Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of declining aerosols on projections of zonally averaged tropical precipitation

All of the representative concentration pathways (RCPs) assume that future emissions of aerosols and aerosol precursors will decline sharply. There is considerable evidence that historically increasing aerosols have substantially affected tropical precipitation, but the effects of projected aerosol declines have received little attention. We compare projections forced by the medium-low RCP4.5 pathway in two subsets of models from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5): one group (HiForc) includes treatments of indirect aerosol effects on cloud albedo and cloud lifetime as well as direct aerosol effects, while the other group (LoForc) only treats direct aerosol effects. In this scenario we find that models in the HiForc group consistently project larger increases in both the mean and inter-hemispheric (north minus south) asymmetry of tropical sea-surface temperature (SST) and precipitation than do models in the LoForc group. Earlier projections from CMIP3, in which future aerosol declines were assumed to be smaller, behave more like the CMIP5 LoForc group. These results show that projected tropical SST and precipitation changes are sensitive to assumptions about aerosol emissions and indirect aerosol effects. If the real world resembles the HiForc group, then future aerosol changes are likely to be an important (even dominant) driver of tropical precipitation changes under low to moderate forcing scenarios.
Leadership development: A review and Agenda for future research.

This chapter develops a conceptual framework that helps organize and synthesize key insights from the literature on leadership development. In this framework, called PREPARE, the authors call attention to the strategic purpose and desired results of leadership development in organizations. They emphasize how organizations can deliberately and systematically leverage a range of developmental experiences for enhancing the leadership capabilities of individuals, relationships, and collectives. Finally, they highlight how individuals and organizations vary in their approach to and support for leadership development, and how these differences explain variation in leadership development processes and outcomes. As an organizing mechanism for the existing literature, the PREPARE framework advances our understanding of what individuals and organizations can do to develop leadership talent, and highlights important questions for future research.
Professional Training of Secondary School Principals in Nigeria: A Neglected Area in the Educational System.

The paper examines the professional training of Principals of secondary schools in Nigeria. The study observes that teaching experience appears to be the major yardstick that is being used currently to promote teachers to the rank of school Principals in the country. After drawing experiences from some other countries on how Principals are trained and appointed, the paper concludes that teaching experience should not be the only yardstick for appointing Principals of secondary schools in Nigeria. As school administrators, the principals need to be formally trained before they assume administrative positions. The paper therefore suggests that the National policy on Education should be amended such that potential principals would attend mandatory leadership courses at the National Institute for Educational Planning and Administration (NIEPA) before they assume managerial positions. It further proposed that NIEPA should expand its programmes to provide the opportunities and avenues for such training.
Effects of Simultaneous Exercise and Loud Music on Hearing Acuity and Auditory Function

Hearing acuity can be reduced temporarily after exposure to loud noise, and the physiological responses that occur with exercise may enhance this effect. Currently, it is not known whether short-term reductions in hearing acuity after noise exposure and exercise are a result of temporary changes in auditory function. Therefore, the purpose of this investigation was to determine the acute effects of simultaneous exercise and loud music on hearing acuity and auditory function in young, healthy women. Nine women (age = 22 ± 5 years, body mass index = 23.9 ± 2.2, Vo2peak = 30.6 ± 6.0 ml·kg−1·min−1) with normal hearing thresholds (<20 dB hearing level) underwent each of 3 conditions in a randomized counterbalanced design: (a) loud music exposure of 90 to 95 dB sound pressure level for 20 minutes, (b) exercise at 60% Vo2peak on a cycle ergometer for 20 minutes, and (c) simultaneous exercise and music exposure for 20 minutes. Hearing acuity and auditory function were assessed via pure-tone hearing thresholds and distortion product otoacoustic emission amplitudes, respectively, at frequencies of 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8 kHz presented in random order before and after each condition. Results indicate that hearing acuity and auditory function remained unaltered after exposure to each condition (p > 0.05). These findings provide evidence that hearing acuity and auditory function in young women do not change after short-term exposure to moderate-intensity exercise and loud music. Thus, listening to loud music with earphones during moderate-intensity exercise does not pose acute hearing health concerns for young physically fit adults with normal hearing.
Determinants of employee engagement and their impact on employee performance

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify the key determinants of employee engagement and their predictability of the concept. It also studies the impact of employee engagement on employee performance. Design/methodology/approach – Causal study was done to study the impact of relationships. A survey questionnaire was developed and validated using a pilot data (a=0.975). Simple random sampling was used to select the employees from middle and lower managerial levels from small-scale organisations. A total of 700 questionnaires were distributed and 383 valid responses collected. Regression and structural equation modelling were used to predict and estimate the relationships. Findings – It was found that all the identified factors were predictors of employee engagement (r2, 0.672), however, the variables that had major impact were working environment and team and co-worker relationship. Employee engagement had significant impact on employee performance (r2, 0.597). Practical implications – Special fo.
Integrated Water Resources Management: Is It Working?

Integrated water resources management is not a new concept: it has been around for some two generations. In the early 1990s it was ‘rediscovered’ by some water professionals, and then subsequently heavily promoted by several donors and international institutions. In spite of the fact that its promoters have spent hundreds of millions of dollars in recent years, the facts remain that the definition of this concept remains amorphous, and the results of its application in a real world to improve water policy, programme and projects at macro- and meso-scales have left much to be desired. At a scale of 1 to 100 (1 being no integrated water resources management and 100 being full integration), any objective analyst will be hard-pressed to give a score of 30 to any one activity anywhere in the world in terms of its application. The paper reviews the reasons for its recent popularity, why the concept has not been a universal solution in the past, as claimed by its promoters, and also discusses why it is highly unlikely to work in the future.
Consolidation in the U.S. Banking Industry: Is the "Long, Strange Trip" About to End?

Consolidation in the U.S. banking industry has resulted in a reduction of nearly 50 percent in the number of bank and thrift organizations over the last 20 years. Our paper reviews the structural changes that have occurred in the industry over this period; reexamines the macroeconomic forces and microeconomic motives behind the consolidation trend; reviews the results of empirical research on how consolidation has affected such things as banking competition, efficiency, profitability, shareholder value, and the availability and pricing of banking services; and speculates on how the current forces of change might affect the industry's structure going forward. As the 21st century unfolds, we find that a number of the forces driving the consolidation trend in the past are no longer relevant or are greatly diminished in influence. By incorporating this knowledge into our analysis, we anticipate that the banking industry may experience only slight to moderate declines in the number of organizations over the next five to ten years.
Investors’ Perceptions of Auditors’ Economic Dependence on the Client

The authors revisit the client importance and auditor independence debate, and investigate whether investors’ perceptions of the auditor’s economic dependence has changed since the passage of the Sarbanes–Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX). Client importance is measured as the proportion of client nonaudit service fees, audit fees, or total fees to the total audit office revenue. Consistent with their hypothesis, they find a significant decrease in the association between both nonaudit services (NAS) and total fees, and the cost of equity from the pre- to the post-SOX period, indicating that investors’ concerns over auditor independence have changed in the post-SOX period. In addition, the authors find some evidence of a positive and significant association between both audit fees (2003) and total fees (2004), and cost of equity in the post-SOX period. Overall, these results indicate that the independence requirements in SOX and/or the heightened litigation environment post-SOX have, to some extent, mitigated but not completely eliminated investors’ concerns over the threat of economic fee dependence.
On the long-range dependence of fractional Poisson and negative binomial processes

Abstract We discuss the short-range dependence (SRD) property of the increments of the fractional Poisson process, called the fractional Poissonian noise. We also establish that the fractional negative binomial process (FNBP) has the long-range dependence (LRD) property, while the increments of the FNBP have the SRD property. Our definitions of the SRD/LRD properties are similar to those for a stationary process and different from those recently used in Biard and Saussereau (2014).
Board information: meeting the evolving needs of corporate directors

Purpose - Amid ongoing criticism that corporate boards do not receive adequate information to help them fulfill their current and emerging roles, the purpose of this paper is to focus on the type of information directors receive. Specifically, to examine whether greater board independence and greater board expertise were associated with receiving more information, in five specific categories. Design/methodology/approach - Hypotheses about the relationships between the composition of corporate boards and the various types of information they receive were tested by means of a survey of 161 Canadian companies listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange. Findings - The authors findings indicate a strong association between board expertise and each type of information received and suggest a weaker relationship between board independence and information received. Specifically, the results demonstrate that more independent boards do not receive larger amounts of information that is more forward-looking in nature. Research limitations/implications - These findings contribute to the literature on governance by providing relevant empirical evidence, based on primary data on board information issues. However, these results must be interpreted within the context of the use of various perceptual measures. Practical implications - Now that the composition of corporate boards has changed considerably, the findings of this study underline the need to re-examine the supporting information processes. Hence, this study should help provide guidance to organizations examining the content of their current information strategy. Originality/value - An important contribution of this study is its detailed characterization of the information provided to corporate boards, including financial and non-financial information and reflecting the five traditional stages of the strategic management process.
RNA Splicing at Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 3′ Splice Site A2 Is Regulated by Binding of hnRNP A/B Proteins to an Exonic Splicing Silencer Element

ABSTRACT The synthesis of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) mRNAs is a complex process by which more than 30 different mRNA species are produced by alternative splicing of a single primary RNA transcript. HIV-1 splice sites are used with significantly different efficiencies, resulting in different levels of mRNA species in infected cells. Splicing of Tat mRNA, which is present at relatively low levels in infected cells, is repressed by the presence of exonic splicing silencers (ESS) within the two tat coding exons (ESS2 and ESS3). These ESS elements contain the consensus sequence PyUAG. Here we show that the efficiency of splicing at 3′ splice site A2, which is used to generate Vpr mRNA, is also regulated by the presence of an ESS (ESSV), which has sequence homology to ESS2 and ESS3. Mutagenesis of the three PyUAG motifs within ESSV increases splicing at splice site A2, resulting in increased Vpr mRNA levels and reduced skipping of the noncoding exon flanked by A2 and D3. The increase in Vpr mRNA levels and the reduced skipping also occur when splice site D3 is mutated toward the consensus sequence. By in vitro splicing assays, we show that ESSV represses splicing when placed downstream of a heterologous splice site. A1, A1B, A2, and B1 hnRNPs preferentially bind to ESSV RNA compared to ESSV mutant RNA. Each of these proteins, when added back to HeLa cell nuclear extracts depleted of ESSV-binding factors, is able to restore splicing repression. The results suggest that coordinate repression of HIV-1 RNA splicing is mediated by members of the hnRNP A/B protein family.
Exploring the relationship between perceived electronic service quality, satisfaction, and personality: a study of Taiwan's online game industry

E-commerce is transforming the form of competition, the speed of operation, and the way of interactions, services, products, and money from consumers to companies and from companies to suppliers. Developing an e-commerce ability has grown into a principal thing for companies. Service quality is normally related to customers' behavioural intentions and actual behavioural patterns in product and service settings. Therefore, electronic service quality (e-SQ) is likely to be a determinant of e-commerce success. However, few studies have examined the effects of customer personality traits on perceived e-commerce service quality and web behaviours. An online game is a game played over some form of computer network.The online game industry has grown fast into an important industry in Taiwan. Based on the above, the purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between perceived e-SQ, satisfaction, and personality and it aims at the online game industry in Taiwan. The findings can supply important information for improvements and a basis for further research for researchers and practitioners.
Firm‐level performance impact of IS support for product innovation

Purpose – This paper seeks to assess the bottom‐line (profitability) impact of information systems support for product innovation at the firm level, based on the current resource‐based view of the competitive role of information systems (IS). The paper also explores the role of firm‐specific information and knowledge that complement IS support for product innovation in moderating the performance impact of the IS support.Design/methodology/approach – Both survey and archival data were used to assess the profitability impact of IS support for product innovation. Data tapping IS support for product innovation and firm‐specific, complementary information and knowledge were collected from a survey of senior IS executives from 760 large companies operating in different industries in the United States. The profitability data were obtained from the Research Insight database. Hierarchical regression analyses were employed to test the research hypotheses.Findings – Providing IS support for product innovation alone .
MONEY GROWTH AND INFLATION IN THE UNITED STATES

Specification tests reject a linear inflation forecasting model over the period 1959–2002. Based on this finding, we evaluate the out-of-sample inflation forecasts of a fully nonparametric model for 1994–2002. Our two main results are that: (i) nonlinear models produce much better forecasts than linear models, and (ii) including money growth in the nonparametric model yields marginal improvements, but including velocity reduces the mean squared forecast error by as much as 40%. A threshold model fits the data well over the full sample, offering an interpretation of our findings. We conclude that it is important to account for both nonlinearity and the behavior of monetary aggregates when forecasting inflation.
Integrating target costing and the balanced scorecard

Target costing (TC) has been used successfully for years by leading Japanese companies, principally to motivate design engineers to look for innovative ways to manage cost while not neglecting other crucial dimensions such as product quality and time-to-market. This article explores ways that the balanced scorecard (BSC) may help in the target costing process—specifically, how the balanced scorecard could serve as an interactive control system of intensive review, dialogues, and debates to ensure that a company is heading toward its targets. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Major Factors Influencing the Performance of Local Private Third Party Logistics Service Providers in Southern China

The increase in foreign trade that resulted from China’s membership of the World Trade Organization (WTO) created substantial pressure on its logistics system and made change inevitable for local private third party logistics service providers (3PLs) in China who found themselves unable to compete with the global logistics players who began operating in China after it joined the WTO. This study provides an empirically-based model to help local private 3PLs formulate appropriate strategies for improving their performance. Although there is a plethora of literature relating to the improvement of organizational performance and the development of quality management models, most of the studies have been conducted in Western countries and used only one or two organizational performance variables. This study sought to redress that by conducting a study of local 3PLs in southern China to empirically investigate the relationship between the four performance variables of the Balanced Scorecard and the six quality management factors developed for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. Southern. Although it was found that the six factors have a strong relationship with the four organizational performance variables, not all factors are significant constructs to each performance variable. The findings provide local private 3PLs in China with indicators as to which factors do and which factors do not have a positive and significant effect on each of the four organizational performance variables considered. The study clearly shows that performance improvement should not be considered from the financial perspective alone, but should also include customer orientation, business process, and learning and growth.
Industrialization and the Big Push

This paper explores Rosenstein-Rodan's idea that simultaneous industrialization of many sectors of the economy can be profitable for them all even when no sector can break even industrializing alone. We analyze this idea in the context of an imperfectly competitive economy with aggregate demand spillovers and interpret the big push into industrialization as a move from a bad to a good equilibrium. We present three mechanisms for generating a big push and discuss their relevance for less developed countries.
The price elasticity of demand for common stock

The authors study the price elasticity of demand for the common stock of an individual corporation. Despite the prevalance of assumptions that demand is perfectly elastic, there is little, if any, direct evidence in the literature to either support or reject that contention. Consistent with the notion of finite price elasticities, the authors find that the announcement of primary stock offerings by regulated firms depresses their stock prices and little, if any, evidence that this decline is the result of adverse information about future cash flows. Attempts to relate offer announcement effects directly to possible determinants of price elasticities, however, are inconclusive. Copyright 1991 by American Finance Association.
EXPLAINING NON- COMPLIANCE IN PUBLIC PROCUREMENT IN UGANDA

Purpose – The paper aims at contributing to the debate on the causes of non – compliance with public procurement regulations in Uganda. Methodology – The hypotheses tested in this study were adopted from review of literature in a cross sectional study. Data was collected from 46 Central Government procuring and disposing entities using a structured questionnaire. Findings – The empirical findings indicate that of the three variables which are professionalism, familiarity with procurement regulations and institutional factors, only one variable, familiarity is a significant predictor of compliance. The model explains 52.4% of the variation in compliance with regulations. Research limitations – The study is limited by factors like the study being cross – sectional in nature and considered Central Government Entities and left out the Local Government Entities, which are also public. Future studies should consider being longitudinal in nature as well as extending to the Local Government Entities. Practical implications – The managerial implication of the findings of this study is that for compliance with public procurement regulations to be improved, focus needs to be placed on improving familiarity with procurement procedures amongst procurement personnel and staff employed in the public entities. Originality – Despite the fact that studies have been undertaken elsewhere to explain non – compliance with public procurement regulations, limited research has been carried out in Uganda. This paper therefore makes it contribution by providing information that is relevant for filling this gap that exists. The findings provide implications for procurement policy makers, the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Authority and researchers.