Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Managerial use of accounting information : A study on how managers use business reports at NCC

There is a need to learn more about how managers use accounting information. This thesis investigates how managers make use of business reports; as they are one of the ways managers receive information. Previous research was found to broadly correspond to four important aspects affecting how managers make use of business reports; aggregation, timeliness, flexibility and dimensions. A case study was conducted at NCC Construction. The main findings from this study are that managers have the possibility to view information in the reports at their desired level of specificity and they are not concerned about the issue of timeliness. Furthermore they are satisfied with flexibility in reports, but wish for more capabilities and do not desire non-financial information in reports. Therefore the four aspects are found to no longer be a hindrance to managers in their use of business reports as much as could be expected from previous studies. Technological developments and business practices are found to have changed managerial work. Reporting has become faster and is more accurately reflecting the real world operations, making business reports more useful to managers.
Is the Security Bubble Within the Banking Sector About to BURST

In the context of Access provision, Identity access management holds the key to administering, monitoring and assurance of access to information within the Bank, both internal premises and application hosted on cloud. It is vital that the information is available when required providing both integrity and confidentiality. Failure to deliver information on time, lacking in integrity could results in compensation, loss of business, disclosure of company secrets and compliance issues. Identity management is widely herald as an opportunity for enhancing the operational process in information security, reducing cost, enhanced reporting capability and regulatory compliance. However in recent year this has proven to be the concept misunderstood, complex and costly. A case study within an investment Bank information system department is used to highlight issues around access management and the controls. Organisation is still reliant of manual provisioning of information access, user access addition, removal and update. This leave user under- privilege or over privilege access, high risk of human error and this could open up the organisation fraud risk. In this paper we extend the, issues within the previous unsuccessful implementation of Identity access management solution and highlight flaws within the access control provisioning requirements within investment banks by proposing a model framework to be used by the banks to enhance the process of access control and to be use by software vendors as a guideline in developing access provisioning identity access management software.
Balancing potential and realized absorptive capacities to enhance firms' innovation and financial performance

This study takes firms' absorptive capacity as a multi-dimensional construct consisting two capability subsetspotential and realized absorptive capacities. Instead of studying their individual impact on organizational performance as most previous studies do, we study how their relative magnitude (trade-offs) and combined magnitude (interaction) affect innovation and financial performance, and their variations at different levels of market competitiveness. We use the survey method and empirically prove that the relative magnitude of absorptive capacity can significantly affect firms' innovation activities in highly competitive markets, whereas the combined magnitude can enhance firms' financial performance in the absence of intense competition. Our perspective provides a more nuanced view of organizational learning. It is consistent with the latest theoretical trend in absorptive capacity studies where the focus has shifted from the static and simplistic view to the dynamic perspective that emphasizes “balancing”, “trade-off”, and “interaction”.
IN VITRO STUDIES ON STAPHYLOCOCCAL ENTEROTOXIN PRODUCTION

Staphylococcal enterotoxin is found in the culture supernatant after suitable incubation of food poisoning strains (Dack, 1956). Attempts to demonstrate the toxin within washed cells have not been successful. This extracellular nature of enterotoxin and the production of an antienterotoxin serum (Bergdoll, Surgalla, and Dack, 1959) suggested that the enterotoxigenicity of staphylococcal strains could be studied in vitro, using the formation of specific antigen-antibody precipitate lines in agar plates as the criterion of enterotoxin production. The present communication is concerned with (a) a simple in vitro method for demonstrating the production of enterotoxin, (b) the variation in enterotoxin production within a single strain of staphylococcus, and (c) additional evidence for the antigenic heterogeneity of enterotoxins produced by different strains.
Late Effects of Hodgkin’s Disease and Its Treatment

Long-term survivors of Hodgkin’s lymphoma are at increased risk for a number of late complications, including development of second malignancies and cardiovascular disease. Treatment-related factors and other modifying risk factors contributing to the risk of late effects have been identified. Survivors deemed at increased risk based on their treatment history and other exposures may benefit from early detection for late complications and risk reduction strategies. However, the optimal screening tests and prevention program, and their timing and frequency are not clear. It should be noted that treatment for Hodgkin’s lymphoma has undergone considerable changes over the last several decades. Most of the current data on late effects after Hodgkin’s lymphoma are based on patients treated with outdated chemotherapy and radiation therapy. As Hodgkin’s lymphoma therapy evolve over time, continued documentation of late effects associated with newer treatment will be important for the follow-up of patients treated in the modern era.
Modulation of the proliferation and matrix synthesis of chondrocytes by dynamic compression on genipin-crosslinked chitosan/collagen scaffolds

Dynamic compression is an important physical stimulus for the physiology of chondrocyte and articular cartilage tissue engineering. In this study, modulation of chondrocyte behaviors in chitosan/collagen scaffolds with different mechanical properties under free-swelling or dynamic compression conditions was investigated. Rabbit chondrocytes were seeded in chitosan/collagen scaffolds crosslinked by genipin (GP) with different concentrations, and then cultured for 3 days prior to cyclic compression of 40% strain, 0.1 Hz, and 30 min/day for 2 weeks. The results showed that the cell proliferation was increased with increasing genipin concentrations and dynamic compression. On the other hand, although total glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) deposition was enhanced by dynamic compression under certain conditions, e.g. the GP0.5 chitosan/collagen scaffolds for 1 week of compression culture, normalized GAGs deposition per cell was decreased by dynamic compression. Our results suggest that while several studies suggest that dynamic compression benefits articular cartilage tissue engineering, many factors including scaffold types and compression conditions determine the outcome of dynamic compression culture.
Sensitivity techniques for the fast assessment of security margins to voltage collapse

This paper presents a simple, fast and efficient method for determining the security margin to voltage collapse (SMVC) of electric power systems. The computation procedure is based on the utilization of sensitivity techniques. The basic idea is that load increments influence the behavior of the reactive power injected by generators (slack and PV buses). Therefore, sensitivity analysis may be a very interesting tool for voltage stability analysis and applications. The proposed method, with a static approach, is based on solving a certain number of load flow calculations for different load levels. The path to reaching the maximum loading point, which allows the estimation of the SMVC consists of simple load increments or curtailments. The results are accurately obtained after a few load change steps.
Assessment of State Capacity to Manage Forest and Land Fires in Kubu Raya Regency, West Kalimantan Province

Forest and land fires in Kubu Raya Regency are caused by human activity such as farming by burning landand have caused a lot of environmental damage and material loss. There is a need to overcome or to minimize disaster by conducting activities aiming to reduce the risk and the impact. This paper focuses on the government capacity to address disaster, particularly forest and land fires in Kubu Raya Regency and describes government capacity, particularly within organizations, coordination among organizations, human and material resources, and budgets related to forest and land fires, in order to discover whether the capacity is strong or weak. It attempts to describe state capacity and to answer the question about the government capacity to manage forest and land fires in Kubu Raya Regency. The method that is used to analyze the question is a qualitative and descriptive method by doing interview and reviewing literature and documents related with the forest and land fires issues.This research found that government has the capability to address forest and land fires, but there does not exist a particular organization to handle the fires, lack of coordination, budget, and both human and material resources which proves that state capacity is still weak. Keywords: disaster, forest and land, state capacity
Vipirinin, a Coumarin-based HIV-1 Vpr Inhibitor, Interacts with a Hydrophobic Region of VPR*

The human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV-1) viral protein R (Vpr) is an accessory protein that has been shown to have multiple roles in HIV-1 pathogenesis. By screening chemical libraries in the RIKEN Natural Products Depository, we identified a 3-phenyl coumarin-based compound that inhibited the cell cycle arrest activity of Vpr in yeast and Vpr-dependent viral infection of human macrophages. We determined its minimal pharmacophore through a structure-activity relationship study and produced more potent derivatives. We detected direct binding, and by assaying a panel of Vpr mutants, we found the hydrophobic region about residues Glu-25 and Gln-65 to be potentially involved in the binding of the inhibitor. Our findings exposed a targeting site on Vpr and delineated a convenient approach to explore other targeting sites on the protein using small molecule inhibitors as bioprobes.
The Effects of Agricultural Trade Liberalisation under the Doha Development Agenda with Special Reference to the Asia Pacific Region: A Brief Survey

The main purpose of this paper is to survey the results of recent quantitative studies on the effects of Agricultural Trade Liberalization with special reference to the Asia-Pacific region under the July Framework Agreement or the “July Package” of the Doha Development Agenda, DDA (the decision adopted by the General Council of the WTO on 1 August 2004, see WTO, 2004, WT/L/579).
How To Reduce Arrears In Microfinance Institutions

Reducing arrears is crucial if MFIs are to achieve selfsufficiency. MFI staff must understand the causes of arrears--whether from clients' testing the MFI's determination to collect, crises in clients' lives, loans that are too large, or loans given on the basis of favoritism. Analytical tools for assessing and preventing arrears include key measures for analyzing arrears (e.g., portfolio quality ratios and performance ratios by credit officer) and financial ratio tests for determining appropriate loan size. The key to reducing arrears is to follow up late loans quickly, form strong solidarity groups, update and enforce credit policies, focus credit officers' services in a specific geographic scope, not lend to start-up businesses, and provide financial incentives for credit officers. In critical arrears situations, MFIs should suspend lending to new clients until portfolio quality improves, as well as ascertain clients' ability and willingness to repay in order to design appropriate strategies to pursue.
Web phishing detection using classifier ensemble

This research adapts and develops various methods in Artificial Intelligent (A.I) field to improve web phishing detection. Based on the features from Carnegie Mellon Anti-phishing and Network Analysis Tool (CANTINA), we add, modify or reduce features in case of using to train a machine learning method. We also add our developed features called homepage similarity features to the machine. Moreover, we applied the classifier ensemble concept to the study. After training with 500 phishing web pages and 500 non-phishing web pages, the experiments on 1,500 pages per each class showed that our proposed methodology could boost accuracy up to approximately 30% from traditional heuristic method's results.
(Im)perishable Pleasure, (In)destructible Desire: Sexual Themes in U.S. and English News Coverage of Male Circumcision and Female Genital Cutting

Under what conditions do sexual pleasure and desire get addressed in news coverage of sexual health issues like female genital cutting (FGC) and male circumcision (MC)? In this study we employed an embodied ethnosexuality approach to analyze sexual themes in 1,902 items published from 1985 to 2009 in 13 U.S. and 8 English newspapers and news magazines. Journalists' discussions of sexual pleasure, desire, control, problems, and practices differed in quantity and quality depending on the practice and nation to which they pertained. News coverage in both nations presented FGC as impeding female sexual pleasure, desire, and activity in ways that reinforce (hetero)sexist understandings of sexuality. The English press depicted MC as diminishing male sexuality, whereas U.S. papers showed it as enhancing male sexuality. These patterns are influenced by, and serve to reinforce, cultural norms of embodiment and ethnosexual boundaries based on gender, race, and nationality. They may, in turn, shape public understandings of FGC and MC as social problems.
Searching Translation Memories for Paraphrases

Translation memories (TMs) are very useful tools for translating texts in narrow domains. We propose the use of paraphrases for searching TMs. By using paraphrases, we can retrieve sentences that have the same meaning as the input sentences even if they do not match exactly. The paraphrase pairs used in our sys-tem are obtained from parallel corpora and are used to retrieve sentences in a statistical framework.
Enhancing empirical accounting models with textual information

OF THE DISSERTATION Enhancing Empirical Accounting Models with Textual Information by Khrystyna Bochkay Dissertation Director: Dr. Carolyn B. Levine Rapid developments in information technologies and the increased availability of narrative disclosures in electronic form have provoked interest in textual analysis. In this dissertation, we survey research on textual analysis of mandatory and voluntary disclosures, describe methodologies for analyzing and incorporating text into quantitative models, and provide an analysis of MD&A text and earnings. Most empirical studies examine the association between text characteristics (e.g., tone and linguistic complexity) and future firm performance or market reactions. However, in-sample explanatory power is not equivalent to out-of-sample predictive power (Shmueli, 2010). We use regularized regression methods to examine whether textual disclosures in the Management Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) section of the 10-K report are helpful in predicting future earnings above and beyond traditional financial factors. We develop techniques to combine textual information from the MD&A section of the annual report with financial variables and generate explicit firm-level forecasts of future earnings. We employ the “bag-of-words” (BOW) approach to represent MD&A
How Come There is No Market For Corporate Bonds In The Baltic States

This thesis contributes to the understanding of why corporate bonds have not been commonly used as a funding source in the Baltic States. In the Baltics, bank loans are practically the only financial instrument used for companies in need of funding. This seems to be sub-optimal from a macroeconomic perspective, where empirical studies have shown that corporate bonds can mitigate the impact of an economic crisis. In order to accelerate the rebuilding of the economy, alternative markets outside bank loans would be preferable. The study is primarily based on a quantitative research but both quantitative and qualitative sources are used in a multiple method study. The research concludes that there is a potential bond market in the Baltic States but there seem to be a lack of investors in the local Baltic markets. If companies due to this situation seek investors on the international market, more obstacles are in the way for these companies. The most important aspect in explaining this dysfunctional bond market is the low interest rates of bank loans that are present in the Baltics. These have been low for a long time and the interest rates for bank loans were lower than those of bonds even back in 2004. Another aspect of explaining the problem has to do with the short sightedness of Baltic enterprises.
The usefulness of mathematical models in assessing medical tests.

Box and Draper are widely quoted: “Essentially, all (mathematical) models are wrong, but some are useful. ”1(p. 424) As a biostatistician, I read the models described by Steyerberg et al2 with admiration. The authors are doing what their title implies: evaluating mathematical models. However, as an i
Optimum Resource Allocation and Eliminating Waste Inside Food Industry

This article seeks to allocate optimum resources for the wrapping section and suggesting a suitable method that needs to be in place for successful elimination of waste inside the food industry's wrapping section. It also includes identifying the main reasons for various types of wastages inside the wrapping section and cost of all the wastages. The paper is based on observation and research using the approach of lean tools and techniques. The methodology used for evaluating data is value stream mapping and some statistical SPSS tools for analysis. Data are real and are gathered from three different production shifts inside a food industry wrapping section. The main reasons for wastages inside the wrapping section are highlighted. Finally, the paper was concluded by estimating total cost of wastages and recommending a suitable way to save wastage costs. The need to change the jaws inside the wrapping machines, regular maintenance of all machines throughout the industry and training of personnel are recommended. The possible methods along with their benefits to reduce waste, operators, improve productivity and business growth were also highlighted.
Insomnia in places of detention: a review of the most recent research findings

Up to 40% of prisoner patients in a general medicine outpatient service seek medical consultation for sleep problems. This paper provides a brief overview of what is known about insomnia and its treatment from studies on non-detained patients and discusses the relevance of the findings from studies in liberty for prison health care. The clinical and ethical issues of insomnia in prison are described, followed by a summary of the existing studies on insomnia in prison. The results of the reported studies show that insomnia in places of detention should not be reduced to a secondary problem related to substance abuse and mental illness, as it appears to be an independent situational problem. Correctional health care physicians' evaluation of insomnia is insufficient. Drug prescription works well in some patients, but has a limited effect on insomnia relief in others. A clear need exists for the education of prison health care professionals on insomnia evaluation and management. Additional non-pharmacological treatment in the prison health care setting should be used more frequently. Prison health care services should develop clear guidelines based on research evidence about insomnia and which contain treatment recommendations based on the principle of equivalence of health care outside and inside places of detention.
COURTSHIP FEEDING AND THE FITNESS OF FEMALE KATYDIDS (ORTHOPTERA: TETTIGONIIDAE)

Katydid males (Requena verticalis) produce spermatophores with a large sperm‐free spermatophylax, which is eaten by the female after mating. In this study, I asked 1) how do spermatophylax nutrients affect the fitness of the mated female and her progeny? 2) does this male‐produced food substitute for other food in the diet of the female, or is it a source of specialized nutrients? and 3) does an increase in the size of the spermatophylax eaten influence female reproduction in the same way as the additional spermatophylaxes that would be obtained from multiple mating?
Socio-economic status and health inequalities in rural Tanzania: Evidence from the Rufifi demographic surveillance system.

It has been questioned whether demographic surveillance system (DSS) sites, which normally operate in relatively small, homogeneous areas, and in relatively small populations of the order of 100,000 people, are large enough to examine inequalities and inequities in health. The Rufiji DSS in Tanzania has attempted to apply principal components analysis (PCA) to asset and other household data collected in the routine course of a DSS, to rank individuals according to a household socio-economic index and investigate whether this predicts health system access or outcomes. In this study, we determined wealth indices for individuals in 12,604 rural households in the Rufiji DSS area using principal components analysis for the year 2000. The index was based on the presence or absence of items from a list of 20 specific household assets and 9 household characteristics dealing with household ownership, construction features, water supply, sanitation, and type of fuel. PCA revealed 49 principal components of which the first accounted for 12.9% of the total variance. Asset ownership and housing features contributed equally to the variance in the first component. Scores for each asset or feature were internally consistent with expectations. In this study, we examined mosquito net ownership as an example of health intervention access, and infant, child and under-5 mortality rates as examples of health outcomes, all in relation to quintiles of populations and determined poorest-least poor ratios, concentration indices, and chi-square for linear trend. Results showed significant gradients in both access and outcome measures across wealth quintiles, even in this relatively homogeneous rural area. Poorest-least poor ratios for infant, child and under-5 mortality were 1.46, 1.41 and 1.53 respectively while lack of access to mosquito nets was 1.82. The findings call for more attention to strategies or approaches for reducing health inequalities. These could include reforms in the health sector to provide more equitable resource allocation, improvement in the quality of the health services offered to the poor, and redesigning interventions and