Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Casimir based impedance control

This paper proposes a new impedance control principle for mechanical systems which have driving systems whose control input is not the torque any more. It is shown how to transform such mechanical systems with driving systems into another systems with the desired mechanical impedance. Also it is proved that the proposed principle achieves a robustness in the presence of parameter perturbations. First, we propose a new state space expression of mechanical systems with driving systems based on a natural Casimir function. Second, we propose an impedance control using an artificial Casimir function as well as the natural Casimir function. Third, we analyze a robustness not on the closed-loop stability but on the closed-loop structure. Finally, the validity of the proposed method is confirmed by numerical simulations. Remarkably, the closed-loop system keeps the mechanical impedance structure robustly and thus achieves a robust behavior.
Maximizing the entropy of a sum of independent bounded random variables

Let X<sub>1</sub>,. ,X<sub>n</sub> be n independent, symmetric random variables supported on the interval [-1,1] and let S<sub>n</sub>=sigma<sub>i=1</sub> <sup>n</sup>X<sub>i</sub> be their sum. We show that the differential entropy of S<sub>n</sub> is maximized when X<sub>1</sub>,. ,X<sub>n-1</sub> are Bernoulli taking on +1 or -1 with equal probability and X<sub>n</sub> is uniformly distributed
Multiple Large Shareholders and Firm Value

This paper investigates the effects of having multiple large shareholders on the valuation of firms. Using data on Finnish listed firms, we show, consistent with our model, that a more equal distribution of votes among large blockholders has a positive effect on firm value. This result is particularly strong in family-controlled firms suggesting that families (which typically have managerial or board representation) are more prone to private benefit extraction if they are not monitored by another strong blockholder. We also show that the relation between multiple blockholders and firm value is significantly affected by the identity of these blockholders.
End Sequence Analysis Toolkit (ESAT) expands the extractable information from single-cell RNA-seq data

RNA-seq protocols that focus on transcript termini are well suited for applications in which template quantity is limiting. Here we show that, when applied to end-sequencing data, analytical methods designed for global RNA-seq produce computational artifacts. To remedy this, we created the End Sequence Analysis Toolkit (ESAT). As a test, we first compared end-sequencing and bulk RNA-seq using RNA from dendritic cells stimulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). As predicted by the telescripting model for transcriptional bursts, ESAT detected an LPS-stimulated shift to shorter 3′-isoforms that was not evident by conventional computational methods. Then, droplet-based microfluidics was used to generate 1000 cDNA libraries, each from an individual pancreatic islet cell. ESAT identified nine distinct cell types, three distinct β-cell types, and a complex interplay between hormone secretion and vascularization. ESAT, then, offers a much-needed and generally applicable computational pipeline for either bulk or single-cell RNA end-sequencing.
Distributed frequency control for stability and economic dispatch in power networks

We explore two different frequency control strategies to ensure stability of power networks and achieve economic dispatch between generators and controllable loads. We first show the global asymptotic stability of a completely decentralized frequency integral control. Then we design a distributed averaging-based integral (DAI) control which operates by local frequency sensing and neighborhood communication. Equilibrium analysis shows that DAI recovers the nominal frequency with minimum total generation cost and user disutility for load control after a change in generation or load. Local asymptotic stability of DAI is established with a Lyapunov method. Simulations demonstrate improvement in both transient and steady-state performance achieved by the proposed control strategies, compared to droop control.
Income and Veteran Status: Variations Among Mexican Americans, Blacks and Anglos

Hyman, Herbert 1959 Political Socialization. Glencoe: Free Press. Hyman, Herbert H. and Paul B. Sheatsley 1950 "The current state of American public opinion. " Pp. 11-34 in National Council for Social Studies Yearbook. Jaros, Dean 1967 "Children's orientations towards the president: some additional theoretical considerations and data. " Journal of Politics, 29 (May):368-87. Jennings, M. Kent and Richard Niemi 1968a "The transmission of political values from parent to child. " American Political Science Review 62 (March):169-84. 1968b "Patterns of political learning. " Harvard Educational Review 30 (Summer) :443-67. Langton, Kenneth P. and M. Kent Jennings 1968 "Political socialization and the high school civics curriculum in the United States. " American Political Science Rex iew 62 (September): 852-67. Lyons, Schley 1970 "The political socialization of ghetto children: efficacy and cynicism. " Journal of Politics 32:288-304. Olsen, Marvin E. 1970 "Social and political participation of blacks. " American Sociological Review, 35 (August) :682-97. Orum, Anthony M. 1966 "A reappraisal of the social and political participation of Negroes. " American Journal of Sociology 72 (July):32-46. Pettigrew, Thomas F. 1964 A Profile of the Negro American. Princeton, New Jersey: D. Van Nostrand Company, Inc. Sears, David 0. 1969 "Black attitudes toward the political system in the aftermath of the Watts insurrection. " Midwest Journal of Political Science 12 (November) :515-44.
A review and re-interpretation of a group-sequential approach to sample size re-estimation in two-stage trials

In this paper, we review the adaptive design methodology of Li et al. (Biostatistics 3:277–287) for two‐stage trials with mid‐trial sample size adjustment. We argue that it is closer in principle to a group sequential design, in spite of its obvious adaptive element. Several extensions are proposed that aim to make it even more attractive and transparent alternative to a standard (fixed sample size) trial for funding bodies to consider. These enable a cap to be put on the maximum sample size and for the trial data to be analysed using standard methods at its conclusion. The regulatory view of trials incorporating unblinded sample size re‐estimation is also discussed. © 2014 The Authors. Pharmaceutical Statistics published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Retrospective Exposure Assessment of Airborne Asbestos Related to Skilled Craftsmen at a Petroleum Refinery in Beaumont, Texas (1940–2006)

Despite efforts over the past 50 or more years to estimate airborne dust or fiber concentrations for specific job tasks within different industries, there have been no known attempts to reconstruct historical asbestos exposures for the many types of trades employed in various nonmanufacturing settings. In this paper, 8-h time-weighted average (TWA) asbestos exposures were estimated for 12 different crafts from the 1940s to the present day at a large petroleum refinery in Beaumont, TX. The crafts evaluated were insulators, pipefitters, boilermakers, masons, welders, sheet-metal workers, millwrights, electricians, carpenters, painters, laborers, and maintenance workers. This analysis quantitatively accounts for (1) the historical use of asbestos-containing materials at the refinery, (2) the typical workday of the different crafts and specific opportunities for exposure to asbestos, (3) industrial hygiene asbestos air monitoring data collected at this refinery and similar facilities since the early 1970s, (4) published and unpublished data sets on task-specific dust or fiber concentrations encountered in various industrial settings since the late 1930s, and (5) the evolution of respirator use and other workplace practices that occurred as the hazards of asbestos became better understood over time. Due to limited air monitoring data for most crafts, 8-h TWA fiber concentrations were calculated only for insulators, while all other crafts were estimated to have experienced 8-h TWA fiber concentrations at some fraction of that experienced by insulators. A probabilistic (Monte Carlo) model was used to account for potential variability in the various data sets and the uncertainty in our knowledge of selected input parameters used to estimate exposure. Significant reliance was also placed on our collective professional experiences working in the fields of industrial hygiene, exposure assessment, and process engineering over the last 40 yr. Insulators at this refinery were estimated to have experienced 50th (and 95th) percentile 8-h TWA asbestos exposures (which incorporated 8-h TWA fiber concentrations, respirator use and effectiveness, and time spent working with asbestos-containing materials) of 9 (16) fibers/cc (cubic centimeter) from 1940 to 1950, 8 (13) fibers/cc from 1951 to 1965, 2 (5) fibers/cc from 1966 to 1971, 0.3 (0.5) fibers/cc from 1972 to 1975, and 0.005 (0.02) fibers/cc from 1976 to 1985 (estimated exposures were <0.001 fibers/cc after 1985). Estimated 8-h TWA exposures for all other crafts were at least 50- to 100-fold less than that of insulators, with the exception of laborers, whose estimated 8-h TWA exposures were approximately one-fifth to one-tenth of those of insulators. In spite of the data gaps, the available evidence indicates that our estimates of 8-h TWA asbestos exposures reasonably characterize the typical range of values for these categories of workers over time.
Personality Profiles of American Presidents as Revealed in Their Public Statements: The Presidential News Conferences of Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan

Les profils de personnalite des presidents americains tels qu'ils sont reveles par leurs declarations en public: l'exemple des conferences de presse de Jimmy Carter et de Ronald Reagan. Presentation d'une technique d'analyse du comportement verbal a partir d'echantillons de reponses aux questions des journalistes, faites au cours de la premiere annee des deux mandats presidentiels
Identification of fundamental building blocks in protein sequences using statistical association measures

Protein sequence data is abundant, yet derivation of structural features from sequence alone is generally restricted to prediction of domain architecture, secondary structure elements and motifs. Precise feature boundaries cannot be determined reliably, and it is unknown to what extent these features constitute fundamental building blocks of protein sequences, a question with particular relevance to protein folding. Here we propose a statistical approach using mutual information, a measure of association, to predict feature boundaries. In this approach, proteins are viewed as strings of adjacent, non-overlapping features, where each feature is a subsequence of the protein, and the union of the features is the entire protein. Mutual information values are measured between nearby amino acids along sequences, and low values are indicators for feature boundaries. These boundaries are then predicted using a flexible partitioning algorithm. The algorithms presented in this paper were tested on the GPCR protein family and subfamilies. A comparison with segment boundaries implied indirectly from secondary structure prediction and expert knowledge demonstrates that the algorithm can be used to statistically predict feature positions in protein sequences generically, without assumptions on the feature type to be detected. Access to the data used and algorithms presented in this paper are available at flan.blm. cs.cmu. edu.
A new delay-dependent stability criterion of fuzzy systems with interval time-varying delay

A new delay bisection approach has been proposed to solving the problem of the stability of fuzzy systems with interval time-varying delay. The time-delay is assumed to be a time-varying function belonging to a given interval. Based on a Lyapunov-Krasovskii functional, a new sufficient condition on the asymptotical stability of the system is obtained by using the delay bisection method. Two numerical examples are also given to show the effectiveness of the proposed stability criterion.
At Home and on Demand Mechanical Cough Assistance Program for Patients With Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

Vitacca M, Paneroni M, Trainini D, Bianchi L, Assoni G, Saleri M, Gilè S, Winck JC, Gonçalves MR: At Home and on Demand Mechanical Cough Assistance Program for Patients With Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. Objective:To establish a cost-effective telephone-accessed consultation and mechanical in-exsufflation (MI-E) and manually assisted coughing, oximetry feedback program for 39 patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Design:Rapid access to healthcare consultation and to MI-E was provided to treat episodes of distress as a result of secretion encumbrance not reversed by suctioning and associated with a decrease in oxyhemoglobin saturation (SpO2) baseline. Avoided hospitalizations, defined by relief of respiratory distress and return of SpO2 baseline to ≥95% by continuous ventilator use and assisted coughing, were recorded. Patient satisfaction was queried at 6 mos, and a cost analysis was performed of continuous vs. on demand MI-E use. Results:Thirty-nine patients made a total of 1661 calls in 7.46 ± 5.8 mos of follow-up. Twenty-seven patients had 66 home care visits by a respiratory therapist for a total time commitment of 89.7 ± 99.3 min/patient/mo. Twelve patients, all ventilator users, were also brought mechanical in-exsufflators for mechanically assisted coughing for 47 respiratory episodes. Thirty hospitalizations were avoided. Seventy-five percent of the patients were extremely satisfied. Mean monthly cost per patient for on-demand telephone consultation, professional home healthcare visits, and MI-E as deemed necessary was &U20AC;403 ± &U20AC;420 or 59% less than for continuous MI-E rental. Hospitalization costs were also spared. Conclusions:An on-demand consult and MI-E access program can avoid hospitalizations for patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis with significant cost savings.
Depletion Forces near Curved Surfaces

Based on density functional theory the influence of curvature on the depletion potential of a single big hard sphere immersed in a fluid of small hard spheres with packing fraction \eta_s either inside or outside of a hard spherical cavity of radius R_c is calculated. The relevant features of this potential are analyzed as function of \eta_s and R_c. There is a very slow convergence towards the flat wall limit R_c \to \infty. Our results allow us to discuss the strength of depletion forces acting near membranes both in normal and lateral directions and to make contact with recent experimental results.
Justifying Conditionalization: Conditionalization Maximizes Expected Epistemic Utility

According to Bayesian epistemology, the epistemically rational agent updates her beliefs by conditionalisation: that is, her posterior subjective probability after taking account of evidence X, p', is to be set equal to her prior conditional probability p(.|X). Bayesians can be challenged to provide a justification for their claim that conditionalisation is recommended by rationality --- whence the normative force of the injunction to conditionalise? There are several existing justifications for conditionalisation, but none directly addresses the idea that conditionalisation will be epistemically rational if and only if it can reasonably be expected to lead to epistemically good outcomes. We apply the approach of cognitive decision theory to provide a justification for conditionalisation using precisely that idea. We assign epistemic utility functions to epistemically rational agents; an agent's epistemic utility is to depend both upon the actual state of the world and on the agent's credence distribution over possible states. We prove that, under independently motivated conditions, conditionalisation is the unique updating rule that maximizes expected epistemic utility.
Nanoindentation and XPS Studies of Titanium TNZ Alloy after Electrochemical Polishing in a Magnetic Field

This work presents the nanoindentation and XPS results of a newly-developed biomaterial of titanium TNZ alloy after different surface treatments. The investigations were performed on the samples AR (as received), EP (after a standard electropolishing) and MEP (after magnetoelectropolishing). The electropolishing processes, both EP and MEP, were conducted in the same proprietary electrolyte based on concentrated sulfuric acid. The mechanical properties of the titanium TNZ alloy biomaterial demonstrated an evident dependence on the surface treatment method, with MEP samples revealing extremely different behavior and mechanical properties. The reason for that different behavior appeared to be influenced by the surface film composition, as revealed by XPS study results displayed in this work. The increase of niobium and zirconium in the surface film of the same titanium TNZ alloy after magnetoelectropolishing MEP treatment is meaningful and especially advantageous considering the application of this alloy as a biomaterial.
A study of relevance propagation in large topic ontologies

Topic ontologies or web directories consist of large collections of links to websites, arranged by topic in different categories. The structure of these ontologies is typically not flat because there are hierarchical and nonhierarchical relationships among topics. As a consequence, websites classified under a certain topic may be relevant to other topics. Although some of these relevance relations are explicit, most of them must be discovered by an analysis of the structure of the ontologies. This article proposes a family of models of relevance propagation in topic ontologies. An efficient computational framework is described and used to compute nine different models for a portion of the Open Directory Project graph consisting of more than half a million nodes and approximately 1.5 million edges of different types. After performing a quantitative analysis, a user study was carried out to compare the most promising models. It was found that some general difficulties rule out the possibility of defining flawless models of relevance propagation that only take into account structural aspects of an ontology. However, there is a clear indication that including transitive relations induced by the nonhierarchical components of the ontology results in relevance propagation models that are superior to more basic approaches.
Age effects and health appraisal: a meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE The purpose was to clarify the effects of methodological variables in the research on age differences in self-rated health and specifically the effects of: (a) the item type used to solicit the appraisal, (b) the approach to sampling, and (c) the criteria for assembling the age groups for study. METHODS Studies differing on these dimensions were compared using meta-analytic techniques. Seventeen usable samples were grouped according to the age comparisons--seven compared "young" and "old" samples while ten compared "young-old" and "old-old" groups. RESULTS The results failed to support the frequently reported health optimism of old-old samples when compared with young-old. Further, the findings suggest that the item type used in eliciting the rating of health may be instrumental in the respondent's appraisal process. For instance, use of the age-comparative item tends to favor "old" groups when compared to young, whereas the global health item has an effect in the other direction. Effect size was also related to a study's sampling procedure and to the method used in assembling groups (i.e., age ranges used to represent young and old). DISCUSSION Practical implications and areas of needed research are discussed.
Cities of difference

Introduction, Jacobs, Fincher. Grids of Difference: Place and Identity Formation, Pratt. In the Right Place at the Right Time? : Life Stages and Urban Spaces, Fincher. Suburban Stories, Gendered Lives: Thinking through Difference, Dowling. Justice and the Disabling City, Gleeson. Community Responses to Human Service Delivery in U.S. Cities, Takahashi, Sexuality and Urban Space: Gay Male Identity Politics in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia, Knopp. Sexing the City, Bondi. Sites of Difference: Beyond a Cultural Politics of Race Polarity, Anderson. Contesting Social Relations in Communal Places: Identity Politics among Asian Communities in Dar es Salaam, Nagar, Leitner. Staging Difference: Aestheticization and the Politics of Difference in Contemporary Cities, Jacobs. Whose City? : Gender, Class, and Immigrants in Globalizing European Cities, Kofman. Social Polarization and the Politics of Difference: Social Polariazation and the Politics of Difference: Discourses in Collision or Collusion? , Gibson.
Product/Consumption-Based Affective Responses and Postpurchase Processes

The author examines consumer affective responses to product/consumption experiences and their relationship to selected aspects of postpurchase processes. In separate field studies of automobile owners and CATV subscribers, subjects reported the nature and frequency of emotional experiences in connection with product ownership and usage. Analysis confirms hypotheses about the existence of independent dimensions of positive and negative affect. Both dimensions of affective response are found directly related to the favorability of consumer satisfaction judgments, extent of seller-directed complaint behavior, and extent of word-of-mouth transmission.
Conservative Medical Treatment and Intravenous Thrombolysis in Acute Stroke from Carotid T Occlusion

Background: We aimed to analyse the course of early recanalization and corresponding functional outcome in patients with an acute occlusion of the carotid T who were treated conservatively or underwent intravenous thrombolysis. Methods: Forty-two patients with an acute occlusion of the carotid T within 6 h were recruited from consecutive admissions to a neurological department participating in the Duplex Sonography in Acute Stroke study. All patients underwent a standardized admission and follow-up procedure. Colour-coded duplex sonography was performed on admission, 30 min after thrombolysis, and at 6 and 24 h after onset of symptoms. Recanalization of the carotid T was classified as complete, partial and absent. Functional outcome was rated with the modified Rankin scale (mRS) at 3 months as favourable (mRS 0–2) or poor (mRS 3–6). Results: Within 6 h, complete or partial recanalization occurred in 1 of 27 patients treated conservatively and in 6 of 15 thrombolysed patients. Intravenous thrombolysis predicted early recanalization also after adjustment for age, sex, cardioembolic stroke aetiology and time to treatment (adjusted odds ratio, OR, 39.7; 95% confidence interval, CI, 2.0–801.7; p = 0.016). An early recanalization was the only selected predictor of a favourable outcome (OR, 13.6; 95% CI, 1.0–179.0; p = 0.047) at regression analysis, and was achieved in 3 thrombolysed patients but in none with conservative medical treatment. Conclusions: In patients treated conservatively, functional outcome is poor and early recanalization rarely occurs. The latter can be achieved by intravenous thrombolysis with a rate comparable to that found at an intra-arterial approach without major intracranial bleeding complications. Early recanalization is associated with a better functional outcome.