Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Partial Moments for Quadratic Forms in Non-Gaussian Random Vectors: A Parametric Approach

Countless test statistics can be written as quadratic forms in certain random vectors, or ratios thereof. Consequently, their distribution has received considerable attention in the literature. Except for a few special cases, no closed-form expression for the cdf exists, and one resorts to numerical methods. Traditionally the problem is analyzed under the assumption of joint Gaussianity; the algorithm that is usually employed is that of Imhof (1961). The present manuscript generalizes this result to the case of multivariate generalized hyperbolic (MGHyp) random vectors. The MGHyp is a very flexible distribution which nests, among others, the multivariate t, Laplace, and variance gamma distributions. An expression for the first partial moment is also obtained, which plays a vital role in financial risk management. The proof involves a generalization of the classic inversion formula due to Gil-Pelaez (1951). Two numerical applications are considered: first, the finite-sample distribution of the 2SLS estimator of a structural parameter. Second, the Value at Risk and Expected Shortfall of a quadratic portfolio with heavy-tailed risk factors. An empirical application is examined, where a portfolio of of Dow Jones Industrial Index (DJIA) stock options is optimised by minimising the expected shortfall. The empirical results show the benefits of the analytical expression.
A COMPARISON OF BIRTH GROWTH AND CARCASS CHARACTERISTICS BETWEEN HOLSTEIN-FRIESIAN STEERS AND CHAROLAIS × HOLSTEIN (F1) CROSSBREDS

The growth and carcass characteristics of 12 purebred Holstein-Friesian steers were compared with 18 (12 steers and 6 heifers) Charolais × Holstein, F1 crossbreds. The rates of growth were similar for the three groups except for the 400- to 500-kg growth phase when the females, Holstein and crossbred steers gained 1.25, 1.47 and 1.69 kg/day, respectively. After slaughter at 500 kg, the crossbreds were found to have significantly (P < 0.05) heavier hides and hindquarters and lighter stomachs and livers than the purebreds. The females had the greatest amount of offal fat (stomach, kidney, cod plus channel) (35.1 kg), and the crossbred males the least (24.3 kg). The crossbreds were significantly (P < 0.05) shorter in body length, wider at the shoulders and rumps and had greater circumference in the round than the purebreds. Since the average birthweights were similar in all three groups (47 ± 0.6 kg), these structural differences appeared to be the major cause of dystocia in the crossbreds, particularly in t.
Non-Market Valuation of the Coastal Environment - Uniting Political Aims, Ecological and Economic Knowledge

The EU Water Framework Directive (WFD) requires coastal water quality to be classified according to ecological indicators. In this paper, contingent valuation is used to estimate the value of improving the water quality status according to this classification, investigating if this type of holistic political-ecological measure can be related to and valued in monetary terms by the general public. A web-based survey was conducted in two study areas on the Swedish East and West coast. The paper focuses on eutrophication effects, such as bad water clarity, a decrease of bladder wrack stands and algae mats. These water quality elements affect recreational use of coastal areas. Relating to recreational use, two other environmental attributes are addressed – algae blooms and protection of marine areas in terms of e.g. restrictions for boat traffic. The restrictions scenario is also holistic in terms of several imposed restrictions, as well as tightly linked with existing policy. Conducting valuation studies based on a policy-determined measure is beneficial for decisionmakers but also for research e.g. in terms of data availability. It is concluded that these politically defined measures seem to work well as a basis for economic valuation. The respondents are in general both able to understand and to put a monetary value to the measures. This is an important first step, paving the ground for further studies. The monthly mean household WTP between the years 2010-2029 ranges from 61 to 108 SEK for improved water quality, from 54 to 84 SEK for less algae blooms and from 32 to 50 SEK for less noise and littering. Regarding noise and littering in archipelago areas in Northern Europe, this is to our knowledge the first WTP estimate that has been presented. The respondents from the East coast region express relatively high mean WTP values compared to the respondents on the West coast for all scenarios. The differences in mean WTP values between the study areas, which are reflected in the transfer errors, indicate that even though the coasts are similar in terms of use and environmental problems, and the respondents have many similar characteristics, a point estimate benefit transfer between the two coasts is not recommended unless high transfer errors are acceptable. WTP is affected by gender, membership of an NGO, whether or not the respondent has children, whether or not the respondent has a foreign background, frequency of visiting the area and whether or not the respondent uses a boat with an engine effect of more than 10 hp while visiting the area.
A Test of the ‘Lose it or Use It’ Hypothesis in Labour Markets Around the World

This paper investigates skills and the use of skills at work in 21 OECD countries. The skills included in the analysis are literacy, numeracy and problem-solving. The paper investigates the conjecture that the deterioration of skills with age might be more pronounced in occupations with a limited use of skills than in occupations with more intensive use of these skills – an implication of the ‘use it or lose it’ hypothesis. I look at the development over age of both measured skills and the use of skills at work in two aggregate categories of occupations: a group of high-skilled workers (ISCO major occupations from 0 to 4) and a group of low-skilled workers (ISCO major occupations from 5 to 9). High-skilled workers have higher measured skills than low-skilled workers and high-skilled workers use skills more at work than low-skilled workers. Measured skills decline from the age of 35 both for high- and low-skilled workers at about the same pace. The use of skills at work also declines from the age of 35 for both high-skilled workers and low-skilled workers at about the same pace, and at about the same rate as measured skills. The evidence does not support the ‘use it or lose it’ hypothesis.
Guest Editorial: Trade and the Environment

Such population policies are not an alternative but a supplement to the many steps which will be needed to put farming on a foreseeably sustainable footing, but ultimately that footing will not be secure until the world's population stabilizes. Only then will farmers be able to turn away from the unrelenting drive to boost yields and towards conservation and restoration of soils and water supplies for tomorrow's use.
Development and Welfare Schemes Towards SDGS: Case Study of Emped Village, Telangana, India

Achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is a gigantic task given its 17 goals and 169 targets cutting across many areas. These have to be achieved in synergistic manner by central, state and local governments. Although, state and central level departments work in silos, their actual implementation at village level needs to be integrated to explore synergies. Keeping this in view, this paper examined the different government schemes working at village level which are linked to specific SDGs. The paper examined how many are benefiting, what was the extent of benefit from each scheme and at aggregate level. The study was done in Emped village of Telangana by collecting data on all schemes and from all 287 households in the village to get holistic picture. The average income of the households were Rs.73,345 in the village. Although, more than 50 schemes are working in Telangana, the study examined a total of 29 schemes from which at least one household benefited. The average aggregate benefit from all government schemes is about Rs.58,095 per household. If we include double-bed-room housing scheme and Chief Minister Relief Fund, the aggregate support reached Rs.1,06,006 per household. Some schemes are benefiting landholding class more, while some are pro-poor and pro-socially backward classes. Majority of the households benefited from schemes like Public Distribution System (PDS), Rs.4000 input support per acre, MGNREGA, loan weaver, seed and fertilizer subsidy, mid-day-meal scheme but in modest amount. Schemes addressed to women like KCR Kits and Shadi Mubharak are working well. But very few are benefited from double-bed room housing scheme, Chief Minister Relief Fund but in huge sums. Overall, these schemes are helping to achieve different targets of SDGs, but needs more focus on identification of right beneficiary, reduction of leakages and inordinate delays in implementation.
Peroxisomal β-oxidation: Insights from comparative biochemistry

The activities of fatty acyl-CoA oxidase (FAO) and carnitine palmitoyl transferase (CPT), indices of the capacities of peroxisomal beta-oxidation and mitochondrial beta-oxidation, respectively, were determined in livers of several vertebrate species notable for differences in dietary fatty acid composition. In suckling rats FAO activities were half that in adult rats and CPT/FAO ratios twice that of adult rats. As their milk diet is dominated by medium chain fatty acids, this observation is consistent with current ideas about the role of peroxisomal beta-oxidation in rat liver in oxidation of long chain unsaturated fatty acids. In nectar-feeding hummingbirds (fatty acids synthesized de novo) FAO activities were 50% greater than adult rats and CPT/FAO ratios one-third less than adult rats, suggesting that peroxisomal beta-oxidation is relatively more important in this species, despite a fatty-acid-poor diet. In marine fish (herring, dogfish shark, hagfish) FAO activities were all less than 15% that of rats and undetectable in hagfish. CPT/FAO ratios were greater in herring (8.1) and hagfish (greater than 30) than adult rats (3.1), suggesting that peroxisomal beta-oxidation is relatively less important in these species despite a natural diet containing high levels of long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids. These data are discussed in relation to current ideas about the role of peroxisomes in beta-oxidation of fatty acids.
Accountability Asset Recovery: A Leadership & Sustainability Initiative 5th Paper Presentation in the Series

During the post-1925 era, institutional, evolutionary and financial economics have been predominant within the natural and constructed environment. For instance, from 1st to 22nd July 1944, experts representing forty-four nations convened at Bretton Woods, New Hampshire for the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference. Among its work there, the Conference drew up a plan for what became known as the International Monetary Fund (IMF). 74 years henceforth speaking at the 8th Kissinger Lecture Series at the US Library of Congress on 4th December 2018, the IMF managing director broached the idea for institutional recognition of evolutionary phenomena in financial economics. <br><br>Encouraged by the adoption of UN Resolution 72/277, “Towards a Global Pact for the Environment” on 10th May 2018 and in alignment with UN SDG #17 which was adopted by all UN member states in 2015, this invited paper explores the viability of Accountability Asset Recovery: A Leadership and Sustainability Initiative in seeking to facilitate institutional change, mindful of the gap that heretofore frustrated the promises enshrined in international conventions.
Site-specific Recombination of Bacteriophage λ: The Role of Host Gene Products

Integration of the DNA of bacteriophage A into the chromosome of Escherichia coli occurs by recombination at two unique genetic loci: attP on the phage genome and attB on the bacterial chromosome. This reaction is therefore an example of site-specific recombination. The only phage-encoded protein required for recombination at these art (attachment) sites is Int, the product of the phage int gene. Integration of A generates a prophage that is flanked by two new att sites, attL and attR. Excision, recombination between attL and attR, requires Xis, the product of the phage xis gene, as well as Int (for review, see Weisberg et al. 1977). It has previously been demonstrated that in addition to phage-encoded proteins, the products of one or more host genes are necessary for A site-specific recombination (Miller and Friedman 1977a; Nash et al. 1977; Williams et al. 1977). In this paper, we briefly present the results of experiments that characterize mutant E. coli strains that are unable to carry out A site-specific recombination. Our studies describe the biochemical nature of the integration defect in these strains and define the genetic loci that are responsible. The interest in these newly identified genetic loci promises to extend beyond the study of A site-specific recombination, since the mutants exhibit various other phenotypes, some of which do not appear to be a consequence of a defect in recombination.
Effects of carbon dioxide acidification of mouse oocytes before in vitro fertilization, culture, and transfer

The effects of varying pH levels on superovulated mouse oocytes before in vitro fertilization, culture, and transfer were investigated. Mouse oocytes acidified for 1 hour with 20% CO2(pH 6.9) exhibited a wide range of alterations. Five hours after insemination, 25% of these eggs showed different degrees of cytolysis and their perivitelline space contained numerous spermatozoa. At 12 hours normal-looking eggs from this group showed a higher proportion of polypronuclear zygotes than the control group (exposed, 51%; controls, 18%). Acidification thus markedly increased the permeability of the zona pellucida and/or interfered with the normal block to polyspermy. Fewer eggs achieved the two-cell stage among groups submitted to acidotic pH levels (6.9 to 6.6). In contrast, alkaline conditions (pH 7.8) did not reduce the proportion of two-cell embryos. However, only eggs maintained at pH 7.5 were capable of producing 80% of blastocysts. In other groups developmental blockage occurred mainly between stages 2 and 4. A significant reduction was found in the proportion of recipient females becoming pregnant after intrauterine transfer of blastocysts originating from CO2- treated oocytes. This difference might be related to the existence of a large polyploid population among experimental eggs.
Entrepreneurial Opportunities and Financing Sources in a Developing Economy: A Focus on Nigeria

The link between entrepreneurship and economic development has been well established. Macroeconomic dislocations, infrastructure defciencies, and limited access to sources of fnancing are some of the factors militating against the development of thriving entrepreneurship and development of sustainable organizations in developing countries like Nigeria. This paper argues that these challenges in themselves should create the emergence of entrepreneurial opportunities directed towards solving these problems. The buyer experience cycle and utility matrix, and the entrepreneurial process: Renewal, Regeneration and Intrapreneuring were used to illustrate how entrepreneurs can develop and grow business opportunities. Some entrepreneurial fnancing sources and strategies were also proposed.
Long-Lived Drosophila with Overexpressed dFOXO in Adult Fat Body

Reduced activity of the insulin/insulin-like growth factor signaling (IIS) pathway increases life-span in diverse organisms. We investigated the timing of the effect of reduced IIS on life-span and the role of a potential target tissue, the fat body. We overexpressed dFOXO, a downstream effector of IIS, in the adult Drosophila fat body, which increased life-span and reduced fecundity of females but had no effect on male life-span. The role of FOXO transcription factors and the adipose tissue are therefore evolutionarily conserved in the regulation of aging, and reduction of IIS in the adult is sufficient to mediate its effects on life-span and fecundity.
Phylogeny of major lineages of suboscines (Passeriformes) analysed by nuclear DNA sequence data

dichotomy into oscine and suboscine passerines previously suggested based on syringeal morphology and DNA-DNA hybridizations. The representatives of the Old World suboscines (families Eurylaimidae, Philepittidae and Pittidae) formed a monophyletic clade. The New World suboscines clustered into two clades. The first contained Conopophaga (Conopophagidae), Furnarius (Furnariidae), Lepidocolaptes (Dendrocolaptidae), Thamnophilus (Formicariidae), and Rhinocrypta (Rhinocrypti dae). Previously, the monophyly of this group has been inferred from their possession of a unique, "tracheophone,, syrinx, and from DNA-DNA hybridisation data. The second clade of New World suboscines includes Gubernetes and Muscivora (Tyran nidae), Phytotoma (Phytotomidae), Tityra (Cotingidae) and Pipra (Pipridae). This group of families have been considered monophyletic based on morphology (al though ambiguously) and DNA-DNA hybridisation. The sister group relationship of Tityra and Phytotoma supports the previously supposed cotingid affinity of Phyto toma. Nuclear DNA data also unambiguously group the lyrebirds Menura with the oscines. The presented results from the analysis of nuclear DNA agree well with morphology and DNA-DNA hybridisation data. The precise age of the divergences studied herein are unknown but based on interpretations of the fossil record of passerine birds many of them might date back to the early Tertiary. The agreement between data from the nuclear DNA and other sources, along with the fact that neither of the studied genes showed sign of saturation, indicate the great potential of these two nuclear genes to resolve very old divergences in birds.
Monitoring cattle behavior and pasture use with GPS and GIS

Precision agriculture is already being used commercially to improve variability management in row crop agriculture. In the same way, understanding how spatial and temporal variability of animal, forage, soil and landscape features affect grazing behavior and forage utilization provides potential to modify pasture management, improve efficiency of utilization, and maximize profits. Recent advances in global positioning system (GPS) technology have allowed the development of lightweight GPS collar receivers suitable for monitoring animal position at 5-min intervals. The GPS data can be imported into a geographic information system (GIS) to assess animal behavior characteristics and pasture utilization. This paper describes application and use of GPS technology on intensively managed beef cattle, and implications for livestock behavior and management research on pasture. Key words: Livestock behavior, electronics, grazing, forage, global positioning system, geographic information system
Influência do ambiente no desenvolvimento de colônias iniciais de formigas cortadeiras (Atta sexdens rubropilosa)

Annually, mature colonies of Atta ants produce winged males and females, where leave the colony in which they were produced to form new colonies and thus continue the species perpetuation. The foundation of Atta spp. colonies always involves high queen effort, solely responsible for growing the fungus and the care with itself and its offspring. During the foundation there is consumption of body reserves. This study investigated how the environment influences the development of newly founded colonies of leaf cutting ant, Atta sexdens rubropilosa. Therefore, it was compared field colonies collected five months after the nuptial flight and colonies maintained in the laboratory since the nuptial flight. It was analyzed the weight and size of the population (number of workers, larvae, pupae and eggs), the workers size, the volume and weight of the fungus garden and queen effort for the nest foundation (lipid content and weight of queens). In comparison to the field colonies, the laboratory colonies showed higher values in the weight and size of population, the volume and weight of the fungus garden. Measures of workers by class size did not vary between colonies from field and laboratory. The queen effort for nest foundation was higher in field colonies, which showed a lower percentage of fat and lower weight compared to laboratory colonies. These results show that the environment has a strong influence on the colonies development during the foundation, as well as on the physiological status of the queens, and therefore the survival, development and success of the colony, it is a reflection of the queen efforts and of the environment conditions.
δ Subunit Susceptibility Variants E177A and R220H Associated with Complex Epilepsy Alter Channel Gating and Surface Expression of α4β2δ GABAA Receptors

Most human idiopathic generalized epilepsies (IGEs) are polygenic, but virtually nothing is known of the molecular basis for any of the complex epilepsies. Recently, two GABAA receptor δ subunit variants (E177A, R220H) were proposed as susceptibility alleles for generalized epilepsy with febrile seizures plus and juvenile myoclonic epilepsy. In human embryonic kidney 293T cells, recombinant hα1β2δ(E177A) and hα1β2δ(R220H) receptor currents were reduced, but the basis for the current reduction was not determined. We examined the mechanistic basis for the current reduction produced by these variants using the hα4β2δ receptor, an isoform more physiologically relevant and linked to epileptogenesis, by characterizing the effects of these variants on receptor cell surface expression and single-channel gating properties. Expression of variant α4β2δ(R220H) receptors resulted in a decrease in surface receptor proteins, and a smaller, but significant, reduction was observed for variant α4β2δ(E177A) receptors. For both variants, no significant alterations of surface expression were observed for mixed population of wild-type and variant receptors. The mean open durations of α4β2δ(E177A) and α4β2δ(R220H) receptor single-channel currents were both significantly decreased compared to wild-type receptors. These data suggest that both δ(E177A) and δ(R220H) variants may result in disinhibition in IGEs by similar cellular and molecular mechanisms, and in heterozygously affected individuals, a reduction in channel open duration of δ subunit-containing GABAA receptors may be the major contributor to the epilepsy phenotypes.