Search

Kansas has produced its share of unique and interesting political movements and politicians. With a history of populism, socialism, and free-thought, some unique and colorful politicians and radicals have made [...]

Using a sample of 347 demutualizing thrifts from 1991 to 2004, we show that the level of inside participation is not a traditional signal of firm performance. We conclude that unanticipated inside participation reflects the incentives of insiders to reduce the size of the offer to influence the level of expected initial public offer (IPO) returns. We find unanticipated inside participation is related to lower offer size and higher initial returns, but we do not find a relationship between inside participation and post-IPO performance. JEL code: G21 Keywords: demutualization, thrifts, initial public offering, inside ownership, financial regulation., INSIDERS ARE WIDELY acknowledged to possess asymmetric information. Previous research suggests that insiders use asymmetric information related to firm value to enhance their personal trading strategies (Seyhun 1986, Lee 1997, [...]

This paper presents a degradation-based procedure for estimating the full and residual lifetime distribution of a single-unit system subject to Markovian deterioration. The hybrid approach unites real degradation measures with analytical, stochastic failure models to numerically compute the distributions and their moments. Two distinct models are shown to perform well when compared with simulated data. Moreover, results obtained from the second model are compared with empirically generated lifetimes of 2024-T3 aluminum alloy specimens. The numerical experiments indicate that the proposed techniques are useful for remaining lifetime prognosis in both cases., 1. Introduction In this paper, we consider the problem of using sensor data to estimate full and residual lifetime distributions for a single-unit system subject to a stochastically evolving environment. [...]

Polyurethane foam (PUF) is widely used in indoor consumer products. Despite strong potential interactions with volatile organic compounds (VOCs), the effect of PUF on indoor concentrations of VOCs has not been examined. This study determines the behavior of PUF as a potential sink for or source of VOCs in indoor air. A flexible polyether-type foam and eight aromatic VOCs ranging in molecular weight from naphthalene to benzene were studied. Rapid determinations of PUF-air partition coefficient (K) and PUF-phase diffusion coefficient (D) were achieved using a dynamic microbalance procedure. A diffusion model was applied to interpret the experimental data. The PUF sample was assumed to conform to semi-infinite cylindrical geometry with solid-phase diffusion being the rate limiting step. The results indicate that sorption of VOCs by PUF is fully reversible. For the VOCs studied, K can be correlated with vapor pressure and D with molecular free surface area. Humidity appears to reduce the extent of sorption and slow the sorption kinetics. These findings should facilitate the prediction of the source/sink behavior of PUF and the related impact on VOC concentrations in the indoor environment. CE Database subject headings: Desorption; Diffusion; Indoor air pollution; Models; Sorption; Polyurethane; Volatile organic chemicals.

Natural killer (NK) cells provide a central defense against viral infection by using inhibitory and activation receptors for major histocompatibility complex class I molecules as a means of controlling their activity. We show that genes encoding the inhibitory NK cell receptor KIR2DL3 and its human leukocyte antigen C group 1 (HLA-C1) ligand directly influence resolution of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. This effect was observed in Caucasians and African Americans with expected low infectious doses of HCV but not in those with high-dose exposure, in whom the innate immune response is likely overwhelmed. The data strongly suggest that inhibitory NK cell interactions are important in determining antiviral immunity and that diminished inhibitory responses confer protection against HCV., Natural killer (NK) cells are key components of the innate antiviral immune response. In vivo, they are under the constitutively dominant influence of inhibitory receptors for self-MHC class I ligands [...]

The problem in question is which half-segment of a drum's periphery generates the softest or loudest bass note, when one of the half-segments is bound with the other left free. The solution is found based on the assessment of two mathematical techniques applied to oval- and L-shaped drums.

When 23-year-old Bolton Wanderers footballer Fabrice Muamba had a cardiac arrest earlier this month, it shocked the world of sport. But every week in the UK, 12 apparently fit and [...]

By John W. Miller Fortress, 177 pp., $18.00 paperback. Has historical scholarship neglected the humanity of Jesus for the sake of presenting his divinity? This is the question John Miller [...]

By Russell Pregeant. Fortress, $46.00 paperback. RUSSELL PREGEANT, professor of religion and chaplain at Curry College and lecturer in New Testament at Andover Newton Theological School, offers a fresh and [...]

By Gil Bailie. Crossroad, 293 pp., $24.95. WHERE DOES SIN and guilt start and where does it stop?' To try to answer the question, Marjorie Suchocki which is 'developed through [...]

By Marjorie Hewitt Suchocki. Continuum, 168 pp., $18.95. WHERE DOES SIN and guilt start and where does it stop?' To try to answer the question, Marjorie Suchocki which is 'developed [...]

Edited by Mark I. Wallace and Theophus H. Smith. Polebridge, 326 pp., $2 7.95 paperback. WHERE DOES SIN and guilt start and where does it stop?' To try to answer [...]

Professors Kirmser and Hu are correct in some of the points in 'The Shape of the Ideal Column Reconsidered,' especially regarding Cox's and Michael Overton's errors. However, they place too much faith in their reformulation to Tadjbakhsh and Keller's design, and they show contempt for the concept of a strongest column. Extensive reference is made to Perron's paradox in L.C. Young's 'Lectures on the Calculus of Variations and Optimal Control Theory.'