Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Constituting the Academic Performer: The Spectre of Superficiality and Stagnation in Academia

Abstract Journal rankings and performance measurement schemes tend to become increasingly influential within many fields of research, thereby consolidating the prevalence of performativity on the life and research endeavours of many academics. The latter are nowadays often pressured to publish in ‘top’ journals to ensure they have a displayable level of performance. Drawing from literature on identity, this paper introduces and details the construction of the academic performer – a representation of identity which is increasingly typical of what it means today to be an actor in academia, in terms of attitudes and behaviour. Fundamentally speaking, this paper constitutes a critique of a detrimental tendency in academia, that is to say the excessive spread of performance measurement practices and the flow of superficiality and conformity they consolidate.
A survey on voluntary disclosure on the internet : empirical evidence from 300 European union companies

Nowadays, the Internet is a powerful means for companies to voluntarily disclose all kind of financial information. A wide academic literature exists on the field. Findings reveal that the financial information disclosed is wider than that normally required by accounting regulations. Furthermore, the disclosure on the Internet of compulsory information can be considered as a voluntary reporting practice in itself. In this paper, the information currently provided on the Internet by leading companies in different European countries is analyzed in order to make a comparative analysis. To achieve this goal, data from the biggest (market value) 20 companies in each European Union country have been collected. Then, statistical tests have been performed to determine the relationships between what we have called companies� transparency (dependent variable) and their sector, country of origin and size (independent variables). The results suggest that there is a statistically significant relationship between these three variables and the extent of voluntary disclosure (transparency) on the Internet.
Connection admission control algorithms for OFDM wireless networks

We present queueing analysis for two connection admission control (CAC) schemes for OFDM wireless networks. The first one is a threshold-based CAC scheme in which admissibility for a new connection is determined based on a certain threshold and the number of ongoing connections. The second scheme uses the information on queue status to determine the probability to accept an incoming call. The connection-level and the packet-level performance measures for both CAC schemes are obtained from the queueing analytical models. Typical numerical results based on the proposed model are presented which provide interesting insights on the behavior of these two different CAC schemes. Also, simulation results are presented to validate the analytical results
Nutrient Foramina in the Upper and Lower Limb Long Bones : Morphometric Study in Bones of Southern Brazilian Adults

The major blood supply to long bones occurs through the nutrient arteries, which enter through the nutrient foramina. This supply is essential during the growing period, during the early phases of ossification, and in procedures such a s bone grafts, tumor resections, traumas, congenital pseudoarthrosis, and in transplant techniques in orthopedics. The present study a nalyzed the location and the number of nutrient foramina in the diaphysis of 885 long bones of the upper and lower limbs of adults: 174 hum eri, 157 radii, 146 ulnae, 152 femora, 142 tibiae and 114 fibulae. The location of the nutrient foramina is predominant on the anterior aspect of the upper limb long bones, and on the posterior aspect of the lower limb long bones. The majority of the bones studied had a single nutrient foramen, which may represent a single source of blood supply. The mean foraminal index for the upper limb bones was 55.2% for t he humerus, 35.7% for the radius, and 37.9% for the ulna, and for the lower limb bones, 43.7% for the femur, 32.7% for the tibia a nd 46.1% for the fibula. This study recorded data related to the population of Southern Brazil, providing ethnic data to be used for com parison and that may help in surgical procedures and in the interpretation of radiological images.
Promoting inter‐professional teamwork and learning – the case of a surgical operating theatre

Hospitals, and surgical operating theatres (OTs) in particular, are environments in which inter‐professional teamwork and learning are essential to secure patient safety and effective practice. However, it has been revealed in many studies that inter‐professional collaborative work in hospital organisations faces many challenges and constraints. In this study we examine surgical operations as participatory practices from the perspective of inter‐professional learning and cooperation. We ask what kinds of shared practices enable learning and collaboration within the surgical operating team. We used an ethnographic approach to data collection including observations and interviews of surgical residents and nursing staff. Observations were conducted in the OTs of one non‐academic hospital in Finland in 2007. The transcripts and episodes were analysed qualitatively. We suggest that inter‐professional teamwork can be implemented by collegial support, transgressing professional roles and sustaining an inclusive atmosphere. There is a need to strengthen and develop the practices of inter‐professional education, not only in formal educational but, especially, in practical clinical settings.
The Relationship Among Managerial Sentiment, Corporate Investment, and Firm Value: Evidence from Taiwan

This study has two objectives: to examine the relationship between managerial sentiment and corporate investment and to examine the relationship between investment and firm value. We use a sample of Taiwanese firms and find that an optimal level of investment that maximizes a firm's value does exist and that it depends upon the quality of the investment opportunities. In addition, the empirical results show that when firms have valuable (nonvaluable) investment opportunities, managerial optimism (pessimism) makes overinvestment (underinvestment) more likely. Interestingly, the overinvestment (underinvestment) phenomenon for optimistic (pessimistic) managers differs significantly between valuable project and nonvaluable project firms.
Assessing a Decade of Interstate Bank Branching

Table of ContentsI. Introduction 75II. Historical Background on Interstate Branching and IBBEA 77III. IBBEA Interstate Banking and Branching Provisions Determined by Federal Law 88A. IBBEA Provisions with Regard to Interstate Banking 89B. IBBEA Provisions with Regard to Interstate Branching 90C. IBBEA Branching Provisions Determined by Individual States 911. Minimum Age of Target Institution 922. De Novo Interstate Branching 923. Acquisition of Single Branches or Other Portions of an Institution 934. Statewide Deposit Cap 935. Reciprocity 94IV. States' Responses to Interstate Branching Provisions 94A. Minimum Age of Target Institution 95B. Statewide Deposit Cap on Branch Acquisition 95C. De Novo Interstate Branching 96D. Acquisition of Single Branches or Other Portions of an Institution 96E. Reciprocity 96V. Description of State Branching-Restriction Index 97VI. Data and Analysis 97A. Data 97B. Empirical Analysis 98VII. Conclusion 100VIII. Appendix 101One aspect of the American banking system that quickly impresses itself onthe mind of a foreign observer is its fragmented structure. [The] prospective developments in the payments mechanism-electronic transfer of funds, direct deposit of payrolls, and wider use of pre-authorized credit-will reduce the need for customers to visit their banks frequently and, though not resolving the branching controversy, will make it academic.1I. IntroductionWhile much has changed in the last thirty-four years, bank branching has not yet progressed from a controversial issue to a purely academic one. Throughout its history, U.S. banking regulation has constrained bank growth through prohibitions or restrictions on the means of direct and indirect bank expansion both within states (intrastate banking and branching) and between states (interstate banking and branching). 2 Although restrictions on intrastate expansion were eliminated through piecemeal changes in legislation over the past several decades, many restrictions remained regarding interstate expansion.The passage of the Riegle-Neal Interstate Banking and Branching Efficiency Act (IBBEA) of 1994(3) removed any remaining federal restrictions on interstate expansion, but allowed the states considerable leeway in deciding the rules governing entry by out-of-state branches.4 As a result, states opposing entry used IBBEA to erect barriers to out-of-state branch entry.IBBEA's removal of federal interstate branching barriers has resulted in staggering interstate expansion. This growth, illustrated in Figure 1, was driven both by consolidation of bank subsidiaries into branch offices and also establishment of de novo branches. …
Habit Formation and Aggregate Consumption Dynamics

This paper finds that a benchmark model of habit formation in consumer preferences can explain two well-known failures of the permanent income hypothesis: the sensitivity of aggregate consumption to predictable changes in income and to lagged consumer sentiment. One novel feature of the paper's methodology is to allow for measurement errors and other transitory elements (for example, weather-related disturbances) in consumption data. In contrast with traditional wisdom, aggregate consumption growth appears to be highly persistent after controlling for measurement errors and transitory consumption fluctuations: the estimates of persistence in quarterly consumption growth jump up from the commonly assumed 0.3 to about 0.7.
Perceptions of the certified public accountants by accounting and non‐accounting tertiary students in Japan

Purpose – This study aims to investigate tertiary business students' perceptions of certified public accountants (CPAs) in Japan and how this perception may influence their career path decision. Design/methodology/approach – This study is the first such research in Japan that has been conducted to investigate students' perception of various factors regarding the accounting profession and CPA. The data used in this study were collected via questionnaires completed by students who were studying at the undergraduate and graduate levels in large Japanese universities. From approximately 200 universities offering accounting courses in Japan, this study mainly selected universities where students were contemplating a career in the accounting profession. The results of the questionnaire were then quantitatively analyzed. Findings – The results indicated significant differences in several factors of perceptions toward the CPA between accounting students and non-accounting students. These results create various implications that need to be addressed in order to reverse the current situation of the problematic unpopularity towards the accounting sector in Japan. Originality/value – As this is the first accounting education paper produced in Japan on this topic the results will inspire educators and the CPA to re-think the way in which they market accounting as a profession to potential students.
Yardstick Competition in case of the Czech Property Tax

Abstract Introduction of the local coefficient in the property tax law since 2009 gave a significant tax authority to Czech municipalities; on average they can up to quadruple their property tax revenue which means increasing their total revenue by more than 10%. Czech municipalities appeared very cautious when exercising this new autonomy and only less than 8% of them applied the local coefficient in 2013. The theory of yardstick competition offers one of the possible explanations of this reluctance: Voters do not vote for politicians who increase taxes unless the politicians in the neighbouring jurisdictions increase taxes as well. So municipal politicians are carefully observing what others do and approve the local coefficient with prudence. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the usage of the local coefficient with special regard to spatial distribution and impacts on re-election and to verify the existence of the yardstick competition among Czech municipalities in case of the property tax. The results of the difference of means test using data for 206 municipalities with extended scope comply with this theory: (1) politicians who applied local coefficient in 2010 got re-elected in a significantly lesser number of municipalities than those who did not, and (2) in all years analyzed, municipalities applying local coefficient are surrounded by a higher share of municipalities with local coefficient than municipalities without it.
The Impact of Ownership Structure on Earnings Usefulness: Japanese Evidence

Using a large sample of Japanese firms, this paper examines the impact of the ownership structure on managerial incentives for income smoothing through discretionary accrual choices. Our results show that like US managers, Japanese managers engage in income smoothing in consideration of both current earnings and expected future earnings. More importantly, we find that managers' ability to smooth income through discretionary accrual choices is constrained by external monitoring by financial institutions, while it is enhanced by managerial entrenchment arising from cross-corporate shareholdings.
Voter Turnout in the 1986 Congressional Elections

This article investigates whether certain contextual factors can have a demobilizing effect on voter turnout in congressional elections. Probit analysis of the full model of the voting decision reveals that the contextual factors of campaign expenditures and party contact are important determinants of voter turnout, in addition to the standard socioeconomic and social-psychological variables of age, education, and partisan intensity. These results also suggest that individuals who are disillusioned with both senate candidates are more likely to refrain from voting. The author concludes that the effect of campaign activities on voter turnout is often mixed; expensive media campaigns can deflate turnout and cancel out other, more mobilizing, contextual factors.
Entrepreneurial competencies: a literature review and development agenda

Purpose – Entrepreneurial competencies are seen as important to business growth and success. The purpose of this paper is therefore to undertake a literature review of research on entrepreneurial competence in order to: provide an integrated account of contributions relating to entrepreneurial competencies by different authors working in different countries and different industry sectors and at different points in time; and, develop an agenda for future research, and practice in relation to entrepreneurial competencies.Design/methodology/approach – The article starts with a review of the development of the concept of competence, with particular reference to its use in the context of management competencies. It then draws together views on the notion of entrepreneurial competence before exploring and summarising research on the link between entrepreneurial competencies and business performance and growth. A core section then compares the models of entrepreneurial competencies cited in the literature, and o.
Identity-making: A Multimodal Approach for Researching Identity in Social Media

As social media becomes ubiquitous in people’s lives, concepts of identity and self-presentation are increasingly drawn upon to understand its use and value. However, the growing body of literature is lacking in conceptual clarity. Moreover, our current understanding of identity is severely circumscribed by what has been called an essentialist view of identity that leads to unhelpful distinctions between people’s offline, ‘real’ identities and their presentation ‘online’. In this conceptual paper we turn to the broader multidisciplinary literature to develop a coherent non-essentialist alternative for understanding self and identity. We derive a framework that describes identity-making as an active achievement involving reflective, narrative and active modes. We illustrate the usefulness of our framework for revealing identity-related phenomena in both public and workplace social media. We offer our framework as a way to ask new questions and reveal in new ways existing identity-related phenomena within the IS discipline.
Regulation of D-cyclin translation inhibition in myeloma cells treated with mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitors: rationale for combined treatment with extracellular signal–regulated kinase inhibitors and rapamycin

We have shown that heightened AKT activity sensitized multiple myeloma cells to the antitumor effects of the mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitor CCI-779. To test the mechanism of the AKT regulatory role, we stably transfected U266 multiple myeloma cell lines with an activated AKT allele or empty vector. The AKT-transfected cells were more sensitive to cytostasis induced in vitro by rapamycin or in vivo by its analogue, CCI-779, whereas cells with quiescent AKT were resistant. The ability of mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitors to down-regulate D-cyclin expression was significantly greater in AKT-transfected multiple myeloma cells due, in part, to the ability of AKT to curtail cap-independent translation and internal ribosome entry site (IRES) activity of D-cyclin transcripts. Similar AKT-dependent regulation of rapamycin responsiveness was shown in a second myeloma model: the PTEN-null OPM-2 cell line transfected with wild-type PTEN. Because extracellular signal–regulated kinase (ERK)/p38 activity facilitates IRES-mediated translation of some transcripts, we investigated ERK/p38 as regulators of AKT-dependent effects on rapamycin sensitivity. AKT-transfected U266 cells showed significantly decreased ERK and p38 activity. However, only an ERK inhibitor prevented D-cyclin IRES activity in resistant “low-AKT” myeloma cells. Furthermore, the ERK inhibitor successfully sensitized myeloma cells to rapamycin in terms of down-regulated D-cyclin protein expression and G1 arrest. However, ectopic overexpression of an activated MEK gene did not increase cap-independent translation of D-cyclin in “high-AKT” myeloma cells, indicating that mitogen-activated protein kinase/ERK kinase/ERK activity was required, but not sufficient, for activation of the IRES. These data support a scenario where heightened AKT activity down-regulates D-cyclin IRES function in multiple myeloma cells and ERK facilitates activity. [Mol Cancer Ther 2009;8(1):83–93]
Did Japanese-SOX have an impact on earnings management and earnings quality?

Purpose - – The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether Japanese Sarbanes – Oxley Act (J-SOX) impacted earnings management and earnings quality of public firms in Japan. Design/methodology/approach - – This archival study compares earnings management and earnings quality of firms that disclose at least one material weakness with a sample matched on size and industry without a material weakness. Findings - – The authors investigate whether the differences in regulations, corporate governance and regulatory environment acceptance influence earnings management and earnings management of Japanese listed firms, relative to findings in the USA. They found the Japanese results to be slightly different from the results found in previous USA studies. First, the time-series observations suggest that while accruals management and real earnings management remained unchanged for control firms, accruals management and real earnings management increased for material weaknesses disclosing firms following J-SOX. The regression analyses suggest that accruals management for both the groups is significant in the pre-and post-J-SOX periods, but that real earnings management declined for both the groups post-J-SOX. Second, while, both accruals quality and accuracy of cash flow predictions improved in the post-J-SOX period. Research limitations/implications - – The sample of Japanese firms disclosing a material weakness is small because the number of firms that disclose internal control deficiencies is decreasing in Japan. The authors have no evidence that their results are not generalizable to a larger sample and leave this for future research. Practical implications - – The authors provide evidence that J-SOX, which does not have a direct reporting system, does not constrain earnings management. Their results drive the regulator to reconsider whether the reporting system works in the Japanese business environment. Additionally, their results show that J-SOX has no effect on earnings management; thus, regulators need to reconsider the governance function of directors and internal auditors. This paper communicates to the world how J-SOX works in Japan through changes in earnings quality and management post J-SOX and the root problems. Originality/value - – This paper is the first (of which the authors are aware) to examine whether J-SOX impacted both earnings management and earnings quality in Japan. This paper discusses how the differences in regulations and corporate governance as well as the differences between USA-SOX and J-SOX may explain the results observed in Japan. This paper provides results regarding whether J-SOX improved earnings quality.
Curcumin counteracts cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity by preventing renal tubular cell apoptosis

Abstract Curcumin has several biological functions particularly antioxidant and anti-inflammatory. The aims of this study are determination of the protective effects of curcumin on cisplatin-induced renal tubular cell apoptosis and related pathways in kidney. Eighteen male Wistar albino rats were randomly divided into three groups (n = 6): the control, cisplatin (CP), and cisplatin + curcumin (CP + CUR). Acute renal damage was induced by single dose of cisplatin (7.5 mg/kg) injected by intraperitoneally (i.p). The animals of curcumin-treated group were received daily 200 mg/kg curcumin per os (po), starting from 2 days before the injection of cisplatin to the day of sacrifice. Forty-eight hours after cisplatin injection, samples of cardiac blood and kidneys were harvested from the animals. In this study, the major finding is that curcumin treatment ameliorates the following conditions associated with cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity: (1) the development of kidney injury (histopathology), (2) inflammatory responses [myeloperoxidase (MPO) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), IL-6, IL-10 levels], (3) the degree of lipid peroxidation [malondialdehyde (MDA) level], (4) renal tubular cell apoptosis (active caspase-3) and expression of related proteins [p53, Fas, and Fas ligand (Fas-L)] by immunohistochemistry, (5) renal dysfunction (serum urea and creatinine). In a conclusion, this study suggests that curcumin has antiapoptotic effect against cisplatin nephrotoxicity, in addition to anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.