Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Debt in Industry Equilibrium

This article shows (1) how entry and exit of firms in a competitive industry affect the valuation of securities and optimal capital structure, and (2) how, given a trade-off between tax advantages and agency costs, a firm will optimally adjust its leverage level after it is set up. We derive simple pricing expressions for corporate debt in which the price elasticity of demand for industry output plays a crucial role. When a firm optimally adjusts its leverage over time, we show that total firm value comprises the value of discounted cash flows assuming fixed capital structure, plus a continuum of options for marginal increases in debt. Article published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Financial Studies in its journal, The Review of Financial Studies.
Job satisfaction and affective commitment: a study of employees in the tourism industry in Sarawak, Malaysia

This study examines what motivates the employees involved in the tourism industry in Sarawak, Malaysia, their level of job satisfaction and the influence of job satisfaction on affective commitment. Meanwhile, this study also examines whether age moderates the relationship. The tourism industry is chosen as the industry for analysis of job satisfaction and affective commitment as it is the critical industry accommodating the increasing number of visitors to Sarawak. Hierarchical regression analysis was used to analyse the data of the study. Satisfaction towards salary was found to have a significant positive relationship with affective commitment while satisfaction towards supervision showed significant positive relationships with normative commitment.
Transbuccal delivery of 5-Aza-2′-deoxycytidine: Effects of drug concentration, buffer solution, and bile salts on permeation

Delivery of 5-aza-2′-deoxycytidine (decitabine) across porcine buccal mucosa was evaluated as an alternative to the complex intravenous infusion regimen currently used to administer the drug. A reproducible high-performance liquid chromatography method was developed and optimized for the quantitative determination of this drug. Decitabine showed a concentration-dependent passive diffusion process across porcine buccal mucosa. An increase in the ionic strength of the phosphate buffer from 100 to 400 mM decreased the flux from 3.57±0.65 to 1.89±0.61 μg/h/cm2. Trihydroxy bile salts significantly enhanced the flux of decitabine at a 100 mM concentration (P>.05). The steady-state flux of decitabine in the presence of 100 mM of sodium taurocholate and sodium glycocholate was 52.65±9.48 and 85.22±7.61 μg/cm2/h, respectively. Two dihydroxy bile salts, sodium deoxytaurocholate and sodium deoxyglycocholate, showed better enhancement effect than did trihydroxy bile salts. A 38-fold enhancement in flux was achieved with 10 mM of sodium deoxyglycocholate.
Online environmental activism and Internet use in the Indonesian environmental movement

This article investigates the use of the Internet among Indonesian environmental non-governmental organizations (ENGOs) and how this use influences the mobilizing structure of the environmental movement. The discussion is informed by an explorative study of nineteen Indonesian ENGOs working in the domain of forest protection. The study reveals that the Internet empowers the environmental activism of these organizations by enhancing opportunities for political participation. A main finding in the article is that well-established organizations with well-developed international networks benefit the most from the use of the Internet in their activism. However, smaller organizations with more informal charters seemed to have a better capacity to connect unconnected communities to the global flow of information.
Evaluation and Comparison of TRMM Multi-Satellite Precipitation Products With Reference to Rain Gauge Observations in Hunza River Basin, Karakoram Range, Northern Pakistan

The performance evaluation of satellite-based precipitation products at local and regional scales is crucial for modification in satellite-based precipitation retrieval algorithms, as well as for the provision of guidance during the selection of substitute precipitation data. This study evaluated the performances of three Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (TMPA) products (3B42V6, 3B42RT and 3B42V7) with a reference to rain gauge observations in the Hunza River basin, northern Pakistan. Multi-spatial (pixel and basin) and temporal (daily, monthly, seasonal and annual) resolutions were considered for performance evaluation of TMPA products. Results revealed that the spatial pattern of observed precipitation over the basin was adequately captured by 3B42V7 but misplaced by 3B42V6 and 3B42RT. All TMPA products were unable to capture the intense precipitation events. On the daily time scale, the performance of TMPA products was very poor over both spatial scales. 3B42V6 underestimated the precipitation (31.25% and 44.27% on pixel and basin scales, respectively). By contrast, 3B42RT significantly overestimated the precipitation (47.91% and 38.62% on pixel and basin scales, respectively), while 3B42V7 showed overestimation (17.30%) on pixel scale and slight underestimation (6.24%) on the basin scale. On the seasonal scale, TMPA products showed significant biases with observed precipitation data. We found that the TMPA products performed relatively better on monthly and annual time scales and overall performance of 3B42V7 product was better than that of 3B42V6 and 3B42RT. The bias in 3B42V7 was improved by 85.90% compared with 3B42V6 and by 116.16% compared with 3B42RT. Thus, it is concluded that the TMPA products were unreliable to capture the intense precipitation events and retain high errors on daily and seasonal scales. Therefore, caution should be considered while using these precipitation estimates as a substitute data in hydrology, meteorology and climatology studies in Hunza River basin. However, due to the reasonable performance of monthly and annual 3B42V7 estimates, these can be used as an acceptable substitute for applications in the region.
Comparative study of tumor markers in patients with colorectal carcinoma before and after chemotherapy.

BACKGROUND Colorectal carcinoma (CRC), the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in US, has a rising time-trend in India. Tumour markers in CRC are extensively researched, and there's still debate on their diagnostic and prognostic values. METHODS In this hospital-based longitudinal study in north India, 51 male diagnosed CRC cases (pre-chemotherapy) were contrasted against 50 age and sex matched controls. Nine biomarkers: carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), prolactin (PRL), alfa feto protein (AFP), total human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), cancer antigen-125 (CA-125), serum testosterone, prostate specific antigen (PSA) and ferritin were measured by direct chemiluminescence technique. Further, follow-up was done on 47 cases after treatment with six cycles of 5-flurouracil (5-FU) and oxaliplatin. RESULTS Mean serum CEA (case: 5.94±8.27 ng/mL, control: 2.5±0.79 ng/mL, P<0.05), PRL (case: 28.12±13.39 ng/mL, control: 14.24±13.13 ng/mL, P<0.0001), AFP (case: 10.9±6.65 ng/mL, control: 4.02±1.26 ng/mL, P<0.0001) levels were significantly raised in CRC cases compared to controls. On the contrary, mean testosterone level (P<0.05) was lower among the cases. After chemotherapy, the mean serum CEA (P<0.05), AFP (P<0.0001) and CA-125 (P<0.05) levels among the cases decreased significantly compared to their pretreatment levels. CONCLUSIONS The present study strongly indicates the role of CEA, PRL, AFP, CA-125 and testosterone as important biomarkers in male CRC patients from north India. Further, AFP, CA-125 and CEA may be used to assess the effectiveness of chemotherapy in such patients.
The relationship between informal caregiving and mortality: an analysis using the ONS Longitudinal Study of England and Wales

Background Many studies have suggested that caregiving has a detrimental impact on health. However, these conclusions are challenged by research which finds evidence of a comparative survivorship advantage, as well as work which controls for group differences in the demand for care. Methods We use a large record linkage study of England and Wales to investigate the mortality risks of carers identified in the 2001 Census. The analysis focuses on individuals aged 35–74 living with others in private households and a distinction is made between those providing 1–19 and 20 or more hours of care per week. Logit models identify differences in carers’ health at baseline and postcensal survival is analysed using Cox proportional hazards models. Results 12.2% of study members reported providing 1–19 h of care and 5.4% reported providing 20 or more hours. While carers were significantly more likely to report poorer health at baseline, survival analyses suggested that they were at a significantly lower risk of dying. This comparative advantage also held when the analyses were restricted to individuals living with at least one person with poor health. Conclusions The comparative mortality advantage revealed in this analysis challenges common characterisations of carers' health and draws attention to important differences in the way carers are defined in existing analyses. The survival results are consistent with work using similar data for Northern Ireland. However, the study also affords more uniform conclusions about carers’ baseline health and this provides grounds for questioning existing hypotheses about the reasons for this advantage.
Linear and non-linear (non-)forecastability of high-frequency exchange rates

This paper explores a number of statistical models for predicting the daily stock return volatility of an aggregate of all stocks traded on the NYSE. An application of linear and non-linear Granger causality tests highlights evidence of bi-directional causality, although the relationship is stronger from volatility to volume than the other way around. The out-of-sample forecasting performance of various linear, GARCH, EGARCH, GJR and neural network models of volatility are evaluated and compared. The models are also augmented by the addition of a measure of lagged volume to form more general ex ante forecasting models. The results indicate that augmenting models of volatility with measures of lagged volume leads only to very modest improvements, if any, in forecasting performance.
N-terminal amino acid sequences and amino acid compositions of the Spirochaeta aurantia flagellar filament polypeptides

The amino-terminal sequences and amino acid compositions of the three major and two minor polypeptides constituting the filaments of Spirochaeta aurantia periplasmic flagella were determined. The amino-terminal sequence of the major 37.5-kDa outer layer polypeptide is identical to the sequence downstream of the proposed signal peptide of the protein encoded by the S. aurantia flaA gene. However, the amino acid composition of the 37.5-kDa polypeptide is not in agreement with that inferred from the sequence of flaA. The 34- and 31.5-kDa major filament core polypeptides and the 33- and 32-kDa minor core polypeptides show a striking similarity to each other, and the amino-terminal sequences of these core polypeptides show extensive identity with homologous proteins from members of other genera of spirochetes. An additional 36-kDa minor polypeptide that occurs occasionally in preparations of S. aurantia periplasmic flagella appears to be mixed with the 37.5-kDa outer layer polypeptide or a degradation product of this polypeptide.
Respiratory metabolism of L‐929 cells at different water contents and volumes

Oxygen consumption was measured in mouse L‐929 cells whose volumes and water contents were reduced by adding sorbitol to the medium. The volume of water lost due to a given sorbitol supplement exceeded the loss in apparent cell volume. An explanation is given for this discrepancy. The rate of oxygen uptake in the absence of exogenous respiratory substrate was essentially the same in cells whose total volume was reduced by 45%, amounting to a loss of about 70% of the total cell water, compared to controls at ‘physiological’ volume and water content. Cells under these same conditions responded to added substrates (pyruvate, glucose, and glutamine) and inhibitors (iodoacetate and 2‐deoxyglucose) in nearly the same way as control cells. These observations are in accord with and add to previous work showing that very large fluctuations in cell volume and water content have only modest effects on the rates and directions of a variety of metabolic processes. The results are interpreted in terms of current views on the composition and organization of the aqueous compartments of eucaryotic cells.
Online Communities and Open Innovation

The advent of Internet marked a significant change in how users and customers can be involved in the innovative process. History is rife with examples of how users innovate, but Internet and its associated communication technologies brought radically new means for individuals to interact rapidly and at little cost in communities that spur new innovations. These communities are initiated and governed by people that differ in their motivations for taking part and participate to varying degrees. Such communities are outside the immediate control of companies seeking to develop open innovation strategies aimed at harnessing their work. This book brings together distinguished scholars from different disciplines: economics, organization theory, innovation studies and marketing in order to provide an improved understanding of how technological as well as symbolic value is created and appropriated at the intersection between online communities and firms. Empirical examples are presented from different industries, including software, services and manufacturing. The book offers food for thought for academics and managers to an important phenomenon that challenges many conventional wisdoms for how business can be done. This book was published as a special issue of Industry and Innovation.
Knowledge networks in local and global space

The objective of the paper is to discuss the space and scale of knowledge networks for innovation. The point of departure is a critical review of territorialised innovation theories according to which the source of growth and competitiveness is to be found in the innovative interplay among local actors and institutions. The region is believed to play a particular role as incubator or mediator for small firms. On this background the question raised is what globalisation and the emergence of time and space shrinking technologies imply to the spatial scale of knowledge networks. It is shown that the territorialised innovation theories rest on simplistic perceptions of embeddedness and space, and on functional notions of proximity which treat the firms as black box. The result is a considerable regional determinism. On the basis of recent network theory and empirical results, it is argued that firms do find knowledge sources on different spatial scales. Global networks or distant knowledge sources are particularly beneficial to innovation and firms are able to establish and participate in knowledge networks on all spatial scales. The political focus on local and regional innovation networks should therefore be changed and the role of the region redefined.
Expression patterns of CD200 and CD148 in leukemic B-cell chronic lymphoproliferative disorders and their potential value in differential diagnosis

Different combinations of biomarkers analyzed by flow cytometry are critical for the accurate diagnosis of leukemic B-cell chronic lymphoproliferative disorders (B-CLPDs). We investigated CD200 and CD148 expression patterns of blood or bone marrow from 374 cases of B-CLPD by multicolor flow cytometry. Our results showed that CD200 and CD148 expression patterns distinguished different types of B-CLPD. CD200 mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) or CD148 MFI had a high sensitivity and specificity to differentiate mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) from chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Furthermore, CD148 MFI/CD200 MFI ratio > 4.79 produced a specificity of 94.46% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 91.04–96.87%) and a sensitivity of 100% (95% CI: 88.78–100.0%) in establishing the diagnosis of MCL in differential diagnosis between MCL and CLL. We therefore conclude that the combination of CD200 and CD148 may have a potential differential diagnostic value in leukemic B-CLPDs, especially between CLL and MCL.
The Rural under the Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union: Sustainable Rural Development aspects of Pillar II in Finland and Estonia

National ministries of agriculture and competent EU authorities cur- rently have the reforms of the EU's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) high on their agendas in terms of planning and designing the upcoming programmatic period. Also subjected to this debate are the allocation of the budget to each pillar and their territorial impact. The interest of this article lies with two interrelated aspects. The first comprises an overview of the Pillar II budget and how this is allocated within EU member states. The second considers how these measures relate and contribute to the im- provement of the socio-economic situation and the state of the environment in ru- ral areas of the EU in general, and in Estonia and Finland in particular. Seemingly, the way funding has been allocated thus far, with a heavy focus on agriculture and directly related activities, is not appropriately suited to facilitate a holistic improvement of the state of rural areas of the EU, while it does not reflect the con - temporary economic transition processes in these areas. In terms of protection of the agri-environment, Finland exhibits an unprecedented coverage of areas under environmental support measures, as a Pillar II component, while implementation of the same policy in Estonia results currently in the coverage of less than half of the potential areas. The imbalances in the two countries in terms of actual finan - cial support per hectare are also considerable. To facilitate sustainable development in such areas as a whole, policy stream- ing should not be broken down into objectives to be reached via broad actions that address particular sectors, and it should not attend to the satisfaction of sec- toral interests. Rural areas and their economies, in terms of sustainable develop- ment, should be approached in an integrated manner, enabling this process to
Heavy Alcohol Use and Youth Suicide: Evidence from Tougher Drunk Driving Laws.

This paper uses the widespread variation across states in the timing of adoption of tougher drunk driving laws that set very low legal blood alcohol limits for drivers under age 21-“zero tolerance” (ZT) laws-to provide new evidence on the causal effect of alcohol use on youth suicide. ZT laws reduced heavy episodic drinking by underage men, with no effect for slightly older males. I estimate the reduced form effect of ZT policy adoption on suicide deaths among 15-17-, 18-20-, 21-24-, and 25-29-year-old males and females for the period 1981-1998. The models control for macroeconomic conditions, demographic changes, other alcohol control policies, state and year fixed effects, and smooth state trends. Results indicate statistically significant reductions in suicide among young males aged 15-17 and 18-20 associated with adoption of ZT laws on the order of 7 to 10 percent. I find no effects for slightly older males who were unaffected by the tougher drunk driving laws, and no consistent effects for females. These results provide new and compelling evidence that heavy alcohol use causes young male suicide. © 2004 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management.
A Single Visualization Technique for Displaying Multiple Metabolite–Phenotype Associations

To assist with management and interpretation of human metabolomics data, which are rapidly increasing in quantity and complexity, we need better visualization tools. Using a dataset of several hundred metabolite measures profiled in a cohort of ~1500 individuals sampled from a population-based community study, we performed association analyses with eight demographic and clinical traits and outcomes. We compared frequently used existing graphical approaches with a novel ‘rain plot’ approach to display the results of these analyses. The ‘rain plot’ combines features of a raindrop plot and a conventional heatmap to convey results of multiple association analyses. A rain plot can simultaneously indicate effect size, directionality, and statistical significance of associations between metabolites and several traits. This approach enables visual comparison features of all metabolites examined with a given trait. The rain plot extends prior approaches and offers complementary information for data interpretation. Additional work is needed in data visualizations for metabolomics to assist investigators in the process of understanding and convey large-scale analysis results effectively, feasibly, and practically.
Plasma total cholesterol level as a risk factor for Alzheimer disease: the Framingham Study.

BACKGROUND Previous studies examining the association of plasma cholesterol levels with the risk for development of Alzheimer disease (AD) have been inconclusive. We examined the impact of baseline and lifetime plasma total cholesterol levels averaged across many years on the risk for AD in a large, population-based cohort. METHODS Five thousand two hundred nine subjects from the Framingham Study original cohort underwent biennial evaluation for cardiovascular risk factors since 1950, with estimations of serum total cholesterol levels at 19 of these 25 biennial examinations. The study sample consisted of 1026 subjects from this cohort who were alive and free of stroke and dementia at examination cycle 20 (1988-1989) and had undergone apolipoprotein E (APOE) genotyping. The main outcome measure was incident AD diagnosed using standard criteria, according to average total cholesterol levels across biennial examination cycles 1 to 15 and baseline total cholesterol level measured at the 20th biennial examination cycle. RESULTS Alzheimer disease developed in 77 subjects from 1992 to 2000. After adjustment for age, sex, APOE genotype, smoking, body mass index (calculated as weight in kilograms divided by the square of height in meters), coronary heart disease, and diabetes, we found no significant association between the risk for incident AD and average cholesterol level at biennial examination cycles 1 to 15 (hazard ratio per 10-mg/dL [0.3-mmol/L] rise, 0.95; 95% confidence interval, 0.87-1.04) or baseline total cholesterol level at examination 20 (hazard ratio, 0.97; 95% confidence interval, 0.90-1.05). CONCLUSION In this large, population-based cohort, baseline and long-term average serum total cholesterol levels were not associated with the risk for incident AD.