Manipulation in U.S. REIT Investment Performance Evaluation: Empirical Evidence

We investigate whether Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) managers actively manipulate performance measures in spite of the strict regulation under the REIT regime. We provide empirical evidence that is consistent with this hypothesis. Specifically, manipulation strategies may rely on the opportunistic use of leverage. However, manipulation does not appear to be uniform across REIT sectors and seems to become more common as the level of competition in the underlying property sector increases. We employ a set of commonly used traditional performance measures and a recently developed manipulation-proof measure (MPPM, Goetzmann, Ingersoll, Spiegel, and Welch (2007)) to evaluate the performance of 147 REITs from seven different property sectors over the period 1991-2009. Our findings suggest that the existing REIT regulation may fail to mitigate a substantial agency conflict and that investors can benefit from evaluating return information carefully in order to avoid potentially manipulative funds.

Namibia RSRC Activity Performance Evaluation: Component 1 Report

The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) contracted the Technology & Social Change group (TASCHA) at the University of Washington to conduct a performance evaluation of the Namibia Regional Study and Resource Centers (RSRC) Activity. This evaluation has been designed to serve the needs of two major stakeholders, MCC and the Namibia Library and Archives Service (NLAS). The evaluation comprises a set of quantitative and qualitative data collection efforts divided into two categories: Component 1 and Component 2. This report presents the findings for Component 1 only, focusing on evaluating the RSRC planning and implementation activities leading up to the end of the MCA-Namibia Compact in September 2014.

Mixing performance evaluation of additive manufactured milli-scale reactors

The mixing performance of three passive milli-scale reactors with different geometries was investigated at different Reynolds numbers. The effects of design and operating characteristics such as mixing channel shape and volume flow rate were investigated. The main objective of this work was to demonstrate a process design method that uses on Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) for modeling and Additive Manufacturing (AM) technology for manufacture. The reactors were designed and simulated using SolidWorks and Fluent 15.0 software, respectively. Manufacturing of the devices was performed with an EOS M-series AM system. Step response experiments with distilled Millipore water and sodium hydroxide solution provided time-dependent concentration profiles. Villermaux-Dushman reaction experiments were also conducted for additional verification of CFD results and for mixing efficiency evaluation of the different geometries. Time-dependent concentration data and reaction evaluation showed that the performance of the AM-manufactured reactors matched the CFD results reasonably well. The proposed design method allows the implementation of new and innovative solutions, especially in the process design phase, for industrial scale reactor technologies. In addition, rapid implementation is another advantage due to the virtual flow design and due to the fast manufacturing which uses the same geometric file formats.

Performance evaluation of DCA and SRC on a single bot detection

Malicious users try to compromise systems using new techniques. One of the recent techniques used by the attacker is to perform complex distributed attacks such as denial of service and to obtain sensitive data such as password information. These compromised machines are said to be infected with malicious software termed a “bot”. In this paper, we investigate the correlation of behavioural attributes such as keylogging and packet flooding behaviour to detect the existence of a single bot on a compromised machine by applying (1) Spearman’s rank correlation (SRC) algorithm and (2) the Dendritic Cell Algorithm (DCA). We also compare the output results generated from these two methods to the detection of a single bot. The results show that the DCA has a better performance in detecting malicious activities.

Long term performance evaluation of small-diameter vascular grafts based on polyvinyl alcohol hydrogel and dextran and MSCs-based therapies using the ovine pre-clinical animal model.

The functional and structural performance of a 5 cm synthetic small diameter vascular graft (SDVG) produced by the copolymerization of polyvinyl alcohol hydrogel with low molecular weight dextran (PVA/Dx graft) associated to mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs)-based therapies and anticoagulant treatment with heparin, clopidogrel and warfarin was tested using the ovine model during the healing period of 24 weeks. The results were compared to the ones obtained with standard expanded polyetetrafluoroethylene grafts (ePTFE graft). Blood flow, vessel and graft diameter measurements, graft appearance and patency rate (PR), thrombus, stenosis and collateral vessel formation were evaluated by B-mode ultrasound, audio and color flow Doppler. Graft and regenerated vessels morphologic evaluation was performed by scanning electronic microscopy (SEM), histopathological and immunohistochemical analysis. All PVA/Dx grafts could maintain a similar or higher PR and systolic / diastolic laminar blood flow velocities were similar to ePTFE grafts. CD14 (macrophages) and α-actin (smooth muscle) staining presented similar results in PVA/Dx/MSCs and ePTFE graft groups. Fibrosis layer was lower and endothelial cells were only detected at graft-artery transitions where it was added the MSCs. In conclusion, PVA/Dx graft can be an excellent scaffold candidate for vascular reconstruction, including clinic mechanically challenging applications, such as SDVGs, especially when associated to MSCs-based therapies to promote higher endothelialization and lower fibrosis of the vascular prosthesis, but also higher PR values.

Orthogonal chirp division multiplexing: performance evaluation in the presence of phase noise

In Beyond 5G technologies, Terahertz communications will be used: frequency bands between 100 GHz and 10 THz will be exploited in order to have higher throughput and lower latency. Those frequency bands suffer from several impairments, and it is thought that phase noise is one of the most significant. Orthogonal Chirp Division Multiplexing (OCDM) might be used in Beyond 5G communications, thanks to its robustness to multipath fading: it outperforms Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) systems. The aim of this thesis is to find a suitable model for describing phase noise in Terahertz communications, and to study the performance of an OCDM system affected by this impairment. After this, a simple compensation scheme is introduced, and the improvement that it provides is analysed. The thesis is organized as follow: in the first chapter Terahertz communications and Beyond 5G are introduced, in the second chapter phase noise is studied, in the third chapter OCDM is analysed, and in the fourth chapter numerical results are presented.

Numerical simulation of the flow and performance evaluation of an aerospike engine

The main focus of this work is to define a numerical methodology to simulate an aerospike engine and then to analyse the performance of DemoP1, which is a small aerospike demonstrator built by Pangea Aerospace. The aerospike is a promising solution to build more efficient engine than the actual one. Its main advantage is the expansion adaptation that allows to reach the optimal expansion in a wide range of ambient pressures delivering more thrust than an equivalent bell-shaped nozzle. The main drawbacks are the cooling system design and the spike manufacturing but nowadays, these issues seem to be overcome with the use of the additive manufacturing method. The simulations are performed with dbnsTurbFoam which is a solver of OpenFOAM. It has been designed to simulate a supersonic compressible turbulent flow. This work is divided in four chapters. The first one is a short introduction. The second one shows a brief summary of the theoretical performance of the aerospike. The third one introduces the numerical methodology to simulate a compressible supersonic flow. In the fourth chapter, the solver has been verified with an experiment found in literature. And in the fifth chapter, the simulations on DemoP1 engine are illustrated.

Prescription drug samples: Does this marketing strategy counteract policies for quality use of medicines?

Prescription drug samples, as used by the pharmaceutical industry to market their products, are of current interest because of their influence on prescribing, and their potential impact on consumer safety. Very little research has been conducted into the use and misuse of prescription drug samples, and the influence of samples on health policies designed to improve the rational use of medicines. This is a topical issue in the prescription drug debate, with increasing costs and increasing concerns about optimizing use of medicines. This manuscript critically evaluates the research that has been conducted to date about prescription drug samples, discusses the issues raised in the context of traditional marketing theory, and suggests possible alternatives for the future.

Regionalization strategy and performance: the moderating role of industry dynamism and top management team diversity

Purpose– This paper contributes to the debate about the performance implications of adopting a regional as opposed to a global strategic posture. The aim of this paper is to argue that the performance effects of a regionalization strategy vary based on the characteristics of the industry in which the MNE operates and the composition of its top management team (TMT). Design/methodology/approach– This analysis is based on a cross‐sectional dataset of 211 large European MNEs headquartered in four Western European economies at the end of 2005. Findings– Results show that firms adopting a regional orientation outperform MNEs with global strategic positioning. This positive relationship is less pronounced under conditions of industry dynamism and inter‐regional TMT diversity. Originality/value– The study contributes to our understanding of whether and under what conditions MNEs benefit from adopting a regional as opposed to a global strategic posture.

Evaluation of methods of detecting cell reactive oxygen species production for drug screening and cell cycle studies

Intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) production is essential to normal cell function. However, excessive ROS production causes oxidative damage and cell death. Many pharmacological compounds exert their effects on cell cycle progression by changing intracellular redox state and in many cases cause oxidative damage leading to drug cytotoxicity. Appropriate measurement of intracellular ROS levels during cell cycle progression is therefore crucial in understanding redox-regulation of cell function and drug toxicity and for the development of new drugs. However, due to the extremely short half-life of ROS, measuring the changes in intracellular ROS levels during a particular phase of cell cycle for drug intervention can be challenging. In this article, we have provided updated information on the rationale, the applications, the advantages and limitations of common methods for screening drug effects on intracellular ROS production linked to cell cycle study. Our aim is to facilitate biomedical scientists and researchers in the pharmaceutical industry in choosing or developing specific experimental regimens to suit their research needs.

Re-evaluation of central America drug market where to start?

Atral is a Portuguese Pharmaceutical firm devoted to the production of finished drugs. Due to domestic market hurdles, Atral is now, more than ever, focused in the world. The Central America region seams alluring due to its context alignment with firm’s resources bundle. As Atral should approach one regional country at a time, the purpose of this thesis is to find out the most suitable country to approach now. Hence a tailored scoring model was applied, based on contexts analysis and importance of benchmarking indicators to both firm and industry. Upon analysis of the highest scored country, the most appropriate entry modes were assessed.

Population pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics: An underutilized resource

A meeting was convened in Canberra, Australia, at the request of the Australian Drug Evaluation Committee (ADEC), on December 3-4, 1997 to discuss the role of population pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics in drug evaluation and development. The ADEC was particularly concerned about registration of drugs in the pediatric age group. The population approach could be used more often than is currently the case in pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic studies to provide valuable information for the safe and effective use of drugs in neonates, infants, and children. The meeting ultimately broadened to include discussion about other subgroups. The main conclusions of the meeting were: 1. The population approach, pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic analysis, is a valuable tool both for drug registration purposes and for optimal dosing of drugs in specific groups of patients, 2. Population pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic studies are able to fill in the gaps' in registration of drugs, for example, to provide information on optimal pediatric dosing. Such studies provide a basis for enhancing product information to improve rational prescribing, 3. Expertise is required to perform the population studies and expertise, with a clinical perspective, is also required to evaluate such studies if they are to be submitted as part of a drug registration dossier Such expertise is available in the Australasian region and is increasing. Centers of excellence with the appropriate expertise to advise and assist should be encouraged to develop and grow in the region, 4. The use of the population approach by the pharmaceutical industry needs to be encouraged to provide valuable information not obtainable by other techniques. The acceptance of population pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic analyses by regulatory agencies also needs to be encouraged, and 5. Development of the population approach to pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics is needed from a public health perspective to ensure that all available information is collected and used to improve the way drugs are used. This important endeavor needs funding and support at the local and international levels.

Aplicação dos princípios da manutenção Lean na indústria farmacêutica

Trabalho Final de Mestrado para obtenção do grau de Mestre em Engenharia Mecânica