Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The relationship between firm performance and CEO turnover with CEO entrenchment as a moderator: An empirical study on the Swedish market

Purpose: The aim of this thesis is to explain how prior firm performance affects CEO turnover with the moderating role of CEO entrenchment on the Swedish market. Theoretical perspectives: The theoretical framework provides different aspects which highlights corporate governance in a Swedish context and the impact of CEO entrenchment from an agency theory perspective. Stewardship theory is provided as an additional theory to get a broader understanding of the relationship between prior firm performance and CEO turnover. The theoretical contribution of the thesis lays in argumentation for the relationship of concepts under study. Methodology: This study adopts deductive reasoning and employs quantitative analysis by using the non-linear logistic regression model. The dataset is longitudinal, thus all CEO turnovers are included in the analysis. Separate robustness tests are conducted to evaluate forced CEO turnovers and if the main results are affected by the logistic regression structure. Empirical Foundation: All companies listed on Nasdaq OMX Stockholm were included in the original sample during the 1st of January 2012 to 31th December 2014. After adjustments, the final sample consisted of 666 observations, 222 companies and 83 CEO turnovers. Conclusions: Consistent with previous research our results partly show that there is a significant negative relationship between prior firm performance and CEO turnover, indicating that CEOs delivering poor financial performance will be replaced. However, this classical relationship is not moderated by the aspect of CEO entrenchment on the Swedish market and the thesis suggests explanations to these non-findings. Some of the more interesting findings indicate that instead of playing a moderating role, CEO entrenchment has a direct effect on the CEO turnover outcome.
Exchange Rate Management and Inflation Targeting: Modeling the Exchange Rate in Reduced-Form New Keynesian Models

This paper introduces a strategy for modeling the exchange rate when the monetary authority targets inflation while also managing the exchange rate using interventions. It does so in the framework of a standard reduced-form New Keynesian model of monetary transmission used in many institutions for research, forecasting, and monetary policy analysis. We propose a microfounded modification to the UIP condition which allows for modeling of informal exchange rate bands. Our modeling strategy is useful for most hybrid IT regimes, including those with imperfect control over market interest rates.
Identifying Predictors of Programming Achievement

The main purpose of this study is to explore the predictors of programming achievement. With this aim in mind, the students’ achievement in the programming courses is specified as the dependent variable and computer achievement, creativity, problem solving, general aptitudes, computer attitudes and mathematics achievement are specified as the independent variables. A correlational design was used to explain the relations between dependent and independent variables. The study group consists of 48 high school students in Profilo Anatolia Technical High School, Istanbul. At the end of the study, significant relations were found between the students’ programming achievement and their computer achievement, general aptitudes and mathematics achievement. Also, in order to determine the predictors of the students’ programming achievement, multiple regression analysis was applied. The findings reveal that only one variable that significantly predicts the students’ programming achievement is general aptitude. Key-Words: Programming achievement, creativity, problem solving, general aptitudes, computer attitude, mathematics achievement
Entrepreneurial Roles Along a Cycle of Discovery

The literature on entrepreneurship recognizes a variety of entrepreneurial roles, and the question arises what roles are played when and by whom.In this article, roles are attributed to different stages of innovation and organizational development.A central theme is the relation between discontinuity, in radical innovation (exploration), and continuity, in application, diffusion and adaptation (exploitation). Use is made of a concept of a 'cycle of discovery', which seeks to explain how exploration leads on to exploitation, and how exploitation may yield exploration, in a step-by-step development towards radical innovation.Parallel to this there are processes of organisational development.
The Influence of Institutional and Government Ownership on Firm Performance: Evidence from Kuwait

Drawing on prior theoretical and empirical research examining corporate governance mechanisms, this study empirically explores the effects of institutional and government ownership on the performance of firms listed on the Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE). Both a market-based measure (Tobin’s Q) and an accounting-based measure (ROA) are used to measures firm performance. Based on a sample of 134 firms listed on the KSE in the year 2010, regression analysis results show a positive relationship between institutional investors and KSE firm performance, suggesting the powerful and influential role institutional investors play as a corporate governance mechanism. In contrast, a negative relationship is observed between government ownership and KSE firm performance, implying worse market performance when government ownership exists. The findings imply that different types of ownership structures have different affects on firm performance. Some ownership structures enhance performance while others worsen performance.
Response of snap bean plants to some agricultural treatments for early yield production.

Two field experiments were carried out during two early summer seasons of 2012 and 2013 years at the Experimental Farm of Kaha Station, Qalubia Governorate to study the response of snap bean plants Poulista c.v to some agricultural treatments for early green pods yield production using (flowering, amcotone, super phosphate solution compounds) as foliar nutrition, (charcoal, agriculture sulphur and charcoal + agriculture sulphur) as soil addition and( Pea, onion and broad bean) as protection plants, in addition using black polyethylene plastic as a soil mulch. The results indicated that spraying the plants with flowering and amcotone compounds followed by super phosphate solution had the highest values of fresh and dry plant weight. While addingcharcoal to the soil before sowing snap bean seeds gave the highest values of no. of leaves/ plant followed by spraying withflowering and amcotone compounds, respectively. The data showed also that spraying the plants with flowering, amcotone compounds, super phosphate solution, adding charcoal + sulphur and soil mulch with black polyethylene plastic exerted the highest values on all parameter of green pods its and yield attributes in both growing seasons. Concerning total sugars in dry pods it's clear that using protection plants with broad bean followed byonion were the best treatments on it. Generally it can recommend using any one of the mentioned treatments in this experiment especially flowering, amcotone compounds, super phosphate solution, charcoal + sulphur, respectively to obtain high green pod yield either early or total with the best quality.
Competitive Balance in Team Sports and the Impact of Revenue Sharing

This article uses economic theory to examine the variables that affect the competitive balance in a professional sports league and the impact of revenue sharing. The generally accepted proposition that revenue sharing does not affect the competitive balance in a profi t-maximizing league has been challenged by many. It is shown that the competitive balance and the impact of revenue sharing not only depend on the relative size of the market of the clubs, but that they are also affected by the objectives of the club owners and the importance to spectators of absolute team quality and uncertainty of outcome. Furthermore, the clubs’ hiring strategies, including the talent supply conditions, turn out to be important elements affecting competitive balance and the impact of revenue sharing.
Fingered flow in two dimensions: 2. Predicting finger moisture profile

An exact integral solution for the moisture profile in growing fingers in sandy soil is derived from Richards' equation. The solution provides moisture content along a finger as a function of position and time and provides applicable results, including the calculation of the asymptotic mattic potential of a growing finger and a method of obtaining the unsaturated conductivity in a single experiment. The solution is verified experimentally through comparison with measurements of matric potential and moisture content using high-speed tensiometers.
The Flow in S-shaped Ducts

Measurements are presented of total pressure, static pressure, surface shear stress and yaw angle in the flow through several S-shaped ducts, each with a thin turbulent boundary layer at entry. The results show that the region of low total pressure in the exit plane, found by previous workers, is due to expulsion of boundary-layer fluid by a pair of contra-totating vortices in the boundary layer. The generation of these vortices is explained: similarly-produced vortices, with similar effects, occur in some types of wind-tunnel contraction and possibly in other three-dimensional flows.
Preliminary Survey on Consumption of Moringa Products for Nutraceutical Benefits in Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria.

The public's need for health and dietary adequacy has been the driving force for their use of Nutraceutical supplements. Moringa oleifera is one of the herbal plants promoted based on its acclaimed of its Nutraceutical benefits. However awareness and adoption are critical issues in the utilization of any product/service. This preliminary survey was conducted to examine the consumption of moringa products for nutraceutical benefits in Ilorin, Kwara state, Nigeria. One hundred adult respondents were interviewed using semi-structured questionnaire. Descriptive statistics, Binary Logistic Regression and non-parametric correlation analyses were employed to achieve the study's objectives. The results indicated that a fairly high proportion of the respondents (48%) had used Moringa products for its claimed Nutraceutical benefits. Lack of awareness was a major barrier to the use of Moringa product: 87% of the non-users indicated lack of awareness as a reason for non-use. Educating non-users on its claimed Nutraceutical benefits led to 85% prospective adoption. However, given knowledge, the major determinant of reticence to its adoption was safety concerns, which is statistically significant (p<0.01). Hence, it is recommended that an awareness of the claimed Nutraceutical benefits of Moringa products should be increased since it could increase adoption with a consequent increase in market share. However, it is paramount that pre-clinical and clinical trials on Moringa products for claimed Nutraceutical benefits should be conducted to assure its safety and efficacy in the immediate and long term. Keywords : Moringa products, Nutraceutical benefits, use, adoption, clinical trials.
The Effective Teaching and Learning of Biodiversity in Advanced Level National Biology Curriculum (9190), Masvingo Province, Zimbabwe

The study presents findings on the effectiveness of the teaching and learning of the topic biodiversity a component of the Zimbabwean Advanced level Biology curriculum (9190) in Masvingo. The main goal of this study was to identify the methods employed by the teachers when teaching the topic Diversity of organisms and factors that affect their effectiveness in the teaching and learning of this component as well as establishing the challenges faced by ‘A’ level biology teachers during the teaching and learning of this topic. The data gathering procedures involved ‘A’ level biology lesson observations, document analysis of ‘A’ level biology teachers’ schemes and records of work, past examination question papers from ZIMSEC and chief examination reports for the period 2003-2005. Questionnaires were administered to ‘A’ level biology teachers and students. The Zimbabwe School Examination Council (ZIMSEC) National Chief Examiner for Biology Curriculum 9190/2 was interviewed. The qualitative and quantitative methods of data analysis were employed. The results obtained indicated that the teaching and learning of biodiversity was not very effective. Findings from the lessons observed and the interviews carried out to the Heads of Science Departments showed that the majority of the strategies used in biodiversity teaching were not student-centred. Very few schools were found to involve field trips when teaching this topic. The study recommends that ‘A’ level biology teachers from each province establish ‘A’ level biology peer coaching teams to help each other on the diversity of organisation. Workshops on how to prepare fieldtrips as a teaching strategy should be organized and carried out.
Effect of Drying Air Velocity on Drying Kinetics of Tomato Slices in a Forced-Convective Solar Tunnel Dryer

The objective of this work is to analyse the extent to which a change in the drying air velocity may affect the drying kinetics of tomato in a forced-convective solar tunnel dryer. 2 m⋅s−1 (V1) and 3 m⋅s−1 (V2) air speeds were applied in similar drying air temperature and humidity conditions. Main drying constants calculated included the drying rate, the drying time and the effective water diffusivity based on the derivative form of the Fick’s second law of diffusion. Henderson and Pabis Model and Page Model were used to describe the drying kinetics of tomato. We found that solar drying of tomato occurred in both constant and falling-rate phases. The Page Model appeared to give a better description of tomato drying in a forced-convective solar tunnel dryer. At t = 800 min, the drying rate was approximately 0.0023 kg of water/kg dry matter when drying air velocity was at 2 m/s. At the same moment, the drying rate was higher than 0.0032 kg of water/kg dry matter when the drying air velocity was 3 m/s. As per the effective water diffusivity, its values changed from 2.918E−09 m2⋅s−1 to 3.921E−09 m2⋅s−1 when drying air velocity was at 2 and 3 m⋅s−1 respectively, which is equivalent to a 25% increase. The experimentations were conducted in Niamey, on the 1st and 5th of January 2019 for V2 and V1 respectively. For both two experiments, the starting time was 9:30 local time.
Degradation data analysis using the Probability Integral Transformation and a linear degradation path model with Weibull distributed random effects

Degradation data are usually modeled by a nonlinear regression model with random coefficients. Maximum Likelihood (ML) estimation is often implemented in those cases using normality assumption of random effects. Unfortunately this assumption may be unrealistic or invalid in practice. Misspecification of the random effects distribution leads to biased estimates of the reliability figures of interest such as quantiles of the time to failure distribution and the mean time to failure. In this paper we use the Probability Integral Transformation (PT) proposed by Nelson et al. (2006) for obtaining ML estimates when the random effects are assumed to have non-normal distribution. In particular, the method is used for a linear path degradation model with Weibull distributed random effects. The method is applied to a real situation.
Analysis of reflectance spectra of tropical seagrass species and their value for mapping using multispectral satellite images

ABSTRACT Mapping of the distribution of individual seagrass species is essential for any attempts to manage seagrass ecosystems. It is therefore important to understand how the spectra of different seagrass species vary, in order to establish their unique absorption features and how these can be utilised for mapping by making use of remote-sensing images. This paper presents measurements of the reflectance spectra between 400 and 900 nm for nine tropical species of seagrass. Continuum removal and multispectral resampling procedures were applied to the spectra. Dendrogram analysis was carried out to identify species clustering as the basis for a mapping scheme. Spectral Angle Mapper (SAM) and Spectral Information Divergence (SID) approaches were employed for the classification of seagrass species using WorldView-2 images and measured spectra as the input endmember. Classification Tree Analysis (CTA) and an image segmentation approach using CTA (Object-Based Image Analysis – OBIA) were performed as a means of comparison. The results indicate that the absorption features and overall shape of the spectra for all seagrass species are relatively similar, and implied that the major differences are attributable to the absolute reflectance values. Consequently, SAM and SID produced results of low accuracy (<30%), whereas, CTA and OBIA delivered results exhibiting higher accuracy (60–92%). The use of a spectral-based classification algorithm was ineffective for the classification and mapping of seagrass species using multispectral images. The utilisation of absolute reflectance values was beneficial for the classification of seagrass species having similar spectral shape.
Local Labour Market Effects of Unemployment on Crime Induced by Trade Shocks

This paper analyses the effect of a long-term change in unemployment on crime in the US local labour markets (1990-2007). During these last two decades, the US economy has experienced severe structural changes caused by international trade shocks, and China has played a crucial role as a major global exporter. The rapid growth of US exposure to China products triggers the increase in US local unemployment rates. This study documents whether this increasing exposure to Chinese competitiveness has indirectly contributed to the change in the propensity to commit crime through the displacement of workers. I exploit the cross-market variation in import exposure stemming from initial differences in industry specialisation to instrument the unemployment rate. The empirical evidence suggests that a one per cent increase in unemployment rate, induced by a change in Chinese import products, leads to almost a one per cent rise in the total crime rate.
Consumer confusion proneness: insights from a developing economy

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine young consumers’ general tendency to become confused and its effect on the word of mouth, trust, and consumer satisfaction in Indonesia – the largest smartphone market in Southeast Asia. Design/methodology/approach – A combination of convenience and purposive sampling were used to select the sample of young adults in Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta (DIY), Indonesia. Findings – The results confirm that consumer confusion proneness comprises three dimensions; similarity confusion, overload confusion, and ambiguity confusion among young consumers in the smartphone market. Furthermore, each dimension has different consumer behavioural implications. Practical implications – In the context of Indonesia and when targeting young consumers, companies should focus on defining unique product features instead of simply imitating competitor offerings, because similarity confusion negatively affects consumer trust. Moreover, managers should consistently emphasize unique and .
CONSUMER PREFERENCES, BUDGET CONSTRAINTS, AND CONSUMPTION CHOICES

This paper discusses consumer preferences and choices from a traditional perspective to illuminate some of the crucial issues relevant to consumer theory and service science. As revealed in the theory of revealed preference, the information which is obtained from the observed consumption choices by consumers may be used by firms in providing and pricing commodities of various types to promote managerial outcomes. The property of transitivity in a preference order relation would facilitate the establishment of the property of coherence in a choice function, while the coherence in a consumer’s choice function may not guarantee that her preferences would possess the property of transitivity in a preference order relation. A hypothetical example presented in this paper demonstrates the duality approach to consumer choice analysis by showing the equivalence between utility maximization and expenditure minimization in consumer choice and suggests the necessity of further research on the unaddressed psychological process of individual or group consumption choices made by consumers within a global context.
DETERMINANTS OF BANK PROFITABILITY : AN INVESTIGATION ON TURKISH BANKING SECTOR Halil Emre

This paper aims to examine how bank-specific, industry-specific and macroeconomic factors affect the profitability of 26 commercial banks in Turkey over the period from 2005 to 2010. Return on Assets (ROA) and Return on Equity (ROE) are used as the profitability measures of banks in the study. The results of the study indicate that the ratio of loan loss provisions to gross loans, the ratio of total costs to total income, Herfindahl–Hirschman Index (HHI) for deposits and inflation have a statistically significant and negative relationship with ROA. When the ROE is taken as the measure of profitability; it was found that the ratio of equity to total assets, the ratio of loan loss provisions to gross loans, the ratio of total costs to total income, logarithm of total assets, and finally, HHI for assets are negatively and significantly related to profitability.
A Gamma-Ray Periodic Modulation in Globular Cluster 47 Tucanae

The globular cluster 47 Tucanae was first detected in gamma rays by the Large Area Telescope (LAT) on board the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope, and the gamma-ray emission has been widely attributed to the millisecond pulsars. In this work, we analyze the Fermi-LAT pass 8 data ranging from 2008 August to 2017 May and report the detection of a modulation with a period of 18.416 ± 0.008 hr at a significance level of ∼4. 8σ. This is the first time detecting a significant modulation with a period much longer than that of millisecond pulsars in gamma rays from globular clusters. The periodic modulation signal appears in the Swift Burst Alert Telescope (BAT) data as well. The phase-folded Chandra X-ray light curve of a point source may have provided an additional clue.
A model for simulating structure-function relationships in Walnut tree growth processes

An ecophysiological growth process model, called INCA, for simulating the growth and development of a young walnut tree (Juglans regia L.) during three or four years, is presented. This tool, currently under development, aims at integrating architectural and physiological knowledge of the processes involved, in order to give a more rational understanding of the pruning operation. The model describes a simple three-dimensional representation of tree crown, solar radiation interception, photosynthesis, respiration, growth and partitioning of assimilates to leaves, stems, branches and roots. It supports the hypothesis that the tree grows as a collection of semiautonomous, interacting organs that compete for resources, based on daily sink strengths and proximity to sources. The actual growth rate of organs is not predetermined by empirical data, but reflects the pattern of available resources. The major driving variables are solar radiation, temperature, topological, geometrical and physiological factors. Outputs are hourly and daily photosynthate production and respiration, daily dimensional growth, starch storage, biomass production and total number of different types of organ. The user can interact or override any or all of the input variables to examine the effects of such changes on photosynthate production and growth. Within INCA, the tree entities and the surrounding environment are structured in a frame-based representation whereas the processes are coded in a rule-based language. The simulation mechanism is primarily based on the rule chaining capabilities of an inference engine.