Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Business portfolio restructuring, prior diversification posture and investor reactions

This study examined firm performance in market reaction to two types of business portfolio restructuring announcements: refocusing and repositioning. We predicted that market performance effects for these two types of strategic restructurers would be moderated by prior diversification posture. The theory behind these expectations was built on a general premise that restructuring strategy would be more favorably viewed by the market as performance enhancing when it offered greater potential for organizational transformation. Results showed strong support for our conclusion that prior diversification posture poses a significant contingency factor in restructuring firms' strategic choices. Further, the market tended to respond more favorably with this sample to repositioning restructuring choices. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Sanctions on South Africa: What Did They Do?

This paper considers the economic sanctions that were applied in the mid-1980s to pressure the South African government to end apartheid. It asks what role those sanctions played in the eventual demise of the apartheid regime and concludes that the role was probably very small. An alternative explanation for the regime change is offered: the communist bloc combined to bring about the change. If one is to argue for the efficacy of sanctions, two key obstacles are their limited economic impact and the substantial lag between the imposition of sanctions and the political change. Since sanctions preceded the change of government, it is impossible to rule them out as a determinant. However, their principal effect was probably psychological. The implication is that the South African case should not serve as the lone major instance of effective sanctions.
Why did Collusion Fail? The Indian Jute Industry in the Inter-War Years

In March 1937 the Indian jute industry abandoned its collusive agreement after nearly two decades. The cartel had been formed after the wartime boom ended, in 1919. It sought to regulate the hours worked and the capacity in use to reduce output. The participants in the cartel were mainly British firms. The industry saw increased entry during this period. Many of the new entrants were Indian firms. The cartel encouraged the participation of new firms. However, free riding was widespread as many of the new firms stayed outside. This was well known and the cartel discussed strategies for punishing the outsiders, but did not act until 1937. Theory suggests that cartels use price wars to punish non-compliance. Empirical work on cartels has found price wars to be less important as an enforcement mechanism. Genesove and Mullin emphasise the importance of communication at the meetings of the National Sugar Institute in the United States in the inter-war period. These meetings provided the means of sustaining collusion instead of treating unilateral actions as cheating and resorting to punishment. Only severe non-compliance tended to lead to retaliation. Levenstein finds that price wars in the American Bromine cartel at the turn of the nineteenth century were less frequent and less severe than theory predicts. Gupta sees the breakdown of the International Tea Cartel in 1931 and 1932 as a failure to arrive at agreed market shares rather than punishment for cheating. The case of the Indian jute cartel of the inter-war period is an interesting one. The cartel had a long history of effective output restriction organised by British firms. Figure 1 shows trends in output, exports and prices. Although the industry reduced real output and export in the 1920s, both increased in the 1930s while output restrictions were in place. The high level of output kept prices low. The cartel accepted entry and conceded market share to the new entrants in the 1920s even when the latter stayed outside the cartel. The social status of the new entrants was often different from that of the cartel members. Several new firms were Indian owned. Recent work by Podolny and Scott Morton shows that the British shipping cartels of 1879–1927 were less likely to be predatory if the new entrant had high social status. The jute cartel did not adopt a predatory stance with regard to entry nor did the cartel discriminate according to the
Towards A Predictive Theory of Government Expenditure: Us Domestic Appropriations

The project on which this paper reports is aimed not only at increased understanding of the United States federal budget process, but also at predicting government expenditures in total and by bureau with a view to their determination within United States national econometric models. Estimates of likely expenditures using standard econometric techniques are poor, both in absolute terms and in comparison with our own work. Management of the economy should be improved by the use of predictors based on considering budgeting as a political process that is responsive to economic and social conditions. Use of mathematical models in the social sciences should be furthered, not by arguing their hypothetical utility, but by demonstrating that they work. The proof is in the prediction.
Festival Attendance and the Development of Social Capital

Abstract Festivals are emerging worldwide as a growing and vibrant sector of the tourism and leisure industries and are seen to have significant economic, socio-cultural, and political impacts on the destination area and host groups. While there are a number of scholars working on developing valid models to determine the economic impact of festivals on host communities, there are few studies published which focus on the social, cultural, and/or political impacts of festivals and events. The purpose of this paper, therefore, is to determine the degree to which festival attendance facilitates the augmentation of social capital by drawing upon the literature from various disciplines in order to conceptualize the synergy between festivals and social capital. To achieve this, the paper will (1) examine the relevant literature on the key characteristics of “festivals” as distinct from other events and (2) investigate the current uses of the notion of “social capital” within the academic debates in a variety of disciplinary contexts.
The effect of separation between test and comparison objects on size constancy at various age-levels.

The effect of separation between test and comparison stimuli on size constancy at various distances was determined for children and adults. Separation slightly reduced the tendency toward size constancy at the longer distances. The data are interpreted as supporting the assumption that size constancy and the Ponzo illusion share common mechanisms, since the developmental size-distance function is independent of whether the comparison is successive, as in most size-constancy experiments, or simultaneous, as in the Ponzo illusion. A number of investigators have suggested that size constancy and the Ponzo perspective illusion share common mechanisms.1 Specifically, it is assumed that one of the factors underlying size constancy is that subjects make depth inferences from converging lines, which are ordinarily associated with distance in the normal environment. When converging lines are presented in the twodimensional Ponzo figure, distance is falsely indicated, resulting in an inappropriate correction of the upper or 'more distant' line of the Ponzo figure. Evidence for this hypothesis is presented by the similar increase in both measures as a function of chronological age.2 Received for publication December 2, 1969. The research was supported by Grant MH-08061 from the National Institute of Mental Health. Dr. Brislin is now at Western Washington State College. 1 R. Tausch, Optische Tiiuschungen als artifizielle Effeckte der Gestaltungsprozesse von Groissenund Formenkonstanz in der naturlichen Raumwahrnehmung. Psychol. Forsch. , 24, 1954, 299-348; E. von Holst, Aktive Leistungen der menschlichen Gesichtswahrnehmung, Stud. Gen., 10, 1957, R. L. Gregory, Eye and Brain, 1966, 145-156. 2H. W. Leibowitz and J. M. Judisch, The relation between age and the magnitude of the Ponzo illusion, this JOURNAL, 80, 1967, 105-109; H. W. Leibowitz, S. W. Pollard, and D. Dickson, Monocular and binocular size matching as a function of distance at various age levels, this JOURNAL, 80, 1967, 263-268.
The influence of breathing pattern during nebulization on the delivery of arformoterol using a breath simulator.

BACKGROUND Patients with obstructive airway conditions, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), use nebulizers for drug delivery. Tidal breathing patterns employed by patients during nebulized drug delivery may vary. It is unclear whether different breathing patterns affect the emitted quantity of nebulized drug. This in vitro study evaluated whether different tidal breathing patterns that encompass a range that could be observed in COPD patients influence the emitted amount of nebulized arformoterol. METHODS Breath-simulation experiments used a Pari LC Plus nebulizer in combination with the Duraneb 3000 portable aerosol system. Four breathing patterns that could represent a range of tidal volumes and inspiratory and expiratory times observed in patients with COPD were studied. The amount of arformoterol on the inspiratory and expiratory filters, and the residual amount in the nebulizer bowl were determined via high-pressure liquid chromatography. Results are expressed as a percent of the nominal dose (15 microg in 2 mL). RESULTS The total amount of arformoterol on the inspiratory filter increased with a longer inspiratory phase of tidal breathing (ranging from 8.0% to 13.1%), while the expiratory filter dose remained similar (7.9% to 8.7%). The total emitted dose (expiratory and inspiratory amounts combined) for all patterns was 16.0% to 21.1% of the nominal dose. Retained arformoterol amount (not emitted) ranged from 55.9% to 62.3% of the nominal dose. CONCLUSIONS These breath-simulation experiments suggest that only about 20% of the nominal 15-microg arformoterol dose was emitted from the nebulizer apparatus with each of the 4 tidal breathing patterns studied, and that a longer inspiratory phase was associated with greater inhaled dose.
Robust droop control of grid-connected inverters

The use of distributed generation in microgrid systems is becoming a popular way to provide a reliable source of electricity to critical loads. Droop control techniques are used in power systems for the synchronization of grid-connected inverters by local measurements of active and reactive powers. Despite the benefits of distributed generation, the drawback is that large grid-side impedance steps can cause a system to become unstable. A robust control method based on disturbance observer is proposed in this paper. When the proposed robust controller is utilized, closed loop performance remains nearly nominal throughout the whole operation range. Simulation results confirm theoretical issues.
Social and Cultural Obstacles to Russian Modernisation

THE ANALYTICAL LEVADA CENTRE HAS RIGHTLY RECEIVED the reputation as a very reliable source of information on Russia’s public opinion. References to the data of surveys conducted by the Centre are common in publications by Western scholars discussing contemporary Russian politics and social life. However, the Western audience is not well acquainted with the works of the Centre’s leading researchers. Today Lev Gudkov and Boris Dubin, who collaborated for many years with the late Yurii Levada, are the key figures in the Centre’s research activities. Both worked in the VTsIOM (All-Russia Centre for the Study of Public Opinion) from the end of the 1980s until its transformation into a state-controlled organisation in 2003, when they left it for the newly established Levada Centre. They have both contributed to the research project ‘The Soviet ordinary person’ (sovetskii prostoi chelovek) which became the basis of many of the Centre’s studies. Dubin’s book includes articles and short essays published from 2004 to 2009. In Gudkov’s book there are articles and conference papers mostly published from 2003 to 2008 but also in the 1990s and even in the late 1980s. Many of these works appeared in the Levada Centre’s journal Vestnik obshchestvennogo mneniya and in such periodicals as Novoe literaturnoe obozrenie, Neprikisnovennyi zapas, Otechestvennye zapiski and Pro et Contra. These articles and essays discuss the Russian political regime, the role of the army and religion in Russian society, the system of education and mass media, historical memory of the Soviet period and different aspects of post-Soviet everyday life.
Channel selection for simultaneous and proportional myoelectric prosthesis control of multiple degrees-of-freedom

Objective. Recent studies have shown the possibility of simultaneous and proportional control of electrically powered upper-limb prostheses, but there has been little investigation on optimal channel selection. The objective of this study is to find a robust channel selection method and the channel subsets most suitable for simultaneous and proportional myoelectric prosthesis control of multiple degrees-of-freedom (DoFs). Approach. Ten able-bodied subjects and one person with congenital upper-limb deficiency took part in this study, and performed wrist movements with various combinations of two DoFs (flexion/extension and radial/ulnar deviation). During the experiment, high density electromyographic (EMG) signals and the actual wrist angles were recorded with an 8 × 24 electrode array and a motion tracking system, respectively. The wrist angles were estimated from EMG features with ridge regression using the subsets of channels chosen by three different channel selection methods: (1) least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO), (2) sequential feature selection (SFS), and (3) uniform selection (UNI). Main results. SFS generally showed higher estimation accuracy than LASSO and UNI, but LASSO always outperformed SFS in terms of robustness, such as noise addition, channel shift and training data reduction. It was also confirmed that about 95% of the original performance obtained using all channels can be retained with only 12 bipolar channels individually selected by LASSO and SFS. Significance. From the analysis results, it can be concluded that LASSO is a promising channel selection method for accurate simultaneous and proportional prosthesis control. We expect that our results will provide a useful guideline to select optimal channel subsets when developing clinical myoelectric prosthesis control systems based on continuous movements with multiple DoFs.
The development of international business in Africa (1947–1997)

The genesis of international business in Africa from 1947 to 1996 is traced to colonial times. The article analyzes the dynamics and observes that international business in Africa witnessed growth but has not meaningfully influenced Africa's general economic development because of constraints: poor infrastructure, lack of maintenance culture, inadequate funding, debt burden and overemphasis on export of raw materials instead of manufactured goods. The article suggests placing a greater emphasis on the development of intermediate and capital goods industries and granting debt relief to all African countries as a means of further promoting international business entente in Africa.
Sustained stimulation of soil respiration after 10 years of experimental warming

A number of forest and grassland studies indicated that stimulation of the soil respiration by soil warming ceases after a couple of years (Luo et al 2001 Nature 413 622–5). Here we present results from a long-term soil warming lysimeter experiment in southern Germany showing sustained stimulation of soil respiration after 10 years. Moreover, both warmed and control treatments exhibited a similar temperature response of soil respiration, indicating that adaptation in terms of temperature sensitivity was absent. Carbon dioxide concentration measurements within the profiles are supporting these findings. The increased soil respiration occurred although vegetation productivity in the warmed treatment was not higher than in the control plots. These findings strongly contrast with current soil carbon modeling concepts, where carbon pools decay according to first-order kinetics, and thus a depletion of labile soil carbon pools leads to an apparent down-regulation of microbial respiration (Knorr et al 2005 Nature 433 298–301). Consequently, the potential for positive climate carbon cycle feedback may be larger than represented in current models of soil carbon turnover.
Leader-following consensus in second-order multi-agent systems with sampled data

The leader-following consensus problem of second-order multi-agent systems with sampled data is investigated in the paper firstly. Only sampled position data is used in consensus protocol due to the difficulty of measuring relative velocity among all agents in fact. We consider two cases: 1) network with fixed topology; 2) network with switching topology. A necessary and sufficient condition is given for the case under fixed topology. For the case of switching topology, a sufficient condition is obtained. Some examples with simulations are presented to illustrate the validity of theory.
Protective Effects of Prepubertal Genistein Exposure on Mammary Tumorigenesis Are Dependent on BRCA1 Expression

This study investigated whether prepubertal dietary exposure to genistein reduces mammary tumorigenesis by upregulating Brca1 expression in mice. Heterozygous Brca1+/− mice and their wild-type (WT) littermates were fed control AIN93G diet or 500 ppm genistein–supplemented AIN93G diet from postnatal day (PND) 15 to PND30 and then switched to AIN93G diet. Prepubertal dietary exposure to genistein reduced 7,12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene (DMBA)-induced mammary incidence (P = 0.029) and aggressiveness of the tumors (P < 0.001) in the WT mice and upregulated the expression of Brca1 in their mammary glands (P = 0.04). In contrast, prepubertal genistein diet neither significantly reduced mammary tumorigenesis or tumor aggressivity nor increased Brca1 mRNA expression in the Brca1+/− mice. These results may be related to the opposing effects of prepubertal genistein diet on the expression of Rankl and CK5/CK18 ratio (marker of luminal epithelial cell differentiation) in the mammary gland and estrogen receptor (ER-α) and progesterone receptor (PgR) protein levels in the mammary tumor: these all were reduced in the WT mice or increased in Brca1+/− mice. Both the WT and Brca1+/− mice exhibited reduced levels of amphiregulin, CK5, and CK18, delayed ductal elongation and a reduction in terminal end bud number in the normal mammary gland, and reduced HER-2 protein levels in the mammary tumors; however, these effects were not sufficient to significantly reduce mammary tumorigenesis in Brca1+/− mice. Our results show that upregulation of Brca1 may be required for prepubertal dietary genistein exposure to reduce later mammary tumorigenesis, perhaps because in the absence of this upregulation, mice do not exhibit genistein-induced downregulation of ER-α, PgR, and Rankl. Cancer Prev Res; 4(9); 1436–48. ©2011 AACR.
Simultaneous recording of centric occlusion and vertical dimension.

be tied so that the knot lies labially to the teeth in order that it can be removed easily. In placing a tongue suture care should be taken to place it just anterior to the lingual frenum at the midline, to prevent unnecessary tenderness or hemorrhage. After the surgical procedure is com­ pleted, the packs are removed, the throat is checked and aspirated. Gauze packs with a string attached are placed over the operative area and the strings taped to the face. These remain in place until the patient has recovered from the anes­ thetic. In this series, a severe laryngospasm developed in four instances. This compli­ cation can usually be treated effectively by aspirating any mucus, forcing oxy­ gen, injecting an additional amount of atropine or deepening the plane of anes­ thesia. If the spasm continues, intubation should be done immediately. In the entire series, there was only one death. It occurred on the sixth postopera­ tive day. The pathologist attributed the cause of death to terminal bronchopneu­ monia secondary to metastasis from a car­ cinoma of the uterus.
Building Microbial Forensics as a Response to Bioterrorism

Combating bioterrorism is a challenge to all of us. To be proactive, the U.S. Government has formalized the discipline of "microbial forensics" to deter and attribute perpetrators of such acts. This Policy Forum describes the foundations of the microbial forensics program: the creation of a national bioforensics laboratory, a partnership laboratory network, and a peer-consensus scientific working group and the promulgation of quality assurance guidelines.
Optimal federal taxes with public inputs

This paper deals with the solution to vertical expenditure externalities in a federation with two levels of government sharing taxes. Under these circumstances, the Nash equilibrium does not satisfy the condition for production efficiency in the provision of public inputs. This vertical expenditure externality is removed when the federal government, behaving as Stackelberg leader, chooses the optimal tax rate on l abor income. The sign of this tax rate depends on the elasticity of marginal productivity of the public input with respect to employment. M oreover, the previous result that the two vertical (tax and expenditure) externalities are independent of each other is confirmed here.
The competition of user networks : Ergodicity , lock-ins , and metastability

This paper models the competition of user networks as a continuous-time Markov process. It presents a dynamic version of the Discrete Choice Analysis with state-dependent choice probabilities. Among other things, we show that the network competition can be characterized by the coexistence of lock-in regimes and a 'metastable' state i.e. a State which is a probability maximum for a finite period of time. Then, unlike in the case of ergodicity or of simple lock-in scenarios, the networks can coexist for a considerable period of time, although the market is a natural monopoly. JEL Classification: Dil, L10
Testing Rationality in the Point Spread Betting Market

This paper presents empirical tests of market rationality using data from the point spread betting market on National Football League games. Data from this market avoid many common pitfalls of tests of rationality in conventional financial markets. The authors test for rationality with two types of tests, statistical and economic. Results of the tests reveal that the statistical tests cannot reject market rationality while the economic tests do reject market rationality. MARKET RATIONALITY CAN BE empirically examined with either pure statistical tests or direct economic tests. Statistical tests look at statistical properties of markets, such as price correlations. Economic tests attempt to detect unexploited profit opportunities. This paper compares the results of these two types of rationality tests with data from the point spread betting market on National Football League (NFL) games. We conclude that the statistical tests are too weak to reject rationality in a market where irrationality appears to exist. Our results are strikingly consistent with those of Summers [26], who simulated a model of stock prices incorporating nonrational expectations and then showed that standard statistical tests are too weak to detect the absence of rationally formed expectations. Summers employed simulation because market rationality is difficult to test directly in conventional financial markets: the ongoing nature of securities markets means that there exists no point at which an objective fundamental value can be observed and compared with actual prices. ' In contrast, the point spread market offers an objective, though uncertain, game outcome to decide the end-of-horizon payoff. Moreover, once a bet is placed in these markets, the impact of subsequent betting does not affect the odds on the placed bet (unlike pari-mutuel betting). Because of this elementary market