Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fiber concentration in lung tissue of patients with malignant mesothelioma a case—control study

The risk of malignant mesothelioma associated with low‐level asbestos exposure is an important unresolved issue today. We have analyzed the asbestos fiber concentration in lung tissue from 14 cases of malignant mesothelioma and 28 case‐matched controls by scanning electron microscopy. The cases represent 86% of all mesotheliomas recorded by the Cancer Registry of Norway from the county of Hordaland between 1970 and 1979. Based on 1 million fibers per g of dried tissue as an indicator of cumulated asbestos exposure, the odds ratio (relative risk) was 8.5 (95% confidence limits, 2.3—31.1). Assuming that the risk of malignant mesothelioma is related to mineral fiber concentration in lung tissue, it is concluded that a fiber concentration exceeding 1 million fibers per g of dried tissue is associated with an increased risk of malignant mesothelioma. Furthermore, the results are consistent with a no‐threshold response.
English Teachers' Perceptions Toward differentiated Assessment in Cycle Two at Al Ain public Schools

This thesis was concerned with studying the perception of English teachers toward differentiated assessments in Cycle two at Al Ain public schools. The main purpose of this thesis was to identify the perception of English teachers toward differentiated assessments, recognize the different types of assessments teachers are using in their classrooms and understand how these assessments may inform teaching and learning. A questionnaire had been distributed to Cycle two schools. Also, semi-structured interviews were conducted with teachers to obtain detailed data. The study investigated the views of teachers about differentiated assessments along with the assessment strategies they implement in their classrooms. In addition, it aimed to study the impact of differentiating assessment on teaching and learning. The study showed that many teachers perceived differentiated assessments as effective tools that could be effectively applied in classrooms. Moreover, they could be used to better manage classrooms, meet students' needs and differentiate students’ learning. Examining the perception of teachers helped us understand the knowledge teachers had and what they might apply in their classrooms. That allowed us to know if the learning cycle was continuous or conventional in those classrooms. The collected data from the questionnaire beside the obtained results from the interviews described how teachers perceived differentiated assessments in classrooms. This in return clarified the effectiveness of these assessments.
The Dark Side of the (Pink) Moon. The Role of Europe in the Recent Evolution of Italian Conciliation Policies

Conciliation policies have traditionally been very marginal and characterised by limited coherence in the overall employment policy setting of Italy, which is primarily designed to meet the needs and demands of the standard ‘male breadwinner’ model. Nevertheless, over the past ten to fifteen years a number of reforms have addressed conciliation issues in quite a new fashion. The aim of this article is to provide an analysis of the evolution of and changes in conciliation policies in Italy, looking in particular at the ways in which Europe has been used by national policy-makers, i.e. as a point of reference for proposed reforms. After a brief introduction, section 2 offers an overview of the traditional Italian welfare state configuration, and aims to highlight the (limited) effort made within in it to promote the conciliation between paid work and family responsibilities. The third section focuses on recent reforms, in order to assess the extent and dynamics of the changes. Section 4 considers the role played by Europe in domestic policy change, investigating whether and how Europe has been ‘used’ by national political actors to reshape the Italian policy landscape with respect to conciliation policies.
Upregulation of Monocyte Urokinase Plasminogen Activator Receptor during Human Endotoxemia

ABSTRACT The receptor for urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPAR) (CD87) plays an important role in leukocyte adhesion and migration. To assess the effect of endotoxin on cellular uPAR, uPAR expression was determined on leukocytes by fluorescence-activated cell sorter analysis in seven healthy subjects following intravenous injection of endotoxin (lot G; 4 ng/kg). Endotoxin induced a transient increase in uPAR expression on monocytes, reaching a 92% ± 46% increase over baseline expression after 6 h (P < 0.05). Endotoxin did not influence uPAR expression on granulocytes, while uPAR remained undetectable on lymphocytes. Endotoxin also increased soluble uPAR levels in plasma (P < 0.05). Stimulation of human whole blood with endotoxin or gram-positive stimuli in vitro also resulted in an upregulation of monocyte uPAR expression. Although tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF) upregulated monocyte uPAR expression, anti-TNF did not influence the endotoxin-induced increase in monocyte uPAR expression. These data suggest that infectious stimuli may influence monocyte function in vivo by enhancing the expression of uPAR.
Work–family Conflict, Family–work Conflict and Intention to Leave the Organization: Evidences Across Five Industry Sectors in India

With the attrition rates across different industry sectors likely to rise to up to a global high of 20 per cent by 2017 in India, organizations are finding it harder to understand its antecedents and thus devise and employ new strategies aimed at retaining their employees. Very few studies have tried to understand the dynamics of work–family conflict and its relationship with turnover intention in a collectivistic society like India. This research study is aimed at understanding the strength of relationship between employees’ work–family conflict and family–work conflict and their intention to leave the organization. The total 150 sample respondents comprised of 30 employees each from five different industry sectors—banking, IT (software development), IT-enabled services, insurance and telecom. Data were collected using Carlson’s measure of work–family conflict and Mobley’s turnover intention scale. Results revealed that time-based and strain-based conflict showed the highest correlations with turnover intention, with variations across different industry sectors. Multiple regression model predicted R square of 0.403, explaining 40.3 per cent of variance in turnover intention (dependent variable), by work–family conflict and family–work conflict (independent variables). Family–work conflict contributed more to turnover intention, than work–family conflict. Interesting relationships between different demographic factors and variables under study are discussed.
The Agency Costs of Agency Capitalism: Activist Investors and the Revaluation of Governance Rights

Equity ownership in the United States no longer reflects the dispersed share ownership of the canonical Berle-Means firm. Instead, we observe the reconcentration of ownership in the hands of institutional investment intermediaries, which gives rise to what we call “the agency costs of agency capitalism. ” This ownership change has occurred because of (i) political decisions to privatize the provision of retirement savings and to require funding of such provision and (ii) capital market developments that favor investment intermediaries offering low cost diversified investment vehicles. A new set of agency costs arise because in addition to divergence between the interests of record owners and the firm’s managers, there is divergence between the interests of record owners – the institutional investors – and the beneficial owners of those institutional stakes. The business model of key investment intermediaries like mutual funds, which focus on increasing assets under management through superior relative performance, undermines their incentive and competence to engage in active monitoring of portfolio company performance. Such investors will be “rationally reticent” – willing to respond to governance proposals but not to propose them. We posit that shareholder activists should be seen as playing a specialized capital market role of setting up intervention proposals for resolution by institutional investors. The effect is to potentiate institutional investor voice, to increase the value of the vote, and thereby to reduce the agency costs we have identified. We therefore argue against recent proposed regulatory changes that would undercut shareholder activists’ economic incentives by making it harder to assemble a meaningful toe-hold position in a potential target.
Occupational injuries in the Finnish furniture industry.

OBJECTIVES The purpose of the study was to determine the types of occupational injuries that occur in the Finnish furniture industry and to see whether they differ as regards production type and company size. METHODS During a one-year registration period accident events, the actual and potential severity of the injuries, the causes of the accidents, and the measures needed to prevent such accidents were examined in 18 Finnish furniture factories of different types. An analysis of covariance determined the variables affecting the actual and potential severity of the injuries. RESULTS The 214 accidents registered were lost-time injuries; two of them resulted in slight partial loss of fingertips. The disabling injury rate was 14.4 per 100 workers per year. Wooden furniture production and kitchen cupboard production in large companies had the highest rate. Accidents involving machines comprised half of the material. Saws were the most common machine type. Forty-two percent of the injuries could have been more severe; one injury could have been fatal. The injured persons and their foremen identified the causal factors of the accidents and the needed safety countermeasures well. Sixty-six percent of the causes and 65% of the safety countermeasures were associated with the actions of the workers and the workplace procedures. Nevertheless, only 6% of the identified safety countermeasures were put into force. CONCLUSIONS It was estimated that, in 1987, 2000 on-site accidents leading to at least first-aid at some health care center occurred in the Finnish furniture industry. Special efforts should be taken to improve safety in furniture production in Finland.
IFRS Disclosure Compliance in Malaysia: Insights from a Small‐sample Analytical Study

This study provides unique insights into the disclosure practices of large Malaysian publicly listed companies. Using an expanded compliant/non-compliant data classification scheme, the 2011 annual reports of nine government linked companies (GLCs) and their non-GLC industry equivalents are examined to determine compliance with all the disclosure requirements of eight accounting standards that form part of International Financial Reporting Standards. Results indicate that overall compliance is 45.8%, is not predictable and differs widely between standards. Contributions to the literature include distinguishing between ‘Note 1’ disclosures and standard-specific disclosures that impact current or future year profitability and financial position, investigating incidences of partial disclosures and errors in disclosure, detection and analysis of patterns in disclosure/non-disclosure, and reflections on the influence of data classification decisions on findings in compliance research. Firms tend to routinely comply with ‘Note 1’ descriptive disclosures and with standard-specific disclosures that impact current year profitability and financial position. They routinely fail to provide details and explanations of undisclosed financial statement/off balance sheet items that impact future profitability and financial position. There is some evidence that GLCs demonstrate higher levels of standard-related compliance in five (of eight) industries than do non-GLCs. The study finds no association between disclosure and auditor.
N‐methyl‐D‐aspartate receptor antibody‐associated movement disorder without encephalopathy

N‐methyl‐D‐aspartate receptor (NMDAR) antibody encephalitis is a well‐recognized clinico‐immunological syndrome that presents with a movement disorder, cognitive decline, psychiatric symptoms, and epileptic seizures. A pure monosymptomatic presentation is rare; however, some patients present predominantly with a movement disorder in the absence of encephalopathy. Here, we describe three paediatric patients with an NMDAR antibody‐mediated movement disorder: a 5‐year‐old female with acute onset hemichorea, a 10‐year‐old female with generalized chorea, and a 12‐year‐old male with abdominal myoclonus. These patients did not develop the characteristic encephalopathy syndrome seen in NMDAR encephalitis, but all three had other associated subtle cognitive deficits. The patients demonstrated good responses to immunotherapy.
Environmental factors and graduate start up in Uganda.

Purpose: A major concern in many countries is the failure to see high levels of apparent intent to start up amongst graduates. This study investigates the relationship between social and closer valuation and intention to start a business by graduates in Uganda. Design/Method/ Approach: In the first phase of the study, the answers to the question “What are the reasons for low graduate start up in Uganda? ” set in a second year Bachelor of Business Administration entrepreneurship examination were content analyzed. Findings from the content analysis of 96 scripts provided the direction for the second phase, which was anchored on the Theory of Planned Behavior and the Social Capital Theory. Data was collected from a convenience sample of 217 third year business students using the newly created Entrepreneurial Intentions Questionnaire (EIQ). Findings: Content analysis reveals that negative societal perceptions of entrepreneurship are important barriers against graduate start up, while regression analysis shows that the three antecedents of intention in the TPB are good predictors of intention. The relationship between close valuation and intention is fully mediated by subjective norm, attitude towards entrepreneurship and perceived behavioral control, while the relationship between social valuation and intention is not mediated by these antecedents of intention. Unlike studies in a Western context, this study establishes that family, peers, and colleagues exert a direct effect on intention . This finding underlines a particularity of entrepreneurship in collectivist societies. Limitations: The study utilized a small sample from only one academic institution. Practical implications: There is need to convince Ugandans that entrepreneurship is a noble career path for graduates. Theoretical implications: The study gives reason to assume that the influence of peers, family, and colleagues on entrepreneurial intention is much more straightforward in collectivistic societies like Uganda. Originality/ value: Contrary to earlier studies about entrepreneurship in Uganda, the study identifies social valuation as a barrier to graduate start up in Uganda.
Effects of Epidural Steroid Injections on Blood Glucose Levels in Patients With Diabetes Mellitus

Study Design. A prospective cohort study. Objective. To evaluate the effects of epidural steroid injections (ESIs) on blood glucose levels in patients with diabetes mellitus. Summary of Background Data. ESIs are commonly used in the treatment of multiple spinal disorders. Corticosteroid injections have been evaluated in the total joints and hand literature showing systemic effects to diabetics. Methods. Diabetic patients who were scheduled for an ESI were given an opportunity to enroll in our IRB-approved study. We collected the patient's most recent hemoglobin A1c (hA1c) and then asked them to track their blood glucose numbers at least twice per day for 2 weeks prior to and after their ESIs. Results. We noted a statistically significant increase in blood glucose levels in diabetic patients (n = 30) after ESI. The mean blood glucose level prior to ESI was 160.18 ± 47.46, and, after ESI, it was 286.13 ± 111.11. This represents an average 125.96 ± 100.97 increase in blood glucose levels after injection. Using a nonlinear mixed effect model, the estimated half-life of this increase was 1.06 days (95% CI 0.80, 1.58), meaning that the patients were back within their normal standard deviation mean glucose levels within 2 days of injection. There was no association between observed glucose level change and preinjection hA1c levels or age (Spearman = 0.0326 and −0.1091 separately), indicating that there is no correlation between preinjection hA1c levels and systemic response to ESI. Conclusion. ESIs were noted to cause a significant increase in the blood glucose levels in diabetics. There was no correlation between preinjection diabetic control, represented by hA1c levels, and postinjection response. Diabetics who are candidates for ESI should be counseled that a blood glucose increase may be apparent post intervention, but effects should not last longer than approximately 2 days.
TspanC8 Tetraspanins and A Disintegrin and Metalloprotease 10 (ADAM10) Interact via Their Extracellular Regions

Citation for published version (Harvard): Noy, P, Yang, J, Reyat, J, Matthews, A, Charlton, A, Furmston, J, Rogers, D, Rainger, G & Tomlinson, M 2016, 'TspanC8 Tetraspanins and A Disintegrin and Metalloprotease 10 (ADAM10) Interact Via Their Extracellular Regions: Evidence For Distinct Binding Mechanisms For Different TspanC8s', Journal of Biological Chemistry, vol. 291, no. 7, pp. 3145-3157. https://doi.org/10.1074/jbc.M115. 703058
Cardiovascular Stress Responses in Young Adulthood Associated With Family-of-Origin Relationship Experiences

Objective: The impact of relationships within the family-of-origin on the development of physiological stress responses has significant consequences for long-term vulnerability to stress-related illness. Methods: The current study evaluated systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), and heart rate (HR) responses to a challenge task in 150 young adults from families characterized by parental loss, divorce, or intact marriages. Results: Overall, higher-quality family relationships were associated with stronger recovery of SBP. For DBP and HR, interactions were found in which higher-quality family relationships were associated with stronger recovery in the loss group relative to the divorce and intact groups. Good support was found for a mediational model outlining self-regulatory abilities as a pathway linking family relationships to SBP reactivity and recovery. Conclusions: Findings provide further evidence that family-of-origin relationship experiences can affect cardiovascular responses to later-life stress. BMI = body mass index; DBP = diastolic blood pressure; FR = family relationships; HR = heart rate; SBP = systolic blood pressure; SEM = structural equation modeling.
Faculty Employment Status and Student Characteristics as Predictors of Student Success in Modularized Developmental Mathematics

FACULTY EMPLOYMENT STATUS AND STUDENT CHARACTERISTICS AS PREDICTORS OF STUDENT SUCCESS IN MODULARIZED DEVELOPMENTAL MATHEMATICS Leonda Williams Keniston Old Dominion University, 2016 Director: Dr. Christopher Glass Approximately two-thirds of incoming community college students are considered academically unprepared for college-level work and lack adequate literacy and mathematical skills needed to learn at the postsecondary level. To address these realities, individual community colleges and state-wide systems have responded by redesigning developmental curricula and course structures into modularized programs that accelerate student progression through developmental sequences. Simultaneously, community colleges are hiring more adjunct faculty to meet the ever-growing demand to educate students in these programs. Data were collected for a study of the Virginia Community College System 2012 developmental math redesign to primarily examine the effects of adjunct faculty on student success in the modularized developmental math program. Secondary data analysis was conducted utilizing student characteristics. This study posed two research questions and 16 hypotheses. Logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the factors believed to have an impact on student pass rates in total and from grouped developmental pathways individually. Predictor variables used to measure the effect on achieving a passing grade were: faculty employment status, student race/ethnicity, gender, and age and institutional location— rural, urban, and suburban, were examined. This study examined secondary data of 48,765 first-time-in-college students who were enrolled in Virginia community colleges’ redesigned developmental math modules beginning in fall 2013, 2014 and 2015. Findings indicate the following: having an adjunct faculty increased the likelihood of students passing all nine modules but especially the earlier modules that make up 1-5; traditional-age students were more likely to be FACULTY EMPLOYMENT STATUS iii successful overall compared to non-traditional age students; student enrollment in urban and rural community colleges were negatively associated with achieving a passing grade. Black or African-American, Hispanic or Latino and male students had lower pass-rates than White and female students overall and in developmental pathway. Black or AfricanAmerican students by comparison had considerably lower pass-rates across all developmental modules than their non-Black peers. FACULTY EMPLOYMENT STATUS iv Copyright, 2016, by Leonda Williams Keniston, All Rights Reserved. FACULTY EMPLOYMENT STATUS v
Prolactin release in cattle.

The cow has been specifically selected for lactational performance. It has no lactational anoestrus and the simultaneous reproductive ability and milk yield have not only scientific interest but economic importance too. We have no evidence of a luteotrophic action of prolactin (Hoffmann, Schams, Bopp, Ender, Gim\l=e'\nez& Karg, 1974) in this species such as has been shown in some others. Furthermore, mammary cancer, one motivation for the increasing amount of work devoted to studies on prolactin in man, has not been recorded in the cow.
Postpartum Depression and HIV Infection Among Women in Malawi

Background:HIV-infected women face several risk factors related to postpartum depression (PPD). We aimed to describe the prevalence and cumulative incidence of PPD in the low-income setting of Malawi and to determine the association between maternal and infant HIV and PPD. Methods:This longitudinal cohort study included 156 HIV-uninfected and 373 HIV-infected Malawian women enrolled 10–14 weeks after delivery who returned at 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18 months for follow-up visits. PPD was assessed at all visits. The prevalence of PPD at all visits was estimated using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS). Association between PPD at 10–14 weeks and maternal and infant HIV status was assessed using log binomial regression. Cumulative incidence of PPD was assessed using Kaplan–Meier curves. Results:Prevalence of PPD was highest (11%) at 10–14 weeks postpartum and decreased to 2.9% at 18 months. There was no association between maternal HIV status and PPD (prevalence ratio, 1.18; 95% confidence interval: 0.68 to 2.08). Among HIV-infected women, prevalence of PPD was higher among women whose infants had acquired HIV (prevalence ratio, 2.0; 95% confidence interval: 1.1 to 3.6). The cumulative probability of experiencing PPD over the first 12 months postpartum was estimated to be 33.5% for HIV-infected mothers with HIV-infected infants vs. 22.5% for HIV-infected mothers with uninfected infants and 23.2% for HIV-uninfected mothers. Conclusions:PPD prevalence did not differ between HIV-infected and -uninfected mothers but increased among women with an HIV-infected infant. Our findings suggest that it may be important to monitor PPD among women with HIV-infected infants.