Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Case of Sustainability Assurance: Constructing a New Assurance Service

This paper presents an in-depth longitudinal case study examining the processes through which practitioners in two Big 4 professional services firms have attempted to construct sustainability assurance (independent assurance on sustainability reports). Power’s (2003, 1999, 1997, 1996) theorization of the way in which new subject areas are made auditable is used to frame the findings. The case reveals the fragile nature of efforts to innovate with assurance and render sustainability reporting auditable. Practitioners are shown to experience considerable discomfort and conflict in their attempts to construct a stable and legitimate knowledge base for assurance practice. Tacit knowledge embedded in highly subjective assessments of evidence is frequently enrolled to make assurance possible in the presence of vague guidance from assurance standards. In light of ongoing practitioner struggles, both firms have publicly acknowledged the limitations of traditional financial audit practice operating alone in the conduct of sustainability assurance. In order to offset these limitations, they propose a coupling of “expert” stakeholder assessments of reporting completeness with traditional audit assessments of data reliability. This assigns part of the responsibility for delivering on a key assurance objective (reporting completeness) to what some practitioners perceive as questionable stakeholder expertise. Overall, the findings suggest that innovation in new assurance practices may be stifled by an exclusive reliance on financial audit training and techniques and by certain constraints imposed by internal professional firm control procedures.
The Return on Investment for Improving California's High School Graduation Rate

ectiveness in raising the rate of high school graduation.The cost of “producing” one additional high school graduate, using one of the ﬁ ve proven interventions, ranges from $37,810 to $131,000. Beneﬁ ts per high school graduate range from $53,000 (ﬁ scal beneﬁ ts to state and local government) to $392,000 (total economic beneﬁ ts to California). Beneﬁ ts far exceed costs: each dollar invested in the ﬁ ve proven interventions generates $2 to $4 in ﬁ scal beneﬁ ts to all levels of government.The cost of inaction is high: a companion study found that California loses $46.4 billion in total income, taxes, and economic activity from each cohort of 120,000 20-year-olds who never complete high school.
Domain reactivity of autoantibodies to calpastatin in patients with systemic rheumatic diseases

Abstract Autoantibodies to calpastatin (endogenous inhibitor of calpain, a calcium-dependent neutral proteinase) have been detected in sera of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and other diseases. We investigated the epitope reactivity of anticalpastatin autoantibodies in patients with rheumatic diseases. cDNAs encoding each calpastatin domain (L, I, II, III, and IV) were amplified by PCR and ligated into an expression vector. The fusion proteins were expressed in E. coli. The presence of autoantibodies specific for each calpastatin domain was assayed in sera of patients with various rheumatic diseases by immunoblotting the fusion proteins with these sera. Of the RA patient sera, 81% reacted with at least one calpastatin domain. This reaction was significantly greater than with sera from patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (46%), scleroderma (32%), polymyositis/dermatomyositis (43%), and normal controls (13%). Domains I and II were recognized by RA patient sera significantly more than by other patient sera, whereas domains III and IV reacted almost equally among all patient sera. Although, collectively, sera from RA and lupus patients reacted equally with all domains, scleroderma sera tended to react with only domains I and IV and myositis sera tended to recognize only domains III and IV. Patients with RA positive for anticalpastatin antibodies exhibited more active disease (i.e., a higher erythrocyte sedimentation rate and C-reative protein level) than antibody-negative patients. Our results suggest that anticalpastatin antibodies were detected in RA with the highest frequency and that different domain reactivity was shown among different diseases. The presence of these antibodies in sera may be related to the type of disease and, in RA, with disease activity, suggesting their importance in rheumatic disorders.
Money and happiness: does age make a difference?

ABSTRACT Although the factors that influence people's perception of happiness have long been a focus for scholars, research to date has not offered conclusive findings on the relationships between income, age and happiness. This study examined the relationship between money and happiness across age groups. Analysing data from United States General Social Surveys from 1972 to 2006, this study finds that even after controlling for all the major socio-demographic variables, income (whether household income or personal equivalised income) had a significant positive association with happiness for young and middle-age adults, but it was not the same case with older adults. After controlling for the major socio-demographic variables, there was no evidence of a significant relationship between income (whichever definition) and happiness for older adults. The results also showed that the effect of household income on happiness was significantly smaller for older adults than for young or middle-age adults in the model controlling for major socio-demographic variables. The relationship between household income and happiness no longer differed significantly across age groups after social comparison variables were included. The relationship between equivalised income and happiness did not vary significantly by age group after controlling for the major socio-demographic variables.
Learning and innovation under changing market conditions : the auto parts industry in Mexico

The research points to the relevance of understanding the role that traditional habits and practices (i.e., passive acquisition of new technologies, lack of implicit learning efforts, weak investments in machinery and equipment) play in shaping the development of an industry. It also considers how institutions (in the form of policies) can effect changes to (or reinforce) these habits and practices. It shows that without purposeful intervention to support learning, the policy regime is not enough on its own to ensure that technological learning and capacity building takes place. Therefore, building capacity locally and creating an institutional regime that supports innovation appears to be the only way in which learning and capacity development processes can be enhanced.
STRUCTURAL HEDONIC PRICES OF LAND PARCELS IN TRANSITION FROM AGRICULTURE IN A WESTERN COMMUNITY

A single-equation nonlinear hedonic price function is estimated for parcels of rural land in transition from agriculture in a Nevada community. Empirical results are evaluated relative to the effects of selected government-provided amenities on parcel prices. Utilizing the estimated hedonic equation, bid (demand) and offer (supply) functions are determined for two dependent trait variables of parcel size and closeness to mountains.
A state observer for multimachine power systems based on model reduction by moment matching

The problem of model reduction by moment matching for multimachine power systems is addressed and solved using the recently introduced notion of moment for nonlinear systems. It is shown that the reduced order model can be used to construct asymptotic estimates for the unmeasured states. The theory is illustrated by means of simulation on a 2-machine power system.
Identification of Novel Isoforms of the BH3 Domain Protein Bim Which Directly Activate Bax To Trigger Apoptosis

ABSTRACT Bim (Bcl-2-interacting mediator of cell death) is a member of the BH3 domain-only subgroup of Bcl-2 family members, for which three splice variants have been described. Bim is expressed in many healthy cell types, where it is maintained in an inactive conformation through binding to the microtubule-associated dynein motor complex. Upon certain apoptotic stimuli, Bim is released from microtubules and mediates caspase-dependent apoptosis through a mechanism that is still unclear. Here, we have identified and characterized novel splice variants of human Bim mRNA. In particular, we show that a newly discovered, small protein isoform, BimAD, is also able to induce apoptosis strongly in several human cell lines. BimAD and the previously characterized isoform BimS are shown to be capable of heterodimerizing in vivo with both death antagonists (Bcl-2 and Bcl-XL) and death agonists (Bax). Mutants of BimAD that bind to Bax but not to Bcl-2 still promote apoptosis, indicating that Bim can regulate apoptosis through direct activation of the Bax-mediated cell death pathway without interaction with antiapoptotic Bcl-2 family members. Furthermore, we have shown that the interaction of the BimS and BimAD isoforms with Bax leads to a conformational change in this protein analogous to that triggered by the BH3-only protein Bid.
Monocyte Derivatives Promote Angiogenesis and Myocyte Survival in a Model of Myocardial Infarction

In this study, we have investigated the hypothesis that previously reported beneficial effect of peripheral blood mononuclear cells cultured under angiogenic conditions on cardiovascular function following ischemia is not limited to EPCs but also to monocytes contained therein. We first purified and analyzed the phenotype and secretome of human and murine blood monocytes cultured under angiogenic conditions (named MDs for monocyte derivatives) and tested their effect in a mouse model of myocardial infarction (MI). FACS analysis of MDs shows that these cells express mature endothelial cell markers and that their proliferative capacity is virtually absent, consistent with their end-differentiated monocytic ontogeny. MDs secreted significant levels of HGF, IGF-1, MCP-1, and sTNFR-1 relative to their monocyte precursors. MDs were unable to form vascular networks in vitro when cultured on matrix coated flasks. Treatment of murine HL-1 cardiomyocyte cell line with MD-conditioned medium reduced their death induced by TNF-α, staurosporine, and oxidative stress, and this effect was dependent upon MD-derived sTNFR-1, HGF, and IGF-1. We further demonstrate that MD secretome promoted endothelial cell proliferation and capacity to form vessels in vitro and this was dependent upon MD-derived MCP-1, HGF, and IGF-1. Echocardiography analysis showed that MD myocardial implantation improved left ventricle fractional shortening of mouse hearts following MI and was associated with reduced myocardial fibrosis and enhancement of angiogenesis. Transplanted MDs and their secretome participate in preserving functional myocardium after ischemic insult and attenuate pathological remodeling.
Security Analysis of Accountable Anonymous Group Communication in Dissent

Abstract : Users often wish to communicate anonymously on the Internet using, for instance, group discussion forums or instant messaging. Misbehaving users may abuse this anonymity to disrupt communication, however, and existing solutions do not adequately address this risk. Messaging protocols such as DC-nets leave groups vulnerable to denial-of-service and Sybil attacks, mixnets are difficult to protect against traffic analysis, and accountable voting protocols are unsuited to general anonymous messaging. DISSENT, originally introduced by Corrigan-Gibbs and Ford (2010), is the first general communication protocol that offers provable anonymity, integrity and accountability for moderatesize groups, and efficiently handles unbalanced loads where few members wish to transmit in a given round. We provide a full description of an improved DISSENT protocol, define its precise security properties, and give rigorous proofs of these properties. Our improved protocol is a direct result of this security analysis, which identified several non-trivial attacks on the original protocol stemming from subtle design flaws.
Expression and functional characterization of human ABC transporter ABCG2 variants in insect cells.

Hitherto three variant forms of ABCG2 have been documented on the basis of their amino acid moieties (i.e., Arg, Gly, and Thr) at the position 482. In the present study, we have generated those variants of ABCG2 by site-directed mutagenesis and expressed them in Sf9 insect cells. The apparent molecular weight of the expressed ABCG2 variants was 130,000 under non-reductive conditions, whereas it was reduced to 65, 000 by treatment with mercaptoethanol. It is suggested that ABCG2 exists in the plasma membrane of Sf9 cells as a homodimer bound through cysteinyl disulfide bond(s). Both ATPase activity and drug transport of ABCG2 variants were examined by using plasma membrane fractions prepared from ABCG2-overexpressing Sf9 cells. The ATPase activity of the plasma membrane expressing ABCG2 (Gly-482) was significantly enhanced by prazosin. In contrast, ABCG2 (Arg-482) transports [(3)H]methotrexate in an ATP-dependent manner; however, no transport activity was observed with the other variants (Gly-482 and Thr-482). It is strongly suggested that the amino acid moiety at the position of 482 is critical for the substrate specificity of ABCG2.
Effect of the transcriptional activators SoxS , RobA and RamA 1 on expression of the multidrug efflux pump AcrAB-TolC in 2 Enterobacter cloacae

26 Control of membrane permeability is a key step in regulating the intracellular 27 concentration of antibiotics. Efflux pumps confer innate resistance to a wide 28 range of toxic compounds such as antibiotics, dyes, detergents and 29 disinfectants in members of the Enterobacteriaceae. The AcrAB-TolC efflux 30 pump is involved in multidrug resistance in E. cloacae. However, the underlying 31 mechanism that regulates the system in this microorganism remains unknown. 32 In Escherichia coli, transcription of acrAB is up-regulated under global stress 33 conditions by proteins such as MarA, SoxS and Rob. In the present study, two 34 different clinical isolates of E. cloacae, EcDC64 (MDR over-expressing the 35 AcrAB-TolC efflux pump) and Jc194 (with basal AcrAB-TolC expression level) 36 were used to determine whether similar global stress responses operate in E. 37 cloacae and also to establish the molecular mechanisms underlying this 38 response. A decrease in susceptibility to erythromycin, tetracycline, 39 telithromycin, ciprofloxacin and chloramphenicol was observed in clinical isolate 40 Jc194, and to a lesser extent in EcDC64, in the presence of salicylate, 41 decanoate, tetracycline and paraquat. Increased expression of the acrAB 42 promoter in the presence of the above described conditions was observed by 43 flow cytometry and RT-PCR, by using a reporter fusion protein (GFP). The 44 expression level of the AcrAB promoter decreased in E. cloacae EcDC64 45 derivates deficient in SoxS, RobA and RamA. Accordingly, the expression level 46 of the AcrAB promoter was higher in E. cloacae Jc194 strains overproducing 47 soxS, robA and ramA. Overall, the data showed that SoxS, RobA and RamA 48 regulators were associated with the up-regulation of acrAB, thus conferring 49 antimicrobial resistance as well as a stress response in E. cloacae. 50 on July 2, 2017 by gest httpaac.asm . rg/ D ow nladed fom In summary, the regulatory proteins SoxS, RobA and RamA were cloned and 51 sequenced for the first time in this species. The involvement of these proteins in 52 conferring antimicrobial resistance through up-regulation of acrAB was 53 demonstrated in E. cloacae. 54 on July 2, 2017 by gest httpaac.asm . rg/ D ow nladed fom
Compact, dual-wavelength, non-line-of-sight (NLOS) underwater imager

High scattering environments, such as fog, sand, and turbid ocean water, severely degrade the performance of typical line-of-sight(LOS)/pseudo-monostatic imaging systems where the laser and receiver are on the same platform. Researchers at NAVAIR have developed a unique non-line-of-sight (NLOS)/bistatic imaging system where the illuminator and receiver are on separate platforms and are linked via wireless optical communication signal that is carried via the target-reflected light. The illuminator is placed close to the target, eliminating a majority of the forward and back scatter that occurs on the way to the target. This system is not hindered by multiple scattering in the path from the object to the receiver which allows it to achieve good image quality through much higher attenuation lengths than typical LOS imaging systems. A compact, dual optical wavelength system has been developed and is currently being tested in a laboratory environment. Results from this testing will be presented and plans for future work will be discussed.
In defence of evolutionary explanation: coping with technological change

When trying to explain the behaviour of innovating firms and their technology strategies it is necessary to be able to explain the phenomenon of technological change and underlying mechanisms that determine it. Therefore, one has to take a closer look at different explanations offered for technological change. This paper examines the logic of evolutionary explanation and compares it to intentional explanations used in neoclassical economics when coping with technological change and innovation activities of the firms in turbulent environments. The problems of standard intentional explanation will be stressed and an alternative evolutionary explanation will be offered for a starting point when explaining the behaviour of innovating firms and creating technology strategies for them.
Soft tissue reaction to ceramic ossicular replacement prosthesis

Abstract Soft-tissue reaction to ceramic ossicular replacement prostheses (CORP) has been evaluated histologically in rabbits and humans. One week after implantation, severe inflammatory and foreign body reaction was observed in the fibrous connective tissue surrounding the prosthesis. Though some inflammatory response was seen after one month, after three months the CORP was surrounded by a layer of fibrous connective tissue without any foreigh body giant cell, histiocyte or inflammatory cell infiltration. Our satisfactory clinical results in humans without placing a cartilage between the CORP and the fascia graft may be due to the excellent softtissue compatibility of CORP, as demonstrated in this study.
Spontaneous clearance of hepatitis C virus after liver transplantation in two patients coinfected with hepatitis C virus and human immunodeficiency virus

Spontaneous resolution of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is exceedingly rare and poorly understood. As HCV and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) have shared routes of transmission, HCV coinfection is estimated to affect 15%‐30% of the HIV‐positive population. We report 2 patients with HCV‐HIV coinfection who underwent orthotopic liver transplantation at our center and had spontaneous clearance of their chronic HCV infection after transplantation without any anti‐HCV treatment. Both patients showed no evidence of HCV recurrence for more than 3 years despite long‐term immunosuppressant therapy. Spontaneous clearance of chronic HCV infection can occur in HIV‐HCV–coinfected patients after liver transplantation. The mechanism of this phenomenon remains unclear. Liver Transpl 14:92–95, 2008. © 2007 AASLD.
Retirement as a strategy for land transmission: a micro-study of pre-industrial rural Sweden

In pre-industrial Sweden (and other parts of northwestern Europe) retirement arrangements were used by peasants to keep their property intact and to transfer it to one of the children while the other children were compensated with, for example, movable property or plots of land. In this article we study the frequency and form of this strategy in pre-industrial rural Sweden. While the literature on retirement arrangements mainly concentrates on the functionality of this system, the focus of this study is on what happened to the institution of peasant retirement in the nineteenth century when an active land market developed and the relative price of land rose. In this study, we use two different sources of land transmission: poll-tax registers, indicating the management of farms, and records of land certificates, showing changes in ownership. The results clearly show that peasant retirement remained an important strategy of intergenerational land transmission at least until the mid-nineteenth century, but the way it was carried out changed profoundly from being mainly an intra-family affair to being channelled through the market.
Growth, foreign investment and trade-openness interactions in ten OECD countries: a panel-VAR approach

This paper investigates statistical relationships between economic growth, foreign direct investment (FDI) and trade openness, using panel-VAR methods in relation to ten significant OECD countries: Austria, Canada, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Norway, Spain, Switzerland and the USA, between 1970 and 2010. We find that foreign direct investment, trade openness and economic growth are co-integrated, suggesting the presence of long-run equilibrium relationships between them. Our Granger-causality tests indicate the presence of bidirectional causality linking foreign direct investment to trade openness, with unidirectional causality from foreign direct investment to economic growth, and also from trade openness to economic growth. Significantly, the pattern of causal relationships varies between the countries we studied.
Social Inequality in Higher Education. Is Vocational Training a Pathway Leading to or Away from University

This paper analyses theoretically the decision to enrol in university under the conditions of certain educational systems. In particular, the impact of an institutional alternative of vocational training (as in Germany) and the possibility of combining vocational and academic training are examined. The comparison of educational systems shows how different types may give rise to social class differences in participation in higher education. [The authors] trace back this comparison to individual decisions after leaving upper secondary education which [the authors] represent by a formal model. Here, [the authors] can refer to theories that were developed to explain social differences in other kinds of educational transitions. Using a model of utility maximization, [the authors] specify the returns to education in the form of expected future income within a certain time. By introducing social differences in the relevant parameters, [the authors'] model offers an explanation of why school-leavers from different social origins have incentives to choose different educational paths. [The authors] also find evidence that the populations in different tracks might differ with respect to average achievement. Finally, [the authors] give a brief discussion on implications for further research.
A gaussian sum approach to blind carrier phase estimation and data detection in turbo coded transmissions

We present a joint phase estimation and decoding method for convolutional turbo codes in the presence of strong phase noise. In order to overcome the problem of phase ambiguity and cycle slips, a combined state-space model for the time varying phase and the component convolutional codes is introduced. The proposed algorithm uses a Gaussian sum approach to approximate the multimodal a posteriori probability density function (pdf) of the phase in a blind context. We compare our method to the well known alternative consisting in discretizing the phase.Monte-Carlo simulations for the turbo code used in the DVB-RCS standard show that the performances of the proposed scheme are close to decoding with perfect knowledge of the phase.