Common Property Research Articles

Functional and biochemical characterisation of remote homologues of type IV pili proteins PilN and PilO in Helicobacter pylori.

Helicobacter pylori encodes homologues of PilM, PilN and PilO from bacteria with Type IV pili, where these proteins form a pilus alignment complex. Inactivation of pilO changes H. pylori motility in semi-solid media, suggesting a link to the chemosensory pathways or flagellar motor. Here, we showed that mutation of the pilO or pilN gene in H. pylori strain SS1 reduced the mean linear swimming speed in liquid media, implicating PilO and PilN in the function, or regulation of, the flagellar motor. We also demonstrated that the soluble variants of H. pylori PilN and PilO share common biochemical properties with their Type IV pili counterparts which suggests their adapted function in the bacterial flagellar motor may be similar to that in the Type IV pili.

Mobilising Papua New Guinea’s Conservation Humanities: Research, Teaching, Capacity Building, Future Directions

Abstract We suggest that the emerging field of the conservation humanities can play a valuable role in biodiversity protection in Papua New Guinea (PNG), where most land remains under collective customary clan ownership. As a first step to mobilising this scholarly field in PNG and to support capacity development for PNG humanities academics, we conducted a landscape review of PNG humanities teaching and research relating to biodiversity conservation and customary land rights. We conducted a systematic literature review, a PNG teaching programme review, and a series of online workshops between the authors (10 PNG-based, 7 UK-based). We found a small but notable amount of PNG research and teaching focused on biodiversity conservation or customary land rights. This included explicit discussion of these topics in 8 of 156 PNG-authored humanities texts published 2010-2020 and related teaching content in the curricula of several different humanities-based programmes. We discuss current barriers to PNG academic development. The growth of fully fledged in-country conservation humanities will require a joint collaborative effort by PNG researchers, who are best placed to carry out such work, and researchers from abroad who can access resources to support the process.

The effects of common ownership on price and quality decisions in competing supply chains

AbstractThis paper examines the implications of common ownership on pricing and quality decisions in supply chains. Our results indicate that the presence of common ownership enhances the quality investment but increases the wholesale price. However, the presence of common ownership induces the retailers to charge lower sales price. Because of higher wholesale price and lower sales price, the manufacturer always benefits from the common ownership but the common ownership always hurts the retailers. The presence of common ownership always benefits consumer surplus and social welfare. The benefits of common ownership are more significant as the common ownership level becomes strong.

Optimizing differential expression analysis for proteomics data via high-performing rules and ensemble inference

Identification of differentially expressed proteins in a proteomics workflow typically encompasses five key steps: raw data quantification, expression matrix construction, matrix normalization, missing value imputation (MVI), and differential expression analysis. The plethora of options in each step makes it challenging to identify optimal workflows that maximize the identification of differentially expressed proteins. To identify optimal workflows and their common properties, we conduct an extensive study involving 34,576 combinatoric experiments on 24 gold standard spike-in datasets. Applying frequent pattern mining techniques to top-ranked workflows, we uncover high-performing rules that demonstrate optimality has conserved properties. Via machine learning, we confirm optimal workflows are indeed predictable, with average cross-validation F1 scores and Matthew’s correlation coefficients surpassing 0.84. We introduce an ensemble inference to integrate results from individual top-performing workflows for expanding differential proteome coverage and resolve inconsistencies. Ensemble inference provides gains in pAUC (up to 4.61%) and G-mean (up to 11.14%) and facilitates effective aggregation of information across varied quantification approaches such as topN, directLFQ, MaxLFQ intensities, and spectral counts. However, further development and evaluation are needed to establish acceptable frameworks for conducting ensemble inference on multiple proteomics workflows.

Common spectral properties and $$\nu $$-convergence

Common spectral properties and $$\nu $$-convergence

Rapid Surface Reconstruction of In2S3 Photoanode via Flame Treatment for Enhanced Photoelectrochemical Performance.

Surface reconstruction, re-organizing the surface atoms or structure, is a promising strategy to manipulate materials' electrical, electrochemical, and surface catalytic properties. Herein, we demonstrate a rapid surface reconstruction of indium sulfide (In2S3) via a high-temperature flame treatment to improve its charge collection properties. The flame process selectively transforms the In2S3 surface into a diffusionless In2O3 layer with high crystallinity. Additionally, it controllably generates bulk sulfur (S) vacancies within a few seconds, leading to surface-reconstructed In2S3 (sr-In2S3). When using those sr-In2S3 as photoanode for photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting devices, these dual functions of surface In2O3/bulk In2S3 reduce the charge recombination in the surface and bulk region, thus improving photocurrent density and stability. With optimized surface reconstruction, the sr-In2S3 photoanode demonstrates a significant photocurrent density of 8.5mA/cm2 at 1.23V versus a reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE), marking a 2.5-fold increase compared to pristine In2S3 (3.5mA/cm2). More importantly, the sr-In2S3 photoanode exhibited an impressive photocurrent density of 7.3mA/cm2 at 0.6V versus RHE for iodide oxidation reaction (IOR). We also showcase a practical and scalable surface reconstruction via flame treatment. Our work provides new insights for surface reconstruction engineering in sulfide-based semiconductors, making a breakthrough in developing efficient solar-fuel energy devices. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Cost, Quality, and Utilization After Hospital-Physician and Hospital-Post Acute Care Vertical Integration: A Systematic Review.

Vertical integration of health systems-the common ownership of different aspects of the health care system-continues to occur at increasing rates in the United States. This systematic review synthesizes recent evidence examining the association between two types of vertical integration-hospital-physician (n = 43 studies) and hospital-post-acute care (PAC; n = 10 studies)-and cost, quality, and health services utilization. Hospital-physician integration is associated with higher health care costs, but the effect on quality and health services utilization remains unclear. The effect of hospital-PAC integration on these three outcomes is ambiguous, particularly when focusing on hospital-SNF integration. These findings should raise some concern among policymakers about the trajectory of affordable, high-quality health care in the presence of increasing hospital-physician vertical integration but perhaps not hospital-PAC integration.

Cycle-Star Motifs: Network Response to Link Modifications

Understanding efficient modifications to improve network functionality is a fundamental problem of scientific and industrial interest. We study the response of network dynamics against link modifications on a weakly connected directed graph consisting of two strongly connected components: an undirected star and an undirected cycle. We assume that there are directed edges starting from the cycle and ending at the star (master–slave formalism). We modify the graph by adding directed edges of arbitrarily large weights starting from the star and ending at the cycle (opposite direction of the cutset). We provide criteria (based on the sizes of the star and cycle, the coupling structure, and the weights of cutset and modification edges) that determine how the modification affects the spectral gap of the Laplacian matrix. We apply our approach to understand the modifications that either enhance or hinder synchronization in networks of chaotic Lorenz systems as well as Rössler. Our results show that the hindrance of collective dynamics due to link additions is not atypical as previously anticipated by modification analysis and thus allows for better control of collective properties.

Independent Video Steganalysis Framework Perspective of Secure Video Processing

We have designed an algorithm of cross-domain feature set extraction for cross-domain video steganalysis of video steganography in multiple domains. For video steganography, we implemented the recently proposed steganography methods such as PMs, MVs, and IPMs. The outcomes of these techniques have fed as input to the proposed Steganalysis approach. We have designed a cross-domain technique for Steganalysis in which the global feature set is extracted according to common statistical properties. After the extraction of global features, the domain-specific features have been extracted in the local features set. Both global and local features are set to form the cross-domain steganalysis technique. The classification has been performed by using the conventional machine learning classifiers such as Support Vector Machine (SVM) and Artificial Neural Network (ANN).

Common institutional ownership and corporate ESG performance in China

Corporate ESG performance, which serves as an important aspect of sustainable finance, is a significant concern of communities and academics. Using a sample of Chinese listed companies spanning from 2011 to 2020, we investigate whether common institutional ownership affects corporate ESG performance. The results show that common institutional ownership worsens corporate ESG performance, which still holds after conducting robustness checks. The above conclusion is more prominent for enterprises facing stronger industrial competition, demonstrating the existence of an anticompetitive mechanism. Overall, we investigate how common institutional ownership negatively affects corporate ESG performance and has implications for emerging markets.

Does common institutional ownership constrain related party transactions? Evidence from China

This study investigates the influence of common institutional ownership (CIO) on the use of related party transactions (RPTs) using a sample of 4410 Chinese A-share listed firms from 2000 to 2021. We find that CIO constrains the use of RPTs. Mechanism tests reveal that the negative association is more prominent for firms with poorer information environments or more concentrated ownership by large shareholders, which is consistent with CIO’s monitoring expertise mechanism. Moreover, the tests indicate that the negative association is more prominent when common institutional investors hold more same-industry or geographically proximate firms, which is consistent with CIO’s scale economy mechanism. Furthermore, heterogeneity analysis suggests that the negative effect of CIO on RPTs is moderated by common institutional investors’ independence, horizon, and stability, as well as by RPTs’ type, abnormality, and direction. Finally, we demonstrate that firms with CIO exhibit higher firm value. Overall, our findings provide a bright side for the ongoing debate regarding the role of CIO and have important implications for regulators and investors in emerging markets.

Gold nanoshells with varying morphologies through templated surfactant‐assisted seed‐growth method

AbstractPlasmonic nanoparticles exhibit dramatic changes in optical properties depending on their spatial organization. Therefore, the ability to precisely control their assembly structure is important for both fundamental understanding and practical applications. In this personal account, we describe a templated surfactant‐assisted seed‐growth method to synthesize core–shell‐type gold nanoparticle assemblies with controllable surface morphologies and optical properties. This approach provides a simple procedure for simultaneous growth and assembly of metal nanoparticles on polymer templates, producing well‐defined nanostructures such as spiky nanoshells and raspberry‐like metamolecules with useful and interesting optical properties, such as strong and uniform surface‐enhanced Raman scattering and metamaterial properties. We discuss the factors that control the morphology and collective properties, describe the design rules acquired from the system, and suggest future directions of this research area.

Politically Affiliated Analysts

Government ownership of financial intermediaries is pervasive around the world. In this study, we examine the impact of common government ownership between the brokerage and listed firms on the information production role of brokerage firms. We show that affiliated analysts tend to issue more optimistic recommendations for stocks of firms controlled by the same government entity that controls their brokerage firms. This optimistic bias is particularly pronounced during periods of economic shocks. Our study demonstrates this by utilizing additional tariff impositions and tariff exemptions during the U.S.–China trade war as exogenous negative and positive shocks, respectively. Additionally, our study indicates that stocks recommended by politically affiliated analysts tend to underperform those recommended by independent analysts, implying that the optimism stems from conflicts of interest rather than superior information. Furthermore, our research highlights that sophisticated investors perceive the potential bias and incorporate it into their trading. Consistent with an exchange of favors story, politically affiliated brokerage firms receive a larger allocation during the issuance of local government debt, whereas governments subscribe for more shares during seasoned equity offerings by these affiliated brokerage firms. This paper was accepted by Kay Giesecke, finance. Funding: The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China [Grants 71972088, 72132002, and 71991473], the National Social Science Foundation of China [Grants 21ZDA010 and 22VRC145], and the Innovation and Talent Base for Digital Technology and Finance [Grant B21038]. Supplemental Material: The online appendix and data files are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2022.00579 .

Political Stability, Corruption, and Economic Development : Evidence frim WAMZ Countries

The paper has analyzed the political stability, corruption and economic development in the West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ) countries for the period of 2000 to 2020. The common properties of the panel data were first checked to avoid mis-specification bias and hence biased statistical results. Firstly, the CD test revealed no evidence/absence of cross sectional dependence among the countries which validates the use of traditional panel unit root that does not take account of cross-sectional dependence. The results of panel unit root test proposed by Levin et al (2002) revealed that the variables are integrated of order zero i.e. I (0). Based on this, the paper explores within the panel VAR framework. Evidence from impulse response functions revealed that, political stability and rule of low are economic development promoters while corruption hampers economic development in the region. The results from variance decomposition indicate that the variables under study contribute or hinder economic development in the WAMZ countries. Based on the results the paper recommends that, transparency and accountability at all level of government affairs as well as respecting the constitution in these nations should be preserved in order to overcome all social and political injustice among the countries under study.

Learning from Failures of Co-owned Firms: Common Ownership and Information Disclosure Fraud

Learning from Failures of Co-owned Firms: Common Ownership and Information Disclosure Fraud

Gradual information diffusion across commonly owned firms

This paper studies how common institutional ownership (CIO) affects information diffusion in the stock market. My findings suggest that CIO can exacerbate the slow spread of information across firms. With over 50% of institutional investors holding concentrated stock portfolios, I infer a fundamental connection among firms with CIO. These firms exhibit cross-predictability in monthly stock returns, leading to a CIO-based peer momentum strategy that outperforms Ali and Hirshleifer's (2020) shared-analyst momentum strategy. This anomaly stems primarily from institutional investors with fewer stock holdings, who employ passive asset management characterized by lower portfolio turnover and more delegated investment.

ПЕРСПЕКТИВИ РЕФАКТОРИНГУ ОНТОЛОГІЙ

Existing ontologies are supplemented and expanded in scope, increasing their complexity. Over time, integration issues arise with adding new knowledge to an ontology and maintaining existing ones. The problem is exacerbated by the fact that ontologies typically incorporate knowledge from databases and annotated documents in natural language, significantly increasing the volume and complexity of ontologies. This paper focuses on processing and analyzing existing ontologies and applying specific refactoring methods to enhance ontology and improve the readability of presented knowledge for developers and users. The development of corresponding software and metrics is carried out to objectively demonstrate the effectiveness of refactoring methods. During the research process, a certain list of patterns was identified that can be used for ontology refactoring, and one of them was implemented – the "Property Raising" pattern – transferring a property to a superclass. As a result of testing, it was found that after applying this pattern, the volume of the original ontology data file decreased by 3-5%, provided that the subclass contained common properties that were passed to the superclass.

Group Ownership, Group Interests, and the Ethics of Cultural Exchange

AbstractIn this essay, we address an important problem in the ethics of cultural engagement: the problem of giving a systematic account of when and why outsider use of insider cultural material is permissible or impermissible. We argue that many scholars rely on a problematic notion of collective ownership even when they claim to be disavowing it. After making this case, we motivate an alternative framework for thinking about cultural exchange, which we call the core interests framework. We conclude with some reflections on how this framework helps to raise interesting questions about the most promising accounts of wrongful cultural appropriation.

The Limits of Individual Regulation of Marital Relations based on a Marriage Contract

The paper examines the qualifying features and elements of a marriage contract under the provisions of the Civil and Family Codes of the Russian Federation, as well as the specifics of legal regulation of relations arising in connection with its conclusion. The author critically investigates limitations of freedom of the marriage contract provided for by the mandatory norms of the Family Code of the Russian Federation and the definition of the marriage contract. The author justifies admissibility of determining the shares in the right to the common property of spouses or specific property belonging to them in the event of death or bankruptcy of one or both spouses. At the same time, special attention is paid to incompatibility of the marriage contract with involuntary creditors and creditors to whom its terms were not disclosed, as well as ex post control of the fairness of the terms of the marriage contract. According to the author, the regulatory potential of a marriage contract should not be limited mainly to the disposal of the spouses’ property belonging to them. The author brings up for discussion the possibility of using a marriage contract not only as an administrative, but also as an obligatory transaction, through which it is possible to regulate all property and personal non-property relations arising between spouses, including spouses with common children, in connection with marriage, in marriage and in the event of its termination. The paper highlights that a marriage contract may contain the terms of a corporate agreement defining the procedure for one of the spouses to exercise corporate rights. The author comes to the conclusion that it is necessary to develop dispositive (discretionary) principles regulating relations arising from a marriage contract and defining it as an agreement to family creation and functioning as a non-subjective entity, which would allow considering a marriage contract as a kind of a simple partnership agreement.

Out-of-equilibrium interactions and collective locomotion of colloidal spheres with squirming of nematoelastic multipoles

Many living and artificial systems show similar emergent behavior and collective motions on different scales, starting from swarms of bacteria to synthetic active particles, herds of mammals, and crowds of people. What all these systems often have in common is that new collective properties like flocking emerge from interactions between individual self-propelled or driven units. Such systems are naturally out-of-equilibrium and propel at the expense of consumed energy. Mimicking nature by making self-propelled or externally driven particles and studying their individual and collective motility may allow for deeper understanding of physical underpinnings behind collective motion of large groups of interacting objects or beings. Here, using a soft matter system of colloids immersed into a liquid crystal, we show that resulting so-called nematoelastic multipoles can be set into a bidirectional locomotion by external oscillating electric fields. Out-of-equilibrium elastic interactions between such colloidal objects lead to collective flock-like behaviors emerging from time-varying elasticity-mediated interactions between externally driven propelling particles. Repulsive elastic interactions in the equilibrium state can be turned into attractive interactions in the out-of-equilibrium state under applied external electric fields. We probe this behavior at different number densities of colloidal particles and show that particles in dense dispersions collectively select the same direction of a coherent motion due to elastic interactions between near neighbors. In our experimentally implemented design, their motion is highly ordered and without clustering or jamming often present in other colloidal transport systems, which is promising for technological and fundamental-science applications, like nano-cargo transport, out-of-equilibrium assembly, and microrobotics.