Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Branded Spaces

This article comprises a series of critical reflections on some current directions in marketing, with reference to empirical material from a case study of the promotion of a series of live music events. In particular, it highlights a key theme in contemporary marketing: the attempt to approach consumers in an expanded range of everyday spaces. This, in turn, is related to a heightened emphasis on branding, which derives from a complex of factors including a perceived fragmentation and diversification of media audiences and new ideas about the best ways of structuring and stabilizing markets. Within this scenario, the case study is presented as an example of ‘experiential marketing’: one of a range of possible strategic choices in the attempt to insinuate marketing practices more deeply into the lives of consumers. In addition, the case study shows how these spatial practices may be connected to electronic marketing technologies, such as databases, consumer websites and‘viral marketing’campaigns, in an attempt to extend the scope of emotional or affective bonds forged between consumers and brands. The article concludes by arguing that whilst such strategies may not always succeed in their stated aims, their emergence should nonetheless be taken seriously as an important development in the mediation of production and consumption.
Elimination of T‐cell‐receptor β‐chain diversity in transgenic mice restricts antigen‐specific but not alloreactive responses

The contribution of T‐cell‐receptor β‐chain diversity to the T‐cell antigen‐specific repertoire was investigated using single‐chain T‐cell‐receptor transgenic mice. Animals that express the rearranged β‐chain gene from a T hybridoma with specificity for a hen egg lysozyme peptide, designated HEL(85–96) were analysed for their ability to respond to a panel of diverse antigens. Transgenic mice exhibited a significantly elevated response to HEL(85–96) which was shown to be due to an increased frequency of HEL(85–96)‐specific T‐cell progenitors. This increased frequency of specific progenitors resulted in the ability of transgenic mice to respond to the peptide in the absence of antigen priming. Conversely, transgenic mice failed to respond to any other antigen tested. Furthermore, this apparent deficiency was associated with a significant decrease in the frequency of antigen‐specific T‐cell progenitors in transgenic mice. Surprisingly, the ability to launch an alloresponse was unaffected by the exclusive expression of the transgene‐derived β‐chain. These results indicate that β‐chain diversity is crucial for the ability of the T‐cell population to elicit a rapid and robust response to the profusion of different antigen/major histocompatibility complex (MHC) ligands potentially encountered by an individual. Furthermore, these results suggest a lesser role for β‐chain diversity in contributing to allorecognition, and support a model in which the direct recognition of peptide‐mediated conformational MHC forms is the major contributor to the alloreactive response exhibited by the majority of T cells.
Prolegomenon to the structure of emotion: Gleanings from neuropsychology

Abstract This article presents a model of the structure of emotion developed primarily from a consideration of neuropsychological evidence and behavioural data which have bearing on neuropsychological theories. Valence is first considered and highlighted as a defining characteristic of emotion. Next, the use of facial behaviour and autonomic nervous system patterns as defining characteristics of discrete emotions is questioned on empirical and conceptual grounds. The regulation of emotion is considered and proposed to affect the very structure of emotion itself. If there is an invariant pattern of biological activity across different instantiations of the same emotion, it is likely to be found in higher-order associative networks of central nervous system activity, the very same networks that subserve goal-directed behaviour and other cognitive functions. Drawing upon evolutionary considerations, it is argued that what is basic about emotion are the dimensions of approach and withdrawal. The nature of the.
Write-limited sorts and joins for persistent memory

To mitigate the impact of the widening gap between the memory needs of CPUs and what standard memory technology can deliver, system architects have introduced a new class of memory technology termed persistent memory. Persistent memory is byte-addressable, but exhibits asymmetric I/O: writes are typically one order of magnitude more expensive than reads. Byte addressability combined with I/O asymmetry render the performance profile of persistent memory unique. Thus, it becomes imperative to find new ways to seamlessly incorporate it into database systems. We do so in the context of query processing. We focus on the fundamental operations of sort and join processing. We introduce the notion of write-limited algorithms that effectively minimize the I/O cost. We give a high-level API that enables the system to dynamically optimize the workflow of the algorithms; or, alternatively, allows the developer to tune the write profile of the algorithms. We present four different techniques to incorporate persistent memory into the database processing stack in light of this API. We have implemented and extensively evaluated all our proposals. Our results show that the algorithms deliver on their promise of I/O-minimality and tunable performance. We showcase the merits and deficiencies of each implementation technique, thus taking a solid first step towards incorporating persistent memory into query processing.
MBA lecturers’ curriculum interests in leadership

This article aims to provide insight into MBA lecturers’ curriculum interests in relation to the topic of leadership. Central to this inquiry is the exploration of MBA lecturers’ beliefs and expectations of leadership learning. An attempt is made to categorize the purpose of leadership study in five English and French MBAs by investigating lecturers’ assumptions about what counts as a leadership success in the corporate world. Guided by the work of Habermas on human knowledge interests, the main value of this inquiry is to provide research-based evidence of the prevailing interests in the teaching of leadership in MBA curricula. The analysis reveals that, although driven by different pedagogical motives, the majority of MBA lecturers are not committed to providing participants with a full understanding of leadership that might serve people and society beyond mere business ends.
Avifaunal Richness and Abundance Along an Urban Rural Gradient with Emphasis on Vegetative and Anthropogenic Attributes in Tiruchirappalli, India

Abstract Urban expansion and human migration from rural to urban locations have complex relationships with environmental change. Habitat fragmentation, loss of biodiversity and vegetation changes are some of the most common impacts of urbanisation. In many Indian cities, the urban core is characterised by historical human settlements with narrow lanes and packed commercial establishments, while urbanisation that occurred after 1970s preferred spacing between the dwellings with more greenery or urban forestry. As urbanisation progresses, the urban fringes have more scope for incorporating environmental concerns and conservation. In this study, we measured species richness and abundance of birds within varied urban habitats and landscapes along the urban–rural gradient in Tiruchirappalli, India. We also tried to determine the linkage between bird diversity and landscape attributes including anthropogenic factors. Our observations showed that within urban areas, certain landscapes favoured species richness while many habitats are unfriendly for species but encouraged homogenisation. As we move from urban core towards rural gradient, the species richness increased; however, it is not uniform in all peripheral directions. Interestingly, the urban fringes at certain pockets had richness equivalent to rural locations. Species richness positively correlated with vegetation cover while built cover, noise, vehicular movement and pedestrians had negative impacts. As the urban fringes are in various stages of development, they have more scope for integrating ecological and biodiversity considerations and in this aspect wetlands, riverine farmlands and urban forests may play a crucial role in retaining native birds and also supporting migratory bird species.
Autocratic Breakdown and Regime Transitions: A New Data Set

When the leader of an autocratic regime loses power, one of three things happens. The incumbent leadership group is replaced by democratically elected leaders. Someone from the incumbent leadership group replaces him, and the regime persists. Or the incumbent leadership group loses control to a different group that replaces it with a new autocracy. Much scholarship exists on the first kind of transition, but little on transitions from one autocracy to another, though they make up about half of all regime changes. We introduce a new data set that facilitates the investigation of all three kinds of transition. It provides transition information for the 280 autocratic regimes in existence from 1946 to 2010. The data identify how regimes exit power, how much violence occurs during transitions, and whether the regimes that precede and succeed them are autocratic. We explain the data set and show how it differs from currently available data. The new data identify autocratic regime breakdowns regardless of whether the country democratizes, which makes possible the investigation of why the ouster of dictators sometimes leads to democracy but often does not, and many other questions. We present a number of examples to highlight how the new data can be used to explore questions about why dictators start wars and why autocratic breakdown sometimes results in the establishment of a new autocratic regime rather than democratization. We discuss the implications of these findings for the Arab Spring.
Phosphorylation of D-glucose in Escherichia coli mutants defective in glucosephosphotransferase, mannosephosphotransferase, and glucokinase

Genetic studies show that Escherichia coli has three enzymes capable of phosphorylating glucose: soluble adenosine 5'-triphosphate-dependent glucokinase, which plays only a minor role in glucose metabolism; an enzyme II, called glucosephosphotransferase, with high specificity for the D-glucose configuration; and another enzyme II, called mannosephosphotransferase, with broader specificity. The former enzyme II is active on glucose and methyl-alpha-glucopyranoside, whereas the latter is active on D-glucose, D-mannose, 2-deoxy-D-glucose, D-glucosamine, and D-mannosamine. Mutations leading to loss of glucosephosphotransferase activity and designated by the symbol gpt are between the purB and pyrC markers in a locus previously called cat. The locus of mutations to loss of mannosephosphotransferase, mpt, is between the eda and fadD genes. Mutations to loss of glucokinase, glk, are between the ptsI and dsd genes.
Taking the MINI to Mustang, Nepal: methodological and epistemological translations of an illness narrative interview tool

Illness narratives and explanatory models have been a research focus for the discipline of medical anthropology for decades. In recent years, standardized qualitative research tools have been developed to elicit illness narratives as a means of conducting socio-cultural analysis and as a springboard for health-related interventions – particularly with reference to communities experiencing rapid socioeconomic transition or those in which trauma has been experienced. Nevertheless, gaps persist in terms of the latent methodological and epistemological challenges of translating and transplanting such research tools to new contexts. This paper chronicles the adaptation of the McGill Illness Narrative Interview (MINI) for use in the culturally Tibetan region of Mustang, Nepal. This analysis is based on 44 in-depth interviews using an adapted version of the MINI to elicit narratives about experiences of illness. The MINI proved to be a compelling research tool, particularly in terms of engaging research assistants in the field. Yet its deployment in a context where distinctions between individual and social suffering can be blurred, where the dichotomization of ‘religion’ and ‘medicine’ makes little sense, and where understandings of causality are rooted in the concept of karma, revealed the extent to which the MINI – and, by extension other such qualitative research tools – emerges from particular models of narrative construction and assumptions about the relationships between self and other, cause and effect. Concluding recommendations are made regarding the adaptation of this tool to other settings.
Fast and robust keypoint detection in unstructured 3-D point clouds

In robot perception, as well as in other areas of 3-D computer vision, keypoint detection is the first major step for an efficient and accurate 3-D perception of the environment. Thus, a fast and robust algorithm for an automatic identification of keypoints in unstructured 3-D point clouds is essential. The presented algorithm is designed to be highly parallelizable and can be implemented on modern GPUs for fast execution. The computation is based on a convolution of a voxel based representation of the point cloud and a voxelized integral volume. The generation of the voxel-based representation neither requires additional surface information or normals nor needs to approximate them. The proposed approach is robust against noise up to the mean distance between the 3-D points. In addition, the algorithm provides moderate scale invariance, i. e. , it can approximate keypoints for lower resolution versions of the input point cloud. This is particularly useful, if keypoints are supposed to be used with any local 3-D point cloud descriptor to recognize or classify point clouds at different scales. We evaluate our approach in a direct comparison with state-of-the-art keypoint detection algorithms in terms of repeatability and computation time.
Secured Dual Mode Logic (DML) as a countermeasure against Differential Power Analysis

Security of the digital systems is under the threat from so called side channel attacks. In particular, Differential Power Analysis (DPA) is a powerful technique, as it does not require any assumption regarding the chip implementation of the device. In this paper, we introduce a novel countermeasure strategy to deal with DPA attacks. This approach is based on randomization methodology of the Dual Mode Logic (DML) family. This logic family basically comprises two modes of operation: static and dynamic modes, each having a different power profile. We design the desired cryptographic module using DML gates while switching randomly between operation modes of these gates. This results in power profile which is much more difficult to estimate, and therefore makes the DPA attack less effective. Simulation results, conducted in a standard 40nm technology, prove the efficiency of the proposed methodology.
Demographic differences in the perception of constraints on recreational sport participation: results from a study in Greece

Are any sub-groups of the Greek population particularly influenced by the experience of leisure constraints? The present study aimed to investigate demographic differences (age, gender, education and marital status) in the perception of constraints on recreational sport participation, in relation to demographic differences in annual sport-participation rates. The data were collected by means of a self-administered household questionnaire survey conducted in an urban area in Greece. The results indicated that: (a) females were significantly more constrained than males, especially by intrapersonal constraints; (b) the perception of constraints significantly increased among less-educated individuals; (c) there was an inverted U-relationship between perception of constraints and age; (d) married individuals were significantly more constrained than single persons on time-related constraints. The implications of these results are discussed in terms of the ‘negotiation’ and ‘balance’ propositions. The study prov.
Biomarkers of Everolimus Sensitivity in Hormone Receptor-Positive Breast Cancer

Activation of the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway is an important mechanism of resistance to endocrine therapy in breast cancer. Everolimus, an mTOR inhibitor, has been shown to increase the efficacy of endocrine therapy and overcome resistance to endocrine therapies. Clinical studies have suggested that everolimus combined with endocrine therapy prolongs progression-free survival in hormone receptor-positive breast cancer patients. However, because breast cancer includes a group of highly heterogeneous tumors, patients may have different responses to everolimus. Therefore, finding biomarkers that can predict a patient's positive response or resistance to everolimus is critical. Numerous preclinical studies have shown that PIK3CA/PTEN mutations are predictive of sensitivity to everolimus; however, clinical trials have not confirmed the correlation between mutation status and clinical response. KRAS or BRAF mutations can bypass the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase pathway; therefore, mutations in KRAS or BRAF may lead to resistance to mTOR inhibitors, and preclinical studies have shown that PIK3CA mutant cells which also contain KRAS mutations are resistant to everolimus. However, there are no clinical data in breast cancer patients to support this conclusion. Therefore, large-scale clinical studies are needed to identify biomarkers of efficacy and resistance to everolimus.
Enthusiastic Embrace or Critical Reception? The German HRM Debate

This paper discusses the reception of human resource management (HRM) in Germany. A review of the German HRM debate shows that this is dominated by business administration academics specializing in this field. In the past, these scholars as well as practitioners have generally embraced the techniques as well as the ideology of HRM. This finding can be explained by a relatively low emphasis on empirical research, a neglect of industrial relations issues, and a strong impact of theories and concepts developed in the USA. Today, however, there appears to be a change towards a more critical appreciation of the US HRM model and a more positive assessment of the German HRM model.
Parental Investment in Children with Chronic Disease: The Effect of Child's and Mother's Age

Parents do not invest their resources in their children equally. Three factors which elicit differential parental investment are the parent's reproductive value, the child's reproductive value (RV), and the impact of the investment on the child (II). As the child matures, his RV increases while the II may decrease. This raises a question regarding the favored strategy of investment by child age. It was hypothesized that different categories of parental investment generate different age-based strategies. Emotional investment, such as maternal worrying for the child's health, was hypothesized to increase with the child's age, while direct care was hypothesized to decrease with the child's age. Both categories were hypothesized to increase with the mother's age at childbirth. 137 Israeli mothers of children with chronic neurological conditions reported levels of worrying for their child and levels of change in direct care. Maternal worrying about the child's health was positively associated with the child's age at diagnosis and the severity of his illness, and negatively associated with the time from diagnosis. An increase in direct care was positively associated with maternal age at childbirth and illness severity, and negatively associated with the time from diagnosis, and the duration of the marriage. Contrary to the hypothesis, the child's age had no effect on changes in direct care. It appears that in mothers of children with adverse neurological conditions, child and maternal age effect parental investment differently. While the child's age is related to maternal worrying about his health, the mother's age at childbirth is related to changes in direct care.
DNA Hypermethylation as a Blood-Based Marker for Pancreatic Cancer: A Literature Review

Objectives The aim is to review genes aberrantly methylated in pancreatic cancer. This review focuses on DNA promoter hypermethylation in plasma and serum to describe the most promising genes that may be useful as minimally invasive diagnostic blood-based markers for pancreatic cancer. Methods A systematic search of the literature was performed using the PubMed and EMBASE databases. The following MeSH terms and free text were used: pancreatic disease, pancreatic cancer, pancreatic neoplasm, methylation, DNA hypermethylation, CG rich sequence, CpG island, cell-free DNA, blood, plasma, serum, fluids, and secretions. Results In total, 720 articles were found. Eight studies on cell-free DNA promoter hypermethylation in plasma or serum and 2 studies on hypermethylation in whole blood/leukocyte DNA from patients with pancreatic cancer were identified. The search for a hypermethylated marker in cell-free DNA is characterized by a few small studies lacking well-defined control groups. No single gene has been identified as a diagnostic marker. Conclusion Because of insufficient power, none of the genes examined have the potential to work as an individual diagnostic marker, suggesting that a panel of several genes is needed. Further research is warranted before a blood-based diagnostic marker for pancreatic cancer based on promoter hypermethylation can be applied clinically.
Gene encoding zonula occludens toxin (zot) does not occur independently from cholera enterotoxin genes (ctx) in Vibrio cholerae

Of 167 Vibrio cholerae isolates screened for sequences homologous with zonula occludens toxin (zot) or cholera toxin (ctx) genes, 3.0% of non-O1, 100.0% of clinical O1, and 0.0% of environmental O1 strains contained both zot and ctx. zot was present only in strains that were ctx positive; all ctx-positive strains carried zot. The absence of zot-positive, ctx-negative strains suggests ZOT is not an independent virulence factor for V. cholerae, although ZOT may play a role in the pathogenesis of toxigenic strains.
Separate and Connected: A Side-by-Side Model for Intervening with Mother-Child Dyads in Small Groups

When a woman becomes a mother, a profound psychic reorganization takes place, changing her life forever. Many new mothers experience overwhelming feelings, including anxiety, confusion, and self-doubt, especially if they have or have had a problematic relationship with their own mother. This article describes a model for working with mothers and their infant or toddler in small groups of four to six mother-child pairs in order to reduce anxiety within the dyad by facilitating affect regulation and mentalization. The room is set up in such a way that as the process unfolds and according to the age of the children, a parent group and a children's group run side by side, separate and interconnected. Through the gradual development of trust between all the participants—parents, children, and staff—and through many applications of the concepts of holding, play, space, and containment, anxious mothers and their children achieve a degree of internal and physical separation that allows for exploring and reflecting upon projections, identifications, and attributions. As a result, maternal attunement is enhanced and attachments are strengthened.