Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Knowledge spillovers and sources of knowledge in the manufacturing sector: literature review and empirical evidence for the UK

This report provides a review of knowledge spillovers and sources of knowledge in the manufacturing sector. The literature reviewed indicates the importance of intangible investments in firms’ internal knowledge assets. The weight of evidence also emphasises the importance of firms’ absorptive capacity in increasing internal capabilities and in benefiting from external knowledge sources. We also highlight the importance of external knowledge and knowledgeassets (i.e., knowledge spillovers) in determining productivity and competitiveness, as well as the spatial dimension of knowledge flows in particular knowledge clusters. Our study subsequently provides an empirical analysis of firms’ knowledge sourcing and cooperation behaviour for innovation activities in the UK manufacturing sector, using establishment-level data from recent four waves of the UK Innovation Survey covering the 2002-2010 period. Following the approach developed in Harris and Li (2009), we have constructed an empirical multi-index of absorptive capacity to measure a firm’s ability to internalise and appropriate external knowledge for innovation activities. Our results show substantial heterogeneity across sectors; and overall, manufacturing (especially higher tech or advanced) makes the strongest use of knowledge sources and is associated with highest levels of absorptive capacity followed by Knowledge-Intensive Services (KIS), where the UK has a strong comparative advantage. There is evidence that manufacturers responded to external market conditions in their utilisation of knowledge sources and more specifically, firms were making greater use of knowledge sources in response to the recent economic recession.
NDT_A_238044 235..247

1Department of Psychiatry, The Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210029, People’s Republic of China; 2School of Biological Sciences & Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096, People’s Republic of China; 3Child Development and Learning Science, Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education, Nanjing 210096, People’s Republic of China; 4Nanjing Brain Hospital, Medical School of Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, People’s Republic of China Objective: To investigate the mechanism of interactions between autonomic nervous system (ANS) and cognitive function in Major depression (MD) with Magnetoencephalography (MEG) measurements. Methods: Participants with MD (n = 20), and Health controls (HCs, n = 18) were completed MEG measurements during the performance of a go/no-go task. Heart rate variability (HRV) indices (SDANN, and RMSSD) were derived from the raw MEG data. The correlation analysis of the HRV and functional connectivities in different brain regions was conducted by Pearson’s r in two groups. Results: The go/no-go task performances of HCs were better than MD patients; HRV indices were lower in the MD group. Under the no-go task, a brain MEG functional connectivity analysis based on the seed regions of the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) displayed increased functional inter-region connectivity networks of OFC in MD group. HRV indices were correlated with different functional inter-region connectivity networks of OFC in two groups, respectively. Conclusion: ANS is related to inhibitory and control function through functional interregion connectivity networks of OFC in MD. These findings have important implications for the understanding pathophysiology of MD, and MEG may provide an image-guided tool for interventions.
Principal Component Analysis and Mapping to Characterize the Emission of Volatile Organic Compounds in a Typical Petrochemical Industrial Park

ABSTRACT The petrochemical industry generates a notorious amount of VOC pollution. Given the vastness and complexity of this particular industry as well as dissimilarities between the sectors and companies, comprehensively understanding and controlling these VOC emissions is a challenge in many countries. This study demonstrates an approach of characterizing and identifying critical sources by using multivariate analysis, including principal component analysis (PCA) and projection pursuit. A representative petrochemical industrial park in southern Taiwan comprising 20 up-, mid-, and downstream companies and 519,442 emission sources from 2012 till 2014 was selected for analysis. The results indicated that although the total emissions decreased during this period, which was attributable to controlling upstream vendors (65.5–72.1% of the total emission) and larger sources, such as equipment components (ECs; 63.5% of the total emission in 2012, which decreased to 59.3% in 2014), significant emissions were associated with the mid- and downstream companies and other sources, such as cooling towers (CTs) and storage tanks. PCA revealed that the sources in 5 PCs—namely, in decreasing importance, storage tanks, CTs, ECs, wastewater treatment plants, and stacks—explained 88.7% of the data variability. Furthermore, the variance in emission exhibited stronger correlations with the mid- and downstream sectors than their upstream counterpart. In addition to the amount of emissions they produce, key sources that must be controlled in order to effectively reduce VOCs in the petrochemical industry may be indicated by the correlation among their emission variations.
Alzheimer's Disease and Amyloid

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the largest unmet medical need in neurology today. This most common form of irreversible dementia is placing a considerable and increasing burden on patients, caregivers, and society, as more people live long enough to become affected. Current drugs improve symptoms but do not have profound neuroprotective and/or disease-modifying effects. AD is characterized by loss of neurons, dystrophic neurites, senile/amyloid/neuritic plaques, neurofibrillary tangles, and synaptic loss. Beta-amyloid (Ab) peptide deposition is the major pathological feature of AD. Increasing evidence suggests that overexpression of the amyloid precursor protein and subsequent generation of the 39–43 amino acid residue, Ab, are central to neuronal degeneration observed in AD patients possessing familial AD mutations, while transgenic mice overexpressing amyloid precursor protein develop AD-like pathology. Despite the genetic and cell biological evidence that supports the amyloid hypothesis, it is becoming increasing clear that AD etiology is complex and that Ab alone is unable to account for all aspects of AD. The fact that vast overproduction of Ab peptides in the brain of transgenic
How Does R & D Evolution of the Notebook Company in Taiwan – Based on the Company C

The Notebook constituted about 50% of the global output of notebooks in 2002, 60% in 2003, and 70% in 2004. Apparently, notebook producers have outperformed other competitors in the field of notebook production. How did notebook manufacturers accomplish such success in Taiwan? Company C in Taiwan is the notebook manufacturer in the world, showing that the strategy supported by a well-managed R&D system is the key. This paper carries out this research on the subject R&D of Company C, which was to become a fit of model.
The anticipation and adaptation effects of intra- and interpersonal wage changes on job satisfaction

This paper analyses how individual job satisfaction is affected by wage changes. In order to account for potential dynamic effects of wage changes on job satisfaction, we include lead and lag effects of income changes in our analysis. Furthermore, we examine the role of social comparisons, i.e., how an individual’s job satisfaction is driven not only by changes in his wages, but also by the size of these changes relative to wage changes within his reference group. Results from an individual fixed effects regression indicate that wage increases have a statistically significant positive effect on job satisfaction. This effect exhibits a dynamic pattern. We observe an anticipation effect of a positive wage change, i.e., individuals are more satisfied with their job one year ahead of the wage increase. Also, we find statistically significant positive, but declining effects on job satisfaction four years after the wage increase, i.e., partial adaptation. We find that an additional increase in job satisfaction is obtained when the individual’s wage increase exceeds the average wage increase for his reference group. However, this effect does not appear to persist, as it is only statistically significant in the first period after the wage change. JEL-Classification: J28, M50, M52
The Role of Decision Rationality on Users' Attitudes toward Utilitarian Mobile Service Usage

Organizations in various industries have emphasized the need to use mobile information and communication technologies (mICTs) to deliver utilitarian services. Firms need to understand how users make routine and unexpected use decisions in order for their utilitarian mobile services (UMSs) to gain market acceptance. In this study, we empirically tested a theoretical model that examined how both affective attitude and cognitive attitude influence both routine and unexpected UMS use and the role of decision rationality in the process. We tested our model using two independent empirical studies. The results show that affective attitude had a stronger effect than cognitive attitude on routine use, while cognitive attitude had a stronger effect than affective attitude on the unexpected UMS use. Furthermore, decision rationality weakened the effects that affective attitude had on both routine use and unexpected use but strengthened the effects that cognitive attitude had on the routine use of UMSs. Our results advance knowledge on: 1) users’ behaviors when they use UMSs, 2) the effect that attitude components have on use at different levels of decision rationality, and 3) the underlying mechanism for our mixed findings about the effect of both affective and cognitive attitudes. These findings also provide insights for practitioners on how to promote their services among consumers.
A SURVEY OF PARASITE PATHOGENS IN STRAY DOGS FROM PUDU PASAR AND CHOW KIT AREA OF KUALA LUMPUR

Stray dogs are carriers of several zoonotic diseases such as leishmaniasis and canine monocytic ehrlichiosis (CME) as a result of poor nutrition, low hygienic conditions and lack of veterinary care. Thus, the Veterinary Research Institute (VRI) conducted a survey to determine the parasite pathogens such as blood protozoans, gastrointestinal parasites and ectoparasites in stray dogs with the collaboration of the Kuala Lumpur City Council Pest Control Unit. Skin, organ, faecal and blood samples were analysed and results indicate that Babesia canis, Babesia gibsoni, Ehrlichia canis, Hepatozoon canis and microfilaria of Dirofilaria immittis are the common parasites species found in the blood and organ samples in 2014. The faecal floatation technique showed the presence of helminth ova such as Trichuris, Ancylostoma and Toxocara species. All skin samples were positive for Rhipicephalus sanguineus ticks. As strays are closely linked to human habitats such as market and housing areas, it is vital that stray population control is strategically implemented to safeguard these common zoonotic infections from spreading to humans.
Temporal trends in Podarcis muralis and Lacerta bilineata populations in a fragmented landscape in western France: Results from a 14 year time series

Identifying population changes is a prerequisite for any conservation efforts, but to evaluate trends requires long-term data sets. In this paper, changes in population numbers in two species of European lizards, Lacerta bilineata and Podarcis muralis, are described. The results are based on counts of mortalities and live lizard presence on roads collected over a 14 year period, which indicated wide annual fluctuations in numbers in both species, with inter-specific annual trends strongly correlated. Snout to vent lengths (SVL) in L. bilineata were generally longer when annual numbers were higher but not in P. muralis. Regression analysis of the logarithmic transforms of annual lizard numbers as dependent variables and year as the independent variable indicated that despite population fluctuations, numbers of both species were stable or increased during the period of observation. Jackknife analysis identified unusually high numbers of L. bilineata in 2012 and P. muralis in 2010, but data from these years had minimal influence on the general trends with the peudo-regression coefficients generated from the Jackknife analysis in agreement with the true regressions. The results were therefore congruent, indicating annual fluctuations in both species were underpinned by long-term population stability.
Cannabinoids in the Treatment of Epilepsy: Current Status and Future Prospects

Abstract Cannabidiol (CBD) is one of the prominent phytocannabinoids found in Cannabis sativa, differentiating from Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) for its non-intoxicating profile and its antianxiety/antipsychotic effects. CBD is a multi-target drug whose anti-convulsant properties are supposed to be independent of endocannabinoid receptor CB1 and might be related to several underlying mechanisms, such as antagonism on the orphan GPR55 receptor, regulation of adenosine tone, activation of 5HT1A receptors and modulation of calcium intracellular levels. CBD is a lipophilic compound with low oral bioavailability (6%) due to poor intestinal absorption and high first-pass metabolism. Its exposure parameters are greatly influenced by feeding status (ie, high fat-containing meals). It is mainly metabolized by cytochrome P 450 (CYP) 3A4 and 2C19, which it strongly inhibits. A proprietary formulation of highly purified, plant-derived CBD has been recently licensed as an adjunctive treatment for Dravet syndrome (DS) and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS), while it is being currently investigated in tuberous sclerosis complex. The regulatory agencies’ approval was granted based on four pivotal double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trials (RCTs) on overall 154 DS patients and 396 LGS ones, receiving CBD 10 or 20 mg/kg/day BID as active treatment. The primary endpoint (reduction in monthly seizure frequency) was met by both CBD doses. Most patients reported adverse events (AEs), generally from mild to moderate and transient, which mainly consisted of somnolence, sedation, decreased appetite, diarrhea and elevation in aminotransferase levels, the last being documented only in subjects on concomitant valproate therapy. The interaction between CBD and clobazam, likely due to CYP2C19 inhibition, might contribute to some AEs, especially somnolence, but also to CBD clinical effectiveness. Cannabidivarin (CBDV), the propyl analogue of CBD, showed anti-convulsant properties in pre-clinical studies, but a plant-derived, purified proprietary formulation of CBDV recently failed the Phase II RCT in patients with uncontrolled focal seizures.
Cohesin promotes interactions across domain boundaries to regulate gene expression

Abstract The mammalian genome has been segmented into thousands of topologically associated domains (TADs) based on chromosome conformation capture studies, such as Hi-C. TADs have been proposed to act as insulated neighborhoods, spatially sequestering and insulating the enclosed genes and regulatory elements through self-association and chromatin looping. Recent results indicate that inter-TAD interactions can also occur. However, the nature, extent, and function of these inter-TAD interactions remains unclear. Here, we combine Hi-C data with Oligopaint technology to precisely visualize neighboring TADs and quantify their interaction frequency in human cells. We find that intra-TAD interactions are indeed more enriched than inter-TAD interactions. However, we also observe extensive intermingling between neighboring domains in the majority of cells. Moreover, we find that cohesin depletion, which is known to abolish TADs at the population-average level, does not induce ectopic interactions but instead reduces interactions between neighboring domains. We find that cohesin loss preferentially alters locus topology and transcriptional bursting frequencies at genes close to domain boundaries, potentially explaining the gene expression changes observed in the cohesinopathy Cornelia de Lange syndrome. Together, our results challenge the notion that cohesin forms spatially insulated domains to regulate gene expression. Instead, we propose that cohesin normally antagonizes domain insulation by frequently bypassing boundaries to promote proper gene regulation at a subset of boundary-proximal genes.
Two dimensional simulation of laminar flow by three- jet in a semi-confined space

Abstract Equipment performance improvement in a wide range of working conditions is one of the major goals of aerodynamics. This goal can be achieved by the deformation of the object being examined or by using flow control techniques in active or inactive modes. In different researches, how to change the development ratio on the semi-confined space with input jet system is surveyed. In this study, two-dimensional simulation of the flow has been investigated in three-jet laminar flow in a semi-confined space. To determine the effective and optimal mixing in a laminar flow, critical Reynolds numbers were determined to distinguish when the flow in the channel from a steady-state symmetric flowformed downstream recirculation and ultimately transient flow. To better understand the flow characteristics, the simulations were changed at a fixed jet spacing (input jets distance to height of space ratio). Also, in this paper, for comparison, four jets were considered. Based on the results, it was observed that in all cases, mixing occurred in the space between three jets. Placing the jet along the walls of the semi-confined space allows the best combination, and increase in the distance between the first and third jets and reduction of the particle coefficient caused to reach the critical Reynolds number faster and, as a result, mixing in a laminar flow with geometric changes of the semi-confined space.
ICT Infrastructure Set and Adoption of Filipino and Indonesian SHS Students: Application of UTAUT

ICT infrastructure generates abundant benefits to every country's educational progress. This study aims to explore the acceptance and utilization of ICT among senior high school (SHS) students in the Philippines and Indonesia using the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT). A survey questionnaire was administered to 529 Senior High School students through convenience sampling. Structural equation modelling (SEM) was conducted to analyse the data using EQS 6.1 software. A confirmatory factor analysis and path analysis was also performed to test the model. The results reveal that among the predictors of behavioral intentions, only social influence positively influences behavioral intention or acceptance to use ICT for learning and research. Facilitating conditions and behavioral intention directly predicts the behavioral use. The findings reveal behavioral similarity and difference between Filipino and Indonesian senior high school students on the adoption of ICT.
Approximate Dynamic Inversion for Nonaffine Nonlinear Systems With High-Order Mismatched Disturbances and Actuator Saturation

In this paper, a novel disturbance-observer-based approximate dynamic inversion (ADI) approach is developed for pure-feedback nonaffine-in-control nonlinear systems (PFNNSs) in the presence of both high-order mismatched disturbances and actuator saturation. Finite-time disturbance observers (FTDOs) are utilized to estimate the disturbances and their derivatives. Then, we rebuild the system with the outputs of FTDOs. Thereafter, ADI is employed to derive the desired virtual and actual control of the nominal system, where no disturbances and saturation are presented. Furthermore, an augmented intermediate subsystem is constructed for the reduced slow subsystem to compensate for the difference between inputs with and without saturation by approximating its inversion. The stability of the closed-loop system is studied using Tikhonov’s theorem. The proposed method is applied to a numerical example and a one-link robotic system with a brush DC motor. The simulation results demonstrate the validity of the presented approach.
Electrical conduction in dielectric elastomer transducers

Dielectric elastomers are considered to be promising materials for applications in energy harvesting, haptic interface or biomedical actuation, thanks to their high energy density and attractive efficiency. Nevertheless, the performance of dielectric elastomer transducers (DETs) are affected by losses, especially losses induced by leakage current. This work reports an extensive investigation into the stability of the current-time characteristics of VHB4910 dielectric elastomers, currently in use for such applications. It should be noted that conductive pastes that act as compliant electrodes play an important role in the behavior of the current. The Schottky current is thus disturbed at the electrode — elastomer interface and an increase in current is observed over time when the device is subjected to electrical voltages over long periods of time. Pre-stress, commonly applied for application using VHB4910, influences also significantly the electrical response. Thus, for a same stretching of the material, asymmetric stretching is preferred over symmetric stretching in order to obtain a lower leakage current. This difference in behavior is explained by the fact that the polymer chains are stretched in preferential directions which will then lead to specific responses of both the dipoles and other conduction mechanisms such as hopping. Finally, a simple analytical model is proposed to report the current behavior in these materials according to the nature of the electrodes and the pre-stretching applied.
A Multi-Objective Target-Oriented Cooperative MAC Protocol for Wireless Ad-hoc Networks With Energy Harvesting

In this paper, we present a cross layer cooperative medium access control (CMAC) protocol with energy harvesting (EH) capability. The small energy capacity and size of wireless nodes pose a great challenge to the longevity of wireless networks due to the cost of ensuring a reliable communication link between transmitting nodes characterized by path-loss, shadowing and fading effects. Besides, the inability of existing CMAC protocols to exhibit multi-objective target orientation limits their adaptation to the dynamic network requirements. To address this problem, we propose a protocol that harnesses the radio frequency (RF) EH in the physical layer to enhance the throughput, end to end delay, energy efficiency and network lifetime of energy constraint wireless networks. This ensures that beneficial cooperation is achieved in fairness and multi-objective target-oriented protocol. We then investigate the performance of deploying a selective time-switching relaying (TSR) and power-splitting relaying (PSR) schemes in the MAC layer stack for a decode-and-forward (DF) reactive relaying distributed network. In addition, the quality of service requirement, outage probability, and network lifetime optimization techniques, respectively were utilized for optimal power allocation. Also, we propose a distributed and adaptive relay selection algorithm to select the best helper node that improves the network performance and balance the network energy consumption. The results of simulation show that a multi-objective target orientation can be achieved by the proposed EH-CMAC protocol and outperforms EAP-CMAC protocol with respect to throughput, end to end delay, network lifetime and energy efficiency.