Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Motivations and Marketing Drivers of Taiwanese Island Tourists: Comparing Across Penghu, Taiwan and Phuket, Thailand

The island tourism market is a major growth segment, worldwide, for international tourism. Penghu, Taiwan, and Phuket, Thailand, have become major destinations for foreign and domestic island tourism for Taiwanese tourists. Island tourists might have different reasons for choosing domestic versus international destinations. The objectives of this study are: (1) to identify motivational factors and marketing drivers across the two islands; (2) to investigate measurement invariance across samples; and (3) to examine the moderation effect of marketing drivers on the relationship between island tourists' motivations and their travel behavior, across samples. The measures were validated via confirmatory factor analysis, using EQS, and identified four motivational factors: experience, facilities and services, natural resources, and special events. Moderated regression was carried out to examine whether marketing drivers have a moderating effect on the relationship between motivation, and trip duration and group size. As there is measurement invariance exhibited throughout the samples of both Penghu and Phuket tourists, managers and academics alike can be confident that the scales capture the motivations and marketing drivers effectively across different contexts. In addition, marketing drivers moderate the effect of motivation on trip duration and group size in Phuket, and on group size in Penghu. Both islands need to emphasize that tourist motivations for experiencing island travel can bring a longer stay through pricing and promotional tour package programming.
Highly conformal and adhesive electroless barrier and Cu seed formation using nanoparticle catalyst for realizing a high aspect ratio cu-filled TSV

A conformal diffusion barrier was formed in a high aspect ratio through-silicon via (TSV) using electroless plating. Dense adsorption of Pd nanoparticle catalyst on SiO2 assisted the formation of a thin electroless CoWB layer, on which an electroless Cu seed layer could be deposited. The adhesion strength of the CoWB layer was improved with addition of adequate amount of saccharine and conformal deposition property was obtained with addition of SPS.
Epidural versus intravenous steroids application following percutaneous endoscopic lumbar discectomy

Abstract Retrospectively study. The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of intraoperative epidural steroids and single dose intravenous steroids following a percutaneous endoscopic lumbar discectomy (PELD). Inflammatory irritation of dorsal root ganglia or sensory nerve roots may cause postoperative pain. Epidural steroids have been applied after a lumbar discectomy for more than 20 years. Epidural steroid application after a PELD is easier to perform and safer because the operations are under observation of the scope. We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients with lumbar intervertebral disc herniation who had undergone transforaminal PELD at our department. There are 60 patients in epidural steroid group, intravenous steroid group, and control group, respectively. Visual analog scores (VAS) and the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) were collected. Successful pain control is defined as 50% or more reduction in back and leg pain (VAS scores). VAS scores (back and leg) and ODI showed a significant decrease in all groups when comparing pre- and postoperatively. Epidural steroid group had a significant improvement in successful pain control compared with the control group at 2 weeks of follow-up. VAS scores (leg) in the epidural steroid group showed a significant decrease compared with the intravenous steroids group at 1, 3, and 7 days after the surgery, but this difference had no statistical significance at 1, 6, and 12 months of follow-up. All groups did not show a significant difference in ODI at 1, 6, and 12 months follow-up. Epidural application of steroid has a better effect on controlling the postoperative pain of PELD in the short term. The epidural application of steroid did not show a tendency to cause infection.
Use of antiretroviral therapy in resource-limited countries in 2006: distribution and uptake of first- and second-line regimens

Objective: To address the information gap on current use of antiretroviral drugs (ARTs) in developing countries. Methods: The AIDS Medicines and Diagnostics Service of the World Health Organization (WHO) carried out a multi-country survey in early 2006. Questionnaires covered the use of first- and second-line regimens in adults and children, and the rates of switching from first-line to second-line regimen. Weighted percentages of use of ARTs across the cohort of adults and children were calculated and correlated with 2006 WHO guidelines. A second analysis compared demand for ARTs with rates of production of active pharmaceutical ingredients. Results: Twenty-three countries (96%) returned the questionnaires, representing 53% of relevant patients in developing countries as of June 2006, and comprising 92% adults and 8% children receiving ARTs. Response rates were highest for questions regarding first-line use and lowest for those regarding pediatric regimens. The distribution of first-line: second-line use was 96%: 4% among adults and 99%: 1% among children. For adults, 95% of those receiving first-line treatment, but only 25% of those receiving second-line treatment, were on regimens consistent with those preferred by the WHO. Among first-line users, the most common regimen (61%) was stavudine+lamivudine+nevirapine. Among second-line users, abacavir+didanosine+lopinavir/ritonavir was the most common regimen (24%). Among children, compliance with WHO guidelines was high among the respondents, with zidovudine+lamivudine+nevirapine reported as the main option. Estimates of first-year switching rate were highly variable, ranging from 1% to 15%, with only ten responses. Comparison of supply and demand showed that the stated production capacity for active pharmaceutical ingredients is sufficient to meet current demands for ARTs. Conclusion: This survey has provided valuable information on the uptake of ARTs in developing countries and will help forecast future demand. Reporting for second-line and pediatric antiretroviral therapy should improve as national programs gain more experience. The current availability of active pharmaceutical ingredients appears to be sufficient to meet current demand. Further work is needed for an understanding of switching rates.
Journal of Reproduction and Development

In mammals, spermatozoa activate oocytes by triggering a series of intracellular Ca2+ oscillations with phospholipase C zeta (PLCζ), a sperm-borne oocyte-activating factor. Because the introduction of PLCζ alone can induce oocyte activation, it might be a promising reagent for assisted reproductive technologies. To test this possibility, we injected human PLCζ (hPLCζ) mRNA into mouse oocytes at different concentrations. We observed the oocyte activation and subsequent embryonic development. Efficient oocyte activation and embryonic development to the blastocyst stage was achieved only with a limited range of mRNA concentrations (0.1 ng/μl). Higher concentrations of mRNA caused developmental arrest of most embryos, suggesting that excessive PLCζ protein might be harmful at this stage. In a second series of experiments, we aimed to regulate the PLCζ protein concentration in oocytes by applying auxin-inducible degron (AID) technology that allows rapid degradation of the target protein tagged with AID induced by auxin. Injection of the hPLCζ protein tagged with AID and enhanced green fluorescent protein (hPLCζ-AID-EGFP) demonstrated that high EGFP expression levels at the late 1-cell stage were efficiently reduced by auxin treatment, suggesting efficient hPLCζ degradation by this system. Furthermore, the defective development observed with higher concentrations of hPLCζ-AID-EGFP mRNA was rescued following auxin treatment. Full-term offspring were obtained by round spermatid injection with optimized hPLCζ-AID activation. Our results indicate that this AID technology can be applied to regulate the protein levels in mouse oocytes and that our optimized PLCζ system could be used for assisted fertilization in mammals.
Molecular imaging of angiogenesis

Angiogenesis (the growth of new blood vessels) is a complex multistep process that involves multiple cell types, numerous growth factors, and complex regulatory checks and balances. Tight control of vascular remodeling evolved to ensure stability of the vasculature while maintaining the body's ability to rapidly mount an angiogenic response requiring a high degree of plasticity. Angiogenesis is critical not only for physiological development, but also for the progression of pathologies, and is thus a target for therapeutic intervention. The importance of the process coupled with the ease of access for delivery of contrast agents makes the vasculature at large, and angiogenesis in particular, a favorable target of functional and molecular imaging. Recent developments in molecular imaging tools have expanded our views to encompass many components of the process. Functional imaging of blood volume, vessel permeability, and vasoreactivity is complemented by novel contrast agents that reveal specific targets on endothelial cells. Methods have been developed to label vascular cells so as to track their recruitment to sites of angiogenesis, and new “smart” contrast agents have been designed to reveal the activity of enzymatic reactions in altering the extracellular matrix (ECM) during angiogenesis. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2007. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The Urban Penalty

The stimulus for this essay was given by the fact that life expectancy in certain countries started to increase long before the development of modern medicine. Having as a principal axis the so called „urban penalty‟, the analysis was limited in two port cities; Glasgow and Malmo. Data on crude, age-specific and disease-specific mortality were used over the period 1800-1914 in order to identify the mortality development of these two cities. In addition, data on various investments were used for the two cities mentioned above. All these combined, tried to answer a principal question concerning whether the reduction in mortality before the advancement of modern medicine was associated with investments. If the answer to this question was positive, two secondary questions were raised concerning firstly, which investment proved to be more effective, and secondly, if there was an investment that could be described as a „common ingredient of success‟. The analysis of these two cities revealed that undoubtedly their mortality decline over the second half of the 19th century was driven by investments; however, it did not manage to reveal any „winner‟ in terms of efficiency, or any common „ingredient of success‟.
Relation between management's behavioural intentions toward the environment and environmental actions

Drawing on Ajzen's Theory of Planned Behaviour, this paper analyses whether there is a relation between management's behavioural intentions toward an environmental problem and the company's specific actions in this area, and also considers the impact of the company size on these actions. For the data, a questionnaire was sent to 184 managers employed in industrial companies located in Spain which belonged to the automobile industry. The empirical analysis produces positive and significant regression coefficients and provides support for the hypotheses proposed. Specifically, the results show that the environmental actions carried out in the company respond at least in part to management's behavioural intentions toward these issues and the size of the firm.
Upregulation of Neurodevelopmental Genes During Scarless Healing

Scarless fetal skin wound healing is a paradigm for ideal skin repair and is dependent on peripheral nerve function.To further explore neurogenic mechanisms influence on the scarless skin repair, fetal rats were wounded on gestational days 16 (E16; n = 24) and 18 (E18; n = 8) and wounds were harvested at 1 and 3 days after injury. Unwounded skin at identical gestational age was used for control comparison. The scarless E16 and scarring E18 wounds underwent macroarray gene expression analysis (1172 genes). During the scarless healing period, 53 (4.5%) genes had a statistically significant upregulation post-injury with at least a 2- to 3-fold change 1 day after wounding and 14 (1.2%) genes 3 days after wounding (P < 0.05). Many neurodevelopmental genes were increased during scarless repair on post-injury days 1 and 3. Neuropeptide Y Receptor type I, cJun related Transcription Factor (junD), Synaptophysin, SNAP 25, Neuronal calcium sensor 1 (NCS1), neural visine-like calcium binding protein 1 (NVP1), nerve growth factor-induced gene A (NGFI-A/EGR1), VGF8A protein, p27kip1, and members of the GABA and serotonin family each had 2- to 3-fold expression increases (P < 0.05). We speculate that fetal skin cells express neurotrophins during skin development that regulate peripheral neuron formation. During injury these factors promote the survival and regeneration of peripheral neurons; this interaction of neuropeptides, neuropeptide receptors, and neurotrophins may modulate the fetal scarless repair mechanisms in response to injury. Identification of these neurodevelopmental candidate genes provides insight for new investigation into mechanisms regulating scarless healing.
A Gravity Model Forecast of the Potential Trade Effects of EU Enlargement: Lessons from 2004 and Path-Dependency in Integration

This paper uses a gravity model to forecast the potential impact on trade balances and trade patterns of the 2004 EU enlargement. The results suggest that gross trade creation for the accession economies is about 25 per cent of their 2003 trade. Although membership of the EU creates trade it also results in trade diversion; that is, a declining share of accession country exports and imports with non-EU15 countries. Overall, the trade balances of the accession countries suffer larger trade deficits after accession due to import growth surpassing export growth. The extent of increase in the trade deficit due to accession is inversely related to the level of integration and income of the new members. Hence integration is path-dependent and the EU should take this into account when preparing for further enlargements to the Balkans and Southeast Europe.
Distinguishing between Equilibrium and Integration in Spatial Price Analysis

This article introduces a new spatial price analysis methodology based on maximum likelihood estimation of a mixture distribution model incorporating price, transfer cost, and trade flow data. This method permits differentiation between market integration and competitive market equilibrium and derivation of intuitive measures of intermarket tradability, competitive market equilibrium, perfect integration, segmented equilibrium, and segmented disequilibrium. One can also use these estimates to derive semiparametric measures of time-varying regime probabilities to track changing market conditions. An application to trade in soybean meal among Pacific Rim economies demonstrates the usefulness of the method. Copyright 2002, Oxford University Press.
Rent Seeking and the Provision of Public Goods

In this short paper I adopt the public choice school paradigm of modeling a government in order to compare its performance with that of the market in the standard model of the provision of public goods. Private provision is represented by the Cournot-Nash equilibrium in individual contributions. Public provision incorporates rent seeking, whereby some of the aspects of the allocation are determined indirectly by influence activities of the interested parties. Thus, both allocation procedures yield inefficiency, and the question is which procedure results in a greater amount of inefficiency: private provision with its free riding incentives, or public provision with its rent seeking incentives. The results indicate that public provision may well be preferred to private provision of public goods. Thus, superiority of private provision is not guaranteed even in the case of a non-benevolent government. Copyright 1993 by Royal Economic Society.
DIFFERENTIATING FINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY AND MANAGEMENT IN GOVERNMENTS, PUBLIC SERVICES AND CHARITIES

This paper illustrates many types of not-for-profit organisations (NFPOs) whose characteristics of financial accountability and management differentiate them as suitable for study in this journal. It also more briefly introduces some of the distinctive characteristics of the environment of financial accountability and management in NFPOs. Its purpose is to give readers the flavour of the intended future coverage of FAM, which should include a wider range of disciplinary insights than appear in this first paper. The editor hopes that academics, practitioners and others will be stimulated to submit authoritative papers relating to any of the relevant organisations, characteristics or problems.
State of the Art Symposium: Flow cytometry in the diagnosis of lymphoproliferative disorders by fine‐needle aspiration

Received July 13, 2005; revision received July 22, 2005; accepted July 23, 2005. Condensed abstract Immunophenotyping is an absolutely essential component of the diagnosis of lymphoma on the basis of fine-needle aspiration (FNA). Flow cytometry is a powerful technique that is well suited to FNA material. The current article addresses some of the advantages and disadvantages of flow cytometric immunophenotyping (FCI) in the diagnosis of lymphoma and discusses some basic principles of data collection and interpretation. A differential diagnosis of the most common B-cell lymphomas, organized on the basis of the FCI, also is presented. In many cases, the interpretation of FCI data is relatively straightforward; however, we have encountered several potential pitfalls that may lead to a misdiagnosis or a misclassification. Some of these pitfalls are discussed in this review. The assessment of the cytomorphology of FNA material, in combination with FCI and in selected cases, cytogenetic and/or molecular studies, can in many cases lead to a diagnosis of lymphoma with full classification. FCI has many advantages for the analysis of FNA and other cytologic preparations. Flow cytometry generally has a rapid turnaround time (1–2 working days). It is a highly flexible assay because panels of markers may be tailored according to clinical or morphologic features or previous clinical history. It is a very sensitive technique; in some cases, FCI is able to detect aberrant cells at a frequency of 1/1000 to 1/10,000 cells. In general, there are more markers available for flow cytometry than for immunohistochemistry. One of the greatest advantages of FCI is its ability to assess the expression of four or more markers on a single cell. The expression levels of each of these markers can be roughly quantitated on individual cells. Therefore, flow cytometry has the ability to identify aberrant cells within a complex cellular background. FCI in clinical practice is not a perfect technique, and it is important to be aware of a few disadvantages. Staining for intracytoplasmic and nuclear markers generally produces higher levels of background staining compared with staining for surface markers. Often, the performance of an intracellular or nuclear marker assay is critically dependent on the fixation and permeabilization conditions, with different markers performing better with different buffers. In some cases, intracytoplasmic and nuclear markers are easier to assess by immunohistochemistry than by FCI. In addition, FCI is generally limited to intact viable cells. Consequently, large cells may be eliminated from the analysis. Perhaps the most important limitation of flow cytometry in clinical practice is that in some cases there may be no direct correlation 443 CANCER CYTOPATHOLOGY
Cases for teacher development : preparing for the classroom

Acknowledgements Introduction: Using Cases to Understand What it Means to be a Teacher - Patricia F. Goldblatt and Deirdre Smith Chapter 1: Dealing with Religious Intolerance - Lyn Miller-Lachmann, Judith Lessow-Hurley, Poonam C. Dev, Harold Brathwaite Chapter 2: Is the Teacher's Gender an Issue in a Kindergarten Classroom? - Ellen Moir, Barbara B. Levin, Jerry Rosiek & Becky M. Atkinson, Kristopher Wells, Paul Axelrod Chapter 3: Working with a Disruptive Child and His Family - Peter McLaren & Nathalia Jamarillo, Deborah J. Trumbull, David E. Wilson & Joy S. Ritchie, David Booth, Janna Dresden Chapter 4: Negotiating Different Styles When Two Teachers Share a Class - Rita Silverman, Cheryl J. Craig, Ron Wideman Rita Silverman, Cheryl J. Craig, Ron Wideman Chapter 5: Managing Conflict When Working with Educational Partners - Becky Wai-Ling Packard, Nancy L. Hutchinson and Anne Jordan Chapter 6: A Student Teacher Faces the Challenges of the Classroom - Tom Russell, William J. Hunter, Janet L. Miller and D. Jean Clandinin Chapter 7: Engaging in Action Research in the Classroom - Robert E. Stake, Stefinee Pinnegar, Andrea K. Whittaker Chapter 8: Evaluating a Teacher's Classroom Management Strategy - Elizabeth Campbell, Iain Munro, Frances Squire and Jay Martin Chapter 9: Balancing the Needs of All Students in an Inclusive Classroom - Anna Ershler Richert, Lynn M. Cavazos, Tania Madfes and Linda F. Rhone Chapter 10: Implications of Student Cheating for the Teaching Community - Jean McNiff, Aria Razfar, Michael Manley-Casimir, and James McCracken Chapter 11: Challenges Teachers Face When Reentering the Classroom - Patrick M. Jenlink, Margaret Olson, and A.G. Rud Chapter 12: Developing Appropriate Boundaries with a Troubled Student - John Loughran, Ardra L. Cole, Allen T. Pearson and Janine Remillard Chapter 13: School Politics Divide a Community - Michael Dale, Elizabeth Jordan, Fred MacDonald, Ron McNamara Contributor Biographies Bibliography Index
Deficits in attention, motor control and perception (DAMP): a simplified school entry examination

Objective: To suggest an empirically based school entry screening examination for the detection of deficits in attention, motor control and perception (DAMP) in 6‐y‐old children. Material and methods: A population‐based cohort of 113 children, 6‐7 y of age (62 with and 51 without DAMP), compared on measures of attention, motor functions, language and cognition. Results: Attention deficits were convincingly identified by both parents and paediatrician. The motor function tests clearly distinguished between the two groups. Linguistic and meta‐linguistic tests demonstrated greater phonological processing difficulties in the DAMP group. The cognitive test revealed an overall lower IQ but no consistent characteristic pattern in the DAMP group.
Dynamic modelling of the demand for money in Latvia

Abstract This study develops a money demand model for Latvia for the period from 1996 to 2006. The model is specified in the error-correction form based on a single co-integrating vector between real money balances, gross domestic product, long-term interest rate, and the rate of inflation. The model meets all three requirements for ‘stability’ put forward in Judd and Scadding (1982). The model is both well-specified and highly parsimonious. It demonstrates high explanatory power in sample as well as accurately forecasting real money balances out of sample.