Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Determining Factors of the Level of Disclosure of Information on Business Combinations with the Entry into Force of the Accounting Standard CPC 15

This paper aimed to investigate information disclosure on business combination transactions that took place in Brazil in 2010, when the Accounting Standard CPC 15 entered into force, and evaluate which were the determining factors of the level of disclosure of information related to it. To evaluate the disclosure level, a disclosure index of business combinations (INDCOMB) was prepared, having the disclosure index developed by Shalev (2009) as a basis. We evaluated, in the light of the literature on disclosure and business combinations, whether the following factors influenced on the disclosure level: acquiring company size, recognized percentage of overprice for expected future profitability in relation to the transaction value, dispersion of capital of the acquiring company, audit firm size, and participation of the acquiring company in American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) programs. The control variables used were listing of the acquiring company in the various segments of BM&FBOVESPA, operation sector, origin (state, private company with national capital or private company with foreign capital), and relative acquired company size in relation to the acquiring company. We analyzed business combination transactions that took place in 2010, reported by 40 open capital companies involved in 76 transactions. We conclude that the audit firm size and the relative acquired company size were factors that influenced on the level of disclosure of information regarding business combinations in 2010. The other factors showed no conclusive results.
Reopening the Convergence Debate when Sharp Breaks and Smooth Shifts Wed, 1870-2010

Abstract This paper attempts to re-investigate the catching-up (stochastic convergence) hypothesis among the selected 16 OECD countries applying the time series approach of convergence hypothesis with annual data over one century. To reach this aim, we propose a model which specifies a trend function, incorporating both types of structural breaks – that is, sharp breaks and smooth shifts using dummy variables and Fourier function respectively. In order to detect the sharp breaks, we apply the multiple structural break models (Bai & Perron, 1998) and the Fourier function proposed in Becker et al. (2004) to capture the smooth shifts. Our results show that most divergence process occurred over World War I (WWI) and World War II (WWII). Among the 69 estimated break points occurred over the period 1870-2010, 75 % of those break points result in catching-up and the remainder results in divergence.
ADHD Assessment Practices Used by General Practitioners, Pediatricians, Psychiatrists, and Psychologists in West Virginia

ADHD Assessment Practices Used by General Practitioners, Pediatricians, Psychiatrists, and Psychologists in West Virginia By Kristal D. Jenkins, M.S. Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is the most commonly diagnosed behavioral disorder in childhood (NIH, 2000) and its prevalence continues to increase. ADHD is diagnosed by a variety of practitioners, including general physicians, pediatricians, psychiatrists, and clinical/school psychologists. There is little known regarding how these diversely trained professionals differ or may be similar in their beliefs regarding ADHD and their approach to diagnosis and treatment. The current study utilizes a survey methodology to address the commonalities and differences in the approaches these professionals take to conceptualize diagnostic criteria, etiology and course of treatment for children diagnosed with ADHD. The need for further research in both national and rural areas such as Appalachia is also discussed.
Listening: the most difficult skill to teach

With listening skills usually requiring a considerably long period of time to acquire, normally involving the student experiencing a variety of emotions ranging from depression and frustration through to exhilaration and pride, teaching listening skills is one of the most difficult tasks that a teacher faces. The following article evaluates contemporary research with the aim of dissecting and discussing the reasons why the teaching of listening skills seems to be so complex and consequently intends to report upon possible suggestions for improving listening competence in the second language (L2) classroom. Through the consideration of the difficulties encountered when undergoing listening, as well as the evaluation of various strategies and exercises suggested to facilitate the acquisition of listening skills, such as Dictogloss, Listening from the middle and Discovery Learning, this research highlights the important place that the teaching of listening strategies should be ever increasingly assuming in the modern foreign language classroom.
Safety Performance Functions to Assess the Safety Risk of Urban Residential Collector Roads

Previous research shows that various geometric and non-geometric road elements significantly affect collision occurrence and severity on highways and arterial roads; however, little is known about how these elements affect the safety performance of urban residential collector roads. Therefore, this study investigated the impact of these elements on collision occurrence and collision severity for urban residential collector roads. An extensive data collection effort was conducted to synthesize collision records, traffic counts, road geometry, traffic control and other features of residential collector road segments in the city of Edmonton (COE), Alberta, Canada. Negative binomial safety performance functions (SPFs) were developed for total collision occurrence and collision severity using four years of data. The proposed models were estimated using the maximum likelihood estimation technique under a Bayesian context. An outlier test was performed to improve the models’ goodness-of-fit. Scaled Deviance (SD) and the Pearson 2 statistic were used to assess the models’ goodness-of-fit. Results reveal that the exposure covariates (segment length and traffic volume) are highly significant and positively related to the predicted collisions in all of the SPFs. The property damage only (PDO) collision model has the same significant covariates as the total collisions model, indicating that the number of PDO collisions is predominantly higher than other collisions. For predicted total and PDO collisions, there is a statistically significant positive relationship between collisions and access-point density, stop-controlled intersection density, the presence of a horizontal curve, the presence of a licensed premises, the presence of a seniors’ centre and the presence of on-street parking. In contrast, there is a significant negative relationship between the presence of median and predicted total and PDO collisions. For severe (i.e., fatal and injury) collisions, there is a statistically significant positive relationship between collisions and segment length, traffic volume, number of lanes, access-point density, stop-controlled intersection density, bus stop density, the presence of a horizontal curve, the presence of a licensed premises, the presence of a seniors’ centre and the presence of on-street parking. On the contrary, there is a significant negative relationship between predicted severe collisions and the presence of a median, the presence of a centre line and the presence of manned enforcement sites. From a model application perspective, the city authority could use this information to assess the associated safety risk of different geometric and non-geometric road elements on residential collector roads and, hence, prioritize collision prone road segments.
Using Matched Samples to Test for Differences in Trade Execution Costs

This paper provides guidance on how to use matched samples to test for differences in trade execution costs (e.g., quoted and effective spreads). Based on extensive simulation results, we conclude that the best practice is to match firms one-to-one based on market capitalization and share price, and to test for differences between the matched pairs using a Wilcoxon signed rank test. We demonstrate that pre-sorting by industry groups or discarding apparent poor matches may reduce test power. We show that, in general, tests based on one-to-one nearest-neighbor matching have comparable power and less size distortion than alternatives that place more weight on distant firms. We find that matching without replacement can reduce size distortion when the control sample is relatively small. We highlight conditions under which matched sample estimation may be preferred to the corresponding event study.
Understanding the Controversy of Liquidity Beta

This paper provides a new perspective on liquidity beta. Within the framework of a liquidity-assentiment model, we point out that liquidity beta can be treated as a sentiment measure rather than a liquidity risk gauge. Consistent with the sentiment-based view on liquidity beta but in contradiction to the risk-based interpretation, we document a negative relation between liquidity beta and stock returns on the Chinese stock market. In contrast to US evidence, the strategy of going long in high and short in low liquidity beta stocks leads to a significantly negative riskadjusted return of -1.17% per month in China. This reverse liquidity beta effect persists over different subperiods and is more pronounced during the financial crisis. The empirical result is robust to different weighting schemes, alternative asset pricing models, alternative liquidity measures, and other well-known determinants of cross sectional returns. Further analysis shows that liquidity beta well predicts future stock returns and the reverse liquidity beta premium is mainly driven by the underperformance of high liquidity beta stocks following high market liquidity episodes.
Adaptable Bandwidth for Harmonic Step-Frequency Radar

A spectrum sensing technique is described which is used to enhance the performance of harmonic step-frequency radar in the presence of harmful radio frequency (RF) interference (RFI). This technique passively monitors the RF spectrum for subbands of high signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR) within a constrained bandwidth of interest. An optimal subband is selected for the harmonic radar that maximizes SINR and minimizes the range resolution cell size, two conflicting objectives. The approach is tested using an experimental setup that injects high power RFI into a harmonic step-frequency radar, which significantly degrades radar performance. It is shown that the proposed spectrum sensing technique significantly improves the SINR and the peak-to-average sidelobe power level of the harmonic radar at the sacrifice of range resolution.
Density dependent and temporal variability in habitat selection by a large herbivore; an experimental approach

Both density dependent and density independent processes such as climate affect population dynamics in large herbivores. Understanding herbivore foraging patterns is essential to identify the underlying mechanisms behind variation in vital rates. However, very little is known about how animals vary their selection of habitat temporally, alone or in interaction with density during summer. At the foraging scale, we tested using a fully replicated experiment whether domestic sheep Ovis aries stocked at high (80 per km 2 ) and low (25 per km 2 ) densities (spatial contrasts) varied their habitat selection temporally over a four year period. We predicted reduced selection of high productivity vegetation types with increasing density, and that seasonal and annual variation in climate would affect this density dependent selection pattern by increasing competition for high quality habitats in late grazing season and in years with poor vegetation development and over time related to vegetation responses to grazing. As predicted from the Ideal free distribution model, selection of high productivity habitat decreased at high density. There was also a marked temporal variation in habitat selection. Selection of the most productive vegetation types declined towards the end of each grazing season, but increased over years both at low and high sheep density. There was only weak evidence for interactions, as selection ratio of highly productive habitats tended to increase more over years at low density as compared to high density. Limited interactive effects of density and annual variation on habitat selection during summer may explain why similar interactions in vital rates have rarely been reported for summer seasons. Our results are consistent with the view that variation in habitat selection is a central mechanism for climate and density related variation in vital rates.
A glimpse of the future in animal nutrition science. 2. Current and future solutions

Despite tremendous advancements in the livestock sector, additional opportunities exist to improve even further livestock production around the globe. Forecasting is not an exact science and it relies heavily on past and current knowledge. Improvements in the nutritional sciences (both human and animal) include a better understanding of agents that cause deterioration of human health, improving the quality of animal products, applying effective fetal programming, developing new feeds and feeding strategies, and revisiting longstanding technologies. Improvements in the understanding of the rumen microbiome will enable scientists to increase the fermentation efficiency and, hopefully, select microbial species of greater interest. Improvements in remote sensing and ground-based instrumentation, telecommunications, and weather forecasting technologies will aid in the continued improvements of early warning systems to assist livestock producers in reducing risk and adapting to the changing environment. Broad utilization of sensor technologies will allow scientists to collect real-time data and, when combined with mathematical modeling, decision support systems will become an indispensable managerial tool for livestock production with the possibility to automate low-level decisions on the farm, such as supplementation schedules, sorting of animals, and early detection of disease and outbreaks. The identification of feed efficient animals may be the single most impactful advancement towards long-term livestock sustainability and the promise of feeding the world animal products. We contend that education across societal levels is the first step to solve current and future challenges of the livestock industry. The dilemma has been who will take the first step forward.
Demography and evolution of pure hybridogenetic frog (Rana esculenta) populations

Question: How can pure hybrid populations of the hemiclonal frog Rana esculenta persist over time? How can they maintain genetic diversity despite partial clonal inheritance? Mathematical methods: A deterministic model for identifying the composition of hybrid populations in relation to gamete production and primary fitness of its diploid and triploid members. Computer simulations for testing the effects of population composition on genetic diversity. Key model assumptions: Pure Rana esculenta populations consist of diploid males and females of the genotype LR and triploid males and females of the type LLR. Triploids of both sexes eliminate the R genome pre-meiotically (hybridogenesis) and produce haploid L gametes. Within the diploids, males produce R sperm and females either haploid R or diploid LR eggs. All individuals mate randomly and generations do not overlap. The overall hybrid population has a constant size with both sexes and ploidies affected equally by the limitation. Predictions: In pure Rana esculenta populations, the co-existence of diploid and triploid individuals is stable since each ploidy depends on the other for successful reproduction; hence, the mating system is balanced in itself. The genetic diversity and health in these hemiclonal populations resembles the diversity in similar sexual species due to a constant high amount of recombination in one of the parental genomes and a reduced mutation rate in the other. Thus diploid–triploid R. esculenta have become self-sustaining evolutionary units with a potential for new species formation.
Impact of seeing and host galaxy into the analysis of photo-polarimetric microvariability in blazars - Case study of the nearby blazars 1ES 1959+650 and HB89 2201+044

Blazars, a type of Active Galactic Nuclei, present a particular orientation of their jets close to the line of sight. Their radiation is thus relativistically beamed, giving rise to extreme behaviors, specially strong variability on very short timescales (i.e., microvariability). Here we present simultaneous photometric and polarimetric observations of two relatively nearby blazars, 1ES 1959+650 and HB89 2201+044, that were obtained using the Calar Alto Faint Object Spectrograph mounted at the 2.2 m telescope in Calar Alto, Spain. An outstanding characteristic of these two blazars is the presence of well resolved host galaxies. This particular feature allows us to produce a study of their intrinsic polarization, a measurement of the polarization state of the galactic nucleus unaffected by the host galaxy. To carry out this work, we computed photometric fluxes from which we calculated the degree and orientation of the blazars polarization. Then, we analyzed the depolarizing effect introduced by the host galaxy with the main goal to recover the intrinsic polarization of the galactic nucleus, carefully taking into consideration the spurious polarimetric variability introduced by changes in seeing along the observing nights. We find that the two blazars do not present intra-night photo-polarimetric variability, although we do detect a significant inter-night variability. Comparing polarimetric values before and after accounting for the host galaxies, we observe a significant difference in the polarization degree of about 1% in the case of 1ES 1959+650, and 0.3% in the case of HB89 2201+044, thus evidencing the non-negligible impact introduced by the host galaxies. We note that this host galaxy effect depends on the waveband, and varies with changing seeing conditions, so it should be particularly considered when studying frequency-dependent polarization in blazars.
Has Growth Been Socially Inclusive during 1993-94 - 2009-10?

This paper is an abridged version of a research undertaken by Indian Institute of Dalit Studies for the UNDP. We gratefully acknowledge the fi nancial support from UNDP India offi ce for this work. An earlier version of this paper was presented at the Workshop organised by the UNDP and Planning Commission during 24-25 October 2011 in New Delhi. We thank Palanivel, Seeta Prabhu, Rathin Roy, Ashwini Saith, Pronob Sen, Catlin Wiesen and several other participants in the UNDP-Planning Commission Workshop for helpful suggestions. We also acknowledge comments from three anonymous referees who have helped to improve this paper immensely. We thank Veronica Pala and Shivakar Tiwari for their effi cient support with the data work.
Examining the Relationship between Bicultural Stress, Mental Well-Being, Perceived Social Support, And Education Among People of African Descent

Studies investigating the bicultural experiences of people of African descent are significantly underrepresented in the literature. The primary purpose of this exploratory study was to examine the relationship between experiences of bicultural stress and mental well-being. In investigating this relationship, perceived social support and education were examined as protective factors, and its relationship to bicultural stress for this population. With the ultimate goal of this information contributing to the understanding of bicultural processes within this population and the relationship to mental health outcomes. A non-experimental (nonrandomized) research design was utilized to examine the study research questions and hypotheses. The participants include self-identified bicultural adults of African descent. Correlational and regression analyses indicated that in the study’s sample: (a) bicultural stress was related to symptoms of depression, perceived social support and education, (b) symptoms of depression were correlated with bicultural stressors, (c) social support and education served as protective factors against endorsement of depressive symptoms, (d) social support and education were correlated. The findings from this study may help to elucidate mental health outcomes as it relates to bicultural experiences among people of African descent. The findings may also serve to highlight culturally-sensitive approaches and information that better inform psychologists and health practitioners in serving this population. Furthermore, the findings of this study supports continued research that seeks to address the bicultural experiences of this diverse subgroup as it relates to mental health outcomes.
Physico-chemical and Bacteriological Quality of an Abattoir Wastewater Discharged into Water Bodies in Ibadan, Nigeria and drug resistant profile of isolated Salmonella species

The discharge of untreated abattoir wastewater constitutes public health concern because diseases are transmitted through contaminated water bodies. Contaminated water supply systems used for drinking and other purposes have been implicated in the transmission of antibiotic resistant pathogens. This study was carried out to determine the physico-chemical, bacteriological qualities of abattoir wastewater in Ibadan and antibiotics resistance patterns of Salmonella species from the wastewater. Wastewater samples were collected from the slaughter slab and drainage. Physico-chemical parameters, total bacteria counts (TBC) and total coliform counts (TCC) were determined using standard procedures. Salmonella species were isolated from the samples using pour plate techniques and identified using biochemical tests, while susceptibility test of the isolates against 10 antibiotics was determined using disc diffusion technique. The physico-chemical parameters of the wastewater showed total dissolved solids of 4,150 mg/l and 2300 mg/l for slaughter slab and drainage respectively while biochemical oxygen demand was 867.2 mg/l and 698.5 mg/l. Dissolved oxygen was between 0.01 mg/l and 0.02 mg/l; the mean value of TBC and TCC ranged between 4.24x 107- 4.78x107 cfu/ml and 3.03x107-3.51x107cfu/ml respectively. Salmonella species isolated were 48 and were all resistant to ampicillin and ceftriazone. The strains of S. enterica subspecies enterica exhibited resistance to eight antibiotics combination (AMP-TET-OFX-AMC-CLX-CRO-STR-SXT, AMP-TET-AMC-CLX-CRO-CHL-STR-SXT) while two of the isolates were pan-resistant. The abattoir wastewater must be properly treated before being discharged into the environment as it is evident that it harbours multiple antibiotic resistant pathogens.
Host specificity and distribution of the kleptobiotic spider Argyrodes antipodianus (Araneae, theridiidae) on orb webs in Queensland, Australia.

We investigated host specificity, the effects of host size, and the effects of the size, structure and occupancy of host webs on the abundance of the kleptobiotic spider Argyrodes antipodianus O.P.-Cambridge 1880. The kleptobiont is not host specific, but does prefer orb webs that are surrounded by a scaffold of threads (barrier-web). Across all hosts, host size had little effect on the abundance of the kleptobiont, while host density and the presence of other species of Argyrodes on webs had no effect. Web diameter, although not strongly related to the abundance of A. antipodianus in the field, limited kleptobiont numbers in greenhouse experiments. On webs of the Golden Orb Spider, Nephila plumipes (Latreille 1804), numbers of A. antipodianus were not affected by size of the scaffold or by aggregation of host webs. However, presence of host males was associated with a significantly higher abundance of A. antipodianus, suggesting that these kleptoparasites may take advantage of distracted females and impose a cost on mating in N. plumipes.