bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Preparation and Characterization of In Situ Nanocomposites of Graphene Nanosheets/Polyurethane
Authors: Lv Guang Lei , Li Yuan Yuan , Fei Chen , Shan Zhi Hao , Gan Jing , Zhao Ming
Published: July 2019

Graphene nanosheets/polyurethane (GNS/PU) was prepared in situ by polymerization technique for the manufacture of PU safety shoes soles. The graphene nanosheets/polyurethane composites were characterized for their mechanical properties, thermal conductivity and abrasion resistance, and comparison is made with those of the neat polyurethane. The microstructural properties of GNS/PU were characterized by SEM. The results show that with the increase of the amount of graphene within the range of weight-percentages analyzed, the tensile strength of the composites gradually increases. The tensile strength of the GNS/PU composites increased to 64.14 MPa with 2 wt% GNS, compared with 55.1 MPa for neat PU. When the graphene sheets reached 2 wt%, the abrasion volume reached 71 mm3. Compared with the pure PU, the wear performance of GNS/PU composites was significantly improved.
Sense of Coherence and Coping Resources of Working Nurses at Hospital
Authors: Park Chai Soon , Suh Im Sun , Oh Jeong Ah , Choi Euy Soon
Published: July 2019

This study was designed to identify the relationship between the level of sense of coherence(SOC) and coping resources of nurses working in hospital. The subjects of this study were 248 nurses working at C University hospital in Seoul. The data was collected during the period from July 1. to July 14. 2001. The insruments for this study were SOC scale by Antonovsky(1987) and Coping Resources Inventory by author. The analysis of data was done by simple statistics, ANOVA and Pearson correlation coefficient with SAS program. The results of this study were as follows: 1. Total mean SOC was 132.1/203.0 with a range 96.0 to 171.0. The mean score of this item was arranged according to three areas. The meaningfulness was 4.9, managability was 4.7, and comprehensibility was 4.2.2. Total mean coping resources was 144.5/225.0 with a range 93.0 to 190.0. The highest mean score of item according to the area was social support 4.0 and the lowest mean score was self care coping 2.7.3. A significant statistical difference between age, religion, spending money and SOC was found.4. Significant statistical difference between age, educational level, spending money, working period and coping resources were found.5. Coping resources by the level of SOC was high in the highest group of SOC(F=6.19, p=0.00). With respect to the area of coping resources, higher group of SOC was using much coping resources generally except area of leisure.6. SOC was positively related to age(r=0.17), working periods(r=0.16), each SOC area, coping resources and all area of them except leisure.7. The coping resources were positively related to age(r=0.21), working periods(r=0.21), SOC (r=0.49), each coping resources area, and each SOC area.In conclusion, we confirmed that the level of SOC of the subjects was low relatively and the high level of sense of coherence was related to the high score of coping resources. Therefore, it could also contribute to select suitable nurses in their fields. In the future, it's necessary to develop strategies improving SOC.
Application of Evaluation Criteria for Web sites to Sexuality Education
Authors: Kang Nammi , Hyun Taisun , Lee Pilryang , Kim Jin
Published: July 2019

Web sites on the internet are excellent resources for the younger generation to gain information related to sexuality education. The potential benefits of the information of sexuality education on web sites are obvious. But the information of sexuality education on web sites could also result in potentially negative effects. Yet the quality of the information of sexuality education on web sites is variable and difficult to assess. There is no rating criteria for quality assessment of the information on web sites. The rating criteria for quality assessment of information of sexuality education were investigated and reviewed. Among the criteria, best 15 items to evaluate the information of sexuality education on web sites were selected and identified in this study. 15 items were categorized to reliability (3 items), content (6 items), goal (2 items), design & technology (4 items). This 15-items questionnaires is considered as commonly implementable criteria for the information of sexuality education on web sites in Korean. 20 web sites related to sexualtiy education were evaluated and the results were discussed.
Marital Satisfaction among Married Women in Korea
Authors: Park Eunok
Published: July 2019

The purposes of this study are to investigate marital satisfaction according to demographic characteristic, division of household labor, and awareness of gender discrimination, and to explore influences of demographic and other variables on marital satisfaction. Social statistics survey data which collected in 1998 by ministry of statistics were used for secondary analysis of this study. Marital satisfaction was measured by questionnaire which was consisted in 7 items, including satisfaction with general family life, relationship with their own parent and parent-in-law, relationship with brothers and sisters, relationship with their children, and economic living status. These are measured by 5-point Likert scale. Independent variables are age, education, employment status, having their own house or not, No. of children under school age, parents living or not, perception of sexual discrimination, and division of household labor. The findings of this study show that there are significant differences of marital satisfaction by all independents variables, and all independent variables except employment have significant influences on marital satisfaction. People who are younger, received higher education, have their own house, have more children under schoolage and whose parent are living in the world, show higher marital satisfaction. The more husbands participate to household labor, the better marital satisfaction. In case of perception of sexual discrimination, main effect is not significant, but interaction effect with age is significant. Interaction effect between age and education is also significant. 32.52% of the variance in marital satisfaction were accounted for by these variables.
A Study on the Home Health Care Needs of Postpartum Women
Authors: Yoo Youn Ja
Published: July 2019

This study was carried out to understand the home health care needs of postpartum women during the postpartum period. The goal of this study was to obtain data needed to develope postpartum home health care programs and to improve the nursing quality for postpartum women. A convenient sample of 105 healthy women who were discharged after delivery at a maternity hospital in Ulsan, Korea were studied from January 25 to April 15, 2001. Data collection was done with a structured questionnaire (maternal concerns questionnaire) by mailing. Data was collected from 1 to 4 weeks after delivery.The Results of this study were as follows: 1. The mean score of home health care need of postpartum women was 2.51. The degree of nursing need according to the category of home health care needs was 'concerns about the infant (2.91 +/- .68)', 'maternal physical and emotional concerns (2.62 +/- .52)', 'concerns related to the husband (2.45+/-73)', 'concerns related to the family (2.16+/-.64)', 'concerns related to the community (2.03+/-.60)' in rank. Among the items, 'recognizing illness in the newborn (3.36+/-.83)', 'normal growth and development (3.33+/-.92)' were high.2. Among items of concerns about infant (2.91+/-.68), 'recognizing illness in the newborn (3.36+/-.83)', 'normal growth and development (3.33+/-.52)' showed high nursing needs.3. Among items of maternal physical and emotional concerns (2.62+/-.52), 'being a good mother (3.31=/-.86)', 'return of their figures to normal (3.04+/-1.05) showed high nursing needs.4. Among items of concerns about husband (2.45+/-.73), 'husband being a good father (2.84+/-1.00) shows high nursing needs.5. Among items of concerns related to the community (2.03+/-.60), 'getting to health care facilities (2.69+/-.90) shows high nursing needs.6. On considering the relationship between the postpartum women s home health care needs and their general characteristics, parity (t=2.436, p=.017) and delivery type (t=2.074, p=.041) were statistically significant.
Women and Childrens Health Care in Korea: Status and Strategies
Authors: Lee Kyung Hye
Published: July 2019

No abstract available.
A macroeconomic model for South Africa: A non-linear econometric modelling approach
Authors: Pretorius Marinda , Botha Ilse
Published: July 2019

Econometric models are often made up of assumptions that never truly match reality. One of the most challenged requirements is that the coefficients of econometric models remain constant over time, in the sense that it is assumed that the future will be similar to the past. If the assumption of constant coefficients is not satisfied, any conclusions reached from normal (constant coefficient) models will be biased. Another, very closely related, contested assumption is that the functional form (usually linear) of a model remains unchanged over time. The theory of linearity has long been the centre of all econometric model-building. According to Teräsvirta (1994), if linear estimates were not successful in practice, they would have been forsaken long ago, and this has certainly not been the case. Quite the opposite has been experienced: some very influential ideas based on the linear relationships between variables, like cointegration analysis, have been established. Nonetheless, there are definite situations in which linear models are unable to grasp the underlying economic theory of the data accurately. This article addresses the problem of non-linearity by applying smooth transition autoregressive (STAR) specifications to an existing simultaneous macroeconomic model of the South African economy. The results support the view that non-linear models provide better forecasts than linear specifications of equations.
The engagement decision in medium audit practice in South Africa
Authors: Steyn Dirk A. , Voogt Thea L. , Marx Ben
Published: July 2019

The decision to accept an appointment as registered external auditor to an audit client (the engagement decision) has in recent years been subject to an increased level of professional care and consideration, mainly as a result of previous experiences of engagement decisions that have led to audit practitioners suffering significant financial losses and litigation exposure, as well as significant amendments to statutory regulation and new International Standards on Auditing. The engagement decision is affected by a number of factors or motivational drivers. The purpose of this article is to discuss some of these factors related to the audit practitioner’s business that may be grouped together under the headings of commercial, professional and organisational considerations. The article further reports on the extent to which auditors in medium audit practice in South Africa considers the three groups of considerations during the engagement decision, based on questionnaire results. Lastly, the article comments on the need for a balanced approach to the three groups of considerations to manage the auditor’s business risk associated with the engagement decision.
Monetary policy transparency and financial market forecasts in South Africa
Authors: Arora Vivek
Published: July 2019

The transparency of monetary policy in South Africa has increased substantially since the end of the 1990s. But little empirical work has been done to examine the economic benefits of the increased transparency. This paper shows that, in recent years, South African private sector forecasters have become better able to forecast interest rates, are less surprised by reserve bank policy announcements, and are less diverse in the cross-sectional variety of their interest rate forecasts. In addition, there is some evidence that the accuracy of inflation forecasts has increased. The improvements in interest rate and inflation forecasts have exceeded those in real output forecasts, suggesting that increases in monetary policy transparency are likely to have played a role.
Narrative reporting of intellectual capital by the New Zealand local government sector
Authors: Schneider Annika , Samkin Grant
Published: July 2019

This exploratory study investigates the extent to which 82 New Zealand local government authorities report intellectual capital in their annual reports. A disclosure index, constructed with the assistance of a 14-member local government stakeholder panel, was applied to the annual reports as part of a content analysis. Findings indicate that the overall level of intellectual capital disclosure was varied, with the majority of disclosures being narrative in nature. Findings also indicate that despite a significant portion of total annual expenditure being attributed to employees/staff, the level of human capital reporting was low.
Size matters: Comparing the competitiveness of manufacturers of various sizes in South Africa
Authors: Kleynhans Ewert
Published: July 2019

The competitiveness platform of industries of various sizes is compared in this study, which also examines their competitiveness indices and aspects relating to the competitiveness platform of large, medium and small firms respectively. The reasons that small and medium enterprises (SMMEs) deserve the attention of policymakers are considered first, and the merits of large firms are then assessed. Finally, the results of an empirical investigation into the competitiveness of South African industries are considered. The study revealed that firms of different sizes have strengths and weaknesses influencing their respective international competitiveness. When development policies and strategies are designed to enhance the competitiveness of industrial SMMEs, this should be kept in mind. A firm can be enhanced, for example, through the supplying of information, infrastructure, development funds and the acquisition of modern technology. Competitiveness and productivity increase as the size of firms increases.
Shift-share analysis of production in the manufacturing industry of South Africa’s Southern District Municipality
Authors: Kleynhans Ewert , Sekhobela Moloto J.
Published: July 2019

In this study, the development and structure of value-added production in the manufacturing industries of the Southern District Municipality (SDM) of South Africa are investigated. The field of study focuses on spatial economic development, with the aim of identifying industries that can offer future growth and job creation. The methodology of shift-share analysis, often applied to studies of Economic Geography, is used for the empirical analysis. The SDM district municipality includes the local municipalities of Klerksdorp, Potchefstroom, Ventersdorp, Merafong City and Wolmaransstad. The economy of these municipalities is mainly dependent on gold mining, which is declining as their gold reserves are becoming depleted which will lead to a large section of its population being unemployed in the near future. Shift-share analysis provides insight into the shifts of production between various sectors over time and is comprehensible to policymakers. It provides further insight into the national share effect on production of the sectors in the region, as well as the regional industrial mix and the competitive share effects. It was found that the sectors with the highest growth potential are Transport Equipment, Petroleum and Chemicals, Furniture, Metal Products, and Wood and Paper Products, and they merit attention in future development initiatives.
An investigation into the extent to which the National Senior Certificate equips university finance students with required skills
Authors: Oosthuizen Annelie , Eiselen Riëtte
Published: July 2019

Higher education institutions have an obligation to provide graduates with the necessary knowledge and skills to enter the workforce and contribute effectively to the financial and economic development of the country. After 1994, the South African educational system was redesigned. One of the major events in this process was the replacement of the Senior Certificate (NATED 550) by the National Senior Certificate, awarded for the first time in 2008. Questions have been raised as to whether the National Senior Certificate curriculum prepares learners adequately for success in university studies. The purpose of the exploratory research reported on in this article was to investigate the perceptions of students on the skills acquired in the National Senior Certificate, as well as the skills required to succeed in their university studies. The study was conducted amongst the first-year B.Com (Finance) students during the 2009 academic year at a South African higher education institution. The results of the study indicate that these students felt that they lacked some of the critical skills required for academic success at university.
Editorial
Authors: Els Gideon
Published: July 2019

Abstract not available.
The effects of the global financial crisis on top 40 company CFO's
Authors: Voogt Thea L.
Published: July 2019

Very little country-specific information is available on the effects of the global financial crisis on developing countries. This article focuses on the effects of the global financial crisis on the chief financial officers (CFOs) of the 40 largest listed companies on the JSE Ltd and achieves four objectives. Firstly, it provides perspectives on the effects of the global financial crisis on South Africa. Secondly, it details a literature review on the effects of the crisis on CFOs globally. Thereafter, a model is presented of the roles and responsibilities of CFOs, which, together with the literature review and previous similar research, was used as the basis for a questionnaire. Lastly, this article reports on the responses to the questionnaire. The research revealed eight significant findings and a number of specific areas for research. Among these significant findings were that respondents’ perceptions of an increase in importance in some of their roles did not correspond to the time they spend and expect to spend on responsibilities related these roles. In addition, respondents expected to spend even less time on IT and sustainability. This article provides valuable insights into the extent of the effects of the global financial crisis on CFOs.
Die inkomstebelastinghantering van aanvangsfranchisefooie betaalbaar in die Suid-Afrikaanse petroleumbedryf
Authors: Willemse Leonard C.
Published: July 2019

A wholesaler of petroleum products is prohibited in terms of section 12(2)(c) of Regulation 287 of the Petroleum Products Act, No. 120 of 1977, to own a retail licence for purposes other than that of training. As a result, petroleum companies make use of franchises to sell their products. The concept of a franchise is based on the principle that a franchisee obtains the franchise of an existing, often prosperous, business from a franchisor, and then operates the business under the banner of this franchise. The franchisee pays the franchisor franchise fees as consideration for certain items or privileges obtained. This article investigates the deductibility of franchise fees in terms of the current South African Income Tax Act, No. 58 of 1962 and includes an evaluation of Australian Income Tax Act sections that might offer deduction possibilities for franchise fees if applied within a South African context.
Die verkoop van 'n besigheid as lopende saak: Belasting en arbeidsreg probleme met “voorsienings”
Authors: Kieviet Suzanne
Published: July 2019

The amounts set aside for the provision for employee-related contingent liabilities, such as the provision for leave pay, are often considerable. According to current Income Tax law, it is highly unlikely that the former employer (seller) will enjoy a tax deduction. Furthermore, it is also unlikely that the prospective employer (buyer) will enjoy a tax deduction. In contrast to this, both the former and prospective employers are held liable according to the Labour Relations Act in cases where a business is sold as a going concern. This article concludes that the Draft Taxation Laws Amendment Bill 2011, as envisioned, finally provides clear tax legislation, but still needs to be aligned with the objectives of the Labour Relations Act. In doing so, contradictory legislation will be avoided, thus facilitating the transfer of businesses and achieving the protection of employees’ work security.
Bargaining power and market definition: A reflection on two mergers
Authors: Roberts Simon , Corbett Catherine , Das Nair Reena
Published: July 2019

When assessing whether a merger is likely to substantially prevent or lessen competition, the Competition Act, No. 89 of 1998, as amended, specifies that the Commission should assess the strength of competition by taking into account the degree of countervailing power in a market. We highlight the importance of understanding this in terms of the factors underlying bargaining power, such as the alternative sources of supply available to buyers, the alternative sources of demand to sellers, cost structures, and information asymmetries. To do this we critically compare the approach adopted by the Competition Tribunal in evaluating two mergers: Sasol/Engen and Chlor-Alkali Holdings/Botash. We find that in both cases an analysis of bargaining power should play an important part in the assessment of the effects on competition, including the identification of competitive constraints that fall within market definition.
Determinants of visitor expenditure at the Tsitsikamma National Park
Authors: Kruger Martinette , Saayman Melville , Manners Bianca
Published: July 2019

The Tsitsikamma National Park is Africa’s oldest and largest marine reserve. It has considerable importance for the community and the region. In the face of declining government funding, it needs to attract more high spenders if it is to be sustainable. This requires an understanding of expenditure patterns and the determinants of Park visitors’ spending behaviour. This study investigated the socio-demographic and behavioural determinants of visitor expenditure, using visitor surveys at the Park in 2010/2011. Correlation analysis and regression analysis established the most significant determinants. The results indicated that a longer stay, a smaller travel group and obtaining information from magazines were the variables associated with higher spending. These findings provide strategic insights for marketing the Park, with the aim of achieving a greater economic impact and competitive advantage and ultimately aiding conservation efforts.
A critical analysis of the concepts ‘Permanent Establishment’ and ‘Foreign Business Establishment’
Authors: Van Schalkwyk Linda , Van Schaik Rozelle
Published: July 2019

The objective of this study was to analyse and compare the concepts permanent establishment and foreign business establishment in order to make recommendations regarding the required additions and amendments to replace the concept foreign business establishment with the internationally recognised and accepted concept permanent establishment. The proposed replacement of the concept foreign business establishment with an internationally recognised and accepted tax concept will enhance the international compatibility of the Income Tax Act 58 of 1962. The use of an internationally recognised and accepted tax concept will provide clarity and certainty regarding the tax implications of section 9D(9)(b) for those affected by it. After comparing the two definitions it was found that, subject to certain suggested additions and amendments, the internationally recognised and accepted concept permanent establishment can replace the concept foreign business establishment in section 9D(9)(b) of the Income Tax Act 58 of 1962 without having a material impact on the objective of section 9D(9)(b). This replacement is possible due to the mutual objective of and the similar components contained in the definitions of the concepts permanent establishment and foreign business establishment.
Determining the residency of companies: Difficulties in interpreting ‘place of effective management’
Authors: Padia Nirupa , Maroun Warren
Published: July 2019

Even South Africa’s Income Tax Act No. 58 of 1962 uses the terminology ‘place of effective management’ when determining the residency of companies. This term is not, however, defined in the said legislation and there is no South African case law specifically dealing with this matter. In contrast, the United Kingdom (UK) uses the term ‘central management and control’, and its courts have been called upon to hear numerous cases on the interpretation of this phrase. Given the increasing pressure on South Africa to align its tax treatment with international trends as well as increased levels of trade with the United Kingdom, this study examined the interpretation of ‘place of effective management’ in a South African context and juxtaposed this with the conclusions reached in seven cases in the United Kingdom dealing with the interpretation of ‘centre of management and control’. The findings show that ‘place of effective management’ from a South African perspective may depend heavily on where decisions are implemented and day-to-day operations occur. ‘Central management and control’, however, appears to vest almost exclusively in where primary decisions are made or strategic directions emanate from.
An analysis of compensation collected for the depletion of Angola’s oil resources
Authors: Van der Zwan Pieter
Published: July 2019

The African continent contributes approximately 12% of the world’s oil production. Despite this wealth, many citizens of oil-rich African countries live in poverty, often because their governments do not collect sufficient compensation for the depletion of oil resources to fund national development or do not utilise compensation collected for the benefit of the people. In this article the extraction tax regime to collect compensation on Angola’s oil resources is compared to the regimes in other oil-rich countries to identify aspects from which Angola can learn with regard to the compensation systems of those countries. It is concluded that Angola may be able to improve its extraction tax regime by learning from governance measures over natural resource funds in Norway and Canada, by implementing measures to increase its oil royalty income in times of economic prosperity and by defining deductible costs more specifically in its production-sharing agreements.
South African firm-level evidence of the links between finance and efficiency
Authors: Krugell Waldo , Matthee Marianne
Published: July 2019

Small and medium-sized enterprises are often seen as drivers of economic growth and development by generating employment opportunities. However, for SMEs to be successful they need finance. Access to finance has been found to be a major obstacle to SMEs’ ability to do business in South Africa. This paper takes a closer look at firms, their access to finance and output per worker in South Africa, by using data from the World Bank Enterprise Survey 2007. The results show that firms that are financially constrained are more vulnerable to shocks and competition, and are weaker contributors to employment creation and growth. These firms are typically small and less established. They hold less inventory, have lower capacity utilisation and are unlikely to be exporters or to introduce new products in response to competition. The results from the regression model confirm that access to finance and different sources of finance are drivers of productivity at firm level.
Consumers’ perceived risks associated with purchasing on a branded web site: The mediating effect of brand knowledge
Authors: Boshoff C. , Schlechter C. , Ward S. J.
Published: July 2019

Research concerning online consumer behaviour has found that consumers are more inclined to utilise the Internet for information searching rather than actual purchasing. One reason proposed for this state of affairs is that potential buyers perceive buying on the Internet as a risky endeavour.The unique purchasing decision in an online environment is different from a traditional purchasing environment and as a result online transactions differ from the traditional "bricks-and-mortar" environment. These differences may lead to risk perceptions among potential purchasers that are unique to online purchase intention. This study assesses the impact of the perceived risks associated with intention to purchase online from a well-established, branded web site on purchasing intentions. A secondary objective of the study was to assess whether the consumer‟s brand knowledge (brand awareness and brand image) mediates the impact of risk perceptions on the intention to purchase from the web site.It was found that both Performance risk and Social risk exert a strong negative influence on Intentions to purchase on a branded web site. Personal risk, however, do not impact on intentions to purchase on a branded web site. Furthermore, it was found that Brand knowledge does act as a mediating variable between Performance risk and Intentions to buy on a branded web site. Brand knowledge, however does not mediate the impact of Social risk on intentions to buy on a branded web site.
Social axioms: A new culture measure for South African business research
Authors: Burgess S. M.
Published: July 2019

This study is intended to introduce social axiom theory to South African business researchers and, in this process, to provide new empirical evidence pertinent to the South African context. We examine social axioms in the largest and most representative national metropolitan population ever studied, providing scores for social axiom dimensions at the individual-level and nation-level, as well as assessments of relations with sociodemographics, values, personality and life satisfaction. The results support the convergent validity, discriminant validity and composite reliability of the 25-item brief version of the Social Axioms Scale. We extend prior research on social axioms and personality by examining relations with optimum stimulation level (OSL), an important personality construct studied in marketing and human resource management. A hierarchical regression model illustrates the power of social axioms in predicting life satisfaction, over and above the effects of sociodemographics, values and optimum stimulation level. Several points of departure for fruitful business research are identified.
Can service firms overdo service recovery? An assessment of non-linearity in service recovery satisfaction
Authors: Boshoff C.
Published: July 2019

Owing to the human nature of service delivery service failures occasionally occur. Persistently poor service delivery will, however, have a harmful impact on the survival and growth prospects of service firms. Service failure thus calls for remedial action, better known as service recovery. A variety of remedies have been proposed over the years. These remedies or tactics include fixing the problem, apologising, compensation (financial compensation or other forms of redress), a timely response and offering an explanation. A general theme in the service recovery literature is that ‘more is better’. The validity of this contention has, however, not been adequately considered. In other words, in a service recovery context, is more always better? Can service recovery be over-done (known as ‘over-benefitting’)? If so, what are the consequences? Based on the results of two field-type experimental studies involving a sample of 12 800 respondents the conclusion is that over-benefitting can be counter-productive. Over-benefitting consistently produced satisfaction scores lower than service recovery that was more moderate in nature.
35 years of socially responsible investing (SRI) research: General trends over time
Authors: Viviers S. , Eccles N. S.
Published: July 2019

This article describes 35 years of academic research into investment practices that in some way integrate a consideration of environmental, social and corporate governance issues. A review of 190 academic papers was undertaken to identify trends in five domains, namely ‘Primary Name’, ‘Research Themes’, ‘Ethical Foundations’, ‘Research Approach’ and ‘SRI Strategies’. The evidence reveals that more than half the researchers refer to such investment practices as Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) and for this reason the name is used in this review as a generic term for the genre. A myriad of other names were also identified. In terms of research themes, one particularly dominant theme was that of financial performance, which was often discussed in relation to fiduciary responsibility and legal aspects. Although the primary ethical foundation was not always directly observable, the majority of papers implied utilitarianism or ‘the greatest good for the greatest number’. Increased mention of ethical egoism (self-interest) is observed in later periods. An equal split between qualitative and quantitative research methodologies was noted, with a qualitative approach being more favoured in recent years. Three SRI strategies have dominated academic discussions over the past 35 years, namely negative screening, positive screening and shareholder activism. Gaps in the literature have been identified and suggestions for future research made.
Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Adverse Events with Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors: Data from the United States Food and Drug Administration Adverse Event Reporting System
Authors: Pundole Xerxes N , Sarangdhar Mayur , Suarez-Almazor Maria E
Published: July 2019

Background: Despite their efficacy, immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) can cause significant immune-related adverse events (irAEs). Rheumatic and musculoskeletal irAEs can be serious and adversely affect the quality of life. The full spectrum of irAEs is still emerging, and to represent and better understand their scope, we evaluated the United States Food and Drug Administration Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) database. Methods: We used AERSMine, an open-access web application to mine FAERS data across 11,919,342 patients from 2011 (first quarter) to 2018 (fourth quarter). Measures of disproportionality were calculated using well-established pharmacovigilance metrics, proportional reporting ratios, and safety signals (information component), in patients receiving ICI. Results: We analyzed 63,979 cancer patients for reports of ICI-associated AEs. Eighty-two percent of these reports were in relation with anti-PD-1 inhibitors. Rates of rheumatic and musculoskeletal AEs were higher in men and in patients >65 years of age. Several statistically significant AEs were identified, most in relation with PD-1 inhibitors. AEs with the highest number of reports included arthralgia (n = 1062), followed by myalgia (n = 532), myositis (n = 438), arthritis (n = 403), and rhabdomyolysis (n = 230). Novel AEs affecting the skeleton included compression fractures, fractures at various skeletal sites (rib, thoracic vertebral, and humerus), osteonecrosis of the jaw, osteitis, and osteomyelitis. Conclusion: A wide spectrum of rheumatic and musculoskeletal AE signals were detected within the FAERS data which may signify the emerging trends of irAEs post approval of ICI. Additional research to explore mechanisms and identify optimal management strategies of these AEs is warranted.
A generic gust definition and detection method based on wavelet-analysis
Authors: Knoop Helge , Ament Felix , Maronga Björn
Published: July 2019

Abstract. Wind gusts can have destructive effects on many structures and objects deemed valuable to humans. The aviation industry, for example, views gusts as a major hazard. Their destructive effect is proportional to the momentum that a specific gust imposes onto an object. The actual definition of a gust has a strong influence on how its impact can be quantified. Existing gust definitions, however, are largely based on fixed parameters describing shape requirements and thresholds and are often developed only for specific use cases. These gust definitions do not provide a direct link to the physical impact a particular gust has on a structure or object. The overall goal of this study is to provide such a direct link. The application of a wavelet-analysis to a turbulence-resolving wind velocity signal allows for the localization of signal amplitudes in the period as well as in the time domain. In this paper, we use wavelet-analysis in order to develop a straight-forward method of deriving information about gusts from a wind velocity signal. In order to define what a particular gust might be, we suggest the specification of a characteristic period and amplitude in the time-domain. We define a generic gust as a section of a wind velocity signal, where the wavelet-analysis detects that characteristic amplitude to be matched or exceeded within that characteristic period. The characteristic amplitudes and periods are generic and span a two-dimensional space of generic gust definitions. The method can be applied to turbulence resolving simulation data as well as high-resolution wind velocity measurement data. It can detect gusts of any shape, it is unbiased regarding any specific use case and invariant to changes of the mean wind. We provide a detailed description of the method, its capabilities and demonstrate its application to high resolution wind velocity measurement data.
Technical note: comparison of water vapor sampling techniques for
stable isotope analysis
Authors: Jiménez-Rodríguez César Dionisio , Coenders-Gerrits Miriam , Bogaard Thom , Vatiero Erika , Savenije Hubert
Published: July 2019

Abstract. Water vapor samples are key elements to describe the evaporation process thanks to the stable isotope signatures of δ2H and δ18O. However, its sampling is a difficult task that can introduce errors due to isotopic fractionation. This study investigates the consistency of different sampling techniques for atmospheric water vapor. The isotope signature of a parcel of air was determined with a cavity output spectroscopy device during a period of 3 hours (benchmark). This parcel of air was sampled simultaneously with 3 types of sampling bags made of different materials (metalized polyethylene -MPE-, polyvinyl fluoride -PVF-, low density polyethylene -LDPE-) and with 2 cryogenic baths running at two different pumping rates (3 L min-1 and 50 mL min-1). The tested water vapor sampling techniques differ in their ability to keep reliable measurements after sampling and are highly susceptible to procedural errors. MPE bags are the best option for measuring samples up to two weeks of storage after sampling. LDPE and PVF bags are only reliable if the measurement is performed on the same sampling day.
WHEAT AREA MAPPING AND PHENOLOGY DETECTION USING SYNTHETIC APERTURE RADAR AND MULTI MULTI-SPECTRAL REMOTE SENSING OBSERVATIONS
Authors: Mohite J. D. , Sawant S. A. , Rana S. , Pappula S.
Published: July 2019

Abstract. In season crop area mapping is of significant importance for multiple reasons such as monitoring if crop health and residue burning areas, etc. Wheat is one of the important cereal crop cultivated all across the India, with Punjab-Haryana being the prime contributors to the total production. In this study we propose a method for early season Wheat area mapping using the combined use of temporal Sentinel-1 and 2 observations. Further, we propose a method to estimate the crop phenology parameter viz. sowing date using the early time series of Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). Few districts from Haryana and Punjab have been selected. The Wheat sowing starts in month of Oct.–Nov. Considering the sowing window, images available during Oct.–Dec. 2017 have been chosen for early season Wheat area mapping. The field data for Wheat, other crops, forest, water and settlements classes is gathered using human participatory sensing and Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform and used for data analysis. We have assessed the performance of random forest classifier using 1. NDVI derived from Sentinel-2, 2. VV and VH backscatter obtained from Sentinel-1 and 3. Both NDVI and VV-VH backscatter. Results show the maximum classification accuracy of 88.31 % when using combination of NDVI, VV and VH. However, accuracy drops to 87.19 % and 79.16 % while using NDVI and VV-VH respectively. Further, to estimate the sowing date we have considered the NDVI time-series during Oct.–Dec. for Wheat pixels. A method based on NDVI compositing is used with gradual increase of 0.1–0.15 at every 12 days for subsequent two images. We have found a good agreement between the estimated sowing dates and actual sowing dates.
AREA ESTIMATION OF COTTON AND MAIZE CROPS IN PERAMBALUR DISTRICT
OF TAMIL NADU USING MULTI DATE SENTINEL-1A SAR DATA & OPTICAL DATA
Authors: Ramalingam K. , Ramathilagam A. B. , Murugesan P.
Published: July 2019

Abstract. This study was carried out to estimate the area of cotton and maize crops in Permabalur district of Tamil Nadu using microwave and optical data. Permabalur was selected as the study area, as it is the largest cotton and maize producing district in Tamil Nadu. The multi-temporal Sentinel-1A SAR data was acquired from 09th July, 2016 to 17th January, 2017 as it coincides with the crop calendar of these crops. Both the Vertical-Vertical (VV) and Vertical-Horizontal (VH) polarized data were compared. The cloud free Landsat 8 data acquired on 7th October 2016 was fused with the Vertical–Vertical (VV) and Vertical-Horizontal (VH) polarized data of 13th October and classified. Unsupervised classification approach was adopted to classify the cotton and maize pixels. The highest accuracy of 72.73% and 76.24% were achieved in VV polarization + Landsat 8 data and VH polarization + Landsat 8 data respectively. The cotton and maize areas were estimated to be 20,218 ha and 28,032 ha respectively. It is also evident that VH polarization fused with optical data is better in discriminating the cotton and maize crop than VV polarization fused with optical data.
SYNERGETIC USE OF OPTICAL, MICROWAVE AND THERMAL SATELLITE DATA FOR NON-PARAMETRIC ESTIMATION OF WHEAT GRAIN YIELD
Authors: Choudhary K. K. , Pandey V. , Murthy C. S. , Poddar M. K.
Published: July 2019

Abstract. Crop yield maps are very crucial inputs for different practical applications like crop production estimation, pay-out of crop insurance, yield gap analysis etc. Satellite derived vegetation indices across different electromagnetic region has the ability to explain the variation in crop yield and can be used for prediction of yield before harvesting. This study utilised indices derived from multi-temporal Optical, Thermal and Radar data for developing model for Wheat (Triticum aestivum) grain yield using Machine learning approaches i.e., Random Forest Regression (RFR). Time series of Sentinel-2 derived Normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), Normalized difference water Index (NDWI), Landsat-8 derived GPP using LST-EVI relationship (Temparature-Greeness model) and Sentinel-1 derived cross-polarization backscatter ratio (σVH/σVV) were used as predictor for wheat yield estimation. Actual grain yield measurements at ground were carried out at the end of the season over 178 locations. Seventy five percent of ground yield data were used for training of the model and rest twenty five percent data were used for its validation. All the datasets were grouped into ten fortnightly datasets ranging from November 2017 to March 2018. Through the random forest regression using time-series of NDVI alone, wheat grain yields were estimated with an RMSE of 9.8 Q ha−1. Subsequently by adding the multi-temporal NDWI, GPP and σVH/σVV led to the improvement of RMSE to 8.7, 7.6 and 7.4 Q ha−1 respectively. Variable importance based on the out of box error showed the significance of NDVI, NDWI and GPP during Dec-Jan and σVH/σVV during Feb for wheat grain estimation. It was concluded that the RFR algorithm together with the indices from optical, thermal and microwave satellite data can able to produced significantly accurate estimates of wheat grain yield.
INTEGRATING TIME-SERIES SAR DATA AND ORYZA CROP GROWTH MODEL IN RICE AREA MAPPING AND YIELD ESTIMATION FOR CROP INSURANCES
Authors: Pazhanivelan S. , Ragunath K. P. , Sudarmanian N. S. , Kumaraperumal R. , Setiyono T. , Quicho E. D.
Published: July 2019

Abstract. Lowland rice in tropical and subtropical regions can be detected precisely and its crop growth can be tracked effectively through Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imagery, especially where cloud cover restricts the use of optical imagery. Parameterised classification with multi-temporal features derived from regularly acquired, C-band, VV and VH polarized Sentinel-1A SAR imagery was used for mapping rice area. A fully automated processing chain in MAPscape-Rice software was used to convert the multi-temporal SAR data into terrain-geocoded σ0 values, which included strip mosaicking, co-registration of images acquired with the same observation geometry and mode, time-series speckle filtering, terrain geocoding, radiometric calibration and normalization. Further Anisotropic non-linear diffusion (ANLD) filtering was done to smoothen homogeneous targets, while enhancing the difference between neighbouring areas. Multi-Temporal Features viz., max, min, mean, max date, min date and span ratio were extracted from VV and VH polarizations to classify rice pixels. Rice detection was based on the analysis of temporal signature from SAR backscatter in relation to crop stages. About sixty images across four footprints covering 16 samba (Rabi) rice growing districts of Tamil Nadu, India were obtained between August 2017 and January 2018. In-season site visits were conducted across 280 monitoring locations in the footprints for classification purposes and more than 1665 field observations were made for accuracy assessment. A total rice area of 1.07 million ha was mapped with classification accuracy from 90.3 to 94.2 per cent with Kappa values ranging from 0.81 to 0.88. Using ORYZA2000, a weather driven process based crop growth simulation model developed by IRRI, yield estimates were made by integrating remote sensing products viz., seasonal rice area, start of season and backscatter time series. By generating average backscatter for each time series and dB stack for each SoS, LAI values were estimated. The model has generated rice yield estimate for each hectare which were aggregated at administrative boundary level and compared against CCE yield. Yield Simulation accuracy of more than 86–91% at district level and 82–97% at block level from the study indicates the suitability of these products for policy decisions. SAR products and yield information were used to meet the requirements of PMFBY crop insurance scheme in Tamil Nadu and helped in identifying or invoking prevented/failed sowing in 529 villages and total crop failure in 821 villages. In total 303703 farmers were benefitted by this technology in getting payouts of INR 9.94 billion through crop insurance. The satellite technology as an operational service has helped in getting quicker payouts.