This study examines the link between effective tax rates (ETR) and political connections in developing economies. The political connections explanation is informed by the observation that developing economies tend to be ''relationship-based'' rather than ''market-based'' capitalisms. Two proxies of political patronage are developed and applied to a group of Malaysian firms over a 10-year period. We find firms with political connections pay tax at significantly lower effective rates than other firms. Our results suggest that political connections are an important determinant of ETR in relationship-based economies.

The 13 November 2016 Mw 7.8 Kaikoura, New Zealand, earthquake was investigated using teleseismic P waves. Backprojection of high‐frequency P waves from two regional arrays shows unilateral rupture of at least two southwest‐northeast striking faults with an average rupture speed of 1.4–1.6 km/s and total duration of ~100 s. Guided by these backprojection results, 33 globally distributed low‐frequency P waves were inverted for a finite fault model (FFM) of slip. The FFM showed evidence of several subevents; however, it lacked significant moment release near the epicenter, where a large burst of high‐frequency energy was observed. A local strong‐motion network recorded strong shaking near the epicenter; hence, for this earthquake the distribution of backprojection energy is superior to the FFM as a guide of strong shaking. For future large earthquakes that occur in regions without strong‐motion networks, initial shaking estimates could benefit from backprojection constraints.

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Valuable investments in human capital, it has been argued, may be at risk in much the same way as shareholder equity capital. In this paper, we develop and test the hypothesis that employee share ownership (ESO) may be used to encourage and safeguard investments in human capital. Using the Workplace Employee Relations Survey 1998, we examine the empirical link between the likelihood of ESO and the presence of valuable human capital. Adjusted for possible structural influences, empirical evidence suggests considerable support for our hypothesis. Copyright Blackwell Publishing Ltd/London School of Economics 2005.

Cases of brucellosis were diagnosed in 3-month-old twins and their mother. An epidemiologic survey suggested that raw sheep or goat meat might be the source of Brucella melitensis infection. This finding implies that the increasing threat of brucellosis might affect low-risk persons in urban settings in China.

The prevalence of myopia among primary school children in Beijing increased with age, and was significantly higher in girls ≥10 years old. Myopia was significantly associated with parental myopia, reading posture, distance between the eyes and the book being read, font size used in extracurricular reading material, time spent studying at home, and the duration of continuous study time.

Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) is a tick-borne viral disease affecting hundreds of people in China each year. To better understand the epidemiological characteristics and environmental risk factors associated with the incidence of SFTS in Hubei Province, China, we conducted a retrospective epidemiological study and risk assessment of SFTS from 2011 to 2016. Although, the incidence and epidemic areas of SFTS are increasing, the fatality rate has decreased. Elderly farmers are the population most commonly infected with SFTS virus between May and July in the northeast Hubei Province, which seems to be consistent with local agricultural activities and the seasonal abundance of ticks. Spatial scanning showed that regions bordering with Xinyang City, Henan Province accounted for most of the SFTS cases in Hubei Province, and there was a significant association of SFTS incidence with temporal changes in the climate within these clusters. Multivariate modeling analysis identified density of cattle, rain-fed cropland, built-up land, temperature, and relative humidity as independent risk factors for the distribution of SFTS. Future epidemiological and serological studies are warranted to elucidate the dynamics and immunity patterns of local SFTS disease and to optimize interventions.

Background: Shigellosis is one of the main diarrhea diseases in developing countries. However, the transmissibility of shigellosis remains unclear. Methods: We used the dataset of shigellosis cases reported between January 2005 and December 2017, from Hubei Province, China. A mathematical model was developed based on the natural history and the transmission mechanism of the disease. By fitting the data using the model, transmission relative rate from person to person (b) and from reservoir to person (b w ), and the effective reproduction number (R eff ) were estimated. To simulate the contribution of b and b w during the transmission, we performed a "knock-out" simulation in four scenarios:Results: A total of 130,770 shigellosis cases were reported in Hubei province, among which 13 cases were dead. The median annual incidence was 19.96 per 100,000 persons (range: 5.99 per 100,000 persons -29.47 per 100,000 persons) with a decreased trend (trend χ 2 = 25,470.27, P < 0.001). The mean values of b and b w were 0.0898 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.0851-0.0946) and 1.1264 × 10 − 9 (95% CI: 4.1123 × 10 − 10 -1.8416 × 10 − 9 ), respectively. The "knock-out" simulation showed that the number of cases simulated by scenario A was almost the same as scenario B, and scenario C was almost the same as scenario D. The mean value of R eff of shigellosis was 1.19 (95% CI: 1.13-1.25) and decreased slightly with a Linear model until it decreased to an epidemic threshold of 0.99 (95% CI: 0.65-1.34) in 2029. Conclusions:The incidence of shigellosis is still in high level. The transmissibility of the disease is low in Hubei Province. The transmission would be interrupted in the year of 2029.