Annoyance of helicopter impulsive noise

Psychoacoustic studies of helicopter impulsive noise were conducted in order to qualify additional annoyance due to this feature and to develop physical impulsiveness descriptors to develop impulsivity correction methods. The currently proposed descriptors and methods of impulsiveness correction are compared using a multilinear regression analysis technique. It is shown that the presently recommended descriptor and correction method provides the best correlation with the subjective evaluations of real helicopter impulsive noises. The equipment necessary for data processing in order to apply the correction method is discussed

Mothers Voices: The Lived Experience of the Human Milk Banking Association of North America Milk Donor

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to examine the lived experience of the milk donor who donated milk to a hospital-based bank regulated under the policies and procedures set forth by the Human Milk Banking Association of North America (HMBANA). The literature has examined and established the life-saving benefits of donor milk for the vulnerable infant. Currently, there is a shortage of donor milk available for vulnerable and premature infants. Learning more about the experience of donation from the perspective of the donating mother can aid in the future education, recruitment, and retention of donors. Method: This study utilized a qualitative phenomenological approach to describe the experience of the donor. Donors approved through the Human Milk Banking Association of North America were selected for this study at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Participants were interviewed using a face-to-face semi-structured interview format. Edmund Husserl’s philosophical framework and Colaizzi’s method of data analysis were utilized. The voices of women who lived the experience of donating their milk illuminated the essence of the phenomenon. iv Results: Four themes illuminated the phenomena of donation: A Ripple of Hope and Help, The Dynamic Interplay of Nurturance, Standing on The Shoulders of Others, and Sharing Their Story. The first theme expressed the ripple effect of the positive emotions experienced by each participant. The dynamic interplay of nurturance demonstrates the participants’ knowledge that her donation is helping another infant and family, and how that leads to her feeling good while acting as a motivating factor. The third theme, standing on the shoulders of others, illuminates the staff as the central facilitating factor in donation, and helps us understand the elements of that relationship. Lastly, every participant wanted to share their story and teach others about donation because they wanted other women to have the same experience. Donation was described as a positive, valuable, and nurturing experience that motivated donors to continue. This study illuminated the positive emotional experiences associated with milk donation

Do the burdens to being public affect the investment and innovation of newly public firms?

We examine how the regulatory burdens to being public affect the investment and innovation of newly public firms. To do so, we exploit the Jumpstart our Business Start-up (JOBS) Act, which eliminates certain disclosure, auditing, and governance requirements for a subset of newly public firms. Firms treated with these reduced burdens invest more and more efficiently after going public relative to untreated firms. These findings are concentrated in innovative investments, are accompanied by treated firms being less prone to cater to short-term earnings benchmarks, and are non-existent in dual class firms. We conclude that one reason the burdens to being public affect investment and innovation is because they divert resources away from long-run value increasing investments

Buying Analyst and Investor Attention through IPO Proceeds

We examine the effect of IPO proceeds on the post-IPO information environment. We exploit variation in the amount of capital raised across IPOs that is unrelated to firm size and manager decisions using an instrumental variable approach, and find that marginal increases in IPO proceeds lead to large increases in analyst coverage and institutional ownership in the first two years a firm is public. Increases in IPO proceeds also lead to more frequent follow-on offerings and longer survival as a public firm. We find evidence that immediate shocks to ownership diversification represent one plausible channel through which changes in IPO proceeds affect long-run visibility and investor demand. Overall, our findings highlight important rewards to selling additional shares at the IPO

Voluntary Disclosure and Firm Visibility: Evidence from Firms Pursuing an Initial Public Offering

Drawing on predictions by Merton (1987) regarding the benefits to firms of enhancing visibility with prospective investors, we develop hypotheses for the role of pre-prospectus voluntary disclosure activities in terms of press releases and attendance at investor and industry conferences by firms pursuing an initial public offering (IPO). For a sample of IPOs during 2004–2014 we find that press release disclosures and conference attendance are common pre-IPO disclosure strategies. Tests using the passage of the 2005 Securities Offering Reform as a source of quasi-exogenous variation in pre-prospectus disclosures reveal, consistent with Merton (1987), that disclosures in this regime appear designed to enhance firm visibility, but have little effect on the extent of adverse selection costs. Overall, our evidence suggests that pre-IPO voluntary disclosure strategies provide benefits to newly public firms beyond mitigating informational asymmetries

A Typology of Online Group Buyers: Using Means-end Structures for Benefit Segmentation

Given the enormous growth and significant impacts of group buying on Internet business marketplaces, this study aims to develop a typology of online group buyers based upon benefits pursued by them and develop the hierarchical decision making process model for different segments of consumers from a Means-end Chain (MEC) theory perspective. The laddering interview technique was used to interview 58 online group buying users and to capture their reasons behind the online shopping behaviour, with grounded theory used to determine categories, which were then classified into attributes, consequences/benefits, and values/goals. Cluster analysis were conducted based on benefits level factors and three segments of consumers were identified: economic shoppers, balanced shoppers, and destination shoppers. Three decision making process model were developed and compared. Both similarities and differences were identified. This study has the potential to make significant contributions to both IS research and e-business regarding consumer online group buying decisions

The economic consequences of GASB financial statement disclosure

We examine whether changes in how items are reported on GASB financial statements have real economic consequences for local governments. We generate identification using financial reporting differences that existed prior to adoption of GASB 68, a standard focused on the reporting of defined benefit pension obligations. These differences were eliminated by GASB 68, and were not discretionary. They arose based on whether the local government participated in either a shared or agency pension plan. Using a broad sample of municipalities and a difference-in-differences (DD) research design, we find that the new disclosure of a pension obligation leads to reduced expenses through changes to wages, benefits and employee headcount. We find the opposite result for pension assets, and stronger results for larger pension obligations. In addition, we find that the effects of disclosing pension obligations are stronger for those municipalities accessing debt markets, suggesting that credit markets may be contributing to the effects we document

Short and long term results of the laparoscopic Heller–Dor myotomy. The influence of age and previous conservative therapies

Analisi dei risultati della terapia chirurgica dell'acalasia esofagea con tecnica di Heller-Dor laparoscopica in pazienti anziani con e senza dilatazione pneumatica pregress

Anatomy & Physiology Revealed: The ultimate virtual cadaver dissection experience

Anatomy & Physiology Revealed is an interactive cadaver dissection tool to enhance lecture and lab, which teachers can use in lecture room, and student can use anytime anywhere. This program uses cadaver photos combined with a layering technique that allows the student to peel away layers of the human body to reveal structures beneath the surface. Anatomy & Physiology Revealed also offers animations, histologic and radiologic imaging, and a comprehensive quizzing tool. It can be used as part of any one or two semester undergraduate anatomy & physiology or human anatomy course; it is available as a stand-alone or can be combined with any Anatomy & Physiology textbooks