Accounting in a Country : The Case of Pakistan

Our paper examines the origins, growth, and the development of accounting practices and disclosures in Pakistan and the factors that influenced them. We traced the early days of accounting in the Indian subcontinent and the British colonial influence over the accounting of newly independent State. We examined the development of accounting through three eras : 1) Independence through 1971, 2) Post 1971 1984, and 3) 1984 to the present. We described how the colonial past and later the international financial institutions such as the Asian Development Bank and the International Monetary Fund played a key role in shaping accounting and reporting practices of the country. Pakistans adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards as national standards in 1985 did not lead to improvement in the quality of financial reporting. Pakistan, though classified as a common law country in literature exhibits most of the properties of code law countries. We argue that lack of investor protection (e.g., minority rights protection, insidertrading protection), judicial inefficiencies, and weak enforcement mechanisms are more critical factors than are cultural factors in explaining the state of accounting in Pakistan. We conclude that it is the enforcement mechanisms that are paramount in improving the quality of accounting in developing economies.culture, Colonial, Corporate governance, Accounting Practices, International Standards, Pakistan

The Mediation Effect of Trusting Beliefs on the Relationship Between Expectation-Confirmation and Satisfaction with the Usage of Online Product Recommendation

Online Product Recommendations (OPRs) are increasingly available to onlinecustomers as a value-added self-service in evaluating and choosing a product.Research has highlighted several advantages that customers can gain from usingOPRs. However, the realization of these advantages depends on whether and towhat extent customers embrace and fully utilise them. The relatively low OPR USAgerate indicates that customers have not yet developed trust in OPRs’ performance.Past studies also have established that satisfaction is a valid measure of systemperformance and a consistent significant determinant of users’ continuous systemusage. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the mediation effect of trustingbeliefs on the relationship between expectation-confirmation and satisfaction. Theproposed research model is tested using data collected via an online survey from626 existing users of OPRs. The empirical results revealed that social-psychologicalbeliefs (perceived confirmation and trust) are significant contributors to customersatisfaction with OPRs. Additionally, trusting beliefs partially mediate the impactof perceived confirmation on customer satisfaction. Moreover, this study validatesthe extensions of the interpersonal trust construct to trust in OPRs and examinesthe nomological validity of trust in terms of competence, benevolence, andintegrity. The findings provide a number of theoretical and practical implications.&nbsp

FRET primers for quantitative real-time PCR: Optimization for genomic and cDNA templates

 The chemistry of FRET (fluorescence resonance energy transfer) primers real-time thermal cycling technique depends on internally labeled primers with FRET dyes. Fluorescent dyes are linked internally close to the 3` end of both primers. FRET primers technique was tested and optimized on PCR products as an amplification template. It showed high efficiency, correlation coefficient and wide dynamic range in short amplification time. FRET primers technique was not tested on real sample materials such as genomic and cDNA. The main objective of this study was to test and optimize FRET primers on genomic and cDNA as an amplification templates to be used in research and diagnosis. Two steps amplification protocol (denaturation step and annealing-elongation step) showed higher efficiency, correlation coefficient and wider dynamic range compared to three steps protocol in case of genomic and cDNA templates. Moreover, shorter amplification time is needed for two steps protocol that makes FRET primers suitable and alternative choice for research and diagnostic purposes.Â

Snail Protein Family in Drosophila Neurogenesis: a Dissertation

The Snail protein functions as a transcriptional regulator to establish early mesodermal cell fate in Drosophila. Later, in germ band-extended embryos, Snail is considered a pan-neural protein based on its extensive expression in neuroblasts. The evidence presented in thesis links snail expression and function in CNS. Cloning and functional characterization of a novel snail homologue, in Drosophila, are also described here. Cloning of this gene, worniu (Chinese for snail), revealed that the neural function of snail is masked by this and another closely related gene escargot. Both Escargot and Worniu contain zinc finger domains that are highly homologous to that of Snail. These three members of Snail protein family are redundantly required for CNS development. Although not affecting formation of neuroblasts, the loss of expression of these three members correlates with disruption of Nb asymmetry and division. Downstream targets of Snail protein family, in these processes, are inscuteable and string. In mutant embryos, which have the three genes deleted, the RNA expression of inscuteable and string is significantly lowered. Consistent with the gene expression defects, the mutant embryos have loss of asymmetric localization of prospero RNA in neuroblasts and nuclear localization of Prospero protein in ganglion mother cells. Transgenic expression of inscuteable and string together, in the snail family deletion mutant, efficiently restores the Prospero expression in GMC, demonstrating that the two genes are key targets of Snail in Nbs. Like in the mesoderm, in CNS Snail function depends on interaction with dCtBP co-repressor. These results suggest that Sna [Snail] family of proteins control both asymmetry and cell division of neuroblasts by activating, perhaps indirectly, the expression of inscuteable and string

Hydrogen Transport and the Spatial Requirements of Renewable Energy

Unlike oil and coal, which are compressed forms of energy, renewable energy requires unusually large land areas. This article calculates the consequences of a switch to hydrogen-cell vehicles powered by electricity from wind turbines. It then re-does the calculation for three other green energy sources : wave power ; biofuels ; solar energy. We argue that policy-makers and social scientists need to understand the significant spatial demands of a move to a carbon-free society.Renewable energy ; wind power ; land use ; energy efficiency ; wind turbines ; transport ; environmental ; solar ; biomass ; wave

Dual function additives: A small molecule crosslinker for enhanced efficiency and stability in organic solar cells

A bis‐azide‐based small molecule cross­linker is synthesized and evaluated as both a stabilizing and efficiency‐boosting additive in bulk heterojunction organic photovoltaic cells. Activated by a non­invasive and scalable solution processing technique, polymer:fullerene blends exhibit improved thermal stability with suppressed polymer skin formation at the cathode and frustrated fullerene aggregation on ageing, with initial efficiency increased from 6% to 7%

Calli Essential Oils Synergize with Lawsone against Multidrug Resistant Pathogens.

The fast development of multi-drug resistant (MDR) organisms increasingly threatens global health and well-being. Plant natural products have been known for centuries as alternative medicines that can possess pharmacological characteristics, including antimicrobial activities. The antimicrobial activities of essential oil (Calli oil) extracted from the Calligonum comosum plant by hydro-steam distillation was tested either alone or when combined with lawsone, a henna plant naphthoquinone, against MDR microbes. Lawsone showed significant antimicrobial activities against MDR pathogens in the range of 200-300 µg/mL. Furthermore, Calli oil showed significant antimicrobial activities against MDR bacteria in the range of 180-200 µg/mL, Candida at 220-240 µg/mL and spore-forming Rhizopus fungus at 250 µg/mL. Calli oil's inhibition effect on Rhizopus, the major cause of the lethal infection mucormycosis, stands for 72 h, followed by an extended irreversible white sporulation effect. The combination of Calli oil with lawsone enhanced the antimicrobial activities of each individual alone by at least three-fold, while incorporation of both natural products in a liposome reduced their toxicity by four- to eight-fold, while maintaining the augmented efficacy of the combination treatment. We map the antimicrobial activity of Calli oil to its major component, a benzaldehyde derivative. The findings from this study demonstrate that formulations containing essential oils have the potential in the future to overcome antimicrobial resistance

Management of urinary tract infections in adults: An overview

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