Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Estimating the impact of bank mergers: an application to the Portuguese banking system

Most studies assessing the impact of bank mergers analyze the differential impact of these processes on a number of variables that characterize the banking system. However, this approach has important limitations, ignoring endogenous changes in market structure that might occur after the merger. This article analyzes the impact on credit markets of a number of bank mergers in the Portuguese banking system using this methodology usually employed in the literature, as well as an alternative methodology based on the estimation of a structural model, which allows for the derivation of a counterfactual scenario. In this framework it becomes possible to evaluate, using this structural model, what would have happened if the mergers had not occurred. We fi nd that these mergers have contributed to a decrease in loan interest rates larger than what could have been anticipated. The fl ow of credit to non fi nancial fi rms was larger than what was suggested by the combination of the pre-merger equilibrium with the post-merger environment. In contrast, the fl ow of loans to households was lower than expected, even though the loans granted to this sector have recorded a signifi cant growth during the period analysed.
Cash holdings of small private family firms: evidence on the effect of generational evolution

We present empirical evidence on the cash holdings determinants in the under-researched context of private family firms. Results suggest that family firms diverging from the single-ownermanaged firm hold higher cash levels which originates in higher shareholder-manager agency costs e.g. free riding of family insiders on the controlling owner’s equity using the firm’s free cash flows. Moreover, descendant-managed firms hold higher cash levels compared to founder-managed firms due to higher debt agency costs. The descendant’s potentially limited capacities and opportunistic behaviour may negatively affect the firm’s ability to repay bank loans, decreasing loan availability and increasing the need for cash holdings.
Effects of Opuntiaficus-indica function in subsyndromal fatigue

1Institut für Lebensmittelwissenschaft und Humanernährung, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Universität Hannover, Hannover, Germany 2Dr. Willmar Schwabe GmbH & Co. KG, Karlsruhe, Germany A b s t r a c t Traditional use, chemical constituents, and results of prior animal studies indicate alleviating effects of healthy subjects of either gender aged 30 to 60 years with subsyndromal fatigue were enrolled in this open extract from psychic function parameters were assessed by numerical analogue scale of Subjective Fatigue Symptoms, Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory 20, Sheehan Disability Scale, Short Form Health Survey 36, Fatigue Impact Scale, and Global S incidents, laboratory parameters and vital signs were measured during the intervention period. Improvement of fatigue symptoms could be shown in most measurements after week 1and continued further throughout the trial. complaints at end of study. extract on symptoms of fatigue could be demonstrated.Improvement in all mental and psychic functions could be
Aeration of surf zone breaking waves

A set of laboratory experiments of the free surface elevation, the water velocity, the void fraction and the bubble distribution were conducted simultaneously for irregular wave breaking on a plane slope. The void fraction and bubbles induced by irregular wave breaking are different from regular wave case. It is, however, found that the relationship between the void fraction and the normalized turbulence intensity shows a linear dependence. In addition, the timeaveraged void fraction can be estimated from the wave energy dissipation rate.
MICROSTRUCTURAL AND THERMAL STABILITY OF SELECTIVE LASER MELTED 316L STAINLESS STEEL SINGLE TRACKS

To remove residual stresses, an as-built SLM object is usually post- treated. This treatment can affect the microstructure, changing the final mechanical characteristics. This investigation is focused on the microstructural characterisation of 316L austenitic stainless steel in as-built and annealed conditions. The SLM microstructure was relatively stable up to 900°C, when cell boundaries start to disappear. At higher temperatures, an insignificant grain coarsening was detected. These microstructural changes caused a gradual drop in the hardness. The obtained result is background for the future development of post-treatment regimens to achieve a high level in the final mechanical properties of SLM objects.
Solar twins in M 67: evolutionary status and lithium abundance

Aims. We determine the age and mass of the three best solar twin candidates in open cluster M 67 through lithium evolutionary models. Methods. We computed a grid of evolutionary models with non-standard mixing at metallicity [Fe/H] = 0.01 with the Toulouse-Geneva evolution code for a range of stellar masses. We estimated the mass and age of 10 solar analogs belonging to the open cluster M 67. We made a detailed study of the three solar twins of the sample, YPB637, YPB 1194, and YPB 1787. Results. We obtained a very accurate estimation of the mass of our solar analogs in M 67 by interpolating in the grid of evolutionary models. The three solar twins allowed us to estimate the age of the open cluster, which is 3.87 +0.55 0.66 Gyr, which is better constrained than former estimates. Conclusions. Our results show that the 3 solar twin candidates have one solar mass within the errors and that M 67 has a solar age within the errors, validating its use as a solar proxy. M 67 is an important cluster when searching for solar twins.
Evaluation and acceptability of yoghurt drink processed from goat milk and a combination of goat and cow milks

The present study was undertaken to determine the suitability and acceptability of yoghurt drink prepared from goat milk, either singly or admixed with 75% cow milk. Chemical and microbial analyses were carried out on both the fresh milk and the prepared product. The chemical analysis included quantification of the fat, protein, moisture, ash, total solids (TS), pH and titratable acidity (TA) of the fresh milk and the yoghurt drink; while the microbial analysis included the determination of the total bacterial count (TBC), coliform count, yeast and mould counts of the fresh milk prior to processing and on processed yoghurt drink 24 h after the processing. Sensory evaluation was also conducted on the processed yoghurt drink to determine the level of acceptability of the product. Results of the chemical and microbial analyses, as well as the sensory evaluation of yoghurt drinks prepared separately from goat and cow milks and the admixture, showed that the composition of goat milk is comparable to that of cow"s milk (goat"s milk was even better in some aspects than the cow"s milk). The mean composition of protein, fat and lactose recorded in goat and cow milks were 3.62 ± 0.11 and 3.45 ± 0.12; 4.15 ± 0.32 and 4.63 ± 0.35; 4.63 ± 0.35, 4.68 ± 0.23 and 4.92 ± 0.28, respectively; whereas the mean TS contents of the two milks were 13.17 ± 0.22 and 13.80 ± 0.17, respectively. Similarly, the average total bacterial counts (TBC) in fresh milk samples taken directly from the pooled milk were 2.7 × 10 3 and 3.7 × 10 3 cfu/ml for goat and cow"s milk, respectively. The organoleptic property (appearance, taste, texture and flavour) of goat milk yoghurt drink was adjudged acceptable compared with that of cow. It was concluded that goat milk has a very good potential for future utilization on commercial level, including yoghurt production in Nigeria.
Precessing Jet and Large Dust Grains in the V380 Ori NE Star-forming Region

The V380 Ori NE bipolar outflow was imaged in the SiO and CO lines, and dense cores in L1641 were observed in the 2.0–0.89 mm continuum. The highly collimated SiO jet shows point-symmetric oscillation patterns in both position and velocity, which suggests that the jet axis is precessing and the driving source may belong to a non-coplanar binary system. By considering the position and velocity variabilities together, accurate jet parameters were derived. The protostellar system is viewed nearly edge-on, and the jet has a flow speed of ∼35 km s−1 and a precession period of ∼1600 years. The CO outflow length gives a dynamical timescale of ∼6300 years, and the protostar must be extremely young. The inferred binary separation of 6–70 au implies that this protobinary system may have been formed through the disk instability process. The continuum spectra of L1641 dense cores indicate that the emission comes from dust, and the fits with modified blackbody functions give emissivity power indices of β = 0.3–2.2. The emissivity index shows a positive correlation with the molecular line width, but no strong correlation with bolometric luminosity or temperature. V380 Ori NE has a particularly low value of β = 0.3, which tentatively suggests the presence of millimeter-sized dust grains. Because the dust growth takes millions of years, much longer than the protostellar age, this core may have produced large grains in the starless core stage. HH 34 MMS and HH 147 MMS also have low emissivity indices.
Electric-field noise above a thin dielectric layer on metal electrodes

The electric-field noise above a layered structure composed of a planar metal electrode covered by a thin dielectric is evaluated and it is found that the dielectric film considerably increases the noise level, in proportion to its thickness. Importantly, even a thin (mono) layer of a low-loss dielectric can enhance the noise level by several orders of magnitude compared to the noise above a bare metal. Close to this layered surface, the power spectral density of the electric field varies with the inverse fourth power of the distance to the surface, rather than with the inverse square, as it would above a bare metal surface. Furthermore, compared to a clean metal, where the noise spectrum does not vary with frequency (in the radio-wave and microwave bands), the dielectric layer can generate electric-field noise which scales in inverse proportion to the frequency. For various realistic scenarios, the noise levels predicted from this model are comparable to those observed in trapped-ion experiments. Thus, these findings are of particular importance for the understanding and mitigation of unwanted heating and decoherence in miniaturized ion traps.
Viscous flow rates of icy topography on the north polar layered deposits of Mars

We investigate the importance of viscous flow in shaping topography at the north polar layered deposits (NPLD) of Mars by using finite element modeling to calculate the distribution of stresses and flow velocities. Present‐day impact craters on the NPLD are too small and cold for viscous relaxation to have been an important mechanism in controlling their current dimensions; this effect may be ignored when analyzing crater size‐frequency distributions. Scarps at the NPLD margins, where avalanches of dust and carbon dioxide frost occur, are sufficiently steep, high, and warm to experience significant viscous flow. We find flow velocities at the base of these steep scarps on the order of tens to hundreds of cm/yr, which are fast enough to significantly affect their slope over kiloyear timescales. Alternatively, the scarps could be close to steady state in which observed block falls provide a competing effect to viscous flow.
Earnings of Immigrant Classes in the Early 1980 s in Canada : A Reexamination 181

Il est généralement admis que les immigrés, tel que des réfugiés, acceptés pour des raisons humanitaires ont de moins bonnes performances que les immigrés sélectionnés pour leurs compétences. Récemment, Statistiques Canada a mis en place la Longitudinal Immigration Database (IMBD) qui procure une occasion unique pour vérifier cette affirmation. En utilisant un sous-échantillon de l’IMBD, cet article montre que les revenus des différentes catégories des immigrés convergent rapidement au fil du temps. Du point de vue politique, la principale conclusion est que l’âge d’entrée au Canada est probablement plus importante que toutes les autres caractéristiques rapportées au moment de l’arrivée.
Determinants of Earnings Management in the Hotel Industry: an International Perspective

This paper analyzes the determinants of the level of earnings management in a wide sample of listed firms from the hotel industry in 15 countries. The empirical study relies on the discretionary accruals, as an indication of earnings management, and examines the firm and country characteristics that are potentially associated with those discretionary accruals. The results suggest that firm characteristics, including the leverage ratio, cash flow from operations, investment opportunities and the frequency of losses, are the major determinant of earnings management in the hotel industry around the world. Our results also show that firms with five star hotels have different incentives to manipulate earnings, when compared to firms holding lower quality hotels. The hotels’ star rating also seems to play a different role in explaining the level of earnings management in common-law countries, when compared to code-law countries. This paper contributes to the accounting literature by examining the determinants of earnings management of a large panel of firms from the hotel industry and by focusing on the characteristics of the firm and its institutional environment.
Prognostic Significance of Tumor Volume and Microvessel Density in Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Uterine Cervix

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the prognostic significance and relationship between tumor volume and microvessel density in squamous cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix. The estimated tumor volume (TV) in 57 patients (22 stage Ib, 18 stage IIa, and 17 stage IIb) had radical hysterectomy was calculated on the assumption that the tumor mass was spheroid. The micro-vessel density (MVD) was evaluated as the ratio of endothelial area immunoreactive to factor-VIII related antigen (von Willebrand factor) to whole image area measured by computer-aided image analysis system. Tumor volume ranged from 0.1 to 41.0 cm 3 (median 3.6 cm 3 ) and MVD from 0.33 to 2.95 % (median 0.85 %). A significantly larger median TV was noted in women with positive pelvic node metastasis (6.3 vs 2.6 cm 3 , P=0.0228), parametrial invasion (8.9 vs 0.8 cm 3 , P 4 cm 3 , respectively; and 96.2% and 61.3% (P=0.0022) between tissue specimens with a MVD of ≦0.8% and >0.8%, respectively. A combined TV of >4 cm 3 and MVD >0.8% further deteriorated 5 year survival rate (42.1% vs 94.7%, P<0.0001). Multivariate analysis indicated TV and MVD as independent risk factor in this series (P=0.041, P=0.03, respectively). Our current findings suggested that TV and MVD are independent prognostic factors in women with cervical carcinoma who underwent radical hysterectomy. These prognostic factors may be clinically useful for the selection of high-risk patients who need extensive adjuvant therapy. ACTA MEDICA NAGASAKIENSIA 53: 77－84, 2008
SOME IMAGING ANATOMICAL ULTRASONOGRAPHIC FEATURES OF THE LIVER IN DOMESTIC RABBIT (Oryctolagus cunicuclus)

STAMATOVA - YOVCHEVA, K. , R. DIMITROV and A. RUSSENOV, 2012. Some imaging anatomical ultrasonographic features of the liver in domestic rabbit (Oryctolagus cunicuclus). Bulg. J. Agric. Sci., 18: 144-146 We studied nine sexually matured, healthy New Zealand white rabbits. The animals were positioned in supine recumbence. The sonographic approach was transabdominal percutaneous hypochondrial. The liver of four investigated animals was extirpated, following euthanasia and studied in liquid isotonic medium, in order to compare its ultrasonographic characters with these of its normal topography. The rabbit liver was an echoic structure with regular contours, close to the hyperechoic diaphragm. The liver parenchyma showed heterogeneous echogenicity. The gall bladder was observed as a longitudinal oval finding, filled with anechoic content, and its wall was hypoechoic.
Link between rheumatoid arthritis and chronic periodontitis

Chronic periodontitis is an infectious disease associated with the progressive destruction of periodontal tissues. In recent years, more and more data indicate an existing relationship between periodontal disease and rheumatoid arthritis. The link between both diseases has been confirmed in multiple studies. Despite the fact that this association might be based on shared environmental and genetic risk factors, a possible causal relation was advocated by experimental, epidemiological and interventional studies, with the leading role of Porphyromonas gingivalis. Individuals with chronic periodontitis are at an increased risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis, as well as rheumatoid arthritis patients are at an increased risk of chronic periodontitis and more severe forms of periodontitis. Furthermore, there is a correlation between the activity in both diseases – patients with more severe periodontitis suffer from more active rheumatoid arthritis. Intervention attempts were also performed, which demonstrated that eliminating periodontal infection and inflammation can affect the severity of rheumatoid arthritis. In this paper, we review the current knowledge about the link between both diseases, focusing on its clinical implications. Will periodontal treatment become a part of standard therapy for rheumatoid arthritis?
Temporal stability of climate‐isotope relationships in tree rings of oak and pine (Ticino, Switzerland)

Climate reconstructions based on stable isotopes in tree rings commonly rely on the assumption that climate‐isotope relations are stable over time. However, studies of tree ring growth have revealed trends thought to result from either physiological changes or changes in the climate‐growth relationship. We investigated whether or not similar trends exist for tree ring stable isotopic ratios using a statistical approach. Correlations between climate (temperature and precipitation amount) and tree ring cellulose δ13C and δ18O of oak and pine from Ticino, Switzerland, were calculated for the period AD 1660–2000. Climate calibration of tree rings was enabled by long‐term monthly resolved temperature and precipitation data sets on the basis of instrumental and documentary proxy data. Overall, five findings have been identified: (1) Isotopic ratios in tree rings most strongly reflect conditions of the current growing season, (2) temporally stable climate signals are found in pine δ13C only, (3) all other correlations between tree ring isotopes and climate are temporally unstable and characterized by shifts in correlation sign and strength, (4) climate signals in oak are strongest in the 20th century, and (5) tree ring δ13C reflects local climatic conditions while δ18O is influenced by large‐scale synoptic circulation. The nonstationary relationships observed could reflect changes in the relationship between the climate variables or a physiological adaptation to warmer conditions. Our results provide a cautionary note for the calibration of long tree ring series with 20th century relationships, at least for trees located at ecologically nonextreme sites.
Deuteration and evolution in the massive star formation process - The role of surface chemistry

Context. An ever growing number of observational and theoretical evi d nce suggests that the deuterated fraction (column densit y ratio between a species containing D and its hydrogenated co unterpart,Dfrac) is an evolutionary indicator both in the lowand the highmass star formation process. However, the role of surface ch emistry in these studies has not been quantified from an obser vational point of view. Aims. Because many abundant species, like NH 3, 2CO and CH3OH, are actively produced on ice mantles of dust grains durin g the early cold phases, their Dfrac is expected to evolve di fferently from that of species formed only (or predominantly) in the gas, like N2H, HNC, HCN and their deuterated isotopologues. The di fferences are expected to be relevant especially after the pro tostellar birth, in which the temperature rises up causing the evapora tion of ice mantles. Methods. In order to compare how the deuterated fractions of species f ormed only in the gas and partially or uniquely on grain surfaces evolve with time, we observed rotational transiti ons of CH3OH, CH3OH, CH2DOH, CH3OD at 3 and 1.3 mm, and of NH2D at 3 mm with the IRAM-30m telescope, and the inversion trans itions (1,1) and (2,2) of NH3 with the GBT, towards most of the cores already observed by Fontani et al. (2011, 2014) in N 2H, N2D, HNC, DNC. Results. NH2D is detected in all but two cores, regardless of the evolutio nary stage. Dfrac(NH3) is on average above 0.1, and does not change significantly from the earliest to the most evolved ph ases, although the highest average value is found in the prot ostellar phase (∼ 0.3). Few lines of CH2DOH and CH3OD are clearly detected, and only towards protostellar core s externally heated starless cores. In quiescent starless cores, we have found only one do ubtful detection of CH2DOH. Conclusions. This work clearly confirms an expected di fferent evolutionary trend of the species formed exclusively in the gas (N2D and N2H) and those formed partially (NH 2D and NH3) or totally (CH2DOH and CH3OH) on grain mantles. The study also reinforces the idea thatDfrac(N2H) is the best tracer of massive starless cores, while high val ues ofDfrac(CH3OH) seem rather good tracers of the early protostellar phases, at which the evaporation /sputtering of the grain mantles is most e fficient.
Taxpayer Compliance in SMEs Sector: A Theory of Planned Behavior

The low level of taxpayer compliance is assessed as one of the causes of not achieving the target of tax revenue in Indonesia. One of the efforts made by the government to optimize tax revenue is by requiring UMKM sector to fulfill the obligation of taxation. Based on the above, the researcher is interested to conduct research on taxpayer compliance of UMKM using the psychological approach that is Theory of Planned Behavior. This theory describes the effect of attitudes on behavior, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control on taxpayer compliance intent and behavior. This research uses a survey method at formal UMKM in Bali Province. Methods of sampling using proportional random sampling. Data analysis using the Structural Equation Model (SEM). The results showed that attitudes toward behavior, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control have an effect on one's intentions to comply with tax provisions. Nevertheless, perceived behavioral control variables have no direct effect on individual tax compliance behavior. The test results on the variable intention to comply with tax compliance behavior support Theory of Planned JEL Classification : H24 ; H26 ; M41 DOI: https://doi.org/10.26905/jkdp.v22i2. 1561
Structural and thermal history of poly-orogenic basement: U–Pb geochronology of granitoid rocks in the southern Menderes Massif, Western Turkey

Ion microprobe U–Pb dating of granitoid rocks from key structural outcrops of the Menderes Massif in western Turkey provides an important constraint to the thermal and deformational history of a structurally complex metamorphic belt within the Alpine chain. Crystallization ages of two granite protoliths, derived from the weighted means of rim ages and the ages of homogeneous prismatic zircon grains, are 541 ± 14 Ma and 566 ± 9 Ma, whereas the cores of zoned pyramidal and short-prismatic zircon grains range from Palaeoproterozoic to Neoproterozoic in age. These ages indicate that amphibolite- to granulite-facies metamorphic rocks in much of the Menderes Massif were deformed, metamorphosed and intruded during the Pan-African Orogeny, and neither crystallized nor remelted during an Alpine event. Structural and metamorphic evidence for Alpine convergence in Pan-African basement rocks is limited to greenschist-facies top-to-the-south shear zones, which occur on a regional scale across a number of tectonic units.