Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Hand Hygiene and Anesthesiology

Even though hand hygiene in hospitals is currently considered as the standard of clinical care, the history behind this practice is relatively recent. The practice of hand hygiene among health care workers was first proposed by Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis (1818-1865). He was an assistant professor of Medicine, at a time when puerperal fever was a common cause of maternal mortality. While working at a maternity clinic in Austria, he witnessed physicians and medical students moving between the anatomy laboratory and the labor ward. In 1847, Dr Semmelweis found that an intervention consisting of hand disinfection of the hands of medical staff with a chlorinated lime solution between performing autopsies and providing maternal care at the delivery suite decreased puerperal fever from 16% to 3%. Semmelweis’s discovery of the importance of hand disinfection was quite revolutionary for his time, but like many new ideas, not embraced by the medical “establishment. ” His results were dismissed and disregarded by many of his peers. In his subsequent quest to change hand hygiene behaviors of physicians, he felt increasingly frustrated and ostracized. Eventually, his conduct deteriorated and the diagnosis of insanity was made. This chapter in the history of hand hygiene comes to a sad end. In 1865, Dr Semmelweis was committed to a mental institution, dying 14 days after being institutionalized. A sorrowful introduction, indeed, to the important subject of hand hygiene compliance among physicians and an example of just how difficult it is to change the culture of nonadherence to hand hygiene among hospital staff.
The impact of lending relationship on risk premium and credit availability: evidence from Tunisia

This paper presents empirical evidence from a representative sample of Tunisian firms on the importance of loan officers in the production of 'soft information' by opposition of 'hard' information, testing whether firm borrowers have a relationship with their bank or with their loan officer. To establish the main determinants of the credit conditions in Tunisia, our study is based on a sample of 297 companies, dealing with a Tunisian bank from 1998 to 2002. The main finding of this paper is that the risk premium depends only on the hard information proxies. However, the availability of credit seems related to the interaction between the loan officer and the customer through the collection of 'soft' information.
Speeding up Cloth Simulation by Linearizing the Bending Function of the Physical Mass-Spring Model

We introduce a new enhancement to speed up the physical mass-spring model for efficient cloth simulation. The mass-spring model is known for its accuracy but slowness. The proposed technique tackles the computation burden of the model by developing a linearization solution for the bending function. The proposed technique is about six times faster than the traditional technique of directly evaluating the complex physical models. The detailed of the proposed technique and its experimental results are discussed in this paper.
Leading the way to faster new product development

Executive Overview Industrial competitiveness can be evaluated in many ways, but for high-tech firms no measure is more important than that of getting new products into their relevant markets ahead of the competition. Especially for companies with technology-driven products, where technological obsolescence compounds the problems of head-to-head competition, speed-to-market is an essential factor for survival. As the last few years have seen more international competition for many U.S. companies, there have been numerous alarms calling for increased attention to this aspect of corporate competitive behavior. Partly in response to these clarion calls numerous studies in recent years have pointed out the economic and strategic benefits associated with the accelerated product introductions. Unfortunately, relatively few studies have examined the situation in detail, so that previous recommendations have often been limited to highlighting such mainstream concepts as concurrent engineering and cross-functional.
Depth hole filling for 3-D reconstruction using color and depth images

Computer vision algorithms using depth and color data (RGBD image) acquired at the same time are gradually getting an attention. Depth data is useful three-dimensional (3-D) information. However, the depth data has a problem that it includes depth hole regions. In this paper, a depth hole filling method is proposed, which is suitable for 3-D reconstruction, with the detail of depth region of an object preserved.
Design and implementation of class E power amplifier with parallel circuit for wireless power transfer systems

This article proposes the design and implementation of the class E power amplifier with parallel circuit for wireless power transfer systems. The high power efficiency of the class E power amplifier with parallel circuit provides small circuit by reducing cooling systems and using low inductance of a DC-feed inductor. Furthermore, the parallel circuit provides wideband operating frequency that makes more flexible to design the resonant capacitors and the coupling coils to transmit and receive the electrical power in the wireless power transfer systems. The proposed class E power amplifier with parallel circuit is implemented with the wireless power transfer system that provides 63% of the maximum power efficiency, 40 dBm of output power and 63 volts of the load voltage for 400 ohms of the load resistance at 2 cm of the distance for transferring power at 160 kHz of the input signal frequency. For the broadband performance of the system, 50% of the power efficiency and 35 dBm of the output power can be maintained the operating frequency from 140 kHz to 220 kHz with the distance that is lower than 5 cm and 400 ohms of the load resistance.
Electoral Structures and Pork Barrel Politics

Pork barrel politics is a particular type of constituency service through which a legislator's geographic constituency benefits from the distribution of public works projects. The desire for reelection prompts a representative to use his influence to initiate local projects. A comparative model is presented, causally linking a country's electoral system with the de gree of pork barrel activity. Most literature has focused disproportionately on the United States. This model suggests that the electoral accountability linkage is strongest in coun tries with single-member districts and weakest in those with at-large districts. The article's central argument is that a strong correlation exists between the number of representatives per district and the degree of pork barrel politics. Factors such as committee structure and party discipline are also considered.
Interstate Migration and Electoral Politics

Migration is often discussed as one of several factors underlying political change. But the precise kind of political change we should expect in areas of high in-migration is often not specified. In this article, we draw from migration theory in economics and demography to hypothesize that areas with large migrant populations will be more likely to support Republican than Democratic candidates. Because mobility imposes costs that only some can afford to pay, there will be an economic bias in who moves and who stays put. Using the ecological inference maximum likelihood technique developed and advanced by King (1997), we estimate the percentage of cross-state migrants and natives who vote Democratic in gubernatorial and presidential elections. Our results generally confirm the principal hypothesis, but they also indicate that the propensity for migration to produce partisan change in a location depends not just on the volume of migration, but such aspects of the local environment as demand in specific labor market sectors and the political loyalties of the native population.
Ankylosing spondylitis--the female aspect.

OBJECTIVE To study reproductive performance and interaction between ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and pregnancy in a large population of female patients. METHODS In collaboration with the Ankylosing Spondylitis International Federation, a questionnaire including clinical data and details on past and recent pregnancies was sent to the female members of national and regional AS societies in the USA, Canada, and 11 European countries. RESULTS Nine hundred thirty-nine questionnaires were completed, showing the following clinical data. Mean age at onset of AS was 23 years. The onset was related to a pregnancy in 21%. The frequency of accompanying features of AS was as follows: peripheral arthritis 45%, acute anterior uveitis 48%, psoriasis 18%, and inflammatory bowel disease 16%. Six hundred forty-nine women with previous pregnancies had on average 2.4 pregnancies per woman, of which 1.4 pregnancies were during disease. Of pregnancies 15.1% ended with miscarriage. Disease activity during 616 previous and 366 recent pregnancies was unchanged in 33.2%, improved in 30.9%, and worsened in 32.5%. Improvement of disease activity during pregnancy was correlated with a history of peripheral arthritis. It was also observed more often among those having a female than a male child (p = 0.02). A postpartum flare within 6 months after delivery was experienced by 60%, most often patients with active disease at conception. Delivery occurred at term in 93.2% of cases. The rate of cesarean section was high and due to AS in 58% of cases. The majority of neonates were healthy and had a mean birthweight of 3339 g. AS had an adverse effect on being a mother and a caregiver. CONCLUSION AS did not adversely affect fertility, pregnancy outcome, or the neonate. Improvement during pregnancy was related to a history of peripheral arthritis and a female fetus. Active disease at conception was a predictor of a postpartum flare.
Formal versus Informal Knowledge Networks in R&D: A Case Study Using Social Network Analysis

The existence of informal social networks within organizations has long been recognized as important and the unique working relationships among scientific and technical personnel have been well documented by both academics and practitioners. The growing interest in knowledge management practices has led to increased attention being paid to social network analysis as a tool for mapping the nature and membership of informal networks. However, despite the knowledge-intensive nature of research and development (RD more efficiently disseminate information throughout the function; and more effectively understand the working habits and activities of employees.
TEACHER PREPARATION AND IN-SERVICE NEEDS OF GEORGIA AGRICULTURE TEACHERS

The continuing trend toward increasing the diversity of curriculum offered within secondary agricultural education programs is driving a change in pre-service and in-service preparation for agriculture teachers. This study analyzed Georgia agriculture teachers’ perceived importance of, and competence in, a variety of professional agricultural teaching competencies to identify their in-service needs. A revised version of Joerger’s (2002) needs assessment instrument was used to gather data from existing Georgia agriculture teachers, with this data providing the means to prioritize competencies where agriculture teachers need supplemental preparation. The findings of this study indicate that teachers need additional preparation in technical areas such as biotechnology, aquaculture, and veterinary technology. Teachers also need support in developing pedagogical skills that will assist them in motivating their students to learn and increase their students’ ability to think critically and creatively. Further, teachers indicated a need for preparation in managing student behavior. Finally, teachers identified the need for assistance when advising students who have an interest in post-secondary education, preparing various FFA applications, and developing an effective public relations program. Therefore, it was recommended that a number of pre-service/in-service preparation needs should be addressed by university faculty and state agricultural education staff.
The Influence of Auditors' Justification Processes on Their Decisions: A Cognitive Model and Experimental Evidence

This paper presents a cognitive model of how justification influences auditors' decisions and an experiment which focuses on how auditors' justification processes influence two dimensions of their planning-stage analytical procedures performance: their assessments of client-provided explanations for income-increasing account balance fluctuations and the extent of their search for competing explanations. These dimensions relate to auditors' beliefs about the likelihood that material misstatements exist in a client's financial statements (Koonce [1993]). These beliefs should, and likely do, affect the nature, timing, and extent of substantive
Communicating a new corporate image during privatization: the case of El Al airlines

Purpose – The importance of corporate image management in the airline industry has increased substantially in recent years. More and more managers of airline companies have found themselves changing their company's corporate image in order to ensure a more modern and updated identity. The purpose of this case study is to trace the new corporate image communication design and implementation phases of the privatization process of El Al airlines.Design/methodology/approach – This article explores the transition process of a government‐owned airline with a popular‐national image to a private company with an exclusive‐national image, focusing on the implementation of its new corporate image communication process.Findings – The case study described here suggests that the corporate image communication process of a company that has become a private entity should be holistic and takes place on four levels – internal and external, formal and informal.Originality/value – This unique case study adds a new element to .
The parables, premium puzzles, and the CAPM

Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to ascertain whether religions parables are relevant to finance. Design/methodology/approach - In the Gospel, one may find parallels to the capital asset pricing model in the context of the parables of the kingdom of God. For instance, the duality in the parables is particularly analogous to the gain – loss decision making in the practice and theory of finance. Moreover, several parables giving insight into investor reactions may help explain the premium puzzles in asset pricing. Findings - Based on a thorough analysis, one can see that the parables contribute to finance practice and education. Originality/value - This study is the first attempt to link parables in the Gospel of Matthew to finance theories.
Inflation and asset returns in a monetary economy

Postwar U.S. data are characterized by negative correlations between real equity returns and inflation and by positive correlations between real equity returns and money growth. These patterns are closely matched quantitatively by an equilibrium monetary asset pricing model. The model also implies negative correlations between expected asset returns and expected inflation, and it predicts that the inflationasset return correlation will be more strongly negative when inflation is generated by fluctuations in real economic activity than when it is generated by monetary fluctuations. THE CO-MOVEMENTS OF REAL asset returns, inflation, and money growth have been studied extensively over the past fifteen years. Table I displays some of the statistical properties of these series using quarterly U.S. data from 1959 to 1990. Note first the significantly negative correlation between real equity returns and inflation. ' Note also the negative correlation between inflation and the ex post- real return to nominally riskless bonds. While this fact is not particularly surprising, numerous studies conclude that the correlations between ex ante real asset returns and expected inflation are also negative.2 In contrast to these patterns, the correlation between money growth and real equity returns is (weakly) positive in the data, while the correlation between money growth and the real bond return is virtually zero. Initially, these empirical patterns were viewed as anomalies. Negative correlations between inflation and ex post real stock returns contradict the traditional view that equities ought to act as an inflation hedge.3 Negative correlations between expected inflation and ex ante real returns violate the
Determinants for allocations to Central Eastern Europe venture capital and private equity limited partnerships

Growth expectations and institutional settings in Central Eastern Europe (CEE) seem favorable for establishing a vibrant venture capital and private equity (VC/PE) market. However, the risk capital supply there is rather small in relation to the growth prospects. We examine the determinants of institutional investors' CEE allocation decisions through a questionnaire addressed to limited partners worldwide. Investors in CEE VC/PE limited partnerships are very knowledgeable about the region, they also appreciate other emerging regions, they regard entrepreneurial opportunities in CEE as very favorable, and they attribute local general partners in CEE with a high level of professional quality. In more detail, they appreciate team independence and the match of fund strategies with the teams' backgrounds. As economic growth expectations are fairly high in all emerging regions, investors focus on other allocation determinants, notably on the potential of institutional and cultural characteristics to turn the economic growth into entrepreneurial activism.
Structure of Sectoral Decomposition of Aggregate Poverty Changes in Cameroon

: This paper reviews theoretical frameworks for sectoral decomposition and assesses the within- and between-sector contributions to changes in aggregate poverty in Cameroon informed by the Shapley Value decomposition rule. Between 1984 and 1996 poverty remained a rural phenomenon in Cameroon. It became more widespread, deeper and severer in both rural and urban areas, but more so in urban than rural areas. While the within-sector effects disproportionately accounted for the increase in poverty in the period 1984–96, the between-sector contributions in both rural and semi-urban areas played a mitigating role on the worse effects of the increase in poverty. These findings infer the potential positive feedback effects of migration such as remittances, and/or increases in rural consumption expenditure in the face of rural underemployment, as effective strategies used by migrants to lift their families and villages out of the worse effects of poverty. The implication of this interpretation is that decision-makers need to better understand the factors that push or pull potential migrants. Rural–urban mobility could, therefore, be viewed as a strategy used by households to moderate the worse effects of poverty and a vector of shared growth. The implications for public policy, in terms of open unemployment and associated social and insecurity problems at the receiving end, point to the wisdom of addressing the push-factors via targeting more in favour of rural areas.
The role of accrual accounting in restricting dividends to shareholders

This paper addresses the question why net earnings and other accrual accounting numbers are frequently used to restrict dividends to shareholders. Even though this role of accrual accounting is widely accepted in the literature, a theory explaining the role of accruals in dividend restrictions is still in its early stages. Building on the principal-agent framework, I argue that basic features of the accrual process can be viewed as arising from the demand for dividend restrictions mitigating debt-related incentive problems. This explanation is consistent with the observation that, historically, debt contracting, dividend restrictions and the development of accrual accounting have been closely related. The basic idea is that the use of transactions and events in the accrual process leads to a contingent specification of the upper bound on dividends in an earnings-based constraint. Transactions and events used in the accrual process can be viewed as imperfect, but verifiable indicators for (unverifiable) determinants of debt-related incentive problems. This general idea is applied to incentive problems that regularly arise in a multi-period context. The paper demonstrates that the accrual process may mitigate distortions in shareholders' investment decisions using provisions and depreciation charges as examples.
Alcohol consumption alters insulin secretion and cardiac autonomic activity

Background Alcohol may have a cardioprotective effect. One possible mechanism is by modifying insulin resistance/secretion. The aims of this study were: (i) to examine the effect of short‐term alcohol consumption on the metabolic control of glucose tolerance; (ii) to study the influence of short‐term alcohol consumption on cardiac autonomic activity using spectral analysis of heart rate variability.
Presenilins regulate calcium homeostasis and presynaptic function via ryanodine receptors in hippocampal neurons

Presenilin (PS) plays a central role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease, and loss of PS causes progressive memory impairment and age-related neurodegeneration in the mouse cerebral cortex. In hippocampal neurons, PS is essential for neurotransmitter release, NMDA receptor-mediated responses, and long-term potentiation. PS is also involved in the regulation of calcium homeostasis, although the precise site of its action is less clear. Here we investigate the mechanism by which PS regulates synaptic function and calcium homeostasis using acute hippocampal slices from PS conditional knockout mice and primary cultured postnatal hippocampal neurons, in which PS is inducibly inactivated. Using two different calcium probes, Fura-2 and Mag–Fura-2, we found that inactivation of PS in primary hippocampal neurons does not affect calcium concentration in the endoplasmic reticulum. Rather, in the absence of PS, levels of ryanodine receptor (RyR) are reduced in the hippocampus, measured by Western analysis and radioligand binding assay, although the mRNA expression is unaffected. RyR-mediated function is also impaired, as indicated by reduced RyR agonist-induced calcium release from the ER and RyR-mediated synaptic responses in the absence of PS. Furthermore, knockdown of RyR expression in wild-type hippocampal neurons by two independent shRNAs to levels comparable with the RyR protein reduction in PS-deficient hippocampal neurons mimics the defects exhibited in calcium homeostasis and presynaptic function. Collectively, our findings show that PS regulates calcium homeostasis and synaptic function via RyR and suggest that disruption of intracellular calcium homeostasis may be an early pathogenic event leading to presynaptic dysfunction in Alzheimer’s disease.