Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Does land tenure security matter for investment in soil and water conservation? Evidence from Kenya

This paper investigates the impact of tenure security and other factors on investment in soil and water conservation (SWC) in Kenya. Factor analysis, step-wise regression and reduced form model approaches are used to explain the willingness, likelihood and intensity of adoption of SWC investments. The results confirm the importance of tenure security and development domain dimensions in determining the likelihood and intensity of adoption and suggest that to ensure land tenure policy is pro-SWC/environment, it is important to consider whether household plots are owned, rented out or rented in. The impact of household assets implies a poverty environment link. Similar factors affect the decision whether or not to invest in SWC and also the level of investment. The results suggest the need for region specific SWC practices and for broad policies that provide incentives for environmental conservation and poverty reduction.
The Impact of Subprime Crisis on Asia-Pacific Islamic Stock Markets

The objective of this study is to examine the impact of the U.S. subprime crisis on the long-term and short-term dynamic relationships between selected Asia-Pacific Islamic stock markets and conventional stock markets in the region. The comovements among these stock markets are examined through cointegration tests, and vector error correction model–based Granger causality tests, for the period from February 2006 to December 2010. The study reveals that, after the debut of the U.S. subprime crisis, Asia-Pacific Islamic stock markets increasingly integrated among themselves and with their conventional counterparts. In addition, the conventional markets of the United States and Japan significantly influence the short-run fluctuations of Asia-Pacific Islamic and conventional markets.
Capital Accumulation, Technical Progress and Labour Supply Growth: Keynes's Approach to Aggregate Supply and Demand Analysis Revisited

This paper addresses the effects on employment and the price level of a range of factors including capital accumulation, technical progress and money wage changes by formalising the aggregate supply and demand framework posited by Keynes in his General Theory. We find that labour-augmenting technical progress reduces the equilibrium level of employment, thus lending support to Hansen's notion of technological unemployment. We also find that capital accumulation and capital-augmenting technical progress raise the level of employment whereas, as argued by Keynes and several subsequent authors, money wage cuts have an ambiguous effect on the level of employment. We discuss a number of results as well as some aspects related to the adjustment of aggregate demand to aggregate supply in the long run. We conclude that Keynes's aggregate supply and demand framework provides a robust explanation of the mechanism through which increases in potential output lead over time to equiproportional increases in the level of aggregate demand and that the mechanism of adjustment to increases in the labour force in Keynes's theory differs markedly from that in classical theory.
The Effect of Foreign Direct Investment on Innovation in South Asian Emerging Markets

Many economists consider foreign direct investment (FDI) an important channel for the transfer of technology to emerging markets. This study investigates the impact of inward FDI on absorptive capacity and domestic innovation capability in South Asian countries from 2000 to 2011. The experiences of the given sample support the hypothesis that domestic innovation capability stems from a knowledge-generation process with well-equipped human resources like scientists, engineers, technicians, research equipment, and cumulative research and development (R&D) expenditure. In addition, the study found that local R&D expenditure is a very significant determinant of innovation capability. This inquiry into innovation in South Asian countries contributes to the portfolio of developing economies literature and has practical implications for those concerned with international technology spillovers in South Asian countries. ©2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
E‐business through knowledge management in Spanish telecommunications companies

Purpose – E-business requires small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to seek both external and internal knowledge and to establish external and internal relationships with partners, such as customers and suppliers. This paper aims to describe a model that examines how knowledge management has an impact on the adoption of e-business, particularly in SMEs. Design/methodology/approach – This paper reviews literature to identify relevant measures through a structural equation model, which is validated through an empirical investigation of 107 SMEs in the Spanish telecommunications sector. Findings – The results show that, in order to implement e-business systems, companies need to provide and support the acquisition, sharing and application of knowledge as prior steps. Research limitations/implications – Other factors that have not been included in this study are also likely to affect knowledge acquisition. Practical implications – Organisations that engage in learning from their customers and suppliers not only test the effectiveness of a new direction of e-business, but also have the potential to design their e-business around what customers truly need and want, and as such gain a sustainable competitive advantage. Originality/value – These results have implications for e-business managers in formulating policies and targeting appropriate organisational capabilities to ensure the effective adoption of e-business systems.
A new method for generating approximation algorithms for financial mathematics applications

This paper describes a new technique that can be used in financial mathematics for a wide range of situations where the calculation of complicated integrals is required. The numerical schemes proposed here are deterministic in nature but their proof relies on known results from probability theory regarding the weak convergence of probability measures. We adapt those results to unbounded payoffs under certain mild assumptions that are satisfied in finance. Because our approximation schemes avoid repeated simulations and provide computational savings, they can potentially be used when calculating simultaneously the price of several derivatives contingent on the same underlying. We show how to apply the new methods to calculate the price of spread options and American call options on a stock paying a known dividend. The method proves useful for calculations related to the log-Weibull model proposed recently for empirical asset pricing.
A simple model of R&D: An extension of the Dorfman-Steiner theorem

This paper extends the seminal Dorfman-Steiner (American Economic Review, 44, 826–36, 1954) theorem by putting underlying structures on the determination of market share and on the production of quality or technology. The model developed in this paper yields a demand-pull, technology-push theory of R&D, where the profit-maximizing R&D intensity (i.e., the ratio of R&D expenditure to sales) is determined jointly by consumer characteristics, represented by the elasticities of consumer value with respect to price and quality, and firm-specific technological competence or simply R&D productivity, measured as the R&D elasticity of quality or technological output.
An Andean Avatar: Post-Neoliberal and Neoliberal Strategies for Securing the Unobtainable

Recent years have seen increasingly aggressive expansion of extractive industry in the Andean-Amazonian region. Reminiscent of the film Avatar, this expansion drives conflicts over land, territory and political control of space. This expansion is occurring in both overtly neoliberal regimes and in self-consciously post-neoliberal ones. This essay documents the convergence among the different regimes' ways of governing extraction and socio-environmental conflicts. We draw on Executive level statements and policy positions as well as on statements by indigenous peoples' organisations. Among the reasons for this apparent convergence are: long-standing resource curse effects; the need to generate resources to finance social policy instruments that are integral to the governments' overall political strategies; power and information asymmetries among companies and governments; and international relations. The convergences among Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru regarding the governance of extraction and the conflicts that it catalyses suggests the need for great critical caution before using the terminology of post-neoliberalism.
TYPE 1 DIABETES AND HYPERCHOLESTEROLAEMIA REVEAL THE CONTRIBUTION OF ENDOTHELIUM‐DERIVED HYPERPOLARIZING FACTOR TO ENDOTHELIUM‐DEPENDENT RELAXATION OF THE RAT AORTA

1 The present study evaluated the effect of diabetes, hypercholesterolaemia and their combination on the contribution of nitric oxide (NO) and endothelium‐derived hyperpolarizing factor (EDHF) to relaxation of rat isolated aortic rings and the potential contribution of oxidant stress to the disturbance of endothelial function. 2 Thoracic aortic rings from control, diabetic, hypercholesterolaemic and diabetic plus hypercholesterolaemic rats were suspended in organ baths for tension recording. Generation of superoxide by the aorta was measured using lucigenin‐enhanced chemiluminescence. 3 The maximal response to acetylcholine (ACh) was significantly reduced in diabetic or hypercholesterolaemic rats compared with control rats. In rats with diabetes plus hypercholesterolaemia, both the sensitivity and maximal response to ACh was impaired. In control rats, the response to ACh was abolished by the NO synthase inhibitor NG‐nitro‐l‐arginine (l‐NNA) or inhibition of soluble guanylate cyclase with 1H‐[1,2,4]oxadiazolo[4,3‐a]quinoxalin‐1‐one (ODQ). In contrast, in rats with diabetes, hypercholesterolaemia or both, relaxation to ACh was resistant to inhibition by l‐NNA or ODQ, but abolished by additional inhibition of KCa channels with charybdotoxin plus apamin. 4 The generation of superoxide was not significantly enhanced in aortic rings from either diabetic or hypercholesterolaemic rats, but was significantly increased in aortic rings from rats with diabetes plus hypercholesterolaemia. 5 These results suggest that when diabetes and hypercholesterolaemia impair endothelium‐dependent relaxation, due to a diminished contribution from NO, a compensatory contribution of EDHF to endothelium‐dependent relaxation of the aorta is revealed. The attenuation of NO‐mediated relaxation, at least in the presence of both diabetes and hypercholesterolaemia, is associated with enhanced superoxide generation.
Quantitative gene‐expression analysis of the ligand‐receptor system for classical neurotransmitters and neuropeptides in hippocampal CA1, CA3, and dentate gyrus

We have shown quantitative expression levels of genes coding for the “ligand‐receptor system” for classical neurotransmitters and neuropeptides in hippocampal subregions CA1, CA3, and dentate gyrus (DG). Using a combination of DNA microarray and quantitative PCR methods, we found that the three subregions have relatively similar expression patterns of ionotropic receptors for classical neurotransmitters. Expression of ionotropic receptors for glutamate and GABA represents more than 90% of all ionotropic receptors for classical neurotransmitters, and the expression ratio between ionotropic receptors for glutamate and GABA is constant (1.2:1–1.6:1) in each subregion. Meanwhile, the three subregions have different expression patterns of neuropeptide receptors. Furthermore, there are asymmetric expression patterns between neuropeptides and their receptors. Expression of Cck, Npy, Sst, and Penk1 represents 90% of neuropeptides derived locally in the hippocampus, whereas expression of these four neuropeptide receptors accounts for 50% of G protein‐coupled receptors for neuropeptides. We propose that CA1, CA3, and DG have different modalities based on the ligand‐receptor system, particularly the “neuropeptidergic system. ” Our quantitative gene‐expression analysis provides fundamental data to support functional differences between the three hippocampal subregions regarding ligand‐receptor interactions. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The Role of Technology in the Shift Towards Open Innovation: The Case of Procter & Gamble

As with all new ideas, the concept of Open Innovation requires extensive empirical investigation, testing and development. This paper analyzes Procter and Gamble's 'Connect and Develop' strategy as a case study of the major organizational and technological changes associated with open innovation. It argues that although some of the organizational changes accompanying open innovation are beginning to be described in the literature, more analysis is warranted into the ways technological changes have facilitated open innovation strategies, particularly related to new product development. Information and communications technologies enable the exchange of distributed sources of information in the open innovation process. The case study shows that furthermore a suite of new technologies for data mining, simulation, prototyping and visual representation, what we call 'innovation technology', help to support open innovation in Procter and Gamble. The paper concludes with a suggested research agenda for furthering understanding of the role played by and consequences of this technology.
Predictive validity of bulimia nervosa as a diagnostic category.

OBJECTIVE The authors sought to investigate the predictive validity of bulimia nervosa as a diagnostic category. METHOD More than 10 years after they appeared as patients with bulimia nervosa, 177 women (participation rate=79.7%) completed follow-up assessments. RESULTS Among the women with a current eating pathology, most engaged in recurrent binge eating and purging. Anorexia nervosa and binge eating disorder were relatively uncommon. Eating disorder outcome was significantly related to the presence of mood, substance use, and impulse control disorders but not to the presence of anxiety disorders. CONCLUSIONS These results support the validity of bulimia nervosa as a diagnostic category that is distinct from anorexia nervosa. Furthermore, these results suggest that bulimic symptoms are associated with disorders involving distress and disinhibition.
Cardiomyocyte differentiation of mouse and human embryonic stem cells *

Ischaemic heart disease is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the western world. Cardiac ischaemia caused by oxygen deprivation and subsequent oxygen reperfusion initiates irreversible cell damage, eventually leading to widespread cell death and loss of function. Strategies to regenerate damaged cardiac tissue by cardiomyocyte transplantation may prevent or limit post‐infarction cardiac failure. We are searching for methods for inducing pluripotent stem cells to differentiate into transplantable cardiomyocytes. We have already shown that an endoderm‐like cell line induced the differentiation of embryonal carcinoma cells into immature cardiomyoctyes. Preliminary results show that human and mouse embryonic stem cells respond in a similar manner. This study presents initial characterization of these cardiomyocytes and the mouse myocardial infarction model in which we will test their ability to restore cardiac function.
Extent of Adoption as Opposed to Adoption: Case of E-Procurement

Existing literature has given much attention to e-procurement adoption, rather than to the extent of eprocurement adoption. In most countries, e-procurement is being adopted at a slow pace by the corporate world, especially by small and medium enterprises (SMEs) that have traditionally been late adopters of any advanced technologies, due in large part to their resource constraints. This paper describes a project which aims to develop a measure of the extent of e-procurement adoption and to examine the key factors that influence the extent of e-procurement adoption in New Zealand SMEs. An integrated model of the Technology-OrganizationEnvironment (TOE) framework and Diffusion of Innovations (DOI) theory is described and a cross-sectional survey is discussed. The model will be tested using data from the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of the SMEs.
An update on the constitutive androstane receptor (CAR)

Abstract The constitutive androstane receptor (CAR; NR1I3) has emerged as one of the main drug- and xenobiotic-sensitive transcriptional regulators. It has a major effect on the expression of several oxidative and conjugative enzymes and transporters, and hence, CAR can contribute to drug/drug interactions. Novel functions for CAR are also emerging: it is able to modulate the metabolic fate of glucose, lipids, and bile acids, and it is also involved in cell-cell communication, regulation of the cell cycle, and chemical carcinogenesis. Here, we will review the recent information available on CAR and its target gene expression, its interactions with partner proteins and mechanisms of action, interindividual and species variation, and current advances in CAR ligand selectivity and methods used in interrogation of its ligands.
Structural Changes in the Carboxyl Terminus of the Gap Junction Protein Connexin40 Caused by the Interaction with c-Src and Zonula Occludens-1

c-Src can disrupt the connexin43 (Cx43) and zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1) interaction, leading to down-regulation of gap junction intercellular communication. Previously, the authors characterized the interaction of domains from these proteins with the carboxyl terminus of Cx43 (Cx43CT) and found that binding of the c-Src SH3 domain to Cx43CT disrupted the Cx43CT/ZO-1 PDZ-2 domain complex. Because Cx43 and Cx40 form heteromeric connexons and display similar mechanisms of pH regulation, the authors addressed whether Cx40CT interacts with these domains in a similar manner as Cx43CT. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) data indicate that Cx40CT is an intrinsically disordered protein. NMR titrations determined that PDZ-2 affected the last 28 Cx40CT residues and SH3 shifted numerous amino-terminal Cx40CT residues. Finally, the Cx40CT/PDZ-2 complex was unaffected by SH3 and both domains interacted simultaneously with Cx40CT. This result differs from when the same experiment was performed with Cx43CT, suggesting different mechanisms of regulation exist between connexin isoforms, even when involving the same molecular partners.
Verification of Data-aware Business Processes in the Presence of Ontologies

The meet up between data, processes and structural knowledge in modeling enterprise systems is a challenging task that has led to the study of combining formalisms from knowledge representation, database theory, and process management. To ensure system correctness, formal verification also comes into play and offers well-established techniques. In line with this, significant results have been obtained within the research on data-aware business processes (DABP), which studies the marriage between static and dynamic aspects of a system within a unified framework. Here, we investigate the verification of DABP in the presence of ontologies, and provide the following contributions: (1) We propose a formal framework called Golog-KABs (GKABs), by leveraging on the state of the art formalisms for DABP equipped with ontologies. GKABs enable us to specify semantically-rich DABP, where the system dynamics are specified using a high-level action language inspired by the Golog programming language. (2) We propose a parametric execution semantics for GKABs that is able to elegantly accommodate a plethora of inconsistency-aware semantics based on the well-known notion of repair, and this leads us to several variants of inconsistency-aware GKABs. (3) We enhance GKABs towards context-sensitive GKABs. (4) We introduce the so-called Alternating-GKABs that allow for a more fine-grained analysis over the systems. (5) We introduce a novel framework called Semantically-Enhanced Data-Aware Processes (SEDAPs) that, by utilizing ontologies, enable us to have a high-level conceptual view over the evolution of the underlying system. We also provide reductions for the verification of sophisticated first-order temporal properties over all of the settings above, and show that verification can be addressed using existing techniques developed for Data-Centric Dynamic Systems (a well-established DABP framework).
Characteristics of tuberculosis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a retrospective single-center study.

OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to assess the characteristics of hospitalized patients suffering from tuberculosis with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), focusing specifically on those treated without anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF) therapy. METHODS We conducted a retrospective review to assess the characteristics of 1,022 hospitalized Japanese patients suffering from tuberculosis with and without RA between 2002 and 2011. RESULTS Compared with the 995 non-RA patients with tuberculosis, the 24 RA patients with tuberculosis treated without anti-TNF therapy were older and predominantly female. They less frequently had a history of smoking, with a higher rate of underlying respiratory diseases, an impaired performance status and side effects. The three RA patients receiving anti-TNF therapy had extrapulmonary tuberculosis; however, the rate of extrapulmonary tuberculosis in the other RA patients treated without anti-TNF therapy did not differ from that observed in the non-RA patients. Five patients died during hospitalization. The in-hospital mortality of the RA patients did not differ significantly from that of the non-RA patients. Independent factors contributing to in-hospital mortality did not include RA. CONCLUSION In this study, the RA patients treated without anti-TNF therapy did not differ from the non-RA patients in terms of the rate of extrapulmonary tuberculosis or bilateral pulmonary lesions, although they did exhibit a higher frequency of side effects of antituberculosis treatment. RA was not found to be an independent factor contributing to in-hospital mortality.
Robust MSE-based transceiver optimization for downlink cellular interference alignment

In this paper, we consider mean squared error (MSE)-based robust transceiver optimization for multi-user multi-input multi-out (MU-MIMO) cellular network that exploits interference alignment (IA) for its downlink communication. First, we consider the conventional sum-MSE minimization problem, where the MSE is calculated at user equipments (UEs). Second, we consider a different approach where the MSE can be calculated at base stations (BSs) i.e., leakage-based MSE from each BS. Different from conventional per-base station power constraint (PBPC), we assume practical per-antenna power constraint (PAPC) due to linearity of the power amplifier that feeds each transmit antenna at the BSs. To this end, we derive robust precoders and receive filters for these two design objectives under statistical channel state information (CSI) uncertainty. Simulation results suggest that our robust designs offer a good performance, showing resilience against CSI uncertainty. In addition, the sum-rate performances for designs with PAPC and PBPC are compared. It is observed that the sum-rate loss due to PAPC is relatively small for the robust designs.