Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
On Improving the Greek Social Security System Via Equity Investment

Economic and demographic slowdown has put under strain public pension systems around the globe. The actuarial balance of the PAYG system can only be restored by reshuffling its parameters and by attaining a higher return on its reserves. In this paper we investigate the extent to which an acceptable use of stock market opportunities could have relieved the pressure off the Greek public pension system while reducing the risks associated with such an exercise.
Business, Biodiversity and New ‘Fields’ of Conservation: The World Conservation Congress and the Renegotiation of Organisational Order

Biodiversity conservation, in practice, is defined through the institutionalised association of individuals, organisations, institutions, bodies of knowledge, and interests. Events like the World Conservation Congress (WCC) constitute political sites where much of that institutionalisation is rendered legible and where struggles over the organisational order of conservation are acted out. Over the past decade one source of struggle has been the role of private sector actors and markets. This paper treats the WCC as a site where tension over market-based mechanisms of conservation becomes visible and where it becomes possible to watch durable institutional arrangements form and enter standard operational practice of organisations like IUCN. This paper builds upon recent work on the performative aspects of governance and analyses the WCC as an integral mechanism in achieving a renegotiated 'order' of conservation with 'private sector engagement' as a core operational practice. It describes how this performative work is predicated, in part, on the act of meeting; and the ways meetings serve both as sites for the formation of associations and as vehicles that privilege certain positions in renegotiating an organisational order under which the interests of capital accumulation receive an unparalleled degree of access and consideration in conservation planning and practice.
Is a convertible bond call really bad news

We test and reject the hypothesis that managers call in-the-money convertibles when they view a decline in the value of the firm as likely. Inconsistent with this view, we find that insiders generally buy equity before conversion-forcing calls. Also, analysts tend to raise their earnings forecasts following a call. Thus, our evidence supports the alternative hypothesis that the price decline immediately following conversion-forcing calls is a purely transitory decline caused by the anticipated increase in the supply of equity. Indeed, our evidence confirms that the initial price decline is reversed in the weeks following the announcement. Copyright 2001 by University of Chicago Press.
The use of pilocarpine in opioid-induced xerostomia

Oral dryness can be a symptom of asystemic disease, an adverse effect of anticholin-ergic, antiadrenergic or cytotoxic drug treatment, orit can be due to local radiotherapy. Opioid use isstrongly associated with xerostomia, although themechanism for this remains unclear; in one studypatients receiving morphine were four times morelikely to have a dry mouth than patients taking otherdrugs known to cause xerostomia.
Capital Investments and Stock Returns in Japan

The negative relation between capital investments and subsequent stock returns, found in the United States, is not observed in Japan, which is inconsistent with the risk-based explanation. More specifically, we find no significant relation between capital expenditures (CE) and subsequent stock returns for either the entire sample or for keiretsu firms. However, in the pre-1990 subperiod, there is a positive relation between increased CE and subsequent risk-adjusted returns among independent firms, especially for those firms that have high cash flows and/or low leverage. These results are consistent with existing evidence that independent firms are financially constrained in the pre-1990 period and that keiretsu main bank monitoring effectively controls the overinvestment problem.
Consistency Tests of Alternative Measures of Comparative Advantage

The commodity pattern of comparative advantage across countries is a central concept in international trade theory. Since the concept is based upon autarkic prices which are not observable in post-trade equilibria, its use in empirical research is most difficult. The literature reports numerous alternative indices that purport to "measure" comparative advantage. This paper examines the extent to which various measures are consistent using a large sample of trade flows. The results have important implication for judging empirical studies based upon particular choices of a measure for comparative advantage.
RISK AND RETURN ON SHORT POSITIONS IN COMMON STOCKS

THE PURPOSE OF THIS PAPER is to investigate risk and return of reported short positions in individual issues of common stocks. Several recent studies of short-selling have investigated the relationship between aggregate reported short interest and an index of stock market prices, as well as subsequent market price movements for small samples of "high short interest" stocks. The evidence suggests that short interest is not useful in predicting future market returns and generally fails to support either the view of technical analysts who hold that large short interest constitutes "latent demand" which is likely to be associated with future increases in stock prices or the older view that short-sales portend price declines. ' The present study emphasizes that mean-variance portfolio theory would lead us to expect that short positions are generally larger in riskier stocks, an hypothesis tested in this paper. This paper also presents a method for approximating average returns to short sellers of individual stocks, with an extension of a methodology used by Houthakker (5) in estimating profits to speculators in commodity futures contracts. Our objective is to present average returns to short-sellers of stocks of varying degree of measured risk and to compare these returns from actual short-selling experience to returns obtained from a naive strategy of selling short over a five-year period. As actual dates and prices at which issues were sold short and covered are not publicly available, we use reported monthly short interest in this initial attempt to measure holding-period returns on short positions in individual stocks. It is hypothesized that actual returns on short positions do not exceed returns from a naive strategy. In a generally rising market, one would expect losses on reported short positions in high-risk stocks to exceed those on low-risk stocks under the efficient market hypothesis.
A Raman cell based on hollow core photonic crystal fiber for human breath analysis.

PURPOSE Breath analysis has a potential prospect to benefit the medical field based on its perceived advantages to become a point-of-care, easy to use, and cost-effective technology. Early studies done by mass spectrometry show that volatile organic compounds from human breath can represent certain disease states of our bodies, such as lung cancer, and revealed the potential of breath analysis. But mass spectrometry is costly and has slow-turnaround time. The authors' goal is to develop a more portable and cost effective device based on Raman spectroscopy and hollow core-photonic crystal fiber (HC-PCF) for breath analysis. METHODS Raman scattering is a photon-molecular interaction based on the kinetic modes of an analyte which offers unique fingerprint type signals that allow molecular identification. HC-PCF is a novel light guide which allows light to be confined in a hollow core and it can be filled with a gaseous sample. Raman signals generated by the gaseous sample (i.e., human breath) can be guided and collected effectively for spectral analysis. RESULTS A Raman-cell based on HC-PCF in the near infrared wavelength range was developed and tested in a single pass forward-scattering mode for different gaseous samples. Raman spectra were obtained successfully from reference gases (hydrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide gases), ambient air, and a human breath sample. The calculated minimum detectable concentration of this system was ∼15 parts per million by volume, determined by measuring the carbon dioxide concentration in ambient air via the characteristic Raman peaks at 1286 and 1388 cm(-1). CONCLUSIONS The results of this study were compared to a previous study using HC-PCF to trap industrial gases and backward-scatter 514.5 nm light from them. The authors found that the method presented in this paper has an advantage to enhance the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). This SNR advantage, coupled with the better transmission of HC-PCF in the near-IR than in the visible wavelengths led to an estimated seven times improvement in the detection sensitivity. The authors' prototype device also demonstrated a 100-fold improvement over a recently reported detection limit of a reflective capillary fiber-based Raman cell for breath analysis. Continued development is underway to increase the detection sensitivity further to reach practical clinical applications.
Immigration, social change and cohort fertility in Israel

14000 Israeli women were interviewed between 1973-1975 in a series of surveys designed to identify cohort fertility trends of specific immigrant subpopulations in Israel and their socioeconomic correlates. The complexity of fertility changes was found to be masked when fertility of the total Jewish population was examined; thus ethnic breakdowns were utilized. Initial completed fertility of European immigrants regardless of period of migration was 2-2.5 children/married woman but showed a general increase and convergence among more recent marriage cohorts. Initial fertility for migrants from Asia and North Africa was 6.5-7 and 7.5 respectively but in both cases this initially high rate was cut in half between marriage cohorts 25-30 years apart as fertility began to respond to the more modernized conditions in Israeli society. Israeli-born of Afro-Asian origin have lower fertility levels than immigrants from these countries; conversely Israeli-born of European descent show higher levels than European immigrants. Overall an intergenerational fertility convergence between ethnic groups is complemented by a convergence within immigrant subpopulations indicative of a rapid fertility response appropriate to societal changes. In addition all ethnic groups show recent fertility increases among younger cohorts. This is interpreted as an "insurance effect" due to the high rate of war casualties.
A Distorted Metric: The MDGs and State Capacity

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have been commonly understood as national targets. This interpretation has fostered the critique that the framework favours complacent middle-income countries, discriminates against low-income countries, provides a poor national planning tool and generally fails to conform to the more nuanced obligations of states under international human rights law, such as the duty to use the maximum available resources to realise socio-economic rights. The result is that the current MDGs framework (and its likely successor in 2015) may be an unreliable and misleading indicator of progress when used as a cluster of national benchmarks. This paper tests this potential bias in the framework by measuring performance on two MDG targets, water and sanitation, from the perspective of state capacity. A number of proxy indicators are used to capture the relevant resources: GDP per capita; the ratio of ‘disposable national income’ (DNI) to GDP; total population; land area; urbanisation and the dependency ratio. The relationship between this capacity and actual progress on access to water and sanitation is measured for both levels and changes in resources between 1990 and 2010. The resource-adjusted performance of states is then ranked according to two alternative methods and compared with the ranking generated by the standard MDG metric. The paper concludes by arguing that the post-2015 agenda needs to address the distortion and disincentives created by the MDG framework and suggests a number of practical means of doing so.
Effectiveness of general practice-based physical activity promotion for older adults: systematic review

Aim To review the effectiveness of physical activity interventions for adults aged 50 and above, delivered through general practice. Background Physical activity has beneficial effects on the common disorders of later life. General practice is a potentially important setting for promotion of physical activity among older adults, but the effectiveness of such interventions is presently unknown. Methods Studies published between January 1998 and July 2011 were identified from electronic databases. We searched for studies of tailored physical activity interventions to older adults through general practice. The search and selection process was not restricted to any outcome measures but only included studies comparing two or more groups prospectively. Two reviewers screened the studies and obtained full texts of eligible studies. Included studies were assessed for their methodological quality and public health impact. Findings Altogether, 4170 studies met the initial search criteria but only six were included in the review, with a total of 1522 participants. The interventions ranged from six weeks to six months. One study showed a statistically significant increase in physical activity in the intervention compared with the control group (P ⩽ 0.007). Four studies measured quality of life using the SF-36, of which three reported inconsistent results. This review shows some evidence of the effectiveness of physical activity promotion for older adults through general practice, but not enough to warrant widespread commissioning and implementation. Large-scale developmental projects with long follow-up (beyond two years), objective measures of physical activity and comprehensive documentation of resource use, should now be conducted.
Reactive Oxygen Species Precede Protein Kinase C-&dgr; Activation Independent of Adenosine Triphosphate–sensitive Mitochondrial Channel Opening in Sevoflurane-induced Cardioprotection

BackgroundIn the current study, the authors investigated the distinct role and relative order of protein kinase C (PKC)-&dgr;, adenosine triphosphate–sensitive mitochondrial K+ (mito K+ATP) channels, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the signal transduction of sevoflurane-induced cardioprotection and specifically addressed their mechanistic link. MethodsIsolated rat trabeculae were preconditioned with 3.8% sevoflurane and subsequently subjected to an ischemic protocol by superfusion of trabeculae with hypoxic, glucose-free buffer (40 min) followed by 60 min of reperfusion. In addition, the acute affect of sevoflurane on PKC-&dgr; and PKC-&egr; translocation and nitrotyrosine formation was established with use of immunofluorescent analysis. The inhibitors chelerythrine (6 &mgr;m), rottlerin (1 &mgr;m), 5-hydroxydecanoic acid sodium (100 &mgr;m), and n-(2-mercaptopropionyl)-glycine (300 &mgr;m) were used to study the particular role of PKC, PKC-&dgr;, mito K+ATP, and ROS in sevoflurane-related intracellular signaling. ResultsPreconditioning of trabeculae with sevoflurane preserved contractile function after ischemia. This contractile preservation was dependent on PKC-&dgr; activation, mito K+ATP channel opening, and ROS production. In addition, on acute stimulation by sevoflurane, PKC-&dgr; but not PKC-&egr; translocated to the sarcolemmal membrane. This translocation was inhibited by PKC inhibitors and ROS scavenging but not by inhibition of mito K+ATP channels. Furthermore, sevoflurane directly induced nitrosylation of sarcolemmal proteins, suggesting the formation of peroxynitrite. ConclusionsIn sevoflurane-induced cardioprotection, ROS release but not mito K+ATP channel opening precedes PKC-&dgr; activation. Sevoflurane induces sarcolemmal nitrotyrosine formation, which might be involved in the recruitment of PKC-&dgr; to the cell membrane.
Agricultural Impacts of Biofuels Production

Analysis of the potential to supply 25% of projected 2025 U.S. transportation fuels indicates sufficient biomass resources are available to meet increased demand while simultaneously meeting food, feed, and export needs. Corn and soybeans continue to be important feedstocks for ethanol and biodiesel production, but cellulose feedstocks (agricultural crop residues, energy crops such as switchgrass, and forestry residues) will play a major role. Farm income increases, mostly because of higher crop prices. Increased crop prices increase the cost of producing biofuels.
Sply regulation of sphingolipid signaling molecules is essential for Drosophila development

Sphingosine-1-phosphate is a sphingolipid metabolite that regulates cell proliferation, migration and apoptosis through specific signaling pathways. Sphingosine-1-phosphate lyase catalyzes the conversion of sphingosine-1-phosphate to ethanolamine phosphate and a fatty aldehyde. We report the cloning of the Drosophila sphingosine-1-phosphate lyase gene (Sply) and demonstrate its importance for adult muscle development and integrity, reproduction and larval viability. Sply expression is temporally regulated, with onset of expression during mid-embryogenesis. Sply null mutants accumulate both phosphorylated and unphosphorylated sphingoid bases and exhibit semi-lethality, increased apoptosis in developing embryos, diminished egg-laying, and gross pattern abnormalities in dorsal longitudinal flight muscles. These defects are corrected by restoring Sply expression or by introduction of a suppressor mutation that diminishes sphingolipid synthesis and accumulation of sphingolipid intermediates. This is the first demonstration of novel and complex developmental pathologies directly linked to a disruption of sphingolipid catabolism in metazoans.
EFFECT OF SURFACTANTS AND GRAFTED COPOLYMER ON STABILITY OF BENTONITE PARTICLES DISPERSION IN BRINE SYSTEM

A major issue for the oil and gas industry is the production of high water from many fields due to massive water injection. Reducing the water production while improving oil recovery from these fields is a key challenge. Polymer gel has been widely used to shut off water-producing zones, but it is not suitable for high temperature reservoirs (> 100 °C). Recently, developing a thermally stable plugging agent has posed a challenge for oil and gas business. The aims of the present study are to investigate the stability and aggregation rates of 0.1% w/w bentonite particles dispersion in the brine system (1% w/w NaCl) at various conditions. The main objective is to select an effective and suitable method for stabilizing of bentonite colloids for possible propagation in porous media to plug high permeable zones (thief zones). The effects of surfactants (cationic/anionic), and grafted poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide-co-acrylic Acid) on the bentonite colloids aggregation kinetics and stabilities were investigated. In this study, a series of bentonite dispersions stability tests were conducted using light transmission and backscattering measurements by Turbiscan. Time evolution of turbidity was employed to define colloids aggregation rates. The study revealed that surfactants and polymer grafted bentonite had significant impacts on the stability of bentonite particles dispersion. It was observed that anionic surfactant (SDS) has more tendency to stabilize the particles compared to cationic surfactant. However, both surfactants have shown unstable dispersion in 1% NaCl. Also, increasing SDS surfactant concentration decreases aggregation and migration rates, whereas cationic surfactant (DTAB) exhibits an opposite phenomenon. It was also observed from the Turbiscan measurements that the aggregation and sedimentation dynamics fell into two patterns, slow and rapid coagulations. Under studied conditions, grafted bentonite effectively showed excellent dispersion stability.
Characterization of a cyclooxygenase-2-765G→C promoter polymorphism in human neural cells

Direct sequencing of the human cyclooxygenase-2 gene promoter revealed a common single nucleotide substitution, cyclooxygenase-2-765G→C, in 24.5% of the populations analyzed. This change introduced a 20 base pair polypyrimidine/polypurine element and a partial recognition feature for RXR&agr;, the 9-cis retinoic acid receptor, into the polymorphic promoter. Cyclooxygenase-2-765G→C constructs, when transfected into human neural cells, exhibited a 1.4-fold higher level of basal expression, while the proinflammatory factors interleukin-1&bgr; and 9-cis retinoic acid synergistically induced polymorphic promoter activity 2.4-fold over wild type. These results suggest that under specific conditions of cellular stress, a common variation in cyclooxygenase-2 promoter structure may enhance cyclooxygenase-2 transcription, and this may contribute to the proliferation of an inflammatory response in brain cells.
The impact of human resource management practices on intention to leave of employees in the service industry in India: the mediating role of organizational commitment

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of a bundle of eight human resource management practices on intention to leave, and to examine the mediating effect of organizational commitment on the relationship between the HRM practices and intention to leave of employees of a service organization in India. Most of the prior HRM practices–employee turnover studies have been from the HR manager's point of view. This study took a different approach and studied this relationship from an employee's point of view. Internet survey questionnaires were used to collect the data from 183 employees working in a service company in India. Multiple linear regression and hierarchical linear regression analysis were conducted to test the hypotheses. The study found not only that the HRM practices lower employee intentions to leave, but also that this relationship is partially mediated by organizational commitment. The results of the study not only supported that organizations should focus on employee perceptions of the organizations' HRM practices but also indicated that human resources should go beyond establishing policies and procedures to providing an employee-friendly work environment (Biswas and Varma 2007).
Valuing Urban Green Space: Hypothetical Alternatives and the Status Quo

Abstract Although many cities have guidelines on the quantity of green open space that should accompany residential development, there is less guidance on the type or facilities of these spaces. The study uses an approach to determine whether green space can be valued on the basis of its constituent characteristics and, if so, what characteristics are preferred. The results indicate that preferences vary depending on whether the green space in question is a small local park or a larger municipal park. However, where a base alternative of usual park destination is included in the analysis, the results are affected by collinearity and the actual availability of relevant green space attributes in these destinations. A mixed logit approach is used to tease out this effect from the underlying preference values.