Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The economics of bureaucracy and the British National Health Service.

mists have analyzed the British National Health Service (NHS). Common to most of these studies are the findings that the NHS has failed to achieve efficiency in the use of resources and equality in access to health care. However, the studies differ with respect to what is the basic cause of these problems. Cooper (1975) and Culyer (1976) seem to argue that the problem is essentially one of poor information and excessive discretion on the part of physicians. According to Cooper (1975:107), "the clinical freedom to differ widely as to their [physicians'] conception of need has led to inconsistencies of treatment between patients and to the allocation, without challenge, of scarce resources to medical practices of no proven value. " He also notes that "lack of research into indicators of need has enabled gross inequalities of provision to persist on the grounds that, in the absence of any evidence to the contrary, they might in fact, however accidentally, reflect needs" (Cooper, 1975:109). In a similar vein, Culyer (1976:110) claims that "the efficient and fair operation of the health service requires the establishment of national norms and a substantial reduction in the discretion of individual hospital doctors. " The latter would be accomplished by requiring
Molecular characterization of protein p50 of Dendrolimus punctatus cytoplasmic polyhedrosis virus

Genome segment 7 of the 10‐segmented RNA genomes of Dendrolimus punctatus cytoplasmic polyhedrosis virus (DpCPV) comprises 1502 nucleotides with one ORF of 1347 bp. This ORF was predicted to encode a protein of 448 amino acids with a molecular mass of 49,756 Da (p50). Antisera against both p50 and an antigen domain (AD) near the N‐terminus of p50 specifically bound to a viral structural protein of ca. 33 kDa (V5), indicating that V5 was an N‐terminal product of p50. Immunoblotting analysis with anti‐p50 antibodies detected p50 and V5 molecules in the host midguts three days and five days post infection, respectively. The intracellular localization of p50 protein was examined by expressing truncations of p50 fused with GFP in recombinant baculovirus‐infected Sf9 cells. The p50 protein was present in the cytoplasm of the cells, and the N‐terminal portion (67–135 aa) of the protein played a key role in this localization.
Proteasome-driven turnover of tryptophan hydroxylase is triggered by phosphorylation in RBL2H3 cells, a serotonin producing mast cell line.

We previously demonstrated in mast cell lines RBL2H3 and FMA3 that tryptophan hydroxylase (TPH) undergoes very fast turnover driven by 26S-proteasomes [Kojima, M. , Oguro, K. , Sawabe, K. , Iida, Y. , Ikeda, R. , Yamashita, A. , Nakanishi, N. & Hasegawa, H. (2000) J. Biochem (Tokyo) 2000, 127, 121-127]. In the present study, we have examined an involvement of TPH phosphorylation in the rapid turnover, using non-neural TPH. The proteasome-driven degradation of TPH in living cells was accelerated by okadaic acid, a protein phosphatase inhibitor. Incorporation of 32P into a 53-kDa protein, which was judged to be TPH based on autoradiography and Western blot analysis using anti-TPH serum and purified TPH as the size marker, was observed in FMA3 cells only in the presence of both okadaic acid and MG132, inhibitors of protein phosphatase and proteasome, respectively. In a cell-free proteasome system constituted mainly of RBL2H3 cell extracts, degradation of exogenous TPH isolated from mastocytoma P-815 cells was inhibited by protein kinase inhibitors KN-62 and K252a but not by H89. Consistent with the inhibitor specificity, the same TPH was phosphorylated by exogenous Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II in the presence of Ca2+ and calmodulin but not by protein kinase A (catalytic subunit). TPH protein thus phosphorylated by Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II was digested more rapidly in the cell-free proteasome system than was the nonphosphorylated enzyme. These results indicated that the phosphorylation of TPH was a prerequisite for proteasome-driven TPH degradation.
THE TYPE IIb SUPERNOVA 2013df AND ITS COOL SUPERGIANT PROGENITOR

We have obtained early-time photometry and spectroscopy of supernova (SN) 2013df in NGC 4414. The SN is clearly of Type IIb, with notable similarities to SN 1993J. From its luminosity at secondary maximum light, it appears that less 56Ni (≲ 0.06 M☉) was synthesized in the SN 2013df explosion than was the case for the SNe IIb 1993J, 2008ax, and 2011dh. Based on a comparison of the light curves, the SN 2013df progenitor must have been more extended in radius prior to explosion than the progenitor of SN 1993J. The total extinction for SN 2013df is estimated to be AV = 0.30 mag. The metallicity at the SN location is likely to be solar. We have conducted Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Target of Opportunity observations of the SN with the Wide Field Camera 3, and from a precise comparison of these new observations to archival HST observations of the host galaxy obtained 14 yr prior to explosion, we have identified the progenitor of SN 2013df to be a yellow supergiant, somewhat hotter than a red supergiant progenitor for a normal Type II-Plateau SN. From its observed spectral energy distribution, assuming that the light is dominated by one star, the progenitor had effective temperature Teff = 4250 ± 100 K and a bolometric luminosity Lbol = 104.94 ± 0.06 L☉. This leads to an effective radius Reff = 545 ± 65 R☉. The star likely had an initial mass in the range of 13–17 M☉; however, if it was a member of an interacting binary system, detailed modeling of the system is required to estimate this mass more accurately. The progenitor star of SN 2013df appears to have been relatively similar to the progenitor of SN 1993J.
Biological and biochemical characteristics of a Mediterranean population with Gestational Diabetes Mellitus

Abstract The interplay of various nutrients provided to the developing foetus determines the growth potential of the conceptus. This study assessed the inter-relationship between these nutrients in a Mediterranean population including 1062 pregnant, previously non-diabetic women. These underwent an oral glucose tolerance test (oGTT) and were accordingly classified into gestational hyperglycaemic and normoglycaemic groups. Fasting insulin, HbA1c, and lipid profiles were further assessed, and the anthropomorphic characteristics of the mother and child at birth were measured. Lipid profiles were compared between the two groups and related to the biological characteristics of the mother and child at birth. Gestational hyperglycaemia was significantly associated with elevated triglycerides (P<0.0001) and decreased low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) (P=0.02). There were no significant changes in total cholesterol and high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels. Maternal BMI correlated positively with the various glycaemic indices (P<0.0001) and triglycerides (P<0.0001), but inversely with cholesterol (P<0.0001), HDL-C (P<0.0001) and LDL-C (P<0.0001). The infant birth weight correlated positively with maternal body weight (P<0.0001), LDL-C (P<0.0001) and the glycaemic indices (P<0.0001), but negatively with cholesterol (P<0.0001), triglycerides (P<0.0001), HDL-C (P<0.0001) and FBG (P<0.0001). This study confirms that the maternal body mass index (BMI), insulin resistance, and LDL-C levels positively contribute towards foetal growth, whereas a negative correlation was noted with cholesterol, triglycerides, and HDL-C.
Finding OERs with Social-Semantic search

Social and semantic web can be complementary approaches searching web resources. This cooperative approach lets enable a semantic search engine to find accurate results and annotate web resources. This work develops the components of a Social-Semantic search architecture proposed by the authors to find open educational resources (OER). By means of metadata enrichment and logic inference, OER consumers get more precise results from general search engines. The Search prototype has been applied to find OER related with computers and engineering in a domain provided by OpenCourseWare materials from two universities, MIT and UTPL. The semantic search answers reasonably well the queta collected.
Limited stage diffuse large B-cell lymphoma: comparative effectiveness of treatment strategies in a large cohort of elderly patients

Abstract Optimal treatment for limited stage diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) in the elderly is controversial. Using the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results-Medicare database, we compared overall survival (OS), time to second-line therapy (surrogate for recurrence) and adverse events in elderly patients diagnosed with stage I or II DLBCL in 1999–2009, who received either abbreviated rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine and prednisone (RCHOP) plus radiation or 6–8 cycles of RCHOP alone. Of 874 patients, 359 received abbreviated RCHOP with radiation, and 515 received a full course of RCHOP. In propensity score-adjusted analyses, OS was similar in both groups (hazard ratio [HR] 1.02, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.76, 1.38). Abbreviated RCHOP with radiation was associated with lower risk of second-line therapy (HR 0.71, 95% CI 0.53, 0.94) and lower odds of febrile neutropenia (odds ratio [OR] 0.27, 95% CI 0.15, 0.50). While the two treatments resulted in similar survival, our data suggest that abbreviated RCHOP with radiation may be better tolerated than a full course of RCHOP.
EEG abnormalities in chronic alcoholism related to age

EEG was studied in SO chronic alcoholics (age 45 ± 10 years). All EEGs were classified visually. In addition, a manual analysis from a fronto‐central (F3‐C3 or F4‐C4) lead and a temporo‐occipital (T5‐O1 or T6‐O2) lead was done in 42 cases to obtain the mean frequency of the 6–12 Hz band.
Vitamin C Transporter Gene Polymorphisms, Dietary Vitamin C and Serum Ascorbic Acid

Background/Aims: Vitamin C transporter proteins SVCT1 and SVCT2 are required for the absorption and transport of vitamin C in humans. This study aims to determine whether common SVCT genotypes modify the association between dietary vitamin C and serum ascorbic acid. Methods: Non-smoking men and women (n = 1,046) aged 20–29 were participants of the Toronto Nutrigenomics and Health Study. Overnight fasting blood samples were collected to determine serum ascorbic acid concentrations by HPLC and to genotype for two SVCT1 (rs4257763 and rs6596473) and two SVCT2 (rs6139591 and rs2681116) polymorphisms. Results: No diet-gene interactions were observed for the vitamin C transporter polymorphisms, however, the average (mean ± SE) serum ascorbic acid concentrations differed between rs4257763 genotypes (GG: 24.4 ± 1.3, GA: 26.8 ± 1.1, AA: 29.7 ± 1.4 µmol/l; p = 0.002). For this polymorphism, the correlation between dietary vitamin C and serum ascorbic acid was only significant in subjects with a G allele. The SVCT2 polymorphisms also appeared to modify the strength of the diet-serum correlation. Conclusions: Our findings demonstrate that genetic variation in SVCT1 can influence serum ascorbic acid concentrations and that SVCT1 and SVCT2 genotypes modify the strength of the correlation between dietary vitamin C and serum ascorbic acid.
Side effects that Cause Noncompliance to Antidepressant Medications in the Course of Outpatient Treatment

Objective: Treatment non-compliance is defined as patients not following the treatment program as recommended by their physician. In studies, drug non-compliance for selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) has been found to be between 21-60%. Pharmacotherapeutic side effects were found to be responsible for approximately 30% of cases of non-compliance. In this study, we aimed to determine side effects that cause noncompliance in patients using SSRIs and TCAs. Method: The study group consisted of 264 patients, who were admitted to GATA Psychiatry outpatient clinic, in whom noncompliance was identified and who were using either SSRI or TCA treatments. Socio-demographic characteristics of the cases, medications they had used and causes of non-compliance were evaluated with a semistructured questionnaire. Results: It was found that 71 of the cases (26.8%) had discontinued the treatment due to side effects. No differences were found in terms of gender, age or educational level between the SSRI and TCA groups. The discontinuation rate due to side effects was higher in the somatization disorder subgroup medicated with TCAs. Moreover, there were no differrences within both groups with respect to discontinuation due to side effects or other causes. Conclusion: In this study, no significant differences were found between the two groups with respect to side effects that cause medication non-compliance. It was concluded that switching to another medication or informing patients adequately should be effective for prevention of noncompliance.
Maternal Exposure to Lipopolysaccharide Leads to Transient Motor Dysfunction in Neonatal Rats

Epidemiological and experimental data implicate maternal infection and inflammation in the etiology of brain white matter injury, which may lead to cerebral palsy in preterm newborns. Our aim was to investigate motor development of the offspring after maternal administration of lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Wistar rats were intraperitoneally injected with Escherichia coli LPS or saline on gestational days 19 and 20. From birth to 3 weeks, pups were tested for neurobehavioral development, neurological signs and reflexes. From 3 to 6 weeks, motor coordination was investigated. At 4 months, animals were tested for locomotion. Brain myelination was assessed by myelin basic protein immunohistochemistry. Days of appearance of several neurological reflexes were significantly delayed, and neonate LPS pups displayed retarded performance in righting, gait and negative geotaxis. At the juvenile stage, LPS animals showed important impairment in coordination. However, although the LPS group performed worse in most tests, they reached vehicle levels by 5 weeks. At 4 months, LPS animals did not show variations in locomotion performances compared to vehicle. No myelination differences have been observed in the brains at adulthood. Maternal LPS administration results in delayed motor development even though these alterations fade to reach control level by 5 weeks. Motor impairments observed at the early stage in this study could be linked to previously reported hypomyelination of the white matter induced by maternal LPS challenge in the neonates. Finally, the normal myelination shown here at adulthood may explain the functional recovery of the animals and suggest either a potential remyelination of the brain or a delayed myelination in LPS pups.
Intergenerational Continuity in Attitudes: A Latent Variable Family Fixed-Effects Approach

Attitudes are associated with behavior. Adolescents raised by parents who endorse particular attitudes are relatively more likely to endorse those same attitudes. The present study addresses conditions that would moderate intergenerational continuity in attitudes across 6 domains: authoritative parenting, conventional life goals, gender egalitarianism, deviancy, abortion, and sexual permissiveness. Hypothesized moderators included the attitudes of the other parent, and adolescent sex. Data come from a 2-generation study of a cohort of 451 adolescents (52% female), a close-aged sibling, and their parents. After employing a novel specification in which family fixed-effect models partitioned out variation at the between-family level, hypotheses were tested on the within-family variance. Unlike typical family fixed-effect models, this specification accounted for measurement error. Intergenerational continuity was not significant (deviancy), negative (sexual permissiveness), and conditional on the attitudes of the coparent (authoritative parenting, conventional life goals, and gender egalitarianism). Adolescent age, sex, and conscientiousness were accounted for in all analyses.
Do We Need a Regulation on Dividends for Indonesia Stock Exchange

This study examines the dividend life-cycle hypothesis and the propensity of non-financial firms listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) to pay dividends, in light of a recent idea by the IDX to regulate dividend payments. Using several proxies of the life cycle, the results consistently show that Indonesian listed firms follow the dividend life-cycle hypothesis. Our results recommend that if the authority insists on regulating dividend payments, the regulation should take into account the firms’ life cycles. Firms should only be required to pay dividends when they reach a certain stage and/or meet defined characteristics, according to their stage or characteristics.
Analisis Pengaruh Faktor Non-Ekonomi terhadap Sikap Pedagang Madura dalam Membayar Zakat Perdagangan

Zakah maal is one of the kind of zakat that must be paid by muslims who work as traders and have the treasures that reach nisab, haul, and also fulfill other conditions. The purpose of this research is to know the influence of non-economic factors namely knowledge of zakah on trade (X 1 ), work environment (X 2 ) , religiosity (X 3 ) , and education (X 4 ) on the attitudes of Madurese traders in Malang in paying zakah on trade (Y). The method used in this study is multinomial logit analysis. The results of this study indicate that simultaneously the knowledge (X 1 ) , work environment (X 2 ) , religiosity (X 3 ) , and education (X 4 ) significantly influence the attitude of Madurese traders in paying zakah on trade (Y) . Further partially, Madurese traders' attitude in paying zakah on trade (Y) is influenced by knowledge (X 1 ) , work environment (X 2 ), religiosity (X 3 ), and education (X 4 ).
Transforming Disability Welfare Policy . Completing A Paradigm Shift

Before we address the mainstreaming of disability from sort to self-determination as well as the salience, success and failure of modern disability welfare policies, some thoughts about what disability actually means are at place: How can this most complex phenomenon be defined and measured – and how can people, their needs, hardships and behaviour, their restricted employment opportunities, life chances and their compensation requirements be classified accordingly? What are the problems that these definitions, measurements and classifications involve, and how do these problems impact on disability entitlements?
Less Sensitivity for Late Airway Inflammation in Males than Females in BALB/c Mice

Several studies have investigated allergic airway inflammation, a T helper 2 (Th2)‐type immune response, using a mouse model of asthma. At present, however, no reports have described sex differences in the sensitivity of late airway inflammation (LAI). The LAI induced by ovalbumin in adult BALB/c mice was compared in males and females or sham‐operated males and castrated males. The males showed less severe bronchial‐bronchiolar inflammation with infiltration of eosinophils and lymphocytes and lower content of such cells in bronchoalveolar fluid than the females. Moreover, interleukin‐4 (IL‐4) mRNA expression levels in splenic cells were lower in the males than in the females. Castrated males performed like the females. Moreover, when compared with the sham‐operated males, the castrated males showed lower testosterone levels in the blood. The present results suggest that less sensitivity for LAI in the males may be because of the decreased Th2 cell responses compared with the females. Moreover the testosterone, at least in part, may be responsible for the decreased Th2 cell responses in males in vivo.
Managerial Performance Incentives and Firm Risk during Economic Expansions and Recessions

We argue that the relationship between managerial pay-for-performance incentives and risk taking is procyclical. We study the relationship between incentives provided by stock-based compensation and rm risk for U.S. non- nancial corporations over the two business cycles between 1992 and 2009. We show that a given level of pay-for-performance incentives results in signi cantly lower rm risk when the economy is in a downturn. The documented procyclical relationship between incentives and risk taking is consistent with state-dependent risk aversion. Our ndings contribute to the literature on the depres- sive e¤ects of performance incentives on rm risk by documenting the importance of the interaction between performance incentives and risk aversion.
The Bank-Specific Factors Affecting the Profitability of Commercial Banks in Bangladesh: A Panel Data Analysis

The objective of this paper is to identify the bank specific variables that affect the profitability of commercial banks of Bangladesh. A total of 15 commercial banks were taken & their financial reports were analyze from 2003-2013. The study used return on asset as the dependent variable & bank specific variables like capital adequacy ratio, gearing ratio (risk), liquidity, non-performing loan ratio, operating expense ratio & bank size as independent variables. Prais-Winsten correlated panels corrected standard errors (PCSEs) model was employed which removes any autocorrelation & heteroskedasticity problem automatically for the panel data. The results indicated that size, operating expense, gearing ratio & capital were found to be important variables that affect the bank profitability of Bangladesh. Other two variables were not important determinants for Bangladeshi commercial banks. Capital shows positive relation to bank profitability but other three statistically significant variables showed negative relation to performance. Empirical results suggests that adequate capital, low risk, efficient expense management & rightsizing lead to greater performance and profitability for Bangladeshi bank industry.
Signal transduction pathways and haem oxygenase induction in soybean leaves subjected to salt stress

Abstract We have previously demonstrated that the induction of haem oxygenase-1 (EC 1.14.99.3) plays a protective role for soybean plants against cadmium and UV-B stress. Here, we have investigated the possible signal transduction pathways involved in haem oxygenase-1 induction in leaves of soybean plants subjected to salt stress. Treatment with 100 mM NaCl during 48 h increased thiobarbituric acid reactive substances by 30%, whereas GSH decreased by 50%, with respect to controls. These effects were prevented by pre-incubation with diphenyleneiodonium (DPI; an NADPH oxidase inhibitor), [1,2,4]oxadiazolo-[4,3-a]quinoxalin-1-one (ODQ; a guanylate cyclase inhibitor) or LaCl3 (calcium channel blocker). NaCl at 100 mM produced in situ accumulation of H2O2 and O2•−, which were also prevented by DPI, ODQ or LaCl3. Moreover, salt-induced haem oxygenase-1 activity was also totally abolished by pretreatment with the different inhibitors. These results clearly demonstrated that the signal transduction pathways involved in oxidative stress triggered by salt stress were similar to those implicated in haem oxygenase-1 induction, and provide additional information suggesting that haem oxygenase might play a key role in the antioxidative protection machinery of higher plants.
ENGINEERING FLOWS IN SMALL DEVICES

Microfluidic devices for manipulating fluids are widespread and finding uses in many scientific and industrial contexts. Their design often requires unusual geometries and the interplay of multiple physical effects such as pressure gradients, electrokinetics, and capillarity. These circumstances lead to interesting variants of well-studied fluid dynamical problems and some new fluid responses. We provide an overview of flows in microdevices with focus on electrokinetics, mixing and dispersion, and multiphase flows. We highlight topics important for the description of the fluid dynamics: driving forces, geometry, and the chemical characteristics of surfaces.