Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
‘Too central to fail’ firms in bi-layered financial networks: linkages in the US corporate bond and stock markets

Several measures have been recently developed in the financial networks literature to quantify the vulnerabilities of firms in specific markets for risk management. However, firms are often active in multiple asset markets simultaneously with potentially different degrees of vulnerabilities across markets. One can hypothesize that since assets are backed by similar firm-level fundamentals, the vulnerability measures across markets would be highly correlated. In this paper, we present two results based on the empirical correlation of network-based measures of vulnerabilities by studying US firms' asset returns that are active in stock as well as corporate bond markets. First, the magnitude of the relationship, while positive and significant, is not very large. Quantitatively, a unit percent increase in vulnerability measure of a firm in the stock market is associated with 0.15% increase in the vulnerability in the bond market. Second, the vulnerability of the firms in the stock market is negatively related to firm size proxied by market capitalization, indicating that ‘too-big-to-fail’ firms tend to be ‘too-central-to fail’. By adopting instrumental variables, we show that the coefficient has a higher magnitude. The results are robust with respect to choices of asset classes, maturity horizons, model selection, time length of the data, as well as controlling for return sensitivities to market-level factors.
Antihypertensive treatment and risk factors for syncope in asymptomatic aortic stenosis patients with hypertension

ABSTRACT Background Evidence for treating hypertension in patients with asymptomatic aortic valve stenosis(AS) is scarce. Objectives Given the paucity of data on the relationship between syncope and antihypertensive treatment in aortic stenosis. This study sought to investigate this association in patients admitted to our hospital. Methods A total of 158 patients with asymptomatic moderate or severe aortic stenosis were analyzed. Follow-up was conducted by clinic visit, telephone contact, or review of electronic medical records. Outcomes were syncope. Results Hypertension were documented in 90 of the 158 patients with moderate or severe AS, and 77 of them received antihypertensive medications. During an average 28 months follow-up period, the occurrence of syncope was observed in 13 patients. Among them, 8 were in antihypertensive group (n = 77) and 5 in normotensive group (n = 68). There was no significant difference in incidence of syncope between the two groups. Patients with treated hypertension and syncope had a lower stroke volume index (SVi), a higher valve arterial impedance (ZVA), a smaller SAC than those without. Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that there was no significant difference in syncope cumulative incidence between antihypertensive group and normotensive group (log rank P = .478). Multivariate cox regression analysis showed that both ZVA (hazard ratio:19.006, 95% confidence interval: 4.664 to77.448;P = .002) and LVMI (hazard ratio:1.484, 95% confidence interval: 1.427 to 5.157;P = .016) were associated with development of syncope, whereas hypertension were not related independently to syncope (hazard ratio:0.935, 95% confidence interval: 0.786 to3.173; P = .869). Conclusions In patients with moderate or severe AS, concomitant hypertension, and antihypertensive treatment didn’t increase the occurrence of syncope, whereas higher ZVA was independently associated with greater risk of syncope.
Operation of the unified power flow controller (UPFC) under practical constraints

The UPFC is the most versatile and complex power electronic equipment that has emerged for the control and optimization of power flow in electrical power transmission systems. It offers major potential advantages for the static and dynamic operation of transmission lines, but it brings with it major design challenges, both in the power electronics and from the perspective of the power system. As the UPFC transitions from concept to full-scale power system implementation, the control and protection of this sophisticated equipment are of primary concern. This paper describes the basic control, sequencing and protection philosophies that govern the operation of the UPFC, subject to the practical constraints encountered in an actual high power installation. The operation of the UPFC is illustrated with representative results from a TNA study, undertaken jointly by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), Western Area Power Administration (WAPA) and Westinghouse Science and Technology Center (STC).
Machine-Learning the Skill of Mutual Fund Managers

We show, using machine learning, that fund characteristics can consistently differentiate high from low-performing mutual funds, as well as identify funds with net-of-fees abnormal returns. Fund momentum and fund flow are the most important predictors of future riskadjusted fund performance, while characteristics of the stocks that funds hold are not predictive. Returns of predictive long-short portfolios are higher following a period of high sentiment or a good state of the macro-economy. Our estimation with neural networks enables us to uncover novel and substantial interaction effects between sentiment and both fund flow and fund momentum. JEL: G11, G12, G17, G23, C45
Stock-rebuilding time isopleths and constant-F stock-rebuilding plans for overfished stocks

Stock-rebuilding time isopleths relate constant levels of fishing mortality (F), stock biomass, and management goals to rebuilding times for overfished stocks. We used simulation models with uncertainty about FMSY and variability in annual intrinsic growth rates (ry) to calculate rebuilding time isopleths for Georges Bank yellowtail flounder, Limanda ferruginea, and cowcod rockfish, Sebastes levis, in the Southern California Bight. Stock-rebuilding time distributions from stochastic models were variable and right-skewed, indicating that rebuilding may take less or substantially more time than expected. The probability of long rebuilding times increased with lower biomass, higher F, uncertainty about FMSY, and autocorrelation in ry values. Uncertainty about FMSY had the greatest effect on rebuilding times. Median recovery times from simulations were insensitive to model assumptions about uncertainty and variability, suggesting that median recovery times should be considered in rebuilding plans. Isopleths calculated in previous studies by deterministic models approximate median, rather than mean, rebuilding times. Stochastic models allow managers to specify and evaluate the risk (measured as a probability) of not achieving a rebuilding goal according to schedule. Rebuilding time isopleths can be used for stocks with a range of life histories and can be based on any type of population dynamics model. They are directly applicable with constant F rebuilding plans but are also useful in other cases. We used new algorithms for simulating autocorrelated process errors from a gamma distribution and evaluated sensitivity to statistical distributions assumed for ry. Uncertainty about current biomass and fishing mortality rates can be considered with rebuilding time isopleths in evaluating and designing constant-F rebuilding plans.
Attentive deep learning-based tumor-only somatic mutation classifier achieves high accuracy agnostic of tissue type and capture kit

In precision oncology, reliable identification of tumor-specific DNA mutations requires sequencing tumor DNA and non-tumor DNA (so-called “matched normal”) from the same patient. The normal sample allows researchers to distinguish acquired (somatic) and hereditary (germline) variants. The ability to distinguish somatic and germline variants facilitates estimation of tumor mutation burden (TMB), which is a recently FDA-approved pan-cancer marker for highly successful cancer immunotherapies; in tumor-only variant calling (i.e., without a matched normal), the difficulty in discriminating germline and somatic variants results in inflated and unreliable TMB estimates. We apply machine learning to the task of somatic vs germline classification in tumor-only samples using TabNet, a recently developed attentive deep learning model for tabular data that has achieved state of the art performance in multiple classification tasks (Arik and Pfister 2019). We constructed a training set for supervised classification using features derived from tumor-only variant calling and drawing somatic and germline truth-labels from an independent pipeline incorporating the patient-matched normal samples. Our trained model achieved state-of-the-art performance on two hold-out test datasets: a TCGA dataset including sarcoma, breast adenocarcinoma, and endometrial carcinoma samples (F1-score: 88.3), and a metastatic melanoma dataset, (F1-score 79.8). Concordance between matched-normal and tumor-only TMB improves from R2 = 0.006 to 0.705 with the addition of our classifier. And importantly, this approach generalizes across tumor tissue types and capture kits and has a call rate of 100%. The interpretable feature masks of the attentive deep learning model explain the reasons for misclassified variants. We reproduce the recent finding that tumor-only TMB estimates for Black patients are extremely inflated relative to that of White patients due to the racial biases of germline databases. We show that our machine learning approach appreciably reduces this racial bias in tumor-only variant-calling.
Effect of Dietary Protein Levels on Growth Performance, Hematological Parameters and Digestive Enzymes in Juveniles of Brycon amazonicus (Spix & Agassiz, 1829)

A 52-day experiment was conducted to determine the crude protein (CP) requirements of juvenile matrinxã Brycon amazonicus, and to evaluate their resulting growth performance, hematological parameters and enzymatic activities. Sixty fish (29.03g ± 1.16g) were distributed in 12 tanks (310 L) with a completely randomized design, and maintained at four dietary crude protein levels (270, 320, 350, 390 g.kg-1) for 52 days. The results revealed that the fish fed diet 390 g.kg-1 CP had the best final weight, weight gain, feed conversion ratio, specific growth rate, protein efficiency ratio and lipid retention rate. The same could be stated for hematocrit, number of circulating erythrocytes, triglycerides and total proteins of the hematological profile (p&lt;0.05). In the whole body composition, dry matter content was lower in the fish fed 390 g.kg-1 CP, while lipid content was higher in the fish fed 350-390 g.kg-1 CP (p&lt;0.05). No differences were observed in CP and ash (p&gt;0.05), or in the activities of digestive enzymes (p&gt;0.05). In short, our findings suggest benefits of the 390 g.kg-1 CP feed for being the most adequate for this species’ juvenile stage.
Finite-time performance of a quadratically constrained MVDR beamformer

The finite-time behavior of a quadratically constrained version of the minimum-variance, distortionless-response line-array beamformer is examined. An entity known as the weight ratio is defined and it is demonstrated that there are simple expressions that relate the weight ratio to the field scenario which explicitly take into account the finite-time misadjustment phenomenon. It is further demonstrated that holding the weight ratio to a value of about 0.5 produces an adaptive beamformer with a beneficial combination of robustness to nonideal situations (e.g., sensor misalignment, pointing errors, correlated interferers, misadjustment effects, etc.) while retaining the ability to adapt quickly in highly dynamic fields.
Effect of Cellsize Reduction on Polyurethane Foam Physical Properties

Polymer distribution in rigid PU foams is a complex, position de pendent parameter which can be described in terms of: 1) the overall density and density distribution, 2) the average cellsize and cellsize distribution, 3) cell elonga tion and orientation and 4) the material distribution between struts and windows within the individual cells. Considering that a typical foam contains only 2-3 volume % of polymer, it is not surprising that any variation in the way this material is distributed will have a large impact on most of the physical properties of the foam. In the present paper, we evaluate what effects can be expected from changes in cellsize and/or density on the polymer distribution in foams and consequently on foam physical properties like compressive strength, initial thermal conductivity, and thermal conductivity aging. These results are obtained using a blend of modelling techniques and experimental data. Generally speaking, in PU foams a reduction in the average cellsize will also cause an increase in the amount of material which is present in the cell windows versus the cell struts. It is observed that in most systems, the window thickness remains relatively unaffected by cell size reduction. Also, for a given density, there exists a cell size at which the cells will no longer be closed simply because there is not enough material available to ensure film stability. Since the cell windows represent most of the barrier to diffusion, the rate of aging will be reduced dramatically by this shift in the material distribution as long as the cells are still closed. A reduction in cellsize will, in general, also cause a reduction in the initial thermal conductivity, mostly because of the reduction in the thermal radiation component to foam thermal conductivity. There exists a region, however, where this effect is reversed. Further reductions in cellsize will cause an increase in thermal conductivity rather than a decrease. The impact of cellsize reduction on foam compressive strength is usually negative, again because of the concomitant change in polymer distribution.
Adaptive Fuzzy Fast Finite-Time Formation Control for Second-Order MASs Based on Capability Boundaries of Agents

This article addresses a new adaptive fuzzy fast finite-time state-constraint protocol for leader-follower formation control. Each agent in uncertain nonlinear dynamic multiagent systems is represented by second-order integrator, which synchronously governs its position and velocity. The fuzzy logic systems are employed to compensate and approximate uncertain functions. On the premise of maintaining formation structure and coupling communication topology, time-varying transformation equations containing exponential signals are introduced to ensure that state capability boundaries for different physical quantities of agents are not violated. It not only guarantees own state performance and collision avoidance among agents, but also realizes the specified transient and steady formation performance. Furthermore, focusing on convergence rate, the adaptive fuzzy fast finite-time strategy is designed that can guarantee all agents will follow the desired formation configuration in fast finite-time. Through the abovementioned approaches provide a good way to improve the convergence and ensure the security for decentralized formation control. Finally, the validity of the theoretical method is proved by fast finite-time stable theory and Lyapunov stability theory. The effectiveness of the protocol is verified by digital simulation and simulation comparison.
Effect of Rejuvenator on Performance Properties of HMA Mixtures with High RAP and RAS Contents

Recycled binder in reclaimed asphalt pavement/reclaimed asphalt shingles (RAP/RAS) hot mix asphalt (HMA) mixtures can be subject to cracking and stiffness. This can lead to pavement maintenance and rehabilitation issues. Rejuvenators can be used to enhance the performance of these mixes making them more stable for use by transportation agencies. This report examines the effect on pavement performance of adding a rejuvenator to HMA mixtures with high RAP/RAS content. Performance properties of various mixtures were tested. Laboratory tests included moisture resistance, tensile strength, mixture stiffness, cracking resistance, and rutting resistance. In addition a cost comparison is provided.
Chest Radiograph and CT Findings in Patients Hospitalized with Breakthrough COVID-19

Purpose To characterize chest radiograph and CT imaging appearance in patients with breakthrough COVID-19 (defined as an illness occurring in patients that previously received a COVID-19 vaccination) in a hospital setting. Materials and Methods In this retrospective study, all patients admitted to the hospital between August 26 and September 8, 2021 with a positive SARS-CoV-2 reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction-confirmed infection who were fully vaccinated against COVID-19 were evaluated. Clinical, laboratory data, and outcomes were collected and assessed. All patients had chest imaging performed (either radiography, CT, or a combination of both). Chest radiographs and CTs were assessed and scored on admission and on follow up to determine the extent and type of pulmonary involvement. Descriptive statistics were used. Results Charts of 60 hospitalized patients that tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 were reviewed for a prior history of COVID-19 vaccination. Eight (13.3%) such patients were identified and included for analysis (mean age, 54 years; range 34–81 years; four women). Patients received either two doses of Pfizer-BioNTech (n = 6), two doses of Moderna (n = 1), or one dose of Johnson and Johnson (n = 1). Five (63%) patients were immunosuppressed at the time of presentation, and six (75%) reported respiratory symptoms. Most of the patients had normal radiographs (4 of 7; 57%). The most common chest CT findings were ground glass opacities (three of five), with mild to moderate severity scores (average, 51; range 8–88). Two patients required intensive care unit admission. However, no patients died and all were either discharged or were on room air without residual respiratory symptoms by the end of the study period. Conclusion In hospitalized patients with COVID-19 breakthrough illness, normal to mild or moderately positive imaging findings were observed. ©RSNA, 2021
The Effect of Factors on Operational Efficiency and the Relationship between Operational Efficiency and Solvency of Logistics Joint-Stock Companies

Operational Efficiency (OE) and solvency play an important role in the success of any enterprises. Therefore, studying the relationship between OE and solvency needs to be taken comprehensively and continuously in order to find out long –term solutions for increasing business effectiveness. This paper examines the determinants of OE and the relationship between OE and solvency of the logistics joint-stock companies (JSCs) listed on the Vietnam Stock market with answers for the above - mentioned issues. This study mainly investigates 30 listed logistics firms from 2014 to 2018. The findings of this study sugg
Subjective well-being and COVID-19 prevention practices among people living with HIV in Cape Town, South Africa

ABSTRACT COVID-19 poses significant threats to the health of people with underlying chronic conditions, including people living with HIV. The association between subjective well-being and practicing COVID-19 preventive behaviours among people living with HIV is yet to be empirically tested. The objective of the current study was to test the hypothesis that subjective well-being would be associated with engaging in greater COVID-19 preventive behaviours. A sample of 200 women and 72 men (mean age 38.1, SD = 10.4) receiving HIV treatment at a clinic in Cape Town, South Africa completed interview administered surveys of health behaviours and three dimensions of subjective well-being: emotional, social and psychological well-being. Hierarchical regression models were performed to test subjective well-being as predictors of COVID-19 preventive behaviours adjusting for age, sex, education, TB history, antiretroviral therapy adherence, and concern about contracting COVID-19. Results showed that psychological well-being, along with concerns over COVID-19, predicted greater COVID-19 preventive behaviours over and above the other variables in the model, accounting for 9.2% of the variance. Results support incorporating interventions to foster psychological well-being into existing clinical services for people living with HIV to improve clusters of health behaviours.
The effects of water deficit and polymer on some physiological traits in corn ( Zea mays L.)

Drought stress is the most important problem of agr iculture in the wide world arid and semiarid areas. The application of some material such as superabsorbent polymers in soil could increase wate r retention in soil and decrease leaching of water and fertilizer. This experiment was conducted on corn (Zea mays L.) in Dashtak, Zahedan during growing 2012-2013. The experiment was carri ed out as split-plot with two factors including three irrigation regimes including irriga ted with 60%, 80% and 100% crop evapotranspiration (ET c) respectively as main plots and four amounts of superabsorbent polymer (SAP) includ ing 0, 30, 60 and 90 kg ha -1 as subplots in a completely randomized block desig n with three replications. The results showed that the effect of irrigation regimes, SAP levels and interaction bet ween two factors had significant effect on all traits. The regression models estimated for relativ e water content (RWC), chlorophyll index (CI), remo bilization of photosynthetic matters (RPM), portion of remobilization to seed and seed y ield showed that applying SAP in 100% ET c treatment had no different effect on above traits, but in the treatments which were exposed with water deficit improved all the traits of corn. The results also showed that applying 60 kg ha -1 SAP decreased corn’s water requirement as much as 20% a nd caused a seed yield and physiological characters equivalent to the 100% irrigation treatment.
Characteristics of industrial hazardous waste generation in South Korea from 2008 to 2018 based on decoupling and decomposition analysis

The industrial hazardous waste (IHW) generation to meet consumption is steadily increasing, resulting in environmental, health, and social problems around the world. To address IHW at the source, it is critical to understand the generation characteristics and key drivers on industrial hazardous waste generation (IHWG). This study analysed the generation characteristics of IHW of South Korea from 2008 to 2018 by decoupling and index decomposition analysis using Log Mean Divisia Index (LMDI) model. South Korea presented unstable decoupling of IHWG from economic growth, so more effective waste management regulations are needed to support a stable decoupling. One most critical finding was that the factors of industrial output and industrial characteristic of IHWG-to-energy were major driving factors influencing the increase of IHWG, whereas those of industrial structure and energy efficiency affect to the decrease of IHWG in most industries. In addition, the result clearly confirmed that the contribution of driving factors affecting the IHWG differs by industry. These results provide significant policy insights that the South Korean government needs institutional improvement and refinement of customised IHW management according to the characteristics of IHWG.