Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Accruals Quality and Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

We examine the relation between accruals quality and internal controls using 705 firms that disclosed at least one material weakness from August 2002 to November 2005 and find that weaknesses are generally associated with poorly estimated accruals that are not realized as cash flows. Further, we find that this relation between weak internal controls and lower accruals quality is driven by weakness disclosures that relate to overall company‐level controls, which may be more difficult to “audit around. ” We find no such relation for more auditable, account‐specific weaknesses. We find similar results using four additional measures of accruals quality: discretionary accruals, average accruals quality, historical accounting restatements, and earnings persistence. Our results are robust to the inclusion of firm characteristics that proxy for difficulty in accrual estimation, known determinants of material weaknesses, and corrections for self‐selection bias.
Stock returns and inflation: a macro analysis

A negative relationship between stock returns and (expected) inflation is frequently observed in empirical work and is considered a puzzle since it is expected that stocks are a good hedge against inflation, so that their real rate of return (actual or expected) ought to be unaffected by changes in inflation. Various attempts have been made to resolve this puzzle empirically but have tended to use single equations of a partial equilibrium nature which have been ad hoc to a greater or lesser extent. This paper examines the puzzle in the framework of a small empirical macroeconomic model. The negative sign survives the extension to the full model and the source of the puzzle is found in the macroeconomic interactions: a rise in the expected inflation rate raises equilibrium real output which has a negative impact on stock returns.
A methodology for incorporating natural catastrophes into macroeconomic projections

This paper addresses a critical problem in macroeconomic planning for natural disaster losses: how to incorporate potential future losses into current planning activity. The authors develop a technique to integrate probabilistic natural hazard losses into macroeconomic planning models. Probabilistic losses to capital stock (direct losses) serve as input to a macroeconomic model, which consequently calculates the macroeconomic impacts. The macroeconomic effects calculated comprise the indirect effects of losing and not being able to replace capital stock sufficiently or in a timely manner, as well as the effects of diverting funds to relief and reconstruction activities. The modeling can serve as a tool for planning for the effects of natural disasters before they occur and for engaging in appropriate risk management activities.
THE MEDIATIZATION OF NETWORK GOVERNANCE: THE IMPACT OF COMMERCIALIZED NEWS AND MEDIATIZED POLITICS ON TRUST AND PERCEIVED NETWORK PERFORMANCE

Despite the importance of news media and their commercial logic for society at large and politics in particular, the impact of media and media logic on network governance processes is often disregarded. In this article we examine the effects of commercialized news and mediatized politics on trust between network actors and perceived network performance. Our study draws on a survey of project managers involved in urban spatial projects in the four largest cities in the Netherlands (N = 141). The results show that commercialized news and mediatized politics negatively affect trust relations between network actors. Commercialized news has a direct effect on the perceived network performance.
AN INTERNATIONAL INVESTIGATION OF THE AUSTRIAN THEORY OF THE BUSINESS CYCLE

In this paper we investigate the validity of the Austrian theory of business cycle. We use international data that span 1980-2005 and we utilize the available information in the most efficient manner via unit panel root and panel cointegration analysis. The relationships among the variables of the Austrian theory of business cycle are investigated using cointegrating techniques. Our results are in favour of the Austrian theory. JEL Classifications: E32, E51.
An efficient protocol for group security in global-scale applications

Nowadays, many applications require security of information communicated between parties that may exist in different countries or continents. The fact that the key establishment messages will traverse such long distances over a network that may be insecure raises many concerns related to the communication, computation, storage, reliability and security of the establishment process. Even though different key management protocols have been proposed, we show that there are several aspects that threaten their scalability, reliability, or security. In this paper, we propose a novel 3-layer protocol for key management in global-scale applications, and show that it provides better scalability and reliability and less vulnerability to security threats than the existing protocols.
Adaptive climate change governance for urban resilience

Climate change poses new challenges to cities and new flexible forms of governance are required that are able to take into account the uncertainty and abruptness of changes. The purpose of this paper is to discuss adaptive climate change governance for urban resilience. This paper identifies and reviews three traditions of literature on the idea of transitions and transformations, and assesses to what extent the transitions encompass elements of adaptive governance. This paper uses the open source Urban Transitions Project database to assess how urban experiments take into account principles of adaptive governance. The results show that: the experiments give no explicit information of ecological knowledge; the leadership of cities is primarily from local authorities; and evidence of partnerships and anticipatory or planned adaptation is limited or absent. The analysis shows that neither technological, political nor ecological solutions alone are sufficient to further our understanding of the analytical aspects of transition thinking in urban climate governance. In conclusion, the paper argues that the future research agenda for urban climate governance needs to explore further the links between the three traditions in order to better identify contradictions, complementarities or compatibilities, and what this means in practice for creating and assessing urban experiments.
Real time deconvolution using the conjugate gradient algorithm

A solution to the deconvolution problem is presented using iterative methods, which has been implemented in real time on the AT&T DSP-32 processor. Given the output of a linear system, and its transfer function, a procedure is shown to compute the input time function. Since there are, in general, infinitely many inputs which will produce the same output time function, the problem cannot be solved directly. However, using an iterative approach it is possible to converge to one solution. The technique uses the conjugate gradient algorithm to obtain a candidate input function and post processes the function based on its periodicity in the frequency domain to enhance resolution. <<ETX>>
Distress Dependence and Financial Stability

This paper defines a set of systemic financial stability indicators which measure distress dependence among the financial institutions in a system, thereby allowing to analyze stability from three complementary perspectives: common distress in the system, distress between specific banks, and cascade effects associated with a specific bank. Our approach defines the banking system as a portfolio of banks and infers the system’s multivariate density (BSMD) from which the proposed measures are estimated. The BSMD embeds the banks’ default inter-dependence structure that captures linear and non-linear distress dependencies among the banks in the system, and its changes at different times of the economic cycle. The BSMD is recovered using the CIMDO-approach, a new approach that, in the presence of restricted data, improves density specification without explicitly imposing parametric forms that, under restricted data sets, are difficult to model. Thus, the proposed measures can be constructed from a very limited set of publicly available data and can be provided for a wide range of both developing and developed countries.
EMU's Potential Effect on British Trade: A Quantitative Assessment

This paper estimates the effect of joining European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) on British Trade. The United Kingdom is very open to international trade: exports and imports combined together amount to two-thirds of British GDP. About half of this trade is with the Euro-zone. The empirical evidence presented here shows that currency unions are associated with substantially higher trade. There is also evidence that higher trade results in higher economic output. I estimate that British trade with the Euro-zone could increase considerably if the UK joins EMU. The UK’s trade with the Euro-zone may conceivably triple, eventually leading to an overall doubling of British trade. A trade increase of this magnitude could result in a substantial boost to British GDP.
Transcriptional activation in an improved whole-cell extract from Saccharomyces cerevisiae

We report an improved in vitro transcription system for Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Small changes in assay and whole-cell extraction procedures increase selective initiation by RNA polymerase II up to 60-fold over previous conditions (M. Woontner and J. A. Jaehning, J. Biol. Chem. 265:8979-8982, 1990), to levels comparable to those obtained with nuclear extracts. We have found that the simultaneous use of distinguishable templates with and without an upstream activation sequence is critical to the measurement of apparent activation. Transcription from any template was very sensitive to the concentrations of template and nontemplate DNA, extract, and activator (GAL4/VP16). Alterations in reaction conditions led to proportionately greater changes from a template lacking an upstream activation sequence; thus, the apparent ratio of activation is largely dependent on the level of basal transcription. Using optimal conditions for activation, we have also demonstrated activation by a bona fide yeast activator, heat shock transcription factor.
Angiopoietin 2 and Soluble Tie-2 Receptor Plasma Levels in Children with Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Obesity

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a prevalent condition, especially in children with obesity, and is associated with increased risk for metabolic syndrome (MetS). Angiopoietins have been identified as potential biomarkers of endothelial dysfunction and MetS. In adults, angiopoietin‐2 (Ang‐2) and its soluble receptor (sTie‐2) are associated with diabetes, hypertension, and obesity and could be increased in children with OSA and obesity, particularly those with evidence of cardiometabolic alterations.
A Realistic/Theory of Change Approach to the Evaluation of Health Promotion in Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises in Sandwell

Discovering a theory of change for health promotion in small- and medium-sized enterprises highlights important lessons about how successful workplace health interventions work and the conditions conducive to positive outcomes for ‘hard to reach groups’. In the evaluation of targeted health promotion initiatives carried out by the Workwell project in Sandwell, a theory of change has emerged that indicates the need for a sensitive understanding of the contexts of interventions and the importance of developing mechanisms appropriate to local conditions and stakeholder expectations.
‘A Public Expert in Matters of Account’: Defining the Chartered Accountant in England and Wales

Abstract This study addresses the attempts by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) to set its professional boundaries based on the performance of work in order to create a definition of the specialist chartered accountant or ‘public expert in matters of account’. The article, located in the 1880–1900 period, provides an insight into the activities and arenas in which chartered accountants could engage. The complexities associated with this demarcation between permissible and non-permissible activities, revealed through a series of ‘test cases’, were exacerbated by the ‘grandfather clauses’ contained in the ICAEW's Royal Charter.
Handheld Wireless Point of Sale Systems in the Restaurant Industry

Abstract As surprising as it may seem, handheld ordering systems have been around for over 20 years. The first handheld system that came on the market used numeric keypads to enter the PLU codes from items and infrared transmitter/receivers to relay the information between the handhelds and the point of sale (POS) system. Handheld wireless POS systems are a portable version of a POS system which is defined as the time and place in which a transaction is made. Point of sale computer systems include: cash registers, optical scanners, magnetic card readers, and special terminals. Handheld wireless POS systems used for hospitality, more specifically food service, will be the main focus for this paper. This includes events such as taking food orders and the inventory/ordering process. Customers are the reasons restaurants are in business, and the time saved by using a handheld device (versus waiting in line to place an order on a traditional POS system that averages over four minutes per order) can be used to better serve the guests. Those four minutes also lead to drinks and meals being ready quicker and, throughout an evening, those minutes equate to greater table turnover and more profits.It is these benefits which lead to cost savings and return on investment for the purchase of a handheld POS system.
Analyzing Efficacy of Constrained Test Program Generators - A Case Study

Functional verification of microprocessor designs exposes bugs in the design implementation by using a vast suite of randomly generated and directed test programs. Typically, more than one random test program generator(exerciser) is used. Our objective here is to develop a methodology to assess exerciser verification efficiency qualitatively and quantitatively. This understanding is used to identify untested design properties and fix coverage holes. We demonstrate this using a comparative analysis of the abilities of two in-house exercisers based to verify secure virtual mode(SVM) functionalities of an x86 instruction set architecture-based microprocessor core. We demonstrate that simulation data can be used to provide feedback on verification completeness to increase functional coverage.
Search engine optimization to enhance user interaction

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is important for websites to improve the rank for search results and get more page views requested by the user. This search engine ranks provide the better and optimized result to user, which will help them to view the popular page among the number of pages available in the search results. Apart from this search engine ranking, it also enables the websites to compete with other rival's website as each and every website owner expect to see their own website on the list before other's websites. This paper puts forward idea about SEO principles and basic strategies. It also expresses different techniques that are employed by search engines to improve its results. Also it presents the observation section, which gives the comparative analysis of SEO techniques.
Novel method for atrioventricular motion assessment from three-dimensional cine magnetic resonance imaging

This study was carried out to (i) track the motion of six atrioventricular junction (AVJ) sites from the two-, three-, and four-chamber cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) views in 27 healthy subjects, (ii) extract four clinically most useful AVJ velocities (i.e., myocardial systolic velocities Sm1 and Sm2, early diastolic velocity Em, and late diastolic velocity Am) for each AVJ site, and (iii) assess the relationship between CMR measurements to age and gender, and set up preliminary normal reference ranges for CMR derived AVJ velocites stratified by age and gender. The data obtained by CMR based method demonstrated that men had significant higher Sm1 (10.5±3.7 cm/s vs. 7.8±2.5 cm/s, P<;0.05) and Am (10.5±4.5 cm/s vs. 7.7±2.6 cm/s, P<;0.05), but comparable Sm2 (6.6±2.2 cm/s vs. 6.9±1.6 cm/s, P>0.05) and Em (11.2±3.3 cm/s vs. 11.5±4.3 cm/s, P>0.05) than women. There was no significant correlation between Sm1, Sm2 and age, while Em and Am strongly or moderately correlated with age. The lateral, posterolateral and posterior AVJ velocities were significant higher than the ones in septal, anteroseptal and anterior locations. Atrioventricular motion and derived velocities are independent of imaging reference frames, and thereby computationally light-weight. They can be derived by post-processing three-dimensional routine CMR images without additional image acquisition. This shall potentially extend routine CMR's capability for left ventricular (LV) systolic and diastolic function assessment.
Marked lipomatous infiltration of the right ventricle: MRI findings in relation to arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia.

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to describe the structure and function of the heart in the presence of marked lipomatous infiltration of the right ventricular wall in 13 patients referred for second opinions about fatty infiltration of the right ventricular wall and suspected arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia. CONCLUSION Lipomatous infiltration with right ventricular thickness > or = 6 mm on MRI but without regional or global functional abnormalities of the right ventricle appears to be distinct from fatty right ventricle associated with arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia. The finding of right ventricular fat must be interpreted cautiously to avoid the pharmacologic and defibrillator intervention associated with management of arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia.
Political Aftershocks: The Impact of Earthquakes on Intrastate Conflict

Although many scholars, policy makers, and relief organizations suggest that natural disasters bring groups together and dampen conflicts, earthquakes can actually stimulate intrastate conflict by producing scarcities in basic resources, particularly in developing countries where the competition for scarce resources is most intense. Capitalizing on a natural experiment design, this study examines the impact of earthquakes on intrastate conflict through a statistical analysis of 185 countries over the period from 1975 to 2002. The analysis indicates that earthquakes not only increase the likelihood of conflict, but that their effects are greater for higher magnitude earthquakes striking more densely populated areas of countries with lower gross domestic products as well as preexisting conflicts. These results suggest that disaster recovery efforts must pay greater attention to the conflict-producing potential of earthquakes and undertake certain measures, including strengthening security procedures, to prevent this outcome from occurring.
The business use of Twitter by Australian listed companies

The rapid rise of the business use of social media platform Twitter by organisations around the world, highlights the need for understanding the degree to which the new communication tool has been adopted, and how it is being used for business purposes. US researchers Case and King (2011) and Heaps (2009) provided important early insight into the business use of Twitter, however, their research was limited to a small sample of listed companies from limited industry sectors in the US. Our study builds on these prior research by extending the research to an Australian context and explores the business use of Twitter by the top 100 Australian ASX (Australian Securities Exchange) listed corporations in 2013. The study used general online search methods to identify that 60 Australian companies (60%) from a variety of industry sectors had adopted the business use of Twitter. A thematic template approach was developed based on the combination of prior research and results from a test pilot analysis. The final template consisted of 11 different business communication purposes. This framework was used to examine the content of the business ‘tweets’ from the 60 companies in order to identify the degree to which Twitter was being used for different business communication purposes, and if industry sectors differed in their business use. The study found that companies had adopted the use of Twitter for a variety of business purposes which differed at the industry level. ‘Corporate Promotion’, ‘Market News’ and ‘Customer Service Enquiries’ were the most popular business purposes for using Twitter. While Consumer Discretionary companies emphasised the use of Twitter for ‘Customer Service Enquiries’, companies from Industrials, Energy and Materials industries were more likely to disclose ‘Financial Reporting’ and ‘Potential Financial Information’. The findings in this paper endorse the validity of the use of Twitter for business communication purposes for all types of organisations, by providing evidence of the number of ASX firms who had adopted the platform, the different industries they represent, and the broad range of business communication purposes being explored. The findings provide normative guidelines for corporations yet to adopt Twitter, or for those seeking to understand how early adopter firms have leveraged a social media technology, in order to reach and communicate with 21st Century audiences.
The Bank of England industry dataset

This paper describes the sources and methods used to construct the Bank of England industry dataset. In its current form, the dataset comprises annual data on 34 industries covering the whole economy over the period 1970-2000. The main variables are gross output, value added, capital, labour and intermediate input. Capital input is built up from the services of seven assets, of which three are ICT (computers, software and communications equipment). Each industry’s intermediate input is an aggregate of purchases from all other industries and from imports. Labour input is measured by hours worked, but with an adjustment for quality change derived from aggregate data. We employ U.S. methods to measure ICT. Apart from this, the dataset is consistent with the UK national accounts both in real and nominal terms.