Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An empirical analysis of the importance of controlling for unobserved heterogeneity when estimating the income-mortality gradient

Background: Statistical theory predicts that failing to control for unobserved heterogeneity in a Gompertz mortality risk model attenuates the estimated income-mortality gradient toward zero. Objective: I assess the empirical importance of controlling for unobserved heterogeneity in a Gompertz mortality risk model when estimating the income-mortality gradient. The analysis is carried out using individual-level administrative data from the Netherlands over the period 1996-2012. Methods: I estimate a Gompertz mortality risk model in which unobserved heterogeneity has a gamma distribution and left-truncation of life durations is explicitly taken into account. Results: I find that, despite a strong and significant presence of unobserved heterogeneity in both the male and female samples, failure to control for unobserved heterogeneity yields only a small and insignificant attenuation bias in the negative income-mortality gradient. Conclusions: The main finding, a small and insignificant attenuation bias in the negative income-mortality gradient when failing to control for unobserved heterogeneity, is positive news for the many empirical studies, whose estimations of the income-mortality gradient ignore unobserved heterogeneity.
Nigerian teachers’ understanding of autism spectrum disorder: a comparative study of teachers from urban and rural Lagos State

Aim: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a lifelong developmental disability characterised by difficulties in social interaction and social communication and restricted and repetitive behaviour (American Psychiatric Association 2013). Despite its worldwide nature, research is low in some areas. This is particularly true for sub-Saharan Africa, where there is a paucity of research in some areas, including education. This paper seeks to begin to address this gap by exploring teachers’ understanding of ASD in Nigeria. Method: Using an adapted version of the Knowledge About Childhood Autism Among Health Workers (KCAHW) questionnaire (Bakare et al 2008), a total of 177 mainstream primary teachers from Lagos State (112 from eleven urban schools and 65 from four rural schools) were surveyed concerning their knowledge of the condition. Results: The total mean score on the Adapted KCAHW questionnaire among all teachers participating in the study was 10.81 ± 4.13 out of a total of 16 possible. The mean score for urban teachers was 11.21 ± 4.31, while the mean score for rural teachers was 10.11 ± 3.75. In total, 46% of the urban teachers and 31% of the rural teachers demonstrated a generally accurate knowledge of ASD, with 15% of the whole sample answering all questions correctly – twenty-three urban and four rural teachers. Over 50% of urban teachers and almost 70% of rural teachers surveyed had only a low or moderate understanding of ASD. Conclusions: This research supports previous studies in identifying professional knowledge and understanding regarding ASD to be low, identifying a need for improved professional education and training. Limitations: This study has focused only on one state within Nigeria, and upon mainstream primary schools only. Further research is necessary both across the educational age range and different geographical areas in the country.
Understanding Factors Affecting Financial Satisfaction: The Influence of Financial Behavior, Financial Knowledge and Demographics

The continuous changes and improvements in the financial world created by sophisticated and increased variety of financial products, and diversity in financial services make it essential for individuals to constantly obtain new information and exhibit desirable financial behaviors for financial satisfaction in order to respond to this financial environment. The current study examines the impacts of financial behavior, financial knowledge, and selected demographic variables on financial satisfaction. The study sample consists of academic and administrative staff of a major state university in Turkey (n=596). Data was analyzed using binary logistic regression analysis. The regression analysis results showed that positive financial behaviors and financial knowledge contribute to financial satisfaction. The only demographic variable that has a significant impact on financial satisfaction was income.
Far UV spectroscopy of the circumstellar environment of the Herbig Be stars HD 259431 and HD 250550

We present an analysis of FUSE spectra of HD 259431 and HD 250550, two young Herbig Be stars. Numerous absorption lines of H2 are seen in the spectrum of each star, revealing large amounts of this gas on the lines of sight. In addition, absorption lines from atomic species in dierent ionization and excitation states are also identified. We demonstrate that all these species probe the close circumstellar environment around the stars, with two or even three temperature components in HD 259431, as revealed by molecular gas analysis. Although favouring the flared disk scenario, our results do not rule out the possibility that we actually detect CS envelopes/halos around these stars.
Setiya on Intention, Rationality and Reasons

practical thought are traits of character, that if the virtue theory is false, there must be something in the distinctive nature of those dispositions to explain its failure. This is possible only on a rationalist conception of ethics, according to which the standards of practical reason derive from the nature of agency or practical thought. Understood in this abstract way, ethical rationalism takes various forms. It might be Kantian: deriving standards of practical reason from formal constraints implicit in practical thinking. It might be recognitional: deriving standards of practical reason from the assumption that we act ‘under the guise of the good’. It might be instrumentalist: deriving standards of practical reason from the role of desire in the motivation of action. Or it might be cognitivist: deriving standards of practical reason from the role of selfknowledge in acting for reasons. I argue against all such views. The basis of the argument, and its claim to completeness, is a theory of intentional action defended in the first part of the book. This theory is minimalist: it offers few materials for the rationalist project. For instance, although it gives a role to desire and self-knowledge in intentional action, this role is insufficient to establish claims about what there is reason to do. Most importantly, the theory denies that we act under the guise of the good, or that we must see what we are doing as justified to some degree – assumptions that play a crucial role in Kantian and recognitional forms of rationalism. These doctrines mistake the sense in which one must take the reasons for which one acts as reasons for acting as one does: it is not that one must take them to count in favour of what one is doing, but as reasons that explain why one is doing it. This conception of taking-as-one’s-reason explains the connection, noted but left mysterious by Anscombe (1963), between acting intentionally and knowing what one is doing.
Determinants of objective adherence to nebulised medications among adults with cystic fibrosis: an exploratory mixed methods study comparing low and high adherers

ABSTRACT Objectives: Adherence to nebulised treatment is typically low among people with cystic fibrosis (CF). This study sought to identify factors differentiating high or low nebuliser adherence patterns (i.e. ≥80% or <50% of all nebulised treatments over one year) among adults with CF. Design: A mixed methods cross-sectional exploratory comparison of low and high adherers to nebulised medications. Methods: Of 36 eligible adults invited from a UK CF centre, 20 were recruited (10 high, 10 low adherers). Adherence was objectively measured using electronic data capture. Participants completed a self-report questionnaire comprising measures of hypothesised predictors (habit, self-control, life chaos, perceived treatment burden, capability, motivation and opportunity), then took part in a semi-structured interview. Quantitative data were compared between groups, and interview data were thematically analysed. Results: High adherers reported stronger habit and greater opportunities, though habit and perceived opportunity scores were highly positively correlated. No other quantitative measure distinguished between groups. Habitual instigation tendency attenuated the relationship between treatment complexity and perceived treatment burden. Indeed, in interviews, high adherers reported that routinisation and greater automaticity made treatment burden more manageable. Conclusions: High adherers seized more opportunities for nebuliser use, adapted their lives more effectively to using nebulisers and were more likely to make nebuliser use habitual. Nebuliser adherence interventions among adults with CF might usefully target development of routines for instigating nebuliser use, and identification of opportune moments for nebuliser use.
A endophytic fungus, Ramichloridium cerophilum, promotes growth of a non-mycorrhizal plant, Chinese cabbage.

A fungal endophyte, Ramichloridium cerophilum , was identified as a Class 2 endophytes species obtained from the leaf of common sowthistle ( Sonchus oleraceus L). This fungus was found to grow endophylically in the roots of Chinese cabbage seedlings. Light microscopy of cross-sections of colonized Chinese cabbage roots showed that the fungus penetrates through the outer epidermal cells, grows further into the inner cortex, and colonizes the cortical tissue. Isolates of R. cerophilum 28L-9 have shown the ability to increase biomass of a nonmycorrhizal plant, Chinese cabbage. This finding is the first report of R. cerophilum could help to improve nonmycorrhizal plant. Keywords: Ramichloridium cerophilum , endophytic fungus, Chinese cabbage, plant growth promoting
Multimodal Affect Recognition: Current Approaches and Challenges

Many factors render multimodal affect recognition approaches appealing. First, humans employ a multimodal approach in emotion recognition. It is only fitting that machines, which attempt to reproduce elements of the human emotional intelligence, employ the same approach. Second, the combination of multiple-affective signals not only provides a richer collection of data but also helps alleviate the effects of uncertainty in the raw signals. Lastly, they potentially afford us the flexibility to classify emotions even when one or more source signals are not possible to retrieve. However, the multimodal approach presents challenges pertaining to the fusion of individual signals, dimensionality of the feature space, and incompatibility of collected signals in terms of time resolution and format. In this chapter, we explore the aforementioned challenges while presenting the latest scholarship on the topic. Hence, we first discuss the various modalities used in affect classification. Second, we explore the fusion of modalities. Third, we present publicly accessible multimodal datasets designed to expedite work on the topic by eliminating the laborious task of dataset collection. Fourth, we analyze representative works on the topic. Finally, we summarize the current challenges in the field and provide ideas for future research directions.
Intra-Aortic Balloon Occlusion for Pelvic and Sacrum Tumors: A Case Series

Background: The purpose of this study is to investigate feasibilities of intra-aortic balloon occlusion (IABO) for pelvic and sacrum tumors, focusing on the advantages and precautions of the technique. Methods: From January 2010 to December 2013, among all patients with sacrum or pelvic tumor, 46 underwent surgery adjuvant with IABO. We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of these patients, including characteristics, intraoperative hemorrhage, transfusion, serum potassium, arterial lactic acid, postoperative complication, tumor recurrence or metastasis at a follow-up of 28.2 months. Results: Balloons for 46 patients were successfully placed, and the average intraoperative hemorrhage was 1.8 (1.2-3.0) l. Intraoperatively, arterial lactic acid increased from baseline (1.69±0.68) mmol/l to (2.11±0.82) mmol/l (P=0.17) during occlusion and (3.50±2.70) mmol/l (P=0.02) after deflation. While serum potassium concentration showed a trend of increase, but the change was not significant. Application of the technique helped create a bloodless surgical field and shorten the operative time. 9 patients regained normal defecation, while 2 patients with preoperative numbness of perineum developed new onset urinary and fecal incontinence after surgery. Postoperatively, 5 patients developed wound infection, 1 patient developed lower limb weakness, and 1 patient developed cerebrospinal leak. During 28.2 months' follow-up, 5 recurrences and 2 metastases occurred. Conclusions: IABO might be a choice to reduce intraoperative bleeding, create a clear view of the anatomical structures, shorten the operative time and limit postoperative complication in resection of pelvic and sacrum tumor. Nevertheless, anesthesiologists and surgeons should be sensitive to hemodynamic parameters, electrolyte balance as well as acid-base balance during the procedure, especially after deflation of the balloon. Citation: Kai Sun, Yang-Fan Huo, Yong Xu, Feng-Jiang Zhang, Shui Yu, Zhen-Feng Zhou, et al. Intra-Aortic balloon occlusion for pelvic and sacrum tumors: a case series. J Anesth Perioper Med 2017; x: x-x. doi:10.24015/JAPM.2017. 0029 This is an open-access article, published by Evidence Based Communications (EBC). This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium or format for any lawful purpose. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
Optimal inference with a multidimensional multiscale statistic

We observe a stochastic process $Y$ on $[0,1]^d$ ($d\geq 1$) satisfying $dY(t)=n^{1/2}f(t)dt$ + $dW(t)$, $t \in [0,1]^d$, where $n \geq 1$ is a given scale parameter (`sample size'), $W$ is the standard Brownian sheet on $[0,1]^d$ and $f \in L_1([0,1]^d)$ is the unknown function of interest. We propose a multivariate multiscale statistic in this setting and prove its almost sure finiteness; this extends the work of Dumbgen and Spokoiny (2001) who proposed the analogous statistic for $d=1$. We use the proposed multiscale statistic to construct optimal tests for testing $f=0$ versus (i) appropriate Holder classes of functions, and (ii) alternatives of the form $f=\mu_n \mathbb{I}_{B_n}$, where $B_n$ is an axis-aligned hyperrectangle in $[0,1]^d$ and $\mu_n \in \mathbb{R}$; $\mu_n$ and $B_n$ unknown. In the process we generalize Theorem 6.1 of Dumbgen and Spokoiny (2001) about stochastic processes with sub-Gaussian increments on a pseudometric space, which is of independent interest.
Volatility forecasting with realized measures: HEAVY vs. HAR

The use of estimators of volatility based on high-frequency data has greatly improved our ability to measure and model financial market volatility. Over the past few years there has been an abundance of research on the subject of modeling return volatility. This paper compares two of the more successful models, being the HEAVY and HAR models. The HEAVY model framework as developed in Shephard and Sheppard (2009) uses two separate equations and realized measures to model the volatility. The HAR model introduced by Corsi (2009) uses an additive cascade model of volatility components defined over different time periods. This paper also uses ideas from Patton and Sheppard (2009b) for the implementation of the HAR model. To compare the models we use a predictive ability test and compare their forecast performance at different horizons. Results of these tests show that the HAR models outperform HEAVY models when using a lot of observations to estimate. But we see the opposite when using an estimation window of four years, in that case the HEAVY models perform better at almost every horizon.
Disclosure Manipulation and Elasticity of Intertemporal Substitution

This paper is concerned with the effect of disclosure manipulation in earnings reporting on the stock market and the elasticity of intertemporal substitution (EIS) in consumption. We try to quantify the effects of fraud and speculation on EIS, and develop a new theory of “noise-corrected” EIS. In the study of U.S. quarterly data, the effect is found to be so severe that the statistical properties of the estimated elasticity are heavily noised. The noise-corrected EIS is estimated of 0.51 similar to that of Kydland and Prescott (1982). Mehra and Prescott (1985, 2003) and Hall (1988) found that EIS is essentially zero, while Arrow (1971) predicts as ‘1’ in theory, an obvious contraction between theory and empirical studies (the elasticity puzzle). Our result implies that economic behaviors may be working as predicted in theory even though the statistical significance is noised due to the effect, hence we need to be careful in interpreting the results. It is also found that under fraudulent earnings reporting, the asset market’s channelling role for consumers’ decisions and for government policies is thin and reversed.
Common fixed points of f-weak contractions in cone metric spaces

Recently, Choudhury and Metiya proved some xed point theorems for weak contractions in cone metric spaces. Weak contractions are generalizations of Banach's contraction mapping, which have been studied by several authors. Here, we introduce the notion of f-weak contractions and also establish a coincidence and common xed point result for f-weak contractions in cone metric spaces. Our result is supported by an example which includes and generalizes the results of Choudhury and Metiya's work.
Strategic Effort to Improve Tax Compliance

This study is directed to identify any strategy that can be done to improve tax compliance. With the spirit of the state apparatus, especially the Civil Servant, in reporting the taxes, it is expected to become a continuously growing and infectious snowball to the taxpayers to report their taxes correctly, completely and clearly as well as to avoid administrative sanctions that are subject to such non-compliance. This study method used is qualitative, the source of this study is government treasurer. The use of this qualitative approach is based on the concept of natural setting, grounded theory, descriptive, more concerned with the process than the outcome, temporary design, and research results are negotiated and agreed upon. Keywords—tax compliance; civil servant; government treasurer
Optimal execution strategy in liquidity framework

Abstract A trader wishes to execute a given number of shares of an illiquid asset. Since the asset price also depends on the trading behaviour, the trader main aim is to find the execution strategy that minimizes the related expected costs. We solve this problem in a discrete time framework, by modeling the asset price dynamic as an arithmetic random walk with drift and volatility both modeled as Markov stochastic processes. The market impact is assumed to follow a Markov process. We found the unique execution strategy minimizing the implementation shortfall when short selling is allowed. This optimal strategy is given as solution of a forward-backward system of stochastic equations depending on conditional expectations of future values of model parameters. In the opposite case, namely when short selling is prohibited, we numerically obtain the solution for the associated Bellman equation that an optimal trading strategy must satisfy.
De l'Europe à l'Inde: structure génétique et diversité des populations de part et d'autre de leurs frontières géographiques et culturelles

In this study, we compared HLA-C molecular polymorphism in 39 human populations located from Europe to the Indian subcontinent. This geographic area encompasses more or less the spoken area of the Indo-European linguistic phylum, but some Afro-asiatic and Dravidian speakers were also considered in the comparisons. Our results indicate that geography is one of the main factors acting on population differentiations in Europe. Moreover, we detect a genetic boundary following a north-east / south-west axis cutting through the Alps and the Pyrenees and which separates the western European populations from those located around the Mediterranean basin. On the other hand, we do not find any significant correlation between geography and genetics in the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent. Although geography does not play a major role in these two regions, the factors that could explain the observed genetic diversity are not the same. Indeed, the Middle Eastern populations constitute a genetically homogeneous group, which could reflect a high level of gene flow due to the numerous migrations that took place in that region throughout history. Conversely, the Indian-Pakistani populations are very heterogeneous genetically, particularly the Dravidian speakers. The differentiation of these populations seems to result from rapid genetic drift under the complex influence of social, cultural, linguistic and religious boundaries.
The Status of Multi-Dimensional Core-Collapse Supernova Models

Abstract Models of neutrino-driven core-collapse supernova explosions have matured considerably in recent years. Explosions of low-mass progenitors can routinely be simulated in 1D, 2D, and 3D. Nucleosynthesis calculations indicate that these supernovae could be contributors of some lighter neutron-rich elements beyond iron. The explosion mechanism of more massive stars remains under investigation, although first 3D models of neutrino-driven explosions employing multi-group neutrino transport have become available. Together with earlier 2D models and more simplified 3D simulations, these have elucidated the interplay between neutrino heating and hydrodynamic instabilities in the post-shock region that is essential for shock revival. However, some physical ingredients may still need to be added/improved before simulations can robustly explain supernova explosions over a wide range of progenitors. Solutions recently suggested in the literature include uncertainties in the neutrino rates, rotation, and seed perturbations from convective shell burning. We review the implications of 3D simulations of shell burning in supernova progenitors for the ‘perturbations-aided neutrino-driven mechanism,’ whose efficacy is illustrated by the first successful multi-group neutrino hydrodynamics simulation of an 18 solar mass progenitor with 3D initial conditions. We conclude with speculations about the impact of 3D effects on the structure of massive stars through convective boundary mixing.
Color Image Reconstruction via Sparse Signal Representation

In una macchina fotografica digitale, ogni unita fotosensibile misura solo una delle tre componenti di colore che la rappresentazione di un'immagine digitale a colori richiede. L'operazione di ricostruzione delle componenti mancanti e nota come demosaicing. In questa tesi si e' studiato e implementato un algoritmo di demosaicing recentemente proposto in letteratura, e basato sulla rappresentazione sparsa, attraverso un dizionario, delle immagini naturali acquisite dalla macchina fotografica