R&D INVESTMENT AND FINANCIAL CONTRACTING IN SPANISH MANUFACTURIG FIRMS

This paper presents a model in which a firm with a degree of R&D specialization raises external funds to develop a two-period project that involves some non-verifiable returns (R&D-type of project). Taking into account a possible opportunistic behavior by the manager, we find out that the optimal firm's debt equity ratio is negatively related to the firm's degree of R&D specialization, its internal funds, and the output generated by the R&D project. Moreover, the expected R&D output of the firm is related negatively to the firm’s leverage and positively to the firm’s degree of R&D specialization as well as the amount of internal funds. The novelty of this work is to derive these results from strategic default consideration of the managers of firms specialized in R&D investments, as opposed to the standard collateral arguments concerning debt financing. This has a consequence of a lower growth of the firm’s debt-equity ratio once we compare firms specialized on R&D investments with others non specialized in these activities. We confirm our main theoretical findings making use of a Spanish data set of manufacturing firms during the period 1990-94.

Towards Distributed Convoy Pattern Mining

Mining movement data to reveal interesting behavioral patterns has gained attention in recent years. One such pattern is the convoy pattern which consists of at least m objects moving together for at least k consecutive time instants where m and k are user-defined parameters. Existing algorithms for detecting convoy patterns, however do not scale to real-life dataset sizes. Therefore a distributed algorithm for convoy mining is inevitable. In this paper, we discuss the problem of convoy mining and analyze different data partitioning strategies to pave the way for a generic distributed convoy pattern mining algorithm.Comment: SIGSPATIAL'15 November 03-06, 2015, Bellevue, WA, US

Rijoq: Vocal Music of Dayak Benuaq From Kutai, East Kalimantan

Rijoq, a Dayak Benuaq vocal music, has been passed down from generation to generation through oral tradition for hundreds of years. When and how it was founded, developed and preserved in the Dayak community remains questionable. But according to some research done by scholars, Rijoq has its origin from Dayak Bawo, a tribe living in the borderlines between Central, South, and East Kalimantan. Rijoq is normally performed during festivities, such as: initiation, reconciliation, menugal (rice planting) and potong kerbau (buffalo slaughtering). Rijoq\u27s texts have very deep messages which are considered still relevant to today\u27s life context. On the one hand, it speaks about the horizontal relationship—human beings and their fellows, and human beings and its nature—; and on the other hand, the vertical relationship—human beings with their Creator. The primary concern of doing this research is to preserve Rijoq as written and recorded documents. So far, this research has been successful in notating and recording five kinds of Rijoq, that is Peket Muat Bolupm (working together to build lives), Rijoq Patuk Ajer (advice), Rijoq Natal Tautn Bayuq (Christmas and New Year), Rijoq Isiq Asekng Sookng Bawe (the expression of a man\u27s feeling who is falling in love with a woman), and Rijoq Lati Tana Orekng Tepa (forests and lands are disappearing and gone). But this paper is not intended to discuss these five kinds of Rijoq. Isiq Asekng Sookng Bawe is chosen as it is the oldest and the most difficult Rijoq among the rest

Some don't like it hot: microhabitat-dependent thermal and water stresses in a trailing edge population

The distributional limits of species in response to environmental change are usually studied at large temporal and/or geographical scales. However, organismal scale habitat variation can be overlooked when investigating large-scale averages of key factors such as temperature. We examine how microhabitat thermal conditions relate to physiological limits, which may contribute to recent range shifts in an intertidal alga. We defined the onset and maximum temperatures of the heat-shock response (HSR) for a southern edge population of Fucus vesiculosus, which has subsequently become extinct. The physiological threshold for resilience (assayed using chlorophyll fluorescence) coincided with declining HSR, determined from the temperature-dependent induction of seven heat-shock protein transcripts. In intertidal habitats, temperature affects physiology directly by controlling body temperature and indirectly through evaporative water loss. We investigated the relationship between the thermal environment and in situ molecular HSR at microhabitat scales. Over cm to m scales, four distinct microhabitats were defined in algal patches (canopy surface, patch edge, subcanopy, submerged channels), revealing distinct thermal and water stress environments during low-tide emersion. The in situ HSR agreed with estimated tissue temperatures in all but one microhabitat. Remarkably, in the most thermally extreme microhabitat (canopy surface), the HSR was essentially absent in desiccated tissue, providing a potential escape from the cellular metabolic costs of thermal stress. Meteorological records, microenvironmental thermal profiles and HSR data indicate that the maximum HSR is approached or exceeded in hydrated tissue during daytime low tides for much of the year. Furthermore, present-day summer seawater temperatures are sufficient to induce HSR during high-tide immersion, preventing recovery and resulting in continuous HSR during daytime low-tide cycles over the entire summer. HSR in the field matched microhabitat temperatures more closely than local seawater or atmospheric data, suggesting that the impacts of climatic change are best understood at the microhabitat scale, particularly in intertidal areas.FCT - Portuguese Science Foundation [POCTI/MAR/61105/2004, EXCL/AAG-GLO/0661/2012, SFRH/BPD/63/03/2009, SFRH/BD/74436/2010]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Polyploid lineages in the genus Porphyra

Whole genome duplication is now accepted as an important evolutionary force, but the genetic factors and the life history implications affecting the existence and abundance of polyploid lineages within species are still poorly known. Polyploidy has been mainly studied in plant model species in which the sporophyte is the dominant phase in their life history. In this study, we address such questions in a novel system (Porphyra, red algae) where the gametophyte is the dominant phase in the life history. Three Porphyra species (P. dioica, P. umbilicalis, and P. linearis) were used in comparisons of ploidy levels, genome sizes and genetic differentiation using flow cytometry and 11 microsatellite markers among putative polyploid lineages. Multiple ploidy levels and genome sizes were found in Porphyra species, representing different cell lines and comprising several cytotype combinations among the same and different individuals. In P. linearis, genetic differentiation was found among three polyploid lineages: triploid, tetraploid and mixoploids, representing different evolutionary units. We conclude that the gametophytic phase (n) in Porphyra species is not haploid, contradicting previous theories. New hypotheses for the life histories of Porphyra species are discussed.FCT (Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia, Portugal) [SFRH/BPD/109452/2015, NORIGENOMICS - PTDC/MAR/099698/2008, UID/Multi/04326/2013, BIODIVERSA/004/2015-MARFOR

Technology and Caregiving: Emerging Interventions and Directions for Research.

An array of technology-based interventions has increasingly become available to support family caregivers, primarily focusing on health and well-being, social isolation, financial, and psychological support. More recently the emergence of new technologies such as mobile and cloud, robotics, connected sensors, virtual/augmented/mixed reality, voice, and the evermore ubiquitous tools supported by advanced data analytics, coupled with the integration of multiple technologies through platform solutions, have opened a new era of technology-enabled interventions that can empower and support family caregivers. This paper proposes a conceptual framework for identifying and addressing the challenges that may need to be overcome to effectively apply technology-enabled solutions for family caregivers. The paper identifies a number of challenges that either moderate or mediate the full use of technologies for the benefit of caregivers. The challenges include issues related to equity, inclusion, and access; ethical concerns related to privacy and security; political and regulatory factors affecting interoperability and lack of standards; inclusive/human-centric design and issues; and inherent economic and distribution channel difficulties. The paper concludes with a summary of research questions and issues that form a framework for global research priorities

Effectiviteit slakkenkorrels in spruitkool : vergelijking in vier praktijkpercelen van de effectiviteit van Caragoal GR en Ferramol Slakkenkorrels bij toepassing na 1 september, 2008

Slakken kunnen vraatschade aanrichten in diverse akkerA en tuinbouwgewassen. In de teelt van spruitkool is de slak één van de voornaamste belagers. Slakken zijn vooral actief in het voorA en najaar, maar ook in koele natte zomers kunnen zich problemen voordoen. Slakken kunnen grote schade veroorzaken in de periode van spruitvorming tot aan de oogst. De slakken kruipen gedurende de koele, vochtige periode met weinig wind, dus meestal 's nachts, in de plant en vreten aan de buitenste blaadjes van de spruit. De ontstane schade geeft een declassering bij de verkoop. De meest voorkomende slak is de akkeraardslak (Deroceras reticulatum (Müller)), die tot boven in de spruitkoolplanten voorkomt. Naast deze soort komen o.a. Arion silvaticus en Arion circumscriptus voor. Binnen de dringend vereiste toelating mogen producten op basis van metaldehyde, twee keer worden toegepast in de spruitkoolteelt. Ecostyle, dat de Ferramol Ecostyle Slakkenkorrels in haar pakket voert, heeft bezwaar aangetekend tegen het verlenen van een Dringend vereiste toelating, met het argument dat haar product een afdoende alternatief voor de in de markt verkrijgbare slakkenkorrels is. Besloten werd om in een proef een vergelijking van het effect van toepassingen van Caragoal GR en Ferramol Ecostyle Slakkenkorrels op de aantasting van spruitjes door slakken uit te voeren