Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Parents, privilege and the education market‐place

Abstract According to advocates of ‘marketization’ in education, market systems of school provision are fairer than those organized around catchment areas. Whereas catchment areas are said to privilege the wealthy and deny choice to the poor because they lead to a system of ‘selection by mortgage’, market systems are held to give all parents ‐‐ rich and poor alike ‐‐ the opportunity to choose a school for their children. This paper builds on existing research that points to the ways in which market systems privilege certain groups or classes of parents and children. It draws on data collected as part of an ongoing ESRC study into markets in secondary education to illustrate how class bias operates in a market system of provision and how immigrant families with middle‐class backgrounds may also be disadvantaged in the market‐place. Three broad categories of families are identified ‐‐ the Privileged, the Frustrated and the Disconnected ‐‐ defined in terms of their position in relation to the education marke.
Homeowners' participation in management of multi‐storey residential buildings

Purpose – Proper management and maintenance of building stock are vital to sustainable development of a city for a number of reasons, for example, the close relationship between building performance and residents' health. However, effective housing management requires active participation of the residents, particularly the homeowners. Yet, homeowners' participation in housing management in Hong Kong is claimed to remain at a low level because of its voluntary nature. This paper aims to empirically explore the determinants of participation behaviour of homeowners in private housing management in the city based on survey findings.Design/methodology/approach – Founded on the literature reviewed, an analytic model for explaining homeowners' participation behaviour in housing management is developed. The model is then tested by means of logit regression with the data collected from a structured questionnaire survey conducted in summer 2009. A total of 346 respondents from 53 private multi‐storey residential bu.
Lease Accounting: A Review of Recent Literature

Abstract Current lease accounting standards classify leases as either operating or finance leases. Operating leases do not require recognition of lease assets or lease liabilities on the balance sheet. Proposed changes to lease accounting would require a lessee to recognise assets and liabilities for most leases over 12 months and may improve the quality and comparability of financial reporting of the entity. In this paper we summarise the literature that can be related, directly or indirectly to the proposed changes by the IASB and the FASB on lease accounting. In summary, the literature highlights that the proposed changes would potentially have economic implications for both preparers and users of accounting reports; including changes to financial ratios, assessment of risk and providing an audit of the accounting reports.
Reform Styles of Political and Administrative Elites in Majoritarian and Consensus Democracies: Public Management Reforms in New Zealand and the Netherlands

One of the most important claims advanced by comparative public management reform studies is that these reforms have been more successfully implemented in majoritarian than in consensus democracies. The claim is built on the premise that the institutional structure of a majoritarian democracy enables a parliamentary majority to implement policies unilaterally and in a desired way whereas the institutional structure of a consensus democracy forces parliamentary majorities to negotiate compromises. This claim, we argue, lacks sufficient empirical backing, is biased by studies focusing on the initiation of reforms, and needs serious rethinking in the light of recent empirical studies that downplay the salience of institutions as an explanatory factor for variations in policy reform. With The Netherlands and New Zealand as cases, this article first shows that far-reaching reforms can be implemented in consensus systems too; secondly, it develops a model that centres on the interplay between institutions and politicians’ reform styles and applies this to these countries.
Effects of Jiangya Xiaoke prescription on TGF-β1 in diabetic nephropathy rats with hypertension and its mechanisms.

OBJECTIVE To observe the effects of Jiangya Xiaoke prescription on transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) in diabetic nephropathy (DN) with hypertension rats and to investigate its mechanisms. METHODS DN with hypertension models were made by 4 weeks high-salt diet with high sugar and fat for male Wistar rats, and intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (STZ). The model rats were randomly divided into three groups: untreated model group (n = 15); metformin group (n = 15), orally given metformin; Prescription group (n = 15), orally administrated JXR, for 8 weeks respectively. Blood pressure was measured before modeling and after treatment of 2, 4, 8 weeks. Fasting blood glucose (FBG), total triglyceride (TG) and total cholesterol (TC) and urine albumin excretion (UAE) of rats were observed and recorded. Renal histomorphology with PAS staining was observed by the light microscope. TGF-β1 in kidney was detected by immunohistochemical assay and TGF-β1 mRNA in renal cortex was detected by RT-PCR. RESULTS The base blood pressure of rats has no significant difference before modeling (P > 0.05). After 4 weeks of treatment, compared with model group, blood pressure in metformin group decreased (P < 0.01), blood pressure in Jiangya Xiaoke prescription group was slightly lower (P < 0.05). When 8 weeks, the rebound of blood pressure in metformin group is appropriate with the model, the blood pressure of Jiangya Xiaoke prescription reduced significantly (P < 0.01). Compared with model group, FBG, UAE and TG in Jiangya Xiaoke prescription group and metformin group significantly decreased (P < 0.01), TC levels also decreased (P < 0.05). The level of TGF-β1 in Jiangya Xiaoke prescription group and the metformin group decreased (P < 0.01), and level of TGF-β1 in Jiangya Xiaoke prescription group was lower significantly than that in metformin group (P < 0.05). The mRNA expression of TGF-β1 in Jiangya Xiaoke prescription group and the metformin group was significantly lower than model group (P < 0.01). Pathological changes were ameliorated in Jiangya Xiaoke prescription and metformin group compared with model group. CONCLUSION Jiangya Xiaoke prescription can regulate blood pressure and improve renal functional morphology through down-regulation of TGF-β1 and its mRNA expression in DN rats with hypertension. We initially proved that the inhibition effect of TGF-β1 in Jiangya Xiaoke prescription is better than metformin, and Jiangya Xiaoke prescription can lower blood pressure to normal levels with a better step-down smoothly and a long-term efficacy.
The Effect of the German Renewable Energy Act (EEG) on "the Electricity Price"

Many technologies that produce electricity from renewable energy sources are currently not competitive. This is due to the fact that their generation cost is higher than that of conventional thermal power plants. Nevertheless, since using renewable energies has a number of positive effects, these installations have been supported by German public policy for many years. This support is currently demonstrated very successfully by the German Renewable Energy Act (EEG), which provides for fixed feed-in tariffs (FITs). The costs of this support scheme are distributed to the electricity consumers. Due to the so-called EEG levy, electricity costs of industry are increased and as a result their competitiveness is decreased. Consequently, electricity intensive enterprises have protested against the levy on a regular basis and finally achieved a reduction of the levy. However, the potential effect of the EEG on the wholesale price for ele ctricity has not yet been considered. Against this background, we analyze the effect of the EEG on electricity prices in a perfect market. We will show that the support of electricity production from renewable energy decreases the wholesale price of electricity. Consequently, electricity costs of companies that are subject to the reduced EEG levy may decrease too.
Implementation and pitfalls of total quality management

This paper discusses how to implement total quality management in the competitive business world where the customer no longer accepts the traditional approach to quality. In general, it has been accepted that the basic pitfalls which prevent both manufacturing and service industries from being quality organizations are the same. This paper suggests that the pitfalls are directly attributable to the organization and failure to lead the drive for continuous improvement will affect the business excellence or profitability.
Multiregion bicentric-spheres models of the head for the simulation of bioelectric phenomena

Equations are derived for the electric potentials [electroencephalogram (EEG)] produced by dipolar sources in a multiregion bicentric-spheres volume-conductor head model. Being the equations valid for an arbitrary number of regions, our proposal is a generalization of many spherical models presented so far in literature, each of those regarded as a particular case of our multiregion model. Moreover, our approach allows considering new features of the head volume-conductor to better approximate electrical properties of the real head.
Green and nongreen recruitment practices for attracting job applicants: exploring independent and interactive effects

The study is based on the reactions of a sample of Italian graduate students to the websites of seven companies operating in Italy. It addresses two specific issues in the literature about green recruiting practices, namely (1) the distinct and direct effects of green recruiting practices on attracting applicants, and (2) the interactive effect of ‘green’ and ‘nongreen’ recruitment practices on attracting applicants. With regard to the first issue, the study compares the effects on attracting applicants of two green recruitment practices, that is, the green reputation of a company, and the amount of information provided on the recruitment website about the company's environmental policies and practices. With regard to the second issue, the study examines the substitution effect on attracting applicants between the two green recruitment practices, and additive effects on attracting applicants between them and two nongreen recruitment practices (i.e., company reputation, and the amount of company and job information provided by the company recruitment website). In terms of direct effects, the findings support the impact of a green reputation on attracting applicants, but no impact of information on the recruitment website about company environmental policies and practices. In terms of interactive effects, the findings do not confirm the substitution effects between green recruitment practices, but indicate additive effects between green and nongreen recruitment practices. Overall, the article extends knowledge on green recruitment by contributing to the literature on organizational reputation, and the literature on interactive effects among human resource practices. The implications of these two extensions of knowledge for human resource management research and practice are discussed.
Biological Effect of Titanium's Surface Roughness on Periodontal Ligament Cells

This paper aims to evaluate the effect of surface roughness of commercially pure titanium (Ti) on the adhesion and proliferation of human periodontal ligament cells (hPDLCs). Four Ti surfaces of dental implants were compared through different systems in vitro. The surface roughness of Ti was measured by TR240 mobile surface roughmeter. hPDLCs were seeded on Ti and their response to smooth and rough surfaces manufactured from Ti was examined by cell morphology, acridine orange fluorescent staining and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity. The surface roughness data of the samples for Group A to D was 0.5995plusmn 0.0083, 0.4065 plusmn 0.0046, 0.3588 plusmn 0.0118 and 0.0087 plusmn 0.0022 mum respectively (F = 6190, P < 0.0001). There was significant difference in surface roughness between all the groups (P < 0.001). hPDLCs were fusiform in shape after they were seeded on Ti, simultaneously few hPDLCs were triangle or polygon in shape. hPDLCs exhibit decreased proliferation on rougher surfaces based on reduced cell amount through the fluorescent staining. hPDLCs had decreased ALP mRNA expression when grown on rougher surfaces. Surface roughness of titanium is one of the important parameters that affect hPDLCs behavior.
PTEN dosage is essential for neurofibroma development and malignant transformation

Patients with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) carry approximately a 10% lifetime risk of developing a malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor (MPNST). Although the molecular mechanisms underlying NF1 to MPNST malignant transformation remain unclear, alterations of both the RAS/RAF/MAPK and PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathways have been implicated. In a series of genetically engineered murine models, we perturbed RAS/RAF/MAPK or/and PTEN/PI3K/AKT pathway, individually or simultaneously, via conditional activation of K-ras oncogene or deletion of Nf1 or Pten tumor suppressor genes. Only K-Ras activation in combination with a single Pten allele deletion led to 100% penetrable development of NF lesions and subsequent progression to MPNST. Importantly, loss or decrease in PTEN expression was found in all murine MPNSTs and a majority of human NF1-associated MPNST lesions, suggesting that PTEN dosage and its controlled signaling pathways are critical for transformation of NFs to MPNST. Using noninvasive in vivo PET-CT imaging, we demonstrated that FDG can be used to identify the malignant transformation in both murine and human MPNSTs. Our data suggest that combined inhibition of RAS/RAF/MAPK and PTEN/PI3K/AKT pathways may be beneficial for patients with MPNST.
Protection against Streptococcus pneumoniae Invasive Pathogenesis by a Protein-Based Vaccine Is Achieved by Suppression of Nasopharyngeal Bacterial Density during Influenza A Virus Coinfection

ABSTRACT An increase in Streptococcus pneumoniae nasopharynx (NP) colonization density during a viral coinfection initiates pathogenesis. To mimic natural S. pneumoniae pathogenesis, we commensally colonized the NPs of adult C57BL/6 mice with S. pneumoniae serotype (ST) 6A or 8 and then coinfected them with mouse-adapted H1N1 influenza A virus (PR/8/34). S. pneumoniae established effective commensal colonization, and influenza virus coinfection caused S. pneumoniae NP density to increase, resulting in bacteremia and mortality. We then studied histidine triad protein D (PhtD), an S. pneumoniae adhesin vaccine candidate, for its ability to prevent invasive S. pneumoniae disease in adult and infant mice. In adult mice, the efficacy of PhtD vaccination was compared with that of PCV13. Vaccination with PCV13 led to a greater reduction of S. pneumoniae NP density (>2.5 log units) than PhtD vaccination (∼1-log-unit reduction). However, no significant difference was observed with regard to the prevention of S. pneumoniae bacteremia, and there was no difference in mortality. Depletion of CD4+ T cells in PhtD-vaccinated adult mice, but not PCV13-vaccinated mice, caused a loss of vaccine-induced protection. In infant mice, passive transfer of antisera or CD4+ T cells from PhtD-vaccinated adult mice led to a nonsignificant reduction in NP colonization density, whereas passive transfer of antisera and CD4+ T cells was needed to cause a significant reduction in NP colonization density. For the first time, these data show an outcome with regard to prevention of invasive S. pneumoniae pathogenesis with a protein vaccine similar to that which occurs with a glycoconjugate vaccine despite a less robust reduction in NP bacterial density.
Inflation and Output in New Keynesian Models with a Transient Interest Rate Peg

Recent monetary policy experience suggests a simple diagnostic for models of monetary non-neutrality. Suppose the central bank pegs the nominal interest rate below steady state for a reasonably short period of time. Familiar intuition suggests that this should be modestly inflationary, and a reasonable model should deliver such a prediction. We pursue this simple diagnostic in several variants of the familiar Dynamic New Keynesian (DNK) model. Some variants of the model produce counterintuitive inflation reversals where the effect of the interest rate peg can switch from highly inflationary to highly deflationary for only modest changes in the length of the interest rate peg. Curiously, this unusual behavior does not arise in a sticky information model of the Phillips curve.
Effects of Cytapheresis on Tumor Necrosis Factor Receptor and on Expression of CD63 in Myeloperoxidase–Antineutrophil Cytoplasmic Autoantibody‐associated Vasculitis

Abstract: To evaluate the therapeutic potential of cytapheresis in myeloperoxidase–antineutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibody (MPO–ANCA)‐associated vasculitis, plasma levels of soluble tumor necrosis factor receptors (sTNFR1, sTNFR2) and the expression of TNFR1, TNFR2, and CD63 on granulocytes were measured. The levels of sTNFR1 and sTNFR2, and the expression of TNFR1 and TNFR2 were significantly higher in MPO–ANCA‐associated vasculitis patients than in normal controls. The levels of sTNFR1 and sTNFR2 increased significantly after cytapheresis (P < 0.001). The expression of TNFR1 showed a tendency to decrease after cytapheresis (P = 0.0535). The expression of CD63 decreased significantly after cytapheresis (P < 0.05). Because sTNFR1 and sTNFR2 act as TNF‐antagonists, the increases of sTNFR1 and sTNFR2 after cytapheresis might contribute to inhibit the action of TNF‐α. The decreased expression of TNFR1, which mediates the signal for polymorphonuclear cell respiratory burst, might also contribute to the reduction of inflammation. From these results, the inhibition of TNF action and removal of degranulated granulocytes appear to be related to the mechanism whereby cytapheresis can exert a beneficial and therapeutic function in the treatment of MPO–ANCA‐associated vasculitis.
Corporate Real Estate and Corporate Takeovers: International Evidence

We investigate whether corporate real estate ownership is a trigger for takeovers. The empirical analysis is based on a sample covering 225 takeovers in France, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom between 1992 and 2003. Using a multivariate probit model in which we control for various financial firm characteristics we find that the role of corporate real estate in takeovers depends on the nature of the takeover, the industry, the period, and the country. The presence of corporate real estate is a significantly positive predictor for takeovers within the same industry. Companies that have been taken over appear to have been reducing their real estate holdings prior to the takeover, which would suggest a financial distress situation.
Independent Evaluation of Medical-Grade Bioresorbable Filaments for Fused Deposition Modelling/Fused Filament Fabrication of Tissue Engineered Constructs

Three-dimensional printing/additive manufacturing (3DP/AM) for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine (TE/RM) applications is a multifaceted research area encompassing biology, material science, engineering, and the clinical sciences. Although being quite mature as a research area, only a handful of clinical cases have been reported and even fewer commercial products have made it to the market. The regulatory pathway and costs associated with the introduction of bioresorbable materials for TE/RM have proven difficult to overcome, but greater access to 3DP/AM has spurred interest in the processing and availability of existing and new bioresorbable materials. For this purpose, herein, we introduce a series of medical-grade filaments for fused deposition modelling/fused filament fabrication (FDM/FFF) based on established and Federal Drug Administration (FDA)-approved polymers. Manufacturability, mechanical characterization, and accelerated degradation studies have been conducted to evaluate the suitability of each material for TE/RM applications. The comparative data serves to introduce these materials, as well as a benchmark to evaluate their potential in hard and soft tissue engineering from a physicochemical perspective.
Devolving people management to the line

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to focus on the different rationales for devolving people management responsibilities to the line and examine their consequences for the HR function and HR’s interactions with line managers and employees. Design/methodology/approach – A model was developed and tested that describes how the rationale for devolving people management to the line influences the HR function, HR’s interactions with line managers and the quality of people management. Survey data were collected from 446 managers who reported that their organisations had devolved people management to the line. Findings – Results indicate that devolution rationales are associated with distinct changes to the HR function’s strategic integration and size. These changes in the HR function are in turn associated with utilisation of line manager focused HR practices, HR’s business partner orientation and people management effectiveness. Practical implications – The HR function should consider changes that refine jo.
Detecting Tomato Flowers in Greenhouses Using Computer Vision

 Abstract — This paper presents an image analysis algorithm to detect and count yellow tomato flowers in a greenhouse with uneven illumination conditions, complex growth conditions and different flower sizes. The algorithm is designed to be employed on a drone that flies in greenhouses to accomplish several tasks such as pollination and yield estimation. Detecting the flowers can provide useful information for the farmer, such as the number of flowers in a row, and the number of flowers that were pollinated since the last visit to the row. The developed algorithm is designed to handle the real world difficulties in a greenhouse which include varying lighting conditions, shadowing, and occlusion, while considering the computational limitations of the simple processor in the drone. The algorithm identifies flowers using an adaptive global threshold, segmentation over the HSV color space, and morphological cues. The adaptive threshold divides the images into darker and lighter images. Then, segmentation on the hue, saturation and volume is performed accordingly, and classification is done according to size and location of the flowers. 1069 images of greenhouse tomato flowers were acquired in a commercial greenhouse in Israel, using two different RGB Cameras – an LG G4 smartphone and a Canon PowerShot A590. The images were acquired from multiple angles and distances and were sampled manually at various periods along the day to obtain varying lighting conditions. Ground truth was created by manually tagging approximately 25,000 individual flowers in the images. Sensitivity analyses on the acquisition angle of the images, periods throughout the day, different cameras and thresholding types were performed. Precision, recall and their derived F1 score were calculated. Results indicate better performance for the view angle facing the flowers than any other angle. Acquiring images in the afternoon resulted with the best precision and recall results. Applying a global adaptive threshold improved the median F1 score by 3%. Results showed no difference between the two cameras used. Using hue values of 0.12-0.18 in the segmentation process provided the best results in precision and recall, and the best F1 score. The precision and recall average for all the images when using these values was 74% and 75% respectively with an F1 score of 0.73. Further analysis showed a 5% increase in precision and recall when analyzing images acquired in the afternoon and from the front viewpoint.