Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A SCHOLAR-PRACTITIONER CONSTRUCT IN TRANSNATIONAL EDUCATION: SOCIAL JUSTICE ISSUES FOR SCHOOL LEADERSHIP IN NIGERIA

The issues of social justice are ubiquitous phenomena. They cut across a wide range of disciplines, national life, and social markers, and impact differentially on people from different walks of life depending on creed, race, education, social status, and geographical location. Social justice in education within the Nigerian educational system is an area that represents a gap in the research literature when compared with studies conducted that focus on the American educational system. The framing of these issues in America has evolved through various paradigms and currently revolves around school improvement, democratic community, and social justice. Therefore, this inquiry seeks to explore the existence and nature of social justice issues within potential U.S.-Nigerian transnational educational partnerships. As such, we utilize a scholar-practitioner framework as a critical lens to examine and offer notions of interdisciplinarity and integration relating to the complexities of the Nigerian educational system and asymmetrical relationships and tensions within. In detail, it aims to examine how scholarpractitioners as transnational educators frame the critical issues of social injustice within the educational system in regards to democratic learning, equity, and care.
A proposed knowledge management framework for boosting the success of information systems projects

Information systems projects are collective, collaborative, complex, knowledge-intensive and creative efforts that involve many people working in different phases and activities. Therefore, the knowledge and its management are considered valuable resources for guaranteeing the success of these projects. This paper attempts to present a conceptual framework that integrates the knowledge management processes (discovery, capture, sharing, and application) during the phases of information systems project management (initiation, planning, execution, and closing-down). It is expected that the application of the proposed framework by IT companies will improve the success rate of IS projects, through enhancing the exchange and transfer of knowledge and experience among team members. This will also result in establishment of a knowledge repository that will serve as a reference of best practices and lessons learned that will support decision making for upcoming futuristic projects.
Prophylactic antibiotic therapy for chronic bronchitis.

BACKGROUND The use of prophylactic antibiotics to reduce the frequency and severity of acute exacerbations of chronic bronchitis is controversial. OBJECTIVES To determine if prophylactic antibiotics reduce the frequency of exacerbations and/or days of disability in subjects with chronic bronchitis. SEARCH STRATEGY We searched the Cochrane Airways Group Register of Clinical Trials and the bibliographies of relevant articles. SELECTION CRITERIA Randomised controlled trials of prophylactic antibiotics in patients with chronic bronchitis and/or COPD were selected. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS The eligibility of studies for inclusion was evaluated by three independent reviewers. MAIN RESULTS Nine trials involving 1055 subjects were included in the analysis. All were performed before 1970. Concealment of allocation was assessed as clearly adequate in only 3 studies. The likelihood of having a exacerbation at any time during the course of the study was decreased with treatment (Relative Risk 0.91, 95% Confidence Intervals (CI) 0.84, 0.99). There was a small reduction in the number of exacerbations per patient per year with prophylactic antibiotics but this was not statistically significant ( Weighted Mean Difference (WMD) -0.15, 95%CI -0.34, 0.04 ). There was a modest but significant reduction of 22% in the number of days of disability per patient per month treated ( WMD -0.95, 95%CI -1.89 to - 0.01 ). A parallel reduction in the days of disability for each exacerbation (WMD -2.08, 95% CI -4.08 to -0.07) was seen. There was a small increase in adverse effects with antibiotics. REVIEWER'S CONCLUSIONS Prophylactic antibiotics in chronic bronchitis / COPD have a small but statistically significant effect in reducing the days of illness due to exacerbations of chronic bronchitis. They do not have a place in routine treatment because of concerns about the development of antibiotic resistance and the possibility of adverse effects. The available data are over 30 years old, so the pattern of antibiotic sensitivity may have changed and there is a wider range of antibiotics in use.
Familial Kallmann syndrome with unilateral renal aplasia

On the basis of studies in two brothers and their double first cousin, the Kallman syndrome (KS) is discussed as an X‐linked syndrome of anosmic hypogonadotropic hypo‐gonadism. The anosmia is thought to represent agenesis or hypoplasia of the olfactory lobes, the mildest form of the alobar holoprosencephaly developmental field defect; this is supported by the finding of hypotelorism in two of the patients and their mother. The endocrine defect is thought to represent a hypothalamic abnormality of the luteinizing hormone releasing hormone; borderline normal intelligence may represent another pleio‐tropic CNS manifestation of the KS gene. All three affected males had unilateral renal aplasia, associated in one with ipsilateral abyence of the testis. The presence of at least two developmental field defects (involving the CNS and urogenital system) makes it likely that the KS is a true multiple congenital anomaly syndrome; this is supported by the finding of additional, mostly minor, anomalies reported by other investigators. Heterozygous females may also show manifestations of anosmia, hypogonadism, possibly even internal genital malformation; however, genetic heterogeneity of anosmic hypogonadism is pos? ible, and for the time being it is probably better to designate sporadic female cases of anosmic hypogonadism as examples of the olfacto‐genital syndrome of DeMorsier. Linkage studies are urgently needed to clear up the question of genetic heterogeneity and to help develop empiric recurrence risk figures in anosmic hypogonadism.
Induction and potential biological relevance of a Ca2+‐independent nitric oxide synthase in the myocardium

1 We have investigated whether the myocardium and isolated cardiac myocytes can express a Ca2+‐independent NO synthase after treatment with endotoxin or cytokines. Nitric oxide synthesis was measured in cytosols from the left ventricular wall from rats treated with endotoxin, or from freshly isolated myocytes from adult rats treated in vitro with cytokines. 2 Cytosols from the ventricle of saline‐treated control animals showed only Ca2+‐dependent NO synthesis. After treatment with endotoxin, the expression of an inducible, Ca2+‐independent NO synthase was observed. The activity of this enzyme was maximal at 6 h and returned towards control levels by 18 h; no alterations occurred in the Ca2+‐dependent NO synthase activity. Parallel to this enzyme induction there was an increase in myocardial guanosine 3′:5′‐cyclic monophosphate (cyclic GMP) and plasma nitrite and nitrate (NO−x). All these changes were prevented by pretreatment of the rats with dexamethasone. 3 Myocytes possessed Ca2+‐dependent NO synthase activity and expressed, after treatment with tumour necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α) and interleukin‐1β (IL‐1β), a Ca2+‐independent NO synthase, the induction of which was prevented by dexamethasone and cycloheximide. 4 Since increases in cyclic GMP levels in the heart are associated with reduced myocardial contractility, it is possible that the enhanced production of NO by a Ca2+‐independent enzyme accounts, at least in part, for the depression of myocardial contractility seen in septic shock, cardiomyopathies, allograft rejection, burn trauma, as well as during anti‐tumour therapy with cytokines.
Daily Electrical Muscle Stimulation Enhances Functional Recovery Following Nerve Transection and Repair in Rats

Background. Incomplete recovery following surgical reconstruction of damaged peripheral nerves is common. Electrical muscle stimulation (EMS) to improve functional outcomes has not been effective in previous studies. Objective. To evaluate the efficacy of a new, clinically translatable EMS paradigm over a 3-month period following nerve transection and immediate repair. Methods. Rats were divided into 6 groups based on treatment (EMS or no treatment) and duration (1, 2, or 3 months). A tibial nerve transection injury was immediately repaired with 2 epineurial sutures. The right gastrocnemius muscle in all rats was implanted with intramuscular electrodes. In the EMS group, the muscle was electrically stimulated with 600 contractions per day, 5 days a week. Terminal measurements were made after 1, 2, or 3 months. Rats in the 3-month group were assessed weekly using skilled and overground locomotion tests. Neuromuscular junction reinnervation patterns were also examined. Results. Muscles that received daily EMS had significantly greater numbers of reinnervated motor units with smaller average motor unit sizes. The majority of muscle endplates were reinnervated by a single axon arising from a nerve trunk with significantly fewer numbers of terminal sprouts in the EMS group, the numbers being small. Muscle mass and force were unchanged but EMS improved behavioral outcomes. Conclusions. Our results demonstrated that EMS using a moderate stimulation paradigm immediately following nerve transection and repair enhances electrophysiological and behavioral recovery.
Biologic aspects of AIDS‐associated non‐Hodgkin's lymphoma

Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome-associated non-Hodgkin's lymphomas represent a significant and formidable clinical problem. They also represent an important biologic model for investigating the development and progression of high-grade malignant lymphomas and for studying lymphomas that develop in the setting of immune deficiency. A vast majority of non-Hodgkin's lymphomas exhibit clonal immunoglobulin gene rearrangements and, hence, are B-cell neoplasms. Most express B-cell phenotypes, but a minority, predominantly body cavity—based tumors, express indeterminate phenotypes. AIDS-associated non-Hodgkin's lymphomas do not contain HIV. However, approximately 40% of systemic non-Hodgkin's lymphomas, predominantly those with immunoblastic plasmacytoid morphology, and essentially 100% of primary central nervous system AIDS-associated non-Hodgkin's lymphomas contain Epstein-Barr virus. The c-myc protooncogene is rearranged in approximately 80% of systemic cases, predominantly in those with Burkitt's and Burkitt's-like morphology. Point mutations of the ras gene are detectable in approximately 15% of systemic cases. The p53 tumor-suppressor gene is mutated in approximately two thirds of systemic AIDS-associated Burkitt's and Burkitt's-like non-Hodgkin's lymphomas. The retinoblastoma tumor-suppressor gene does not appear to be mutated or deleted in AIDS-associated non-Hodgkin's lymphomas. In summary, various genetic lesions occur in AIDS-associated non-Hodgkin's lymphomas, which appear to vary according to the anatomic site of disease (systemic vs central nervous system vs body cavity) and the histopathology (Burkitt's vs immunoblastic vs large cell). Further active investigation is necessary to determine the role of these and possibly other genetic lesions in AIDS lymphomagenesis.
Biochemical serum markers for brain damage: a short review with emphasis on clinical utility in mild head injury.

PURPOSE To provide an overview of clinical research on the use of biochemical serum markers for traumatic brain injury (TBI) in the evaluation of patients with mild head injuries (MHI). METHODS The MEDLINE database was searched for publications on biochemical serum markers of TBI until August 2002. Clinical studies addressing their use in MHI were reviewed. RESULTS Desirable characteristics for biochemical serum markers of TBI were identified. Creatine kinase isoenzyme BB (CK-BB), neuron specific enolase (NSE) and S-100B protein have been most extensively studied. The sensitivity and specificity of CK-BB is inadequate for use as an indicator of traumatic brain injury. Serum levels of NSE do not correspond to the amount of TBI, probably because of its long (20 h) half-life. S-100B serum levels are correlated to both clinical measures of injury severity, neuroradiological findings and outcomes in several studies from different authors. CONCLUSION Currently, S-100B protein is the most promising marker for evaluation of TBI in patients with MHI.
A functional role of the extracellular domain of Crumbs in cell architecture and apicobasal polarity

Summary Regulated cell shape changes in epithelial cells, which contribute to most organs and tissues, are at the basis of morphogenesis. Crumbs (Crb) is an essential apical determinant controlling epithelial apicobasal polarity. Here we provide evidence for a novel role of Crb apical localisation and stabilisation in controlling cell shape through apical domain organisation and adherens junction positioning. We find that Crb apical stabilisation requires the extracellular domain. In vivo results from Drosophila suggest that the extracellular domain assists Crb apical stabilisation by mediating Crb–Crb interactions at opposing cell membranes. We further confirm Crb–Crb extracellular interactions by showing that the extracellular domain of Crb is sufficient to promote cell aggregation in vitro. Furthermore, we report that Crb apical stabilisation mediated by the extracellular domain is also required for maintenance of Crb apicobasal polarity. Our results provide new insights into the mechanisms of apicobasal polarity and the cellular mechanisms of tissue architecture.
Global tracking output-feedback sliding mode control design via norm estimators and variable high gain observer

An output-feedback sliding mode controller is proposed for a widely general class of single-input-single-output (SISO) time-varying uncertain nonlinear systems. Such a class encompasses plants in the state-of-the-art of global output-feedback control framework, possibly including strong polynomial nonlinearities in the unmeasured states. The sliding surface is generated by using the state of a high gain observer (HGO) while the control signal amplitude is obtained from norm estimators (or observers) free of peaking. The proposed scheme achieves global tracking by means of a time-varying HGO gain synthesized from measurable signals.
Getting it Right or Being Top Rank: Games in Citizen Science

The use of games in citizen science is growing, but can create tension as gaming and science can be seen as incompatible areas of activity. For example, the motivations for winning a game and scientific pursuit of knowledge may be seen as contrary. Over a one-year period, we conducted a virtual ethnographic study of the public forums of two online citizen science projects, Foldit and Galazy Zoo, the first a project in which gaming is an explicit design feature and the second in which it is not. The aim was to provide a nuanced view of how participants topicalize and respond to tensions between gaming and science. Thematic analysis of discussion forum posts suggests that participants in the two projects respond differently to the tension. By unpacking participant responses to the tension between games and science, our study highlights that citizen science projects using games are not just about fun. To enroll and retain volunteers, these projects also must recognize and manage the implicit normative scientific ideals that participants bring with them to a project. We further conclude that ideals of science embraced by citizen scientists appear to influence the reasons why they participate, either emphasizing equality, like in Galazy Zoo, or meritocracy, like in Foldit.
Reproducibility in Ultrasonic Characterization of Carotid Plaques

Background and Purpose: Echolucent carotid plaques compared with echogenic plaques could carry a significant risk of transient ischemic attacks and strokes, but the reproducibility of new ultrasonic methods has not yet been proved. The objective was to evaluate interobserver and intraobserver agreement in characterizing the carotid plaques studied by both B mode imaging and color Doppler imaging, which is the only ultrasonic method available for recognizing anechoic lesions. Methods: Fifty-three carotid plaques greater than 40% in diameter were selected from four centers and simultaneously analyzed by 9 observers. Five types of plaques were defined by their echo structure: class I = uniformly anechogenic, class II = predominantly hypoechogenic with >50% hypoechogenic area, class III = predominantly echogenic with >50% echogenic area, class IV = uniformly echogenic, class V = unclassified plaques. The luminal surface was characterized as either 1 = regular, 2 = recess of more than 2 mm in depth and width, or 3 = unclassified. Agreement of these variables was calculated by using the kappa index, agreement proportion and an intraclass correlation coefficient. Results: Interobserver reproducibility was only fair for type I (kappa = 0.47) and for the luminal surface (class 1, kappa = 0.52 and class 2, kappa = 0.41). Agreement proportion was 0.51 in hypoechoic plaques and 0.64 in the determination of the regular surface. Mean intraobserver agreement was fair (kappa = 0.47 ± 0.1) for plaque echogenicity to good (kappa = 0.63 ± 0.19) for surface. Conclusion: This study shows that the semiquantitative classification, first developed by Gray-Weale, then by Nicolaides, could be improved, thus giving rise to a new outlook in the debated field of ulcerations.
Reading Bureaucratic Text: Analysis and Committee Documents

THIS PAPER IS ABOUT ONE FORM of technical writing: the bureaucratic text. ' In what follows, I examine in particular a committee document, in this case the "Terms of Reference" from an inter-ministerial committee on Aboriginal social policy. 2 Drafted principally by an Aboriginal director at the Ministry of Native Affairs, the document was produced to guide the work of the Committee, tasked in a conventional way with responding to Aboriginal social issues. 4 As the authors and users of such documents know, there is much to be said about the organizational role of such texts, for instance, in their capacity as administrative instruments for coordinating committees in a public sector bureaucracy. I intend as the analysis proceeds to reveal some of these features of the Committee's "Terms of Reference. " But I am also concerned with the social uses of language, in the way the bureaucratic text articulates, mediates, and shapes broader social interactions, and the role it plays in bureaucratic and other socio-political processes. My research into the bureaucratic text shows that, in addition to conveying organizational, task-related information (thus fulfilling what Brown and Yule
Large-Scale Management of Insect Resistance to Transgenic Cotton in Arizona: Can Transgenic Insecticidal Crops be Sustained?

Abstract A major challenge for agriculture is management of insect resistance to toxins from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) produced by transgenic crops. Here we describe how a large-scale program is being developed in Arizona for management of resistance to Bt cotton in the pink bollworm, Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae), and other insect pests of cotton. Financial support from growers makes this program possible. Collaboration between the Arizona Cotton Research and Protection Council, the University of Arizona, and government agencies has led to development of resistance management guidelines, a remedial action plan, and tools for monitoring compliance with the proposed guidelines. Direct participation in development of resistance management policies is a strong incentive for growers to invest in resistance management research. However, more research, regularly updated regulations, and increased collaboration between stakeholders are urgently needed to maintain efficacy of Bt toxins in transgenic crops.
Growth Factor-Mediated Induction of HDM2 Positively Regulates Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 1α Expression

ABSTRACT The hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1) transcriptional complex is regulated by cellular oxygen levels and growth factors. The phosphoinosotide 3-kinase (PI-3K)-Akt/protein kinase B (PKB) pathway has been shown to regulate HIF-1 activity in response to oncogenic signals and growth factors. We assessed whether the HDM2 oncoprotein, a direct target of Akt/PKB, could regulate HIF-1α expression and HIF-1 activity under normoxic conditions. We found that growth factor stimulation, overexpression of Akt/PKB, or loss of PTEN resulted in enhanced expression of both HIF-1α and HDM2. Growth factor-mediated induction of HIF-1α was ablated by transient expression of a dominant negative form of Akt/PKB or by treatment with LY294002. Transient expression of HDM2 led to increased expression of HIF-1α. Pulse-chase and cycloheximide experiments revealed that HDM2 did not significantly affect the half-life of HIF-1α. Growth factor-induced HIF-1α and HDM2 proteins were localized to the nucleus, and induction of both proteins was observed in both p53+/+ and p53−/− HCT116 cells to comparable levels. Importantly, insulin-like growth factor 1-induced HIF-1α expression was observed in p53-null mouse embryo fibroblasts (MEFs) but was significantly impaired in p53 Mdm2 double-null MEFs, indicating a requirement for Mdm2 in this process. Finally, we showed that phosphorylation at Ser166 in HDM2 contributed in part to growth factor-mediated induction of HIF-1α. Our study has important implications for the role of the PI-3K-Akt/PKB-HDM2 pathway in tumor progression and angiogenesis.
Are They Ready? Accounting Academics' Perspectives of the Preparedness of New Student Cohorts

The research reported here has as its central question of how do Australian accounting academics perceive the preparedness of students to study accounting at university. The research looks at how well prepared new cohorts of accountancy students are to engage. The research found that accounting academics identified four success factors required for students to study accounting at first year university level, identifying those needing to be addressed prior to beginning study, and others within the course of study itself. These four success factors included the ability to participate in the course with an apropos level of English language proficiency, to commence with a certain level of assumed knowledge which is then further extended, to develop and utilise higher order thinking skills, and finally to effectively communicate thoughts and ideas through written and verbal means. The findings, of the study reported here, provide insight into what students need as preparation to study accounting at university, using the Success Factor Timeline (SFT). The SFT bring together disparate concepts into one framework for consideration of student selection procedures and course design. It also provides appropriate scaffolding for first year students to better enable them for success, based on attributes they need to possess before commencing university studies, and attributes they can learn whilst at university.
A Novel Tri-Band Branch-Line Coupler With Three Controllable Operating Frequencies

A novel branch-line coupler with three controllable operating frequencies is presented for tri-band operation. The tri-band operation is achieved by attaching a matching circuit to each port of the conventional branch-line coupler. Closed-form design equations are derived. For verification, a microstrip 3 dB branch-line coupler operating at 0.9/2/2.45 GHz is designed, fabricated and measured. The measured results are in good agreement with the simulated results. When the return loss and isolation are better than 15 dB and 20 dB simultaneously, the measured bandwidths of three operating bands are all almost 40 MHz, while the amplitude imbalance is below 0.8 dB and the phase difference is within .