Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Identification and estimation of nonclassical nonlinear errors-in-variables models with continuous distributions using instruments

While the literature on nonclassical measurement error traditionally relies on the availability of an auxiliary dataset containing correctly measured observations, this paper establishes that the availability of instruments enables the identification of a large class of nonclassical nonlinear errors-in-variables models with continuously distributed variables. The main identifying assumption is that, conditional on the value of the true regressors, some "measure of location" of the distribution of the measurement error (e.g. its mean, mode or median) is equal to zero. The proposed approach relies on the eigenvalue-eigenfunction decomposition of an integral operator associated with specific joint probability densities. The main identifying assumption is used to order the eigenfunctions so that the decomposition is unique. The authors propose a convenient sieve-based estimator, derive its asymptotic properties and investigate its finite-sample behavior through Monte Carlo simulations. An example of application to the relationship between earnings and divorce rates is also provided.
Sustainability and duration of early central places in prehispanic Mesoamerica

During the last millennium BCE, central places were founded across many regions of western (non-Maya) Mesoamerica. These early central places differed in environmental location, size, layout, and the nature of their public spaces and monumental architecture. We compare a subset of these regional centers and find marked differences in their sustainability--defined as the duration of time that they remained central places in their respective regions. Early infrastructural investments, high degrees of economic interdependence and collaboration between domestic units, and collective forms of governance are found to be key factors in such sustainability.
Dynamic and convective results for a developing laminar unsteady flow

Dynamic and thermal results for developing laminar pulsed flows in a duct are presented. They have been investigated by means of a finite difference model. This flow is described in terms of an unsteady pulsed flow superimposed on a steady incompressible one with the following main assumptions: a sinusoidal modulation for the pulsation and a uniform wall temperature. Results emphasize the importance of this entry region, where four simultaneous developments occur: steady—dynamic and thermal—and unsteady—dynamic and thermal.
Photometric studies of spiral structure. I. The disks and arms of six Sb I and Sc I galaxies

This paper presents detailed surface photometry of the galaxies NGC 3031, 4254, 4321, 5194, 5364, and 5457. Profiles showing the variation of surface brightness with azimuthal angle in each galaxy are given and used to separate the light into disk and arm components. The disk level at each radius is defined by the two main minima of the azimuthal light distribution, and the light above this level is assigned to the arms.The disks are exponential with an extrapolated center surface brightness of (B/sub 0/)/sub D/=21.67 +- 0.35 mag arcsec/sup -2/, in excellent agreement with Freeman. The disk colors are very uniform, with radial gradients mostly below the detection limit ( +- 0.010 mag kpc/sup -1/ in B-V), and lie in the narrow range of colors between old galactic clusters (B-Vapprox. =+0.7) and giant elliptical (B-Vapprox. =+0.9). The arms are significantly bluer than the disks and have a highly composite spectrum, as judged from the color indices. The ratio of arm intensity to disk intensity increases with radius, which explains the well-known outward bluing of spiral galaxies. There are indications that the ratio of total arm intensity to total disk intensity, which is a coarse measure of the strength of star formation,more » correlates with van der Kruit's compression strength of the gas. (AIP)« less
Epitope mapping of SARS-CoV-2 spike protein differentiates the antibody binding activity in vaccinated and infected individuals

Previous studies have attempted to characterize the antibody response of individuals to the SARS-CoV-2 virus on a linear peptide level by utilizing peptide microarrays. These studies have helped to identify epitopes that have potential to be used for diagnostic tests to identify infected individuals. The immunological responses of individuals who have received the two most popular vaccines available in the US, the Moderna mRNA-1273 or the Pfizer BNT162b2 mRNA vaccines, have not been characterized. We aimed to identify linear peptides of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein that elicited high IgG or IgA binding activity and to compare the immunoreactivity of infected individuals to those who received both doses of either vaccine by utilizing peptide microarrays. Our results revealed peptide epitopes of significant IgG binding among recently infected individuals. Some of these peptides are located near variable regions of the receptor binding domains as well as the conserved region in the c-terminal of the spike protein implicated in the high infectivity of SARS-CoV-2. Vaccinated individuals lacked a response to these distinct markers despite the overall antibody binding activity being similar.
Lidar-Based Characterization of the Geometry and Structure of Water Clouds

Abstract Lidar remote sensing measurements of low-level water clouds in the form of vertical soundings and instantaneous (∼1 min) azimuth-over-elevation scans are reported. Retrievals are made of the liquid water content and effective droplet diameter at the same range, time, and angular resolutions as those of the measurements. The results are presented as time–height plots and two-dimensional horizontal maps of the retrieved parameters. The cloud structure is resolved by calculating histograms, spatial autocorrelation functions, and power spectra. The distribution of the horizontal inhomogeneities is characterized over the size range from 10 to ∼1000 m. The Kolmogorov −5/3 power-law dependence is verified in all cases, but the −5/3 regime is broken into two subregimes that are separated by a sudden increase in the energy density level. The results illustrate how lidars can contribute meaningful information on cloud structure at high spatial and temporal resolutions, in near–real time, and over extended .
Outer magnetospheric fluctuations and pulsar timing noise

The Cheng, Ho, and Ruderman (1986) outer-magnetosphere gap model was used to investigate the stability of Crab-type outer magnetosphere gaps for pulsars having the parameter (Omega-square B) similar to that of the Crab pulsar. The Lamb, Pines, and Shaham (1978) fluctuating magnetosphere noise model was applied to the Crab pulsar to examine the type of the equation of state that best describes the structure of the neutron star. The noise model was also applied to other pulsars, and the theoretical results were compared with observational data. The results of the comparison are consistent with the stiff equation of state, as suggested by the vortex creep model of the neutron star interior. The timing-noise observations also contribute to the evidence for the existence of superfluid in the core of the neutron star. 37 references.
USING THE MUTUAL INFORMATION COEFFICIENT TO IDENTIFY LAGS IN NONLINEAR MODELS

Two alternative methods are considered for identifying what lags to use in a nonlinear model relating a pair of series. One is based on a mutual information function, the other is Kendall's r. They both have the property that if each variable is instantaneously transformed, such that ranks are preserved, then the functions are unchanged. Simulations find properties of the functions and allow application to generated nonlinear series. In simple cases, the methods appear to find frequently the correct lags.
On the formation and suppression of vortex ‘shedding’ at low Reynolds numbers

Vortex ‘shedding’ behind circular cylinders can be altered and suppressed altogether (or ‘controlled’) over a limited range of Reynolds numbers, by a proper placement of a second, much smaller, cylinder in the near wake of the main cylinder. This new and dramatic suppression of vortex ‘shedding’ is the subject of this paper. Details of the phenomenon are documented through parallel experimental and numerical investigations, including flow visualization. Temporal growth rate measurements of the velocity fluctuations reveal that the presence of the smaller cylinder reduces the growth rate of the disturbances leading to vortex ‘shedding’, and that its suppression, accompanied by the disappearance of sharp spectral peaks, coincides with negative temporal growth rates. It is argued that the presence of the secondary cylinder has the effect of altering the local stability of the flow by smearing and diffusing concentrated vorticity in the shear layers behind the body; a related effect is that the secondary cylinder diverts a small amount of fluid into the wake of the main cylinder. A unified explanation of the formation and suppression of the vortex street is attempted, and it is suggested that the vortex ‘shedding’ is associated with temporally unstable eigenmodes which are heavily weighted by the near field. It is also shown that absolute instability is relevant, up to a point, in explaining vortex shedding, whose suppression can similarly be associated with altering the instability in the near wake region from absolute to convective.
Accounting Information Quality, Tax Avoidance and Companies' Performance: the Moderate Role of Political Connection

Purpose: This study examines the relationship between the accounting information quality, tax avoidance, and political connection in all Jordanian companies listed on Amman Stock Exchange. The current study also investigates the moderating effect of political connections on accounting information quality and company performance relationships. Further, the study examines the moderating effect of political connection on tax avoidance and company performance relationship. Theoretical framework: Political connections, tax avoidance, and the quality of accounting information affect a company's performance. According to the agency theory, reliable accounting information improves business performance and resources’ allocation efficiency by reducing information asymmetry. Additionally, the adverse effects of politics on companies are mitigated by accounting information quality. As a result, the cash flow is allocated effectively, improving the business's overall performance. Design/methodology/approach: The study uses the ordinary least squares (OLS) and applied moderated multiple regression (MMR). The sample data of this study includes 2266 company-years observations over the period 2008-2018 for all Jordanian companies listed on Amman Stock Exchange. The study compares accounting and market-based measurements of companies' performance (ROE, Tobin's Q). Findings: The study reveals consistent results among the measure. The results support the agency theory and found that accounting information quality reduces information asymmetry and positively affects companies' performance. Also, tax avoidance helps the companies to have more cash, and the results indicate a significant positive effect on companies' performance. In addition, the results support the agency theory argument and found that politics increase agency costs and negatively affect companies' performance. However, further analysis found that political connections sustain the positive effect of accounting information quality, which is a robust governance mechanism in Jordanian listed companies. Finally, the results found that tax avoidance with more political connections harms companies' performance. Research, Practical & Social implications: This study helps policymakers increase the governance mechanisms function in Jordanian listed companies. Also, the higher political relationship with the companies could be affected negatively on the Jordanian companies' achievement. Originality/value: The findings suggest several consequences for the fields of accounting and corporate governance. Additionally, the Middle East nations, including the Jordanian market, have had numerous economic difficulties that this study aids in resolving. For example, antagonistic political ties, information asymmetry, and insufficient allocation of financial resources.
STABILITY RESULTS FOR THE SOLUTIONS OF CERTAIN NON-AUTONOMOUS DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS OF FIFTH -ORDER

The paper is concerned with the stability of solutions of a class of general type fifth order non-autonomous differential equations (1.3) and (1.4). It is shown that under some less restrictive conditions that all solutions of (1.3) and (1.4) tend to zero as t → ∞. Our results improve that the results obtained by Sadek [9].
Dynamic simulation of sphere motion in a vertical tube

In this paper, the sedimentation of a sphere and its radial migration in a Poiseuille flow in a vertical tube filled with a Newtonian fluid are simulated with a finite-difference-based distributed Lagrange multiplier (DLM) method. The flow features, the settling velocities, the trajectories and the angular velocities of the spheres sedimenting in a tube at different Reynolds numbers are presented. The results show that at relatively low Reynolds numbers, the sphere approaches the tube axis monotonically, whereas in a high-Reynolds-number regime where shedding of vortices takes place, the sphere takes up a spiral trajectory that is closer to the tube wall than the tube axis. The rotation motion and the lateral motion of the sphere are highly correlated through the Magnus effect, which is verified to be an important (but not the only) driving force for the lateral migration of the sphere at relatively high Reynolds numbers. The standard vortex structures in the wake of a sphere, for Reynolds number higher than 400, are composed of a loop mainly located in a plane perpendicular to the streamwise direction and two streamwise vortex pairs. When moving downstream, the legs of the hairpin vortex retract and at the same time a streamwise vortex pair with rotation opposite to that of the legs forms between the loops. For Reynolds number around 400, the wake structures shed during the impact of the sphere on the wall typically form into streamwise vortex structures or else into hairpin vortices when the sphere spirals down. The radial, angular and axial velocities of both neutrally buoyant and non-neutrally buoyant spheres in a circular Poiseuille flow are reported. The results are in remarkably good agreement with the available experimental data. It is shown that suppresion of the sphere rotation produces significant large additional lift forces pointing towards the tube axis on the spheres in the neutrally buoyant and more-dense-downflow cases, whereas it has a negligible effect on the migration of the more dense sphere in upflow.
Productivity of Zakat Institutions in Indonesia

Zakat institutions play an important role in managing zakat productively, with the aim that the funds collected can be distributed in an appropriate manner to achieve welfare and social justice. The purpose of this research is to analyze the productivity of zakat institutions in Indonesia using the Malmquist Productivity Index (MPI) method with the 2016-2020 research period. The research object used is 15 zakat institutions in Indonesia. The data from this study comes from the annual financial reports of each institution from the 2016-2020 period. The input variables used are total assets, operational costs, and employee costs. Meanwhile, the output variable used is the amount of collection and distribution of zakat. The results of the study show that in general, zakat institutions experience increased productivity over time. Zakat institutions originating from mass organizations have the highest average productivity compared to other organizations. If productivity is seen from year to year in each institution, the institution with optimal productivity in all years of observation is LAZ Al-Azhar.
On the theory of hypersonic flow past plane and axially symmetric bluff bodies

The ‘Newtonian-plus-centrifugal’ approximate solution (Busemann (1933) and Ivey (1948)) for hypersonic flow past plane and axially symmetric bluff bodies in gases with the ratio of the specific heats λ constant and equal to unity is rederived using ‘boundary layer’ techniques together with the von Mises variables x and ψ. A method of successive approximations then gives a closer approximation to this solution for ε (λ − 1)/(λ + 1) small and the free-strea Mach number infinite. Formulae for the streamlines, shock shape and pressure distribution are determined to this approximation. These formulae are valid for any plane or axially symmetric shape, giving the ‘stand-off’ distance of the shock wave from the body as ½εlog(4|3ε) and ε times the nose radius of curvature for plane and axially-symmetric flows respectively. Particular results are computed for a number of special shapes. For certain shapes, the theory has a singular point where the first approximation to the pressure vanishes (θ = 60° for a sphere). Actually, the theory is not applicable where the pressure becomes too small. The corresponding theory for gases of general thermodynamic properties is deduced, the approximation being valid provided the total energy of the gas is large compared with the energy contained in the translational modes of the gas molecules.
Prehospital emergency care patient satisfaction scale [PECPSS] for care provided by emergency medical teams: Scale development and validation

The purpose of this study was to develop and validate an emergency medical technician (EMT) care patient satisfaction scale to measure patient satisfaction with prehospital emergency care. To date, patient satisfaction surveys of EMTs have been performed subjectively, e using each facility's questionnaire, without the use of a validated patient satisfaction scale. However, no specific scale has been devised to assess patient satisfaction with EMTs. The study population comprised patients who used an ambulance between November 2020 and May 2021 (N = 202). A survey instrument was administered to participants who provided informed consent. In the process of validating the patient satisfaction scale, an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) of construct validity was performed. The results of the EFA showed a factor structure consisting of five factors: “teamwork”, “explanation and communication”, “physical treatment and psychological support”, “quickness of transport”, and “environment in the ambulance”. In addition, domain and summary scores showed good internal reliability (Cronbach's range = 0.82–0.94). The patient satisfaction scale developed in this study was designed and validated considering the role of EMTs and patients' needs for prehospital care. This scale may be useful in the development of assessments and interventions to improve patient satisfaction with EMTs.
Therapist-Assisted Internet-Delivered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia: A Case Report

Despite its well-documented efficacy, few clinicians are trained to deliver Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I), and it remains an inaccessible treatment. Therapist-Assisted Internet-Delivered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (TAI-CBT-I) holds promise for overcoming barriers to accessing this evidence-based treatment. However, to date, there have been no case reports published that describe how to deliver TAI-CBT-I. This case report fills in this gap by illustrating the application and utility of such a treatment on an asynchronous platform. We report on a course of TAI-CBT-I for a 34-year-old Caribbean Canadian male who presented with chronic insomnia characterized by difficulty falling and staying asleep, night awakenings, and reduced helpfulness from medication. Self-report measures of sleep, depression, functioning and ability, and therapist satisfaction were administered throughout treatment, post-discharge, and at follow-up. Improvement was noted across all measures. This case report demonstrates that TAI-CBT-I can be an effective treatment for chronic insomnia and showcases how to deliver it.
Association of MicroRNA-146a with Type 1 and 2 Diabetes and their Related Complications

Most medical investigations have found a reduced blood level of miR-146a in type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients, suggesting an important role for miR-146a (microRNA-146a) in the etiology of diabetes mellitus (DM) and its consequences. Furthermore, injection of miR-146a mimic has been confirmed to alleviate diabetes mellitus in diabetic animal models. In this line, deregulation of miR-146a expression has been linked to the progression of nephropathy, neuropathy, wound healing, olfactory dysfunction, cardiovascular disorders, and retinopathy in diabetic patients. In this review, besides a comprehensive review of the function of miR-146a in DM, we discussed new findings on type 1 (T1MD) and type 2 (T2DM) diabetes mellitus, highlighting the discrepancies between clinical and preclinical investigations and elucidating the biological pathways regulated through miR-146a in DM-affected tissues.
Urolithin A analog inhibits castration-resistant prostate cancer by targeting the androgen receptor and its variant, androgen receptor-variant 7

We investigated the efficacy of a small molecule ASR-600, an analog of Urolithin A (Uro A), on blocking androgen receptor (AR) and its splice variant AR-variant 7 (AR-V7) signaling in castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). ASR-600 effectively suppressed the growth of AR+ CRPC cells by inhibiting AR and AR-V7 expressions; no effect was seen in AR− CRPC and normal prostate epithelial cells. Biomolecular interaction assays revealed ASR-600 binds to the N-terminal domain of AR, which was further confirmed by immunoblot and subcellular localization studies. Molecular studies suggested that ASR-600 promotes the ubiquitination of AR and AR-V7 resulting in the inhibition of AR signaling. Microsomal and plasma stability studies suggest that ASR-600 is stable, and its oral administration inhibits tumor growth in CRPC xenografted castrated and non-castrated mice. In conclusion, our data suggest that ASR-600 enhances AR ubiquitination in both AR+ and AR-V7 CRPC cells and inhibits their growth in vitro and in vivo models.