Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Open Market Share Repurchase Programs and Corporate Governance: Company Performance

Payout policies based on share repurchase programs provide greater flexibility than do those based on cash dividends. We develop and test an empirical model in which strongly-governed companies outperform weakly-governed companies after announcing share repurchase programs. Our findings include positive associations between strong governance and both post-announcement adjusted operating performance and abnormal stock returns. The results are robust to sample selection bias, different sample criteria, governance measurement, and various control variables. In addition, governance strength is associated with larger post-announcement changes in CEO incentive compensation and merger and acquisition activity, both of which we argue are consistent with strongly-governed companies using the financial flexibility derived from choosing share repurchases over cash dividends to drive better performance. Consistent with current literature on attenuation of former anomalies, the associations we find between governance and post-announcement performance tend to disappear in the latter half of our sample period.
Corporate Governance and Audit Report Lag in Malaysia

This paper examines audit report lag in Malaysian public listed companies, following the implementation of the Malaysian Code on Corporate Governance in 2001. It departs from the standard audit report lag studies by incorporating characteristics of the board of directors and the audit committee. Multivariate analysis using 628 annual reports for the year ended 2002 indicates that active and larger audit committees shorten audit lag. However, we fail to find evidence that audit committee independence and expertise are associated with the timeliness of the audit report. Classification-JEL:
The Effects of Shifting Dividend Regimes: An International Examination of the REIT Effect

This paper examines the effects of a drastic change in dividend payout policy on both the return and risk of firms stock. We focus on the listed real estate markets of Japan, U.K and U.S. where the adoption of a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) standard has imposed a payout policy of 90 percent of taxable income. This exogenous shift in the dividend regime allows us to empirically test asymmetric information and incomplete contract theories. In line with signaling models, our event study results show that after the REIT adoption, dividend announcements are no longer accompanied by significant stock price reactions. Moreover, the results of our risk decomposition analysis tell us that the increased dividend payout has lowered the discount rate risk of firms, which supports theories are based on agency-induced imperfections.
Can psychometric testing be used to explain, predict and measure behavioural competences and the funding resource orchestration of the entrepreneur?

Financing is a critical entrepreneurial activity (Shane et al. 2003) and within the study of entrepreneurship, behaviour has been identified as an area requiring further exploration (Bird et al. 2012). Since 2008 supply side conditions for SMEs have been severe and increasingly entrepreneurs have to bundle or ‘orchestrate’ funding from a variety of sources in order to successfully finance the firm (Wright and Stigliani 2013: p.15). This longitudinal study uses psychometric testing to measure the behavioural competences of a panel of sixty entrepreneurs in the Creative Industries sector. Interviews were conducted over a 3 year period to identify finance finding behaviour. The research takes a pragmatic realism perspective to examine process and the different behavioural competences of entrepreneurs. The predictive qualities of this behaviour are explored in a funding context. The research confirmed a strong behavioural characteristic as validated through interviews and psychometric testing, was an orientation towards engagement and working with other organisations. In a funding context, this manifested itself in entrepreneurs using networks, seeking advice and sharing equity to fund growth. These co-operative, collaborative characteristics are different to the classic image of the entrepreneur as a risk-taker or extrovert. Leadership and achievement orientation were amongst the lowest scores. Three distinctive groups were identified and also shown by subsequent analysis to be a positive contribution to how entrepreneurial behavioural competences can be considered. Belonging to one of these three clusters is a strong predictive indicator of entrepreneurial behaviour – in this context, how entrepreneurs access finance. These Clusters were also proven to have different characteristics in relation to funding outcomes. The study seeks to make a contribution through the development of a methodology for entrepreneurs, policy makers and financial institutions to identify competencies in finding finance and overcome problems in information asymmetry.
Audit Committees and Financial Reporting Quality Following the Government Transformation Program: Evidence from Malaysia

The main objective of this study is to investigate the impact of Green Book’s implementation through Government Transformation programme in improving financial reporting quality among Malaysian GLCs. Results show an agitation finding whereby no evidence was found to support the hypotheses. Nevertheless, results were significant on the year when transformations were made. Agency theory and resource dependence theory presented as the theory used to explain audit committee, as a monitoring mechanism and reduce the agency costs via gaining competitive advantage in knowledge, skills, and expertise towards financial reporting quality. However, much to my keenness, the theories were not supported hence delineating other alternative theories in gaining further understanding the relationship between audit committee and financial reporting quality. The introduction of the Green Book to strengthen the board’s effectiveness had shown otherwise. Consequently, provide some room for improvement for future research to collaborate other theoretical explanation that could explain these findings.
A Principal Component Analysis to Identify the Green IT Factors that Impact ERP Adoption in Indian Small and Medium Enterprises

This paper identifies and explains the impact of certain predetermined Green IT factors in each of the five ERP adoption phases namely Planning, Acquisition, Implementation, Usage & Percolation and Extension for small and Medium Enterprises (SME) during an ERP investment decision. This exploratory study identified thirty four critical factors with relevance to Green IT practices throughout the five decision phases, tested on a sample of forty nine SMEs operating in the Auto-Component Cluster in Pune, India. The responses from SMEs indicate their interest in adopting Green IT practices during ERP adoption. Based on the principal component analysis and interpretation of results from all these five phases, twelve principal components emerged. This componentized set will be a good useful reference for decision-makers of SMEs to identify, anticipate and analyze the relevance of Green IT in ERP adoption for their organizations.
Rapid one-step purification of native dimeric ALS-associated human Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase from transgenic rat tissues

Abstract Mutated Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (SOD1) was the first proven cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and was the basis for the first animal model. Many approaches, including transgenic and knock-out animals, cell models, and in vitro studies using recombinant hSOD1 mutants and wild-type, have been employed in an attempt to elucidate the gained toxic function. However, a thorough characterization of the properties of hSOD1 mutants produced in vivo has yet to be carried out, primarily due to the lack of a procedure capable of purifying the enzyme from relevant tissues in a manner that avoids potential artifacts. Here we report a new, one-step purification procedure using a semi-preparative polymeric reversed-phase HPLC system, which yields greater than 99% pure enzyme from the spinal cord, and >95% pure from brain, heart, and kidney. This novel approach for purifying ‘in vivo expressed’ native dimeric SOD1 will facilitate the determination of the true ‘as isolated’ properties of the enzyme that is responsible for disease, devoid of any expression system, or harsh purification, artifacts. An important new finding related to the specific activity of human SOD1 (normalized to copper content) is also discussed.
Evolution of an Improved Trawl for Traditional Motorised Craft

12.77 m two seam trawl net designed for operation from 8.40 m OAL dug out canoe with 11HP outboard engine was field tested and the results compared, with 14.00 m two seam trawl net commonly used in Valappu area of Vypeen Island. The former net brought in 31.5 % more shrimp catch and 37% more revenue compared to the latter. Selective action of square meshes in cod end was also attempted.
Automating network meta‐analysis

Mixed treatment comparison (MTC) (also called network meta‐analysis) is an extension of traditional meta‐analysis to allow the simultaneous pooling of data from clinical trials comparing more than two treatment options. Typically, MTCs are performed using general‐purpose Markov chain Monte Carlo software such as WinBUGS, requiring a model and data to be specified using a specific syntax. It would be preferable if, for the most common cases, both could be derived from a well‐structured data file that can be easily checked for errors. Automation is particularly valuable for simulation studies in which the large number of MTCs that have to be estimated may preclude manual model specification and analysis. Moreover, automated model generation raises issues that provide additional insight into the nature of MTC. We present a method for the automated generation of Bayesian homogeneous variance random effects consistency models, including the choice of basic parameters and trial baselines, priors, and starting values for the Markov chain(s). We validate our method against the results of five published MTCs. The method is implemented in freely available open source software. This means that performing an MTC no longer requires manually writing a statistical model. This reduces time and effort, and facilitates error checking of the dataset. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Financial Performance of Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation (RTDC): An Analysis

Financial statements communicate its users how business has prospered under the leadership of the management. Financial ratios' are widely used technique to evaluate the financial performance of organizations in terms of its liquidity, solvency, efficiency and profitability. Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation Ltd (RTDC) as established by state Government of Rajasthan with largest infrastructure network could not commercialize its touristic product to the maximum extent in the state. Despite of large network of hotels, motels and midways, it could not generate substantial return on investment. Many RTDC owned properties are either given on lease or some are even on the verge of sale. This study attempts to analyze the financial statements of RTDC using ratio analysis techniques for the period of 13 years (1995 to 2007).
Beyond the “Fetishism of Words”: Considerations on the Use of the Interview to Gather Chronic Illness Narratives

The author explores the technique of interviewing chronic illness patients to obtain narratives of their illness experiences. It is argued that the perspective that interview responses are accurate reflections of experience (the “fetishism of words”) hampers the understanding of patient voice and agency. Discussions of chronic illness and narrative are followed by an examination of the interview based on the work of Charles L. Briggs. The author then uses the concepts of self-presentation and social support to examine what interviewers and interviewees contribute to the coconstructed discourse that is produced by the interview and addresses the question of how these concepts contribute to the beneficial outcomes of constructing narratives. The author offers specific suggestions for future research.
Exploring Ease in Thinking Aloud

Thinking aloud seems unnatural and difficult to most subjects. The present study explored the relation between Ease in Thinking Aloud, verbal fluency, Self-talk, and Big Five personality traits for a heterogeneous sample of 101 German-speaking adults (50 women and 51 men). Ease in Thinking Aloud positively correlated with scores on verbal fluency (r = .31) and Conscientiousness (r = 38). The discussion considers implications for further research on ease in thinking aloud.
Comments on -adaptive control: stabilisation mechanism, existing conditions for stability and performance limitations

In recent years, we have witnessed the publication in various control and applications journals of some papers where it is suggested to replace the tracking error-driven parameter estimator of direct model reference adaptive controller with a state prediction-driven one, used in indirect schemes. Moreover, it is suggested to compute the controller with a linear time-invariant filter and to use high adaptation gains. It has been claimed that these modifications improve the performance of the system. The objective of this paper is to discuss these claims with the simplest possible examples. The main contributions of the paper are, first, to reveal that the stabilisation mechanism is univocally determined by the filter and is independent of the parameter adaptation. Second, to prove that the condition for stability suggested in the literature cannot be verified, even in basic examples. Finally, to prove that the controller cannot ensure suitable tracking (or regulation) performance even for these examples.
Racial and ethnic disparities in pediatric appendicitis rupture rate.

OBJECTIVES To determine if there are racial/ethnic differences in the rates of appendiceal rupture among the children of two large states. Because rupture is primarily due to delayed diagnosis, differences would suggest disparities in timely access to quality emergency care. METHODS This was an observational, cross-sectional analysis of full-year samples of acute appendicitis cases from California and New York children 4 to 18 years old. Racial/ethnic groups were compared for risk of appendiceal rupture adjusted for biological factors both before and after adjustment for the following socioeconomic, hospital, and admission characteristics: income, insurance, hospital type, and admission source. Results were interpreted in light of census data on the proportion of immigrants in each racial/ethnic group. RESULTS Compared with white children with acute appendicitis, Hispanic and Asian children have higher odds of rupture in California, whereas Asian and black/African American children have higher odds in New York. These differences roughly parallel the within-state proportion of immigrant children in these groups. Adjustments for family, socioeconomic, and hospital characteristics attenuate but do not eliminate disparities. CONCLUSIONS The authors found evidence of significant racial/ethnic disparities in rate of appendiceal rupture, an important and preventable outcome, in two large but dissimilar states. Immigrant groups may be most at risk for delayed emergency care. Future research should focus on immigration and acculturation as risk factors for appendicitis rupture in children.
An approach to software development effort estimation using machine learning

We introduce a machine learning approach for real life software development effort estimation. Our method uses state of the art developments such as distributed word embeddings in order to create a system that can estimate effort given only basic project management metrics and, most importantly, textual descriptions of tasks. We use an artificial neural network for automating the effort estimation task. We evaluate our method on genuine software project data from a software company, obtaining results that surpass some of the related literature and a system that promises much easier integration into any software management tool that stores textual descriptions of tasks.
Mechanisms of CO2 laser mitigation of laser damage growth in fused silica

Theoretical models for heating, evaporation, material flow, and stress and strain generation accompanying CO2 laser damage mitigation and surface treatment of fused silica are developed to aid understanding of scaling with process parameters. We find that lateral nonlinear heat transport is an important cooling mechanism, more significant than evaporative cooling. Scaling laws relating experiments with different set of parameters are presented. Transverse conduction, together with the increased thermal conductivity at high temperatures, allows a gentle evaporation regime at low laser intensity in which the rate can be controlled via laser fluence. For higher laser intensity, recoil momentum imparted by rapid evaporation generates pressure, which can lead to transverse flow of the melted material. Only a very thin layer can flow because viscosity increases rapidly with depth. Evaporation and flow are subject to instabilities that can impact surace quality, especially surface flatness, if large areas are processed. Also material flow can heal cracks and improve material quality. Analysis of stress indicates that maximal tensile streses of order 0.1 GPa, comparable to the tensile strength, can be generated.
Study on the Relationships between Environmental Turbulence,Organizational Innovation and Performance of Nonprofit Organizations

This study broadens the research scope of organizational innovation to different types of nonprofit organizations(NPO) in China and constructs a conceptual model which includes three variables: environmental turbulence,nonprofit organizational innovation,and organizational performance.By analyzing the survey from NPO with factor analysis and structural equation modeling methods,the results reveal that environmental turbulence has direct and significant influence on nonprofit organizational innovation,and organizational innovation has direct and significant influence on nonprofit organizational performance.While environmental turbulence is not a direct antecedent of performance,it has indirect influence on nonprofit organizational performance via organizational innovation.
Internet users’ intention to purchase air travel online: an empirical investigation

It is recognised in marketing that the study of buyer behaviour includes analysis of instrumental acts: that is, acts necessary in obtaining the goal object and the acts involved in consuming it. A technology that eases the difficulty level of instrumental acts such as visiting a purchase outlet to purchase a product is the Internet. Technically, the Internet minimises customer’s transaction costs such as time spent travelling to a store to purchase a product. Yet, in spite of its benefits, only one‐in‐four Internet users shop online. An empirical analysis of surveyed beliefs, attitudes, and intentions regarding Internet purchase of air tickets revealed that security concerns about the Internet make consumers avoid online purchase of air tickets. It is suggested that Internet marketers focus on modifying the attitudinal structure of consumers.
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE PRACTICES AT HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS IN SOUTH AFRICA

South Africa boasts a vibrant higher education sector, with more than a million students enrolled in its higher education institutions. These institutions constitute highly complex organisations, with many and varied stakeholders and with budgets running into hundreds of millions of rands. Sound management and strict adherence to corporate governance principles and practices are essential to the success of these institutions. This will include the establishment of a well-balanced, independent and diligent council, as well as properly constituted and effective sub-committees of council. Of these sub-committees, the audit and finance committees are sure to play a pivotal part in ensuring financial discipline and adherence to sound corporate governance principles and practices. The principal aim of this paper will be to focus on the basic governance-regulatory requirements of higher education institutions in South Africa, and to benchmark these requirements against the corporate governance principles and practices required by King II.
Visualization and label-free quantification of microfluidic mixing using quantitative phase imaging

Microfluidic mixing plays a key role in various fields, including biomedicine and chemical engineering. To date, although various approaches for imaging microfluidic mixing have been proposed, they provide only quantitative imaging capability and require for exogenous labeling agents. Quantitative phase imaging techniques, however, circumvent these problems and offer label-free quantitative information about concentration maps of microfluidic mixing. We present the quantitative phase imaging of microfluidic mixing in various types of PDMS microfluidic channels with different geometries; the feasibility of the present method was validated by comparing it with the results obtained by theoretical calculation based on Fick’s law.
An assessment of facilitators and inhibitors for the adoption of enterprise application integration technology: An empirical study

Purpose – Enterprise application integration (EAI) aims to integrate various enterprise applications, such as legacy systems, enterprise resource planning systems, and best‐of‐breed business applications, to aid in promoting organizational goals. EAI is a relatively new area of concern for researchers and practitioners and research on its adoption by organizations remain to be examined.Design/methodology/approach – This paper extends prior research by providing a systematic examination of both generic and specific dimensions of facilitators and inhibitors for the adoption of EAI technology. A rigorous validation of these factors was established. A case study was conducted to refine the developed instrument.Findings – The results indicate that EAI adoption is facilitated by generic as well as specific factors to this technology.Research limitations/implications – Several limitations of the study need to be mentioned at this stage. First, the research design of this study has incorporated only one site to e.
SafeExit: Exit Node Protection for TOR

TOR is one of the most important networks for providing anonymity over the internet. However, in some cases its exit node operators open themselves up to various legal challenges, a fact which discourages participation in the network. In this paper, we propose a mechanism for allowing some users to be voluntarily verified by trusted third parties, providing a means by which an exit node can verify that they are not the true source of traffic. This is done by extending TOR’s anonymity model to include another class of user, and using a web of trust mechanism to create chains of trust.