Latent entrepreneurship across nations

The paper studies latent entrepreneurship across nations. There are three main findings. First, large numbers of people in the industrial countries say they would prefer to be self-employed. Top of the international ranking of entrepreneurial spirit come Poland (with 80% saying so), Portugal and the USA; bottom of the table come Norway (with 27% saying so), Denmark and Russia. Second, for individuals the probability of preferring to be self-employed is strongly decreasing with age, while the probability of being self-employed is strongly increasing with age. Third, we show that self-employed individuals have noticeably higher job satisfaction than the employed, so people's expressed wish to run their business cannot easily be written off as mistaken. We speculate on why so much entrepreneurial spirit lies dormant

Latent entrepreneurship across nations

The paper studies latent entrepreneurship across nations. There are three main findings. First, large numbers of people in the industrial countries say they would prefer to be self-employed. Top of the international ranking of entrepreneurial spirit come Poland (with 80% saying so), Portugal and the USA; bottom of the table come Norway (with 27% saying so), Denmark and Russia. Second, for individuals the probability of preferring to be self-employed is strongly decreasing with age, while the probability of being self-employed is strongly increasing with age. Third, we show that self-employed individuals have noticeably higher job satisfaction than the employed, so people's expressed wish to run their business cannot easily be written off as mistaken. We speculate on why so much entrepreneurial spirit lies dormant

Analytic Gradients for Complete Active Space Pair-Density Functional Theory

Analytic gradient routines are a desirable feature for quantum mechanical methods, allowing for efficient determination of equilibrium and transition state structures and several other molecular properties. In this work, we present analytical gradients for multiconfiguration pair-density functional theory (MC-PDFT) when used with a state-specific complete active space self-consistent field reference wave function. Our approach constructs a Lagrangian that is variational in all wave function parameters. We find that MC-PDFT locates equilibrium geometries for several small- to medium-sized organic molecules that are similar to those located by complete active space second-order perturbation theory but that are obtained with decreased computational cost

Investigation of prediction methods for the loads and stresses of Apollo type spacecraft parachutes. Volume 2: Stresses

For abstract, see N74-19673

Utility of oropharyngeal real-time PCR for S. pneumoniae and H. influenzae for diagnosis of pneumonia in adults.

Efst á síðunni er hægt að nálgast greinina í heild sinni með því að smella á hlekkinn To access publisher's full text version of this article click on the hyperlink at the bottom of the pageor click on the hyperlink at the To access publisher's full text version of this article, please click on the hyperlink in Additional Links field top of the page marked FilesA lack of sensitive tests and difficulties obtaining representative samples contribute to the challenge in identifying etiology in pneumonia. Upper respiratory tract swabs can be easily collected and analyzed with real-time PCR (rtPCR). Common pathogens such as S. pneumoniae and H. influenzae can both colonize and infect the respiratory tract, complicating the interpretation of positive results. Oropharyngeal swabs were collected (n = 239) prospectively from adults admitted to hospital with pneumonia. Analysis with rtPCR targeting S. pneumoniae and H. influenzae was performed and results compared with sputum cultures, blood cultures, and urine antigen testing for S. pneumoniae. Different Ct cutoff values were applied to positive tests to discern colonization from infection. Comparing rtPCR with conventional testing for S. pneumoniae in patients with all tests available (n = 57) resulted in: sensitivity 87 %, specificity 79 %, PPV 59 % and NPV 94 %, and for H. influenzae (n = 67): sensitivity 75 %, specificity 80 %, PPV 45 % and NPV 94 %. When patients with prior antimicrobial exposure were excluded sensitivity improved: 92 % for S. pneumoniae and 80 % for H. influenzae. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis demonstrated for S. pneumoniae: AUC = 0.65 (95 % CI 0.51-0.80) and for H. influenzae: AUC = 0.86 (95 % CI 0.72-1.00). Analysis of oropharyngeal swabs using rtPCR proved both reasonably sensitive and specific for diagnosing pneumonia caused by S. pneumoniae and H. influenzae. This method may be a useful diagnostic adjunct to other methods and of special value in patients unable to provide representative lower airway samples.Icelandic Center for Research Rannis Landspitali University Hospital Science Fund University of Iceland Research Fun

Telomere length and telomerase activity in malignant lymphomas at diagnosis and relapse

Telomere length maintenance, in the vast majority of cases executed by telomerase, is a prerequisite for long-term proliferation. Most malignant tumours, including lymphomas, are telomerase-positive and this activity is a potential target for future therapeutic interventions since inhibition of telomerase has been shown to result in telomere shortening and cell death in vitro. One prerequisite for the suitability of anti-telomerase drugs in treating cancer is that tumours exhibit shortened telomeres compared to telomerase-positive stem cells. A scenario is envisioned where the tumour burden is reduced using conventional therapy whereafter remaining tumour cells are treated with telomerase inhibitors. In evaluating the realism of such an approach it is essential to know the effects on telomere status by traditional therapeutic regimens. We have studied the telomere lengths in 47 diagnostic lymphomas and a significant telomere shortening was observed compared to benign lymphoid tissues. In addition, telomere length and telomerase activity were studied in consecutive samples from patients with relapsing non-Hodgkin's lymphomas. Shortened, unchanged and elongated telomere lengths were observed in the relapse samples. The telomere length alterations found in the relapsing lymphomas appeared to be independent of telomerase and rather represented clonal selection random at the telomere length level. These data indicate that anti-telomerase therapy would be suitable in only a fraction of malignant lymphomas. © 2000 Cancer Research Campaig

Incidence, Etiology, and Outcomes of Community-Acquired Pneumonia: A Population-Based Study

To access publisher's full text version of this article, please click on the hyperlink in Additional Links field or click on the hyperlink at the top of the page marked FilesBACKGROUND: The microbial etiology of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is often unclear in clinical practice, and previous studies have produced variable results. Population-based studies examining etiology and incidence are lacking. This study examined the incidence and etiology of CAP requiring hospitalization in a population-based cohort as well as risk factors and outcomes for specific etiologies. METHODS: Consecutive admissions due to CAP in Reykjavik, Iceland were studied. Etiologic testing was performed with cultures, urine-antigen detection, and polymerase chain reaction analysis of airway samples. Outcomes were length of stay, intensive care unit admission, assisted ventilation, and mortality. RESULTS: The inclusion rate was 95%. The incidence of CAP requiring hospitalization was 20.6 cases per 10000 adults/year. A potential pathogen was detected in 52% (164 of 310) of admissions and in 74% (43 of 58) with complete sample sets. Streptococcuspneumoniae was the most common pathogen (61 of 310, 20%; incidence: 4.1/10000). Viruses were identified in 15% (47 of 310; incidence: 3.1/10000), Mycoplasmapneumoniae were identified in 12% (36 of 310; incidence: 2.4/10000), and multiple pathogens were identified in 10% (30 of 310; incidence: 2.0/10000). Recent antimicrobial therapy was associated with increased detection of M pneumoniae (P < .001), whereas a lack of recent antimicrobial therapy was associated with increased detection of S pneumoniae (P = .02). Symptoms and outcomes were similar irrespective of microbial etiology. CONCLUSIONS: Pneumococci, M pneumoniae, and viruses are the most common pathogens associated with CAP requiring hospital admission, and they all have a similar incidence that increases with age. Symptoms do not correlate with specific agents, and outcomes are similar irrespective of pathogens identified.Icelandic Center for Research, Rannis Landspitali University Hospital Science Fund University of Iceland Research Fun

Environmental chemicals in dog testes reflect their geographical source and may be associated with altered pathology

In humans and dogs, a temporal decline in semen quality and increased incidence of testicular cancer is hypothesised to be associated with exposure to anthropogenic chemicals, particularly during fetal development. Human studies suggest that differential exposures to environmental chemicals may be associated with geographical differences in male reproductive health. Here we investigate testicular chemical profiles and pathologies in dogs residing in the UK [West Midlands (WM), East Midlands (EM), South East (SE)], Denmark (Copenhagen) and Finland (Vantaa). Testes, surplus from routine castrations, contained region specific differences in relative concentrations of diethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB). Relative to UK regions, testes from dogs living in Finland and Denmark had higher concentrations of PBDE and lower concentrations of DEHP and PCBs. Regional differences in the UK in PCB concentrations were also observed. Dog testes from Finland had fewer pathologies, reduced testicular area stained for Sertoli and germ cells and evidence of reduced cellular proliferation. Since the geographical differences in testis pathologies in dogs parallel reports of regional differences in human testicular cancer, we postulate that this may reflect chemical effects within the testis and that this may be related to environmental influences on male reproductive function.Peer reviewe

Defining user perception of distributed multimedia quality

This article presents the results of a study that explored the human side of the multimedia experience. We propose a model that assesses quality variation from three distinct levels: the network, the media and the content levels; and from two views: the technical and the user perspective. By facilitating parameter variation at each of the quality levels and from each of the perspectives, we were able to examine their impact on user quality perception. Results show that a significant reduction in frame rate does not proportionally reduce the user's understanding of the presentation independent of technical parameters, that multimedia content type significantly impacts user information assimilation, user level of enjoyment, and user perception of quality, and that the device display type impacts user information assimilation and user perception of quality. Finally, to ensure the transfer of information, low-level abstraction (network-level) parameters, such as delay and jitter, should be adapted; to maintain the user's level of enjoyment, high-level abstraction quality parameters (content-level), such as the appropriate use of display screens, should be adapted