Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Social embeddedness and job performance of tenured and non-tenured professionals

This study examines how different employment relationships in academic settings, ie tenured versus non-tenured appointments, are associated with different types of job performance efforts. The social embeddedness model contends that employees' efforts to perform well depend on embeddedness in the social environment. Adopting this perspective, we ask what types of embeddedness are likely to improve job performance efforts, namely compliance and contextual performance, under the condition of different employment relationships. Regression analyses on the responses of both tenured and non-tenured faculty members show that employees' efforts to perform well can be explained by social embeddedness. Temporal embeddedness appears to be important in explaining the job performance efforts of tenured faculty members, while, in contrast, network embeddedness seems important in explaining the efforts of nontenured faculty members; and institutional embeddedness explained the efforts of both groups of faculty members.
Economic Mobility and the Rise of the Latin American Middle Class

After decades of stagnation, the size of the middle class in Latin America and the Caribbean recently expanded by 50 percent from 103 million people in 2003 to 152 million (or 30 percent of the continent's population) in 2009. Over the same period, as household incomes grew and inequality edged downward in most countries, the proportion of people in poverty fell markedly: from 44 percent to 30 percent. As a result, the middle class and the poor now account for roughly the same share of Latin America's population. This is in stark contrast to the situation prevailing (for a long period) until about 10 years ago, when the share of the poor hovered around 2.5 times that of the middle class. This study investigates the nature, determinants, and possible consequences of this remarkable process of social transformation. Such large changes in the size and composition of social classes must, by definition, imply substantial economic mobility of some form. A large number of people who were poor in the late 1990s are now no longer poor. Others who were not yet middle class have now joined its ranks. But social and economic mobility does not mean the same thing to different people or in different contexts. This report discusses the relevant concepts and documents the facts about mobility in Latin America and the Caribbean over the past two decades, both within and between generations. In addition, it investigates the rise of the Latin American middle class over the past 10-15 years and explores the size, nature, and composition of this pivotal new social group. More speculatively, it also asks how the rising middle class may reshape the region's social contract.
Environmental Views from the Coast: Public Concern about Local to Global Marine Issues

Surveys conducted in 2009–2012 asked residents of eight U.S. coastal regions about ocean-related environmental problems. Analysis of these multiregion data tests how individual characteristics predict views on locally focused marine issues, and whether after controlling for individual characteristics there remain systematic place-to-place variations. We find two kinds of place effects: some related to broad attributes such as resource employment, and others explained by local society–environment relations. Apart from these place effects, the individual-level predictors of coastal environmental concerns resemble those seen elsewhere for non-coastal environmental concerns, including effects from age, gender, and education. Political party, however, proves to be the most consistent predictor across issues from local to global in scale. Significant education effects offer support for an information deficit model of coastal concerns, but the pervasive partisanship and education × party interactions suggest that ideology-linked processes of biased assimilation and elite cues filter how information is acquired.
On the Interrelation of Capital and Labor Adjustment Costs at the Firm Level

Abstract In this paper, we study capital and labor adjustment costs by allowing interrelation among adjustments when estimating a dynamic model of factor demand for Greek manufacturing firms. A balanced panel dataset of 1299 firms on 9093 observations for the period 1998-2004 has pointed to strong evidence of (a) inaction, (b) lumpiness, and (c) interrelation of factor adjustment. On account of these empirical observations, we set up and estimate models with alternative factor adjustment costs, using the Method of Simulated Moments. We show that a model incorporating convex, non convex, and interrelation adjustment processes fits the data best. Moreover, the results indicate that (i) labor and capital adjustment should be analyzed together, (ii) capital and labor’s slow adjustment is generated and can be explained by costs associated with changing input demand, and (iii) the firm has an incentive to adjust input factors at the same time period, since adjustment costs decrease when the firm decides to adjust the two factors, namely capital and labor, simultaneously.
Distance to frontier, intellectual property rights, and economic growth

This article examines the effects of intellectual property rights (IPR) protection on growth and convergence. Firms in a country undertake both innovation and imitation to improve their productivity. IPR protection reduces the cost of innovation, but makes imitation more costly. Countries at early stages of growth adopt a strategy of high effort on imitation, and switch to the strategy of high effort on innovation at some point. A higher degree of IPR protection makes the switch to the strategy of high effort on innovation earlier. There are two possible growth traps. A middle-income trap arises when a country fails to switch to high effort on innovation due to a low degree of IPR protection. Whereas a poverty trap may exist at the early stage of development, when there is no enough effort on imitation due to a strict IPR protection.
Divalent metal transporter 1 is involved in amyloid precursor protein processing and Aβ generation

The amyloid‐β precursor protein (APP) and its pathogenic byproduct β‐amyloid peptide (Aβ) play central roles in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Reduction in levels of the potentially toxic Aβ is one of the most important therapeutic goals in AD. Recent studies have shown that bivalent metals such as iron, copper, and zinc are involved in APP expression, Aβ deposition, and senile plaque formation in the AD brain. However, the underlying mechanisms involved in abnormal homeostasis of bivalent metals in AD brain remain unclear. In the present study, we found that two isoforms of the divalent metal transporter 1 (DMT1), DMT1‐IRE, and DMTl‐nonIRE, were colocalized with Aβ in the plaques of postmortem AD brain. Using the APP/PS1 transgenic mouse model, we found that the levels of both DMT1‐IRE and DMT1‐nonlRE were significantly increased in the cortex and hippocampus compared with wild type‐control. We further verified the proposed mechanisms by which DMT1 might be involved in APP processing and Aβ secretion by using the SH‐SY5Y cell line stably overex‐pressing human APP Swedish mutation (APPsw) as a cell model. We found that overexpression of APPsw resulted in increased expression levels of both DMT1‐IRE and DMTl‐nonIRE in SH‐SY5Y cells. Interestingly, silencing of endogenous DMT1 by RNA interference, which reduced bivalent ion influx, led to reductions of APP expression and Aß secretion. These findings suggest both that DMT1 plays a critical role in ion‐mediated neuropathogenesis in AD and that pharmacological blockage of DMT1 may provide novel therapeutic strategies against AD. —Zheng, W. , Xin, N. , Chi, Z. ‐H. , Zhao, B. ‐L. , Zhang, J., Li, J.‐Y. , Wang, Z. ‐Y. Divalent metal transporter 1 (DMT1) is involved in amyloid precursor protein processing and Aß generation. FASEBJ. 23, 4207‐4217 (2009). www.fasebj. org
Life Cycle of Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticle Production

Life cycle impact of emissions, energy requirements, and exergetic losses are calculated for a novel process for producing titanium dioxide nanoparticles from an ilmenite feedstock. The Altairnano hydrochloride process analyzed is tailored for the production of nanoscale particles, unlike established commercial processes. The life cycle energy requirements for the production of these particles is compared with that of traditional building materials on a per unit mass basis. The environmental impact assessment and energy analysis results both emphasize the use of nonrenewable fossil fuels in the upstream life cycle. Exergy analysis shows fuel losses to be secondary to material losses, particularly in the mining of ilmenite ore. These analyses are based on the same inventory data. The main contributions of this work are to provide life cycle inventory of a nanomanufacturing process and reveal potential insights from exergy analysis that are not available from other methods.
Permafrost warming and vegetation changes in continental Antarctica

Continental Antarctica represents the last pristine environment on Earth and is one of the most suitable contexts to analyze the relations between climate, active layer and vegetation. In 2000 we started long-term monitoring of the climate, permafrost, active layer and vegetation in Victoria Land, continental Antarctica. Our data confirm the stability of mean annual and summer air temperature, of snow cover, and an increasing trend of summer incoming short wave radiation. The active layer thickness is increasing at a rate of 0.3 cm y−1. The active layer is characterized by large annual and spatial differences. The latter are due to scarce vegetation, a patchy and very thin organic layer and large spatial differences in snow accumulation. The active layer thickening, probably due to the increase of incoming short wave radiation, produced a general decrease of the ground water content due to the better drainage of the ground. The resultant drying may be responsible for the decline of mosses in xeric sites, while it provided better conditions for mosses in hydric sites, following the species-specific water requirements. An increase of lichen vegetation was observed where the climate drying occurred. This evidence emphasizes that the Antarctic continent is experiencing changes that are in total contrast to the changes reported from maritime Antarctica.
Signalling and the Pricing of New Issues

This paper develops a signaling model with two signals, two attributes, and a continuum of signal levels and attribute-types to explain new issue underpricing. Both the fraction of the new issue retained by the issuer and its offering price convey to investors the unobservable "intrinsic" value of the firm and the variance of its cash flows. Many of the model's comparative statics results are novel, empirically testable, and consistent with the existing empirical evidence on new issues. In particular, the degree of underpricing, which can be inferred from observable variables, is positively related to the firm's postissue share price. Copyright 1989 by American Finance Association.
The impact of cigarette and alcohol consumption on weight and obesity. An analysis of 1911 monozygotic male twin pairs.

BACKGROUND The objective of this investigation was to examine the relationships among cigarette and alcohol consumption and weight and obesity. Although previous research demonstrated that smoking is associated with reduced weight, data on the relationship between alcohol consumption and weight are conflicting. In addition, the influence of smoking cessation on the risk of obesity at a level that adversely affects health has not been fully examined. METHODS By means of a cotwin-control research design, cigarette and alcohol consumption and weight measurements derived from 1911 male, monozygotic twins were compared with those of their identical siblings. This approach eliminates confounding from a large number of measurable and unmeasurable environmental experiences and the well-documented influence of inherited factors on weight and cigarette and alcohol consumption. RESULTS After adjustment for a variety of socioeconomic factors, light (one to 19 cigarettes daily), moderate (20 to 29 cigarettes daily), and heavy (> 29 cigarettes daily) smokers were an average of 3.2, 2.4, and 4.0 kg lighter, respectively, than nonsmokers. Past smokers demonstrated a 33% higher prevalence of clinically significant obesity (body mass index > 27.8 kg/m2) by comparison with their currently smoking siblings (26.5% vs 19.9%, respectively; difference, P < .001) and a 1.8 times increased risk (95% confidence interval, 1.1 to 2.9) of clinically significant obesity by comparison with heavy smokers. By contrast, alcohol consumption had no significant influence on weight or obesity. CONCLUSIONS Smoking cessation efforts provided by health practitioners to men should consider routinely offering a weight management component to reduce weight gain and further improve the well-documented health benefits of not smoking. It may not be necessary for alcohol treatment programs to adopt a similar policy.
Systemic Losses in Banking Networks: Indirect Interaction of Nodes Via Asset Prices

A simple banking network model is proposed which features multiple waves of bank defaults and is analytically solvable in the limiting case of an infinitely large homogeneous network. The model is a collection of nodes representing individual banks; associated with each node is a balance sheet consisting of assets and liabilities. Initial node failures are triggered by external correlated shocks applied to the asset sides of the balance sheets. These defaults lead to further reductions in asset values of all nodes which in turn produce additional failures, and so on. This mechanism induces indirect interactions between the nodes and leads to a cascade of defaults. There are no interbank links, and therefore no direct interactions, between the nodes. The resulting probability distribution for the total (direct plus systemic) network loss can be viewed as a modification of the well-known Vasicek distribution.
[Hypocomplementemic urticarial vasculitis syndrome].

CET HOMME DE 17 ANS avait depuis plusieurs mois de multiples episodes d'urticaire durant 2 a 3 jours (fig. 1 et 2) et de purpura vasculaire (purpura infiltre, fig. 3 a 5) touchant les membres inferieurs et superieurs associes a des arthralgies diffuses. La proteinurie et le sediment urinaire etaient normaux. Les anticorps antinucleaires, les anti-ADN natifs, les ANCA et la cryoglobulinemie etaient negatifs. Le CH50 etait a 55 % (70-130 %), le C4: 78 mg/L (93-380), le C3: 856 mg/L (660-1250). Le C1q etait normal et les anticorps anti-C1q etaient negatifs. La biopsie cutanee montrait une vascularite leucocytoclasique avec des depots de complement au sein des parois des capillaires superficiels. Le diagnostic de vascularite urticarienne hypocomplementemique de Mac Duffie etait porte. Un traitement par colchicine entrainait une nette diminution des lesions.
Business Location Decisions in the Medical Device Industry

Medical device firms, like firms in the high-technology sector, often include business functions characteristic of both the industrial economy and the knowledge economy. Thus, it is not immediately clear which kinds of locational attributes (i.e., traditional cost-based factors or those concerned with attracting and retaining knowledge workers) are most influential in the site selection process. This study draws on survey data from 48 medical device firms in Massachusetts, a state with one of the largest clusters in the industry, to examine the relative importance of various factors and conditions in the location decision. A second objective is to consider the extent to which the rating of a given location factor varies depending on whether the firm maintains manufacturing facilities in the state. The implications of the findings for both location theory and economic development efforts are discussed.
MOTIVATIONS FOR PARTICIPATING IN COMMUNITY- SUPPORTED AGRICULTURE AND THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH COMMUNITY ATTACHMENT AND SOCIAL CAPITAL *

The social fabric of rural communities is continuing to change as we move toward a more globalized society and food economy, and the vitality of rural agricultural communities in particular may be declining (Berry 1999). In re sponse to these changes, efforts a re underway in many parts of the U nited States to counteract this global, industrial food system and by implication, increase the vitality and sustainability of rural communities. One effort that is gaining momentum is the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) movement, which involves local farmers and community members working together as partners to create a sustainable local food system. It has been argued that one measure of a community's vitality and sustainability is the long- term health of its food system, and CSAs provide a locally-based approach to community revitalization that also incorporates the benefit of such a healthy food system (Feenstra 1997). Using quantitative data from the memberships of CSA operations in both Central Illinois and New Hampshire, this research identifies the perceived benefits of C SA involvement, the m otivations C SA members i dentify a s impor tant t o th eir involvement, and the effects of CSA activity on community social capital. Analyses reveal that CSA member motivations are similar to those found in past empirical work, with concerns over quality of food being the strongest mo tivators. The im portance o f com munity building and development of social capital a re not considered significant motivators for joining a CSA, nor are they perceived to be particularly important benefits of membership. However, the importance of community attachment in enhancing certain motivating factors like a desire to develop a stronger sense of community and a desire to support local growers is significant.
Disentangling the Effects of Corporate Disclosure on the Cost of Equity Capital

In this article, we investigate whether intellectual capital (IC) and financial disclosures jointly affect the firm’s cost of equity capital. In contrast to prior research, we disaggregate disclosures into IC and financial disclosures and examine whether the two disclosure types are jointly related to the cost of equity capital. We also investigate whether IC and financial disclosures have an interaction effect on the cost of equity capital. Using data for a sample of 125 U.K. firms, we find a negative relationship between the cost of equity capital and IC disclosure. We find that the relationship between financial disclosure and the cost of equity capital is magnified when combined with IC disclosure. In addition, we find that IC and financial disclosures interact in shaping their effects on the cost of equity capital. Further analyses suggest that the effect of financial disclosure on the cost of equity capital is augmented for firms characterized by a medium level of IC disclosure. These results provide important insights into the relationship between disclosures and cost of equity capital and have policy and practical implications.
From Historical to “Dialectical” Populism: The Case of Post-Communist Romania

Abstract This article begins with a brief discussion of the differences between “historical populism” and “neo-populism” in the post-communist context. The second part concentrates on “neo-populism from below,” exemplifying the category of neopopulist politicians aspiring to power, with the case in point being George Becali and his New Generation Party (PNG). The third part turns to “neo-populism from above,” that is to say, to populist policies employed by incumbent politicians for the purpose of preserving power and enlarging support. The example chosen here is that of President Traian Băsescu and the role played by intellectual elites in making possible “neopopulism from above. ” The fourth examines successes and failures of the two categories of neo-populists in two electoral contests, namely the 2007 elections for the European Parliament and the 2008 local elections. It is pointed out that the latter electoral contest produced a prospective “populist dialectics,” namely, a symbiotic mergence of the two Romanian post-communist populisms. Finally, the fifth and last part turns to theoretical considerations of a general and comparative nature.
Angiotensin-converting enzyme gene insertion/deletion polymorphism with metabolic syndrome in Turkish patients

Background: The ACE gene has received substantial attention in recent years as candidate for a variety of diseases. The most common polymorphism in ACE gene is the Insertion/Deletion (I/D, rs4646994) polymorphism located on intron 16. Aim: We investigated the association between metabolic syndrome (MS) and the insertion (I) — deletion (D) polymorphisms in the angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) gene in south-east of Turkey. Subjects and methods: One hundred and sixty subjects, with 101 cases of MS and 59 age- and gender-matched healthy controls were included in the study. Results: The frequency of ACE I/D polymorphism was found to be 49.5% for DD, 36.6% for ID, and 13.9% for II in the MSstudy group and 44.1% for DD, 42.4% for ID and 13.5% for II in the control group. Allele frequencies were found to be 0.68% for D and 0.32% for I allele in the study group with MS and 0.65% for D, 0.35% for I allele in the control group. The I/D polymorphism of the ACE gene, DD, ID, and II genotypes occurred with similar frequencies in the study group with MS and the control group with no significant differences (p>0.05). On applying one-way analysis of variance to different ACE gene polymorphic groups in patients with MS were not significantly associated to ACE gene polymorphism and waist circumference, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, fasting blood glucose, HDL, and LDL (p>0.05). Conclusions: Further studies of patients in larger numbers and of different ethnic backgrounds may be necessary to elucidate the association between the ACE I/D gene polymorphism and MS.
Loss of dual‐specificity phosphatase‐2 promotes angiogenesis and metastasis via up‐regulation of interleukin‐8 in colon cancer

Dual‐specificity phosphatase 2 (DUSP2) is a negative regulator of mitogen‐activated protein kinases. Our previous study showed that DUSP2 expression is down‐regulated in many human cancers and loss of DUSP2 promotes cancer progression; however, the underlying mechanism remains largely uncharacterized. Herein, we found that loss of DUSP2 induces angiogenesis, while forced expression of DUSP2 inhibits microvessel formation in xenografted mouse tumours. Genome‐wide screening of expression profiles, and meta‐analysis of clinical data, identified that the level of interleukin‐8 (IL‐8) correlated negatively with that of DUSP2, suggesting that it may be a downstream target of DUSP2. Molecular characterization revealed that DUSP2 inversely regulates IL‐8 expression, mediated by ERK1/2 and C/EBPα‐dependent transcriptional regulation. Further study showed that hypoxia‐induced IL‐8 expression in cancer cells is also mediated via down‐regulation of DUSP2. Treatment with the IL‐8 receptor inhibitor reparixin or knockdown of IL‐8 in cancer cells abolished angiogenesis induced by loss of DUSP2. Functionally, knockdown of DUSP2 enhanced tumour growth and metastasis, which were abolished by treatment with reparixin or knockdown of IL‐8 in an orthotopic mouse model. Taken together, our results demonstrate that hypoxia inhibits DUSP2 expression in colon cancer, leading to up‐regulation of IL‐8, which facilitates angiogenesis and tumour metastasis. Our findings suggest that blocking hypoxia–DUSP2–IL‐8 signalling may be a plausible approach for therapeutic intervention in cancer. Copyright © 2016 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.