Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Deviations from the Law of One Price in Japan

Using 25 years of monthly data on individual Japanese retail prices, we study the behavior of product-specific Law of One Price (LOP) deviations. Individual tradable products, compared with nontradables, are more likely to have different distributions of LOP deviations across cities. Their distributions are also more likely to change over time. Individual LOP deviation series are found to display considerable persistence and there is limited evidence that tradability enhances price convergence. In addition, deviations from the LOP are found to display nonlinear trends, and these trends are not linearly related to a product’s tradability. For individual products, LOP deviations are affected by their own inflation rates and, to a lesser extent, by aggregate inflation, output variations, and monetary variability. Interestingly, the trend behavior remains significant in the presence of these economic variables.
Mutual Information Analysis for Three‐Phase Dynamic Current Mode Logic against Side‐Channel Attack

To date, many different kinds of logic styles for hardware countermeasures have been developed; for example, SABL, TDPL, and DyCML. Current mode–based logic styles are useful as they consume less power compared to voltage mode–based logic styles such as SABL and TDPL. Although we developed TPDyCML in 2012 and presented it at the WISA 2012 conference, we have further optimized it in this paper using a binary decision diagram algorithm and confirmed its properties through a practical implementation of the AES S‐box. In this paper, we will explain the outcome of HSPICE simulations, which included correlation power attacks, on AES S‐boxes configured using a compact NMOS tree constructed from either SABL, CMOS, TDPL, DyCML, or TPDyCML. In addition, to compare the performance of each logic style in greater detail, we will carry out a mutual information analysis (MIA). Our results confirm that our logic style has good properties as a hardware countermeasure and 15% less information leakage than those secure logic styles used in our MIA.
Object Recognition Memory and Cholinergic Parameters in Mice Expressing Human Presenilin 1 Transgenes

Most autosomal dominant forms of Alzheimer disease (AD) are related to missense mutations in the human presenilin (PS) 1 gene. Although the underlying mechanisms associated with pathophysiology of AD have yet to be clearly established, pathogenic mutations in the PS1 gene influence the processing of beta-amyloid precursor protein, leading to increased production and deposition of highly fibrillogenic amyloid beta(1-42) peptide in the brains of AD patients. As cognitive dysfunction in AD is associated with a dramatic loss of cholinergic innervation particularly in the hippocampus and neocortex, we investigated learning and cholinergic neurochemistry in transgenic mice expressing pathogenic mutant L286V or wild-type(wt) human PS1 transgenes. Relative to wt, the L286V PS1 transgenic mice exhibited reduced sensorimotor activity and marked deterioration of object memory between 3 and 5 h after the first encounter. Activity of the biosynthetic enzyme choline acetyltransferase was not altered in the hippocampus, frontoparietal cortex, or striatum of mutant transgenic mice relative to wt transgenic or littermate nontransgenic controls. No differences in the densities of M1/[3H]pirenzepine, M2/[3H]AF-DX 384, or alpha(7) nicotinic/125I-alpha-bungarotoxin receptor binding sites were evident in any brain regions among L286V PS1 transgenic, wt PS1 transgenic, and littermate nontransgenic controls. These results suggest that overexpression of a mutated PS1 gene induces a subtle alteration in object memory without affecting cholinergic neurochemistry.
Statistics of AGN in Rich Clusters Revisited

Using spectrophotometry of a large sample of galaxies in 19 Abell Clusters, we have selected 42 candidate AGN by the criteria used by Dressler et.al. 1985 (DTS) in their analysis of the statistics of 22 AGN in 14 rich cluster fields, which are based on the equivalent width of [OII]3727, Hbeta, and [OIII]5007 emission. We have then discriminated AGN from HII region-like galaxies (hereafter HII galaxies) in the manner developed by Veilleux & Osterbrok 1987 using the additional information provided by Halpha and [NII]6583 or Halpha and [SII]6716+6731 emission, in order to test the reliability of the selection criteria used by DTS. We find that our sample is very similar to that of DTS before we discriminate AGN from HII galaxies, and would lead to similar conclusions. However, we find that their method inevitably mixes HII galaxies with AGN, even for the most luminous objects in our sample. Other authors have attempted to quantify the relative fraction of cluster to field AGN since the study of DTS (Hill & Oegerle 1993, Biviano et al. 1997) reaching similar conclusions, but using similar criteria to theirs to select AGN (or using the [OIII]5007/Hbeta flux ratio test that also mixes HII galaxies with AGN). Our sample of true AGN is left too small to reach statistically meaningful conclusions, therefore a new study with the more time-consuming method that includes the other lines will be required to quantify the true relative fraction of cluster to field AGN.
Job Mobility and Measurement Error

This thesis consists of essays investigating job mobility and measurement error. Job mobility, captured here as a change of employer, is a striking feature of the labour market. In empirical work on job mobility, researchers often depend on self-reported tenure data to identify job changes. There may be measurement error in these responses and consequently observations may be misclassified as job changes when truly no change has taken place and vice versa. These observations serve as a starting point for this thesis. Chapter 3 explores the level and determinants of job mobility in Ireland, using the Living in Ireland Survey, the Irish component of the European Community Household Panel. One of the findings is that the rate of voluntary (i.e. employee initiated) job mobility in Ireland trebled over the period 1995 to 2000. A decomposition technique indicates that composition changes only explain around one-fifth of the increase, while the remainder reflects changes in operation of the labour market. Chapter 4 uses Monte Carlo simulation techniques to investigate the performance of a modified probit estimator developed by Hausman, Abrevaya and Scott-Morton (1998) that controls for misclassification in a dependent variable. An analysis of the data indicates that there is the possibility of substantial measurement error which may make it difficult to capture job changes. The Hausman et al. (1998) estimator is used to formally control for measurement error in models of job change for Ireland (Chapter 5) and other European countries (Chapter 6). The main findings are that the true rates of job change are being severely undercounted in several countries and also that similar factors are important in determining job changes across countries. Finally, Chapter 7 contributes to the existing literature that examines the impact of job mobility on wage growth. It finds that by controlling for measurement error in job changes, the effect of job mobility on wage growth is larger than prevailing estimates suggest.
Exploring a financial product model with a two-population genetic algorithm

This paper describes a successful application of evolutionary computation to a difficult and commercially significant constrained optimization problem. The financial product model, for optimizing mortgage refinancing packages, is introduced. It is a realistic, and very challenging optimization problem, for which standard solvers leave much to be desired. An untuned two-population genetic algorithm (GA) has been remarkably successful in finding good, feasible and nearly optimal solutions. In addition, the genetic solver provides important information for management decision making besides simply a good solution to the model. Finally, the paper undertakes a case study in order to investigate the details of how and why the two-population GA works.
Essays in labor economics

This thesis titled “Essays in Labour Economics” is comprised of three essays investigating various determinants of earnings inequality. Chapter 1 provides a novel explanation for labor market polarization—the rise in employment shares of high and low skill jobs at the expense of middle skill jobs, and the fall in middle-skill wages. We argue that recent and historical episodes of polarization resulted from increased automation. In our theoretical model, firms deciding whether to employ machines or workers in a given task weigh the cost of using machines, which is increasing in the complexity (in an engineering sense) of the task, against the cost of employing workers, which is increasing in training time required by the task. Some tasks do not require training regardless of complexity, while in other tasks training is required and increases in complexity. In equilibrium, firms are more likely to automate a task that requires training, holding complexity constant. We assume that more-skilled workers learn faster, and thus it is middle skill workers who have a comparative advantage in tasks that are most likely to be automated when machine design costs fall. In addition to explaining job polarization, our model makes sense of observed patterns of automation and accounts for a set of novel stylized facts about occupational training requirements. Chapter 2 establishes a novel source of wage differences among observationally similar high skill workers. We show that degree class — a coarse measure of performance in university degrees — causally affects graduates’ earnings. We employ a regression discontinuity design comparing graduates who differ only by a few marks in an individual exam, and whose degree class is thus assigned randomly. A First Class is worth roughly three percent in starting wages which translates into £1,000 per annum. An Upper Second is worth more on the margin—seven percent in starting wages (£2,040). In addition to identifying a novel source of luck in the determination of earnings, our findings also show the importance of simple heuristics for hiring decisions. Chapter 3 asks whether public policy affects the degree of intergenerational transmission of education. The chapter investigates this question in the context of secondary school transitions in Germany. During the last three decades, several German states changed the rules for admission to secondary school tracks. Combining a new data set on transition rules with micro data from the German Socioeconomic Panel (SOEP), I find that allowing free track choice raises the probability of attending the most advanced track by five percentage points. However, the effect is twice as large for children of less educated parents. The results suggest that the correlation between parents’ and children’s educational attainment may be reduced by more than one third when no formal restrictions to choosing a secondary school track exist.
Increased Expression of Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor Induces Formation of Basal Dendrites and Axonal Branching in Dentate Granule Cells in Hippocampal Explant Cultures

During limbic epileptogenesis in vivo the dentate granule cells (DGCs) exhibit increased expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), followed by striking morphologic plasticities, namely the formation of basal dendrites and the sprouting of mossy fibers. We hypothesized that increased expression of BDNF intrinsic to DGCs is sufficient to induce these plasticities. To test this hypothesis, we transfected DGCs in rat hippocampal slice cultures with BDNF or nerve growth factor (NGF) via particle-mediated gene transfer, and we visualized the neuronal processes with cotransfected green fluorescent protein. Transfection with BDNF produced significant increases in axonal branch and basal dendrite number relative to NGF or empty vector controls. Structural changes were prevented by the tyrosine kinase inhibitor K252a. Thus increased expression of BDNF within DGCs is sufficient to induce these morphological plasticities, which may represent one mechanism by which BDNF promotes limbic epileptogenesis.
Vitamin D3 Regulates the Formation and Degradation of Gap Junctions in Androgen-Responsive Human Prostate Cancer Cells

1α-25(OH)2 vitamin D3 (1-25D), an active hormonal form of Vitamin D3, is a well-known chemopreventive and pro-differentiating agent. It has been shown to inhibit the growth of several prostate cancer cell lines. Gap junctions, formed of proteins called connexins (Cx), are ensembles of cell-cell channels, which permit the exchange of small growth regulatory molecules between adjoining cells. Cell-cell communication mediated by gap junctional channels is an important homeostatic control mechanism for regulating cell growth and differentiation. We have investigated the effect of 1-25D on the formation and degradation of gap junctions in an androgen-responsive prostate cancer cell line, LNCaP, which expresses retrovirally-introduced Cx32. Connexin32 is expressed by the luminal and well-differentiated cells of normal prostate and prostate tumors. Our results document that 1-25D enhances the expression of Cx32 and its subsequent assembly into gap junctions. Our results further show that 1-25D prevents androgen-regulated degradation of Cx32, post-translationally, independent of androgen receptor (AR)-mediated signaling. Finally, our findings document that formation of gap junctions sensitizes Cx32-expressing LNCaP cells to the growth inhibitory effects of 1-25D and alters their morphology. These findings suggest that the growth-inhibitory effects of 1-25D in LNCaP cells may be related to its ability to modulate the assembly of Cx32 into gap junctions.
Detection of a hot core in the intermediate-mass Class 0 protostar NGC 7129-FIRS 2

We report high angular resolution (HPBW ∼ 0.6 �� × 0.5 �� at 1.3 mm) observations of the Class 0 intermediate-mass (IM) protostar NGC 7129- FIRS 2 using the Plateau de Bure Interferometer. Our observations show the existence of an intense unresolved source in the continuum at 1.3 mm and 3 mm at the position of the Class 0 object. In addition, compact CH3CN emission is detected at this position. The high rotational temperature derived from the CH3CN lines (Trot ≈ 50 K), as well as the enhanced CH3CN fractional abundance (X(CH3CN) ∼ 7.0×10 −9 ), shows the existence of a hot core in this IM young stellar object. This is to our knowledge the first IM hot core detected so far. Interferometric maps of the region in the CH3OH 5kk� →4kkand D2CO 404→303 lines are also presented in this paper. The methanol emission presents two condensations, one associated with the hot core, which was very intense in the high upper state energy lines (Eu > 100 K), and the other associated with the bipolar outflow which dominates the emission in the low excitation lines. Enhanced CH3OH abundances (X(CH3OH) ∼ 3 × 10 −8 -af ew 10 −7 ) were measured in both components. While intense D2CO 404 → 303 emission was detected towards the hot core, the N2D + 3 → 2 line was not detected in our interferometric observations. The different behaviors of D2CO and N2D + emissions suggest different formation mechanisms for the two species and different deuteration processes for H2CO and N2H + (surface and gas-phase chemistry, respectively). Finally, the spectrum of the large bandwidth correlator shows a forest of lines at the hot core position, revealing that this object is extraordinarily rich in complex molecules. For deeper insight into the chemistry of complex molecules, we compared the fractional abundances of the complex O- and N- bearing species in FIRS 2 with those in hot corinos and massive hot cores. Within the large uncertainty involved in fractional abundance estimates towards hot cores, we did not detect any variation in the relative abundances of O- and N-bearing molecules ((CH3CN)/(CH3OH)) with the hot core luminosity. However, the O-bearing species H2CO and HCOOH seemed to be more abundant in low and intermediate mass stars than in massive star-forming regions. We propose that this could be the consequence of a different grain mantle composition in low and massive star-forming regions.
Modeling Tourism Advertising Effectiveness

This study builds on previous research on the impact of tourism advertising and argues that there are a number of likely routes through which tourism advertising influences destination choice. Data were obtained from a survey that examined the impact of Illinois travel advertising and was conducted during the fall of 2001. The results confirm that there are strong linkages among top-of-mind awareness, ad awareness, requesting travel information, and the likelihood of visiting a destination, and therefore, these constitute important routes to influencing destination choice. Differences in the effects of advertising by media channel also appear to be substantial.
Exploring the time-saving bias: How drivers misestimate time saved when increasing speed

According to the time-saving bias, drivers underestimate the time saved when increasing from a low speed and overestimate the time saved when increasing from a relatively high speed. Previous research used a specific type of task — drivers were asked to estimate time saved when increasing speed and to give a numeric response — to show this. The present research conducted two studies with multiple questions to show that the time-saving bias occurs in other tasks. Study 1 found that drivers committed the time-saving bias when asked to estimate (a) the time saved when increasing speed or (b) the distance that can be completed at a given time when increasing speed or (c) the speed required to complete a given distance in decreasing times. Study 2 showed no major differences in estimations of time saved compared to estimations of the remaining journey time and also between responses given on a numeric scale versus a visual analog scale. Study 3 tested two possible explanations for the time-saving bias: a Proportion heuristic and a Differences heuristic. Some evidence was found for use of the latter.
VEGFR-1 function and dysfunction in monocytes

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India's policy stance on reserves and the currency

Over the last decade, India engaged in substantial liberalisation on the current account and the capital account. At the same time, a fully articulated policy framework defining the currency regime is not known in the public domain. In this paper, we seek to characterise then ature of the currency regime, in the period after the Asian crisis. This is closely linked to better understanding the phenomenon of reserves accumulation of the recent years. Our results suggest that the main focus of the currency regime has been to deliver a low volatility of the nominal exchange rate. The rupee appears to be a de facto peg to the USD. In the last one year, reserves accumulation cannot be explained by insurance motivations; it seems to be a passive side effect of maintaining the currency regime
Clinical Factors for Prognosis and Treatment Guidance of Spinal Cord Astrocytoma

Study Design Retrospective study. Purpose To obtain information useful in establishing treatment guidelines by evaluating baseline clinical features and treatment outcomes of patients with spinal cord astrocytoma (SCA). Overview of Literature The optimal management of SCA remains controversial, and there are no standard guidelines. Methods The study included 20 patients with low-grade and 13 with high-grade SCA surgically treated between 1989 and 2014. Patients were classified according to the extent of surgical resection. Survival was assessed using Kaplan–Meier plots and compared between groups by log-rank tests. Neurological status was defined by the modified McCormick scale and compared between groups by Mann–Whitney U tests. Results Surgical resection was performed for 19 of 20 low-grade (95%) and 10 of 13 high-grade (76.9%) SCA patients. Only nine patients (27.3%) underwent gross total resection, all of whom had low-grade SCA. Of all patients, 51.5% showed deteriorated neurological status compared to preoperative baseline. Median overall survival was significantly longer for low-grade SCA than that (91 months, 78% at 5 years vs. 15 months, 31% at 5 years; p=0.007). Low-grade SCA patients benefited from more aggressive resection, whereas high-grade SCA patients did not. Multivariate analysis revealed histology status (hazard ratio [HR], 0.30; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.09–0.98; p<0.05) and postoperative neurological status (HR, 0.12; CI, 0.02–0.95; p<0.05) as independent predictors of longer overall survival. Adjuvant radiotherapy had no significant impact on survival rate. However, a trend for increased survival was observed with radiation cordotomy (RCT) in high-grade SCA patients. Conclusions Aggressive resection for low-grade and RCT may prolong survival. Preservation of neurological status is an important treatment goal. Given the low incidence of SCA, establishing strong collaborative, interdisciplinary, and multi-institutional study groups is necessary to define optimal treatments.
New release of the ELODIE library: Version 3.1

We present ELODIE.3. 1, an updated release of the library published in Prugniel & Soubiran (2001, 2004). The library includes 1962 spectra of 1388 stars obtained with the ELODIE spectrograph at the Observatoire de Haute-Provence 193cm telescope in the wavelength range 390 to 680 nm. It provides a wide coverage of atmospheric parameters : T_eff from 3100 K to 50000 K, log g from -0.25 to 4.9 and [Fe/H] from -3 to +1. The library is given at two resolutions: R~42000, with the flux normalized to the pseudo-continuum, FWHM=0.55A (R~10000) calibrated in physical flux (reduced above earth atmosphere) with a broad-band photometric precision of 2.5% and narrow-band precision of 0.5%. In this new release the data-reduction (flux calibration, reconnection of the echelle orders) has been improved, and in particular the blue region, between 390 and 400 nm has been added. The FITS files for each spectra, and the measured atmospheric parameters are publicly available. See the ELODIE.3. 1 page for more details: http://www.obs. u-bordeaux1.fr/m2a/soubiran/elodie_library. html
Fragmentation in Molecular Clouds and its connection to the IMF

We present an analysis of star-forming gas cores in a smooth particle hydrodynamics simulation of a giant molecular cloud. We identify cores using their deep potential wells. This yields a smoother distribution with clearer boundaries than density. Additionally, this gives an indication of future collapse, as bound potential cores (p-cores) represent the earliest stages of fragmentation in molecular clouds. We find that the mass function of the p-cores resembles the stellar initial mass function and the observed clump mass function, although p-core masses (∼0.7 M� ) are smaller than typical density clumps. The bound p-cores are generally subsonic, have internal substructure and are only quasi-spherical. We see no evidence of massive bound cores supported by turbulence. We trace the evolution of the p-cores forward in time, and investigate the connection between the original p-core mass and the stellar mass that formed from it. We find that there is a poor correlation, with considerable scatter suggesting accretion on to the core is dependent on more factors than just the initial core mass. During the accretion process the p-cores accrete from beyond the region first bound, highlighting the importance of the core environment to its subsequent evolution.