Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Prevalence of Complications in IDDM by Sex and Duration: Pittsburgh Epidemiology of Diabetes Complications Study II

The prevalence of and interrelationships among all four major complications of insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) and their risk factors are being examined in a large epidemiologic study of IDDM subjects diagnosed in childhood. This article focuses on the baseline prevalence of complications in the 657 subjects diagnosed between 1950 and 1980 and currently aged 8–48 yr, with a mean duration of 20 yr. In addition to background retinopathy being virtually universal after 20 yr of diabetes, proliferative retinopathy affects 70% of IDDM subjects after 30 yr duration. As with overt nephropathy, prevalence of proliferative retinopathy is marginally higher in females than in males at short durations; the previously reported male excess is limited to the subjects with IDDM of longer duration (≥25 yr). Somewhat different patterns of microalbuminuria are also seen by sex. Males show a threefold increase in prevalence from 10 to 25 yr duration, whereas females show a more constant prevalence across these durations. A further rise in microalbuminuria is seen in males but not females at ≥30 yr duration, giving a combined prevalence of microalbuminuria and overt nephropathy at ≥30 yr duration of 84% (males) and 59% (females). Distal symmetrical polyneuropathy shows a constant rise with duration and is only marginally higher in men. Prevalence of cardiovascular (coronary and cerebral) disease shows no sex difference, whereas peripheral vascular disease is particularly common in women after 30 yr duration (>30%) compared with men (11%) when determined by ankle/arm blood pressure ratio <0.8 at rest or after exercise. These results suggest that the natural history of IDDM complications varies considerably by sex and that the prevalence of complications (especially renal complications in males) may be higher than previously recognized.
Mutual fund performance benchmarking using a quadratic directional distance function approach

The purpose of this paper is to apply a quadratic directional distance function in order to validate a relative performance indicator for portfolio benchmarking analysis. Based on a daily data set generated from a sample of 43 equity mutual funds the present study compares the performance results given by a directional and two standard distance function models as well as with a traditional fund performance index for periods ranging from 6 months to 4 years. A significant difference was observed in their rankings overall time horizons. This finding implies that ignoring the diversification effect of co-variances in portfolio risk reduction and the potential improvements in returns will yield a biased estimate of mutual fund performance.
The service quality dimensions and patient satisfaction relationships in South Korea: comparisons across gender, age and types of service

Purpose – Aims to investigate the structural relationships between out‐patient satisfaction and service quality dimensions under a South Korea health care system where patients have substantial freedom in choosing their medical service providers and to further study the causal relationship between service quality and satisfaction between out‐patient subgroups obtained on the basis of gender, age and types of services received.Design/methodology/approach – After assessing the construct validity of the service quality dimensions based on confirmatory factor analysis, a path model specifying the relationships between service quality dimensions and patient satisfaction was estimated. The next analysis was a series of multi‐sample analyses. A multigroup LISREL analysis was used to test the invariance of structural paths between service quality dimensions and patient satisfaction.Findings – Results indicated that the general causal relationship between service quality and patient satisfaction was well supported.
On the characterization of the solution set of polynomial systems via LMI techniques

The problem addressed in this paper is the computation of the solution set for systems of polynomial equations, a key issue in several system analysis and control problems. A new approach is presented, which represents a possible alternative to well-known techniques, based on algebraic geometry and homotopy methods. The basic idea is to characterize the solution set in terms of the kernel of a symmetric matrix, associated to a suitable quadratic homogeneous form. This matrix is obtained via a Linear Matrix Inequality (LMI) optimization problem. The actual computation of the solution set can be performed quite easily, provided that the dimension of the kernel does not exceed a prescribed value. It is shown that this value turns out to be quite large, so that the proposed procedure can be applied to a fairly wide variety of polynomial systems.
Successful Financial Goal Attainment: Perceived Resources And Obstacles

Perceived resources and obstacles to financial goal attainment of 520 MONEY 2000O participants are reported. Open-ended questions were used to solicit responses. The most frequently mentioned resource that helped respondents make progress toward financial goals was personal qualities (e.g., discipline, knowledge) and action. Having a goal or plan, financial publications and media, payroll deduction/automated savings, a good income, Cooperative Extension/MONEY 2000O, and seeing results were also mentioned. The most frequently mentioned challenge to financial progress was debt/credit use/spending habits. Additional obstacles were a low or reduced income, unexpected expenses and emergencies, children/children’s expenses, personal qualities, and other obstacles.
Conversion intentions of interns: what are the motivating factors?

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to investigate interns’ supervisory support expectations, psychological contract obligations, job satisfaction, perception of advancement opportunities and affective organisational commitment in an attempt to gain a better understanding of how these variables influence interns’ conversion intentions.Design/methodology/approach – This study focuses on college juniors and seniors who were enrolled in retail/service programs at one of three major US universities, and successfully completed a retail/service internship. An online survey was used to assess the influence of interns’ psychological contract expectations regarding employer obligations, supervisory support expectations, job satisfaction, perception of advancement opportunities, and affective organisational commitment on interns’ conversion intentions (intent to accept an offer for full‐time employment). Findings – Findings indicate that employers can establish a foundation for intern retention by fulfilling obli.
Study on the Sustainability of Ecological Water Transfer and Rehabilitation Project Based on Participant Investigation

In the arid inland area of northwest China, the ecological water transfer and rehabilitation project (EWTRP) is an important measure to restore the deteriorated ecosystem. However, the sustainability of the project is affected by many socio-economic factors. This article examines local people's attitudes, its impact on people's livelihood and the positive effect of water-saving agriculture in the in the Ejina country. Related data were collected through a questionnaire survey and group discussions. The study results identified three critical issues that may influence the sustainability of the project in the study area. The first issue is related to the project's impacts on local herdsmen's' livelihoods. Because ecological migrants' livelihoods depend greatly on the compensation awarded by the project, the potential for the sustainability of the project is compromised. The second issue is that the project didn't raise the water resources utilization ratio, which may undermine the final purpose. Lastly, the compensation of the project only considers the loss of agriculture, but neglects the externality and publicity of eco-water. Appropriate compensation mechanisms should be established and adapted according to local economic, environmental, and social conditions. Based on our study, some recommendations for improving the sustainability of the project are given.
Infrastructure Investment, Institutional Quality, and Economic Growth in Nigeria: An Interactive Approach

This paper examines the effect of interaction of infrastructure investment and institutional quality (corruption and contract enforcement) on economic growth in Nigeria. Time series data were obtained from various sources and were further subjected to series of econometric analysis. The empirical results indicate that infrastructure investment has a robust positive influence on economic growth. Corruption has a negative and significant effect while contract enforcement has positive and significant effect on economic growth. Interestingly, the interaction between infrastructure investment and institutional quality on economic growth were insignificant. It appears that low levels of contract enforceability and increase corruption render the positive infrastructure investment –economic growth nexus insignificant in Nigeria. This may suggest that success of infrastructure investment may, to a great extent, depend on the prevailing institutional quality (corruption and contract enforceability) in Nigeria.
Farmers' perception and knowledge of environmental problems affecting sustainable food production in Edo State

This study examined farmers' perception and knowledge of environmental problems affecting their food production. A total of 120 farmers randomly selected from six communities in Orhionmwon and Uhunmwonde Local Government areas of Edo State were used for the study. Data were collected from respondents using interview schedule and analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. Results showed that majority of the respondents (76.0%) were males, half of them (50.0%) were in the age group of 31-40 years old and majority of them had educational qualification below secondary school (72.0%). Findings showed that soil erosion (M = 4.30), soil nutrient depletion (M = 3.96) and deforestation (M = 3.84) are the top major environmental problems affecting food production in the study area. The result also shows that majority of the respondents (72.0%) received information on environmental issues from other farmers and only 16 percent received information from extension agents. Respondents were found to have inadequate knowledge of many environmental conservation methods. However, they have very good perception of environmental issues. The respondents' perception of environmental issues did not have significant association with their age (c2=0.229) sex (c2=0.688) and farm size (c2=0.572). Level of education and farming experience were however significantly associated with their perception of environmental issues. It was therefore recommended that there is a need for the integration of environmental issues into messages disseminated by extension agents and also a need to empower farmers through educational/training programmes on environmental conservation methods to boost sustainable food production. Keywords : Farmers' Perception/Knowledge, Environmental Problems, Food Production Journal of Environmental Extension Vol. 6 2007: pp. 86-91
Agency and Information Asymmetry Issues in Structural Credit Models: Evidences from Bank Industry

We empirically examine the agency and information asymmetry issues in structural credit models using commercial bank data from 2001 to 2005. We find five independent information asymmetry and agency issue related factors that can explain absolute differences in the default probabilities estimated by various structural models and that implied by credit rating from 45.5% to 77.7%. They include the factors of management-equity agency problem - free cash flow hypothesis, debt-equity agency problem, Information asymmetry, management-equity agency problem - cost efficiency and debt-equity agency problem caused by adverse wealth transfers. These factors are scarcely discussed in literature and should be incorporated into credit modeling. Different from previous empirical literature, we also find that, except the Collin-Dufresne and Goldstein (2001), the other three models underestimate default probabilities on average and the one with dynamic interest rate setting, the Longstaff and Schwartz (1995), performs the best because it takes into consideration of interest dynamics which is crucial for bank operations.
The Influence of Market Concentration on Bank Performance and the Test of TBTF Behavior in China

There are 16 listed commercial banks in total in China. Based on the annual specific data of those banks in China from 2008 to 2013, this research intends to find out how bank size and market concentration affect its market efficiency. This paper aims to test whether there exists a TBTF (Too Big to Fail) behavior in China. However, there is no clear evidence which shows that Chinese systemically important banks have a higher fragility than other banks. The results show that systemically important banks perform better than others on cost and profit efficiency and do not take too much risks under the same condition, even in a concentrated market where there are few dominant large banks and the majority of banks are in small size. However, regards to assets, if a banking market is highly unequaled, it does harm to smaller banks’ performance and increases the instability of the whole banking system. The study argues that regulators should make an adjustment on market concentration according to reducing the gap of bank size between large and small banks, other than limiting the size of systemically important banks.
Losing Owners: Deregulation and Small Radio Markets

There has been a dramatic shift in the philosophy of broadcast regulation. After decades of managing the local radio market structure with policies of ownership regulation, Congress and the FCC have mandated policies of ownership deregulation. This study examines the effect of deregulation policies on the small market radio industry. Recent research has explored issues of radio market structure and performance in larger markets; however, few studies have examined the impact of policy in smaller markets. This study analyzed 52 metropolitan statistical areas with populations less than 125,000. The study used regression analysis to identify the effect of deregulation on the number and type of radio owners in the small markets. Overall, the results revealed that the Telecommunications Act of 1996 had a dramatic impact on the number of local radio owners in the small markets.
Geomorphology and stream habitat relationships with smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) abundance at multiple spatial scales in eastern Oklahoma

Fluvial geomorphic processes structure habitats important to stream fishes. We determined relationships between densities of smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) and ecoregions, watershed and reach morphology, and stream habitat in eastern Oklahoma, USA. Watershed and reach morphology were measured at 128 stream sites, and stream habitat and smallmouth bass abundance were measured in 1800 channel units. Variation in stream size, channel morphology, and substrate size constituted major physical differences among sites. Channel morphology differed among ecoregions in the largest streams. Densities of age-0 and age-1 and older smallmouth bass were approximately an order of magnitude greater in the Boston Mountains and Ozark Highlands streams than in Ouachita Mountains streams. Regression tree analysis explained less variation in age-0 (10-fold cross-validated relative error = 0.843) than in age-1 and older (relative error = 0.650) smallmouth bass densities and showed that stream size and channel-unit size were primary determinants of density. Channel morphology explained variation in densities in deep channel units of large streams, which was somewhat independent of ecoregion.
Solution-state molecular structure of apo and oleate-liganded liver fatty acid-binding protein.

Rat liver fatty acid-binding protein (LFABP) is distinctive among intracellular lipid-binding proteins (iLBPs): more than one molecule of long-chain fatty acid and a variety of diverse ligands can be bound within its large cavity, and in vitro lipid transfer to model membranes follows a mechanism that is diffusion-controlled rather than mediated by protein-membrane collisions. Because the apoprotein has proven resistant to crystallization, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy offers a unique route to functionally informative comparisons of molecular structure and dynamics for LFABP in free (apo) and liganded (holo) forms. We report herein the solution-state structures determined for apo-LFABP at pH 6.0 and for holoprotein liganded to two oleates at pH 7.0, as well as the structure of the complex including locations of the ligands. 1H, 13C, and 15N resonance assignments revealed very similar types and locations of secondary structural elements for apo- and holo-LFABP as judged from chemical shift indices. The solution-state tertiary structures of the proteins were derived with the CNS/ARIA computational protocol, using distance and angular restraints based on 1H-1H nuclear Overhauser effects (NOEs), hydrogen-bonding networks, 3J(HNHA) coupling constants, intermolecular NOEs, and residual dipolar (NH) couplings. The holo-LFABP solution-state conformation is in substantial agreement with a previously reported X-ray structure [Thompson, J., Winter, N. , Terwey, D. , Bratt, J., and Banaszak, L. (1997) The crystal structure of the liver fatty acid-binding protein. A complex with two bound oleates, J. Biol. Chem. 272, 7140-7150], including the typical beta-barrel capped by a helix-turn-helix portal. In the solution state, the internally bound oleate has the expected U-shaped conformation and is tethered electrostatically, but the extended portal ligand can adopt a range of conformations based on the computationally refined structures, in contrast to the single conformation observed in the crystal structure. The apo-LFABP also has a well-defined beta-barrel structural motif typical of other members of the iLBP protein family, but the portal region that is thought to facilitate ligand entry and exit exhibits conformational variability and an unusual "open cap" orientation with respect to the barrel. These structural results allow us to propose a model in which ligand binding to LFABP occurs through conformational fluctuations that adjust the helix-turn-helix motif to open or close the top of the beta-barrel, and solvent accessibility to the protein cavity favors diffusion-controlled ligand transport.
A family of efficient and channel error resilient wavelet/subband image coders

We present a new wavelet/subband framework that allows the efficient and effective quantization/coding of subband coefficients in both noiseless and noisy channel environments. Two different models, one based on a zero-tree structure and another based on a quadtree and context-based modeling structure, are introduced for coding the locations of significant subband coefficients. Then, several multistage residual lattice vector quantizers are proposed for the quantization of such coefficients. The proposed framework features relatively simple modeling and quantization/coding structures that produce a bit stream containing two distinct bit sequences, which can then be protected differently according to their importance and channel noise sensitivity levels. The resulting wavelet/subband image coding algorithms provide good tradeoffs between compression performance and resilience to channel errors, In fact, experimental results indicate that for both noiseless and noisy channels, the resulting coders outperform most of the source-channel coders reported in the literature. More importantly, our coders are substantially more robust than all previously reported source-channel coders with respect to varying channel error conditions. This is a desired feature in low-bandwidth wireless applications.
Reflections on Representation in Australian Superannuation Governance

Studies have shown that pension fund governance has a measurable effect on returns on investment, thus the regulation of pension fund governance is an important issue for governments that provide substantial tax concessions to employment based pension schemes and rely on them to provide retirement income for their older citizens. Australia has a rapidly growing defined contribution superannuation scheme funded by mandatory contributions from employers. The governance of these schemes is primarily in the hands of a board of directors of a corporate trustee. For funds sponsored by certain industries the legislation mandates equal numbers of directors appointed by employers and by unions, these “industry funds” are operated on a non-profit basis. A proposal to change the governance arrangements of superannuation schemes has been adopted by the newly elected federal government in Australia. The proposal would require one-third of the directors of industry superannuation schemes to be “non-associated” or “independent” of any connections with the employers, unions or financial institutions involved and remove the equal representation requirement from industry funds.The article is critical of these changes because the justifications offered for the change offer a weak, abstract explanation of its necessity; provide no elucidation of a concrete, measurable goal by which to determine whether the change has produced the desired result; and fail to generate a persuasive narrative about why independence offers value in the context of superannuation fund governance. While “independence” of directors is considered to be important in the governance of corporations, this is seen as a solution to the collective action problems of dispersed shareholders in supervising management. However, superannuation scheme members have an alternative means of addressing collective action problems through the union’s appointment of directors and the unions have the resources and coordination necessary to protect plan members’ interests in the scheme. As well, superannuation scheme members will not have the power to remove the independent directors, unlike the shareholders of a corporation who can use their voting rights to hold director to account.To summarise the concerns, these non-associated directors — adrift from all but the most formal legal ties to the scheme members — will gravitate towards those with the power of appointment, and be vulnerable to capture by the full-time management of the scheme, because of insufficient resources and lack of information necessary to act as an effective constraint on their actions. The lack of a robust system of accountability to members will compound these problems.
Bond failure rates of two self-ligating brackets: a randomised clinical trial.

AIMS To evaluate the bond failure rates of two self-ligating appliance systems bonded with a self-etching primer. METHODS Forty patients were randomly assigned to either Group SC (SmartClip, 3M Unitek, Monrovia, CA, USA) or Group IR (In-Ovation R, GAC International, Bohemia, NY, USA) appliance groups. Seven hundred and sixty six brackets were bonded with Transbond Plus Self-Etching Primer and Transbond Plus Color Change Adhesive according to the manufacturer's instructions. Over a 12-month period, the survival rates of the brackets were estimated with the Kaplan-Meier analysis. The survival distributions for the appliance systems, dental arch and position in the dental arch were compared with the log-rank test. RESULTS The bond failure rate for SC was significantly lower than IR (p = 0.022). There were no differences in failure rates between either the maxillary and mandibular arches or between the anterior and posterior brackets. CONCLUSION SC provided a more reliable bond than IR over the 12-month observation period, however, both brackets had clinically acceptable bond failure rates.