Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Regional Patterns and Vulnerability Analysis of Chinese Web Passwords

Current research on password security pays much attention on users who speak Indo-European languages (English, Spanish, and so on), and thus the countermeasures are heavily influenced by Indo-European speakers' choices as well. However, languages have a strong impact on passwords. Analysis without considering other languages (e.g., Chinese) might lead to some biased results, such as Chinese passwords are one of the most difficult ones to guess. We believe that such a conclusion could be biased because, to the best of our knowledge, little empirical study has examined the regional differences of passwords at a large scale, especially on Chinese passwords. In this paper, we comprehensively study the differences between passwords from Chinese and English-dominant users, leveraging over 100 million leaked and publicly available passwords from Chinese and international websites in recent years. We find that Chinese prefer digits when composing their passwords, while English-dominant users prefer letters, especially lowercase letters. However, their strength against password guessing is similar. Second, we observe that both groups of users prefer to use the patterns that they are familiar with, e.g., Chinese Pinyins for Chinese and English words for English-dominant users. In particular, since multiple input methods require various sequences of letters to enter the same Chinese characters, we evaluate the impacts of various Chinese input methods, in addition to Pinyin. Third, we observe that both Chinese and English-dominant users prefer their conventional format when they use dates to construct passwords. Based on these observations, we improve two password guessing methods: 1) probabilistic context-free grammar (PCFG)-based password guessing method and 2) Markov model-based password guessing method. For the PCFG-based method, the guessing efficiency increases by up to 48% after inserting Pinyins (about 2.3% more entries) into the attack dictionary and inserting the observed composition rules into the guessing rule set. For the Markov-model-based method, the guessing efficiency increases by up to 4.7% after we increase the percentage of Pinyins in the training set. Our research sheds light on understanding the impact of regional patterns on passwords.
Molecular identification of Saint Louis encephalitis virus genotype IV in Colombia

Saint Louis encephalitis virus (SLEV) is a member of the Japanese-encephalitis virus serocomplex of the genus Flavivirus. SLEV is broadly distributed in the Americas and the Caribbean Islands, where it is usually transmitted by mosquitoes of the genus Culex and primarily to birds and mammalian-hosts. Humans are occasionally infected by the virus and are dead-end hosts. SLEV causes encephalitis in temperate regions, while in tropical regions of the Americas, several human cases and a wide biological diversity of SLEV-strains have been reported. The phylogenetic analysis of the envelope (E) protein genes indicated eight-genotypes of SLEV with geographic overlap. The present paper describes the genotyping of two SLEV viruses detected in mosquito-pools collected in northern Colombia (department of Cordoba). We used reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction to amplify a fragment of theE-gene to confirm the virus identity and completeE-gene sequencing for phylogenetic analysis and genotyping of the two-SLEV viruses found circulating in Córdoba. This is the first report of SLEV genotype IV in Colombia (Córdoba) in mosquitoes from a region of human inhabitation, implicating the risk of human disease due to SLEV infection. Physicians should consider SLEV as a possible aetiology for undiagnosed febrile and neurologic syndromes among their patients who report exposure to mosquito-bites.
The Black Hole Mass versus Velocity Dispersion Relation in QSOs/Active Galactic Nuclei: Observational Appearance and Black Hole Growth

Studies of massive black holes (BHs) in nearby galactic centers have revealed a tight correlation between BH mass and galactic velocity dispersion. In this paper we investigate how the BH mass versus velocity dispersion relation and the nuclear luminosity versus velocity dispersion relation in QSOs/active galactic nuclei (AGNs) are connected with the BH mass versus velocity dispersion relation in local galaxies, through the nuclear luminosity evolution of individual QSOs/AGNs and the mass growth of individual BHs. In the study we ignore the effects of BH mergers and assume that the velocity dispersion does not change significantly during and after the nuclear activity phase. Using the observed correlation in local galaxies and an assumed form of the QSO/AGN luminosity evolution and BH growth, we obtain the simulated observational appearance of the BH mass versus velocity dispersion relation in QSOs/AGNs. The simulation results illustrate how the BH accretion history (e.g., the lifetime of nuclear activity and the possibility that QSOs/AGNs accrete at a super-Eddington accretion rate at the early evolutionary stage) can be inferred from the difference between the relation in QSOs/AGNs and that in local galaxies. We also show how the difference may be weakened by the flux limit of telescopes. We expect that a large complete sample of QSOs/AGNs with accurate BH mass and velocity dispersion measurements will help to quantitatively constrain QSO/AGN luminosity evolution and BH growth models.
Successful Antiviral Triple Therapy in a Longstanding Refractory Hepatitis C Virus Infection with an Acute Kidney Injury

Introduction. The HCV infection is a common disease with many chronically infected patients worldwide. So far, the standard therapy of a chronic HCV infection consisted of interferon as single therapy or in combination with ribavirin. After approval of the two protease inhibitors, boceprevir and telaprevir, the standard therapy for patients with genotype 1 changed. In patients with acute kidney injury (AKI) these therapies are not approved and have so far not been evaluated in studies. Case Report. In April 2012, a 58-year-old female was admitted due to a cryoglobulin-positive chronic HCV infection which had been treated with interferon and ribavirin. Currently, the patient was admitted because of severe complications with an acute kidney injury. We treated our patient successfully with a boceprevir based triple therapy. Conclusion. Limited data suggests that a therapy with ribavirin in patients with AKI seems to be safe under close monitoring. Our patient was treated successfully with a protease inhibitor based triple therapy. Nevertheless, it is necessary to plan an interventional study to evaluate the exact risk-benefit profile of triple therapy regimens in patients with AKI and hepatitis C.
Genotypic Diversity of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Clinical Isolates in the Multiethnic Area of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in China

Objectives. We studied the genetic diversity of clinical isolates from patients with tuberculosis in the multiethnic area of Xinjiang autonomous region in China. A total of 311 clinical M. tuberculosis isolates were collected in 2006 and 2011 and genotyped by two genotyping methods. All isolates were grouped into 68 distinct spoligotypes using the spoligotyping method. The Beijing family was dominant, followed by T1 and CAS. MIRU-VNTR results showed that a total of 195 different VNTR types were identified. Ten of the 15 loci were highly or moderately discriminant according to their HGDI scores, and 13 loci had good discriminatory power in non-Beijing family strains, whereas only two loci had good discriminatory power in Beijing family strains. Chi-square tests demonstrated that there were no correlations between four characteristics (sex, age, type of case, and treatment history) and the Beijing family. In summary, Beijing family strains were predominant in Xinjiang, and the VNTR-15China locus-set was suitable for genotyping all Xinjiang strains, but not for the Beijing family strains. Thus, these data suggested that different genotype distributions may exist in different regions; MLVA locus-sets should be adjusted accordingly, with newly added loci to increase resolution if necessary.
THE RADIO AND OPTICAL LUMINOSITY EVOLUTION OF QUASARS. II. THE SDSS SAMPLE

We determine the radio and optical luminosity evolutions and the true distribution of the radio-loudness parameter R, defined as the ratio of the radio to optical luminosity, for a set of more than 5000 quasars combining Sloan Digital Sky Survey optical and Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty cm (FIRST) radio data. We apply the method of Efron and Petrosian to access the intrinsic distribution parameters, taking into account the truncations and correlations inherent in the data. We find that the population exhibits strong positive evolution with redshift in both wavebands, with somewhat greater radio evolution than optical. With the luminosity evolutions accounted for, we determine the density evolutions and local radio and optical luminosity functions. The intrinsic distribution of the radio-loudness parameter R is found to be quite different from the observed one and is smooth with no evidence of a bimodality in radio loudness for log R ⩾ −1. The results we find are in general agreement with the previous analysis of Singal et al., which used POSS-I optical and FIRST radio data.
AN INITIAL STUDY OF THE LEARNING ORGANIZATION MODEL FOR EVALUATING INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY-BASED PROCESS IMPROVEMENT PROJECT POTENTIAL

This paper presents the initial results of an empirical study of the learning organization concept to information technology enabled process improvement projects. A brief overview of the process change studies is presented. The Learning Organization Model is then presented as a possible framework for understanding the behavior of organizations engaged in the implementation of process improvements using information technology. An information technology oriented extension to this model is then presented. The results of the pilot study phase show that the extended Learning Organization Model does have some initial support.
Maturing school-community partnerships : developing learning communities in rural Australia

This paper reports findings from a project that examined the extent and nature of the contribution of rural schools to their communities’ development beyond traditional forms of education of young people. Case study communities in five Australian States participated in the project, funded by the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation. Communities and schools that share the belief that education is the responsibility of the whole community and work together, drawing on skills and knowledge of the community as a whole, experience benefits that extend far beyond producing a well-educated group of young people. The level of maturity of the school– community partnership dictates how schools and communities go about developing and sustaining new linkages, or joint projects. Twelve characteristics central to the success of school–community partnerships were identified. The characteristics are largely sequential in that later characteristics build on earlier ones. Underscoring these characteristics is the importance of collective learning activities including teamwork and network building, which have been identified elsewhere as key social capital building activities. A generic model of the relationship between the indicators of effective school–community partnerships and the level of maturity of those partnerships is forwarded.
Salvianolic Acid B Reducing Portal Hypertension Depends on Macrophages in Isolated Portal Perfused Rat Livers with Chronic Hepatitis

This study is aimed to investigate the effects of Sal B on portal hypertension (PH). PH with chronic hepatitis was induced by carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) in rats. The model was confirmed with elevated portal pressures and increased serum CD163 levels. The inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) or heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) in portal triads was assessed. The isolated portal perfused rat liver (IPPRL) was performed at d 0, d 28, d 56 , and d 84 in the progression of chronic hepatitis. After constricting with phenylephrine, the portal veins were relaxed with Sal B. The EC50 of Sal B for relaxing portal veins was −2.04 × 10−9, 7.28 × 10−11, 1.52 × 10−11, and 8.44 × 10−11 mol/L at d 0, d 28, d 56, and d 84, respectively. More macrophages infiltrated in portal triads and expressed more iNOS or HO-1 as PH advanced. The areas under the curve (AUCs) of Sal B for reducing PH were positively correlated with the levels of iNOS or HO-1 in portal triads, and so did with serum CD163 levels. Sal B reduces PH in IPPRL with chronic hepatitis, via promoting portal relaxation due to macrophage-originated NO or CO in portal triads, partly at least.
Embracing Asynchronism: Achieving Cooperative Diversity using Zigzag Interference Cancellation

Synchronization between the received signals from several transmitters is a challenging problem for cooperative communications. In the literature it is often assumed that the signals are somehow perfectly synchronized, but the problem of communication with asynchronism is rarely addressed. Moreover, in the few works where the problem is addressed, the proposed techniques are designed for a maximum delay whose value determines the decoding complexity. Thus in practice, only small delays can be dealt with. In this paper, instead of trying to avoid asynchronism between the received signals from two different transmitters, we propose to exploit it to provide cooperative diversity by optimally combining the two signals resulting from forward and backward zigzag interference cancellation. In addition to being tolerant to any delay, our bit error rate derivations and simulations show that the proposed scheme provides similar performance as delay-tolerant space-time block codes, such as the delay-tolerant Alamouti code, with a much lower complexity compared to a maximum likelihood (ML) decoder.
Military Spending and Economic Growth

This paper proposes to test the relationship between military expenditure and economic growth by including the impact of the share of military and civilian components of government expenditure in an economic growth model with endogenous technology. In this framework, we empirically consider the hypothesis of a nonlinear effect of military expenditure on economic growth. The comparison between costs and benefits of defence sector has traditionally explained the nonlinear relationship. This paper suggests that shocks to insecurity may also be a source of nonlinearity as they determine a re-allocative effect within government expenditure. While parametric partial correlations are in line with empirical findings, the robustness of estimations is tested by using a nonparametric approach. The negative relationship between military expenditure and growth in countries with high levels of military burden predicted by theory becomes significant only after including a proxy for re-allocative effects in the growth equation.
Seipin performs dissectible functions in promoting lipid droplet biogenesis and regulating droplet morphology

Loss-of-function mutations in seipin cause severe lipodystrophy, yet seipin's function in incompletely understood. Seipin is shown here to be important specifically for initiation of droplet formation, and a deletion mutant allows dissection of this function from maintenance of droplet morphology and vectorial droplet budding.
Intelligent Deflection Routing Protocol

Contention is the main source of burst loss in Optical Burst Switched (OBS) networks where deflection routing is one of the methods to resolve contention. Deflection routing requires enhancements only in the routing software without additional hardware installations. Its main goal is to successfully deflect a burst based only on a limited knowledge that nodes posses about their environment. In this paper, we present an intelligent deflection protocol named iDef. The iDef enhances a node with intelligent decision making ability through a Monte-Carlo planning algorithm, which employs a forward search to select the best output interface for a burst to be deflected. The proposed iDef design enables a node to adapt itself to changes in network topology and traffic patterns.
A Modest Proposal for Improved Corporate Governance

University. Messrs. Lipton and Lorsch are members of the Subeouncil on Corporate Governance and Financial Markets of the Competitiveness Policy Council. An earlier version of this article was considered by the Subeouncil at its August 5, ] 992 meeting. 1. Joseph B. White & Paul Ingrassia. Board OwLs Managers AL GM, Takes Control of Crucia2 Committee, Wall St.J., Apr. 7,1992, at Al. 2. See, e.g. Frank H. Easterbrook & Daniel R. Fischel, The Proper Role of a Targets Man. agement in Responding to a Tender Offer, 94 Harv. L. Rev. 1161, 1169 (1981) (senderbidding process polices managers whether or not a tender offer occurs); Ronaldj. Gilson, A Structural
Modulation of Internal Estimates of Gravity during and after Prolonged Roll-Tilts

Perceived direction of gravity, as assessed by the subjective visual vertical (SVV), shows roll-angle dependent errors that drift over time and a bias upon return to upright. According to Bayesian observer theory, the estimated direction of gravity is derived from the posterior probability distribution by combining sensory input and prior knowledge about earth-vertical in a statistically optimal fashion. Here we aimed to further characterize the stability of SVV during and after prolonged roll-tilts. Specifically we asked whether the post-tilt bias is related to the drift pattern while roll-tilted. Twenty-nine healthy human subjects (23-56yo) repetitively adjusted a luminous arrow to the SVV over periods of 5min while upright, roll-tilted (±45°, ±90°), and immediately after returning to upright. Significant (p<0.05) drifts (median absolute drift-amplitude: 10°/5min) were found in 71% (±45°) and 78% (±90°) of runs. At ±90° roll-tilt significant increases in absolute adjustment errors were more likely (76%), whereas significant increases (56%) and decreases (44%) were about equally frequent at ±45°. When returning to upright, an initial bias towards the previous roll-position followed by significant exponential decay (median time-constant: 71sec) was noted in 47% of all runs (all subjects pooled). No significant correlations were found between the drift pattern during and immediately after prolonged roll-tilt. We conclude that the SVV is not stable during and after prolonged roll-tilt and that the direction and magnitude of drift are individually distinct and roll-angle-dependent. Likely sensory and central adaptation and random-walk processes contribute to drift while roll-tilted. Lack of correlation between the drift and the post-tilt bias suggests that it is not the inaccuracy of the SVV estimate while tilted that determines post-tilt bias, but rather the previous head-roll orientation relative to gravity. We therefore favor central adaptation, most likely a shift in prior knowledge towards the previous roll orientation, to explain the post-tilt bias.
The Effect of Immigration on Entrepreneurship

This research focuses on the impact of immigration on entrepreneurship. I find clear evidence that immigration has a significant impact on entrepreneurship. The paper makes three important contributions to the research of both immigration and entrepreneurship. First, it proposes unique empirical evidence using a cross‐section analysis in which the country's level of immigrants has a significantly positive affect on its level of entrepreneurship. Second, it adds to the theoretical understanding of the mechanisms and environments that characterize positive immigration effects on entrepreneurship. I suggest that country‐specific characteristics – in particular urban, open, competitive and culturally diversified (including open minded for ethnic and gender diversity) – influence significantly the positive effect of immigrants on the country's level of entrepreneurship. Furthermore, these positive effects are magnified as the flow of immigrants grows. Third, it uses for the first time in the literature a cross‐section data set of 176 countries of immigrants and entrepreneurial activity.
K-shell Analysis Reveals Distinct Functional Parts in an Electron Transfer Network and Its Implications for Extracellular Electron Transfer

Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 is capable of extracellular electron transfer (EET) and hence has attracted considerable attention. The EET pathways mainly consist of c-type cytochromes, along with some other proteins involved in electron transfer processes. By whole genome study and protein interactions inquisition, we constructed a large-scale electron transfer network containing 2276 interactions among 454 electron transfer related proteins in S. oneidensis MR-1. Using the k-shell decomposition method, we identified and analyzed distinct parts of the electron transfer network. We found that there was a negative correlation between the ks (k-shell values) and the average DR_100 (disordered regions per 100 amino acids) in every shell, which suggested that disordered regions of proteins played an important role during the formation and extension of the electron transfer network. Furthermore, proteins in the top three shells of the network are mainly located in the cytoplasm and inner membrane; these proteins can be responsible for transfer of electrons into the quinone pool in a wide variety of environmental conditions. In most of the other shells, proteins are broadly located throughout the five cellular compartments (cytoplasm, inner membrane, periplasm, outer membrane, and extracellular), which ensures the important EET ability of S. oneidensis MR-1. Specifically, the fourth shell was responsible for EET and the c-type cytochromes in the remaining shells of the electron transfer network were involved in aiding EET. Taken together, these results show that there are distinct functional parts in the electron transfer network of S. oneidensis MR-1, and the EET processes could achieve high efficiency through cooperation through such an electron transfer network.
Sharing Building Information using the IFC Data Model for FDS Fire Simulation

This paper describes part of a research project that looks into the potential and challenge of using the Industry Foundation Classes (IFC) open standard building information model in fire engineering design. In particular the paper describes work undertaken to share building geometry and other information with the Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS) fire simulation model. A commercially available building information modeling (BIM) authoring application has been used to create building geometries and export IFC data files. A web-based conversion tool has been created to generate FDS input data given the output from a dedicated fire engineering IFC parser tool. The capabilities and outcome of data sharing process is illustrated in this paper using a simple test case building.