Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A case study of the tensions between policy-making and implementation of higher education reform policies that affect the professoriate at two Argentinean universities

The Argentinean higher education system suffered an overarching reform since the mid 1990's. The literature for the study of higher education reform policies in Argentina focuses mainly on broad reform policies and on issues of university autonomy. This dissertation reveals the impact of global trends on higher education reform policies in Argentina and it explores the goals of the Argentinean national state in the design of the higher education reform policies, plus the tensions and misalignments between policy goals and implementation at two universities, and the outcomes of the policies on professors' work and academic professionalism. The purpose of this study is to analyze the tensions and impacts initiated by the Argentinean higher education reform policies of 1995 (and subsequent policies) on the ways in which professors and academic staff perceive the roles of the professoriate at two Argentinean universities.This research is designed as a policy case study complemented with the method of focused synthesis. This study is sustained by different type data such as archival data, and interviews. Policy actors, such as policy makers, as well as academic staff, and professors working at two Argentinean universities were interviewed using open-ended interviews. A coding schema rooted in the theoretical framework was the research tool utilized to construct the research findings.The research findings reveal that the Argentinean state intended the modernization of the higher education system in the context of state reform. The improvement of quality of both the system and the professoriate was also among the goals of the reform movement. Different system stakeholders influence both the design and implementation of the policies. Their perceptions about academic professionalism have a weak impact in the process of policy implementation. Nevertheless, professors' work has been deeply affected by the implementation of these policies. This study will contribute to the scholarship of higher education reform policies from a global scope. The focus of the policy outcomes on the professoriate opens an unusual topic that will ultimately be the source of further comparative analysis of the effects of these policies on professors' lives and work.
Impact of surgical experience on recurrence and progression after transurethral resection of bladder tumour in non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer

Abstract Objective. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of experience in transurethral resection of bladder tumour (TURBT) on recurrence and progression in primary Ta/T1 urinary bladder cancer. Material and methods. Clinical and pathological characteristics of patients with primary Ta/T1 urinary bladder cancer were recorded prospectively from 1992 to 2007 inclusive. Data on surgeons' experience were categorized as follows: experience by training status (residents or specialists); number of TURBTs performed by each surgeon during the registration period, with cut-off levels at more than 100, more than 150, more than 200, greater than the median and above the third quartile of surgical volume; and lifetime high-volume surgeons (>100 TURBTs). Hazard ratios (HRs) were estimated using Cox regression with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) in multivariate analyses. Results. The analysis included 768 evaluable patients with a median follow-up of 60 months. Recurrence was observed in 478 patients (62%) and progression in 71 (9%). Surgery was performed by residents in 100 cases and specialists in 668, with recurrence in 75 (75%) and 403 (60%) patients, and progression in nine (9%) and 62 (9%), respectively. Surgery performed by specialists was significantly associated with a lower recurrence rate (HR = 0.68, 95% CI 0.53–0.87) but not progression (HR = 0.76, 95% CI 0.37–1.56). Surgical volume had no significant impact on recurrence or progression in any of the analyses at the chosen cut-offs. Conclusions. Surgical experience (specialist/resident) was predictive for recurrence after TURBT for Ta/T1 bladder cancer. Training programmes, checklists and specialist-assisted surgery may shorten the learning curve and improve results.
Structure of Travel Planning Processes and Information Use Patterns

Based on an empirical data set collected from Chinese tourists visiting Macau SAR, this study attempts to decompose the travel decision-making process into a multistage sequence (before purchase, at time of purchase, after purchase, after arriving at destination) with multiple decision choices for a vacation trip. The study results demonstrate that travel decision making follows a multidimensional, ongoing sequence and is a hierarchical process. This study further attempts to expand the framework for describing the travel decision-making structure by incorporating information use patterns across the overall course of the travel planning process. The contingent nature of decision making is partially validated by tracing the sequence of decision making and information use along the travel planning horizon. Furthermore, given the lack of studies based on Chinese tourists’ decision-making behavior, the study results provide new insights for many tourism destinations and businesses eyeing the burgeoning Chinese tourists’ market.
Expected Skewness and Momentum

Motivated by the time-series insights of Daniel and Moskowitz (2016), we investigate the link between expected skewness and momentum in the cross-section. The alpha of skewness-enhanced (-weakened) momentum is about twice (half) as large as the traditional alpha. These findings are driven by the short leg. Portfolio sorts, Fama-MacBeth regressions, and the market reaction to earnings announcements suggest that expected skewness is an important determinant of momentum. Due to the simplicity of the approach, its economic magnitude, its existence among large stocks, and the success of risk management, the results are difficult to reconcile with the efficient market hypothesis.
Lottery Sales and Per-capita GDP: An Inverted U Relationship

The main purpose of this study is to test the hypothesis that the relationship between per-capita sales and per-capita GDP is given by an inverted U. The paper considers that lottery sales increase together with increases in GDP up to a point where a country has reached a level at which the GDP is high enough and lottery sales become an inferior good and as a result, start to decrease. As there are other determinants of the expenditure on lottery products, the paper introduces into the regression analysis other explanatory factors as control variables. The paper uses a cross-country regression, using 2004 data for 80 countries. The results confirm the hypothesis, in addition to yielding other interesting findings: countries with higher levels of education sell fewer lottery products; lottery sales increase together with increases in the male to female ratio.
Asset Markets and Monetary Policy Shocks at the Zero Lower Bound

This paper quantifies the impact of monetary policy shocks on asset markets in the United States and gauges the usefulness of a shadow short rate as a measure of conventional and unconventional monetary policy shocks. Monetary policy surprises are found to have had a larger impact on asset markets since short term interest rates reached the zero lower bound. Our results indicate that much of the increased reaction is due to changes in the transmission of shocks and only partly due to larger monetary policy surprises.
An Analysis of Alternative Maize Marketing Policies in South Africa

The maize-oriented agricultural economies throughout Southern Africa are in fundamental transition. Increased recognition of the costs of historical controls on pricing and marketing already has led to partial maize market liberalization in several countries in the region. However, there is still intense debate over the appropriate scope and implementation of future food market reform. Much of the debate derives from uncertainty over the consequences of comprehensive and politically risky changes to domestic markets, especially at a time when regional market conditions are also in flux due to agricultural restructuring in neighboring countries. There is currently little information on the direction and magnitude of grain trade between South Africa, Zimbabwe, and other countries in the region under a deregulated external trading environment. There is also a lack of information on the regional consequences of alternative domestic maize policy scenarios currently under deliberation in South Africa. The purpose of this research is fourfold. First, we consider the role of food market reform in affecting future economic growth and food security in South Africa, and discuss the congruence between the government's food policy objectives and the existing marketing and pricing system. Second, trends in maize production, trade, prices and marketing costs in South Africa and Zimbabwe, the two largest maize traders in the region, are presented. Third, we present four alternative maize policy scenarios in South Africa, and then estimate their effects on maize production, gross revenues, consumer prices, and trade flows under various weather and pricing scenarios in Zimbabwe. A comparison of results across four policy scenarios clarifies the gainers, losers, and extent of income transfers between various regions and socio-economic groups within each region. The final section identifies means by which national food policy objectives in South Africa may be more cost-effectively ach(This abstract was borrowed from another version of this item.)
BUREAUCRATS AS PURCHASERS OF HEALTH SERVICES: LIMITATIONS OF THE PUBLIC SECTOR FOR CONTRACTING

SUMMARY Contracting out of health services increasingly involves a new role for governments as purchasers of services. To date, emphasis has been on contractual outcomes and the contracting process, which may benefit from improvements in developing countries, has been understudied. This article uses evidence from wide scale NGO contracting in Pakistan and examines the performance of government purchasers in managing the contracting process; draws comparisons with NGO managed contracting; and identifies purchaser skills needed for contracting NGOs. We found that the contracting process is complex and government purchasers struggled to manage the contracting process despite the provision of well-designed contracts and guidelines. Weaknesses were seen in three areas: (i) poor capacity for managing tendering; (ii) weak public sector governance resulting in slow processes, low interest and rent seeking pressures; and (iii) mistrust between government and the NGO sector. In comparison parallel contracting ventures managed by large NGOs generally resulted in faster implementation, closer contractual relationships, drew wider participation of NGOs and often provided technical support. Our findings do not dilute the importance of government in contracting but front the case for an independent purchasing agency, for example an experienced NGO, to manage public sector contracts for community based services with the government role instead being one of larger oversight. Copyright # 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Do Chinese Unions Have 'Real' Effects on Employee Compensation?

In this article, we use enterprise population‐level data to investigate the effectiveness of Chinese unions in improving employee wage and nonwage compensation. We show that the effectiveness of Chinese unions stems from a “collective voice” face rather than from a “monopoly” face. The empirical findings on the effectiveness of unions are remarkable: unions in the workplace significantly improve employee wage and nonwage compensation, along with employee training. Moreover, the presence of unions within the same region and industry generates positive spillovers for employee compensation. The unions in China do have “real” effects.
IMAGES OF THE US DURING THE COLD WAR: MEDIA DISCOURSE IN THE UK 1956-1986

This thesis explores how the local media in East Anglia portrayed the US military presence during the Cold War at times of international crisis. It aims to assess this portrayal in comparison with national media images and critically interrogates the socio-political, economic and cultural reasons for it. This media related study contributes to Cold War historiography and the historiography of the USAF. Research was mainly archival, based on discourse analysis and comparative focusing on the official discourse of the Cold War and the news media. Central to the research were the written records of the British government and articles in appropriate newspapers issued near American airbases. The region of East Anglia was selected for its strategic location and large number of military bases, and data collection focused on selected periods of international crisis due to their impact on media coverage. The examination of newspaper articles identified a wide range of images with some recurring from time to time while others remain specific to certain periods. Findings suggest that local economic as well as political interests played a role in shaping the images of the US presence in the local media, and it could be argued that there is a correlation between the conservative landscape of the region and the newspaper articles’ overwhelming tolerance or at least acceptance of the US presence, which is in line with conservative governmental discourse in all periods of crisis explored. However, the articles – and in particular the readers’ letters to the editors – also highlight that there were strong debates between supporters and opponents of the American presence, and this debate blurs the boundaries of political parties, i.e. in certain periods there are also strong opponents in the conservative camp.
In vitro survival at low ph and acid adaptation response of Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli

The survival of Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli at pH 7.0, 6.0, 5.0 and 4.0 for up to 24 h, and the induction of an acid adaptation response in 12 C. jejuni and 10 C. coli strains in early exponential or late stationary phases in tryptic soy broth (TSB) and Brucella broth were investigated. C. coli strains were more sensitive than C. jejuni in media adjusted to pH 5.0 or 4.0 with hydrochloric acid. Five log 10 cfu/mL of C. coli were inhibited at 12 h in pH 5.0, but only 2.5 log 10 cfu/mL of C. jejuni cells were inhibited under the same conditions. No viable cells were detected at 4 h in pH 4.0 from an inoculum of 6 log 10 cfu/mL of C. coli. Late stationary phase cells of C. jejuni exposed to pH 5.0 for 4 h in TSB exhibited a significant (P ≤ 0.05) acid tolerance response when compared to nonexposed cells. Late stationary phase cells of C. coli exposed to pH 5.0 for 3 h in TSB and late stationary and early exponential phase cells exposed to pH 5.0 for 3 h in Brucella broth showed a significant (P ≤ 0.05) acid tolerance response when compared to nonexposed cells. The acid tolerance responses observed for C. jejuni and C. coli conferred adapted cells no more than 1 logic cfu/mL survival advantage over nonadapted cells. Brucella broth appeared to be more protective than TSB for the survival of C. jejuni and C. coli at pH 4.0.
Hardnose the Dictator

Lab experiments have gone to extremes to isolate and repress other-regarding behavior in extensive-form bargaining games, with limited success. Consider, for example, Elizabeth Hoffman et al.’s (1996; hereafter HMS) Anonymous Dictator game. This game controls self-interested strategic behavior by giving a person complete control over the distribution of wealth, and complete anonymity from all others including the experimenter. While theory predicts people with complete control and complete anonymity will offer up nothing to others, in fact they still share the wealth in about 40 percent of the observed bargains. Such other-regarding choice is another example in which individual behavior differs from that predicted by subgame perfection, and supports the call for a new “behavioral game theory” (Colin F. Camerer, 1997). Herein we extend the work of HMS to reveal a setting in which 95 percent of dictators follow game-theoretic predictions. In contrast to previous studies, our design has people bargain over earned wealth rather than unearned wealth granted by the experimenter. We argue that just as rewards must be salient (Kyung Hwan Baik et al., 1999), the assets in a bargain must be legitimate to produce rational behavior. Our results support this conjecture. Dictators bargaining over earned wealth were more selfinterested than observed in previous studies; and when they had complete anonymity, selfless behavior is essentially eliminated.
Price-Setting Behaviour, Competition, and Mark-Up Shocks in the New Keynesian Model

Recent research and policy discussions have noted that the potentially increased competition among firms since the 1990s may affect inflation and economic activity. This paper considers the implications of this structural change on short-run inflation dynamics, and for assessing shocks to inflation and output. The importance of firms' price-setting behaviour is highlighted in this context using a standard New Keynesian model with microfoundations. It is well known that both Rotemberg and Calvo price-setting assumptions imply the same reduced-form New Keynesian Phillips Curve (NKPC). Increased competition among firms, however, increases price flexibility in the former, and has either no effect or decreases price flexibility in the latter. The effects of mark-up shocks on inflation and output are small when firms' price-setting behaviour incorporates concerns about potential loss of market share. These effects are further dampened in an environment of more intense competition. Under the assumption of increased competition, both models lead to unambiguous predictions about the direction of change in the slope of the Phillips curve. Rolling estimates of the NKPC indicate that the slope has declined or flattened for several countries since the 1990s. This evidence is consistent with the prediction of the Calvo model.
Commodity Index Investing and Commodity Futures Prices

Recently, commodity index investing has come under attack. A Staff Report by the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigation (hereafter, the "subcommittee report") "…finds that there is significant and persuasive evidence to conclude that these commodity index traders, in the aggregate, were one of the major causes of 'unwarranted changes' - here increases - in the price of wheat futures contracts relative to the price of wheat in the cash market". The purpose of this study is to provide a comprehensive evaluation of whether commodity index investing is a disruptive force not only in the wheat futures market in particular but in the commodity futures market in general. We conclude that: (a) commodity index investing is not speculation; (b) commodity index rolls have little futures price impact, and inflows and outflows from commodity index investment do not cause futures prices to change; and, (c) the failure of the wheat futures price to converge to the cash price at the contract’s expiration has not undermined the futures contract’s effectiveness as a risk management tool.
Women entrepreneurs in a developing economy

While research on women entrepreneurs is extensive in developed countries, little has been done in this area in non‐OECD and developing economies. This research focuses on the characteristics, performance, and problems of women entrepreneurs in one developing economy – Turkey. The results indicate that while the women entrepreneurs exhibited many similarities with their counterparts in other countries they differed in other aspects such as in their reasons and motivation for starting a venture and problems encountered. These differences reflect in part the effect of a different social structure in a developing economy, particularly the impact of occupational segregation, wage disparity, and participation in a non‐supported sector of the economy. These findings suggest that the theories regarding women entrepreneurs based on developed economies need to be carefully examined before being applied to non‐OECD and developing economies.
Land Acquisition, Investment, and Development in the Lao Coffee Sector: Successes and Failures

ABSTRACT Despite the increasing acknowledgment of scholars and practitioners that many large-scale agricultural land acquisitions in developing countries fail or never materialize, empirical evidence about how and why they fail to date is still scarce. Too often, land deals are portrayed as straightforward investments and their success is taken for granted. Looking at the coffee sector in Laos, the authors of this article explore dimensions of the land grab debate that have not yet been sufficiently examined. Coffee concessionaires in southern Laos often fail to use all of the land granted them and fail to produce high yields on the land they do use. Thus, the authors challenge the often-assumed superiority and effectiveness of large-scale versus small-scale production, specifically the argument that they modernize agricultural production and optimize land use. They argue that examining failed investments is as important as studying successful ones for understanding the implications of the land grabbing phenomenon for social, economic, and environmental outcomes. Knowledge about the scale of “failed land deals” provides important motivation for national governments to close the gap between intentions and actual outcomes. This article engages with the current debate on quality of investment and challenges the approach of employing land concessions as a vehicle for economic development in the Lao coffee sector and in other sectors and countries.
Body Mass Index or Waist Circumference: Which Is the Better Predictor for Hypertension and Dyslipidemia in Overweight/Obese Children and Adolescents? Association of Cardiovascular Risk Related to Body Mass Index or Waist Circumference

Background: In order to assess the relationship between hypertension or dyslipidemia and obesity, the body mass index (BMI) is usually used. Unlike waist circumference (WC), BMI does not reflect body fat distribution. The aim of this study is to investigate whether BMI or WC is a better predictor of hypertension or dyslipidemia in overweight/obese children and adolescents. Methods: As of November 2012, the APV database contained data on 81,819 patients from 189 specialized pediatric obesity institutions in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Logistic regression analysis was conducted using odds ratios (OR) with 95% CI. Results: The average age of the youths (n = 5.978) was 13.9 ± 1.8 years. Mean BMI-SDS was 2.0 ± 0.5, and mean WC-SDS was 2.2 ± 0.5. Both BMI-SDS and WC-SDS are significant predictors of hypertension and dyslipidemia: BMI-SDS is a better predictor (OR = 2.60) for hypertension than WC-SDS (OR = 1.85), while WC-SDS (OR = 1.90) was slightly superior to BMI-SDS (OR = 1.86) in predicting adverse lipid profiles. Compared to normal-weight patients, obese patients (BMI ≥97th percentile) exhibited increased systolic (+6.3 mm Hg) and diastolic blood pressure (+3.9 mm Hg). However, this difference was only +4.8 mm Hg (systolic) and +2.6 mm Hg (diastolic) if WC >97th percentile was used. Conclusion: BMI-SDS is more closely associated with hypertension, while WC-SDS is more closely associated with dyslipidemia. However, the additional measurement of WC has only a small benefit in obese youths.