Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Innovation Policy on a Budget: Driving Innovation in a Time of Fiscal Constraint

Innovation – the improvement of existing or the creation of entirely new products, processes, services, and business or organizational models – drives long-run economic growth and quality of life improvements. As such, spurring innovation should be the centerpiece of national economic policies.To date, much of the focus of innovation policy has been on government investments in science, technology and education, either directly or indirectly through incentives such as the R&D tax credit. We believe that even in a time of fiscal constraint the U.S. federal government should increase, not cut, these key public investments. However, we recognize the political reality that substantial increases in public investment for innovation are problematic at this time. Nonetheless, the government is not powerless to drive innovation without its fiscal policy tool. To the contrary, it can take a wide array of actions to spur innovation that require little or no additional public expenditure. This report lays out a menu of such actions.
Limiting Imperviousness

Abstract Research shows negative consequences for a stream when more than 10 to 15% of the land in its watershed is covered by impervious surfaces. Yet we find that how imperviousness is measured has a major effect on whether such thresholds are exceeded. First we show large differences between estimates of impervious ness obtained with land use and land cover data, and propose adopting a consistent standard for the future. Second, we illustrate very different results when watershed imperviousness is measured at a few discrete points on the drainage system or continuously along all stream segments. Based on these findings we recommend that planners allow a safety margin when regulating land based on imperviousness, steer development towards already urbanized locations and away from relatively undisturbed locations, and take advantage of methods that mitigate the deleterious effects of imperviousness on stream ecology.
Continuous administration of gonadotrophin-releasing hormone agonist during the luteal phase in IVF.

BACKGROUND It has been reported that ceasing the administration of gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonist causes a profound suppression of circulating serum gonadotrophins. A comparative prospective and randomized study was conducted to investigate the effect of continuous administration of GnRH agonist during the luteal phase in an ovarian stimulation programme for IVF. METHODS GnRH agonist was administered intranasally from the midluteal phase of the previous cycle, and pure FSH administration started on cycle day 7. In the continuous-long protocol (cL) group (n = 161 ), GnRH agonist administration was continued until 14 days after oocyte retrieval. In the long protocol (L) group (n = 158 ), GnRH agonist was administered until the day before human chorionic gonadotrophin (HCG) administration. RESULTS The implantation rate and live birth rate per unit of transferred embryos were significantly higher in the cL group than the L group (P < 0.05 ). Serum LH and FSH concentrations on the day of, and 1 day after, HCG administration were significantly lower in the L group than the cL group (P < 0.01 ). CONCLUSIONS Continuation of GnRH agonist administration during the luteal phase might facilitate implantation, and prevent the profound suppression of serum gonadotrophins.
Learning-by-Doing vs. On-the-Job Training: Using Variation Induced by the EITC to Distinguish between Models of Skill Formation

This paper investigates the impact of wage subsidies on skill formulation. We analyze two prototypical models of skill formation: (a) a learning-by-doing model and (b) an on-the-job training model. We develop conditions on the pricing of jobs under which the two models are equivalent. In general they are different and have different implications of wage subsidies on skill formation. On-the-job training models predict that wage subsidies reduce skill formation. Learning-by-doing models predict the opposite. The provisional evidence favors the learning-by-doing model. We apply our estimates to investigate the impact of the EITC on skill formation. We estimate that the EITC reduced the long term wages of participants with low levels of education.
Golden Growth: Restoring the Lustre of the European Economic Model

Europe's growth will have to be golden in yet another sense. Economic prosperity has brought to Europeans the gift of longer lives, and the continent's population has aged a lot over the last five decades. Over the next five, it will age even more by 2060; almost a third of Europeans will be older than 65 years. Europe will have to rebuild its structures to make fuller use of the energies and experience of its more mature population's people in their golden years. These desires and developments already make the European growth model distinct. Keeping to the discipline of the golden rule would make it distinguished. This report shows how Europeans have organized the six principal economic activities trade, finance, enterprise, innovation, labor, and government in unique ways. But policies in parts of Europe do not recognize the imperatives of demographic maturity and clash with growth's golden rule. Conforming growth across the continent to Europe's ideals and the iron laws of economics will require difficult decisions. This report was written to inform them. Its findings the changes needed to make trade and finance will not be as hard as those to improve enterprise and innovation; these in turn are not as arduous and urgent as the changes needed to restructure labor and government. Its message the remedies are not out of reach for a part of the world that has proven itself both intrepid and inclusive.
What's to Know About Hypothetical Bias in Stated Preference Valuation Studies?

Hypothetical bias arises in stated preference valuation studies when respondents report a willingness to pay (WTP) that exceeds what they actually pay using their own money in laboratory or field experiments. Although this bias is not found in all stated preference surveys, hypothetical WTP typically exceeds the actual value by a factor of two to three. Unfortunately, there is no widely accepted general theory of respondent behaviour that explains hypothetical bias. Therefore, two meta-analyses are reviewed to test current hypotheses regarding the causes of this overstatement of WTP and the associated recommendations to mitigate the bias. Suggestions for future research are made including the development of a general theory.
Coronary artery bypass grafting in diabetic patients: do not bypass the pump!

on-pump coronary artery bypass grafting. Interact CardioVasc Thorac Surg 2013;17:878–80. [8] Renner A, Zittermann A, Aboud A, Pühler T, Hakim-Meibodi K, Quester W et al. Coronary revascularization in diabetic patients: off-pump versus on-pump surgery. Ann Thorac Surg 2013;96:528–34. [9] Emmert MY, Salzberg SP, Seifert B, Rodriguez H, Plass A, Hoerstrup SP et al. Is off-pump superior to conventional coronary artery bypass grafting in diabetic patients with multivessel disease? Eur J Cardiothorac Surg 2011;40:233–9. [10] Iqbal J, Zhang YJ, Holmes DR, Morice MC, Mack MJ, Kappetein AP et al. Optimal medical therapy improves clinical outcomes in patients undergoing revascularization with percutaneous coronary intervention or coronary artery bypass grafting: insights from the Synergy Between Percutaneous Coronary Intervention with TAXUS and Cardiac Surgery (SYNTAX) trial at the 5-year follow-up. Circulation 2015;131:1269–77.
Co-evolution, opportunity seeking and institutional change: Entrepreneurship and the Indian telecommunications industry, 1923–2009

This paper demonstrates the importance for entrepreneurship of historical contexts and processes, and the co-evolution of institutions, practices, discourses and cultural norms. Drawing on discourse and institutional theories, it develops a model of the entrepreneurial field, and applies this in analysing the rise to global prominence of the Indian telecommunications industry. The article uses entrepreneurial life histories to show how various discourses and discursive processes ultimately worked to generate change and the creation of new business opportunities. It suggests that entrepreneurship involves more than individual acts of business creation, but also implies collective endeavours to shape the future direction of the entrepreneurial field.
Management of corporate communication : from interpersonal contacts to external affairs

Contents: Preface. Managing Communication in Companies: An Enactment Point of View. Coordination Through Meaningful Expectations. Narrative, Enactment, and Organizational Discourse. Information: Uncertainty Reduction, System, and Satisfaction. Managing as Symbolic Action: Enacting Interpretations in Organizational Settings. Companies as Negotiated Enactment of Stakeholder Interests. Interpersonal Contacts: Enacting with Boss and Others. Networks: Many People Speaking with a Single Voice. Markets, Images, Issues, and External Stakeholders. External Communication with Public Policy Stakeholders.
Recombinant Rift Valley fever vaccines induce protective levels of antibody in baboons and resistance to lethal challenge in mice

Rift Valley fever (RVF) is a zoonotic disease endemic in Africa and the Arabian Peninsula caused by the highly infectious Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) that can be lethal to humans and animals and results in major losses in the livestock industry. RVF is exotic to the United States; however, mosquito species native to this region can serve as biological vectors for the virus. Thus, accidental or malicious introduction of this virus could result in RVFV becoming endemic in North America. Such an event would likely lead to significant morbidity and mortality in humans, and devastating economic effects on the livestock industry. Currently, there are no licensed vaccines for RVF that are both safe and efficacious. To address this issue, we developed two recombinant RVFV vaccines using vaccinia virus (VACV) as a vector for use in livestock. The first vaccine, vCOGnGc, was attenuated by the deletion of a VACV gene encoding an IFN-γ binding protein, insertional inactivation of the thymidine kinase gene, and expression of RVFV glycoproteins, Gn and Gc. The second vaccine, vCOGnGcγ, is identical to the first and also expresses the human IFN-γ gene to enhance safety. Both vaccines are extremely safe; neither resulted in weight loss nor death in severe combined immunodeficient mice, and pock lesions were smaller in baboons compared with the controls. Furthermore, both vaccines induced protective levels of antibody titers in vaccinated mice and baboons. Mice were protected from lethal RVFV challenge. Thus, we have developed two safe and efficacious recombinant vaccines for RVF.
A pharmacologic approach to vagal nerve stimulation prevents mesenteric lymph toxicity after hemorrhagic shock

BACKGROUND Electrical stimulation of the vagus nerve (VN) prevents gut and lung inflammation and mesenteric lymph (ML) toxicity in animal models of injury. We have previously shown that treatment with CPSI-121, a guanylhydrazone-derived compound, prevents gut barrier failure after burn injury. While the structure of CPSI-121 predicts that it will activate parasympathetic signaling, its ability to stimulate the VN is unknown. The aims of this study were to (1) measure the ability of CPSI-121 to induce VN activity, (2) determine whether CPSI-121 causes significant hemodynamic effects, and (3) further define the potential for CPSI-121 to limit the systemic inflammatory response to injury. METHODS Male Sprague-Dawley rats were given 1-mg/kg CPSI-121 intravenously while blood pressure, heart rate, and efferent VN electrical activity were recorded. Rats were also assigned to sham or trauma/hemorrhagic shock (T/HS). T/HS was induced by laparotomy and 60 minutes of HS (mean arterial pressure, 35 mm Hg) followed by fluid resuscitation. A separate cohort of animals received CPSI-121 after the HS phase. Gut and lung tissues were harvested for histologic analysis. Lung wet-dry ratios were also evaluated. The ability of ML to prime neutrophils was assessed by measuring in vitro oxidative burst using flow cytometry. RESULTS Blood pressure was not altered after treatment with CPSI-121, while heart rate decreased only slightly. Recording of efferent VN electrical activity revealed an increase in discharge rate after administration of CPSI-121. T/HS caused gut and lung injury, which were prevented in animals treated with CPSI-121 (p < 0.05). Treatment with CPSI-121 following T/HS attenuated neutrophil priming after exposure to ML (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION CPSI-121 causes efferent VN output and limits shock-induced gut and lung injury as well as ML toxicity. CPSI-121 is a candidate pharmacologic approach to VN stimulation aimed at limiting the inflammatory response in patients following T/HS.
Value creation through the management of corporate real estate

Traditionally performance of real estate portfolios is either measured by internal rates of return or to costs per square meter (or per FTE). An increasing number of corporations have during the last couple of years been focusing on introducing performance metrics based on shareholder value. Although the popularity of value based management changed the corporate metrics the contribution of real estate is still measured by cost reductions or capital minimisation. It is seldom that corporations proactively benefit from other, non‐financial, effects resulting out of professional real estate management. The objective of this paper is to highlight the value of managing corporate real estate and its contribution to the performance of a corporation both in a financial and non‐financial manner.
Firm size, sectors and countries as sources of variety in innovation

This paper aims at providing a comprehensive empirical appraisal of the nature, extent and sources of variety in innovation in industry across Europe. The results presented in the empirical section of this paper are based on a unique database (SIEPI) containing data drawn by the second Community Innovation Survey (CIS2) for 10 countries, 22 manufacturing sectors and three firm-size classes. This database has allowed us to look beyond the sectoral aggregate statistics provided by Eurostat and explore in detail the differences in innovation processes both within and across European countries and manufacturing industries. Further, the SIEPI database has been used to identify the determinants of the variety in innovation across Europe. In particular, the analysis focuses on the relative importance of sector-specific, context-specific and firm-size factors in driving firms’ innovative behaviours and performances.
The Welfare Aspects of Excise Taxes

T HE proposition has often been advanced that a commodity tax involves a burden on the taxpayer which an income tax of the same yield does not entail. The demonstration has generally been based in recent years upon the indifference map of an individual consumer.2 This analytical device has now become thoroughly familiar, and we shall confine ourselves to a brief resume of the usual arguments based upon its use. In Figure i money income, M, is
Which university? A study of the influence of cost and information factors on Scottish undergraduate choice

At a time when higher education institutions (HEIs) around the globe face declining student numbers and decreasing funding grants, it becomes imperative for those involved in the recruitment process to understand the factors utilized by students in the search process. This paper explores the influence of two such factors: Information Supplied by Universities and Cost of the Package on undergraduate choice at six universities in Scotland. It reflects a two‐year survey (2003/04 and 2004/05) of 1,400 students in two undergraduate disciplines, namely accountancy and engineering. The findings add empirical weight to the importance of focused and ‘informed’ student recruitment practice and importantly they also provide an impetus for the re‐examination of information and marketing strategies. The implications of the findings and avenues for future research are delineated in the study.
Prodrug approaches to improving the oral absorption of antiviral nucleotide analogues

Nucleotide analogues have been well accepted as therapeutic agents active against a number of viruses. However, their use as antiviral agents is limited by the need for phosphorylation by endogenous enzymes, and if the analogue is orally administered, by low bioavailability due to the presence of an ionizable diacid group. To circumvent these limitations, a number of prodrug approaches have been proposed. The ideal prodrug achieves delivery of a parent drug by attachment of a non-toxic moiety that is stable during transport and delivery, but is readily cleaved to release the parent drug once at the target. Here, a brief overview of several promising prodrug strategies currently under development is given.
Automotive application of multi-phase coupled-inductor DC-DC converter

A set of four coupled inductors is applied to a four-phase interleaved 1 kW bi-directional 14 V to 42 V DC/DC converter for automotive applications. The coupled-inductor structure is optimized, and the performance is examined through simulations and experimental measurements. Although coupled inductors offer bigger advantages in applications that require fast transient response, they also have significant advantages in this type of application.
Significance of an index of insulin resistance in non-diabetic patients with impaired fasting glucose with acute myocardial infarction and its correlation to short term outcome.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES To investigate the potential role of a simple insulin resistance index i.e. Homeostatic Model Assessment-Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) in identifying insulin resistance in patients admitted with an acute coronary syndrome without diabetes mellitus and its effect on short term outcome on cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. METHODS Seventy non-diabetic patients with impaired fasting glucose admitted with a diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction and followed prospectively for a median of six months for outcomes. Admission fasting glucose and insulin concentrations were measured and from these values an Insulin Resistance index was calculated. RESULTS During hospital course a high incidence of heart failure (11/;29 vs5/;41; p<0.05) and mortality (4/29 vs 1/41; p=0.152) was seen in patients with Index > 2 as compared to patients with Index <2, but mortality data failed to show any statistical significance because of small sample size. At six months patients with Index >2 had high incidence of heart failure (9/25 vs 4/40; p<0.020), reinfarct (2/25 vs. 0; p=0.141), repeated admissions (7/25 vs 3/40; p=0.092) and mortality (1/25 vs 1/40; p=0.181). Six out of twenty-five (p<0.001) patients with Index > 2 required antidiabetic treatment to achieve glycemic control. CONCLUSIONS A simple index of insulin resistance (Homeostatic Model Assessment-Insulin Resistance) measured on patients admitted with myocardial infarction provides an important predictive measure of poor outcome and is superior to admission glucose measurement. It may be useful in identifying patients admitted with myocardial infarction who could benefit from alternative early invasive strategies.
Obesity prevalence in Colombian adults is increasing fastest in lower socio-economic status groups and urban residents: results from two nationally representative surveys

Abstract Objective Low- and middle-income countries are experiencing rises in the prevalence of adult obesity. Whether these increases disproportionately affect vulnerable subpopulations is unclear because most previous investigations were not nationally representative, were limited to women, or relied on self-reported anthropometric data which are subject to bias. The aim of the present study was to assess changes in the prevalence of obesity from 2005 to 2010 in Colombian adults; overall and by levels of sociodemographic characteristics. Design Two cross-sectional, nationally representative surveys. Setting Colombia. Subjects Men and women 18–64 years old (n 31 105 in 2005; n 81 115 in 2010). Results The prevalence of obesity (BMI ≥30 kg/m2) was 13·9 % in 2005 and 16·4 % in 2010 (prevalence difference = 2·7 %; 95 % CI 1·9, 3·4 %). In multivariable analyses, obesity was positively associated with female sex, age, wealth, and living in the Pacific or National Territories regions in each year. In 2010, obesity was also associated with living in an urban area. The change in the prevalence of obesity from 2005 to 2010 varied significantly according to wealth; 5·0 % (95 % CI 3·3, 6·7 %) among the poorest and 0·3 % (95 % CI −1·6, 2·2 %) in the wealthiest (P, test for interaction = 0·007), after adjustment. Obesity rates also increased faster in older than younger people (P, test for interaction = 0·01), among people from urban compared with non-urban areas (P, test for interaction = 0·06) and in adults living in the Atlantic region compared with others. Conclusions Adult obesity prevalence has increased in Colombia and its burden is shifting towards the poor and urban populations.
Unifying Computing and Cognition: The SP Theory and its Applications

This book develops the conjecture that all kinds of information processing in computers and in brains may usefully be understood as "information compression by multiple alignment, unification and search". This "SP theory", which has been under development since 1987, provides a unified view of such things as the workings of a universal Turing machine, the nature of 'knowledge', the interpretation and production of natural language, pattern recognition and best-match information retrieval, several kinds of probabilistic reasoning, planning and problem solving, unsupervised learning, and a range of concepts in mathematics and logic. The theory also provides a basis for the design of an 'SP' computer with several potential advantages compared with traditional digital computers.