Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Novel Hierarchical Ship Classifier for COSMO-SkyMed SAR Data

Ship monitoring has a wide range of applications in marine activities and maritime management. Spaceborne synthetic aperture radar (SAR) technology has an advantage in ship detection over a vast region compared to other technologies. Recently, high-resolution SAR satellites have made ship recognition and classification possible from space. In July 2010, a ship recognition campaign was performed in the East China Sea. In situ investigation of ship types was carried out during the periods when the Italian COSMO-SkyMed satellites passed over the test site. Automatic Identification System (AIS) information was collected. Based on this information, a novel hierarchical ship classifier for COSMO-SkyMed SAR data was proposed. A total of 41 ship chips were cut from the SAR images for later classification. After preprocessing of the ship chips, geometric and backscattering characteristics of various ship types were analyzed. The ships were classified into bulk carriers, container ships, and oil tankers, with an accuracy of 93.3%, 80.0%, and 72.7%, respectively. Further investigation of the backscattering features with various illumination conditions is still in progress.
Isolation of Mycoplasma bovis from broiler chickens in Turkey

Mycoplasma bovis normally affects cattle, in which it causes pneumonia in calves, mastitis, arthritis and other diseases. In the present article we report the isolation of this bovine pathogen from the tracheas of broiler chickens with no clinical signs. The most probable source of infection was the cattle herd sharing the farm with the chickens.
A Confirmatory Factor Analysis on Brand Equity in Mobile Handset Market: SEM Approach

This study examines the practicality and application of a customer-based brand equity model in Indian mobile handset market. Hence, the important attributes to make any mobile handset brand successful in Indian market will be disclosed. The study is based on Aaker’s conceptual framework of brand equity. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) is used to investigate the causal relationships between the four brand equity dimensions and overall brand equity in the mobile handset market. The study used a sample of 105 customers from Ahmedabad city. Strong support was found for brand loyalty dimension which is the influential dimension of brand equity, while perceived quality, brand awareness and brand association dimensions represent weak support. The paper shows that mobile handset brand managers and marketing planners should consider the relative importance of brand loyalty in their evaluation of overall brand equity. They should concentrate primarily on building brand loyalty. Future research needs to be done if the results are to be expanded to other regional cities of Indian market in the light of significant gaps between different cities. Further research by adding performance measurement into the model could also strengthen this analysis.
Serologic Evidence of a Natural Infection of White-Tailed Deer with the Agent of Human Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis in Wisconsin and Maryland

ABSTRACT White-tailed deer participate in the maintenance of theIxodes tick life cycle and are reservoirs for some tick-borne infectious agents. Deer may be useful sentinels for tick-transmitted agents, such as ehrlichiae. In order to determine whether white-tailed deer are markers of natural transmission or are reservoirs for the human granulocytic ehrlichiosis (HGE) agent, we performed indirect immunofluorescent-antibody (IFA) tests and immunoblotting with the HGE agent and Ehrlichia chaffeensison sera from 43 and 294 deer captured in northwest Wisconsin during 1994 and 1995, respectively, and 12 deer from southern Maryland. According to IFA testing, 47% of 1994 Wisconsin sera, 60% of 1995 Wisconsin sera, and 25% of Maryland sera contained HGE agent antibodies. All IFA-positive deer sera tested reacted with the 44-kDa band which is unique to the Ehrlichia phagocytophila group. Serologic reactions to E. chaffeensis were detected by IFA testing in 15 of 337 (4%) Wisconsin deer and in 10 of 12 (83%) Maryland deer, while 60 and 80% of E. chaffeensisIFA-positive Wisconsin and Maryland deer sera, respectively, reacted with the E. chaffeensis 28- to 29-kDa antigens by immunoblotting. A total of 4% of deer from Wisconsin and 25% of deer from Maryland were found by IFA testing to have antibodies to both the HGE agent and E. chaffeensis; 75% of these were confirmed to contain E. chaffeensis antibodies by immunoblotting. These results suggest that white-tailed deer in diverse geographical regions of the United States are naturally infected with the HGE agent, E. chaffeensis, or both and that these animals, and potentially humans, are exposed to infected ticks at a high frequency in nature.
Continuous negative pressure wound therapy in the treatment of a gigantic trophic leg ulcer.

AIM to present a therapeutic algorithm for chronic venous insufficiency complicated with ulceration, using etiologic treatment combined with local treatment by negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) before and after skin grafting. MATERIAL AND METHOD we are discussing a 59 years-old patient with a lower leg gigantic, circumferential trophic lesion. The aetiology was combined, post-traumatic and chronic venous insufficiency, with 30 years of evolution. RESULTS the treatment was applied in two surgical steps. Initially the pathological refluxes were interrupted; secondarily a skin graft was applied, preceded and followed by NPWT until graft intake. The wound healed completely; patient developed secondary foot lymphoedema. CONCLUSIONS 1. Case treatment particularity consists in using a combination of etiologic and local treatment, combined with adjuvant NPWT. 2. Secondary lymphoedema developed due to circumferential location of the lesion. 3. Continuous NPWT has proven its efficiency in chronic ulcer before and after skin grafting, reducing costs and duration of treatment.
A single amino acid replacement results in the Ca2+-induced self-assembly of a helical conantokin-based peptide.

Conantokins are short (17-27 amino acid residues), gamma-carboxyglutamate (Gla)-rich peptide components of the venoms of marine snails of the genus Conus. They display high apo and/or Ca(2+)-induced helicity and act as potent and selective inhibitors of the N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor (NMDAR). We have previously established that one of the conantokins, conantokin-G (con-G), self-associates in the presence of Ca(2+) with high specificity for antiparallel chain orientation [Dai, Q. , Prorok, M. , and Castellino, F. J. (2004) J. Mol. Biol. 336, 731-744]. The dimerization appears to be driven by interhelical Ca(2+) coordination between the following residue pairings: Gla(3)-Gla(14)('), Gla(7)-Gla(10)('), Gla(10)-Gla(7)('), and Gla(14)-Gla(3)('). A second member of the conantokin family, conantokin-T (con-T), shares sequence identity with con-G at 8 of 21 amino acids, including 4 Gla residues. These similarities notwithstanding, several primary and secondary structural differences exist between con-T and con-G. Particularly notable is that con-T contains a Lys, rather than a Gla, at position 7. Moreover, unlike con-G, con-T does not undergo Ca(2+)-triggered self-assembly. In the present study, sedimentation equilibrium ultracentrifugation is employed to demonstrate that a single amino acid replacement analogue of con-T, con-T[K7gamma], assumes a dimeric superstructure in the presence of Ca(2+) at pH values consistent with the ionization of Gla carboxylate groups. Furthermore, HPLC-monitored thiol-disulfide folding and rearrangement assays with Cys-containing con-T variants suggest that the relative chain alignment preference in the noncovalent complex is antiparallel. Our results suggest that interchain Ca(2+) coordination in con-T[K7gamma] is incumbent upon an "i, i + 4, i +7, i +11" arrangement of Gla residues, as occurs in native con-G.
Communication of ethical values in organic farming

Due to globalisation and growing anonymity of trade with organic products, farmers in Europe are under pressure to lower their production standards in order to keep up with world-wide competition. On the other hand consumers increasingly criticise food products which were produced under unsatisfactory social and environmental conditions. A literature review indicates that consumers are willing to pay an additional premium for ethical values in organic production regarding social, environmental and economic concerns. This creates possibilities to differentiate from the organic mass markets by providing and communicating ethical values. So far, not much is known about which ethical values and arguments are comprehensible and important to organic consumers and how to communicate them most effectively. This contribution discusses some hypotheses on the communication of additional ethical values in the organic market and points at existing research deficits.
The financing structure of non-listed firms

This paper presents an analysis of how Norwegian non-listed firms are financed. Using a unique database covering all limited liability firms in Norway, both the size (leverage) and composition (maturity structure) of debt are investigated. The empirical evidence provides support for the effects of taxes, asymmetric information and size suggested in the theoretical literature, and rejects the effects of agency costs and the pecking order theory.
APPLICATION OF LAOZI'S DAODEJING TO CURRENT CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

This study explores the relationships among the leader’s ethical spirit, leader’s social responsibility, internal corporate governance mechanisms (ICGMs), and shareholder rights in the Taiwanese export industry from the viewpoint of stakeholders. It takes in to account of Laozi’s Daodejing (DDJ) for Daoism philosophy in order to create the criteria on ethical spirit and social responsibility for Taiwanese leader. After reviewing OECD principles for corporate governance and Taiwanese company laws on ICGMs and shareholder rights, a conceptual framework is established based on hypotheses relating to possible influential factors. An empirical study was conducted among 265 stakeholders in the Taiwanese export industry. The results show that the leader’s ethical spirit has positive effects on his social responsibility and on ICGMs, but has an indirect effect on shareholder rights. The leader’s social responsibility has a positive influence on ICGMs. Moreover, social responsibility and ICGMs play a significant role in shareholder rights.
Electronics for the new on-line ultrasonic mixture analyzer and flowmeter for fluorocarbon mixtures in the ATLAS silicon tracker, with application to Ring Imaging Cherenkov detectors

The ATLAS silicon tracker community foresees a change from the present octafluoropropane (C<sub>3</sub>F<sub>8</sub>) evaporative coolant to a blend with a 20-30% admixture of hexafluoroethane (C<sub>2</sub>F<sub>6</sub>), allowing a lower evaporation temperature to afford the silicon a better safety margin against leakage current-induced thermal runaway as the LHC luminosity profile increases. Central to the use of this blend is a custom developed speed-of-sound instrument for simultaneous real-time measurement of the C<sub>3</sub>F<sub>8</sub>/C<sub>2</sub>F<sub>6</sub> mixture ratio and flow. The electronics of this instrument and its functionality - which also has been employed in on-line refractive index monitoring in Ring Imaging Cherenkov detectors - is described.
Behavioral and Personality Characteristics of Children With Reactive Attachment Disorder

Abstract The authors compared behavioral and personality characteristics of children with reactive attachment disorder (RAD) with non-RAD children. Participants included parents of children with RAD (n = 21), parents of non-RAD children (n = 21), and some of the children (n = 20). The parents completed questionnaires regarding behavioral and personality characteristics of their children. Parents were also given the option of asking their children to participate in the study by completing self-report measures. Several significant findings were obtained. Children with RAD scored lower on empathy but higher on self-monitoring than non-RAD children. These differences were especially pronounced based on parent ratings and suggest that children with RAD may systematically report their personality traits in overly positive ways. Their scores also indicated considerably more behavioral problems than scores of the control children. Previous research has been generally qualitative in nature. The current research represents some of the first quantitative, empirical work documenting specific behaviors associated with the diagnosis of RAD. The findings of this study have implications for better understanding and dealing with reactive attachment disorder.
Is anybody home? The role of company websites for small building contractors in Sweden

During the last decades, being visible on the Internet has been advertised as the solution to develop businesses. Among other benefits, it should increase profitability by enlarging the number of customers and accelerating processes and communication. Indeed by 2012, 92% of the Swedish micro, small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) had a website presenting their companies; the construction sector for once is no exception. Looking at SME building contractors we inquire into whether the announced potential of being online has been realized and, in particular if their relations to customers have improved. Referring to customer relationship management and e-business studies, we focus on 4 aspects of websites to assess their qualities: content, convenience, control and interaction. The material consists of a sample of 90 building contractors of the region of Gothenburg in Sweden. We have examined the companies' websites, checked their profile, contacted them by phone and carried out in-depth interviews with 21 of them. The results show quite diversified strategies and benefits of their use of websites. Updating the sites regularly or gaining customers seem to be the exception, and the uses of the web sites are so far rather rudimentary. If there is no surprise in the SMEs building their customers relationship on direct contact and local network, the passivity and lack of visibility towards new customers and business opportunity are nevertheless intriguing. Even more as the sector is facing a rather bad reputation in the public. Finally a close contact with clients is said to be one of the most important factors contributing to innovation which these SMEs acutely need to face the new energy regulations.
Narrative structure of storytelling in Kelantanese dialect

Human interaction involves a process of sharing experiences, telling stories, and retelling stories in a form of narration. While telling story, the narration is structured in a way to make sense to the audiences.This study examined the narrative structures in Kelantanese dialect used by young female native speakers. The participants were two (2) female Kelantanese students, aged 25 and 27 years old, who have completed their undergraduate studies in local universities. Audio recording and semi-structured interview were two types of instruments used for the data collection. Interview session of 1012 words was analyzed using a combination of the theory of Malay sentence classifications and the theory of narrative structure. The findings of this study reveal that the narration in Kelantanese dialect has a systematic structure which consists of title and elaboration. The title consists of the abstract and orientation, while elaboration includes the four stages of narrative structure which are complication, evaluation, resolution and coda. The findings show that the story is unfolded in a structural manner-which means it has the idea and the elaboration of the idea (the story).
Rising-frequency chirps and earphones with an extended high-frequency response enhance the post-auricular muscle response

The purpose of this study was to determine whether rising-frequency chirps presented via earphones with an extended high-frequency response would optimize the post-auricular muscle response (PAMR). The PAMR was recorded in adults using three different stimuli (a click, a rising-frequency chirp, and a truncated speech stimulus, /t/). Conventional ER-3A insert earphones were compared to ER-2 insert earphones to determine whether the PAMR is enhanced by the ER-2's extended high-frequency response. There were significant stimulus and earphone effects on PAMR amplitudes. The PAMR was largest for the chirp stimulus and the ER-2 earphones. The poorest responses were obtained using the /t/ stimulus and conventional ER-3A earphones. The results support previous ABR studies that have demonstrated a significant advantage of chirps over clicks for evoked response audiometry, and indicate that the PAMR is enhanced by inclusion of additional high-frequency stimulus energy. Sumario El propósito de este estudio fue determinar si los gorjeos de frecuencia ascendente presentados con auriculares de respuesta extendida en las frecuencias agudas, optimizan la respuesta del músculo post-auricular (PAMR). El PAMR se registró en adultos que usaron tres estímulos diferentes (clic, gorjeo de frecuencia ascendente y estimulo truncado de lenguaje, /t/). Se compararon auriculares de inserción convencionales ER-3A con auriculares de inserción ER-2 para determinar si el PAMR mejora con las respuestas de alta frecuencia extendida del ER-2. Se apreciaron efectos significativos en el estímulo y en los auriculares sobre las amplitudes del PAMR. EL PAMR fue más grande para los estímulos con gorjeo y con los auriculares ER-2. Las respuestas mas pobres se dieron usando el estimulo /t/ y los auriculares convencionales ER-3A. Estos resultados apoyan estudios previos de ABR que demostraron una ventaja significativa de los gorjeos sobre los clics en la audiometría de respuestas evocadas e indican que el PAMR se incrementa con la inclusión adicional de la energía de estímulos de altas frecuencias.
Materials and Processes for MEMS-Based Infrared Microspectrometer Integrated on HgCdTe Detector

The materials and processes for fabrication of monolithically integrated microelectromechanical systems-based microspectrometers operating in the short-wavelength IR range is presented. Using low-temperature surface micromachining techniques, compatible with a range of IR sensor technologies, silicon-nitride-based tunable Fabry-Perot filter structures with distributed Bragg mirrors made of Ge/SiO/Ge layers have been monolithically integrated with HgCdTe photoconductors. The stress within and between the many layers of the structure has been eliminated or compensated by stress tuning of the deposition conditions. The demonstrated microspectrometers have a tuning range of 1.8-2.2 mum with relative peak transmission of 70% and full-width at half-maximum of 80plusmn10 nm.
Nonlinear dynamics of lipid-shelled ultrasound microbubble contrast agents

Encapsulated gas microbubbles, known as contrast agents, are widely used in ultrasound medical applications. The present study is devoted to modelling of the spatio-temporal dynamics of lipid-shelled contrast agents. A theoretical model is proposed that describes the radial and translational motion of a lipid-shelled microbubble in an ultrasound field. The model approximates the behaviour of the lipid shell by the linear 3-constant Oldroyd constitutive equation, incorporates the translational motion of the bubble, and accounts for acoustic radiation losses due to the compressibility of the surrounding liquid. The values of the shell parameters appearing in the model are evaluated by fitting simulated radius-time curves to experimental ones. The results are then used for the simulation of the translational motion of contrast agent bubbles of various radii and the evaluation of the relationship between equilibrium radii of lipid-shelled agents and their resonance frequencies in the regime of nonlinear oscillation.
THE EFFECT OF OWNER’S GENDER AND AGE TO FIRM PERFORMANCE: A REVIEW ON MALAYSIAN PUBLIC LISTED FAMILY BUSINESSES

There are lack of studies that discuss the importance of owner’s gender and age with firm performance. Thus, the objective of this study is to examine the relationship between owner’s gender and age with the business performance, which is measured using Tobin’s Q (Q) and Earnings Per Share (EPS). This study uses secondary data approach. The sample size is 182 Malaysian family companies listed on Bursa Malaysia over the period of 2003 to 2007. Findings from this study show that there is a difference between male-led and female-led companies with firm performance. Male owners are found to enhance greater firm value than female owners, when based on the market value (Tobin’s Q). In term of owner’s age, both the market value (Q) and accounting value (EPS) do show a negative relationship with business performance. This explains that matured owners are found to be underperformed, while the young owners are more aggressive in enhancing the firm value. Interestingly, the findings have shown that factors such as owner’s gender and age do enhance company performance, especially for Malaysian family businesses. Regulators, stakeholders and potential investors need to be alert that gender and age plays an important role in the family company success
Evaluation of the GenoType Mycobacterium Assay for Identification of Mycobacterial Species from Cultures

ABSTRACT A new commercially available DNA strip assay (GenoType Mycobacterium CM/AS; Hain Lifescience, Nehren, Germany) was evaluated for the ability to differentiate mycobacterial species. The test is based on a PCR technique targeting a 23S rRNA gene region, followed by reverse hybridization and line probe technology. The GenoType CM is capable of identifying 23, the GenoType AS a further 14, species either alone or in combination with one or more species. Both tests were evaluated with 156 mycobacterial strains composed of 61 validly published species including different subspecies, 6 not validly published species, and 3 strains other than mycobacterial species. All strains were precharacterized by sequencing of the 5′ region of the 16S rRNA gene and biochemical tests. In total, results for 151 strains were interpretable. Concordant results were obtained for 137 (92.6%) of 148 mycobacterial strains with the CM assay and 133 (89.9%) of 148 mycobacterial strains with the AS assay, and all three non-Mycobacterium species were identified.
Nucleic Acids Research

Treatment of E. coli 50S ribosomal subunits with low doses of bis-(2-chloroethyl)-methylamine ("nitrogen mustard") leads to formation of a number of intra-RNA and RNA-protein cross-links. After partial digestion of the cross-linked subunits with cobra venom nuclease, followed by destruction of the protein moiety with proteinase K, complexes containing the intra-RNA cross-links were isolated by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. The individual complexes were subjected to oligonucleotide analysis, either directly or after a second partial digestion procedure using ribonuclease T1, and the cross-link sites determined. In 23S RNA, the cross-links found were between bases 763 and 1567, 1210 and 1236, 1482 and 1501; in 5S RNA, base 69 was cross-linked to base 107. The significance of these cross-links in relation to the three-dimensional organization of the ribosomal RNA is discussed.