Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Impact of free cash flow on profitability of the firms in automobile sector of Germany

The discourse objective of the study is to investigate the effect of free cash flow on the profitability of firms listed in automotive sector of Germany. The study adopted a descriptive survey that aimed at analyzing the effect. Furthermore, the population of the study consisted of dominant and large firms, for simple random sampling method was used and all the firms within the automotive industry had equal chance of being studied, but only 5 firms were comparatively identified for the purpose of study from the population available and notably the secondary data used for the study were extracted from the audited annual reports and financial statements of the firms listed under the automotive industry of Germany for the period of ten years (2007-2016). Consequently, the regression results indicated that there was a positive relationship between the free cash flows and profitability of listed firms. However, Leverage has an inverse insignificant impact on profitability (ROA) and evidence for this comes from testing the proxies (Leverage, Current asset, Firm size, Capital liquidity, Sales growth, FCF). The findings further denoted R-squared= 0.766504 which substantiates the regression model used for the study is a good predictor, and it explained 76.65% of the variation in profitability (ROA) of the firms.
Adoption of islamic credit card utilizing innovation diffusion theory and theory of reasoned action

Islamic banking is the most developed part of the Islamic financial system. In order to ensure that it is competitive within the banking industry, Islamic banks have to have their own distinctive Islamic-based financial schemes and appealing alternatives to the services offered by conventional banks. Among the Shariah compliance products offered, the main focus of this study is the Islamic credit card (ICC). Currently, the market share of ICC is comparatively smaller than the conventional ones and the service is under-used. Since the factors determining the usage of ICC remained inconclusive, this study was conducted to fill the gaps. Besides, due to the enormous advantages it offers to banks as well as customers, a close examination of the main factors that makes ICC attractive to consumers is worth the study as well. This study expanded a model of antecedents that was found to affect customers’ intentions to adopt ICC. It also used using Innovation Diffusion Theory (IDT) in combination with Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA), along with other related predictors. Using a quantitative methodology, 649 Islamic bank customers in Kuala Lumpur participated in the study and completed the survey. A structural equation modeling (SEM), particularly Partial Least Squares (PLS) was incorporated to evaluate the relationships between constructs and to estimate both the measurements and structural parameters proposed. The results depicted that relative advantage, compatibility, trialability and observability have positive associations with the customers’ intentions to use ICC. The study is a pioneer in terms of extending the validity of IDT in the field of ICC research. Besides, it is also the first in integrating two well-established adoption and acceptance models, namely IDT and TRA in order to provide more in depth results in regards to the acceptance of ICC.
The Impact of Total Quality Management Implementation on Small and Medium Manufacturing Companies

This study aims to analyze the influence of Total Quality Management (TQM) implementation to competitive advantage and company’s performance, especially to small and medium manufacturing company. Using Partial Least Square (PLS) tested the hypothesis of Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). There is significant influence between TQM implementation to competitive advantage. Likewise with a competitive advantage to the company's performance there is significant influence. But there is no significant influence directly between TQM to the company's performance. The study discusses about the implementation of TQM in small and medium manufacturing companies. In the practice, implementation of TQM in small and medium manufacturing companies are not as smooth as the large manufacturing company. DOI: 10.15408/ess.v8i1. 5852
Stock Repurchase Motivation and Effect of Signaling: A Comparative Analysis between U.S. and China

This paper compares different methods used for stock repurchase and examines the role of signaling in the U.S. and Chinese capital markets. We find that the ways to buyback stocks are very difference in two countries. Most U.S. stocks are repurchased through open market and the signal sent to the market through open market repurchase is getting weaker. Even though stock repurchase is at its early stage in the Chinese stock market and the dominated way to buyback is through a negotiated repurchase agreement for non-floating shares, the power of signaling seems much stronger. Examining stock prices pre- and post-repurchase, we find that stock repurchase records an average abnormal return of 3.42% on the announcement date and 3.24% on the date of actual repurchase.
The Development and Construct Validity of a Team Processes Survey Measure

Marks, Mathieu, and Zaccaro (2001) advanced a theory and framework of team processes that has garnered much attention and guided numerous investigations. They proposed that 10 first-order constructs (e.g., strategy formulation, coordination, conflict management) would map to three second-order constructs (i.e., transition, action, and interpersonal). Despite the popularity of this framework, we are unaware of any validated multiitem measures of the team processes they identified. Accordingly, we develop and demonstrate content and construct validity of 50-, 30-, and 10-item versions of a survey measure of team processes. Using data from over 700 teams, we test Marks et al.’s higher-order model and find results that are largely consistent with both their 10 first-order dimensions and the 10:3 second-order framework. Using samples of global virtual knowledge teams and health care employees, we provide evidence of the discriminant validity of our team process measure versus a measure of team empowerment. We provide recommendations for the use of these measures in future research and practice and encourage their use as part of a portfolio of measures of team processes.
Detection and Analysis of Functional Specialization in Duplicated Genes

Gene duplication has long been recognized as a powerful mechanism facilitating development and evolution in genomes. Duplication events produce additional copies of genomic information, perhaps including one or more genes. While in some cases these duplicated elements may be of immediate benefit (i.e. increasing availability and effective dosage of a desired gene product), often they are initially at least somewhat redundant, and either neutral or mildly detrimental to the fitness of the organism. It is perhaps no surprise, then, that the majority of duplicated genes are quickly deactivated by mutations abolishing transcription or translation. Some duplicated genes, however, survive and persist, suggesting that their retention has some benefit. Many of these genes seem to have acquired properties that distinguish them from their progenitors – they may be expressed in a novel tissue type, for example, or differ in their functional specificity. In these cases, it appears as though duplication has facilitated evolution, either by allowing specialization and refinement or, perhaps most intriguingly, generating genes free to mutate and acquire ‘novel’ functions. These retained duplicates form a family of genes related through common ancestry. As a result of their common origin, gene sequences within gene families are often quite similar, complicating the task of assigning them unique and specific functions. As such, there has been a significant effort to study and characterize the evolution of function in the aftermath of a duplication event. This chapter will briefly cover the various modes of gene duplication, and then will focus on the various functional outcomes of duplication. The theoretical models for functional specialization following a duplication event are discussed, as are practical techniques for applying these models to observed gene duplicates.
SOX10 expression in superficial spreading and nodular malignant melanomas

SOX10 is a transcription factor expressed in nerve cells and melanocytes. The aim of this study was to investigate the protein expression pattern of SOX10 in malignant melanoma tumors and to analyze whether the results correlated with clinical parameters and the proliferation marker Ki-67. Furthermore, proliferation and migration were analyzed in three different cell lines employing SOX10 small interfering RNA-mediated silencing. Expression patterns were determined in 106 primary tumors and 39 metastases in addition to 16 normal skin samples and six benign nevi employing immunohistochemistry and tissue microarrays. The immunohistochemical staining was evaluated manually and with an automated algorithm. SOX10 was strongly expressed in the benign tissues, but for the malignant tumors superficial spreading melanomas stained stronger than nodular malignant melanomas (P=0.008). The staining intensity was also inversely correlated with T-stage (Spearman's ρ=−0.261, P=0.008). Overall survival and time to recurrence were significantly correlated with SOX10 intensity, but not in multivariate analysis including T-stage. With the automated algorithm there was an inverse correlation between the SOX10 staining intensity and the proliferation marker, Ki-67 (ρ=−0.173, P=0.02) and a significant difference in the intensity signal between the benign tissues, the primary tumors and the metastases where the metastases stained the weakest (P≤0.001). SOX10 downregulation resulted in variable effects on proliferation and migration rates in the melanoma cell lines. In conclusion, the SOX10 intensity level differed depending on the tissue studied and SOX10 might have a role in survival. No conclusion regarding the role of SOX10 for in-vitro proliferation and migration could be drawn.
AtBGAL10 Is the Main Xyloglucan β-Galactosidase in Arabidopsis, and Its Absence Results in Unusual Xyloglucan Subunits and Growth Defects1[W][OA]

In growing cells, xyloglucan is thought to connect cellulose microfibrils and regulate their separation during wall extension. In Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), a significant proportion of xyloglucan side chains contain β-galactose linked to α-xylose at O2. In this work, we identified AtBGAL10 (At5g63810) as the gene responsible for the majority of β-galactosidase activity against xyloglucan. Xyloglucan from bgal10 insertional mutants was found to contain a large proportion of unusual subunits, such as GLG and GLLG. These subunits were not detected in a bgal10 xyl1 double mutant, deficient in both β-galactosidase and α-xylosidase. Xyloglucan from bgal10 xyl1 plants was enriched instead in XXLG/XLXG and XLLG subunits. In both cases, changes in xyloglucan composition were larger in the endoglucanase-accessible fraction. These results suggest that glycosidases acting on nonreducing ends digest large amounts of xyloglucan in wild-type plants, while plants deficient in any of these activities accumulate partly digested subunits. In both bgal10 and bgal10 xyl1, siliques and sepals were shorter, a phenotype that could be explained by an excess of nonreducing ends leading to a reinforced xyloglucan network. Additionally, AtBGAL10 expression was examined with a promoter-reporter construct. Expression was high in many cell types undergoing wall extension or remodeling, such as young stems, abscission zones, or developing vasculature, showing good correlation with α-xylosidase expression.
Wear of an Experimental Metal-on-Metal Artificial Disc for the Lumbar Spine

Study Design. In vitro wear simulation. Objective. To determine the type and amount of wear produced by experimental metal-on-metal artificial discs for the lumbar spine. To minimize the amount of wear by changing the carbon content, clearance, and presence of a keel and notch. Summary of Background Data. In contrast to the extensive number of hip joint replacement simulator studies examining the effects of individual design variables on wear, existing artificial lumbar disc wear publications have measured wear using only the final version of each product. That is, the effects of individual variables such as material, diameter, or clearance on wear of artificial discs are not known, even though the importance of such variables has been established in artificial hip wear studies. Methods. Experimental metal-on-metal artificial discs for the lumbar spine were tested in a 3-station, biaxial spine wear simulator designed and constructed by the investigators. Two versions of the implants were manufactured with differences in carbon content, clearance, and the presence of a keel. Additionally, implants were tested with or without a surgical notch. Results. The wear rates of the experimental metal-on-metal lumbar discs in the current study ranged from 6.2 to 15.8 mm3/million cycles. However, changing the carbon content of the ball from low to high, decreasing the initial clearance, and eliminating the anteroposterior keel reduced the wear rate from 12.4 to 7.6 mm3/million cycles. Furthermore, removing the surgical notch reduced the wear rate from 7.6 to 6.2 mm3/million cycles. The surface damage was generally consistent with low lubrication and varying degrees of abrasive and fatigue wear, with impingement of nonbearing surfaces observed at 1.5 million cycles for the longer-term test. Conclusion. Although the implants tested in the current study were experimental, the results suggest that metal-on-metal lumbar discs have the potential to produce wear of this magnitude and mechanism in vivo. Therefore, careful consideration of individual design variables, including those considered in the current study, is necessary to avoid production of excessive wear in artificial lumbar discs.
Hypoxic stress and cancer: imaging the axis of evil in tumor metastasis

Tumors emerge as a result of the sequential acquisition of genetic, epigenetic and somatic alterations promoting cell proliferation and survival. The maintenance and expansion of tumor cells rely on their ability to adapt to changes in their microenvironment, together with the acquisition of the ability to remodel their surroundings. Tumor cells interact with two types of interconnected microenvironments: the metabolic cell autonomous microenvironment and the nonautonomous cellular–molecular microenvironment comprising interactions between tumor cells and the surrounding stroma. Hypoxia is a central player in cancer progression, affecting not only tumor cell autonomous functions, such as cell division and invasion, resistance to therapy and genetic instability, but also nonautonomous processes, such as angiogenesis, lymphangiogenesis and inflammation, all contributing to metastasis. Closely related microenvironmental stressors affecting cancer progression include, in addition to hypoxia, elevated interstitial pressure and oxidative stress. Noninvasive imaging offers multiple means to monitor the tumor microenvironment and its consequences, and can thus assist in the understanding of the biological basis of hypoxia and microenvironmental stress in cancer progression, and in the development of strategies to monitor therapies targeted at stress‐induced tumor progression. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Lakatos’s “Internal History” as Historiography

Imre Lakatos’s conception of the history of science is explicated with the purpose of replying to criticism leveled against it by Thomas Kuhn, Ian Hacking, and others. Kuhn’s primary argument is that the historian’s internal-external distinction is methodologically superior to Lakatos’s distinction because it is “independent” of an analysis of rationality. That distinction, however, appears to be a normative one, harboring an implicit and unarticulated appeal to rationality, despite Kuhn’s claims to the contrary. Lakatos’s history, by contrast, is clearly the history of a normatively defined discipline; of science and not scientists and their activities. How such history can be written, the historiographic and critical tools available for its construction, and its importance as history are considered in detail. In an afterword, the prevalence of Lakatos’s treatment of history in philosophical discussion is indicated: a related approach is shown to arise in social contract theory.
In-phase signal intensity loss in solid renal masses on dual-echo gradient-echo MRI: association with malignancy and pathologic classification.

OBJECTIVE The purposes of this study were to determine the prevalence of in-phase signal intensity loss on dual-echo gradient-echo MRI in solid renal masses using visual and quantitative techniques and to test for any association between in-phase signal intensity loss and pathologic classification. MATERIALS AND METHODS The renal MRI studies of 177 patients (192 solid masses consisting of 166 renal cell carcinomas [RCCs], four malignant non-RCCs, and 22 benign tumors) were qualitatively reviewed by two blinded readers for visual evidence of relative in-phase signal intensity loss. For lesions without visual evidence, whole-lesion ROIs were used to attempt quantification of subtle signal intensity loss between opposed- and in-phase images (signal intensity loss index). RESULTS Visual in-phase signal intensity loss was noted in 18% of clear cell RCC, 42% of papillary RCC, and no benign lesions. There was significant correlation between malignancy and visual signal intensity loss (Fisher exact test, p = 0.0092). Visual signal intensity loss was predictive of papillary RCC over clear cell RCC (odds ratio, 5.79; p = 0.0002) in logistic regression analysis of all RCCs, controlling for size. Quantitative assessment of remaining lesions provided no additional diagnostic benefit. CONCLUSION Visible in-phase signal intensity loss is relatively common within solid renal masses and was associated with RCC and particularly papillary RCC (among all RCCs) in our population. Quantitative analysis in lesions without visible signal intensity loss was not predictive of RCC. Further work should be performed to validate the usefulness of this additional imaging parameter to help characterize renal masses and to determine the impact of this finding on imaging techniques potentially sensitive to susceptibility effects.
New treatment options for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis

Despite the development of effective treatments, tuberculosis (TB) remains a major health problem. TB continues to infect new victims and kills nearly 2 million people annually. The problem is much greater in resource-limited countries but is present worldwide. Inadequate public health resources, cost, the obligatory long treatment period, and adverse drug effects contribute to treatment failures and relapses. Drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) strains arise spontaneously and are propagated by inadequate treatment. According to World Health Organization global data, 17% of MTB strains in new, previously untreated cases are resistant to at least one drug. Approximately, 3.3% of new MTB cases are resistant to both isoniazid and rifampin, also called multidrug resistant (MDR), and rates of MDR-TB are greater than 60% in previously treated patients in some countries. Approximately 5% of cases of MDR-TB are also resistant to fluoroquinolones and to injectable drugs, and are called extensively drug resistant (XDR). Recently, XDR strains have been isolated that are also resistant to all standard second-line anti-TB medications. Successful drug treatment of TB with complex resistance profiles is virtually impossible with currently available drugs. There is a desperate need for new compounds that cure strains resistant to currently available drugs and for drugs that are better tolerated and will shorten treatment regimens. In the short term, new strategies for the management of drug-resistant TB with currently available drugs are being explored. These include the use of high-dose isoniazid, substitution of rifabutin in a small proportion of rifampin-resistant cases, linezolid, fluoroquinolones, and phenothiazines. A number of novel drugs are undergoing clinical testing and will hopefully be available in the near future. These include the newer oxazolidinones, diarylquinolines, nitroimidazopyrans, ethenylenediamines, pyrroles, and benzothiazinones.
DISCRIMINATION OF SPEAKERS USING THE FORMANT DYNAMICS OF /uː/ in BRITISH ENGLISH

A study of speaker-distinguishing properties of the formant dynamics of /uː/ is presented. Measurements at equidistant intervals along the F1 and F2 contours of /uː/ are compared with polynomial characterisations of the contours. Approximating the contours with quadratic and cubic polynomials allows more speaker-distinguishing information to be conveyed with fewer parameters. Based on discriminant analysis, the best value per predictor is provided by a quadratic approximation of F2.
Government of Canada Securities in the Cash, Repo and Securities Lending Markets

This paper documents the properties of Government of Canada securities in cash, repo and securities lending transactions over their life cycle. By tracking every security from issuance to maturity, we are able to highlight inter-linkages between the markets for cash and for specific securities. Our results indicate that the interaction of search frictions with clientele effects may be key to producing the patterns of trade exhibited by bonds of different maturities.
Investigating the feature collection for semantic segmentation via single skip connection

Since the study of deep convolutional neural network became prevalent, one of the important discoveries is that a feature map from a convolutional network can be extracted before going into the fully connected layer and can be used as a saliency map for object detection. Furthermore, the model can use features from each different layer for accurate object detection: the features from different layers can have different properties. As the model goes deeper, it has many latent skip connections and feature maps to elaborate object detection. Although there are many intermediate layers that we can use for semantic segmentation through skip connection, still the characteristics of each skip connection and the best skip connection for this task are uncertain. Therefore, in this study, we exhaustively research skip connections of state-of-the-art deep convolutional networks and investigate the characteristics of the features from each intermediate layer. In addition, this study would suggest how to use a recent deep neural network model for semantic segmentation and it would therefore become a cornerstone for later studies with the state-of-the-art network models.