Patterns in spatial proximity between venture capital investors and investees in Germany: an empirical analysis

The paper analyzes patterns in spatial proximity between venture capital investors and investees. We use a data set of 950 dyads of venture capitalists and German new ventures which have closed a financing round between January 2002 and March 2007. We are the first study to use minimum travel time via car or plane as realistic measure of spatial proximity. Our results indicate that different factors relating to characteristics of the new venture, the venture capitalist and the financing round help explain variations in spatial proximity. We find that spatial proximity is more likely for younger ventures, ventures in knowledge-intensive industries, smaller, less specialized, more experienced, semi-profit oriented, or lead-venture capital investors, as well as for very small or very large investment volumes. Another key finding is that spatial proximity is more likely for consecutive financing rounds. Furthermore, we find the effects to be more pronounced for lead-investors. --venture capital,new venture,spatial proximity,entrepreneurial

Patterns in spatial proximity between venture capital investors and investees in Germany: an empirical analysis

The paper analyzes patterns in spatial proximity between venture capital investors and investees. We use a data set of 950 dyads of venture capitalists and German new ventures which have closed a financing round between January 2002 and March 2007. We are the first study to use minimum travel time via car or plane as realistic measure of spatial proximity. Our results indicate that different factors relating to characteristics of the new venture, the venture capitalist and the financing round help explain variations in spatial proximity. We find that spatial proximity is more likely for younger ventures, ventures in knowledge-intensive industries, smaller, less specialized, more experienced, semi-profit oriented, or lead-venture capital investors, as well as for very small or very large investment volumes. Another key finding is that spatial proximity is more likely for consecutive financing rounds. Furthermore, we find the effects to be more pronounced for lead-investors

Geographic location of a new venture and the likelihood of a venture capital investment

Based on 1182 dyads of German new ventures and venture capitalists involved in a financing round between 2002 and 2007, we examine the impact of spatial proximity on the likelihood of an investment. We find that with each triplication of journey time the relative likelihood of an investment decreases by one third. Venture development stage, the experience of the entrepreneurial team, knowledge-intensity of the industry and the investment volume moderate the relationship between journey time and the likelihood of an investment. Our results suggest that even in economies with a dense infrastructure like Germany regional equity gaps may exist. --venture capital,new venture,geographic location,entrepreneurial finance

Geographic location of a new venture and the likelihood of a venture capital investment

Based on 1182 dyads of German new ventures and venture capitalists involved in a financing round between 2002 and 2007, we examine the impact of spatial proximity on the likelihood of an investment. We find that with each triplication of journey time the relative likelihood of an investment decreases by one third. Venture development stage, the experience of the entrepreneurial team, knowledge-intensity of the industry and the investment volume moderate the relationship between journey time and the likelihood of an investment. Our results suggest that even in economies with a dense infrastructure like Germany regional equity gaps may exist

Central rotations of Milky Way Globular Clusters

Most Milky Way globular clusters (GCs) exhibit measurable flattening, even if on a very low level. Both cluster rotation and tidal fields are thought to cause this flattening. Nevertheless, rotation has only been confirmed in a handful of GCs, based mostly on individual radial velocities at large radii. We are conducting a survey of the central kinematics of Galactic GCs using the new Integral Field Unit instrument VIRUS-W. We detect rotation in all 11 GCs that we have observed so far, rendering it likely that a large majority of the Milky Way GCs rotate. We use published catalogs of the ACS survey of GCs to derive central ellipticities and position angles. We show that in all cases where the central ellipticity permits an accurate measurement of the position angle, those angles are in excellent agreement with the kinematic position angles that we derive from the VIRUS-W velocity fields. We find an unexpected tight correlation between central rotation and outer ellipticity, indicating that rotation drives flattening for the objects in our sample. We also find a tight correlation between central rotation and published values for the central velocity dispersion, most likely due to rotation impacting the old dispersion measurements.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures; accepted for publication in ApJ Letter

Predicting plankton net community production in the Atlantic Ocean

We present, test and implement two contrasting models to predict euphotic zone net community production (NCP), which are based on 14C primary production (PO14CP) to NCP relationships over two latitudinal (ca. 30°S–45°N) transects traversing highly productive and oligotrophic provinces of the Atlantic Ocean (NADR, CNRY, BENG, NAST-E, ETRA and SATL, Longhurst et al., 1995 [An estimation of global primary production in the ocean from satellite radiometer data. Journal of Plankton Research 17, 1245–1271]). The two models include similar ranges of PO14CP and community structure, but differ in the relative influence of allochthonous organic matter in the oligotrophic provinces. Both models were used to predict NCP from PO14CP measurements obtained during 11 local and three seasonal studies in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans, and from satellite-derived estimates of PO14CP. Comparison of these NCP predictions with concurrent in situ measurements and geochemical estimates of NCP showed that geographic and annual patterns of NCP can only be predicted when the relative trophic importance of local vs. distant processes is similar in both modeled and predicted ecosystems. The system-dependent ability of our models to predict NCP seasonality suggests that trophic-level dynamics are stronger than differences in hydrodynamic regime, taxonomic composition and phytoplankton growth. The regional differences in the predictive power of both models confirm the existence of biogeographic differences in the scale of trophic dynamics, which impede the use of a single generalized equation to estimate global marine plankton NCP. This paper shows the potential of a systematic empirical approach to predict plankton NCP from local and satellite-derived P estimates

Phase I In Vitro Metabolic Profiling of the Synthetic Cannabinoid Receptor Agonists CUMYL-THPINACA and ADAMANTYL-THPINACA

Synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists (SCRAs) remain popular drugs of abuse. As many SCRAs are known to be mostly metabolized, in vitro phase I metabolic profiling was conducted of the two indazole-3-carboxamide SCRAs: CUMYL-THPINACA and ADAMANTYL-THPINACA. Both compounds were incubated using pooled human liver microsomes. The sample clean-up consisted of solid phase extraction, followed by analysis using liquid chromatography coupled to a high resolution mass spectrometer. In silico-assisted metabolite identification and structure elucidation with the data-mining software Compound Discoverer was applied. Overall, 28 metabolites were detected for CUMYL-THPINACA and 13 metabolites for ADAMATYL-THPINACA. Various mono-, di-, and tri-hydroxylated metabolites were detected. For each SCRA, an abundant and characteristic di-hydroxylated metabolite was identified as a possible in vivo biomarker for screening methods. Metabolizing cytochrome P450 isoenzymes were investigated via incubation of relevant recombinant liver enzymes. The involvement of mainly CYP3A4 and CYP3A5 in the metabolism of both substances were noted, and for CUMYL-THPINACA the additional involvement (to a lesser extent) of CYP2C8, CYP2C9, and CYP2C19 was observed. The results suggest that ADAMANTYL-THPINACA might be more prone to metabolic drug−drug interactions than CUMYL-THPINACA, when co-administrated with strong CYP3A4 inhibitors

Yoga jam: remixing Kirtan in the Art of Living

Yoga Jam are a group of musicians in the United Kingdom who are active members of the Art of Living, a transnational Hindu-derived meditation group. Yoga Jam organize events—also referred to as yoga raves and yoga remixes—that combine Hindu devotional songs (bhajans) and chants (mantras) with modern Western popular musical genres, such as soul, rock, and particularly electronic dance music. This hybrid music is often played in a clublike setting, and dancing is interspersed with yoga and meditation. Yoga jams are creative fusions of what at first sight seem to be two incompatible phenomena—modern electronic dance music culture and ancient yogic traditions. However, yoga jams make sense if the Durkheimian distinction between the sacred and the profane is challenged, and if tradition and modernity are not understood as existing in a sort of inverse relationship. This paper argues that yoga raves are authenticated through the somatic experience of the modern popular cultural phenomenon of clubbing combined with therapeutic yoga practices and validated by identifying this experience with a reimagined Vedic tradition