Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Coarse Credit Ratings, Corporate Financing, and Real Outcomes∗

We study how third-party rating information influences firms’ access to bank financing and real outcomes. We exploit a refinement in the rating scale that occurred in France in 2004. The new rules made some firms upgraded relative to others within each rating class. We find that upgraded firms enjoy greater and cheaper access to bank credit. Such effects are stronger the higher the cost for banks to screen the borrowing firms. Thanks to the greater access to credit, upgraded firms reduce their reliance on equity, increase their investment and hiring, and are less likely to fail. Overall, our findings uncover a new bank lending technology whereby banks rely on indicators based on hard and soft information produced by a third-party entity. ∗The views expressed herein are those of the authors and should under no circumstances be interpreted as reflecting those of the Banque de France or the Eurosystem. †Banque de France; christophe.cahn@banque-france.fr; 31 rue Croix des Petits Champs 75049, Paris CEDEX 01, France. ‡Banque de France; mattia.girotti@banque-france.fr; 31 rue Croix des Petits Champs 75049, Paris CEDEX 01, France. §PSB Paris School of Business; f.salvade@psbedu.paris; 59 rue Nationale 75013, Paris, France.
Stability and mean-field limits of age dependent Hawkes processes

In the last decade, Hawkes processes have received a lot of attention as good models for functional connectivity in neural spiking networks. In this paper we consider a variant of this process; the age dependent Hawkes process, which incorporates individual post-jump behavior into the framework of the usual Hawkes model. This allows to model recovery properties such as refractory periods, where the effects of the network are momentarily being suppressed or altered. We show how classical stability results for Hawkes processes can be improved by introducing age into the system. In particular, we neither need to a priori bound the intensities nor to impose any conditions on the Lipschitz constants. When the interactions between neurons are of mean-ﬁeld type, we study large network limits and establish the propagation of chaos property of the system. du réseau est supprimée ou au moins modiﬁée. Nous améliorons les résultats de stabilité classiques pour les processus de Hawkes dans ce cadre. En particulier, nous n’avons ni besoin de supposer que les intensités sont bornées, ni d’imposer une condition aux normes Lipschitz des fonctions taux de saut. Lorsque les interactions entre les neurones sont du type champ moyen, nous étudions les limites en grande population et nous démontrons la propriété de propagation du chaos du système.
The chamois ( Rupicapra cf. pyrenaica ) in central Italy: what ancient DNA tells us

Acknowledgements This work was supported by funds from “Università Politecnica delle Marche” (Ricerca Scientifica d’Ateneo 2018, grant number I36C18004750005 and Progetto Strategico di Ateneo, grant number 040017_R. SCIENT. A_2016_CAPUTO BARUCCHI_V_STRATEGICI). We are grateful to Carlo Bifulco, Director of the Sibillini Mountain National Park, for permitting us to study the Ripa Grande skull of Apennine chamois and to Francesca Alhaique (Museo delle Civiltà, Rome, Italy) for revising the first draft of the manuscript. We also thank the anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments which allowed the improvement of the manuscript. Abstract
Hierarchical Inconsistencies: A Critical Assessment of Justification

The existential insecurity of human beings has induced them to create protective spheres of symbols: myths, religions, values, belief systems, theories, etc. Rationality is one of the key factors contributing to the construction of civilisation in technical and symbolic terms. As Hankiss (2001) has emphasised, protective spheres of symbols may collapse – thus causing a profound social crisis. Social and political transformations had a tremendous impact at the end of the 20 th century. As a result, management theories have been revised in order to deal with transition and uncertainty. Francis Fukuyama’s (2000) approach is supportive of hierarchical organisation as the best solution when facing a ‘disruption’. The notion of Homo Hierarchicus has been based on, allegedly, rational presumptions. This paper contributes to the discussion on hierarchy within contemporary organisations. It criticises so-called ‘natural’ and ‘rational’ necessities justifying hierarchy. A key issue identified by the paper is the formalisation of language in claiming value-free knowledge and ‘detached’ observation as the basis for neutral rationality and aspired efficiency. This should be seriously reconsidered as hindering rather than aiding understanding of social complexity. All in all, Homo Hierarchicus appears to be misleading rather than helping symbolic sphere or construct.
Undisclosed SEC Investigations

One of the hallmarks of the Security and Exchange Commision's (SEC's) investigative process is that it is shrouded in secrecy––only the SEC staff, high-level managers of the company being investigated, and outside counsel are typically aware of active investigations. We obtain novel data on all investigations closed by the SEC between 2000 and 2017––data that were heretofore nonpublic––and find that such investigations predict economically material declines in future firm performance. Despite evidence that the vast majority of these investigations are economically material, firms are not required to disclose them, and only 19% of investigations are initially disclosed. We examine whether corporate insiders exploit the undisclosed nature of these investigations for personal gain. Despite the undisclosed and economically material nature of these investigations, we find that insiders are not abstaining from trading. In particular, we find a pronounced spike in insider selling among undisclosed investigations with the most severe negative outcomes; and that abnormal selling activity appears highly opportunistic and earns significant abnormal returns. Our results suggest that SEC investigations are often undisclosed, economically material nonpublic events, and that insiders are trading in conjunction with these events. This paper was accepted by Suraj Srinivasan, accounting.
Governance, governmentality and project performance: the role of sovereignty

Considerable confusion prevails in the mutual positioning and relationship of concepts like management, leadership, governance and governmentality in projects. This article first develops a framework to distinguish these terms conceptually by use of Archer’s structure and human agency philosophy. This provides for clearer conceptualization and lesser redundancy in the use of terms. Then the interaction between governance and governmentality in the context of projects is assessed, using a contingency theory perspective. This addresses long-standing questions about the nature of the impact of governance and governmentality on each other and on project and organizational performance. The results show that higher levels of project sovereignty (as a measure of governance), are associated with lower levels of authoritarian, but higher levels of neo-liberal governmentality, as well as higher levels of project and organizational performance. The article continues with a discussion of the theoretical implications from different perspectives of causality, which provides for different approaches to improve project performance through deliberate fine-tuning of governance and governmentality.
Comparison of antigenic mutation during egg and cell passage cultivation of H3N2 influenza virus

Purpose When influenza viruses are cultured in eggs, amino acid mutations of the hemagglutinin may occur through egg adaptation. On the other hand, when influenza viruses are cultured in animal cells, no antigenic mutation occurs unlike in eggs. Therefore, we examined whether the antigenic mutations actually occurred after passage of H3N2 (A/Texas/50/2012) virus up to 15 times in eggs and MDCK-Sky3851 cells. Materials and Methods Prototype A/Texas/50/2012 (H3N2) influenza virus which was isolated from clinical patient, not passaged in egg, was obtained and propagated using the specific pathogen free egg and the MDCK-Sky3851 cell line up to 15 passage, and the changes in the antigen sequence of the influenza viruses were confirmed by gene sequencing and protein structure analysis. Results In term of the hemagglutination titer of influenza virus, the reactivity to chicken and guinea pig red blood cell showed different results between egg propagated and cell propagated viruses. In the sequence analysis results for hemagglutinin and neuraminidase, no antigenic mutation was observed throughout all passages when cultured in MDCK-Sky3851 cells. On the other hand, mutations occurred in three amino acid sequences (H156R, G186S, S219F) in hemagglutinin up to 15 passages when cultured in eggs. Conclusion H3N2 influenza virus cultured in eggs could lead mutations in amino acid sequence of hemagglutinin, distinct from the corresponding virus cultured in cells for which no antigenic mutation was observed. These findings suggest that cell culture is a more stable and effective way of production with lower risk of antigenic mutations for the manufacture of influenza vaccines.
Effect of Aniline as Corrosion inhibitor on the Corrosion of Aluminium in Hydrochloric Acid Solution

The effect of aniline as an organic inhibitor on the corrosion of aluminum in hydrochloric acid solution was studied at different temperature using weight loss method. The inhibitor and corrosion product were characterized using Fourier transform infrared Spectrophotometer (FTIR) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) analysis. The results of the study reveal that aluminum corrosion was inhibited at different concentrations of the inhibitor. The inhibition efficiency increased with increasing inhibitor concentration but decreased with rising temperature. Activation energy was found to be 20.48 kJ mol for the uninhibited acid solution which increased to 27.32 kJ mol in the presence of 0.1 M inhibitor concentration. The negative values of Gibb’s free energy of adsorption (ΔGads) confirmed the spontaneity of the inhibition process and adsorption of the inhibitor on the aluminium surface was found to be consistent with Langmuir adsorption isotherm. Corrosion rate and other thermodynamic parameters such as enthalpy (ΔH) and entropy (ΔS) were calculated and discussed.
JIMS, Volume 10, Number 4, 2010 ISSN: 1690-2140 ABSTRACTS 1. INTERNAL AUDIT COMPETENCY, ORGANIZATIONAL OUTCOMES, AND FIRM SUCCESS: AN EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE FROM THAI-LISTED FIRMS

1. INTERNAL AUDIT COMPETENCY, ORGANIZATIONAL OUTCOMES, AND FIRM SUCCESS: AN EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE FROM THAI-LISTED FIRMS Somjai Boonmunewai, Mahasarakham University, Thailand Phapruke Ussahawanitchakit, Mahasarakham University, Thailand ABSTRACT The objective of this study is to investigate the effects of internal audit competency on firm success via the mediating influences of organizational outcomes which include organizational operation efficiency, enterprise risk management effectiveness, corporate governance achievement, and financial information reliability. Executive vision of transparency, management controllability, information technology change, regulation enforcement, and stakeholder pressure are hypothesized to become the antecedents of internal audit competency. Also inter-functional cooperation is the moderating variable of the relationship between internal audit competency and organizational outcomes. Data was collected from 104 listed firms in Thailand. The results of OLS regression reveal that internal audit competency has a positive influence on all organizational outcomes. In addition, organizational operation efficiency, enterprise risk management effectiveness, and corporate governance achievement have a positive effect on firm success. Moreover, executive visions of transparency, information technology change, and regulation enforcement also have a positive effect on internal audit competency. Contributions, suggestions for future research, and conclusions of this study are presented.
Investigating Consumer Participation Decision in Community-Supported Agriculture: An Application of Cumulative Prospect Theory

Using the framework of cumulative prospect theory (CPT), we investigate consumers’ decision to participate in community-supported agriculture (CSA) under risk and uncertainty. We analyze discrete choice experiment data using a CPT framework that allows for flexible reference points and individual preference heterogeneity. Comparison between model specifications suggests that the CPT model with the control of all risk parameters generates better goodness of fit than the expected utility model. Market sensitivity analysis further indicates that, while CSA operators benefit from transferring production risk partially to consumers, the level of transferred risk has a great impact on market share.
Mantle Structure and Flow Beneath an Early‐Stage Continental Rift: Constraints From P Wave Anisotropic Tomography

To explore 3‐D seismic velocity and radial anisotropy structures of the upper mantle and mantle transition zone beneath the Malawi and Luangwa rift zones of the East African Rift System, we conduct the first study of P wave anisotropic tomography using data recorded at 75 seismic stations including 34 stations that we installed along two profiles as part of the Seismic Arrays for African Rift Initiation experiment. Both rift zones are revealed to have normal or slightly low velocity anomalies in the lithosphere and upper asthenosphere. The surrounding cratonic lithosphere is characterized by high‐velocity anomalies with amplitudes ranging from +1.0% to +2.0%. Negative radial anisotropy, which is indicative of upwelling or downwelling in the mantle, is mainly distributed beneath the rift zones, whereas the other areas mostly feature positive radial anisotropy that implies horizontal flow. A prominent circular low‐velocity anomaly exists in the top 200 km of the upper mantle beneath the Rungwe Volcanic Province without obvious connections to the lower mantle. Combining the present findings with previous geodetic and tomography results, we interpret the Rungwe Volcanic Province magmatism as primarily due to decompression melting in response to lithospheric extension induced by the counterclockwise and clockwise rotations of the Victoria and Rovuma microplates, respectively, with respect to the Nubian plate. Isolated mantle upwelling, which is indicated by scattered low‐velocity anomalies and negative radial anisotropy beneath the Malawi rift zone, may contribute to the incipient rifting.
What Explains the Dispersion Effect? Evidence from Exogenous Variation in Institutional Ownership

This paper offers a joint test of two plausible explanations (difference-in-opinion vs. analyst selfcensoring) for why stocks with higher dispersion in analysts’ earnings forecasts earn lower subsequent returns (the dispersion effect). We recognize the possibility that institutional ownership can be endogenous, which could cause bias in the tests of the dispersion effect. We address this concern by exploiting the exogenous variations in institutional ownership generated by the annual reconstitution of the Russell 3000 index. We find that in the general sample, firms with higher institutional ownership have a weaker dispersion effect, but the exact opposite is true for firms in the Russell sample. Furthermore, we find parallel results when we replace stock returns with analyst forecast bias. These results strongly suggest that analyst self-censoring rather than the more popular difference-in-opinion story is the more plausible explanation for the dispersion effect, at least in a sample where the endogeneity bias of institutional ownership is minimized.
The Relationship of Self-efficacy and Demographic Characteristics With Blood Glucose Control in Iranian Older Adults With Diabetes Type II: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract Objectives: The present study was conducted to investigate the relationship of self-efficacy and demographic characteristics with blood glucose control in older patients with diabetes type II who referred to an endocrinology clinic in the northwest of Iran. Materials and Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted using a random sampling method through which the patients were divided into controlled and uncontrolled groups. A total of 290 eligible volunteers participated in the research during November-March 2016. The Diabetes Management Self-efficacy Scale and demographic information form were completed by face-to-face interviews. Based on the hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) level, the patients were assigned to controlled (HbA1c<7) and uncontrolled (HbA1c>7) groups. Finally, the data were analyzed using SPSS. Results: The results showed a significant difference between the 2 groups regarding the mean self-efficacy scores after adjusting for the blood glucose control confounding variables (P≤0.05). Moreover, all the dimensions of participants’ self-efficacy scores had significant relationships with the glycosylated hemoglobin level (P≤0.05). In terms of personal details, variables including the time since diagnosis of diabetes, education, and economic status had significant relationships with blood glucose control as well (P≤0.05). Conclusions: In general, the economic status, education, and time since diagnosis of diabetes affected diabetes control. Thus, performing interventions to improve the self-efficacy and well-being of these patients can improve their self-care and blood glucose control.
DO EXPECTATIONS REFLECT INFORMATION RELIABILITY? EVIDENCE FROM ODDS ON TENNIS MATCHES

We examine whether people form expectations by placing a larger weight on more reliable signals. To test this notion, we analyze subjective probabilities inferred from odds offered on the outcomes of men's tennis matches, exploiting exogenous variation in information reliability related to whether a tennis match is played in a long or short format. The premise of our tests is that higher-skilled players, who are more likely to win any single point, will win more often in longer matches, where more points are generally played. This notion, which is confirmed in the data, suggests that skillrelated signals are relatively more reliable in longer matches, and should thus affect odds in those matches more strongly. However, we find that the likelihood of higherranked players winning in longer matches is under-estimated. This result is robust to inferring expectations from odds offered by professional bookmakers, or odds achieved on a person-to-person betting exchange. The resulting biases in expectations are costly. Results from various robustness tests, including a laboratory experiment and a placebo test using women’s tennis data where all matches are played in the same length, support our conclusions. Overall, our analysis suggests that information reliability neglect influences expectations and outcomes in real-world markets.
Learning Depression Patterns from MyPersonality and Reddit

Millions of Americans suffer from mental health problems caused by negative sentiment such as depression and neuroticism. Nevertheless, traditional clinical diagnosis is not preferred as a large-scale approach due to the high expenditures and subjective judgement. In this paper, we conduct exploratory data analysis on three datasets from MyPersonality and Reddit, train and compare different predictive models for depression and neuroticism with various features. Our experimental results indicate promising feasibility to identify such mental health problems using natural language processing techniques. Moreover, we discuss the differences among χ2-Test, PMI, LDA, between single and multiple feature selections, and between SVM and SLDA. Thus, we accomplish and overfulfill all of our proposed goals. Eventually, we propose several directions for future research.
Lecture Notes for ORIE 6300: Mathematical Programming I

2 What is Optimization? 4 2.1 A Mathematical Program . 4 2.2 Fundamental Structures: Linearity and Convexity . 5 2.2.1 Aside: Ubiquity of Linear Objectives . 6 2.3 Basic Consequences of Convexity . 6 2.4 Exercises . 6
PLACEMENT, CAREER DEVELOPMENT ON EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE WITH JOB SATISFACTION AS INTERVENING VARIABLES

The Ministry of Social Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia (RI) is a ministry that has the task of organizing and in charge of domestic affairs for the implementation of state governance in the social field. The purpose of this study was to determine and analyze the influence of placement and career development on performance with job satisfaction as an intervening variable at the Ministry of Social Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia. The population is employees taken proportionally with a sample size of 146 respondents. Data collection techniques using questionnaires and analyzed using path analysis with the help of SEM. The results showed that placement and career development had a positive and significant effect on performance through employee job satisfaction at the Ministry of Social Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia. The findings of this study found that the presence of employees as one of the triggers of low performance given the low effectiveness of employees in carrying out their duties and responsibilities.
Horizontal coordinate transformation using artificial neural network technology- A case study of Ghana geodetic reference network

Transformation of coordinates between different geodetic datums has been a common practice within the geospatial profession. Relating different geodetic datums mostly involves the use of conformal transformation techniques which could produce results that are not very often satisfactory for certain geodetic, surveying and mapping purposes. This has been attributed to the inability of the conformal models to absorb more of the heterogeneous and local character of deformations existing within the local geodetic networks. In light of this, most researchers have resorted to Artificial Neural Network (ANN) as a plausible alternative technology for coordinate transformation. Although the ANN technique has been applied successfully, the method is yet to be adopted and tested within the Ghana geodetic reference network. In view of this, the present study applied the Radial Basis Function Neural Network (RBFNN) to transform plane coordinates between the two classical geodetic networks namely, Accra datum and Leigon datum which is used in Ghana for its surveying and mapping activities. The RBFNN results obtained were compared with the four-parameter and sixparameter transformation models. It was noticed that the RBFNN could produce more reliable and accurate results and thus is more applicable in modelling distortions existing in the local geodetic networks more effectively than the traditional techniques (six-parameter and four-parameter).