Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Combined SPECT and diffusion-weighted MRI as a predictor of infarct growth in acute ischemic stroke.

UNLABELLED In acute ischemic stroke, the infarcted core is surrounded by a zone of tissue that has decreased perfusion. Some of this tissue may be salvaged by prompt, effective treatment. Diffusion-weighted MRI is sensitive in detecting the infarcted tissue, whereas SPECT also detects the hypoperfused tissue around the infarcted core. We studied the potential of combined diffusion-weighted MRI and SPECT to predict infarct growth and clinical outcome in patients not receiving thrombolytic treatment. METHODS Sixteen patients with acute stroke were examined consecutively with diffusion-weighted MRI and 99mTc-ethyl cysteinate dimer (99mTc-ECD) SPECT within 24 h of the onset of symptoms. Follow-up diffusion-weighted MRI was performed on the second day and after 1 wk. The volumes of infarcted and hypoperfused brain tissue were measured from diffusion-weighted MRI and SPECT, respectively. The volume difference between the hypoperfused and infarcted tissue on the first day was compared with the possible increase in infarct volume during the follow-up. Each patient's neurologic status was assessed with the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS). RESULTS The volume of infarcted tissue increased from 48 +/- 54 cm3 (mean +/- SD) on the first day to 88 +/- 93 cm3 on the second day (P = 0.001) and to 110 +/- 121 cm3 at 1 wk (P = 0.001). The volume of hypoperfused tissue on the first day was significantly greater than the infarct volume (102 +/- 135 cm3; P = 0.001). The volume difference between the hypoperfused and infarcted tissue on the first day correlated significantly with the infarct growth between the first day and 1 wk (r = 0.71; P < 0.01). Between the first day and 1 wk, the increase of the infarct volume correlated significantly with the change in the NIHSS (r = 0.54; P < 0.05). CONCLUSION A large hypoperfusion zone around the infarct core in the acute phase of ischemic stroke predicts the infarct growth during the first week, and this correlates significantly with the change in the neurologic status of the patient. Combined diffusion-weighted MRI and SPECT performed within 24 h after the onset of symptoms can be useful in the evaluation of acute stroke to predict infarct growth.
Improving Non-local Video Denoising with Local Binary Patterns and Image Quantization

The most challenging aspect of video and image denoising is to preserve texture and small details, while filtering out noise. To tackle such problem, we present two novel variants of the 3D Non-Local Means (NLM3D) which are suitable for videos and 3D images. The first proposed algorithm computes texture patterns for each pixel by using the LBP-TOP descriptor to modify the NLM3D weighting function. It also uses MSB (Most Significant Bits) quantization to improve robustness to noise. The second proposed algorithm filters homogeneous and textured regions differently. It analyses the percentage of non-uniform LBP patterns of a region to determine whether or not the region exhibits textures and/or small details. Quantitative and qualitative experiments indicate that the proposed approaches outperform well known methods for the video denoising task, especially in the presence of textures and small details.
A Random Walk Down Wall Street: The Time-Tested Strategy for Successful Investing

Updated with a new chapter that draws on behavioural finance, the field that studies the psychology of investment decisions, here is the best-selling, authoritative and gimmick-free guide to investing. Burton Malkiel evaluates the full range of investment opportunities, from stocks, bonds and money markets to insurance, home ownership and tangible assets such as gold or collectibles. This edition includes new strategies for rearranging your portfolio for retirement, along with the book's classic life-cycle guide to investing, which matches the needs of investors in any age bracket. "A Random Walk Down Wall Street" long ago established itself as the first book to purchase before starting a portfolio and this "entertaining and informative" ("Financial Times") book remains the best investing guide money can buy.
A Theory of Disappointment Aversion

An axiomatic model of preferences over lotteries is developed. It is shown that this model is consistent with the Allais paradox, includes expected utility theory as a special case, and is only one parameter (" beta") richer than the expected utility model. Allais paradox type behavior is identified with positive values of "beta. " Preferences with positive "beta" are said to be disappointment averse. It is shown that risk aversion implies disappointment aversion and that the Arrow-Pratt measures of risk aversion can be generalized in a straight-forward manner to the current framework. Copyright 1991 by The Econometric Society.
Enhanced Cluster Based Routing in WSN

Energy is the main issue in the WSN as these networks contains the battery operated nodes. The energy consumption can be reduced by efficient routing in the network. The efficient routing needs the proper cluster head selection along with the proper cluster size. Moreover, the cluster shape is also an important factor to optimize the clustering. This paper studies various routing schemes in the WSN. These schemes cover the cluster shape, cluster size and cluster head selection processes.
Risk-Adjusted Performance of Real Estate Stocks: Evidence from Developing Markets

This paper examines the performance of real estate stocks listed in seven developing markets in East Asia between 1992 and 2002. Using panel regressions, the goal is to identify determinants of the risk-adjusted returns of real estate securities traded in these markets. The empirical evidence suggests that size, book-to-market value, capital structure and market diversification have significant influence on the performance of real estate securities. Asset structure and development exposure, however, do not appear to have any significant effect on the returns behavior, while dividend yield has limited influence. As expected, interest rates and market condition have significant impact on the returns of real estate stocks. The Asian Financial Crisis also has an adverse impact on stocks' performance.
Dynamic Properties Influence the Perception of Facial Expressions

Two experiments were conducted to investigate the role played by dynamic information in identifying facial expressions of emotion. Dynamic expression sequences were created by generating and displaying morph sequences which changed the face from neutral to a peak expression in different numbers of intervening intermediate stages, to create fast (6 frames), medium (26 frames), and slow (101 frames) sequences. In experiment 1, participants were asked to describe what the person shown in each sequence was feeling. Sadness was more accurately identified when slow sequences were shown. Happiness, and to some extent surprise, was better from faster sequences, while anger was most accurately detected from the sequences of medium pace. In experiment 2 we used an intensity-rating task and static images as well as dynamic ones to examine whether effects were due to total time of the displays or to the speed of sequence. Accuracies of expression judgments were derived from the rated intensities and the results were similar to those of experiment 1 for angry and sad expressions (surprised and happy were close to ceiling). Moreover, the effect of display time was found only for dynamic expressions and not for static ones, suggesting that it was speed, not time, which was responsible for these effects. These results suggest that representations of basic expressions of emotion encode information about dynamic as well as static properties.
Ownership and management issues in first generation and multi-generation family firms

A matched sample methodology was utilized to detect ownership and management differences between first generation and multi-generation independent unquoted family companies in the UK. Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) in first generation and multi-generation companies were generally drawn from the family owning the company. Both types of companies also had small management teams. Several statistically significant differences were detected. CEOs served longer apprenticeships in multi-generation rather than first generation companies. Multi-generation rather than first generation companies were more likely to employ managers drawn from the family owning the company. In other respects, multi-generation companies generally appeared to be better managed than first generation companies. Multi-generation companies had larger boards of directors. Moreover, a larger proportion of multi-generation rather than first generation companies employed a non-executive director. Owners of both types of family companies, but particularly the owners of first generation companies may be ‘control averse’. Many first generation companies (and some multi-generation companies) associated with a shallower managerial pool had failed to address this potential managerial and strategic weakness by selective use of ‘outside’ managerial expertise. Implications for practitioners and researchers are discussed.
Effect of Cell Growth on Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) Replication and a Mechanism of Cell Confluence-Based Inhibition of HCV RNA and Protein Expression

ABSTRACT An intimate relationship between hepatitis C virus (HCV) replication and the physiological state of the host liver cells has been reported. In particular, a highly reproducible and reversible inhibitory effect of high cell density on HCV replication was observed: high levels of HCV RNA and protein can be detected in actively growing cells but decline sharply when the replicon cells reach confluence. Arrested cell growth of confluent cells has been proposed to be responsible for the inhibitory effect. Indeed, other means of arresting cell growth have also been shown to inhibit HCV replication. Here, we report a detailed study of the effect of cell growth and confluence on HCV replication using a flow cytometry-based assay that is not biased against cytostasis and reduced cell number. Although we readily reproduced the inhibitory effect of cell confluence on HCV replication, we found no evidence of inhibition by serum starvation, which arrested cell growth as expected. In addition, we observed no inhibitory effect by agents that perturb the cell cycle. Instead, our results suggest that the reduced intracellular pools of nucleosides account for the suppression of HCV expression in confluent cells, possibly through the shutoff of the de novo nucleoside biosynthetic pathway when cells become confluent. Adding exogenous uridine and cytidine to the culture medium restored HCV replication and expression in confluent cells. These results suggest that cell growth arrest is not sufficient for HCV replicon inhibition and reveal a mechanism for HCV RNA inhibition by cell confluence.
Role of epithelial cell fibroblast growth factor receptor substrate 2α in prostate development, regeneration and tumorigenesis

The fibroblast growth factor (FGF) regulates a broad spectrum of biological activities by activation of transmembrane FGF receptor (FGFR) tyrosine kinases and their coupled intracellular signaling pathways. FGF receptor substrate 2α (FRS2α) is an FGFR interactive adaptor protein that links multiple signaling pathways to the activated FGFR kinase. We previously showed that FGFR2 in the prostate epithelium is important for branching morphogenesis and for the acquisition of the androgen responsiveness. Here we show in mice that FRS2α is uniformly expressed in the epithelial cells of developing prostates, whereas it is expressed only in basal cells of the mature prostate epithelium. However, expression of FRS2α was apparent in luminal epithelial cells of regenerating prostates and prostate tumors. To investigate FRS2α function in the prostate, the Frs2α alleles were ablated specifically in the prostatic epithelial precursor cells during prostate development. Similar to the ablation of Fgfr2, ablation of Frs2α disrupted MAP kinase activation, impaired prostatic ductal branching morphogenesis and compromised cell proliferation. Unlike the Fgfr2 ablation, disrupting Frs2α had no effect on the response of the prostate to androgens. More importantly, ablation of Frs2α inhibited prostatic tumorigenesis induced by oncogenic viral proteins. The results suggest that FRS2α-mediated signals in prostate epithelial cells promote branching morphogenesis and proliferation, and that aberrant activation of FRS2-linked pathways might promote tumorigenesis. Thus, the prostate-specific Frs2αcn mice provide a useful animal model for scrutinizing the molecular mechanisms underlying prostatic development and tumorigenesis.
PUBLIC R&D AND INDUSTRIAL INNOVATIONS AT THE PROJECT LEVELS: AN EXPLORATION OF TAIWAN'S PUBLIC RESEARCH PROJECTS

This study investigates the role of the ITRI in Taiwan's technological catch-up. The authors examine the relationship between public R&D and industrial innovations in Taiwan using data encompassing 252 ITRI annual research projects and the survey on the characteristics of 5902 cases of transferred technologies within these projects. The authors develop a new index of innovative output to measure the monetary value of patents for research projects. They find that the influences of accumulated R&D stock, high-level R&D personnel, and the intensity of process innovations on project-level R&D productivity to be more pronounced when the monetary value of patents, instead of simple patent counts, is used as the proxy for innovation outputs. (JEL "O12", "L63") Copyright 2005 Western Economic Association International.
Response of switchgrass yield to future climate change

A climate envelope approach was used to model the response of switchgrass, a model bioenergy species in the United States, to future climate change. The model was built using general additive models (GAMs), and switchgrass yields collected at 45 field trial locations as the response variable. The model incorporated variables previously shown to be the main determinants of switchgrass yield, and utilized current and predicted 1 km climate data from WorldClim. The models were run with current WorldClim data and compared with results of predicted yield obtained using two climate change scenarios across three global change models for three time steps. Results did not predict an increase in maximum switchgrass yield but showed an overall shift in areas of high switchgrass productivity for both cytotypes. For upland cytotypes, the shift in high yields was concentrated in northern and north-eastern areas where there were increases in average growing season temperature, whereas for lowland cultivars the areas where yields were projected to increase were associated with increases in average early growing season precipitation. These results highlight the fact that the influences of climate change on switchgrass yield are spatially heterogeneous and vary depending on cytotype. Knowledge of spatial distribution of suitable areas for switchgrass production under climate change should be incorporated into planning of current and future biofuel production. Understanding how switchgrass yields will be affected by future changes in climate is important for achieving a sustainable biofuels economy.
Option-Adjusted Equilibrium Valuation of Guaranteed Minimum Death Benefits in Variable Annuities

In the United States, variable annuity contracts are mutual funds with tax-deferred investment gains containing an additional embedded put option with a stochastic maturity date. At death, the beneficiary - or estate - of the policy owner is assured to receive the greater of the account market value and the original investment premium, perhaps with a minimally guaranteed "roll up" rate. Payment for this life-contingent claim, is not made up front, but rather deducted continuously from the account in the form of a constant insurance expense ratio. This proportional expense stands in contrast to a fixed periodic - or initial - insurance premium and is what differentiates our research from previous analysis of similar equity-linked life products. In this paper we value the guaranteed minimum death benefit (GMDB) of a variable annuity by melding the tools of continuous-time financial economics and the actuarial theory of mortality functions. Specifically, we solve for the equilibrium insurance expense ratio that funds the embedded put option. We demonstrate that the equilibrium expense ratio solves a type of fixed point equation that relates the risk-neutral expected present value of costs and benefits. From an analytic perspective, with an assumed constant force of mortality, we show that the present value of the guaranteed minimum death benefit is the Laplace transform - in time - of the classical Black-Scholes/Merton equation adjusted for dividends, where the dividend is the insurance expense ratio. Remarkably, the final expression can be obtained in closed form and does not even involve the normal density. On the other hand, when the mortality is given a more realistic continuous time Gompertz structure, we obtain quite robust expressions and numerical values for the equilibrium insurance expense ratio. Finally, using a cross section of average insurance expense ratios (known as Mortality and Expense charges) provided by Morningstar Data - and reasonable estimates of market volatility - we conclude that in most cases the insurance industry is charging variable annuity holders approximately five to ten times the economic value of the guarantee.
Cultivating Voters: The Social Relations of Agriculture and Racial Politics in the New South

The twentieth-century Southern racial political order is conventionally seen as a product of tenant farming and economic stagnation. This article argues that class and racial struggles in agriculture had a variety of effects, some enhancing white political advantage while others undermined it, and that these effects differed depending on the racial composition of county populations. These results shed new light on the politics of black land loss and the trajectory of southern political development.
PENDAPATAN, PENDIDIKAN, TEMPAT TINGGAL, DAN KEMAUAN MEMBAYAR ASURANSI KESEHATAN ANAK: PENGGUNAAN TEKNIK "BIDDING GAME" 1= INCOME, EDUCATION, RESIDENCE, AND WILLINGNESS TO PAY FOR ...

Backgrounds: Over recent years health policymakers and academicians in Indonesia have shown zealous interest in expanding the explicit role of health insurance in the health financing system. However, many health financing policies produced are lacking in prudent consideration of economic theory and empirical evidence. This paper presents the results of a willingness to pay study for child health insurance that used a robust contingent valuation method, namely the bidding game technique. Subject and methods: A total of 409 children aged 3 to 7 years from 10 and 9 kindergartens in Surakarta and Boyolali (Central Java, Indonesia), respectively, were selected for study by proportional random sampling. Each father of these children was interviewed by use of a set of structured questionnaire. Willingness to pay was estimated by Ordinary Least Square (OLS) regression. Results: Thirty six percent of fathers did not want to buy a child health insurance scheme. Income, education, and residence do not determine this decision. Mean WTP for childs premium is Rp28.743,00 per month, with standard deviation of Rp29.271,00, and median WTP of Rp20.000,00. Family income, education, and residence are important determinants for WTP for childs health insurance, and they are all statistically significant at 1% level. Family income has an elasticity of 0.53 (95%CI 0.40 to 0.65), meaning that a 10% increase in family income leads to 5% rise in WTP for child health insurance. Conclusion: The paper has informed policymakers of the demand for health insurance and feasible prices. It is particularly useful for estimating the level of subsidies required to fill the gap between the maximum possible premium to be charged to social health insurance participants and the costs of providing health care services. An understanding of the determinants of WTP is useful for selecting the appropriate strategies for expanding the coverage of health insurance.
A NOVEL MINIMALLY OCCLUSIVE MICROVASCULAR ANASTOMOSIS TECHNIQUE USING A TEMPORARY INTRALUMINAL SHUNT: A PROSPECTIVE TECHNIQUE TO MINIMIZE BRAIN ISCHEMIA TIME DURING SUPERFICIAL TEMPORAL ARTERY‐TO‐MIDDLE CEREBRAL ARTERY BYPASS

OBJECTIVE To describe a new technique of suturing microvessels with persistent perfusion via a temporary intraluminal microshunt. METHODS Experiments were conducted in Wistar rats. Abdominal aorta grafts were explanted from donor rats. A soft silicon microcatheter was introduced into the lumen of this graft. The abdominal aorta of a recipient rat was prepared for end-to-side microvascular anastomosis. Acland clamps (S&T AG, Neuhausen, Switzerland) were applied, and a linear arteriotomy was made. One end of the graft-clad microcatheter was introduced into the lumen and occluded with a fenestrated Acland clamp. At a more distal part, a similar arteriotomy was performed, and the other end of the microcatheter was introduced into the lumen and clamped with a fenestrated Acland clip. This created a temporary shunt through the graft-clad microcatheter. Then, the graft was anastomosed to the arteriotomies at both ends, over the microcatheter, in an end-to-side manner. The microcatheter was explanted from the vessel lumen through an arteriotomy in the middle of the graft. The graft was clipped short to close this arteriotomy. The mean total occlusion time before perfusion was reestablished amounted to 3.7 minutes. This experiment was repeated in 12 animals (6 with and 6 without heparin) without technical complications. As controls, conventional anastomoses were made in 2 animals. RESULTS Suturing microvessels mandates their occlusion during the period of anastomosis. Although ischemia is well tolerated by other tissue types, the brain is quite sensitive to even short windows of ischemia. Nonocclusive anastomotic techniques have been developed recently. These are confined to vessels with luminal diameters greater than 3 mm. We have evolved a novel technique that can be used with microvessels, as pertinent to superficial temporal artery-to-middle cerebral artery bypass. CONCLUSION We have described a new technique for performing microvascular anastomoses over a temporary intraluminal microcatheter shunt.