Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
TOURISM AND TRANSPORTATION

This article details the road, rail, air and sea transport facilities available to tourists in Yorkshire and Humberside, an area attracting many visitors to the North of England, and describes the response of the Yorkshire and Humberside Tourist Board. In 1986, the Board set up a working party to produce a regional policy for tourist signposting, which included representatives from local highway authorities, the Department of Transport, the Board itself and other relevant organisations. The working party's report has now been published by the Board, with the title "Signposting for Tourism - A Strategy", whose recommendations include: (1) formulation and completion within two years of plans for signing major destinations; (2) use of composite signs in urban areas, to avoid crowding of signs; (3) relaxation of signing criteria for rural hotels; (4) standardisation and encouragement of tourist information points, at sites where parking and supervision are already available; (5) careful use of boundary signs, to avoid confusion to tourists; (6) identification of tourist trails, to open up both new and underdeveloped tourist areas; and (7) white-on-brown colouring of pedestrian signs, which should be placed to avoid confusion with other signs and on a discreet scale.
Sperm Population Structure and Male Fertility: An Intraspecific Study of Sperm Design and Velocity in Red Deer1

ABSTRACT Sperm design and velocity play key roles in influencing sperm performance and, therefore, can determine fertilization success. Several interspecific studies have demonstrated how these features correlate, and it has been hypothesized that selection may drive changes in these sperm traits. Here, we examine the association between sperm design and swimming velocity in a study conducted at an intraspecific level in Iberian red deer (Cervus elaphus hispanicus). We addressed how the structure of different sperm subpopulations, based on sperm morphometry and velocity, are interrelated and, in turn, how they associate with fertility. Our results show that males with high fertility rates have ejaculates with high percentages of spermatozoa exhibiting fast and linear movements and that these are highly correlated with a large proportion of spermatozoa having small and elongated heads. On the other hand, males with low fertility are characterized by a subpopulation structure in which slow and nonlinear as well as small and wide spermatozoa are predominant. These findings provide insight regarding how sperm size and velocity are interrelated and how they both are associated with fertility.
Menthol blocks dihydropyridine‐insensitive Ca2+ channels and induces neurite outgrowth in human neuroblastoma cells

Voltage‐gated Ca2+ channels were identified in LA‐N‐5 human neuroblastoma cells using the Ca2+ sensitive fluorescent probe, fura‐2. Using a variety of “classical” Ca2+ channel blockers, we have demonstrated the presence of both dihydropyridine (DHP)‐sensitive and ‐insensitive channel types that can be activated by depolarization of the cells with either high K+ or gramicidin in the bathing solution. Brief exposure of LA‐N‐5 cells to menthol blunted the depolarization‐induced Ca2+ influx though both DHP‐sensitive and DHP‐insensitive channels. This effect is concentration dependent (50% maximal blocking effect with 0.25 mM menthol), rapid in onset, and readily reversible. The specificity of the Ca2+ ‐channel blocking effect of menthol was demonstrated in parallel studies using compounds with similar structures: menthone blocked Ca2+ channels with about half the potency of menthol, while cyclohexanol was without effect. Addition of either menthol or menthone to LA‐N‐5 cultures induced neurite outgrowth, cellular clustering, and reduction of cell growth in a dose‐dependent fashion that correlated with the ability of these compounds to inhibit the DHP‐insensitive Ca2+ influx. Cyclohexanol had no biologic activity. Taken together, the parallel potency for blockade of DHP‐insensitive Ca2+ influx with the biologic activity of menthol suggests a role for certain types of Ca2+ channels in triggering growth and morphologic changes in LA‐N‐5 cells.
Effect of ocean acidification on growth, gonad development and physiology of the sea urchin Hemicentrotus pulcherrimus

Ocean acidification, due to diffusive uptake of atmospheric CO2, has potentially pro- found ramifications for the entire marine ecosystem. Scientific knowledge on the biological impacts of ocean acidification is rapidly accumulating; however, data are still scarce on whether and how ocean acidification affects the reproductive system of marine organisms. We evaluated the long-term (9 mo) effects of high CO2 (1000 µatm) on the gametogenesis, survival, growth and physiology of the sea urchin Hemicentrotus pulcherrimus. Hypercapnic exposure delayed gonad maturation and spawning by 1 mo, whereas it had no effect on the maximum number of ova, sur- vival or growth. After 9 mo of exposure, pH (control: 7.61, high-CO2: 7.03) and Mg 2+ concentration (control: 50.3, high-CO2: 48.6 mmol l �1 ) of the coelomic fluid were significantly lower in the exper- imental urchins. In addition, a 16 d exposure experiment revealed that 1000 µatm CO2 suppressed food intake to <30% of that of the controls. These data suggest that the ocean condition predicted to occur by the end of this century disrupts the physiological status of the sea urchin, possibly through reduced energy intake, which may delay reproductive phenology of the species. Taking into account earlier studies reporting negative impacts of ocean acidification on the early devel- opment of the same species, these results imply that ocean acidification will threaten H. pulcher- rimus at a community level.
Long-Term Impact of a Mega-Event on International Tourism to the Host Country:

The purposes of this study are to present a conceptual framework for identifying and understanding the long-term impacts of a mega-event on international travel to the host country and to apply a component of that conceptual framework in an analysis of international visitation to Korea as a result of the 1988 Summer Olympic Games. Study results indicate (1) mega-events do have a long-term impact on the international tourism to the host country; (2) that impact is greatest in the year following the event and diminishes over time; and (3) in the case of Korea the value of the benefit realized in a three-year period is estimated to be $1.3 billion.
Hematopoietic-specific activators establish an overlapping pattern of histone acetylation and methylation within a mammalian chromatin domain

Posttranslational modification of histones through acetylation, methylation, and phosphorylation is a common mode of regulating chromatin structure and, therefore, diverse nuclear processes. One such modification, methylated histone H3 at lysine-4 (H3-meK4), colocalizes with hyperacetylated histones H3 and H4 in mammalian chromatin. Whereas activators directly recruit acetyltransferases, the process whereby H3-meK4 is established is unknown. We tested whether the hematopoietic-specific activators NF-E2 and GATA-1, which mediate transactivation of the β-globin genes, induce both histone acetylation and H3-meK4. Through the use of NF-E2- and GATA-1-null cell lines, we show that both activators induce H3 acetylation at the promoter upon transcriptional activation. However, analysis of H3-mek4 revealed that NF-E2 and GATA-1 differentially regulate chromatin modifications at the βmajor promoter. NF-E2, but not GATA-1, induces H3-meK4 at the promoter. Thus, under conditions in which NF-E2 and GATA-1 activate the transcription of an endogenous gene at least 570-fold, these activators differ in their capacity to induce H3-meK4. Despite strong H3-meK4 at hypersensitive site 2 of the upstream locus control region, neither factor was required to establish H3-meK4 at this site. These results support a model in which multiple tissue-specific activators collectively function to assemble a composite histone modification pattern, consisting of overlapping histone acetylation and methylation. As GATA-1 induced H3 acetylation, but not H3-meK4, at the promoter, H3 acetylation and H3-meK4 components of a composite histone modification pattern can be established independently.
A novel bioinspired hexapod robot developed by soft dielectric elastomer actuators

This paper presents a hexapod crawling robot which has bioinspired design and locomotion posture from the insects. The robot, called S-Hex II, is an upgraded version of the different printable monolithic hexapod robot which is named as S-Hex I. The S-Hex II is studied for the project of developing mesoscale walking robots actuated by the soft dielectric elastomer actuators. In comparison with the S-Hex I, the S-Hex II owns smaller dimension, lighter weight, and significantly faster walking speed. We improve and increase the total number of degree-of-freedom (DOF) of the soft dielectric elastomer actuators (DEAs) from three, used in the S-Hex I, up to five, employed in the S-Hex II, and that provides the promising versatile locomotion ability to the S-Hex II robot. This robot has successfully demonstrated the back and forth ambulation on flat surfaces using the alternating tripod gait with the walking speed of 52 mm/s (approximately 0.35 body-lengths per second) at 7 Hz of actuation frequency.
Dentin caries risk indicators in 1-year-olds. A two year follow-up study

Abstract Background: Early childhood caries (ECC) risk factors are suspected to vary between regions with different caries prevalence. Aim: Identify ECC risk factors for 1-year-olds predicting dentin caries at 3 years of age in a region with low caries prevalence. Design: Caries risk was assessed by dental hygienist or dental assistant in 779 one-year-olds. The oral mutans streptococci (MS) score was performed from a tooth surface or (in pre-dentate children) from oral mucosa. A parental questionnaire with questions regarding family factors (siblings with or without caries), general health, food habits (night meals, breastfeeding, other beverage than water), oral hygiene habits and emerged teeth were answered by parents of the 1-year-olds. Dentin caries was assessed when the children were 3-year-olds. Simple and multiple logistic regression analyses were used for identification of caries-associated factors. Results: An increased caries risk was assessed in 4.4% of the 1-year-olds. Dentin caries was found in 2.6% of the 3-year-olds. Caries risk at 1 year was associated with caries at 3 years (OR = 6.5, p = .002). Multiple regression analysis found the variables Beverages other than water (OR = 7.1, p < 0.001), Caries in sibling (OR = 4.8, p = .002), High level of MS (score 2–3) (OR = 3.4, p = .03) and Night meal (OR = 3.0, p = .03) to be associated with caries. The single variables Beverage other than water between meals and Caries in sibling were more reliable than Caries risk assessed performed by dental personnel. Conclusions: Behavioural, family and microbial factors are important when assessing caries risk among 1-year-olds in a region with low caries experience.
Monetary and Fiscal Policy with Sovereign Default

How does the option to default on debt payments affect the conduct of public policy? To answer this question, this paper studies optimal monetary and fiscal policy without commitment in a model with nominal debt and endogenous sovereign default. When the government can default on its debt, public policy changes in the short and the long run relative to a setting without default option. The risk of default increases the volatility of interest rates, impeding the government's ability to smooth tax distortions across states. It also limits public debt accumulation and reduces the government's incentive to implement high inflation in the long run. The welfare costs associated with the short-run effects of sovereign default are found to be outweighed by the welfare gains due to lower average debt and inflation.
Pluripotential liver stem cells: facultative stem cells located in the biliary tree

Abstract. The ability of the liver to regenerate after parenchymal damage is usually accomplished by the ephemeral entry of normally proliferatively quiescent (G0) hepatocytes into the cell cycle. However, when hepatocyte regeneration is defective, arborizing ductules which are continuous with the biliary tree, proliferate and migrate into the surrounding parenchyma. In man these biliary cells have variously been referred to as ductular structures, neoductules and neocholangioles, and have been observed in many forms of chronic liver disease, including cancer. In experimental animals similar ductal cells are usually called oval cells, and their association with defective regeneration has led to the belief that these cells represent a progenitor cell population. Oval cells are thought to take over the burden of regenerative growth after substantial hepatocyte loss, suggesting that they are the progeny of facultative stem cells. The liver is not, however, generally considered as a stem cellfed hierarchy, although this is disputed by others. Despite this, the subject of oval cells has aroused intense interest as these cells may represent a target population for hepatic carcinogens, and they may be useful vehicles for ex vivo gene therapy.
Risk assessment.

The results from mutagenic and carcinogenic studies of propylene oxide (PO) and the current efforts to develop molecular dosimetry methods for PODNA adducts are reviewed. PO has been shown to be active in several bacterial and mammalian mutagenicity tests and induces site of contact tumors in rodents after long-term administration. Quantitation of N7(2-hydroxypropyl)guanine (7-HPG) in nasal and hepatic tissues of male F344 rats exposed to 500 ppm PO (6 hours/day; 5 days/week for 4 weeks) by inhalation was performed to evaluate the potential of high concentrations of PO to produce adducts in the DNA of rodent tissues and to obtain information necessary for the design of molecular dosimetry studies. The persistence of 7-HPG in nasal and hepatic tissues was studied in rats sacrificed three days after cessation of a 4-week exposure period. DNA samples from exposed and untreated animals were analyzed for 7-HPG by two different methods. The first method consisted of separation of the adduct from DNA by neutral thermal hydrolysis, followed by electrophoric derivatization of the adduct and gas chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry (GC-HRMS) analysis. The second method utilized P-postlabeling to quantitate the amount of this adduct in rat tissues. Adducts present in tissues from rats sacrificed immediately after cessation of exposure were 835.4-80.1 (respiratory), 396.8-53.1 (olfactory) and 34.6-3.0 (liver) pmol adduct/mol guanine using GC-HRMS. Lower values, 592.7-53.3, 296.5-32.6 and 23.2-0.6 pmol adduct/mol guanine were
Improved Auction Price Mechanism for Electronic Security Trading Platform

By reviewing the current Xetra auction price mechanism and analyzing its economic properties, we discover that Xetra auction price is generically non market-clearing and that only limit prices are considered as Xetra auction price, which prevents a market-clearing price but not a limit price from being Xetra auction price even when this situation exists in the market. Then we construct in a step-by-step manner improved auction pricing rules that serve as an improvement on Xetra auction pricing rules from the perspective of market efficiency.
IMPACT OF SERVICE AND FOOD QUALITY ON CUSTOMER SATISFACTION AMONG GENERATION Y FOR THE FAST FOOD RESTAURANT IN MALAYSIA

The drive of this study is to contribute to the literature of service and food quality significance in fast food restaurant industryof Malaysia. The study is carrying out from the viewpoint of fast food restaurant industry and the customers' satisfaction among generation Y in Malaysia. Three variables have been examined to demonstrate the significance of service quality and food quality on customer satisfaction. The outcomesratify the importance of greatercorresponding service and food standards in fast food restaurant industry. For food quality factor, all respondents are agreed with statement. Findings from 1000 respondents of Generation Yshowed that two factors significantlyinfluenced customer satisfaction. Thisresearch would be valuable in the improvement of a more comprehensive model to simplify a better understanding of customers' satisfaction among generation Y on fast food restaurant in Malaysia; these findings would deliver a better comprehension of Malaysian customers' satisfaction andhelp design more effective marketing strategies.
THE UPTAKE OF MODERN CONTRACEPTIVES AMONG WOMEN OF REPRODUCTIVE AGE ATTENDING MATERNAL CHILD HEALTH AND FAMILY PLANNING (MCH/FP) CLINICS.

OBJECTIVE To determine the uptake ana factors associated with the uptake of modern contraceptives among women of reproductive age (15-49 years) attending Maternal Child Health and Family Planning Clinics/Units in Rift Valley Provincial Hospital in Kenya. DESIGN A descriptive cross-sectional study. SETTING Rift Valley Provincial hospital which is a level five health facility situated in Nakuru County, Kenya. SUBJECTS Women of reproductive age (15-49 years) who were attending Maternal Child Health and Family Planning Clinics at the Rift Valley Provincial Hospital. The respondents were identified by systematic random sampling RESULTS Modern contraceptive uptake is over ninety percent (90.4, n = 218). The factors that are significantly associated with uptake of modern contraceptives are perceived convenience to use modern contraceptives (OR 0.39, CI: 0.16 - 0.93, p value- 0.04), experience of unmet needs of contraception (OR 0.08, CI: 0.03 - 0.2, p value- 0.001), history of a modern contraception discontinuation (OR 5.5, CI: 1.7 - 9.2, p value- 0.036) and knowledge of modern contraceptives (OR 19.1, CI: 12.3 - 27.5, p value-0.001). Conclusion: This study concluded that uptake of modern contraceptive is relatively high in Nakuru, Kenya and there is need for programmes to focus more on the client of modern contraceptive and the attributes of the modern contraceptives in up-scaling the uptake of modern contraceptives.
Monolithic Versus Differential Impacts of SOX Regulation on Market Valuation of Banks’ Loan Loss Provision

This study examines the incremental impact of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) on the market valuation of the discretionary component of banks’ provision for loan losses. SOX provides an interesting context for testing the efficacy of corporate governance provisions developed in the professional and government fields. We find that prior to SOX, the market assigned a higher valuation of discretionary loan loss provisions when the board was independent. In contrast, post-SOX, we document a significant negative incremental effect on market valuation for a board with more independent directors. These findings are consistent with economic regulation theory. A fully independent compensation committee also has a significant positive incremental impact on the valuation of discretionary loan loss provision post-SOX. We contribute to prior literature on corporate governance by unpacking specific effects of different proposed governance provisions, thereby revealing that the developed notions of corporate governance have not led to a monolithic governance-enhancing structure but rather to disparate parts, some of which may be detrimental.
Chemical Defense Against Fouling in the Solitary Ascidian Phallusia nigra

The solitary ascidian Phallusia nigra is rarely fouled by epibionts. Here, we tested the antifouling activity of its crude extracts in laboratory and field assays. P. nigra extracts inhibited the growth of all eight tested environmental bacteria and two of four laboratory bacteria. Extracts of the sympatric, but fouled solitary ascidian Herdmania momus inhibited only one test bacterium. Scanning electron microscopy confirmed that the tunic surface of P. nigra is largely bacteria-free. Both ascidian extracts significantly inhibited the larval metamorphosis of the bryozoan Bugula neritina at the tested concentration range of 0.05–2 mg ml−1. Both crude extracts were toxic to larvae of the brine shrimp Artemia salina at natural volumetric whole-tissue concentrations, but only P. nigra showed activity at 2 mg ml−1 and below (LC50 = 1.11 mg ml−1). P. nigra crude extracts also significantly reduced the settlement of barnacles, polychaetes, and algae in Mediterranean field assays and barnacle settlement in Red Sea trials. Comparisons between control experiments and pH values monitored in all experiments indicate that the observed effects were not due to acidity of the organic extracts. Our results show that P. nigra secondary metabolites have antifouling activities, which may act in synergy with previously proposed physiological antifouling mechanisms.
OsRALyase1, a Putative F-Box Protein Identified in Rice, Oryza sativa, with Enzyme Activity Identical to That of Wheat RALyase

A rice gene, OsRALyase1, encoding a product similar to wheat ribosomal RNA apurinic site specific lyase (RALyase), was isolated and expressed in vitro. An open reading frame of the gene predicted a protein of 476 amino acid residues with 75% identity to RALyase and contained an F-box-like motif in its amino terminal region. The rice gene product expressed in a wheat-germ protein expression system had the same characteristics as its wheat counterpart, cleaving a specific depurinated site of the 28S rRNA sarcin-ricin domain.
Focal vertebral artery dissection causing Brown-Séquard’s syndrome

Vertebral artery dissection typically causes an ischaemic brain stem stroke. We report a man who presented with left sided neck pain and Brown-Sequard’s syndrome localised to C1, and in whom a focal C1 ischaemic cord lesion secondary to a localised vertebral artery dissection was found using MRI. A 47 year old machine operator was admitted as an emergency with neck pain, headache, and gait disturbance. Three weeks before admission he developed minor stiffness of his upper cervical region while decorating his home, which was relieved by ibuprofen. There was no history of neck manipulation or trauma. Two days before admission he awoke with a severe left sided pounding headache and neck ache with an associated cold sensation on the left side of his neck. He was nauseated but did not vomit. His symptoms again resolved within an hour with ibuprofen, but two hours later there followed a tingling sensation in his left index finger, thumb, and forearm spreading up to his elbow. He slept for a few hours but awoke with more generalised paraesthesiae in the left arm which spread over the next 36 hours to involve the left trunk and leg. He noticed minor gait disturbance as well as …
On the role of modeling causal independence for system model compilation with OBDDs

Model-Based Reasoning requires as input a formal model of the system often expressed as a propositional logic theory. Exploiting the presence of structure in such a theory is fundamental in order to have a compact representation of the model and, more important, to speed-up the reasoning task. In this paper we introduce the notion of causal independence (derived from the Bayesian Networks formalism) in order to allow the modeling of an important class of local relations among system variables. In particular we focus our analysis on MAX families, where the value of a common effect is determined as the maximum among the independent contributions of a set of causing variables. We show formal and experimental results on the positive effects of causal independence on the size of the compilation of the system model in terms of an Ordered Binary Decision Diagram and connect them with the computational efficiency of Model-Based Diagnosis. Such benefits hold also when we relax the notion of causal independence in order to cover a broader class of systems which includes combinatorial digital circuits.