Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Reforming the Labour Market: An Assessment of the UK Policies of the Thatcher Era

Under Thatcher the United Kingdom introduced a major program of labour market deregulation, claimed to have made the United Kingdom one of the least regulated labour markets in the OECD. This paper reviews the measures implemented and assesses their impact. Trade union membership declined steeply, and collective bargaining was curtailed even more sharply. The impact of the legislation curbing unions can be exaggerated, given that it coincided with wider developments. At the microeconomic level there is some evidence that the decline of unions contributed to productivity gains, but no clear evidence on employment, investment, profitability or wage premia. UK macroeconomic performance improved, but not dramatically. The most marked features of the more flexible labour markets are the growth of part‐time and temporary work, while job insecurity has become a common perception. The most striking development is the growth in earnings inequality, in part reflecting the weakening of collective bargaining. The evolution and consequences of inequality will be a major criterion in assessing the moves to labour market flexibility.
NF-κB as a therapeutic target in autoimmune disease

NF-κB transmits signals from the cell surface to the nucleus. Signaling through cell surface receptors to activate NF-κB and mitogen-activated protein kinases through adaptor molecules is of critical importance to survival and activation of all cells in the body, including those regulating innate and adaptive immunity. As such, NF-κB is a key signaling component in autoimmunity and an attractive target for autoimmune disease therapy. However, given its global importance, targeting NF-κB tends to be immunosuppressive. In this review, the authors discuss the roles played by NF-κB in autoimmunity, drugs which target it, and complexities which need to be addressed to improve the use of NF-κB as a target. Finally, the authors highlight some novel approaches that are likely to be important in the next generation of NF-κB therapies.
Knowledge‐based replica deletion scheme using directional anti‐packets for vehicular delay‐tolerant networks

As stable end‐to‐end paths seldom exist in vehicular delay‐tolerant networks, replication‐based opportunistic routing protocols are often utilised to improve the data delivery ratio and decrease the transfer delay. However, the network load increases heavily because of numerous data replicas. In this paper, we propose a knowledge‐based replica deletion Scheme using Directional Anti‐packets (SuDAs), in order to reduce the transmission of anti‐packets by considering vehicle contact statistics. We firstly use the contact judgment algorithm to avoid invalid anti‐packet transmissions and select better forwarder for the anti‐packets to reach each relay node, which has redundant data replica. Then, in the directional anti‐packet transmission algorithm, we set different anti‐packet transmission thresholds according to different requirements for the quality of replica deletion in the network. Formal validations and extensive simulations evaluate the performance of our scheme, which show that SuDA has a distinct advantage over others in striking a balance between the replica deletion delay and the anti‐packet overhead. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Modelling Multiple Interactions in Science and Technology Networks

Empirical studies have shown that the extent of innovation diffusion is greatly affected by the structure of the network in which innovation processes take place. This contribution aims to identify the complex structure of relationships at the basis of knowledge and innovation diffusion among actors from various organizations (ﬁrms, academic and research institutions) in a given territory. A multiplex approach is proposed to explain co-authorship and co-invention interaction among Author–Inventors community in a specific geographic area. To this end, we carry out a case study of the Trieste area (North-East Italy), characterized by a very high concentration of research organizations and by the emergence of a lively sector of small R&D firms.
Contactin regulates the current density and axonal expression of tetrodotoxin‐resistant but not tetrodotoxin‐sensitive sodium channels in DRG neurons

Contactin, a glycosyl‐phosphatidylinositol (GPI)‐anchored predominantly neuronal cell surface glycoprotein, associates with sodium channels Nav1.2, Nav1.3 and Nav1.9, and enhances the density of these channels on the plasma membrane in mammalian expression systems. However, a detailed functional analysis of these interactions and of untested putative interactions with other sodium channel isoforms in mammalian neuronal cells has not been carried out. We examined the expression and function of sodium channels in small‐diameter dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons from contactin‐deficient (CNTN–/–) mice, compared to CNTN+/+ litter mates. Nav1.9 is preferentially expressed in isolectin B4 (IB4)‐positive neurons and thus we used this marker to subdivide small‐diameter DRG neurons. Using whole‐cell patch‐clamp recording, we observed a greater than two‐fold reduction of tetrodotoxin‐resistant (TTX‐R) Nav1.8 and Nav1.9 current densities in IB4+ DRG neurons cultured from CNTN–/– vs. CNTN+/+ mice. Current densities for TTX‐sensitive (TTX‐S) sodium channels were unaffected. Contactin's effect was selective for IB4+ neurons as current densities for both TTX‐R and TTX‐S channels were not significantly different in IB4– DRG neurons from the two genotypes. Consistent with these results, we have demonstrated a reduction in Nav1.8 and Nav1.9 immunostaining on peripherin‐positive unmyelinated axons in sciatic nerves from CNTN–/– mice but detected no changes in the expression for the two major TTX‐S channels Nav1.6 and Nav1.7. These data provide evidence of a role for contactin in selectively regulating the cell surface expression and current densities of TTX‐R but not TTX‐S Na+ channel isoforms in nociceptive DRG neurons; this regulation could modulate the membrane properties and excitability of these neurons.
Externalities among creditors and personal bankruptcy

Purpose - – The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of creditors' undervaluing the total expected cost of a borrower's bankruptcy filing because a portion of the cost will be borne by other lenders. Creditors who bear a smaller portion of the total cost of a personal bankruptcy would be expected to take less care to avoid triggering one. Design/methodology/approach - – This paper presents a theoretical model of a creditor's decision of how aggressively to pursue collection. The model shows that because each lender's collection actions increase the probability of bankruptcy, each lender will collect more aggressively when a borrower has many loans. The paper tests the predictions of the model using a large dataset of credit card accounts. Findings - – The model highlights an important testable result: holding the level of debt constant, a borrower with many loans is more likely to choose formal bankruptcy and less likely to choose informal bankruptcy, i.e. chronic non-repayment absent a bankruptcy filing. This paper finds evidence that strongly supports the predictions of the model. Laws that limit creditor collection actions do not appear to mitigate the effects of increasing number of loans. Originality/value - – While a few papers have tested whether strategic interactions may impact business bankruptcy, no paper of which the author is aware has provided clear empirical evidence of the existence of common pool effects in the personal credit market. These effects point to an important and potentially underappreciated source of risk for borrowers and creditors in this market.
A European Perspective on Depression in the Community: The DEPRES Study

ABSTRACT Depression is one of the most prevalent disorders in the general population, causing personal and social disability and impairment. Major studies assessing the diagnosis and management of depression have shown that it is often underdiagnosed and undertreated. A pan-European study aimed at assessing the extent and consequences of depression in six different countries is reported in this article. Different types of depressive profiles are analyzed and their respective management has been compared. The importance of improving diagnosis and treatment of depression is underlined. Appropriate management of depression depends on the recognition of depressive symptoms by patients, their possibility of seeking care, and the ability of the primary care physician to recognize the disorder and prescribe the appropriate medicines. Improvement in all of these fields is necessary.
PROACTIVE CONTRACTING IN FINNISH PPP PROJECTS

Public‐private‐partnership projects are long term, complex and very challenging contractual arrangements and relationships. They bring new roles for public sector and also for private sector in terms of construction and services. This paper will go through some features of the Finnish PPPs. Proactive law focuses in practical views as regards contract law and contractual issues. The main target is to prevent problems instead of confronting them. This paper will clarify what proactive law is about in terms of contract law and contracting especially in PPPs. For instance, 20--40 years’ partnership relation with PPPs brings up also dozens of different risks into the picture. This paper will discuss the risks and risk management in terms of proactive law and after that, focus on PPPs in Finland.
Invited research overview: end-user programming

In the past few decades there has been considerable work on empowering end users to be able to write their own programs, and as a result, users are indeed doing so. In fact, we estimate that over 12 million people in American workplaces would say that they "do programming" at work, and almost 50 million people use spreadsheets or databases (and therefore may potentially program), compared to only 3 million professional programmers. The "programming" systems used by these end users include spreadsheet systems, web authoring tools, business process authoring tools such as Visual Basic, graphical languages for demonstrating the desired behavior of educational simulations, and even professional languages such as Java. The motivation for end-user programming is to have the computer be useful for each person's specific individual needs. While the empirical study of programming has been an HCI topic since the beginning the field, it is only recently that there has been a focus on the End-User Programmer as a separate class from novices who are assumed to be studying to be professional programmers. Another recent focus is on making end-user programming more reliable, using "End-User Software Engineering. " This paper gives a brief summary of some current and past research in the area of End-User Programming.
Development Strategy, Urbanization and the Urban-Rural Income Gap in China*

Abstract Analyzing the reasons for the lag in urbanization and the persistent widening of the urban- rural income gap in China from the viewpoint of government development strategy, we find that the government’s strategy of encouraging the development of capital-intensive sectors has resulted in a relative fall in labor demand in urban areas and thus delayed the progress of urbanization, hampered the effective transfer of the rural population into urban areas and widened the urban-rural income gap. Using the technology choice index (TCI) to measure the degree to which government policy is biased towards capital-intensive sectors, this paper conducts empirical tests of a series of theoretical hypotheses on the basis of Chinese provincial panel data for 1978-2008. We further find that changes in China’s urban-rural income gap conform to a U-curve pattern, i.e. in the course of economic development, the income gap first decreases then increases.
Enhancement of the intracranial arterial wall at MR imaging: relationship to cerebral atherosclerosis.

PURPOSE To investigate the relationship between intracranial arterial wall enhancement and atherosclerosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS Intracranial vertebral arteries of 30 patients and carotid arteries of 62 patients were studied with spin-echo magnetic resonance imaging with contrast enhancement and spatial presaturation. Arterial wall enhancement was graded as follows: stage 1, no substantial enhancement; stage 2, faint or thin area of enhancement; stage 3, definite and thick area of enhancement. RESULTS In vertebral arteries, stage 3 enhancement was seen in 11 patients (mean age, 73.7 years) and stage 1 in eight (mean age, 56.4 years). In carotid arteries, stage 3 enhancement was seen in 13 patients (mean age, 71.0 years) and stage 1 in 21 patients (mean age, 39.0 years). In both arteries, stage was well correlated with age (P < .05). CONCLUSION Arterial wall enhancement is related to aging and is probably due to neovascularity in association with atherosclerotic plaques. This finding may permit assessment of intracranial atherosclerosis and other vascular diseases.
Whole-grain intake and total, cardiovascular, and cancer mortality: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies.

BACKGROUND The potential role of whole grain in preventing various mortality outcomes has been inconsistently reported in a wealth of prospective observational studies. OBJECTIVE We evaluated the relations between whole-grain intake and risks of dying from any cause, cardiovascular disease (CVD), and cancer through a meta-analytic approach. DESIGN Relevant studies were identified by searching PubMed and EMBASE databases and bibliographies of retrieved full publications. Summary RRs with 95% CIs were calculated with a random-effects model. RESULTS Thirteen studies on total mortality (104,061 deaths), 12 on CVD mortality (26,352 deaths), and 8 on cancer mortality (34,797 deaths) were included. Three studies reported whole-grain intake, and the remaining studies reported whole-grain product intake. In the dose-response analysis in which the intake of whole-grain products was converted to the amount of whole grain, the summary RRs for an increment in whole-grain intake of 50 g/d were 0.78 (95% CI: 0.67, 0.91) for total mortality, 0.70 (95% CI: 0.61, 0.79) for CVD mortality, and 0.82 (95% CI: 0.69, 0.96) for cancer mortality. A similar reduction was observed for the mortality from ischemic heart disease (RR: 0.68; 95% CI: 0.55, 0.84) but not from stroke (RR: 0.93; 95% CI: 0.54, 1.62). There was evidence of nonlinear associations of whole-grain intake with total (P-nonlinearity < 0.001) and CVD mortality (P-nonlinearity <0.001), but not with cancer mortality (P-nonlinearity = 0.12), with the curves for the associations appearing slightly steeper at lower ranges (<35 g/d) of the intake than at higher ranges. CONCLUSIONS Our findings suggest significant inverse relations between whole-grain intake and mortality due to any cause, CVD, or cancer. The findings support the recommendation of increasing whole-grain intake to improve public health.
Interpreting “Interconnection”: Hermeneutics of the WTO Mexico-Telecommunications Case

Abstract: This paper discusses the hermeneutics of the first GATS panel report, Mexico- Telecommunications Case (DS204), with particular reference to its interpretation of the meaning of the word “interconnection” in the Telecommunications Reference Paper. Having noted that the panel report exposed weakness in persuasion because of the tradition of strict literal interpretation, this paper argues for loosening of the WTO interpretative tradition in order to take into account more elements of interpretation in a holistic way. This paper recommends that it is time for the tribunal to enrich the interpretation rules of the Vienna Convention by taking into account factual contexts at the time of interpretation. This paper also recommends that the WTO tribunal to develop a structured way to consider the object and purpose of a treaty to a meaningful degree even within the ambit of Article 31 of the Vienna Convention. This paper further suggests that the WTO tribunal should be prepared to embrace a more purposeful interpretation of the WTO agreements in a dynamic economy which often involves appearance of new gaps in the web of regulation. Finally, it suggests that the WTO develop mechanisms to carry out some of treaty objectives in cooperation with neighboring institutions, the ITU in this case, and that the WTO tribunal take it into account in balancing the conflicting objectives.
Polymorphisms in the Matrilin-1 Gene and Risk of Mandibular Prognathism in Koreans

Previous linkage analysis of an Asian population proposed possible candidate genes for mandibular prognathism, such as Matrilin-1 (cartilage matrix protein). To investigate the association between the single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in Matrilin-1 and mandibular prognathism, we investigated three sequence variants (-158 T>C, 7987 G>A, 8572 C>T) in 164 mandibular prognathism patients and 132 control individuals with a normal occlusion. The results showed that the 8572 TT genotypes in Matrilin-1 showed increased risk of mandibular prognathism (OR = 9.28, 95% Cl = 1.19~197.57, P < 0.05), whereas the 7987 AA genotype showed a protective effect for mandibular prognathism (OR = 0.16, 95% Cl = 0.05~0.47, P < 0.05). Genotyping results showed that the Matrilin-1 polymorphism haplotype TGC (ht4; 158T, 7987G, and 8572C alleles) had a pronounced risk effect for mandibular prognathism compared with controls (OR = 5.16, 95% Cl = 2.03~13.93, P < 0.01). The results suggest that polymorphisms in Matrilin-1 could be used as a marker for genetic susceptibility to mandibular prognathism.
An Old Problem Revisited-and Solved: Upton and Dalton's Linear Production Response: A Note

This note presents a robust method for estimating response surfaces that consist of linear response regimes and a linear plateau. The linear response-and-plateau model has fascinated production scientists since von Liebig (1855) and, as Upton and Dalton indicated, some years ago in this Journal, the response-and-plateau model seems to fit the data in many empirical studies. The estimation algorithm evolves from Bayesian implementation of a switching-regression (finite mixtures) model and demonstrates routine application of Gibbs sampling and data augmentation-techniques that are now in widespread application in other disciplines.
Decision Support for Pond Aquaculture : Parameter Estimation for Simulation Models Work Plan 7 , DAST Study 5

Users of the POND decision support system may often be interested in tailoring the models to one or more fish species at a given location. Manual calibration of the fish bioenergetics model in POND for Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) growth has previously been reported (Bolte et al., 1995). However, estimating suitable parameters for complex, non-linear simulation models by manual calibration can be extremely tedious, because of the potentially high degree of interaction between variables and the large size and dimensions of parameter spaces to be searched.
A Study of the Functions and Pitfalls of Design Leadership How Leadership of the Creative Industry Attains Effectiveness

Design leadership with its own characteristics has played a key role in design agencies and a wide range of other organizations in the creative industry. Besides the common features of leadership, the core of design leadership is to innovate and encourage its creative members to develop their creativeness to the greatest possible extent. This outstanding feature of design leadership is closely related to design leadership's functions and should be emphasized within these. Design leadership's functions are based upon both the nature of the design process and creative people's working goals. Not only should the common functions be fulfilled in design leadership, but also the core function must be highlighted to satisfy the nature of design and characteristics of the creative industry. By examining the nature of design leadership and the intrinsic essence of a creative organization, the functions of design leadership are explored. Equally, it is also vital to avoid pitfalls inherent in design leadership, which critically influence its effectiveness. The research purpose of this paper is how to attain effectiveness of design leadership from the perspective of its functions and pitfalls. Also, design leadership within the specified social context of Confucianism has been chosen since this is an example of great significance in China.
Taxation over Time

Individuals experience lengthy taxpaying lives that exhibit a great deal of internal variation in income, yet tax rate schedules usually ignore the taxpayer's age, life cycle stage, and pattern of earnings over time. What would it mean for tax design to optimally contextualize taxation within taxpayers' lives - that is, to approach the taxation of individuals explicitly as taxation over time? This article offers what we believe to be the first comprehensive theoretical treatment of that question. The fact that people occupy different income positions at different times in their lives has profound implications for a tax system's pursuit of equity and efficiency. Features of human cognition that operate over time, such as optimism, myopia, and a preference for improving sequences, also bear importantly on tax design. To shed light on these issues, we synthesize and contrast two divergent approaches to taxpayer lives - well-known lifetime averaging proposals that attempt to erase the impact of income volatility on relative tax burdens, and less-studied age-basing proposals that attempt to harness population-wide variations in lifetime earning patterns by keying tax rates explicitly to age. Our goal is to provide a unified analytic framework for understanding taxation over time that will spur further empirical and theoretical work on this intriguing issue.
Unofficial images of a tourism destination: New Orleans behind the scenes

New Orleans is both a tourist destination and a city with high mass media representation. In recent years, New Orleans has increasingly become the focus of numerous media events ranging from the acclaimed HBO series Treme to the unmistakable images of the city in ruins following Hurricane Katrina. This research explores what images of New Orleans visitors expect to see and how visitors use the media to form perceptions about New Orleans. Specific to this study, content analysis provides a technique to determine the dominant themes and images of New Orleans that are projected to tourists through selected unofficial visual media form (motion pictures). Although unofficial media are not created or intended to attract tourists, they can increase tourism and influence expectations of a destination. Investigations into how tourists use the media and how prior media exposure affects satisfaction with the destination could be an important resource for cities attempting to expand their tourism industry, target a new population or change their destination? s image.
Toward closed-loop optimization of deep brain stimulation for Parkinson's disease: concepts and lessons from a computational model

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the subthalamic nucleus with periodic, high-frequency pulse trains is an increasingly standard therapy for advanced Parkinson's disease. Here, we propose that a closed-loop global optimization algorithm may identify novel DBS waveforms that could be more effective than their high-frequency counterparts. We use results from a computational model of the Parkinsonian basal ganglia to illustrate general issues relevant to eventual clinical or experimental tests of such an algorithm. Specifically, while the relationship between DBS characteristics and performance is highly complex, global search methods appear able to identify novel and effective waveforms with convergence rates that are acceptably fast to merit further investigation in laboratory or clinical settings.