Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Impact of spironolactone on vascular, myocardial, and functional parameters in untreated patients with a hypertensive response to exercise.

BACKGROUND Although a hypertensive response to exercise (HRE) is associated with cardiac risk and masked hypertension (MHT), its mechanisms and appropriate treatment remain unclear. We investigated spironolactone as a treatment for abnormal vascular and myocardial stiffness in HRE. METHODS In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of 115 patients (54 ± 9 years, 57% men) with an HRE (≥210/105 mm Hg in men; ≥190/105 mm Hg in women) but no prior history of hypertension or myocardial ischemia, MHT prevalence was 40%. Patients were randomized to spironolactone 25mg daily (n = 58) or placebo (n = 57) and underwent evaluation at baseline and 3 months with exercise echocardiography, VO2max, pulse wave velocity (PWV), exercise and central blood pressure (BP), and 24-hour ambulatory BP. Changes in left ventricular mass index (LVMI), Doppler-derived E/em ratio (LV filling pressure), and myocardial strain were assessed. RESULTS Baseline 24-hour systolic BP (SBP) was 133 ± 10 mm Hg and peak-exercise SBP was 219 ± 16 mm Hg. Peak systolic strain (0.3 ± 3.6% vs. -0.1 ± 3.2, P = 0.56), E/em (-1.1 ± 2.3 vs. -0.6 ± 1.7, P = 0.30), VO(2max) (0.4 ± 4.9 vs. -0.9 ± 4.1 ml/kg/min, P = 0.15), and adjusted PWV did not significantly change with treatment, despite reduction in exercise SBP, 24-hour SBP, and LVMI. The change in exercise E/em was of borderline significance (-0.3 ± 2.4 vs. 0.8 ± 2.8, P = 0.06) and became significant after adjustment for baseline differences (P = 0.01). Patients with higher LVMI significantly increased VO(2max) (1.1 ± 5.6 vs. -2.4 ± 4.4 ml/kg/min, P < 0.05) and reduced exercise E/e(m) (-0.7 ± 2.7 vs. 1.9 ± 2.8, P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS In HRE patients without previous hypertension, short-term spironolactone reduced exercise BP, 24-hour ambulatory BP, LVMI, and E/e(m) but did not significantly alter exercise capacity or myocardial strain.
Diet with a low n‐6/n‐3 essential fatty acid ratio when started immediately after the onset of overt diabetes prolongs survival of type 1 diabetes model NOD mice

Type 1 diabetes is a multifactorial disease involving genetic and environmental factors and results from the destruction of pancreatic islet β cells, virtually the only source of insulin. When the majority of β cells are lost, a ‘honeymoon’ period of variable length follows: namely, a fleeting phase of residual endogenous insulin production, during which glycemic control is achieved with modest or no doses of insulin. However, the remaining β cells are eventually lost, causing the individual to become insulin‐dependent and to require long‐term insulin therapy or islet transplantation. Here we show that NOD mice, a type 1 diabetes model, survived significantly longer when their diet was changed from one chow with a high essential fatty acid (EFA) ratio (n‐6/n‐3, 14.5) to another with a low n‐6/n‐3 ratio (3.0) within 6 days after the onset of overt diabetes (i.e. the ‘honeymoon’ period), than mice that were continuously fed with the chow with the high n‐6/n‐3 ratio. This effect was not observed when the chow was changed later than 9 days after the onset. Significantly larger number of islets remained with suggestive islet neogenesis from the pancreatic duct and pathological changes in renal glomeruli were significantly milder in NOD mice fed the chow with the low n‐6/n‐3 ratio within 6 days after the onset of overt diabetes than those continuously fed with the high‐n‐6/n‐3‐ratio chow. These findings indicate that a diet with a low n‐6/n‐3 ratio prolongs the ‘honeymoon’ period by retaining the β cell mass, suggesting its potential therapeutic merit.
The Potential Impact of Tax Reform on Farm Businesses and Rural Households

Several proposals calling for fundamental reform of the Federal income tax system have been put forth, including a report by the co-chairs of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility. The primary elements of reform—eliminating tax preferences, restructuring capital gains and dividend tax rates, lowering rates on individual income, and reducing the number of tax brackets—could have a signifi cant impact on the after-tax income and well-being of both farm businesses and rural households. This report uses published and special tabulation data obtained from the Internal Revenue Service, farm-level data from USDA’s Agricultural Resource Management Survey, and data from the American Housing Survey to examine the current tax situation for farm households and to evaluate the importance of various Federal income tax policies. For farm households, the effect of reform will primarily depend upon changes to existing treatment of investment and business income, including several important business deductions. In contrast, changes to existing individual tax credits, especially refundable tax credits, will likely be of greater signifi cance to nonfarm rural households.
Biomedical Progress Rates as New Parameters for Models of Economic Growth in Developed Countries

While the doubling of life expectancy in developed countries during the 20th century can be attributed mostly to decreases in child mortality, the trillions of dollars spent on biomedical research by governments, foundations and corporations over the past sixty years are also yielding longevity dividends in both working and retired population. Biomedical progress will likely increase the healthy productive lifespan and the number of years of government support in the old age. In this paper we introduce several new parameters that can be applied to established models of economic growth: the biomedical progress rate, the rate of clinical adoption and the rate of change in retirement age. The biomedical progress rate is comprised of the rejuvenation rate (extending the productive lifespan) and the non-rejuvenating rate (extending the lifespan beyond the age at which the net contribution to the economy becomes negative). While staying within the neoclassical economics framework and extending the overlapping generations (OLG) growth model and assumptions from the life cycle theory of saving behavior, we provide an example of the relations between these new parameters in the context of demographics, labor, households and the firm.
A Monolithic Geon-Si CMOS Imager for Short Wave Infrared

Introduction Imaging in the Short Wave Infrared (SWIR) band (1-2μm) enables a broad range of applications in medical and dental imaging, industrial inspection and night vision. The night sky emits substantially more light in this band than in the visible. The spectral response of silicon detectors is limited to λ < ~1μm. SWIR imagers have traditionally been built using arrays of compound semiconductor detectors hybridized to a silicon read-out circuit but are prohibitively expensive for many applications. Germanium is chemically compatible with silicon and optically responsive from blue to 1. 6μm but until now, there has been no good technique for integrating single-crystal germanium detectors on silicon. This paper describes a monolithic CMOS imager with Ge detectors fabricated within a conventional 180 nm CMOS foundry process.
DemYouth: Co-Designing and Enacting Tools to Support Young People's Engagement with People with Dementia

There is a growing body of research examining the role of technology in supporting the care of--and relationships surrounding--people with dementia, yet little attention has been given to how this relates to younger family members. We conducted a qualitative study based on a series of 6 co-design workshops conducted with 14 young people who had personal experience with dementia. Initially, our workshops focused on understanding the difficulties that young people face when engaging, interacting and being with people with dementia. Initial analysis of workshop data informed the design of three digital tool concepts that were used as the basis for user enactment workshops. Our findings highlight the young people's desire to be more involved in their family discussions around dementia and a need for them to find new ways to connect with their loved ones with dementia. We offer a set of design considerations for future systems that support these needs and reflect on some of the complexities we faced around engaging young people in this difficult topic of discussion.
China's Industrial Transformation: Investigations into Enterprise, Competition, and Performance

This study is motivated by two paradoxes in transition economies. The first is the contrast between the rapid economic growth in China and the deep output decline in Eastern European and former Soviet Union Countries. China's rapid economic growth occurred in the absence of several conditions that are deemed necessary for economic growth. The second paradox is posed by the contrast between the rapid economic growth and the deterioration of enterprise performance in China. By focusing on the study of Chinese enterprise performance and enterprise behaviour, this study tries to shed lights on these two puzzles. While most of the studies of Chinese enterprise performance have focused on whether it has improved or not, this thesis investigates first the impact of enterprise reform and increased competition on enterprise efficiency, and then looks beyond the `within-firm' effects of economic reform and market competition, investigating whether economic reform has facilitated a dynamic competitive market selection process. Methodologically, this study applies Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) to evaluate the impacts of economic reform on firm efficiency, utilizes Baily et al. (1992) methods of productivity growth decomposition to analyze the dynamics of firm's entry, survival and exit, and then employs a Hazard model to analyze firm exit behavior in the context of China. To my knowledge, neither of these latter two methods has been applied in the context of transition economies. This study finds that that there is a divergence of technical efficiency from technology frontier rather than a convergence of technical efficiency to technology frontier as is expected in a more competitive market. This study has also discovered that efficiency differences between State Owned Enterprise (SOEs) and non-SOEs may have resulted from their different speeds in `catching up' with the technology advance. By analysing the dynamic process of firm's entry, survival and exit, and decomposing productivity growth into the contribution of each, the study finds that the competitive selection process is taking shape in China. While productivity growth mainly comes from new entry, and exits are playing an increasing role. By applying a hazard model to analyse firm exit behaviour specifically, this study establishes that the exit threat as a corporate governance mechanism has not been set up effectively for SOEs, while nonSOEs are increasingly subject to the discipline of market forces, indicating that competitive selection process is not, as yet, providing a sufficient substitute for corporate governance mechanisms based on ownership. Therefore, this study suggests that more radical reform, based on ownership and property rights, is needed.
A Study on the Successful Adoption of IoT Services- Focused on iBeacon and Nearby -

Abstract Submitted：January 27, 2015 1 st Revision：February 12, 2015 Accepted：February 17, 2015* 숭실대학교 대학원 경영학과** 숭실대학교 경영학부 교수, 교신저자The purpose of this study is to propose the effective location- based IoT service acceptance model by integrating ELM (Elaboration Likelihood Model) with UTAUT (Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology). The Partial Least Squares was used to analyze the causal relationships with respect to the effects of central route and peripheral route on acceptance intention.The results shows that central route has more significant impac ts on perceived usefulness than peripheral route and CFIP (Concern for Information Privacy) weaken the relations hip of acceptance intention and perceived usefulness. Our findings indicate some meaningful implications in the accep tance research of IOT services. First, we noted that the easy of use significantly affects the adoption of location- based IoT service. Furthermore, it is important to build the secured mechanism of privacy protection to adopt of locatio n-based IoT service. Second, we tried to attempt the newly integrated approach to technical acceptance using UTAUT’s variables and ELM by Petty and Cacioppo (1986). Finally this research empirically analyzed the adoption case of location-based IoT service which is not well-known yet within our country.
L'INTELLIGENCE CULTURELLE DANS L'IMPLANTATION D'UN ERP : E CAS D'UNE ENTREPRISE THAÏLANDAISE “CULTURAL INTELLIGENCE” FOR ERP IMPLEMENTATION: A THAI CORPORATION CASE STUDY

A large part of existing literature on ERP implementation is based on the theories of “fit” between firm properties and IT prerequisites in terms of process integration. Among these properties, cultural differences perceived by users can be considered as the main constraining mis-alignement because referring to the persons' values as to the underlying ones induced by the ERP to be implemented. However, little research has been done about the way those cultural mis-fits can be managed. In this perspective, this article uses the “cultural intelligence” concept as theoretical lens and relates the results provided by a qualitative research done in a thai corporation. The interviews conducted with the ERP project managers illustrate how they used some of the Buddhist principles to force employees to accept changes involved.
MANAGEMENT SUPPORT AND ITS IMPACT ON PERFORMANCE OF INTERNAL AUDITORS AT JORDANIAN PUBLIC INDUSTRIAL SHAREHOLDING COMPANIES

This study seeks to identify the impact of support provided by Management on performance improvement of internal auditors at Shareholding companies in Jordan, The randomly selected sample (N=142) consisted of internal auditors at shareholding companies. The descriptive analytical methods including theoretical and empirical approaches were followed. Results demonstrate a positive statistical association between composite dimensions of management support and performance improvement of internal auditors at Jordanian shareholding companies. Specifically, the study supports a steady association between management support (material and immaterial incentives, and Professional development as dimensions of the variable) and internal auditor's performance level improvement. However, no statistical significant association was found between modern technology offered by the corporate and internal auditor's performance level improvement. The study concludes with a number of recommendations, most importantly, managers at industrial shareholding should pay greater attention to employees at internal auditing departments since
Predictive value of thymidylate synthase expression in gastric cancer: a systematic review with meta-analysis.

PURPOSE The relationship between thymidylate synthase (TS) expression and outcomes in gastric cancer (GC) patients remains controversial, although most studies reported poor survival and reduced response to fluoropyrimidine were related to high TS in tumors. We carried out a systematic review of the literature with meta-analysis to estimate the predictive value of TS expression from published studies. METHODS We identified 24 studies analysing the outcome data in gastric cancer stratified by TS expression. Effect measures of outcome were hazard ratios (HRs) for overall survival (OS) and event-free survival (EFS), or the odds ratio (OR) for overall response rate (ORR). HRs and ORs from these eligible studies were pooled using random-effects meta- analysis. RESULTS Fifteen studies investigated outcomes in a total of 844 patients with advanced GC, and nine studies investigated outcomes in a total of 1,235 patients with localized GC undergoing adjuvant therapy. Meta- analysis of estimates showed high TS expression was significantly associated with poor OS in the advanced setting (HR: 1.43, 95%CI: 1.08 - 1.90), and poor EFS in the adjuvant setting (HR: 1.53, 95%CI: 1.01 - 2.32). Subgroup analysis demonstrated TS expression to have even greater value in predicting OS, EFS and ORR in advanced GC patients treated with fluoropyrimidine monotherapy (HR for OS: 2.32, 95%CI: 1.53 - 3.50; HR for EFS: 1.76, 95%CI: 1.19 - 2.60; OR for ORR: 0.32, 95%CI: 0.11 - 0.95). CONCLUSION High levels of TS expression were associated with a poorer OS for advanced GC patients compared with low levels. In the adjuvant setting, high TS expression was also associated with a worse EFS. Additional studies with consistent methodology are needed to define the precise predictive value of TS.
Phase I Safety and Pharmacokinetic Study of Bavituximab, a Chimeric Phosphatidylserine-Targeting Monoclonal Antibody, in Patients with Advanced Solid Tumors

Purpose: Bavituximab is a chimeric immunoglobulin G1 phosphatidylserine-targeting monoclonal antibody that triggers vascular disruption and enhances antitumor immune response. This phase I study assessed the safety and pharmacokinetics of bavituximab in patients with advanced solid tumors. Experimental Design: Patients with refractory advanced solid tumors were enrolled into four sequential dose-escalation cohorts (0.1, 0.3, 1, or 3 mg/kg bavituximab weekly) with two dosing schedules. Patients in the 0.1 and 0.3 mg/kg cohorts received bavituximab on days 0, 28, 35, and 42. Patients in the 1 and 3 mg/kg cohorts were administered bavituximab on days 0, 7, 14, and 21. Safety, pharmacokinetics, and tumor response were assessed. Results: Twenty-six patients were accrued. No maximum tolerated dose was reached. Six serious adverse events occurred in five patients, including one pulmonary embolism at 3 mg/kg, which was the only dose-limiting toxicity (DLT) in the study. Bavituximab half-life ranged from 37 to 47 hours, with no accumulation seen following administration of multiple doses. Activated partial thromboplastin time was modestly prolonged in vitro at the highest dose tested. As assessed on day 56, a total of 18 patients were evaluable for efficacy, of whom 10 had disease progression and none had an objective response. Conclusions: Bavituximab was well tolerated at doses ranging up to 3 mg/kg weekly. Pharmacokinetic studies support a weekly dosing regimen. Additional phase I and II clinical trials are in progress to investigate bavituximab in combination with chemotherapy and other molecularly targeted agents. Clin Cancer Res; 17(21); 6888–96. ©2011 AACR.
Predicting Bankruptcy After The Sarbanes-Oxley Act Using The Most Current Data Mining Approaches

Our study proposes several current data mining methods to predict bankruptcy after the SarbanesOxley Act (2002) using 2007-2008 U.S. data. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) of 2002 was introduced to improve the quality of financial reporting and minimize corporate fraud in the U.S. Because of this SOX implementation, a company’s financial statements are assumed to provide higher quality financial information for investors and other stakeholders. The results of our data mining approaches in our bankruptcy prediction study show that Bayesian Net method performs the best (85% overall prediction rate with 94% in AUC), followed by J48 (85% with 82% AUC), Decision Table (83.52%), and Decision Tree (82%) methods using financial and other data from the 10-K report and Compustat. These results are better than previous bankruptcy prediction studies before the SOX implementation using most current data mining approaches.
Switching to nintedanib after discontinuation of pirfenidone due to adverse events in IPF

Recently two novel drugs, pirfenidone and nintedanib have been licenced for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), marking a turning point in this previously untreatable, fatal disease. Nintedanib can be well tolerated in patients who stopped pirfenidone treatment due to intolerable adverse effects http://ow.ly/OYEAK
Searching for competitive advantage with the aid of the brand potential index

Purpose – In recent years, the world food market has undergone an accelerated process of concentration and consolidation. These intensive processes increase the competitive advantage of operating activities on the global market and are the result of numerous changes in the period of new economy. What is the meaning of brand management and how is it dealt with in practice? What is the importance of positioning in the light of brand image and identity? Which are the ways to measure the brand strength with the aid of the brand potential index (BPI) and to identify the characteristics (key drivers) which have the greatest influence on brand strength? All these are questions for which this paper seeks to provide answers.Design/methodology/approach – The answers to the research questions were gained using the GFK target positioning research with which a brand analysis of high‐volume products was carried out in the light of its key characteristics: brand as a product, opportunities and risks involved in the bran.
A knowledge engineer based on natural language understanding for an expert system: DOMES

In order to enhance the knowledge acquisition capability of the expert system DOMES (Design Of Mechanisms by an Expert System), which is developed at the University of Rhode Island for creative type synthesis of mechanisms, methodologies have been developed to build a knowledge engineer module based on natural language understanding. Specifically, artificial intelligence concepts and Lisp programming techniques have been incorporated in this module to implement the following: (1) analysing and understanding design criteria supplied by human designers in the form of English sentences; and (2) transforming these design criteria into Lisp code and storing them in the knowledge base of DOMES. This knowledge engineer module enhances the capability and improves the performance of the expert system DOMES by providing an effective means for knowledge acquisition based on natural language understanding. The concepts and implementation techniques in developing this module are general and can also be utilized for other knowledge-based systems.
A Study of Psychotic Symptoms in Borderline Personality Disorder

Abstract Patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD) report psychotic symptoms, but it has been questioned whether they are intrinsic to BPD. Thirty patients meeting Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV), criteria for BPD were drawn from a specialist personality disorder service. Exclusion criteria included a preexisting clinical diagnosis of nonaffective psychotic disorder. Participants underwent structured psychiatric interview using the Present State Examination (PSE), lifetime version. Approximately 60% of the patients reported psychotic symptoms unrelated to drugs or affective disorder. Auditory hallucinations were the most common symptom (50%), which were persistent in the majority of cases. A fifth of the patients reported delusions, half of whom (three patients) also met DSM-IV criteria for schizophrenia, who were previously undiagnosed. The form of auditory hallucinations was similar to that in schizophrenia; the content was predominantly negative and critical. Persistent auditory hallucinations are intrinsic symptoms of BPD. This may inform current diagnostic criteria and have implications for approaches to treatment, both pharmacological and psychological. The presence of delusions may indicate a comorbid axis I disorder.