Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Implementation and Outcomes of Customer Value: A Dyadic Perspective

This study examines the concept of customer value based on the views shared by service firms and their consumers. Using qualitative and quantitative approaches, the study reveals customer satisfaction and retention as outcomes of front-line service employees' value delivery practices. Our results suggest that service employees' efforts to deliver customer value, even when based on a dyadic view, do not necessarily lead to customer retention. Rather, customers become more loyal when the value provided by service employees is matched by consumers' satisfaction. In other words, satisfaction is an important and necessary mediating variable between employees' efforts and customer retention.
Consumer consideration of non-deceptive counterfeit goods: a contingency matrix approach

The aim of this paper is to develop a model that explains how consumers' considerations of non-deceptive counterfeits vary as a function of the counterfeits' perceived benefits in different usage situations. Basing the analysis on consideration set theories and the Behavioural Perspective Model contingency matrix concepts, four hypotheses are suggested. The hypothesised relationships are tested using survey data from 421 consumers regarding their consideration of two types of non-deceptive counterfeits across eight different usage situations. The results support the proposed model structure and show an interactive relationship between consumer's learning-based considerations, perceived product benefit, usage situations, and product requirement.
Overexpression of SoCYP85A1, a Spinach Cytochrome p450 Gene in Transgenic Tobacco Enhances Root Development and Drought Stress Tolerance

Brassinosteroids (BRs) play an essential role in plant growth, development, and responses to diverse abiotic stresses. However, previous studies mainly analyzed how exogenous BRs influenced plant physiological reactions to drought stress, therefore, genetic evidences for the endogenous BRs-mediated regulation of plant responses still remain elusive. In this study, a key BRs biosynthetic gene, SoCYP85A1 was cloned from Spinacia oleracea, which has a complete open reading frame of 1,392 bp encoding a 464 amino acid peptide and shares high sequence similarities with CYP85A1 from other plants. The expression of SoCYP85A1 which was higher in leaf compared with root and stem, was induced by treatments of PEG6000, abscisic acid (ABA), low temperature and high salt. Increases in both SoCYP85A1 transcripts and endogenous BRs in transgenic tobacco which resulted in longer primary root and more lateral roots enhanced drought tolerance compared with wild types. The transgenic tobacco accumulated much lower levels of reactive oxygen species and malondialdehyde (MDA) than wild types did, accompanied by significantly higher content of proline and notably enhanced activities of antioxidant enzymes. Besides, transcriptional expressions of six stress-responsive genes were regulated to higher levels in transgenic lines under drought stress. Taken together, our results demonstrated that SoCYP85A1 involves in response to drought stress by promoting root development, scavenging ROS, and regulating expressions of stress-responsive genes.
Short-Term Study Abroad: An Exploratory View of BusinessStudent Outcomes

Acknowledging the importance of fostering global perspectives in students, business educators stress the role that international study plays in increasing interpersonal skills, and broadening knowledge of global business practices. Traditionally offered as semesteror year-long programs, today’s programs are more often short-term in nature, raising questions about student outcomes of abbreviated tours. This longitudinal study of students who participated over a nine-year period examines the benefits and limitations of short-term tours. Results suggest that schools of business give careful consideration to desired student outcomes, learning objectives and how these might best be accomplished if delivered in a compressed time frame.
International Monetary Arrangements for the 21st Century

Recent events have reignited the debate over the future of the international monetary system. This book, part of the Integrating National Economic series, examines international monetary options of the twenty-first century. Barry Eichengreen argues that it will not be possible for governments to prevent exchange rates from exceeding prespecified limits. Changes in technology, market structure, and politics will force countries that have traditionally pegged their exchange rates to choose between floating rates and monetary unification. Eichengreen describes the various international monetary arrangements with which policymakers have experimented in the past. He introduces the requirements that an international monetary system must satisfy and illustrates how these requirements have been met over time. He analyzes which preconditions for the smooth operation of international monetary systems in the past will be impossible to achieve in the next century and creates a list of feasible options for future policymakers. These feasible options, he concludes, will be limited to some form of floating exchange rates and monetary unions. In which direction countries should move is not obvious. The choice between floating and monetary unification depends on a host of economic and political factors. The book provides an in-depth analysis of Western Europe's experience and the dramatic international monetary initiatives currently under way, and compares options for Asia, Africa, the former Soviet Union, and the Western Hemisphere. A volume of Brookings' Integrating National Economies Series
Recruiting Hard-to-Reach Drug-Using Men Who Have SexWith Men into an Intervention Study: Lessons Learned and Implications for Applied Research

Drug (ab)use researchers and service providers across the globe have been challenged with locating target populations and subsequently enrolling participants into their programs. This study presents data from nearly 3 years (2004–2006) of recruiting “high-risk” drug-using gay and bisexual men into a clinical research trial based in New York City. During the enrollment period, two recruitment/marketing strategies were utilized: (1) marketing of the intervention research study itself to men who were in the early stages of identifying problems with their drug use and risky sexual behavior and (2) two-stage recruitment via a lower-threshold/commitment (i.e., brief survey) and subsequent offering/enrollment into the full trial upon completion of the initial visit (i.e., a foot-in-the-door). The second approach was substantially more effective in enrolling participants into the full trial (6.3 participants/month vs. 2.5 participants/month). Furthermore, recruitment costs for the foot-in-the-door approach were substantially reduced ($356.57 per participant vs. $497.03 per participant). Compared to the marketing of interventions themselves to target populations, a two-stage recruitment strategy incorporating lower-threshold interactions may be a more effective approach to recruit for interventions.
Demographic dynamics of poverty and income inequality: the case of Brazil

There is a common belief that higher reproduction rates among the poor will increase average poverty levels, drive inequality up, prevent economic development and reduce upward mobility. To test this hypothesis we used 1980, 1991 and 2000 Brazilian Census data. We first present rates of demographic growth among subpopulations with different levels of income (poor, middle and rich classes) and then 1) evaluate the impact of differential demographic rates on the size, composition and growth of income classes and on the distribution of income through population projections, and 2) conduct stable population analysis, demonstrating the long-term implications of maintaining or changing current demographic patterns to the composition of poverty and inequality.
Substitutes or Complements? Consumer Preference for Local and Organic Food Attributes

This research examines consumer preference and compares their willingness-to-pay for a host of value-added attributes of processed blackberry jam, and focuses on various organic and local production location designations. Instead of being treated as a binary attribute, three levels of USDA organic are considered: 100% organic, at least 95% organic, and made with organic ingredients (at least 70% organic). For local production, three levels are also included in the analysis: cross-state region (the Ohio Valley), state boundary (state-proud logos), as well as sub-state regions. Stated-preference data collected from a choice experiment in a mail survey in Kentucky and Ohio are used. Results from the study confirm positive willingness-to-pay for both organic and local attributes. However, consumers were willing to pay comparatively more for jam produced locally in regions smaller than the border of a state compared to organic jam. Furthermore, substitution and complementary effects between food attributes were investigated. The study found strong substitution effects between organic and local production claims, an issue that has thus far received minimal treatment in the existing literature on organic and local food willingness-to-pay studies. The results indicate a large degree of overlapping values in the willingness-to-pay for these two food attributes. In addition, the "small farm" attribute considered in the study also appears to be a substitute for organic and local attributes, which confirms the previous belief that one of the many reasons consumers purchase organic or local products is to support small or family-owned farms.
The role of physical and psychological symptoms in desire for death: a study of terminally ill cancer patients

The current study assessed the attitudes of the desire for hastened death in terminally ill cancer patients and whether these are determined by their physical and psychological symptoms. The final sample consisted of 106 terminally ill cancer patients attending a Palliative Care Unit, in University of Athens, Greece, between June and October 2004. Significant associations were found between the desire for hastened death (D.H.D.) and ‘pain’ (r=0.469, p<0.005), ‘fatigue’ (r=0.591, p<0.0005), ‘loss of appetite’ (r=0.622, p<0.0005) and ‘feeling sad’ (r=0.635, p<0.0005). Statistically significant associations were also found between Schedule of Attitudes towards Hastened Death (SAHD) scores, age (r=0.300, p=0.002) and ECOG (p<0.0005). Twenty‐six percent of the patients reported high D.H. D. while 41% reported moderate desire. In the prediction of SHAD the contribution of ‘pain’ (p=0.011), ‘lack of appetite’ (p=0.012) and ‘sadness’ (p=0.011) is high (42% of variance).
Editorial: Increasing the Reach of the Australian Journal of Management

The task of a scholarly journal is to assist in the dissemination of knowledge. It does that in a number of ways; primarily by providing access to research in a readily available and convenient form, and secondarily by offering some form of quality control by the mechanism of peer review. The AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT is in the middle of a program to improve the rôle it plays in this process using traditional means. Efforts are underway to make the JOURNAL a more appealing outlet to authors which will ensure that we publish the very best research that is of relevance and value to Australian managers and management researchers. We are also aiming to raise the readership of the JOURNAL to increase the exposure of the target audience to these new ideas and findings. Some of the actions that we are undertaking were outlined in the June 1995 issue of the JOURNAL. Since the June issue, the JOURNAL has started an exciting new initiative to help it in its mission of promulgating the best management research. In addition to a series of actions to increase circulation and submissions, we are now also investigating electronic publishing of the JOURNAL. The Australian Vice Chancellors Committee on Electronic Publishing has awarded the AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT $76,000 to pursue an electronic publishing trial. Professor Bob Marks, the Area Editor for Economics, has already put a page up on the World Wide Web as a test. We would encourage you to visit it. The address is http: www.agsm. unsw.edu. au/∼bobm/AJM/contents.html. While this is not necessarily the technology with which we will proceed, it represents a dramatic new step forward for the JOURNAL. The JOURNAL will continue in printed form. What parallel electronic publishing enables us to do is to increase its reach so that researchers’ works get more comprehensive distribution. Moreover, in time, electronic publishing will provide more flexibility in terms of what is published. As we supplement hard copy publishing with electronic publishing we will be able to fill out articles with more details of the analysis undertaken, availability of the original data in some cases, support materials that were used in the research such as questionnaires, advertisements tested, software, etc. The objective of the AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT is to be a leader in the promulgation of management research of a world class standard. We regard new technology as a key element in achieving that goal. But these initiatives will not be achieved at the expense of traditional methods of publication which we see as continuing to play a mainstream rôle in sharing knowledge of management theory and practice for the foreseeable future.
Worker Preference and Market Compensation for Job Risk

Workers choose a job and receive in return a bundle consisting of income and a probability of job injury. The authors view this income- job-risk bundle chosen by the worker as being exchanged in an implici t market. By jointly estimating the market income-job-risk locus and the optimum conditions for utility maximization, they are able to identif y the market locus and parameters of the workers' utility function. In contrast to previous work, the authors are able to derive valuations of discrete changes in job risk for each individual in the sample. They present evidence that an increase in nonlabor income leads workers to select safer jobs. Copyright 1988 by MIT Press.
Properties of distinct ventral tegmental area synapses activated via pedunculopontine or ventral tegmental area stimulation in vitro

Anatomical studies indicate that synaptic inputs from many cortical and subcortical structures converge on neurons of the ventral tegmental area (VTA). Although in vitro electrophysiological studies have examined synaptic inputs to dopamine (DA) and non‐DA neurons in the VTA, they have largely relied upon local electrical stimulation to activate these synapses. This provides little information regarding the distinct properties of synapses originating from different brain areas. Using whole‐cell recordings in parasagittal rat brain slices that preserved subcortical axons from the pedunculopontine nucleus (PPN) to the VTA, we compared these synapses with those activated by intra‐VTA stimulation. PPN‐evoked currents demonstrated longer latencies than intra‐VTA‐evoked currents, and both VTA and PPN responses were mediated by GABAA and AMPA receptors. However, unlike VTA‐evoked currents, PPN currents were exclusively mediated by glutamate in 25–40% of the VTA neurons. Consistent with a cholinergic projection from the PPN to the VTA, nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR) were activated by endogenous acetylcholine released during PPN, but not VTA, stimulation. This was seen as a reduction of PPN‐evoked, and not VTA‐evoked, synaptic currents by the α7‐nAChR antagonist methyllycaconitine (MLA) and the agonist nicotine. The β2‐nAChR subunit antagonist dihydro‐β‐erythroidine had no effect on VTA‐ or PPN‐evoked synaptic currents. The effects of MLA on PPN‐evoked currents were unchanged by the GABAA receptor blocker picrotoxin, indicating that α7‐nAChRs presynaptically modulated glutamate and not GABA release. These differences in physiological and pharmacological properties demonstrate that ascending PPN and presumed descending inputs to VTA utilize distinct mechanisms to differentially modulate neuronal activity and encode cortical and subcortical information.
Prenatal nicotine exposure blunts the cardiorespiratory response to hypoxia in lambs.

Because smoking during pregnancy is a major risk factor for late fetal death and the sudden infant death syndrome, we investigated cardiorespiratory defense mechanisms to hypoxia in 7 prenatally nicotine-exposed (N) lambs (approximate maternal dose: 0.5 mg/kg/day) and 11 control (C) lambs all at an average age of 5 days. The ventilatory response to 10% oxygen (hyperpnea) was significantly attenuated during quiet sleep in N lambs compared with C lambs and in N lambs aroused from sleep later compared with C lambs (161 +/- 90 versus 75 +/- 66 seconds, p < 0.05). The ventilatory response to hypoxia was similar in the two groups during wakefulness (W), whereas the heart rate response (tachycardia) was significantly lower in N lambs compared with C lambs during both activity states. The ventilatory response to hyperoxia was significantly lower in N lambs compared with C lambs during both activity states. Transition from W to quiet sleep was associated with a significant decrease in ventilation in C lambs but not in N lambs. In conclusion, prenatal nicotine exposure, at a dose comparable with moderate smoking, blunts major elements of the cardiorespiratory defense to hypoxia, i.e., the heart rate and ventilatory and arousal responses, and abolishes the normal decrease in ventilation during sleep compared with W.
Plasmonic metamaterial with fishnet superlattice for enhanced chemical sensing

In this work we consider a novel type of superlattice fishnet metamaterial for chemical sensing. By superimposing two fishnet metamaterial lattices we aim to achieve increased functionality compared to the standard fishnet metamaterials. We investigate spectral response of our structure to the changes in surrounding medium to be utilized in single wavelength readout chemical sensing. Additionally we compare the dispersion relation of plasmon modes in our superlattice fishnet metamaterial to the single lattice metamaterial and analyze the nature of coupling between plasmon modes. We present possibilities for multispectral sensing operation as well as for switching the resonant plasmon modes between sublattices by purely optical means.
Impact of microcredit on poverty alleviation among rural women: A case study of Panchagarh District in Bangladesh

Although women constitute almost half of the total population of Bangladesh, they experience adverse situations in terms of socio-economic inequality and gender disparity. Especially, rural women are the most deprived section of the society and a majority of them are extremely poor. They have very limited access to economic and income generating activities outside their home and consequently, the less opportunity to contribute to their families and get out of poverty. MFIs are contributing significantly to poverty reduction in Bangladesh by creating income generation and self-employment opportunities for the poor people by providing microcredit. This study attempts to assess the role of microcredit programme in reducing poverty of rural women. The study is based on empirical data collected through interview from the two groups of rural women e.g. ‘with credit’ and ‘without credit’ rural women. The ‘with credit’ respondents are the members of microcredit programme of Grammeen Bank, one of the largest MFIs in Bangladesh. The findings demonstrate that, the ‘with credit’ women have a much lower percentage of poverty in terms of its incidence (80%), intensity (28%) and severity (12%) compared to the ‘without credit’ respondents (99, 59 and 37% respectively). It was also found that educational attainment of the respondents and income earners in the family contribute positively to reduce poverty situation among the ‘with credit’ households more, as compared to ‘without credit’ households. Therefore, it can be concluded that microcredit programme helps the rural women to reduce their poverty more effectively. Key words: Rural women, poverty alleviation, microcredit, Bangladesh.
The impact of BSE on the demand for beef and other meats in Great Britain

Indices of media coverage of BSE are incorporated in a dynamic AIDS model of meat demand. The publicity which BSE has received is found to have had significant effects on the allocation of consumer expenditure among the meats. A short-run impact has been identified which accounts in large part for the discernible drop in the market share of beef in the early 1990s. And more important, there also appears to be a significant long-run impact of BSE, which by the end of 1993 has reduced the beef market share by 4.5%.
Mesenchymal Stem Cell Therapy Prevents Abortion in CBA/J × DBA/2 Mating

Immunological disorders are among the main causes of recurrent spontaneous abortions (RSAs). Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have been shown to modulate various aspects of immune responses. It seems that MSCs may improve the immunological conditions in immune-mediated RSA. The aim of this study is the reduction of resorption in RSA mouse model through MSCs therapy. The adipose-derived MSCs were administered intraperitoneal to pregnant CBA/J mice on day 4.5 of gestation in abortion-prone matting. On day 13.5 of pregnancy, abortion rates were calculated and transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β), interleukin 10 (IL-10), interferon γ (IFN-γ), and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) gene expression in deciduas were evaluated by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The level of TGF-β in serum was also determined by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method. The obtained results showed that MSCs therapy could reduce the abortion rate significantly in test group compared to controls. MSCs therapy also caused a significant upregulation of TGF-β and IL-10 and downregulation of IFN-γ and TNF-α genes expression in deciduas. However, the levels of TGF-β didn’t change in mice sera. Due to the significant decrease in abortion rate, we concluded that MSCs therapy could modulate the immune responses in fetomaternal interface and protect fetus from undesirable immune responses. So, these cells might be considered as a new therapeutic for spontaneous pregnancy loss. The local upregulation of TGF-β and IL-10 and downregulation of IFN-γ and TNF-α gene expression in decidua could be considered as one possible mechanism of immune regulation, which could protect the fetus.