Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Firm’s efficiency and foreign ownership: evidence from Turin automotive cluster

During the last decade many contributions underline the importance of multinationals presence arguing their higher productivity. This paper presents a non-parametric estimate of efficiency levels and productivity trends of firms operating in the automotive sector near Turin. The obtained results are analysed using one of the most modern and robust semi-parametric technique. This allows to draw a more precise picture of the relation between ownership and productivity, cleaning for misleading individual characteristics. Large automotive multinationals appear to be less efficient in combining inputs to obtain outputs and they are also less able to improve productivity during the crisis. No evidence is found for small and medium firms owned by a foreign subject.
Treatment of Parameter Uncertainty and Variability for a Single Seismic Hazard Map

The inputs to probabilistic seismic hazard studies (seismic source zones, earthquake rates, attenuation functions, etc.) are uncertain, being based on subjective judgments and interpretations of limited data. In the face of this uncertainty, we consider (a) how one might “reasonably” determine the ground-motion levels to show on a single probabilistic seismic hazard map, and (b) the extent to which uncertainty in the calculated levels can be meaningfully represented on such a map. If the “best guess” estimates of the earthquake rate, the Gutenberg-Richter b-value and the maximum magnitude for a single source zone are regarded as uncorrelated and the uncertainty in each parameter can be regarded as symmetric about the estimated value, then the probabilistic ground-motion levels calculated using these best estimates represent both most likely values and also approximate mean values.
Thin-Film Transistor Simulations with the Voltage-In-Current Latency Insertion Method

This article presents formulations for the voltage-in-current (VinC) latency insertion method (LIM) for thin-film transistors (TFTs). LIM is a fast circuit simulation algorithm that solves circuits in a leapfrog manner, without requiring intensive matrix operations present in SPICE-based simulators. This allows LIM to have a far superior scaling with respect to the size of the circuit resulting in significant time savings on large circuit networks. The VinC LIM formulation for the TFTs written in this article has the benefit of a better stability compared to the original LIM formulation which allows the use of larger time steps. The performance of the new algorithm is demonstrated through the simulation of numerical examples of large flat-panel display (FPD) circuits. It is seen that VinC LIM greatly outperforms basic LIM and commercial SPICE-based simulators, where the presented algorithm is able to simulate circuits with more than 10 million nodes or devices in a reasonable time, which is not viable in many modern day SPICE-based simulators.
Multi-dimensional Trust Quantification by Artificial Agents through Evidential Fuzzy Multi-Criteria Decision Making

Increasing man-machine trust has burgeoned during the last few decades. The growing interest in trust-building has led to the study of the non-dichotomous nature of trust. Trust as social behavior is an integral part of effective team building. The major focus has been offered to study how humans build trust towards machines, whereas few attempts have been made to study the reverse. Studies have shown that trustworthiness perceptions initialize trust behavior whereas trust behavior influences subsequent trustworthiness perceptions. This paper presents the design and comparative analysis of evidential fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making (EFMCDM) based on multi-dimensional trust quantification schemes to quantify trust level with the human agent in a collaborative environment.
An Experimental Research on Generalized Prandtl-Ishlinskii Model for Modeling Asymmetric Hysteresis of a Piezoceramic Actuator

A piezoceramic actuator is widely employed in micropositioning and MEMS. However, the piezoceramic actuators are limited due to the natural hysteresis nonlinearity which affect the accuracy of the actuators in applications. In order to revise the hysteresis nonlinearity, lots of hysteresis models have been proposed such as the Preisach model, the classical Prandtl—Ishlinskii model and so on. While some drawbacks still exist with these models, a generalized hysteresis model for asymmetric hysteresis basing on the classical Prandtl—Ishlinskii model is devised. In the modified model, the exponential functions which contain the amplitude and the frequency of the input voltage and its gain factor are introduced into the NLPO (nonlinearity play operator). As a result, the generalized model in this paper applies to modeling asymmetric hysteresis. This model was identified and simulated using the experimental data by other researchers. At last, the validity and the accuracy of the given model were tested through the experiment of the piezoceramic control.
MAP-Elites to Generate a Team of Agents that Elicits Diverse Automated Gameplay

The objective of this work is to provide a procedure to generate a team of players for a game so they are available to the developer to choose from and that can be used for automated gameplay. Our solution applies the MAP-Elites algorithm to generate agents with distinct behaviours. The resulting agents are distributed in the space of features based on the result of their actions when playing a game: wins, score, % explored, interactions, kills, items collected, etc. The criteria used as the performance of the elites does not come from how well an agent plays a game, but by the time it takes it to play it and determine the cell in the map it falls into. We present and implement the solution and include details about the agent used, as well as the list of heuristics created to elicit differentiated behaviours within the game, representing distinct types of players. We executed the algorithm implemented for three different games and a total of 33 configurations. The size and diversity of the pool of agents generated allow running automated gameplays in each of the games to elicit different expected behaviours. The options are limited by the distribution of the team within the space, given by the pair of features or the characteristics of the game. The methodology gives the flexibility to extend the features or modify the range of existing ones to have control over the behavioural space and, therefore, the characteristics of the generated team.
Occupational stress in the Hospitality Industry: an employment relations perspective

This article endeavours to draw attention to occupational stress amongst workers in so-called 'low risk industries' - namely the service and hospitality industries - and to explore their perceptions of stress, their attitudes to managing stress and their responses to the recent inclusion of stress in the Health and Safety in Employment Amendment Act, 2002. It is also the intention to broaden the scope of analysis by investigating a range of employment factors - such as heavy workloads, interpersonal relationships and organisational factors - which can contribute to occupational stress amongst workers. Findings from two case studies are reported and they indicate that working in the hospitality industry can be stressful and that many workers are vulnerable in terms of their poor working conditions and low wages. Consistent with other studies, it was also found that there was low trade union presence and a high rate of casualisation and staff turnover. At the same time, there was a lack of overt conflict between management and workers, with an apparent close alignment of goals between the two parties and a style of management that could be described as unitarist.
Experiment M131. Human vestibular function

The lower susceptibility to vestibular stimulation aloft, compared with that on ground under experimental conditions, is attributed to a precondition, namely, either there is no need to adapt, or, as exemplified by the Skylab 3 pilot, adaptation to weightlessness is achieved. Findings in some of the astronauts emphasize the distinction between two categories of vestibular side effects: immediate reflex phenomena (illusions, sensations of turning, etc.), and delayed epiphenomena that include the constellation of symptoms and syndromes comprising motion sickness. The drug combinations 1-scopolamine and d-amphetamine and promethazine hydrochloride and ephedrine sulfate are effective in prevention and treatment of motion sickness. It is concluded that prevention of motion sickness in any stressful motion environment involves selection, adaptation, and the use of drugs.
Microhematuria Enhances the Risks of Relapse and Renal Progression in Primary Membranous Nephropathy

Objective: To determine whether there is an association between microhematuria and relapse or kidney disease progression in patients with primary membranous nephropathy (PMN). Methods: A cohort of 639 patients with biopsy-proven PMN from two centers was followed for a median of 40 months. The exposures were initial hematuria, time-averaged hematuria, and cumulative duration of hematuria. The outcomes were relapse and renal progression, which were defined by a 40% reduction in renal function or end-stage renal disease. Cox proportional hazards regression and competing risk analyses were performed to yield hazard ratios (HRs) and subdistribution hazard ratios (sHRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Sensitivity and interaction analyses were also performed. Results: After adjusting for confounders, a higher level of initial hematuria was associated with a 1.43 (95% CI, 1.15–1.78) greater hazard of relapse. Worsening hematuria remarkably increased the risk of short-term relapse (HR, 4.64; 3.29–6.54). Time-averaged hematuria (sHR, 1.35; 1.12–1.63) and cumulative duration of hematuria (sHR, 1.17; 1.02–1.34) were independent predictors of renal progression. Hematuria remission was related to a reduced risk of renal progression over time in patients with positive microhematuria (sHR, 0.63; 0.41–0.96). Conclusions: A higher level of initial hematuria was a remarkable predictor of relapse in patients with PMN, and the magnitude and persistence of microhematuria were independently associated with kidney disease progression.
A Novel Chloroplast Protein RNA Processing 8 Is Required for the Expression of Chloroplast Genes and Chloroplast Development in Arabidopsis thaliana

Chloroplast development involves the coordinated expression of both plastids- and nuclear-encoded genes in higher plants. However, the underlying mechanism still remains largely unknown. In this study, we isolated and characterized an Arabidopsis mutant with an albino lethality phenotype named RNA processing 8 (rp8). Genetic complementation analysis demonstrated that the gene AT4G37920 (RP8) was responsible for the mutated phenotype. The RP8 gene was strongly expressed in photosynthetic tissues at both transcription and translation protein levels. The RP8 protein is localized in the chloroplast and associated with the thylakoid. Disruption of the RP8 gene led to a defect in the accumulation of the rpoA mature transcript, which reduced the level of the RpoA protein, and affected the transcription of PEP-dependent genes. The abundance of the chloroplast rRNA, including 23S, 16S, 4.5S, and 5S rRNA, were reduced in the rp8 mutant, respectively, and the amounts of chloroplast ribosome proteins, such as, PRPS1(uS1c), PRPS5(uS5c), PRPL2 (uL2c), and PRPL4 (uL4c), were substantially decreased in the rp8 mutant, which indicated that knockout of RP8 seriously affected chloroplast translational machinery. Accordingly, the accumulation of photosynthetic proteins was seriously reduced. Taken together, these results indicate that the RP8 protein plays an important regulatory role in the rpoA transcript processing, which is required for the expression of chloroplast genes and chloroplast development in Arabidopsis.
Evaluation of Rail Passenger Equipment Crashworthiness Strategies

Comparisons are made of the effectiveness of competing crashworthiness strategies—crash energy management (CEM) and conventional passenger train design. CEM is a strategy for providing rail equipment crashworthiness that uses crush zones at the ends of cars. These zones are designed to collapse in a controlled way during a collision, distributing the crush among the train cars. This technique preserves the occupied spaces in the train and limits the decelerations of the occupant volumes. Two scenarios are used to evaluate the effectiveness of the crashworthiness strategies—(a) a train-to-train collision of a cab-car–led passenger train with a standing locomotive–led passenger train and (b) a grade-crossing collision of a cab-car-led passenger train with a standing highway vehicle. The maximum speed for which all the occupants are expected to survive and the predicted increase in fatalities and injuries with increasing collision speed are determined for both train designs. Crash energy management is shown to significantly increase the maximum speed at which all the occupants could survive for both grade crossing and train-to-train collisions for cab-car–led trains, at the expense of modestly increasing the speeds at which occupants impact the interior in train-to-train collisions.
Circadian Rhythms in Bacterial Sepsis Pathology: What We Know and What We Should Know

Sepsis is a syndrome caused by a deregulated host response to infection, representing the primary cause of death from infection. In animal models, the mortality rate is strongly dependent on the time of sepsis induction, suggesting a main role of the circadian system. In patients undergoing sepsis, deregulated circadian rhythms have also been reported. Here we review data related to the timing of sepsis induction to further understand the different outcomes observed both in patients and in animal models. The magnitude of immune activation as well as the hypothermic response correlated with the time of the worst prognosis. The different outcomes seem to be dependent on the expression of the clock gene Bmal1 in the liver and in myeloid immune cells. The understanding of the role of the circadian system in sepsis pathology could be an important tool to improve patient therapies.
Integration of mRNA and miRNA Analysis Reveals the Molecular Mechanism of Cotton Response to Salt Stress

To identify the regulatory network of known and novel microRNAs (miRNAs) and their targets responding to salt stress, a combined analysis of mRNA libraries, small RNA libraries, and degradome libraries were performed. In this study, we used unique molecular identifiers (UMIs), which are more sensitive, accurate, and reproducible than traditional methods of sequencing, to quantify the number of molecules and correct for amplification bias. We identified a total of 312 cotton miRNAs using seedlings at 0, 1, 3, and 6 h after NaCl treatment, including 80 known ghr-miRNAs and 232 novel miRNAs and found 155 miRNAs that displayed significant differential expression under salt stress. Among them, fifty-nine differentially expressed miRNAs were simultaneously induced in two or three tissues, while 66, 11, and 19 were specifically expressed in the roots, leaves, and stems, respectively. It is indicated there were different populations of miRNAs against salt stress in roots, leaves and stems. 399 candidate targets of salt-induced miRNAs showed significant differential expression before and after salt treatment, and 72 targets of 25 miRNAs were verified by degradome sequencing data. Furthermore, the regulatory relationship of miRNA-target gene was validated experimentally via 5′RLM-RACE, proving our data reliability. Gene ontology and KEGG pathway analysis found that salt-responsive miRNA targets among the differentially expressed genes were significantly enriched, and mainly involved in response to the stimulus process and the plant hormone signal transduction pathway. Furthermore, the expression levels of newly identified miRNA mir1 and known miRNAs miR390 and miR393 gradually decreased when subjected to continuous salt stress, while overexpression of these miRNAs both increased sensitivity to salt stress. Those newly identified miRNAs and mRNA pairs were conducive to genetic engineering and better understanding the mechanisms responding to salt stress in cotton.
Towards Realistic Financial Time Series Generation via Generative Adversarial Learning

Training network models to accurately respond to market fluctuations requires access to vast amounts of data. Data availability is strictly bound to the market's evolution, which updates only on a daily basis. In this paper, we propose several solutions based on Generative Adversarial Networks for providing artificially generated time series data with realistic properties. The main challenge here is the specificity of the target data, which has properties that are difficult to control and have wide variations in time, e.g., central moment statistics, autocorrelation or cluster volatility. Another contribution is in assessing the quality of synthetic data, in general, as there is no standard metric for this. Experimental validation is carried out on real-world financial data retrieved from the US stock market.
Insider at border: interactions of technology, language, culture, and gender in computer-mediated communication by korean female learners of english

Computer-mediated communication (CMC) has become an important alterative to conventional means of communication in an age of rapidly developing electronic communication technology. As our communication crosses the borders of languages and cultures, CMC has become a site of international and intercultural communication. In this context, this study attempts to add to our understanding of the ‘others’ we meet in cyberspace through CMC. Working from an interpretivist paradigm, this qualitative research is intended to understand how Korean female learners of English represent themselves in computer-mediated communication (CMC) using English across technology, language, and culture. In interviews with eight Korean female students at a large U.S. Midwestern university, the research participants were asked to share their experiences of CMC in English both in academic and non-academic settings. They often compared this with other modes of communication, CMC in Korean and speaking in English or Korean in real life situations. From the conversations surfaced the intricate process of how they negotiate their being Korean, being women, being non-native speakers of English as they communicate in cyberspace using English as a second language. The research data were analyzed using QSR NVivo, a qualitative analysis tool, and the results were reported in two separate chapters, one addressing the data as a whole and the other focusing on particular issues surfaced from data analysis. A few of the important findings from the study include: (a) co-occurrences of multiple constructs in the participants' CMC in English, which exemplifies the intricacy and complexity involved in their CMC; (b) participants' bodily engagement with technology in praxis; (c) language being felt as the biggest barrier; (d) cultural distance recognized in addition to language barrier; and (e) gender found to matter less than expected in CMC in English. By drawing upon knowledge from two areas of study, foreign and second language education and cultural studies of technology, this study attempts to fill the gaps between CMC studies in these two fields. Findings of this study offer a few important pedagogical implications as to the incorporation of CMC into classrooms with various linguistic and cultural backgrounds.
Providing Task Instructions During Motor Training Enhances Performance and Modulates Attentional Brain Networks

Learning a new motor task is a complex cognitive and motor process. Especially early during motor learning, cognitive functions such as attentional engagement, are essential, e.g., to discover relevant visual stimuli. Drawing participant’s attention towards task-relevant stimuli—e.g., with task instructions using visual cues or explicit written information—is a common practice to support cognitive engagement during training and, hence, accelerate motor learning. However, there is little scientific evidence about how visually cued or written task instructions affect attentional brain networks during motor learning. In this experiment, we trained 36 healthy participants in a virtual motor task: surfing waves by steering a boat with a joystick. We measured the participants’ motor performance and observed attentional brain networks using alpha-band electroencephalographic (EEG) activity before and after training. Participants received one of the following task instructions during training: (1) No explicit task instructions and letting participants surf freely (implicit training; IMP); (2) Task instructions provided through explicit visual cues (explicit-implicit training; E-IMP); or (3) through explicit written commands (explicit training; E). We found that providing task instructions during training (E and E-IMP) resulted in less post-training motor variability—linked to enhanced performance—compared to training without instructions (IMP). After training, participants trained with visual cues (E-IMP) enhanced the alpha-band strength over parieto-occipital and frontal brain areas at wave onset. In contrast, participants who trained with explicit commands (E) showed decreased fronto-temporal alpha activity. Thus, providing task instructions in written (E) or using visual cues (E-IMP) leads to similar motor performance improvements by enhancing activation on different attentional networks. While training with visual cues (E-IMP) may be associated with visuo-attentional processes, verbal-analytical processes may be more prominent when written explicit commands are provided (E). Together, we suggest that training parameters such as task instructions, modulate the attentional networks observed during motor practice and may support participant’s cognitive engagement, compared to training without instructions.
Validating the plot of Interactive Narrative games

The authoring of interactive dialogues in video games is an overwhelming and complex task for game writers. Developing an Interactive Narrative that balances authorial intent and players' agency requires frequent in-depth testing. The limited range of tools to assist authors in verifying their story can limit the creation of more complex narratives. In this paper, we discuss the challenges of Interactive Story design and provide a model consisting of a set of metrics for testing interactive dialogues. Using this model, we developed a prototype for the Story Validator tool. This debugging tool allows game writers to experiment with different hypotheses and narrative properties in order to identify inconsistencies in the authored narrative and predict the output of different playthroughs with visual representation support. We conducted a series of user tests, Using the Story Validator, to investigate whether the tool adequately helps users identify problems that appear in the game's story. The results showed that the tool enables content creators to easily test their stories, setting our model as a good step towards automated verification for assistance of authoring interactive narratives.
Lode Encoder: AI-constrained co-creativity

We present Lode Encoder, a gamified mixed-initiative level creation system for the classic platform-puzzle game Lode Runner. The system is built around several autoen-coders which are trained on sets of Lode Runner levels. When fed with the user's design, each autoencoder produces a version of that design which is closer in style to the levels that it was trained on. The Lode Encoder interface allows the user to build and edit levels through “painting” from the suggestions provided by the autoencoders. Crucially, in order to encourage designers to explore new possibilities, the system does not include more traditional editing tools. We report on the system design and training procedure, as well as on the evolution of the system itself and user tests.