We introduce a list that offers information on the relation between first names and race or ethnicity. Drawing information from mortgage applications, the list includes 4,250 first names and information on their respective count and proportions across six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups. These six categories are consistent with the categories used in the Census Bureau's list on surnames' demographic information. Also, just like the Census Bureau's list of surnames, the list of first names is highly aggregated, so as to not identify any specific individuals.

Objective: To investigate the association between environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure (at least 30 minutes a day) and the risk of developing acute coronary syndromes (ACS). Design and setting: The CARDIO2000 is a case-control study which was conducted in Greece from 2000 to 2001. Cases included 847 individuals with a first event of ACS and 1078 cardiovascular disease-free controls. Cases and controls were frequency matched on age (within three years of age), sex, and region. Main outcome measures: ACS was defined as a diagnosis of first acute myocardial infarction or unstable angina. Main independent variable: Exposure to ETS was measured by self report as follows: after the second day of hospitalisation for the cases, and at the entry for the controls, participants were asked whether they were currently exposed to tobacco smoke from other people (home and/or work) for more than 30 minutes a day. The responses were categorised into three levels: no exposure, occasional exposure (< 3 times per week), and regular exposure. In addition participants were asked how many years they had been exposed. Because these were self reported assessments and prone to bias, the results were compared to reports obtained from subjects' relatives or friends, using the Kendal's τ coefficient that showed high agreement. Results: 731 (86%) of the patients and 605 (56%) of the controls reported current exposure of 30 minutes per day or more to ETS. Among current non-smokers, cases were 47% more likely to report regular exposure to ETS (odds ratio (OR) 1.47, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.26 to 1.80) compared to controls. Exposure to ETS at work was associated with a greater risk of ACS compared to home exposure (+97% v +33%). The risk of ACS was also raised in active smokers (OR 2.83, 95% CI 2.07 to 3.31) regularly exposed to ETS. Conclusions: This study supports the hypothesis that exposure to ETS increases the risk of developing ACS. The consistency of these findings with the existing totality of evidence presented in the literature supports the role of ETS in the aetiology of ACS.

This paper examines the determinants of stock option introduction as a part of CEO compensation in listed US firms during the 1994-2004 period. The results are consistent with agency costs and recruiting considerations, suggesting that firms do not adjust CEO compensation in order to address the 'investment horizon' problem. The findings also suggest that CEO stock option adoption is not necessarily influenced by the same factors that have been found in the literature to affect the level of CEO stock-option compensation and the adoption of broad-based stock-option incentives. Overall, the findings provide evidence for several theoretical predictions, thus adding to our understanding of managerial incentives.JEL Classification: J33, M12, M52

Recently a growing amount of interest has been focused on new risk factors for cardiovascular disease, such as insulin, leptin, homocysteine, and urinary albumin excretion (UAE). Furthermore, the absence of a nocturnal blood pressure (BP) decrease is emerging as an index for future target organ damage. In the present study we aimed to determine the relationship between these risk factors and circadian BP variations in essential hypertensive subjects. One hundred six patients, aged 54+/-7 years, with stage I-II untreated hypertension were classified as dippers and nondippers according to the diurnal variation of >10% between mean daytime and nighttime systolic BP (SBP) and diastolic BP (DBP) in 24-h noninvasive ambulatory BP monitoring. Venous blood samples were drawn for determination of insulin, leptin, and homocysteine plasma levels, whereas UAE was evaluated in three consecutive 24-h urine samples. Nondippers compared to dippers had significantly greater hemodynamic load and higher UAE (by 17 mg/24 h, P < .05). The two groups did not differ regarding serum insulin, plasma leptin, and homocysteine levels. In the entire population, leptin was positively correlated with age, body mass index, 24-h DBP, fasting serum insulin, and plasma homocysteine levels, whereas homocysteine levels were significantly related to 24-h SBP and DBP values. Multiple linear regression analyses revealed that only UAE was significantly related with nocturnal SBP and DBP decrease (P < .05 for both). These findings suggest that the increased UAE observed in nondipper hypertensive subjects possibly represents a useful indicator-for future target organ damage.