The relationship between board gender diversity and firm risk-taking among the S&P 500 firms

This study examines the relationship between board gender diversity and the risk-taking of the S&P500 firms over the period 2004-2017, aiming to solve the question of whether women’s par-ticipation in the boardroom can reduce a firm’s level of risk-taking. The theoretical framework is based on the background of corporate governance systems, the mechanism of the board of directors, and existing related theories including agency theory, re-source dependence theory, and tokenism theory. In the scope of the theoretical framework, we conduct an empirical review on the board gender diversity and risk-taking. The first section pre-sents empirical evidence of the behavioral differences between men and women in the work-place. In the next section, we focus on existing studies on the impact of board gender diversity on corporate governance. The last section goes through different opinions in the discussions about the relationship between gender diversity and firm risk-taking. We apply panel data methodology to conduct the empirical part of the thesis. Board gender di-versity is measured by the presence of female members and their proportion on the board of directors. The proxy for the firm’s risk-taking is the volatility of profitability ratio (ROTA ratio). The regression model is controlled by multiple control variables, including board characteristics and firm performance indicators. Omitted firm characteristics are controlled through firm fixed effects and time fixed effects specifications. We further modify the regressions to address en-dogeneity concerns through two different approaches: lagged dependent variables with fixed effects and Generalized Moment Methods estimators. The models are verified against robust-ness by employing alternative measures of board gender diversity (Blau index and Shannon index for diversity) and alternative proxies of firm risk-taking (volatility of profitability adjusted by in-dustry benchmarks and profitability ratio gap). The findings provide significant evidence that firms having a more gender-diverse board tend to be less risky than others. The presence of at least one woman on board appears to have no im-pact on corporate risk-taking, which might be explained by inappropriate variable choice and the tokenism theory. The dual position of CEO/ chairperson and the board independence level is negatively related to the volatility of profitability, while the higher leverage ratio is linked to the higher riskiness. However, the models perform poorly in addressing potential endogeneity issues and produce questionable results, which implies that the relationship between gender diversity and firm risk-taking is probably far more complicated than we assume

An Unconventional Pathway: A Qualitative Inquiry Into the Experience of Racial Minority Transfer Students

Transfer students’ success is increasingly being discussed in higher education. A large population of transfer students includes racial minority, low-income, and first-generation college students. Due to the multiple layers of students’ identities, it has been difficult for educational leaders in institutions to grasp the essential elements needed to serve these students. As a result, this qualitative study contributes to this discussion and efforts to support the transfer student’s success. In this study, qualitative methods, including interviews with 14 students from 4-year universities and community colleges and a survey, were used to identify the steps and resources associated with supporting transfer students. The critical race theory framework served as the central lens to determine how racial factors played a vital key in the students’ post-transfer experience. The goal of this study was to ensure that the transfer students receive the essential resources and guidance from their institutions to have a successful transfer pathway to earning their degree

Zooplankton from Can Giuoc River in Southern Vietnam

In this study, the variables of zooplankton and water quality were investigated in the Can Giuoc River, Southern Vietnam. Zooplankton was monitored in April and September 2015 at 5 sampling sites in the river. Some basic water quality parameters were also tested, including pH, total suspended solid (TSS), dissolved oxygen (DO), biological oxygen demand (BOD5), inorganic nitrogen (NH4+), dissolved phosphorus (PO43-), and coliform. The zooplankton biodiversity indices were applied for the water quality assessment. The results showed that pH ranged from 6.7 to 7.6 during the monitoring. The TSSs were between 34–117 mg/L. The DO and BOD5 were from 0.6 to 3.8 mg/L and from 6.3 to 13.2 mg/L, respectively. The NH4+ and PO43- concentrations ranged from 0.44 to 3.23 and from 0.08 to 1.85 mg/L, respectively. The coliform number was between 9.3x103–9.3x104 MPN/100 mL. The zooplankton analyses showed that there were 31 species of coelenterates, rotatoria, oligochaetes, cladocerans, copepods, ostracods, mysidacea, and 8 larval types. Thereof, the species of copepods were dominant in the species number. The zooplankton density ranged from 9 500 to 23 600 individuals/m3 with the main dominant species of Moina dubia (Cladocera), Thermocyclops hyalinus, Acartia clausi, Oithona similis (Copepoda), and nauplius copepods. The biodiversity index values during the monitoring were from 1.47 to 1.79 characteristic of mesotrophic conditions of the aquatic environment. Besides, the species richness positively correlated with pH, TSS, DO, BOD5, NH4+, PO43-, and coliform, while the zooplankton densities got a positive correlation with DO, BOD5, NH4+, PO43-, and coliform. The results confirmed the advantage of using zooplankton and its indices for water quality assessment

Digital Media, Digital Democracy and the Changing Nature of Freedom of Speech in Vietnam

This paper discusses the influence of digital media and its online presence on freedom of speech in Vietnam by analyzing three different kinds of emerging online media tools: blogosphere, electronic/online newspapers, and social media networks (SNSs). As a single- party socialist republic country, the controlling power of the media lays in the hands of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV). The Doi Moi reform in 1986, marketization and the introduction of the Internet in 1997 have slightly transformed the Vietnamese media environment, however, it remains highly restricted. This paper explores several sources including academic research, research articles, as well as analysis of online press coverage in the Vietnamese media environment to examine governmental control over the media which influences the free flow of information. Understanding digital media developments within the Vietnamese online media environment helps us to understand how Vietnamese netizens utilize these tools to maximize their online freedom of speech, the CPV"s approach to regulate the Internet in order to maintain its legitimacy, and several challenges facing Vietnamese netizens including bloggers, journalists, and the wider public in the digital age

EMaP: Explainable AI with Manifold-based Perturbations

In the last few years, many explanation methods based on the perturbations of input data have been introduced to improve our understanding of decisions made by black-box models. The goal of this work is to introduce a novel perturbation scheme so that more faithful and robust explanations can be obtained. Our study focuses on the impact of perturbing directions on the data topology. We show that perturbing along the orthogonal directions of the input manifold better preserves the data topology, both in the worst-case analysis of the discrete Gromov-Hausdorff distance and in the average-case analysis via persistent homology. From those results, we introduce EMaP algorithm, realizing the orthogonal perturbation scheme. Our experiments show that EMaP not only improves the explainers' performance but also helps them overcome a recently-developed attack against perturbation-based methods.Comment: 29 page

An Exploration in Social and Emotional Health of Vietnamese High School Students

Social and emotional health (SEH) aims to promote academic success and create school well-being. SEH has not been studied in Vietnam. This article focused on exploring the SEH of Vietnamese high school students because of the high-risk level in mental health that appeared in this group. The study was carried out using a qualitative case study approach to interviewing 74 students, 12 teachers, 7 school administrators, and 4 school counselors. We interpreted four features of SEH\u27s expression of Vietnamese students: (1) Confident but lack of individual perspectives, (2) Respectful but lack of listening and empathy in school relationships, (3) Balanced but lack of authentic perception of emotions and effective emotional management, (4) Satisfied but lack of sustainability and action. This study has broadened our understanding of external behaviours and current limitations in the young people’s SEH from their perspectives in a developing Southeast Asian country to promote positive psychological development in school-based prevention programs

ANALYSIS OF PRESCRIPTION INDICATORS FOR OUTPATIENTS WITH HEALTH INSURANCE IN OUTPATIENTS DEPARTMENT AT CAN THO UNIVERSITY OF MEDICINE AND PHARMACY HOSPITAL IN THE PERIOD 2017-2018

Objective: The main objective of this study was to evaluate the drug prescription parameters and to find out the elements had an influence on the prescribing practice of doctors’. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted to collect 300 outpatient drug prescriptions and 30 questionnaires of physicians during the period of 2017-2018. The data were analyzed according to WHO’s the guideline. Results: Average number of drug per prescription: 3.73, percentage of drugs prescribed by generic or international name (INN): 100%, percentage of prescriptions with an antibiotic prescribed: 24%, of β-lactam antibiotics group, including cephalosporin (31.17%) and aminopenicillin (27.27%), accounted for the highest percentage of using in antibiotic groups with a total of 58.44%, of corticosteroid: 12%, of vitamin: 27.3%, of drugs prescribed including in the Essential Medicines List issued by the Ministry of Health: 35.3%. Average drug cost per prescription: 88,867 VNĐ. Percentage of drug costs for antibiotics (%): 7.48%, of corticosteroids (%): 1.85% and of vitamins (%): 5.25%. Conclusion: The results of this research have identified some prescription indicators and elements affect the prescription indicators such as drug information, patient, drug, which may lead to intervention studies for evaluating changes in these issues in the outpatient clinic

The context of school-based cyberbullying prevention in Vietnamese public schools: A cross-sectional study

Cyberbullying is a form of violence that has been present in schools for a long time and negatively impacts the mental health of students. Different countries have different strategies for avoiding cyberbullying. However, research on school-based cyberbullying prevention is limited in Southeast Asian developing countries.  This study aims to explore the current implementation of school-based cyberbullying prevention in public schools in a developing country. The framework of prevention programs is based on three aspects: (1) Developing curricula on how to behave when being a victim of cyberbullying.  (2) Strengthening the students' skills to deal with cyberbullying. (3) Promulgating specific provisions in the legal document on handling cyberbullying. School-based cyberbullying prevention among students in public schools is currently a research gap because of the limitations in the management of students using the internet and educational policies. This is a cross-sectional study that surveyed 400 participants who are Vietnamese teachers, administrators and school psychologists. The results show that the limitations of school-based cyberbullying prevention for Vietnamese students include professional knowledge, practical experience and personnel in charge of this work.  This constraint has resulted in an upsurge in incidents of cyberbullying in Vietnam. The findings add to the important evidence on cyberbullying prevention in a developing country that is working to research and develop an appropriate school-based cyberbullying prevention strategy

Assay of Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine Hydrochloride) Utilizing Isocratic Reversed Phase High Performance Liquid Chromatography

Aims: To demonstrate an analysis for vitamin B6 from commercial aqueous nutritional drinks and solid tablets, utilizing isocratic conditions with high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and UV detection at 290 nm. Study Design: Vitamin B6 in the form of pyridoxine hydrochloride is assayed by HPLC from various samples. Place and Duration of Study: Department of Chemistry, Durham Science Center, University of Nebraska, Omaha Nebraska from May to August 2016. Methodology: Utilizing a reversed-phase C-18 column with eluent solvent (19% ethanol, 77% water, 4% acetic acid), the samples were prepared in sample solvent (19% ethanol, 81% distilled water). Detection of vitamin B6 was accomplished at 290 nm. Analysis of samples was done following solubilizing in aqueous conditions having ethanol at 10% to 20% (v/v). Column pressure at 1900 psig, rise time 0.1 with flow rate 1.0 mL/minute. Elution peak for vitamin B6 occurred consistently at 1.6 minutes. Nutritional samples, aqueous samples, and solid pills were prepared in aqueous solvent with various levels of ethanol. Results: Levels of vitamin B6 detected were as low as 4.4029x10-5 molar to 7.8081x10-4 molar. Sensitivity for vitamin B6 was highest at 290 nm. Reverse phase isocratic conditions is shown to be effective for determination of vitamin B6 in aqueous based samples. Standard curves applied are highly linear in range from zero to 7.8081x10-4 molar (y = 112,521,145.5x + 2,818.6), having coefficient of determination (R2 = 0.9948) with very strong positive correlation coefficient (r= 0.9974). Percent recovery of vitamin ranged from 95% to 105%. Amounts of vitamin present in drinks from same manufacturer were consistent. Conclusion: Utilizing reversed phase column, isocratic solvent conditions with ethanol in water, and a UV detector set at 290 nm is effective for determination of vitamin B6. Ethanol-water solvent system is effective. Vitamin B6 was found in various amounts in nutritional drinks tested. Percent recovery of vitamin averaged 101% with a standard deviation of 2.4%. Pyridoxine hydrochloride was effectively assayed from aqueous samples, vitamin preparations, and vitamin tablets. The methodology presented in this study will be useful for quality control analysis for commercial production. Analysis methods for vitamin assay are a necessary objective to ensure quality control of commercial products and medicinal applications