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Iceberg orders, which allow traders to hide a portion of their order size, have become prevalent in many electronic limit order markets. This paper investigates, via a real options analysis, whether small traders, who have no use for submitting iceberg orders, are better off submitting their orders to fully transparent markets which have low depth, or to more liquid markets which do permit the placement of iceberg orders by large traders. Surprisingly, we find that in the context of our model, small traders are better off submitting to fully transparent markets in spite of them being less liquid.

Child welfare is "that part of human services and social welfare programs and ideologies oriented toward the protection, care, and healthy development of children" [Barker 1991: 35], and social welfare archives are "among the cumulative by-products of social welfare activities" [KlaassenSteinwall 1987: 150]. Social welfare archives may include accreditation reports and responses, annual reports, budgets, biographical information, bylaws, charters, client case records, contracts, constitutions with amendments, consultants' reports, correspondence, manuals and handbooks, minutes, photographs, reports, and salary schedules, among other items [Barbeau & Lohmann 1992]. The researcher should consider which of these will be of importance in examining archival records.A General Approach to Sources of Archival MaterialColleagues are often invaluable in suggesting archival sources to the prospective researcher, and reference and subject librarians can also be helpful at every stage of the research process. The following are resources to consider in finding archival materials: (1) general histories of social welfare; (2) documentary histories; (3) annotated bibliographies; (4) directories of archival and manuscript collections; (5) journal articles; (6) published inventories of oral history collections with reference to primary source materials; (7) The Social Welfare History Archives Center at the University of Minnesota; (8) social agencies and historical societies; and (9) abstracts, indexes, reference guides, and electronic services.A Generic Approach to Finding and Using ArchivesGeneral Histories of Social WelfareThe General Index to David Schneider's The History of Public Welfare in New York State [1938] refers to "child welfare in New Netherland, care of dependent children, 15-19." On these pages is a reference to "orphan masters." A footnote there refers the reader to chapter note no. 25 and "New York City Orphan Masters 1902-7." The full reference on page 27 is "New York City Orphan Masters. Minutes of the Orphanmasters of New Amsterdam: 1655-1663. New York, 1902-7." In the New York City Municipal Reference and Research Center, this topic is not locatable under New York or New York City, but does appear under New Amsterdam [New York (NY) Orphanmasters 1902-1907].Documentary HistoriesIn the area of children and youth, one documentary history is unusually complete for the period it covers. Compiled by Bremner [1970-1974], Children and Youth in America: A Documentary History is a multivolume set that includes citations from many archives covering the period from 1600 through 1973. It has a fine bibliography and is painstakingly indexed. Material from a number of the White House Conferences on Children is included.Annotated BibliographiesAnnotated bibliographies not only provide the complete bibliographic information on a work, but also describe its coverage and scope. If available in a subject area of interest, annotations may lead the researcher to important material. For example, Social Welfare in America: An Annotated Bibliography [Trattner & Achenbaum 1983] includes monographs, journal articles, and dissertations from the mid-1940s through early in the 1980s, with some titles going back to the 1600s. Under the heading Child Welfare, the subject index yields a reference to a survey of child welfare literature spanning 75 years [Brown 1960].Directories of Archival and Manuscript CollectionsOne ongoing compilation of monumental proportions is the National Union Catalog of Manuscript Collections (NUCMC), which began publication with its 1959-61 volume [Library of Congress 1962]. Collections are listed if they are "located in a public or quasi-public repository that regularly admits researchers." It does not list collections that are logically part of a functioning institution or organization such as municipal materials in a municipal agency, but it does include "archival records found outside the normal archival repository" [Library of Congress 1962: vi]. …

In this second article on inferential statistical analysis, the author lookes at how it is used to test hypotheses—to test statements about the population being studied. The aim of this article is to help readers understand the basic systematic process of testing a hypothesis, to be aware of directional and nondirectional tests and when they might be used, and to understand significance levels and why they are used in research.

Descriptive statistical analysis is the simplest statistical analysis available but it can be a daunting task for many people. The purpose of this type of analysis is to describe the sample group from which data was collected. This process allows a sense of order to be gained in the data so that the story of the sample group can be told. This article is a comprehensive overview of undertaking descriptive statistical analysis.

The delivery of effective phototherapy to patients with psoriasis living in areas devoid of dermatologists is difficult. Telemedicine has proven useful in the delivery of health care in such locations. This evidence-based study sought to investigate the use of telemedicine in the monitoring of phototherapy of psoriasis patients located in a Nova Scotia region with no dermatologist. Psoriatic patients were reviewed six months before and after protocols and monitoring were instituted. First, charts of 23 patient treated with phototherapy were reviewed from the Aberdeen Hospital in New Glasgow. Patients were either self-referred or referred by a family physician and occasionally a dermatologist. Treatments were not monitored by a specialist. Second, a group of 33 patients receiving treatment were supervised via telemedicine by a dermatologist 250 km away in Halifax. During the study period, treatment time decreased from 140 to 37 days. In the monitored group, 40% more patients were clear of psoriasis at time of discharge. The number of patients with side effects decreased. The number of self-and family practice–referred patients dropped; the clinic became a referral center for dermatologists. Telemedicine provided an excellent way to monitor patients receiving phototherapy in an area without a dermatologist. Overall, patient care improved: More patients were treated effectively with better outcomes and fewer side effects. Il est difficile de livrer line phototherapie efficace aux patients atteints de psoriasis qui vivent dans des regions ou il n’y a pas de dermatologues. La telemedecine s’est revelee utile dans la prestation de soins de sante dans ces regions. Cette etude factuelle cherche a sonder 1’usage de la telemedecine dans l’administration de la phototherapie aux patients atteints de psoriasis qui vivent dans une region de la Nouvelle-Ecosse depourvue de dermatologues. Les patients atteints de psoriasis ont ete examines six mois avant et six mois apres la mise en place des protocoles et du suivi. D’abord, les dossiers de 23 patients du Aberdeen Hospital a New Glasgow ont ete revus. Les patients etaient venus par eux-memes ou etaient referes par un medecin de famille ou parfois un dermatologue. Les traitements n’ont pas ete surveilles par un specialiste. Ensuite, grâce a la telemedecine, un groupe de 33 patients recevant des traitements a ete suivi par un dermatologue etabli a Halifax, soit a 250 km. Durant la duree de 1’etude, le temps du traitement est passe de 140 jours a 37 jours. Le groupe ainsi suivi comptait 40% plus de patients gueris au moment de leur conge. Le nombre de patients ayant des effets secondaires a diminue. Le nombre de patients qui venaient par eux-memes ou qui sont referes par des medecins de famille a diminue; La clinique est devenue un centre d’aiguillage pour dermatologues.

Background: The diagnosis of melanoma at an early, curable stage is an important challenge for clinicians. Confocal scanning laser microscopy (CSLM) is a high-resolution, noninvasive technology that may facilitate improved diagnostic accuracy over clinical examination. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of CSLM compared to dermoscopy in a prospective examination of benign and malignant melanocytic lesions. Methods: 125 patients with suspicious pigmented lesions were prospectively recruited to undergo a clinical, dermoscopic and CSLM examination. A diagnosis was made preoperatively with each technique, and the lesion was then excised and diagnosed using histopathology. Results: 125 patients with 125 lesions were studied comprising 88 melanocytic nevi and 37 melanomas. Dermoscopy had a sensitivity of 89.2%, a specificity of 84.1%, a positive predictive value of 70.2% and a negative predictive value of 94.9%. CSLM was found to have a sensitivity of 97.3%, a specificity of 83.0%, a positive predictive value of 70.6% and a negative predictive value of 98.6%. No melanomas were misidentified when both techniques were used together. Conclusions: CSLM had a relatively higher sensitivity than dermoscopy; however, the specificity was similar with CSLM and dermoscopy. These results suggest that dermoscopy and CSLM are complementary.

Background: Tumor vascularity may be of strong prognostic significance in cutaneous melanoma. We are the first to use a novel, noninvasive, in vivo confocal scanning laser microscope (CSLM) to evaluate vascularity in cutaneous melanoma. Objective: Our purpose was to apply a CSLM to assess vascularity in melanoma and to evaluate the prognostic significance of these findings. Methods: Patients with a suspicious pigmented lesion were prospectively recruited to undergo CSLM prior to skin biopsy, and those diagnosed with melanoma were included in this study. A blinded observer graded tumor vascularity from still digital CSLM images. The CSLM vascularity grading was correlated to tumor thickness and ulceration as a proxy for clinical prognosis. Results: Sixty-six patients and 67 lesions underwent imaging with CSLM. Eleven patients were diagnosed with melanoma, including six in situ and five invasive melanomas. Prominent vascularity was observed in all advanced melanomas. There was an overall increase in mean tumor thickness between the absent (x = 0.315 mm) to prominent (x = 1.51 mm) categories. Conclusion: In this pilot study, vascularity was readily detected in cutaneous melanomas using CSLM. Prominent vascularity was observed in patients with advanced cutaneous melanomas. Our preliminary results are encouraging and indicate potential for the use of CSLM to assess vascularity in cutaneous melanoma, with potential prognostic and therapeutic implications.

This paper outlines a real options approach to valuing those announcements which are made by firms outside their legal requirements. From the firm's perspective, information is disclosed only if the manager of the firm is sufficiently certain that the market response to the announcement will have a positive impact on the value of the firm. When debt financing is possible it is found that the manager adopts a more transparent disclosure policy, thus violating the Modigliani-Miller theorem on irrelevance of capital structure on firm value.