Credit default swaps and firms' financing policies

This paper examines the impact of credit default swaps (CDS) on firms' financing and trade credit policies. Our results indicate firms with CDS trading on their debt increase their equity issuances. Further, firms with CDS trading on their debt and high levels of long-term debt issuances decrease their debt financing. Total and idiosyncratic risks are also higher for firms with CDS trading on their debt. These firms pay their suppliers and collect from their customers quicker. Thus, the impacts of the CDS market are not limited to the borrowing firms but also affect economically connected firms

A Comparative Study of AC Transport and Eddy Current Losses for Coil Made of HTS Tapes Coated with Copper Stabilizer

WOS: 000412085400040In this work, the evaluation of AC loss of the pancake coils wound by HTS-coated conductors, by employing the finite element method in 2D, is presented. The transport current loss of the superconducting tape and the eddy current loss of the copper stabilizer as a function of the amplitude for four frequencies of the applied current are examined numerically by utilizing a newly developed calculation method based on the A - V formulation embedded in COMSOL Multiphysics software with an AC/DC module. The number of the coil turn is 10, and the radius is about 60 mm. The superconducting layer width and height in the simulations are 12 and 1 mm, respectively. The width and height of the copper layers are 12 and 80 mm, respectively. The critical current density of tapes is taken as 300 A.Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK)Turkiye Bilimsel ve Teknolojik Arastirma Kurumu (TUBITAK) [114F424]This study is supported by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) under the grant number 114F424

A case of multiple coronary microfistulas to the left ventricle and apical myocardial hypertrophy coexisting with stable angina

AbstractA coronary artery fistula consists of a communication between a coronary artery and a cardiac chamber, a great artery or the vena cava. It is the most common congenital anomaly that can affect coronary perfusion. However, coronary fistulas to one of the cardiac chambers and coexisting apical myocardial hypertophy are infrequent anomalies, and usually are found unexpectedly. Herein, we report a case in which all three major coronary arteries emptied into the left ventricle with apical hypertrophy, through multiple microfistulas

Otpornost prema gorenju i propadanju borovine zaštićene sredstvima na bazi bora i bakra

Boron compounds in the form of boric acid, borax or disodiumoctaborate tetrahydrate have been used as insecticide, fungicide and fire retardant in wood preservatives industry for decades. Also, copper is the most commonly used component in most of relatively modern preservatives as it is highly effective against fungi. The objective of this study was to investigate the combustion and decay resistance of boron-copper based solutions which were developed by our group. These solutions contain boric acid, sodium borate decahydrate, copper hydroxy carbonate, ethanolamine, quaternary ammonium compound (benzalkonium chloride), and/or organic acid (octanoic acid). Scots Pine (Pinus sylvestris) woods were treated with the preservatives according to ASTM D1413-07 standard by vacuum-pressure impregnation system, which was developed by our group. Decay resistance performances against white and brown rot fungi were determined according to EN 113 standard and combustion tests were performed with respect to ASTM E160-50 standard. All the impregnated wood samples were found highly resistant to both white (Trametes versicolor L.) and brown (Coniophora puteana L.) fungi. Besides, they gave better results than the control samples in terms of combustion tests.Spojevi bora poput borne kiseline, boraksa ili dinatrijeva oktaborata tetrahidrata već se desetljećima u industriji sredstava za zaštitu drva proizvode kao insekticidi, fungicidi i usporivači gorenja. Usto, bakar je najčešća komponenta u većini relativno modernih zaštitnih sredstava jer je visoko učinkovit u zaštiti od gljiva. Cilj ove studije bio je istražiti otpornost prema gorenju i propadanju drva bora zaštićenog otopinama na bazi bora i bakra koje je razvila naša grupa. Te otopine sadržavaju bornu kiselinu, boraks, bakrov(II) karbonatni hidroksid karbonat, etanolamin, kvaterni amonijev spoj (benzalkonijev klorid) i/ili organsku kiselinu (oktansku kiselinu). Uzorci borovine (Pinus sylvestris) obrađeni su zaštitnim sredstvima prema standardu ASTM D1413-07 postupkom impregnacije pod vakuumom koji je razvila naša grupa. Otpornost prema gljivama bijele i smeđe truleži određena je prema standardu EN 113, a ispitivanje gorenja provedeno je prema standardu ASTM E160-50. Svi impregnirani uzorci drva pokazali su se vrlo otpornima i na bijele (Trametes versicolor L.) i na smeđe (Coniophora puteana L.) gljive. Osim toga, pri ispitivanju gorenja pokazali su bolje rezultate od kontrolnih uzoraka

Effects of ivabradine therapy on heart failure biomarkers

Background: Heart rate (HR) reduction is associated with improved outcomes in patients with heart failure (HF) and biomarkers can be a valuable diagnostic tool in HF management. The primary aim of our study was to evaluate the short-term (6 months) effect of ivabradine on N-terminal pro B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP), CA-125, and cystatin-C values in systolic HF outpatients, and secondary aim was to determine the relationship between baseline HR and the NT-proBNP, CA-125, cystatin-C, and clinical status variation with ivabradine therapy. Methods: Ninety-eight patients (mean age: 65.81 ± 10.20 years; 33 men), left ventricular ejection fraction < 35% with Simpson method, New York Heart Association (NYHA) class II–III, sinus rhythm and resting HR > 70/min, optimally treated before the study were included. Among them, two matched groups were formed: the ivabradine group and the control group. Patients received ivabradine with an average (range of 10–15) mg/day during 6 months of follow-up. Blood samples for NT-proBNP, CA-125, and cystatin-C were taken at baseline and at the end of a 6-month follow-up in both groups. Results: There was a significant decrease in NYHA class in the ivabradine group (2.67 ± ± 0.47 vs. 1.85 ± 0.61, p < 0.001). When ivabradine and control groups were compared, a significant difference was also found in NHYA class 6 months later (p = 0.013). A significant decrease was found in HR in the ivabradine and control groups (84.10 ± 8.76 vs. 68.36 ± ± 8.32 bpm, p = 0.001; 84.51 ± 10 vs. 80.40 ± 8.3 bpm, p = 0.001). When both groups were compared, a significant difference was also found in HR after 6 months (p = 0.001). A significant decrease was found in cystatin-C (2.10 ± 0.73 vs. 1.50 ± 0.44 mg/L, p < 0.001), CA-125 (30.09 ± 21.08 vs. 13.22 ± 8.51 U/mL, p < 0.001), and NT-proBNP (1,353.02 ± 1,453.77 vs. 717.81 ± 834.76 pg/mL, p < 0.001) in the ivabradine group. When ivabradine and control groups were compared after 6 months, a significant decrease was found in all HF parameters (respectively; cystatin-C: p = 0.001, CA-125: p = 0.001, NT-proBNP: p = 0.001). Creatinine level was significantly decreased and glomerular filtration rate (GFR) was significantly increased in the ivabradine group (1.02 ± 0.26 vs. 0.86 ± 0.17, creatinine: p = 0.001; 79.26 ± 18.58 vs. 92.48 ± 19.88, GFR: p = 0.001). There was no significant correlation between NYHA classes (before and after ivabradine therapy) and biochemical markers, or HR. Conclusions: In the outpatients with systolic HF, persistent resting HF > 70/min with optimal medical therapy, the NT-proBNP, CA-125, and cystatin-C reductions were obtained with ivabradine treatment. Measurement of NT-proBNP, CA-125, and cystatin-C may prove to be useful in biomarker panels evaluating ivabradine therapy response in HF patients.

Yapay Zekânın Eğitime Etkileri

Yapay zekâ, öğrenme, öğretme ve eğitim süreçlerinin farklı alanlarında önemli bir rol oynamaktadır. Otomatik değerlendirme sistemleri, öğrenci başarısını ölçme ve geribildirim sağlama konusunda büyük fırsatlar sunmaktadır. Aynı zamanda, öğrenciye özelleştirilmiş öğrenme deneyimleri sunarak, öğrenme sürecini daha etkili ve verimli hale getirebilir. Bununla birlikte, yapay zekânın eğitime olan etkileri sadece avantajlardan ibaret değildir. Öğretmenlerin rolü, veri gizliliği ve etik gibi konular da dikkate alınması gereken önemli tartışma noktalarıdır. Yapay zekâ, eğitim alanında dönüşüme neden olan önemli bir teknolojidir. Öğrencilerin ve öğretmenlerin deneyimlerini iyileştirebilir, öğrenme süreçlerini kişiselleştirebilir ve eğitim kurumlarının verimliliğini artırabilir. Bununla birlikte, yapay zekâ kullanımıyla ilgili endişeler de dikkate alınmalıdır, örneğin veri gizliliği, önyargı ve etik sorunlar. Bu nedenle, yapay zekâ teknolojilerinin eğitimde dikkatli bir şekilde kullanılması ve tartışılması önemlidir. Yapay zekâ teknolojileri eğitim alanında büyük bir potansiyele sahiptir. Öğrencilere kişiselleştirilmiş öğrenme deneyimleri sunabilir, öğretmenlere iş yükünü azaltabilir ve eğitim kurumlarına veri analizi ve yönlendirme konularında destek sağlayabilir. Ancak, yapay zekâ uygulamalarının etik standartlara uygun olması, veri gizliliği ve öğretmen-öğrenci etkileşiminin öneminin korunması gibi konuların dikkate alınması gerekmektedir. Eğitim kurumlarının, yapay zekâ teknolojilerini dikkatli bir şekilde kullanarak öğrencilerin başarısını artırma ve eğitim sürecini geliştirme hedeflerine ulaşması önemlidir. Bu çalışmada, yapay zekânın eğitim alanındaki etkilerini incelenmiştir. Yapay zekâ teknolojileri, son yıllarda hızla gelişmiş ve eğitim süreçlerinde çeşitli değişikliklere yol açmıştır. Bu değişiklikler bazen olumlu fırsatlar sunarken, bazen de yeni mücadeleler ortaya çıkarmıştır. Yapay zekânın eğitimdeki dönüşümünü, öğrenciler, öğretmenler ve eğitim kurumları açısından ele alınacaktır

Search for dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks in √s = 13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for weakly interacting massive particle dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks is presented. Final states containing third-generation quarks and miss- ing transverse momentum are considered. The analysis uses 36.1 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at √s = 13 TeV in 2015 and 2016. No significant excess of events above the estimated backgrounds is observed. The results are in- terpreted in the framework of simplified models of spin-0 dark-matter mediators. For colour- neutral spin-0 mediators produced in association with top quarks and decaying into a pair of dark-matter particles, mediator masses below 50 GeV are excluded assuming a dark-matter candidate mass of 1 GeV and unitary couplings. For scalar and pseudoscalar mediators produced in association with bottom quarks, the search sets limits on the production cross- section of 300 times the predicted rate for mediators with masses between 10 and 50 GeV and assuming a dark-matter mass of 1 GeV and unitary coupling. Constraints on colour- charged scalar simplified models are also presented. Assuming a dark-matter particle mass of 35 GeV, mediator particles with mass below 1.1 TeV are excluded for couplings yielding a dark-matter relic density consistent with measurements