Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Achieving Bankable Green Deals In The Commercial Sectors Of Emerging Economies: The Case Of Shopping Malls In The United Arab Emirates

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is known for having one of the world’s highest per capita carbon rates. In recent years, however, the UAE has launched a number of sustainability-oriented initiatives with the ultimate aims of both reducing its carbon footprint and greening the image of the country. Most efforts have focused, thus far, on government-led large-scale renewable energy projects. Meanwhile, there is a growing global understanding that as governments have limited financial capacities, a large proportion of green investment is slated to come from the private sector. Given the potential role of the business community in achieving the overreaching aims of sustainable development, this paper examines ways of achieving bankable win–win green deals in one of the UAE’s fastest growing sectors; the commercial sector. Through conducting in-depth interviews and surveys with several retail owners in the UAE, we examined both their current willingness to engage in green entrepreneurial activities and ways to enhance their contribution to achieving a sustainable future for the commercial sector in the UAE. A particular focus was placed on examining the potential of striking win–win deals that involve the incorporation of renewable energy technologies and energy-efficient equipment in shopping malls.
Home-school cooperation in the changing context: An ecological approach

This paper aims at examining the development and conditions of home-school cooperation in Hong Kong during the past 15 years. Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory is adapted in the analysis whereby interactions between home-school cooperation and various contextual factors in the microsystem, exosystem and macrosystem are examined. The change of social capital in the process is also examined. It is argued that the development of home-school cooperation has been subjected to great influences from the interrelated contextual factors and the forces experienced by different types of cooperation. The Government is found to play a critical role in shaping the development of home-school cooperation and the reform has focused on meeting the requirement of school accountability rather than on developing partnership for student learning. Suggestions for further development are made and new research directions are proposed .
Effects of natriuretic peptides on electrical conduction in the sinoatrial node and atrial myocardium of the heart

Natriuretic peptides are powerful regulators of the cardiovascular system, but their direct electrophysiological effects in the heart are poorly understood. We have used optical mapping techniques to determine the effects of B‐type and C‐type natriuretic peptide (BNP and CNP) as well as their receptors (NPR‐A, NPR‐B and NPR‐C) on electrical conduction in the sinoatrial node and atrial myocardium. In basal conditions, BNP and CNP speed conduction within the sinoatrial node (SAN) and into the atrial myocardium in association with shifts in the initial exit site by activating NPR‐A and NPR‐B. In the presence of isoproterenol, BNP and CNP have the opposite effect whereby conduction in the SAN and atria is slowed. These inhibitory effects are due to the activation of NPR‐C as well as NPR‐A/B. We conclude that natriuretic peptides have potent effects on electrical conduction in the heart. These effects are complex and can involve multiple natriuretic peptide receptors.
Does Adopting High-Standard Corporate Governance Increase Firm Value? An Empirical Analysis Of Canadian Companies

Research on the impact of corporate governance on firm value has provided inconclusive results. The findings vary depending on the sample, country of study (regulation, law, shareholder protection, market development, etc.) and methodology employed. Many studies are unable to detect significant connection between corporate governance and firm value. Unlike the United States, Canada adopts a principles-based approach in corporate governance regulation. Canadian companies are required to disclose whether they comply with the corporate governance guidelines set up by authorities (such as the Toronto Stock Exchange) or explain deviations from the guidelines. Using panel data from 2004 to 2008 in Canada the empirical analyses in this paper show that the finding on the connection between corporate governance and firm value is sensitive to the methodology employed. Controlling relevant information is crucial to the results. When the data is analyzed in a self-selection framework, it is found that some time-varying unobservable firm characteristics that make firms adopt high-standard corporate governance also increase firm value, and somewhat surprisingly, adopting better corporate governance practices per se seems to decrease firm value. The results support the view that firms use sound corporate governance to signal their favorable private information.
Converting from Independent to Employee Salesforces: The Role of Perceived Switching Costs

A study was conducted to understand when and why manufacturers might convert from an independent salesforce to a direct salesforce. On the basis of hypotheses developed from channel distribution theory and ecological theory of organizational change, the authors estimate a model of a firm's intention to “go direct” with survey data from 243 manufacturers currently using manufacturers’ representatives. Results indicate considerable inertia in the manufacturer/agent relationship and suggest some reasons for the stability of those arrangements.
Evaluation of cognitive function associated with chemotherapy: a review of published studies and recommendations for future research.

PURPOSE There is evidence that some cancer survivors suffer cognitive impairment after chemotherapy. Determining if a patient has cognitive impairment is challenging, especially because impairment is usually subtle. PATIENTS AND METHODS We assessed the design of studies evaluating cognitive function during or after chemotherapy in adult patients with solid tumors. We also reviewed methods used to evaluate cognitive function in subjects with other diseases and make recommendations for future studies. RESULTS We identified 22 studies that met our criteria: 82% included women with breast cancer. Eight studies were longitudinal, 12 were cross-sectional, and two were follow-ups of cross-sectional studies. Sixteen studies used a battery of neuropsychological (NP) tests to assess subjects, and 13 included a control group. Ten studies (45%) had no explicit definition of cognitive impairment; most others used z scores or T scores and defined impairment based on standard deviations below the mean, but there was no consistency in for the cutoff point used or the number of tests required. CONCLUSION There is no consistency in defining cognitive impairment, in the NP batteries used, or in statistical methods in studies of cognitive function of cancer patients. We suggest guidelines to define criteria for cognitive impairment. Use of summary scores and control groups is recommended. Practice effect should be adjusted for in longitudinal studies. A balance is needed between comprehensive batteries and briefer tests, which still need to be sensitive to mild impairment.
X-ray spectral survey with XMM-Newton of a complete sample of nearby Seyfert galaxies

Results obtained from an X-ray spectral survey of nearby Seyfert galaxies using XMM–Newton are reported. The sample was optically selected, well defined, complete in B magnitude, and distance limited: it consists of the nearest ($D \la22$ Mpc) 27 Seyfert galaxies (9 of type 1, 18 of type 2) taken from the Ho et al. (1997a, ApJS, 112, 315) sample. This is one of the largest atlases of hard X-ray spectra of low-luminosity active galaxies ever assembled. All nuclear sources except two Seyfert 2s are detected between 2 and 10 keV, half for the first time ever, and average spectra are obtained for all of them. Nuclear luminosities reach values down to 10 38 erg s -1 . The shape of the distribution of X-ray parameters is affected by the presence of Compton-thick objects ($\ga$30% among type 2s). The latter have been identified either directly from their intense FeK line and flat X-ray spectra, or indirectly with flux diagnostic diagrams which use isotropic indicators. After taking into account these highly absorbed sources, we find that (i) the intrinsic X-ray spectral properties (i.e., spectral shapes and luminosities above 2 keV) are consistent between type 1 and type 2 Seyferts, as expected from “unified models”; (ii) Seyfert galaxies as a whole are distributed fairly continuously over the entire range of N H , between 10 20 and 10 25 cm -2 ; and (iii) while Seyfert 1s tend to have lower N H and Seyfert 2s tend to have the highest, we find 30% and 10% exceptions, respectively. Overall the sample is of sufficient quality to well represent the average intrinsic X-ray spectral properties of nearby active galactic nuclei, including a proper estimate of the distribution of their absorbing columns. Finally, we conclude that, with the exception of a few cases, the present study agrees with predictions of unified models of Seyfert galaxies, and extends their validity down to very low luminosities.
Board Independence and the Regulatory Framework for Appointing Independent Directors on the Boards of Listed Companies in India

Worldwide, the presence of independent directors on the board of listed companies is seen as an integral element of a company’s corporate governance process and has become a pre requisite for good governance. Consequently, in the recent years, governance reforms in India have increasingly pinned hope, as well as responsibility, on independent directors to achieve higher standards of governance in organizations.Unlike the Anglo Saxon world, where the key corporate governance challenge is disciplining the management and making it accountable to the distributed shareholders, the central challenge in corporate governance in India is that of disciplining the dominant shareholder(s) and protecting the interest of the minority shareholders. Therefore independent directors, in Indian business organizations, can become effective only when their appointment process is outside the influence of the dominant shareholders.This paper examines the current state of corporate boards among the S&P CNX 500 companies in India and reviews the impact of the changes that have been introduced in the recently amended Companies Act, 2013 and the revisions, by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to clause 49 of the Listing agreement dealing with corporate governance. While, with the recent changes, significant steps have been taken to strengthen the role of independent directors on the board of listed companies, the process for the appointment of independent directors needs to be further strengthened so as to truly improve the independence of the board in listed Indian companies.
Generic super-exponential stability of invariant tori in Hamiltonian systems

Abstract In this article, we consider solutions that start close to some linearly stable invariant tori in an analytic Hamiltonian system, and we prove results of stability for a super-exponentially long interval of time, under generic conditions. The proof combines classical Birkhoff normal forms with a new method for obtaining generic Nekhoroshev estimates developed by the author and L. Niederman in another paper. We will focus mainly on the neighbourhood of elliptic fixed points, since with our approach the other cases can be treated in a very similar way.
Information Transfer, Rent Extraction and Insider Trading ― Who Internalised the Private Information Externality?

We examine corporate insider transactions around Sarbanes-Oxley §403 (SOX) regulatory regimes and subsequent Wall Street Journal (WSJ) media postings — and provide new evidence on the benefit/cost trade-off tension between private information transfer and stock trading costs. SOX increased abnormal returns for insiders in conjunction with market-maker induced higher trading costs — reversed after WSJ posting of Form 4. The highest trade-off impact was clustered around purchases by non-executive directors and intangible rich firms. We reject the notion that SOX provided an information externality to outside investors from accelerated reporting of insider profitability. Our alternative explanation is an (unintended) internal information externality to less informed non-executive directors (per Fishman and Hagerty 1995) at the expense of increased trading costs to outside investors (per Leland 1992). Highlighted are cost trade-offs from regulations intended to address investor information asymmetry, and the incremental role the media plays in disseminating second hand and pre-trading private information.
Knowledge of the Firm, Combinative Capabilities, and the Replication of Technology

How should we understand why firms exist? A prevailing view has been that they serve to keep in check the transaction costs arising from the self-interested motivations of individuals. We develop in this article the argument that what firms do better than markets is the sharing and transfer of the knowledge of individuals and groups within an organization. This knowledge consists of information (e.g., who knows what) and of know-how (e.g., how to organize a research team). What is central to our argument is that knowledge is held by individuals, but is also expressed in regularities by which members cooperate in a social community (i.e., group, organization, or network). If knowledge is only held at the individual level, then firms could change simply by employee turnover. Because we know that hiring new workers is not equivalent to changing the skills of a firm, an analysis of what firms can do must understand knowledge as embedded in the organizing principles by which people cooperate within organizations.Based on this discussion, a paradox is identified: efforts by a firm to grow by the replication of its technology enhances the potential for imitation. By considering how firms can deter imitation by innovation, we develop a more dynamic view of how firms create new knowledge. We build up this dynamic perspective by suggesting that firms learn new skills by recombining their current capabilities. Because new ways of cooperating cannot be easily acquired, growth occurs by building on the social relationships that currently exist in a firm. What a firm has done before tends to predict what it can do in the future. In this sense, the cumulative knowledge of the firm provides options to expand in new but uncertain markets in the future.We discuss at length the example of the make/buy decision and propose several testable hypotheses regarding the boundaries of the firm, without appealing to the notion of “opportunism. ”
Are lead risk questionnaires adequate predictors of blood lead levels in children?

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the accuracy of the verbal lead risk assessment tool in identifying the presence of measurable blood lead levels (BLL) in children. DESIGN AND SAMPLE A retrospective analysis comparing results of a verbal lead risk assessment tool intended to identify elevated BLL in children with actual capillary fingerstick lead screening laboratory data. Three hundred and forty-nine children aged 5 years and younger enrolled in Head Start during the 2008-2009 school year were evaluated. Sixty-nine children had complete data and were included for final analysis. MEASURES Results of the verbal lead risk assessment and laboratory capillary fingerstick BLL. RESULTS All 69 children had measurable BLL. The Pass group, 84.3% of the sample, had BLL scores of 2.2±1.5 μg/dl, while the Fail group, 15.7% of the sample, had BLL scores of 1.5±0.65 μg/dl. There was no significant difference in BLL between children that passed the verbal risk assessment and those that failed ( p>.05). CONCLUSIONS The verbal lead risk assessment did not accurately predict measurable BLL in children. Universal BLL screening for children is necessary to identify low levels of lead so that parents and caretakers of children can be notified and assisted in identifying and eliminating sources of lead exposure.
Communication With Residents and Families in Nursing Homes at the End of Life

Communication with residents and their families is important to ensure that the end-of-life experience is in accordance with residents’ wishes. A secondary analysis was conducted to determine (a) who should communicate with the resident/family about death and dying; (b) when communication should occur around death and dying, obtaining a “DNR” (do not resuscitate) order, and obtaining a hospice referral; and (c) what differences exist in communication about death and dying between registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, and unlicensed staff. More than 90% of staff (N = 2191) reported that the physician or social worker should communicate about death and dying with residents/families, but only 53% thought that direct care staff should talk with them. Weighted scores for “when communication should occur about death and dying and obtaining a DNR order” revealed significantly (P < .01) lower scores for unlicensed staff than registered nurses and licensed practical nurses (ie, licensed staff), indicating that licensed staff were more likely to initiate conversations on admission or at the care-planning meeting or when the resident’s family requested it. No differences were found between staff on communication about obtaining a hospice referral. The identified gaps in perception about who should be communicating can assist in developing appropriate interventions that need future testing. The potential for training regarding communication strategies and techniques could lead to higher satisfaction with end-of-life care for residents and their families.
Revealing the expectations and preferences of complaining customers by combining the laddering interviewing technique with the Kano model of customer satisfaction

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to focus on complaint satisfaction with a particular emphasis on the qualities and behaviours that affect customers during personal complaint handling encounters.Design/methodology/approach – Following a literature review of complaint satisfaction and the role of customer contact employees in complaint encounters, an exploratory study using both the laddering interviewing technique and Kano questionnaires is presented.Findings – The laddering results indicate that being taken seriously in the complaint encounter and the employee's friendliness, listening skills and competence are particularly important. The fact that interpersonal factors are highly regarded indicates that customers want to satisfy these process needs first and their outcome expectations second. The Kano results show that employees' active listening skills are the only must‐be requirements while the two concepts “Apology” and “Respectful Treatment” are close to being must‐be criteria. In addition, th.
Cell-penetrating peptides—the Swiss Army knife of cancer vaccines

ABSTRACT Therapeutic cancer vaccination is an attractive treatment modality for cancer, but with limitations using existing whole-cell, peptide, or protein vaccines. We propose that a cell-penetrating peptide (CPP)-based vaccine delivering multi-epitopic antigens into antigen-presenting cells (APCs) offers great potential to induce an integrated antitumor immune response and robust, sustained therapeutic effect.
Stress buffering effects of family support in AIDS caregiving

This study examines the effects of family support on AIDS caregiver stress over time, comparing HIV-positive and HIV-negative gay-identified men who care for a friend or partner living with HIV (PLWH). Support from the care-recipient's family of origin is assessed, and the stress buffering effects of this type of support are explored longitudinally within a stress proliferation framework for 276 men (114 were HIV-positive, 162 were HIV-negative). Among HIV-positive caregivers, emotional distress is associated with high caregiving stress and low PLWH family support. Emotional distress among HIV-negative caregivers is also associated with caregiving stress, but is not significantly influenced by support from the PLWH's family. For both groups, increasing emotional distress over a seven-month period is a function of increasing caregiver stress, but not PLWH family support. The effects of financial worry and role overload on caregiver emotional distress are conditional upon PLWH family support at Time 1 among HIV-positive caregivers, such that support buffers the distressing impact of financial worry, but may exacerbate the distressing impact of role overload. In addition to characterizing processes of stress proliferation and social support, this research also illustrates how families of choice and families of origin simultaneously shape the experience of the caregiving role and its influence on the wellbeing of gay men.
Firms’ Real Earnings Management and Subsequent Stock Price Crash Risk

Using a large sample of U.S. firms for the period from 1994 to 2009, we find that firms’ prior real earnings management (RM) is positively associated with their stock price crash. These results are robust to firm-fixed effects analysis, different crash likelihood measurements, and suspect-firm analysis. On the other hand, RM does not show any predicting power on positive jumps, which supports the argument that insiders use real activities to hide bad but not good information. We find that the predicting power of RM on crash risks after SOX 2002 is much stronger, with the marginal impact being nearly three times as it is in pre-SOX period. By contrast, and consistent with the finding by Hutton et al. (2009), the marginal impact of accrual-based earnings management on crash risks drops by about half after SOX.
Symmetry of Nodal Solutions for Singularly Perturbed Elliptic Problems on a Ball

In [41], it was shown that the following singularly perturbed Dirichlet problem e 2 Δu - u + |u| p- u = 0, in Ω, u = 0 on ∂Ω has a nodal solution u e which has the least energy among all nodal solutions. Moreover, it is shown that u e has exactly one local maximum point P e 1 with a positive value and one local minimum point P e 2 with a negative value, and as e → 0, formula math where φ(P 1 , P 2 ) = min(}P 1 - P 2 }/2,d(P 1 , ∂Ω ), d(P 2 , ∂Ω)). The following question naturally arises: where is the nodal surface {u e (x) = 0}? In this paper, we give an answer in the case of the unit ball Ω = B 1 (0). In particular, we show that for e sufficiently small, Pf, P e 2 and the origin must lie on a line. Without loss of generality, we may assume that this line is the x 1 -axis. Then u e must be even in Xj, j = 2,. , N, and odd in x 1 . As a consequence, we show that {u e (x) = 0} = {x ∈ B 1 (0) x 1 = 0}. Our proof is divided into two steps: first, by using the method of moving planes, we show that P e 1 , P e 2 and the origin must lie on the x 1 -axis and u e must be even in Xj, j = 2,. , N. Then, using the Liapunov-Schmidt reduction method, we prove the uniqueness of u e (which implies the odd symmetry of u e in x 1 ). Similar results are also proved for the problem with Neumann boundary conditions.