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Thermal printing technology requires a color developer to activate the dye under the action of heat. Bisphenol A (BPA) has traditionally been used for this purpose, although it has increasingly been replaced by bisphenol S (BPS) in recent years. Due to concerns regarding their toxicity, the Swiss authorities have banned both BPA and BPS from thermal papers since 2020. The impact of this regulatory decision was evaluated during 3 monitoring campaigns: in 2013-2014, 2019 and 2021. They were used to describe the starting point, the transition phase, and the status after entry into force of the ban, respectively. Whereas the use of BPA as color developer dropped from 82.2% in 2013/14 to 10.8% in 2021, the fraction of BPS-based thermal paper rose from 3.1% to 19.1% during the same period, despite being banned. However, Pergafast® 201 (PF201) is now the main color developer in thermal paper in Switzerland, with an occurrence of 60.3%. Other alternatives such as D-8, TGSA, PPSMU, NKK-1304, BPS-MAE, D-90 and Blue4est® have only been marginally detected. This study demonstrates the efficiency of the regulatory measure and the feasibility to substitute BPA in thermal papers with less-toxic alternatives., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Central neurocytoma is the most common primary intraventricular tumor in adults being classified by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a benign grade II tumor with a good prognosis. Given the recent advances with regard to this tumor, a bibliometric analysis was due to study the future direction of research for neurocytomas. A comprehensive Elsevier's Scopus database search was performed to capture all published and indexed studies to date relevant to neurocytoma. A discrete set of validated bibliometric parameters were extracted and analyzed on R v4.1.3. A total of 1002 documents were included in our analysis covering a period between 1910 and 2021 (111 years). Around 98.5% of the documents were multi-author publications with a collaboration index (CI) of 4.21. Acta Neuropathologica, The American Journal of Surgical Pathology, and Cancer were the journals to include the highest number of top ten cited articles (2 out of 10 most cited articles, 20%). Switzerland (4 out of 10, 40%) accounted for the country to have the highest number of top 10 most cited articles with the USA (5588 out of 16,395 citations, 34.1%) having the greatest number of citations. Lastly, our analysis reported an annual growth rate of 6.9% for the number of papers produced by year. This is the first bibliometric analysis to study the top 10 most cited articles with regard to neurocytomas. A shift from histopathologic and clinical symptoms towards the treatment and management of the tumor was observed in our analysis., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Alternatives to bisphenol A (BPA) are more and more used in thermal paper receipts. To get an overview of the situation in Switzerland, 124 thermal paper receipts were collected and analyzed. Whereas BPA was detected in most samples (n=100), some alternatives, namely bisphenol S (BPS), Pergafast® 201 and D-8 have been found in 4, 11 and 9 samples respectively. As no or few data on their endocrine activity are available, these chemicals and bisphenol F (BPF) were tested in vitro using the H295R steroidogenesis assay. 17β-Estradiol production was induced by BPA and BPF, whereas free testosterone production was inhibited by BPA and BPS. Both non-bisphenol substances did not show significant effects. The binding affinity to 16 proteins and the toxicological potential (TP) were further calculated in silico using VirtualToxLab™. TP values lay between 0.269 and 0.476 and the main target was the estrogen receptor β (84.4 nM to 1.33 μM). A substitution of BPA by BPF and BPS should be thus considered with caution, since they exhibit almost a similar endocrine activity as BPA. D-8 and Pergafast® 201 could be alternatives to replace BPA, however further analyses are needed to better characterize their effects on the hormonal system., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Fear of falling (FoF) results in social, functional, physical, and psychological symptoms, including secondary disorders, such as depression and general anxiety disorder (GAD). A vicious cycle develops, where symptoms maintain and reinforce FoF and its consequences, including increasing the risk of falling. In this position paper, we suggest screening for FoF using the falls efficacy scale international (FES-I) questionnaire. The presence of a high score (> 23) warrants an investigation into frailty and exclusion of depression and GAD, during the clinical interview. Stratifying frailty, based on the Fried frailty criteria will guide treatment options based on the most significant health concerns. Frail older adults should first receive physiotherapy and exercise interventions, as physical disabilities are their most significant characteristic, while pre-frail and non-frail older adults should receive multicomponent interventions, consisting of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) with physical exercise. The non-frail with predominantly GAD and depression should receive specialized CBT interventions. Currently, only exercise interventions are available for FoF treatment in Switzerland. Although some exercise interventions use CBT elements, such as goal setting and reflections on behavior and feelings, they are not systematically used, are not part of a quality-assured procedure, and do not address the psychological-cognitive aspects of FoF. As the pre-frail and non-frail are the largest groups to use these services, adapting current exercise programs by incorporating a CBT component would be the most practical means to provide optimized care., (© 2021. The Author(s).)

In the wake of local initiatives and developmental funding programs, interprofessionality is now included in national curricula in the German-speaking countries. Based on the 3P model (presage, process, product), this position paper presents the development of interprofessional education in recent years in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and places it in an international context. Core aspects as legal frameworks, including amendments to occupational regulations as well as the formation of networks and faculty development are basic requirements for interprofessional education. New topics and educational settings take shape in the process of interprofessional education: patient perspectives and teaching formats, such as online courses, become more important or are newly established. The influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on interprofessional education is explored as well. Among many new interprofessional courses, particularly the implementation of interprofessional training wards in Germany and Switzerland are positive examples of successful interprofessional education. The objective of interprofessional education continues to be the acquisition of interprofessional competencies. The main focus is now centered on evaluating this educational format and testing for the corresponding competencies. In the future, more capacities will be required for interprofessional continuing education and post-graduate education. Structured research programs are essential to ascertain the effects of interprofessional education in the German-speaking countries. In this position paper the GMA committee on interprofessional education encourages further advancement of this topic and expresses the aim to continue cooperating with other networks to strengthen and intensify interprofessional education and collaboration in healthcare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Only a few studies with small sample sizes have compared electronic Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) rating checklists with traditional paper-based OSCE rating checklists. In this study, the examiner-perceived usability and preference for type of OSCE checklist (electronic vs. paper based) were compared, and the influence of OSCE checklist type on missed ratings was determined, for the Swiss Federal Licensing Examination in clinical skills for human medicine., Methods: All examiners in the Swiss Federal Licensing Examination in clinical skills for human medicine were invited over two subsequent years to evaluate the OSCE checklist type they had worked with during the examination. This was based on a questionnaire with 14 closed questions (i.e., demographic, checklist-type experience, perceived usability, checklist type preference). Furthermore, the numbers of missed ratings for the paper-based checklist were recorded., Results: The data from these examiners ( n =377) with experience of both OSCE checklist types were analyzed. The electronic OSCE checklist was rated significantly higher on all usability aspects (i.e., ease of use, candidate rating and error correction, clarity, distraction using the checklist, overall satisfaction), except for the speed of registering comments (no significant difference). The majority of the examiners in both years (2014: 54.5%, n =60, 2015: 89.8%, n =230) reported preference for working with the electronic OSCE checklist in the future. Missed ratings were seen for 14.2% of the paper-based OSCE checklists, which were prevented with the electronic OSCE checklists., Conclusions: Electronic OSCE checklists were rated significantly more user-friendly and were preferred over paper-based OSCE checklists by a broad national sample of examiners, supporting previous results from faculty-level examinations. Furthermore, missed ratings were prevented with the electronic OSCE checklists. Overall, the use of electronic OSCE checklists is therefore advisable., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests. The OSCE-Eval application that was used to implement the electronic OSCE checklist was designed and developed by the Department for Software Development, Usability Consulting and IT Infrastructure (ASCII), at the Institute for Medical Education. More information about the application can be accessed through the website [https://eosce.ch/]., (Copyright © 2022 Wagner et al.)

This document is an introduction to a special collection of papers in honor of Robert Deschenaux, a chemist who made significant contributions to the field of soft materials. Deschenaux was born in Switzerland in 1957 and obtained his PhD in chemistry in 1983. Throughout his career, he conducted research on various topics including metal complexes, liquid-crystalline materials, and dendrimers. Deschenaux also played a role in teaching and promoting chemistry. The special collection of papers was organized to celebrate his retirement and his outstanding contributions to the field. [Extracted from the article]

This paper examines digital archiving policies of open access (OA) electronic scholarly journals in Central Europe. The research sample consists of 1589 journals from nine Central European countries registered in the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ). Results show that of the 1589 journals, 69% of them have an archiving policy. In terms of the number of indexed journals, Poland ranks first with 592 journals. Switzerland is at the forefront of digital archiving with 89% of archived journals. It was also found that Portico and national libraries are the most widely used archives, and that 19% of the preserved journals are archived in more than one archive. A preliminary analysis was also conducted to investigate the possible existence of a relationship between journal rank and digital archiving. The results show a higher number of JCR indexed titles, as well as a higher ranking, among archived journals. The paper also compares the status of archiving policies among Asian and Central European countries. The results reveal that archived journals are significantly more represented in Central European countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The number of older people dying in long-term care facilities (LTCFs) is increasing globally, but care quality may be variable. A framework was developed drawing on empirical research findings from the Palliative Care for Older People (PACE) study and a scoping review of literature on the implementation of palliative care interventions in LTCFs. The PACE study mapped palliative care in LTCFs in Europe, evaluated quality of end-of-life care and quality of dying in a cross-sectional study of deceased residents of LTCFs in 6 countries, and undertook a cluster-randomized control trial that evaluated the impact of the PACE Steps to Success intervention in 7 countries. Working with the European Association for Palliative Care, a white paper was written that outlined recommendations for the implementation of interventions to improve palliative and end-of-life care for all older adults with serious illness, regardless of diagnosis, living in LTCFs. The goal of the article is to present these key domains and recommendations., Design: Transparent expert consultation., Setting: International experts in LTCFs., Participants: Eighteen (of 20 invited) international experts from 15 countries participated in a 1-day face-to-face Transparent Expert Consultation (TEC) workshop in Bern, Switzerland, and 21 (of 28 invited) completed a follow-up online survey., Methods: The TEC study used (1) a face-to-face workshop to discuss a scoping review and initial recommendations and (2) an online survey., Results: Thirty recommendations about implementing palliative care for older people in LTCFs were refined during the TEC workshop and, of these, 20 were selected following the survey. These 20 recommendations cover domains at micro (within organizations), meso (across organizations), and macro (at national or regional) levels addressed in 3 phases: establishing conditions for action, embedding in everyday practice, and sustaining ongoing change., Conclusions and Implications: We developed a framework of 20 recommendations to guide implementation of improvements in palliative care in LTCFs., (Copyright © 2020 AMDA – The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The transition period from the hospital to the outpatient setting is a critical phase when managing heart failure. A well-structured transition is paramount and helps to ensure a tight follow-up schedule for the heart failure patient, thereby improving treatment outcomes. This article aims to provide guidance for the first three follow-up visits after hospital discharge, with a focus on monitoring heart failure patients and up-titrating their medication in primary care.

Background: 5-Fluorouracil (FU) is one of the most commonly used cytostatic drugs in the systemic treatment of cancer. Treatment with FU may cause severe or life-threatening side effects and the treatment-related mortality rate is 0.2-1.0%., Summary: Among other risk factors associated with increased toxicity, a genetic deficiency in dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPD), an enzyme responsible for the metabolism of FU, is well known. This is due to variants in the DPD gene (DPYD). Up to 9% of European patients carry a DPD gene variant that decreases enzyme activity, and DPD is completely lacking in approximately 0.5% of patients. Here we describe the clinical and genetic background and summarize recommendations for the genetic testing and tailoring of treatment with 5-FU derivatives. The statement was developed as a consensus statement organized by the German Society for Hematology and Medical Oncology in cooperation with 13 medical associations from Austria, Germany, and Switzerland. Key Messages: (i) Patients should be tested for the 4 most common genetic DPYD variants before treatment with drugs containing FU. (ii) Testing forms the basis for a differentiated, risk-adapted algorithm with recommendations for treatment with FU-containing drugs. (iii) Testing may optionally be supplemented by therapeutic drug monitoring., (© 2020 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

The free-banking history of Switzerland is subdivided into periods with unfettered competition (1826–1881), and strict banknote regulation (1881–1907). This paper suggests that the Federal Banknote Act of 1881 was introduced to remedy the fragmentation of the unfettered-competition period, during which private note-issuing banks were unable to issue standardised paper money. Although the corresponding minimum-reserve and mutual-acceptance rules led to a standardisation, they created new problems. For example, these regulatory interventions reduced the flexibility (or "elasticity") of the paper-money supply. It turned out that a central note-issuing bank is needed to supply adequate amounts of standardised banknotes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent reforms in Swiss higher education transformed vocational training institutions with a teaching mission into universities of applied sciences and universities of teacher education that should balance research and teaching activities of individual lecturers following the Humboldtian model. Drawing on the concept of ambidexterity, we aim to examine the current outcome of the reforms in terms of the structural conditions for research and the research competence of lecturers at the two new types of universities. By means of a document analysis, we first assess how the shift manifests itself in institutional mission statements. We then analyze recent survey data (N=2454) regarding the lecturers' perceptions of the structural conditions for research and their research competence. While our findings suggest that the new higher education sector has formally adopted the Humboldtian model, notable differences between the two types of universities can be observed in the extent to which the new policy imperatives have influenced the mission statements. Furthermore, we find a certain degree of mismatch between the organizational ambidexterity required by the Humboldtian model, the structural conditions for research encountered by lecturers, and the individual research competence. A number of conceptual and policy implications are drawn.

In Switzerland, regulatory requirements mandated that spraying drones undergo a testing procedure, which included assessing their transversal spray distribution using a patternator. Various stakeholders have repeatedly expressed uncertainty as to whether these static measurements correctly reflect the real dynamic spray distribution or whether this type of measurement falsifies the spray pattern. Taking these uncertainties into account, the present study compared the static patternator method with dynamic field measurements using water-sensitive and filter paper. The three methods showed good agreement in the results. In contrast to the other two methods, the measurements on the patternator showed the lowest variability, which shows that hovering at the same point probably causes some compensation in the distribution. Different nozzles (flat fan, hollow cone, air induction nozzles) produce quite similar distribution patterns in all three measurement methods, whereby the injector nozzle with the largest droplets produced the best transverse distribution with a coefficient of variation of less than 10 %. • Spray drones can achieve regular transversal distribution with coefficients of variation less than 10 %. • Patternator is well suited to measure the transversal volume distribution of the spray liquid. • Collectors (water sensitive and filter paper) show the variability of the distribution during the flight. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Due to the complexity and importance of oral bone structure, oral bone regeneration materials differ from those used in other parts of the body. To study the research trends and hotspots of oral bone regeneration materials, this paper conducts a bibliometric analysis of related papers from 1991 to 2023 (retrieved on 27 September 2023). Materials and methods: Using bibliometric methods, two visualization metric software, Citespace and VOSviewer, were used to analyze 1217 papers in SCIE, including paper analysis, author analysis, country and institution analysis, keyword analysis, and cited literature analysis. Results: (Alavi et al., Oral Surgery Oral Medicine Oral Pathology Oral Radiology, 2023, 136 (5), 554-68) The number of papers is generally increasing and gradually stabilizing; (Xia et al., Bioactive Materials, 2021, 6 (11), 4186-208) Buser D is the most influential author, while Jung, Ronald E has the highest number of papers and total citations; (Wagner et al., Stem Cells Translational Medicine, 2019, 8 (10), 1084-91) The United States has the highest number of papers and citation frequency. The University of Bern and the University of Zurich in Switzerland are not only the institutions with the most papers but also the institutions with the most collaborations with other institutions. (Gallego et al., T Engineering Part A, 2010, 16 (4), 1179-87) Many research directions have persisted for decades since their inception. The field of oral bone regeneration materials is constantly developing and improving. In recent years, the research direction in this field may mainly focus on the role of blood cells and proteins in bone regeneration. (Wang et al., Japanese Dental Science Review, 2022, 58, 233-48). In recent years, the types of cited literature mainly include barrier membranes, alveolar ridge augmentation, bone graft materials, histological examination, and in vivo animal experimental models. Conclusion: The United States and Switzerland have a significant influence in the field of oral bone regeneration materials. The research hotspot in recent years is mainly on tissue engineering materials. However, traditional materials still occupy a large proportion in clinical treatment or research. In addition, the combined use of new and old materials has gradually become one of the research hotspots in this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The adoption and use of health information technology (IT) continues to grow around the globe. In Switzerland, the government nor professional associations have to this day provided incentives for health IT adoption., Objective: We aim to assess the proportion of physicians who are routinely working with electronic health data and describe to what extent physicians exchange electronic health data with peers and other health care providers. Additionally, we aim to estimate the effect of physicians' attitude towards health IT on the adoption of electronic workflows., Methods: Between May and July 2013, we conducted a cross-sectional survey of 1200 practice based physicians in Switzerland. Respondents were asked to report on their technical means and where applicable their paper-based workarounds to process laboratory data, examination results, referral letters and physician's letters. Physicians' view of barriers and facilitators towards health IT use was determined by a composite score., Results: A response rate of 57.1% (n=685) was reached. The sample was considered to be representative for physicians in Swiss ambulatory care. 35.2% of the respondents documented patients' health status with the help of a longitudinal semi-structured electronic text record generated by one or more encounters in the practice. Depending on the task within a workflow, around 11-46% of the respondents stated to rely on electronic workflow practices to process laboratory and examination data and dispatch referral notes and physician's letters. The permanent use of electronic workflow processes was infrequent. Instead, respondents reported paper-based workarounds affecting specific tasks within a workflow. Physicians' attitude towards health IT was significantly associated with the adoption of electronic workflows (OR 1.04-1.31, p<0.05), but the effect sizes of factors related to the working environment (e.g., regional factors, medical specialty, type of practice) were larger., Conclusion: At present, only a few physicians in Swiss ambulatory care routinely work with electronic health data. Until more of their peers participate in electronic exchange of structured clinical information, most physicians will continue to stay in paper-based systems and workarounds. The survey found that physicians with a positive attitude towards health IT were more likely to adopt electronic workflows, but the impact is minor. It will likely be necessary to introduce financial incentives and develop national standards in order to promote the adoption by a critical mass of practicing clinicians., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This paper examines a disaster preparedness organisation for which waiting is, and has long been, an intensive yet frustrating state. Its focus is on the organisation most centrally concerned with disaster response in Switzerland: Zivilschutz, or 'Civil Protection'. Drawing on ethnographic and historical research, it explores how a particular modality of waiting - waiting on standby - is rendered fragile by the absence of disasters severe enough to authorise its activities. For many, participating in this organisational enterprise appears to incur the risk of becoming trapped in an endless present, in which training and exercises become the primary focus of organisational activity over and above responding directly to disasters. The paper suggests that a core challenge that has occupied the recent and more distant pasts of Swiss disaster preparedness is how to continue to claim its 'relevance', in the context of pasts and anticipated futures that threaten to undermine this very claim. The paper draws on work that has looked to the philosophy of Alfred North Whitehead to account for how, precisely, the world and conditions of possibility are continually made and remade. This includes in relation to practices of 'relevance-making', as well as the capturing of 'feeling'. By doing so, the paper examines how particular times and spaces, both past and future, become joined, sometimes unavoidably, to the practices, affects and devices of disaster preparedness. It adds to work on the temporal dimensions of organisational life, in particular that which has focused on the role of affect and the everyday. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Patient-reported outcome (PRO) assessment is becoming increasingly important after joint replacement surgery. However, PRO data collection, questionnaire handling, and data processing are time consuming and costly process. The aim of our study was to evaluate the efficiency of PRO assessment using tablet computers compared with traditional paper questionnaires in a total hip or knee arthroplasty (THR or TKR) population., Materials and Methods: We recruited 100 patients from outpatient clinics attending for routine follow-up 2 months, 1 year, or 5 years after THR or TKR. Fifty patients completed the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities (WOMAC) osteoarthritis score and Forgotten Joint Score-12 (FJS-12) questionnaires on paper, and 50 patients completed these on a tablet computer. Questionnaire completion was timed for each PRO assessment and for manual data entry of the paper questionnaires into the database. The t test, Mann-Whitney U test, Fisher's exact test, and Wilcoxon test were used for statistical analysis., Results: The mean age of the patients was 67.0 years (standard deviation 10.3 years), with no significant difference between the two groups. Median time for WOMAC questionnaire completion (including data entry for the paper questionnaires) was 197 s for the paper version and 117 s for the tablet version (p < 0.001). Median times for completion of FJS-12 were comparable for paper and tablet versions (32 vs. 37 s). We did not find a significant correlation between age and time for questionnaire completion., Conclusion: Electronic PRO data collection can substantially decrease time, logistics, and effort associated with questionnaire completion in daily clinical practice. It is also acceptable for use in an older arthroplasty population.

Iodine deficiency-induced goiter continues to be a global public health concern, with varying manifestations based on geography, patient's age, and sex. To gain insights into clinical occurrences, a retrospective study analyzed medical records from patients with iodine deficiency-induced goiter or thyroid cancer who underwent surgery at the Community Hospital in Riehen, Switzerland, between 1929 and 1989. Despite today's adequate iodine supplementation, a significant risk for iodine-independent goiter remains in Switzerland, suggesting that genetic factors, among others, might be involved. Thus, a pilot study exploring the feasibility of genetic analysis of blood spots from these medical records was conducted to investigate and enhance the understanding of goiter development, potentially identify genetic variations, and explore the influence of dietary habits and other environmental stimuli on the disease. Blood prints from goiter patients' enlarged organs were collected per decade from medical records. These prints had been made by pressing, drawing, or tracing (i.e., pressed and drawn) the removed organs onto paper sheets. DNA analysis revealed that its yields varied more between the prints than between years. A considerable proportion of the samples exhibited substantial DNA degradation unrelated to sample collection time and DNA mixtures of different contributors. Thus, each goiter imprint must be individually evaluated and cannot be used to predict the success rate of genetic analysis in general. Collecting a large sample or the entire blood ablation for genetic analysis is recommended to mitigate potential insufficient DNA quantities. Researchers should also consider degradation and external biological compounds' impact on the genetic analysis of interest, with the dominant contributor anticipated to originate from the patient's blood. Highlights: DNA can be extracted from paper-derived historical blood spots using a commercial kit. Strong fluctuation in DNA quantity and quality over and within decades due to storage and samples' age. DNA mixtures are to be expected due to the handling of patient files by multiple individuals. Analysis of blood ablations should be considered individually and holistically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to find an answer to the questions of "whether chief executive officers (CEOs) are compensated for market risk", and "how the combined interaction of board size and CEO duality moderates this relationship" from the tenets of agency theory and managerial power theory. Even though the contracting view of agency theory posits that agents are neither to be punished nor rewarded for events that go beyond their direct control (market risk), the research findings in the corporate governance domain are contradictory. It was found that Chinese and American executives were paid for market risk, including oil prices and exchange rates, which was explained by retention risk and weaker corporate governance systems. To shed light on previous inconclusive research, this paper investigates the topic further in a new country setting, that of Switzerland, because the previous results were mostly related to Anglo-Saxon countries. Switzerland is also one of the exemplary countries for executive compensation. Furthermore, it investigates the combined (cascaded) interaction effects of the board size and CEO duality on CEO compensation and market risk from the perspective of managerial power theory, which has not been previously analyzed in the literature to date. For the direct effect, in contrast to previous findings in Anglo-Saxon countries, it has been found that CEOs were not paid for market risk in Switzerland, which confirms agency theory's contracting prediction. This finding outlines the future comparative research area in this domain. For the combined interaction effect, it has been found that board size incorporated with CEO duality is the significant cascaded moderator, and large boards with CEO duality are significantly more effective in controlling asymmetric compensation, which confirms the efficacy of large boards with CEO duality in coping with asymmetric compensation and managerial entrenchment (managerial power theory). These results have both practical and academic implications for boards of directors, Human Resources and corporate governance literature, agency theory, and managerial power theory, by providing further evidence on previous inconclusive findings on board size, CEO duality, and the role of market risk in the CEO pay structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the evolution of the banking system sensitivity to cross-border contagion in 2006-2011. The study is performed on the basis of the BIS data on cross-border exposures and the Bankscope data on Tier 1 capital of 20 banking systems (Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the UK, and the USA). Since the European sovereign debt crisis took a decisive turn at the end of 2009, markets started looking at its main protagonists—Greece, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, and Spain (GIIPS)—with a lot of anxiety. However, unexpectedly, we find that a single failure among GIIPS could be absorbed by the network. Our results reveal that the USA, the UK, France, and Germany pose the highest threat to the systemic stability. Moreover, the resilience of the banking systems to contagion risks tends to improve over the years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scientists from a consortium of Swiss energy research centres and universities have prepared a white paper on 'Power-to-X' for the Swiss Federal Energy Research Commission, to collect the key insights into Power-to-X technologies. The study sheds light on contributions that could be made to Switzerland's energy strategy by different technologies based on conversion and storage of various forms of energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper estimates the impact of the introduction of a tax on unsorted waste increasing the 35-l bag price from 0.24 to 1.95 CHF in 2013 in the canton of Vaud. Using panel data for 22 districts over the period 2010–2017, we identify the effects over time of the waste tax on unsorted waste and recycling. The neighbouring cantons of Geneva and Valais form our control group. The waste tax decreases the amount of yearly unsorted household-waste by about 47 kg, corresponding to a reduction of about one fourth per inhabitant. The effect is strongest the year after the introduction of the tax and is persistent over time. We further find a robust increase in organic waste recycling. For recycling of paper and glass, the effect is not clear-cut. Interestingly, in terms of weight, the reduction in unsorted waste is not fully compensated by increased recycling. Given that there are no signs for illegal waste disposal, this means that consumers probably reduced their total packaging bought. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]