Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Association between Family Socio-Economic Status and Health Care Utilization in Ghaemshahr-Mazandaran, Iran

Background and purpose: Equity in access to health care has become a desirable policy objective. Therefore, accessibility to health care should be provided based on health needs rather than sociodemographic variables. This will lead to a better utilization of health care and improvement of equity in health. The aim of this paper is to examine the effects of family socio-economic status as an indication of individual’s socio-economic status on the utilization of their health care. Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted in Ghaemshahr County, Iran in early 2013. In this household survey, 807 individuals were randomly approached at their home. A self-designed questionnaire was applied. The parent or every individual above 18 years were asked to fill the questionnaire for themselves and other member of their family. Using SPSS software analyses were performed with employing correlation coefficient, Chi-square and t-test. Results: About 47.9% and 52.1% of respondents were living at urban and rural area respectively. Respondents were from a quite different socio-economic and demographic background. Utilization of health care had only significant association with the location of respondents. Underutilization of health care has proportionately more evident in a rural area compared with the urban area. Conclusion: Accessibility to and utilization of health care was lower in a rural area. There is a concern of inequity in health at rural area and is going to be expanded. Appropriate policy and intervention are required to improve the situation.
A STUDY ON DEVELOPING VALID E-SERVICE QUALITY SCALE FOR ONLINE SHOPPING.

This paper develops a research model to examine the relationship among e-service quality dimensions and overall service quality. The purpose of this paper is to design, develop and evaluate a reliable and valid scale for the measurement of online retail service quality. Data from a survey of 100 online consumers were used to test the research model. E-service quality is the difference between customer’s expectations for service performance priorities the service encounters and their expectations about service performance prior to the service offering. Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to examine the reliability and validity of the measurement model. A Seven-factor instrument has been proposed to measure the e-service quality. The analytical results showed that the dimensions of web site design, reliability, responsiveness, reliability, Information Quality, Product Quality, Security and trust affect overall service quality and customer satisfaction. However, the personalization dimension is not significantly related to overall service quality and customer satisfaction. This study suggests that to enhance customer purchase intentions, online stores should develop marketing strategies to better address the trustworthiness,
Mechanisms and Sources of Resistance in Tropical Maize Inbred Lines to Chilopartellus Stem Borers

Developing maize with durable resistance to maize stem borers could be enhanced by identifying genotypes with different mechanisms of resistance and pyramiding the resistances into high yielding genotypes. This study was carried out on 120 CIMMYT tropical maize inbred lines to identify the most important mechanisms of resistance that could be used to discriminate the germplasm into resistant or susceptible categories. The experiment was laid in an α-lattice design, and replicated three times during the 2011/12 seasons. Traits measured were leaf toughness, stem penetrometer resistance, trichome density, stem sugar content, leaf damage, number of stem exit holes and stem cumulative tunnel length. A selection index was computed and categorized the 120 inbred lines into 33 resistant, 29 moderately resistant, 31 moderately susceptible and 27 susceptible. The most resistant lines were those derived from the CIMMYT multiple borer-resistant populations with CKSBL10039 being most resistant and CML395 most susceptible with indices of 0.49 and 1.84, respectively. Trichome density, leaf toughness and stem sugar content in that order were the most important traits in discriminating the lines into resistance and susceptible categories. More research is needed to classify the specific types of trichomes and sugars present in both resistant and susceptible inbred lines.
The clone of wheat dehydrin-like gene wzy2 and its functional analysis in Pichia pastoris

Dehydrin is one of the responsive proteins under water-deficit stress. The aim of this study was to explore function of dehydrins in cells and the relationship with drought tolerance under water-deficit stress. We used winter wheat ( Triticum aestivum ) Zhengyin No.1 as the material, the complete cDNA sequence of dehydrin wzy2 was cloned and the code sequence of wzy2 was transformed into yeast ( Pichia pastoris ) for eukaryotic expression. We also analyzed the relationship between wheat dehydrin wzy2 gene and drought resistance. Our results indicate that the whole cDNA sequence of dehydrin wzy2 gene was 819-bp long, containing an open reading frame of 459 bp. The deduced wzy2 protein had 152 amino acid residues, which formed a 15.5 ku polypeptide with a predicted isoelectric point (pI) of 7.17. It was Y n SK 2 type of dehydrin superfamily. Methanol was used to induce the expression of wzy2 gene in transformed P. pastoris GS115. Sodium dodecyl sulfate- polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and Western blotting further confirmed that the wzy2 was successfully transformed into P. pastoris and expressed specifically and effectively in yeast. With drought tolerance and cold tolerance treatment to recombinant P. pastoris , wzy2 gene can significantly improve the growth of the transgenic yeast under salt and drought stress compared with the control of pPIC9K yeast cell. However, in low temperature stress conditions, survival rate of the transferred wzy2 yeast cell had no significant improvement compared with the control of pPIC9K yeast cell. These results further indicate that Y n SK 2 type dehydrin could be induced by salt and osmotic stress rather than low temperature. Key words : Triticum aestivum L. , eukaryotic expression, dehydrin-like, Pichia pastoris , drought tolerance.
Structural change in regional economies: A varying coefficients econometric modeling approach

Traditional tools of econometric analysis building rest in almost all cases on the precept that the structure of economy is stable. This asumption is very restrictive in the case of modeling regional economies, where it is very difficult assume that the future will be similar to the past. The objective of this paper is to investigate the effects of structural change on the process of building regional econometric models, and to explore how this process should depart from standard practise when structural change is present. We will ilustrate this methodology by estimating a econometric model for Extremadura, a region of Spain where had been in the last decade deep economic changes which could be originated a fundamental structural change.
Using Mindful Self-Compassion to Improve Self-Criticism, Self-Soothing, Cravings, and Relapse in Substance Abusers in an Intensive Outpatient Program

Applying mindfulness techniques to the treatment of substance use disorders is relatively new; however, initial studies show promising results (e.g. Bowen et al., 2009; Witkiewitz & Bowen, 2010). Similarly, treatment-seeking substance users may find benefits in treatments that increase levels of self-compassion, a construct that uses mindfulness and allows awareness of personal faults (e.g. relapses) without becoming paralyzed by shame. Instead, individuals who are compassionate toward their failures are more likely to take healthy steps to address them (Leary, Tate, Adams, Allen, & Hancock, 2007). This study added a brief self-compassion group treatment to an existing Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) of substance users at a community mental health center to explore the potential benefits of increasing self-compassion in this population. Overall, 20 persons were recruited for participation in this study; 10 of those received the 5-session self-compassion group treatment and 10 were recruited for a treatment as usual control. Results found self-compassion to be related to decreased drug use, cravings, general psychological symptoms, and an increase in self-soothing behaviors. Additionally, all participants experienced a significant reduction in cravings, and those who participated in the self-compassion group therapy showed increased and maintained levels of self-compassion and self-soothing behaviors. Limitations and future directions are discussed.
CXCR 2 in Acute Lung Injury

In pulmonary inflammation, recruitment of circulating polymorphonuclear leukocytes is essential for host defense and initiates the following specific immune response. One pathological hallmark of acute lung injury and acute respiratory distress syndrome is the uncontrolled transmigration of neutrophils into the lung interstitium and alveolar space. Thereby, the extravasation of leukocytes from the vascular system into the tissue is induced by chemokines that are released from the site of inflammation. The most relevant chemokine receptors of neutrophils are CXC chemokine receptor (CXCR) 1 and CXCR2. CXCR2 is of particular interest since several studies implicate a pivotal role of this receptor in development and promotion of numerous inflammatory disorders. CXCR2 gets activated by ELR+ chemokines, including MIP-2, KC (rodents) and IL-8 (human). Since multiple ELR+ CXC chemokines act on both receptors—CXCR1 and CXCR2—a pharmacologic agent blocking both receptors seems to be advantageous. So far, several CXCR1/2 antagonists have been developed and have been tested successfully in experimental studies. A newly designed CXCR1 and CXCR2 antagonist can be orally administered and was for the first time found efficient in humans. This review highlights the role of CXCR2 in acute lung injury and discusses its potential as a therapeutic target.
Looking back on identities past: Implicit and explicit evaluations of former groups

Group memberships have consequences for social evaluation, leading people to prefer in-groups over out-groups. However, group membership can change. In this paper, I investigate implicit and explicit evaluations of a past in-group. Across three studies, former Christians showed less positive implicit and explicit evaluations of Christianity than current Christians, but also slightly more positive implicit evaluations compared to non-religious individuals who were never Christian. This lingering influence of group membership on implicit evaluation was not moderated by the length of time since group exit or past level of involvement in Christianity. Overall, implicit and explicit evaluations of former Christians more closely resembled those of their current group rather than those of their past identity.
Genome‐wide patterns of transposon proliferation in an evolutionary young hybrid fish

Hybridization can induce transposons to jump into new genomic positions, which may result in their accumulation across the genome. Alternatively, transposon copy numbers may increase through nonallelic (ectopic) homologous recombination in highly repetitive regions of the genome. The relative contribution of transposition bursts versus recombination‐based mechanisms to evolutionary processes remains unclear because studies on transposon dynamics in natural systems are rare. We assessed the genomewide distribution of transposon insertions in a young hybrid lineage (“invasive Cottus”, n = 11) and its parental species Cottus rhenanus (n = 17) and Cottus perifretum(n = 9) using a reference genome assembled from long single molecule pacbio reads. An inventory of transposable elements was reconstructed from the same data and annotated. Transposon copy numbers in the hybrid lineage increased in 120 (15.9%) out of 757 transposons studied here. The copy number increased on average by 69% (range: 10%–197%). Given the age of the hybrid lineage, this suggests that they have proliferated within a few hundred generations since admixture began. However, frequency spectra of transposon insertions revealed no increase in novel and rare insertions across assembled parts of the genome. This implies that transposons were added to repetitive regions of the genome that remain difficult to assemble. Future studies will need to evaluate whether recombination‐based mechanisms rather than genomewide transposition may explain the majority of the recent transposon proliferation in the hybrid lineage. Irrespectively of the underlying mechanism, the observed overabundance in repetitive parts of the genome suggests that gene‐rich regions are unlikely to be directly affected.
Master ’ s Project Proposal Exploring the Topology of Small-World Networks

Complex networks have been studied for a long time in order to understand various real-world complex systems around us. Complex systems, such as the WWW, the movieactor network, social networks and neural networks, are systems made of many nonidentical elements connected by diverse interactions. To study the network topology is one of important issues on the way of exploring such systems, because the structure always affects the system function. Traditionally, these systems have been modeled as either completely ordered graphs or completely random graphs. Until recently, some surprising empirical results in the field of complex networks, like 19 clicks of the web’s diameter and 6 degrees of separation in social networks, show us the small-world phenomena existing in some large sparse networks. This finding motivates the interest in small-world networks. The objective of the project is to study the properties of smallworld networks and the network evolution over time via experiments on a movie actor collaboration network; to find their different characteristics by comparing small-world networks with random networks; and to analyze the factors that result in such differences.
How Relevant is Size for Setting the Scope of The IFRS for SMEs

The International Financial Reporting Standard for Small and Medium-sized Entities (IFRS for SMEs) is currently considered for adoption by national regulators in many emerging economies and a few developed countries. The cost-benefit approach is advanced as useful to investigate how the scope of the IFRS for SMEs should be set. Size is used in many jurisdictions as criterion to set financial reporting obligations, but it is questioned if it represents an appropriate criterion for the scope of the IFRS for SMEs. The aim of this paper is therefore to empirically investigate the applicability and consequences of using various criteria to set the scope of IFRS for SMEs, and to discuss the implications of using size instead of other criteria. Data consists of a sample of 194 questionnaires completed by accountants employed by Romanian SMEs. I find that the choice between size and other criteria is related to placing greater emphasis on preparers or users, or on costs versus benefits. Also, findings suggest that while size is correlated with users-based criteria, the level of agreement between various criteria for setting the scope of the standard is medium. Therefore, in order to capture the cost-benefit tension two criteria might be used in deciding the scope of the standard.
Classification and recognition scheme for vegetable pests based on the BOF-SVM model

The current detection technology for vegetable pests mainly relies on artificial statistics, which exists many shortages such as requiring a large amount of labor, low efficiency, feedback delay and artificial faults. By rapid detection and image processing technology targeting at vegetable pests, not only can reduce manpower and pesticide use, but also provide decision support for precise spraying and improve the quality of vegetables. Practical research achievements are still relatively lacking on the rapid identification technology based on image processing technology in vegetable pests. Given the above background, this paper presents a classification and recognition scheme based on the bag-of-words model and support vector machine (BOF-SVM) on four important southern vegetable pests including Whiteflies, Phyllotreta Striolata, Plutella Xylostella and Thrips. This paper consists of four sub-algorithms. The first sub-algorithm is to compute the character description of pest images based on scale-invariant feature transformation. The second sub-algorithm is to compute the visual vocabulary based on bag of features. The third sub-algorithm is to compute the classifier of pests based on support vector machines. The last one is to classify the pest images using the classifier. In this study, C++ and Python language were used as implementation technologies with OpenCV and LibSVM function library based on BOF-SVM classification algorithm. Experiments showed that the average recognition accuracy was 91.56% for a single image category judgment with 80 images from the real environment, and the average time was 0.39 seconds. This algorithm has achieved the ideal operating speed and precision. It can provide decision support for UAV precise spraying, and also has good application prospect in agriculture. Keywords: agricultural image processing, vegetable pests, classification, recognition, bag of features, support vector machine DOI: 10.25165/j.ijabe. 20181103.3477 Citation: Xiao D Q, Feng J Z, Lin T Y, Pang C H, Ye Y W. Classification and recognition scheme for vegetable pests based on the BOF-SVM model. Int J Agric & Biol Eng, 2018; 11(3): 190–196.
Investigating Time-in-Market Effects in Kuwait Health Clubs

Timing may play a significant role in determining the ultimate success or failure of any given adventure, whether it be personal or business in nature. A large body of academic writings exists pursuing this idea of market order-of-entry, oftentimes referred to as the first-mover effect (e.g., Robinson and Fornell, 1985; Berger and Dick, 2007; Lieberman and Montgomery, 1998; Saurez and Lanzolla, 2007; Varadarajan, et al., 2008; Rasmusen and Yoon, 2012; Tran et al., 2012). Conventional wisdom suggests that the pioneering, prospecting, or first-mover brands enjoy competitive advantages and superior performance relative to follower brands (e.g., DiBenedetto and Song, 2008; Juste et al., 2009; Pleshko and Nickerson, 2008; McDaniels and Kolari, 1987; Miles and Snow, 1978). However, other studies suggest that later entrants may be more successful than are pioneers or at least overcome any first-mover advantages (e.g., Rasmusen and Yoon, 2012; Shankar et al., 1998; Tran et al., 2012). In addition, Magnusson et al. (2009) speculate that service industries and services in developing economies may be outside the domain of a time-in-market effect, indicating successful entry may occur at any time.
Post-Acquisition Innovativeness in High-Tech Industries : The Attention-Based Perspective

Post-Acquisition Innovativeness in High-Tech Industries: The Attention-Based Perspective Sung Hun Chung Department of Business Administration The Graduate School Seoul National University Despite the growing recognition of managerial attention as one of critical factors that drive firm behavior, its influence on the post-acquisition innovativeness has been neglected. In this study, we examine the effects of entrepreneurial focus, future focus, and change focus on post-acquisition innovativeness. Also, we investigate the moderating role of firm size disparity and that of strategic complementarity in order to find the optimal organizational and environmental fit that influences post-acquisition innovativeness and to complete the explanations of attention-based view (ABV). Drawing from the sample of 177 M&A deals in high-tech industry, we have found out that most of our hypotheses were supported. In addition, theoretical and empirical contributions for attention-based view were provided.
Multiscale Modeling of the Mantle Rheology

The research project Multiscale modelling of the rheology of mantle minerals (acronym RheoMan) was awarded by the European Research Council in response to its 2011 Advanced Grant call. Its aim was to provide a new approach of the rheology of the mantle from the mineral physics point of view which would take advantage of the most recent developments of computational materials science. The RheoMan project ended in May 2018. This ebook describes the project and the main results obtained. Starting from the atomic scale and the structure of crystal defects, the RheoMan project provides the first numerical rheological laws applicable without extrapolation to natural conditions. In the course of this project, new mechanisms emerged: disclinations at grain boundaries and pure climb creep, providing new paradigms for the rheology of the Earth’s mantle and planetary interiors.
Measuring Health Inequality with Categorical Data: Some Regional Patterns

Much of the theoretical literature on inequality assumes that the equalisand is a cardinal variable like income or wealth. However, health status is generally measured as a categorical variable expressing a qualitative order. Traditional solutions involve reclassifying the variable by means of qualitative models and relying on inequality measures that are mean independent. We argue that the way status is conceptualized has important theoretical implications for measurement as well as for policy analysis. We also bring to the data a recently proposed approach to measuring self-reported health inequality that meets both rigorous and practical considerations. We draw upon the World Health Survey data to examine alternative pragmatic methods for making health inequality comparisons. Findings suggest significant differences in health inequality measurement and that regional and country patterns of inequality orderings do not coincide with any reasonable categorization of countries by health system organization.
Nanotechnology and its potential applications in meat industry.

The food industry is making great efforts to improve hygiene, extend the shelf life of products, prevent food-borne illnesses and contamination by chemical and also physical agents, and to improve their detection and control if contamination already has occurred. As a result, there is a constant search for new technologies which can help in achieving these goals. Nanotechnology is one of the major innovations which have already been applied in many different areas. Results of previous studies show that the use of nanotechnology provides a number of opportunities to improve processes of production, packaging, distribution and storage of the food, and therefore of the meat, as one of the most valuable source of nutritional components.
Early‐onset colorectal cancer in young individuals

Treatment of young adults with colorectal cancer (CRC) represents an unmet clinical need, especially as diagnosis in this population might lead to the greatest loss of years of life. Since 1994, CRC incidence in individuals younger than 50 years has been increasing by 2% per year. The surge in CRC incidence in young adults is particularly alarming as the overall CRC frequency has been decreasing. Early‐onset CRC are characterized by a more advanced stage at diagnosis, poorer cell differentiation, higher prevalence of signet ring cell histology, and left colon‐sided location of the primary tumor. Among EO‐CRC, approximately 30% of patients are affected by tumors harboring mutations causing hereditary cancer predisposing syndromes, and 20% have familial CRC. Most notably, the remaining 50% of EO‐CRC patients have neither hereditary syndromes nor familial CRC, thus representing a formidable challenge for research. In this review article we summarize epidemiology, clinical and molecular features, heredity and outcome of treatments of EO‐CRC, and provide considerations for future perspectives.