Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Dynamics of Sovereign Credit Risk

This paper proposes a structural model for sovereign credit risk with endogenous sovereign debt and default policies. A maximum-likelihood estimation of the model with local stock market prices generates daily model-implied sovereign spreads. This approach explains two-thirds of the daily variation in observed sovereign spreads for emerging and European economies over the 2000-2011 period. Global factors help to further explain the time variation in sovereign credit risk. In particular, sovereign spreads in emerging markets vary with U.S. market uncertainty, while European spreads depend on Euro zone bond factors.
The role of Local Economic Development in developing small medium enterprises: a case of Solomondale Community in the Limpopo Province

Government's New Growth Path is targeting five million (5 000 000) new jobs by 2020 and also aims to reduce the unemployment rate by 2030 by creating eleven million (11 000 000) new jobs. South Africa needs over forty-nine thousand (49,000) Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), growing at a rate of twenty percent (20%) per annum, to create eleven million (11 000 000) jobs by 2030 to meet the National Development Plan (NDP) target. The local economic development is providing capital to previously disadvantaged South Africans to encourage start-ups and grow existing businesses through grants and incentive programmes. The study evaluated the contribution of local economic development in developing SMEs in local communities. A total of twenty-three (23) in-depth interviews were conducted with respondents aged between eighteen to fifty-five (18-55) years. Snowball sampling was used to select respondents from Solomondale community in the Limpopo Province, South Africa. Thematic content analysis was used to analyse the data. The author adopted the Sustainable Livelihood Approach (SLA), which postulates that, for livelihood to be sustainable in the case of SMEs, it has to comprise of five elements, namely: human, physical, social, financial and natural assets. Regardless of the incentives provided by the government, the research identified challenges faced by SMEs. These include; lack of proper skills to maintain sustainability and growth of the businesses, competition by foreign markets of which most of the businesses are not registered, and the lack of complete assets outlined by the SLA. It is imperative to understand the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) of small medium enterprises in local communities to provide business management skills. Most xenophobic attacks in local communities' result from fear of losing control over local economies and the lack of job opportunities as had been happening in South Africa recently. It is trusted that findings in this study will contribute to the development of coherent strategies to support local economies to meet the NDP target.
An evolving protocol to identify key stakeholder-influenced indicators of coastal change: the case of Marine Protected Areas

Vella, P., Bowen, R. E. , and Frankic, A. 2009. An evolving protocol to identify key stakeholder-influenced indicators of coastal change: the case of Marine Protected Areas. - ICES Journal of Marine Science, 66: 203-213.In recent years, there has been a growing realization of the need to protect and conserve degrading environments. This can only be achieved through integrated management of environmental protection and the rational use of living and non-living resources. However, no management plan that aims at sustainable development can be successful unless the human factor is included. The concept of ecosystem-based management considers socio-economic issues in evaluating management effectiveness. In this paper, we present a method for selecting and prioritizing socio-economic indicators, using a bottom-up approach involving stakeholder input. This technique is developed further to measure the effectiveness of integrated coastal management, using a Marine Protected Area (MPA) as an example. Stakeholder input is essential at an early stage to ensure MPA management success, providing the opportunity to include public participation and ensure community support. This paper presents a transparent and adaptable indicator ranking protocol and evaluative rules, ensuring that an ecosystem-based approach can be more effectively implemented.
M-Banking in Metropolitan Bangkok and a Comparison with other Countries

Early days, the prevalence of Internet technology generated e-commerce, e-business, and innovative products and services to market. At present, the diffusion of mobile technology creates m-commerce. Mobile banking is a banking service which helps customers in easily making online transactions anywhere, anytime. It has been adopted extensively in developed countries. However, for Thailand, this acceptance rate is still low. Thus, this paper is aimed at to gather factors affecting m-banking acceptance, both on adoption side and barrier side, to explore the effects of those factors, to guide banks and financial firms to attract more customers, and to compare the differences and similarities of m-banking key success factors from different countries. The quantitative approach using questionnaire survey along with the qualitative approach using interviews are used to test the model. The result shows that the positive factors have more influence on an intention to use m-banking than the negative factors.
A multichannel model

Focused beam induced deposition (FE/IBID) using either an electron (E) beam or an ion (I) beam is an excellent method to quickly fabricate structures on the nanoscale. Using appropriate materials, these structures can even be superconducting [1] (W) or ferromagnetic [2] (Co and Fe). In this report, point contact junctions were fabricated with FIBID W and FEBID Co. In such a junction between a superconductor and a ferromagnet a process called Andreev reflection occurs that influences the conductance across the interface, and the resulting conductance is well described by a theory developed by Blonders, Tinkham and Klapwijk. [3] However, when measuring the conductance of the FIBID W-FEBID Co junctions, several anomalies were observed. Analysing these anomalies has allowed us to gain more insight into the characteristics of FIBID W as a superconductor. A compositional and electrical analysis was carried out on FIBID W, indicating that it consists of multiple phases, each with a different critical temperature. This multiphase nature leads to distinctive kinks observed in the R-T dependence around TC . To explain shoulder shapes that were observed in our Andreev reflection spectra, we have introduced a multichannel model that describes how conductance over the point contact consists of multiple independent conductive channels. As each of these channels connects to a different phase on the FIBID W side, this results in a superposition of multiple conductance curves with different parameters. Numerical simulations are used to show that such a superposition can indeed explain the appearance of shoulder shapes. By annealing the sample or by using an etching step in the fabrication process it was found that the shoulders could be removed, which means that either the point contact is reduced to a single conductive channel, or the FIBID W is made more homogenous, so that it no longer contains different phases at the interface.
River hydraulics – a view from midstream

Six distinct “views” of river hydraulics are presented, beginning with what influences us today, given our shared history, to what we can learn from others as they tackled research topics in their day. Other views relate to how we regard rivers through laboratory studies, the computer screen or in nature at full scale, and to how we might view research problems in the future. Interspersed with these various views are 10 questions that are frequently asked of river engineers, along with some possible answers. In attempting to answer these particular questions, some insights gained from a career in river hydraulics research are offered as a guide to others, both in practice or academe, as they raise some further issues which are worth reflecting on. This paper is particularly aimed at emerging hydraulic researchers and young engineers who are embarking on a career in river hydrodynamics.
Towards the Assignment for the Ground Scalar Meson

Combining three complementary approaches, nonrelativistic constituent quark model, Regge phenomenology, and meson-meson mixing, we obtain the mass relations which relate different meson multiplets. With the help of known meson masses, these relations can be used for the prediction of unknown meson states masses. The utility of this new analysis technique is applied for the scalar meson and results in a possible allocation scheme for the ground scalar meson.
Structural Breaks in Inflation Dynamics

Are there structural breaks in the dynamics of the inflation process? Does inflation possess a unit root? Is inflation a highly persistent process? We use tests for multiple structural breaks at unknown points in the sample, and a newly developed test for unit roots allowing for up to m structural breaks, to investigate breaks in inflation dynamics for 23 inflation series from 18 countries (plus the eurozone), and their implications for the serial correlation properties of inflation. All inflation series display structural breaks, often highly suggestive as they appear to broadly coincide with readily identifiable macroeconomic events, like the breakdown of Bretton Woods, the Volcker disinfl ation in the U.S., and the introduction of inflation targeting in several countries. Allowing for structural breaks, the null of a unit root can be strongly rejected for the vast majority of the series. Finally, evidence seems to suggest that, in general, inflation is not a highly persistent process. We discuss the implications of our rejection of a unit root for Mishkin’s explanation of time-variation in the extent of the Fisher effect. We argue that Mishkin’s theory, based on the notion that inflation and interest rates are cointegrated, is difficult to defend in the light of our evidence against a unit root for almost all inflation series. The alternative Ibrahim and Williams (1978)-Barthold and Dougan (1986)-Barsky (1987) explanation, based on the notion of changes in the extent of inflation forecastability along the sample, is on the other hand compatible with our findings.
Precise information retrieval in semantic scientific digital libraries

When scientists are looking for information in document collections, they generally have a precise objective in mind. They try to answer specific needs such as finding the definition of a concept, checking whether an idea has already been tested, or comparing the scientific conclusions of several documents. To build better information system model it is important to understand the needs of scientists in terms of information and their seeking information behaviour. The contributions of this thesis are to a) offer a user model; b) propose a generic annotation model (SciAnnotDoc) for scientific documents; c) demonstrate that the annotation model is realistic enough to be used by both manual and automatic methods of annotation; d) build a faceted search interface (FSAD) and e) evaluate the model with scientists and show that the FSAD interface is more effective than a keywords-search, notably in terms of user preference, recall and F1 measure.
Dyes Removal from Wastewater Using Agricultural Waste

Capability of Rice Husk (RH) on the removal of four types of dyes pollutant from wastewater which were methylene blue, Congo red, brilliant green and crystal violent using different design parameters by adsorption process is focus on. The design parameters studied to adsorb above four dyes using RH as an adsorbent material were initial concentration of dye, absorbance material packing height which was RH, pH of dye solution feed inlet, treatment time, feed flow rate and feed temperature, these parameters were varied from (1-100) mg/l, (10100) cm, (1-8), (1-60) min, (5-100) ml/min and (20–55°C) respectively. Results show that the higher removal efficiency was (95.81, 93.44, 96.62 and 96.35) % for brilliant green, Congo red, crystal violent and methylene blue dyes respectively from aquatic solution and these efficiencies were decreased with increasing of initial concentration and flow rate while the removal efficiencies increased with increasing absorbance material bed height and feeding temperature. The removal efficiency was increased with increasing pH of solution for methylene blue, brilliant green and crystal violent dyes and decreased with increasing pH of solution for Congo red dye. Statistical model is achieved to find an expression combined all operating parameters with the removal efficiency for dyes used in this paper in a general equation. By this way we can possess different benefits which are: remove the toxic dyes contaminated the water, get rid of agricultural waste RH.
The cyclicality of interest rate spreads in Austria: Evidence for a financial decelerator?

This study explores an important aspect of how the Austrian banking sector contributes to the propagation of aggregate shocks. Time series data for the 1995-2003 period are applied to examine the cyclical variations in interest rate spreads. Differentials between interest rates on loans and savings are not found to shrink in economic upturns, so there is no financial mechanism emanating from bank markups that would entail an amplification of macroeconomic fluctuations. But also the evidence for Austrian banks dampening the business cycle (a financial de-celerator) is not striking as the increases of interest rate spreads after shocks in the growth rate of real GDP are practically small.
Career Choices of Secondary Students with Special Reference to Gender, Type of Stream and Parental Education

The study was carried out to find the career choices of students at secondary level. A sample of 200 students was drawn randomly from 12 secondary schools of district Srinagar within the age range of 16 plus. The selected sample comprised of arts and science streams. Chatterji’s Non-Language Preference Record was administered to collect the data. Besides, parental education as one of the variables was also taken into consideration. Data was subjected to statistical treatment by applying percentages and ‘t’ values. The results revealed some significant differences on the basis of gender and parental education in various career choices of the subjects under investigation. Key Words: Career choices; Secondary students; Gender; Type of stream; Parental education
Stellar rotation and variability in the Orion Nebula Cluster

A wide field imager attached to the MPG/ESO 2.2 m telescope on La Silla has been used to monitor the Orion Nebula Cluster on 45 nights between 25 Dec. 1998 and 28 Feb. 1999. Ninety-two images were obtained during this period through an intermediate band filter centered at 815.9 nm. More than 1500 sources with I magnitudes between 12.5 and 20 were monitored. We find that essentially every star brighter than 16th mag (where the precision is 0:1 yielded periods. Our work confirms the existence of a bimodal period distribution, with peaks near 2 and 8 days, for stars with M> 0:25 M and a unimodal distribution peaked near 2 days, for lower mass stars. We show that a statistically significant correlation exists between infrared excess emission and rotation in the sense that slower rotators are more likely to show evidence of circumstellar disks. Slowly rotating stars, with angular velocities,! 2r adians/d, corresponding to rotation periods shorter than 3.14 d, have a much smaller mean of 0:17 0:05. This supports the hypothesis that disks are involved in regulating stellar rotation during the pre-main sequence phase. We explore a simple and commonly adopted model of rotational evolution in which stars conserve angular velocity while locked to a disk and conserve angular momentum once released. If these assumptions are valid, and if the locking period is 8 days, we find that more than half of the stars in the ONC are no longer locked to disks and that an exponential decay model with a disk-locking half-life of about 0.5-1 My fits the observations well. Assuming that the mean ages of the higher and lower mass stars are the same, the faster rotation of the lower mass stars can be understood as either a consequence of a shorter disk-locking time or a shorter initial disk-locking period, or both.
Nest Success of Southeastern American Kestrels Associated with Red-Cockaded Woodpeckers in Old-Growth Longleaf Pine Habitat in Northwest Florida

Abstract The Southeastern American Kestrel (Falco sparverius paulus), a non-migratory subspecies of the widespread American Kestrel, has declined to the point that it is listed as threatened in Florida, the state in which it is most common. We studied the nesting biology of Southeastern American Kestrels in 1999 and 2000 at Eglin Air Force Base, FL, in old-growth longleaf pine savanna, a habitat type historically widely occupied by the kestrels. Most of the nest cavities we observed were in old-growth trees, both living and dead, and were originally excavated by Red-cockaded Woodpeckers (Picoides borealis) and then enlarged by other woodpecker species. Nesting success was 70% in 1999 and 56% in 2000. In 1999, 67% of eggs survived to become fledglings in successful nests, as did 58% in 2000. Nests in live pines and snags were equally successful, and nest success was positively related to cavity height in 1999. Reduced nesting success in 2000 may have been related to severe drought conditions. High nesting concentrations of up to 4 pairs per km2 were observed. We suggest that stands of old-growth longleaf pine, with little or no hardwood midstory and a relatively high number of snags, inhabited by Red-cockaded Woodpeckers, may constitute high quality habitat for Southeastern American Kestrels. Therefore, loss of longleaf pine habitat, degradation of remaining longleaf habitat due to fire suppression and removal of old-growth and snags, and the decline of the Red-cockaded Woodpecker, a species on which kestrels may have depended as a source of nest cavities historically, may have contributed to the decline of the Southeastern American Kestrel.
Economic downturn and investment in innovation Is accumulation more creative than destruction

The 2008 economic crisis has severely reduced the short-term willingness of firms to invest in innovation. But this reduction has not occurred uniformly and a few firms have even increased their investment in spite of the adverse macroeconomic environment. On the ground of a fresh European Survey carried out by Innobarometer, this paper compares drivers of innovation investment before, during and following on from the crisis. Using the two Schumpeterian models of technological accumulation and creative destruction the paper shows that before the crisis incumbent firms were more likely to expand their innovation investment, but that the crisis has reverted this picture, giving space to a restricted number of small firms and new entrants that swim against the stream and are expanding innovative
How important is competition in a species-rich grassland? A two-year removal experiment in a pine savanna

Abstract Although we know that competition sometimes controls the composition of plant communities, we still do not understand its significance in communities having high species richness. We removed an abundant and apparently dominant grass (Andropogon virginicus) in species-rich pine grassland in southeastern Louisiana and evaluated the effects on species richness and composition. At 2 sites, moist and dry, we located twenty 1- × 1-m plots with 10 randomly assigned control plots and 10 treatment plots, in which herbicide was applied to individual shoots of A. virginicus over 2 y. Plant cover, species richness, and species composition were recorded 4 times over this period. Repeated measures analyses of variance and Mantel tests were used to evaluate differences between control and removal plots. Although there were more than 90 species of vascular plants that might have responded to the removal of A. virginicus, no significant effect on cover, species richness, species composition, or functional group composition was found. Competition apparently played a minor role in determining the composition of this subtropical grassland. The general model of competition in temperate grasslands, which assumes a few species of grasses dominate the community through competition and other species survive in the interstices, does not seem to apply. Infertile soils may reduce rates of competitive exclusion and establishment, minimize interactions between grasses and forbs, or produce a fundamentally different kind of competition that is inherently slower and more symmetrical than in most experimental situations.
The Impact of Green Lending on Credit Risk in China

This study explores China’s green credit policy from a credit risk perspective. Green finance has been growing rapidly in China since the government issued its Green Credit Policy. The objective of this study is to explore whether green loans are less risky than non-green loans. Based on a five-year dataset of 24 Chinese banks, we used panel regression techniques, including two-stage least square regression analysis and random-effect panel regression to examine whether a higher green credit ratio reduces a bank’s non-performing loan ratio (NPL ratio). The results suggest that allocating more green loans to the total loan portfolio does reduce a bank’s NPL ratio. We conclude that institutional pressure by the Chinese Green Credit Policy has a positive effect on both the environmental and the financial performance of banks. The study contributes to the literature on the correlation between green lending and credit risks, as well as to the literature on the impact of institutional pressure on environmental and financial risks.
Assessment of Knowledge, Attitude and Practice towards Hepatitis B among two rural communities of the Anglophone regions in Cameroon

Viral hepatitis, especially those caused by hepatitis B virus (HBV), represents a worldwide significant cause of morbidity and mortality affecting about 2 billion people worldwide. Prevention against hepatitis B (HB) is proportional to the knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) of the people. This study seeks to assess the KAP towards HB in two rural areas of the Anglophone regions in Cameroon from the May 2014 of January 2015 using p re-designed and pre-tested, semi- structured questionnaire. Any correct or positive answers was given one point and zero for a no or negative answer. The response rate was 612 (87.4%). This study revealed that mean (SD) KAP was 14.4(3.7%), 4.7(1.1%) and 3.8(1.2%) respectively. Thus majority of the respondents had low knowledge 354(57.9%), high positive attitude 334(54.6%) and low poor practice 149(24.3%) regarding HB. Excellent knowledge was expressed only by 38(6.2%) respondents. A univariate analysis of Knowledge, showed a significant difference (p<0.05) in place, sex, age group, occupation, level of education and monthly income while for attitude a significant difference (p<0.05) was seen only in place and for practices a significant difference (p<0.05) was seen in the place, marital status, occupation, level of education and monthly income. A linear correlation revealed a non significant positive correlation between knowledge and attitude (r=-0.003, p = 0.12), a significantly positive correlation between knowledge and practice (r =0.28, p = 0.00) and a significantly positive correlation in attitude and Practice (r =0.27, p = 0.00).