Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Performance of Japanese Banks in Relation to Safety Levels

Japanenese banks over the past decade appear to have been more concerned with market penetration than with earnings and shareholder wealth maximisation. This paper reports the results of an analysis of bank safety levels using a cross sectional sample of Japanese and European Banks compared in light of the unacceptably high reported levels of non-performing loans in the Japanese banking sector. The results confirm that more attention should have been applied to balance sheet fundamentals in Japanese banking. It is conjectured that bank safety levels would have been higher and that the more prudent use of credit risk assessment and management would have avoided balance sheet problems.
A Meta-Learning Approach to One-Step Active-Learning

We consider the problem of learning when obtaining the training labels is costly, which is usually tackled in the literature using active-learning techniques. These approaches provide strategies to choose the examples to label before or during training. These strategies are usually based on heuristics or even theoretical measures, but are not learned as they are directly used during training. We design a model which aims at \textit{learning active-learning strategies} using a meta-learning setting. More specifically, we consider a pool-based setting, where the system observes all the examples of the dataset of a problem and has to choose the subset of examples to label in a single shot. Experiments show encouraging results.
Sexual transmission of HCV

1Case reports of acute hepatitis C with anti-HCV seroconversion in sexual partners of individuals infected by HCV, excluding mechanisms of nonsexual transmission and with high genomic homology among viral strains infecting sexual partners [2-4]. 2Detection of HCV RNA in semen, vaginal secretion and cervical secretion, despite low titles in most cases [5-8]. 3Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention demonstrating that, from 1995 to 2000, 18% of the cases of acute HCV infection in the United States occurred in patients reporting sexual contact with an individual infected with HCV in the preceding 6 months or multiple sexual contacts as the only risk factors for acquiring the infection [1].
How to Raise Capital: Techniques and Strategies for Financing and Valuing Your Small Business

This is the entrepreneur's guide to money - where to find what you need to build your business, how to value the business you build, and more America is the land of the entrepreneur. We lead the industrialized world in people who pursue their own businesses, and build their own dreams. Yet for too many this dream becomes a nightmare, a never-ending cycle of scrambling for financial resources as customers and growth fly out the door to their competitors. "How to Raise Capital" provides a battle-tested, step-by-step plan you can follow to create the financial foundations necessary for long-term success.Drawing on the authors' unmatched experience in the start-up trenches, along with literally dozens of high-profile, real-life examples of entrepreneurial success and failure, this straight-talking book will show you how to: locate and negotiate with the funding resources that are right for you, from SBA lenders to angel investors; and, anticipate and overcome the four key mistakes that stifle small business growth. Think big - because if you're going to be exhausted anyway, you may as well be exhausted and wealthy! Less than 40 percent of entrepreneurs seeking new business funding each year actually get that funding. Let "How to Raise Capital" tell you everything you need to know to finance your idea, then transform your idea into a successful business - and a positive, long-lasting legacy.
Obesity, sleep apnea, the airway and anesthesia

Purpose of review Recent articles indicate that at the present time disastrous respiratory outcomes during the perioperative management of patients with obstructive sleep apnea are a major problem for the anesthesia community. Recent findings A recent review of the literature indicates that disastrous respiratory outcomes are due to intubation failure, respiratory obstruction soon after extubation, and respiratory arrest after narcotic and sedative medication. In obese patients, the basic problem is deposition of adipose tissue in the pharynx. The excessive adipose tissue in the pharynx causes both the intubation and respiratory obstruction soon after extubation problems. Finally, opioid administration in the postoperative period adds the insults of depression of ventilation in general and depression of arousal to obstructed breathing during the sleep in specific, which creates in turn, the potential for the arrest of spontaneous ventilation, especially in unmonitored patients. Summary Adult obese patients with suspected or sleep test confirmed obstructive sleep apnea present a formidible challenge throughout the perioperative period. Tracheal intubation and extubation decisions in obese patients with either a presumptive or sleep study diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea must be made within the context that there may be excess tissue in the pharynx. If opioids are used in the extubated postoperative obese patient with sleep apnea, then one must seriously consider the need for continuous visual and electronic monitoring. Institutional and national society guidelines on these matters are badly needed.
Deep Reinforcement Learning for Long Term Strategy Games

Deep reinforcement learning has been increasingly successful in a wide variety of tasks. Deep Mind’s Deep Q-network (DQN) was able to surpass the overall performance of a professional human player in most Atari games. However, games like Seaquest, Private Eye, Montezuma’s Revenge which demand a more temporally extended planning strategy still constitute a major challenge for all existing agents. The primary difficulty for learning goal-directed behaviour in such games is that the rewards received from the environments are sparse and the state space is relatively large to explore. Thus if the agent receives some additional environment specific information to help aid its exploration, it might be able to learn robust value functions. The primary objective of our project is to explore different heuristics which can be provided to the agent along with the architectural changes that can be made to help the agent learn a long term strategy in sparse reward games. We decided to explore sparse reward setup with respect to two environments:
Differences in breast cancer stage, treatment, and survival by race and ethnicity.

BACKGROUND In the United States, black and Hispanic white women with breast cancer present with more advanced stages and have poorer survival rates than non-Hispanic whites, whereas Asians and Pacific Islanders do not. However, Asians and Pacific Islanders and Hispanic whites are heterogeneous populations, and few studies have evaluated breast cancer stage, treatments, and mortality rates for subgroups of these populations. METHODS Using data from 11 population-based tumor registries that participate in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program, we conducted a retrospective cohort study to evaluate the relationship between race and ethnicity and breast cancer stage, treatments, and mortality rates. The cohort of 124,934 women diagnosed as having a first primary invasive breast carcinoma between January 1, 1992, and December 31, 1998, included 97,999 non-Hispanic whites, 10,560 blacks, 322 American Indians, 8834 Asians and Pacific Islanders, and 7219 Hispanic whites. RESULTS Relative to non-Hispanic whites, blacks, American Indians, Hawaiians, Indians and Pakistanis, Mexicans, South and Central Americans, and Puerto Ricans had 1.4- to 3.6-fold greater risks of presenting with stage IV breast cancer. Blacks, Mexicans, and Puerto Ricans were 20% to 50% more likely to receive or elect a first course of surgical and radiation treatment not meeting the 2000 National Comprehensive Cancer Network standards. In addition, blacks, American Indians, Hawaiians, Vietnamese, Mexicans, South and Central Americans, and Puerto Ricans had 20% to 200% greater risks of mortality after a breast cancer diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS Differences in breast cancer stage, treatments, and mortality rates are present by race and ethnicity. Breast cancer survival may be improved by targeting factors, particularly socioeconomic factors, that underlie these differences.
dentification of core components of the exon junction complex n trypanosomes

In animal cells, the exon junction complex (EJC) is deposited onto mRNAs during the second step of splicing, 20–24 nt upstream of the exon–exon junction. The EJC core contains four proteins: Mago, Y14, eIF4AIII and Btz. In trypanosomes, cis-splicing is very rare but all mRNAs are subject to 5′ trans-splicing of a 39-nt RNA sequence. Here we show that trypanosomes have a conserved Mago and a divergent Y14 vailable online 5 April 2009
Knowledge Sharing in a Finnish MNC – A Social Process Perspective (Available on Internet)

The purpose of this study is to explain the processes for knowledge transfer in a multinational company, with the help of a social perspective. The examination of a MNC with subsidiaries around the world provides a picture of how that company deals with the intra-organizational cultural diversity and knowledge transfer globally. The contribution of this study is a framework for analyzing the knowledge transfer process within a multinational corporation. The research is carried through in the form of a qualitative case study of a Finnish multinational within the industrial goods and services sector. The structure of the data collection is special in the sense that the subsidiary interviews were conducted before the HQ interviews, facilitating a subsidiary view on the process. The research method is abductive because the process of knowledge transfer is explained through a new point of view. Through a case study of two Portuguese subsidiaries of the Finnish MNC, and its headquarters, the process of knowledge transfer within and between the different units of the MNC was determined. The knowledge transfer process is dependent on the role of the subsidiary, the available transfer methods, and the different dimensions of knowledge. Through a consideration of the social context, including power, cognitive capacity, and national and organizational culture, the most significant influencing factors were indentified. These turned out to be power, motivation, absorptive capacity, cultural differences and the organizational structure and culture. The social perspective provided insights on how knowledge transfer in a MNC is successfully managed and implemented with respect to the human aspect.
A neural model of electrosensory system for detection of position and moving direction of an object in electrolocation

Weakly electric fish generates electric field around its body using electric organ discharge and can accurately detect the location of an object using the modulation of electric field induced by an object. Objects with electric properties different from those of the surrounding water distort the electric field around fish’s body depending on the size, distance and electric properties of objects. It is not clear yet how the fish recognizes the properties of an object such as its electric property, location and size based on its electric image. As the first step to clarify the neuronal mechanism of electrolocation, we developed a model of fish body by which we describe numerically the spatio-temporal patterns of electric field around the fish body. We made also neural models of electroreceptors distributed on the fish body and of electrosensory lateral line lobe(ELL) to investigate what kinds of information of electric field distorted by an object they detect. The models reproduce qualitatively the experimental results about the detections of size, distance, and moving directions of an object. We show that the ability of ELL neuron to detect the direction of object movement parallel to the fish body is generated by the spatially inhomogeneous pattern of electric field along the fish body from head to tail,which is induced originally by the electric organs in the
Do Small Banks Have an Advantage in Lending? An Examination of Small Business Lending Performance for Large and Small Banks

Consolidation in the banking industry has sparked concern about the survival of small banks. However, if small banks are better at processing credit information than large banks, they should continue to survive in a competitive environment. We evaluate risk-adjusted commercial loan yields (gross yields less net charge-offs and the risk-free rate) at small and large banks for 1996 through 1999. We find that risk-adjusted yields fall as the proportion of small business loans (i.e., original amounts less than $1 million) increase. However, smaller banks earn greater risk-adjusted yields than larger banks. Our results suggest that small banks make better choices from the available small business loans. This finding is consistent with the notion that these banks have an information advantage in evaluating credit and adds to our understanding of the intermediation process.
Attitude of Pakistani Consumers towards SMS Advertising

Advertisement through short messaging service SMS is a recent trend in this new era. Pakistan is among those countries where people use mobile phones excessively. Promotional messages which are entertaining, informative, without any irritation and sent by a credible source succeed in getting attention of consumers and help in the formation of favorable attitude. Demographic variables like age, education and gender also effect on the attitude formation of consumers who are exposed to advertisements via SMS’s.
Execution: the Critical “What’s Next?” in Strategic Human Resource Management

The Human Resource Planning Society’s 1999 State of the Art/Practice (SOTA/P) study was conducted by a virtual team of researchers who interviewed and surveyed 232 human resource and line executives, consultants, and academics worldwide. Looking three to five years ahead, the study probed four basic topics: (1) major emerging trends in external environments, (2) essential organizational capabilities, (3) critical people issues, and (4) the evolving role of the human resource function. This article briefly reports some of the study’s major findings, along with an implied action agenda – the “gotta do’s" for the leading edge. Cutting through the complexity, the general tone is one of urgency emanating from the intersection of several underlying themes: the increasing fierceness of competition, the rapid and unrelenting pace of change, the imperatives of marketplace and thus organizational agility, and the corresponding need to buck prevailing trends by attracting and, especially, retaining and capturing the commitment of world-class talent. While it all adds up to a golden opportunity for human resource functions, there is a clear need to get to get on with it – to get better, faster, and smarter – or run the risk of being left in the proverbial dust. Execute or be executed.
The Diabetic Phenotype in HNF4A Mutation Carriers Is Moderated By the Expression of HNF4A Isoforms From the P1 Promoter During Fetal Development

OBJECTIVE—Mutations in the alternatively spliced HNF4A gene cause maturity-onset diabetes of the young (MODY). We characterized the spatial and developmental expression patterns of HNF4A transcripts in human tissues and investigated their role as potential moderators of the MODY phenotype. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS—We measured the expression of HNF4A isoforms in human adult tissues and gestationally staged fetal pancreas by isoform-specific real-time PCR. The correlation between mutation position and age of diagnosis or age-related penetrance was assessed in a cohort of 190 patients with HNF4A mutations. RESULTS—HNF4A was expressed exclusively from the P2 promoter in adult pancreas, but from 9 weeks until at least 26 weeks after conception, up to 23% of expression in fetal pancreas was of P1 origin. HNF4A4–6 transcripts were not detected in any tissue. In whole pancreas, HNF4A9 expression was greater than in islets isolated from the endocrine pancreas (relative level 22 vs. 7%). Patients with mutations in exons 9 and 10 (absent from HNF4A3, HNF4A6, and HNF4A9 isoforms) developed diabetes later than those with mutations in exons 2–8, where all isoforms were affected (40 vs. 24 years; P = 0.029). Exon 9/10 mutations were also associated with a reduced age-related penetrance (53 vs. 10% without diabetes at age 55 years; P < 0.00001). CONCLUSIONS—We conclude that isoforms derived from the HNF4A P1 promoter are expressed in human fetal, but not adult, pancreas, and that their presence during pancreatic development may moderate the diabetic phenotype in individuals with mutations in the HNF4A gene.
China's technological catch-up and structural changes of Korean investment in China

In the globalized and knowledge-based world, science and technology (S&T) is becoming more important location determinants of FDI, but the relation between the development of science and technology of a host country and the structure of inbound FDI is unknown. This paper finds that the development of science and technology can increase a country's chance to attract foreign investment and heavily affect the structure of inbound FDI. China's technological catch-up plays an important role in the structural changing of Korean investment in China to more technology-intensive in structure.
The morphology of the sensory neuron in the cockroach femoral tactile spine.

1. The cockroach femoral tactile spine contains a single bipolar sensory neuron. The mechanosensitive dendrite in the wall of the spine leads through the spine lumen to a cell body, and then to an axon that proceeds proximally along the femur. The ultrastructure of the sensory ending has been examined before with electron microscopy. However, the morphology of the complete neuron and its relationship to the general spine structure have not been described before. 2. The tactile spine neuron has been extensively used in electrophysiological studies, including intracellular recordings. Action-potential amplitudes and thresholds were variable and inversely related in intracellular recordings, which could be caused by variability in the location of the action-potential initiation region, the position of the recording electrode, or the neuronal morphology. Attempts to observe the complete neuronal morphology by dye injection were hampered by the opaque and autofluorescent cuticle surrounding the neuron. 3. We examined 10 tactile spine neurons, and their surrounding structures, by taking serial 1-micron sections through the base of the spine, normal to its long axis. The sections were examined with light microscopy, digitized by tracing onto a graphics tablet, and then reassembled with the use of computer software. Reconstructions were made of the borders of the spine cuticle, neuron, neuronal nucleus, glial wrappings, and the main trachea in the spine lumen. 4. There was considerable variability in the size and shape of the neuronal cell body, although the sensory dendrite and axon had more consistent morphologies. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
A DUAL-POLARIZED SHORTED MICROSTRIP PATCH ANTENNA FOR WIDEBAND APPLICATION

A new design of a wideband dually-polarized shorted microstrip patch antenna coupled to hook shaped probes is presented. The antenna is designed to operate around 4 GHz. The mechanisms of the shorted microstrip patch antenna provide wider impedance bandwidth over 37%. The shorted patch is smaller than as with to the unshorted patch. The present design provides about 40 dB isolation level between the two ports. Also, a stable low cross polarization level is around -20dB for both E-and H-planes. Index Terms ─ Dual polarization, wide bandwidth, high isolation, shorted microstrip antenna.
Genome‐wide mapping of cellular traits using yeast

Yeast has long enjoyed superiority as a genetic model because of its short generation time and ease of generating alleles for genetic analysis. However, recent developments of guided nucleases for genome editing in higher eukaryotes, and funding pressures for translational findings, force all model organism communities to reaffirm and rearticulate the advantages of their chosen creature. Here I examine the utility of budding yeast for understanding the genetic basis of cellular traits, using natural variation as well as classical genetic perturbations, and its future prospects compared to undertaking the work in human cell lines. Will yeast remain central, or will it join the likes of phage as an early model that is no longer widely used to answer the pressing questions? Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
OBSERVATIONS ON THE RIGHT PULMONARY ARCH ARTERY AND ITS NERVE SUPPLY IN HUMAN EMBRYOS.

Various explanations have been advanced to account for the disappearance of the right pulmonary arch artery dorsal to the origin of its pulmonary branch. Hamilton, Boyd & Mossman (1962) attribute the retrogression of this vessel to loss of connexion with the right dorsal aorta, when the latter disappears 'between the point of attachment to it of the right fourth arch artery and its junction with the left dorsal aorta'. On the other hand, Moffatt (1960) in the rat, Heuser (1923) in the pig and Congdon (1922) in Man find that the closure of the right pulmonary arch precedes that of the right dorsal aorta. Congdon, on the basis of thickening of the coats of the pulmonary arch, considers that the first distinguishable step in the reduction of its lumen is an active contraction of its wall. Lehmann (1905) describes a similarly thickened coat of the vessel in a pig embryo of approximately 23 days gestation age. Tension imposed by the pull of the right vagus nerve and its recurrent laryngeal branch can be discounted as a primary cause, since the left arch, although under similar mechanical tension, does not regress but, indeed, increases in diameter during the same period. The present investigation of a series of human embryos contributes information which has a bearing on this problem. Moreover, appropriately stained material shows the presence of nerve fibres in the coats of the right pulmonary arch. Although Boyd (1941) demonstrates the similarity of the innervation of the mammalian left pulmonary arch, i.e. the ductus arteriosus, to that possessed by the aorta and the carotid sinus in accordance with a prediction by Koch (1931), the presence of nerves in the right pulmonary arch artery has not been, hitherto, convincingly demonstrated. Descriptions of the aortic arches in mammalian embryos omit reference to innervation of the right pulmonary arch; Muratori (1937), however, figures nerve endings on both pulmonary arches in birds.
I'm Here, But Maybe Not for Long: Using Complaints to Predict and Value Customers

The extant literature has related Customer Lifetime Value [CLV] to the customer's purchase history, but has paid little attention to other non-transactional customer-firm interactions like complaints. This paper makes three contributions. First, we build an easy-to-implement model that incorporates complaints into customer base analysis. Second, applying this model to more than two years of individual data from a major U.S. catalog retailer, we demonstrate that the occurrence and timing of customer complaints offer predictive value beyond the occurrence and timing of purchases. Lastly, we assess the link between complaints, purchases and CLV, which allows us to investigate the conditions under which observing a customer complaint increases or decreases CLV. We argue that a customer complaint may provide two opposing signals. The negative signal concerns potential defection. The positive signal is that the customer is still active and involved with the firm.