Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Combination of citalopram plus paliperidone is better than citalopram alone in the treatment of somatoform disorder: results of a 6-week randomized study

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness and tolerability of citalopram versus citalopram plus paliperidone combination therapy in patients with somatoform disorders (SDs). In this 6-week, randomized, fixed-dose study, 60 patients with SD (ICD-10 F45.0), undifferentiated SD (F45.1), and somatoform autonomic dysfunction (F45.3) were randomly assigned to receive citalopram (20 mg/day) with or without paliperidone (3 mg/day). Four scales were used to evaluate effectiveness and tolerability at baseline and at the end of the second, fourth, and sixth week after treatment: Somatoform Disorders Screening Symptoms-7 (SOMS-7), Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA), 17-item Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD-17), and Treatment Emergent Symptom Scale (TESS). The rater was blinded to the kind of treatment patients received. (i) In the intention-to-treat population (N=51), the overall response ratio (50% reduction in SMOS-7 scores) was significantly higher in the citalopram–paliperidone group compared with the citalopram group after a 6-week treatment (71.4 vs. 38.10%, &khgr;2=4.71, P=0.03). (ii) The SOMS-7 and somatic subscore of the Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA-SOM) total score of the citalopram plus paliperidone group decreased more significantly than that of the citalopram group, and a significant difference could be observed at the end of 4 weeks of treatment. (iii) There was no significant difference between the two groups in adverse effects, and no serious adverse event was reported in both groups. Our findings indicate that a combination with paliperidone is significantly better than monotherapy with citalopram whether synergistic or add-on for patients with SDs. Our results call for future studies with larger sample sizes and a longer duration to draw more definitive conclusions.
Probing Empirical Attitudes in Academic Finance

This article provides some reflection from early career researchers in finance towards empirical issues in finance. By drawing upon a semi-structured interview method, reflections are sought from five early-career, or young, academics, finding that methodological choices in finance are influenced not only by concerns over method, but by some aspects of ideology.
Welcome to the Dark Side

Hedge funds exhibit a high rate of attrition that has increased substantially over time. Lack of size, lack of performance and an increasingly aggressive attitude of old and new fund managers alike appear to be the main factors behind this phenomenon. Although attrition is high, survivorship bias in hedge fund data is modest, which reflects the relatively small difference in performance between surviving and defunct funds. Concentrating on survivors only will overestimate the average hedge fund return by around 2% per annum. For small, young, and leveraged funds, however, the bias can be as high as 4%–5%. The authors also find significant survivorship bias in estimates of the standard deviation, skewness, and kurtosis of individual hedge fund returns. When not corrected for, this will lead investors to seriously overestimate the benefits of hedge funds. Fund of funds attrition is much lower. Combined with the small difference in performance between surviving and defunct funds of funds, this yields relatively low survivorship bias estimates for funds of funds.
In Books One Finds a House of Gold: education and labor market outcomes in urban China

Data from a 1999–2000 survey of urban workers are employed here to examine the role of education and other factors in both preventing lay-offs and obtaining re-employment. The data are also used to compare the effect of education on the earnings of re-employed workers to that of workers who have never been laid off. The empirical results demonstrate that by the late 1990s education had become a key determinant of successful labor market outcomes. The more education a worker had, the less likely he or she was to be laid off. Similarly, the more education a worker had, the better his or her chances of finding new employment once laid off. Interestingly, the education of workers who experienced a lay-off and then found new employment was rewarded more, in terms of incremental earnings for each additional year of schooling, than that of continuously employed workers.
Intellectual Capital Reporting Practices of the Top Australian Firms

Using content analysis of annual reports of the top 20 firms (by market capitalization) listed on the Australian stock exchange in 2004, this paper describes the state of intellectual capital reporting practices in Australia. The paper also compares the results with a previous Australian study by Guthrie and Petty (2000) and reconfirms that reporting of intellectual capital is yet to be done within a consistent framework. The IC reporting examined was not structured and systematic. There is still no established and generally accepted Australian framework for IC reporting, which could be a reason for inconsistency. Of the IC-related information reported, 73% was in qualitative terms, which essentially creates difficulty in setting benchmarks for managing, measuring and reporting IC performance. External capital was the most reported category, with 48% of the overall IC reporting in this category. It was followed by internal capital with 31% and human capital with 21%. When compared to previous studies, the descriptive statistics show that there has been a modest increase in IC reporting. However, the increase in quantitative reporting is remarkable.
Tourism occupations and education: an exploration study

This article contributes to the literature on the relationship between the tourism industry and vocational tourism education. It reports on an exploratory study of the work of a sample of tourism professionals and their education. The study attempts to classify tourism occupations by modifying an established scheme used in general administration. The study sought to find commonality within the diverse occupations and to go on to relate that to tourism education. The study found that the majority of the sample of 153 contained a common set of 24 activities. In educational terms, marketing, recreation and leisure and finance dominated as relevant subjects to study for tourism occupations. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Rethinking Commercial Revitalization: A Neighborhood Small Business Perspective

Inner-city neighborhood retail development often engenders vigorous popular and political debate about the scale, scope, and location of projects as well as their intended and inadvertent effects for urban landscapes, residents, and consumers. The term commercial revitalization is frequently used to characterize the resurgence of retail activity in neighborhoods previously considered moribund and perilous areas to avoid. In most instances, however, the factors animating commercial revitalization are implicitly assumed and, as such, are conceptually and empirically underdeveloped. This article elucidates commercial revitalization and focuses on the agency of neighborhood small business owners as underexplored stakeholders. Using the extended case methodology, this article examines Black business owners in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, who mounted a relatively successful campaign of retail restructuring by cultivating political clout, establishing civic alliances, participating in neighborhood planning, and promoting the commercial district as an economic and cultural enclave. However, merchants failed to develop mechanisms to sustain their vision and advance commercial revitalization. The article concludes with a discussion of planning and policy implications.
Cysteinyl Leukotrienes Are Autocrine and Paracrine Regulators of Fibrocyte Function1

Pulmonary fibrosis is characterized by the accumulation of fibroblasts and myofibroblasts. These cells may accumulate from three potential sources: the expansion of resident lung fibroblasts, the process of epithelial-mesenchymal transition, or the recruitment and differentiation of circulating mesenchymal precursors known as fibrocytes. We have previously demonstrated that fibrocytes participate in lung fibrogenesis following administration of FITC to mice. We now demonstrate that leukotriene-deficient 5-LO−/− mice are protected from FITC-induced fibrosis. Both murine and human fibrocytes express both cysteinyl leukotriene receptor (CysLT) 1 and CysLT2. In addition, fibrocytes are capable of producing CysLTs and can be regulated via the autocrine or paracrine secretion of these lipid mediators. Exogenous administration of leukotriene (LT) D4, but not LTC4 induces proliferation of both murine and human fibrocytes in a dose-dependent manner. Consistent with this result, CysLT1 receptor antagonists are able to block the mitogenic effects of exogenous LTD4 on fibrocytes. Endogenous production of CysLTs contributes to basal fibrocyte proliferation, but does not alter fibrocyte responses to basic fibroblast growth factor. Although CysLTs can induce the migration of fibrocytes in vitro, they do not appear to be essential for fibrocyte recruitment to the lung in vivo, possibly due to compensatory chemokine-mediated recruitment signals. However, CysLTs do appear to regulate the proliferation of fibrocytes once they are recruited to the lung. These data provide mechanistic insight into the therapeutic benefit of leukotriene synthesis inhibitors and CysLT1 receptor antagonists in animal models of fibrosis.
The World Economy from 1979 to 1988: Results from the MSG2 Model

This paper examines the role played in divergent macroeconomic policies in the major industrial economies in causing the large swings in asset prices and global trade imbalances experienced during the 1980s. Using the MSG2 model of the world economy, it is found that the observed and expected changes in fiscal and monetary policies in the major industrialised economies, as well as the OPEC oil price shocks and cessation of lending to the developing countries, can explain the 1980s experience reasonably well. The results also suggest that coordination of monetary policies alone, will do little to solve the current imbalances.
Informal Technical and Vocational Training Programs (ITVTP) and farming in the province of Isfahan, Iran

Since 1954, various informal training programs for farmers have been implemented to support them in several aspects of their life and careers in Iran. This study aimed at assessing the results of informal technical and vocational training programs (ITVTP) in the field of agriculture on the employment status of farmers in the province of Isfahan in Iran. A number of 330 farmers (equally divided over an experimental and a control group) were selected from 19 townships of the province mentioned to be interviewed. Structured questionnaires were completed during the interviews. The results show the education level of the majority of farmers in both groups is low; most of them are married, smallholder and more than 40 years of age. Statistical analysis showed there is a positive relationship between ITVTP (as an independent variable) and different aspects of the lives and careers of farmers (as dependent variables), such as job stability, job satisfaction and motivation, income generation, investments in the agriculture sector, information and competence, the employment of families, and production capacity of farmers. The findings underline the importance and supporting role of ITVTP for many factors relating farming.
Career challenges for female managers in Egyptian hotels

Purpose – This paper aims at providing a profile of female managers in Egypt, determining their positions in hotel departments, and investigating the challenges preventing them from reaching the top management positions.Design/methodology/approach – A sample of female managers in five star hotels was randomly selected, followed by an in‐depth interview conducted with 56 female managers. This sample represented 37.6 percent of the total population.Findings – The results of the study depicted that the majority of female managers were not in situations that would lead them to the positions of general managers. The study detected several factors preventing female managers from reaching the glass ceiling. The stepwise multiple regression showed that 35.5 percent of the variance in the existence of challenges could be explained by four factors; gender discrimination, relationships at work, mentor support and lack of network access.Research limitations/implications – This study might be considered as a first ste.
Business cycle asymmetry: a deeper look

This paper distinguishes two types of asymmetry in business cycles: deepness and steepness. Deepness is defined as the characteristic that troughs are further below trend than peaks are above. Most previous research has focused exclusively on steepness, which refers to cycles in which contractions are steeper than expansions. A test for deepness is proposed and applied to U.S. postwar quarterly unemployment, real GNP, and industrial production. Evidence of deepness is found for unemployment and industrial production, while the evidence for real GNP is weaker. Previous evidence of steepness in unemployment is confirmed. Copyright 1993 by Oxford University Press.
Thermodynamic Analysis of the Emergence of New Regulatory Properties in a Phosphoribulokinase-Glyceraldehyde 3-Phosphate Dehydrogenase Complex*

Glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase and phosphoribulokinase exist as stable enzymes and as part of a complex inChlamydomonas reinhardtii. We show here that phosphoribulokinase exerts an imprinting on glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase, which affects its catalysis by decreasing the energy barrier of the reactions with NADH or NADPH by 3.8 ± 0.5 and 1.3 ± 0.3 kJ·mol−1. Phosphoribulokinase and glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase within the complex are regulated by NADP(H) but not by NAD(H). The activities of the metastable phosphoribulokinase and glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase released from the complex preincubated with NADP(H) are different from those of the metastable enzymes released from the untreated complex. NADP(H) increases phosphoribulokinase and NADPH-glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase activities with aK̃ 0.5 (NADP) of 0.68 ± 0.16 mm and a K̃ 0.5 (NADPH) of 2.93 ± 0.87 mm and decreases NADH-dependent activity. 1 mm NADP increases the energy barrier of the NADH-glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase-dependent reaction by 1.8 ± 0.2 kJ·mol−1 and decreases that of the reactions catalyzed by phosphoribulokinase and NADPH-glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase by 3 ± 0.2 and 1.2 ± 0.3 kJ·mol−1, respectively. These cofactors have no effect on the independent stable enzymes. Therefore, protein-protein interactions may give rise to new regulatory properties.
The efficacy of subcutaneous recombinant human erythropoietin in the correction of phlebotomy‐induced anemia in autologous blood donors

The efficacy of subcutaneous recombinant human erythropoietin (rhEPO) (500 U/kg; administered twice a week during the 3 weeks before surgery) in the recovery of preoperative hemoglobin concentrations within a 3‐ week period was studied in 40 patients, each of whom donated 2 units (900 mL) of blood for their own use before total hip replacement surgery. Twenty autologous blood donors received rhEPO (EPO group) and 20 were not treated (control group). The initial hemoglobin concentration (14.0 ± 1.0 g/dL [140 ± 10 g/L]) was completely recovered before surgery (14.0 ± 1.6 g/dL [140 ± 16 g/L]) in the EPO group, while a decrease from 13.8 ± 1.1 to 12.2 ± 1.3 g per dL (138 ± 11 to 122 ± 13 g/L) was observed in the control group. The preoperative reticulocyte count showed more than sixfold increase in the EPO group, whereas a twofold to threefold increase was found in the control group. Serum ferritin concentration fell to 42 ± 29 micrograms per L in the EPO group and to 54 ± 35 micrograms per L in the control group. The postoperative serum erythropoietin concentration in the EPO group was significantly lower than that in the control group, but it did not differ from the pretreatment value and was attended by a higher hemoglobin concentration after surgery. Only transient flu‐like symptoms were mentioned by patients who were treated with rhEPO. Changes in blood pressure or platelet count or other adverse events were not observed. This study demonstrates that subcutaneous rhEPO is safe and effective for the complete correction of the loss of 2 units of blood within a 3‐week period.
Characterization of patients receiving palliative chemo- and radiotherapy during end of life at a regional cancer center in Norway

Abstract Background. Many cancer patients receive chemotherapy and radiotherapy their last 30 days [end of life (EOL)]. The benefit is questionable and side effects are common. The aim of this study was to investigate what characterized the patients who received chemo- and radiotherapy during EOL, knowledge that might be used to improve practice. Methods. Patients dead from cancer in 2005 and 2009 were analyzed. Data were collected from hospital medical records. When performance status (PS) was not stated, PS was estimated from other information in the records. A Glasgow Prognostic Score (GPS) of 0, 1 or 2 was assessed from blood values (CRP and albumin). A higher score is associated with a shorter prognosis. Results. In total 616 patients died in 2005; 599 in 2009. Among the 723 analyzed, median age was 71; 42% had metastases at diagnosis (synchronous metastases); 53% had PS 2 and 16% PS 3–4 at the start of last cancer therapy. GPS at the start of last cancer therapy was assessable in 70%; of these, 26% had GPS 1 and 35% GPS 2. Overall, 10% received chemotherapy and 8% radiotherapy during EOL. The proportions varied significantly between the different types of cancer. Multivariate analyses revealed that those at age < 70 years, GPS 2, no contact with our Palliative Care Unit and synchronous metastases received most chemotherapy the last 30 days. PS 3–4, GPS 2 and synchronous metastases were strongest associated with radiotherapy the last 30 days. Conclusion. Ten percent received chemotherapy and 8% radiotherapy the last 30 days of life. GPS 2 and synchronous metastases were most significantly associated with cancer therapy the last 30 days of life, indicating that in general, patients with the shortest survival time after diagnosis of cancer received more chemo- and radiotherapy during EOL than other patients.
The Rhetoric of Sustainability: Perversity, Futility, Jeopardy?

In 1991, development economist and American public intellectual Albert O. Hirschman wrote the Rhetoric of Reaction [1]. In this book, which was prescient of more contemporary popular books such as Naomi Klein’s The Shock Doctrine [2] and James C. Scott’s Seeing Like a State [3], Hirschman proposed a way to understand the kinds of arguments made by conservatives about proposals for change. His compelling trilogy of modes of arguments included arguments of perversity, futility, and jeopardy. I argue here that this schema can additionally be used as a way to understand the limits that are seen to exist to approaching sustainable development. I will demonstrate the pervasiveness of arguments that our best attempts to move toward sustainability in our cities today may present threats that are just as grave as those of not acting. This exercise serves two purposes. One is to urge those who would call themselves sustainability scholars to think critically and carefully about the lines of thought and action that may separate different sustainability motivations from the far reaches of interdisciplinary work in this field. The other is to suggest that, because of the persistence of certain kinds of arguments about the impossibility of sustainability, suggestive of deep and enduring instincts of doubt through human history, we should be skeptical of the legitimacy of these claims about the limitations of achieving sustainable development.
Sustainable marketing: implications of an emerging producer/consumer societal contract

This article offers an explication of the evolving relationship between producers and consumers in the context of sustainable marketing; wherein an evolution toward a 'neutral impact' production and consumption paradigm necessitates that producers and consumers share a mutual responsibility for the products they produce/consume. This shared responsibility may be regarded as an implicit societal contract spanning the lifetime of products (i.e., design, consumption, and disposition). Such a contract suggests an expansion of mutual expectations between producers and consumers, and potentially substantial behavioural and economic implications for each party. The article explores the implications of this societal contract applying agency theory, in which the producer and consumer exchange roles as principal and agent in fulfilling the contract. In addition the authors provide a number of propositions (regarding behaviour and market mechanisms employed by producers and consumers in this emerging market environment) and suggestions for future empirical analysis of this relationship.
An Empirical Investigation of Determinants of Audit Reports in the UK

Prior studies of audit reporting in the UK only analyse either very small, private companies, or large listed companies. In addition, these studies focus on narrowly defined types of modified audit reports, respectively the 'small company' audit qualification, and going-concern related modifications. In contrast, this paper employs a multinomial logit model to analyse the determinants of both going-concern and non going-concern related audit modifications, including modifications for disagreements and limitations on scope. Furthermore, this paper analyses reports over a wide range of both private and public (listed and non-listed) companies. The determinants of audit reports are shown to differ between different types of audit modification. In addition, subsidiary companies hiring large auditors are significantly less likely to receive non going-concern related modifications, whereas non-subsidiary companies hiring large auditors are significantly more likely to receive going-concern related modifications. Copyright Blackwell Publishers Ltd, 2003.
Body composition in urban South Asian women; development of a bioelectrical impedance analysis prediction equation

Abstract Background: Assessment of body composition plays a significant role in combating chronic disease among South Asians. Accurate assessment of body composition by bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) requires population-specific equations which are currently unavailable for urban South Asian women. Aim: To assess validity of direct BIA assessment and selected equations for prediction of total body water (TBW), against Deuterium (2H2O) dilution and develop and validate a population-specific TBW equation for urban South Asian women. Subjects and method: Data of 80 urban Sri Lankan women (30–45 years) were used for this analysis. Body composition was assessed by 2H2O dilution (reference) and BIA. Available BIA equations were assessed for validity. A new TBW equation was generated and validated. Results: Direct BIA measurements and other equations did not meet validation criteria in predicting TBW. TBW by the new equation (TBW = 3.443 + 0.342 × (height2/impedance) + 0.176 × weight) correlated (p < 0.001) with TBW by reference method. TBW using the new equation was not significantly different (25.30 ± 2.4 kg) from the reference (25.32 ± 2.7 kg). Conclusion: Direct use of TBW by instrument and existing equations are less suitable for this population. The new TBW equation is suitable for body composition assessment in urban South Asian women.