Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The dynamic financial distress prediction method of EBW-VSTW-SVM

Financial distress prediction (FDP) takes important role in corporate financial risk management. Most of former researches in this field tried to construct effective static FDP (SFDP) models that are difficult to be embedded into enterprise information systems, because they are based on horizontal data-sets collected outside the modelling enterprise by defining the financial distress as the absolute conditions such as bankruptcy or insolvency. This paper attempts to propose an approach for dynamic evaluation and prediction of financial distress based on the entropy-based weighting (EBW), the support vector machine (SVM) and an enterprise’s vertical sliding time window (VSTW). The dynamic FDP (DFDP) method is named EBW-VSTW-SVM, which keeps updating the FDP model dynamically with time goes on and only needs the historic financial data of the modelling enterprise itself and thus is easier to be embedded into enterprise information systems. The DFDP method of EBW-VSTW-SVM consists of four steps, namely evaluation of vertical relative financial distress (VRFD) based on EBW, construction of training data-set for DFDP modelling according to VSTW, training of DFDP model based on SVM and DFDP for the future time point. We carry out case studies for two listed pharmaceutical companies and experimental analysis for some other companies to simulate the sliding of enterprise vertical time window. The results indicated that the proposed approach was feasible and efficient to help managers improve corporate financial management.
Nonlinear adaptive control using multiple identification models

An indirect multiple model adaptive controller is proposed for nonlinear systems in parametric-strict-feedback form. By designing a suitable switching scheme, some model close to the real plant can be selected quickly, so that transient performance can be improved significantly, especially when there exist large parametric uncertainties. Global stability of the closed-loop switching system has been proved. A simulation example is also given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed multiple model adaptive controller.
VESTIGIAL ORGANS AS OPPORTUNITIES FOR FUNCTIONAL INNOVATION: THE EXAMPLE OF THE PENSTEMON STAMINODE

Abstract Vestigial organs arise commonly during morphological evolution, but they need not be destined for elimination. Instead, vestigial organs may facilitate functional innovation because their freedom from functional constraints allows them to assume novel roles that their functional progenitor could not perform. We illustrate this vestigial transition between functions with an experimental study of the staminode of Penstemon flowers. Previous phylogenetic and developmental studies indicate that this staminode represents a stamen that was lost phenotypically, but not genetically, and then reappeared in the tribe Cheloneae, to which Penstemon belongs. To assess whether the Penstemon staminode has adopted a novel function(s), we compared pollination of flowers with and without staminodes for two bee-pollinated species, P. ellipticus and P. palmeri, and two hummingbird-pollinated species, P. centranthifolius and P. rostriflorus. The staminode acts differently in the two bee-pollinated species. For P. ellipticus, which represents the basal Penstemon lineage, the staminode hinders pollinator access to nectar, which increases visit duration and pollinator contact with sexual organs, thereby increasing pollen receipt by stigmas and controlling pollen removal from anthers. In contrast, in P. palmeri, the staminode acts as a lever that enhances stigma contact with the pollinator, so that staminode removal reduced pollen receipt, but did not affect pollinator attraction, visit duration, or pollen removal. Unlike in bee-pollinated species, staminode removal from hummingbird-pollinated species did not affect any measured aspect of pollination, indicating that the staminode serves no function in this derived pollination system. These results illustrate several features of vestigial organs: loss of function can be temporary; loss of function facilitates the evolution of novel roles; and functional reinvention will often involve only a single role, thus increasing the chance of both secondary loss of function (bird-pollinated penstemons) and functional switches (P. palmeri).
Optimal Designs for Discrete Choice Contingent Valuation Surveys: Single-Bound, Double-Bound, and Bivariate Models

This paper finds the designs for discrete-choice contingent valuation surveys which maximize the precision of a statistic of interest about the public′s willingness to pay (WTP) for a change in the environmental quality, such as median WTP. An optimization problem is set up, in which the efficiency of the estimate of median WTP (or a related concept) is the objective function to optimize with respect to the survey design (i.e., the set of bids offered to the respondents). In deriving the optimal designs, we consider alternative econometric models, such as the basic "single-bound" model that uses the responses to the first payment question, the traditional interval-data (or "double-bound") model for surveys with a follow-up payment question, and the recently proposed bivariate binary response model. Simulations are carried out to compare the alternative design principles and assess their performances with respect to the statistic of primary interest, median WTP, and other welfare measures, such as mean WTP. Other designs that are constructed ad hoc are also examined.
Connected Filtering and Segmentation Using Component Trees

This paper formalizes the notion of nonflat gray-level connected filters and proposes efficient algorithms for their implementation in a supplementary web page. The component tree is proposed as an efficient and accessible data structure used to implement these filters. The primary nonflat component filter advocated in this paper is based on the concept of an attribute signature. The attribute signature captures both attribute and linking information between components in a gray-level image and can be a powerful means of discriminating desired image features. One of the key benefits of the approach is that the image features to be filtered undergo the maximum amount of filtering that is possible without altering the rest of the image at all. As a consequence, an image segmentation can be obtained simply by finding those pixels within the image that have been changed by the filter. We present an application of nonflat component filters to the segmentation of wood micrographs.
A meta‐analysis of parasite virulence in nestling birds

Parasitism is a common cause of host mortality, but little is known about the ecological factors affecting parasite virulence (the rate of mortality among infected hosts). We reviewed 117 field estimates of parasite‐induced nestling mortality in birds, showing that there was significant consistency in mortality among host and parasite taxa. Virulence increased towards the tropics in analyses of both species‐specific data and phylogenetic analyses. We found evidence of greater parasite prevalence being associated with reduced virulence. Furthermore, bird species breeding in open nest sites suffered from greater parasite‐induced mortality than hole‐nesting species. By contrast, parasite specialization and generation time of parasites relative to that of hosts explained little variation in virulence. Likewise, there were little or no significant effects of host genetic variability, host sociality, host migration, host insular distribution or host survival on parasite virulence. These findings suggest that parasite‐induced nestling mortality in birds is mainly determined by geographical location and to a smaller extent nest site and prevalence.
Signals of foreign bank entry on real sector FDI and foreign trade and their impact on economic development in the New EU Member States

Does financial sector foreign direct investment (FSFDI) trigger general capital inflows and foreign trade? Do these inflows to New EU Member States (NMS) provide positive signals (Spence, 1973) towards economic development or 'crowd out' investment and trade? While the direct impact of financial deepening has received much attention (Hasan, Wachtel, Zhou, 2006; Detragiache, Tressel, Gupta, 2006), indirect effects have received less consideration. To fill this gap, we review the literature on possible links and provide descriptive data for NMS. We apply regression analysis and find coherence between FSFDI and non-financial FDI and trade in Bulgaria and Croatia, but there are various directions in which developmental repercussions can go and the impact on trade is not as significant as the effect on nonfinancial FDI. We argue that the relative impact of FSFDI, real sector FDI and trade needs to be taken into consideration in shaping economic policies conducive to economic development.
A Money-Based Indicator for Deflation Risk

We employ a money-based early warning model in order to analyse the risk of a low inflation regime in the euro area, Japan and the US. The model specification allows for three different inflation regimes: Low, Medium and High inflation, while state transition probabilities vary over time as a function of monetary variables. Using Bayesian techniques, we estimate the model with data from the early 1970s up to the present. Our analysis suggests that the risks of a Low inflation regime in the euro area have been increasing in the course of the last six quarters of the sample; moreover, money growth appears to play a significant role in the assessment of such risks. Evidence for Japan and the US, on the other hand, shows that the inclusion of a monetary indicator variable does not substantially change the assessment of the risk of a Low inflation regime in either of the two countries.
An Examination of Short-Selling Activity Surrounding Auditor Changes

Using a combination of short-selling data made available by Regulation SHO and auditor change data disclosed in companies’ SEC filings, we examine whether short sellers (a) discern between “good news” and “bad news” auditor changes and (b) increase their revenue by trading around auditor change announcements. We find that short sellers systematically increase activity following certain auditor changes, which include auditor downgrades (i.e., change from Big 4 auditor to non-Big 4 auditor), auditor resignations, and auditor changes involving a disagreement between management and the departing auditor. Our results indicate that short sellers are able to generate significant returns by systematically taking short positions pursuant to specific types of “bad news” changes.
Erectile response to transurethral alprostadil, prazosin and alprostadil-prazosin combinations.

PURPOSE Transurethral alprostadil has been shown to be efficacious in many men with erectile dysfunction. We compared transurethral alprostadil and prazosin alone, and in combination to treat this disorder. MATERIALS AND METHODS In this double-blind, placebo controlled study the erectile responses to transurethral alprostadil, prazosin and alprostadil-prazosin combinations were assessed in 234 men 26.8 to 81.5 years old with complete organic erectile dysfunction. Patients self-administered a random sequence of 7 doses in the clinic in 4 weeks. The erectile response was assessed using categorical and visual analog scales. RESULTS Full penile enlargement or rigidity was achieved by 165 of the 234 men (70.5%) after at least 1 active dose of medication. The most effective alprostadil dose (500 microg.) resulted in full penile enlargement or rigidity in 51.8% of administrations, whereas the most effective prazosin dose (2,000 microg.) and placebo resulted in a similar response in 12.7 and 2.7%, respectively (p <0.001). The 500/2,000 microg. alprostadil/prazosin combination, which resulted in full enlargement or rigidity in 58.9% of doses, was only slightly better than the most effective dose of alprostadil alone (500 microg.). However, combinations of 125/500 and 250/500 microg. alprostadil/prazosin were more effective (p <0.01) than 125 and 250 microg. alprostadil given alone, respectively. The most common side effect of therapy was penile pain, which rarely led to study discontinuation. Hypotension most commonly developed at the higher alprostadil-prazosin combination. CONCLUSIONS Transurethral alprostadil and alprostadil-prazosin combinations produced erections in men with complete organic erectile dysfunction. This combination therapy may be an option in patients who do not respond to transurethral alprostadil alone.
Corporate Social Responsiveness

The policies and practices of corporations are shaped by their top management groups. The attitudes and values of these executives influence significantly whether or not those policies and practices are responsive to the expectations of the broader society. This article demonstrates not only a relationship between management values and corporate social responsiveness, but also that companies with strong social responsiveness generally enjoy better financial performance than their less responsive industry counterparts.
GHG Mitigation Policies and Employment: A CGE Analysis with Wage Rigidity and Application to Canada

Dans cet article, nous évaluons, grâce à un modèle d’équilibre général, les effets d’une politique d’atténuation des impacts des GES en présence de rigidités du marché du travail. Nous analysons l’impact de la réduction d’émissions de CO2 dans le cadre d’un système de plafonnement et d’échange de droits d’émission ainsi que les implications de différentes possibilités de recyclage des recettes. Nos résultats indiquent que cette politique a un effet négatif sur l’emploi et le bien-être quand les recettes des permis sont recyclées en tant que dividendes sociaux forfaitaires aux ménages. Utiliser les recettes du carbone pour réduire les cotisations sociales donne de meilleurs résultats, puisque les avantages sont plus importants que les coûts de la réduction elle-même. De plus, utiliser les recettes des permis pour réduire les cotisations sociales uniquement des travailleurs peu spécialisés est l’option la plus avantageuse.
SECULAR TRENDS IN RISK PREMIUMS

THIS PAPER CONSIDERS how risk premiums on investments are likely to change over time. The analysis is based upon results derived by Sharpe, Lintner and others [2, 5, 6, 9, 11] for equilibrium in the market for risk assets. To simplify the analysis it is assumed all physical assets are owned by firms. This allows us to identify the national wealth with the total value of company assets. It is shown that for a constant rate of interest the secular trend in the cost of capital for an investment project of given riskiness depends upon the growth of national wealth and the growth of population. The first part of the paper examines secular trends in risk premiums. The question we are in effect asking is whether the compensation required for risktaking changes through time. Under a class of investor utility functions-the Bernoulli or logarithmic utility function-risk premiums would be constant through time. Under two classes of investor utility functions-the negative exponential and the quadratic utility function-risk premiums would be constant under conditions of economic stagnation. Under these latter classes of utility functions risk premiums would increase over time under conditions of growth in per capita national wealth. The second part examines secular trends in the Lintner-Mossin measure of the "market price of risk. " Under growth in national wealth and population and reasonable assumptions on investor utility functions this is shown to decline secularly. However, it is argued that the secular decline in the "market price of risk" is unimportant from the perspective of economic allocation under uncertainty. The analysis uses comparative statics and the rate of growth of total wealth is treated as exogenous. The results may, however, have some significance for growth theory. If (as is possible) risk premiums increase as per capita wealth increases, this would be a factor in limiting the feasible rate of growth of output.
Natural Immunity Enhances the Activity of a DR5 Agonistic Antibody and Carboplatin in the Treatment of Ovarian Cancer

The tumor necrosis factor–related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) induces apoptosis specifically in cancer cells with little effect on normal cells. We have previously shown that TRAIL signaling is altered in most ovarian cancer patients and that resistance to TRAIL contributes to ovarian cancer progression. In this study, we investigated whether resistance to TRAIL may be overcome by a monoclonal TRAILR2 (DR5) agonistic antibody (AD5-10). We found that the joint presence of AD5-10 with TRAIL and natural killer (NK) cells expressing TRAIL resensitizes ovarian cancer cells to apoptosis in vitro and in vivo, respectively. The combination of AD5-10 with carboplatin exerts a more than additive effect in vitro, which may at least partially be explained by the fact that carboplatin triggers DR5 expression on ovarian cancer cells. Moreover, AD5-10 restores the sensitivity of platin-resistant ovarian cancer to carboplatin in vivo. In addition, we found that TRAIL expression and NK cells are abundant in the tumor microenvironment and that depletion of NK cells abolishes the antitumor activity of AD5-10. This indicates that NK-mediated immunosurveillance against ovarian cancer might be mediated by TRAIL and that apoptosis induced by AD5-10 requires the presence of NK cells. In conclusion, this study indicates a key role and strong antitumorigenic effect of DR5 and highlights a novel link between NK-mediated immunosurveillance and activation of DR5-mediated apoptosis in ovarian cancer. Mol Cancer Ther; 9(4); 1007–18. ©2010 AACR.
Quality of Diagnosis and Procedure Coding in ICD-10 Administrative Data

Objectives:The International Classification of Disease, 10th Revision (ICD-10) was introduced worldwide beginning in the late 1990s. Because there have been no published data on the quality of coding using ICD-10, the aim of our analysis is to assess the quality of ICD-10 coding in routinely collected hospital discharge data from Australia, which began using ICD-10 in 1998. Methods:Audit data from the years 1998–1999 (n = 7004) and 2000–2001 (n = 7631), excluding same-day chemotherapy and dialysis cases, were used in data analysis. Quality measures included prevalence comparisons, sensitivity, positive predictive value (PPV), and the kappa statistic. Results:Comparison of the audit sample to public hospital discharges showed little difference in age and gender, with audited cases more likely to be overnight stays. There was no difference in the median number of hospital assigned diagnosis and procedure codes per discharge. Agreement of the principal diagnosis code was 85% at the 3-digit level and 79% at the 4-digit level in 1998–1999; this rate had improved to 87% and 81% in 2000–2001. Principal procedure code agreement was 85% in 1998–1999 and 83% in 2000–2001 at the 5-digit level, and 81% and 80% at the 7-digit level, respectively. Specific major diagnoses, comorbid diagnoses, major procedures, and minor procedures showed good-to-excellent coding quality. Conclusions:The transition to ICD-10 has occurred with no loss of data quality, with data showing a high level of reliability and adherence to coding standards. When consideration is given to the nature of the analysis, administrative data can provide highly reliable population-based estimates of hospitalization rates.
A Cultural Capital Perspective of the Effect of a Government–Voluntary Sector Partnership for Enhancing Access to Postsecondary Education

Affordable access to postsecondary education is of growing concern for both families and policy makers. More students have chosen to continue their education after high school over the last several decades, though decisions whether and where to attend are often based on limited knowledge and financial resources. Increasing costs of attendance have sustained inequalities in access for students from varying economic, social, and racial groups—a problem that captures the attention of the government and voluntary sectors alike. The purpose of this article is to examine the effect of Oregon’s government–voluntary sector partnership for improving access to postsecondary education: a private scholarship program and a volunteer mentoring program. In so doing, authors introduce cultural capital theory as a framework for studying nonprofit and voluntary sector activities. Authors suggest a need for further research on the utility of cultural capital in other policy areas that cut across sectors.
A Structural and Functional Analysis of α-Glucan Recognition by Family 25 and 26 Carbohydrate-binding Modules Reveals a Conserved Mode of Starch Recognition*

Starch-hydrolyzing enzymes lacking α-glucan-specific carbohydrate-binding modules (CBMs) typically have lowered activity on granular starch relative to their counterparts with CBMs. Thus, consideration of starch recognition by CBMs is a key factor in understanding granular starch hydrolysis. To this end, we have dissected the modular structure of the maltohexaose-forming amylase from Bacillus halodurans (C-125). This five-module protein comprises an N-terminal family 13 catalytic module followed in order by two modules of unknown function, a family 26 CBM (BhCBM26), and a family 25 CBM (BhCBM25). Here we present a comprehensive structure-function analysis of starch and α-glucooligosaccharide recognition by BhCBM25 and BhCBM26 using UV methods, isothermal titration calorimetry, and x-ray crystallography. The results reveal that the two CBMs bind α-glucooligosaccharides, particularly those containing α-1,6 linkages, with different affinities but have similar abilities to bind granular starch. Notably, these CBMs appear to recognize the same binding sites in granular starch. The enhanced affinity of the tandem CBMs for granular starch is suggested to be the main biological advantage for this enzyme to contain two CBMs. Structural studies of the native and ligand-bound forms of BhCBM25 and BhCBM26 show a structurally conserved mode of ligand recognition but through non-sequence-conserved residues. Comparison of these CBM structures with other starch-specific CBM structures reveals a generally conserved mode of starch recognition.
INCOME TAXATION AND GROWTH IN AN OLG ECONOMY: DOES AGGREGATE UNCERTAINTY PLAY ANY ROLE? *

We analyze the effects of capital income taxation on long-run growth in a stochastic, two-period overlapping generations economy with an aggregate AK technology. We distinguish between capital income and labor income, and between attitudes towards risk and intertemporal substitution of consumption. We show necessary and sufficient conditions such that i) increments in the capital income taxation lead to higher equilibrium growth rates, and ii) the effect of changes in the capital income tax rate on the equilibrium growth may be of opposite signs in stochastic and in deterministic economies. Numerical simulations show that deterministic OLG economies are a good approximation of the assessment of the effect of taxes on the equilibrium growth rate in stochastic economies as in Smith (1996).