Quest for Cash: Exempt Organizations, Joint Ventures, Taxable Subsidiaries, and Unrelated Business Income

Most “for-profit” or “business” activities of exempt organizations take one of three forms: (A) The exempt organization may undertake to perform the business activities within the existing structure of the exempt organization. (B) The exempt organization may form a “taxable” subsidiary or affiliate which will perform the business activities. (C) The exempt organization may “partner” with other individuals and entities (both nonprofit and for-profit) to form a corporation, limited liability company (LLC), partnership, joint venture, strategic alliance, or other collaborative effort which will perform the “for-profit” activities. Depending in part upon which of these forms is chosen, any business activities by an exempt organization may result in: (i) income taxes being imposed upon the exempt organization or the “for-profit” entity; (ii) the exempt organization losing its tax-exempt status; (iii) excise taxes being imposed by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on the individuals and for-profit companies (as well as on the managers of the exempt organization) with whom the tax-exempt organization conducts a business activity; (iv) a regulatory action brought against the organization by federal or state governmental authorities; or (v) all of the above. This article gives an overview of the regulations, Treasury rulings, IRS manuals, and case law that become important when an exempt organization decides to engage in business activity

Neurofeedback for tinnitus treatment: an innovative method with promising potential

This scientific commentary refers to 'Does it matter what is trained? A randomized controlled trial evaluating the specificity of alpha/delta ratio neurofeedback in reducing tinnitus symptoms 'by Jensen et al. (https://doi.org/10.1093/braincomms/fcad185)

Quest for Cash: Exempt Organizations, Joint Ventures, Taxable Subsidiaries, and Unrelated Business Income

Most “for-profit” or “business” activities of exempt organizations take one of three forms: (A) The exempt organization may undertake to perform the business activities within the existing structure of the exempt organization. (B) The exempt organization may form a “taxable” subsidiary or affiliate which will perform the business activities. (C) The exempt organization may “partner” with other individuals and entities (both nonprofit and for-profit) to form a corporation, limited liability company (LLC), partnership, joint venture, strategic alliance, or other collaborative effort which will perform the “for-profit” activities. Depending in part upon which of these forms is chosen, any business activities by an exempt organization may result in: (i) income taxes being imposed upon the exempt organization or the “for-profit” entity; (ii) the exempt organization losing its tax-exempt status; (iii) excise taxes being imposed by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on the individuals and for-profit companies (as well as on the managers of the exempt organization) with whom the tax-exempt organization conducts a business activity; (iv) a regulatory action brought against the organization by federal or state governmental authorities; or (v) all of the above. This article gives an overview of the regulations, Treasury rulings, IRS manuals, and case law that become important when an exempt organization decides to engage in business activity

<Contributed Talk 24>Heteroclinic Cycles in Coupled Systems with Applications to Sensor Devices

[Date] November 28 (Mon) - December 2 (Fri), 2011: [Place] Kyoto University Clock Tower Centennial Hall, Kyoto, JAPA

Speech-in-Noise Performance and Executive Functioning in Individuals with Chronic Subjective Tinnitus

Background: Many individuals with chronic subjective tinnitus report significant problems in comprehending speech in adverse listening situations. A large body of studies has provided evidence to support the notion that deficits in speech-in-noise (SIN) are prevalent in the tinnitus population, while some studies have challenged these results. Notably, elemental auditory perception is usually only minimally or not impaired. In addition, deficits in cognitive functions, particularly executive functions, have also been observed in individuals with tinnitus.Methods: In order to investigate differences in SIN performance and executive functioning, 25 participants with tinnitus and 25 control participants, between 23 and 58 years of age, were examined. A large audiometric battery was used, including tests of peripheral and central hearing, ranging from threhold and supra-threshold tasks to complex speech tasks. Additionally, four cognitive tests were performed, primarily covering the area of executive functions. Tinnitometry and tinnitus-related questionnaires were assessed to complement sample description and allow for secondary analyses. The groups were case-matched for age, sex, education, and hearing loss. We hypothesized, that tinnitus participants score lower in SIN and executive function tasks compared to healthy controls, while no group differences in elementary audio tasks were expected.Results: Hypothesized considerable differences in speech perception under adverse listening conditions were found in the SIN task and also in the gated speech task, while there were no differences in the basic speech recognition threshold task. Other elementary auditory perception tasks did not differ between the two groups. The cognitive tests revealed clear deficits in interference susceptibility in the Stroop task, but not in the Flanker task. There were no differences in inhibition or working memory tasks.Conclusion: Our results clearly delineate differences between the tinnitus and the control group in two tests of speech intelligibility under complex listening conditions. Further, the poorer performance in a task of interference control in individuals with tinnitus points towards a reduced central executive control in tinnitus. Taken together, these novel corroborating evidence supports the view of a deficient central inhibiton system in healthy individuals with tinnitus. Hence, we present important contributions to the ongoing debate about the effects of tinnitus on comprehension in adverse listening situations

Möglichkeiten der funktionellen Bildgebung bei Tinnitus

Hintergrund Die Pathophysiologie des Tinnitus ist nach wie vor nicht ausreichend verstanden. Verschiedene Bildgebungsmethoden helfen beim besseren Verständnis der komplexen Zusammenhänge, die zur Wahrnehmung von Tinnitus führen. Ziel der Arbeit Es erfolgt die Vorstellung von verschiedenen funktionellen Bildgebungsmethoden, die in der Erforschung von Tinnitus eingesetzt werden können. Material und Methoden Unter Einbezug der aktuellen Fachliteratur zum Thema gehen die Autoren auf die relevanten Bildgebungsmethoden der Tinnitusforschung ein. Ergebnisse und Schlussfolgerung Die funktionelle Bildgebung kann Korrelate von Tinnitus aufzeigen. Aufgrund der noch eingeschränkten zeitlichen und räumlichen Auflösung der aktuellen Bildgebungsmodalitäten lässt eine abschließende Erklärung von Tinnitus auf sich warten. Mit der weiteren Verbreitung der funktionellen Bildgebung lassen sich in Zukunft zusätzliche wichtige Erkenntnisse zur Aufklärung von Tinnitus gewinnen

Psychological Treatment Effects Unrelated to Hair-Cortisol and Hair-BDNF Levels in Chronic Tinnitus

Background: Currently, there are no objective markers to measure treatment efficacy in chronic (distressing) tinnitus. This study explores whether stress-related biomarkers cortisol and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) measured in hair samples of chronic tinnitus patients change after compact multimodal tinnitus-specific cognitive behavioral therapy. Methods: In this longitudinal study, hair-cortisol and hair-BDNF levels, self-reported tinnitus-related distress (Tinnitus Questionnaire; TQ), and perceived stress (Perceived Stress Questionnaire; PSQ-20) were assessed before and 3 months after 5 days of treatment in N = 80 chronic tinnitus patients. Linear mixed-effects models with backward elimination were used to assess treatment-induced changes, and a cross-lagged panel model (structural equation model) was used for additional exploratory analysis of the temporal associations between TQ and hair-BDNF. Results: At follow-up, a reduction in TQ (p < 0.001) and PSQ-20 scores (p = 0.045) was observed, which was not influenced by baseline hair-cortisol or hair-BDNF levels. No changes in biomarker levels were observed after treatment. The exploratory analysis tentatively suggests that a directional effect of baseline TQ scores on hair-BDNF levels at follow-up (trend; p = 0.070) was more likely than the opposite directional effect of baseline hair-BDNF levels on TQ scores at follow-up (n.s.). Discussion: While the treatment effectively reduced tinnitus-related distress and perceived stress in chronic tinnitus patients, this effect was not mirrored in biological changes. However, the lack of changes in hair-cortisol and hair-BDNF levels might have been influenced by the treatment duration, follow-up interval, or confounding medical factors, and therefore must be interpreted with caution. The relationship between tinnitus-related distress and hair-BDNF levels should be explored further to obtain a better understanding of stress-related effects in chronic tinnitus

Prospectus, March 31, 2010 - April Fool\u27s Edition

BIG NEW THINGS TO HAPPEN AT PARKLAND; Parkland announces new classes, future aquarium; Parkland hires all-star processor to teach new course; Metered spaces now a sure bet for Parkland; Chuck Shepherd\u27s News of the Weird; music downloads; In keeping April showers and May flowers green; The benefits of being illiterate; Prospectus Pick: Laser Cats; New sports on the way for Parkland; Students and faculty gear up for unofficial ; 2010 Staff Excellence Awards; April Fool\u27s Pranks!https://spark.parkland.edu/prospectus_2010/1010/thumbnail.jp

Mobile Crowdsensing for the Juxtaposition of Realtime Assessments and Retrospective Reporting for Neuropsychiatric Symptoms

Many symptoms of neuropsychiatric disorders such as tinnitus are subjective and vary over time. Usually, in interviews or self-report questionnaires, patients are asked to report symptoms as well as their severity and duration retrospectively. However, only little is known to what degree such retrospective reports reflect the symptoms experienced in daily life some time ago. Mobile technologies can help to bridge this gap: mobile self-help services allow patients to record their symptoms prospectively when (or shortly after) they occur in daily life. In this study, we present results that we obtained with the mobile crowdsensing platform TrackYourTinnitus to show that there is a discrepancy between the prospective assessment of symptom variability and the retrospective report thereof. To be more precise, we evaluated the real-time entries provided to the platform by individuals experiencing tinnitus. The results indicate that mobile technologies like the TrackYourTinnitus crowdsensing platform may go beyond the role of an assistive service for patients by contributing to more accurate diagnosis and, hence, to a more elaborated treatment

Prospective crowdsensing versus retrospective ratings of tinnitus variability and tinnitus–stress associations based on the TrackYourTinnitus mobile platform

Many symptoms of neuropsychiatric disorders, such as tinnitus, are subjective and vary over time. Usually, in interviews or self-report questionnaires, patients are asked to retrospectively report symptoms as well as their severity, duration and influencing factors. However, only little is known to what degree such retrospective reports reflect the actual experiences made in daily life. Mobile technologies can remedy this deficiency. In particular, mobile self-help services allow patients to prospectively record symptoms and their severity at the time (or shortly after) they occur in daily life. In this study, we present results we obtained with the mobile crowdsensing platform TrackYourTinnitus. In particular, we show that there is a discrepancy between prospective and retrospective assessments. To be more precise, we show that the prospective variation of tinnitus loudness does not differ between the users who retrospectively rate tinnitus loudness as “varying” and the ones who retrospectively rate it as “non-varying.” As another result, the subjectively reported stress-level was positively correlated with tinnitus (loudness and distress) in the prospective assessments, even for users who retrospectively rated that stress reduces their tinnitus or has no effect on it. The results indicate that mobile technologies, like the TrackYourTinnitus crowdsensing platform, go beyond the role of an assistive service for patients by contributing to more detailed information about symptom variability over time and, hence, to more elaborated diagnostics and treatments