bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Impaired cardiac and skeletal muscle bioenergetics in children, adolescents, and young adults with Barth syndrome
Authors: Bashir Adil , Bohnert Kathryn L. , Reeds Dominic N. , Peterson Linda R. , Bittel Adam J. , de las Fuentes Lisa , Pacak Christina A. , Byrne Barry J. , Cade W. Todd
Published: February 2017

Barth syndrome (BTHS) is an X‐linked condition characterized by altered cardiolipin metabolism and cardioskeletal myopathy. We sought to compare cardiac and skeletal muscle bioenergetics in children, adolescents, and young adults with BTHS and unaffected controls and examine their relationships with cardiac function and exercise capacity. Children/adolescents and young adults with BTHS (n = 20) and children/adolescent and young adult control participants (n = 23, total n = 43) underwent 31P magnetic resonance spectroscopy (31P‐MRS) of the lower extremity (calf) and heart for estimation of skeletal muscle and cardiac bioenergetics. Peak exercise testing (VO2peak) and resting echocardiography were also performed on all participants. Cardiac PCr/ATP ratio was significantly lower in children/adolescents (BTHS: 1.5 ± 0.2 vs. Control: 2.0 ± 0.3, P < 0.01) and adults (BTHS: 1.9 ± 0.2 vs. Control: 2.3 ± 0.2, P < 0.01) with BTHS compared to Control groups. Adults (BTHS: 76.4 ± 31.6 vs. Control: 35.0 ± 7.4 sec, P < 0.01) and children/adolescents (BTHS: 71.5 ± 21.3 vs. Control: 31.4 ± 7.4 sec, P < 0.01) with BTHS had significantly longer calf PCr recovery (τPCr) postexercise compared to controls. Maximal calf ATP production through oxidative phosphorylation (Qmax‐lin) was significantly lower in children/adolescents (BTHS: 0.5 ± 0.1 vs. Control: 1.1 ± 0.3 mmol/L per sec, P < 0.01) and adults (BTHS: 0.5 ± 0.2 vs. Control: 1.0 ± 0.2 mmol/L sec, P < 0.01) with BTHS compared to controls. Blunted cardiac and skeletal muscle bioenergetics were associated with lower VO2peak but not resting cardiac function. Cardiac and skeletal muscle bioenergetics are impaired and appear to contribute to exercise intolerance in BTHS.
Wet Observations of GD 358 in 2000
Authors: Kepler S. O. , Nather E.R. , Winget D.E. , Nitta A. , Kleinman S.J. , Metcalfe T. , Sekiguchi K. , Xiaojun J. , Sullivan D. , Sullivan T. , Janulis R. , Meištas E.G. , Kalytis R. , Krzesiński J. , Ogłoza W. , Zola S. , O’Donoghue D. , Romero-Colmenero E. , Martinez P. , Dreizler S. , Deetjen J. , Nagel T. , Schuh S.L. , Vauclair G. , Fu J.N. , Chevreton M. , Solheim J.-E. , Kanaan A. , Costa J.E. , Costa A.F. Murillo , Wood M.A. , Silvestri N. , Ahrens T.J. , Jones A. Kyle , Collins A.E. , Boyer M. , Shaw J.S. , Mukadam A.S. , Klumpe E.W. , Larrison J. , Kawaler S.D. , Riddle R.L. , Ulla A. , Bradley P.
Published: February 2017

We report on the 323 hours of nearly uninterrupted time series photometric observations of the DBV star GD 358 acquired with the Whole Earth Telescope (WET) during May 23 to June 8, 2000. We acquired more than 232 000 independent measurements and detected the non-radial g-modes consistent with degree ℓ = 1 and radial order 8 to 20 and their linear combinations up to 6th order. We also detect, for the first time, a high amplitude ℓ = 2 mode, with a period of 796 s. In the 2000 WET data, the largest amplitude modes are similar to those detected with the WET observations of 1990 and 1994, but the highest combination order previously detected was 4th order.
Further Development of the Tromsø CCD Photometer
Authors: Janulis R.
Published: February 2017

A brief summary of the improvements recently made by the Vilnius WET group to Tromsø CCD photometer for time resolved photometry is provided.
Atmospheric Extinction Corrections for WET Observations
Authors: Pakštienė E. , Solheim J. E.
Published: February 2017

Account of the extinction in the Earth’s atmosphere is an important part of the WET light curve reduction procedures. Usually, WET observations are not corrected for the second order extinction effects: the dependence of the extinction coefficient on spectral type and on air mass (the Forbes effect). The ignorance of these effects does not change seriously the derived pulsation amplitudes at the frequencies higher than 200 μHz but the increase of the noise at lower frequencies takes place. For obtaining the true extra-atmospheric magnitudes of stars, a modification of the extinction correction procedure is proposed. For photometry with the R647 phototube we recommend to use a filter cutting out the region below 310 nm, in order to decrease and stabilize the extinction coefficient. A method for estimation of spectral type of the comparison star from WET observations is proposed.
The WET Coverage - How Well Do We Do?
Authors: Solheim Jan-Erik
Published: February 2017

The Whole Earth Telescope collaboration is build solidly on the interest of the participants. One of the goals of the collaboration is to produce a high signal to noise, as continuous as possible, light curve for a selected target. During the nearly 15 years of existence the operation of the network has been based on what the members have been able to provide of local funds for their own participation, in addition to NSF grants to run the headquarters activities. This has led to a very uneven geographical distribution of participating groups and observatories. An analysis of the coverage of some of the last WET runs shows that we still have large holes in the coverage, and this leads to aliasing and loss of precision in our final products.
Asteroseismology of Pulsating sdB Stars Observed at Catania Astrophysical Observatory
Authors: Bonanno A. , Frasca A. , Lanza A. F. , Ventura R. , Mignemi B. , Silvotti R.
Published: February 2017

We present analysis of the data collected during three years of photometric campaigns at the 91 cm Cassegrain telescope of the Catania Astrophysical Observatory to observe the pulsating subdwarf B star PG 1336-018. For this eclipsing binary system, we obtained a precise determination of the orbital period which turns out to be P = 0.10101599±0.00000002 days. Time-series photometry reveals pulsation periods near 174 and 184 seconds. We also discuss a preliminary analysis of the data obtained in 2002 for the pulsating subdwarf PG 1325+101.
Overlapping Open Clusters NGC 1750 and NGC 1758 behind the Taurus Dark Clouds. II. CCD Photometry in the Vilnius System
Authors: Straižys V. , Kazlauskas A. , Černiauskas A. , Boyle R. P. , Vrba F. J. , Philip A. G. Davis , Laugalys V. , Černis K. , Smriglio F.
Published: February 2017

Seven-color photometry in the Vilnius system has been obtained for 420 stars down to V = 16 mag in the area containing the overlapping open clusters NGC 1750 and NGC 1758 in Taurus. Spectral and luminosity classes, color excesses, interstellar extinctions and distances are given for 287 stars. The classification of stars is based on their reddening-free Q-parameters. 18 stars observed photoelectrically were used as standards. The extinction vs. distance diagram exhibits the presence of one dust cloud at a distance of 175 pc which almost coincides with a distance of other dust clouds in the Taurus complex. The clusters NGC 1750 and NGC 1758 are found to be at the same distance of ~760 pc and may penetrate each other. Their interstellar extinction A
Spectral Classification of Faint Carbon Stars
Authors: Eglitis I. , Eglite M. , Balklavs A.
Published: February 2017

R-N classification of 187 faint carbon stars is based on the classical criteria adjusted to the yellow-red spectral region, with two new criteria added - the ratios of the red CN bands 6206/6332 (Å) and 6478/6631 (Å).
Photoelectric Vilnius Photometry of Stars in the Mega Proper Motion Field KA 10
Authors: Bartašiutė S.
Published: February 2017

Photoelectric seven-color photometry in the Vilnius medium-band, system is obtained for 87 stars down to V≃13.0 in the Kiev proper motion field KA10 [l = 137°, b = -59°]. The size of the field is 1.4 square degrees. For each star, photometric spectral type, absolute magnitude, metallicity, and color excess due to interstellar reddening have been determined. These data, together with previous Vilnius photometry obtained in other seven KA fields at high Galactic latitudes, will be combined with radial-velocity measurements and available proper motions to yield space velocities and to investigate kinematical and chemical properties of the Galactic disk in the direction perpendicular to the Galactic plane.
Motion of Test Bodies in a Quasi-Newtonian Potential. I. Qualitative Classification of the Motion Trajectories
Authors: Pyragas K. , Svirskas K.
Published: February 2017

The motion of test bodies in a Quasi-Newtonian potential is examined. Main attention is paid to the qualitative classification of all possible trajectories.
Stellar Photometry at the Crossroads of the Two Centuries
Authors: Straižys V.
Published: February 2017

In the last century photometry was recognized as a powerful method for investigation of physical parameters of stars and of interstellar matter. Photometric investigations now cover the spectral range from the far ultraviolet to the far infrared. The article describes the most important landmarks in development of photometric classification of stars and the number of photometric survey projects accomplished by ground-based and space telescopes and including millions of point sources. The success of the future LSSD and Gaia projects will depend on the use of optimum photometric passbands.
Overview of Gaia Multi-Color Photometry
Authors: Høg Erik
Published: February 2017

Gaia will obtain multi-color photometry for astrometric and astrophysical purposes. A photometry in five broad bands and with high angular resolution will be obtained after every astrometric observation of a star, especially for the sake of correcting slight astrometric chromaticity errors of the optical system. A separate smaller telescope will obtain photometry in eleven passbands of medium width designed to serve the astrophysical analysis of the mission results. The medium-band photometry (MBP) has less angular resolution, but much longer effective integration time than the broad-band photometry (BBP).
The Development of Stellar Photometry in Russia and the USSR in the 20Th Century (Some Pages of History)
Authors: Mironov A. V.
Published: February 2017

A short historical review of the development of astrophotometry in Russia and the Soviet Union is given. The input of V. Cerasky, G. Tikhov, V. B. Nikonov, Moscow University astronomers and Vilnius astronomers is described.
Luminosity and Intrinsic Color Calibration of Main-Sequence Stars With 2Mass Photometry: All Sky Local Extinction
Authors: Knude Jens , Fabricius Claus
Published: February 2017

We present a new color index vs. absolute magnitude calibration of 2MASS JHK photometry. For the A0 to ~G5 and M segments of the main sequence information on the amount of interstellar extinction and its location in space may be obtained.
Stellar Populations of the Galactic Disk: Metallicity Distribution and Kinematics
Authors: Bartašiūtė S. , Aslan Z. , Boyle R. P. , Kharchenko N. V. , Ossipkov L. P. , Sperauskas J.
Published: February 2017

Metallicities and distances have been determined from Vilnius photometry for an in situ sample of nearly 650 stars in eight proper-motion fields at high Galactic latitudes. For half of these stars, radial velocities have been measured with the CORAVEL spectrometer, which allowed us to derive spatial velocities and Galactic orbits. In this contribution we present a status report on our results for the stellar content of the Galactic disk, with emphasis given to specific aspects of distinguishing the thick-disk stars from the old thin-disk population.
Classification of Metal-Deficient Dwarfs in the Vilnius Photometric System
Authors: Lazauskaitė R. , Bartkevičius A. , Bartašiūtė S.
Published: February 2017

Methods used for the quantitative classification of metal-deficient stars in the Vilnius photometric system are reviewed. We present a new calibration of absolute magnitudes for dwarfs and subdwarfs, based on Hipparcos parallaxes. The new classification scheme is applied to a sample of Population II visual binaries.
High-Precision UBVRI Photometry with a New 50 Cm Telescope at Stará Lesná
Authors: Pribulla T. , Chochol D.
Published: February 2017

The paper presents the experience, observations and results obtained with the new 50 cm photometric telescope at the Stará Lesná Observatory equipped with an SBIG ST10MXE CCD camera. The telescope time is devoted to observations of variable stars of various types. Prospects for further improvement of the instrument, observational and reduction techniques are discussed.
Fast CCD Photometry in the Taiwan-America Occultation Survey
Authors: Chen W. P. , Zhang Z. W. , King S. K. , Alcock C. , Byun Y. I. , Cook K. H. , Dave R. , Giammarco J. , Lee T. , Lehner M. , Liang C. , Lissauer J. , Marshall S. , Pater I. de , Porrata R. , Rice J. , Wang A. , Wang S. Y. , Wen C. Y.
Published: February 2017

We describe the efforts of the Taiwan-America Occultation Survey (TAOS) project to develop a data acquisition and analysis scheme for fast CCD imaging photometry. The TAOS project aims to conduct a census of the Kuiper-belt objects (KBOs) by detecting chance stellar occultation events by these small bodies in the outer reach of the solar system. An array of telescopes, each with fast optics (f/2) of 0.5 m aperture and equipped with a 2K CCD camera (3 square degrees FOV), have been set up in central Taiwan to monitor a couple thousand stars simultaneously. By reading out the CCD chip sequentially a few rows of pixels at a time (pause-and-shift), it is possible to achieve stellar photometry with a sampling rate up to several hertz. Here we report how such a setup has been used to observe the SX Phoenicis type variable CY Aqr to illustrate the potential usefulness of the TAOS database in stellar variability studies.
The Whole Earth Telescope Arrives to Lithuania
Authors: Meištas E. G.
Published: February 2017

A short description of participation of the Lithuanian astronomers in the Whole Earth Telescope program is given.
On a New Technique for Discovering Variable Stars
Authors: Mironov A. V. , Zakharov A. I. , Nikolaev F. N.
Published: February 2017

A technique for discovering variable stars based on the calculation of the correlation coefficients is proposed. Applications of the technique are shown on the results of numerical experiments and on the Hipparcos photometric data.
Interstellar Extinction in the Gaia Photometric Systems
Authors: Bridžius A. , Vansevičius V.
Published: February 2017

Three medium-band photometric systems proposed for the Gaia space mission are intercompared in determining color excesses for stars of spectral classes from O to M at V = 18 mag. A possibility of obtaining a three-dimensional map of the interstellar extinction is discussed.
Recent UBVR Photometry of Symbiotic Stars
Authors: Skopal A. , Vaňko M. , Pribulla T. , Chochol D.
Published: February 2017

We present recent photometric observations of Z And, BF Cyg, and AX Per made in the standard Johnson UBVR system. The main characteristics of their light behavior can be summarized as follows: Z And: our observations cover the recent active phase, from its maximum in 2000 December to the latest measurements (2003 September). BF Cyg: the minimum of the recent wave in the star’s brightness was the deepest ever observed; in 2003 February a short-term flare developed in the light curve. AX Per: from 1995 October the light curve displays signatures of a quiescent phase of the star; in 2003 May a 0.5 mag flare was detected.
On the Accuracy of Gaia Photometry
Authors: Abromavičius G. , Drazdys R. , Skrebutėnas A. , Vansevičius V.
Published: February 2017

The errors of Gaia photometry originating from tolerancies of the light filter mean wavelengths and half-widths are investigated.
Observations on the flight pattern of some Phlaeothripidae (Thysanoptera) species by using suction trap in Hungary
Authors: Orosz Szilvia , Szénási Ágnes , Puskás János , Ábrahám Rita , Fülöp Andrea , Jenser Gábor
Published: February 2017

In this study, the seasonal flight activity of the Phlaeothripidae (Thysanoptera) species was studied by using suction trap, in South-East Hungary, in the years 2000 and 2004 from April to October. The flight period of two dominant species, namely Haplothrips angusticornis Priesner and Haplothrips aculeatus Fabricius (Thysanoptera: Phlaeothripidae), was observed in high number in Europe. Also, it was the first record of mass flight observation of H. angusticornis. In addition, the effect of meteorological factors, such as temperature, sunshine duration, relative humidity, air pressure, and their influences, were evaluated.
Approximation of the WRB reference group with the reapplication of archive soil databases
Authors: Balla Dániel , Novák Tibor József , Zichar Marianna
Published: February 2017

In our study, we tested the existing and freely accessible soil databases covering a smaller geographical region surveyed and classified according to the Hungarian classification in order to approximate the WRB soil reference groups (RSG). We tested the results and applicability of approximation for the RSG with three different methods on 12 soil profiles. First, RSGs were assigned to Hungarian soil taxa based on results of previous correlation studies, secondly, a freely accessible online database of ISRIC was applied furthermore, and an automated reclassification developed and programmed by us was used, which takes the original soil data as input.
Some bioecological aspects of the rose aphid, Macrosiphum rosae (Hemiptera: Aphididae) and its natural enemies
Authors: Mehrparvar Mohsen , Mansouri Seyed Mozaffar , Hatami Bijan
Published: February 2017

The rose aphid, Macrosiphum rosae, is one of the most important pests on roses in the world and it causes economic damage. In this study, biology, seasonal population dynamics, and status of natural enemies of the rose aphid were studied. Seasonal population dynamics was studied by randomly sampling 10 shoots every week in two locations of Isfahan, Iran. Rose aphid with a high population density, both in spring (April and May) and in autumn (November), was observed on roses. The results showed that the rose aphid overwinters as parthenogenetic females and nymphs. This aphid migrates to a secondary host, Dipsacus fullonum (Dipsacaceae), in summer due to poor food quality of rose plants. Since sexual form and egg of the rose aphid were not observed in Isfahan, it is probably anholocyclic species with host alternation in this area. Natural enemies of the rose aphid include four species of Coccinellidae, three species of Syrphidae, two species of Chamaemyiidae, one species of Chrysopidae, a few species of Anthocoridae and Miridae, and one species of Cantharidae. One species of ectoparasite mite of Erythraeidae was also collected. In addition, four species of parasitoid wasps, Braconidae, were collected.
The Spatial Autocorrelation Analysis For Transport Accessibility In Selected Regions Of The European Union
Authors: Górniak Joanna
Published: February 2017

In view of the significant differences between the socio-economic regions, the level of development of transport is not homogenous. According to Tobler’s law (1970) we can point out that all objects are related to each other, but the ones located closer are more dependent on each other than those farther away. Then we can identify the occurrence of spatial autocorrelation. For example, the European regions can assess whether the border regions of different countries show a similarity to each other. The main purpose of this article is to assess and analyze the occurrence of spatial autocorrelation in connection with the transport accessibility (measured by density of a motorway network). The general hypothesis is: between European regions, there is a positive spatial autocorrelation in connection with the problems of transport accessibility. Research subjects are selected European regions at NUTS level 2. To evaluate the occurrence of spatial autocorrelation the classic Moran I statistic has been used.
Laparoscopic Common Bile Duct Exploration for Choledocholithiasis During a Pregnancy: a Case Report
Authors: Lacis Janis , Rancane Ieva , Plaudis Haralds , Saukane Evita , Pupelis Guntars
Published: February 2017

In population studies, gallstones are found in 6.5% to 8.4% of nulliparous women, and in 18.4% to 19.3% of women with two to three or more pregnancies (7). Approximately 1 in 500 to 1 in 635 women will require non-obstetrical abdominal surgery during their pregnancies. Pregnancy induced physiological hormonal changes are associated with a decrease of gallbladder motility and increased cholesterol saturation of bile, leading to biliary stone formation (12,6,8). Surgical approach nowadays is the method of choice in the management of symptomatic gallstone disease during pregnancy, preferably if possible surgery should be postponed to second trimester (7,8).

Preoperative radiologic imaging using magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography is the golden standard for patients with suspected choledocholithiasis, however, its application during pregnancy is limited (9). Therapeutic endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) may be used before, during or after laparoscopic cholecystectomy when it is indicated, but unfortunately, its application during pregnancy is associated with considerable number of complications concerning mother and fetus. Alternative approach has been developed and recommended for patients with the common bile duct (CBD) stones providing laparoscopic common bile duct exploration (LCBDE). Intraoperative cholangiography or intraoperative ultrasound (IOUS) are the methods currently used for detection of the CBD stones during laparoscopic cholecystectomy, however, IOUS can be considered as the method of choice during pregnancy (3).

IOUS is a dynamic imaging modality that provides interactive and timely information during surgical procedures. Because the transducer is in direct contact with the organ being examined, high-resolution images can be obtained that are not degraded by air, bone, or overlying soft tissue (1).
Learners’ preferences towards Corrective feedback in writing assignments in tertiary education
Authors: Horbacauskiene Jolita , Kasperaviciene Ramune
Published: February 2017

For several decades, there has been a heated debate about the value of providing corrective feedback in writing assignments in English as a foreign language (EFL) classes. Despite the fact that corrective feedback in writing has been analysed from various angles, learners’ expectations regarding feedback given by language instructors are still to be considered, especially in different learning settings. Student attitudes have been found to be associated with motivation, proficiency, learner anxiety, autonomous learning, etc. (Elwood & Bode, 2014). Thus, the aim of this paper was to compare EFL learners’ attitudes towards corrective feedback and self-evaluation of writing skills in different learning settings. Students at two technological universities in France and Lithuania were surveyed and asked to complete an anonymous questionnaire combining the Likert scale and rank order questions. The results indicate that frequency of writing assignments seems to have little or no impact on students’ self-evaluation of writing skills. Moreover, although the two groups of students showed preference for feedback on different error types (e.g., feedback on structure vs. feedback on grammar), nevertheless, indirect corrective feedback with a clue was favoured by all the respondents.
Exploration of the relationship between word-association and learners’ lexical development with a focus on American L1 and Croatian L2 speakers
Authors: Séguin Maja
Published: February 2017

Vocabulary acquisition is a dynamic process and there is a constant change in the way words are stored in the mental lexicon. Word association tests are used in linguistic research to observe to which extent mental mapping can be understood. This paper presents the results of a word association game consisting of seven words administered to second language speakers, and native speakers for comparative purposes. The results indicate the possibility of a link between experiences and associations, which leads to the recommendation for teachers to create activities and new experiences that demand the learner’s personal involvement in expanding their vocabulary.
Disclosures on Control over Financial Reporting: The Reporting Practice of Banks Listed on The Warsaw Stock Exchange
Authors: Gad Jacek
Published: February 2017

The purpose of this paper is to identify the effects of the implementation of selected regulations on corporate governance in the reporting practice of banks listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. The survey examined the disclosures concerning the main features of the internal control and risk management systems in relation to financial reporting in banks. Research studies on disclosures related to control over financial reporting have not yet been conducted. The paper uses a research method involving the analysis of annual reports disclosed by banks. The method of induction was used in the process of inference. The results of the study indicate that in the practice of reporting of banks listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange in 2011, there was no uniform reporting form in terms of the presentation of information on internal control or risk management systems in relation to financial reporting. The disclosures were different both in terms of level of detail and content. In some banks disclosures were drawn at a high level of generality.
The Profitability of Following Analyst Recommendations on The Polish Stock Market
Authors: Zaremba Adam , Konieczka Przemysław
Published: February 2017

The profitability of analysts’ recommendations is documented in numerous studies from all over the world. However, the evidence from the Polish market is relatively modest. The primary aim of this study is to fill this gap. The paper contributes to the economic literature in four ways. First, it provides fresh out-of-sample evidence on return patterns following analysts’ recommendations from Poland. Second, it examines the relations between these patterns and the size of the rated companies. Finally, it investigates whether it is possible to design profitable strategies based on the discovered patterns. We use monthly stock level data from Poland and the sample period is 2004-2013. In order to examine the profitability of analysts’ reports, we build market-neutral portfolios and test their performance against CAPM, Fama-French three-factor and Carhart four-factor models. The principal findings can be summarized as follows. First, we document that the top rated companies deliver better returns than the bottom rated companies. Second, we find that the profitability is particularly impressive among the small companies. Third, the abnormal returns are partially explained by momentum and value based factors. Finally, we provide evidence that strategies based on information in recommendations deliver statistically significant positive abnormal rates of return.
Selected Techniques of Detecting Structural Breaks in Financial Volatility
Authors: Stawiarski Bartosz
Published: February 2017

We investigate several promising algorithms, proposed in literature, devised to detect sudden changes (structural breaks) in the volatility of financial time series. Comparative study of three techniques: ICSS, NPCPM and Cheng’s algorithm is carried out via numerical simulation in the case of simulated T-GARCH models and two real series, namely German and US stock indices. Simulations show that the NPCPM algorithm is superior to ICSS because is not over-sensitive either to heavy tails of market returns or to their serial dependence. Some signals generated by ICSS are falsely classified as structural breaks in volatility, while Cheng’s technique works well only when a single break occurs.
The Momentum Effect Exemplifies The Influence of Investors’ Irrational Behaviour on Changing Prices of Shares and Stocks: An Analysis of The Momentum Effect on The Warsaw Stock Exchange
Authors: Merło Paweł , Konarzewski Patryk
Published: February 2017

An efficient market should not show any anomalies. When new information reaches a market which is efficient, it should automatically translate into prices of assets, which ought to eliminate the possibility of gaining an advantage over other investors, thus preventing excess profits. However, studies on capital markets indicate that in reality it is possible to earn unusually high profits by taking advantage of certain anomalies which occur on a given market. Among such anomalies there is the momentum effect. This study performed on the Stock Exchange in Warsaw has shown that the momentum effect occurred throughout the entire analyzed time period. Positive returns demonstrated for investment strategies based on the momentum effect were unexplainable by the classical theory of finances. A correlation was found between the economic situation on the stock exchange and portfolio return rates, but it was too weak to attribute the effect to a single decisive factor. In addition, the returns from investments based on the momentum effect were statistically higher in January than in the other months, which was caused by the January effect, stimulating the occurrence of statistically higher returns at the beginning of a year rather than later on during the analyzed period of time. Research in this field carried out in other countries justifies the claim that there are many irrational factors which together create the momentum effect on the stock exchange. Thus, it is possible to conclude that irrational decisions may have strong impact on the pricing of stocks on the capital market. The momentum effect persisted throughout the entire analyzed period, although its power changed cyclically, which coincides with results of research carried out in other countries. The fact that the momentum effect did not disappear may suggest that the factors involved in its creation are an indispensable part of the market, and this seems to undermine the commonly accepted hypothesis about the efficiency of capital markets.
Measurement and Analysis of the Efficiency of Human Capital in a Small Enterprise in Poland
Authors: Bagieńska Anna
Published: February 2017

Human capital plays an important role in the development of every company. Big enterprises have a Human Resources Department which conducts analyses and measurements of human capital. In Poland over 90% of the total number of companies is made up of small and middle-size enterprises. The aim of the research is to determine reasons why small Polish companies take an interest in the measurement and analysis of human capital as well as to discover the causes of their limited use of human capital measurement. The results confirmed that limited measurement and analysis of human capital efficiency in small companies results from the lack of additional information; apart from this it results from the binding legal regulations as well as the lack of employees who possess the knowledge necessary for conducting such analyses. Despite barriers and difficulties in human capital measurement, small companies appreciate employees and their qualification, not treating them only as a necessary cost of their doing business.
Is Poland Still Attractive for Foreign Investments?
Authors: Jasiniak Magdalena
Published: February 2017

Since the economic transition Poland has faced many changes. Accession to the European Union improved the Polish economy and made it more attractive for foreign investments. Since 2004 Poland has been one of the major destinations of FDI in East and Central Europe Countries. Also during the global economic crisis Poland was a good location for foreign capital. The main aim of this article is an attempt to assess whether Poland is still attractive for the location of foreign direct investment. This article is a preliminary study. It is based on statistical analysis describing changes in foreign capital flows in Poland and its position in relation to other European Union countries. Results show that the position of Poland on the map of foreign investment has dramatically changed.
Data Mining Approach in Determining the Relationships Between the Economy and the General Government Sector Size
Authors: Skica Tomasz , Rodzinka Jacek , Mroczek Teresa
Published: February 2017

This article is dedicated to a study of the relations between the economy and the size of the general government sector. The main aim of the article is an identification of the most important variables that are used to determine relations between the economy and size of the sector, as well as to identify frequency of their occurrences in relations to pairs of variables which describe an economy and the size of the sector. In order to explore these relations, the authors used Bayes networks. The economies of EU member states and their public finance systems were the object of analyses in this article. The period that was selected for the research covered the years 2000-2013 (inclusive). In order to describe economies, the authors selected 18 variables, whereas to describe the general government sector - 15 variables. These variables were sourced from databases of Eurostat, OECD and the World Bank. Among an economy’s measures and general government sector measures, there were also some benchmarks found (standard and classic) as well as measures proposed by the authors, which had not been used in the scientific descriptions that were dedicated to research on size of the general government sector. Ipso facto, this article fits in the discussion on not only the size of the general government sector, but also attempts to answer the question of whether the economy determines the size of the sector. To date, the research questions on the impact of the size of the general government sector on the economy of a particular country have been common. This article inverts the investigated dependence and its content concentrates on the attempt to determine if the size of the sector in a particular country is a function of its economy expressed by ratios adopted in conducted the research.
Gant Development SA – The Effectiveness of Bankruptcy Prediction Models in Case of Sudden Bankruptcy. Case Study
Authors: Dzyuma-Zaremba Ulyana
Published: February 2017

Company bankruptcies are an inseparable element of market economy. We may observe the tendency to view bankruptcy as a problem of weak and usually small entities facing problems when trying to meet the challenge posed by strong competition. Big companies, however, also fall, and their bankruptcy cannot be predicted by even the most experienced analysts. The aim of the article is to examine the effectiveness of the bankruptcy prediction models in case of sudden bankruptcies, on the example of Gant Development S.A. The author attempts to classify the real estate developer’s bankruptcy as “staged” bankruptcy by performing an analysis of company activities in the period of 2010-2013. The study was conducted using Polish models of linear discriminant analysis, widely popular in the Polish literature as well as the models which reflect the branch specificity of the examined entity.
Day-of-the-Week Effect among the Smallest Enterprises Listed on WSE
Authors: Keller Jakub
Published: February 2017

The text touches on the subject of the financial markets in the context of behavioral theories. The author attempts to verify the occurrence of one of the popular calendar effects, the day-of-the- -week effect, on the Polish stock market. Another limitation of the study area of the research is to include in the analysis only small companies. Many voices from the mainstream of behavioral finance say that the presence of anomalies listed is more evident in the case of small companies, which are not the focus of the majority of investors. In the proposed study, the data used contained companies in the Stock Exchange in Warsaw, with a maximum capitalization of 10 million PLN. Research sample includes quotations of these companies during the period January 2010-April 2014. In order to verify the hypothesis of the occurrence of the day-of-the-week effect among these companies the author used ARCH modeling. In the course of the analysis the author verified negatively the occurrence of the effect of weekdays in the proposed research sample.
Pakistan-EU Commodity Trade: Is there Evidence of J-Curve Effect?
Authors: Bahmani-Oskooee Mohsen , Iqbal Javed , Muzammil Muhammad
Published: February 2017

In investigating the short run and the long run impact of currency depreciation on Pakistan’s trade balance, previous studies have either relied on using bilateral trade data between Pakistan and her trade partners or between Pakistan and the rest of the world and have found not much support for successful depreciation. Suspecting that these studies may suffer from aggregation bias, in this paper we use disaggregated trade data at commodity level from 77 industries that trade between Pakistan and EU. While we find short-run significant effects in 22 industries, these effects do not last into the long run in most industries. Most of the affected industries are found to be small, as measured by their trade shares.
Projectivity, affine, similarity and euclidean coordinates transformation parameters from ITRF to EUREF in Turkey
Authors: Ansari Kutubuddin , Corumluoglu Ozsen , Yetkin Mevlut
Published: February 2017

Today, in geodesy most practical applications is to use a datum to get three dimensional position of a particular point. The geodetic techniques generally provide time dependent coordinates in global datum. The difference between the global datum like international terrestrial reference frame (ITRF) to local datum like Europe fixed reference frame (EUREF) can be up to several centimeters due to different velocity rate of tectonic plates. To get high-precision measurements, there is an increasing need of time dependent transformations from the global level to local level. The present paper treats, this theoretical problem of geodesy by using mathematical dependency between two spatial coordinate systems whose common points are given in both systems. The paper describes four different (projective, affine, similarity and euclidean) modified methodologies for the transformation between global (ITRF) to local (EUREF) by using the Turkish permanent GPS network (TPGN) as an example. The time series from TPGN stations are used to review these transformations from ITRF 2008 to EUREF 2008. The transformation parameters in all cases shows that mostly transform coordinates depends on its counterparts (X to x and Y to y) and others coordinates have very less effect. Finally to show the validity of our model a comparative analysis with standard Bursa-Wolf and Molodensky-Badekas models has been presented. The test shows that our model error is equivalent to standard models, in this view the presented models are acceptable and can improve our understanding in coordinate transformation.
Comparative studies on the performance of porous Ti/Sno2-Sb2O3/Pbo2 enhanced by CNT and Bi Co-doped electrodes for methyl orange oxidation
Authors: Zhao Wei , Xing Juntao , Chen Donghui , Shen Jia
Published: February 2017

Three novel, modified PbO
Selective Fenton-like catalytic oxidation of acid orange II on inorganic heterogeneous molecular imprinted catalysts
Authors: Song Yanqun , Shang Jiaobo , Rong Chuan , Wang Yinghui , Zhang Yuanyuan , Yu Kefu , Chen Liyuan
Published: February 2017

In order to realize the selective oxidation of Fenton-like reaction, an inorganic molecularly imprinted Fe/Al/SiO
The Financial-Economic Aspect of the Media and the Public Service in the Globalization Era (Budget and Ownership Framework)
Authors: Rutovic Zeljko
Published: February 2017

This study deals with influence of globalization on the economic aspect of the media. Financing the media and the issue of ownership over them represents the fundamental framework on which basis the media work and direct their editorial policy. Principle position implies that owners of the media use power of media to promote their economic, political, cultural and other stances. A particular issue, especially in European countries in transition, represents the financing of public service, as a socially beneficial good. Many commercial media, on the basis of their financial and political power, are trying to diminish or discredit the power and role of the public service. Former socialist countries, now countries in transition, seek from their national budgets to maintain this kind of informing, that is, the public interest, education and promoting cultural values. The era of globalization brought, as one of its negative traits, the domination of profit over culture, education, and even over the right to have quality informing. So the mass media have become a sort of hostage of confrontation of different political and economic interests, which reflects on the quality of media content that strive towards sensationalism, advertocracy, tabloidization. Based on the case study of Montenegro, as a country in transition, the development of mass media is shown, including their financing, ownership structure, and profit.
Structural, optical and dielectric studies of lithium sulphate monohydrate single crystals
Authors: Najar F.A. , Vakil G.B. , Want B.
Published: February 2017

Optical, dielectric, and thermal properties of lithium sulphate monohydrate crystals grown by slow evaporation method have been studied. The crystal structure was resolved by direct methods using single crystal X-ray diffraction data collected at room temperature and refined by full-matrix least-squares procedures to a final R-value of 0.0174. Plasma energy, Penn gap, Fermi energy and electronic polarizability of the grown crystal were calculated from single crystal XRD data. The electronic polarizability of lithium sulfate monohydrate was also calculated and compared with the theoretical data using Clausius-Mossotti equation. Optical band gap calculated from optical data for the grown crystal is 4.49 eV. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy study confirmed the presence of water in the crystal structure. The AC conductivity, dielectric constant and dielectric loss of the grown crystal were systemically investigated, showing a peak at about 130 °C which could be attributed to the water molecules in the crystal structure. The anomalous dielectric properties shown by the crystal have been correlated with its thermal behavior. The title crystal obeys Jonscher’s power law relation; σ(ω) = σo+ Aωs, with temperature dependent exponent s < 1. The activation energy calculated for the material is 0.24 eV and suggests protonic conduction by hopping mechanism in addition to cationic conduction by lithium ions. The micro-indentation study was also carried out which revealed that the crystal belongs to a category of soft materials.
Weblogs and Journalism
Authors: Domingo David , Heinonen Ari
Published: February 2017

From the perspective of journalism, weblogs can be seen as a new category of news and current affairs communication. Although most weblogs do not even pretend to be journalistic or related to current events in the sense shared by institutional media, when bloggers approach the arena of journalism, some of their working principles can challenge traditional professional standards: Conversation with the audience, transparency in the reporting process or even participatory news production are common in blogging. By challenging the conventional understanding of what journalism is, weblogs have revitalized the voices that expect a paradigm shift in journalism in the Internet era. In order to contribute to the debate on the influences of weblogs on journalism and make it more systematic, we propose a typology of journalistic weblogs, along a continuum ranging from the least to the most institutionalized in terms of their relationship to the established media: At one end, we find weblogs produced by the public outside media companies, and at the other end, we find those that are part of media content and produced by professional staff journalists. We argue that weblogs are a symbol of the ongoing change in the relationship between citizens, media and journalists - a change that questions the basic assumptions of the traditional roles of institutional journalism.
Issues of Gender Equality and Diversity in Broadcast News Policy
Authors: Widestedt Kristina
Published: February 2017

The objective of this article is to investigate the relationship between concerns for diversity and concerns for gender equality in broadcasting companies from Sweden, the UK and the US. This is carried out through analyses of policy documents accessible on the companies’ websites. The contents of the policies and their definitions of diversity are discussed in a context of gender equality and multiculturalism. The concluding results of the study indicate national differences in definitions and applications of diversity, but also, and more importantly, a similar tendency in all three countries to subordinate concerns for gender equality to concerns for diversity.
Regaining Impact
Authors: Erstad Ola , Gilje Øystein
Published: February 2017

Media education is regaining its impact in Norwegian education, both due to the development of a new subject at the upper secondary level and due to a renewed interest in media literacy across the curriculum. From being defined as a marginal issue in educational curricula and development during the 1980s and 1990s, media literacy has now become a key concern linked to technological developments in the Nordic societies over the past ten years. With the Norwegian context as a point of departure, the present article looks especially at media literacy as an expression of certain practices, and at how media education represents a distinctive prerequisite for understanding what young people do with media outside and inside the schools. The article presents results from the first national survey on media education in Norwegian upper secondary schools. A special focus is directed towards the diverse production practices among what are called “school producers” (SP) and “crossover producers” (CP).
Watching Politics
Authors: Engelstad Audun
Published: February 2017

What can fictional television drama tell us about politics? Are political events foremost related to the personal crises and victories of the on-screen characters, or can the events reveal some insights about the decision-making process itself? Much of the writing on popular culture sees the representation of politics in film and television as predominately concerned with how political aspects are played out on an individual level. Yet the critical interest in the successful television series The West Wing praises how the series gives insights into a wide range of political issues, and its depiction of the daily work of the presidential staff. The present article discusses ways of representing (fictional) political events and political issues in serialized television drama, as found in The West Wing, At the King’s Table and The Crown Princess.
End-game Strategies in the Swedish National Tabloid Industry
Authors: Gustafsson Karl Erik
Published: February 2017

Based on decades of comparative research on the national tabloid industry in the Nordic countries, a forecast is made, based on the product life cycle (PLC) theory, that the Swedish national tabloid industry will decline. As PLC theory is a blunt forecasting instrument, every precaution is taken; still a forecast is made that the No.2 tabloid will lose the present endgame to the market leader and disappear in 5-10 years time. End-game strategies as well as exit barriers are discussed in detail. The conclusions are valid for the national tabloid industries in the other Nordic countries following the same pattern of development. In passing, the question is raised of whether Internet publishing will change the rules of the game.