Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Organisational form and industry emergence: Nonprofit and mutual firms in the development of the US personal finance industry

Economic theories of commercial nonprofits and mutuals usually emphasise the advantages of such organisational forms in reducing agency and monitoring costs in markets that suffer from information asymmetries in exchanges between firms and their customers. This article examines the ability of such transaction cost theories to account for historical variations in the ownership and governance of firms in the US personal finance industry between the early nineteenth century and the Great Depression. It focuses, in particular, on mutual savings banks and their role in the development of the intermediated market for savings accounts. While I find some evidence in support of transaction cost theories of organisational form, I also find that entrepreneurial and socio-political factors played crucial roles in the choice of ownership and governance structures; mutual savings banks predominated in the early years of the industry because the form offered entrepreneurial advantages over investor-owned corporations and because in some states they benefitted from regulatory and political advantages that joint-stock companies lacked. Their relative decline by the early twentieth century was the result of increasing competition in the market for savings deposits, the loosening of regulatory barriers to entry, and changes in public policy that reduced the transaction, innovation and regulatory advantages that the mutual savings bank form had once held. The article draws out the theoretical implications for our understanding of the historical role of nonprofit and mutual firms.
The Cost Channel, Indeterminacy, and Price-Level versus Inflation Stabilization

In a New Keynesian model with a cost channel of monetary transmission, discretionary inflation targeting may become susceptible to a multiplicity of equilibria and results in a larger stabilization bias than in the standard model. Both observations can be attributed to a reduction in the effectiveness of the traditional demand channel of monetary transmission. Based on this insight, we evaluate the desirability of an alternative monetary policy regime, price-level targeting. We find that the latter is almost immune to equilibrium indeterminacy and remains successful in stabilizing output and inflation. Due to the weak demand channel, the ability of the central bank to manage private sector expectations takes center stage. This is accomplished by price-level targeting through the introduction of history dependence, but not by inflation targeting.
Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy in Athletes: Progressive Tauopathy After Repetitive Head Injury

Since the 1920s, it has been known that the repetitive brain trauma associated with boxing may produce a progressive neurological deterioration, originally termed dementia pugilistica, and more recently, chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). We review 48 cases of neuropathologically verified CTE recorded in the literature and document the detailed findings of CTE in 3 professionalathletes, 1 football player and 2 boxers. Clinically, CTE is associated with memory disturbances, behavioral and personality changes, parkinsonism, and speech and gait abnormalities. Neuropathologically, CTE is characterized by atrophy of the cerebral hemispheres, medial temporal lobe, thalamus, mammillary bodies, and brainstem, with ventricular dilatation and a fenestrated cavum septum pellucidum. Microscopically, there are extensive tau-immunoreactive neurofibrillary tangles, astrocytic tangles, and spindle-shaped and threadlike neurites throughout the brain. The neurofibrillary degeneration of CTE is distinguished from other tauopathies by preferential involvement of the superficial cortical layers, irregular patchy distribution in the frontal and temporal cortices, propensity for sulcal depths, prominent perivascular, periventricular, and subpial distribution, and marked accumulation of tau-immunoreactive astrocytes. Deposition of &bgr;-amyloid, most commonly as diffuse plaques, occurs in fewer than half the cases. Chronic traumatic encephalopathy is a neuropathologically distinct slowly progressive tauopathy with a clear environmental etiology.
Whither 'training and development' in Vietnam?: learning from United States and Japanese MNCs' practice

This paper focuses on training and development (T&D) policies and practices to explore how multinational companies (MNCs) localise their human resources within their subsidiaries in a developing country. It uses qualitative research methods to examine three US and three Japanese MNCs operating in the automotive and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry in Vietnam. The paper identifies both home- and host-country effects as significant factors in the transfer of MNCs' T&D policies and practices. Clear home-country effects are evident in rigorous attempts of both US and Japanese MNCs to transfer and implement formalised and centrally controlled training programs. Host-country effects manifest themselves in the instability of the institutional environment, weak associations among employers’ groups, and fragmented bargaining practices that encourage employer and employee opportunism, particularly ‘poaching’ and ‘job-hopping’. These lead to MNCs' hesitation to invest in T&D, and the lack of job rotation and a tendency to train ‘specialists’ rather than ‘generalists’ in the Japanese firms. The paper also discusses the interaction of foreign owned and indigenous firms in a very tight labour market at the highly skilled end that results in a ‘brain drain’ phenomenon on human resource development (HRD).
From Patronage to Program

This article explains the unanticipated emergence of party-oriented legislators and rising party discipline in Brazil since the early 1990s. The authors contend that deputies in Brazil became increasingly party oriented because the utilities of party-programmatic and patronage-based electoral strategies shifted with market reforms that created a programmatic cleavage in Brazilian politics and diminished the resource base for state patronage. The study introduces new measures of partisan campaigns, party polarization, and values that legislators attached to party programs and voter loyalty based on an original survey of the Brazilian Congress. Regression analysis confirms that deputies who believe that voters value party programs have run partisan, programmatic campaigns, and those in polarized parties and those who believe voters are loyal to the party are willing to delegate authority to party leaders and do not switch parties. Party polarization and the proximity of deputies' policy preferences to their party's mean explain discipline on 236 roll-call votes in the 51st legislature (1999-2001).
A Plasma Membrane-associated Component of Ovarian Adenocarcinoma Cells Enhances the Catalytic Efficiency of Matrix Metalloproteinase-2 (*)

Several recent investigations have demonstrated that matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) binds to the cell surface and undergoes zymogen activation via a plasma membrane-associated activity. The purpose of this study was to determine if association of MMP-2 with the plasma membrane also modulates the catalytic efficiency of the active enzyme. Using density gradient centrifugation, we isolated the plasma membrane fractions of two ovarian adenocarcinoma cell lines, DOV 13 and OVCA 432, previously described either to express MMP-2 or to express no gelatinolytic metalloproteinases, respectively. While DOV 13 cells contained plasma membrane-associated MMP-2 and OVCA 432 did not, both cell types were able to bind exogenous MMP-2. Furthermore, plasma membrane fractions from these cells significantly enhanced the rate of cleavage of [14C]gelatin I substrate by both MMP-2•tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-2 (TIMP-2) complex (2.5-8-fold) and TIMP-2-free MMP-2 (5.9-fold). This stimulatory activity was dose-dependent, soluble in Triton X-100, and abolished by trypsin treatment of the membranes, but was stable to heat treatment. Plasma membrane stimulation of MMP-2 resulted in a 3.8-4.6-fold increase in the catalytic efficiency of gelatinolysis. These data suggest that, in addition to promoting zymogen activation, cell surface binding of MMP-2 may regulate enzyme activity by increasing the rate of substrate cleavage. Via this mechanism, tumor cell types that do not express MMPs (such as OVCA 432) nevertheless may be able to utilize exogenous MMP-2 to mediate proteolysis associated with invasion and metastasis.
The US Current Account Deficit: A Re-examination of the Role of Private Saving

The large recent US current account deficits have been the subject of an enormous amount of study in academia, among government and central bank economists, in business economic reports, and in the press. Many different explanations of the cause of the deficit have been offered, and to varying degrees we believe that all may have played a role: low private saving in the US; large public-sector budget deficits; a ‘glut’ of savings in the rest of world; and, perhaps even a misalignment of nominal exchange rates. In this paper we explore the role of one other factor that also has been mentioned prominently: private saving in the US is low because income growth is expected to be strong. We rework the standard neoclassical two-country model to show how a country will be a net borrower when its future share of world GDP is expected to increase above its current share. Our research ultimately is motivated by the question of whether the US current account is ‘sustainable’. The way we approach the question is to see whether the high level of US spending currently is compatible with an optimal path of borrowing. In particular, what assumptions about expected future growth of the US’s share of world output could justify its current account deficit? We show that if the deficit can be explained by higher future income shares, then the size of the real depreciation, that may otherwise be required to reduce the deficit, may be quite small.
Optimal investment in product-flexible manufacturing capacity

This paper presents a model and an analysis of the cost-flexibility tradeoffs involved in investing in product-flexible manufacturing capacity. Flexible capacity provides a firm with the ability to respond to a wide variety of future demand outcomes, but at the expense of the increased cost of acquiring flexible manufacturing capacity, as compared with dedicated or nonflexible capacity. We formulate the product-flexible manufacturing capacity investment decision as a two-stage stochastic program. In the first stage, the firm must make its investment decision in manufacturing capacity, before the resolution of uncertainty in product demand. In the second stage, after demand for products are known, the firm implements its production decisions, constrained by the first-stage investments. The main contributions of this paper are threefold. First, we develop a model of the firm's flexible manufacturing investment decision that conceptually captures some of the key characteristics of this complex decision problem. Second, with the aid of the model, we characterize the necessary and sufficient conditions for a firm to invest in flexible capacity to protect efficiently against uncertainty in demand for all of its products. Third, we explore the sensitivity of the firm's optimal capacity investment decision to key problem components, namely to the cost of flexible and nonflexible production capacity, to the underlying distribution of product demand, and to the level of risk.
An intelligent intrusion detection scheme for self-driving vehicles based on magnetometer sensors

Both safety and non-safety applications require authentication of messages and vehicles in cooperative vehicular ad hoc networks. Access control can prevent external attackers from achieving their goal of breaking or hacking important information from road side units and self-driving vehicles. However, internal attacks on vehicular systems and networks remain possible. A novel intelligent intrusion detection is proposed to secure the external communication system of self-driving and semi-self-driving vehicles. This system is based on the Integrated Circuit Metric technology, which has the ability to protect systems using features of the system itself. The detection system, called the ICMetric-IDS, is based on novel and unique features, which have been generated from bias values of magnetometer sensors as well as features which have been extracted from a trace file of simulated vehicle network traffic. Practical implementation and testing of the system demonstrate the efficiency in the detection of malicious behaviour.
Reduction of capacitor voltage ripple in a modular multilevel converter employed in adjustable speed drive application

Nowadays modular multilevel converters (MMCs) are widely used due to their excellent performance and high modularity. However, in the variable speed drive application, there is a challenge to control the voltage ripple of submodules at the low frequency operating points. This challenge is even more critical during the startup procedure of electrical drives. In this paper, the main reasons of voltage ripple generation are explained. Then a method to control the amount of voltage ripple at the low frequency applications is introduced. In fact, the trapezoidal voltage waveform is injected at the reference of phase voltage to reduce the voltage ripple. Next, the proposed method is compared with existing methods to show its better performance. Finally, MATLAB/Simulink software is used to evaluate the performance of proposed and already existing methods.
A study of serum biomarkers associated with relapse of cervical cancer.

BACKGROUND/AIM To discover candidate protein biomarkers in the serum of patients with cervical cancer that differentiate between patients with relapse from those who are tumor-free after primary treatment with (platinum-based chemo-) radiation. PATIENTS AND METHODS Surface-enhanced laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (SELDI-TOF-MS) with cation exchange (CM10) and hydrophobic/reverse-phase (H50) was used to examine 44 serum samples from patients with advanced cervical cancer, primarily treated with (platinum-based chemo-) radiation. RESULTS Ten candidate biomarkers were identified in the serum of 34 patients. Six candidate markers were elevated in patients with no relapse and four were elevated in patients with relapse [p=0.007-0.11; area under the curve (AUC)=0.70-0.75]. Masses of candidate biomarkers ranged from 2,022 to 116,165 Da. CONCLUSION Patients with relapse from primary advanced cervical cancer exhibit different serum protein expression profiles from those with no relapse.
Heterogeneous Expression of Claudin-4 in Human Colorectal Cancer: Decreased Claudin-4 Expression at the Invasive Front Correlates Cancer Invasion and Metastasis

Objective: Claudin-4 plays a key role in constructing the tight junction (TJ), and altered claudin-4 expression has been documented in various human malignancies; however, little is known about the biological significance of claudin-4 in colorectal cancers (CRCs). The aim of this study is to investigate the significance of claudin-4 expression in CRC and its association with clinicopathological factors. Methods: The levels of claudin-4 expression in a total of 129 CRCs and 44 metastatic tumors were examined by immunohistochemistry. A small interfering RNA (siRNA)-mediated claudin-4 knockdown examination was also conducted to assess the biological role(s) of claudin-4 in cultured cells. Results: Expression of claudin-4 at the intercellular membrane was well preserved at the surface of the tumor; however, decreased claudin-4 expression was detected in 57% of CRCs, particularly at the invasive front. Interestingly, decreased claudin-4 expression was detected in metastatic lesions of CRC. The siRNA-mediated claudin-4 knockdown in SW480 claudin-4-positive CRC cells upregulated cell motility, whereas no significant change was detected in cell proliferation. Conclusions: These observations suggested that disruption of claudin-4-mediated TJ construction enhances cancer cell invasion and metastasis in human CRC. Claudin-4 might be a good biomarker for diagnosing the risk of distant metastasis.
MARKET DOMINANCE AND SEARCH QUALITY IN THE SEARCH ENGINE MARKET

We analyze a search engine market from a law and economics perspective and incorporate the choice of quality-improving innovations by a search engine platform in a two-sided model of Internet search engine. In the proposed framework, we first discuss the legal issues the search engine market raises for antitrust policy through analysis of several types of abusive behavior by the dominant platform. We also explore possible consequences of monopolization of the search engine market for advertisers and users in the form of excessive pricing and deterioration of the quality of the search results. Second, in the technical analysis part, we incorporate these considerations in a two-sided market model and analyze the rate of innovation, pricing, and quality choices by the dominant search engine. Our findings show that a dominant monopoly platform results in higher prices and underinvestment in quality-improving innovations by a search engine relative to the social optimum. More generally, we show that monopoly is sub-optimal in terms of harm to advertisers in the form of excessive prices, harm to users in the form of reduction in quality of search results, as well as harm to the society in the form of lower innovation rates in the industry. © The Author (2012). Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.
Expatriate Failures

January 1994 Mary, the company’s expatriate manager, received an urgent call from Betty, vice president of human resources. Betty wanted to see her right away to discuss an important relocation issue. &dquo;We have to get a person to go to China in a hurry,&dquo; explained Betty when Mary rushed into her office. &dquo;Bill just called me from Singapore and said the board approved a new venture in China. It hasn’t yet been decided whether we will go in there with a Chinese partner or as a wholly owned entity. The candidate should be an entrepreneurial type who knows our way of doing things and, of course,
ANALYSIS OF HOUSEHOLD EXPENDITURES

A household expenditure survey is the tool through which material welfare is measured. Its results show that levels of living vary among individuals and groups in the economy. Therefore, the wealth of data from such surveys provides an information base which is an essential prerequisite for the evaluation of actual or proposed policies. This enhances the understanding of how the economy functions, allowing the evolution of better policies for progress and development. Accordingly, this report reviews three analytical issues : a) the estimation of Engel curves; b) the calculation of measures of the costs of maintaining children and c) the calculation of price indices.
NEW EVIDENCE ON THE RETIREMENT AND DEPRECIATION OF MACHINE TOOLS

This paper uses data from machinery dealers to estimate the retirement and depreciation patterns for a broad set of conventional machine tools. According to the dealers, the average service life of these machines at the survey date was about thirty years. Service lives were even longer in the mid-1970s, with the reduction over time likely caused by the diffusion of superior, computer-controlled machines. Consistent with the relatively long average life, the conventional machines have depreciated slowly. The author uses the results to asses the average service life assumed by the Bureau of Economic Analysis to construct capital stocks for metalworking machinery. Copyright 1996 by Oxford University Press.
Towards Charity Accountability: Narrowing the gap between provision and needs?

Abstract Although charities currently play a rich and varied role in modern society, their continued success is dependent upon the public's trust. With respect to charity accountability, two key questions emerge: to whom is a charity accountable; and what form should that account take? Despite the widespread acceptance that charities should discharge accountability, there is limited knowledge of the relative importance of different stakeholder groups and whether the information currently being disclosed meets their needs. Using extensive document analysis and a survey of stakeholders, this research explores these issues in the context of the top 100 UK fundraising charities. Furthermore, it compares the results with much earlier research to identify changes over time.
United by a Common Language? Trade Union Responses in the UK and India to Call Centre Offshoring

The offshoring of business processes from the global North to low-cost countries of the global South has grown spectacularly in the current decade. Self-evidently, transnational relocation presents considerable challenges for organised labour since it suggests both a 'race to the bottom' in respect of pay, conditions and workers' rights and wholesale redundancies in the developed economies. This paper examines the specific case of the migration of call centres from the UK to India and trade union responses in both geographies. Informed by theoretical developments, insights and evidence from diverse disciplines and literatures, the authors concur particularly with Herod's conviction that union strategies to counter TNCs should not be counterposed between 'organising globally' and 'organising locally'and that 'organising at both scales simultaneously may best serve their goals'. Following reflection upon the nature of the call centre and consideration of important contradictions in the offshoring process, we present evidence of UK union responses ranging from the nationalistic, even xenophobic, to the internationalsist, and conclude that membership mobilisation on a principled basis has been key to the limited successes unions have achieved. The paper also evaluates developments in India and the emergence of an embryonic organisation UNITES which is attempting to organise its call centre and business process outsourcing (BPO) workforce.We conclude by considering the gap between the potential and the reality of effective internationally co-ordinated union activity.
Pneumococcal resistance to antibiotics

The geographic distribution of pneumococci resistant to one or more of the antibiotics penicillin, erythromycin, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, and tetracycline appears to be expanding, and there exist foci of resistance to chloramphenicol and rifampin. Multiply resistant pneumococci are being encountered more commonly and are more often community acquired. Factors associated with infection caused by resistant pneumococci include young age, duration of hospitalization, infection with a pneumococcus of serogroup 6, 19, or 23 or serotype 14, and exposure to antibiotics to which the strain is resistant. At present, the most useful drugs for the management of resistant pneumococcal infections are cefotaxime, ceftriaxone, vancomycin, and rifampin. If the strains are susceptible, chloramphenicol may be useful as an alternative, less expensive agent. Appropriate interventions for the control of resistant pneumococcal outbreaks include investigation of the prevalence of resistant strains, isolation of patients, possible treatment of carriers, and reduction of usage of antibiotics to which the strain is resistant. The molecular mechanisms of penicillin resistance are related to the structure and function of penicillin-binding proteins, and the mechanisms of resistance to other agents involved in multiple resistance are being elucidated. Recognition is increasing of the standard screening procedure for penicillin resistance, using a 1-microgram oxacillin disk.