Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Understanding the Effectiveness of EU Environmental Policy: How Can Regime Analysis Contribute?

The study of EU environmental policy consequences tends to focus on how EU legislation output is formally implemented in the Member States and its impact in terms of the state of the European environment. The crucial outcome dimension linking output to impact has, however, received scant attention. Outcome points to changes in the behaviour of relevant target groups causing the problems in the first place. Accordingly, we know little about the causal relationships between EU environmental policy and the state of the European environment. This article examines whether the study of regime-effectiveness has something to contribute in order to bridge this gap. Since EU legislation comes close to the notion of international regimes in the implementation phase, this article argues that analysis and analyses of regime effectiveness can contribute important insights on how to evaluate and explain the effectiveness of EU environmental policy. In particular, the regime analysis perspective is important for understanding how interaction between EU directives and international environmental regimes affect the performance of EU environmental policy and vice versa. However, the study of regime effectiveness has clear limitations in the domestic context. Moreover, regime analysis has much to learn from EU studies particularly related to environmental policy integration.
Elevated intracellular pH appears in aged oocytes and causes oocyte aneuploidy associated with the loss of cohesion in mice

ABSTRACT Increases in the aneuploidy rate caused by the deterioration of cohesion with increasing maternal age have been well documented. However, the molecular mechanism for the loss of cohesion in aged oocytes remains unknown. In this study, we found that intracellular pH (pHi) was elevated in aged oocytes, which might disturb the structure of the cohesin ring to induce aneuploidy. We observed for the first time that full-grown germinal vesicle (GV) oocytes displayed an increase in pHi with advancing age in CD1 mice. Furthermore, during the in vitro oocyte maturation process, the pHi was maintained at a high level, up to ∼7.6, in 12-month-old mice. Normal pHi is necessary to maintain protein localization and function. Thus, we put forward a hypothesis that the elevated oocyte pHi might be related to the loss of cohesion and the increased aneuploidy in aged mice. Through the in vitro alkalinization treatment of young oocytes, we observed that the increased pHi caused an increase in the aneuploidy rate and the sister inter-kinetochore (iKT) distance associated with the strength of cohesion and caused a decline in the cohesin subunit SMC3 protein level. Young oocytes with elevated pHi exhibited substantially the increase in chromosome misalignment.
‘Power’ and ‘stability’ in the China–Japan–South Korea regional security complex

Abstract Despite continuing economic liberalization and social integration, relations between Northeast Asian governments are often tense and lead to enhanced military readiness. Alongside confrontation in all three dyads, however, trilateral cooperation between China, Japan and South Korea has been evolving. This study shows that history problems, territorial disputes and geopolitical concerns lock the Chinese, Japanese and South Korean governments into a constellation that creates political space for the emergence of cooperative frameworks. The very fixation on material power and bilateral relationships reveals that power is being exercised in non-material ways in effect foreclosing alternative futures and reproducing existing structures including the pertaining security dilemmas.
STRATEGIC PLANNING AND FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE: A META‐ANALYTIC REVIEW*

After two decades of research, the effect of strategic planning on a firm's performance is still unclear. While some studies have found significant benefits from planning, others have found no relationship, or even small negative effects. Interpretation of these findings is confounded by the fact that many of these studies base their findings on a small number of firms. This article uses meta-analysis to aggregate the results of 29 samples on a total of 2496 organizations. Cumulation of previous studies found modest correlations between planning and nine performance measures. Extensive measurement problems suggest that these findings underestimate the true relationship between planning and performance.
Cost-Effective Large-Scale Occupancy–Abundance Monitoring of Invasive Brushtail Possums (Trichosurus Vulpecula) on New Zealand’s Public Conservation Land

There is interest in large-scale and unbiased monitoring of biodiversity status and trend, but there are few published examples of such monitoring being implemented. The New Zealand Department of Conservation is implementing a monitoring program that involves sampling selected biota at the vertices of an 8-km grid superimposed over the 8.6 million hectares of public conservation land that it manages. The introduced brushtail possum (Trichosurus Vulpecula) is a major threat to some biota and is one taxon that they wish to monitor and report on. A pilot study revealed that the traditional method of monitoring possums using leg-hold traps set for two nights, termed the Trap Catch Index, was a constraint on the cost and logistical feasibility of the monitoring program. A phased implementation of the monitoring program was therefore conducted to collect data for evaluating the trade-off between possum occupancy–abundance estimates and the costs of sampling for one night rather than two nights. Reducing trapping effort from two nights to one night along four trap-lines reduced the estimated costs of monitoring by 5.8% due to savings in labour, food and allowances; it had a negligible effect on estimated national possum occupancy but resulted in slightly higher and less precise estimates of relative possum abundance. Monitoring possums for one night rather than two nights would provide an annual saving of NZ$72,400, with 271 fewer field days required for sampling. Possums occupied 60% (95% credible interval; 53–68) of sampling locations on New Zealand’s public conservation land, with a mean relative abundance (Trap Catch Index) of 2.7% (2.0–3.5). Possum occupancy and abundance were higher in forest than in non-forest habitats. Our case study illustrates the need to evaluate relationships between sampling design, cost, and occupancy–abundance estimates when designing and implementing large-scale occupancy–abundance monitoring programs.
Value relevance of financial assets' fair values: Evidence from Chinese listed companies

The primary objective of this paper is to examine the value-relevance of financial assets’ fair values using data from all A-share listed companies in non-financial industries during 2004 to 2009 in China under IFRS-based new China Accounting Standards (CAS). We find that value-relevance of financial instruments is improved following the implementation of the fair value accounting standards, as predicted. Specifically, the change in fair values of financial assets held for trading, financial assets available-for-sale, or the sum of the two financial assets have incremental explanatory power over stock returns to their historical costs.
TQM and organisational culture: How do they link?

There have been many documented cases where total quality management (TQM) initiatives have failed to succeed and these have been often blamed on the implementation process. The purpose of this conceptual paper is to show the potential links between TQM and culture, and to highlight some of the reasons for TQM failure with a view to suggesting whether ‘cultural traits’, identified in some of the major cultural models, could influence the success of TQM implementation. The paper is purely literature based with the investigation being split into three distinct sections. The first briefly covers a number of important aspects of TQM and identifies some of the problems that have been encountered in its implementation. The second describes four models of organisational culture and attempts to identify the particular ‘cultural traits’, within each model, which might prove conducive to TQM success. Finally, the third suggests an amalgamated model that could be used to test whether an organisation will be receptive to a TQM initiative. Findings suggest that successful implementation of TQM could depend on the prevailing culture of the organisation. While the findings require further empirical research, there is evidence to support that paying attention to cultural aspects could assist the decision concerning a TQM initiative. It should be noted, however, that the research is limited in that the validity of the amalgamated model has not been empirically tested.
Abstract: Capital Market Equilibrium in a Mean-Lower Partial Moment Framework

In this paper, we develop a Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) using a mean-lower partial moment framework. We explicitly derive the valuation formulas for the equilibrium value of risky assets and provide a distribution-free testable hypothesis for empirical validation of the new CAPM. We show the invariance of our results to the problem of estimation risk. We also show that when the probability distribution of security rer turns is the normal distribution, the stable Paretian distribution (with the same characteristic exponent between 1 and 2 and the same skewness parameter (not necessarily zero)), or the multivariate t-distribution, our CAPM reduces to the traditional two-parameter CAPM.
Interactions of vitamins A and E and retinol-binding protein in healthy Swedish children--evidence of thresholds of essentiality and toxicity.

The serum levels of vitamins A and E and retinol-binding protein (RBP) were determined and their relationships investigated in 144 healthy Swedish children between the ages of 1 month and 16 years. The median level for vitamin A was 540 micrograms l-1 (range 181-1720 micrograms l-1); for vitamin E 6.8 mg l-1 (range 1.0-14.0 mg l-1) and for RBP 0.030 g l-1 (0.018-0.045 g l-1). Retinol-binding protein levels rose steeply in relation to vitamin A levels of up to approximately 800 micrograms l-1. However, RBP levels remained constant when vitamin A levels were between 800 and 1600 micrograms l-1 but displayed a further steep rise for vitamin A levels above this range. Fourteen individuals had levels that did not follow this pattern but fell rather neatly below the correlation line. These individuals were also found to have significantly higher mean levels of acute phase reactants than the rest of the study group, suggesting the possibility of subclinical infection or inflammation in these subjects. Vitamins A and E showed an inverse curvilinear relationship. This is the first report of an interaction between vitamins A and E and RBP in healthy Swedish children. The study demonstrates that a linear one-to-one relationship between RBP and vitamin A may not be of regular occurrence as previously assumed. The pattern described suggests the existence of thresholds of essentiality and toxicity in the interaction between the two vitamins and RBP. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Importance and expectations of destination attributes for Japanese tourists to Hawaii and the gold coast compared

Competition in tourism destination marketing has highlighted the need for comparative studies of destination attributes. The Japanese are a major source of tourists, and Hawaii and the Gold Coast significant but somewhat similar destination choices for the Japanese. A survey of 1270 tourists arriving and departing Hawaii and the Gold Coast is used to measure the importance of, expectations of, and satisfaction with, a range of 27 destination attributes. A principal components dimensional analysis is destination images. The question of whether satisfaction should be compared with attribute importance or expectation is determined by a structural equation analysis, and it is concluded that expectations on arrival result from the importance of attributes. A comparison of the expectations and satisfaction of the Japanese tourists, provides a more comprehensive view of the attributes at the two destinations. The study discusses the implications of this finding for the two destinations.
Stock Market Volatility and Economic Factors

This paper examines the ability of rational economic factors to explain stock market volatility. A simple model of the economy under uncertainty identifies four determinants of stock market volatility: uncertainty about the price level, the riskless rate of interest, the risk premium on equity and the ratio of expected profits to expected revenues. In initial tests these variables have significant explanatory power and account for over 50 per cent of the variation in market volatility from 1929 to 1989. When the regression coefficients are allowed to vary over time using cluster regression, the four factors explain over 90 per cent of the variation in market volatility. The results are useful in explaining the past behavior of stock market volatility and in forecasting future volatility.
The effect of SHRM practices on perceived firm financial performance: Some initial evidence from Australia

Since its emergence, strategic human resource management (SHRM) has been the focus of debate over whether it exists in reality or is merely rhetoric. SHRM is often measured by the integration of the HR function in the strategic management process, the devolvement of HR practices to line managers, and the influence of these practices on firm performance. Our survey research findings indicate that strategic integration and devolvement of HRM were practised to a moderate extent in the firms sampled, and the degree of alignment of HRM with business objectives and strategies had a positive relationship with perceived firm financial performance.
Mechanistic link between lidocaine block and inactivation probed by outer pore mutations in the rat μ1 skeletal muscle sodium channel

1 Mutations that disrupt Na+ channel fast inactivation attenuate lidocaine (lignocaine)‐induced use dependence; however, the pharmacological role of slower inactivation processes remains unclear. In Xenopus oocytes, tryptophan substitution in the outer pore of the rat skeletal muscle channel (μ1‐W402) alters partitioning among fast‐ and slow‐inactivated states. We therefore examined the effects of W402 mutations on lidocaine block. 2 Recovery from inactivation exhibited three kinetic components (IF, fast; IM, intermediate; IS, slow). The effects of W402A and W402S on IF and IS differed, but both mutants (with or without β1 subunit coexpression) decreased the amplitude of IM. In wild‐type channels, lidocaine imposed a delayed recovery component with intermediate kinetics, and use‐dependent block was attenuated in both W402A and W402S. 3 To examine the pharmacological role of IS relative to IM, drug‐exposed β1‐coexpressed channels were subjected to 2 min depolarizations. Lidocaine had no effect on sodium current (INa) after a 1 s hyperpolarization interval that allowed recovery from IM but not IS, suggesting that lidocaine affinity for IS is low. 4 Both W402 mutations reduced occupancy of IM in drug‐free conditions, and also induced resistance to use‐dependent block. We propose that lidocaine‐induced use dependence may involve an allosteric conformational change in the outer pore.
Growth Hormone Treatment Completely Normalizes Adult Height and Improves Body Composition in Prader-Willi Syndrome: Experience from KIGS (Pfizer International Growth Database)

Background: Abnormal body composition, with low muscle mass and increased fat mass, as well as short adult stature are common features in Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS), as in growth hormone (GH) deficiency. Methods: We followed a cohort of 22 genetically verified patients with PWS from the start of GH (Genotropin®) treatment at the median age of 6.9 years (4.9–11.3) to near-adult height at 18.1 years (16.4–21.2). The patients were treated with a median GH dose of 0.03 mg/kg/day (0.02–0.03) for a median duration of 10.2 years (6.9–11.5). Results: All patients reached near-adult height within midparental height median –0.5 SDS (–1.4 to 0.7) and 0.9 SDS (0.1–1.9) for girls and boys, respectively. The body composition improved but did not normalize. Only 7 of the 22 patients were reported to be in puberty. None of the patients were reported to be on sex hormone substitution which might contribute to not reaching a normal body composition. No serious side effects were reported when the caloric intake was controlled to maintain an appropriate body weight. Conclusion: GH treatment in children with Prader-Wili syndrome normalizes adult height and improves body composition.
Product platform flexibility planning by hybrid real options analysis

Product platforms are believed to facilitate product design flexibility; however, the value and best form of such flexibility have yet to be fully understood. This article treats the design flexibility that is inherent in product platforms as being irreversible investment decisions that are crafted with a portfolio of platform real options that are continuously exercised to fulfill expected returns on investment. While options thinking has been appealing to the design community, the existing design real options models suffer from poor validity of the basic assumptions about the real options. Most existing work intuitively imitates real options decision making based on modularity and configuration. The missing link lies in the lack of an explicit time horizon, in which real options theory has its roots. This article proposes to craft platform real options in line with the management flexibility that is staged along the design project life. A hybrid real options analysis framework is developed by incorporating product-related and project-related flexibility to synthesize both financial and technical analyses of product platforms within a coherent framework. A case study of vibration motor platform planning demonstrates the potential of the proposed hybrid approach for the valuation of platform flexibility under uncertainty and for supporting optimal product platform planning.
Asset Building Among Native Hawaiians: Lessons From the Kahikü Individual Development Account Program

Individual Development Accounts (IDAs) are matched savings accounts that encourage asset development for individuals and families with low incomes. Unique data from an IDA program serving 758 Native Hawaiians were used to model the probability of participating in and graduating from the program. Multivariate logistic regression models show that the presence of children in the household, lack of vehicle ownership, and savings goal (education) were positively associated with program participation. Participants with assets to start in the form of homes and relatively high savings balances were more likely to graduate from the program. Additionally, Maui participants were 3 times more likely than O‘ahu participants to graduate. Recommendations for IDA policies and future research are discussed.
Equity Portfolio Structure and Design in the Presence of Taxes

The author addresses the issues selecting the policy normal equity mix among large and small capitalization stocks, or a value or growth style, together with the method of implementing this, that is through an active or a passive investment process. Focusing on the taxable investor, the author argues that equity portfolio structure is a particularly important subject in this case. Discussing the four decision points at which some tax may be incurred, he proposes five broad recommendations, which view the design of the equity portfolio from a long-term perspective. Thus, he suggests that taxable investors should reject conventional wisdom and rather opt for a broad core equity investment that is passive and tax managed, allowing for concentrated active managers with relatively small portfolios that are unconstrained with respect to risk and are not too focused on taxes.
Fabric filter performance of helicopter inlet barrier filters

An Inlet Barrier Filter System is integrated into the intake of a helicopter to perform the task of removing potentially harmful particles from engine-bound air. While performing a vital duty in the prolonging of engine life, their use incurs a loss of engine performance as a result of the loss of pressure that is synonymous with air passing through a porous barrier. Furthermore, as particles collect on the filter they pose additional restriction to the flow of air, causing the pressure drop to increase over time. It is the objective of the present work to propose a low order model to predict this transient pressure loss, in order that the performance of helicopters operating with Inlet Barrier Filters may be analysed. The contribution includes a model to predict the temporal separation efficiency of a woven fabric filter and the temporal change in pressure drop due to the build up of particles on the filter.
OPINION FORMATION MODELS IN STATIC AND DYNAMIC SOCIAL NETWORKS

We study models of opinion formation on static as well as dynamic networks where interaction among individuals is governed by widely accepted social theories. In particular, three models of competing opinions based on distinct interaction mechanisms are studied. A common feature in all of these models is the existence of a tipping point in terms of a model parameter beyond which a rapid consensus is reached. In the first model that we study on a static network, a node adopts a particular state (opinion) if a threshold fraction of its neighbors are already in that state. We introduce a few initiator nodes which are in state ‘1’ in a population where every node is in state ‘0’. Thus, opinion ‘1’ spreads through the population until no further influence is possible. Size of the spread is greatly affected by how these initiator nodes are selected. We find that there exists a critical fraction of initiators pc that is needed to trigger global cascades for a given threshold φ. We also study heuristic strategies for selecting a set of initiator nodes in order to maximize the cascade size. The structural properties of networks also play an important role in the spreading process. We study how the dynamics is affected by changing the clustering in a network. It turns out that local clustering is helpful in spreading. Next, we studied a model where the network is dynamic and interactions are homophilic. We find that homophily-driven rewiring impedes the reaching of consensus and in the absence of committed nodes (nodes that are not influenceable on their opinion), consensus time Tc diverges exponentially with network size N . As we introduce a fraction of committed nodes, beyond a critical value, the scaling of Tc becomes logarithmic in N . We also find that slight change in the interaction rule can produce strikingly different scaling behaviors of Tc. However, introducing committed agents in the system drastically improves the scaling of the consensus time regardless of the interaction rules considered. Finally, a three-state (leftist, rightist, centrist) model that couples the dynamics of social balance with an external deradicalizing field is studied. The mean-field
The Discursive Resistance to EU-Enticement: The Russian Elite and (the Lack of) Europeanisation

Abstract This article explores the discourse of the Russian elite on foreign policy in general and on the European Union in particular, and identifies the main reasons for Russia's resistance to Europeanisation. At a theoretical level, the article builds upon the study of discourse conceived in ‘structural’ terms, and argues that discursive incompatibility at a deeper discursive level prevents the socialisation of elite members to attitudes more sympathetic to Europe at a more superficial level. Methodologically, the research is based on content analysis of major Russian foreign policy documents, presidential speeches and, in particular, of a set of interviews with Russian foreign policy-makers and academics most frequently in touch with the European Union.