Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Location of the Software Industry

In the late 1980s, the software industry in Japan grew rapidly not only in the 'global city' of Tokyo but also in some rural areas. In short, it was dispersed from the global city to other areas in Japan. In the late 1990s, however, the software industry became concentrated mainly in Tokyo, unlike the late 1980s. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the background of that concentration within the context of international trade.Two hypotheses were examined as driving forces of that concentration. 1) In the late 1980s, software firms in Tokyo outsourced software business to rural areas in Japan where a low cost labor force was available. In the late 1990s, however, software firms in China and India provided lower costs than the rural areas of Japan. Thus, it was expected that software firms in Tokyo outsourced software not to the rural areas in Japan, but to overseas software firms. 2) As the demand for producer services by Trans National Corporations (TNCs) located in the global city grew with the economic globalization of the 1990s, it was anticipated that demand for software would increase in the 'global city' of Tokyo rather than in the rural areas.First, the performance of an extended shift-share analysis on the software industry revealed that the import substitution effect is rarely seen in the Japanese software industry although labor costs are significantly reduced by outsourcing to China and India. One reason for limited overseas outsourcing is that electronic devices made by Japanese manufacturers need highly skilled workers. Embedded software in electronic devices like mobile phones and digital cameras need highly skilled workers most of whom live in the Tokyo metropolitan area. The demand for skilled workers for high value electronic manufacturing products prevented further outsourcing of the software overseas and facilitated the concentration of the software industry in Tokyo. Second, the extended shift-share analysis of TNCs growing demand for software shows that export-led job growth became evident in the late 1990s. The correlation coefficient between export-oriented job growth and software job growth is significant at the 1% level. The high demand for software in the 'global city' and the decrease in government public works investment in rural areas have greatly contributed to the concentration of the software industry in Tokyo in the late 1990s. That helped shift software demand from the rural areas in Japan to the 'global city', Tokyo.With a governmental income transfer policy from urban to rural areas, the software industry grew relatively all over Japan. However, the growth gap between the urban and rural areas was mainly aggravated by economic globalization and the minimal government policy in the 1990s.
Impact of Pain on Incident Risk of Disability in Elderly Japanese: Cause-specific Analysis

Background: Although several cross-sectional studies have reported that pain is associated with functional disability in the elderly, data regarding a longitudinal association between pain and disability are inconsistent. This study aimed to investigate the association of pain severity with subsequent functional disability due to all causes as well as stroke, dementia, and joint disease/fracture. Methods: The authors conducted a prospective cohort study of 13,702 Japanese individuals aged 65 yr or older. Information regarding pain severity during the previous 4 weeks and other lifestyle factors was collected via questionnaire in 2006. Data on the incidence of functional disability were retrieved from the Long-term Care Insurance database. Cox proportional hazards regression analysis was used to estimate the multivariate-adjusted hazard ratios for incident functional disability. Results: The authors documented 2,686 (19.6%) cases of incident functional disability. The multivariate hazard ratio of functional disability was 1.15 (95% CI, 1.02 to 1.31) among respondents with moderate pain and 1.31 (95% CI, 1.12 to 1.54) among respondents with severe pain in comparison with those without pain (P trend < 0.001). These positive associations were particularly remarkable for disability due to joint disease/fracture: the multivariate hazard ratio was 1.88 (95% CI, 1.37 to 2.58) for moderate pain and 2.76 (95% CI, 1.93 to 3.95) for severe pain (P trend < 0.001). There was a negative association between pain severity and disability due to dementia (P trend = 0.041) and no significant association between pain severity and disability due to stroke. Conclusions: Among elderly Japanese individuals, the authors found a significant positive association between pain severity and future incident functional disability.
Selective peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor‐α modulator K‐877 efficiently activates the peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor‐α pathway and improves lipid metabolism in mice

Peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor‐α (PPARα) is a therapeutic target for hyperlipidemia. K‐877 is a new selective PPARα modulator (SPPARMα) that activates PPARα transcriptional activity. The aim of the present study was to assess the effects of K‐877 on lipid metabolism in vitro and in vivo compared with those of classical PPARα agonists.
Impact of maternal BMI and sampling strategy on the concentration of leptin, insulin, ghrelin and resistin in breast milk across a single feed: a longitudinal cohort study

Objectives We tested the hypothesis that there is a positive association between maternal body mass index (BMI) and the concentration of appetite-regulating hormones leptin, insulin, ghrelin and resistin in breast milk. We also aimed to describe the change in breast milk hormone concentration within each feed, and over time. Setting Mothers were recruited from the postpartum ward at a university hospital in London. Breast milk samples were collected at the participants’ homes. Participants We recruited 120 healthy, primiparous, breastfeeding mothers, aged over 18 years. Mothers who smoked, had multiple births or had diabetes were excluded. Foremilk and hindmilk samples were collected from 105 women at 1 week postpartum and 92 women at 3 months postpartum. Primary and secondary outcome measures We recorded maternal and infant anthropometric measurements at each sample collection and measured hormone concentrations using a multiplex assay. Results The concentration of leptin in foremilk correlated with maternal BMI at the time of sample collection, at 7 days (r=0.31, p=0.02) and 3 months postpartum (r=0.30, p=<0.00). Foremilk insulin correlated with maternal BMI at 3 months postpartum (r=0.22, p=0.04). Breast milk ghrelin and resistin were not correlated with maternal BMI. Ghrelin concentrations at 3 months postpartum were increased in foremilk compared with hindmilk (p=0.01). Concentrations of ghrelin were increased in hindmilk collected at 1 week postpartum compared with samples collected at 3 months postpartum (p=0.03). A trend towards decreased insulin concentrations in hindmilk was noted. Concentrations of leptin and resistin were not seen to alter over a feed. Conclusions A positive correlation between maternal BMI and foremilk leptin concentration at both time points studied, and foremilk insulin at 3 months postpartum was observed. This may have implications for infant appetite regulation and obesity risk.
Integrated screening for Down's syndrome based on tests performed during the first and second trimesters.

BACKGROUND Both first-trimester screening and second-trimester screening for Down's syndrome are effective means of selecting women for chorionic-villus sampling or amniocentesis, but there is uncertainty about which screening method should be used in practice. We propose a new screening method in which measurements obtained during both trimesters are integrated to provide a single estimate of a woman's risk of having a pregnancy affected by Down's syndrome. METHODS We used data from published studies of various screening methods employed during the first and second trimesters. The first-trimester screening consisted of measurement of serum pregnancy-associated plasma protein A in 77 pregnancies affected by Down's syndrome and 383 unaffected pregnancies and measurements of nuchal translucency obtained by ultrasonography in 326 affected and 95,476 unaffected pregnancies. The second-trimester tests were various combinations of measurements of serum alpha-fetoprotein, unconjugated estriol, human chorionic gonadotropin, and inhibin A in 77 affected and 385 unaffected pregnancies. RESULTS When we used a risk of 1 in 120 or greater as the cutoff to define a positive result on the integrated screening test, the rate of detection of Down's syndrome was 85 percent, with a false positive rate of 0.9 percent. To achieve the same rate of detection, current screening tests would have higher false positive rates (5 to 22 percent). If the integrated test were to replace the triple test (measurements of serum alpha-fetoprotein, unconjugated estriol, and human chorionic gonadotropin), currently used with a 5 percent false positive rate, for screening during the second trimester, the detection rate would be higher 85 percent vs. 69 percent), with a reduction of four fifths in the number of invasive diagnostic procedures and consequent losses of normal fetuses. CONCLUSIONS The integrated test detects more cases of Down's syndrome with a much lower false positive rate than the best currently available test.
Association between the Serum Metabolic Profile and Lung Function in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

OBJECTIVES Although dietary patterns are known to modulate disease severity in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), the relationship between the circulating lipid profile and lung function in COPD has not been studied extensively. MATERIAL AND METHODS There were 43 COPD patients with a history of smoking and 39 patients with a history of biomass fuel exposure recruited in this study, along with 43 age-matched healthy controls. All participants underwent complete lung function profiling, and their glucose and lipid profiles were measured. The association between the metabolic profile and lung function was assessed using the Spearman's rank-order correlation coefficient. RESULTS 52.4% of the COPD patients were smokers compared to the healthy group (46.5%). We found an inverse correlation between triglyceride and functional residual capacity (p=-0.21, p=0.05) and a positive association between serum cholesterol and overall airway resistance (R5) (p=0.24, p=0.04) and central airway resistance (R20) (p=0.32, p=0.004). Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) ratio and LDL/HDL ratio were also found to correlate with R5 (p=0.25, 0.23, and 0.22, respectively) and R20 (p=0.31, 0.24, and 0.24, respectively). No significant association was observed between other metabolites and either spirometric or plethysmographic lung function indices. CONCLUSION High serum triglyceride and cholesterol may increase the resistance in the airways, which may lead to increased airway obstruction. Therefore, monitoring of lipid profile should be considered in the diagnosis and management of COPD.
Pricing variable annuity guarantees in South Africa under a Variance-Gamma model

The purpose of this study is to investigate the pricing of variable annuity embedded derivatives using a suitably refined model for the underlying assets, in this case the Johannesburg Securities Exchange FTSE/JSE All Share Index (ALSI). This is a practical issue that life insurers face worldwide in the management of embedded derivatives. We consider the Variance-Gamma (VG) framework to model the underlying data series. The VG process is useful in option pricing given its ability to model higher moments, skewness and kurtosis and to capture observed market dynamics. The framework is able to address the inadequacies of some deterministic pricing approaches used by life insurers, given the increasing complexity of the option-like products sold.
A Novel Device for Measuring Respirable Dustiness Using Low-Mass Powder Samples

Respirable dustiness represents the tendency of a powder to generate respirable airborne dust during handling and therefore indicates the propensity for a powder to become an inhalation hazard. The dustiness of 14 powders, including 10 different nanopowders, was evaluated with the use of a novel low-mass dustiness tester designed to minimize the use of the test powder. The aerosol created from 15-mg powder samples falling down a tube were measured with an aerodynamic particle sizer (APS). Particle counts integrated throughout the pulse of aerosol created by the falling powder were used to calculate a respirable dustiness mass fraction (D, mg/kg). An amorphous silicon dioxide nanopowder produced a respirable D of 121.4 mg/kg, which was significantly higher than all other powders (p < 0.001). Many nanopowders produced D values that were not significantly different from large-particle powders, such as Arizona Road Dust and bentonite clay. In general, fibrous nanopowders and powders with primary particles >100 nm are not as dusty as those containing granular, nano-sized primary particles. The method used here, incorporating an APS, represents a deviation from a standard method but resulted in dustiness values comparable to other standard methods.
A safety and efficacy study of a resorbable hydrogel for reduction of post-operative adhesions following myomectomy.

BACKGROUND This multicenter, randomized, single-blind study assessed the safety and efficacy of a resorbable hydrogel ('Hydrogel') for the reduction of post-operative adhesion formation following myomectomy. METHODS Women (n = 71) who were undergoing laparoscopic (67.6%) or laparotomic myomectomy were randomized (2:1) to Hydrogel (sprayed over surgically treated areas prior to wound closure, n = 48) or to control (standard care, n = 23). Patients (38 Hydrogel, 20 control) returned 8-10 weeks later for a second look. Adhesions were graded using a modified American Fertility Society (mAFS) scoring method. The primary efficacy measure was the posterior uterus mAFS score. RESULTS For Hydrogel and control patients, respectively, mean +/- SD mAFS scores were 0.5 +/- 1.4 and 0.0 +/- 0.0 at baseline, and 1.1 +/- 1.9 and 2.6 +/- 2.2 at the second look. Similarly, mean changes from baseline were 0.8 +/- 2.0 and 2.6 +/- 2.2 (P = 0.01); 95% confidence intervals for these mean changes were (0.16-1.44) and (1.64-3.56). Adverse events were reported by 9.6 and 17.4% of Hydrogel and control patients, respectively. No intra-abdominal infections or post-operative site infections were reported. CONCLUSIONS This 71-patient study provides the first clinical evidence of the safety and efficacy of Hydrogel for the reduction of adhesions following myomectomy. The ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier is NCT00562471.
Reply to “A Comment on ‘Discovery and Characterization of AMPA Receptor Modulators Selective for TARP-γ8’”

Thank you for the opportunity to reply to the comment by [Witkin and Gardinier (2016)][1] regarding our recent article, “Discovery and Characterization of AMPA Receptor Modulators Selective for TARP-γ8” ([Maher et al., 2016][2]). It is scientifically reassuring when two independent lines of
Choice of Rating Technology and Loan Pricing in Imperfect Credit Markets

Accurate rating systems are of central importance for banks to price and manage their loan portfolios. A bank’s choice to invest in a more accurate rating technology is based on a trade-off: the better rating system usually comes at higher cost, but endows the bank with a competitive advantage, which includes potentially better access to funds. This paper models the rating technology choice of a bank as a two-stage game in an oligopolistic banking sector. In the first stage banks choose between two alternative rating technologies that provide estimates about a borrower’s default probability with varying precision. In the second stage banks set their loan prices based on estimated default probabilities in an imperfectly competitive loan market. While rating technology investment is lumpy and characterized by fixed costs, loan prices vary continuously with their markup over the risk-free rate of interest. The interaction of loan pricing and rating technology investment gives rise to the following predictions: equilibrium adoption of the new rating technology need not increase individual banks’ profits; identical banks in a symmetric banking sector might adopt the more accurate rating technologies sequentially rather than simultaneously; and increased competition in the banking sector slows investment in the new rating technology.
Neutrophils responded to immobilized lipopolysaccharide in the absence of lipopolysaccharide‐binding protein

Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in solution primes neutrophils for enhanced release of superoxide in response to N‐formyl‐methionyl‐leucyl‐phenylalanine. We show that LPS immobilized on polystyrene or polypropylene acted on neutrophils by a mechanism different from that of LPS in solution. Coating the surface with 1% plasma, either before coating with LPS (plasma/LPS) or after coating with LPS (LPS/plasma), was essential to induce the LPS response in neutrophils. However, plasma could be replaced by fibrinogen, type I collagen or type IV collagen, or, to a lesser extent, by fibronectin or vitronectin, which was not true for LPS in solution. About 20% of the LPS added was immobilized on the plastic surfaces, based on its ability to adsorb anti‐LPS antibody after extensive washing. The amount of soluble LPS that might have been released from surfaces during the incubation with neutrophils was too low to account for the priming by immobilized LPS. About 13–20 min was needed for neutrophils to become primed after incubation with immobilized LPS. Immobilized LPS induced up‐regulation of CD11b/CD18 and latent alkaline phosphatase and also enhanced the adhesive response of neutrophils. Priming by immobilized LPS was inhibited by anti‐CD14 antibody or by treatment of neutrophils with the LPS antagonist LA‐14‐PP. When immobilized LPS was treated with anti‐LPS‐binding protein (LBP) antibody, the response of neutrophils to LPS/plasma was inhibited but the response to plasma/LPS or fibrinogen/LPS was not. Thus, the LPS in plasma/LPS or fibrinogen/LPS acted on neutrophils in an LBP‐independent manner. We conclude that the CD14‐dependent LPS receptor system of neutrophils was capable of working in the absence of LBP, but only when LPS was immobilized on a surface coated with protein. J. Leukoc. Biol. 64: 177–184; 1998.
Relationship between membrane damage, leakage of intracellular compounds, and inactivation of Escherichia coli treated by pressurized CO2

The relationship between membrane damage, leakage of intracellular compounds, and inactivation of Escherichia coli treated by pressurized CO2 was investigated by assessing the inactivation, bacterial cell membrane permeability, the leakage of protein, nucleic acid, and K+ and Mg2+ of E. coli. The results indicated that pressurized CO2 treatment induced the leakage of protein in E. coli, but the time of leakage was lagged behind the time of 99% E. coli inactivation, so it was only the secondary phenomenon of inactivation. The inactivation of E. coli was related to the leakage of nucleic acid, K+, Mg2+ induced by the pressurized CO2 treatment. There was direct relationship between the inactivation of E. coli and the damaging effect of pressurized CO2 treatment on the cell membrane of E. coli.
Using Partial Desalination Treatment To Improve the Recovery of Copper and Molybdenum Minerals in the Chilean Mining Industry

Limited water resources and greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels used in electricity production are problems experienced in Chile. To address water shortages, many copper mining companies have started to use seawater or desalinated water in their operations. However, seawater exerts a negative impact on the mineral processing operation. It reduces the recovery of copper and molybdenum minerals in the flotation of copper–molybdenum sulfide ores due to the presence of calcium and magnesium ions. This study aims to propose a partial desalination treatment for calcium and magnesium species removal to improve the recovery of valuable minerals in the flotation of copper–molybdenum sulfide ores. The proposed method uses carbon dioxide gas and sodium hydroxide to promote the removal of calcium and magnesium ions from seawater. As a result, the partial desalination treatment can remove 60.5% of calcium and 98.3% of magnesium species. In addition, it helped in reaching a high recovery of molybdenum (81.1%) an.
Dual role of CaMKII‐dependent SAP97 phosphorylation in mediating trafficking and insertion of NMDA receptor subunit NR2A

Synapse Associated Protein 97 (SAP97), a member of membrane‐associated guanylate kinase (MAGUK) protein family, has been involved in the correct targeting and clustering of ionotropic glutamate receptors (iGluRs) at postsynaptic sites. Calcium/calmodulin kinase II (CaMKII) phosphorylates SAP97 on two major sites in vivo; one located in the N‐terminal domain (Ser39) and the other in the first postsynaptic density disc large ZO1 (PDZ) domain (Ser232). CaMKII‐mediated phosphorylation of SAP97‐Ser39 is necessary and sufficient to drive SAP97 to the postsynaptic compartment in cultured hippocampal neurons. CaMKII‐dependent phosphorylation of Ser232 disrupts SAP97 interaction with NR2A subunit, thereby regulating synaptic targeting of this NMDA receptor subunit. Here we show by means of phospho‐specific antibodies that SAP97‐Ser39 phosphorylation represents the driving force to release SAP97/NR2A complex from the endoplasmic reticulum. Ser39 phosphorylation does not interfere with SAP97 capability to bind NR2A. On the contrary, SAP97‐Ser232 phosphorylation occurs within the postsynaptic compartment and is responsible for both the disruption of NR2A/SAP97 complex and, consequently, for NR2A insertion in the postsynaptic membrane. Thus, CaMKII‐dependent phosphorylation of SAP97 in different time frames and locations within the neurons controls both NR2A trafficking and insertion.
On Hash-Based Work Distribution Methods for Parallel Best-First Search

Parallel best-first search algorithms such as Hash Distributed A* (HDA*) distribute work among the processes using a global hash function. We analyze the search and communication overheads of state-of-the-art hash-based parallel best-first search algorithms, and show that although Zobrist hashing, the standard hash function used by HDA*, achieves good load balance for many domains, it incurs significant communication overhead since almost all generated nodes are transferred to a different processor than their parents. We propose Abstract Zobrist hashing, a new work distribution method for parallel search which, instead of computing a hash value based on the raw features of a state, uses a feature projection function to generate a set of abstract features which results in a higher locality, resulting in reduced communications overhead. We show that Abstract Zobrist hashing outperforms previous methods on search domains using hand-coded, domain specific feature projection functions. We then propose GRAZHDA*, a graph-partitioning based approach to automatically generating feature projection functions. GRAZHDA* seeks to approximate the partitioning of the actual search space graph by partitioning the domain transition graph, an abstraction of the state space graph. We show that GRAZHDA* outperforms previous methods on domain-independent planning.