Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
U-Pb Ages of Detrital Zircons from the Permo-Triassic Series of the Iberian Ranges: A Record of Variable Provenance during Rift Propagation

The provenance of the Permo-Triassic series of the Talayuelas anticline (Iberian Ranges) have been studied using U-Pb geochronology (laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry) of detrital zircons. These intracontinental siliciclastic series were formed by extensive sandy braided fluvial systems associated with ephemeral lake deposits and aeolian sediments, with paleocurrents suggesting constant NW-SE transport directions. Upper Permian reddish sandstones from the Upper Alcotas Formation (Lopingian) contain a dominant Variscan zircon population (290–360 Ma), which indicates source areas located in the axial zone of the Variscan belt, in the core of the Ibero-Armorican arc. However, in the Lower Triassic sandstones of the Cañizar Formation (Olenekian), the Variscan zircon population is almost completely replaced by Cadomian zircons (520–750 Ma), with important Avalonian (390–520 Ma), Mesoproterozoic (900–1750 Ma), Eburnian (1.78–2.35 Ga), and post-Eburnian and Archaean (>2.4 Ga) zircon populations. This detrital zircon content now suggests source areas located more to the NW, in the Avalonian microcontinent, although a limited supply coming from the southern part of Laurentia cannot be ruled out. Finally, in the Middle Triassic (Anisian), the source areas returned to the Variscan axial zone, since the Variscan zircon population is again highly dominant during this period. The changes detected in the source areas of the Permo-Triassic series are related to the development and propagation of the Iberian rift, one of the large extensional structures that determined the generation of the sedimentary basins and finally caused the breakup of Pangea. The methodology followed in this article is very useful to understand the generation and evolution of these intracontinental basins and also the relationships between the different rift systems generated in the North Atlantic realm during the Permo-Triassic times.
The Impact of Audit Committee Characteristics on the Enhancement of the Quality of Financial Reporting: An Empirical Study in the Spanish Context

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the relationship between the likelihood that a company will receive a qualified audit report (as a measure of the quality of financial information) and the existence and characteristics of the audit committee (AC). For listed companies that voluntarily created an AC in the period following the publication in 1998 of the Spanish Code of Corporate Governance, known as the Olivencia Code, we find that ACs size, the percentage of independent members in ACs, company size, losses reported in either or both of the previous two years, receiving the same qualified audit opinion as in the previous year and ownership concentration affect the likelihood of receiving error or non-compliance qualifications. However, the existence of an AC and its composition are not factors associated with the receipt of audit reports containing uncertainties or scope limitations, while losses reported in either or both of the previous two years and receiving the same qualified opinion as in the previous year are. Copyright (c) 2007 The Authors; Journal compilation (c) 2007 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
Outcome prediction in severe head injury: analyses of clinical prognostic factors

Retrospective analysis of 272 patients with severe head injury was performed. Patient age, Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score, pupillary abnormalities, impaired oculocephalic response, presence of subarachnoid haemorrhage, and multiplicity of parenchymal lesions on computerised tomography (CT) were examined. The CT findings were divided into 2 groups, diffuse brain injury (DBI) and mass lesion, according to the classification of the Traumatic Coma Data Bank. The DBI, basically, has no high or mixed density lesion more than 25 ml on CT, and was classified into 4 subgroups: DBI I includes injuries where there is no visible pathology; DBI II includes all injuries in which the cisterns are present with a midline shift of less than 5 mm; DBI III includes injuries with swelling where the cisterns are compressed or absent and the midline shift is less than 5 mm; DBI IV includes injuries with a midline shift of more than 5 mm. The mass lesions were categorised into 3 subgroups: epidural haematoma; acute subdural haematoma; and intracerebral haematoma. Outcomes were determined at 6 months following trauma using the Glasgow Outcome Scale. All DBI I patients recovered well. In the DBI II group, age, GCS score and detection of multiple parenchymal lesions on CT were significantly correlated with outcome. For the DBI III and IV groups, the only significant prognostic factor was the GCS score. In patients with a mass lesion, the GCS score was the only significant prognostic factor in the epidural haematoma group, but the GCS score and the presence of subarachnoid haemorrhage were predictive factors in the acute subdural haematoma group. Outcomes were unfavourable in the majority of patients with intracerebral haematoma. GCS score could predict outcome in all groups. The confidence of the outcome prediction ranged from 75.8 to 92.1%, depending on logistic regression analysis.
THE EVOLUTION OF AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION IN ENGLAND AND WALES PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS

This paper traces the evolution of agricultural extension in England and Wales and reflects on the reasons for the changes which have occurred in its structure, direction and funding. It describes the change from an extension to a consultancy organisation, analyses the effects of such a change, and examines some of the early mistakes in undertaking it. Questions are raised about whether advice paid for by the client improves the focus of extension and enhances the effectiveness of the relationship between adviser and client. It also questions whether Government policies towards agriculture could be equally well carried out by contracting out the work of extension to the private sector.
Contests with Ties

We study two-player all-pay contests in which there is a positive probability of a tied outcome. We show that the players' efforts in equilibrium do not depend on the expected prize in the case of a tie given that this prize is smaller than the prize for winning. The implications of this result are twofold. First, in symmetric one-stage contests, the designer who wishes to maximize the expected total effort should not award a prize in the case of a tie which is larger than one-third of the prize for winning. Second, in multi-stage contests, the designer should not limit the number of stages (tie-breaks) but should allow the contest to continue until a winner is decided.
Political connections, fees paid to auditors and auditor independence in Malaysia: evidence from going concern audit opinions

This study examines whether auditor independence will be affected by the magnitude of audit and non-audit services fees provided to audit clients and political connections. We predict that auditor independence will be undermined when audit firms provide non-audit services to the audit clients as the provision of the non-audit services to audit clients increases the economic bond between the audit firm and the client. Furthermore, given the unique institutional background in Malaysia, we also test the relationship between auditor independence and political connections. We use the propensity to issue a going concern opinion as a proxy for auditor independence while political connections are represented by two measures namely the proportion of Bumiputras directors on the board and politically connected firms. Contrary to our prediction, we do not observe any association between the propensity to issue going concern opinions and non-audit fees, total fees and the ratio of non-audit fees to total fees. Interestingly, we find evidence to suggest that audit firms are less likely to issue going concern opinions when audit clients have more Bumiputras directors sitting on board. This result is view to be important as it suggests that political connections could undermine auditor independence in fact and appearance.
Sweet Potato-Based Complementary Food for Infants in Low-Income Countries

Background In low-income countries, most infants are given cereal-based complementary foods prepared at the household level. Such foods are high in phytate, which limits the bioavailability of nutrients, including iron, calcium, zinc, and in some cases proteins, which are crucial to the development of infants. Objective To compare the levels of macronutrients (protein, fat, and carbohydrate), gross energy, and fructose in sweet potato-based (denoted ComFa) formulations and enriched Weanimix (dehulled maize–dehulled soybean–groundnut blend with fish powder and sugar incorporated). The phytate level was also compared. Methods A composite flour of sweet potato and soybeans containing fish powder was processed by oven toasting as a home-based complementary food. Another blend containing skim milk powder was processed by extrusion cooking or roller drying as industrial-based prototypes. The macronutrient composition and the levels of fructose and phytate were determined in the ComFa formulations and enriched Weanimix. Results The ComFa formulations and the enriched Weanimix met the stipulated values in the Codex Alimentarius Commission standard for energy (400 kcal/100 g), protein (15 g/100 g), and fat (10 to 25 g/100 g) for complementary food, with the exception of the industrial-based ComFa formulations, which satisfied 83% of the protein requirement (15 g/100 g). The ComFa formulations had a quarter of the phytate level of enriched Weanimix. The fructose level in the sweet potato-based complementary foods was more than five times that in enriched Weanimix. Conclusions The sweet potato-based formulations were superior to enriched Weanimix as complementary foods for infants in low-income countries, based on the fructose (which makes the porridge naturally sweet) and phytate levels.
Enabling Open Innovation Process Through Interactive Methods: Scenarios And Group Decision Support Systems

To be able to utilise opportunities in a radically changing business environment, various organisations are transforming their practices towards open innovation processes. Openness does not, however, mean any kind of looseness in innovation management but calls for coordination and facilitation. The challenge for the management in the open innovation process is to find out the appropriate methods and practices for the utilisation of external knowledge resources. One of the first attempts, this study brings two widely utilised innovation management methods — scenarios and the group decision support system (GDSS) — to the open innovation context and suggests guidelines for the management of the open innovation process in an inter-organisational context.
The Role and Functions of Audit Committees in the Indian Corporate Governance: Empirical Findings

This paper examines the composition, focus and functions of audit committees (ACs), the effects of meetings and the criteria used in the selection of members by Indian listed companies from 73 questionnaire responses. The survey was carried out during February-March, 2002. The study reveals that so far only 56.2% of companies have established an AC despite the fact that it is now mandatory. Of those companies which have ACs, 68.3% have between three and six members on ACs. However, only 14.6% of companies have independent nonexecutive directors on the committee, while 90.2% have nonexecutive directors. This shows a lack of independent representation on the committees. The functions of ACs are quite diverse and are classified in three areas: financial statements and reporting, audit planning, and internal control and evaluation. The review of annual audited financial statements, discussion and recommendations of audit fees and review of the effectiveness of internal control were rated very highly by the respondents. The review of note disclosure and scope of external audit work are other important functions performed by ACs. The most important areas for focus are compliance with the standards and regulatory bodies, probing material items and undisclosed liabilities. However, there are statistical differences between medium and large sized companies in the performance of their role. The main criteria used for membership of an AC are: experience and knowledge of business, experience of holding similar positions and accounting and finance expertise. Ownership in the company was not perceived as an important criterion. The majority of companies' AC meetings are held monthly or quarterly. MANOVA analysis reveals that the frequency of AC meetings has an effect on the internal control functions. The study concludes that the concept of an AC is not new in India but their formation is slow and their composition lacks independence. AC functions are still concentrated in the traditional areas of accounting and their role is not changing fast enough to make the corporate governance more effective.
Contraction-based variations in upper limb EMG-force models under isometric conditions

In this work, a previously developed model, which maps joint kinematic data and estimated muscle activation levels to net elbow joint torque, is trained with 4 groups of datasets in order to improve force estimation accuracy and gain insight into muscle behaviour. The training datasets are defined such that surface electromyogram (EMG) and force data are grouped within individual trials, across trials, within force levels and across force levels, and model performance is assessed. Average evaluation error ranged between 5% and 15%, with the lowest error observed for models trained with datasets grouped within separate force levels. Model error is further reduced when training datasets are grouped across data collection trials. Therefore, more accurate estimation of elbow joint behaviour can be accomplished by taking into account the functional requirements of muscle, and allowing for separate models to be developed accordingly.
Rational Choice and Revealed Preference

According to the currently dominant view, the choice behaviour of an agent is construed to be rational if there exists a preference relation R such that, for every set S of available states, the choice therefrom is the set of " R-optimal " points in S. ' There are at least two alternative definitions of R-optimality-R-maximality and R-greatestness. On the one hand, an x in S is said to be R-maximal in S if there exists no y in S which is strictly preferred to x in terms of R. On the other, an x in S is said to be R-greatest in S if, for all y in S, x is at least as preferable as y in terms of R. The former viewpoint can claim its relevance in view of the prevalent adoption of the concept of Pareto-efficiency in the theory of resource allocation processes.2 The latter standpoint is deeply rooted in the well-developed theories of the integrability problem, revealed preference and social choice. The difference between these two definitions of rational choice is basically as follows. Any two states in a choice function which is R-maximal rational are either R-indifferent or R-incomparable, while any two states in a choice function which is R-greatest rational are R-indifferent. A condition for rational choice has been put forward in terms of the R-greatestness interpretation of optimality (Hansson [4] and Richter [9, 10]). In this paper, a condition for rational choice in its R-maximality interpretation will be presented. The condition in question will, in a certain sense, synthesize both concepts of rationality, because it can be seen that the rational choice in terms of R-maximality is rational in terms of R-greatestness as well. The role of various axioms of revealed preference and congruence in the theory of rational choice will also be clarified. In this kind of analysis, special care should be taken with the domain of the choice function. It was Arrow [1] who first suggested that " the demand-function point of view would be greatly simplified if the range over which the choice functions are considered to be determined is broadened to include all finite sets ". This line of enquiry was recently completed by Sen [13]. ' It is true, as was persuasively discussed by Sen [13, Section 6], that there is no convincing reason for our restricting the domain of the choice function to the class of convex polyhedras representing budget sets in the commodity space. At the same time, however, it should be admitted that there exists no specific reason for our extending the domain so as to include all finite sets. This being the case, no restriction whatsoever will be placed on the domain of the choice function in this paper except that it should be a non-empty family of non-empty sets. In Section 2, our conceptual framework will be presented. The main results will be stated in Section 3, proofs thereof being given in Section 4. In Section 5 we will present some examples which will negate the converse of our theorems. Finally, Section 6 will be devoted to comparing our results with the Arrow-Sen theory, on the one hand, and the Richter-Hansson theory, on the other.
An empirical analysis of corporate debt maturity structure

This paper provides an empirical examination of the determinants of corporate debt maturity structure. A partial adjustment model is estimated by GMM estimation procedure using data for an unbalanced panel of UK firms over the period 1983-1996. The evidence is consistent with the hypothesis that firms with more growth opportunities in their investment sets tend to have more shorter-term debt. There is also strong evidence for a positive impact of size on debt maturity structure. The results also provide strong support for the maturity-matching hypothesis that firms match the maturity structure of their debt to that of their assets. The findings are inconsistent with the signalling hypothesis that firms use their debt maturity structure to signal information to the market. We find no evidence that taxes affect debt maturity structure. Our results suggest that firms have long-term target ratios and they adjust to the target ratio relatively fast, which might suggest that the costs of being away from their target debt maturity ratios are significant.
Rectus Femoris Muscle Tear Appearing as a Pseudotumor

Quadriceps muscle strains are common sporting injuries, but occasionally a tear of the rectus femoris muscle can appear as a soft tissue mass of the anterior thigh with or without a significant history of trauma. Between 1992 and 1996, seven patients were referred to the Orthopaedic Oncology Unit at Walter Reed Army Medical Center with an unexplained soft tissue mass of the thigh. Three were active duty soldiers, three were military dependents, and one was a retired serviceman. All patients were men, and the mean age was 32 years (range, 15 to 73). A palpable, mildly tender mass was confirmed on clinical examination. Laboratory studies and plain radiographs were normal. Magnetic resonance imaging showed an obvious, but often ill-defined, lesion at the musculotendinous junction of the rectus femoris muscle. Four patients subsequently underwent a tissue biopsy to rule out a soft tissue sarcoma. Histologic studies showed fibrosis, degeneration of muscle fibers, and chronic inflammatory cells with no evidence of malignancy. A chronic rectus femoris muscle tear can mimic a soft tissue tumor or sarcoma and needs to be excluded in the differential diagnosis. These tears may occur acutely or may represent an overuse injury caused by repeated micro-trauma. Careful history taking, physical examination, and selective radiographic studies, specifically magnetic resonance imaging, can confirm the diagnosis of muscle tear and full functional recovery can be anticipated.
A novel role for Bcl‐2 associated‐athanogene‐1 (Bag‐1) in regulation of the endoplasmic reticulum stress response in mammalian chondrocytes

BAG‐1 (Bcl‐2 associated athanogene‐1) is a multifunctional protein, linking cell proliferation, cell death, protein folding, and cell stress. In vivo, BAG‐1 is expressed in growth plate and articular cartilage, and the expression of BAG‐1 is decreased with aging. Chondrocytes respond to endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress with decreased expression of extracellular matrix proteins, and prolonged ER stress leads to chondrocyte apoptosis. Here we demonstrate for the first time that BAG‐1 is involved in ER stress‐induced apoptosis in chondrocytes. Induction of ER stress through multiple mechanisms all resulted in downregulation of BAG‐1 expression. In addition, direct suppression of BAG‐1 expression resulted in chondrocyte growth arrest and apoptosis, while stable overexpression of BAG‐1 delayed the onset of ER stress‐mediated apoptosis. In addition to regulating apoptosis, we also observed decreased expression of collagen type II in BAG‐1 deficient chondrocytes. In contrast, overexpression of BAG‐1 resulted in increased expression of collagen type II. Moreover, under ER stress conditions, the reduced expression of collagen type II was delayed in chondrocytes overexpressing BAG‐1. These results suggest a novel role for BAG‐1 in supporting viability and matrix expression of chondrocytes. J. Cell. Biochem. 102: 786–800, 2007. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Mortality in early inflammatory polyarthritis: cardiovascular mortality is increased in seropositive patients.

OBJECTIVE To determine the degree and causes of any excess mortality observed during the early years of inflammatory polyarthritis (IP). METHODS Between 1990 and 1994, a total of 1,236 patients were registered with the Norfolk Arthritis Register, a primary care-based inception cohort. All patients were tracked on the National Health Service Central Register for notification of death. The vital status of each patient was determined as of December 31, 1999. Causes of death were coded according to the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision. Expected death rates were calculated using annual death rates for the Norfolk population. Standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) were calculated for all IP patients and for the subgroups of patients who did and did not satisfy the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) 1987 criteria for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) at baseline, as well as for the subgroups who were and were not rheumatoid factor (RF) positive at baseline. RESULTS By December 31, 1999, 160 patients (13%; 79 women and 81 men) had died. The median duration of followup in the entire cohort was 6.9 years. Mortality rates were not significantly increased in the entire group of patients with IP or in the subgroup who met the ACR 1987 criteria for RA at baseline. In contrast, RF-positive patients had an increased rate of death from all causes (SMR in men 1.51, in women 1.41). Cardiovascular disease was the most common cause of death. The majority of the excess mortality in the RF-positive patients could be attributed to cardiovascular causes (SMR in men 1.34, in women 2.02). CONCLUSION Excess mortality in the early years of IP is confined to patients who are seropositive for RF. While excess cardiovascular mortality has been described in patients with established RA, this is the first report of premature death from heart disease in the early years of IP.
Dual Betas from Bull and Bear Markets: Reversal of the Size Effect

Significant firm-size-related differences in abnormal returns and systematic risks occur in bull and bear market months from 1926 to 1988. Potential differential return premiums between recessions and expansions appear to be captured by the varying risk model and not the constant risk model. Using a dual-beta market model to adjust for risk differences in bull and bear markets, we find that large firm stocks on average earn significant positive excess returns and small firm stocks earn significant negative excess returns. Superior performance of large firm stocks is even more pronounced outside January.