Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Role of Demographic Variables in Credit Card Selection Criteria - An Empirical Study in NCR of Delhi.

The payment industry in India is rapidly revolutionizing. Economic growth has enabled India's 1.2 billion population to avail superior financial services compare to to their previous generations. There is availability of plethora of electronic payment services like credit cards, debit cards, net banking, e-wallets which consumer can use for payment. This growth of electronic and cash less payment has also led to the increased use of the credit cards. The credit card offers consumers the convenience of purchasing without paying cash and removes the need of carrying cash. Also, the credit card offers consumers access to credit without detailed paper work as in a loan. The purpose of the research paper is to study the role of demographic variables in credit card selection criteria. Variables are adopted from a study conducted by Gan, Maysami, and Koh (2008). For this study, six factors namely Convenience, Protection, Economics, Flexibility, Reward Program and Reputation are selected. The sample was selected from the National Capital Region of Delhi as consumers have greater exposure to credit cards. This study based in emerging economy like India has relevance because of changing consumers' preferences and usage behaviour.
Ethnic differences in birth weight by gestational age: at least a partial explanation for the Hispanic epidemiologic paradox?

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to evaluate ethnic differences in low birth weight and gestational age-dependent birth weight. STUDY DESIGN A retrospective cohort study of 47,669 newborn infants was conducted with the use of the perinatal database of the Memorial Health Care System. Logistic regression was used to estimate the odds ratio for low birth weight by ethnic group, which took into account gestational age at delivery. Multiple linear regression models were then developed to predict ethnic differences in birth weight by gestational age. RESULTS When compared with white women, the adjusted odds ratio for low birth weight in of Mexican origin women (1.16; 95% CI, 1.02-1.32) was substantially lower than that of African American women (2.21; 95% CI, 1.87-2.60). An analysis of birth weight by gestational age suggested that African American neonates were intrinsically smaller than Hispanic neonates (difference, 4.22%). CONCLUSION At least some of the differences in low birth weight that are noted among ethnic minorities may be attributable to ethnic differences in birth weight by gestational age.
Health care utilization in males with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome two years after diagnosis and treatment.

OBJECTIVE To document changes in health care utilization (physician claims and hospitalizations) two years after diagnosis and treatment of patients with OSAS. DESIGN Prospective observational cohort study. SETTING The study was done in the Canadian Province of Manitoba. OSAS patients were selected from a University-based sleep disorders center. Control subjects were selected from the general population. PATIENTS AND CONTROLS There were 344 OSAS patients on whom there was utilization data for the period of the study. They were matched to controls from the general population by gender, age, and geographic location. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS The difference in physician claims between the patients and their matched controls two years after diagnosis and treatment ($174+/-32.4 (SE) per year in Canadian dollars) was significantly less than the difference in the year before diagnosis ($260+/-35.7 (SE), p=0.038). Examining the subgroups of patients adhering (PAT) or not adhering (PNAT) to treatment revealed that the changes were only significant in the patients adhering to treatment. Hospital stays for the entire OSAS group decreased from 1.27 days+0.25(SE) per patient per year one year before diagnosis to 0.54+0.13 per patient per year (p=0.01). The changes in the PAT group (1.25+0.28 per patient per year one year before diagnosis to 0.53+0.14 per patient per year (p=0.034) were significant while in the PNAT group they were not. CONCLUSIONS Adherence to treatment in patients with OSAS results in a significant reduction in physician claims and hospital stays.
Financial Development, Savings and Investment in South Africa: A Dynamic Causality Test

Abstract This study investigates the causal relationship between financial development and investment in South Africa during the period from 1976 to 2014. The study incorporates both bank-based and market-based segments of financial sector development. In addition, composite indices for bank-based and market-based financial development indicators are used as explanatory variables. The study incorporates savings as an intermittent variable – thereby creating a simple trivariate Granger-causality model. Using the ARDL bounds testing approach to cointegration and the ECM-based Granger-causality test, the study finds a unidirectional causal flow from investment to financial development, but only in the short run. In the long run, the study fails to find any causal relationship between financial development and investment. These results apply irrespective of whether bank-based or market-based financial development is used as a proxy for financial sector development. The findings of this study have important policy implications.
Type test scripts for TypeScript testing

TypeScript applications often use untyped JavaScript libraries. To support static type checking of such applications, the typed APIs of the libraries are expressed as separate declaration files. This raises the challenge of checking that the declaration files are correct with respect to the library implementations. Previous work has shown that mismatches are frequent and cause TypeScript's type checker to misguide the programmers by rejecting correct applications and accepting incorrect ones. This paper shows how feedback-directed random testing, which is an automated testing technique that has mostly been used for testing Java libraries, can be adapted to effectively detect such type mismatches. Given a JavaScript library with a TypeScript declaration file, our tool TSTEST generates a "type test script", which is an application that interacts with the library and tests that it behaves according to the type declarations. Compared to alternative solutions that involve static analysis, this approach finds significantly more mismatches in a large collection of real-world JavaScript libraries with TypeScript declaration files, and with fewer false positives. It also has the advantage that reported mismatches are easily reproducible with concrete executions, which aids diagnosis and debugging.
The adjunctive effect of tenoxicam during non-surgical periodontal treatment on clinical parameters and gingival crevicular fluid levels of MMP-8 and TNF-α in patients with chronic periodontitis - randomized, double-blind clinical trial.

BACKGROUND Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and cytokines play a role of extracellular matrix degradation and remodelling, and are significantly involved in the course of periodontal disease. OBJECTIVES The purpose of this study was to evaluate the adjunctive effect of administering an oxicam non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), tenoxicam, during non-surgical (phase 1) periodontal treatment on clinical parameters and gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) levels of MMP-8 and TNF-α in subjects with chronic periodontitis. MATERIAL AND METHODS A total of 32 subjects with chronic periodontitis were randomized into two groups: 1) phase I periodontal treatment + NSAID and 2) phase I periodontal treatment + placebo. Phase I periodontal therapy consisted of scaling and root planning (SPR), which was provided by a single therapist masked with respect to group assignment. Patients in group 1 received a systemic NSAID (20 mg tenoxicam tablet once daily for 10 days). Clinical measures and GCF samples were obtained immediately prior to periodontal treatment and 30 days afterwards from all subjects. Clinical measures included a plaque index, gingival index, gingival bleeding time index, probing depth, and clinical attachment level. The MMP-8 and TNF-α levels in the GCF were assayed using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. RESULTS With the exception of clinical attachment level, all clinical measures showed a significant (p < 0.05) improvement following non-surgical treatment in both the NSAID and placebo groups. A significant decrease in MMP-8 levels (p < 0.05) was observed at post-treatment in the NSAID group but not in the placebo group (p > 0.05). Treatment exhibited no effect on TNF-α levels (p > 0.05). There was also no statistically significant difference in clinical measurements after treatment between the two groups (p > 0.05). Moreover, the post treatment MMP-8 level in group 1 was statistically significant higher than the placebo group (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS The adjunctive administration of tenoxicam during phase I periodontal treatment decreases MMP-8 levels in gingival crevicular fluid in patients with chronic periodontitis. But no benefits were observed.
The Ins and Outs of Self-Employment: An Estimate of Business Cycle and Trend Effects

We examine quarterly microlevel data on labor market transitions taken from the Current Population Survey from 1990 to 2014 to estimate how the business cycle affects transitions into and out of self-employment from other labor market states. We control for individual demographics and occupational influences in our analysis to better pinpoint the effect of demand growth on these transitions. We find that changes in demand conditions substantially influence the marginal rate of transition into and out of self-employment from other labor market states, after taking into account demographic and industrial differences. A contraction in demand has a large effect on self-employment because it alters the balance between self-employment entry and exit. Falling demand leads to an increase in exit from entrepreneurship, but has countervailing effects on entry. While a decrease in demand leads to a decrease in the opportunity cost of entry into entrepreneurship by increasing the rate of unemployment, the entry into entrepreneurship is higher from employment than from unemployment or from out of the labor market. Finally, we find that the effect of changes in demand on self-employment differ for incorporated and unincorporated self-employment.
The Balance Between Donor T Cell Anergy and Suppression Versus Lethal Graft-Versus-Host Disease Is Determined by Host Conditioning1

Graft-vs-host disease (GVHD) remains the most life-threatening complication following the transfer of allogeneic bone marrow into immunocompromised hosts. Transferred alloreactive T cells respond in a complex manner. While massive T cell expansion is observed upon entry into an allogeneic environment, anergy, apoptosis, and repertoire selection are also observed. The study presented here shows that alloreactive T cell expansion and differentiation vs anergy and suppression are dramatically influenced by host conditioning. Using alloreactive CD4+ and CD8+ TCR transgenic (Tg) T cells, a novel GVHD model is presented that allows for the visualization of how alloreactive T cells behave when host conditioning is manipulated. Following the transfer of alloreactive CD4+ and CD8+ TCR Tg T cells into sublethally irradiated hosts, both Tg T cells populations expand, develop effector function, and cause GVHD. In contrast, when Tg T cells are transferred in non-irradiated hosts, expansion is observed, but there is no development of effector function or disease. Assessment of CD4+ Tg T cell function following transfer into non-irradiated hosts reveals that these CD4+ Tg cells are profoundly anergic and have acquired a regulatory function, as manifested in their ability to suppress the expansion of naive TCR Tg T cells in vitro and in vivo as well as the development of GVHD. These findings underscore the decisive effect of the inflammatory environment created by irradiation in determining the ultimate fate and function of alloreactive T cells in vivo
Perioperative socialization, care and monitoring of National Institutes of Health miniature swine undergoing ocular surgery and sampling of peripheral blood

Swine are a frequent species of choice for testing new surgical procedures and for transplantation studies. However, information concerning best practice to prepare pigs for surgery and postoperative treatment and monitoring is limited, despite a perception that preoperative socialization is beneficial. Therefore we examined the effect of preoperative visits by project personnel on compliance of 26 National Institutes of Health (NIH) minipigs subject to corneal transplantation. We briefly describe sedation and anaesthesia protocols developed for surgery and multiple postoperative interventions in order to facilitate interpretation of data relating to pig compliance. Preoperative visit variables and measures of preoperative socialization were correlated with postoperative outcome. Principal component analysis (PCA) of postoperative outcome variables identified a factor accounting for 53.5% of the variance that was significantly associated with two factors derived from PCA of preoperative factors (accounting, respectively, for 54.7% and 26.0% of the variance; P = 0.019 for the overall model, P = 0.041 and 0.040 for factors 1 and 2, respectively), such that more time spent with pigs before surgery and higher socialization scores were associated with less postoperative stress and difficulty of eye medication. Moreover, two of the preoperative visit variables, time spent with only one person in the pen and time spent with two or more people in the pen, contributed predominantly to PCA factors 1 and 2, respectively, indicating that they were fulfilling two qualitatively different requirements for socialization. We conclude that NIH minipigs are fully compliant with anaesthetic and postoperative experimental procedures provided they are well-socialized to project personnel before surgery.
The phenomenon of entrepreneurial leadership in gazelles and mice: a qualitative study from Bosnia and Herzegovina

This study examines the entrepreneurial leadership and business performance in gazelles and mice, using stratified purposive sampling from three sectors: manufacturing, sales and services. Findings suggest that gazelles are more in favour of applying entrepreneurial leadership compared to mice. However, both of them need improvement. Gazelles need to maintain a constant sustainable growth in the market while mice should transform themselves into gazelles. It can be done by creating a positive synergetic effect of entrepreneurial leadership to business performance in both types of firms, in the long term. Likewise, Bosnian government should pave the way for better business surroundings and to promote entrepreneurship development in the region. On the contrary, the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B%H) seems to maintain a status quo or even tends to shackle the entrepreneurial activities and opportunities in its business environment.
Clinical Outcomes for Adult Cochlear Implant Recipients Experiencing Loss of Usable Acoustic Hearing in the Implanted Ear

Objectives: The first aim of the study was to quantify the change in clinical performance after cochlear implantation for adults who had pre-operative levels of acoustic hearing in each ear of greater than or equal to 46% phoneme score on an open-set monosyllabic word test, and who subsequently experienced loss of useable acoustic hearing in the implanted ear. Pre- and postoperative spatial hearing abilities were assessed, because a clinical consideration for candidates with bilateral acoustic hearing is the potential for post-operative reduction in spatial hearing ability. Second, it was of interest to examine whether preoperative localization ability, as an indicator of access to interaural timing and level cues preoperatively, might be correlated with post-operative change in spatial hearing abilities. Design: Clinical performance measures in the binaural condition were obtained preoperatively and at 12 months postoperatively in 19 postlinguistically hearing-impaired adult subjects. Preoperative localization ability was investigated as a potential correlate with post-operative change in spatial hearing abilities. Results: Significant postoperative group mean improvement in speech perception was observed on measures of open-set monosyllabic word perception in quiet and on an adaptive sentence test presented in coincident 4-talker babble. Observed benefit was greater for a lower presentation level of 55 dB SPL as compared with a conversational speech level of 65 dB SPL. Self-reported ratings of benefit also improved for all questionnaires administered. Objective assessment of localization ability revealed poorer localization postoperatively, although subjective ratings of post-operative change in localization ability in real-world environments were more variable. Postoperative spatial release from masking was not different to that measured preoperatively for the configuration where the side of the head with the hearing aid was advantaged, but improved postoperatively for the configuration that advantaged the implanted side. Preoperative binaural localization ability was not correlated with postoperative spatial hearing abilities. Conclusions: The findings from this study support cochlear implantation for candidates with pre-operative levels of binaural acoustic hearing within the range examined within the present study. This includes subjects with preoperative open-set monosyllabic word scores ranging from 11 to 62% in the implanted ear, and from 16 to 75% on the contralateral side. Post-operative improvement would be expected for those subjects on a range of clinical measures, even when acoustic hearing was lost in the implanted ear after implantation.
Length-dependent Binding of Human XLF to DNA and Stimulation of XRCC4·DNA Ligase IV Activity*

An XRCC4-like factor, called XLF or Cernunnos, was recently identified as another important factor in the non-homologous DNA end joining (NHEJ) process. NHEJ is the major pathway for the repair of double-strand DNA breaks. The similarity in the putative secondary structures of XLF and XRCC4 as well as the association of XLF with XRCC4·DNA ligase IV in vivo suggested a role in the final ligation step of NHEJ. Here, we find that purified XLF directly interacts with purified XRCC4·DNA ligase IV complex and stimulates the ligase complex in a direct assay for ligation activity. Purified XLF has DNA binding activity, but this binding is dependent on DNA length in a manner most consistent with orientation of the C-terminal α helices parallel to the DNA helix. To better understand the function of XLF, we purified an XLF mutant (R57G), which was identified in patients with NHEJ deficiency and severe combined immunodeficiency. Surprisingly, the mutant protein retained its ability to stimulate XRCC4·DNA ligase IV but failed to translocate to the nucleus, and this appears to be the basis for the NHEJ defect in this patient.
Estrogen Receptor Subtypes in Ovarian Cancer: A Clinical Correlation

OBJECTIVE: To study the distribution of estrogen receptor (ER) subtypes in ovarian tumors and to correlate the levels of expression with clinical factors. METHODS: Estrogen receptor-&agr; (ER&agr;) and &bgr;-mRNA expressions in 58 normal, 25 borderline, and 161 malignant ovarian tissue samples were determined by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. The expression levels were correlated with clinical data, including the histologic subtypes, the stage of the disease, and the disease-free and overall survival, with a median follow-up of 80 months. RESULTS: Estrogen receptor-&bgr; (ER&bgr;) expression, but not ER&agr;, was significantly higher in normal tissues compared with malignant tissues (P<.001). Estrogen receptor-&bgr; expression was also significantly higher in stage I disease compared with stage II-IV disease (P<.001). A higher ER&bgr; expression was found to be significantly associated with a longer disease-free survival (P=.007) as well as overall survival (P=.011). Estrogen receptor-&bgr; expression remained a significant predictor for disease-free survival and overall survival in multivariable analysis that took into account other factors that were shown to be associated with survival in univariate analyses, including stage of disease, type of tumor (borderline or malignant), and optimal debulking. CONCLUSION: Loss of ER&bgr; expression in ovarian tumors may be a feature of malignant transformation. Determining ER subtypes expression may improve response to hormonal therapy by tailoring the use of selective estrogen receptor modulators with different ER affinity in selected women. As a prognostic indicator, ER&bgr; levels may be useful in deciding the need for and choice of adjuvant treatment in women with early ovarian cancers. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: II
Structural analysis, identification, and design of calcium‐binding sites in proteins

Assigning proteins with functions based on the 3‐D structure requires high‐speed techniques to make a systematic survey of protein structures. Calcium regulates many biological systems by binding numerous proteins in different biological environments. Despite the great diversity in the composition of ligand residues and bond angles and lengths of calcium‐binding sites, our structural analysis of 11 calcium‐binding sites in different classes of proteins has shown that common local structural parameters can be used to identify and design calcium‐binding proteins. Natural calcium‐binding sites in both EF‐hand proteins and non‐EF‐hand proteins can be described with the smallest deviation from the geometry of an ideal pentagonal bipyramid. Further, two different magnesium‐binding sites in parvalbumin and calbindinD9K can also be identified using an octahedral geometry. Using the established method, we have designed de novo calcium‐binding sites into the scaffold of non‐calcium‐binding proteins CD2 and Rop. Our results suggest that it is possible to identify calcium‐ and magnesium‐binding sites in proteins and design de novo metal‐binding sites. Proteins 2002;47:344–356. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Inter-firm relational resources in cloud service adoption and their effect on service innovation

ABSTRACT This study examines (1) inter-firm relational resources for cloud service adoption and (2) their effects on service innovation. A research model and the related hypotheses are developed based on resource-advantage (R-A) theory that combines inter-firm relational resources identified in theoretical and empirical research as important antecedents of cloud service adoption and its effect on service innovation. This study collects data from 165 managers from service firms in Taiwan. The results show that resources, including reliability, cost, and compatibility significantly affect a firm’s cloud service adoption. Furthermore, the adoption of cloud service significantly contributes to service innovation. The findings add to the current understanding of service innovation in two important ways. First, drawing on R-A theory, this study is among the first attempts to identify inter-firm relational resources (reliability, cost, compatibility, and customer orientation) for cloud service adoption and their effect on innovation performance. Second, this study introduces cloud services as effective technological platforms for a firm and its business partners to share, integrate, and reciprocate information, knowledge, and experience for service innovation.