bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
External adjustment in oil exporters: The role of fiscal policy and the exchange rate
Authors: Behar Alberto , Fouejieu Armand 
Published: December 2017

AbstractAfter the decline in oil prices, many oil exporters face the need to improve their external balances. Special characteristics of oil exporters make the exchange rate an ineffective instrument for this purpose and give fiscal policy a sizeable role. These conclusions are supported by regression analysis of the determinants of the current account balance and of the trade balance. The results show little or no relationship with the exchange rate and, especially for the less diversified oil exporters, a strong relationship with the fiscal balance or government spending.
What drives the capital flows into BRICS economies?
Authors: Swamy Vighneswara , Narayanamurthy Vijayakumar 
Published: December 2017

AbstractUnderstanding what drives the capital flows has important policy implications for countries in managing the direction and magnitude of such flows. This paper empirically investigates the main drivers of capital flows into the fast‐growing BRICS countries, in the backdrop of their growing inward capital flows. Employing a fully balanced panel for the period 1995–2015, we focus on, among others, the hitherto commonly untested variables: sovereign credit ratings, economic freedom and ease of doing business ranking of these countries. In searching for the relevant interaction and causality among the drivers of capital flows, we employ the panel Granger causality test to arrive at the policy implications. The results suggest that market size is a significant driver of capital flows. In addition to infrastructure, economic freedom in the host countries, ease of doing business ranking and sovereign credit ratings are the main drivers in the long‐run growth of capital flows.
Implementation of a lung cancer multidisciplinary team standardised template for reporting to general practitioners: a mixed-method study
Authors: Rankin Nicole M , Collett Gemma K , Brown Clare M , Shaw Tim J , White Kahren M , Beale Philip J , Trevena Lyndal J , Anderiesz Cleola , Barnes David J 
Published: December 2017

ObjectivesFew interventions have been designed that provide standardised information to primary care clinicians about the diagnostic and treatment recommendations resulting from cancer multidisciplinary team (MDT) (tumour board) meetings. This study aimed to develop, implement and evaluate a standardised template for lung cancer MDTs to provide clinical information and treatment recommendations to general practitioners (GPs). Specific objectives were to (1) evaluate template feasibility (acceptability, appropriateness and timeliness) with GPs and (2) document processes of preimplementation, implementation and evaluation within the MDT setting.DesignA mixed-method study design using structured interviews with GPs and qualitative documentation of project logs about implementation processes.SettingTwo hospitals in Central Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Participants: 61 GPs evaluated the template. Two lung cancer MDTs, consisting of 33 clinicians, and eight researchers participated in template development and implementation strategy.ResultsThe MDT-reporting template appears to be a feasible way of providing clinical information to GPs following patient presentation at a lung cancer MDT meeting. Ninety-five per cent of GPs strongly agreed or agreed that the standardised template provided useful and relevant information, that it was received in a timely manner (90%) and that the information was easy to interpret and communicate to the patient (84%). Implementation process data show that the investment made in the preimplementation stage to integrate the template into standard work practices was a critical factor in successful implementation.ConclusionsThis study demonstrates that it is feasible to provide lung cancer MDT treatment recommendations to GPs through implementation of a standardised template. A simple intervention, such as a standardised template, can help to address quality gaps and ensure that timely information is communicated between tertiary and primary care healthcare providers.
The renal parenchyma—evaluation of a novel ultrasound measurement to assess fetal renal development: protocol for an observational longitudinal study
Authors: Brennan Sonja , Schneider Michal , Watson David , Kandasamy Yogavijayan , Rudd Donna 
Published: December 2017

IntroductionDisorders of fetal growth, such as intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) and large for gestational age (LGA), have been found to have a profound effect on the development of the fetal kidney. Abnormal kidney development is associated with hypertension and chronic kidney disease later in life. This study will use a novel ultrasound measurement to assess the renal parenchymal growth and kidney arterial blood flow in the fetus to evaluate the development of the fetal kidneys and provide an indirect estimate of nephron number. Measurements in normally grown, IUGR and LGA fetuses will be compared to determine if changes in renal parenchymal growth can be detected in utero.Methods and analysisThis longitudinal, prospective, observational study will be conducted over 12 months in the Ultrasound Department of the Townsville Hospital, Australia. The study will compare fetal renal parenchymal thickness (RPT) and renal artery Doppler flow between IUGR fetuses and appropriately grown fetuses, and LGA fetuses and appropriately grown fetuses between 16 and 40 weeks. The fetal RPT to renal volume ratio will also be compared, and correlations between RPT, renal parenchymal echogenicity, fetal Doppler indices and amniotic fluid levels will be analysed.Ethics and disseminationThis study was approved by the Townsville Health District Human Research Ethics Committee. The study results will form part of a thesis and will be published in peer-reviewed journals and disseminated at international conferences.
Repository corticotropin injection in patients with persistently active SLE requiring corticosteroids: post hoc analysis of results from a two-part, 52-week pilot study
Authors: Furie Richard A , Mitrane Margaret , Zhao Enxu , Becker Patrice M 
Published: December 2017

ObjectivePost hoc analyses evaluated the effectiveness and safety of repository corticotropin injection (RCI) in patients with persistently active SLE over 52 weeks.MethodsPatients were initially randomised to 40 U daily or 80 U every other day RCI (n=26) or placebo (n=12) for the 8-week double-blind period. Completers entered the open-label extension (OLE; n=33) receiving 16, 40 or 80 U RCI 1–3 times/week and were followed through week 52. Outcomes included proportion of responders based on a novel index (resolution of joint or skin activity using hybrid Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index (hSLEDAI) without any worsening British Isles Lupus Assessment Group (BILAG) scores in other organ systems) or revised novel index (using SLE Responder Index (SRI) definition of BILAG worsening (1A or 2B)), proportion of responders by SRI and changes in total hSLEDAI and BILAG scores. Adverse events and laboratory values were assessed.ResultsAt week 52, 12.0% (3/25) RCI/RCI patients and 36.4% (4/11) placebo/RCI patients were responders using the novel index. The revised novel responder index demonstrated response rates of 48.0% (12/25) and 54.5% (6/11) in the RCI/RCI and placebo/RCI groups, respectively. Proportions of SRI responders were 40.0% (10/25) and 54.5% (6/11). In the RCI/RCI group, total hSLEDAI and BILAG scores declined from 10.0 and 15.7 at week 0 to 3.5 and 4.6 at week 52, respectively. Reductions in the placebo/RCI group on switching were observed (mean hSLEDAI: 9.1–3.3; BILAG: 13.5–2.6). Other disease activity endpoints also improved in both groups. No new safety signals were observed during the OLE.ConclusionsRCI demonstrated durable effectiveness in patients with persistently active SLE despite moderate-dose corticosteroid therapy. Switching from placebo resulted in reduced disease activity during the OLE. These data provide the foundation for evaluation of RCI in a robustly powered study.
Inception of the ‘endocarditis team’ is associated with improved survival in patients with infective endocarditis who are managed medically: findings from a before-and-after study
Authors: Kaura Amit , Byrne Jonathan , Fife Amanda , Deshpande Ranjit , Baghai Max , Gunning Margaret , Whitaker Donald , Monaghan Mark , MacCarthy Philip A , Wendler Olaf , Dworakowski Rafal 
Published: December 2017

ObjectiveDespite improvements in its management, infective endocarditis (IE) is associated with poor survival. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of a multidisciplinary endocarditis team (ET), including a cardiologist, microbiologist and a cardiac surgeon, on the outcome of patients with acute IE according to medical or surgical treatment strategies.MethodsWe conducted an observational before-and-after study of 196 consecutive patients with definite IE, who were treated at a tertiary reference centre between 2009 and 2015. The study was divided into two periods: period 1, before the formation of the ET (n=101), and period 2, after the formation of the ET (n=95). The role of the ET included regular multidisciplinary team meetings to confirm diagnosis, inform the type and duration of antibiotic therapy and recommend early surgery, when indicated, according to European guidelines.ResultsThe patient demographics and predisposing conditions for IE were comparable between the two study periods. In the time period following the introduction of the ET, there was a reduction in both the time to commencement of IE-specific antibiotic therapy (4.0±4.0 days vs 2.5±3.2 days; P=0.004) and the time from suspected IE to surgery (7.8±7.3 days vs 5.3±4.2 days; P=0.004). A 12-month Kaplan-Meier survival for patients managed medically was 42.9% in the pre-ET period and 66.7% in the post-ET period (P=0.03). The involvement of the ET was a significant independent predictor of 1-year survival in patients managed medically (HR 0.24, 95% CI 0.07 to 0.87; P=0.03).ConclusionsA standardised multidisciplinary team approach may lead to earlier diagnosis of IE, more appropriate individualised management strategies, expedited surgery, where indicated, and improved survival in those patients chosen for medical management, supporting the recent change in guidelines to recommend the use of a multidisciplinary team in the care of patients with IE.
Synthesizing bijective lenses
Authors: Miltner Anders , Fisher Kathleen , Pierce Benjamin C. , Walker David , Zdancewic Steve 
Published: December 2017

Bidirectional transformations between different data representations occur frequently in modern software systems. They appear as serializers and deserializers, as parsers and pretty printers, as database views and view updaters, and as a multitude of different kinds of ad hoc data converters. Manually building bidirectional transformations---by writing two separate functions that are intended to be inverses---is tedious and error prone. A better approach is to use a domain-specific language in which both directions can be written as a single expression. However, these domain-specific languages can be difficult to program in, requiring programmers to manage fiddly details while working in a complex type system.
We present an alternative approach. Instead of coding transformations manually, we synthesize them from declarative format descriptions and examples. Specifically, we present Optician, a tool for type-directed synthesis of bijective string transformers. The inputs to Optician are a pair of ordinary regular expressions representing two data formats and a few concrete examples for disambiguation. The output is a well-typed program in Boomerang (a bidirectional language based on the theory of lenses). The main technical challenge involves navigating the vast program search space efficiently. In particular, and unlike most prior work on type-directed synthesis, our system operates in the context of a language with a rich equivalence relation on types (the theory of regular expressions). Consequently, program synthesis requires search in two dimensions: First, our synthesis algorithm must find a pair of "syntactically compatible types," and second, using the structure of those types, it must find a type- and example-compliant term. Our key insight is that it is possible to reduce the size of this search space without losing any computational power by defining a new language of lenses designed specifically for synthesis. The new language is free from arbitrary function composition and operates only over types and terms in a new disjunctive normal form. We prove (1) our new language is just as powerful as a more natural, compositional, and declarative language and (2) our synthesis algorithm is sound and complete with respect to the new language. We also demonstrate empirically that our new language changes the synthesis problem from one that admits intractable solutions to one that admits highly efficient solutions, able to synthesize intricate lenses between complex file formats in seconds. We evaluate Optician on a benchmark suite of 39 examples that includes both microbenchmarks and realistic examples derived from other data management systems including Flash Fill, a tool for synthesizing string transformations in spreadsheets, and Augeas, a tool for bidirectional processing of Linux system configuration files.
Linear Haskell: practical linearity in a higher-order polymorphic language
Authors: Bernardy Jean-Philippe , Boespflug Mathieu , Newton Ryan R. , Peyton Jones Simon , Spiwack Arnaud 
Published: December 2017

Linear type systems have a long and storied history, but not a clear path forward to integrate with existing languages such as OCaml or Haskell. In this paper, we study a linear type system designed with two crucial properties in mind: backwards-compatibility and code reuse across linear and non-linear users of a library. Only then can the benefits of linear types permeate conventional functional programming. Rather than bifurcate types into linear and non-linear counterparts, we instead attach linearity to
function arrows
. Linear functions can receive inputs from linearly-bound values, but can
also
operate over unrestricted, regular values.

To demonstrate the efficacy of our linear type system — both how easy it can be integrated in an existing language implementation and how streamlined it makes it to write programs with linear types — we implemented our type system in ghc, the leading Haskell compiler, and demonstrate two kinds of applications of linear types: mutable data with pure interfaces; and enforcing protocols in I/O-performing functions.
Linearity in higher-order recursion schemes
Authors: Clairambault Pierre , Grellois Charles , Murawski Andrzej S. 
Published: December 2017

Higher-order recursion schemes (HORS) have recently emerged as a promising foundation for higher-order program verification. We examine the impact of enriching HORS with linear types. To that end, we introduce two frameworks that blend non-linear and linear types: a variant of the λY -calculus and an extension of HORS, called linear HORS (LHORS).
First we prove that the two formalisms are equivalent and there exist polynomial-time translations between them. Then, in order to support model-checking of (trees generated by) LHORS, we propose a refined version of alternating parity tree automata, called LNAPTA, whose behaviour depends on information about linearity. We show that the complexity of LNAPTA model-checking for LHORS depends on two type-theoretic parameters: linear order and linear depth. The former is in general smaller than the standard notion of order and ignores linear function spaces. In contrast, the latter measures the depth of linear clusters inside a type. Our main result states that LNAPTA model-checking of LHORS of linear order n is n-EXPTIME-complete, when linear depth is fixed. This generalizes and improves upon the classic result of Ong, which relies on the standard notion of order.
To illustrate the significance of the result, we consider two applications: the MSO model-checking problem on variants of HORS with case distinction (RSFD and HORSC) on a finite domain and a call-by-value resource verification problem. In both cases, decidability can be established by translation into HORS, but the implied complexity bounds will be suboptimal due to increases in type order. In contrast, we show that the complexity bounds derived by translations into LHORS and appealing to our result are optimal in that they match the respective hardness results.
A practical construction for decomposing numerical abstract domains
Authors: Singh Gagandeep , Püschel Markus , Vechev Martin 
Published: December 2017

Numerical abstract domains such as Polyhedra, Octahedron, Octagon, Interval, and others are an essential component of static program analysis. The choice of domain offers a performance/precision tradeoff ranging from cheap and imprecise (Interval) to expensive and precise (Polyhedra). Recently, significant speedups were achieved for Octagon and Polyhedra by manually decomposing their transformers to work with the Cartesian product of projections associated with partitions of the variable set. While practically useful, this manual process is time consuming, error-prone, and has to be applied from scratch for every domain.
In this paper, we present a generic approach for decomposing the transformers of sub-polyhedra domains along with conditions for checking whether the decomposed transformers lose precision with respect to the original transformers. These conditions are satisfied by most practical transformers, thus our approach is suitable for increasing the performance of these transformers without compromising their precision. Furthermore, our approach is ``black box:'' it does not require changes to the internals of the original non-decomposed transformers or additional manual effort per domain.
We implemented our approach and applied it to the domains of Zones, Octagon, and Polyhedra. We then compared the performance of the decomposed transformers obtained with our generic method versus the state of the art: the (non-decomposed) PPL for Polyhedra and the much faster ELINA (which uses manual decomposition) for Polyhedra and Octagon. Against ELINA we demonstrate finer partitions and an associated speedup of about 2x on average. Our results indicate that the general construction presented in this work is a viable method for improving the performance of sub-polyhedra domains. It enables designers of abstract domains to benefit from decomposition without re-writing all of their transformers from scratch as required by prior work.
Maximal strength training-induced improvements in forearm work efficiency are associated with reduced blood flow
Authors: Berg Ole Kristian , Nyberg Stian Kwak , Windedal Tobias Midtvedt , Wang Eivind 
Published: December 2017

Maximal strength training (MST) improves work efficiency. However, since blood flow is greatly dictated by muscle contractions in arms during exercise and vascular conductance is lower, it has been indicated that arms rely more upon adapting oxygen extraction than legs in response to the enhanced work efficiency. Thus, to investigate if metabolic and vascular responses are arm specific, we used Doppler-ultrasound and a catheter placed in the subclavian vein to measure blood flow and the arteriovenous oxygen difference during steady-state work in seven young men [24 ± 3 (SD) yr] following 6 wk of handgrip MST. As expected, MST improved maximal strength (49 ± 9 to 62 ± 10 kg) and the rate of force development (923 ± 224 to 1,086 ± 238 N/s), resulting in a reduced submaximal oxygen uptake (30 ± 9 to 24 ± 10 ml/min) and concomitantly increased work efficiency (9.3 ± 2.5 to 12.4 ± 3.9%) (all P < 0.05). In turn, the work efficiency improvement was associated with reduced blood flow (486 ± 102 to 395 ± 114 ml/min), mediated by a lower blood velocity (43 ± 8 to 32 ± 6 cm/s) (all P < 0.05). Conduit artery diameter and the arteriovenous oxygen difference remained unaltered. The maximal work test revealed an increased time to exhaustion (949 ± 239 to 1,102 ± 292 s) and maximal work rate (both P < 0.05) but no change in peak oxygen uptake. In conclusion, despite prior indications of metabolic and vascular limb-specific differences, these results reveal that improved work efficiency after small muscle mass strength training in the upper extremities is accompanied by a blood flow reduction and coheres with what has been documented for lower extremities. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Maximal strength training increases skeletal muscle work efficiency. Oxygen extraction has been indicated to be the adapting component with this increased work efficiency in arms. However, we document that decreased blood flow, achieved by blood velocity reduction, is the adapting mechanism responding to the improved aerobic metabolism in the forearm musculature.
ЕКСПЕРИМЕНТАЛЬНЕ ДОСЛІДЖЕННЯ СПЕЦИФІЧНОЇ ФАРМАКОЛОГІЧНОЇ АКТИВНОСТІ ПРЕПАРАТУ ПЕГ-ФІЛСТИМ
Authors: Karbovsky V. L. , Shevchuk I. A. , Kurkina O. V. 
Published: December 2017

Мета роботи. Дослідити специфічну фармакологічну активність препарату ПЕГ-Філстим на моделі фебрильної нейтропенії у мишей.Матеріали і методи. Експериментальну лейкопенію в самців мишей лінії C57BL/6 моделювали одноразовим внутрішньоочеревинним введенням циклофосфаміду у дозі 250 мг/кг. ПЕГ-Філстим або референтний препарат Неуластим вводили одноразово підшкірно в дозі 1 мг/кг через 24 год після ін'єкції циклофосфаміду або через 24 години після ін’єкції 0,9 % розчину натрію хлориду. На 7-му добу після введення досліджуваного і референтного препаратів тварин наркотизували та відбирали кров на мазок і підрахунок лейкоцитів. Після евтаназії з правої стегнової кістки вимивали кістковий мозок, в якому підраховували загальну кількість мієлокаріоцитів, а в мазку кісткового мозку – мієлограму, лейкоеритроцитарне співвідношення, індекс дозрівання нейтрофілів.Результати та обговорення. У здорових мишей після одноразового застосування ПЕГ-Філстиму або Неуластиму спостерігається збільшення кількості лейкоцитів щодо інтактного контролю. У тварин з експериментальною лейкопенією при дії обох препаратів також збільшилась абсолютна кількість лейкоцитів щодо тварин з експериментальною патологією. При цьому ефекти ПЕГ-Філстиму та Неуластиму на даний показник статистично значущих відмінностей між собою не мали. Як у здорових мишей, так і у тварин з експериментальною лейкопенією одноразове підшкірне введення препаратів ПЕГ-Філстим або Неуластим збільшує кількість мієлокаріоцитів у кістковому мозку, яке не було пов’язане зі зміною абсолютного вмісту недиференційованих бластів, еозинофілів, моноцитів і незрілих форм нейтрофілів. І у здорових тварин, і у мишей з експериментальною патологією після застосування досліджуваного або референтного препаратів спостерігалося збільшення абсолютного вмісту зрілих форм (паличкоядерних і сегментоядерних) нейтрофілів. Такі зміни призвели до зниження індексу дозрівання нейтрофілів.Висновки. Препарат ПЕГ-Філстим в дозі 1 мг/кг має виражений гемостимулюючий ефект як у інтактних мишей, так і у тварин з експериментальною лейкопенією. При дії препарату збільшується кількість лейкоцитів у периферичній крові (за рахунок паличкоядерних нейтрофілів і лімфоцитів), а також збільшується кількість мієлокаріоцитів у кістковому мозку (за рахунок зрілих форм нейтрофілів, базофілів всіх генерацій, а також еритрокаріоцітів). Засвоїми характеристиками досліджуваний засіб не поступається референтному препарату Неуластим.