ABSTRACT
We examine how investment professionals assess the usefulness of financial accounting information depending on their information acquisition objectives and preparers' earnings management ...incentives. We conduct a survey experiment based on face-to-face interviews with investment professionals and document two main results. First, we find that, compared with investment professionals assigned a firm valuation objective, those assigned a managerial performance evaluation objective assess accounting information as significantly less useful. Second, we find no systematic evidence that preparers' earnings management incentives negatively affect investment professionals' assessments of accounting information usefulness. To elucidate this second finding, we conduct a large-scale follow-up online experiment. Our results continue to offer no support for the effect of earnings management incentives on investment professionals' assessments of accounting information usefulness, irrespective of preparers' corporate governance quality. Instead, we find that poor corporate governance, by itself, reduces the usefulness of accounting information to investment professionals.
JEL Classifications: G15; G18; G38; M41; M48.
Interface engineering of organic–inorganic halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) plays a pivotal role in achieving high power conversion efficiency (PCE). In fact, the perovskite photoactive layer ...needs to work synergistically with the other functional components of the cell, such as charge transporting/active buffer layers and electrodes. In this context, graphene and related two-dimensional materials (GRMs) are promising candidates to tune “on demand” the interface properties of PSCs. In this work, we fully exploit the potential of GRMs by controlling the optoelectronic properties of molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) and reduced graphene oxide (RGO) hybrids both as hole transport layer (HTL) and active buffer layer (ABL) in mesoscopic methylammonium lead iodide (CH3NH3PbI3) perovskite (MAPbI3)-based PSCs. We show that zero-dimensional MoS2 quantum dots (MoS2 QDs), derived by liquid phase exfoliated MoS2 flakes, provide both hole-extraction and electron-blocking properties. In fact, on one hand, intrinsic n-type doping-induced intraband gap states effectively extract the holes through an electron injection mechanism. On the other hand, quantum confinement effects increase the optical band gap of MoS2 (from 1.4 eV for the flakes to >3.2 eV for QDs), raising the minimum energy of its conduction band (from −4.3 eV for the flakes to −2.2 eV for QDs) above the one of the conduction band of MAPbI3 (between −3.7 and −4 eV) and hindering electron collection. The van der Waals hybridization of MoS2 QDs with functionalized reduced graphene oxide (f-RGO), obtained by chemical silanization-induced linkage between RGO and (3-mercaptopropyl)trimethoxysilane, is effective to homogenize the deposition of HTLs or ABLs onto the perovskite film, since the two-dimensional nature of RGO effectively plugs the pinholes of the MoS2 QD films. Our “graphene interface engineering” (GIE) strategy based on van der Waals MoS2 QD/graphene hybrids enables MAPbI3-based PSCs to achieve a PCE up to 20.12% (average PCE of 18.8%). The possibility to combine quantum and chemical effects into GIE, coupled with the recent success of graphene and GRMs as interfacial layer, represents a promising approach for the development of next-generation PSCs.
Grounded in the agency, socioemotional wealth and resource dependence theories, we study how debt decisions are influenced by family control and how such relationship is moderated by an internal ...corporate governance mechanism, the quality of the board of directors. Our results show that family‐controlled firms use more leverage at lower levels of family ownership to retain family control over the business, but once their socioemotional wealth is fulfilled at higher levels of ownership, they decrease leverage in pursuit of conservative financing policies. These actions are found to be moderated by board quality (i.e., experience and expertise) and female directors (predominantly independent).
A global mass market adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) is still hindered by the high costs of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). Repurposing degraded EV batteries in second use applications holds the ...potential to reduce first-cost impediments of EVs. New business models are emerging rapidly within the EV and battery second use (B2U) industries but they focus on economic aspects without integrating social and environmental dimensions. Simultaneously, the emerging research topic around sustainable business models (SBMs) seem to be able to bridge the environmental management concerns in conjunction with economic and social changes. This paper addresses this paucity in the literature by offering an interdisciplinary approach by drawing upon key perspectives from the emerging sustainable technology of EVs and its underlying B2U market in relation to SBMs. Findings reveal major contributions to theorists and practitioners. B2U holds the potential to facilitate current unsustainable practices in the EV industry. This in turn, will lead towards a faster EV market uptake and improvements of overall sustainability performance through SBM perspectives. Accordingly, a B2U business model framework is conceptualised that embodies the cross-sector multi-stakeholder impact and the shared value creation mechanism for the EV industry and emerging B2U market. We finally conclude that as such B2U holds the potential to prove itself to be a viable and efficient case for sustainability. This can be implemented by taking a multi-stakeholder network centric business model design compared to traditionally firm-centric models, which ultimately refreshes the traditional business models on sustainability.
•SBMs for EV B2U will solve current unsustainable practices in the EV industry.•B2U leads to innovative multi-stakeholder cross-sector relationships as part of SBMs.•B2U is a shared sustainable value creation mechanism for the EV industry.•B2U slows resource loops as part innovative business models for sustainability.
Hepatitis E and pregnancy: current state Pérez‐Gracia, María Teresa; Suay‐García, Beatriz; Mateos‐Lindemann, María Luisa
Reviews in medical virology,
20/May , Letnik:
27, Številka:
3
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Summary
Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is responsible for more than 50% of acute viral hepatitis cases in endemic countries. Approximately 2 billion individuals live in hepatitis E–endemic areas and, ...therefore, are at risk of infection. According to World Health Organization, HEV causes about 20.1 million infections and 70 000 deaths every year. In developing countries with poor sanitation, this disease is transmitted through contaminated water and is associated with large outbreaks, affecting hundreds or thousands of people. In developed countries, autochthonous cases of HEV have been increasingly recognized in the past several years.
Hepatitis E virus typically causes an acute, self‐limiting illness similar to other acute viral hepatitis, such as hepatitis A or B, with about 0.2% to 1% mortality rate in the general population. However, the course of hepatitis E in pregnancy is different than the mild self‐constraining infection described in other populations. During pregnancy, HEV infection can take a fulminant course, resulting in fulminant hepatic failure, membrane rupture, spontaneous abortions, and stillbirths. Studies from various developing countries have shown a high incidence of HEV infection in pregnancy with a significant proportion of pregnant women progressing to fulminant hepatitis with a fatality rate of up to 30%.
The present review will highlight new aspects of the HEV infection and pregnancy.
Osteoporosis is a common chronic disease characterized by a decrease in bone mineral density, impaired bone strength, and an increased risk of fragility fractures. Fragility fractures are associated ...with significant morbidity, mortality and disability and are a major public health problem worldwide. The influence of nutritional factors on the development and progression of this disease can be significant and is not yet well established. Calcium intake and vitamin D status are considered to be essential for bone metabolism homeostasis. However, some recent studies have questioned the usefulness of calcium and vitamin D supplements in decreasing the risk of fractures. The adequate intake of protein, vegetables and other nutrients is also of interest, and recommendations have been established by expert consensus and clinical practice guidelines. It is important to understand the influence of nutrients not only in isolation but also in the context of a dietary pattern, which is a complex mixture of nutrients. In this review, we evaluate the available scientific evidence for the effects of the main dietary patterns on bone health. Although some dietary patterns seem to have beneficial effects, more studies are needed to fully elucidate the true influence of diet on bone fragility.
Gasdermin D forms large, ~21 nm diameter pores in the plasma membrane to drive the cell death program pyroptosis. These pores are thought to be permanently open, and the resultant osmotic imbalance ...is thought to be highly damaging. Yet some cells mitigate and survive pore formation, suggesting an undiscovered layer of regulation over the function of these pores. However, no methods exist to directly reveal these mechanistic details. Here, we combine optogenetic tools, live cell fluorescence biosensing, and electrophysiology to demonstrate that gasdermin pores display phosphoinositide-dependent dynamics. We quantify repeated and fast opening-closing of these pores on the tens of seconds timescale, visualize the dynamic pore geometry, and identify the signaling that controls dynamic pore activity. The identification of this circuit allows pharmacological tuning of pyroptosis and control of inflammatory cytokine release by living cells.
In the past few years, several protocols have been reported on the synthesis of CdSe nanoplatelets with narrow photoluminescence (PL) spectrum, high PL quantum efficiency, and short exciton lifetime. ...The corresponding core/shell nanoplatelets are however still mostly based on CdSe/CdS, which possess an extended lifetime and a strong red shift of the band-edge absorption and emission, in accordance with a quasi-type-II band alignment. Here we report on a robust synthesis procedure to grow a ZnS shell around CdSe nanoplatelets at moderate temperatures of 100–150 °C, to improve the optical properties of CdSe nanoplatelets via a type-I core/shell heterostructure. The shell growth is performed under ambient atmosphere, in either toluene or 1,2-dichlorobenzene. The variation of the shell thickness induces a continuous red shift of the PL peak, eventually reaching 611 nm. The PL quantum efficiency is increased compared to the original CdSe cores, with values up to 60% depending on the shell thickness. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy reveals a bending of the nanoplatelets caused by strain due to 12% lattice mismatch between CdSe and ZnS. The present procedure can easily be translated to other core/shell nanocrystals, such as CdSe/CdS and CdSe/CdZnS nanoplatelets.
In this work, we demonstrate the successful application of two-dimensional (2D) materials, i.e., graphene and functionalized MoS2, in perovskite solar cells (PSCs) by interface engineering the ...standard mesoscopic n–i–p structure. The use of 2D materials has the dual role to improve both the stability and the overall power conversion efficiency (PCE) of the PSCs compared to standard devices. The application of 2D materials is successfully extended to large-area perovskite solar modules (PSMs), achieving PCEs of 13.4% and 15.3% on active areas of 108 cm2 and 82 cm2, respectively. This performance results in record-high active area-indexed aperture PCE (AIAPCE) of 1266.5% cm2. In addition, the 2D materials-based PSMs show a stability under a prolonged (>1000 h) thermal stress test at 65 °C (ISOS-D2), representing a crucial advancement in the exploitation of perovskite photovoltaic technology.
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