Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An exact solution of cash flow for an integrated evaluation of investment in inventory and credit

In a recent paper, Kim and Chung suggested a method for jointly evaluating inventory and accounts receivable based on the criteria-net present value (NPV) maximization. They were fairly confident of the concavity of NPV (8) \[the function of all future cash flows] and proposed a lot of conclusions about the optimal batch sales volumes. This paper refutes the concavity of NPV(8) and conclusions expressed or implied by Kim and Chung. It is proved that NPV(8) is unimodal. Finally, an exact solution of cash flow for an integrated evaluation of investment in inventory and credit is presented. Numerical examples are included.
Hypocrea/Trichoderma: species with conidiophore elongations and green conidia

Species of Trichoderma and Hypocrea that have green conidia and sterile or fertile elongations of their conidiophores are described or redescribed and their phylogenetic position explored. The described species include T. crassum, T. fasciculatum, T. fertile, T. hamatum, T. longipile, T. oblongisporum, T. pubescens, T. spirale, T. strictipile, T. strigosum, T. stromaticum, T. tomentosum, Hypocrea aureoviridis f. macrospora, H. ceramica. and H. semiorbis. Trichoderma fasciculatum originally was described from cultures from ascospores of an unidentified Hypocrea specimen; it is considered to be a synonym of T. strictipile. The remaining species of Trichoderma considered here have not been linked to teleomorphs, and the Trichoderma anamorphs of H. aureoviridis f. macrospora and H. semiorbis have not been named. Five new species of Hypocrea are described, viz. H. cremea, H. cuneispora, H. estonica, H. strictipilosa and H. surrotunda. The phylogenetic relationships of these species were inferred based on partial RPB2 and EF-1α DNA sequence data and phenotypic characteristics, including teleomorph, anamorph, colony and growth rates. Trichoderma crassum was found to be a sister species to T. virens, based on molecular sequences and phenotypic data. Hypocrea surrotunda and H. cremea, H. cuneispora and T. longipile, T. fertile and T. oblongisporum, T. tomentosum and H. atrogelatinosa, and T. hamatum and T. pubescens, respectively, were found to be closely related phylogenetically, based on RPB2 and EF-1α gene genealogies. Anamorph and teleomorph phenotype, including conidiophore elongations, phialide morphology, conidial morphology, stroma anatomy and ascospore morphology are not useful predictors of relationships. Despite the shared phenotypic characters of these Trichoderma and Hypocrea species, they are distributed between two major clades of Trichoderma/Hypocrea. Redescriptions and a key to species of Hypocrea/Trichoderma with green conidia and conidiophore elongations are presented.
Spontaneous Clearance of Chlamydia trachomatis Infection in Untreated Patients

Background and Objectives: To assess the spontaneous clearance of untreated Chlamydia trachomatis infections and factors correlated with the process. Study Design: Spontaneous clearance was assessed through review of laboratory database, chart review, and laboratory testing using direct immunofluorescence (DFA) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests on C. trachomatis culture transport media from patients with negative chlamydial cultures. Specimens (C. trachomatis culture transport media) were obtained from patients attending a Birmingham, Alabama sexually transmitted diseases clinic. The study group consisted of patients with positive cultures for C. trachomatis who had repeat specimens obtained for culture within 45 days of initial observation and who had not received recommended therapy for chlamydial infection in the interval between the two tests. Results: Of 74 evaluable patients, 24 (32%) had negative follow‐up cultures. Culture transport media for these 24 culture‐negative patients were tested with DFA or PCR assays for chlamydial infection, and 3 (13%) were positive. Culture positivity rates declined significantly with increasing age and duration of follow‐up. Interval treatment with benzathine penicillin resulted in apparent resolution of infection in 9 of 10 patients. Neither a history of a C. trachomatis‐associated syndrome nor treatment with cefixime, metronidazole, or antifungal agents was associated with clearance of infection. Conclusions: These results are consistent with host response‐mediated resolution of infection in a minority of patients and have implications regarding public health efforts to control chlamydial infection.
Identiﬁcation and Characterization of Pancreatic Eukaryotic Initiation Factor 2 a -Subunit Kinase, PEK, Involved in Translational Control

In response to various environmental stresses, eukaryotic cells down-regulate protein synthesis by phosphor- ylation of the a subunit of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2 (eIF-2 a ). In mammals, the phosphorylation was shown to be carried out by eIF-2 a kinases PKR and HRI. We report the identiﬁcation and characterization of a cDNA from rat pancreatic islet cells that encodes a new related kinase, which we term pancreatic eIF-2 a kinase, or PEK. In addition to a catalytic domain with sequence and structural features conserved among eIF- 2 a kinases, PEK contains a distinctive amino-terminal region 550 residues in length. Using recombinant PEK produced in Escherichia coli or Sf-9 insect cells, we demonstrate that PEK is autophosphorylated on both serine and threonine residues and that the recombinant enzyme can speciﬁcally phosphorylate eIF-2 a on serine-51. Northern blot analyses indicate that PEK mRNA is expressed in all tissues examined, with highest levels in pancreas cells. Consistent with our mRNA assays, PEK activity was predominantly detected in pancreas and pancreatic islet cells. The regulatory role of PEK in protein synthesis was demonstrated both in vitro and in vivo. The addition of recombinant PEK to reticulocyte lysates caused a dose-dependent inhibition of translation. In the Saccharomyces model system, PEK functionally substituted for the endogenous yeast eIF-2 a kinase, GCN2, by a process requiring the serine-51 phosphorylation site in eIF-2 a . We also identiﬁed PEK homologs from both Caenorhabditis elegans and the puffer ﬁsh Fugu rubripes , suggesting that this eIF-2 a kinase plays an important role in translational control from nematodes to mammals. experiment using an activated version of human PKR puriﬁed from yeast (51) and found a 60% reduction in the incorporation of [ 35 S]methionine (data In contrast, the addition of the catalytically inactive PEK- D 785-1108 caused only a modest reduction in protein synthesis in the reticulocyte lysates. Results from these studies suggest that PEK can function to reduce mammalian translation.
Examining the Impact of the 1986 Tax Reform Act on Corporate Dividend Policy: A New Methodology

The article introduces a new methodology to investigate the effects of the 1986 Tax Reform Act (TRA) on corporate dividend policy. The methodology employs a modified version of Rozeff's (1982) model to control for the potential effects of underlying influential variables. The empirical results show there is no widespread reaction to the 1986 TRA passage on the aggregate level of dividends and only modest support for an industry-related dividend effect. We also find that firm size does not play a significant role in dividend policy reaction to the 1986 TRA. Copyright 1999 by MIT Press.
Analysing Comparative Advantage and Competitiveness: An Application to Australia's Textile and Clothing Industries

Australia's comparative advantage and competitiveness in textile and clothing (TAC) industries are analysed, using Balassa's revealed comparative advantage index and Vollrath's measures of competitiveness. The analysis based on Balassa's indices shows that Australia has a strong comparative disadvantage in textiles and clothing as aggregate commodity groups, but there is comparative advantage in sub–categories of ‘special textile products’, ‘floor coverage, tapestry etc’, and ‘fur clothing’. The analysis based on Vollrath's indices shows that Australia is not competitive in the world market with respect to aggregate commodity groups of textiles and clothing. Grubel–Loyd index of intra–industry trade was calculated for seven categories of textiles and two categories of clothing. The results show a rising trend in intra–industry trade in some of these categories of TAC products, implying that Australia increasingly exports and imports differentiated TAC products. Australian TAC industries may look to further promote exports of their products in the global market through increased product differentiation and improved quality and design.
Towards information literacy indicators

Governments and international organizations looking for ways to measure the information society tend to focus on access to technology rather than monitoring its impact. This publication presents a framework to measure the impact of knowledge societies from the perspective of people and priorities of governments.Governments and international organizations are looking for ways to measure the information society. Despite the good intentions, there is a tendency to focus almost exclusively on the technology involved. Yet, the real interest lies in monitoring the impact of these technologies - not simply access to them. In response, the UNESCO Information for All Programme (IFAP) and the UIS are working closely to develop a comprehensive framework to measure the impact of knowledge societies from the perspective of people and priorities of governments. The proposed framework is presented in a new booklet, entitled Towards Information Literacy Indicators. It begins by defining information literacy before exploring its implications, specifically from a measurement perspective.
High priority for hepatitis C screening in safety net hospitals: Results from a prospective cohort of 4582 hospitalized baby boomers

Low‐income populations are disproportionately affected by hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Thus, implementing baby boomer screening (born 1945‐1965) for HCV may be a high priority for safety net hospitals. We report the prevalence and predictors of HCV infection and advanced fibrosis or cirrhosis based on the Fibrosis‐4 score plus imaging for a baby boomer cohort admitted to a safety net hospital over a 21‐month interval with >9 months of follow‐up. Anti‐HCV antibody testing was performed for 4582, or 90%, of all never‐screened patients, of whom 312 (6.7%) tested positive. Adjusted odds ratios of testing anti‐HCV‐positive were 2.66 for men versus women (P < 0.001), 1.25 for uninsured versus insured (P = 0.06), 0.70 for Hispanics versus non‐Hispanic whites (P = 0.005), and 0.93 per year of age (P < 0.001). Among 287 patients tested for HCV RNA (91% of all anti‐HCV‐positive cases), 175 (61%) were viremic (3.8% overall prevalence in cohort), which was 5% less likely per year of age (P < 0.03). Noninvasive staging of 148 (84.6%) chronic HCV patients identified advanced fibrosis or cirrhosis in 50 (33.8%), with higher adjusted odds ratios of 3.21 for Hispanics versus non‐Hispanic whites/Asians (P = 0.02) and 1.18 per year of age (P = 0.001). Other factors associated with significantly higher adjusted odds ratios of advanced fibrosis or cirrhosis were alcohol abuse/dependence, obesity, and being uninsured. Conclusion: In this low‐income, hospitalized cohort, 4% of 4582 screened baby boomers were diagnosed with chronic HCV, nearly twice the rate in the community; one‐third had noninvasive testing that indicated advanced fibrosis or cirrhosis, which was significantly more likely for Hispanics, those of older age, those with obesity, those with alcohol abuse/dependence, and those who lacked insurance. (Hepatology 2015;62:1388–1395)
Issues of Accountability in Health Charities: A Case Study of Accountability Problems Among Nonprofit Organizations

Although record amounts of money and other resources are being donated to American charities, few discussions focus on the issue of accountability. This article attempts to lay the framework for such a discussion by exam ining charitable health organizations as a case study. Such issues as fiscal responsibility, fund-raising, organizational structure, and political lobbying are explored in an effort to define the problems that surround the concept of accountability in the nonprofit sector.
Incentives in Mixed-Member Electoral Systems

Mixed-member systems have been characterized as encouraging politicians to balance the activities that enhance their personal reputations and those of their parties. Another literature challenges that legislators from one tier are not likely to behave differently from those of the other. After summarizing this debate, data from Venezuela are used to look for evidence supporting either side in a series of behaviors that span the entire legislative process—from bill initiation to committee consideration to final vote. The author concludes that the “best of both worlds” versus “contamination” debate has led to a focus on mixed-member institutions, to the exclusion of other incentive structures confronting legislators and that we need to engage in more careful theorizing about when and where they should expect the electoral tier to have an impact on legislator behavior.
Decentralised innovation systems and poverty reduction: experimental evidence from Central Africa

We use experimental data to investigate whether a decentralised approach to promoting innovation in central African agriculture outperforms conventional extension approaches. Our main result is that this decentralised approach, based on so-called innovation platforms, is effective in reducing poverty – more effective than conventional extension approaches. However, we also document considerable heterogeneity in terms of platform performance.
Real-time optical measurement of biologically relevant thermal damage in tissue-mimicking hydrogels containing bovine serum albumin

Purpose: In controlled laboratory studies of hyperthermia and thermal ablation, translucent hydrogels containing bovine serum albumin (BSA) are often employed as tissue-mimicking materials due to the change in their opacity that takes place as they accumulate heat damage. In this work we demonstrate the biological relevance of this optical metric of thermal damage, as well as establish the physical mechanisms that link it with quantifiable damage to the proteins embedded in the gel. Materials and methods: We applied Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, turbidity analysis using ultraviolet-visible (UV/VIS) spectroscopy, and size exclusion chromatography (SEC) to samples of heat-treated, aqueous bovine serum albumin (BSA). We also measured the rates of survival in heated suspensions of breast cancer cells using a colorimetric assay. Results: Using FTIR spectroscopy and SEC, we show that the intermolecular β-sheet content of the protein ensemble rises in heat treatments above 60°C, which causes aggregate formation. Furthermore, by applying UV/VIS spectroscopy we demonstrate that the opacity of the hydrogel increases past 60°C due to the formation of insoluble protein aggregates that scatter incident light. Finally, we illustrate that the viability of human breast cancer cells follows a similar trend to measurements of BSA polyacrylamide hydrogel opacity at various temperatures from 37°C to 90°C. Conclusions: Our work establishes a causal link between the degree of BSA denaturation in hydrogel and the opacity of the medium. Furthermore, our results demonstrate that BSA hydrogels provide a simple physical model for quantifying biologically relevant heat damage in real time during controlled laboratory studies of hyperthermia and thermal ablation.
Growth and Deeper Regional Integration in a Three‐Country Model

An endogenous growth model of three countries is used to investigate the dynamic effects of deeper economic integration between two countries in the presence of an outside world. The paper looks at the long-run effects of inner-union trade liberalization, the union's external trade policy, and of the relaxation of the inner-union barriers to migration. It is shown that regional integration via inner-union trade liberalization can lead very well to a decline of the steady-state growth rates. Copyright 1997 by Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
A new approach to generate hyperchaotic 3D-scroll attractors in a closed chain of Chua's circuits

This paper presents an approach to generate new hyperchaotic attractors in a closed chain of Chua's circuits. By taking a ring of three circuits and by exploiting sine functions as non-linearities, the proposed technique enables 3D-scroll attractors to be generated. In particular, the paper shows that 3D-scroll dynamics can be easily designed by modifying six parameters related to the circuit nonlinearities.
Gain Enhancement of Planar Antenna Enabled by Array of Split-Ring Resonators

This communication proposes a high-gain bow-tie antenna operating over the frequency band of 5.5-8 GHz. The proposed antenna is comprised of a microstrip-to-slot transition line connected to bow-tie radiators. Seven slabs of split-ring resonator (SRR) unit cells are integrated into the orthogonal plane of antenna substrate to enhance its gain. Each slab consists of 2×7 double-sided SRR unit cells. A prototype of the antenna is fabricated and measured. The results indicate that the reflection coeflicient is better than -10 dB over the frequency band of 3.5-8 GHz. The measured antenna gain varies from 10.2 to 13.8 dBi over a frequency range of 5.65-7.8 GHz. The measured radiation efliciency corresponds to 90% at 7 GHz. The cross polarization is better than -30 dB in the E-plane at 6.5 GHz.
Acute vasodilator effects of a Rho-kinase inhibitor, fasudil, in patients with severe pulmonary hypertension

Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is characterised by progressive elevation of pulmonary artery pressure and pulmonary vascular resistance. Pathohistological findings have demonstrated that PH is associated with abnormal vascular structures, including medial and/or intimal hypertrophy, concentric or eccentric intimal fibrosis, obstruction in the arterial lumen, and aneurysmal dilatation.1 Patients with PH are currently treated with anticoagulant agents, vasodilators including continuous intravenous prostacyclin (prostaglandin I2) and oral sildenafil or bosentan, and in end stage, with lung transplantation,1 when applicable. Endothelial dysfunction of pulmonary arteries and enhanced pulmonary vasoconstriction contribute to the development of PH.1 Endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) expression is reduced in patients with PH and therefore nitric oxide inhalation and sildenafil are useful for those patients. However, more effective treatments remain to be developed.1 We have recently demonstrated that Rho-kinase is substantially involved in the pathogenesis of a wide range of cardiovascular disease.2,3 Rho-kinase suppresses myosin phosphatase activity by phosphorylating the myosin binding …
Monetary business cycle accounting for Sweden

Abstract When creating competing models of economic fluctuations, researchers typically introduce frictions in their models aiming at replicating the observed movements in the data. This paper implements a business cycle accounting procedure for the Swedish economy. Both the 1990s and the 2008 recessions are given special focus. Evidence is provided for properties that structural extensions to the business cycle model need to have in order to replicate the movements in the data. Distortions to the labor market and movements in total factor productivity are the most determinant features to be modeled with respect to real variables as well as deviations from a Taylor rule for interest rate setting, though the latter plays little role for both the 1990s and the 2008 recessions. The distortions share a structural break during the 1990s crisis but not during the recent one.
Amylin: Pharmacology, Physiology, and Clinical Potential

Amylin is a pancreatic β-cell hormone that produces effects in several different organ systems. Here, we review the literature in rodents and in humans on amylin research since its discovery as a hormone about 25 years ago. Amylin is a 37-amino-acid peptide that activates its specific receptors, which are multisubunit G protein–coupled receptors resulting from the coexpression of a core receptor protein with receptor activity–modifying proteins, resulting in multiple receptor subtypes. Amylin’s major role is as a glucoregulatory hormone, and it is an important regulator of energy metabolism in health and disease. Other amylin actions have also been reported, such as on the cardiovascular system or on bone. Amylin acts principally in the circumventricular organs of the central nervous system and functionally interacts with other metabolically active hormones such as cholecystokinin, leptin, and estradiol. The amylin-based peptide, pramlintide, is used clinically to treat type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Clinical studies in obesity have shown that amylin agonists could also be useful for weight loss, especially in combination with other agents.
Homo Oeconomicus and Homo Politicus, Political Economy, Constitutional Interest and Ecological Interest

Are modern democracies capable of preserving the constituent of liberty and the natural basis of human existence in the long-run? The achievement of these aims requires political actions toward fundamental changes in modern societies. The respective political actors have to develop long-term constitutional and ecological interests. Attempts of public choice to derive such interests on the basis of homo oeconomicus have led to theoretical difficulties. To contribute to a theoretical basis for constitutional and ecological interests, the authors introduce the notion of homo politicus. Homo oeconomicus and homo politicus are not mutually exclusive alternatives, but dimensions of human behavior. Copyright 1997 by WWZ and Helbing & Lichtenhahn Verlag AG
Ablative or palliative stereotactic body radiotherapy with helical tomotherapy for primary or metastatic lung tumor.

AIM To evaluate the feasibility and outcomes of stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) by helical tomotherapy (HT) for patients with primary or secondary lung cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS Between March 2009 and January 2012, 56 patients were selected as candidates for the study and were divided into two subgroups. The ablative SBRT group included 27 patients with T1-T2 non-small cell lung cancer who received four to five large-dose fractions in two weeks and the palliative SBRT group included 29 patients with lung metastases treated with eight lower-dose fractions in four weeks. RESULTS No differences in acute toxicities were found between different fractionation schemes with different overall treatment times. Actuarial local control at 24 months was better for the ablative group (69.6%) than for the palliative one (40.4%) (p=0.0019). CONCLUSION HT-based SBRT was feasible and well-tolerated. Local control was satisfactory for patients treated with ablative SBRT but unsatisfactory for those treated with palliative SBRT. Outcomes also suggest the use of ablative SBRT fractionation for palliative intent.
A performance evaluation of list scheduling heuristics for task graphs without communication costs

Proposes three new static scheduling algorithms for allocating task graphs without communication costs to fully connected multiprocessors. The proposed algorithms, called MCP/ABS, MCP/CLR and MCP/CLRR, are based on the well-known MCP (modified critical path) algorithm, and all of them have the same complexity of O(v/sup 2/log v), where v is the number of nodes in the task graph. A global comparison of the proposed algorithms with three recently reported scheduling algorithms [ETF (earliest task first), HLFET (high level first with estimated time) and MCP] is carried out. The proposed algorithms generate similar or even better solutions than the previous algorithms in terms of the completion times of the resulting schedules using a prototype standard task graph set.