Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Tax Competition Under Budget Rigidities and Fairness Norms

This paper analyzes fiscal competition under budget rigidities and tax equity (fairness norms). We outline a numerically solvable political economic model that treats the outcome of tax competition as one argument in the governments utility function, the others being public expenditure and tax equity. In accordance with theoretical research, we demonstrate that tax competition tends to reduce taxes on mobile capital while increasing the tax rates on relatively immobile labor. However, taxes on mobile capital do not vanish in equilibrium. Instead, the government being least restricted by budget constraints and equity norms reduces tax rates slightly below the lowest tax rates of those countries, in which governments are more constrained. Analyzing data from 21 OECD countries between 1965 and 2000 we find empirical support for the hypotheses derived from our theoretical model.
“Pulling the Tail of the Cat”: An Exploration of Palestinian Peacebuilders' Conceptualisations of Men and Masculinities in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

To date, men as gendered beings have largely remained absent from the international literature on armed conflict and peacebuilding. In general, the literature omits men‘s gendered experiences as civilians, non-combatants and peacebuilders and instead, men remain confined by stereotypes of violence, soldiering and war-making. In this thesis, I aim to break these silences by producing a qualitative analysis of discourses of men and masculinities within semi-structured interviews conducted with fourteen Palestinian peacebuilders in the West Bank. This analysis explores the impacts of the ongoing occupation and armed conflict on non-combat related Palestinian masculinities, and further, how men and masculinities are thought to interact with local peacebuilding initiatives. Through the use of feminist critical discourse analysis, this study has uncovered a number of key themes relevant to gender and peacebuilding theory and practice. Firstly, it found that the ongoing conflict has resulted in a 'thwarting' of West Bank masculinities in which men are understood as finding it increasingly difficult to live up to social expectations of their traditional roles and identities. Secondly, this study found that men and masculinities have become somewhat estranged from civil society, informal peacebuilding schemes. Based on my findings, these initiatives seem to centre around feminised narratives that emphasise women's peacebuilding capacities, while masculinities and the peacebuilding roles of men are overlooked. Nevertheless, this thesis also presents the notion that men are actively involved in the nonviolent resistance movement within the West Bank, which opens up room for a novel, alternative understanding of 'masculinised' peacebuilding in Palestine. In sum, this study articulates the need to 'take masculinities seriously' in the pursuit of more inclusive and effective peacebuilding and post-conflict development practice.
What Is Wrong with the Transmission? A Comprehensive Study on Message Passing Related Bugs

Along with the prevalence of distributed systems, more and more applications require the ability of reliably transferring messages across a network. However, passing messages in a convenient and dependable way is both difficult and error prone. Thus the existing messaging products usually suffer from numerous software bugs. And these bugs are particularly difficult to be diagnosed or avoided. Therefore, in order to improve the methods for handling them, we need a better understanding of their characteristics. This paper provides the first (to the best of our knowledge)comprehensive characteristic study on message passing related bugs (MP-bugs). We have carefully examined the pattern, manifestation, fixing and other characteristics of 349 randomly selected real world MP-bugs from 3 representative open-source applications (Open MPI, Zero MQ, and Active MQ). Surprisingly, we found that nearly 60% of the non-latent MP-bugs can be categorised into two simple patterns: the message level bugs and the connection level bugs, which implies a promising perspective of detecting/tolerating tools for MP-bugs. Apart from this finding, our study have also uncovered many new (and sometimes surprising)insights of the message passing systems' developing process. The results should be useful for the design of corresponding bug detecting, exposing and tolerating tools.
Modeling amplified p53 responses under DNA-PK inhibition in DNA damage response

During DNA double strand breaks (DSBs) repair, coordinated activation of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)-like kinases can activate p53 signaling pathway. Recent findings have identified novel interplays among these kinases demonstrating amplified first p53 pulses under DNA-PK inhibition. However, no theoretical model has been developed to characterize such dynamics. In current work, we modeled the prolonged p53 pulses with DNA-PK inhibitor. We could identify a dose-dependent increase in the first pulse amplitude and width. Meanwhile, weakened DNA-PK mediated ATM inhibition was insufficient to reproduce such dynamic behavior. Moreover, the information flow was shifted predominantly to the first pulse under DNA-PK inhibition. Furthermore, the amplified p53 responses were relatively robust. Taken together, our model can faithfully replicate amplified p53 responses under DNA-PK inhibition and provide insights into cell fate decision by manipulating p53 dynamics.
Re-description of Xysticus bimaculatus L. Koch, 1867 (Araneae, Thomisidae) and characterization of its subsocial lifestyle

Abstract Spiders have become an important model to study the evolution of sociality, but a lack of their detailed natural history and taxonomy hinders broader comparative studies. Group-living crab spiders (Thomisidae) provide an excellent contrast to other social spiders since they lack a communal capture web, which was thought to be a critical factor in the evolution of sociality. Only three non-webbuilding crab-spider species are known to be subsocial or social, all of which belong to the genus Diaea Thorell, 1869. The aim of this study is to describe the social lifestyle of Xysticus bimaculatus L. Koch, 1867 for the first time. Furthermore, we present a detailed re-description of this species and discuss its taxonomic implications. Like other subsocial crab spiders, X. bimaculatus builds nests from tree leaves. Nests contain up to 38 spiders and sometimes several adult females, indicating the species may be at a transitory stage between subsociality and permanent sociality.
Dynamic Effects of Anticipated and Temporary Tax Changes in a R&D-Based Growth Model

Tax changes are often announced before their implementation and are not permanent, but rather only temporary. Accordingly, R&D firms will optimally adjust their investment decisions to fit tax schedule changes. This study analyzes how changes in various tax rates relevant to corporate activities affect growth and welfare, considering their methods of implementation. For this purpose, we consider adjustment costs involved in the investment process and allow firms to make a forward looking investment decision in a R&D-based endogenous growth model. Calibrating the model with U.S. data, we find that a dividend tax cut reduces the level of welfare irrespective of implementation method. On the other hand, a capital gains tax cut and a rise in the R&D tax credit rate enhance the level of welfare irrespective of implementation. However, the announcement of these tax changes prior to implementation reduces their effectiveness.
Ethnic differentials in the timing of family formation: A case study of the complex interaction between ethnicity, socioeconomic level, and marriage market pressure

Ethnic differentials in the timing of family formation in Fiji cannot be adequately explained by the norms, characteristics, minority group, and interaction hypotheses. The missing dimensions are socioeconomic level within ethnicity and time, including the marriage market effects of fertility transition. A complex interaction of factors involves underlying norms and the opposing effects of modernisation, including the interaction between socioeconomic level and ethnicity, and the changing marriage market pressures determined by the ethnically differentiated fertility decline consistent with the minority group hypothesis. Within each ethnicity, marriage market pressures are concentrated at lower socioeconomic levels, resulting in decreasing trends in age at marriage, and increased socioeconomic differentiation.
Multigrade lessons for EFA

Chapter 1 of this book and previous reviews of research on multigrade teaching highlighted an educational paradox (Little 1995, 2001; Pridmore, 2004). If children are to learn effectively in multigrade settings teachers need to be well trained, well resourced and to hold positive attitudes to multigrade teaching. The realities of the multigrade teacher stand in stark contrast. Many teachers such as Maheswari (Chapter 1) who find themselves in settings that require multigrade teaching are either untrained or are trained in monograde pedagogy. Many teachers in multigrade settings have few if any teaching/learning resources. And, as we saw in Chapter 1, many teachers in multigrade settings regard the multigrade classroom as inferior to the better resourced monograde classroom found in large, urban schools, staffed by trained teachers. During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries a monograded structure of mass schooling emerged as a universal ideal (Chapter 1). This ideal is reflected in the dominant construction of academic and professional knowledge that continues to surround teaching and learning worldwide. National curriculum frameworks are graded for cohorts of learners who entered school within the same calendar year. National Curriculum Authorities generate syllabi and guides for teaching based on single year grades. Teachers like Maheswari in Chapter 1, Olga in Chapter 3 and the teacher in the Tomorro mobile multigrade school in Chapter 10 struggle to meet the expectations of national education authorities using syllabi and teaching guides that have not been designed with their types of school in mind, or, in many settings, with no teaching materials at all. To meet this challenge education officials frequently express the view that multigrade
Intra-Abdominal Candidiasis: The Importance of Early Source Control and Antifungal Treatment

Intra-abdominal candidiasis (IAC) is poorly understood compared to candidemia. We described the clinical characteristics, microbiology, treatment and outcomes of IAC, and identified risk factors for mortality. We performed a retrospective study of adults diagnosed with IAC at our center in 2012–2013. Risk factors for mortality were evaluated using multivariable logistic regression. We identified 163 patients with IAC, compared to 161 with candidemia. Types of IAC were intra-abdominal abscesses (55%), secondary peritonitis (33%), primary peritonitis (5%), infected pancreatic necrosis (5%), and cholecystitis/cholangitis (3%). Eighty-three percent and 66% of secondary peritonitis and abscesses, respectively, stemmed from gastrointestinal (GI) tract sources. C. albicans (56%) and C. glabrata (24%) were the most common species. Bacterial co-infections and candidemia occurred in 67% and 6% of patients, respectively. Seventy-two percent of patients underwent an early source control intervention (within 5 days) and 72% received early antifungal treatment. 100-day mortality was 28%, and highest with primary (88%) or secondary (40%) peritonitis. Younger age, abscesses and early source control were independent predictors of survival. Younger age, abscesses and early antifungal treatment were independently associated with survival for IAC stemming from GI tract sources. Infectious diseases (ID) consultations were obtained in only 48% of patients. Consulted patients were significantly more likely to receive antifungal treatment. IAC is a common disease associated with heterogeneous manifestations, which result in poor outcomes. All patients should undergo source control interventions and receive antifungal treatment promptly. It is important for the ID community to become more engaged in treating IAC.
Conceptual and procedural encoding: cause-consequence conjunctive particles in Japanese *

A number of Japanese grammarians have proposed analyses of the causal connectives, KARA and NODE; however, these analyses do not appear to account in a fully adequate manner for the phenomena involved. This paper aims to clarify, using Sperber and Wilson's Relevance Theory, their similarities and differences in meaning. It is argued that they encode both conceptual and procedural information. On the conceptual level, KARA/NODE contribute to the truth-conditional content of an utterance, while on the procedural level they indicate where presupposition and focus are to be found. I will argue that their conceptual semantics is identical, and that they differ only on the procedural level.
A Method for Chronological Intravital Imaging of Bovine Oocytes during In Vitro Maturation

Abstract Oocyte maturation is known to affect the chances for successful fertilization, embryonic development, establishment of pregnancy and delivery of a live, healthy, and viable offspring. Two-photon laser scanning microscopy (TPLSM) has previously been used to evaluate early embryonic development without a detectable impairment of subsequent development, but has never been applied to assess mammalian oocytes throughout in vitro maturation (IVM). Visualization of structures within live oocytes during IVM, followed by fertilization and embryo culture, may improve the understanding of oocyte maturation. To visualize structures within bovine oocytes using TPLSM, it is necessary to remove the cumulus cells that normally surround the oocyte during maturation. Repeated visualization of structures within the same oocyte is possible, if movement of the oocyte can be avoided. In this article, we describe the development of a method for repeated intravital imaging of denuded bovine oocytes using an upright TPLSM equipped with a specially constructed incubator. Oocytes were stained with Hoechst 33258, and the nuclear structures were evaluated. Oocyte fertilization rate was not affected by TPLSM exposure, but the developmental capacity of the denuded oocytes was significantly reduced. This is, to our knowledge, the first article describing repeated intravital imaging during mammalian oocyte maturation using TPLSM.
The Clonic Phase of Seizures in Patients Treated with Electroconvulsive Therapy is Related to Age and Stimulus Intensity

Background: Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is effective in the treatment of major depressive disorder and schizophrenia in patients who are drug-naïve or less-receptive to antipsychotic drugs. Several studies have discussed the correlation between patient characteristics, input-current volume, and seizure duration. According to the present principle of ECT guidelines, the therapeutic effect of ECT mostly correlates with seizure duration. As the tonic phase is different from the clonic phase with respect to brain function and activity, it is informative to analyze both the tonic and clonic phases. Thus, this study sought to clarify the relationship between the features of the two phases, and to re-examine and refine guidelines regarding ECT treatment. Method: ECT-course data from 44 schizophrenia or bipolar I patients were recollected, including the number of treatments that they had received, their gender, age, and the association of these characteristics with motor seizure duration was analyzed. A two-factor correlation was employed to test the relationship between each of the two factors. Result: The post-analysis results indicate that seizure duration and age are significantly correlated. Older patients had relatively short seizure durations after ECT-treatment. Notably, a negative correlation was only found between age and the clonic phase of the seizure, not between age and the tonic phase. Furthermore, this study also found an inverse relationship between ECT-intensity and the clonic phase, but not between ECT-intensity and the tonic phase. Conclusion: This study demonstrated that age and ECT-intensity are negatively correlated with seizure duration, particularly in the clonic phase. The present observations are not fully consistent with the basic guidelines of the APA-ECT practical manual. Accordingly, the predictions regarding the therapeutic effect of ECT can be based on both the seizure duration and the clonic phase.
Combining service and learning: A comparison study of the relationship between a classroom sponsored service learning initiative and the moral, civic and intellectual lives of college students

Title of Dissertation: COMBINING SERVICE AND LEARNING: A COMPARA11VE sruDY OF 1HE RELAnONSHIP BETWEEN A CLASSROOM SPONSORED SERVICE­ LEARNING INlTIA11VE AND 1HE MORAL, CMC AND INTELLEcnJAL UVES OF COLLEGE STUDENTS Timothy P. Leary, Doctor of Philosophy, 1994 Dissertation directed by: Dr. Manique Clague Professor of Education Department of Education Policy, Planning, and Administration The purpose of this study was to examine the eHects of a classroom sponsored community service initiative on students' moral judgment, commitment to civic and social responsibility, and mastery of academiC course content. A multi-method approach was utilized to examine developmental and learning outcomes of students participating in two sections of a Philosophical Anthropology n course, both taught by the same instructor, offered at a small1iberal arts college. Students in one section of the course participated in a structured service-Ieaming experience of approximately 2S hours in length, while students in the other section were asked to complete a library assignment of approximately 2S hours in lieu of the service-Ieaming component. An other aspects of the course remained the same. The primary instrument utilized to measure changes in students' moral judgment was the Defining Issues Test (Rest, 1986a) and the main instrument employed to measure changes in students' commitment to civic and soda! responsibility was the Social and Personal Responsibility Scale (Conrad cSr: Hedin. 1981a). Students' mastery of academic course content was determined in large part by the results on a final essay examination. Based on an analysis of the results of the three primary instruments utilizf:d in au.co study. little or no evidence was found to suggest that students participating in the service section of the course demonstrated greater gains in their levels of moral judgment. commitment to civic and social responsibility. and mastery of academic course content than did students in the non-service section of the course. However, analysis of the findings of the more secondary. qualitative aspects of this study tended to differ and to somewhat contradict the quantitative findings. Data generated from student interviews, an interview with the course instructor, student reflection papers. and the results of standardized course evaluations and community service questionnaires suggest that some modest. subtle differences did exist between the overall quality of the educational experience for students in the service section and for students in the non-service section of the course. These differences related primarily to pedagogy, to levels of student involvem~nt in the learning process, and t! ' t-tu! d2gree to whic. 't students were able to make meaningful connections to social issues and concerns. COMBINING SERVICE AND LEARNING: A COMPARATIVE snJDV OF 1HE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN A CLASSROOM SPONSORED SERVICE-LEARNING INITIATIVE AND THE MORAL. CMC AND INTELLEClUAL UVES OF COLLEGE STUDENTS
T cell-mediated lethal shock triggered in mice by the superantigen staphylococcal enterotoxin B: critical role of tumor necrosis factor

Because mice are more resistant than humans to the pathogenic effects of bacterial toxins, we used D-Galactosamine- (D-Gal) sensitized mice as a model system to evaluate potential toxic shock symptoms triggered by the superantigen staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB). We show that similar to endotoxin (lipopolysaccharide) [LPS], the exotoxin SEB causes lethal shock within 8 h in D-Gal-sensitized mice, inducing 100% and about 50% lethality with 20 and 2 micrograms SEB, respectively. The lethal shock triggered by the superantigen SEB is mediated by T cells, a conclusion based on the observation that T cell repopulation of SCID mice conferred sensitivity to SEB. Since CSA also conferred protection, the role of T cell-derived lymphokines in mediating lethal shock was evaluated. Within 30-60 min after SEB injection, serum tumor necrosis factor (TNF) levels peaked, followed immediately by interleukin-2 (IL- 2). Serum-borne lymphokines were detected well in advance of signs of T cell activation, as assessed by IL-2 receptor expression of SEB- reactive V beta 8+ T cells. Passive immunization with anti-TNF- alpha/beta-neutralizing monoclonal antibody also conferred protection, indicating that it is TNF which is critical for initiating toxic shock symptoms. Taken together, this study defines basic differences between endotoxin (LPS)- and exotoxin (SEB)-mediated lethal shock, in that the former is mediated by macrophages and the latter by T cells. Yet the pathogenesis distal to the lymphokine/cytokine-producing cells appears surprisingly similar in that TNF represents a key mediator in inducing shock.
NUMERICAL ANALYSIS OF THREE-DIMENSIONAL TURBULENT FLOW BY FINITE ELEMENT METHOD AND LARGE EDDY SIMULATION

Formulation, implementation and applications of a numerical algorithm to simulate turbulent, incompressible, isothermal flows are the main objectives of this work. The transient three-dimensional flow is analyzed using an explicit Taylor-Galerkin scheme and the finite element method with hexahedrical eight-node element. The scheme adopted for turbulence treatment is Large Eddy Simulation. For sub-grid scales two models where implemented, the classical Smagorinsky ́s model and the dynamic eddy viscosity model. For the process of second filtration, which is necessary in the dynamic model, a new method was developed based on independent finite elements that involve each node in the original mesh. The implemented scheme is efficient and good results with low additional computational cost were obtained. Results for classical problems where presented, that demonstrate the system validation. Comments about the scheme applicability for flows with high Reynolds number are presented in the last part.
Ambient seismic noise monitoring of a clay landslide: Toward failure prediction

Given that clay-rich landslides may become mobilized, leading to rapid mass movements (earthflows and debris flows), they pose critical problems in risk management worldwide. The most widely proposed mechanism leading to such flow-like movements is the increase in water pore pressure in the sliding mass, generating partial or complete liquefaction. This solid-to-liquid transition results in a dramatic reduction of mechanical rigidity in the liquefied zones, which could be detected by monitoring shear wave velocity variations. With this purpose in mind, the ambient seismic noise correlation technique has been applied to measure the variation in the seismic surface wave velocity in the Pont Bourquin landslide (Swiss Alps). This small but active composite earthslide-earthflow was equipped with continuously recording seismic sensors during spring and summer 2010. An earthslide of a few thousand cubic meters was triggered in mid-August 2010, after a rainy period. This article shows that the seismic velocity of the sliding material, measured from daily noise correlograms, decreased continuously and rapidly for several days prior to the catastrophic event. From a spectral analysis of the velocity decrease, it was possible to determine the location of the change at the base of the sliding layer. These results demonstrate that ambient seismic noise can be used to detect rigidity variations before failure and could potentially be used to predict landslides.