bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Novel Scoring System Based on Fibrinogen and the Neutrophil-Lymphocyte Ratio as a Predictor of Chemotherapy Response and Prognosis in Patients with Advanced Gastric Cancer
Authors: Arigami Takaaki , Uenosono Yoshikazu , Ishigami Sumiya , Okubo Keishi , Kijima Takashi , Yanagita Shigehiro , Okumura Hiroshi , Uchikado Yasuto , Kijima Yuko , Nakajo Akihiro , Kurahara Hiroshi , Kita Yoshiaki , Mori Shinichiro , Maemura Kosei , Natsugoe Shoji
Published: March 2016

Objective: We assessed the clinical applicability of the F-NLR score, which is based on fibrinogen (F) and the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and the Glasgow Prognostic Score (GPS) to predict the therapeutic effects of chemotherapy or chemoradiotherapy on advanced gastric cancer and the prognoses of patients. Methods: Sixty-eight patients with advanced gastric cancer treated with first-line chemotherapy or chemoradiotherapy were classified into two groups based on tumor response. Furthermore, we categorized patients according to cutoff F-NLR scores of 2 [hyperfibrinogenemia (>400 mg/dl) and high NLR (>3.0)], 1 [one of these hematological abnormalities], and 0 [neither hyperfibrinogenemia nor high NLR]. Results: A total of 27 patients had progressive disease (PD) and 41 did not. The F-NLR scores were significantly higher in the PD than in the non-PD group (p = 0.003). Survival was significantly shorter for patients with high F-NLR scores and GPS (p = 0.0071 and p = 0.0065, respectively). Multivariate analysis selected the F-NLR score as an independent prognostic factor (p = 0.017). Conclusion: A novel grading system based on F-NLR scores, as well as the GPS, appears to have value as a clinical predictor of the therapeutic response of advanced gastric cancer to chemotherapy or chemoradiotherapy and the prognoses of patients.
Generalized Arterial Calcification in a Recipient Twin: Discordant Fetal Hemodynamics Result in Differing Phenotypes in Monozygotic Twins with an ABCC6 Mutation
Authors: Votava-Smith Jodie K. , Pitukcheewanont Pisit , Randolph Linda M. , Chmait Ramen H.
Published: March 2016

Recipients of the twin-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) often develop cardiac manifestations, but arterial calcification has rarely been reported. Generalized arterial calcification of infancy (GACI) is a genetic disorder with high infantile mortality. We report the case of a TTTS recipient with moderate cardiomyopathy at diagnosis who developed progressive calcification of the pulmonary arteries and aorta after successful in utero laser therapy. Postnatally, both twins were diagnosed with a heterozygous ABCC6 gene mutation associated with GACI. The recipient had progressive supravalvular pulmonary and aortic stenosis, was treated with bisphosphonate therapy, and successfully underwent cardiac surgery at 4 months of age. The donor twin with the same mutation remained phenotypically normal at 15 months of age. This case illustrates monozygotic fetuses with discordant in utero hemodynamics, with subsequent development of phenotypic differences. TTTS recipients with arterial calcifications should undergo genetic testing for GACI.
Transformation of the Mustard Seed and Leaven in the Gospel of Luke
Authors: Bryan David K.
Published: March 2016

Interpretation of the parables of the mustard seed and leaven have often focused on what these parables tell us about the kingdom of God, rather than why or how they are employed in a specific Gospel for the benefit of the Gospel’s audience. This article explores the meaning and function of the parables of the mustard seed and leaven in Luke’s Gospel in light of their unique narrative co-text and metaphorical context. Such analysis reveals that Luke employs these parables as metaphors of transformation, exhorting the hearer to choose the kingdom of God or risk the consequences of rejecting it.
Functional morphology of the feeding and associated appendages of the detritivore-collector atyid shrimps, Caridina cantonensis and Caridina trifasciata — a scanning electron microscopy study
Authors: Yam Rita S. W.
Published: March 2016

The present study used Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) to examine the functional morphology of the feeding and associated appendages of the detritivore-collector atyid shrimps Caridina cantonensis Yu, 1938 and C. trifasciata Yam & Cai, 2003. The third maxillipedes of both species are equipped with serrate setae ending in a terminal pore, which setae may thus serve both as mechano- and chemo-receptors. Pereiopods 1 and 2 have dense, long, simple setae and single-rowed serrate setae for effective brushing fine-particulate organic matter and scraping periphyton from the substratum. Pereiopods 3 and 4 are heavily armed with large cuspidate setae and with simple type setae, which can be used for food collection or providing strong anchorage. The dactylus of pereiopod 5 is oval, flattened, and equipped with serrate setae on the ventral margin. In contrast to the suspension-feeding Atya innocuous (Herbst, 1792), Caridina spp. show a lower setal diversity, while all setal types on the pereiopods are mechano-receptors, being specialized for collecting food.
Steinernema nguyeni n. sp. (Rhabditida: Steinernematidae), a new entomopathogenic nematode from South Africa
Authors: Malan Antoinette P. , Knoetze Rinus , Tiedt Louwrens R.
Published: March 2016

Steinernema nguyenin. sp. was recovered by baiting from beneath anOlea africanatree in South Africa. The combination of morphological and molecular features suggests thatS. nguyenin. sp. is a member of thefeltiae-kraussei-oregonensegroup, clustering with members of this group in Clade III. The new species is morphologically characterised by the infective juvenile body length of 737 (673-796) μm and the number of ridges in the infective juvenile lateral field is 2, 8, 2. The male of the first generation can be recognised by the spicule length of 66 (58-75) μm and a gubernaculum length of 43 (30-55) μm. The first generation female can be recognised by the vulval lips only slightly protruding and the presence of low, double-flapped epiptygmata. Analysis of the ITS and D2-D3 regions of the ribosomal DNA confirms thatS. nguyenin. sp. differs from all other knownSteinernemaspecies.
The Korean War in History and Historiography
Authors: Lee Steven Hugh
Published: March 2016

This article reviews the 2014 book co-edited by Donald W. Boose, Jr. and James I. Matray, The Ashgate Research Companion to the Korean War. The essay evaluates the book in relation to the historiography of the Korean conflict, outlines areas where future research needs to be carried out, reflects on methodological issues related to the field of military history, and, with reference to Michael Hunt and Steven Levine’s book, Arc of Empire, discusses the Korean War as part of broader histories of empire.
Ramón Magsaysay—the Myth and the Man
Authors: Prescott James R.
Published: March 2016

Ramón Magsaysay became a phenomenon in Philippine politics after World War ii. In less than a decade, he rose from managing a bus company to governing his homeland. Magsaysay died tragically in a plane crash near the end of his only term as president and students of Philippine affairs have been left to speculate about what might have been a different subsequent course of affairs in this Southeast Asian nation. This paper argues that the so-called “Magsaysay Myth”—the idea that the United States installed him in office to transform his country’s government and politics—is not convincing. u.s. policy makers with experience in the Philippines, including President Dwight D. Eisenhower, remained skeptical that he could achieve fundamental change in his country in a short period of time. Despite Magsaysay’s great success as secretary of defense, he was less effective enacting reforms as president. However, he did not “sellout” to the Philippine economic and political elite. Rather, his relative ineffectiveness resulted from his lack of political experience and the well-organized opposition to reforms in the legislature.
“Plunged in the like peril”: The Power of Remembered and Dismembered Bodies in Robert Southwell’s Epistle unto His Father
Authors: Bouchard Gary M.
Published: March 2016

The text of Epistle of Robert Southwell unto His Father is populated by bodies: the body politic that is the omnipresent Elizabethan state, the body of the Southwell family on behalf of whom Southwell claims to make his appeal, the body of the Catholic Church from which Richard Southwell is presently separated, and most significantly the body of Christ to which the young priest would have his father reunited. The detachment of father and son from these various bodies, and consequently from one another, is the reason for the letter’s existence as well as the foundation of its arguments and the source of its considerable drama. This essay argues that the artful persuasiveness of the Epistle lies in the simultaneity of its rhetorical appeals to both a private and public audience, appeals which are strengthened by the author’s awareness of the divided bodies he addresses, and his subsequent decision to deploy a provocative interplay between the actions of remembering and dismembering throughout his text.
Thermal properties and thermal degradation kinetics of phenolic and wood flour-reinforced phenolic foams
Authors: Domínguez JC , del Saz-Orozco B , Oliet M , Alonso MV , Rodriguez F
Published: March 2016

In the present work, the thermal stability, changes in chemical structure during thermal degradation, and the kinetics of thermal degradation of a phenolic foam were studied. An 8.5 wt% of Pinus radiata wood flour reinforcement was added to the phenolic foam. A commercial phenolic resol was used as the matrix for the foam. The wood flour-reinforced foam showed a structure similar to the phenolic foam according to the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy results. The wood flour increased the thermal stability of the phenolic foam in the first stage of thermal degradation ( T 5%), decreased it in the second step ( T 25%), and negligibly influenced the final stage. The activation energies of the degradation processes of the studied materials were obtained by the Kissinger-Akahira-Sunose and Flynn-Wall-Ozawa model-free kinetic methods and a 2-Gaussian distributed activation energy model. The values of the activation energies obtained by the model-free kinetic methods for the first degradation stage of the phenolic foams were in a range between 110 and 170 kJ mol−1, whereas for the wood flour it was 162 kJ mol−1 for almost all of the conversion range of its main degradation stage. The applied models showed good fits for all the materials, and the activation energies calculated were in agreement with the values found in the literature.
Development and characterization of novel polybutylene nanocomposites
Authors: Alfadhel Khaled , Al-Mulla Adam , Al-Busairi Bader
Published: March 2016

Polybutylene/starch/nanoclay composite blends were prepared by melt extrusion technique. Maleic anhydride grafted polybutylene was used as a compatibilizer. The nanocomposites were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, rheological, and mechanical analysis. Addition of compatibilizer to the polybutylene/starch/nanoclay showed dispersion and nucleation related to the nanoclay in the polybutylene matrix. An increase in the mechanical properties like modulus and tensile strength at break and a decrease in the elongation at break were observed on the addition of compatibilizer to the matrix compared to that of uncompatibilized matrix. The biodegradability of the nanocomposites was studied using the landfill burial test. The blends subjected to the burial test were evaluated for their tensile properties. The results revealed that the tensile strength and elongation at break of the compatibilized nanocomposites decreased after 80 days of land burial test compared to the initial period.
The Role of Regulatory Fit in Framing Effective Negative Feedback Across Cultures
Authors: Kung Franki Y. H. , Kim Young-Hoon , Yang Daniel Y.-J. , Cheng Shirley Y. Y.
Published: March 2016

Giving effective negative feedback is not only important but also challenging. Often people struggle as to how; and perhaps even more so when the feedback receiver comes from a different culture . Building on the regulatory fit theory, the current research examined how negative feedback framing (gain- vs. loss framed) would affect feedback receivers’ motivation as a function of their regulatory focus. We found that European Americans were in general more promotion-focused than Chinese (Study 1) and Indians (Study 2), such that promotion-focused (vs. prevention-focused) participants showed higher motivation after receiving gain-framed (vs. loss-framed) negative feedback. Across two studies, with student and work samples, our findings answered the question of how to give more effective negative feedback and suggested that regulatory fit can be a universal strategy for increasing motivation across the East and West.
Handedness in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder
Authors: Knaus Tracey A. , Kamps Jodi , Foundas Anne L.
Published: March 2016

The left hemisphere is usually predominant in manual skills and language, suggesting a link between hand dominance and language. Studies of autism spectrum disorder show atypical handedness; however, few have examined language-handedness associations. Handedness, assessed by task performance, and standardized receptive and expressive language tests were completed in 110 autism spectrum disorder children (96 boys; M age = 8.3 years, SD = 3.8) and 45 typically developing children (37 boys; M age = 8.6 years, SD = 4.3), 3 to 17 years of age. The autism spectrum disorder group had a lower handedness score (was less strongly lateralized) than the control group. In the autism spectrum disorder group, there was a small effect of handedness on language; right-handers had better language than non-right-handers. Results suggest poorer language prognosis may be associated with left- or mixed-handedness in autism spectrum disorder.
“That’s Not Real India”
Authors: Somani Indira S. , Doshi Marissa J.
Published: March 2016

This study examined the portrayal of women on Indian soap operas through content analysis. Quotes from in-depth interviews of 100 Asian Indians (50 couples) from five major metropolitan areas, NY, DC, SF, Chicago, and Houston, who watch Indian television (imported from India) via the satellite dish or cable, were used in this study. Researchers uncovered specific themes, such as Portrayal of women, Heterosexual Romance and Intimacy, and Joint Family, and analyzed these themes against the theoretical framework of cultural proximity. The authors explained that the role of Indian women being created in Indian serials did not reflect the image of Indian women the participants remembered when they migrated to the United States in the 1960s. The image of Indian women that was being portrayed was that of a “vamp” or someone manipulative and not family-oriented. Therefore, the cultural proximity of the Indian soap operas was disrupted by the negative portrayal of Indian women to a particular generation of Indian immigrants in the United States. The participants appreciated the image of a modern Indian woman, as long as she still maintained traditional values. Further, these portrayals reminded these participants that they were cultural outsiders in modern India.
Delayed ALK5 inhibition improves functional recovery in neonatal brain injury
Authors: Guardia Clausi Mariano , Levison Steven W
Published: March 2016

Neuroinflammation subsequent to developmental brain injury contributes to a wave of secondary neurodegeneration and to reactive astrogliosis that can inhibit oligodendrocyte progenitor differentiation and subsequent myelination. Here we evaluated the therapeutic efficacy of a small molecule antagonist for a TGFß receptor in a model of moderate perinatal hypoxia-ischemia (H-I). Osmotic pumps containing SB505124, an antagonist of the type 1 TGFß1 receptor ALK5, or vehicle, were implanted three days after H-I induced at postnatal day 6. Perinatal H-I induced selective neuronal death, ventriculomegaly, elevated CNS levels of IL-6 and IL-1α, astrogliosis, and fewer proliferating oligodendrocyte progenitors. Myelination was reduced by ∼50%. Anterograde tracing revealed extensive axonal loss in the corticospinal tract. These alterations correlated with functional impairments across a battery of behavioral tests. All of these parameters were brought back towards normal levels with SB505124 treatment. Notably, SB505124 preserved neurons in the hippocampus and thalamus. Our results indicate that inhibiting ALK5 signaling, even as late as three days after injury, creates an environment that is more permissive for oligodendrocyte maturation and myelination producing significant improvements in neurological outcome. This new therapeutic would be especially appropriate for moderately preterm asphyxiated infants, for whom there is presently no FDA approved neuroprotective therapeutic.
Factors Affecting Physicians’ Intentions to Communicate Personalized Prognostic Information to Cancer Patients at the End of Life
Authors: Han Paul K. J. , Dieckmann Nathan F. , Holt Christina , Gutheil Caitlin , Peters Ellen
Published: March 2016

Purpose. To explore the effects of personalized prognostic information on physicians’ intentions to communicate prognosis to cancer patients at the end of life, and to identify factors that moderate these effects. Methods. A factorial experiment was conducted in which 93 family medicine physicians were presented with a hypothetical vignette depicting an end-stage gastric cancer patient seeking prognostic information. Physicians’ intentions to communicate prognosis were assessed before and after provision of personalized prognostic information, while emotional distress of the patient and ambiguity (imprecision) of the prognostic estimate were varied between subjects. General linear models were used to test the effects of personalized prognostic information, patient distress, and ambiguity on prognostic communication intentions, and potential moderating effects of 1) perceived patient distress, 2) perceived credibility of prognostic models, 3) physician numeracy (objective and subjective), and 4) physician aversion to risk and ambiguity. Results. Provision of personalized prognostic information increased prognostic communication intentions ( P < 0.001, η2 = 0.38), although experimentally manipulated patient distress and prognostic ambiguity had no effects. Greater change in communication intentions was positively associated with higher perceived credibility of prognostic models ( P = 0.007, η2 = 0.10), higher objective numeracy ( P = 0.01, η2 = 0.09), female sex ( P = 0.01, η2 = 0.08), and lower perceived patient distress ( P = 0.02, η2 = 0.07). Intentions to communicate available personalized prognostic information were positively associated with higher perceived credibility of prognostic models ( P = 0.02, η2 = 0.09), higher subjective numeracy ( P = 0.02, η2 = 0.08), and lower ambiguity aversion ( P = 0.06, η2 = 0.04). Conclusions. Provision of personalized prognostic information increases physicians’ prognostic communication intentions to a hypothetical end-stage cancer patient, and situational and physician characteristics moderate this effect. More research is needed to confirm these findings and elucidate the determinants of prognostic communication at the end of life.
Extracranial injections of botulinum neurotoxin type A inhibit intracranial meningeal nociceptors’ responses to stimulation of TRPV1 and TRPA1 channels: Are we getting closer to solving this puzzle?
Authors: Zhang XiChun , Strassman Andrew M , Novack Victor , Brin Mitchell F , Burstein Rami
Published: March 2016

Background

Administration of onabotulinumtoxinA (BoNT-A) to peripheral tissues outside the calvaria reduces the number of days chronic migraine patients experience headache. Because the headache phase of a migraine attack, especially those preceded by aura, is thought to involve activation of meningeal nociceptors by endogenous stimuli such as changes in intracranial pressure (i.e. mechanical) or chemical irritants that appear in the meninges as a result of a yet-to-be-discovered sequence of molecular/cellular events triggered by the aura, we sought to determine whether extracranial injections of BoNT-A alter the chemosensitivity of meningeal nociceptors to stimulation of their intracranial receptive fields.

Material and methods

Using electrophysiological techniques, we identified 161 C- and 135 Aδ-meningeal nociceptors in rats and determined their mechanical response threshold and responsiveness to chemical stimulation of their dural receptive fields with TRPV1 and TRPA1 agonists seven days after BoNT-A administration to different extracranial sites. Two paradigms were compared: distribution of 5 U BoNT-A to the lambdoid and sagittal sutures alone, and 1.25 U to the sutures and 3.75 U to the temporalis and trapezius muscles.

Results

Seven days after it was administered to tissues outside the calvaria, BoNT-A inhibited responses of C-type meningeal nociceptors to stimulation of their intracranial dural receptive fields with the TRPV1 agonist capsaicin and the TRPA1 agonist mustard oil. BoNT-A inhibition of responses to capsaicin was more effective when the entire dose was injected along the suture lines than when it was injected into muscles and sutures. As in our previous study, BoNT-A had no effect on non-noxious mechanosensitivity of C-fibers or on responsiveness of Aδ-fibers to mechanical and chemical stimulation.

Discussion

This study demonstrates that extracranial administration of BoNT-A suppresses meningeal nociceptors’ responses to stimulation of their intracranial dural receptive fields with capsaicin and mustard oil. The findings suggest that surface expression of TRPV1 and TRPA1 channels in dural nerve endings of meningeal nociceptors is reduced seven days after extracranial administration of BoNT-A. In the context of chronic migraine, reduced sensitivity to molecules that activate meningeal nociceptors through the TRPV1 and TRPA1 channels can be important for BoNT-A’s ability to act as a prophylactic.
Modification of Knee Flexion Angle Has Patient-Specific Effects on Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury Risk Factors During Jump Landing
Authors: Favre Julien , Clancy Caitlin , Dowling Ariel V. , Andriacchi Thomas P.
Published: March 2016

Background:

The incidence of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries may be decreased through the use of intervention programs that focus on increasing the knee flexion angle during jump landing, which decreases strain on the ACL.

Purpose:

To investigate whether intervention training designed to change the knee flexion angle during landing causes secondary changes in other known measures associated with the risk of ACL injuries and to examine the time points when these secondary measures change.

Study Design:

Controlled laboratory study.

Methods:

A total of 39 healthy recreational athletes performed a volleyball block jump task in an instrumented gait laboratory. The participants first completed the jumps without any modification to their normal landing technique. They were then given oral instruction to land softly and to increase their knee flexion angle during landing. Lower body kinematics and kinetics were measured before and after the modification using an optoelectronic motion capture system.

Results:

The knee flexion angle after the modification significantly increased from 11.2° to 15.2° at initial contact and from 67.8° to 100.7° at maximum flexion, and the time between initial contact and maximum flexion increased from 177.4 to 399.4 milliseconds. The flexion modification produced a substantial reduction in vertical ground-reaction force (243.1 to 187.8 %BW) with a concomitant reduction in the maximum flexion moment. Interestingly, the flexion modification only affected the abduction angle and abduction moment for the group of participants that landed in an initial adducted position before the modification and had no significant effect on the group that landed in an abducted position.

Conclusion:

Increasing the knee flexion angle during jump landing may be an effective intervention to improve knee biomechanical risk factors associated with an ACL injury. However, the fact that the flexion modification only influenced critical risk factors (the abduction angle and abduction moment) in participants who initially landed in an adducted position suggests that the selection of interventions to prevent ACL injuries should account for patient-specific characteristics.

Clinical Relevance:

The study helps elucidate how increasing the knee flexion angle affects lower body biomechanics and provided evidence for the need to introduce patient-specific strategies for preventing ACL injuries.
The Golden Virtue of Eclecticism in Economics John R. Commons Award Lecture
Authors: Samuelson Paul A.
Published: March 2016

This award consists of no stipend for the recipient—rather travel money for graduate students presenting papers at the Meetings in 2001 and 2002 will be given in the name of the Commons award recipient.

As we all know, ODE exists to honor students. This year's Commons award winner has arguably had more influence on students during the past fifty years than any other economist. We all became acquainted with him when we were undergraduates—via a book simply titled Economics. When we first started graduate school we met him again with a book known as Foundations. And when we started course work in our fields, in field after field we encountered seminal papers he had written. For example: in Public Finance “The Pure Theory of Public Expenditure”; in International Economics “International Trade and the Equalization of Factor Prices.” The list goes on and on and on—but I won't.

It is my distinct privilege to be able to introduce this year's John R. Commons award winner: Prof. Paul Samuelson.
Back to Basics: Reserve Requirements and Money Stock Changes, 1929–1936
Authors: Stauffer Robert F.
Published: March 2016

This paper explains how the shift of deposits from nonmember banks and country banks to larger member banks increased the average or “effective” reserve requirement in the 1929–1936 period. The result was an inappropriate tightening of monetary conditions, along with liquidity problems for those banks most susceptible to failure. A basic money multiplier model is developed to help clarify the possible impact of increases in effective reserve requirements. The resulting perspective strengthens the usual charges against the Federal Reserve of monetary policy malfeasance during the Great Depression.
Qualitative and Quantitative Methods: A New Design for Introductory Economics
Authors: Zweig Michael , Dawes William
Published: March 2016

This paper describes and motivates a new approach to the introductory economics program. Beginning in 1997, a two semester introduction to economics has been offered at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Instead of the usual micro-macro sequence, the two courses reported in this paper each present a one-semester introduction to both micro and macro principles. They differ in that one course presents the material in a narrative approach that emphasizes the social content of economic categories and relationships. In the other, students learn to work with these categories using more formal mathematical and computer-based methods. This complementary approach strengthens the student's background for further study and exposes the student to notions of economics both as a social science and as an example of applied mathematics.
Foreign Trade Behavior in Thailand: Stable or Unstable?
Authors: Arize A. C. , Chooekawong P. , Prasanpanich V.
Published: March 2016

This paper analyzes the demand for import and export functions of Thailand. It provides new evidence on both cointegration and the stability of the long-run relationship between trade flows and their determinants. Cointegration analyses are based on the Johansen (1992, 1995) system approach and the FM-OLS by Phillips and Hansen (1990) technique. Evidence of stability is examined using two formal tests of the cointegration space by Hansen and Johansen (1993) and Hansen (1992). The major results show that there is a long-run equilibrium relationship between trade flows and their determinants. While the import demand function appears structurally stable, there is evidence of parameter instability in the export demand function.
Coase Theorems 1-2-3
Authors: Felder Joseph
Published: March 2016

Develops a pedagogical model so simple and powerful that students practically discover the three Coase Theorems for themselves. Three Theorems? Yes. Theorem One: In the absence of transaction costs, the initial allocation of rights between parties does not matter. Theorem Two: In the presence of transaction costs, the initial allocation of rights may matter; one initial allocation may be superior to another. The orem Three: In the presence of transaction costs, some distributions of limited rights may be superior to any that the parties could arrive at themselves through trade.
Long Run Aggregate Supply Verticality: Fact or Fiction?
Authors: Walker John F. , Vatter Harold G.
Published: March 2016

A presumed “long run” aggregate supply curve has become an accepted and widely incorporated construct in contemporary macroeconomics. Unfortunately, that theoretical model, with its vertical supply curve, has been subjected to hardly any empirical testing. The major thrust of the present analysis is to determine whether such testing will show if continued use of the concept is warranted as a virtual representation of the actual economy.

The critique herein stresses the necessity for a clock-time format to examine the empirical adequacy of the LRAS construct. Using an arbitrarily chosen four year, minimal, “long run” model period, divided into two appropriate biennia of stipulated change, the analysis finds the LRAS curve empirically unsupported over the crucial second biennia.
Determinants of Variations in Journal Publication Rates of Economists
Authors: Davis Joe C. , Patterson Debra Moore
Published: March 2016

We track a cohort of economists over a 16-year period following receipt of the Ph.D. Using a multivariate model, we assess the influence on publishing success before and after tenure of graduate school attended, dissertation topic, type of employer, gender, and co-authorship.
Nonlinear Dependence in Gold and Silver Futures: Is it Chaos?
Authors: Chatrath Arjun , Adrangi Bahram , Shank Todd
Published: March 2016

We test for the presence of low-dimensional chaotic structure in the gold and silver futures markets. While we find strong evidence of nonlinear dependencies, the evidence is not consistent with chaos. Our test results indicate that ARCH-type processes, with controls for contract-maturity effects, generally explain the nonlinearities in the data. We also make a case that employing seasonally adjusted price series is important to obtaining robust results via some of the existing tests for chaotic structure.
Extending Traditional Classroom Boundaries
Authors: Gillette David H.
Published: March 2016

Mainframe and networked computers provide faculty and students the opportunity to carry on classroom discussions, or conversations that might never take place, even after the bell rings. Internet and World Wide Web facilities provide additional sources of ideas and information and limitless opportunities for students to engage the world of economics outside the classroom. With examples of real world experiences using e-mail, electronic conferences, and the World Wide Web, this paper provides readers with an exposure to some of the uses as well as the costs and benefits associated with incorporating these types of electronic components into economics courses. Instructors who value the processes of discussion, dialogue, and public discourse and who are interested in incorporating these forms of electronic resources into their courses, whether serving small or large numbers of students, will find useful ideas for enhancing economics courses.
Does the Aggregate Demand Curve Suffer from the Fallacy of Composition?
Authors: Saltz Ira , Cantrell Pat , Horton Joseph
Published: March 2016

Colander (1995) identifies four main explanations of the inverse relationship between the price level and aggregate demand: the Pigou effect, the Keynes effect, the international price level effect, and the intertemporal price level effect. This paper examines whether any of these explanations can be justified. All four are found to at least potentially suffer from some form of the fallacy of composition. These problems are the result of the fallacious use of microeconomic principles to draw conclusions about the macroeconomy. The effect of price changes on aggregate demand appears to be ambiguous or negligible.
Abatement Expenditure Acts as an Environmental Investment: An Efficiency Wage Viewpoint
Authors: Lai Ching-Chong , Yang Chih-Yu , Kao Ming-Ruey
Published: March 2016

By presenting an efficiency wage model embodying intertemporal optimization, this paper proposes a channel to illustrate the willingness of firm's abatement activities. The idea is that worker's efficiency on working is positively related to his stock of health capital, and that abatement will raise the flow of health. The firm thus will treat the abatement expenditure as an environmental investment since it will raise the stock of health capital, and hence the working efficiency in the future. In addition, our model predicts that, when the authorities raise the subsidy on firm's abatement expenditure, the firm will raise both employment and abatement expenditures and lower its wage offer.
Factors Underlying Trends in Economics Majors: A Cause for Concern?
Authors: Skoorka Bruce M. , Condon Carol M.
Published: March 2016

This paper identifies factors that are important in explaining recent trends in undergraduate economics majors. The decline in economics majors during the nineteen-nineties has caused concern in the profession because the declining trend had been attributed to a general decrease in student interest in the economics major. This study uses least squares regression techniques to explain trends in economics Bachelor degrees granted by 20 New Jersey colleges and universities during the 1979–2000 period, with implications for the national level. The results show that trends in economics majors are primarily a function of demographic trends, business cycle conditions, and the desire to attend post-graduate professional school. Hence, the recent declining trend in the number of economics graduates may not be a cause for concern. [JEL A22,129, Z00]
Using Greek Mythology to Teach Game Theory
Authors: Miller James D. , Felton Debbie
Published: March 2016

This paper presents eight stories from classical Greek mythology which illustrate economic theories of truth inducement and separating equilibria. Since many students already have some familiarity with Greek mythology, these stories make ideal classroom examples.
Classification of 2X2 Games and Strategic Business Behavior
Authors: Wang X. Henry , Yang Bill Z.
Published: March 2016

This note discusses the classifications of general symmetric and anti-diagonally symmetric 2×2 games, illustrated with business-related examples. It also shows how 2×2 games can be used to explain and interpret business strategies such as “top dog,” “puppy dog,” “fat cat” and “lean-and-hungry look” (Fudenberg and Tirole, 1984). A strategic move basically changes a prisoner's dilemma game, coordination game or chicken game into one with a unique Nash equilibrium that favors the strategic player.
Competitive Balance and Free Agency in Major League Baseball
Authors: Fishman Peter
Published: March 2016

In 1976, the Basic Agreement introduced free agency to Major League Baseball; previously, the reserve clause gave a team indefinite monopsonistic rights to a player's services. Owners claimed that the new system would enable large market teams to destroy Major League Baseball's competitive balance. Coasian logic, however, would suggest that player allocation would not be affected by free agency. Because player distribution would not change, the Coase Theorem implies that free agency should have no effect on competitive balance. My paper tests this claim by developing an econometric model of competitive balance in Major League Baseball.
Personal Financial Planning: Origins, Developments and a Plan for Future Direction
Authors: Altfest Lewis
Published: March 2016

Personal financial planning (PFP) is a fairly new and growing discipline. Its origins are in the underacknowledged contribution by Modigliani, and by Becker and Markowitz. PFP deserves academic recognition and additional academic research in the area. It would be extremely useful if a separate personal financial planning theory were articulated. The author presents building blocks for that theory. Furthermore, PFP coursework and textbooks should be elevated in academic content to place them on a par with the corporate finance and investments areas. With proper support, PFP is likely to achieve the greater prominence it deserves alongside other well-recognized academic financial areas and other professional disciplines.
Short-Term Output Fluctuations in Poland: An Application of the Is-Mp-As Model
Authors: Hsing Yu
Published: March 2016

This paper examines output fluctuations in Poland based on an extended IS-MP-AS model (Romer, 2000) and the Taylor rule (1993, 1998, 1999). Empirical results show that real output is negatively influenced by the expected inflation rate, the deficit/GDP ratio, and the euro interest rate while it is positively affected by real appreciation and stock prices. Policy implications are that expansionary fiscal policy would not generate expected outcomes and that the conventional approach of currency devaluation to stimulate the economy may not apply to Poland due to the National Bank of Poland's potential reaction to raise the interest rate.
The Determinants of Health Status in Sub-Saharan Africa (Ssa)
Authors: Fayissa Bichaka , Gutema Paulos
Published: March 2016

This study examines the determinants of health status (as measured by life expectancy at birth) in SSA based on the Grossman (1972) theoretical model which considers the economic (the ratio of health expenditure to GDP and the per capita food availability index), social (the illiteracy rate and alcohol consumption), and environmental factors (urbanization rate and carbon dioxide emission per capita index). The coefficients of the health status function are estimated by one-way and two-way panel data analyses.

The two-way random-effect model results suggest that a decrease in illiteracy rate and an increase in the food availability index are well positively associated with improvements in life expectancy at birth. Overall results also suggest that a health policy that may focus on the provision of health services, family planning programs, and emergency aids to the exclusion of other demographic issues may serve little in schemes aimed at improving the current health status of the region.
Upstream Mergers, Downstream Mergers, and Unionized Oligopoly
Authors: Chang Shu-Hua
Published: March 2016

In a duopolistic industry characterized by unobserved vertical contracts, and where there are two vertical chains with two upstream manufacturers selling to two downstream retailers, we show that the wage is jointly determined by the union and the firm through bargaining and that the wage bargaining power of the union under different regimes, regardless of whether an upstream merger or a downstream merger takes place, will determine the degree of the welfare damage effect. It is also found that an upstream or a downstream monopolist, regardless of whether it possesses the right to franchise, will exert no impact on the equilibrium outputs and total profit, and will only affect the distribution of profits within the vertical chain.
From Poverty to Obesity: Exploration of the Food Choice Constraint Model and the Impact of an Energy-Dense Food Tax
Authors: Martin Seth S.
Published: March 2016

Obesity has reached epidemic proportions in the United States and is disproportionately concentrated in poor populations. This paper explores the role that poverty may play in driving the present obesity epidemic. Current literature supports a food choice constraint model in which one's ability to purchase healthy foods falls with income in a standard budget constraint shift fashion because healthy foods (nonenergydense foods) are relatively costly. This model is reinforced by a biological preference for energy-dense foods. Theoretically, a tax on energy-dense food would reduce the prevalence of obesity, along with obesity-related disease, and therefore should be carefully considered by the American people.
The Price of Morals: An Empirical Investigation of Industry Sectors and Perceptions of Moral Satisfaction—Do Business Economists Pay for Morally Satisfying Employment?
Authors: Benedict Mary Ellen , McClough David , McClough Anita C.
Published: March 2016

Many factors contribute to choice of employment other than compensation. This study extends the current literature by testing whether a compensating differential exists in employment sectors deemed morally satisfying. Data from the 1998 salary survey of the National Association for Business Economics (NABE) and sector rankings addressing moral satisfaction provided by a sample of college students are used in a regression analysis. When we include a self-selection correction in the salary regression, business economists in the for-profit sector earned almost 150 percent more than their nonprofit counterparts, once controlling for the choice of employment sector and human capital variables. Average wages were economically and statistically higher for business economists situated in the middle and low moral satisfaction groupings compared to those in the high moral satisfaction sector. Results suggest a compensating differential for those employed in morally satisfying industry sectors.
Associate Professor Turnover at America's Public and Private Institutions of Higher Education
Authors: Nagowski Matthew P.
Published: March 2016

This paper uses data from the American Association of University Professor's annual salary survey to compute continuation rates for associate professors during the 1996–97 to 2001–2002 period. Findings demonstrate that average continuation rates are higher for private academic institutions than for public academic institutions in bachelors-level, masters-level and doctoral-level institutions. Furthermore, multivariate analysis finds that, all other things held equal, institutions with higher average faculty compensation have higher continuation rates. However, the magnitude of this relationship is not sufficient enough to warrant change in compensation policies at academic institutions, particularly between public and private institutions.
Hispanic Workers and Employer Sponsored Health Insurance
Authors: Paringer Lynn
Published: March 2016

Hispanic workers are particularly disadvantaged with respect to access to employer based health insurance. Low levels of education and correspondingly low earnings as well as language difficulties contribute to the limited access that Hispanic workers have to employer-sponsored health insurance. At the same time, Hispanic workers are often more stably employed than their non-Hispanic counterparts. This paper compares the impact of employment, earnings and demographic characteristics on the probability of receiving an offer of employment based health insurance by Hispanic and non-Hispanic workers and on the take-up of insurance when it is offered. The paper finds that, once human capital, immigration status, and employment characteristics are controlled, Hispanic workers actually have a higher probability of being offered employment-sponsored health insurance than non-Hispanic workers. Take-up of offers of employer sponsored insurance are lower for Hispanic immigrants than for non-immigrant, non-Hispanic workers but there is no difference in take-up between U.S. bom Hispanic workers and non-immigrant, non-Hispanic workers.
Drug Markets: A Classroom Experiment
Authors: Tedeschi Gwendolyn Alexander
Published: March 2016

Experiments are becoming increasingly popular in economics principles classes as a way to gain student interest in a rather abstract subject. This experiment examines the market for illegal drugs, such as marijuana, and the effects of loosening government intervention on it. While the media tends to focus on the ‘normative’ aspects of drug legislation, students explore the ‘positive’ effects that such legislation would produce. This paper contains detailed instructions on the experiment, including a discussion of decriminalization and legalization, and ends with empirical research on the drug market, a discussion of sin taxes, and the economic costs associated with drug use.
Does Drinking Affect Grades More for Women? Gender Differences in the Effects of Heavy Episodic Drinking in College
Authors: Wolaver Amy M.
Published: March 2016

The effects of heavy episodic drinking on studying and grades are modeled separately for college men and women using instrumental variable, simultaneous equation techniques with the 1993 & 1997 College Alcohol Studies data. Binge drinking lowers predicted grades by three tenths of a point for both genders. Current drinking is predicted to increase study hours for women; the effects for men are ambiguous. High school binging decreases study hours for women. The direct effect of drinking on grades remains negative under all robustness checks; the effect on study hours for women is robust to most specifications changes.
On the Political Economy of Binational Counter-Terrorism
Authors: Mantell Edmund H.
Published: March 2016

This paper applies game theory to explore the economic incentives facing foreign nations sheltering terrorists. The players are a nation that has been a target of international terrorist activities and a nation that is a host (willing or unwilling) of international terrorists. The economics of multinational terrorism involve the costs to host nations of sanctions imposed by the U.S. and others, as well as the economic benefits transferred to the host nations by terrorist groups that they shelter. The main result shows that coalitions between international terrorists and their host nations allow the latter to sell licenses to terrorists thereby frustrating the counter-terrorist activities of victim nations.
Do Price Guides Guide Ebay Prices: The Market for Individual Baseball Cards
Authors: Highfill Jannett , O'Brien Kevin
Published: March 2016

The paper considers the question of whether eBay selling prices for baseball cards are correlated with “book prices.” Three book prices are used, “Lo,” and “Hi” from the price guide Beckett Baseball Card Plus, and their average “Avg. HiLo.” The paper demonstrates a close relationship between book prices and the final sale price. Higher book prices (by all three measures) were associated with higher eBay selling prices, and in separate regressions, each book price explained a substantial proportion of the variance of the final sale price. There is mixed evidence about which book price best is the best guide to the final sale price. The Lo price was closest to the final sales price, but the regression results suggest the Ave. HiLo price because its coefficient is relatively close to one.