Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Psychomotor Performance After Intake of Zopiclone Compared With Intake of Ethanol: A Randomized, Controlled, Double-Blinded Trial

The sleep medicine zopiclone (eszopiclone) is commonly used in most Western countries. The focus on legislation for possible traffic-impairing nonalcohol drugs have caused a need for comparing traffic relevant behavior after intake of commonly used psychoactive drugs to blood alcohol concentrations (BACs). We aimed to compare psychomotor effects at 3 levels of behavior at different blood zopiclone concentrations to effects seen at different BACs. We performed a randomized double-blinded trial on 16 healthy volunteers who received either 10 or 5 mg zopiclone, 50 g ethanol or placebo in a crossover design. The volunteers performed computerized tests at baseline, 1, 3.5, and 6.5 hours after intake, accompanied by blood sampling. Impairment was found at all 3 behavior levels. For zopiclone, impairment was most pronounced at behavior level 1 (automotive behavior); a mean blood zopiclone concentration at 39 &mgr;g/L achieved 1 hour after intake of 10 mg zopiclone was accompanied by more impairment than BAC 0.074 %. At behavior levels 2 (control behavior) and 3 (executive planning), the psychomotor impairment accompanying approximately 39 &mgr;g/L zopiclone seemed comparable to a BAC of approximately 0.074%. No test components were impaired at 6.5 hours after intake.
Relational and Contractual Governance in Family Firms: Effects on Strategic Decision Making

Governance of family firms differs from mainstream corporate governance in an important respect: Important owners, i.e., family members, may have multiple roles in the business. In this paper, we develop and test a model of family firm governance that incorporates both formal control and social control aspects of governance. Governance based on the formal control draws on agency theory, whereas the social control aspects draw on social theories of governance, addressing social capital embedded in relationships. Drawing on these theories, we examine the influence of different governance mechanisms on the quality of strategic decision making. The Family Business Governance Model is tested using survey data from 192 family firms in Finland. We use structural equation modeling in testing the empirical validity of the model. The empirical analysis largely supports our hypotheses on formal control and social control as well as their influences on the decision-making quality.
Diagnosis and treatment of inherited thrombocytopenias

Knowledge in the field of inherited thrombocytopenias (ITs) has greatly improved over the last 15 years. Several new genes responsible for thrombocytopenia have been identified leading to the definition of novel nosographic entities and to a much better characterization of the phenotypes of these diseases. To date, ITs encompass 22 disorders caused by mutations in 24 genes and characterized by different degrees of complexity and great variability in prognosis. Making a definite diagnosis is important for setting an appropriate follow‐up, choosing the best treatments and providing proper counseling. Despite the abovementioned progress, diagnosis of ITs remains difficult and these disorders are still underdiagnosed. The purpose of this review is to provide an updated guide to the diagnosis of ITs based on simple procedures. Moreover, the currently available therapeutic options for these conditions are recapitulated and discussed.
External Imbalances in the Eurozone

The paper examines the extent to which current account imbalances of euro area countries are related to intra‐euro area factors and to external trade shocks. We argue that the traditional explanations for the rising imbalances are correct, but are incomplete. We uncover a large impact of declines in export competitiveness and asymmetric trade developments vis‐a‐vis the rest of the world \x96 in particular vis‐a‐vis China, Central and Eastern Europe, and oil exporters \x96 on the external balance of euro area debtor countries. While current account imbalances of euro area deficit countries vis‐a‐vis the rest of the world increased, they were financed mostly by intra‐euro area capital inflows (in particular by the purchase of government and financial institutions' securities, and cross‐border interbank lending) which permitted external imbalances to grow over time.
New Small Technically-Based Firms and Industrial Distributors

Mrs. S. M. Hill at the time of carrying out this research was a research assistant at Templeton College, Oxford, England, financed by a Leverhulme Trust Research Grant. Dr. K. J. Blois is a Fellow of Templeton College, Oxford, England. It has been established that a lack of marketing skills is a common cause of failure amongst new small technically-based firms. The activities of industrial distributors include many functions vital to successful marketing such as maintaining close customer contact. It would, therefore, appear that industrial distributors could play a role complementary to this type of small firm. However, the initial findings of this research indicate that such complementarity rarely exists.
Hepatocellular carcinoma: MR imaging with mangafodipir trisodium (Mn-DPDP).

PURPOSE To determine the efficacy of manganese (II) N,N'-dipyridoxylethylenediamine-N,N'-diacetate 5,5'-bis(phosphate) (DPDP) at magnetic resonance (MR) imaging for evaluation of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). MATERIALS AND METHODS MR imaging at 1.5 T was performed in 20 patients with 65 HCC nodules. T1- and T2-weighted spin-echo and T1-weighted gradient-recalled-echo images were obtained before and after administration of 5 mumol/kg Mn-DPDP. Readers individually evaluated the pre- and postcontrast images for detection of tumor nodules, with subsequent consensus reading for interpretation discrepancies. Quantitative measurements of tumor-liver contrast-to-noise ratio (C/N) were also performed. Enhancement characteristics were correlated with histologic tumor differentiation. RESULTS Precontrast images depicted 50 lesions in 17 patients, and postcontrast images depicted 49 lesions in 20 patients. Combination of pre- and postcontrast images enabled detection of 53 lesions in 20 patients. Three lesions (three patients) were seen only on postcontrast images. Four lesions (three patients) were seen only on precontrast images. Reader evaluation of tumor conspicuity showed a significant preference for precontrast T2-weighted SE images (P < .01). Quantitative evaluation showed a significant increase in C/N on postcontrast T1-weighted images (P < .01). Well-differentiated lesions showed significantly greater enhancement than that of poorly differentiated lesions (P < .05). CONCLUSION Mn-DPDP-enhanced MR imaging depicts HCC tumors not visualized with unenhanced studies. The degree of tumor enhancement correlates with histologic differentiation.
Rent Reform-Issues for the Countries of Eastern Europe and the Newly Independent States

The transitional economies share common, serious problems in their public sector housing stocks, including poor condition and repair, and low rents which neither cover the maintenance and managementcosts, nor reflect the market exchange value of the houses. The paper begins by looking at the general background of rental policy and alternative approachesto rent reforms in the East-Central European transitional countries, and then goes on to consider the restructuring of the public rental sector, taking into account price structure changes and price increases in relation to income changes, and affordability. Current trends and problems in regulating rent policy at central and local levels are then considered, including factors influencing the restructuring of the public rental sector, the level of rents and utility prices, and rent reforms in relation to other institutional changes. The paper concludes that no wholly satisfactory reform model has been developed,mainly because each aspect of necessary reform.
Initial development of the Coach Motivation Scale: Qualitative perspectives?

The coach has a central role in the facilitation of adaptive forms of motivation aimed at enhancing the quality of athletic sport performance (Mallett & Hanrahan, 2004). Moreover, research suggests that the adoption of an autonomysupportive coaching style fosters such adaptive motivation in both athletes and coaches (Mallett, 2005; Vallerand & Rousseau, 2001). Given the significance of the coaching role in athletic satisfaction and performance, an understanding of the coach’s motivation is paramount. Knowledge in this area would benefit from the development of a reliable measure of coaching motivation, which could be used to examine the social and contextual factors that influence a coach’s motivation and hence behaviour. Moreover, basing such an instrument on the principles of the self-determination paradigm is recommended (Fredrick & Morrison, 1999; Mageau & Vallerand, 2003; Mallett, 2005). This paper will argue for the importance of such a scale and present initial qualitative and quantitative findings from the development of the Coach Motivation Scale (CMS).
Low-carbon, Sustainable Future in East Asia : Improving energy systems, taxation and policy cooperation

1. Energy systems and environmental policy in East Asia 2. Introduction to the modelling in this book Part 1: The Power Choices and the Sustainability of Energy Usage in East Asia 3. Modeling the Power Sectors in East Asia: The choice of Power Sources 4. Modeling the power sector in East Asia: Economic and Environmental impacts of the choices of power sources 5. The environmental and macroeconomic implications of phasing out nuclear power in Japan - E3MG vs CGE modeling results 6. Energy efficiency policies in East Asia: Macroeconomic implications and interactions with existing climate policies 7. Energy structure and energy security under climate mitigation scenarios in East Asia Part 2: Environmental Tax Reform for Environmental and Economic Balance 8. The double dividend of an environmental tax reform in East Asian economies 9. The macroeconomic impacts of ETR: A comparison of model results 10. Environmental taxes and fiscal deficits 11. The distributional effects of low carbon policies in Japan and South Korea 12. Human Capital and Environmental Taxation in Japan and South Korea 13. Competitiveness issues and carbon leakage 14. The role for border tax adjustments Part 3: Trade and Interdependency of Economy and Environment in East Asia 15. Measuring both production-based and consumption-based CO2 emissions of different countries based on the multi-region input-output model 16. An empirical study on the interdependency of energy consumption and CO2 emissions under the international IO structure of the Asia-Pacific region 17. Emissions from international maritime transportation in East Asia 18. An environmental assessment of FTA in East Asian regions using the CGE modeling approach 19. An environmental assessment of East Asian trade agreements using E3ME-Asia 20. Conclusion
New Perspectives on East Asian Development

Conventional explanations of rapid growth in East Asia have focused on the efficient allocation of resources resulting from market-led outward-oriented strategies. This study challenges that approach. East Asian success has centred around the accumulation dynamic both because of its direct importance to the growth process and also because of its close and interdependent linkages with exports. On this basis the study considers the institutions and policies which were used to manage economic rents in support of rapid growth and to ensure a more strategic and orderly integration into the world economy. The study also examines the contribution of regional trade and investment flows to East Asian industrialisation. The potential for replicating similar strategies is considered.
Escherichia coli and Salmonella spp. in meat in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

INTRODUCTION Food-borne pathogens are the leading cause of illness and death in developing countries, killing approximately 1.8 million people annually. In developed countries, food-borne pathogens are responsible for millions of cases of infectious gastrointestinal diseases each year, costing billions of dollars. The objective of this study was to screen for two major food-borne pathogens, Escherichia coli and Salmonella spp. , from meat samples obtained from different strata of the consumer market in Jeddah. METHODOLOGY A total of 60 meat samples, 20 each from large hypermarkets, groceries and small butcher shops were used in the study. Samples were transported to the laboratory in a cooler. They were macerated in peptone water and then seeded on selective media appropriate for each organism. Colonies were identified using conventional microbiological methods and suspected colonies were confirmed as E. coli and Salmonella spp. by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using specific primers. RESULTS The results indicated a high degree of contamination in samples from butcher shops as compared to those from groceries or hypermarkets (high scale supermarkets). Both pathogens E. coli and Salmonella spp. were found in higher rates in the samples from butcher shops. In small butcher shops, E. coli was found at an incidence of 65%, and Salmonella at 45%. CONCLUSION The results indicate an urgent need for applying proper food hygienic practices in food outlets, especially in small ones, to reduce the incidence of food-borne diseases. Vigilance by the right agencies must be implemented in order to prevent future food-borne outbreaks.
WHICH PROCESS GIVES RISE TO THE OBSERVED DEPENDENCE OF SWAPTION IMPLIED VOLATILITY ON THE UNDERLYING

In this paper we investigate whether a CEV model can account for the observed variation in the at-the-money implied volatility as a function of the level of the at-the-money forward rate. We also determine which exponent β in the CEV process for the swap rate best accounts for the observed behaviour of the implied volatilities.
Venture Capital Investors and Portfolio Firms

The principal goal of this monograph is to provide an overview of relevant aspects and research findings pertaining to the period after the venture capital firm (also known as venture capitalist or VC) has made the decision to invest in a particular portfolio company (or entrepreneur). Drawing principally upon refereed journal papers in entrepreneurship, finance, and management, our review is divided into six principal areas: (1) what venture capital firms do, (2) the impact of VCs on portfolio firms and other stakeholders, (3) the role of syndication, (4) the nature and timing of exit from VC investment, (5) the role of VCs in portfolio companies that undergo an initial public offering (IPO), and (6) the returns from investing in VC. The monograph concludes with a detailed outline of an agenda for further research. We provide a summary of the main papers in this literature in a set of tables in which we identify the authors, publication date, the journal, the main research question, the theoretical perspective, data, and the principal findings.
Young Couples’ Experiences of Breast Cancer During Hormone Therapy: An Interpretative Phenomenological Dyadic Analysis

Background: Young women are confronted with the same consequences of cancer as older women are. In addition, they face problems specifically related to their age, such as their children’s education and their family responsibilities, marital relationships, and career issues. Objective: The objective was to identify the functioning profiles of young couples confronted with hormone therapy. Methods: This study was both qualitative and dyadic. Interviews with 11 couples revealed 5 themes. Results: Initially, the partners reported increased intimacy and mutual support; however, during hormone therapy, a divergence developed between the patients and their partners. The partners wished for the couple to resume a normal life. The patients’ loved ones, also helpful in the beginning, were tempted to promote this resumption of normalcy, with the risk that the patients’ suffering would no longer be acknowledged. The risk of cancer recurrence appeared to immobilize the patients, who were unable to adopt a long-term perspective. Finally, the experience of the disease led the participants to reorganize their priorities and promoted self-centering. Conclusions: Breast cancer affects both the patient and her loved ones. Future research should focus on qualitative extensions to other stages of cancer treatment and quantitative studies to measure the phenomena revealed in the current work. Implications for Practice: Cancer and its treatment have impacts on the patient and her marriage; therefore, the focus for the clinical care should be on the couple rather than just the patient. Additionally, our findings suggest new areas of psychological dyadic counseling for cancer patients and their partners.
Exploring value creation of manufacturing service innovation based on a perspective of asset specificity: Cases from IT industry

Along with global competition, Taiwan's manufacturing sector faces a severe environment due to the leading high-tech of advanced countries, and low-cost production advantages of emerging countries. Manufacturing transformation through servitization becomes an important issue. However, the past servitization studies mostly focused on industrial restructuring, business strategy and model, and service development connotation. They rarely discussed value-creation strategy of manufacturing service innovation. Therefore, this study further bases on a perspective of asset specificity to explore the strategy of manufacturing service innovation. That is to explore how to enhance the degree of customer adhesion by servitization, and hence create value of service innovation. The study adopted a qualitative research method. The analytical framework is based on a two-dimensional strategy matrix, consisting servitization depth and servitization breadth. Four cases are selected from the top 100 manufacturing firms in Taiwan. Through secondary data and in-depth interviews with experts, the study collected representative service innovation events of the cases from 2004 to 2013. According to the final analysis results and in-depth interviews with experts, the value-creation strategies of the asset specificity, developed by manufacturing service innovation, are explored. In summary, for the value creation of asset specificity by manufacturing service innovations, the study suggests the following two strategies. First, a vertically integrated supply chain services: e-Through build an open platform, a series of value-added supply chain resources sevalue-added supply chain resources servicesrvices, while providing one-stop shopping total solution of hardware and software services program, create customer convenience, immediate value and flexibility. Second, the value chain integration services diversification: diversification extends the value chain to form integration services, and create customer value across multi-service value chain. The results presented in this article and in accordance with management implications.
Internet-based self-management offers an opportunity to achieve better asthma control in adolescents.

BACKGROUND Internet and short message service are emerging tools for chronic disease management in adolescents, but few data exist on the barriers to and benefits of internet-based asthma self-management. Our objective was to reveal the barriers and benefits perceived by adolescents with well-controlled and poorly controlled asthma to current and internet-based asthma management. METHODS Ninety-seven adolescents with mild-to-moderate persistent asthma monitored their asthma control on a designated Web site. After 4 weeks, 35 adolescents participated in eight focus groups. Participants were stratified in terms of age, gender, and asthma control level. We used qualitative and quantitative methods to analyze the written focus group transcripts. RESULTS Limited self-efficacy to control asthma was a significant barrier to current asthma management in adolescents with poor asthma control (65%) compared to adolescents with good asthma control (17%; p < 0.01). The former group revealed the following several benefits from internet-based asthma self-management: feasible electronic monitoring; easily accessible information; e-mail communication; and use of an electronic action plan. Personal benefits included the ability to react to change and to optimize asthma control. Patients with poor asthma control were able and ready to incorporate internet-based asthma self-management for a long period of time (65%), whereas patients with good control were not (11%; p < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS Our findings reveal a need for the support of self-management in adolescents with poorly controlled asthma that can be met by the application of novel information and communication technologies. Internet-based self-management should therefore target adolescents with poor asthma control.
Credibility, Complexity and Uncertainty: Explaining the Institutional Independence of 29 EU Agencies

The delegation of policy-making tasks to EU agencies and their remarkable growth in number over the past two decades mark a striking new development in the EU's institutional make-up. While most of the nascent literature on the EU's ‘agencification’ addresses the conditions for agency creation and the implications of agency governance from the perspective of democratic accountability, there is a lack of empirical research systematically scrutinising the institutional structure and degree of formal-institutional independence of these agencies. This article offers a comprehensive empirical assessment and measure of the variation in institutional independence displayed by the entire set of 29 EU agencies operating under the EU's three pillars and tests hypotheses explaining variation in formal independence among agencies.
Nerve growth factor affects Ca2+ currents via the p75 receptor to enhance prolactin mRNA levels in GH3 rat pituitary cells

In clonal pituitary GH3 cells, spontaneous action potentials drive the opening of Cav1 (L‐type) channels, leading to Ca2+ transients that are coupled to prolactin gene transcription. Nerve growth factor (NGF) has been shown to stimulate prolactin synthesis by GH3 cells, but the underlying mechanisms are unknown. Here we studied whether NGF influences prolactin gene expression and Ca2+ currents. By using RT‐PCR, NGF (50 ng ml−1) was found to augment prolactin mRNA levels by ∼80% when applied to GH3 cells for 3 days. A parallel change in the prolactin content was detected by Western blotting. Both NGF‐induced responses were mimicked by an agonist (Bay K 8644) and prevented by a blocker (nimodipine) of L‐type channels. In whole‐cell patch‐clamp experiments, NGF enhanced the L‐type Ca2+ current by ∼2‐fold within 60 min. This effect reversed quickly upon growth factor withdrawal, but was maintained for days in the continued presence of NGF. In addition, chronic treatment (≥ 24 h) with NGF amplified the T‐type current, which flows through Cav3 channels and is thought to support pacemaking activity. Thus, NGF probably increases the amount of Ca2+ that enters per action potential and may also induce a late increase in spike frequency. MC192, a specific antibody for the p75 neurotrophin receptor, but not tyrosine kinase inhibitors (K252a and lavendustin A), blocked the effects of NGF on Ca2+ currents. Overall, the results indicate that NGF activates the p75 receptor to cause a prolonged increase in Ca2+ influx through L‐type channels, which in turn up‐regulates the prolactin mRNA.