Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Determinants of Postmolt Size in the American Lobster (Homarus americanus). I. D13 is the Critical Stage

Juvenile American lobster (Homarus americanus) were subjected to induced limb autotomy, eyestalk ablation, and manipulation of container space at different molt stages to test the hypothesis that postmolt size is predetermined at the time of deposition of the epicuticle. Molt increments in autotomized animals that regenerated limbs were reduced by 30–40%. Molt increments were reduced by only 5–10% in autotomized animals that did not regenerate limbs. The critical stage for limb regeneration is D13. Depending on the time of limb autotomy, molt intervals were decreased (stages B–C), increased (stages D11 and D12), or not affected (stages D0, D13, D2, and D3). Eyestalk ablation shortened the molt interval; the change in molt interval was less when ablation was performed near the end of the current molt cycle. Eyestalk-ablated lobsters had larger molt increments compared with intact controls, especially in the chelipeds. This growth-promoting effect disappeared if ablation was conducted at or after D13. Trans.
Is the Coach Paid Too Much? Coaching Salaries and the NCAA Cartel

Recently a great deal of controversy has been generated from the salaries earned by head football coaches in the NCAA. On one level this seems odd since many figures in the world of sports and entertainment earn exceptionally high salaries. However, one important difference in the case of NCAA football is that the players themselves do not get paid. We develop a model which shows that a cartel agreement to not pay the players raises the coach's salary if some players choose where to play based on the identity of the coach. For some parameters, the gain in the coach's salary exceeds the loss in salary experienced by the player. On average, the agreement not to pay the players improves competitive balance.
The genera Dirina and Roccellina (Roccellaceae)

In the present monograph of the coastal lichens, generally referred to as Dirina (crustose), Lobodirina (placoid), and Roccellina (suffruticose), two genera comprising 38 taxa are recognized: Dirina Fr. (7 species, 2 subspecies, and 4 forms) and Roccellina Darbish. (23 species and 2 forms). One Chiodecton and one Enterographa species are transferred to Dirina. Lobodirina Follm. is included in Roccellina together with seven species formerly placed in Dirina, one in Schismatomma, and one in Dirinastrum. The relationships between the two genera and the relation to other genera in Roccellaceae are discussed. Eleven species, and four forms are new: Dirina approximata Zahlbr. ssp. hioramii (B. de Lesd.) Tehler f. sorediala Tehler, D. catalinariae Hasse f. sorediala Tehler, D. insulana (C. Tav.) Tehler f. sorediala Tehler, Roccellina badia Tehler, R. cerebriformis (Mont.) Tehler f. sorediala Tehler, R. chalybea Tehler, R. conformis Tehler, R. exspectata Tehler, R. flavida Tehler, R. inaequabilis Tehler, R. nigricans Tehler, R. nigrocincta Tehler, R. obscura Tehler, R. suffruticosa Tehler, R. terrestris Tehler. Sixteen new combinations are proposed: D. approximata Zahlbr. ssp. africana (Fee) Tehler, D. approximata Zahlbr. ssp. hioramii (B. de Lesd.) Tehler, Dirina cretacea (Zahlbr.) Tehler, D. insulana (C. Tav.) Tehler, D. massiliensis Durteu et Mont. f. sorediala (Mull. Arg.) Tehler, Roccellina accedens (Nyl.) Tehler, R. capensis (Nyl. ex Stiz.) Tehler, R. cerebriformis (Mont.) Tehler, R. chilena (Dodge) Tehler, R. cinerea (Mull. Arg.) Tehler, R. cinerea (Mull. Arg.) Tehler f. sorediosa (Mull. Arg.) Tehler, R. falklandica (Zahlbr.) Tehler, R. limitata (Nyl.) Tehler, R. lutosa (Zahlbr.) Tehler, R. mahuiana (Follm.) Tehler, R. niponica (Nyl.) Tehler. All Dirina and 18 Roccelina species have been collected and studied in the field. Gross morphology and chemistry arediscussed. Statistical measurements of spore size are made for all species and subspecies. A cladistic relationship of the species of both genera, and a reduced area cladogram for Roccellina are proposed. Dirina is mainly restricted to the Northern Hemisphere and Roccellina, except for four species, is found in the Southern Hemisphere. The species are mainly bound to mediterranean, arid or subtropical climates.
Canadian Stock Splits and Financial Analyst Forecasts: Testing Signaling and Attention Effects

This paper analyses Canadian market reaction to stock splits over the period 1985-2000. It then attempts to explain this reaction by two hypotheses, namely signaling and attention hypotheses. Results indicate that the Canadian market reacts positively to stock split announcements. Positive average abnormal returns of 1.76% and 1.14% are reported for the announcement date and the following day, respectively. This market reaction is partly explained by signaling hypothesis. An earning prediction error of 115.05% after the announcement date is observed, giving support to this hypothesis. However, the authors are unable to validate the attention hypothesis in Canadian markets. The average revision rate of earnings per share by financial analysts is 3.49%, but is not significant.
In vivo Genotoxicity Studies of Cefotaxime

Cefotaxime is a semisynthetic broad-spectrum bactericidal antibiotic derived from cephalosporin C. The aim of this work is to evaluate the genotoxic effect induced by intraperitoneal (i.p.) administration of cefotaxime at different doses (260, 520 and 1040 mg/kg b.wt.). The induction of sister chromatid exchanges “SCE's” in mouse bone marrow cells, chromosomal aberrations in mouse primary spermatocytes after repeated treatment (4, 7 and 10 d), and morphological sperm abnormalities were determined. The 3 tested doses of cefotaxime induced significant increase in the frequency of sister chromatid exchanges with dose-dependent relationship. A significant increase in the percentage of structural and numerical chromosomal aberrations in mouse spermatocytes was observed after treatment with the doses 520 and 1040 mg/kg b.wt. Cefotaxime also induced different types of head and tail sperm abnormalities. The results showed that cefotaxime has clastogenic and aneugenic effect.
University Rankings Game and Its Relation to GDP per Capita and GDP Growth

In this study, the term ‘World-Class Universities per capita’ or ‘WCUs per capita’ is created and defined as the number of world-class universities available in a country divided by its population. To date, it is known that global university rankings are solely the numerical measures of world-class universities. ARWU is chosen as the benchmark of wold-class universities (WCUs) among the university ranking methodologies available based on the assumption that universities listed under Top 500 are WCUs. Simple regression analysis is carried out to determine the correlation between WCUs per capita and GDP per capita as well as GDP growth. The results show that WCUs per capita is strongly correlated to the nation’s GDP per capita. However, the WCUs per capita has an insignificant effect on GDP growth. There is a pronounced increase in significance level when the ranking lists are expanded from the Top 100 to Top 500. This suggests that it is crucial for a nation to increase the number of WCUs (listed in the Top 500) in order to attain a higher GDP per capita, rather than having a few elite WCUs in the Top 100. In addition, ‘freedom from corruption’ is the most significant institutional factor when institutional factors are added into the regression model, followed by ‘property rights’, ‘business freedom’ and ‘investment freedom’.
Finance - Growth Nexus: Evidence from Turkey

This paper examines the causal relationship between financial development and economic growth in Turkey for the period 1986:1-2006:4 using dynamic time series models. The results of the cointegration analysis provide evidence of no long-run relationship between financial development and economic growth. Therefore, the empirical investigation is carried out in a vector autoregression (VAR) framework to analyze the short run effect of the financial intermediary development on economic growth. The results show a one-way causal relationship running from the financial development to the economic growth in Turkey.
Traffic Safety and Vehicle Choice: Quantifying the Effects of the 'Arms Race' on American Roads

The increasing market share of light trucks in the U.S. in recent years has been characterized as an “arms race” where individual purchase of light trucks for better self-protection in collisions nevertheless leads to worse traffic safety for the society. This paper investigates the interrelation between traffic safety and vehicle choice by quantifying the effects of the arms race on vehicle demand, producer performance, and traffic safety. The empirical analysis shows that the accident externality of a light truck amounts to $2,444 in 2006 dollars during vehicle lifetime. Counterfactual simulations suggest that about 12% of new light trucks sold in 2006 and 204 traffic fatalities could be attributed to the arms race.
Effects of herbivore-induced rice volatiles on the host selection behavior of brown planthopper, Nilaparvata lugens

It has been suggested that herbivore would react to volatiles produced by herbivore infested plant due to potential change, either positive or negative, in the acceptability of the host plant. This hypothesis was tested for the brown planthopper (BPH) in the laboratory. Sixteen components of the headspace volatiles from rice seedlings with different treatments were collected with SPME and Tenax-TA trap and analyzed with GC and GC-MS. Significant differences in volatile emissions were observed for rice plants with different treatments. Undamaged control plants, mechanically damaged plants and the plants infested by BPH for 1 or 2 d emitted much lower amounts of volatiles compared to the plants infested by BPH for 3 or 5 d. The plants infested by BPH for 3 or 5 d emitted several volatiles that were not detected in undamaged control plants, mechanically damaged plants or the plants infested by BPH for 1 or 2 d. Spodoptera litura infested plants released much higher amounts of volatiles than those in all other treatments, and the contents of several green leaf volatiles, methyl salicylate and terpenoids increased dramatically. In dual-choice flight tunnel experiments, adult BPH females showed no significant preference between the untreated healthy plants and mechanically damaged plants or the plants infested by BPH adult females. However, rice plants damaged by S. litura had a clearly repellent effects on BPH adult females compared to healthy undamaged plants, mechanically damaged plants or the plants infested by BPH.
Dynamic Marketing Resource Allocation for Long-Term Profitability: A Pharmaceutical Application

The ability to identify customers' dynamics and its drivers present an opportunity for firms to optimize their marketing resource allocation and increase long-run profitability. Accordingly, we address the following managerial questions in this research: (1) how can firms dynamically segment their customer base? (2) what are the short- and long-term effects of marketing activities? and (3) how should firms allocate and target their marketing resources to maximize long-term profitability? To address these questions, we propose a non-homogeneous hidden Markov model that captures the dynamics in customer behavior and the enduring effect of marketing actions. To optimally allocate marketing activities, we formulate a dynamic programming approach which takes into account the evolution of customers' behavior. We apply the model in the context of pharmaceutical marketing. We identify three prescription-behavior states, a high degree of physicians' dynamics, and substantial long-term effects for detailing and sampling. We find that detailing is most effective as an acquisition tool, whereas sampling is most effective as a retention tool. Our dynamic marketing allocation approach suggests that the firm could increase its pro¿ts substantially, while decreasing its marketing efforts. Our integrative framework provides important implications for dynamically managing customers and maximizing long-run profitability.
An Application of the Two-Stage Bivariate Probit-Tobit Model to Corporate Financing Decisions

Most of the previous studies on the firms’ debt-equity choice utilize the standard single equation Probit (or logit) model as if firms face a single dichotomous decision to issue debt or equity, but not both. In this study, we examine the factors affecting the choice between internal and external funding and between debt and equity as well as the size of issues using a two stage Bivariate Probit-Tobit model. Our results indicate that the Bivariate-Probit estimation is more efficient than that of two independent Probit equations. An examination of factors that affect the choice of financing form and the size of issue support the predictions of trade-off theory. The pecking order’s prediction that, if external funding is needed, firms issue debt first and then equity finds no support in this study as firms with higher information asymmetry have propensity to issue equity rather than debt. While information asymmetry affects the choice between debt and equity, we find no evidence that it influences the size of issue.
Effects of benomyl, clipping, and competition on growth of prereproductive Lotus corniculatus

Vesicular–arbuscular mycorrhizae, defoliation, and competition can influence survival, growth, and fecundity of plants, but the combined effects of these factors are not well known. I examined how combinations of these factors influence biomass allocation and investment in root nodules by prereproductive Lotus corniculatus and whether the effects were ephemeral. Soil with vesicular–arbuscular mycorrhizal (VAM) fungi was treated with the fungicide benomyl or water and added to trays containing two L. corniculatus or one L. corniculatus and one Brassica napus (a nonmycotrophic species). Leaves of target L. corniculatus were undamaged or clipped five times over 40 days. Plants were harvested 5, 18, or 36 days after last clipping. Interspecific competition was the dominant effect at all harvests: B. napus greatly depressed growth of its neighbor. Benomyl depressed VAM colonization only in the first harvest, and growth reduction associated with depressed colonization diminished over time. Clipping reduced grow.
The Risk Factors Associated with Investing in an Emerging Equity Market During the EU Membership Process

This paper identifies the risks associated with investing in the Turkish stock market. We find that Turkish firms are more volatile than firms in countries that have recently joined the EU (our control group) and that the excess volatility is significantly associated with higher financial and economic risks rather than fundamentals. Additionally, firmsâ€™ fundamentals are as important as country risk factors in explaining stock risk premiums for the control group, while the combined effect of country risk scores has a greater impact on risk premiums than firmsâ€™ fundamentals alone for Turkish firms. Also, while Turkish stocks are sensitive to all country risk factors â€” economic conditions, international openness, investment profile, conflicts, and social tensions â€” stocks of the control group are mostly affected by only two factors, namely social tensions and economic conditions. Finally, some risks have become less relevant as a result of the changes in legal, political, and economic policies that occurred from 1999 to 2004 (the candidacy period for EU membership). Overall, Turkey has been quite successful at pursuing reforms since it began its candidacy for the EU. It has liberalized its political system and relaxed restrictions on freedom. It has also reduced hyperinflation, strengthened its currency, lowered interest rates, and provided more stable growth in GDP. However, political stability and financial and economic development appear to be issues for Turkey in its quest to become an EU member.
Understanding Entrepreneurship: A Research and Policy Report

Much is simultaneously known and not known about the U.S. entrepreneurial economy. This report, on theories, applications and policies, reflects the thoughts of some of the leading researchers in the field of entrepreneurship. Within the theory section, the role of entrepreneurship in economic prosperity is highlighted with an overview of research on three types of "economic experiments. " Also included are an interview with William Baumol and an essay on the role of economic institutions in an economy's operating system. Chapters addressing the application of entrepreneurship research include a short note on young and small businesses, using data from the Integrated Longitudinal Business Database (ILBD). A look at the research of Howard Aldrich sheds light on the importance of teams in entrepreneurial ventures. An interview with Marie Thursby addresses the relationship between universities and entrepreneurship. Also included are research results on how government and industry shape the research interests of academic scientists, and a discussion of the advancement of research in minority and women's entrepreneurship. Finally, the section on policies addresses the globalization of venture finance, presents an interview with Susan Gates on the effects of regulations on entrepreneurship, and provides an essay on the relationship between disadvantaged communities and entrepreneurship.
Leadership Cycles

We study a quality-ladder model of endogenous growth that produces stochastic leadership cycles. Over a cycle, industry leaders can innovate several successive times in the same industry, gradually increasing the magnitude of their technological lead before being replaced by a new entrant. Initially, new leaders are eager to enlarge their lead and do much of the research, but if they innovate repeatedly, their propensity to invest in R&D decreases. Eventually they stop doing research altogether, and as they are overtaken a new cycle starts. The model generates a skewed firm size distribution and a deviation from Gibrat's law that accord with the empirical evidence. We also consider various policy measures, showing that in some cases policy should favour R&D by incumbents, not outsiders, and that stronger patent protection may reduce innovation and growth.
Short communication. Serine: glyoxylate aminotransferase exerts no control on photosynthesis.

A barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) mutant deficient in serine:glyoxylate aminotransferase (SGAT) was crossed with wild-type plants to generate heterozygous mutants. Plants of the F2 generation with reduced SGAT activities (45-60% of wild-type activities) contained proportionally less SGAT protein. Reduced SGAT activities resulted in the accumulation of serine and, to a smaller extent, of glycine, indicating that the flux through the photorespiratory pathway was restricted. Rates of photosynthesis were, however, not affected by the reduction in SGAT activity.
The oxidative stability of biodiesel: Effects of FAME composition and antioxidant

Summary A significant problem associated with the commercial acceptance of biodiesel is poor oxidative stability. This study investigated the effectiveness of individual and binary antioxidants to improve the oxidative stability of different types of biodiesel and distilled biodiesel. Results indicate that different types of biodiesel have different levels of oxidative stability, and that natural antioxidants and FAME composition play significant roles in determining oxidative stability. Synthetic antioxidants can enhance the oxidative stability of different types of biodiesel, and antioxidant activity increases as a function of its concentration. However, the effective activity level of antioxidant is dependent on biodiesel feedstock. Binary antioxidant formulations (TBHQ and PY) have a synergistic effect on oxidative stability of biodiesel. After long-term storage at room temperature, the oxidative stability of untreated SBO-based biodiesel significantly decreases as a function of time, while the addition of the antioxidant TBHQ can improve and maintain oxidative stability of biodiesel over an 18-month period. However, the effectiveness of PY significantly decreases even after 2-months.
FLSA Working Hours Reform: Worker Well-Being Effects in an Economic Framework

A model is developed to predict the effects of recently proposed amendments to the FLSA workweek and overtime provisions. It contrasts allowing compensatory time for overtime pay for private non-exempt employees to “rights to request” reduced hours. It finds that hours demanded are likely to rise for the workers who request comp time, undermining its intention of family-friendliness and alleviating overemployment — unless it were accompanied by offsetting policies that prevent the denied use or forced use of comp time and resurrect some monetary deterrent effect. A unique survey shows that the preference for comp time is far more prevalent among exempts, thus, worker welfare is likely better served if comp time in lieu were incorporated into the right to request.
Flip-Flopping: Ideological Adjustment Costs in the United States Senate

Models of electoral competition in which candidates can change position at no cost predict the convergence of platforms in a two-candidate election. Such convergence is at odds with empirical observation. In this paper, I undertake a study of candidate positioning in the United States Senate and determine the extent to which electoral costs associated with changing position explain the ideological positions taken by Senators. Using over 50 years of roll call voting data, I use a simulated method of moments approach to estimate a dynamic model of candidate positioning for U.S. Senators. The findings support a model in which Senators face convex costs to changing position, with the best fitting model being one with linear costs of adjustment. The model thus predicts severe punishments for "flip-flopping" Senators (those who make large changes in position). As a result of the significant costs associated with adjusting position, the empirical validity of the Median Voter Theorem (which depends upon candidates being able to change position at no cost) is called into question.