Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Time and the interpretation of canonical quantum gravity.

The unsatisfactory status of the interpretation of the wave function of the Universe in canonical quantum gravity is reviewed. The "naive interpretation" obtained by straightforwardly applying the standard interpretive rules to the canonical quantization of general relativity is manifestly unacceptable; the "WKB interpretation" has only a limited domain of applicability; and the "conditional probability interpretation" requires one to pick out a "preferred time variable" {or preferred class of such variables) from among the dynamical variables. Evidence against the possibility of using a dynamical variable to play the role of "time" in the conditional probability interpretation is provided by the fact {proven here) that in ordinary Schrodinger quantum mechanics for a system with a Hamiltonian bounded from below, no dynamical variable can correlate monotonically with the Schrodinger time parameter t, and thus the role of t in the interpretation of Schrodinger quantum mechanics cannot be replaced by that of a dynamical variable. We also argue that the interpretive problems of quantum gravity are not alleviated by the incorporation of observers into the theory. Faced with these difhculties, we seek a formulation of canonical quantum gravity in which an appropriate nondynamical time parameter is present. By analogy with a parametrized form of ordinary Schrodinger quantum mechanics, we make a proposal for such a formulation. A specific proposal considered in detail yields a theory which corresponds at the classical level to general relativity with an arbitrary, unspecified cosmological constant. In minisuperspace models, this proposal yields a quantum theory with satisfactory interpretive properties, although it is unlikely that this theory will admit suKciently many observables for general spacetimes. Nevertheless, we feel that the approach suggested here is worthy of further investigation.
Nonconscious Activation of an Elderly Stereotype and Speed of Driving

Under the guise of evaluating a head-up display in a driving simulator, 11 participants (5 men), ages 21 to 35 years, completed scrambled-sentence tasks (while waiting at stop signs) designed to prime an elderly stereotype. Each driver completed both the Elderly Stereotype and Control conditions with order counterbalanced across participants. Further, order of presentation of word sets for each trial was random. Driving speed and driving time between stop signs in the Elderly Stereotype condition were compared to the Control condition in which nonspecific age words were substituted for elderly stereotyped words. Participants showed lower maximum speed and longer driving time in the Elderly Stereotype condition than in the Control condition, even though participants reported no awareness of the theme in the experimental condition.
Numerical Analysis of Stress Distribution in Embedded Polymer and Silica-Glass Highly Birefringent Fibers

The paper presents a numerical analysis of influence of polymerization shrinkage on selected polymer and silica-based highly birefringent (HB) optical fibers embedded in a composite material. Since polymerization is a chemical process consisting in combining many molecules into a macromolecular compound, the direction of polymerization shrinkage depends on the number of constituent composite surfaces. A detailed analysis of the piezo-optic effects occurring in HB fibers before and after the lamination process is presented. An answer to the question to what extent we are able to properly diagnose a degree of degradation of the material is also provided.
Advances in Hirschsprung Disease Genetics and Treatment Strategies

Hirschsprung disease (HSCR) is a multigenic condition with variable presentation. Most commonly, it presents in the neonatal period as a functional intestinal obstruction secondary to failure of caudal migration of the enteric nervous system. Classically, this manifests as dilated proximal bowel and constricted distal bowel with absent ganglia and hypertrophic nerve trunks. When recognized early, medical and surgical therapies can be instituted to minimize associated morbidity and mortality. This article reviews current understanding of the etiology of HSCR, its multigenic associations, the historical evolution of HSCR diagnosis and treatment, and current HSCR therapies.
Postnatal cytomegalovirus infection in an extremely premature infant transmitted via breast milk: A case report

= Abstract = Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is one of the most commonly encountered viral pathogens in newborn infants and is found in 0.3-2.4% of all live births. It has been demonstrated that 40-96% of seropositive mothers shed the virus via their breast milk. Breast milk containing CMV can cause almost one-third of CMV infections occurring in infants. A case of postnatal CMV infection in an extremely premature infant (gestational age 24 +5 weeks, birth weight 750 g) transmitted via breast milk is presented. For neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) management of severe thrombocytopenia, anemia, and sepsis syndrome, the infant received repeated transfusions of platelets; intravenous (IV) immunoglobulins; and gammairradiated, filtrated packed red cells and was fed her mother's breast milk since the second week of life. CMV infection was diagnosed with positive CMV immunoglobulin M (IgM) and positive urine CMV culture at the second month of life. Considering the negative CMV IgM and urine CMV culture at birth, postnatally-acquired CMV infection was suspected and confirmed with completely identical nucleotide sequence alignments of the infantile blood isolate and the maternal breast milk isolate. To our knowledge, this is the first case of proven postnatal CMV infection transmitted via breast milk in an extremely premature infant in Korea. (Korean J Pediatr 2009;52:1053-1058)
Public-Private Mix of Health Expenditure: A Political Economy Approach and A Quantitative Exercise

This paper constructs a simple overlapping generations model to examine how the choice of public and private health expenditure is affected by preferences and economic factors under majority voting. In the model,agents with heterogeneous income decide how much to consume, save, and invest in private health care, and vote for the income tax to be used to finance public health. Agents survival probabilities are endogenously determined by a CES composite of public and private health expenditure. For the two special cases that public and private health are complements or perfect substitutes, we show that the voting equilibrium is unique and locally stable. For the general case, we calibrate the model to Canadian data to conduct a quantitative analysis.Our results suggest that the public-private mix of health expenditure is quite sensitive to the degree of substitutability between private and public health and the relative e¤ectiveness of public and private health. Using a sample of advanced democratic countries, we further infer these two parameters and construct the shares of public health in total health expenditure for each country, and find that the predicted values match the data quite well.
Globalization, Technology, and the Skill Premium

We construct a model of international trade and multinational production (MP) to examine the impact of globalization on the skill premium in developed and developing countries. Our framework extends the Heckscher-Ohlin model by incorporating productivity dierences across producers within a sector, skill-biased technology (more e¢ cient producers employ a relatively higher share of skilled workers), and MP. Reductions in trade and/or MP costs induce a re- allocation of resources both towards sectors that are intensive in a country's abundant factor (generating a between eect that increases the skill premium in skill-abundant countries and reduces it in skill-scarce countries) and within sectors towards more e¢ cient producers that are more skill intensive (generating a within eect that increases the skill premium in all countries). We study how the model's parameters determine the strength of these eects. Using a parameterized version of the model that matches salient features of U.S. data on trade and MP, we study the impact on the skill premium of changes in the extent of globalization (the shares of trade and MP in output) and in the composition of globalization (the relative importance of skill-abundant and skill-scarce countries in the global economy). Central to many of our results is the fact that the within eect is stronger than the between eect. In response to the three-fold increase in the extent of globalization in the U.S. over the last 40 years, the model generates an increase in the skill premium of 4% to 6% in the U.S. (or 1=6 to 1=4 of the rise of the college wage premium during this period) and 5% in skill-scarce countries.
PERCEPTIONS AND BARRIERS TO ICT USE AMONG ENGLISH TEACHERS IN INDONESIA

The purpose of this research is to investigate Engl ish teachers’ perception and challenges of the implementation of ICT in ELT classrooms. This s tudy used mixed methods, qualitative and quantitative in nature. A purposive sampling te chnique was used to select the study subjects, who are 26 English teachers from 16 publi c senior high schools in Banda Aceh. Questionnaires and interviews were used to collect data. The data were analysed and interpreted through qualitative and quantitative pr ocedures. The results showed that the English teachers found ICT very helpful in teaching . However, the limited time and tools, coupled with a poor Internet connection as well as a lack of knowledge and experience of ICT training were obstacles for the teachers using ICT. The results of this study give meaningful insights for policy makers in relation t o the implementation of ICT for teaching and learning in the classroom.
Campylobacter butzleri sp. nov. isolated from humans and animals with diarrheal illness

Seventy-eight aerotolerant Campylobacter isolates were characterized phenotypically and by DNA hybridization (hydroxyapatite method at 50 and 65 degrees C). Two DNA relatedness groups were found. (i) Sixty-four strains belonged to aerotolerant Campylobacter DNA hybridization group 2. These organisms were isolated from humans, primarily with diarrheal illness, and animals on several continents. Strains were aerotolerant at 30 and 36 degrees C and catalase negative or weakly catalase positive, grew in media containing glycine and on MacConkey agar, were susceptible to nalidixic acid, and were resistant to cephalothin. The name Campylobacter butzleri sp. nov. is proposed for this group. (ii) DNA hybridization group 1 consisted of the type strain of Campylobacter cryaerophila and 13 additional strains isolated from 10 animals outside the United States and from three humans within the United States. This group was genetically diverse; five strains were closely related to the type strain of C. cryaerophila (DNA hybridization group 1A), and eight strains were more closely related to one another (DNA hybridization group 1B). Strains in DNA hybridization group 1B were phenotypically diverse, with two of eight strains resembling C. cryaerophila. The seven strains from DNA hybridization groups 1A and 1B which resembled C. cryaerophila and the C. cryaerophila type strain were aerotolerant only at 30 degrees C and catalase positive, did not grow in glycine or on MacConkey agar, were generally susceptible to nalidixic acid, and were resistant to cephalothin. The remaining six strains of DNA hybridization group 1B phenotypically resembled C. butzleri; however, they were generally catalase positive and susceptible to nalidixic acid and cephalothin. DNA hybridization group 1B is not designated as a separate species at this time since it cannot, with certainty, be separated genetically from C. cryaerophila or phenotypically from C. butzleri.
PENGARUH INTELLECTUAL CAPITAL TERHADAP KINERJA KEUANGAN PERUSAHAAN PUBLIK DI INDONESIA (Studi Empiris Pada Perusahaan Manufaktur di BEI 2012-2014)

The purpose of this research was to examine the effect of intellectual capital on Return On Assets, Earning Per Share and Return On Equity. The population of this research is manufacturing companies listed on the Stock Exchange the period 20122014, a total sample of companies amounted to 51 samples were taken by using purposive sampling method. The method of analysis in this research is multiple linear regression analysis. The results of this study indicate that intellectual capital significant positive effect on ROA. This condition occurs because if the human resource capacity the better, it is expected to produce profitability Return on Assets increased. Intellectual capital is significant positive effect on EPS. This condition occurs because when intellectual capital is getting better, the public trust in the company, the better, so that the products or services offered by the company is accepted by the community and increasing revenue. Intellectual capital is significant positive effect on ROE. This condition occurs because the intellectual capital increases, the company has been using its capital more effectively to improve human resources, so that the performance of employees to generate increasing profits . Keyword : Intellectual Capital, Financial Performance, Return on Assets, Earning Per Share and Return On Equity
Perceptions of Parental Awareness of Emotional Responses to Stressful Life Events

There is a need to better understand family processes related to recovery from past stressful life events. The present study aimed to investigate links between perceptions of parental awareness regarding stressful life events, continued event-related rumination, and current symptoms of depression. Students at a diverse, urban university completed a Life Events Checklist and a semistructured interview regarding family processing of stressful life events, as well as self-report measures of event-related rumination and depression. Results indicated that perceptions of mothers’ and fathers’ awareness of sadness regarding stressful life events as well as mothers’ and fathers’ verbal event processing predicted symptoms of event-related rumination and depression. Results support the inclusion of perceptions of parental awareness in the understanding of how emerging adults continue to cope with past stressful life events.
N-Channel Zinc Oxide Nanowire:Perylene Diimide Blend Organic Thin Film Transistors

N-channel solution-processed organic thin film transistors (TFTs) based on a blend network of <italic>N,N’</italic>-bis(<italic>1H,1H</italic>-perfluorobutyl)-1,7-dicyanoperylene-3,4:9,10-tetracarboxylic diimide (PDIF-CN2) and zinc oxide (ZnO) nanowires show remarkable electron field effect mobilities of up to 0.5 cm<sup>2</sup>/<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\text{V}\cdot \text{s}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> in ambient air, which is about five-fold higher than those based on pristine PDIF-CN2 films. When tested in both bias directions the output and transfer electrical hysteresis of those blend TFTs are negligible. In addition, their low processing temperature and flexible semiconducting layer makes them a highly promising means of realizing high performance, solution-processed n-channel organic TFTs.
Pension Communication in the Netherlands and Other Countries

In many countries, pension reforms reduce the generosity of collective pensions and shift the responsibility for an adequate standard of living after retirement to individuals and their households. Individuals have to make more decisions than before on supplementary pension savings, on how to invest their DC pension assets, etc. Making such decisions is challenging, since retirement planning requires intertemporal decision-making under uncertainty and is subject to behavioural and psychological biases. Many studies in different countries have shown that the large majority lack the interest, knowledge, or skills to make such decisions in a way that is in their own best interest. Governments and the pension industry try to assist individuals in making the right decisions through pension communication. This paper focuses on experiences with pension communication, and the lessons to be learned from them. First, the paper provides an overview of the literature, addressing how pension communication is organized across countries and what can be said about its efficiency. Second, using Dutch longitudinal data at the individual level, we analyse the relations between communication (receiving an annual pension overview), pension knowledge, and conscious pension decision-making. We investigate associations and aim at estimating causal effects exploiting the timing of events.
Assessment of laboratory exercises in physiology †

Assessment is an integral part of the teaching‐learning process. It contributes to the realization of learning objectives by inculcating habits which are conducive to better scores in the examination. A system of assessing laboratory work which combines the performance of experiments by the student with some short questions based on an instrument, experimental data or tracing has been critically examined. The performance of the student in the two parts of the examination is poorly correlated (r=0.36 to 0.72), suggesting that they test different abilities, and that combining them may improve the objectivity of the examination. The overall practical assessment is better correlated with the overall theory assessment (r=0.71, 0.87). The correlation between different forms of examination also improves when only the top 10% and bottom 10% of the class is considered. Since the results quoted are based on only a few examinations at a single medical school, generalizations are not justified.
Prominent activation of the intraparietal and somatosensory areas during angle discrimination by intra‐active touch

Intra‐active touch (IAT) is a process that involves a body part doing the touching (active touch [AT]) and another body part being touched (passive touch [PT]) simultaneously. The brain representation related to IAT is still unclear. A total of 23 subjects carried out angle discrimination under PT, AT and IAT conditions with functional magnetic resonance imaging. All of the tasks were strictly dependent on cutaneous feedback from the finger(s). As the subjects were able to perceive the angle stimuli from the right (touching) and left (touched) sides during the IAT condition, we expected there would be greater brain activation with the IAT condition than for the AT or PT condition. Therefore, we hypothesized that the region within and/or around the intraparietal sulcus (IPS) and the part of the primary somatosensory cortex (SI) that is associated with high‐level tactile spatial processing would be more active during the IAT task than during the AT and PT tasks. Compared with the areas activated by the motor somatosensory control task, the most prominent activation areas evoked by the three‐angle discrimination tasks were in the SI and secondary somatosensory cortex areas in the bilateral parietal operculum, IPS, lateral occipital complex, insula and cerebellum. Finally, we directly compared IAT with AT and PT, and the results suggest that the contralateral part of IPS and part of the SI are more active under IAT conditions than under either AT or PT conditions. These results suggest that both hemispheres contribute to angle discrimination during IAT. Hum Brain Mapp, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
CORPORATE DEVELOPMENT AS AN ADAPTIVE MECHANISM IN EVOLVING TECHNOLOGY ECOSYSTEMS: THREE ESSAYS

As contemporary business environments across the globe are increasingly affected by the advent of disruptive technologies, several technology ecosystems are in a consistent state of flux driven by the fast paced and discontinuous nature of technological change. This dissertation addresses the adaptive role of firms’ corporate development decisions in these dynamic and fast changing environments. I theorize on and empirically evaluate the role of four corporate development decisions – internal development, alliances, acquisitions and divestitures as adaptive mechanisms towards improving the likelihood of survival in evolving technology ecosystems. This dissertation examines how corporate development decisions exert an adaptive influence on strategic decisions taken at the product portfolio level (essay one), firm level (essay two) and transaction level (essay three). Each essay focuses on a unique challenge that accosts managers in evolving technology ecosystems – product configuration (essay one), corporate growth (essay two) and technology driven inertia (essay three). Also, each essay proposes that corporate development decisions contribute to the adaptive behavior of firms in different ways and hence, they represent strategic alternatives through which managers can overcome these challenges to enhance the likelihood of survival of their firms in evolving technology ecosystems.
‘To repair or not to repair – no longer a question’: repair of mitochondrial DNA shielding against age and cancer

Abstract: The role of mitochondria in energy production and apoptosis is well known. The role of mitochondria and particularly the role of the mitochondria's own genome, mitochondrial (mt) DNA, in the process of ageing were postulated decades ago. However, this was discussed, debated and more or less disposed of. Recent data from elegant mouse models now confirm that mutations of mtDNA do indeed play a central and pivotal role in the ageing process. Newer reports also indicate a possible role of mtDNA mutations in the carcinogenesis of several organs. But is damaged mtDNA repaired, or is it simply degraded and discarded? This question appears to be answered now. According to recent data, mitochondria possess functional repair mechanisms such as base excision repair, double‐strand break repair and mismatch repair, yet nucleotide excision repair has so far not been detected.
Efficacy of Levetiracetam in Huntington Disease

Objective:Levetiracetam (LEV) is a novel antiepileptic drug characterized by a wide spectrum of action; no pharmacologic interaction and poor adverse events are reported. In animal models, effects of LEV are observed in basal ganglia. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of LEV in reducing involuntary movements in subjects affected by Huntington disease (HD). Methods:This was a single-center, short-term, open-label, controlled study. Patients had LEV as add-on therapy for 6 months. In the first visit patients were rated according to the Unified Huntington Disease Rating Scale. Every 2 months they were submitted to all these tests. LEV was added at the dose of 500 mg twice daily for the first 2 months and then the dosage was increased until 1000 mg twice daily for the next 4 more months. The authors enrolled 22 patients: 15 were assigned to the LEV group and 7 were enrolled as control subjects. Results:No serious adverse events were experienced by the treated patients. After 6 months of treatment patients on LEV showed a significant reduction of involuntary movements, with a slight improvement of functional capacity compared with the control group. Conclusion:Results of this short-term, prospective, controlled study indicates that in HD patients, LEV is effective in reducing involuntary movements, thus improving the quality of life.