Classical theory of investment: panel cointegration evidence from 13 EU countries

In the realm of macroeconomic theory, it is well established that investment decisions play an instrumental role in the determination of the level of output and employment; nevertheless, little progress has been made in relation to the theoretical aspects of these decisions. This paper, inspired by the classical approach to capital accumulation as well as the Keynesian theory of effective demand, attempts to enhance our empirical understanding of what determines investment decisions by exploring profitability, financial as well as demand factors. In so doing, a ‘Fully Modified OLS’ panel cointegration framework, for a cluster of two distinct groups of EU countries classified as core and the peripheral economies, provides the platform upon which our econometric investigation takes place. The respective evidence generated from the estimation process is in line with the theoretical framework proposed in this paper

Blood transcriptomic discrimination of bacterial and viral infections in the emergency department: a multi-cohort observational validation study

Background: There is an urgent need to develop biomarkers that stratify risk of bacterial infection in order to support antimicrobial stewardship in emergency hospital admissions. / Methods: We used computational machine learning to derive a rule-out blood transcriptomic signature of bacterial infection (SeptiCyte™ TRIAGE) from eight published case-control studies. We then validated this signature by itself in independent case-control data from more than 1500 samples in total, and in combination with our previously published signature for viral infections (SeptiCyte™ VIRUS) using pooled data from a further 1088 samples. Finally, we tested the performance of these signatures in a prospective observational cohort of emergency department (ED) patients with fever, and we used the combined SeptiCyte™ signature in a mixture modelling approach to estimate the prevalence of bacterial and viral infections in febrile ED patients without microbiological diagnoses. / Results: The combination of SeptiCyte™ TRIAGE with our published signature for viral infections (SeptiCyte™ VIRUS) discriminated bacterial and viral infections in febrile ED patients, with a receiver operating characteristic area under the curve of 0.95 (95% confidence interval 0.90–1), compared to 0.79 (0.68–0.91) for WCC and 0.73 (0.61–0.86) for CRP. At pre-test probabilities 0.35 and 0.72, the combined SeptiCyte™ score achieved a negative predictive value for bacterial infection of 0.97 (0.90–0.99) and 0.86 (0.64–0.96), compared to 0.90 (0.80–0.94) and 0.66 (0.48–0.79) for WCC and 0.88 (0.69–0.95) and 0.60 (0.31–0.72) for CRP. In a mixture modelling approach, the combined SeptiCyte™ score estimated that 24% of febrile ED cases receiving antibacterials without a microbiological diagnosis were due to viral infections. Our analysis also suggested that a proportion of patients with bacterial infection recovered without antibacterials. / Conclusions: Blood transcriptional biomarkers offer exciting opportunities to support precision antibacterial prescribing in ED and improve diagnostic classification of patients without microbiologically confirmed infections

A pilot study to understand feasibility and acceptability of stool and cord blood sample collection for a large-scale longitudinal birth cohort

BACKGROUND: Few data are available to guide biological sample collection around the time of birth for large-scale birth cohorts. We are designing a large UK birth cohort to investigate the role of infection and the developing immune system in determining future health and disease. We undertook a pilot to develop methodology for the main study, gain practical experience of collecting samples, and understand the acceptability of sample collection to women in late pregnancy. METHODS: Between February-July 2014, we piloted the feasibility and acceptability of collecting maternal stool, baby stool and cord blood samples from participants recruited at prolonged pregnancy and planned pre-labour caesarean section clinics at University College London Hospital. Participating women were asked to complete acceptability questionnaires. RESULTS: Overall, 265 women were approached and 171 (65%) participated, with ≥1 sample collected from 113 women or their baby (66%). Women had a mean age of 34 years, were primarily of white ethnicity (130/166, 78%), and half were nulliparous (86/169, 51%). Women undergoing planned pre-labour caesarean section were more likely than those who delivered vaginally to provide ≥1 sample (98% vs 54%), but less likely to provide maternal stool (10% vs 43%). Pre-sample questionnaires were completed by 110/171 women (64%). Most women reported feeling comfortable with samples being collected from their baby (<10% uncomfortable), but were less comfortable about their own stool (19% uncomfortable) or a vaginal swab (24% uncomfortable). CONCLUSIONS: It is possible to collect a range of biological samples from women around the time of delivery, and this was acceptable for most women. These data inform study design and protocol development for large-scale birth cohorts

The role of celebrities in mediating distant suffering

How effective are celebrities, not just in helping to draw attention to distant suffering, but in actually regulating spectators’ mediated experiences of the lives of distant strangers? What function does the perceived authenticity of a celebrity play in their role as mediator? This article seeks to address such questions by analysing the results of an audience study involving two phases of focus groups separated by a two-month diary study. The results show that celebrities certainly help to shape our mediated experiences of distant suffering – but not always in the ways and to the extent we might expect. What is clear is that celebrities are generally ineffective in cultivating a cosmopolitan engagement with distant suffering

Surreptitious symbiosis: engagement between activists and NGOs

Based on research conducted in Athens, Cairo, London and Yerevan the article analyses the relationship between activists engaged in street protests or direct action since 2011 and NGOs. It examines how activists relate to NGOs and whether it is possible to do sustained activism to bring about social change without becoming part of a ‘civil society industry’. The article argues that while at first glance NGOs seem disconnected from recent street activism, and activists distance themselves from NGOs, the situation is more complicated than meets the eye. It contends that the boundaries between the formal NGOs and informal groups of activists is blurred and there is much cross-over and collaboration. The article demonstrates and seeks to explain this phenomenon, which we call surreptitious symbiosis, from the micro- perspective of individual activists and NGO staff. Finally, we discuss whether this surreptitious symbiosis can be sustained and sketch three scenarios for the future

Technologies of political mobilization and civil society in Greece: The wildfires of summer 2007

This is a commentary regarding the role new technologies may have to play in the mobilization of civil society in Greece; it discusses two street protests against the wildfires that consumed large parts of the country during the summer of 2007, which were initiated via online technologies. It concludes that, despite the recent mobilization of large parts of Greek society in December 2008, also accelerated via the use of new media, the Greek citizenry has yet to prove that it can effectively and consistently over time remain motivated about the environment. In that respect, the street protests under consideration may be seen as nothing more than activist pyrotechnics, facilitated and sexed-up by new ICTs. Therefore, new technologies, on their own, have a limited scope for political mobilization unless there is a supporting and contextual environment that promotes and sustains their impact. Copyright © The Author(s), 2010

The role of Greek television in the construction of national identity since broadcasting deregulation

SIGLEAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre-DSC:DXN012149 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

Playing with porn: Greek children&apos;s explorations in pornography

This article draws on the research findings of the Greek Kids Go Online project and the EU Kids Online I network research on children and online technologies in Europe, funded by the European Commission Safer Internet Programme, 2006-2009. It explores the experiences of young people aged between 9 and 17 with pornographic texts online, and parental perceptions of these, examines the broader sexual cultures ofyoung children and teenagers, and argues that public concern about the harmful effects of pornography on young people needs to be put into context. © 2011 Taylor &amp; Francis