Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Pricing Equity Index Annuities with Surrender Options in Four Models

Abstract Equity-indexed annuities (EIAs) have generated a great deal of interest since Keyport Life first launched “Key Index” in February 1995. They are considered to be the most innovative products to appear on the market in years. EIAs are, essentially equity-linked deferred annuities which provide the policyholder with a guaranteed accumulation rate on their premium, and also at maturity, benefits from an additional return based on the performance of an equity mutual fund or a family of mutual funds or a stock index, typically of the Standard and Poor’s (S&P500) index, so the customer can profit from the growth of the stock market. Product designs of EIAs can vary, depending on the companies that sell them. In this article, we focus on the pricing of one of the product designs in the market which gives the possibility to surrender their policy before maturity. Such options can be valued using Monte Carlo simulation method proposed for pricing American options but, here, we use the least squares Monte Carlo suggested by Longstaff and Schwartz added to the control variate tool in order to construct efficient estimators. We analyze these equity-linked life insurance contracts under four different models. The frameworks differ from the way we model the price of the fund associated with the contract. The first setting is the usual Black and Scholes model, the second is the environment of jump diffusions, especially a Kou process, the third is the regime switching log normal model (RSLN) developed by Hamilton and the fourth is a mixed of a regime switching and a jump diffusion. The surrender option is priced using the Longstaff and Schwartz methodology.
Unemployment, Underemployment, Occupational Stress and Psychological Well-Being

Research on unemployment, underemployment and organisational stress have become major social issues over the past 20 years and have attracted considerable research interest on the part of organisational psychologists both in Australia and overseas. Globalisation has led to restructuring and downsizing in many industrialised societies and a shift, for many workers, from the prospect of secure, long-term employment, to unemployment or inadequate or insecure employment. This paper reviews the research on these topics, discusses their theoretical implications and suggests future research directions.
Time-scale and extent at which large-scale circulation modes determine the wind and solar potential in the Iberian Peninsula

The North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), the East Atlantic (EA) and the Scandinavian (SCAND) modes are the three main large-scale circulation patterns driving the climate variability of the Iberian Peninsula. This study assesses their influence in terms of solar (photovoltaic) and wind power generation potential (SP and WP) and evaluates their skill as predictors. For that we use a hindcast regional climate simulation to retrieve the primary meteorological variables involved, surface solar radiation and wind speed. First we identify that the maximum influence of the various modes occurs on the interannual variations of the monthly mean SP and WP series, being generally more relevant in winter. Second we find that in this time-scale and season, SP (WP) varies up to 30% (40%) with respect to the mean climatology between years with opposite phases of the modes, although the strength and the spatial distribution of the signals differ from one month to another. Last, the skill of a multi-linear regression model (MLRM), built using the NAO, EA and SCAND indices, to reconstruct the original wintertime monthly series of SP and WP was investigated. The reconstructed series (when the MLRM is calibrated for each month individually) correlate with the original ones up to 0.8 at the interannual time-scale. Besides, when the modeled series for each individual month are merged to construct an October-to-March monthly series, and after removing the annual cycle in order to account for monthly anomalies, these correlate 0.65 (0.55) with the original SP (WP) series in average. These values remain fairly stable when the calibration and reconstruction periods differ, thus supporting up to a point the predictive potential of the method at the time-scale assessed here.
Tax Costs and Signalling Benefits: The Impact of Surplus Act

Companies with surplus ACT are faced with additional tax costs if they use dividends to signal information to investors, hence there is a trade-off between tax costs and signalling benefits. This paper provides evidence that investors' reactions to dividend surprises are influenced by the signal generated by earnings and tax planning considerations. The results indicate that in the presence of a positive earnings signal and a binding tax constraint, decreases in dividends are value enhancing.
Wage settlements and wage setting: results from a multi-level model

Which dimensions of wage setting differ across establishments applying collective contracts and uncovered establishments? The empirical analysis reported here utilizes German linked employer–employee data for the years 1990, 1995 and 2001 and is restricted to workers without supervisory functions in larger manufacturing firms. Results show that the expected wage of an average worker is higher in firms applying collective contracts, while returns to human capital and the gender wage gap are reduced. Moreover, during the 1990s these effects became stronger.
The Impact of Cold-Water Immersion on Power Production in the Vertical Jump and the Benefits of a Dynamic Exercise Warm-Up

Dixon, PG, Kraemer, WJ, Volek, JS, Howard, RL, Gomez, AL, Comstock, BA, Dunn-Lewis, C, Fragala, MS, Hooper, DR, Häkkinen, K, and Maresh, CM. The impact of cold-water immersion on power production in the vertical jump and the benefits of a dynamic exercise warm-up. J Strength Cond Res 24(12): 3313-3317, 2010-The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of a cold treatment and a dynamic warm-up on lower body power in the form of a countermovement vertical jump (CMVJ). Nine physically active men, who were either current or ex-National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division 1 athletes, consented to participate in the study. Using a balanced, randomized presentation and a within-subject design, each subject performed 4 environmental and warm-up protocols (i.e., ambient temperature without warm-up, ambient temperature with warm-up, cold without warm-up, or cold with warm-up). Two sets of 3 maximal effort CMVJs were performed on a force plate at each testing time point. For each protocol, the subjects completed a pretest set of CMVJ (pretreatment [PRE]), were then exposed to 1 of the 2 temperature treatments, completed another set of CMVJ (initial [IT]), then either went through a 15-minute warm-up, or were asked to sit in place. Then a final set of CMVJs was completed (posttreatment [PT]). The primary finding in this study was that warm-up was effective in offsetting the negative effects of cold exposure on CMVJ power. There was a significant main effect for Time (PRE > PT > IT), and there was a significant (p ≤ 0.05) main effect for Trial (AMB = AMBWU > COLDWU > COLD). Because athletic competitions happen in various colder climates, it is important to make sure that a proper warm-up be completed to maximize the athlete's power output. The results of this study demonstrate that when athletes are exposed to cold conditions, it is recommended that before practice or play, a dynamic warm-up be employed to optimize performance.
Impact of Internet Financial Reporting on Emerging Markets

Application of information technology to gain a competitive advantage is well known and often used by business firms in developed countries. A fairly recent technological development is use of the Internet to provide corporate financial information, that is, Internet financial reporting. The research question posited by this study is: Do investors value emerging market firms that attempt to reduce information asymmetry by using information technology? This study uses the efficient market hypothesis to test the effects of two economic events on the market returns of emerging markets firms that engage in Internet financial reporting. At the macro-economic level, the event date is defined as the date the country deregulated the telecommunications industry granting commercial access to Internet providers. At the micro-economic level, the event date is based on the firm's announcement of the launching of its website. This study offers empirical evidence of the longitudinal effects of Internet technology i.e., timely dissemination of financial information, on emerging markets. The analysis reveals positive dispersions in market price and volume around the event dates. Market performance of securities listed on emerging market stock exchanges does improve after commercialization of the Internet.
Household Debt and Fiscal Multipliers

We study the size of government spending multipliers in a general equilibrium model with search and matching frictions in which we allow for different levels of household indebtedness. The main results are: (a) the presence of impatient households and private debt helps to generate government spending multipliers greater than 1; (b) as financial conditions worsen, the size of the government spending multiplier falls; (c) conversely, employment, vacancies and unemployment multipliers are larger in a credit crunch; (d) the model explains the observed pattern of responses of labour market variables, housing prices and private debt to a fiscal shock reasonably well.
Fatigue and physical activity in older patients with cancer: a six-month follow-up study.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES To determine the relationship between fatigue and physical activity in older patients with cancer. DESIGN Targeted analysis using data from a prospective longitudinal study. SETTING A cancer care facility in southeastern Ontario, Canada. SAMPLE 440 patients, aged 65 years and older, seeking consultation for cancer treatment at a regional cancer clinic for lymphoma or leukemia or lung, breast, genitourinary, head or neck, gastrointestinal, or skin cancers. METHODS Self-report questionnaires were mailed to consenting participants and completed at baseline and three and six months after consultation for cancer treatment. MAIN RESEARCH VARIABLES Participants rated fatigue and physical activity and reported comorbidities and personal demographic characteristics. Clinical measures of disease and treatment factors were obtained through chart abstraction. FINDINGS Fatigue was the most prevalent symptom reported. Higher fatigue was associated with lower physical activity levels. Physical activity level significantly predicted fatigue level, regardless of age. CONCLUSIONS Physical activity level is a modifiable factor significantly predicting cancer-related fatigue at three and six months following consultation for cancer treatment. The results suggest that physical activity may reduce fatigue in older patients with cancer. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING Physical activity interventions should be developed and tested in older patients with cancer.
Estimating the long‐term effects of stocking domesticated trout into wild brown trout (Salmo trutta) populations: an approach using microsatellite DNA analysis of historical and contemporary samples

Indigenous salmonid fish gene pools are affected by domesticated conspecifics, derived from aquaculture escapes and deliberate releases. Variability was examined at nine microsatellite loci in order to assess the long‐term impact of stocking domesticated trout in two brown trout populations. The study was based on analysis of two historical samples (1945–56), represented by old scale collections, and seven contemporary samples (1986–2000). In one population historical and contemporary samples were remarkably genetically similar despite more than a decade of intense stocking. Estimation of admixture proportions showed a small genetic contribution from domesticated trout (approximately 6%), and individual admixture analysis demonstrated a majority of nonadmixed individuals. The expected genetic contribution by domesticated trout was 64%, assessed from the number of stocked trout and assuming equal survival and reproductive performance of wild and domesticated trout. This demonstrates poor performance and low fitness of domesticated trout in the wild. In another population there was a strong genetic contribution from domesticated trout (between 57% and 88% in different samples), both in samples from a broodstock thought to represent the indigenous population and in a sample of wild spawners. Survival of domesticated trout and admixture with indigenous fish in the broodstock and subsequent stocking into the river, combined with a low population size of native trout relative to the number of stocked trout, could explain the observed introgression. Few nonadmixed individuals remained in the introgressed population, and I discuss how individual admixture analysis can be used to identify and conserve nonintrogressed remains of the population.
Legality and Venture Capital Exits

This paper introduces an analysis of the impact of Legality on the exiting of venture capital investments. We consider a sample of 468 venture-backed companies from 12 Asia-Pacific countries, and these countries' venture capitalists' investments in US-based entrepreneurial firms. The data indicate IPOs are more likely in countries with a higher Legality index. This core result is robust to controls for country-specific stock market capitalization, MSCI market conditions, venture capitalist fund manager skill and fund characteristics, and entrepreneurial firm and transaction characteristics. Although Black and Gilson (1998) speculate on a central connection between active stock markets and active venture capital markets, our data in fact indicate the quality of a country's legal system is much more directly connected to facilitating VC-backed IPO exits than the size of a country's stock market. The data indicate Legality is a central mechanism which mitigates agency problems between outside shareholders and entrepreneurs, thereby fostering the mutual development of IPO markets and venture capital markets.
Growth effects of FDI and portfolio investment flows to developing countries: a disaggregated analysis by income levels

What is the impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) and portfolio investment flows on the economic growth of low-, lower middle- and upper middle-income countries? In this article we address this question using a dynamic panel model and a large data set of 126 developing countries for the period 1985 to 2002. Employing the system-generalized methods of moments (GMM) estimation approach, our findings suggest that only developing countries that have reached a minimum level of economic development and absorptive capacity are capturing the growth-enhancing effects of both forms of investment inflows.
Effects of Husbands' Migration on Mental Health and Gender Role Ideology of Rural Mexican Women

Our purpose for this study was to investigate the roles of migration in rural Mexican migrant–sending communities. Specifically, we examined the effects of changing gender role ideology on the mental health of wives whose spouses migrated to the United States. The sending group scored significantly higher in egalitarian gender role ideology but lower in general mental health than the nonsending group. We found through mediation analysis that the difference in gender role ideology mediated the difference in mental health between the two groups. Results are contrary to some psychological and feminist literature advocating benefits of masculine or androgynous ideology.
Nigerian Debt Portfolio and Its Implication on Economic Growth

This study examines the relationship between economic growth and debt variables for the period 1981-2012 using Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) approach. Variables were stationary at their first differences at 1% level of significance and there is one co-integrating relationship among the variables at 0.05 level. Granger test reveals that causality flows from GDP to both External debt (EXD) and its servicing (SERV). On the other hand, domestic debt (DDB) granger causes GDP. Bi-causality relationship was also found between EXD and SERV. The error correction value of 55.1% which is significant at 1% means that the speed of adjustment of the short-run to the long-run is slightly above average. Instrumental variable (IV) analysis (GMM) confirms non-linear (inverted-U) relationships between economic growth and the domestic/external debts. Debt-to-GDP ratios of 21.4% (domestic debt) and 26.9% (external debt) reveal that Nigeria can benefit from borrowed funds provided it stays below these limits and the repayment conditions are favorable. Hence, funds channeled towards developmental efforts will have positive ripple effects on the economy. Keywords: Debt stock, debt service, economic growth, sustainability ratio, vector error correction
Synthesizing the Effects of Service Quality, Value, and Customer Satisfaction on Behavioral Intentions in the Motel Industry

There is a conceptual gap in the marketing literature, as to date there has been no published empirical research on service quality, value, customer satisfaction, or behavioral intentions that has focused on the motel industry. This study seeks to fill this conceptual gap by identifying the dimensions of service quality and empirically examining the interrelationships among the service quality dimensions, service quality, value, customer satisfaction, and behavioral intentions. A hierarchical model is used as a framework to synthesize the effects of quality, value, and satisfaction on the behavioral intentions of motel customers. Statistical support is found for 3 primary dimensions and 10 subdimensions of service quality for motels. The hypothesized paths between the higher order constructs—service quality, value (price), satisfaction, and favorable behavioral intentions—are confirmed. The results of this analysis contribute to the services marketing theory by providing additional insights into behavioral intentions, satisfaction, value, service quality, and the dimensions of service quality. The results of this study will also assist motel management in developing and implementing market-orientated service strategies to increase service quality, enhance customer satisfaction, and create favorable future behavioral intentions.
Long-acting somatostatin analog therapy of acromegaly: a meta-analysis.

CONTEXT Although considerable data exist on the use of long-acting somatostatin analogs to treat acromegaly, their reported efficacy differs substantially among trials. OBJECTIVE We conducted a meta-analysis to derive definitive estimates of their efficacy for biochemical control and tumor shrinkage. DATA SOURCES A search of literature was conducted through 2003, primarily via PubMed. STUDY SELECTION Inclusion criteria, met in 44 trials, included at least 3 months of secondary octreotide long-acting release (LAR) or lanreotide slow release (SR) therapy or of primary octreotide LAR, lanreotide SR, or sc octreotide therapy and clearly reported data on biochemical efficacy and/or tumor shrinkage. Fifty other trials screened did not meet analysis inclusion criteria. DATA EXTRACTION Data were extracted by three independent observers. DATA SYNTHESIS Among subjects not selected for somatostatin analog responsiveness before study entry, both GH efficacy criteria and IGF-I normalization were met in a greater proportion of those treated with octreotide LAR vs. lanreotide SR (GH: B = 0.2310, P = 0.016; IGF-I: B = 0.2325, P = 0.007). Prestudy selection for somatostatin analog responsiveness was not a significant predictor of meeting GH efficacy criteria (B = 0.0992; P = 0.12). Preselection was a positive predictor of IGF-I normalization rate (B = 0.1213; P = 0.04), which was greater among preselected than unselected subjects (B = 0.1472; P = 0.0475). IGF-I normalization occurred in a greater proportion of secondary octreotide LAR- vs. primary octreotide-treated subjects (B = 0.2056; P = 0.009). The odds of tumor shrinkage more than 10% were lower in the unselected vs. preselected subjects. However, the effect of drug type was an important predictor of shrinkage; such that regardless of preselection or not, the odds of shrinkage with lanreotide SR were lower than with octreotide LAR (P = 0.003). Shrinkage greater than 10% occurred in a higher percentage of primary octreotide LAR-treated vs. primary octreotide sc-treated subjects (odds ratio = 9.4; P < 0.0001). The overall rate of tumor increase was 1.4%. CONCLUSIONS In this meta-analysis, we have shown that the efficacy of octreotide LAR is greater than lanreotide SR among subjects unselected for prior somatostatin analog responsiveness. Preselection is a significant positive predictor of IGF-I normalization and is associated with increased odds of tumor shrinkage, which is also greatest with octreotide LAR. Biochemical efficacy is similar, but tumor shrinkage is greater when these drugs are given as primary vs. secondary therapy.
p53 Down-Regulates CHK1 through p21 and the Retinoblastoma Protein

ABSTRACT Both fission yeast and mammalian cells require the function of the checkpoint kinase CHK1 for G2 arrest after DNA damage. The tumor suppressor p53, a well-studied stress response factor, has also been shown to play a role in DNA damage G2 arrest, although in a manner that is probably independent of CHK1. p53, however, can be phosphorylated and regulated by both CHK1 as well as another checkpoint kinase, hCds1 (also called CHK2). It was therefore of interest to determine whether reciprocally, p53 affects either CHK1 or CHK2. We found that induction of p53 either by diverse stress signals or ectopically using a tetracycline-regulated promoter causes a marked reduction in CHK1 protein levels. CHK1 downregulation by p53 occurs as a result of reduced CHK1 RNA accumulation, indicating that repression occurs at the level of transcription. Repression of CHK1 by p53 requires p21, since p21 alone is sufficient for this to occur and cells lacking p21 cannot downregulate CHK1. Interestingly, pRB is also required for CHK1 downregulation, suggesting the possible involvement of E2F-dependent transcription in the regulation of CHK1. Our results identify a new repression target of p53 and suggest that p53 and CHK1 play interdependent and complementary roles in regulating both the arrest and resumption of G2 after DNA damage.
NEUROMUSCULAR, BIOCHEMICAL, ENDOCRINE AND PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES OF ELITE RUGBY LEAGUE PLAYERS TO COMPETITIVE MATCH-PLAY.

8 Chapter 3 (Experimental Study 1 – Paper 1) 8 Chapter 4 (Experimental Study 2 – Paper 2) 8 Chapter 5 (Experimental Study 3 – Paper 3) 9 Chapter 6 (Experimental Study 4 – Paper 4) 10 Chapter 7 (Experimental Study 5 – Paper 5) 11 LIST OF PUBLICATIONS 12 LIST OF CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS 12
The Standpoint of Storyteller

The legitimacy of an interest in illness narratives that is therapeutic, emancipatory, and pre-occupied with ethics is defended in response to Atkinson’s critique of this interest as a blind alley. The value of storytelling as complementary to story analysis is argued, and the importance of recognizing one’s own standpoint is emphasized. The conclusion considers how qualitative methods can inform changing relationships between illness, health, medicine, and culture.