Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Impact of Macroeconomics and Bank Specifics on Nonperforming Loans and Banking Sustainability Performance

This study is exploring impact of macroeconomics and bank specifics factor on nonperforming loans (NPLs) and banking sustainability performance (BSP) particularly in financial performance, with Indonesian commercial banking system back ground. The Study period is over the year 2004 to the year 2013. The objective is to perform statistic examining and analyzing to find out the impact of macroeconomic factors which comprise of gross domestic product (GDP); Bank Indonesia interest rate (BI rate); inflation; exchange rate; unemployment. Then bank specific indicators, which comprise of total assets; loan deposit ratio (LDR); capital adequacy ratio (CAR); credit growth. The conclusion of this study is confirmed that macroeconomic and bank specific factors have a significant impact on NPLs and BSP.
Identification of the major capsid protein of erythrocytic necrosis virus (ENV) and development of quantitative real-time PCR assays for quantification of ENV DNA

Viral erythrocytic necrosis (VEN) is a disease of marine and anadromous fish that is caused by the erythrocytic necrosis virus (ENV), which was recently identified as a novel member of family Iridoviridae by next-generation sequencing. Phylogenetic analysis of the ENV DNA polymerase grouped ENV with other erythrocytic iridoviruses from snakes and lizards. In the present study, we identified the gene encoding the ENV major capsid protein (MCP) and developed a quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) assay targeting this gene. Phylogenetic analysis of the MCP gene sequence supported the conclusion that ENV does not group with any of the currently described iridovirus genera. Because there is no information regarding genetic variation of the MCP gene across the reported host and geographic range for ENV, we also developed a second qPCR assay for a more conserved ATPase-like gene region. The MCP and ATPase qPCR assays demonstrated good analytical and diagnostic sensitivity and specificity based on samples from laboratory challenges of Pacific herring Clupea pallasii. The qPCR assays had similar diagnostic sensitivity and specificity as light microscopy of stained blood smears for the presence of intraerythrocytic inclusion bodies. However, the qPCR assays may detect viral DNA early in infection prior to the formation of inclusion bodies. Both qPCR assays appear suitable for viral surveillance or as a confirmatory test for ENV in Pacific herring from the Salish Sea.
AGRICULTURE, ECONOMIC GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT NEXUS: VAR VARIANCE DECOMPOSITION EVIDENCE FROM NIGERIA

This research paper empirically explored the Agriculture, Economic Growth and Development Nexus in Nigeria. The objective of the study is to examine the place of agriculture in the economic growth and development of Nigeria. The quantitative technique is employed in a multivariate model VAR model with emphasis on the Variance Decomposition Analysis with the aid of Eview 7. The study revealed that the sector has been neglected and the whole attention is paid on the crude oil which has caused dwindling of agricultural sector contributions to Economic growth. Realization of this, made the policy makers to commit huge resources and efforts to the sector lately in order to resuscitate it. The study finds out that efforts directed to resuscitate the sector have not translated commensurately to the desirable development of the sector as the positive change experienced in the sector is lopsided in favour of crop production.
Effects of site-specific application of aldicarb on cotton in a meloidogyne incognita-infested field.

Cotton farmers in Missouri commonly apply a single rate of aldicarb throughout the field at planting to protect their crop from Meloidogyne incognita, even though these nematodes are spatially aggregated. Our purpose was to determine the effect of site-specific application of aldicarb on cotton production in a field infested with these nematodes in 1997 and 1998. Cotton yields were collected from sites not treated with aldicarb (control), sites receiving aldicarb at the standard recommended rate of 0.58 kg a.i./ha, and sites receiving specific aldicarb rates based on the soil population densities of second-stage infective juveniles of root-knot nematode. Yields for the standard rate and site-specific rate treatments were similar and greater (P ≤ 0.05) than the control treatment. Less aldicarb was used for the site-specific than the uniform-rate treatment each year-46% less in 1997 and 61% less in 1998. Costs associated with the site-specific treatment were very high compared with the uniform-rate treatment due to a greater number of soil samples analyzed for nematodes. Site-specific application of aldicarb for root-knot nematode management in cotton may pose fewer environmental risks than the uniform-rate application of aldicarb.
Structure of the Perineal Membrane in Females: Gross and Microscopic Anatomy

OBJECTIVE: To re-examine the anatomy of the perineal membrane and its anatomical relationships in whole-pelvis and histologic serial section as well as gross anatomical dissection. METHODS: Serial trichrome-stained histologic sections of five female pelvic specimens (0–37 years old) were examined. Specimens included the urethra, perineal membrane, vagina, and surrounding structures. Macroscopic whole-pelvis sections of three adults, 28–56 years of age, in axial, sagittal, and coronal sections were also studied. Dissections of six female cadavers, 48–90 years of age, were also performed. RESULTS: The perineal membrane is composed of two regions, one dorsal and one ventral. The dorsal portion consists of bilateral transverse fibrous sheets that attach the lateral wall of the vagina and perineal body to the ischiopubic ramus. This portion is devoid of striated muscle. The ventral portion is part of a solid three-dimensional tissue mass in which several structures are embedded. It is intimately associated with the compressor urethrae and the urethrovaginal sphincter muscle of the distal urethra with the urethra and its surrounding connective. In this region the perineal membrane is continuous with the insertion of the arcus tendineus fascia pelvis. The levator ani muscles are connected with the cranial surface of the perineal membrane. The vestibular bulb and clitoral crus are fused with the membrane's caudal surface. CONCLUSION: The structure of the perineal membrane is a complex three-dimensional structure with two distinctly different dorsal and ventral regions; not a simple trilaminar sheet with perforating viscera. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: II
Bacterial brain abscess: microbiological features, epidemiological trends and therapeutic outcomes.

BACKGROUND Despite the advent of modern neurosurgical techniques, new antibiotics, and powerful imaging technologies, brain abscess remains a potentially fatal central nervous system infection. AIM To determine the epidemiological trends, prognostic factors, and outcomes of bacterial brain abscess, to improve the therapeutic strategy for this disease. DESIGN Retrospective hospital-based epidemiology study. METHODS Over a period of 15 years (1986-2000), 123 patients were retrospectively identified as having brain abscesses at Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital. To compare changes over time, the appearance of disease among our patients was divided into two time periods: 1986-1993 and 1994-2000. RESULTS The prevalence rate of brain abscesses caused by Gram-negative organisms significantly increased in the second study period. Viridans streptococci and Klebsiella pneumoniae were the two prevalent pathogens associated with haematogenous spread. Metastatic septic abscess, a devastating complication of K. pneumoniae septicaemia, frequently occurs in diabetic patients, with a high mortality rate. Viridans streptococci were the most prevalent pathogens from infection in paranasal sinusitis, but no fatality occurred. In recent years, head trauma and/or post-neurosurgical states have become important predisposing factors, and nosocomial infections also play an important role. DISCUSSION Despite the availability of new antibiotics and the development of better neurosurgical techniques, therapeutic outcomes of brain abscess showed no significant change when comparing the two study periods, and only the presence of septic shock influenced outcome.
In-vitro activity of ofloxacin, a quinolone carboxylic acid compared to other quinolones and other antimicrobial agents.

Ofloxacin is a new quinolone carboxylic acid compound. Its activity against 900 bacterial isolates was determined. It inhibited 90% of Escherichia coli, Klebsiella sp. , Aeromonas hydrophila, Salmonella spp. , Shigella spp. , Citrobacter spp. , Enterobacter spp. , Morganella morganii, Proteus mirabilis, Yersinia enterocolitica at less than or equal to 0.8 mg/l. Branhamella catarrhalis, Haemophilus sp. , Neisseria sp. were inhibited by less than or equal to 0.1 mg/l. Pseudomonas aeruginosa and other Pseudomonas species were inhibited by less than or equal to 6.3 mg/l. Although most staphylococcal species, including methicillin-resistant staphylococci were inhibited by 3.1 mg/l, many streptococcal species had higher MIC values, and most Bacteroides species were inhibited at less than or equal to 6.3 mg/l. The overall activity of ofloxacin was similar to enoxacin and norfloxacin. Ofloxacin inhibited organisms resistant to nalidixic acid, ampicillin, cephalexin, piperacillin, and gentamicin including Enterobacter spp. , Citrobacter freundii and Serratia marcescens resistant to cefotaxime. The activity of ofloxacin was lower at an acid pH and in urine, but serum had no effect on MICs or MBCs. Increase in ofloxacin MICs for various bacteria could be achieved by repeated subculture in the presence of ofloxacin.
Segmentation of potential film tourists by film nostalgia and preferred film tourism program

ABSTRACT The current study sought to identify the role of nostalgia in film tourism, specifically in relation to the development of preferred film tourism products and activities for potential Korean film tourists visiting the shooting locations of Hong Kong films made from the 1970s to the late 1990s. The findings suggest that the concept of nostalgia in the context of film tourism is multidimensional and consists of five identified domains. Of these domains, “reminiscence of mimicking”, “memory of film backdrops”, and “memory of Hong Kong history and culture” were highly significant in explaining familiarity with film destinations and the intention to engage in nostalgia film tourism. Differences in characteristics of respondents’ profiles were categorized into clusters generated using extracted domains. Among the four extracted clusters, the high film nostalgia group (Cluster 2) and the low film nostalgia group (Cluster 3) showed completely different characteristics. These differences included preferred activities or tour programs and socio-demographic profiles. As a result, this study found film nostalgia to be an important segmentation variable. The results of this study can be prudently used by film destination marketers to develop new products or programs and to satisfy their on-site experiences.
Dimensions of adolescent rebellion: Risks for academic failure among high- and low-income youth

The central question addressed in this study was whether upper class, suburban teenagers can engage in various problem behaviors and still maintain adequate academic grades, because of environmental safety nets, unlike their low-income, inner-city counterparts. Three problem behavior dimensions were assessed among tenth graders, that is, substance use, delinquency, and low school engagement. Academic achievement was assessed in terms of grades across four major subjects. Variable-based analyses indicated unique links with grades for self-reported delinquency and school disengagement in high- and low-income samples, but for substance use only among the former. Person-based analyses showed that in both schools, grades were clearly compromised among youth with disturbances in all three problem domains. In addition, in the suburban school only, grades were low in the cluster characterized chiefly by high substance use. Results are discussed in terms of stereotypes regarding risks (or lack thereof) stemming from families' socioeconomic status; implications for theory and interventions are also considered.Preparation of this manuscript was funded in part by grants from the National Institutes of Health (RO1-DA10726, RO1-DA11498, R01-DA14385), the William T. Grant Foundation, and the Spencer Foundation.
Chronic depression of hypothalamic paraventricular neuronal activity produces sustained hypotension in hypertensive rats

• What is the central question of this study? Will a chronic reduction of neuronal excitability within the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus reduce arterial blood pressure and sympathetic activity in the long term in an animal model of neurogenic hypertension? • What is the main finding and its importance? We show, for the first time, that overexpression of an inwardly rectifying potassium channel in the paraventricular nucleus provided a long‐term (>60 days) antihypertensive response in conscious spontaneously hypertensive rats that was associated with a reduction in neurohumorally mediated vasoconstriction, enhanced baroreflex sensitivity and reduced peripheral chemosensitivity; no such response was observed in normotensive rats. Our results support the paraventricular nucleus as a therapeutic target for the chronic control of blood pressure in neurogenic hypertension.
An Analysis of Revenue Maximising Efficiency of Public Sector Banks in the Post-Reforms Period

Abstract The paper investigates and compares the performance of the Indian public sector banks (PSBs) based on revenue maximising efficiency in the deregulation period from 2001-02 to 2012-13. Several efficiency estimates viz., overall technical efficiency, pure technical efficiency and scale efficiency of individual banks are calculated using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). The empirical findings indicate the presence of managerial and scale inefficiencies in the operation of the most of the PSBs. Applying the Tobit regression analysis, the paper also assesses the impact of different environmental factors, like profitability, the level of non-performing assets, size etc. on the efficiency of PSBs. It is observed that banks with high profitability, low level of non-performing assets, and relatively larger size are more technically efficient.
Employee Turnover and Organizational Performance in U.S. Federal Agencies

Contrary to received wisdom, could turnover actually be good for an organization? Traditional research on turnover in the public management field treats turnover as a dependent variable, emphasizing its negative role on organizational performance without sufficient theoretical or empirical support. With an emphasis on the type of employee turnover as a situational factor, this research establishes the hypothesized relationships between different employee turnovers—employee transfers, quits, and involuntary turnover—and organizational performance, and tests them using panel data from 2010 to 2014 in agencies of the U.S. federal government. Empirical results challenge the accepted belief about the harmful effects of turnover on organizational performance: Turnover can be beneficial for an organization. The results confirm the relationship differs across the type of turnover involved: Employee transfers have an inverted U-shaped relationship with organizational performance, and involuntary turnovers have a linear and positive relationship with organizational performance. Given the use of a perceptual measure of organizational performance by remaining employees, these results imply that a low-to-moderate level of employee transfers is likely to increase organizational performance and that involuntary turnovers—an elimination of employees who presented poor performance or were involved in misconducts—contribute to improving organizational performance.
Lymphovascular Invasion as a Prognostic Factor in Melanoma

The prognostic significance of lymphovascular invasion (LVI) in melanoma remains controversial. Clinicopathologic data from a prospective trial of patients with melanoma were analyzed with respect to LVI. Disease-free survival and overall survival (OS) were evaluated by Kaplan-Meier (KM) analysis. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to evaluate factors predictive of tumor-positive sentinel nodes (SLN) and survival. A total of 2183 patients were included in this analysis; 171 (7.8%) had LVI. Median follow-up was 68 months. Factors associated with LVI included tumor thickness, ulceration, and histologic subtype (P < 0.05). LVI was associated with a greater risk of SLN metastasis (P < 0.05). By KM analysis, LVI was associated with worse OS (P = 0.0009). On multivariate analysis, age, gender, thickness, ulceration, anatomic location, and SLN status were predictors of OS; however, LVI was not an independent predictor of OS. Among patients with regression, the 5-year OS rate was 49.4 per cent for patients with LVI versus 81.1 per cent for those with no LVI (P < 0.0001). LVI is associated with a greater risk of SLN metastasis. Although LVI is not an independent predictor of OS in general, it is a powerful predictor of worse OS among patients who have evidence of regression of the primary tumor.
The Role of the Neurologist in the Longitudinal Management of Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus

Background:Since normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) was first described in 1965, neurologists have been involved in the initial diagnostic evaluation for it but have rarely followed patients specifically to monitor response to therapy after shunt surgery. Review Summary:The potential role for the neurologist in the longitudinal management of NPH has broadened, partly because of improvement in the tools used to diagnose and treat NPH and partly because of progress in understanding how NPH mimics and interacts with other common disorders of the elderly. The interplay of Alzheimer dementia, vascular dementia, Parkinson disease, and spinal stenosis with NPH presents the clinician with a patient profile that may be challenging to assess. Neurologists also face a broad differential spectrum of less common neurologic diseases that may present with similar signs (including ventriculomegaly) and symptoms; these diseases include frontotemporal dementia, progressive supranuclear palsy, Lewy body disease, corticobasal degeneration, Huntington disease, spongiform encephalopathy, and multiple-system atrophy. Conclusions:The neurologist is in a unique position to differentiate NPH from alternative diagnoses, to suggest management strategies for patients with concomitant NPH and another neurologic disorder, and to participate in longitudinal management of NPH.
Incoherent Photonic Processing for Chirped Microwave Pulse Generation

We propose and experimentally demonstrate a fully reconfigurable generator of chirped microwave pulses based on the processing of an incoherent optical signal by means of a dispersive element with a non-uniform optical spectral shaping. The system performance has been proven by the generation of different chirped microwave pulses. Different capabilities of the system have been experimentally demonstrated as frequency tunability and time-bandwidth product control by means of the dispersive element and optical source power distribution. Furthermore, the possibility for generating chirped microwave pulses with positive and negative chirp characteristic has been shown achieving similar chirps in terms of magnitude but opposite sign. For it, the chirp characteristic is introduced by proper shaping of the optical source signal power distribution.
Seeking science information online: Data mining Google to better understand the roles of the media and the education system

Which extrinsic cues motivate people to search for science-related information? For many science-related search queries, media attention and time during the academic year are highly correlated with changes in information seeking behavior (expressed by changes in the proportion of Google science-related searches). The data mining analysis presented here shows that changes in the volume of searches for general and well-established science terms are strongly linked to the education system. By contrast, ad-hoc events and current concerns were better aligned with media coverage. The interest and ability to independently seek science knowledge in response to current events or concerns is one of the fundamental goals of the science literacy movement. This method provides a mirror of extrapolated behavior and as such can assist researchers in assessing the role of the media in shaping science interests, and inform the ways in which lifelong interests in science are manifested in real world situations.
Physico-mechanical and Stability Evaluation of Carbamazepine Cocrystal with Nicotinamide

The focus of this investigation was to prepare the cocrystal of carbamazepine (CBZ) using nicotinamide as a coformer and to compare its preformulation properties and stability profile with CBZ. The cocrystal was prepared by solution cooling crystallization, solvent evaporation, and melting and cryomilling methods. They were characterized for solubility, intrinsic dissolution rate, chemical identification by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, crystallinity by differential scanning calorimetry, powder X-ray diffraction, and morphology by scanning electron microscopy. Additionally, mechanical properties were evaluated by tensile strength and Heckel analysis of compacts. The cocrystal and CBZ were stored at 40°C/94% RH, 40°C/75% RH, 25°C/60% RH, and 60°C to determine their stability behavior. The cocrystals were fluffy, with a needle-shaped crystal, and were less dense than CBZ. The solubility profiles of the cocrystals were similar to CBZ, but its intrinsic dissolution rate was lower due to the high tensile strength of its compacts. Unlike CBZ, the cocrystals were resistant to hydrate transformation, as revealed by the stability studies. Plastic deformation started at a higher compression pressure in the cocrystals than CBZ, as indicated by the high yield pressure. In conclusion, the preformulation profile of the cocrystals was similar to CBZ, except that it had an advantageous resistance to hydrate transformation.
Effect of exogenous reduced glutathione on the survival of red blood cells in hemodialyzed patients.

Reduced glutathione (GSH) is an important scavenger of free radicals in the red blood cell (RBC) membrane, and its deficiency may be a partial cause of increased hemolysis and shortened RBC survival in uremics. In this study we employed exogenous GSH (1200 mg i.v. at the end of each dialysis session for at least nine months) to treat anemia in a group of 28 hemodialyzed patients, 14 of whom were also receiving erythropoietin. RBC survival (51Cr T/2) was calculated before (26 patients) and at the end (15 pts) of GSH therapy. After the first three months anemia (RBC, hemoglobin, hematocrit, reticulocytes) improved significantly in 17 patients (60%), for as long as they were under therapy, but rapidly dropped to pre-treatment values when GSH was discontinued. The 51Cr T/2 increased significantly in responders, but not in those who did not respond. No significant differences were found between responders and non-responders as regards urea KT/V, PTH, serum iron, ferritin, dialysis membrane, dose of erythropoietin and basal 51Cr T/2. These results suggest that exogenous GSH may be a promising drug for the treatment of anemia in most hemodialyzed patients, particularly considering its low cost.