Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Sustainability and financing of current account deficits: The Turkish case

Economic theory and empirical research show that either foreign direct investment or external debt, or a combination of the two, can be used to finance a growing current account deficit in the medium to long run. If both financing methods fail, the best solution is to reduce the deficit itself by depreciating the local currency either by market forces or by policy intervention. Sustainability of the Turkish current account deficit was assessed in time-series data over 33 years. Results show that sustainable current account deficits were recorded during periods of economic stability, whereas periods of economic instability coincided with unsustainable deficits. This paper develops a model with policy implications for calculating a sustainable level of current account deficit and verifies its validity by applying it to the Turkish setting.
'Deal-makers': Reputation attracts quality

This study is a preliminary step in examining whether reputation effects are operating in the UK informal venture capital market. We test the notion as to whether deal-makers rely on fundamentally different sources of leads and get shown better quality opportunities generally than is the case for less active investors. By deal-makers, we mean individuals who have: 1) a demonstrated track record of completing deals, 2) significant personal resources to invest in new opportunities presented to them, and 3) have substantial previous experience in the building of new ventures. Our findings reveal differences in terms of the relative reliance on different sources of investment leads and the perceived quality of specific sources. Over time, it appears that the most active segment of the market rely less on 'public' as opposed to 'private' sources for leads and benefit from an extensive base of contacts developed as a result of building their own portfolios, particularly among individual investors, venture capital funds and entrepreneurs.
EVOLUTION OF URBAN SYSTEMS IN THE PARETO PLANE

Distributions of city sizes are usually characterized by their Pareto index. This, however, turns out to be a rather restrictive view, for the Pareto distribution is known to become singular whenever the Pareto index becomes smaller than one, a case which is fairly frequent in empirical distributions. We show that the introduction of finite Pareto distributions in which city sizes are bounded from above solves a number of difficulties encountered by the rank-size rule and by the unbounded Pareto distribution. Combined with the use of finite Pareto distributions, the green-belt model that has been introduced previously is reexamined. It implies definite constraints for the long-run evolution of urban systems; it is in the cases of countries experiencing a process of fast urbanization that these constraints are of greatest significance. The implications of the model are confronted with empirical evidence concerning the evolution of urban systems in major industrialized countries during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
Should Bangladesh Join a Regional Free Trade Area?

Suppose a regional preferential trading agreement (PTA) is to be formed and a particular country is invited to join. Should it do so? This question arises for Bangladesh in relation to a proposed PTA based upon the BIMST-EC country grouping of Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand. This paper examines the case for Bangladesh joining such a PTA. It is concluded that the net gains from doing so would be very small. There are two reinforcing aspects to this point. The first is the relatively small levels of intra-regional trade between Bangladesh and the other BIMST-EC countries. Although these trade volumes would almost certainly increase under a PTA, they may not do so sufficiently to make the benefits economically significant. The second aspect is that the pattern of trade between Bangladesh and the other BIMST-EC countries suggests that they are not natural trading partners. The trade-creating effects that generate net benefits may be especially small. There may be other strong reasons for forming a PTA among these countries, resting mainly on political considerations, but significant trade-related gains should not be expected.
Unions: Rent Creators or Extractors?

This paper proposes a model of workplace-specific unions that integrates two views of what unions do. One view holds that unions mainly engage in rent extraction. Another view holds that unions mainly engage in rent creation by providing agency services that increase workplace productivity. We demonstrate that the choice between the two activities is systematically related to the economic and regulatory environment in which the union operates. Product market competition encourages rent creation, while labor market deregulation encourages rent extraction. Moreover, we provide a rationale for why firms may want to subsidize unions.
Saliency Detector for SAR Images Based on Pattern Recurrence

In order to detect targets from nonuniform background in synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images, this paper proposes a new approach for saliency detection based on the idea of pattern recurrence. The pattern recurrence quantifies the saliency of a local patch by how well it can be reconstructed from patches in the background. The similarity between polarimetric SAR (PolSAR) patches is defined as the likelihood that both patches belong to the same Wishart distribution. A simple saliency indicator is defined as the normalized variance of the nonlocal similarity map. To detect target of different sizes, multiscale patches are also used. The proposed approach is first tested on optical images and results are compared with other saliency detection method and experiments of eye fixation prediction. Test results on real SAR images show that the proposed method has robust performance on target detection with and without the presence complicated background.
Familial Prevalence of Coeliac Disease: a Twenty-Year Follow-up Study

Background: The genetic predisposition of coeliac disease (CD) is well known. Previous studies of first-degree relatives of coeliac patients have shown that as many as 10% have the disease. In 1981, we published a study in which all first-degree relatives of 32 index patients with CD were investigated by small-bowel biopsy. We found 2 relatives (2%) with CD. The present study is a re-investigation of all first-degree relatives of the same index patients performed 20-25 years after the first study to reveal any new cases of CD in this high-risk population. Methods: All 120 first-degree relatives were screened for CD by means of serological markers of CD. The relatives with positive markers were submitted to small-bowel biopsy. Results: Eight new cases of CD were found among the relatives. Two had been investigated by small-bowel biopsy 20 years previously, when they had only minor mucosal changes not classified as CD. The other six new cases of CD were found among offspring of the index patients and were born after completion of the previous study. Thus no new case of CD was found among those relatives who had a completely normal small-bowel biopsy 20-25 years previously. Conclusions: The high prevalence of CD among first-degree relatives of coeliac patients (8.3% in this study) supports the need to screen for CD in this high-risk population. Even relatives with only mild enteropathy should be followed carefully, since some may subsequently develop CD.
Where are the Boys? Gender Imbalance in Higher Education

The gender breakdown in higher education in Canada and other western countries has switched from an imbalance in favour of men to an imbalance in favour of women over the last two decades. Programs to attract women into higher education have worked very well. At the University of Guelph for example, 70% of the students are women. Should educators be concerned about this phenomenon? Are there short- and long-term negative effects of gender imbalance? If so, what can and should educators do about the imbalance? Should programs to attract men into higher education be implemented? What accessibility steps can be taken to create a gender balance in higher education? This article explores the changes in the gender profile at universities and colleges in Canada, the United States, and other countries. Potential economic, social, and political causes and effects of gender imbalance are proposed. Accessibility techniques that could be used to create gender balance in university and college programs are explored.
Demographics and International Investment

Population demographics impact both the time-series and cross-section of expected asset returns. A number of theories link the average age of a population to expected market returns. For example, Bakshi and Chen (1994) argue that an older population will demand a higher premium on equity investment because their risk aversion is higher. We argue that, in an international context, population demographics are more likely to reveal information about the risk exposure of a particular country. Our evidence supports the risk hypothesis. This is the last working paper version of our 1997 Financial Analysts Journal article.
Medicare Part D and the Financial Protection of the Elderly

We examine the impact of the expansion of public prescription drug insurance coverage from Medicare Part D on the elderly and find evidence of substantial crowd-out. Using detailed data from the 2002-7 waves of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS), we estimate that the extension of Part D benefits resulted in 80% crowd-out of both prescription drug insurance coverage and prescription drug expenditures of those 65 and older. Part D is associated with only modest reductions in out-of-pocket spending. This suggests that the welfare gain from protecting the elderly from out-of-pocket spending risk through Part D has been small.
Between Macedonia and Rome: political landscapes and social change in southern Greece in the early Hellenistic period1

This paper examines the nature and extent of changes in landscapes, societies, and economies in the numerous city-states of the Peloponnese under Macedonian domination (338–196 BC). Emigration and warfare may have had limited and short-term impacts. While Macedonian rule may have been oppressive before and after the Chremonidean war, it did not necessarily disrupt local economies and politics. The Antigonids did not run the Peloponnese as a province, and were concerned mainly with security. Though the building of towns and forts declined, and some cities were abandoned or lost freedom at times, others enjoyed new amenities and religious architecture. Epigraphic output was maintained, and a sharp increase in the centralization of inscriptions in central places post-dates 200. The traditionally oligarchic culture of most city-states was probably unchanged; and while the élite domination of land and politics may have intensified, archaeological survey reveals no trends that can conclusively be attributed to Macedonian rule.
Dynamic modelling of a bicycle in balance

In this paper, the dynamic model of a bicycle in its vertical balance state is established using Newton Euler equations. Some special features of bicycle design and operation are explored to simplify the model in the point of view of multi body dynamics. The model can be used for design and stability analysis for bicycles and general mobile robots in a similar structure.
Understanding the ethnic pay gap in Britain

The pay gap between white British workers and other ethnic groups is largely in favour of whites, which suggests that discrimination might be a factor. However, discrimination can occur at two points, at entry to the job and within the job. In the former case non-whites might find it difficult to work in well-paid occupations; in the latter they obtain the same sorts of jobs as whites but receive less pay. There is therefore predominantly either job or wage discrimination. We use the British Labour Force Survey 1993–2008 to show that much of the pay gap is explained by occupational segregation while within occupations the ethnic pay gap is far less substantial. Occupational segregation therefore has strong negative effects, but if minorities are over-represented in occupations with a positive wage gap, then there is also a ‘protective’ element to segregation.
Persistence of avian oncoviruses in chicken macrophages

Inoculation of avian oncoviruses into 1- to 2-month old chickens led to a rapid production of antiviral humoral antibodies. Under these conditions it was found that avian leukosis viruses are sequestered in macrophages of peripheral blood, in which they can persist for a long period of time (up to about 3 years). In contrast, avian sarcoma viruses were never found in macrophages from chickens during the progression of sarcomas or after regression of the tumors.
GM plants, farmers and the public - a harmonious relation?

The controversy in Europe over genetically manipulated (GM) foods has been conceived largely as a conflict between a reluctant public and a more enthusiastic agri-food sector. As a result, the political focus has been on the public to the neglect of other actors, such as the farmers, whose willingness to adopt GM technology is taken for granted. This article explores the case of herbicide-resistant GM plants with claimed environmental benefits. It is assumed that these claims satisfy public concerns and that farmers are not only willing to grow them but do so in a way that ensures that the environmental benefits are redeemed. Using interviews with Danish farmers, we argue, firstly, that it cannot be taken for granted that farmers will adopt GM plants, and, secondly, that if they do, they are unlikely to manage them in such a way as to secure the expected environmental benefits. This is, on the one hand, the result of a conflict between the idea behind herbicide-resistant plants and what we conceptualise as harmony on the farm, and, on the other hand, the way farmers perceive nature in relation to the farm. In a wider perspective the problems illustrate a clash between an agricultural and GM policy based on post-productivist values and an agricultural sector still dominated by productivist values.
Peripheral Financialization and Vulnerability to Crisis: A Regulationist Perspective

The current crisis confirmed that highly financialized regimes of accumulation are extremely crisis-prone. Most of the literature on financialization is focused on the economies of the centre. This paper analyses the peculiarities of financialization in the periphery, which is characterized by a high degree of extraversion and/or by considerable socio-economic heterogeneity. The theory of regulation permits analysis of different forms of financialization and the social dynamics linked with them. In contrast to Keynesian approaches, the state, international organizations and social forces shaping norms and policies are an explicit part of the theory. This allows for looking at policy-making within the analysis. Such an analysis enables us to explain policy changes (or lack of them) that are crucial for the processes of financialization and de-financialization in the periphery.
American Management Consulting Companies in Western Europe, 1920 to 1990: Products, Reputation, and Relationships

This article surveys the expansion of American management consulting companies to Western Europe in the twentieth century. It focuses on the way these consultancies built and sustained activities outside their home country. A number of elements facilitated expansion abroad, including the creation of new and distinctive “products,” or approaches to management, and the use of domestic multinational clients as “bridges” to foreign countries. But to be successful in the long run, American consulting companies needed to create relationships with clients in the host country. In this respect, social and, sometimes, political contacts with the local elite, usually established through a few well-connected individuals, proved a crucial advantage.
Soybean Aphid (Hemiptera: Aphididae) Development on Soybean with Rag1 Alone, Rag2 Alone, and Both Genes Combined

ABSTRACT Aphis glycines Matsumura (Hemiptera: Aphididae) can reduce the yield of aphidsusceptible soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merrill) cultivars. The Rag1 and Rag2 genes confer resistance to some biotypes of A. glycines. These genes individually can limit population growth of A. glycines and prevent yield loss. The impact of these genes when combined is not known. We compared the development of A. glycines on soybean with Rag1 alone (R1/S2), Rag2 alone (S1/R2), both genes combined (R1/R2), or neither gene (S1/S2). In addition, we determined the impact of different levels of aphid infestation on seed yield. The genotypes were grown in cages and artificially infested with A. glycines to achieve five treatment levels: aphid-free, 675 aphids per plant, 25,000 cumulative aphid days (CAD) (25K), 50,000 CAD (50K), and 75,000 CAD (75K). The S1/S2 line reached the 50K treatment, but did not reach the 75K treatment. Aphid development on R1/S2 and S1/R2 soybeans after two infestations reached a maximum of 25K. The maximum treatment reached on R1/R2 was only 675 aphids per plant after two infestations, at which there was no significant yield reduction when compared with the aphid-free treatment. The maximum yield reduction of S1/S2 was 27% at 50K treatment compared with 2% for R1/S2 and 12% for S1/R2 at the 25K treatment. Our results indicated that for A. glycines used in our study, cultivars with both Rag1 and Rag2 had less aphid exposure and less yield reduction than soybeans with only one resistant gene.
Differential renal tumor response to N-ethylnitrosourea and dimethylnitrosamine in the Nb rat: basis for a new rodent model of nephroblastoma.

Previous studies have indicated that the Nb rat has a higher predisposition to the spontaneous development of nephroblastoma than most other strains of laboratory rat. In order to determine whether this inherent susceptibility could be exploited as a model for Wilms' tumor, Nb rats were treated with various chemicals in regimens known to be associated with renal tumor induction in the young rat. Nb rats were either exposed in utero to various dose levels of N-ethylnitrosourea (ENU) on day 18 +/- 1 of gestation, injected s.c. with one 25 mg/kg dose of dimethylnitrosamine (DMN) as neonates or dosed twice orally with 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA) shortly after ovariectomy. Transplancental ENU at a dose of 60 mg/kg resulted in an average of 50% frequency of unequivocal nephroblastomas in both sexes with no renal mesenchymal tumors. In contrast, DMN administered to neonates produced a similar incidence of renal mesenchymal tumors but no nephroblastomas. DMBA in the ovariectomized female was not a successful strategy for inducing primary renal tumors in the Nb rat (0 nephroblastomas, 1 renal mesenchymal tumor in 16 effective survivors), although the kidney was sometimes the site for metastatic invasion by tumors originating at other locations. The induction of nephroblastomas and renal mesenchymal tumors by ENU and DMN in parallel experiments emphasized the many differences which establish them as distinct and unrelated tumor entities. The relatively high incidence of nephroblastoma in the Nb rat using transplacentally administered ENU appears to represent a suitable basis for developing a rodent model of human nephroblastoma or Wilms' tumor.
Market Failure and the Environmental Policies of Firms: Economic Rationales for “Beyond Compliance” Behavior

This paper is an inquiry into the circumstances under which the voluntary provision of environmental public goods might be sensible from a firm's point of view. If environmental externalities were the only departure from the economic assumptions of perfect competition, and if no firms had preferential access to superior (low‐cost) stocks of natural resources, firms that volunteered to internalize costs could not survive. But because externalities coexist with other departures from the competitive paradigm, such as asymmetric information and oligopoly competition, firms may find it in their shareholders' interests to provide environmental public goods to a greater degree than required by law. A number of firms, especially in Europe and North America, assert that they are pursuing “beyond‐compliance” environmental policies. From the perspective of a firm's shareholders, it makes sense to pursue such policies if they increase the firm's expected value or if they appropriately manage business risk.
Occupier perceptions of green workplace environment: the Australian experience

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to shed light on the perceptions by occupiers of green workplace environments. It examines how occupiers (both management and employees) perceive and evaluate the role of green workplace environments, and subsequently assesses the effectiveness of a green workplace environment.Design/methodology/approach – The paper relies on a data set derived from a survey of 128 respondents who have occupied Green Building Council Australia's Green Star‐rated offices and buildings for more than 12 months.Findings – The findings suggest that green workplace offers greater psychological benefits (taking pride of the workplace environment) to occupiers than physical improvements (health and productivity gains). Further, management perceived greater benefits of green workplace compared to employees.Research limitations/implications – This paper summarises the findings of the first phase of a longitudinal study. It is limited at this stage by a relatively small data sample, given that .
Currents evoked in Bergmann glial cells by parallel fibre stimulation in rat cerebellar slices

1 Whole‐cell recordings were obtained from Bergmann glial cells in rat cerebellar slices. 2 The cells had low input resistances (70 ± 38 mV; n= 13) and a mean resting potential of −82 ± 6 mV (n= 12) with a potassium‐based internal solution. Electrical and dye coupling between Bergmann glia were confirmed. 3 Stimulation of parallel fibres induced a complex, mostly inward current which could be decomposed pharmacologically. 4 The ionotropic glutamate receptor antagonist, 6‐cyano‐7‐nitroqumoxalme‐2,3‐dione (CNQX; 10 μM), but not DL‐2‐amino‐5‐phosphonopentanoic acid (DL‐APV; 100μM) consistently blocked an early inward current component that may reflect synaptic activation of AMPA/kainate receptors in Bergmann glia. 5 Addition of cadmium ions (100 μM) to inhibit transmitter release blocked most of the CNQX‐APV‐insensitive current. This component probably reflects electrogenic uptake of the synaptically released glutamate. 6 Tetrodotoxin (TTX; 1 μM) blocked the remaining inward current: a slow component, possibly produced by the potassium ion efflux during action potential propagation in parallel fibres. An initial triphasic component of the response was also TTX sensitive and reflected passage of the parallel fibre action potential volley. 7 The putative glutamate uptake current was further characterized; it was blocked by the competitive uptake blockers D‐aspartate (0.5 mM) and L‐trans‐pyrrolidine‐2,4‐dicarboxylic acid (PDC; 0.5 mM), and by replacement of sodium with lithium. Monitoring the triphasic TTX‐sensitive component showed that this inhibition did not result from changes of action potential excitation and propagation. 8 Intracellular nitrate ions increased the putative uptake current, consistent with the effect of this anion on glutamate transporters. 9 The putative uptake current was reduced by depolarization, consistent with the voltage dependence of glutamate uptake. 10 It is concluded that a large fraction of the current induced by parallel fibre stimulation reflects the uptake of synaptically released glutamate. The uptake current activated rapidly, with a 20–80% rise time of 2.3 ± 0.7 ms (n= 10), and decayed with a principal time constant of 25 ± 6 ms (n= 10).