Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Global Sporting Arms Race. An International Comparative Study on Sports Policy Factors Leading to International Sporting Success (SPLISS)

International sporting success can be produced by investing strategically in elite sport. Nevertheless, the optimum strategy for delivering international success is still unclear. In The Global Sporting Arms Race. An International Comparative Study on Sports Policy Factors Leading to International Sporting Success, Veerle De Bosscher, Jerry Bingham, Simon Shibli, Maarten Van Bottenburg and Paul De Knop aim to address this topic by developing a model to compare the elite sport systems of different countries. The authors bring their previous research and experience together in this book. Veerle De Bosscher is Professor at the Department of Sports Policy and Management (Faculty of Physical Education) of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium. She obtained her doctorate cum laude in 2007 on the topic ‘‘Sports Policy Factors Leading to International Sporting Success’’, the topic of this book. Jerry Bingham is the Head of Strategy, Ethics & Research for UK Sport. He manages the UK’s Sport’s research and ethics programmes seeking to ensure that policy decisions are based on sound evidence. Simon Shibli is a Director of the Sport Industry Research Centre (SIRC) at Sheffield Hallam University, England. Maarten Van Bottenburg is Professor at the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands. Since 2002, he has been the research director of W.J.H. Mulier Institute*Centre for Research on Sports in Society. Paul De Knop is rector of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium. The book is based on a study that used an experimental pilot study in six sample nations: Canada, Italy, Norway, Belgium (Flanders and Wallonia), Netherlands and the UK. It is aimed at sports professionals, academics and politicians seeking a better understanding of the factors that lead to international sporting success and that are seeking insights in future sport policy developments. The major objectives of the work are to compare the success of these nations in elite sport and to analyse their sport policy factors. It also presents the project reflected by the name ‘‘SPLISS’’, which stands for ‘‘Sports Policy factors Leading to International Sporting Success’’. This project groups researchers from different countries on the topics of sport policy and sport performance. In the longer term, the main goal of the SPLISS project is to increase the knowledge about optimum strategies for delivering international
Multiple functions of the paranodal junction of myelinated nerve fibers

Myelin sheaths include an extraordinary structure, the “paranodal axoglial junction” (PNJ), which attaches the sheath to the axon at each end of each myelin segment. Its size is enormous and its structure unique. Here we review past and current studies showing that this junction can serve multiple functions in maintaining reliable saltatory conduction. The present evidence points to three functions in particular. 1) It seals the myelin sheath to the axon to prevent major shunting of nodal action currents beneath the myelin sheath while still leaving a narrow channel interconnecting the internodal periaxonal space with the perinodal space. This pathway represents a potential route through which juxtaparanodal and internodal channels can influence nodal activity and through which nutrients, such as glucose, and other metabolites can diffuse to and from the internodal periaxonal space. 2) It serves as a mechanism for maintaining discrete, differentiated axolemmal domains at and around the node of Ranvier by acting as a barrier to the lateral movement of ion channel complexes within the axolemma, thus concentrating voltage‐gated sodium channels at the node and segregating fast voltage‐gated potassium channels to the juxtaparanode under the myelin sheath. 3) It attaches the myelin sheath to the axon on either side of the node and can thus maintain nodal dimensions in the face of mechanical stresses associated with stretch or other local factors that might cause disjunction. It is therefore the likely means for maintaining constancy of nodal surface area and electrical parameters essential for consistency in conduction. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Do Big Crops Get Bigger and Small Crops Get Smaller? Further Evidence on Smoothing in USDA Crop Production Forecasts

The purpose of this paper is to determine whether smoothing in USDA corn and soybean production forecasts is concentrated in years with relatively small and large crops. The sample consists of all USDA corn and soybean production forecasts released over the 1970 through 2006 crop years. Results show that USDA crop production forecasts in both corn and soybeans have a marked tendency to decrease in small crop years and increase in big crop years. The magnitude of smoothing is surprisingly large, with corn and soybean production forecasts cumulatively revised downward by about 6 to 7 percent in small crop years and upward by about 5 to 6 percent in large crop years. Crop condition ratings are useful in predicting whether the current year is likely to be a small, normal, or big crop year. Hence, there appears to be an opportunity for the USDA to incorporate additional information into the forecasting process to reduce or eliminate the smoothing inherent in different types of crop years.
Unions and Profitability Over the 1980s: Some Evidence on Union‐Firm Bargaining in the United Kingdom

In this paper at attempt is made to assess the behavior of the rate of return on sales of unionized firms as compared to the non-unionized ones in the late 1980s in the United Kingdom. The main aim is to examine what has happened to the relationship between unionization and profitability after the changes in the union legislation, competition environment and cyclical variations that took place over this period. The impact of different forms of union-firm bargaining on the union-profitability effect is also examined. The data reveal that the negative union effect on profitability exists, even after controlling for firm specific fixed effects, but that it has been sharply reduced over the 1980s. Copyright 1997 by Royal Economic Society.
Carbon emissions control policies in China's power generation sector

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to examine the potential for emissions control policy using the example of the power generation sector in China. Design/methodology/approach - The analytical model is developed using a joint production function, where carbon emissions and electricity are jointly produced using capital and fossil fuel inputs. Abatement of emissions can be achieved by investment in production capital that improves the production efficiency or abatement capital that removes the emissions. The results are estimated using data from China's electricity generation sector. Findings - The analytical model shows that economic growth can be achieved while still keeping the emission stock at a stable level. The results show that the level of the tax required to stabilize emissions depends greatly on the efficiency of abatement activities. As an illustration of this result, one finding shows that the required emission tax would be reduced greatly from 16 to 5 yuan/ton of emission when the abatement technology is improved from removing 10 to 30 percent of emissions flow. Research limitations/implications - The lack of carbon capture and storage technology in the real-world limits the ability to estimate some of the results from the economic growth model. Originality/value - Unlike many other papers, the empirical analysis is based on conditions from the economic model. In contrast to previous work that models emissions as an input into the production process, the model and estimation are consistent with the joint nature of electricity and emissions production.
DEVELOPING A DEMAND REVEALING MARKET CRITERION FOR CONTINGENT VALUATION VALIDITY TESTS

Past research suggests that contingent valuation overstates demand for public goods. These estimates of hypothetical bias are probably invalid since they rely on voluntary contributions mechanisms which fail to reveal demand. An improved mechanism is shown to reveal aggregate demand in controlled experiments. However, individual contributions deviate from induced value. Key Words: contingent valuation, voluntary contributions, provision point, experiments JEL Codes: H41, C92, Q20
Brain circuitry model for mental illness will transform management, NIH mental health director says

The field of mental health is on the cusp of a revolution, which is set to transform the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness and reverse the lack of major progress made in curbing associated ill health and death over the past 100 years, the director of the US National Institute of Mental Health, has claimed. “We are at an extraordinary moment when the entire scientific foundation for mental health is shifting, with the 20th century discipline of psychiatry becoming the 21st century discipline of clinical neuroscience,” Thomas Insel said before a meeting on the challenges facing mental health research at the Royal Society in London on 31 August. But those looking for magic bullets will be disappointed. “There …
Fine structural studies of cholecystokinin‐8‐like immunoreactive neurons and axon terminals in the nucleus of tractus solitarius of the rat

Cholecystokinin (CCK)‐8‐like immunoreactive structures in the nucleus of tractus solitarius (NTS) were studied by using the peroxidase‐antiperoxidase (PAP) immunohistochemical method. Immunoreactivity was localized in cell bodies and nerve fibers. The perikarya were oval or fusiform (average length 13 μm) and were mostly located in the dorsal half of the medial subnucleus of the NTS at the level of the area postrema (AP). One to three straight immunoreactive dendritelike processes emerged from the perikarya. Neurons that had first been identified under light microscopy were also studied by electron microscopy. Each neuron had a moderate amount of cytoplasm and an oval or elongated nucleus that was eccentrically located in the soma. A few synaptic inputs were found on the CCK immunoreactive perikarya, while a moderate number were seen on both proximal and distal dendrites. These neurons received both asymmetrical and symmetrical synaptic inputs. The immunoreactive dendrites were most frequently in asymmetrical synaptic contact with nonreactive boutons (max. 2.7 μm in diameter) containing fairly densely packed, small round vesicles.
The lean-performance relationship in services: a theoretical model

Purpose – The extant literature on lean service reveals a noticeable lack of theoretical models establishing the core constructs of lean service, their interrelation and impact on organizational performance. The purpose of this paper is to address this gap by proposing a theoretical model in which lean constructs are identified and operationalized to establish their interrelation and impact on organizational performance. Design/methodology/approach – This paper synthesizes information drawing on a systematic review of the literature on lean service, other relevant academic literature to develop a theoretical model and a set of propositions. Drawing on the universal theory, socio-technical systems theory and contingency theory (CT), the paper highlights and clarifies the potential impact of lean service on operational and financial performance. Findings – This study identifies a comprehensive set of lean technical practices, lean supportive practices, inhibitors and expected outcome of lean service. Expect.
Requisites for Long-Term Growth in Financial Markets

We investigate multi-period investments where the initial capital and its gains are reinvested after each trading period. We point out that holding higher return investments even in the long run can be disadvantageous since, if the mean of a risky investment does not exceed the variance increment considerably, the investor cannot rely on positive growth of capital. We present the optimal trade-off between the single period mean and variance which provides maximum growth if the return distribution is not highly skewed and higher moments are negligible. Our approach is tested using the S&P 500 constituents in the period from 1970 to 2008.
Real Time Efficient Scheduling Algorithm for Load Balancing in Fog Computing Environment

Cloud computing is the new era technology, which is entirely dependent on the internet to maintain large applications, where data is shared over one platform to provide better services to clients belonging to a different organization. It ensures maximum utilization of computational resources by making availability of data, software and infrastructure with lower cost in a secure, reliable and flexible manner. Though cloud computing offers many advantages, but it suffers from certain limitation too, that during load balancing of data in cloud data centers the internet faces problems of network congestion, less bandwidth utilization, fault tolerance and security etc. To get rid out of this issue new computing model called Fog Computing is introduced which easily transfer sensitive data without delaying to distributed devices. Fog is similar to the cloud only difference lies in the fact that it is located more close to end users to process and give response to the client in less time. Secondly, it is beneficial to the real time streaming applications, sensor networks, Internet of things which need high speed and reliable internet connectivity. Our proposed architecture introduced a new scheduling policy for load balancing in Fog Computing environment, which complete real tasks within deadline, increase throughput and network utilization, maintaining data consistency with less complexity to meet the present day demand of end users.
Corporate discourse and environmental performance in Argentina

There is substantial research and policy interest in the relationship between firms and the natural environment, including how this relationship is influenced by regulators, international pressures, rival firms and stakeholder demands. With some exceptions, the ‘softer’ dimensions of environmental aspect management – how attitudes, beliefs and perceptions and the human factors drive corporate behaviour – have been understudied. The work that exists tends to be informal, and allows little scope for the statistical validation that is required for robust inference. This paper examines whether corporate values towards the environment affect a firm's environmental performance. It uses survey methods as well as content and discourse analyses of interview text and corporate reports and web sites to explore the links between managerial ‘mindsets’ and the environmental performance of the firms of which they are a part. Though the application is Argentina, the lessons learned can be generalized to other developing and industrialized countries. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.
p38 activation through Toll‐like receptors modulates IFN‐γ‐induced expression of the Tap‐1 gene only in macrophages

Although interferon‐γ (IFN‐γ) induces the transporter associated with antigen processing (Tap)‐1 expression in macrophages, cooperation with lipopolysaccharide signaling through Toll‐like receptor 4 (TLR4) accelerates the kinetics and increases the overall levels of this gene. In this report, we show that peptidoglycan signaling through TLR2 and bacterial CpG DNA signaling through TLR9 are functionally equivalent at synergizing with IFN‐γ in regulating Tap‐1 expression in macrophages. Activation of the p38 mitogen‐activated protein kinase is necessary for this response, which correlates with increased phosphorylation of signal transducer and activator of transcription‐1 on serine 727. Activation of p38, however, is not sufficient, as this signaling event does not affect the response to IFN‐γ in HeLa cells. The cooperation between these different signaling pathways also requires membrane fluidity. These data suggest that macrophages possess an ability to coordinate the signaling between the IFN‐γ and TLR receptors.
Sexually dimorphic effect of the Val66Met polymorphism of BDNF on susceptibility to Alzheimer's disease: New data and meta‐analysis

Conflicting results have been reported as to whether genetic variations (Val66Met and C270T) of the brain‐derived neurotrophic factor gene (BDNF) confer susceptibility to Alzheimer's disease (AD). We genotyped these polymorphisms in a Japanese sample of 657 patients with AD and 525 controls, and obtained weak evidence of association for Val66Met (P = 0.063), but not for C270T. After stratification by sex, we found a significant allelic association between Val66Met and AD in women (P = 0.017), but not in men. To confirm these observations, we collected genotyping data for each sex from 16 research centers worldwide (4,711 patients and 4,537 controls in total). The meta‐analysis revealed that there was a clear sex difference in the allelic association; the Met66 allele confers susceptibility to AD in women (odds ratio = 1.14, 95% CI 1.05–1.24, P = 0.002), but not in men. Our results provide evidence that the Met66 allele of BDNF has a sexually dimorphic effect on susceptibility to AD. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The Role of Neurotrophins in Multiple Sclerosis—Pathological and Clinical Implications

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory demyelinating and neurodegenerative disease of the central nervous system (CNS) with unknown etiology. It was recently suggested that autoimmunity, which had long been considered to be destructive in MS, might also play a protective role in the CNS of MS patients. Neurotrophins are polypeptides belonging to the neurotrophic factor family. While neurotrophins mediate cell survival and proliferation in the nervous system, they are also expressed within peripheral blood mononuclear cells fraction (PBMCs) of immunological system. In MS additional neurotrophic support from PBMCs might compensate relative neurotrophins deficiency in the damaged CNS tissue that needs to be repaired. Failure to produce the adequate neurotrophins concentrations might result in decreased protection of the CNS, consequently leading to increased atrophy, which is the main determinant of MS patients’ end-point disability. There are several lines of evidence, both from clinical research and animal models, suggesting that neurotrophins play a pivotal role in neuroprotective and neuroregenerative processes that are often defective in the course of MS. It seems that neuroprotective strategies might be used as potentially valuable add-on therapies, alongside traditional immunomodulatory treatment in multiple sclerosis.
The FTT-ethernet protocol: merging flexibility, timeliness and efficiency

Despite having been designed to interconnect office equipment such as computers and printers, since its early daysEthernet has also been considered for use in the industrial domain. However, it was not originally developed to meet the requirements of real-time industrial automation systems and it was commonly considered unsuited for applications at the field level, i.e.to interconnect sensors, actuators and controllers. Therefore, along its 30 years of existence, several proposals have been presented to make this protocol exhibit real-timebehaviour. Nevertheless, these proposals either require specialised hardware, or are suited to soft-real-time operation only, or are bandwidth or response-time inefficient. This paper presents an overview about the work previously done towards real-time communication on Ethernet. Then, it presents a new protocol, FTT-Ethernet, which relies on common network adapters and on a new transmission control named master/multi-slave that efficiently supports hard-real-time operation in a flexible way.
Life Cycle vs. Multiple Path Dependency in Industrial Districts

The aim of this article is to shed light on the evolutionary process of industrial districts (IDs), evaluating the role of path dependence in their growth trajectories. We intend here to identify the districts' life cycles and the factors that influence the origin, development and maturity stages. Following an evolutionary economics approach, we investigated the path-dependence mechanism behind the evolution of IDs. By adopting a qualitative meta-study approach, the paper shows how different IDs have changed over time and how their growth pattern is partially determined by initial conditions and by heterogeneous capabilities cultivated by district firms. The analysis is applied to 12 case studies of Italian IDs developed in the literature, following the model of qualitative meta-analysis for theory building. The results provided add new insights to the present literature on evolutionary geography by indicating some key triggering factors. Our contribution shows that instead of a standardized life cycle, Italian IDs follow a multiple growth pattern in their development.
Yankee Doodle Went to London: Anglo‐American Breweries and the London Securities Market, 1888–92

The enthusiasm of British portfolio investors for US industry in the late 1880s has been seen as evidence of the liberalism of the London Stock Exchange and the conservatism of the New York Stock Exchange. Based on a study of Anglo-American brewing issues on the London market between 1888 and 1892, in this article it is argued that such an interpretation cannot be sustained. For these issues, securing access to the London market proved more demanding than accounts of its liberalism would lead us to expect: in fact, Anglo-American brewing companies submitted to strictures from London that were more constraining than those of the New York market. Promoters accepted London's constraints to take advantage of the high valuations assigned to Anglo-American brewing securities there, which reflected the city's success in building demand based on financial machinery that did not exist in New York. That machinery included underwriting syndicates, accounting standards, and the London Stock Exchange's listing rules, although, from this perspective, it was the rigour of the exchange's rules that was important. Still, vetting securities for quotation was not the same as for investment, as the disappointing performance of the Anglo-American brewing securities soon revealed.
Baroreceptor modulation of active cutaneous vasodilation during dynamic exercise in humans.

The hypothesis that baroreceptor unloading during dynamic limits cutaneous vasodilation by withdrawal of active vasodilator activity was tested in seven human subjects. Increases in forearm skin blood flow (laser-Doppler velocimetry) at skin sites with (control) and without alpha-adrenergic vasoconstrictor activity (vasodilator only) and in arterial blood pressure (noninvasive) were measured and used to calculate cutaneous vascular conductance (CVC). Subjects performed two similar dynamic exercise (119 +/- 8 W) protocols with and without baroreceptor unloading induced by application of -40 mmHg lower body negative pressure (LBNP). The LBNP condition was reversed (i.e., either removed or applied) after 15 min while exercise continued for an additional 15 min. During exercise without LBNP, the increase in body core temperature (esophageal temperature) required to elicit active cutaneous vasodilation averaged 0.25 +/- 0.08 and 0.31 +/- 0.10 degrees C (SE) at control and vasodilator-only skin sites, respectively, and increased to 0.44 +/- 0.10 and 0.50 +/- 0.10 degrees C (P < 0.05 compared with without LBNP) during exercise with LBNP. During exercise baroreceptor unloading delayed the onset of cutaneous vasodilation and limited peak CVC at vasodilator-only skin sites. These data support the hypothesis that during exercise baroreceptor unloading modulates active cutaneous vasodilation.