Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Value Relevance of Voluntary Risk Disclosure Levels: Evidence from Saudi Banks

This study seeks to examine whether the levels of voluntary risk disclosure in Saudi listed banks are valuerelevant or not. The sample of this investigation consists of all banks listed on the Saudi Stock Market Exchange (Tadawul). All data was collected from the annual reports of the sample banks from 2009 to 2013 using manual content analysis. Other variables were collected using DataStream and Bloomberg. Ordinary least squares regressions analysis was used. The findings of the multivariate analysis demonstrated that there is no association between the levels of voluntary risk disclosure and firm value as measured by the market to book value at the end of the year (MTBV). But, the results generate from the accounting based measure (ROA) show that there is a positively significant association between the levels of voluntary risk disclosure and firm value. This study contributes to the literature on general accounting disclosure and in particular advances and contributes to the literature on risk disclosure in developing economies. It also contributes to the understanding of the role of accounting information in relation to the market valuation of a firm. The empirical findings of this study have several implications for banksâ€™ investors, regulatory bodies and any other interested group as they report the importance of corporate risk disclosure and its economic consequences. This can be used to increase the value relevance in the banking sector. This study also informs regulators about the current level of risk disclosure in all Saudi listed banks.To the best of the researcherâ€™s knowledge, no prior research has been conducted on the relationship between firm value and levels of risk disclosure in general nor especially in emerging markets, such as Saudi Arabia, the focus of this study
Allometric scaling of flow‐mediated dilation: is it always helpful?

Flow‐mediated dilation (FMD) is calculated as the greatest percent change in arterial diameter following an ischaemic challenge. This Traditional %FMD calculation is thought to have statistical bias towards baseline diameter (Dbase), which is reduced by allometric scaling. This study examined whether allometric scaling FMD influenced the difference between a group of healthy young and older adults compared to the Traditional %FMD, and to determine whether a New (allometric) scaling %FMD improved the ability to obtain individually scaled FMD. Popliteal artery FMD was assessed in 18 young (26 ± 3 years) and 17 older adults (77 ± 5 years). ‘Corrected’ mean FMD was generated from a log‐linked ANCOVA model. Individual %FMD was evaluated using three calculations: (1) Traditional %FMD calculation; (2) Atkinson (allometric) scaling %FMD (peak diameter (Dpeak)/(Dbasescalingexponent) ); and (3) New scaling %FMD ((Dpeak−Dbase)/(Dbasescalingexponent)) . Traditional %FMD was significantly larger in young (5·82 ± 2·58%) versus old (3·72 ± 1·26%). ‘Corrected’ FMD means (Y: 5·97 ± 2·12%; O: 3·98 ± 2·06%) were similar to Traditional %FMD; however, the logarithmic transformation prevents statistical interpretation of group differences. Individually scaled %FMD using the Atkinson scaling resulted in values that were corrected for variations in Dbase but that were twofold to threefold larger than those of the Traditional calculation. New scaling %FMD resulted in values that were similar to values expected (Y: 6·21 ± 2·75%; O: 3·98 ± 1·36%); however, it did not effectively correct for variation in Dbase. Recommendations regarding the advantages of allometrically scaling %FMD should be made with caution until research clearly establishes the benefits of this approach.
THE SURVIVAL OF INITIAL PUBLIC OFFERINGS IN

This paper examines the survival of Australian initial public offerings (IPOs). The Cox proportional hazards model is used to test the value of the information available at the time of listing and whether this information foreshadows the likelihood of survival or failure of an IPO. The number of risk factors listed in the prospectus and the size of the firm are found to be negatively related to survival of the firm. The size of the offering and the forecast dividend yield are found to be positively related to firm survival. The likelihood of survival is also found to vary with industry and firms in the finance and natural resources industries are more likely to survive than firms in other industries.
Assessing Customers' Attitudes/Expectations Toward Online Grocery Businesses

Customer attitudes toward online purchasing behavior have relied on various factors, such as product category, price, and brand name awareness of the store. Customer attitudes toward online shopping are also greatly affected by the inherent limitation of virtual shopping: quality is not easily judged on the Web, particularly for products which the Web cannot deliver sensory experiences. The purpose of this study is to examine customer attitudes toward an online store that sells “look-and-feel” products with various qualities[1] that appear to grow and receive increased attention. In particular, the author investigated i) the factors affecting customer attitudes toward the online grocery store; ii) how those factors affected the perceived ease of use (EOU) and usefulness (U); and iii) the effects of the perceived ease of use (EOU) and usefulness (U) on overall expected customer satisfaction toward the online grocery store. Surveys were conducted and the major findings suggest that customers’ purchase decisions in the electronic marketplace are affected by how online stores apply strategies to maximize customer satisfaction. Furthermore, this study provides managerial implications and offers suggestions for e-businesses.
The Effect of Customer–Contractor Alignment in Forest Harvesting Services on Contractor Profitability and the Risk for Relationship Breakdown

In forest operations, the interface between forest companies and harvesting contractors is of special importance, considering that it is the first link in the forest industry’s supply chains. Supply operations account for a significant share of the final costs of wood products (up to 50%). This study investigates the effect of customer–contractor alignment on contractors’ profit margins and on the risk for business relationship breakdown. Alignment is empirically measured for a Swedish forest company and 74 of its harvesting contractors, who were monitored during a four-year period. Two measures of alignment are employed: (1) the customer-perceived value of the contractors’ services; and (2) the contractors’ perceived alignment with the forest company expectations. Results indicate that the two measures of alignment are largely independent from each other, and that customer-perceived value affects both contractor profitability and the risk of relationship breakdown. Conflict between the two parties and lack of trust for the customer were found to be common complaints among contractors who ceased working for the studied forest company. Consequently, customer–contractor alignment should be considered a key objective by contractors who strive for business success, and also by forest companies who wish to improve their supply chain performance.
Looks matter in developing consumer‐brand relationships

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe research which introduces attractiveness as a moderator of the relationship between the perceived brand personality and evaluations of the brand as a relationship partner in a product marketing context.Design/methodology/approach – This research tests hypotheses concerning the relationship between the perceived personality of a test brand and perceptions regarding the quality of the test brand as a relationship partner, and the moderating effects of the test brand's perceived attractiveness. The research is based upon a survey of 142 graduate and undergraduate students attending four universities in the southeastern USA. Reliability and validity of the measures were tested using structural equation modeling and the hypotheses tested using multiple linear regression.Findings – This research provides empirical evidence, in a product‐marketing context, that perceived attractiveness significantly influences the consumer‐brand relationship development process .
The Yeast RAD7 and RAD16 Genes Are Required for Postincision Events during Nucleotide Excision Repair

In eukaryotes, nucleotide excision repair (NER) is a complex reaction requiring multiple proteins. In the yeastSaccharomyces cerevisiae, two of these proteins, Rad7 and Rad16, are specifically involved in the removal of lesions from transcriptionally silent regions of the genome in vivo. Extracts prepared from rad7 or rad16 mutant cells are deficient, but not totally defective, in both oligonucleotide excision and repair synthesis of damaged plasmid DNA. We show that these extracts are, however, fully proficient in the incision step of the NER reaction in vitro. Furthermore, using acdc9 mutant to trap incision intermediates, we demonstrate that rad7 and rad16 mutants are proficient in NER-dependent DNA incision in vivo. A purified protein complex containing both Rad7 and Rad16 proteins complements the oligonucleotide excision and repair synthesis defects inrad7 and rad16 mutant extracts. We conclude that the products of the RAD7 and RAD16 genes are involved in a postincision event(s) during NER in yeast.
Sustainable supply chain management across the UK private sector

Purpose – Increasingly, private sector companies are aiming to buy and supply products and services in a sustainable way, termed “sustainable supply chain management” (sustainable SCM), using purchasing and supply to reduce negative impacts on the environment, economy and society. There is often a gap between rhetoric and reality, with companies often accused of paying green lip service to sustainable SCM. This research aims to explore sustainable SCM issues in companies that have been recognized as leaders in their sectors, and investigate what factors influence sustainable SCM, and how practice might change in the future. Design/methodology/approach – Current practice in sustainable SCM and predictions for the future were explored in case studies of seven UK companies, through semi-structured interviews with purchasers and CSR practitioners, and secondary data collection from reports and websites. Sectors included aerospace, retail, pharmaceuticals, and food and drink. Findings – Companies were mapped onto a typology of approaches to sustainable SCM, based on internal and external enablers and barriers. Companies were classified as Internal focusers, Reserved players, External responders, and Agenda setters. Predictions for the future of sustainable SCM within the companies were also explored. Research limitations/implications – The typology could be further explored through a survey of firms from different sectors, and with firms not seen as leading in their field. Originality/value – The paper draws on contingency theory and existing sustainable SCM literature to develop a typology of approaches to sustainable SCM. The paper draws useful lessons from leading companies for practitioners seeking to implement sustainable SCM.
Retrofitting automatic testing through library tests reusing

Test cases are useful for program comprehension. Developers often understand dynamic behavior of systems by running their test cases. As manual testing is expensive, automatic testing has been extensively studied to reduce the cost. However, without sufficient knowledge of the software under test, it is difficult for automated testing techniques to create effective test cases, especially for software that requires complex inputs. In this paper, we propose to reuse existing test cases from the libraries of software under test, to generate better test cases. We have the observation that, when developers start to test the target software, the test cases of its dependent libraries are often available. Therefore, we propose to perform program analysis on these artifacts to extract relevant code fragments to create test sequences. We further seed these sequences to a random test generator GRT to generate test cases for target software. The preliminary experiments show that the technique significantly improves the effectiveness of GRT. Our in-depth analysis reveals that several dependency metrics are good indicators of the potential benefits of applying our technique on specific programs and their libraries.
Effect of Training and Development on Employee Turnover in Selected Medium Sized Hotels in Kisumu City, Kenya

Employee turnover in the hotel industry is problematic and can be dysfunctional. There cannot be a cohesive successful team, if the team members are always changing. However, it is not just the retention of the staff that is of interest here, it is the examination of those elements of human resource practices, over which these establishments have some control. Off the job training takes place away from the working station and most hotels rarely take this form of training because of the intensity of work. The broad objective of this study was to investigate the effects of human resource practices on employee turnover in selected medium size hotels in Kisumu City. The research sought to establish the extent to which training and development of employees contribute to employee turnover. The research adopted Herzberg’s two factor theory. The research design was survey. A target of 24 medium size hotels in Kisumu City comprising a population of 350 employees was used. Purposive sampling technique was used to select the hotels, while stratified sampling method was used to select departments and simple random sampling was used to select the respondents from the departments. A sample size of six hotels comprising 187 employees and 24 management staff was selected for the study. Questionnaires were administered to both the management staff and employees. The findings indicated that employee development significantly affected employee turnover (p=.005) 2-tailed. Training is a tool that can assist Hotels in building a more committed and productive workforce. Although training plays a major role in this process, Hotels need to look at additional strategies and practices that can enhance commitment. Training alone may offer many benefits but a much greater impact will be found when using a strategy to human resources that entails many different organizational practices and policies. Keywords: Turnover; Hotels; Training; Herzberg’s motivator-hygiene; Human resource.
Reusable specification modules for type analysis

Type analysis can be characterized by a language‐independent collection of standard computational roles such as ‘typed identifier use’ (e.g. a variable name appearing in an expression) and ‘dyadic expression’ (e.g. addition of two values). A type analyzer for a specific language is then defined by stating which language construct(s) play each role. The computational roles provide a framework for understanding the general process and a vocabulary for applying that understanding to the solution of particular problems. We have captured this knowledge in attribute grammar modules that are carefully designed to be combinable and adaptable, exporting language‐independent roles that define the general type analysis problem. From this collection, the compiler designer instantiates the appropriate modules and identifies the relevant source‐language constructs; an attribute grammar processor then weaves the necessary computations into the compiler's semantic analyzer. Our attribute grammar modules provide a precise definition of the actions constituting the various roles and the dependences among them. They can therefore also be used to describe the type analysis process to students, or to specify a hand‐coded semantic analyzer. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Extracting parallel phrases from comparable data for machine translation†

Abstract Mining parallel data from comparable corpora is a promising approach for overcoming the data sparseness in statistical machine translation and other natural language processing applications. In this paper, we address the task of detecting parallel phrase pairs embedded in comparable sentence pairs. We present a novel phrase alignment approach that is designed to only align parallel sections bypassing non-parallel sections of the sentence. We compare the proposed approach with two other alignment methods: (1) the standard phrase extraction algorithm, which relies on the Viterbi path of the word alignment, (2) a binary classifier to detect parallel phrase pairs when presented with a large collection of phrase pair candidates. We evaluate the accuracy of these approaches using a manually aligned data set, and show that the proposed approach outperforms the other two approaches. Finally, we demonstrate the effectiveness of the extracted phrase pairs by using them in Arabic–English and Urdu–English translation systems, which resulted in improvements upto 1.2 Bleu over the baseline. The main contributions of this paper are two-fold: (1) novel phrase alignment algorithms to extract parallel phrase pairs from comparable sentences, (2) evaluating the utility of the extracted phrases by using them directly in the MT decoder.
Low-Dose Ketamine in Chronic Critical Illness

We report a case series on the observed effects of low-dose ketamine infusions in 4 critically ill patients with varying complications related to prolonged critical illness. Doses of ketamine infusion ranged from 0.5 to 4 μg/kg/min. A low-dose ketamine infusion was used to reduce agitation in a patient requiring high doses of sedatives and analgesics. In a second patient, ketamine improved depression and anxiety symptoms. In a third patient, ketamine may have facilitated liberation from mechanical ventilation. In a fourth patient, ketamine was used for palliation to avoid lethargy. Ketamine may be considered to help decrease agitation, manage pain, facilitate opioid and benzodiazepine withdrawal, prevent respiratory depression, and potentially manage depression and anxiety in chronically critically ill patients.
The English Channel : subtitle a mixed fishery, but which mix is best?

Ecopath with Ecosim ecosystem models were built for the English Channel (ICES areas V l l d and Vile) in 1973 and 1995. The 1973 model was run forwards in time with a timeseries of fishing mortality data to assess how realistically the model predicted the changes in biomass that had occurred. The parameters for both models were modified so that the biomass trends reflected stock assessment data. This "tuning" required slight changes to some of the basic input parameters, and the addition of 5 juvenile groups and 5 functions that forced 8 groups to react to annual mean water temperature. The final 1995 Ecosim model consisted of 50 groups, with nine different fisheries exploiting 31 of these groups. The market price, fleet profitability and jobs/catch value ratio were entered into Ecosim to run policy optimisations. To set extreme boundaries of possible gains from the Channel, initially the computer searched for the economic, social, ecological and rebuilding for recreational species optima. Netting and lining were the most profitable fleets and also had a high jobs/catch value ratio so were significantly increased for the economic and social optima. The ecological and rebuilding optima reduced the fleet to nearly zero. Trade-off frontiers were created by weighting each of the objective functions differently and these, along with the results of RAPFISH, a rapid appraisal technique that determined the sustainability of the fisheries, were used to generate three robust management alternatives that were assumed to be most beneficial to the special interest groups (stakeholders). The effect of climate change was incorporated by running the model for two scenarios where the average sea temperature increased by 0.15 °C and 0.3 °C per decade. Some of the inherent uncertainty of the data was accounted for by varying vulnerabilities, sea temperatures and the discount rate and by using the 'closed loop' optimisation analysis. A discussion of the future management of the Channel followed, suggesting that changes to both the fishing fleet and the European management structure were required for sustainable management of the English Channel.
Evidence of oxidative stress in familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy type 1.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the oxidative state in patients with familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy type 1 (FAP1). DESIGN From 3 unrelated families, patients with FAP1 carrying a transthyretin Met-30 mutation were studied. The diagnosis was confirmed by genetic analysis. Eleven of 21 patients carried the mutation; all were symptomatic and were clinically assessed using a clinical score. All of the patients were evaluated for copper-zinc superoxide dismutase type 1 activity in red blood cells using spectrophotometry. Plasma total reactive antioxidant potential was studied using a chemiluminescent method. The results were compared with those obtained from an age-matched control group. SETTING A public and academic multidisciplinary research clinic. RESULTS Six of the 11 FAP1-positive patients disclosed superoxide dismutase type 1 activity values greater than 55 U/mg of protein (upper control limit), whereas 9 of 10 patients in whom total reactive antioxidant potential was measured had values below the lower limit of the control group. No relationship was found between the levels of superoxide dismutase type 1 activity and the severity of the clinical involvement. CONCLUSIONS Oxidative stress may be part of the mechanisms leading to tissue damage in patients with FAP1. The lack of correlation between the laboratory findings and the severity of clinical involvement may signal that oxidative processes are at work throughout the natural history of the disease.
Variable Mini-Batch Sizing and Pre-Trained Embeddings

This paper describes our submission to the WMT 2017 Neural MT Training Task. We modiﬁed the provided NMT system in order to allow for interrupting and continuing the training of models. This allowed mid-training batch size decremen-tation and incrementation at variable rates. In addition to the models with variable batch size, we tried different setups with pre-trained word2vec embeddings. Aside from batch size incrementation, all our experiments performed below the baseline.
Predicting Store Profit and Customer Satisfaction: The Moderating Role of Customer BATNA and Salesperson's Job Attitude

This study examined real world sales negotiations. We collected data in collaboration with a large Taiwanese eyeglasses company. Our data showed that the higher the first offers (made from either side) the higher the store profit for the final deal, but this effect was lessened when the had a stronger BATNA (measured by the number of times the customers had compared other stores’ prices in advance). In terms of customers’ perceptions of service quality, a different set of predictors emerged. Customers of salespeople who spent more time talking to customers about the product reported higher service quality, but this only occurred among salespeople high in job satisfaction. We discuss the implications of our findings both for the management and for the customers.
Tax incentives and R&D: an evaluation of the 2002 UK reform using micro data

The United Kingdom introduced an R&D tax incentive scheme rst for SMEs in 2000 and then for large rms in 2002, gradually increasing the generosity of both schemes after 2008. This study exploits the differences between companies with similar characteristics that were just above the size threshold for eligibility to the SME scheme and those that were just below, before and after the 2002 reform. This allows for a difference-in-differences approach to measure the (additional) impact of the tax incentives on firms around this size threshold. Treatment group firms are found to have increased their R&D spending by around 18 percent on average in response to the large company tax incentive, implying a user cost elasticity of -1.35. We do not find significant differences in this effect between sectors.