Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Acid-Base Equilibria of (2,2'-Bipyridyl-4,4'-dicarboxylic acid)ruthenium(II) Complexes and the Effect of Protonation on Charge-Transfer Sensitization of Nanocrystalline Titania.

The ruthenium complexes [Ru(dcbpyH(2))(2)(Cl)(2)] (1), [Ru(dcbpyH(2))(2)(NCS)(2)] (2), (Bu(4)N)(4)[Ru(dcbpy)(2)(NCS)(2)] (3), and (Bu(4)N)(2)[Ru(dcbpyH)(2)(NCS)(2)] (4) were synthesized and characterized by cyclic voltammetry, UV-vis absorption, and emission, IR, Raman, and NMR spectroscopy. The absorption and emission maxima of these complexes red shifted with decreasing pH, and showed pH-dependent excited-state lifetimes. The ground-state pK(a) values were determined by spectrophotometeric methods, and the dissociation of protons was found to occur in two steps (pK(a) = 3 and 1.5). The Ru(II)/(III) couple in the complex (Bu(4)N)(4)[Ru(dcbpy)(2)(NCS)(2)] is shifted ca. 290 mV negatively with regard to that of the complex [Ru(dcbpyH(2))(2)(NCS)(2)] due to the replacement of H(+) by tetrabutylammonium cation. The negative shift for the dcbpy-based reduction potential is even larger, i.e., about 600 mV compared to that of the complex [Ru(dcbpyH(2))(2)(NCS)(2)]. The effect of deprotonation on the performance of these complexes as photosensitizers for nanocrystalline titania was investigated.
Dimensions of Social Capital and Firm Competitiveness Improvement: The Mediating Role of Information Sharing

This study investigates the mediating role of information sharing in the relationships between dimensions of social capital and firm competitiveness, thereby positing a possible explanation for the divergent empirical results of the social capital-performance relationship in the existing literature. The study uses a sample of 108 Hong Kong-based Chinese family-owned firms from the manufacturing sector. Largely supporting the theoretical predictions, the results from multiple regression and structural equation model tests show that information sharing plays a mediating role in the relationships between three dimensions of social capital (trust, network ties, and repeated transactions) and firm competitiveness improvement. Copyright Blackwell Publishing Ltd 2007.
Structural features of economic integration in an enlarged Europe: patterns of catching-up and industrial specialisation

This paper discusses the evolution of competitiveness, industrial and trade specialisation in the manufacturing sector of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe (CEECs). It is shown that the paths taken by the different CEECs have been quite diverse and we attempt to apply a combination of a catching-up plus trade specialisation model which is required to understand the patterns of specialisation emerging in Central and Eastern Europe.
Toward Understanding Work Motivation

Government reformers in the United States have recently focused on running public agencies more like private firms by emphasizing economic rewards, such as merit pay. Meanwhile, a body of literature has grown that indicates that public servants respond to factors that financially based reward initiatives tend to ignore. We introduce a new explanatory variable, perceived public service efficacy (PPSE), which quantifies public servants' perception about the benefit their employing agencies provide the public. We present empirical evidence demonstrating that as PPSE rises—that is, as public servants more strongly perceive their agencies to be benefiting the public—reported levels of role ambiguity decrease, whereas job satisfaction and organizational commitment responses increase.
Entrepreneurial Orientation, Risk Taking, and Performance in Family Firms

This article focuses on risk taking as one important dimension of entrepreneurial orientation and its impact in family firms. Drawing on a sample of Swedish SMEs, we find that risk taking is a distinct dimension of entrepreneurial orientation in family firms and that it is positively associated with proactiveness and innovation. We also find that even if family firms do take risks while engaged in entrepreneurial activities, they take risk to a lesser extent than nonfamily firms. Moreover, and most importantly for our understanding of entrepreneurial orientation in family firms, we find that risk taking in family firms is negatively related to performance. Both theoretical and practical implications of our findings are provided.
Sorting Out Sorts

In this paper we analyze the theoretical implications of sorting data into groups and then running asset pricing tests within each group. We show that the way this procedure is implemented introduces a severe bias in favor of rejecting the model under consideration. By simply picking enough groups to sort into even the true asset pricing model can be shown to have no explanatory power within each group.
Reversion of autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome with an antimalarial drug: preliminary results of a clinical cohort study and molecular observations

Summary. Autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome (ALPS) is a paediatric disease characterized by lymphoproliferation and autoimmunity. Most patients are known to carry heterozygous mutations of the TNFRSF6 gene leading to diminished Fas‐mediated apoptosis and failure of activated lymphocytes to undergo apoptosis. A subgroup of patients without the TNFRSF6 gene mutation has similar defective apoptosis and clinical features. No effective treatment has been reported so far. Glucocorticoids, intravenous immunoglobulin and/or immunosuppressive drugs have usually led to only transient clinical improvement. Seven ALPS patients (two type Ia and five type III) were treated with the antimalarial drug Fansidar. No toxicity was observed. An objective response was seen in six of them and, in two, the treatment was stopped without reappearance of the symptoms. Moreover, a marked decrease in interleukin‐10 levels was observed in two patients during the treatment. We found that the drug induced apoptosis in activated lymphocytes through activation of the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway.
Subversion of a young phagosome: the survival strategies of intracellular pathogens

Infection by intracellular pathogens remains a major cause of human diseases and death worldwide. The emergence of various resistant microbe strains associated to the problem of multidrug resistance emphasizes the urgency of finding new approaches to fight intracellular pathogens. Despite the severity of this health problem, it is surprising to realize that, until recently, little was known about the molecular mechanisms taking place at the subcellular level during host±pathogen interaction. Hopefully, a significant body of data has accumulated in the past few years and contributed to the birth of a new field at the frontier of microbiology and cell biology, cellular microbiology (Falkow, 1999). This interest has widened our understanding of the strategies used by microorganisms to survive in mammalian cells. Recent reviews have described with details the survival strategies of intracellular pathogens within their host cells (Finlay and Falkow, 1997; Sinai and Joiner, 1997; Aderem and Underhill, 1999; Dermine and Desjardins, 1999; MeÂresse et al., 1999a). Here, we will discuss mainly the mechanisms and molecules involved in phagolysosome biogenesis, and those used by intracellular pathogens to subvert the properties of host cell phagosomes and avoid the encounter with the harsh environment of phagolysosomes. We will also present some of the new approaches and technical developments that are likely to have a significant impact in our ability to decode and expose the subversive strategies of intracellular pathogens.
Information Uncertainty and Expected Returns

This study examines the role of information uncertainty (IU) in predicting cross-sectional stock returns. We define IU in terms of “value ambiguity,” or the precision with which firm value can be estimated by knowledgeable investors at reasonable cost. Using several different proxies for IU, we show that (1) on average, high-IU firms earn lower future returns (the “mean” effect), and (2) price and earnings momentum effects are much stronger among high-IU firms (the “interaction” effect). These findings are consistent with analytical models in which high IU exacerbates investor overconfidence and limits rational arbitrage.
Fresh Assessment of the Underground Economy and Tax Evasion in Pakistan: Causes, Consequences, and Linkages with the Formal Economy

Rise in the underground economy creates problems for the policy-makers to formulate economic policies, especially the monetary and fiscal policies. It is found that if there was no tax evasion, budgets balance might have been zero and positive for some years and we would not have needed to borrow as much as we had borrowed. It is concluded that the impact of the underground economy is significant to the movements of the formal economy, but the impact of formal economy is insignificant in explaining the movements in the underground economy. In the long run, underground economy and official economy are positively associated. It is estimated that the underground economy ranges between Rs 2.91 trillion and Rs 3.34 trillion (54.6 percent of GDP to 62.8 percent of GDP respectively) in 2005 and tax evasion ranges between Rs 302 billion and Rs 347 billion (5.7 percent of GDP to 6.5 percent of GDP respectively) in 2005. Underground economy and tax evasion were increasing very rapidly in the early 1980s but the rate of increase accelerated in the 1990s. It declined in 1999, but reverted to an increasing trend until 2003. It declined again in 2004 and 2005.
Proteasome dysfunction induces muscle growth defects and protein aggregation

ABSTRACT The ubiquitin–proteasome and autophagy–lysosome pathways are the two major routes of protein and organelle clearance. The role of the proteasome pathway in mammalian muscle has not been examined in vivo. In this study, we report that the muscle-specific deletion of a crucial proteasomal gene, Rpt3 (also known as Psmc4), resulted in profound muscle growth defects and a decrease in force production in mice. Specifically, developing muscles in conditional Rpt3-knockout animals showed dysregulated proteasomal activity. The autophagy pathway was upregulated, but the process of autophagosome formation was impaired. A microscopic analysis revealed the accumulation of basophilic inclusions and disorganization of the sarcomeres in young adult mice. Our results suggest that appropriate proteasomal activity is important for muscle growth and for maintaining myofiber integrity in collaboration with autophagy pathways. The deletion of a component of the proteasome complex contributed to myofiber degeneration and weakness in muscle disorders that are characterized by the accumulation of abnormal inclusions.
CFO Gender and Accruals Quality

SYNOPSIS: The authors examine the association between chief financial officer (hereafter, CFO) gender and the quality of accruals. Based on findings in prior research on gender differences in a variety of decision settings—risk-taking attitudes, financial judgments, and regulatory compliances—they hypothesize that firms with female CFOs will have higher quality of accruals. The empirical findings, based on a sample of 1,559 (1,222) firms in 2005 (2004), support this hypothesis. The study shows that companies with female CFOs have lower performance-matched absolute discretionary accruals and lower absolute accrual estimation errors, after controlling for other factors that prior research has shown to be associated with accruals.
The Effects of Earnings Inequality on State Social Spending in the United States

States provide a variety of goods and services to their citizens, ranging from police protection to highway construction to education and health services. This study is concerned with how earnings inequality has affected such spending at the state level in the United States between 1977 and 2005. The results show that for every 1 percent increase in the 9050 percentile ratio of earnings, social spending on non-health and non-education goods and services increases by approximately 0.231 percent, or about $615 per person. A similar 1 percent increase in the 5010 percentile ratio of earnings is associated with a smaller 0.042 percent rise in spending, or $112 per person. A one percent increase in overall inequality, as measured by the Gini coefficient, is associated with a rise in social spending of about 0.255 percent, or $680 per person. The model is robust to a variety of sensitivity tests and generally shows that increases in inequality in both the upper- and lower-tail of the earnings distribution serve to increase social spending.
The Effectiveness of Management Control in Small Firms: Perspectives from Resource Dependence Theory

In the present study, the authors explore how small firms' human resource management (HRM) systems influence the effectiveness of their formal and informal management controls. Coinvestigations of broader control systems and HRM in small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) are significantly lacking in the existing literature. A better understanding of the links between control and HRM will lead to better prescriptions regarding how control relates to performance in small firms. To address this gap, the authors develop a theoretical model based on reen and elsh's seminal application of resource dependence theory to management control and test its propositions using structural equation modeling on a sample of 317 SMEs. The empirical findings suggest that control has a stronger effect on SME performance if the firm emphasizes HRM. Managers should employ a portfolio consisting of both formal and informal controls. The paper closes with discussions of its implications for theory and managerial practice, highlighting limitations and potential future research avenues.
The Implications of Temporary Jobs on the Distribution of Wages in Italy: An Unconditional IVQTE Approach

Using Italian data, this paper investigates the wage implications of temporary jobs across the whole pay profile using unconditional quantile regression (UQR) models. Results clearly indicate that the wage penalty associated to temporary jobs is significantly larger at the bottom of wage profile and is almost absent for high-wage jobs. This is in line with the sticky floors hypothesis, supporting the idea that the wage gap for temporary employees depends on their position in the wage distribution for low-paid jobs. To recover a causal interpretation, I employ an instrumental variable (IV) strategy. I adopt the unconditional instrumental variable quantile treatment effects (IVQTE) estimator proposed by Frolich and Melly, which corrects for endogenous selection in temporary contracts. The IVQTE estimates yield similar results to standard UQR, even if the wage penalty is larger in size at the bottom of the wage distribution and disappears at the top quantiles. This evidence highlights that policies aimed at increasing flexibility may reinforce the two-tier nature of the Italian labour market and the relative wage inequality.
System for Stable β-Estradiol-Inducible Gene Expression in the Moss Physcomitrella patens

Inducible transgene expression provides a useful tool to analyze gene function. The moss Physcomitrella patens is a model basal land plant with well-developed research tools, including a high efficiency of gene targeting and substantial genomics resources. However, current systems for controlled transgene expression remain limited. Here we report the development of an estrogen receptor mediated inducible gene expression system, based on the system used in flowering plants. After identifying the appropriate promoters to drive the chimeric transducer, we succeeded in inducing transcription over 1,000-fold after 24 h incubation with β-estradiol. The P . patens system was also effective for high-level long-term induction of gene expression; transcript levels of the activated gene were maintained for at least seven days on medium containing β-estradiol. We also established two potentially neutral targeting sites and a set of vectors for reproducible expression of two transgenes. This β-estradiol-dependent system will be useful to test genes individually or in combination, allowing stable, inducible transgenic expression in P . patens .
Reinvestigating the Export-Led Growth Evidence in Malaysia: Bound Test Approach

International trade is an important contributor to Malaysia's economic growth and development. Malaysia's trade policy is to pursue efforts towards creating a more liberalizing and fair global trading environment. While Malaysia continues to accord high priority to the rule-based multilateral trading system under the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Malaysia is also pursuing regional and bilateral trading arrangements to complement the multilateral approach to trade liberalisation. Recently, Malaysia has successfuly established free trade agreement (FTA) with her close trading partner such as Japan, Pakistan, New Zealand, India, Chile and Australia. Knowing the importances of export contribution towards the gross domestic product (GDP) of the country, this paper aims to reinvestigates the evidence of Export-Led-Growth Hypothesis by using recent time series techniques known as Bound test. The data used in this paper is annually data ranged from 1980 to 2011. By modifying the standard Cobb-Douglas production function, we found out that export plays a significant role in contributing growth to the Malaysia’s economy. Besides, labor and capital are also vital for the development of the nation. We recommend few policies based on the result gained from this paper.
Benchmarking: a tool for facilitating organizational learning?

This article looks at benchmarking as a tool for promoting performance improvement and the ‘learning organization’ ideal. Specifically, it considers some of the ways the European Foundation for Quality Management Excellence Model and self-assessment approach are being applied within the UK public service. Further, the article introduces ‘Dolphin’, a new self-assessment tool based on the Excellence Model, and describes how the tool can be applied in practice. Finally, whether benchmarking can aid organizational improvement, organizational learning and establish the basis for a ‘learning culture’ is discussed. Copyright © Crown Copyright 2002. Recorded with the permission of the controller of Her Majestry's Stationery Office. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Differential sorting and packaging of capa‐gene related products in an insect

A unique costorage of neuropeptides was recently found in the abdominal perisympathetic organs (PSOs) of the American cockroach, Periplaneta americana. Having specific antisera directed against all peptides belonging to this neurosecretory system, we examined the sorting of PSO‐peptides in the soma of the median neurosecretory cells of abdominal ganglia by using immunoelectron microscopic double stainings. The data indicate that all six abundant neuropeptides of this neurohormonal system, which includes three capa‐gene related products, are primarily incorporated into separate vesicles. These vesicles fuse with each other in the cytoplasm and become translucent on their way to the axon hillock. By means of light microscopy and MALDI‐TOF mass spectrometry, an identical population of neuropeptides was found in interneurons of the brain. As revealed by subsequent immunoelectron microscopic analysis, the peptides of these cells are separately packed into dense core vesicles but do not fuse with each other. Thus, hitherto unknown cell‐type–specific sorting mechanisms occur in neurosecretory cells and interneurons, respectively. J. Comp. Neurol. 481:84–95, 2005. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
A three-decade repeated cross-sectional survey on mental health of the Chinese Jino minority

Objective: As there is growing evidence outlining varying degrees of social, economic and cultural changes among minority groups in China, there was a need to undertake research to determine whether modernization and urbanization of China has had an impact on the mental health of individuals from minority groups. In 1979, the Jino ethnic minority group was the last minority group to be designated a minority by the Chinese Central Government. As a direct result of the Chinese Government intervention, the Jino society began transitioning from a traditional rural lifestyle existence to that of a more modern urban lifestyle. Our objective was to explore whether changing social and economic influences had impacted the mental health of the Jino people. Methods: A longitudinal study over three decades was undertaken to determine the mental health of the Jino People. Results: From our initial study in 1979 and subsequent follow-up studies in 1989, 1999 and 2009, there were no significant changes found for 1-month prevalence, lifetime prevalence and prognosis for schizophrenia and mental retardation among the Jino population researched. For major depressive disorders, there were significant differences, suggesting a rising trend not only in 1-month prevalence but also in lifetime prevalence. We found significant differences had occurred over the three decades for alcohol abuse, alcohol dependence and Korsakov’s psychosis. At the same time, the annual suicide incidence had increased at least three times in 2009 compared to that of 1989. Conclusion: Results from our three-decade longitudinal repeated cross-sectional survey show that due to rapid social, economic and cultural changes among the Jino people, serious social and mental health problems such as alcohol-related disorder, suicide and major depressive disorders have increased.
Arm position constraints when throwing in three dimensions.

1. Overarm throwing is a skilled multijoint movement with potentially many degrees of freedom. Considering only the arm > or = 7 degrees of freedom are involved (shoulder 3, elbow 2, wrist 2). For each arm segment 3 degrees of freedom are potentially required to specify its angular position (orientation) at any moment during a throw. Simplification of the control problem for the CNS would occur if there were constraints on these degrees of freedom. The objective was to determine whether such constraints exist at ball release when throwing at targets in different directions using only the arm. 2. The angular positions in three dimensions of the distal phalanx of the middle finger, the hand, the forearm, and the upper arm were simultaneously recorded with search coils as subjects sat with a fixed trunk and threw balls at nine targets in an approximate +/- 40 degree work space. Ball release was signaled by microswitches on the proximal and distal phalanges of the middle finger (proximal and distal triggers). 3. On throwing at any one target the hand at ball release adopted a similar orientation for each throw, i.e., for a particular vertical and horizontal angular position the hand adopted a similar torsional position. On throwing at targets throughout the work space, angular position (rotation) vectors describing hand positions in space at ball release were confined to a two-dimensional surface rather than a three-dimensional volume. This constraint in hand torsion occurred near and at ball release but not throughout the entire throw. It was not due to mechanical factors because such a surface was not obtained when subjects deliberately twisted their arms when throwing. Thus at ball release during a "natural" throw the hand was constrained to 2 of its possible 3 angular degrees of freedom. 4. The same constraint was also found for finger, forearm, and upper arm angular positions in space at ball release as determined at both the proximal and distal triggers. A consequence is that at ball release the entire arm was constrained to 2 of its possible 7 degrees of freedom. 5. The two-dimensional position vector surface for each arm segment was similar to that obtained when pointing with a straight arm at the same targets. In both cases they showed torsion and were twisted like the surface obtained by rotations around the horizontal and vertical axes of a Fick gimbal. However, in some subjects the throwing surfaces were tilted from the vertical. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)