Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Effects of Technology Innovativeness and System Exposure on Student Acceptance of E-textbooks

The efforts of educators in the last three decades have, among other things, focused on the use of information technology (IT) in education. It has become commonplace to view information systems both as an effective carrier of course content as well as a cost-effective tool to improve student learning outcomes. One of such technologies is the e-book. Decision-makers in the education field need make sense of this technological transformation. However, despite the growing popularity of e-books in higher education, its adoption by students is yet to be crystalized. This study exploits the technology acceptance model (TAM) framework to examine student acceptance of e-textbooks as “internally” impacted by technology innovativeness and “externally” influenced by system exposure. The results showed that students’ technology innovativeness is associated with student acceptance of e-textbooks and that system exposure was a strong moderator of the TAM relationships. The findings suggest that students’ openness to new technology, in general, is likely to positively affect the adoption of a specific new instructional technology. Additionally, system exposure was found to be a significant moderator of the TAM relationships. It is concluded that students’ technology innovativeness and system exposure must therefore be factored into instructional technology usage decision-making models.
On the Growth Effect of Stock Market Liberalizations

We investigate the effect of a stock market liberalization on industry growth in emerging markets. Consistent with the view that liberalization reduces financing constraints, we find that industries that are more externally dependent and face better growth opportunities grew faster following liberalization. However, this growth increase appears to come from an expansion in the size of existing firms rather than through the entry of financially constrained new firms. We show that following liberalization, new firm growth occurs in countries and industries with lower entry barriers. Hence, liberalization has a more uniform growth impact if accompanied by competition-enhancing reforms.
Organizing self-organizing teams

Agile teams are described as "self-organizing". How these teams actually organize themselves in practice, however, is not well understood. Through Grounded Theory research involving 24 Agile practitioners across 14 software organizations in New Zealand and India, we identified six informal roles that team members adopt in order to help their teams self-organize. These roles --- Mentor, Co-ordinator, Translator, Champion, Promoter, and Terminator --- help teams learn Agile practices, liaise with customers, maintain management support, and remove ineffective team members. Understanding these roles will help software teams become self-organizing, and should guide Agile coaches in working with Agile teams.
Altered gene expression profiles in the frontal cortex of cirrhotic alcoholics.

BACKGROUND Cirrhosis is the result of chronic liver disease that causes scarring and dysfunction of the liver. The disease is a common concomitant condition resulting from sustained exposure to alcohol. Heavy alcohol use results in brain damage that is generally more severe in cirrhotic compared with noncirrhotic alcoholics. We examined, at the cellular level, gene expression in the frontal cortex of cirrhotic alcoholics. METHODS Gene expression profiles were compared between cirrhotic and noncirrhotic alcoholics using approximately 47,000 element cDNA microarrays. RESULTS Widespread differences in transcriptome patterns were observed in cirrhotic compared with noncirrhotic alcoholics and these differences in gene expression accurately distinguished cirrhotic from noncirrhotic alcoholics. Functionally related groups of genes were identified that are involved in cell adhesion, mitochondrial function, synaptic transmission, apoptosis, and cell proliferation. Both astrocytes and neuronal cells were affected at the transcriptional level. The regulated genes are involved in neurite growth, neuronal cell adhesion, synaptic vesicle release, and postsynaptic neurotransmission. CONCLUSIONS These changes in the transcriptome likely contribute to the more severe brain dysfunction in cirrhotic alcoholics.
Behavioral response and adaptive cost in resistant and susceptible Plutella xylostella to Chlorantraniliprole

Abstract Diamides have been used worldwide to manage the diamondback moth (DBM), Plutella xylostella L. (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae), however some strains showed resistance to these molecules. Also, pheromone traps could be used to manage this pest, hence reducing the use of insecticides in the field. Resistant DBM strains may have biological disadvantages in comparison to susceptible strains in areas without sprays, including reduction in fitness or behavioral changes. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate whether DBM strains resistant to chlorantraniliprole showed adaptive costs that could alter male attraction to the sex pheromone, in comparison to susceptible strains in the laboratory and semi-field conditions. First, the LC1, LC10, LC25, and LC50 of DBM to chlorantraniliprole were established, which were 0.003, 0.005, 0.007, and 0.011 mg a.i. liter−1, and 5.88, 24.80, 57.22, and 144.87 mg a.i. liter−1 for the susceptible and resistant strains, respectively. Development and reproduction of DBM strains subjected to those concentrations were compared. Later, male response to the sex pheromone was investigated in a Y-tube in the laboratory and in a greenhouse to pheromone traps. Resistant DBM strain showed an adaptive cost in comparison to the susceptible strain that can result in a delay in population growth in the field when selection pressure is absent. Conversely, resistant males have no olfactory response alteration in comparison to susceptible males, consistently at 3 (P = 0.6848) and 7 days (P = 0.9140) after release, suggesting that pheromone traps continue to be a viable alternative to manage DBM in an IPM system.
Bi-directional wireless charging between portable devices

In order to support for empty battery of portable devices with very important and urgent situations, a bi-directional wireless charging between portable devices is tested under WPC Qi specifications. The bi-directional charging is simply achieved by adding the switching elements across the rectifier diodes. As an experimental result of a prototype, system efficiencies of about 70% are obtained at an output power of 2.5W with 2mm air gap and 0~8mm lateral transition conditions.
Loss of diversity in wood-inhabiting fungal communities affects decomposition activity in Norway spruce wood

Hundreds of wood-inhabiting fungal species are now threatened, principally due to a lack of dead wood in intensively managed forests, but the consequences of reduced fungal diversity on ecosystem functioning are not known. Several experiments have shown that primary productivity is negatively affected by a loss of species, but the effects of microbial diversity on decomposition are less studied. We studied the relationship between fungal diversity and the in vitro decomposition rate of slightly, moderately and heavily decayed Picea abies wood with indigenous fungal communities that were diluted to examine the influence of diversity. Respiration rate, wood-degrading hydrolytic enzymes and fungal community structure were assessed during a 16-week incubation. The number of observed OTUs in DGGE was used as a measure of fungal diversity. Respiration rate increased between early- and late-decay stages. Reduced fungal diversity was associated with lower respiration rates during intermediate stages of decay, but no effects were detected at later stages. The activity of hydrolytic enzymes varied among decay stages and fungal dilutions. Our results suggest that functioning of highly diverse communities of the late-decay stage were more resistant to the loss of diversity than less diverse communities of early decomposers. This indicates the accumulation of functional redundancy during the succession of the fungal community in decomposing substrates.
Convolutional networks for real-time 6-DOF camera relocalization

We present a robust and real-time monocular six degree of freedom relocalization system. Our system trains a convolutional neural network to regress the 6-DOF camera pose from a single RGB image in an end-to-end manner with no need of additional engineering or graph optimisation. The algorithm can operate indoors and outdoors in real time, taking 5ms per frame to compute. It obtains approximately 2m and 3 degree accuracy for large scale outdoor scenes and 0.5m and 5 degree accuracy indoors. This is achieved using an efficient 23 layer deep convnet, demonstrating that convnets can be used to solve complicated out of image plane regression problems. This was made possible by leveraging transfer learning from large scale classification data. We show the convnet localizes from high level features and is robust to difficult lighting, motion blur and different camera intrinsics where point based SIFT registration fails. Furthermore we show how the pose feature that is produced generalizes to other scenes allowing us to regress pose with only a few dozen training examples.
ORGANIZATIONAL POLITICS AND PERFORMANCE OUTCOMES: INVESTIGATING THE BUFFERING EFFECT OF ORGANIZATIONAL JUSTICE

In current study, it was theorized that perceived fairness reduces the detrimental effects of perception of organizational politics on performance outcomes of organizations i.e. organizational commitment, managerial effectiveness and organizational performance. To test this exposition, data of 243 managerial employees of banking sector have been obtained and used to find out the moderating effect of organizational justice on perception of organizational politics and performance outcomes. The findings reached at the conclusion that distributive and procedural dimensions of the organizational justice safeguard the damaging effects of perception of organizational politics on performance but interactional justice has not verified as moderator. This study extends the fairness theory and recommends management to flourish fairness culture in organizations to reduce the injurious effects of organizational politics in the workplace.
Protection of Video Logos with Randomization

To announce the ownership of video such as TV programs, the owner usually embeds his logo into the programs in a visible way. Since the logo and its position are usually fixed in the video frames, an adversary can completely remove the logo from the video without video quality loss. In order to thwart this removal attack, the present paper randomly changes logo location and shape without obviously reducing the visibility and fidelity of the logo
The Devil You Know: Self-Esteem and Switching Responses to Poor Service

We investigate a psychological factor regulating consumers’ switching in response to poor service quality: chronic global self-esteem. Whereas high-self-esteem consumers tend to switch to other providers in response to poor service quality, low-self-esteem consumers often do not. This happens because low-self-esteem consumers who experience poor service become risk-averse, and therefore reluctant to engage in new committed service relationships. Indeed, low-self-esteem consumers’ likelihood to switch to an alternative provider in response to poor service quality increases when this provider offers a less risky, low commitment (vs. more risky, high commitment) contract. Moreover, experimentally reducing low-self-esteem consumers’ risk aversion increases their likelihood to switch to alternative providers in response to poor service quality. Finally, low-self-esteem consumers’ risk aversion mediates their reluctance to switch in response to poor service. We rule out failure severity perceptions, power, autonomy, affect, and action orientation as alternative explanations. The implication of this research for public policy makers is that promoting competition (by offering consumers options and by reducing switching costs) may not be enough to protect the welfare of low-self-esteem consumers. We also suggest ways in which firms can untie vulnerable consumers from negative service relationships.
The gravitational-wave signature of core-collapse supernovae

We review the ensemble of anticipated gravitational-wave (GW) emission processes in stellar core collapse and postbounce core-collapse supernova evolution. We discuss recent progress in the modeling of these processes and summarize most recent GW signal estimates. In addition, we present new results on the GW emission from postbounce convective overturn and protoneutron star g-mode pulsations based on axisymmetric radiation-hydrodynamic calculations. Galactic core-collapse supernovae are very rare events, but within 3–5 Mpc from Earth, the rate jumps to 1 in ∼2 years. Using the set of currently available theoretical gravitational waveforms, we compute upper-limit optimal signal-to-noise ratios based on current and advanced LIGO/GEO600/VIRGO noise curves for the recent SN 2008bk which exploded at ∼3.9 Mpc. While initial LIGOs cannot detect GWs emitted by core-collapse events at such a distance, we find that advanced LIGO-class detectors could put significant upper limits on the GW emission strength for such events. We study the potential occurrence of the various GW emission processes in particular supernova explosion scenarios and argue that the GW signatures of neutrino-driven, magneto-rotational, and acoustically-driven core-collapse SNe may be mutually exclusive. We suggest that even initial LIGOs could distinguish these explosion mechanisms based on the detection (or non-detection) of GWs from a galactic core-collapse supernova.
DELPHIN2: AN OVER ACTUATED AUTONOMOUS UNDERWATER VEHICLE FOR MANOEUVRING RESEARCH

Delphin2 is a hover capable torpedo style Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV), developed at the University of Southampton to provide a test bed for research in marine robotics, primarily to enhance the manoeuvring capability of AUVs. This paper describes the mechanical design of the vehicle and its software architecture. The performance of the vehicle is presented as well as preliminary findings from the vehicle’s first fully autonomous video survey missions in Lough Erne, Northern Ireland. It is interesting to note that the low-cost of the vehicle and its development using a succession of MEng and PhD students has provided an excellent training environment for specialists in the growing area of marine autonomous vehicles.
The student voice in well-being: a case study of participatory action research in positive education

Abstract Positive education blends academic learning and student well-being. Although research and application in positive education is growing, most has involved psychologists and educators applying strategies in schools, with little research that involves student voices in the development and implementation of a school’s positive education strategy. Assumptions are frequently made about what is best for student well-being, with little input from the students themselves. This paper describes a case study of participatory action research (PAR) carried out by students (N = 10) at a publically funded Australian school aiming to implement positive education. PAR is a form of collective inquiry undertaken by the people that the issue directly affects. The PAR group researched the school community regarding well-being during the school year. Mixed methods examined PAR student’s well-being, self-efficacy, autonomy, social and emotional assets, and other competencies before and after the process. Student involvement allowed the school to better understand their students’ well-being, and student-led communication about positive education laid the groundwork for its implementation. Results suggested benefits for the PAR students, particularly in engagement and self-efficacy. This realistically scaled study suggests that involving students using a framework of PAR is a promising, accessible, evidence-based, and developmentally beneficial approach to the implementation of positive education.
Extracellular vesicles released from cells exposed to reactive oxygen species increase annexin A2 expression and survival of target cells exposed to the same conditions

ABSTRACT Annexin A2 (AnxA2) is present in multiple cellular compartments and interacts with numerous ligands including calcium, proteins, cholesterol, negatively charged phospholipids and RNA. These interactions are tightly regulated by its post-translational modifications. The levels of AnxA2 and its Tyr23 phosphorylated form (pTyr23AnxA2) are increased in many cancers and the protein is involved in malignant cell transformation, metastasis and angiogenesis. Our previous studies of rat pheochromocytoma (PC12) cells showed that reactive oxygen species (ROS) induce rapid, simultaneous and transient dephosphorylation of nuclear AnxA2, most likely associating with PML bodies, while AnxA2 associated with F-actin at the cell cortex undergoes Tyr23 phosphorylation. The pTyr23AnxA2 in the periphery of the cells is incorporated into intraluminal vesicles of multivesicular endosomes and subsequently released to the extracellular space. We show here that extracellular vesicles (EVs) from cells exposed to ROS prime untreated PC12 cells to better tolerate subsequent oxidative stress, thus enhancing their survival. There is an increase in the levels of pTyr23AnxA2 and AnxA2 in the primed cells, suggesting that AnxA2 is involved in their survival. This increase is due to an upregulation of AnxA2 expression both at the transcriptional and translational levels after relatively short term (2 h) exposure to primed EVs.
A Novel Role for the TIR Domain in Association with Pathogen-Derived Elicitors

Plant innate immunity is mediated by Resistance (R) proteins, which bear a striking resemblance to animal molecules of similar function. Tobacco N is a TIR-NB-LRR R gene that confers resistance to Tobacco mosaic virus, specifically the p50 helicase domain. An intriguing question is how plant R proteins recognize the presence of pathogen-derived Avirulence (Avr) elicitor proteins. We have used biochemical cell fraction and immunoprecipitation in addition to confocal fluorescence microscopy of living tissue to examine the association between N and p50. Surprisingly, both N and p50 are cytoplasmic and nuclear proteins, and N's nuclear localization is required for its function. We also demonstrate an in planta association between N and p50. Further, we show that N's TIR domain is critical for this association, and indeed, it alone can associate with p50. Our results differ from current models for plant innate immunity that propose detection is mediated solely through the LRR domains of these molecules. The data we present support an intricate process of pathogen elicitor recognition by R proteins involving multiple subcellular compartments and the formation of multiple protein complexes.
Analysis of the Energy Based Swing-up Control for a Double Pendulum on a Cart

Designing and analyzing controllers for underactuated systems with underactuation degree greater than one is still an open and challenging problem. In this paper, we study an unsolved problem of analyzing energy based swing-up control for a double pendulum on a cart, which has three degrees of freedom and only one control input. We present an original analysis of the convergence of the energy of the cart-double pendulum system. We show that for all initial states of the cart-double pendulum system, if the convergent value of the energy is not equal to the energy at the upright (up-up) equilibrium point, then the cart-double pendulum remains at its up-down, down-up, and down-down equilibrium points. Moreover, we show that these three equilibrium points are unstable. This shows that for almost all initial states of the cart-double pendulum system, as time approaches infinity, the energy of the cart-double pendulum system can be controlled to its energy at the upright equilibrium point. This paper provides insight into the energy based control approach to underactuated systems with underactuation degree greater than one.
How Do Acts of Penance Influence Intergroup Forgiveness

In the current paper the problems of penance and remorse in intergroup relations, as well as their influence on forgiveness are investigated. We argue that repent can be expressed in multiple ways, which vary in their effectiveness, because of differences in evaluation of their genuineness. Results obtained in an experimental study conducted among 271 Polish students suggest that indeed act of penance alone has no direct influence on willingness to forgive. On the other hand, genuineness of the outgroup conciliatory actions and remorse facilitates forgiveness. Also, it is shown that acts of penance, as well as outgroup remorse may break a negative relationship between magnitude of ingroup harm and intergroup forgiveness.
Clustering Dynamic Spatio-Temporal Patterns in The Presence of Noise and Missing Data

Clustering has gained widespread use, especially for static data. However, the rapid growth of spatio-temporal data from numerous instruments, such as earth-orbiting satellites, has created a need for spatio-temporal clustering methods to extract and monitor dynamic clusters. Dynamic spatio-temporal clustering faces two major challenges: First, the clusters are dynamic and may change in size, shape, and statistical properties over time. Second, numerous spatio-temporal data are incomplete, noisy, heterogeneous, and highly variable (over space and time). We propose a new spatio-temporal data mining paradigm, to autonomously identify dynamic spatio-temporal clusters in the presence of noise and missing data. Our proposed approach is more robust than traditional clustering and image segmentation techniques in the case of dynamic patterns, non-stationary, heterogeneity, and missing data. We demonstrate our method's performance on a real-world application of monitoring in-land water bodies on a global scale.
ProVeLines: a product line of verifiers for software product lines

Software Product Lines (SPLs) are families of similar software products built from a common set of features. As the number of products of an SPL is potentially exponential in the number of its features, the model checking problem is harder than for single software. A practical way to face this exponential blow-up is to reuse common behaviour between products. We previously introduced Featured Transition Systems (FTS), a mathematical model that serves as a basis for efficient SPL model checking techniques. In this paper, we present ProVeLines, a product line of verifiers for SPLs that incorporates the results of over three years of research on formal verification of SPLs. Being itself a product line, our tool is flexible and extensible, and offers a wide range of solutions for SPL modelling and verification.
Theoretical light curves for deflagration models of Type Ia supernova

Aims. We present synthetic bolometric and broad-band UBVRI light curves of SNe Ia for four selected 3D deflagration models of thermonuclear supernovae. Methods. The light curves are computed with the 1D hydro code stella, which models (multi-group time-dependent) nonequilibrium radiative transfer inside SN ejecta. Angle-averaged results from 3D hydrodynamical explosion simulations with the composition determined in a nucleosynthetic postprocessing step served as the input to the radiative transfer model. Results. The predicted model UBV light curves do agree reasonably well with the observed ones for SNe Ia in the range of low to normal luminosities, although the underlying hydrodynamical explosion models produced only a modest amount of radioactive 56 Ni (i.e. ∼0.24–0.42 M� ) and relatively low kinetic energy in the explosion (less than 0.7 × 10 51 erg). The evolution of predicted B and ∞