Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
CSR disclosure in response to major airline accidents: a legitimacy-based exploration

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the literature investigating disclosure reactions to legitimacy threats by analyzing the corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure reactions to catastrophic accidents suffered by major airlines. Design/methodology/approach – The authors use content analysis to examine changes in annual report disclosure in response to four separate airline disasters. The authors adopt two classification schemes and two measurement approaches to explore these changes. Findings – The authors find that for three events the organizations appear to have responded with considerable increases in CSR disclosure that are consistent with attempts of legitimation. For one of the events examined, the authors find no disclosure response and suggest that this could be due to the company’s unwillingness to accept responsibility. Research limitations/implications – The study’s focus on major airlines that have suffered an accident with available annual reports in English mean.
Riding the Bubble? Chasing Returns into Illiquid Assets

Household investors chase stock market returns. Surveys suggest that households intend to "ride the bubble" by buying stocks early in a boom and selling stocks early in a bust. This implies that households use only liquid assets to chase returns. I test this prediction using inflows to fixed annuities---illiquid tax-preferred assets that lock wealth out of the stock market for five to ten years. I find that fixed annuity inflows spike after poor stock market returns, inconsistent with ride-the-bubble intentions and instead indicating buy-and-hold intentions. The results are consistent with households extrapolating recent stock market returns into the long run.
The implications of trade policy and 'natural' barriers induced protection for aggregate demand for imports: Evidence for Malawi

This paper analyses the relative importance of trade policy and ‘natural’ trade barriers in the demand for imports for Malawi, a geographically landlocked sub-Saharan African economy, using an augmented dynamic import demand model. Incidence analysis of protection shows that pre-liberalisation trade policy barriers were greater than ‘natural’ barriers but in post-liberalisation ‘natural’ barriers were greater. Econometric analysis of the import demand model shows that ‘true’ protection of importables has been a decisive disincentive to importing. Therefore, like other landlocked countries Malawi needs to aggressively lower not only trade policy barriers but also ‘natural’ barriers for greater efficient trade. Outline
e-Maternal, Neonatal and Child Health and Nutrition with Geographic Information System and Decision Support System

The study focused in developing an electronic Maternal, Neonatal and Child Health and Nutrition application system with Geographic Information System and Decision Support System as an electronic means of monitoring and guidance in decision-making on the health and nutrition status of mothers and their infants and children. A mixed-method type of research was employed. Experimental design was used to develop the system based on the eXtreme Programming software development methodology. Second, descriptive-quantitative design was used to describe the satisfaction and acceptability of the users (midwifes, BHWs and mothers) and determine the best determinant or predictor of acceptability of e-MNCHN. Lastly, qualitative design was used to come up with the feedbacks of the mothers regarding their use on the system. Based on eXtreme Programming, gathering of necessary information from the midwife and community health workers became the necessary basis in programming the e-MNCHN’s preliminary algorithms. The application system was rated both by the expert and the mothers as very effective. It was found out to be satisfactory at some extent, and acceptable at some extent. Documentation is the best and only determinant of acceptability of the system. This means that the documentation aspect of the system. Lastly, themes from emerge from the mothers’ feedbacks, namely IT factors, personal factors and social factors. This implies that the physical, graphical and infrastructure requirements of the system, the personal experiences, beliefs and profile of the users, and the role of the government and the users’ peers in the use of the e-MNCHN application system.
Heterogeneous cortical atrophy patterns in MCI not captured by conventional diagnostic criteria

Objective: We investigated differences in regional cortical thickness between previously identified empirically derived mild cognitive impairment (MCI) subtypes (amnestic MCI, dysnomic MCI, dysexecutive/mixed MCI, and cluster-derived normal) in order to determine whether these cognitive subtypes would show different patterns of cortical atrophy. Methods: Participants were 485 individuals diagnosed with MCI and 178 cognitively normal individuals from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative. Cortical thickness estimates were computed for 32 regions of interest per hemisphere. Statistical group maps compared each MCI subtype to cognitively normal participants and to one another. Results: The pattern of cortical thinning observed in each MCI subtype corresponded to their cognitive profile. No differences in cortical thickness were found between the cluster-derived normal MCI subtype and the cognitively normal group. Direct comparison between MCI subtypes suggested that the cortical thickness patterns reflect increasing disease severity. Conclusions: There is an ordered pattern of cortical atrophy among patients with MCI that coincides with their profiles of increasing cognitive dysfunction. This heterogeneity is not captured when patients are grouped by conventional diagnostic criteria. Results in the cluster-derived normal group further support the premise that the conventional MCI diagnostic criteria are highly susceptible to false-positive diagnostic errors. Findings suggest a need to (1) improve the diagnostic criteria by reducing reliance on conventional screening measures, rating scales, and a single memory measure in order to avoid false-positive errors; and (2) divide MCI samples into meaningful subgroups based on cognitive and biomarkers profiles—a method that may provide better staging of MCI and inform prognosis.
A Simple Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism-Based Strategy That Can Distinguish the Internal Genes of Human H1N1, H3N2, and H5N1 Influenza A Viruses

ABSTRACT A simple molecular technique for rapid genotyping was developed to monitor the internal gene composition of currently circulating influenza A viruses. Sequence information from recent H1N1, H3N2, and H5N1 human virus isolates was used to identify conserved regions within each internal gene, and gene-specific PCR primers capable of amplifying all three virus subtypes were designed. Subtyping was based on subtype-specific restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) patterns within the amplified regions. The strategy was tested in a blinded fashion using 10 control viruses of each subtype (total, 30) and was found to be very effective. Once standardized, the genotyping method was used to identify the origin of the internal genes of 51 influenza A viruses isolated from humans in Hong Kong during and immediately following the 1997–1998 H5N1 outbreak. No avian-human or H1-H3 reassortants were detected. Less than 2% (6 of 486) of the RFLP analyses were inconclusive; all were due to point mutations within a restriction site. The technique was also used to characterize the internal genes of two avian H9N2 viruses isolated from children in Hong Kong during 1999.
Influence of Promoter, Gene Copy Number, and Preexisting Immunity on Humoral and Cellular Responses to a Vectored Antigen Delivered by a Salmonella enterica Vaccine

ABSTRACT Attenuated Salmonella strains are currently in production as vaccines for protection of animals against salmonellosis. Such commercial strains offer the potential to deliver heterologous antigen to protect animals against other diseases. One vaccine strain, attenuated Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium (STM-1), was tested for the ability to deliver ovalbumin and to induce immune responses in mice. Two vaccine trials were performed testing the influence of promoter choice, the location of the encoding DNA (plasmid or chromosome), and the effect of preexisting homologous or heterologous immunity. The results demonstrated that humoral and T-cell responses were induced from either of two promoters, from either the plasmid or the chromosome, and that preexposure to the empty homologous vector, STM-1, or the heterologous vector, S. enterica serovar Enteritidis, had no detrimental effect on subsequent antigen-specific responses. In the case of homologous preexposure, responses were generally greater, and this was correlated with an increased uptake of Salmonella by macrophages in vitro after opsonization with immune sera.
Diphtheria: The Patch Still Remains–A Case Report From the State of Uttarakhand

Diphtheria is a potentially fatal acute infectious disease caused by toxigenic strains of Corynebacterium diphtheriae. It is rare in most developed countries due to routine childhood vaccination. Although Universal Immunization Programme is fully functional in India, several hospital-based surveillance studies over the recent years indicate that cases of this infection do occur among school-going children and adolescents. Poor immunization coverage, failure to take booster doses, and absence of data regarding coverage of booster doses of Diphtheria, Pertussis, and Tetanus vaccine are some of the factors responsible for persistence or possible reemergence of this infection in our country. There are no published reports of diphtheria from the state of Uttarakhand, India, in the recent years. We hereby report a confirmed case of diphtheria from this region.
The continuing challenge of treatment for non‐Hodgkin's lymphoma in children

The philosophy of treatment in children's cancers has changed steadily over the past 10±15 years as it has become apparent that in many tumour types the chance of cure is very high. One example is non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). In the early 1980s the focus of effort was to try to improve outcome in those patients with non-localized disease in whom standard CHOP-type regimens or more complex multiagent acute lymphocytic leukaemia (ALL) type protocols were of limited value. As will be described later, the strati®cation of treatment based on histological and subsequently immunophenotypic characteristics and the ability to signi®cantly escalate the doses of chemotherapy transformed the outcome, particularly in B-cell NHL. Currently, as much effort is applied to reducing the early and late sequelae of such treatments as to reducing the relapse rates in the small percentage that fail ®rst-line therapy (Magrath, 1997; Philip et al, 1996; Sandlund et al, 1996). With increased success in the commoner NHL subtypes, interest and effort has been directed towards the less common variants. These are not only biologically intriguing but have thrown up a whole new range of management problems. Their rarity has been a real stimulus to international collaboration which is a prerequisite to improve the understanding of these conditions and optimizing therapy.
A second visual rhodopsin gene, rh1-2, is expressed in zebrafish photoreceptors and found in other ray-finned fishes

ABSTRACT Rhodopsin (rh1) is the visual pigment expressed in rod photoreceptors of vertebrates that is responsible for initiating the critical first step of dim-light vision. Rhodopsin is usually a single copy gene; however, we previously discovered a novel rhodopsin-like gene expressed in the zebrafish retina, rh1-2, which we identified as a functional photosensitive pigment that binds 11-cis retinal and activates in response to light. Here, we localized expression of rh1-2 in the zebrafish retina to a subset of peripheral photoreceptor cells, which indicates a partially overlapping expression pattern with rh1. We also expressed, purified and characterized Rh1-2, including investigation of the stability of the biologically active intermediate. Using fluorescence spectroscopy, we found the half-life of the rate of retinal release of Rh1-2 following photoactivation to be more similar to that of the visual pigment rhodopsin than to the non-visual pigment exo-rhodopsin (exorh), which releases retinal around 5 times faster. Phylogenetic and molecular evolutionary analyses show that rh1-2 has ancient origins within teleost fishes, is under similar selective pressure to rh1, and likely experienced a burst of positive selection following its duplication and divergence from rh1. These findings indicate that rh1-2 is another functional visual rhodopsin gene, which contradicts the prevailing notion that visual rhodopsin is primarily found as a single copy gene within ray-finned fishes. The reasons for retention of this duplicate gene, as well as possible functional consequences for the visual system, are discussed. Summary: An ancient duplication of the rhodopsin gene, rh1-2, is a functional visual pigment and is expressed in retinal photoreceptors.
Novel Interactome of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Myosin Type II Identified by a Modified Integrated Membrane Yeast Two-Hybrid (iMYTH) Screen

Nonmuscle myosin type II (Myo1p) is required for cytokinesis in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Loss of Myo1p activity has been associated with growth abnormalities and enhanced sensitivity to osmotic stress, making it an appealing antifungal therapeutic target. The Myo1p tail-only domain was previously reported to have functional activity equivalent to the full-length Myo1p whereas the head-only domain did not. Since Myo1p tail-only constructs are biologically active, the tail domain must have additional functions beyond its previously described role in myosin dimerization or trimerization. The identification of new Myo1p-interacting proteins may shed light on the other functions of the Myo1p tail domain. To identify novel Myo1p-interacting proteins, and determine if Myo1p can serve as a scaffold to recruit proteins to the bud neck during cytokinesis, we used the integrated split-ubiquitin membrane yeast two-hybrid (iMYTH) system. Myo1p was iMYTH-tagged at its C-terminus, and screened against both cDNA and genomic prey libraries to identify interacting proteins. Control experiments showed that the Myo1p-bait construct was appropriately expressed, and that the protein colocalized to the yeast bud neck. Thirty novel Myo1p-interacting proteins were identified by iMYTH. Eight proteins were confirmed by coprecipitation (Ape2, Bzz1, Fba1, Pdi1, Rpl5, Tah11, and Trx2) or mass spectrometry (AP-MS) (Abp1). The novel Myo1p-interacting proteins identified come from a range of different processes, including cellular organization and protein synthesis. Actin assembly/disassembly factors such as the SH3 domain protein Bzz1 and the actin-binding protein Abp1 represent likely Myo1p interactions during cytokinesis.
A system for matching moving vehicles across different camera sites in outdoor environments

A method for identifying the same running vehicle from images captured at different camera sites is proposed. This is achieved through an image matching process. With cameras installed at the inlets and exits of highways and at crossroads in a road network, the system can be used for tracking the routes of individual vehicles and computing the times of traveling from one site to another. The system has the advantages of being low cost and not requiring sophisticated imaging hardware. Contributions include (i) a novel background removal method that employs the robust RANSAC algorithm for estimation, (ii) an elaborate shadow removal algorithm, and (iii) an effective license plate matching method applicable to poor quality images. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Imaging Syst Technol, 15, 211–219, 2005
On the Extent of Economic Integration

European economic integration is commonly believed to be incomplete, and that further reforms are needed. In this context, the union of U.S. states is considered the benchmark of complete economic integration and is often the basis for comparison regarding the extent of E.U economic integration. Yet, with low trade barriers and with productive factors at least notionally mobile across E.U. countries, is the belief that U.S. states are more integrated than E.U. member states correct? To address this question, this paper first develops three theoretical predictions about the distribution of output and factors that would arise among members of a fully integrated economic area in which goods, capital and labor are freely mobile and policies are harmonized. These theoretical predictions are then empirically tested using data on the output and factor stocks of 14 E.U. member states and the 51 U.S. states (includes District of Columbia) for the period 1965 to 2000. The empirical results convincingly support each theoretical prediction. Hence, contrary to popular belief, the extent of E.U. economic integration is not statistically different from that among U.S. states.
Model-Based Predictive Current Controllers in Multiphase Drives Dealing with Natural Reduction of Harmonic Distortion

An important drawback in the application of model-based predictive controllers for multiphase systems is the relatively high harmonic content. Harmonics arise due to the fixed sampling-time nature and the absence of modulation methods in the control technique. Recent research works have proposed different procedures to overcome this disadvantage at the expense of increasing the complexity of the controller and, in most cases, the computational requirements. There are, however, natural ways to face this harmonic generation that have been barely explored in the scientific literature. These alternatives include the use of variable sampling times or the application of the observer theory, whose utility has been stated without excessively increasing the computational cost of the controller. This paper presents the basis of both methodologies, analyzing their interest as natural alternatives to mitigate the generation of harmonic components in modern electrical drives when using predictive controllers. A five-phase induction machine is used as a case example to experimentally validate the study and draw conclusions.
Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid exosomes contribute to cytokine and leukotriene production in allergic asthma

Leukotrienes (LTs) are potent pro‐inflammatory mediators involved in asthma. Exosomes, nanosized vesicles released from various cells, can stimulate or down‐regulate immune responses, depending on the state and nature of the originating cell. We have recently shown an altered exosome profile in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) of patients with sarcoidosis, but their role in asthma is unknown. Our aims were to investigate whether exosomes from BALF have LT biosynthetic capacity and to explore phenotypic and functional characteristics of BALF exosomes in asthma.
Multiobjective Optimization and Fuzzy Logic Applied to Planning of the Volt/Var Problem in Distributions Systems

This paper deals with integrated voltage and reactive power control (volt/var) for radial distribution feeders in planning issues, by means of the application of automatic voltage regulators (AVRs) banks and capacitors. A multiobjective genetic algorithm (SPEA2) improved using fuzzy logic is presented to solve the volt/var problem, since it is a combinatorial multiobjective optimization problem. The expert knowledge is taken into account via fuzzy logic in order to reduce the search space using voltage regulators in standard units. According to the multiobjective optimization fundamentals, an optimal solution ensemble is obtained, which concomitantly represents the solutions to both objectives, in such way that the operational restrictions of systems are satisfied. The algorithm is evaluated for a known 69-bus feeder in the literature of the subject. The obtained results demonstrate that the proposed method provides good concordance between the obtained solution and the Pareto front.
Real-time simulations and experiments on ultrahigh frequency surface waves in micro-structured phononic crystals

We investigate experimentally and by numerical simulation the interaction between ultrahigh frequency surface acoustic waves (SAW) and periodic microstructures. We use both one-dimensional (1D) phononic crystals consisting of copper lines embedded in silicon oxide and 2D phononic crystals consisting of air-filled holes etched as a square lattice in a silicon substrate. Experimental results obtained by ultrashort pulsed optical excitation and interferometric detection are compared to time-domain finite element (FEM) simulations of the propagating ultrahigh frequency SAW with frequency components up to ~1 GHz in these phononic crystals, allowing the investigation of SAW scattering and phononic band structure. Good agreement was obtained between simulation and experiment.
Osteoclast Fusion: Time‐Lapse Reveals Involvement of CD47 and Syncytin‐1 at Different Stages of Nuclearity

Investigations addressing the molecular keys of osteoclast fusion are primarily based on end‐point analyses. No matter if investigations are performed in vivo or in vitro the impact of a given factor is predominantly analyzed by counting the number of multi‐nucleated cells, the number of nuclei per multinucleated cell or TRAcP activity. But end‐point analyses do not show how the fusion came about. This would not be a problem if fusion of osteoclasts was a random process and occurred by the same molecular mechanism from beginning to end. However, we and others have in the recent period published data suggesting that fusion partners may specifically select each other and that heterogeneity between the partners seems to play a role. Therefore, we set out to directly test the hypothesis that fusion factors have a heterogenic involvement at different stages of nuclearity. Therefore, we have analyzed individual fusion events using time‐lapse and antagonists of CD47 and syncytin‐1. All time‐lapse recordings have been studied by two independent observers. A total of 1808 fusion events were analyzed. The present study shows that CD47 and syncytin‐1 have different roles in osteoclast fusion depending on the nuclearity of fusion partners. While CD47 promotes cell fusions involving mono‐nucleated pre‐osteoclasts, syncytin‐1 promotes fusion of two multi‐nucleated osteoclasts, but also reduces the number of fusions between mono‐nucleated pre‐osteoclasts. Furthermore, CD47 seems to mediate fusion mostly through broad contact surfaces between the partners’ cell membrane while syncytin‐1 mediate fusion through phagocytic‐cup like structure. J. Cell. Physiol. 232: 1396–1403, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The Normal Logarithmic Transform

There are two ways of treating data which are distributed in this manner: (i) One may actually go over to the logarithms y = log x and proceed as though y were normal or nearly so; in this case m is calculated as the mean of y and ois the standard deviation of y and the usual formulas ? m = o,\Vn, uJa = o/V2n would apply. (2) Or one may fit the transform by moments on the original data, in which case the values of m and a may be somewhat different and their standard deviations will be determined by other formulas. We propose to discuss briefly some matters, connected with the logarithmic transform, which we believe have had insufficient emphasis. To make the discussion less abstract we shall give numerical illustrations obtained from the distribution of the percentage net debt (state and municipal) of the forty-eight states relative to the wealth of the state as estimated a decade