Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Productive and Financial Performance in U. S. Manufacturing Industries: An Integrated Structural Approach

In the last few years, macroeconomists and industrial organization researchers have reexamined relationships among scale economies, markups, economic profitability and productivity growth. Paul Romer [14] has emphasized the importance of increasing returns for productivity growth at the aggregate industry or economy level. Empirical evidence supporting this at the industry level has been presented by Robert Hall [4;5], who reported both significant increasing returns and markups of price over marginal cost in various U.S. manufacturing sectors. Related evidence on the cyclical nature of markups in these industries, suggesting some procyclicality of markup behavior, has been presented by Domowitz, Hubbard and Petersen [3]. Analysis of the cyclical characteristics of Robert Solow's [16] productivity residual provided the basis for these empirical studies. The resulting framework is limited, however, by its dependence on a number of restrictive assumptions, which severely hamper analysis of interactions among these characteristics. The purpose of this paper is to extend this type of analysis to consider profit-maximizing markups, economic profitability, scale economies, capacity utilization and productivity growth within an integrated theoretical structural model, and to assess their interactions empirically for two-digit U.S. manufacturing data. More specifically, using the "new industrial economics" approach outlined by Timothy Bresnahan [2] in which marginal cost and therefore markups are unobserved but estimated econometrically, I specify an integrated cost and demand structure for each industry. The structure is quite general in that (i) markups and returns to scale are permitted to vary over time (they are not constant parameters); (ii) shortand long-run impacts are distinguished (by explicit recognition of adjustment costs); (iii) quasi-fixity of both capital and labor is incorporated (to accommodate labor hoarding as well as slow adjustment of capital); (iv) input substitution is not constrained a priori (a generalized Leontief restricted cost function based on gross output is employed); (v) nonstatic expectations are allowed for (through an instrumental variable estimation procedure); and (vi) the effects of cost and demand "shocks" are directly represented (by specifying and estimating industry-specific cost, output demand and input demand functions).
Intake of fatty acids and antioxidants and pancreatic cancer in a large population‐based case‐control study in the San Francisco Bay Area

There are no well‐established modifiable risk factors for pancreatic cancer except smoking. Some dietary factors have been associated with pancreatic cancer risk and require further study. We examined the associations among intake of specific fatty acids and antioxidants and risk of pancreatic cancer in a large population‐based case‐control study in the San Francisco Bay Area. Unconditional logistic regression models were used to compute odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) as estimates of relative risk. Positive associations were observed for high levels of the 8 individual saturated fatty acids (4th vs. 1st quartile: ORs ranged from 1.6 to 2.6; all ptrend < 0.01), monounsaturated palmitoleic and oleic fatty acids [OR = 1.6 (95% CI: 1.2–2.1) and 1.4 (95% CI: 1.1–1.9); both ptrend < 0.01], and polyunsaturated linolenic acid [OR = 1.5 (95% CI: 1.1–2.0); ptrend = 0.02]. Inverse associations were observed for high levels of gadolic acid [4th vs. 1st quartile: OR = 0.68 (95% CI: 0.50–0.92); ptrend = 0.007] and omega‐3 fatty acids [≥0.85 g/day vs. 1st quartile: OR = 0.47 (95% CI: 0.25–0.90)]. An inverse association was also observed for high total intake of vitamin C [4th vs. 1st quartile: OR = 0.69 (95% CI: 0.51–0.94); ptrend = 0.004] and of vitamin E [OR = 0.67 (95% CI: 0.49–0.92); ptrend = 0.01]. Although similar decreased risks were also observed for high supplemental intake of these 2 vitamins (both ptrend < 0.01), no association was observed for intake from food alone. These results support the hypotheses that a high intake of saturated and certain monounsaturated fatty acids may increase the risk of pancreatic cancer, whereas greater intake of omega‐3 fatty acids, vitamins C and E may reduce the risk.
Ensembles and probabilities: a new era in the prediction of climate change

Predictions of future climate are of central importance in determining actions to adapt to the impacts of climate change and in formulating targets to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. In the absence of analogues of the future, physically based numerical climate models must be used to make predictions. New approaches are under development to deal with a number of sources of uncertainty that arise in the prediction process. This paper introduces some of the concepts and issues in these new approaches, which are discussed in more detail in the papers contained in this issue.
The effects of simulated transverse, anterior column, and posterior column fractures of the acetabulum on the stability of the hip joint.

BACKGROUND Knowledge of the location of the weight-bearing portion of the acetabulum would assist orthopaedic surgeons in the treatment of acetabular fractures. With use of controlled experimental transverse, anterior column, and posterior column osteotomies, we investigated the weight-bearing region of the acetabulum. METHODS Twenty-four fresh-frozen cadaveric hip joints were tested. Simulated transverse fractures were evaluated in twelve specimens, and simulated anterior column and posterior column fractures were tested in six specimens each. Each femur and acetabulum was potted and mounted in an aluminum fixture, with the acetabulum positioned in 25 degrees of flexion and 20 degrees of abduction. Each specimen was tested intact and after successive osteotomies. The transverse osteotomies had roof-arc angles of 60, 50, 40, and 30 degrees. The anterior column and posterior column osteotomies were classified as very low, low, intermediate, or high. Compressive loading to 800, 1200, and 1600 newtons was performed four times for each intact specimen and after each osteotomy. A specimen was considered to be stable if no gross dislocation occurred during any of the four loading cycles. Translation of the femur within the acetabulum also was measured during each trial. RESULTS The number of stable specimens decreased both with higher applied loads and with more superior osteotomies. The stability of the hip was significantly affected by both the location of the fracture and the magnitude of the applied load (p < 0.00005). Translation of the femur within the acetabulum increased with higher applied loads and with more superior osteotomies. CONCLUSIONS Fractures that have a medial roof-arc angle of 45 degrees or less, an anterior roof-arc angle of 25 degrees or less, or a posterior roof-arc angle of 70 degrees or less cross the weight-bearing portion of the acetabulum and necessitate operative treatment.
Tilting the balance between RNA interference and replication eradicates Leishmania RNA virus 1 and mitigates the inflammatory response

Significance Leishmania parasites can be infected with Leishmaniavirus (LRV1), a double-stranded RNA virus whose presence in Leishmania guyanensis parasites exacerbates disease severity in both mouse models and humans. Studies of the role of the virus on parasite biology and virulence are hampered by the dearth of isogenic lines bearing and lacking LRV, particularly in the clinically important species Leishmania braziliensis. Here, we describe a method to systematically generate LRV1-free Leishmania parasites using the parasite RNA interference (RNAi) pathway. The ability of transgene-driven RNAi to overcome the ability of LRV1 to withstand the endogenous RNAi attack suggests a third paradigm of virus–RNAi interaction where RNAi and virus replication exist in balance to maintain persistent infection. Many Leishmania (Viannia) parasites harbor the double-stranded RNA virus Leishmania RNA virus 1 (LRV1), which has been associated with increased disease severity in animal models and humans and with drug treatment failures in humans. Remarkably, LRV1 survives in the presence of an active RNAi pathway, which in many organisms controls RNA viruses. We found significant levels (0.4 to 2.5%) of small RNAs derived from LRV1 in both Leishmania braziliensis and Leishmania guyanensis, mapping across both strands and with properties consistent with Dicer-mediated cleavage of the dsRNA genome. LRV1 lacks cis- or trans-acting RNAi inhibitory activities, suggesting that virus retention must be maintained by a balance between RNAi activity and LRV1 replication. To tilt this balance toward elimination, we targeted LRV1 using long-hairpin/stem-loop constructs similar to those effective against chromosomal genes. LRV1 was completely eliminated, at high efficiency, accompanied by a massive overproduction of LRV1-specific siRNAs, representing as much as 87% of the total. For both L. braziliensis and L. guyanensis, RNAi-derived LRV1-negative lines were no longer able to induce a Toll-like receptor 3–dependent hyperinflammatory cytokine response in infected macrophages. We demonstrate in vitro a role for LRV1 in virulence of L. braziliensis, the Leishmania species responsible for the vast majority of mucocutaneous leishmaniasis cases. These findings establish a targeted method for elimination of LRV1, and potentially of other Leishmania viruses, which will facilitate mechanistic dissection of the role of LRV1-mediated virulence. Moreover, our data establish a third paradigm for RNAi–viral relationships in evolution: one of balance rather than elimination.
[Derivation of cerebrospinal fluid: consequences on inner ear biomechanics in adult patients with chronic hydrocephalus].

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Patients suffering from hydrocephalus are often treated by the surgical placement of a shunt, directing the excess of cerebrospinal fluid towards another body compartment. However, the degree of clinical improvement is variable and the dynamics of cerebrospinal fluid pressure in shunted hydrocephalus is poorly understood. A recently developed noninvasive technique makes it possible to follow pressure variations: it is based on otoacoustic emissions, sounds naturally emitted by the cochlea and routinely detected in audiology. When cerebrospinal fluid pressure changes, emissions undergo a phase shift while crossing the oval window. The goal of this work is to study how this shift is affected by shunt placement. METHOD Otoacoustic emissions were recorded repeatedly in 22 adult patients who suffered from chronic hydrocephalus. Their phase shifts were measured, in sitting and recumbent positions, before and after surgical placement of a ventriculo-peritoneal shunt (Sophysa SM8). RESULTS Postural shift in normal subjects is a phase lead, and this outcome was found in 17 of 22 patients preoperatively. After shunt placement, the postural effect became a phase lag in 18 patients of 20. In a given posture, sitting or recumbent, phase shifts changed from pre to postoperative measurements in a systematic manner. CONCLUSION Otoacoustic emissions respond in a characteristic way to posture changes in normal adults, and having received a shunt for chronic hydrocephalus reverses the effect, presumably in relation to the existence of a "vacuum" in the inner ear.
Improving classification accuracy in crowdsourcing through hierarchical reorganization

In this paper, we propose a method of improving accuracy of multiclass classification tasks in crowdsourcing. In order to improve quality of outputs in crowdsourcing, it is important to assign workers to tasks they are good at. In multiclass classification tasks, which are common in crowdsourcing, sometimes different workers are good at different subcategories. It suggests that we can improve the accuracy of a multiclass classification task by reorganizing the task into a hierarchical classification task, and assigning workers to appropriate sub-tasks in the hierarchy. We experimentally show that we can actually improve the accuracy of a classification task by this approach. We collected performance data of workers in a flat multiclass classification task on Amazon Mechanical Turk, and simulated the process of the reorganization and the worker allocation. We confirmed that the output in the simulation achieves higher accuracy than that of the original flat classification task.
Increase of uncertainty in transient climate response to cumulative carbon emissions after stabilization of atmospheric CO2 concentration

We analyzed a dataset from an experiment of an earth system model of intermediate complexity, focusing on the change in transient climate response to cumulative carbon emissions (TCRE) after atmospheric CO2 concentration was stabilized in the Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) 4.5. We estimated the TCRE in 2005 at 0.3–2.4 K/TtC for an unconstrained case and 1.1–1.7 K/TtC when constrained with historical and present-day observational data, the latter result being consistent with other studies. The range of TCRE increased when the increase of CO2 concentration was moderated and then stabilized. This is because the larger (smaller) TCRE members yield even greater (less) TCRE. An additional experiment to assess the equilibrium state revealed significant changes in temperature and cumulative carbon emissions after 2300. We also found that variation of land carbon uptake is significant to the total allowable carbon emissions and subsequent change of the TCRE. Additionally, in our experiment, we revealed that equilibrium climate sensitivity (ECS), one of the 12 parameters perturbed in the ensemble experiment, has a strong positive relationship with the TCRE at the beginning of the stabilization and its subsequent change. We confirmed that for participant models in the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5, ECS has a strong positive relationship with TCRE. For models using similar experimental settings, there is a positive relationship with TCRE for the start of the period of stabilization in CO2 concentration, and rate of change after stabilization. The results of this study are influential regarding the total allowable carbon emissions calculated from the TCRE and the temperature increase set as the mitigation target.
Analysis of the Molecular Species of Hydrogenase in the Cells of an Obligately Chemolithoautotrophic, Marine Hydrogen-Oxidizing Bacterium, Hydrogenovibrio marinus

Hydrogenovibrio marinus was suggested to have only membrane-bound hydrogenase (MBH). The change of cultivation pO2 did not affect the molecular species of hydrogenase expressed. We propose the MBH is grouped in class I [NiFe] MBH according to the subunit composition, size (Mw 38,000 and Mw 74,000 subunits) and N-terminal sequences of the subunits, and arrangement of the structural genes. Ni-requirement for the autotrophic growth on H2 also suggested the MBH is the Ni-containing type. Southern hybridization analysis using a part of the MBH gene showed a possibility of the presence of two highly homologous MBHs which were not separated by SDS-PAGE.
Cohesin Regulates MHC Class II Genes through Interactions with MHC Class II Insulators

Cohesin is a multiprotein, ringed complex that is most well-known for its role in stabilizing the association of sister chromatids between S phase and M. More recently, cohesin was found to be associated with transcriptional insulators, elements that are associated with the organization of chromatin into regulatory domains. The human MHC class II (MHC-II) locus contains 10 intergenic elements, termed MHC-II insulators, which bind the transcriptional insulator protein CCCTC-binding factor. MHC-II insulators interact with each other, forming a base architecture of discrete loops and potential regulatory domains. When MHC-II genes are expressed, their proximal promoter regulatory regions reorganize to the foci established by the interacting MHC-II insulators. MHC-II insulators also bind cohesin, but the functional role of cohesin in regulating this system is not known. In this article, we show that the binding of cohesin to MHC-II insulators occurred irrespective of MHC-II expression but was required for optimal expression of the HLA-DR and HLA-DQ genes. In a DNA-dependent manner, cohesin subunits interacted with CCCTC-binding factor and the MHC-II–specific transcription factors regulatory factor X and CIITA. Intriguingly, cohesin subunits were important for DNA looping interactions between the HLA-DRA promoter region and a 5′ MHC-II insulator but were not required for interactions between the MHC-II insulators themselves. This latter observation introduces cohesin as a regulator of MHC-II expression by initiating or stabilizing MHC-II promoter regulatory element interactions with the MHC-II insulator elements, events that are required for maximal MHC-II transcription.
Synchronization of Multimedia Data for a Multimedia News-on-Demand Application

We present a complete software control architecture for synchronizing multiple data streams generated from distributed media-storing database servers without the use of a global clock. Independent network connections are set up to remote workstations for multimedia presentations. Based on the document scenario and traffic predictions, stream delivery scheduling is performed in a centralized manner. Certain compensation mechanisms at the receiver are also necessary due to the presence of random network delays. A stream synchronization protocol (SSP) allows for synchronization recovery, ensuring a high quality multimedia display at the receiver. SSP uses synchronization quality of service parameters to guarantee the simultaneous delivery of the different types of data streams. In the proposed architecture, a priority-based synchronization control mechanism for MPEG-2 coded data streams is also provided. A performance modeling of the SSP is presented using the DSPN models. Relevant results such as the effect of the SSP, the number of synchronization errors, etc., are obtained.
A customized and reconfigurable VLIW-based packet classifier on ρ-VEX

The bandwidth growth of networks increased almost exponentially in the recent years and is expected to continue so for years to come. This has been fuelled by emerging new technologies that are capable of achieving higher bandwidths. Consequently, new applications are being developed that take advantage of the new capabilities. These complex applications and heavier traffic have emerged demands on more powerful devices. Furthermore, due to dynamic nature of network traffic, totally scalable methods for packet processing and implementation platforms that are able to cope with this dynamicity are needed. Field-Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) are efficient candidates as they contain hardware programmable logic units that can be reconfigured based on the application requirements. ρ-VEX is a reconfigurable soft-core Very Long Instruction Word (VLIW) processor on an FPGA and it is able to use the inherit Instruction Level Parallelism (ILP) of applications. ρ-VEX has all the requirements of processing network applications. For the purpose of scalability and economical reasonability, in this paper, an implementation of CRC called one-clock CRC (OC-CRC) as a customized instruction in ρ-VEX is presented. Using this customization, one of packet classification algorithms that have taken advantage of Bloom filter e.g. tuple pruning using Bloom filter is implemented. CRC is selected as a custom instruction because of its importance in Bloom filter as hashing function and error detection in the most of the layer of common protocol stacks. The results show the huge performance gap between General Purpose (GPP) processors and our customized ρ-VEX such that our customized ρ-VEX provided on average approximately 8× speedup.
Sleep and Stroke

More than 50% of stroke patients have sleep-disordered breathing (SDB), mostly in the form of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). SDB represents both a risk factor and a consequence of stroke. The presence of SDB has been linked with poorer long-term outcome and increased long-term stroke mortality. Continuous positive airway presure is the treatment of choice for OSA. Oxygen and other forms of ventilation may be helpful in other (e.g., central) forms of SDB. SDB can improve spontaneously after stroke. About 20 to 40% of stroke patients have sleep-wake disorders (SWD), mostly in form of insomnia, excessive daytime sleepiness/fatigue, or hypersomnia (increased sleep needs). Depression, anxiety, SDB, stroke complications, and medications may contribute to SWD and should be addressed first therapeutically. Brain damage per se, often at thalamic or brainstem level, can be also a cause of persisting SWD. In these patients, hypnotics, dopeminergic agents, and stimulants (e.g., modafinil) can be attempted.
Outcomes of a care coordinated service model for persons with severe and persistent mental illness: A qualitative study

Background: Owing to difficulties faced by individuals with severe and persistent mental illness (SPMI) in accessing multiple services, the Australian Government trialed a care coordinated service model called the Partners in Recovery (PIR) initiative. Material: A total of 45 stakeholders in Gippsland were asked what difference the initiative had made. Discussion: The PIR initiative benefited not only clients and carers but also service providers. It addressed an unmet need in service delivery for individuals with SPMI. Conclusion: The PIR initiative has filled a gap in delivery of care for individuals with SPMI in Gippsland.
International Business Research: Understanding Past Paths to Design Future Research Directions

In this chapter we examine the extant research in international business (IB) by conducting a bibliometric study of the articles published in three leading IB journals – International Business Review, Journal of International Business Studies and Management International Review, over their entire track record of publication available in the ISI – Institute for Scientific Information. In longitudinal analyses of citation data we ascertain the most relevant works of the IB field. We also identify intellectual interconnectedness in co-citation networks of the research published in each journal. A second-tier analysis delves into publication patterns of those articles that are not at the top citation listings. Our results permit us better understand and depict the extant IB research and, to some extent, its evolution thus far.