Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The determinants of credit ratings in the United Kingdom insurance industry

This paper examines the determinants of external credit ratings attained by insurance firms in the United Kingdom (UK) and of the likelihood that insurers will have such an assessment. Using panel data relating to A.M. Best-rated and Standard and Poor's (S&P)-rated insurers over the period 1993-1997, a trichotomous logit model and an ordered probit model with sample selection are employed to show that the factors which influence the likelihood of having external credit assessments not only vary between the two agencies but also differ from those which determine the ratings themselves. Our results are shown to be of potential interest to participants in the insurance industry and policy-makers alike. Copyright Blackwell Publishers Ltd, 2002.
A Publication of the Association of Management INFLUENCE OF RELATIONSHIP QUALITY ON IS / IT OUTSOURCING SUCCESS : INDIAN VENDORS ' PERSPECTIVE

Relationship has become important for the success of IS/IT outsourcing projects. Although some studies have explored the issues of IS/IT outsourcing relationship in the past, these studies are mostly limited to the client's perspective. We explore from the vendors' perspective the nature, role and influence of relationship quality on outsourcing success. Therefore the main purpose of this study is to examine the IS/IT outsourcing relationship from vendors' perspective, by determining relationship quality dimensions. Based on the social exchange and the relational exchange theories a relationship model is proposed and hypotheses are tested. Results from the response of 163 Indian vendors indicate that the outsourcing success is greatly determined by relationship quality. This study will serve as a useful guideline in understanding how to develop a successful IS/IT outsourcing relationships for IS/IT vendors undertaking those outsourced projects.
Distribution of facial nerve in parotid gland: analysis of 50 cases.

The purpose of the present study is to reduce the postoperative morbidity related to facial paralysis during parotid surgery and to layout the different characteristics related to intraparotideal distribution and anastomoses of the facial nerve in our community. We also report new variations in the facial nerve branchings that have not been previously published. In this paper, facial nerves from 48 cadavers and 2 patients of which 45(90%) were males and 5(10%) were females; 26(52%) being right and 24(48%) being left facial nerves were put forward. Their photographs were taken and the diagrams of intraparotideal distributions of each facial nerve were drawn. The intraparotideal configuration of the facial nerve was evaluated in 5 types. Twenty-four% of the facial nerves had no anastomoses (Type I); 12% had a ring-like shape anastomosis between the buccal and the zygomatic branches (Type II); 14% anastomoses were between the buccal and the other branches in a ring-like shape (Type III); 38% of the facial nerves had multiple complex anastomoses and were named as multiple loops (Type IV); 12% had two main trunks (Type V). Of the bilateral cadaver dissections, the facial nerve distribution in 9(47.3%) were bilaterally the same and in 10(52.7%) main trunks were different. A facial nerve trifurcation composed of two main trunks were also established. There were no statistical differences between branching of the facial nerves in the right and left side of the faces. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Nurse managers' experiences in continuous quality improvement in resource‐poor healthcare settings

&NA; Ensuring safe and quality care for patients in hospitals is an important part of a nurse manager's role. Continuous quality improvement has been identified as one approach that leads to the delivery of quality care services to patients and is widely used by nurse managers to improve patient care. Nurse managers' experiences in initiating continuous quality improvement activities in resource‐poor healthcare settings remain largely unknown. Research evidence is highly demanded in these settings to address disease burden and evidence‐based practice. This interpretive qualitative study was conducted to gain an understanding of nurse managers' Continuous Quality Improvement experiences in rural hospitals in Uganda. Nurse managers in rural healthcare settings used their role to prioritize quality improvement activities, monitor the Continuous Quality Improvement process, and utilize in‐service education to support continuous quality improvement. The nurse managers in our sample encountered a number of barriers during the implementation of Continuous Quality Improvement, including: limited patient participation, lack of materials, and limited human resources. Efforts to address the challenges faced through good governance and leadership development require more attention.
Clinical Guidelines Prevention of infection after induced abortion

One known complication of induced abortion is upper genital tract infection, which is relatively uncommon in the current era of safe, legal abortion. Currently, rates of upper genital tract infection in the setting of legal induced abortion in the United States are generally less than 1%. Randomized controlled trials support the use of prophylactic antibiotics for surgical abortion in the first trimester. For medical abortion, treatment-dose antibiotics may lower the risk of serious infection. However, the number-needed-to-treat is high. Consequently, the balance of risk and benefits warrants further investigation. Perioperative oral doxycycline given up to 12 h before a surgical abortion appears to effectively reduce infectious risk. Antibiotics that are continued after the procedure for extended durations meet the definition for a treatment regimen rather than a prophylactic regimen. Prophylactic efficacy of antibiotics begun after abortion has not been demonstrated in controlled trials. Thus, the current evidence supports pre-procedure but not post-procedure antibiotics for the purpose of prophylaxis. No controlled studies have examined the efficacy of antibiotic prophylaxis for induced surgical abortion beyond 15 weeks of gestation. The risk of infection is not altered when an intrauterine device is inserted immediately post-procedure. The presence of Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae or acute cervicitis carries a significant risk of upper genital tract infection; this risk is significantly reduced with antibiotic prophylaxis. Women with bacterial vaginosis (BV) also have an elevated risk of post-procedural infection as compared with women without BV; however, additional prophylactic antibiotics for women with known BV has not been shown to reduce their risk further than with use of typical pre-procedure antibiotic prophylaxis. Accordingly, evidence to support pre-procedure screening for BV is lacking. Neither povidone-iodine nor chlorhexidine have been shown to alter the risk of infection when used as cervicovaginal preparation. However, chlorhexidine appears to be more effective than povidone iodine at reducing bacteria within the vagina. The Society of Family Planning recommends the routine use of antibiotic prophylaxis, preferably with doxycycline, before surgical abortion. Use of treatment doses of antibiotics with medical abortion may decrease the rare risk of serious infection but universal requirement for such treatment has not been established.
Diel shifts in carboxylation pathway and metabolite dynamics in the CAM bromeliad Aechmea 'Maya' in response to elevated CO2.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS The deployment of temporally separated carboxylation pathways for net CO(2) uptake in CAM plants provides plasticity and thus uncertainty on how species with this photosynthetic pathway will respond to life in a higher-CO(2) world. The present study examined how long-term exposure to elevated CO(2) influences the relative contributions that C(3) and C(4) carboxylation make to net carbon gain and to establish how this impacts on the availability of carbohydrates for export and growth and on water use efficiency over the day/night cycle. METHODS Integrated measurements of leaf gas exchange and diel metabolite dynamics (e.g. malate, soluble sugars, starch) were made in leaves of the CAM bromeliad Aechmea 'Maya' after exposure to 700 micromol mol(-1) CO(2) for 5 months. KEY RESULTS There was a 60 % increase in 24-h carbon gain under elevated CO(2) due to a stimulation of daytime C(3) and C(4) carboxylation in phases II and IV where water use efficiency was comparable with that measured at night. The extra CO(2) taken up under elevated CO(2) was largely accumulated as hexose sugars during phase IV and net daytime export of carbohydrate was abolished. Under elevated CO(2) there was no stimulation of dark carboxylation and nocturnal export and respiration appeared to be the stronger sinks for carbohydrate. CONCLUSIONS Despite the increased size of the soluble sugar storage pool under elevated CO(2), there was no change in the net allocation of carbohydrates between provision of substrates for CAM and export/respiration in A. 'Maya'. The data imply the existence of discrete pools of carbohydrate that provide substrate for CAM or sugars for export/respiration. The 2-fold increase in water-use efficiency could be a major physiological advantage to growth under elevated CO(2) in this CAM bromeliad.
Cognitive Radio Networks with Energy Harvesting

We consider a cognitive radio network with an energy-harvesting secondary transmitter to improve both energy efficiency and spectral efficiency. The goal of this paper is to determine an optimal spectrum sensing policy that maximizes the expected total throughput subject to an energy causality constraint and a collision constraint. The energy causality constraint comes from the fact that the total consumed energy should be equal to or less than the total harvested energy, while the collision constraint is required to protect the primary user. We first show that the system can be divided into a spectrum-limited regime and an energy-limited regime depending on where the detection threshold for the spectrum sensor lies. Assuming infinite battery capacity, we derive the optimal detection threshold that maximizes the expected total throughput subject to the energy causality constraint and the collision constraint. Analytical and numerical results show that the system is energy-limited if the energy arrival rate is lower than the expected energy consumption for a single spectrum access. They also show that a decreasing probability of accessing the occupied spectrum does not always result in decreased probability of accessing the idle spectrum in the energy-limited regime.
Runtime and reconfiguration dual-aware placement for SRAM-NVM hybrid FPGAs

Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) has been widely adopted as modern reconfigurable computing platforms. Traditionally, the storage elements in FPGAs are static RAM (SRAM), which has large leakage power and limited scalability. Recently, non-volatile memory (NVM) is proposed to replace the SRAM in FPGA systems for static power and density considerations, at the cost of inducing larger dynamic power. Hybrid FPGAs combine the advantages of SRAM and NVM by employing both SRAM and NVM as logic storage elements. Although the feasibility of hybrid FPGA has been confirmed, the design flow has not fully explored the hybrid features yet, resulting in inferior system performance. Besides, traditional design flow does not consider the reconfiguration cost, which may prolong the reconfiguration procedures and thus degrade the system performance in dynamically reconfigurable FPGA systems. This work proposes a runtime and reconfiguration dual aware placement strategy for dynamically reconfigurable hybrid architecture. The proposed scheme considers the tradeoff between runtime and dynamic reconfiguration latency and optimizes the overall performance of the reconfigurable system. Evaluation shows that the proposed scheme improves the system performance by 14.6% for SRAM-MRAM hybrid FPGAs compared with the default placement strategy.
Relative importance of different human aPL derived heavy and light chains in the binding of aPL to cardiolipin.

INTRODUCTION Previous studies have suggested the importance of somatic mutations and arginine, asparagine and lysine residues in the complementarity determining regions (CDRs) of antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) implicated in the pathogenesis of the antiphospholipid antibody syndrome. The relative contributions of the heavy and light chains of aPL in binding to cardiolipin (CL) were assessed by pairing the heavy and light chains of two IgG, beta(2)GPI dependent aPL (IS4 and CL24) with different partner chains from other IgG, beta(2)GPI independent aPL (UK4) and anti-DNA antibodies (B3 and 33H11). METHODS Four heavy (V(H)) and five light (V(L)) chain variable sequences from three aPL and two anti-DNA antibodies were cloned into expression vectors containing appropriate gamma(1), lambda or kappa constant region cDNA. Paired combinations of heavy and light chain expression plasmids were transfected into COS-7 cells allowing transient expression of whole IgG molecules, which were harvested and tested for the ability to bind CL and DNA by enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay (ELISA). RESULTS Whole IgG was produced from 19 heavy/light chain combinations. IS4V(H) was dominant in conferring the ability to bind CL with four of the five V(L) tested. The identity of the V(L) region paired with IS4V(H) was important in determining the strength of binding to CL. IS4V(H) contains multiple arginine residues in CDR3, which may have accumulated due to antigen driven selection. It is likely that these arginine residues may interact with CL. The combination B3V(H)/B3V(L) also bound CL, but none of the other 14 combinations showed any binding in this assay. CONCLUSION Whole IgG molecules capable of binding CL were produced by in vitro expression in COS-7 cells. Arginine residues play important roles in binding to CL and double-stranded DNA. However, different patterns of mutation to arginine are associated with binding to each of these antigens.
Protocol for maximizing the triglycerides-enriched lipids production from Dunaliella salina SA32007 biomass, isolated from the Salar de Atacama (Northern Chile)

This paper reports the effects of different culture conditions for Dunaliella salina SA32007 from Salar de Atacama (second Region, northern ofChile) over biomass, lipid production and triglycerides synthesis. A maximum value of microalgae density (8.2 × 109 Cells/L) and an intrinsic growth rate (0.17 d-1), were obtained using a culture with 0.5 mol/L of NaCl and a nitrogen/phosphorous (N/P) limitation of 14/1. The triglycerides production was significantly favoured under nitrogen deficiency conditions (Mann-Whitney test; p = 0.0043). However there was a nitrogen-limiting threshold for the stimulation and accumulation of triglycerides (N/P: 14/1), lower than that limit, these compounds would not be accumulated. It was also observed that triglyceride content was not proportional to the total lipid content and the maximum number of cells. The aeration system employed stimulated the growth and synthesis of structural organic molecules. Regarding microalgae growth stage subjected to nitrogen deficiency, when the deficit was applied before the lag phase, the negative effect on the biomass and the triglycerides production decreased.
Hybrid Control of Remote Controlled Bilateral Manipulation System

We propose a new hybrid control scheme for stable bilateral manipulation. The proposed system consists of two control elements; position control and adaptive force control. These two control elements can be automatically selected according to the contact situation with the environment. Under a large information transmission delay, the proposed control system maintains its stability. Finally, we confirm the effectiveness of the method by experiments
Differential impact of multiple levels of productive activity engagement on psychological well-being in middle and later life.

PURPOSE This study tested the effect of multiple levels of engagement in the productive roles of paid work, volunteering, and caregiving on midlife and older adults' psychological well-being. METHODS Using cross-sectional data from a sample of 330 adults aged 50 and older (largely white, women, and educated), a treatment effects model was employed to test the impact of four levels of engagement (not involved and low, medium, and high engagement) on psychological well-being. RESULTS Those involved in work or volunteer activities who were high in engagement reported greater psychological well-being than those who were not involved, whereas those who were low or medium in engagement reported lower well-being than those not involved. A different pattern emerged for caregiving; midlevels of engagement were associated with higher well-being compared with the noninvolved, whereas low and high levels of engagement were associated with lower well-being. IMPLICATIONS Findings suggest that one's experience of an activity plays an important role in the extent to which involvement is associated with positive outcomes. Recommendations for enhancing role quality to promote psychological well-being in middle and later life are discussed.
The s-CVD radiation monitoring and beam abort system of the Belle-II vertex detector

The Belle-II VerteX Detector (VXD) is a 6 layers silicon tracker device that will cope with an unprecedented luminosity of 8 × 10<sup>35</sup> cm<sup>−2</sup> s<sup>−1</sup> achievable by the new SuperKEKB e<sup>+</sup>e<sup>−</sup> collider, now under commissioning at the KEK laboratory (Tsukuba, Japan). A radiation monitoring and beam abort system has been developed based on single-crystal s-CVD diamond sensors. The sensors will be placed in 20 key positions in the vicinity of the interaction region. The severe space limitations require a remote readout of the sensors. In this contribution we present the system design, along with the sensor characterisation procedure. We present also the preliminary results with the prototype system during the first SuperKEKB commissioning phase in February-June 2016.
High-Dose Valacyclovir Decreases Plasma HIV-1 RNA More Than Standard-Dose Acyclovir in Persons Coinfected with HIV-1 and HSV-2: A Randomized Crossover Trial

Background:Standard doses of herpes simplex virus (HSV) suppressive therapy reduce plasma HIV-1 RNA levels (0.25–0.53 log10 copies per milliliter) among HIV-1/HSV-2 coinfected persons. Postulated mechanisms for this effect include direct inhibition of HIV-1 by acyclovir or indirect reduction by decreasing HSV-associated inflammation. We hypothesized that high-dose valacyclovir would further reduce plasma HIV-1 RNA and that the effect would be mediated by greater suppression of HSV shedding. Methods:Thirty-four participants with HIV-1 and HSV-2 not on antiretroviral therapy were enrolled into a randomized, open-label crossover trial of valacyclovir 1000 mg twice daily or acyclovir 400 mg twice daily for 12 weeks, followed by a 2-week washout, and then the alternate treatment arm for 12 weeks. HSV DNA was measured from daily self-collected genital swabs for the initial 4 weeks of each arm, and HIV-1 RNA was quantified from weekly plasma samples. Results:Twenty-eight participants provided plasma samples and genital swabs on both acyclovir and valacyclovir. The genital HSV-2 shedding rate was the same on valacyclovir and acyclovir [7.8% vs. 8.2% of days; relative risk: 0.95; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.66 to 1.37; P = 0.78]. Plasma HIV-1 RNA was 0.27 log10 copies per milliliter lower on valacyclovir compared with acyclovir (95% CI: −0.41 to −0.14 log10 copies per milliliter; P < 0.001); this was unchanged after adjustment for genital HSV-2 shedding. Conclusions:High-dose valacyclovir reduces plasma HIV-1 RNA levels more than standard-dose acyclovir in HIV-1/HSV-2–seropositive persons not receiving antiretroviral therapy. The incremental reduction in plasma HIV-1 RNA achieved is not mediated by greater genital HSV-2 suppression.
Delay-dependent criteria for robust stability of linear neutral systems with time-varying delay and nonlinear perturbations

This article investigates the robust stability of linear neutral systems with time-varying delay and nonlinear perturbations. Using a new Lyapunov–Krasovskii functional and employing some free weighting matrices, less conservative delay-dependent robust stability conditions for such systems in terms of linear matrix inequalities are derived. Numerical examples are given to indicate significant improvements over some existing results.
Evaluation of the utility of the Vigileo FloTrac™, LiDCO™, USCOM and CardioQ™ to detect hypovolaemia in conscious volunteers: a proof of concept study

It is important to detect and treat hypovolaemia; however, detection is particularly challenging in the conscious, spontaneously breathing patient. Eight healthy male volunteers were monitored using four minimally invasive monitors: Vigileo FloTrac™; LiDCOrapid™; USCOM 1A; and CardioQ™ oesophageal Doppler. Monitor output and clinical signs were recorded during incremental venesection of 2.5% estimated blood volume aliquots to a total of 20% blood volume removed. A statistically significant difference from baseline stroke volume was detected after 2.5% blood loss using the LiDCO (p = 0.007), 7.5% blood loss using the USCOM (p = 0.019), and 12.5% blood loss using the CardioQ (p = 0.046) and the FloTrac (p = 0.028). Receiver operator characteristic curves for predicting > 10% blood loss had areas under the curve of 0.68–0.82. The minimally invasive cardiac output devices tested can detect blood loss by a reduction in stroke volume in awake volunteers, and may have a role in guiding fluid replacement in conscious patients with suspected hypovolaemia.
Antecedents of strategic ambidexterity: effects of entrepreneurial orientation on exploratory and exploitative innovations in adolescent organisations

Strategic ambidexterity, the ability to pursue exploratory and exploitative innovations simultaneously, is a key driver of firm survival and progress. However, our understanding of the organisational antecedents of ambidexterity is limited. We advance the existing body of literature by examining the influences of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) on both dimensions of strategic ambidexterity. Our study in 75 adolescent ICT companies shows that the effects of the constituent dimensions of EO on exploratory innovation differ from those on exploitative innovation. Each dimension of EO, i.e., risk taking, innovativeness, proactiveness, competitive aggressiveness, and autonomy, stimulates exploratory innovation, whereas only proactiveness and competitive aggressiveness facilitate exploitative innovation. The dimensions have no conflictive effects; thus, none of the dimensions facilitating exploratory innovation impedes exploitative innovation. Therefore, the results would suggest that organisations aiming toward ambidexterity should strive for high levels of EO.