Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Political Economy in the Twenty-First Century: (A Reliable Key to Systemic Analysis of the Modern Economy and to Resolving its Problems)

The article reveals the objective process through which political economy arose and developed as a fundamental part of economic theory in general. Discussion questions are set forward on the topic and the method of research. The role of the industrial and information periods in the development of capitalism is examined. The article demonstrates that political economy has a full set of instruments for systematically analysing the modern economy and resolving its problems.
A High-Precision Method of Phase-Derived Velocity Measurement and Its Application in Motion Compensation of ISAR Imaging

The existing methods for motion compensation in inverse synthetic aperture radar (ISAR) imaging are generally limited to the low-order target motion model, and require iterative optimization with limited velocity estimate precision and heavy computational burdens. This paper proposes a high-precision method of phase-derived velocity measurement (PDVM) and applies it to motion compensation of ISAR imaging. The method applies PDVM based on range profiles cross correlation to the translational velocity estimation of targets, and converts the velocity measurement results to the corresponding range increment. The equivalent phase-derived range measurement precision can reach the order of magnitude of millimeter (mm) or even sub-mm, which can satisfy the precision requirements of both envelope alignment and phase adjustment. The key to realizing PDVM is resolving phase ambiguity. The traditional method for resolving ambiguity has very high requirements for the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). This work resolves ambiguity by combining multiframe data, i.e., by resolving ambiguity of multiframe data simultaneously instead of resolving ambiguity of single-frame data independently and correcting the above ambiguity-resolving results using a minimum-entropy method. Therefore, phase ambiguity can be correctly resolved under a relatively low SNR. Experimental results of an ISAR imaging of an airplane show that the method proposed in this paper can obtain high-quality ISAR imagery, and can efficiently realize robust imaging under the conditions of low SNR.
Comparison of three retreatment techniques with ultrasonic activation in flattened canals using micro-computed tomography and scanning electron microscopy.

AIM To use micro-CT to quantitatively evaluate the amount of residual filling material after using several techniques to remove root fillings with and without ultrasonic activation and to analyse the cleanliness of the root canal walls and dentine tubules with scanning electron microscopy (SEM). METHODOLOGY The root canals of one hundred and eight human mandibular incisors were selected and instrumented with rotary files using the BioRace system up to file size 40, . 04 taper. After instrumentation, the teeth were filled using a hybrid technique with gutta-percha and sealer then divided into three groups according to the method used for removing the root filling: G1-Reciproc (using only instrument R50), G2-ProTaper Universal retreatment system and G3-Manual (hand files and Gates-Glidden burs). All groups were divided into two subgroups depending on whether ultrasonic agitation was used with the irrigants. Micro-CT scans were taken before and after removal of the filling material to detect residual material in the canal. After micro-CT analysis, the roots were cut in half, imaged by SEM and scored based on the amount of surface covered by root filling remnants. The data were analysed statistically using a significance level of 5%. RESULTS All groups had retained material in the root canals after instrumentation. The Reciproc method was associated with less retained material than the ProTaper and Manual methods. Ultrasonic activation significantly reduced the amount of residual root filling in all groups (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION None of the instrumentation methods were able to completely remove root filling material. Ultrasonic activation improved the removal of root filling material in all groups.
Transition of Spatial Distribution of Human Capital inã€€Japan

We examine the transition of the spatial distribution of human capital by using data on Japanese prefectures. We find substantive concentration of university enrollments in Tokyo and its neighboring prefectures. After graduation, slight dispersal occurs but the movements are limited to neighboring prefectures. Moreover, we examine the relationship between human capital distributions of different cohorts, and find that the concentration of university graduates of a particular age group attracts university graduates of adjacent age groups. However, such an effect becomes insignificant and sometimes opposite as the age differences grow.
Usefulness of india ink artifact in steady‐state free precession pulse sequences for detection and quantification of intramyocardial fat

In steady state free precession (SSFP) images acquired with a repetition time/echo time (TR/TE) ≈ 2, fat is surrounded by a black boundary, called “India Ink” artifact. Indian Ink artifact may improve detection of intramyocardial fat. Aims of this study were: (i) to assess the accuracy of SSFP technique for the detection of fat metaplasia in remote myocardial infarction (RMI); (ii) to evaluate the inter‐ and intraobserver reproducibility for the quantification of intramyocardial fat using SSFP and fast spin echo/short TI inversion recovery (FSE/STIR) techniques.
H∞ bipartite consensus of discrete-time multi-agent systems with directed information exchanges

We study an H∞ bipartite consensus problem of the first-order linear multi-agent systems with directed information exchanges. For a complex network consisting of two sub-networks, a bipartite consensus problem concerns both the cooperation and the competition among the agents. The agents in different sub-networks reach different consensus values, while the two values have different signals. A distributed bipartite consensus protocol is designed to solve the bipartite consensus problem, and guarantee the system keep an H∞ performance. A simulation example is presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the theoretical results.
Emulating an Anechoic Environment in a Wave-Diffusive Medium Through an Extended Time-Reversal Approach

A generalized time-reversal (TR) technique for the generation of coherent wavefronts within complex media is presented in this paper. Although completely general, this method is primarily considered for testing purposes herein, where an equipment under test is submitted to a series of impinging wavefronts with varying features. Electromagnetic compatibility, antenna testing as well as telecommunications facilities where complex-wavefront schemes (e.g., multi-path configurations) are required, could benefit from the proposed approach. The main advantages and limitations of current standard TR approaches are reviewed in this respect, exposing their inadequacy for this particular context. The proposed alternative technique, named time-reversal electromagnetic chamber (TREC) is introduced and studied by means of a formal theoretical analysis, showing how a reverberation chamber (RC) supporting a diffused-field condition can be operated as a generator of deterministic pulsed wavefronts. The TREC is demonstrated to be capable of generating arbitrary wavefronts with a remarkable accuracy, allowing to revisit the RC as a deterministic facility: the main advantages of RCs and anechoic ones are merged, leading to a new facility capable of potentially generating in real-time pulsed wavefronts while using low input energies, without requiring neither mechanical displacements nor any special features of the sources.
Using systems thinking to improve natural resource governance and strengthen weak networks

This paper reports on the decision‐making processes in international conservation as found in two southern African case studies, the Greater Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area, and the Greater Mapungubwe Transfrontier Conservation Area. Using systems thinking to approach the model of cross‐border natural resource governance and management provided insights at the landscape scale, particularly regarding the absence of a physical institution that can be evaluated and consequently improved. The overall objective of the research project was to consult with all layers of decision and policy makers involved in order to synthesize the current state of knowledge, identify the range of potential incremental effects of management responses on natural and human systems, and determine the range of values that drive decision‐making processes. The methodology involved analyses of semi‐structured interviews with stakeholders involved in the TFCAs, as well as relevant policies and treaty documents. The findings in the governance and decision making sphere were analysed using Capability Maturity Model theory and the NATO Network Enabling Capability Model theory. The main recommendations suggest improving involvement in decision‐making processes from the grass‐roots or community level, developing communities of practice between the different countries and core protected areas, prioritizing policy harmonization, and establishing a physical TFCA unit with dedicated, longer term staff instead of the current brief rotational cycle. The same Capability Maturity Model theory was then applied to a different type of network; the Regional Inter‐Agency Standing Committee, an informal network of humanitarian aid agencies and organizations. The latter research is an ongoing project, but preliminary results show that strengthening a central platform or institution can greatly improve the connections between entities within a system of systems, as well as the performance within each individual entity.
Brain Drain Revisited

The "brain drain/brain gain" debate is raging again after thirty years of respite, based on better empirical data but the same conceptual framework, which is static, retains nation states as the pertinent space of analysis, and assumes labour demand to be exogenous. Starting from opposite premises, we suggest to distinguish between two types of migration flows. One, potentially reversible, concerns the tradable, for-profit productive occupations, the location of which are directly controlled by capital's global strategies. The other, self sustaining, refers to the non-traded, not-for profit occupations which cater for the reproduction of the labour force, under the budgetary constraints laid upon the states by their competition to attract capital flows.
Antibody response to four secretory proteins from Mycobacterium tuberculosis and their complex antigen in TB patients.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate antibody responses to a panel of four protein antigens secreted from Mycobacterium tuberculosis, CFP-21, ESAT-6, MPT-63 and MPT-64, and their complex antigen. DESIGN Seventy-eight samples of serum and cerebral spinal fluid were tested by ELISA. RESULTS Serum IgM antibody positive rates of protein antigens CFP-21, ESAT-6, MPT-63 and MPT-64 and their multi-antigen complex were respectively 34.6%, 60.3%, 52.6%, 78.2% and 96.2%; IgG antibody positive rates were respectively 46.2%, 64.1%, 93.6%, 57.7% and 84.6%. The specificity of the antibodies to the four proteins secreted from M. tuberculosis and its mixture antigen was 100%; sensitivity to the multi-antigen complex was higher than for the four single antigens. Among the IgM positive rates, the differences between the multi-antigen complex and CFP-21, ESAT-6, MPT-63 and MPT-64 were significant (P < 0.01); among the IgG positive rates, the differences between the multi-antigen complex and CFP-21, ESAT-6 and MPT-64 were significant (P < 0.01). Although the IgG positive rate for MPT-63 was higher than for the multi-antigen complex, the difference was not significantly different (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION These findings indicate that the multi-antigen complex composed of CFP-21, ESAT-6, MPT-63 and MPT-64 may be useful in the diagnosis of TB.
Digenean Trematode Infections of Native Freshwater Snails and Invasive Potamopyrgus antipodarum in the Grand Teton National Park/John D. Rockefeller Memorial Parkway Area

Abstract Outside its native range, the invasive New Zealand mud snail (NZMS), Potamopyrgus antipodarum, is rarely reported to harbor parasites. To test this observation, 7 sites along the Snake River and Polecat Creek in the Grand Teton National Park/John D Rockefeller Memorial Parkway area (Wyoming) were surveyed for native aquatic snails, NZMS, and associated digenean trematodes, in July 2005. At 6 sites, native snails harbored patent digenean infections; within 2 hr, ≤10% of lymnaeid snails shed furcocercariae or xiphidiocercariae, and ≤42% of physid snails released furcocercariae or echinostome cercariae. Partial 18S rDNA sequences were recovered from several furcocercariae. Potamopyrgus antipodarum was present at, and collected from, 5 sites. Polymerase chain reaction assays targeting digenean rDNA sequences in DNA extracted from pools of 150 NZMS snails did not detect parasites. The examination of 960 NZMS by overnight shedding yielded 1 occurrence of (surface-encysted) metacercariae of an unclassified notocotylid (based on 18S and 28S rDNA sequences). The dissection of 150 ethanol-fixed NZMS (30/site) revealed 2 types of digenean metacercariae encysted in tissues of 5 snails from Polecat Creek. Thus, invasive NZMS may serve as first and second intermediate host for digenean parasites.
The inflammation-lipocalin 2 axis may contribute to the development of chronic kidney disease.

BACKGROUND Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is an important risk factor for coronary heart disease, and previous studies indicated the involvement of low-grade inflammation in the pathogenesis of CKD. METHODS The study was designed to (i) identify and confirm genes and their products upregulated in mesangial cells cocultured with endotoxin-stimulated macrophages and (ii) determine the clinical relevance of genes and proteins upregulated in mesangial cells under inflammatory conditions by an epidemiological approach. RESULTS DNA microarray analysis revealed upregulated expression of many genes and their products including several cytokines and chemokines, as well as the inflammatory marker, lipocalin 2 gene. The gene expression and protein upregulation of lipocalin 2 were synergistically affected by endotoxin and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α stimulation. In human studies, lipocalin 2 level was significantly associated with creatinine (r = 0.419, P < 0.001) and negatively associated with eGFR (r = -0.365, P < 0.001). Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed a significant association between lipocalin 2 and soluble tumor necrosis factor receptor 2 (sTNF-R2), eGFR and uric acid in general subjects attending regular annual medical check-up (n = 420). When subjects with diabetes were excluded from the analysis, lipocalin 2 remained associated with sTNF-R2, eGFR and uric acid. CONCLUSIONS Since an activated TNF system, as demonstrated by elevated sTNF-R2, and elevated uric acid were recently implicated in an elevated CKD risk, we conclude that inflammation could play an important role in the pathogenesis of CKD, and that lipocalin 2 is a potential universal marker for impaired kidney function. Furthermore, the results obtained by the current microarray analysis could improve the understanding of gene profiles associated with the pathophysiology of CKD under inflammatory conditions.
International Opportunity Recognition: An Overview

Since 2006, the role of international opportunity recognition became an emergent research stream in international entrepreneurship. Following the definition of international opportunity recognition, the initial international opportunity recognition is defined as follows: The way an entrepreneur discovers the opportunity to exchange products and services with a new or existing partner in a new international market for the first time. In this study, we perform an in-depth literature review on the international opportunity recognition concept, and we suggest future lines of research in this topic.
Systematic Identification of Functional Plant Modules through the Integration of Complementary Data Sources1[W][OA]

A major challenge is to unravel how genes interact and are regulated to exert specific biological functions. The integration of genome-wide functional genomics data, followed by the construction of gene networks, provides a powerful approach to identify functional gene modules. Large-scale expression data, functional gene annotations, experimental protein-protein interactions, and transcription factor-target interactions were integrated to delineate modules in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). The different experimental input data sets showed little overlap, demonstrating the advantage of combining multiple data types to study gene function and regulation. In the set of 1,563 modules covering 13,142 genes, most modules displayed strong coexpression, but functional and cis-regulatory coherence was less prevalent. Highly connected hub genes showed a significant enrichment toward embryo lethality and evidence for cross talk between different biological processes. Comparative analysis revealed that 58% of the modules showed conserved coexpression across multiple plants. Using module-based functional predictions, 5,562 genes were annotated, and an evaluation experiment disclosed that, based on 197 recently experimentally characterized genes, 38.1% of these functions could be inferred through the module context. Examples of confirmed genes of unknown function related to cell wall biogenesis, xylem and phloem pattern formation, cell cycle, hormone stimulus, and circadian rhythm highlight the potential to identify new gene functions. The module-based predictions offer new biological hypotheses for functionally unknown genes in Arabidopsis (1,701 genes) and six other plant species (43,621 genes). Furthermore, the inferred modules provide new insights into the conservation of coexpression and coregulation as well as a starting point for comparative functional annotation.
Survey of Wastewater Indicators and Human Pathogen Genomes in Biosolids Produced by Class A and Class B Stabilization Treatments

ABSTRACT Accurate modeling of the infectious aerosol risk associated with the land application of biosolids requires an in-depth knowledge of the magnitudes and changes in pathogen concentrations for a variety of class A and class B stabilization methods. The following survey used quantitative PCR (qPCR) and culture assays to detect environmentally resistant bacterial and viral pathogens and biosolid indicator organisms for 36 biosolid grab samples. Biosolids were collected from 14 U.S. states and included 16 class B mesophilic anaerobic digestion (MAD) samples and 20 class A biosolid samples from temperature-phased anaerobic digestion (TPAD), MAD plus composting (COM), and MAD plus heat pelletization processes. The indicator concentrations of fecal coliforms and male-specific coliphages as well as pathogen genome concentrations for human adenovirus species, Legionella pneumophila, Staphylococcus aureus, and Clostridium difficile were significantly lower in the class A samples, and a multivariate analysis of variance ranked the stabilization processes from the lowest pathogen/indicator load to the highest as (i) class A COM, (ii) class A TPAD, and (iii) class B MAD. Human adenovirus genomes were found in 88% of the class B samples and 70 to 100% of the class A samples. L. pneumophila, S. aureus, and C. difficile genomes were detected at the qPCR assay detection limits in 19 to 50% of the class B and class A anaerobic digestion samples, while L. pneumophila was detected in 50% of the class A compost samples. When considering all the stabilization methods, both the fecal coliform and the male-specific coliphage concentrations show a significant linear correlation with the pathogen genome concentrations. This survey provides the necessary pathogen concentrations to add to biosolid aerosol risk and pathogen exposure analyses and clarifies the effectiveness of class A stabilization methods with the pathogen and indicator loads in biosolids.
Food and drinking patterns as predictors of 6-year BMI-adjusted changes in waist circumference

Few studies have investigated the prospective associations between diet or drinking patterns and abdominal obesity; we therefore investigated whether food and beverage groups or patterns predicted 6-year changes in waist circumference (WC) and whether these associations were independent of concurrent changes in BMI as a measure of general obesity. The subjects were 2300 middle-aged men and women with repeated measurements of dietary intake, BMI and WC from 1982 to 1993. Intakes from ten food groups and from coffee, tea, wine, beer and spirits were assessed; gender-specific food factors were identified by factor analyses. Multiple linear regression analyses were done before and after adjustment for concurrent changes in BMI. A high intake of potatoes seemed to prevent gain in WC for men, while a high intake of refined bread was associated with gain in WC for women. The association persisted for refined bread, but not for potatoes, after adjustment for concurrent BMI changes. Among women, but not men, high intakes of beer and spirits were associated with gain in WC in both models. A high intake of coffee for women and moderate to high intake of tea for men were associated with gain in WC, but the associations were weakened, especially for women, after adjustment for BMI changes. None of the food factors was associated with WC changes. Based on the present study, we conclude that very few food items and no food patterns seem to predict changes in WC, whereas high intakes of beer and spirits among women, and moderate to high tea intake among men, may promote gain in WC.
Neurogenic Vasodilation in Rabbit Hindlimb Mediated by Tachykinins and Nitric Oxide

Summary: We investigated the role of nitric oxide (NO) in the mediation of nerve stimulation-induced vasodilation in skeletal muscle. Hindlimb blood flow and vascular resistance were measured in pentobarbital-anesthetized, paralyzed, and guanethidine-treated rabbits. Centrifugal electrical stimulation of the sciatic nerve bundle induced reproducible, frequency-, voltage-, and pulse duration-dependent decrements in vascular resistance. The tachykinin antagonist CP-96,345 (1 mg/kg intravenously, i.v.) attenuated the vasodilation induced by intraarterially (i.a.) administered substance P but not by adenosine. Furthermore, CP-96,345 attenuated the decrease in vascular resistance in response to nerve stimulation, from 22.9 ± 3.2 to 4.5 ± 4.1% of control resting resistance (p < 0.005), without affecting basal vascular resistance. An inhibitor of NO formation, Nω-nitro-l-arginine methyl ester (l-NAME, 30 mg/kg i.v.), increased vascular resistance from 6.1 ± 0.5 to 9.1 ± 1.2 resistance units (p < 0.05) and significantly attenuated the vascular response to i.a. administered substance P but not adenosine. Finally, nerve stimulation-induced reduction in vascular resistance was attenuated by l-NAME, from 22.6 ± 2.7 to 7.0 ± 1.0% of control (p < 0.001). These findings suggest that tachykinins and NO are involved in mediation of vasodilation in response to the present type of nerve stimulation. The data are consistent with the hypothesis that NO is produced subsequent to neural release of tachykinin-type transmitter(s).