Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Institutional Networks for Inclusive Coastal Management in Trinidad and Tobago

The authors consider the role of institutional networks in integrated and inclusive coastal-zone management in Trinidad and Tobago. Drawing on theories of social institutions, a framework for understanding the institutional prerequisites for participatory management is developed. In this framework, distinction is made between institutions at the community, formal-organisational, and national regulatory levels and the means by which institutions adapt to and learn about new issues in terms of networks of dependence and exchange are characterised. The immediate networks between actors (their spaces of dependence) are augmented by wider networks between institutions at various scales (their spaces of exchange). This framework is applied to a case study of resource management in Trinidad and Tobago. Semistructured interviews with key government urban and economic planners, fisheries regulators, and other agents in Trinidad and Tobago, and a participatory workshop for resource managers, are used to identify the perceived opportunities and constraints relating to integrated and inclusive resource management within the social institutions. The findings are analysed through an exploration of the spaces of dependence and exchange that exist in the various social networks at the different institutional scales. The prescriptive relevance of this approach is in the demonstration of the nature of change required in social institutions at all scales to facilitate integrated and inclusive resource management.
Corporate Governance and Innovation: A Survey

The traditional economics of innovation, inspired by Schumpeter and more recent advances on his work, seem unable to explain why firms with similar external conditions may show greatly different performance in innovation. Contrastingly, the literature on corporate governance provides some useful insights for understanding corporate innovation activity, to the extent that such literature examines the economic effects of different modes of coordination between firm members. The process through which individuals integrate their human and physical resources within the firm is central to the dynamics of corporate innovation. This paper provides the first survey of the literature on this issue. We start by discussing how various theoretical approaches to the analysis of the firm deal with technological innovation. We then describe three main channels – corporate ownership, corporate finance and labor – through which a system of corporate governance shapes a firm’s innovation activity. Finally, we examine the relationship between country-level institutional settings, national patterns of corporate governance and the aggregate innovation activity of corporations. We conclude by suggesting that future research should focus more deeply on the interrelation between the various dimensions of corporate governance and on their joint effect on firm innovation.
Families and donor insemination: the views of semen donors

One of the consequences of donor insemination for the semen donor is that he becomes a member of two families: his own family in which he has a genetic and social connection with his offspring; and the family of the recipient couple, in which he has a genetic connection to the offspring, but usually no social connection with either the offspring or the recipient couple. This article challenges the dominant view that donor insemination as a practice of mainly medical or legal importance by looking at the attitudes of donors to both their own family and the family to which they have contributed their genetic material. Results are presented concerning who donors have told about their donation, who they think should be told, whether they think recipient couples should tell their donor insemination offspring about their conception, and concerning their opinions about factors that are considered in matching donors with recipient fathers.
Local Ownership, Crises, and Asset Prices: Evidence from US Mutual Funds

We exploit the domestic portfolios of US mutual funds to provide microeconomic evidence that investors are more likely to liquidate geographically remote investments at times of high aggregate market volatility. This has important implications for asset prices. The valuations of stocks with ex ante less local ownership decline more when aggregate market volatility is high. Furthermore, the returns of stocks with geographically distant owners are more exposed to changes in aggregate market volatility.
Student diversity and implications for clinical competency development amongst domestic and international speech-language pathology students

Abstract International students graduating from speech-language pathology university courses must achieve the same minimum competency standards as domestic students. This study aimed to collect descriptive information about the number, origin, and placement performance of international students as well as perceptions of the performance of international students on placement. University Clinical Education Coordinators (CECs), who manage clinical placements in eight undergraduate and six graduate entry programs across the 10 participating universities in Australia and New Zealand completed a survey about 3455 international and domestic speech-language pathology students. Survey responses were analysed quantitatively and qualitatively with non-parametric statistics and thematic analysis. Results indicated that international students came from a variety of countries, but with a regional focus on the countries of Central and Southern Asia. Although domestic students were noted to experience significantly less placement failure, fewer supplementary placements, and reduced additional placement support than international students, the effect size of these relationships was consistently small and therefore weak. CECs rated international students as more frequently experiencing difficulties with communication competencies on placement. However, CECs qualitative comments revealed that culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) students may experience more difficulties with speech-language pathology competency development than international students. Students’ CALD status should be included in future investigations of factors influencing speech-language pathology competency development.
Investigating mobile payment acceptance using technological-personal-environmental (TPE) framework: A case of Indonesia

This study aims to investigate the influence of technological, personal, and environmental factors on users' intention to adopt mobile payment from the perspective of Indonesian consumers. We conducted an online survey, which obtained 1684 valid respondents. Those data were analyzed using SEM method with AMOS 21.0 application. This study showed that intrinsic motivation and facilitating condition significantly have a positive effect on consumer's perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use. Then, personal innovativeness only showed to have a significant effect on perceived ease of use, while social influence only showed to have a significant effect on perceived usefulness. In addition, perceived ease of use also showed to have a significant effect on perceived usefulness. Lastly, both perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use proved to have a significant impact on consumers' intention to use mobile payment thus confirming the applicability of the Technology Acceptance Model in the mobile payment acceptance context.
Early Transcriptional Defense Responses in Arabidopsis Cell Suspension Culture under High-Light Conditions1[C][W][OA]

The early transcriptional defense responses and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) cell suspension culture (ACSC), containing functional chloroplasts, were examined at high light (HL). The transcriptional analysis revealed that most of the ROS markers identified among the 449 transcripts with significant differential expression were transcripts specifically up-regulated by singlet oxygen (1O2). On the contrary, minimal correlation was established with transcripts specifically up-regulated by superoxide radical or hydrogen peroxide. The transcriptional analysis was supported by fluorescence microscopy experiments. The incubation of ACSC with the 1O2 sensor green reagent and 2′,7′-dichlorofluorescein diacetate showed that the 30-min-HL-treated cultures emitted fluorescence that corresponded with the production of 1O2 but not of hydrogen peroxide. Furthermore, the in vivo photodamage of the D1 protein of photosystem II indicated that the photogeneration of 1O2 took place within the photosystem II reaction center. Functional enrichment analyses identified transcripts that are key components of the ROS signaling transduction pathway in plants as well as others encoding transcription factors that regulate both ROS scavenging and water deficit stress. A meta-analysis examining the transcriptional profiles of mutants and hormone treatments in Arabidopsis showed a high correlation between ACSC at HL and the fluorescent mutant family of Arabidopsis, a producer of 1O2 in plastids. Intriguingly, a high correlation was also observed with ABA deficient1 and more axillary growth4, two mutants with defects in the biosynthesis pathways of two key (apo)carotenoid-derived plant hormones (i.e. abscisic acid and strigolactones, respectively). ACSC has proven to be a valuable system for studying early transcriptional responses to HL stress.
A Model of Travel Itineraries

A model of travel itineraries is proposed with two single- and five multidestination itineraries. The validity of these itineraries is tested by analyzing travel patterns of 1,000 international tourists to Malaysia. The study indicates that the advanced travel itineraries are relevant and comprehensive. Further, it suggests that international travel patterns are much more complex than is usually assumed.
Senescent CD14+CD16+ Monocytes Exhibit Proinflammatory and Proatherosclerotic Activity

In elderly subjects and in patients with chronic inflammatory diseases, there is an increased subset of monocytes with a CD14+CD16+ phenotype, whose origin and functional relevance has not been well characterized. In this study, we determined whether prolonged survival of human CD14++CD16− monocytes promotes the emergence of senescent cells, and we analyzed their molecular phenotypic and functional characteristics. We used an in vitro model to prolong the life span of healthy monocytes. We determined cell senescence, intracellular cytokine expression, ability to interact with endothelial cells, and APC activity. CD14+CD16+ monocytes were senescent cells with shortened telomeres (215 ± 37 relative telomere length) versus CD14++CD16− cells (339 ± 44 relative telomere length; p < 0.05) and increased expression of β-galactosidase (86.4 ± 16.4% versus 10.3 ± 7.5%, respectively; p = 0.002). CD14+CD16+ monocytes exhibited features of activated cells that included expression of CD209, release of cytokines in response to low-intensity stimulus, and increased capacity to sustain lymphocyte proliferation. Finally, compared with CD14++CD16− cells, CD14+CD16+ monocytes showed elevated expression of chemokine receptors and increased adhesion to endothelial cells (19.6 ± 8.1% versus 5.3 ± 4.1%; p = 0.033). In summary, our data indicated that the senescent CD14+CD16+ monocytes are activated cells, with increased inflammatory activity and ability to interact with endothelial cells. Therefore, accumulation of senescent monocytes may explain, in part, the development of chronic inflammation and atherosclerosis in elderly subjects and in patients with chronic inflammatory diseases.
Periprosthetic infection in patients treated for an orthopaedic oncological condition.

BACKGROUND Prosthetic replacement following excision of a bone tumor can be complicated by infection because patients who undergo surgery for a neoplastic condition often are subjected to extensive soft-tissue dissection and long operating times and are immunosuppressed. The aim of this study was to investigate the rate of periprosthetic infection, identify possible predisposing factors, and assess treatment efficacy in such patients. METHODS Prosthetic reconstruction was performed in 1264 patients over a thirty-seven-year period in a single hospital by four surgeons. Twenty-four patients were excluded because of incomplete follow-up, leaving 1240 patients who had been followed for a mean of 5.8 years. Infection was identified in 136 patients (11.0%). The management and outcome of the infections in all of these patients were analyzed. RESULTS Coagulase-negative Staphylococcus was the most common organism isolated. Two-stage revision successfully treated the infection in 72% (forty-two) of the fifty-eight patients in whom it was performed. Local surgical debridement with or without antibiotic implants was successful in only 6% (four) of sixty-eight patients. Amputation to treat the infection was performed in fifty (37%) of the 136 patients. The factors that were associated with a significant risk of infection (p <or= 0.05) included tibial and pelvic prosthetic replacements, radiation therapy, and the use of a pediatric expandable prosthesis. CONCLUSIONS Patients treated with an orthopaedic procedure for an oncological condition have high infection rates. The treatment of infection in these patients is arduous and lengthy, with a substantial risk of amputation.
Effects of product attributes and consumer characteristics on attitude and behavior: The case of peanuts in a transition economy

Using consumer survey data collected in Bulgaria in 1997, this study examined consumer preferences for peanuts in a transition economy. Perceived product attributes and household characteristics were hypothesized to influence attitude and peanut consumption behavior. The effects of perceived product attributes on overall attitude toward peanuts were examined, drawing on Fishbein's multiattribute model. Consumption behavior was analyzed using a count data model that distinguishes between participation and consumption frequency decisions. Results showed that perceived attributes with respect to taste and price consistently influenced consumers' overall attitude toward peanuts and consumption behavior. Income and location of households were statistically significant in explaining peanut consumption frequency. Whereas perceived health attributes affected attitude toward peanuts, they were not directly associated with consumption behavior. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Polycentric Structures in Latin American Metropolitan Areas: Identifying Employment Sub-centres

Fernández-Maldonado A. M. , Romein A. , Verkoren O. and Parente Paula Pessoa R. Polycentric structures in Latin American metropolitan areas: identifying employment sub-centres, Regional Studies. The significant spatial transformations that have occurred within Latin American metropolitan areas since the 1990s have triggered many local studies claiming the formation of polycentric structures. This study explores the extent of that process, identifying sub-centres of employment using the double threshold methodology of job concentration and employment density in Mexico City (Mexico), Lima (Peru) and Fortaleza (Brazil). The results, although partial due to an absence of data on informal employment, indicate that Latin American metropolises are moving towards polycentric structures. But the identified employment sub-centres are mostly located in or near the metropolitan core, which practically excludes the formation of polycentric nodes in the metropolitan periphery.
Price-Cost Margins and Industry Structure

A NUMBER of studies have yielded evidence of significant association between certain characteristics of industry structuresuch as high concentration and substantial entry barriers and variations in industry performance, particularly with respect to profitability. * In general, these studies tend to confirm the expectation that, other things being equal, profits will tend to be higher in industries in which structural conditions depart substantially from those of the competitive model. However, as Stigler [16, p. 145] has noted, the statistical associations found are usually weak, and a substantial amount of performance diversity is left unexplained. Thus, the typical strength and character of the structure-performance associations, and the importance of individual structural factors in the overall pattern, have remained open to question. Many hypotheses have been suggested; only a few are subject to serious empirical investigation; fewer still have actually been examined. This paper presents a summary report on our efforts to test a small number of fairly straightforward structure-performance hypotheses against the most comprehensive collection of relevant data available, the concentration statistics for 1958 and 1963 [18, 19]. These tests have focused on a single performance measure, the percentage price-cost margin, which we take as an indicator of the ability of firms in an industry to obtain prices in excess of direct costs. We have found a significant association between the price-cost margin and the level of four-firm concentration among fourdigit SIC (Standard International Trade Classification) industries; and this association is not eliminated when differences in capital-intensity among industries are taken into account. We have further found: (1) a tendency for the strength of the concentration-margins association to increase over the period 19581963, particularly in industries in which the level of four-firm concentration was stable or increasing; (2) a substantially stronger association between concentration and margins in consumer goods industries, as compared to producer goods industries; and (3) evidence that the principal component of the concentration-margins association in consumer goods industries is a correlation between concentration and margins of the four largest firms alone, in those industries in which these firms have higher margins than their smaller rivals. The first section of this paper establishes the background and framework of our analysis, and the following sections present the evidence of these findings in some detail.
The knowledge transfer process in Six Sigma subsidiary firms

Although the operative benefits of the Six Sigma methodology in the business world are well accepted, the long-term benefits of the initiative are currently under discussion. This paper aims to analyse how Six Sigma methodology is related to the knowledge transfer process, a source of competitive advantage. For this purpose, we observe how team management in Six Sigma firms differs statistically from the team management proposed by other quality management initiatives, and how Six Sigma team management is related to the knowledge integration and knowledge transfer processes. An ANOVA analysis and Partial Least Squares approach were used to analyse data from 53 European Six Sigma firms, confirming the hypotheses developed. The results confirm that Six Sigma methodology offers new possibilities to companies and that implementation of Six Sigma has a positive effect on the variables that influence long-term organisational performance, such as knowledge management. Relevant academic contributions and implications for practitioners are included.
Hemodynamics of conscious unrestrained baboons, including cardiac output.

A method is described for comprehensive hemodynamic study of undisturbed baboons (Papio hamadryas) that incorporates cardiac output measurement by thermodilution. Instrumentation includes arterial, aortic, and central venous catheterization by a surgical technique that does not require entry to peritoneal or thoracic cavities. It provides a means for right atrial indicator delivery with aortic temperature recording of thermodilution curves. Accuracy was confirmed by comparison to measurement by Swan-Ganz catheters. Diurnal variations of systemic arterial pressure in long-term study of conscious baboons were shown to result from significant increases in cardiac output by day (P less than 0.001), despite concomitant falls in systemic vascular resistance. The cardiac output values obtained were 0.13 l.min-1.kg-1 at night and 0.16 l.min-1.kg-1 by day. Comparison of these results to previous reports of cardiac output in baboons highlights the inadequacies of methods that require physical restraint or anesthesia. This technique also leaves the baboons intact for subsequent breeding or experimental use after catheter removal without the need for further surgery.
Financial Liberalization: The Experience of Developing Countries

This paper investigates the experience of developing countries with financial liberalization, focusing on the gap between theory and evidence. While the former suggests positive effects on economic development, the latter pinpoints to significant destabilizing consequences. e argue that the main implicit assumptions of the financial liberalization thesis, perfect information and perfect competition, along with the scant attention paid to stock markets, are responsible for this discrepancy. We conclude by suggesting that a great deal more caution should be disposed in the future when implementing financial liberalization policies.
Values and motivations in BA students of social work: the italian case

The aim of this research was to investigate what are the main characteristics of Social Work students in a context such as that of Italy, marked by radical changes both in the education and in welfare systems. In particular, we want to explore the value systems students refer to and what motivates their choice, but also what image these undergraduates have of social work. This was done through a nationwide research project carried out by using a structured questionnaire distributed in all Italian Universities that offer a Social Work Degree to students enrolled in the 1st year of the BA course in Social Work. It was completed by almost all the BA students (nearly 2000 students). The data analyzed with the research tool SSP confirm, firstly, that female students are still numerically dominant and that values of social solidarity prevail. Secondly, it shows that students have very high expectations in relation to their future profession but under-estimate the role attributed to specific competences, elements that make satisfactory training of fundamental importance. Finally, considerations on how the education process has to develop a critical and self reflective attitude in the students will be presented.
YOUR TERMS OR MINE? THE DUTY TO READ THE FINE PRINT IN CONTRACTS

This article examines the legal rules that govern the interpretation of standardized form contracts. Different legal rules induce different bargaining games between buyers and sellers, and they can influence the efficiency of exchange when communication is costly. The traditional common-law rule, which binds an assenting recipient of a form contract to fine-print terms he has not read, has little effect in encouraging parties to read contracts, contrary to the conventional wisdom among lawyers. Instead, there is little practical difference between a rule that nominally holds the drafter of a form contract responsible for communicating its terms and one that holds the receiving party responsible. Moreover, the traditional rule may be Pareto inferior to a rule providing presumptive warranties when negotiation is costly.