Private antitrust enforcement revisited: The role of private incentives to report evidence to the antitrust authority

It is commonly believed that the possibility to sue privately for antitrust damages decreases the number of type II errors in enforcement at the cost of creating more type I errors. We extend the analysis by taking into account the fact that private parties often submit evidence during public prosecution. Such parties consider private suit as a partial substitute for public prosecution, as both imply desistance of the violation. The trial option might induce these parties to be less willing to contribute evidence to public cases. Private trials crowd out public prosecution and can have ambiguous effects on the number of enforcement errors.private and public enforcement, damages, antitrust litigation

Operationalizing Organizational Change Theory: Implications for Practice in the Fraternity/Sorority Movement

The literature exploring organizational change theory, while rich in conceptual frameworks, is limited on longitudinal studies of fraternity and sorority organizations, and/or the higher education environments in which they exist, undergoing long-term change initiatives. Based on a review of the literature on organizational change theory, this article has outlined a specific model of change related to the relational culture of fraternities and sororities. As this article explicates the operationalization of change theory through a model specific to the fraternity/sorority context, aspects of the literature related to this unique population and industry are as follows: defining change in an organizational context, inertia, role of environment, performance aspects and criteria, readiness, barriers and resistance to change, organizational learning and unlearning, consequences of change, and models for planning and implementing change

A Star Shall Fall: Young America and the Politics of Manifest Destiny, 1844-1861

This paper explores the interplay between politics and ideology within the context of American expansion in the Late Jacksonian Era (1840s and 1850s). This paper seeks to understand the role of a younger generation of Democrats in changing the Democratic Party and the Second Party System as the United States expanded territorially and, unbeknownst to them, careened towards disunion and civil war. Of particular importance is the conception of a term which is synonymous with American expansion, Manifest Destiny. Rather than rehashing prior arguments about Manifest Destiny's ideological importance, this thesis goes an alternate route. It reframes Manifest Destiny as a paradoxical idea: simultaneously it served as a vague nationalism espoused by younger Democrats as a tool to achieve party unity on expansion and as the progenitor of the sectional conflict which culminated in secession and the Civil War

A Star Shall Fall: Young America and the Politics of Manifest Destiny, 1844-1861

This paper explores the interplay between politics and ideology within the context of American expansion in the Late Jacksonian Era (1840s and 1850s). This paper seeks to understand the role of a younger generation of Democrats in changing the Democratic Party and the Second Party System as the United States expanded territorially and, unbeknownst to them, careened towards disunion and civil war. Of particular importance is the conception of a term which is synonymous with American expansion, Manifest Destiny. Rather than rehashing prior arguments about Manifest Destiny's ideological importance, this thesis goes an alternate route. It reframes Manifest Destiny as a paradoxical idea: simultaneously it served as a vague nationalism espoused by younger Democrats as a tool to achieve party unity on expansion and as the progenitor of the sectional conflict which culminated in secession and the Civil War

Non-Compact Pure Gauge QED in 3D is Free

For all Poincar\'e invariant Lagrangians of the form ${\cal L}\equiv f(F_{\mu\nu})$, in three Euclidean dimensions, where $f$ is any invariant function of a non-compact $U(1)$ field strength $F_{\mu\nu}$, we find that the only continuum limit (described by just such a gauge field) is that of free field theory: First we approximate a gauge invariant version of Wilson's renormalization group by neglecting all higher derivative terms $\sim \partial^nF$ in ${\cal L}$, but allowing for a general non-vanishing anomalous dimension. Then we prove analytically that the resulting flow equation has only one acceptable fixed point: the Gaussian fixed point. The possible relevance to high-$T_c$ superconductivity is briefly discussed.Comment: 11 pages, plain tex, uses harvmac. Minor additions - version to be published in Physics Letters

A Values-Based Learning Model to Impact Maturational Change: The College Fraternity as Developmental Crucible

The period of late adolescence and early adulthood is a critical time during which individual identity is developed. One fraternity recently implemented a developmental process that facilitated identity maturation within its members by emphasizing self-awareness and reflection. Utilizing a learning model as the core component of all aspects of its programming, the fraternity conducted research to determine the impact of its learning model on the development of self-awareness. This article provides data from three years of implementation that documents significant increases in this critical developmental competency

Longitudinal characterization of antimicrobial resistance genes in feces shed from cattle fed different subtherapeutic antibiotics

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Environmental transmission of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria and resistance gene determinants originating from livestock is affected by their persistence in agricultural-related matrices. This study investigated the effects of administering subtherapeutic concentrations of antimicrobials to beef cattle on the abundance and persistence of resistance genes within the microbial community of fecal deposits. Cattle (three pens per treatment, 10 steers per pen) were administered chlortetracycline, chlortetracycline plus sulfamethazine, tylosin, or no antimicrobials (control). Model fecal deposits (<it>n </it>= 3) were prepared by mixing fresh feces from each pen into a single composite sample. Real-time PCR was used to measure concentrations of <it>tet</it>, <it>sul </it>and <it>erm </it>resistance genes in DNA extracted from composites over 175 days of environmental exposure in the field. The microbial communities were analyzed by quantification and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) of PCR-amplified <it>16S-rRNA.</it></p> <p>Results</p> <p>The concentrations of <it>16S-rRNA </it>in feces were similar across treatments and increased by day 56, declining thereafter. DGGE profiles of <it>16S-rRNA </it>differed amongst treatments and with time, illustrating temporal shifts in microbial communities. All measured resistance gene determinants were quantifiable in feces after 175 days. Antimicrobial treatment differentially affected the abundance of certain resistance genes but generally not their persistence. In the first 56 days, concentrations of <it>tet</it>(B), <it>tet</it>(C), <it>sul1, sul2</it>, <it>erm</it>(A) tended to increase, and decline thereafter, whereas <it>tet</it>(M) and <it>tet</it>(W) gradually declined over 175 days. At day 7, the concentration of <it>erm</it>(X) was greatest in feces from cattle fed tylosin, compared to all other treatments.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The abundance of genes coding for antimicrobial resistance in bovine feces can be affected by inclusion of antibiotics in the feed. Resistance genes can persist in feces from cattle beyond 175 days with concentrations of some genes increasing with time. Management practices that accelerate DNA degradation such as frequent land application or composting of manure may reduce the extent to which bovine feces serves as a reservoir of antimicrobial resistance.</p

Indirect Comparison of Topiramate and Monoclonal Antibodies Against CGRP or Its Receptor for the Prophylaxis of Episodic Migraine: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis

Background: Head-to-head comparator trials between first-line oral migraine preventatives and the new monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) blocking the calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) pathway have not been published to date. Objectives: This study aimed to indirectly compare the clinical efficacy and safety of mAbs against CGRP or its receptor (CGRPR) and topiramate in episodic migraine prophylaxis using meta-analysis. Methods: We included controlled trials testing efficacy and safety of erenumab, galcanezumab, fremanezumab, eptinezumab, and topiramate in adults diagnosed with episodic migraine. We searched PubMed, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), and ClinicalTrials.gov from January 2000 to November 2020. We used the Risk of Bias 2 (RoB2) tool to assess the risk of bias and report pooled mean effects (mean difference and risk ratio) as estimated in a random effect model. For efficacy analysis, we determined the reduction of monthly migraine days (MMDs), reduction of days with acute medication (AMDs), and 50% responder rates (50% RR). For safety, we determined adverse events (AEs) occurring in >= 2% of study participants and the number of patients who discontinue treatment due to AEs (DAEs). The number needed to treat (NNT) and to harm (NNH) were estimated as well as the likelihood to help or harm (LLH). Results: We included 13 trials involving 7557 patients: three trials with erenumab, two trials with galcanezumab, two trials with fremanezumab, one trial with eptinezumab, and five trials with topiramate, for the prophylaxis of episodic migraine in adults. The placebo-subtracted reduction (pooled mean difference) of MMDs were - 1.55 (95% CI - 1.86 to - 1.24; active drug n = 3326 vs placebo n = 2219, 8 studies) for the CGRP(R) mAb and - 1.11 (95% CI - 1.62 to - 0.59; active drug n = 1032 vs placebo n = 543, 4 studies) for topiramate (p for subgroup difference = 0.15). 'Cognitive' and 'sensory & pain'-related adverse events occurred more often in patients treated with topiramate compared with those treated with a CGRP(R) mAb (p for subgroup difference 0.03 and < 0.001, respectively). Based on the 50% RR and DAE, the NNT, NNH, and LHH for the CGRP(R) mAbs were 6, 130, and 24.3:1, respectively. For topiramate, these values were 7, 9, and 1.8:1, respectively. Conclusion: The efficacy of CGRP(R) mAbs to reduce migraine days does not differ from topiramate. However, the safety profile is in favor of the CGRP(R) mAbs, with a higher likelihood to help than to harm compared with topiramate. The diversity of endpoint determination and the heterogeneity between studies for some endpoints cause some limitations for this study

A gauge invariant exact renormalization group I

A manifestly gauge invariant continuous renormalization group flow equation is constructed for pure SU(N) gauge theory. The formulation makes sense without gauge fixing and manifestly gauge invariant calculations may thus be carried out. The flow equation is naturally expressed in terms of fluctuating Wilson loops, with the effective action appearing as an integral over a `gas' of Wilson loops. At infinite N, the effective action collapses to a path integral over the trajectory of a single particle describing one Wilson loop. We show that further regularization of these flow equations is needed. (This is introduced in part II.)Comment: TeX, harvmac, epsf; 35 pages, 15 figs; a few typos correcte

Does Higher Intensity Increase the Rate of Responders to Endurance Training When Total Energy Expenditure Remains Constant? : A Randomized Controlled Trial

Background Standardized training prescriptions often result in large variation in training response with a substantial number of individuals that show little or no response at all. The present study examined whether the response in markers of cardiorespiratory ftness (CRF) to moderate intensity endurance training can be elevated by an increase in training intensity. Methods Thirty-one healthy, untrained participants (46±8 years, BMI 25.4±3.3 kg m−2 and V˙O2max 34±4 mL min−1 kg−1 ) trained for 10 weeks with moderate intensity (3 day week−1 for 50 min per session at 55% HRreserve). Hereafter, the allocation into two groups was performed by stratifed randomization for age, gender and VO2max response. CON (continuous moderate intensity) trained for another 16 weeks at moderate intensity, INC (increased intensity) trained energy-equivalent for 8 weeks at 70% HRreserve and then performed high-intensity interval training (4×4) for another 8 weeks. Responders were identifed as participants with VO2max increase above the technical measurement error. Results There was a signifcant diference in V˙O2max response between INC (3.4±2.7 mL kg−1 min−1 ) and CON (0.4±2.9 mL kg−1 min−1 ) after 26 weeks of training (P=0.020). After 10 weeks of moderate training, in total 16 of 31 participants were classifed as VO2max responders (52%). After another 16 weeks continuous moderate intensity training, no further increase of responders was observed in CON. In contrast, the energy equivalent training with increasing training intensity in INC signifcantly (P=0.031) increased the number of responders to 13 of 15 (87%). The energy equivalent higher training intensities increased the rate of responders more efectively than continued moderate training intensities (P=0.012). Conclusion High-intensity interval training increases the rate of response in VO2max to endurance training even when the total energy expenditure is held constant. Maintaining moderate endurance training intensities might not be the best choice to optimize training gains. Trial Registration German Clinical Trials Register, DRKS00031445, Registered 08 March 2023—Retrospectively registered, https://www.drks.de/DRKS0003144