Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Developing an index to measure the entrepreneurial orientation of rural youth

An index may be defined as a technique of totalling or reducing a single composite series datum on a number of distinct but related variables expressed in different units of measurement. In other words the term index is defined as the numerical scale used to compare variables with one another. A study was designed to develop an index to measure the entrepreneurial orientation of rural youth of Krishnagiri district, Tamil Nadu. The study was conducted among 210 rural youths with farming background. Relevancy weightage score method was used to develop the index. The finalized index comprised of fifteen indicators. The entrepreneurial orientation index thus developed was standardized for administration.
0.97 mΩcm2/820 V 4H-SiC Super Junction V-Groove Trench MOSFET

We have fabricated Super Junction (SJ) V-groove trench MOSFETs (VMOSFETs), demonstrated a low specific on-resistance (RonA) of 0.97 mΩcm2 and a blocking voltage (VB) of 820 V. In the first trial, SJ structure in 4H-SiC have proved to be a good combination with MOS interface on (0-33-8) faces which keep high channel mobility in high doping concentration. We designed a protection structure called “upper p-pillar region” and demonstrated that VB lowering appeared according to its width.
Aquaculture farmer organizations and cluster management : concepts and experiences

Small-scale aquaculture producers in developing countries are facing new opportunities and challenges related to market liberalization, globalization and increasingly stringent quality and safety requirements for their products, making it harder for them to access markets. Collective action through participation in farmers' organization (FOs) can provide an effective mechanism to assist small-scale producers overcome these challenges ad contribute to and influence modern market chains and trade. This publication presents factors associated with successful FOs and guiding principles for development organizations that wish to support aquaculture FOs in developing countries.
THE GEOGRAPHY OF MAMMALIAN SPECIATION: MIXED SIGNALS FROM PHYLOGENIES AND RANGE MAPS

Abstract The importance of geographic isolation in speciation has been debated since the 19th century. Since the beginning of the 20th century, the consensus has been that most speciation involves divergence in allopatry. This consensus was based largely on decades of observations by naturalists and verbal arguments against speciation without isolation. Recent attempts to quantify the importance of allopatric versus sympatric speciation using comparative methods called “age-range correlation” (ARC) suggest that allopatric speciation is more common than sympatric speciation. However, very few taxa have been studied and there are concerns about the adequacy of the methods. We propose methodological improvements including changes in the way overlap between clades is quantified and Monte Carlo methods to test the null hypothesis of no relationship between phylogenetic relatedness and geographic range overlap. We analyze 14 clades of mammals, chosen because of the availability of data and the consensus among mammalogists that speciation is routinely allopatric. Although data from a few clades clearly indicate allopatric speciation, divergence with gene flow is plausible in others and many results are inconclusive. The relative rarity of significant correlations between phylogenetic distance and range overlap may have three distinct causes: (1) postspeciation range changes, (2) relative rarity of range overlap, and (3) a mixture of geographic modes of speciation. Our results support skepticism about ARC's power for inferring the biogeography of speciation. Yet, even if few clades provide clear signals, meta-analytic approaches such as ARC may set bounds on the prevalence of alternative modes of speciation.
Facilitating a Generic Communication Interface to Distributed Energy Resources: Mapping IEC 61850 to RESTful Services

As the power system evolves into a smarter and more flexible state, so must the communication technologies that support it. A key requirement for facilitating the distributed production of future grids is that communication and information are standardized to ensure interoperability. The IEC 61850 standard, which was originally aimed at substation automation, has been expanded to cover the monitoring and control of Distributed Energy Resources (DERs). By having a consistent and well- defined data model the standard enables a DER aggregator, such as a Virtual Power Plant (VPP), in communicating with a broad array of DERs. If the data model of IEC 61850 is combined with a set of contemporary web protocols, it can result in a major shift in how DERs can be accessed and coordinated. This paper describes how IEC 61850 can benefit from the REpresentational State Transfer (REST) service concept and how a server using these technologies can be used to interface with DERs as diverse as Electric Vehicles (EVs) and micro Combined Heat and Power (µCHP) units.
Expression and regulation of chemokines in bacterial pneumonia

Effective host defense against bacterial invasion is characterized by the vigorous recruitment and activation of inflammatory cells, which is dependent on the coordinated expression of both pro‐and anti‐inflammatory cytokines. In this review, we present evidence indicating that both C‐X‐C and C‐C chemokines are integral components of antibacterial host defense. Specifically, in vitro studies indicate that C‐X‐C chemokines [interleukin‐8 (IL‐8) and macrophage inflammatory protein 2 (MIP‐2)] and the C‐C chemokine macrophage inflammatory protein 1 alpha (MIP‐1α) augment the ability of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) and alveolar macrophages, respectively, to phagocytose and kill Escherichia coli. In addition, the intratracheal instillation of Klebsiella pneumoniae in CD‐I mice results in time‐dependent production of MIP‐2 and MIP‐1α, and the inhibition of MIP‐2 bioactivity in vivo results in decreases in lung PMN influx, impaired bacterial clearance, and early mortality. Finally, the anti‐inflammatory cytokine interleukin‐10 (IL‐10) is also expressed within the lung during the evolution of Klebsiella pneumonia, and neutralization of IL‐10 in vivo results in enhanced proinflammatory cytokine production, bacterial clearance, and increases in both short‐ and long‐term survival. In conclusion, our studies indicate that specific chemokines are important mediators of leukocyte recruitment and/or activation in bacterial pneumonia and that the expression of these chemokines is regulated by endogenously produced IL‐10.
The syntax of possessor prominence in Maithili

Maithili (Indo-Aryan; India; Nepal) has a complex agreement system in which many terms and non-terms, including subjects, objects, obliques, extra-clausal ‘deictic referents’, and, crucially, possessors within any of these can potentially control agreement on the verb. Agreement is partly determined by grammatical function and argument structure, but in many instances the functional prominence of the agreement controller—determined by focus and referential features, including respect—overrides syntactic prominence. This is particularly clear when possessors internal to an argument or adjunct can control agreement, even though viable alternatives appear to be available. The functional prominence of the internal possessor also appears to have a syntactic correlate: the possessor that controls agreement may be in a more prominent position within the phrase headed by the possessed nominal, and this is what enables it to participate in clause-level syntactic processes.
Effects of adjuvant tamoxifen on the endometrium in postmenopausal women with breast cancer: a prospective long-term study using transvaginal ultrasound.

PURPOSE To study the value of transvaginal ultrasound (TVS) in endometrial screening of postmenopausal breast cancer patients treated with tamoxifen. PATIENTS AND METHODS In 247 tamoxifen-treated (20 to 30 mg/d for >/= 2 years) women and 98 controls, the endometrium was prospectively followed-up by means of TVS every 6 months for up to 5 years. Patients with homogeneous endometrium of more than 10-mm thickness were then scanned repeatedly every 3 months. RESULTS The mean endometrial thickness was 3.5 +/- 1.1 mm before treatment and increased to a maximum of 9. 2 +/- 5.1 mm after 3 years of tamoxifen application (P: <.0001), which was significantly (P: <.0001) thicker compared with controls. Fifty-two asymptomatic patients with thickened or morphologically suspect endometrium underwent hysteroscopy and dilatation and curettage (D&C), resulting in four uterine perforations. Histopathologically, atrophy was found in 38 patients (73.1%), polyps in nine, hyperplasia in four, and endometrial cancer in one case. In 20 screened patients who reported vaginal bleeding, five atrophies (25%), five polyps, four hyperplasias, and two endometrial cancers were found. Before hysteroscopy and D&C were performed, 36 (69.2%) of 52 asymptomatic and four (20%) of 20 symptomatic patients were scanned by repeated TVS over 2 to 30 months. Invasive diagnostic procedures were significantly (P: <.05) more frequent in younger and obese patients. In the controls, one asymptomatic polyp and one symptomatic hyperplasia were found. CONCLUSION In tamoxifen-treated patients, TVS offered a high false-positive rate, even with a cutoff value of 10 mm for endometrial thickness and repeated TVS scans. Increased iatrogenic morbidity and only one asymptomatic endometrial carcinoma do not warrant endometrial screening by TVS in tamoxifen-treated patients.
Should Crowdfunding Investors Rely on Lists of the Best Private Companies?

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) annually publishes a list of the fifty “best” private companies that are funded by venture capitalists. Given the important role venture capitalists play in fostering the growth and development of relatively young firms, it is important to examine the returns to venture capitalists and investors when these firms go public or are acquired. Equity crowdfunding will soon allow all investors to invest in companies before they go public. It is therefore worthwhile to examine whether such lists of best companies suggest better investment opportunities for these individual investors. We examine the financial performance of private venture capital funded firms on the WSJ list up to the public offering or acquisition to determine expected performance in these types of emerging growth companies by individual investors in the post-JOBS act era.
Stent thrombosis redux--the FDA perspective.

Stent Thrombosis Redux — The FDA Perspective Dr. Andrew Farb and Ashley Boam write that as compared with on-label use, off-label use of drug-eluting stents is associated with increased risks of both early and late stent thrombosis, as well as death or myocardial infarction. Given the benefits and risks, physicians should consider certain patient characteristics in deciding whether to use a drug-eluting or a bare-metal stent. Dr. Donald Baim, chief medical and scientific officer of Boston Scientific, and Dr. Steven Nissen, chairman of The Department of Cardiovascular Medicine at The Cleveland Clinic, discuss the risks and benefits of drug-eluting stents.
Antibiotic Resistance Trends and The ESBL Prevalence of Escherichia coli and Klebsiella spp Urinary Isolates in In-and Outpatients in a Tertiary Care Hospital in Istanbul, 2004 - 2012

Background: Extended spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) producing organisms causing urinary tract infections are increasing in incidence and becoming a serious health problem due to their resistance to large number of antibiotics. Objectives: To investigate the ESBL prevalence of Escherichia coli and Klebsiella spp. which are isolated from urine samples for both in and outpatients with their resistance proﬁles. Methods: From 2004 to 2012, a total of 13975 isolates (12897 E. coli , 1078 Klebsiella spp.) were included in this study. The antibiotic susceptibility was tested using Kirby–Bauer disk diﬀusion method and Vitek2 System (bioMerieux, France) according to CLSI. Results: Our data showed a signiﬁcant increasing in ESBL prevalence from 12.5% to 44.7% (P < 0.001) for inpatients; from 9.6% to 22.8% (P< 0.001)foroutpatientsin E.coli andfrom25% to60.5% (P< 0.003)forinpatients;from12% to25% (P< 0.095)foroutpatients in Klebsiella spp. For E. coli , the increase was signiﬁcantly high in both of males and females (P < 0.001). However, for Klebsiella spp. it was signiﬁcantly high in male patients (P < 0.001). The resistance rates of antibiotics for the ESBL producing E. coli , and Klebsiella spp. showed a signiﬁcant increase. These rates were higher than 70% for ﬂuoroquinolones, amoxicillin-clavulanic acid and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. Even carbepenem resistance reached to 7% in the outpatients and 15% in inpatients for ESBL producing Klebsiella spp. Conclusions: Our study demonstrated a signiﬁcant increase in the prevalence of ESBL producing E. coli and Klebsiella spp. and a remarkable carbapenem resistance trend in the ESBL producing Klebsiella spp. isolated from urine samples.
A case of normal pressure hydrocephalus presenting as levodopa responsive parkinsonism.

Sir: It is well recognised that normal pressure hydrocephalus may rarely present with pure Parkinsonian signs and gait disturbance without other features of the triad, namely intellectual impairment and urinary incontinence. ' 3 I report a case which presented with Parkinsonian findings only for 2 years and which initially responded to levodopa. This case highlights a pitfall of diagnosing idiopathic Parkinsonism on clinical grounds, when there is a positive response to levodopa, which is usually taken to indicate idiopathic disease. A 64 year old woman presented with a 2 year history ofdifficulty in walking, slowness in her actions and stiff limbs. She had difficulty getting up from a chair and shuffled when walking. There was no other previous medical history of note. Examination revealed facial impassivity and a resting tremor in the left hand. There was a cog wheel rigidity in all four limbs, left greater than right. There was no sign of pyramidal involvement. Plantar responses were flexor and there was no intellectual or urinary disturbance. Her gait was shuffling with no arm swing. The diagnosis of Parkinsonism, probably idiopathic, was made and treatment with Sinemet Plus (levodopa and carbidopa) was commenced. On three tablets daily her gait had substantially improved but dyskinesia had not occurred. She was admitted 1 year later with further deterioration in function. She had great difficulty buttoning clothes and her walking was slow with occasional falls. Signs remained those of akinetic rigid Parkinsonism without intellectual impairment. A CT scan (figure) showed marked hydrocephalus. Again she showed marked improvement (PD rating scores improved by 50%) with increasing dose of Sinemet to eight tablets daily and so conservative management was pursued. Three months later, she again deteriorated swiftly so that she could not walk unaided. At this stage the other features of the hydrocephalic triad supervened with intellectual problems (slowness ofthought and poor memory) and occasional urinary incontinence. A ventricular atrial shunt was inserted and she quickly improved so that all anti-Parkinson drugs could be withdrawn. Two years later she remains well, fully functional without any sign of Parkinsonism or intellectual impairment. She walks normally, her only abnormality being slight postural instability when Letters
The Feasibility of Market Value Accounting for Commercial Banks

As the severity of the problems facing the federal deposit insurance funds become more obvious, the chorus of support for some form of market value accounting is growing. Proponents cite the benefits of increased disclosure and the discipline such accounting would bring about. Opponents argue that market value accounting is infeasible because it would be too costly and too inaccurate to be worth the effort.
Critical Review: The effectiveness of ultrasound technology as a visual biofeedback tool on the productive speech intelligibility of adolescents and young adults with a hearing impairment

This critical review examines the effects of ultrasound technology as a visual biofeedback tool as an adjunct to speech therapy on the productive speech intelligibility of adolescents and young adults with moderate to profound hearing impairments. Study designs include: case study and single subject design. Overall, research suggests a facilitative role of this technology in developing more typical tongue placement for challenging phonemes particular to this population to increase intelligibility, with hope for long-term effects. However, the evidence base for this field of research is limited and the studies reviewed demonstrate methodological weaknesses. Recommendations for future research and clinical practice are provided.
Stock Market Efficiency and Development in the GCC

In their present early stages of development, GCC component stock markets are characterised by outstanding returns performance. However, issues relating to foreign investment openness, industry governance and transparency have contributed to thin trading and lack of liquidity particularly in the smaller GCC markets. Change is occurring gradually. However, while oil revenues flow strongly and while there remains a huge pool of petro-dollar assets for repatriation and new funds in strong oil revenues, there seems no immediate pressure for the authorities to implement faster market reform. This study provides evidence that the component stock markets of the GCC are not efficient, even at the weak-form level under the efficient markets hypothesis. In addition, the component markets exhibit substantial interdependence. In light of the degree of interdependence arguments may be presented for amalgamation of the stock exchanges to encourage greater liquidity and efficiency.
Enhancement of Evaporation from a Large Northern Lake by the Entrainment of Warm, Dry Air

The turbulent exchange of water vapor and heat were measured above Great Slave Lake, Northwest Territories, Canada, using the eddy covariance method for most of the ice-free period in 1997, 1998, and 1999. In all years, evaporation tended to occur in episodic pulses, lasting 52‐78 h, between which quiescent periods dominated. The contributions of these evaporation pulses to the measured total evaporation were 45%, 65%, and 47% for 1997, 1998, and 1999, respectively, yet occurred on only 24% (1997), 37% (1998), and 25% (1999) of the total number of days observed. Despite the suppression of turbulent mixing, due to the stable atmospheric conditions that dominated much of the ice-free periods, analyses of high-frequency wind, air temperature, and humidity data revealed that evaporation was enhanced by the mixing of warm, dry air down to the lake surface. Conditional sampling of turbulent measurements showed that these sweeps of warm, dry air were infrequent, yet were the dominant turbulent transfer mechanism. Because the approximately 3-day-long evaporation pulses were composed of an aggregation of sweeps, measurements of air‐lake turbulent heat exchange needed to be made at a high frequency in order to capture these significant events. Implications of climate variability on the mechanisms that control short- and long-term evaporation rates were discussed, in terms of the positive feedback that developed between entrainment and evaporation.
Trafficking of Ganglioside GD3 to Mitochondria by Tumor Necrosis Factor-α*

The interaction of mitochondria with proapoptotic proteins activates apoptosis pathways. Previous findings have identified ganglioside GD3 (GD3) as an emerging apoptotic lipid intermediate that targets mitochondria in response to death signals. Using immunoelectron and laser scanning confocal microscopy, we characterize the trafficking of GD3 to mitochondria in response to tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in rat hepatocytes. In control hepatocytes, GD3 is present predominantly at the plasma membrane as well as in the endosomal/Golgi network, as verified by its colocalization with the asialoglycoprotein receptor. Following TNF-α exposure, GD3 undergoes a rapid cellular redistribution with a gradual loss from the plasma membrane before its colocalization with mitochondria. This process is mimicked by acidic sphingomyelinase and ionizing radiation but not by neutral sphingomyelinase or staurosporin. TNF-α stimulated the colocalization of GD3 with early and late endosomal markers, Rab 5 and Rab 7, whereas perturbation of plasma membrane cholesterol or actin cytoskeleton or inhibition of glucosylceramide synthase prevented the trafficking of GD3 to mitochondria. Finally, prevention of the TNF-α-stimulated neosynthesis of GD3, cyclosporin A, and latrunculin A or filipin protected sensitized hepatocytes from TNF-α-mediated cell death. Thus, the intracellular redistribution and mitochondrial targeting of GD3 during TNF-α signaling occurs through actin cytoskeleton vesicular trafficking and contributes to TNF-α-mediated hepatocellular cell death.
Devidend payment behaviour and its determinants: The Malaysian property sector

Disappearing dividend phenomenon remains unexplored in the Malaysian market. Therefore, this study investigates whether or not the phenomenon exists in the Malaysian property sector. This is achieved by observing dividend pattern in the sector between 2000 to 2013. The study investigates dividend payout in the sector further by examining the factors that influence companies‟ decision to pay or not to pay dividends. Trend analysis was used to describe the dividend pattern over the period while logistic regression analysis was conducted to determine the factors that influence companies‟ payout decisions. Findings revealed an upward trend in the amount of dividends distributed in the sector over the period as well as in the number of dividend payers. The study provides evidence of dividend concentration in the property sector of Bursa Malaysia as results shows that a large portion of dividend paid out for all the years come from the top 10 payers. As revealed by the findings, the explanatory factors for dividend payout decisions in the Malaysian property sector include dividend premium, retained earnings to total equity, profitability, size, leverage, and past year dividend. Thus, findings of the study provide support for catering theory, lifecycle theory and dividend smoothing theory. Findings indicate that investment opportunities and crisis do not play any significant role in explaining payout decisions in the sector
The Export-Performance Licensing Scheme

The structure and impact of the Export-Performance Licensing Scheme is a particularly interesting study when contrasted with the Export Bonus Scheme. These two export-incentive measures overlap in many ways; yet they are radically different in certain aspects. Each alone has evolved administratively into a formidable institutional structure. The Export Bonus Scheme has been based upon a partially market-oriented, price-determined allocation of resources. However, the Export-Performance Licensing Scheme has been directly controlled by administrative intervention at all levels. It is interesting to search for reasons why the Export-Performance Licensing Scheme has reached a condition such that the following comments could be seriously posited