Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Residual force enhancement is affected more by quadriceps muscle length than stretch 1 amplitude 2 3

17 Little is known about how muscle length affects residual force enhancement (rFE) in humans. 18 We therefore investigated rFE at short, long, and very long muscle lengths within the human 19 quadriceps and patellar tendon (PT) using conventional dynamometry with motion capture 20 (rFE TQ ) and a new, non-invasive shear-wave tensiometry technique (rFE WS ). Eleven healthy 21 male participants performed submaximal (50% max.) EMG-matched fixed-end reference and 22 stretch-hold contractions across these muscle lengths while muscle fascicle length changes of 23 the vastus lateralis (VL) were captured using B-mode ultrasound. We found significant rFE TQ 24 at long (7±5%) and very long (12±8%), but not short (2±5%) muscle lengths, whereas rFE WS 25 was only significant at the very long (38±27%), but not short (8±12%) or long (6±10%) 26 muscle lengths. We also found significant relationships between VL fascicle length and rFE TQ 27 ( r =0.63, p =.001) and rFE WS ( r =0.52, p =.017), but relationships were not significant between 28 VL fascicle stretch amplitude and rFE TQ ( r =0.33, p =.126) or rFE WS ( r =0.29, p =.201). PT 29 shear-wave speed-angle relationships did not agree with estimated PT force-angle 30 relationships, which indicates that estimating PT loads from shear-wave tensiometry might be 31 inaccurate. We conclude that increasing muscle length rather than stretch amplitude 32 contributes more to rFE during submaximal voluntary contractions of the human quadriceps.
Using Divide and Conquer to Improve Tax Collection: Theory and Laboratory Evidence

We consider a government collecting taxes from a large number of tax-payers using limited enforcement capacity. Under random enforcement, limited capacity results in multiple equilibria: if most agents comply, limited enforcement is suﬃcient to dissuade individual misbehavior; if most agents do not comply, enforcement capacity is overstretched and fails to dissuade misbehavior. In settings without behavioral frictions, prioritized enforcement strategies can implement high collection as the unique rationalizable outcome. We investigate both theoretically and experimentally the extent to which this insight extends to environments with incomplete information and bounded rationality.
On Performance Tuning of Serverless IoT Applications

Cloud computing has become a predominant IT operation platform in the past decade. Small and large companies have been migrating their workloads to the cloud, and serverless architectures, such as container and Function as a Service (FaaS), are among the popular choices for cluster software deployments. Within this context, autoscaling, the ability to dynamically adapt the cluster capacity based on the current demand is pivotal for maintaining Quality of Service (QoS) and optimizing the cost in the presence of workload fluctuations. The first contribution of this thesis is a novel autoscaling solution that uses burstable instances along with regular instances to handle the queueing arising in traffic and flash crowds. In a second contribution, we evaluate different types of deployments for FaaS, and present three recommendations that developers can consider when deploying their workloads on the public cloud. Finally, we present a resource-aware dynamic load balancer component for edge computing platforms using one of the most fast-growing IoT services in the industry. The contributions are tested and validated on public clouds. burstable instances on the public cloud as the only of its kind fully validated and integrated on the Google Cloud Platform. We applied a known scaling model to validate our concept, and achieved promising results on both savings and resource efficiency. By replacing some of the conventional instances with burstable instances, BIAS Autoscaler was able to reduce the cost by 25% while maintaining the same service SLOs compared with traditional approaches using regular instances only. We evaluated BIAS Autoscaler under a transient queueing and a flash crowd experiment, and showed its efficiency on Google Cloud Platform on a microservice workload. The outcome of these performance experiments showed great potential to increase resource efficiency and reduce the cost. These results demonstrated that BIAS Autoscaler can increase resource efficiency by 42% without interfering with the quality of the service when using burstable instances.
Opportunies for Generative AI in UX Modernization 81-91

The process of application modernization consumes the effort of software development teams charged with upgrading legacy applications to modern technology, architecture, and design. While some tools exist to aid in these efforts, the modernization of an application’s user experience is an arduous and primarily manual undertaking. Through a process of user research and design exploration, we investigate how generative AI models might be used to assist software development teams in modernizing the user experience of legacy applications. Our goal is to identify opportunities for further research to aid teams involved in user experience modernization efforts.
Fast Sky Rendering for Daylight & Twilight

: Besides the simulation of daylight luminous intensity distribution for interior architecture, spectral rendering of the sky hemisphere has been a rather important task for the video game developers. A veridical panorama under vigorous conditions in real-time requires a credible sky model as well as a prompt algorithm. The main purpose of this work is confined to the generation of an interactive WEB application which can run on any general purpose device lacking dedicated graphics processing but still can achieve sub-second response time. A convincing clear/turbid sky reproduction for both daylight and twilight was possible thanks to the employment of a single-pass semi-analytical model without the necessity of any pre-computing or recursive numerical integration effort. The highly parameterized structure enables to experiment many meteorological variations such as turbidity, altitude or ozone layer thickness. The shadow of the Earth has been empirically included into the algorithm in order to construct the Venus Belt. Some rendered images are compared against real photographs to evaluate the soundness of the proposed framework. The imitation of the Martian sky appearance has further been demonstrated in order to reflect the flexibility of the model to diverse atmospheric compositions.
Teleological essentialism across development Forthcoming in Proceedings of the 44th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society

Do young children have a teleological conception of the essence of natural kinds? We tested this by examining how the preservation or alteration of an an- imal’s purpose affected children’s persistence judgments (N = 40, ages 4 - 12, M Age = 7.04, 61% fe- male). We found that even when surface-level features of an animal (e.g., a bee) were preserved, if the entity’s purpose changed (e.g., the bee now spins webs), children were more likely to categorize the entity as a member of a different natural kind (e.g., a spider) and these effects were similar in magnitude to altering the surface-features of a natural kind. Our results suggest that we might view teleological properties as partially constitutive of the essence of natural kinds.
Computational analysis of pattern generation in reduced vertebrate motor circuit models

Rhythmic behaviors such as breathing, walking, and scratching are vital to many species. Such behaviors can emerge from groups of neurons, called central pattern generators (CPGs), in the absence of rhythmic inputs. In vertebrates, the identification of the cells that consti- tute the CPG for particular rhythmic behaviors is difficult, and often, its existence has only been inferred. In the second and third chapters of this thesis, we use two reduced mathemat- ical models to investigate the capability of a proposed network to generate multiple scratch rhythms observed in turtles. Under experimental conditions, intact turtles generate sev- eral rhythmic scratch motor patterns corresponding to non-rhythmic stimulation of different body regions. These patterns feature alternating phases of motoneuron activation that occur repeatedly, with different patterns distinguished by the relative timing and duration of activ- ity of hip extensor, hip flexor, and knee extensor motoneurons. We show through simulation that the proposed network can achieve the desired multi-functionality, even though it relies on hip unit generators to recruit appropriately timed knee extensor motoneuron activity. We develop a phase space representation which we use to derive sufficient conditions for the network to realize each rhythm and which illustrates the role of a saddle-node bifurcation in achieving the knee extensor delay. This framework is harnessed to consider bistability and to make predictions about the responses of the scratch rhythms to input changes for future experimental testing. We also consider a stochastic spiking model to reproduce firing rate changes observed in experiment, explore the relative contributions of different parameters in the model to the observed changes, support our collaborators’ hypothesis regarding these changes, and provide our collaborators with predictions for future experiments. In the fourth chapter of this thesis, we present a theoretical study examining whether three mechanisms suggested by deletion experiments can operate in the same CPG for an extensor-flexor pair in the mammalian central nervous system during locomotion. We arrive at unique solution properties produced by each of the three mechanisms for use in future experiments. Our findings propose explanations for the coexistence of the three experimentally suggested yet seemingly contradictory mechanisms for rhythmogenesis.
Kernel Landmarks: An Empirical Statistical Approach to Detect Covariate Shift

Training an effective predictive model with empirical risk minimization requires a distribution of the input training data that matches the testing data. Covariate shift can occur when the testing cases are not class-balanced, but the training is. In order to detect when class imbalance is present in a test sample (without labels), we propose to use statistical divergence based on the Wasserstein distance and optimal transport. Recently, slicing techniques have been proposed that provide computational and statistical advantages for the Wasserstein distance for high-dimensional spaces. In this work we presented a computationally simple approach to perform generalized slicing of the kernel-based Wasserstein distance and apply it as a two-sample test. The proposed landmark-based slicing chooses a single point to be the sole support vector to represent the witness function. We run pseudo-real experiments using the MNIST dataset and compare our method with maximum mean discrepancy (MMD). We have shown that our proposed methods perform better than MMD on these synthetic simulations of covariate shift.
MONETARY AND FISCAL POLICY WHEN PEOPLE HAVE FINITE LIVES∗

We ﬁnd a suﬃcient condition for a three-generation Overlapping Generations (OLG) model to possess four steady-state equilibria and we show that our result also holds in a 62-generation model where the income process is calibrated to U.S. data. In our calibrated model, there exists a dynamically eﬃcient steady state equilibrium where money has positive value and where both the price level and the real interest rate are indeterminate. There are no frictions or rigidities of any kind other than the natural assumption that people are born and die at diﬀerent dates. Our paper is the ﬁrst to provide a long-lived example of an OLG model in which there exists an indeterminate steady state where money has value when both monetary and ﬁscal policy are active. Our work has implications for the question of which ﬁscal and monetary policies are welfare improving and which are not. that, in our calibrated model, there three autarkic rule three determinacy we ﬁnd for parameters, ﬁscal
“A Me Dis 1 ”: A Study of Jamaican Adolescent Identity Construction using a Graphical Measure

Susan Harter’s and Jacqueline Eccles’ extensive work with U.S. youth provides evidence that adolescents perceive themselves differently in, and identify to varying degrees with different life domains across the adolescent period (e.g., Harter, 1999; Eccles, 1999). These researchers have developed widely used numerical rating scales to measure how adolescents value life domains independent of each other; however; it appears that there has been no measure of how adolescents comparatively value life domains to form an integrated self-representation. Moreover, there is little knowledge about adolescent identity or self-representations among Caribbean youth. Thus, the present study adds to the current body of knowledge by piloting a simple graphical measure of relative life domain identification among early, middle, and late adolescents in Kingston, Jamaica ( N = 246). Adapted from research on new parents’ changing roles (e.g., Cowan & Cowan, 1988), the Identity Pie allowed Jamaican teenagers to construct graphical representations of themselves capturing the relative importance of 6 major life domains – family, schoolwork, religion, sports, friends, and dating. Participants also completed modified Harter and Eccles Importance/Valuing scales, and reported on academic, psychological, and behavioral adjustment. Overall, the Identity Pie demonstrated good content, construct and discriminant validity with the Modified Harter and Eccles scales and is offered as a promising new measure for use with other populations. As predicted, some aspects of domain identification in this sample were consistent with findings among North American adolescents, whereas other aspects appeared to be culturally determined. Many gender and grade differences emerged; however, the similarities across gender and grade were overwhelming. Finally, relatively high valuing of dating and strong peer vs. family orientations were related to negative adjustment, whereas strong identification with schoolwork and religion was related to positive adjustment.
Who Versus When: Designing Decision Processes in Organizations

This paper analyzes concurrent versus sequential decision-making in a model where two agents ﬁrst communicate and then make decisions, attempting to both adapt to their local conditions and coordinate with their partner. Sequential decision-making improves overall information sharing. However, ﬁrst movers also have an incentive to over-adapt to their state, knowing second movers will conform to their decision. Sequential decision-making is optimal if and only if the two units’ local conditions have suﬃciently diﬀerent volatilities or if their need to coordinate is suﬃciently asymmetric. Finally, this paper discusses the empirical literature on the optimal timing of decisions within ﬁrms through the lens of the model. (JEL D21, D23, D82)
Walmart Supercenters and Monopsony Power: How a Large, Low-Wage Employer Impacts Local Labor Markets

This paper considers the extent and impact of monopsony power exercised by Walmart Supercenters. I focus on Walmart as it has long been the largest private-sector employer in the U.S., and as it pays very low wages. Previous research into the ﬁrm’s labor market impact has yielded incongruous results, with little consensus on how to address identiﬁcation concerns regarding endogeneity of store entry. A more recent literature has also demonstrated that widely-used estimators are often subject to numerous sources of bias when units are treated at different times. I address these identiﬁcation concerns by adopting a stacked-in-event-time synthetic control approach to estimate average county-level labor market effects of the Walmart Supercenter roll-out across the U.S. Crucially, I construct the pools of synthetic control donor counties from novel observations of counties where Walmart tried to open a Supercenter but was blocked by local efforts. I ﬁnd Supercenter entry caused signiﬁcant reductions in local aggregate employment and earnings. Retail employment concentration grew, as retail employment initially jumped up before reverting to pre-entry levels. In counties with a Supercenter, subsequent exogenous minimum wage increases led to signiﬁcant growth in aggregate and retail employment. These results run counter to predictions for competitive labor markets, and indicate Walmart Supercenters gradually accumulated and exercised monopsony power in their local markets for labor, with negative consequences for workers.
Comparative performance study on liquid desiccant dehumidification with different packing types for built environment

Packed liquid desiccant dehumidification systems are regarded as energy-saving and environmentally friendly technologies compared with conventional dehumidification technologies. The packing type plays a significant role in the system performance, but comparative studies of the different types are limited. First, this article investigates the dehumidification performance of liquid desiccant dehumidification with three packing types: corrugated structured, S-shaped polyvinyl chloride, and globular-shaped polypropylene. Then, the operation performance of solar-assisted liquid desiccant air-conditioning systems with different packings is simulated. A commercial building in Hong Kong was chosen as the case study. Results show that each specific packing surface area and structure determines the dehumidification performance by significantly influencing the liquid/air contact area and time. The enthalpy and moisture effectiveness of the corrugated structured packing were found to be 1.69 and 1.60 times those of S-shaped polyvinyl chloride packing, and 1.97 and 1.87 times those of globular-shaped polypropylene packing. The main reason is that the corrugated structured packing has a denser structure with a smaller volume of individual modules, which could provide a large specific surface area, but the dehumidification performance did not increase proportionally with the specific surface area. When the specific surface area increased from 81.8 to 537.3 m2/m3, the enthalpy and moisture effectiveness increased from 0.35 to 0.6 and from 0.38 to 0.61, respectively. Furthermore, the simulation results showed that for the commercial building, the maximum electricity savings percentage for globular-shaped polypropylene packing liquid desiccant air-conditioning systems, S-shaped polyvinyl chloride packing liquid desiccant air-conditioning systems, and corrugated structured packing liquid desiccant air-conditioning systems was 11, 21, and 42%, respectively. For globular-shaped polypropylene packing liquid desiccant air-conditioning systems, a minimum solar collector area of 219m2 was required to avoid consuming more electricity. The authors also found that the dehumidification performance could be enhanced with an increase of desiccant/air mass flow rate ratio and inlet air temperature. This article will help researchers and engineers optimize the design of liquid desiccant air-conditioning systems with different packing types.
Detecting viewer-perceived intended vector sketch connectivity

Many sketch processing applications target precise vector drawings with accurately specified stroke intersections, yet free-form artist drawn sketches are typically inexact: strokes that are intended to intersect often stop short of doing so. While human observers easily perceive the artist intended stroke connectivity, manually, or even semi-manually, correcting drawings to generate correctly connected outputs is tedious and highly time consuming. We propose a novel, robust algorithm that extracts viewer-perceived stroke connectivity from inexact free-form vector drawings by leveraging observations about local and global factors that impact human perception of inter-stroke connectivity. We employ the identified local cues to train classifiers that assess the likelihood that pairs of strokes are perceived as forming end-to-end or T- junctions based on local context. We then use these classifiers within an incremental framework that combines classifier provided likelihoods with a more global, contextual and closure-based, analysis. We demonstrate our method on over 95 diversely sourced inputs, and validate it via a series of perceptual studies; participants prefer our outputs over the closest alternative by a factor of 9 to 1.
Pair Programming and the Factors Affecting Brooks'' Law

Software project managers often add new team members to late software projects with mixed results. Through his law, adding manpower to a late software project makes it later, Brooks asserts that the assimilation, training and intercommunication costs of adding new team members outweigh the associated team productivity gain in the short term. Our studies show that pair programming reduces these three costs and enables new team members to contribute to a team effort sooner when compared to teams where new team members work alone. Adding manpower to a late project will yield productivity gains to the team more quickly if the team employs the pair programming technique.
Determinism In Quantum Slit-Experiments

A mathematical model for the slit experiments in the heart of quantum mechanics is developed to gain insight into quantum ‎theory. The proposed system-theoretical model is entirely based on commutative mathematics, i.e. convolution, and integral ‎transformations, and starts with spacetime functions with inherent energy-based cause and effect relations of the state-‎function Ѱ in the complex Hilbert space. The benefits of his approach are as 1-Invariance in time reversal. 2-Deterministic ‎result functions in the model in line with the outcome of slit experiments. 3- Separation of causality and cross-correlations of ‎attained states. 4- Disappearance of a posteriori probability of quantum states. 5- Quantum a priori fixed states after ‎causality interactions have ended, (even) when quanta are (light-years) separated. The model predicts the patterns in the ‎experiments with mathematical functions of the energy distributions. The quantum mechanical counterpart description of the ‎physical reality of slit experiments thus may be considered complete in A. Einstein’s definition. The patterns in double slit ‎experiments are found to be an effect of energy (amplitude-) modulation. An equivalent double-slit pattern can be retrieved ‎from an input modulated 1-slit experiment excluding interference interpretations. The system-theoretical model uses generic ‎properties of quanta and evolves into determinism in ‎quantum mechanics slit experiments. The mathematics in the model ‎handles beables by treatment ‎of momentum p in system theoretical I/O relations of the transformed functions and allows the ‎proposed description by the avoidance of a direct addressing of the individual quanta through variables. The following ‎method yields exact, non-probabilistic results. ‎
Vortices and turbulence

Ladies and Gentlemen, tonight we pay homage to Frederick William Lanchester, Doctor of Laws, Fellow of the Royal Society who, having become interested in mechanical flight at the age of 21, while studying at South Kensington in 1889, entered the field of aeronautics in 1892 and continued to aid its development until his death in 1946. His great contributions to aeronautics were the discovery of the theory of the vortex motion of the lifting wing and that the key to successful flight lay in reducing the skin friction, which was far from being the negligible quantity that others such as Langley, whose name is forever remembered through NASA Langley Field, had stated earlier. All this was in 1893 to 1894 some ten years before the first flight of the Wright brothers. When asked later how he had successfully derived his great and momentous theory Lanchester simply stated; ‘it was a matter of logical deduction helped by experiment’. He vigorously defended his work as not being empirical but was soundly based on hydrodynamic theory.