Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Local modes in dilute metal-hydrogen alloys.

We report on measurements of the local modes of H in the transition metals V, Nb, and Ta with particular emphasis on low-concentration alloys. The excitations appear as very broad peaks in the neutron scattering spectrum even at a level of <1 at. % H, in contrast to the narrow density-of-states peaks normally expected for such interstitial defects. The lower vibration peak in NbH/sub 0.0055/ reveals, within the . cap alpha. phase between 295 and 210 K, an unexpected continuous shift from 106 to 118 meV. Several possible mechanisms to explain these unusual observations are discussed and evaluated.
Do Insiders Manipulate Earnings When They Sell Their Shares in an Initial Public Offering?

In this article we examine whether insider share selling in an initial public offering (IPO) influences R&D expenditures. Insiders (managers and venture capitalists) who sell their pre-offering shareholdings might try to increase the IPO offer price (1) by overinvesting in R&D to signal the firm`s prospects (the signaling hypothesis) or (2) by underinvesting in R&D to increase current reported earnings (the earnings fixation hypothesis). We find that, for a sample of 243 IPOs from 1986 to 1990, change in R&D spending in the year of the IPO is negatively related to managerial selling. Because reductions in R&D spending increase current earnings at the expense of future earnings, our evidence suggests that managers believe that investors place more emphasis on current earnings and less emphasis on R&D and therefore spend less on R&D. We also document a positive association between discretionary current accruals in the offering year and managerial selling, suggesting that selling managers manipulate accruals as well.
Acceptability of suction curettage and mifepristone abortion in the United States: a prospective comparison study.

OBJECTIVE We sought to compare the acceptability of suction curettage abortion with that of medical abortion with mifepristone and misoprostol in American women. STUDY DESIGN We performed a prospective, serially enrolled, cohort analysis. The study population consisted of 152 subjects receiving mifepristone and misoprostol and 174 subjects undergoing suction curettage abortion aged > or =18 years with intrauterine pregnancies of up to 63 days' estimated gestation. Questionnaires regarding expectations and experiences were administered before the abortion and at the 2-week follow-up visit. RESULTS Subjects undergoing medical abortions reported significantly greater satisfaction than those undergoing surgical abortions (mean rank, 121 vs 149; P <.01) but were no more likely to recommend the method they had just experienced to a friend (97% vs 93.3%). If a future abortion was required, however, 41.7% of subjects undergoing surgical abortions indicated they would opt for a medical abortion, whereas only 8.6% of subjects receiving medical abortions would choose a surgical abortion (P <.001). Failure of the abortion decreased satisfaction in the medical group and increased the likelihood of choosing a surgical abortion for a subsequent procedure (P <.001). Surgical subjects who experienced more anxiety than expected during the abortion were more likely to choose a medical procedure for a subsequent abortion (P <.01). CONCLUSION Women receiving mifepristone and misoprostol were more satisfied with their method and more likely to choose the same method again than were subjects undergoing surgical abortion. Failure of a medical abortion and increased anxiety during surgical abortion were associated with preference for the alternative technique in a future procedure.
Essays on asset pricing and the macroeconomy

This thesis consists of three self-contained essays that investigate the interaction of asset prices and financial markets with the macroeconomy. All papers extend the existing literature in order to enhance the understanding of the strong degree of cross-linking between financial markets and the ’rest of the economy’. In particular, the thesis focuses on habitually formed preferences and Bayesian techniques to yield theoretical and empirical insights, which help to reduce the existing gap between asset pricing and macroeconomic literature. The first essay examines and compares the ability of habitually formed preferences to explain the cross section of asset returns compared to successful factor models. Such consumption-based asset pricing models are based on micro-founded preferences, implying a linkage to individual and aggregate behavior. For this reason, the essay uses a Bayesian approach with a priori information derived from the empirical Business Cycle literature. In the second essay which is joint work with Harald Uhlig, we use Bayesian techniques to estimate a DSGE model. Especially, we explore a way to include conditional second moments of asset returns into the estimation. Moreover, we constrain the estimation by a priori probabilities on the Sharpe ratio and the Frisch elasticity. By doing so, the estimated model can well jointly explain key business cycle facts, different volatilities of several asset returns, and the empirically observed equity premium. The third essay presents a DSGE model, which covers the observed co-movements of stock market boom and bust episodes in the 1980’s and 1990’s and the economy. By including non-separable preferences and nominal rigidities, the model explains the simultaneous rise of consumption, output, investments, hours worked, and wages during a boom and the subsequent bust. Finally, the role of monetary policy during stock market booms is discussed, and optimal monetary policy rules are evaluated.
Ovarian Malignant Mixed Mesodermal Tumor With Neuroectodermal Differentiation: A Multifaceted Evaluation

Malignant mixed mesodermal tumors (MMMTs) of the ovary are rare, highly aggressive neoplasms that arise most commonly in postmenopausal women. Histologically, they consist of a mixed population of malignant epithelial and mesenchymal elements. Neuroectodermal differentiation in ovarian MMMTs is exceedingly uncommon, with only a few case reports in the literature. We present a case of an ovarian MMMT with neuroectodermal differentiation in a 78-year-old female patient. Histologically, the tumor was composed of epithelial, mesenchymal, and neuroectodermal elements. The neuroectodermal component was predominantly that of a medulloepithelioma, with scattered areas displaying features of an anaplastic astrocytoma, including rare ganglion cell differentiation. The neuroectodermal component showed immunoreactivity for glial fibrillary acidic protein, synaptophysin, and S100 protein. Ultrastructurally, the neuroectodermal component was populated by cells with irregular nuclei, finely dispersed chromatin, rudimentary cell junctions, and a delicate basement membrane, all of which have been described in medulloepitheliomas. DNA ploidy analysis was also performed on the various components of the tumor and compared with 3 additional cases of MMMT without neuroectodermal differentiation and 2 ovarian immature teratomas. Our findings suggest that the neuroectodermal component may arise from a separate clone or at least evolves at an earlier stage of tumor development.
The Opportunity Cost of Saving Money

In this exploratory study we draw on interviews with 12 expatriate staff, seven of whom are permanent transfers to a Singapore-based subsidiary of a global knowledge-based firm. Using goal congruence theory as an extension of agency theory, we compare the motivation, adjustment, retention, and careers of permanent transferees who subsequently localize in the host location to those of traditional expatriates in the same location. Our findings show that expatriates who are expected to work as "locals" in a host country not only receive less compensation, but also receive less preparation and support than traditional expatriates despite the fact that both groups of employees work under similar conditions and face similar challenges. Our study has important implications for research and practice in the planning and management of global mobility programs.
Mediating Role of Jobs Satisfaction among Organizational Commitment, Organizational Culture and Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB): Empirical Study on Private Higher Education in Central Java, Indonesia

Several studies and articles have reported and discussed the job satisfaction and dissatisfaction of workers in organizations. However, very few empirically-supported explanations have been given to explain how job satisfaction mediates the relationship between Organizational Commitment, Organizational Culture and Organizational Citizenship Behavior in lecturers of Private Higher Education in Central Java, Indonesia. Probes into the explanations of determining how job satisfaction mediates the relationship between Organizational Commitment, Organizational Culture and Organizational Citizenship Behavior, the data were collected from the respondents who were the tenured faculty, both civil servant lecturers and private lecturers, and work at private universities in Central Java province. The data was collected using a questionnaire. Only 244 copies, out of the total 400 questionnaires distributed, got by the author and he got a response rate of 61%. After processing and modifying the data, only 226 respondents used as the main resources analyzed by using Structural Equation Model (SEM). Statistical analysis reveals that there exists significant relationship between Organizational Commitment, Organizational Culture and Organizational Citizenship Behavior; likewise, Job Satisfaction mediates the relationship between Organizational Commitment, Organizational Culture and Organizational Citizenship Behavior. Limitations and future implementations of this research are also discussed.
A Breakdown of the Valuation Effects of International Cross-Listing

It is well known that cross-listing domestic stocks in foreign exchanges has significant valuation effects on the listed company's shares. Using a sample of firms with dual shares, we explore the differential effects of cross-listing on prices and we are able to separate the different sources of the benefits of cross-listing. Our results show that even though the market segmentation and bonding effects are both statistically significant, the economic significance of segmentation is more than double that of bonding. Furthermore, we document an economically and statistically significant increasse in the liquidity of both share classes after the listing. Overall, our results explain why less and less firms are willing to list in the U.S.: Sarbanes Oxley has increased the cost of adopting better governance while its benefits are not substantial; and market segmentation has decreased significantly in the last years.
Intergenerational persistence of poverty in the UK : empirical analysis of economic outcomes for people born from the 1950s to the 1980s

Further income redistribution is an obvious way of alleviating child poverty. However, whether this effectively improves life chances of children growing up in poverty is debated, and there might be less expensive ways of doing so. Drawing on competing models explaining intergenerational persistence of poverty, this thesis investigates some of the links between childhood poverty and later economic outcomes in the UK. Aiming to identify policy areas where intervention would be helpful, it examines continuities and changes over time in these links and mechanisms that create them, analysing longitudinal data from people born in 1958, 1970 and the 1980s. This thesis shows that a negative effect of childhood poverty on adult earnings remains for the 1970 cohort (although not for the 1958 cohort), even after controlling for educational attainment in particular, and for other individual and family characteristics. This appears to be a reason that intergenerational persistence of poverty is stronger for the younger cohort. Teenage occupational aspirations do not seem to explain this residual effect, but unemployment in early working life contributes to it. An original contribution is the investigation of different effects of childhood poverty on later onset of and exit from unemployment, and the relative strength of the effects of parental worklessness and income poverty on these outcomes. A main finding is that income poverty more strongly affects the rapid onset of unemployment following employment, although parental worklessness appears to be associated with the slow exit from unemployment. The results suggest that policy interventions in education or (potentially cheaper) interventions affecting youth aspirations would not completely remove the disadvantage experienced by children growing up in poverty. There is therefore evidence that further income redistribution would be beneficial in improving their future life chances, while the findings suggest that the design of income redistribution also matters.
The Environmental Case for the High-Speed Train in the UK: Examining the London–Manchester Route

ABSTRACT This article investigates the potential for environmental benefit from the introduction of the High Speed Train (HST) on the London–Manchester route in the UK, focusing on carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. The lifecycle carbon emission of HST is assessed, and its sensitivity to demand changes is analyzed for several scenarios. Based on the UK Government demand assumptions, the analysis shows relatively limited potential for reduction in CO2 emissions. In 2033, overall CO2 reduction due to HST operation on the route is estimated at 100,000 tCO2 per annum, which is less than 0.1% of the total UK domestic transport emissions in 2007.
Ictal Tonic Postural Changes and Automatisms of the Upper Limb During Epileptic Parietal Lobe Discharges

Tonic postural changes of the upper limb accompanied by epileptic parietal lobe discharges are not well known. The authors report 3 such cases. In the 3 patients, a total of 18 spontaneous seizures were recorded, 12 by telemetry, from either scalp electrodes or stereotactically implanted electrodes. Of these 18 seizures, 14 included tonic postural changes of the upper limb accompanied by a contralateral parietal discharge. Combining these 3 cases with the 4 such cases in the literature, the authors found that the clinical pattern consisted of a tonic postural change in one upper limb associated with automatisms of the opposite upper limb. It was also found that the same patient might have automatisms involving the upper limb in some seizures and upper limb postural changes in other seizures, both accompanied by the same electrical discharge. It is concluded that tonic postural changes and automatisms in the upper limb may be interchangeable.
The 'smacking debate' in Northern Ireland : messages from research : full report

Type of publication – Primary Research Key issues in literature – Some summary of Gershoff/Baumrind impact debate – highlights flaws in research and comments on growing body of evidence that mild or moderate physical punishment is not in itself predictive of internalising or externalising problems in childreninstead the meanings ascribed to it by parents and children appear to be crucial these meanings seem to depend on parental warmth accompanying physical punishment and family ethnicity or socio-cultural context. Acknowledges that while some studies have not found any moderating impact of warmth or ethnicity on child outcomes, many studies have consistently found that African American families show evidence of the benign or beneficial consequences of corporal punishment when it is accompanied by warmth different outcomes for different groups. Also discusses difficulties in terminology re physical punishment and the range of terms used highlights lack of categorisation by implement used or body part hit little discussion with parents themselves on what behaviours they consider to warrant corporal punishment. Quantitative/Qualitative – Qualitative only Total sample size 9 Is it a population based study eg prevalence study – No Sample details/characteristics – All mothers were unmarried, African Americans with incomes at or below the federal poverty guidelines – at the start of the study their mean age was 19.3 (range 15–24) and at that time one was pregnant with her first child and the others each had one child under the age of 13 months. Four mums had completed high school. Over the course of the study, four gave birth to additional children and two graduated from high school.
The Effect of Payments Standstills on Yields and the Maturity Structure of International Debt

Payments standstills have been suggested as a tool for the resolution of financial crises in emerging markets economies. A simple model is developed here to examine the implications of standstills for yields and the maturity structure of debt. An emerging market country chooses to sell short and long-term debt to risk-neutral international investors. The key assumptions are that the level of short-term debt increases the probability of crisis, that crises have costs that spill over into the next period, and that the orderly resolution of financial crises will reduce the cost of crises. A standstill is depicted as an orderly rollover of short-term debt. Standstills have the benefit of reducing the proportion of short-term debt and so lower the probability of crisis. This comes at the cost of generally lower expected output.
Activity Segmentation of the International Heritage Tourism Market to Taiwan

The heritage tourism market has developed from being regarded as a small niche segment to a mainstream market of considerable size. In Taiwan, diversified heritage resources hold considerable appeal to the international tourism market. Little research has been completed on international heritage tourists to Taiwan, so this study utilized Taiwan as a case study and examined international tourists to the destination. It first employed cluster analysis based on activity participation to segment the market and test for the existence of “heritage tourists”. Three groups of international tourists to Taiwan were identified and they were labelled as “heritage”, “shopping” and “non-specialists”. The heritage group had a high participation rate in visiting heritage relics (90.6%). The study also profiled tourists according to the reasons they travelled to Taiwan and socio-demographic variables. The heritage tourists and other activity participation groups were compared to reveal the major motivational and socio-demographic differences involved. The findings showed that “international heritage tourists to Taiwan” were a group of visitors with relatively younger ages, middle levels of income and higher educational levels. The study defined heritage tourists who indicated visiting heritage sites as part of their reason for visiting Taiwan as “motivated heritage visitors”. Other heritage tourists who participated in heritage activities, but did not list heritage tourism as a reason for visiting Taiwan, were defined as “heritage site visitors”. Finally, the study profiled the two groups of heritage tourists and compared them, with significant differences being found in ages and nationalities.
Desmosomal Cadherin Misexpression Alters β-Catenin Stability and Epidermal Differentiation

ABSTRACT Desmosomal adhesion is important for the integrity and protective barrier function of the epidermis and is disregulated during carcinogenesis. Strong adhesion between keratinocytes is conferred by the desmosomal cadherins, desmocollin (Dsc) and desmoglein. These constitute two gene families, members of which are differentially expressed in epidermal strata. It has been suggested that this stratum-specific expression regulates keratinocyte differentiation. We tested this hypothesis by misdirecting the expression of the basally abundant desmosomal cadherins Dsc3a and Dsc3b to suprabasal differentiating keratinocytes in transgenic mice. No phenotype was apparent until adulthood, when mice developed variable ventral alopecia and had altered keratinocyte differentiation within affected areas. The follicular changes were reminiscent of changes in transgenic mice with an altered β-catenin stability. Stabilized β-catenin and increased β-catenin transcriptional activity were demonstrated in transgenic mice prior to the phenotypic change and in transgenic keratinocytes as a consequence of transgene expression. Hence, a link between desmosomal cadherins and β-catenin stability and signaling was demonstrated, and it was shown that desmocollin cadherin expression can affect keratinocyte differentiation. Furthermore, the first function for a “b-type” desmocollin cadherin was demonstrated.
Policy Update: Multicomponent climate policy: why do emission metrics matter?

191 future science group www.future-science.com 10.4155/CMT.10. 28 © 2010 Future Science Ltd The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) requires that “policies and measures should [. ] be comprehensive [. ] and [. ] cover all relevant sources, sinks and reservoirs. ” Many studies have shown the advantages of a multicomponent agreement [1,2], but challenges remain regarding how to establish a common scale to compare the emissions of different greenhouse gases and aerosols (components) in a way that is supported scientifically, economically and politically [3]. An ‘emission metric’ designates relative weights of the emissions of various components according to their climatic effects. Owing to a large span of atmospheric adjustment times (i.e., lifetimes) and radiative efficien� cies of the components (Table 2.14 of [4]), a particular metric can give different relative weights to differ� ent components [5], which will change the mitigation priorities between components and hence potentially affect climate policy negotiation. The most common metric is the Global Warming Potential (GWP) [4,6], which is defined as the ratio of the integrated radiative forcing of a component in question over a time horizon relative to that of CO 2 after their instantaneous pulse releases to the atmo� sphere in amounts of 1 kg. While the GWP is widely accepted for applications such as climate policies (e.g., the Kyoto Protocol) and assessments (e.g., life cycle assessment [LCA] [7] and carbon footprint ana lysis [8,9]), it has received a number of criticisms in the climate research community [3,5,10–12] and, as a result, alterna� tive metrics such as the Global Temperature Change Potential (GTP) have been proposed (e.g., [13–18]). The issues at stake are complex and require multi� disciplinary perspectives (i.e., from climate physics, atmospheric chemistry, biogeochemistry, environmen� tal economics and political science) in addition to value judgments [3,12,19]. This paper provides an overview of the discussions related to emission metrics (Figures 1 & 2) to narrow the gap between the science of emission metrics and the policy applications of metrics. More comprehensive and detailed overviews of the metrics can be found else� where [3,5,12]. In March 2009, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Expert Meeting on the Science of Alternative Metrics [19] was held in Oslo, Norway, which brought attention to metric research activities. This paper touches upon recent advances and new challenges in the field, as well as outstanding issues that still need to be addressed.