Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Success factors: public works and public‐private partnerships

Purpose – The purpose of this research is to analyze and compares principal factors that contribute to successful public‐private partnerships and public works projects.Design/methodology/approach – This study uses a qualitative analysis with in‐depth interviews and observation. Interviews are conducted with key individuals of two projects. Success factors are derived from literature review and modified through in‐depth interviews and comparative analysis.Findings – Ten success factors are presented and analyzed: specific plan/vision, commitment, open communication and trust, willingness to compromise/collaborate, respect, community outreach, political support, expert advice and review, risk awareness, and clear roles and responsibilities. High degrees of commitment and shared vision between the client, architect, and contractor are shown to be important aspects for construction success as well as pairing factors of open communication and trust with high levels of compromise or collaboration.Research limit.
Dietary intake of selected micronutrients and gastric cancer risk: an Italian case-control study.

BACKGROUND A high consumption of non-starchy vegetables and fruits likely decreases the risk of gastric cancer, but no specific constituent of plant foods has been consistently identified to explain this association. PATIENTS AND METHODS We considered several micronutrients and minerals in an Italian case-control study conducted between 1997 and 2007, including 230 patients with incident, histologically confirmed gastric cancer and 547 matched controls, admitted with acute conditions. Micronutrients computation was based on a validated and reproducible food frequency questionnaire, through an Italian food composition database. We estimated odds ratios (ORs) using conditional logistic regression, adjusted for energy intake and selected covariates. RESULTS We found decreased ORs for the highest versus lowest quartile of vitamin E (OR=0.50), alpha-carotene (OR=0.52) and beta-carotene (OR=0.42) intake. Gastric cancer was directly associated with sodium, with ORs of 2.22 for the second, 2.56 for the third and 2.46 for the fourth quartile of intake. No significant relation emerged with iron, calcium, potassium, zinc, vitamin C, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, folate, vitamin D, retinol, beta-cryptoxanthin, lycopene and lutein plus zeaxanthin. CONCLUSIONS Our data support a favourable effect on gastric cancer of vitamin E and selected carotenoids and a detrimental effect of sodium even at intermediate levels of intake.
Do Credit Ratings Really Affect Capital Structure?

This paper revisits recent investigations into the role credit ratings play in the marginal financing behavior of firms. While it has long been documented that credit ratings may be an important determinant of firm capital structure policy, academics have only recently subjected this motivation to empirical scrutiny. We add to the brief existing literature by investigating the sensitivity of marginal financing behavior of firms to a number of attributes deemed to capture firms’ affinity to emphasize credit ratings in their financing behavior. Our results suggest that credit ratings are not a first order concern in capital structure decisions.
A Matter of Timing? A Study of Regional Election Campaigns in Germany

Unlike national elections, subnational levels of politics have rarely been the subject of research. The small number of investigations stem from the field of psephology. While these have supported the assumption that the national level exerts a time-dependent impact on regional voting behaviour, election campaigning's time-dependency has yet to be investigated. Against this backdrop, this article offers a unique longitudinal and quantitative investigation of election campaigns in Germany's federal states. Using campaign managers' perceptions as a basis, it discusses time-relevant effects on electoral campaigning with regard to the degree of regionalisation, emotionalisation, and personalisation.
Can diversification degree amplify momentum and contrarian anomalies

This paper analyses the impact of industrial diversification on the profitability of contrarian and momentum strategies. Our findings show that the momentum strategy seems to be no more profitable in the recent years. In fact, while momentum strategies earn large positive and significant returns before the 2000 crash, these returns are negative after the crash. Then, firms are classified into two groups according to the intensity of their industrial diversification by the Ward (1963) method. We find that, for the non -diversified sample, no effect is significant. However, for the diversified sample, the significant contrarian effect observed in the medium term disappears in the long run. Before the crash, we find a more pronounced momentum effect for the non -diversified sample. After the crash, we identify a contrarian effect more important for this sample. Moreover, the Bootstrap without replacement results do not support the risk based explanation.
Product variety and manufacturing performance: evidence from the international automotive assembly plant study

This paper examines the effect of product variety on manufacturing performance, defined here as total labor productivity and consumer-perceived product quality. Using data from the International Motor Vehicle Program (M.I.T.) study of 70 assembly plants worldwide, the paper examines three dimensions of product variety, at fundamental, peripheral, and intermediate levels. The international sample reveals great variation in the distribution of each type of product variety in different regions, reflecting in part different strategies for variety. Furthermore, the impact of different kinds of product variety on performance varies, and is generally much less than the conventional manufacturing wisdom would predict. However, an intermediate type of product variety, here called parts complexity, was found to have a persistent negative impact on productivity. Finally, the study provides partial support for the hypothesis that management policies, in both operations and human resource areas, can facilitate the absorption of higher levels of product variety, i.e. that "lean production" plants are capable of handling higher levels of product variety with less adverse effect on total labor productivity than traditional "mass production" plants.
Effects of chronic NO synthase inhibition in rats on renin-angiotensin system and sympathetic nervous system.

This study was designed to assess the role of renin and of the sympathoadrenal system in the maintenance of the hypertension induced by chronic nitric oxide synthase (NOS) inhibition in rats kept on a normal (RS) or a low-sodium (LS) diet. With the administration of NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) in drinking water (0.4 milligrams) for 6 wk, mean intra-arterial blood pressure rose to a similar extent to 201 mmHg in the RS and 184 mmHg in the LS animals. Simultaneously, plasma norepinephrine was increased to 838 and 527 pg/ml and epinephrine to 2,041 and 1,341 pg/ml in RS and LS, respectively. Plasma neuropeptide Y levels did not change. Plasma renin activity rose to 21 ng.ml-1.h-1 in RS but remained at 44 ng.ml-1.h-1 in the LS. Both losartan (10 mg/kg) and phentolamine (0.1 mg/kg) intravenous bolus injections reduced blood pressure considerably in the L-NAME hypertensive animals. Whole brain NOS activity was reduced by 84%. Hypertension induced by chronic NOS inhibition in LS as well as in RS fed rats seems to be sustained by an interaction of several mechanisms, including the activation of the sympathetic nervous system and the renin-angiotensin system.
Factors Influencing Outcomes From A Technology-Focused Professional Development Program

Abstract Using survey data, the authors examined the relationship between intensity (as opposed to duration) of a technology-focused professional development program and specific participant characteristics in predicting successful outcomes. The four participant characteristics chosen were: teachers’ feelings of preparedness to support student technology use, teachers’ perceptions of the usefulness of creating technology-based projects with students, teachers’ perceptions of the relevance of the pedagogical approaches emphasized, and teachers’ prior use of featured software. Two outcomes were defined: (1) Use of new software applications/technology skills and (2) implementation of new technology-rich lessons. Analyses indicated different combinations of personal characteristics predicted each outcome. In addition, intensity of the program only predicted the latter outcome. Implications of this research are discussed within the framework of the professional development literature.
Decreased anti‐donor major histocompatibility complex class I and increased class II alloantibody response in allograft tolerance in adult rats

Permanent tolerance to allografts can be induced in adult rats by donor‐specific transfusions (DST) prior to transplantation. We have previously reported, in a model of heart allograft, the presence of a heavy leukocyte infiltrate, in the allograft which displayed a strong allospecific cytotoxicity when tested in vitro against donor cells, and a strong accumulation of mRNA for granzyme A and perforin in vivo. In contrast, there was a major decrease in the accumulation of mRNA for interleukin‐2 and interferon‐γ. These results suggested that the DST‐induced tolerance was associated with a decrease in type‐1 T helper (Th1) cell function. The major role of preformed antibodies in xeno and allorejection is clearly established. Nevertheless, the consequences of alloantibody production in acute rejection and tolerance induction remains to be elucidated. We here analyze the alloantibody response in rejecting and DST‐treated recipients. We show that, after transplantation, tolerant recipients, in contrast to rejecting ones, mount a low IgM alloresponse that switches to low IgG production. Detailed analysis of IgG alloantibodies in DST‐treated recipients revealed that their production decrease was not equally distributed. Whereas rejecting animals mounted a strong anti‐class I and II IgG alloantibody response, DST‐treated recipients produced anti‐class II and low titers of anti‐class I IgG alloantibodies. Furthermore, among IgG subclasses, tolerant recipients predominantly produced IgG2a, a profile which, in the rat, is compatible with a Th2‐controlled response. Finally, the passive transfer of immune serum from rejecting animals to DST‐treated recipients could abrogate the tolerance. We suggest that the absence of anti‐class I alloantibodies combined with preserved and/or increased anti‐class II production plays a major role in graft tolerance in this model. These results reinforced the role of alloantibodies in rejection and in induction of tolerance.
Product Market Threats, Payouts, and Financial Flexibility

type="main"> We examine how product market threats influence firm payout policy and cash holdings. Using firms' product text descriptions, we develop new measures of competitive threats. Our primary measure, product market fluidity, captures changes in rival firms' products relative to the firm's products. We show that fluidity decreases firm propensity to make payouts via dividends or repurchases and increases the cash held by firms, especially for firms with less access to financial markets. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that firms' financial policies are significantly shaped by product market threats and dynamics.
Internal R&D effort, external imported technology and economic value added: empirical study of Taiwan's electronic industry

Technology innovation is a significant resource in the contemporary knowledge-based economy. The main sources of technology innovation are internal R&D effort and external imported technology. Two primary traditional production factors are physical capital and labour. The theoretical basis for this study is an evolutionary Cobb–Douglas production function explaining the effects of four resources (internal R&D effort, imported technology, physical capital and labour) on a firm's sales and economic value added (EVA). Time-series cross-section panel data from 219 Taiwan electronic manufacturers between 1990 and 2003 were employed for fixed effect model. Major empirical findings were observed in this study: first, Internal R&D effort can positively affect a firm's sales and EVA. Conversely, imported technology is found to have had no significant effect on sales and EVA. Second, although both physical capital and labour affect a firm's sales more than the effects of internal R&D and external imported technology, internal R&D effort contributes to a firm's EVA beyond the effects of imported technology, physical capital and labour. Third, External imported technology has neither a complementary nor a substitutive relationship with internal R&D effort.
Promoter polymorphism rs3087456 in the MHC class II transactivator gene is not associated with susceptibility for selected autoimmune diseases in German patient groups

We analysed whether the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs3087456 in the promoter of the MHC class II transactivator (MHC2TA) gene is associated with manifestation of rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, narcolepsy and Wegener granulomatosis. The recently reported association in a northern population of the MHC2TA variation with these autoimmune diseases is not evident in the German population.
Wingless-type family member 5A (Wnt-5a) stimulates synaptic differentiation and function of glutamatergic synapses

Growing evidence indicates that Wingless-type (Wnt) signaling plays an important role in the maturation of the central nervous system. We report here that Wingless-type family member 5A (Wnt-5a) is expressed early in development and stimulates dendrite spine morphogenesis, inducing de novo formation of spines and increasing the size of the preexisting ones in hippocampal neurons. Wnt-5a increased intracellular calcium concentration in dendritic processes and the amplitude of NMDA spontaneous miniature currents. Acute application of Wnt-5a increased the amplitude of field excitatory postsynaptic potentials (fEPSP) in hippocampal slices, an effect that was prevented by calcium-channel blockers. The physiological relevance of our findings is supported by studies showing that Wnt scavengers decreased spine density, miniature excitatory postsynaptic currents, and fEPSP amplitude. We conclude that Wnt-5a stimulates different aspects of synaptic differentiation and plasticity in the mammalian central nervous system.
Investigating Relationships Among Festival Quality, Satisfaction, Trust, and Support: The Case of an Oriental Medicine Festival

ABSTRACT This study examines the effect of a Korean Oriental medicine festival’s quality on tourists’ satisfaction, trust, and support, and explores satisfaction’s influence through the mediating variable of trust on destination development support, which previous festival tourism research underreports. An onsite survey was conducted for tourists (N = 458) to the Oriental Medicine Expo. The structural equation model results reveal that the quality dimensions of program, facility, and convenience influenced satisfaction positively, and satisfaction exerted a positive significant effect on trust in the festival’s location developing as an Oriental medicine tourism destination. Ways that Oriental medicine tourism festivals can leverage health tourism development at regional and country levels are considered.
Optimal Monetary and Fiscal Policy Analysis for Sri Lanka; a DSGE Approach

This paper provides welfare maximizing optimal monetary and fiscal policy rules for Sri Lanka, in a New Keynesian Dynamic Stochastic General Equilibrium (DSGE) model, closely following Schmitt-Grohe and Uribe (2007). A standard Taylor rule type monetary policy reaction function where the nominal interest rate responds to inflation deviations and output gap, and a fairly simple fiscal policy reaction function in which tax revenue depends on the level of total government liabilities are used. The deep structural parameters of the model are calibrated to the Sri Lankan economy. To conduct welfare analysis, equilibrium solutions to the model are approximated up to second order accuracy. The optimal solution coefficients for the policy reaction functions are determined such that the welfare associated with the optimal policy rules delivers virtually the same level of welfare associated with the Ramsey optimal allocation. The monetary and fiscal policy rules that are optimal within a group of implementable and simple rules are then proposed for the Sri Lankan economy.
[Magnitude of rainfall on viral contamination of the marine environment during gastroenteritis epidemics in human coastal population].

BACKGROUND Sewage treatments are not efficient to eliminate enteric microorganisms. Viruses are able to persist and are discharged into the marine environment with treated effluents. Few data are now available on the magnitude and the contributive processes of marine viral contamination. This work evaluates the relationship between the magnitude of rainfall and the viral contamination of the marine environment during winter epidemics of gastroenteritis in human coastal populations. METHODS A RT-PCR method was used to detect enterovirus, hepatitis A virus, Norwalk-like virus, astrovirus and rotavirus in shellfish, harvested monthly between August 1995 and July 1998. The frequency of virus detection in shellfish was expressed as an Index of Viral Contamination. Acute gastroenteritis in the population was estimated using the French Sentinel System for Monitoring of Communicable Diseases. Rainfall effects on the efficiency of sewage treatment were assessed using an estimated staying time of sewage effluents in the plant. RESULTS The results indicate that the highest viral contamination occurs in winter. Maximal indexes of viral contamination were respectively 70% in January 1996, 100% in January 1997, but only 31% in January 1998. Viral contamination variations seemed to follow the pattern of the winter epidemic of acute gastroenteritis in the local population in 1996 and 1997. These observations should be linked to the winter rainfalls. Heavy rains on short periods of time could create an hydraulic overload in the sewage treatment plant, reducing the staying time of the sewage effluents and thus the efficiency of the disinfection process. CONCLUSION The magnitude of the viral contamination of shellfish seems to result from the simultaneity between the winter epidemics of acute gastroenteritis in the coastal population and heavy rainfall. To prevent public health hazards associated with shellfish consumption, the monitoring of microbiological quality in shellfish harvesting areas should include accompagning survey of viral epidemic in the coastal population, and of sewage outputs in the coastal environment.
Clinical and endocrine aspects of the oestrous cycle in donkeys (Equus asinus).

Oestrous behaviour and occurrence of ovulation was studied in 13 jenny asses (3-18 years) during a 15-month period. Teasing was performed daily and follicular growth, ovulation and changes of the genitalia were checked every other day by rectal palpation during dioestrus or the anovulatory season or daily during oestrus and when a follicle greater than or equal to 3 cm in diameter was present. Plasma oestrogens and progesterone levels were measured by radioimmunoassay (RIA). Of the 13 jennies, 6 showed a typical seasonal ovarian activity, 1 stopped cycling only at the end of the experiment, 2 ovulated regularly and 4 did not cycle. Mean (+/- s.d.) length of the anovulatory season in the 6 jennies with seasonal cyclic ovarian activity was 166.3 +/- 63.2 days (74-263 days). Irregular oestrous periods were detected during the anovulatory season of these jennies. Irregular signs of oestrus and follicular growth were detected in the 4 jennies which remained acyclic during the whole experiment. Mean (+/- s.d.) length of the ovulatory season was 197.8 +/- 63.4 days (102-291 days). Overall mean +/- s.d. lengths for the oestrous cycle and dioestrous and oestrous periods were 25.9 +/- 2.7 (n = 74), 18.2 +/- 2.3 (n = 70) and 7.9 +/- 2.5 (n = 79) days. Ovulatory oestrous periods tended to be longer at the start and end of the season than during the summer months. Dioestrous length was not affected by season. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
The acquisition value of oil and gas firms: The role of historical costs, reserve recognition accounting, and analysts' appraisals*

Abstract. Our research confirms that book values possess significant ability to explain the acquisition values of oil and gas firms. It also indicates that RRA information provides incremental information over book values in determining acquisition values. However, when analyst information is more current than competing information, analysts' appraisals provide a significant incremental contribution beyond the explanatory ability of book values and reserve recognition data. Current analysts' information provides a stronger basis for predicting acquisition values than any model supplementing analysts' appraisals with additional information. This implies that current analysts' information captures all information sources and is consistent with the findings of â€œanalysts superiorityâ€ in the extensive literature on earnings forecasts. RA©sumA©. Les travaux des auteurs confirment que les valeurs comptables peuvent assez bien expliquer les valeurs d'acquisition des entreprises pA©trolierA¨s et gaziA¨res. Ils rA©vA¨lent A©galement que les renseignements livrA©s par la mA©thode de la capitalisation des gisements fournissent de l'information marginale par rapport aux valeurs comptables dans la dA©termination des valeurs d'acquisition. Toutefois, lorsque l'information des analystes financiers est plus rA©cente que l'information concurrente, les A©valuations des analystes apportent une contribution marginale importante auâ€ delA de la capacitA© explicative des valeurs comptables et de donnA©es relatives A la capitalisation des gisements. L'information rA©cente des analystes offre une base plus solide pour la prA©vision des valeurs d'acquisition que tout modA¨le qui sert de complA©ment aux A©valuations des analystes. Cela suppose que l'information rA©cente des analystes recouvre toutes les sources d'information et vient confirmer la conclusion reconnaissant la Â«supA©rioritA© des analystes Â» A laquelle se range une abondante documentation sur les prA©visions de rA©sultats.