Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Working Paper Series Research and Statistics Department Bank of Japan

Views expressed in Working Paper Series are those of authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Bank of Japan or Research and Statistics Department. and the many staff of the Research and Statistics Department at the Bank of Japan for their helpful comments. Any remaining errors belong to the authors. The opinions expressed here are those of the authors, and should be ascribed neither to the Bank of Japan nor to the Research and Statistics Department. We can be reached at ABSTRACT This paper shows that changes in international competitiveness played a significant role in creating the deflationary pressure in Japan from 1980 to 2001. Applying Blanchard and Quah's (1989) SVAR technique to Dornbusch, Fischer, and Samuelson's (1977) classical comparative advantage model, we break down Japan's inflation rate of the consumer prices into three kinds of structural shocks: comparative advantage shocks, global productivity shocks, and cyclical demand shocks. The breakdown results tell us that the Japanese economy had been exposed to severe international competition since 1994, especially from the Asian economies. Japan's loss of international competitiveness had exerted continuous downward pressure on the consumer prices and deflationary pressure strengthened significantly at the very end of the 20 th century.
A refined analysis of the remarkable Bp star HR 6000

Aims. UVES spectra of the very young (∼10 7 years) peculiar B-type star HR 6000 were analyzed in the near-UV and visual spectral regions (3050–9460 A) with the aim of extending to other spectral ranges the study made previously in the UV using IUE spectra. Methods. Stellar parameters Teff = 12 850 K, log g = 4.10, and ξ = 0k m s −1 , as determined from Hβ ,H γ ,H δ Balmer profiles and from the Fe i ,F eii ionization equilibrium, were used to compute an individual abundances ATLAS12 model. We identified spectral peculiarities and obtained final stellar abundances by comparing observed and computed equivalent widths and line profiles. Results. The adopted model fails to reproduce the (b − y )a ndc color indices. The spectral analysis revealed: the presence of emission lines for Mn ii ,C rii ,a nd Feii; isotopic anomalies for Hg, Ca; the presence of interstellar lines of Na i at λλ 3302.3, 3302.9, 5890, 5896 A, and of K i at 7665, 7699 A; the presence of a huge quantity of unidentified lines, which we presume to be mostly due to Fe ii transitions owing to the large Fe overabundance amounting to [+0.7]. The main chemical peculiarities are an extreme overabundance of Xe, followed by those of Hg, P, Y, Mn, Fe, Be, and Ti. The most underabundant element is Si, followed by C, N, Al, S, Mg, V, Sr, Co, Cl, Sc, and Ni. The silicon underabundance [−2.9] is the lowest value for Si ever observed in any HgMn star. The observed lines of He i cannot be reproduced by a single value of the He abundance, but they require values ranging from [−0.8] to [−1.6]. Furthermore, when the observed and computed wings of He i lines are fitted, the observed line cores are much weaker than the computed ones. From the present analysis we infer the presence of vertical abundance stratification for He, Mn, and possibly also Fe and P.
Sulfonation, an underexploited area: from skeletal development to infectious diseases and cancer

Sulfonation is one of the most abundant cellular reactions modifying a wide range of xenobiotics as well as endogenous molecules which regulate important biological processes including blood clotting, formation of connective tissues, and functionality of secreted proteins, hormones, and signaling molecules. Sulfonation is ubiquitous in all tissues and widespread in nature (plants, animals, and microorganisms). Although sulfoconjugates were discovered over a century ago when, in 1875, Baumann isolated phenyl sulfate in the urine of a patient given phenol as an antiseptic, the significance of sulfonation and its roles in human diseases have been underappreciated until recent years. Here, we provide a current overview of the significance of sulfonation reactions in a variety of biological functions and medical conditions (with emphasis on cancer). We also discuss research areas that warrant further attention if we are to fully understand how deficiencies in sulfonation could impact human health which, in turn, could help define treatments to effect improvements in health.
Neural Encoding and Perception of Speech Signals in Informational Masking

Objective: To investigate the contributions of energetic and informational masking to neural encoding and perception in noise, using oddball discrimination and sentence recognition tasks. Design: P3 auditory evoked potential, behavioral discrimination, and sentence recognition data were recorded in response to speech and tonal signals presented to nine normal-hearing adults. Stimuli were presented at a signal to noise ratio of −3 dB in four background conditions: Quiet, continuous noise, intermittent noise, and four-talker babble. Results: Responses to tonal signals were not significantly different for the three maskers. However, responses to speech signals in the four-talker babble resulted in longer P3 latencies, smaller P3 amplitudes, poorer discrimination accuracy, and longer reaction times than in any of the other conditions. Results also demonstrate significant correlations between physiological and behavioral data. As latency of the P3 increased, reaction times also increased and sentence recognition scores decreased. Conclusion: The data confirm a differential effect of masker type on the P3 and behavioral responses and present evidence of interference by an informational masker to speech understanding at the level of the cortex. Results also validate the use of the P3 as a useful measure to demonstrate physiological correlates of informational masking.
Position dependence of charge collection in prototype sensors for the CMS pixel detector

This paper reports on the sensor R&D activity for the CMS pixel detector. Devices featuring several design and technology options have been irradiated up to a proton fluence of 1/spl times/10/sup 15/ n/sub eq//cm/sup 2/ at the CERN PS. Afterward, they were bump bonded to unirradiated readout chips and tested using high energy pions in the H2 beam line of the CERN SPS. The readout chip allows a nonzero suppressed full analogue readout and therefore a good characterization of the sensors in terms of noise and charge collection properties. The position dependence of signal is presented and the differences between the two sensor options are discussed.
Photodynamic therapy in the treatment of aggressive periodontitis: A systematic review

Background Aggressive periodontitis (AgP) is a severe form of periodontal diseases with rapid destruction of the supporting bone around teeth. The efficacy of PDT in suppressing periodontal pathogens may be crucial in adopting new protocols for the treatment of AgP. Thus, the aim of this systematic review was to investigate the possible role of PDT in the treatment of AgP as an adjunctive therapy or monotherapy. Material and Methods A systematic search of the literature was performed. Additionally, the references from all the selected full-text studies were searched for relevant articles. Two reviewers screened independently titles and abstracts or full text copies. Quality assessment of all the included studies was held. Results Initial screening of electronic databases yielded 418 potentially relevant publications. After screening of the titles and full-text examination, five studies were included in the systematic review. Four publications evaluated the effects of PDT adjunctive to SRP in patients with AgP: two of them compared the clinical outcomes of SRP and PDT with a control group that received therapy with SRP and antibiotics (metronidazole and amoxicillin); two publications included SRP and PDT in the test group, and SRP alone in the control group. In one study, PDT was tested as a monotherapy compared with SRP alone. Conclusions Within the limitations of this review, PDT may exhibit a beneficial role in the therapy of aggressive periodontitis after repeated applications. In the future, more methodologically sound, long-term randomized clinical trials are needed to be conducted. Key words:Photodynamic therapy, periodontitis, systematic review.
A Retrospective Survey of Research Design and Statistical Analyses in Selected Chinese Medical Journals in 1998 and 2008

Background High quality clinical research not only requires advanced professional knowledge, but also needs sound study design and correct statistical analyses. The number of clinical research articles published in Chinese medical journals has increased immensely in the past decade, but study design quality and statistical analyses have remained suboptimal. The aim of this investigation was to gather evidence on the quality of study design and statistical analyses in clinical researches conducted in China for the first decade of the new millennium. Methodology/Principal Findings Ten (10) leading Chinese medical journals were selected and all original articles published in 1998 (N = 1,335) and 2008 (N = 1,578) were thoroughly categorized and reviewed. A well-defined and validated checklist on study design, statistical analyses, results presentation, and interpretation was used for review and evaluation. Main outcomes were the frequencies of different types of study design, error/defect proportion in design and statistical analyses, and implementation of CONSORT in randomized clinical trials. From 1998 to 2008: The error/defect proportion in statistical analyses decreased significantly ( = 12.03, p<0.001), 59.8% (545/1,335) in 1998 compared to 52.2% (664/1,578) in 2008. The overall error/defect proportion of study design also decreased ( = 21.22, p<0.001), 50.9% (680/1,335) compared to 42.40% (669/1,578). In 2008, design with randomized clinical trials remained low in single digit (3.8%, 60/1,578) with two-third showed poor results reporting (defects in 44 papers, 73.3%). Nearly half of the published studies were retrospective in nature, 49.3% (658/1,335) in 1998 compared to 48.2% (761/1,578) in 2008. Decreases in defect proportions were observed in both results presentation ( = 93.26, p<0.001), 92.7% (945/1,019) compared to 78.2% (1023/1,309) and interpretation ( = 27.26, p<0.001), 9.7% (99/1,019) compared to 4.3% (56/1,309), some serious ones persisted. Conclusions/Significance Chinese medical research seems to have made significant progress regarding statistical analyses, but there remains ample room for improvement regarding study designs. Retrospective clinical studies are the most often used design, whereas randomized clinical trials are rare and often show methodological weaknesses. Urgent implementation of the CONSORT statement is imperative.
On atmospheric excitation of out-of-phase nutational components.

A simple self-consistent model of thermal diurnal tides in the earth's atmosphere is constructed which gives the possibility to separate annual and semi-annual prograde and retrograde components. For a realistic model of the Earth the numericalestimationsofatmosphericexcitationofout-of-phase nutational components are obtained. It is shown that prograde annual component may be totally explained by thermal atmo- spheric tides; at the same time, the influence of these tides on retrograde annual component is negligible small.
Tailor-Made Tissue Phantoms Based on Acetonitrile Solutions for Microwave Applications up to 18 GHz

Tissue-equivalent phantoms play a key role in the development of new wireless communication devices that are tested on such phantoms prior to their commercialization. However, existing phantoms cover a small number of tissues and do not reproduce them accurately within wide frequency bands. This paper aims at enlarging the number of mimicked tissues as well as their working frequency band. Thus, a variety of potential compounds are scanned according to their relative permittivity from 0.5 to 18 GHz. Next, a combination of these compounds is characterized so the relation between their dielectric properties and composition is provided. Finally, taking advantage of the previous analysis, tailor-made phantoms are developed for different human tissues up to 18 GHz and particularized for the main current body area network (BAN) operating bands. The tailor-made phantoms presented here exhibit such a high accuracy as would allow researchers and manufacturers to test microwave devices at high frequencies for large bandwidths as well as the use of heterogeneous phantoms in the near future. The key to these phantoms lies in the incorporation of acetonitrile to aqueous solutions. Such compounds have a suitable behavior to achieve the relative permittivity values of body tissues within the studied frequency band.
Stochastic Optimal Power Flow with Uncertain Reserves from Demand Response

Demand response (DR) can provide reserves in power systems but a fundamental challenge is that the amount of capacity available from DR is time-varying and uncertain. We propose a stochastic optimal power flow (OPF) formulation that handles uncertain energy from wind and uncertain reserves provided by DR. To handle the uncertainty, we formulate chance constraints and use a scenario based methodology to solve the stochastic OPF problem. This technique allows us to provide a-priori guarantees regarding the probability of constraint satisfaction. Additionally, we devise a strategy for the reserves, provided either by the generators or the loads, that could be deployed in real time operation. To evaluate the effectiveness of our methodology, we carry out a simulation based analysis on the IEEE 30-bus network. Our case studies show that optimizing over the reserves provided by DR, even though they are uncertain, results in lower total cost compared to the case where only generation side reserves are taken into account. We also carry out a Monte Carlo analysis to empirically estimate the probability of constraint satisfaction and demonstrate that it is within the theoretical limits.
Alcohol and Health Focus On: Alcohol and the Immune System Overview of the Human Immune System Alcohol and Health Alcohol and Health Alcohol and the Innate Immune Response Alcohol and Health

Alcohol abuse suppresses multiple arms of the immune response, leading to an increased risk of infections. The course and resolution of both bacterial and viral infections is severely impaired in alcohol­abusing patients, resulting in greater patient morbidity and mortality. Multiple mechanisms have been identified underlying the immunosuppressive effects of alcohol. These mechanisms involve structural host defense mechanisms in the gastrointestinal and respiratory tract as well as all of the principal components of the innate and adaptive immune systems, which are compromised both through alcohol's direct effects and through alcohol­related dysregulation of other components. Analyses of alcohol's diverse effects on various components of the immune system provide insight into the factors that lead to a greater risk of infection in the alcohol­abusing population. Some of these mechanisms are directly related to the pathology found in people with infections such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, hepatitis, and pneumonia who continue to use and abuse alcohol. KEY WORDS: Alcohol abuse; alcohol and other drug effects and consequences; immune system; immune response; immunosuppressive effect; infection; bacterial infection; viral infection; communicable disease; host defense mechanisms B oth acute and chronic alcohol abuse can induce significant defects in the body's defense against microorganisms (i.e., pathogens) by interfering with multiple aspects of the immune response. The resulting increased risk and severity of infections in chronic alcoholics has been recog­ nized as early as 1785, by Benjamin Rush, the first Surgeon General of the United States. The impact of alcohol abuse on risk and severity of infection has been demonstrated par­ ticularly well for infections of the respiratory tract, especially bacterial pneumonia and tuberculosis (Zhang et al. 2008). Alcohol consumption also is associated with a higher preva­ lence of hepatitis C infection (Prakash et al. 2002) and increases the risk of infection with the human immunodefi­ ciency virus (HIV), particularly in binge drinkers (Baliunas et al. 2009). In addition to increasing the risk of infections, alcohol abuse has been reported to contribute to the morbidity and mortality resulting from these infections in alcohol­ abusing patients. This is particularly relevant in chronic infections, such as HIV and hepatitis C. After providing a brief overview of the human immune system and its various components, this article summarizes alcohol's diverse effects on these components. The body constantly is exposed to pathogens that penetrate either our external surface (i.e., the skin), through wounds or burns, or the internal surfaces (i.e., epithelia) lining the respiratory …
Segmenting and Parsing Instrumentalists' Gestures

Abstract This article presents a segmentation model applied to musician movements, taking into account different time structures. In particular we report on ancillary gestures that are not directly linked to sound production, whilst still being entirely part of the global instrumental gesture. Precisely, we study movements of the clarinet captured with an optical 3D motion capture system, analysing ancillary movements assuming that they can be considered as a sequence of primitive actions regarded as base shapes. A stochastic model called the Segmental Hidden Markov Model is used. It allows for the representation of a continuous trajectory as a sequence of primitive temporal profiles taken from a given dictionary. We evaluate the model using two criteria: the Euclidean norm and the log-likelihood, then show that the size of the dictionary does not influence the fitting accuracy and propose a method for building a dictionary based on the log-likelihood criterion. Finally, we show that the sequence of primitive shapes can also be considered as a sequence of symbols enabling us to interpret the data as symbolic patterns and motifs. Based on this representation, we show that circular patterns occur in all players' performances. This symbolic step produces a different layer of interpretation, linked to a larger time scale, which might not be obvious from a direct signal representation.
Thyroid hormone supplementation improves bovine embryo development in vitro.

BACKGROUND Early embryo development (EED) forms the basis of assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs), which are used to treat human infertility and to propagate other mammalian species. Thyroid hormones (THs) play an important role in the post-implantation development of the embryo in mammals; however, the effects of THs on pre-attachment embryos are not known. Currently utilized in-vitro embryo production media are devoid of THs and hence our main objective was to examine whether THs affected EED in a bovine model. METHODS To determine if THs are present at the site of fertilization and EED in cattle, we evaluated the presence of the hormones in oviductal and uterine horn tissues. To assess the outcome of free TH supplementation (50 ng/ml of each hormone: triiodothyronine-T3 and thyroxin-T4), embryos were followed through standard and TH-supplemented in-vitro procedures, and evaluated for the cleavage rates, blastocyst formation rate and hatching rates. Embryo quality was assessed using TUNEL assay and post-cryopreservation survival was also evaluated. RESULTS Although TH levels in in-vitro culture media were found to be approximately 60% of the administered doses, the TH-treated embryos exhibited significant increases in blastocyst formation and hatching rates (P < 0.05). Embryo quality was significantly improved in the treated groups as demonstrated by greater total cell counts and reduced proportions of apoptotic cells (P < 0.05). Finally, TH supplementation was associated with improved post-cryopreservation viability, defined by blastocyst re-expansion and hatching rates after frozen embryos had been thawed and cultured (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS These findings not only provide a way of optimizing ART efficiency, but also further our understanding of how THs influence embryonic development in mammals.
Emotional and Relational Proximities as Explanatory Factors for Affective Meaning Transfer between Brands and Print Media Brands

This paper examines the emotional and relational proximities between print media brands and advertiser brands from the standpoint of theories of meaning transfer and implicit evaluation. To this end, a “hybrid” scale for measuring emotions is created and tested against five successive data sets. Results indicate that this measurement tool can differentiate brands in terms of their respective emotional field. Analysis shows that the emotional proximity between these two types of brand echoes the measure of their affective relational proximity.
Empirical analysis of safety-critical anomalies during operations

Analysis of anomalies that occur during operations is an important means of improving the quality of current and future software. Although the benefits of anomaly analysis of operational software are widely recognized, there has been relatively little research on anomaly analysis of safety-critical systems. In particular, patterns of software anomaly data for operational, safety-critical systems are not well understood. We present the results of a pilot study using orthogonal defect classification (ODC) to analyze nearly two hundred such anomalies on seven spacecraft systems. These data show several unexpected classification patterns such as the causal role of difficulties accessing or delivering data, of hardware degradation, and of rare events. The anomalies often revealed latent software requirements that were essential for robust, correct operation of the system. The anomalies also caused changes to documentation and to operational procedures to prevent the same anomalous situations from recurring. Feedback from operational anomaly reports helped measure the accuracy of assumptions about operational profiles, identified unexpected dependencies among embedded software and their systems and environment, and indicated needed improvements to the software, the development process, and the operational procedures. The results indicate that, for long-lived, critical systems, analysis of the most severe anomalies can be a useful mechanism both for maintaining safer, deployed systems and for building safer, similar systems in the future.
Factors shaping parent–adolescent communication about sexuality in urban China

Abstract Within a rapidly changing cultural and socio-economic context, young people in China are increasingly engaging in romantic experiences and sexual behaviours with consequences such as unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections. Across a range of contexts, parental communication about sexuality has been recognised as protective in terms of increasing the likelihood of sexual abstinence and safer sexual practice. This study focuses on the factors shaping parent–adolescent communication about sexuality. Thirty-eight young people and twenty-seven parents, recruited from two high schools in a Northern-Eastern city of China, were interviewed. Thematic analysis of their interview responses was conducted using a social constructionist framework. Four main themes were identified: timing; discomfort and uncertainty; assumptions; and the parent–adolescent relationship. Findings suggest that communication between parents and children is influenced by individual as well as interpersonal factors and factors relating to the broader Chinese sociocultural context. To facilitate communication, both parents and young people need support from health and other professionals, while parents need more help and support in overcoming historical, social and cultural barriers to open communication about sex.