Does the yield spread predict real economic activity? : a multicountry analysis

This article evaluates the ability of the yield spread to forecast real economic activity in 11 industrial countries. The first section of this article defines the yield spread and explains why the spread may be a useful predictor of real economic activity. The second section describes the data and criteria used to evaluate the predictive power of the yield spread. The third section examines whether yield spreads have reliably forecast real economic activity in the 11 countries, using several measures of real economic activity and alternative forecast horizons. The empirical results indicate the yield spread is a statistically and economically significant predictor of real economic activity in several industrial countries besides the United States. In addition, the yield spread forecasting model generally outperforms two alternative forecasting models in predicting future real GDP growth.Economic conditions - United States ; Interest rates ; Forecasting ; Gross domestic product

The Text of the Fourth Gospel in Greek Lectionary l1172

This investigation into the Johannine pericopes in Greek lectionary /11 72 seeks to discover the textual character of twenty-four pericopes, with reference to five text-types, and to provide answers to three questions: (1) Do any of the Johannine pericopes in l1172 show affinity with an identifiable Caesarean text-type? (2) Is there a connecting link between the Caesarean and Byzantine text-types? (3) What part does the lectionary play in this connection

Comparison of long-term CIDR-based protocols to synchronize estrus and ovulation prior to fixed-time artificial insemination in postpartum beef cows

Title from PDF of title page (University of Missouri--Columbia, viewed on March 8, 2013).The entire thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file; a non-technical public abstract appears in the public.pdf file.Thesis advisor: Dr. David J. PattersonIncludes bibliographical references.Vita.M.S. University of Missouri--Columbia 2012."December 2012"This experiment compared two long-term CIDR-based protocols to synchronize estrus and ovulation prior to fixed-time AI (FTAI) in postpartum beef cows. Cows assigned to the 14-19 d CIDR-PG protocol (n = 196) received CIDR inserts (1.38 g progesterone) from d 0 to 14 and PGF2[alpha] (PG; 25 mg, i.m.) 19 d after CIDR removal on d 33. Cows assigned to the 14-16 d CIDR-PG protocol (n = 195) received CIDR inserts from d 3 to 17, and PG 16 d after CIDR removal on d 33. Cows in both treatments were artificially inseminated on d 36, 72 h after PG, with GnRH (100 [mu]g i.m.) at FTAI. Blood samples for progesterone (P4) were collected at d --10 and d 0 to determine pretreatment estrous cyclicity status, and again at PG. Blood samples for estradiol (E2) were collected at PG and FTAI. HeatWatch estrus detection transmitters were utilized from CIDR removal until FTAI to determine onset of estrus following CIDR removal and PG. Dominant follicle diameter was determined via ultrasonagraphy at PG and FTAI. Ultrasound pregnancy diagnosis was performed 70 d after FTAI and confirmed at d 140 of gestation. Cows in both treatments had similar size dominant follicles at PG, and FTAI. Progesterone at PG was higher for 14-16 d CIDR-PG treated cows compared to 14-19 d treated cows. Mean concentrations of E2 were similar between treatments at PG, but were higher at FTAI for 14-16 d CIDR-PG treated cows. There were no differences between treatments in E2 at FTAI for cows that failed to exhibit estrus after PG. Estrous response after PG was higher for cows assigned to the 14-19 d CIDR-PG protocol. Estrous response after PG among cows [less than or equal to] 4 yr was higher for cows assigned to the 14-19 d CIDR-PG protocol, but there were no differences between treatments for cows [less than or equal to] 3 yr. There were no differences between treatments for FTAI pregnancy rate. However, pregnancy rate after FTAI among cows [greater than or equal to] 4 yr tended to be higher for cows assigned to the 14-19 d CIDR-PG protocol. In summary, both protocols worked effectively to synchronize estrus and ovulation prior to FTAI in postpartum beef cows, suggesting that a range in interval from CIDR removal to PG may be feasible when using long-term CIDR-based protocols. Higher estrous response rates after PG and improvements in FTAI pregnancy rate for 14-19 d treated cows [greater than or equal to] 4 yr of age warrants further consideration

Ireland and brexit: a roundtable

A panel of five historians and political scientists, from the United States, Ireland, and Britain respond to questions regarding Brexit vote of the United Kingdom in June 2016 and historic and present-day attitudes toward the European Union (EU) in Britain and Ireland. The authors consider regional variations in attitudes toward the EU within both countries. They offer commentary on the implications of the Brexit vote on future British-Irish relations, particularly with regard to the nature of the land border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland in the future. The article closes with a discussion of how the nature of nation-states has been called into question by the vote, requiring that political actors and nations reconcile states and multi-state entities with nations in a new context

An unexpected diagnosis of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus septic arthritis

Hand infections can result in serious tissue damage and gross functional impairment. This is particularly true in the case of septic arthritis, the most destructive of all joint disease. We report the first case of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus septic arthritis of the distal interphalangeal joint to have occurred in a patient devoid of all risk factors traditionally associated with a hospital-associated infection (HA-MRSA). The afflicted patient's only exposure to the pathogen was during her role as a community carer for an asymptomatic carrier. Delayed treatment allowed the infection to rapidly destroy surrounding soft tissue and necessitate in the need for arthrodesis. It is, therefore imperative that clinicians maintain a low index of suspicion for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus as the causative pathogen in similar cases. Consequently, consideration of empirical antibiotic therapy for this patient subgroup is discussed