Price, Return and Volatility Linkages of Base Metal Futures traded in India

In this study the price, return and volatility behaviour of base metals (aluminium, copper, nickel, lead and zinc) which are traded on Indian commodity exchange - Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) and International commodity exchange – London Metal Exchange (LME) are analysed. The time period chosen for the study is from November 1st, 2006 to January 30th, 2013. The paper attempts to demonstrate the linkages in price, return and volatility across the two markets for the five metals through three models - (a) Price – Co-integration methodology and Error Correction Mechanism Model (b) Return and Volatility – Modified GARCH model (c) Return and Volatility - ARMA-GARCH in mean model – Innovations Model. The findings of the paper suggest that there exists a strong linkage across the price, return and volatility of futures contracts traded on MCX and LME respectively. Given the level of linkages, the imposition of Commodity Transaction Taxes on sellers at the time of trading of these five base metals on Indian Commodity exchanges would lead to a fall in their trading volume as traders and speculators would escape the higher transaction cost of hedging by investing in International Exchanges instead of Indian Commodity exchanges. This movement from Indian to the International markets would defy the intention of imposition of the tax, as the government expects to earn revenue from the tax, and this would also defeat the very purpose of price discovery in the commodity exchanges in India

Wild Wrack (Ascophyllum nodosum) – A replacement for salt (as sodium chloride) in bread products

To evaluate the effect of Seagreens Human Food Quality Wild Wrack Seaweed (Ascophyllum nodosum) as a replacement for salt in bread products

The Effect of Parceling on the Measurement Invariance of Us Students’ Trends in International Mathematics And Science Study (Timss) 2015 Math Attitude Scores

Measurement invariance is crucial for making valid comparisons across different groups (Kline, 2016; Vandenberg, 2002). To address the challenges associated with invariance testing such as large sample size requirements, the complexity of the model, etc., applied researchers have incorporated parcels. Parcels have been shown to alleviate skewness, improve reliability, reduce the number of indicators, and produce a more stable solution (Bandalos & Finney, 2001; Matsunaga et al., 2021; Nasser & Takahashi, 2003). Despite these benefits, limited methodological research has been conducted on the effects of parcels on tests of measurement invariance. This dissertation investigated the effects of different total sample sizes, types of indicator variables (including indicator variable techniques), and ratio of group sample sizes on tests of measurement invariance between gender and race. Empirical data from eighth-grade U.S. students\u27 responses on four different math attitude subscales using a Likert-type rating scale from TIMSS 2015 were used to build a CFA model (Tang & Averett, 2018). The study found that using a smaller number of items as indicators with the highest factor loadings can better assess measurement invariance tests, providing a middle way for applied researchers to conduct tests of measurement invariance without the need for extremely large sample sizes or the use of parcels. Furthermore, the study found that item-based models detected a lack of invariance better than parcel-based models. Three-item indicator models provided stronger evidence of configural invariance than nine-item indicator and parcel-based models, with all three-item indicator models exhibiting full configural invariance. Higher CFI and TLI values and lower chi-square and SRMR values supported the use of three-item indicator models in tests of configural invariance. Three-item indicator models-based analyses were found to be better at identifying items with significant differences in factor loadings than parcel-based analyses. These findings provide researchers with a way to conduct tests of measurement invariance without requiring extremely large sample sizes and address the challenges associated with testing measurement invariance, making it more accessible for applied researchers. However, further research is required to determine the optimal number of items with highest factor loadings to use as indicators that can improve and facilitate the testing of measurement invariance for applied researchers

The Role of Type-I Interferon in Limiting Spread and Killing of an Oncolytic RNA Virus in Prostate Cells

Prostate cancer is the second most prevalent cancer amongst men and there is an urgent need to address viable therapeutic options for its treatment. Development of viruses which target and kill cancer cells has gained momentum due to the first FDA approved oncolytic virus for treating human cancer patients. Our previous work with the RNA virus, Parainfluenza Virus 5 (PIV5), has led to the generation of mutants that are potential candidates for oncolytic viruses: 1) the hyperfusogenic (P/V/F) mutant has a mutated P/V and fusion gene which activates anti-viral responses and causes massive cell-cell fusion respectively, and 2) the Leader mutant has a mutated viral genomic promoter which kills cells due to overactive viral gene expression. The P/V/F mutant has shown effectiveness in reducing prostate tumor burden in a mouse model system, however, the specificity of these viruses is unclear, i.e. targeting cancerous prostate cells while leaving uninvolved cells unaffected. In this study, we addressed how these PIV5 mutants replicate in and killed tumor versus benign human prostate cells. Flow cytometry demonstrated that the mutants are able to infect and replicate in prostate tumor cells (22Rv1), resulting in effective cell killing. However, these mutants showed highly restricted spread in benign prostatic hyperplasia cells (BPH-1). Upon further exploration, it was determined that the restriction observed in the BPH-1 cells is due to the induction and signaling of type-I Interferon (IFN). This was confirmed upon treatment with an IFN-? neutralizing antibody, which relieved restricted spread of mutants in benign cells. BPH-1 cells infected with the mutants also showed upregulation of key anti-viral, IFN-induced genes such as TLR3, IFIT1, and OAS2. Upon characterization of the mutant viruses in an additional metastatic prostate cancer cell line (C4-2B), a restriction in viral spread was observed. The restricted spread did not correlate with production of high levels of type-I IFN, suggesting that other cytokines or intracellular factors can limit replication in tumor cells. Therefore, these studies lay the groundwork for further improving the specificity of oncolytic PIV5 mutants by exploiting type-I IFN pathways as well as other anti-viral factors

Kritika letterarja

Wara li l-awtur qara “Il-Malti” ta’ Diċembru 1945 ried jieqaf jiżen u jgħarbel kemxejn aktar fit-tul l-kritika li A. J. V. għoġbu jħażżeż dwar il-poeżija ta’ Ninu Cremona.N/

Consumer Diversity In Multicultural Arenas: An Investigation Of Social Influences Between Asians And Westerners

The impact of people’s orientation with regard to Collectivism/Individualism and to Locus of Control on the extent to which they are subject to social influence has never been investigated cross culturally in the context of consumer behavior in making purchasing decisions.  The objective of this research is to compare the cultural orientations of people in the East and West, and to observe the effect of social influence in their decision making.  In particular, this paper examines and adds evidence to the mutually exclusive cultures:  Singapore, Thailand, Australia, and America.  Hofstede’s typology of cultures is reconfirmed and empirically associated with specific social influence variables on decision making.  The findings provide either whole or partial supports for the hypotheses.  In general, high collectivism is positively related with external locus of control and results in high level of social influence.  There are exceptions, however, which highlight the need to incorporate other factors into understanding the role that cultural orientation plays in decision making.