Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Reviewing the Profile and Behaviour of Internet Users

SUMMARY Despite the wide-spread discussion of e-commerce advantages, research of e-commerce business models in the tourism literature has, to date, focused primarily on organisational, business and technical factors. In contrast, social considerations, i.e., factors related to the general societal context influencing the shape and adoption of e-commerce models in practice, have not been adequately addressed. As the wide success of e-commerce heavily depends on its adoption by society, it is imperative to develop a better understanding of the profile and behaviour of Internet surfers and shoppers. Thus, robust research on the adoption of e-commerce needs to consider the societal issues/factors affecting people and their environment. In this vein, by reviewing a great amount of literature from different disciplines, this paper aims to develop a holistic perspective for examining online tourists by integrating the study of individual, organisational, industrial, societal, and technological aspects of e-business. By consolidating and synthesizing a great number of studies, the paper also aims to identify and discuss future research opportunities and directions aiming to further examine Internet users and their behaviour.
On the effect of R&D in returns to experience

Using a recent macroeconomic database, we empirically estimate an ‘erosion effect’: we show that Total Factor Productivity (TFP) growth decreases returns to experience. The ‘erosion effect’ is typically stronger within the rich and the most experienced countries in the world. This article complements the scarce microeconomic literature on the issue and the theoretical macroeconomic literature recently coming to the conclusion that this effect has important implications for the interaction between human capital accumulation and TFP.
Serum levels, absorption efficiency, faecal elimination and synthesis of cholesterol during increasing doses of dietary sitostanol esters in hypercholesterolaemic subjects.

1. Serum cholesterol reduction and changes in cholesterol metabolism were studied during rapeseed oil feeding without and with increasing amounts of sitostanol trans-esterified with rapeseed oil fatty acids and dissolved in rapeseed oil mayonnaise. Fifteen mildly hypercholesterolaemic subjects replaced 50 g of their usual dietary fat by 50 g of rapeseed oil fat mayonnaise for 6 weeks followed by randomization so that eight subjects continued on rapeseed oil mayonnaise alone (control group) for 15 weeks and seven on rapeseed oil mayonnaise with a small dose of sitostanol ester (800 mg/day of sitostanol) for 9 weeks followed by 6 weeks with higher dose of sitostanol ester (2000 mg/day of sitostanol). 2. During the rapeseed oil period the reduction in serum low-density lipoprotein cholesterol was 14% from the home diet. The control-adjusted reduction by the low sitostanol ester dose was 7.4% (not significant) and by the higher dose it was 15.7%. 3. The low dose of sitostanol ester had no consistent effect on cholesterol precursors or cholestanol in serum, reduced serum levels of campesterol and sitosterol by 28.2% and 23.6%, respectively, and reduced cholesterol absorption efficiency significantly from 28.7% to 23.4%. In accordance, faecal excretion of neutral and particularly endogenous neutral sterols increased (16.7% and 19.7%, respectively), but faecal cholesterol elimination and cholesterol synthesis were only insignificantly increased. 4. During the high dose of sitostanol ester the high-density lipoprotein-to low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol ratio increased. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Cellular structure for total quality management in a globalized economy

Proponents of Total Quality Management (TQM) have strongly suggested that TQM implementation will lead to employee empowerment. However, in a surprisingly large number of cases, it was found that employee empowerment remains a dream. Instead, in some cases, with the implementation of TQM, employees found the organization even more hierarchical and their power is further eroded. In most of these cases, employee resentment was so strong that quality improvement was impaired. This problem arises mainly due to management's belief that a separate organization may be created to implement TQM above the existing organization structure in the company. Evidence has shown that this does not work and could be one of the main reasons for the implementation failure of TQM. For TQM to work there is a necessity to revamp or level the whole organization structure. This article attempts to present an organization structure that is believed to be able to facilitate the successful implementation of TQM.
Automatic labeling for news article classification based on paragraph vector

Getting useful information from the Internet plays an important role. A news site is one of Internet services often used for obtaining information on the Internet. The news site has advantages such that information update is fast and there are abundant kinds of information, and in recent years there are sites that collaborate with multiple newspaper companies and post bulk content. However, as there are a lot of articles, there are problems that it is difficult to find the articles we would like to read. Therefore, how to classify and present articles is an important issue. In this study, we consider the category classification of documents using distributed representation of sentences. Specifically, we propose a method to classify articles by extracting words with similar meanings from sentence vectors of each category and assigning them as labels.
Black Immigrants in the United States: A Comparison with Native Blacks and other Immigrants

This analysis of 1980 Census data shows that in 1979 immigrant black men had higher employment rates than native-born black men, but the wages of employed members of the two groups were nearly the same. Further, the wage differences that did exist between these groups appear to have stemmed from the selection process associated with migration, not (as has been argued by-some) from differences between the cultural traditions of immigrant and native-born blacks: on a variety of employment and wage measures, black Jamaican and other Caribbean immigrant men in 1979 were remarkably similar to native-born black “movers” (men who had moved out of their state of birth by the Census date).
Foreign Ownership and Real Earnings Management: Evidence from Japan

ABSTRACT: Studying a sample of Japanese firms, we examine whether foreign investors exert a significant influence on earnings management through manipulation of real activities. We find that foreign investors play an independent role in restraining real earnings management, as captured by abnormal cash flow from operations, abnormal discretionary expenses, abnormal production costs, or a composite of the aforementioned three measures. These results are robust to a variety of controls, including economic fundamentals, domestic blockholdings, governance mechanisms, and endogeneity of foreign ownership. Our findings indicate that sophisticated foreign investors, with relatively few business ties to local management, improve the accounting oversight of local firms by curbing earnings manipulation via operating activities. Collectively, our evidence suggests that one potential benefit of capital market globalization is less real earnings management in particular and higher earnings quality in general. JEL Clas.
From Rags to Rifles: Deprivation, Conflict and the Welfare State

Historical evidence suggests that poor population groups are more likely to engage in conflict. We construct a theoretical model of the choice between appropriation and production. Fully specified production functions allow for both symmetrical outcomes and for introducing inequalities in abilities and endowments. It is examined under what conditions income and capital redistribution, as well as education, health and poverty-alleviation spending reduce the incentives for appropriation. Empirical evidence is presented that is consistent with the theory.
The Trade-Off Model with Mean Reverting Earnings: Theory and Empirical Tests

The 'trade-off theory' of capital structure predicts a positive relationship between earnings and leverage, contradictory to well established empirical evidence. Since corporate earnings are known to be mean reverting, we reformulate the trade-off model "with mean reverting earnings". We show that, with mean reverting earnings, there should be a "negative" relationship between optimal leverage and the current earnings level. The model also illustrates the importance of the earnings reversion parameter in the determination of capital structure. The major implications of the model are supported by empirical tests carried out with a sample of firms in the S&P 500 Index. Copyright 2003 Royal Economic Society.
Dual Pareto Efficiency

Abstract Consider an economy with d commodities and n individuals. A pair (p, M), where p is a price vector and M = (m1, m2, ., mn) is a set of n individual income levels, defines a set of individual budget constraints. It is known that such pairs provide a framework for duality-based investigations of Pareto efficient allocations and of equilibria. This paper employs this framework in a general setting, not requiring smoothness or boundedness of budget sets, to develop duals of the first and second theorems of welfare economics. Namely, under suitable assumptions: (1) the price-income pair associated with any equilibrium is dual Pareto efficient, and (2) corresponding to any dual Pareto-efficient pair, there is an allocation which together with the given prices forms an equilibrium. Journal of Economic Literature Classification Number(s): D00, D50, D51, D6l.
Benefit‐risk analysis: a proposal using quantitative methods

This is the first part of a two‐article series which will introduce the theory and practice of a proposed set of quantitative methods for benefit‐risk analysis. Adjustments to number‐needed‐to‐treat (NNT) analysis and a new method, minimum clinical efficacy (MCE) analysis are presented and critically discussed. The goal of these methods is to condense into a summary metric the benefit‐risk profile of a product so that manufacturers, regulators, clinicians and patients can better understand and participate in risk management. A second article will present examples of these methods. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Temporal Clinical Chemistry and Microscopic Renal Effects Following Acute Uranyl Acetate Exposure

Military use of depleted uranium (DU) has renewed interest in the toxicology of this metal. In this study, the nephrotoxicity of single exposure DU was assessed with and without pre-exposure stress. Adult male Sprague–Dawley rats (n = 288) were administered a single IM dose of 0, 0.1, 0.3 or 1.0 mg/kg DU. Corticosterone concentrations (ng/ml, mean ± SD) were 763.65 ± 130.94 and 189.80 ± 90.81 for swim stressed and unstressed rats. Serum and kidney uranium concentration, hematocrit, chemistry, and renal histology were assessed on sacrifice days 1, 3, 7 and 30 post-DU-dosing. Dose related increases in serum and kidney uranium were noted. DU concentration peaked day 1 in the kidney and days 3–7, in the serum. Dose-related elevations of Cr and BUN concentrations were seen on days 3 and 7. A decline in serum albumin coincided with Cr and BUN suggesting protein losing nephropathy. Dose related acute tubular necrosis and proliferative glomulonephritis were seen. Tubular regeneration in low dose rats was almost complete by day 30. High dose rats had extensive tubular necrosis and delayed regeneration with focal residual chronic interstitial nephritis and cortical scarring. Glomular changes were reversed in all treatment groups by day 30. Stress exposure had no impact on any measured renal parameter.
Predictors of Total Mortality and Echocardiographic Response for Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy: A Cohort Study

Background Clinical studies demonstrate that up to 40% of patients do not respond to cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT), thus, appropriate patient selection is critical to the success of CRT in heart failure. Objective Evaluation of mortality predictors and response to CRT in the Brazilian scenario. Methods Retrospective cohort study including patients submitted to CRT in a tertiary hospital in southern Brazil from 2008 to 2014. Survival was assessed through a database of the State Department of Health (RS). Predictors of echocardiographic response were evaluated using Poisson regression. Survival analysis was performed by Cox regression and Kaplan Meyer curves. A two-tailed p value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results A total of 170 patients with an average follow-up of 1011 ± 632 days were included. The total mortality was 30%. The independent predictors of mortality were age (hazard ratio [HR] of 1.05, p = 0.027), previous acute myocardial infarction (AMI) (HR of 2.17, p = 0.049) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (HR of 3.13, p = 0.015). The percentage of biventricular stimulation at 6 months was identified as protective factor of mortality ([HR] 0.97, p = 0.048). The independent predictors associated with the echocardiographic response were absence of mitral insufficiency, presence of left bundle branch block and percentage of biventricular stimulation. Conclusion Mortality in patients submitted to CRT in a tertiary hospital was independently associated with age, presence of COPD and previous AMI. The percentage of biventricular pacing evaluated 6 months after resynchronizer implantation was independently associated with improved survival and echocardiographic response.
Education in Post-Independent Eritrea - A Brief Description

Education is an important pillar in the national economic development. It contributes to economic growth in varied forms. The educational system in Eritrea shows all the symptoms of prolonged neglect under colonialism and war. But education plays a key role in the development after independence. This paper discusses educational growth and development in post-independent Eritrea. It also analyses educational finances, and challenges for development in the country and thus provides some implications.
The long‐run Fisher effect in developing economies

Purpose - The purpose of this study is to test the validity of Fisher effect for four South Asian and two oil-producing countries, namely India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Design/methodology/approach - The autoregressive distributed lag-bound testing approach is used which is capable of testing the long-run relationship irrespective of whether the underlying series are individually I(0) or I(1). Findings - The estimation results indicate the presence of weak form of Fisher effect in India, Pakistan, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, while the hypothesis of the existence of Fisher effect is not supported for Bangladesh and mixed results are found for Sri Lanka. Practical implications - The results help monetary authorities to formulate better monetary policy, besides many other far reaching macroeconomic implications for each economy. Originality/value - The use of a variety of interest rates and the use of a relatively new technique in Fisher effect is tested in developing economies.
Planktonic copepods reacting selectively to hydrodynamic disturbances

In the water column, planktonic copepods encounter small-scale hydrodynamic disturbances generated by fellow zooplankters. Our question is whether or not the copepods can distinguish between hydrodynamic disturbances created by predators, prey, conspecifics and/or mates. We used a Schlieren optical system with a density gradient in the water volume and filmed at 48 frames per second to record the behaviour of copepods during encounters with an artificial hydrodynamic disturbance. We observed the reactions of Cyclops scutifer and Epischura nordenskioldi towards disturbances of different strengths. We also re-examined an earlier report on tandem swimming in C. scutifer while attempting to mate, using novel mathematical tools to analyse possible correlations between the two mates. We conclude that the information within the hydrodynamic disturbances created by swimming zooplankters has enough content for differentiated reactions. We also suggest that the adaptive value of tandem swimming during mating results in offspring capable of executing escape reactions comparable in strength to the disturbances.
Mothers, Maids and Tutors: An Empirical Evaluation of their Effect on Children's Academic Grades in Singapore

Abstract As female labour force participation in the workforce increases in Singapore, the basic economic unit—the home—has become wealthier, although arguably at the expense of both personal and family leisure. Yet with additional income, breadwinners are better able to undertake investment for their own well‐being or their children's well‐being that can offset the net loss of utility associated with less leisure. Concomitantly, it is common to find a domestic helper living with a Singapore family and other specialist helpers such as paid home tutors, who come to the home. This paper examines how this new investment vis‐à‐vis new home variables affects a child's overall academic performance. Primarily, the effects of a mother's choice to work, the presence of either tutors or domestic helpers and the effects of different investment strategies to raise a child's qualitative attributes. The paper asserts that how a child performs academically is less dependent on his/her choice of time use; rather, it is the number of qualitative benefits the child receives in the home environment. The conventional wisdom of ‘the more the better’ is questioned by the results of this study, arguing instead that diminishing returns set in far quicker when over‐investment in the child takes place.
Interactions Between Two Counterpropagating Plasma Bullets

Cold plasma jets produced by pulsed discharges have recently attracted a lot of attention because of their unusual physical properties enabling the development of new applications, particularly for plasma medicine. ICCD pictures of these jets revealed that they were not continuous plasmas but composed of plasma bullets propagating at very high velocity. In this paper, pictures of the interaction of two counterpropagating bullets have been taken to give insights into the physics of the bullets and to clarify which kind of models could be relevant to describe the bullet properties.
Improving the quality of corporate technical planning: dynamic analogues of QFD

This paper proposes a forecasting methodology based on a combination of QFD and S-curve analysis, In process industries there is a need to strengthen the linkages between process attributes, product attributes, and customer requirements. Industry planning processes accept the relationship between technological positioning, project portfolios, and market life cycles, but specific methods are seldom discussed. QFD(Quality Function Deployment) can be used to translate customer requirements into product specifications and in turn to specify the process capabilities required to meet those customer requirements. The paper recommends that managements use analogues of QFD adapted to the need for dynamic changes in process capability. This approach would focus on the interaction between key variables of customer requirements and the technological capabilities of the firm and its competitors, at present and in the future. Historical industry-wide capabilities would be projected through S-curve analysis, while customer requirements can be related to these capabilities through information from QFD studies focused on future customer requirements. Because of their potential complexity, these analyses should deal with only a very limited number of interacting attributes and special care should be given to the management of their implementation.
Mitigation of risks due to service provider behavior in offshore software development: A relationship approach

Purpose – Although risks and client‐vendor relationships in IT outsourcing have been studied in prior research, there is a paucity of studies providing insights on the mitigation of client risks through the relationship. This research aims to focus on mitigation of the ex post risks of firms engaged in offshore software development (OSD). Client risks due to service provider behavior are identified first. Further, this work seeks to identify relationship variables that could reduce the impact of determinants of risk on a risk category.Design/methodology/approach – This research followed a multiple case study method aiming to build insights and directions that would facilitate further research. The paper's goal of sampling was to choose cases which were likely to extend the emergent theory pertaining to risks and their mitigation through relationships.Findings – Findings from this study show that shirking, loss of control over information assets, and service provider lock‐in are the three categories of ex .
The cost-effectiveness of isotretinoin in the treatment of acne. Part 2. A chronic medication plan profiling study.

OBJECTIVES Aspects of current clinical practice, needed for a pharmaco-economic model of isotretinoin, were determined from an acne-profiling study on chronic medication plan data. The patient sample was analysed as a whole and as two subgroups, representing isotretinoin and oral antibiotic patients. The study focused on the prevalence of the condition, patient age and gender distributions, and pharmacotherapeutic patterns and costs. METHODOLOGY Anonymous patient records from the Pharmaceutical Benefit Management (Pty) Ltd, Cape Town, chronic medication plan were screened and analysed using descriptive and inferential statistical methods. For all hypothesis tests, the significance level (alpha) was set a priori at 5% (0.05). In order to determine the distribution of costs among patient groups, cost-concentration curves were constructed. RESULTS A total of 5,198 patient records were analysed, representing 3,546 acne patients (2.7% of applicants to the plan). The majority of patients were female (72.2%, median age 23 years), with male patients treated at a younger age (median age 19 years). The cyproterone/oestrogen combination was found to be the most frequently prescribed agent (25.2% of script items), followed by isotretinoin (15.6%). The oral antibiotics as a group accounted for 24.9% of script items, the leading agents being minocycline (10.1%) and doxycycline (7.1%). Isotretinoin (44.1%) represented the greatest expense, followed by hormonal therapies (24.7%) and oral antibiotics (16.7%). Female isotretinoin patients (55.1%) were older (median age 25 years), while the male patients were of an equivalent age to the collective sample. Patients treated with oral antibiotics represented the youngest group of patients (median age 20 years), with 57.8% being female. The annual pharmacotherapy expense per patient on oral antibiotics was R1 971.81 compared with R2 670.20 for all patients, and R6 140.81 for the isotretinoin group. For each of these groups there was an uneven cost distribution among patients. CONCLUSION The treatment of acne represents a significant burden to funders, estimated at R7.2 million per 100,000 beneficiaries. The distinct age and gender distribution patterns, together with the uneven distribution of costs among patients, provide valuable information for the treatment and management of the condition. This information indicates that the introduction of clinically based, focused management principles supported by sound pharmaco-economic arguments will be required to manage acne effectively.