Do homeowners prefer living in an area with a more equal distribution of income? We answer this question by estimating a nonparametric hedonic pricing model for about 90,000 housing units transacted in Hong Kong between 2005 and 2006. We first identify a hedonic price function by locally regressing the rental price of the housing unit on its intrinsic and neighborhood characteristics, one of wh...

A polyphasic study was carried out to establish the taxonomic positions of six strains isolated from diverse soil samples and provisionally assigned to the genus Kitasatospora. The isolates were found to have chemical and morphological properties consistent with their classification as Kitasatospora strains. Direct 16S rRNA gene sequence data confirmed the taxonomic position of the strains foll...

Let be a partition of an integer n chosen uniformly at random among all such partitions. Let s( ) be a part size chosen uniformly at random from the set of all part sizes that occur in . We prove that, for every xed m 1, the probability that s( ) has multiplicity m in approaches 1=(m(m + 1)) as n ! 1. Thus, for example, the limiting probability that a random part size in a random partition is u...

Objective: To evaluate and compare the characteristics of spinal block, its postoperative analgesic effects, using intrathecal inj. Bupivacaine 0.5% and its combination with nalbuphine or buprenorphine in patients undergoing lower abdominal surgery. Methods: Sixty patients aged 30-60years scheduled for elective lower abdominal surgeries randomly received hyperbaric bupivacaine 0.5% 2.6 ml (grou...

We analyze numerically the critical properties of a two-dimensional discretized random surface with extrinsic curvature embedded in a three-dimensional space. The use of the toroidal topology enables us to enforce the non-zero external extension without the necessity of defining a boundary and allows us to measure directly the string tension. We show that a phase transition from the crumpled ph...

The carbon dioxide solubility coefficient, alphaCO2, and the apparent carbonic acid dissociation constants, K'1 and K'2 were estimated in the serum of the crab Carcinus maenas at various temperatures and ionic strengths. At 15 degrees C, the indirectly determined alphaCO2 value is 0-0499 m-mole l-1 torr-1 for crabs living in normal sea water (salinity ca. 35 percent). It is apparently independe...

Introduction Chiari 1 malformation (CM1) is a structural abnormality of the hindbrain characterised by descent cerebellar tonsils through foramen magnum. The management patients with CM1 remains contentious since there are currently no UK or international guidelines for clinicians. We therefore propose collaborative, prospective, multicentre study on investigation, and outcome in UK: Study (UKC...

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a serious medical condition affecting millions of people. Patients in intensive care unit (ICU) who develop AKI have increased morbidity and mortality, prolonged length of stay in ICU and hospital and increased costs, especially when they require renal replacement therapy. In the latter case, morbidity and mortality increase further. In order to meet the needs of th...

The purpose of this study was to clarify the genetic contribution to finger-sucking and nail-biting in childhood using the largest databases available on Japanese twins. The subjects were 1131 pairs of 12-year-old twin children, consisting of 1057 males and 1205 females. All data were gathered by maternal questionnaire, and responses to the questionnaire were checked in the medical interview. T...