Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Government Contracting and the Continuation as a Going Concern

When there is separation between a firm’s managers and owners, there is a greater need for information about the firm’s ability to continue as a going concern as a violation of such implies shareholders are at risk of losing their equity in the firm. The going concern assumption is a fundamental concept of financial reporting because, when violated, financial statements are required to be prepared at liquidation values. We examine the public signals of going concern audit opinions, delisting decisions, and filing for bankruptcy to draw inferences on whether firms that are dependent on the government for revenue are more likely to continue as going concerns. We find that firms that earn more revenues from the government are less likely to receive going concern opinions, delist from a major stock exchange, or file for bankruptcy. We also find that the loss of government contracts in the subsequent year affects auditors’ assessment of going concern risk in the current year, but the likelihood of delisting or filing bankruptcy is not affected, suggesting managers do not signal changes in going concern risk induced by the loss of government contracts. We document that the market reacts more negatively to government contracting firms’ going concern opinions and delisting decisions relative to firms that do not earn revenue from the government. Our findings suggest that firms’ dependence on the government as a customer is important for managers to consider in adhering to new U.S. GAAP disclosure requirements addressing their firms’ continuation as a going concern.
Online Price Dispersion: An International Comparison

Online price dispersion has remained a puzzle for many years. In this article, we test the effects of a range of factors identified in the literature including vendor strategy, market structure, vendor heterogeneity and the time dimension. We use a dataset collected from the Amazon.com, Amazon.uk and the Amazon.fr marketplaces for books, CDs and DVDs from March to November 2006. First, using posted prices, we show that vendors make few modifications to their prices over time (once every 20 to 30 days), and those variations that they do make are relatively small (on average 15 cents). Secondly, we compare posted prices to transaction prices and we show that transaction prices do not necessarily correspond to the lowest posted price but rather centered around the median prices. Thirdly, we show that online price dispersion increases with the number of sellers mainly because new sellers price their product significantly lower that the current median price. Fourth, we show that there is a significant reputation premium of about 10 to 15%. A well established seller can charge a price 10 to 20% higher than the average seller. Our estimation results support the idea that price dispersion is sensitive to the maturity of the market. Consistent with our finding that price dispersion increases with the number of sellers, less mature markets, such as France with fewer sellers, exhibit lower price dispersion. Similarly, we find that large sellers account for a greater proportion of transactions in France than in the U.S. Lastly, we find that public policy can affect price dispersion: a French law limiting discounting on new books results in lower price dispersion in the French book market relative to book markets in the US and UK and relative to the French market for other goods.
Variations in Magnitude of Emotion: A Method Applied to Anxiety and Hostility During Phases of the Menstrual Cycle

&NA; The sensitivity of a newly developed method of measuring immediate affect levels from small samples of speech is demonstrated by use of the method (in 5 subjects) to detect the effect on personality of the biological rhythms of the menstrual cycle. The method employs separate scoring scales for each affect to be measured. Psychoanalytic insights and principles are built into the scales, as exemplified by the verbal themes considered relevant to each affect and by the relative weights assigned verbal items. Extensive reliability and validity studies have been reported elswhere. Four of the 5 women showed statistically significant rhythmical changes in the magnitude of at least one of the affects‐‐anxiety, hostility outward, or hostility inward‐‐during the sexual cycle. The changes in these affects were not similar among the women. Those psychophysiological rhythms more statistically significant appeared within women studied during a larger number of menstrual cycles. This suggests that data from more cycles tended to amplify the effects of the sexual cycle on the emotions measured by minimizing and randomizing the effect of transient intrapsychic and interpersonal events. The individual variations in anxiety and hostility levels during the sexual cycle should be accounted for by personality studies focusing on psychosexual development and conflicts. There was a tendency for the levels of tension measured‐‐specifically, anxiety and hostility inward‐‐to decrease transiently around the time of ovulation. The presumed cause is some hormonal change; whether it is ovarian or gonadatropic (luteinizing hormone) or both has yet to be ascertained.
Human Sigma: Managing the Employee-Customer Encounter

What would your company look like if you could increase the revenue and profitability potential of every customer by more than 20 percent? What if you could double the productivity of every employee? And what if these two phenomena together could drive overall organizational performance exponentially? What would your company look like? And how would you go about creating this kind of change? One thing is certain: Business leaders are never going to inspire higher levels of employee productivity and build more passionate customer relationships by doing the same things they have tried for the past 25 years.Business leaders need something fresh. Something new. The last thing they need is more of the same old conventional wisdom about "satisfying" their employees and their customers. Based on solid research by The Gallup Organization, Human Sigma will appeal to senior leaders and line managers alike who are looking for a way to dramatically increase productivity, retain a base of high value customers, and improve overall business performance.
2DPCA-based techniques in DCT domain for face recognition

In this paper, we introduce two-dimensional PCA (2DPCA), diagonal principal component analysis (DiaPCA) and DiaPCA+2DPCA in DCT domain for the aim of face recognition. The 2D discrete cosine transform (2D DCT) transform has been used as a pre-processing step, then 2DPCA, DiaPCA and DiaPCA+2DPCA are applied on the upper left corner block of the global 2D DCT transform matrix of the original images. The Olivetti Research Laboratory (ORL) and YALE face databases are used to compare the proposed approach with the conventional one without DCT under four matrix similarity measures: Frobenuis, Yang, assembled matrix distance (AMD) and volume measure (VM). The experiments show that in addition to the significant gain in both the training and testing times, the recognition rate using 2DPCA, DiaPCA and DiaPCA+2DPCA in DCT domain is generally better or at least competitive with the recognition rates obtained by applying these three 2D appearance-based statistical techniques directly on the raw pixel images; especially, under the VM similarity measure.
Assembly-dependent maturation cleavage in provirions of a small icosahedral insect ribovirus

Extracts from nodavirus-infected Drosophila cells contained detergent-labile 140S "young" particles much richer than mature virions in their content of protein alpha, a precursor of coat proteins beta and gamma. Incorporation studies in infected cells showed that most newly synthesized alpha protein was assembled into young particles within a few minutes. Incubation of the particles, either in cytoplasmic extracts or after purification, resulted in spontaneous first-order cleavage of alpha protein to form beta-plus-gamma chains. Alpha protein that was not associated with particles failed to cleave. Cleavage was accompanied by a marked increase in detergent stability of the particles and was unaffected by a broad spectrum of protease inhibitors or by coating with precipitating antibody. We conclude (i) that alpha chains are cleaved only after assembly into provirions, (ii) that cleavage occurs internally and is likely therefore autocatalytic, and (iii) that cleavage stabilizes the mature virus particles.
Reduction and methylation of mercury in the terrestrial isopod Porcellio scaber (Crustacea) and its environment

Reduction and methylation of inorganic mercury in Porcellio scaber (Isopoda, Crustacea) and its environment were studied, using a purpose‐built experimental setup where Hg cycling was followed using 203Hg2+ tracer in experiments without and with isopods. In experiment without isopods, daily reduction of 203Hg2+ to 203Hg0 under sterile and nonsterile conditions was measured for three weeks to assess the contribution of bacteria to this process. In experiments with isopods, daily release of 203Hg0 was measured for two weeks. Total mercury (T203Hg) and monomethylmercury (Me203Hg) in whole animals, gut, digestive glands (hepatopancreas), food (hazelnut leaves), and feces were measured to obtain the assimilation and distribution of mercury in the animals, to investigate the origin and fate of Me203Hg, and, finally, to assess the mass balance of mercury in the experimental system. Experiment without isopods showed the important role of bacteria in reduction of 203Hg2+ to 203Hg0, especially in the first day of the experiment. Experiments with isopods showed that formation of 203Hg0 depended on the 203Hg2+ concentration in the food. The contribution of the isopod's digestive flora in reduction of 203Hg2+ to 203Hg0 was negligible. Approximately 3% of T203Hg and 2% of Me203Hg consumed was assimilated by the animals. Methylation of 203Hg2+ occurred already in the leaves before they were consumed by the isopods. Assimilation of Me203Hg from the food surprisingly was low. Also, a loss of Me203Hg was noticed when comparing assimilated and excreted Me203Hg versus consumed Me203Hg. This may be explained by the assumption that demethylation of MeHg prevailed over methylation of Hg2+in the animal's digestive system, leading to excretion of ingested mercury as Hg2+.
Best practices in trade policy reform

It was recognized by many developing countries in the 1980s that integration with the global economy is necessary for economic development and technological progress. Efforts to liberalize trade were controversial. A unique body of evidence on developing country trade liberalization will examine why outcomes have varied from one country to another. The political economy of trade liberalization and the interaction among trade and domestic reform, macro-economic stability, and export development is examined using: (a) cross-sectional data, (b) country studies, (c) and interviews. The sequencing of reforms and implications for multilateral trade negotiations, foreign direct investment, and regional integration schemes is an additional consideration. The emphasis is on practical problems-economic and political-and recommendations of how policies can be designed and implemented to yield stronger and more sustainable results.
Interactions between microbial biofilms and marine fouling algae: a mini review

Natural and artificial substrata immersed in the marine environment are typically colonized by microorganisms, which may moderate the settlement/recruitment of algal spores and invertebrate larvae of macrofouling organisms. This mini-review summarizes the major interactions occurring between microbial biofilms and marine fouling algae, including their effects on the settlement, growth and morphology of the adult plants. The roles of chemical compounds that are produced by both bacteria and algae and which drive the interactions are reviewed. The possibility of using such bioactive compounds to control macrofouling will be discussed.
Endotoxin-Induced Endothelial Fibrosis Is Dependent on Expression of Transforming Growth Factors β1 and β2

ABSTRACT During endotoxemia-induced inflammatory disease, bacterial endotoxins circulate in the bloodstream and interact with endothelial cells (ECs), inducing dysfunction of the ECs. We previously reported that endotoxins induce the conversion of ECs into activated fibroblasts. Through endotoxin-induced endothelial fibrosis, ECs change their morphology and their protein expression pattern, thereby suppressing endothelial markers and upregulating fibrotic proteins. The most commonly used fibrotic inducers are transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1) and TGF-β2. However, whether TGF-β1 and TGF-β2 participate in endotoxin-induced endothelial fibrosis remains unknown. We have shown that the endotoxin-induced endothelial fibrosis process is dependent on the TGF-β receptor, ALK5, and the activation of Smad3, a protein that is activated by ALK5 activation, thus suggesting that endotoxin elicits TGF-β production to mediate endotoxin-induced endothelial fibrosis. Therefore, we investigated the dependence of endotoxin-induced endothelial fibrosis on the expression of TGF-β1 and TGF-β2. Endotoxin-treated ECs induced the expression and secretion of TGF-β1 and TGF-β2. TGF-β1 and TGF-β2 downregulation inhibited the endotoxin-induced changes in the endothelial marker VE-cadherin and in the fibrotic proteins α-SMA and fibronectin. Thus, endotoxin induces the production of TGF-β1 and TGF-β2 as a mechanism to promote endotoxin-induced endothelial fibrosis. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report showing that endotoxin induces endothelial fibrosis via TGF-β secretion, which represents an emerging source of vascular dysfunction. These findings contribute to understanding the molecular mechanism of endotoxin-induced endothelial fibrosis, which could be useful in the treatment of inflammatory diseases.
Appendix for “ Deworming externalities and schooling impacts in Kenya : A Comment on Aiken

Results: “For school attendance, re-analysis showed benefits similar to those originally found in intervention schools for both children who did and did not receive deworming drugs. However, after correction of coding errors, there was little evidence of an indirect effect on school attendance amongst children in schools close to intervention schools. Combining these effects gave a total increase in attendance of 3.9% amongst treated children, which was no longer statistically significant. ” We address this claim extensively in Section A.2 above. The results after correction of variable construction make clear that it is impossible to precisely estimate overall deworming externalities on school participation out to a distance of 6 km, as this results in very wide and largely uninformative
T-lymphocyte cytotoxicity to HBsAg-coated target cells in hepatitis B virus infection

The cytotoxic effect of peripheral lymphocytes on chicken red blood cells (ChRBC) coated with purified hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) has been studied as an in vitro parameter of cell-mediated immunity in acute and chronic infection with hepatitis B virus. Using this technique, the mean cytotoxic index of lymphocytes from patients with acute hepatitis B (29·13 ± 20·88) was significantly higher than that obtained with lymphocytes from control subjects (6·53 ± 3·75). Only 33·3% of the patients with HBsAg-positive chronic active hepatitis exhibited lymphocyte cytotoxicity to HBsAg-coated target cells and the mean cytotoxic index (11·66 ± 6·60) was in these cases significantly lower than that found in acute hepatitis B. Healthy chronic carriers of HBsAg failed to show lymphocyte cytotoxicity to target cells. The effector cells detected in acute hepatitis B by this in vitro assay have been demonstrated to be T-lymphocytes, as T-cell depleted subpopulations lacked cytotoxic activity. Target cell lysis could be blocked by addition of HBsAg-coated unlabelled ChRBC as well as of purified HBsAg in the culture tubes. It is suggested that damage to the liver cells in acute hepatitis B is related to the presence of cytotoxic T-lymphocytes reacting with HBsAg on the surface of infected hepatocytes. An inadequate lymphocyte response to the antigen may be responsible for the persistence of the infection in the liver with varied clinical manifestations and associated hepatic lesions.
Supply Networks for Relational Sourcing

Making long-term commitments to exclusive suppliers, or relational sourcing, is critical in industries where quality includes social, ethical, and technical elements concerning which contractual terms would be costly to verify or enforce. This study identifies supplier network topologies that best facilitate such relational sourcing. We consider a brand-owning firm that sources in an ongoing fashion from a general multi-tier network of idiosyncratic suppliers. Alternate network designs are compared in terms of three defining structural properties: network scope, the number of suppliers at each tier in the network; degree of control/delegation, the number of tiers in the network; and network connectivity, the connections between firms located at different tiers. Our analysis reveals that neither network connectivity nor the distribution of costs among suppliers affects the ability to sustain relational sourcing. Networks characterized by more delegation or less scope have the most to gain from relational sourcing, but they are also most vulnerable to exploitation of a relational agreement. We characterize this trade-off and identify preferred network topologies. Our analysis shows that, all else equal, delegation is better than control for products with higher margins, greater sourcing stability, or lower costs of noncompliant quality. Numerical analysis reveals that low-scope networks, too, are preferable for higher-margin products with greater sourcing stability; however, low-scope networks are preferred at higher costs of noncompliant quality. These results are robust to alternate information environments, supplier replaceability and equilibrium concepts.
Fatal Attraction? Access to Early Retirement and Mortality

We estimate the causal effect of early retirement on mortality for blue-collar workers. To overcome the problem of endogenous selection, we exploit an exogenous change in unemployment insurance rules in Austria that allowed workers in eligible regions to withdraw from the workforce up to 3.5 years earlier than those in non-eligible regions. For males, instrumental-variable estimates show a significant 2.4 percentage points (about 13%) increase in the probability of dying before age 67. We do not find any adverse effect of early retirement on mortality for females. Death causes indicate a significantly higher incidence of cardiovascular disorders among eligible workers, suggesting that changes in health-related behavior explain increased mortality among male early retirees.
The Investigation of Innovation and Performance of Chinese Manufacturing Firms: The Role of Foreign Direct Investment, Formal Institutions and Research and Development Strategies

By employing an institution-based view, this thesis proposes that the innovation of indigenous firms is directly influenced by FDI and formal institutions and the latter also moderate the effects of the former. I use the World Bank Enterprise Survey 2003(WBES2003). The following findings are obtained: 1) FDI generates negative spillover effects on patents; 2) formal institutions positively affect innovation of firms; 3) formal institutions positively moderate the negative FDI innovation effects. This thesis also looks at the role of formal institutions at regional level. It proposes that regional formal institutions and FDI affect the innovation of Chinese firms and also affect regional innovation. I use the WBES2012, China Statistical Yearbook and the NERI Index of Marketization of China. The following findings are obtained: 1) FDI generates no spillover effects on innovation; 2) regional formal institutions promote innovation of Chinese firms, while the study fails to discover such an impact from legal institutions; 3) regional formal institutions promote regional innovation. In addition, this thesis also looks at the role of national innovation system (NIS) and a firm’s RD 2) NIS promotes firm performance; 3) FDI generates positive spillover effects on total sales; 4) FDI spillover effects are positively moderated by a firm’s R&D strategy and NIS.
What are Insider Trades Around Profit Warnings Really Telling Us?

In this paper, we investigate insider trading activity around profit warnings. We conjecture that since firms are required to release price sensitive information, such as in the form of profit warnings, to ensure that investors are continually informed of changes in performance and future prospects, insiders time their trades to maximise personal gains. Our results show that in the six months leading up to the warning, there is a decrease in share price that continues after the warning. Insiders take advantage of the situation by increasing their holdings in the pre-warning period and continue buying, though to a less extent after the warning's release. The findings indicate that profit warnings signal poorer though temporary financial performance and insiders profit from this knowledge.
From arms‐length to collaborative relationships in the supply chain

Buyer‐supplier relationships play an important role in an organization’s ability to respond to dynamic and unpredictable change. If the relationship is too restrictive, flexibility will be difficult to achieve and, if it is too lenient the risk of opportunism will be present. This paper provides a framework for understanding how buyer‐supplier relationships have evolved over the past two decades from transaction processes based on arms‐length agreements to collaborative processes based on trust and information sharing. To achieve this objective, buyer‐supplier relationships are reviewed from the perspectives of transaction cost theory, strategy‐structure theory and resource‐based theory of the firm. Findings from early supply chain research are contrasted with the findings of more current research to provide a better understanding of how these relationships have changed. Current theory is extended by offering two proposals that test the influence of trust and information sharing and a third proposal that rejects the notion that supply chain alliances lead to monopolistic practices.