejected because of poor user interfaces. Moreover, the actual underlying problem might be low computer self-efficacy of the target user group. In such cases, training interventions aimed at improving computer self-efficacy of users may be more effective than improved interface design for increasing user acceptance.
Mutation analysis of the entire keratin 5 and 14 genes in patients with epidermolysis bullosa simplex and identification of novel mutations

Epidermolysis bullosa simplex is a group of blistering skin disorders caused by defects in one of the keratin genes, KRT5 and KRT14. Previously reported KRT5 and KRT14 mutations are clustered in several hotspots, namely the rod ends of the 1A and 2B domains and in the non‐helical linker region L12. Therefore, genomic KRT5 and KRT14 mutation analysis was initially limited to these hotspots. In this study we describe the screening of nine EBS patients for mutations in the hotspots. In two patients, with the Koebner and the Weber‐Cockayne subtypes of epidermolysis bullosa simplex respectively, we could, however, not identify any mutation in one of the hotspot domains of KRT5 and KRT14. Therefore, it appeared to be necessary to screen the entire genes for mutations. For KRT5, a complete genomic mutation detection system was previously described. We now developed a complete genomic mutation detection system for KRT14. For the amplification of the KRT14 genes, we make use of restriction sites to exempt the keratin 14 pseudogene sequence from polymerase chain reaction amplification. Using the complete genomic mutation detection system for both KRT5 and KRT14, we identified four novel KRT5 mutations (IVS1‐1G>C, K404E, A438D, E475K), two of which are outside the KRT5 hotspot domains, and three novel KRT14 mutations (IVS4+1G>A, L408M, L130P). © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Clinical Analysis of Benign Eyelid and Conjunctival Tumors

Purpose: To assess the relative frequency and clinicopathologic characteristics of benign conjunctival tumors. Methods: A retrospective study of 80 consecutive patients admitted to our hospital with benign eyelid and conjunctival tumor between April 2000 and November 2002 was undertaken, and clinical records including age, sex and involved site of tumors and pathology slides of the patients were reviewed retrospectively. Results: Twenty-three males and 33 females presented with benign eyelid tumors and 12 males and 12 females with conjunctival tumors. Mean age was 42.3 and 29.7 years, respectively. The lower eyelid was involved in 27 (48.2%) of eyelid tumors and the medial conjunctiva in 14 (58.3%) of conjunctival tumors. The most frequent tumor was intradermal nevus (44.6%), seborrheic keratosis (16.1%) and compound nevus (10.7%) in eyelid tumors, and compound nevus (29.2%) and intradermal nevus (25.0%) in conjunctival tumors. Conclusion: This report will provides a basic analysis of benign eyelid and conjunctival tumors.
Diffusion and contribution of total quality management: an empirical study in Norway

This article will report the findings from a survey on total quality management (TQM) in Norway. The survey was conducted in cooperation with the Norwegian Society for Quality. This study reveals that the components of a TQM programme may vary from country to country. This may suggest that the Quality Award Model should be used for guidance rather than as a model to copy. This study also finds that the TQM enablers (or practices) such as quality leadership, human resource development and quality information contribute to the increase of customer satisfaction and the business performance. However, none of these TQM enablers can guarantee better results. It is these enablers as a whole that contribute collectively to the improvements. The study also finds that ISO 9000 and the length of practising TQM are related to the better results. It seems as if there is a tendency for the ISO 9000 standards to be taken as part of a TQM programme in the future. The conclusion is that all the enablers of quality managem.
Reverse Transcription-PCR Analysis of Bottled and Natural Mineral Waters for the Presence of Noroviruses

ABSTRACT A seminested reverse transcription-PCR method coupled to membrane filtration was optimized to investigate the presence of norovirus (NV) RNA sequences in bottled and natural mineral waters. The recovery of viral particles by filtration varied between 28 and 45%, while the limit of detection of the overall method ranged from 6 to 95 viral particles. The assay was broadly reactive, as shown by the successful detection of 27 different viral strains representing 12 common genotypes of NVs. A total of 718 bottled and natural mineral water samples were investigated, including 640 samples of finished, spring, and line products (mostly 1 to 1.5 liters), collected from 36 different water brands of various types and from diverse geographic origins over a 2-year period. In addition, 78 samples of larger volume (10 and 400 to 500 liters) and environmental swabs were investigated. From the 1,436 analyses that were performed for the detection of NVs belonging to genogroups I and II, 34 samples (2.44%) were presumptively positive by seminested RT-PCR. However, confirmation by DNA sequence analysis revealed that all presumptive positive results were either due to nonspecific amplification or to cross-contamination. In conclusion, these results do not provide any evidence for the presence of NV genome sequences in bottled waters.
The Role of Haptic Macrophages in Regulation of Idiosyncratic Drug Reactions

Idiosyncratic drug reactions (IDR) account for approximately 6%-10% of all adverse drug reactions. The unpredictable and serious nature of these reactions makes them a significant economic burden and safety concern to the health care community and the pharmaceutical industry. Clinical and laboratory evidence suggests that adverse immune responses against drug—protein adducts play a role in the pathogenesis of IDR. However, it remains unclear why only a small percentage of patients are susceptible to developing these reactions. We hypothesized that most patients develop immunological tolerance against drug—protein adducts as a default mechanism, and that IDRs can only occur when this tolerance is deficient or abrogated in susceptible individuals. Using a murine model of 2,4-dinitrochlorobenzene (DNCB)—induced delayed type hypersensitivity (DTH) reaction, our previously published data demonstrated that intravenous pretreatment of mice with dinitrophenyl-bovine serum albumin (DNP-BSA) induced immunological tolerance to subsequent DNCB sensitization, and that hepatic macrophages (Kupffer cells, KC) played an important role in mediating such tolerance. Further mechanistic investigation revealed that KC, acting as incompetent antigen-presenting cells, cannot elicit strong T cell reactions, and that they actively suppress T cell activation through production of prostaglandins. These findings suggest that KCs may play a critical role in regulating immune reactions within the liver and contributing to liver-mediated systemic immune tolerance.