Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Functional Rating Index: literature review.

UNLABELLED In 1999, a new self-report outcome measure, the Functional Rating Index (FRI), was developed and tested. This measure demonstrated reasonable reliability, validity and responsiveness. Since the publication of the original testing, numerous independent research teams have examined the psychometric qualities of the FRI and published their findings. The aim of this study is to review the psychometric properties of the FRI as reported by published studies. Researchers independently searched the literature for relevant studies using MEDLINE and Index to Chiropractic Literature from January 2001 to August 2009. Descriptive and outcome data was extracted using standardized forms. The psychometric properties of the FRI were analyzed with established criteria and compared head-to-head with other outcome measures. The search yielded ten studies that provided psychometric data. Reliability: Test-retest: Intraclass correlation coefficient and Cronbach's alpha were good, and FRI is equivalent to the other measures. VALIDITY the FRI has good convergent validity with pain and function self-report scales and a weaker correlation with items that measure different constructs. Responsiveness: FRI was similar to the comparative measures for standardized response mean, effect size and receiver operating curve statistics. Patient acceptability: time required by the patient and staff averaged 78 seconds per administration, and there were few missing responses. The FRI demonstrates favorable measurement properties of reliability, validity and responsiveness. It provides an alternative to other self-report measures, because it is quicker for a patient to complete and can be used for patients with neck and back pain.
Near-Optimal Management Strategies for Controlling Wild Oats in Spring Wheat

Near-optimal multiperiod decision rules for controlling wild oats in spring wheat in north central Montana are presented in this paper. Decision alternatives are fallow, use of a preemergent or postemergent herbicide, and crop without use of a herbicide. The near-optimal decision rules, which were obtained from a partially decomposed stochastic dynamic programming model, depend on density of wild oats seed in the plow layer, whether the land was previously cropped or fallow, soil moisture level, price of spring wheat, and post-planting density of wild oats.
Hierarchical Control of Parallel AC-DC Converter Interfaces for Hybrid Microgrids

In this paper, a hierarchical control system for parallel power electronics interfaces between ac bus and dc bus in a hybrid microgrid is presented. Both standalone and grid-connected operation modes in the dc side of the microgrid are analyzed. Concretely, a three-level hierarchical control system is implemented. In the primary control level, the decentralized control is realized by using the droop method. Local ac current proportional-resonant controller and dc voltage proportional-integral controller are employed. When the local load is connected to the dc bus, dc droop control is applied to obtain equal or proportional dc load current sharing. The common secondary control level is designed to eliminate the dc bus voltage deviation produced by the droop control, with dc bus voltage in the hybrid microgrid boosted to an acceptable range. After guaranteeing the performance of the dc side standalone operation by means of the primary and secondary control levels, the tertiary control level is thereafter employed to perform the connection to an external dc system. Meanwhile, the impact of the bandwidth of the secondary and tertiary control levels is discussed. The closed-loop model including all the three control levels is developed in order to adjust the main control parameters and study the system stability. Experimental results of a 2 ×2.2 kW parallel ac-dc converter system have shown satisfactory realization of the designed system.
Cystatin C Levels in Patients With Dipper and Nondipper Hypertension

Objective Subjects with nondipper hypertension carry a higher risk of cardiovascular events than their normotensive counterparts. The present study was designed to investigate cystatin C levels in patients with dipper and nondipper hypertension. Methods Eighty-eight consecutive patients who had been treated with antihypertensive drugs for at least 6 months were included in the study. Dipping and nondipping patterns were detected with ambulatory blood pressure monitoring. Clinical, laboratory, and ambulatory blood pressure monitoring data of patient groups with nondipper and dipper hypertension were compared. Results Patients in the nondipper group were older than those in the dipper group. Serum cystatin C level was higher in the patients in the nondipper group. Cystatin C was negatively correlated with the rate of systolic blood pressure fall at night (r = −0.41; P < 0.001). Linear regression analyses revealed that only cystatin C level was a significant correlate of nocturnal systolic blood pressure decrease. Logistic regression analyses also showed that cystatin C was an independent predictor of nondipping pattern (odds ratio, 3.586; 95% confidence interval, 1.432–8.98; P = 0.006]). Conclusion The present study showed that cystatin C is higher in patients with nondipper hypertension patients.
A statistical analysis of regime switching under asymmetric error correction

A novel approach is presented for the analysis of regime switching behaviour based upon the use of Geary's runs test. The proposed method is used to examine recent evidence presented concerning the application of alternative models of asymmetric error correction. The results derived show the runs test to detect a significant difference in regime switching behaviour under the rival models.
Chemical Equilibrium and Reaction Modeling of Arsenic and Selenium in Soils

Inorganic Chemistry of As and Se in Soil Solution . 66 Methylation and Volatilization Reactions . 66 Precipitation-Dissolution Reactions . 68 Oxidation-Reduction Reactions . 68 Adsorption-Desorption Reactions . 69 Modeling of Adsorption by Soils: Empirical Models . 70 Modeling of Adsorption by Soils: Constant Capacitance ModeL. 72 Summary . 86 References . 87
Determinants of Labor Productivity: An Empirical Investigation of Productivity Divergence

This paper investigates the determinants of labor productivity growth using a cross country panel data set of 45 countries for the period of 1980-2005. The results reveal the positive and significant role of education, ICT investment, financial depth and FDI for labor productivity growth. However, increase in labor force participation, employment in agriculture sector and price volatility impacts the productivity growth negatively. On the basis of long term structural determinants, we find that divergence in labor productivity across different income groups and regions can be explained by diversity in ICT investment, human capital, financial depth and employment distribution in different sectors.
Profit maximization and marketing strategies: Demand rotation and social influences

Microeconomic texts discuss alterations in industry demand curves as movements to higher or lower levels. Consider, instead, the implications for a monopolist's profit of rotating its (linear) demand curve. Where this can be done without cost by pivoting at the current price it will be profitable to continue to pivot the curve until it is horizontal or vertical. The possibility of rotating the demand curve of a ‘new’ product on an arbitrarily selected price allows us to consider the optimality of different advertising strategies (‘bandwagon’ or 'snob').
Growth of the mandible after replacement of the mandibular condyle: an experimental investigation in Macaca mulatta.

PURPOSE The study goal was to investigate growth of the mandible after temporomandibular joint reconstruction in juvenile monkeys. MATERIALS AND METHODS Sixteen juvenile monkeys (Macaca mulatta) were used as experiment subjects. Animals were equally divided into 4 experimental groups based on the method of temporomandibular joint reconstruction after bilateral condylar excision via extraoral vertical ramus osteotomies. Group Condyle animals had their condylar segments immediately replaced to serve as surgical controls. Group Bone animals were reconstructed with a bony strut. Group sternoclavicular joint (SCJ) animals were reconstructed with the sternal end of their clavicles. Group costochondral junction (CCJ) animals were reconstructed with costochondral junction of ribs. Standardized lateral cephalometric radiographs with the aid of tantalum bone markers were used to evaluate mandibular growth. Twenty animals were used as controls and were allowed to grow undisturbed for an 18-month period (Group Control). RESULTS All animals showed good mandibular function and a Class I molar relationship after an 18-month follow-up period. Statistical and graphic comparisons showed no significant difference in mandibular growth among any of the groups. CONCLUSIONS The results of this investigation suggest that, within the limits of this model, the choice of autograft for condyle replacement may be irrelevant.
Sub-regional Economic Development — Consolidation and Culture

In the run up to Gordon Brown’s ascent into the premiership, there was a welter of policy reviews and White Papers, many of which will have a profound effect on economic development and regeneration work over the next few years. However we have yet to see how these various reviews of policy (Lyons, Sub-national review, Barker, Leitch etc) join up together to form a coherent economic narrative for the UK and there is also a sense that many of these policy reviews are pulling in opposite directions, with some confusion on leadership and focus. For instance are elements of our national (micro)economic policy, employer led or public sector led? Indeed do we have a joined up national economic strategy (as opposed to macroeconomic management) at all? Where do all the national government departments join together with the private and community sectors to produce the equivalent of a regional or sub-regional economic strategy? Perhaps if there was at least an attempt to draw some cross departmental thoughts together on such a national economic policy document, we would all be a little clearer on what we are trying to achieve rather than the current jumble of silo-ed service provision and new initiatives. However there are some encouraging signs that national departments are beginning to move away from the trend of centralised control, management through national ‘Next Steps’ agencies and the Blairite obsession with the private sector in the delivery of required public sector outcomes. Even more exciting for local economy advocates and
HOW TO SOLVE THE DILEMMA OF POWER SHARING? FORMAL AND INFORMAL PATTERNS OF REPRESENTATION IN THE SWISS MULTILINGUAL CANTONS

Formal rules for group representation like constitutional quotas or reserved seats are among the most widespread mechanisms of power sharing in culturally heterogeneous countries. Critics, however, consider these tools as counterproductive for the establishment of peace and democracy in such societies. In this paper it is claimed that this ‘dilemma of power sharing’ can be tackled by focusing upon informal practices for group representation and on less rigid formal rules that indirectly or implicitly ensure power sharing. It illustrates possible institutional solutions by presenting the first comparative exploration of the patterns of group representation in the four Swiss multilingual cantons.
Dutch accounting in Japan 1609–1850: isolation or observation?

The trading station or factory maintained by the Dutch East India Company (VOC) was Japan's sole window on the Western world during most of the Tokugawa period (1600–1868). While many aspects of the factory's role in Dutch/Japanese cultural exchange have been researched little is known in the West of the accounting at the factory. This paper considers the possibility that double-entry bookkeeping employed by the Dutch may have been diffused to the Japanese. The available evidence is synthesized after considering the accounting system in the Dutch factory.
Should Education Be Subsidized?

An efficiency argument for public subsidies to education is proposed in this study. Subsidizing education is shown to be welfare improving because it makes the tax system less distortionary. Income taxation causes a less than efficient amount of investment in human capital, and induces an inefficient mix of human capital investments. Taxation causes too few goods, and relatively too much time, to be invested in human capital. Lowering the private cost ofgoods invested in human capital counteracts these tax distortions, thus it can be efficient to subsidize education.
A cohort study of racing performance in Japanese Thoroughbred racehorses using genome information on ECA18.

Using 1710 Thoroughbred racehorses in Japan, a cohort study was performed to evaluate the influence of genotypes at four single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) on equine chromosome 18 (ECA18), which were associated in a previous genome-wide association study for racing performance with lifetime earnings and performance rank. In males, both g.65809482T>C and g.65868604G>T were related to performance rank (P= 0.005). In females, g.65809482T>C (P = 1.76E-6), g.65868604G>T (P=6.81E-6) and g.66493737C>T (P=4.42E-5) were strongly related to performance rank and also to lifetime earnings (P < 0.05). When win-race distance (WRD) among all winning racehorses and best race distance (BRD) among elite racehorses were considered as the phenotypes, significant associations (P<0.001) were observed for all four SNPs. The favourable race distance of both elite (BRD) and novice racehorses (WRD) was also associated with genotypes in the ECA18 region, indicating the presence of a gene in this region influencing optimum race distance in Thoroughbred racehorses. Therefore, the association with performance rank is likely due to the bias in the race distances. The location of the SNPs within and proximal to the gene encoding myostatin (MSTN) strongly suggests that regulation of the MSTN gene affects racing performance. In particular, the g.65809482T>C, g.65868604G>T and g.66493737C>T SNPs, or their combinations, may be genetic diagnostic markers for racing performance indicators such as WRD and BRD.
The Effects of a New Subway Line on Housing Prices in Metropolitan Toronto

An analysis by means of using the estimation results of a modal choice model and the hedonic price regressions model is conducted in order to identify the effects of a subway line in Toronto on the values of housing units. The modal choice model is used for the estimation of the direct benefits from the improvement in transportation, and the hedonic price equations for the identification of subway effects on housing prices. Empirical results indicate that the direct savings in commuting costs have been capitalized into housing values.
Improving International Competitiveness

Recent data indicate U.S. design and construction firms have been losing market share in international business. An ASCE task committee assesses the impact of a global economy on U.S. firms and concludes that the firms may be losing their competitive edge. The committee identifies factors that limit U.S. firms, including an insufficient supply of highly competent employees, increased research spending by foreign firms, growth of foreign firms in the U.S. market, emergence of regional trading blocks, use of integrated project teams, reduced financial incentive for U.S. firms and individuals, and insufficient government support. Findings of the committee indicate U.S. firms may decline in domestic as well as international business unless corrective measures are taken. This paper discusses the findings and recommended actions, including assignment of responsibility to the engineering profession, construction industry, educational system, and the government.
Presence of ganglia within the prostatic capsule: Ganglion involvement in prostatic cancer

The presence of ganglia within the prostatic capsule (capsular ganglia) is a poorly understood phenomenon. If cancer invasion into or around ganglia is identified in a needle biopsy specimen, such a finding may be diagnosed as an extraprostatic extension. In this study, the presence of capsular ganglia was clarified. Furthermore, we discuss the significance of these ganglia in prostatic cancer patients.
AT THE HEART OF SCHOOL CHANGE The experience of participation in a whole-school revitalisation project.

[Abstract]: What is at the heart of whole school change? The focus of this research is how a whole school revitalisation process impacted on the professional community, professional learnings and professional practices in a secondary Catholic College in regional southeast Queensland. It identifies the factors within the school context that impacted on the progress of the project. A review of literature provides support for each of the dimensions of the focus of the research, the research-based framework of the revitalisation project and the factors relevant to a whole school change process. The research paradigm involves interpretivist inquiry, the methodology is case study and a narrative method is used to interpret and present the study. Multiple sources of data are employed: three sets of semi-structured interviews conducted over a three year period from 2004 to 2006; the researcher’s journal; and school documents. Some evidence indicates that the revitalisation project had some impact upon the development of a shared vision and improved whole school collaboration and professional dialogue. The implementation of the change process led to an increase in whole school professional development which impacted on teachers’ shared understandings of pedagogical principles and further there is some evidence of perceived change in teachers’ professional practices as a result of engagement in the project. The study identifies cultural and other factors existing in the school which hindered the progress of the change process. These include teachers’ resistance to change, a culture of ‘blame’, and a lack of teacher leadership and of collaborative decision making on the part of the school leadership team. One outcome of the study was the construction of a set of recommendations to assist a school in overcoming the impact of these identified hindrances to the change process. A model of effective change is developed as a second key outcome of the study. The model is consistent with the key “school change” literature, but its significance lies in the unique context from which it was drawn.
Exorbitant Global Imbalances

The Bretton Woods system in the aftermath of the Second World War provided the world economies with a monetary framework to replace the Gold Standard that prevailed in the preceding period. The system to rebuild war-torn economies worked fine but it could not meed the needs of the growing world trade and economy. Post Bretton Woods world evolved into a global reserve system adopting the currency of the dominant power at this time, the United States, the dollar. In the second half of the 20th century the status of the dollar as the international reserve currency was unchallenged and the United States benefited from this privileged position, for which, although, it had to pay a small price for that as well. In this paper we look at the consequences â€“ mostly economic â€“ this global reserve system in terms of its stability, adjustment mechanism, and its equity.
Methods for estimating the maximal lactate steady state in trained cyclists.

PURPOSE Maximal lactate steady state (MLSS) is the highest exercise intensity at which blood lactate concentration (HLa) remains stable. In this study, we examined the validity of simulated 5-km and 40-km time trials (TT) as methods for estimating average speed at MLSS in cyclists. METHODS Nine trained cyclists reported to the laboratory for five to seven exercise trials. Testing included a VO2max test, a simulated 5-km and 40-km TT, and several 30-min MLSS trials. RESULTS Mean VO2peak was 4.42 +/- 0.13 L.min-1, whereas VO2 at MLSS (N = 8) was 3.54 +/- 0.15 L.min-1, representing 80.1 +/- 4.1% of VO2peak. HR and HLa at MLSS were 174.7 +/- 2.6 b.min-1 and 6.9 +/- 0.8 mM, respectively. MLSS speed was 36.8 +/- 1.0 km.h-1, which corresponded to 92.1 +/- 1.2% of 5 km average speed (AVS5km). Mean AVS, HLa, and HR during the 40-km TT were 36.6 +/- 0.9 km.h-1, 6.3 +/- 0.7 mM, and 174.1 +/- 2.1 b.min-1, respectively, and did not differ from those at MLSS. CONCLUSIONS Both the (simulated) 5-km and 40-km TT can be used to estimate the MLSS in cyclists. In addition, HLa at MLSS shows a large degree of variation between riders.
An Evaluation of Upper and Lower Pharyngeal Airway Width, Tongue Posture and Hyoid Bone Position in Subjects with Different Growth Patterns.

INTRODUCTION It is important to evaluate the position of the hyoid bone in relation to the tongue at the beginning of orthodontic treatment so that during the treatment, its position may be directed hence overall impact on airway could be assessed. AIM The aim of this study was to evaluate the upper and lower pharyngeal airway dimensions, posture of tongue and hyoid bone position in young adults with different growth patterns. MATERIALS AND METHODS Sample size of the study included 90 post-adolescent subjects, within the age range of 18-32 years. Based on the different growth pattern of the face, subjects were divided into Group I (n=30; average growth pattern), Group II (n=30; horizontal growth pattern) and Group III (n=30; vertical growth pattern). Lateral cephalogram were traced and analysed manually by the same investigator for evaluation of upper and lower pharyngeal airway, tongue posture and hyoid bone position. The intergroup comparison of upper and lower pharyngeal airway dimensions, posture of tongue and hyoid bone was performed with one-way ANOVA test. RESULTS The results showed that upper oropharyngeal widths were significantly different in different facial skeletal patterns (p=0.00). Subjects with vertical skeletal pattern have significantly narrower upper airways than those with horizontal skeletal pattern (p= 0.025). There was significantly higher difference in position of dorsum of the tongue in vertical growth pattern group (p=0.00). The hyoid bone was positioned farther from the mandibular symphysis in brachyfacial subjects, reflected by the larger H-RGN (Hyoid- retrognathion) values compared with the dolichofacial and normal subjects (p=0.044). CONCLUSION The upper oropharyngeal width was found to be narrower in subjects with vertical growth pattern. The dorsum of the tongue is seen to be placed higher in subjects with vertical growth pattern. The hyoid bone was more inferiorly and posteriorly positioned in subjects with horizontal growth pattern. Variations are seen in upper and lower oropharyngeal widths, posture of the tongue and hyoid bone position in all the growth patterns.