University of Memphis

About: University of Memphis is a education organization based out in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Poison control. The organization has 7710 authors who have published 20082 publications receiving 611618 citations. The organization is also known as: U of M.

Male mammals respond to a risk of sperm competition conveyed by odours of conspecific males

Abstract: Sperm competition occurs when a female copulates with two or more males and the sperm of those males compete within the female's reproductive tract to fertilize her eggs1,2. The frequent occurrence of sperm competition has forced males of many species to develop different strategies to overcome the sperm of competing males1,3. A prevalent strategy is for males to increase their sperm investment (total number of sperm allocated by a male to a particular female) after detecting a risk of sperm competition1,3,4. It has been shown that the proportion of sperm that one male contributes to the sperm pool of a female is correlated with the proportion of offspring sired by that male5,6. Therefore, by increasing his sperm investment a male may bias a potential sperm competition in his favour5,7,8. Here we show that male meadow voles, Microtus pennsylvanicus, increase their sperm investment when they mate in the presence of another male's odours. Such an increase in sperm investment does not occur by augmenting the frequency of ejaculations, but by increasing the amount of sperm in a similar number of ejaculations.

Flexural Design of Reinforced Concrete Frames Using a Genetic Algorithm

Abstract: A design procedure implementing a genetic algorithm is developed for discrete optimization of reinforced concrete frames ~RC-GA!. The design procedure conforms to the American Concrete Institute ~ACI! Building Code and Commentary. The objective of the RC-GA procedure is to minimize the material and construction costs of reinforced concrete structural elements subjected to serviceability and strength requirements described by the ACI Code. Examples are presented demonstrating the efficiency of theRC-GA procedure for the flexural design of simply-supported beams, uniaxial columns, and multi-story frames.

Corporate Governance, Audit Quality, and the Sarbanes‐Oxley Act: Evidence from Internal Audit Outsourcing

Abstract: This study extends current literature related to nonaudit services by investigating internal audit outsourcing to the external auditor. We posit that certain types of internal audit outsourcing (i.e., those which are nonroutine, and thus tend to be nonrecurring in nature) are unlikely to lead to economic bonding, while offering significant potential for improvements in audit coverage and scope when provided by the external auditor. Alternatively, outsourcing routine internal audit tasks is more likely to lead to economic bonding, as well as potentially threatening internal auditor independence. Our results are consistent with firms with independent, active, and expert audit committees being less likely to outsource routine internal auditing activities to the external auditor. However, the outsourcing of nonroutine internal audit activities such as special projects and EDP consulting are not negatively related to effective audit committees. Additionally, outsourcing of either type of internal audit activit...

Supply chain disruption risk management through strategic information acquisition and sharing and risk-sharing contracts

Abstract: In this paper, we develop a framework that captures the effects of information management and risk-sharing contracts in supply chain networks. In particular, we analyse the impact of strategic information acquisition and sharing on supply chain disruption risks and costs and we evaluate the supply chain performance of risk-sharing contracts. Risk-sharing contracts specify who needs to incur the costs when supply chain disruptions occur. We develop a model that consists of three tiers of multi-criteria decision-makers, manufacturers, retailers, and demand markets. We describe the behaviour or each decision-maker, derive the finite-dimensional variational inequality formulation of the equilibrium conditions of the supply chain and present numerical examples. The numerical examples highlight that it is not a priori clear which participant in the supply chain network will benefit from increased information-sharing activities. Our models indicate that the beneficiary of reduced information-sharing costs is in ...