Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Effects of International Operations on the Market Value of the Firm: Theory and Evidence

THIS PAPER INVESTIGATES the existence of monopoly rents associated with international operations in a market-value theoretic framework. The benefits of international operations evolve from such factors as (1) imperfections in the product and factor markets, (2) differential international taxation, and (3) imperfections in the financial markets. In this paper, these factors are subject to an equilibrium analysis in the context of recent advances in financial theory. In particular, imperfections in the financial sector arising from corporate international diversification are examined in a framework which allows (a) supply adjustments by multinational firms and (b) the interaction of barriers to international capital flows faced by both firms and investors. Taking the U.S. capital market and investors as a base, we then specify the conditions under which the foregoing imperfections get "priced out" in an equilibrium. These pricing effects cannot be detected empirically through the methodologies employed by the existing studies which examine the effects of corporate international diversification. Indeed, it was an attempt to rescue the limitations of these studies which initially motivated our paper. The existing empirical inquiries into this area rely on traditional risk-adjusted performance measures (e.g., [7]) or international analogs of return generating processes (e.g., [1, 8]). Instead, at the empirical level, we employ a "value-based" method which is in the same vein of the Thomadakis [17] approach developed to identify the monopoly benefits of industrial market structure. We conduct the tests over subperiods characterized by differential government controls in an attempt (a) to separate the pure financial motives for multinationality from other motives, and (b) to detect if the benefits of international operations carry through recent periods.
Planning Home Assistance for AIDS Patients in the City of Rome, Italy

In allocating resources to health-care services, the main difficulties derive from uncertainty concerning the number of patients who need the service and the level of care required by each patient who is entitled to receive it. I deal with the problem of allocating resources to the home-care service provided to AIDS patients in the city of Rome, Italy, which include medical assistance provided by nurses and doctors and social assistance and accompaniment of patients provided by social workers. A simple linear programming model solves the problem for single organizations, which provide assistance within a given budget, and for public-health authorities, which have to evaluate the results of tentative budgets assigned to home care.
Using accounting data to measure efficiency in banking: an application to Portugal

This paper uses accounting data to provide estimates of productive efficiency in Portuguese banking. A model of the production process of the banking firm consistent with the characteristics of this kind of data is presented. This framework differs from existing literature on the explicit inclusion of the balance sheet constraint on the cost minimization problem, being concluded that in such context deposits should be handled as an output. Results show clear evidence for the existence of economies of scale for the smaller banks and economies of scope between deposits and loans were found for all but the largest banks. A discussion on the determinants of individual inefficiency scores is also presented, being concluded that they are affected by factors such as size, type of ownership and age. A positive trend on efficiency was also found.
Dividend Distributions and Closed-End Fund Discounts

Empirical support for the hypothesis that closed-end fund discounts are related to overhanging tax liabilities has been mixed. We introduce a new approach to testing this hypothesis by examining changes in discount levels following distributions of dividends and capital gains. Since distributions reduce future shareholder tax liabilities, the tax liability hypothesis implies that closed-end fund discounts should decline following distributions. Focusing on changes in discounts isolates this tax effect by eliminating the impact of other fund-specific factors on discount levels. Our results support the tax liability hypothesis, showing that short-run fluctuations in discounts are directly affected by taxable distributions.
The prognostic value of the components of the Glasgow Coma Scale following acute stroke.

BACKGROUND The Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) is widely used in assessing level of consciousness. The GCS verbal component may be misleading in acute stroke: a focal neurological deficit leading to dysphasia could affect the score, independently of level of consciousness. AIM To investigate the relationship, in all strokes and in dysphasic patients, between stroke outcome and total GCS (with and without the verbal score) and its components, to assess their relative values. STUDY DESIGN Retrospective analysis following prospective data collection in an acute stroke unit and follow-up. METHODS Outcomes studied were 2-week mortality and 3-month recovery (survival, subject living at home). We used area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) to compare versions of the GCS and multivariate logistic regression to identify which subset of GCS components best predicted outcome. RESULTS Of 1517 patients with acute stroke, 1217 had complete clinical and follow-up data; 349 were dysphasic. Total GCS had greater AUC than the GCS without the verbal score, for mortality (all patients 0.78 vs. 0.76, p=0.021; dysphasics 0.72 vs. 0.71, p=0.52) and recovery (all patients 0.71 vs. 0.67, p=0.0001; dysphasics 0.74 vs. 0.70, p=0.055). Verbal and eye scores independently provided prognostic information, for each patient group and outcome measure. CONCLUSIONS The GCS contains valuable predictive information. Regardless of whether dysphasia is present, the verbal score should be assessed since it adds prognostic information to that from the eye component, and has greater value than the motor score.
Prevalence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis among a largely middle-aged population utilizing ultrasound and liver biopsy: a prospective study.

BACKGROUND & AIMS Prevalence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has not been well established. The purpose of this study was to prospectively define the prevalence of both NAFLD and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). METHODS Outpatients 18 to 70 years old were recruited from Brooke Army Medical Center. All patients completed a baseline questionnaire and ultrasound. If fatty liver was identified, then laboratory data and a liver biopsy were obtained. RESULTS Four hundred patients were enrolled. Three hundred and twenty-eight patients completed the questionnaire and ultrasound. Mean age (range, 28-70 years) was 54.6 years (7.35); 62.5% Caucasian, 22% Hispanic, and 11.3% African American; 50.9% female; mean body mass index (BMI) (calculated as kg/m(2)) was 29.8 (5.64); and diabetes and hypertension prevalence 16.5% and 49.7%, respectively. Prevalence of NAFLD was 46%. NASH was confirmed in 40 patients (12.2% of total cohort, 29.9% of ultrasound positive patients). Hispanics had the highest prevalence of NAFLD (58.3%), then Caucasians (44.4%) and African Americans (35.1%). NAFLD patients were more likely to be male (58.9%), older (P = .004), hypertensive (P < .00005), and diabetic (P < .00005). They had a higher BMI (P < .0005), ate fast food more often (P = .049), and exercised less (P = 0.02) than their non-NAFLD counterparts. Hispanics had a higher prevalence of NASH compared with Caucasians (19.4% vs 9.8%; P = .03). Alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, BMI, insulin, Quantitative Insulin-Sensitivity Check Index, and cytokeratin-18 correlated with NASH. Among the 54 diabetic patients, NAFLD was found in 74% and NASH in 22.2%. CONCLUSION Prevalence of NAFLD and NASH is higher than estimated previously. Hispanics and patients with diabetes are at greatest risk for both NAFLD and NASH.
Exploring the synergy between entrepreneurship and innovation

Purpose – To contribute to an understanding of the complementary nature of entrepreneurship and innovation through an empirical study of various organisations; and to develop an integrative framework of the interaction between entrepreneurship and innovation.Design/methodology/approach – The study takes a qualitative approach in exploring the synergies between entrepreneurship and innovation and in analysing the factors that foster an interaction between the two. Case studies of six entrepreneurial and innovative organisations and in‐depth interviews with senior managers were conducted to complement a comprehensive literature review of entrepreneurship and innovation.Findings – The study has found that: entrepreneurship and innovation are positively related to each other and interact to help an organisation to flourish; entrepreneurship and innovation are complementary, and a combination of the two is vital to organisational success and sustainability in today's dynamic and changing environment; entrepren.
From First Lyapunov Coefficients to Maximal Canards

Hopf bifurcations in fast–slow systems of ordinary differential equations can be associated with a surprisingly rapid growth of periodic orbits. This process is referred to as canard explosion. The key step in locating a canard explosion is to calculate the location of a special trajectory, called a maximal canard, in parameter space. A first-order asymptotic expansion of this location was found by Krupa and Szmolyan [2001a, 2001b, 2001c] in the framework of a "canard point"-normal-form for systems with one fast and one slow variable. We show how to compute the coefficients in this expansion using the first Lyapunov coefficient at the Hopf bifurcation thereby avoiding the use of this normal form. Our results connect the theory of canard explosions with existing numerical software, enabling easier calculations of where canard explosions occur.
Decline of striatal dopamine release in parkin‐deficient mice shown by ex vivo autoradiography

Parkin is the causal gene of autosomal recessive juvenile parkinsonism (AR‐JP). Dopamine (DA) metabolism has been linked to Parkinson's disease (PD). To understand the pathogenesis of AR‐JP, we generated parkin‐deficient mice to assess the status of DA signaling pathway and examine DA release and DA receptor by ex vivo autoradiography. Ex vivo autoradiography using [11C]raclopride showed a clear decrease in endogenous DA release after methamphetamine challenge in parkin‐deficient mice. Furthermore, parkin deficiency was associated with considerable upregulation of DA (D1 and D2) receptor binding in vivo in the striatum and increased DA levels in the midbrain. Our results suggest that dopaminergic neurons could behave abnormally before neuronal death. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Generating benchmarking indicators for employee job satisfaction

This paper aims to generate benchmarking indicators for employee job satisfaction using a large size sample including various industrial and occupational sectors. Job satisfaction was measured using the Job Satisfaction Scale developed by the Sheffield Institute of Work Psychology and published with a benchmarking manual in 2007. The International Standard Classification of Occupations developed by the International Labour Organization was used to classify occupations into sectors and job titles. The sample of the study consisted of (4076) individuals working in 24 public and private organisations. Statistical outcomes indicated that the managerial job sector has the highest job satisfaction means (M = 4.24, SD = 1.09), while the lowest means went to the craft workers’ sector (M = 3.47, SD = 0.60). Surprisingly, the highest job satisfaction means according to job title were scored by customer service and sales representatives (M = 4.51, SD = 0.85), while physicians and university professors showed the lowest job satisfaction means (M = 3.43, SD = 0.66). Other job titles are also discussed. This study provides reliable comparative data that helps researchers and practitioners in diagnostic and strategic planning initiatives. This may help in incorporating better development plans, leading to higher job satisfaction and productivity.
Field and laboratory alcohol detection with 2 types of transdermal devices.

BACKGROUND Two types of transdermal electrochemical sensors that detect alcohol at the skin surface were evaluated. One, the AMS SCRAM device, is locked onto the ankle and is based on a fuel cell sensor; the other, a Giner WrisTAS device, worn on the wrist, is based on a proton exchange membrane. SCRAM is used by several court systems in the United States to monitor alcohol offenders, WrisTAS, a research prototype, is not commercially available. METHODS The 2 devices were worn concurrently by 22 paid research subjects (15 men, 7 women), for a combined total of 96 weeks. Subjects participated in both laboratory-dosed drinking to a target of 0.08 g/dl blood alcohol concentration (BAC), and normal drinking on their own; all subjects were trained to use and carry a portable fuel-cell breath tester for BAC determinations. Overall 271 drinking episodes with BAC > or = 0.02 g/dl formed the signal for detection-60 from laboratory dosing, and 211 from self-dosed drinking, with BAC ranging from 0.02 to 0.230 g/dl (mean 0.077 g/dl). RESULTS False negatives were defined as a transdermal alcohol concentration response equivalent <0.02 g/dl when BAC > or = 0.02 g/dl. The overall true-positive hit rate detected by WrisTAS was 24%. The low detection rate was due to erratic output and not recording during nearly 67% of all episodes; reportedly a chipset, not a sensor problem. SCRAM correctly detected 57% across all BAC events, with another 22% (total 79%) detected, but as <0.02 g/dl. When subjects dosed themselves to BAC > or = 0.08 g/dl, SCRAM correctly detected 88% of these events. SCRAM devices lost accuracy over time likely due to water accumulation in the sensor housing. Neither unit had false-positive problems when true BAC was <0.02 g/dl. CONCLUSIONS Each device had peculiarities that reduced performance, but both types are able to detect alcohol at the skin surface. With product improvements, transdermal sensing may become a valuable way to monitor the alcohol consumption of those who should be abstaining.
Time-Varying Price Interactions and Risk Management in Livestock Feed Markets – Determining the Ethanol Surge Effect

This paper studies the dynamic effects that the recent growth in supply of Distiller Dried Grains (DDGs), due to the ethanol production surge from corn consumption, has had in relation to other market feeds, specifically corn, grain sorghum and soybean meal. Prior to the U.S. ethanol surge, more than a half of corn’s production was consumed as feed for livestock. This amount has dropped to around 40%, as corn is increasingly being used – about 1/3 of U.S. supply - for ethanol production. Ethanol’s by-product for feed, DDGs, contains more proteins than corn and serves as substitute in feed rations for livestock, and may likewise affect soybean meal, a protein feed component. In addition, increased corn demand may impact grain sorghum (milo), a similar carbohydrate substitute. A multivariate regime-switching model is applied to two different periods, pre and post- ethanol mandates (Energy Acts of 2005 and 2007), to gauge the dynamic correlations among these markets. Results are consistent with previous literature regarding increasing relationship (correlation) between DDGs and corn, among others. More importantly, an improved characterization of the dynamic inter-relationships between these feed markets not only empirically identifies ethanol surge effects, but serves to assess cross-hedging potential with current corn and soybean meal futures markets. Implications for agricultural price levels, risk management and policy analysis are discussed.
The Neoclassical Dichotomy as a Controlled Experiment

The controversy about Say's Law, Walras' Law, and the "neoclassical dichotomy," led on by Lange and Patinkin, has now gone on for a quarter of a century (Lange, 1942, pp. 49-50; Patinkin, 1965). In view of the formidable array of economists who have contributed to it, it may seem presumptuous to suggest that anything remains to be said. Nevertheless, this note is intended to draw attention to a point which, though simple and perhaps bordering on the obvious, seems to have been overlooked. If it is duly recognized, the dichotomy which Patinkin called invalid appears in a new light. In particular, it will be shown that there is a decomposition procedure according to which the general equilibrium system can be partitioned into a real part determining relative prices and a monetary part determining the absolute price level. The so-called Patinkin controversy has been surveyed several times (Becker and Baumol, 1952; Johnson, 1962; Bieri, 1963; Mauer, 1966). This introductory statement of the problem can thus be brief and nontechnical. The neoclassical dichotomy consists in determining prices in two stages. First, relative prices are determined in the "real" part of the general equilibrium system by equilibrating supply and demand for individual commodities. Using these relative prices, the absolute price level is then determined in the monetary part of the system by equilibrating supply and demand for money (or, what amounts to the same thing, supply and demand for commodities as a whole). Lange and Patinkin raised the objection against this dichotomy that it contained an inconsistency. By Walras' Law, so the argument runs, any excess demand for commodities as a whole is necessarily equal to the excess supply of money. Therefore, if, by appropriate adjustments of relative prices in the real sector, all individual excess demands in the commodity markets are eliminated, supply and demand for money must also be in equilibrium, whatever the price level. But the monetary sector shows that supply and demand for money
Credibility without rules?: Monetary frameworks in the post-Bretton Woods era

This paper is the story of the search for a better trade-off between flexibility and credibility undertaken by authorities around the world in the last 25 years. It provides detailed information on how monetary frameworks - that is the set of announced rules and institutions affecting monetary policy - evolved in 100 countries, examining the forces that molded such evolution and focusing on how developments in economic theory affected the choices of policy-makers.
Emerging robot swarm traffic

Purpose – This paper aims to discuss traffic patterns generated by swarms of robots while commuting to and from a base station.Design/methodology/approach – The paper adopts a mathematical evaluation and robot swarm simulation. The swarm approach is bottom‐up: designing individual agents the authors are looking for emerging group behaviour patterns. Examples of group behaviour patterns are human‐driven motorized traffic which is rigidly structured in two lanes, while army ants develop a three‐lane pattern in their traffic. The authors copy army ant characteristics onto their robots and investigate whether the three lane traffic pattern may emerge. They follow a three‐step approach. The authors first investigate the mathematics and geometry of cases occurring when applying the artificial potential field method to three “perfect” robots. Any traffic pattern (two, three or more lanes) appears to be possible. Next, they use the mathematical cases to study the impact of limited visibility by defining models of.
Moderately elevated maternal homocysteine at preconception is inversely associated with cognitive performance in children 4 months and 6 years after birth.

Abstract Prenatal methyl donor deficiency leads to homocysteine accumulation in the brain and impaired neurodevelopment in rats. We investigated the effect of moderately elevated preconception fasting total plasma homocysteine (tHcy) on child neurodevelopment in a prospective study of 67 and 76 mother–child pairs at 4 months and 6 years of age, respectively. Fasting blood samples at 2–10 weeks preconception, from the cord (nonfasting) and the mother and child 6 years after birth, were collected. Psychomotor and mental development were assessed at 4 months using the Bayley Scale of Infant Development (BSID) and cognitive development at 6 years using the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence (WPPSI). Highest tertile preconception tHcy (≥9.04 &mgr;mol/L) was categorized as moderately elevated and low‐mid tertile tHcy as normal. Children, born to mothers with moderately elevated compared to normal preconception tHcy, scored lower [mean (95% CI)] in the BSID psychomotor [115 (105, 124) vs. 126 (121, 130), p = 0.03] and mental [101 (93, 109) vs. 113 (107, 119), p = 0.03] development tests. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that moderately elevated compared to normal preconception tHcy was associated with greater probability, OR (95%CI), of scoring in the lowest tertile for BSID psychomotor development (≤120): 4.0 (1.1, 14.3) and lowest tertiles for WPPSI full (≤111), verbal (≤104) and performance (≤111), intellectual quotient: 6.0 (1.5, 23.7), 3.5 (1.1, 11.2) and 4.1 (1.1, 15.7), respectively. We conclude that moderately elevated preconception tHcy is inversely associated with psychomotor and cognitive development scores in infants and children.
When do Governments Consolidate? A Quantitative Comparative Analysis of 23 OECD Countries (1980–2005)

Abstract Soaring unemployment, various economic stimulus packages, and the financial backlash have left their marks on the public finances of most industrialized countries. Fiscal adjustments are a top priority for the governments of the OECD member states. Against this background, this paper investigates the determinants of fiscal adjustments in the 1990s – a period when many budget consolidations occurred. Through a quantitative analysis, this research shows (1) what variables explain the probability of budget consolidation, (2) what consolidation strategies are most successful, and (3) what factors influence the relative consolidation performance within the group of consolidators.
Autoimmune enteropathy with severe atrophic gastritis and colitis in an adult: proposal of a generalized autoimmune disorder of the alimentary tract.

BACKGROUND We describe the case of an adult with autoimmune enteropathy consistent with both severe atrophic gastritis accompanying antral stenosis and colitis. METHODS AND RESULTS The patient, positive for anti-intrinsic factor antibody, had intractable diarrhea and protein-losing enteropathy. In the ileum inflammatory cells were observed infiltrating the lamina propria along with villus atrophy, and similar inflammation was also found in the lamina propria of the colon and stomach, with complete loss of specialized glands. The myenteric ganglion cells of the hypertrophied muscularis propria in the stenosed antrum showed degeneration with surrounding T-lymphocyte infiltration. There were more CD8+ than CD4 lymphocytes in the lamina propria of the stomach and colon. CONCLUSIONS The CD8+ (suppressor-cytotoxic) T lymphocytes may have played an important role in the production of lesions in the stomach, small intestine, and colon, so we propose this case as an example of a generalized autoimmune disorder of the alimentary tract.