Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Explaining Securities Markets Efficiency

This article examines the current status of the efficient markets hypothesis (EMH), which Fama proclaimed to be a well substantiated truth in 1978. The claims of EMH have been challenged by behavioural theory (which shows that individuals do not act to maximise their utility as asserted by neoclassical economists), entrepreneurial theory (which explains share price movements as being the product of error prone guesswork by market participants), and more recently by economic sociology (who explain share value as being the product of manipulation by forces inside and outside the corporation). Nonetheless, securities prices move freely, and sometimes volatile and unpredictable. This article argues that in the absence of objective criteria to measure Fama's claimed efficiency, EMH can at best be said to mean a free, and at times totally unpredictable, movement in share prices.
TERRORIST NETWORK MINING: ISSUES AND CHALLENGES

Before few decades Terrorism was merely considered as a law and order problem in many countries. But due exponential increase in the number of such organizations and their activities, they become threat for very existence of many countries. Many of these terrorist organizations are equipped with the advance technology based weapons. Also, it has been observed in last few decades that these terrorist organizations are communicating and coordinating with other terrorist organizations. Traditional war methods are not equipped to counter such an organized network of terrorist organizations and a systematic effort is greatly to study the architecture of such terrorist networks. This paper is a small step in that direction. This paper looks at the usefulness of Social Network Analysis and Graph Theory for decoding the structure of terrorist networks through Terrorist Network Mining.
Influence of Path Complexity on Spatial Overlap Perception in Virtual Environments

Real walking in large virtual indoor environments within a limited real world workspace requires effective spatial compression methods. These methods should be unnoticed by the user. Scene manipulation that creates overlapping spaces has been suggested in recent work. However, there is little research focusing on users' perception of overlapping spaces depending on the layout of the environment. In this paper we investigate how the complexity of the path influences the perception of the overlapping spaces it connects. We compare three spatial virtual layouts with paths that differ in complexity (length and number of turns). Our results suggest that an increase of the path's length is less efficient in decreasing overlap detection than a combination of length and additional turns. Furthermore, combination of paths that differ in complexity influences the distance perception within overlapping spaces.
An Empirical Study on Improving Portfolio Performance Using Range Correlation of Stocks 1

The purposeof the present paper is to offer an empirical analysis of improving portfolio performance using range correlation. The Data is daily prices(opening, high, low, closing) of equities listed in KOSPI200 during the period from 2 January 2002 to 30 May 2014. As the results of tests, if risks of portfolio show lower level while returns of portfolios do not show difference, performance of portfolio using range correlation can be improved. But, we need to expand the tests to out-of-sample and investigate whether performance of that will be still shown or not. Keyword: correlation, range correlation, portfolio performance, sharp ratio
The Effects of Revitalization on Public Housing Residents: A Case Study of the Atlanta Housing Authority

Abstract This research uses administrative data to examine the long-term socioeconomic status of households that relocated from public housing projects in Atlanta as a result of mixed-income revitalization. The research spans 7 years, covering the period before relocation and demolition had begun and ending after mixed-income redevelopment was completed. Residents who lived in three public housing projects that were revitalized are compared to a control group of residents who lived in three projects that were not revitalized, showing that mixed-income revitalization greatly accelerated the residential mobility of public housing residents and that households displaced by revitalization did not experience a statistically significant loss of housing assistance. Households that relocated by using vouchers or by moving to mixed-income revitalized communities experienced significant improvements in their socioeconomic status, and they moved to higher quality neighborhoods. Additionally, their long-run socioeconomic status was similar to the status of households who moved from housing projects voluntarily, i.e., not in response to a planned demolition. This is one of few empirical studies of the effects of HOPE VI revitalization on public housing residents, and its conclusions argue against the elimination of funding for HOPE VI as called for in the president's budget for 2006.
Estimating Option Prices and Existence Values for Wildlife Resources

The benefit-cost analyst has traditionally focused on the use values of natural environments. However, other values should be counted as part of the total value of a natural resource or environment. In particular, Weisbrod (1964) set forth option value for natural environments, and Krutilla (1967) has suggested that individuals may have existence values for natural environments. Although the suggestions of Weisbrod and Krutilla have prompted much discussion in the literature regarding the theoretical nature of such values, little research has been directed toward empirical estimation (see Long 1967; Cicchetti and Freeman 1971; Schmalensee 1972; Bohm 1975; and Greenley et al. 1981). Much of this literature has been summarized and reviewed in Bishop (1982). An approach to valuing nonmarketed commodities, referred to as the contingent valuation approach, has been developed which can be successfully utilized in estimating values associated with retaining the option to future use and existence of a natural environment. Regardless of the theoretical arguments that option value will be positive, negative, or zero, option price (option value plus expected consumer surplus) is the appropriate value to measure increments or decrements of a natural environment. A straightforward application of the contingent valuation approach can be used to estimate both option price and existence value. However, the existing literature from Long (1967) through Schmalensee (1972, 1975) and Bohm (1975) to Bishop (1982) is
Trends in University Ag-Biotech Patent Production

This work exploits information on U.S. patents to identify trends in university ag-biotech patenting and citation performance. It sets forth some key issues concerning patterns of university ag-biotech patenting and then provides an empirical analysis of the evolving trends. Land grant universities account for most U.S. ag-biotech patents. The data show a path-dependent innovation pattern, in which there also seems to be a culture of patenting that develops at certain universities. Evidence shows that ag-biotech patents are more cited than the average university patent. Inequalities across land grant universities are also evident in the production of ag-biotech patents, although perhaps not to a much greater degree than underlying inequalities in funding and research qualities. The paper closes by considering how the evidence offered might be used to advance the public discussion regarding trends in agricultural biotechnology research in the United States.
Women's experiences of work and family conflict in a Chinese airline

Established literature on work–family conflict concentrates on the experiences of women and organizational equalities policies in Western contexts. This article examines the experiences of women working in a Chinese airline. Drawing on questionnaires and interviews with female employees and managers, we explore work–family conflict and gendered organizational perceptions of women's needs. Our findings suggest that work rather than family-related factors are the most influential causes of conflict for Chinese women in our case study. Cultural and social factors that shape familial relationships prove important in explaining these differences, but we also highlight the significant role played by gendered organizational culture.
Population pharmacokinetics of docetaxel in patients with hepatic dysfunction treated in an oncology practice

To investigate the relationship between the degree of liver dysfunction and the pharmacokinetics of docetaxel, a population pharmacokinetic model was developed in an oncology practice without excluding patients with moderate to severe liver dysfunction. Two hundred patients were treated with docetaxel as a single agent or in combination chemotherapy. The plasma concentration–time course data were analyzed using a three‐compartment open model with zero‐order administration and first‐order elimination on the NONMEM program. Sixty‐one had elevated transaminase levels, and alkaline phosphatase was elevated in 40. Body surface area, albumin, α1‐acid glycoprotein, and liver function were found to be significant covariates for the systemic clearance of docetaxel. Compared to patients with normal or minimal impairment of liver function, patients with grade 2 and 3 elevations of transaminases at baseline in conjunction with elevation of alkaline phosphatase had 22 and 38% lower clearances, respectively. Goodness‐of‐fit plots indicated that the model was fitted well with the observed data, and the bootstrap method guaranteed robustness of the model. We developed a population pharmacokinetic model for docetaxel, which can be used in the setting of an oncology practice. Based on the model, dose reduction by approximately 20 and 40% should be considered for patients with grade 2 and 3 elevations of transaminases at baseline in conjunction with elevation of alkaline phosphatase, respectively. (Cancer Sci 2009; 100: 144–149)
Compact wideband band-pass filter using microstrip parallel-coupled line structure with complementary split ring resonator

A compact wide-band band-pass filter using microstrip parallel-coupled line structure with complementary split ring resonators (CSRRs) is proposed. By using CSRRs, the proposed wide-band band-pass filter has two transmission zeros at each edge of the pass-band. The proposed wide-band band-pass filter has been simulated, fabricated and measured. The centre frequency of the pass-band is 4.97 GHz and 3 dB bandwidth is 2.82 GHz from 3.56 GHz to 6.38 GHz. The simulated results are basically consistent with the measured ones.
Synergistic Combination of N-Acetylcysteine and Ribavirin to Protect from Lethal Influenza Viral Infection in a Mouse Model

Oxidative stress is implicated in the pathogenesis of pulmonary damage during viral infections. In a previous study we observed a significant improvement of survival of influenza-infected mice with NAC, 1g/kg divided in two daily administrations, for 8 days including a pretreatment on day 1 before infection. In order to test NAC in a more realistic model, we studied the effect of combined treatment with NAC and the antiviral drug, ribavirin. Since in the present work we wanted to test a possible synergistic effect by combination of NAC and ribavirin, we used a different NAC's treatment regimen (1 g/kg, once a day for 4 days) that, alone, did not significantly protect mice from death. Mice (12 per group) infected intranasally with a lethal dose of influenza A virus APR/8. NAC was given as a single daily dose of 1000 mg/kg starting from 4 h after infection and until day 4 after infection, in association with ribavirin (100 mg/kg, ip). End-point evaluation was 14-day survival. With this schedule survival in infected mice was 17%, it was not significantly changed by NAC (25%). Survival increased to 58% with ribavirin and to 92% (n=12) with a combined treatment with ribavirin and NAC. This suggest that antioxidant therapy can increase survival by either improving the defenses against virus or by protecting from the pathogenesis of lung inflammation.
Determinants of Nonprofit Board Size and Composition: The Case of Spanish Foundations

Recently, many empirical studies have shed light on the determinants of boards of directors. Our aim in this paper goes far from the corporate setting. We explain how nonprofits boards are structured. As opposed to corporations' goals, the objectives of nonprofits are non-lucrative. They can not disburse profits to their contributors, but the role played by their boards of trustees in monitoring and advising managers is analogous to that of boards of directors. Using a sample of Spanish foundations, we show that nonprofit board determinants, such as organizational complexity and financing structure, are mostly similar to those of corporate boards. Nonprofit age, however, illustrates the different nature of these organizations and their voluntary boards.
A Multi-Center, Double Blind Clinical Trial Comparing Benefit from Three Commonly Used Hearing Aid Circuits*

Objective Although numerous studies have demonstrated that hearing aids provide significant benefit, carefully controlled, multi-center clinical trials have not been conducted. A multi-center clinical trial was conducted to compare the efficacy of three commonly used hearing aid circuits: peak clipping, compression limiting, and wide dynamic range compression. Design Patients (N = 360) with bilateral, sensorineural hearing loss were studied using a double blind, three-period, three-treatment crossover design. The patients were fit with each of three programmable hearing aid circuits. Outcome tests were administered in the unaided condition at baseline and then after 3 mo usage of each circuit, the tests were administered in both aided and unaided conditions. The outcome test battery included tests of speech recognition, sound quality and subjective scales of hearing aid benefit, including patients’ overall rank-order rating of the three circuits. Results Each hearing aid circuit improved speech recognition markedly, with greater improvement observed for soft and conversationally loud speech in both quiet and noisy listening conditions. In addition, a significant reduction in the problems encountered in communication was observed. Some tests suggested that the two compression hearing aids provided a better listening experience than the peak clipping hearing aid. In the rank-order ratings, patients preferred the compression limiting hearing aid more frequently than the other two hearing aids. Conclusions The three hearing aid circuits studied provide significant benefit both in quiet and in noisy listening situations. The two compression hearing aids appear to provide superior benefits compared to the linear circuit, although the differences between the hearing aids were smaller than the differences between unaided and aided conditions.
Myths, Beliefs and Realities: Public-Private Competition and Program Diversification in Higher Education

In recent years we have observed significant growth in the private sector in many higher education systems around the globe. This growth of private higher education is associated with high political expectations, notably concerning greater choice of programs and greater responsiveness of institutions to students' and labor markets' demands. Looking at the experience of several European and Latin American countries, this study analyzes the patterns of program diversification of public and private higher education and discusses the impact of the private sector for the diversification of higher education's supply. The results show a contrasting picture between political beliefs about privatization in higher education and its actual results, suggesting that private institutions tend to be far more specialized than their public counterparts.
How well do patient reports reflect adverse drug reactions reported by rheumatologists? Agreement of physician- and patient-reported adverse events in patients with rheumatoid arthritis observed in the German biologics register.

OBJECTIVE To analyse the validity of patient reports on adverse drug reactions (ADRs) compared with the reports given by the treating physician. METHODS Patients with RA enrolled in the German biologics register rheumatoid arthritis observation of biologic therapy (RABBIT) between May 2001 and September 2006 were included in the study. We investigated concordance of reporting and level of agreement between physician- and patient-reported ADRs, taking the physician as gold standard. RESULTS Data from 4246 patients were analysed. Patients reported on average 1.2 ADRs per patient-year (PY) compared with 0.8 ADRs reported by the physicians (P<0.001). Gastrointestinal disorders were the most frequently reported ADRs by patients (277.8/1000 PYs) and physicians (137.8/1000 PYs), infections were reported with considerably higher frequency by physicians (124/1000 PYs) than by patients (72/1000 PYs). Agreement between patients and physicians (same or similar event reported at the same time) differed according to the nature of the reported ADR. High agreement was found for easily observable, known ADRs (such as alopecia, agreement 76.7%) In contrast, even for some serious ADRs, many patients did not see a connection between the event and the drug taken (e.g. pneumonia, agreement 37.7%). CONCLUSIONS Patient reports on ADRs are a useful source of information on the safety of new therapies. However, drug surveillance cannot rely on patient reports only, since even life-threatening events were not reported as ADRs by the patients who failed to associate them with the therapy. When coding patient reports on ADRs to a standard coding system, the differences in language and terminology between patients and physicians should be taken into account.
Downloading or uploading? The information economy and Africa's current status

Abstract While Africa is confronted with the urgency to provide its citizens with the basic requirements of life such as peace, food, education, health, shelter, safe drinking water, etc., the rest of the world and the developed nations in particular are fast heading towards a globally networked information economy. This raises questions about what the information economy holds for Africa and specifically what opportunities, challenges and impacts it may have. This paper attempts to provide an overview of the current state of affairs of the information economy in Africa by implementing a generic conceptual framework that includes ICT hardware, software and services, informatization and e‐commerce. The paper also identifies the basic challenges that Africa faces in developing and benefiting from the information economy.
Time-series Analysis of Heat Waves and Emergency Department Visits in Atlanta, 1993 to 2012

Background: Heat waves are extreme weather events that have been associated with adverse health outcomes. However, there is limited knowledge of heat waves’ impact on population morbidity, such as emergency department (ED) visits. Objectives: We investigated associations between heat waves and ED visits for 17 outcomes in Atlanta over a 20-year period, 1993–2012. Methods: Associations were estimated using Poisson log-linear models controlling for continuous air temperature, dew-point temperature, day of week, holidays, and time trends. We defined heat waves as periods of ≥2 consecutive days with temperatures beyond the 98th percentile of the temperature distribution over the period from 1945–2012. We considered six heat wave definitions using maximum, minimum, and average air temperatures and apparent temperatures. Associations by heat wave characteristics were examined. Results: Among all outcome-heat wave combinations, associations were strongest between ED visits for acute renal failure and heat waves defined by maximum apparent temperature at lag 0 [relative risk (RR) = 1.15; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.03–1.29], ED visits for ischemic stroke and heat waves defined by minimum temperature at lag 0 (RR = 1.09; 95% CI: 1.02–1.17), and ED visits for intestinal infection and heat waves defined by average temperature at lag 1 (RR = 1.10; 95% CI: 1.00–1.21). ED visits for all internal causes were associated with heat waves defined by maximum temperature at lag 1 (RR = 1.02; 95% CI: 1.00, 1.04). Conclusions: Heat waves can confer additional risks of ED visits beyond those of daily air temperature, even in a region with high air-conditioning prevalence. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP44
Risk factors for drug-induced gingival overgrowth.

BACKGROUND/AIMS Drug-induced gingival overgrowth remains a significant problem for the periodontologist. Many patients medicated with the drugs implicated in this unwanted effect experience significant, recurrent gingival problems that require repeated surgical excisions. In this review, we attempt to identify and quantify the various "risk factors" associated with both the development and expression of the drug-induced gingival changes. METHOD The risk factors appraised include age, sex, drug variables, concomitant medication, periodontal variables and genetic factors. Elucidation of such factors may help to identify "at risk patients" and then develop appropriate treatment strategies. RESULTS Of the factors identified, the only one that can be affected by the periodontologist is the patents' periodontal condition. However, drug variables and concomitant medication do impact upon the expression of gingival overgrowth. CONCLUSION The identification of risk factors associated with both the prevalence and severity of drug-induced gingival overgrowth is important for all parties involved with this unwanted effect. Both periodontologist and patient have an important rôle to play in improving oral hygiene and gingival health. Likewise, there is always an opportunity to establish a close liaison between the patient's physician and the periodontologist to try and identify alternative drug regimens that can help reduce the impact of this unwanted effect.
CALIBRATED OPTION BOUNDS

This paper proposes a numerical approach for computing bounds for the arbitrage-free prices of an option when some options are available for trading. Convex duality reveals a close relationship with recently proposed calibration techniques and implied trees. Our approach is intimately related to the uncertain volatility model of Avellaneda, Levy and Paras, but it is more general in that it is not based on any particular form of the asset price process and does not require the seller's price of an option to be a differentiable function of the cash-flows of the option. Numerical tests on S&P500 options demonstrate the accuracy and robustness of the proposed method.
A Qualitative Analysis of Pakistan's External and Internal Debt

This paper discusses how poor debt management combined with the policies of donor agencies (particularly the IMF) have brought on the present domestic and foreign debt crises. The paper presents a qualitative account of the debt in Pakistan and then analyzes the debt data using various debt burden indicators. After the analysis of the economic and social costs of debt overhang in Pakistan, it is found that net foreign resource flows to the private and public sectors tended to crowd out private and public savings respectively and that public savings is crowded out by resource flows from the private sector to the public sector. Finally, the results of the paper find that the resource allocation between development and non-development expenditure did not depend on whether government expenditure was financed by revenues or government borrowing and that more resources are directed towards deveopment activity when government expenditure is financed by foreign resource flows rather than domestice resource flows.