Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Discretionary government intervention and the mispricing of index futures

This article examines how and to what extent direct market intervention by the Hong Kong government in both the stock and futures markets affected the pricing relationship between the Hang Seng Index futures and the cash index during the period of the Asian financial crisis. The study avoids infrequent trading and nonexecution problems by using tradeable bid and offer quotes for the constituent stocks of the index. The results show that arbitrage efficiency was impeded during, and in the immediate aftermath of, the intervention. The findings suggest that discretionary government action introduces an additional risk factor for arbitrageurs that continues to disrupt normal market processes even after the government ceases to intervene. The continued disruption following the government's actions in the market also stems from a poorly developed stock loan market that impedes short selling, as well as a lack of liquidity in the market. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Jrl Fut Mark 23:1159–1189, 2003
Inflammatory arthritic process, iridocyclitis and immune response to articular and ocular antigens in Wistar rats injected with T. gondii trophozoites.

The present study deals with the potential role of T. gondii in inducing an arthritic inflammatory process. Wistar rats were injected subcutaneously (sc) into the right footpad with viable T. gondii trophozoites emulsified in incomplete Freund's adjuvant (IFA). The control group was injected with IFA. All parasite-injected animals developed a local inflammatory process characterized by hind limb swelling and marked restriction of ankle motility approximately 25 days after injection. Histopathogical studies of the joints, carried out 90 days after injection, revealed intense mononuclear infiltration, proliferation of granulation tissue, giant cells and necrosis in the synovia of 90% of T. gondii-injected rats. Strikingly, 40% (4/10) of the parasite-injected animals developed iridocyclitis, which was characterized by intense mononuclear infiltration around the iris-ciliary microvasculature in two animals and a slightly pronounced infiltrate of polymorphonuclear and mononuclear cells in two other animals. Antibodies to soluble T. gondii antigens (STAg) were detected in all parasite-injected rats. Antibodies against articular and ocular antigens such as proteoglycans, type II collagen, retinal S antigen and iris antigens were detected by ELISA in 40, 80, 70 and 70% of T. gondii -injected animals, respectively. Control animals injected with IFA failed to develop any articular or ocular process or humoral immune response. The present study demonstrated that footpad sc injection of Wistar rats with viable T. gondii trophozoites was able to induce a localized inflammatory arthritic process which, in some of the animals, was accompanied by iridocyclitis and immune response against articular and ocular components.
Northern Ireland Student Teachers' Changing Attitudes towards Inclusive Education during Initial Teacher Training.

With the passing of the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Act into law alongside the move away from academic selection for post-primary pupils by 2008 and a far reaching review of the curriculum, education in Northern Ireland is about to face its most radical change in fifty years. Issues relating to Inclusive Education are now pressing and in addressing such change, it is recognized that pre-service programmes must be reviewed to ensure that student teachers are equipped to teach effectively in classrooms that may be very different from their own learning experience. This study seeks to discover the factors influencing student teachers changing attitudes towards inclusion during a one year Post-Graduate Diploma in Education. The findings reveal that positive attitudes towards inclusion were tempered by concern about personal competency to teach in an inclusive classroom and by continued attachment to the current system of academic selection with which they were familiar. The effect of a successful teaching practice in the non-selective sector had the most positive influence on perceived competency and on general attitudes towards inclusion. This research concludes that those responsible for pre-service education in Northern Ireland should ensure that school based experience is also underpinned with an effective programme of academic study about inclusion-based practices
Introduction: The Role Perception and Behaviour of Municipal Councillors in the Changing Context of Local Democracy

Political leadership at the local level has attracted growing attention in recent years in parallel with reforms of local government and of municipal administration, as well as the debate on a shift from government to governance. But this debate has been mainly focused on sole leaders, i.e. mayors or executive officers. Taking into account the power triangle of (i) mayor, (ii) municipal administration (executive officers) and (iii) council, it is surprising that councillors have so far received little by way of attention. It is amazing that case studies like the one carried out in the 1960s by Eulau and Prewitt (1973) on the 82 city councils in the San Francisco Bay area have not been replicated in recent years. The aim of this special issue is to reflect on the role and task perception, as well as the behaviour, of councillors in the changing context of local democracy. The articles collected for this special issue use a common conceptual framework sketched out in Figure 1. We start from the hypothesis that the role perception and behaviour of councillors, as well as their attitudes towards reforms at the local level, cannot be seen as being determined directly by (i) both formal and informal institutional structures and/or by (ii) personal characteristics. Instead, we argue (in line with Fishbein and Ajzen 1975 and Ajzen and Fishbein 1980) that councillors’ role perceptions and behaviour depend on their notion of democracy as an expression of their basic beliefs about appropriate behaviour and subjective norms.
Response of Tabanidae (Diptera) to different natural attractants

ABSTRACT The response of female tabanids to natural attractants was studied in the Monjoroš Forest along the Nature Park Kopački rit in eastern Croatia. Tabanids were caught in canopy traps baited with either aged cow, horse, sheep, or pig urine and also in unbaited traps. Tabanids were collected in a significantly higher numbers in traps baited with natural attractants compared to unbaited traps. The number of females of Tabanus bromius, Tabanus maculicornis, Tabanus tergestinus, and Hybomitra bimaculata collected from canopy traps baited with cow urine and traps baited with other natural attractants differed significantly. Females of Haematopota pluvialis were also collected more frequently in canopy traps baited with aged cow urine than in those with aged horse urine, but this difference was not significant. However, the number of females of Haematopota pluvialis collected from canopy traps baited with other natural attractants (sheep and pig urine) differed significantly when compared with aged cow urine baited traps. Canopy traps baited with aged cow urine collected significantly more Tabanus sudeticus than did traps baited with aged pig urine. Finally, the aged cow urine baited canopy traps collected 51 times more tabanids than unbaited traps, while aged horse, aged sheep, and aged pig urine baited traps collected 36, 30, and 22 times as many tabanids, respectively, than unbaited traps.
Experimental strategies for induction of gastric adenocarcinomas under long-term proton pump inhibitor administration and Helicobacter pylori infection.

We read with interest the study by Tsukamoto et al. (2011) published in the recent issue of Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention. They examined the effect of the administration of long-term proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) to Mongolian gerbils (MGs) infected with Helicobacter pylori and observed the development of neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) and an increase in serum gastrin levels, but did not observe heterotopic proliferative glands (HPGs), gastritis, or any adenocarcinomas. In contrast, in our recent study, we observed atrophic corpus gastritis and the development of adenocarcinomas in an animal model (Hagiwara et al., 2011). Tsukamoto et al. cited our study and stated this difference may be due to differences in medicines or doses administered. However, we postulate that the differences between their experimental results and ours are caused by not only different medicines and doses administered but also the timing of initiation and duration of PPI administration. We were surprised that they did not detect any HPGs or corpus atrophic gastritis in the H. pylori-infected plus PPI-administered group. Several researchers have reported observing HPGs in the glandular stomach of MGs infected with H. pylori (Tatematsu et al., 2005), and we also observed HPGs and corpus atrophic gastritis in not only the H. pylori-infected group but also the H. pyloriinfected plus PPI-administered group in our recent study (Hagiwara et al., 2011). We speculate if H. pylori was eradicated or if their number was reduced significantly by lansoprazole administration in their study. Considering that PPIs are usually administered in adulthood, the timing of lansoprazole administration in their study, beginning one month after H. pylori infection, may be equivalent to that of lansoprazole administration in human infancy or childhood. The point of most concern in their study is that the authors have not evaluated the presence of infections. Moreover, they may have ignored another important fact that lansoprazole has stronger bacteriocidal activity against H. pylori than omeprazole; the MIC50 of lansoprazole is approximately 4-16 times lower than that of omeprazole (Midolo et al., 1996; Alarcon et al., 1998). These facts suggest that lansoprazole may have eradicated H. pylori in the early phase of their experiment before the establishment of H. pylori infection in the H. pylori-infected plus PPI-administered group in their study. Therefore, the timing of initiation of PPI administration may be important and should be set after considering LETTER to the EDITOR
The Real Effects of Corporate Fraud: Evidence from Class Action Lawsuits

Using a sample of lawsuit firms from 1996 to 2009, this study examines whether fraud revelation through shareholder class action affects corporate financing and investment policies. We predict that revelation of fraud damages defendant firms’ reputation and undermines credibility of their financial disclosure. As a result, such firms experience difficulty in financing and reduce investment accordingly. Consistent with our prediction, we find that fraud-committing firms experience a decline in total financing (total investment) by 1.5% (0.8%) of total assets after fraud revelation. Difference-in-differences analyses reinforce our main findings. The impact is more pronounced for firms with lower inherent fraud incidence.
How Knowledge Worker Teams Deal Effectively with Task Uncertainty: The Impact of Transformational Leadership and Group Development

The purpose of this paper is to clarify how leadership is able to improve team effectiveness, by means of its influence on group processes (i.e., increasing group development) and on the group task (i.e., decreasing task uncertainty). Four hundred and eight members of 107 teams in a German research and development (R&D) organization completed a web-based survey; they provided measures of transformational leadership, group development, 2 aspects of task uncertainty, task interdependence, and team effectiveness. In 54 of these teams, the leaders answered a web-based survey on team effectiveness. We tested the model with the data from team members, using structural equations modeling. Group development and a task uncertainty measurement that refers to unstable demands from outside the team partially mediate the effect of transformational leadership on team effectiveness in R&D organizations (p < 0.05). Although transformational leaders reduce unclarity of goals (p < 0.05), this seems not to contribute to team effectiveness. The data provided by the leaders was used to assess common source bias, which did not affect the interpretability of the results. Limitations include cross-sectional data and a lower than expected variance of task uncertainty across different job types. This paper contributes to understanding how knowledge worker teams deal effectively with task uncertainty and confirms the importance of group development in this context. This is the first study to examine the effects of transformational leadership and team processes on team effectiveness considering the task characteristics uncertainty and interdependence.
Gender Differences in Children's Nutrition and Access to Health Care in Pakistan

This article analyses gender differences in children's nutrition and access to health care in Pakistan with a view to uncovering parents motives for the favouring of sons in South Asia. It is found that, among 0 to 5-year-old children, boys are favoured in the allocation of health care. However, girls appear as nourished as or better nourished than boys. This is taken to be evidence that intra-household gender discrimination has primary origins not in parental preference for boys but in differential returns to parents from investment in boys and girls.
The Impact of Demographic Change on Social Security Financing

The relationship between prospective demographic changes and social security tax rates over the long term is examined for four countries--the Federal Republic of Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Through use of a simple projection model it is shown that, without significant reform, social security programs as constituted in 1980 would have implied substantial increases in social security tax rates by the year 2025 in all four countries. The model is then used to explore how a range of policy options would affect the evolution of tax rates. Recent policy measures taken in each of the countries can be summarized in terms of the model, and it is shown that these measures lead to markedly lower tax rates than with unreformed programs, although the tax rate in Germany will remain high.
Poverty and Growth in Southeast Asia

Over recent decades, most countries of Southeast Asia achieved reductions in absolute poverty incidence, but these reductions varied in magnitude between countries and over time. This paper shows that differences in the rate and sectoral composition of economic growth explain part, but not all, of these differences. It describes outcomes on poverty incidence in Southeast Asia and relates them to the growth of output in the agricultural, industrial and services sectors. This analysis uses data from the 1970s to the most recent available for Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, and the Philippines to analyse the economic determinants of changes in poverty incidence in Southeast Asia.
Cluster Firms: You'll Never Walk Alone

Molina-Morales F. X. and Martínez-Cháfer L. Cluster firms: you'll never walk alone, Regional Studies. The role of supporting organizations is subject to controversy. Although many studies have reported positive effects, the significance of these organizations still remains diluted among different explanatory factors. This paper uses social network analysis techniques to investigate the extent to which supporting organizations really act as intermediaries in clusters and how they may improve the structural indicators of the networks involved. Overall findings go further than the specific cluster literature, since they shed light on the role of the nodes and links in networks, and provide evidence of the potential benefits for focal actors.
A study on high current rectifier systems with mitigated time-varying magnetic field generation at ac input and dc output busbars

This paper investigates occupational exposure to time-varying magnetic field generation in high power rectifier systems. Two different kinds of high power rectifier systems rated for 25kA are modeled and analyzed. The performance is compared and evaluated on the basis of exposure guidelines from ICNIRP(International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection). In order to focus on the qualitative effect of rectifier operation, the mechanical structure of current carrying conductors is simplified as infinite long bus-bar model and low frequency harmonic contents up to 65kHz are considered. Thyristor rectifier generates a significant amount of low frequency magnetic field harmonic contents both at ac and dc side of rectifier infringing the limit from ICNIRP. The multilevel rectifier-IGCT type has almost negligible field generation from ac input side and smaller harmonic contents in dc load side complying with ICNIRP guideline. This remarkable advantage of multilevel rectifier-IGCT type can lead to very simple site layout design for installation and cost-effective compliance to guideline of occupational exposure against magnetic field.
Econometric analysis of productivity with measurement error: Empirical application to the US Railroad industry

This paper analyzes the productivity in the US rail industry for the period 1980 - 2006. I propose a value-added production framework to circumvent the problem of measurement error in one input. I find evidence showing that aggregate productivity gains can be attributed to returns to scale and the reshuffling of resources to more efficient firms. However, productivity slows down for the period 1995 - 2000 after important concentrations. I also look at the correlations between firm-level productivity and the operating environment. My results show that failing to control for the omitted price variable bias leads to an overestimation of productivity gains.
Telecommunications and economic growth: a panel data approach

Telecommunication investment is increasingly identified as one with a strong potential to improve economic productivity and growth. The objective of this study is to investigate the long run relationship between telecommunications infrastructure and economic growth, using data from 22 OECD countries. A dynamic panel data method is used for estimation, which corrects for omitted variables bias of single equation cross-section regression. The ‘fixed-effects’ specification accounts for country specific differences in aggregate production functions. The results show a significant and positive correlation between telecommunications infrastructure and growth, after controlling for a number of other factors.
Economic Efficiency of Mergers in the Czech Republic 2001–2010

AbstractThe paper presents partial results of research focusing on accounting, taxation and legal aspects of mergers in the Czech market. The input source is a database of mergers implemented in the Czech territory, which compiles data taken from the Trade Register for the decade of 2001–2010. The structure of the data allows for an evaluation of development trends of mergers in the Czech market, analysis of economic consequences of mergers and finding possible causes of their success or failure. From economic characteristics of merger success, we have chosen the item of net assets. Statistical testing of the hypothesis proved that mergers do not affect net assets during the period of three years after the merger implementation. A significant dependence of net assets development on mergers was proved after the basic set was stratified based on the size of companies. Mergers have a positive effect on the growth of value for owners in the group of small enterprises in the third year after the merger; the va.
The Application of Network Analysis to the Study of Trial Courts

In the late 1960s, scholars began studying trial courts as organizations. Since the last large wave of these studies in the 1990s, there have been reforms that purport to alter state court institutions. The literature on trial courts has not yet addressed how reforms, like specialized courts, alter trial courts as organizations. Studies of trial courts could also profit from the application of other methods for analyzing organizations. This article explores the use of network analysis to examine the organizational linkages and structure of trial courts. After reviewing the literature on trial courts and recent court reforms, we make a case for the utility of this methodological approach. Recent computer applications of network analysis can visually map the linkages between trial court actors and the organizations that work with them. As a demonstration, we provide some of the results of our study of a state trial court located in a medium-size U.S. city. We conclude by arguing that network analysis as a technique can help scholars test past assumptions about the organization of courts and explore new linkages that are proposed by the adoption of court reforms.
LONG‐TERM OUTCOME OF SUBCUTANEOUSLY PRESERVED AUTOLOGOUS CRANIOPLASTY

OBJECTIVEDecompressive craniectomy for intracranial hypertension mandates later cranioplasty. Autologous cranioplasties can be preserved either by freezing or placement in a subcutaneous pocket. There are few data on the long-term follow-up of patients treated in such a fashion. METHODSA retrospective study was conducted on 100 consecutive patients who underwent decompressive craniectomy and placement of the bone flap in a subcutaneous pocket in the abdominal wall between 2000 and 2005. Initial diagnosis, Glasgow Coma Scale score on admission, complications, and Glasgow Outcome Score were recorded. RESULTSOf the 100 patients who underwent autocranioplasty, the primary diagnosis was traumatic brain injury (76%), subarachnoid hemorrhage (17%), primary intracerebral hemorrhage (3%), and tumor (4%). The mean age of the sample was 39 years (age range, 10–72 years). The mean follow-up duration was 25 months. The average Glasgow Coma Scale score on admission was 7. Eight patients died before replacement of the bone flap. The average time between craniectomy and replacement of bone flap was 42 days. The mean Glasgow Outcome Score was 4 at the time of the 1-year follow-up evaluation. Seven of the 79 patients (9%) for whom 1-year review data were available had a cosmetic result that was unacceptable and required removal of the flap (bone flap infections in 5 patients, unacceptable bone flap resorption in 2 patients) CONCLUSIONOur study indicates that storage of a cranioplasty flap in a subcutaneous pouch in the abdominal wall has a favorable long-term outcome.
English commercial bank liquidity, 1860–1913

This article presents new half-yearly time series for the asset ratios of commercial banks in England and Wales, 1860-1913. The series reveal new evidence on the nature of the banks' business and are, therefore, relevant to the debate on the role of banks in British economic development. The new estimates are used to examine trends and short-term changes in bank liquidity. Analysis is concerned with the changing stability of bank asset structure and with substitutability across different asset ratios. The main finding is of a sharp, long-term increase in liquidity and a concomitant decline in bank credit to the non-bank, private sector. The article also highlights the significance of short-term shocks to the trend increase in bank liquidity. The new findings are supportive of the argument that, over time, English banks became less involved with the non-bank private sector. In general, the results confirm that the English and Welsh bank asset structure became more liquid over time. However, no detailed breakdown of bank loans to the non-bank, private sector (for example, between business loans and personal loans), is available for this period. Moreover, the current study offers no evidence as to the trend in financial provision to the business sector from institutions other than the commercial banks. Nevertheless, the results are clear in showing a strong upward trend in commercial bank liquidity and a relative decline in private sector credit provision by the commercial banks.