Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Essays in risk

The dissertation consists of three chapters. The first chapter considers a novel component of individual utility, which I term “adjustment utility”. In a classroom experiment, I first show that this component of utility exists. I then develop a model to show when and in what way adjustment utility affects overall utility and economic decision making. Data on HIV infections and use of condoms in Germany shows the relevance of the results. For the second chapter I conducted an experiment, which shows that individuals imitate intentionally, even in settings where they cannot learn anything by doing so. This complements previous experimental research, which could show that individual behavior is consistent with imitation motives, but where behavior could also be explained by learning motives. In addition, the results show that when subjects choose whom to imitate, they consider the results of other players over several periods, rather than only of the last period, as assumed in previous work. Finally, in the third chapter, I analyze the question whether state-owned banks have a competitive advantage over private banks due to a state guarantee on their deposits. State-owned banks face a restriction of their business strategies, which is due to their mandate of “supporting economic development”. As a consequence, state-owned banks cannot publicly declare to liquidate all borrowers in financial distress. This offers private banks the opportunity to separate borrowers by self-selection, enter the market and make profits in equilibrium.
University of Southern Denmark Interactions between meat intake and genetic variation in relation to colorectal cancer

Meat intake is associated with the risk of colorectal cancer. The objective of this systematic review was to evaluate interactions between meat intake and genetic variation in order to identify biological pathways involved in meat carcinogenesis. We performed a literature search of PubMed and Embase using ‘‘interaction’’, ‘‘meat’’, ‘‘polymorphisms’’, and ‘‘colorectal cancer’’, and data on meat–gene interactions were extracted. The studies were divided according to whether information on meat intake was collected prospectively or retrospectively. In prospective studies, interactions between meat intake and polymorphisms in PTGS2 (encoding COX-2), ABCB1, IL10, NFKB1, MSH3, XPC (Pint = 0.006, 0.01, 0.04, 0.03, 0.002, 0.01, respectively), but not IL1B, HMOX1, ABCC2, ABCG2, NR1I2 (encoding PXR), NR1H2 (encoding LXR), NAT1, NAT2, MSH6, or MLH1 in relation to CRC were found. Interaction between a polymorphism in XPC and meat was found in one prospective and one case–control study; however, the directions of the risk estimates were opposite. Thus, none of the findings were replicated. The results from this systematic review suggest that genetic variation in the inflammatory response and DNA repair pathway is involved in meat-related colorectal carcinogenesis, whereas no support for the involvement of heme and iron from meat or cooking mutagens was found. Further studies assessing interactions between meat intake and genetic variation in relation to CRC in large well-characterised prospective cohorts with relevant meat exposure are warranted.
Right ventricular reserve in a piglet model of chronic pulmonary hypertension

Right ventricular (RV) response to exercise or pharmacological stress is not well documented in pulmonary hypertension (PH). We investigated the relationship between RV reserve and ventricular–arterial coupling. Surgical ligation of the left pulmonary artery was performed in 13 Large White piglets (PH group), thereafter weekly embolisations of the right lower lobe were performed for 5 weeks. A control group of six piglets underwent sham procedures. Right heart catheterisation and echocardiography were performed at week 6. Pressure–volume loops were recorded before and after dobutamine infusion. Induction of experimental PH resulted in a higher mean±sd pulmonary artery pressure (34±9 versus 14±2 mmHg; p<0.01) and in a lower ventricular–arterial coupling efficiency (0.66±0.18 versus 1.24±0.17; p<0.01) compared with controls at 6 weeks. Dobutamine-induced relative changes in RV stroke volume index (SVI) and end-systolic elastance were lower in the PH group (mean±sd 47±5% versus 20±5%, p<0.01, and 81±37% versus 32±14%, p<0.01, respectively). Change in SVI was strongly associated with resting ventricular–arterial coupling (R2=0.74; p<0.01). RV reserve was associated with ventricular–arterial coupling in a porcine model of chronic pressure overload. Dobutamine testing in right ventricular pressure overload: a potentially useful method to assess contractile reserve http://ow.ly/E9NMK
Parameters analyzed of Higuchi's fractal dimension for EEG brain signals

Due to the stochastic nature of EEG signals, various nonlinear patterns and methods have been applied in order to obtain characteristic understanding of their dynamic behavior [6]. The Fractal Dimension (FD) is an appropriate tool to analyzed EEG signals and can be calculated by means of the Higuchi's algorithm. Nevertheless, this algorithm depends of the k parameter to improve the speed of calculation. The aim of this work is to analyze the sensitivity of the k parameter due to segmentation, overlap, and noise over a signal. After that, with a better k parameter we applied the FD on EEG brain signals recorded while subjects were executing cognitive task. To analyze the statistical differences for each cognitive mental task, the hypothesis Wilcoxon signed-rank test was applied. The results for all tested brain bands used in this study reported a statistical difference (p <; 0.05) in 9 out of 10 pairs of mental tasks. The proposed approach reported is a good tool for cognitive tasks discrimination. We have also determine better k parameter for different conditions therefore these results can be used for future studies.
The Role of Boundary Layer Processes in Limiting PV Homogenization

A b-plane multilevel quasigeostrophic channel model with interactive static stability and a simplified parameterization of atmospheric boundary layer physics is used to study the role of different boundary layer processes in eddy equilibration and their relative effect in maintaining the strong boundary layer potential vorticity (PV) gradient. The model results show that vertical thermal diffusion, along with the surface heat exchange, is primarily responsible for limiting PV homogenization by baroclinic eddies in the boundary layer. Under fixed SST boundary conditions, these two processes act as the source of the mean flow baroclinicity in the lower levels and result in stronger eddy heat fluxes. Reducing surface friction alone does not result in efficient elimination of the boundary layer PV gradient, but the equilibrium state temperature gradient is still largely influenced by surface friction and its response to changes in surface friction is not monotonic. In the regime of strong surface friction, with reduced poleward eddy heat flux, a strong temperature gradient is still retained. When the surface friction is sufficiently weak along with the stronger zonal wind, the critical level at the center of the jet drops below the surface. As a result, in the lower levels, the eddy heat flux forcing on the mean flow moves away from the center of the jet and the equilibrium state varies only slightly with the strength of the vertical momentum diffusion in the boundary layer.
Amplified spontaneous emission noise in few-mode fiber Raman amplifiers

We present a theoretical model of amplified spontaneous emission noise in few-mode fiber Raman amplifiers. Under the undepleted-pump approximation, equalization of modal gain also ensures equalization of OSNR. This modal allows the prediction of mode-dependent OSNRs in the saturated-pump regime. The experimental results are in good agreement with theoretical estimations.
A learner’s role-based multi dimensional collaborative recommendation (LRMDCR) for group learning support

This article argues for the new solution of personal recommender systems that can provide learners with suitable learning objects to learn in group learning. In order to improve the ldquoeducational provisionrdquo to implement the e-learning recommender system, we propose a new recommendation approach which has been proven to be more suitable to realize personalized recommendation based on not only learning histories but also learning activities and learning processes which is defined as LRMDCR (a learnerpsilas role-based multidimensional collaborative recommendation) by us. In the approach, firstly we use the Markov chain model to divide the group learners into advanced learners and beginner learners by using the learnerspsila learning activities and learning processes. Secondly we use the multidimensional collaborative filtering to decide the recommendation learning objects to every learner of the group. We believe our approach is more effective and efficient to group learning.
Properties of Piriform Cortex Pyramidal Cell Dendrites: Implications for Olfactory Circuit Design

Unlike the neocortex, sensory input to the piriform cortex is anatomically segregated in layer 1, making it ideal for studying the dendritic integration of synaptic inputs pivotal for sensory information processing. Here we investigated dendritic integration of olfactory bulb inputs in pyramidal cells using dual patch-clamp recordings along the soma–apical dendritic axis. We found that these dendrites are relatively compact with 50% maximal somatic current loss for synaptic inputs arriving at distal dendritic regions. Distal dendrites could generate small and fast local spikes, but they had little impact on the soma, indicating that they are only weakly active. In contrast to the neocortex, we found no evidence for dendritic Ca2+ or NMDA spikes though these dendrites actively supported action potential backpropagation with concomitant entry of Ca2+ ions. Based on experiments and simulations we suggest that regardless of dendritic location, olfactory bulb inputs have nearly uniform potency and are distributed diffusely over the distal apical tree (layer Ia), thereby minimizing sublinear summation effects. This indicates that any stimulus feature extraction performed by these cells will occur at the soma and is based on the nearly linear sum of olfactory bulb inputs, rather than on explicitly designed clusters of functionally related synapses in the dendritic tree.
State‐dependent atmospheric noise associated with ENSO

A strong relationship between ENSO (El Nino/Southern Oscillation) and atmospheric short‐term variability in the near‐surface zonal wind is reported in the present study. On one hand, anomalies in the variance of the short‐term atmospheric variability over the western Pacific tend to lead El Nino development. On the other hand, the activity of the fast atmospheric variability over the central Pacific is simultaneously correlated to the NINO3.4 SST. The significant correlation exists over the broad range of atmospheric variability from the synoptic time scale to the inter‐seasonal time scale. This finding supports the notion that the ENSO–state dependence of the atmospheric variability serves as a source of stochastic forcing for ENSO. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that there is a significant interdecadal change in this dependence. The state‐dependent noise becomes much stronger in the recent period, which possibly explains the recent increase of the ENSO activities, consistent with the recent theory of noise‐induced destabilization effect for ENSO.
Mainstreaming informal employment and gender in poverty reduction : a handbook for policy - makers and other stakeholders

Abbreviations Foreword Executive Summary 1. Employment: The 'Missing Link' in the Poverty Debates The Globalisation-Growth-Poverty Debate Terms of the Debate The 'Missing link' in the Debate Conclusion 2. Informal Employment, Gender and Poverty The Informal Economy Women and Men in the Informal Economy The Links Between Informal Employment, Poverty and Gender Gender Segmentation of the Informal Economy Hidden Costs of Informal Employment The Global Horticulture Value Chain: An Illustrative Case Study Gender Segmentation of the Informal Economy and Poverty 3. The Changing World of Work: Linking Economic Reforms-Gender-Poverty Economic Reforms and Poverty Trade and Employment The Changing Nature of Work Conclusion 4. Decent Work for Informal Workers: Promising Strategies and Examples Goal 1: Promoting Opportunities Goal 2: Securing Rights Goal 3: Promoting Protection Goal 4: Promoting Voice Supporting Strategy- Collecting Statistics on the Informal Economy Conclusion 5. Informal Employment and Gender: A Strategic Policy Approach Policy Perspective Policy Goals Substantive Policy Areas Key Actors Policy Process References Appendices 1 llO Convention on Home Work, 1996 2 Recommendations to Extend National Labour Legislation to Informal Women Workers in India 3 Draft Umbrella Legislation on Informal Sector Workers, India 4 Bellagio Declaration of Street Vendors, 1995
Development of Genetic Tools forLactobacillus sakei: Disruption of the β-Galactosidase Gene and Use of lacZ as a Reporter Gene To Study Regulation of the Putative Copper ATPase, AtkB

ABSTRACT Downstream from the ptsHI operon of Lactobacillus sakei, the genes atkY and atkB, organized in an operon, were observed. The two putative proteins, AtkB and AtkY, show sequence similarity to the Enterococcus hirae copper P-type ATPase, responsible for copper efflux, and its negative regulator. Characterization of AtkB as a copper P-type ATPase could not be demonstrated since an atkB mutant did not show any phenotype. Thus, another strategy was followed in order to investigate the transcriptional regulation of the atkYB locus, leading to the development of new genetic tools for L. sakei. A plasmid was constructed, the use of which allowed gene replacement at the lacLM locus in L. sakei by two successive crossovers. A strain deleted of the lacLM operon encoding the β-galactosidase of L. sakei was constructed by this method, and the Escherichia coli lacZ gene could then be used as a reporter gene to investigate the regulation ofatkYB. Results show that the atkYB operon is induced by small concentrations of CuSO4 (30 to 40 μM) but not when CuSO4 is omitted or added at higher concentrations.
Managing a Liquidity Trap: Monetary and Fiscal Policy

I study monetary and fiscal policy in liquidity trap scenarios, where the zero bound on the nominal interest rate is binding. I work with a continuous-time version of the standard New Keynesian model. Without commitment, the economy suffers from deflation and depressed output. I show that, surprisingly, both are exacerbated with greater price flexibility. I examine monetary and fiscal policies that maximize utility for the agent in the model and refer to these as optimal throughout the paper. I find that the optimal interest rate is set to zero past the liquidity trap and jumps discretely up upon exit. Inflation may be positive throughout, so the absence of deflation is not evidence against a liquidity trap. Output, on the other hand, always starts below its efficient level and rises above it. I then study fiscal policy and show that, regardless of parameters that govern the value of "fiscal multipliers" during normal or liquidity trap times, at the start of a liquidity trap optimal spending is above its natural level. However, it declines over time and goes below its natural level. I propose a decomposition of spending according to "opportunistic" and "stimulus" motives. The former is defined as the level of government purchases that is optimal from a static, cost-benefit standpoint, taking into account that, due to slack resources, shadow costs may be lower during a slump; the latter measures deviations from the former. I show that stimulus spending may be zero throughout, or switch signs, depending on parameters. Finally, I consider the hybrid where monetary policy is discretionary, but fiscal policy has commitment. In this case, stimulus spending is typically positive and increasing throughout the trap.
A Centripetal Theory of Democratic Governance: Frontmatter

1. Models of governance Part I. Causal Mechanisms: 2. Party government 3. Conflict mediation 4. Policy coordination Part II. Empirics: 5. Hypotheses 6. Crossnational tests 7. Assessing the evidence Part III. Conclusions: 8. In defense of grand theory Appendix A. Defining good governance Appendix B. Alternative theories revisited Sources.
In Search of an Effective in vivo Reactivator for Organophosphorus Nerve Agent-Inhibited Acetylcholinesterase in the Central Nervous System

Abstract : Organophosphorus nerve agents irreversibly inhibit the enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE), leading to excessive cholinergic neurotransmission and causing toxic lethal consequences. Current nerve agent therapies in the U.S. include 2-pralidoxime to reactivate inhibited AChE. Due to its quaternary structure, this oxime does not readily cross the blood brain barrier (BBB) to reactivate brain AChE and to mitigate CNS toxicity.
Metabolism of Bergamottin by Cytochromes P450 2B6 and 3A5

Cytochromes P450 (P450) 2B6 and 3A5 are inactivated by bergamottin (BG). P450 2B6 metabolized BG primarily to M3 and M4 and one minor metabolite (M1). The metabolites were analyzed, and the data indicated that M1 was bergaptol, M3 was 5′-OH-BG, and M4 was a mixture of 6′- and 7′-OH-BG. Because 6′- and 7′-OH-BG were the primary metabolites, it suggested that P450 2B6 preferentially oxidized the geranyloxy chain of BG. Metabolism of BG by P450 3A5 resulted in three major metabolites: [bergaptol, M3 (5′-OH-BG), and M5 (2′-OH-BG)], and two minor metabolites [M2 (6′,7′-dihydroxy-BG) and M4 (6′- and 7′-OH-BG)]. Because bergaptol was the most abundant metabolite formed, it suggested that P450 3A5 metabolized BG mainly by cleaving the geranyl-oxy chain. Molecular modeling studies confirmed that docking of BG in the P450 2B6 active site favors oxidation in the terminal region of the geranyl-oxy chain, whereas positioning the 2′-carbon of BG nearest the heme iron is preferred by P450 3A5. Glutathione (GSH)-BG conjugates were formed by both P450. Each enzyme predominantly formed conjugates with m/z values of 662. Tandem mass spectrometry analysis of the GSH conjugates indicated that the oxidation forming a reactive intermediate occurred on the furan moiety of BG, presumably through the initial formation of an epoxide at the furan double bond. The data indicate that oxidation of the geranyl-oxy chain resulted in the formation of stable metabolites of BG, whereas oxidation of the furan ring produced reactive intermediates that may be responsible for binding to and inactivating P450 2B6 and 3A4.
Generating Text with Deep Reinforcement Learning

We introduce a novel schema for sequence to sequence learning with a Deep Q-Network (DQN), which decodes the output sequence iteratively. The aim here is to enable the decoder to first tackle easier portions of the sequences, and then turn to cope with difficult parts. Specifically, in each iteration, an encoder-decoder Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) network is employed to, from the input sequence, automatically create features to represent the internal states of and formulate a list of potential actions for the DQN. Take rephrasing a natural sentence as an example. This list can contain ranked potential words. Next, the DQN learns to make decision on which action (e.g., word) will be selected from the list to modify the current decoded sequence. The newly modified output sequence is subsequently used as the input to the DQN for the next decoding iteration. In each iteration, we also bias the reinforcement learning's attention to explore sequence portions which are previously difficult to be decoded. For evaluation, the proposed strategy was trained to decode ten thousands natural sentences. Our experiments indicate that, when compared to a left-to-right greedy beam search LSTM decoder, the proposed method performed competitively well when decoding sentences from the training set, but significantly outperformed the baseline when decoding unseen sentences, in terms of BLEU score obtained.
Performance comparison of channel coding for 60GHz SC-PHY and a multigigabit Viterbi decoder

In this paper, we make a performance comparison between convolutional(171,133) codes (CC), concatenated RS(255,239)-convolutional(171,133) codes (RS-CC) and LDPC(672,336) based on 60GHz single carrier physical layer (SC-PHY). With the effect of phase noise and non-linear distortion of power amplifier (NLPA) taken into account, RS-CC reveals higher robustness against the effect over LDPC, and it has the better bit-error rate performance than LDPC. Over and above, a forward independent sliding-block architecture for Viterbi decoders (FISB-VD) is proposed to achieve multigigabit inner-CC decoding of the RS-CC. A 16-parallel FISB-VD has been implemented in a Xilinx Virtex-6 FPGA device, of which the maximum decoding rate can be up to 3.2 Gbps.
A stochastic model of technical change: an application to the U

A stochastic model of technical change is presented that accounts for the profiles of important macroeconomic variables observed in the US economy since the Civil War: labor productivity, the productivity of capital, and the profit rate. No production function exists, and the viewpoint is that of evolutionary economics. Innovation is described as a random, non-biased process, controlled by two parameters. The techniques of production used are selected according to their profitability. Under the assumptions of a rising labor cost and a temporary variation in the profile of innovation, it is possible to reproduce the historical trends of each variable over the three subperiods, 1869-1920, 1920-1960, and 1960-1989. For example, the model explains why the productivity of capital and the profit rate displayed first a downward, then an upward, and again a downward trend. The treatment of a deterministic approximation of the model permits a thoroughly analytical discussion of the various configurations of the variables depending on the values of the parameters.
The potential of speed control

The effect of speed control when used as a single action to resolve aircraft conflicts is not well known in the ATM scientific world. Therefore, the objective of this study is to get some initial figures to evaluate its potential. This paper introduces the use of speed control manoeuvres with a specific focus on automation. The reorganised ATC mathematical simulator that served as a tool is described and especially the modifications for its resolution rules, the aircraft performance and uncertainty model. Then the simulation setup and the seven scenarios are analysed in more detail concerning traffic and conflict density. Next, the results from the simulations are shown with analysis of resolution rates, speed rates, encounter angles, and closest points of approach. Last, the results are discussed and further studies suggested.
Keeping Up with the E-Joneses: Do Online Social Networks Raise Social Comparisons?

Online social networks, such as Facebook, disclose an unprecedented volume of personal information amplifying the occasions for social comparisons, which can be a cause of frustration. We test the hypothesis that the use of social networking sites (SNS) increases social comparisons as proxied by people’s dissatisfaction with their income and we compare the effect of SNS in Western and Eastern European countries. After controlling for the possibility of reverse causality, our results suggest that SNS users have a higher probability to compare their achievements with those of others. In Western countries, this leads individuals to a lower satisfaction with their economic conditions. The opposite holds in Eastern countries, where upward comparisons seemingly strengthen the hope that an improvement in individuals’ economic conditions will occur (so called “tunnel effect”). We conclude that SNS can be a strong engine of frustration for their users depending on the institutional and economic circumstances.