Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Equilibrium Default and the Unemployment Accelerator

We provide evidence of a significant and persistent negative relation between a firm's workers and her probability to default. In contrast with most "macro-finance" models, this relation is robust to controlling for the several firm's variables, such as the firm's leverage and profitability. In particular, for a panel of most US publicly traded firms, we find that a 10% increase in a firm's workers is associated with a 3% decline in her probability to default. To account for this fact, we extend a standard search-friction labor-market model to incorporate firms default risk. This environment provides a micro-foundation where workers determine the firm's value, and consequently affecting her incentives to default. We argue that fluctuations in the value of a worker generate and significantly amplify business cycle fluctuations. In the context of our model, we find that fluctuations in the value of a worker explain more than 68% of credit spreads volatility, and almost 80% of default rate volatility.
Auditory Brain Stem Responses to Air‐ and Bone‐Conducted Clicks in the Audiological Assessment of At‐Risk Infants

Abstract Auditory brain stem responses [ABRs] to air and boneconducted clicks were used to assess the auditory status of 170 atirisk neonates. During the perinatal period, 20.6% [35/170 cases] of the at-risk infants failed ABRs to airconducted clicks at 30 dB nHL in at least one ear. Earspecific results indicated an initial failure rate of 15.0% [51/340 ears]. Approximately two-thirds (32/51 ears] of these initial failures showed purely conductive deficits, whereas the remaining one-third [I9/51 ears] involved suspected sensorineural components. Follow-up audiological evaluations were performed for 87.1% (148 cases] of these atirisk infants at 4 mo and/or 1 yr corrected age. Based on the initial tests and followup assessments, the tentative operating characteristics of ABRs to both air and boneconducted clicks for identification of sensor neural deficits in at-risk neonates were calculated. It was found that the ABR to boneconducted clicks yielded better specificity, predictive value of positive results, and overall efficiency. It is suggested that the ABR to boneconducted stimuli should be viewed as a valuable addition in the assessment of cochlear reserve in infants who fail a newborn auditory screening to airconducted stimuli.
Gross, Net, and New Job Creation by Entrepreneurs

Using a dataset with over 24 million year-employment observations and the universe of more than 230,000 entries into entrepreneurship in one economy we analyze the gross (including the founders), net (excluding the founders), and new (jobs to the former unemployed or those outside the labor force) job creation by entrepreneurs two and six years after start-up. These novel measures of job creation show that the average entrepreneur does not create any jobs for any other than him/her-self, and typically arrives from having another job. Thus, short term job creation by entrepreneurs involves a reshuffling of jobs from older to new firms rather than creating new jobs.
Modulated and Localized States in a Finite Domain

A subcritical pattern-forming (Turing) instability of a uniform state, in an infinite domain, produces two branches of spatially localized states that bifurcate from the pattern-forming instability along with a uniform spatially periodic pattern. In this paper we demonstrate that branches of localized states persist as strongly amplitude-modulated patterns in large, but finite, domains with periodic boundary conditions. Our analysis is carried out for a model Swift–Hohenberg equation with a cubic-quintic nonlinearity. If the domain size exceeds a critical value, modulated states appear in secondary bifurcations from the primary branch of spatially periodic solutions. Multiple-scales analysis indicates that these secondary bifurcations occur close to the primary instability and close to the saddle-node bifurcation on the spatially periodic solution branch. As the domain size increases, extra “turns” on the snaking curve arise through a repeating sequence of saddle-node bifurcations and mode interactions be.
Dark-grown Psilotum

Sporophytes of Psilotum are slow growing plants. This may be one reason why Psilotum has been subjected to very few experimental investigations. Marsden and Wetmore (1954) found that the apices of aerial stems grown in axenic culture often differentiated into rhizome apices. Rouffa (1966) observed that Psilotum, which was illuminated with cool white fluorescent light at 200-400 ft. -c. for extended periods of time, would produce unusual fertile appendages. Warren H. Wagner, Jr. (pers. comm., 1986) observed unusual plants of Psilotum collected in Hawaii by Francis G. Howarth on the floor of a lava tube in complete absence of light. These plants had the appearance of short aerial rhizomes. The modifications of these plants were apparently caused by their growth in the dark, so Wagner suggested that such modified development might be produced experimentally by giving greenhouse-grown plants a dark treatment. The aim of this investigation was to determine whether Psilotum plants could grow at all for an extended period in the dark and whether their morphology would be altered by such growth.
Analysis of sphingolipids, sterols, and phospholipids in human pathogenic Cryptococcus strains[S]

Cryptococcus species cause invasive infections in humans. Lipids play an important role in the progression of these infections. Independent studies done by our group and others provide some detail about the functions of these lipids in Cryptococcus infections. However, the pathways of biosynthesis and the metabolism of these lipids are not completely understood. To thoroughly understand the physiological role of these Cryptococcus lipids, a proper structure and composition analysis of Cryptococcus lipids is demanded. In this study, a detailed spectroscopic analysis of lipid extracts from Cryptococcus gattii and Cryptococcus grubii strains is presented. Sphingolipid profiling by LC-ESI-MS/MS was used to analyze sphingosine, dihydrosphingosine, sphingosine-1-phosphate, dihydrosphingosine-1-phosphate, ceramide, dihydroceramide, glucosylceramide, phytosphingosine, phytosphingosine-1-phosphate, phytoceramide, α-hydroxy phytoceramide, and inositolphosphorylceramide species. A total of 13 sterol species were identified using GC-MS, where ergosterol is the most abundant species. The 31P-NMR-based phospholipid analysis identified phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylinositol, phosphatidylserine, phosphatidyl-N,N-dimethylethanolamine, phosphatidyl-N-monomethylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidic acid, and lysophosphatidylethanolamine. A comparison of lipid profiles among different Cryptococcus strains illustrates a marked change in the metabolic flux of these organisms, especially sphingolipid metabolism. These data improve our understanding of the structure, biosynthesis, and metabolism of common lipid groups of Cryptococcus and should be useful while studying their functional significance and designing therapeutic interventions.
The Evolution of Corporate Social Responsibility Assurance – A Longitudinal Study

ABSTRACT Companies today are realising that they no longer only account to their shareholders for their financial performance, but to their broader stakeholders for the non-financial impact of their operations on society, the environment and the economy as well. The provision of independent assurance on these corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosures is a relatively new mechanism that has been introduced to provide stakeholders with confidence about the veracity of the underlying CSR disclosures. Recent studies have found that the provision of independent CSR assurance has increased around the world. This longitudinal study covering the eight-year period from 2007 to 2014, undertaken in a South African context, examined the extent to which the largest companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), have had their CSR disclosures independently assured. As such, this is one of the first studies to examine the emerging CSR assurance phenomenon over a protracted period. Although the extent to which companies have provided independent assurance over their CSR disclosures has steadily grown, the study also revealed that the majority still did not. Although the pool of CSR assurance providers has widened to become more inclusive, contrary to the expectation that the dominance of the Big 4 audit firms would gradually be eroded, the study found that the Big 4 audit firms were actually consolidating their position in this area.
Neuropsychologic reactions and other side effects after metrizamide myelography.

One hundred patients were questioned after metrizamide myelography about the side effects of the examination. The number and type of side effects were tabulated and correlated with investigated region (e.g., cervical, lumbar) and with use of medication (e.g., analgesics, diuretics). The number of side effects, particularly neuropsychologic, were higher than previously reported. The most common side effects were minor meningeal irritations (headache, nausea, dizziness, and vomiting) and were regarded by the patients as inconsequential. All side effects became apparent during the first 24 hr after myelography and all were transitory. The side effects, being minor, should not limit the use of metrizamide for myelography. However, those caring for patients who have undergone the study should be aware of the possible side effects.
Twenty-three steps to learning Web 2.0 technologies in an academic library

Purpose – This paper aims to report on the adoption and evaluation of a Learning 2.0 program in a pilot program at the Edith Cowan University Library during 2007.Design/methodology/approach – The paper examines the suitability of Learning 2.0 for training eight “early adopters” among library staff in the new and emerging Web 2.0 technologies. The program was set up and deployed via a blog, which recorded staff progress through the nine‐week implementation phase of the program. At the conclusion, a focus group was held and the pilot group members responded to questions about the relevance of the program, and the effectiveness of their learning.Findings – It was found that library staff responded positively to this program, not least because it adhered to adult learning principles. For the authors' purpose, Learning 2.0 was an eminently suitable training package.Originality/value – The paper is unique in that Edith Cowan University Library was the first Australian university library to adopt Learning 2.0.
Value-oriented supply chain risk management: you get what you expect

Purpose – With the globalisation of supply chains the importance of supply chain risk management (SCRM) has grown considerably. Still, although both researchers and practitioners fully agree on its importance, most companies pay very limited attention to SCRM. The purpose of this paper is to use expectation confirmation theory to investigate the reasons for that. Design/methodology/approach – The authors use a combination of six mini case studies and a survey of 89 companies to show how a different attitude towards SCRM can lead to greater value from SCRM efforts. Findings – In line with the expectation confirmation theory the authors stipulate that the primary reason is in companies’ attitudes towards SCRM. Their main expectation is risk avoidance and not value generation. In such a case, even “successful” SCRM programmes merely confirm such an expectation (e.g. no risk materialised or with a limited impact) and the company continues to avoid risk while limiting the resources for SCRM. It is only when th.
Quantifying the Impact of Construction Waste Charging Scheme on Construction Waste Management in Hong Kong

AbstractA considerable amount of solid wastes is generated every year from construction and demolition (C&D) activities in Hong Kong. The C&D waste can be classified into inert and noninert wastes, in which the inert waste is normally disposed of in public fills as reclamation materials and the noninert waste is dumped at landfills. Under the current waste generation trend, all landfills and public fills in Hong Kong will be used up within a few years. To tackle this problem, in December of 2005, the Hong Kong Government implemented the Construction Waste Disposal Charging Scheme (CWDCS) to provide financial incentives to C&D waste generators to reduce waste and encourage reuse and recycling. This paper presents the results of a study to explore the perceptions of the Hong Kong construction participants toward the CWDCS after three years of implementation. The study was conducted by a survey with follow-up interviews to experienced professionals in the building industry. The results revealed no consensus .
Recovery of Architecture Module Views using an Optimized Algorithm Based on Design Structure Matrices

Design structure matrices (DSMs) are useful to represent high-level system structure, modeling interactions between design entities. DSMs are used for many visualization and abstraction activities. In this work, we propose the use of an existing DSM clustering algorithm to recover software architecture module views. To make it suitable to this domain, optimization has proved necessary. It was achieved through performance analysis and parameter tuning on the original algorithm. Results show that DSM clustering can be an alternative to other clustering algorithms.
VEGF 165 b , an Inhibitory Splice Variant of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor , Is Down-Regulated in Renal Cell Carcinoma 1

Angiogenesis is essential for tumor growth. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is the most potent growth factor of tumor neovasculature, has been shown to be up-regulated in every tumor studied thus far, and is correlated with tumor stage and progression. To determine whether specific VEGF splice variants were differentially expressed in renal cell carcinomas, 18 polar tumor samples were analyzed by reverse transcription-PCR using primers designed to differentiate between VEGF splice variants. Control tissue was derived from the opposite normal pole. An amplicon of length consistent with the previously described variant VEGF148 was found in normal kidney tissue. Subsequent sequencing revealed a new VEGF isoform formed by differential splicing from the end of exon 7 into the 3 untranslated region of the mRNA. Cloning of this transcript showed that translation would result in a 165-amino acid peptide with an alternative terminal 6 amino acids, followed by a stop codon. We have termed this new isoform VEGF165b. This isoform was present in 17 of 18 normal kidney samples but only 4 of 18 cases from matched malignant tissue. VEGF165b was therefore expressed in a significantly higher proportion of normal tissue than malignant tissue from the same patients (P < 0.001). To determine the functional significance of this new isoform, we expressed the full-length protein in a heterologous expression system. Conditioned medium containing this isoform significantly and dose dependently inhibited VEGF165-mediated proliferation, migration of endothelial cells, and vasodilatation of mesenteric arteries. This novel isoform VEGF165b is therefore an endogenous inhibitory form of VEGF that is down-regulated in renal tumors and, therefore, may be anti-angiogenesis.
Effect of previous cerebrovascular accident on outcome after hip fracture.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effect of previous cerebrovascular accident on outcome after hip fracture. STUDY DESIGN Prospective, consecutive. PATIENTS From July 1987 to March 1997, 862 community-dwelling patients sixty-five years of age or older who had sustained an operatively treated femoral neck or intertrochanteric fracture were prospectively followed. INTERVENTION All patients had operative fracture treatment. MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS Postoperative complications, in-hospital mortality, hospital length of stay, hospital discharge status, one-year mortality and place of residence, and return to preinjury ambulatory level, basic and instrumental activities of daily living status. RESULTS Sixty-three patients (7.3 percent) had a history of cerebrovascular accident; the fracture was on the hemiplegic side in forty-six (86.8 percent) of the fifty-three patients with hemiplegia. Patients who had a history of cerebrovascular accident were more likely to be male and have an American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) rating of III or IV. They were also more likely to have three or more comorbidities, be a home ambulator, and be dependent on basic and instrumental activities of daily living before hip fracture. Hospital length of stay was significantly higher for patients who had a history of cerebrovascular accident. There were no differences in the incidence of hospital mortality or one-year mortality between patients who did and did not have a history of cerebrovascular accident before hip fracture. In addition, at one-year follow-up, when controlling for prefracture level of function, there were no differences in the rate of functional recovery between the two groups of patients. CONCLUSIONS The functional recovery of elderly hip fracture patients who had a prior cerebrovascular accident was similar to that of patients who had no history of a prior cerebrovascular accident.
Longitudinal-mode characteristics of weakly index-guided buried-stripe type 980-nm laser diodes with and without substrate-mode-induced phenomena

We have carried out a systematic experimental study of the longitudinal-mode characteristics of 980-nm laser diodes with a weakly index-guided buried-stripe structure at high optical output powers. For comparison, we have prepared devices with 1.5- and 2.5-/spl mu/m cladding layers. We found large differences in the longitudinal-mode characteristics and light output linearity between the two types of devices. We think that these differences result from whether or not there is coupling between the ordinary laser-mode and an unusual substrate-mode. In addition, our results show an improvement in laser diode characteristics when the substrate-mode is suppressed.
Antiparasitical chemotherapy in Chagas’ disease cardiomyopathy: current evidence

Chronic chagasic cardiomyopathy affects 20% of Chagas’ disease patients. At present, Chagas’ disease chemotherapy uses nitrofurans, benznidazole (Rochagan®, Rodanil®, Roche) or nifurtimox (Lampit®, Bayer). Treatment during acute and recent chronic phases in childhood effects 71.5% and 57.6%, respectively, of parasitological cure. However, in clinical trials during the late chronic phase, only 5.9% of parasitological cure were achieved. This review focuses on the benefit from aetiological treatment to avoid, stop or revert myocarditis. Divergent data gathered from clinical practice are not convincing to support prescription of aetiological treatment as routine for indeterminate and cardiac chronic patients.
Information and collective action in the community monitoring of schools : Field and lab experimental evidence from Uganda ∗

Community-based monitoring of public services provides a possible solution to accountability problems when state oversight is limited. However, the mechanisms through which such policies can be effective are not well understood. Are community-monitoring interventions successful because they improve information alone, or do they also need to overcome collective action problems? We investigate this question by implementing a combined field and lab experiment in 100 Ugandan primary schools, which randomly assigns schools and their Management Committees (SMCs) either to standard community-based monitoring, to a participatory variation that addresses coordination problems, or to a control group. We find substantial impacts of the participatory treatment on pupil test scores as well as pupil and teacher absenteeism, while the standard treatment has small and insignificant effects, and we develop a test using randomization inference to show that differences in these outcomes between treated groups are statistically significant. Combining this evidence with SMC member behavior in laboratory games, we find evidence that improved collective action explains these differences. The results have implications for the design of communitybased monitoring policies, and help to explain their variable effectiveness across contexts. ∗Barr: University of Nottingham; Mugisha: Economic Policy Research Centre and Ministry of Finance, Uganda; Serneels: University of East Anglia; Zeitlin: University of Oxford. We thank Lawrence Bategeka, Madina Guloba, and Ibrahim Kasirye of EPRC, Gregory Acar, Kees de Graaf, and Damalie Zalwango of SNV, and Judith Nakayamanna and Julius Odongo of World Vision. Seda Koymen, Sangamitra Ramachander, and especially Felix Schmieding provided superb research assistance. We are grateful to Paul Collier and to Stefan Dercon for helpful comments and encouragement. This work was supported by research funding from the UK Department for International Development (DFID) as part of the iiG, a research program studying how to improve institutions for pro-poor growth in Africa and South Asia. The views expressed are not necessarily those of DFID. †Corresponding author. Email: andrew.zeitlin@economics.ox. ac.uk.
Determinants of Neighbourhood Satisfaction and Perception of Neighbourhood Reputation

It has been suggested that the residential mobility behaviour and general well-being of residents of urban neighbourhoods are not only influenced by how residents themselves assess their neighbourhood, but also by how they think other city residents see their neighbourhood: the perceived reputation of the neighbourhood. There is a large body of literature on residents’ satisfaction with their neighbourhood, but much less is known about how residents perceive the reputation of their own neighbourhood. Such knowledge might give important clues on how to improve the well-being of residents in deprived neighbourhoods, not only by directly improving the factors that affect their own level of satisfaction, but also by improving the factors that residents think have a negative effect on the reputation of their neighbourhood. This paper examines whether there are differences in the determinants of neighbourhood satisfaction and the perceived reputation of the neighbourhood. Using data from a purpose-designed survey to study neighbourhood reputations in the city of Utrecht, the Netherlands, it is found that subjective assessment of the dwelling and neighbourhood attributes are more important in explaining neighbourhood satisfaction than in explaining perception of reputation. Objective neighbourhood variables are more important in explaining perception of reputation than in explaining neighbourhood satisfaction.