Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Some Problems with Employee Monitoring

Employee monitoring has raised concerns from all areas of society – business organizations, employee interest groups, privacy advocates, civil libertarians, lawyers, professional ethicists, and every combination possible. Each advocate has its own rationale for or against employee monitoring whether it be economic, legal, or ethical. However, no matter what the form of reasoning, seven key arguments emerge from the pool of analysis. These arguments have been used equally from all sides of the debate. The purpose of this paper is to examine the seven key arguments that have been made with respect to employee monitoring. None of these arguments is conclusive and each calls for managerial and moral consideration. We conclude that a more comprehensive inquiry with ethical concern at the center is necessary to make further progress on understanding the complexity of employee monitoring. The final section of this paper sketches out how such an inquiry would proceed.
Tourism as a Small-State Development Strategy

There has been a shift in many developing countries, particularly Small Island Developing States (SIDS), towards tourism as the centrepiece of their development strategy. This occurs in the context of narrowing developmental options occasioned by the end of preferential access to metropolitan markets for agriculture and the attendant decline of the primary sector. This article draws on evidence from two case studies from the microstates of the Eastern Caribbean – St Lucia and St Vincent – and discusses the implications of their respective approaches and the ambiguous nature of tourism as a development strategy.
Pricing dynamics of index options and index futures in Hong Kong before and during the Asian financial crisis

This article studies the impact of the Asian financial crisis on index options and index futures markets in Hong Kong. We employed a time‐stamped transaction data set of the Hang Seng Index options and futures contracts that were traded on the Hong Kong Futures Exchange. The results show that during the crisis period, the arbitrage profits, and the standard deviations of these profits increased in both ex‐post and ex‐ante analyses. In a market turbulent time, market volatility brings a higher arbitrage profit level. However, despite the increased market volatility, the profitability of the arbitrage trades declined substantially with longer execution time lags in the ex‐ante analysis. This suggests that the HSI futures and options markets are mature and resilient. A multiple regression analysis on the ex‐post arbitrage profit also suggests that there were structural changes during the Asian financial crisis and the Hong Kong government intervention periods. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Jrl Fut Mark 20: 145–166, 2000
Arachidonic Acid and Other Unsaturated Fatty Acids Alter Membrane Potential in PC12 and Bovine Adrenal Chromaffin Cells

Abstract: The action of arachidonic acid and other fatty acids on membrane potential in PC 12 and bovine chromaffin cells was investigated using a membrane potential‐sensitive fluorescent dye. Arachidonic acid (1–40 μM) provoked dose‐dependent membrane hyperpolarization, thereby reducing hyperpolarization induced by the K+‐selective ionophore valinomycin. Other cis‐unsaturated fatty acids, but not lipoxygenase products or the saturated fatty acid palmitic acid, also affected membrane potential. Tetraethylammonium blocked the arachidonic acid‐induced hyperpolarization. These data suggest that cis‐unsaturated fatty acids alter membrane potential in PC 12 and bovine chromaffin cells by modulating K+ conductances. Valinomycin‐generated hyperpolarization had no effect on agonist‐induced Ca2+ influx into bovine chromaffin cells, whereas preincubation with arachidonic acid and other cis‐unsaturated fatty acids blocked Ca2+ influx and secretion. We propose a model where internally generated fatty acids act as a feed‐back to desensitize the stimulated cell via inhibition of receptor‐dependent Ca2+ influx and induction of membrane hyperpolarization.
Vegetation type and the intertidal macroinvertebrate fauna of a brackish marsh: Phragmites vs. Spartina

The responses of tidal marsh macroinvertebrate assemblages to the conversion of Spartina alterniflora marshes to marshes dominated by the invasive reed, Phragmites australis, are poorly understood Changes in edaphic, vegetative, hydrologic, and detrital conditions that attend conversion to Phragmites should produce changes in the intertidal fauna. We used core sampling (7.8-cm diameter, 4-cm deep) and litter packs to compare the intertidal macroinvertebrate fauna of Phragmites marshes and adjacent remnant Spartina marshes in a brackish reach of the Mullica River (0–17 ppt salinity during the study) in southern New Jersey, USA. Detrital and above-ground vegetative biomass and water velocity were greater in Phragmites marsh; stem density, microtopographic relief, and the density of standing-water microhabitats were greater in Spartina marsh. The intertidal assemblages varied between marsh types. Total macroinvertebrate density was greater in Spartina marsh (97,000 m−2) than in Phragmites marsh (82,000 m−2). Mean taxa richness (number of taxa per core sample) was greater in Spartina marsh (12.4 taxa sample−1) than in Phragmites marsh (9.4 taxa sample−1) and dominance (relative abundance of the three most abundant taxa) was lower. Oligochaeta, Nematoda, and the polychaete, Manayunkia aestuarina, dominanted the fauna (>75% of the total abundance) in both marsh types. Of these, oligochaetes were more abundant in Spartina marsh, and nematodes and polychaetes were slightly more abundant in Phragmites marsh. Most common subdominant taxa (100-4,000 m−2), including ceratopogonids, chironomids, mites, ostracods, isopods, and gastropods were more abundant in Spartina marsh. Collembolans were more abundant in Phragmites marsh; amphipods were about equally abundant in both marsh types. Invertebrate abundance and assemblage composition varied with distance from the edge of the marsh in both marsh types; overlap in assemblage composition between marsh types was greates at the edge of the marsh, where more frequent inundation may have moderated the influence of vegetation type on the marsh fauna. For mean taxa richness and for the density of most taxa, the effect of marsh type on density exceeded the effect of season, marsh position, or a local salinity gradient. We consider the greater density of intertidal standing-water microhabitats and probably of microalgal production as important sources of faunal variation between marsh types. Fewer refugia from predators during high tide in Phragmites marsh may also contribute to variation in faunal abundance and community structure between marsh types. Detritus biomass was probably a more important source of spatial variation in the fauna of the Phragmites marsh than in Spartina marsh.
Two serines in the distal C-terminus of the human ß1-adrenoceptor determine ß-arrestin2 recruitment

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) undergo phosphorylation at several intracellular residues by G protein-coupled receptor kinases. The resulting phosphorylation pattern triggers arrestin recruitment and receptor desensitization. The exact sites of phosphorylation and their function remained largely unknown for the human β1-adrenoceptor (ADRB1), a key GPCR in adrenergic signal transduction and the target of widely used drugs such as β-blockers. The present study aimed to identify the intracellular phosphorylation sites in the ADRB1 and to delineate their function. The human ADRB1 was expressed in HEK293 cells and its phosphorylation pattern was determined by mass spectrometric analysis before and after stimulation with a receptor agonist. We identified a total of eight phosphorylation sites in the receptor’s third intracellular loop and C-terminus. Analyzing the functional relevance of individual sites using phosphosite-deficient receptor mutants we found phosphorylation of the ADRB1 at Ser461/Ser462 in the distal part of the C-terminus to determine β-arrestin2 recruitment and receptor internalization. Our data reveal the phosphorylation pattern of the human ADRB1 and the site that mediates recruitment of β-arrestin2.
Nursing-care text classification using word vector representation and convolutional neural networks

In this paper, we propose a convolutional neural network (CNN) based classification method for nursing-care classification. CNNs have obtained strong performance in computer vision speech recognition areas. Recently, CNNs have been also applied sentence classification. We have studied nursing-care text classification [6]-[18]. In our former works, we proposed several types of feature definitions and examined some classification models. In this paper, each text is represented as a concatenated word vector. Then, every text is classified using CNN-based classification methods. We examined some classification models at the classification layer in CNNs. From our experimental results, the proposed CNN-based method obtained better performance than our former works.
Product Quality, Uncertainty, and Regulation: The Trucking Industry

The impact of uncertainty on optimal pricing and output decisions where quality is a parameter has been the subject of recent work. Optimal pricing and product quality under certainty has also been discussed extensively. Little if any work has been done on the determination of optimal pricing and product quality under conditions of uncertainty. This paper will demonstrate that the integration of the quality and price decisions under uncertainty allows for the explanation of a broad class of economic behavior heretofore unexplained. The central thesis of this paper is that industry capacity affects both the quantity and quality of output. The particular application of the quantity-quality relation considered here is the relation between capacity and waiting time in the trucking industry.
The economic resilience of U.S. counties during the great recession

A regional economy perturbed by a shock may move onto a new growth path by reestablishing economic linkages both internally and with other regions. This dynamic property of regions has recently been explained in terms of regional economic resilience. In this paper, we introduce a more refined measure of economic resilience and then apply it to monthly employment data for U.S. counties in the 2007-2009 downturn. We suggest that describing and analyzing the distinct response patterns during this downturn are important starting points for policy makers to understand the spatial resilience of the US economy.
Cointegration and Causal Relationship between Taxes and Spending for Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa

Causal relationships between taxes and spending are examined for three African countries using the GDP as a control variable, and dummy variables to address structural changes in Nigeria and South Africa. There is one cointegration equation between nominal fiscal variables in all three countries, one cointegration equation for Kenya and two cointegration equations for Nigeria and South Africa for the real fiscal variables and their respective dummy variables. Short-term results of the nominal variables show fiscal independence for all three countries. In real terms, taxes cause spending for Kenya and Nigeria and a weak fiscal synchronization for South Africa. There is long run fiscal synchronization in nominal terms for all three countries, and in real terms for both Nigeria and South Africa, while real taxes cause spending in Kenya. Long-run estimates show a unit increase in nominal (real) taxes translating into a less than proportionate increase in nominal (real) spending for Kenya and South Africa, and a more than proportionate increase in nominal (real) spending for Nigeria. Fiscal imbalance is not a threat in the budgetary process in Kenya and South Africa, but an issue of concern in Nigeria, where oil revenues are a major source of support for budget short falls.
Sexual Minority Status and Long-Term Breast Cancer Survivorship

Sexual minority women, such as lesbians, bisexuals, and women who have a woman partner face unique challenges, such as deciding on disclosing their sexual minority status to health providers. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the perceptions of sexual minority women who were long-term breast cancer survivors. Twenty-two sexual minority women, diagnosed with non-metastatic breast cancer between 2000 and 2005, participated in semi-structured, open-ended interviews. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed to identify emergent themes to summarize sexual minority women's perceptions of breast cancer survivorship. Participants' perceptions about the impact of their sexual minority identity on breast cancer survivorship consisted of: (1) breast cancer is a women's issue, not a lesbian issue; (2) I can manage my identity in the context of breast cancer; and (3) I am better off than heterosexual women. The authors' findings suggest a possible disconnect between sexual minority women with breast cancer who de-emphasized the importance of sexual minority status and the research community that emphasizes the importance of this status. Prior to counting on sexual minority women's interest in studies, researchers may need to educate sexual minority women about the need of breast cancer studies.
Pervasive Shortages Under Socialism

We present a new theory of pervasive shortages under socialism, based on the assumption that the planners are self-interested. Because the planners -- meaning bureaucrats in the ministries and managers of firms -- cannot keep the official profits that firms earn, it is in their interest to create shortages of output and to collect bribes from the rationed consumers. Unlike official profits, bribes are not turned over to the state, and so shortages enable the key decision makers who collect them to profit personally. The theory suggests that an increase in the official price of a good might reduce output. The theory also suggests that market socialism is bound to fail even without computational complexities facing the planners.
HRM practices in China-Western joint ventures: MNC standardization versus localization

In recent years, multinational corporations have become increasingly ascendant in the world economy. The HRM strategies that these corporations adopt may blend global integration with local responsiveness. This paper examines the compatibility between MNC standardization and localization of different HRM practices in a sample of Sino-Western joint ventures. The findings indicate that various HRM practices have different responses to MNC standaridization and localization.
Market Efficiency versus Behavioral Finance

Two prominent economists-one the author of "A Random Walk Down Wall Street" and the other a leading scholar in behavioral finance-debate the current validity of the efficient markets hypothesis (EMH). For over 30 years, the idea that capital markets are efficient and that stock prices reflect all publicly available information dominated academic thinking. But the bubble of the late 1990s and recent advances in behavioral finance have forced a re-thinking. 2005 Morgan Stanley.
The Effect of Pension Plan Type on Retirement Age: Distinguishing Plan Incentives from Career Length Preferences

This study uses the Retirement Confidence Survey of College and University Faculty, 2005, to examine the impact of pension plan incentives on retirement age and to understand how the widespread transition from defined benefit (DB) to defined contribution (DC) plans has affected workers. Incentives stemming from differences in pension wealth accrual patterns between DB and DC plans directly induce up to a one-year difference in expected retirement age and are indirectly responsible for up to a two-year difference due to workers sorting into plans based on preferences over career length. The results imply that failing to account for worker sorting leads to an overestimation of the transition’s effect on the average retirement age of Americans. In addition, the findings suggest that individuals choose retirement plans to diversify retirement income, which has implications for Social Security reform.
Thick as Thieves: A Social Embeddedness Model of Rule Breaking in Organizations

This qualitative study examines rule breaking in organizations by analyzing how deceptive sales practices became widespread at a major life insurance company. Using grounded theory techniques, a theoretical model is developed that illustrates the persistence and proliferation of rule breaking in organizations. Findings suggest the utility of adopting a social embeddedness perspective on rule breaking, as the mechanisms of diffusion and facilitation embedded in relationships between managers and employees enable the process whereby rule breaking becomes widespread.
Laterality and body ownership: Effect of handedness on experience of the rubber hand illusion

ABSTRACT Body ownership has mainly been linked to the right hemisphere and larger interhemispheric connectivity has been shown to be associated with greater right hemispheric activation. Mixed-handed participants tend to have more interhemispheric connectivity compared to extreme handed participants. The aim of this study was to examine whether feelings of ownership as assessed with the rubber hand illusion (RHI) are differentiated by handedness and differed between the left and right hand. Sinistrals-, dextrals-, and mixed-handed individuals (n = 63) were subjected to the RHI. Stroking was synchronously and asynchronously performed on both the participant’s hand and a rubber hand. Outcome measures were an embodiment questionnaire and proprioceptive drift. In contrast to our hypotheses we show a similar experience of ownership for all groups, which may indicate no hemispheric specialization for the illusion. In addition, plasticity of ownership and body ownership are similar for the left hand and right hand in all participants, which suggests similar representations for both hands in the brain. This might be useful to maintain a coherent sense of the body in space.
A User-Centred Design Approach Towards Developing an Intelligent Living Environment for Honeybees

Honeybees are vital to both agriculture and ecology, primarily through their major role as pollinators. However, they have been in major decline over recent years due to a variety of factors. In this paper, we discuss a user-centred (bee-centred) design approach to creating an intelligent living environment to promote the well-being of honeybees, in an effort to stop their decline.
Neuroblastoma in a pediatric patient with a microduplication of 2p involving the MYCN locus

Neuroblastoma is the most common solid tumor of infancy, and mutations in several genes have been implicated as playing a role in tumor development. Here, we describe a pediatric patient with a constitutional microduplication of 2p24.3 who developed Stage 4 neuroblastoma at age 11 months. He represents the sixth patient described in the literature with partial trisomy 2p and neuroblastoma. All previous cases had duplication events spanning two genes implicated in neuroblastoma, MYCN and ALK. Our patient is unique because his duplicated region includes the MYCN gene only; the ALK gene is unaffected. These data, combined with the relatively high incidence of neuroblastoma reported in partial trisomy 2p patients, support the notion that MYCN duplication should be added to the growing list of genetic factors associated with an increased risk of neuroblastoma. The mechanism of increased risk is unclear, but the fact that our patient had dramatic amplification of MYCN in his tumor suggests that a germline duplication might predispose to further amplification. Additionally, our patient has several morphologic features common to patients with partial trisomy 2p including high forehead, hypertelorism, postaxial polydactyly, and developmental delay despite having a microduplication spanning approximately 1 Mb and including just three intact genes. This case may therefore help further delineate the genotype–phenotype correlations associated with partial trisomy 2p. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Changes in international capital flows and monetary dominance: a study of small and large economies

This study attempts to examine changes that have occurred in the extent of international capital flows over the past three decades. In addition, the paper investigates the influence of changes in large economies interest rates on rates in smaller economies. Empirical results of the study show that capital flows have increased over time and that the US has played a dominant role in setting global financial conditions while Germany has emerged as a dominant regional economy.
Ethnic Differences in Housing Opportunities in Athens

This study uses a telephone field experiment to assess the degree of discrimination against female Albanians in Athenian rental housing markets. By examining a large sample represented by 122 urban areas, it was found that Albanians faced lower access to housing than the corresponding probability for Greeks. Moreover, Albanians faced lower access in newer apartments, above-ground apartments and repaired apartments. Meanwhile, Albanian home-seekers have to pay more than Greeks for these housing characteristics. Of further importance is the finding that Albanians have higher access to housing in areas closer to the Athens centre, suggesting the role of landlords in creating residential ethnic segregation. All findings are significant and suggest that Albanians both anticipate and encounter housing discrimination.
Cooperativity Between Different Nutrient Receptors in Germination of Spores of Bacillus subtilis and Reduction of This Cooperativity by Alterations in the GerB Receptor

ABSTRACT The GerA nutrient receptor alone triggers germination of Bacillus subtilis spores with l-alanine or l-valine, and these germinations were stimulated by glucose and K+ plus the GerK nutrient receptor. The GerB nutrient receptor alone did not trigger spore germination with any nutrients but required glucose, fructose, and K+ (GFK) (termed cogerminants) plus GerK for triggering of germination with a number of l-amino acids. GerB and GerA also triggered spore germination cooperatively with l-asparagine, fructose, and K+ and either l-alanine or l-valine. Two GerB variants (termed GerB*s) that were previously isolated by their ability to trigger spore germination in response to d-alanine do not respond to d-alanine but respond to the same l-amino acids that stimulate germination via GerB plus GerK and GFK. GerB*s alone triggered spore germination with these l-amino acids, although GerK plus GFK stimulated the rates of these germinations. In contrast to l-alanine germination via GerA, spore germination via l-alanine and GerB or GerB* was not inhibited by d-alanine. These data support the following conclusions. (i) Interaction with GerK, glucose, and K+ somehow stimulates spore germination via GerA. (ii) GerB can bind and respond to l-amino acids, although normally either the binding site is inaccessible or its occupation is not sufficient to trigger spore germination. (iii) Interaction of GerB with GerK and GFK allows GerB to bind or respond to amino acids. (iv) In addition to spore germination due to the interaction between GerA and GerK, and GerB and GerK, GerB can interact with GerA to trigger spore germination in response to appropriate nutrients. (v) The amino acid sequence changes in GerB*s reduce these receptor variants' requirement for GerK and cogerminants in their response to l-amino acids. (vi) GerK binds glucose, GerB interacts with fructose in addition to l-amino acids, and GerA interacts only with l-valine, l-alanine, and its analogs. (vii) The amino acid binding sites in GerA and GerB are different, even though both respond to l-alanine. These new conclusions are integrated into models for the signal transduction pathways that initiate spore germination.