On the basis of signaling and trust theories, we explore the impact of focal firms’ environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance on their collaborative innovation (co-innovation). We argue that high ESG performance serves as a positive signal that focal firms engage less in opportunistic behavior in the co-innovation process. This, in turn, makes it easier for focal firms to gain the trust of potential external innovation collaborators (collaborators) and ultimately increases the level of co-innovation in focal firms. Guided by signaling and trust theories, we further argue that heavy polluting firm attributes and historical co-innovation alter the impact of ESG signals on collaborators’ trust, which in turn leads to heterogeneity in the positive impact of ESG performance on firms’ co-innovation. Based on empirical data on A-share manufacturing companies listed in China from 2010 to 2021, we obtained empirical evidence to support the above theoretical arguments. This study provides new insights for a refined understanding of the innovation consequences of ESG performance and important implications for shareholders and policymakers to better encourage and guide firms in co-innovation.

Boundary points on the moduli space of pointed curves corresponding to collisions of marked points have modular interpretations as degenerate curves. In this paper, we study degenerations of orbifold projective curves corresponding to collisions of stacky points from the point of view of noncommutative algebraic geometry.

Haemonchus contortus is a parasitic nematode that causes significant economic losses in ruminant livestock worldwide. In this study, we assessed the global genetic diversity and population structure of H. contortus using mitochondrial COX1 and ribosomal ITS2 sequences retrieved from the NCBI GenBank database. In total, 324 haplotypes of the COX1 and 72 haplotypes of the ITS2 were identified. The haplotype diversity values were all higher than 0.5, and the nucleotide diversity values were higher than 0.005. The Tajima’s D value for COX1 (−1.65634) was higher than that for ITS2 (−2.60400). Fu’s Fs, Fu and Li’s D (FLD), and Fu and Li’s F (FLF) values also showed high negative values, indicating a high probability of future population growth. In addition, the high fixation index (FST) value suggests significant genetic differentiation among populations. The haplotype networks of H. contortus populations based on COX1 sequences revealed clear geographic clustering, whereas ITS2 sequences showed more haplotype admixture across regions. The results of phylogenetic analyses were consistent with the haplotype networks. These findings highlighted that H. contortus populations exhibit significant genetic variation and are undergoing rapid population expansion, with clear genetic differences across geographic regions. This study established critical baseline data for future molecular epidemiology studies, which could guide region-specific parasite surveillance and targeted control strategies, thus helping to mitigate the risk of cross-border parasite transmission and drug resistance.

In this paper we adopt the probabilistic mean value theorem in order to study differences of the variances of transformed and stochastically ordered random variables, based on a suitable extension of the equilibrium operator. We also develop a rigorous approach aimed at expressing the variance of transformed random variables. This is based on a joint distribution which, in turn, involves the variance of the original random variable, as well as its mean residual lifetime and mean inactivity time. Then we provide applications to the additive hazards model and to some well-known random variables of interest in actuarial science. These deal with a new notion, called the ‘centred mean residual lifetime’, and a suitably related stochastic order. Finally, we also address the analysis of the differences of the variances of transformed discrete random variables thanks to the use of a discrete version of the equilibrium operator.

Pronatalist policies are on the rise in many countries. These have stemmed from several motivators, including economic concerns, nationalism, and promotion of traditional family values. As global fertility rates have fallen, many countries have instilled pronatalist policies to encourage people to have more children. In other countries, including the United States, religious traditionalism and nationalist forces have fueled pronatalist policies as a counter to improved female empowerment and global immigration. No matter the stated motivation, government-sanctioned pronatalism overtly leads to reproductive coercion or covertly results in limited reproductive autonomy as collateral damage. Herein, we review global examples of prior and current pronatalist policies, outlining the motivators for their promotion within each case. We demonstrate how these policies are not only ineffective, but are dangerous to the health and well-being of women and other populations and are in direct conflict with modern reproductive goals, reproductive justice, and decades of efforts towards achieving gender parity.

Resilient enterprises thrive under adverse conditions given their preparedness for crises. This study proposes that executives’ vigilant managerial cognition is essential for enhancing enterprise resilience. To measure this cognition, the study developed a textual index using machine learning methods and analyzed a sample of Chinese enterprises to assess the impact of executives’ vigilant managerial cognition on enterprise resilience. The findings indicate that this cognition is positively related to enterprise resilience, where the relationship is stronger in enterprises with robust internal controls. The primary contribution of this study is the conceptualization of vigilant managerial cognition and its established positive relationship with enterprise resilience. Furthermore, by introducing a novel quantitative measure of managerial cognition through textual analysis and machine learning, the study paves the way for future research on managerial cognition within firms.

In a series of articles published between 1982 and 1993, Margareta Steinby put forward the hypothesis that brick stamps produced in Rome, especially those dating from Hadrian to Septimius Severus, constituted an abbreviated form of a locatio conductio, or contract for letting and hiring. According to Steinby, the hypothesis could also be used to explain the productive cycles represented by the stamps of other types of instrumenta domestica. This study builds on Steinby’s thesis to analyze Dressel 20 amphora stamps and the organization of Baetican figlinae. It explores oil amphora production in southern Spain through legal frameworks, focusing on lease and hire contracts. Case studies of public and private facilities demonstrate diverse production models. The analysis shows Steinby’s theory is broadly applicable, highlighting Roman law’s flexibility in shaping various industries beyond amphora manufacturing.

The conventional historiography of eighteenth-century Prussia portrays peasants as completely dominated by their imperious Junker superiors. Since the 1980s, a revisionist tendency has challenged this asymmetrical picture of lord-peasant relations, downplaying the oppressiveness of the manorial system and arguing that peasants were equally capable competitors in the “tug-of-war” with their lords. This article evaluates the revisionists’ claims using the historical findings they, and others, have produced about the relationship of lords and peasants in rural Prussia. The evidence supports the contention that peasants were, to a significant extent, the victims of the Prussian manorial system.

We explore debt and debt management among older Americans (ages 51–61 years) using the 2018 National Financial Capability Study. Though these individuals should have been at the peak of their retirement savings, we show that many were heavily indebted, often due to unpaid medical bills and student loans. Additionally, fewer than half (43%) could correctly answer three basic financial literacy questions; importantly, less financially literate people were more likely to hold excessive debt, be contacted by debt collectors, and carry medical debt or student loans. Our findings show that, even before the pandemic, a sizable proportion of older Americans was financially distressed, underscoring the need for researchers and policymakers to devote attention to specific types of debt that burden the older population. Particularly vulnerable groups include African-Americans, women, and the least-educated.

The gambler’s ruin problem for correlated random walks (CRWs), both with and without delays, is addressed using the optional stopping theorem for martingales. We derive closed-form expressions for the ruin probabilities and the expected game duration for CRWs with increments $\{1,-1\}$ and for symmetric CRWs with increments $\{1,0,-1\}$ (CRWs with delays). Additionally, a martingale technique is developed for general CRWs with delays. The gambler’s ruin probability for a game involving bets on two arbitrary patterns is also examined.