Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ex-Dividend Profitability and Institutional Trading Skill

We use institutional trading data to examine whether skilled institutions exploit positive abnormal ex-dividend returns. Results show that institutions concentrate trading around certain ex-dates, and earn higher profits around these events. Dividend capture trades represent 6% of all institutional buy trades but contribute 15% of overall abnormal returns. Institutional dividend capture trading is persistent. Institutional ex-day profitability is also strongly cross-sectionally related to trade execution skill. The relation between execution skill and profits disappears around placebo, non-ex-days. Results suggest that skilled institutions target certain opportunities rather than benefiting uniformly through time. Furthermore, only skilled institutions can profit from dividend capture.
Exploring Biological Relationships Between Calving Traits in Primiparous Cattle with a Bayesian Recursive Model

Structural equation models (SEMs) of a recursive type with heterogeneous structural coefficients were used to explore biological relationships between gestation length (GL), calving difficulty (CD), and perinatal mortality, also known as stillbirth (SB), in cattle, with the last two traits having categorical expression. An acyclic model was assumed, where recursive effects existed from the GL phenotype to the liabilities (latent variables) to CD and SB and from the liability to CD to that of SB considering four periods regarding GL. The data contained GL, CD, and SB records from 90,393 primiparous cows, sired by 1122 bulls, distributed over 935 herd-calving year classes. Low genetic correlations between GL and the other calving traits were found, whereas the liabilities to CD and SB were high and positively correlated, genetically. The model indicated that gestations of ∼274 days of length (3 days shorter than the average) would lead to the lowest CD and SB and confirmed the existence of an intermediate optimum of GL with respect to these traits.
A Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) of Stockmarket Returns

Empirical observations on security prices and other financial time series usually not only include the closing prices ( t C ), but also the opening, the highest and the lowest prices ( , , t t t O H L ) for specific horizons such as days, weeks and months. A multivariate vector of prices ( , , , t t t t O H L C ) is obviously more informative than just the close prices ( t C ) for modelling and forecasting. In this paper we attempt to capture the return generation process of security prices using all the quoted prices ( , , , t t t t O H L C ) via a vector error correction (VEC) process.
Effect of therapeutic exercises on pregnancy-related low back pain and pelvic girdle pain: Secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE To investigate the effect of a supervised, structured exercise programme on the occurrence and severity of pregnancy-related lumbopelvic pain. DESIGN Randomized controlled trial. SUBJECTS A total of 45 pregnant women were randomly assigned to 2 groups: an experimental group (n = 20; mean age 32.8 (standard deviation (SD) 3.6) years) and a control group (n = 22; mean age 32.2 years (SD 4.9)). METHODS Exercise intervention for the experimental group consisted of aerobic and resistance exercises performed bi-weekly from the date of inclusion into the study until the end of pregnancy, together with at least 30 min of brisk daily walks. A numeric rating scale, Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire (RMDQ), and Pelvic Girdle Questionnaire (PGQ) were used to measure outcomes. The control group received only standard antenatal care. RESULTS There were significant differences between the 2 groups on the numeric rating scale, PGQ and RMDQ scores in the 36th week of pregnancy (p = 0.017; p = 0.005; p < 0.001, respectively) in favour of the experimental group. CONCLUSION The exercise programme had a beneficial effect on the severity of lumbopelvic pain in pregnancy, reducing the intensity of pain and the level of disability experienced as a result.
Archaeology. Virtual archaeologists recreate parts of ancient worlds.

ArchaeologyArchaeologists are using computers to recreate the environment and conditions of the past, including objects, buildings, and landscapes with human actors, such as ancient battles. The field is a natural evolution of archaeology in the digital age. And although virtual archaeology arose in the mid-1990s, it is only now going mainstream, as archaeologists realize the benefits of using computers to make the most of their necessarily incomplete data and as costs go down. Archaeologists argue that virtual worlds offer the best way to test complex hypotheses. The field also gets a boost from the entertainment industry: The technology is the same as that used in video games and movie special effects, and many universities have recently added 3D modeling programs.
An International Comparison of Early Childhood Initiatives: From Services to Systems

It can be argued that much of the evidence generated in the United States on the importance of early childhood to future health and attainment has had a greater effect on the national policies of other countries than it has in the U.S., which lacks a national policy agenda for young children. However, the U.S. is not the only country to struggle with the direction early childhood policy should take: England, Canada, and Australia all started with similarly fragmented early childhood services, and have tended to favor market-based solutions with limited reliance on the welfare state. This report describes some of the components of all four countries’ efforts to develop policies that produce lasting gains for their youngest citizens. The authors also consider the implications of experiences in England, Canada, and Australia for the development of early childhood policy in the U.S. Support for this research was provided by The Commonwealth Fund. The views presented here are those of the authors and not necessarily those of The Commonwealth Fund or its directors, officers, or staff. This and other Fund publications are available online at www.commonwealthfund. org. To learn more about new publications when they become available, visit the Fund’s Web site and register to receive e-mail alerts. Commonwealth Fund pub. no. 1241.
The effects of R&D cooperation and labour mobility on innovation

The purpose of this dissertation is to contribute both theoretically and empirically to the literature of regional economics. We aim to provide theoretical insights and explanations as well as interesting empirical findings which are relevant for the analyses of the regional development. Chapter two reviews the literature on new growth theory, economic geography, geography of innovation and innovation process. We illustrate connections between these strands of literature from the perspective of technological development and its diffusion. We discuss the role of innovation activity, technological development, and especially knowledge spillovers in economic growth, and clarify their microeconomic linkages to endogenous macroeconomic growth. In chapter three we shed additional light on the role of intra-regional economies of scale and interregional externalities in regional economic growth. Chapter provides interesting theoretical insights and explanations for the analysis of regional development. In chapters four to seven we analyse how the establishments' individual characteristics and their R&D cooperation with other firms and organizations as well as sectoral and geographical origins of their labour acquisitions affects the innovation performance of the establishments. We try to isolate the independent role on innovation performance played by knowledge transfers associated with localised human-capital mobility from those associated with inter-firm and inter-organisational tacit knowledge spillovers. No previous studies, as far as we are aware, have been able to empirically identify and distinguish in such a detailed and comprehensive manner as in this dissertation the effects of these two, qualitatively quite different types of knowledge transfer mechanisms on innovation.
Global Analysis of Methylation Profiles From High Resolution CpG Data

New high throughput technologies are now enabling simultaneous epigenetic profiling of DNA methylation at hundreds of thousands of CpGs across the genome. A problem of considerable practical interest is identification of large scale, global changes in methylation that are associated with environmental variables, clinical outcomes, or other experimental conditions. However, there has been little statistical research on methods for global methylation analysis using technologies with individual CpG resolution. To address this critical gap in the literature, we develop a new strategy for global analysis of methylation profiles using a functional regression approach wherein we approximate either the density or the cumulative distribution function (CDF) of the methylation values for each individual using B‐spline basis functions. The spline coefficients for each individual are allowed to summarize the individual's overall methylation profile. We then test for association between the overall distribution and a continuous or dichotomous outcome variable using a variance component score test that naturally accommodates the correlation between spline coefficients. Simulations indicate that our proposed approach has desirable power while protecting type I error. The method was applied to detect methylation differences, both genome wide and at LINE1 elements, between the blood samples from rheumatoid arthritis patients and healthy controls and to detect the epigenetic changes of human hepatocarcinogenesis in the context of alcohol abuse and hepatitis C virus infection. A free implementation of our methods in the R language is available in the Global Analysis of Methylation Profiles (GAMP) package at http://research.fhcrc. org/wu/en.html.
Does Size Matter? Evaluating Corporate Environmental Disclosure in the Australian Mining and Metal Industry: A Combined Approach of Quantity and Quality Measurement

There are an increasing number of companies in the mining and metals sector disclosing environmental sustainability information in their annual reports, sustainability reports and corporate internet web pages. However, there is ongoing debate about the relationship between the quantity and the quality of environmental disclosure. That is, does an increase in number equate to an increase in quality? This study investigates the relationship between the quantity and the quality of environmental disclosure reports. Using content analysis, we examine the environmental disclosure of 55 Australian mining and metal companies which are listed among the Australian Securities Exchange's (ASX) Top 100 mining and metal sector companies. We find that the size of firms influences both the quantity and the quality of corporate environmental disclosure. That is, we find that market capitalization is positively and significantly correlated to the quantity (number of words) and the quality of disclosure. We also confirm that there is a very highly significant, positive correlation between quantity (number of words) and quality of environmental disclosure. In order to investigate any differences between the top performing group and the bottom performing group in terms of environmental disclosure quality, further analysis also confirms that there is a positive relationship between the quantity and the quality of environmental disclosure. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment
Academic Inbreeding and Research Productivity in Australian Law Schools

This study compares the research productivity of inbred and non-inbred faculty employed at Australian law schools. The sample consists of 429 academics, employed at 21 law schools. To measure research productivity we use both articles and pages published in top law journals, defined in six different ways, as well as total citations and two different citation indices. We report results including, and excluding, publications in the home law review. We find evidence that silver-corded faculty outperform other faculty on one of the measures of research productivity, once the endogeneity of academic seniority and grant history is addressed, but this finding is not robust across alternative measures of research productivity. We find that there is no statistically significant difference between the research productivity of inbred and non-inbred faculty. This finding is robust to a range of different ways of measuring research productivity and alternative econometric approaches, including using two-stage least squares to address the endogeneity of academic seniority and grant history.
Design of Multi-Task Auto-Testing Line System for Metering Current Transformer

In recent years, automatic technologies have been gradually applied in the batch testing process of energy measuring devices. Different from energy meters and acquisition terminals, the metering current transformers have more than ten specifications (various in size, transformation ratio, etc), and the demands for testing are more dispersed. This leads to a large number of scattered work tasks on the auto-testing line, which reduces its operational efficiency and utilization. In this paper, we propose a flexible multi-task system applied in the auto-testing process of metering current transformers. Through concurrent dispatching mechanism and parallel layout design, the system can carry out multiple testing tasks from different specifications simultaneously. Practical application results show that this design idea optimizes the working efficiency with limited occupation of space.
Psychosocial Determinants of Out of School Activity Participation for Children with and without Physical Disabilities

ABSTRACT Psychosocial determinants of children's out of school participation were examined, using secondary analyses of data from 427 children with physical disabilities (from 12 service locations in Ontario Canada) and 354 children without disabilities, ages 6 to 14. For both groups of children, hierarchical regression analyses indicated that psychosocial variables added significant incremental variance (6% to 14%) to the prediction of active physical intensity and social activity enjoyment, beyond that accounted for by family income, child age and sex, and physical functioning. As well, there were significant psychosocial determinants, with medium to large effect sizes. Athletic competence and hyperactivity had specific effects on active physical activities and social activities, respectively, for both groups of children. Disability-specific determinants included social acceptance, emotional functioning, and peer difficulties (only significant for children with disabilities). It was concluded that psychosocial variables play an important role in children's enjoyment and intensity of participation in leisure activities.
Neuropsychological deficits in vascular dementia vs Alzheimer's disease. Frontal lobe deficits prominent in vascular dementia.

OBJECTIVE To detect neuropsychological differences between Alzheimer's disease (AD) and vascular dementia (VAD). DESIGN Neuropsychological measures were compared in clinically defined AD and VAD patient groups. SETTING Ambulatory and hospitalized patients were referred to a behavioral neurology clinic and to the neuropsychology department of a teaching hospital. PATIENTS Consecutive, referred patients who fulfilled National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke/Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders Association and Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Revised Third Edition, criteria for AD and VAD were selected to participate in the study based on the history and clinical findings. A modified ischemic score of 3 or less was an independent selection criterion for AD (n = 103) and a score of 4 or more for VAD (n = 25). Computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging was used to exclude other structural causes. Patients with cognitive changes related directly to a stroke were excluded. Patients were matched for age, education, age at onset, and severity of dementia. MEASURES The variable measures were the subtests of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-R), Wechsler Memory Scale-Revised, Mattis Dementia Rating Scale (MDRS), and Western Aphasia Battery (WAB). Patients were further stratified into mild and severe dementia categories, based on their performance on the MDRS. RESULTS Variables that were significantly different were selected for discriminant function analysis. The Writing subtest of the WAB, the Picture Arrangement subtest of the WAIS-R, and the Motor Performance subtest of the MDRS were the best discriminators of AD and VAD in the overall and severely affected populations. Patients with VAD performed significantly worse on the MDRS Motor Performance subtest, the WAIS-R Picture Arrangement subtest, the WAB Writing subtest, the WAIS-R Object Assembly subtest, and the WAB Block Design subtest. The AD group performed significantly worse on the WAB Repetition subtest, and patients with severe AD performed significantly worse on the Story Recall test. CONCLUSIONS Patients with VAD performed worse on tests that are influenced by frontal and subcortical mechanisms. Patients with AD performed worse on memory and some language subtests.
Electrical Storm After CRT Implantation Treated by AV Delay Optimization

Electrical Storm After CRT Implantation. We present a case of symptomatic ischemic heart failure with an indication for cardiac resynchronization and implantable cardiac defibrillator therapy in primary prevention. After implantation, the patient developed a severe electrical storm with multiple shocks. Hemodynamic improvement based only on AV delay, guided by echocardiography and ECG, brought about a dramatic improvement in the situation. We discuss the pathophysiology of electrical storm occurring immediately after LV pacing. (J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol, Vol. 21, pp. 211‐213, February 2010)
Reconfigurable MIMO Antenna for Integrated-Metal-Rimmed Smartphone Applications

A reconfigurable full-metal-rimmed MIMO antenna is designed and proposed for WWAN/LTE smartphones. This antenna consists of two centro-symmetrically distributed antenna elements and radiation structures using the unbroken metal rim in plastic casing. It can achieve a good isolation of more than 17dB over the entire operation bands. Each antenna element occupies a small ground area of $30\times 6$ mm2. The U-shaped feeding line provides a coupled feed and the antenna element generates four typical loop resonant modes. Using reconfigurable technique to combine these four resonant modes, this hepta-band MIMO antenna can satisfactory cover lower bands of GSM850/900 and higher bands of GSM1800/1900/ UMTS/LTE2300/2500. A prototype MIMO antenna was fabricated and the measured results of S-parameters, antenna efficiency and gain, envelope correlation coefficient, mean effective gain, and channel capacity are reported.
Effect of inductor saturation on the harmonic currents of grid-connected three-phase VSI in PV application

The optimal design of a VSI based photovoltaic (PV) inverter has been studied extensively during the last years. The focus in these studies has been in the selection of the reactive components of the LCL-filter, leaving the inductor design out from the discussion. However, the inductor design plays important role when the design target is to minimize the size and the cost of the filter. Unfortunately, the minimization of the filter size might yield saturating inductors. In this paper, the effect of inductor saturation on the harmonic currents of grid-connected three-phase PV inverter is studied by simulations and measurements on a prototype inverter. The results indicate that application of saturating inductors increases the fifth and seventh harmonics in the output current of the inverter when it is operating at open-loop. However, these harmonics are effectively attenuated when the inverter is operated at closed-loop.
COLORIMETRIC ESTIMATION OF INDOLEACETIC ACID.

The wide use of the auxin, indoleacetic acid, in physiological and biochemical experiments has promoted interest in methods for its colorimetrie estimation. Mitchell and Brunstetteb (1) have proposed both the nitrite and the ferric chloride-sulphuric acid tests for the quantitative estimation of indoleacetic acid (IAA) in aqueous solutions, basing their suggested procedures upon a study of optimal reaction conditions for these two reagents. According to them, the nitrite method is sensitive to 10 /tig. IAA/ml. and develops a red color that is stable after two hours. In several attempts to duplicate their nitrite method using solutions of IAA varying from 20 to 45 /tg. /ml. , we could not obtain a stable red color with IAA at the two hours proposed, or at any other time. A faint pink develops almost immediately which rapidly fades to orange or yellow, depending on IAA concentrations, within i hour. If the concentration of nitrite is reduced, the red color becomes sufficiently persistent to be read. Indole likewise gives a strong, relatively stable, red color in this test (cf. table II)? a reaction which is sometimes used as a qualitative test for indole (Nitroso-Indole reaction). Tang and Bonner (2) have modified the ferric chloride-sulphuric acid method for IAA, combining the iron and sulphuric acid as a single reagent to yield improved sensitivity. However, the color produced is also unstable, rapidly developing and then fading. We have found, as have these workers, that the fading color can be practically dealt with by adopting a standard time between addition of reagent and reading of absorbancy or transmittance. Both of the methods discussed above possess disadvantages, lacking either specificity, sensitivity, or stability of color complex formed. During a study of the inactivation of IAA in aqueous solutions, it was frequently necessary to assay at one time many samples where the IAA concentrations were low, or where the degree of significance of small differences in concentrations between experimental unite required evaluation. Hence, we considered it desirable 'to re-examine the ferric chloride-sulphuric acid procedure. Several alterations have been made which produce a more stable color, of increased specificity, which changes in density more rapidly with variation in IAA concentration. 1. The procedure of Tang and Bonner can be improved somewhat by reading at 15 minutes after addition of reagent (instead of 30 minutes as they suggest), since the transient color reaches a maximum at the former time. Maximum absorption was found to occur at 530 ?
Evaluating the output power of a PV system under uniform and non-uniform irradiance

Non-uniform operating conditions for photovoltaic (PV) modules of the PV array, especially the different irradiation levels received by the modules, greatly affect the energy yield of the PV system. This paper compares different avenues by which the energy yield of grid-connected PV system can be increased. The effect of some common array configurations, the level of distributed maximum power point tracking (DMPPT), and the type of converters and their gain; on the output power of the PV system operating under uniform and non-uniform conditions are addressed. Rather than focusing on the output power of the PV array, the power supplied to the grid and the overall system- efficiency are considered as the performance parameters for evaluation of various approaches. The results of exhaustive simulation study performed in MATLAB/Simulink are reported as a summary to highlight the superiority of high-gain converters over other approaches.