The determinants of the accounting classification of convertible debt when managers have freedom of choice

This study examines the accounting classification of convertible debt in an environment where there is the choice of debt, other capital funds or equity. Contracting theory suggests possible determinants of accounting choice. These are leverage, as a proxy for closeness to debt covenants, the relative size of the convertible financial instrument issued and the contractual terms of the instrument. Two measures of leverage are used. One is debt to earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA). This variable has been included as it is the most commonly used ratio in debt covenants. The second measure is debt to net tangible assets as this ratio, or similar ratios, have been used in previous accounting studies to proxy for closeness to debt covenants. As leverage ratios tend to vary between industries I identify whether each firm is above or below their industry average. I find that the best predictor of the accounting classification choice is the contractual terms of the instrument. The two debt covenants derived hypotheses are not supported. The leverage of the issuer and the relative size of the issue have no significant influence on the choice of classification

Home Management Mothers...

We find that our home management houses are a matter of interest to visitors because of their differences from usual laboratory courses. Besides the abilities and training of the students we learn much of the traits and characteristics which influence their work and life as they live in family groups there

How Shall We Keep Our Food Cold?

The time is with us now when there is more interest than there has been in the past few months in how to keep food cold, both for the sake of economy and for palatability. The question is, What is the best method of keeping food cold? Refrigerators are being used more and more for this purpose for at least two reasons: they save the many, many steps which must be taken if the food is kept in a cool cellar or well, and they can be much more easily regulated as to temperature and dryness. We have learned to appreciate cool drinks and crisp vegetables on hot days so that the lack of ice as a means of making foods palatable would be a real hardship for many people, but the greatest value of a means of refrigeration comes in the enormous amount of food that can be saved by its use and the transportation of foods to far parts of the country

Uncovering Assumptions in Information Security

The design and implementation of security is based upon many assumptions. This paper discusses the need for students to learn to question assumptions, and in so doing identify unrealistic or incorrect assumptions and any associated policies. More realisticassumptions can then made and/or procedures implemented to protect against violation ofthe assumptions. A number of examples in the context of teaching computer security arediscussed and some methods of teaching awareness of assumptions presented

Leadership in Policy Issue Networks: The New Community College of Baltimore

The policy-making process is a complex human endeavor characterized by interactions among leaders and followers who do leadership by placing policy innovations on the political agenda and utilizing their resources to attempt change. If innovative change is accomplished, then the new policy must be implemented at the local level, in ways which may or may not reflect the intentions of those who desired the change, or those who created the new policy. This research focuses on an example of policy making in state government in the area of postsecondary education. The objectives of the study were to determine how coalitions form during the policy-making process, the ways in which leaders and followers enter and leave those coalitions, and the degree to which a systems model explains the process in this case. The study was also intended to examine the role of values in the policy-making process. The researcher utilized qualitative methodologies to explore the chronology of events in the takeover by the state of Maryland of the Community College of Baltimore, a small, urban college which attempted to serve the educational needs of underprepared students, primarily from the African-American community. The study includes information on the ways in which the policy was implemented at the college. The findings of the study indicate that coalitions form and are maintained on the basis of core values, and that two systems models together are more helpful in explaining the policy-making process than either of them is alone. The researcher concluded that policy issue networks on the state level are made up of coalitions of leaders and followers who intend real changes that reflect their mutual purposes. These coalitions may remain in place after the policy-making process has been completed, and may play a significant role in the successful implementation of innovative policies

Quantifying the digital traces of Hurricane Sandy on Flickr

Society’s increasing interactions with technology are creating extensive “digital traces” of our collective human behavior. These new data sources are fuelling the rapid development of the new field of computational social science. To investigate user attention to the Hurricane Sandy disaster in 2012, we analyze data from Flickr, a popular website for sharing personal photographs. In this case study, we find that the number of photos taken and subsequently uploaded to Flickr with titles, descriptions or tags related to Hurricane Sandy bears a striking correlation to the atmospheric pressure in the US state New Jersey during this period. Appropriate leverage of such information could be useful to policy makers and others charged with emergency crisis management

Scientists and Homemakers Look at the Electronic Range

Home scientists used thermocouples and calibrators. Homemakers tried food. Together these two groups find the electronic oven has some distinct advantages and a few unsolved problems

The Value Relevance of Information about Convertible Financial Instruments

We investigate the value relevance of the financial statement information about convertible financial instruments. Our findings indicate that the classification of convertibles provides incremental information over and above the book value of equity and net income. This finding is not as strong for convertibles that are classified as a form of mezzanine financing between debt and equity as for those classified as debt or equity. We also find that investors make use of information contained in the notes but only with respect to mandatory convertibles and convertibles where the right to make the decision about conversion or redemption rests with the issuer

The Iowa Homemaker vol.6, no.10

Table of Contents V-E-I-S-H-E-A by Gladys Parker, page 1 Is the Home Economics Graduate the Best Homemaker?, page 2 The Season Suggests a Sewing Machine by Cleo Fitzsimmons, page 3 How Shall We Keep Our Food Cold? by Helen Bishop, page 4 4-H Clubs, page 6 Iowa State Home Economics Association Page, page 8 Editorial, page 9 Who’s There and Where, page 10 Research in Canning by Betty Barker, page 11 Vodvil Puts $350 in MacKay Loan Fund by Marcella Alton, page 11 Art Students Compete by Jane Rhoads, page 11 New Meat Course by Helen Goeppinger, page 11 Eternal Question, page 12 Movement to End Waste in Textile Industry, page 13 Analyzes 100 Brands of Sheeting by Mary Moser, page 1

Urinary schistosomiasis: risk factors and symptoms among school adolescents in Kaduna State, Nigeria

Improper waste disposal, unsafe water and indiscriminate water-contact activities are major factors enhancing continuous spread of schistosomiasis in Nigeria. Many water bodies are prone to contamination with human wastes directly discharged into them or due to surface runoff, and are infested with parasites. Open defecation and discharge of household sewage into water channels is still practiced. Children conduct activities in these water bodies, thereby exposing themselves to infections with schistomes among other pathogens. Urine samples (10 mL each) were collected from 600 consented school adolescents across six Local Government Areas of Kaduna State, Nigeria. Information on their water-contact activities were obtained by means of questionnaires. Urine sediment was examined for Schistosoma haematobium eggs by microscopy. No infection was recorded in adolescents who had awareness about the disease. Those who engaged in swimming (9.2 %, OR=2.2) and fishing (10.3 %, OR=2.1) were significantly more infected than those who did not (P≤0.05). Adolescents who worked on irrigated farms (9.0 %, OR=1.4), washed clothes in rivers (9.0 %, OR=1.6), or fetch water from rivers for domestic purpose (10.0 %) were more infected than others who did not engage in those activities. Therefore, swimming and fishing are important factors enhancing the spread of schistosomiasis among school adolescents in Kaduna State. Irrigation farming, washing of clothes in rivers or fetching water from rivers exposed the adolescents to schistosome infections. Widespread awareness campaigns, provision safe water to communities, and standard water-based recreational centers are paramoun