Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
PT-symmetry breaking and laser-absorber modes in optical scattering systems.

Using a scattering matrix formalism, we derive the general scattering properties of optical structures that are symmetric under a combination of parity and time reversal (PT). We demonstrate the existence of a transition between PT-symmetric scattering eigenstates, which are norm preserving, and symmetry-broken pairs of eigenstates exhibiting net amplification and loss. The system proposed by Longhi [Phys. Rev. A 82, 031801 (2010). ], which can act simultaneously as a laser and coherent perfect absorber, occurs at discrete points in the broken-symmetry phase, when a pole and zero of the S matrix coincide.
Brand preference and its impacts on customer share of visits and word-of-mouth intention: An empirical study in the full-service restaurant segment

This study attempted to investigate antecedents and consequences of consumers‟ utilitarian and hedonic attitudes toward restaurant brands and to examine the effects of brand prestige on brand preference and word-of-mouth intention with customer involvement as a moderator. In study 1, to investigate the antecedents and consequences of consumer attitudes toward restaurant brands in the full-service restaurant, this study proposed, based on existing theoretical premises, significant interrelationships among three service qualities (i.e., physical environment quality, interactional quality, and outcome quality). This study also hypothesized that these service qualities predict consumers‟ utilitarian and hedonic attitudes toward restaurant brands. Finally, this study examined the effects of consumer attitudes toward restaurant brands in forming brand preference and relative customer share of visits. A theoretical model was proposed and then tested with data collected from 318 casual and 303 fine dining restaurant patrons. The results of data analysis indicated significant interrelationships among three service qualities in both casual and fine dining restaurants. In addition, interactional and outcome qualities had significant effects on utilitarian and hedonic attitudes toward restaurant brands in the casual dining restaurant. In the fine dining segment, interactional quality significantly influenced both utilitarian and hedonic attitudes toward restaurant brands, while physical environment and outcome qualities had positive impacts only on hedonic attitude toward the restaurant‟s brand. Finally, utilitarian and hedonic attitudes toward restaurant brands enhanced brand preference, and in turn, brand preference increased relative customer share of visits in both casual and fine dining restaurants. The purpose of study 2 was to examine the effects of brand prestige on brand preference and word-of-mouth with customer involvement as a moderator in the fine dining restaurant segment. Based on a thorough literature review, this study hypothesized that brand prestige would have positive effects on brand preference and word-of-mouth and that brand preference would have a positive relationship with word-of-mouth. Finally, this study examined the moderating role of customer involvement in the relationships between (1) brand prestige and brand preference, (2) brand prestige and word-of-mouth, and (3) brand preference and word-ofmouth. A total of 293 questionnaire responses were used to empirically test the proposed relationships in fine dining restaurants. This study found that brand prestige has significant effects on brand preference and word-of-mouth. In addition, brand preference had a positive relationship with word-of-mouth. However, customer involvement as a moderator was not supported. BRAND PREFERENCE AND ITS IMPACTS ON CUSTOMER SHARE OF VISITS AND WORD-OF-MOUTH INTENTION: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY IN THE FULL-SERVICE RESTAURANT SEGMENT
Short-term changes in sedentary behaviour during adolescence: Project STIL (Sedentary Teenagers and Inactive Lifestyles)

Hypothesis: Changes in body composition and body image during puberty will impact on sedentary behavioural choices. Aim: The study aimed to investigate the effects of changes in pubertal status, body composition and body image on changes in time spent being sedentary. Participants and methods: Eighty-three school students aged 10–15 years were studied at 6-month intervals. BMI and percentage body fat (%BF) were calculated from anthropometric measures. Sedentary behaviour and sleep time were computed for weekday and weekend days using momentary-time-sampling diaries. Body image was measured using the Physical Self-Perception Profile for Children. Pubertal status was assessed from self-reported secondary sexual characteristics. Results: During weekdays, boys’ sedentary behaviour increased by a significantly greater amount for those who increased pubertal level compared with those who did not. No significant correlations were found between changing pubertal status, body composition, and body image for either gender. For girls, but not boys, a significant amount of the variance of the change in weekend day sedentary behaviour was explained by changing %BF, independent of changing pubertal status. Conclusion: Only a part of the hypothesis was supported by these data. Changes in sedentary behaviour were not associated with behavioural choices triggered by body compositional changes.
The long-term outcome after acute renal failure

Purpose of reviewResearch priorities in critical care are increasingly focusing on long-term outcomes and prognosis for survivors of critical illness. This review will focus on long-term outcomes after acute renal failure. Recent findingsFew studies have described the long-term outcomes after acute renal failure. Rates of survival are variable and range from 46 to 74%, 55 to 73%, 57 to 65% and 65 to 70% at 90 days, 6 months, 1 year and 5 years, respectively. All of older age, co-morbid illness, illness severity, septic shock, and renal replacement therapy after cardiac surgery have been associated with reduced survival. Recovery to independence from renal replacement therapy is expected in 60–70% of survivors by 90 days. Health-related quality of life is generally good and perceived as acceptable. Survivors often experience difficulty with mobility and limitations in activities of daily living. Renal replacement therapy is costly and achieves marginal cost-effectiveness in terms of quality-adjusted survival for those with a higher probability of survival. SummaryThe long-term survival after acute renal failure is poor. Yet, most survivors recover sufficient function to become independent from renal replacement therapy. While perceived health-related quality of life is good, survivors have a lower health-related quality of life compared with the general population. Further research is needed to explore the relationship between survival, markers of morbidity and costs after acute renal failure.
The Role of a Regional Bank in a System of Central Banks

The paper assesses the role of a Reserve Bank in the Federal Reserve System. It compares the Eurosystem with the Fed System, and offers suggestions for the Eurosystem based on the Fed's experience. A regional presence facilitates surveillance of the economy and helps a central bank to communicate with the public. Competition among regional banks stimulates innovative thinking on operational, research, and policy questions. The Chairman (President) of the system should be strong enough to encourage diverse views in the monetary policy committee and to build a consensus for decisive and timely policy actions as needed.
Determinants of firm R&D: Evidence from Swedish firm level data

This paper analyses determinants of firm R&D and if predictions from the model of creative destruction is supported by data using matched employer-employee longitudinal data on the Swedish manufacturing industry. In particular, we analyse the impact of competition on R&D. Using various measures of competition, results indicate that competition is likely to contract firm R&D expenditures. We do not find strong support for the expected large-firm advantage in R&D through scale effects. In addition, firm R&D appears positively correlated with its own export and to the R&D-intensity of other firms within the same concern, indicating the existence of knowledge spillovers.
Chromosome copy number variants in fetuses with syndromic malformations

Chromosome copy number variants (CNVs; gains and losses of DNA sequences >1 kb) are wide‐spread throughout the genome of healthy individuals. Laboratory studies show that a subset of CNVs are pathogenic, and not only can be responsible for the pathogenesis of major birth defects and cancer, but are also associated with neurodevelopmental disorders at birth. The characteristics of the pathogenic microdeletions and microduplications are important for both clinical implications and genetic counselling regarding test selection for prenatal screening and diagnosis. Unfortunately, our knowledge of the phenotypic effects of most CNV is still minimal, leading to the classification of many CNVs as “genomic imbalances of unknown clinical significance”. Microdeletions and microduplications can occur in all pregnancies and the spectrum of pathogenic CNVs in fetuses with syndromic malformations is not well studied. This review summarizes our current understanding of CNVs, the common detection methods, and the characteristics of pathogenic CNVs identified in fetuses with syndromic malformations. Birth Defects Research 109:725–733, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
A Novel Class of Cell Surface Glycolipids of Mammalian Cells

Glycosyl phosphatidylinositol (GPI) lipids function as anchors of membrane proteins, and free GPI units serve as intermediates along the path of GPI-anchor biosynthesis. By using in vivo cell surface biotinylation, we show that free GPIs: 1) can exit the rough endoplasmic reticulum and are present on the surface of a murine EL-4 T-lymphoma and a human carcinoma cell (HeLa), 2) arrive at the cell surface in a time and temperature-dependent fashion, and 3) are built on a base-labile glycerol backbone, unlike GPI anchors of surface proteins of the same cells. The free GPIs described in this study may serve as a source of hormone-sensitive phosphoinositol glycans. The absence of free GPIs from the cell surface may also account for the growth advantage of blood cells in paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria.
Inter-Industry Contagion between UK Life-Insurers and UK Banks: An Event Study

Understanding interlinkages in a financial system is an integral part of the assessment of its stability. This paper employs an event study technique to assess the significance of interlinkages from the UK life insurance sector to the UK banking system in times of stress. The paper uses a thorough methodology to enhance standard event study techniques by adjusting for autocorrelation and heteroskedasticity when calculating the abnormal returns’ forecast errors and for the offsetting effects in cumulative abnormal returns. We take an original approach by introducing the use of trading volumes to detect significant reactions not captured by the use of equity prices. The paper shows evidence of interlinkages from the UK life insurance to the UK banking sector, and concludes that contagion is driven by banks’ ownership of life insurance assets and only occurs during events that have hit the life insurance sector as a whole.
APPARENT INCREASE OF REPORTED HEMORRHAGIC DISEASE IN THE MIDWESTERN AND NORTHEASTERN USA

Abstract We investigated temporal and spatial trends in reporting of hemorrhagic disease (HD) in the midwestern and northeastern US using a 33-yr (1980–2012) questionnaire-based data set. This data set was supported by an additional 19 yr (1994–2012) of bluetongue virus (BTV) and epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus (EHDV) isolation results from clinically affected white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) in these regions. Both the number of counties that were reported positive for HD and the northern latitudinal range of reported HD increased with time. A similar increase was observed with both the number of states annually reporting HD and the number of counties where HD was reported. Large-scale outbreaks occurred in 1988, 1996, 2007, and 2012, and the scale of these individual outbreaks also increased with time. The predominant virus isolated from these regions was EHDV-2, but the prevalence of EHDV-6, which was first detected in 2006, appears to be increasing. Temporally, the extent of regional HD reporting was correlated with regional drought conditions. The significance of increases in reported HD and the incursions and establishment of new BTV and EHDV in the US currently are unknown.
High b diversity in the flora of Californian serpentine ‘ islands ’ 1 , 2 *

Identification of global biodiversity hotspots is a leading conservation priority (Mittermayer et al. (1999) Hotspots. Conservation International, Washington, DC; Stein et al. (2000) Precious Heritage: The Status of Biodiversity in the United States. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK), but we know little about the nature and structure of such hotspots. Botanical richness in one recently identified hotspot, the California Floristic Province, has long been attributed by evolutionists to edaphic and climatic heterogeneity. Here we demonstrate that the flora restricted (endemic) to serpentine soil, the state’s most botanically distinctive substrate, shows unusually high ‘b diversity’ – i.e., spatial variation in species composition – among regions, although ‘a’ diversity within any given region is low. Conservation of an endemic-rich flora requires a network of sites to capture this among-region or spatial component of diversity.
Causal explanations as a risk factor for depression: theory and evidence.

The attributional reformulation of the learned helplessness model claims that an explanatory style in which bad events are explained by internal, stable, and global causes is associated with depressive symptoms. Furthermore, this style is claimed to be a risk factor for subsequent depression when bad events are encountered. We describe a variety of new investigations of the helplessness reformulation that employ five research strategies: (a) cross-sectional correlational studies, (b) longitudinal studies, (c) experiments of nature, (d) laboratory experiments, and (e) case studies. Taken together, these studies converge in their support for the learned helplessness reformulation.
Reconceptualizing entrepreneurial orientation

Entrepreneurial orientation (EO)—a firm's strategic posture towards entrepreneurship—has become the predominant construct of interest in strategic entrepreneurship research. Despite the ever-increasing volume of nomological research on EO, there remain ongoing conversations regarding its ontology. Drawing from measurement theory, we outline an EO reconceptualization addressing the likely prevalence of Type II nomological error in the EO literature stemming from measurement model misspecification. Focusing on the question of whether EO is an attitudinal construct, a behavioral construct, or both, we propose a formative construction of EO viewing the exhibition of entrepreneurial behaviors and of managerial attitude towards risk as jointly necessary dimensions that collectively form the higher-order EO construct. We present an empirical illustration of our reconceptualization followed by a discussion of future research opportunities
Managing mission-critical IT in the financial industry

In recent years, IT has come to play an important role in companies. So successful execution of business processes often depends on mission-critical IT-solutions. Managing such IT is challenging. Companies have to keep up with rapid developments, but also consider long-term consequences while doing so. How do they survive in the long run without surrendering in the short run? What should be done in-house? What should be bought from external providers? How should they allocate scarce IT resources? This book answers these questions on the basis of four cases from the financial industry. After describing and analyzing IT portfolios, it investigates the questions of sourcing and technology adoption. Finally, it explores the relationship between mission-critical IT and business operations. The study suggests different ways of analyzing the role applications play in a company rather than the applications themselves. The character of an application may be in the eye of the beholder. Framing applications from both business and IT perspectives is also important, especially in information intensive companies. The Resource Allocation Matrix provides a tool for characterizing four types of IT-management efforts: agile action, firefighting, business transformation and platform construction.
Intra‐laboratory validation of the Ridascreen® SET Total kit for detecting staphylococcal enterotoxins SEA to SEE in cheese

Aim: To determine the performance of the Ridascreen® SET Total kit, after sample extraction and concentration by dialysis, with regard to its use in official controls for staphylococcal enterotoxins under European Regulation (EC) No. 2073/2005 modified. This study was conducted on naturally contaminated cheese samples and compared with the results of the previously validated Vidas® SET2 kit.
Effect of CD4 monoclonal antibody in vivo on lesion development, delayed-type hypersensitivity and interleukin 3 production in experimental murine cutaneous leishmaniasis.

Highly susceptible BALB/c mice subjected to adult thymectomy followed by prolonged (15 weeks), twice-weekly injections of a low dose (100 micrograms) of CD4 monoclonal antibody (MoAb) develop resistance to otherwise uniformly fatal and disseminating Leishmania major infection. In contrast, similar treatment with CD8 MoAb has no effect on the course of L. major infection. CD4 MoAb administered after the lesion establishment also has no effect. Mice which become resistant following CD4 MoAb treatment developed the classical delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) which persisted at 72 h after footpad injection with killed L. major promastigotes. A substantial degree of resistance can also be induced in the BALB/c mice with two i.v. high doses of 500 micrograms of CD4 MoAb given immediately prior to L. major infection. The treated mice developed classical DTH and significantly smaller lesions. The spleen cells from these mice also produced significantly lower levels of IL-3 compared to that of untreated control mice when cultured with L. major antigens in vitro. In contrast, genetically resistant CBA mice treated with CD4 MoAb developed significantly larger lesions but lower levels of classical DTH compared to untreated mice. These data confirmed and extended earlier reports on the prophylactic effect of CD4 MoAb in susceptible BALB/c mice and the disease exacerbative effect in the resistant CBA mice. The data also further illustrate the direct correlation between classical DTH and resistance, and the inverse correlation between IL-3 production and resistance in experimental cutaneous leishmaniasis.
Low-temperature heat capacities of confined liquid benzene, implying the behavior of ordinary bulk liquids

Isobaric heat capacities Cp of benzene confined in silica MCM-41 mesopores with average diameters equal to and smaller than 2.9 nm were measured by precise adiabatic calorimetry. The confined benzene samples revealed no thermal anomaly due to crystallization/fusion and vitrified at low temperatures. The Cp curves displayed a hump and a considerably quick decrease on the low-temperature side of the hump as the pore diameter increased. The enthalpy-relaxation effects observed on intermittent heating showed that the anomaly of the Cp hump and quick decrease is not assigned to a glass transition. The bend in the temperature dependence of density reported previously was interpreted as corresponding to the quick decrease in Cp. We concluded that the anomalous Cp and density behaviors originated from the ordering/excitation in the configurational state, close to the ground state, of confined molecular aggregate and proposed a scenario that explains the general Cp curves of ordinary bulk supercooled liquids in equilibrium at low temperatures below the glass-transition temperatures.
Emergent Behaviors in a Deterministic Model of the Human Uterus

The human birth process is powered by uterine contractions that have observable patterns that depend on the physiology of muscular activity. We explored a previously designed model1 simulating the uterus to assess global contractile patterns. The model is a cellular automaton that simulates the complexities of uterine activity from a few simple rules of cellular interaction and uterine geometry. Multiple experiments using the cellular automaton involved different uterine shapes, cell numbers, and initial distributions of active and resting cells. Results demonstrate complex contraction patterns similar to those observed in human labor. At least 2 modes of behavior appear in the simulations, one consistent with effective labor and one not. Experiments with cellular automata provide insights into stereotypic and disordered labor patterns that produce patient discomfort without progress in labor. We hypothesize that complex uterine contraction patterns may have other roles in the preparation for labor and birth.
Light-load maximal lifting velocity full squat training program improves important physical and skill characteristics in futsal players

ABSTRACT This study aimed to compare the effect of 6 weeks of resistance training or combined resistance training and change of direction exercises on physical performance and motor skills in futsal players. Thirty-four futsal players were divided into full squat group (SG, n = 12), combined full squat and change of direction exercises group (S+CDG, n = 12) and control group (CG, n = 10). The resistance training for SG consisted of full squat with low load (~45–58% 1RM) and low volume (4–6 repetitions), whereas the S+CDG performed the same resistance training program combined with loaded change of direction. Sprint time in 10 and 20 m, change of direction test, countermovement vertical jump (CMJ) height, maximal strength and force–velocity relationship in full squat exercise, kicking speed ball (BSmean) and repeated sprint ability (RSAmean) were selected as testing variables. Both experimental groups showed significant improvements for CMJ, BSmean and all strength parameters. Only SG resulted in significant sprint gains, whereas S+CDG also achieved significant improvements in RSAmean. The CG remained unchanged after training period. No significant differences were found between both experimental groups. These findings suggest that only 12 sessions of either lightweight resistance training alone, lifting the load at maximal intended velocity or combined with change of direction exercises is enough to improve several physical and skills capacities critical to futsal performance in adult players.
Attributions and Attitudes of Mothers and Fathers in China

SYNOPSIS Objective. The present study examined mothers' and fathers' attributions and attitudes related to parenting in China. Design. Interviews were conducted with 241 pairs of parents to obtain maternal and paternal reports of attributions regarding successes and failures in parent–child interactions and on progressive versus authoritarian attitudes about parenting. Results. Mothers' mean levels of attributions and attitudes did not differ significantly from fathers' mean levels of attributions and attitudes. The authors found significant correlations between mothers' and fathers' attributions regarding uncontrollable success, authoritarian attitudes, and modernity of attitudes. Conclusions. Supporting the cultural evolutionary view that drastic social changes bring about nonconforming and individualistic behavioral tendencies, these findings rectify and expand the existing literature portraying Chinese parenting as uniformly Confucian and traditional.