Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A novel compact polarization independent triple band reject frequency selective surface for the security of wireless communication

A periodic frequency selective surface (FSS) having triple frequency band reject behaviour has been proposed with a square and two dodecagon shaped element. These three elements of the FSS unit cell are embedded on the FR-4 substrate, which acts as a triple band reject filter on the frequency band 1.8 GHz, 2.5 GHz and 5.5GHz to avoid the leakage of GSM, WiMax and WLAN signal outside the building. The FR-4 substrate has the loss tangent of 0.02 and relative permittivity of 4.4 with the dimension of 0.12 λ × 0.12 λ that told us the compactness of the structure. The designed FSS has verified by its simulated results and realized in CST Microwave studio in frequency domain solver based on FDTD method as well as also verified in the ANSYS HFSS software. The proposed FSS exhibits more than 91% band reject characteristics for the frequency band 1.8 GHz, 2.5 GHz and 5.5GHz. The FSS unit-cell has symmetrical structure to allow the stable behaviour for both TE and TM mode with the variation of incident angles from 0°–60°. Moreover, the stable resonant frequency response and polarization independence has verified by all its simulated results.
Designs for environmental scanning systems: tests of a contingency theory

This study compared the relationships between organizational context and the designs of environmental scanning systems for organizational with effective and ineffective scanning systems. The study analyzed data from over 100 North American business organizations. Results indicate that organizations with effective scanning systems tend to align their scanning designs with the requirements of their context. On the other hand, the results show that organizations with ineffective scanning systems typically fail to exhibit the requisite level of alignment between contexts and scanning design.
No Child Left in Museum?

This article presents an ecologically informed approach for comprehending the nature of and perceived changes to the relationship between Indiana’s kindergarten-5 classrooms and public history institutions. This perspective offers a lens for understanding the degree to which public history institutions actualize social studies learning and how public policy currently influences their associations with kindergarten-5 classrooms. Consideration was given to how respondents reported exchanges with kindergarten-5 learners, elementary educators, and the extent to which state public history organizations encouraged schools to utilize their resources for extending social studies instruction outside of the classroom. Baseline data gathered in 2007 indicated that: (1) state public history organizations adapted their mission statements to better reflect federal and state educational policy and (2) federal and state educational policy were contributing to both children and teachers being left out of the museum experience. Based on the results, the authors call for sustained inquiry to ascertain the impact such changes are having on the status and quality of kindergarten-5 social studies instruction across the United States.
The Influence of the Region of Interest Width on Two‐Dimensional Speckle Tracking–Based Measurements of Strain and Strain Rate

There are significant variations in the published normal values of two‐dimensional speckle tracking–derived strain and strain rate. These occur even when authors use the same software. To measure strain, the operator creates a region of interest (ROI) to define the myocardium to be analyzed. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that measurements vary significantly with the chosen ROI width.
INTERNATIONAL PRICE COMPARISONS BASED UPON INCOMPLETE DATA

This paper is directed at the following question: given an incomplete set of price data relating to goods or services in some category of output for each of a number of different countries, what arithmetic should be performed on the prices to get a meaningful representation of the relative category price‐levels of the countries? In the course of developing an answer to the question, some broader matters are considered and illuminated. A comparison of category price‐levels for different countries is analogous to a commonly‐encountered problem in many areas, that of ranking ordinally or cardinally in one dimension a group of “entities”—persons, households, firms, industries, etc.—on the basis of sets of measurements associated with the individual entities. It is this point of view which dominates the following presentation.
Desmopressin in vitro effects on platelet function, monitored with Multiplate, ROTEM and Sonoclot

Abstract Background and aims The vasopressin analogue desmopressin has demonstrated efficacy in decreasing bleeding time by increasing the circulating levels of coagulation factor VIII and von Willebrand factor, but also by direct effects on platelets. Previous studies have demonstrated contrasting results regarding the effect of desmopressin on platelets in vitro. The aim of this study was to investigate the dose-response effects of in vitro desmopressin in whole blood. Our hypothesis was that desmopressin could increase platelet function in anticoagulated whole blood being stored up to 4 hours. Methods Desmopressin was administered with up to four different concentrations to venous whole blood, sampled with standard vacutainer tubes from 10 healthy volunteers after consent. Platelet function was analyzed with three different point-of-care techniques: Multiplate platelet aggregometry with adenosine diphosphate, collagen, thrombin receptor activating peptide-6, ristocetin and arachidonic acid agonists, tissue factor-activated thromboelastometry and Sonoclot glass bead viscoelastic coagulation tests at baseline and 4 hours later using different activator reagents. Results Thromboelastometry and Sonoclot did not show any significant change between baseline and 4 h later. A significant decrease in area under curve (AUC) could be seen with the Multiplate between baseline and after 4 h. Desmopressin did not improve any of these tests at baseline or during a 4 h storage and incubation period. Conclusion In vitro administered desmopressin could not increase normal platelet function or coagulation being measured with thromboelastometry and Sonoclot. Multiplate indicated decreased platelet aggregation over time, without any effect of in vitro added desmopressin.
Integrating the Baltic States and Europe – Rail Baltica

Railway transport has gained foothold as safe and environmentally friendly transport mode, and its progression has been a success story in Central Europe. However, European peripheral areas such as the Baltic States (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) are lagging behind, as railway infrastructure does not fulfil the requirements of competent network. Rail Baltica has been offered as prospective option, and it has been widely studied during the last decade. This paper fulfils the existing research gap by unfolding the Baltic States public actors' viewpoints. Based on the results, in all three Baltic States the public sector is strongly supporting Rail Baltica, because it could provide economic growth by introducing improved connection to Europe as well as to Russia. However, countries should pay special attention to national as well as international cooperation, as lack of collaboration is impeding the process.
Day of the week effect on the Greek stock market

Evidence is presented concentrating on the day of the week effect on the Greek stock market, which is currently in a transitory stage. The analysis carried out takes into account that the variance is dependent over time, while an EGARCH-M model investigates the volatility which is considered non-constant over time. During the period examined, January 1985 to February 1994 this market is divided into two subperiods, one in which it operated under backward statutory conditions and the recent one, that is since 1988, during which significant changes have been introduced affecting all market players. A positive return is found for Mondays when the total period is examined, as well as in the first subperiod. Tuesdays, on the other hand, show negative returns. The recent changes, however, since 1988 have established a new pattern of returns which comes closer to that of most other national stock markets. Factors relating to the degree of order established in this market in combination with human behaviour patte.
Defining the level of abnormal return underperformance that exists for issuers of high-yield bonds

A great deal of academic research focuses on how bond issuance impacts the firm. Most recent research focuses on investment grade bonds and ignores noninvestment grade bonds. This article investigates the long-run stock underperformance of high-yield bond Initial Bond Offerings (IBOs) in the 3–5-year post-issuing period compared to firms that do not issue stock and/or bonds over the same 5-year post period. A second dataset featuring investment grade bond issuing firms is also compared to firms that do not issue stocks and/or bonds over the same 5-year post period. It is determined that stock underperformance does exist following bond IBOs using both the buy-and-hold return and Fama–French Four-Factor models. The level of underperformance is found to be greatest for callable bonds issuers followed by straight bonds and convertible bond issuers. Additionally, it is learned that high-yield bond issuing firms experience a greater level of underperformance than their investment-grade counterparts. This line of research partially fills the gap in understanding how noninvestment grade bonds impact the firm in both stock performance and the pricing decision.
Developers' coordination issues and its impact on software quality: A systematic review

Complex projects require involvement from many experts to fulfill the requirements. Complexity arises as working in distributed projects indeed requires expertise to overcome the gaps. Coordination among developers increases the likelihood of delivering high quality software. However, working in isolation impedes coordination and causes issues during development. Coordination issues impact the software quality in software engineering projects. This paper aims to investigate issues relating to coordination and its impact on software quality in software engineering projects. Systematic Literature Review (SLR) is applied to perform this study. Among the coordination issues uncovered are language barriers, intercultural, inefficient communication, lack of trust, lack of project flow understanding, different time zones, dependency issues, strategic issues, knowledge management, geographical distance, awareness, and organizational boundaries. As for the finding of this study, all these obstacles significantly impact software quality.
Economics, Politics and Nations: Resistance to the Multidivisional Form in France, Germany and the United Kingdom, 1983-1993

This paper assesses economic, political and national institutional explanations for continued resistance to the multidivisional form in France, Germany and the United Kingdom during the 1980s and 1990s. It finds that the economics of different diversification strategies play a significant but changing role in the structural choices of large corporations. The political interests of personal, banking and government owners are exercised variably. There remain strong national influences on structural choices, with resistance to the multidivisional form particularly pronounced in Germany. Overall, our results call for an increased contextual sensitivity in management research while acknowledging the possibility of convergent processes in business organization, represented here by the slow progress of the multidivisional firm.
Instability and Failure in International Joint Ventures in Post-Socialist Societies: Power, Politics and Strategic Orientations

International business researchers have identified the tendency of international joint ventures (IJVs) to fail and recognized that explaining the process of failure can benefit from inductive qualitative research. This article offers a processual account of instability in and the dissolution of an IJV, taking the perspective of the local parent in an IJV with a powerful Western multinational corporation in order to understand more fully their experience of participating in the venture. The case study findings offer empirical support for an emergent theoretical framework that highlights the role of contextual factors and explores the internal process of dissolution and ‘failure’ as the socio-political enactment of parents' strategic orientations.
A critical review of human resource management studies (1978–2007) in the People's Republic of China

The study reviews the empirical studies on human resource management (HRM) practices in mainland China published in 26 leading international journals across the span of 30 years in the period 1978–2007. We intend to achieve three aims in this review: (1) to take an inventory of what have been done so far in the field of HRM studies in China; (2) to critically evaluate the development of Chinese HRM practices in the past 30 years; and (3) to identify research gaps for what needs to be done in the future. Along with this critical review, we also examine which research methods have been used in the empirical inquiries; where the research has been published; and who has made the most contribution in the field of Chinese HRM studies. We conclude that what is known is comparative rather than definitive, with HRM in China treated as a subset of international HRM, rather than as a mainstream issue. With a quarter of the world's population affected by an understanding of what constitutes better HRM in China, we call for a more inclusive, collaborative approach to further theorising and substantiating HRM studies by researchers inside and outside China.
The Ideological Organization of Latin American Legislative Parties

Are legislative party systems in Latin America organized along ideological lines? This article presents a cross-country analysis of legislators’ positions on a variety of issues, such as government intervention in the economy, the value of democratic competition, attitudes toward cultural minorities, and views on international openness. The study is based on discriminant analysis of data from a 1997 survey of legislators in 12 countries. The purpose is to explore whether legislative parties in the region are ideologically organized and if so, to understand the substance and structure of the ideological dimensions that underlie legislative party systems. The analysis reveals variation in the programmatic organization of Latin American legislatures, emphasizing that political, cultural, and economic dimensions coalesce in different ways across countries to account for ideological disagreement among legislative parties.
Quantifying Discipline Practices Using Absolute Versus Relative Frequencies

In the parent intervention outcome literatures, discipline practices are generally quantified as absolute frequencies or, less commonly, as relative frequencies. These differences in methodology warrant direct comparison as they have critical implications for study results and conclusions among treatments targeted at reducing parental aggression and harsh discipline. In this study, we directly compared the absolute frequency method and the relative frequency method for quantifying physically aggressive, psychologically aggressive, and nonaggressive discipline practices. Longitudinal data over a 3-year period came from an existing data set of a clinical trial examining the effectiveness of a psychosocial treatment in reducing parental physical and psychological aggression and improving child behavior (N = 139). Discipline practices (aggressive and nonaggressive) were assessed using the Conflict Tactics Scale. The two methods yielded different patterns of results, particularly for nonaggressive discipline strategies. We suggest that each method makes its own unique contribution to a more complete understanding of the association between parental aggression and intervention effects.
Assessing the intention of land trust representatives to collaborate with tourism entities to protect natural areas

Environmental degradation and dwindling natural areas can negatively impact a destination's image. Nonprofit land trusts have become important organizations in the US conservation movement and elsewhere. Their method of negotiating with landowners to protect land, yet leave the land in private ownership and on the tax rolls, is often popular with the public and local governments. This study explains how land trusts operate. It measured the collaboration potential between land trusts and tourism entities in the US, from the land trust representatives’ point of view, by embedding six propositions considered necessary for collaboration into the theory of planned behavior. An email survey of land trusts in the US yielded 279 usable replies. Approximately 71% of the representatives’ intention to collaborate was accounted for, with opinions of peers (subjective norm) providing the most influence; 64% of the representatives’ attitude toward collaboration was identified. Land trusts were found to be able and willing to provide an efficient, economical method of protecting the landscape, while working with tourism entities that could provide financial support, promotion and increased awareness of the importance of natural areas to both local population and tourists.
The Sugar Spectrum of Human Cholesterol Gallstones, Mixed and Pigment Gallstones: Combined Quantitative Analysis of Neutral Sugars, N-Acetylhexosamines, Hexuronic and N-Acetylneuraminic Acids by Capillary Gas-Liquid Chromatography

Glycoproteins were investigated in different types of biliary calculi by a methanolysis procedure of the carbohydrate moiety, the formation of 2,6-dinitro-4-trifluoromethylbenzenesulphonate derivatives of N-acetylhexosamines and N-acetylneuraminic acid, followed by separation, identification and quantification of the liberated monosaccharides using capillary gas-liquid chromatography. This indirect method avoids several analytical problems caused by the presence of bile pigment derivatives; unless these are carefully removed they interfere strongly in the measurement of protein. The carbohydrate contents were much higher in pigment stones than in cholesterol and mixed stones. Rhamnose, a non-mammalian monosaccharide, was identified in most samples, but was significant increased in pigment stones, indicating a bacterial history of this stone type.
Business Cycle Trends, Cycles and Growth Revisited: With Applications to G7 Economies

This paper examines the behaviour of G7 economies and decomposes their GDP into trend and cycle components using the Kalman filter. The general model of the paper encompasses a number of alternative specifications about trend growth, therefore accommodating diverse views on growth. The business cycle characteristics of G7 economies are then discussed, compared and deliberated in this framework. The empirical results overwhelmingly favor a mean-reverting stochastic process for the growth rate, the general and unrestricted specification of the paper, across G7 countries, though the restrictions are statistically rejected in less than half of the cases. Further reflection on the properties of cycles makes the specifications and the results of this study more reasonable in capturing the characteristics of GDP series, and contributes to solving the controversies in model specifications in some previous studies.
Robust Iterative Interference Alignment with Limited Feedback

In this paper we propose a robust iterative interference alignment (IA) technique for the downlink of OFDM-based (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing) broadband wireless systems with limited feedback. The channel frequency responses (CFR) associated to each link between base station (BS) and user terminal (UT) are quantized and feedback from the UT to the BS, which sends it to the other BSs through a limited-capacity backhaul network. This information is employed by each BS to perform a robust overall IA design, which takes into account the statistical characterization of the CFR quantization errors. An analytical method for obtaining this statistical characterization is derived taking advantage of the Gaussian characteristics of the CFR. Simulations show the relevance of the proposed technique, almost perfectly canceling multi-user interference, and the high accuracy of the theoretical characterization of the CFR quantization error. Moreover, the robust IA technique with the proposed analytical characterization of the CFR error is as good as genie-aided techniques that know the CFR error characteristics, outperforming non-robust IA designs, as well as techniques that employ an approximate characterization based on the uniform distribution of the quantization error.
A new dimeric anthraquinone from endophytic Talaromyces sp. YE3016

Abstract A new unsymmetrical dimeric anthraquinone, 3-demethyl-3-(2-hydroxypropyl)-skyrin (1) was isolated from the solid-state fermentation extract of an endophytic fungal strain Talaromyces sp. YE 3016, together with five known compounds, skyrin (2), oxyskyrin (3), emodin (4), 1,3,6-trihydroxy-8-methyl-anthraquinone (5) and ergosterol (6). The structure of the new compound was elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic analysis. Compounds 1–3 exhibited moderate cytotoxic activities against MCF-7 cell line.
Finite domain constraints in the ML functional language

We propose an extension of the ML language for handling constraints in finite domains, as originally proposed by the CHIP Constraint Logic Programming Language, following and attending techniques originating from Constraint Satisfaction Problems. This makes it possible for the programmer to declaratively combine in a single application both purely functional parts and constraint solving parts for efficient handling of discrete search problems. In order to show the effectiveness of this approach, we present a simple demonstrative problem-solving example using finite domain constraints such as linear equations and disequations. <<ETX>>
Purification of a GlutathioneS-Transferase and a Glutathione Conjugate-Specific Dehydrogenase Involved in Isoprene Metabolism in Rhodococcussp. Strain AD45

ABSTRACT A glutathione S-transferase (GST) with activity toward 1,2-epoxy-2-methyl-3-butene (isoprene monoxide) andcis-1,2-dichloroepoxyethane was purified from the isoprene-utilizing bacterium Rhodococcus sp. strain AD45. The homodimeric enzyme (two subunits of 27 kDa each) catalyzed the glutathione (GSH)-dependent ring opening of various epoxides. At 5 mM GSH, the enzyme followed Michaelis-Menten kinetics for isoprene monoxide and cis-1,2-dichloroepoxyethane, withVmax values of 66 and 2.4 μmol min−1 mg of protein−1 andKm values of 0.3 and 0.1 mM for isoprene monoxide and cis-1,2-dichloroepoxyethane, respectively. Activities increased linearly with the GSH concentration up to 25 mM.1H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy showed that the product of GSH conjugation to isoprene monoxide was 1-hydroxy-2-glutathionyl-2-methyl-3-butene (HGMB). Thus, nucleophilic attack of GSH occurred on the tertiary carbon atom of the epoxide ring. HGMB was further converted by an NAD+-dependent dehydrogenase, and this enzyme was also purified from isoprene-grown cells. The homodimeric enzyme (two subunits of 25 kDa each) showed a high activity for HGMB, whereas simple primary and secondary alcohols were not oxidized. The enzyme catalyzed the sequential oxidation of the alcohol function to the corresponding aldehyde and carboxylic acid and followed Michaelis-Menten kinetics with respect to NAD+ and HGMB. The results suggest that the initial steps in isoprene metabolism are a monooxygenase-catalyzed conversion to isoprene monoxide, a GST-catalyzed conjugation to HGMB, and a dehydrogenase-catalyzed two-step oxidation to 2-glutathionyl-2-methyl-3-butenoic acid.