Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
EVALUATION OF THE DISCLOSURE RISK OF MASKING METHODS DEALING WITH TEXTUAL ATTRIBUTES

Record linkage methods evaluate the disclosure risk of revealing confidential information in anonymized datasets that are publicly distributed. Concretely, they measure the capacity of an intruder to link records in the original dataset with those in the masked one. In the past, masking and record linkage methods have been developed focused on numerical or ordinal data. Recently, motivated by the proliferation of textual information, some authors have proposed masking methods to anonymize textual data. Textual attributes should be interpreted according to their semantics, which makes them more difficult to manage and compare than numerical data. In this paper, we propose a new record linkage method specially tailored to accurately evaluate their disclosure risk. Our method, named Semantic Record Linkage, relies on the theory of semantic similarity and uses widely available ontologies to interpret the semantics of data and propose coherent record linkages. Test performed over a real dataset shows that a semantic record linkage method evaluates better the disclosure risk when compared with a non-semantic approach.
Rothamsted Repository Download

Federal and state regulations are being promulgated under the Clean Air Act to reduce hazardous air emissions from livestock operations. Although much is known about air emissions from livestock operations in Europe, few data are available on emissions from livestock facilities in the United States and the management practices that may minimize these emissions. The objective of this study was to measure seasonal and diet effects on ammonia emissions from experimental tie-stall dairy barns located in central Wisconsin. Four experimental chambers each housed 4 lactating Holstein dairy cows for three 28-d trial periods corresponding to spring, early fall, and winter. A 4 × 4 Latin square statistical design was used to evaluate 4 diets [corn silage (CS)- or alfalfa silage (AS)-based diets at low or high crude protein] in each chamber for a 4-d ammonia monitoring period. Partially due to higher crude protein levels, average ammonia-N emissions during spring (18.8 g/cow per d) were approximately twice the emissions recorded during early fall (8.4 g/cow per d) and 3 times greater than emissions during winter (6.7 g/cow per d). Ammonia-N emissions accounted for approximately 1 to 3% of consumed feed N, 2 to 5% of excreted manure N, and 4 to 11% of manure ammonical N. Night-time ammonia emissions were on average 30% lower than daytime emissions. Forage type did not affect ammonia emissions during winter or early fall. Only during early spring were ammonia emissions lower from chambers containing cows fed low-CP diets than from cows fed high-CP diets. Of the total chamber N inputs (feed and bedding), 93, 91, and 95% were recovered in N outputs (milk, manure, body weight change, and ammonia N) during spring, early fall, and winter trials, respectively. Conﬁdence in the accuracy of ammonia emission results was gained by the relatively high chamber N balances and favorable comparisons of study data with published relationships among the
Wavelet Packets of Fractional Brownian Motion: Asymptotic Analysis and Spectrum Estimation

This paper provides asymptotic properties of the autocorrelation functions of the wavelet packet coefficients of a fractional Brownian motion. It also discusses the convergence speed to the limit autocorrelation function, when the input random process is either a fractional Brownian motion or a wide-sense stationary second-order random process. The analysis concerns some families of wavelet paraunitary filters that converge almost everywhere to the Shannon paraunitary filters. From this analysis, we derive wavelet packet based spectrum estimation for fractional Brownian motions and wide-sense stationary random processes. Experimental tests show good results for estimating the spectrum of 1/f processes.
The Importance of Mental Organization (or Character Structure) When Diagnosing and Analyzing Asperger’s Patients

ABSTRACT A nonlinear, dynamic systems model is applied to the difficulties with diagnosing high-functioning Asperger’s syndrome. These patients are often misdiagnosed as having narcissistic personality disorders, leading to analytic techniques that focus on intrapsychic conflict as the primary etiological factor. It is suggested that what appear descriptively to be narcissistic defenses are really desperate attempts to compensate for developmental disparities that include difficulties with mentalization. Three case examples are used to illustrate this point. Once one realizes that dispositional aberrations, more than intrapsychic conflicts, are leading to these compensatory attempts, an analytic technique can be used that is more helpful.
Synchronisation using wireless trigger-broadcast for impedance spectroscopy of battery cells

In electric vehicles, batteries with many cells are used to supply the high voltages needed for the power train. The battery is controlled by a battery management system (BMS) which needs measurement data from each individual cell. Up to now, wired solutions with specialized measurement controllers for battery modules are in use. Some of these communicate over data bus structures. Our group proposes as an alternative solution the use of wireless communication in the near RF field area. The basics of this solutions have already been published [1]. In this article we present more advanced functionality for the wireless sensors approach. A functional module has been developed for impedance spectroscopy of each individual cell in the battery stack during automotive operation. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy is a powerful method to determine the battery state beyond common and simple models. This technique needs precise and synchronized measurements of the common current and the voltages of the individual cells. A communication and control protocol has been implemented in hard- and software, including a trigger-broadcast operating mode. This solution has to fulfill the time precision requirements of the distributed measurements in the range of a few μs. Therefore, proprietary protocol solutions have been developed. Additional modules in the sensor system allow other functions such as cell balancing and an energy saving wake-up function for the sensor modules. These sensor modules are designed as tailored hardware for integration inside the individual battery cells.
The Missing M Dwarfs

We present evidence which indicates the luminosity functions of star-forming regions, open star clusters and the field dips between spectral types M7 and M8. We attribute this to a sharp local drop in the luminosity–mass relation and speculate that this is caused by the beginning of dust formation in the atmospheres of objects in this effective temperature regime. This effect is not predicted by the current generation of low-mass stellar/substellar evolutionary models. If our interpretation is correct then this result has important implications for investigations concerned with the mass functions of star-forming regions and young open star clusters. For example, it suggests that some brown dwarfs have higher masses than previously thought.
Histamine as a growth factor and chemoattractant for human carcinoma and melanoma cells: action through Ca2(+)-mobilizing H1 receptors

Histamine receptors are present on the surface of various normal and tumor-derived cell types, where their biological function is incompletely understood. Here we report that histamine not only stimulates cell proliferation under serum-free conditions, but also is chemotactic for human carcinoma (Hela and A431) and melanoma (A875) cells expressing H1 type receptors. Histamine was found to be a potent activator of phospholipase C, leading to polyphosphoinositide hydrolysis and subsequent intracellular Ca2+ mobilization. In addition, histamine also causes the protein kinase C-mediated activation of Na+/H+ exchange, as evidenced by an amiloride-sensitive rise in cytoplasmic pH. All histamine-induced responses, including chemotaxis and DNA synthesis, are completely inhibited by the H1 receptor antagonist pyrilamine, but not by cimetidine, an inhibitor of histamine H2 type receptors. Our results suggest that histamine may have a previously unrecognized role in the migration and proliferation of cells expressing H1 receptors.
MULTI-ELEMENT ABUNDANCE MEASUREMENTS FROM MEDIUM-RESOLUTION SPECTRA. I. THE SCULPTOR DWARF SPHEROIDAL GALAXY

We present measurements of Fe, Mg, Si, Ca, and Ti abundances for 388 radial velocity member stars in the Sculptor dwarf spheroidal galaxy (dSph), a satellite of the Milky Way (MW). This is the largest sample of individual α element (Mg, Si, Ca, and Ti) abundance measurements in any single dSph. The measurements are made from Keck/Deep Imaging Multi-Object Spectrometer medium-resolution spectra (6400–9000 Å, R ∼ 6500). Based on comparisons to published high-resolution (R ≳ 20,000) spectroscopic measurements, our measurements have uncertainties of σ[Fe/H] = 0.14 and σ[α/Fe] = 0.13. The Sculptor [Fe/H] distribution has a mean 〈[Fe/H]〉 = −1.58 and is asymmetric with a long, metal-poor tail, indicative of a history of extended star formation. Sculptor has a larger fraction of stars with [Fe/H] < −2 than the MW halo. We have discovered one star with [Fe/H] = −3.80 ± 0.28, which is the most metal-poor star known anywhere except the MW halo, but high-resolution spectroscopy is needed to measure this star's detailed abundances. As has been previously reported based on high-resolution spectroscopy, [α/Fe] in Sculptor falls as [Fe/H] increases. The metal-rich stars ([Fe/H] ∼ −1.5) have lower [α/Fe] than Galactic halo field stars of comparable metallicity. This indicates that star formation proceeded more gradually in Sculptor than in the Galactic halo. We also observe radial abundance gradients of −0.030 ± 0.003 dex arcmin−1 in [Fe/H] and +0.013 ± 0.003 dex arcmin−1 in [α/Fe] out to 11 arcmin (275 pc). Together, these measurements cast Sculptor and possibly other surviving dSphs as representative of the dwarf galaxies from which the metal-poor tail of the Galactic halo formed.
Heritable glycogen-storage deficiency in yeast and its induction by ultra-violet light.

SUMMARY: Cultures of several diploid strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae were found to contain about 0.5% of glycogen-deficient cells. Ultraviolet irradiation increased the mutant frequency to about 5%, while 40% of the population survived. The mutants were detected by plating cultures on nutrient agar containing 1% glucose and staining 3-day colonies with iodine; normal colonies became brown due to the stored glycogen whereas the mutants remained white. The size of the mutant colonies was normal. Most of the mutants have remained stable during subculture. Fractionation of the cellular carbohydrate confirmed that the mutants were deficient in glycogen. Glucose concentration in the growth medium had a marked influence on glycogen storage. When the mutants were grown on nutrient agar containing 8% glucose, glycogen was stored and the mutants could not be distinguished by iodine-staining from the wild type. Glycogen-deficient mutants contained higher than usual proportions of respiration-deficient cells. Respiration-deficient colonies, whether derived from glycogen-deficient or from normal cultures contained appreciably less glycogen than those of the wild-type yeast.
Online Information Search: Differences between Goal-Directed and Experiential Search

travelers’ use of the Internet as an information source has been the subject of research in the past. Most studies focus on the search process; however, the influence of the actual search goal on search behavior has been neglected. travelers’ interactions with a website may depend on whether they search for precise factual information or rather stimulus driven and unplanned. this article provides an overview of literature on information search and shows how searchers who are browsing a website just for fun or are searching for factual information differ in their perception. A survey among 445 travelers will give insight into search behavior depending on the search setting. the results indicate that the main drivers for value and satisfaction for a goal-directed search are content quality followed by usefulness. these effects are attenuated for the experiential search. Further, ease of use is only significant for the goal-directed search group while enjoyment only exhibits effects for experiential searchers.
Curcumin: A Culinary Herb and Its Health Benefits

Abstract: Curcumin, present in Curcuma longa , a traditional Indian spice, has many important biological mechanisms to improve health of aging organisms. It inhibits nuclear factor kappa beta (NFkB) decreasing both inflammation and cell survival, which is important to avoid proliferation of cancer cells and decrease brain, endothelial and myocardial damage. Curcumin also decreases inflammation by other membrane systems, such as protein kinases. This traditional spice also elicites higher antioxidant activity that can potentially enhance neuronal survival, decreasing the risk of neurodegenerative disorders of the CNS (e.g. Alzheimerâ€™s disease). By its capability to trigger apoptosis of different target tumoral cells, curcumin has been considered as a new promise anti-cancer quimiopreventive agent. It is speculated that dietary curcumin could perform many important biological mechanisms affording a better quality of life during human lifespan.
International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning Exploring the Moderating Role of Perceived Flexibility Advantages in Mobile Learning Continuance Intention (MLCI)

The primary purpose of this study was to explore the key factors that could affect mobile learning continuance intention (MLCI), and examine the moderating effect of perceived flexibility advantages (PFA) on the relationship between key mobile learning elements and continuance intention. Five hundred undergraduate students who had previously adopted mobile devices to learn English took part in this study. Partial least squares (PLS) analysis was utilized to test the hypotheses in this study. It has been found that the perceived usefulness of mobile technology, subjective norm, and self-management of learning could be closely linked to mobile learning continuance intention. With particular respect to the moderating role of perceived flexibility advantages, it has been demonstrated that PFA could moderate the relationship between perceived usefulness of mobile technology and mobile learning continuance intention, as well as the association between subjective norm and mobile learning continuance intention, whereas PFA did not moderate the link between self-management of learning and mobile learning continuance intention.This report has further added to the body of knowledge in the field of mobile learning through empirical examination.
School randomised trial on prevention of excessive weight gain by discouraging students from drinking sodas

Abstract Objective To determine whether an educational programme aimed at discouraging students from drinking sugar-sweetened beverages could prevent excessive weight gain. Design Forty-seven classes in twenty-two schools were randomised as intervention or control. Subjects Participants were 1140, 9–12-year-old fourth graders (435 in the intervention group and 608 in the control group). Sugar-sweetened beverages and juice intake were measured through one 24 h recall at baseline and another at the end of the trial. The main outcome was the change in BMI (BMI = weight (kg)/height (m2)), measured at the beginning and at the end of the school year. Intention-to-treat analysis was performed taking into account the cluster (classes) effect. Results A statistically significant decrease in the daily consumption of carbonated drinks in the intervention compared to control (mean difference = −56 ml; 95 % CI −119, −7 ml) was followed by a non-significant overall reduction in BMI, P = 0·33. However, among those students overweight at baseline, the intervention group showed greater BMI reduction (−0·4 kg/m2 compared with −0·2 kg/m2 in the control group (P = 0·11)), and this difference was statistically significant among girls (P = 0·009). Fruit juice consumption was slightly increased in the intervention group (P = 0·08), but not among girls. Conclusion Decreasing sugar-sweetened beverages intake significantly reduced BMI among overweight children, and mainly among girls. Efforts to reduce energy intake through liquids need to emphasise overall sweetened beverages and addition of sugar on juices.
Looking Chinese and Learning Chinese as a Heritage Language: The Role of Habitus

ABSTRACT The identity-language link has been widely recognised. In Heritage Language research, the complex entanglement between Chinese ethnic identity and Chinese Heritage Language has gained increasing attention in recent decades. Both social psychological and poststructural schools have offered meaningful insights into this field, but have also received criticism from other perspectives. To think through these two camps of scholarship, this paper draws on Bourdieu’s sociological notion of habitus and zooms in on the visible racial identity of Chinese looks. To unveil the dynamics and nature of this particular form of Chinese identity in relation to Chinese Heritage Language learning, the author first surveyed 230 young Chinese Australian adults and then interviewed five of them. The survey result indicated that perceptions of Chinese looks were significantly related to Chinese Heritage Language proficiency. In addition, the theme of looking Chinese repeatedly emerged from the interview data. Participants considered looking Chinese as an integral part of their Chinese identity, reported powerful others’ stereotypical perception that looking Chinese necessarily meant being able to speak Chinese, and indicated that these internal and external understandings of looking Chinese came to shape their Chinese Heritage Language learning.
Circumcorneal annulus of collagen fibrils in the human limbus.

PURPOSE To quantify the orientation of the collagen fibrils in the human limbus and to compare it with the orientation in the cornea and the sclera. METHODS Fibril orientation was measured from 100 synchrotron x-ray diffraction patterns collected at intervals along lines across the cornea, limbus, and sclera. RESULTS A distinct circumcorneal annulus of collagen fibrils was revealed in the limbus. For the individual cornea investigated, the annulus was not uniform around the corneal circumference; its width, fibril angular spread, and fibril density all varied with position. The average width of the annulus was narrower in the superior sector (1.5 mm) than in the inferior sector (2.0 mm). The results from the edge of the cornea suggested that the preferentially aligned corneal fibrils bend sharply at the limbus to run circumferentially or that, together with this bending or alone, extra fibrils arising in the sclera run across this zone. In the cornea the biaxial preferred directions became more pronounced from the center of the cornea toward the limbus along the superior-inferior axis. CONCLUSIONS The excess of circumferential fibrils in the limbus, predicted from the sharp change of curvature in the surface of the eye at the limbus, appeared to take the form of a well-defined annulus. From a consideration of the mechanics of the system it seemed probable that the purpose of this annulus was to help maintain the correct curvature of the cornea. Before further research, it was hypothesized that some refractive problems associated with an incorrect curvature of the cornea may be related in part to abnormalities of this circumcorneal annulus.
Active and Passive Waste in Government Spending: Evidence from a Policy Experiment

We propose a distinction between active waste and passive waste as determinants of the cost of public services. Active waste entails utility for the public decision maker (as in the case of bribery) whereas passive waste does not (as in the case of inefficiency due to red tape). To assess the empirical relevance of both forms of waste, we analyze purchases of standardized goods by Italian public bodies and exploit a policy experiment associated with a national procurement agency. A revealed preference argument implies that if public bodies with higher costs are more likely to buy from the procurement agency rather than from traditional suppliers, cost differences are more likely to be due to passive waste. We find that: (i) Some public bodies pay systematically more than others for observationally equivalent goods and such price differences are sizeable; (ii) Differences are correlated with governance structure: the central administration pays at least 22% more than semi-autonomous agencies (local government is at an intermediate level); (iii) The variation in prices across public bodies is principally due to variation in passive rather than active waste; (iv) Passive waste accounts for 83% of total estimated waste.
The impact of user generated content on consumer based brand equity

Developed to address the challenges of the social web, this study aims to determine how consumers’ involvement in user-generated content (UGC) affects brand equity. The formation and testing of a conceptual model addresses a gap in the literature by exploring links between UGC, involvement and consumer-based brand equity. Based on previous research complemented by depth interviews with experts, co-creation, empowerment, community and self-concept were selected to represent the domain of UGC. The model was then empirically tested through data from 201 consumers responding to an online survey. The results provide support for managerial initiatives involving UGC campaigns for brand building. More specifically, the results indicate that co-creation, community and self-concept have a positive impact on UGC involvement. The data also supports that UGC involvement has a positive impact on consumer-based brand equity. The contributions of these research findings provide empirical evidence that has implications in building deeper relationships between consumers and brands.
An Empirical Approach to the Normality of π

Using the results of several extremely large recent computations [Yee and Kondo 11], we tested positively the normality of a prefix of roughly four trillion hexadecimal digits of π. This result was used by a Poisson process model of normality of π: in this model, it is extraordinarily unlikely that π is not asymptotically normal base 16, given the normality of its initial segment.