Global Corporate Governance: Implications For A Functionally Harmonized Legal Infrastructure

As developing and centrally planned economies shift toward decentralized market economies, they will revise their corporate governance rules to attract foreign investors and foster economic growth.  However, the expansion of firms internationally creates the immediate problem of cross-border bankruptcy and policy makers will eventually have to turn to functional harmonization of national bankruptcy laws as well as other means of corporate governance to maintain fairness and to facilitate a freer flow of cross-border investment.   We propose three major changes to global governance:  (1) a functionally harmonized system of bankruptcy laws that supersede national bankruptcy laws  (2) contractual corporate governance via securities exchange listing and (3) arbitration as a means to enforce global recourse. &nbsp

The Environment and Trade Agreements: Should the WTO Become More Actively Involved

The article first explores several basic arguments concerning whether the World Trade Organization (WTO) should require member states to adopt environmental standards as major components of international trade agreements. Section II provides a brief background on the debate surrounding environmental aspects of trade agreements and their relationship to development. Section III discusses the benefits and problems associated with enforcing environmental standards through the WTO. Section IV provides arguments for the incorporation of environmental standards in trade agreements through the WTO

Associations Between Adolescent Sport and Exercise Participation and Device-Assessed Physical Activity in Adulthood: Evidence From the 1970 British Cohort Study

BACKGROUND: Adolescence is a critical period filled with life changes. Early implementation of effective health promotion strategies could help alleviate the morbidity and mortality associated with inactivity. This study investigated whether adolescent participation in exercise and sport is associated with device-assessed physical activity (PA) levels in midlife. METHODS: A total of 2984 participants (41.2% male) from the 1970 British Cohort Study were included. Participants were surveyed at age 16 years on 5 indicators of exercise and sport participation. Total daily PA and moderate to vigorous PA (MVPA) at age 46 years were measured using a thigh-worn accelerometer, worn for 7 days. Associations between each adolescent exercise or sport indicator and adulthood total daily PA and MVPA were examined using linear regressions, adjusting for sex, wear time, body mass index, smoking, disability, malaise, alcohol consumption, social class, education, and self-rated health. RESULTS: In fully adjusted models, adolescents who reported exercising "much more" than others (8.6 min/d; 95% confidence interval, -0.1 to 17.1), who played sports at the park/playground more than once a week (8.5 [3.0-14.0] min/d), and who exercised on the most recent Saturday (3.8 [0.7-6.9] min/d) had higher adult total PA levels than those who reported the lowest activity levels. There was no evidence of an association between greater sport and exercise participation at age 16 y and MVPA at age 46 y. There was no association between sports at school and either measure of adult PA. CONCLUSION: Active adolescents, particularly those who engaged in out-of-school exercise, had higher total daily PA levels, but not MVPA levels, in midlife. This highlights the potential of early PA interventions to improve PA levels in adulthood

Weep Hole Inspection for Radial Fatigue Cracks by Circumferential Creeping Waves

Weep holes are drilled through risers in wet-wing structures in order to permit remanent fuel to be evenly distributed during flight. Unfortunately, they can become the sites from which fatigue cracks tend to originate. Figure 1 shows the schematic diagram of weep holes cut into the vertical risers of an airplane wing used as a fuel tank. The cracks have been found to grow in either the upward or downward or both directions. These fatigue cracks initially grow in a radial direction perpendicular to the wing skin surface. Downward growing cracks can be easily detected using a 45-degree shear wave transducer. The main objective of this study was the development of an ultrasonic detection technique for the less accessible upward growing cracks. The blowup in Figure 1 shows the geometrical configuration of such an upward growing fatigue crack

Dose-response association between step count and cardiovascular disease risk markers in middle aged adults

Several step-based daily targets have been widely circulated, but there is a lack of empirical population-based evidence to support such guidance. We examined dose-response associations between step count and classical CVD risk markers (glycated haemoglobin, high density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, C-reactive protein) in 4,665 adults (aged 46 yr; 51.4% female) in a cross-sectional study. Step counts were measured from a thigh mounted accelerometer (activPAL) worn over 7 days. The shape of the dose response curve for most risk markers was 'L-shaped', with linear risk reduction up to around 10,000 steps a day. Controlling for stepping intensity did not materially alter our results

The Role of Families in Youth Sport Programming in a Canadian Aboriginal Reserve

Background: There has been a recent push in the sport psychology literature for sport participants to be approached based on their cultural backgrounds. However, there are few examples where a cultural approach is considered, such as a culturally reflexive version of participatory action research (PAR). In the current study, the role of family is considered in relation to the sport engagement of Canadian Aboriginal youth. Methods: Mainstream researchers teamed with co-researchers from the Wikwemikong Unceded Indian Reserve for 5 years. Community meetings and talking circles were employed as culturally sensitive data collection techniques to uncover how to encourage youth participation in Wikwemikong’s sport programs. The overarching methodology for the project is PAR. Results: Themes and subthemes were determined by community consensus with terms indigenous (ie, culturally relevant) among the local Aboriginal culture. Family was considered important for youth involvement in Aboriginal community sport programs. Parents were expected to support their children by managing schedules and priorities, providing transportation, financial support, encouragement, and being committed to the child’s activity. Aunts, uncles, cousins, siblings, grandparents, and the family as a whole were seen as sharing the responsibility to retain youth in sport through collateral support (ie, when gaps in parental support arose). Conclusions: Suggestions are proposed regarding how families in Aboriginal communities can collaborate to facilitate sport and physical activity among their youth. Further suggestions are proposed for researchers engaging in culturally reflexive research with participants and coresearchers from oppressed cultures

A Primer On International Environmental Law: Sustainability As A Principle Of International Law And Custom

International environmental law draws from two important sources: international treaties and conventions\u27 and customary international law

Social Enterprise: Raffirming Public Purpose Governance Through Shared Value

Article published in the Michigan State Journal of Business and Securities Law

State Oversight of Nonprofit Governance: Confronting the Challenge of Mission Adherence Within a Multi-dimensional Standard

State Oversight of Nonprofit Governance: Confronting the Challenge of Mission Adherence Within a Multi-dimensional Standar