Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dynamic effects of self-efficacy on smoking lapses and relapse among adolescents.

OBJECTIVE The present study examined whether dynamic day-to-day variations in self-efficacy predicted success in quit attempts among daily smoking adolescents. DESIGN A sample of 149 adolescents recorded their smoking and self-efficacy three times per day during 1 week prior to and 3 weeks after a quit attempt. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES The first lapse, second lapse, and relapse after at least 24 hours of abstinence from smoking were the main outcome measures. RESULTS Self-efficacy was relatively high and moderately variable prior to the first lapse, but decreased and became more variable thereafter. Lower self-efficacy as measured at the lapse assessment significantly increased the risk that a second lapse and relapse would occur. Individual differences in baseline self-efficacy did not predict any of the treatment outcomes. The time-varying analyses, however, showed that lower self-efficacy on a given day predicted the first lapse, the second lapse, and relapse on the succeeding day. Daily concomitant smoking (any smoking on the preceding day) was not significantly related to relapse. CONCLUSION The present results emphasize the importance of self-efficacy among adolescents in cessation and highlight the need for dynamic formulations and assessments of adolescents' self-efficacy and relapse.
[Expression of main heat stress proteins and p53 in nasopharyngeal carcinoma].

OBJECTIVE To investigate the expression and the significance of main heat stress proteins (HSPs) and p53 in nasopharyngeal carcinoma. METHOD Tissues homogenate and western blot were used to determine the level of HSPs and p53. RESULT HSP27 and p53 elevated remarkably (P < 0.05) while HSP90 and HSP70 showed no significance between nasopharyngeal carcinoma and control tissues. Elevated level of HSP27 and p53 don't correlated with histological type and clinical stage. CONCLUSION Expression of HSPs and p53 show some difference in nasopharyngeal carcinoma tissue. These data suggest that HSPs and p53 may play a role in the development of nasopharyngeal carcinoma.
New TRB Special Report: Between Public and Private Mobility: Examining the Rise of Technology-Enabled Transportation Services

This article outlines the findings and recommendations of Transportation Research Board (TRB) Special Report 319, Between Public and Private Mobility: Examining the Rise of Technology-Enabled Transportation Services. The TRB Executive Committee initiated the study, convening a committee of subject-matter experts through the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. The report looks at a variety of mobility services, including carsharing, bikesharing, taxis, and app-based ride service companies to learn more about how they are used, how they relate to established transportation modes, and what implications they have for policy development, regulation, transportation planning, and infrastructure investment.
Which Price to Learn From? Evidence from Cross Listings with Market Segmentation

We conduct a novel test of the managerial learning hypothesis by exploiting a unique cross- listing setting with market segmentation that engenders a largely exogenous difference in price informativeness of stocks traded at home and abroad. We document that firms’ investment is more sensitive to the more informative price and the result is robust to the exploitation of a policy change for identification. In addition, we identify a learning channel that managers of firms relying more on international markets tend to learn more from prices of shares traded abroad. Investment sensitivity to prices is also stronger when managers’ incentives are better aligned with shareholders but weaker when they are more informed. Consistent with learning from more informative prices improving investment decisions, more informative stock prices are associated with better subsequent operating performance. Overall, our results support the managerial learning hypothesis.
Limited value of recovery phase‐limited ST segment depression of treadmill exercise test

Background Clinical meaning of recovery phase limited ST segment depression of a treadmill exercise test is controversial. The aim of this study was to re‐assess the diagnostic and prognostic value of ST segment depression during the recovery phase with the active phase of a treadmill exercise test in suspected coronary artery disease patients. Methods Clinical, exercise and angiographic data were retrospectively collected from 602 patients in the study. Five hundred and seventy‐six patients developed ST segment depression during the active phase of the treadmill exercise test (group 1) and 26 patients developed ST segment depression only during the recovery phase (group 2). Results With similar major clinical features, the prevalence of significant coronary artery stenosis and average Gensini scores were lower in the recovery phase‐limited depression patients (group 2 vs. group 1, 50.0% vs. 66.9%, P=0.031 and group 2 vs. group 1, 1.5 vs. 8.5, P=0.04). At a median follow up of 50.9 months for 22 group 2 and 34.8 months for 438 group 1 patients, the prevalence of total cardiac events was higher in group 1 than in group 2 patients (RR 1.60, 95% CI 1.00‐2.54, P=0.049). Conclusion The present study provides preliminary evidence that the diagnostic and prognostic value of recovery phase‐limited ST segment depression of treadmill exercise test is limited. Chin Med J 2014;127 (4): 742‐746
Determining the Effectiveness of Three Teaching Methods for Blood Pressure Measurement Skills

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of the following three methods for teaching blood pressure measurement: 1) lecture, 2) demonstration and 3) self study using video, and to measure the effect of each method on acquired knowledge, skill performance and learning satisfaction of the nursing students at Asia-Pacific International University. The participants of this study were 90 undergraduate nursing students who had never taken the fundamental of nursing courses, in which they were assigned to one of three groups by cluster randomization. This experimental study used a Cognitive learning theory as a conceptual framework ANOVA was used to determine any statistcial significance of knowledge, skill performance and satisfaction after three teaching methods were applied. There was no significant difference between the three teaching methods, though the lab demonstration produced the highest satisfaction score among the three. Nonetheless, a further study with a larger group of students may yield different results.
Multi-Tier Supplier Quality Evaluation in Global Supply Chains

Supplier quality evaluation is a critical part of quality management in global supply chains. Poor supplier quality results in not only monetary losses but also negatively impacts the business potential and future growth of buyer organizations. In this thesis, we propose a multi-tier supplier quality evaluation framework based on total cost of ownership and data envelopment analysis for quality management in global supply chains. The proposed approach comprises of three main steps. Firstly, we group the upstream suppliers based on common attributes using hierarchical cluster analysis. Then, we calculate the total cost of ownership for the grouped suppliers and their sub-suppliers using various qualitative and quantitative factors that are vital for quality management in global supply chains. In the third and the last step, we apply data envelopment analysis to compute the efficiencies of various suppliers to identify the best one (s) and recommend for selection. A numerical application is provided. The proposed approach is very useful to decision makers in benchmarking supplier quality performances and setting improvement targets for supplier quality development in global supply chains.
Empirical Asset Pricing with Multi-Period Disasters and Partial Government Defaults

According to the rare disaster hypothesis, the high excess returns that characterize U.S. postwar data resulted because investors ex ante demanded a compensation for possibly disastrous but very unlikely risks that they ex post did not suffer from. Empirical assessments of the rare disaster hypothesis are scarce, and the frequently used assumption that disasters shrink to one-period events is under suspicion of being the driving force behind the hypothesis' success in calibrations. This study uses the simulated method of moments to estimate a consumption-based asset pricing model that accounts for multi-period disasters, partial government defaults, and recursive investor preferences. The estimates are economically plausible, precise, and qualitatively insensitive with respect to different model specifications. Furthermore, the model-implied market Sharpe ratio, mean market return, and equity premium are comparable to the empirical data. The results thus help to restore the nexus between the real economy and financial markets that is implied by the consumption-based asset pricing paradigm.
Proliferation of E-Learning in Indian Universities through the Analysis of Existing LMS Scenario: A Novel Approach

Objectives: The first objective of this paper is to evaluate the present Status of E-learning in India by collecting facts about the usage of Learning Management System, its proliferation and adoption in Indian Universities. The second objective is to prepare a model that could help us to achieve the transformation in teaching-learning process. Methodology: The basic purpose of this study is to understand where does Indian modern education Stand with respect to modern means of technological tools available in the market. The study was based on Content Analysis Methodology that included a survey of visiting more than 700 official websites of Indian universities and the services they offered by using Learning Management System. Findings: As far as India is concerned, Learning Management System has been adopted in the corporate world for in-house training purpose but very much inadequately in Indian Universities, and by the result of that we are lagging behind from benefiting by modern means of educational tools. In this Study, it was found that even with surging internet user’s percentage growth rate in India which is second highest in Asia 28%, still only 6% of Universities in India are using Learning Management System application for E-learning Purpose. The cause for such low percentage might be Very Low broadband speed Connections and Lack of motivational Factors.According to the survey conducted it was found 95% of Indian Universities are using Open source Learning Management System and the approach they use is mostly ICT enabled and few with blended learning approach. Novelty: In this paper we attempt to propose a new Strategic model applicable to the current E-learning scenario in India to make E-learning as well as Learning Management System popular in Indian Universities to provide a way for better E-learning approach.
Causal Inference on the Difference of the Restricted Mean Lifetime Between Two Groups

Summary. When comparing survival times between two treatment groups, it may be more appropriate to compare the restricted mean lifetime, i.e., the expectation of lifetime restricted to a time L, rather than mean lifetime in order to accommodate censoring. When the treatments are not assigned to patients randomly, as in observational studies, we also need to account for treatment imbalances in confounding factors. In this article, we propose estimators for the difference of the restricted mean lifetime between two groups that account for treatment imbalances in prognostic factors assuming a proportional hazards relationship. Large‐sample properties of our estimators based on martingale theory for counting processes are also derived. Simulation studies were conducted to compare these estimators and to assess the adequacy of the large‐sample approximations. Our methods are also applied to an observational database of acute coronary syndrome patients from Duke University Medical Center to estimate the treatment effect on the restricted mean lifetime over 5 years.
Stratejik stok yönetimi: Bir kamu hastanesi örnei

Businesses have to develop and implement effective stock policies to maximize profits by minimizing costs in today's market conditions. Since the stocks enterprises between 20% to 60% within total assets of manufacturing, effective implementation of stock control and management policies, has great importance for the future of business. Businesses’ execution of it’s stock policies at the lowest cost depends on the forecasting amount of stock based on demand at least error, and minimum stock level determination and the appropriate time and amount of orders given to it. Thus, time and cost savings will be achieved by ensuring balance of continuity and speed in production of goods and services in the production process. By the rapid changes in consumer preferences, the variety of products, technologies and competitors are rapidly changing and increasing in rate. By increases in product variety, stock control and management is becoming even more difficult and complex. In recent years, effective and efficient resource use and management began to be kept in the foreground in public institutions as well as private sector. Public hospitals have been diverged from other business such as restaurant and hotel since it is an inpatient treatment business. It’s obligation of keeping right supplies in right amount, in the right place at the right time and cost is stricter comparing other institutions.
Tobacco control and the reduction in smoking-related premature deaths in the United States, 1964-2012.

IMPORTANCE January 2014 marks the 50th anniversary of the first surgeon general's report on smoking and health. This seminal document inspired efforts by governments, nongovernmental organizations, and the private sector to reduce the toll of cigarette smoking through reduced initiation and increased cessation. OBJECTIVE To model reductions in smoking-related mortality associated with implementation of tobacco control since 1964. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Smoking histories for individual birth cohorts that actually occurred and under likely scenarios had tobacco control never emerged were estimated. National mortality rates and mortality rate ratio estimates from analytical studies of the effect of smoking on mortality yielded death rates by smoking status. Actual smoking-related mortality from 1964 through 2012 was compared with estimated mortality under no tobacco control that included a likely scenario (primary counterfactual) and upper and lower bounds that would capture plausible alternatives. EXPOSURES National Health Interview Surveys yielded cigarette smoking histories for the US adult population in 1964-2012. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Number of premature deaths avoided and years of life saved were primary outcomes. Change in life expectancy at age 40 years associated with change in cigarette smoking exposure constituted another measure of overall health outcomes. RESULTS In 1964-2012, an estimated 17.7 million deaths were related to smoking, an estimated 8.0 million (credible range [CR], 7.4-8.3 million, for the lower and upper tobacco control counterfactuals, respectively) fewer premature smoking-related deaths than what would have occurred under the alternatives and thus associated with tobacco control (5.3 million [CR, 4.8-5.5 million] men and 2.7 million [CR, 2.5-2.7 million] women). This resulted in an estimated 157 million years (CR, 139-165 million) of life saved, a mean of 19.6 years for each beneficiary (111 million [CR, 97-117 million] for men, 46 million [CR, 42-48 million] for women). During this time, estimated life expectancy at age 40 years increased 7.8 years for men and 5.4 years for women, of which tobacco control is associated with 2.3 years (CR, 1.8-2.5) (30% [CR, 23%-32%]) of the increase for men and 1.6 years (CR, 1.4-1.7) (29% [CR, 25%-32%]) for women. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE Tobacco control was estimated to be associated with avoidance of 8 million premature deaths and an estimated extended mean life span of 19 to 20 years. Although tobacco control represents an important public health achievement, efforts must continue to reduce the effect of smoking on the nation's death toll.
The clinical relevance of the anhepatic phase during liver transplantation

This study assesses the relation between the anhepatic phase duration and the outcome after liver transplantation. Of 645 patients who underwent transplantation between 1994 and 2006, 194 were recipients of consecutive adult primary piggyback liver transplants using heart‐beating donors. The anhepatic phase was defined as the time from the physical removal of the liver from the recipient to recirculation of the graft. Other noted study variables were the cold and warm ischemia times, donor and recipient age, donor and recipient body mass index, perioperative red blood cell (RBC) transfusion, indication for transplantation, and Model for End‐Stage Liver Disease score. The primary outcome parameter was graft dysfunction, which was defined as either primary nonfunction or initial poor function according to the Ploeg‐Maring criteria. The median anhepatic phase was 71 minutes (37–321 minutes). Graft dysfunction occurred in 27 patients (14%). Logistic regression analysis showed an anhepatic phase over 100 minutes [odds ratio (OR), 4.28], a recipient body mass index over 25 kg/m2 (OR, 3.21), and perioperative RBC transfusion (OR, 3.04) to be independently significant predictive factors for graft dysfunction. One‐year patient survival in patients with graft dysfunction was 67% versus 92% in patients without graft dysfunction (P < 0.001). A direct relation between the anhepatic phase duration and patient survival could, however, not be established. In conclusion, this study shows that liver transplant patients with an anhepatic phase over 100 minutes have a higher incidence of graft dysfunction. Patients with graft dysfunction have significantly worse 1‐year patient survival. Liver Transpl 15:1050–1055, 2009. © 2009 AASLD.
HRM and Performance: What do we know and where should we go?

‘Based on four national surveys and observations on more than 2000 firms, our judgment is that the effect of a one standard deviation change in the HR system is 10–20% of a firm’s market value. ’ (Huselid & Becker, 2000, p. 851; emphasis added) ‘The existing evidence for a relationship between HRM and performance should be treated with caution. ’ (Wall & Wood, 2005, p. 454) ‘After hundreds of research studies we are still in no position to assert with any confidence that good HRMhas an impact on organization performance. ’ (Guest, 2011, p. xx)
Optimum traction force distribution for stability improvement of 4WD EV in critical driving condition

This paper is concerned with integrated yaw stability control strategy for 4WD EV driven by in-wheel motors. The strategy consists of double control loops. One is the upper control loop, which uses 2-DOF control method to specify control effectors which are required for keeping EV yaw stability. The other is the lower control loop, which is used to determine control inputs for four driving motors by optimum traction force distribution method. This distribution method is implemented by redundancy control. The simulation results indicate that handling stability of this 4WD EV is improved by proposed strategy, especially when the EV drives in critical conditions
Melatonin and aging.

Although many theories relating the pineal secretory product melatonin to aging have been put forward, the role of this agent in the aging process is not clear. However, there are several reasons to postulate a role for melatonin in this process. Melatonin levels fall gradually over the life-span. Melatonin is a potent free radical scavenger. Melatonin deficiency is related to suppressed immunocompetence. In at least one animal model melatonin supplementation increased life-span although several other studies have failed. The aging process is multifactorial, and no single element seems to be of basic importance. It seems, however, that although melatonin can not be univocally recognized as a substance delaying aging, some of its actions may be beneficial for the process of aging. However, the precise role of melatonin in the aging process remains to be determined.
Design of a switched reluctance traction drive for Electric Vehicles

The cost of an electric traction drive has a strong impact on the overall price of small electric cars. Therefore, a cost effective design of such a drive train is essential. This paper investigates the design of a switched reluctance machine for application in electric vehicles from a system perspective. The goal of the paper is to propose a design procedure, which takes into account machine, inverter, battery and mechanical system. First, relevant components of the system as well as the basic requirements are defined. Special attention is paid to the modeling of the battery and dc-link behavior, which often was neglected in previous studies. Afterwards, the machine design considerations and machine characteristics are presented. The analysis clearly shows that the entire propulsion system has to be optimized in closed form to optimize the overall efficiency. In addition, it is essential to minimize the size of the dc-link capacitor of the inverter, while reducing the influence of ripple current on the high-voltage battery.
To stent or not to stent: is there a role for vascular endoprostheses in haemodialysis shunts?

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Dynamic scheduling MAC protocol for large scale sensor networks

In this paper a modified neighbor aware medium-access control protocol is proposed designed for wireless sensor networks. Wireless sensor networks are generally comprised of battery powered nodes. These nodes are densely deployed in an ad-hoc structure. The main objective for sensor networks is low power consumption while latency is less important. This leads different MAC layer design for wireless sensor networks compared to conventional ad hoc protocols. In this paper we propose a neighbor aware medium access control to reduce power consumption. This protocol is derived from modified distributed mediation device (MDMD) protocol and uses useful properties of this protocol while improves the performance of this protocol especially in dense environments. We add a neighbor aware dynamic scheduling scheme to MDMD protocol to reduce power consumption. We compare this modified protocol with sensor-MAC (S-MAC) and MDMD protocol