Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Bridging the Culture Chasm: Ensuring that Consumers are Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise

This article pulls together streams of culture-related research found in information-processing and behavioral decision theory literature, and it complements them with a focus on motivations and goals. The authors propose a framework that suggests that (1) the treatment of culture is useful when it incorporates subcultures, including those defined by nationality, ethnicity, religious affiliation, and neighborhood or local surroundings; (2) goals are determined by both cultural background and situational forces; and (3) through its impact on goals, culture influences the inputs used to make a decision, the types of options preferred, and the timing of decisions. The authors highlight the implications of the framework for two policy domains: health and finances. They suggest that consumers’ goal orientations can provide a useful segmentation dimension, and they carve out specific tendencies that appear to vary across cultural contexts (e.g., satisficing, goal shifting, reactivity). A deeper consideration of consumer goals and the role of culture in individual decision making can inform policies aimed at improving the quality of consumers’ decisions and, ultimately, consumer welfare.
Poster: Comparative study of EM-MAC and TSCH/orchestra for IoT

Multichannel Medium Access Control (MAC) protocols for IoT can potentially improve network performance. Therefore, a considerable number of such protocols have been proposed in the last decade, ranging from slotted synchronous to contention-based asynchronous multichannel protocols. In this paper two of the most representative multichannel MAC layer protocols are compared: Time-Slotted Channel Hopping (TSCH) using the Orchestra scheduling algorithm, and Energy-Efficient Multichannel MAC (EM-MAC). The performance of these protocols is assessed under different traffic loads and node densities using the standard IPv6 Routing Protocol for Low-Power and Lossy Networks (LLNs), i.e. RPL. The results show the cross-layer interaction between the RPL protocol and the multichannel MAC schemes under study. Moreover, it can be generally appreciated that TSCH/Orchestra performs better in terms of Packet Delivery Ratio (PDR) whereas EM-MAC exhibits lower power consumption. These characteristics reveal the suitability of these protocols for different IoT applications.
Non-local spatial frequency response of photopolymer materials containing chain transfer agents: II. Experimental results

In part I of this paper the non-local photo-polymerization driven diffusion model was extended to include the kinetics of chain transfer and re-initiation, in order to analyse the effects of chain transfer agents on the system kinetics and to study their use in reducing the average polymer chain length in free-radical based photopolymer materials. Based on these results, it is proposed that one possible way to improve the material response at high spatial frequency is the addition of chain transfer agents. In this paper, the validity of the proposed model is examined by applying it to fit experimental data for an acrylamide/polyvinyl alcohol (AA/PVA) layer containing two different types of chain transfer agent (CTA): sodium formate (HCOONa) and 1-mercapto-2-propanol (CH3CH(OH)CH2SH). The effects on decreasing the average polymer chain length formed, by the addition of chain transfer agent, which in turn reduces the non-local response of the material, are demonstrated. These reductions are shown to be accompanied by improved high spatial frequency response. Key material parameters are extracted by numerically fitting experimentally measured refractive index modulation growth curves using the model. Further independent experimental confirmation of the reduction in the average polymer molecular weight is provided using a diffusion based holographic technique.
Size, Trend, and Policy Implications of the Underground Economy

We study the underground economy in a dynamic and stochastic general equilibrium framework. Our model combines limited tax enforcement with an otherwise standard two-sector neoclassical stochastic growth model. The Bayesian estimation of the model based on Italian data provides evidence in favor of an important underground sector in Italy, with a size that has steadily increased over the whole sample period. We show that this pattern is due to a persistent increase in taxation. Fiscal policy experiments suggest that a moderate tax cut, along with a stronger effort in the monitoring process, causes a sensitive reduction in the size of the underground economy and positive stimulus to the regular sector that jointly increase the total fiscal revenues.
Protein synthesis regulation by leucine

In vivo and in vitro studies have demonstrated that high protein diets affect both protein synthesis and regulation of several cellular processes. The role of amino acids as substrate for protein synthesis has been established in the literature. However, the mechanism by which these amino acids modulate transcription and regulate the mRNA translation via mTOR-dependent signaling pathway has yet to be fully determined. It has been verified that mTOR is a protein responsible for activating a cascade of biochemical intracellular events which result in the activation of the protein translation process. Of the aminoacids, leucine is the most effective in stimulating protein synthesis and reducing proteolysis. Therefore, it promotes a positive nitrogen balance, possibly by favoring the activation of this protein. This amino acid also directly and indirectly stimulates the synthesis and secretion of insulin, enhancing its anabolic cellular effects. Therefore, this review aimed to identify the role of leucine in protein synthesis modulation and to discuss the metabolic aspects related to this aminoacid.
A Flexible LED Driver for Automotive Lighting Applications: IC Design and Experimental Characterization

This letter presents a smart driver for LEDs, particularly for automotive lighting applications, which avoid ringing and overshoot phenomena. To this aim, advanced Soft Start and Current Slope Control techniques are integrated on-chip. This letter discusses the driver design integrating in high voltage CMOS technology, the digital circuitry for programming and electronic control units interfacing, and the power devices up to 10 W. Experimental characterizations with LEDs of different power levels and with different types of connections are showed. The smart driver sustains automotive temperature and voltage requirements; moreover it has high power efficiency, it is programmable, and can be configured to work as a linear regulator (for low current LEDs) or in switch mode (for higher power LEDs).
Noninvasive testing, early surgery, and seizure freedom in tuberous sclerosis complex

Background: The unambiguous identification of the epileptogenic tubers in individuals with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) can be challenging. We assessed whether magnetic source imaging (MSI) and coregistration of 18fluorodeoxyglucose PET (FDG-PET) with MRI could improve the identification of the epileptogenic regions noninvasively in children with TSC. Methods: In addition to standard presurgical evaluation, 28 children with intractable epilepsy from TSC referred from 2000 to 2007 had MSI and FDG-PET/MRI coregistration without extraoperative intracranial EEG. Results: Based on the concordance of test results, 18 patients with TSC (64%) underwent surgical resection, with the final resection zone confirmed by intraoperative electrocorticography. Twelve patients are seizure free postoperatively (67%), with an average follow-up of 4.1 years. Younger age at surgery and shorter seizure duration were associated with postoperative seizure freedom. Conversely, older age and longer seizure duration were linked with continued seizures postoperatively or prevented surgery because of nonlateralizing or bilateral independent epileptogenic zones. Complete removal of presurgery MSI dipole clusters correlated with postoperative seizure freedom. Conclusions: Magnetic source imaging and 18fluorodeoxyglucose PET/MRI coregistration noninvasively localized the epileptogenic zones in many children with intractable epilepsy from tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC), with 67% seizure free postoperatively. Seizure freedom after surgery correlated with younger age and shorter seizure duration. These findings support the concept that early epilepsy surgery is associated with seizure freedom in children with TSC and intractable epilepsy.
Conflict to Potentially Ameliorative Proposals in the Context of an Intractable Intergroup Sentiments , Political Identity , and Their Influence on Responses

Two studies examined the association of particular sentiments and political identities with Jewish-Israeli students’ responses to a generic plan to end the Israeli– Palestinian conflict and to narrower proposals for cooperative undertakings. Three composites—hatred/anger, compassion/empathy (reverse-coded), and guilt/shame (reverse-coded), and also a global composite combining these three sets of sentiments, were generally associated with negative responses to those plans and negative attributions about the wisdom and patriotism of supporters of those plans. Most of the associations between the global sentiments composite and the relevant responses continued to be statistically significant even after controlling for participants’ political identity. The interaction between the relevant sentiments and the putative authorship of one of the proposals was also investigated. Issues of generalizability, replicability, robustness, and of the relevance of mediational analysis, as well Arison School of Business, The Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, Israel School of Psychology, The Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, Israel Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA Corresponding Author: Dennis T. Kahn, Arison School of Business, Interdisciplinary Center, P.O. B. 167, Herzliya, Israel. Email: dennis.t. kahn@gmail.com Journal of Conflict Resolution 1-28 a The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permission: sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/0022002714535250 jcr.sagepub.com at Interdisciplinary Center for on May 25, 2014 jcr.sagepub.com Downloaded from as implications for conflict resolution and potential directions for future research are addressed in a concluding discussion.
Sensorless position estimation from PWM-induced transient excitation in induction machines

This paper investigates the feasibility of sensorless position estimation from PWM-induced transient excitation sequences, present during inverter-driven operation of induction machines (IM) with standard space vector PWM (SVPWM). The applied method exploits existing machine saliencies and their correlation to the current slopes measured in response to a voltage pulse at the machine terminals. Determination of this quite linear current response and its position dependent slope modulation allows for extraction of the flux/rotor position information. However, an initial transient oscillation process delays the first possible measurement instant, what imposes minimum pulse duration and limits the possible operational range of SVPWM-integrated transient excitation for sensorless methods. Previous publications showed, that by application of current signal high frequency sampling it is possible to estimate the current derivative before these oscillations decay, thus further reducing the minimum pulse duration requirement. The paper at hand contributes an analysis of different signal processing algorithms and their capabilities when used for this purpose. The investigations include: mean value evaluation (MVE), Theil-Sen regression (TSR), least-squares regression (LSR) and maximum-likelihood estimation (MLE). In a first step an offline comparison is carried out with previously sampled measurement data. The second part features an online evaluation to verify the possibilities for SVPWM-integration.
The Floral Biology, Breeding System and Pollination Efficiency of Schima superba Gardn. et Champ. (Theaceae)

Schima superba Gardn. et Champ. is a perennial, evergreen tree valued for its eco-protection and commercial values in China. In this study, we investigate the breeding system, reproductive ecology and pollination biology of S. superba in a seed orchard. The flowers are hermaphrodite and protogynous. The viability of the pollen is inactivated rapidly, and the stigma maintains a high receptivity within the flower lifespan. Flowers typically offer pollen and nectar to visitors. The flowers possess a typical insect pollination syndrome, and three visitors (Apis cerana cerana Fabricius, Protaetia brevitarsis Lewis, and Popillia mutans Newman) are observed on flowers during the study period. The visitation frequency per minute and capability of pollen removal and deposition of A. cerana are significantly higher than P. brevitarsis and P. mutans, although the pollinator efficiency is lower than those shown by the two beetles. Fruit set (28.27%) and seed set (6.57%) percentages resulting from open-pollination are significantly lower than those resulting from cross-pollination (fruit/seed set, 43.73%/11.66%), and the pollen limitation index (L) was 0.34, suggesting that seed production is pollen-limited in the seed orchard. The pollen/ovule ratio (P/O) and outcrossing index (OCI) values are 6686.67 and 4, respectively. The self-incompatibility index (ISI) was estimated to be 0.95. Results from hand-pollination, pollen tube growth experiments and the ISI value show that S. superba is late-acting self-incompatible. The synthetic results indicate that A. cerana is the most efficient pollinator of S. superba, and seed production is frequently limited by pollinators, fruit abortion, and pollen quality.
Electric and Magnetic Properties of Multiferroic BiFeO$_{3}$  and YMnO$_{3}$  Thin Films

We grew rhombohedrally distorted BiFeO <sub>3</sub> and hexagonal YMnO <sub>3</sub> thin films on Pt/TiO <sub>2</sub>/SiO <sub>2</sub>/Si substrates via RF magnetron sputtering technique in a pure oxygen atmosphere. BiFeO <sub>3</sub> and YMnO <sub>3</sub> targets were self-made by the usual solid-state reaction method. We investigated the effects of deposition temperature upon crystalline structure, surface morphology, magnetization, and electrical polarization of BiFeO<sub>3</sub> and YMnO<sub>3</sub> thin films. The crystalline structure was studied by X-ray diffraction, and the topography of film surface was analyzed by atomic force microscopy. We also conducted measurements of ferroelectric and ferromagnetic hysteresis loops to study the electrical and magnetic behavior of the samples. Polarization, as a function of electric field in capacitor structures based on our BiFeO<sub>3</sub> films, shows hysteretic behavior with a coercive field of 54 kV/cm and a remanent polarization of 21 muC/cm<sup>2</sup>; whereas, YMnO<sub>3</sub> films show hysteretic behavior with coercive field of 2.4 kV/cm, remanent polarization of 1.2 muC/cm<sup>2</sup>, and saturation polarization of 3.5 mu C/cm<sup>2</sup> . Magnetization measurements of the BiFeO <sub>3</sub> films evidence weak ferromagnetism, that can be related to the presence of a small quantity of ferromagnetic impurities.
Deep Vein Thrombosis and Pulmonary Embolism

BACKGROUND: Some studies have reported an increased incidence of thomboembolic complications following trauma. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: We performed a literature review and queried the National Trauma Data Bank to more closely examine the incidence of a variety of thromboembolic complications following injury. RESULTS: Thromboembolic events are rare, but occur at a greater rate in more severely injured patients. It is unclear, however, whether the incidence of thromboembolic complications in trauma patients is on the rise overall. Differences in study populations, particularly injury severity scores, as well as different methods of screening, diagnosis, prophylaxis, and treatment have led to extreme differences in reported rates. CONCLUSION: While recent research has added to the body of knowledge, continued efforts focusing on risk stratification, diagnosis, screening, prophylaxis, and treatment are necessary to rationally understand the spectrum of thrombotic complications. INTRODUCTION
Lipid damage during frozen storage of Gadiform species captured in different seasons

Quality loss of two gadiform fish species (blue whiting, Micromesistius poutassou; hake, Merluccius merluccius) during frozen storage (–30 and –10 °C; up to 12 months) was studied. For this, hydrolytic (formation of free fatty acids, FFA) and oxidative (conjugated dienes, peroxide and interaction compound formation) lipid damage were analysed. For both species, individual fishes captured in two different trials (May and November) were considered. Increasing (p <0.05) lipid hydrolysis and oxidation (peroxide and interaction compound formation) were observed for all kinds of samples throughout the frozen storage. Interaction compound detection by fluorescence analysis showed the best correlation values with storage time. Some higher (p <0.05) hydrolysis development could be observed in hake captured in May than in its counterpart from the November trial, while frozen blue whiting did not provide definite differences for FFA formation between both trials. Concerning peroxide formation, higher (p <0.05) values were obtained for individual blue whiting and hake captured in November when compared to their corresponding May fish for both frozen storage conditions. Interaction compound formation was also found to be higher (p <0.05) for November hake fish than for its counterpart captured in May, while blue whiting did not provide definite differences between trials.
A data driven hybrid heuristic for the dial-a-ride problem with time windows

The Dial-A-Ride Problem (DARP) consists of designing pick-up and delivery vehicle routing schedules for a set of customers. Commonly, it arises in door-to-door transportation for impaired or elderly people. The main objective is to accommodate as many users as possible with a minimum operation cost. It adds realistic precedence and transit time constraints on the pairing of vehicles and customers. This paper proposes a hybrid evolutionary heuristic for the dial-a-ride problem with time windows (DARPTW). It combines evolutionary crossover operators with a hybridized VNS algorithm. Data extracted from routes with DARP infeasibilities are used to guide customized local search operators. Using route duration minimization as its main objective, the competitiveness of the proposed heuristic is tested on benchmark instances.
Adipose tissue macrophages in human obesity Pro-inflammatory CD 11 c + CD 206 + adipose tissue macrophages are associated with insulin resistance in human obesity

1. Autoimmunity & Transplantation Division, Walter & Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, 1 G Royal Parade, Parkville 3050, Victoria, Australia 2. Burnet Clinical Research Unit, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Grattan Street, Parkville 3050, Victoria, Australia 3. Centre for Obesity Research and Education, Monash University, Commercial Road, Prahran 3181, Victoria, Australia 4. Bioinformatics Division, Walter & Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, 1 G Royal Parade, Parkville 3050, Victoria, Australia 5. Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, University of Ulm, Eythstr. 24, 89075 Ulm, Germany
Conditional Probability Models for Deep Image Compression

Deep Neural Networks trained as image auto-encoders have recently emerged as a promising direction for advancing the state-of-the-art in image compression. The key challenge in learning such networks is twofold: To deal with quantization, and to control the trade-off between reconstruction error (distortion) and entropy (rate) of the latent image representation. In this paper, we focus on the latter challenge and propose a new technique to navigate the rate-distortion trade-off for an image compression auto-encoder. The main idea is to directly model the entropy of the latent representation by using a context model: A 3D-CNN which learns a conditional probability model of the latent distribution of the auto-encoder. During training, the auto-encoder makes use of the context model to estimate the entropy of its representation, and the context model is concurrently updated to learn the dependencies between the symbols in the latent representation. Our experiments show that this approach, when measured in MS-SSIM, yields a state-of-the-art image compression system based on a simple convolutional auto-encoder.
Course of IgA Nephropathy : follow-up of 23 years

Background. IgA nephropathy (IgAN) accounts for 11.8% of primary glomerulonephritides (GN) in R. Macedonia. IgAN presents with variable onset and shows unpredictable outcomes. Methods. To evaluate the association of risk factors with the progression of IgAN to renal failure we examined eighty patients diagnosed by renal biopsy (RB). We used H. S. Lee’s grading system to score the severity of histological involvement. Baseline clinical and demographic data were reviewed. Patients were followed-up from 6 to 276 months. Male: female ratio was 58:22; the mean age was 36.65±8.83 years. The date when patients underwent their first haemodialysis or their last visit was defined as an end-point. Independent samples t-tests or one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to compare the differences in means between groups. Kaplan-Meier survival curves and Cox regression models were used to analyze the time course from renal biopsy to end points. Results. The largest subclasses were grade I and II, with 31 patients each. All patients with grade IV and V (after 6-48 months), five patients grade I (after 60-144 months), four patients grade II (after 48-84 months), and 7 patients from grade III (after 24-108 months) entered ESRD. Macrohematuria had 32; microhematuria had 48 patients. Mean proteinuria was 1.68±0.99 g/day and the mean serum creatinine was 148.02±68.76 μmol/l. By multivariate analysis using the Cox regression model, grades, renal insufficiency and significant proteinuria were independent prognostic factors for progressive renal disease. At the end of followup, grades were significantly related to serum creatinine, proteinuria, hypertension and progressive renal disease. Conclusions. Renal biopsy remains the most powerful predictor for renal outcome. Determining the patient who might develop ESRF over time based on clinical and histological renal findings remains a challenge.
Ontology-Based Translation of Natural Language Queries to SPARQL

We present an implemented approach to transform natural language sentences into SPARQL, using background knowledge from ontologies and lexicons. Therefore, eligible technologies and data storage possibilities are analyzed and evaluated. The contributions of this paper are twofold. Firstly, we describe the motivation and current needs for a natural language access to industry data. We describe several scenarios where the proposed solution is required. Resulting in an architectural approach based on automatic SPARQL query construction for effective natural language queries. Secondly, we analyze the performance of RDBMS, RDF and Triple Stores for the knowledge representation. The proposed approach will be evaluated on the basis of a query catalog by means of query efficiency, accuracy, and data storage performance. The results show, that natural language access to industry data using ontologies and lexicons, is a simple but effective approach to improve the diagnosis process and the data search for a broad range of users. Furthermore, virtual RDF graphs do support the DB-driven knowledge graph representation process, but do not perform efficient under industry conditions in terms of performance and scalability.