Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dynamic Susceptibility Contrast Perfusion MRI Identifies Persistent Vessel Pathology in Acute Pontine Stroke

Background: In large territorial stroke of the anterior and the posterior circulation, the extent of affected tissue can be characterized by the demonstration of vessel occlusion on MR angiography (MRA), while the extent of hypoperfusion can be shown on dynamic susceptibility contrast perfusion-weighted MRI (PWI). The ability of MRA and conventional MRI sequences to demonstrate branches of the basilar artery (BA) is very limited. This study analyzes the value of the combined use of diffusion-weighted MRI (DWI), MRA and PWI in acute pontine stroke. Methods: A series of 24 consecutive patients with acute pontine stroke received an extensive MRI stroke workup including DWI, PWI and MRA. Results: In 11/24 patients visual analysis of PWI demonstrated persisting hypoperfusion, and in 1/24 patients indication of hyperperfusion was found. Vessel abnormalities were seen in 19/24 patients (15/24 hypoplastic vertebral artery, 9/24 stenosis or occlusion of the BA, 1/20 ectatic BA). Persistent pontine hypoperfusion was more frequently associated with BA pathology (9/11 vs. 1/13, p = 0.001), large-vessel disease (8/11 vs. 1/13; p = 0.001) and a more pronounced clinical deficit (NIHSS score on day 1: 7 vs. 3, p = 0.01). Conclusions: In pontine ischemia areas of hypoperfusion can be identified due to the strong contrast induced by ischemia on PWI and can be easily related to DWI lesion size. This is of use particularly as small vessels are frequently missed by MRA and occlusion of the BA can be better characterized with the help of PWI.
Making Markets Work for the Poor

AbstractThe following sections are included:Markets and the Poor: Opportunities and ExperiencesLessons from the poorDimensions of Poverty and the Institutional Foundations of the Market: An Integrating FrameworkTransactions cost economics, social capital, and powerTransactions cost economicsEmbeddedness, trust, and social capitalMarket powerThe Sustainable Livelihoods Framework and the Many Dimensions of PovertyMapping Poverty and Market OutcomesAsset ownership, including access to informationVulnerability and riskSocial marginalization and lack of powerPolicy ImplicationsImproving access to market information systems and infrastructureSupporting collective actionSupporting alternative institutional schemesAddressing risk and vulnerabilityAddressing discrimination and social barriersBuilding the asset base of the poorConclusionsReferences
The challenge of sustainable innovation in agri-food supply chains

Abstract Purpose This chapter introduces the volume’s theme by describing the challenges of sustainability in the agri-food industry and the critical role of agri-food supply chains. Following a description of traditional and sustainable supply chain management practices, we discuss the likely characteristics of sustainability-oriented innovations and how organizations pursuing higher levels of economic, social, and environmental performance will need to adapt their capabilities. Methodology/approach Drawing on the emerging concepts and practices from sustainable supply chain management as well as traditional and emerging concepts from innovation, we develop general propositions and expectations about how organizations might address sustainable effectiveness in their supply chains. The importance of the agri-food industry to all three pillars of sustainable effectiveness and predictions about the inability to feed future populations gives the discussion a certain urgency. Findings Sustainability-oriented innovations in the agri-food supply chain are different from traditional innovations. We develop propositions regarding the driving motivations, their nature and scope (i.e., more radical and systemic than incremental and focused), and the importance of a multi-stakeholder approach. The 10 cases presented in the volume are summarized.
The influence of the CEO and the largest shareholder on dividend payout policy in Thailand

In a setting of weak law enforcement and low investor protection, minority shareholders may find it difficult to extract cash from a company. This paper examines whether or not the CEO and the largest shareholder affect dividend decisions. Using a sample of Thai firms, I find that the CEO tenure and the ownership of the largest shareholder increase the likelihood of a dividend payout. As a result of high commitment and incentives, CEOs and the largest shareholder use dividend payments as a mechanism to mitigate free cash flow problems and reduce potential expropriation of minority shareholders. In addition, the possibility of a dividend payout decreases if firms are controlled by domestic financial institutions. Domestic financial institutions seem to play a significant role in monitoring management teams; consequently, the need for a dividend payment in alleviating agency costs is lower than other firms. Moreover, firms are more likely to pay dividends when they have higher profitability and a lower leverage ratio.
Shock-Induced Bubble Collapse versus Rayleigh Collapse

This paper compares two physical mechanisms for the collapse of a bubble near a rigid wall: a traveling shock-induced collapse and a Rayleigh-like collapse due to a uniform rise of the pressure around the bubble. A multi-material compressible flow solver capable of handling material interfaces under high pressures is used to investigate these two scenarios for different levels of the driving pressure ranging from 1 MPa to 400 MPa. The two mechanisms are differentiated on the basis of the resulting bubble dynamics, the reentrant jet velocity, and the pressures imparted to the wall.
The Influences of Health Beliefs and Identity on Adolescent Marijuana and Tobacco Co-Use

Among youth, the co-use of marijuana and tobacco is highly prevalent, yet a considerable gap remains in the drug-prevention literature pertaining to such co-use. In particular, the prevention field lacks research exploring how adolescents understand the health implications of smoking these two substances in combination. In this article, we draw on qualitative interviews with adolescents from three communities in British Columbia, Canada, and describe the health beliefs and social identities that they associated with smoking marijuana and tobacco. We argue that smoking prevention and cessation initiatives targeting adolescents must address both marijuana and tobacco. Such initiatives must also be designed to identify and address how adolescents frame the potential health harms associated with smoking these substances.
Blood Coagulation, Fibrinolysis and Cellular Haemostasis

CPU generation during coagulation but not during fibrinolysis. Addition of the plasmin inhibitor aprotinin during fibrinolysis resulted in a decrease in CPU activation during the lysis phase. These results demonstrate that proCPU was activated during coagulation by thrombin and during fibrinolysis by plasmin. Addition of a CPU inhibitor before initiation of clotting decreased the clot lysis time as expected. However, addition in the time period between the two peaks of CPU activity had no apparent effect on the clot lysis time.
Share trading and the London Stock Exchange 1914-1945 : the dawn of regulation

In the London of August 1914, there was no statutory regulation of share trading. By the beginning of 1946, only traders registered in accordance with the Prevention of Fraud (Investments) Act 1939 were permitted to engage in share trading between members of the public. This study examines the stages by which share trading in the United Kingdom came to be a statutorily regulated activity and by which the London Stock Exchange moved from being antagonistic towards public regulation in 1914 to lobbying in 1944 for the new scheme to be implemented. A number of challenges were posed by changes in the character of the demand for and supply of securities which were evident before 1914 but hastened by the 1914-1918 war. There is no evidence that the Exchange, its members or outside observers understood how these changes would affect the overall character of the market or its sensitivity to risk. Almost all regulatory interventions between 1914 and 1945 responded to crises which exposed the failure of existing arrangements to cope with the consequences of market changes. Whilst these interventions show that self-regulatory arrangements could be effective, they also demonstrate the limitations of reliance on self-regulation alone. Although the Exchange’s members supported severe action after the crashes of 1929, the criminal justice system again proved inadequate to deal with abusive share trading generally. The 1939 legislation responded to the criminal justice system’s failure and, for the Exchange, was made palatable by protecting its formal independence. Each successive regulatory intervention in part responded to compromises in previous interventions occasioned by the need to secure acceptance by market operators.
Subjective sleepiness and physiological sleep tendency in healthy young morning and evening subjects

SUMMARY The Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT) was performed twice after 8h and after 4h of night sleep in 15 healthy young subjects (mean age: 23 y). Seven subjects could be regarded as morning, 8 subjects as evening types. After 8h of sleep significantly more evening types napped at 08.00 hours and at 12.00 hours. Evening types rated themselves more sleepy on an hourly administered visual analogous scale (VAS). Sleep onset latencies (SOL) decreased, and the amount of Stages 1 and 2 increased in all subjects dependent on the sleep restriction condition. No significant differences between morningness and eveningness concerning SOL and structure of nap structure could be observed. After 4 h of sleep there was a marked increase in subjectively rated sleepiness during the morning hours in both groups.
Procyclical Credit Rating Policy

This paper examines whether credit rating agencies applied consistent rating standards to US corporate bonds in the periods surrounding the 2008 financial crisis. Based on estimates of issuing firms' credit quality from a structural model, I find that rating standards are in fact procyclical: ratings are stricter during an economic downturn than during an economic expansion. As a result, firms receive overly pessimistic ratings in a recession, relative to during an expansion. I further show that a procyclical rating policy amplifies the variation in corporate credit spreads, accounting for, on average, 11% of the increase in spreads during a recession. In the cross‐section, firms with a higher rollover rate of debt, fewer alternative channels to convey their credit quality to the market, and firms with businesses that are more sensitive to economic cycles are more affected by the procyclical rating policy.
Determinants of Financial Distress: What Drives Bankruptcy in A Transition Economy? The Czech Republic Case

The main factors influencing the probability of bankruptcy are analyzed on Czech Republic 1993-1999 firm data. Basic models of the bankruptcy are compared: neoclassical, financial and corporate governance. The corporate governance hypothesis does not receive support in the ownership but the indicator of voucher privatization supports it. The initial conditions from early 90? s were not the driving the financial distress. The voucher-scheme privatization results in poorer corporate governance. These firms are more likely to go bankrupt, ceteris paribus. On the other hand, former large SOEs are less likely to bankrupt than firms with a similar debt structure - this is an evidence of soft budget constraints.
Judgment and decision making.

For many decades, research in judgment and decision making has examined behavioral violations of rational choice theory. In that framework, rationality is expressed as a single correct decision shared by experimenters and subjects that satisfies internal coherence within a set of preferences and beliefs. Outside of psychology, social scientists are now debating the need to modify rational choice theory with behavioral assumptions. Within psychology, researchers are debating assumptions about errors for many different definitions of rationality. Alternative frameworks are being proposed. These frameworks view decisions as more reasonable and adaptive that previously thought. For example, "rule following. " Rule following, which occurs when a rule or norm is applied to a situation, often minimizes effort and provides satisfying solutions that are "good enough," though not necessarily the best. When rules are ambiguous, people look for reasons to guide their decisions. They may also let their emotions take charge. This chapter presents recent research on judgment and decision making from traditional and alternative frameworks.
Transcutaneous immunization and immunostimulant strategies: capitalizing on the immunocompetence of the skin

The skin is an attractive target for vaccine delivery. Topical application of adjuvants results in potent immune responses and good safety profiles. Adjuvants can be coadministered in a patch with vaccine antigens (transcutaneous immunization) or similar delivery format, or administered separately with an injection or IS™ patch (Iomai), leading to enhanced immune responses. These observations have moved into the clinic, highlighting the likelihood that skin delivery of vaccines will play an important future role in vaccine applications.
Sustainability of Indian PPP procurement process

Purpose Though public-private partnership (PPP) programme in India has stabilized significantly with implementation of successful infrastructure projects, still it suffers from shortfalls related to some aspects of sustainable development. One of the ways to overcome these shortfalls is to modify the existing PPP procurement process in order to attain the sustainable development goals. The purpose of this paper is to develop a conceptual framework highlighting the strategies for integrating sustainable development principles in PPP procurement process. Design/methodology/approach Content analysis through literature review has been adopted to identify the shortfalls in PPP process and examine the possible strategies to overcome the shortfalls from best practices in implementation of PPP projects. The preliminary framework of strategies has been conceptualized to integrate sustainable development principles in PPP procurement process. Finally, the feasibility of preliminary framework has been undertaken through focussed interviews with local stakeholders of PPPs. Findings The study indicates opportunities to promote sustainable development in the current PPP procurement process exists through enhancement in critical aspects like stakeholder’s participation, environment impact assessment, value for money analysis, user’s charges, risk allocation policies, transaction and bidding cost, and bid evaluation criteria. Originality/value The paper presents a critical insight on integrating sustainable development principles in PPP procurement process which has not been the focus in the majority of previous research studies.
A comparison of hemodynamic effects of levosimendan and dobutamine in patients undergoing mitral valve repair / replacement for severe mitral stenosis.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES We aimed to compare the hemodynamic effects of levosimendan and dobutamine in patients undergoing mitral valve surgery on cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). MATERIALS AND METHODS Sixty patients were divided into 2 groups of 30 each. Group-L patients received levosimendan 0.1 μg/kg/min and Group-D patients received dobutamine 5 μg/kg/min while weaning off CPB. Additional inotrope and/or vasoconstrictor were started based on hemodynamic parameters. Hemodynamic data were collected at the end and at 30 minutes after CPB, thereafter at 6, 12, 24, and 36 hours post-CPB. Mean arterial pressure (MAP), central venous pressure (CVP), heart rate (HR), cardiac index (CI), systemic vascular resistance index (SVRI), and lactate levels were measured. RESULTS Group-L showed increased requirement of inotropes and vasoconstrictors. The SVRI, CVP, and MAP were reduced more in Group-L. The CI was low in Group-L in the initial period when compared to Group-D. Later Group-L patients showed a statistically significant increase in CI even after 12 hrs of discontinuation of levosimendan infusion. The HR was increased more in Group-D. Lactate levels, intensive care unit stay, and duration of ventilation were similar in both groups. CONCLUSIONS Levosimendan 0.1 μg/kg/min compared to dobutamine 5 μg/kg/min showed more vasodilation and lesser inotropic activity in patients undergoing mitral valve surgery for mitral stenosis. Levosimendan compared to dobutamine showed a statistically significant increase in CI even after 12 hrs of discontinuation. The requirement of another inotrope or vasopressor was frequent in levosimendan group.
Adult‐onset angiocentric glioma of epithelioid cell‐predominant type of the mesial temporal lobe suggestive of a rare but distinct clinicopathological subset within a spectrum of angiocentric cortical ependymal tumors

Angiocentric glioma (AG) is defined as an epilepsy‐associated stable or slowly growing cerebral tumor primarily affecting children and young adults, histologically consisting mainly of monomorphic, bipolar spindle‐shaped cells and occasional round to monopolar columnar epithelioid cells, showing angiocentric growth pattern and features of ependymal differentiation. We describe two clinicopathologically unusual cases of AG. Case 1 is a 54‐year‐old woman with a 10‐year history of complex partial seizures. MRI revealed non‐enhancing T1‐low, T2/fluid‐attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR)‐high intensity signal change in the left hippocampus and amygdala. After selective amygdalohippocampectomy, she had rare non‐disabling seizures on medication for over 50 months (Engel's class I). Case 2 is a 37‐year‐old man with a 3‐year history of complex partial seizures. MRI revealed non‐enhancing T1‐low, T2/FLAIR‐high intensity signal change in the left uncus and amygdala. After combined amygdalohippocampectomy and anterior temporal lobectomy, he has been seizure‐free for over 11 months. Histologically the tumors in both cases consisted mainly of infiltrating epithelioid cells (GFAP– ∼ ± , S‐100‐) with perinuclear epithelial membrane antigen (EMA)‐positive dots and rings, showing conspicuous single‐ and multi‐layered angiocentric arrangements. Occasional tumor cells showed spindle‐shaped morphology (GFAP+, S‐100+) with rare EMA‐positive dots aligned radially and longitudinally along parenchymal blood vessels. Focal solid areas showed a Schwannoma‐like fascicular arrangement with rare EMA‐positive dots and/or sheets of epithelioid cells with abundant EMA dots. Electron microscopic investigation demonstrated features of ependymal differentiation. These cases, together with a few similar cases previously reported, appear to represent a rare but distinct clinicopathological subset of AG characterized by adult‐onset, mesial temporal lobe localization and epithelioid cell‐predominant histology.
Childhood Participation in After-School Activities: What is to be Expected?

Participation is recognised as a key to health and wellbeing and is considered to be a vital part of the development of children and youth. The purpose of this study was to examine the participation patterns of children and adolescents in their time outside formal school. More specifically, the influence of age and gender on after-school participation patterns was explored. Method: Three hundred and thirty-two children and adolescents (5 to 18 years old) were divided into five age groups and completed the Children's Assessment of Participation and Enjoyment (CAPE). To test the interaction effect of gender and age on participation measures, ANOVAs were conducted. Results: The results indicated differences with moderate to high effect size in participation patterns across age, where a decline in participation was detected as children made the transition to adolescence. Differences with negligible effect size in participation were found between boys and girls in some of the activity types. No interaction effect between age and gender was observed. Conclusion: Participation patterns change with age, particularly as children make the transition to adolescence; however, this change does not depend on gender. Intervention strategies might take into account these inherent changes. Future studies might consider additional factors (for example, environment) while examining participation throughout age.
Farmers’ perception of agricultural extension service delivery in Germiston Region, Gauteng Province, South Africa

This study was conducted to determine farmers' perception of extension service delivery in Germiston Region, Gauteng Province, South Africa. Both purposive and simple random sampling techniques were used for the sample selection and questionnaire was used to elicit information from 78 respondents. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics such as mean, frequency counts, percentages and standard deviation. Results showed that farmers perceived training (M=3.6, SD=±0.5) and demonstrations (M=3.6, SD=±0.48) to be highly effective in the study area. Results also indicated that 42.31 % of farmers were visited once a month by agricultural advisors. The study further revealed that extension activities had low impact on improving farm production yield and profitability (M=1.9, SD=±0.67) and enabling farmers to identify their own needs, problems and solve them (M=1.9, SD=±0.69). In conclusion it was found that extension is efficient, effective and visible in the study area. The study recommended a review on extension methods perceived to be non-effective or slightly effective and collaboration between stakeholders for a strong extension services. It will be imperative to ensure that methods regarded to be effective are mainly used to deliver extension messages.
LSTMs and Dynamic Memory Networks for Human-Written Simple Question Answering

One of the larger goals of Artificial Intelligence research is to produce methods that improve natural language processing and understanding and increase the ability of agents to interact and converse with humans. This by its very nature is an incredibly complex task, and involves myriad subproblems. Many of these problems have been posed and solved successfully, but one of the most interesting problems which is an active area of research currently is developing agents with the ability to answer questions by chaining facts, using inductive or deductive reasoning, parsing the question and looking up the answer, etc. We argue that improving performance on tasks which measure an agents ability to answer questions is an excellent benchmark for further, more general AI improvement. Our problem is therefore built around these tasks. We use modern deep learning techniques to demonstrate increased performance on a variety of canonical question answering tasks. Practically speaking, the Question Answering problem is critical in a very direct way to projects like IBM’s Watson[9], which was initially designed to answer trivia questions and is now being applied in the medical field. But it is also important to almost any project or business that requires any type of query, like search engines, chat applications, database programs, etc. Natural language queries are much more common, and much easier for humans to formulate, than other kinds of queries which can more directly access facts such as those written in database languages. It is thus one of the most important problems in the Artificial Intelligence fields to develop models and methods to parse these questions and correctly answer them.