Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Automated imaging of extended tissue volumes using confocal microscopy

Confocal microscopy enables constitutive elements of cells and tissues to be viewed at high resolution and reconstructed in three dimensions, but is constrained by the limited extent of the volumes that can be imaged. We have developed an automated technique that enables serial confocal images to be acquired over large tissue areas and volumes. The computer‐controlled system, which integrates a confocal microscope and an ultramill using a high‐precision translation stage, inherently preserves specimen registration, and the user control interface enables flexible specification of imaging protocols over a wide range of scales and resolutions. With this system it is possible to reconstruct specified morphological features in three dimensions and locate them accurately throughout a tissue sample. We have successfully imaged various samples at 1‐μm voxel resolution on volumes up to 4 mm3 and on areas up to 75 mm2. Used in conjunction with appropriate embedding media and immuno‐histochemical probes, the techniques described in this paper make it possible to routinely map the distributions of key intracellular structures over much larger tissue domains than has been easily achievable in the past. Microsc. Res. Tech. 67:227–239, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Associations of Diabetes and Obesity with Risk of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm in Men

Background. The associations of diabetes and obesity with the risk of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) are inconclusive in previous studies. Subjects/Methods. We conducted prospective analysis in the Physicians' Health Study. Among 25,554 male physicians aged ≥ 50 years who reported no AAA at baseline, 471 reported a newly diagnosed AAA during a mean of 10.4 years' follow-up. Results. Compared with men who had baseline body mass index (BMI) < 25 kg/m2, the multivariable hazard ratio (HR [95% CI]) of newly diagnosed AAA was 1.30 [1.06–1.59] for BMI 25–<30 kg/m2 and 1.69 [1.24–2.30] for BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2. The risk of diagnosed AAA was significantly higher by 6% with each unit increase in baseline BMI. This association was consistent regardless of the other known AAA risk factors and preexisting vascular diseases. Overall, baseline history of diabetes tended to be associated with a lower risk of diagnosed AAA (HR = 0.79 [0.57–1.11]); this association appeared to vary by follow-up time (HR = 1.56 and 0.63 during ≤ and >2 years' follow-up, resp.). Conclusion. In a large cohort of middle-aged and older men, obesity was associated with a higher risk, while history of diabetes tended to associate with a lower risk of diagnosed AAA, particularly over longer follow-up.
Technical Efficiency and Economic Performance: Some Evidence from Ghana

RECENT studies of the magnitude of inefficiency generated by distorted foreign trade structures have focused attention on the role of inappropriate choice of technique in reducing the social profitability of investments in LDC's. Steel (1972) examining the performance of thirty-nine industrial firms in Ghana, finds a significant relationship between low social profitability, inappropriate factor proportions, and excess capacity engendered by the structure of protection. Similar conclusions emerge from the work of Bela Balassa and Associates, (1971) and from project analyses of existing investments in developing countries. These findings have produced substantial debate on the scope for factor substitution and the determination of the choice of technique in LDC manufacturing. ' Concurrently, a literature has developed suggesting that poor economic performance may arise largely from low levels of technical efficiency. Pack (1974) observed significant variations in technical or "X-efficiency" among firms in six industries across several countries, and in a more detailed study of the manufacturing sector in Kenya (1976) concluded that managerial training and competence exercise a major influence on economic performance. Leibenstein (1966) has argued that the social costs of "Xinefficiency" may substantially outweigh those arising from misallocation of resources, and Bergsman (1974) has attempted to quantify the costs of protection arising from tariff induced reductions in X-efficiency. This paper seeks to clarify the relationship between technical (or managerial) efficiency, the choice of technique, and economic performance. The first section draws upon the concepts of technical and price efficiency developed by Farrell (1957) to establish the relationship between technical efficiency, choice of technique, and a commonly used measure of economic performance, the "Domestic Resource Cost" (DRC) criterion. Section 2 summarizes the results of DRC estimates of economic efficiency for firms in three Ghanaian industries. In Section 3 estimates of the industry production function are employed to measure the extent of technical inefficiency and inappropriate choice of technique. Section 4 utilizes the computed indices of technical, price, and economic efficiency to assess the significance of the choice of technique, and technical inefficiency as components of measured
Mind Your P's and Q'S: The Cost of Public Investment is Not the Value of Public Capital

The author presents theory and calculations to show that part of the explanation of slow growth in many poor countries is not that governments did not spend on investment, but that these investments did not create productive capital. For a variety of reasons governments take resources from current consumption to"invest"in the economic equivalent of pyramids, items that produce no future output. The most critical assumption necessary for cumulated investment flows to be even more reasonable proxies for capital stocks is that the cost of investments (the p's) is equal to the value of the capital stock evaluated as its increment to future profitability (the q's). This assumption can be justified only if investors act to equalize these. But there is ample reason not to believe that all governments act as profit maximizing investors - and ample reason to believe that some governments invest better than others. The implication is that a dollar's worth of public investment spending often does not create a dollar's worth of public capital. Calculations suggest that in a typical developing country less than 50 cents of capital were created for each public dollar invested. One of the difficulties of development may be that even when public capital is productive it may be difficult to create public sector capital.
Mechanisms of photoinduced toxicity of photomodified anthracene to plants: Inhibition of photosynthesis in the aquatic higher plant Lemna gibba (duckweed)

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) toxicity is enhanced by light, especially ultraviolet (UV) radiation. To examine a potential mechanism(s) of photoinduced toxicity of PAHs to plants, the effects of anthracene and its photoproducts on photosynthesis were investigated using the aquatic higher plant Lemna gibba L. G‐3 (duckweed). Photosynthetic activity was monitored both in vivo and in vitro by measuring chlorophyll a (Chl a) fluorescence, carbon fixation, and electron transport. In simulated solar radiation (a light source with a visible light: UV‐A: UV‐B ratio similar to sunlight), inhibition of photosynthesis was more rapid with photomodified anthracene than with intact anthracene, and intact anthracene appeared to only inhibit photosynthesis following its photomodification. The primary site of action of photomodified anthracene was found to be electron transport at or near photosystem I (PSI). This was followed by inhibition of photosystem II (PSII), probably due to excitation pressure on PSII once the downstream electron transport through PSI was blocked. Accordingly, higher chemical concentrations and/or longer exposures were required to inhibit PSII than PSI. Net photosynthesis (carbon fixation) was also inhibited, implying that the inhibition of electron transport in PSI by photomodified anthracene can lead to diminished primary productivity. A linkage between inhibition of photosynthesis and inhibition of plant growth was established in terms of the initial site of action (PSI) and primary productivity (carbon fixation), which suggested that Chl a fluorescence can be used as a bioindicator of PAH impacts on plants.
Optimal Equity Stakes and Corporate Control

I show that firms may optimally place their own equity with other firms in anticipation of possible future corporate control activity. In the model, a target and potential acquirer can negotiate before synergy values are learned. I find that equity implements an optimal mechanism, benefiting both firms at the expense of another potential bidder. The stake is limited by the outsider's willingness to investigate the target. The results imply that corporate control may motivate an equity sale even when no takeover activity is apparent at the time or occurs ex-post. I derive results on optimal stake sizes and block pricing.
, Hypercholesterolemia : Effects of Statin Therapy Association Between Enhanced Soluble CD 40 L and Prothrombotic State in

Francesco Cipollone, Andrea Mezzetti, Ettore Porreca, Concetta Di Febbo, Michele Nutini, Hypercholesterolemia : Effects of Statin Therapy Association Between Enhanced Soluble CD40L and Prothrombotic State in Print ISSN: 0009-7322. Online ISSN: 1524-4539 Copyright © 2002 American Heart Association, Inc. All rights reserved. is published by the American Heart Association, 7272 Greenville Avenue, Dallas, TX 75231 Circulation doi: 10.1161/01.CIR. 0000025419.95769. F
Theories of convection and the spectrum of turbulence in the solar photosphere

Abstract Classical theories of turbulence do not describe accurately inertial range scaling laws in turbulent convection and notably fail to model the shape of the turbulent spectrum of solar photospheric convection. To understand these discrepancies, a detailed study of scale-by-scale budgets in turbulent Rayleigh-Bénard convection is presented, with particular emphasis placed on anisotropy and inhomogeneity. A generalized Kolmogorov equation applying to convection is derived and its various terms are computed using numerical simulations of turbulent Boussinesq convection. The analysis of the isotropic part of the equation shows that the third-order velocity structure function is significantly affected by buoyancy forcing and large-scale inhomogeneities. Anisotropic contributions to this equation are also shown to be comparable to their isotropic counterpart at moderate to large scales. Implications of these results for convection in the solar photosphere, mesogranulation and supergranulation are discussed.
Sleepless in Town – Drivers of the Temporal Shift in Dawn Song in Urban European Blackbirds

Organisms living in urban environments are exposed to different environmental conditions compared to their rural conspecifics. Especially anthropogenic noise and artificial night light are closely linked to urbanization and pose new challenges to urban species. Songbirds are particularly affected by these factors, because they rely on the spread of acoustic information and adjust their behaviour to the rhythm of night and day, e.g. time their dawn song according to changing light intensities. Our aim was to clarify the specific contributions of artificial night light and traffic noise on the timing of dawn song of urban European Blackbirds (Turdus merula). We investigated the onset of blackbird dawn song along a steep urban gradient ranging from an urban forest to the city centre of Leipzig, Germany. This gradient of anthropogenic noise and artificial night light was reflected in the timing of dawn song. In the city centre, blackbirds started their dawn song up to 5 hours earlier compared to those in semi-natural habitats. We found traffic noise to be the driving factor of the shift of dawn song into true night, although it was not completely separable from the effects of ambient night light. We additionally included meteorological conditions into the analysis and found an effect on the song onset. Cloudy and cold weather delayed the onset, but cloud cover was assumed to reflect night light emissions, thus, amplified sky luminance and increased the effect of artificial night light. Beside these temporal effects, we also found differences in the spatial autocorrelation of dawn song onset showing a much higher variability in noisy city areas than in rural parks and forests. These findings indicate that urban hazards such as ambient noise and light pollution show a manifold interference with naturally evolved cycles and have significant effects on the activity patterns of urban blackbirds.
MODEL PEMBELAJARAN PRODUCTION BASED TRAINING (PBT) PADA PEMBELAJARAN PRAKARYA DAN KEWIRAUSAHAAN

Tujuan penelitian mendeskripsikan dan menganalisis keefektifan model pembelajaran PBT terhadap hasil belajar Prakarya dan Kewirausahaan di kelas XI IPS SMAN 1 Ungaran. Penelitian ini mengambil kelas XI IPS 2 berjumlah 34 peserta didikdengan perlakuan menggunakan model pembelajaran PBT serta dilakukan pre testdan post test untuk mengetahui keefektifan model PBT. Metode analisis menggunakan uji normalitas, uji homogenitas, dan uji T.Hasil analisis menunjukkan bahwa rata-rata hasil belajar peserta didik meningkat setelah adanya perlakuan model pembelajaran PBT yaitu sebesar 18,7%. Tingkat motivasi dan keaktifan peserta didik dalam pembelajaran PKWU juga mengalami peningkatan dengan rata-rata kriteria sangat tinggi sebesar 70,6% dan keaktifan sangat baik sebesar 55,9%. Dari hasil perhitungan uji T hasil belajar PKWU peserta didik dengan software SPSS diperoleh nilai Sig. (2-tailed) pada tabel independent samples test sebesar 0.000. Disimpulkan bahwa model pembelajaran PBT efektif terhadap hasil belajar PKWU di kelas XI IPS. Saran dalam penelitian ini, guru mata pelajaran PKWU dapat mempertimbangkan model pembelajaran PBT untuk meteri yang membutuhkan kegiatan pembelajaran dengan metode penugasan project, karena efektif terhadap keaktifan, motivasi, dan hasil belajar peserta didik. The purpose of this study was to describe and analyze the effectiveness of PBT model on the results of learning Workshop and Entrepreneurship in grade XI IPS SMAN 1 Ungaran. This research took a class of XI IPS 2, total of 34 studentsusing PBT model’s treatment and conducted pre-test and post-test. The method of data analysis used in this study were normality test, homogeneity test, and T test.The analysisthat the result’s average of the learners increased after the existence of PBT model’s treatment that is equal to 18,7%. The level of motivation and activeness of learners in learning PKWU also increased to a very high average criteria of 70.6% and excellent activeness of 55.9%. Based on the result of T test calculationfrom students’ outcomes in learning PKWUwith SPSS software obtained Sig value. (2-tailed) on the independent samples test table of 0.000. Concluded that PBT modelwas effective on the results of learning Workshop and Entrepreneurship in grade XI IPS. The suggestions were PKWU teachers may consider Production Based Training (PBT) model for the materials which require learning activities with a project task, as they were effective onactiveness, motivation, and students’outcomesin learning activity.
Dynamic Construction of Stimulus Values in the Ventromedial Prefrontal Cortex

Signals representing the value assigned to stimuli at the time of choice have been repeatedly observed in ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC). Yet it remains unknown how these value representations are computed from sensory and memory representations in more posterior brain regions. We used electroencephalography (EEG) while subjects evaluated appetitive and aversive food items to study how event-related responses modulated by stimulus value evolve over time. We found that value-related activity shifted from posterior to anterior, and from parietal to central to frontal sensors, across three major time windows after stimulus onset: 150–250 ms, 400–550 ms, and 700–800 ms. Exploratory localization of the EEG signal revealed a shifting network of activity moving from sensory and memory structures to areas associated with value coding, with stimulus value activity localized to vmPFC only from 400 ms onwards. Consistent with these results, functional connectivity analyses also showed a causal flow of information from temporal cortex to vmPFC. Thus, although value signals are present as early as 150 ms after stimulus onset, the value signals in vmPFC appear relatively late in the choice process, and seem to reflect the integration of incoming information from sensory and memory related regions.
Speaker- and Corpus-Independent Methods for Affect Classification in Computational Paralinguistics

The analysis of spoken emotions is of increasing interest in human computer interaction, in order to drive the machine communication into a humane manner. It has manifold applications ranging from intelligent tutoring systems to affect sensitive robots, from smart call centers to patient telemonitoring. In general the study of computational paralinguistics, which covers the analysis of speaker states and traits, faces with real life challenges of inter-speaker and inter-corpus variability. In this paper, a brief summary of the progress and future directions of my PhD study titled Adaptive Mixture Models for Speech Emotion Recognition that targets these challenges are given. An automatic mixture model selection method for Mixture of Factor Analyzers is proposed for modeling high dimensional data. To provide the mentioned statistical method a compact set of potent features, novel feature selection methods based on Canonical Correlation Analysis are introduced.
The Vanishing January Effect

Seasonality in U.S. stock prices is investigated using monthly average data on the Dow Jones Industrial Average over the period 1970-2005. By estimating a dummy variable model using OLS and rolling regressions, the results reveal the presence of a significant January effect except in the most recent period, 1990-2005, when a strong negative July effect surfaced. This finding is confirmed by using a more sophisticated structural time series model with an autoregressive structure. Some explanations are suggested for the disappearance of the January effect and the surfacing of the July effect.
An algorithm for detecting community structure of social networks based on prior knowledge and modularity

An algorithm is proposed to detect community structure in social network. The algorithm begins with a community division based on prior knowledge of the degrees of the nodes, and then combines the communities until a clear partition is obtained. In applications such as a computer-generated network, Ucinet networks, and Chinese rural-urban migrants' social networks, the algorithm can achieve higher modularity and greater speed than others in the recent literature. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Complexity 12: 53–60, 2007
An n-Dimensional Generalization of the Rhombus Tiling

Several classic tilings, including rhombuses and dominoes, possess height functions which allow us to 1) prove ergodicity and polynomial mixing times for Markov chains based on local moves, 2) use coupling from the past to sample perfectly random tilings, 3) map the statistics of random tilings at large scales to physical models of random surfaces, and and 4) are related to the "arctic circle"' phenomenon.However, few examples are known for which this approach works in three or more dimensions.Here we show that the rhombus tiling can be generalized to n-dimensional tiles for any $n ≥ 3$. For each $n$, we show that a certain local move is ergodic, and conjecture that it has a mixing time of $O(L^{n+2} log L)$ on regions of size $L$. For $n=3$, the tiles are rhombohedra, and the local move consists of switching between two tilings of a rhombic dodecahedron.We use coupling from the past to sample random tilings of a large rhombic dodecahedron, and show that arctic regions exist in which the tiling is frozen into a fixed state.However, unlike the two-dimensional case in which the arctic region is an inscribed circle, here it seems to be octahedral.In addition, height fluctuations between the boundary of the region and the center appear to be constant rather than growing logarithmically.We conjecture that this is because the physics of the model is in a "smooth" phase where it is rigid at large scales, rather than a "rough" phase in which it is elastic.
A general time-dependent stochastic method for solving Parker's transport equation in spherical coordinates

[1] We present a detailed description of our newly developed stochastic approach for solving Parker's transport equation, which we believe is the first attempt to solve it with time dependence in 3-D, evolving from our 3-D steady state stochastic approach. Our formulation of this method is general and is valid for any type of heliospheric magnetic field, although we choose the standard Parker field as an example to illustrate the steps to calculate the transport of galactic cosmic rays. Our 3-D stochastic method is different from other stochastic approaches in the literature in several ways. For example, we employ spherical coordinates to integrate directly, which makes the code much more efficient by reducing coordinate transformations. What is more, the equivalence between our stochastic differential equations and Parker's transport equation is guaranteed by Ito's theorem in contrast to some other approaches. We generalize the technique for calculating particle flux based on the pseudoparticle trajectories for steady state solutions and for time-dependent solutions in 3-D. To validate our code, first we show that good agreement exists between solutions obtained by our steady state stochastic method and a traditional finite difference method. Then we show that good agreement also exists for our time-dependent method for an idealized and simplified heliosphere which has a Parker magnetic field and a simple initial condition for two different inner boundary conditions.
econstor Make Your Publications Visible . A Service of zbw

The introduction of the Euro has been accompanied by the hope that intra-EMU trade would increase and that prices would converge due to increased elasticities of international substitution. This paper contributes to the literature on the Euro’s effects on international trade by analyzing price elasticities in international trade flows between Germany and France and between Germany and the United Kingdom before and after the introduction of the Euro. Using disaggregated Eurostat trade statistics for up to 715 product categories, we adopt a heterogeneous dynamic panel framework for the estimation of price elasticities. We suggest a Kalman-filter approach to control for unobservable quality changes which otherwise would bias estimates of price elasticities. This approach delivers reasonable estimates of price elasticities for a broad set of products. Furthermore, we divide the complete sample, which ranges from 1995 to 2008, into two sub-samples and show that the hypothesis that price elasticities in trade between EMU members did not change substantially after the introduction of the Euro cannot be rejected. This result is robust with respect to changes in the estimation technique.