Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Broad Bills or Particularistic Policy? Historical Patterns in American State Legislatures

When do lawmakers craft broad policies, and when do they focus on narrow legislation tailored to a local interest? We investigate this question by exploring historical variation in the types of bills produced by American state legislatures. Drawing on a new database of 165,000 bills—covering sessions over 120 years in thirteen different states—we demonstrate the surprising prominence of particularistic bills affecting a specific legislator's district. We then develop and test a theory linking the goals of legislators to their propensity to introduce district bills rather than broad legislation. We find that, consistent with our predictions, politicians are more likely to craft policies targeted to a particular local interest when a legislature is dominated by one party or when it pays its members relatively high salaries. These findings provide empirical support for Key's (1949) thesis that one-party politics descends into factionalism and undermines the making of broad public policy.
A new packet detection algorithm for IEEE 802.15.4a DBO-CSS in AWGN channel

In this paper, we propose a new packet detection algorithm for differentially bi-orthogonal chirp-spread-spectrum (DBO-CSS) over multiple piconets. Because of the band hopping property of the DBO-CSS, the conventional packet detection algorithms based on auto-correlation cannot avoid side band noise. And the conventional algorithms employed in DBO-CSS systems are not performed well over simultaneously operating piconets (SOP) because they did not consider the waveforms of signal. First, the proposed detector includes matched filters to eliminate the side band noise and to make SNR at the end of matched filters maximal. Second, the proposed detector also includes auto-correlators in order to make outputs of matched filters inphase. Finally, the proposed detector gathers the energy of all sub-chirps and employs the Permutator in order to operate regardless of piconet. Simulation results show that we can detect packets by using the proposed algorithm compared with the conventional one in about -4 dB SNR with the same miss detection probability and the false alarm probability between them.
Enhancing propagation characteristics of truncated localized waves in silica

The spectral characteristics of truncated Localized Waves propagating in dispersive silica are analyzed. Numerical experiments show that the immunity of the truncated Localized Waves propagating in dispersive silica to decay and distortion is enhanced as the non-linearity of the relation between the transverse spatial spectral components and the wave vector gets stronger, in contrast to free-space propagating waves, which suffer from early decay and distortion.
Disturbing effects of microwave probe on mm-Wave antenna pattern measurements

In order to be able to measure and validate an antenna design in the mm-wave frequency range it must be connected to a Vector Network Analyzer or Spectrum Analyzer. One of the challenges is to interconnect such a small antenna and the measurement equipment without influencing the antenna measurements. A commonly used method for interconnection is making use of a connector or a probe. The problem is that the connector as well as the probe are often many times larger than the antenna under test itself and are located close to the radiating part of the antenna structure. This means that the antenna measurements will be influenced. Therefore, the paper focuses on the disturbing effects of the probe as a reflective and obstructive object on mm-wave antenna pattern measurements, specifically in the 60 GHz band, and how they can be reduced.
The study of the impact of political marketing on citizens' political participation promotion in Uromia province

The purpose of this research is the study of the impact of political marketing on Citizens' Political Participation Promotion in Uromia province. For doing this study, 301 persons among political elites and activists of Uromia were selected as sample based on stratified random sampling and answered to the questionnaire about citizens' political marketing and participation. Finally, the obtained data were analyzed using Pearson's correlation coefficient and multivariate linear regression. Results indicated that using partial-political, scheduling, symbols, media based-political tools and depending on religious-revolutionary symbols results in increasing Uromia citizens' political participation.
Cellular UDP-Glucose Deficiency Caused by a Single Point Mutation in the UDP-Glucose Pyrophosphorylase Gene*

We previously isolated a mutant cell that is the only mammalian cell reported to have a persistently low level of UDP-glucose. In this work we obtained a spontaneous revertant whose UDP-glucose level lies between those found in the wild type and the mutant cell. The activity of UDP-glucose pyrophosphorylase (UDPG:PP), the enzyme that catalyzes the formation of UDP-glucose, was in the mutant 4% and in the revertant 56% of the activity found in the wild type cell. Sequence analysis of UDPG: PP cDNAs from the mutant cell showed one missense mutation, which changes amino acid residue 115 from glycine to aspartic acid. The substituted glycine is located within the largest stretch of strictly conserved residues among eukaryotic UDPG:PPs. The analysis of the cDNAs from the revertant cell indicated the presence of an equimolar mixture of the wild type and the mutated mRNAs, suggesting that the mutation has reverted in only one of the alleles. In summary, we demonstrate that the G115D substitution in the Chinese hamster UDPG:PP dramatically impairs its enzymatic activity, thereby causing cellular UDP-glucose deficiency.
Diagnosis and management of neuropathic pain

#### Summary points Neuropathic pain arises from damage, or pathological change, in the peripheral or central nervous system. It is usually a chronic condition that can be difficult to treat because standard treatment with conventional analgesics does not typically provide effective relief of pain. Patients with neuropathic pain commonly present to primary care professionals, but making a diagnosis may be difficult. Neuropathic pain is usually associated with substantially greater impairment of quality of life compared with other types of chronic pain, and the disorder is a large cost burden on healthcare services. In this review, we provide an overview of published evidence to help clinicians recognise and manage patients with neuropathic pain. A group of specialists of the International Association for the Study of Pain defines neuropathic pain as “pain arising as a direct consequence of a lesion or disease affecting the somatosensory system. ”1 In contrast to inflammatory or nociceptive pain, which is caused by actual tissue damage or potentially tissue damaging stimuli, neuropathic pain is produced either by damage to, or pathological change in, the peripheral or central nervous system, the system that normally signals pain. As such, the term neuropathic pain represents a varying set of symptoms rather than a single diagnosis. Damage to the somatosensory system can provoke a range of responses; an absence of sensation and pain is probably a more common response than new onset of …
Why Not 100% Equities

Abstract Objective To develop and validate a set of practical prediction tools that reliably estimate the outcome of subarachnoid haemorrhage from ruptured intracranial aneurysms (SAH). Design Cohort study with logistic regression analysis to combine predictors and treatment modality. Setting Subarachnoid Haemorrhage International Trialists’ (SAHIT) data repository, including randomised clinical trials, prospective observational studies, and hospital registries. Participants Researchers collaborated to pool datasets of prospective observational studies, hospital registries, and randomised clinical trials of SAH from multiple geographical regions to develop and validate clinical prediction models. Main outcome measure Predicted risk of mortality or functional outcome at three months according to score on the Glasgow outcome scale. Results Clinical prediction models were developed with individual patient data from 10 936 patients and validated with data from 3355 patients after development of the model. In the validation cohort, a core model including patient age, premorbid hypertension, and neurological grade on admission to predict risk of functional outcome had good discrimination, with an area under the receiver operator characteristics curve (AUC) of 0.80 (95% confidence interval 0.78 to 0.82). When the core model was extended to a “neuroimaging model,” with inclusion of clot volume, aneurysm size, and location, the AUC improved to 0.81 (0.79 to 0.84). A full model that extended the neuroimaging model by including treatment modality had AUC of 0.81 (0.79 to 0.83). Discrimination was lower for a similar set of models to predict risk of mortality (AUC for full model 0.76, 0.69 to 0.82). All models showed satisfactory calibration in the validation cohort. Conclusion The prediction models reliably estimate the outcome of patients who were managed in various settings for ruptured intracranial aneurysms that caused subarachnoid haemorrhage. The predictor items are readily derived at hospital admission. The web based SAHIT prognostic calculator (http://sahitscore.com) and the related app could be adjunctive tools to support management of patients.
Missed lung cancer at chest radiography: prevalence and radiographic lesion characteristics

Poster: "ESTI 2012 / E-0107 / Missed lung cancer at chest radiography: prevalence and radiographic lesion characteristics" by: "A. del Ciello, A. R. Larici, P. Franchi, M. Ciresa, A. Contegiacomo, L. Bonomo; Rome/IT"
Formal and informal governance of agricultural biotechnology in Kenya: participation and accountability in controversy surrounding the draft biosafety bill

Formal governance of agricultural biotechnology in Kenya—i.e. national institutional and policy developments—has been loosely co-ordinated and largely reactive, both in terms of bio-safety and in terms of setting national priorities. At the same time, modern biotechnology developments have been occurring for over a decade, mainly driven by public-private partnerships. Governance of biotechnology has thus been largely informal with strategic decisions being made mainly outside state mechanisms. The distinction between formal and informal governance sheds light on the current draft biosafety bill of Kenya and how it is pivotal for tipping biotechnology developments more towards increased accountability and open participation of farmers and publics. The government of Kenya, non-governmental actors and donors must all make actions to shape a more productive interaction between formal and informal governance to avoid immediate and long-term repercussions. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The Impact of Phenylephrine, Ephedrine, and Increased Preload on Third-Generation Vigileo-FloTrac and Esophageal Doppler Cardiac Output Measurements

BACKGROUND:Cardiac output (CO) monitoring based on pulse contour analysis (Vigileo-FloTrac) has the potential to be used for goal-directed fluid therapy in the perioperative setting. However, factors such as vasopressor usage may impact Vigileo-FloTrac's reliability in tracking CO changes. We tested third-generation Vigileo-FloTrac system's ability to accurately measure the changes in CO induced by vasopressor administration and increased preload in comparison with esophageal Doppler measurements. METHODS:In 33 anesthetized patients, CO was monitored simultaneously by the third-generation Vigileo-FloTrac and esophageal Doppler. Hemodynamic challenges included phenylephrine (to increase vasomotor tone), ephedrine (to increase myocardial contractility and heart rate), and whole-body tilting (to increase preload). Measurements were performed before and after each intervention. RESULTS:Overall, 176 pairs of CO measurements were obtained. The difference between paired pulse contour and Doppler measurements of CO was 0.14 ± 2.13 L/min (mean ± SD), and the percentage error (2 SD of the difference divided by the mean CO of the reference method) was 66%. The trending ability of pulse contour versus Doppler was 23% (concordance, the percentage of the total number of data points that are in 1 of the 2 quadrants of agreement) after phenylephrine treatment, 69% (concordance) after ephedrine treatment, and 96% (concordance) after whole-body tilting. CONCLUSIONS:The pulse contour method of measuring CO, as implemented in the third-generation Vigileo-FloTrac device, accurately tracks changes in CO when preload changes. However, the pulse contour method does not accurately track changes in CO induced with phenylephrine and ephedrine.
Entrepreneurs Self-Perception of Planning Skills: Evidences from Brazilian Entrepreneurs

This study examined whether entrepreneurs see themselves as good strategic planners and understand key factors that contribute to plan their business endeavors. This is a quantitative-qualitative research. 339 entrepreneurs ahead of businesses with at least 5 years of existence in Sao Paulo, Brazil answered a survey with 27 validated questions about planning, strategy and entrepreneurship. Data was analyzed through factorial analysis. Results showed six factors named external environment, innovation, internal environment, experience, mission and impulsiveness. The qualitative part of the study brought a discussion about these factors. The relevance of the internal and external environments is shown by the important relationship and influence that these may exercise in the performance of the enterprise, including information about best practices of the market in the production of products/services in comparison to internal strengths and weaknesses. In contrast to environmental uncertainty and variations, that makes the planning effort extremely difficult for entrepreneurs. We suggest that their personal abilities can compensate the lack of planning, including their innovative ability together with accumulated experience. Thanks to these qualities, entrepreneurs are constantly honing their abilities to create and manage their businesses and, over time, achieving success. The factors rose on the analysis shows that the strategic planning initiatives of entrepreneurs balance both environmental facts and personal abilities. The theoretical approach of effectuation and causation explains how entrepreneurs deal with this balance when deciding to act impulsively or planned in certain conditions, representing the key contribution of this article.
Uniaxial-process-induced strained-Si: extending the CMOS roadmap

This paper reviews the history of strained-silicon and the adoption of uniaxial-process-induced strain in nearly all high-performance 90-, 65-, and 45-nm logic technologies to date. A more complete data set of n- and p-channel MOSFET piezoresistance and strain-altered gate tunneling is presented along with new insight into the physical mechanisms responsible for hole mobility enhancement. Strained-Si hole mobility data are analyzed using six band k/spl middot/p calculations for stresses of technological importance: uniaxial longitudinal compressive and biaxial stress on [001] and [110] wafers. The calculations and experimental data show that low in-plane and large out-of-plane conductivity effective masses and a high density of states in the top band are all important for large hole mobility enhancement. This work suggests longitudinal compressive stress on [001] or [110] wafers and <110> channel direction offers the most favorable band structure for holes. The maximum Si inversion-layer hole mobility enhancement is estimated to be /spl sim/ 4 times higher for uniaxial stress on (100) wafer and /spl sim/ 2 times higher for biaxial stress on (100) wafer and for uniaxial stress on a [110] wafer.
The new economy and the measurement of GDP growth

In connection with a surge in the "new economy" that is statistically difficult to measure, doubts have been cast both on European growth and its comparability with that of the United States. This article explores measurement problems in the French case. The data at current prices seem to be reliable, but information by product is becoming increasingly difficult to establish. Contrary to widely held belief, the differences in the application of the famous "hedonic methods" have only a small impact on the French data. On the other hand, there seems to be a difference in the treatment of data between France and the United States, or rather between several European countries and the United States, regarding the distinction between final consumption and intermediate consumption of IT products. The United States national accounts record more gross fixed capital formation in software, ceteris paribus, and this automatically produces a higher measure of GDP in recent years. The difference may be the result of different industrial processes, but it cannot be ruled out that it may be merely the result of applying a different statistical convention. In that case, one might then speak of a comparability bias. The method most widely used in Europe -- and which therefore preserves intra-European comparability -- maintains consistency with the results of private accounting, whereas the American method diverges from it. The use of "net domestic product instead of the usual "gross domestic product" improves comparability with the United States. Taking net domestic product reduces the growth differential between France and the United States in 1999 by half a point.
Detection of Cells Captured with Antigens on Shear Horizontal Surface-Acoustic-Wave Sensors

Techniques to separate cells are widely applied in immunology. The technique to separate a specific antigen on a microfluidic platform involves the use of a shear horizontal surface-acoustic-wave (SH-SAW) sensor. With specific antibodies conjugated onto the surface of the SH-SAW sensors, this technique can serve to identify specific cells in bodily fluids. Jurkat cells, used as a target in this work, provide a model of cells in small abundance (1:1000) for isolation and purification with the ultimate goal of targeting even more dilute cells. T cells were separated from a mixed-cell medium on a chip (Jurkat cells/K562 cells, 1/1000). A novel microchamber was developed to capture cells during the purification, which required a large biosample. Cell detection was demonstrated through the performance of genetic identification on the chip.
Human Arbovirus Infections Worldwide

Abstract: Viral diseases transmitted by blood‐feeding arthropods (arboviral diseases) are among the most important of the emerging infectious disease public health problems facing the world at the beginning of the third millennium. There are over 534 viruses listed in the arbovirus catalogue, approximately 134 of which have been shown to cause disease in humans. These are transmitted principally by mosquitoes and ticks. In the last two decades of the twentieth century, a few new arboviral diseases have been recognized. More important, however, is the dramatic resurgence and geographic spread of a number of old diseases that were once effectively controlled. Global demographic and societal changes, and modern transportation have provided the mechanisms for the viruses to break out of their natural ecology and become established in new geographic locations where susceptible arthropod vectors and hosts provide permissive conditions for them to cause major epidemics. West Nile virus is just the the latest example of this type of invasion by exotic viruses. This paper will provide an overview of the medically important arboviruses and discuss several in more detail as case studies to illustrate our tenuous position as we begin the twenty‐first century.
Economic evaluation of 5-HT3 receptor antagonists in combination with dexamethasone for the prevention of ‘overall’ nausea and vomiting following highly emetogenic chemotherapy in Chinese adult patients

Background Two pivotal Phase III trials compared the efficacy of palonosetron, ondansetron and granisetron, combined with dexamethasone, for the prevention of nausea and vomiting following highly emetogenic chemotherapy. However, an economic evaluation of these three regimens in the real-world setting of Chinese adult patients has not been determined. Objectives To estimate, from the perspective of the Chinese healthcare system, which of these frequently used strategies consisting of 0.25 mg palonosetron (0.25P), 16 mg ondansetron (Onda), and 3 mg granisetron (Gran), is the most cost-effective option in patients following highly emetogenic chemotherapy. Methods A Markov decision-analytic model was developed. The health and economic outcomes of the three strategies; 0.25P, Onda, and Gran were investigated. The clinical and utility data were taken from published studies. The cost data were calculated according to current local Chinese practices. Sensitivity analyses were performed to determine the impact of uncertainty regarding the results. Results The base-case analysis showed that the 0.25P strategy yielded maximum health benefits compared with the other two strategies. However, the probabilistic sensitivity analysis demonstrated that the Gran strategy was the most cost-effective approach when the willingness-to-pay threshold was not more than US$22,515/quality-adjusted life year. Moreover, palonosetron is not cost-effective in preventing ‘overall’ nausea and vomiting following highly emetogenic chemotherapy in Chinese patients. Conclusions Our analysis suggests that, compared with palonosetron and ondansetron, 3 mg granisetron may be a cost-effective treatment option in the current Chinese healthcare setting.
Platform strategies in international new product development

The paper analyses the implications of a platform strategy in new product development with reference to the automobile industry. The implications and benefits of a platform strategy are discussed from both the technical and organisational points of view. The impact of a platform strategy on international product development is then analysed. The paper draws on examples from the experience of major Japanese automobile companies. In general, the analysis highlights how platform strategies are evolving and how they must be recognised more and more in relation to the internationalisation processes of R&D activities and operations. Moreover, different approaches are pointed out concerning more advanced and/or conservative approaches to platform development. A more advanced approach leads to more benefits in terms of the performance of the product development process and the reorganisation of the development process on a global level.