Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Are Providers More Likely to Contribute to Healthcare Disparities Under High Levels of Cognitive Load? How Features of the Healthcare Setting May Lead to Biases in Medical Decision Making

Systematic reviews of healthcare disparities suggest that clinicians’ diagnostic and therapeutic decision making varies by clinically irrelevant characteristics, such as patient race, and that this variation may contribute to healthcare disparities. However, there is little understanding of the particular features of the healthcare setting under which clinicians are most likely to be inappropriately influenced by these characteristics. This study delineates several hypotheses to stimulate future research in this area. It is posited that healthcare settings in which providers experience high levels of cognitive load will increase the likelihood of racial disparities via 2 pathways. First, providers who experience higher levels of cognitive load are hypothesized to make poorer medical decisions and provide poorer care for all patients, due to lower levels of controlled processing (H1). Second, under greater levels of cognitive load, it is hypothesized that healthcare providers’ medical decisions and interpersonal behaviors will be more likely to be influenced by racial stereotypes, leading to poorer processes and outcomes of care for racial minority patients (H2). It is further hypothesized that certain characteristics of healthcare settings will result in higher levels of cognitive load experienced by providers (H3). Finally, it is hypothesized that minority patients will be disproportionately likely to be treated in healthcare settings in which providers experience greater levels of cognitive load (H4a), which will result in racial disparities due to lower levels of controlled processing by providers (H4b) and the influence of racial stereotypes (H4c). The study concludes with implications for research and practice that flow from this framework.
Off-line Farsi / arabic handwritten word recognition using vector quantization and hidden Markov model

In this paper a Farsi handwritten word recognition system for reading city names in postal addresses is presented. The method is based on vector quantization (VQ) and hidden Markov model (HMM). The sliding right to left window is used to extract the proper features(we have proposed four features). After feature extraction, K-means clustering is used for generation a codebook and VQ generates a codeword for each word image. In the next stage, HMM is trained by Baum Welch algorithm for each city name. A test image is recognized by finding the best match (likelihood) between the image and all of the HMM words models using forward algorithm. Experimental results show the advantages of using VQ/HMM recognizer engine instead of conventional discrete HMM.
Ionic gel based carbon dioxide gas sensor

We propose a CO2 gas sensor based on an impedance change of ionic gel (IG) according to the CO2 gas concentration. The sensor consists of an IG film patterned on electrodes. The impedance of the IG changes when the IG absorbs CO2 gas. CO2 gas concentration can be detected by measuring the amount of impedance change. Our proposal sensor has a merit that power consumption is very low (<;1μW). It is because ionic liquid (IL) and IG have selective gas solubility and high impedance. The high impedance means that large current is not required for the measurement.
Caught on Tape: Institutional Order Flow and Stock Returns

Many questions about institutional trading can only be answered if one can track high-frequency changes in institutional ownership. In the US, however, institutions are only required to report their ownership quarterly in 13-F filings. We infer daily institutional trading behavior from the "tape", the Transactions and Quotes database of the New York Stock Exchange, using both a naive approach and a sophisticated method that best matches quarterly 13-F data. Increases in our measures of institutional flows negatively predict returns, particularly when institutions are selling. We interpret this as evidence that 13-F institutions compensate more patient investors for the service of providing liquidity. We also find that both very large and very small trades signal institutional activity, while medium size trades signal activity by the rest of the market.
Customer expectations of CSR, perceived service quality and brand effect in Thai retail banking

Purpose – This paper aims to explore how social responsibility initiatives can influence perceived service quality and brand effect from the perspective of retail banking customers in Bangkok, Thailand. The paper also aims to examine the impact of trust as a mediating variable between perceived service quality and brand effect.Design/methodology/approach – The study is quantitative in nature, using the responses of 275 bank customers to a closed‐end questionnaire administered on a face‐to‐face basis by trained fieldworkers. The data analysis is performed by partial least squares (PLS), a second generation statistical SEM variance‐based modeling technique.Findings – The results of the study demonstrate how corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives influence service quality perceptions and also examine CSR's impact on trust and affective attitudes of customers towards their banks. The study's hypothesized relationships were principally supported, i.e. perceived service quality is positively associat.
Corporate distribution networks for slot array antenna based on groove gap waveguide technology

This paper deals with the design of low loss wideband power dividers based on groove gap waveguide (GGW) technology. The advantages of GGW power dividers are low insertion loss, high power handling capacities, ease of fabrication and compatibility with integrated microwave networks. A 64-way power divider is designed and used as the feeding network of a 16×16-element slot antenna array at 60-GHz band. The results show that the gain and total radiation efficiency of the antenna are more than 32.5 dBi and 90% over the desired frequency range from 56 to 66.4 GHz.
Strategic Default in the Context of a Social Network: An Epidemiological Approach

The paper examines the impact of social networks on strategic default behavior. Given the difficulties in empirically modeling this phenomenon, the paper takes a simulation approach, utilizing techniques from epidemiology. The concept is that ideas can travel through a population in the same manner that a disease does. Homeowners learn about strategic default either from their neighbors or from real estate “mavens” who provide information, or in some cases misinformation. The modeling indicates that in fragile markets, advice by those considered to be experts can result in a flood of strategic defaults, causing a contagious downward spiral of home prices and potentially a market collapse.
Predictors of customer satisfaction: testing the classical paradigms

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to ascertain the best predictors of customer satisfaction by analysing and comparing the variables of two classical paradigms: the confirmation/disconfirmation model; and Locke's model of general satisfaction.Design/methodology/approach – Following a literature review and the development of a conceptual framework in which various problems in the two models are identified, the paper presents a field study that investigates the extent to which the satisfaction of customers of a bank can be explained by these models and by two modified models (regression design). Findings – The study finds: that the inclusion of “importance” in Locke's model does not provide a better prediction of satisfaction than the variables of “performance” and “expectation” in the confirmation/disconfirmation model; that the absolute level of the expectation‐performance difference is a better predictor of customer satisfaction than the simple relative difference; and that “performance” is a much mo.
Sex Offender Treatment

Convicted sex offenders attending an outpatient treatment program in Connecticut were surveyed about their experiences in therapy, their perceived importance of treatment content, their satisfaction with the help they receive, and their engagement in therapeutic services. There were strong correlations between perceived importance of content items and satisfaction with services. A robust correlation was also found between engagement and satisfaction. Clients rated accountability and victim empathy as the most important components of treatment. Other popular content areas were thinking errors, relapse prevention concepts, uncovering motivations to offend, and controlling deviant arousal. Most sex offenders valued the peer support and confrontation offered by group therapy. Though reduced recidivism is clearly the crucial measure of treatment success, clients who are engaged in the treatment process and develop healthy interpersonal skills by participating in therapy may be less likely to engage in abusive behavior. Implications for practitioners are discussed.
A framework for configuring sales support structure

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to examine when it is appropriate to provide dedicated support for a sales activity, and in cases where support is desirable, to explore the choice between core team support and external support.Design/methodology/approach – Sales transactions typically require a diverse range of sales activities, including customer contact, scheduling appointments, internal meetings, processing orders, and preparing financing applications. This research develops a framework for understanding how to structure sales support for specific sales activities.Findings – Each sales activity has four dimensions, i.e. workload, customization, complexity, and prequalification risk. Support structure (self‐support, core team support, and external support) moderates the influence of the four sales activity dimensions on sales activity performance and salesperson role stress. These, in turn, impact overall sales performance.Research limitations/implications – This research presents a broad conceptual .
Analysis of Data Mining Techniques for Detection of Financial Statement Fraud

Top level management is usually found responsible for fraudulent reporting of financial statements to fulfill the objective of artificially improving the financial performance and results of the company. Several data mining algorithms have been implemented for successful identification of fraudulent financial reporting. This paper explores the four commonly used data mining techniques, viz., Neural Network, Decision Trees, Genetic Algorithms and Bayesian Belief Networks for detection of financial statement fraud. This study investigates the effectiveness of these four techniques in identifying fraudulent financial statements. In addition, the techniques were compared in terms of their performances based on eight varying parameters. Neural network appeared as the most extensively used technique for detection and identification of financial statement fraud.
Social capital, strategic relatedness and the formation of intraorganizational linkages

This paper investigates the evolutionary dynamics of network formation by analyzing how organizational units create new interunit linkages for resource exchange. Using sociometric techniques and event history analysis, this study predicts the rate at which new interunit linkages are created between a newly formed unit and all the existing units in a large multinational organization. Two important constructs: social capital, derived from the literature on social structure and network formation, and strategic relatedness, derived from research on diversification and the resource‐based view of the firm, are used to explain the rate of new linkage creation. Results show that the interaction between social capital and strategic relatedness significantly affects the formation of intraorganizational linkages. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Observation of the Poole-Frenkel effect in Tantalum Polymer capacitors

I-V and I-time measurements to characterize the Polymer-Dielectric interface of Tantalum/Ta<inf>2</inf>O<inf>5</inf>/Polymer capacitors were performed. The interface consists of a conducting polymer — PEDOT (poly 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) and Ta<inf>2</inf>O<inf>5</inf>. The leakage current measurements on these capacitors were found to be consistent with Poole-Frenkel Emission in the bulk of the dielectric.
Architecture of a FPGA-based coprocessor: the PAR-1

The implementation of a FPGA based coprocessor and its programming methodology are shown. The effects of different sequencing models, and regular and irregular circuits on the hardware and in the programming methodology are discussed. Two examples are described: a sorting network and the kernel of a speech recognition algorithm. The results are still preliminary but they suggest some architectural improvements for general FPGA based computing machines.
Market concentration and pricing behaviour of Sri Lankan banks

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether the level of market concentration in Sri Lanka's banking sector is positively associated with bank‐specific interest spreads after controlling for other bank‐specific and exogenous influences.Design/methodology/approach – A pooled, time‐series and cross‐section model is utilized which distinguishes between banks’ dominance in loan and deposit market segments. Results are presented for the total sample as well as for a truncated sample of private‐owned banks.Findings – Changes in industry concentration do not affect bank‐level interest margins of Sri Lankan banks. Nevertheless, the dominant Sri Lankan banks seem to extract them and banks’ cost structures are priced in their interest spreads. The less‐capitalized, high risk banks operate with narrow interest margins, possibly due to the relatively higher deposit rates they pay to attract deposits. Although regulatory changes seem to have no effect, the growing capital market exerts negative prici.
Unmasking the Ambushers: Conceptual Framework and Empirical Evidence

Purpose: Sport events organizers have recently undertaken to disclose to the general public instances where firms have conspired to ambush the official sponsors. In doing so, they have sought to sensitise audiences to sponsors’ valuable contribution. However, what is the effect of such disclosure on ambush marketers’ brands? This study aims to answer this question, using an experimental approach. Design: We conducted two successive experiments. Our first study used a student sample (N=120) and a fictitious brand. Our second study used a before-and-after experiment with control groups (N=480), using four real brands and print disclosure articles. Data was collected from 6 French metropolitan areas and analysed using Repeated Measure ANOVA and MANOVA. Results: Ambush marketing disclosure is associated with lower attitudes towards the ambusher’s brand. Two variables moderate this effect: involvement in the event and attitude towards sponsorship, both of which worsen the negative influence of ambush disclosure on audiences’ attitudes. Research Limitations/Implications: While the empirical work reflects one national context and one specific sport event, our findings are the first to empirically support the notion that disclosure of ambush practices adversely impacts ambushers’ brand. Practical Implications: Our results offer official sponsors and event organisers an effective alternative strategy to legal protection, with demonstrated effects on the core target audience of the event. Originality/Value: The literature has alluded to possible perverse effects of ambush marketing. This study is the first to draw an analogy with corrective advertising to test and demonstrate the impact of ambush disclosure on ambushers’ brands.
Is Small the New Big? Size Effects on TV Stations’ Social Network Communication

Abstract In previous research size aspects have been discussed as key determinants for any explanation how television broadcasting works. This paper addresses the question how the market and the firm size influence the social network site (SNS) communication by television stations. The study examines the Facebook activities of twelve stations in four countries and investigates the degrees of sophistication along key success factors for SNS communication. Yet, different from what has been argued from the resources argument our results suggest that the small program diversity and the incentives lead to a more sophisticated SNS communication in small markets and by small companies.
An Examination of Government Internal Audits’ Role in Improving Financial Performance

This research empirically examines how the work of government internal audits lead to improvements in government financial performance. Periodic economic downturn and dwindling state aid to local governments have left many public managers looking for ways to improve financial oversight and operational efficiency. Although internal audit is one area with the expertise to assess efficient utilization of financial resources and help improve oversight and financial performance, public administration research has paid little attention to the role of internal audit in the financial management process. A survey was sent to local government Chief Auditors to learn of audit's examination of government operations and financial management. Financial performance data were obtained from the Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports (CAFRs) of survey respondents’ local governments and analyzed with the survey responses. Results show that in general, local government auditors perform more audits in operational areas that deal with fiscal receipts and outlays. Additionally, auditors’ work significantly influences local government financial performance both directly and indirectly through improvements in internal controls and efficiency of operations.
Forest remote sensing on the individual tree level by airborne millimeterwave SAR

This paper presented experimental results discussing the potential of millimeterwave SAR for forest remote sensing on the individual tree level. As can be seen from the experimental results, although there is a certain amount of canopy penetration, a significant part of the signal response is received from the tree crowns. This provides both interesting perspectives for an analysis of forest volumes by continuous TomoSAR models as well as the reconstruction of individual tree models by utilization of discrete TomoSAR models.
Incident Cerebral Microbleeds in a Cohort of Intracerebral Hemorrhage

Background and Purpose— We aimed to identify prognostic and associated factors of incident cerebral microbleeds (CMBs) in intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) survivors. Methods— Observational prospective cohort of 168 ICH survivors who underwent 1.5T magnetic resonance imaging at ICH onset and during follow-up (median scan interval, 3.4; interquartile range, 1.4–4.7) years. We used logistic regression adjusted for age, sex, and scan interval. Analyses were stratified according to the index ICH location (58 lobar ICH, 103 nonlobar ICH, excluding patients with multiple or unclassifiable ICH). Results— Eighty-nine (53%) patients had CMBs at ICH onset, and 80 (48%) exhibited incident CMBs during follow-up. Predictors of incident CMBs at ICH onset were ≥1 CMBs (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 2.27; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.18–4.35), old radiological macrohemorrhage (aOR, 6.78; 95% CI, 2.76–16.68), and CMBs in mixed location (aOR, 3.73; 95% CI, 1.67–8.31). When stratifying by ICH location, incident CMBs were associated in nonlobar ICH with incident lacunes (aOR, 2.86; 95% CI, 1.04–7.85) and with the use of antiplatelet agents (aOR, 2.89; 95% CI, 1.14–7.32). In lobar ICH, incident CMBs were associated with incident radiological macrohemorrhage (aOR, 9.76; 95% CI, 1.07–88.77). Conclusions— Prognostic and associated factors of incident CMBs differed according to the index ICH location. Whereas in lobar ICH, incident CMBs were associated with hemorrhagic biomarkers, in nonlobar ICH, ischemic burden also increased. CMBs may be interesting biomarkers to monitor in randomized trials on restarting antithrombotic drugs after ICH.
Capon beamforming and moving objects-an analysis of lateral shift-invariance

If an ultrasound imaging system provides a presentation of a moving object which is sensitive to small spatial shifts, the system is said to be locally spatially shift-variant. This can happen, for instance, if the axial or lateral sampling is insufficient. The Capon beamformer has been shown to provide increased lateral resolution in ultrasound images. Increased lateral resolution should demand denser lateral sampling. However, in previous literature on Capon beamforming for medical ultrasound imaging, only single-frame scenarios have been simulated. Temporal behavior and effects caused by the increased resolution and lack of oversampling have therefore been neglected. In this paper, we analyze the local lateral shift-invariance of the Capon beamformer when imaging moving objects. We show that insufficient lateral sampling makes an imaging system based on the Capon beamformer laterally shift-variant. Different methods for oversampling on transmit and receive are then discussed and investigated to improve on the Capon beamformer. It is shown that lateral shift-invariance can be improved by oversampling based on phase rotation on receive without affecting the acquisition frame rate and with a minor change in processing complexity.
Performance of children with mental retardation after cochlear implantation: Speech perception, speech intelligibility, and language development

Abstract Conclusion: Children with mental retardation (MR) obtain demonstrable benefit from cochlear implantation, and their postoperative performance was tempered by the degree of MR. Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the performance of children with MR after implantation, and to explore their progress according to the degree of MR. Methods: Fifteen implanted children with MR were included. Progress in speech perception, speech intelligibility, and language was measured using Categories of Auditory Performance, monosyllabic word test, Speech Intelligibility Rating, and Language Scale before and after implantation. We retrospectively examined outcomes and explored the association between the progress and the degree of MR after implantation. We compared monosyllabic word test scores using repeated-measures ANOVA. Results: Speech perception and speech intelligibility for children with mild MR improved consistently after implantation. After implantation, monosyllabic word test scores did not differ significantly between children with mild MR and children with no additional disabilities. Although language development of children with mild MR was slow, they could communicate verbally 3 years after implantation. Children with moderate MR progressed more slowly and had limitations in speech and language development, and these children could communicate by vocalization and gesture 3 years after implantation.