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PREDICTING PRICE MOVEMENTS OF THE S&P 500 USING CONVENTIONAL AND ALTERNATIVE MARKET INDICATORS
No full textThis thesis investigates whether integrating alternative data sources with conventional financial indicators enhances S&P 500 forecasting accuracy in modern financial markets characterized by increased complexity and rapid information flows. The study analyzes daily S&P 500 returns using twelve predictor variables comprising conventional indicators (VIX volatility index, WTI crude oil, gold futures, AAA bond yields, Federal Funds Rate, Treasury yield spreads) and alternative data sources (Bitcoin returns, Daily News Sentiment Index, Indeed job postings, Economic Policy Uncertainty Index) across 1,341 observations from February 2020 to June 2025. The methodology employs ordinary least squares regression and ARIMAX(5,5) modeling with rigorous preprocessing including Augmented Dickey-Fuller stationarity testing and logarithmic transformations, estimated via maximum likelihood procedures in EViews with 30-day out-of-sample validation. Results reveal alternative data contributes a 249% improvement in explanatory power over conventional indicators alone (adjusted R-squared: 0.213 vs. 0.061), with ARIMAX models achieving superior performance (0.666 adjusted R-squared). These findings offer practical applications for portfolio management, risk assessment, and trading strategies while demonstrating the value of alternative data integration in modern financial forecasting
The preferential option for the poor: Vincentians carry the Church’s call to justice and compassion
No full textTrustworthy AI: Prohibited Practices, Ethical Principles, and the Identification of Problems
No full textThe following considerations arise from the study of texts of documents of a legal nature and from the author’s judgments. They do not present the results of the author’s own empirical research; however, they constitute a factual study that is important for their undertaking in the next step. Having given concern but also hopes for AI, the author focuses her attention on issues that, not only in her opinion, have a strong bearing on the preservation of humanity in a digital environment and at the same time with technocratic features. These issues (prohibited practices, high-risk systems, and ethics) related to AI flow directly from the need to respect the nature of humanity, freedom (autonomy), and security, which should be inherent attributes of everyone’s life.
The author, at this stage of her research, and because of the novelty of virtually every issue that can be associated with AI today, recognizes the framework for reality in the areas indicated in the title of this text. In doing so, she is preparing for a planned empirical study. She is presenting this text at the conference forum because she recognizes that sharing the findings she has made may also be useful to other researchers
IMPROVING THE SAFETY OF N,N-DIMETHYLACETAMIDE AS A POTENTIAL TREATMENT FOR PRETERM BIRTH USING A VAGINAL NANOFORMULATION
Get PDFWith no available treatment for preterm birth, the field of reproductive medicine has been repurposing small molecule candidates into vaginal nanoformulations as potential treatments for the condition. The commercial solvent N,N-Dimethylacetamide (DMA) has previously been shown to delay and prevent inflammation-induced preterm birth in a mouse model. A vaginal nanoformulation of DMA loaded into a self-nanoemulsifying drug delivery system (SNEEDS) was studied to see if it can also be efficacious. A side by-side histological comparison was done in the more pertinent tissues of the reproductive tract between the traditional formulation of DMA given intraperitoneally (IP) and the vaginal nanoformulation of DMA when given at a lower dose. SNEDDS DMA was shown to have comparable efficacy to IP DMA in delaying and preventing preterm birth altogether in an inflammation-induced mouse model. Histological sections of the placental labyrinth revealed IP DMA causes the vascular channels to be engorged with red blood cells while this phenomenon is ameliorated when using SNEDDS DMA. Quantitative analysis revealed villous congestion is reduced by approximately 25% with SNEDDS DMA. IP DMA also showed lower CD31 content in the placental labyrinth implicating a potential adverse effect in the development of fetal blood vessels while loss of CD31 was reduced by about 20% when mice were given SNEDDS DMA. Quantitative analysis also showed that adverse effects seen in mice following IP DMA administration are more severe in implantation sites closer to the ovaries than implantation sites closer to the cervix while this phenomenon is absent in mice given SNEDDS DMA illustrating differences in hemodynamics when comparing intraperitoneal and vaginal administration. DMA levels in the plasma were reduced by more than 50% when mice were given SNEDDS DMA, limiting the amount of DMA in the systemic circulation and the likelihood of causing adverse effects in other tissues. Overall, this study demonstrates the vaginal nanoformulation of DMA is efficacious for treating preterm birth in pregnant mice while minimizing damage in the sensitive tissues of the reproductive tract
DEVELOPING STIRIPENTOL ANALOGS AS POTENTIAL LDH INHIBITORS FOR THE TREATMENT OF GLIOBLASTOMA
No full textGlioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a highly proliferative brain tumor that has a 5-year survival rate of ~7 %. Temozolomide (TMZ) is the current standard of care therapeutic for GBM. However, 50% of patients develop resistance to TMZ. Therefore, further investigation for new GBM therapeutics is necessary to overcome this issue of drug resistance. GBM patients are known to overexpress lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), which is inversely correlated with their survival. This key glycolytic enzyme catalyzes the interconversion of pyruvate and lactate and plays an important role in cancer proliferation and invasion. Therefore, we aimed to inhibit LDH for developing therapeutics for GBM. In our previous study, we demonstrated the efficacy of a putative LDH inhibitor Stiripentol (STP) against GBM as. STP is an FDA-approved drug used for the treatment of Dravet Syndrome (a rare epilepsy). We repurposed STP for its potential as a novel GBM therapeutic. However, our previous data showed that STP moderately inhibits LDH and shows suboptimum potency in GBM cells. Therefore, we aimed to do an extensive structure-activity relationship (SAR) study of the STP scaffold to develop novel and potent analogs. We focused on replacing the tertiary butyl group of STP with various aromatic substitutions or various bulky groups to enhance GBM cytotoxicity and improve LDH inhibition. The synthesized STP analogs were evaluated for their cytotoxic and anti-proliferative activity (CC50) against four human GBM cell lines (U87, U138, SW1088, and LN229) by MTT and CyQuant assays. The results indicate an enhanced cytotoxic profile of select STP analogs in comparison to the parent compound. The selectivity of the active compounds was also evaluated against non-cancerous HEK-293 cells. Further biological evaluation will include assessing LDH enzyme activity inhibition. Future studies will focus on lead optimization of our most potent analogs
IMPACT OF DIFFERENT LEADERSHIP STYLES ON JOB SATISFACTION OF PRIVATE SECTOR SCHOOL TEACHERS IN PRIVATE SCHOOLS IN PAKISTAN
Get PDFhe present study aims to investigate educational leadership styles i.e. Transformational and distributed leadership style, teacher job satisfaction, and student outcomes in secondary schools in Pakistan. The present study employed phenomenological interviews with a sample size of 5 teachers and 1 principal in order to investigate the potential relationship between transformational leadership styles and indicators of teacher satisfaction and student success. The findings of this research revealed a positive association between transformational leadership styles and both teacher satisfaction and student success. Positive school climates conducive to growth were fostered by leaders who demonstrated empathy, collaboration, and transparency. The challenges encountered by leaders encompassed a range of issues, including concerns related to workload management and the presence of resistance towards embracing change. The recommendations put a strong emphasis on the implementation of leadership development programs, fostering a culture of collaborative decision-making, and cultivating positive school climates. This study makes a valuable contribution to the existing body of knowledge on educational leadership theory and practice. It highlights the importance of conducting further research in various cultural contexts to improve teacher satisfaction and enhance student outcomes in the field of secondary education.
Key words: Leadership Styles, transformational, empathy, collaboration, governanc
PERSISTENCE INSISTENCE: THE ACADEMIC SUCCESS AND ACHIEVEMENT OF FIRST-GENERATION COLLEGE STUDENTS OF COLOR
No full textThis qualitative study aimed to determine how the external experiences of first-generation college students of color (i.e., both outside of the classroom and the influence of on-campus resources and programs that target the transition from high school to post-secondary education) and internal factors (i.e., perseverance, engagement, perceptions of equality/inequality, and sociological elements) influence how FGSOCs view their academic success and belonging at College X. A total of 10 undergraduate students at College X participated in one-hour, in-depth interviews involving both initial and follow-up questions. Participants self-identified as first-generation college students of color and were identified as FGSOCs using the Banner electronic campuswide administrative system. First-year and continuing students were identified by the number of credit hours completed, 12-23 and 24 and over, respectively, and participants originated from the geographic regions directly adjacent to College X. Study participants included a total of five males and five females. First-year participants ranged in age from 18 to 56, and continuing education participants ranged in age from 19 to 65. Participants identified their ethnicity as Black (n = 4), Hispanic (n = 2), Asian (n = 2), and Native American (n = 2). The instruments used for data collection included an initial survey designed to select participants, followed by one-hour-long interviews, which were comprised of a series of ten initial questions and follow-up questions asked during an interview session with each of the ten students via face-to-face sessions at Office of Institutional Research Effectiveness and Planning on the College X campus. The study employed a phenomenological design due to its inherent focus on a common meaning for both individuals and the collective in terms of their lived experiences surrounding the phenomenon of being first-generation students of color. Following the grouping of answers to interview questions through categorization and structural coding, themes and meanings were drawn from the data set, and a narrative ultimately emerged. The goal of the study was to investigate the perspectives and experiences of FGSOCs, as well as the supports that influence their college success and potential retention, to provide recommendations towards fostering the success and achievement of FGSOCs
CRITICAL LITERACY ENGAGEMENT OF ELEMENTARY MULTILINGUAL LEARNERS: A MIXED METHODS STUDY
Get PDFAs the number of students identified as multilingual learners (ML) continues to increase in schools across the United States and the accountability for states to provide rigorous and meaningful instruction rises, the daily instructional experiences of students identified as ML need more focused research. Existing research on students identified as ML often focuses on their acquisition of English. Students identified as ML often experience rote instruction and do not have access to critical literacy practices, especially in the elementary school grades. Critical literacy practices are cognitively rigorous and can include analyzing current structures of power, equity, and facilitating student talk. This mixed methods research study involved exploring the experiences and engagement with critical literacy of students identified as ML in Grades 2–5 compared to their engagement with other modes of literacy instruction in the elementary classroom. This study included quantitative data using teacher and student Likert-type scales of engagement alongside researcher-scaled experiences using the In-Class Engagement measure (IEM). Qualitative data included direct observations of student engagement in literacy instruction in the classroom and student interviews from a nested sample. Results have implications for the future of critical literacy practice with elementary students identified as ML as being a cognitively rigorous and engaging mode of instruction