Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Reference Prices as Determinants of Business-to-Business Price Negotiation Outcomes: An Empirical Perspective from the Chemical Industry

Price negotiations in supply chain relationships often take place during annual pricing reviews. This study integrates transaction cost economics and reference price thinking from consumer behavior to understand better how a seller's reservation price, aspiration price, and initial price offering might influence the ultimate settlement price. We apply ridge regression to negotiation data from 282 business relationships of a German chemicals supplier with customers in six client industries. Overall, the three determinants explain 86 percent of the variation in the settlement price. A seller's reservation price is substantially less important than the aspiration price or the initial price offering. Although this outcome can be explained via a reference price perspective, transaction cost economics theory helps clarify the industry differences that determine the impact of reservation prices and initial price offerings on settlement prices.
Fate of 2 year-old, hatchery-reared trout cod Maccullochella macquariensis (Percichthyidae) stocked into two upland rivers

Radio-tracking was used in monitoring the reintroduction of on-grown 2 year-old trout cod Maccullochella macquariensis (Percichthyidae) (a nationally endangered freshwater fish) in both a large and small upland river. Thirty-six radio-tagged M. macquariensis were stocked into a site in each of the Murrumbidgee and Cotter Rivers (Australian Capital Territory). Restricted dispersal occurred in both rivers, with both samples of M. macquariensis remaining within 5 km of the release site for the duration of the study. Mortality was rapid and 1 month after release 61 and 31% of the sample was alive in the Murrumbidgee and Cotter Rivers, respectively. In the Murrumbidgee River, complete mortality had occurred 6 months after release. An individual survived in the Cotter River until 7 months after release. Predation by cormorants Phalacrocorax spp. and predation or scavenging by the common water rat Hydromys chrysogaster were the probable causes of mortality. Predator-assisted movement of radio-tags by cormorants occurred in both groups and had the potential to confound interpretation of active dispersal movements.
Aerodynamics of a two-dimensional bluff body with the cross-section of a train

Experiments on the aerodynamics of a two-dimensional bluff body simplified from a China high-speed train in crosswinds were carried out in a wind tunnel. Effects of wind angle of attack α varying in [−20°, 20°] were investigated at a moderate Reynolds number Re = 9.35 × 104 (based on the height of the model). Four typical behaviors of aerodynamics were identified. These behaviors are attributed to the flow structure around the upper and lower halves of the model changing from full to intermittent reattachment, and to full separation with a variation in α. An alternate transition phenomenon, characterized by an alteration between large- and small-amplitude aerodynamic fluctuations, was detected. The frequency of this alteration is about 1/10 of the predominant vortex shedding. In the intervals of the large-amplitude behavior, aerodynamic forces fluctuate periodically with a strong span-wise coherence, which are caused by the anti-symmetric vortex shedding along the stream-wise direction. On the contrary, the aerodynamic forces fluctuating at small amplitudes correspond to a weak span-wise coherence, which are ascribed to the symmetric vortex shedding from the upper and lower halves of the model. Generally, the mean amplitude of the large-amplitude mode is 3 times larger than that of the small one. Finally, the effects of Reynolds number were examined within Re = [9.35 × 104, 2.49 × 105]. Strong Reynolds number dependence was observed on the model with two rounded upper corners.
Study of Bond Strength of Steel Bars in Basalt Fibre Reinforced High Performance Concrete

The paper presents the study on bond behaviour of steel bars. It reports the research conducted on local bond strength of short length specimens in high performance concrete (HPC) and basalt fibre reinforced high performance concrete (BFRHPC). In this study, the basalt fibre volume content, concrete cover, bar diameter and rib geometry are the main parameters. Further important factors are the directions of the casting and loading. Determining the effect of aforementioned main parameters on the bond strength in test series is required, in order to design reinforced HPC structures. The study of local bond strength in HPC and BFRHPC with five different basalt fibre fractions included tests of seventy-two short length specimens, using two concrete cover and two diameters of steel bars with different rib face angles. For different ranges of BFRHPC strength, relationships for bond strength with respect to the splitting tensile strength were obtained. The bond strength increased with the splitting tensile strength and compressive strength of BFRHPC specimens with the 12 mm and 16 mm bar respectively. The bond strength of BFRHPC was lower for the bar with the greater distances between the lugs on the bar.
X-ray diffraction method to identify epithelial to mesenchymal transition in breast cancer tissue

Breast Stromal tissue is significantly involved in the spread of cancer because of molecular variations. The main component, collagen, has a spatial arrangement allowing the investigation of its structural patterns in tissues by X-ray diffraction (XRD). Since detection and classification of tumor type and stage from the pathological examinations is a laborious task that additionally does not allow cancer detection in the early stages, development of new tools to improve the diagnostic power of pathologists is still needed. In this study, the potential used of XRD tecniques as one of the method for early detection of breast cancer was done. Four pathological cancerous breast tissue samples were taken from four different patients; where two samples are with epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (P-EMT) and two samples are without epithelial to mesenchymal transition (N-EMT). The latter was incorporated at an angle interval of 10° to 80° to obtain interference diffraction pattern of XRD of human malignant tissues. This was done to determine molecular structure changes of collagen fiber within the tissue and their potential relation to the changes in cancerous tissue toward metastasis. The results showed that the momentum transfer values for the first region of N-EMT, P-EMT cancerous tissue are not significantly different for both cancerous breast tissue types, being at 1.61 ± 1.74 nm−1. The average peaks of the second region were determined for N-EMT at 3.4 ± 3.5 nm−1 and P-EMT at 3.6 ± 3.7 nm− which is attributed to water content of the tissues, due to the greater intensity of the P-EMT compared to that of N-EMT. Principal component analysis (PCA) used to confirm statistical appropriateness of the results, showed a normal distribution within 95% confidence level. P-EMT clusters have a larger number of scatter plots compared to N-EMT, which indicates a higher similarity between P-EMT samples than between N-EMT samples, thus confirming the difference between positive and negative-EMT clusters. The curent analysis can differentiate XRD features and thus confirms its effectiveness in detecting the molecular correlation of abnormal collagen fiber structure within epithelial change, and is useful for early diagnosis even case of dense breasts.
Taxing Top Incomes in a World of Ideas

This paper considers top income taxation when (i) new ideas drive economic growth, (ii) the reward for successful innovation is a top income, and (iii) innovation cannot be perfectly targeted by a research subsidy—think about the business methods of Walmart, the creation of Uber, or the “idea” of Amazon. These conditions lead to a new force affecting the optimal top tax rate: by slowing the creation of new ideas that drive aggregate GDP, top income taxation reduces everyone’s income, not just income at the top. This force sharply constrains both revenue-maximizing and welfare-maximizing top tax rates.
Can the Implementation of Social Protection Policies and Programme Reducing Households and Community Vulnerability to Poverty in Uganda

The existence of disconnected and overlapping research findings on who are the vulnerable groups in postconflict communities of Uganda continues to mingle around the mind of scholarly researchers, policy and decision makers. Most of these groups have had specific research studies conducted and strategic policies designed to address the findings. This article tries to provide an approach to understanding of the concept of vulnerability from social protection perspective. In this regards, the paper looks at and reviews available text on who are vulnerable group in Ugandan context and then focus on more general issues of poverty and vulnerability at household and community level. It further examines the causes of household and community vulnerability to poverty and suggests what social protection interventions provided by the state and non-state actors in reducing their vulnerability to poverty can do. The vulnerable communities reviewed are those households and communities members emerging from inter-intra-conflicts in northern and eastern Uganda. The article begins with an overview of poverty trends and distribution and identifies who are the vulnerable poor in the context of Uganda. For this paper, we define or identify vulnerable households as those persons living in one roof of a home and are always susceptible to shocks and risks such as limited access to education, health facilities, shelter, safe and clean drinking waters, while the paper identifies vulnerable communities as those communities with no or existing poor social infrastructures such as medical facilities, bad roads and old building school structures.
A longitudinal analysis of sexual minorities’ acceptance concerns and internalised homonegativity on perceived psychological stress

ABSTRACT Acceptance concerns and internalised homonegativity are associated with deleterious health outcomes for sexual minority persons, including psychological stress. However, previous studies examining the effects of proximal minority stressors (including acceptance concerns and internalised homonegativity) on stress have been limited by their cross-sectional approach. The present study extends past research by examining the temporal relationship between two minority stress processes – acceptance concerns and internalised homonegativity – and perceived stress. Ninety-four sexual minority participants (M = 25.6 years; SD = 9.1 years) recruited from American university listservs completed online measures assessing minority stress and perceived stress. Then, one year later, participants completed the same measure of perceived stress. Structural equation modelling of latent variables examined effects of minority stress on perceived stress one year later, controlling for perceived stress at the initial time of data collection. Analyses revealed that internalised homonegativity – but not acceptance concerns – predicted perceived stress one year later. Implications at the macrolevel and microlevel are discussed, including important and relevant public policy directions to help ameliorate mental health disparities in sexual minority populations. We also identify strategies for policy and health professionals, such as enacting inclusive policies and recognising and celebrating the strengths of sexual minority individuals.
Seasonal variations in the content and composition of essential oil from Zanthoxylum piperitum

Seasonal variations in the profile and concentrations of essential oil in Zanthoxylum piperitum were investigated by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Seasonal changes in the percentages of the main constituents of the essential oil of both leaves and fruits from Z. piperitum varied. Variations in essential oil yield and the amount of monoterpenes and ses-quiterpenes in leaves and fruits at different developmental stages were significant. The characteristic content of essential oil in leaves was determined mainly due to the content of monoterpenes, and that in fruits was determined largely due to the sesquiterpenes. Twenty-nine compounds in the oil from Z. piperitum leaves were detected; the major compounds were b-phellandrene (26.90%), citronella (15.32%), b-myrcene (3.24%), α-pinene (2.79%), trans-caryophyllene (2.66%), and fanesyl acetate (2.30%). The highest yield of oil (43.89%) in Z. piperitum leaves was obtained in May but decreased gradually beginning in June. The yield of essential oil from Z. piperitum leaves during early periods was higher than that during later periods and usually decreased from early maturation stages to subsequent stages. However, in contrast to leaves, the oil yield in Z. piperitum fruit increased in June, and oil yield later in the season was higher than that earlier in the season. These results indicate that the essential oil produced from Z. piperitum leaves at the early developmental stages was stored in leaves, and might be transferred to fruit at the final developmental stages.
Factors Affecting the Value-Relevance of Capitalized Exploration and Evaluation Expenditures Under IFRS 6

This study examines factors affecting the value-relevance of financial and nonfinancial disclosure in the context of the long contentious International Financial Reporting Standard 6 (IFRS 6). Relative to the capitalization of R&D expenditures, IFRS 6 follows a far less restrictive approach, delaying the requirement for probable future economic benefits in settings of high uncertainty. We compare the value-relevance of this asset with that of nonfinancial information commonly reported by mining firms, namely mineral resource estimates. We report evidence that investors utilize nonfinancial information to assess the value-relevance of financial information, initially focusing on whichever information is timelier. We do not find evidence that investors prefer conservative reporting practices in a setting with high uncertainty; rather we provide evidence that investors interpret the capitalization decision as a signal of project viability. This finding is of particular relevance to the ongoing Intangible Assets project being conducted by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). JEL classifications: G12, G14
OF ECONOMICS DISCUSSION PAPER SERIES Airline Market Power and Intertemporal Price Dispersion

This paper analyzes the empirical relationship between market structure and price dispersion in the airline markets connecting the UK and the Republic of Ireland. Price dispersion is measured by a number of inequality indexes, calculated using fares posted on the Internet at specific days before takeoff. We find a negative correlation between market dominance and price dispersion; thus competition appears to hinder the airlines’ ability to price discriminate to exploit consumers’ heterogeneity in booking time preferences. Moreover, in the Christmas and Easter periods of high demand, fares are less dispersed, possibly because airlines target a less heterogenous set of consumers. JEL Classification: D43, L10, L93.
Salivary profile and periodontal condition in patients with heart disease under warfarin treatment

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in many countries. It refers to many conditions can be categorized into: electrical, circulatory and structural disorders. Warfarin drug is widely used anticoagulant medication for treatment of thrombosis and embolism. Patients on warfarin treatment are susceptible to bleeding and cannot perform oral hygiene practice properly therefore, periodontal diseases are commonly seen in those patients. The study was carried out on 42 individuals (22 with heart disease taking warfarin drug as case group and 20 healthy individuals as control group). Nonstimulated whole saliva samples were obtained by expectoration. Salivary flow rate was measured as ml/min, salivary Creactive protein and albumin levels were measured by using autoanalyzer. Periodontal status was assessed by measurement of clinical attachment loss for both groups. The mean salivary flow rate was significantly lower in case group compared to healthy controls (P= 0.02). The mean salivary C reactive protein and albumin levels were significantly higher in the case group than the control group (p= 0.003). Clinical attachment loss was significantly higher in case group than controls (p< 0.001). Salivary flow rate decrease in patients with heart disease. Salivary Creactive protein and albumin levels in addition to clinical attachment loss were increase in patients with heart disease using warfarin drug, so good oral hygiene instructions are necessary. Clinical article (J Int Dent Med Res 2018; 11(2): pp. 449-453)
Two-Dimensional Numerical Modelling of a Moored Floating Body under Sloping Seabed Conditions

A coupled floating body-mooring line model is developed by combining a boundary element model for a two-dimensional floating body and a catenary mooring line model. The boundary element model is formulated in the time domain by a continuous Rankine source, and a reflection potential is introduced to account for the wave reflection due to sloping seabed. This newly developed model is validated by comparisons against available data. Then, dynamic response analyses are performed for the moored body in various seabed conditions. Compared with a flat seabed, a sloping seabed causes unsymmetrical mooring line configuration and generates noticeable effects in the motion responses of the floating body.
The Cycle of Daily Stress and Sleep: Sleep Measurement Matters.

BACKGROUND Disturbed sleep can be a cause and a consequence of elevated stress. Yet intensive longitudinal studies have revealed that sleep assessed via diaries and actigraphy is inconsistently associated with daily stress. PURPOSE We expanded this research by examining daily associations between sleep and stress using a threefold approach to assess sleep: sleep diaries, actigraphy, and ambulatory single-channel electroencephalography (EEG). METHODS Participants were 80 adults (mean age = 32.65 years, 63% female) who completed 7 days of stressor and sleep assessments. Multilevel models were used to examine bidirectional associations between occurrence and severity of daily stress with diary-, actigraphy-, and EEG-determined sleep parameters (e.g., total sleep time [TST], sleep efficiency, and sleep onset latency, and wake after sleep onset [WASO]). RESULTS Participants reported at least one stressor 37% of days. Days with a stressor were associated with a 14.4-min reduction in actigraphy-determined TST (β = -0.24, p = 0.030), but not with other actigraphy, diary, or EEG sleep measures. Nights with greater sleep diary-determined WASO were associated with greater next-day stressor severity (β = 0.01, p = 0.026); no other diary, actigraphy, or EEG sleep measures were associated with next-day stressor occurrence or severity. CONCLUSIONS Daily stress and sleep disturbances occurred in a bidirectional fashion, though specific results varied by sleep measurement technique and sleep parameter. Together, our results highlight that the type of sleep measurement matters for examining associations with daily stress. We urge future researchers to treat sleep diaries, actigraphy, and EEG as complementary-not redundant-sleep measurement approaches.
Inter- and intraspecific variability of plant individual growth and its role on species ranking in grasslands

Individual growth constitutes a major component of individual fitness. However, measuring growth rates of herbaceous plants non-destructively at the individual level is notoriously difficult. This study, based on an accurate non-destructive method of aboveground biomass estimation, aims to assess individual relative growth rates (RGRs) of some species, identify its environmental drivers and test its consequences on community patterning. We specifically address three questions: (i) to what extent environmental conditions explain differences in individual plant growth between sites, (ii) what is the magnitude of intraspecific variability of plant individual growth within and between sites and (iii) do species-averaged (dis-)advantage of individual growth compared with the whole vegetation within a site correlate with species ranking at the community level? We monitored the growth of individuals of four common perennial species in 18 permanent grasslands chosen along a large pedoclimatic gradient located in the Massif Central, France. We measured soil properties, levels of resources and meteorological parameters to characterize environmental conditions at the site level. This design enables us to assess the influence of environmental conditions on individual growth and the relative extent of inter-individual variability of growth explained within and between sites. We determined the ranking of each of the four species in each site with botanical surveys to assess the relationship between species-averaged growth (dis-)advantage relative to the whole community and species rank in the community. We found that environmental conditions explain a significant proportion of individual growth variability, and that this proportion is strongly variable between species. Light availability was the main driver of plant growth, followed by rainfall amount and potential evapotranspiration, while soil properties had only a slight effect. We further highlighted a moderate to high within-site inter-individual variability of growth. We finally showed that there was no correlation between species ranking and species-averaged individual growth.
ZnO Nanowire-Based Field Emission Devices Through a Microelectronic Compatible Route

Digital Object Identifier 10.29292/jics.v15i1. 105 Abstract— Nanostructured zinc oxide (ZnO) has attracted considerable interest over the past few years because of its unique characteristics and possibility of application in different areas, including its use as an active layer in gas sensor devices and as promising emitters for field emission devices. Although it is interesting for FE purposes, the synthesis of this material can be complex and non-compatible with microelectronic processes. To overcome this issue, this paper explores ZnO nanowires growth by a non-catalyst thermal oxidation method. The as-grown nanomaterials were characterized in detail by Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectrometry, X-ray diffractometry and scanning electron microscopy. These characterizations confirmed that the processes applied were well succeeded in obtaining high density of nanoscale structures of ZnO over the whole substrate surface. The diameters of the ZnO nanowires ranged from 30 to 100 nanometers with the length up to 4 micrometers. Efficient electron field emission properties were obtained, with a low turn-on electric field (2.4 volts per micrometer at a current density of 360 picoamperes per square centimeter). An innovative system based on image processing allowed electrical current mapping throughout the active area of the devices, providing information about the uniformity of the emitted current. These results demonstrate that the low-complex fabrication procedures adopted as well as the ZnO nanomaterial itself are suitable for field emission based devices.
Do Place-Based Policies Work? Micro-Level Evidence from China's Economic Zone Program

Exploiting two geo-coded firm censuses, this paper examines the impact of China's Special Economic Zones on economic activity in the targeted areas. We find that economic zones have a positive effect on employment, output and capital, and increase the number of firms. We also find that firm births and deaths play a larger role in explaining the zones' effects than incumbents and relocations. Finally, a zone's effectiveness depends on a program's features. Capital-intensive industries exhibit larger positive zone effects than labor-intensive ones. Location characteristics such as market potential and transportation accessibility are not critical factors in enhancing the program effects.