Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Constructing Success: The Conundrum of Evaluating a Community-Based Program for Street-Invollved Youth

Community-based arts programs (CBAPs) for street-involved youth in Canada are notoriously vulnerable to funding cuts. This vulnerability can be traced to the existing gulf between the way government funders like Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC), CBAPs like Kensington Youth Theatre and Employments Skills (KYTES), construct and measure success. Currently, youth perspectives are conspicuously missing from discussions about the impacts of these programs. To gain a fuller understanding of the current dilemmas CBAPs face, this thesis asks: 1) How do stakeholders including youth, KYTES, and HRSDC construct success? and, 2) What are the implications of these findings for program evaluation? This thesis suggests that KYTES and HRSDC often use limited constructions and measures of success. It calls for structural and conceptual shifts in evaluative criteria and practices and the implementation of Youth Participatory Evaluation (YPE), an alternative evaluative strategy, to address current dilemmas surrounding program development and evaluation.
Is Foreign Exchange Risk Priced in the Japanese Stock Market?

Abstract The exchange rate is an important variable that affects international competitiveness and performance of Japanese firms. We use an unconditional and a conditional multi-factor asset pricing model to examine whether exchange risk is recognized and priced in the Japanese stock market. The results indicate that the exchange risk is generally priced in Japan. More specifically, we provide evidence, in the unconditional model, that the exchange risk is priced in both weak and strong yen periods, when the bilateral yen/U.S. dollar exchange rate measure is used. The results are more mixed when the trade-weighted exchange rate is used. For the conditional model, the exchange risk is priced regardless of the exchange rate measure used. The combined evidence from the two models suggests an interesting observation about the role of the secular exchange rate trend in shaping the perception of exchange risk in the Japanese capital markets.
Enrolments in higher education: do economic incentives matter?

This article analyses the determinants of participation in higher education in Germany, with a particular focus on the role of expectations regarding the cost and the return of higher education. The results show that the enrolment probability is mainly influenced by social origin, even though it also depends on cost and return expectations. In particular, a high unemployment risk and a high expected wage premium seem to increase the enrolment probability, while a higher propensity of non‐ or part‐time employment decreases it. Moreover, extending the coverage of public financial support seems to be more efficient in increasing enrolments than raising the amount granted per beneficiary.
Lipid profile in normal weight migraineurs – evidence for cardiovascular risk

Background: Recent studies suggest that migraine is associated with metabolic disorders. In particular, migraine may be associated with cardiovascular risk; however, an association of migraine with cardiovascular risk factors like hypercholesterolemia has been proposed, but previous studies have yielded in part conflicting results. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the lipid profile in normal weight migraine patients.
Adverse Selection, Commitment, and Renegotiation: Extension to and Evidence from Insurance Markets

With asymmetric information, full commitment to long-term contracts may permit markets to approach first-best allocations. However, commitment can be undermined by opportunistic behavior, notably renegotiation. We reexamine commitment in insurance markets. We present an alternative model (which extends Laffont and Tirole's procurement model to address uncertainty and competition), which involves semipooling in the first period followed by separation. This and competing models (e.g., single-period models and no-commitment models) have different predictions concerning temporal patterns of insurer profitability. A test using California data suggests that some automobile insurers use commitment to attract selective portfolios comprising disproportionate numbers of low risks.
Follow-up of Prostate Cancer Patients by On-demand Contacts with a Specialist Nurse: A Randomized Study

Objective: The effectiveness of traditional follow-up programs and the intensive search for disease progression in men with prostate cancer have been questioned. The aims of this randomized multi-centre study were to evaluate medical safety, patient satisfaction and resource utilization in an on-demand follow-up by a specialist nurse compared with traditional follow-up by a urologist. Material and methods: Four hundred consecutively approached men with newly diagnosed or previously known prostate cancer in any stage at three hospitals in Sweden were randomized to follow-up in the nurse group (NG, 200 patients) or the urologist group (UG, 200 patients). In the NG, the nurse contacted the patient by phone every 6 months unless the patient himself initiated the contact. Patient satisfaction was evaluated twice a year via questionnaire. The questionnaire included the validated Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). The costs of all medical interventions and adverse events related to prostate cancer were calculated for all patients. Results: Medical safety, measured as complication frequency and lag time from symptoms to intervention, during the first 3 years of the observation period, was similar in the NG and the UG. The total number of interventions due to symptoms from prostate cancer was also similar in both groups. The analysis of accessibility and the HAD scale showed no significant differences between the groups. The mean outpatient cost (excluding pharmaceutical costs) per patient was lower in the NG compared to the UG, especially among patients without metastases at inclusion (37% lower cost). Conclusions: Our study indicates that men with prostate cancer can be safely followed up by a specialist nurse. The study results show that this alternative follow-up is cost-effective, especially in men without metastases.
The Effect of Exchange Rates on Agricultural Goods for Export: A Case of Thailand

This paper examined the relationships between exchange rates and the volumes of Thailand’s top two majors agricultural goods export which were rice and rubber exports. The results indicated that exchange rates had negative significant effects on Thailand’s agricultural goods export volumes. Results also showed that the exchange rates influenced total agricultural, rubber, and rice goods export volumes respectively. For the qualitative research, interviewing 17 business men who came from rice exports companies 6 persons and from rubber exports companies 11 persons used the in-depth interview. The results showed the effect of exchange rate had strong fluctuation then exporters could not handle it on time, and make the problems all parts of working in companies. Moreover, the best way to do hedging exchange rate risk for exporters, Companies had to book the forward contact in order to reduce the risk.
The Effect of Metro Expansions on Air Pollution in Delhi

The Delhi Metro (DM) is a mass rapid transit system serving the National Capital Region of India. It is also the world’s first rail project to earn carbon credits under the Clean Development Mechanism of the United Nations for reductions in CO2 emissions. Did the DM also lead to localized reduction in three transportation source pollutants? Looking at the period 2004–2006, one of the larger rail extensions of the DM led to a 34 percent reduction in localized CO at a major traffic intersection in the city. Results for NO2 are also suggestive of a decline, while those for PM25 are inconclusive due to missing data. These impacts of pollutant reductions are for the short run. A complete accounting of all long run costs and benefits should be done before building capital intensive metro rail projects.
Effect of the implementation of NICE guidelines for ultrasound guidance on the complication rates associated with central venous catheter placement in patients presenting for routine surgery in a tertiary referral centre.

BACKGROUND The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidelines of 2002 recommended the use of ultrasound (US) for central venous catheterization in order to minimize complications associated with central line placement. An ongoing audit of line placement by anaesthetists in the theatre complex of a tertiary referral centre looked at the associated complication rates. The objective of the study was to compare complication rates pre- and post-implementation of NICE guidelines. METHODS This prospective, single centre audit looked at all patients in whom a central venous catheter was placed for surgery. Complication rates were assessed for procedures that were performed pre- and post-implementation of NICE guidelines. In total, 438 patients were identified for the study, and the procedures were performed either by trainee or by consultant anaesthetists. RESULTS The pre- and post-implementation complication rates were 10.5% (16/152) and 4.6% (13/284), respectively, representing an absolute risk reduction of 5.9% (95% CI 0.5-11.3%). Comparison of those procedures in which US was used when compared with the landmark technique after implementation found a reduction of 6.9% in complications (95% CI 1.4-12.4%). The reduction in complication rates was larger for specialist registrars than for consultants (11.2% vs 1.6%). CONCLUSIONS The implementation of NICE guidelines has been associated with a significant reduction in complication rates in our tertiary referral centre. In the light of the cross-speciality evidence of US superiority and our results, it is imperative that routine use of US guidance becomes more widespread.
The Influence of Location and Distance on the Supply of Business Advice

The authors examine the geographical relations between small business clients and their external suppliers of business advice. The analysis is based on the stratified random sample survey carried out by the ESRC Centre for Business Research in 1999. The analysis demonstrates the importance of localisation in a simplistic sense: a large percentage of advisors are drawn from within 10 km of the client, and almost all from within 50 km for most types of advisor. There are important differences between types of advisors, with public sector advisors, chambers of commerce, and enterprise agencies being the most localised. However, the high degree of localisation is shown to be chiefly dependent on the agglomeration benefits of the accessibility and size of centres in which advisors are located. The general pattern of client – advisor relations is demonstrated to be modelled accurately by a standard spatial interaction model. A key finding is that the spatial pattern of the location of the supply of advisors, particularly the size of the business centres in which they are located, is a key determinant of choice and must be taken into account simultaneously with any role of distance which influences demand, in order to explain the pattern of choice of business advisors. This suggests that small business support policies should be focused chiefly towards small and medium-sized enterprises that have difficulty in accessing major supply sources by virtue of their locations; that is, they should be focused on rural and more peripheral areas.
The Saga of the First Stock Index Futures Contract: Benchmarks, Models, and Learning

In the presence of imperfect, or perturbed benchmarks, pricing based on relative valuation or arbitrage can be affected adversely. This study highlights persistent pricing irregularities in the Kansas City Value Line (KCVL) stock index futures market. This contract is especially interesting because the underlying benchmark underwent a midstream change in definition from a complex equally weighted geometric index to an equally weighted arithmetic index. Empirical analysis reveals that during a four-year period the market displayed herd-like behavior and priced the KCVL (Geometric) contract using the simple but wrong cost-of-carry benchmark model. A dramatic change occurs around the publication of the Eytan-Harpaz (1986) model when the market turns efficient from the perspective of this new model. The market appears to have succumbed initially to a bad information cascade primarily because arbitrage was difficult to understand and carry out under complex benchmarking. The evidence provides empirical extension to the observational social learning paradigms of Simon (1955), Banerjee (1992), and Bikhchandani, Hirshleifer, and Welch (1992) that lead to behavioral herding and information cascades.
Economic Analysis of Cotton Production in Selected Local Government Areas of Taraba State, Nigeria

Abstract The study was carried out on the economic analysis of cotton production in Selected Local Government Areas of Taraba State, Nigeria. Data were collected through primary source using structured questionnaires from 96 respondents using multi-stage, purposive random sampling techniques. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and budgetary technique analysis. The result of the socio-economic characteristics revealed that 84.5% were young aged people below 41 years with a mean age of 32 years and were predominantly males (88.5%). About 77.08% of the respondents attained different level of education, 91% had farm size ranging from 0.5 – 5 ha with a mean farm size of 2.5 ha. Also 72% had above 6-10 years farming with a mean farming experience of 9 years. Budgetary technique analysis showed a total cost of production of N37, 629/ha with a total revenue (TR), gross margin (GM), net farm income (NFI) and returns on investment (R.O.I) per hectare of N58,081.10, N23, 236.12, N21,172.2 and N0.56 respectively. The study also identified low price of seed cotton, pest and diseases infestation, inadequate funds, highest cost of inputs and inadequate extension agents as constraints of production. The researchers wish to recommend that farmers should form cooperative societies to have access to loans; they should also be trained by Government and Non-Governmental organization on the effective method of pesticide application in the study area. The result of the study showed that the business of cotton production is a profitable venture.
Impact of Microwave and mmWave Channel Models on 5G Systems Performance

Channel models and measurements across a wide range of candidate bands for fifth generation wireless networks are considered. Motivated by the different propagation and spatial characteristics between different bands and channel models within a band, we investigate how key channel modeling and spatial parameter differences impact various antenna topologies in terms of sum rate, channel eigenvalue structure, effective degrees of freedom (EDOF), channel connectivity, and massive multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) convergence. We show that due to the sparsity of millimeter-wave (mmWave) channels, any variation in spatial parameters can dramatically affect the sum rate. In microwave scenarios, where the probability of line-of-sight (LOS) propagation is low, the structure of the eigenvalues is highly dependent on the richness of scattering. In mmWave bands, where the probability of LOS is higher, the structure of the eigenvalues is largely dependent on the LOS channel model. The uniform linear array is seen to have a superior sum rate and an eigenvalue structure due to the inherently larger interelement spacings and wider azimuth spectra. These observations are seen to affect the sum rate, EDOF, and massive MIMO convergence. Two variations of channel connectivity are then considered, and compared with EDOF, to examine the richness of scattering and channel rank.
Checking Accounts and Bank Monitoring

Do checking accounts help banks monitor borrowers? A borrower’s checking account provides a bank with exclusive access to a continuous stream of borrower data, namely, the borrower’s checking account balances at the bank. Using a unique set of data that includes monthly and annual information on small-business borrowers at an anonymous Canadian bank, we provide empirical evidence that checking account information helps the bank to monitor commercial borrowers. We show the direct mechanism through which banks can use this information in monitoring. Our results provide empirical support for the notion of Black (Jrl of Fin Econ, 1975) and Fama (Jrl of Mon Econ, 1985) that, because of their role in the payments system, banks are “special” monitors.
Change in care regimes and female migration: the ‘care drain’ in the Mediterranean

Concern over the need to provide long-term care for an ageing population has stimulated a search for new solutions able to ensure financial viability and a better balance between demand and supply of care. There is at present a great variety of care regimes across industrial countries, with Mediterranean countries forming a distinctive cluster where management of care is overwhelmingly entrusted to the family. In some of these countries elderly care has recently attracted large flows of care migrants, ushering in a new division of labour among family carers (mainly women), female immigrants, and skilled native workers. The article explores the interconnections between the feminization of migration, on the one hand, and ongoing change in the Southern European care regimes, on the other hand. Different strands of the literature are brought together and reviewed to illustrate ongoing developments. One main objective is to identify issues of efficiency, equity and sustainability raised by this new ‘model’ of care. The results of recent surveys on provisions and costs of long-term care are accordingly reviewed to set the stage for discussion on the optimal mix of long-term care provisions in place of traditional family care.
Regional analysis of the impact of inward foreign direct investment on economic growth in the Chinese electronic industry

This article empirically investigates the impact of inward foreign direct investment (FDI) on regional economic growth in the Chinese electronic industry (CEI). Utilizing a provincial-level panel data spanning the period 1989 to 2009, we specify and estimate an endogenous economic growth model for the CEI. Empirical results indicate that, for the coastal region, FDI inflows have been growth enhancing, while in the central and western regions the impact of FDI on economic growth is mixed, depending on the channel of capital flow. Results also indicate that exports, human capital, science and technology investment and fixed asset investment are growth enhancing, while unemployment and foreign R&D investment are growth impeding in the CEI.
28 GHz Compact Omnidirectional Circularly Polarized Antenna for Device-to-Device Communications in the Future 5G Systems

An omnidirectional circularly polarized (OCP) antenna operating at 28 GHz is reported and has been found to be a promising candidate for device-to-device (D2D) communications in the next generation (5G) wireless systems. The OCP radiation is realized by systematically integrating electric and magnetic dipole elements into a compact disc-shaped configuration (9.23 mm $^{3} =0.008~\lambda _{0}^{3}$ at 28 GHz) in such a manner that they are oriented in parallel and radiate with the proper phase difference. The entire antenna structure was printed on a single piece of dielectric substrate using standard PCB manufacturing technologies and, hence, is amenable to mass production. A prototype OCP antenna was fabricated on Rogers 5880 substrate and was tested. The measured results are in good agreement with their simulated values and confirm the reported design concepts. Good OCP radiation patterns were produced with a measured peak realized RHCP gain of 2.2 dBic. The measured OCP overlapped impedance and axial ratio bandwidth was 2.2 GHz, from 26.5 to 28.7 GHz, an 8 % fractional bandwidth, which completely covers the 27.5 to 28.35 GHz band proposed for 5G cellular systems.
Volatility and Foreign Equity Flows: Evidence from the Philippines

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to dissect the dynamic linkages between foreign equity flows, exchange rates and equity returns in the Philippines. Design/methodology/approach - Using a parsimonious SVARX-GARCH model and unique daily equity flow data, this research models the relationship between net equity flows, conditional variance of stock returns and conditional variance of exchange rates. Findings - The authors find several noteworthy results, which are unique to this study and several results that confirm existing literature. Much of existing literature on foreign equity flows into emerging economies find that foreign equity investors are trend chasers and equity flows are auto correlated. The authors confirm these finding in the Philippines and document two new and important findings. First, it was found that unexpected increases in foreign equity flows to the Philippines increases the conditional volatility of the Filipino stock market significantly over the next two weeks of trading. The second major finding is that unexpected shocks to foreign equity flows sharply increases the conditional variance of the USD/PHP exchange rate over the next two to three weeks of trading. Practical implications - Taken together, the results indicate that foreign equity investment, while providing many benefits for small open economies such as the Philippines, does in the short run increase the conditional variance of both the equity market and exchange rates. Policy makers must weigh the benefits of increased risk sharing and the potential for lower costs of capital with the short-run potential for increase swings in asset prices. Originality/value - This paper is one of the only studies of its kind to test the impact of foreign equity flows on the conditional volatility of returns and exchange rates.
The Value of Secondary Cytoreductive Surgery in Recurrent Ovarian Cancer and Application of a Prognostic Score

Objectives Secondary cytoreductive surgery (SCS) is an option for treating patients with recurrent ovarian cancer. Three ongoing randomized trials are comparing SCS plus chemotherapy with chemotherapy alone, and few comparative studies have been published. Materials and Methods We performed a retrospective review of data on 209 patients with recurrent ovarian carcinoma who were treated at a single institution from 2000 to 2013. We analyzed prognostic factors in the recurrence setting to determine the value of SCS in a multivariate model, including propensity score, by prognostic group. Results In the univariate analysis, younger than 65 years, personal or family history of breast or ovarian cancer, stage I–II at diagnosis, residual disease 10 mm or less after primary debulking surgery, performance status 1 or less, CA125 less than 100, only 1 metastatic site of recurrence, platinum-free interval of more than 12 months, and SCS correlated with better overall survival. In the multivariate model, including propensity score, SCS remained associated with a 66% decrease in the risk of death (hazard ratio, 0.34; 95% CI, 0.15–0.76, P = 0.008). Secondary cytoreductive surgery was also linked to longer progression-free survival (hazard ratio, 0.50; 95% CI, 0.30–0.84, P = 0.008). There was no evidence of a benefit of SCS in patients with unfavorable prognosis (P for interaction = 0.654). Conclusions Our results confirm the benefit of SCS in progression-free survival and overall survival in the recurrent setting and suggest that it exists not only for patients with a good prognosis.