Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Value Relevance of DuPont Identity

This study provides an empirical support to the relevance of very prevalent and well-established almost a century ago the DuPont Identity in the context of India, one of big 10 emerging markets (Garten, 1997). The DuPont Identity, a familiar form of financial statement analysis (Soliman, 2008) for use in equity valuation (Nissim and Penman, 2001), decomposes the return on equity (ROE) into three multiplicative components: net profit margin (operating efficiency), assets turnover ratio (asset use efficiency) and equity multiplier (financial leverage). The present study is based on the valuation theory which considers the viewpoint of equity investors to empirical investigate the value relevance of accounting information (Beisland, 2009). In this study, value relevance of three measures of accounting information used in the DuPont Identity is investigated for 228 manufacturing firms listed in National Stock Exchange (NSE) of India over a period of ten years from 2006-07 to 2015-2016. The findings indicate that the firms should focus on asset use efficiency and financial leverage components of DuPont Identity since a statistically significant impact of these two components on the stock returns is found. The strategic use of asset efficiency and financial leverage inevitably ensures the operating efficiency of the firms. This empirical investigation is an addition to the value relevance literature with an important insight to the firms and the participants of stock market about the usefulness of DuPont Identity in the context of India.
Descriptive study on the evolution of hospitalization costs for ambulatory care sensitive conditions in Brazil, 2000-2013*

Correspondence: Dayane Kelle de Souza – Rua Lírios do Campo, no 280, Etelvina Carneiro, Belo Horizonte-MG, Brasil CEP: 31746-120 E-mail: dayanekellesouza@hotmail.com Abstract Objective: to analyze the proportions of costs of hospitalizations for ambulatory care sensitive conditions (ACSC) in relation to total hospitalization costs funded by the Brazilian National Health System (SUS) in Brazil, in 2000, 2005, 2010 and 2013, according to sex, age and group of causes. Methods: this is a descriptive study, with data from SUS Hospital Information System (SIH/SUS); the proportion of hospitalization costs for ACSC was estimated in relation to total hospitalization costs. Results: proportions decreased from 23.6% (2000) to 17.4% (2013); higher rates occurred among women (29.8%), children (42.3%) and the elderly (31.7%); on the other hand, there was a significant increase in the proportion of hospitalization costs for angina (237.5%) and pneumonia (84.3%). Conclusion: there were greater reductions in costs among children, elderly and women; however, the persistence of high proportion of costs attributed to cardiovascular diseases stands out, especially hospitalizations for angina.
Example-based 3D face reconstruction from uncalibrated frontal and profile images

Reconstructing 3D face models from multiple uncalibrated 2D face images is usually done by using a single reference 3D face model or some gender/ethnicity-specific 3D face models. However, different persons, even those of the same gender or ethnicity, usually have significantly different faces in terms of their overall appearance, which forms the base of person recognition using faces. Consequently, existing 3D reference model based methods have limited capability of reconstructing 3D face models for a large variety of persons. In this paper, we propose to explore a reservoir of diverse reference models to improve the 3D face reconstruction performance. Specifically, we convert the face reconstruction problem into a multi-label segmentation problem. Its energy function is formulated from different cues, including 1) similarity between the desired output and the initial model, 2) color consistency between different views, 3) smoothness constraint on adjacent pixels, and 4) model consistency within local neighborhood. Experimental results on challenging datasets demonstrate that the proposed algorithm is capable of recovering high quality face models in both qualitative and quantitative evaluations.
Differences in Hematopoietic Stem Cells Contribute to Sexually Dimorphic Inflammatory Responses to High Fat Diet-induced Obesity*

Background: Diet-induced obesity leads to a chronic low grade inflammation with production of activated macrophages associated with systemic sexually dimorphic metabolic dysfunction. Results: Males have enhanced myelopoiesis and a proinflammatory response to obesity compared with females. Conclusion: Sex differences in myelopoiesis result in dimorphic responses to obesity-induced inflammation. Significance: Given differences in inflammatory responses, targeted treatment strategies are probably required for males and females. Women of reproductive age are protected from metabolic disease relative to postmenopausal women and men. Most preclinical rodent studies are skewed toward the use of male mice to study obesity-induced metabolic dysfunction because of a similar protection observed in female mice. How sex differences in obesity-induced inflammatory responses contribute to these observations is unknown. We have compared and contrasted the effects of high fat diet-induced obesity on glucose metabolism and leukocyte activation in multiple depots in male and female C57Bl/6 mice. With both short term and long term high fat diet, male mice demonstrated increased weight gain and CD11c+ adipose tissue macrophage content compared with female mice despite similar degrees of adipocyte hypertrophy. Competitive bone marrow transplant studies demonstrated that obesity induced a preferential contribution of male hematopoietic cells to circulating leukocytes and adipose tissue macrophages compared with female cells independent of the sex of the recipient. Sex differences in macrophage and hematopoietic cell in vitro activation in response to obesogenic cues were observed to explain these results. In summary, this report demonstrates that male and female leukocytes and hematopoietic stem cells have cell-autonomous differences in their response to obesity that contribute to an amplified response in males compared with females.
Schottky MOSFET for VLSI

Recently MOSFET with Schottky source and drain has been considered an important candidate for VLSI because of its ultra-shallow junctions to minimize short-channel effects, low source and drain series resistances, simplified processes, and the elimination of minority carrier injection into the substrate [1]. We present results of MOSFETs with 300Å PtSi as the source and drain contacts. The devices are fabricated on 2 × 1015cm-3, oriented n-Si substrates; and the gate oxide thickness is 250-300Å. Long-channel behavior is observed for devices with channel lengths down to 1 µm, in very good agreement with the generalized guide for MOSFET miniaturization[2]. We observe that the output currents are smaller than those for the conventional MOSFETs. This is explained by the potential barrier arising in the gap between the Schottky source contact and the inversion channel. Extensive Arrhenius plots indicate that the gap has a profound effect in enhancing the corner field which in turn can greatly increase the current availability from the source. By reducing the gap to about 100Å, the current approaches that as expected from the Pao-Sah theory[3].
Uterus‐relaxing effect of β2‐agonists in combination with phosphodiesterase inhibitors: Studies on pregnant rat in vivo and on pregnant human myometrium in vitro

Aims: Our aims were to examine the effects of a simultaneous stimulation of β2‐adrenergic receptors and inhibition of uterine phosphodiesterases (PDE), in the pregnant rat uterus in vivo and on human uterine tissue in vitro. We also set out to measure cAMP levels and detect the expressions of the isoenzymes PDE4B and PDE4D in human uterine tissue samples.
Remission rate of atypical antipsychotic treatment of bipolar depression: experience at Srinagarind Hospital, northeast Thailand.

OBJECTIVE To determine the remission rate when using atypical antipsychotic treatment for bipolar depression at Srinagarind Hospital, Khon Kaen, Thailand. MATERIAL AND METHOD The authors reviewed the patient records for 18 persons, both in- and out-patients, with DSM-IV-TR bipolar depression, treated with atypical antipsychotic(s), at the Department of Psychiatry, Srinagarind Hospital, between May 2005 and April 2008. The remission rate using atypical antipsychotic treatment was assessed using survival analysis while the patterns of prescribing atypical antipsychotics were delineated using percentages. RESULTS Of the 18 patients, 15 fulfilled the remission criteria. The mean time to remission was 10.3 weeks (SD 8.4). The incidence-density of the remission rate for bipolar depression treated with atypical antipsychotics was 8.1 per 100 person-weeks (SD 2.4, 95% CI 4.5-13.4). One patient achieved remission using only atypical antipsychotic monotherapy while 17 received a combination of atypical antipsychotics plus one or more of the following: antidepressants, anticonvulsants, anxiolytics and/or lithium. The present study revealed that remission was 1.4 times higher among females than males and 13 times higher among married than singles. CONCLUSION The incidence-density of the remission rate using atypical antipsychotics for treatment of bipolar depression was 8.1 per 100 person-weeks. Almost all of the patients were treated with a combination of atypical antipsychotics plus other groups of medications. Higher remission was associated with females and married persons.
Feasibility and Safety of Laparoscopic Nephrectomy in Uremic Patients with End-Stage Renal Disease

Introduction The purpose of this study was to analyse the feasibility and safety of laparoscopic radical nephrectomy (LRN) vs. open radical nephrectomy (ORN), in terms of perioperative and postoperative outcomes, in uremic patients. Methods Between September 2007 and December 2013, 19 patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD), who underwent LRN or ORN for chronic pyelonephritis, renal calculi, hydronephrosis, renal tumors, complicated cyst, or associated polycystic kidney, were retrospectively analysed. All patients with complete preoperative clinical and intraoperative parameters, including age at surgery, gender, body mass index (BMI), American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score, surgical technique, operation time, complications, were available for further analyses. The 30-day complication rate in both groups was retrospectively review and graded according to the modified Clavien System in five grades. Results Overall, nine (47.3%) vs. 10 (52.7%) patients underwent LRN vs. ORN, respectively. The mean ASA score (2.7 ± 0.8 vs. 2.9 ± 0.7) did not show statistically significant differences in both groups (p = 0.632). None of the patients in G1 was converted to open surgery for intraoperative complications or CO2 retention. The estimated blood loss was 223 ± 155 mL in G1 and 455 ± 134 mL in G2 (p<0.005). Both groups were comparable with regard to mean operation time. The mean hospital stay was 5.95 ± 1.85 days in G1 and 8.10 ± 1.67 days in G2 (p<0.001). Conclusions The present study revealed that laparoscopic surgery in uremic patients might be performed safely under the expertise of an experienced laparoscopic team. This surgical technique is a minimally invasive treatment, reduces blood loss, shortens postoperative hospital stay, minimizes wound pain, and encourages an earlier return to normal activity.
A Geo-spatial study for analysing temporal responses of NDVI to rainfall

Climate change has become a serious concern worldwide owing to its multifaceted impact upon the physical as well as socio-economic environment (IPCC, 2013). Vulnerability to climate change is much higher in the developing countries like India, where the economy is mainly agro-based and productivity from the agricultural sector is dependent upon summer monsoon rainfall. Hence, assessing the quantitative relationship between vegetation patterns and climatic influence has become an increasingly important study conducted on regional and global scales. As vegetation cover plays a key role in conserving the natural environment, studying the spatio-temporal trend of vegetation is crucial in identifying changes in the natural environment. We analysed the spatial responses of SPOT-VGT NDVI to TRMM based rainfall during a sixteen year period (1998–2013) in the Bundelkhand region of Central India. The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) has proven to be a strong indicator of global vegetation productivity. Among climatic factors, rainfall robustly influences both spatial and temporal outline of NDVI. In this study, we used linear regression for analysing the statistical relationship among NDVI and rainfall and their trends. The study reveals a varying pattern of vegetation dynamics in response to rainfall over the area.
Hybrid Energy Storage Systems for Electric Vehicles: An Experimental Analysis of Performance Improvements at Subzero Temperatures

Electric vehicles based on high-energy lithium-ion batteries often exhibit a substantial loss in performance at subzero temperatures: Due to slower electrochemical kinetics, the internal resistances of the batteries rise and diminish available power and capacity. Hybrid energy storage systems (HESSs) can be used to overcome these weaknesses. In this paper, the performance of two HESSs, combining a high-energy lithium-ion battery with either a high-power lithium-ion battery or a lithium-ion capacitor, has been investigated experimentally for a driving scenario at various temperatures. Both configurations enable driving at -20 °C, which was not possible without hybridization. The HESS using the high-power lithium-ion battery provides a substantially higher driving range due to its higher energy density. An analysis of different operating strategies has helped to maximize the driving range: Discharging the high-energy battery with a constant current and keeping the high-power cell at a higher state of charge (SoC) extend the driving duration, as the requested driving power can still be provided at a lower SoC of the high-energy battery. In addition to the HESSs, two energy storage systems without hybridization, consisting of different generations of high-energy lithium-ion cells, have been examined to disclose improvements in battery technology. These improvements narrow the benefits of HESSs, as the high-energy batteries have become less reliant on the support of an additional high-power device. Although HESSs lose importance for current lithium-ion battery systems, they can be a valuable option for next-generation lithium batteries, which are expected to provide higher energy densities but exhibit reduced rate capability.
Partially Cystic Thyroid Nodules: Ultrasound Findings of Malignancy

Objective To seek for the ultrasound (US) findings of partially cystic thyroid nodules that are associated with malignancy. Materials and Methods We reviewed the US characteristics of 22 surgically confirmed partially cystic papillary carcinomas, and compared them with those of 80 benign partially cystic nodules. The review cases were selected in a random order from a total of 1029 partially cystic nodules that were diagnosed with an US-guided fine needle aspiration biopsy over a period of 8 years (June 2003 to October 2010) at our institution. Results In partially cystic thyroid nodules, a taller-than-wide shape (100%, p < 0.001) and spiculated or microlobulated margin (58.3%, p = 0.003) were significantly associated with malignancy. In terms of internal solid portion of the nodule, eccentric configuration (68.0%, p < 0.001), non-smooth margin (81.3%, p < 0.001), hypoechogenecity (30.0%, p < 0.042), and microcalcification (89.5%, p < 0.001) were more frequently demonstrated in malignant nodules than benign ones. Conclusion In partially cystic thyroid nodules, understanding the characteristics of US findings is important to make a precise diagnosis of malignant nodules.
Macrophyte Species Drive the Variation of Bacterioplankton Community Composition in a Shallow Freshwater Lake

ABSTRACT Macrophytes play an important role in structuring aquatic ecosystems. In this study, we explored whether macrophyte species are involved in determining the bacterioplankton community composition (BCC) in shallow freshwater lakes. The BCC in field areas dominated by different macrophyte species in Taihu Lake, a large, shallow freshwater lake, was investigated over a 1-year period. Subsequently, microcosm experiments were conducted to determine if single species of different types of macrophytes in an isolated environment would alter the BCC. Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE), followed by cloning and sequence analysis of selected samples, was employed to analyze the BCC. The DGGE results of the field investigations indicated that the BCC changed significantly from season to season and that the presence of different macrophyte species resulted in lower BCC similarities in the summer and fall. LIBSHUFF analysis of selected clone libraries from the summer demonstrated different BCCs in the water column surrounding different macrophytes. Relative to the field observations, the microcosm studies indicated that the BCC differed more pronouncedly when associated with different species of macrophytes, which was also supported by LIBSHUFF analysis of the selected clone libraries. Overall, this study suggested that macrophyte species might be an important factor in determining the composition of bacterial communities in this shallow freshwater lake and that the species-specific influence of macrophytes on BCC is variable with the season and distance.
Memory-related functional connectivity in visual processing regions varies by prior emotional context

Memory retrieval involves the reactivation of processes that were engaged at encoding. Using a Generalized Linear Model to test for effects of valence, our prior study suggests that memory for information previously encoded in a negative context reengages sensory processing regions at retrieval to a greater extent than positive. Here, we used partial least squares analyses of the same dataset to determine whether this valence-specific processing was one of the dominant patterns in the retrieval data. Trials previously paired with a face revealed a strong pattern of emotion that did not vary by valence, but for trials previously paired with a scene, an extensive network of regions was active during recollection of trials paired with negative content. These same regions were negatively correlated with recollection of trials paired with positive content. These results confirm that, despite no emotional content present during the time of retrieval, strong patterns of emotional study context are present in the data. Moreover, at least for trials paired with scenes at encoding, valence-specific networks are linked to episodic memory recollection, providing further support for recapitulation of sensory processing during recollection of negative emotional information.
Determination of sex by discriminant function analysis of mandibles from a Central Indian population

CONTEXT Identification of sex from skeletal remains is one of the important forensic considerations. Discriminant function analysis is increasingly used to determine the sex from skeleton. AIMS To develop discriminant function to determine sex from mandible in a Central Indian population. SETTINGS AND DESIGN This was a prospective study done at the Department of Anatomy. MATERIALS AND METHODS The mandibles used in the present study were from the museum specimens. Only 82 adult mandibles (55 male and 27 female) that had been preserved were selected. Ten mandibular parameters were measured. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED Statistical analysis was conducted using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) for Windows, version 16. The level of statistical significance was set at P < 0.05. RESULTS Using stepwise discriminant function analysis, only six variables were selected as the best discriminant between sexes, with the projection length of corpus mandibulae being the most dimorphic. It was observed that sex classification accuracy of the discriminant functions ranged from 57.3 to 80.5% for the individual variables, 81.7% for the stepwise method, and 85.4% for the direct method. CONCLUSION The results of the study show that mandibles can be used for determining sex and the results are comparable with other similar studies. The studied mandibular variables showed sexual dimorphism with an accuracy comparable with other skeletal remains, next to cranium and pelvis.
Do Government and Foreign Funding Influence Individual Donations to Religious Nonprofits? A Survey Experiment in Pakistan

Abstract Donors support faith-based organizations whose missions and work cohere with their religious values. Might such donors located in the local community be less likely to donate to a hypothetical Madrasa, an Islamic seminary providing K-12 education, which receives funding from non-local sources, specifically the federal government or foreign donors? We examine this question using a survey experiment in Lahore, Pakistan. Because some Madrasa students have indulged in acts of terrorism, the government of Pakistan has offered Madrasas financial assistance to secularize their curriculums. Most Madrasas, however, have refused government funding because they fear it will harm their reputations in the local community for piety and religious training. Alongside, several foreign donors also provide funds to Madrasas, some to aid governmental reform efforts, and others for religious reasons. Based on the survey of 530 respondents, we find that acceptance of government funding does not diminish the respondents’ willingness to donate to the hypothetical Madrasa. Additionally, we find modest evidence that willingness to donate diminishes when the Madrasa accepts money from donors in Saudi Arabia and the United States (but not Germany).
Root Type-Specific Reprogramming of Maize Pericycle Transcriptomes by Local High Nitrate Results in Disparate Lateral Root Branching Patterns1[OPEN]

Root type-specific lateral root branching and pericycle-specific transcriptome reprogramming highlight diverse foraging strategies of maize roots in heterogeneous nitrate environments. The adaptability of root system architecture to unevenly distributed mineral nutrients in soil is a key determinant of plant performance. The molecular mechanisms underlying nitrate dependent plasticity of lateral root branching across the different root types of maize are only poorly understood. In this study, detailed morphological and anatomical analyses together with cell type-specific transcriptome profiling experiments combining laser capture microdissection with RNA-seq were performed to unravel the molecular signatures of lateral root formation in primary, seminal, crown, and brace roots of maize (Zea mays) upon local high nitrate stimulation. The four maize root types displayed divergent branching patterns of lateral roots upon local high nitrate stimulation. In particular, brace roots displayed an exceptional architectural plasticity compared to other root types. Transcriptome profiling revealed root type-specific transcriptomic reprogramming of pericycle cells upon local high nitrate stimulation. The alteration of the transcriptomic landscape of brace root pericycle cells in response to local high nitrate stimulation was most significant. Root type-specific transcriptome diversity in response to local high nitrate highlighted differences in the functional adaptability and systemic shoot nitrogen starvation response during development. Integration of morphological, anatomical, and transcriptomic data resulted in a framework underscoring similarity and diversity among root types grown in heterogeneous nitrate environments.