Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Gender Diversification in the U.S. Forest Service: Does It Still Matter?

The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) has historically provided a useful model for understanding administrative behavior and organizational change. In 1990 and 1996, nationwide studies of USFS employees were conducted to evaluate the emergence of a new resource management paradigm and to examine the role of workforce diversification, especially gender, in contributing to organizational change. In 2008, a new survey of Forest Service employees was conducted to measure what changes have occurred over the last decade. More than a decade later, workforce diversification continues to evoke powerful negative and positive attitudinal responses among USFS employees. Larger organizational issues, especially reduced program budgets and a reduction in workforce, have stalled agency diversification efforts, reducing opportunities for women to enter leadership roles. The authors’ analysis suggests that the USFS is operating from a “discrimination-and-fairness” organizational diversity paradigm rather than a “valuing-and-integrating” paradigm, which will ultimately limit the benefits purported to accrue from workforce diversification.
LEADERSHIP STYLES OF EFFECTIVE FEMALE ADMINISTRATORS IN HIGHER EDUCATION

The purpose of this research was to identify the contextual, societal and cultural factors that influenced the styles of leadership of female executives in higher education. The study profiled the leadership styles of 183 female administrators at senior level positions, such as: president, chancellor, vice president, and dean, at accredited institutions of higher education in the United States, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico. The research assessed the leadership styles with the purpose of identifying the factors that positively influenced the success of female administrators. A descriptive and qualitative approach was the research method for the study. This approach was used because it allowed the researcher to study, explore and understand the experiences of successful female administrators in higher education. The descriptive approach allowed the researcher to analyze attitudes, demographics, opinions and personal experiences of the participants and its relevance to the study. A self-report survey was developed with an inquiry content derived from the literature review. Demographic data included age, age at first administrative position, marital status, institution, rank, years in current position, number of years teaching prior to administration, number of administrative positions before achieving a higher administrative position, and highest academic degree obtained. The self-report survey consisted of five questions exploring the participants’ beliefs with regard to barriers, leadership styles, personal characteristics, and factors affecting women in higher education administration as well as demographic and institutional information. Findings from the study revealed the factors that determined the success of female administrators in higher education administration.
Measuring Monetary Policy in the UK: A Factor-Augmented Vector Autoregression Model Approach

This paper investigates the determinants of UK interest rates using a factor-augmented vector autoregression model (VAR), similar to the one suggested by Bernanke, Boivin and Eliasz (Quarterly Journal of Economics, Vol. 120 (2005), No. 1, pp. 387-422). The method allows impulse response functions to be generated for all the variables in the data set and so is able to provide a more complete description of UK monetary policy than is possible using standard VARs. The results show that the addition of factors to a benchmark VAR generates a more reasonable characterization of the effects of unexpected increases in the interest rate and, in particular, gets rid of a 'price puzzle' response present in the benchmark VAR. The extra information generated by this method, however, also brings to light other identification issues, notably house price and stock market 'puzzles'. Importantly the out-of-sample prediction performance of the factor-augmented VARs is also very good and strongly superior to those of the benchmark VAR and simple autoregression models. Copyright Blackwell Publishing Ltd and The University of Manchester, 2005.
Reduction of spastic hypertonia during repeated passive knee movements in stroke patients.

OBJECTIVES To quantify changes in spastic hypertonia during repeated passive isokinetic knee movements in stroke patients and to assess the role of muscle activity. DESIGN A between-groups design with repeated measures. SETTING Rehabilitation center for stroke patients. PARTICIPANTS Ten stroke patients with hypertonia and 10 healthy subjects matched for age and gender. INTERVENTION With an isokinetic apparatus, movements were imposed on the knee in series of 10 repetitions at speeds of 60 degrees /s, 180 degrees /s, and 300 degrees /s. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Spastic hypertonia was assessed on the basis of torque measurement and electromyographic activity of the quadriceps, hamstrings, and gastrocnemius muscles. RESULTS Compared with the controls, stroke patients presented a significantly stronger torque reduction during the mid- and endphases of movements at all speeds tested (P<.05). The strongest torque decline occurred during knee flexion and during the first movements. The effect increased toward the end phase of movements and with increasing speeds. The effect of movement repetitions on torque measurements was unchanged after electromyographic activity was included in the statistical analysis, except during extension movements at 180 degrees /s and 300 degrees /s. CONCLUSION Passive movements of the knee induced a decrease of spastic hypertonia in stroke patients through a combination of reflexive and mechanical factors. The role of these mechanisms is velocity dependent and differs for flexion and extension movements.
MODELING PROPORTIONS: RANDOM EFFECTS MODELS OF UK FIRM ENTRY

A long-standing issue in industrial economics is the understanding of the relative prevalence of labor-managed firms (LMFs) and capitalist firms across industries. In proportionate terms, LMF entry tends to be highly concentrated in particular industries. We provide empirical evidence on this by modeling the proportions of industry entrants that are LMFs, using a panel of UK manufacturing industries. Random effects proportions models indicate the role and importance of risk and capital requirements as potential deterrents to LMF entry.
Diagnostic value of a negative single color duplex ultrasound in deep vein thrombosis suspicion during pregnancy.

OBJECTIVE to determine whether a negative single complete ultrasound (US) of the lower limbs veins is a safe and accurate diagnostic method to rule out deep venous thrombosis (DVT) in pregnancy. MATERIAL AND METHODS We performed a prospective study on 87 consecutive pregnant women with clinical suspicion of DVT in "Dr. D. Popescu" Maternity, Timişoara, between January 2007 and December 2009. All cases were investigated by color duplex ultrasound. Those who were negative but with high clinical probability of DVT underwent MR venography, the rest with negative US findings did not received anticoagulant therapy and US was repeated after seven days. All were instructed about the signs and symptoms of DVT and asked to return at six weeks postpartum when they were questioned if presented any. RESULTS from the 87 women 30 (34.48%) were found positive and two (2.29%) had a high clinical suspicion of DVT. 55 (63.21%) with negative findings repeated the US exam after 7 days which remained negative. Only 43 (78.18%) returned for the 6 weeks postpartum visit and none of them experienced any thromboembolic event during follow-up. CONCLUSIONS A single complete color duplex ultrasonography of lower limbs veins appears to be a safe method to rule out the diagnosis of deep venous thrombosis in pregnant women and if negative is safe to withhold heparin therapy.
Event-Triggered Sliding Mode Control algorithms for a class of uncertain nonlinear systems: experimental assessment

An experimental assessment of the recently introduced event-triggered sliding mode control approach is presented in this paper. The major design requirement, in this approach, is to reduce the number of transmissions over the network, while guaranteeing that the sliding mode control is stabilizing with appropriate robustness in front of matched uncertainties. In the present paper a novel Event-Triggered Sliding Mode Control algorithm is first introduced and discussed and then it is compared with two different Model-Based Event-Triggered Sliding Mode Control algorithms. Finally, their experimental assessment is reported, obtaining satisfactory performance consistent with the theoretical treatment and fulfilling all the design requirements.
Evaluating Methodological Issues in the Tourism Literature: UK outgoing tourism and trade links

This paper evaluates the importance of trade in goods when modelling demand for tourism. It is argued that the limited literature testing causality between trade in goods and tourism does not consider the appropriate variables. This study utilises bilateral data for 16 UK tourist destinations in order to test for Granger causality between trade in goods and tourism expenditure. UK imports, exports and total trade are tested separately, whilst controlling for real GDP and real bilateral exchange rates. The novelty of this paper is the variable specification, as well as testing the causal relationship for the case of UK outgoing tourists. Our findings suggest a causal relationship between the tourism expenditure of UK residents and trade in goods. These results support the inclusion of a trade-in-goods variable when estimating tourism demand, as well as adopting appropriate methodologies to account for this causal relationship. Furthermore, there is strong evidence that the trade-tourism link is important for both the UK and host countries.
Exploring Nonparametric Strategies for Pricing American Index Options

Nonparametric models such as machine learning methods that are counterparts of parametric financial models were applied to pricing American index options. 10 year S&P 100 Index American options were adopted as experimental dataset and the both training (in-sample) and test (out-of-sample) errors of machine learning and ad-hoc pricing which is a conventional financial pricing model were calculated and compared to each other. We found out that Bayesian neural network outperforms the other pricing methods. Furthermore, we suggested an ensemble method which takes advantage of both machine learning method and ad-hoc pricing method and as a consequence, it shows the best performance.
Does Prospect Theory Explain the Disposition Effect?

The disposition effect is the observation that investors tend to realize gains more than losses. This behavior is puzzling because it cannot be explained by traditional finance theories. A standard explanation of the disposition effect refers to prospect theory and, in particular, to the asymmetric risk aversion, according to which investors are risk-averse when faced with gains and risk-seeking when faced with losses. We show that for reasonable parameter values, the disposition effect cannot, however, be explained by prospect theory. The reason is that those investors who sell winning stocks and hold losing assets would not have invested in stocks in the first place. That is, the standard prospect theory argument is sound ex-post, assuming that the investment occurred, but not ex-ante, requiring also that the investment has to be made in the first place.
Board characteristics and firm performance in Spain

Purpose – This paper aims to investigate the relationship between internal governance structure and financial performance of listed Spanish companies. The effectiveness of the board of directors is analyzed through the use of different variables: size, composition, duality, number of annual meetings and busyness of the directors. The financial performance is measured by return on assets (ROA), return on equity (ROE) and Tobin’s Q. Design/methodology/approach – Our study is addressed through the use of a multi-theoretical approach followed by an empirical analysis. Schematic literature review serves as a basis for setting our hypotheses. We conduct the empirical part of the study by applying these to the listed companies in the Madrid Stock Exchange. An econometric model (multiple regression) is used to test the relation between board structure and financial performance. Findings – Empirical: We conclude that in the three estimated models, two of the dependent variables, ROE and ROA, have an explanatory va.
Relationship Between Wine Involvement and Wine-Related Travel

Abstract This research was conducted to examine the nuances of special interest wine markets in terms of day-to-day consumption and travel-related patterns. A demographically diverse set of respondents (n = 161) were recruited from wine clubs and wine events at a western Canadian city. Based on previous involvement research a reliable and valid fifteen-item, three-faceted Wine Involvement Scale (WIS) was developed. Respondents were placed into one of four market segments based on their responses to the WIS. Although between market demographic differences were minimal, consumptive behaviours related to wine and wine tourism were consistent and profound (p < .05). Discussion focuses on marketing implications for special interest wine tourists and on conceptual challenges related to high-end market research.
Incremental, radical and game-changing: strategic innovation for sustainability

Purpose – This article was developed to provide a viewpoint for the 10th Annual EABIS Colloquium on Strategic Innovation for Sustainability held at IMD in Lausanne, Switzerland on 3-4 July 2012. Design/methodology/approach – The authors present a framework of three practices that must be applied to an ever-increasing degree along the spectrum of strategic innovation for sustainability. Findings – To reap the benefits of innovation for sustainability, businesses need to adapt the type of innovation they aim for to their particular context. Three practices are crucial to the innovation process – i.e. an integrated approach, multiple partnerships and visionary leadership from the top. These practices address two of the main challenges companies face in innovating for sustainability, namely actively engaging with the wider dynamic context in which they operate, and spanning boundaries they are not used to crossing. Practical implications – By analysing the specific context in which a business operates, it is .
Why Use Debit Instead of Credit? Consumer Choice in a Trillion-Dollar Market

Debit cards are overtaking credit cards as the most prevalent form of electronic payment at the point of sale, yet the determinants of a ubiquitous consumer choice-"debit or credit? "-have received relatively little scrutiny. Several stylized facts suggest that debit-card use is driven by behavioral factors. The popular view is that debit-card use presents a puzzle for canonical economic models. However, we should not overlook standard cost-based motives for using debit cards. Principally, the 50 percent of debit-card users who revolve credit-card balances would pay interest to charge purchases on the margin and hence might rationally choose to use debit rather than credit to minimize transaction costs. Debit-card use might also be rational for consumers lacking access to a credit card or facing a binding credit limit. I document robust effects of these types of credit-card use on debit use and show that such effects are consistent with a canonical model of consumer choice. This paper also shows, however, that it is difficult to distinguish sharply between canonical and behavioral motives for debit-card use in publicly available data. More generally, I develop analytical frameworks for testing competing canonical and behavioral models and find evidence consistent with important roles for both pecuniary and psychological motives.
Board practices and board effectiveness in local nonprofit organizations

This study of sixty-four locally governed nonprofit charitable organizations used a social constructionist perspective to investigate the relationship between the extent to which nonprofit boards use prescribed board practices and stakeholder judgments of the effectiveness of those boards. A social constructionist perspective implies that different stakeholders use and evaluate different kinds of information in making judgments about board effectiveness. The results suggest that there is wide variation in the use of the prescribed board practices, that judgments of board effectiveness often differ substantially, and that chief executives' judgments of the effectiveness of their boards is moderately related to the extent of use of recommended board practices.
Nonoptimality of the Friedman Rule with Capital Income Taxation

This paper studies the efficient taxation of money and factor income in intertemporal optimizing growth models with infinite horizons, transaction costs technologies and flexible prices. Second-best optimality calls for a positive inflation tax and a non-zero capital income tax when there are restrictions on taxation of production factors or profits/rents. Our cases of nonoptimality of the Friedman rule —which differ from those of Mulligan and Sala-i-Martin (1997) and extend substantially those of Schmitt-Grohe and Uribe (2004a)— follow from the violation of the Diamond and Mirrlees (1971) principle on production efficiency.
The prevalence of blood parasites in helmeted guineafowls, Numida meleagris, in the Kruger National Park.

Bloodsmears were taken from separate groups of five helmeted guineafowls, Numida meleagris, shot at approximately monthly intervals at Skukuza and near Lower Sabie in the Kruger National Park during the period August 1988 to August 1990. Ninety-eight (86%) of 114 guineafowls had single or multiple infections of Aegyptianella sp. , Haemoproteus pratasi, Hepatozoon sp. , Leucocytozoon neavei, Plasmodium circumflexum and Trypanosoma numidae. The apparent seasonal prevalence of Aegyptianella sp. , H. pratasi and L. neavei, the three most commonly occurring parasites (42%, 49% and 56% of birds infected respectively), is probably dependent on the presence of their respective vectors.
Water and solute permeabilities of medullary thick ascending limb apical and basolateral membranes

RICKEY RIVERS, ANNE BLANCHARD, DOMINIQUE ELADARI, FRANCOIS LEVIEL, MICHEL PAILLARD, RENE-ALEXANDRE PODEVIN, AND MARK L. ZEIDEL Laboratory of Epithelial Cell Biology, Renal-Electrolyte Division, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213; and Laboratoire de Physiologie et Endocrinologie Cellulaire et Moleculaire, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Faculté de Medecine, Broussais-Hotel Dieu and Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale U356, Paris, France
The global war for talent: responses and challenges in the Singapore higher education system

This article considers the Singapore government's aims to develop its higher education system into a Global Schoolhouse to tap into a lucrative global market in higher education. To do so, the higher education system in Singapore needs to compete globally for talent. This article examines the responses and challenges of the Singapore higher education system against the backdrop of the global talent war. It first describes the higher education system in Singapore and analyses the system's response to the talent war. Then, it examines the issues and challenges in attracting world class universities and top academics and in attracting talented foreign university students. In particular, although Singapore has been successful in some regards, the challenges are the growth of this education hub in a government-controlled approach, cultural differences between locals and foreign talents and local sentiments to foreign talent.
Facing up to the risks in commercially focused university–industry R&D partnerships

The number of university–industry R&D partnerships (UIPs) has increased significantly over the past decade, in most OECD countries and in Australia, yet the study of risk in such commercially focused collaborative ventures is still a developing area. This review paper seeks to contribute to debate on this increasingly important phenomenon by addressing three key areas of risks for universities in entering such collaborations. The commercialization of research findings presents particular risks to universities, most notably the possibility of financial loss, which has a greater impact than for companies in cross‐sector collaborations. Another major type of risk faced by universities is relational risk, and this can significantly alter the trust dynamics that underpin research and innovation. There are also institutional risks to universities and their research staff engaged in commercializable R&D and, ultimately, to their reputation as a neutral source of expertise. It is argued there is a need for universities in Australia to develop comprehensive policies to manage the risks of commercialization and R&D collaboration with industry partners.
Patient activation with knowledge, self-management and confidence in chronic kidney disease.

BACKGROUND Chronic kidney disease is a growing health problem on a global scale. The increasing prevalence of chronic kidney disease presents an urgent need to better understand the knowledge, confidence and engagement in self-managing the disease. OBJECTIVES This study examined group differences in patient activation and health-related quality of life, knowledge, self-management and confidence with managing chronic disease across all five stages of chronic kidney disease. DESIGN The study employed a descriptive correlational design. SETTINGS Participants were recruited from five primary care, three nephrology clinics and one dialysis centre in two Midwestern cities in the United States. PARTICIPANTS The convenience sample included 85 adults with hypertension, diabetes mellitus and chronic kidney disease, including kidney failure, who spoke English. MEASUREMENTS Seven measurements were used to collect data via telephone interviews with participants not receiving haemodialysis, and face-to-face interviews with those receiving haemodialysis at the beginning of their treatment session. RESULTS Analyses indicated that half the participants were female (50.58%), the mean age was 63.21 years (SD = 13.11), and participants with chronic kidney disease stage 3 were the most activated. Post hoc differences were significant in patient activation and blood pressure self-management and anxiety across chronic kidney disease stages, excluding stage 5. CONCLUSION Engaging patients in the self-management of their health care and enhancing patients' ability to self-manage their blood pressure may work to preserve kidney health. Healthcare providers should collaborate with patients to develop strategies that will maintain patients' health-related quality of life, like reducing anxiety as kidney disease progress.