bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Corporate governance in Greece: developments and policy implications
Authors: Spanos Loukas J. 
Published: March 2005

PurposeThis paper provides a comprehensive overview of corporate governance (CG) developments in Greece and has two objectives: to enrich the debate in this area and to contribute to the increasing literature by presenting the main aspects of the Greek CG framework; and to place the current CG developments and trends in Greece within the international debate, especially in the light of the recent debate to improve and convergence CG in the EU.Design/methodology/approachFirst, reviews the evolution of the CG debate in Greece and its implication at the EU level. Second, provides a short view of the institutional‐economic environment in Greece, as it influences corporate governance practices. Then analyzes the CG mechanisms in the light of the recent key reforms. Finally, summarizes the findings and proceeds with some critical points and recommendations.FindingsThe general finding is that the development of regulatory reforms was mostly an endogenous process influenced mainly by the speculative events in the Greek capital market during 1999.Practical implicationsThe evolution of the Greek CG may have significant implication, such as that the Greek market is a newly mature euro‐area market and CG is supposed to be a key factor for the competitive transformation of the capital market and the business world. In addition, the evolutionary path of CG in Greece may have significant implication for the new EU member states.Originality/valueThe paper shows how the CG practices evolve in a small open economy influenced by speculative events and is valuable to policymakers, regulators and academics.
Do outside independent directors strengthen corporate boards?
Authors: Petra Steven T. 
Published: March 2005

PurposeRecent changes in corporate governance require firms to maintain boards with a majority of outside independent directors. The belief seems to be that outside independent directors will strengthen corporate boards by monitoring the actions of management and ensuring that management decisions are made in the best interests of the stockholders. This belief, however, may be founded on an assumption that has its roots in public perception and not in fact. The purpose of this paper is to determine whether or not outside independent directors strengthen corporate boards.Design/methodology/approachFive areas within corporate boards of directors, including board composition, CEO duality, audit committees, compensation committees and nominating committees, are examined. The results of studies aimed at discerning the effects that outside independent directors have on increased firm performance and shareholder wealth through strong corporate governance are discussed.FindingsThe conclusion reached is that outside independent directors do appear to strengthen corporate boards; however, more needs to be done to reestablish the market's confidence in corporate America's ability to effectively govern itself.Practical implicationsBest practices are discussed that can assist corporate boards in fulfilling their responsibilities to shareholders in monitoring and controlling the actions of management.Originality/valueThis paper is of value to management of firms, corporate directors, and investors. It demonstrates that the presence of outside independent directors alone will not solve the deficiencies exposed in corporate boardrooms. It also highlights the fact that more needs to be done to change the environment in which corporate boards operate in order to better protect shareholder interests.
The board of directors: a referee or a coach?
Authors: Sussland Willy A. 
Published: March 2005

PurposeThe author's original approach helps to understand the executives and their decision‐making process.Design/methodology/approachThe complexity of today's business requires the board of directors (BoD) to go beyond its traditional role of referee, and to become involved as appropriate with the business and with its top managers. The BoD should apply the 3<P>of governance: namely the official policies that tell it what to do and what not to do; a comprehensive process of governance that ensures the effectiveness of its activities; and, last but not least, basic psychology to understand the possible quirks of the top managers. This article complements the author's earlier contribution on the process of governance, and focuses on how the directors can monitor the behavioral patterns of the top managers and assess the impact on their decision making.FindingsThe author recommends that the BoD uses the methodology of “Creating Business Value” described in this article. By providing transparency over the whole business system, it brings out the proficiency of the top management, and reveals dysfunctional attitudes.Practical implicationsThe advocated approach contributes to the effectiveness of the directors as they interact with the executive on critical issues.Originality/valueThe author presents an application of “creating business value”, an original and holistic methodology that enables all concerned to see where, why, how, and how much business value has been, or will likely be, added or destroyed throughout the enterprise.
Early hatching decreases jumping performance in a direct‐developing frog, Eleutherodactylus coqui
Authors: BUCKLEY C. R. , MICHAEL S. F. , IRSCHICK D. J. 
Published: March 2005

Summary

Differences in timing of development can greatly affect morphology and locomotor performance, which are of crucial importance in juvenile organisms. Early hatching in amphibians can occur in response to egg threats, and early hatched individuals may suffer the costs of physical immaturity posthatching.
We measured maximum jumping performance for early hatched (EH) and normal hatched (NH) froglets of the direct‐developing frog Eleutherodactylus coqui on both a wet and a dry substrate. Snout–vent length, hindlimb length and mass were compared with jumping ability and behaviours on the wet substrate were scored.
EH froglets had lighter mass, shorter relative hindlimbs and performed more poorly on both substrates than NH individuals. Between groups, hindlimb length and snout–vent length scaled higher with mass than the expected geometric scale. EH froglets also engaged in more walking and swimming behaviour than did NH froglets on wet substrates.
We found that EH froglets have shorter relative hindlimbs and poorer jumping performance than NH froglets. EH froglets may compensate for their poor jumping ability by using other forms of locomotion. Limbs that are longer than theoretically predicted may help these terrestrial organisms escape forest‐floor predators.
The energetic cost of humoral immunity in the Collared Dove,Streptopelia decaocto: is the magnitude sufficient to force energy‐based trade‐offs?
Authors: ERAUD C. , DURIEZ O. , CHASTEL O. , FAIVRE B. 
Published: March 2005

SummaryEnergy saving is often suggested as the basis of a resource trade‐off between immunocompetence and other fitness‐relevant traits. This suggests that the energetic cost of an immune response is significant and sufficient to force trade‐offs. To date, few studies have investigated the energetic cost of the humoral component of the immune system in birds and furthermore, existing results are contradictory.We addressed this question through two experiments. In experiment 1, the basal metabolic rate (BMR) of Collared Doves,Streptopelia decaocto, challenged with sheep red blood cells (SRBC) was compared with the BMR of control birds. The energetic cost of immunity on host life‐history strategies was compared with another physiological activity, thermoregulation, in experiment 2 to assess its significance.Experiment 1 showed that antibody production against SRBC increased BMR of birds, with a peak of energy expenditure 7 days after immune activation (+8·5% BMR). In addition, we found that among birds fedad libitum, those mounting a stronger immune response lost significantly more mass than controls or birds mounting a low immune response. In experiment 2, we found the cost of thermoregulation to be 5·27% BMR °C−1.If results from experiment 1 primarily suggested that an energy‐based trade‐off was expected between immune functions and other fitness‐related traits, experiment 2 showed that the magnitude of this energetic cost corresponded to that used during low levels of thermoregulation. Consequently, we suggest that energy saving is not the central mechanism of a trade‐off mediating immunocompetence. We provide some evidence that the degradation of body condition should be considered as an important additional cost of humoral immunity in the context of a resource‐based trade‐off.
Low energy reserves and energy allocation decisions affect reproduction by Mountain Pine Beetles,Dendroctonus ponderosae
Authors: ELKIN C. M. , REID M. L. 
Published: March 2005

SummaryLow internal energy reserves at the beginning of the breeding season may impose physiological constraints on an animal's reproductive investment and may alter the optimal trade‐off between investment in reproduction and somatic condition.Here we examine how the energetic condition of female Mountain Pine Beetles (Dendroctonus ponderosae) affects their reproductive investment. We starved beetles to simulate the decrease in energy that accompanies dispersal and tested whether starved beetles had decreased egg number and decreased egg size, or both. We further distinguished whether changes are due to physiological constraints or shifts in allocation between reproduction and somatic condition.We found that starved beetles produced smaller eggs than non‐starved beetles, but females were able to partially offset the energetic deficit by feeding at their breeding habitat. Starvation did not decrease the number of eggs beetles produced.The number and size of eggs produced depended on whether females allocated energy to reproduction or to somatic condition. However, this life‐history allocation decision was independent of the amount of energy beetles had at the beginning of reproduction.Our results demonstrate the importance of assessing reproductive investment in the context of other life‐history trade‐offs. Specifically, since egg size in Mountain Pine Beetles was highly dependent on both the amount of energy remaining after dispersal and whether energy was allocated to reproduction or somatic maintenance, we expect both of these trade‐offs to be under strong selection.
Metal hyperaccumulation in plants: mechanisms of defence against insect herbivores
Authors: BEHMER S. T. , LLOYD C. M. , RAUBENHEIMER D. , STEWART‐CLARK J. , KNIGHT J. , LEIGHTON R. S. , HARPER F. A. , SMITH J. A. C. 
Published: March 2005

Summary

To determine the mechanisms by which metal hyperaccumulation in plants could provide a chemical defence against insect herbivores, the feeding behaviour and performance of the desert locust, Schistocerca gregaria (Forskål), was investigated on plants of Thlaspi caerulescens J. & C. Presl containing different zinc concentrations, as well as on artificial food differing only in Zn content.
In choice experiments, locusts preferred T. caerulescens plants containing low foliar Zn concentrations (mean value 0·42 mg g−1 dry biomass) compared with intermediate (1·50 mg g−1) or high (5·77 mg g−1) Zn concentrations. In no‐choice experiments, there was no difference in the duration of the first meal, suggesting that locusts could not taste Zn directly, but total time spent feeding, amount of foliage eaten, and locust growth rate all decreased as foliar Zn concentration increased.
When presented with artificial food containing Zn concentrations of 0·5, 1·5 or 5·5 mg g−1, locusts fed at a slower rate on intermediate‐ and high‐Zn diets, and their development time from fourth to fifth stadium was proportionately longer. The total amount of food eaten over the fourth stadium was similar for the different treatments, but locust mass gain was inversely related to Zn concentration in the diet. This was reflected in lower nutrient‐utilization efficiencies in locusts on a high‐Zn diet.
In choice experiments with artificial food, locusts showed very similar feeding behaviour to that on plants, consuming more of the low‐Zn food. Experiments using food flavoured with coumarin, provided with or without Zn, showed that the locusts’ aversion to Zn develops by a post‐ingestive feedback mechanism involving associative learning.
These results support the notion that metal hyperaccumulation in plants can provide a defence against insect herbivores, and demonstrate that metal concentration per se can account for the deterrent effect of high‐Zn foods. Aversion responses were evoked by Zn concentrations in the range 0·5–5 mg g−1, an order of magnitude lower than those commonly observed in the foliage of T. caerulescens. This suggests that comparatively small elevations in Zn concentration could confer an adaptive advantage on plants by influencing the feeding behaviour of polyphagous insect herbivores, thereby contributing to evolution of the metal‐hyperaccumulation trait.
Conceptions of evidence, evidence‐based medicine, evidence‐based practice and their use in nursing: independent nurse prescribers’ views
Authors: Banning Maggi 
Published: March 2005

Aim.  The purpose of this study was to explore nurses’ conceptions of evidence and evidence‐based practice, whether there are differences between evidence‐based practice and evidence‐based medicine and to identify the uptake of research evidence in the workplace.Background.  The use and comprehension of the term ‘evidence‐based practice’ in relation to nursing shows remarkable variation. Numerous definitions are provided, some tend to be closely related to the concept ‘evidence‐based medicine’. Independent nurse prescribers need to be able to understand the concept of evidence‐based practice to utilize and apply this concept in order to provide adequate medication management of their patients.Method.  Data were generated by focus group interview and open question questionnaire and analysed by analytical abstraction.Results.  Nurses offered a variety of views on the use and uptake of evidence in the workplace. Some nurses acknowledged that they did not read research papers but were aware that they used a lot of evidence in their practice. Nurses had difficulty differentiating evidence‐based practice from evidence‐based medicine.Conclusions.  Nurses were familiar with the research process but not the canons of evidenced‐based practice. The data generated indicate different levels of evidence are used by nurses. This may be a reflection of the level of intrigue of the nurses involved.Relevance to clinical practice.  The education and training of independent nurse prescribers should include the exploration of evidence from randomized controlled trials and from naturalistic studies and their contribution to evidenced‐based practice and evidence‐based medicine. Both concepts need to be explored in relation to the medication management of patients.
Predictive survival model with time‐dependent prognostic factors: development of computer‐aided SAS Macro program
Authors: Chen Li‐Sheng , Yen Ming‐Fang , Wu Hui‐Min , Liao Chao‐Sheng , Liou Der‐Ming , Kuo Hsu‐Sung , Chen Tony Hsiu‐Hsi 
Published: March 2005

AbstractAims  and  objectives  Computer  program  for  the  prediction  of  survival with respect  to  time‐dependent  proportional  hazards  regression  model has been rarely addressed. We therefore developed a SAS Macro program for time‐dependent Cox regression predictive model for empirical survival data associated with time‐dependent covariates.Method  Time‐dependent proportional hazards regression model and partial likelihood in association with time‐varying predictors were explicitly delineated. Baseline hazard using Andersen's method was incorporated into proportional hazards regression model to predict the dynamic change of cumulative survival in respect of time‐varying predictors. Two SAS Macro programs for time‐dependent predictive survival model and model validation using receiver operative characteristics were written with SAS IML language.Results  The computer program was applied to data on clinical surveillance of small hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) treated by percutaneous ethanol injection (PEI) or transcatheter arterial embolization (TAE) with time‐varying predictors such as alpha‐feto protein (AFP) and other biological markers.Conclusion  The program is very useful for real‐time prediction of cumulative survival on the basis of time‐dependent covariates.
Investigations on prophylactic effects of coarse feed structure and/or potassium diformate on the microflora in the digestive tract of weaned piglets experimentally infected with Salmonella Derby
Authors: Papenbrock S. , Stemme K. , Amtsberg G. , Verspohl J. , Kamphues J. 
Published: March 2005

SummaryThe purpose of this study was to examine potential prophylactic effects of a coarse feed structure and/or potassium diformate (KDF as feed additive) addition to diets on the microflora of the digestive tract in reared piglets experimentally infected with Salmonella Derby. The results show that coarse grinding as well as KDF addition are able to influence positively the intestinal flora and are capable to reduce Salmonella excretion of infected piglets. Coarse grinding of main ingredients (e.g. cereals) led to an increased number of lactobacilli as well as to higher counts of Gram‐positive coccoid bacteria in the colon chyme, while KDF resulted in a tendency towards lower counts of Escherichia coli within the digestive tract. Moreover, a combination of both treatments influenced the composition of the gastrointestinal flora quite positively. Furthermore, the combination of these dietetic measures resulted in a reduced Salmonella excretion rate, shorter Salmonella shedding period and a reduced translocation of Salmonella within the infected piglets. The positive effects of combining both treatments led to a significantly reduced spreading of Salmonella within the group of pigs, which might be used to diminish Salmonella prevalence in pig production.
Essential fatty acids supplementation in different‐stage atopic dogs fed on a controlled diet
Authors: Abba C. , Mussa P. P. , Vercelli A. , Raviri G. 
Published: March 2005

SummaryThe aim of this trial was to evaluate the effects of polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) supplementation in different‐stages atopic dogs fed on a controlled diet. Twenty‐two non‐seasonal atopic dogs of different breeds and ages were included in the 2‐month trial. All the patients were given an essential fatty acid (EFA) supplementation [17 mg/kg eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) + 5 mg/kg docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) + 35 mg/kg gammalinolenic acid (GLA)], the global (diet + supplementation)ω‐6 toω‐3 ratio was 5.5–1. Two groups of dogs were considered: group A ‘pre‐immunotherapy’ (15 cases) included dogs with early stages atopy, which had not been submitted to any treatment yet; group B ‘post‐immunotherapy’ (seven cases) included dogs with chronic atopy immunotherapy non‐responsive. Clinical evaluations were performed at the beginning, on day 30 and at the end of the trial. Blood serum fatty acids profile was determined at the beginning and at the end of the study. Better clinical results were obtained in group A, a great difference was found between the two groups on pruritus score. Serum arachidonic acid (AA) was significantly lower at the end of the trial in group A while GLA was significantly higher in group B. We hypothesized that different‐stages atopic dogs could have different response to EFA supplementation, maybe because of a different fatty acids metabolism. Early stages cases seem to be more responsive to EFA supplementation.
Dioxin concentration in milk and tissues of cows and sheep related to feed and soil contamination
Authors: Schulz A. J. , Wiesmüller T. , Appuhn H. , Stehr D. , Severin K. , Landmann D. , Kamphues J. 
Published: March 2005

SummaryIf cows or sheep are grazing on areas known for a higher dioxin level of the soil, respectively, dry cows are fed with feedstuffs produced on such areas, the dioxin concentration in food, in this case in cows’ milk and livers of sheep could reach or exceed maximum levels. Furthermore large amounts of polychlorinated dibenzo‐p‐dioxins/polychlorinated dibenzo‐p‐furans (PCDD/F) can be excreted with the faeces. But there are chances for farmers to prevent or at least to minimize the dioxin load of feed and with it of food (including the harvesting technique and the feeding strategy).
Influence of different calcium concentrations in the diet on bone metabolism in growing dairy goats and sheep
Authors: Liesegang A. , Risteli J. 
Published: March 2005

SummaryThe purpose of this study was to investigate, if different Ca concentrations in diets have an influence on bone mineral metabolism in growing goats and sheep. Twelve growing goats and sheep were divided into two groups. The two control groups received 6.1 g calcium/day (nG) and 6.7 g calcium/day (nS) for goat and sheep respectively. The other two groups were fed 17.7 g calcium/day (hG) and 18.5 g calcium/day (hS). Blood samples were taken 2, 4, 5 and 6 weeks after the start of the experiment. In serum Ca and vitamin D were determined and bone metabolism was measured using crosslinked carboxyterminal telopeptide of type I collagen (ICTP), crosslaps, bone‐specific alkaline phosphatase and osteocalcin (OC). Bone mineral density (BMD) was quantified using quantitative computed tomography. Bone resorption marker (ICTP) concentrations were significantly different between both groups control sheep/control goat and hS/hG, but no significant differences were evident in the different feeding groups within one species. OC concentrations showed a similar course to ICTP. The goats had significantly higher concentrations compared with sheep. The 1,25 dihydroxyvitamin D (VITD) concentrations in both hCa groups were significantly lower than in the control groups. BMD increased in the hCa groups compared with the control groups with the time, but significant differences were only evident in sheep in week 2. The hCa diet did not induce differences between the groups within one species for all bone markers. The control Ca diet seems to improve the active Ca absorption via VITD whereas the hCa diet leads to a higher amount of Ca apparently digested. Higher BMD was only observed in group hS compared with nS.
The effect of oligofructose on urea metabolism and faecal odour components in cats
Authors: Hesta M. , Hoornaert E. , Verlinden A. , Janssens G. P. J. 
Published: March 2005

SummaryThe effect on urea metabolism by the supplementation of oligofructose to a reduced protein diet was evaluated in cats by the use of labelled urea. The effect on faecal odour was also evaluated. Four cats were tested in a crossover study with two treatments: control and fructo‐oligosaccharide (FOS). The FOS was supplemented at 3.11% on dry matter (DM) basis to a reduced protein diet (28.9% DM). After an adaptation period of 3 weeks, faeces and urine were collected during a 5‐day collection period. Fresh faecal samples were collected for determination of odour components. On the first day of the collection period, labelled urea was injected subcutaneously. Urine production was estimated by potassium excretion. The fresh faecal samples were incubated in an air‐closed recipient with two solid‐phase micro extraction (SPME) fibres to bind the produced sulphur (S)‐containing components. The reduced protein diet decreased plasma urea concentration but FOS supplementation had no effect. The tendency for a higher faecal output by FOS supplementation was the consequence of both an increased moisture content and faecal DM production. Supplementation of FOS showed tendencies to increase total faecal nitrogen (N) excretion and faecal15N excretion and tended to decrease urinary15N excretion. Twenty‐seven different odour components were detected but were not affected by FOS supplementation.