Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Food access, diet and health in the UK: an empirical study of Birmingham

Purpose – This paper aims to investigate the statistical and geographical links between the prevalence of obesity and a range of socio‐economic indicators in a major UK cityDesign/methodology/approach – The geographical pattern of fresh fruit and vegetable retailing was mapped across Birmingham (UK), and this data was combined with UK census data from Neighbourhood Statistics to investigate possible correlations between obesity and the social geography of this city. To further elicit the varying underlying links between obesity and social conditions, a methodology of partial correlations was used to create “social transects” across Birmingham so the operational effects of social conditions upon poor diet could be investigated across a range of Birmingham neighbourhood types.Findings – Across Birmingham as a whole, people whose ethnic or social make‐up did not fit the dominant group in their neighbourhood were more likely to be obese than those of the majority socio‐ethnic group for that area. The level of.
Region-specific alterations in glutamate receptor 1 phosphorylation during context-induced drug seeking after withdrawal from morphine self-administration

Re-exposure to morphine-associated environments elicits morphine-seeking behavior after a long period of withdrawal in rats with a history of morphine dependence. Adaptations in glutamate receptor 1 (GluR1) phosphorylation in limbic brain regions have been shown to occur during withdrawal from addictive drugs, such as cocaine, methamphetamine, and heroin. However, whether similar adaptations exist after spontaneous withdrawal from repeated morphine intake has not been studied. In our present study, alterations in GluR1 expression and GluR1 phosphorylation at serine 845 (Ser845) and serine 831 (Ser831) in multiple limbic brain regions of rats were measured following context-induced drug craving after 1 or 10 days of withdrawal from intravenous morphine self-administration. Phosphorylation of GluR1 at Ser845, but not Ser831, increases in the nucleus accumbens and central amygdala from 1 to 10 days of withdrawal, and there were no changes in GluR1 phosphorylation at Ser845 or Ser831 in the hippocampal CA1 subregion from 1 to 10 days of withdrawal. Significant positive correlations between numbers of drug-seeking responses and GluR1 phosphorylation at Ser845 in the nucleus accumbens were found in individual animals. These results suggest that time-dependent and region-specific changes in phosphorylation of GluR1 at Ser845, but not Ser831, are involved in the drug-seeking behavior elicited by re-exposure to the morphine-associated context.
Book-Tax Consolidation, Rates of Return, and Capital Structure

This study finds a strong relationship at the firm level between differences in the rates of return reported for the financial and tax consolidated groups on one hand and differences in tax return and financial statement capital structure measures on the other. In particular, after controlling for size, profitability, global character (domestic or multinational), industry, and the lack of eliminating entries for intercompany transactions, the authors find that the more the rate of return for the financial group exceeds the rate of return for the tax group, the more the tax measures of leverage, debt, interest, and assets exceed financial measures for the same items. Their results, they note, are consistent with several explanations, including the use of special purpose entities, hybrid financing arrangements, state tax reporting, deconsolidating from worldwide to U.S. reporting, transfer pricing, and the foreign tax credit limitation. The results are also consistent with the premise that taxpayers may be taking advantage of differences in the financial and tax consolidation rules to overreport income performance and underreport risk to shareholders relative to what they report to the IRS. This report is based in part on confidential tax return data obtained from the IRS Statistics of Income Division. The data are protected by nondisclosure requirements under the Internal Revenue Code, and all statistics are presented in an aggregated form.
Weight control among obese adolescents: A pilot study

Objective The present study evaluated weight loss and compliance outcomes for overweight adolescents assigned to one of two dietary interventions differing in the type of snacks allowed. Methods The study was a 12-week, controlled clinical trial, among otherwise healthy but overweight (body mass index ≥95th percentile) 11-year-old to 15-year-old girls who were randomly assigned to either a 1,500 kcal/day free-snack program or a 1,500 kcal/day restricted-snack program. All subjects were counseled to consume three servings of dairy products per day, and were provided with a 500 mg calcium supplement as well. Subjects in the free-snack group could choose any 150-calorie item as one of their two daily snacks, including regular soda if desired; however, subjects in the restricted-snack group were limited to diet soda. Results Thirty-two adolescent girls completed the 12-week intervention. Both diets were equally effective in achieving a modest amount of weight loss, and were equally acceptable to the subjects. Significant decreases in weight, body mass index, anthropometric measures, total cholesterol and triglycerides were observed. Conclusions A 1,500 kcal/day diet allowing for a free snack of 150 calories was equally as effective as a more restricted snack policy in achieving a modest amount of weight loss among overweight 11-year-old to 15-year-old girls. In addition, results suggest that some soda may be included in a teen weight control diet, as long as caloric intake is maintained at recommended levels, and care is taken to achieve adequate intake of essential nutrients. Calcium intake among subjects was low at baseline, and, although it increased during the study (due to supplementation), further efforts to increase consumption of naturally calcium-rich and calcium-fortified foods and beverages are needed.
An augmented reality prototype for investigating tangible and virtual components in a gaming environment

In recent years, button-based controllers for gaming consoles have evolved into dynamic, sensor based controllers that track movement and mimic real life instruments. The sudden popularity growth of this novel and interactive sensing technique has led us to consider whether realistic motion controllers will become the standard of future entertainment. This notion inspired us to investigate the preferability of physical interaction techniques over their virtualized equivalents. To accomplish this, a multi-user prototype was developed and designed using affordable and portable commercial hardware components. Our system features an overhead camera as the main form of input, coupled with a vibration sensor for touch-detection, and a projector for graphical output. Three gaming applications, an augmented tower defense game, roll-and-move board game, and augmented Settlers of Catan, were implemented to test the hypothesis that physical components will be most suitable for social situations while digitization is preferred for mundane tasks. Additionally, two formal experiments were conducted in the context of the last two gaming applications to determine the overall effects on player enjoyment. Our findings suggest that while it is possible to use either physical or digital implementations of game components, scenarios involving more than two simultaneously interactive players benefit from tangible components. %%%%Depuis quelque temps, les controleurs de jeux video evoluent en instruments a bases de capteurs qui suivent les mouvements dynamiques et naturelles, et imitent les instruments utilises dans la vie de tous les jours. La popularite soudaine de ce type de controleurs nous mene a considerer si cette nouvelle maniere d'interaction naturel va devenir la norme pour l'avenir du divertissement electronique. Cette notion nous a inspire a investiguer la preference de l'interaction physique versus les modes virtuels conventionnels. Pour accomplir ceci, un systeme prototype multiutilisateur a ete developpe en utilisant des composantes materielles commerciales a prix modiques. Notre systeme comprend une camera montee sur le plafond, qui sert de capteur principal, couple avec un capteur de vibration pour la detection tactile et finalement un projecteur servant a projeter des graphiques sur une table. Trois applications de divertissements on ete crees: un jeu de defense de tours augmente, un jeu de des et un jeu Settles of Catan augmente. Ces jeux ont ete developpes pour tester notre hypothese que les modes d'interactions physiques sont preferes dans des situations sociales, tandis que les modes virtuels sont plus adaptes pour des tâches banales. De plus, deux experiences ont ete menees dans le contexte des deux derniers jeux pour determiner l'effet sur le plaisir des joueurs. Nos resultats demontrent qu'il est possible d'utiliser les modes physiques ou virtuels d'interaction des jeux, mais que les modes tangibles procurent plus de benefices lorsqu'il y a plus de deux joueurs simultanes.
Etanercept reduces hyperalgesia in experimental painful neuropathy

Abstract Etanercept, a recombinant tumor necrosis factor receptor (p75)‐Fc fusion protein competitively inhibits tumor necrosis factor‐alpha (TNF). Etanercept has been successfully used in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, where it reduces pain and inflammation. Because locally produced proinflammatory cytokines play a role in pain after nerve injury, we investigated whether etanercept can reduce pain and hyperalgesia in an animal model of painful neuropathy, the chronic constriction injury of the sciatic nerve. C57BL/6 mice received etanercept or sham treatment by local near‐nerve injection to the injured nerve or by systemic application. Treatment with etanercept reduced thermal hyperalgesia and mechanical allodynia significantly in both modes of application. The effect of etanercept was present in animals that were treated from the time of surgery and in those that were treated from day 6, when hyperalgesia was already present. These results suggest the potential of etanercept as a treatment option for patients with neuropathic pain.
Laser blastocyst biopsy for preimplantation diagnosis in the human

Summary A new methodology for blastocyst biopsy that uses a 1. 48μm in diode laser is described. Trophectoderm cells are biopsied after laster zona drilling and culture, fixed and processed for fluorescent in situ hybridisation (FISH) analysis. Preliminary results on the efficiency of the procedure and blastocyst recovery rate are promising. Blastocyst laser biopsy is a useful tool in preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) as it allows a more reliable diagnosis and widens the diagnostic possibilities on account of the higher number of cells obtained in the biopsy.
Modeling the Effect of Consumer Utility Through Personalized Services and Compensating Variance Through Greater Product Variety on Increased Spending in Online Advertisements

Extending and combining concepts from consumer surplus of product availability and personalization strategies under privacy concern we made a model to comprehend and justify the reasons for the increase in the spending on online advertisements. We inductively found that with higher capability to sell increased product variety online and with high consumer utility from personalized services, investment in online advertisement will rise with a greater exponential slope and reach the saturation point much later than with lower levels of consumer utility and product variety. First, we linked online advertisement with technology adoption, by using decision-theoretic model to understand the probabilistic outcomes of when a firm decides to wait and observe and when it decides to adopt. Then we tried to comprehend the implications of consumer utility through personalized services and the compensating variance through increased product variety. Considering, that Internet adoption like most technology adoption will follow an S-curve we inductively concluded, along with attached evidences, that spending in online advertisements will follow the same path. The slope, inflection point and the saturation point of the curve will depend on the ability to increase consumer utility through personalization and the consumer variance with increased product variety. Combining the concepts we also stated that a firm is more likely to adopt online advertisement as a media for marketing if these two features are optimized.
The Impact of Recent Central Bank Asset Purchase Programmes

This article analyses the effectiveness of the asset purchase programmes implemented by the Federal Reserve and the Bank of England. Both the Federal Reserve's Large-Scale Asset Purchase (LSAP) programme and the Bank of England's Asset Purchase Facility (APF) had a significant impact on financial markets when the first stages were announced, but the effects became smaller for later extensions of the programmes. Applying a methodology developed by D'Amico and King (2010), we estimate that the lasting reduction in bond supply via central bank asset purchases lowered government bond yields significantly. The effect is largely similar for the LSAP and the APF. Our estimations also suggest that the Federal Reserve's new maturity extension programme (MEP) should have an effect on longer-term Treasury bond yields comparable to that of the outright asset purchases under the LSAP.
FDTD solution of reconstructing permittivity of a dielectric inclusion in a waveguide taking into account measurement inaccuracy

Wave propagation in a rectangular waveguide with perfectly conducting walls containing a parallel-plane dielectric diaphragm and a small inclusion is modeled using a numerical solution to Maxwell's equations. The methods are developed for reconstructing permittivity of the inclusion from the transmission coefficient of the principal waveguide mode taking into account experimental error. The results determined by these methods are compared with experimental data obtained for a homogeneous diaphragm.
Bank Patronage Factors of Muslim and Non‐Muslim Customers

A fiercer level of competition is becoming the most influential factor in the structure and activities of the banking system around the globe. Banks are competing not only with themselves, but also with other financial institutions within the financial industry. In a plural society such as in Malaysia, the competition is becoming fiercer with the existence of the Islamic bank, which was established specifically to cater for the needs of the Muslim population in the country. To attract more customers, both conventional and Islamic banks should have information on factors used by customers in selecting their banks. Investigates how Muslims and non‐Muslims select their banks and what services they use frequently. Results show that there are many similarities between Muslims and non‐Muslims in their selection of banks and utilization of services.
Construction to Operations Exchange: Challenges of Implementing COBie and BIM in a Large Owner Organization

Despite the transition from paper to digital media, hand-off of data and documents from construction to operations and facilities management is still cumbersome and often requires manual entry and duplication of effort. This paper presents initial findings from an ongoing pilot project that began in spring 2011 on a digital information exchange standard called COBie (Construction Operations Building Information Exchange). Through interviews with key participants, we analyze existing practices as well as proposed changes to be made to these practices. Across a large organization, digital information is not trusted—nor is information neutral. Information is connected to particular jurisdictions who currently control the creation and management of their own datasets. We found that despite availability of digital information, people generally prefer to obtain information from colleagues with direct knowledge of the project or from paper documents. Digital information was considered to be either too difficult to access or not viewed as trustworthy since digital data was not consistently maintained. As more digital information is amassed, including information from COBie and building information models, organizational cultures and practices need to be developed around these new datasets.
Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy (Fear of Flying): From a Private Practice Perspective

A new treatment modality has been introduced recently as an alternative to standard in vivo exposure therapy or other traditional therapeutic approaches. The Phobia Center™ is the first non-affiliated private practice in the United States to treat fear of flying (FOF) patients with VR exposure therapy. The preliminary results are very encouraging and support the efficacy of VR exposure therapy. The rationale for VR treatment for fear of flying and other anxiety disorders are examined, and factors incorporating the utilization of VR treatment in a private practice setting are explored.
ICT Development and Small Tourism Enterprises in Europe

ABSTRACT Small tourism enterprises make-up a large element of the European tourism economy, notably in hospitality as well as in independent cultural and visitor attractions, travel agencies and tour guides. However, the opportunities and impacts arising from the development of Information Communications Technology (ICT) raise particular problems for the small firm which risks being bypassed in e-commerce and further disadvantaged in marketing and the customer inter-face. This paper discusses the findings of a comparative survey of ICT usage by over 800 SMTEs in three contrasting destination regions—London UK, the Aragon province in Spain and The Netherlands. Within the largely fragmented SMTE supply sectors and regions themselves, the approach to and adoption of ICT has been uneven, whilst the micro-enterprise also differs in its attitude towards ICT in contrast to the medium-sized firm, in some respects refuting the claim that SMEs are simply “lost in the electronic marketplace”.
Predicting Long-Term Cognitive Outcome Following Breast Cancer with Pre-Treatment Resting State fMRI and Random Forest Machine Learning

We aimed to determine if resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) acquired at pre-treatment baseline could accurately predict breast cancer-related cognitive impairment at long-term follow-up. We evaluated 31 patients with breast cancer (age 34–65) prior to any treatment, post-chemotherapy and 1 year later. Cognitive testing scores were normalized based on data obtained from 43 healthy female controls and then used to categorize patients as impaired or not based on longitudinal changes. We measured clustering coefficient, a measure of local connectivity, by applying graph theory to baseline resting state fMRI and entered these metrics along with relevant patient-related and medical variables into random forest classification. Incidence of cognitive impairment at 1 year follow-up was 55% and was predicted by classification algorithms with up to 100% accuracy (p < 0.0001). The neuroimaging-based model was significantly more accurate than a model involving patient-related and medical variables (p = 0.005). Hub regions belonging to several distinct functional networks were the most important predictors of cognitive outcome. Characteristics of these hubs indicated potential spread of brain injury from default mode to other networks over time. These findings suggest that resting state fMRI is a promising tool for predicting future cognitive impairment associated with breast cancer. This information could inform treatment decision making by identifying patients at highest risk for long-term cognitive impairment.
Clicks vs. bricks: internet-facilitated relationships in financial services

A consensus has not yet been developed in the marketing literature about the ability of technology to facilitate relationships between organisations and their customers. One argument suggests that technology may facilitate dialogue between companies and customers, and thus transform their relationships. In contrast, some suggest that only people create relationships. We compare "clicks" (internet) banking and "bricks" (face-to-face) banking in their potential to facilitate common relationship marketing variables such as commitment, trust, satisfaction, and value. The study was conducted in two stages; in focus groups of customers we explored the issues about bank–customer relationships, followed by a mail survey experiment with 579 randomly selected customers. The data were analysed using structural equation modelling. We conclude that the fear that technology may harm the formation of customer relationships may not be justified, as long as there are compensating social components.
Electric Multipoles Magnetic Multipoles Toroidal Multipoles Radiation Patterns Dipoles : Quadrupoles : Octupoles : charge current

The toroidal dipole is a peculiar electromagnetic excitation that can not be presented in terms of standard electric and magnetic multipoles. A static toroidal dipole has been shown to lead to violation of parity in atomic spectra and many other unusual electromagnetic phenomena. The existence of electromagnetic resonances of toroidal nature was experimentally demonstrated only recently, first in the microwave metamaterials, and then at optical frequencies, where they could be important in spectroscopy analysis of a wide class of media with constituents of toroidal symmetry, such as complex organic molecules, fullerenes, bacteriophages, etc. Despite the experimental progress in studying toroidal resonances, no direct link has yet been established between microscopic toroidal excitations and macroscopic scattering characteristics of the medium. To address this essential gap in the electromagnetic theory, we have developed an analytical approach for calculating the transmissivity and reflectivity of thin slabs of materials that exhibit toroidal dipolar excitations.
Observation of curative effect regarding corneal cross-linking treatment of riboflavin combined with 440 nm bluelight cornea for fungal keratitis

To observe and analyze the curative effects of the treatment of riboflavin combined with 440 nm blue-light corneal cross-linking (CXL) treatment for fungal keratitis via a rabbit model experiment. A model of rabbit fungal keratitis was used through anterior stromal injection in which 24 rabbits were randomly divided into blank control, 360 nm group, and 440 nm group. Both groups underwent CXL treatment. Ultraviolet radiation A (365 nm) and blue-light (440 nm) irradiations were performed for 30 min after 30 min of 0.1% riboflavin eye drops used in 360 nm and 440 nm groups, respectively. Slit-lamp observation, photography of the cornea, calculation of ulcer area, and comparison of examination under confocal microscope were performed for all rabbits on the first, third, and seventh days after treatment. No statistical significance was observed between all groups on the first day after treatment (P>0.05). In 3 days after surgery, the cornea ulcer area decreased by 35.65% in the 360 group (P=0.012) and 37.94% in the 440 group (P=0.015), thus the two groups showing no statistical significance (P=0.88). In 7 days after surgery, the area vanished by 59.02% in the 360 group (P=0.00) and 55.29% in the 440 group (P=0.001), thus the two groups showing statistical significance (P=0.75). Riboflavin with 440 nm blue-light irradiation had a positive effect on treatment for fungal keratitis.