Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Rectal misoprostol versus intramuscular oxytocin for prevention of post partum hemorrhage.

BACKGROUND Postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) is an important cause of maternal morbidity and mortality especially in the developing countries. ,Compared to expectant management, active management decreases the incidence of PPH. OBJECTIVE To compare the effectiveness of rectal misoprostol with intramuscular oxytocin in the prevention of postpartum hemorrhage. METHODS This is a prospective, randomized and analytical study from 1 st September 2009 to 28th February 2010 at Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Dhulkhel Hospital - Kathmandu University Hospital, Dhulikhel, Nepal. A total of 200 women were included to receive either 1000 micrograms rectal misoprostol tablets or 10 units of oxytocin intramuscularly. Primary outcome measures were the incidence of postpartum hemorrhage or a change in hematocrit or hemoglobin from admission to day two post delivery. Secondary outcome measures including severe postpartum hemorrhage and the duration of the third stage of labor were noted. Also the side effects of both misoprostol and oxytocin were recorded. RESULTS The frequency of postpartum hemorrhage was 4% in the misoprostol subjects and 6% in the control subjects (P=0.886) There were no significant difference among the groups in the drop of hematocrit (P>0.05). Secondary outcome measures including severe postpartum hemorrhage and the duration of the third stage of labor were similar in both groups. Similarly, the side effects between the misoprostol and oxytocin group within 6 hours was statistically significant (p=0.003) whereas the side effects within 24 hours was statistically not significant (p=0.106). CONCLUSION Rectal misoprostol is as effective as intravenous oxytocin in preventing postpartum hemorrhage with the similar incidence of side effects and is worthwhile to be used as a uterotonic agent for the routine management of third stage of labor.
NATO DEFENSE EXPENDITURES: COMMON GOALS OR DIVERGING INTERESTS? A STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS

By testing for structural breaks in defense expenditures, the dates of change in the pattern of defense expenditures for the NATO allies are determined. If NATO members are responding to a common threat, the breaks should be similar, in both direction and dates, for defense expenditures. The breaks should occur during major NATO strategy shifts. The results of the structural analysis tests suggest that NATO allies do not have an integrated response to NATO‐specific defense issues. It appears that NATO members, in general, adjusted their defense spending according to economic imperatives, political issues, and ally‐specific defense agendas.
An open-label study of the efficacy and tolerability of aripiprazole for children and adolescents with tic disorders.

OBJECTIVES This study aimed to investigate the efficacy and tolerability of aripiprazole, an atypical antipsychotic with dual agonist and antagonist actions toward dopaminergic imbalance and partial serotonin-2A receptor antagonism, for treating children and adolescents with tic disorders. METHOD Twenty-four outpatients aged 7 to 18 years with DSM-IV-diagnosed tic disorders were treated with aripiprazole using an open-label, flexible dosing schedule for 8 weeks from January 2005 to August 2006. The Korean versions of the Yale Global Tic Severity Scale (YGTSS), the Clinical Global Impressions-Improvement scale (CGI-I), and the CGI-Severity of Illness scale (CGI-S) scores were used to measure the drug efficacy. Side effects were assessed using an adverse effect checklist, the Extrapyramidal Symptom Rating Scale, height and weight measurements, laboratory tests, and electrocardiograms. RESULTS Aripiprazole was prematurely discontinued in 6 (25%) of the 24 subjects due to intolerable adverse effects. After a mean of 9.8 +/- 4.8 mg/day of aripiprazole for 8 weeks, there was a 52.8% reduction in the mean YGTSS Total Tic scores (from 26.7 +/- 5.5 to 12.6 +/- 7.6, p < .001). Nineteen patients (79.2%) showed either much improved or very much improved status according to the CGI-I. The CGI-S score was also reduced (from 5.5 +/- 0.5 to 3.0 +/- 1.4, p < .001). The initial dose of 5 mg/day aripiprazole for 2 weeks was also found to reduce tic symptoms significantly (Total Tic scores decreased from 26.7 +/- 5.5 to 17.9 +/- 8.7, p < .001). Fourteen subjects (58.3%) experienced unwanted side effects, the most common being hypersomnia (37.5%), nausea (20.8%), and headache (16.6%). CONCLUSION This open-label study suggests that aripiprazole is an efficacious and safe treatment for children and adolescents with tic disorders.
Dendritic cells freshly isolated from human blood express CD4 and mature into typical immunostimulatory dendritic cells after culture in monocyte-conditioned medium

A procedure has been developed to isolate dendritic cells to a high degree of purity from fresh blood. Prior enrichment methods have relied upon an initial 1-2-d culture period. Purified fresh isolates lack the characteristic morphology, phenotype, and immunostimulatory function of dendritic cells. The purified cells have the appearance of medium sized lymphocytes and express substantial levels of CD4, but lack the T cell molecules CD3, CD8, and T cell receptor. When placed in culture, the cells mature in a manner resembling the previously described, cytokine- dependent maturation of epidermal dendritic cells (Langerhans cells). The cells enlarge and exhibit many cell processes, express much higher levels of major histocompatibility complex class II and a panel of accessory molecules for T cell activation, and become potent stimulators of the mixed leukocyte reaction. Among the many changes during this maturation process are a fall in CD4 and the appearance of high levels of B7/BB1, the costimulator for enhanced interleukin 2 production in T cells. These changes are not associated with cell proliferation, but are dependent upon the addition of monocyte- conditioned medium. We suggest that the freshly isolated CD4-positive blood dendritic cells are recent migrants from the bone marrow, and that subsequent maturation of the lineage occurs in tissues in situ upon appropriate exposure to cytokines.
De-Marginalizing Science in the Early Elementary Classroom: Fostering Reform-Based Teacher Change through Professional Development, Accountability, and Addressing Teachers' Dilemmas

De-Marginalizing Science in the Early Elementary Classroom: Fostering Reform-Based Teacher Change through Professional Development, Accountability, and Addressing Teachers’ Dilemmas Alissa Berg To develop a scientifically literate populace, students must acquire the motivation and foundational skills for success in science beginning at an early age. Unfortunately, science instruction is often marginalized in elementary schools for reasons including teachers’ lack of confidence in teaching science and an overemphasis on literacy and mathematics. This study employed a case study design to examine the impact of teachers’ dilemmas, career stage, coaching, and other forms of support on elementary teachers’ abilities to teach science more often and in more reform-based ways. The conceptual lenses used to guide this dissertation include the theory related to teacher change, dilemmas, reform-oriented science teaching, and the professional learning continuum. Findings suggest that teachers’ dilemmas must be addressed in order for them to move toward more reform-based science teaching practices. It was found that how teachers reconcile their dilemmas is due in part to their career stage, level of readiness, and access to a more knowledgeable other who can assist them in learning and enacting reform-based instruction. Moreover, the likelihood and extent of teacher change appears to be related to teachers recognizing a need to change their practice, developing the capacity to change, feeling accountable to change, and possessing the motivation to change. Implications for teacher educators, professional development providers, and curriculum developers are presented. It is argued that teachers require support the length of their career and, to be effective, this support must be personalized to their diverse and changing needs and responsive to the context in which they teach.
Low latency book handling in FPGA for high frequency trading

Recent growth in algorithmic trading has caused a demand for lowering the latency of systems for electronic trading. FPGA cards are widely used to reduce latency and accelerate market data processing. To create a low latency trading system, it is crucial to effectively build a representation of the market state (book) in hardware. Thus, we have designed a new hardware architecture, which updates the book with the best bid/offer prices based on the incoming messages from the exchange. For each message a corresponding financial instrument needs to be looked up and its record needs to be updated. Proposed architecture is utilizing cuckoo hashing for the book handling, which enables low latency symbol lookup and high memory utilization. In this paper we discuss a trade-off between lookup latency and memory utilization. With average latency of 253 ns the proposed architecture is able to handle 119 275 instruments while using only 144 Mbit QDR SRAM.
Asymmetric bargaining and development trade-offs in the CARIFORUM-European Union Economic Partnership Agreement

ABSTRACT On 15 October 2008, CARIFORUM became the first region among the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) group of countries to sign a ‘full’ Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the European Union (EU). Although the EPA process has generated widespread critical commentary, few analysts have stopped to consider the motives of individual ACP countries and regions in their approach to the talks. In this article we consider the question of motives in relation to the CARIFORUM-EU EPA. Specifically, it asks why did CARIFORUM feel it necessary or desirable to sign a ‘full’ EPA, containing numerous provisions not actually mandated by the WTO, when the rest of the ACP was content to sign far less ambitious ‘goods only’ interim agreements? In order to address this question, the article goes beyond the extant EU-ACP trade literature to build on wider international political economy (IPE) scholarship, which has analysed the actions of developing countries in relation to a whole range of ‘WTO-plus’ North–South regional and bilateral FTAs. On this basis, the article stands back from the complex details of the agreement to analyse its wider significance, especially in terms of the presumed trade-off between the immediate economic benefits of improved and more secure market access, against the longer term costs of sacrificing the regulatory autonomy, or policy space, deemed necessary to pursue the type of trade and industrial policies deployed successfully in the past by both developed and (some) developing countries. Put simply, the article seeks to ascertain why ultimately CARIFORUM signed an agreement, what it gained from the negotiations and at what cost.
Development of a Virtual Second Life Curriculum Using Currere Model

This is a study integrating Second Life (SL) and the currere approach to develop a virtual curriculum demonstration. The overarching purposes of this study were to understand the perceptions, self-reflection, self- understanding and educational growth of graduate students in education toward teaching and learning in a virtual interdisciplinary curriculum. Data was collected in two education graduate courses with a total of 31 participants in 2011 at a central Texas public university. The results revealed how SL exhibitions, based on the four-step currere approach, benefitted the participants. Using the exhibitions' target knowledge, individuals were able to develop a self-understanding, which propelled them toward self-mobilization and educational reconstruction.
Herding behaviour and market dynamic volatility: evidence from the US stock markets

This paper documents the effect of herd behaviour on the US S%P100 and US DJIA stock market's stocks volatility. We investigated the presence and the change of herding behaviour in the US S%P100 and US DJIA stock markets during January 2000 to July 2012. Results provide strong and coherent evidence on the occurrence of herding at only daily frequency. In particular, the findings indicated a significant change in herding tendency across sub-periods of the subprime crisis. The different tests report that herding is only prevailing during bull period and during days of high trading volumes. Moreover, empirical evidences report a significant relationship between market sentiment and herd behaviour. We show that herding contributes not only in fuelling market excessive volatility but also in raising the housing bubble during the subprime crisis. Surprisingly, we find that asymmetric herding exists during days of low volatility.
Empirical study on the impact of market orientation and innovation orientation on new product performance of Chinese manufacturers

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of market orientation and innovation orientation in new product performance as well as the potential moderating role of innovation orientation and environmental variables in the market orientation-new product performance link among Chinese manufacturing firms. Design/methodology/approach - A questionnaire survey was conducted among 227 manufacturing firms in mainland China. A total of six hypotheses related to market orientation, innovation orientation, and new product success as well as moderating effects of innovation orientation and environmental variables are examined by structural equation modeling and hierarchical regression techniques. Findings - The research results show that: first, the conceptual model is superior to the popular model in Western literature in terms of model fit goodness; second, market orientation and innovation orientation have significant and positive impact, which is higher than the average level in previous research, upon new product success; third, innovation orientation and technological turbulence have a positive moderating effect on market orientation-new product performance link; and fourth, market turbulence and competitive intensity have no moderating effects. In addition, managerial implications as to how to improve product innovation performance are provided for Chinese manufacturers. Originality/value - The paper contributes to the extant literature of market orientation and product innovation in the following three ways. First of all, the research empirically validates a modified conceptual model incorporating market orientation, innovation orientation and new product performance. Second, the facilitating impact of strategic orientations (including market orientation and innovation orientation) upon new product performance is higher than the average level in previous studies (primarily based on developed economies), indicating the greater effectiveness of two strategic orientations in transition economy and east-Asian cultural context. Third, by examining the potential moderating roles of innovation orientation and environmental variables, we are able to better understand how to match market orientation strategy with those moderators in order to help enhance the product innovation performance results of manufacturing firms.
The Common Prior Assumption in Economic Theory

Why is (it that) common priors are implicit or explicit in the vast majority of the differential information literature in economics and game theory? Why has the economic community been unwilling, in practice, to accept and actually use the idea of truly personal probabilities in much the same way that it did accept the idea of personal utility functions? After all, in (Savage's expected utility theory), both the utilities and probabilities are derived separately for each decision maker. Why were the utilities accepted as personal, and the probabilities not?
Gerontocracy and Economic Decline: An Italian Tale

This paper provides a theoretical and empirical investigation of the relationship between politicians’tenure, innovation and growth. We develop a model with quality improvements in the intermediate good sector, where regulation (red tape) imposes costs on producers that can be reduced through political connections. Within this framework, we show conditions under which low-quality producers can exploit political connections to retain their monopoly position and prevent innovation. From the politicians’point of view, the probability of re-election is positively related to the size of red tape costs. Combining these results, the model delivers a negative association between politicians’tenure and economic growth. Preliminary evidence based upon an original dataset of Italian regions between 1984 and 2006 seems to con…rm our main theoretical predictions.
A service-informed approach to regional innovation – or adaptation?

This article explores the implications of a ‘service-informed’ understanding of economic growth and restructuring for regional analysis and policies. As well as growing tradability, the more fundamental role of service functions is to support other activities with specialist expertise. ‘Service’ qualities are also keys to innovativeness, including interactivity, market awareness and intangible qualities such as trust. These qualities remain outside technology-focused economic modelling and monitoring. The ‘new economy’ debate is contrasted with recent theoretical insights into service-based innovation. Innovation studies need to be broadened to encompass wider issues of economic adaptability, largely determined by service relationships. The growth of knowledge-intensive business services (KIBS) reflects wider regional differences in the corporate, SME and public sector nexus of knowledge-based service functions. Regional competitiveness is thus favoured more by the diversity of global urban regions than the technologies within regional innovation systems. A service-informed perspective should emphasise the full knowledge base required for regional adaptability.
Organ-specific phosphorus-allocation patterns and transcript profiles linked to phosphorus efficiency in two contrasting wheat genotypes.

Recent studies have identified genotypic variation in phosphorus (P) efficiency, but rarely have the underlying mechanisms been described at the molecular level. We demonstrate that the highly P-efficient wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivar Chinese 80-55 maintains higher inorganic phosphate (Pi ) concentrations in all organs upon Pi withdrawal in combination with higher Pi acquisition in the presence of Pi when compared with the less-efficient cultivar Machete. These findings correlated with differential organ-specific expression of Pi transporters TaPHT1;2, TaPHT1;5, TaPHT1;8, TaPHT2;1 and H(+) -ATPase TaHa1. Observed transcript level differences between the cultivars suggest that higher de novo phospholipid biosynthetic activities in Pi -limited elongating basal leaf sections are another crucial adaptation in Chinese 80-55 for sustaining growth upon Pi withdrawal. These activities may be supported through enhanced breakdown of starch in Chinese 80-55 stems as suggested by higher TaGPho1 transcript levels. Chinese 80-55 fine roots on the other hand show strong suppression of transcripts involved in glycolysis, transcriptional regulation and ribosomal activities. Our work reveals major differences in the way the two contrasting cultivars allocate Pi and organic P compounds between source and sink tissues and in the acclimation of their metabolism to changes in Pi availability.
Opening the black box of QS World University Rankings

In the era of globalization, the trend of university rankings gradually shifts from country-wide analyses to world-wide analyses. Relatively high analytical weightings on reputational surveys have led Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings to criticisms over the years. This study provides a comprehensive discussion of the indicators and weightings adopted in the QS survey. The article discusses several debates stirred in the academia on QS. Debates on this ranking system are presented in the study. Firstly, problems of return rate, as well as unequal distribution of returned questionnaires, have incurred regional bias. Secondly, some universities are listed in both domestic and international reputation questionnaires, but some others are listed only in the domestic part. Some universities were evaluated only by domestic respondents, limiting their performance of the ranking results. Thirdly, quite a few universities exhibit the same indicator scores or even full scores, rendering the assessment questionable. Lastly, enormous changes of single indicator scores suggest that the statistic data adopted by QS Rankings should be further questioned. Copyright The Author 2012. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com, Oxford University Press.
A double‐blind ambulatory blood pressure monitoring study of the efficacy and tolerability of once‐daily telmisartan 40 mg in comparison with losartan 50 mg in the treatment of mild‐to‐moderate hypertension in Taiwanese patients

Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) was used to compare the efficacy and tolerability of once‐daily telmisartan 40 mg and once‐daily losartan 50 mg in Taiwanese patients with mild‐to‐moderate essential hypertension in a randomised, double‐blind, double‐dummy, parallel‐group study. The initial 2‐week placebo run‐in phase was followed by randomisation to treatment with telmisartan 40 mg (n = 31) or losartan 50 mg (n = 30) for 6 weeks. The reduction in 18‐ to 24‐h mean (SE) ambulatory diastolic blood pressure (DBP) from baseline was significantly greater with telmisartan 40 mg (−12.1 ± 1.6 mmHg, p = 0.036) than with losartan 50 mg (−7.0 ± 1.8 mmHg). The reduction in 18‐ to 24‐h mean (SE) ambulatory systolic blood pressure (SBP) from baseline was also greater with telmisartan 40 mg (−16.0 ± 2.4 mmHg) than with losartan 50 mg (−11.8 ± 2.7 mmHg), but did not achieve statistical significance. Telmisartan was well tolerated; no serious adverse events occurred.
Coase versus Pacman: Who Eats Whom in the Durable-Goods Monopoly?

In standard durable-goods monopoly models, both the set of buyers and the set of prices are assumed to be continua. If the set of buyers is finite, the perfectly discriminating monopoly outcome is a unique subgame perfect equilibrium when the seller is sufficiently patient. Introducing instead a smallest unit of account yields the Coasian outcome as a generically unique subgame perfect equilibrium for patient enough buyers. A folk theorem is obtained if both sets are finite. These results reflect a strategic disadvantage of having to make moves with a large impact on other players' payoffs. The analysis is extended to durable-goods oligopoly.