Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Authenticity: What Consumers Really Want

Contrived. Disingenuous. Phony. Inauthentic. Do your customers use any of these words to describe what you sell--or how you sell it? If so, welcome to the club. Inundated by fakes and sophisticated counterfeits, people increasingly see the world in terms of real or fake. They would rather buy something real from someone genuine rather than something fake from some phony. When deciding to buy, consumers judge an offering's (and a company's) authenticity as much as--if not more than--price, quality, and availability. In Authenticity, James H. Gilmore and B. Joseph Pine II argue that to trounce rivals companies must grasp, manage, and excel at rendering authenticity. Through examples from a wide array of industries as well as government, nonprofit, education, and religious sectors, the authors show how to manage customers' perception of authenticity by: recognizing how businesses "fake it;" appealing to the five different genres of authenticity; charting how to be "true to self" and what you say you are; and crafting and implementing business strategies for rendering authenticity. The first to explore what authenticity really means for businesses and how companies can approach it both thoughtfully and thoroughly, this book is a must-read for any organization seeking to fulfill consumers' intensifying demand for the real deal.
SUNflower+6: development and application of a footprint methodology for the SUNflower+6 countries

A methodology has been developed, which for each country results in a 'road safety footprint' showing the state of the art on road safety. The road safety footprint is based upon the different levels of 'the safety pyramid' which underpins the SUNflower methodology. As a result a footprint gives a representation of the road safety status and development over time in a country, which can be used for benchmarking. At this stage, the proposed methodology is considered as a first step in the definition of an overall methodology, which may eventually grow into a widespread tool for benchmarking road safety. Based on the available data, safety trends and disaggregate outcomes have been analysed for the SUNflower+6 countries, to get a deeper understanding of footprint outcomes. It was found that in the SUN countries the decline of safety risk started early and led to a low risk level per kilometre travelled. There is reason to believe that the more attention is given to road safety, the more this is translated in safety actions. And the more actions are taken in various areas of safety, the more safety is improving in the SUNflower+6 countries.
Alcohol and Highway Safety 2006: A Review of the State of Knowledge

This sixth volume in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s series of reviews on the state of knowledge in alcohol and highway safety covers research reported after the 2001 publication up to 2006. Specifically, it includes articles published between 2000 and 2006, as well as additional reports published in early 2007. As has been the practice in previous issues of this report, articles from earlier periods are included to provide sufficient background for more recent findings. Thus, this volume is a compilation of information from a 5-year span of alcohol and highway safety reports and research findings. This volume is organized under the standard six headings used in previous reviews: Introduction and Methods; Overview of the Alcohol-Crash Problem; Alcohol Effects on People; Drinking Drivers, Pedestrians, and Pedalcyclists; Dealing with the Alcohol-Crash Problem; and Summary and Conclusions. The review suggests that although public attention to impaired driving has declined since its peak in the 1980s and 1990s, government support for traffic safety research and safety demonstration programs has continued to increase. However, this support is not commensurate with the magnitude of the problem. There is considerable room for revising and strengthening current State and community efforts to reduce impaired driving. Progress in understanding the drinking-and-driving problem, combined with development of new technologies, is offering opportunities to resume the decline of alcohol-related crashes nationwide, which stagnated in 1995.
Chronic rhinosinusitis with polyposis and serum vitamin D levels

SUMMARY The pathogenesis of chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is still unknown, but it is accepted that various inflammatory factors are responsible for the different CRS subtypes. Vitamin D3 has been shown to alter inflammatory mediators in some diseases and its deficiency might also be associated with CRS with nasal polyposis (CRSwNP). Herein, we investigated serum vitamin D3 levels in patients with CRSwNP and its association with disease severity. In a cross-sectional study, 166 cases with CRSwNP and 172 healthy subjects were enrolled. Serum vitamin D3 levels were measured and compared in both groups. Furthermore, the relationship between serum vitamin-D3 level and the patient’s allergic status and severity of disease (clinically and based on computed tomographic imaging and nasal endoscopy) among patients with CRSwNP was assessed. Serum vitamin D3 level in the CRSwNP group was significantly lower than in the control group (P < 0.0001). After controlling for possible confounding factors, an increase in vitamin D level showed a protective effect in CRSwNP (OR = 0.69 95% CI:0.62-0.76). A negative correlation was found between serum vitamin-D3 level and the Lund-Mackay score (LMS) (P < 0.0001, R = – 0.66), the Lund-Kennedy score (LKS) (P < 0.0001, R = – 0.71) and the Sino-Nasal Outcome Test-22 (P < 0.001, R = – 0.49). Serum vitamin D level in the CRSwNP group was significantly lower than the control group. Disease severity, based on imaging, endoscopic and clinical criteria, was inversely associated with serum vitamin D levels.
Estimation of Kinetic Energy Harvesting Potential for Self-Powered Wearable IoT Devices With 67 000 Participants From the UK Biobank

Energy harvesting from human motion can reduce reliance on battery recharging in wearable Internet of Things (IoT) devices. However, to date, studies estimating energy harvesting potential have largely focused on small scale, healthy, population groups in laboratory settings rather than free-living environments with population level participant numbers. Here, we present the largest ever investigation into energy harvesting potential by utilizing the activity data collected in the UK Biobank from over 67000 participants. This article presents detailed stratification into how the day of the week and participant age affect harvesting potential, as well as how the presence of conditions (such as diabetes, which we investigate here) may affect the expected energy harvester output. We process accelerometery data using a kinetic energy harvester model to investigate power output at a high temporal resolution. Our results identify key differences between the times of day when the power is available and an inverse relationship between power output and participant age. We also identify that the presence of diabetes substantially reduces energy harvesting output, by over 21%. The results presented highlight a key challenge in IoT and wearable energy harvesting: that wearable devices aim to monitor health and wellness, and energy harvesting aims to make devices more energy autonomous, but the presence of medical conditions may lead to substantially lower energy harvesting potential. The findings indicate how it is challenging to meet the required power budget to monitor diseases when energy autonomy is a goal.
Contrast extravasation from basilar artery without aneurysm formation on digital subtraction angiography in computed tomography angiogram-negative subarachnoid hemorrhage: A case report

Background: The causes of angiogram-negative subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) on initial angiography, which accounts for 10–30% of spontaneous SAH, are heterogeneous and still unclear. We report a case of nonaneurysmal SAH, in which initial computed tomographic angiography (CTA) showed no source of bleeding, but the subsequent digital subtraction angiography (DSA) revealed contrast extravasation from the basilar artery without aneurysms. Case Description: A 67-year-old woman with a medical history of hypertension presented as SAH of World Federation of Neurological Surgeons Grade II. CTA on admission did not show any cause of bleeding and DSA was subsequently performed to show contrast extravasation from a perforator of the middle third of the basilar artery without aneurysms during the subsequent DSA, resulting in profound deterioration SAH and neurological status. The patient was conservatively treated. Follow-up DSAs on days 2 and 16 showed no source of bleeding as well. Conclusion: Although the precise cause of bleeding in this case is uncertain, SAH might be caused by local dissection of the basilar artery perforator, and the bleeding site might heal spontaneously without forming of a pseudoaneurysm.
Information Technology and the Distribution of Inventive Activity

We examine the relationship between the diffusion of advanced internet technology and the geographic concentration of invention, as measured by patents. First, we show that patenting became more concentrated from the early 1990s to the early 2000s and, similarly, that counties that were leaders in patenting in the early 1990s produced relatively more patents by the early 2000s. Second, we compare the extent of invention in counties that were leaders in internet adoption to those that were not. We see little difference in the growth rate of patenting between leaders and laggards in internet adoption, on average. However, we find that the rate of patent growth was faster among counties who were not leaders in patenting in the early 1990s but were leaders in internet adoption by 2000, suggesting that the internet helped stem the trend towards more geographic concentration. We show that these results are largely driven by patents filed by distant collaborators rather than non-collaborative patents or patents by non-distant collaborators, suggesting low cost long-distance digital communication as a potential mechanism.
Three dimensional analysis of building settlement caused by shaft construction

An analysis of a case history of settlement damage to a masonry building, due to the construction of a nearby shaft, is presented. Three-dimensional finite element analysis is used, in which the non-linear behaviour of both the soil (a heavily overconsolidated clay) and the building is taken into account. Procedures are used to capture the construction process as realistically as possible. Comparisons are made between a variety of analyses (including separate analyses of the building and the soil, and a fully coupled analysis of the whole system), as well as with observations at the site. The principal comparisons are in terms of observed surface settlements and of the categories of cracking damage suffered by the masonry building. It is concluded that the analysis technique can model adequately the interaction between the building and the ground, but that details of settlement and damage pattems depend critically on assumptions about the structure and stiffness of the building and its foundation.
The Professional risk Managers' Handbook:A Comprehensive Guide to Current Theory and Best Practices

As its title implies, this book is the Handbook for the Professional Risk Manager. It is for those professionals who seek to demonstrate their skills in the field of financial risk management and for those looking simply for an excellent reference source. With contributions from nearly 40 leading authors, the Handbook is designed to provide you with the materials needed to gain the knowledge and understanding of the building blocks of professional financial risk management. Financial risk management is not about avoiding risk. Rather, it is about understanding and communicating risk, so that risk can be taken more confidently and in a better way. Whether your specialism is in insurance, banking, energy, asset management, weather, or one of myriad other industries, this Handbook is your guide. In Section I, we introduce the foundations of finance theory, the financial instruments that provide tools for the mitigation or transfer of risk, and the financial markets in which instruments are traded and capital is raised. In Section II, we take you through the mathematical foundations of risk assessment. While there are many nuances to the practice of risk management that go beyond the quantitative, it is essential today for every risk manager to be able to assess risks. The chapters in this section are accessible to all, including those without any quantitative skills. The online Excel spreadsheets that accompany the examples are an invaluable aid to understanding the mathematical and statistical concepts that form the basis of risk assessment. In Section III, the current and best practices of Market, Credit and Operational risk management are described. This is where we take the foundations of Sections I and II and apply them to our profession in very specific ways. Here the strategic application of risk management to capital allocation and risk-adjusted performance measurement takes hold. At the end of your progression through these materials, you will find that you have broadened your knowledge and skills in ways that you might not have imagined. You will have challenged yourself as well. And, you will be a better risk manager. It is for this reason that we have created the Professional Risk Managers' Handbook.
Comparison of numerical modeling results from laboratory and field obtained unsaturated flow parameters

Moisture and suction variation beneath pavement contribute significantly to the volumetric deformation of expansive subgrade in response to climatic loading. In order to quantify the damage due to climatic loading, estimation of moisture, and suction variation in pavement subgrade is of paramount importance. The objective of the current study is to investigate the moisture and suction variation in response to precipitation events with the aid of numerical modeling in the unsaturated pavement subgrade. In unsaturated soils where the voids are filled with both water and air, the SWCC describes the volume of the voids that remain filled with water as the soil drains pore water. The SWCC has been identified as the vital soil information required to analyze seepage, stability, and volume change problems involved in unsaturated soils. However, the selection of unsaturated flow parameters is typically laboratory-based which represents specific conditions rather than a dynamic scenario of the field. In this study, an attempt was undertaken to conduct numerical modeling using field generated unsaturated flow parameters along with five other predictive models. Results indicated the distinct variation of moisture and suction distribution in subgrade from the same rainfall event while using laboratory versus field generated SWCC unsaturated flow parameters. In addition, predicted model yielded output was also varying with the field generated parameters’ output. Instead of using laboratory-generated static parameters, it was found that field generated dynamic unsaturated flow parameters were able to capture better suction variation at the pavement subgrade.
COMPARATIVE ASSESSMENT OF ORIGIN-BASED AND EN ROUTE REAL-TIME INFORMATION UNDER ALTERNATIVE USER BEHAVIOR RULES

The effects of real-time traffic information, supplied at the origin of the trip or along the way (en route), on the system's performance under alternative behavioral rules governing path selection in the network are examined in this paper. Simulation experiments are performed to investigate the effect on overall system performance as well as the incidence of benefits (costs) across user information groups of four experimental factors: (a) behavioral rules, governing users' response to real-time information, (b) sources of information, consisting of point-of-departure or in-vehicle (or both), (c) prevailing "initial conditions" in the system, and (d) market penetration (i.e., the fraction of users with access to real-time information in the network). The results of these simulation experiments provide insights into the effectiveness of real-time advanced driver information systems on systemwide performance and on its critical determinants. The results confirm a priori expectations that the existence of benefits as well as the relative effectiveness of origin-based versus en route information is highly dependent on the initial conditions prevailing in the system as well as the behavioral rules governing path selection. Extreme behavior by users (with frequent switching in myopic response to any gain, no matter how small) could lead to severe worsening of traffic conditions under real-time information from either source. On the other hand, switching according to a boundedly rational model incorporating a threshold improvement in trip time is more likely to lead to meaningful systemwide benefits.
BIOMECHANICAL DIFFERENCES OF THE LOWER EXTREMITY DURING A LANDING AND JUMPING TASK IN PREPUBESCENT GIRLS AND BOYS

Females incur non-contact anterior cruciate ligament injuries at a rate four to six times higher than their male peers. This increased incidence may be attributed to lower extremity biomechanical differences between girls and boys during landings from athletic maneuvers. While most of the published literature focuses on a postpubsent population, there are little data investigating the differences between prepubescent girls and boys. The purpose of this study was to investigate if biomechanical differences at the knee were present between prepubescent girls and boys during a landing and jumping task.Nineteen (10 boys / 9 girls) prepubescent soccer players participated in this study. A motion analysis system and force plate were used to collect data. Knee flexion/extension angle, varus/valgus angle, vertical ground reaction forces and anterior tibial shear force were assessed during the vertical jump and landing task. Statistical analysis revealed no significant differences between genders for vertical ground reaction force, peak posterior ground reaction force, anterior tibial shear force, knee flexion/extension and varus/valgus angle at peak vertical ground reaction force and varus/valgus angle at initial contact with the force plate. There was significance between genders for the knee flexion/extension angle at initial contact with the force plate for the landing task only. The results of this research indicate that the biomechanical differences of the lower extremity may emerge during or after puberty. Based upon these findings, it may be appropriate to initiate injury prevention programs at an earlier age to aid in correcting the high risk biomechanical differences typically seen in the postpubescent population.
Use of Models in Automotive Software Development: A Case-study

Models, formal and informal, can be used in product development for many purposes, e.g. to specify the desired behaviour of a function; to specify requirements; or as implementation. During the development of complex products, such as automotive software, models are used throughout the development process by different roles and for different purposes. This paper reports results of a case-study of the development process of automotive software at a Swedish vehicle manufacturer. The study investigates the use of modelling at different stages of the development process, from high-level product planning to low-level component requirements specifications.
Beschäftigungserwartungen und Innovationen im Umweltbereich : eine empirische Analyse auf der Basis des IAB-Betriebspanels (Employment expectations and innovations in the environmental prtotection sector * an empirical analysis on the basis of the IAB establishment panel)

"During the past twenty years the environmental protection sector has become very important for employment, too. Against the background of the product cycle hypothesis this paper looks into the question as to whether positive employment impulses will continue to come from this cross-sectional industry in the coming years. On the basis of an econometric analysis of recent data from the IAB establishment panel, the development of employment in environmental protection is analysed. The results show that in the medium term on the whole no strong employment dynamics can be expected for the environmental protection sector. This does not apply for all areas of environmental protection, however. Thus for instance fields of environmental protection that are classified more as preventative or integrated environmental protection (e.g. measurement technology, analysis tech-nology and control engineering) will gain importance. On the other hand, employment in areas such as the prevention of air and water pollution, and refuse disposal, in which so-called additive environmental technology dominates, will stagnate or decrease in the coming years. This finding is confirmed by a study of the innovation behaviour of firms in the environmental protection sector. " (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
Effects of Wet Mat Curing Time and Earlier Loading on Long-Term Durability of Bridge Decks: Compressive Strength, Maturity and Strength Durability Index (SDI)

There is increasing pressure from owners, contractors, and the public to open bridge decks sooner to full traffic loads. As a result, a set of criteria or guidelines is needed to determine when concrete bridge decks can safely be opened. Today, current practice allows many bridge decks and concrete pavements to be opened to traffic once a desired compressive strength is achieved from a representative field-cast test cylinder. Though generally untrue, many believe that this strength value serves as a measure of the durability of the placed concrete. In a collaborative research effort between Texas Department of Transportation and researchers at Texas Tech University, studies were undertaken to collect research data that could potentially lead to the development of new guidelines as to when bridge decks can be open to (a) construction traffic and (b) full traffic without sacrificing concrete durability. This report presents detailed findings of two research thrusts: compressive strength and maturity curves commonly used on bridge deck concrete mixes and comparative assessment of the effectiveness of three curing methods that led to the development of a framework for a Strength-Durability Index (SDI).
Traffic Congestion and Greenhouse Gases

A comprehensive methodology has been developed to take advantage of the latest vehicle activity measurements and detailed vehicle emission factors to create an accurate emissions inventory for different types of vehicles and different levels of traffic congestion. This methodology produces better estimates of CO2 reductions from improvements in traffic operations, including congestion mitigation strategies, speed management techniques, and traffic-flow smoothing techniques. This is illustrated by a figure showing an example of a speed-based CO2 emissions curve for a typical vehicle traveling on a highway section.