Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Confronting the Collateral Consequences of a Criminal Conviction: A Special Challenge for Social Work With Offenders

Millions of former offenders—often members of racial/ethnic minority or other disenfranchised groups—experience restrictions on their legal and civil rights as the collateral consequences of their criminal conviction. It is critical for the social workers and other human service professionals who frequently interface with this population to understand these collateral consequences to effectively serve their clients with criminal convictions. This exploratory study examined the impact these collateral consequences may have on social work practice with offenders. We assessed practitioners' awareness, knowledge, and experiences with the collateral consequences of clients' criminal convictions and practitioner efforts as “agents of restoration” to pursue statutorily available court-ordered expungements of their clients' criminal conviction records. Findings revealed that practitioners lacked awareness of collateral consequences, their application, and expungement. Recommendations to enhance social work practitioners' ability to address and reduce the far-reaching collateral consequences of incurring a criminal conviction are discussed.
Programas de transferência de renda no Brasil: impactos sobre a desigualdade

This paper evaluates the contribution of cash transfer programmes to the observed fall in inequality in Brazil between 1995 and 2004 as well as its impact on poverty. We use the 2004 Brazilian National Household Survey (PNAD) that for the first time collected data on the incidence of some of the cash transfer programmes. We develop a methodology to separate out the income of different cash transfer programs, crosscheck the survey information with administrative records, evaluate the incidence of the programmes, calculate their concentration indexes and decompose the Gini index into the contribution of each income source. We find that both BPC - the means tested old age pension and disability grant programme - and Bolsa-Familia are quite well targeted: 74% of BPC reported income and 80% of Bolsa-Familia reported income goes to families living below the poverty line (half of minimum wage per capita), and that they were jointly responsible for 28% of the fall in the Gini inequality between 1995 and 2004 (7% from BPC and 21% from Bolsa-Familia). This contribution is quite sizable since BPC and Bolsa-Familia together account for a tiny 0.82% of the total family income reported in the National Household Survey. It is also striking that pensions equal to the minimum wage ? contributory or not - contributed 32% to the fall in the Gini index, but this better performance was due to the fact that they make up 4.6% of the total family income.
Changing the Rules to Change the House: Electoral Reform and the 2006 Electoral Contest for the Victorian Legislative Council

On 25 November, 2006, Victorians participated in a general State election in which a new electoral system was being used for the Legislative Council. The electoral reform was part of an overall reform of the upper house undertaken by the Bracks Labor government. This article examines the electoral reform of the Victorian Legislative Council and the politics associated with this major change. It argues that this reform was the product of a Labor commitment to reform Australia's State upper houses that had already been implemented in three other States. It also reviews the outcome of the 2006 election to assess the extent to which the outcome matched the expectation of advocates of reform.
Dietary fat and body fat: an intervention study.

OBJECTIVE Assessment of body composition in relation to the habitual diet and after a six month dietary intervention. DESIGN After a baseline measurement subjects were randomly assigned to either a group consuming reduced-fat products or a group consuming full-fat products for six months. SUBJECTS 108 women and 109 men, equally distributed over the age range 19-35 with BMI between 21 and 28, and the age range 36-55 with BMI between 24 and 30. MEASUREMENTS Food intake was measured by three day dietary record, body composition by deuterium dilution. RESULTS At baseline, explained variance of %body fat on age and fat-carbohydrate ratio in the diet together were 17% (P < 0.0001) and 36% (P < 0.0001) for women and men, respectively, and on diet alone 7-8% (P < 0.01) independent of gender. The diet intervention caused on average a change in fat intake and body fat mass in subjects of the reduced-fat group of -5 +/- 29 g/d (P < 0.05) and -0.1 +/- 2.1 kg (ns), respectively, and of +23 +/- 31 g/d (P < 0.0001) and +0.5 +/- 2.3 kg (P < 0.05) in subjects of the full-fat group. The change in the fat content of the diet was positively related to a change in energy intake (fat-carbohydrate ratio: R2 = 0.15, P < 0.0001; g fat: R2 = 0.70, P < 0.0001), the latter explaining 5% of the variation in the change in body fat mass (P < 0.001). Subjects changing the fat content of the diet showed a consequent change in body fat mass only when energy intake changed as well. CONCLUSION The fat content of the diet has an effect on body fat as a function of the effect of dietary fat on energy intake.
Large Shareholder Entrenchment and Performance: Empirical Evidence from Canada

Recent empirical evidence indicates that the largest publicly traded companies throughout the world have concentrated ownership. This is the case in Canada where voting rights are often concentrated in the hands of large shareholders, mostly wealthy families. Such concentrated ownership structures can generate specific agency problems, such as large shareholders expropriating wealth from minority shareholders. These costs are aggravated when large shareholders don't bear the full costs of their decisions because of the presence of mechanisms (dual class voting shares, pyramids) which lead to voting rights being greater than the cash flow rights (separation). We assess the impact of separation on various performance metrics while controlling for situations when the large shareholder has (1) the opportunity to expropriate (high free cash flows in the firm) and (2) the incentive to expropriate (low cash flow rights). We also control for when the large shareholder has the power to expropriate (high voting rights, outright control and insider management) and for the presence of family ownership. The results support our hypotheses and indicate that firm performance is lower when large shareholders have both the incentives and the opportunity to expropriate minority shareholders. Copyright 2007 The Authors Journal compilation (c) 2007 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
A Modeling-Free Inversion-Based Iterative Feedforward Control for Precision Output Tracking of Linear Time-Invariant Systems

In this paper, we propose a modeling-free inversion-based iterative feedforward control (MIIFC) approach for high-speed output tracking of single-input single-output linear time-invariant systems. The recently developed inversion-based iterative learning control (IIC) techniques provide a straightforward manner to quantify and account for the effect of dynamics uncertainty on iterative learning control performance, thereby arriving at rapid convergence of the iterative control input. However, dynamics model and thereby the modeling process are still needed, and the model quality directly limits the performance of the IIC techniques. The main contribution of this paper is the development of the MIIFC algorithm to eliminate the dynamics modeling process, and significantly improve the tracking performance. The disturbance (measurement noise) effect on the tracking precision is addressed in the convergence analysis of the MIIFC algorithm. The allowable disturbance/noise level to guarantee the convergence is quantified in frequency domain, and the noise level can be estimated through the noise spectrum measured before the whole operation. The MIIFC technique is demonstrated by applying it to the output tracking of a piezotube scanner on an atomic force microscope. The experimental results showed that precision output tracking of a frequency-rich desired trajectory with power spectrum similar to a band-limited white noise can be achieved.
Identification of a Flavonol 7-O-Rhamnosyltransferase Gene Determining Flavonoid Pattern in Arabidopsis by Transcriptome Coexpression Analysis and Reverse Genetics*♦

Glycosylation plays a major role in the remarkable chemical diversity of flavonoids in plants including Arabidopsis thaliana. The wide diversity encoded by the large family-1 glycosyltransferase (UGT) gene family makes it difficult to determine the biochemical function of each gene solely from its primary sequence. Here we used transcriptome coexpression analysis combined with a reverse genetics approach to identify a gene that is prominent in determining the flavonoid composition of Arabidopsis. Using transcriptome coexpression analysis accessible on the ATTED-II public data base, the expression pattern of a UGT gene, UGT89C1, was found to be highly correlated with known flavonoid biosynthetic genes. No C-7 rhamnosylated flavonols were detected in either of two T-DNA ugt89c1 mutants. This specific metabolite deficiency in the mutants was complemented by stable transformation with the genomic fragment containing intact UGT89C1. Glutathione S-transferasefused recombinant UGT89C1 protein converted kaempferol 3-O-glucoside to kaempferol 3-O-glucoside-7-O-rhamnoside and recognized 3-O-glycosylated flavonols and UDP-rhamnose as substrates, but not flavonol aglycones, 3-O-glycosylated anthocyanins or other UDP-sugars. These results show that UGT89C1 is a flavonol 7-O-rhamnosyltransferase. The abundance of UGT89C1 transcripts in floral buds was consistent with the flavonoid accumulation of C-7 rhamnosylated flavonols in Arabidopsis organs. Our present study demonstrates that the integration of transcriptome coexpression analysis with a reverse genetic approach is a versatile tool for understanding a multigene family of a metabolic pathway in Arabidopsis.
Working memory capacity and the spacing effect in cued recall

ABSTRACT Spacing repetitions typically improves memory (the spacing effect). In three cued recall experiments, we explored the relationship between working memory capacity and the spacing effect. People with higher working memory capacity are more accurate on memory tasks that require retrieval relative to people with lower working memory capacity. The experiments used different retention intervals and lags between repetitions, but were otherwise similar. Working memory capacity and spacing of repetitions both improved memory in most of conditions, but they did not interact, suggesting additive effects. The results are consistent with the ACT-R model’s predictions, and with a study-phase recognition process underpinning the spacing effect in cued recall.
Are large and complex agricultural cooperatives losing their social capital

During the last 20 years many traditionally organized agricultural cooperatives have been forced to abandon their business form. Explanations have been put forward, comprising a variety of economic and sociological theories. The present study suggests that the social capital paradigm may add explanatory power when analyzing this development. It is claimed that the problems are due to the members having increasingly little trust in the cooperatives and in each other. The cooperatives’ decision makers have no instruments for estimating how much social capital is lost when they pursue strategies of vertical and horizontal integration. Therefore, they do not consider this loss in their calculations. Thus, the problems caused by the cooperatives’ vaguely defined property rights are becoming increasingly serious. This reasoning is summarized into a model, which is influenced by the consumer choice model. [EconLit Classification; A130; P130; Q130]. C 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Quantitative Position-Averaged K-, L-, and M-Shell Core-Loss Scattering in STEM

Abstract We present a quantitative comparison between experimental position-averaged core-loss scattering from K-, L-, and M-shells of various elements and simulations based on a single-particle description of the core-loss process. To facilitate a direct comparison free of adjustable or compensating parameters, we compare absolute scattering cross-sections for zone-axis-aligned crystals whose thicknesses have been measured independently. The results show that the single-particle model accurately predicts the absolute scattering intensity from K-shells, and L-shells in some cases, but achieves only semi-quantitative agreement for M-shells.
The Influence of Gestation and Mechanical Ventilation on Serum Clara Cell Secretory Protein (CC10) Concentrations in Ventilated and Nonventilated Newborn Infants

Clara cell secretory protein (CC10) is an important anti-inflammatory mediator in the adult lung, but its role in newborn pulmonary protection is uncertain. We examined the early postnatal behavior of CC10 in newborn serum and tracheal fluid and hypothesized that CC10 production is positively influenced by gestation. Blood from 165 infants from the first, third/fourth, and seventh days of life (gestational ages: 23–29 wk, 30–36 wk, >36 wk) and tracheal fluid (TF) from the first day of life from 32 ventilated infants were analyzed for CC10. Surfactant proteins A (SPA) and B (SPB) were also analyzed from the blood of a subgroup of infants. Serum CC10 on day 1 was highest in term infants (69.4 ng/mL), followed by moderately preterm (55.8 ng/mL), and then extremely preterm infants (median 42.1 ng/mL). Term infants also had higher tracheal fluid CC10 than preterm infants. (20.152 ng/mL versus 882 ng/mL). Mechanical ventilation increased serum CC10 only in moderately preterm infants, and only on d 1 [68.4 ng/mL versus 42.1 ng/mL (nonventilated moderately preterm infants)]. Serum CC10 decreased progressively by the end of the first week in all infants, in contrast to SPA and SPB, which increased. Our results show that CC10 is detectable in the blood of newborn infants and that a production surge occurs at birth. This surge is more pronounced in term infants and may confer them with superior extrauterine pulmonary protection compared with preterm infants.
Acquisition of European research funds and its effect on international scientific collaboration.

The Framework Programmes (FPs) funded by the European Commission support transnational research collaborations in order to make the European Research Area more competitive. Some have raised concerns that the FPs compromise the cohesion policies of the European Commission aimed at reducing income disparities between European regions. We investigate whether existing scientific collaborations between European Union (EU) subnational regions-as captured by co-authored publications-are conducive for acquiring FP funding, and whether FP funding, in turn, stimulates subsequent co-publication activity between pairs of EU regions. Our results indicate that previous co-publication activity only has a minor effect on being funded. We also find that the effect of funding on co-publication activity is especially significant for regional pairs that did not intensively co-publish before participation. The results suggest that the returns to FP funding are highest when involving scientifically lagging regions. In this respect, the current FP policy is in line with cohesion policy.
Phrenic Nerve End-to-Side Neurotization in Treating Brachial Plexus Avulsion: An Experimental Study in Rats

The aim of this study was to extend the clinical application of phrenic nerve neurotization in treating brachial plexus avulsion injury, reducing the possible damage on the diaphragm function. Fifty-one male Sprague-Dawley rats and 9 transgenic rats were used in this study. Evaluations including behavioral observation, histology, and electrophysiology study were performed postoperatively. The functional recovery of rats with the end-to-side neurorrhaphy reached 80% of those with end-to-end neurorrhaphy, and the function of diaphragm was preserved. The fluorescence study revealed abundant collateral sprouting of the phrenic nerve axons through the coaptation site in all the experimental groups. The study showed that the end-to-side neurorrhaphy in a helicoid manner and the standard end-to-side neurorrhaphy were effective in the treatment of brachial plexus root avulsion injury with little harm to the function of diaphragm. This will extend the clinical application of phrenic nerve neurotization in treating brachial plexus avulsion injury.
Age at menarche, abnormal glucose tolerance and type 2 diabetes mellitus: The Rancho Bernardo Study

Objective We examined the association of age at menarche with risk of abnormal glucose tolerance (AGT) and type 2 diabetes in postmenopausal women. Methods Participants were 997 women aged 50–92 years who had a clinic visit in 1984–87, when reproductive and diabetes history were recorded, and an oral glucose tolerance test administered. Information on age at menarche was collected in 1989. Diabetes status was based on WHO 1999 criteria, and AGT on having impaired fasting glucose (IFG) or impaired glucose tolerance (IGT). Results The average age was 69.5 years; 12.5% had diabetes and 29.8% had AGT. Menarche was < 12 years in 14.5%, 12–15 years in 78.9% and ⩾ 16 years in 6.6%. Age and body mass index (BMI) predicted AGT (p < 0.001, p = 0.003, respectively), while age, BMI and family history of diabetes predicted type 2 diabetes (p < 0.001, p < 0.001, p = 0.02, respectively). Polynomial logistic regression showed no association of menarche with AGT or type 2 diabetes risk. In linear regressions, however, older age at menarche was associated with lower fasting (p = 0.01) and post-challenge plasma glucose (p = 0.03). Covariates, especially BMI, weakened these associations, although women with menarche ⩾ 16 years still had lower post-challenge (0.86 mmol/l, p = 0.05) and fasting glucose (0.26 mmol/l, p = 0.11) than those with menarche < 12 years. Conclusions Age at menarche was not associated with AGT or type 2 diabetes risk. Late age at menarche was inversely associated with fasting and post-challenge glycemia. Obesity may mediate the observed associations.
Value of High Frequency Ultrasonography in Diagnosis and Surgical Repair of Traumatic Finger Tendon Ruptures

Objective: To investigate the value of high frequency ultrasonography in the diagnosis of zone 2 flexor tendon injuries. Subjects and Methods: Ninety-two patients (49 males and 43 females, mean age 32.6 ± 11.2 years) with zone 2 flexor tendon injuries in one or more digits were randomly divided into a study (n = 46, 95 digits) and a control group (n = 46, 90 digits). In the study group, preoperative ultrasound was performed and surgical repair was conducted based on ultrasonographic findings. Diagnosis and surgical repair of the control group was based on history of trauma and physical examination. Results: Types of ruptures (complete or partial) and the location of the distal end of the ruptured tendon diagnosed by preoperative ultrasonography were consistent with surgical findings in all cases (95/95, 100%) of the study group, whereas the concordance rate between clinically diagnosed ruptures and surgical findings was only 34.4% (31/90) in the control group (p = 0.02). Conclusion: Preoperative high frequency ultrasound examination yielded excellent diagnostic accuracy for zone 2 flexor tendon injuries.
Network of Dynamic Interactions between Histone H1 and High-Mobility-Group Proteins in Chromatin

ABSTRACT Histone H1 and the high-mobility group (HMG) proteins are chromatin binding proteins that regulate gene expression by modulating the compactness of the chromatin fiber and affecting the ability of regulatory factors to access their nucleosomal targets. Histone H1 stabilizes the higher-order chromatin structure and decreases nucleosomal access, while the HMG proteins decrease the compactness of the chromatin fiber and enhance the accessibility of chromatin targets to regulatory factors. Here we show that in living cells, each of the three families of HMG proteins weakens the binding of H1 to nucleosomes by dynamically competing for chromatin binding sites. The HMG families weaken H1 binding synergistically and do not compete among each other, suggesting that they affect distinct H1 binding sites. We suggest that a network of dynamic and competitive interactions involving HMG proteins and H1, and perhaps other structural proteins, constantly modulates nucleosome accessibility and the local structure of the chromatin fiber.
Preoperative radiotherapy for patients with rectal cancer: a risk factor for non-reversal of ileostomy caused by stenosis or stiffness proximal to colorectal anastomosis

The influence of radiotherapy on permanent stoma and the bowel proximal to anastomosis was not well investigated. The current study aimed to analyze the effect of preoperative radiotherapy on colorectal anastomosis and incidence of non-reversal ileostomy. A total of 184 eligible patients with rectal cancer undergoing loop ileostomy were included. Patients were well selected by excluding some confounding factors and divided into two groups according to whether they received preoperative radiotherapy. Patients with preoperative radiotherapy had higher incidence of non-reversal stoma (12.8%, P = 0.004) and stenosis or stiffness around anastomosis (21.1%, P < 0.01) including 13 patients with stenosis or stiffness proximal to anastomosis. Stenosis proximal to anastomosis was different from anastomotic stricture caused by surgery and could be described by imaging findings. Preoperative radiotherapy prolonged the interval to closure (P = 0.008) and was defined as a significant risk factor for permanent stoma (HR, 0.627; 95% CI, 0.405–0.973; P = 0.04) by multivariate Cox regression analysis. In conclusion, Preoperative radiotherapy increased incidence of non-reversal ileostomy and stenosis or stiffness proximal to anastomosis in rectal cancer patients with radical resection and diverting ileostomy.
Doxycycline inhibits TGF-beta1-induced MMP-9 via Smad and MAPK pathways in human corneal epithelial cells.

PURPOSE To evaluate the effects of TGF-beta1 and doxycycline on production of gelatinase MMP-9 and activation of Smad, c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), extracellular-regulated kinase (ERK), and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathways in human corneal epithelial cells. METHODS Primary human corneal epithelial cells were cultured to confluence. The cells were treated with different concentrations of TGF-beta1 (0.1, 1, or 10 ng/mL), with or without TGF-beta1-neutralizing mAb (5 microg/mL), SP600125 (30 microM), PD98059 (40 microM), SB202190 (20 microM), or doxycycline (5-40 microg/mL) for different lengths of time. Conditioned media were collected from cultures treated for 24 to 48 hours to evaluate the MMP-9 production by zymography and activity assay. Total RNA was isolated from cells treated for 6 to 24 hours to evaluate MMP-9 expression by semiquantitative RT-PCR and Northern hybridization. Cells treated for 5 to 60 minutes were lysed in RIPA buffer for Western blot with phospho-specific antibodies against Smad2, JNK1/2, ERK1/2, or p38. RESULTS TGF-beta1 increased expression, production, and activity of MMP-9 by human corneal epithelial cells in a concentration-dependent fashion. TGF-beta1 also induced activation of Smad2, JNK1/2, ERK1/2, and p38 within 5 to 15 minutes, with peak activation at 15 to 60 minutes. Doxycycline markedly inhibited the TGF-beta1-induced production of MMP-9 and activation of the Smad, JNK1/2, ERK1/2, and p38 signaling pathways. Its inhibitory effects were of a magnitude similar to SP600125, PD98059, and SB202190, specific inhibitors of the JNK1/2, ERK1/2, and p38 pathways, respectively. CONCLUSIONS These findings demonstrated that doxycycline inhibits TGF-beta1-induced MMP-9 production and activity, perhaps through the Smad and MAPK signaling pathways. These inhibitory effects may explain the reported efficacy of doxycycline in treating MMP-9-mediated ocular surface diseases.