Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
THE EFFECT OF MONEY AVAILABILITY FOR SHOPPING ON IMPULSIVE PURCHASING IN DIFFERENT CULTURES: THE MODERATING EFFECT OF INFLUENCE OF SHOPPING COMPANION

The paper investigates the relationship between the availability of money for shopping activities and impulsive purchasing of consumers. Further, it is observed whether decisions of consumers are changed when they go shopping with someone which means the moderating effect of influence of shopping companion on impulsive decisions of the consumers. The study will be really significant as it examines the influence of other persons in buying decisions whereas most of previous studies come out with individual level factors. For the study a sample was conveniently selected consisting 150 respondents representing Norway and Sri Lanka. The survey was employed as the tool to collect primary data by using self-administered questionnaire. Through the findings it was revealed that, the availability of money shows significant positive relationship in consumers' impulsive purchasing of both nationalities. However, as further results shopping companions significantly influence the relationship between main variables: availability of money and impulsive buying but that is only related to Sri Lankan Sample. The future research implications have discussed.
The effect of compensation and board quality on non-GAAP reporting decisions

This study reports international evidence on the impact of compensation and board quality on the voluntary disclosure of non-GAAP earnings numbers. We find that compensation contracts linked to firm performance are associated with a higher probability of disclosure of non-GAAP figures in the earnings announcement‟s press release. Furthermore, when this type of compensation is used firms tend to report non-GAAP figures in the title of the press release, make more adjustments for recurring items, and avoid reporting reconciliations. We also show that an efficient governance structure of the board of directors can help restrain these discretionary disclosure decisions regarding non-GAAP reporting.
Specificity, tolerance and developmental regulation of natural killer cells defined by expression of class I‐specific Ly49 receptors

Summary: Natural killer cells in the mouse express class 1 MHC‐specific inhibitory receptors of the Ly49 protein family. The receptors mediate inhibition of the lysis of tumor cells and normal cells, and mediate the specificity of bone‐marrow graft rejection by NK cells in vivo. The function of these receptors may be to confer upon NK cells the capacity to distinguish normal self cells from cells that have down‐regulated expression of some or all self‐class I molecules, Ly49 receptors discriminate between different class I molecules, and are distributed in expression to overlapping subsets of NK cells. The receptors appear to interact with class I‐MHC residues and associated N‐glycans, with little or no discrimination of the class I‐ bound peptide. The Ly49 receptor repertoire may be initially generated by a stochastic process that distributes receptors randomly to I different cells and treats the two alleles of a given Ly49 gene independently. However, class I‐MHC‐dependent “education” processes shape the functional repertoire. The education processes silence potentially auto‐aggressive NK cells, probably by ensuring that each NK cell expresses at least one self‐specific Ly49 receptor. In addition, NK cell clones that express multiple self‐specific Ly49 receptors are disfavored by the education processes, perhaps to confer greater discrimination on to individual NK cells.
Long-term gamma-ray lightcurves and high state probabilities of Active Galactic Nuclei

Current neutrino detectors are approaching a sensitivity that allows one to detect Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) in their high state. However, the expected signals might be too weak to result in a significant detection. One possibility to increase the detection chance is to focus the searches during states of high electromagnetic activity, especially in the very high energy (VHE) gamma-ray regime. In this context a good knowledge of the phenomenology of gamma-ray flux variability of the known VHE AGN is crucial. Here, we present our effort in archiving and combining VHE gamma-ray lightcurves and first results including a lightcurve of Mrk 421 spanning 15 years and the estimation of an average observed high state rate.
Augmentation in lower extremity sonography for the detection of deep venous thrombosis.

OBJECTIVE The purpose of our study was to evaluate the usefulness of venous flow augmentation with duplex sonography in the evaluation of deep venous thrombus of the lower extremities. CONCLUSION The augmentation component of the lower extremity sonogram rarely provides additional information in the diagnosis of deep venous thrombus. In our large series, no deep venous thromboses were discovered with augmentation. Factors such as the lack of usefulness and patient discomfort may justify removal of augmentation from the routine study. However, augmentation should still be applied as a diagnostic tool in difficult or uncertain cases.
Marihuana and alcohol, Time production and memory functions.

In a double-blind study, time production tasks and clinical tests of memory function were performed by 15 normal subjects given placebo and "social" doses of alcohol (ethyl alcohol) and marihuana, calibrated to (-)-δ 1 -tetrahydrocannabinol. Using subjects as their own controls, it was found that, compared to alcohol and placebo, marihuana induced a significant under production of time intervals suggesting an acceleration of the internal clock. At these dose levels, there were no significant changes in memory function, but during marihuana intoxication some consistent trends toward greater impairment of tracking information over time were noted.
Comparative Incidence of Allergy in the Presence or Absence of Cancer

Depression of the immune system may be related to cancer development. Allergic manifestations are due to enhanced immunological activity. Several authors have found lower rates of malignancy in atopic individuals. To elucidate the relationship between cancer and allergy, the prevalence of allergic manifestations was surveyed in 400 healthy Controls and 400 patients with cancer. The number of allergies was significantly higher (P < 0.001) in the control group than in patients with cancer. Women were more atopic than men in both groups (P < 0.001) but skin colour did not affect the prevalence of allergies. The type of cancer was not related to any specific allergic manifestation. The results suggest that allergies occur less frequently in men than in women and less frequently in patients with cancer than in healthy controls but these relationships are complex and depend on other factors that need further investigation.
A characterization of direct-market beef processing and marketing in Virginia

Virginia Cooperative Extension programs and employment are open to all, regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or marital or family status. An equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension work, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Virginia State University, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture cooperating. Rick D. Rudd, Interim Director, Virginia Cooperative Extension, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg; Alma C. Hobbs, Administrator, 1890 Extension Program, Virginia State, Petersburg. publication 448-123
Cloud computing adoption and usage in community colleges

Cloud computing is gaining popularity in higher education settings, but the costs and benefits of this tool have gone largely unexplored. The purpose of this study was to examine the factors that lead to technology adoption in a higher education setting. Specifically, we examined a range of predictors and outcomes relating to the acceptance of a cloud computing platform in rural and urban community colleges. Drawing from the Technology Acceptance Model 3 (TAM3) (Venkatesh, V. and Bala, H., 2008. Technology Acceptance Model 3 and a research agenda on interventions. Decision Sciences, 39 (2), 273–315), we build on the literature by examining both the actual usage and future intentions; further, we test the direct and indirect effects of a range of predictors on these outcomes. Approximately 750 community college students enrolled in basic computing skills courses participated in this study; findings demonstrated that background characteristics such as the student's ability to travel to campus had influenced the usefulness perceptions, while ease of use was largely determined by first-hand experiences with the platform, and instructor support. We offer recommendations for community college administrators and others who seek to incorporate cloud computing in higher education settings.
European integration, FDI and the Geography of French Trade

This paper uses an augmented gravity model to investigate whether the 1978-2000 process of European integration has changed the geography of trade within France, with a particular focus on the trends experienced by border regions. We support the conclusion that, once controlled for bilateral distance, origin- and destination-specific characteristics, French border regions trade on average 72% more with nearby countries than predicted by the gravity norm. They perform even better (114%) if they have good cross-border transport connections to the neighboring country. However, this outperformance eroded drastically for the French border regions located at the periphery of Europe throughout integration. We show that this trend is partly due to a decreasing propensity of foreign affliates to trade with their home country. This trade reorientation is less pronounced for the Belgian-Luxembourgian and German firms located in the regions which have better access to the EU core.
Molecular approach for assessing responses of microbial‐feeding nematodes to burning and chronic nitrogen enrichment in a native grassland

A substantial proportion of the primary productivity in grassland ecosystems is allocated belowground, sustaining an abundant and diverse community of microbes and soil invertebrates. These belowground communities drive many important ecosystem functions and are responsive to a variety of environmental changes. Nematodes, an abundant and diverse component of grassland soil communities, are particularly responsive to altered environmental conditions, such as those associated with reduced fire frequency and nitrogen enrichment, with the most consistent responses displayed by microbial‐feeding nematodes. However, much of the available research characterizing nematode responses to environmental change has been carried out at the taxonomic level of family or by broad trophic categories (e.g. fungivores, bacterivores). The extent to which differential responses to environmental change occurs at the genus level or below is unclear. Therefore, the objective of this study was to use molecular methods to quantify the response of microbial‐feeding nematodes, at the lowest levels of taxonomic resolution, to nitrogen enrichment and changes in fire frequency. Using sequencing and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) probes for the 18S ribosomal RNA gene and the ITS1 region, we identified 19 microbial‐feeding nematode taxa across four families. When nematodes were sampled across treatments, we found that some nematode taxa within a family responded similarly to nitrogen and burning treatments, while other taxa within the same family respond quite differently. Additionally, although nematodes from different families on average responded differently to nitrogen enrichment and burning, similar responses were seen in nematode taxa that span three taxonomic families. Thus, if nematodes are to be used as indicators of environmental change, care should be taken to assess the response at the lowest taxonomic level possible.
Credit Rationing and Firm Exports: Microeconomic Evidence from SMEs in China

This paper examines the effect of credit rationing on export performance by small and medium-sized firms in China. We use a detailed firm-level data provided by the Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Dynamic Survey (SMEDS) during 2015-2016 to conduct this analysis. The SMEDS provides firm-specific measures of credit rationing based directly on firm-level responses to the survey rather than indirect ones, based on firm-level financial statements. We find that, at the extensive margin, weak and strong credit rationing reduce export probability of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by 15.1% and 39.6%, respectively. At the intensive margin, they decrease SMEs’ export values by more than 20.0% and over 28.8%, respectively. Different than existing literature, we construct valid firm-level instruments, firm-level housing stock, for credit rationing rather than using province-level instruments. We also employ county-industry-level instruments and obtain consistent estimates. In addition, credit rationing exhibits heterogeneous impacts on firms with different liquidity ratios, product portfolios, external collateral, and capital utilization rates.
Age-Dependent Decline of Association Between Obesity and Hyperglycemia in Men and Women

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to determine whether age influences the association between obesity and hyperglycemia. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS The subjects were 57,576 Japanese male and female workers aged 35–70 years. The associations of adiposity indices, including BMI, waist circumference, and waist-to-height ratio, with risk for hyperglycemia were compared among different age groups (35–39, 40–49, 50–59, and 60–70 years) using odds ratios (ORs). RESULTS There were significant trends for the crude ORs of obese subjects versus nonobese subjects for hyperglycemia to be lower as age increased in men and women. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed these trends of age-dependent decreases in ORs for hyperglycemia were not altered by adjustment for confounders such as smoking, alcohol drinking, and habitual exercise. CONCLUSIONS The results suggest that the association between obesity and hyperglycemia declines with age in men and women.
An approach to stochastic system identification in riemannian manifolds

Estimation problems on manifolds e.g. Stiefel manifolds, and Lie groups e.g. SE(3), SO(3) have emerged in several applications such as computer vision pose estimation and aerospace attitude estimation. But the random process construction methods available in the probability literature rely on abstract stochastic differential geometry and are accessible with difficulty to an engineering audience. Here we review and expand to matrix manifolds a recent much simpler approach developed by the author. Using that approach we give a simple interpretation of some important recent results based on a notion of state conversion. We then show how these conversion results can be used to do system identification. We illustrate throughout with Stiefel manifold examples.
Efficacy and safety of aceclofenac in the treatment of osteoarthritis: a randomized double-blind comparative clinical trial versus diclofenac – an Indian experience

ABSTRACT Objective: Osteoarthritis is one of the most common forms of arthritis seen in primary care. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) play an important role in the management of osteoarthritis. However, gastrointestinal (GI) side effects limit their use. Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX‐2) selective inhibitors exhibit better GI tolerability than conventional NSAIDs, but their cardiovascular safety is controversial. An NSAID with high efficacy, high GI tolerability and devoid of adverse cardiovascular effects is therefore a profile preferred by physicians. Aceclofenac is an anti-inflammatory and analgesic drug with preferential COX-2 inhibition. The objective of this study was to assess the efficacy and safety of aceclofenac in the treatment of osteoarthritis in an Indian population. Research design and methods: The trial was controlled, comparative, randomized, and double-blind. The study included 247 patients (82 males and 165 females, 40–82 years), suffering from osteoarthritis. Patients were randomized to receive either aceclofenac (100 mg twice daily) or diclofenac (75 mg twice daily). Main outcome measures: Clinical assessment was done at screening, randomization, and at 2 weeks, 4 weeks and 8 weeks of treatment by calculating Western Ontario MacMaster (WOMAC) scores, time taken to walk 100 feet, visual analogue scores for pain, investigator's assessment on a Likert scale and joint tenderness. Tolerability assessment was based on adverse events. Patient compliance was also assessed. Results: Aceclofenac was found to be statistically superior to diclofenac in efficacy parameters of WOMAC scores, investigator's assessment and joint tenderness. Aceclofenac was found to be statistically superior to diclofenac in terms of epigastric discomfort, dyspepsia and abdominal pain. Compliance was also better with aceclofenac. The overall response of patients’ osteoarthritis to aceclofenac was found to be statistically superior to diclofenac by both physician and patient. Conclusions: Aceclofenac is an effective and well-tolerated drug in osteoarthritis in the Indian setting.
Relationship between Autophagy and Apoptotic Cell Death in Human Neuroblastoma Cells Treated with Paraquat: Could Autophagy be a “Brake” in Paraquat-Induced Apoptotic Death?

Paraquat (PQ) (1, 1’-dimethyl-4, 4’-bipyridinium dichloride), a widely used herbicide, has been suggested as a potential etiologic factor for the development of Parkinson’s disease (PD). In neurons from patients with PD display characteristics of autophagy, a degradative mechanism involved in the recycling and turnover of cytoplasmic constituents from eukaryotic cells. Low concentrations of paraquat have been recently found to induce autophagy in human neuroblastoma cells, and ultimately the neurons succumb to apoptotic death. Whereas caspase inhibition retarded cell death, autophagy inhibition accelerated the apoptotic cell death induced by paraquat. These findings suggest a relationship between autophagy and apoptotic cell death in human neuroblastoma cells treated with paraquat and open a new line of investigation to advance our knowledge regarding the origin of PD. Addendum to Inhibition of Paraquat-Induced Autophagy Accelerates the Apoptotic Cell Death in Neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y Cells R.A. González-Polo, M. Niso-Santano, M.A. Ortíz-Ortíz, A. Gómez-Martín, J.M. Morán, L. García-Rubio, J. Francisco-Morcillo, C. Zaragoza , G. Soler and J.M. Fuentes Toxicological Science 2007; In press
ANALYSIS OF ABNORMAL RETURN, STOCK RETURN AND STOCK LIQUIDITY BEFORE AND AFTER BUYBACK SHARE: CASE STUDY OF COMPANIES LISTED IN INDONESIA STOCK EXCHANGE IN PERIOD OF 2011-2015

This study aims to know the impact of buyback share conducted by companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) Period of 2011-2015. The analytical method used to perform the test of this research’s hypothesis is parametric t statistic which is by using two different mean tests with paired samples. The population in this study is all listed companies in Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) which conduct buyback share from the period of 2011 to the period of 2015. The results of this study include 1) the first hypothesis shows that on average, abnormal share return prior to the implementation of buyback share is greater than after the implementation of buyback share, 2) the second hypothesis, on average, stock return prior to the execution of buyback share is larger compared to after the implementation of buyback share, stock return of the company after the implementation of share buyback, 3) the third hypothesis shows, on average, trading volume activity after implementation buyback share is greater than before implementation, 4) The fourth hypothesis after testing the result shows the bid-ask spread after the implementation of buyback share which is greater than before buyback share.
Determinants of Firm Growth: Evidence on Ownership Structure Effects and Gibrat’s Law Validity

This paper is aimed at investigating the effect of ownership structure and firm size on firm growth. While the relationship between ownership structure and firm performance has been discussed in numerous studies, inadequate attention is drawn on the correlation between ownership structure and growth indicators of firm performance. For the case of Vietnam, there is still a significant gap in knowledge on this issue. Employing the fixed-effect regression with Driskoll-Kraay standard errors for a sample of 2056 firm-year observations for the period from 2008-2015, we find that ownership structure is indeed an important determinant of firm growth, which is also dependent on financial leverage, initial earnings, and corporate diversification. Additionally, we show that Gibrat’s law is valid for the Vietnamese firms. The results of this research contribute to an enhanced understanding of the influencing factors of firm growth, which are helpful to propose some policy recommendations.
Sliding-Mode-Based Direct Power Control of Grid-Connected Wind-Turbine-Driven Doubly Fed Induction Generators Under Unbalanced Grid Voltage Conditions

This paper proposes an improved direct power control (DPC) strategy of grid-connected wind-turbine-driven doubly fed induction generators (DFIGs) when the grid voltage is unbalanced. The DPC scheme is based on the sliding mode control (SMC) approach, which directly regulates the instantaneous active and reactive powers in the stator stationary reference frame without the requirement of either synchronous coordinate transformation or phase angle tracking of grid voltage. The behavior of DFIGs by the conventional SMC-DPC, which takes no negative-sequence voltage into consideration, is analyzed under unbalanced grid voltage conditions. A novel power compensation method is proposed for the SMC-based DPC during network unbalance to achieve three selective control targets, i.e., obtaining sinusoidal and symmetrical stator current, removing stator interchanging reactive power ripples and canceling stator output active power oscillations, respectively. The active and reactive power compensation components are calculated via a simple method and the proposed three control targets can be achieved, respectively, without the need of extracting negative-sequence stator current components. Experimental results on a 2 kW DFIG prototype are presented to verify the correctness and validity of the proposed control strategy and power compensation method.
Does Acculturation Influence Psychosocial Adaptation and Well-Being in Native Hawaiians?

Native Hawaiians have suffered higher disease rates and achieved lower educational and economic levels than other ethnic groups living in Hawaii. This study tests the hypothesis that cultural afifiliation protects against psychosocial pathology in Hawaiians. Subjects included 172 Hawaiians of varying blood quantum and 92 non- Hawaiians. The Na Mea Hawai'i, a rationally derived, empirically validated measure of Hawaiian acculturation was administered to all subjects in addition to psychological tests which included 19 visual analogue scales that measure both state and trait variables. The Na Mea Hawai'i proved excellent at differentiating Hawaiians from non- Hawaiians (p = .0001), and it correlated well with blood quantum (r = 0.31, p = .0001). Low acculturation scores among Hawaiians did not correlate with any measure of discontent or psychosocial pathology irrespective of blood quantum. We conclude that Na Mea Hawai'i is a valid measure of Hawaiian acculturation, and that adaptation of the Hawallans in our sample has been unaffected by level of acculturation.