Reit Organizational Structure and Operating Characteristics

As a corporate organizational form, real estate investment trusts (REITs) fall into two competing property management structures: internally advised and externally advised. This study tests the hypothesis that, due to their superior ability to resolve conflicts of interests between REIT management and shareholders, internally-advised REITs will dominate the externally-advised REITs. We also test the hypothesis that larger REITs will come to dominate the market and find support for this hypothesis. The results confirm that externally-advised REITs are responding to market pressure to conform to the performance standards set by newer, internally-advised REITs.

Association of intestinal alkaline phosphatase with necrotizing enterocolitis among premature infants

Importance: Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in preterm infants is an often-fatal gastrointestinal tract emergency. A robust NEC biomarker that is not confounded by sepsis could improve bedside management, lead to lower morbidity and mortality, and permit patient selection in randomized clinical trials of possible therapeutic approaches. Objective: To evaluate whether aberrant intestinal alkaline phosphatase (IAP) biochemistry in infant stool is a molecular biomarker for NEC and not associated with sepsis. Design, Setting, and Participants: This multicenter diagnostic study enrolled 136 premature infants (gestational age, \u3c37 weeks) in 2 hospitals in Louisiana and 1 hospital in Missouri. Data were collected and analyzed from May 2015 to November 2018. Exposures: Infant stool samples were collected between 24 and 40 or more weeks postconceptual age. Enrolled infants underwent abdominal radiography at physician and hospital site discretion. Main Outcomes and Measures: Enzyme activity and relative abundance of IAP were measured using fluorometric detection and immunoassays, respectively. After measurements were performed, biochemical data were evaluated against clinical entries from infants\u27 hospital stay. Results: Of 136 infants, 68 (50.0%) were male infants, median (interquartile range [IQR]) birth weight was 1050 (790-1350) g, and median (IQR) gestational age was 28.4 (26.0-30.9) weeks. A total of 25 infants (18.4%) were diagnosed with severe NEC, 19 (14.0%) were suspected of having NEC, and 92 (66.9%) did not have NEC; 26 patients (19.1%) were diagnosed with late-onset sepsis, and 14 (10.3%) had other non-gastrointestinal tract infections. For severe NEC, suspected NEC, and no NEC samples, median (IQR) fecal IAP content, relative to the amount of IAP in human small intestinal lysate, was 99.0% (51.0%-187.8%) (95% CI, 54.0%-163.0%), 123.0% (31.0%-224.0%) (95% CI, 31.0%-224.0%), and 4.8% (2.4%-9.8%) (95% CI, 3.4%-5.9%), respectively. For severe NEC, suspected NEC, and no NEC samples, median (IQR) enzyme activity was 183 (56-507) μmol/min/g (95% CI, 63-478 μmol/min/g) of stool protein, 355 (172-608) μmol/min/g (95% CI, 172-608 μmol/min/g) of stool protein, and 613 (210-1465) μmol/min/g (95% CI, 386-723 μmol/min/g) of stool protein, respectively. Mean (SE) area under the receiver operating characteristic curve values for IAP content measurements were 0.97 (0.02) (95% CI, 0.93-1.00; P \u3c .001) at time of severe NEC, 0.97 (0.02) (95% CI, 0.93-1.00; P \u3c .001) at time of suspected NEC, 0.52 (0.07) (95% CI, 0.38-0.66; P = .75) at time of sepsis, and 0.58 (0.08) (95% CI, 0.42-0.75; P = .06) at time of other non-gastrointestinal tract infections. Mean (SE) area under the receiver operating characteristic curve values for IAP activity were 0.76 (0.06) (95% CI, 0.64-0.86; P \u3c .001), 0.62 (0.07) (95% CI, 0.48-0.77; P = .13), 0.52 (0.07) (95% CI, 0.39-0.67; P = .68), and 0.57 (0.08) (95% CI, 0.39-0.69; P = .66), respectively. Conclusions and Relevance: In this diagnostic study, high amounts of IAP protein in stool and low IAP enzyme activity were associated with diagnosis of NEC and may serve as useful biomarkers for NEC. Our findings indicated that IAP biochemistry was uniquely able to distinguish NEC from sepsis

Brief Report: Assessment of Intervention Effects on In Vivo Peer Interactions in Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a randomized controlled trial of a social skills intervention, the Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS: Laugeson et al. in J Autism Dev Disord 39(4): 596–606, 2009), by coding digitally recorded social interactions between adolescent participants with ASD and a typically developing adolescent confederate. Adolescent participants engaged in a 10-min peer interaction at pre- and post-treatment. Interactions were coded using the Contextual Assessment of Social Skills (Ratto et al. in J Autism Dev Disord 41(9): 1277–1286, 2010). Participants who completed PEERS demonstrated significantly improved vocal expressiveness, as well as a trend toward improved overall quality of rapport, whereas participants in the waitlist group exhibited worse performance on these domains. The degree of this change was related to knowledge gained in PEERS

First-time House Buying and Catch-up: A Cohort Study

We investigate whether different ages of first-time house buying lead to persistent differences in homeownership between cohorts. Our data span nearly 40 years and multiple cycles of England's volatile house prices. Ownership rates at thirty have differed substantially, with a significant negative association with prices. The persistence of differences is assessed using synthetic cohort techniques. Two methods of dealing with measurement error problems both indicate that cohorts with low ownership rates at thirty catch up almost all of the ownership gap by forty. Earlier access to homeownership may result in the ownership of slightly larger homes at around forty

The Fear of Castration and Male Dread of Female Sexuality: The Theme of the “Vagina Dentata” in Dracula

Bram Stoker’s Dracula reflects the Victorian fear of reverse colonization by the “Other” or the encroachment of the outsider on the British Empire as well as the repression of sexuality in Victorian England; however, there is one facet of the text that has never been fully explored: the inherent male fear of castration and feminine sexuality as well as its relationship to the “vagina dentata” motif. Furthermore, this dread of female sexuality has not been adequately explored in light of the novel’s historical context. Written during the rise of the New Woman, Stoker crafts a response to the increasing independence of women, embracing the strength and abilities of women, but rejecting the New Woman’s sexual forwardness and lack of maternal instinct. Using the female vampires to represent the New Woman, Stoker creates a social commentary that juxtaposes the New Woman with the reinvented traditional woman to demonstrate the dangers the New Woman poses. By re-envisioning the critical landscape of Dracula, the discussion on the place of and misconceptions of female sexuality within a phallocentric discourse will be extended to demonstrate that a vaginally-centered discourse exists. As Judith Butler states, “Within a language pervasively masculinist, a phallogocentric language, women constitute the unrepresentable. In other words, women represent the sex that cannot be thought, a linguistic absence and opacity” (9). Therefore, female sexuality is not verbalized as clearly as male sexuality; however, through the male dread of the unrepresentable nature of female sexuality, particular motifs and images, such as the vagina dentata, are used to visually represent the male projection of female sexuality in light of a phallocentric discourse

Online Dispute Resolution for Divorce Cases in Missouri: A Remedy for the Justice Gap

This Comment will analyze the use of ODR for divorce disputes in Missouri by first explaining the use of ODR and then analyzing its evolution. How ODR has grown on a global level and entered the realm of family law will also be viewed, as well as how other countries have used ODR to successfully resolve divorce case disputes. Recent proposals in the United States for use of ODR programs to resolve domestic disputes will be discussed, before evaluating how ODR programs could be implemented into Missouri’s legal system as a way to begin shaping the future of America’s family law system

Is This The Worst Ever Yet?

In this publication\u27s last issue, John Williams and the author determined that the 2008 recession was the least worst of the recessions of the past forty years. Now, the author says, we are in the second-worst recessionary period of the last forty years, and it is worsening fast. But do not bet against the U.S. economy, he cautions. Entrepreneurs are still out there, and with a modicum of political leadership and stable economic policy, we will get through this stronger than ever. Realistically, we cannot save everyone, but in the Chapter 11 limbo, companies can try to reconstitute themselves; special bailouts do nothing but redistribute income according to political clout. Losers must lose if winners are to prosper. If one or more of the Hopeless Three (U.S. auto manufacturers) goes bankrupt, their competitors\u27 sales will rise; their operating margins will improve, allowing them to avoid financial distress and expand output and employment domestically. As with wildebeest in the Masai Mara, death is essential to life. People knew that leverage could be risky. Debt is wonderful on the upside, but remorseless on the downside. This lesson will hopefully be remembered for a new generation

From Sherman to Shut Down – Understanding Antitrust Legislation Targeting Big Tech

Beginning in the late 19th and 20th centuries and extending into present day, United States antitrust legislation has sought to safeguard consumers and maintain fair competition among businesses. While the purpose of antitrust legislation has always been to encourage free market principles, changing technologies within re-cent decades, as well as the rise of so-called “Big Tech”, has disrupted the “traditional” business landscape. This article begins with a general history of antitrust legislation within the United States in an effort to provide context regarding legislators’ recent push for legislation targeting Big Tech giants. In analyzing recent antitrust legislation, this article provides insights regarding the potential dangers which could result from the passage of these bills. Ultimately, this article argues that American legislators, and more generally Americans at large should consider the potential unintended consequences the passage of these bills could have for businesses, and more specifically the tech industry, at large