Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Thermodynamic singularities in the entanglement entropy at a two-dimensional quantum critical point

We study the bipartite entanglement entropy of the two-dimensional (2D) transverse-field Ising model in the thermodynamic limit using series expansion methods. Expansions are developed for the Renyi entropy around both the small-field and large-field limits, allowing the separate calculation of the entanglement associated with lines and corners at the boundary between sub-systems. Series extrapolations are used to extract subleading power laws and logarithmic singularities as the quantum critical point is approached. In 1D, we find excellent agreement with exact results as well as quantum Monte Carlo simulations. In 2D, we find compelling evidence that the entanglement at a corner is significantly different from a free boson field theory. These results demonstrate the power of the series expansion method for calculating entanglement entropy in interacting systems, a fact that will be particularly useful in future searches for exotic quantum criticality in models with and without the sign problem.
Inclusion of Pupils with SENs into Mainstream Physical Education – Potential Research Ideas to Explore Issues of Engagement

One consequence of the 1981 Education Act (DES, 1981) was that there began a transference of pupils from special educational schools to mainstream schools over the coming years. Thus, for the first time in many cases, mainstream schools were expected, through policy developments, to provide an inclusive education culture for pupils with SEN (Special Educational Needs). The aim of this paper is to analyse some of the consequences, intended or otherwise, of including pupils with SEN in mainstream school National Curriculum Physical Education (NCPE) lessons and extra-curricular physical activity. In this regard, it is argued that team games and competitive sports are activities which teachers find particularly difficult to plan for and deliver in an inclusive way, whereas more individual activities such as dance, gymnastics, tennis, badminton and athletics are identified as activities that may be easier to plan and deliver inclusively. The paper is punctuated with potential field research ideas; being possible investigations prompted by this critique of literature. These ideas typically involve suggestions for primary data gathering in the school setting with either pupils or staff, exploring issues for engagement (and non-engagement) with PE and physical activity. The paper concludes that an over emphasis upon competitive team sports and performance in PE may be eroding the quality of learning experience for all pupils, not least those with SEN.
The Effect of Increases and Decreases in R&D Expenses on Company Performance (Available on Internet)

The aim of this thesis is to study the effect of increases and decreases in R&D expenses on company performance. To study these effects, long-term abnormal stock returns and abnormal profit margins following R&D changes are examined. This thesis extends previous research by studying firstly both increases and decreases in R&D expenditures and secondly changes of differing magnitudes. The main data sample includes all U.S. non-ADR firms in the Compustat database Active and Research files between 1990 and 2009. From this main sample, unexpected and economically significant changes in annual R&D expenditures, denoted events, are identified. Abnormal stock returns for five years following an event are studied using multifactor models, while abnormal profit margins for the same period are measured using a matched firm methodology. Small changes, both positive and negative, are shown to induce significant positive abnormal stock returns and positive abnormal profit margins, indicating superior stock and operating performance relative to peers. Large changes yield the opposite; significant negative abnormal stock returns and negative abnormal profit margins, respectively indicating worse-than-expected performance. These results are consistent with the notion of a R&D optimum. The markets may be slow to react, or react incompletely, to the effect of increases and decreases in R&D expenditures on company performance.
Business cycles in small open economies: Evidence from panel data between 1900 and 2013

Using a novel data set for 17 countries between 1900 and 2013, we characterize business cycles in both small developed and developing countries in a model with financial frictions and a common shock structure. We estimate the model jointly for these 17 countries using Bayesian methods. We find that financial frictions are an important feature for not only developing but also small developed countries. Furthermore, business cycles in both groups of countries are marked with trend productivity shocks. Common disturbances explain one third of the fluctuations in small open economies, especially during important worldwide phenomena.
Why and how does exponential smoothing fail? An in depth comparison of ATA-simple and simple exponential smoothing.

Even though exponential smoothing (ES) is publicized as one of the most successful forecasting methods in the time series literature and it is widely used in practice due to its simplicity, its accuracy can be affected by the initialization and optimization procedures followed. It also suffers from some fundamental problems that can be seen clearly when its weighting scheme is studied closely. Exponential smoothing fails to account for the number of data points that can contribute to the forecast when assigning weights to historical data. ATA smoothing has been proposed as an alternative forecasting method and is shown to perform better than ES when the accuracies are compared on empirical data. In this paper, the properties of ATA that make it stand out from ES models will be discussed by just comparing the simple versions of both models. Empirical performance of the two simple models will also be compared based on popular error metrics.
PREDICTING TECHNOLOGY ADOPTION IN PADDY (RICE) CULTIVATION AT SUKOHARJO AND WONOKARTO VILLAGE OF SEKAMPUNG SUBDISTRICT IN EAST DISTRICT OF LAMPUNG PROVINCE, INDONESIA Prediksi Adopsi Teknologi dalam Budidaya Padi di Desa Sukoharjo dan Wonokarto Kecamatan Sekampung Lampung Timur, Indonesia

The introduction of many new technologies has come up with limited success, as indicated by the low of observed rates of adoption. Furthermore, the process of introduction until paddy farmers have willingness to adopt this new technology is not always easy. The objective of this paper is to analyze factors that drive farmers’ intention to adopt a new technology in paddy cultivation, by taking into account simultaneous effects of measured and latent variables influencing the intention. This study uses integrated technology acceptance model (TAM) and theory of planned behavior (TPB) for predicting farmers’ technology acceptance by measuring their intentions, and the ability to explain their intentions in terms of their attitudes, perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, past experience, perceived behavioral control, and interrelated variables. Results of this paper reveal that attitude, perceived behavioral control, perceived usefulness, resource facilitating conditions and perceived risks positively engender the intention of agricultural technology adoption.
The Impact of Cross-Addiction on Information Sharing Behaviors on Social Networking Sites

ABSTRACT There is a rise in the interest among researchers to understand how addiction to social networking sites (SNSs) influences the use of SNS for information sharing. Much less attention has been placed on the interactive effect of multiple addictions (i.e., cross-addiction) on information sharing behaviors on SNSs. In this study, we examine the interaction effect of SNS addiction and alcohol use on two characteristic sharing behaviors on SNSs, self-promotion, and peer promotion of alcohol use. This study contributes to theory and practice as it builds a model that integrates social cognitive theory and normative social influence to explain mechanisms through which cross-addiction shapes information sharing behaviors on SNSs. The proposed model is estimated using data from a sample of college students in a North American university. The results support the theorized relationships between cross-addiction and SNS use to promote addiction-related activities. Implications of the findings for theory and practice are discussed.
Functionalizing polymer surfaces with Cold Spray for applications in bioenvironments

Title Antifouling coatings made with Cold Spray onto polymers: Process characterization Authors(s) Lupoi, R. ; Stenson, C. ; McDonnell, Kevin; Dowling, Denis P.; Ahearne, Eamonn Publication date 2016 Publication information CIRP Annals Manufacturing Technology, 65 (1): 545-548 Publisher Elsevier Item record/more information http://hdl.handle. net/10197/7998 Publisher's statement þÿ T h i s i s t h e a u t h o r s v e r s i o n o f a w o r k t h a t w a s a c c e p t e d f o r p u b l i c a t i o n i n C I R P A n n a l s Manufacturing Technology. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in CIRP Annals Manufacturing Technology (65, 1, (2016)) DOI:10.1016/j.cirp. 2016.04. 015 Publisher's version (DOI) 10.1016/j.cirp. 2016.04. 015
Decentralisation in Uganda: prospects for improved service delivery

Since the 1980s, many Sub-Saharan African countries have been undergoing structural reforms with a view to promoting efficient service delivery. Decentralisation, defined as the transfer of authority from central to local governments to perform certain duties, is seen as one of the public sector reform strategies to increase service delivery. Decentralisation in Uganda began in 1986 with the coming into power of the National Resistance Movement, which aimed at promoting democracy and enhancing local participation. In Uganda, political decentralisation developed along with financial decentralisation. The goal of political decentralisation was to promote people’s participation in the democratic process of Uganda. This took the form of Administrative Units – Resistance Councils (RC)1 running from the village to district levels. Financial decentralisation, on the other hand, attempted to assign responsibilities and taxes between the centre and local governments, to enable the transfer of grants and other resources to different parts of the country, and to improve service delivery. This paper will review different government, public and academic documents as well as findings of other researches such as UN reports about decentralisation and service delivery in Uganda. Based on these sources the paper will answer the following questions: to what extent does decentralisation increase service delivery? To what extent does decentralisation increase efficiency, participation, accountability and effectiveness? What are the challenges of implementing decentralisation in Uganda? Key words: Decentralisation, accountability, efficiency, economy, effectiveness and performance.
Microencapsulation of lemon grass oil for mosquito repellent finishes in polyester textiles

A B ST R A C T Health and hygiene are the primary requirements for human beings to live comfortably and work with maximum efficiency. Mosquitoes home in on people because they give off carbon dioxide, lactic acid, body odor and heat. A mosquito repellent textile protects the human beings from the bite of mosquitoes and thereby promising safety from the diseases like malarial fever. There are many natural plant products, which show mosquito repellent properties. Extracts from roots, stem, leaves, flowers, fruits and seeds of diverse species of plants exhibit mosquito repellent properties. These extracts can be used as textile finishing agents in the crude form or as microcapsules to enhance the durability and controlled release of the extracts. Lemon grass is one such plant well known for its medicinal properties. In the present study, 100% polyester fabric was finished with lemon grass oil to check for its mosquito repellent properties. The results show that, the microencapsulated polyester fabric showed highest mosquito repellent activity (92%) when compared with the fabric finished by pad dry cure method. FTIR analysis of the microcapsules finished fabric also reveals additional functional groups imparted to the fabric by microencapsulation compared to the control.
Trust in schools: a conceptual and empirical analysis

The conceptual foundations of trust as a multi‐dimensional construct are reviewed, and relevant related issues are discussed with a focus on trust in schools. An empirical analysis of faculty trust in colleagues and trust in the principal demonstrates that faculty trust is an important aspect of the openness and health of school climate. It is related to the authenticity of both the principal’s and the teachers’ behavior; however, elements of climate and behavior that predict trust in the principal are different from those that predict trust in colleagues. Finally, a research agenda for the study of trust in schools is sketched.
Charles A. Dice Center for Research in Financial Economics

We study the role of brand capital – a primary form of intangible capital – for firm valuation and risk in the cross section of publicly traded firms. Using a novel empirical measure of brand capital stock constructed from advertising expenditures accounting data, we show that: (i) firms with low brand capital investment rates have higher average stock returns than firms with high brand capital investment rates, a difference of 5.2% per annum; (ii) more brand capital intensive firms have higher average stock returns than less brand capital intensive firms, a difference of 5.1% per annum; and (iii) investment in both brand capital and physical capital is volatile and procyclical. A neoclassical investmentbased model in which brand capital is a factor of production subject to adjustment costs matches the data well. The model also provides a novel explanation for the empirical links between advertising expenditures and stock returns around seasoned equity offerings (SEO) documented in previous studies. JEL Classification: E13, E32, G12, G14,
Online Social Networking Sites Continuance Intention: A Model Comparison Approach

ABSTRACT Retaining existing users and letting them continue to use the current social networking sites (SNSs) have become increasingly challenging for developers. This study takes a model comparison approach to investigate this important issue. Based on technology acceptance model, self-determination theory, and net-valence model, our study develops four models that explain individuals’ continuance intention. Based on the data collected from U.S. SNS users, all four models can predict individuals’ intention reasonably well, and net-valence model with perceived benefits and risks as second-order constructs explains the largest amount of variance of SNS continuance intention. This study is among the first model comparison studies in the SNS continuance area. It is also among the first to apply self-determination theory and net-valence model to investigate SNS continuance.
Price-Level Uncertainty, Price-Level Targeting, and Nominal Debt Contracts

Many central banks around the world have embraced inflation targeting as a monetary policy framework. Interest is growing, however, in price-level targeting as an alternative. The choice of frameworks has important consequences for financial contracts, most of which are not fully indexed to the price level. Changes in the price level therefore lead to changes in the real value of contracts. Price-level targeting would reduce the size of these changes in real wealth and decrease uncertainty about the future price level. This article assesses the merits of price-level targeting vis-a-vis inflation targeting from a debt-revaluation perspective, with a focus on channels affecting risk premiums, the maturities of nominal debt contracts, and redistribution of wealth. A general conclusion flowing from the analysis is that accounting for the revaluation of nominal debts and assets strengthens the relative merits of price-level targeting compared with inflation-targeting.
Title Mutations of Human NARS 2 , Encoding the Mitochondrial Asparaginyl-tRNA Synthetase , Cause Nonsyndromic Deafness and Leigh Syndrome Permalink

Here we demonstrate association of variants in the mitochondrial asparaginyl-tRNA synthetase NARS2 with human hearing loss and Leigh syndrome. A homozygous missense mutation ([c.637G>T; p.Val213Phe]) is the underlying cause of nonsyndromic hearing loss (DFNB94) and compound heterozygous mutations ([c.969T>A; p.Tyr323*] + [c.1142A>G; p.Asn381Ser]) result in mitochondrial respiratory chain deficiency and Leigh syndrome, which is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by symmetric, bilateral lesions in the basal ganglia, thalamus, and brain stem. The severity of the genetic lesions and their effects on NARS2 protein structure cosegregate with the phenotype. A hypothetical truncated NARS2 protein, secondary to the Leigh syndrome mutation p.Tyr323* is not detectable and p.Asn381Ser further decreases NARS2 protein levels in patient fibroblasts. p.Asn381Ser also disrupts dimerization of NARS2, while the hearing loss p.Val213Phe variant has no effect on NARS2 oligomerization. Additionally we demonstrate decreased steady-state levels of mt-tRNA in fibroblasts from the Leigh syndrome patients. In these cells we show that a decrease in oxygen consumption rates (OCR) and electron transport chain (ETC) activity can be rescued by overexpression of wild type NARS2. However, overexpression of the hearing loss associated p.Val213Phe mutant protein in these fibroblasts cannot complement the OCR and ETC defects. Our findings establish lesions in NARS2 as a new cause for nonsyndromic hearing loss and Leigh syndrome.
Predictive Skills of Seasonal to Annual Rainfall Variations in the U . S . Affiliated Pacific Islands : Canonical Correlation Analysis and Multivariate Principal Component Regression Approaches *

Drought and flooding are recurrent and serious problems in the U.S. Affiliated Pacific Islands (USAPI). Given the agricultural and water-dependent characteristics of the USAPI economies, accurate forecasts of seasonal to interseasonal rainfall variations have the potential to provide important information for decision makers involved in resource management issues and response strategies related to drought and flood events. Climatology of rainfall and outgoing longwave radiation (OLR) cycle in the USAPI and the response of OLR to the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) are addressed. Boxplot and harmonic analyses indicate that the annual cycles in rainfall and OLR are generally strong in USAPI except those stations close to the equator. Northern USAPI have positive (negative) OLR anomalies during El Niño (La Niña) winters. Two statistical models, canonical correlation analysis (CCA) and a relatively new method called multivariate Principal Component Regression (PCR), are employed to forecast rainfall variations in 10 USAPI stations. Sea surface temperatures (SSTs) in the Pacific Ocean are used as predictors for both models. The results of this study indicate that both models are potentially useful in predicting seasonal rainfall variations in the USAPI region, especially in winter (DJF) and spring (MAM). CCA cross validation shows that at one and two seasons lead JFM is the most accurately forecast period in the northern USAPI stations, with average skills of 0.53 and 0.41, respectively. However, the authors’ analysis indicates a problem of lower predictive skill in summer (JJA) and fall (SON). One reason might be associated with the so-called spring barrier in predictive skill in the tropical ocean–atmosphere system. Another reason might be associated with the tropical cyclone activity during these seasons. Predictions using the PCR model yield similar predictive skill. Though simpler than He and Barnston’s model in term of the number of predictor variables used, the authors’ CCA and PCR provide comparable skills.
Trueness of digital intraoral impression in reproducing multiple implant position

The aim of this study was to evaluate the trueness of 5 intraoral scanners (IOSs) for digital impression of simulated implant scan bodies in a complete-arch model. A 3D printed full-arch mandible model made of Co-Cr with a total of 6 bilaterally positioned cylinders in the canine, second premolar, and second molar area served as the study model. Digital scans of the model were made with a reference scanner (steroSCAN neo) and 5 IOSs (CEREC Omnicam, CS3600, i500, iTero Element, and TRIOS 3) (n=10). For each IOS’s dataset, the XYZ coordinates of the cylinders were obtained from the reference point and the deviations from the reference scanner were calculated using a 3D reverse engineering program (Rapidform). The trueness values were analyzed by Kruskal-Wallis test and Mann-Whitney post hoc test. Direction and amount of deviation differed among cylinder position and among IOSs. Regardless of the IOS type, the cylinders positioned on the left second molar, nearest to the scanning start point, showed the smallest deviation. The deviation generally increased further away from scanning start point towards the right second molar. TRIOS 3 and i500 outperformed the other IOSs for complete-arch digital impression. The accuracy of the CEREC Omnicam, CS3600, and iTero Element were similar on the left side, but they showed more deviations on the right side of the arch when compared to the other IOSs. The accuracy of IOS is still an area that needs to be improved.