Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Strategic Choice and Performance of Universities in Kenya: The Mediating Role of Organizational Learning

Scholars and practitioners argue that organizational performance is important for both empirical and conceptual research in strategic management. Strategic choice is a major connection between the organization and the environment and involves decisions on the mix of business portfolio. Organizational learning, on the other hand, involves a process of change which evolves around improving the organizational capability through new knowledge. However, different scholars conceptualize organizational learning differently depending on their interests. This empirical research sought to contribute to knowledge by assessing the extent to which organizational learning influences the relationship between strategic choice and performance of universities in Kenya. The study premised on the view that establishing the role of organizational learning maximizes the capabilities and competitive advantage in the performance of universities in Kenya. The study was anchored in the industrial organizations economics theory as the main theory. The study adopted a positivistic orientation and used a cross sectional survey. This study used a sample of fifty two and got responses from forty three private and public universities. Primary data was collected using semi structured questionnaires. An analysis was done using correlation and regression analysis to test the hypotheses. The study objective confirmed mediation of organizational learning confirmed significant results on nonfinancial performance. The findings of this study are consistent with most of the previous studies. This study therefore extends the knowledge frontiers in strategic management through the finding that strategic choice influences organizational performance both directly and indirectly through mediation of organizational learning. The findings of this study provide a diversity of implications on theory, policy and practice. Policy makers will utilize the findings from this study as a guide in the policy formulation and implementation of strategic choices aimed at improved performance of the universities in Kenya with focus on strategic choice and organizational learning. Key Words: Strategic Choice, Organizational Learning, Organizational Performance
Optimization of a mouse locomotor rating system to evaluate compression-induced spinal cord injury: correlation of locomotor and morphological injury indices.

OBJECT Due to the usefulness of mouse genetics, there is a need to improve procedures for producing and assessing spinal cord injury (SCI) in mice. The authors describe an improved locomotor scoring system for evaluating SCI. The modified Basso-Beattie-Bresnahan (mBBB) scoring system for mice is compared with existing procedures as well as histological SCI criteria. METHODS Mice were subjected to SCI by placing a weight on the cord at T-12 for 5 to 15 minutes after laminectomy to produce spinal cord ischemia. Injury was assessed using mBBB scoring that incorporates elements of the rat BBB and the mouse motor function scoring systems that are best suited for precisely assessing mouse SCI. The mBBB score was found to be more discriminating than the inclined plane test, and in the authors' laboratory it had a significantly lower coefficient of variation than the Basso mouse scale score. The mBBB score is well correlated with sparing of white matter as assessed by eriochrome cyanine staining of myelin. CONCLUSIONS Weight placement at T-12 in the mouse causes reproducible SCI. A new mBBB scoring system is useful for accurately assessing locomotor dysfunction following SCI in mice and is well correlated with histological assessment of spinal cord white matter.
Model predictive control-based wind turbine blade pitch angle control for alleviation of frequency fluctuation in a smart grid

This paper proposes model predictive control (MPC) for wind turbine blade pitch angle control of a smart grid. The MPC is an effective model-based predictive control which calculates future control signals by optimization method using plant model, current and past signals of the system. The MPC-based blade pitch angle control is used for smoothing of wind power production of wind turbine generator. As a result, the frequency fluctuation in the smart grid system resulted from wind power deviation can be maintained. The simulation results performed in a two-area interconnected power system show that the MPCs-based blade pitch angle of wind turbine generator is capable to reduce frequency fluctuation on the study system.
Evaluation of 18F-annexin V as a PET imaging agent in an animal model of apoptosis.

UNLABELLED Annexin V is a 36-kDa protein that binds with high affinity to phosphatidylserine lipids in the cell membrane. Because one of the earliest measurable events in apoptosis is the eversion of phosphatidylserine from the inner membrane leaflet to the outer cell surface, annexin V has proven useful for detecting the earliest stages of apoptosis. METHODS Annexin V was radiolabeled with 18F using N-succinimidyl-4-18F-fluorobenzoic acid chemistry, to a specific activity of 555-925 kBq/mug of protein. 18F-Annexin V (14.8-51.8 MBq) was administered intravenously to rats after pretreatment with cycloheximide (5 mg/kg) to induce liver apoptosis, and the injected rats were imaged by PET over 2 h. After imaging, rats were dissected and individual organs were weighed and counted. RESULTS Pretreatment of rats with cycloheximide resulted in a 3- to 9-fold increase in uptake of 18F-annexin V in the liver of treated animals at 2 h, compared with controls. By morphologic analysis, treated livers showed a 3- to 6-fold higher level of apoptosis than controls, with higher levels also seen with longer exposure to cycloheximide. Terminal deoxynucleotide end-labeling (TUNEL) assays performed on liver slices showed that cycloheximide induced a 5- to 8-fold increase in the number of TUNEL-positive nuclei. These TUNEL results correlated with the uptake of 18F-annexin V in dissected liver tissue, with an r2 value of 0.89. Biodistribution analysis of normal rats showed highest uptake of 18F-annexin V in the kidneys and urinary bladder, indicating rapid renal clearance of 18F-annexin V metabolites. CONCLUSION The PET data, the organ-specific uptake data from dissection, and the morphologic and TUNEL measures of apoptosis together indicate that 18F-annexin V binds specifically to apoptotic tissues in this model of chemically induced apoptosis in rat liver. The short physical half-life of 18F-annexin V and the rapid clearance of its metabolites to the urinary system suggest that 18F-annexin V will be useful in early assessment of the clinical response to cancer therapy in individual patients.
Full-dimensional Sampling and Analysis of BSSRDF

Full-dimensional (8-D) BSSRDF completely expresses various light interactions on object surface such as reflection and subsurface scattering. However, it is difficult to sample full-dimensional BSSRDF because it requires many illuminations and observations from various directions. There are many research which approximated BSSRDF as a lowdimensional function by only considering the medium as homogeneous or assuming isotropic scattering. Therefore, in this research, we show a novel sampling and analyzing method for full-dimensional BSSRDF of real scenes. We sample the BSSRDF using a polyhedral mirror system to place a lot of virtual cameras and projectors. In addition, we propose a method of decomposition of BSSRDF into
Etude de l'allumage et de la structure des flammes turbulentes

Ce document presente les resultats d'une etude numerique et theorique des flammes premelangees. Les sujets abordes sont l'allumage des flammes et l'interaction entre front de flamme et turbulence homogene isotrope dans des configurations bidimensionnelles. Un des objectifs poursuivis etait d'envisager la faisabilite d'une simulation directe complete d'un ecoulement reactif turbulent avec chimie et modeles de transport complets. De facon generale, on constate que cet objectif est aujourd'hui realisable et on presente ici un certain nombre d'applications. Un algorithme de simulation directe (DNS) a ete developpe dans le cadre de ce travail pour aborder ces problemes. L'algorithme, initialement developpe pour traiter des schemas cinetiques simplifies est ensuite etendu aux schemas cinetiques plus detailles avec des proprietes de transport realistes (avec l'utilisation de CHEMKIN et TRANSPORT). Cet algorithme a permis tout d'abord d'etudier l'allumage de flammes premelangees avec un schema cinetique simple. Nous nous sommes interesses au mecanisme qui controle l'allumage dans des ecoulements turbulents. Dans une premiere approche, nous avons etudie l'allumage par deposition d'energie dans des ecoulements a flux massique impose en configuration bidimensionnelle. Les delais et les temps minimaux d'allumage sont determines en fonction de la puissance de chauffage et du flux. Les rayons critiques des noyaux de flamme sont aussi examines. Un modele simple est enfin presente pour representer ces resultats. Dans une seconde etude nous avons considere l'interaction entre front de flamme et turbulence homogene isotrope dans une configuration bidimensionnelle. Cette etude est realisee pour des flammes hydrogene-air representees par un schema cinetique a 9 especes et 19 reactions. Une flamme plane, stationnaire, laminaire, non-etiree, adiabatique est superposee a un champ de vitesse determine sur la base d'un spectre d'energie du type Von Karmann-Pao. L'observation de l'evolution du front de flamme a permis d'etablir une description qualitative ainsi que les proprietes statistiques de ce type de flamme.
THE EFFECT OF BOARD OF DIRECTORS BACKGROUND ON FIRM VALUE (Studi empiris pada seluruh perusahaan yang terdaftar di Bursa Efek Indonesia (BEI) tahun 2011-2017)

ABTRAK Tujuan penelitian ini adalah untuk menganalisa pengaruh latar belakang dewan direksi terhadap nilai perusahaan. Family, size, busy dewan direksi digunakan sebagai variabel independen dan firm value digunakan sebagai variabel dependen. Dua variabel digunakan sebagai variabel kontrol yaitu company leverage dan company leverage. Data yang digunakan adalah data sekunder berupa laporan keuangan dan annual report tahun 2011 sampai 2017. Sampel pada penelitian ini adalah seluruh perusahaan yang terdaftar di Bursa Efek Indonesia sebanyak 266 perusahaan. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa family dewan direksi dan size dewan direksi berpengaruh negatif dan signifikan terhadap firm value. Busy dewan direksi tidak berpengaruh signifikan terhadap firm value. Company growth tidak berpengaruh signifikan terhadap firm value. Company leverage berpengaruh positif dan signifikan terhadap firm value. Kata Kunci: firm value, family, size, busy directors, company growth, dan company leverage.
Overseas Expansion and Technological Capabilities: The Case of Chinese Electronics Firms

We analyze the formation of technological capabilities of major Chinese home appliance and consumer electronics manufacturers in comparison to the telecommunication equipment manufacturers and hardware start-ups in the electronics industry. To achieve this, we focus on the external business environment of major home appliance and consumer electronics manufacturers, including the technological gaps between foreign and Chinese firms in the same industry, the possibility of cross-border merger and acquisition (M&A) transactions, and the barriers to starting a business and developing new products. Results suggest that there are a variety of ways to increase the technological capabilities of firms in emerging countries and that there may be an optimal way of doing it, depending on the business environment.
The London APP Mutation (Val717Ile) Associated with Early Shifting Abilities and Behavioral Changes in Two Italian Families with Early-Onset Alzheimer’s Disease

Background/Aims: Mutations in the amyloid precursor protein gene were the first to be recognized as a cause of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Methods: We describe 2 Italian families showing the missense mutation in exon 17 of the amyloid precursor protein gene on chromosome 21 (Val717Ile), known as London mutation. Results: In 1 family, this mutation was responsible for AD in 3 out of 7 siblings and it is also present in a fourth sibling who has only shown signs of executive dysfunction so far. Two subjects of the other family with AD diagnosis were carriers of the same mutation. Conclusion: All AD subjects showed a cognitive profile characterized by early impairment in long-term memory, shifting abilities and affective symptoms beginning in the fifth decade of life.
Buying free rewards: the impact of a points-plus-cash promotion on purchase and reward redemption

While many studies have investigated consumer purchase behavior in reward programs, a better understanding of customer redemption behavior is lacking, particularly when promotions affect a core aspect of reward programs—free rewards. In this paper, we examine the impact of a promotion on purchase and reward redemption in a reward program in which consumers can partially cover the cost of a free reward with their money. The literature on reward programs suggests a positive reinforcement caused by reward redemption, whereas the literature on promotion provides different views regarding the existence of a postpromotion dip. Using data from a major retailer’s reward program, we verify that such a promotion attracted customers with less transaction activity and shorter tenure. Interestingly, consumers using the promotion increased their preference for hedonic rewards compared to their previously observed behavior. This change in preference persisted after the promotion ended. Overall, the promotion significantly increased the number of redemptions but generated a negative impact on subsequent consumer behavior by decreasing purchase incidence and quantity. Our findings point to a need to understand the trade-off between spending money on buying an otherwise free reward and future regular purchases.
Normal Human Keratinocytes Bind to the α3LG4/5 Domain of Unprocessed Laminin-5 through the Receptor Syndecan-1*

Basal keratinocytes of the epidermis adhere to their underlying basement membrane through a specific interaction with laminin-5, which is composed by the association of α3, β3, and γ2 chains. Laminin-5 has the ability to induce either stable cell adhesion or migration depending on specific processing of different parts of the molecule. One event results in the cleavage of the carboxyl-terminal globular domains 4 and 5 (LG4/5) of the α3 chain. In this study, we recombinantly expressed the human α3LG4/5 fragment in mammalian cells, and we show that this fragment induces adhesion of normal human keratinocytes and fibrosarcoma-derived HT1080 cells in a heparan- and chondroitin sulfate-dependent manner. Immunoprecipitation experiments with Na2 35SO4-labeled keratinocyte and HT1080 cell lysates as well as immunoblotting experiments revealed that the major proteoglycan receptor for the α3LG4/5 fragment is syndecan-1. Syndecan-4 from keratinocytes also bound to α3LG4/5. Furthermore we could show for the first time that unprocessed laminin-5 specifically binds syndecan-1, while processed laminin-5 does not. These results demonstrate that the LG4/5 modules within unprocessed laminin-5 permit its cell binding activity through heparan and chondroitin sulfate chains of syndecan-1 and reinforce previous data suggesting specific properties for the precursor molecule.
A method used for distinguishing the pupae sexuality of Heortia vitessoides

A method used for quickly and accurately distinguishing pupae sex of Heortia vitessoides Moore according to the morphology of the 8th and 9th abdominal segments was described in this paper.There was one shorter suture existing between the genital pore and the oviposition on the 8th abdominal segment in female pupae and one longer suture formed by genital pore on the 9th abdominal segment in male pupae.
Could early visual processes be sufficient to label motions?

Biological motion recognition refers to our ability to recognize a scene (motion or movement) based on the evolution of a limited number of points acquired for instance with a motion capture tool. Much work has been done in this direction showing how it is possible to recognize actions based on these points. Following the reference work of Giese and Poggio (2003), we propose an alternative approach to extract such points from a video based on spiking neural networks with rank order coding. We use some recent results of Thorpe et al. (2001), who claim that the neural information is coded by the relative order in which these neurons fire. This allows selecting a limited set of relevant points to be used in the motion classification. Several experiments and comparisons with previous work are proposed. The result of these simulations is that information from early visual processes appears to be sufficient to classify biological motion.
Bisecting GlcNAc Structures Act as Negative Sorting Signals for Cell Surface Glycoproteins in Forskolin-treated Rat Hepatoma Cells*

The bisecting N-acetylglucosamine residue is formed by UDP-N-acetylglucosamine:β-D-mannoside-β-1,4-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase III (GnT-III), a key branching enzyme for N-glycans. We found that forskolin, an adenylyl cyclase activator, markedly enhanced GnT-III at the transcriptional level in various hepatoma cells and hepatocytes, resulting in an increase of bisecting GlcNAc residues in various glycoproteins, as judged from the lectin binding to erythroagglutinating phytohemagglutinin (E-PHA). In whole cell lysates, the E-PHA binding was increased, and leukoagglutinating phytohemagglutinin (L-PHA) binding was decreased at 12 h after forskolin treatment, by time, both GnT-III activity and mRNA had reached the maximum levels. In contrast, the binding capacity as to E-PHA, determined by fluorescence-activated cell sorting on the cell surface, was decreased, suggesting that bisecting GlcNAc structures in certain glycoproteins changed the expression levels of glycoproteins and decreased their sorting on the cell surface. Fractionated organelles of M31 cells showed that the binding capacity as to E-PHA was mainly localized in Golgi membranes and lysosomes. This was also supported by a fluorescence microscopy. In order to determine whether or not the bisecting GlcNAc residue acts as a sorting signal for glycoproteins, N-oligosaccharide structures of lysosomal-associated membrane glycoprotein 1 and β-glucuronidase, γ-glutamyltranspeptidase, and secretory glycoproteins such as ceruloplasmin and α-fetoprotein were measured by E-PHA and L-PHA blotting after immunoprecipitation. The expression levels of lysosomal membrane glycoprotein 1 and γ-glutamyltranspeptidase on the cell surface were decreased at 12 h after forskolin treatment, indicating that the bisecting GlcNAc structure may act as a negative sorting signal for the cell surface glycoproteins and may alter the characteristics of hepatoma cells. This is the first report on glycoprotein sorting related to a specific structure of oligosaccharides, bisecting GlcNAc.
Inference of Strategic Behavior based on Incomplete Observation Data

Inferring the goals, preferences and restrictions of strategically behaving agents is a common goal in many situations, and an important requirement for enabling computer systems to better model and understand human users. Inverse reinforcement learning (IRL) is one method for performing this kind of inference based on observations of the agent’s behavior. However, traditional IRL methods are only applicable when the observations are in the form of state-action paths – an assumption which does not hold in many real-world modelling settings. This paper demonstrates that inference is possible even with an arbitrary observation noise model.
Indice probabilisté de vraisemblance du lien entre objets quelconques analyse comparative entre deux approches

La methode AVL (Analyse de la Vraisemblance des Liens) est davantage connue pour la classification de l'ensemble V des variables descriptives que pour celle d'un ensemble O d'objets ou C de categories decrits au moyen de V. Cependant cette methode permet avec la meme rigueur conceptuelle d'elaborer une classification ascendante hierarchique sur O (respectivement sur C) et de fournir des coefficients d'«explication» compte tenu de l'organisation de V. Le probleme que nous reprenons ici est celui de la construction d'un indice de similarite probabiliste entre objets decrits par des variables de types quelconques. Plus precisement, il s'agit d'analyser une approche due a W.D. Goodall que nous ignorions lors de la conception de nos indices et de la situer par rapport a notre methode d'elaboration. Cette derniere s'avere essentiellement distincte: plus souple, tres generale et tenant compte de la semantique des variables. Des resultats experimentaux etayeront la comparaison theorique. Enfin, nous proposerons un logiciel HETAVL qui permet l'etablissement d'une matrice d'indices probabilistes entre objets decrits par un ensemble de variables de types heterogenes et quelconques.
Efficient tRNA degradation and quantification in Escherichia coli cell extract using RNase‐coated magnetic beads: A key step toward codon emancipation

Emancipating sense codons toward a minimized genetic code is of significant interest to science and engineering. A key approach toward sense codon emancipation is the targeted in vitro removal of native tRNA. However, challenges remain such as the insufficient depletion of tRNA in lysate‐based in vitro systems and the high cost of the purified components system (PURE). Here we used RNase‐coated superparamagnetic beads to efficiently degrade E. coli endogenous tRNA. The presented method removes >99% of tRNA in cell lysates, while partially preserving cell‐free protein synthesis activity. The resulting tRNA‐depleted lysate is compatible with in vitro‐transcribed synthetic tRNA for the production of peptides and proteins. Additionally, we directly measured residual tRNA using quantitative real‐time PCR. © 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog. , 33:1401–1407, 2017
Inferring Geographic Isolation of Wolverines in California Using Historical DNA

Abstract Delineating a species' geographic range using the spatial distribution of museum specimens or even contemporary detection–non-detection data can be difficult. This is particularly true at the periphery of a species range where species' distributions are often disjunct. Wolverines (Gulo gulo) are wide-ranging mammals with discontinuous and potentially isolated populations at the periphery of their range. One potentially disjunct population occurred in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, California, USA, and appears to have been extirpated by the 1930s. Many early 20th century naturalists believed that this population was connected to other populations occurring in the Cascade Range of northern California, Oregon, and Washington, USA, but a recent analysis of historical records suggests that California wolverines were isolated from other populations in North America. We used DNA extracted from museum specimens to examine whether California wolverines were isolated. Both nuclear and mitochondrial DNA data indicate that California wolverines were genetically distinct from extant populations, suggesting long-term isolation. We identified 2 new control region (mitochondrial DNA) haplotypes located only within California. We used these data and referenced sequences from the Rocky Mountains, USA, to make inferences regarding potential wolverine translocations into California. In addition, we used these genetic data to make inferences about wolverine conservation throughout western North America.