Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Validated Grading Scale for Marionette Lines

BACKGROUND Melomental folds, or marionette lines, are one of the consequences of facial aging. The curvilinear wrinkles formed because of facial movements and the aging process extend downward from the oral commissures. OBJECTIVES To develop the Marionette Lines Grading Scale for objective quantification of the severity of melomental folds and to establish the reliability of this photonumeric scale for clinical research and practice. MATERIALS AND METHODS A 5-point photonumeric rating scale was developed to objectively quantify the severity of melomental folds. Nine experts rated photographs of 35 subjects, twice, with regard to marionette lines in comparison with morphed images. Inter- and intrarater variability was assessed by computing intraclass correlation coefficients. RESULTS The agreement between the experts was high. Bubble plots (bivariate scatter plots) demonstrated linearity in judgment by the experts. CONCLUSION The 5-point photonumeric scale generated spans the severity of marionette lines for which patients commonly seek correction. The scale is well stratified for consistent rating.
Do return and volatility traverse the Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) stock markets borders

Purpose - – This paper aims to examine the dynamic relationship across stock market returns in Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, United Arabic Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, and Oman from June 2005 to January 2012. Design/methodology/approach - – The paper uses a multivariate model with leptokurtic distribution which allows for both return asymmetry and fat tails. The paper also derives from the model the conditional correlation between stock markets and examines the impact of the global financial crisis of 2008 on the conditional variance and correlation. Findings - – The empirical results show that the Middle East and North African (MENA) markets are interconnected by their volatilities and not by their returns. Volatility persists in each market and significant volatility spillovers from small to relatively larger markets. During the crisis, the paper finds that conditional volatilities across markets increase but then during the post-crisis period return to their pre-crisis levels. More importantly, the conditional correlation behaves differently, with a significant evidence of downwards trend in some correlations across the MENA stock markets. Research limitations/implications - – One limitation of the study relates to the relatively short-sample period which drives the empirical results. Practical implications - – The key results imply that there is still a possibility of benefits from portfolio diversification across specific MENA countries during periods of high volatility. Originality/value - – No previous study investigates the transmission of both the first and second moments of the return series across the MENA stock markets allowing for time-varying volatility and correlation and accounts for the 2008 global financial crisis to examine whether the conditional volatilities and correlations have strengthened or weakened during the crisis and afterwards.
Institutional Performance and Compliance with EU Law: Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia and Slovenia

Abstract This article compares the performance of state institutions and compliance with EU law in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia and Slovenia. The public institutions highlighted are of crucial relevance when it comes to enforcing EU social standards and include the court and legal systems as well as labour inspectorates and equal treatment authorities. Expert and practitioner assessments point to major shortcomings in their institutional performance. The procedural compliance pattern to which these shortcomings give rise closely resembles that found by previous studies in some Western European countries, notably Ireland and Italy. Thus, the four countries examined here fall within a ‘world of dead letters’ as far as their compliance with EU law is concerned. In this ‘world’, EU directives tend to be transposed in a politicised mode (although so far, this happened rather timely and correctly) and there is frequent non-compliance at the later stages of monitoring and enforcement.
The Production Structure and Demand for Labor in Postwar Japanese Agriculture, 1952–82

This paper analyzes the factor relations of postwar Japanese agriculture to identify the factors which explain a significant decline in labor in the agricultural sector. A nonhomothetic and Hicks-non-neutral translog cost function is estimated. The results of the decomposition analysis based on the estimates show that biased technical changes and nonhomotheticity together with price-induced factor substitutions play an important role in easing the transfer of agricultural labor to the nonagricultural sectors. The results also suggest that the biased technical change is consistent with the Hicksian-induced innovation hypothesis.
Ownership Concentration and Share Valuation

Abstract Concentrated ownership of large listed companies is widespread throughout the world, and Germany is typical in this respect. This paper proposes a method of distinguishing empirically between the beneficial and harmful effects of ownership concentration, and applies it to German data. The results show that, for most types of largest shareholder, the beneficial effects on minority shareholders of increased ownership (greater monitoring of management, and reduced incentives to exploit minority shareholders due to greater cash-flow rights) are at least as large as, and sometimes significantly larger than, the harmful effect (greater private benefits of control due to greater control rights).
Effects of dexamethosone and glucagon after long-term exposure on cyclic AMP phosphodiesterase 4 in cultured rat hepatocytes.

67% of total cAMP phosphodiesterase activity (PDE) in cultured rat hepatocytes could be detected in the cytosol, 15% in plasma membrane, 15% in 'dense vesicle,' and 3% in endoplasmatic reticulum fractions. Up to 84% of the PDE activity of the cytosol is represented by the rolipram-sensitive PDE 4. ICI 118233-inhibited PDE 3 was found predominantly in membranes. We were able to show that dexamethasone acts on the PDE 4 in cytosolic and plasma membrane fractions whereas glucagon effected the PDE 4 of the cytosol and the PDE 3 in 'dense vesicle' membranes. Primary culture of hepatocytes was used to study long-term effects of dexamethasone and glucagon on PDE 4 activity. Addition of dexamethasone (0.1 microM) at the beginning of cultivation leads to a decrease of total PDE 4 activity whereas after 24 h precultivation no dexamethasone effect could be observed. Glucagon effects on PDE 4 were investigated in 20 h precultured hepatocytes. Maximal stimulation was achieved after 2 h of exposure. PDE 4 subtypes A, B , D and, to a lesser degree, subtype C could be detected by RT-PCR analysis. The results of semiquantitative RT-PCR show that the presence of dexamethasone during the first 24 h of cultivation reduced selectively the transcription of PDE 4D, whereas glucagon was without any effect. Also the translation of PDE 4D was reduced as shown in the Western blot. We would like to discuss the way that dexamethasone influences PDE 4D expression-most likely in combination with other factors such as cytokines--during the time of cell plating, whereas glucagon actions are part of metabolic regulations via phosphorylation reactions.
Destination Brand Identity, Values, and Community: A Case Study From Rural Victoria, Australia

ABSTRACT This article explores a values-based approach to regional destination branding. Drawing on a qualitative case study of the branding of Victoria's High Country, a regional tourism area in rural Victoria, Australia, the article illustrates the shortcomings of a branding process (both in theory and practice) that draws on an overly narrow values base. It argues for consideration of a broader suite of values including social, cultural, historic, geographic, symbolic, environmental, and economic, to fully reflect what the destination has to offer. The article engages with the concept of sense of place as a theoretical lens through which to view destination branding and suggests that sustainable brands are those that are developed organically, driven by the values held by local brand communities and networks, rather than a more limited consumer-based value set being imposed upon a destination.
Three Essays on Resource Use, Sustainability and Agricultural Productivity

This dissertation consists of three essays. The first essay presents a dynamic model that analyzes the simultaneous use of a polluting non-renewable resource (coal) and an alternative technology (solar energy). It contributes to the literature by presenting a conceptual framework to characterize the production, exports and imports of a polluting non-renewable resource in the presence of a high cost substitute renewable technology. Results indicate that by ignoring external costs, inter-temporal social welfare from using both energy sources is overestimated and these market failures can be corrected by imposing a tax equal to the external cost per unit of coal used to induce the first best outcome. Subsidizing the backstop by an amount equal to the tax is a second best solution. The second essay analyzes the extent to which climatic variability affects agricultural productivity across LAC countries. The estimation is based on a stochastic production frontier, which is used to decompose total factor productivity (TFP). The results show that average annual temperature and precipitation have a negative significant impact on production and these adverse effects are getting more pronounced over time. Climatic variability has a more severe impact on Caribbean and Central America countries. Technological progress is found to play a key role in climate adjusted total factor productivity change. South and Central American countries are catching-up to their production frontier. TFP for these countries, except for Nicaragua and El Salvador, is converging to that of Brazil, which defines the frontier. All Caribbean countries are lagging behind and not converging. The third essay adopts a dynamic stochastic production frontier in which technical inefficiency from production is allowed to be auto-correlated over time. Results reveal that there are systematic differences in production and TE across LAC countries. Agricultural R&D is a determining factor in inefficiency levels. The mean rate of return on agricultural R&D across the 11 LAC countries is estimated to be 16.0%. The results indicate that the El Nino–Southern Oscillation accounts for an average annual loss in agricultural output equal to US $484 million in 2005 values across the LAC countries included in the analysis.
Use of the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and its microadaptation for the serodiagnosis of toxoplasmosis

The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) has proved to be a sensitive and specific quantitative procedure for the serodiagnosis of toxoplasmosis. Using the toxoplasma model, several parameters of the test were investigated. Day-to-day reproducibility was 90% within one twofold dilution and 98% specific when tested against batteries of sera from other diseases. Both the tube method and the microtitration method were used successfully. ELISA results are equivalent to those found in the indirect immunofluorescence test, yet the ELISA procedure is simpler and more rapid to perform.
Business Improvement Districts in New York City’s Low-Income and High-Income Neighborhoods

Business improvement districts (BIDs) have become popular commercial revitalization tools. To date, the literature has focused on the experiences of large BIDs in the wealthiest parts of the city. The author offers qualitative and quantitative data on 41 of New York City’s BIDs in an effort to reveal differences in the form, function, and operating practices of large and small BIDs and the roles they play in urban development processes. Her key findings suggest that large and small BIDs fulfill different development functions. Small BIDs attend to the physical maintenance of an area. Midsized BIDs concentrate on marketing and promotional activities. Large BIDs, in addition to maintenance and promotion, engage in capital improvement activities. BID behavior appears to vary in relation to its resource base, type of commercial property represented, the composition and balance of power among key stakeholders, and the wealth of the community in which it is located.
Workplace partnership and public service provision

This article considers the extent to which partnership espoused in Best Value is likely to be compatible with the model of social partnership espoused for employment relations. More specifically, the article seeks to cast light, empirically, on the degree to which Best Value can support the series of mutually supportive arrangements between these external stakeholders while maintaining positive-sum relationships with their unions and staff. The article proceeds as follows. Initially, the study’s methodology is detailed. Following this, the findings obtained from a survey are detailed and discussed. Lastly, a concluding section draws out their key analytical implications.
Deletion analysis of dengue virus type 4 nonstructural protein NS2B: identification of a domain required for NS2B-NS3 protease activity

Most proteolytic cleavages in the nonstructural protein (NS) region of the flavivirus polyprotein are effected by a virus-encoded protease composed of two viral proteins, NS2B and NS3. The N-terminal 180-amino-acid-region of NS3 includes sequences with homology to the active sites of serine proteases, and there is evidence that this portion of NS3 can mediate proteolytic cleavages. In contrast, nothing is known about required sequences in NS2B. We constructed a series of deletion mutations in the NS2B portion of plasmid pTM/NS2B-30% NS3, which expresses dengue virus type 4 (DEN4) cDNA encoding NS2B and the N-terminal 184 residues of NS3 from the T7 RNA polymerase promoter. Mutant or wild-type plasmids were transfected into cells that had been infected with a recombinant vaccinia virus expressing T7 RNA polymerase, and the protease activities of the expressed polyproteins were assayed by examining the extent of self-cleavage at the NS2B-NS3 junction. The results identify a 40-amino-acid segment of NS2B (DEN4 amino acids 1396 to 1435) essential for protease activity. A hydrophobicity profile of DEN4 NS2B predicts this segment constitutes a hydrophilic domain surrounded by hydrophobic regions. Hydrophobicity profiles of the NS2B proteins of other flaviviruses show similar patterns. Amino acid sequence alignment of this domain of DEN4 NS2B with comparable regions of other proteins of flaviviruses indicates significant sequence conservation, especially at the N-terminal end. These observations suggest that the central hydrophilic domain of NS2B of these other flaviviruses will also prove to be essential for protease activity.
Government Debt Dynamics Under Discretion

Abstract This paper studies the dynamics of state-contingent government debt in the case that the fiscal authority cannot commit to a future policy. As is well known, optimal policy under commitment calls for letting debt follow a stationary process, with values that depend on the initial conditions. In contrast, when the fiscal authority lacks the ability to commit, it manipulates its policy tools, i.e. the tax rate and government spending, in order to reduce the intertemporal price of current consumption goods, i.e. the real interest rate, and the intertemporal value of its current outstanding liabilities. If the economy converges, in any steady state the government has either no incentive or no ability to reduce the real interest rate any longer.
Central Versus Thinnest Pachymetry of the Cornea and Thinnest Point Vector Length: Impact of Ocular Side, Refractive State, Age, and Sex

Purpose: To quantify the difference in corneal thickness between the central and thinnest point (&Dgr;CCT-TPCT) and the distance between the center of the cornea and its thinnest point (TPCT vector length) and to explore the impact of ocular side, refractive state, age, and sex. Methods: Multicenter, retrospective, cross-sectional study. Medical records of 8054 eyes of 4027 refractive surgery candidates were reviewed. The correlation between &Dgr;CCT-TPCT and TPCT vector length (Pentacam) and the variables refractive state, age, and sex were assessed. Spearman correlations, t tests, analysis of variance, analysis of covariance, and multiple regression models were used. Results: &Dgr;CCT-TPCT was higher in the left eyes of myopic (3.03 ± 2.29 µm) and hyperopic (4.97 ± 3.19 µm) subjects compared with myopic (2.39 ± 2.28 µm) and hyperopic (4.77 ± 3.97 µm; P < 0.05) right eyes. &Dgr;CCT-TPCT was higher in hyperopic than in myopic (P < 0.001) eyes. TPCT vector length was 0.62 ± 0.28 mm for the right eye and 0.69 ± 0.24 mm for the left eye (P < 0.001). TPCT vector length tended to increase with advancing age. Age had the strongest independent effect on TPCT vector length in myopic (&eegr;2 = 0.018; P < 0.001) and hyperopic (&eegr;2 = 0.028; P = 0.006) right eyes. No difference was observed between male and female subjects. The correlations between &Dgr;CCT-TPCT and TPCT vector length were strong (r > 0.8; P < 0.001). Conclusions: As a result of the significant differences found, normative data on ocular side, refractive state, and age should ideally be incorporated into &Dgr;CCT-TPCT and TPCT vector length reference values.
Monthly Variations in the Nutritional Composition of Antarctic Krill Euphausia superba

Abstract The proximate composition and various specific components of Antarctic krill Euphausia superba , in the catch season between March and August were investigated. Frozen krill were freeze-dried and milled. The proximate composition comprised water, proteins, fats, ash, fatty acids, and amino acids, while the specific components were vitamins, minerals, nucleotides, betaine, and astaxanthin. The moisture content of the krill ranged from 77 to 80%, with the highest value in June, and the ash content was be-tween 12 and 13%. The protein content was lowest in May, and the fat content was 18–19%, with the highest value in March. The amino acid content varied according to the season: taurine and glycine were highest in August; β-alanine was higher in April and May; and arginine, ornithine, and lysine were highest in March. The unsaturated fat content was ~50% and omega-3 fatty acids were highest in June. Oil-soluble vitamins A and E were highest in March, and the water-soluble vitamin content was less than that of oil-soluble vitamins. The mineral content was highest in June, and the most abundant mineral was sodium at 235.60 mg/100 g krill. The content of other minerals was lowest (2.94 mg/100 g) in April, except for lead. The nucleotide content was highest in July, while the betaine content was highest in April and lowest in June. The astaxanthin content was highest in May and ranged from 6 to 10 ppm in other months.
The Early Entrepreneurial Stage in Finnish Family and Nonfamily Firms

This study examined factors influencing the survival and success of 200 Finnish family and nonfamily firms in the metal-based manufacturing industry and business services over the first three years of their operation. The features that this study reviewed include owner-manager personality attributes, entrepreneurial competence, and motives for the start-up. Strategic choices of the firms were also examined. The study found that family firms were better equipped to survive beyond the early entrepreneurial stage than were nonfamily businesses. The entrepreneurial abilities and resources of the family business owners enabled them to operate relatively successfully in the nearby market, often with one unique product. The family firms were more conscious of survival and family well-being than profitability or market position. A higher mortality rate was discovered among the nonfamily firms. Failed firms were often established with unrealistic expectations, and their performance deteriorated rapidly after their early success.
Asymmetric Information, Auditing Commitment, and Economic Growth

We analyze in this paper the growth and welfare consequences arising from the lack of auditing commitment in a credit market with costly state verification. Specifically, two endogenous growth models, of which one allows lenders to commit to costly auditing strategies to identify borrowers' investment returns and the other does not, are compared. We show that the inability to commit acts as an additional source of informational friction that leads to more stringent contractual terms, which in turn result in lower capital accumulation, growth, and welfare. In addition, when a tax on capital is considered, the tax-induced investment distortions are amplified by the absence of auditing commitment. From the policy perspective, our analysis can be interpreted as suggesting a new micro-economic channel through which institutional failings hinder economic growth and social welfare.
Implications of urban structure on carbon consumption in metropolitan areas

Urban structure influences directly or indirectly the majority of all green house gas (GHG) emissions in cities. The prevailing belief is that dense metropolitan areas produce less carbon emissions on a per capita basis than less dense surrounding rural areas. Consequently, density targets have a major role in low-carbon urban developments. However, based on the results of this study, the connection seems unclear or even nonexistent when comprehensive evaluation is made. In this letter, we propose a hybrid life cycle assessment (LCA) method for calculating the consumption-based carbon footprints in metropolitan areas, i.e. carbon consumption, with the emphasis on urban structures. The method is input–output-based hybrid LCA, which operates with the existing data from the region. The study is conducted by performing an analysis of the carbon consumption in two metropolitan areas in Finland, including 11 cities. Both areas consist of a dense city core and a less dense surrounding suburban area. The paper will illustrate that the influence of urban density on carbon emissions is insignificant in the selected metropolitan areas. In addition, the utilized consumption-based method links the climate effects of city-level development to the global production of emissions.