bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The significance and performance of property companies on the AIM stock market
Authors: Newell Graeme , Marzuki Muhammad Jufri Bin 
Published: March 2018

PurposeThe Alternative Investment Market (AIM) is an important UK growth-focused stock market. The purpose of this paper is to assess the significance, risk-adjusted performance and portfolio diversification benefits of property companies on the AIM stock market over 2005-2015. The post-Global Financial Crisis (GFC) recovery of property companies on AIM is highlighted, as well as their performance compared with property companies on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) main board.Design/methodology/approachUsing monthly total returns, the risk-adjusted performance and portfolio diversification benefits of property companies on the AIM stock market over 2005-2015 are assessed and compared with a range of other asset classes. Sub-period analysis is used to assess the post-GFC recovery of the property companies on AIM.FindingsProperty companies on AIM delivered poor risk-adjusted returns over 2005-2015, with limited portfolio diversification benefits with the overall AIM stock market. However, since the GFC, property companies on AIM have delivered strong risk-adjusted returns, with improved portfolio diversification benefits with the overall AIM stock market. This post-GFC performance is shown to be more than a small cap effect, reflecting the property portfolios in these AIM property companies. Despite this strong post-GFC performance, the AIM property companies under-performed property companies on the LSE main board on a risk-adjusted basis.Practical implicationsAIM provides an important platform for property companies seeking start-up and growth opportunities in a less-regulated funding environment. This has been reinforced by strong risk-adjusted performance in a post-GFC context. However, the stronger risk-adjusted performance of LSE listed property companies and their superior scale, resources and higher quality property portfolios present challenges for increased investor support for the AIM property companies going forward.Originality/valueThis paper is the first published empirical research analysis of the risk-adjusted performance and diversification benefits of property companies on the AIM stock market. This research enables empirically validated, more informed and practical property investment decision-making regarding the strategic role of property companies on the AIM stock market in a portfolio.
Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) highlights operating, control and compliance deficiencies in asset management industry
Authors: Godfrey Anne-Marie 
Published: March 2018

Purpose
To examine the nine common areas of non-compliance in managing investment funds and discretionary accounts, detailed in a Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) circular dated September 15, 2017, directed at SFC-licensed asset managers.

Design/methodology/approach
Discusses a July 2017 circular indicating the SFC’s general concerns and analyzing the following nine common areas of non-compliance cited in the September 15, 2017 circular: (1) inappropriate receipt of cash rebates giving rise to apparent conflicts of interests, (2) failure to follow investment-suitability and discretionary account mandates during solicitation, (3) failure to implement liquidity-risk management processes, (4) deficiencies in governance structures and fair-valuation procedures, (5) deficiencies in systems for ensuring best execution, (6) failure to safeguard fair order allocation, (7) inadequate controls for protection of client assets, (8) inadequate systems to comply with investment restrictions, and (9) inadequate safeguards to address market misconduct risk.

Findings
The nine examples of non-compliance provide a useful insight into key “problem areas” indicated to currently be of particular concern to the SFC.

Practical implications
All SFC-licensed asset managers would be well advised to revisit their internal governance structures and operational policies and procedures in order to ensure that they are compliant with applicable standards and requirements.

Originality/value
Practical guidance from a lawyer with extensive experience advising investment managers and advisers, fund administrators, trustees and other fund service providers on investment fund-related issues.
Abiotic and biotic interactions in the diffusive boundary layer of kelp blades create a potential refuge from ocean acidification
Authors: Noisette Fanny , Hurd Catriona 
Published: March 2018

Abstract

Seaweeds are able to modify the chemical environment at their surface, in a micro‐zone called the diffusive boundary layer (DBL), via their metabolic processes controlled by light intensity. Depending on the thickness of the DBL, sessile invertebrates such as calcifying bryozoans or tube‐forming polychaetes living on the surface of the blades can be affected by the chemical variations occurring in this microlayer. Especially in the context of ocean acidification (OA), these microhabitats might be considered as a refuge from lower pH, because during the day photosynthesis temporarily raises the pH to values higher than in the mainstream seawater.

We assessed the thickness and the characteristics of the DBL at two pH levels (today's average surface ocean pH 8.1 and a reduced pH predicted for the end of the century, pH 7.7) and seawater flows (slow, 0.5 and fast, >8 cm/s) on Ecklonia radiata (kelp) blades. Oxygen and pH profiles from the blade surface to the mainstream seawater were measured with O2 and pH microsensors for both bare blades and blades colonized by the bryozoan Membranipora membranacea.

The DBL was thicker in slow flow compared with fast flow and the presence of bryozoans increased the DBL thickness and shaped the DBL gradient in dark conditions. Net production was increased in the low pH condition, increasing the amount of oxygen in the DBL in both bare and epiphytized blades. This increase drove the daily pH fluctuations at the blade surface, shifting them towards higher values compared with today's pH. The presence of bryozoans led to lower oxygen concentrations in the DBL and more complex pH fluctuations at the blade surface, particularly at pH 7.7.

Overall, this study, based on microprofiles, shows that, in slow flow, DBL microenvironments at the surface of the kelps may constitute a refuge from OA with pH values higher than those of the mainstream seawater. For calcifying organisms, it could also represent training ground for harsh conditions, with broad daily pH and oxygen fluctuations. These chemical microenvironments, biologically shaped by the macrophytes, are of great interest for the resilience of coastal ecosystems in the context of global change.

A plain language summary is available for this article.
Childhood measles contributes to post‐bronchodilator airflow obstruction in middle‐aged adults: A cohort study
Authors: Perret Jennifer L. , Matheson Melanie C. , Gurrin Lyle C. , Johns David P. , Burgess John A. , Thompson Bruce R. , Lowe Adrian J. , Markos James , Morrison Stephen S. , McDonald Christine F. , Wood‐Baker Richard , Svanes Cecilie , Thomas Paul S. , Hopper John L. , Giles Graham G. , Abramson Michael J. , Walters E. Haydn , Dharmage Shyamali C. 
Published: March 2018

AbstractBackground and objectiveChronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has potential origins in childhood but an association between childhood measles and post‐bronchodilator (BD) airflow obstruction (AO) has not yet been shown. We investigated whether childhood measles contributed to post‐BD AO through interactions with asthma and/or smoking in a non‐immunized middle‐aged population.MethodsThe population‐based Tasmanian Longitudinal Health Study (TAHS) cohort born in 1961 (n = 8583) underwent spirometry in 1968 before immunization was introduced. A history of childhood measles infection was obtained from school medical records. During the fifth decade follow‐up (n = 5729 responses), a subgroup underwent further lung function measurements (n = 1389). Relevant main associations and interactions by asthma and/or smoking on post‐BD forced expiratory volume in 1 s/forced vital capacity (FEV1/FVC; continuous variable) and AO (FEV1/FVC < lower limit of normal) were estimated by multiple regression.ResultsSixty‐nine percent (n = 950) had a history of childhood measles. Childhood measles augmented the combined adverse effect of current clinical asthma and smoking at least 10 pack‐years on post‐BD FEV1/FVC ratio in middle age (z‐score: −0.70 (95% CI: −1.1 to −0.3) vs −1.36 (−1.6 to −1.1), three‐way interaction: P = 0.009), especially for those with childhood‐onset asthma. For never‐ and ever‐smokers of <10 pack‐years who had current asthma symptoms, compared with those without childhood measles, paradoxically, the odds for post‐BD AO was not significant in the presence of childhood measles (OR: 12.0 (95% CI: 3.4–42) vs 2.17 (0.9–5.3)).ConclusionChildhood measles infection appears to compound the associations between smoking, current asthma and post‐BD AO. Differences between asthma subgroups provide further insight into the complex aetiology of obstructive lung diseases for middle‐aged adults.
Constitucionalización y protección de derechos fundamentales en el contrato de seguros . Análisis jurisprudencial - corte constitucional de Colombia
Authors: Zarante Bahamón Gabriela 
Published: March 2018

Este artículo tiene como objeto dar a conocer la tendencia a la “constitucionalización” del Derecho de Seguros y la protección excepcional de la Corte Constitucional a los denominados “Sujetos de Protección Constitucional”. Lo anterior se representa en la manera en que un asegurado o beneficiario de una Póliza Vida Grupo en “estado de indefensión” mediante una acción de tutela solicita hacer efectivos los amparos de muerte o incapacidad total y permanente sin cumplir con los requisitos contractuales y legales para acceder a dichas coberturas. La posición de la Corte Constitucional, teniendo en cuenta que prevalece el derecho sustancial sobre el procesal, se basa en los principios de solidaridad, inmediatez y subsidiaridad, cuando se invoca la protección de los derechos fundamentales a la vida, mínimo vital, vivienda digna, igualdad, seguridad social entre otros. Se resalta que dicha tutela constitucional, se ha presentado en casos en los cuales las Compañías Aseguradoras han negado el pago de la Indemnización bajo el argumento de haber sido el asegurado reticente por tratarse de una enfermedad preexistente o cuando, por el transcurso del tiempo, el asegurado o beneficiario de la póliza pierde la posibilidad de ejercer el derecho de acción por haber operado el término de prescripción contemplado en la ley Colombiana para el Contrato de Seguros.
Low-Speed Go-Kart Crash Tests and a Comparison to Activities of Daily
Living
Authors: Kloppenborg Nick , Amenson Tara , Wernik Jacob , Wiechel John 
Published: March 2018

Abstract
Go-karts are a common amusement park feature enjoyed by people of all ages. While intended for racing, contact between go-karts does occur. To investigate and quantify the accelerations and forces which result from contact, 44 low-speed impacts were conducted between a stationary (target) and a moving (bullet) go-kart. The occupant of the bullet go-kart was one of two human volunteers. The occupant of the target go-kart was a Hybrid III 50th percentile male anthropomorphic test device (ATD). Impact configurations consisted of rear-end impacts, frontal impacts, side impacts, and oblique impacts. Results demonstrated high repeatability for the vehicle performance and occupant response. Go-kart accelerations and speed changes increased with increased impact speed. Impact duration and restitution generally decreased with increased impact speed. All ATD acceleration, force, and moment values increased with increased impact speed. Common injury metrics such as the head injury criterion (HIC), Nij, and Nkm were calculated and were found to be below injury thresholds. Occupant response was also compared to published activities of daily living data.
A Novel Time-Variant Reliability Analysis Method Based on Failure Processes Decomposition for Dynamic Uncertain Structures
Authors: Yu Shui , Wang Zhonglai 
Published: March 2018

AbstractDue to the uncertainties and the dynamic parameters from design, manufacturing, and working conditions, many engineering structures usually show uncertain and dynamic properties. This paper proposes a novel time-variant reliability analysis method using failure processes decomposition to transform the time-variant reliability problems to the time-invariant problems for dynamic structures under uncertainties. The transformation is achieved via a two-stage failure processes decomposition. First, the limit state function with high dimensional input variables and high order temporal parameters is transformed to a quadratic function of time based on the optimized time point in the first-stage failure processes decomposition. Second, based on the characteristics of the quadratic function and reliability criterion, the time-variant reliability problem is then transformed to a time-invariant system reliability problem in the second-stage failure processes decomposition. Then, the kernel density estimation (KDE) method is finally employed for the system reliability evaluation. Several examples are used to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method to demonstrate its efficiency and accuracy.
Draft Genome Sequence of Bacillus velezensis Lzh-a42, a Plant Growth-Promoting Rhizobacterium Isolated from Tomato Rhizosphere
Authors: Li Zhenghua , Chen Mei , Ran Kun , Wang Jihua , Zeng Qiangcheng , Song Feng 
Published: March 2018

ABSTRACT

The plant growth-promoting rhizobacterium
Bacillus velezensis
strain Lzh-a42, which has antimicrobial activity, was isolated from tomato rhizosphere. Here, we report its genome sequence, which includes several predicted functional genes related to secondary metabolite biosynthesis, antimicrobial activity, and biofilm synthesis.
Complete Genome Sequence of the Live Attenuated Vaccine Strain Brucella melitensis Rev.1
Authors: Salmon-Divon Mali , Banai Menachem , Bardenstein Svetlana , Blum Shlomo E. , Kornspan David 
Published: March 2018

ABSTRACT

Live attenuated vaccines are essential elements in control programs for the prevention of brucellosis. Here, we report the whole-genome sequence of the original Elberg
Brucella melitensis
Rev.1 vaccine strain, passage 101 (1970). Commercial lines of the original strain have been successfully used in small ruminants worldwide.
Draft Genome Sequence of Bacillus velezensis B6, a Rhizobacterium That Can Control Plant Diseases
Authors: Gao Yu-han , Guo Rong-jun , Li Shi-dong 
Published: March 2018

ABSTRACT

The draft genome of
Bacillus velezensis
strain B6, a rhizobacterium with good biocontrol performance isolated from soil in China, was sequenced. The assembly comprises 32 scaffolds with a total size of 3.88 Mb. Gene clusters coding either ribosomally encoded bacteriocins or nonribosomally encoded antimicrobial polyketides and lipopeptides in the genome may contribute to plant disease control.
Draft Genome Sequence of Carbapenem-Resistant Pseudomonas fluorescens Strain BWKM6, Isolated from Feces of Mareca penelope
Authors: Kenzaka Takehiko , Tani Katsuji 
Published: March 2018

ABSTRACT

Migratory birds are potential vehicles of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Here, we isolated the multidrug-resistant
Pseudomonas fluorescens
strain BWKM6 from the feces of
Mareca penelope
. The strain’s draft genome sequence indicates that it harbors a metallo-beta-lactamase, a class C beta-lactamase, and several multidrug efflux pumps.
Improved Hydrological Simulation Using SMAP Data: Relative Impacts of Model Calibration and Data Assimilation
Authors: Koster Randal D. , Liu Qing , Mahanama Sarith P. P. , Reichle Rolf H. 
Published: March 2018

Abstract
The assimilation of remotely sensed soil moisture information into a land surface model has been shown in past studies to contribute accuracy to the simulated hydrological variables. Remotely sensed data, however, can also be used to improve the model itself through the calibration of the model’s parameters, and this can also increase the accuracy of model products. Here, data provided by the Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) satellite mission are applied to the land surface component of the NASA GEOS Earth system model using both data assimilation and model calibration in order to quantify the relative degrees to which each strategy improves the estimation of near-surface soil moisture and streamflow. The two approaches show significant complementarity in their ability to extract useful information from the SMAP data record. Data assimilation reduces the ubRMSE (the RMSE after removing the long-term bias) of soil moisture estimates and improves the timing of streamflow variations, whereas model calibration reduces the model biases in both soil moisture and streamflow. While both approaches lead to an improved timing of simulated soil moisture, these contributions are largely independent; joint use of both approaches provides the highest soil moisture simulation accuracy.
Tropical Cyclone Gale Wind Radii Estimates, Forecasts, and Error Forecasts for the Western North Pacific
Authors: Sampson Charles R. , Goerss James S. , Knaff John A. , Strahl Brian R. , Fukada Edward M. , Serra Efren A. 
Published: March 2018

Abstract
In 2016, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center extended forecasts of gale-force and other wind radii to 5 days. That effort and a thrust to perform postseason analysis of gale-force wind radii for the “best tracks” (the quality controlled and documented tropical cyclone track and intensity estimates released after the season) have prompted requirements for new guidance to address the challenges of both. At the same time, operational tools to estimate and predict wind radii continue to evolve, now forming a quality suite of gale-force wind radii analysis and forecasting tools. This work provides an update to real-time estimates of gale-force wind radii (a mean/consensus of gale-force individual wind radii estimates) that includes objective scatterometer-derived estimates. The work also addresses operational gale-force wind radii forecasting in that it provides an update to a gale-force wind radii forecast consensus, which now includes gale-force wind radii forecast error estimates to accompany the gale-force wind radii forecasts. The gale-force wind radii forecast error estimates are computed using predictors readily available in real time (e.g., consensus spread, initial size, and forecast intensity) so that operational reliability and timeliness can be ensured. These updates were all implemented in operations at the Joint Typhoon Warning Center by January 2018, and more updates should be expected in the coming years as new and improved guidance becomes available.
Beyond Pluralism and Media Rights: Indigenous Communication for a Decolonizing Transformation of Latin America and Abya Yala
Authors: Lehman Kathryn 
Published: March 2018

In resisting genocidal projects of modernity since the Conquest and their most recent phase, neoliberalism, indigenous peoples have provided leadership in maintaining pluralist societies and protecting the rights of all living beings. This role is little known even to many on the left because of the history of the nation-state and current communications and research practices. Drawing on community-based autonomous alternatives to neoliberalism, indigenous media contribute to twenty-first-century Latin American participatory democracy and plurinational socialism by defending communication as a basic human right. They evoke a long history of place-based narratives whose values are encoded in language, and their epistemologies are strengthened by transnational indigenous communication networks and practices. Moving beyond pluralism and media rights, indigenous communication transforms media practices in order to decolonize relations among humans, other living beings, and the environment that sustains life. Al resistir los proyectos genocidas de la modernidad desde la Conquista y, su más reciente fase, el neoliberalismo, los pueblos indígenas han tomado una posición líder en el acto de mantener sociedades pluralistas y proteger los derechos de todos los seres vivos. Esto es poco sabido, incluso por muchos en la izquierda, debido a la historia del estado-nación y las prácticas actuales de comunicación e investigación. Basados en alternativas autónomas comunales al neoliberalismo, los medios indígenas contribuyen a la democracia participativa latinoamericana del siglo XXI y al socialismo plurinacional, a la vez que defienden la comunicación como un derecho humano básico. Evocan una larga historia de narrativas asentadas en lugares cuyos valores están codificados en el lenguaje, y sus epistemologías se ven reforzadas por las redes y prácticas transnacionales de comunicación indígena. Al ir más allá del pluralismo y los derechos de los medios, la comunicación indígena está transformando las prácticas mediáticas para descolonizar las relaciones entre los seres humanos, otros seres vivos y el medio ambiente que sustenta la vida.
Civic Organizations and Internet Social Networks: A Case Study in the Province of Buenos Aires
Authors: Silva Ana Cecilia 
Published: March 2018

A neighborhood assembly in a medium-sized city in the province of Buenos Aires formed in connection with a petition for designation as a historical protection area uses the Internet to generate visibility spaces alternative to those of the traditional media and install its own agenda, to include in those new spaces the voices and perspectives of new social actors, and to organize and improve its own participatory management. Its use of Facebook has acquired some of the features of “community media.” At the same time, its use of the Internet for internal communication and coordination is clearly accessory to face-to-face interaction. There is a generational difference in access to and decision making about the content to be posted in the various media, and spokespersons have become authorized voices. Appealing to both the traditional and the new media is a crucial aspect of the assembly’s positioning strategy, but the strategy is in constant revision. La asamblea vecinal de una ciudad mediana de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina, que se formó en torno a una petición para designarse área de protección histórica utiliza la Internet para la construcción de espacios de comunicación alternativos a los medios tradicionales e instalar así su propia agenda, incluir las voces y perspectivas de nuevos actores sociales en esos nuevos espacios, y organizar y mejorar su propia administración participativa. El uso que le dan a Facebook ha adquirido algunas características de los “medios comunitarios.” Al mismo tiempo, el uso de la Internet para la comunicación y coordinación internas es claramente un accesorio a la interacción cara a cara. Hay una diferencia generacional en el acceso a y decisiones en torno al contenido que se publica en diversos medios, y los voceros se han convertido en voces autorizadas. La estrategia de posicionamiento de la asamblea apela a medios tanto tradicionales como nuevos, pero dicha estrategia está sujeta a revisión constante.