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Maturity
Kinds of Maturity Terms modified by Maturity Selected AbstractsOIL POLYMERISATION AND FLUID EXPULSION FROM LOW TEMPERATURE, LOW MATURITY, OVERPRESSURED SEDIMENTSJOURNAL OF PETROLEUM GEOLOGY, Issue 3 2008D. D. J. Antia A mechanism for hydrocarbon expulsion from low temperature (T = <20 , 150° C), low maturity (Ro=<0.6), overpressured sediments (clays, shales and enclosed sands) with active hydrocarbon concentration and/or generation is outlined. Low temperature polymerisation of light hydrocarbons (e.g. biogenic methane) is considered to be a potential source for some oils found in association with hydrates (resulting from fluidisation discharges from overpressured zones), and some oils found in shales displaying suppression of vitrinite reflectance. It is observed that low temperature polymerisation will increase the potential pressure load retained within an overpressured zone and increase the overall volume of gas/fluids discharged on pressure release. Field observations, including measured recharge volumes and the fluid discharge volumes through a chimney from an overpressured zone, have been used to produce a triple porosity, poroelastic fluidisation expulsion model which links the discharge volume to pressure loading. The model predicts that expulsion from an active pressure mound will be cyclic and episodic. Published geochemical results from seismic chimneys in the Lower Congo Basin have been reinterpreted using the model to demonstrate that expulsion through a chimney is episodic, and to identify overpressured zones where the dominant fluid is oil and others where the overpressured zone contains both oil and gas. It is suggested that some of the oil in these overpressured zones, currently interpreted as thermogenic, may be derived from the polymerisation of biogenic gas. [source] OILS FROM CENOZOIC RIFT-BASINS IN CENTRAL AND NORTHERN THAILAND: SOURCE AND THERMAL MATURITYJOURNAL OF PETROLEUM GEOLOGY, Issue 1 2007H.I. Petersen Oil is produced from the Suphan Buri, Phitsanulok and Fang Basins onshore central and northern Thailand. Most of the Cenozoic rift-basins onshore Thailand are 2,4 km deep, but the Phitsanulok Basin is the deepest with a basin-fill up to 8 km thick. In this basin, the Sirikit field produces ,18,000,24,000 bbl/day of crude oil. In the Suphan Buri Basin, about 400 bbl/day of crude oil is produced from the U Thong and Sang Kajai fields. Approximately 800 bbl/day of crude oil is produced from the Fang field (Fang Basin), which in reality consists of a number of minor structures including Ban Thi, Pong Nok, San Sai, Nong Yao and Mae Soon. A total of eight oil samples were collected from these structures and from the Sirikit, U Thong and Sang Kajai fields. The oils were subjected to MPLC and HPLC separation and were analysed by gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS and GC-MS-MS). The U Thong oil was investigated in more detail by separating the oil into a number of fractions suited for the analysis of various specific compounds. The Sirikit oil appears to be the most mature, whereas the Suphan Buri oils and the oil from the San Sai structure (Fang Basin) are the least mature. Apart from the San Sai oil, the other oils in the Fang Basin are of similar maturity. The oils contain small amounts of asphaltenes and the asphaltene-free fractions are completely dominated by saturated hydrocarbons (generally >60%). Long-chain n-alkanes extend to at least C40 and the oils are thus highly waxy. In general the oils were generated from freshwater lacustrine source rocks containing a large proportion of algal material, as indicated by the presence of long-chain n-alkanes, low C3122R/C30 hopane ratios, the presence of 28-Nor-spergulane, T26/T25 (tricyclic triterpanes) ratios of 1.07,1.57 and tetracyclic polyprenoid (TTP) ratios close to 1. Occasional saline conditions may have occurred during deposition of the Sirikit, Ban Thi and Pong Nok source rocks. The Fang Basin oils were sourced from two different kitchens, one feeding the Ban Thi and Pong Nok structures and one feeding the Mae Soon, Nong Yao and San Sai structures. The presence ofcadalene, tetracyclic C24 compounds, oleanane, lupane, bicadinane and trace amounts ofnorpimarane or norisopimarane indicate a contribution from higher land plant organic matter to the oils. The terrestrial organic matter may occur disseminated in the lacustrine facies or concentrated in coal seams associated with the lacustrine mudstones. Thermally immature oil shales (lacustrine mudstones) and coals exposed in numerous basins in central and northern Thailand could upon maturation generate oils with a composition comparable to the investigated oils. [source] PETROLEUM POTENTIAL, THERMAL MATURITY AND THE OIL WINDOW OF OIL SHALES AND COALS IN CENOZOIC RIFT BASINS, CENTRAL AND NORTHERN THAILANDJOURNAL OF PETROLEUM GEOLOGY, Issue 4 2006H. I. Petersen Oil shales and coals occur in Cenozoic rift basins in central and northern Thailand. Thermally immature outcrops of these rocks may constitute analogues for source rocks which have generated oil in several of these rift basins. A total of 56 oil shale and coal samples were collected from eight different basins and analysed in detail in this study. The samples were analysed for their content of total organic carbon (TOC) and elemental composition. Source rock quality was determined by Rock-Eval pyrolysis. Reflected light microscopy was used to analyse the organic matter (maceral) composition of the rocks, and the thermal maturity was determined by vitrinite reflectance (VR) measurements. In addition to the 56 samples, VR measurements were carried out in three wells from two oil-producing basins and VR gradients were constructed. Rock-Eval screening data from one of the wells is also presented. The oil shales were deposited in freshwater (to brackish) lakes with a high preservation potential (TOC contents up to 44.18 wt%). They contain abundant lamalginite and principally algal-derived fluorescing amorphous organic matter followed by liptodetrinite and telalginite (Botryococcus-type). Huminite may be present in subordinate amounts. The coals are completely dominated by huminite and were formed in freshwater mires. VR values from 0.38 to 0.47%Ro show that the exposed coals are thermally immature. VR values from the associated oil shales are suppressed by 0.11 to 0.28%Ro. The oil shales have H/C ratios >1.43, and Hydrogen Index (HI) values are generally >400 mg HC/g TOC and may reach 704 mg HC/ gTOC. In general, the coals have H/C ratios between about 0.80 and 0.90, and the HI values vary considerably from approximately 50 to 300 mg HC/gTOC. The HImax of the coals, which represent the true source rock potential, range from ,160 to 310 mg HC/g TOC indicating a potential for oil/gas and oil generation. The steep VR curves from the oil-producing basins reflect high geothermal gradients of ,62°C/km and ,92°C/km. The depth to the top oil window for the oil shales at a VR of ,0.70%Ro is determined to be between ,1100 m and 1800 m depending on the geothermal gradient. The kerogen composition of the oil shales and the high geothermal gradients result in narrow oil windows, possibly spanning only ,300 to 400 m in the warmest basins. The effective oil window of the coals is estimated to start from ,0.82 to 0.98%Ro and burial depths of ,1300 to 1400 m (,92°C/km) and ,2100 to 2300 m (,62°C/km) are necessary for efficient oil expulsion to occur. [source] CRITICAL PRICE NEAR MATURITY FOR AN AMERICAN OPTION ON A DIVIDEND-PAYING STOCK IN A LOCAL VOLATILITY MODELMATHEMATICAL FINANCE, Issue 3 2005Etienne ChevalierArticle first published online: 10 JUN 200 We consider an American put option on a dividend-paying stock whose volatility is a function of the stock value. Near the maturity of this option, an expansion of the critical stock price is given. If the stock dividend rate is greater than the market interest rate, the payoff function is smooth near the limit of the critical price. We deduce an expansion of the critical price near maturity from an expansion of the value function of an optimal stopping problem. It turns out that the behavior of the critical price is parabolic. In the other case, we are in a less regular situation and an extra logarithmic factor appears. To prove this result, we show that the American and European critical prices have the same first-order behavior near maturity. Finally, in order to get an expansion of the European critical price, we use a parity formula for exchanging the strike price and the spot price in the value functions of European puts. [source] BURIAL HISTORY RECONSTRUCTION AND THERMAL MODELLING AT KUH-E MOND, SW IRANJOURNAL OF PETROLEUM GEOLOGY, Issue 4 2003M. R. Kamali At the Kuh-e Mond anticline (Fars Province, SW Iran) and in nearby offshore structures, large volumes of natural gas are reservoired in the Permian , Early Triassic Dehram Group while heavy oil has been discovered in the Cretaceous Sarvak and Eocene Jahrum Formations. In this paper, we use data from six exploration wells and from nearby surface exposures to reconstruct the burial history at Kuh-e Mond. Regional observations show that the thick sedimentary fill in this part of the Zagros Basin was subjected to intense tectonism during the Zagros Orogeny, with a paroxysmal phase during the late Miocene and Pliocene. Thermal modelling and geochemical data from Kuh-e Mond and adjacent fields allows possible hydrocarbon generation and migration mechanisms to be identified. Maturities predicted using Lopatin's TTI model are in accordance with maturities obtained from vitrinite reflectance measurements. We show that formations which have source potential in the nearby Dezful Embayment (including the Pabdeh, Gurpi, Gadvan and Kazhdumi Formations) have not reached the oil window in the Mond wells. Moreover, their organic carbon content is very low as they were deposited in oxic, shallow-water settings. Underlying units (including the Ordovician and Cambrian) could have reached the gas window but contain little organic matter. Silurian shales (Sarchahan Formation), which generate gas at Kuh-e Gahkum and Kuh-e Faraghan (north of Bandar Abbas) and in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere in the Middle East, are absent from the Mond structure. The absence of source rocks suggests that the gas and heavy oil accumulations at Kuh-e Mond and at nearby fields have most probably undergone long-distance lateral migration from distant source kitchens. [source] Technological Maturity and Development without Research: The Challenge for Malaysian ManufacturingDEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE, Issue 2 2000Suresh Narayanan Propelled largely by direct investment via multinationals, Malaysia's manufacturing sector has grown rapidly and is changing its output-mix. In 1992, the share of high-tech products in Malaysian manufacturing exceeded that of Japan, Korea or Taiwan. However, this ,maturity' was acquired without a strong research base. This article provides a framework which looks at the role of research and development (R&D) in conferring technological maturity and assesses the progress Malaysian manufacturing has made in this regard. The authors find that while multinationals have transferred many aspects of production, they have been slow in transferring R&D expertise. Neither has indigenous innovation filled this gap. Consequently, the long-term sustainability of the industrial transformation process in Malaysia is in jeopardy. The article concludes with suggestions for corrective policies. [source] Influences of postconceptional age and postnatal experience on the development of auditory recognition memory in the newborn infantDEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOBIOLOGY, Issue 3 2002Raye-Ann deRegnier Abstract We evaluated the effects of postconceptional age and postnatal experience on the development of neonatal auditory recognition memory. Three groups were tested: a premature newborn group (tested at 35,38 weeks postconceptional age, ,1 week old), a full-term newborn group (tested at 39,42 weeks postconceptional age, ,1 week old), and a full-term experienced group (tested at 39,42 weeks postconceptional age, >1 week old; range 8,30 days). Event-related potentials were collected while infants listened to the maternal voice alternating with a stranger's voice. Postconceptional age was correlated with the development of recognition memory for the maternal voice while there were qualitative effects of postnatal experience on latency measurements. Maturity of auditory cortical responses was not correlated with recognition memory abilities. We conclude that maturation of the recognition memory pathways is primarily a function of postconceptional age with qualitative effects of postnatal experience. Maturation of the auditory recognition memory pathway is not contingent upon maturation of the "P2" peak thought to arise from primary auditory cortex. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Dev Psychobiol 41: 216,225, 2002. Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/dev.10070 [source] The Original Maturity of Corporate Bonds: The Influence of Credit Rating, Asset Maturity, Security, and Macroeconomic ConditionsFINANCIAL REVIEW, Issue 2 2006Geetanjali Bali G24 Abstract We examine the determinants of the new issue maturity of corporate bonds. As credit rating decreases, new bond issues have longer maturities, but substantial variation in maturity within each rating class remains. We seek to explain the variation of new issue maturity within credit classes. We find that asset maturity, security covenants, and macroeconomic conditions influence the new issue maturity of bonds within rating categories. [source] Caring in nursing: a different interpretationJOURNAL OF ADVANCED NURSING, Issue 6 2001Jane Sumner PhD MN RNC Caring in nursing: a different interpretation Aim.,To apply Habermas' (1995) Theory of Moral Consciousness and Communicative Action to the nurse,patient relationship, offering a different interpretation to the nurse,patient relationship that is caring in nursing. Rationale.,Many authors have described the nurse,patient relationship, but Habermas' theory synthesizes the components into a complex matrix that is caring in nursing. Findings.,The theory offers three claims to normative validity: the claim to truth which is the factual objective knowledge; the claim to truthfulness which refers to the intrasubjective self; and the claim to right which is the intersubjective interaction. The validity claims explain the patient's personal and illness self, the nurse's personal and professional self, and the interaction/discourse. The interaction is situation specific, and is identified as moral because dialogue/discourse requires a ,considerateness' of each for the other. ,Considerateness' in discourse requires certain rules, including that each participant has an equal voice, be followed in order for the Principle of Universalization to occur. Habermas draws on Kohlberg's (1981), and Selman's (1980) work to develop three levels of moral maturity of communication. These are preconventional, conventional, and postconventional. Initial moral maturity is egocentric, subjective, and obedient to authority. Maturity develops with recognition of other and reciprocity. At the postconventional level there is mutuality and the ability for abstract reasoning. There is a third person objectivity combining speaker and addressee/listener perspectives. Norms are not just accepted, they are reasoned through. This leads to justification of the norm, which is then accepted as valid. When the three validity claims are met and there is genuine ,considerateness' in the interaction there is communicative action. The reverse is strategic action, where the communication is coercive. When there is communicative action both patient and nurse are validated with a sense of fulfillment or Ovary development in Greenland halibut Reinhardtius hippoglossoides in west Greenland watersJOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY, Issue 5 2005C. S. Simonsen Maturity in adult female Greenland halibut Reinhardtius hippoglossoides was studied in three areas in west Greenland waters: the inshore area in Disko Bay and two offshore areas, Baffin Bay and Davis Strait. The aim was to monitor maturity changes in the inshore fjords of Disko Bay over an extended period from winter to autumn and compare these findings with specimens from Baffin Bay and the presumed spawning area in Davis Strait. A significant difference in maturity level was observed in and between the three areas. In Disko Bay maturity indices increased significantly in August and September both with respect to the gonado-somatic index (IG) and the size in the leading oocyte cohort. In the period February to May no significant changes were observed. Mature ovaries were only observed among fish >80 cm total length and only among a fraction of these large fish. Offshore areas of Baffin Bay, even though poorly sampled, showed similar signs in the maturity indices as in Disko Bay. Relative to Disko Bay and Baffin Bay, female fish in Davis Strait had more progressed maturity indices. Furthermore, almost all fish in Davis Strait showed signs of progressed maturity contrary to Disko and Baffin Bay. A large proportion of the Greenland halibut in Disko and Baffin Bay apparently did not begin the maturation cycle until very late in their life history or were repeat spawners with a multi-year maturation cycle. These observations could thus support the hypothesis that Greenland halibut have a prolonged adolescent phase. Atresia was highest in the early phases of maturation in Greenland halibut but relatively high levels of atresia were also observed in fish in more advanced maturity phase. The first was ascribed to fecundity regulation while the latter could be linked to the fish's fitness condition but it was not possible to show this with the available condition index. [source] Assessment of Skeletal Maturity and Prediction of Adult Height (TW3 Method)JOURNAL OF MEDICAL IMAGING AND RADIATION ONCOLOGY, Issue 3 2003Lloyd L Morris No abstract is available for this article. [source] Assessment Of Skeletal Maturity And Prediction Of Adult HeightJOURNAL OF PAEDIATRICS AND CHILD HEALTH, Issue 4 2003RL Teele No abstract is available for this article. [source] Personality Development From Late Adolescence to Young Adulthood: Differential Stability, Normative Maturity, and Evidence for the Maturity-Stability HypothesisJOURNAL OF PERSONALITY, Issue 2 2007M. Brent Donnellan ABSTRACT This investigation examined personality development during the transition from adolescence to adulthood using the brief form of the Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire (Patrick, Curtin, & Tellegen, 2002). Parent and self-reports of personality were obtained in 1994 (average age=17.60 years), and self-reports were obtained in 2003 (average age=27.24 years). There was evidence of both differential stability and normative changes in the direction of increased functional maturity during this transition. Moreover, adolescents with more mature personalities in 1994 tended to show fewer personality changes from 1994 to 2003. These maturity-stability effects held when parent reports were used to assess personality. All told, there was evidence of both stability and change in personality during the transition to adulthood. [source] STEINDL ON IMPERFECT COMPETITION: THE ROLE OF TECHNICAL CHANGEMETROECONOMICA, Issue 3 2006Article first published online: 24 JUL 200, Harry Bloch ABSTRACT Josef Steindl offers an innovative dynamic analysis of competition in Maturity and Stagnation in American Capitalism, with a key role for technical change. However, in his later writings he suggests that he had not gone far enough and that his account was not ,sufficiently dynamic', noting particularly his neglect of fundamental issues in technological development. Here, we critically examine the nature of technical change in Steindl's analysis, pointing to ambiguities and contradictions that arise. Standard characterizations of the nature of technical change are then introduced and used to further integrate technical change into Steindl's analysis of competition. [source] Maturity and adherence in adolescent and young adult heart recipientsPEDIATRIC TRANSPLANTATION, Issue 3 2006Carol S. Stilley Abstract: Background: Pediatric transplant (txp) teams note high rates of non-adherence and risky behaviors linked to morbidity and mortality among adolescent and young adult recipients. Clinicians and parents alike report symptoms of social immaturity and failure to appreciate consequences of risky behavior; relationships between the two have not been studied in this population. Method: This two-phase mixed method study examined adherence, high-risk behaviors, and maturity in a sample of 27 heart recipients, aged 15,31, who underwent transplantation in childhood or adolescence at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. All subjects completed a projective ego development measure and a questionnaire about adherence to the post-txp regimen. Nine recipients, purposely selected for good or poor adherence according to criteria determined by the transplant team and matched on age, participated in phase 2 qualitative interviews and mood assessments. Results: Sixty-three percent of the phase 1 sample missed medications, 67% missed appointments, 11% smoked, 37% had difficulty with diet, 89% exercised infrequently, 33% had tattoos, 26% had more than two body piercings, and 11% used street drugs. Six themes and a core construct of maturity were identified with qualitative methodology. Poor adherers were less mature on every theme and consistently scored at a less mature level on the projective measure of ego development. Chronological age was not related to the level of maturity in qualitative or projective data. Most interview subjects reported high levels of anxiety, and two reported clinically significant levels of depression and anger; mood was not related to adherence. Conclusions: Non-adherence and high-risk behaviors are prevalent among adolescent and young adult heart recipients. Level of maturity appears to be associated with ability to adhere to the treatment regimen and avoid high-risk behaviors. [source] Activity of nitric oxide synthase in mature and immature human spermatozoaANDROLOGIA, Issue 2 2010C. Roessner Summary Nitric oxide (NO) is known to be involved in multiple signal transduction pathways of male germ cells, including sperm capacitation. In somatic cells, NO production was found to be part of apoptosis signalling. The aim of our study was to further clarify the role of NO in spermatozoa by investigation of NO synthase activity with regard to sperm maturity and sperm apoptosis signalling. Semen specimens from 19 healthy donors were subjected to density gradient centrifugation to separate the predominantly mature and immature sperm fraction. NO synthase activity was evaluated using diaminofluoresceine-2-diacetate by FACS. Apoptosis signalling was monitored by flowcytometric analyses of caspase-3 (CP3) and integrity of the transmembrane mitochondrial potential (TMP). TUNEL assay was used to detect DNA fragmentations. Maturity of human spermatozoa was associated with increased NO synthase activity and inactivated apoptosis signalling (lower levels of disrupted TMP, active CP3 and DNA fragmentations, P < 0.05). Activation of apoptosis signalling was significantly negatively correlated to NO production, indicating a rather anti-apoptotic effect of NO. This might underline the recently proposed role of NO in physiological sperm signal transduction, e.g. during capacitation. [source] Applicability of Carbazole Migration Indices in Continental Rift Basins: A Case Study of Western Lujiapu Depression in Kailu Basin, NE ChinaACTA GEOLOGICA SINICA (ENGLISH EDITION), Issue 3 2010Shuqing ZHOU Abstract: Kailu Basin in which the Western Lujiapu Depression is located is a typical continental rift basin. Biomarker parameters of the oils indicate that depositional facies and environments vary between the Bao 1 and Bao 14 fault blocks with a higher saline environment in the Bao 1 fault block, but such difference has no significant impact on carbazole abundance and distribution. Maturity and migration distance are the main controls on carbazole abundance and distribution in the Western Lujiapu Depression. The commonly used migration indices, such as ratios of nitrogen shield isomers to nitrogen exposed isomers (1-/4-methylcarbazole ratio, 1,8-/2,4-dimethylcarbazole (DMC) ratio and half-shield/exposed-DMC ratio), absolute concentrations of alkylated carbazoles and BC ratio (= benzo [a]carbazole/ (benzo[a]carbazole + benzo[c]carbazole)) increase at the low mature range and decrease at a higher mature range with increasing maturity. At relatively low maturity stage (Rc<0.77%), maturation has reversal effects with migration on the ratios of nitrogen shield isomers to nitrogen exposed isomers, which may cover migration influence and makes these parameters fail to indicate migration effects. Valid migration indicators at this maturity stage are concentrations of alkylated carbazoles and BC ratios, which can provide ideal tools for migration direction assessment even within short migration distance. Maturity effects should be taken into account when carbazole compounds are applied to indicate migration direction, and at different maturity stages, these commonly used parameters have different validity in tracing migration direction. Coupled with our previous study in the Eastern Lujiapu Depression, a conceptual model of the variation of nitrogen migration indices can be established for terrestrial rifted basins, that is, strong fractionation lateral migration model through sandy beds, weak fractionation vertical migration model along faults, and maturity impacts on migration assessment. [source] Effect of Hormone Replacement Therapy on Bone Quality in Early Postmenopausal WomenJOURNAL OF BONE AND MINERAL RESEARCH, Issue 6 2003Ep Paschalis PhD Abstract HRT is an effective prophylaxis against postmenopausal bone loss. Infrared imaging of paired iliac crest biopsies obtained at baseline and after 2 years of HRT therapy demonstrate an effect on the mineral crystallinity and collagen cross-links that may affect bone quality. Several studies have demonstrated that hormonal replacement therapy (HRT) is an effective prophylaxis against postmenopausal bone loss, although the underlying mechanisms are still debated. Infrared spectroscopy has been used previously for analyzing bone mineral crystallinity and three-dimensional structures of collagen and other proteins. In the present study, the technique of Fourier transform infrared microscopic imaging (FTIRI) was used to investigate the effect of estrogen on bone quality (arbitrarily defined as mineral/matrix ratio, mineral crystallinity/maturity, and relative ratio of collagen cross-links [pyridinoline/deH-DHLNL]) at the ultrastructural level, in mineralized, thin tissue sections from double (before and after administration of HRT regimen; cyclic estrogen and progestogen [norethisterone acetate]) iliac crest biopsy specimens from 10 healthy, early postmenopausal women who were not on any medication with known influence on calcium metabolism. FTIRI allows the analysis of undemineralized thin tissue sections (each image analyzes a 400 × 400 ,m2 area with a spatial resolution of ,6.3 mm). For each bone quality variable considered, the after-treatment data exhibited an increase in the mean value, signifying definite changes in bone properties at the molecular level after HRT treatment. Furthermore, these findings are consistent with suppressed osteoclastic activity. [source] Assessing quality in community pharmacyINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PHARMACY PRACTICE, Issue 3 2008Mrs. Devina Halsall PhD student Objective This review aimed to identify English-language instruments used to assess quality in community pharmacy and to evaluate their reported validity, reliability, feasibility and acceptability. Method A systematic review was conducted to identify literature relating to the use of instruments to assess quality in community pharmacy. The electronic databases searched included Embase, International Pharmaceutical Abstracts, Medline, e-PIC and Pharmline, covering the period of time between January 1990 and March 2007. Reference lists of identified studies and websites of pharmacy bodies were also searched. Key findings Ten instruments were identified from Canada, Malta, the UK and the US. These were used for quality-assurance and/or quality-improvement purposes and focused on: clinical governance systems; organisational culture/maturity; safety (climate and systems); effectiveness of pharmacy services; and stakeholders' feedback on services. The assessments were at different stages of development, and the majority had not been tested for construct validity, reliability and feasibility. Conclusions Assessments with high validity and reliability give a good indication of the quality of care provided and can indicate areas for improvement. Further research is needed to establish a composite view of quality in community pharmacy; and many of the instruments identified required validation. [source] Risk-Based Capital and Credit Insurance PortfoliosFINANCIAL MARKETS, INSTITUTIONS & INSTRUMENTS, Issue 1 2010Van Son Lai This paper analyzes the risk-management practices of a vulnerable credit insurer by studying the effects of time-varying correlations, asset risks and loan maturities on the risk-based capital that backs credit insurance portfolios. Since asset correlations may change over a business cycle, we have analyzed these effects by means of a one-factor Gaussian stochastic model as part of an extended contingent claims analysis. Our results show the need to account for cyclical changes to correlations in the pricing of credit insurance. When compared with the reserve of risk-based capital recommended by the Basel II Internal Ratings-Based (IRB) approach, our model provides a better capital buffer against extreme credit losses, especially in times of recession and/or in a risky business environment. Using a risk-adjusted performance metric (RAPM), we find insurers perform better when insuring relatively short-term loans. We also make several policy recommendations on creating a reserve of risk-based capital to protect against possible loan losses. [source] The Original Maturity of Corporate Bonds: The Influence of Credit Rating, Asset Maturity, Security, and Macroeconomic ConditionsFINANCIAL REVIEW, Issue 2 2006Geetanjali Bali G24 Abstract We examine the determinants of the new issue maturity of corporate bonds. As credit rating decreases, new bond issues have longer maturities, but substantial variation in maturity within each rating class remains. We seek to explain the variation of new issue maturity within credit classes. We find that asset maturity, security covenants, and macroeconomic conditions influence the new issue maturity of bonds within rating categories. [source] The behavior of emerging market sovereigns' credit default swap premiums and bond yield spreadsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF FINANCE & ECONOMICS, Issue 1 2010Michael Adler Abstract We test whether credit risk for Emerging Market Sovereigns is priced equally in the credit default swap (CDS) and bond markets. The parity relationship between CDS premiums and bond yield spreads (BYS), that was tested and largely confirmed in the literature, is mostly rejected. Prices below par can result in positive basis, i.e. CDS premiums that are greater than BYS and vice versa. To adjust for the non-par price, we construct the BYS implied by the term structure of CDS premiums for various maturities. We are able to restore the parity relation and confirm the equivalence of credit risk pricing in the CDS and bond markets for many countries that have bonds with non-par prices and time varying credit quality. We detect non-parity even after the adjustment mainly in countries in Latin America, where the bases are larger than the bid,ask spreads in the market. We also find that the repo rates of bonds decrease around episodes of credit quality deterioration, which helps the basis remain positive. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Estimation Uncertainty and the Equity Premium,INTERNATIONAL REVIEW OF FINANCE, Issue 3 2009HONG YANArticle first published online: 25 AUG 200 ABSTRACT This paper studies a dynamic equilibrium model of asset prices in a partially observable exchange economy. It shows that the precautionary savings motive in response to estimation uncertainty can dominate the risk aversion effect, resulting in the reduction of the equity premium over short horizons. This exacerbates the equity premium puzzle. Over longer holding horizons, however, estimation uncertainty does induce higher risk premiums on equity over risk-free coupon bonds of matching maturities, as long-term bond yields are lowered due to the precautionary savings effect. [source] EFFECTS OF RAW MATERIALS AND PROCESS VARIABLES ON THE HEAT PENETRATION TIMES, FIRMNESS, AND PECTIC ENZYME ACTIVITY OF DICED TOMATOES (HALLEY BOS 3155 CV)JOURNAL OF FOOD PROCESSING AND PRESERVATION, Issue 2 2001WENDY H. MA The effects of raw materials and process variables on the heat penetration times into diced tomatoes (Halley Bos 3155 cv) were evaluated. Variables included dice size (1.27 and 2.54 cm), maturity at harvest (red and red+2 weeks), and processing temperature (88 and 92C). Heat penetration times between dice sizes were significantly different, but not between maturities or processing temperatures. Tomatoes were also evaluated for firmness, pectin-methylesterase (PME) and polygalacturonase (PG) activities. Half-inch size diced tomatoes were processed at 88 and 92C, and evaluated for firmness using the shear-compression method. Firmness decreased to 60% of the initial raw firmness from 8.8 × 105 to 5.3 × 105 g-mm after 15 s at 88C, and to 50% from 8.8 × 105 to 4.4 × 105 g-mm after 15 s at 92C. Diced tomato firmness showed a slight firming trend after 150 s at both temperatures. PME was inactivated after 45 s, while 5% residual PG activity remained after 3 min. [source] SEASONAL VARIATIONS IN FATTY ACID COMPOSITION OF OIL IN DEVELOPING COCONUTJOURNAL OF FOOD QUALITY, Issue 2 2009S. NARESH KUMAR ABSTRACT Studies on seasonal variation in oil and fatty acid profile of developing solid endosperm of two cultivars, West Coast Tall (WCT) and Chowghat Orange Dwarf (COD), and their hybrids indicated that oil percentage increased from 30% in 6-month-old nuts to 63% in matured nuts (12 months old). Nuts sampled during July from different levels of maturity had high oil percentage and followed by those sampled during April, October and January. During nut development to maturity, the percentages and contents of medium and long chain saturated fatty acids increased except that of palmitic and myristic acids. Concentration of long chain unsaturated fatty acids (LCUFAs) in developing coconut kernel were high at 5 and 6 months after fertilization and then decreased toward maturity. The LCUFAs were high in nuts developing during October; consequently, saturated to unsaturated fatty acid ratios were low during October. Results indicated that nuts matured during October had better nutritional quality for human consumption and those matured during January are more suitable for industrial purpose due to higher medium chain fatty acid concentrations. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS Coconut is consumed either as the tender nut (5,6 months after fertilization) or as the kernel from mature nut (12 months after fertilization). Recent technologies of making snowball tender nut use the nuts aged 7,8 months old. Kernel also is consumed in this product. Apart from this, the coconut is being increasingly used for making different kernel-based value-added products. This information is useful, as the value-added products are being developed using different maturities of coconut. Hence, it is of paramount importance that the fatty acid profile of coconut kernel is known in detail for assessing the safety of food consumption from the human health point of view. Apart from this, information on the seasonal variation in fatty acid profile of developing endosperm gives an integrated knowledge so as to optimize the usage of coconut kernel for both human consumption and industrial exploitation. [source] OIL-PRONE LOWER CARBONIFEROUS COALS IN THE NORWEGIAN BARENTS SEA: IMPLICATIONS FOR A PALAEOZOIC PETROLEUM SYSTEMJOURNAL OF PETROLEUM GEOLOGY, Issue 2 2010J.H. Van Koeverden In this study, we assess the oil generation potential of Lower Carboniferous, liptinite-rich coals in the Tettegras Formation on the Finnmark Platform, southern Norwegian Barents Sea. Oil from these coals has been expelled into intercalated sandstones. The coals may have contributed to petroleum recorded in well 7128/4,1 on the Finnmark Platform and may constitute a new Palaeozoic source rock in the Barents Sea. The Tettegras Formation coals contain up to 80 vol.% liptinite (mineral matter free base) and have low oxygen indices. Hydrogen indices up to 367 mg HC/g TOC indicate liquid hydrocarbon potential. In wells 7128/4,1 and 7128/6,1, the coals have vitrinite reflectance Ro= 0.75,0.85 %. Compared to shale and carbonate source rocks, expulsion from coal in general begins at higher maturities (Ro= 0.8,0.9% and Tmax= 444,453°C). Thus, the coals in the wells are mostly immature with regard to oil expulsion. The oil in well 7128/4,1 most likely originates from a more mature part of the Tettegras Formation in the deeper northern part of the Finnmark Platform. Wide variations in biomarker facies parameters and ,13C isotope values indicate a heterogeneous paralic depositional setting. The preferential retention by coal strata of naphthenes (e.g. terpanes and steranes) and aromatic compounds, compared to n-alkanes and acyclic isoprenoids, results in a terrigenous and waxy oil. This oil however contains marine biomarkers derived from the intercalated shales and siltstones. It is therefore important to consider the entire coal-bearing sequence, including the intercalated shales, in terms of source rock potential. Coals of similar age occur on Svalbard and Bjørnøya. The results of this study therefore suggest that a Lower Carboniferous coaly source rock may extend over large areas of the Norwegian Barents Sea. This source rock is mature in areas where the otherwise prolific Upper Jurassic marine shales are either immature or missing and may constitute a new Palaeozoic coal-sourced petroleum system in the Barents Sea. [source] A RAPID METHOD OF QUANTIFYING THE RESOLUTION LIMITS OF HEAT-FLOW ESTIMATES IN BASIN MODELSJOURNAL OF PETROLEUM GEOLOGY, Issue 2 2008A. Beha Deterministic forward models are commonly used to quantify the processes accompanying basin evolution. Here, we describe a workflow for the rapid calibration of palaeo heat-flow behaviour. The method determines the heat-flow history which best matches the observed data, such as vitrinite reflectance, which is used to indicate the thermal maturity of a sedimentary rock. A limiting factor in determining the heat-flow history is the ability of the algorithm used in the software for the maturity calculation to resolve information inherent in the measured data. Thermal maturation is controlled by the temperature gradient in the basin over time and is therefore greatly affected by maximum burial depth. Calibration, i.e. finding the thermal history model which best fits the observed data (e.g. vitrinite reflectance), can be a time-consuming exercise. To shorten this process, a simple pseudo-inverse model is used to convert the complex thermal behaviour obtained from a basin simulator into more simple behaviour, using a relatively simple equation. By comparing the calculated "simple" maturation trend with the observed data points using the suggested workflow, it becomes relatively straightforward to evaluate the range within which a best-fit model will be found. Reverse mapping from the simple model to the complex behaviour results in precise values for the heat-flow which can then be applied to the basin model. The goodness-of-fit between the modelled and observed data can be represented by the Mean Squared Residual (MSR) during the calibration process. This parameter shows the mean squared difference between all measured data and the respective predicted maturities. A minimum MSR value indicates the "best fit". Case studies are presented of two wells in the Horn Graben, Danish North Sea. In both wells calibrating the basin model using a constant heat-flow over time is not justified, and a more complex thermal history must be considered. The pseudo-inverse method was therefore applied iteratively to investigate more complex heat-flow histories. Neither in the observed maturity data nor in the recorded stratigraphy was there evidence for erosion which would have influenced the present-day thermal maturity pattern, and heat-flow and time were therefore the only variables investigated. The aim was to determine the simplest "best-fit" heat-flow history which could be resolved at the maximum resolution given by the measured maturity data. The conclusion was that basin models in which the predicted maturity of sedimentary rocks is calibrated solely against observed vitrinite reflectance data cannot provide information on the timing of anomalies in the heat-flow history. The pseudo inverse method, however, allowed the simplest heat-flow history that best fits the observed data to be found. [source] BURIAL HISTORY RECONSTRUCTION AND THERMAL MODELLING AT KUH-E MOND, SW IRANJOURNAL OF PETROLEUM GEOLOGY, Issue 4 2003M. R. Kamali At the Kuh-e Mond anticline (Fars Province, SW Iran) and in nearby offshore structures, large volumes of natural gas are reservoired in the Permian , Early Triassic Dehram Group while heavy oil has been discovered in the Cretaceous Sarvak and Eocene Jahrum Formations. In this paper, we use data from six exploration wells and from nearby surface exposures to reconstruct the burial history at Kuh-e Mond. Regional observations show that the thick sedimentary fill in this part of the Zagros Basin was subjected to intense tectonism during the Zagros Orogeny, with a paroxysmal phase during the late Miocene and Pliocene. Thermal modelling and geochemical data from Kuh-e Mond and adjacent fields allows possible hydrocarbon generation and migration mechanisms to be identified. Maturities predicted using Lopatin's TTI model are in accordance with maturities obtained from vitrinite reflectance measurements. We show that formations which have source potential in the nearby Dezful Embayment (including the Pabdeh, Gurpi, Gadvan and Kazhdumi Formations) have not reached the oil window in the Mond wells. Moreover, their organic carbon content is very low as they were deposited in oxic, shallow-water settings. Underlying units (including the Ordovician and Cambrian) could have reached the gas window but contain little organic matter. Silurian shales (Sarchahan Formation), which generate gas at Kuh-e Gahkum and Kuh-e Faraghan (north of Bandar Abbas) and in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere in the Middle East, are absent from the Mond structure. The absence of source rocks suggests that the gas and heavy oil accumulations at Kuh-e Mond and at nearby fields have most probably undergone long-distance lateral migration from distant source kitchens. [source] HYDROCARBON POTENTIAL OF JURASSIC SOURCE ROCKS IN THE JUNGGAR BASIN, NW CHINAJOURNAL OF PETROLEUM GEOLOGY, Issue 3 2003A. N. Ding Jurassic source rocks in the Junggar Basin (NW China) include coal swamp and freshwater lacustrine deposits. Hydrocarbon-generating macerals in the coal swamp deposits are dominated by desmocollinite and exinite of higher-plant origin. In lacustrine facies, macerals consists of bacterially-altered amorphinite, algal- amorphinite, alginite, exinite and vitrinite. Coals and coaly mudstones in the Lower Jurassic Badaowan Formation generate oil at the Qigu oilfield on the southern margin of the basin. Lacustrine source rocks generate oil at the Cainan oilfield in the centre of the basin. The vitrinite reflectance (Ro) of coal swamp deposits ranges from 0.5% to 0.9%, and that of lacustrine source rocks from 0.4% to 1.2%. Biomarker compositions likewise indicate that thermal maturities are variable. These variations cause those with lighter compositions to have matured earlier. Our data indicate that oil and gas generation has occurred at different stages of source-rock maturation, an "early" stage and a "mature" stage. Ro values are 0.4%,0.7% in the former and 0.8%,1.2% in the latter. [source] TERM STRUCTURES OF IMPLIED VOLATILITIES: ABSENCE OF ARBITRAGE AND EXISTENCE RESULTSMATHEMATICAL FINANCE, Issue 1 2008Martin Schweizer This paper studies modeling and existence issues for market models of stochastic implied volatility in a continuous-time framework with one stock, one bank account, and a family of European options for all maturities with a fixed payoff function h. We first characterize absence of arbitrage in terms of drift conditions for the forward implied volatilities corresponding to a general convex h. For the resulting infinite system of SDEs for the stock and all the forward implied volatilities, we then study the question of solvability and provide sufficient conditions for existence and uniqueness of a solution. We do this for two examples of h, namely, calls with a fixed strike and a fixed power of the terminal stock price, and we give explicit examples of volatility coefficients satisfying the required assumptions. [source]
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