Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Henman Paul and Fenger Menno (eds) (2006), Administering Welfare Reform: International Transformations in Welfare Governance. Bristol: Policy Press. £50.00, pp.287, hbk.

parents’ attitudes towards education (Alm’s measure of cultural capital) is more significant for upward mobility than parents’ involvement in the child’s education (Alm’s measure of social capital). All of the chapters in Carroll and Eriksson’s book constitute good quality contributions to welfare state research, empirically, conceptually and theoretically. It is also exciting to note that the book’s contributors belong to a new generation of welfare state analysts: researchers who had only recently finished their Ph.Ds at the time when the book project was initiated. As such, the publication of the book has a further reason to be applauded. There is perhaps less theoretical and methodological variation throughout the book as a whole than the editors suggest in their introducing chapter. Quantitative analysis and institutionalist theory does seem to dominate. One exception to this rule is Urban Lundberg’s chapter, which in itself is a critique of institutionalism’s tendency to emphasise continuity over change and structure over agency. Lundberg has chosen Swedish pension reforms between 1978 and 1998 as the empirical context within which to pry open the ‘black box’ of party politics and focus on those individual actors (social democratic politicians) who were instrumental to the final outcome of the reforms. In the light of recent events in Sweden referred to earlier, Lundberg’s conclusion to his analysis seems almost prophetic. Lundberg suggests that ‘only time will tell if the Social Democrat’s decision to abandon the ATP [income related occupational pension system] will mean that they have actively contributed to substantially changing the ground for their own continued success’ (p. 133). Time has told and history would seem to have proved Lundberg right. Time will also undoubtedly tell us what will happen to the Swedish welfare state under the New Moderates. What we need in order to understand any possible changes ahead is for high quality social policy research, like that presented in this book, to continue.
Effects of antidepressant drug exposure on gene expression in the developing cerebral cortex

To clarify the basis of limited responses in children and adolescents to antidepressant treatments considered standard in the treatment of adult major depressive disorder, juvenile Sprague–Dawley rats were subjected to 21‐day treatment with dissimilar antidepressant drugs fluoxetine, imipramine, or vehicle control. Total RNA was extracted from brain frontal cortices and hybridized to the Affymetrix 230.2 chip. A total of 18 microarrays were analyzed (i.e., six biological replicates in three treatment groups). Transcripts identified were validated using Taqman real‐time quantitative PCR methodology, and the relative expression of each gene was also determined. In both the imipramine‐ and fluoxetine‐treated animals, expression of six genes was down‐regulated (ANOVA‐filtered gene expression data using dChip [version 2005]): Gpd1; Lrrn3; Sult1A1; Angptl4; Mt1a; Unknown. Furthermore, four genes were over‐expressed: P4Ha1; RDG1311476; Rgc32; and SLC25A18‐like by both imipramine and fluoxetine. These data demonstrate that antidepressant drugs interfere with the expression of genes involved in cell signaling, survival, and protein metabolism. Our results show that antidepressants regulate the induction of highly specific transcriptional programs in the developing frontal cortex. These findings provide novel insights into the long‐term molecular actions of antidepressant drugs in the developing brain. Synapse 68:209–220, 2014. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
THE PROFITABILITY OF COLONIAL INVESTMENT

This paper develops a model for studying colonial investment in which the metropolitan government restricts the amount of investment in the colony in order to maximize the net profits earned in the colony. The model explicitly includes the threat of subversive activity by the indigenous colonial population. The analysis suggests why historically some countries but not others became colonies and why many colonies that were initially profitable subsequently become unprofitable and were abandoned. The model also has implications for the amount of investment in colonies, the allocation of indigenous colonial labor between production and subversive activity, and the distribution of income between colonial firms and the indigenous population.
Informal venture capital: a study of the investment process, the post-investment experience and investment performance

Although research on the informal venture capital market has expanded in recent years our current knowledge and understanding remains deficient in a number of respects. This paper examines three aspects of the operation of the informal venture capital market where information is either lacking or based on anecdotal or impressionistic evidence: the investment process, the post-investment experience and the investment performance. Information was obtained via telephone interviews with 31 business angels and with 28 owner-managers. In 20 cases information was available from both the entrepreneur and the investor. The paper concludes that in most cases the informal venture capital process has worked relatively well. There are few situations where the relationship between investor and entrepreneur broke down. Nevertheless, the naivety and inexperience exhibited by a minority of investors and entrepreneurs is striking. However, there are significant and consistent expectation gaps between investors and entrepre.
An empirical comparison of alternative functional forms for the Lorenz curve

Using US income data, several functional forms for the Lorenz curve are evaluated. On the basis of the goodness of fit, estimated income shares and Gini coefficients, the form proposed by Kakwani (Electrometrica, 48, 437–46, 1980) is found to be overall superior to the other forms.
A Discrete Choice Model of Dividend Reinvestment Plans: Classification and Prediction

We study 852 companies with dividend reinvestment plans in 1999 matched by total assets to 852 companies without such plans. We use discrete choice methods to predict the classification of these companies. We interpret the misclassified companies as being likely to switch their plan status. That is, if a firm's financial data suggest that a company should have had a dividend reinvestment plan in 1999 but did not, then we expect that it would be more likely to institute a plan than the other companies in the sample. Conversely, if it did have a plan but the financial data suggest that it should not, then we expect that the company would be more likely to drop the plan. We use data from 2004 to explore this conjecture and find evidence supporting it. Our model is an economically and statistically reliable predictor of changes in plan status. We also identify which variables have the most influence on a company's decision whether or not to offer a plan.
Professing Professionalism: Are We Our Own Worst Enemy? Faculty Members' Experiences of Teaching and Evaluating Professionalism in Medical Education at One School

Purpose To explore clinical faculty members' knowledge and attitudes regarding their teaching and evaluation of professionalism. Method Clinical faculty involved in medical education at University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine were recruited to participate in focus groups between 2006 and 2007 to discuss their knowledge, beliefs, and attitudes about teaching and evaluating professionalism and to determine their views regarding faculty development in this area. Focus groups were transcribed, analyzed, and coded for themes using a grounded theory approach. Results Five focus groups consisting of 14 faculty members from surgical specialties, psychiatry, anesthesia, and pediatrics were conducted. Grounded theory analysis of the 188 pages of text identified three major themes: Professionalism is not a static concept, a gap exists between faculty members' real and ideal experience of teaching professionalism, and “unprofessionalism” is a persistent problem. Important subthemes included the multiple bases that exist for defining professionalism, how professionalism is learned and taught versus how it should be taught, institutional and faculty tolerance and silence regarding unprofessionalism, stress as a contributor to unprofessionalism, and unprofessionalism arising from personality traits. Conclusions All faculty expressed that teaching and evaluating professionalism posed a challenge for them. They identified their own lapses in professionalism and their sense of powerlessness and failure to address these with one another as the single greatest barrier to teaching professionalism, given a perceived dominance of role modeling as a teaching tool. Participants had several recommendations for faculty development and acknowledged a need for culture change in teaching hospitals and university departments.
Convergence of Productivity Levels Among the EU Countries: Evidence from a Panel of Industries

We investigate whether economic integration stimulates income convergence and whether changes in production, specialisation and trade patterns associated with the enlargement process foster economic growth and convergence among countries. We examine income convergence via endogenous growth model for countries in which the scale factor stemming from learning‐by‐doing is a prevailing feature. We illustrate a clear connection between externalities and trade among EU countries. Empirical evidence based on a panel of industries shows that learning from export and import related scale effect do significantly affect the convergence process. We find that there is a low speed of convergence across the EU manufacturing. This implies that the degree of cross‐manufacturing productivity inequality disappears in the very long‐run. This in turn implies that manufacturing sectors, which are predicted, to be more productive in the past, are the same sectors that are also productive today.
Resource Depletion and Technical Change: Effects on U.S. Crude Oil Finding Costs from 1977 to 1994

A dramatic decline in U.S. crude oil finding costs has provoked intense interest in the extent to which technical progress has mitigated the effects of resource depletion. Analysis of depletion and technical change using data for 27 large U.S. oil producers from 1977-1994 is conducted using a translog cost function. The translog provides a flexible representation of the underlying production function, and controls for changing factor prices. The model also controls for the effect of prospect highgrading. Results show that an accelerating rate of technical change reduced average finding cost 15 percent (onshore) and 18 percent (offshore) per year by 1994. Resource depletion increased cost at an average annual rate of 7 percent onshore and 12 percent offshore. Technical change was relatively labor-using both onshore and offshore.
Four Clones of Borrelia burgdorferiSensu Stricto Cause Invasive Infection in Humans

ABSTRACT Lyme disease begins at the site of a tick bite, producing a primary infection with spread of the organism to secondary sites occurring early in the course of infection. A major outer surface protein expressed by the spirochete early in infection is outer surface protein C (OspC). In Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto, OspC is highly variable. Based on sequence divergence, alleles ofospC can be divided into 21 major groups. To assess whether strain differences defined by ospC group are linked to invasiveness and pathogenicity, we compared the frequency distributions of major ospC groups from ticks, from the primary erythema migrans skin lesion, and from secondary sites, principally from blood and spinal fluid. The frequency distribution of ospC groups from ticks is significantly different from that from primary sites, which in turn is significantly different from that from secondary sites. The major groups A, B, I, and K had higher frequencies in the primary sites than in ticks and were the only groups found in secondary sites. We define three categories of major ospC groups: one that is common in ticks but very rarely if ever causes human disease, a second that causes only local infection at the tick bite site, and a third that causes systemic disease. The finding that all systemicB. burgdorferi sensu stricto infections are associated with four ospC groups has importance in the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of Lyme disease.
Longitudinal Impacts of a Faculty Abroad Program: 1994-2007

When surveyed, faculty generally believe that study abroad is desirable or essential, that it is important to work with people from different cultural backgrounds, it helps people to function effectively in another culture within their profession, and enhances knowledge of current international issues and affairs (Dooley, Dooley & Carranza, 2008; Towsic, N.D.). Sending faculty to programs abroad can therefore enhance academic potential (Özturgut, 2007). The 10-day Faculty Abroad Seminar (FAS) sponsored through the Office of Mexican and Latin American Programs at Texas A&M University was developed to contribute to the internationalization of faculty by directly exposing them to the culture, history, government, business, and language of Mexico. The main objective was for faculty participants to incorporate applicable global experiences into their teaching and research programs. The purpose of this study was to determine the longitudinal impacts of the FAS on participants from 1994–2007 in terms of teaching and research collaboration. As faculty participants reflected about their teaching and research impacts, a higher percentage of respondents had teaching impacts compared with research impacts (74 percent and 64 percent, respectively). In describing personal impacts participants’ comments supported the belief that the Faculty Abroad Seminar changed them, personally, and professionally.
Assessing Credit Quality from Equity Markets: Is Structural Model a Better Approach?

In this paper, we investigate whether the theoretical default probability measures calculated from Merton's (1974) structural credit risk model can provide a better way to explain and predict credit rating than traditional statistical models. The empirical results suggest that Merton's theoretical default measure is not a sufficient statistic of equity market information concerning credit quality. By including the market value of the firm as an independent variable we can improve both in-sample fitting and out-of-sample predictability of credit ratings. Moreover, the empirical performance of this hybrid model is very similar to those simple statistical model. As a result, we conclude that structural models hardly provide any additional capability in capturing credit risk. Our empirical results show that instead of using the firm value only through the debt leverage ratio, as suggested in the structure models, one should include the market value of the firm as a separate factor affecting default probability when building credit risk models.
Data Warehousing Process Maturity: An Exploratory Study of Factors Influencing User Perceptions

This paper explores the factors influencing perceptions of data warehousing process maturity. Data warehousing, like software development, is a process, which can be expressed in terms of components such as artifacts and workflows. In software engineering, the Capability Maturity Model (CMM) was developed to define different levels of software process maturity. We draw upon the concepts underlying CMM to define different maturity levels for a data warehousing process (DWP). Based on the literature in software development and maturity, we identify a set of features for characterizing the levels of data warehousing process maturity and conduct an exploratory field study to empirically examine if those indeed are factors influencing perceptions of maturity. Our focus in this paper is on managerial perceptions of DWP. The results of this exploratory study indicate that several factors-data quality, alignment of architecture, change management, organizational readiness, and data warehouse size-have an impact on DWP maturity, as perceived by IT professionals. From a practical standpoint, the results provide useful pointers, both managerial and technological, to organizations aspiring to elevate their data warehousing processes to more mature levels. This paper also opens up several areas for future research, including instrument development for assessing DWP maturity
The Global Financial Crisis Revisited: Competition and Regulation

Abstract Using data of the systematic banking crises from 1981 to 2008, we examine how competition and regulation are related to the crises. We find that countries with higher concentration and/or higher market power of the banking industry are less prone to crises. Further, they are more likely to have weathered the 2008 global financial crisis. However, regulatory and institutional factors play little role and the estimation results are shown to be sensitive to measures of the degree of competition or severity of the crisis, as well as the coverage of the crises.
Uncertainty, Generic Strategy, Strategic Clarity, and Performance of Retail SMEs in Peru, Argentina, and the United States

This study examines the links among perceived environmental uncertainty, generic strategy, strategic clarity, and performance in small and medium‐sized enterprises in the retail industry in rgentina, eru, and the nited tates. Moderate support was found for links between the defender strategy and competitive uncertainty, the prospector strategy and technology uncertainty, and the analyzer strategy and market uncertainty. In all three nations, businesses with high and low strategic clarity—the extent to which a single generic strategy reflects the organization's strategic intent—outperformed those with moderate strategic clarity. Differences across nations are addressed, and future research opportunities are elaborated.
Synthetic curcuminoids modulate the arachidonic acid metabolism of human platelet 12-lipoxygenase and reduce sprout formation of human endothelial cells

Platelet 12-lipoxygenase (P-12-LOX) is overexpressed in different types of cancers, including prostate cancer, and the level of expression is correlated with the grade of this cancer. Arachidonic acid is metabolized by 12-LOX to 12(S)-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid [12(S)-HETE], and this biologically active metabolite is involved in prostate cancer progression by modulating cell proliferation in multiple cancer-related pathways inducing angiogenesis and metastasis. Thus, inhibition of P-12-LOX can reduce these two processes. Several lipoxygenase inhibitors are known, including plant and mammalian lipoxygenases, but only a few of them are known inhibitors of P-12-LOX. Curcumin is one of these lipoxygenase inhibitors. Using a homology model of the three-dimensional structure of human P-12-LOX, we did computational docking of synthetic curcuminoids (curcumin derivatives) to identify inhibitors superior to curcumin. Docking of the known inhibitors curcumin and NDGA to P-12-LOX was used to optimize the docking protocol for the system in study. Over 75% of the compounds of interest were successfully docked into the active site of P-12-LOX, many of them sharing similar binding modes. Curcuminoids that did not dock into the active site did not inhibit P-12-LOX. From a set of the curcuminoids that were successfully docked and selected for testing, two were found to inhibit human lipoxygenase better than curcumin. False-positive curcuminoids showed high LogP (theoretical) values, indicating poor water solubility, a possible reason for lack of inhibitory activity or/and nonrealistic binding. Additionally, the curcuminoids inhibiting P-12-LOX were tested for their ability to reduce sprout formation of endothelial cells (in vitro model of angiogenesis). We found that only curcuminoids inhibiting human P-12-LOX and the known inhibitor NDGA reduced sprout formation. Only limited inhibition of sprout formation at ∼IC50 concentrations has been seen. At IC50, a substantial amount of 12-HETE can be produced by lipoxygenase, providing a stimulus for angiogenic sprouting of endothelial cells. Increasing the concentration of lipoxygenase inhibitors above IC50, thus decreasing the concentration of 12(S)-HETE produced, greatly reduced sprout formation for all inhibitors tested. This universal event for all tested lipoxygenase inhibitors suggests that the inhibition of sprout formation was most likely due to the inhibition of human P-12-LOX but not other cancer-related pathways. [Mol Cancer Ther 2006;5(5):1371–82]
Isolation of Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae from Layer Hens Showing Clinical Signs of Infectious Coryza

SUMMARY Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae is the causal agent of porcine pleuropneumonia, which is a highly contagious respiratory disease that affects swine nearly exclusively. An isolate with characteristics of some Pasteurellaceae family members (Gram-negative bacterium, pleomorphic, and NAD-dependent) was isolated from layer hens showing clinical signs of infectious coryza. This bacterium presented hemolysis on rabbit red blood cell agar plates, and PCR amplification and sequencing of its 16S rDNA gene indicated 99% identity with A. pleuropneumoniae serotypes 3 and 7. The presence of a putative apxIIA gene was also determined by PCR. A single, smooth colony of this bacterium inoculated in five, 7-day-old chicken embryos via the yolk sac route induced 100% mortality. However, inoculation into 10-wk-old, specific-pathogen-free chickens induced only light facial swelling, and reisolation of the inoculated bacterium was negative. RESUMEN Reporte de caso—Aislamiento de Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae de gallinas de postura con signos clínicos de coriza infecciosa. Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae es el agente causal de la pleuroneumonía porcina, una enfermedad respiratoria altamente contagiosa que ha sido considerada que afecta casi exclusivamente a los cerdos. Se obtuvo un aislamiento con características de algunos de los miembros de la familia Pasteurellaceae (bacteria Gram negativa, pleomórfica y dependiente de NAD) a partir de gallinas de postura que mostraban signos clínicos de coriza infecciosa. Esta bacteria produjo hemólisis en placas de agar sangre de conejo. La amplificación por PCR del gene rDNA 16S y su secuenciación indicó una identidad del 99% con el rDNA de A. pleuropneumoniae serotipos 3 y 7. La presencia de un supuesto gene apxIIA también determinada por PCR. Cuando se inocularon cinco huevos embrionados de pollo de siete días de edad con una colonia lisa de esta bacteria a través del saco vitelino se observó 100% de mortalidad. Sin embargo, su inoculación en aves libres de patógenos específicos de 10 semanas de edad indujo únicamente una inflamación facial ligera, y el re-aislamiento de la bacteria inoculada fue negativo.
Human head electromagnetic scattering

The rationale for deriving basic restrictions to electromagnetic field exposure and their associated safety margins is not fully standardized and diverse values are employed depending upon the thermal effect being considered. With the recent capabilities of modern computers, hybrid Maxwell's and heat-transfer equations have been solved for the human exposure to electromagnetic field problem. In this contribution, a human head is exposed to 125 mW of power at 1800 MHz (corresponding to a GSM-Power Class 1, divided by 8 slots of time). Peak SAR values along a coronal plane containing the Ear Reference Point, and its effects on temperature increase, have been observed. A matching effect and the skull being a protection for thermal stress due to intense electromagnetic field exposure have been confirmed, validating previous studies suggesting that a combined electromagnetic-thermal basic restrictions would represent more accurate safety limits, reducing the uncertainties for deriving the reference levels.