Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cross-layer optimization of wireless multi-hop networks with network coding

In this paper we present a cross-layer algorithm for joint optimization of congestion control, routing, and scheduling in wireless multi-hop networks with network coding. We introduce virtual flow variables in the formulation of capacity region of the networks. The utility maximization problem subject to constraints on the capacity region is solved using dual decomposition and subgradient method, based on which a new queuing model is obtained and which also can result in a cross-layer algorithm for distributed implementation. The new queuing model can facilitate coding operations and reduce coding complexity. Simulation results show that network coding in the proposed joint optimization algorithm can interact adaptively and optimally with other components in different layers, and thus yield higher performance than the routing scheme without network coding.
The returns to quality in graduate education

ABSTRACT This paper estimates the monetary return to quality in US graduate education, controlling for cognitive ability and self-selection across award level, program quality, and field-of-study. In most program types, I cannot reject the hypothesis of no returns to either degree completion or program quality. Important exceptions include master's programs in health science, where completion substantially increases earnings, and in MBA and professional degree programs, where program quality has a positive influence on earnings. I explore the job characteristics that predict greater earnings among students with tertiary education, and I estimate the returns to quality in terms of non-monetary job benefits.
Match analysis in a wheelchair tennis tournament

The aim of this study was to analyze the activity patterns of wheelchair tennis matches. 16 male singles tennis matches were played. Eight internationally ranked players were recorded and subsequently analyzed according to the following variables: total playing time, effective playing time, resting time (both in absolute values and as a percentage of total time). The average rally duration and the number of shots per rally were also recorded. The results showed a mean (SD) of match length of 61.70 (14.33) minutes, a effective playing time of 20.07 (3.67) %, a work:rest time ratio of 1:4.12 and an average duration of point of 6.93 (5.16) seconds. Most of the points end in 3 or less shots. No significant differences were found in rally duration and shots per rally with regards to non-breakpoint opportunities and breakpoint opportunities (p>0.05). Knowledge of the activity patterns within competition helps with specific training for the sport.
Differential hippocampal and retrosplenial involvement in egocentric-updating, rotation, and allocentric processing during online spatial encoding: an fMRI study

The way new spatial information is encoded seems to be crucial in disentangling the role of decisive regions within the spatial memory network (i.e., hippocampus, parahippocampal, parietal, retrosplenial,…). Several data sources converge to suggest that the hippocampus is not always involved or indeed necessary for allocentric processing. Hippocampal involvement in spatial coding could reflect the integration of new information generated by “online” self-related changes. In this fMRI study, the participants started by encoding several object locations in a virtual reality environment and then performed a pointing task. Allocentric encoding was maximized by using a survey perspective and an object-to-object pointing task. Two egocentric encoding conditions were used, involving self-related changes processed under a first-person perspective and implicating a self-to-object pointing task. The Egocentric-updating condition involved navigation whereas the Egocentric with rotation only condition involved orientation changes only. Conjunction analysis of spatial encoding conditions revealed a wide activation of the occipito-parieto-frontal network and several medio-temporal structures. Interestingly, only the cuneal areas were significantly more recruited by the allocentric encoding in comparison to other spatial conditions. Moreover, the enhancement of hippocampal activation was found during Egocentric-updating encoding whereas the retrosplenial activation was observed during the Egocentric with rotation only condition. Hence, in some circumstances, hippocampal and retrosplenial structures—known for being involved in allocentric environmental coding—demonstrate preferential involvement in the egocentric coding of space. These results indicate that the raw differentiation between allocentric versus egocentric representation seems to no longer be sufficient in understanding the complexity of the mechanisms involved during spatial encoding.
Global Finite-Time Stabilization of a Class of Uncertain Nonlinear Systems Using Output Feedback

In this paper, the problem of global finite-time sta- bilization by means of output feedback is considered for a class of uncertain nonlinear systems. To solve the problem, we first construct a homogenous observer and controller in a recursive way for a chain of integrators. Then, using the homogeneous domination approach [8], we scale the homogeneous observer and controller with an appropriate choice of gain to render the nonlinear systems globally finite-time stable.
Professional Development Aimed at Increasing the Quality of Language Input During Storybook Interactions: Lessons From One Head Start Teacher's Experiences

This article provides a review of problems associated with teachers' talk and indicators of higher quality teachers' talk for use with lower socioeconomic status (SES) Head Start students. Then it shows how one Head Start teacher, called Michele in this article, responded to professional development that was aimed at increasing the quality of language input during storybook interactions, especially for children from low SES communities. Michele's attempts to modify her classroom discourse in her response to her experiences may inform future efforts to work with teachers to improve their classroom interactions with children in inner city Head Start programs, including those who are bilingual and bidialectal. In addition, the article describes the methods that were used to increase Michele's awareness of her language use and draws examples from her experiences in attempting to translate them into higher quality of language input for her Head Start students in actual practice. This qualitative case study shows one teacher's journey and highlights several turning points along the way, perhaps serving as evidence that the intense effort required for this type of change is worth it.
From de Sitter to de Sitter

We obtain D = 6, = (1,1) de Sitter supergravity from a hyperbolic reduction of the massive type IIA* theory. We construct a smooth cosmological solution in which the co-moving time runs from an infinite past, which is dS4×S2, to an infinite future, which is a dS6-type spacetime with the boundary R3×S2. This provides an effective four-dimensional cosmological model with two compact extra dimensions forming an S2. Interestingly enough, although the solution is time dependent, it arises from a first-order system via a superpotential construction. We lift the solutions back to D = 10, and in particular obtain two smooth embeddings of dS4 in massive type IIA*, with the internal space being either H4×S2 or an H4 bundle over S2. We also obtain the analogous D = 5 and 4 solutions. We show that there exist cosmological solutions that describe an expanding universe with the expansion rate significantly larger in the past than in the future.
Astrometric orbits of S~B~^9 stars

Hipparcos Intermediate Astrometric Data (IAD) have been used to derive astrometric orbital elements for spectroscopic binaries from the newly released Ninth Catalogue of Spectroscopic Binary Orbits (SB9 ). This endeavour is justified by the fact that (i) the astrometric orbital motion is often difficult to detect without the prior knowledge of the spectroscopic orbital elements, and (ii) such knowledge was not available at the time of the construction of the Hipparcos Catalogue for the spectroscopic binaries which were recently added to the SB9 catalogue. Among the 1374 binaries from SB9 which have an HIP entry (excluding binaries with visual companions, or DMSA/C in the Double and Multiple Stars Annex), 282 have detectable orbital astrometric motion (at the 5% significance level). Among those, only 70 have astrometric orbital elements that are reliably determined (according to specific statistical tests), and for the first time for 20 systems. This represents a 8.5% increase of the number of astrometric systems with known orbital elements (The Double and Multiple Systems Annex contains 235 of those DMSA/ Os ystems). The detection of the astrometric orbital motion when the Hipparcos IAD are supplemented by the spectroscopic orbital elements is close to 100% for binaries with only one visible component, provided that the period is in the 50−1000 d range and the parallax is > 5m as. This result is an interesting testbed to guide the choice of algorithms and statistical tests to be used in the search for astrometric binaries during the forthcoming ESA Gaia mission. Finally, orbital inclinations provided by the present analysis have been used to derive several astrophysical quantities. For instance, 29 among the 70 systems with reliable astrometric orbital elements involve main sequence stars for which the companion mass could be derived. Some interesting conclusions may be drawn from this new set of stellar masses, like the enigmatic nature of the companion to the Hyades F dwarf HIP 20935. This system has a mass ratio of 0.98 but the companion remains elusive.
Photometric study of distant open clusters in the second quadrant: NGC 7245, King 9, King 13 and IC 166

We present a UBV CCD photometric study of four open clusters, NGC 7245, King 9, IC 166 and King 13, located between l= 90° and 135°. All are embedded in a rich Galactic field. NGC 7245 and King 9 are close together in the sky and have similar reddenings. The distances and ages are: NGC 7245, 3.8 ± 0.35 kpc and 400 Myr; King 9 (the most distant cluster in this quadrant), 7.9 ± 1.1 kpc and 3.0 Gyr. King 13 is 3.1 ± 0.3 kpc distant and 300 Myr old. King 9 and IC 166 (4.8 ± 0.5 kpc distant and 1 Gyr old) may be metal-poor clusters (Z= 0.008), as estimated from isochrone fitting. The average value of the distance of young clusters from the Galactic plane in the above longitude range and beyond 2 kpc (−47 ± 16 pc, for 64 clusters) indicates that the young disc bends towards the southern latitudes.
Mesh-based geocast routing protocols in an ad hoc network

This paper concerns the development and performance evaluation of protocols that provide geocast communication in an ad hoc netw ork. The goal of a geocasting protocol is to deliver pac kets to a group of nodes that are within a speci ed geographical area, i.e., the geocast region. The geocast group consists of the nodes within this region at a given time. We present three di erent approaches for delivering packets to the geocast group and then evaluate these approaches via simulation. In addition, we consider the e ect the random waypoint mobility model has on the performance evaluation of an ad hoc netw ork protocol in general.
Homelessness and Crime

National estimates of homelessness vary considerably from a low of approximately 1 million to a high of 3 million. Regardless of the numbers, most individuals who are homeless have stories to tell about their experiences being unhoused and poor. These stories often incorporate the challenges of surviving each day: finding enough food, locating shelter when the weather turns bad, dealing with health issues and emergencies, and being confronted with life-threatening situations. Unfortunately, they also include daily humiliations, stigmatization, and being ignored by the many people living in urban areas who appear unconcerned with their crises. Another regular experience of the homeless is that of crime. This entry provides a brief review on the relationship between homelessness and crime. Keywords: crime; gender; hate; homelessness; violence
Character Segmentation of Sindhi, an Arabic Style Scripting Language, using Height Profile Vector

2 Abstract: In this p aper, a problem of su b-word segmentation of p rinted Sindhi, an Arabic style scripting language, into characters is addressed. Printed or handwritten Sindhi text is cursive in nature. In t he c ursive w riting, mostly t he s ubsequent characters in a word ar e j oined with ea ch ot her. In t he proposed s egmentation al gorithm, first of all, Height Profile V ector (HPV) of thinned primary s troke of a s ub-word i s calculated a nd ana lyzed for the segmentation i nto i ts constituent characters. The number and locations of possible se gmentation points (PSP) are determined. The number of PSPs gives a rough estimation of the number of characters in t he sub-word. The data around the last PSP is f urther a nalyzed t o de termine t he ex act number of charact ers in t he sub -word. As t he ch aracters' set of Sindhi is the s uperset set of Arabic c haracters' set hence the pr oposed s egmentation al gorithm may b e used for t he seg mentation of text written i n other Arabic scripting languages.
Screen space fluid rendering with curvature flow

We present an approach for rendering the surface of a particle-based fluid that is simple to implement, has real-time performance with a configurable speed/quality trade-off, and smoothes the surface to prevent the fluid from looking "blobby" or jelly-like. The method is not based on polygonization and as such circumvents the usual grid artifacts of marching cubes. It only renders the surface where it is visible, and has inherent view-dependent level-of-detail. We use Perlin noise to add detail to the surface of the fluid. All the processing, rendering and shading steps are directly implemented on graphics hardware.
The Right Answer to the Wrong Question: Identifying Superior Active Portfolio Management

The debate over the value of active portfolio management has often centered on whether the average active manager is capable of producing returns that exceed expectations. We argue that a more useful way to frame this issue is to focus on identifying those managers who are the most likely to generate superior risk-adjusted returns (i.e., alpha) in the future. Using a style-classified sample of mutual funds, we document several tractable relationships between observable fund characteristics and its future alpha, most notably the tendency for performance to persist over time. While median managers produce positive risk-adjusted performance approximately 45% of the time, we document a selection process that improves an investor's probability of identifying a superior active manager to almost 60%. We conclude that there is a place in the investor's portfolio for the properly chosen active manager.
Ring1B is crucial for the regulation of developmental control genes and PRC1 proteins but not X inactivation in embryonic cells

The Polycomb group (PcG) gene Ring1B has been implicated in the repression of developmental control genes and X inactivation and is essential for embryogenesis. Ring1B protein contains a RING finger domain and functions as an E3 ubiquitin ligase that is crucial for the monoubiquitination of histone H2A (H2AK119ub1). Here, we study the function of Ring1B in mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells. The deletion of Ring1B causes the loss of several PcG proteins, showing an unanticipated function in the regulation of PcG protein levels. Derepression of lineage genes and an aberrant differentiation potential is observed in Ring1B-deficient ES cells. Despite a crucial function of Ring1B in establishing the chromosome-wide ubiquitination of histone H2A lysine 119 (H2AK119ub1) upon Xist expression in ES cells, the initiation of silencing by Xist is independent of Ring1B. Other chromatin marks associated with the initiation of X inactivation are not affected in Ring1B-deficient cells, suggesting compensation for the loss of Ring1B in X inactivation in contrast to the repression of lineage genes.
Inferential Models for Linear Regression

Linear regression is arguably one of the most widely used statistical methods in applications. However, important problems, especially variable selection, remain a challenge for classical modes of inference. This paper develops a recently proposed framework of inferential models (IMs) in the linear regression context. In general, an IM is able to produce meaningful probabilistic summaries of the statistical evidence for and against assertions about the unknown parameter of interest and, moreover, these summaries are shown to be properly calibrated in a frequentist sense. Here we demonstrate, using simple examples, that the IM framework is promising for linear regression analysis --- including model checking, variable selection, and prediction --- and for uncertain inference in general.
Language Attrition: The Nkpor Igbo Dialect Situation

ABSTRACT When speakers of two or more languages come into contact, the sociolinguistic implications of the contact situation are multifaceted: from language shift to language attrition, and possibly, language loss. Language attrition manifests among speakers for whom a language other than their first language plays an important role in their life. This article explores the negative language attitude of Nkpor dialect speakers, and the attrition of Nkpor dialect of the Igbo language as a result of dialect contact. Specifically, the article investigates and describes the manifestations of attrition in Nkpor dialect and the perception of Nkpor people of this emerging sociolinguistic phenomenon. Data collection was through observation, questionnaire and interview. The result shows that Nkpor dialect speakers have shifted towards Otu Onitsha dialect, and the few old persons who still use the dialect do so in very restricted situations. Based on this shift, possible dialect attrition is imminent in Nkpor speech community.
Erratum:Colloquium: Quantum fluctuation relations: Foundations and applications [Rev. Mod. Phys.83, 771 (2011)]

Two fundamental ingredients play a decisive role in the foundation of fluctuation relations: the principle of microreversibility and the fact that thermal equilibrium is described by the Gibbs canonical ensemble. Building on these two pillars the reader is guided through a self-contained exposition of the theory and applications of quantum fluctuation relations. These are exact results that constitute the fulcrum of the recent development of nonequilibrium thermodynamics beyond the linear response regime. The material is organized in a way that emphasizes the historical connection between quantum fluctuation relations and (non)linear response theory. A number of fundamental issues are clarified which were not completely settled in the prior literature. The main focus is on (i) work fluctuation relations for transiently driven closed or open quantum systems, and (ii) on fluctuation relations for heat and matter exchange in quantum transport settings. Recently performed and proposed experimental applications are presented and discussed.
The post-transcriptional gene silencing machinery functions independently of DNA methylation to repress a LINE1-like retrotransposon in Neurospora crassa

Post-transcriptional gene silencing (PTGS) involving small interfering RNA (siRNA)-directed degradation of RNA transcripts and transcriptional silencing via DNA methylation have each been proposed as mechanisms of genome defence against invading nucleic acids, such as transposons and viruses. Furthermore, recent data from plants indicates that many transposons are silenced via a combination of the two mechanisms, and siRNAs can direct methylation of transposon sequences. We investigated the contribution of DNA methylation and the PTGS pathway to transposon control in the filamentous fungus Neurospora crassa. We found that repression of the LINE1-like transposon, Tad, requires the Argonaute protein QDE2 and Dicer, each of which are required for transgene-induced PTGS (quelling) in N.crassa. Interestingly, unlike quelling, the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase QDE1 and the RecQ DNA helicase QDE3 were not required for Tad control, suggesting the existence of specialized silencing pathways for diverse kinds of repetitive elements. In contrast, Tad elements were not significantly methylated and the DIM2 DNA methyltransferase, responsible for all known DNA methylation in Neurospora, had no effect on Tad control. Thus, an RNAi-related transposon silencing mechanism operates during the vegetative phase of N.crassa that is independent of DNA methylation, highlighting a major difference between this organism and other methylation-proficient species.
I Remember That From My Pins!: Using Pinterest to Encourage Active Learning

Social media is integral to students’ lives. Pinterest, an online social network for “Pinning” (sharing) links and images, is the fastest-growing social media tool in history. The purpose of this investigation was to determine the effectiveness of a semester-long active-learning assignment using the Pinterest platform. Forty-nine students (42 female; 18 psychology majors) enrolled in a Lifespan Development course contributed data to this investigation. Students used Pinterest to apply their knowledge of developmental theory and research to two celebrities or fictional characters of their choice. At the end of the semester, students completed a short questionnaire in which they reported on their experiences with the project. Participants also consented to have their academic achievement data (course grades) analyzed in aggregate. Results indicate that students enjoy the Pinterest platform and that they perceive learning more from the assignment than from other assignments in this and other courses. However, some students reported struggling with practical concerns of the platform, including difficulty in adjusting to an unfamiliar platform. Results suggest that Pinterest can be used to encourage student learning but that instructors must take care to ensure that assignments in this medium are inclusive of a broad range of students.