Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Male-Female Urban Income Distributions in Canada: The Service Sector in a Dependency Model

International trends of increasing income inequality have not occurred equally for male and female income distributions in Canadian cities. Urban male income inequality declined from 1970 to 1980; it increased in the next decade, but only to its 1990 level. Female income inequality has declined consistently. These urban income distributions can be well-explained using a dependency model in which the female income distribution is influenced by the male income distribution and the income gap between males and females. This dependence effect is modified by urban characteristics. Male and female income distributions are more alike in larger cities and in cities with relatively higher female median incomes. Beginning in 1990, service-sector employment contributes significantly to income inequality for both gender groups, with a slightly greater effect for females.
Locomotion Interface with Natural Interaction for Assisting Mobility of Visually Impaired

For individuals who are visually impaired (VIP), navigation requires the construction of a cognitive spatial map of one's surrounding environment. The proposed system was developed using techniques of Virtual Reality and Natural Interaction to assist the construction of cognitive spatial map and consequently the mobility of visually impaired (VIP). The system allows the modeling of two-dimensional or three-dimensional virtual environments. Is it possible to reproduce any places of interest. The interaction with the virtual environment is based on the recognition of poses, which are interpreted as actions of walking, turning left or right, or groping, and sound responses. Tests with VIPs were performed and the results demonstrated the effectiveness of the system, as well as positive feedback from participants who have developed cognitive map of the navigated environment. Thus, it may be indicated in aid in the work of Orientation and Mobility (OM), and thus contribute to greater social inclusion of those people.
The Effects of Abolishing a Foreign Institutional Investment Quota in Taiwan

Policies regarding the globalization of financial markets have long been investigated with conflicting results. This paper employs an event study approach with the EGARCH process to examine the effects of lifting restrictions on qualified foreign institutional investors in the Taiwanese stock market. The empirical results indicate significant differences in the behavior of stock returns in the electronics, financial, and other nonfinancial sectors, both on and after the abolition of Taiwan's investment quota. In addition, the volatility of stock returns in the electronics sector increases following the event. Foreign ownership provides some additional explanatory power for electronics and other nonfinancial stocks in the short run.
The effects of sevoflurane and desflurane in vitro on platelet–leukocyte adhesion in whole blood

Summary The interaction between platelets and leukocytes plays an important role in inflammatory and thrombotic processes. We investigated whether the volatile anaesthetics sevoflurane and desflurane alter the formation of platelet–leukocyte aggregates and the expression of P‐selectin on platelets. Whole blood was incubated with 1 and 2 minimum alveolar concentration (MAC) sevoflurane or desflurane. Unstimulated and adenosine diphosphate, or thrombin receptor agonist peptide‐6‐stimulated samples were stained with flourochrome‐conjugated antibodies. The formation of platelet–leukocyte conjugates and the expression of P‐selectin on platelets were measured using flow cytometry. Sevoflurane was found to enhance the binding of platelets to lymphocytes, neutrophils and monocytes, it also increased the expression of P‐selectin on platelets especially in the stimulated samples. Desflurane decreased the percentage of lymphocyte–platelet, neutrophil–platelet and monocyte–platelet conjugates principally in unstimulated samples. The results show that these two volatile anaesthetics have differing effects on the formation of platelet–leukocyte conjugates in vitro. Sevoflurane also enhanced the expression of P‐selectin on platelets.
Overview of Biological Themes in PTSD a

The Decade of the Brain is seeing an end to the dominance of the mind-body dichotomy. The fourth edition of the “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders” (DSM-IV)’ has eliminated the distinction between so-called “organic” and “functional” mental illness, recognizing that all mental disorders have important functional and organic aspects. Nowhere in psychiatric research is the collapse of the mind-body dichotomy better illustrated than in posttraumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. (TABLE 1 summarizes the DSM-IV diagnostic criteria for PTSD.) When PTSD first appeared in DSM-IIL2 it was viewed as a disorder with almost exclusively psychological symptoms, most of which were based on self-report. As such, it met with substantial skepticism both within and outside the psychiatric community. Many laymen viewed PTSD as little more than a political concession to disgruntled Vietnam veterans. Many psychiatrists thought PTSD lacked valid standing apart from already recognized anxiety and depressive disorders. Results of biological research into PTSD have changed all this. TABLE 2 presents a partial list of biological abnormalities reported in PTSD. This table is neither authoritative nor exhaustive but merely illustrative. Importantly, not all of these findings have been replicated, and sometimes opposite findings have emerged from different laboratories or even the same laboratory. Some abnormalities that have especially been plagued by inconsistent or opposite results were omitted from TABLE 2. Much more empirical research is needed to resolve the contradictions in the data and to establish the factual biological status of PTSD. This must be the first priority in PTSD investigation.
Classification and Identification of Enterococci: a Comparative Phenotypic, Genotypic, and Vibrational Spectroscopic Study

ABSTRACT Rapid and accurate identification of enterococci at the species level is an essential task in clinical microbiology since these organisms have emerged as one of the leading causes of nosocomial infections worldwide. Vibrational spectroscopic techniques (infrared [IR] and Raman) could provide potential alternatives to conventional typing methods, because they are fast, easy to perform, and economical. We present a comparative study using phenotypic, genotypic, and vibrational spectroscopic techniques for typing a collection of 18Enterococcus strains comprising six different species. Classification of the bacteria by Fourier transform (FT)-IR spectroscopy in combination with hierarchical cluster analysis revealed discrepancies for certain strains when compared with results obtained from automated phenotypic systems, such as API and MicroScan. Further diagnostic evaluation using genotypic methods—i.e., PCR of the species-specific ligase and glycopeptide resistance genes, which is limited to the identification of only four Enterococcusspecies and 16S RNA sequencing, the “gold standard” for identification of enterococci—confirmed the results obtained by the FT-IR classification. These results were later reproduced by three different laboratories, using confocal Raman microspectroscopy, FT-IR attenuated total reflectance spectroscopy, and FT-IR microspectroscopy, demonstrating the discriminative capacity and the reproducibility of the technique. It is concluded that vibrational spectroscopic techniques have great potential as routine methods in clinical microbiology.
Temporary Staff, Contractors, and Volunteers: The Hidden Workforce in Victorian Local Government

Theories of strategic Human Resource Management (HRM) emphasise the need to understand and effectively manage the workforce, and to align HRM practices with organisational strategy. Local government in Victoria was radically revised in 1993–94 with forced amalgamations, and later the introduction of Best Value Principles. Alongside this have been changes to council workforces. This article explores the composition of these workforces, and seeks to understand if strategic HRM practices underpin their management. It reports that in addition to the ‘known’ and ‘managed’ internal workforce, many councils have an external workforce which includes temporary staff, independent contractors, those working for external contractors, volunteers, work placement students and trainees. There is little evidence that theories of strategic HRM have been used to produce workforce planning strategies and policies relating to these staff, or that their management has been strategically aligned and reviewed to align with council strategies and business plans.
Redox compartmentalization and cellular stress

Mammalian cells are highly organized to optimize function. For instance, oxidative energy‐producing processes in mitochondria are sequestered away from plasma membrane redox signalling complexes and also from nuclear DNA, which is subject to oxidant‐induced mutation. Proteins are unique among macromolecules in having reversible oxidizable elements, ‘sulphur switches', which support dynamic regulation of structure and function. Accumulating evidence shows that redox signalling and control systems are maintained under kinetically limited steady states, which are highly displaced from redox equilibrium and distinct among organelles. Mitochondria are most reducing and susceptible to oxidation under stressed conditions, while nuclei are also reducing but relatively resistant to oxidation. Within compartments, the glutathione and thioredoxin systems serve parallel and non‐redundant functions to maintain the dynamic redox balance of subsets of protein cysteines, which function in redox signalling and control. This organization allows cells to be poised to respond to cell stress but also creates sites of vulnerability. Importantly, disruption of redox organization is a common basis for disease. Research tools are becoming available to elucidate details of subcellular redox organization, and this development highlights an opportunity for a new generation of targeted antioxidants to enhance and restore redox signalling and control in disease prevention.
Credit risk modeling: combining classification and regression algorithms to predict expected loss

Credit risk assessment is of paramount importance in the financial industry. Machine learning techniques have been used successfully over the last two decades to predict the probability of loan default (PD). This way, credit decisions can be automated and risk can be reduced significantly. In the more recent parts, intensified regulatory requirements led to the need to include another parameter - loss given default (LGD), the share of the loan which cannot be recovered in case of loan default - in risk models. We aim to build a unified credit risk model by estimating both parameters jointly to estimate expected loss. A large, highdimensional, real world dataset is used to benchmark several combinations of classification, regression and feature selection algorithms. The results indicate that non-linear techniques work especially well to model expected loss.
Whey Protein Supplementation During Resistance Training Augments Lean Body Mass

Compared to soy, whey protein is higher in leucine, absorbed quicker and results in a more pronounced increase in muscle protein synthesis. Objective: To determine whether supplementation with whey promotes greater increases in muscle mass compared to soy or carbohydrate, we randomized non-resistance-trained men and women into groups who consumed daily isocaloric supplements containing carbohydrate (carb; n = 22), whey protein (whey; n = 19), or soy protein (soy; n = 22). Methods: All subjects completed a supervised, whole-body periodized resistance training program consisting of 96 workouts (∼9 months). Body composition was determined at baseline and after 3, 6, and 9 months. Plasma amino acid responses to resistance exercise followed by supplement ingestion were determined at baseline and 9 months. Results: Daily protein intake (including the supplement) for carb, whey, and soy was 1.1, 1.4, and 1.4 g·kg body mass−1, respectively. Lean body mass gains were significantly (p < 0.05) greater in whey (3.3 ± 1.5 kg) than carb (2.3 ± 1.7 kg) and soy (1.8 ± 1.6 kg). Fat mass decreased slightly but there were no differences between groups. Fasting concentrations of leucine were significantly elevated (20%) and postexercise plasma leucine increased more than 2-fold in whey. Fasting leucine concentrations were positively correlated with lean body mass responses. Conclusions: Despite consuming similar calories and protein during resistance training, daily supplementation with whey was more effective than soy protein or isocaloric carbohydrate control treatment conditions in promoting gains in lean body mass. These results highlight the importance of protein quality as an important determinant of lean body mass responses to resistance training.
Quantized Output Feedback Stabilization under DoS Attacks

This paper addresses the stabilization of quantized linear systems under Denial-of-Service (DoS) attacks. Using a state transformation that satisfies a certain norm condition, we first propose an output encoding method that achieves the stabilization of systems with finite data rates only under an assumption on the duration of DoS attacks. Next we add a condition on the frequency of DoS attacks and develop an output encoding method with an arbitrary state transformation. Finally we illustrate the obtained results with numerical simulations.
WHY IS THE TAX EVASION SO PERSISTENT

Virtually all governments seek to fight tax evasion exploiting better and better technological devices. Despite of that the phenomenon still remains alive and kicking all around the world. The foregoing naturally arises the question in the title. This paper develops a simple model to provide some answers to this puzzling issue. Tax evasion is persistent because of the taxpayer's opportunistic behavior and the complex relationships linking it to the cost/quality of the institutional setting. More fundamentally, our model highlights that conditions required for steady state zero-tax evasion (no taxation and/or 100$\%$ probability to be caught) are outside the strategies available for governments.
Linear multitarget finite resolution tracking in clutter

A majority of target tracking algorithms are derived assuming the infinite resolution sensor(s), where each measurement has only one source. This assumption is an approximation as the sensors (e.g., radars and sonars) have finite resolution, where close measurements from multiple sources may merge into one. This disparity between assumptions and reality may significantly degrade target tracking performance. This paper proposes a multitarget tracking algorithm that assumes finite resolution sensor(s). A finite resolution variant of linear multitarget tracking is proposed to limit the computational complexity. The proposed algorithm provides both the trajectory estimate and the track quality measure enabling automatic track initiation and termination (false track discrimination) for a complete target tracking solution in nonhomogeneous clutter. A simulation study vindicates the approach in a difficult situation with 10 crossing targets in clutter that may merge measurements.
The somatic generation of immune recognition

Antibody specificity is determined by structural v‐genes that code for the amino acid sequences of the variable regions of antibody polypeptide chains. The present hypothesis proposes that the germ‐cells of an animal carry a set of v‐genes determining the combining sites of antibodies directed against a complete set of a certain class of histocompatibility antigens of the species to which this animal belongs. The evolutionary development of this set of v‐genes in phylogeny is traced back to the requirements for cell to cell recognition in all metazoa. The hypothesis leads to a distinction between two populations of antigen‐sensitive cells. One population consists of cells forming antibodies against foreign antigens; these lymphocytes have arisen as mutants in clones descending from lymphocytic stem cells which expressed v‐genes belonging to the subset (subset S) coding for antibody against histocompatibility antigens that the individual happens to possess. The other population consists of allograft rejecting lymphocytes that express v‐genes of the remaining subset (subset A) coding for antibody against histocompatibility antigens of the species that the individual does not possess. The primary lymphoid organs are viewed as mutant‐breeding organs. In these organs (e. g. in the thymus), the proliferation of lymphocytes expressing the v‐genes of subset S and the subsequent suppression of the cells of these “forbidden” clones, leads to the selection of mutant cells expressing v‐genes that have been modified by spontaneous random somatic mutation. This process generates self‐tolerance as well as a diverse population of antigen‐sensitive cells that reflects antibody diversity. The proliferation in the primary lymphoid organs of lymphocytes expressing v‐genes of subset A generates the antigen‐sensitive cell population that is responsible for allo‐aggression.
Malignant melanoma in South Wales: changing trends in presentation (1986–98)

In 1990 we reported the trends in presentation of malignant melanoma (MM) from 1986 to 1988 in a defined population in South Wales. Ten years after this initial study we reassessed the incidence of invasive MM in this defined population over a similar 3 year period. Using the local skin cancer registry we identified 186 cases of MM representing a 74% increase. Age standardization to the world population gives an overall incidence of 11.8 per 100 000 population per annum. This is the highest published standard incidence of MM to date from the UK and certainly one of the highest in Europe. We also have observed a continuing trend for diagnosis of thinner lesions with a better prognosis. Information about mortality for the whole of Wales over the corresponding period is also presented.
Credit risk pricing with both expected and unexpected default

This article presents a tractable structural model in which default may be both expected or unexpected. The model can predict realistically high short-term credit spreads. Closed form solutions are provided for corporate bonds and default swaps. The analysis suggests that, in order for the observed short-term yield spreads on high grade corporate debt to be compensation for credit risk, the market must believe that unexpected default may occur at any time, even if it is extremely unlikely, and that it may cause a dramatic sudden ‘downfall’ in the firm's assets value.
High-grain feeding alters caecal bacterial microbiota composition and fermentation and results in caecal mucosal injury in goats

The effect of high-grain (HG) feeding on caecal bacterial microbiota composition and fermentation and mucosa health is largely unknown. In the present study, ten male goats were randomly assigned to either a group fed a hay diet (0 % grain; n 5) or a group fed a HG diet (65 % grain; n 5) to characterise the changes in the composition of the bacterial community and mucosal morphology in the caecum. After 7 weeks of feeding, the HG diet decreased the caecal pH (P< 0·001) and increased (P< 0·001 to P< 0·004) the caecal digesta concentrations of total volatile fatty acids and lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Pyrosequencing of the 16S ribosomal RNA gene revealed that HG feeding increased (P= 0·001 to P= 0·009) the abundance of predominant genera Turicibacter and Clostridium in the caecal lumen and in the caecal mucosa and decreased (P< 0·001 to P< 0·009) the proportion of Bacteroides in the lumen and Mucispirillum in the mucosa compared with the hay diet. Furthermore, the HG diet-fed goats exhibited intense epithelial damage and up-regulation (P< 0·001 to P< 0·025) of the relative mRNA expression of IL-1β, IL-6, IL-12 and interferon-γ (IFN-γ) in the caecal mucosa. The correlation analysis revealed that alterations in caecal pH, LPS concentration and mucosa-associated microbiota abundance during HG feeding might partly contribute to local inflammation. Collectively, these results provide insight into the adaptive response of caecal bacterial populations to HG feeding in goats and reveal that the fermentable substrates that flow into the caecum may cause dramatic alterations in microbial compositions and play a significant role in caecal dysfunction.
Genetic Engineering and the World Trade System edited by Daniel Wüger and Thomas Cottier Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2008

Committee for the first time in 2005 by St Vincent and the Grenadines. Members are required under Article 13 of the Agreement to take reasonable available measures to ensure observation of the Agreement by non-governmental entities within their territories. As Scott observes, there is a pressing need for clarification about the benchmarks in this provision. Finally, Professor Scott emphasizes the importance of enhancing developing country capacity to resolve specific trade concerns through the SPS Committee. Professor Scott’s book is thoroughly to be recommended. The themes of the work are pragmatically and sensitively selected, and the text readable and helpful. A good balance is maintained between explanation and deeper investigation of significant points. A copy of the SPS Agreement is annexed to the text, with a brief table of cases at the front of the book. Readers of Professor Scott’s commentary on the SPS Agreement may await with interest the fruits of her next major research project, with Dr Andrew Lang, The Hidden World of WTO Governance: Law and Constitutionalism in the WTO.
Complete Genome Sequence of the Encephalomyelitic Burkholderia pseudomallei Strain MSHR305

ABSTRACT We describe the complete genome sequence of Burkholderia pseudomallei MSHR305, a clinical isolate taken from a fatal encephalomyelitis case, a rare form of melioidosis. This sequence will be used for comparisons to identify the genes that are involved in neurological cases.
Why 21? The significance of selenoproteins for human health revealed by inborn errors of metabolism

Selenocysteine is the 21st proteinogenic amino acid inmammals. The human genome contains 25 genes encoding selenoproteins, and their significance for human health is increasingly recognized through the identification of patients with inborn errors in selenoprotein biosynthetic factors or in individual selenoproteins. Mutations in selenoprotein N (SEPN1) lead to a spectrum of disorders collectively called SEPN1‐related myopathy, and mutations in glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4) cause respiratory failure and bone defects, and mutations in thioredoxin reductase 2 (TXNRD2) are associated with familial glucocorticoid deficiency. Pathogenic mutations in selenocysteine synthase (SEPSECS) cause neurodevelopmental disorders, but also other factors epistatic to selenoprotein biosynthesis, such as SECIS‐binding protein 2 (SECISBP2) and tRNA[Ser]Sec, are known to cause complex disorders. Mutations in the latter 2 genes involve impaired metabolism and action of thyroid hormones, which lead to delayed bone growth and maturation. Mutations in SECISBP2 sometimes affect nervous system development, muscle, inner ear, skin, and immune system function, underlining the significance of selenoproteins for the organism. Mouse models helped to delineate the functions of selenoproteins and explain pathomechanisms. For brevity, this review is focused on human genetic disorders associated with selenoprotein deficiency and only briefly touches on health effects of nutritional selenium deficiency. —Schweizer, U. , Fradejas‐Villar, N. Why 21? The significance of selenoproteins for human health revealed by inborn errors of metabolism. FASEB J. 30, 3669–3681 (2016) www.fasebj. org