Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Advisory Directors

We propose a measure of the advising capacity of corporate boards that focuses on the distribution of committee assignments. We then study the characteristics and impact of directors dedicated to providing strategic counsel to top management. We find that advisory directors possess professional expertise and experience most valuable to the CEO in strategic decision making: entrepreneurial background, CEO-level experience, advanced degrees, and longer board tenures. We also find that these directors are associated with better strategic outcomes. Acquisition returns are higher at companies with advisory directors while time to deal completion is shorter. Similarly, advisory directors are associated with increased and better-quality corporate innovation and higher firm value. The value effect is stronger when advising needs are high and when the CEO is less powerful and thus more amenable to board influence on strategy. We do not find that advisory directors diminish the effectiveness of board monitoring.
Individual Consumption Response to Expanding Credit Access: Evidence from Online Cash Loan Platform

This paper exploits a detailed new dataset with comprehensive financial and consumption information to investigate the relationship between a cash-loan borrower’s access to credit and their respective consumption response. In particular, we test whether consumption among borrowers with a high level of addiction is more sensitive to a given change in credit. We use an exogenous credit supply shock to cash-loan borrowers and show that expanding credit access is positively associated with increased individual borrowers’ consumption, especially on gaming related consumption.
Distribution and dynamics of surface-dwelling spiders across a pasture-plantation ecotone

The influence of the interface between different vegetation types on the surface active spider fauna within a grass pasture-coniferous plantation ecotone was sampled by pitfall trapping. Species abundance, richness and diversity relative to pitfall traps were measured along a transect across the ecotone. Spider species were classified into six categories based on their habitat preference and the influence of the non-preferred habitat. The number of individuals trapped progressively decreased from the pasture across the interface to the plantation habitat. Species richness increased by some 72% and diversity by some 141% at the interface. These increases were attributable to both the overlap of pasture and plantation species invading the non-preferred habitat across the interface, and to the presence of species with a preference for the ecotone. The overlap of pasture and plantation species was found to be the larger part of the spider community at the interface, species classed as ecotone accounting for only 25% of the catch at the interface. Distinct spider species assemblages were found in the pasture and plantation habitats, and the interface species composition was more similar to the plantation than to the pasture. The variation in physical and biological characteristics which the interface induces, and their influence on the spider assemblages found, are discussed in relation to other ecotone studies.
Heterogenous Impacts of China's Economic and Development Zone Program

This paper evaluates the causal relationship between economic and development zones (EDZs) and the productivity of a large sample of incumbent firms in China. I take into account possible different selection mechanisms across two popular types of EDZs – economic and technological development zones (ETDZs) and high-tech development zones (HTDZs) – by relying on multiple treatment propensity scores matching techniques. Applying a difference-in-differences estimator to the matched sample, the main findings are as follows. First, compared to non-targeted firms, a new HTDZ increase productivity gains, on average, of up to 20.8% for incumbent firms in the five years after the zone was created, compared to 16.2% for incumbent firms in a new ETDZ. Second, compared to non-targeted firms, lower productivity firms benefit less compared to their higher productivity counterparts from the creation of a new ETDZ (or HTDZ), at least initially, but subsequently go on to exhibit larger learning effects in later years. Third, being located in an area with a higher local industrial relatedness initially increases the magnitude of productivity spillovers in both types of EDZs, due to better access to input-output linkages, labor pooling and knowledge spillovers. These findings suggest that the size of productivity spillovers for spatially targeted firms differ quite significantly depending on the strategic development and policy goals of the EDZ, as well as by the firm’s own characteristics and location.
Ultimatum Bargaining with Rational Inattention

A seller bargains with a rationally inattentive buyer (Sims 2003) over a good of random quality. After observing quality, the seller makes a take-it-or-leave-it offer. The buyer pays attention to the seller’s product and offer at a cost proportional to expected entropy reduction. Because attention is free off-path, multiple equilibria emerge, many of which are efficient. A trembling-hand-like refinement (Selten 1975) rules out efficiency, delivering complete disagreement when attention is expensive and a unique equilibrium with trade when attention is cheap. In this equilibrium, the buyer overpays for low-quality goods, underpays for high-quality goods, and earns a strictly positive payoff. (JEL C78, D82, D83, D86, L15)
Formulação de ração para frangos de corte de crescimento lento utilizando valores de energia metabolizável dos ingredientes determinada com linhagens de crescimento lento e rápido

We conducted this work aiming to evaluate the effect of using the metabolizable energy of food, determined by different strains (AMEn Cobb and AMEn Isa Label), on diet formulation for slow growing broilers on the performance, carcass characteristics, biometrical morphometry measures of digestive organs and energetic values of the experimental diets. A total of 72 male broiler chickens, Isa Label, were used and the experiment followed a randomized blocks design with two treatments (feedstuff energy), and six replicates of six birds each. The averages were compared by Tukey test at 5% probability. The treatments consisted in formulating diets using the energy of corn and soybean meal determined by Cobb and Isa Label strains. The experiment was conducted in the starter phase and the birds consumed the diets for 28 days. The diet formulated based on AMEn Cobb or Isa Label did not affect the performance, biometrical and morphometry measures of digestive organs and carcass characteristics. However, the diet formulated according to AMEn Isa Label resulted in better caloric conversion, bioeconomic energetic conversion and lower deposition of abdominal fat. AMEn of the diets similar to those calculated levels were determined with the formulation based on AMEn of corn and soybean meal determined for the line Isa Label (2.750 x 2.728 kcal/kg). Values of AMEn of corn and soybean meal determined with Isa Label strains not affect the performance of slow growing broilers, but resulted in lower abdominal fat according to the desires of consumers for alternative poultry.
Selective antiprotozoal activity of some Strychnos alkaloids

The in vitro activities of 20 Strychnos alkaloids have been determined against three species of protozoa and the active compounds were then assessed for in vitro cytotoxic activity using KB cells. 3′,4′‐dihydrosambarensine was the most active against Plasmodium falciparum, and was relatively nontoxic to KB cells (cytotoxic/antiprotozoal ratio, 1474). Usambarensine displayed the most selectivity against Entamoeba histolytica while 3′,4′‐dihydrousambarensine was the most selective compound against Giardia intestinalis although the cytotoxic/antiprotozoal ratios (20.4 and 6.6 respectively) were less favourable than the above.
Genetic heterogeneity and physiological variation among seasonally separated clones of Skeletonema marinoi (Bacillariophyceae) in the Gullmar Fjord, Sweden

Water samples and plankton net hauls were collected 24 times from Gullmar Fjord on the Swedish west coast from February 2004 to March 2005. The abundance of Skeletonema marinoi was estimated and individual clones isolated. Abundance was highest during the spring blooms in February to March. Subsequently, S. marinoi was detected in all samples but at lower abundances. At the end of September a second peak was recorded. All clones were pre-adapted to the same culturing conditions for more than 1.5 years. Large subunit (LSU) rDNA (D1–D3) was sequenced from 23 clones isolated from three different seasons, February, June and September. Six microsatellite loci were genotyped for 19 clones to estimate within-season genetic diversity. Three clones from each season were selected for physiological experiments at different salinity and temperature combinations and monitored for average number of divisions per day, maximum cell densities, biovolume, and total RNA concentration per cell. Differentiation of physiological response among the clones was partly attributed to the month of isolation. The February isolates had a significantly higher division rate and larger biovolumes, while the September clones attained higher cell densities. The June clones were isolated during the time of the year when the natural abundance is lowest, and exhibited the smallest genetic and physiological variation, which suggests that they were under strong selection pressure. The differential physiological responses and degree of genetic heterogeneity among seasonally separated clones could indicate that different populations succeed each other in the fjord.
Who Moves First? Price Discovery by Institutional and Retail Investors.

This paper uses a data set of 77 million trades from Finland during the period 2003 to 2009 to provide new market wide evidence on which of the two dominant investor categories, foreign institutional or domestic retail investors, contributes most to price discovery. We find foreign institutional investors in our data set dominate the price discovery process. Regression models are estimated to provide additional evidence as to which key determinants (including trading volume, effective spread, cross listing, capital expenditure and leverage) explain the informational contribution of foreign institutions to price discovery. Results from both buys and sells confirm that trading volume is the key factor that explains the information contribution of foreign institutions to price discovery. There is an inverse relation between trading volume and the information contribution to price discovery for buys, while volume is positively related to price discovery in sells. The outcomes of this paper contributes to our understanding of the systematic trading patterns and preferences of foreign institutional traders, and the role they play as counterparties to domestic retail traders during price discovery process in the intra-day space.
The effect of fat rich diet and alcohol on ion concentration in bile fluid in rats.

The metabolic alteration of fatty liver causes significant changes in the composition of bile fluid secreted by epithelial liver cells. These processes include both organic molecular and inorganic ion content changes in bile juice as well. In this work ion concentration differences of bile fluid in experimental hyperlipidemic rats compared to normal ones were monitored. Fatty liver in young male Wistar albino rats was induced by 2% cholesterol, 20% sunflower oil and 0.5% cholic acid added to the normal food and 3% alcoholic water was administered to rats for 9 days. The development of hyperlipidemy was detected by measuring serum parameters and fatty liver was proved by morphological investigations. The ion concentrations of bile fluid samples were determined by ICP-OES (inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry). The bile fluid samples were digested with a mixture of HNO3 and H2 O2 . The results show that the concentration of calcium and phosphorus in bile juice increased significantly in .
The Pathogenesis of Alphaviruses

Alphaviruses are enveloped single-stranded positive sense RNA viruses of the family Togaviridae. The genus alphavirus contains nine viruses, which are of medical, theoretical, or economic importance, and which will be considered. Sindbis virus (SINV) and Semliki Forest (SFV), although of some medical importance, have largely been studied as models of viral pathogenicity. In mice, SINV and SFV infect neurons in the central nervous system and virulent strains induce lethal encephalitis, whereas avirulent strains of SFV induce demyelination. SFV infects the developing foetus and can be teratogenic. Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis virus, Eastern Equine Encephalitis virus, and Western Equine Encephalitis virus can induce encephalitis in horses and humans. They are prevalent in the Americas and are mosquito transmitted. Ross River virus, Chikungunya virus (CHIKV), and O’nyong-nyong virus (ONNV) are prevalent in Australasia, Africa and Asia, and Africa, respectively. ONNV virus is transmitted by Anopheles mosquitoes, while the other alphaviruses are transmitted by culicine mosquitoes. CHIKV has undergone adaptation to a new mosquito host which has increased its host range beyond Africa. Salmonid alphavirus is of economic importance in the farmed salmon and trout industry. It is postulated that future advances in research on alphavirus pathogenicity will come in the field of innate immunity.
Has the Split-Share Reform Influenced Corporate Behaviour? Chinese Firms’ Fixed Capital Investment 2002–2016

In 2005, China took an important step in its privatisation process by initiating the Split Share Reform, whereby state-owned shares became tradeable. As a consequence, there was a significant rise in private holdings of shares of listed companies which previously had high state ownership. This paper considers the impact of this change, by examining how the SSR impacted on firms’ capital investment. Using a value-maximising approach, we empirically model Chinese firms’ fixed capital investment recognising that this was a period of global instability caused by the Global Financial Crisis. Controlling for its effects, we are able to consider if and how the reform influenced firms’ behaviour.
Application of whole effluent toxicity test procedures to ambient water quality assessment

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) protocols for conducting freshwater toxicity tests have been used in California, USA, to evaluate ambient water quality since 1986. Testing evolved from conducting broad watershed surveys for assessing the distribution of toxicity to conducting detailed studies for identifying chemical causes and sources. Using Cerio‐daphnia dubia tests, pulses of diazinon toxicity have been detected over a 10‐year period throughout California's Central Valley in waters receiving drainage from dormant orchards. In the 1980s, toxicity to C. dubia, caused by methyl parathion and carbofuran in drainage from rice fields, was detected in the Sacramento River. Rice drainage also was toxic to two important local species, larval striped bass and Neomysis. Throughout the state, diazinon and chlorpyrifos toxicity to C. dubia occurs year‐round in waters receiving drainage from urban areas. Several years of monitoring the Alamo River in Imperial County with C. dubia demonstrated a recurring seasonal toxicity pattern. Toxicity during a 3‐month autumn period was caused by chlorpyrifos and diazinon and during a 2‐month spring period by diazinon and carbofuran. Although most toxicity has been detected with C. dubia and linked to insecticides, other examples of toxicity have been identified. Toxicity to Selenastrum has been linked to copper and zinc from mines and to the herbicide diuron in waters receiving agricultural or urban runoff. Ammonia‐caused toxicity, originating from dairies and wastewater treatment plants, to fathead minnows has also been identified. Taken together, the results reveal that the three whole effluent toxicity (WET) testing procedures, in association with toxicity identification evaluations (TIEs) and chemical analyses, can be effective for the identification of an array of toxicants originating from several land use practices. In several cases, alternative land use practices or management strategies have resulted in improved water quality as demonstrated by continued toxicity testing.
Competition versus facilitation: conspecific effects on pollinator visitation and seed set in the iris Lapeirousia oreogena

Ecological interactions between conspecific plants can range from facilitative to competitive depending on the spacing and abundance of individuals. Competitive interactions are expected when plants flower en-masse and availability of pollinators is limited. We tested this prediction using Lapeirousia oreogena, a mass-flowering South African iris that is pollinated by a single species of long-proboscid fly. Controlled hand-pollination experiments showed that L. oreogena is self-compatible, but reliant on pollinator visits for seed set. Seed production per flower showed a significant negative relationship with patch size (and the correlated measure of number of individuals per patch), but was not affected by flower density or distance to neighbouring patches. There was a tendency for fly abundance to increase with patch size, but the rate of visits to individual flowers by flies was not affected by patch size. Seed set of hand-pollinated flowers did not differ for plants in and out of dense patches, indicating that the large differences in seed set among patches were likely to reflect pollinator visits, rather than the genetic or physiological capacity of plants to produce seeds. The reduced fecundity of L. oreogena in large patches with a greater numbers of flowers is consistent with the idea that plants with highly specialized pollination systems can experience intra-specific competition for pollination.
Empirical Comparisons on the Effects of the US and the Japan Quantitative Easing Policies on the Asian Exchange Rates

This paper considers the long memory volatility property in the daily return data of six major Asian exchange rates of KRW, SGD and INR in terms of USD and JPY. The daily returns generally are found to exhibit the widespread long memory volatility property and the FIGARCH model appears to be quite appropriate to represent the daily Asian returns. Then, this paper empirically compares the effects of the QE policies by the Fed and the BOJ on the Asian exchange returns using the ARMA‐FIGARCH model with the lagged dummy variables to account for the effects of the QE policies on the mean and the volatility process of the Asian returns. The empirical results shows the direct negative impacts of the QE policies by the Fed and the BOJ on the mean process of the KRW and the SGD exchange returns except the INR returns indicating the direct appreciation of the KRW and the SGD currencies against the USD and JPY. But, there are no direct effects of the QE policies on the volatility process of the Asian exchange returns. These results can help policymakers in the Asian central banks to make them better understand the international implications and the challenges implied by such QE policies.
Soil seed bank and species turnover in a limestone grassland

The vegetation and soil seed bank in a limestone grassland in southern Sweden were studied in permanent 1-m2 subplots which had been either grazed or not grazed for 17 yr. Of the 92 species recorded, 18 were present only in the seed bank, 28 were more frequent and 24 were less frequent in the seed bank than in the vegetation and 22 were not detected in the seed bank. Among the species present in the seed bank, therophytes were over-represented. Species turnover in the vegetation was estimated from presence/absence data collected in 1980, 1986 and 1990. Turnover was high, but there were no differences between grazed and ungrazed subplots. The turnover for individual species was also high in many cases. There was no clear relationship between the turnover of a species and its presence in the persistent seed bank.
Persuasion Bias in Science: An Experiment on Strategic Sample Selection

We experimentally test a game theoretical model of researcher-evaluator interaction à la Di Tillio, Ottaviani, and Sørensen (2017a). Researcher may strategically manipulate sample selection using his private information in order to achieve favourable research outcomes and thereby obtain approval from Evaluator. Our experimental results confirm the theoretical predictions for Researcher's behaviour but find significant deviations from them about Evaluator's behaviour. However, comparative statics are mostly consistent with the theoretical predictions. In the welfare analysis, we find that Researcher always benefits from the possibility of manipulation, in contrast to the theoretical prediction that he sometimes is hurt by it. Consistent with theoretical predictions, Evaluator benefits from the possibility of Researcher's manipulation when she leans towards approval or is approximately neutral but is hurt by that possibility when she leans against approval.
An Approach Based on Knowledge Management for the Use of ICTs in Mexican SMEs

In the business environment, new and ever-changing necessities emerge. This becomes a challenge for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) which aim to survive in an increasingly competitive market that is strongly influenced by Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs). Although Mexican SMEs show an appropriate level of adoption of ICTs, it has been found that there is a low level of use of these technologies in business processes. On the other hand, considering this scenario, it becomes relevant to propose an innovative approach where the adoption of ICTs is treated as a dynamic and interactive process directly linked to Knowledge Management (KM), which also allows the development of competencies and skills so that Mexican SMEs are able to face new knowledge environments. The objective of this paper is to make a literary review that reveals the low level of use of ICTs in SMEs, particularly in the Mexican environment, with the aim of proposing a novel approach where enterprises consider KM in the implementation of ICTs.
Copper‐dependent inhibition of cytochrome c oxidase by Aβ1−42 requires reduced methionine at residue 35 of the Aβ peptide

By altering key amino acid residues of the Alzheimer's disease‐associated amyloid‐β peptide, we investigated the mechanism through which amyloid‐β inhibits cytochrome c oxidase (EC 1.9.3.1). Native amyloid‐β inhibited cytochrome oxidase by up to 65%, and the level of inhibition was determined by the period of amyloid‐β ageing before the cytochrome oxidase assay. Substituting tyrosine‐10 with alanine did not affect maximal enzyme inhibition, but the altered peptide required a longer period of ageing. By contrast, oxidizing the sulfur of methionine‐35 to a sulfoxide, or substituting methionine‐35 with valine, completely abrogated the peptide's inhibitory potential towards cytochrome oxidase. Sodium dodecyl sulfate–polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analysis revealed that the loss of inhibitory potential towards cytochrome oxidase with the methionine‐35‐altered peptides did not correlate with a substantially different distribution of amyloid‐β oligomeric species. Although the amyloid‐β‐mediated inhibition of cytochrome oxidase was completely dependent on the presence of divalent Cu2+, it was not supported by monovalent Cu+, and experiments with catalase and H2O2 indicated that the mechanism of cytochrome oxidase inhibition does not involve amyloid‐β‐mediated H2O2 production. We propose that amyloid‐β‐mediated inhibition of cytochrome oxidase is dependent on the peptide's capacity to bind, then reduce Cu2+, and that it may involve the formation of a redox active amyloid‐β‐methionine radical.