Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Corporate Governance and Emerging Markets: Lessons from the Field

Although it may be too early to pronounce on the relative effectiveness of various capital market-driven corporate governance initiatives, experiences in emerging markets over the last decade, especially Latin America, lead to some preliminary conclusions. These observations may have some predictive value in gauging the potential effectiveness of any particular initiative. "Voluntary" codes and procedural remedies drawn from Anglo-American law, for example, may not be the most effective means of channeling market forces to the improvement of corporate governance in continental European-style legal systems. These transplants may behave a little differently than expected; at worst, they may have somewhat perverse consequences, where an internationally recognized, but domestically ineffective, rule is introduced into a system. The Latin American cases studied are instructive in this regard, as governance mechanisms were introduced in multiple guises along a continuum of private and public rules, amplifying the prospects of effectiveness.
Hospital-Based Surveillance to Estimate the Burden of Rotavirus Gastroenteritis Among European Children Younger Than 5 Years of Age

OBJECTIVES. Rotavirus is the leading cause of acute gastroenteritis requiring hospitalization in young children. Data on the burden of rotavirus gastroenteritis are needed to guide recommendations for rotavirus vaccine use. This study was undertaken to estimate the burden of rotavirus gastroenteritis in European children <5 years of age. METHODS. This prospective, study was conducted in 12 hospitals in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom. A sample of all children aged <5 years presenting to emergency departments or hospitalized because of community-acquired acute gastroenteritis was enrolled for parental interview and stool collection. Acute gastroenteritis was defined as diarrhea (≥3 loose stools per 24 hours) for <14 days. Rotavirus was detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and typed by reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. RESULTS. Between February 2005 and August 2006, 3734 children with community-acquired acute gastroenteritis were recruited and retained for analysis (55.9% via the emergency department, 41.8% hospitalized). Of the 2928 community-acquired acute gastroenteritis cases for which stool samples were available, 43.4% were rotavirus-positive by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (32.8% emergency department, 56.2% hospitalized). Of these rotavirus gastroenteritis cases 80.9% occurred in children aged <2 years and 15.9% among infants aged <6 months. Acute gastroenteritis was more severe in rotavirus-positive subjects (Vesikari score ≥ 11 in 53.3% compared with 31.0% of rotavirus-negative subjects). All 1271 rotavirus-positive strains were genotyped (G1P[8]: 40.3%; G9P[8]: 31.2%; G4P[8]: 13.5%; G3P[8]: 7.1%). CONCLUSIONS. Rotavirus gastroenteritis places high demands on European health care systems, accounting for 56.2% of hospitalizations and 32.8% of emergency department visits because of community-acquired acute gastroenteritis in children aged <5 years. Most community-acquired rotavirus gastroenteritis occurs in children aged <2 years, and a high proportion occurs in infants aged <6 months. Cases were also observed among very young infants <2 months of age. Rotavirus vaccination is expected to have a major impact in reducing morbidity and the pressure on hospital services in Europe.
Research on Critical Review of Enterprise Capability Theory

During the past decades,business capability theory has attracted great attention in literature research.This paper systematically analyzes and summarizes the current researches in this respect,and classifies them into four categories: the resource-based view,the core-capability theory,the knowledge-based theory and the dynamic-capability theory.Within the four categories,the resource-based view is the most popular one,and the dynamic-capability theory is emerging to be the next wave of business capability theory in recent years.
HIV and reproductive care—a review of current practice

I read with great interest the review article by Gilling-Smith et al.1 on current practice in the reproductive care of HIVpositive individuals. As chairman of the centre with the single largest unit in Italy focused on the treatment of HIVserodiscordant (or concordant) couples, I was happy to agree with the views of Gilling-Smith et al. We have now reviewed our experience on more than 700 HIV-serodiscordant couples treated with sperm washing and different forms of assisted reproductive technology.2 Intrauterine insemination (IUI) and in vitro fertilisation/intracytoplasmic sperm injection (IVF/ICSI) were used according to the fertility profile of the couple. The effectiveness of sperm washing was always checked by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Serological long-term follow up has confirmed the safety of this procedure. The overall clinical pregnancy rate per couple was approximately 75% in IUI and 40% in IVF/ICSI. These data suggest that providing fertility treatment for couples with HIV is safe and confirm the efficacy of IUI for otherwise fertile couples as the first therapeutical approach, in agreement with the conclusions of Gilling-Smith et al. We are also grateful to the authors for including our centre in their review (reference 49). Unfortunately, this work was wrongly quoted, both for the authorship and the year. The correct quotation is the following: Savasi V, Persico T, Oneta M, Lanzani C, Crivelli M, Grandi MD, Ferrazzi E. Intrauterine insemination in HIV-serodiscordant couple for male HIV infection (Abstract Mo0rE1070). Int Conf AIDS, Barcelona, 2002;14. In fact, the series of 175 couples reported is consistent with the actual number of cases treated in the period 2000–02 and not with the period 2000–04. That preliminary experience was presented by our group in Barcelona at the International Conference on AIDS. Dr Semprini gives the Department of Clinical Sciences as his institutional address. We are sorry to say that, in spite of being
Alterations in Segmentary Branch Pulmonary Artery Blood Flow Velocimetry in Fetuses of Diabetic Mothers

Objective. To evaluate pulmonary blood flow in fetuses of diabetic mothers by measuring changes in fetal segmentary pulmonary artery blood flow velocimetry throughout pregnancy. Methods. Thirty‐eight women with pregestational diabetes between weeks 18 and 38 were compared with 99 women with singleton low‐risk gestations as controls. Flow velocity waveforms at the proximal middle and distal segments of the right pulmonary artery were obtained with power and color Doppler sonography in all fetuses. The pulsatility index of each segment was compared between the 2 groups. The mean value and 95% confidence interval for each segment were determined in correlation with gestational age for both groups. Results. The highest mean pulsatility indices were obtained in the proximal segment of the pulmonary artery and were 2.25 in the diabetes group and 2.36 in controls. The mean pulsatility indices were significantly decreased in the middle and distal segments to 1.59 and 1.10 in the diabetes group and to 1.57 and 1.02 in controls (P < .05). There were no significant differences in pulsatility indices measured at the proximal and middle segments between the study and control groups. However, the mean pulsatility index ± SD measured at the distal segment in the diabetic group was 9% higher than in controls (1.10 ± 0.13 versus 1.02 ± 0.12; P = .01). The mean pulsatility index (in the study and control groups) in each arterial segment did not change significantly throughout gestation (P > .1). Conclusions. In human fetuses throughout gestation, the pulmonary circulation maintains stable vascular resistance in both diabetic and normal pregnancies. However, in all gestations, the pulsatility index in each segment of the pulmonary artery is unique and reflects the proximity to the heart and the impedance at each location. The significantly higher pulsatility index in the diabetes group might be related to alterations in the microcirculation of diabetic patients.
Histological and Histochemical Studies on the Lingual, Preglottal and Laryngeal Salivary Glands of the Japanese Quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica) at the Post‐hatching Period

The postnatal development and histochemistry of mucins of the lingual, preglottal and laryngeal glands in the quails were investigated by means of light microscopy using specific staining for complex carbohydrates. In this study, the tongues were taken from female and male quails from day 1 to day 60 after hatching. The salivary glands in quail’s tongue comprised the lingual gland, with lateral and medial (paraentoglossal gland) portions that differ in morphology and histochemical staining, and the preglottal gland, with two lateral portions and one medial portion. The medial portion of the preglottal gland, which extended to the row of the laryngeal papillae on each side of the glottis, was described as the laryngeal gland. The salivary glands were present at hatching and their cells were functionally mature and secreted mucins. In quail of all ages, the histochemical reactions revealed that the cytoplasms of the secretory cells of the preglottal, laryngeal and paraentoglossal gland (medial portion of lingual gland) contained sialomucins and weakly sulphated epithelial mucins. Neutral mucins were absent in the paraentoglossal gland, while a small amount of neutral mucins was present in other glands. The mucins with vicinal diol groups, sialomucins and weakly sulphated epithelial mucins were mixed within the secretory cells of all the glands. All the histochemical reactions were restricted to the supranuclear regions of the secretory cells within the lateral portion of the lingual gland. In conclusion, the contents of mucins in the lingual, preglottal and laryngeal glands varied between different age groups, however, no differences in the glands’ histochemistry between male and female quails were observed.
How Do Television Networks Use Twitter? Exploring the Relationship between Twitter Use and Television Ratings

ABSTRACT Television networks are increasingly using social-networking sites to promote programs and to interact with the audiences of those programs. Through a content analysis of 1,656 tweets from the Twitter sites of 20 popular programs featured on U.S. television networks, this study examined how television networks used Twitter and the relationship between the extent of their Twitter use and the ratings of television programs. Analyses revealed a significantly positive relationship between TV networks’ extent of Twitter use and television ratings. Additionally, this study found significant differences in the Twitter usage among television networks. The theoretical and practical implications of this study are also discussed.
Synthesis and characterization of graphene-based nanocomposites for EM shielding applications

Novel graphene-based nanocomposites, consisting of a polymeric-based system filled with graphenenanoplatelets (GNP), are developed for application as low-cost lightweight electromagnetic shielding materials. High concentration and good dispersion of the GNPs inside a thermosetting polymeric matrix is achieved in order to enhance the shielding properties of the nanocomposite through the control of the fabrication process. The good shielding performance of the new material is demonstrated by means of shielding effectiveness (SE) measurements on the fabricated samples. Moreover, numerical simulations are performed in order to validate the SE measurements and to design a nanocomposite panel providing a minimum shielding of 30 dB in the frequency range up to 18 GHz.
Terminal-Modality-Based Joint Call Admission Control Algorithm for Fair Radio Resource Allocation in Heterogeneous Cellular Networks

There is a problem of unfairness in allocation of radio resources among heterogeneous mobile terminals in heterogeneous wireless networks. Low-capability mobile terminals (such as single-mode terminals) suffer high call blocking probability whereas high-capability mobile terminals (such as quad-mode terminals) experience very low call blocking probability, in the same heterogeneous wireless network. This paper proposes a Terminal-Modality-Based Joint Call Admission Control (TJCAC) algorithm to reduce this problem of unfairness. The proposed TJCAC algorithm makes call admission decisions based on mobile terminal modality (capability), network load, and radio access technology (RAT) terminal support index. The objectives of the proposed TJCAC algorithm are to reduce call blocking/dropping probability, and ensure fairness in allocation of radio resources among heterogeneous mobile terminals in heterogeneous networks. An analytical model is developed to evaluate the performance of the proposed TJCAC scheme in terms of call blocking/dropping probability in a heterogeneous wireless network. The performance of the proposed TJCAC algorithm is compared with that of other JCAC algorithms. Results show that the proposed algorithm reduces call blocking/dropping probability in the networks, and ensure fairness in allocation of radio resources among heterogeneous terminals.
DEPRESSION-LIKE EFFECT OF LOSARTAN POTASSIUM ON IMMOBILITY IN MICE : PRELIMINARY EVIDENCE FOR THE INVOLVEMENT OF ITS ACTIVE METABOLITE EXP 3174

The effect of acute oral treatment of losartan potassium, an angiotensin AT1 receptor blocker, on immobility in the forced swim test have been studied using rifampicin-treated (cytochrome P-450 enzyme-induced) and fluconazole-treated (cytochrome P-450 enzyme-inhibited) swiss albino mice respectively. In vehicle-treated group, an enhancement in immobility time was observed at 3 h and 6 h after losartan potassium treatment (20 mg/kg, p.o) in the mouse forced swim test. In rifampicin-treated group, even at 1 h after losartan potassium treatment (20 mg/kg, p.o.) a significant enhancement in immobility was observed. It has also been observed that the basal immobility time of rifampicin-treated mice was significantly (p<0.001) lower when compared with vehicle treated group. In fluconazole-treated group, losartan potassium (20 mg/kg, p.o.) could not significantly alter the immobility time at any point of time. The present study results suggest that the depression-like effect of losartan potassium might be mainly mediated by its active metabolite EXP 3174. However, further studies using EXP 3174 are warranted to confirm its CNS activities.
Food intake and live-weight gain comparisons of Bos indicus and Bos taurus steers on a high plane of nutrition

1. The voluntary dry-matter and water intakes of indigenous and exotic cattle on high plane rations have been compared under similar conditions of management. 2. At similar live weights, exotic cattle have a much higher feed intake relative to maintenance than indigenous cattle. 3. Water intake was closely related to dry-matter intake, irrespective of live weight, and varied only very slightly between the two types of cattle. 4. Exotic cattle were more than twice as efficient as indigenous cattle in converting feed into live-weight gain. It is suggested that this is largely a reflection of the increased feed intake, relative to maintenance requirements. 5. Stage of maturity, degree of fatness and their relation to conversion efficiency are discussed.
Multinational Networks, Domestic,and Foreign Firms in Europe

This paper introduces two datasets, AUGAMA, a panel of European firms for the period 1996-2011, and EUMULNET, a European Multinational Network data set. These datasets are constructed on the basis of the Amadeus database issued by Bureau Van Dijk Electronic Publishing. We document the process of building these data sets from the raw Amadeus data for 26 European countries. We show that the data sets adequately approximate the structure of the European economy across countries, regions, and industries as portrayed by data from Eurostat (Structural Business Statistics) and Cambridge Econometrics. As an illustration of possible application, we use the datasets to test a number of results from the theoretical literature regarding the productivity of multinational firms vis-a-vis domestic firms.
Prevención de riesgos laborales en los centros educativos: análisis de los sistemas de formación Occupational Safety and Health in Schools: Analysis of Education Systems

This paper shows the results of research funded by the Department of Occupational Safety and Health (Department of Employment. Government of Andalusia) and the University of Granada in collaboration with the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health at Work (Ministry of Labour and Immigration of Spain) and the Andalusian School of Public Health (Department of Health. Government of Andalusia). The purpose of this study is the analysis of education strategies for students and teachers to prepare them successfully to risk factors and improve the quality of teaching in Kindergarten, Primary and High School, studying channels that provide training practice in occupational risk prevention in schools. In this sense, we propose to discover experiences and achievements in the prevention of occupational hazards that reveal the extent of such problems in education, determine the current status of educational institutions as centers of training in prevention of occupational risks, make
Closing the Generation Gap: Satisfying Servers, Providers, and Visitors of Hyper-Content

We consider the problem of building a robust and efficient infrastructure for hyper-content. Existing server-only architectures are susceptible to flash crowds, while other peer-to-peer (p2p) solutions may not yet be economically viable because of their voluntary model. We start with the assumption that any infrastructure has to satisfy three types of key players the content provider, the server, and the visitor. Our solution allows the provider to specify a pricing function, optimizes resource usage and avoids flash crowds at the server, and keeps response times low for the visitor. The solution adapts at run-time in order to satisfy these requirements. With low visitor concurrency, our solution reduces to a server-only solution. With rising concurrency, more and more hyper-content gets distributed and shared out among visitors and providers. This leads us to believe that the “right” infrastructure for hyper-content may lie somewhere in between the current two extremes of server-only and p2p.
Research of Price-Making Decision and Channel Coordination in E-commerce

In this paper,we analyze a scenario where a manufacturer with a traditional retailer opens up a direct Internet channel that is in competition with the retailer.We assume that in order to mitigate channel conflict the manufacturer commits to setting a direct channel retail price that matches the retailer's price in the traditional channel.Then we determine the effect of more specific pricing strategies on prices and profits of the manufacturer and the retailer.These specific strategies are: keep wholesale prices as they were before,keep retail prices as they were before,or select wholesale and retail prices that optimize profits for the manufacturer.We find that Strategy 3-the specific equal-pricing strategy that optimizes profits for the manufacturer often is also preferred by the retailer and customers(through lower prices) over the other strategies and also can partly coordinate the supply chain.
A network analysis of financial conversations on Twitter

Assessing influence on social media is at the heart of a new trend in humanities and social sciences. Our paper is about assessing users' influence on social networks. We compare four different methods regarding tweets about financial conversations. We have built two datasets with respectively 489,000 and 280,000 financial tweets. While getting additional followers may provide insight of an increasing popularity, it does not necessarily translate into a more influential position. Our results suggest that the number of followers is only one element of what is considered to be influential. Indeed, the number of messages can be biased by what can be described as 'noisy' users. The number of retweets is a more refined proxy about influence. Finally, the betweenness centrality in the retweet network provides some privileged information to anyone following these users. We compare the performance of stocks mentioned by each type of users. From these results, such methods of assessing influence on Twitter leverage the acquisition of preferential signals in a financial context.
Teaching & Learning System for Diagnostic Imaging - Phase I: X-Ray Image Analysis & Retrieval

This paper presents a framework for building diagnostic imaging teaching and learning facility for entry level medical students of Bangladesh. Initially we demonstrate an X-Ray image analysis and retrieval system that will work as one of the main component in this system. This web based system has three modes. First is the annotation mode where an expert radiologist manually performs annotation of raw x-ray images. To aid the annotation process proposed model proposes a manual and a semi-auto segmentation tool in identifying the region of interests (ROI) in the X-Ray images. Image Retrieval in Medical Applications (IRMA) structure has been used for the annotating the ROIs. In the learning mode, students can retrieve images from the database created by expert radiologists. We proposed information retrieval techniques to find x-ray images of interest. We have used text based and content based search methods which is based on term frequencyâinverse document frequency (tf-idf), and Gabor filter respectively.
The home care of severely retarded children.

A study is reported of the practical and emotional problems found in 201 families with mentally retarded children in Sheffield, England. The families were selected for study solely because they had a retarded child, so that the observations might give a true measure of the incidence of the various disturbances. The main practical problems were nursing care in 14 families (7%), constant supervision in 63 families (31%), and frequent attention at night in 31 families (15%). These problems caused the exhaustion of the mother in 19% of the families and of the father in 5%. The siblings suffered from attacks by the mentally retarded child in 12% of the families, and through helping in 5%. The parents' activities were limited: in 41% of families they were never able to go out together and in 17% they never had a holiday. The retarded child was the cause of extra expense in 59 families (29%). The emotional problems observed were disappointment, guilt, shame and a sense of inadequacy. These reactions led to quarrelling between the parents in 6% of the families. The parents had separated in 5% of the families but usually there were other causes behind these separations. In 10% of the families the siblings showed resentment, and in 5% they were ashamed of the retarded child. The emotional factors led to social isolation in 63% of the families. The place of home care for retarded children is discussed. It is suggested that this can be helped by careful counselling and guidance for the parents, by attention to the needs for practical help, and by reducing the still prevalent stigma against mental defect.