Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Calculation of Investment Portfolios with Risk Free Borrowing and Lending

We consider the problem of portfolio selection for a risk averse investor wishing to allocate his resources among several investment opportunities in order to maximize the expected utility of final wealth. The calculation of the optimal investment proportions generally requires the solution of a stochastic program whose dimension is the number of risky investments. The computations are simplified dramatically when there is a risk free asset and the investment returns are jointly normally distributed. In this case Tobin has shown that the investment proportions in the risky assets are independent of the utility function and Lintner has shown that these proportions may be obtained from the solution of a fractional program. It is shown under mild hypotheses that the fractional program has a pseudo-concave objective and that the program always has a unique solution. The solution may be sought in several ways, perhaps moat efficiently via Lemke's algorithm applied to a linear complementarity problem. The optimal investment proportions in all assets may be found by solving a stochastic program having one random variable and one decision variable via a search technique. Data on the major pooled Canadian equity pension funds were used to provide an empirical test of the suggested solution approach. Five common classes of utility functions were utilised with varying parameter values. For each class there are smooth curves that related the investment in the risk free asset to the parameters of the utility function. The investor is more risk averse when faced with quarterly data.
Developing Global Segments and Forecasting Market Shares: A Simultaneous Approach Using Survey Data

Managers who introduce a new product into the global market must answer critical questions about market size, market responsiveness, and segmentation strategy. Current methods provide a piecemeal approach toward answering these questions. This article provides a new integrated method. The author uses survey-based discrete-choice methodology coupled with latent-class models to identify responsive global segments for a new global satellite-based paging service. The findings reveal seven distinct segments in terms of price responsiveness, size, and market potential. The author shows how these data can be used to develop target segments and marketing strategies. The study adds to the growing literature on international segmentation and pricing.
Party policy equilibrium for alternative spatial voting models: An application to the Norwegian Storting

In recent years a lively debate has emerged concerning the empirical status of the traditional proximity spatial model versus a directional model of voter choice. The central reason for this scholarly interest concerns these models' contrasting implications for parties' policy positioning, with the directional model motivating parties to present extreme policies, but the proximity model promoting centrist positions. To this point, however, there exist no studies that compute parties' optimal strategies in historical elections, for these competing models. This article addresses this issue, by examining party policy strategies in a multiparty electorate for three different vote models: (a) the proximity model, (b) a directional model (c) a mixed model which combines proximity and directional components. Each model incorporates past voting history and the random effects of unmeasured variables. Using parameter estimates derived from analyses of survey data from the 1989 Norwegian Election Study we compute – for each of these vote models – the configuration of party policy positions that maximize each party's vote share in relation to those of the other parties. We find that for each model, such a vote-maximizing configuration exists, but – for the proximity model – represents an unrealistic, tightly clustered array. A mixed proximity-directional model, however, provides by far the most convincing account of parties' actual policy strategies with regard to dispersion and vote share.
Sub-sampling-after-wild bootstrap inference on long-run linkages between the CDS and credit spreads

The contribution of this study is twofold. First, we propose a new methodology to test for robust linkages between the non-stationary credit default swap (CDS) spreads and the credit spreads on the same reference company by employing sub-sampling-after wild bootstrap trace test on cointegration. We identify strong long-run co-movements between the simulated CDS and credit spreads on several companies. Second, we propose a new methodology to compute the Value-at-Risk by regression quantiles in terms of the implications of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision as tool to measure the market risk by employing simulated CDS spreads. We show that the volatility of CDS spreads clusters over time and report volatility shock observed in the middle of 2007.
P3I-5 A 3D Registration Method for US/PET Multi-Modality Small Animal Tumor Imaging

Small animal models have been used extensively in disease research, genomics research, drug development and developmental biology Non-invasive, small animal imaging with adequate spatial resolution and sensitivity is therefore beneficial to such research fields. In particular, multi-modality small animal imaging can provide complementary image information and is therefore of great interest. In this paper, a method for registering high frequency ultrasonic images (microUS) with microPET images is presented. A registration phantom with six multi-modality image markers is custom-designed and placed in the small animal holder. The multi-modality image marker is made of a glass bead with 0.43-0.60 mm diameter and 1 mul [18F] FDG is placed in each marker position. The small animal holder is used to transfer mice between the microPET (R4, Concord Microsystems, Knoxville, TN) and the microUS systems (CLI 1500Ti, Capistrano Labs, San Clemente, CA). Multi-modality imaging is performed on C57BL/6J black mice bearing WF-3 ovary cancer cells from the second week after tumor implantation. Rigid body image registration of the six markers is performed. The average registration error is 0.37 mm when all six markers are used. Also, the target registration error increases when the number of markers decreases. After image registration, image segmentation and fusion is then performed for the tumor. With the multi-modality small animal imaging method, the structural information from microUS can be combined with the functional information from microPET. The proposed method has been shown to be an effective tool for cancer research
Dimer initiation sequence of HIV-1Lai genomic RNA: NMR solution structure of the extended duplex.

The genome of all retrovirus consists of two copies of genomic RNA which are noncovalently linked near their 5' end. A sequence localized immediately upstream from the splice donor site inside the HIV-1 psi-RNA region was identified as the domain responsible for the dimerization initiation. It was shown that a kissing complex and a stable dimer are both involved in the HIV-1Lai RNA dimerization process in vitro. The NCp7 protein activates the dimerization by converting a transient loop-loop complex into a more stable dimer. The structure of this transitory loop-loop complex was recently elucidated by Mujeeb et al. In work presented here, we use NMR spectroscopy to determine the stable extended dimer structure formed from a 23 nucleotides RNA fragment, part of the 35 nucleotides SL1 sequence. By heating to 90 degrees C, then slowly cooling this sequence, we were able to show that an extended dimer is formed. We present evidence for the three dimensional structure of this dimer. NMR data yields evidence for a zipper like motif A8A9.A16 existence. This motif enables the surrounding bases to be positioned more closely and permit the G7 and C17 bases to be paired. This is different to other related sequences where only the kissing complex is observed, we suggest that the zipper like motif AA.A could be an important stabilization factor of the extended duplex.
Contribution of Phe-7 to Tat-Dependent Export of β-Lactamase in Xanthomonas campestris

ABSTRACT Strains of Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris isolated in Taiwan are commonly resistant to ampicillin owing to the constitutive expression of a chromosomally encoded β-lactamase that is secreted into the periplasm. In this study, we found that levels of β-lactamase vary among X. campestris pv. campestris strains, a difference that can be attributed to amino acid substitutions at least at positions 7 and 206, with the former having the major impact. Bioinformatic and PCR analyses indicated that X. campestris pv. campestris possesses tatABC genes and that the signal peptide of X. campestris pv. campestris pre-Bla contains the typical twin-arginine motif (N-R-R-Q-F-L at amino acid residues 3 to 8 in strain X. campestris pv. campestris strain 11), suggesting that Bla is secreted via the Tat pathway. To assess the importance of Phe7 in the efficient export of X. campestris pv. campestris Bla, we prepared mutant constructs containing amino acid substitutions and monitored their expression by measuring enzyme activity and detecting Bla protein by Western blotting. The results indicate that replacement of Phe7 with Leu severely inhibited Bla export whereas replacement with Pro almost abolished it. Although a change to Arg caused moderate inhibition of export, replacement with Tyr had no effect. These results suggest that for efficient export of Bla by X. campestris pv. campestris, the aromatic-aromatic interactions and stability of protein structure around the twin-arginine motif are important, since only proteins that can attain a folded state in the cytoplasm are competent for export via the Tat pathway.
THE LONG-TERM “OPTIMAL” REAL EXCHANGE RATE AND THE CURRENCY OVERVALUATION TREND IN OPEN EMERGING ECONOMIES: THE CASE OF BRAZIL

We present a Structuralist-Keynesian theoretical approach on the determinants of the real exchange rate (RER) for open emerging economies. Instead of macroeconomic fundamentals, the long-term trend of the real exchange rate level is better determined not only by structural forces and long-term economic policies, but also by both short-term macroeconomic policies and their indirect effects on other short-term economic variables. In our theoretical model, the actual real exchange rate is broken down into long-term structural and short-term components, both of which may be responsible for deviations of that actual variable from its long-term trend level. We also propose an original concept of a long-term “optimal” real exchange rate for open emerging economies. The econometric models for the Brazilian economy in the 1999–2011 period show that, among the structural variables, the GDP per capita and the terms of trade had the largest estimated coefficients correlated with the long-term trend of the RER in Brazil. As to our variables influenced by the short-term economic policies, the short-term interest rate differential and the stock of international reserves reveal the largest estimated coefficients correlated with the long-term trend of our explained variable. The econometric results show two basic conclusions: first, the Brazilian currency was persistently overvalued throughout almost all of the period under analysis; and second, the long-term “optimal” real exchange rate was reached in 2004. According to our estimation, in April 2011, the real overvaluation of the Brazilian currency in relation to the long-term “optimal” level was around 80 per cent. These findings lead us to suggest in the conclusion that a mix of policy instruments should have been used in order to reverse the overvaluation trend of the Brazilian real exchange rate, including a target for reaching the “optimal” real exchange rate in the medium and the long-run.
Integration of uniform porous shell layers in microfabricated pillar array columns by electrochemical anodization

Electrochemical anodization has been applied to grow 300 nm thick porous shell layers in 5 μm diameter silicon pillars. These pillars are positioned in a triangular grid with 2.5 μm spacing to form a pillar array columns (PAC) for liquid chromatography. The uniformity of the porous layer was assessed by determining local plate heights along the column length, which appeared to be constant. Minimal plate heights between 4 to 6 μm were obtained at optimal flow rates and for different retention factors. Using the retention surface involved in retention as an indicator of the available surface, an increase in surface by a factor of 30 was found when comparing to non-porous columns. A commercial capillary LC instrument was modified to perform 2 nl sized injections which allowed more than 80% of the on-chip generated performance (expressed in theoretical plates) to be maintained when coupling a 1m long column to an external UV-detector. As the corresponding pressure drop for optimal operation is typically around 10 bar per m and the maximal pressure that can be applied is in the order of max of 350 bar, very long PACs, well capable of delivering much more than 1 million theoretical plates are within sight.
Turkey and the European Union: Modernizing a Traditional State?

This paper discusses the difficulties encountered when reforms are attempted to the administration of public policy in Turkey. This discussion is timely, since Turkey has recently stepped up its modernization agenda in its drive to gain membership of the European Union. The paper briefly examines the political and administrative structure of Turkey before discussing the influence of the EU on the country's modernization agenda.
The value of coordination in manufacturer-customer relationships

This paper studies the relationship between a manufacturer and his customer. In the traditional setting, the customer manages her own inventory and places replenishment orders that are made-to-order by the manufacturer. Recently, supply chain initiatives such as Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) have changed the traditional customer-manufacturer relationship. In a VMI relationship, the manufacturer becomes responsible for the management of his customer? s inventory. Often, costs associated with inventory keeping are transferred from the customer to the manufacturer. Because of this cost transfer, VMI typically is more expensive for the manufacturer. However, being responsible for the inventory management, the manufacturer can coordinate the production and inventory control decisions. It is the goal of this paper to show how the manufacturer can realize this coordination. Moreover, we present a framework to categorize several VMI relationship types. We give insights on the structure of the problem as well as some insights on opportunities for cost savings. The insights are illustrated by numerical examples, which show that the value of coordination can be subtantial in many cases.
Unexpected Benefit of a Social Parasite for a Key Fitness Component of Its Ant Host

Numerous invertebrates inhabit social insect colonies, including the hoverfly genus Microdon, whose larvae typically live as brood predators. Formica lemani ant colonies apparently endure Microdon mutabilis infections over several years, despite losing a considerable fraction of young, and may even produce more gynes. We present a model for resource allocation within polygynous ant colonies, which assumes that whether an ant larva switches development into a worker or a gyne depends on the quantity of food received randomly from workers. Accordingly, Microdon predation promotes gyne development by increasing resource availability for surviving broods. Several model predictions are supported by empirical data. (i) Uninfected colonies seldom produce gynes. (ii) Infected colonies experience a short-lived peak in gyne production leading to a bimodal distribution in gyne production. (iii) Low brood∶worker ratio is the critical mechanism controlling gyne production. (iv) Brood∶worker ratio reduction must be substantial for increased gyne production to become noticeable.
The Total Economic Value of Sporting Events Theory and Practice

The production and consumption of the sporting event generates not only positive externalities (social peace and social links, etc.), butalso negative ones (hooliganism and doping, etc.). Therefore, it is necessary to try to internalize these external effects and determine the total economic value of the sporting event, which would measure the real net social utility created. On this basis, it would be possible to decide whether sporting events deserve to be subsidised—and at whatlevel. More than the general principle that the economic calculation can provide to make a decision, such a determination of the total economic value of a sporting event poses formidable methodological problems. In the case study presented, the authors believe they have reduced many of the biases attached to the travel costs method and contingent valuation method. However, faced with the shortcomings of the cost/benefit method (even when expanded), it is nowadays recommended to resort to a deliberative approach with a view to providing some help in making a decision.
Assessing the Variability of Tax Elasticities in Lithuania

This paper quantifies the variability of tax elasticities in Lithuania using two alternative methods: rolling regressions and pooled mean group estimator. The analysis is motivated by the systematic variation of tax revenues observed over the economic cycle in the recent past. Both methods confirm that tax elasticities moved with the cycle, which can be attributed to the procyclical tax compliance tendencies and structural composition effects across tax bases. Comparison of VAT revenue gaps across Baltic countries during the recent recovery suggests that tax revenues rebounded fastest in Estonia, followed by Lithuania and Latvia. Overall, the results of the study emphasize the importance of accounting for cyclical variation in tax elasticities when making short-term tax revenue projections.
Wage Indexation and Output Stability Revisited

Since Gray (1976) and Fischer (1977), the accepted view is that wage indexation stabilizes output when shocks are nominal and destabilizes output when shocks are real. This paper examines this proposition's validity when wage indexation is based on lagged inflation. It shows that (i) in a Gray-Fischer economy with plausible parameters, indexing wages to lagged inflation destabilizes output regardless of the type of shocks; (ii) the Gray-Fischer result may be restored if nominal shocks have a strong direct effect on prices, given wages; (iii) wage indexation to lagged inflation can be neutral for output stability if monetary policy is accommodative.
Past, current and future trends in tobacco use

This paper first estimates the number of tobacco users in 2000 and cigarette consumption from 1970 to 2000 by regions and levels of development and briefly discusses the advantages and disadvantages of estimating tobacco use on the basis of prevalence surveys or aggregate data. Secondly, prevalence (and its associated number of smokers) and cigarette consumption (total and per capita) are projected in the future using several scenarios of changes in tobacco use (prevalence and cigarette consumption), as well as different assumptions about population and income growth. The results show that even if all countries immediately implement a comprehensive set of tobacco control policies, the reduction in the number of tobacco users and the total consumption of cigarettes will be gradual. This should give comfort to farmers and others who fear the impact of tobacco control on their livelihoods. It is however, discouraging news for public health, since it implies that the number of tobacco attributable deaths will continue to rise for decades to come.
Automatic initialization for active contour model in breast cancer detection utilizing conventional ultrasound and Color Doppler

Regular examination of breasts may prevent and help to cure because breast cancer is treatable when it is detected early. Therefore, a breast cancer screening modality being sensitivity and cost-effective like ultrasonic imaging modality (US), is strongly required. In addition, the combination of a conventional US and its adjunct, Color Doppler has been proved for decreasing the rate of false-positive in breast cancer diagnosis. Thus, combination of these imaging modalities in a breast cancer segmentation would provide some benefits as well. An effective method for feature segmentation, active contour model has been widely utilized for decades. A crucial stage that affects the performance of active contour model is the initialization. This paper proposes a novel method for an automatic initialization of active contour model designed specifically for US-based imaging modalities. The method estimates an initial contour by utilizing the fusion of conventional US and Color Doppler. Examples and comparisons with three state-of-the-art automatic initialization methods are demonstrated to present the advantages of the proposed method. The evaluation results show high accuracy of initialization as well as fast convergence to features of interest.
Symmetry in evolutionary and estimation of distribution algorithms

Symmetry has hitherto been studied piecemeal in a variety of evolutionary computation domains, with little consistency between the definitions. Here we provide formal definitions of symmetry that are consistent across the field of evolutionary computation. We propose a number of evolutionary and estimation of distribution algorithms suitable for variable symmetries in Cartesian power domains, and compare their utility, integration of the symmetry knowledge with the probabilistic model of an EDA yielding the best outcomes. We test the robustness of the algorithm to inexact symmetry, finding adequate performance up to about 1% noise. Finally, we present evidence that such symmetries, if not known a priori, may be learnt during evolution.
Oncogene TUBA1C promotes migration and proliferation in hepatocellular carcinoma and predicts a poor prognosis

The prognostic biomarkers and potential therapy targets are urgently needed in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In this article, we report the expression of TUBA1C was significantly increased in HCC on mRNA and protein level, and this finding was further validated in another two independent datasets. Survival analysis was also implemented on these three datasets, and TUBA1C high expression group was detected to have relative shorter survival time. Furthermore, the metastatic ability is increased along with TUBA1C abundance, according to protein abundance evaluation of normal-tumor-portal vein tumor thrombus pairs, and mRNA comparison between metastasis-averse HCC and metastasis-incline HCC. Correlation analysis was implemented and TUBA1C expression was shown to be significantly associated with recurrence, embolus, and AFP level. Proliferation and migration assays following knock down of TUBA1C in two cell lines, HCCLM3 and PLC, revealed that down-regulation of TUBA1C significantly reduces proliferation and migration in HCC cells. in vivo study also showed the similar results. Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA) comparing the TUBA1C-low and TUBA1C-high group indicates that KEGG pathways including “cell cycle”, “DNA replication”, and “proteasome” were significantly enriched in TUBA1C-high group. In conclusion, prognostic biomarker and oncogene TUBA1C promotes migration and proliferation of hepatocellular carcinoma cells, probability via cell cycle signaling pathway.