Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Driving Public Sector Environmental Reporting

Abstract This article analyses environmental reporting practices within public sector entities. It explores the type and extent of environmental disclosures by all 19 Australian Commonwealth Departments in annual reports and sustainability reports, through a legitimacy approach and a content analysis instrument based on the global reporting initiative (GRI). The findings of this research indicate that there is relatively little difference in the reporting practices of departments with legitimacy drivers of size and mission than other departments. We see little evidence of a wide-spread adoption of GRI reporting and argue that drivers internal to government, particularly the coercive influence of legislation and government-regulation, are a better explanation of public sector environment reporting than a legitimacy explanation. We argue that there is some support for a legitimacy argument in that the most significant category of environmental reporting was reporting of departmental initiatives which could be seen as having potential legitimacy motivation and benefits. We conclude with the argument that a more sophisticated approach to legitimacy is required to understand the role of environmental reporting in the public sector context.
Dynamic Strategic Groups: Deriving Spatial Evolutionary Paths

Recent theoretical developments in the domain of strategic groups, specifically those related to cognitive groups and strategic group identity, seem to suggest that strategic group membership is likely to be relatively stable over time and that firms in a strategic group co-evolve. Yet appropriate data analytic approaches that use information about firms over time to identify stable strategic groups and their evolutionary paths have been lacking. To overcome such limitations, this research proposes a new clusterwise bilinear multidimensional scaling model that can simultaneously identify (1) the number of strategic groups, (2) the dimensions on which the strategic groups are based, and (3) the evolution of the strategy of these groups over time. Our discussion encompasses various alternative model specifications, together with model selection heuristics based on statistical information criteria. An illustration of the proposed methodology using data pertaining to strategic variables for a sample of public banks in the tristate area of New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania across three time periods (1995, 1999, and 2003) identifies two underlying dimensions with five strategic groups that display very different evolutionary paths over time. Post hoc analysis shows pronounced differences in firm performance across the five derived strategic groups. This article concludes with a discussion of the implications of the findings, as well as potential future research directions. John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Oncostatin M stimulates monocyte chemoattractant protein-1- and interleukin-1-induced matrix metalloproteinase-1 production by human synovial fibroblasts in vitro.

OBJECTIVE To measure levels of oncostatin M (OSM) in the synovial fluid of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and to examine the activities of human OSM in the regulation of human synovial fibroblast (HSF) production of chemokines and matrix metalloproteinases (MMP-1 and MMP-3) in vitro. METHODS We examined the levels of OSM in the synovial fluids of patients with arthritis by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). ELISA of cell culture supernatants and Northern blots were used to assess responses of HSF to interleukin-1alpha (IL-1alpha), OSM, and other members of the IL-6/leukemia inhibitory factor (IL-6/LIF) family of cytokines. RESULTS We detected variable levels of OSM antigen in 9 of 10 RA patient synovial fluids, but levels were not detectable in 9 of 10 osteoarthritis (OA) patient fluids. Upon examining the responses of HSF in culture, OSM stimulated monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 (MCP-1), whereas RANTES secretion (regulated upon activation, normal T expressed and presumably secreted) was not altered by OSM alone. In IL-1alpha-induced cells, OSM costimulation further enhanced MCP-1 release, but inhibited the release of RANTES and IL-8. Other members of the IL-6/LIF family of cytokines did not show these effects. OSM induced a small elevation of MMP-1 production over 2 and 3 days of stimulation (2-fold), and acted significantly to enhance IL-1alpha-induced production of MMP-1 (to 8-fold and 9-fold at 48 and 72 hours, respectively). No effect of OSM was seen on MMP-3 secretion, either alone or in IL-1alpha-costimulated cells. CONCLUSION These results suggest that OSM has potentially important functions in the modulation of chemokine and metalloproteinase production by synovial cells of the joint.
Enterprise, Inequality and Economic Development

We characterize an equilibrium development process driven by the interaction of the distribution of wealth with credit constraints and the distribution of entrepreneurial skills. When efficient entrepreneurs are relatively abundant, a "traditional" development process emerges in which the evolution of macroeconomic variables accord with empirical regularities and income inequality traces out a Kuznets curve. If, instead, efficient entrepreneurs are relatively scarce, the model generates long-run "distributional cycles" driven by the endogenous interaction between credit constraints, entrepreneurial efficiency and equilibrium wages.
A comparison between early maternal and neonatal complications of restrictive episiotomy and routine episiotomy in primiparous vaginal delivery

BACKGROUND: Routine episiotomy is a controversial issue among gynecologists. The aim of this study was to compare early maternal and neonatal complications of restrictive episiotomy and routine episiotomy in primiparus vaginal delivery. METHODS: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, two groups of primiparus normal vaginal delivery (NVD) cases with routine and restrictive episiotomy were studied. Immediately and in the first 24 and 48 hours after delivery, specific charts were used to compare the two groups in terms of perineal laceration size, neonatal Apgar score and post-delivery. For data analysis, SPSS was used to conduct student t-test and Kruskal-Wallis test. A p-value < 0.05 was considered significant. RESULTS: Forty primiparus pregnant women were studied in each group. Episiotomy was performed in 7.5% of the restrictive group. Perineal laceration was measured as 3.68 ± 0.47 cm and 1.21 ± 1.1 in routine and restrictive episiotomy groups, respectively (p < 0.05). Intact perineum or first-degree laceration was seen in 80% of the restrictive group. However, second- and third-degree laceration were respectively observed in 75% and 15% of the routine episiotomy group (p < 0.05). Pain relief (immediately, 24 and 48 hours after delivery) was significantly higher in the restrictive group (p < 0.05). On the contrary, no significant difference in Apgar scores at the first and fifth minutes after birth was found between the two groups (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Restrictive episiotomy results in low maternal complications. Therefore, avoiding routine episiotomy in unnecessary conditions would increase the rate of intact perineal and minor perineal trauma and reduce postpartum delivery pain with no adverse effects neither on maternal nor neonatal morbidities.
Trust in a military context: What contributes to trust in superior and subordinate leaders?

The aim was to explore which components military personnel in peacekeeping operations perceive as contributing to trust in their superior and subordinate leaders during international or national operations or exercises. Data were collected among 591 military officers and cadets from Norway and Sweden using a questionnaire with open-ended questions. Two superior categories emerged: Individual-Related Characteristics and Communication- and Relationship-Related Characteristics. The former is made up of the higher-level categories Personal attributes and Experience and competence. The latter is derived from the higher-level categories Consideration and inspiration and Effective communication. In turn, all higher-level categories are underpinned by a number of subcategories (13 altogether). When comparing trust in superior leaders with trust in subordinate leaders, the results show that trust in superiors is characterised to a greater extent by Communication- and Relationship-related characteristics and also by Experience and professional knowledge. Trust in subordinate leaders is characterised to a greater extent by Personal attributes and Management competence.
The Generalized Geometric Approach to Comparative Study of Permanent Magnet Synchronous Machines and Mechatronic Modules

In the paper the radial and axial permanent magnet synchronous machines (RPMSM, APMSM) are classified in accordance with the types of design topologies and degree of active electromagnetic materials utilization. To realize an express comparison analysis of these machines the generalized geometric method is presented. Unlike the other methods this approach is distinguished by very small time for calculation of the ratio of radial and axial machines volumes as well as the similar ratio of mechatronic modules based on these machines. Derived a simple analytical expression enables to draw 3D plot of the volume ratio of compared machines at different number of poles and various geometrical sizes. The comparative study shows, that at the increased number of poles and at certain stator and rotor configuration the APMSM confidently exceed the RPMSM in term of torque/power density.
Impact of Polychlorinated Biphenyl Congener 126 (PCB 126) on the Immune Function of Aged and Juvenile Japanese Medaka (Oryzias latipes)

Abstract : Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) exist today as a major contaminant in water resources worldwide. Produced in the United States under the trade name Aroclor, PCBs were synthesized for use as insulating fluids, plasticizers, and various industrial applications (Swain, 1983; Safe et al., 1987). Since their recognition as an environmental hazard in the 1960's, PCB production in the U.S. ceased in the late 1970's. Nevertheless, PCBs continue to persist in the environment due to their high lipid solubility and, subsequently, bioaccumulate throughout the food chain. This study identifies both host age and post-exposure duration as factors influencing the impact of PCB 126 on the fish immune system. The results demonstrate that the Japanese medaka is a sensitive laboratory model for determining PCB-induced immunodysfunction.
Identifying Organizational Subcultures: An Empirical Approach

Organizations have cultures, but parts of organizations may have distinct subcultures. The question of what is the proper level for a cultural analysis of an organization is generally handled intuitively. The organizational culture of a large Danish insurance company (3,400 employees) was measured, based on employees’ answers to 18 key questions about work practices. Subsequently, scores were determined separately for 131 work groups, and these were subjected to a hierarchical cluster analysis, which produced a dendrogram. The dendrogram showed that within the company there were three distinct subcultures: a professional subculture, an administrative subculture, and a customer interface subculture. These fit a theoretical prediction by Jones (1983); the cultural rifts between the subcultures could be readily recognized in the company’s practice, and had tangible consequences.
Working Hours and Taxation

This article introduces the debate surrounding Prescott's (2004) theory in which he attributes the differences in working hours among the major industrialized nations to respective disparities in the tax systems and public retirement programs. The validity of this argument for Japan is examined. Lacking a body of empirical research that tests assumptions regarding the elasticity of the aggregate labor supply in Japan, we cannot verify that this model applies to Japan. It is clear that in the case of Japan, the structure of incentives provided by various benefit programs has greater bearing than does the tax system. Furthermore, the model used in Prescott's paper considers only in general tax and public retirement programs, and is inappropriate in an analysis of working hours. The remedy for long working hours involves the issue of coordination, and it requires much more in-depth debate regarding the role that labor unions and government regulations do or should play.
Whole-Brain Voxel-Based Correlation Analysis between Regional Cerebral Blood Flow and Intelligence Quotient Score in Parkinson’s Disease

The correlation between regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) and intelligence quotient (IQ) score was investigated in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD) without severe dementia. We analyzed the 99mTc-ethyl cysteinate dimer single-photon emission computed tomography quantitative images and Revised Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale scores of 44 PD patients using statistical parametric mapping. Verbal IQ positively correlated with rCBF in the right ventral striatum and the bilateral prefrontal cortex, performance IQ positively correlated with rCBF in the right operculum, insula and the left middle temporal gyrus, and full-scale IQ positively correlated with rCBF in the right operculum, insula and the ventral striatum. The identified areas may be functionally related to mild to moderate cognitive impairment in patients with PD.
Executive Remuneration and Corporate Divestment: Motivating Managers to Make Unpalatable Decisions

This study examines the impact of voluntary divestment on executive remuneration, using an unbalanced panel of 107 UK quoted companies over the period 1988 to 1993. It employs a dynamic compensation equation, with a vector of controls and alternative specifications of the divestment effect. The results show no general direct evidence of a remuneration process that rewards managers for downsizing their firms. Indeed the substantial pay-size elasticity implies the reverse. However, divestment does have a positive and significant effect in raising executive remuneration under a regime of strong corporate governance, defined in terms of the presence of a substantial blockholder.
MARKET FOR INFORMATION: EXPERIMENTAL EVIDENCE'

Equilibrium predictions of the noisy rational expectations model are relatively accurate for laboratory asset and information markets. When information about an asset's uncertain dividend is sold to a fixed number of highest bidders, prices, allocations, efficiency, and a distribution of profit predictions of the full revelation rational expectations model in the asset market dominate the predictions of the Walrasian model; demand for information shifts leftward and its price approaches zero. When the price of information is fixed, the number of informed agents and the informativeness of the asset market adjusts to permit the information buyers to recover their investment in information. Copyright 1992 by The Econometric Society.
New product development in British SMEs

Reports the efforts of six British small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to enhance their new product development (NPD) capabilities. Finds a strong recognition by managers of “the need for NPD” yet they consistently deprioritised work on NPD when faced with other shorter‐term pressures. The involvement of manufacturing managers was limited in their firms’ NPD activities. What involvement there was occurred late in the process. Identifies a major problem in terms of the lack of information available, with only a few of the firms recording the activities undertaken in the NPD process. This has a number of serious consequences; it was difficult to compare their performance with other firms and they did not have the information needed to improve systematically their systems and procedures. In those firms that did maintain records, their record keeping was limited. Much of what was recorded had little value, as it was not used systematically to improve performance. This shortage of suitable information also hindered the ability of management to learn and thus improve future generations of new products.
Differentiated Regulation: The Case of Charities

The increasing number and influence of charities in the economy, evidence of mismanagement and the need for information for policymaking are all reasons for establishing charity regulators. Public interest and public choice theories explain charity regulation which aims to increase public trust and confidence in charities (and thus increase voluntarism and philanthropy) and to limit tax benefits to specific organisations and donors. Nevertheless, regulation is resource intensive, and growing pressure on government budgets requires efficiencies to be found. This study proposes regulation differentiated according to charities' main resource providers, to reduce costs and focus regulatory effort, and provides a feasible segmentation.
A hyperboloidal study of tail decay rates for scalar and Yang–Mills fields

We investigate the asymptotic behavior of spherically symmetric solutions to scalar wave and Yang–Mills equations on a Schwarzschild background. The studies demonstrate the astrophysical relevance of null infinity in predicting radiation signals for gravitational wave detectors and show how test fields on unbounded domains in black hole spacetimes can be simulated conveniently by numerically solving hyperboloidal initial value problems.
User participation in the evaluation of the quality of knowledge in professional online communities: a motivational process

In a digital society, professionals increasingly seek knowledge from online communities to resolve problems that they encounter in the workplace. Despite the potential benefits to professionals and related community, there are concerns about the quality of users’ knowledge contributions in this open environment. This dilemma makes it challenging for professional online communities to balance the need to provide users with easy access to high-quality user contributions while maintaining a large and useful knowledge repository. Evidence from prior research and current practice suggests that user collaboration in the evaluation of the quality of user contributed knowledge is an effective mechanism that can help users identify high-quality knowledge contributions. Particularly, useful collaborative evaluation is accomplished by means of user feedback in the forms of rating and ranking, among others. While prior research highlights the importance of active user participation in the evaluation activity, little is known about user motivation to perform this activity in professional online communities. This study aims to investigate user motivation to participate in this evaluation activity. Drawing on self-determination theory, social exchange theory, and commitment theory, this study proposed an integrated research model to investigate the motivational process underlying users’ willingness to take part in the evaluation of knowledge contributions in professional online communities. The motivational process highlights how reciprocity, online reputation, trust, and community commitment shape users’ motivation which in turn influences users’ behavioural intention. The integrated research model was empirically validated using a dataset of 272 responses from 30 professional online communities. Structural equation modelling techniques were used to analyse the data. The results revealed that users’ intention to evaluate the quality of knowledge contributions in professional online communities is primarily influenced by autonomous motivation or the reasons coming from inside the self, such as volition, psychological freedom, and reflective self-endorsement. In turn, autonomous motivation is affected by social factors including reciprocity, online reputation, trust in the user involvement mechanism, and affective and normative community commitments. This study has both theoretical and practical contributions. In addition to enhancing the understanding of the strategic importance of active user participation in evaluating knowledge contributions to professional online communities, this study shows the usefulness of a motivational process perspective in investigating user motivation to act in these communities. Specifically, such a motivational process involves a causal sequence from social factors through autonomous motivation to behavioural intention. Findings of this study also provide administrators of professional online communities with practical guidelines on how to encourage user evaluation of knowledge contributions.
Knowledge Sharing Through Expatriate Relationships: A Social Capital Perspective

In this paper, knowledge sharing in expatriate relationships is explored from a social capital perspective, and it is argued that expatriate relationships provide strong ties that function as channels of knowledge sharing across borders. The empirical results of an exploratory case study show that when compared with other more arm's-length cross-border relationships, expatriate relationships have several typical characteristics that have direct consequences for knowledge sharing. First, expatriate relationships are, on average, richer and longer term than arm's-length cross-border relationships, creating more opportunities for knowledge sharing. They also have a higher multiplying effect, spreading ties more effectively across new units. Second, they are characterized by a higher level of trust and multiplexity, driven by shared experience, physical proximity, and prolonged face-to-face interaction. Finally, a lengthened participation in the assignment unit typically leads to a higher level of shared cognitive ground, effectively facilitating knowledge sharing. It is suggested that expatriation may have a sustained effect on knowledge sharing within the multinational corporation (MNC) beyond the knowledge transfer perspective discussed in previous research.
Job-Related Training Activity by Immigrants to Canada

The 1998 Adult Education and Training Survey (AETS) identifies immigrants for the first time and is used to compare the training experiences of immigrants and native-born Canadians. Previous Canadian research indicates that immigrants generally acquire less human capital after arrival than the native-born. Further, if foreign human capital has reduced value in the host labour market, training will be limited for older migrants. We find that training is reduced by about one year for each year that migration is delayed for both men and women in both pooled and separate samples of immigrants and the native-born. Immigrants who arrive in Canada as adults train less than those who arrive as children, while immigrants who arrive as children do about as well as the native-born. Financial constraints may explain some of the training disadvantage, but other common explanations, such as language, are rejected.