Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
EFFECTIVENESS OF E-RECRUITMENT IN SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES OF IT INDUSTRY OF LAHORE ( PAKISTAN )

Usage of technology brings robust improvement in every aspect of human life. Paramount research reveals that Internet is being used in employment sector globally. Recruitment through electronic sources brings phenomenal success in a very short time. This study is an attempt to explore the effectiveness of e-recruitment in small and medium enterprises of IT based companies of Pakistan through descriptive analysis. Effectiveness of e-recruitment is measured through the attributes of advantages and disadvantages. This study provides an insight of how companies’ recruiters perceive the value of online recruitment. Four advantages of e-recruitment, considered in this study, are: (i) quality of applicants, (ii) wider pool of applicants, (iii) time and cost saving, and (iv) brand image development. Major disadvantages of e-recruitment, assessed in this study, are: (i) overloading of irrelevant applicants, (ii) higher numbers of unqualified applicants, (iii) established brand name, (iv) privacy issue of applicants, (v) lack of personal touch, (vi) discrimination between applicants, (vii) not the first choice to apply, (viii) unfriendly user tool, and (ix) extra time and cost subsequently. The study recommends for HR managers of IT SMEs to focus more on online recruitment in Pakistan to get large return on investment in long term perspective.
Factors that Promote Success in Home Palliative Care: A Study of a Large Suburban Palliative Care Practice

It has been repeatedly shown that most people would prefer to die in their own homes. However, many factors affect the feasibility of this choice. This study retrospectively examined the medical and nursing charts of 402 cancer patients who wished to die at home and had been referred to a palliative care service. Of those reviewed, 223 (55%) died at home, while 179 died in hospitals. The presence of more than one caregiver, an increased length of time between diagnosis and referral to a palliative care physician, an increased length of time under that physician's care, older age at referral, home ownership, and race were all significantly associated with home death, as were certain cancer diagnoses. The most compelling of these predictive factors have formed the basis for an evaluation tool, soon to be validated, to help palliative health professionals assess the viability of home-based palliative care culminating in a home death.
Altered Regulation of the Diguanylate Cyclase YaiC Reduces Production of Type 1 Fimbriae in a Pst Mutant of Uropathogenic Escherichia coli CFT073

ABSTRACT The pst gene cluster encodes the phosphate-specific transport (Pst) system. Inactivation of the Pst system constitutively activates the two-component regulatory system PhoBR and attenuates the virulence of pathogenic bacteria. In uropathogenic Escherichia coli strain CFT073, attenuation by inactivation of pst is predominantly attributed to the decreased expression of type 1 fimbriae. However, the molecular mechanisms connecting the Pst system and type 1 fimbriae are unknown. To address this, a transposon library was constructed in the pst mutant, and clones were tested for a regain in type 1 fimbrial production. Among them, the diguanylate cyclase encoded by yaiC (adrA in Salmonella) was identified to connect the Pst system and type 1 fimbrial expression. In the pst mutant, the decreased expression of type 1 fimbriae is connected by the induction of yaiC. This is predominantly due to altered expression of the FimBE-like recombinase genes ipuA and ipbA, affecting at the same time the inversion of the fim promoter switch (fimS). In the pst mutant, inactivation of yaiC restored fim-dependent adhesion to bladder cells and virulence. Interestingly, the expression of yaiC was activated by PhoB, since transcription of yaiC was linked to the PhoB-dependent phoA-psiF operon. As YaiC is involved in cyclic di-GMP (c-di-GMP) biosynthesis, an increased accumulation of c-di-GMP was observed in the pst mutant. Hence, the results suggest that one mechanism by which deletion of the Pst system reduces the expression of type 1 fimbriae is through PhoBR-mediated activation of yaiC, which in turn increases the accumulation of c-di-GMP, represses the fim operon, and, consequently, attenuates virulence in the mouse urinary tract infection model. IMPORTANCE Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are common bacterial infections in humans. They are mainly caused by uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC). We previously showed that interference with phosphate homeostasis decreases the expression of type 1 fimbriae and attenuates UPEC virulence. Herein, we identified that alteration of the phosphate metabolism increases production of the signaling molecule c-di-GMP, which in turn decreases the expression of type 1 fimbriae. We also determine the regulatory cascade leading to the accumulation of c-di-GMP and identify the Pho regulon as new players in c-di-GMP-mediated cell signaling. By understanding the molecular mechanisms leading to the expression of virulence factors, we will be in a better position to develop new therapeutics.
Extracting defect signal from the MFL signal of seamless pipeline

Seamless pipes are widely used in oil and gas transportation. The manufacturing processes associated with the production of seamless pipes contribute to a helical variation in the grain properties of the pipe. It introduces seamless pipe noise in the magnetic flux leakage (MFL) inspection. This paper presents a new approach to extract defect signals based on chaotic time series and random forests prediction. Compared with the predicted signal estimated by this approach, the defect signal can be extracted from seamless pipe noise. The algorithm effectiveness is tested by using experiment data obtained from seamless pipes. The results demonstrate that the proposed method can improve the accuracy rate of extracting defects and reduce the false alarm rate and miss rate.
Hip Impingement in the Indian Population: Hip Anthropometry Measurements in 100 Hips

We studied 100 hip joints in Indian patients to measure femoral head sphericity, head-neck offset and alpha angle. Our study indicates that the mean values of the above measurements are far below the “danger” level for the onset of femoro-acetabular impingement. It remains to be seen whether these findings explain the low incidence of primary hip osteoarthritis in the Indian population.
Nonparametric Modeling of Neural Point Processes via Stochastic Gradient Boosting Regression

Statistical nonparametric modeling tools that enable the discovery and approximation of functional forms (e.g., tuning functions) relating neural spiking activity to relevant covariates are desirable tools in neuroscience. In this article, we show how stochastic gradient boosting regression can be successfully extended to the modeling of spiking activity data while preserving their point process nature, thus providing a robust nonparametric modeling tool. We formulate stochastic gradient boosting in terms of approximating the conditional intensity function of a point process in discrete time and use the standard likelihood of the process to derive the loss function for the approximation problem. To illustrate the approach, we apply the algorithm to the modeling of primary motor and parietal spiking activity as a function of spiking history and kinematics during a two-dimensional reaching task. Model selection, goodness of fit via the time rescaling theorem, model interpretation via partial dependence plots, ranking of covariates according to their relative importance, and prediction of peri-event time histograms are illustrated and discussed. Additionally, we use the tenfold cross-validated log likelihood of the modeled neural processes (67 cells) to compare the performance of gradient boosting regression to two alternative approaches: standard generalized linear models (GLMs) and Bayesian P-splines with Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) sampling. In our data set, gradient boosting outperformed both Bayesian P-splines (in approximately 90 of the cells) and GLMs (100). Because of its good performance and computational efficiency, we propose stochastic gradient boosting regression as an off-the-shelf nonparametric tool for initial analyses of large neural data sets (e.g., more than 50 cells; more than 105 samples per cell) with corresponding multidimensional covariate spaces (e.g., more than four covariates). In the cases where a functional form might be amenable to a more compact representation, gradient boosting might also lead to the discovery of simpler, parametric models.
Cognitive Rest

Cognitive rest has been suggested as a treatment for school athletes who have sustained a concussion, but the concept has rarely been defined. The purpose of this article is to provide a comprehensive definition of cognitive rest, based on an integrative literature review. The method of synthesis was guided by Avant and Walker’s concept analysis format. The importance of rest is discussed as a nursing intervention, and model cases are presented to clarify the concept. Three defining attributes of cognitive rest are established: freedom from physical or mental discomfort, abstinence from mental exertion, and mental and emotional balance. Empirical referents are given as well as a suggested protocol to enable school nurses to form cognitive rest and return-to-classroom protocols that can be adapted to individual school settings.
An Empirical Analysis of Territorial Encroachment Within Franchised and Company-Owned Branded Chains

Franchisees within large branded chains loudly complain of a form of channel conflict known as "encroachment" or "impact. " Encroachment occurs when franchisors add new units of their brand proximately to their franchisees' existing units. Franchisees claim that their revenues have substantially decreased as a result of encroaching same-brand entry. The topic of encroachment has not only dominated franchisee association agendas and trade journal headlines but has also become a hot topic for politicians and policymakers. Yet, until now, evidence of encroachment has been strictly anecdotal. This paper provides the first systematic evidence of encroachment. Using revenue data from the Texas lodging industry in the 1990s, I find that when franchisors approve new same-brand units in the vicinity of incumbent units, these new units cannibalize the incumbents' revenues. In contrast to the result for franchisors, the addition of a new unit by company-owned brands in the vicinity of same-brand units is associated with an increase in the incumbents' revenues. This contrast suggests that encroaching behavior is caused by incentives that result from the governance form of franchising and is not simply an outcome that accompanies all expansion. This finding informs theory on governance forms and exclusive territories. Implications for practitioners and policy are also discussed.
On Wessler's ‘Estimating IQ: Expertise or Examiner Effect?’: Research and Discussion

In response to a study by Wessler (1970), further data concerning the accuracy with which examiners could estimate intelligence quotients was obtained. Each of 8 clinicians was asked to make predictions regarding the anticipated IQ scores of 38 psychiatric patients. Each tester also recorded length of acquaintance of each patient and rated each testing session along several rating scales. Correlations between various predicted and actual scores were highly significant. Also, sessions for which testers' pretest expectations were less closely fulfilled were ultimately rated by them as being less “successful” sessions. Results are discussed in terms of examiner effects and clinical expertise in prediction.
Building an Alpha Spectrometer for the CUORE Collaboration

This paper will give the reader a brief introduction to the Standard Model, Neutrinoless Double Beta Decay (0νββ), and the CUORE experiment under construction at Gran Sasso National Lab in Assergi, Italy. The remainder of the paper will describe the process of creating a working alpha spectrometry system using silicon detectors and NIM and CAMAC electronics. Extensive details of the troubleshooting and calibration period are presented as a way for the reader to better understand the concepts involved in alpha spectroscopy and to not repeat mistakes made in this development process.
Measurements of transpiration isotopologues and leaf water to assess enrichment models in cotton.

The two-pool and Péclet effect models represent two theories describing mechanistic controls underlying leaf water oxygen isotope composition at the whole-leaf level (δ(18) OL ). To test these models, we used a laser spectrometer coupled to a gas-exchange cuvette to make online measurements of δ(18) O of transpiration (δ(18) Otrans ) and transpiration rate (E) in 61 cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) leaves. δ(18) Otrans measurements permitted direct calculation of δ(18) O at the sites of evaporation (δ(18) Oe ) which, combined with values of δ(18) OL from the same leaves, allowed unbiased estimation of the proportional deviation of enrichment of δ(18) OL from that of δ(18) Oe (f) under both steady-state (SS) and non-steady-state (NSS) conditions. Among all leaves measured, f expressed relative to both δ(18) O of transpired water (ftrans ) and source water (fsw ) remained relatively constant with a mean ± SD of 0.11 ± 0.05 and 0.13 ± 0.05, respectively, regardless of variation in E spanning 0.8-9.1 mmol m(-2) s(-1) . Neither ftrans nor fsw exhibited a significant difference between the SS and NSS leaves at the P < 0.05 level. Our results suggest that the simpler two-pool model is adequate for predicting cotton leaf water enrichment at the whole-leaf level. We discuss the implications of adopting a two-pool concept for isotopic applications in ecological studies.
Poverty and Awakening Cortisol in Adolescence

The deleterious effects of poverty on mental and physical health are routinely argued to operate, at least in part, via dysregulation of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, although empirical examinations connecting poverty with HPA axis functioning are rare. Research on the effects of timing of poverty is a particularly neglected aspect of this relationship. This study uses 15 years of prospective data from the Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development to assess how exposure to poverty during infancy, childhood, and adolescence is related to awakening cortisol (n = 826), a marker of HPA axis functioning. Among female participants, poverty exposure in infancy and adolescence, but not childhood, was negatively associated with awakening cortisol. Poverty exposure was unrelated to cortisol among male participants. The importance of timing and gender differences are discussed along with directions for future research.
Home Environmental Influences on Children’s Television Watching from Early to Middle Childhood

ABSTRACT. Identifying correlates of children’s television (TV) watching could help identify strategies to reduce children’s TV watching and impact children’s weight status. Children’s TV time and home environment factors were assessed longitudinally among 169 families with children followed from 6 to 12 years of age. TV watching increased with age, as did the number of in-home TVs and the presence of videocassette recorders (VCRs), the frequency of meal eating while watching TV, and the percentage of children with bedroom TVs. Greater meal eating while watching TV was consistently related to overall TV watching and increases in TV watching over time. The number of in-home TVs and the presence of a bedroom TV were less consistent correlates. TV watching was related to weight status when children were younger, and when children were older, more than 2 hours of TV daily was a risk factor for higher weight. Modifying TV access, particularly by reducing the frequency of meals eaten while watching TV, could promote lower children’s TV watching and adiposity.
Comparative stimulant and diuretic actions of caffeine and theobromine in man

Human subiects ingested measured quantities of caffeine and theobromine, separately and together, at random. The double‐blind technique was used. Caffeine altered self‐estimates of sleep latency and sleep quality in a dose‐dependent fashion and increased overnight urinary sodium excretion. Theobromine in equivalent doses had no detectable effect on sleep parameters or on urine composition, nor did it interact significantly with caffeine when the two were ingested together. Theobromine is much weaker than caffeine or entirely inert in these situations.
2D versus 3D total variation minimization in digital breast tomosynthesis

Total variation (TV) minimization has become an important tool for the sparse image reconstruction. In this study a realistic 3D digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) data was reconstructed and compared using two different forms of TV: (i) 2D reconstruction by applying TV layer by layer (ii) 3D reconstruction of the entire data. It can be assumed that a 3D reconstruction should perform better. However, in real DBT the resolution in z direction is about 10-15 times lower than the resolution in x-y plane. This study investigates the performance of the reconstruction when a TV term in z direction is added into the cost function of TV minimization.
SSO password-based multi-server authentication protocol

User's password verification information stored on the server is main point of vulnerability and remains attractive target for attacker. Proposed protocol uses two-server architecture so that password verification information is distributed between two servers known as authentication server and control server. In this paper, we present single sign-on (SSO) password-based multi-server authentication protocol that issues the ticket to the user for a specific time period. Ticket issued for one authentication server can be used by the peer user for its authentication to another authentication server that is under the control of same control server. It distributes password verification information between the authentication server and the control server based on peer-to-peer (P2P) computing. Therefore, the proposed protocol is more resistant to dictionary attack as compared to existing single-server password based authentication protocols. The proposed protocol does not use public key that causes computation and communication burden in resource constraint environment.
Genetic Differentiation of Anopheles claviger s.s. in Europe

Abstract Two groups of Anopheles claviger sensu stricto Meigen (Diptera: Culicidae) were recently found in France, representing unclear genetic entities. To better understand this situation, sampling was extended to 13 European countries, and 47 samples were analyzed by investigating the polymorphism of 11 autosomal and 1 sex-linked allozyme loci. Genetic differentiation, as measured by Fst, between these two groups was confirmed, with no isolation by distance within each group. Among the twelve loci studied, none had diagnostic alleles. Group I is mainly located in western Europe (UK and south-west of France), and Group II covers eastern France and eastern and northern Europe. Intermediate populations, sampled at the overlapping range between them, do not display a heterozygote deficit, suggesting that these two groups are probably not genetically isolated. The origin of each group and its biological significance is discussed within the context of differentiation in refugia during recent glaciations.
[Biochemical phenotypes and phage types of Salmonella enteriditis strains isolated in Antofagasta during the period 1997-2000].

BACKGROUND PhP-S48 (Phene Plate Techniques AB), a method based on biochemical phenotypes has been developed and used successfully to typify S enteritidis strains in epidemiological studies. AIM To identify phenotypes of S enteritidis isolated from eggs, chicken meat and infected humans in Antofagasta during the period 1997-2000. MATERIAL AND METHODS PhP-S48 and phage typing were used to identify phenotypes of 33 S enteritidis strains, sixteen isolated from poultry and 17 from clinical sources. S enteritidis ATCC17036 was used as control strain. RESULTS Twelve biochemical phenotypes (BTs) including 4 common (C) and 8 single (S) were identified. BTs C1 y C3 containing 16 and 5 strains, respectively, accounted for 63.6% of the isolates. BT C1 was found in poultry and human sources in the period 1997-2000, and BT C3 was isolated from humans, in the period 1999-2000. Using phage typing, 5 phage types (PT) and 3 strains could be not typed (NTs). PT1 and PT21 were the dominant phage types, with 14 and 13 strains respectively. Strains of PT1 were isolated from poultry and human sources in the period 1997-2000. PT21 was found in poultry samples in the period 1997-1998 and in clinical samples, in the period 1997-1998. Combination of biochemical phenotypes and phage typing divided the strains into 5 phenotypes (BT:PT). Two phenotypes were the most frequently isolated, phenotype C1:1 with 8 isolates found in eggs and humans in 1999, and phenotype C1:21 with 5 strains isolated in 1997-1999. CONCLUSIONS These results indicate the presence of one persistent and one recently emerged phenotype among S enteritidis in Antofagasta, Chile. PhP-S48 also provided information about a relationship among the strains.
Pricing of Discretionary Accruals, Stock Returns and Firms Growth: Evidence from Iran

In this study, the relationship between discretionary accruals and stock returns has been investigated by considering the growth variable in companies listed in Tehran Stock Exchanges. The study has been done using the data from 112 companies during 2010-2015 using systematic elimination sampling. For this purpose, three theories have been developed and three types of tests F, t and multivariate regression analysis were used to examine the hypothesis. The results of hypotheses indicate no significant relationship between discretionary accruals and stock returns, but with the addition of firm? s growth, the use of discretionary accruals and positive discretionary accruals is more in firms with high growth than firms with low growth.
Chromaffin Cell Survival Prolonged by Nerve Growth Factor from Pretransected Sciatic Nerve

It has been reported that adrenal medul lary chromaf­ fin cells conta in several trophic factors (12)(Table 1). S o m e o f these factors were effectively used in animal mode l s o f Parkinson's disease t o enhance the recovery o f the intrinsic nigrostr iatal d o p a m i n e r g i c sy s t em (3 ,8 ,10) . Meanwhi le , chromaffin cell survival and neu­ rite extens ion are c losely related to the existence o f nerve growth factor ( N G F ) (13), and N G F concentra­ t ion increases dramatical ly at the distal s tump of the pretransected sciatic nerve 2 4 h after transect ion (9) . These facts prompted us to perform cograft ing o f ad­ renal medul lary chromaff in cells and the distal s tump of the pretransected peripheral nerve into the striatum o f a parkinsonian m o u s e mode l .