Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Impact of e-business on perceived supply chain risks

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to understand the risks managers and individual supply chains perceive from e-business. Design/methodology/approach – This research takes a long-term, staged view of the risks managers and individual supply chains perceive from e-business. By taking a two-stage approach, investigating four supply chains at a three year interval, the research considers perceived risks from e-business and the extent to which these risks obtained. Findings – E-business has the potential to deliver substantial benefits, but it also involves new and different risks. This research finds that small firms (SMEs) adopted a “watching brief” rather than implemented e-business. Between the two studies it emerges that e-business can support rather than detract from inter-organisational relationships. Global forces are in evidence in terms of low cost competition, but low cost competitors are not e-enabled. Research limitations/implications – Limitations, pragmatism and opportunism in the sampling is acknowledged. For example, the work and concepts that led to the expectation of e-business dominating and decimating industrial supply chains may have been based in chains more open to external forces than the ones examined here. Further research is required that identifies the minimum critical mass necessary to retain national manufacturing capacity at a chain or sector level, and empirical work is needed on the suggested link between supply chain stability and certainty of payment. The cases here are based on four UK supply chains, so various chain forms are likely to have been excluded. Originality/value – This research, by taking a staged approach and going back to the same chain and reviewing perceived risks, identifies how the build up of numerous – but small – events, for example factory closures, can aggregate over time to be just as significant as high profile, headline-worthy risks. Methods that produce a snapshot such as a one-off survey may be inadequate for fully exploring an area such as risk. Especially if the risks are hard to assess and are biased toward high profile events – catastrophic risks rather than accumulations of smaller, less noticeable risks.
Evaluation of automatic 4D face recognition using surface and texture registration

We introduce a novel technique for face recognition by using 4D face data that has been reconstructed from a stereo camera system. The 4D face data consists of a dense 3D mesh of vertices describing the facial geometry as well as a 2D texture map describing the facial appearance of each subject. The combination of geometry and texture information produces a complete photo-realistic model of each face. We propose a recognition algorithm based on two steps: The first step involves a 3D or 4D rigid registration of the faces. In the second step we introduce and evaluate different similarity metrics that measure the distance between pairs of closest points on two faces. A key advantage of the proposed technique is the fact that it can capture facial variations irrespective of the posture of the subject. We use this technique on 3D surface and texture data comprising 62 subjects at various postures and emotional expressions. Our results demonstrate that for subjects that look straight into the camera the recognition rate significantly increases when texture and geometry are combined in a 4D similarity metric.
Developing an International Assurance Standard on Greenhouse Gas Statements

SYNOPSIS: Worldwide public concern over climate change and the need to limit greenhouse gas (hereafter, GHG) emissions has increasingly motivated public officials to consider more stringent environmental regulation and standards. The authors argue that the development of a new international assurance standard on GHG disclosures is an appropriate response by the auditing and assurance profession to meet these challenges. At its December 2007 meeting, the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (hereafter, IAASB) approved a project to consider the development of such a standard aimed at promoting trust and confidence in disclosures of GHG emissions, including disclosures required under emissions trading schemes. The authors assess the types of disclosures that can be assured, and outline the issues involved in developing an international assurance standard on GHG emissions disclosures. The discussion synthesizes the insights gained from four international roundtables on the proposed IAASB assur.
Barriers of interorganisational environmental management: two case studies on industrial symbiosis

The objective of this paper is to test the research hypothesis that interorganisational cooperation contributes to improved environmental management. Two case studies - one from the energy sector, the other from the waste disposal sector - are analysed. The results of the case studies support the hypothesis by showing that inter-company concepts can result in considerable cost savings and environmental benefits when compared to the optimal strategies implemented independently by the individual companies. Literature analysis and interviews of 25 decision makers of industrial companies have been used to identify the barriers of interorganisational environmental management.
Gender differences in unsafe sexual behavior among young people in urban Mali

Abstract We developed gender-specific explanatory models for unsafe sexual behavior among unmarried young people living in urban West Africa using a culturally adapted instrument which addresses personal, relational and socio-cognitive factors. Data were collected on condom use and number of sexual partners, and on their potential determinants, using in-person interviews on a heterogeneous sample of in-school and out-of-school young women (n=185) and (n=214) men who reported ever having had sexual intercourse. Recruitment was done at various sites in 21 randomly selected neighborhoods in Bamako. Bivariate analysis and multivariate logistic regressions were conducted to identify determinants of lack of condom at last sex and having more than one partner in the last six months and to test for interactions with gender. Similar percentages of men (40%) and women (46%) reported not using a condom at last sex. However, more men (64%) reported multiple partnering in the last six months than women (32%). Our findings suggest that the context of sexual debut, social status, relation to peers and family as well as attitudinal, normative and behavioral control constructs may influence young men and womens’ sexual behavior, but that pathways leading to unsafe sex are different across genders. Our findings also show that factors associated with condom use and sexual partnering are distinct. Earlier sexual debut seems to be risk-inducing in women while risk-reducing in men. Poor communication with peers and receiving money from sexual partner were associated with lack of condom use in women. High behavioral control was associated with fewer sexual partners in men. Determinants of unsafe sexual behavior were found at the social, interpersonal and individual levels for both men and women, but notable gender differentials existed. These findings underscore the importance of addressing gender as a crucial factor shaping HIV-risk profiles.
Two Theorems on Generalized Diminishing Returns and Their Applications to Economic Analysis

Under certain weak assumptions such as free disposal and non‐satiety, it is shown that the concavity of utility and of technology implies that the maximum value of the set of all attainable programmes is a concave function of the initial capital stocks. For time‐independent problems, this implies that along an optimal path, as a capital stock is accumulated, its shadow price falls. The usefulness of the theorems is demonstrated in a number of examples, including Kemp's cake‐eating problem and Forster's pollution‐control problem.
Bounding truncation errors of a flexible slewing beam using DC gain for controller design

We develop a method of uncertainty modeling of a flexible slewing beam for robust controller design. The obtained uncertainty model consists of a finite dimensional nominal model and an uncertainty bound in the frequency domain. First, we review the conventional method by which a steady state solution to the original system is extensively utilized for bounding the error between the nominal truncated modal model and the original beam. Then as a main result, we establish a new error bound for the modal truncated model whose DC error is compensated. Numerical study demonstrates that, the error bound of the proposed nominal model is smaller than that of the conventional model in relevant frequency range, and thus, the proposed model leads to better control performance by a standard controller design.
The effects of neuromuscular electrical stimulation on clinical improvement in hemiplegic lower extremity rehabilitation in chronic stroke: A single-blind, randomised, controlled trial

Objective. In this study, the effectiveness of neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) was evaluated in lower extremity rehabilitation in patients with chronic stroke. Method. The study enrolled 40 patients with chronic stroke. Twenty patients each were assigned to the treatment group and the control group. All patients received a conventional rehabilitation program for a 4-week period. In addition to this rehabilitation program, patients in the treatment group received NMES treatment for hemiplegic foot dorsiflexor muscles for 4 weeks, 5 days a week. The sessions were performed as one session per day and added to a total of 20 sessions. Clinical parameters were evaluated before and after the treatment. Results. Pre-treatment and post-treatment evaluations showed a significant increase in ankle dorsiflexion and a significant decrease in the level of spasticity in the treatment group (p < 0.05); however, there were no significant differences in the control group between the pre-treatment and post-treatment measures. Although Brunnstrom Stage, Rivermead leg and trunk score and Functional Independence Measurement motor subscore showed a significant improvement in pre- and post-treatment comparisons for both groups, the treatment group's scores were significantly higher than the control group (p < 0.05). Functional Ambulation Categories showed a significant improvement in both groups following the treatment; however, there was no significant difference between the two groups (p > 0.05). Conclusions. Use of NMES in hemiplegic foot dorsiflexion can contribute to the clinical improvement of patients when used in combination with rehabilitation programs.
Revised TN categorization for colon cancer based on national survival outcomes data.

PURPOSE The sixth edition of American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) Cancer Staging Manual for colon cancer subdivided stage II into IIA (T3N0) and IIB (T4N0) and stage III into IIIA (T1-2N1M0), IIIB (T3-4N1M0), and IIIC (anyTN2M0). Subsequent analyses supported revised substaging of stage III because of improved survival for T1-2N2 versus T3-4N2 and T4N1 survival was more similar to T3-4N2 than to T3N1. The AJCC Hindgut Taskforce sought population-based validation that depth of invasion and nodal status interact to affect survival. PATIENTS AND METHODS Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) population-based data from January 1992 to December 2004 for 109,953 colon cancer patients were compared with National Cancer Data Base (NCDB) data on 134,206 patients. T4N0 cancers were stratified by tumors that perforate visceral peritoneum (T4a) versus tumors that invade or are adherent to adjacent organs or structures (T4b). N1 and N2 were stratified by number of involved positive lymph nodes (N+): N1a/N1b (1 v 2-3), N2a/N2b (4 to 6 v > or = 7). Five-year observed and relative survival data were obtained for each TN category. RESULTS SEER rectal cancer analyses confirm that T1-2N2 cancers have better prognosis than T3-4N2,T4bN1 have similar prognosis to T4N2, T1-2N1 have similar prognosis to T2N0/T3N0, and T1-2N2ahave similar prognosis to T2N0/T3N0 (T1N2a) or T4aN0 (T2N2a). Prognosis for T4a lesions is betterthan T4b by N category. The number of positive nodes affects prognosis. CONCLUSION This SEER population-based colon cancer analysis is highly consistent with rectal cancer pooled analysis and SEER rectal cancer analyses, supporting the shift of T1-2N2 lesions from IIIC to IIIA/IIIB, shifting T4bN1 from IIIB to IIIC, subdividing T4/N1/N2, and revising substaging of stages II/III. Survival outcomes by TN category for colon and rectal cancer are strikingly similar.
A novel frameshift mutation of epithelial sodium channel β‐subunit leads to Liddle syndrome in an isolated case

Liddle syndrome, an autosomal dominant form of monogenic hypertension, is attributed to mutations in the genes encoding β and γ subunits (SCNN1B and SCNN1G) of the epithelial sodium channel (ENaC). The aim of this study was to search for pathogenic mutations of SCNN1B and SCNN1G in an adolescent under the impression of Liddle syndrome and no family history of hypertension.
Social and spatial organisation - assessing the agroecological changes on farms: case study in a banana-growing area of Guadeloupe

The aim of the present study is to assess the individual and collective agroecological changes of farmers located in the same drainage basin in Guadeloupe. Farmers of this basin were interviewed; sociogrammes were drawn up and correlated with the farm distribution in the study area. The network analysis combined with the spatial configuration analysis highlighted how the geographical area had an impact on interactions between farmers, and how the extent of the local dimension of these interactions governed some exchanges. We revealed also how alternative production orientations seemed to be introduced within the network so as to facilitate change while preserving some social structural stability. This indicates that new strategies should be introduced by providing farmers with technical training that stresses both technical and social efficiency.
Interpreting Long-run Equilibrium Solutions in Conventional Macro Models: A Comment

C. M. Kelly (1985) claims that long-run solutions from econometric models may be seriously misleading when expectations variables are erroneou sly replaced by observed outcomes. It is shown that his results deriv e uniquely from an invalid exogeneity assumption. All inferences are therefore potentially invalid, illustrated by a case where the long-r un is correct while the short-run is biased. Using an encompassing fr amework, error-variance rankings and related tests distinguishing exp ectational from conditional models are derived for stationary cases. For nonstationary integrated series, the long-run will be correctly e stimated when the data are cointegrated, whereas the short-run remain s biased. Copyright 1988 by Royal Economic Society.
A SIMPLE HEURISTIC FOR DYNAMIC ORDER SIZING AND SUPPLIER SELECTION WITH TIME‐VARYING DATA

In this paper we consider the problem of supplier selection and purchase order sizing for a single item under dynamic demand conditions. Suppliers offer all‐units and/or incremental quantity discounts, which may vary over time. Although the problem refers to a typical planning task of a purchasing agent, which is often solved without algorithmic assistance, in an eBusiness (b2b) environment, the need for the integration of an automatic performance of this planning task into a web‐based procurement process becomes evident. A new model formulation for this problem is developed, and a simple but easily extendible heuristic procedure is presented and tested. The heuristic is implemented as part of the Advanced Planner and Optimizer (apo) software of SAP AG, Walldorf, Germany.
Status Effects, Public Goods Provision, and the Excess Burden

Most studies of the optimal provision of public goods or the excess burden from taxation assume that individual utility is independent of other individuals' consumption. This paper investigates public good provision and excess burden in a model that allows for interdependence in consumption in the form of status (relative consumption) effects. In the presence of such effects, consumption and labor taxes no longer are pure distortionary taxes but have a corrective tax element that addresses an externality from consumption. As a result, the marginal excess burden of consumption taxes is lower than in the absence of status effects, and will be negative if the consumption tax rate is below the "Pigouvian" rate. Correspondingly, when consumption or labor tax rates are below the Pigouvian rate, the second-best level of public goods provision is above the first-best level, contrary to findings from models without status effects. For plausible functional forms and parameters relating to status effects, the marginal excess burden from existing U.S. labor taxes is substantially lower than in most prior studies, and is negative in some cases.
Adenine nucleotide and lysine transport in Chlamydia psittaci

Isolated reticulate bodies of Chlamydia psittaci were found to transport ATP and ADP by an ATP-ADP exchange mechanism. ATP uptake activity was not detected in elementary bodies. The apparent Km of transport for both ATP and ADP was approximately 5 microM, and the calculated Vmax for both was about 1 nmol of nucleotide transported per min per mg of protein. ADP competitively inhibited ATP transport with a Ki of 4.5 microM. Other nucleotides tested had no effect on the uptake of ATP. A magnesium-dependent, oligomycin-sensitive ATPase (ATP phosphohydrolase, EC 3.6.1.3) was associated with reticulate bodies, and most of the transported ATP was hydrolyzed to ADP, which was exchanged for additional, extracellular nucleotide. Some ADP was hydrolyzed to AMP, which exited the cells slowly. Lysine was transported against the electrochemical gradient by reticulate bodies in the presence of ATP. Oligomycin and carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone inhibited ATP-dependent lysine transport. Lysine exited reticulate bodies when the reticulate bodies were incubated in the presence of ADP, carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone, or a reduced concentration of ATP. The results support the concept that chlamydiae are energy parasites which are capable of drawing upon the adenine nucleotides of their hosts, hydrolyzing ATP, and establishing an energized membrane.
Prescriptions of systemic antibiotics for children in Germany aged between 0 and 6 years

Limited information is available about systemic antibiotic use among children in Germany. We therefore assessed prescription patterns by office‐based physicians to analyse antibiotic consumption in early childhood. A total of 331 children < 6 years were eligible for inclusion. The number of antibiotic prescriptions, consumed daily doses, number of treatment courses, types of antibiotics and diagnoses for prescribing were determined. The prevalence of systemic antibiotic treatment was 42.9%. Antibiotic consumption was highest between 2 and 3 years of age (55.8%). The percentage of children receiving one, two or three courses of antibiotic treatment was 49.3, 28.2 and 16.2%, respectively. Acute otitis media (32.2%), upper respiratory tract infections (18.9%), tonsillitis (15.9%) and acute bronchitis (15.4%) were principal indications for treatment. Macrolides were most frequently prescribed (48.1%), followed by penicillin V (21.3%), broad‐spectrum penicillins (14.3%), sulfonamides (10.5%) and cephalosporins (5.8%). Antibiotics not recommended for particular indication were selected in 5–43% of cases. The considerable prescription of systemic antibiotics to children in many European countries is also the case in Germany. A noteworthy trend emerged for suboptimal prescribing with second‐line antibiotics. As such treatment may be associated with the development of bacterial resistance, improved guidelines for antibiotic treatment should be drawn up and enforced. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Effects of Two Different Training Programs with Same Workload on Throwing Velocity by Experienced Water Polo Players

To investigate the effects of two different strength-training programs with the same workload (impulse) on throwing velocity in water polo, 30 water polo players (M age = 17.1 yr., SD = 4.9; M mass = 71.2 kg, SD = 14.7; M height =1.75 m, SD = 0.09 m) were randomly divided in two groups based upon throwing performance with water polo ball. The medicine-ball training group performed 3 × 6 reps with a 3-kg medicine ball, while the combination training group completed 1 × 9 repetitions with the 3-kg medicine ball, followed by 3 × 14 repetitions with a water polo ball. Both groups trained eight weeks twice per week in addition to their regular water polo training. Throwing velocity was measured with a Doppler radar gun before and after the training period. Testing included throws with a water polo ball on land and in water, as well as with 1-kg and 3-kg medicine balls on land. Statistically significant increases were found in mean peak throwing velocity with the water polo, 1-kg, and 3-kg medicine balls after training. No differences between the groups were found, except in throwing velocity with water polo on land, with a statistically significantly larger increase for the combination training group (+ 7.6%) than the medicine-ball training group (+ 3.4%). These findings indicate that after training with the same workload (impulse), increases in throwing velocity in water polo are similar and suggesting workload may be a critical variable for training results.
The Local versus Global Dilemma of the Effects of Structural Funds

This paper extends the analysis by Dall'erba and Le Gallo dealing with the impact of structural funds on the growth process of European regions. Like most of the other 18 contributions assessing the efficiency of structural funds, our article was based on a global model of b-convergence: one coefficient pertaining to the structural funds variable was estimated for the whole sample. In this paper, we extend this approach by performing local estimations, where one coefficient is estimated for each region, so that the impact of structural funds can be regionally differentiated. As in the previous contribution, the presence of spatial spillover effects is taken into account using spatial econometric techniques, but here we apply a Bayesian locally linear spatial estimation method on a conditional b-convergence model, which allows global and local b-convergence to be viewed in a continuous fashion. Our results indicate that structural funds have a weak global impact on the European Union regional growth process, but that their local impacts are very diverse, with a positive influence on the growth of British, Greek, and southern Italian regions.
Validation of Twin Deficits Hypothesis: A Case Study of Pakistan

The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between budget deficit and trade deficit commonly known as ‘twin deficits hypothesis’ in Pakistan economy. We used time series data for the period of 1980 to 2011. The empirical analysis pertain ARDL co-integration methodology and indicate dynamic analysis for the long run and short run. The Error Correction specification is used to find evidence of long-run causality running from budget deficit to trade deficit and vice versa. The empirical results suggest that trade deficit can determine the budget deficit in case of Pakistan. The statistical value of the long run estimate is very high. In the long run, 97 percent of variations in the budget deficit are due to the trade deficit in Pakistan. Finally this empirical study confirms the validity of twin deficits hypothesis in case of Pakistan and concludes that trade deficit is one of the determinants of budget deficit and can cause it.