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Impulse noise is particularly hazardous to the hearing of exposed individuals. In many real-life scenarios, the only protective measure used to reduce the level of impulse noise is hearing protectors. These scenarios include firing ranges. Aside from hearing protectors, shooters use personal safety spectacles. The purpose of this paper was to determine the effect of the simultaneous use of earmuffs and safety spectacles on the sound attenuation of earmuffs during exposure to impact noise. The research was completed with the MIRE method and included the determination of sound attenuation changes in five different models of earmuffs, used simultaneously with three different models of safety spectacles and prescription glasses. The impulse noise source used was a starting pistol, which generated C-weighted peak sound pressure level at a mean of 136.7 dB. The tests demonstrated that the simultaneous use of safety spectacles and earmuffs reduces the impulse noise attenuation of the earmuffs by up to 9 dB. Such sound attenuation changes occurred during simultaneous use of earmuffs with safety spectacles, which feature temples with a rectangular cross-section. The tests also demonstrated that the effect of prescription glasses on sound attenuation was unusually high; prescription glasses reduced the impulse sound attenuation of earmuffs by as much as 18 dB. Keywords: acoustics, noise protection, impulse noise, hearing protectors, earmuffs, noise attenuation

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to empirically explore how the effect of intellectual capital (IC) on organizational performance is indirect and mediated through performance measurement (PM) systems.Design/methodology/approachData were collected from a survey of 128 chief financial officers of Iranian publicly listed companies. Hypotheses were tested using partial least squares regression, a structural modeling technique which is appropriate for highly complex predictive models.FindingsResults from the structural model indicate that, in general, companies with a higher level of IC place a premium on the balanced use of PM systems in a diagnostic and interactive style. Furthermore, the results provide some evidence that IC is indirectly associated with organizational performance through the intervening variable of the balanced use of interactive and diagnostic PM systems.Practical implicationsThis study sheds light on the issue of how senior management should use PM systems to take full advantage of intellectual assets which could lead to improved organizational performance.Originality/valueThis is the first study of its kind to synthesize a model which examines IC, PM systems, and organizational performance. Although the effect of different types of intangible assets on performance has been substantially examined in the literature, less effort has been devoted to understanding the role of PM systems in leveraging an organization's IC.

AbstractThis study exploits the adequacy of the Monti‐Klein model to analyse the banking firms' lending behaviour and uses the geometric lag analytic model to detect the lifespan of bank conglomeration impacts on small business financial welfare. We find that, although the impact of emerging conglomerate banks on lending to small businesses is significantly negative (δ = −0.6897;p < 0.01), the effect reverses to a pre‐conglomerate positive status within one year. Hence, bank conglomeration does not negatively affect the financial welfare of small business borrowers in the long run. Contrary to the widespread belief and fear, the negative effects are not permanent. Large banks are feared to have no time for mid‐sized businesses. We find, however, that mere increases in size, as may be caused by economic or internal growth, do not pose a threat to small businesses. Large‐sized banking firms positively and significantly correlate with small and predictable risks (δ = 1.7935;p < 0.01). Hence, contrary to what regulators fear, there is no real issue surrounding the idea that building diversifying banks will influence small business loans negatively. What matters is the means through which large banks emerge. Therefore, regulators ought to exercise caution so that they do not discourage their emergence.

We show that the impact of government bailouts (liquidity injections) on a representative bank's risk taking depends on the level of systematic risk of its loans portfolio. In a model where bank's output follows a geometric Brownian motion and the government guarantees bank's liabilities, we show first that more generous bailouts may or may not induce banks to take on more risk depending on the level of systematic risk; if systematic risk is high (low), a more generous bailout decreases (increases) bank's risk taking. Second, the optimal liquidity policy itself depends on systematic risk. Third, the relationship between bailouts and bank's risk taking is not monotonic. When systematic risk is low, the optimal liquidity policy is loose and more generous bailouts induce banks to take on more risk. If systematic risk is high and the optimal liquidity policy is tight, less generous bailouts induce banks to take on less risk. However, when high systematic risk makes a very tight liquidity policy optimal, a less generous bailout could increase bank's risk taking. While in this model there is only one representative bank, in an economy with many banks, a higher level of systematic risk could also be a source of systemic risk if a tighter liquidity policy induces correlated risk taking choices by banks.

In 2015, an estimated 1.2 billion people, or 16% of the global population, did not have access to electricity. At the same time, solid waste generation rates have risen fast, reaching 30 million tons in 1980, 200 million tons today, and projected to exceed over 11 million tons per day by 2100. The waste from cities alone is already enough to fill a line of trash trucks 5,000 kilometers long every day. Solutions therefore must be found, with Waste to Energy (WtE) conversion a strong contender, which presently represents a $29 billion industry globally. By use of cluster sampling, a sample of 361 individuals was surveyed by use of a 63-item, 7-level, Likert type agreement scale questionnaire on the study's four constructs. A confirmatory factor analysis was run prior to the structural equation model, with analysis undertaken by use of LISREL 9.1. All causal factors in the model were shown to have a positive influence on the creation of shared value (CSV) of the waste management power plant and the local community, with 68% of the variance of the factor affecting CSV (R2). Ranked in importance, the three latent variables were government policy (GP), the waste management power plant (WMPP), and community participation (CP), with a total score of 0.83, 0.37 and 0.36, respectively.

Multilateral negotiations at the World Trade Organization have stalled. This has contributed to a steep rise in preferential trade agreements (PTAs). At the same time, negotiations for PTAs have not always proven quick and painless: While some treaties are sealed within a few months or days only, other agreements are preceded by protracted bargaining processes in trade and trade-related issue areas. In this article, we provide a theoretical explanation for this empirical variation. More specifically, we argue that PTA negotiations take longer the greater the distance between the prospective partners initial bargaining positions. Moreover, we contend that negotiation processes become more protracted the higher the relative ambition of the prospective PTA. Due to the limited links to the domestic political arena in autocracies, we expect this latter effect to play out for groups of democratic bargaining partners only. We test these two hypotheses for 198 preferential trade negotiations using novel measures for bargaining templates and the ambition of PTA clauses. In our two-stage survival models, we find support for our argument. In line with qualitative evidence from recent preferential trade initiatives, our models indicate that services, investment and intellectual property rights are particularly sticky agenda items for democratic leaders at the international bargaining table. ; (VLID)2843859

Turkey's Middle East policy has been changed a lot in time but the most dramatic one has happened during the reign of the AKP government. As the political Islam tendency in Turkey has evolved, the economic, political and cultural relations with the Middle East have developed in parallel. Besides, the Turkish democracy, which seems to solve its problems with Islam, is shown by some people as a "model" for the Middle Eastern countries. It is a fact that the recent Gezi protests in Turkey constitute some doubts about the success of this model but the impact of AKP's new foreign policy on the Middle Eastern politics is clear. With the "zero problems policy" and the "new activism" era in Turkish foreign policy, Turkey has focused on the Middle East more than ever. However, to evaluate this change as a complete turn from Turkey's centuryold westernization and a shift in its identity would be a misreading of the developments. In fact, this change could be interpreted as another phase in its strategic foreign policy enriched with an opening to the East. In this context, this article tries to discuss the new orientation of Turkey upon old grounds in the Middle East according to its new focus between the regional dynamics and global actors.Full text: http://bazhum.muzhp.pl/czasopismo/589/?idno=14763

ABSTRACT This study was part of dissertation entitled 'Analysis of The Indonesian Transmigration Model and Some Policy Implications for Extension'. This study was heavily based on a review of existing literature and research related to the transmigration program. The Transmigration program was viewed as a combination of push factors that pressure migrants to seek better opportunities and pull factors that attract migrants to a particular location. There are three major components behind the achievements of the transmigration program, namely: government efforts as facilitating factors, potential migrants as push factors to leave the place of origin, economics and non economics factors as pull factors to come to the destination area. ABSTRAK Penelitian ini merupakan bagian dari disertasi yang berjudul 'Analisis Model Transmigrasi Indonesia dan Beberapa Implikasi Kebijakan Terhadap Penyuluhan'. Penelitian ini didasarkan pada review literatur yang ada serta hasil penelitian yang terkait dengan program transmigrasi. Program transmigrasi dipandang sebagai sebuah kombinasi dari faktor-faktor pendorong yang menekan migran untuk mencari kesempatan yang lebih baik dan faktor-faktor penarik yang memberikan daya tarik bagi migran ke suatu lokasi tertentu. Ada tiga komponen utama dibelakang pencapaian program transmigrasi yakni: usaha pemerintah sebagai faktor fasilitas, potensi migran sebagai faktor pendorong untuk meninggalkan daerah asal, faktor ekonomi dan non-ekonomi sebagai faktor penarik bagi migran untuk datang ke daerah yang dituju.

Turkey's Middle East policy has been changed a lot in time but the most dramatic one has happened during the reign of the AKP government. As the political Islam tendency in Turkey has evolved, the economic, political and cultural relations with the Middle East have developed in parallel. Besides, the Turkish democracy, which seems to solve its problems with Islam, is shown by some people as a "model" for the Middle Eastern countries. It is a fact that the recent Gezi protests in Turkey constitute some doubts about the success of this model but the impact of AKP's new foreign policy on the Middle Eastern politics is clear. With the "zero problems policy" and the "new activism" era in Turkish foreign policy, Turkey has focused on the Middle East more than ever. However, to evaluate this change as a complete turn from Turkey's centuryold westernization and a shift in its identity would be a misreading of the developments. In fact, this change could be interpreted as another phase in its strategic foreign policy enriched with an opening to the East. In this context, this article tries to discuss the new orientation of Turkey upon old grounds in the Middle East according to its new focus between the regional dynamics and global actors.Full text: http://bazhum.muzhp.pl/czasopismo/589/?idno=14763

Due to the increasing activities of the tax authority and transfer pricing monitoring by the government and also international organizations, the rules of transfer pricing are keep on updated. As a result, multinational enterprises must comply with those regulations over time. OECD as an international organization launch a principle called Arm's Length Principle, which states that an internal transaction must be carried as it is performed to the unrelated party. Thus, in this paper the author developed a model for the client to apply the principle through clear steps. There are 5 internal interiew participants which the author has chosen with a judgemental strategy. According to the study, the client should follow four big steps. The first step is to determine the type of service being performed. The second step is to determine the ALP method. The third step is to assign the borrowers' credit rating. Then from the credit rating, the amount of intercompany loan margin can be made, which is the last step. By applying the model, the company can save from the tax adjustment and save a lot of time and efforts to achieve the optimum tax efficiency. Keyword:Arm's Length Principle, Transfer Pricing, Intercompany Transaction, Corporate Income Tax, Short Term Loan

BACKGROUND: Loss to care is high among asymptomatic HIV-infected women initiated on antiretroviral therapy (ART) during pregnancy or in the postpartum period. However, whether pregnancy itself plays a role in the high loss to care rate is uncertain. We compared loss to care over seven years between pregnant and non-pregnant women at enrollment into HIV care in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). METHODS: We conducted a retrospective analysis of all ART-naive women aged 15-45 initiating HIV care at two large clinics in Kinshasa, DRC, from 2007-2013. Pregnancy status was recorded at care enrollment. Patients were classified as having no follow-up if they did not return to care after the initial enrollment visit. Among those with at least one follow-up visit after enrollment, we classified patients as lost to care if more than 365 days had passed since their last clinic visit. We used logistic regression to model the association between pregnancy status and no follow-up, and Cox proportional hazards regression to model the association between pregnancy status and time to loss to care. RESULTS: Of 2175 women included in the analysis, 1497 (68.8%) were pregnant at enrollment. Compared to non-pregnant women, pregnant women were less likely to be over 35 years of age (19.1% vs. 31.9%, p

We show that the impact of government bailouts (liquidity injections) on a representative bank's risk taking depends on the level of systematic risk of its loans portfolio. In a model where bank's output follows a geometric Brownian motion and the government guarantees bank's liabilities, we show first that more generous bailouts may or may not induce banks to take on more risk depending on the level of systematic risk; if systematic risk is high (low), a more generous bailout decreases (increases) bank's risk taking. Second, the optimal liquidity policy itself depends on systematic risk. Third, the relationship between bailouts and bank's risk taking is not monotonic. When systematic risk is low, the optimal liquidity policy is loose and more generous bailouts induce banks to take on more risk. If systematic risk is high and the optimal liquidity policy is tight, less generous bailouts induce banks to take on less risk. However, when high systematic risk makes a very tight liquidity policy optimal, a less generous bailout could increase bank's risk taking. While in this model there is only one representative bank, in an economy with many banks, a higher level of systematic risk could also be a source of systemic risk if a tighter liquidity policy induces correlated risk taking choices by banks.

Radial turning forces for tool-life improvements are studied, with the emphasis on predictive rather than preventive maintenance. A tool for wear prediction in various experimental settings of instability is proposed through the application of two statistical approaches to process data on tool-wear during turning processes: three sigma edit rule analysis and Principal Component Analysis (PCA). A Linear Mixed Model (LMM) is applied for wear prediction. These statistical approaches to instability detection generate results of acceptable accuracy for delivering expert opinion. They may be used for on-line monitoring to improve the processing of different materials. The LMM predicted significant differences for tool wear when turning different alloys and with different lubrication systems. It also predicted the degree to which the turning process could be extended while conserving stability. Finally, it should be mentioned that tool force in contact with the material was not considered to be an important input variable for the model. ; The work was performed as a part of the HIMMOVAL (Grant Agreement Number: 620134) project within the CLEAN-SKY program, linked to the SAGE2 project for geared open-rotor development and the delivery of the demonstrator part. Funding through grant IT900-16 is also acknowledged from the Basque Government Department of Education, Universities and Research.

The main idea of the Argentinean history in the XIX C was the nation-building in which the corollary was the National State conformation in 1880, when the leading generation was composed by "liberals from the economic point of view and conservatives from the political point of view". The oligarchic State fostered to "agro exporter model" and laid its constituent foundations on the rural production. After two centuries, it is important to think about the characteristics and consequences of the agrarian alternatives of a country of almost 3 million square meters. This country forms its model with an unequal profile in the fields of economy, politics, space and society. ; La idea fuerza de la historia argentina en el siglo XIX fue la construcción de la Nación, cuyo corolario fue la conformación del Estado Nacional en 1880, cuando la generación dirigente se componía de "liberales en lo económico y conservadores en lo político". El Estado oligárquico dio impulso al "modelo agroexportador" y sentó sus bases fundacionales en la producción rural. Dos siglos después resulta interesante reflexionar sobre las características y consecuencias de las alternativas agrarias de un país de casi 3 millones de kilómetros cuadrados, que forja su modelo con un perfil desigual, en el campo de la economía, la política, el espacio y la sociedad.

En este artículo indago acerca de la compatibilidad del modelo de filosofía jurídica de Ronald Dworkin con el neoconstitucionalismo y otras versiones del constitucionalismo. La tesis que defiendo es que el constitucionalismo sustantivo de Dworkin, considerado en el contexto de su teoría del derecho como moral política institucionalizada, es incompatible con las tesis fundamentales que, tanto sus partidarios como sus detractores, atribuyen al neoconstitucionalismo, así como con otros modelos que toman a la Constitución como una especie de justificativo de segundo orden de principios y valores, un puente entre el derecho y la moral o un determinante de la exclusión de las reglas del razonamiento jurídico. ; In this paper I inquire about the compatibility of Ronald Dworkin's legal philosophy model with neo-constitutionalism and other versions of constitutionalism. My point is that the substantive constitutionalism of Dworkin, considered in the context of his theory oflaw as institutionalized political morality, is incompatible with the fundamental theses that both his supporters and his detractors attribute to neoconstitutionalism, as well as other models that take the Constitution as a kind of second-order justification of principies and values, a bridge between law and morality or a determinant of the exclusion of the rules of legal reasoning. ; Facultad de Ciencias Jurídicas y Sociales