Capital structure and the issuance of corporate bonds in emerging Asia

In emerging Asia's local-currency bond market, the government bond segments have largely come of age while the corporate bond markets have remained immature. This paper focuses on the question of what drives corporate bond issuance, an issue of great practical relevance for policymakers in the region. We analyse the financing decisions of some 4,600 firms in eight countries in emerging Asia. We analyse these decisions within the context of the firms'capital structure. We also analyse the effect of market depth, relying on market-wide indicators from the BIS. We find that for both seasoned and unseasoned issuers, size and leverage both matter for the decision to issue. The availability of tangible assets matters for the decision to issue in foreign currency. At the level of the markets, the depth of the market and interest differentials matter

Erosion Control During Highway Construction: Volume 1

Summary: Highway constuction as we know it today is a high-risk activity with respect to engendering soil erosion. In earlier days of road building, when rights-of-way were generally narrow and excavations mostly shollow, erosion was rarely a serious problem. Only occasionally was it considered necessary to design and apply specific measures for erosion control. With the advent of the superhighway involving far greater widths of right-of-way, and much deeper disturbance of the natural ground to affort the horizontal and vertical highway geometry necessary for high-speed travel, came a several fold increase in erosion potential and a direct need for specific action aimed at its control. Highway engineers have reacted by revising contruction specifications to include many protective measures. In creaseing public awareness of the desireability of protecting the environment has been a source of both support and pressure in the application of erosion control in highway construction. Although improvement has been significant, unwanted soil erosion and accompanying sedimentation resulting from highway construction activity continue to be problems. A lack of knowledge within the highway industry of improved erosion control measures developed outside the industry, perhaps some resistance to change because of a lack of familiarity with erosion control measures, and in some instances a need for information not now available anywhere, are probably the major contributors to continuation of the problem. The present project was directed at improving erosion control practice in highway construction by providing assistance in all three of the foregoing areas contributory to the problem. The principal output of the study is a MANUAL of erosion control principles and practices. The MANUAL focuses on techniques for predicting the erosion potential of highway construction sites, and for estimating the effectiveness of various erosion control measures. A wide variety of control measures are listed and described, and information that will aid in selecting measures to meet specific site requirements is presented. Design standards for control measures, and information on such matters as size selection for mechanical control measures, are not included in the MANUAL because these are already widely available in highway engineering offices. To develop the erosion control MANUAL on which the project effort was centered, means had to be established for estimating the water and wind soil erosion potentials on highway construction sites and the effectiveness of various measures that might be considered for controlling the erosion. The universal soil loss equation

Simulation of the Hydrologic-Economic Flow System in an Agricultural Area

Like the allocation of water resources among water users, the distribution of allocated water to the subusers requires an estimate of the economic costs and benefits from a number of distribution alternatives. The most satisfactory solution maximizes the benefit cost ratio. This study is based on the premise that equitable water distribution to agricultural subusers can be more easily accomplished through the use of a technique to predict the marginal value of agricultural water. A hydro-economic model is formulated to distribute the water supply to the crops and to determine the unit value of water for the given supply. By incrementing the supply, the marginal value of water for a given cropping pattern is determined. Water is in short supply if the potential evapotranspiration of all the crops can not be satisfied. The link between the economic and hydrologic system is the production function which is the relationship between the actual evapotranspiration and the yield of the crop. Other variables affecting crop production are assumed to be relatively constant. The simulation model is applied to a prototype system to demonstrate the applicability of the model to management and planning problems. The model provides a means of determining the marginal value of water in water short years where potential evapotranspiration of all crops can not be met

Who's Getting a Head Start?:Mesocephalic Dogs in Still Images Are Attributed More Positively Valenced Emotions Than Dogs of Other Cephalic Index Groups

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Elements of a dog’s appearance in still images affect how positively human observers interpret that individual’s personality. Given that this may influence caregiving and other aspects of dog ownership, it is important to examine this phenomenon to protect dog welfare. Recently, the popularity of brachycephalic (short-muzzled) dogs has sharply risen and with it the need to assess whether this conformation affects the way in which human observers assign emotional attributes to dogs. The current study aimed to investigate whether cephalic index, a measure to quantify how long and wide a skull is, is related to how both dog owners and non-dog owning adults in the U.K. attribute emotions to still images of dogs, and in the case of dog owners, to their own dogs. Responses were received from 2451 participants. Images of breeds with less extreme skull shapes were most frequently assigned the strongest positive emotional attributions, and the inverse effect was found in more extreme skull shape categories. Results imply that the head shape of dogs may predispose humans to label those dogs with certain emotions, which could impact their behaviour towards those dogs and thus, the dogs’ welfare. These findings should prompt further investigation of morphological influences on dog–owner relationships and dog welfare. ABSTRACT: Assumptions about dogs’ personality are influenced by their appearance, which may lead to differences in ownership styles and subsequent canine welfare. The influence of canine appearance on observers’ emotion attributions to dogs remains largely unexplored. This study investigated whether canine head shape is related to how both dog owners and non-dog owning adults in the U.K. attribute emotions to still images of dogs, and in the case of dog owners, to their own dogs. Attachment, respondent personality and dog trainability were assessed as potential influences on emotional attribution in owners. Overall, 2451 participant responses were received. Still images of mesocephalic dogs were attributed primary and positively valenced emotion with more strength and frequency than other groups. Mesocephalic images were also attributed negatively valenced emotions less frequently and with less strength than other groups. Apart from empathy, no significant differences were found in emotional attribution to owned dogs of different head shapes; however, human personality influenced attribution of emotions to owned dogs. The finding that some dogs are attributed emotions more readily based on their appearance alone has applied importance, given, for example, the potential for misattribution of positive emotions to dogs in negative emotional states, and potential prejudice against dogs considered in negative emotional states

Village Pedagogy: Empowering African American Students to be Activist

The Critical Black Studies Reader is a ground-breaking volume whose aim is to criticalize and reenvision Black Studies through a critical lens. The book not only stretches the boundaries of knowledge and understanding of issues critical to the Black experience, it creates a theoretical grounding that is intersectional in its approach. Our notion of Black Studies is neither singularly grounded in African American Studies nor on traditional notions of the Black experience. Though situated work in this field has historically grappled with the question of «where are we?» in Black Studies, this volume offers the reader a type of criticalization that has not occurred to this point. While the volume includes seminal works by authors in the field, as a critical endeavor, the editors have also included pieces that address the political issues that intersect with – among others – power, race, class, gender, sexuality, religion, place, and economics