Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
To what extent does COVID-19 drive stock market volatility? A comparison between the U.S. and China

Abstract This paper presents a novel wavelet-based quantile-on-quantile method for comparing the impact of COVID-19 on stock market volatility between the U.S. and China. Wavelet decomposition shows that the impact has stronger regularity in the lower frequency domain. Compared with oil price fluctuations, COVID-19 is the main reason for the sharp fluctuation of the U.S. stock market. Unlike China, however, the strong growth of daily new cases, which continued for months, has made the U.S. stock market insensitive to COVID-19. In addition, the particularly loose interest rate policy has effectively suppressed the volatility of the U.S. stock market. However, in contrast to China, the near zero interest rate applied by the U.S. makes it difficult to generate sufficient monetary policy space to address a new potential crisis. The result of this study presents the differences of the financial market response under different epidemic management modes. Under the background that COVID-19 is not effectively controlled, a loose monetary policy may be an expedient measure to stabilise the market. This is of great practical significance towards achieving epidemic control and financial market stability under the background of the global spread of COVID-19.
Palaeoclimate Reconstruction and Age Assessment of the Miocene Flora from the Trwyn y Parc Solution Pipe Complex of Anglesey, Wales, UK

ABSTRACT The Trwyn y Parc solution pipes on the Isle of Anglesey, Wales, UK are one of only three onshore Miocene fossil flora bearing sites. Here, we revise the palynostratigraphy and present new palaeoclimate data for this geoheritage site. By comparison to palynological data from northern Europe the age has been refined from Miocene to Middle Miocene, possibly Langhian. This is confirmed by palaeoclimate reconstructions comparable to the German Middle Miocene, especially the Langhian after the Middle Miocene Climatic Optimum (MMCO). This new information not only confirms the regional importance of Trwyn y Parc, but shows it to be of national importance. Our findings show that this Regionally Important Geodiversity Site (RIGs) is of national importance as it is the oldest onshore fossiliferous Neogene deposit in the UK. Based on this, and the unique fossil flora preserved at Trwyn y Parc, the site has significant geoheritage value and should be upgraded to Geological Conservation Review (GCR) status and subsequently protected as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).
The Predictive Ability of Emotional Creativity in Creative Performance Among University Students

This study investigated the predictive ability of emotional creativity (EC) in creative performance (CP). The sample consisted of 297 male and female students from literary, educational, and administrative specializations. EC was assessed by Averill’s Emotional Creativity Inventory that includes three dimensions: preparedness, novelty, and effectiveness. Mednick’s Remote Associates Test was used to assess CP. Results revealed that the three dimensions of EC predicted CP. Statistically significant differences in EC were found in favor of female students and students from literary and educational specializations, whereas no significant differences were found by cumulative grade. Nevertheless, statistically significant differences in CP by cumulative grade were found in favor of students with high grades. No statistically significant differences in CP by gender and specialization were found. It was recommended based on the results that the three dimensions of EC be integrated in programs seeking to enhance students’ creative thinking skills.
Sovereign currency and long-term interest rates

ABSTRACT This paper investigates the effects of government debt and deficits on long-term interest rates in 17 advanced economies over the period 1973–2016 from the perspective of currency sovereignty. The empirical findings of this paper suggest the market penalizes non-sovereign nations for the same amount of fiscal deficit with higher interest rates than sovereigns. In addition, non-sovereign countries face accelerating interest rates for an increase in the debt-to-GDP ratio beyond a certain threshold (49% to GDP) while such a pattern is not obvious among sovereign nations. Overall, the results support Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) view that a monetarily sovereign government, as a monopoly issuer of currency, can influence the prices of their liabilities to a significant extent, somewhat independent of existing public debt and market sentiment.
Finite Horizon Portfolio Selection with Durable Goods

Abstract We study the consumption and portfolio selection problem of a finitely lived agent who derives utility from the stock of durable goods. We show that the agent’s effective relative risk aversion implied by the optimal portfolio tends to decline and approaches zero, as the planning horizon approaches, whereas the agent exhibits constant effective relative risk aversion in the infinite horizon model of Hindy and Huang (1993). The existence of the stock of durable goods acts as buffer stock and induces the highly risk-tolerant attitude. We approach this problem using successive transformations. We transform our problem by applying an isomorphism proposed by Schroder and Skiadas (2002) to a singular control problem involving the choice of a monotone increasing consumption process. We next transform the problem into a dual singular control problem using the dual martingale method. We then transform the dual singular control problem into an optimal stopping problem. We analyze the variational inequality arising from the optimal stopping problem and provide an integral representation of optimal strategies.
Does Foreign Institutional Equity Participation Instigate Sustainable Corporate Investment Efficiency? Evidence from Emerging Economies

This study examines the impact of overall foreign institutional equity participation and its two types—foreign institutional pressure-resistant and pressure-sensitive—on firm sustainable investment efficiency for non-financial listed domestic firms of three emerging economies over the period of 2009–2018, using an unbalanced panel of 733 firms with 4468 firm-year observations. It also investigates the impact of varying levels of foreign equity participation on investment efficiency. We used the regression estimation technique with robust standard errors clustered at the firm level. We also used the second-stage instrumental variable (IV) method to control potential endogeneity. Empirical findings reveal that overall foreign institutional equity participation and foreign institutional pressure-resistant ownership have a positive and significant impact on corporate investment efficiency, whereas foreign institutional pressure-sensitive ownership has a positive but insignificant impact. When we divided the overall institutional foreign equity ownership and its two types into five levels, we found a positive and significant impact of overall foreign institutional ownership at all levels. The foreign institutional pressure-resistant ownership has a positive and significant impact on investment efficiency when it is greater than 10%. However, we found a weak relationship of foreign institutional pressure-sensitive equity ownership with investment efficiency at all varying levels of investments. These results are robust when we controlled for endogeneity. Our results have implications for policymakers, regulators, academicians, and potential foreign equity participants. These results can be generalized to those emerging economies that have the potentials for attracting foreign equity inflows.
The Micro-Foundation of Ambidextrous Foreign Direct Investment

ABSTRACT Pursuing ambidextrous foreign direct investment (FDI) has been suggested as a desirable strategic choice of emerging economy (EE) firms in their internationalization. Yet, reconciling explorative and exploitative activities overseas is complicated due to their conflicting and tensional nature. This study explores why some EE firms can achieve high levels of ambidextrous FDI while others cannot. Drawing on upper echelons theory, we propose a micro-foundation perspective of ambidextrous FDI by studying top management teams’ (TMTs) attributes. Applying a configurational approach to a sample of 294 EE firms’ FDI observations (of which 43 are ambidextrous FDI in nature) from 2011 to 2015, we not only confirm the equal importance of both TMT incentive and cognitive factors as causal conditions to achieve a high degree of ambidextrous FDI, but also provide original evidence on the interactive configurations of those factors that lead to ambidextrous FDI.
Who Is in the Middle: Social Class, Core Values, and Identities in India

This article examines how middle‐class identity is experienced and employed by traditional and neo‐middle‐class identifiers in India The economically and socially heterogeneous middle‐class identifiers vote similarly, but we know very little about what they want out of politics We focus on the subjective experiences of middle‐class identifiers, we theorize the expressive function of middle‐class identities, and we examine the socially and personally focused core values of traditional middle‐class identifiers and neo‐middle aspirers We introduce the "Class as Social Identity" scale and analyze qualitative interviews with strong middle‐class identifiers (Study 1) and the 2006, 2012, and 2014 World Values Survey India segments (Study 2) The interviews show that upper middle class and lower middle class identifiers express similar socially focused values but different personally focused values The WVS analyses show convergence of upper‐middle‐class and lower‐middle‐class identifiers on conservation and self‐transcendence in line with dominant political narratives and divergence on materialism, hedonism, and stimulation in line with their rising differences in income and every‐day life pressures We discuss the significance of these findings for the understanding of the political function of middle‐class identities in India in the context of heightened Hindu nationalism and recent socioeconomic challenges aggravated by the COVID‐19 pandemic [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Political Psychology is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use This abstract may be abridged No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract (Copyright applies to all Abstracts )
Germination Ecology of Four African Mustard (Brassica tournefortii Gouan) Populations in the Eastern Region of Australia

Abstract African mustard (Brassica tournefortii Gouan) is a problematic winter annual weed in Australia. Germination ecology of B. tournefortii may change in response to the maternal environments or habitats in which the plants grow. A study was conducted to evaluate the effect of environmental factors on germination and emergence of four populations of B. tournefortii that were collected from different fields. Averaged over populations, germination was stimulated by dark and was higher at 25/15 C (92%) compared with 15/5 C (76%) and 35/25 C (45%). Averaged over light/dark regimes, at the lowest temperature regime (15/5 C), population A had higher germination than population D; however, at the highest temperature regime (35/ 25 C), population D had higher germination than population A. Populations B and C had higher germination in the temperature range of 25/15 C and 30/20 C compared with 15/5 C, 20/10 C, and 35/25 C. Seeds germinated at a wide range of alternating day/night temperatures (15/5 to 35/25 C), suggesting that seeds can germinate throughout the year if other optimum conditions are available. Population A was more tolerant to water and salt stress than population D. The sodium chloride concentration and osmotic potential required to inhibit 50% germination of population A were 68 mM and –0.60 MPa, respectively. Averaged over populations, seeds placed at 1-cm soil depth had the highest emergence (54%), and burial depth of 8 cm resulted in 28% seedling emergence. Averaged over populations, wheat residue retention at 6,000 kg ha–1 resulted in greater seedling emergence than the residue amount of 1,000 kg ha–1. The results suggest that B. tournefortii will be favored in no-till systems and that the seedbank of B. tournefortii could be managed by tillage regimes that bury its seeds below 8-cm depths and restrict seedling emergence and growth of new plants.
A CBCT based evaluation of root proximity of maxillary posterior teeth to sinus floor in a subset of Pakistani population.

Objective To evaluate the vertical relationship of the roots of maxillary posterior teeth with maxillary sinus floor, and its association with age, gender and bilateral jaw symmetry. METHODS The cross-sectional study was conducted at a tertiary care hospital in Karachi from June to December 2018, and comprised patients who visited the dental clinics and underwent cone-beam computed tomography scans. The scans were evaluated in the axial, coronal and sagittal planes and roots were classified using Jungs classification for proximity to maxillary sinus floor. The distance between the sinus floor and the apices of maxillary posterior teeth was measured. Data was analysed using SPSS 23. RESULTS There were 60 scans with 1066 roots. The most common maxillary tooth root in Type III group of Jung classification was the mesio-buccal root of the 2nd molar with the shortest mean distance of 0.44±3.05mm, followed by palatal roots of the 1st molar with the shortest mean distance of 1.58±4.01mm. The maxillary tooth root most frequent in Type I group was buccal root of 1st premolar with a mean distance of 8.15±6.65mm, and the 2nd premolar with a mean distance of 7.38±6.60mm. No significant difference was found in terms of gender and sides (p ≥0.05). CONCLUSIONS The most common tooth root protruding in the sinus was found to be the mesio-buccal root of the 2nd molar, followed by palatal roots of the 1st molar. The most distant maxillary tooth root from the sinus was the buccal root of 1st and 2nd premolars.
Trends in incidence of oral anticoagulant-related intracerebral hemorrhage and sales of oral anticoagulants in Capital Region of Denmark 2010–2017

Introduction Non-vitamin K-antagonist oral anticoagulants (NOAC) have become first choice oral anticoagulant (OAC) with decreasing use of vitamin K antagonists (VKA), partly due to lower risk of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). Aim: to identify trends in sale of OACs and relate them to trends in OAC-related ICH (OAC-ICH). Patients and methods Study was based on the population in the Capital Region of Denmark (1.8 million inhabitants). We identified all patients admitted with a non-traumatic OAC-ICH in 2010–2017 and ascertained diagnosis and drug use through medical charts. We used information available in the public domain on sale of defined daily doses (DDD) of OAC in the Capital Region of Denmark. Results 453 patients with OAC-ICH out of a total of 2877 ICH-events were identified. From 2010 to 2017 sale of NOAC rose from 0.1 to 11.8 DDD/1000 inhabitants/day (p < 0.001); while VKA sale decreased from 7.6 to 5.2 DDD/1000 inhabitants/day (p < 0.001). The total number of ICH events was stable between 2010 and 2017, but the proportion of OAC-ICH events increased from 13% in 2010 to 22% in 2017 (p < 0.001). The proportion of ICH events related to NOAC had a significant increasing trend (p < 0.001), whereas a decreasing trend was observed for VKA (p = 0.04). Discussion In Denmark, the population on OACs has increased; resulting from increased use of NOACs. Parallel to this development, the proportion of OAC-ICH overall has increased based on an increasing trend in NOAC-related ICH. Conclusion Our findings document a need for further research on prevention and treatment of this complication.
Geochronology and geochemistry of Late Triassic intrusions in the Liaodong Peninsula, eastern North China Craton: implications for post-collisional lithospheric thinning

ABSTRACT Despite numerous years and avenues of investigation, the timing, evolution, and mechanism of lithospheric thinning of the North China Craton (NCC) are still highly debated. Late Triassic igneous rocks especially mantle derived mafic rocks could provide critical information related to the post-collisional lithospheric thinning of the Liaodong Peninsula in the eastern NCC. Using newly acquired geochronological data points, we determined that the intrusive rocks have emplacement ages of 219–209 Ma, which are typical of Late Triassic magmatism. The studied Qinghekou gabbros have low SiO2 (49.43–51.86 wt.%), Na2O+K2O (3.59–7.20 wt.%), high MgO (3.70–8.54 wt.%) and transition metal element contents, with Mg# values ranging from 49.2 to 69.3. While these samples are enriched in large ion lithophile elements such as Rb, Ba, and K and light rare earth elements, they are depleted in high field strength elements such as Nb, Ta, Ti, and P and heavy rare earth elements. We conclude that these gabbros samples were formed in a subduction-related tectonic setting, where the primary magmas were derived from partial melting of the lithospheric mantle that experienced metasomatism via slab-related fluids. Our Tongyuanpu granite samples have I-type granite affinity, as indicated by their high SiO2 (73.60–75.30 wt.%) and low MgO (0.08–0.32 wt.%) contents, as well as the A/CNK values of 0.99–1.25 and the zircon saturated temperature values of 757–832°C, the parental magmas for these granites were generated by partial melting of the lower crust. Combined with the spatio-temporal distribution and rock-assemblages of the Late Triassic intrusive rocks, we conclude that these rocks were formed in an extensional environment characterized by lithospheric thinning caused by lithospheric delamination after the collision between the NCC and the Yangtze Craton. Furthermore, we infer that the initial lithospheric thinning of the eastern NCC occurred during the Late Triassic. Graphical Abstract
The Effect of Disclosing Identities in a Socially Incentivized Public Good Game

We investigate whether revealing the identities in a public good game that includes a donation incentive leads to higher contributions to the public good. Previous evidence suggests that contributions to a public good increase significantly when these take place in public. Also, the amount of money given in charitable donations seems to be sensitive to the revealing of identities. Using a laboratory experiment, we implement a 20% donation share that is dependent on participants’ contributions to a public good. The donation is either costless (because it is financed by the experimenter) or deducted from a team’s contributions. In both settings, we explore whether informing participants that group members’ identities will be disclosed at the end of the experiment leads to higher contributions to the public good. Non-parametric statistics indicate that when donations are costly for the participants, the announcement of subsequent identity disclosure results in significantly higher contributions in the second half of the repeated public good game. In contrast, revealing identities in settings with costless donations reduces contributions to the public good significantly. The regression results indicate that conditional cooperators might be one subgroup driving these results.
Association between spinal alignment and biochemical composition of lumbar intervertebral discs assessed by quantitative magnetic resonance imaging.

Background To evaluate potential associations between spinopelvic parameters and the biochemical composition of lumbar intervertebral discs using quantitative magnetic resonance imaging in asymptomatic young adults. Methods Our study group comprised 93 asymptomatic volunteers aged 20-40 years (49 women and 44 men). Lumbar spine T2-weighted images and T2 relaxometry were acquired on a 1.5T MRI scanner. Spinopelvic parameters including sacral slope, pelvic tilt, pelvic incidence, lumbar lordosis, thoracic kyphosis, thoracolumbar alignment, sagittal vertical axis, spinosacral angle, C2 pelvic angle, and T1S1 and L1S1 length were measured on panoramic spine radiographs. Results Lumbar lordosis decrease correlates with discrete dehydration of nucleus pulposus at all lumbar levels. Also low values of sacral slope, pelvic tilt, pelvic incidence, thoracic kyphosis and spinosacral angle were associated with decrease of T2 relaxation times on annulus fibrosus. Conclusions In conclusion, spinopelvic parameters presented a discrete association with lumbar disc composition and water content.
SARS-CoV-2 and the role of close contact in transmission: a systematic review

Background: SARS-CoV-2 transmission has been reported to be associated with close contact with infected individuals. However, the mechanistic pathway for transmission in close contact settings is unclear. Our objective was to identify, appraise and summarise the evidence from studies assessing the role of close contact in SARS-CoV-2 transmission. Methods: This review is part of an Open Evidence Review on Transmission Dynamics of SARS-CoV-2. We conduct ongoing searches using WHO Covid-19 Database, LitCovid, medRxiv, PubMed and Google Scholar; assess study quality based on the QUADAS-2 criteria and report important findings on an ongoing basis. Results: We included 278 studies: 258 primary studies and 20 systematic reviews. The settings for primary studies were predominantly in home/quarantine facilities (39.5%) and acute care hospitals (12%). The overall reporting quality of the studies was low-to-moderate. There was significant heterogeneity in design and methodology. The frequency of attack rates (PCR testing) varied between 2.1-75%; attack rates were highest in prison and wedding venues, and in households. The frequency of secondary attack rates was 0.3-100% with rates highest in home/quarantine settings. Three studies showed no transmission if the index case was a recurrent infection. Viral culture was performed in four studies of which three found replication-competent virus; culture results were negative where index cases had recurrent infections. Eighteen studies performed genomic sequencing with phylogenetic analysis – the completeness of genomic similarity ranged from 77-100%. Findings from systematic reviews showed that children were significantly less likely to transmit SARS-CoV-2 and household contact was associated with a significantly increased risk of infection. Conclusions: The evidence from published studies demonstrates that SARS-CoV-2 can be transmitted in close contact settings. The risk of transmission is greater in household contacts. There was a wide variation in methodology. Standardized guidelines for reporting transmission in close contact settings should be developed.