Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
One Step Forward, Two Steps Back? An Analysis of European PR Practitioners’ Views on the Position of Women in the PR Industry (2009-2015)

It has been well established that Public Relations is a gendered industry, but the one in which women earn less and face glass ceiling. Recently, researchers also reported on problems with networking and mentoring. Many of these findings have been reported in annual European Communications Monitor (ECM), the largest European research project focusing on trends in Public Relations through self-assessment of PR practitioners. In this particular paper, using the approach of liberal feminism while embracing the view of radical feminism of patriarchy, we looked at results from the ECM in the period between 2009 (when the gender came to the agenda for the first time in this research) and 2015 in an attempt to discuss how far have feminism got in achieving equality of women with men, at least when findings from the European Communications survey are in stake. The results show that inequality still exists not only in traditional areas of inequality such as the wage gap and the glass ceiling, but also in other areas such as job security and mentoring. Nevertheless, it seems that inequality transforms when one issue gets tackled and new issues continue to arise, with which it can be said that the social structure is still based on inequality between genders and that while issues can be tackled, the whole problem of equality feels like one step forward and two steps back. The conclusion of the paper is that feminists need to work with men to tackle patriarchy and with that also inequality of genders, including in Public Relations.
Bridging the Digital Divide: The Nigerian Journey So Far

The global nature of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) provides developing countries with a unique opportunity to compete in a global economy that was hitherto beyond their reach. ICT has the potential to reduce physical obstacles, increase market access and trade efficiency, as well as provide a competitive stimulus among these countries in a global information society. Digital divide can be described as the information technology gap between developing and developed countries.
Improving Data Access in P2P Systems

The authors present Gridella, a Gnutella-compatible P2P system. Gridella is based on the Peer-Grid (P-Grid) approach, which draws on research in distributed and cooperative information systems to provide a decentralized, scalable data access structure. Gridella improves the highly chaotic and inefficient Gnutella infrastructure with directed search and advanced concepts, thus enhancing efficiency and providing a model for further analysis and research.
‘Growth oriented’ corporate governance reform – can it solve Japan's performance puzzle?

Abstract Recent governance reforms in Japan aim at promoting ‘the establishment of an environment that supports appropriate risk-taking by the senior management. ’ The article evaluates the reforms on the basis of two questions: do the reforms tackle the right issues? And will they be effective? The Japanese economy faces indeed a performance puzzle. Despite Japan's strong efforts in the field of research and development, its excellent work force and abundant financial capital, the economy is performing poorly in terms of productivity. The performance puzzle seems to be closely related to the way large Japanese companies are governed, namely by boards filled with internally promoted lifetime employees. However, the correlation between board composition and performance is spurious. Both are influenced by a third factor, which manifests itself in the predominance of in-house careers. In-house careers determine the composition of boards and have, over the last twenty years, had a negative impact on economic performance. The governance reforms do not address the root of Japan's performance puzzle. They may nevertheless provide an important stimulus for redesigning the way Japanese corporations recruit, train and promote future leaders.
Functional Balance Training in Collegiate Women Athletes

Oliver, GD and Di Brezzo, R. Functional balance training in collegiate women athletes. J Strength Cond Res 23(7): 2124-2129, 2009-This study examined the effects of functional balance training implemented in addition to regular season practice, competition, and strength and conditioning training for collegiate women athletes. Twenty-six members of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I collegiate women's volleyball and soccer teams volunteered. A pre-test, post-test group design was used for the study. Pre- and post-test measures were the following: Skindex, body mass index (BMI), single-leg squat, prone quadra-ped core test, Biodex balance test, and a 1-minute sit-up test. The intervention consisted of 10 minutes of Indo Board (a dynamic balance board) training 4 days a week throughout the entire season. The volleyball team served as the intervention group, whereas the soccer team had no intervention. A dependent t-test demonstrated a statistically significant (p ≤ 0.05) improvement on the single-leg squat and 1-minute sit-up test for the volleyball team, whereas the soccer team (no intervention) demonstrated a statistically significant (p ≤ 0.05) improvement on the 1-minute sit-up test. It was concluded that by training on an unstable surface, the individual is conditioning the core while simultaneously performing balance activities. It was also noted that, although improvements were seen, each participant (both volleyball and soccer) was also active in regular season practice, competition, and strength and conditioning training over the course of the season. Functional balance activities are cost effective and should be added to any form of strength and conditioning program in an attempt to enhance program effectiveness and to develop functional postural activation. Functional postural activation will not only assist with functional performance, but also in the prevention of injury.
BIOTECHNOLOGICALLY RELEVANT ENZYMES AND PROTEINS Purification and biochemical characterization of a laccase from the aquatic fungus Myrioconium sp. UHH 1-13-18-4 and molecular analysis of the laccase-encoding gene

Myrioconium sp. strain UHH 1-13-18-4 is an ascomycete anamorph isolated from the river Saale, Central Germany. An extracellular, monomeric, and glycosylated laccase with a molecular mass of 72.7 kDa as determined by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flightmass spectrometry and an isoelectric point below 2.8 was purified from CuSO4 and vanillic acid amended liquid fungal cultures grown in malt extract medium. The catalytic efficiencies (kcat/Km) for the oxidation of syringaldazine, 2,6-dimethoxyphenol, and 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonate) were 67.3, 46.9, and 28.2 s mM, respectively, with Km values of 4.2, 67.8, and 104.9 μM. After pre-incubation at different pH values and temperatures for 1 h, more than 80% of the initial laccase activity was retained between pH 4 to 6 and 15°C. The laccaseencoding gene was identified and sequenced at both the genomic and complementary DNA (cDNA) level, and corresponding structural characteristics and putative regulatory elements of the promoter region are reported. The identification of two tryptic peptides of the purified enzyme by mass spectrometry confirmed the identity of the functional laccase protein with the translated genomic sequence of the Myrioconium sp. laccase. Myrioconium sp. laccase shows the highest degree of identity with laccases from ascomycetes belonging to the family Sclerotiniaceae, order Helotiales.
The impact of soil microorganisms on the global budget of δ18O in atmospheric CO2

Improved global estimates of terrestrial photosynthesis and respiration are critical for predicting the rate of change in atmospheric CO2. The oxygen isotopic composition of atmospheric CO2 can be used to estimate these fluxes because oxygen isotopic exchange between CO2 and water creates distinct isotopic flux signatures. The enzyme carbonic anhydrase (CA) is known to accelerate this exchange in leaves, but the possibility of CA activity in soils is commonly neglected. Here, we report widespread accelerated soil CO2 hydration. Exchange was 10–300 times faster than the uncatalyzed rate, consistent with typical population sizes for CA-containing soil microorganisms. Including accelerated soil hydration in global model simulations modifies contributions from soil and foliage to the global CO18O budget and eliminates persistent discrepancies existing between model and atmospheric observations. This enhanced soil hydration also increases the differences between the isotopic signatures of photosynthesis and respiration, particularly in the tropics, increasing the precision of CO2 gross fluxes obtained by using the δ18O of atmospheric CO2 by 50%.
STUDENT ENGAGEMENT IN MOOCS WITH APPROPRIATE FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT AND FEEDBACK PRACTICES

This paper presents the main findings of a three year project on how student engagement in Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) can be and which specific feedback and assessment practices can advance engagement of MOOC students. The rationale behind this research is the low engagement of students and high drop rate specifically in MOOCs and whether and if so which formative assessment and feedback practices can increase student engagement. Although there is evidence that such practices can enhance student engagement in traditional face-to-face teaching environments, there was not so far any significant research on whether and how feedback and assessment practices can advance the student engagement specifically in MOOCs. In this study, we focus specifically on these practices that could be applied in MOOCs for enhancing student engagement. We have surveyed 425 students from 8 MOOC courses via an online questionnaire and we have identified the feedback and assessment practices that are applied in those MOOCs and we have applied Principal Component Analysis (PCA) for analyzing how student engagement can be specified in MOOCs and ANOVA for regression analysis. Concerning the impact of formative assessment and feedback practices, main results show that indeed student engagement can be affected by such practices. Student engagement can be positively influenced by increasing interaction between learner and teacher and especially increasing interaction between learner and content as well as by decreasing the length of feedback provided in general. On the other hand, student engagement can be negatively influenced when the feedback focus is on comparing student’s performance with the student herself and her personal characteristics. In relation to test completion activities such as handing in the assignments or doing the final assessment, this can be positively influenced by increasing the interaction between the teacher and content, by limiting assessment activities to discussion participation levels, individual assignments, quizzes or group assessments, by increasing the feedback by the system automatically and by increasing the number of submissions to be evaluated by other peers. But we have identified also that test completion can be significantly negatively influenced (i.e. not achieved) when feedback is provided by other peers and students.
Transitional Cell Carcinoma in a Remnant Ureter after Retroperitoneoscopic Simple Nephrectomy for Benign Renal Disease

A 70-yr-old man presented with painless gross hematuria. He underwent right nephrectomy for benign disease 9 yr ago. Computed tomography and cystoscopy showed a mass in the distal region of the right ureteral stump. He underwent right ureterectomy and bladder cuff resection. Pathological examination showed T1 and WHO grade 2 transitional cell carcinoma. At 6 months postoperatively, the patient is alive without any evidence of recurrence.
Eclipse of the Public Corporation Revisited: Concentrated Equity Ownership Theory

For almost a decade, the author has outperformed many of the world's greatest investors. This working paper reveals the economic basis for this outperformance, which extends beyond idiosyncratic stock selection abilities. Concentrated equity ownership theory, an economic discovery made in 2007, explains the rise of founder centric firms over the subsequent decade. This paper introduces a dynamic unifying governance model, while uncovering theoretical links between otherwise disconnected economic phenomena. In illustrating theoretical continuity in the seemingly disparate investment styles of Jorge Paulo Lemann with 3G Capital, William A. Ackman with Pershing Square Capital Management, and Warren Buffett with Berkshire Hathaway, the author identifies hidden economic efficiencies powering the world's largest companies from Apple to Facebook, Google and Amazon. The novel economic theory presented in this paper also outlines legal and extra-legal mechanisms driving macroeconomic phenomena, specifically those at play in Canada and Silicon Valley - distinct geographic regions uniquely situated for robust economic performance over the next century. This working paper is forthcoming and builds upon the theoretical foundations established in "An Indeterminate Theory of Canadian Corporate Law" (peer-reviewed manuscript, published in the University of British Columbia Law Review, 2014).
The Dopamine D3/D2 Agonist (+)-PD-128,907 [(R-(+)-trans-3,4a,10b-Tetrahydro-4-propyl-2H,5H-[1]benzopyrano[4,3-b]-1,4-oxazin-9-ol)] Protects against Acute and Cocaine-Kindled Seizures in Mice: Further Evidence for the Involvement of D3 Receptors

Previous findings have demonstrated a protective role for dopamine D3/D2 receptor agonists in the convulsant and lethal effects of acutely administered cocaine. Data are provided here to establish that the protection occurs through a D3-linked mechanism and that protection is extended to seizure kindling. The D3 antagonist SB-277011-A [4-quinolinecarboxamide,N-[trans-4-[2-(6-cyano-3,4-dihydro-2(1H)-isoquinolinyl)ethyl]-cyclohexyl]-(9CI)] prevented the anticonvulsant effect of the D3/D2 receptor agonist (+)-PD-128,907 [(R-(+)-trans-3,4a,10b-tetrahydro-4-propyl-2H,5H-[1]benzopyrano[4,3-b]-1,4-oxazin-9-ol)] on cocaine-induced seizures. The protection afforded by the D3/D2 agonist, (+)-PD-128,907, was eliminated in D3 receptor-deficient mice. In D2 receptor knockout mice, the anticonvulsant effects of (+)-PD-128,907 were preserved. (+)-PD-128,907 also prevented the acquisition and expression of cocaine-kindled seizures engendered by repeated daily dosing with 60 mg/kg cocaine. (+)-PD-128,907 also blocked the seizures induced in mice fully seizure kindled to cocaine. Although repeated dosing with cocaine increased the potency of cocaine to produce seizures and lethality (decreased ED50 values), daily coadministration of (+)-PD-128,907 significantly prevented this potency shift. In mice treated daily with cocaine and (+)-PD-128,907, the density, but not the affinity, of D3 receptors was increased. The specificity with which (+)-PD-128,907 acts upon this cocaine-driven process was demonstrated by the lack of a significant effect of (+)-PD-128,907 on seizure kindling to a GABAA receptor antagonist, pentylenetetrazol. Taken together and with literature findings, the data indicate that dopamine D3 receptors function in the initiation of a dampening mechanism against the toxic effects of cocaine, a finding that might have relevance to psychiatric disorders of drug dependence, schizophrenia, and bipolar depression.
Modern Methods for Modeling Change in Obesity Research in Nursing

Persons receiving treatment for weight loss often demonstrate heterogeneity in lifestyle behaviors and health outcomes over time. Traditional repeated measures approaches focus on the estimation and testing of an average temporal pattern, ignoring the interindividual variability about the trajectory. An alternate person-centered approach, group-based trajectory modeling, can be used to identify distinct latent classes of individuals following similar trajectories of behavior or outcome change as a function of age or time and can be expanded to include time-invariant and time-dependent covariates and outcomes. Another latent class method, growth mixture modeling, builds on group-based trajectory modeling to investigate heterogeneity within the distinct trajectory classes. In this applied methodologic study, group-based trajectory modeling for analyzing changes in behaviors or outcomes is described and contrasted with growth mixture modeling. An illustration of group-based trajectory modeling is provided using calorie intake data from a single-group, single-center prospective study for weight loss in adults who are either overweight or obese.
Dynamic regulation of T‐cell costimulation through TCR–CD28 microclusters

Summary: T‐cell activation requires contact between T cells and antigen‐presenting cells (APCs) to bring T‐cell receptors (TCRs) and major histocompatibility complex peptide (MHCp) together to the same complex. These complexes rearrange to form a concentric circular structure, the immunological synapse (IS). After the discovery of the IS, dynamic imaging technologies have revealed the details of the IS and provided important insights for T‐cell activation. We have redefined a minimal unit of T‐cell activation, the ‘TCR microcluster’, which recognizes MHCp, triggers an assembly of assorted molecules downstream of the TCR, and induces effective signaling from TCRs. The relationship between TCR signaling and costimulatory signaling was analyzed in terms of the TCR microcluster. CD28, the most valuable costimulatory receptor, forms TCR–CD28 microclusters in cooperation with TCRs, associates with protein kinase C θ, and effectively induces initial T‐cell activation. After mature IS formation, CD28 microclusters accumulate at a particular subregion of the IS, where they continuously assemble with the kinases and not TCRs, and generate sustained T‐cell signaling. We propose here a ‘TCR–CD28 microcluster’ model in which TCR and costimulatory microclusters are spatiotemporally formed at the IS and exhibit fine‐tuning of T‐cell responses by assembling with specific players downstream of the TCR and CD28.
MiR‐503 Regulates Osteoclastogenesis via Targeting RANK

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play important roles in osteoclastogenesis and bone resorption. However, no study has investigated the role of miRNA in postmenopausal osteoporosis. Here, we report that miR‐503 was markedly reduced in circulating progenitors of osteoclasts–CD14+ peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from postmenopausal osteoporosis patients compared with those from postmenopausal healthy women. Overexpression of miR‐503 in CD14+ PBMCs inhibited receptor activator of nuclear factor‐κB ligand (RANKL)‐induced osteoclastogenesis. Conversely, silencing of miR‐503 in CD14+ PBMCs promoted osteoclastogenesis. RANK, which is activated by the binding of RANKL and inducing osteoclast differentiation, was confirmed to be a target of miR‐503. In vivo, silencing of miR‐503 using a specific antagomir in ovariectomy (OVX) mice increased RANK protein expression, promoted bone resorption, and decreased bone mass, whereas overexpression of miR‐503 with agomir inhibited bone resorption and prevented bone loss in OVX mice. Thus, our study revealed that miR‐503 plays an important role in the pathogenesis of postmenopausal osteoporosis and contributes to a new therapeutic way for osteoporosis. © 2014 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.
Long non‐coding PANDAR as a novel biomarker in human cancer: A systematic review

Long non‐coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are characterized as a group of RNAs that more than 200 nucleotides in length and have no protein‐coding function. More and more evidences provided that lncRNAs serve as key molecules in the development of cancer. Deregulation of lncRNAs functions as either oncogenes or tumour suppressor genes in various diseases. Recently, increasing studies about PANDAR in cancer progression were reported. In our review, we will focus on the current research on the character of PANDAR include the clinical management, tumour progression and molecular mechanisms in human cancers.
Working Memory Span and Motor and Cognitive Speed in Schizophrenia

ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to investigate the verbal working memory deficit and decrease of motor and cognitive speed in patients with schizophrenia, and to clarify their associations with negative and depressive symptomatology. MethodsForty patients with schizophrenia and 41 healthy control individuals were administered the backward digit span to assess the working memory capacity, along with 3 tests of processing speed. ResultsPatients demonstrated reduced backward digit span, as well as decreased motor and cognitive speed. Regression analyses indicated that the backward digit span was associated with cognitive speed. It was not associated with either negative or depressive symptoms. Decreased processing speed was unrelated to negative symptoms, but the depression score was significantly associated with the cognitive speed measure. ConclusionsWorking memory and processing speed seem to share a cognitive component. Depression, but not negative symptoms, affects processing speed, especially by decreasing cognitive speed.
Design of a dynamically reconfigurable architecture for the 3D image synthesis

In this paper, we present a dynamically reconfigurable (DR) architecture for a 3D image synthesis application. We address different issues not covered in similar works especially the use of low complex and cost FPGA and the simultaneous support of different constraints like the energy consumption and the real time constraint. The proposed system uses an adaptation module that monitors the internal architecture modifications using FPGA dynamic reconfiguration mechanism.
Minimizing Energy Cost by Dynamic Switching ON/OFF Base Stations in Cellular Networks

The most efficient way to save energy in cellular networks is to switch ON/OFF base stations (BSs) dynamically according to the distribution of user equipment (UE) at real time. When a BS is switched ON/OFF, there is a switching energy cost incurred, which is a significant amount and cannot be ignored. By considering this switching cost, we formulate the energy saving problem of BSs in cellular networks as the minimum energy cost problem (MECP). The objective of MECP is to choose the BSs to be active during a period of time and determine the levels of transmission power of the active BSs according to the UEs that are served by the BSs, such that the total energy cost of the BSs is minimized. We propose a scheme to solve the MECP in two steps. In the first step, we aim to minimize the energy cost of all BSs in a time unit independently, without considering the switching ON/OFF BSs across adjacent time units. In the second step, we consider the switching cost of state transitions of BSs by introducing a state transition graph a BS over an entire time period, and transform the MECP into a minimum energy cost flow problem. A minimum cost flow algorithm is developed to solve this problem. Simulation results show that our proposed scheme can achieve significant energy cost reduction of the cellular network, compared with the existing methods.