Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
New Farmland Preservation Programs in New York

Abstract New York State and Suffolk County have sought new means for solving the problem of preserving farmland. Agricultural districting, developed at the state level, provides farmers in semi-rural areas with an opportunity to protect themselves on a voluntary basis from some of the rising costs and governmental actions usually associated with urbanization. Development rights purchase, developed in Suffolk County, provides farmers with an opportunity to voluntarily sell the nonfarm portion of their land's value, thus eliminating most of the problems interfering with farming in semi-suburban areas. Other areas may find the experience with agricultural districts and development rights purchase in New York helpful.
Automatic home care system for monitoring HR/RR during sleep

This paper described an automatic home care system for monitoring HR/RR during sleep. Pressure signal is measured with a completely unconstrained pressure sensor beneath a pillow; then the signal is digitalized and the data are transmitted to a remote server using TCP/IP via a netbox. The data are processed and analyzed with a wavelet-based algorithm to obtain the heart rate and respiration rhythm during sleep. Through analyzing 180 days' data obtained from a female subject, it was found that this system can be used for daily monitoring heart rate and respiration rhythm during sleep and evaluating the quality of sleep at home.
Evaluating the effect of HIV prevention strategies on uptake of HIV counselling and testing among male most-at-risk-populations in Nigeria; a cross-sectional analysis

Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of three strategies in increasing uptake of HIV counselling and testing (HCT) among male most-at-risk-population (M-MARPs) using programmatic data. Design HIV prevention strategies were evaluated in a cross-sectional analysis. Methods Three HCT strategies were implemented between July 2009 and July 2012 among men who have sex with men (MSM) and people who inject drugs (PWIDs) in four states in Nigeria. The first strategy (S1), involved key opinion leaders (KOLs) who referred M-MARPs to health facilities for HCT. The second strategy (S2) involved KOLs referring M-MARPs to nearby mobile HCT teams while the third (S3) involved mobile M-MARPs peers conducting the HCT. χ2 statistics were used to test for differences in the distribution of categorical variables across groups while logistic regression was used to measure the effect of the different strategies while controlling for confounding factors. Results A total of 1988, 14 726 and 14 895 M-MARPs were offered HCT through S1, S2 and S3 strategies, respectively. Overall, S3 (13%) identified the highest proportion of HIV-positive M-MARPs compared with S1 (9%) and S2 (3%), p≤0.001. Also S3 (13%) identified the highest proportion of new HIV diagnosis compared with S1 (8%) and S2 (3%), respectively, p≤0.001. When controlled for age, marital status and occupation, MSM reached via S3 were 9 times (AOR: 9.21; 95% CI 5.57 to 15.23) more likely to uptake HCT when compared with S1 while PWIDs were 21 times (AOR: 20.90; 95% CI 17.33 to 25.21) more likely to uptake to HCT compared with those reached via S1. Conclusions Peer-led HCT delivered by S3 had the highest impact on the total number of M-MARPs reached and in identifying HIV-positive M-MARPs and new testers. Training M-MARPs peers to provide HCT is a high impact approach in delivering HCT to M-MARPs.
Organizational Fairness and Diversity Management in Public Organizations

Globalization, migration, initiatives for social justice, and other developments have made the representation of diverse groups and relations among them an important issue for organizations in many nations. In the United States, government agencies have increasingly invested in managing demographic diversity effectively. This study examines how perceived organizational fairness combined with diversity management relates to employees’ job satisfaction in public organizations. To test these relationships we analyze data drawn from the 2006 Federal Human Capital Survey (FHCS) using hierarchical regressions—hierarchical ordered logistic regressions and hierarchical linear regressions. The results indicate that in an agency where members perceive higher levels of organizational fairness, and where employees perceive that diversity is more effectively managed, employees report higher satisfaction with their jobs. Interestingly, while high organizational fairness in association with diversity management efforts enhances the overall job satisfaction of employees, its positive impact was smaller for racial/ethnic minorities than Whites. In contrast, women tend to report higher job satisfaction than men when they perceive that their agency manages diversity effectively, and has just and fair procedures, whereas the relationship was not significant in the hierarchical linear regression model.
Nuclear Reactor Safety and the Role of the Congressman: A Content Analysis of Congressional Hearings

S INCE ITS INCEPTION in 1946, the now defunct Joint Committee on Atomic Energy always had the reputatoin of being pro-nuclear energy.1 To be sure, even a casual reading of its legislative hearings, bills, and other policy outputs would reveal this position, while at the same time showing that the Committee appeared to be much less responsive to environmentalists, concerned citizens, and others wary about the prospects of nuclear energy.2 However, what has not been shown in the literature in systematic, empirical fashion is how this essential cooperative/ antagonistic dichotomy was manifested on the individual level, through the actual behavior of the individual Committee members themselves.
Sustainable Tourist Behaviour a Discussion of Opportunities for Change

Research shows that despite their declared positive attitudes towards sustainable tourism, only a few tourists act accordingly by buying responsible tourism products, choosing environmentally friendly transportation or behaving responsibly towards destination communities. The low support from customers is one of the main barriers for progress towards sustainable tourism. One reason can be that existing initiatives are missing customers' attention, discouraging industry and governments to continue promoting sustainable tourism. Positive attempts to encourage sustainable consumption in other sectors indicate that specific barriers may reside in the nature of tourist choices. Taking a critical look at tourism research and literature, this article examines the interplay between reasons for tourists' choice of products and services, and environmental motivations. After identifying possible gaps that may explain current failures to stimulate responsible tourist choices, the article concludes by discussing the implications for the effectiveness of informative and awareness-raising tools aimed to facilitate the shift towards responsible tourist behaviour and actions.
Stock market and aggregate consumption asymmetry: evidence from Malaysia

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to analyze the influences of real share prices on aggregate consumption for Malaysia with the focus on whether there is asymmetry in the long-run relation of the two variables. Design/methodology/approach - The paper specifies aggregate consumption to depend on real income and real share prices. Alternatively, imposing long-run budget constraint, the paper specifies the relation between aggregate consumption and real share prices as ratio to real income. Then, it applies an asymmetric cointegration and error correction modeling. Findings - The cointegration tests indicate the presence of a long-run relation between consumption-income ratio and share price-income ratio. More interestingly, while changes in share prices exert short-run causal influences on Malaysia's private consumption, evidence is found for the adjustments of consumption – income ratio to the long-run equilibrium path only when it is above its long-run value. The paper interprets the finding as suggesting downward revisions in the consumption patterns when there are adverse shocks in share prices and, accordingly, supports the existence of especially negative wealth effect for Malaysia. Research limitations/implications - Owing to data limitations, the paper relies on aggregate consumption and aggregate income data. It acknowledges that the sum of non-durable consumption and flow-of-services from durable purchases and labor income are more appropriate measures of, respectively, consumption and real income. Originality/value - The findings have important implications for understanding consumption behavior in a developing country and can provide insight on the effectiveness of monetary policy.
National Working Group Meeting on ALK diagnostics in lung cancer

The global landscape of molecular testing is rapidly changing, with the recent publication of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC)/College of American Pathologists (CAP) guidelines and the ALK Atlas. The IASLC/CAP guidelines recommend that tumors from patients with non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) be tested for ALK rearrangements in addition to epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations. The spur for this recommendation is the availability of novel therapies that target these rearrangements. This article is based on coverage of a Pfizer‐sponsored National Working Group Meeting on ALK Diagnostics in Lung Cancer, held around the 15th World Lung Cancer Conference, in Sydney on October 31, 2013. It is based on the presentations given by the authors at the meeting and the discussion that ensued. The content for this article was discussed and agreed on by the authors.
POPULAR MARKETS: FROM FUTURE STUDIES TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF PRODUCTS

Strategies for running companies in low-income markets have been in the spotlight in both the academic and the corporate environments. However, the first discussions about the relevance of such markets arose during the 1980s, when scenario-prospecting studies showed that popular markets would provide many opportunities around the year 2000. Indeed, at present, the base of the pyramid has many unaddressed needs that offer business possibilities for those companies that are willing to review their strategies. In this context, product development becomes increasingly important, since products targeting consumers of the C, D and E classes may need different features from those of goods manufactured for the A and B classes. The aim of this study is to revisit past popular market forecasts and to identify development trends for goods that target low- income consumers. Our results indicate that Wright and Johnson’s (1984) studies predicted that Brazil would maintain both qualitative and quantitative progress in its socioeconomic development over the next two decades and that the development of popular products is undergoing a buoyant phase. Several functional perspectives were used to develop an understanding of the phenomenon, especially marketing, engineering and manufacturing. Key words: Future studies. Popular markets. Product development.
Correlation between HIV-Specific CD8 cell production of interferon- gamma and plasma levels of HIV RNA in perinatally infected pediatric populations.

BACKGROUND CD8 cell responses to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) have been correlated with virus control in adults, and this study outcome has been controversial. Attempts to establish the same correlation in small numbers of children have also been made, with similar controversy resulting. METHODS A total of 110 perinatally infected children were studied. Nine of the children (mean age, 1.9 years vs. 11.8 years for the remaining 101 children) received treatment with antiretrovirals within the first 3 months of life. CD4 cell and HIV RNA levels were measured. Production of interferon- gamma after exposure to recombinant vaccinia vectors was measured by enzyme-linked immunospot (ELISPOT) assay. RESULTS Responses to Pol and Gag antigens exceeded those to Nef and Env antigens, with responses significantly approximated by a quadratic function for which peak responses occurred at plasma HIV RNA levels of 103-104 HIV RNA copies/mL. Children who are treated early in life with highly active antiretroviral therapy have fewer total responses of ELISPOT-forming cells to HIV antigens than do children who are treated later in life.
Specification and Testing of Markov Chain Models: An Application to Convergence in the European Union

Recently Markov chains have been used to analyze the convergence properties of national and regional per capita incomes. This paper highlights their applicability and importance for economists and illustrates some of the potential pitfalls associated with this approach. The empirical conclusions, based on data for the period 1975 to 1993, are that the regions of the European Union appear to be converging to a form of equilibrium characterized by stable proportions of economies at a range of output per capita levels, and by a permanent chance of mobility between all levels, consistent with the existence of multiple steady states across countries. Copyright 1997 by Blackwell Publishing Ltd
Fighting Against Democracy. Military F Fighting Against Democracy. Military F Fighting Against Democracy. Military F Fighting Against Democracy. Military Factions in the

The breakdown of the Second Spanish Republic after the military coup of July 1936 plunged Spain in a three-year civil war that ended in Franco’s dictatorship. The war marked the end of the first serious attempt to establish democracy in Spain and retarded the economic and political development of the country by at least twenty years. This paper establishes the relevance of the Army as a pertinent political player in understanding the dynamics of the Second Republic and shows that, contrary to traditional views, the military was a non-monolithic organization which was divided in different factions with conflicting interests. The empirical section explores the impact that republican military policies and factional military interests had on officers’ side (rebel or loyal) during the Spanish Civil War. The econometric analysis uses a new data set that identifies officers’ side and uses information from military yearbooks to follow officers’ individual history between 1910 and 1936. The results confirm that the Army was a non-monolithic organization where factions behave differently and responded to the impact that republican military reforms had on them. Officers in favored corps and those that enjoyed greater promotions between 1931 and 1936 were more likely to support the republican regime. Finally, the paper explores the effect of hierarchy on officers’ choice. Results show that subordinates tended to follow the side chosen by their senior officer.
Morphology and Small Subunit rDNA Gene Sequence of Pseudoamphisiella quadrinucleata n. sp. (Ciliophora, Urostylida) from the South China Sea

ABSTRACT. The urosylid genus Pseudoamphisiella was established by Song (1996) with hitherto only two known congeners. In the present work, the morphology and infraciliature of a new member, Pseudoamphisiella quadrinucleata n. sp. , a form with conspicuous alveolar layer and four macronuclear nodules isolated from the coastal waters both near Hong Kong and near Guangzhou, South China were investigated using living observation and protargol silver impregnation methods. Pseudoamphisiella quadrinucleata differs from other two known forms mainly by the number of macronuclear nodules: constantly four vs. two in Pseudoamphisiella alveolata and 24–57 in Pseudoamphisiella lacazei. To support this, the sequence of the small subunit rDNA of P. quadrinucleata n. sp. showed 14 and 74 nucleotides in comparison with that of the two known congeners, respectively, which hence firmly supports the validity of the new species.
The Disconnect Between Physical Gold Demand and Gold Prices

This article provides empirical evidence that the drivers of physical gold demand are different from the drivers of gold prices and concludes that increasing physical gold demand does not imply higher gold prices. Accordingly, one should not expect rising gold demand from emerging market countries to support gold markets and to lead to a recovery in gold prices back to the recent highs.
Ant Intelligent Robot: A Versatile and Low Cost Miniature Mobile Robot Platform for Swarm Robotics Research and Education

In this paper we present the Ant Intelligent Robot (AIR), a miniature mobile platform designed for swarm robotic research and education. The proposed system has a modular and distributed architecture that provides the necessary versatility, robustness and user accessibility to enable the study of a broad range of applications, while achieving a low cost. We also present a comparison between AIR and other platforms that were recently used in collective experiments.
Is Basel III a Panacea? Lessons from the Greek Sovereign Fiscal Crisis

Is Basel III a Panacea? Lessons from the Greek Sovereign Fiscal Crisis In the period 2007-2009 the global economy faced the most severe crisis after the Great Recession of 1929. In the aftermath of the crisis a substantially revised version of Basel II, named Basel III, was proposed, introducing new, tighter capital adequacy and liquidity guidelines. Basel III constitutes the new basic embankment against a possible crisis in the future. The same period these discussions were taking place for the new global regulatory framework, the most severe sovereign debt crisis the country ever faced burst out in Greece. One of the main victims of the crisis is the country's banking sector which is sustaining great pressure in its profitability, volume of deposits and credit growth, amongst others. Having as a starting point the Greek banking sector and the effects of the fiscal crisis on it, this paper discusses the new Basel III guidelines and their possible implications in times of turmoil. The new framework can play a crucial role in deterring a new financial crisis; however it should not be regarded as a panacea for all the shortcomings of banking sectors.
Are Positional Concerns Stronger in Some Domains than in Others

For more than one hundred years, economists have discussed the concept of positional goods—that the utility conferred by many, perhaps even most, goods depends not only on the amount the individual consumes, but also on the amount others consume (e.g., Thorstein Veblen, 1899; James Duesenberry, 1949; John K. Galbraith, 1958; Robert Frank, 1985). While economic interest in “positional goods” is increasing (e.g., Mark Pingle and Mike Mitchell, 2002; Kenneth Arrow et al., 2004; Ed Hopkins and Tatiana Kornienko, 2004), the literature remains largely theoretical rather than empirical. If status concerns affect all items in the utility function equally (leisure as well as goods), the positional effect would operate like a lump-sum tax, reducing well-being without changing the allocation of time or money (Arrow et al., 2004). However, if positional concerns are stronger for some things than for others, then in order to understand how people can become better off in well-being, not simply in wealth, we must investigate how interpersonal competition interacts with material gains (Frank, 1997). Evidence about what goods are more positional than others is essential for correct policy recommendations (Gregory Besharov, 2002), but little is actually known about the relative positional rankings of items in the typical consumer’s utility function. Four hypotheses proposed in the literature are:
Molecular imaging of Cathepsin E-positive tumors in mice using a novel protease-activatable fluorescent probe.

UNLABELLED The purpose of this study is to demonstrate the ability of imaging Cathepsin E (Cath E) positive tumors in living animals through selective targeting of Cath E proteolytic activity using a sensitive molecular imaging agent. METHODS A peptide-based Cath E imaging probe and a control probe were synthesized for this study. Human Cath E-positive cancer cells (MPanc96-E) were implanted subcutaneously in nude mice. Tumor-bearing mice were examined in vivo with near-infrared fluorescence (NIRF) imaging at various time points after intravenous injection of the Cath E sensing imaging probe. Excised organs and tissues of interest were further imaged ex vivo. RESULTS Upon specific Cath E proteolytic activation, the NIRF signal of the imaging probe a was converted from an optically quenched initial state to a highly fluorescent active state. Imaging probe a was able to highlight the Cath E-positive tumors as early as 24 h post injection. Fluorescent signal in tumor was 3-fold higher than background. The confined specificity of imaging probe a to tumor associated Cath E was verified by using control imaging probe b. Both in vivo and ex vivo imaging results confirmed the superior selectivity and sensitivity of imaging probe a in Cath E imaging. CONCLUSIONS The small animal studies demonstrated the capability of probe a for imaging Cath E-positive tumors. The developed optical probe could be applied in early diagnostic imaging and guiding subsequent surgical procedure.
A Metabolic Profile of Peru: An Application of Multi‐Scale Integrated Analysis of Societal and Ecosystem Metabolism (MuSIASEM) to the Mining Sector's Exosomatic Energy Flows

The present Peru's metabolic profile study poses the specific question, What are the long‐term national energy system implications of the recent government‐supported growth of the mining sector? The question is addressed by analyzing interactions between human economic activity (in hours) and electricity input flows (in joules) in the mining sector of the Peruvian economy in 2000 and 2010, with a projection for 2020. The methodology is based on the multi‐scale integrated analysis of societal and ecosystem metabolism (MuSIASEM), which is an application of Georgescu‐Roegen's bioeconomics approach. Empirical results found for the national economy show: (1) the massive increase in size of the energy system, which is explained by exploitation of the Camisea natural gas (NG) reserves, and (2) the potential for establishing a carbon lock‐in in the electricity sector, owing to increasing construction of electricity plants based on NG as their primary energy source. Empirical results specific to the mining sector indicate: (1) the extremely high electricity metabolic rate of the mining sector (61.6 megajoules per hour in 2010), which was found to be 11 times the rate of electricity used per hour of human activity in the building and manufacturing sector in Peru, and (b) the potential increases in the proportion of electricity used in the mining sector (flow share), which could jeopardize the availability of high‐quality primary energy supplies for the rest of society. In light of these implications, it is argued that the Peruvian government's strong support for growth of the mining sector may have to be reconsidered.