Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Correspondence Matching in Long-Range Apparent Motion Precedes Featural Analysis

It has been suggested that correspondence matching in long-range motion is mediated by a perceptually high-level, ‘intelligent’ system. This suggestion is based on findings that long-range motion can be perceived between stimuli that could not be detected by lower-level motion mechanisms acting on Fourier motion energy, and that correspondence matching is affected by featural similarities between motion tokens that would be invisible to low-level (Fourier) motion detectors. Here, the effects of spatial-frequency content, color, and binocular disparity on correspondence matching are investigated. It is shown that the effects of featural matches between motion tokens develop only over time and lag behind the effects of the relative proximity between motion tokens in the retinal projection. This suggests that correspondence matching in long-range apparent motion is mediated by a mechanism which acts initially on the retinal coordinates of the motion tokens only, but may be biased to favor matching tokens that are featurally similar through a slower top–down influence by higher-level processes.
IC 21: reflections from 21 years of IC practice and theory

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to reflect on 21 years of IC theory and practice as input into discussing the origins of IC, its multiple perspectives and where it is heading.Design/methodology/approach – This article is based on the author's reflections of the past and vision for the future.Findings – IC is still for many an invisible fuzzy dimension, or mainly a measuring and accounting issue. For others, it is thought of as a more and more strategic ecosystem for sustainable value creation. Is there a kind of learned blindness in financial capital accounting or ignorance of new value opportunity spaces? We need to go beyond IC reporting. We are on the edge of something, but what? Originality/value – The paper presents the personal views of an internationally renowned IC academic and practitioner about what the future may hold for IC.
Transdermal microemulsions of Glycyrrhiza glabra L.: characterization, stability and evaluation of antioxidant potential

Abstract The purpose of the present study is to formulate Glycyrrhiza glabra root and rhizome aqueous ethanolic extract in microemulsion carrier systems intended for transdermal delivery of incorporated antioxidant actives, flavonoids and polyphenols. The results obtained reveal that the microemulsion system ME3 possesses optimum properties regarding drug content (flavonoids and polyphenols), viscosity, pH, particle size and polydispersity index, zeta potential, stability, permeation of actives and hence possesses high in vitro and ex vivo antioxidant efficacy. These results indicate also that this microemulsion shows approximately 13-fold higher ex vivo antioxidant capacity compared with the liquorice extract solution. In addition, the proposed microemulsion is simple to dispense, cost effective and provides high patient compliance and convenience because of simple topical application and avoidance of non-comfortable oral or parenteral administration.
The Impact of Downside Risk on Risk-Adjusted Performance of Mutual Funds in the Euronext Markets

Many performance measures, such as the classic Sharpe ratio have difficulty in evaluating the performance of mutual funds with skewed return distributions. Common causes for skewness are the use of options in the portfolio or superior market timing skills of the portfolio manager. In this article we examine to what extent downside risk and the upside potential ratio can be used to evaluate skewed return distributions. In order to accomplish this goal, we first show the relation between the risk preferences of the investor and the risk- adjusted performance measure. We conclude that it is difficult to interpret differences in the outcomes of risk-adjusted performance measures exclusively as differences in forecasting skills of portfolio managers. We illustrate this with an example of a simulation study of a protective put strategy. We show that the Sharpe ratio leads to incorrect conclusions in the case of protective put strategies. On the other hand, the upside potential ratio leads to correct conclusions. Finally, we apply downside risk and the upside potential ratio in the process of selecting a mutual fund from a sample of mutual funds in the Euronext stock markets. The rankings appear similar, which can be attributed to the absence of significant skewness in the sample. However, find that the remaining differences can be quite significant for individual fund managers, and that these differences can be attributed to skewness. Therefore, we prefer to use the UPR as an alternative to the Sharpe ratio, as it gives a more adequate evaluation of the use of options and forecasting skills.
Zinc deficiency and childhood-onset anorexia nervosa.

BACKGROUND We studied the association of zinc deficiency and childhood-onset anorexia nervosa because the relationship is controversial. METHOD Anorexia nervosa was diagnosed on the basis of determined food avoidance, weight loss, preoccupation with body weight and energy intake, distorted body image, fear of fatness, self-induced vomiting, excessive exercising, and laxative abuse. Twenty-six such children, admitted to a specialized eating disorders program within a children's hospital, formed the basis of the study. Zinc status was determined by measuring fasting plasma zinc levels and 24-hour urinary zinc excretion using atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Nutritional status was determined by using weight-for-height ratios. A trial of zinc supplementation was attempted using a 12-week double-blind crossover design, with 6 weeks of placebo and 6 weeks of treatment with 50 mg daily of oral zinc sulphate. RESULTS Zinc deficiency was found to be common, with a significant correlation between fasting plasma zinc levels and malnutrition (Pearson r = .586, p = .004). Introduction of a normal diet rapidly returned zinc levels and weight-for-height ratios to the normal range. Children entering the study with relatively normal zinc levels gained weight no faster than those with low plasma zinc levels. Of seven trials of zinc supplementation, only three were completed, as inadequate oral intake threatened the health of the remaining four. CONCLUSION Low zinc levels are common in childhood-onset anorexia nervosa, appear to be secondary to self-starvation, and are rapidly reversible without zinc supplementation.
Sensor Data Propagation in Mobile Hosting Networks

One of the promising research areas in recent times is mobile and sensor networks. The use of sensors to collect sensitive information such as radiation dosage, humidity, context information, and so on is receiving attention from both the industry and academia. In previous studies, sensors are proposed to enable radiation readings and these readings are sent to a smartphone where the user can be informed about potential hazard. The mobile sends signals such as beep, vibration and push notification to inform users. Different flow patterns are proposed to enable the data sharing such as sequential, parallel, and choice. While this mobile-sensor ecosystem is tested to determine the optimal path that minimizes latency, a critical issue such as energy minimization is ignored. In this paper, we studied the various flow patterns and their implications for energy consumption on both the sensor and the mobile device. Our preliminary evaluations employ the Sensor Tag device from Texas Instruments and iPod Touch. The results show the process flow with the most computation consumes high energy rather than the flow pattern with the highest latency.
Scholarship Unbound: Assessing Service as Scholarship for Promotion and Tenure—A Book Review

KerryAnn O'Meara studied the practices of promotion and tenure committees assessing school of education faculty from four universities that used service as scholarship work as a component of the review process. Learning from the promotion and tenure committee members, higher education administrators, and candidates for promotion/tenure, O'Meara outlines some common themes in using service as scholarship for academic advancement. Understanding these expectations can help Extension professionals in charting and conducting their service as scholarship work.
Reducing Synchronization Overhead with Computation Replication in Parallel Agent-Based Road Traffic Simulation

Road traffic simulation is a useful tool for studying road traffic and evaluating solutions to traffic problems. Large-scale agent-based road traffic simulation is computationally intensive, which triggers the need for conducting parallel simulation. This paper deals with the synchronization problem in parallel agent-based road traffic simulation to reduce the overall simulation execution time. We aim to reduce synchronization operations by introducing some redundant computation to the simulation. There is a trade-off between the benefit of reduced synchronization operations and the overhead of redundant computation. The challenge is to minimize the total overhead of redundant computation and synchronization. First, to determine the amount of redundant computation, we proposed a way to define extended layers of partitions in the road network. The sizes of extended layers are determined by the behavior of agents and the topology of road networks. Second, due to the dynamic nature of road traffic, a heuristic was proposed to adjust the amount of redundant computation according to traffic conditions during simulation run-time to minimize the overall simulation execution time. The efficiency of the proposed method was investigated in a parallel agent-based road traffic simulator using real-world network and trip data. Results have shown that the method can reduce synchronization overhead and improve the overall performance of the parallel simulation significantly.
Bacterial Hha-like proteins facilitate incorporation of horizontally transferred DNA

Horizontal gene transfer (HGT), non-hereditary transfer of genetic material between organisms, accounts for a significant proportion of the genetic variability in bacteria. In Gram negative bacteria, the nucleoid-associated protein H-NS silences unwanted expression of recently acquired foreign DNA. This, in turn, facilitates integration of the incoming genes into the regulatory networks of the recipient cell. Bacteria belonging to the family Enterobacteriaceae express an additional protein, the Hha protein that, by binding to H-NS, potentiates silencing of HGT DNA. We provide here an overview of Hha-like proteins, including their structure and function, as well as their evolutionary relationship. We finally present available information suggesting that, by expressing Hha-like proteins, bacteria such as Escherichia coli facilitate HGT incorporation and hence, the impact of HGT in their genetic diversity.
Training Paradox in the Hotel Industry

This study was undertaken to assess how hospitality managers perceive the relative effectiveness of alternative employee‐training methods to attain specific training objectives. Data was obtained from 56 hotel managers in member organizations of the Norwegian Hospitality Association (RBL). Respondents rated the effectiveness of 15 training methods for prospective use in six training situations. Training methods included were case study, videotape, lecture, one‐to‐one training, role‐play, games, computer simulations, paper‐and‐pencil‐programmed instruction, audiotapes, self‐assessments, movies/films, multi‐media presentations, computer‐assisted instruction, videoconferences, and sensitivity training. Training objectives were knowledge acquisition, changing attitudes, problem solving, interpersonal‐skill development, participant acceptance, and knowledge retention. Results indicate that one‐to‐one training is perceived the best training method across five of six objectives. For interpersonal skill development role‐play is perceived to be better than one‐to‐one training. The study is partly a replication of previous studies. The respondents were also asked which training methods they currently employ. Except from the most frequently employed method, one‐to‐one training, findings indicate that training methods in use deviate from methods perceived to be effective. This may point out a training paradox. Due to the nature of the research field, the current study is regarded as an explorative study in the Norwegian field of hospitality‐management research.
Economics and the Summer Olympics

Applying stochastic frontier analysis, we estimate distance to frontier of countries in the production of success at the Summer Olympic Games since the 1950s. Our measures of success are medal shares and a broader concept including Olympic diplomas. Following Bernard and Busse (2004), population and GDP are used as inputs. Although the impact of GDP is always positive, we show that the sign of the population effect depends on wealth and population size of a country. The results show that the spread of distance to frontier is very wide over time, across countries, gender, and sports: not only resource endowment matters but also utilization of resources. These differences can be seen as caused by differences in financial support, training methods, organization, or culture. Using a method proposed by Battese and Coelli (1995), the authors build on well-documented results in the literature and identify the channels through which planned economies and host countries generate Olympic success. The method allows shedding light on aspects of recent history, such as the consequences of the breakdown of the former Soviet Union.
Causal Relations between Nominal Exchange Rates and Monetary Fundamentals in Central and Eastern European Countries

type="main" xml:id="ecot12055-abs-0001"> The purpose of this paper is to investigate the causal relations between nominal exchange rates and monetary fundamentals. The analysis is conducted using panel quarterly data from the period 2001–12 for Central and Eastern European countries (including Turkey) with relatively flexible exchange rate regimes. The paper reconnects the empirical literature on exchange rates in Central and Eastern European countries with the most recent findings on exchange rate determination in advanced economies. Koyna's approach, which accounts for linkages between countries, is used in the study. The main findings indicate the existence of causal relations running from both nominal exchange rates to monetary fundamentals and in the opposite direction as well as the existence of a relatively strong link between exchange rates and differentials in the relative price of non-tradables.
Phenotypic Spectrum Caused by Transgenic Overexpression of Activated Akt in the Heart*

The serine-threonine kinase, Akt, inhibits cardiomyocyte apoptosis acutely both in vitro and in vivo. However, the effects of chronic Akt activation in the heart are unknown. To address this issue, we generated transgenic mice (TG+) with cardiac-specific expression of a constitutively active mutant of Akt (myr-Akt) driven by the myosin heavy chain-α promoter. Three TG+ founders (9–19 weeks) died suddenly with massive cardiac dilatation. Two viable TG+ lines (TG564 and TG20) derived from independent founders demonstrated cardiac-specific transgene expression as well as activation of Akt and p70S6 kinase. TG564 (n = 19) showed cardiac hypertrophy with a heart/body weight ratio 2.3-fold greater than littermates (n = 17, p< 0.005). TG20 (n = 18) had less marked cardiac hypertrophy with a heart/body weight ratio 1.6-fold greater than littermates (n = 17, p < 0.005). Isolated TG564 myocytes were also hypertrophic with surface areas 1.7-fold greater than littermates (p < 0.000001). Echocardiograms in both lines demonstrated concentric hypertrophy and preserved systolic function. After ischemia-reperfusion, TG+ had a 50% reduction in infarct size versus TG− (17 ± 3%versus 34 ± 4%, p < 0.001). Thus, chronic Akt activation is sufficient to cause a spectrum of phenotypes from moderate cardiac hypertrophy with preserved systolic function and cardioprotection to massive cardiac dilatation and sudden death.
[Measuring the quality of life in economic evaluations: the Dutch EQ-5D tariff].

OBJECTIVE To value EQ-5D health states by a general Dutch public. EQ-5D is a standardised questionnaire that is used to calculate quality-adjusted life-years for cost-utility analysis. DESIGN Descriptive. METHOD A sample of 309 Dutch adults from Rotterdam and surroundings was asked to value 17 EQ-5D health states using the time trade-off method. Regression analysis was applied to the valuations of these 17 health states. By means of the estimated regression coefficients, which together constitute the so-called Dutch tariff, valuations can be determined for all possible EQ-5D health states. These values reflect the relative desirability of health states on a scale where 1 refers to full health and 0 refers to death. Societal valuations are necessary in order to correct life-years for the quality of life. RESULTS Complete data were obtained from 298 persons. Theywere representative for the Dutch population as far as age, gender and subjective health were concerned, but had a somewhat higher educational level. The estimated Dutch EQ-5D tariff revealed that the respondents assigned the most weight to (preventing) pain and anxiety or depression, followed by mobility, self-care and the activities of daily living. The Dutch tariff differed from the UK ('Measurement and Valuation of Health') tariff, which is currently used in Dutch cost-utility analyses. Compared to UK respondents, Dutch respondents assigned more weight to anxiety and depression and less weight to the other dimensions. Conclusion. The valuation of health states by this representative Dutch study group differed from the valuation that is currently used in Dutch cost-utility analyses.
Statin Drugs Do Not Affect Serum Complement Activation In Vitro

Statin drugs prevent coronary heart disease through anti‐inflammatory mechanisms in addition to the well‐known reduction of low‐density lipoproteins. The complement system plays an essential role in the inflammatory response and has been postulated to be modified by statins. A direct role for statins in complement activation, however, has not been previously investigated. We therefore studied the effect of statins on in vitro complement activation. Pravastatin, atorvastatin and the active metabolite of the latter, ortho‐hydroxy atorvastatin, were added to normal human serum and incubated for 1 h in the absence or presence of aggregated immunoglobulin (classical pathway activation) or cobra venom factor (alternative pathway activation). The degree of complement activation, as detected by specific complement‐activation products for the classical pathway (C1rs‐C1‐inhibitor complexes), the combined classical and lectin pathway (C4bc), the alternative pathway (C3bBbP) and the final common pathway (C3bc and TCC), was not affected by pre‐incubation of the serum with any of the statins. Statins do not affect complement activation directly, but indirect effects in vivo may well be operative.
Development of a Risk Assessment Tool for Intraoperative Pressure Ulcers

This article discusses the current literature related to intraoperative and preoperative risk factors for pressure ulcer development. Although surgical patients have a high risk of pressure ulcer development, the intraoperative period of patient care has often been missed as a time of increased risk. Pressure ulcers, which may originate in the operating room, may be incorrectly blamed on postoperative areas of care resulting from delay of pressure ulcer demarcation. In the literature review, current risk assessment tools do not adequately address intraoperative risk factors. A risk assessment tool that incorporates the specific variables relevant to the preoperative and intraoperative environment is proposed based on existing literature. A pilot study of the tool was done testing for intrarater reliability.
Comparative Analysis of a Human Pancreatic Undifferentiated Cell Line (MIA PaCa‐2) to Acinar and Ductal Cells

Pancreatic ductal cell secretion has not been well characterized due to the difficulty in obtaining sufficient quantities of purified ductal cells. To determine if the MIA PaCa-2 cell line would provide a useful model for in vitro studies of pancreatic ductal cell secretion, the present study was designed to characterize these cells in greater detail. In this investigation, the human pancreatic undifferentiated cell line, MIA PaCa-2, was compared with PANC-1 cells (a human ductal cell line previously characterized), isolated rat and human ducts, acinar cells, and nonpancreatic cell lines. The results indicate that while the morphology of the MIA PaCa-2 cell line is nonpolarized and generally atypical of either ductal or acinar cells, the cell line has retained certain biochemical similarities to ductal cells. Additional morphological studies indicated (a) the presence of intermediate filaments characteristic of epithelial cells, (b) the absence of zymogen granules, and (c) an apparent basolateral plasma membrane localization of Na+, K+-ATPase. Similar to ductal cells, biochemical analyses indicated (a) the presence of Na+, K+-ATPase based on [3H]-ouabain binding assays, (b) high levels of carbonic anhydrase, (c) low levels of γ-glutamyl transpeptidase, (d) nondetectable levels of amylase, and (e) protein composition and protein synthetic patterns comparable to PANC-1 cells. Finally, as with PANC-1 cells and isolated rat and human ducts, the major sulfated secretory product of MIA PaCa-2 cells was a protein with a molecular weight of approximately 660,000 to 1 million. These results suggest that while the MIA PaCa-2 cell line can be used to study pancreatic ductal cell secretion, it possesses less ductal-like characteristics than observed with the PANC- 1 cell line.
The French strategic vision of the Indian Ocean

Abstract Whether France has an integrated and consistent Indian Ocean strategy or not is open to debate. What is clear though, is that France has some strategic interests in different parts of the Indian Ocean and, on that basis, it has a set of policy priorities. These priorities are threefold: first, to exercise sovereignty over French territories in the south-west Indian Ocean and to maintain an influence in that sub-region; secondly, to deploy a permanent military presence in the Persian Gulf and in the Gulf of Aden, with a capacity to project force in the greater Indian Ocean; and finally, to build a strategic partnership with India, with a view to coordinating maritime security operations in the Indian Ocean Region. The objective of this paper is to look into the kind of challenges that these policy priorities raise for France as well as the policy choices they imply. In so doing, it will suggest that the French ambition to be a power in the Indian Ocean is faced with growing constraints and contradictions.
Uniform Bounds for a Class of Algebraic Mappings

The computation of residues with respect to a set of given moduli and the Chinese remainder algorithm can be considered a pair of general invertible algebraic mappings. This class of algebraic mappings include the more familiar mappings of evaluation and interpolation as well as forward and inverse fast Fourier transform (FFT). The utility and significance of these mappings are fully recognized in such fields as symbolic and algebraic computation and signal processing. The importance of the more general pair of mappings as algebraic techniques is just beginning to be appreciated. All these mapping techniques are presented in this paper from a unifying perspective. Then, a uniform upper bound for these pairs of invertible mappings in terms of computational cost or time is established. Hopefully, this effort alleviates concerns of applicability of these mapping techniques and encourages their use in numerous other potential application areas.