Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fibrinogen is associated with EGFR mutation status and lymphatic metastasis in non-small cell lung cancer

In the previous decade, tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) have demonstrated significant effects in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations. However, sufficient tumor tissue for genetic testing cannot always be obtained in clinical settings. The present study evaluated whether fibrinogen may assist in predicting the EFGR mutation status in patients with NSCLC. Between January 2010 to December 2013, 303 patients with NSCLC underwent EGFR mutation testing. Plasma fibrinogen was acquired prior to treatment, and the associations between fibrinogen, EGFR mutation status and clinical features were assessed. A multivariate analysis and a receiver operator characteristic curve analysis were performed to identify the potential value of fibrinogen in predicting EGFR mutation status. The proportion of patients with hyperfibrinogenemia was significantly higher in N2 and N3 stages compared with N0 and N1 stages, 45.2 and 56.5 vs. 29.2 and 36.0%, respectively (P=0.001), and higher in the M1 stage compared with the M0 stage, 47.9 vs. 35.2%, respectively (P=0.025) (Stages according to the American Joint Committee of Cancer, 7th edition). Plasma fibrinogen levels were significantly lower in patients with EGFR mutations compared with the wild-type EGFR gene, 2.95 g/l (range, 0.84 −8.61 g/l) vs. 3.57 g/l (range, 1.38–7.44 g/l), respectively (P<0.001). In the multivariate analysis, logistic regression was utilized and the fibrinogen odds ratio (OR), 2.5, confidence intervals (CI) 1.53–4.51 (P<0.001) and smoking status OR 5.07, CI 3.01–8.53 (P<0.001), for which the area under the curve was 0.75, were revealed to be independent predictive factors. Hyperfibrinogenemia is associated with metastasis of the distant organs, but also metastasis of the lymphatic tissue. In addition, a multivariate model based on fibrinogen and smoking history may be used as a predictive marker of EGFR mutation status in patients with NSCLC.
Have Developed Countries Escaped the Curse of Distance?

There is widespread evidence that a better access to markets contributes to raising income levels. However, no quantification of the impact of distance to markets has been made on the basis of a sample restricted to advanced — and therefore more homogeneous — countries. This paper applies the framework developed by Redding and Venables (2004) on a panel data covering 21 OECD countries over 1970-2004, and shows that, relative to the average OECD country, the cost of remoteness for countries such as Australia and New Zealand could be as high as 10% of GDP. Conversely, the benefit for centrally-located countries like Belgium and the Netherlands could be around 6-7%. Second, the paper explains why the key estimated parameter in the Redding-Venables model is biased upwards in cross-section samples that mix both developing and developed countries, because of the inability to adequately control for heterogeneity in technology levels across countries. The paper also provides a detailed discussion of the links between the ? death-of-distance? hypothesis, the evolution of transport costs and that of the elasticity of trade to distance. Les pays developpes ont-ils echappe a la malediction de la distance ? De nombreuses etudes empiriques ont montre qu‘un meilleur acces aux marches contribue a augmenter les revenus. Cependant, aucune quantification de l‘impact de la distance aux marches n‘a ete effectuee a partir d‘un echantillon homogene limite aux pays developpes. Ce papier applique le cadre developpe par Redding and Venables (2004) a des donnees de panel couvrant 21 pays de l‘OCDE entre 1970 et 2004, et montre que, relativement a la moyenne des pays de l‘OCDE, le cout de l‘eloignement geographique pour des pays comme l‘Australie et la Nouvelle Zelande s‘eleve a environ 10% de PIB. Reciproquement, le benefice que tirent les pays ayant une position centrale comme la Belgique et les Pays-Bas serait de l‘ordre de 6-7%. Deuxiemement, cette etude explique pourquoi le parametre-cle dans le modele Redding-Venables est biaise a la hausse dans des echantillons en coupe qui melent pays developpes et en developpement, en raison de l‘incapacite a controler l‘heterogeneite des niveaux technologiques entre pays. Le papier propose egalement une discussion detaillee des liens entre l‘hypothese de la « fin de la distance », l‘evolution des couts de transport et celle de l‘elasticite du commerce a la distance.
COPIA: A New Software for Finding Consensus Patterns in Unaligned Protein Sequences

Consensus pattern problem (CPP) aims at nding conserved regions, or motifs, in unaligned sequences. This problem isNP -hard under various scoring schemes [52, 1]. To solve this problem for protein sequences more eÆciently, a new scoring scheme and a randomized algorithm based on substitution matrix are proposed here. Any practical solutions to a bioinformatics problem must observe two principles: (1) the problem that it solves accurately describes the real problem; in CPP, this requires the scoring scheme be able to distinguish a real motif from background; (2) it provides an eÆcient algorithm to solve the mathematical problem. A key question in protein motifnding is how to determine the motif length. One problem in EM algorithms to solve CPP is how to nd good starting points to reach the global optimum. These two questions were both well addressed under this scoring scheme, which made the randomized algorithm both fast and accurate in practice. A software, COPIA (COnsensus Pattern Identi cation and Analysis), has been developed implementing this algorithm. Experiments using sequences from the von Willebrand factor (vWF) family [66] showed that it worked well on nding multiple motifs and repeats. COPIA's ability to nd repeats makes it also useful in illustrating the internal structures of multidomain proteins. Comparative studies using several groups of protein sequences demonstrated that COPIA performed better than the commonly used motifnding programs.
Training and Development Policy, Corporate Governance, and Firm Performance

This research investigates the role of corporate governance as a moderator between firms’ performance and their Training and Development Policy (TDP). Research data were taken from the US, Brazil, Russia, India, China and Indonesia from 2007 to 2013. This research found that the TDP is important for enhancing firm performance. Also, the role of the training and development policy impacted each firm’s performance differently, according to the level of corporate governance of that firm. The moderating effect of corporate governance reveals that better governance of a firm may have an influence on its TDP policy, which would lead to better firm performance. Overall, the results are consistent with the conjecture that corporate governance influences the firm’s performance and training and development policy, suggesting that the training and development policy’s success depends on the corporate governance level of the firm. Hence, this research contributes to two big theories: the knowledge transfer theory and the human capital theory, where the research findings show a confirmation of the two theories application in this research context.
Do Financial Ratios Affect Index Constitution

The inclusion or exclusion of a stock from an index is important with regard to be considered as a positive signal for both institutional and individual investors. The index inclusion reflects a positive situation about the quality, risks and possible future return of the stock. Financial ratios reflect the financial solidity of the enterprise. Starting from this statement, in this study we aim to research whether financial ratios have any effect on the inclusion of the stock in the Istanbul Stock Exchange (BIST 100) index. The research on which ratios and ratio groups are effective on the stock inclusion in the index has been anaylzed by using panel logit model. It has been noted that, among the models, the one with the most significant impact on inclusion in or exclusion from the index are the activity ratio variables. This result indicates that the impact of the allocation of resource financing on the probabilities of being included in/excluded from the index is too strong with positive and negative effects of debts on the operating profit. Besides, in order to illustrate the success of the estimated results obtained from the models, the probability of inclusion or exclusion of each stock in the index is determined. The empirical results, on the basis of the financial solidity of enterprises has a significant impact on the inclusion in/exclusion from the index, show that the financial ratios are effective - indirectly- on the inclusion/exclusion.
Chaotic vibrations in a damage oscillator with crack closure effect

Abstract This paper deals with the dynamics of a single-degree-of-freedom unilateral damage oscillator. Using appropriate internal variables, the hysteretic dynamic system can be written as a nonsmooth autonomous system. The free dynamics of such a nonlinear system are simply reduced to periodic motion, eventually attractive trajectories, and divergent motion. The direct Lyapunov method is used to investigate the stability of the free damage system. A critical energy is highlighted that the oscillator can support while remaining stable. The natural frequency of the periodic motion depends on the stationary value of the damage internal variable. The inelastic forced oscillator, however, can exhibit very complex phenomena. When the damage parameter remains stationary, the dynamics are similar to those of an elastic oscillator with nonsymmetric stiffness. The dynamics appear to be controlled by the initial perturbations. Chaotic motions may appear in such a system, specifically for severely damaged oscillators. It is numerically shown that chaos is observed in the vicinity of the divergence zone (the collapse). This closeness of both behaviors-chaos and divergence-is probably related to the perturbation of the homoclinic orbit associated with the critical energy. © 2010. Journal of Mechanics of Materials and Structures.
What drives small-scale spatial patterns in lotic meiofauna communities?

Summary 1 Lotic meiofaunal communities demonstrate extremely variable dynamics, especially when viewed at small spatial scales (≤ metres). Given the limited amount of research on lotic meiofauna, we chose to organise our discussion of their small-scale spatial patterns around the dominant factors we believe drive their spatial distributions in streams. We separate scale-dependent effects that structure lotic meiofauna into biotic factors (e.g. predation, food quantity/quality, dispersal) and abiotic factors (e.g. local flow dynamics and substratum characteristics). 2 The impact of predation on the distribution of meiofauna varies with the scale over which predators forage (e.g. fish predation influences meiofauna in different ways and at broader spatial scales than do invertebrate predators), the type of streambed substrata in which the predator-prey interactions occur, and the dispersal ability of different meiofauna. The latter is greatly influenced by predator and prey (meiofauna) interactions with the flow environment. 3 Organic matter influences the small-scale distribution of meiofauna in streams. Both its quality as food (as indicated by C:N content, ATP content, or microbial biomass) and its spatial distribution on the streambed, influence meiofauna patchiness, community structure and life history characteristics. As a habitat, the structure that organic matter provides (e.g. wood or leaves) can influence predator-prey interactions, offer materials for case-building and offer refugia during disturbance events - all of which influence the small-scale spatial distribution of meiofauna. 4 Stream flow influences the distribution of meiofauna at broad scales (10s–100s of metres), primarily because of the high susceptibility of meiofauna to passive drift; small-scale interactions between flow and substrata are also important, however, particularly at more localised (≤ metre) scales. At both scales, substratum particle size is important to interstitial-dwelling fauna, influencing the probability of passive drift by meiofauna as well as local microhabitat conditions (e.g. dissolved oxygen; upwelling/downwelling in the hyporheic zone) and, thus, the small-scale distribution among microhabitats. 5 In general, the processes governing the distribution of meiofauna at small scales cannot be separated entirely from those processes working at larger scales. A conceptual diagram is presented illustrating the relative importance of various factors in influencing the spatial patterns of meiofauna and over what scales these factors act.
Comparative Analysis of Motorized and Manually Propelled Technologies of Artisanal Fisheries in Ijebu Waterside of Ogun State

This study was carried out to analyze the comparative analysis of efficiencies of artisanal fisheries in Ijebu Waterside of Ogun State. The objectives determined gross margin analysis; estimate the technical efficiencies of both the manually propelled technology (MPT) and motorized technology (MT) of artisanal fishery systems and determining the factors influencing the technical efficiencies of artisanal fisheries in the study area. A multistage sampling technique was used to select a total of 400 Artisans from the study area. Primary data were collected using structured questionnaire as interview guide, on the socio-economic characteristics, production inputs and output prices. The data collected were analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. Stochastic production frontier model was used to estimate the technical, efficiencies of both motorized and manually propelled technologies in artisanal fishery system as well as the factors influencing the technical, efficiencies of the artisans. The results of the comparison of the MPT and (MT) revealed that the average income per month for MPT was N361,847.48 and the amount accruable per month for the MT was N560,755.57. The results of the comparison of catch efficiency and inefficiency function showed that in MPT, fishing gear, vessel length, number of crew/skippers, quantity of bait and battery were all significant at 5 percent probability level while for MT, fishing gear, outboard engine, battery and miscellaneous quantity were the significant factors. The mean catch efficiency of MPT was 0.92 compared to MT with 0.98. However, the comparison of the inefficiency shows that education, age, and household size are significant factors while education is significant factors in both MPT and MT respectively. The results of the returns-to-scale revealed that the parameters estimate of the MT was higher with 4.35 compared to MPT with 2.56.
Parallel Implementation of a Kalman-Based Sinusoidal Estimator

Phase-based methods for estimating the frequency of a sinusoid have typically suffered from a threshold effect, where for signal to noise ratio (SNR) below the threshold, the mean squared error of the estimate rapidly increases. Furthermore, it is a significant problem that the threshold is considerably high and strongly depends on frequency. To overcome the difficulties, a Kalman-based sinusoidal estimator bank (KSEB) is proposed. In the derivation of the KSEB, a four-channel filter bank and decimation technique are effectively used. The computer simulation also demonstrates the superiority of the KSEB to the other frequency estimators. key words: nonlinear lter, Kalman lter, frequency estima-
A Study of Job Stress on Job Satisfaction among the Employees of Small Scale Industries

The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of job stress on job satisfaction among the employees of small scale industries in Madurai. The correlation analysis indicates that the employee job satisfaction is negatively and significantly associated with work load and role conflict, while the employee job satisfaction is positively and significantly correlated with physical environment in small scale industries. The regression analysis shows that the job stress factors of workload and role conflict have the negative impact on employee job satisfaction while, the job stress factor of physical environment have the positive impact on employee job satisfaction at one per cent level of significance. It is very important that the small scale industries understands the needs of its employees and provide what is best for the employees. Constant appraisal programmes and appreciation should be given to reinstate and motivate the employees. In order to enhance the satisfaction of their jobs and lives of employees should compensate with equitable incentives.
Predictors Of Perceiving Racism In Ambiguous Situations 2006

The present study used a mixed-experimental analog design to examine 858 undergraduate students’ reactions to a scenario depicting a store clerk being mildly rude to a customer. The ethnicity of the clerk and customer were manipulated. Results indicated that participants’ beliefs regarding the general prevalence of racism and the degree to which they identify with their respective ethnic group significantly predicted the extent to which they perceived the clerk’s behavior as being racially motivated. It also was found that participants’ beliefs regarding the general prevalence of racism, levels of cynicism, and attributional style significantly predicted the extent to which they perceived the clerk’s behavior as unjust. Moreover, participants’ beliefs regarding the general prevalence of racism, levels of cynicism, self-esteem, and symptoms of depression significantly predicted the extent to which they considered the clerk’s behavior as a common occurrence. Finally, participants judged the clerk’s behavior to be significantly more racially motivated when the clerk was White and the customer was Hispanic or African American than when the clerk was Hispanic or African American and the customer was White. This last finding was robust for White, Latino and African American participants. Implications of the findings are discussed.
On the contribution of the double Drell-Yan process to WW and ZZ production at the LHC

In this paper we investigate consequences of an assumption that the discrepancy of the predicted and observed W+W- production cross sections at the LHC is caused by the missing contribution of the double Drell-Yan process (DDYP). Using our simple model of DDYP of Ref. [1] we show that inclusion of this production mechanism leads to a satisfactory, parameter-free description of the two-lepton mass distribution for 0-jet W+W- events and the four-lepton mass distribution for ZZ events. In such a scenario the Higgs-boson contribution is no longer necessary to describe the data. An experimental programme to prove or falsify such an assumption is proposed.
Study of the influence of derivative strategies on the risk of Brazilian companies

This work aims at investigating the influence of hedge approaches on corporate risk by applying an empirical research on derivative strategies by publicly traded Brazilian companies and the association with their risk levels. Many previous studies did not analyze the effects of specific attributes of both derivative strategies and various financial instruments adopted by companies to mitigate their risk. In this paper, these features were considered and, splitting derivative strategies such as currencies and interest rates, the results indicate that the influence of the strategies on the risk is significant. When the total amount of derivatives contracted by firms was deployed in strategies and products, an association between risk and derivative strategies was significant, which may be explained by the peculiarities of foreign currency and interest rates embedded in various financial instruments. This result is consistent with the macroeconomic environment in which Brazilian companies are inserted in view of the frequent exposure to currency risk and interest rate volatility. Keywords: financial derivatives, corporate risk, Brazilian companies, hedging alternatives, panel data analysis, derivative strategies, risk effects.
The Relationship between Translation Strategies Awareness and Students’ Translation Quality

Abstract This study explored the extent to which the undergraduate BA. Translation program students are aware of translation strategies (TS) and its role in producing high quality target text. It was conducted on a sample of 144 undergraduate Yemeni students of English and translation departments. A questionnaire was distributed to 92 students majoring in the translation programs at the University of Science and Technology (UST) and Sana’a University (SU) to measure their degree of awareness of TS in addition to a translation test comprised of three text types: technical, literary and journalistic to be translated from English into Arabic. The test was conducted on the 92 translation students and 52 non-translation program students at Hodeidah University to measure their translation quality and to compare their performance with regards to their awareness of TS. Pearson’s correlation, Mann-Whitney-U Test, Kruskal-Wallis Test, and Chi-square Test of Independence were used to analyze the data. The results showed that students of translation are aware of translation strategies to somewhat extent , low extent and to great extent respectively. The results also revealed a positive relationship between students’ degree of awareness of TS and their translation quality which is statistically significant p-value=0.01 in a comparison to insignificant relationship between students’ performance and other external factors such as reasons of majoring in translation, courses in language skills, training in translation and Arabic language degree of interest p-value is >. 05. Moreover, translation program students have produced high quality target texts more than the non-translation program students. In the light of the results, it is recommended to teach TS explicitly in a separate course in the translation programs and to pay more effective focus to train students during classroom activities to build their strategic competence.
FISHY FISH? THE ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF ESCAPED FARMED FISH

The escape of cultured fish from a marine aquaculture facility is a type of biological invasion that may lead to a variety of potential ecological and economic effects on native fish. This article develops a general invasive species impact model to capture explicitly both the ecological and economic effects of invasive species, especially escaped farmed fish, on native populations and harvests. First, the possible effects of escaped farmed fish on the growth and stock size of a native fish are examined. Next, a bioeconomic model to analyze changes in yield, benefit distribution, and overall profitability is constructed. Different harvesting scenarios, such as commercial, recreational, and joint commercial and recreational fishing are explored. The model is illustrated by a case study of the interaction between native and farmed Atlantic salmon in Norway. The results suggest that both the harvest and profitability of a native fish stock may decline after an invasion, but the total profits from the harvest of both native and farmed stocks may increase or decrease, depending on the strength of the ecological and economic parameters.