Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Gradient differences of immunotherapy efficacy in metastatic melanoma related to sunlight exposure pattern: A population-based study

Background Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have revolutionized metastatic melanoma (MM) treatment in just a few years. Ultraviolet (UV) in sunlight is the most significant environmental cause of melanoma, which is considered to be the main reason for tumor mutation burden (TMB) increase in melanoma. High TMB usually predicts that PD-1 inhibitors are effective. The sunlight exposure pattern of MM might be a clinical feature that matches TMB. The relationship between sunlight exposure patterns and immunotherapy response in MM is unclear. This study aims to investigate the correlation between sunlight exposure patterns and immunotherapy response in MM and establish nomograms that predict 3- and 5-year overall survival (OS) rate. Methods We searched the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database and enrolled MM cases from 2005-2016. According to the advent of ICIs in 2011, the era was divided into the non-ICIs era (2005-2010) and the ICIs era (2011-2016). Patients were divided into three cohorts according to the primary site sunlight exposure patterns: head and neck in the first cohort, trunk arms and legs in the second cohort, and acral sites in the third cohort. We compared survival differences for each cohort between the two eras, performed stratified analysis, established nomograms for predicting 3- and 5-year OS rate, and performed internal validation. Results Comparing the survival difference between the ICIs and non-ICIs era, head and neck melanoma showed the greatest improvement in survival, with 3- and 5-year OS rate increasing by 10.2% and 9.1%, respectively (P=0.00011). In trunk arms and legs melanoma, the 3- and 5-year OS rate increased by 4.6% and 3.9%, respectively (P<0.0001). There is no improvement in survival in acral melanoma (AM) between the two eras (P=0.78). The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, area under the ROC curve (AUC) and calibration graphs show good discrimination and accuracy of nomograms. Decision curve analysis (DCA) suggests good clinical utility of nomograms. Conclusions Based on the classification of sunlight exposure patterns, there is a gradient difference in immunotherapy efficacy for MM. The degree of sunlight exposure is positively correlated with immunotherapy response. The nomograms are sufficiently accurate to predict 3- and 5-year OS rate for MM, allowing for individualized clinical decisions for future clinical work.
Managements influence in implementing new software applications in an Irish firm and employee acceptance to change management

Purpose – This dissertation proposes there is a lack of literature identifying specific change management roles in actively influencing change. Change management initiatives are often set by executives in organisations and middle management bear the brunt in implementing them at team and employee level. While change has been researched thoroughly, there are gaps in the academic literature in identifying practices as to how active managers influence soft skills in behavioural changes. The objective of this dissertation is to 1) identify aspects of management which promote the speed of employee acceptance towards change 2) identify managements perceptions in dealing with change 3) identify a set of practices or tools used to overcome barriers in change management 4) provide a set of recommendations based on management practices to influence the soft aspects of change management. Design/methodology/approach - This study used a phenomenological philosophy in its findings. A deductive approach was used to provide further academic literature in support of existing change management frameworks. The research performed a case study of middle management in an Irish organisation undergoing a major technical change which affected more than 2000 employees using a choice of mono method qualitative data collection. The researcher performed a thematic analysis of the data collected which focused on managements influence on employee and team acceptance to change in a business unit of that organisation. Given time constraints in the dissertation a cross sectional time horizon was used in this case study to collect data during the implementation of change project in the organisation. Findings – The findings revealed a set of practices management used to meet the objectives as outlined. These include a self-analysis towards implementing change, practices in dealing with resistance to change, empowering employee involvement in decision making, uncovering hidden agendas and black swan events. It proposes the use of a set of tools which complement change management frameworks.
The influence of self-identity on consumer's preferences in the degree of brand prominence in non-luxury fashion

The study focuses on brand prominence in non-luxury fashion brands. Non-luxury fashion brands were defined as mid-level fashion brands and high street brands on the mass market. Brand prominence was defined by how easily a brand is recognizable based on the visible markings on products. Existent research on brand prominence has solely focused on the luxury market and classified consumers’ preferred degree of brand prominence on products based on status, income level, need for uniqueness and self-monitoring. However, the research on brand prominence has not taken qualitative approaches and studied self-identity from a self-concept perspective within nonluxury fashion. The aim of this study was to create a theoretical framework that showed how consumers’ self-identity influence on consumers’ preferences in terms of the degree of brand prominence. The sub-aim was to examine in which situations consumers prefer a low or high degree of brand prominence. In the theoretical framework, brand prominence variation was combined with the self-concept, the situational self and the motivational drivers: self-consistency, social consistency, self-esteem, social approval, distinctiveness, efficacy and situational congruence. The study also extended research on brand prominence by measuring the degree of brand prominence based on brand visibility, brand frequency and brand distribution. The study took a qualitative approach. Four male and four female informants between 24 – 32 years old in the capital area of Helsinki participated in the study. Several data collection techniques were used to reach the research aim, including an interview guide, pictorial stimuli and photographic documentation.
Effects of Revolving Doors in the Financial Sector: Evidence from Korea

The revolving door practice, i.e. the recruitment of ex-regulators by regulated firms, has long been subject to criticism in Korea. Despite its importance, however, there are few studies on the economic impact of the revolving door. By applying a unique dataset of financial firms in Korea, it was found that the practice does not improve the financial soundness of the recruiting firms. Additionally, it was observed that firms, shortly after hiring former regulators, are less likely to receive regulatory penalties. This result appears to be associated with Korea’s financial supervisory system, wherein the majority of supervisory tasks are concentrated within a single agency.
A Study of Post-Demonetization Impact of Limited-Cash Retailing in Uttarakhand, India

Purpose of Study: The paper aims to assess the new face of retailing after demonetization with specific focus to the role of financial intermediaries and it also focuses on Long term solutions to drive the digital cash enabled retailing in India. Methodology: This study used a questionnaire for data collection among 250 retailers in Uttarakhand, India. The questionnaire was later on analyzed using SPSS. Qualitative data was gathered from the interview with the officials from 100 financial intermediaries from banks. Findings: The Indian retail market has been fostered by the cash dealings. The step of demonetization caught the black marketers, retailers and common people by surprise. The move was supported by the majority of people despite facing difficulties. After the demonetization, people started using the adoption of different forms of digital payment options. The trade in the market was affected and the retail sales witnessed a severe dip. The market is recovering but the actual recovery will depend on devising the substitute for the cash payments at all levels of retailers. Social implications: Financial inclusion is important for inclusive growth and bank to have a crucial role to play in financial literacy campaigns and should ensure that those deprived sections that come to exchange their old notes are properly taken care of. Banks could make unbanked people aware about the financial instruments available with banks and the importance of saving and putting their money in these instruments. This step would further help the economy move from unorganized to organized sector. The originality of Study: This study is original and first of its kind conducted in Uttarakhand, India.
Croon’s Bias-Corrected Factor Score Path Analysis for Small- to Moderate-Sample Multilevel Structural Equation Models

Maximum likelihood estimation of multilevel structural equation model (MLSEM) parameters is a preferred approach to probe theories involving latent variables in multilevel settings. Although maximum likelihood has many desirable properties, a major limitation is that it often fails to converge and can incur significant bias when implemented in studies with a small to moderate multilevel sample (e.g., fewer than 100 organizations with 10 or less individuals/organization). To address similar limitations in single-level SEM, literature has developed Croon’s bias-corrected factor score path analysis estimator that converges more regularly than maximum likelihood and delivers less biased parameter estimates with small to moderate sample sizes. We derive extensions to this framework for MLSEMs and probe the degree to which the estimator retains these advantages with small to moderate multilevel samples. The estimator emerges as a useful alternative or complement to maximum likelihood because it often outperforms maximum likelihood in small to moderate multilevel samples in terms of convergence, bias, error variance, and power. The proposed estimator is implemented as a function in R using lavaan and is illustrated using a multilevel mediation example.
Trademarks as an indicator of regional innovation: evidence from Japanese prefectures

ABSTRACT Regional science has long been concerned with measuring the spatial distribution of innovation activity. We introduce trademarks as a new indicator for regional innovation and argue that they are particularly useful to measure the ‘soft’ side of innovation that is difficult to capture with conventional indicators. We explore the spatial distribution of trademarks using a detailed and comprehensive dataset of 47 Japanese prefectures from 1999 to 2012. In addition to mapping differences in trademarking across regions, we identify correlates at the regional level that provide insights into determinants of regional innovation measured via trademarks. For example, regional trademark activity positively correlates with population density, income per capita, entrepreneurship rate, the number of universities, and strong private service and finance sectors. Overall, the results reveal associations unique to trademarks that other measures of innovation cannot uncover. Our findings contribute to research in regional science and the evolving literature on trademarks.
Mandatory Voting, Large Shareholder Power, and Wolf Packs

Our model develops a theory of how the existence of systematic voters who always vote, besides partisans who vote strategically, affects the outcome of general meetings. Depending on the shareholder structure, we show that systematic voting has two opposite consequences on the outcomes of the meeting. It reinforces the power of the largest group of systematic voters. Less expectedly, it also creates an incentive for partisans to vote and oppose together this same group. We apply our results to different ownership structures. In particular, we emphasize the importance, for the board, of having the support of the largest partisan, the role of proxy advisors, and examine the conditions under which blockholders can successfully oppose the largest group of systematic voters alone or together (wolf pack).
Epidemiological pattern of Osteoarticular Tuberculosis in a Teaching hospital of Rural India: A prospective study

Introduction: Tuberculosis (TB) is the most common cause of death from infectious disease world-wide. In India every year almost twelve lakh patients are notified as having newly diagnosed TB and the percentage of notified cases is only about 58%. This study evaluates the epidemiologic parameters of osteoarticular tuberculosis in a teaching hospital of north India primarily catering to rural population.Materials and Methods: All cases of osteoarticular tuberculosis diagnosed in our hospital between January 2014 to March 2016 were analysed for various epidemiologic parameters like age, sex, anatomical site, delay in presentation and associated pulmonary TB.Results: The spine was the most commonly affected anatomical site (50.77%) followed by hip seen in thirty-seven patients (19.17%). Males were affected more commonly than females. Eighty-seven percent of patients belonged to low socioeconomic strata.Cocnclusion: This study depicts the high prevalence of musculoskeletal tuberculosis in rural population. A high index of clinical suspicion coupled with radiologic examination is necessary to diagnose and treat bone and joint TB. Delayed diagnosis and treatment is associated with complications and poor outcome.
Synthetic Financial Data: An Application to Regulatory Compliance for Broker-Dealers

Big Data hype has not missed investment management, the reality is that price data from U.S. financial markets are not really Big Data. Price data is Small Data. The fact that sellers and advisors in financial markets use Small Data to generate and test investment strategies creates two major problems. First, the economic mechanisms that generate prices (and therefore returns) may change through time, so that historical data from an earlier time may tell us little or nothing about future prices and returns. Second, even if data-generating-mechanisms are somewhat stable through time, inferences about the profitability of investment strategies may be sensitive to a handful of outliers in the data that get picked up again and again in different strategies mined from the same Small Data set. In this article, we present an answer to the financial Small Data problem: using machine-learning methods to generate “synthetic” financial data. The essential part of our approach to developing synthetic data is the use of machine learning methods to generate data that might have been generated by financial markets but was not. Synthetic price and return data have numerous uses, including testing new investment strategies and helping investors plan for retirement and other personal investment goals with more realistic future return scenarios. In this article, we focus on a particularly important use of synthetic data: meeting legal and regulatory requirements such as best interest and fiduciary requirements.
Determinants of smallholder teff farmer’s chemical fertilizer technology adoption in Southern Ethiopia, in case of Gena District in Dawro Zone (Heckman Two-Stage Model)

Increasing technology adoption among smallholder farmers has a big potential to uplift living standards of poor through increasing production and consumption pattern. The objective of this study was analyzing determinant of smallholder teff farmer’s chemical fertilizer technology adoption and its intensification in Southern Ethiopia, in case of Gena district in Dawro Zone. The study used data from 180 respondents from four selected teff dominant kebeles of Gena districts in Dawro Zone, through structured questioner. The descriptive statistics and Heckman two stage econometric methods were employed to analyze data collected from sampled household. The significance of coefficient of inverse Mill’s ratio ( ) indicates the presence of selection bias and the effectiveness of applying Heckman two stage model. In the 1st stage of probit regression results of study show that the adoption decision of chemical fertilizer use were driven by factors such as farm size, size of family, family labor, education, access to credit; access to information, distance to near market place. In the second stage, the intensification of chemical fertilizer application was influenced by membership to cooperative, availability of extension service, access to credit, size of farm land, size of family member, family labor, educational status, sex of head. The policies which expand the accessibility of credit service, dissemination of productive agricultural technology information, and creating opportunity of education for farm house hold has potential to increase the chance of chemical fertilizer adoption decision and strengthen the level of adoption among smallholder farmers.
Credit Rating Agencies and Accounting Fraud Detection

This study examines whether and when credit rating agencies take negative rating actions against issuers committing accounting fraud before the fraud is publicly revealed as well as the economic impacts of such rating actions. We find that Standard & Poor’s (S&P), an issuer-paid rating agency, downgrades fraud firms and puts them on negative credit watch as early as four quarters prior to public fraud revelation, controlling for firms’ economic fundamentals and performance. Furthermore, Egan-Jones, an investor-paid rating agency without access to management and private information, is much less timely than S&P in downgrading fraud firms, especially when information uncertainty is high. In addition, S&P distinguishes fraud firms from similar-looking non-fraud firms even when the former appears financially healthy, whereas Egan-Jones does not. This further supports that S&P’s private information advantage facilitates fraud detection. Finally, S&P’s negative rating actions against fraud firms inform the market and are associated with management turnover and shorter fraud duration.
Communication and Job Satisfaction among Workers in the Department of Trade Union Affairs in the Northern State of Malaysia

This study aims to identify communication links with job satisfaction among workers in the Department of Trade Union Affairs. This study also examines the relationship between job satisfaction and communication with the effect of communication on job satisfaction. It has been noted that since recently, communication used in an organization has been extremely weak, resulting in job satisfaction. A total of 200 self-administered questionnaires were distributed among the workersin the Department of Trade Union Affairs. The study had received a total of 120 questionnaires with a 60% response rate. They were asked about their demographic information, communication, and job satisfaction. The tool for communication is based on the Satisfaction Communication Questionnaire, and the tool for job satisfaction is based on the Job Satisfaction Survey. The study concludes that communication has a significant relationship and impact on job satisfaction among workers in the department.
Disease-Modifying Effects of Non-Invasive Electroceuticals on β-Amyloid Plaques and Tau Tangles for Alzheimer’s Disease

Electroceuticals refer to various forms of electronic neurostimulators used for therapy. Interdisciplinary advances in medical engineering and science have led to the development of the electroceutical approach, which involves therapeutic agents that specifically target neural circuits, to realize precision therapy for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). To date, extensive studies have attempted to elucidate the disease-modifying effects of electroceuticals on areas in the brain of a patient with AD by the use of various physical stimuli, including electric, magnetic, and electromagnetic waves as well as ultrasound. Herein, we review non-invasive stimulatory systems and their effects on β-amyloid plaques and tau tangles, which are pathological molecular markers of AD. Therefore, this review will aid in better understanding the recent technological developments, applicable methods, and therapeutic effects of electronic stimulatory systems, including transcranial direct current stimulation, 40-Hz gamma oscillations, transcranial magnetic stimulation, electromagnetic field stimulation, infrared light stimulation and ionizing radiation therapy, and focused ultrasound for AD.
ENO1 Promotes OSCC Migration and Invasion by Orchestrating IL-6 Secretion from Macrophages via a Positive Feedback Loop

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) has a five-year survival rate of less than 50% due to its susceptibility to invasion and metastasis. Crosstalk between tumor cells and macrophages has been proven to play a critical role in tumor cell migration and invasion. However, the specific mechanisms by which tumor cells interact with macrophages have not been fully elucidated. This study sought to investigate the regulatory mechanism of tumor cell-derived alpha-enolase (ENO1) in the interaction between tumor cells and macrophages during OSCC progression. Small interfering RNA (siRNA) transfection and recombinant human ENO1 (rhENO1) stimulation were used to interfere with the interaction between tumor cells and macrophages. Our results showed that ENO1 was expressed higher in CAL27 cells than in HaCaT cells and regulated lactic acid release in CAL27 cells. Conditioned medium of macrophages (Macro-CM) significantly up-regulated the ENO1 mRNA expression and protein secretion in CAL27 cells. ENO1 promoted the migration and invasion of tumor cells by facilitating the epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) through macrophages. ENO1 orchestrated the IL-6 secretion of macrophages via tumor cell-derived lactic acid and the paracrine ENO1/Toll-like receptor (TLR4) signaling pathway. In turn, IL-6 promoted the migration and invasion of tumor cells. Collectively, ENO1 promotes tumor cell migration and invasion by orchestrating IL-6 secretion of macrophages via a dual mechanism, thus forming a positive feedback loop to promote OSCC progression. ENO1 might be a promising therapeutic target which is expected to control OSCC progression.
Quality of low-income housing projects in South Africa

One of the major duties of any government is to ensure that there are enough houses for the citizen. In view of the shortage, government and many private organisations have been involved in the provision and production of houses for the populace. It is therefore necessary to examine the level of conformance of these houses to acceptable level of quality. Several literature materials were reviewed and various factors causing low quality of buildings were extracted accordingly. To examine these factors, quantitative research method was adopted through administration of close-ended questionnaires on relevant construction professionals, which include Quantity Surveyors, Construction Managers, Architects, Engineers, Town Planners and Project Managers who have been involved in low-income housing projects in South Africa. Factors that contributes to non-adherence to required quality in low-income housing projects are poor site management, less focus on quality and much on production, focus on time by contractor, inadequate contractor’s quality expertise and usage of inexperienced personnel. The implication of these are tarnished image of the professionals involved in the project, defective buildings, unsafe structures and cost overruns. In order to ensure conformance to quality of these houses, contractors that handles construction of low-income houses should be knowledgeable with the National Builders Regulations and there should be monitoring and sufficient inspection of work in progress. Other measures include training and education of stakeholders, use of skilled labours, planning and risk assessment as well as use of appropriate construction materials.