Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Validation of the Caregiver Priorities and Child Health Index of Life with Disabilities (CPCHILD) in a sample of Turkish non-ambulatory children with cerebral palsy

Aim: The aim of this study was to translate and transculturally adapt the Caregiver Priorities and Child Health Index of Life with Disabilities questionnaire into the Turkish language and test the reliability and validity. Material and Methods: Eighty-two children with cerebral palsy and their parents were included in the study. The majority of children had spastic cerebral palsy. According to the Gross Motor Function Classification System, 26 children were level III, 30 children were level IV, and 26 children were level V. International accepted guidelines were used in the transcultural adaptation and validation process. Reliability was assessed through statistical analysis of the test results for test-retest and internal consistency. To assess construct validity, Caregiver Priorities and Child Health Index of Life with Disabilities was compared with the Child Health Questionnaire Parent Form. Concurrent validity was assessed by examining how Caregiver Priorities and Child Health Index of Life with Disabilities scores changed according to Gross Motor Function Classification System levels. Results: The mean total score of Caregiver Priorities and Child Health Index of Life with Disabilities was 58.34±26.39. The intraclass correlation coefficient for the total questionnaire score was 0.75, ranging from 0.43 to 0.89 for six domains. Cronbach’s alpha was above 0.80 in all domains of Caregiver Priorities and Child Health Index of Life with Disabilities, except the health domain. The construct validity was good because there was a positive correlation between total Child Health Questionnaire Parent Form and Caregiver Priorities and Child Health Index of Life with Disabilities scores (r=0.58, p<0.01) according to the Pearson correlation analysis. Caregiver Priorities and Child Health Index of Life with Disabilities scores were found to be different between Gross Motor Function Classification System levels (p<0.05). Conclusion: This study showed that the Caregiver Priorities and Child Health Index of Life with Disabilities appears to be easy to administer, seems to have significant validity and reliability, and may be useful in the evaluation of health-related quality of life of children with cerebral palsy.
The Global Epidemic of Childhood Obesity: Poverty, Urbanization, and the Nutrition Transition

Childhood obesity is increasing worldwide at rates of epidemic proportion (1, 2). Previously a public health concern of only the modern, industrialized world, this problem now increasingly affects children and adolescents of poor, developing countries. This new and somewhat baffling phenomenon urgently begs the question: How is it that impoverished children around the world become obese? Recent studies suggest that rapid globalization and urbanization account for significant shifts in dietary patterns and physical activity levels that tend to increase risks for obesity in children. Industrialized agro-food systems established by global corporations have made cheap calorie-dense foods, fats, and oils widely available across the world and have caused what researchers call a nutrition transition . This new global diet has led to increases in fat consumption worldwide (2, 5). Rapidly increasing urbanization has resulted in greater dependence on mechanized transportation and the loss of safe, open spaces for physical activity (2, 5). The combination of increasingly sedentary lifestyles and a lipid-rich diet is documented both in children of poor countries, as well as among impoverished children of the US and other industrialized nations. The global nature of this epidemiological trend indicates that global interventions will be necessary to adequately address the social, economic, and political forces that impact access to healthy food, and voluntary participation in physical activity and consequently lead to increasing rates of childhood obesity worldwide.
ENERGY INTAKE FROM ULTRA-PROCESSED FOODS AMONG ADOLESCENTS

ASTRACT Objective: To evaluate the consumption of ultra-processed foods and related factors in adolescents. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study conducted with 784 adolescents (both sexes and aged between 12 and 19 years) from public and private schools in the municipality of Palmeira das Missões, Brazil. Food consumption was recorded by the semiquantitative questionnaire of frequency of food consumption and converted to energy (kcal/day). Foods were classified as minimally processed, group 1 (G1); processed foods, group 2 (G2); and ultra-processed foods, group 3 (G3). The variables evaluated were sex, socioeconomic class, color, physical activity, body mass index, and blood pressure levels. In the comparison of quantitative variables, the Mann-Whitney test and the Kruskal-Wallis H test were used. To adjust the differences between the groups, considering the effects of total calories, the covariance analysis test (ANCOVA) was applied. Results: The median of the total energy consumption was 3,039.8 kcal, and that of ultra-processed foods was 1,496.5 kcal/day (49.23%). The caloric intake from foods in G1, G2, and G3 did not differ according to the skin color of the adolescents. Those belonging to socioeconomic classes C and D are the most frequent consumers of calories from G2 and G3 (p<0.001). Underactive teens consume fewer calories from minimally processed foods. Eutrophic adolescents present higher consumption of G3 foods (p<0.001) when compared to those who are overweight. Conclusions: The consumption of ultra-processed foods was associated with socioeconomic level, physical activity level, and nutritional status.
Cardiovascular Changes during Sodium Nitroprusside or Adenosine Triphosphate Infusion in the Rat

The purpose of these experiments was to compare the cardiovascular and regional hemodynamic effects of two hypotensive drugs, sodium nitroprusside (SNP) and adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Rats anesthetized with halothane were studied under control conditions and during hypotension of 65 and 40 torr induced with intravenous SNP (group 1) or ATP (group 2). Cardiac output and regional hemodynamic changes were measured with radioactive microspheres. A third group of control rats received sham infusions without SNP or ATP. SNP-induced hypotension was associated with no significant changes in heart rate or cardiac output. Hypotension induced with ATP was associated with a significant decrease in heart rate and a significant increase in cardiac output. Cerebral blood flow did not change at mean pressure levels of 65 or 40 torr with either SNP or ATP. Both renal and skin blood flow decreased significantly during SNP- and ATP-induced hypotension. Hypotension induced with SNP and ATP significantly increased skeletal muscle blood flow compared with saline control treatment. These changes were greater in rats treated with SNP than in rats treated with ATP. Differences between SNP and ATP were also observed in myocardial blood flow. Intravenous ATP infusion resulted in 200% to 300% increases in myocardial blood flow whereas SNP produced no significant change. The results indicate that compared with SNP, ATP has certain advantages for the induction of hypotension. These include an absence of tachyphylaxis during hypotensive anesthesia and the ability to maintain a constant level of blood pressure by titrating the ATP dose. Major differences between the two drugs were apparent in skeletal muscle, where SNP was a more potent vasodilator, and in the heart, where ATP was associated with large increases in myocardial blood flow.
What are the Preconditions for Turnarounds in Failing States?

This paper analyzes the preconditions for sustained policy turnarounds in failing states. Our dependent variable is the probability of the commencement of a turnaround that eventually becomes both sustained and substantial. We focus upon the explanatory variables of resource rents, education, and aid, distinguishing between finance and technical assistance. Overall, we find that these variables have significant and large effects on the duration of state failure. Appropriate donor intervention can radically shorten state failure, whereas additional finance, whether from aid or resource rents, has the opposite effect.
LABOUR SEGMENTATION AND EMPLOYMENT DIVERSITY IN THE ICT SERVICE SECTOR IN PORTUGAL

ABSTRACT This paper provides an overview of the main ongoing employment changes taking place in Portugal and particular emphasis is given to the information and communication technologies (ICT) sector. However, due to its heterogeneous composition, both intensive and low-knowledge services are addressed in this sector, ranging from ICT companies in general to call centres in particular. Starting with a brief revision of both optimistic and critical approaches to the new service-based economy, the paper seeks to contribute to this theoretical debate through the analysis of a very singular context, the Portuguese one, based on the results of a research project. The main argument points out that employment changes in the ICT sector are associated with labour segmentation and growing differences in work and employment conditions, including gender inequalities.
The determinants of workplace direct participation: evidence from a regional survey

Multivariate analysis of survey data for a Spanish region suggests a model of direct participation aimed mostly at workersâ€™ integration within a broadly neo-Tayloristic approach to labour management and pragmatism of unions and managers. These results question dominant perceptions of the determinants of direct participation, especially that direct participation may always be connected to change and that it cannot enhance institutional industrial relations and participation processes. The political system of industrial relations appears to mediate developments.
[Effects of recent upper respiratory-tract infections on incidence of the perioperative respiratory adverse events in children: a prospective cohort study].

OBJECTIVE To investigate the effects of the recent upper respiratory tract infections (URI) on the incidence of perioperative respiratory adverse events in children scheduled to undergo general anesthesia and elective surgery. METHODS In the study, 232 children undergoing general anesthesia with laryngeal mask airway (LMA) for elective ophthalmic surgeries at Peking University First Hospital, Beijing, China, from Nov. 1, 2015 to May 10, 2016 were enrolled. On the day of the surgery, the parents of the children were preoperatively asked to fill out a questionnaire regarding the baseline characteristics and medical history of the children, including gender, age, height, weight, history of URI within the last 2 weeks before anesthesia, history of premature, long-term passive smoking exposure, habitual sleep snoring, and history of asthma. In addition, all adverse respiratory events throughout the perioperative periods (oxygen desaturation, cough, copious secretions, laryngospasm and bronchospasm) as well as peri-operative variables (number of attempts to insert the LMA successfully, anesthesia duration and so on) were recorded. Multivariate Logistic regression analysis was applied to identify independent risk factors of perioperative respiratory adverse events. RESULTS Among the 232 children included in the study, 28.0% (65/232) presented with a history of a recent URI within the last 2 weeks before anesthesia. The presence of the recent URI increased the incidence of oxygen desaturation (23.1% vs.12.0%, P=0.034), copious secretions (15.4% vs. 6.6%, P=0.036) and any of all the adverse respiratory events (32.3% vs. 18.6%, P=0.024). Multivariate Logistic regression analysis identified two independent risk factors of perioperative adverse respiratory events: a history of URI within the last 2 weeks before general anesthesia (OR=2.021, 95%CI: 1.023-3.994, P=0.043) and habitual sleep snoring (OR=3.660, 95%CI: 1.517-8.832, P=0.004). CONCLUSION A history of a recent URI within 2 weeks before general anesthesia was associated with a higher incidence of oxygen desaturation, copious secretions and the overall respiratory adverse events. For the children with recent URI, we recommend the general anesthesia and elective surgery should be postponed for at least 2 weeks after the URI.
Exploring the Agency Cost of Debt: Evidence from the ISS Governance Standards

Corporate governance is usually viewed in the context of strengthening shareholder rights and enhancing shareholders’ welfare. However, the impact of corporate governance on bondholders is much less understood. We explore how corporate governance influences the cost of debt financing. Using broad governance metrics encompassing fifty governance attributes reported by The Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), we document that stronger corporate governance is associated with a higher cost of debt. As governance strengthens by one standard deviation, the cost of debt rises by as much as 11 %. The results are robust even after controlling for both firm-specific and issue-specific characteristics. Our results are important because they suggest that corporate governance has a palpable effect on critical corporate outcomes such as credit ratings and bond yields. More importantly, we show that, while corporate governance may mitigate the agency conflict between managers and shareholders, it appears to exacerbate the agency conflict between shareholders and bondholders (the agency cost of debt).
True and Spurious Duration Dependence: The Identifiability of the Proportional Hazard Model

Lancaster and Nickell (1980) have argued that in the proportional hazard model the effects of time dependence (true duration dependence) and unobserved sample heterogeneity (spurious duration dependence) cannot be distinguished. We show that both effects can be distinguished if the model allows for observed explanatory variables in the hazard. We also discuss the application of our result to practical situations.
Imperfect Competition and Structural Changes in the US Salmon Import Market

ABSTRACT This article examines the extent of competition in the US salmon import market using a residual demand model. The estimated residual demand elasticity is coincident with the profit margin, which depends on market demand and competitors' supply as well as production cost. The estimation results reveal the following: (1) the forces driving the jointly dominant positions of Chilean and Canadian salmon exporters, (2) the suppliers' allocation decisions by product form, (3) the consequences of the antidumping order (AD) imposed on Chilean salmon, and (4) the impacts of the 2008 infectious salmon anemia (ISA) outbreak on Chilean exports, competitors' supply, and market demand. JEL Codes: Q17, Q13, F14.
The Relation between Skill Levels and the Cyclical Variability of Employment, Hours, and Wages

This paper uses micro panel data to examine differences in the cyclical variability of employment, hours, and real wages for skilled and unskilled workers. Contrary to conventional wisdom, we find that, at the aggregate level, skilled and unskilled workers are subject to essentially the same degree of cyclical variation in wages. However, important differences emerge in the patterns of employment and hours variation for skilled versus unskilled workers, especially when a college degree is used as a proxy for skills. We find that the quality of labor input per manhour tends to rise in recessions, thereby inducing a countercyclical bias in aggregate measures of the real wage. We also find substantial differences across industries in the cyclical variation of employment, hours, and wage differentials, which we interpret as indicative of important inter-industry differences in labor contracting.
The Moran model with selection (and mutation) : fixation probabilities, ancestral lines, and an alternative particle representation

This thesis is devoted to a classical model of population genetics, namely, the Moran model in continuous time with two allelic types, (fertility) selection, and mutation. We concentrate on the ancestral line and its stationary type distribution. Building on work by Fearnhead (2002) and Taylor (2007), this distribution may be characterised via the fixation probability of the offspring of all individuals of favourable type (regardless of the offspring's types). Both approaches employ the diffusion limit from the very beginning. The resulting expression for the stationary distribution does not have an obvious interpretation in terms of the graphical representation of the model. Therefore, we concentrate on a finite population and stay with the resulting discrete setting all the way through. This way, we extend previous results and gain new insight into the underlying particle picture. As a further approach we restrict ourselves on a Moran model with selection. We introduce a new particle representation, which we call the labelled Moran model, and which has the same distribution of type frequencies as the original Moran model, provided the initial values are chosen appropriately. In the new model, each individual is characterised by a label; neutral resampling events may take place between arbitrary labels, whereas selective events only occur in the direction of increasing labels. We recover fixation probabilities and obtain detailed insight into the number and nature of selective events that play a role in the fixation process forward in time. The distribution of these events establishes a link to the work of Fearnhead and Taylor.
Unravelling the Hrm-Performance Link: Value-Creating and Cost-Increasing Effects of Small Business HRM

The majority of empirical studies on the HRM-performance link report a positive story. The costs associated with the productivity rise due to high performance work practices (HPWP) have been largely neglected. The purpose of this study is to develop a conceptual framework that maps both the value-enhancing and cost-raising impact of HPWP. In addition, we want to pronounce upon their overall effect on financial performance. To test our model, we rely on a sample of small businesses. Understanding both performance and cost-related effects of the implementation of HPWP is particularly valuable for small businesses since they often lack financial resources to implement HPWP and benefit less from economies of scale compared to their larger counterparts. Study results indicate that although greater use of HPWP is associated with increased productivity, this effect is offset by increased labour costs. However, we find an overall positive effect of HPWP on firm profitability.
Psychological elements explaining the consumer's adoption and use of a website recommendation system: A theoretical framework proposal

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to understand, with an emphasis on the psychological perspective of the research problem, the consumer's adoption and use of a certain web site recommendation system as well as the main psychological outcomes involved.Design/methodology/approach – The approach takes the form of theoretical modelling.Findings – A conceptual model is proposed and discussed. A total of 20 research propositions are theoretically analyzed and justified.Research limitations/implications – The theoretical discussion developed here is not empirically validated. This represents an opportunity for future research.Practical implications – The ideas extracted from the discussion of the conceptual model should be a help for recommendation systems designers and web site managers, so that they may be more aware, when working with such systems, of the psychological process consumers undergo when interacting with them. In this regard, numerous practical reflections and suggestions are presented.Origi.
The Growth and Stabilization Properties of Fiscal Policy in Malaysia

This paper examines the size of the fiscal multiplier values generated in Malaysia. The results show that a government spending shock leads to broad positive economic effects. Although, the effectiveness of fiscal policy alters across macroeconomic states. The estimates show that since the Asian financial crisis the medium- and long-run effect of fiscal policy spending has declined. Some of this is down to greater credit availability and less investment spending.
Rapid identification of Giardia duodenalis assemblages in NSW using terminal-restriction fragment length polymorphism

SUMMARY Humans are infected by 2 genetic assemblages (A and B) of Giardia duodenalis, a protozoan parasite that causes gastro-intestinal disease. Sub-assemblages AI, AII, BIII and BIV are commonly identified in human cases. Detection requires amplification of G. duodenalis loci. Subsequent DNA sequencing or restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) identifies sub-assemblages but is expensive (DNA sequencing) or insensitive (RFLP). This study investigated a fluorescence-based detection method, using terminal-restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) of the glutamate dehydrogenase gene to characterize human infections. Clinical samples (n=73), positive for Giardia were collected in New South Wales, Australia, and were used to evaluate T-RFLP detection. The accuracy and sensitivity of T-RFLP detection was established by comparison to DNA sequencing and RFLP. Sub-assemblage assignment by T-RFLP identified BIV as the common subtype in N.S. W cases, whilst AI, AII and BIII were also detected. When compared to DNA sequencing and RFLP, analysis by T-RFLP was a reliable and reproducible method. Automated fluorescent detection enabled accurate sizing of restriction fragments and provided a sensitive alternative to RFLP. Discrimination of sub-assemblages by T-RFLP was comparable to DNA sequencing, but was efficient and inexpensive. The protocol described here provides a rapid and sensitive diagnostic tool for routine sample screenings in epidemiological research.
An Evaluation of the Impact of Clubhouse Membership On Quality of Life and Treatment Utilization

A group of clubhouse users matched with similar patients (not clubhouse users) in a neighbouring area were compared in terms of quality of life (Lancashire Quality of Life Profile), service utilization and treatment costs over a two year period. The clubhouse group achieved a reasonable employment status and good social relationships, and advantages in subjective well-being favoured the clubhouse group. Over two years the pattern of service utilization and costs also favoured the clubhouse group. When the two groups were disaggregated for employment status the group with least treatment utilization and lowest costs was the employed clubhouse group.
Towards an Accurate Description of Affordability

This paper draws upon the poverty literature and examines the desirable properties of a descriptive statistic of affordability—namely, that it should satisfy three axioms, monotonicity, transfer and transfer sensitivity. The descriptive statistics of headcounts and averages do not satisfy these three axioms and policies using these statistics as allocative tools may be misallocating resources. The paper advocates the use of a Foster, Greer, Thorbecke statistic (FGT). Examples of different hypothetical households are used to show the contradictory results that can be obtained by using the current statistics. As a case study, the paper compares regional affordability rankings in England by looking at the FGT, headcount and mean values of the rent—income ratio using the 1995/96 Existing Tenants' Survey.
Testing the Continuous Semimartingale Hypothesis for the S&P 500

Large amounts of intraday data of the S&P 500 stock index futures are used to test the hypothesis that the log-return process, corrected for drift, is a continuous martingale. We use the time change for martingales theorem to rephrase the hypothesis and test whether the return process, corrected for drift, is a time-changed Brownian motion. This hypothesis cannot be rejected.