Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A hybrid EFG-FE analysis for DOT forward problem

This paper presents an approach based on combination of Element Free Galerkin (EFG) method and Finite Element (FE) method in Diffuse Optical Tomography (DOT) forward problem. DOT is a non-invasive imaging modality for visualizing and continuously monitoring tissue and blood oxygenation levels in brain and breast. The image reconstruction algorithm in DOT involves generating images by means of forward modeling results and the boundary measurements. The ability of the forward model to generate the corresponding data efficiently has a sign ificant role in DOT image reconstruction. FE technique using a fixed mesh is one of the most typical techniques for solving the diffusion equation in the DOT forward problem. However, in some medical applications, meshing task is difficult and the shape and size of elements make a further approximation in the forward problem. Mesh free Galerkin approach is also utilized in DO T, but imposing essential boundary conditions is difficult. In this paper, an approach based on combination of the two methods is used. The validity of the proposed method is investigated by simulation results.
Government executives as Gamesmen: A metaphor for analyzing managerial behavior

Public management requires a diffuse set of activities that extend far beyond the simple activities once encompassed in the study of public administration. The study of public management is hampered by the lack of theory to guide research on the roles and contributions of public managers. By viewing the government executive as a player in a game—more accurately, as a player in many games occurring simultaneously and at different levels, each with its own rules of play—we can begin to gain an integral view of the reality in which they operate.
Strategies for Knowledge Creation in Firms

We extend the knowledge-based view by providing an explanation of how firms develop the capability to create knowledge. We take the view that firms are distributed knowledge systems composed of individuals who embody knowledge, and theoretically identify and empirically test the existence and effectiveness of two strategies - organization and project team - that promote their interactions to develop this capability. On the one hand, building on what we call the organization-level innovation literature, we identify the organization strategy, which suggests investment in organization-level integrative management practices to facilitate interactions to create knowledge among individuals situated in different parts of the system, independently of when a knowledge-creation task is established and individuals are organized to create knowledge. On the other hand, building on what we call the team-level innovation literature, we identify the project team strategy, which suggests investment in project team-level integrative management practices to facilitate interactions to create knowledge among individuals once a knowledge-creation task is defined and individuals are placed into teams to create knowledge. The two strategies are substitute approaches for the development of the capability, although the organization strategy appears to better predict outcomes of the capability. However, this approach might be more costly, so not all managers will choose to follow it.
Determinants of the Relative Interest Rate Sensitivities of Corporate Bonds

The unprecedented price volatility observed in the bond market in recent years has caused investors to be keenly concerned about their exposure to interest rate risk. This paper examines the extent to which the interest rate sensitivity of corporate bond prices is affected by various characteristics. The characteristics examined include default risk, the call option, and the sinking fund. In Section II, several hypotheses are developed concerning the effect of each of these characteristics on the interest rate sensitivity of the corporate bond. The results of testing these hypotheses are reported in sections III through V. Section VI discusses the implications of the default risk analysis for the study of the systematic risk of corporate bonds. Section VII provides summary comments and implications.
Draft Genome Sequences of Nine Livestock-Associated Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Sequence Type 5 Isolates from Humans with Long-Term Swine Contact

ABSTRACT Humans have been found to harbor livestock-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (LA-MRSA) isolates. LA-MRSA isolates are considered adapted to colonizing livestock and less pathogenic in humans than their hospital- and community-acquired counterparts. Here, we present nine LA-MRSA sequence type 5 isolates from veterinarians with long-term swine contact.
Reproduction is not costly in terms of oxidative stress

ABSTRACT One of the core assumptions of life-history theory is the negative trade-off between current and future reproduction. Investment in current reproduction is expected to decrease future reproductive success or survival, but the physiological mechanisms underlying these costs are still obscure. To test for a role of oxidative stress, we measured oxidative damage to lipids and proteins in liver, heart, kidneys and muscles, as well as the level of antioxidants (total glutathione and catalase), in breeding and non-breeding bank voles. We used females from lines selected for high aerobic metabolism and non-selected control lines and manipulated their reproductive investment by decreasing or increasing litter size. Unlike in most previous studies, the females reared four consecutive litters (the maximum possible during a breeding season). Contrary to predictions, oxidative damage in reproducing females was decreased or not changed, and did not differ between the selected and control lines. Oxidative damage to lipids and proteins in the liver was lower in females that weaned enlarged litters than in non-breeding ones, and was intermediate in those with reduced litters. Oxidative damage to proteins in the heart also tended to be lower in breeding females than in non-breeding ones. A negative relationship between the level of oxidative damage and activity of catalase in kidneys indicated a protective action of antioxidants. In conclusion, our study falsified the hypothesis that oxidative stress is a part of the proximate physiological mechanism underlying the fundamental life-history trade-off between current and future reproduction. Summary: Oxidative damage does not increase in female bank voles rearing four enlarged litters, which undermines the hypothesis linking oxidative stress with the trade-off between current and future reproductive effort.
Meaning of spirituality: implications for nursing practice.

BACKGROUND This research outlines some preliminary findings emerging from a grounded theory investigation into the 'meaning of spirituality'. These initial results raise some important questions about the terminology and language that nurses use regarding the term spirituality. It seems that many of the policy directives and statutory guidelines make two major assumptions regarding 'spirituality'. Firstly, patients and nurses are aware and understand the concept, and secondly, patients may require their spiritual needs to be met. These preliminary findings suggest that a dichotomy is emerging between professional assumption and patient expectation regarding the meaning of spirituality. AIM The study had one broad research aim, to gain a deeper insight into how patients, nurses, and people from the major world religions understand the concept of 'spirituality'. DESIGN A qualitative research design was used involving a grounded theory method of inquiry. It was felt that this qualitative method would aid the investigation of this subjective dimension of peoples' existence, enabling existing theoretical constructs and arguments to be tested. METHODS The constant comparative method was used throughout the data collection and analysis. Analysis was undertaken at two levels, 'overview analysis' and 'line-by-line analysis'. This enabled the creation of categories and central themes. RESULTS Constant comparative analysis resulted in the formation of several categories and central themes. Two categories presented and discussed in detail are 'definitions of spirituality', and 'diverse perceptions of spirituality'. CONCLUSION It would seem that there is now an urgent need for nursing to evaluate and perhaps adjust its vision regarding what constitutes spirituality. Such an approach may serve to reduce the gap between policy and public expectation. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE It seems that there may be no 'precise' terminology associated with the language used to define spirituality, raising possible implications for nursing practice and nurse education.
An efficient method for saliva collection from mature pigs to determine their enzymatic and electrolytic profiles

In this study, a novel ‘rope-assisted swab method’ for the collection of saliva samples from 45 adult pigs was established and validated. This method was efficient for harvesting 2 milliliters or more of saliva from each of the pigs for subsequent analyses within two min. The amount of α-amylase and lipase in the collected saliva samples was between 38−6,655 and 2−52 U/l, respectively. For HCO3− and electrolytes, the range was between 9−40, 15−76, 4.3−48.5 and 7−65 mM for HCO3−, Na+, K+ and Cl−, respectively. No significant differences in the enzymatic and electrolytic profiles were observed among sows with a high average litter size (SHA), sows with a low average litter size (SLA) and non-pregnant gilts (NPG) in this study. Our work reveals the efficiency of this collection method for mature pigs, and enzymatic and electrolytic profiling of saliva, which may be a useful reference for multiple diagnostic applications.
Glutathione S-transferase genotype and risk of systemic lupus erythematosus in Koreans

Oxidative stress caused by poor detoxification efficiency of reactive oxygen species (ROS) may play a role in the development of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Glutathione S-transferase (GST) is involved in the detoxification of ROS and genetic polymorphisms of GSTM1, GSTT1 and GSTP1 are associated with altered enzyme activity. The aim of this study was to determine whether GSTM1 (deletion), GSTT1 (deletion) and GSTP1 (Ile105! Val105) polymorphisms are associated with susceptibility to SLE or frequency of clinical manifestations according to the ACR diagnostic criteria. DNA was isolated from blood samples collected from 330 patients with SLE and 270 ageand sex-matched controls. GST genotypes were determined by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) analysis. No associations were observed between GSTM1, GSTT1, and GSTP1 genotypes and risk of SLE. Among SLE patients, the GSTM1 null genotype was associated with a lower frequency of hematological disorders (P = 0.012), and a higher SSA(+)/SSB(2) autoantibody profile (P = 0.042). Compared to SLE patients with the GSTT1 non-null genotype, those with the GSTT1 null genotype had a lower frequency of discoid rash (P = 0.018), and nephritis (P = 0.033). Our findings suggest that genetic polymorphisms of GSTM1, GSTT1, and GSTP1 do not influence the risk of SLE, but a deletion of either GSTM1 or GSTT1 may influence certain clinical manifestations of the disease.
An Empirical Comparison of Bundesbank and ECB Monetary Policy Rules

We estimate a monetary policy reaction function for the Bundesbank and use it as a benchmark to assess the monetary policy of the ECB since the launch of the euro in January 1999. We find that euro interest rates are low relative to this benchmark. We consider several possible reasons for this, including the divergence between core and headline inflation, inflation having turned out to be higher than could have been foreseen by the ECB and the possibility that the ECB is focussing only on macroeconomic conditions in a subset of member countries. We argue that these potential explanations cannot account for the difference between recent interest rates and our estimated Bundesbank benchmark. Our results suggest that the reaction function of the ECB features a high weight on the output gap relative to the weight on inflation, compared to the Bundesbank.
Fast and Stable Sub-10uA Pulse Operation in W/SiO2/Ta/Cu 90nm 1T1R CBRAM Devices

We demonstrate that CBRAM devices based on SiO2 dielectric can target sub-10μA application, ensuring large programming window, fast and low-voltage switching and limited cycle-to-cycle variability at 5 μA. We report, for the first time, reliable 1-μs forming operation at 5 μA on RRAM devices. The thorough comparison of SiO2- and Al2O3-based devices, in terms of electrical and physical characterization, suggests that the Cu mobility in the switching layers plays a key role, impacting forming/switching speed as well as functionality at low current, and that it can be tuned by properly selecting the switching layer material. We also correlate the mismatch in the electrical performances in the sub-10 μA regime to different filament configurations in the two resistive states.
EA-D p45-IgG as a potential biomarker for nasopharyngeal carcinoma diagnosis.

AIM To identify new biomarkers for NPC diagnosis with an anti-EBV Western blot test kit. METHODS Serum samples from 64 NPC patients and healthy subjects with four specific VCA-IgA/EA-IgA profiles were tested with an anti-EBV Western blot test kit from EUROIMMUN AG. Proteins were quantified with scores of intensity visually assigned to the protein bands. The markers which showed statistical differences between the NPC and non-NPC subjects were further evaluated in another 32 NPC patients and 32 controls in comparison with established biomarkers including VCA-IgA, EA-IgA, EBV-related protein IgG, and EBV DNA. RESULTS Among the markers screened, EA-D p45-IgG showed a statistically significant difference (p < 0.05) between NPC and non-NPC subjects with VCA-IgA positivy. In 32 VCA-IgA positive NPC patients and 32 control subjects, the diagnostic accuracy of EA-D p45-IgG was 78.1% with a positive predictive value of 77.8% and a negative predictive value of 78.6%. In the verification experiment, the specificity and sensitivity of EA-D p45-IgG were 75.0% and 90.6 %, respectively. CONCLUSIONS EA-D p45-IgG might be a potential biomarker for NPC diagnosis, especially among VCA-IgA positive subjects.
Publicly Provided Private Goods and Redistribution: A General Equilibrium Analysis

Public provision of private goods is examined within a self-selection framework where production depends on labor supply of different households and the level of public provision. It is shown that productivity and wage-structure effects can create a role for public provision, even if preferences are weakly separable between goods and leisure. Public provision of education may offer an intuitively appealing case for the production-side impacts. We also address the reasons for public provision in a dynamic, overlapping generations economy, whereby public provision may affect efficiency and social costs of redistribution of future generations as well. Copyright 2002 by The editors of the Scandinavian Journal of Economics.
Diversity of Antigen-Specific Responses Induced In Vivo with CTLA-4 Blockade in Prostate Cancer Patients

CTLA-4 is a surface receptor on activated T cells that delivers an inhibitory signal, serving as an immune checkpoint. Treatment with anti–CTLA-4 Abs can induce clinical responses to different malignancies, but the nature of the induced Ag-specific recognition is largely unknown. Using microarrays spotted with >8000 human proteins, we assessed the diversity of Ab responses modulated by treatment with CTLA-4 blockade and GM-CSF. We find that advanced prostate cancer patients who clinically respond to treatment also develop enhanced Ab responses to a higher number of Ags than nonresponders. These induced Ab responses targeted Ags to which preexisting Abs are more likely to be present in the clinical responders compared with nonresponders. The majority of Ab responses are patient-specific, but immune responses against Ags shared among clinical responders are also detected. One of these shared Ags is PAK6, which is expressed in prostate cancer and to which CD4+ T cell responses were also induced. Moreover, immunization with PAK6 can be both immunogenic and protective in mouse tumor models. These results demonstrate that immune checkpoint blockade modulates Ag-specific responses to both individualized and shared Ags, some of which can mediate anti-tumor responses.
Extracellular Volume Expansion Caused by Protein Malnutrition in Peritoneal Dialysis Patients with Appropriate Salt and Water Removal

This study offers a complementary approach to predialysis modality education to increase the utilization of home dialysis among ESRD patients. Our findings suggest that a preplanned and consistently delivered education intervention can successfully persuade patients on hospital-based dialysis programs to consider homebased RRT options. However, in reality, interest in home dialysis, while necessary, is not sufficient to ensure actual transfer from hospital to home dialysis modalities. Given the resource intensity of this intervention, we recommend that other centers interested in replicating this approach be mindful of the family support, community nursing, and other resources required after the intervention to successfully transfer patients from hospital to home dialysis. Finally, this study reinforces the need to educate ESRD patients prior to the start of their RRT, with detailed discussion of all available treatment options.
Real exchange rate overvaluation and currency crisis: evidence from Thailand

This article examines real exchange rate (RER) misalignment in Thailand in the lead-up to the 1997–1998 currency crisis. The methodology involves estimating the long-run equilibrium RER based on the internal and external balance approach. RER misalignment is measured by comparing the actual RER with the estimated long-run equilibrium RER. The results suggest that there was a persistent RER overvaluation from 1991 up to the onset of the crisis in 1997. ‘Too much’ net short-term capital inflows and government expenditure expansion were the main contributory factors. After the massive depreciation of nominal exchange rate during the crisis, the RER seems to have gradually returned to its long-run equilibrium level.
Great Expectations: Three Years in the Life of a European Works Council

This article draws on one detailed case study of a European Works Council (EWC) to highlight the experiences of employees involved in these new institutions. The UK employee representatives at the case study firm have become increasingly frustrated, complaining about inadequate consultation, the poor organization and coordination of the employee representatives and the weakness and isolation of the EWC. The implications of these employee concerns are explored in the context of the changing political economic landscape of Europe. The article speculates whether EWCs can ever become useful tools for workers facing the challenges of Europeanization and globalization.
The search for exercise factors in humans

Regular exercise reduces the risk for numerous chronic diseases. Exercise not only impacts the contracting skeletal muscle but also elicits systemic changes. The exact mechanisms driving the more systemic changes have yet to be resolved, but exercise factors are thought to be an important missing link. Exercise factors are proteins that are released from skeletal muscle into the circulation during exercise. They represent a subclass of myokines, which are classified as proteins secreted from skeletal muscle serving a signaling role. Here, we provide an overview of the current literature on myokines. Many studies have focused on the identification of new myokines using a variety of approaches. These studies have generated an extensive list of myokines, but so far, the functional relevance of many of these novel myokines remains unclear. Few of these myokines represent putative exercise factors. Currently, IL‐6, secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine, angiopoietin‐like 4, chemokine (C‐X3‐C motif) ligand 1, and chemokine (C‐C motif) ligand 2 have the highest potential to serve as exercise factors because for all these factors, there is clear evidence that plasma levels increase during exercise. In our view, the future focus should be on characterizing the functional role of myokines in the acute and chronic response to exercise and explore their potential as a target for metabolic diseases. —Catoire, M. , Kersten, S. The search for exercise factors in humans. FASEB J. 29, 1615‐1628 (2015). www.fasebj. org
The Relationship Between Emotion Regulation, Executive Functioning, and Aggressive Behaviors

Emotion regulation deficits and executive functioning deficits have independently been shown to increase vulnerability toward engaging in aggressive behaviors. The effects of these risk factors, however, have not been evaluated in relation to one another. This study evaluated the degree to which each was associated with aggressive behaviors in a sample of 168 undergraduate students. Executive functioning (cognitive inhibition and mental flexibility) was assessed with a Stroop-like neuropsychological task. Emotion regulation and aggressive behaviors were assessed via self-report inventories. Results showed main effects for both emotion regulation and executive functioning, as well as a significant interaction, indicating that those who scored lowest in both domains reported engaging in aggressive behaviors the most frequently. When different types of aggression were examined, this interaction was only significant for acts of physical aggression, not for acts of verbal aggression. Therefore, for physical aggression, emotion regulation and executive functioning exerted a moderating effect on one another. The implications are that, at least for acts of physical aggression, relatively strong capabilities in either domain may buffer against tendencies to engage in aggressive behaviors. Thus, both emotion regulation skills and executive functioning abilities may be valuable targets for interventions aiming to reduce aggressive behaviors.
Rent Seeking and Collusion in the Military Allocation Decisions of Finland, Sweden, and Great Britain, 1920-38

Analysis of military acquisition policies in Finland, Sweden, and Great Britain in the period from 1920 to 1938 produces evidence of rent seeking, both quantitative and qualitative, in all three cases. The Finnish institutional environment offered the most extensive rents and collusion opportunities, which translated into tangible price advantages for domestic producers. The Swedish and British domestic producers operated under more efficient institutions and thus had to settle for more moderate rents. Evolving institutional environments determined the extent of the rent seeking.
Sales and Employment Changes in Entrepreneurial Ventures with Family Ownership: Empirical Evidence from High‐Tech Industries

We examine the relation between changes in employment and changes in sales for entrepreneurial ventures with and without family ownership. We argue that this positive relation is weaker for entrepreneurial ventures with family ownership. The goal of preserving socio‐emotional wealth (SEW) makes indeed these firms more reluctant to hire (fire) employees in correspondence with an increase (decrease) in sales than their counterparts without family ownership. Results on a sample of talian entrepreneurial ventures in high‐tech industries support our arguments. They also show that the strength of the relation depends on the composition of the entrepreneurial team.