Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Big Constraints to Small Firms’ Growth? Business Environment and Employment Growth across Firms

Using data on more than 56,000 enterprises in 90 countries, this study finds that objective conditions in the business environment vary substantially across firms of different sizes and that there are important nonlinearities in their impact on employment growth. The study focuses on four areas: access to finance, business regulations, corruption, and infrastructure. The results, particularly on the impacts of finance and corruption on growth, depend on whether and how the analysis accounts for the possible endogeneity of the business environment. Controlling for endogeneity revises the finding that small firms benefit most from access to finance, particularly for sources of finance associated with investment and growth. The findings are also sensitive to how “small” is defined. Differentiating micro (fewer than 10 employees) from other small firms shows that, while small firms can be disadvantaged in such an environment, micro firms tend to be proportionally less affected by a weak business climate—and, on occasion, it can help them to grow. Overall, allowing different size classifications provides insights into the impact of the business environment that are lost in more aggregate analyses.
The Relationship of Income And Money Attitudes To Subjective Assessment of Financial Situation

This paper examines a model of economic status satisfaction (money satisfaction) that controls attitudes toward money, income level and gender. Money attitudes were measured with SPP scale (Gąsiorowska, 2003), fully developed in Polish environment, and better adjusted to Polish conditions than other money attitudes scales. In the first study, path analysis showed that gender is the strong moderator of money attitudes - money satisfaction relationship. Money attitudes presented by females do not influence significantly their economic status satisfaction, while in case of males, financial anxiety and power connected with money explained 13% of variance of dependent variable. In the second study, in addition to the previous, income data were also collected. In the group of females, income was found to be a better predictor of financial situation assessment than money attitudes, and the anxiety dimension of money attitudes was slightly mediating income - financial situation relationship. In the group of males, the effect of money attitudes in predicting financial assessment is primarily additive to the effect of income.
Imagerie cérébrale multimodale pour l'étude des aphasies primaires progressives. (Multimodal brain imaging for the study of progressive primary aphasia)

L'aphasie primaire progressive (APP) est un groupe de maladies neurodegeneratives affectant les fonctions du langage et presentant une importante heterogeneite sur le plan clinique, anatomique et biologique/genetique. Dans une premiere partie, nous utilisons l’IRM anatomique, l’IRM de diffusion et l’imagerie TEP-FDG pour fournir une caracterisation complete des differentes formes d’APP dans une grande cohorte de patients au stade debutant de la maladie. Cette etude permet de caracteriser les motifs d’alterations structurelles, microstructurelles et metaboliques dans chaque variante d’APP et de confronter ces alterations entre les differentes modalites d’imagerie. Dans une seconde partie, nous avons utilise le modele lesionnel des APP pour etudier les reseaux des processus semantiques. L’utilisation de la tractographie et l’analyse de correlations entre deficits semantiques et integrite des faisceaux de la substance blanche en IRM de diffusion ont permis l’identification de connexions impliquees dans les processus verbaux et non verbaux. Ces etudes ont necessite le developpement d’outils specifiques d’analyse d’images. En particulier, le developpement d’outils pour l’analyse d’IRM anatomique et de diffusion ont ete integres au sein de la plate-forme logicielle Clinica afin de rendre ces outils facilement utilisables par d’autres chercheurs ou cliniciens.
Effects of Upstream Wake Transonic Phasing on the Performance of Compressors

The effect of the upstream wake phase on the work input (i.e., rise in stagnation enthalpy across the blade row) of a transonic rotor is examined computationally and analytically. It is found that the compressor work depends on the path followed by the wake vortices as they travel through the rotor passage. There can be an important impact on time-mean performance when the time-dependent circulation of the shed vortices in the wake is phase-locked to the rotor position. For the configurations tested, the calculated change in time-mean work input was approximately three percent. The effect on work input is explained in terms of the influence of the time-mean relative stagnation pressure nonuniformity associated with the unsteady (but phase-locked) wake vortex flow field. Changes in vortex path mean that the position of this nonuniformity is altered relative to the rotor. There is lower pressure rise, and thus lower work, when the rotor blade is embedded in the region of low time-mean relative stagnation pressure than when it is immersed in a region of high relative stagnation pressure. In addition to this essentially two-dimensional effect, it is demonstrated that the locations of the wake vortex paths can have substantial effect on the tip clearance flow, implying potential impact on pressure rise capability and rotor stability limits. Model calculations are given to show the magnitude and nature of this phenomenon. Thesis Supervisor: Choon S. Tan Title: Senior Research Engineer, Gas Turbine Laboratory Thesis Supervisor: John J. Adamczyk Title: Senior Technical Specialist, NASA (ret.) Thesis Supervisor: Edward M. Greitzer Title: H. N. Slater Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics Thesis Supervisor: Mark Drela Title: Terry J. Kohler Professor of Fluid Dynamics
Using Perspective-Taking to De-escalate Launch Date Commitment for Products with Known Software Defects

Abstract Previous research in software product development used the lens of escalation of commitment to study the problem of adhering to original product launch dates and suggested that decisions related to launching new products can be particularly prone to escalation of commitment because they involve a high level of uncertainty and large financial stakes. In this study, we propose perspective-taking as a de-escalation tactic to reduce product managers’ commitment to the original product launch date when faced with severe software defects. In two laboratory experiments, we found that when participants took the perspective of product users who might be negatively affected by the launch of a defective software product, their commitment de-escalated more than when they took a shareholder’s perspective. We also found that anticipated guilt about launching the product as scheduled mediated the relationship between perspective-taking and de-escalation. In addition, one of the experiments involved severe consequences associated with the software defects; in that case, we found that the mediation effect of anticipated guilt was moderated by the product managers’ customer orientation. This study makes a theoretical contribution to the literature of de-escalation of commitment by proposing perspective-taking as a new de-escalation tactic, and by demonstrating the affect-based mechanism of perspective-taking that operates through anticipated guilt. While practitioners may use perspective-taking as an effective tactic in reducing commitment to launching a defective software product, our findings highlight the importance of selecting the appropriate target perspective.
Assessment of hepatoprotective effect of extracts of Alstonia boonei leaf in isoniazid and rifampicin co-treated rats

Anti-tuberculosis drugs, rifampicin and isoniazid, in their mode of action can generate toxic reactive metabolites upon oxidative bio-activation of the parent compound by the cytochrome P 450 monooxygenase system leading to liver injury. Currently, there is increased awareness of the benefits in the use of medicinal plants in the management of various oxidative stress-related diseases. This study therefore evaluated the hepatoprotective effect of aqueous and ethanol extracts of Alstonia boonei leaf in rats co-treated with isoniazid (INH) and rifampicin (RIF). Sets of albino Wistar rats were placed into eight groups. The animals in each group (except the normal control) were orally co-treated with isoniazid (200mg/Kg) and rifampicin (200mg/Kg). The results revealed that the INH+RIF co-treated rats significantly (p<0.05) increased the activities of liver function enzymes (ALT, AST and ALP) when compared with the normal control. There were significantly high levels (p<0.05) of malondialdehyde (MDA) and low levels of reduced glutathione (GSH) in the INH + RIF co-treated groups in contrast to the control. However, administration of extracts of A. boonei (250mg/kg and 500mg/kg doses) protected the animals against various degrees of oxidative damage, particularly in the aqueous extract treated rats. A similar trend was observed in the silymarin and vitamin E treated rats which showed normal levels of these parameters. The overall results from this study suggest that the aqueous extract of A. boonei leaf showed better hepatoprotective ability in contrast to the ethanol extract.
Impact of Formal Controls on Client Satisfaction and Profitability in Strategic Outsourcing Contracts

Abstract The reach and impact of outsourcing has grown rapidly to include a variety of strategic objectives. Significant issues of cooperation and coordination in strategic outsourcing necessitate investments in formal controls that specify and monitor execution of the outsourced task to mitigate unforeseen contingencies and improve predictability in the attainment of desirable goals. In this study, we investigate the nature of formal controls in strategic outsourcing contracts and their impact on client satisfaction and financial performance. Specifically, using rich field data on 390 strategic outsourcing contracts, we examine the differential impact of output controls, activity controls, and capability controls on client satisfaction and vendor profitability. We find that activity and capability controls are positively associated with client satisfaction and profitability; in contrast, output controls differentially impact satisfaction and profitability, reflecting potential tradeoffs between the two outcomes. Our results, in addition to contributing to the research in control theory, provide actionable insights for technology vendors into the appropriate strategy and tactics required to compete efficiently and effectively in strategic services markets.
Modeling value at risk of financial holding company: time varying vs. traditional models

This paper models the Value at Risk of financial holding company. Two portfolios are formed, and the daily profit and loss are computed for each portfolio. We find that only the Historical Simulation and GARCH (1,1)-AR (1) models produce the number of the failures within the non-rejection region of BASLE, while all other models are failed for both portfolios at both confidence levels. At a 99% confidence level, both models perform equally well in both portfolios, with only one failure in an out sample test. The Historical Simulation model slightly outperforms the GARCH (1, 1)-AR (1) model at a 95% confidence level.
Relative growth and sexual dimorphism of Austinixa aidae (Brachyura: Pinnotheridae): a symbiont of the ghost shrimp Callichirus major from the southwestern Atlantic

Species of the family Pinnotheridae constitute an ideal group for morphometric studies due to their complex morphological adaptations. These adaptations respond to the selective pressure of a symbiotic life style. This study describes the relative growth and morphometric features of the symbiotic pea crab Austinixa aidae (associated with the ghost shrimp Callichirus major), from the sandy beaches in the southwest Atlantic, Brazil. Significant differences were detected in the biometric proportions, particularly the chelar propodus length and carapace width, of each sex. These dimensions were also related to the size at which the individuals reached morphological sexual maturity (5.1 mm of carapace width for both sexes). Males and females were 2.4 times wider than long, which corresponds to the principal adaptation developed by Austinixa species to live in cryptic environments. Moreover, juveniles were proportionally more rounded. The changes in the biometric proportions of carapace length and width of A. aidae were more pronounced in males and females, adaptations that facilitate roaming within the galleries of their hosts.
Content of Chemical Elements in Wood-Destroying Fungi

Abstract The aim of this study was to examine the content of chemical elements in the dried fruiting bodies of edible wood decaying fungi such as Honey mushrooms (Armillaria mellea), Shiitakes (Lentinus edodes) and Oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus). Powdered samples of fungi were mineralized in a microwave digestion. Twenty-one (21) chemical elements were detected in the plasma of the device ICP-MS AGILENT 7500c by accredited methods with the aid of calibration curves. The content of individual elements varied within a considerable range. The highest contents of K, Mn, Cu and Cd were found in the fruiting bodies of Honey mushrooms (Armillaria mellea). Shiitakes (Lentinus edodes) had the highest content of B and Mo. Significant differences were found in the content of elements in the Oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus) from Slovakia, Hungary and China. The highest content of Al was found in the Oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus) from Hungary. The Chinese oysters had a maximum contents of Ca, Mg, Co, Pb, As and U. The Oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus) from Lemešany (Slovakia) had the highest contents of Na, Zn, Fe, Se, Ag, Hg and Cr. The difference of chemical element content could be influenced by the genotype of the fungus and by the composition of substrate on which mushroom grow up.
STRATEGY IMPLEMENTATION STYLES OF MALAYSIAN, THAI AND HUNGARIAN MIDDLE MANAGERS

There is a need for more comparative empirical research that examines middle manager roles in strategic change. This paper reports a study of middle managers in two dynamic settings: the Asia/Pacific region – Malaysia and Thailand; and Central/Eastern Europe – Hungary. Results of 213 respondents across three countries indicate that middle managers from all three tend toward use of authoritarian management styles even in proactive strategic change situations. However, Hungarians are less likely to use these styles than Thai and Malaysian middle managers. For all three countries, managers with less work experience were found to have lower tendencies to use an authoritarian style of implementation. When top managers exhibit an aggressive strategic posture, middlemanagers from all three countries are also less likely to use an authoritarian style. Firms that want to stay competitive in the global market place must continuously evolve by successfully accomplishing strategic change (Struckman & Yammarino 2003). Although senior managers are critical in leading the strategic change process, even the best-planned strategic changes will not achieve their full potential unless they are well implemented. Part of the strategic leadership responsibility, therefore, includes establishing a climate in which the organization's rank and file will experience both a positive attitude about change and the confidence to actively seek change opportunities (Kanter 2003). Research attention is bringing more insight into the important roles of middle-managers in this process of implementing strategic change (Balogun & Jenkins 2003; Floyd & Wooldridge, 1992, 1994; Wooldridge & Floyd 1990). Although there is little doubt that active support by middle managers is critical for the strategies to be well implemented (Guth & MacMillan 1986), there remain many important questions with regard to how middle managers participate in this process (Balogun 2003). The need for research on middle manager roles in strategic change is even more apparent in the international management area. Past cross-cultural studies have addressed how managers from different countries compare on managerial styles (Michailova 2000), value systems (Elsayed-Elkhouly & Buda 1997), managerial behavior and learning (Child & Markoczy 1993), and conflict tendencies (Swierczek & Onishi 2003). Yet very few comparative studies have specifically investigated middle manager style differences and
MEMORANDUM No 05 / 2013

Using aggregate quarterly data for the period 1975q1–2010q4, I find that the US housing market changed from a stable regime with prices determined by fundamentals, to a highly unstable regime at the beginning of the previous decade. My results indicate that these imbalances could have been detected with the aid of real time econometric modeling. These results are based on the detection of huge parameter non-constancies and a loss of equilibrium correction in two theory derived cointegrating relationships shown to be stable for earlier periods. With reference to Stiglitz’s general conception of a bubble, I use the econometric results to construct two bubble indicators, which clearly demonstrate the transition to an unstable regime in the early 2000s. Such indicators can be part of an early warning system and are shown to Granger cause a set of coincident indicators and financial (in)stability measures. Finally, it is shown that the increased subprime exposure during the 2000s can explain the econometric breakdown, i.e. the housing bubble may be attributed to the increased borrowing to a more risky segment of the market, which may have allowed for a latent frenzy behavior that previously was constrained by the lack of financing.
Monitoring different types of resistance training using session rating of perceived exertion

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of using the session rating of perceived exertion (RPE) scale to measure physical effort during different types of resistance training exercises and to examine the validity of this scale in rating the entire resistance training sessions of different workouts and intensities. Fifteen male subjects (26.7 ± 4.3 years) performed three different types of resistance training protocols. All protocols consisted of the same five exercises (bench press, back squat, bench pull, shoulder press, and leg extension) but the intensities, rest periods, and numbers of repetitions were different. The strength protocol consisted of 3 sets of 5 repetitions per exercise at a load of 90% of 1-RM of the subject with a 3-minute rest period between sets. The hypertrophy session was performed with 3 sets of 1 0 repetitions per exercise at 70% of 1-RM with 1-minute of rest between sets. The power session required subjects to perform at a fast lifting speed for 5 repetitions for 3 sets per exercise at 50% of 1-RM with a 3-minute rest period. The order of the sessions was also randomised. RPE was measured using the CR-1 0 Borg scale following the completion of each set. Session RPE was collected 30 minutes postexercise. Within-subjects repeated measures ANOV A showed a significant difference among the mean RPE and the session RPE values of both the strength and hypertrophy protocol (p:S0.05) but mean and session RPE values for the power protocol showed no significant difference. During the familiarisation session, the session RPE was measured at 5-minute time intervals for thirty minutes after the completion of the entire workout. The data of the test collected during the familiarisation session was compared between the different time intervals. It was found that there was a significant difference (p:S0.05) between the mean RPE values at the fifth minute mark and tenth minute mark when compared to the thirty minute mark. All other session RPE values showed no significant difference. It was concluded that the session RPE method appears to be an effective and valid method in monitoring different types of resistance training and a useful tool of measuring the different intensities of different resistance training session. It was also demonstrated that the session RPE taken after 30 minutes was a better indicated of the overall resistance training workout sessions and its intensities.
Effect of Coffee Daily Consumption Uric Acid Level and Body Weight toPrevent Metabolic Syndrome

Obesity was one of diagnosis criteria of metabolic syndrome. There was increasing mortality case of obesity in recent decade. High uric acid level was the early marker of metabolic syndrome. Coffee was one of favorite drink of obese and non obese people in the world. Thus we investigated the effects of coffee drinking for preventing metabolic syndrome. This study was conducted by true experimental with randomized controlled group pretest-posttest design. Twenty four male wistar rats (10 weeks) were fed a standar density diet with and without 0.72 ml coffee solution dailyduring 14 days. Treatment and control group were greatest difference in the last day (day-14) or after study (t=- 2.24; p 0.05). Drinking 0.72 ml (equal with 2 cup of coffee in human) coffee daily during 14 days decreased uric acid level in obese rats model although not significant. Coffee has activity as antiobesity and has preventieve action against metabolic syndrome disease.
Island growth of Y_2BaCuO_5 nanoparticles in (211_∼1.5 nm/123_∼10 nm)×N composite multilayer structures to enhance flux pinning of YBa_2Cu_3O_7−δ films

A controlled introduction of second-phase Y_2BaCuO_5 (211) nanoparticles into YBa_2Cu_3O_7−δ (123) thin films was achieved for the first time for the purpose of increasing flux pinning. The island-growth mode of 211 on 123 was utilized to obtain an area particle density >10^11 cm^-2 of 211 thick-disk-shaped nanoparticles in individual layers. Composite layered structures of (211_ y nanoparticles/123_ z )× N were deposited by pulsed laser deposition on LaAlO_3 substrates, with N bilayers = 24 to 100, y thickness = 1 to 2 nm, and z thickness = 6 to 15 nm (assuming continuous layer coverage). With 211 addition, the critical current densities at 77 K were higher at magnetic fields as low as 0.1 T and increased as much as approximately 300% at 1.5 T. The superconducting transition temperature was reduced by approximately 2 to 4 K for 211 volume fraction <20%. Reinitiation of 123 growth after every 211 layer resulted in a smooth and flat surface finish on the films and also greatly reduced surface particulate formation especially in thicker films (∼ μm).
The Effects of No Child Left Behind on Student Performance in Alabama’s Rural Schools

County level data for the period 1999-2007 are used to assess the effects of NCLB on student performance in Alabama’s rural schools. Results suggest revisions to the state’s accountability system associated with the Act had a positive effect on 8th grade test scores for language, and for test score gains in language between the 4th and 8th grades. However, the measured effects on test scores for reading and math are mostly zero or negative. This suggests NCLB failed in its major objective, which was to enhance students’ proficiency in math and reading.