Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
User Behaviour and Task Characteristics: A Field Study of Daily Information Behaviour

Previous studies investigating task based search often take the form of lab studies or large scale log analysis. In lab studies, users typically perform a designed task under a controlled environment, which may not reflect their natural behaviour. While log analysis allows the observation of users' natural search behaviour, often strong assumptions need to be made in order to associate the unobserved underlying user tasks with log signals. We describe a field study during which we log participants' daily search and browsing activities for 5 days, and users are asked to self-annotate their search logs with the tasks they conducted as well as to describe the task characteristics according to a conceptual task classification scheme. This provides us with a more realistic and comprehensive view on how user tasks are associated with logged interactions than seen in previous log- or lab-based studies; and allows us to explore the complex interactions between task characteristics and their presence in naturalistic tasks which has not been studied previously. We find a higher number of queries, longer timespan, as well as more task switches than reported in previous log based studies; and 41% of our tasks are zero-query tasks implying that large amounts of user task activities remain unobserved when only focused on query logs. Further, tasks sharing similar descriptions can vary greatly in their characteristics, suggesting that when supporting users with their tasks, it is important to know not only the task they are engaged with but also the context of the user in the task.
Design and impacts of securitized leveraged buyouts

Abstract Private equity investors have traditionally used innovative financial methods in structuring their leveraged buyouts (LBO) deals. In recent years, they have frequently employed securitization to raise funds on the back of their acquisitions’ operating assets. A distinctive feature of these transactions is that they aim to enhance the securitizing LBO’s debt pay capacity through a set of structural enhancements including operating debt covenants. Operating covenants—supported by legal security arrangements—mitigate an LBO’s financial and operating risks and improve its cash generation potential. We test this hypothesis by examining changes in the operating income of Hertz LBO. The results show that, within the operating framework adopted by Hertz LBO, securitization improved the transaction’s debt service capacity.
Transplantation of Photoreceptor Precursors Isolated via a Cell Surface Biomarker Panel From Embryonic Stem Cell‐Derived Self‐Forming Retina

Loss of photoreceptors due to retinal degeneration is a major cause of untreatable blindness. Cell replacement therapy, using pluripotent stem cell‐derived photoreceptor cells, may be a feasible future treatment. Achieving safe and effective cell replacement is critically dependent on the stringent selection and purification of optimal cells for transplantation. Previously, we demonstrated effective transplantation of post‐mitotic photoreceptor precursor cells labelled by fluorescent reporter genes. As genetically labelled cells are not desirable for therapy, here we developed a surface biomarker cell selection strategy for application to complex pluripotent stem cell differentiation cultures. We show that a five cell surface biomarker panel CD73(+)CD24(+)CD133(+)CD47(+)CD15(−) facilitates the isolation of photoreceptor precursors from three‐dimensional self‐forming retina differentiated from mouse embryonic stem cells. Importantly, stem cell‐derived cells isolated using the biomarker panel successfully integrate and mature into new rod photoreceptors in the adult mouse retinae after subretinal transplantation. Conversely, unsorted or negatively selected cells do not give rise to newly integrated rods after transplantation. The biomarker panel also removes detrimental proliferating cells prior to transplantation. Notably, we demonstrate how expression of the biomarker panel is conserved in the human retina and propose that a similar selection strategy will facilitate isolation of human transplantation‐competent cells for therapeutic application. Stem Cells 2015;33:2469—2482
Who Uses Illegal Drugs

Gary Becker and Kevin Murphy (1988) present a theoretical model of rational addiction that requires information on past, present and future prices. They do not study illegal drugs empirically in this and their related papers. A major data source is the annual survey of high school seniors (HSS), also known as "Monitoring the Future. " This work is summarized in L. Johnston et al. (1988). They find a growing use of drugs (measured by monthly, annual, and lifetime prevalence) over time, and differences by region and sex. Cocaine use showed marked increases from 1976, though this levelled off from 1986 to 1987. They often rely on cross-tabs that leaves many variables uncontrolled and the results subject to omitted variable bias. J. Bachman et al. (1984) use ordinary least squares (OLS) regressions in which the drug use in the three years post-high school is related to various characteristics such as living arrangements. While an improvement over cross-tabs, OLS applied to categorical dependent variables yields inefficient estimates (see M. Nerlove and S. Press, 1973). Johnston et al. used follow-up surveys of a subsample drawn from each cohort. They find the use of some drugs decline at older ages, say 35, though they do not determine if the heavy users have died, dropped out of the sample, or have been rehabilitated. ' The HSS's initial restriction to high school seniors removes about 30 percent of the population who drop out of high school perhaps because of taking drugs. Studies based on the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) sample of people 12 and older show some heavy drug use of people less than 17 years old. (See J. D. Miller et al., 1982, and NIDA, 1985.) Richard Clayton (1985) using the 1980 HSS presents univariate regressions that shows the frequency of use of cocaine is positively related to lifetime marijuana use and days out of school in the past month, but negatively related to high school grade point average. H. Abelson and Miller (1985), using the NIDA surveys covering 1974-82, show differences in the percentage using cocaine by education and race-for lifetime, 12 months, and last month measures. They find strong trends. D. Kandel (1980) presents a recent survey of drinking and drug use among youth. People in their late 30's "mature out" of heroin use rather than die.
Do National Economic Shocks Influence European Central Bank Interest Rate Decisions? The Impact of the Financial and Sovereign Debt Crises

This article examines the relevance of national economic conditions for European Central Bank (ECB) interest rate setting and whether the financial and sovereign debt crises have made national divergences more relevant. Officially, the ECB sets policy for the eurozone and considers only eurozone data. However, economic shocks in one or more countries may warrant a deviation from this rule. Using real‐time, forecast data, the authors estimate a modified Taylor rule incorporating two macroeconomic ‘national influence’ measures: first the difference between the median and the eurozone measures of inflation and real gross domestic product (GDP) growth, and then deviations of the measures of inflation and real GDP growth for the ‘core’ and ‘periphery’ countries from eurozone averages. Using rolling‐window analysis to test the stability of parameter estimates, evidence is found that divergences in national data – notably developments in the periphery – from eurozone averages play an increasingly important role during the financial and sovereign debt crises.
Fitting in or Opting Out: A Review of Key Social-Psychological Factors Influencing a Sense of Belonging for Women in Physics.

Karyn L. Lewis, Jane G. Stout, Steven J. Pollock, Noah D. Finkelstein, and Tiffany A. Ito Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado 80309, USA Computing Research Association, 1828 L Street, NW, Suite 800, Washington, DC 20036, USA Department of Physics, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado 80309, USA (Received 30 January 2015; published 1 August 2016)
The Distribution of Family Income: Measuring and Explaining Changes in the 1980s for Canada and the United States

This paper attempts to measure and explain recent changes in the distributions of family income in Canada and the U.S. using comparable micro-data for the two countries for 1979 and 1987. Three main sets of conclusions are reached. First, the distributions of total family income (pre-tax, post-transfer) in the two countries changed differently in the 1980s. Average family income increased faster in Canada than in the U.S. though income inequality increased unambiguously in the U.S., but not in Canada. Imposing a simple structure on the data reveals that the social welfare implications of these changes are generally indeterminate for each country. Second, changes in the distribution of transfer income had important influences on the distribution of total family income in both Canada and the U.S. Transfer income in Canada increased more rapidly than it did in the U.S. during the 1980s and also became more redistributive in nature. Most notably, the shifts in transfer income left female-headed families in Canada with a higher mean income and less income inequality in 1987 than they had in 1970. Among female-headed families in the U.S., income inequality increased while average income declined. Third, increased income inequality in the U.S. partly reflects increased earnings inequality, which is itself associated with a widening of education-earnings differentials that occurred in the 1980s. Earnings inequality also increased in Canada in the 1980s, despite the stability of education-earnings differentials.
Local volatility function models under a benchmark approach

Without requiring the existence of an equivalent risk-neutral probability measure this paper studies a class of one-factor local volatility function models for stock indices under a benchmark approach. It is assumed that the dynamics for a large diversified index approximates that of the growth optimal portfolio. Fair prices for derivatives when expressed in units of the index are martingales under the real-world probability measure. Different to the classical approach that derives risk-neutral probabilities the paper obtains the transition density for the index with respect to the real-world probability measure. Furthermore, the Dupire formula for the underlying local volatility function is recovered without assuming the existence of an equivalent risk-neutral probability measure. A modification of the constant elasticity of variance model and a version of the minimal market model are discussed as specific examples together with a smoothed local volatility function model that fits a snapshot of S&P500 index options data.
A Porcine Anterior Segment Perfusion and Transduction Model With Direct Visualization of the Trabecular Meshwork

Purpose To establish a consistent and affordable, high quality porcine anterior segment perfusion and transduction model that allows direct visualization of the trabecular meshwork. Methods Porcine anterior segments were cultured within 2 hours of death by removing lens and uvea and securing in a specially designed petri dish with a thin bottom to allow direct visualization of the trabecular meshwork with minimal distortion. Twenty-two control eyes (CO) with a constant flow rate were compared to eight gravity perfused eyes (COgr, 15 mm Hg). We established gene delivery to the TM using eGFP expressing feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) vector GINSIN at 108 transducing units (TU) per eye (GINSIN_8, n = 8) and 107 TU (GINSIN_7, n = 8). Expression was assessed for 14 days before histology was obtained. Results Pig eyes were a reliable source for consistent and high quality anterior segment cultures with a low failure rate of 12%. Control eyes had an intraocular pressure (IOP) of 15.8 ± 1.9 mm Hg at fixed pump perfusion with 3 μL/min compared to gravity perfused COgr with imputed 3.7 ± 1.6 μL/min. Vector GINSIN_8 eyes experienced a transient posttransduction IOP increase of 44% that resolved at 48 hours; this was not observed in GINSIN_7 eyes. Expression was higher in GINSIN_8 than in GINSIN_7 eyes. Trabecular meshwork architecture was well preserved. Conclusions Compared with previously used human donor eyes, this inexpensive porcine anterior segment perfusion model is of sufficient, repeatable high quality to develop strategies of TM bioengineering. Trabecular meshwork could be observed directly. Despite significant anatomic differences, effects of transduction replicate the main aspects of previously explored human, feline and rodent models.
Government Debt and Economic Growth - Some Comments; A Panel Data Analysis for Western Europe (1988 – 2006)

In the present paper it is pointed out that government debt is an obstacle to economic growth. To my belief, the remedy to this problem is to encourage consumption and not to impose taxes onto the consumers. Because, any decrease in their wages and salaries for temporary budgetary purposes, will further shrink consumption and will cause unemployment in the long run. Panel data covering western European countries during the period 1988 – 2006 are elaborated by means of Eviews software package.
Laparoscopic Splenectomy for the Elderly Liver Cirrhotic Patients With Hypersplenism

AbstractA growing body of evidence has supported the benefits of laparoscopic splenectomy (LS) for hypersplenism due to liver cirrhosis. With the increased proportion of elderly persons worldwide, it is necessary to investigate the risks and benefits of LS in elderly liver cirrhotic patients.From September 2003 to March 2012, LS and open splenectomy (OS) were performed for 21 (Group 1) and 19 (Group 3) patients, respectively, all of whom were 65 years of age and older; in addition, 39 patients who were <65 years old were treated with LS and referred to as Group 2. Data (i.e., demographic characteristics and preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative information) were retrospectively collected. Between-group comparisons were performed for the above-mentioned data.Compared with the patients in Group 3, the patients in Group 1 required longer operative times, fewer transfusions, less intensive care, a shorter postoperative course, and a shorter time to the first oral intake, and they had less blood loss and fewer postoperative short-term complications. During the follow-up period, compared with the preoperative status, significant changes in hemoglobin, leukocyte, platelet, and albumin levels were observed in all groups, whereas changes in the total BILirubin (BIL), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels were inconspicuous.Patients >65 years of age with hypersplenism caused by liver cirrhosis can safely undergo LS.
ConSeC: Word Sense Disambiguation as Continuous Sense Comprehension

Supervised systems have nowadays become the standard recipe for Word Sense Disambiguation (WSD), with Transformer-based language models as their primary ingredient. However, while these systems have certainly attained unprecedented performances, virtually all of them operate under the constraining assumption that, given a context, each word can be disambiguated individually with no account of the other sense choices. To address this limitation and drop this assumption, we propose CONtinuous SEnse Comprehension (ConSeC), a novel approach to WSD: leveraging a recent re-framing of this task as a text extraction problem, we adapt it to our formulation and introduce a feedback loop strategy that allows the disambiguation of a target word to be conditioned not only on its context but also on the explicit senses assigned to nearby words. We evaluate ConSeC and examine how its components lead it to surpass all its competitors and set a new state of the art on English WSD. We also explore how ConSeC fares in the cross-lingual setting, focusing on 8 languages with various degrees of resource availability, and report significant improvements over prior systems. We release our code at https://github.com/SapienzaNLP/consec.
Language in the Labor Market: The Immigrant Experience in Canada and the United States

This paper explores the determinants and labor market consequences for immigrants of proficiency in speaking the dominate language (English in the US, English or French in Canada). The statistical analysis is for adult men using the self-reported data, including data on language skills, available in the 1980 and 1981 censuses of the US and Canada, respectively. Fluency in the dominant language in the two countries is shown to vary systematically with the immigrant's skills, demographic characteristics, country of origin and economic incentive. That is, fluency is greater the younger the age at immigration, the greater the pre-immigration exposure to the dominant language, the longer the duration in the destination, the higher the level of schooling , and if the person immigrated unmarried, currently has children and lives in an area where few speak his native (non-dominant) language, among other variables. It is also shown that those who can expect to receive greater economic rewards from a higher level of language proficiency are more likely to make the investment and become more proficient. The determinants of earnings among immigrants are shown to be remarkably similar in the two countries; it is as if there is one earning determination process. Fluency in the dominant language has a large positive effect on earnings, independent of other personal characteristics and country of origin. The study shows the importance of explicitly incorporating dominate language fluency, and the determinates of dominant language fluency, in the criteria for allocating immigrant visas, if immigrant economic success is a policy objective. Canadian immigration policy has made more progress in this regards than U.S policy. Furthermore, this study shows that, because of the questions asked and the coding procedures, the data related to language in the U.S. census are superior to the data available in the Canadian census for both statistical and public policy analysis.
The Chimera of Proportionality: Institutionalising Limits on Punishment in Contemporary Social and Political Systems

The concept of proportionality has been central to the retributive revival in penal theory, and underlies desert theory’s normative and practical commitment to limiting punishment. Theories of punishment combining desert-based and consequentialist considerations also appeal to proportionality as a limiting condition. In this paper we argue that these claims are founded on an exaggerated idea of what proportionality can offer, and in particular fail properly to consider the institutional conditions needed to foster robust limits on the state’s power to punish. The idea that appeals to proportionality as an abstract ideal can help to limit punishment is, we argue, a chimera: what has been thought of as proportionality is not a naturally existing relationship, but a product of political and social construction, cultural meaning-making, and institution-building. Drawing on evolutionary psychology and comparative political economy, we argue that philosophers and social scientists need to work together to understand how the appeal of the idea of proportionality can best be realised through substantive institutional frameworks under particular conditions.
The Politics of Congressional Elections

1. Introduction. 2. The Context. The Constitutional Framework. Congressional Districts. Partisan Gerrymandering. Racial Gerrymandering. States as Electoral Units. Election Laws. Political Parties. Social and Political Contexts. 3. Congressional Candidates. The Incumbency Factor. Measuring the Value of Incumbency. The Vanishing Marginals. Sources of the Incumbency Advantage. The Institutional Characteristics of Congress. Changes in Voting Behavior. Constituency Service. The Variability of the Incumbency Advantage. Discouraging the Opposition. Money in Congressional Elections. The Connection between Money and Success. Why Campaign Money Is More Important to Challengers. The Career in the District. Motivating Challengers. 4. Congressional Campaigns. Campaign Money. Political Action Committees. Party Money. Self-Financing by Candidates. Fundraising Tactics. Campaign Organizations. Campaign Strategies. Campaign Media. Personal Campaigning. Campaign Messages. Challengers' Campaigns. Going Negative. Incumbents' Campaigns. Candidates for Open Seats. Senate Campaigns. "Voter Education" and "Issue Advocacy" Campaigns. Concluding Observations. 5. Congressional Voters. Turnout in Congressional Elections. Partisanship in Congressional Elections. Alternative Interpretations of Party Identification. Partisanship and Voting. Information and Voting. Recall and Recognition of Candidates. Contacting Voters. The Effects of Campaign Spending. Models of Voting Behavior. Evaluating Incumbents. Winning Challengers. Issues in Congressional Elections. 6. National Politics and Congressional Elections. Political Interpretations of Congressional Elections. Models of Aggregate Congressional Election Results. Presidential Coattails. National Conditions and Strategic Politics. Campaign Themes. House Elections, 1980-1998. The Clinton Problem. Nationalizing the Vote. The Campaigns. The Scandal and the Campaigns. House Election Patterns, 1980-1998. Senate Elections, 1980-1998. 7. Elections and The Politics of Congress. The Congressional Parties. The Committee Systems. Making Policy. Particularism. Serving the Organized. Immobility. Symbolism. Doing the Right Thing. Building Coalitions. The Budgetary Process. 8. Representation, Responsibility, Impeachment Politics, and the Future of Congressional Elections. Representation. Policy Congruence. Beyond Policy Congruence. Descriptive Representation. Responsiveness without Responsibility. The Revival of Party Cohesion. Ideological Polarization in Congress and the Electorate. Party Polarization: The Electoral Connection. Diverging Electoral Constituencies. Chicken or Egg? Party Polarization and the Politics of Impeachment. Divided Government in the 1990s. Reforming Congress. Term Limits. The Public's Evaluation of Congress. Toward the Millennium. Bibliography. Index.
Integrated damping parameter and control design in structural systems for H 2 and H ∞ specifications

The paper presents a linear matrix inequality (LMI)-based approach for the simultaneous optimal design of output feedback control gains and damping parameters in structural systems with collocated actuators and sensors. The proposed integrated design is based on simplified H2 and H∞ norm upper bound calculations for collocated structural systems. Using these upper bound results, the combined design of the damping parameters of the structural system and the output feedback controller to satisfy closed-loop H2 or H∞ performance specifications is formulated as an LMI optimization problem with respect to the unknown damping coefficients and feedback gains. Numerical examples motivated from structural and aerospace engineering applications demonstrate the advantages and computational efficiency of the proposed technique for integrated structural and control design. The effectiveness of the proposed integrated design becomes apparent, especially in very large scale structural systems where the use of classical methods for solving Lyapunov and Riccati equations associated with H2 and H∞ designs are time-consuming or intractable. J. Mohammadpour Velni · M. Meisami-Azad · K. M. Grigoriadis (B) Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX 77204, USA e-mail: karolos@uh.edu J. Mohammadpour Velni e-mail: jmohammadpour@uh.edu M. Meisami-Azad e-mail: mmeisami@mail.uh.edu