Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
India's Falling Sex Ratios

The proportion of females in India's population, low compared to other countries, reached its lowest level this century in the 1991 census. India's low sex ratios-defined here as the number of females relative to the number of males-have been scrutinized for well over a century. The persistent decline in the twentieth century has been the subject of renewed investigation and critical comment over the past two decades. While many explanations for the decline have been offered, almost without exception these have not addressed the causes of the nearly continuous fall observed since 1901. Several possible long-term changes are investigated in this note. The author argues that India's declining sex ratio is primarily an artifact of the dynamics of India's population growth. Copyright 1999 by The Population Council, Inc.
Growth, digestibility, and enzyme activities in the pancreas and intestines of guinea-pigs fed on raw and heated soya-bean flour

The nutritional effects of giving raw (RSF) or heated (HSF) soya-bean flour to young guinea-pigs were investigated in trials 1 and 2, in which the levels of dietary protein were 120 and 190 g/kg diet respectively. The growth rate of animals fed on RSF was lower than that of those fed on HSF. Growth retardation of guinea-pigs fed on RSF was accompanied by a lower apparent digestibility of the protein (0.49–0.53) compared with HSF (0.67–0.76) and lower food conversion efficiency. In RSF-fed animals, increasing dietary protein affected growth and food conversion efficiency negatively. The pancreas of animals fed on RSF and HSF was similar in weight but secreted less trypsin, chymotrypsin and amylase, in RFS-fed animals. It was concluded that the mechanism by which raw soya-bean negatively affects the growth rate of guinea-pigs by reducing the activity of intestinal enzymes, differs from that suggested for rats and chicks, but is similar to that of pigs and calves.
Labor Mobility and Lengthy Jobs in Nineteenth-Century America

Extensive amounts of geographic mobility and high rates of labor turnover before World War I gave rise to the notion that the industrial labor force was “casual” and “impermanent. ” But data from firms' payrolls and from nineteenth-century surveys conducted by state labor statistics bureaus show that male workers averaged about four years of experience in their current jobs. Data from an 1892 survey of San Francisco workers show that the average non-union male could expect to remain with his current employer almost 13 years.
Determinants of long-term interest rates in the Scandinavian countries

The financial markets in a small open economy like the Scandinavian countries are influenced by international economic developments, especially in their major trading partners. This paper investigates to which degree nominal long-term interest rates in Norway, Sweden and Denmark are determined by fundamental domestic macroeconomic variables and by international economic conditions. Relating the level of interest rates to international macroeconomic variables also sheds some light on the degree of financial marketintegration. In Norway the currency risk, exchange rate regime, international debt and unemployment in Europe are significant in explaining the interest rate differential. In Sweden domestic and US inflation are important, while for Denmark domestic debt, domestic and US money stock, and less significantly US inflation are determinants of the interest rate differential. In these three countries with quite different economies the expectations hypothesis, the effect of domestic growth and unemployment and of international growth are not supported as determinants of long-term interest rate differentials.
Re-establishing the Rent Gap: An Alternative View of Capitalised Land Rent

The debate between the proponents of the rent gap hypothesis and Steven Bourassa concerning its internal consistency centres on the role of land use in capitalised land rent. Bourassa argues that capitalised land rent is nonsensical because it is determined in part by land use which is in conflict with land rent theory. The paper explores the determinants of capitalised land rent by reviewing the rent gap hypothesis and related research, and argues that the issue of scale is implicit in the rent gap. Land rent can be determined at a minimum of two scales resulting in at least two different land rents. This argument rectifies Bourassa's contentions, and is consistent with the theoretical foundations of the rent gap.
The Comparative Impact of an Audit Report Standard and an Audit Going-Concern Standard on Going-Concern Disclosure Rates

There was a significant increase in going‐concern opinions in the U.K. during the 1990s despite a strong economy. This paper tests the impact of a new audit report standard versus an enhanced audit procedures standard in explaining this change. We find the increased going‐concern modification rate among financially distressed firms is directly associated with the introduction of the less confrontational audit report standard: SAS No. 600. On the other hand, the going‐concern procedure standard (SAS No. 130) had no impact on our results. We interpret this finding as highlighting the importance of audit report presentation for standard setters when seeking to enhance disclosure.
The Sovereign Yield Curve and the Macroeconomy in China

A dynamic Nelson–Siegel model is adopted to estimate three time‐varying factors of yield curves, the level, the slope and the curvature, and a vector autoregressive model is built to study interactions between macro variables and the yield curve. Results show that, first, money supply growth is a more effective instrument to curb inflation than the monetary policy interest rate; however, the central bank also adjusts the interest rate to stabilize money supply. Second, investment is an important measure to stimulate the Chinese economy, but it also pushes up money supply growth, which results in higher inflation. Third, the yield curve reacts significantly to innovations to investment growth and money supply growth. The segmentation of China's bond market hinders the efficient implementation of monetary policy, and the monetary policy transmission mechanism is still weak in China. Finally, interactions between the yield curve and the macroeconomy in China are nearly unidirectional. Macroeconomic variables reshape the yield curve, but direct adjustments of the yield curve do not significantly change macroeconomic variables. Due to the incomplete liberalization of financial markets, there exists a wide disjunction between the real economy and financial markets in China.
The effect of placing a bone replacement graft in the gap at immediately placed implants: a randomized clinical trial

OBJECTIVE To assess the added value of using a bone replacement graft in combination with immediate implants in reducing the bone dimensional changes occurring in the residual ridge. MATERIAL AND METHODS Randomized parallel controlled clinical trial to study the efficacy of grafting with demineralized bovine bone mineral with 10% collagen (DBBM-C) in the gap between the implant surface and the inner bone walls when the implants were immediately placed in the anterior maxilla. The changes between implant placement and 16 weeks later in the horizontal and vertical crestal bone changes in relation to the implant were evaluated through direct bone measurements using a periodontal probe. Mean changes were compared between the experimental and control sites using parametric statistics. RESULTS A total of 86 implant sites in 86 subjects were included in the analysis (43 in the test group and 43 in the control group). The horizontal crest dimension underwent marked changes during healing mainly at the buccal aspect of the alveolar crest where this reduction amounted to 1.1 (29%) in the test group and 1.6 mm (38%) in the control group, being these statistically significant (P = 0.02). This outcome was even more pronounced at sites in the anterior maxilla and with thinner buccal bone plates. CONCLUSIONS In conclusion, the results from this clinical trial demonstrated that placing a DBBM-C bone replacement graft significantly reduced the horizontal bone resorptive changes occurring in the buccal bone after the immediate implantation in fresh extraction sockets.
Characterisation of influenza outbreaks in Sweden

Aims: The spatial aspect of Swedish seasonal influenza data was investigated and modelled with the main aim of finding patterns that could be useful for outbreak detection, i.e. for detecting an increase in incidence as soon as possible. Methods: Quality problems with data on laboratory-diagnosed cases (LDI) collected by a number of laboratories and other data were studied. Parametric and nonparametric regression methods were used for estimation of the excepted incidence. Multivariate analysis was used to determine the impact of different spatial components. Results: Quality problems were found for all types of data. LDI was found useful for the present aim. No evidence for a geographical pattern was found. It was found that the influenza outbreak started at about the same time in the metropolitan areas and about 1 week later in the rest of the country. Both parametric and nonparametric regression models are suggested. Conclusions: There was a time difference between the outbreaks in the metropolitan areas and the rest of the country. This can be utilised to improve outbreak detection.
Optimization of input parameters of an EMG-force model in constant and sinusoidal force contractions

In an electromyographic and muscle force (EMG-Force) model, the variability and uncertainty of the input muscle parameters increase the difficulty of assessing this type of model. In this study, a Monte Carlo method is used to evaluate the robustness and the sensitivity of an EMG-Force model, recently developed by our team, for two groups of simulations (constant and sinusoidal force contractions). Two existing criteria (EMG/force and force/force-variability relations) and a new criterion derived from this model (Root Mean Square error, ErrorRMS, between the force command and the generated force) are used to extract relevant simulations and obtain the optimized parameter ranges in constant force contractions, while only the new criterion could be valuable in sinusoidal force contractions. The comparison of obtained results from the two groups of simulations has shown that the new criterion can replace the two existing criteria in constant and sinusoidal force contractions to give rise to stable optimized input parameter ranges for the studied EMG-Force model.
The empirical study of customer satisfaction and continued behavioural intention towards self-service banking: technology readiness as an antecedent

Self-Service Banking (SSB) is one instance of the Self-Service Technologies (SSTs) in e-banking. This study examines consumer satisfaction and the long-term usage intention of SSB. In the proposed model, four dimensions of Technology Readiness (TR) (including optimism, innovativeness, discomfort and insecurity) influence a consumer's continuance intention through the mediation of satisfaction. The research model was evaluated using web-based survey data collected from 388 users about their perceptions of SSB. Overall, the results revealed that the effects of optimism and innovativeness are very important, but that discomfort and insecurity do not influence an individual's satisfaction and behavioural intention towards the continued use of SSB. The implications of this study are also discussed.
An optimal multiple bus network for fan-in algorithms

We consider a class of algorithms called fan-in algorithms, with numerous applications in problems involving semigroup operations. We present a multiple bus network (MBN) that runs any fan-in algorithm in optimal number of steps. The degree and loading of this MBN are each 3. We prove that the product of the degree and loading of any MBN that runs a fan-in algorithm in optimal time is at least 9. This establishes the proposed MBN to be optimal.
Happily Ever after? A Study of Job Satisfaction in Australia

The present paper investigates issues of job satisfaction and gender. In particular, the finding that women are significantly happier in work than their male counterparts is examined. To shed light on this issue, smaller subgroups of the total sample are analysed and more subjective variables (in addition to more traditional objective variables) are incorporated. It is found that differences in reported job satisfaction are more pronounced when looking at individuals with lower levels of education in lower skilled jobs. The determinants of job satisfaction for men and women in this group are significantly different; this was not found to be the case when looking at higher skilled, higher educated individuals. Women in this latter group exhibit similar (i.e. lower) levels of satisfaction to their male counterparts. It is conjectured that this result is due to differences in expectations of work among men and women and also among women themselves.
Risk factors and consequences of maternal anaemia and elevated haemoglobin levels during pregnancy: a population-based prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND To determine sociodemographic and life style-related risk factors and trimester specific maternal, placental, and fetal consequences of maternal anaemia and elevated haemoglobin levels in pregnancy. METHODS In a population-based prospective cohort study of 7317 mothers, we measured haemoglobin levels in early pregnancy [gestational age median 14.4 weeks (inter-quartile-range 12.5-17.5)]. Anaemia (haemoglobin ≤11 g/dl) and elevated haemoglobin levels (haemoglobin ≥13.2 g/dl) were defined according to the WHO criteria. Maternal blood pressure, placental function and fetal growth were measured in each trimester. Data on gestational hypertensive disorders and birth outcomes was collected from hospitals. RESULTS Older maternal age, higher body mass index, primiparity and European descent were associated with higher haemoglobin levels (P < 0.05). Elevated haemoglobin levels were associated with increased systolic and diastolic blood pressure throughout pregnancy (mean differences 5.1 mmHg, 95% confidence interval [CI] 3.8, 6.5 and 4.1 mmHg, 95% CI 3.0, 5.2, respectively) and with a higher risk of third trimester uterine artery notching (RR 1.3, 95% CI 1.0, 1.7). As compared with maternal normal haemoglobin levels, not anaemia, but elevated haemoglobin levels were associated with fetal head circumference, length, and weight growth restriction from third trimester onwards (P < 0.05). Elevated haemoglobin levels were associated with increased risks of gestational hypertensive disorders (RR 1.4, 95% CI 1.1, 1.8) and adverse birth outcomes (RR 1.4, 95% CI 1.1, 1.7). CONCLUSIONS In a low-risk population, various sociodemographic and life style factors affect haemoglobin levels during pregnancy. Elevated haemoglobin levels are associated with increased risks of maternal, placental, and fetal complications.
The Portability of New Immigrants' Human Capital: Language, Education and Occupational Matching

The implications of human capital portability – including interactions between education, language skills and pre- and post-immigration occupational matching – for earnings are explored for new immigrants to Canada. Given the importance of occupation-specific skills, as a precursor we also investigate occupational mobility and observe convergence toward the occupational skill distribution of the domestic population, although four years after landing immigrants remain less likely have a high skilled job. Immigrants who are able to match their source and host country occupations obtain higher earnings. However, surprisingly, neither matching nor language skills have any impact on the return to pre-immigration work experience, which is observed to be statistically significantly negative. Crucially, English language skills are found to have an appreciable direct impact on earnings, and to mediate the return to pre-immigration education but not labour market experience.
PARTY POLARIZATION IN AMERICAN POLITICS: Characteristics, Causes, and Consequences

▪ Abstract Recent commentary points to clear increases in ideological polarization between the major American political parties. We review the theoretical and empirical literature on party polarization and partisan change. We begin by comparing the current period both to earlier political eras and to theories of partisan change. We argue that in the current period the parties have grown increasingly divided on all the major policy dimensions in American politics—a process that we term conflict extension. We discuss various perspectives on increases in polarization between the parties in government, the parties in the electorate, and the parties' activists, and we consider the causal links between polarization at each of these levels. We consider whether American society itself, and not just the parties and their identifiers, has become increasingly polarized. Finally, we discuss the consequences of growing party polarization for American political life.
Australia at the crossroads: A review of school science practical work

In Australia we are at a crossroads in science education. We have come from a long history of adopting international curricula, through to blending international and Australian developed materials, to the present which is a thoroughly unique Australian curriculum in science. This paper documents Australia’s journey over the past 200 years, as we prepare for the implementation of our first truly Australian National Curriculum. One of the unique aspects of this curriculum is the emphasis on practical work and inquiry-based learning. This paper identifies seven forms of practical work currently used in Australian schools and the purposes aligned with each form by 138 pre-service and experienced in-service teachers. The paper explores the question ‘What does the impending national curriculum, with its emphasis on practical inquiry mean to the teachers now - are they ready? ’ The study suggests that practical work in Australian schools is multifaceted, and the teacher-aligned purposes are dependent not only upon the age of the student, but also on the type of practical work being undertaken. It was found that most teachers are not ready to teach using inquiry-based pedagogy and cite lack of content knowledge, behaviour management, lack of physical resources and availability of classroom space as key issues which will hinder their implementation of the inquiry component of Australia’s pending curriculum in science.
Acute Cognitive and Behavioral Effects of Systemic Corticosteroids in Children Treated for Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Abstract Systemic corticosteroids are a mainstay of treatment for many pediatric medical conditions. Although their impact on the central nervous system has been well-studied in animal models and adults, less is known about such effects in pediatric populations. The current study investigated acute effects of corticosteroids on memory, executive functions, emotion, and behavior in children and adolescents with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Patients 8–17 years with IBD (Crohn's disease, CD; ulcerative colitis, UC) on high-dose prednisone (n = 33) and IBD patients in remission off steroids (n = 33) completed standardized neuropsychological tests and behavior rating scales. In the IBD sample as a whole, few steroid effects were found for laboratory cognitive measures, but steroid-treated patients were rated as exhibiting more problems with emotional, and to a lesser extent with cognitive function in daily life. Steroid effects, assessed by laboratory measures and questionnaires, were more prevalent in CD than UC patients; UC patients on steroids sometimes performed better than controls. Sleep disruption also predicted some outcomes, diminishing somewhat the magnitude of the steroid effects. Corticosteroid therapy can have acute effects on cognition, emotion, and behavior in chronically ill children; the clinical and long-term significance of these effects require further investigation. (JINS, 2012, 19, 1–14)
Displayed Categories

We introduce and develop the notion of *displayed categories*. A displayed category over a category C is equivalent to "a category D and functor F : D --> C", but instead of having a single collection of "objects of D" with a map to the objects of C, the objects are given as a family indexed by objects of C, and similarly for the morphisms. This encapsulates a common way of building categories in practice, by starting with an existing category and adding extra data/properties to the objects and morphisms. The interest of this seemingly trivial reformulation is that various properties of functors are more naturally defined as properties of the corresponding displayed categories. Grothendieck fibrations, for example, when defined as certain functors, use equality on objects in their definition. When defined instead as certain displayed categories, no reference to equality on objects is required. Moreover, almost all examples of fibrations in nature are, in fact, categories whose standard construction can be seen as going via displayed categories. We therefore propose displayed categories as a basis for the development of fibrations in the type-theoretic setting, and similarly for various other notions whose classical definitions involve equality on objects. Besides giving a conceptual clarification of such issues, displayed categories also provide a powerful tool in computer formalisation, unifying and abstracting common constructions and proof techniques of category theory, and enabling modular reasoning about categories of multi-component structures. As such, most of the material of this article has been formalised in Coq over the UniMath library, with the aim of providing a practical library for use in further developments.
Evaluating the Effectiveness of Lecture Capture: Lessons Learned from an Undergraduate Political Research Class

This article presents the results of a 4-year quasi-experimental study of the effectiveness of lecture capture in an undergraduate political research class. Students self-enrolled in either a traditional in-class lecture-discussion section or a fully online section of a required political research course. The class sessions from the in-class section were recorded and provided asynchronously to the online students. The instructor, course assignments, exams, and supplemental materials were the same for the in-class and online sections. The two types of sections were compared on course-embedded academic performance measures and on the completion rates of the course and of the course assignments, controlling for prior cumulative grade point average (GPA), prior credits completed, and gender. The mean overall course score for the online students was slightly, but significantly, lower than scores for the in-class students. The students’ GPAs interacted with the type of section such that the difference between in-class and online academic performance diminished or disappeared among students with higher GPAs. Completion rates for the course and for assignments were significantly lower for online students. Strategies for addressing these problems through greater student engagement are widely cited, but recent empirical tests of these strategies have not provided satisfactory results.