gebhart/patrepeval huggingface dataset:
Access to Finance and Attrition Relationship of Small and Medium Textile Firms in Nigeria (2016)

This study focused on the relationship between access to finance and attrition in small and medium textiles firms in Nigeria. The study became necessary due to the moribund nature of the textile industry in Nigeria. The sector was the second largest employer of labour but declined rapidly in productivity between 1991 and 2000, with 80 textile firms closing shop. The study takes a firm specific approach to help investigate the source of decline. Commentators on the causes of the downward trend in the textile industry had mentioned many perceived factors including access to finance. The purpose of this study is to isolate access to finance and to subject it to more intensive investigation. To do this effectively, a sampling frame which contained the list of the collapsed and standing firms was obtained from the textile manufacturers association of Nigeria based in Kaduna. All the selected firms were of medium category. A purposive sampling was used to enlist 3 entrepreneurs each from both failed and successful textile firms and 10 senior managers of failed and 4 senior managers of successful firms for a pilot study. Using a snow-balling technique, 196 respondents comprising owners and senior managers from failed firms were administered semi-structured & unstructured questionnaire whilst 160 questionnaire were also administered on owners and senior managers from successful firms. A total of 232 questionnaire were retrieved representing 65% of questionnaires sent out. The statistical tools used for testing are correlation, ANOVA and Regression. The analysis shows that the correlation between access to finance and the attrition of textiles industries in Nigeria implying a strong negative relationship between access to finance and the attrition of textile industries in Nigeria. It is recommended that textile industries take advantage of the most recent source of financing which is the Nigeria industrial bank. Financial discipline needs to be practiced by textile entrepreneurs in order to distinguish between company funds and personal funds.
Interference of redroot pigweed (Amaranthus retroflexus), Palmer amaranth (A. palmeri), and common waterhemp (A. rudis) in soybean (2003)

Abstract Field studies were conducted in 1997 and 1998 at Manhattan and Topeka, KS, to examine the competitive effects of redroot pigweed, Palmer amaranth, and common waterhemp on soybean yield. The experiments were established as a randomized complete block design in a factorial arrangement of three pigweed species, two pigweed planting dates (soybean planting and cotyledon stage), and seven weed densities (0.25, 0.5, 1, 2, 4, and 8 plants m−1 of row, plus a weed-free control). The effect of weed density on soybean yield loss, pigweed biomass, and pigweed seed production were described using a rectangular hyperbola model. Soybean yield loss varied between locations depending on the weed species, density, and time of emergence. Yield loss increased with weed density for each species and location with the first pigweed emergence time. The maximum soybean yield loss occurred at the first planting and 8 plants m−1 of row density, and was 78.7, 56.2, and 38.0% as determined by the model for Palmer amaranth, common waterhemp, and redroot pigweed, respectively. The second planting of pigweed did not significantly reduce soybean yield. The relative ranking of the pigweed species biomass was Palmer amaranth > common waterhemp > redroot pigweed. Maximum seed production for Palmer amaranth, common waterhemp, and redroot pigweed was 32,300, 51,800, and 9,500 seeds m−2. Palmer amaranth produced a larger quantity of seed than did common waterhemp or redroot pigweed at low weed densities (0.25 to 4 plants m−1 of row). But common waterhemp seed production equaled or surpassed Palmer amaranth at high weed densities. Nomenclature: Palmer amaranth, Amaranthus palmeri S. Wats. AMAPA; common waterhemp, Amaranthus rudis Sauer AMATA; redroot pigweed, Amaranthus retroflexus L. AMARE; soybean, Glycine max (L.) Merr.
High Quality GaN Grown by Facet-Controlled ELO (FACELO) Technique (2002)

We fabricated high-quality GaN by low-pressure metalorganic vapour phase epitaxy (LP-MOVPE) using Facet Controlled Epitaxial Lateral Overgrowth (FACELO) technique. Density and distribution of threading dislocations (TDs) in the GaN epitaxial layer strongly depended on the ELO mask and window widths, and were related to facet structures during the ELO process. It was found that tilt and twist of c-axis in the FACELO GaN were very small. Low temperature cathodo-luminescence (CL) spectra of the FACELO GaN with low TD density exhibited excellent crystallographic quality.
The two oxygen‐regulated subunits of cytochrome <i>c</i> oxidase in <i>Dictyostelium discoideum</i> derive from a common ancestor (1990)

The two smallest polypeptide components of D. discoideum cytochrome c oxidase, whose alternative expression depends on oxygen concentration [Schiavo, G. and Bisson, R. (1989) J. Biol. Chem. 264, 7129-7134], have been partially sequenced. They show 45% homology and are isoforms of the same subunit, which must be encoded on two different genes.
Continuous tone representation of three-dimensional objects illuminated by sky light (1986)

Natural lighting models to date have been limited to calculation of direct sunlight. However, this paper proposes an improved model for natural lighting calculations that adequately considers both direct sunlight and scattered light caused by clouds and other forms of water vapor in the air. Such indirect natural light is termed skylight and can be an important factor when attempting to render realistic looking images as they might appear under overcast skies.In the proposed natural lighting model, the sky is considered to be a hemisphere with a large radius (called the sky dome) that acts as a source of diffuse light with nonuniform intensity. In order to adequately take into account the nonuniform intensity of such skylight, the sky dome is subdivided into bands. The light intensity within individual bands can be assumed to be transversely uniform and longitudinally nonuniform and therefore the total luminance emanating from each band can be calculated more accurately.The proposed method significantly improves the realism of natural lighting effects. Its advantages are particularly apparent when simulating lighting under an overcast sky or when rendering surfaces that fall within a shadow cast by an obstruction lit by direct sunlight.
PCR-DHPLC assay for the identification of predator-prey interactions (2012)

Denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography (DHPLC) is a relatively new method for separating amplicons in a mixture, and was recently developed for parasite detection in the blue crab Callinectes sapidus. That assay used a peptide nucleic acid (PNA) PCR hybridization blocking probe (PNA–PCR–DHPLC) to decrease the generic PCR bias of dominant templates (the host) in the mixture prior to separation on the DHPLC column, thus enhancing the less abundant parasite DNA. The same assay and rational can be used to investigate predator–prey interactions. However, in ecosystem studies with many predator–prey relationships, development of specific PNA-blocking probes for each predator would be too laborious. Here, we have developed a PCR–DHPLC assay excluding the dominant predator amplicons in a first DHPLC run, followed by re-amplification of the non-predator retention volumes and further separation and characterization in a second DHPLC run. This assay generated data on the specific trophic interactions between the calanoid copepod Limnocalanus macrurus and its prey from a seasonal sampling programme. The assay provides an efficient way for an unbiased screening of predator–prey relationships, and although developed for L. macrurus in this study, the approach has wide applicability for any predator–prey interaction.
Reduced-Bandwidth and Distributed MWF-Based Noise Reduction Algorithms for Binaural Hearing Aids (2009)

<para xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> In a binaural hearing aid system, output signals need to be generated for the left and the right ear. Using the binaural multichannel Wiener filter (MWF), which exploits all microphone signals from both hearing aids, a significant reduction of background noise can be achieved. However, due to power and bandwidth limitations of the binaural link, it is typically not possible to transmit all microphone signals between the hearing aids. To limit the amount of transmitted information, this paper presents reduced-bandwidth MWF-based noise reduction algorithms, where a filtered combination of the contralateral microphone signals is transmitted. A first scheme uses a signal-independent beamformer, whereas a second scheme uses the output of a monaural MWF on the contralateral microphone signals and a third scheme involves an iterative distributed MWF (DB-MWF) procedure. It is shown that in the case of a rank-1 speech correlation matrix, corresponding to a single speech source, the DB-MWF procedure converges to the binaural MWF solution. Experimental results compare the noise reduction performance of the reduced-bandwidth algorithms with respect to the benchmark binaural MWF. It is shown that the best performance of the reduced-bandwidth algorithms is obtained by the DB-MWF procedure and that the performance of the DB-MWF procedure approaches quite well the optimal performance of the binaural MWF. </para>
A Test of Positive Reinforcement of Customers (1976)

gests that the normal probability distribution may be adequate. See: Arleigh W. Walker, How to Price Industrial Products, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 45 (SeptemberOctober 1967), pp. 125-132. Goodness-of-fit tests did not reject the assumption that the normal probability distribution is consistent with the data. The results of the test appear sufficient to justify using a normal probability formula. 6. George S. Day, Gerald Eskin, David B. Montgomery, and Charles B. Weinberg, Nikoll Electronics, Inc. (A), Cases in Computer and Model Assisted Marketing: Planning (Cupertino, Cal fornia: Hewlett-Packard Company, 1973), pp. 33-39. 7. Plus or minus 1.96 standard deviations is more precise, but the use of 2 is sufficient for this model's purpose. The author wishes to thank graduate students, Paul Schurr and John McNary, for heir assistance in gathering data and coding the computer p ogram for this project. He also wishes to thank Associate Professor Charles B. Weinberg, Stanford University, for his encouragement and helpful comments.
Adrenal function in asthma. (1990)

A dose dependent suppression of daily cortisol excretion was shown in 25 children with asthma being treated with beclomethasone dipropionate. Cortisol metabolites tended to occur below the normal range when doses of beclomethasone of more than 400 micrograms/m2/day were given. Androgen excretion below the normal range was apparent in asthmatic children aged 8-13 years regardless of whether they were receiving inhaled steroids. This may be the reason for growth delay often seen in asthmatic children. These side effects of beclomethasone are not enough reason to discourage its prescription for the treatment of asthma, but endocrine assessment is desirable when the dose exceeds 400 micrograms/m2/day.
Prevalence, management, and outcomes of patients with coagulopathy after acute nonvariceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding in the United Kingdom (2012)

Coagulopathy was prevalent in 16% of patients after NVUGIB and independently associated with more than a fivefold increase in the odds of in-hospital mortality. Wide variation in plasma use exists indicates clinical uncertainty regarding optimal practice.
A fuzzy model based control scheme and its application to a road tunnel ventilation system (2002)

A predictive fuzzy control scheme is presented. The emphasis is on the adaptation mechanism for the knowledge-based linguistic prediction model. The adaptation mechanism used is based on a set of fuzzy dynamical equations according to mathematical dynamical system theory. A road tunnel ventilation control system incorporating the scheme is described. Much better control performance in terms of regulating the air quality in the tunnel and reducing the electrical energy for the ventilation requirements has been achieved.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">></ETX>
Dispensing Picoliter Droplets Using DEP Micro-Actuation (2003)

Non-uniform, AC electric fields created by coplanar electrodes patterned on a substrate are used to move and manipulate aqueous liquid masses, and to dispense very small droplets. This liquid dielectrophoretic microactuation scheme has potential applications for microfluidic systems in the laboratory on a chip. Simple, co-planar electrode strips are used to divide microliter-sized, sessile water droplets into large numbers of droplets down to ∼40 picoliters. The dispensing system uses the electrodes to draw a long finger or rivulet of liquid from the parent microliter droplet. When the voltage is removed, the rivulet breaks up into numbers of droplets as a result of the familiar capillary instability. We propose and provide data that supports a very simple power law dependence of the finger length upon time: Z(t)∝t, which governs the time required to fill a structure. A capillary instability, very similar to the case of the cylindrical jet, leads to droplet formation when voltage is removed. The hydrodynamic instability features a critical wavelength, below which instability is not possible, and a most unstable wavelength, which controls the volume and spacing of the droplets formed.
Characterization of a Novel Mammalian Phosphatase Having Sequence Similarity to <i>Schizosaccharomyces pombe</i> PHO2 and <i>Saccharomyces cerevisiae </i>PHO13 (2002)

p34, a specific p-nitrophenyl phosphatase (pNPPase) was identified and purified from the murine cell line EL4 in a screen for the intracellular molecular targets of the antiinflammatory natural product parthenolide. A BLAST search analysis revealed that it has a high degree of sequence similarity to two yeast alkaline phosphatases. We have cloned, sequenced, and expressed p34 as a GST-tagged fusion protein in Escherichia coli and an EE-epitope-tagged fusion protein in mammalian cells. Using p-nitrophenyl phosphate (pNPP) as a substrate, p34 is optimally active at pH 7.6 with a K(m) of 1.36 mM and K(cat) of 0.052 min(-1). Addition of 1 mM Mg(2+) to the reaction mixture increases its activity by 14-fold. Other divalent metal ions such as Co(2+) and Mn(2+) also stimulated the activity of the enzyme, while Zn(2+), Fe(2+), and Cu(2+) had no effect. Furthermore, both NaCl and KCl enhanced the activity of the enzyme, having maximal effect at 50 and 75 mM, respectively. The enzyme is inhibited by sodium orthovanadate but not by sodium fluoride or okadaic acid. Mutational analysis data suggest that p34 belongs to the group of phosphatases characterized by the sequence motif DXDX(T/V).
Authentication schemes for VANETs: a survey (2013)

In this paper, we make a survey of the known schemes for V2V (vehicle to vehicle) and V2I (vehicle to infrastructure) authentication in VANETs (vehicular ad hoc networks). We consider a variety of safety applications in VANETs, identify authentication as one of the security requirements and discuss the security challenges for these applications. Existing authentication schemes based on digital signatures are discussed along with schemes based on hash chains and hash trees. It has also been shown how the level of security of these schemes is increased by the involvement of a trusted Certification Authority. We also focus on issues pertaining to anonymity, unlinkability, traceability and computation and communication overhead. Finally, we summarise the limitations of the existing authentication schemes in real-life applications and conclude that further research is essential in this area.
Preparation of Poly(γ-Glutamic Acid)/Montmorillonite Superabsorbent Nanocomposite (2012)

Montmorillonite (MMT) was applied as the modifying agent, polyethylene glycol bisglycidyl ether as crosslinking agent, Poly(γ-glutamic acid)/montmorillonite (γ-PGA/MMT) superabsorbent nanocomposite was prepared. The effects of crosslinking agent mass, MMT contents and reaction temperature on the saline water absorbency of the superabsorbent nanocomposites were studied. The experimental results demonstrated that the saline water absorbency of γ-PGA/MMT nanocomposites increased with the increasing of crosslinking agent mass firstly and decreased when the crosslinking agent mass was higher than 0.6g. The saline water absorbency of γ-PGA/MMT nanocomposites increased with the MMT contents up to 7% and decreased as the MMT contents further increased. Moreover, the saline water absorbency of γ-PGA/MMT nanocomposites increased with the reaction temperature firstly, and then decreased when the reaction temperature was higher than 50°C.
SYNTHESIS AND CHARACTERIZATION OF POLYPYRROLE NANOWIRES USING ALTERNATING AMPHIPHILIC COPOLYMER NANOTUBES AS TEMPLATES (2009)

It has been reported that poly(styrene-alt-maleic anhydride) (SMA) chains would self-assembled into a nanotube in aqueous solution at pH7 by associating through a linear conformation which favours the association of the chains by decreasing the entropic cost due to H-bonding and π-cation interactions. The combined theoretical and experimental characterization of the nanotube revealed that the interior of the tube is hydrophobic while the exterior is hydrophilic. With this property in mind, we developed a method for fabricating intrinsically conducting nanowires. The nanowires are synthesized inside the hydrophobic cavity of the polymeric nanotubes. However, the solubilization of small organic molecules containing benzene groups disrupts the π-π interactions within the tubes and therefore breaks the tubular structure. In order to generalize our method to small organic molecules containing benzene group, we choose a new alternating copolymer poly(isobutylene-alt-maleic anhydride) (IMA). We will present the characterization of the solubilization and polymerization of pyrrole with the nanotube template by a combination of experimental (DLS, SANS, UV-Vis, and IR) and theoretical methods. The careful and precise characterization of the synthesis of well-defined, high density conducting nanowires can have a major impact for applications in nanoelectronics and development of sensors.
Cytokine Gene Expression in Innately Susceptible BALB/c Mice and Relatively Resistant C57BL/6 Mice during Infection with Virulent<i>Burkholderia pseudomallei</i> (2000)

Production of cytokines including gamma interferon (IFN-gamma) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) is an important early-stage host response following infection with intracellular pathogens. Development of immunity to these pathogens is determined to a large extent by the timing and relative level of expression of the cytokines. Numerous studies have shown that early cytokine responses involving interleukin-12 (IL-12) and IFN-gamma are important for resistance to intracellular pathogens, whereas responses involving IL-4 and IL-10 increase host susceptibility. These often-indistinct early cytokine responses influence the differentiation of naïve CD4(+) T helper cells, which later develop into what have commonly been termed Th1- and Th2-type cells. The characterization of CD4(+) T-helper-cell responses as Th1 or Th2 type is based largely on the cytokine profiles during the specific phase and has been used in recent years to account for the innate resistance and susceptibility of different inbred strains of mice to several intracellular pathogens. Studies investigating cytokine production in terms of CD4(+) T-helper-cell polarization in Burkholderia pseudomallei infection have not been undertaken. In this study, we used semiquantitative reverse transcription-PCR to assess induction of cytokine mRNA in liver and spleen of B. pseudomallei-susceptible BALB/c and relatively resistant C57BL/6 mice following infection with virulent B. pseudomallei. The levels of mRNA for IFN-gamma, TNF-alpha, IL-1beta, IL-6, IL-10, and IL-12 increased in both BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice 24 to 36 h after infection. A comparison of BALB/c and C57BL/6 responses revealed the relative levels of expression of mRNA for several of these cytokines, including IFN-gamma, were greater in BALB/c mice, suggesting a role for endotoxic shock and cytokine-mediated immunopathology in the development of acute melioidosis. Early induction of mRNA for the cytokines classically associated with development of Th1- and Th2-type responses was absent or minimal, and induction levels in both strains of mice were similar. During the specific phase, cytokine mRNA profiles occurred as a combination of Th1- and Th2-type patterns. Collectively, these results demonstrate that cytokine mRNA responses in BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice following infection with virulent B. pseudomallei do not develop as polarized Th1- or Th2-type profiles. Considering the role of TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma in the processes of endotoxic shock, these results also indicate that selected cytokines, while important for resistance to B. pseudomallei infection, are also potential contributors to immunopathology and the development of acute fulminating disease.
Real-Time Whiteboard Capture and Processing Using a Video Camera for Remote Collaboration (2006)

This paper describes our recently developed system which captures pen strokes on physical whiteboards in real time using an off-the-shelf video camera. Unlike many existing tools, our system does not instrument the pens or the whiteboard. It analyzes the sequence of captured video images in real time, classifies the pixels into whiteboard background, pen strokes and foreground objects (e.g., people in front of the whiteboard), extracts newly written pen strokes, and corrects the color to make the whiteboard completely white. This allows us to transmit whiteboard contents using very low bandwidth to remote meeting participants. Combined with other teleconferencing tools such as voice conference and application sharing, our system becomes a powerful tool to share ideas during online meetings
Continuous-Wave Two-Photon Spectroscopy of the<mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><mml:mn>1</mml:mn><mml:mi>S</mml:mi><mml:mo>−</mml:mo><mml:mn>2</mml:mn><mml:mi>S</mml:mi></mml:math>Transition in Hydrogen (1985)

We have observed the $1S\ensuremath{-}2S$ transition in atomic hydrogen gas with a resolution of 5 parts in ${10}^{9}$ by Doppler-free two-photon spectroscopy, using multimilliwatt cw radiation near 243 nm generated by sum-frequency mixing. The experiment opens the way to substantial increases in the accuracy of the Rydberg constant, the electron/proton mass ratio, and the Lamb shift of the hydrogen $1S$ ground state.
Soliton transmission and supercontinuum generation in holey fiber, using a diode pumped Ytterbium fiber source (2002)

We report linear dispersion compensation, soliton pulse formation, soliton compression, and ultra-broad supercontinuum generation in a holey fiber with anomalous dispersion at wavelengths above 800nm. The holey fiber was seeded with ultrashort pulses from a diode pumped, Ytterbium (Yb)-doped fiber source operating at 1.06 microm. The results highlight the compatibility of the rapidly developing holey fiber technology with short pulse Yb-doped fiber lasers for wide application.
Human T and B cell immune responses to Fel d 1 in cat‐allergic and non‐cat‐allergic subjects (1996)

Our data suggest that factors other than T cell recognition of specific epitopes are responsible for the nature of allergic immune responses generated when allergen is encountered.