Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Impact of dust aerosols on Earth–atmosphere clear‐sky albedo and its short wave radiative forcing over African and Arabian regions

Satellite‐ (MODIS onboard TERRA satellite) measured regional dust distribution has been used in this paper to examine the effect of dust aerosols on top of the atmosphere (TOA) albedo and it was found they have significant impact, especially over deserts, where surface reflection is high. With increasing dust load, TOA albedo was found to decrease significantly and it was observed that over deserts, TOA albedo becomes less than that at the surface (as much as 15% in near infrared) due to absorption by dust. The temporal variations of aerosol properties were examined at three representative locations: northern Africa (10° N–20° N; 20° E–30° E) and Saudi Arabia (19° N–24° N; 53° E–58° E) (both of which are influenced heavily by dust); and southern Africa (10° S–20° S; 20° E–30° E) (where the influence of dust is seasonal). Over northern Africa, optical depth was maximum (∼0.6) during the June–August period and lower (0.3–0.6) during the rest of the year. The aerosol fine mode fraction (AFMF) was, in general, low (∼0.05), except in the June–August period, when the AFMF shot up to 0.4. Over southern Africa, optical depth was maximum (∼0.5) during the September–October period, lower (∼0.3) in December–March, with the minimum (∼0.1) during April–June. The AFMF was, in general, high (∼0.9) throughout the year, and minimum (∼0.6) during the May–July period. Over Saudi Arabia, optical depths and AFMF showed opposite trends, which is typical of regions influenced heavily by dust. Optical depths as high as ∼0.8 (AFMF ∼0.3) were observed during June–July. The regional average aerosol radiative forcing at these locations was estimated by integrating the measured (column) aerosol properties (from AERONET) into satellite (MODIS) data and then incorporating them into a radiation model. The radiative forcing at the TOA over northern Africa and Saudi Arabia was in the range of +2 to +4 W m−2, whereas that estimated over southern Africa was in the range of −1 to +2 W m−2. While TOA forcing was nearly zero (due to large surface reflectance), the radiative forcing at the surface was large. The radiative forcing at the surface over northern and southern Africa was in the range of −15 to −45 W m−2, whereas that over Saudi Arabia was in the range of −30 to −70 W m−2. The atmospheric absorption estimated for northern and southern Africa translates into a lower atmospheric heating rate of 0.4 to 1.2 K day−1, and the same for Saudi Arabia was in the range of 0.8 to 2.2 K day−1.
The Impact of Informal Social Support on Well-Being: Comparison across Stages of Adulthood.

ABSTRACT Social gerontological studies have found little relation between family availability and interaction and well-being of the elderly. Friendship and neighboring interactions seem more consistently related to well-being, but even this is not universal. This study, conducted to examine whether similar patterns exist in other age groups, included young adults, early middle-aged adults, late middle -aged adults, and older adults to compare the effects of social support on well-being in different stages of adulthood. Data were obtained from the Quality of American Survey which provided interview data from 3,692 adults about their social-psychological condition, their needs and expectations from life, and the degree to which their needs were satisfied. The results showed that family support had the strongest effect on well-being of men and women in early adulthood. Support by friends was the next highest predictor of well-being, followed by support by neighbors. All three supports were found to be significantly related to well-being for young adults. Similar 1tterns were found for other age groups as well. These findings support the hypothesis that social support is positively related to well-being. These findings were different from findings of previous social genrontological studies, possibly due to the difference in measuring interaction and social support variables. The findings do appear to be consistent with various theories in social gerontology. (NB)
Microgeographic Variation in Reproductive Characteristics among Western Rattlesnake (Crotalus oreganus) Populations

Abstract Studies on geographic variation in reproductive characteristics can contribute to an understanding of the effects of environmental factors on animal population structure and dynamics. Using a ten-year mark–recapture data set (1994–2003), we studied microgeographic variation in reproductive characteristics (body condition, growth, age to maturity, pregnancy interval, fecundity, and size of offspring) among three Western Rattlesnake (Crotalus oreganus) populations within 40 km of each other. Significant differences existed among snakes from the different den sites in length, body condition, growth rate, fecundity, and size and body condition of offspring. Furthermore, there was a consistent pattern in the variation among populations. Individuals from the population in the most disturbed area, were shorter, had lower body condition, grew slower, had lower fecundity, and had shorter and lower body condition offspring compared to other populations. The results from this study have important applied implications for understanding fine scale variation in reproductive characteristics. This study suggests that some rattlesnake populations have reproductive characteristics that may make them more susceptible to future disturbances.
A Precision Optical Calibration Module for IceCube-Gen2

by Joost Pieter VEENKAMP IceCube is a cubic kilometer neutrino detector in the Antarctic ice. With the detection of high energy neutrinos many scientific goals are being pursued. The Precision IceCube Next Generation Upgrade, with an energy threshold of a few GeV, will detect atmospheric neutrinos with high statistics. With this detector, the Neutrino Mass hierarchy can be determined, among other goals. Building on experience gathered with the successful IceCube detector, improvements are made to all elements of the PINGU design with respect to IceCube. Among these is the calibration system, in which the Precision Optical CAlibration Module (POCAM) will be implemented. The POCAM illuminates all PINGU optical modules isotropically with short pulses of light. This enables verification of the energy scale and energy resolution of PINGU, and enhancement of the ice models. To introduce the POCAM, this thesis starts with a discussion of (atmospheric) neutrino physics, the IceCube and PINGU detectors and the respective calibration systems, after which the design study of the POCAM is discussed. An inverted integrating sphere isotropizes photons emitted from an internal, appropriately placed matrix of LEDs. The resulting emission from the POCAM consist of short, isotropic light pulses. A diode on the integrating sphere enables in-situ monitoring of the emission. The emission characteristics have been optimized by studying the geometry in a Geant4 simulation. Simulations of configurations varying the properties in the design are presented. With the acquired knowledge a baseline geometry is proposed. As a next step the functionality of the POCAM inside PINGU and IceCube is tested with ray tracing simulation, of which the first promising results are discussed.
The Uses of the Stranger: Circulation, Arbitration, Secrecy, and Dirt*

Little attention has been paid to the role of strangers in the social division of labor that is otherwise a key concept in sociological theory. Partly drawing upon Simmel, this article develops a general framework for analyzing the “uses” of “the stranger” throughout history. Four major domains in which strangers have often been employed are identified: (1) circulation (of goods, money, and information); (2) arbitration; (3) management of secret/sacred domains; and (4) “dirty jobs. ” The article also explores how these activities relate to the characteristics of stranger-relations. It is suggested that such an inquiry, in addition to helping us to understand how the presence of strangers in a society affects the processes of social differentiation, might equip us with a conceptual framework often lacking from purely political and ethical considerations of stranger-relations.
A Model of Collateral

This paper presents a simple equilibrium model in which collateralized credit emerges endogenously. Just like in repos, individuals cannot commit to the use of collateral as a guarantee of repayment, and both lenders and borrowers have incentives to renege. Our theory provides a micro-foundation to justify the borrowing constraints that are widely used in the existing macroeconomic models. We provide an explanation to the question of why assets are often used as collateral, rather than simply as a means of payment, why there is a tradeoff in assets between return and liquidity, and what kinds of assets are useful as collateral.
Primes Represented by Binary Cubic Forms

Let f(x, y) be a binary cubic form with integral rational coefficients, and suppose that the polynomial f(x, y) is irreducible in Q[x, y] and no prime divides all the coefficients of f. We prove that the set f Z(2) contains infinitely many primes unless f(a, b) is even for each (a,b) in Z2, in which case the set 12f(Z2) contains infinitely many primes. 2000 Mathematical Subject Classification: primary 11N32; secondary 11N36, 11R44.
Efficient Mechanisms for Peer Grading and Dueling Bandits

Many scenarios in our daily life require us to infer some ranking over items or people based on limited information. In this paper, we consider two such scenarios, one for ranking student papers in massive online open courses and one for identifying the best player (or team) in sports tournaments. For the peer grading problem, we design a mechanism with a new way of matching graders to papers. This allows us to aggregate partial rankings from graders into a global one, with an accuracy rate matching the best in previous works, but with a much simpler analysis. For the winner selection problem in sports tournaments, we cast it as the well-known dueling bandit problem and identify a new measure to minimize: the number of parallel rounds, as one normally would not like a large tournament to last too long. We provide mechanisms which can determine the optimal or an almost optimal player in a small number of parallel rounds and at the same time using a small number of competitions.
Feedback Trading between Fundamental and Nonfundamental Information

We develop a strategic trading model in which an insider exploits noise traders' overreaction. A feedback effect arises from the insider's trading on fundamental information (the expected growth rate of dividends) and nonfundamental information (insider's inventory or noise supply). We find that the stock price is not fully revealing; a faster mean-reverting noise supply leads to a more volatile price; the price impact can increase with insider's risk-aversion; and a risk-averse insider can trade more aggressively on fundamental information than a risk-neutral one does. Insider's current trade and his previous inventory exhibit simultaneously positive forecasting powers for future stock returns.
A Review on the Characteristics of the Smear Zone: Field Data Back Calculation Compared with Laboratory Testing

Received: September 3, 2018 Revised: October 2, 2018 Accepted: October 18, 2018 Abstract: Background: The so-called smear zone is a disturbed zone developed in soil during prefabricated vertical drainage (PVD) installation using a mandrel. There are 2 main parameters typically used to characterize the smear zone. First, the extent ratio signifies the extent of the soil damage due to mandrel penetration; and second, the permeability ratio κ represents the degree of disturbance to the soil permeability within the smear zone.
Alzheimer ’ s Disease and Occupational Exposures : A Systematic Literature Review and Meta-Analyses

Six systematic literature reviews together with meta-analyses have been published on the associations between Alzheimer’s disease and occupational risk factors. Our meta-analyses were based only on studies fulfilling good standards of scientific quality. We scrutinized the 54 relevant original publications found using a checklist proposed by the MOOSE-group together with a new elaborated protocol. Thus our results are not hampered by bias from studies of lower scientific quality. Thirty publications fulfilled good scientific standards and were thus used in our meta-analyses. Exposures to electromagnetic fields were concerned in 12 publications. The weighted relative risk estimate was 1.35 (95% confidence interval: 1.08-1.70). Exposure to pesticides or other chemicals resulted in the statistically significant relative risk 1.5 while exposure to metals involved no increase of risk. A high degree of work complexity (especially in relation to people) and long education were both protective against Alzheimer’s disease. Based on ten studies the weighted relative risk was 0.47 (95% CI: 0.35-0.63). Both work-related risk factors and protective factors are discussed in relation to possible pathophysiological mechanisms.
Epistemological positioning and evidentiality in English news discourse: A text-driven approach

Abstract This paper uses a text-driven approach to explore epistemological positioning (the expression of assessments concerning knowledge) in English newspapers. The notion of epistemological positioning (EP) often overlaps with evidentiality—the linguistic marking of the basis of speaker/writer knowledge. This is a relatively modern concept in linguistics and, compared to the amount of research it has attracted concerning other languages, it has been somewhat neglected in research focusing on English. Newspaper texts are a particularly good source for looking into EP and evidentiality, because the news story is a genre that is preoccupied with knowledge. The analysis shows that EP in English can be very complex, and that the distinction between attribution and averral (Sinclair 1988) needs to be taken into account when discussing it in naturally occurring texts (particularly in news texts). The resulting elements of EP that are identified for the English language offer a first glance at the possibilities to express EP in English, and open up future research on EP in different registers and text types.
Ionospheric electron number densities from CUTLASS dual‐frequency velocity measurements using artificial backscatter over EISCAT

Using quasi‐simultaneous line‐of‐sight velocity measurements at multiple frequencies from the Hankasalmi Cooperative UK Twin Auroral Sounding System (CUTLASS) on the Super Dual Auroral Radar Network (SuperDARN), we calculate electron number densities using a derivation outlined in Gillies et al. (2010, 2012). Backscatter targets were generated using the European Incoherent Scatter (EISCAT) ionospheric modification facility at Tromsø, Norway. We use two methods on two case studies. The first approach is to use the dual‐frequency capability on CUTLASS and compare line‐of‐sight velocities between frequencies with a MHz or greater difference. The other method used the kHz frequency shifts automatically made by the SuperDARN radar during routine operations. Using ray tracing to obtain the approximate altitude of the backscatter, we demonstrate that for both methods, SuperDARN significantly overestimates Ne compared to those obtained from the EISCAT incoherent scatter radar over the same time period. The discrepancy between the Ne measurements of both radars may be largely due to SuperDARN sensitivity to backscatter produced by localized density irregularities which obscure the background levels.
Information and Innovation Diffusion : The Case of Pharmaceuticals in the United States

How does information affect the diffusion of innovations? This paper empirically assesses the influence of physicians’ access to detailed drug information on their decisions about which products to prescribe. Combining data on prescriptions and electronic drug reference use for over 130,000 individual U.S. physicians, we find that physicians with access to a pharmaceutical reference database prescribe a significantly more diverse set of products than other doctors, and begin prescribing newly approved drugs sooner than other doctors. These latter effects are particularly pronounced for generic drugs, suggesting improvements to physician information access may have important implications not only for the diffusion of new medical technology, but also for the costs and efficiency of medical care. ∗Arrow: Department of Economics, Stanford University, 579 Serra Mall, Stanford, CA 94305, arrow@stanford.edu. Bilir: Department of Economics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1180 Observatory Drive, Madison, WI 53706, kbilir@ssc.wisc. edu. Sorensen: Department of Economics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1180 Observatory Drive, Madison, WI 53706, sorensen@ssc.wisc. edu. We thank the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation for its financial support of this research; Bilir also thanks the Princeton University IES for its generous support. We thank Nick Bloom, Michael Dickstein, Jeff Gambino, Shane Greenstein, Bob Litan, Greg Rosston, Randall Stafford, Jeff Tangney, and the research team at IMS Health for guidance and very helpful conversations.
Pseudocollapse and rebuilding of North Sea mackerel (Scomber scombrus)

The largest observed change in mackerel (Scomber scombrus) abundance in the North Atlantic happened when the so-called “North Sea mackerel” collapsed due to overfishing. Despite protection, it has remained in a depleted state. Central to this interpretation was that the “North Sea mackerel” was considered to be a distinct spawning component. However, a recent study has shown that this is not likely. In the light of this study, a review of the history of mackerel spawning in the North Sea found that the traditional explanation of the collapse did not account for a range of unfavourable environmental changes: high fishing pressure was followed by decreasing temperatures that reduced the spawning migration into the North Sea. This was further supplemented by unfavourable changes in food and wind-induced turbulence. On the population level, this was, therefore, not a local stock collapse, but a southwest shift in spawning distribution combined with a reduction in that portion of the population cline with an affinity for spawning in the northeastern part of the spawning area, including the North Sea. No indication of irreversible genetic or behavioural losses caused by the events was found. The previously unexplained lack of rebuilding of spawning in the North Sea consequently seems related to two environmental factors that have remained unfavourable: (i) zooplankton concentration, and (ii) wind-induced turbulence. Furthermore, the large commercial autumn–winter fishery in the North Sea continues to land unknown quantities of mackerel that have an affinity for spawning in the northeastern part of the spawning area, including the North Sea.
Foreign Direct Investment in Zimbabwe: The Role of Institutional Factors

The purpose of the paper is to examine the impact of property rights on foreign direct investment (FDI) in Zimbabwe for the period 1964-2005. While the macroeconomic determinants of FDI have been analysed to a considerable extent in past empirical work, the role of institutional factors such as the protection of property rights and the efficiency of the legal system has been underexplored. Using a multivariate cointegration framework, the paper employs a newly constructed de jure property rights index for Zimbabwe to determine the impact of property rights on FDI. The empirical evidence shows that property rights are consistently an important explanatory variable of FDI in Zimbabwe, even after controlling for periods when there are no significant new foreign capital inflows. Other significant explanatory variables of FDI in Zimbabwe are the real gross domestic product (GDP), capital intensity, the external debt to GDP ratio, political instability as well as the educational levels.
Measurement of the branching fraction of 
B→D(*)πℓν
 at Belle using hadronic tagging in fully reconstructed events

We report a measurement of the branching fraction of the decay B -> D-(*()) pi l nu. The analysis uses 772X106 B (B) over bar pairs produced in e(+)e(-) -> Upsilon (4S) data recorded by the Belle experiment at the KEKB asymmetric-energy e+e- collider. The tagging B meson in the decay is fully reconstructed in a hadronic decay mode. On the signal side, we reconstruct the decay B -> D-(*()) pi l nu (l=e,mu). The measured branching fractions are B(B+ -> D- (pi)+l(+) nu) = [4.55 +/- 0.27 (stat.) +/- 0.39 (syst.)]X10-3, B(B0? D (_) 0p-l+? ) = [4.05 +/- 0.36 (stat.) +/- 0.41 (syst.)]X10(-3), B (B) over bar (D) over bar *0 pi(-)l(+) nu) = [6.03 +/- 0.43 (stat.) +/- 0.38 (syst.)]X10(-3), and B (B) over bar (D) over bar *0 pi(-)l(+) nu) = [6.46 +/- 0.53 (stat.) +/- 0.52 (syst.)10]X-3. These are in good agreement with the current world average values.
GANtruth - an unpaired image-to-image translation method for driving scenarios

Synthetic image translation has significant potentials in autonomous transportation systems. That is due to the expense of data collection and annotation as well as the unmanageable diversity of real-words situations. The main issue with unpaired image-to-image translation is the ill-posed nature of the problem. In this work, we propose a novel method for constraining the output space of unpaired image-to-image translation. We make the assumption that the environment of the source domain is known (e.g. synthetically generated), and we propose to explicitly enforce preservation of the ground-truth labels on the translated images. We experiment on preserving ground-truth information such as semantic segmentation, disparity, and instance segmentation. We show significant evidence that our method achieves improved performance over the state-of-the-art model of UNIT for translating images from SYNTHIA to Cityscapes. The generated images are perceived as more realistic in human surveys and outperforms UNIT when used in a domain adaptation scenario for semantic segmentation.
Radiative properties of neutral germanium obtained from excited-state lifetime and branching-ratio measurements and comparison with theoretical calculations

Using time-resolved UV laser-induced fluorescence from a laser-produced plasma, natural radiative lifetimes have been measured for 21 levels of Ge I belonging to the odd-parity $4p4d,4p5d,$ and $4p6s$ configurations. Stimulated Brillouin scattering in water has allowed us to compress Nd:YAG laser pulses pumping a dye laser (where YAG denotes yttrium aluminum garnet), thus yielding 1-ns tunable laser pulses to enable accurate measurements of short lifetimes. Branching ratios of Ge I have been measured by inductively coupled plasma emission spectrometry, the intensity calibration being performed by means of Ar lines emitted by a hollow-cathode lamp. The experimental lifetimes and branching ratios have been combined in order to provide a set of accurate transition probabilities for the $4p\ensuremath{-}5s$ and $4p\ensuremath{-}4d$ transitions. A relativistic Hartree-Fock calculation, taking configuration-interaction and polarization effects into account, has been combined with a least-squares optimization procedure of the Slater and spin-orbit integrals in order to test the ability of this approach to correctly predict radiative properties of the group-IV elements. Good agreement between experimental and theoretical transition probability values has been achieved for most of the transitions considered.