Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of Changes in ENSO on Seasonal Mean Temperature and Rainfall in Nigeria

This study investigates the effects of El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) on temperature and rainfall in Nigeria. The persistent rise in population with more demands for rainfall and water supply in Nigeria requires a better understanding of the impacts of ENSO (La Nina, El Nino) induced changes on the precipitation patterns under future climate conditions. Thus, we compared the sea surface temperature (SST) from the ENSO regions of the Tropical Pacific Ocean (Nino 3 (150°W–90°W, 5°S–5°N) and Nino 4 (160°E–150°W, 5°S–5°N)) with the observed temperature from Nigeria and the temperature is further compared with the associated rainfall. The results show that an increase or decrease in the Nino 3 and Nino 4 SST is accompanied by a corresponding change in the temperature over Nigeria; however, there is better agreement with the Nino 3 SST compared to the Nino 4 SST. The investigation suggests that a slight northward (southward) shift in the mean position of Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) during a La Nina (El Nino) event is followed by a reduction (increase) in the average temperature within Nigeria while the mean precipitation rises (reduces) over the country. These results could aid weather prediction which might improve the economy as well as save lives and property during climate-related hazards like drought, forest fires and floods.
Real-Time Epidemic Monitoring and Forecasting of H1N1-2009 Using Influenza-Like Illness from General Practice and Family Doctor Clinics in Singapore

Background Reporting of influenza-like illness (ILI) from general practice/family doctor (GPFD) clinics is an accurate indicator of real-time epidemic activity and requires little effort to set up, making it suitable for developing countries currently experiencing the influenza A (H1N1 -2009) pandemic or preparing for subsequent epidemic waves. Methodology/Principal Findings We established a network of GPFDs in Singapore. Participating GPFDs submitted returns via facsimile or e-mail on their work days using a simple, standard data collection format, capturing: gender; year of birth; “ethnicity”; residential status; body temperature (°C); and treatment (antiviral or not); for all cases with a clinical diagnosis of an acute respiratory illness (ARI). The operational definition of ILI in this study was an ARI with fever of 37.8°C or more. The data were processed daily by the study co-ordinator and fed into a stochastic model of disease dynamics, which was refitted daily using particle filtering, with data and forecasts uploaded to a website which could be publicly accessed. Twenty-three GPFD clinics agreed to participate. Data collection started on 2009-06-26 and lasted for the duration of the epidemic. The epidemic appeared to have peaked around 2009-08-03 and the ILI rates had returned to baseline levels by the time of writing. Conclusions/Significance This real-time surveillance system is able to show the progress of an epidemic and indicates when the peak is reached. The resulting information can be used to form forecasts, including how soon the epidemic wave will end and when a second wave will appear if at all.
The Continuum of Operating Modes for a Passive Model Neuron

Whether cortical neurons act as coincidence detectors or temporal integrators has implications for the way in which the cortex encodes informationby average firing rate or by precise timing of action potentials. In this study, we examine temporal coding by a simple passive-membrane model neuron responding to a full spectrum of multisynaptic input patterns, from highly coincident to temporally dispersed. The temporal precision of the model's action potentials varies continuously along the spectrum, depends very little on the number of synaptic inputs, and is shown to be tightly correlated with the mean slope of the membrane potential preceding the output spikes. These results are shown to be largely independent of the size of postsynaptic potentials, of random background synaptic activity, and of shape of the correlated multisynaptic input pattern. An experimental test involving membrane potential slope is suggested to help determine the basic operating mode of an observed cortical neuron.
Assessing Involvement of Central Banks in Financial Stability

This paper presents the results of a comprehensive survey conducted with 27 European Union (EU) central banks concerning their involvement in ensuring financial stability. The paper also introduces a novel methodology ("Financial Stability Engagement index") to measure central bank involvement in fostering financial stability. After a brief literature review, the author constructs an index to assess financial stability in the EU via publicly available information. Index construction is complemented by results from a survey of the financial stability department heads in 27 EU central banks. The highest index scores were received by De Nederlandsche Bank and Czech National Bank. The average level of involvement is similar in central banks in the EMU, as well as in non-EMU ones. Along with the recent macroprudential reforms, the index level is likely to increase over time. Assessment of central bank involvement in financial stability also points to some practical policy recommendations for the future.
Fuel demand elasticities in Pakistan: an analysis of households' expenditure on fuels using micro data.

This study aims to examine the pattern of households' expenditure on fuel consumption in Pakistan using the data of Household Income and Expenditure Survey (1984-85). Price and income elasticities have been estimated by applying the Extended Linear Expenditure System. It is found that the expenditure pattern of the rural households is different from the urban households, with the rural households spending proportionately more on fuels. The estimates of the income elasticities imply that all fuels are a necessity for both urban and rural households. The price elasticities of different fuels are found to be extremely low, implying that the consumption of fuels in Pakistan is highly price inelastic.
Stress induced polarization currents and electromagnetic emission from rocks and ionic crystals, accompanying their deformation

A crucial question of the scientific community nowadays, concerns the existence of electric signals preceding earthquakes. In order to give a plausible answer to this question, we carried out two kinds of laboratory experiments of uniaxial deformation of ionic crystals and rock samples: a) In the first kind, stress induced polarization currents are detected and recorded. Our experimental results showed not only the existence of stress induced polarization currents before the fracture of the samples, but the possibility of the propagation of these signals, as well, through conductive channels, for distances much longer than the source dimensions. b) In the second, acoustic and electromagnetic signals are detected and recorded in the frequency range from 1KHz to some MHz. The mechanism of generation of these signals is shown to be different for those emitted from piezoelectric and from non-piezoelectric materials. A plausible model is also suggested, on the compatibility of our laboratory results with the processes occurring in the earth during the earthquake preparatory stage.
Combining concern input with program analysis for bloat detection

Framework based software tends to get bloated by accumulating optional features (or concerns) just-in-case they are needed. The good news is that such feature bloat need not always cause runtime execution bloat. The bad news is that often enough, only a few statements from an optional concern may cause execution bloat that may result in as much as 50% runtime overhead. We present a novel technique to analyze the connection between optional concerns and the potential sources of execution bloat induced by them. Our analysis automatically answers questions such as (1) whether a given set of optional concerns could lead to execution bloat and (2) which particular statements are the likely sources of bloat when those concerns are not required. The technique combines coarse grain concern input from an external source with a fine-grained static analysis. Our experimental evaluation highlights the effectiveness of such concern augmented program analysis in execution bloat assessment of ten programs.
Seroprevalence of antibodies to hepatitis C virus among injecting drug users from Kathmandu.

OBJECTIVE To determine the seroprevalence of antibodies to hepatitis C virus among injecting drug users (IDU) from Kathmandu. DESIGN Retrospective cohort study from January 1997 to December 2002. SETTING Pathology Lab, Siddhi Polyclinic, Dillibazaar, Kathmandu. MATERIALS AND METHODS Blood samples were collected from 400 injecting drug users and 400 healthy young adults. Serum samples were examined in duplicate along with negative and positive controls for the presence of antibodies to hepatitis C virus using third-generation enzyme-linked immunoassay (EIA 3.0) kit in fully automated, USA FDA approved, Bio-Rad EIA analyzer. Samples positive for anti HCV were re-examined for confirmation. RESULTS 342 out of 400 (85.5%) serum samples from IDU were found to be positive for anti HCV compared to 3 out of 400 (0.75%) serum samples from young adults without the history of IDU. CONCLUSIONS 1. Injecting drug use is an important risk factor in the spread of hepatitis C virus. 2. Sharing of needles should be stopped. 3. Education and health counselling should be given to the people at risk to bring about behavioural change.
Eastern Partnership and the Preferences of New EU Member States

Abstract This paper tries to shed some light on factors influencing the positions of the new member states of the EU on Eastern Partnership in its initial phase. It utilises an analytical approach developed by Copsey and Haughton (2009) and argues that the two most important factors affecting positioning of newcomers towards the initiative are: perceived size and geography. While the new members were especially keen to support their immediate neighbours, they were using a common policy towards these countries to increase their presence and influence in the region since the initiative helped them to deal with neighbourhood issues they were not able to solve on their own. The paper suggests an amendment to the theoretical approach and proposes an assumption explaining positioning of the member states towards the third countries that better reflect the empirical evidence than the original framework. Moreover, the research showed that Poland differed from the rest of the new EU countries, was much more active and influential and rather resembled the old members. However, due to its not very positive image (caused by its assertive approach and strong effort to play a prominent role within the EU) its influence within the EU was limited and, therefore it proposed the Eastern Partnership together with Sweden that held a much better image.
Hematological manifestations of human immunodeficiency virus infection and the effect of highly active anti-retroviral therapy on cytopenia

Background The aim of this study is to investigate the hematological manifestations of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, the risk factors for cytopenia, and the effect of highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART) on cytopenia. Methods Medical records of patients treated for HIV at the Seoul National University Hospital from January 2005 to March 2010 were retrospectively reviewed. To determine the impact of HIV itself, we excluded HIV patients who had other conditions that could have resulted in hematological manifestations. Multiple logistic regression analyses were performed to identify risk factors for cytopenia. Results A total of 621 cases were investigated, and after exclusion, data of 472 patients were analyzed. The frequency of cytopenia was anemia, 3.0% (14/472); neutropenia, 10.0% (47/472); thrombocytopenia, 2.4% (12/472); lymphopenia, 25.7% (121/470); isolated cytopenia, 11.2% (53/472); and bicytopenia, 2.1% (10/472). The leading risk factor for cytopenia identified by multivariate logistic regression methods was AIDS status at initial presentation. After HAART, cytopenia was reversed in the majority of patients (thrombocytopenia, 100%; neutropenia, 91.1%; and anemia, 84.6%). Conclusion This study isolated the impact of HIV infection alone on hematologic manifestations and confirmed that these changes were reversible by HAART. Control of the HIV infection will have the main role in the management of hematological manifestations of the virus.
A Multidimensional Measure of Professional Learning Communities: The Development and Validation of the Learning Community Culture Indicator (LCCI)

A MULTIDIMENSIONAL MEASURE OF PROFESSIONAL LEARNING COMMUNITIES: The Development and Validation of the Learning Community Culture Indicator (LCCI) Courtney Dennis Stewart Department of Educational Leadership and Foundations Doctor of Philosophy Because of disunity among prominent professional learning community (PLC) authors, experts, and researchers, the literature was studied to develop a ten-element model that represents a unified and reconceptualized list of characteristics of a PLC. From this model, the Learning Community Culture Indicator (LCCI) was developed to measure professional learning community (PLC) implementation levels based on the ten-element model. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were performed to determine the structural validity of the LCCI. Factor analyses provided successful levels of fit for the models tested in representing the constructs of the LCCI. Reliability measures also indicated high levels of internal consistency among the responses to the survey items. Although some items and elements had moderate levels of fit and need additional revisions and validity testing, the LCCI produced substantial evidence
Counting Chickens When They Hatch: The Short-Term Effect of Aid on Growth

Past research on aid and growth is flawed because it typically examines the impact of aggregate aid on growth over a short period, usually four years, while significant portions of aid are unlikely to affect growth in such a brief time. We divide aid into three categories: (1) emergency and humanitarian aid (likely to be negatively correlated with growth); (2) aid that affects growth only over a long period of time, if at all, such as aid to support democracy, the environment, health, or education (likely to have no relationship to growth over four years); and (3) aid that plausibly could stimulate growth in four years, including budget and balance of payments support, investments in infrastructure, and aid for productive sectors such as agriculture and industry. Our focus is on the third group, which accounts for about 53% of all aid flows. We find a positive, causal relationship between this “short-impact” aid and economic growth (with diminishing returns) over a four-year period. The impact is large: at least two-to-three times larger than in studies using aggregate aid. Even at a conservatively high discount rate, at the mean a $1 increase in short-impact aid raises output (and income) by $1.64 in present value in the typical country. From a different perspective, we find that higher-than-average short-impact aid to sub- Saharan Africa raised per capita growth rates there by about half a percentage point over the growth that would have been achieved by average aid flows. The results are highly statistically significant and stand up to a demanding array of tests, including various specifications, endogeneity structures, and treatment of influential observations. The basic result does not depend crucially on a recipient’s level of income or quality of institutions and policies; we find that short-impact aid causes growth, on average, regardless of these characteristics. However, we find some evidence that the impact on growth is somewhat larger in countries with stronger institutions or longer life expectancies (better health). We also find a significant negative relationship between debt repayments and growth. We make no statement on, and do not attempt to measure, any additional effect on growth from other categories of aid (e.g., emergency assistance or aid that might affect growth over a longer time period); four-year panel regressions are not an appropriate tool to examine those relationships.
Experimental study of Nafion- and Flemion-based ionic polymer metal composites (IPMCs) with ethylene glycol as solvent

Ionic polymer-metal composites (IPMCs) consist of a perfluorinated ionomer membrane (usually Nafion or Flemion) plated on both faces with a noble metal such as gold or platinum and neutralized with a certain amount of counterions that balance the electrical charge of anions covalently fixed to the membrane backbone. IPMCs are electroactive materials that can be used as actuators and sensors. Their electrical-chemical-mechanical response is highly dependent on the cations used, the solvent, the amount of solvent uptake, the morphology of the electrodes, and other factors. With water as the solvent, the applied electric potential must be limited to less than 1.3V at room temperature, to avoid electrolysis. Moreover, water evaporation in open air presents additional problems. These and related factors limit the application of IPMCs with water as the solvent. Ethylene glycol has a viscosity of about 16 times that of water at room temperature, and has a greater molecular weight. It is used as an anti-freeze. Like water, it consists of polar molecules and thus can serve as a solvent for IPMCs. We present the results of a series of tests on both Nafion- and Flemion-based IPMCs with ethylene glycol as the solvent, and compare these with the results obtained using water. IPMCs with ethylene glycol as their solvent have greater solvent uptake, and can be subjected to relatively high voltages without electrolysis. They can be actuated in open air for rather long time periods, and at low temperatures. They may be good actuators when high-speed actuation is not necessary.
The Effects of Purchases of Mortgages and Securitization by Government Sponsored Enterprises on Mortgage Yield Spreads and Volatility

In this paper, we investigate the effects of GSE (government sponsored enterprise) activities on mortgage yield spreads and volatility. Using various regression procedures (i.e., vector error correction (VEC) and GARCH models) and controlling for default and prepayment risk, we find that securitizations and purchases of mortgages by GSEs reduce mortgage yield spreads and volatility. In particular, we find that the yield spread between conforming and 10-year constant maturity treasury (CMT) rates decreases by 8.0 bp per $1billion increase in the level of GSE securitizations. Similarly, if GSEs increase mortgage purchases, the yield spread decreases 10.5 bp per $1billion increase of purchases. In addition, we hypothesize and find that GSE activities have a spillover effect to the non-conforming mortgage market; via investor substitutions, GSE purchases and securitizations of conforming loans reduce non-conforming loan rates. Thus, the measured influence of GSE activities is biased downward when measured using the spread of non-conforming loans over conforming loan rates. We also find that purchases of mortgages by GSEs significantly reduce mortgage yield volatility. In sum, our findings show that GSE activities reduce and stabilize mortgage market rates.
Hybrid Approaches in Machine Translation

In this paper we shortly summarize the main paradigms of machine translation. We describe the principles of successful phrase-based statistical approach and show some recent improvements using hybridization towards both example-based and rule-based directions. We also describe the experiments in this topic English-to-Czech translation that carried out at our department, we comment the weak points and provide for improvement possibilities.
The effects of fixed-term contracts on the duration distribution of unemployment: the Spanish case

This paper studies the effects of the introduction of fixed-term contracts in Spain on the duration distribution of unemployment, with particular emphasis on the changes in duration dependence. Since the introduction of fixed-term contracts in the mid 1980s, the Spanish labor market has become more dynamic in terms of inflows and outflows from unemployment to employment. I estimate a parametric duration model using cross-sectional data drawn from the Spanish Labor Force Survey from 1980 to 1994, which allows me to analyze the chances of leaving unemployment before and after the introduction of fixed-term contracts. I find evidence that for very short durations, of up to five months, the probability of leaving unemployment has increased since the introduction of fixed-term contracts. But the reverse is true for longer durations. Also, the chances of finding a job are significantly higher for those workers who became unemployed because their fixed-term contract came to an end than for those who lost their job for other reasons. In addition, there is less duration dependence for those who lost their job due to the expiration of a fixed-term contract than for those who lost their job for other reasons.
Measurement and analysis: what can and does go wrong?

By now, one can point to many instances where measurement has been used effectively to inform management and technical decisions in support of the development and maintenance of software and software intensive systems. Yet, measurement is not very well integrated into software or systems engineering education or practice, and measurement remains challenging for all too many organizations. For this paper, we have analyzed 1350 findings drawn from 663 Software CMM/spl reg/ appraisals that were conducted between 1987 and 2002 inclusive. The results are augmented by questions from a survey of CIO's from state and local governments and the private sector. Our analyses suggest several areas where both managers and engineers would benefit from better guidance about the proper use of measurement and analysis. Future work may include lexical analyses based on natural language processing as well as studies of appraiser understanding of the measurement content in CMMI/spl reg/ models.
A meta-analytical review of the relationship between strategic planning and corporate performance

The majority of management literature describes strategic planning (SP) as being effective in relation to improving corporate performance (CP), but is that assumption correct? Several studies have shown that the relationship is dubious if not non-existent. To clarify the relationship a comprehensive meta-analysis was conducted on 88 individual studies representing a total sample size of 32,472 observations. The findings of the meta-analysis suggest that strategic planning does in fact have a positive effect on corporate performance, although it is smaller than the strategic management literature existing to date has proclaimed it to be. Explanations of the unexpected result and directions for future research will be provided.