Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ethnic Identity and Heritage Language Ability in Second Generation Canadians in Toronto

This study examines the relationship between heritage language ability and ethnic identity in a sample of ethnically diverse second generation Canadians. Previous literature suggests that ethnic identity and heritage language ability are strongly related. The findings from this study, gleaned from 114 surveys and 2 focus group interviews, only partially support this hypothesis. Instead, this study reveals that identity is a complex and mutable concept that is more clearly related to oral language ability than to language literacy. The findings suggest a distinction between external/behavioral expressions of ethnic identity, such as participation in ethnic activities, and internal/attitudinal markers of identity, such as pride or belief in group values. The results from both the interviews and the surveys indicate that participation in ethnic practices is related to oral language ability but not literacy. No clear link between internal aspects of identity and language ability was found.
A Model of the Endogenous Development of Judicial Institutions in Federal and International Systems

Why do sets of sovereign governments create judicial institutions and grant these institutions the power to rule their actions invalid? Once such a court is created, under what conditions is that court able to rule against these governments and get compliance with their rulings? Finally, how might the influence of the court change over time? This study presents a general theory of judicial institutions that provides a unified answer to these three questions. I argue that governments create judicial institutions to help solve collective action problems endemic to operating under a common regulatory regime. Once established, a court in its institutional “infancy” is capable of facilitating compliance with that regulatory regime's rules but only consistent with the purpose for which the governments created the court. And finally, once the court has earned the trust of a government's public, its ability to enforce the regulatory regime's rules qualitatively expands. In demonstrating this last point, I derive how and why publics can rationally come to believe that supporting a court, if there was a conflict between its government and the court, would be in that public's interest.
Features and Implications of Semi-Parliamentarism: The Direct Election of Italian Mayors

An important electoral and institutional reform has been introduced in Italian local government since 1993: the direct election of the mayor and of the president of the provincial government, but with the possibility that the legislature may pass a vote of no confidence in them. Through this reform a new system of government has been established: semi-parliamentarism, institutionally different from the established democratic systems of government. So far, this system appears to have had positive effects on the stability of Italian local government, although it did not reduce (as it was not expected to do) the traditional multi-party format of the Italian local party system. The question arises whether the latter insignificant effect might constrain the former positive effect.
The Descriptive Tyranny of the Common Assessment Framework: Technologies of Categorization and Professional Practice in Child Welfare

The Common Assessment Framework is a standard assessment tool to be used by all professionals working with children for assessment and referral. The CAF is hailed as a needs-led, evidence-based tool which will promote uniformity, ensure appropriate ‘early intervention’, reduce referral rates to local authority children's services and lead to the evolution of ‘a common language’ amongst child welfare professionals. This paper presents findings from a study, funded under the Economic and Social Research Council's e-Society Programme. Our purpose in is not primarily evaluative, rather we illustrate the impacts of CAF as a technology on the everyday professional practices in child welfare. We analyse the descriptive, stylistic and interpretive demands it places on practitioners in child welfare and argue that practitioners make strategic and moral decisions about whether and when to complete a CAF and how to do so. These are based on assessments of their accountabilities, their level of child welfare competence and their domain-specific knowledge, moral judgements and the institutional contexts in which these are played out.
Historical and ecological determinants of genetic structure in arctic canids

Wolves (Canis lupus) and arctic foxes (Alopex lagopus) are the only canid species found throughout the mainland tundra and arctic islands of North America. Contrasting evolutionary histories, and the contemporary ecology of each species, have combined to produce their divergent population genetic characteristics. Arctic foxes are more variable than wolves, and both island and mainland fox populations possess similarly high microsatellite variation. These differences result from larger effective population sizes in arctic foxes, and the fact that, unlike wolves, foxes were not isolated in discrete refugia during the Pleistocene. Despite the large physical distances and distinct ecotypes represented, a single, panmictic population of arctic foxes was found which spans the Svalbard Archipelago and the North American range of the species. This pattern likely reflects both the absence of historical population bottlenecks and current, high levels of gene flow following frequent long‐distance foraging movements. In contrast, genetic structure in wolves correlates strongly to transitions in habitat type, and is probably determined by natal habitat‐biased dispersal. Nonrandom dispersal may be cued by relative levels of vegetation cover between tundra and forest habitats, but especially by wolf prey specialization on ungulate species of familiar type and behaviour (sedentary or migratory). Results presented here suggest that, through its influence on sea ice, vegetation, prey dynamics and distribution, continued arctic climate change may have effects as dramatic as those of the Pleistocene on the genetic structure of arctic canid species.
The Role of Attitudes and Objectives in Farmer Decision Making: Business and Environmentally‐Oriented Behaviour in Scotland

Despite considerable effort to understand and represent decision making by farmers, there has been little attempt to integrate socio‐economic, psychological and farming variables within a comprehensive framework. This paper attempts to do this in the context of two types of farming behaviour ‐ business and environmental ‐for a sample of over 200 Scottish farmers. Using variables covering their attitudes, objectives and behaviours relevant to many aspects of farming, we proposed mediating variables models of business‐oriented and environmentally‐oriented farming behaviours. Structural equation modelling was used to test the adequacy of the proposed models. The results of the study emphasise the importance of psychological factors in the decision making of farmers.
Introduction of complementary food to infants within the first six months postpartum in rural Vietnam

Aim: To document the introduction of complementary food and factors influencing the decision to feed infants with solid food within 6 mo postpartum in rural Vietnam. Methods: A longitudinal study of 463 women who gave birth during August–October 2002 was conducted. Results: An early introduction of complementary food was found, which increased from 16.4% at week 1 to 56.5% at week 16 and nearly 100% at week 24. Home‐cooked solid food was introduced by 4.8%, 40.9% and 74.3% of women at weeks 1, 16 and 24, respectively. Logistic regression analysis found that at week 24 postpartum, it was less likely for the infant to be fed with solid food if the mother was a farmer (OR 0.52, 95% CI: 0.18–0.95) and passed secondary school (OR 0.28, 95% CI: 0.10–0.54), whose husband was satisfied with the infant's sex (OR 0.30, 95% CI: 0.17–0.53), her mother‐in‐law preferred exclusive breastfeeding (OR 0.18, 95% CI: 0.04–0.75), or her friends practised exclusive breastfeeding (OR 0.41, 95% CI: 0.16–1.10). However, infants were likely to be fed with solid food when their parents had higher income and lived independently (OR 1.76, 95% CI: 1.01–3.06).
Audit Committee Composition and the Use of an Industry Specialist Audit Firm

Independent, competent boards of directors and audit committees are said to be important mechanisms of corporate governance. The purpose of the present study is to empirically examine the association between audit committee composition and audit quality. Specifically, the link between the proportion of non-executive directors on an audit committee, financial qualifications of directors and the number of audit committee meetings held in a year are investigated and expected to have a positive association with the quality of the audit firm used. Audit quality is proxied by industry specialization. The results support the link between a higher proportion of non-executive directors on an audit committee and use of an industry specialist audit firm. Other measures of audit committee quality (those with a higher proportion of directors with financial qualifications and those that meet more frequently) are not significantly associated with the use of an industry specialist audit firm. Sensitivity analysis shows that the presence of an audit committee is linked to use of an industry specialist audit firm.
Spectral Mapping Using Prior Re-Estimation of i-Vectors and System Fusion for Voice Conversion

In this paper, we propose a new voice conversion (VC) method using i-vectors which consider low-dimensional representation of speech utterances. An attempt is made to restrict the i-vector variability in the intermediate computation of total variability ($\mathbf {T}$ ) matrix by using a novel approach that uses modified-prior distribution of the intermediate i-vectors. This $\mathbf {T}$-modification improves the speaker individuality conversion. For further improvement of conversion score and to keep a better balance between similarity and quality, band-wise spectrogram fusion between conventional joint density Gaussian mixture model (JDGMM) and i-vector based converted spectrograms is employed. The fused spectrogram retains more spectral details and leverages the complementary merits of each subsystem. Experiments in terms of objective and subjective evaluation are conducted extensively on CMU ARCTIC database. The results show that the proposed technique can produce a better trade-off between similarity and quality score than other state-of-the-art baseline VC methods. Furthermore, it works better than JDGMM in limited VC training data. The proposed VC performs moderately better (both objective and subjective) than mixture of factor analyzer based baseline VC. In addition, the proposed VC provides better quality converted speech as compared to maximum likelihood-GMM VC with dynamic feature constraint.
The Effect of Free Cash Flow Agency Problem on the Value Relevance of Earnings and Book Value

Prior research identifies free cash flow (FCF) as one source of agency problems between managers and shareholders. Managers of firms with high FCF and of low growth opportunity tend to invest in marginal or even negative NPV project and use income increasing discretionary accruals to camouflage the effects of non‐wealth‐maximizing investments. Therefore, the objective of this study is to assess the value relevance of earnings and book value and the effect of agency problem caused by FCF, on the value relevance of earnings and book value. As predicted, results show that earnings and book value are value relevant and agency problem caused by FCF, reduces the value relevance of earnings and book value. However, the effect is not stable across sample years Firms with FCF agency problem do not have lower earnings (book value) coefficient than other firms in year 2002 (2004). Investigation into specific event that may have driven the difference in result is subject to further research.
TAL-1/SCL and Its Partners E47 and LMO2 Up-Regulate VE-Cadherin Expression in Endothelial Cells

ABSTRACT The basic helix-loop-helix TAL-1/SCL essential for hematopoietic development is also required during vascular development for embryonic angiogenesis. We reported that TAL-1 acts positively on postnatal angiogenesis by stimulating endothelial morphogenesis. Here, we investigated the functional consequences of TAL-1 silencing in human primary endothelial cells. We found that TAL-1 knockdown caused the inhibition of in vitro tubulomorphogenesis, which was associated with a dramatic reduction in vascular endothelial cadherin (VE-cadherin) at intercellular junctions. Consistently, silencing of TAL-1 as well as of its cofactors E47 and LMO2 down-regulated VE-cadherin at both the mRNA and the protein level. Endogenous VE-cadherin transcription could be activated in nonendothelial HEK-293 cells by the sole concomitant ectopic expression of TAL-1, E47, and LMO2. Transient transfections in human primary endothelial cells derived from umbilical vein (HUVECs) demonstrated that VE-cadherin promoter activity was dependent on the integrity of a specialized E-box associated with a GATA motif and was maximal with the coexpression of the different components of the TAL-1 complex. Finally, chromatin immunoprecipitation assays showed that TAL-1 and its cofactors occupied the VE-cadherin promoter in HUVECs. Together, these data identify VE-cadherin as a bona fide target gene of the TAL-1 complex in the endothelial lineage, providing a first clue to TAL-1 function in angiogenesis.
Efficiency, Innovation and Exports

Previous research (on countries other than the UK) finds better-performing firms to be more likely to export. We test this hypothesis for UK firms. The relationship between exporting and firm variables is significantly different for firms that have experienced a major innovation ("innovating firms"). Noninnovating firms are more likely to export if they have lower unit labour costs, whilst innovating firms are more likely to do so if they have had more innovations. Ceteris paribus, the probability that a firm is an exporter is higher if it is in a sector with high R&D expenditures (relative to output), which is consistent with product cycle theories of trade. For non-innovators, firms are also more likely to be exporters in sectors with low capital intensity. Copyright 2002 by Blackwell Publishing Ltd
Mean arterial pressure: a better marker of stroke in patients with uncontrolled hypertension in rural areas of China.

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to compare the association of pulse pressure (PP) and mean arterial pressure (MAP) with stroke in uncontrolled hypertensive subjects. METHODS A total of 9,901 uncontrolled hypertensive subjects were included in a cross-sectional study in 62 villages of Fuxin county of Liaoning Province, China. RESULTS Among the 9,901, 406 cases of ischemic stroke and 145 cases of cerebral hemorrhage were identified. Older age, male gender, increased SBP, higher DBP, and history of hyperlipemia were positively associated with both ischemic stroke and cerebral hemorrhage by multivariate logistic regression analysis. However, the odds rations (ORs) of drinking for ischemic stroke and cerebral hemorrhage were 0.407 (95%CI: 0.304-0.544) and 0.595 (95%CI: 0.377-0.940), respectively. An increase of 10 mmHg of MAP had ORs of 1.430 (95%CI: 1.332-1.535) for ischemic stroke and 1.359 (95%CI: 1.220-1.514) for cerebral hemorrhage. The OR of PP (per 10 mmHg increase) for ischemic stroke was 1.085 (95%CI: 1.026-1.148). Subjects with the fourth quartile of PP and MAP had ORs of 1.555 (95%CI: 1.127-2.146) ischemic stroke and 5.127 (95%CI: 3.452-7.616) for cerebral hemorrhage, with the first quartile as the reference group. The OR of the fourth quartile of MAP for cerebral hemorrhage was 5.935 (95%CI: 2.932-12.012). There was no significant association between PP and cerebral hemorrhage. In sensitivity analysis, ORs of standard MAP for ischemic stroke were higher than those of PP in each stratified age subgroup. CONCLUSIONS Increased MAP and PP were significant markers of ischemic stroke and cerebral hemorrhage was only associated with increased MAP. MAP was more closely associated with stroke than PP in patients with uncontrolled hypertension.
Structural models of family labor supply: a discrete choice approach.

A static neoclassical structural model is presented explaining labor supply of both spouses in [two-adult] households [in the Netherlands]. Family preferences are described with a direct translog utility function with the husbands leisure the wifes leisure and family income as its arguments. We assume that the choice set of each family is finite. Account is taken of the Dutch tax and benefits system. We allow for hours restrictions and random preferences and account for unobserved wages of nonworkers. The models are estimated using smooth simulated maximum likelihood. Results based upon Dutch cross-section data from 1987 are illustrated by confidence intervals for elasticities and by several policy simulations. (EXCERPT)
“Rebound” Effects from Increased Energy Efficiency: A Time to Pause and Reflect

Abstract The phenomenon of rebound effects has sparked considerable academic, policy and press debate in recent years over the effectiveness of energy efficiency policy. There has been a huge surge in empirical studies claiming rebound effects of hugely varying magnitudes. The contention of this paper is that the lack of consensus in the literature is grounded in a rush to empirical estimation in the absence of solid analytical foundations. Focus on measuring a single “rebound” measure has led to a neglect of detail on precisely what type of change in energy use is considered in any one study and on the range of mechanisms governing the economy-wide response. This paper attempts to bring a reflective pause to the development of the rebound literature, with a view to identifying the key issues that policymakers need to understand and analysts need to focus their attention on.
Therapeutic effects of psychological autopsies.

BACKGROUND Several authors have observed a therapeutic impact of the psychological autopsy on the interviewee, although they do not explicitly define what aspects of the process were helpful. AIMS This article aims to identify these therapeutic effects and to discuss their potential impact on participants' narratives. METHODS This article derives from 35 psychological autopsy interviews that were conducted to better understand adolescent and young adult suicide. Interviews lasted approximately 6 to 8 h each and consisted of both a battery of questionnaires and open-ended questions. They were mostly conducted with the families of the deceased, including parents and siblings, and on occasion were done with a single family member or friend. The time elapsed since the suicide ranged from 6 to 18 months. RESULTS Psychological autopsies were helpful to interviewees in allowing them to find meaning in the suicide, to find purpose through their altruistic participation, to obtain psychological support, to experience connectedness with others, to accept the loss as real, and to gain insight into their functioning. Negative reactions to the interviews, albeit uncommon, are also briefly described. CONCLUSIONS We recommend that interviewers receive preparatory training and ongoing supervision while conducting interviews, to assure a reflective and professional stance.
Expression of CNTF/LIF-receptor components and activation of STAT3 signaling in axotomized facial motoneurons: evidence for a sequential postlesional function of the cytokines.

Several lines of evidence suggest that ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF) and leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) are important for the survival and regeneration of axotomized motoneurons. To investigate the role of CNTF/LIF signaling in regenerative responses of motoneurons, we studied the expression of the three receptor components, CNTF receptor alpha (CNTFRalpha), LIF receptor beta (LIFRbeta), and gp130, and the activation of the STAT3 signal transduction pathway in the rat facial nucleus following peripheral nerve transection. As shown by in situ hybridization and immunoblotting, axotomy resulted in a rapid down-regulation of CNTFRalpha mRNA expression within 24 h and a concomitant massive up-regulation of LIFRbeta mRNA and protein in the lesioned motoneurons. The altered mRNA levels were maintained for 3 weeks but had returned back to control levels by 6 weeks postlesion after successful regeneration. In contrast, mRNA levels remained in the lesioned state during the 6-week period studied, when regeneration was prevented by nerve resection. Significant lesion-induced changes in gp130 mRNA levels were not detectable. Rapid (within 24 h) and sustained (for at least 5 days) activation of STAT3 in axotomized facial motoneurons was revealed by demonstrating the phosphorylation and nuclear translocation of the protein using immunocytochemistry and immunoblotting. In agreement with previous studies showing a complementary regulation of CNTF and LIF in the lesioned facial nerve, our observations on the postlesional regulation of CNTF/LIF receptor components in the facial nucleus indicate a direct and sequential action of the two neurotrophic proteins on axotomized facial motoneurons.
Wound management in burn centres in the United Kingdom

Despite advances in the use of topical and parenteral antimicrobial therapy, and the practice of early tangential excision, infection of the burn wound remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality. The aim of this study was to survey and compare wound management and antibiotic usage in burn surgery in all UK burn centres. A postal questionnaire was used, followed up by telephone. Answers were obtained from all 39 units treating burns in the UK. A written policy on antibiotic usage was used by 13 centres. Excisions were covered routinely by prophylactic antibiotic therapy in 18 units, and three of these used antibiotic cover during all procedures in which the wound was manipulated. No routine antibiotic cover was given in 21 units. All units obtained surface swab cultures, but only two performed punch biopsy of the wounds. Quantitative bacteriology (counting colony forming units) was employed by three centres. Most units cleaned the burn with saline (17 of 39) or chlorhexidine (eight of 39) but combinations of these and other agents were also used. Nearly half (17 of 37) of those who replied had not seen any cases of proven or suspected toxic shock syndrome in the past 2 years. Four units gave prophylaxis against Staphylococcus aureus, and four gave antibiotics against Streptococcus pyogenes, despite recommendations in the literature. Twenty‐nine units gave no prophylaxis. This study has revealed that there is no consensus on antibiotic usage amongst centres treating burns in the UK and that most units rely on surface swab cultures to monitor infection.
Sovereign credit risk and stock markets: Does the markets' dependency increase with financial Distress?

This paper addresses the relationship between stock markets and credit default swaps (CDS) markets. In particular, I aim to gauge if the co-movement between stock prices and sovereign CDS spreads increases with the deterioration of the credit quality of sovereign debt. The analysis of correlations, Granger causality, cointegration, and the results of an error-correction model represented in a state space form show a close link between these markets, but do not evidence that the co-movement increases in periods of financial distress. I also analyze the transmission of volatility between the two markets. The results do not support the hypothesis that volatility propagation surges during financial distress periods. On the contrary, for some cases, the data suggests that the lead-lag relationships between the two markets volatility are stronger during stable periods.