Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Are People with Disabilities Losing the ICT Revolution? Some Evidence on European Countries

This paper contributes to the line of research devoted to the diffusion of Information and Communication Technologies. We analyse patterns of Internet diffusion across people with disabilities in ten European countries, a geographical area for which empirical evidence is scarce. Results show that disability status has a significant negative effect on the probability of being an Internet user, even for those with higher income and educational attainment. However, we find no significant relationship between disability and frequency of Internet use. Therefore, it seems that once online the digital divide between people with disabilities and the rest of the population attenuate, at least to some extent.
Morph algorithms on GPUs

There is growing interest in using GPUs to accelerate graph algorithms such as breadth-first search, computing page-ranks, and finding shortest paths. However, these algorithms do not modify the graph structure, so their implementation is relatively easy compared to general graph algorithms like mesh generation and refinement, which morph the underlying graph in non-trivial ways by adding and removing nodes and edges. We know relatively little about how to implement morph algorithms efficiently on GPUs. In this paper, we present and study four morph algorithms: (i) a computational geometry algorithm called Delaunay Mesh Refinement (DMR), (ii) an approximate SAT solver called Survey Propagation (SP), (iii) a compiler analysis called Points-To Analysis (PTA), and (iv) Boruvka's Minimum Spanning Tree algorithm (MST). Each of these algorithms modifies the graph data structure in different ways and thus poses interesting challenges. We overcome these challenges using algorithmic and GPU-specific optimizations. We propose efficient techniques to perform concurrent subgraph addition, subgraph deletion, conflict detection and several optimizations to improve the scalability of morph algorithms. For an input mesh with 10 million triangles, our DMR code achieves an 80x speedup over the highly optimized serial Triangle program and a 2.3x speedup over a multicore implementation running with 48 threads. Our SP code is 3x faster than a multicore implementation with 48 threads on an input with 1 million literals. The PTA implementation is able to analyze six SPEC 2000 benchmark programs in just 74 milliseconds, achieving a geometric mean speedup of 9.3x over a 48-thread multicore version. Our MST code is slower than a multicore version with 48 threads for sparse graphs but significantly faster for denser graphs. This work provides several insights into how other morph algorithms can be efficiently implemented on GPUs.
An Information Flow Filter Approach to Cooperative Vehicle Control

Abstract This paper extends an previously proposed information flow filter approach to cooperative vehicle control to guarantee stability of a vehicle formation under arbitrary communication topologies. A systematic design technique for this information flow filter is the main contribution of this work. For this purpose an alternative interpretation of a separation theorem that allows the independent design of the information flow filter and the controllers for the vehicles is presented. The advantages of this approach are illustrated in simulation studies.
Role of Nrf2/ARE Pathway in Protective Effect of Electroacupuncture against Endotoxic Shock-Induced Acute Lung Injury in Rabbits

NF-E2 related factor 2 (Nrf2) is a major transcription factor and acts as a key regulator of antioxidant genes to exogenous stimulations. The aim of current study was to determine whether Nrf2/ARE pathway is involved in the protective effect of electroacupuncture on the injured lung in a rabbit model of endotoxic shock. A dose of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) 5 mg/kg was administered intravenously to replicate the model of acute lung injury induced by endotoxic shock. Electroacupuncture pretreatment was handled bilaterally at Zusanli and Feishu acupoints for five consecutive days while sham electroacupuncture punctured at non-acupoints. Fourty anesthetized New England male rabbits were randomized into normal control group (group C), LPS group (group L), electroacupuncture + LPS group (group EL) and sham electroacupuncture + LPS (group SEL). At 6 h after LPS administration, the animals were sacrificed and the blood samples were collected for biochemical measurements. The lungs were removed for calculation of wet-to-dry weight ratios (W/D), histopathologic examination, determination of heme oxygenase (HO)-1 protein and mRNA, Nrf2 total and nucleoprotein, as well as Nrf2 mRNA expression, and evaluation of the intracellular distribution of Nrf2 nucleoprotein. LPS caused extensive morphologic lung damage, which was lessened by electroacupuncture treatment. Besides, lung W/D ratios were significantly decreased, the level of malondialdehyde was inhibited, plasma levels of TNF-α and interleukin-6 were decreased, while the activities of superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase and catalase were enhanced in the electroacupucnture treated animals. In addition, electroacupuncture stimulation distinctly increased the expressions of HO-1 and Nrf2 protein including Nrf2 total protein and nucleoprotein as well as mRNA in lung tissue, while these effects were blunted in the sham electroacupuncture group. We concluded that electroacupuncture treatment at ST36 and BL13 effectively attenuates lung injury in a rabbit model of endotoxic shock through activation of Nrf2/ARE pathway and following up-regulation of HO-1 expression.
Properties of five low-contrast open clusters in the third quadrant

We derive photometric, structural and dynamical evolution-related parameters of five as yet unstudied low-contrast open clusters located in the third quadrant using 2MASS data. The target clusters are Czernik 31, Czernik 32, Haffner 9, Haffner 11 and Trumpler 13. We apply a statistical field-star decontamination procedure to infer on the intrinsic colour–magnitude diagram (CMD) morphology which is critical for such low-contrast objects. Consequently, it became possible to derive accurate reddening, age, distance from the Sun and Galactocentric distance for the five clusters. In the structural and luminosity/mass-function analyses we apply a colour-magnitude filter which encompasses the cluster evolutionary CMD sequences and excludes stars with discrepant colours. Using this procedure we derive core and limiting radii, mass function (MF) slope, total mass, mass density and relaxation time. We derive ages in the range 140–1100 Myr, Galactocentric distances within 7.7–11.4 kpc, and total masses within 360–2900 $M_\odot$. Reflecting large-scale mass segregation, the MF slope in the core is significantly flatter than that in the halo of the five clusters. Although some of the present clusters are relatively younger than the Gyr-old clusters, they present evidence of advanced dynamical evolution. This kind of study has become possible because of the photometric uniformity and spatial coverage of 2MASS which allows a proper subtraction of the field-star contamination on the target CMDs. The present study indicates that low-contrast clusters can be studied with 2MASS, particularly after field-star subtraction, which is important since most of the unstudied open clusters belong to this class.
Paper Productivity of Ground-based Large Optical Telescopes from 2000 to 2009

Abstract We present an analysis of the scientific (refereed) paper productivity of the current largest (diameter > 8m) ground-based optical (and infrared) telescopes during the ten-year period from 2000 to 2009. The telescopes for which we have gathered and analysed the scientific publication data are the two 10-m Keck telescopes, the four 8.2-m Very Large Telescopes (VLT), the two 8.1-m Gemini telescopes, the 8.2-m Subaru telescope, and the 9.2-m Hobby–Eberly Telescope (HET). We have analysed the numbers of papers published in various astronomical journals produced by using these telescopes. While the total numbers of papers from these observatories are largest for the VLT, followed by Keck, Gemini, Subaru, and HET, the number of papers produced by each component of the telescopes is largest for Keck, followed by VLT, Subaru, Gemini, and HET. In 2009, each telescope of the Keck, VLT, Gemini, Subaru, and HET observatories produced 135, 109, 93, 107, and 5 refereed papers, respectively. We have shown that each telescope of the Keck, VLT, Gemini, and Subaru observatories is producing 2.1 ± 0.9 Nature and Science papers annually and these papers make up 1.7 ± 0.8% of all refereed papers produced by using each of those telescopes. Extending this relation, we propose that this ratio of the number of Nature and Science papers to the total number of refereed papers that will be produced by future extremely large telescopes (ELTs) will remain similar. From a comparison of the publication trends of the above telescopes, we suggest that (i) having more than one telescope of the same kind at the same location and (ii) increasing the number of instruments available at the telescope are good ways to maximize the paper productivity.
The Behavioral Foundations of Corporate Dividend Policy: A Cross-Country Analysis

We study a model that relates dividend payout policy to behavioral issues based on the ideas of mental accounting. A panel analysis across 29 countries and over 43,000 firm-years demonstrates that our model studying the relation between dividends and patience, loss aversion, and ambiguity aversion can be verified empirically. Our paper seems to be the first that highlights empirically in a straightforward way the relevance of behavioral patterns as important determinants for corporate dividend policy, while previous empirical studies could tackle this issue only indirectly. With several robustness tests we also address potential doubts concerning the quality of our data and analyze further implications of our theory.
Suv Austria Spectral Uv Measurements in Austria from 1994 to 2006: Investigations of Short-and Long-term Changes Acpd Suv Austria

Influences of atmospheric variability on short-and long-term changes of spectral UV irradiance measured at the Sonnblick observatory (47.03 N, 12.57 E, 3106 m) during the period from 1994 to 2006 is studied. Measurements are performed with a Brewer ozone single spectrophotometer and with a Bentham DM150 spectroradiometer (dou-5 ble monochromator). The influence of ozone, albedo and clouds on UV variability is evaluated separately using 10-year climatology. It is found that the effect of total ozone on short-term variability of UV irradiance at 305 nm can be more than 200% and on average more than 50%. Clouds can cause variability of 150% or more and on average 35%. Variability 10 caused by albedo is maximum 32%. Long-term trends are investigated for the time period from 1994 to 2006 using the non-parametric Mann-Kendall trend test. Significant downwards trends (99% confidence level) were found for solar zenith angle 55 • at wavelengths from 305 nm to 324 nm and CIE.
Author ' s personal copy An equivalent strain / Cof fi n e Manson approach to multiaxial fatigue and life prediction in superelastic Nitinol medical devices

Medical devices, particularly endovascular stents, manufactured from superelastic Nitinol, a nearequiatomic alloy of Ni and Ti, are subjected to complex mixed-mode loading conditions in vivo, including axial tension and compression, radial compression, pulsatile, bending and torsion. Fatigue lifetime prediction methodologies for Nitinol, however, are invariably based on uniaxial loading and thus fall short of accurately predicting the safe lifetime of stents under the complex multiaxial loading conditions experienced physiologically. While there is a considerable body of research documented on the cyclic fatigue of Nitinol in uniaxial tension or bending, there remains an almost total lack of comprehensive fatigue lifetime data for other loading conditions, such as torsion and tension/torsion. In this work, thinwalled Nitinol tubes were cycled in torsion at various mean and alternating strains to investigate the fatigue life behavior of Nitinol and results compared to equivalent fatigue data collected under uniaxial tensile/bending loads. Using these strain-life results for various loading modes and an equivalent referential (Lagrangian) strain approach, a strategy for normalizing these data is presented. Based on this strategy, a fatigue lifetime prediction model for the multiaxial loading of Nitinol is presented utilizing a modified CoffineManson approach where the number of cycles to failure is related to the equivalent alternating transformation strain. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Short-term energy storage for wind energy applications

The need to limit power fluctuations resulting from wind turbine generators (WTG) is becoming more important as wind energy reaches higher levels of penetration. This paper considers the integration of a short-term energy storage device in a doubly-fed induction generator (DFIG) design in order to smooth the fast, wind induced power variations. This storage feature can also enhance the low voltage ride through (LVRT) capability. The topology is evaluated in terms of its ability to improve both the steady state and transient performance. The system is modeled in EMTP and a number of cases and configurations are illustrated. Results show that when storage is sized based upon the LVRT requirement, it can provide improved performance both under steady state and during transients when compared with conventional technologies.
The impact of performance management policy on standards in schools

Following the introduction of Performance Management in schools in 2000, the rate of increase in attainment from 2001-2005, as measured by the GCSE 5A*-C percentage pass rate, is noticeably higher than in the five years prior to its introduction. The aim of this research is to consider the impact of the national policy for Performance Management (PM) of teachers on standards of attainment in secondary schools. The thesis attempts to locate and explain a potential causal link between PM and the rate of increase in attainment at GCSE. It does this from within a Transcendental Realist philosophical framework incorporating a Critical Realist sociological perspective. An extensive literature survey on both Performance Management and its precursor, Appraisal, revealed a potential for research on the link between PM and standards of attainment in schools. In considering prospective strategies for such a study, a comprehensive range of methodologies and research methods are explored and the Critical Realist perspective using a case study design was considered to be a reasonable approach in that it appeared not to have some of the weaknesses exhibited by some of the other methodologies reviewed. The Case Study was completed through a series of forty four structured interviews in schools with ‘Challenging Circumstances’ (an Ofsted indicator of the demographics of a school) and with two policymakers from the Department for Education and Employment (DfEE). The structured interviews based upon an analysis of PM national policy revealed a positive response to the effect of PM on standards of attainment. This was also coherent with a wider literature survey of the effects of the various PM policy dimensions at one level and a conceptual abstraction of the policy at another. However, PM policy was introduced as part of the Standards Framework (DfEE 1998), which provided for the introduction of a plethora of policies aimed at raising standards. These, together with a number of other contextual factors, were considered to add to the complexity of the final causal analysis. It is argued that Critical Realism has the potential to provide a useful and penetrative starting point in the analysis of such complicated contexts.
A Theoretical Framework for Serious Game Design: Exploring Pedagogy, Play and Fidelity and their Implications for the Design Process

It is widely acknowledged that digital games can provide an engaging, motivating and "fun" experience for students. However an entertaining game does not necessarily constitute a meaningful, valuable learning experience. For this reason, experts espouse the importance of underpinning serious games with a sound theoretical framework which integrates and balances theories from two fields of practice: pedagogy and game design Kiili, 2005; Seeney & Routledge, 2009. Additionally, with the advent of sophisticated, immersive technologies, and increasing interest in the opportunities for constructivist learning offered by these technologies, concepts of fidelity and its impact on student learning and engagement, have emerged Aldrich, 2005; Harteveld et al., 2007, 2010. This paper will explore a triadic theoretical framework for serious game design comprising play, pedagogy and fidelity. It will outline underpinning theories, review key literatures and identify challenges and issues involved in balancing these elements in the process of serious game design.
Detecting Epidemic Malaria, Uganda

To the Editor: In the field of malaria epidemic early warning, there exists an unfortunate but frequently accurate perception that health systems in many affected countries learn of epidemics by way of the popular press rather than through formal disease surveillance systems. Malaria epidemics are often easily recognized (albeit too late) by laypersons (1), but most routine disease surveillance systems lack the ability to provide accurate, timely indications of aberrations in case numbers. The World Health Organization (WHO) has set specific targets for early detection and control of malaria epidemics as part of a wider strategy to cut the global extent of malaria in half by 2010 (2). We describe experiences during a recent epidemic in southwest Uganda and examine the performance of a pilot early detection system.
Real-time human object motion parameters estimation from depth images

This paper introduces a vision-based motion capture system. Motion capturing technology consists of two categories: model-based tracking and example-based indexing. The motion capturing systems face two challenges: parameter estimation in high-dimensional space and self-occlusion. Our algorithm extends the locality sensitive hashing (LSH) method to find the approximate examples and then estimates the pose parameters in high search space. The contributions of this method are proposing the modified LSH function, applying Hough voting to estimate the pose parameters, and adding the temporal/prediction constraints to increase the prediction accuracy.
The Mass of the Neutron Star in Cygnus X-2 (V1341 Cygni)

Cygnus X-2 is one of the brightest and longest known X-ray sources. We present high-resolution optical spectroscopy of Cyg X-2 obtained over 4 yr, which gives an improved mass function of 0.69 ± 0.03 M☉ (1 σ). In addition, we resolve the rotationally broadened absorption features of the secondary star for the first time, deriving a rotation speed of v sin i=34.2±2.5 km s-1 (1 σ), which leads to a mass ratio of q=Mc/M X = 0.34 ± 0.04 (1 σ, assuming a tidally locked and Roche lobe-filling secondary). Hence, with the lack of X-ray eclipses (i.e., i≲73°) we can set firm 95% confidence lower limits to the neutron star mass of MX > 1.27 M☉ and to the companion star mass of Mc > 0.39 M☉. However, by additionally requiring that the companion must exceed 0.75 M☉ (as required theoretically to produce a steady low-mass X-ray binary), then MX > 1.88 M☉ and i < 61° (95% confidence lower and upper limit, respectively), thereby making Cyg X-2 the highest mass neutron star measured to date. If confirmed, this would set significant constraints on the equation of state of nuclear matter.
Open to change: slowing down to explore and innovate

A specific type of knowing comes from the handling of materials in the handcrafting of an artifact. This research looks at the relationship between the handcraft of weaving, and the decision-making process and knowledge of the textile designer. It investigates the potential for new design opportunities to be opened up for the commercial designer by moving out of the studio and back into the workshop environment. As an educator, manager and formerly a designer trained in textile design, this research explores an established industrial production method of weaving but revisited using a craft-like approach. Slowing down the creative process to engage with the materials themselves, this paper starts to explore the potential of hand woven leno structures to be used within the landscape and to explore the process of change in response to environmental factors. Architect Philip Beesleys’ work seeks to achieve a balance with nature, submitting itself to the natural cycles and inevitable decay, in which he deliberately designs mesh structures with weak and fragile links, whose materials soak up environmental forces. This paper starts to further explore the value of haptic intelligence and empathy for materials, also adopted by Beesley in his Haystack Veil (1997) and later Holozoic series. The process of creating leno structures on a handloom, has resulted in outcomes difficult to predict using digital software, confirming weaving as an emergent system (Philpott, 2011), where disparate threads are combined into dynamic structures. There is a delicate relationship between textiles and the landscape, in response to which the designer of performance fabrics is required to create, indestructible solutions, with a lifetime guarantee. By embracing the science of uncertainty, fresh ideas and new solutions have the potential to be created.
Segmentation Based Approach to Dynamic Page Construction from Search Engine Results

The results rendered by the search engines are mostly a linear snippet list. With the prolific increase in the dynamism of web pages there is a need for enhanced result lists from search engines in order to cope-up with the expectations of the users. This paper proposes a model for dynamic construction of a resultant page from various results fetched by the search engine, based on the web page segmentation approach. With the incorporation of personalization through user profile during the candidate segment selection, the enriched resultant page is constructed. The benefits of this approach include instant, one-shot navigation to relevant portions from various result items, in contrast to a linear page-by-page visit approach. The experiments conducted on the prototype model with various levels of users, quantifies the improvements in terms of amount of relevant information fetched. Keywords-information retrieval; search engine results; personalization;
Navigating the Social Landscape: An Exploration of Social Networking Site Usage among Emerging Adults

ii Acknowledgements ii Dedication iv Table of Contents v List of Tables vii List of Appendices viii 1 Introduction 1 1.1 Purpose of Study 4 1.2 Research Problem 6 1.3 Research Questions 7 1.4 Research Approach 9 1.5 Significance of Study 13 2 Literature Review 14 2.1 Social Networking Sites and their Users 14 2.2 Emerging Adulthood and the Role of Technology 23 2.3 Theorizing Social Networking Sites 27 2.4 Conclusions 36 3 Research Methods 38 3.1 Research Questions and Thematic Clusters 38