Cash Holding and Firm Value: Evidence from the US Market from 1999 to 2015

This paper investigates the effect of cash holding on firm value based on a sample of the US industrial firms during the period from 1999 to 2015. The study tests the existence of a linear relationship between cash holdings and firm value. This study also investigates whether there exists an optimum cash level (a non-linear relationship where after a certain level of cash, corporate value declines). This paper uses fixed effect model on unbalanced panel data of listed the US companies (exclude financial firms) during the period of 1999-2015. Our results suggest that there is a positive linear relationship between cash holding and firm value. In addition, the results do also support the hypothesis that there exists an optimum level of cash holding for the US industrial firms from 1999 to 2015

Satisfaction with online education among students, faculty, and parents before and after the COVID-19 outbreak: Evidence from a meta-analysis

The COVID-19 pandemic has presented a unique opportunity for the advancement of online education, as billions of students from 190 countries have been compelled to take classes remotely. The degree of satisfaction is considered one of the major factors in determining the quality of online educational programs. As a result, many empirical studies have been conducted on the level of satisfaction with online education over the last two decades. However, few studies have synthesized previous findings from similar research questions. Therefore, to reinforce statistical power, the study aimed to conduct a meta-analysis to examine satisfaction with online education among students, faculty, and parents before and after the COVID-19 outbreak. A total of 52 studies in English were screened from six academic electronic databases, yielding 57 effect sizes using Comprehensive Meta-Analysis (CMA) software. The results showed that the prevalence of satisfaction with online education among students, faculty, and parents before and after the COVID-19 outbreak was 59.5, 75.3, and 70.7%, respectively, with a significant difference between the satisfaction rates of students and those of their faculty and parents. Besides, we conducted a moderator analysis that found that (1) a significantly higher number of students in the pre-pandemic era in countries with developed digital infrastructure and emergency online learning environments were less satisfied with online education than their counterparts in the post-pandemic era, in countries with developing digital infrastructure, and in non-emergency online learning environments. Additionally, a significantly higher proportion of adult education learners reported being satisfied with online education compared to K-12 and university students. (2) The faculty in the non-emergency situation reported almost double the satisfaction rate of their counterparts in the emergency circumstance. With fewer satisfied remote learning students, efforts could be made by providing well-designed online lessons via faculty and strengthening digital infrastructure via governments to improve student satisfaction

Regional gap and sustainable development of interpreting level in mainland China: A statistics and GIS-based study.

Against the backdrop of globalization, interpreting, a translation communicative activity in a verbal way, plays an increasingly important role in international communications and exchanges. In response to this world pattern, the Chinese government attaches great importance to the interpreting industry. However, due to the national condition of uneven regional development, the English interpreting level across China is also unbalanced. Confronting this circumstance, previous research only stagnates at the level of recognizing the problem, but very few studies have attempted to solve the problem. Thus, the current study aims to figure out the regional interpreting level in mainland China by establishing and utilizing an innovative indicator system based on statistics and geography technologies. Based on the literature review and empirical questionnaire survey from different stakeholders, the study proposes an indicator system containing 3 first-level factors and 7 second-level factors to measure regional English interpreting levels. The weight of each indicator and scoring method is laid down based on factor analysis and interval marking. In addition, putting the innovative indicator system into practice, a total of 38 groups of regional data are collected to rank the regional interpreting level across China. Integrating with GIS and statistical techniques, the result visually shows that the English interpreting level across China is uneven at present: higher in the southern and eastern parts of China compared to that of northern and western China, which is unfriendly to sustainable development in the future. Facing this reality, a following-up analysis has been made for offering explanations of the results and suggestions for regional interpreting sustainable development

α-Linolenic acid alleviates aluminum toxicity in RAW264.7 cells by antioxidative and anti-inflammatory effects

Aluminum is an inorganic contaminant and has adverse effects on human and animal health by mainly accumulating in the immune system to exert toxicity. α-Linolenic acid (ALA), a crucial dietary component, possesses various bioactivities. Nevertheless, the effects of ALA on Al-induced toxicity have not been sufficiently understood. In this study, we aimed to elucidate the possible mechanism of aluminium chloride hexahydrate (AlCl3·6H2O, Al) exposure to RAW264.7 cells and the response of ALA through an RNA sequencing (RNA‐seq). RNA-seq results demonstrated that Al exposure resulted in 2106 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) with 53 pathways, including the NF-κB, enriched by the KEGG analysis. 200 of the 2106 DEGs were modulated in ALA-pretreated group, which were enriched into 36 pathways, containing the NF-κB. qRT-PCR results displayed the RNA-seq's reproducibility and reliability. Western blot analysis confirmed that the protection of ALA against Al toxicity was associated with NF-κB mediated JAK2/STAT3/SOCS3 pathway and HO-1 activation. These results elucidated the protection of ALA against Al-induced toxicity from a new perspective and provided a potential therapy for Al treatment

Measuring Dynamic Goals for Marriage : Development and Validation of the Marital Goal Scale Using Rasch Modeling

Both the dynamic goal theory of marital satisfaction and the suffocation model of marriage argue that whether people are satisfied with their marriage largely depends on their marital goals. However, the lack of a validated measure has greatly limited empirical investigations about marital goals. The current study developed the Marital Goal Scale (MGS) using Rasch modeling. We provided evidence for the validity of the scale scores and confirmed its factorial structure using confirmatory factor analysis. The MGS contains 3 subscales assessing personal growth, instrumental, and companionship goals, respectively. The functioning of each subscale with a 4-point rating scale was supported by Rasch modeling in a married sample (from Hong Kong and the United States) and an unmarried sample (from Hong Kong). The discriminant and convergent validity of the subscale scores were supported in both samples. Major assumptions of the dynamic goal theory were also examined and partially supported. The MGS provides a useful tool to support empirical research about marital goals. Future studies are encouraged to utilize this tool to further investigate the important role of marital goals in marital dynamics

Bimodal DNA self-origami material with nucleic acid function enhancement

Abstract Background The design of DNA materials with specific nanostructures for biomedical tissue engineering applications remains a challenge. High-dimensional DNA nanomaterials are difficult to prepare and are unstable; moreover, their synthesis relies on heavy metal ions. Herein, we developed a bimodal DNA self-origami material with good biocompatibility and differing functions using a simple synthesis method. We simulated and characterized this material using a combination of oxDNA, freeze–fracture electron microscopy, and atomic force microscopy. Subsequently, we optimized the synthesis procedure to fix the morphology of this material. Results Using molecular dynamics simulation, we found that the bimodal DNA self-origami material exhibited properties of spontaneous stretching and curling and could be fixed in a single morphology via synthesis control. The application of different functional nucleic acids enabled the achievement of various biological functions, and the performance of functional nucleic acids was significantly enhanced in the material. Consequently, leveraging the various functional nucleic acids enhanced by this material will facilitate the attainment of diverse biological functions. Conclusion The developed design can comprehensively reveal the morphology and dynamics of DNA materials. We thus report a novel strategy for the construction of high-dimensional DNA materials and the application of functional nucleic acid–enhancing materials. Graphical Abstrac

Type I J-Domain NbMIP1 Proteins Are Required for Both <i>Tobacco Mosaic Virus</i> Infection and Plant Innate Immunity

<div><p>Tm-2² is a coiled coil-nucleotide binding-leucine rich repeat resistance protein that confers durable extreme resistance against <i>Tomato mosaic virus</i> (ToMV) and <i>Tobacco mosaic virus</i> (TMV) by recognizing the viral movement protein (MP). Here we report that the <i>Nicotiana benthamiana</i> J-domain MIP1 proteins (NbMIP1s) associate with tobamovirus MP, Tm-2² and SGT1. Silencing of <i>NbMIP1s</i> reduced TMV movement and compromised <i>Tm-2²</i>-mediated resistance against TMV and ToMV. Furthermore, silencing of <i>NbMIP1s</i> reduced the steady-state protein levels of ToMV MP and Tm-2². Moreover, NbMIP1s are required for plant resistance induced by other <i>R</i> genes and the nonhost pathogen <i>Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato</i> (<i>Pst</i>) DC3000. In addition, we found that SGT1 associates with Tm-2² and is required for <i>Tm-2²</i>-mediated resistance against TMV. These results suggest that NbMIP1s function as co-chaperones during virus infection and plant immunity.</p></div

Additional file 1 of Bimodal DNA self-origami material with nucleic acid function enhancement

Additional file 1: Figure S1. Root mean square fluctuation and root mean square deviation of the bimodal DNA self-origami material. Figures S2–S4. Structure diagram of circular DNA templates. Figure S5. Diagram of DNNs, bimodal state, and DNF synthesis process. Figure S6. Schematic diagrams of DNN (a) and DNF (b) freeze-drying. Figure S7. Freeze–fracture electron micrographs of DNNs, bimodal state, and DNFs. Figure S8. DNN cytotoxicity analysis. Figure S9. Schematic diagram of functionalized DNN preparation. Figure S10. Transwell assay for cell migration. Figure S11. Fourteen-day stability test of DNNs and DNFs. Figure S12. Unit point fluorescence combination of DNFs. Tables S1–S6. DNA sequences