Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An iterative multiuser detector for DS-CDMA systems in multipath fading channels

We propose an iterative multiuser detector for turbo coded direct sequence CDMA (DS-CDMA) systems in the uplink channel. The receiver is derived from the maximum a-posteriori (MAP) estimation of the single user's transmitted data, conditioned on the information about the estimate of the multiple access interference (MAl) and the received signal from the channel. The complexity of the proposed receiver increases linearly with the number of users. Error rate performances of the receiver is found to be better than those of the receiver in which a direct subtraction of the estimated multiple access interference is performed. The performance of the developed iterative multiuser receiver is investigated in the multipath fading environment with and without the knowledge of the side information. It was observed that the performance of the proposed receiver improves in a multipath fading channel when the channel side information is considered in the development of the receiver.
A Structural Equation Model of Nurses' Turnover Intention

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to construct and test a structural equation model of nurses' turnover intention. Method: The participants were 716 nurses at 4 university hospitals. Data were collected by a self-report questionnaire in 2008 and analyzed using SPSS 12.0 and AMOS 4.0 Win program. Results: The fit indices of modified model were (p, GFI=0.964, RMSEA=0.037, AGFI=0.944, NFI=0.947, NNFI=0.961, CFI=0.973, PNFI=0.658 and showed high compatibility with the empirical data. In the final model, job stress and satisfaction were found to have significant direct effects on nurses' turnover intention, while organizational culture and emotional labor were very important factors to have indirect effects on turnover intention via job stress and satisfaction. Nurses' turnover intention was accounted for 41.2% of covariance by these factors. Conclusions: Comprehensive nursing interventions for decreasing nurses' turnover intention should be focused on reducing job stress and increasing job satisfaction. Also, Nursing strategy for enhancing positive organizational culture and decreasing emotional labor would be helpful for decreasing nurses' turnover intention, too. Further studies are needed to prospectively conduct to verify these causal relationships with larger sample.
Enhanced midbrain response at 6‐month follow‐up in cocaine addiction, association with reduced drug‐related choice

Drug addiction is characterized by dysregulated dopamine neurotransmission. Although dopamine functioning appears to partially recover with abstinence, the specific regions that recover and potential impact on drug seeking remain to be determined. Here we used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to study an ecologically valid sample of 15 treatment‐seeking cocaine addicted individuals at baseline and 6‐month follow‐up. At both study sessions, we collected fMRI scans during performance of a drug Stroop task, clinical self‐report measures of addiction severity and behavioral measures of cocaine seeking (simulated cocaine choice); actual drug use in between the two study sessions was also monitored. At 6‐month follow‐up (compared with baseline), we predicted functional enhancement of dopaminergically innervated brain regions, relevant to the behavioral responsiveness toward salient stimuli. Consistent with predictions, whole‐brain analyses revealed responses in the midbrain (encompassing the ventral tegmental area/substantia nigra complex) and thalamus (encompassing the mediodorsal nucleus) that were higher (and more positively correlated) at follow‐up than baseline. Increased midbrain activity from baseline to follow‐up correlated with reduced simulated cocaine choice, indicating that heightened midbrain activations in this context may be marking lower approach motivation for cocaine. Normalization of midbrain function at follow‐up was also suggested by exploratory comparisons with active cocaine users and healthy controls (who were assessed only at baseline). Enhanced self‐control at follow‐up was suggested by a trend for the commonly hypoactive dorsal anterior cingulate cortex to increase response during a drug‐related context. Together, these results suggest that fMRI could be useful in sensitively tracking follow‐up outcomes in drug addiction.
How to Design Message Passing Algorithms for Compressed Sensing

Finding fast first order methods for recovering signals from compressed measurements is a problem of interest in applications ranging from biology to imaging. Recently, the authors proposed a class of low-complexity algorithms called approximate message passing or AMP. The new algorithms were shown, through extensive simulations and mathematical analysis, to exhibit very fast convergence rate and high phase transition. This paper provides a step-by-step explanation of how these algorithms can be constructed, leveraging on the ideas from the graphical models theory, and message passing.
The role of college students' perceptions of effort source on self-evaluations of academic ability

Title of dissertation: THE ROLE OF COLLEGE STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF EFFORT SOURCE ON SELF-EVALUATIONS OF ACADEMIC ABILITY Katherine Marie Muenks, Doctor of Philosophy, 2016 Dissertation directed by: Professor Allan Wigfield Department of Human Development and Quantitative Methodology In the present studies I investigated whether college students’ perceptions of effort source influenced their perceptions of the relation between levels of their own effort and ability in mathematics. In Study 1 (N = 210), I found using hypothetical vignettes that perceptions of task-elicited effort (i.e., effort that arises due to the subjective difficulty or ease of the task) led to perceptions of an inverse relation between one’s effort and ability, and perceptions of self-initiated effort (i.e., effort that arises due to one’s own motivation or lack of motivation) led to perceptions of a positive relation between one’s effort and ability, consistent with my hypotheses and prior research. In Study 2 (N = 160), participants completed an academic task and I used open-ended questions to manipulate their perceptions of effort source. I found that participants in the task-elicited condition endorsed no overall relation between effort and ability, and participants in the selfinitiated condition endorsed an overall inverse relation, which is inconsistent with my hypotheses and prior research. Possible explanations for the findings, as well as broader theoretical and educational implications are discussed. THE ROLE OF COLLEGE STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF EFFORT SOURCE ON SELF-EVALUATIONS OF ACADEMIC ABILITY by Katherine Marie Muenks Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Maryland in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy 2016 Advisory Committee: Professor Allan Wigfield, Chair Dr. Ann Battle Professor David Miele Professor William Strein Professor Kathryn Wentzel © Copyright by Katherine Marie Muenks 2016
Involvement of Newborn Neurons in Olfactory Associative Learning? The Operant or Non-operant Component of the Task Makes All the Difference

New neurons are continuously generated in the adult mammalian olfactory bulb. The role of these newborn neurons in olfactory learning has been debated. Blocking the addition of neurons has been reported either to result in memory alteration or to have no effect at all (Imayoshi et al., 2008; Breton-Provencher et al., 2009; Lazarini et al., 2009; Sultan et al., 2010). These discrepancies may have arisen from differences in the behavioral paradigms used: operant procedures indicated that neurogenesis blockade had substantial effects on long-term memory (Lazarini et al., 2009; Sultan et al., 2010) whereas other methods had little effect (Imayoshi et al., 2008; Breton-Provencher et al., 2009). Surprisingly, while operant learning is known to modulate the survival of new neurons, the effect of non-operant learning on newborn cells is unknown. Here we use mice to show that compared with operant learning, non-operant learning does not affect cell survival, perhaps explaining the current controversy. In addition, we provide evidence that distinct neural substrates at least partly underlie these two forms of learning. We conclude that the involvement of newborn neurons in learning is subtly dependent on the nature of the behavioral task.
Bi-partite entanglement entropy in massive (1+1)-dimensional quantum field theories

This paper is a review of the main results obtained in a series of papers involving the present authors and their collaborator J L Cardy over the last 2 years. In our work, we have developed and applied a new approach for the computation of the bi-partite entanglement entropy in massive (1+1)-dimensional quantum field theories. In most of our work we have also considered these theories to be integrable. Our approach combines two main ingredients: the ‘replica trick’ and form factors for integrable models and more generally for massive quantum field theory. Our basic idea for combining fruitfully these two ingredients is that of the branch-point twist field. By the replica trick, we obtained an alternative way of expressing the entanglement entropy as a function of the correlation functions of branch-point twist fields. On the other hand, a generalization of the form factor program has allowed us to study, and in integrable cases to obtain exact expressions for, form factors of such twist fields. By the usual decomposition of correlation functions in an infinite series involving form factors, we obtained exact results for the infrared behaviours of the bi-partite entanglement entropy, and studied both its infrared and ultraviolet behaviours for different kinds of models: with and without boundaries and backscattering, at and out of integrability.
Price Setting in Online Markets: Does it Click?

Using a unique dataset of daily U.S. and U.K. price listings and the associated number of clicks for precisely defined goods from a major shopping platform, this paper explores how prices are set in online markets, which have a number of special properties such as low search costs, low costs of monitoring competitors' prices, and low costs of nominal price adjustment. High-quality data are not only useful to estimate price rigidity and other properties of price adjustment in online commerce but also allow comparing the behavior of those properties with estimates available from brick-and-mortar stores.
Unraveling public support for casino gaming: The case of a casino referendum in Penghu

ABSTRACT By integrating the social exchange theory (SET) and the theory of planned behavior (TPB), this study unravels the factors associated with residents’ intention to support casino gaming development in Penghu in future referenda. Residents’ attitudes toward casino gaming development in their community were examined in the SET framework while their intention to support such development was investigated in the TPB framework. Despite that partisan difference did not have a significant interaction with TPB variables, past behavior exerted moderating effects determining residents’ intention to support casino gaming development through two TPB variables: subjective norm and perceived behavioral control. Implications are provided. Abbreviations: ATTU: attitude; DPP: Democratic Progress Party; ECOI: perceived economic impact; ENVI: perceived environmental impact; INT: intention to support casino gaming development in future referenda; KMT: Kuomingtang; PBC: perceived behavioral control; PPB: perceived personal benefit; SET: social exchange theory; SN: subjective norms; SOCI: perceived social impact; TPB: theory of planned behavior
Explaining the Investment Boom of the 1990s

Real equipment investment in the United States has boomed in recent years, led by soaring investment in computers. We find that traditional aggregate econometric models completely fail to capture the magnitude of this recent growth - mainly because these models neglect to address two features that are crucial (and unique) to the current investment boom. First, the pace at which firms replace depreciated capital has increased. Second, investment has been more sensitive to the cost of capital. We document that these two features stem from the special behavior of investment in computers and therefore propose a disaggregated approach. This produces an econometric model that successfully explains the 1990s equipment investment boom.
α3Na+/K+-ATPase Deficiency Causes Brain Ventricle Dilation and Abrupt Embryonic Motility in Zebrafish*

Background: The Na+/K+-ATPase maintains Na+/K+ gradients across the plasma membrane, essential for cellular functions. Results: Zebrafish deficient of α3Na+/K+-ATPase display abnormal motility and brain ventricle dilation. Conclusion: Zebrafish α3Na+/K+-ATPase is CNS-specific and required for brain ventricle maintenance and embryonic motility. Significance: This is the first study assessing α3Na+/K+-ATPase in brain development and embryonic motility. Na+/K+-ATPases are transmembrane ion pumps that maintain ion gradients across the basolateral plasma membrane in all animal cells to facilitate essential biological functions. Mutations in the Na+/K+-ATPase α3 subunit gene (ATP1A3) cause rapid-onset dystonia-parkinsonism, a rare movement disorder characterized by sudden onset of dystonic spasms and slow movements. In the brain, ATP1A3 is principally expressed in neurons. In zebrafish, the transcripts of the two ATP1A3 orthologs, Atp1a3a and Atp1a3b, show distinct expression in the brain. Surprisingly, targeted knockdown of either Atp1a3a or Atp1a3b leads to brain ventricle dilation, a likely consequence of ion imbalances across the plasma membrane that cause accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid in the ventricle. The brain ventricle dilation is accompanied by a depolarization of spinal Rohon-Beard neurons in Atp1a3a knockdown embryos, suggesting impaired neuronal excitability. This is further supported by Atp1a3a or Atp1a3b knockdown results where altered responses to tactile stimuli as well as abnormal motility were observed. Finally, proteomic analysis identified several protein candidates highlighting proteome changes associated with the knockdown of Atp1a3a or Atp1a3b. Our data thus strongly support the role of α3Na+/K+-ATPase in zebrafish motility and brain development, associating for the first time the α3Na+/K+-ATPase deficiency with brain ventricle dilation.
Three-dimensional GPR imaging of the Benmore anticline and step-over of the Ostler Fault, South Island, New Zealand

SUMMARY Because surface processes can frequently remove, mask or suppress the surface expression of faults, geophysical imaging is needed to provide information on the geometric expression of the fault in the subsurface, including dips, the presence or absence of splays and folds and the nature of the material in the fault plane. Subsurface data become especially important where a step-over occurs, however the mechanism of the step-over is not clear. The Ostler Fault is a major thrust fault in the Mackenzie Basin of the South Island of New Zealand. The geometry of the fault changes along its length, with a number of growing anticlines and step-overs forming the Ostler Fault Zone (OFZ). One of these anticlines occurs along the Benmore segment of the OFZ. A three-dimensional (3-D) ground penetrating radar (GPR) survey was carried out to supplement detailed surface topographic mapping and help characterize the nature of the OFZ at Benmore. To cover the 1 km length of the step-over, the 3-D survey was done with a coarse yet regular 50 m line spacing. The individual fault splays were continuous and could be traced from line to line. Not all splays had surface expression, whereas almost all surface features had corresponding subsurface expression. As the fault approaches the anticline and multiple splays become apparent, the main fault simply develops into one of a set of splays as the deformation becomes distributed across the wider zone. Eventually, one of the other splays becomes the primary fault strand, and the others are abandoned.
Using the Galactic Dynamics of M7 Dwarfs to Infer the Evolution of Their Magnetic Activity

We present a spectroscopic study and dynamical analysis of ∼2600 M7 dwarfs. We confirm our previous finding that the fraction of magnetically active stars decreases with vertical distance from the Galactic plane. We also show that the mean luminosity of the Hα emission has a small but statistically significant decrease with distance. Using space motions for ∼1300 stars and a simple one-dimensional dynamical simulation, we demonstrate that the drop in the activity fraction of M7 dwarfs can be explained by thin disk dynamical heating and a rapid decrease of magnetic activity at a mean stellar age of ∼6-7 Gyr.
Detection of myocardial ischemia by magnetocardiogram using 64-channel SQUID system

Ischemic heart disease (IHD) is one of the most critical diseases in view of its serious mortality and frequency of occurrence. Especially in Japan, aging population and recent changes in life styles, such as increasing intake of animal fat, are expected to bring about a more frequent occurrence of atherosclerotic lesions in coronary arteries, resulting in an increased IHD morbidity. Furthermore, we can now see more IHD in younger population. Therefore, accurate and quick diagnosis is important. For early detection of IHD, a non-invasive and convenient diagnostic tool with reasonably high accuracy is needed. From this point of view, resting standard electrocardiography (ECG) and echocardiography, which are standard non-invasive diagnostic tools, are not satisfactory in the diagnosis of IHD. The electrical current generated by the heart creates not only electric potential but also a magnetic field. We have observed electrophysiological phenomena of the heart by measuring tangential components of magnetocardiograms (MCGs) using a multi-channel superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) system [1]. Using the tangential components, we have obtained a two-dimensional current projection pattern on the observing plane, because these components show a peak pattern just above the current source. We have developed vector arrow maps of the current from tangential MCGs and have observed their time courses in normal subjects and various patients with cardiac diseases [2,3,4]. We have also developed a visualization method, iso-integral mapping, that is used for twodimensional visualization of total current distribution during the depolarization and repolarization of the ventricle [5]. With our multi-channel SQUID system and these two visualization methods, we thought we may be able to use MCGs as an absolutely non-invasive and convenient diagnostic tool for IHD. In this study, we tried to visualize myocardial ischemia by measuring MCGs using a 64-channel SQUID system, and compared the effectiveness of this approach to resting standard 12-lead ECG and echocardiography.
1 LES SOFTWARE FOR THE DESIGN OF LOW EMISSION COMBUSTION SYSTEMS

In this project, an advanced computational software tool will be developed for the design of low emission combustion systems required for Vision 21 clean energy plants. Vision 21 combustion systems, such as combustors for gas turbines, indirect fired cycles, furnaces, and sequestrian-ready systems, will require innovative low emission designs and low development costs if Vision 21 goals are to be realized. The proposed simulation tool will greatly reduce the number of experimental tests, will stimulate new ideas, will provide the capability of assessing and adapting low-emission combustors to alternate fuels, and greatly reduce the development time cycle of combustion systems. This revolutionary computational tool will utilize Large Eddy Simulation (LES) methods to accurately simulate the highly transient nature of turbulent combustion. The time-accurate LES software will numerically capture large-scale transient motion, while the small-scale motion will be modeled using advanced subgrid turbulence, chemistry, and turbulence-combustion interaction closures. In this way, combustion LES simulations can predict many combustion phenomena that, until now, were impossible to predict with state-of-the-art 3D steady-state Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) analysis. With combustion LES software, it will be possible to calculate combustion dynamics (coupling of unsteady heat release and acoustics), pollutant emissions, lean blowout, flashback, autoignition, etc. LES methods are becoming more and more practical by linking together tens to hundreds of PCs and performing parallel computations with fine grids (millions of cells). Such simulations, performed in a few days or less, provide a very cost-effective complement to experimental testing. In five years, these same calculations can be performed in eight hours or less due to the expected increase of computing power. This three-year project is composed of: Year 1 – model development/implementation, Year 2 – software alpha validation, and Year 3 – technology transfer of software to industry including beta testing. In this first year of the project, subgrid models for turbulence and combustion were developed by expert university researchers (Dr. Suresh Menon of Georgia Tech and Dr. J.Y. Chen of University of California, Berkeley), and are being implemented into a leading combustion CFD
Parallel Deferred Update Replication

Deferred update replication (DUR) is an established approach to implementing highly efficient and available storage. While the throughput of read-only transactions scales linearly with the number of deployed replicas in DUR, the throughput of update transactions experiences limited improvements as replicas are added. This paper presents Parallel Deferred Update Replication (P-DUR), a variation of classical DUR that scales both read-only and update transactions with the number of cores available in a replica. In addition to introducing the new approach, we describe its full implementation and compare its performance to classical DUR and to Berkeley DB, a well-known standalone database.
Getting by with the Advice of Their Friends: CEOs' Advice Networks and Firms' Strategic Responses to Poor Performance

This paper theorizes that relatively poor firm performance can prompt chief executive officers (CEOs) to seek more advice from executives of other firms who are their friends or similar to them and less advice from acquaintances or dissimilar others and suggests how and why this pattern of advice seeking could reduce firms' propensity to change corporate strategy in response to poor performance. We test our hypotheses with large-sample survey data on the identities of CEOs' advice contacts and archival data on firm performance and corporate strategy. The results confirm our hypotheses and show that executives' social network ties can influence firms' responses to economic adversity, in particular by inhibiting strategic change in response to relatively poor firm performance. Additional findings indicate that CEOs' advice seeking in response to low performance may ultimately have negative consequences for subsequent performance, suggesting how CEOs' social network ties could play an indirect role in organizational decline and downward spirals in firm performance.