Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
What a drop can do: Dried blood spots as a minimally invasive method for integrating biomarkers into population-based research

Logistical constraints associated with the collection and analysis of biological samples in community-based settings have been a significant impediment to integrative, multilevel biodemographic and biobehavioral research. However, recent methodological developments have overcome many of these constraints and have also expanded the options for incorporating biomarkers into population-based health research in international as well as domestic contexts. In particular, using dried blood spot (DBS) samples—drops of whole blood collected on filter paper from a simple finger prick— provides a minimally invasive method for collecting blood samples in nonclinical settings. After a brief discussion of biomarkers more generally, we review procedures for collecting, handling, and analyzing DBS samples. Advantages of using DBS samples—compared with venipuncture—include the relative ease and low cost of sample collection, transport, and storage. Disadvantages include requirements for assay development and validation as well as the relatively small volumes of sample. We present the results of a comprehensive literature review of published protocols for analysis of DBS samples, and we provide more detailed analysis of protocols for 45 analytes likely to be of particular relevance to population-level health research. Our objective is to provide investigators with the information they need to make informed decisions regarding the appropriateness of blood spot methods for their research interests.
The Learning Value of the Job as a Driver of Employee Commitment and Job Satisfaction in Public Organisations

The transformation of Poland’s public organisations poses new challenges for their employees. Growing social expectations regarding the quality of social services increase the importance of employees’ development and commitment. This requires that special attention be paid to the learning value of the job, which not only enhances employees’ commitment to the organisation but also positively influences their development and job satisfaction. This paper attempts to answer the question: what is the extent of the learning value of jobs in organisations in the public sector and is the learning value of the job connected with organisational commitment of employees and their job satisfaction? Empirical research is used in service to answering these questions.
Restriction and dependence to autonomy and freedom: Transformation in adolescent heart transplant recipients

The process of heart transplantation poses numerous challenges and adaptive tasks for paediatric patients and their families. Few studies have examined how the experience of transplant interacts with developmental transitions such as adolescence, a period of significant change, and adjustment in itself. We explored adolescent heart transplant recipients' and their parents' experience of transplant from the point at which their heart condition was diagnosed to several months after transplantation. We adopted a developmental focus, to consider how participants negotiated the tasks of adolescence in the context of their transplant experiences. A qualitative approach was used to interview five adolescent–parent dyads, who reported few post‐transplant complications, and the data were analysed according to the principles of IPA. Our findings revealed transplant to be a transformative experience, with two themes marking a contrast between pre‐ and post‐transplant states: “Restriction and Dependence” and “Autonomy and Freedom. ” The themes are considered in relation to adolescent development. We propose that clinicians working with paediatric heart transplant recipients and their families need to consider the particular developmental challenges faced by adolescent patients and view the attainment of developmental milestones alongside physical and psychological markers of successful adjustment.
UK Competitiveness: moving to the next stage

The DTI drives our ambition of 'prosperity for all' by working to create the best environment for business success in the UK. We help people and companies become more productive by promoting enterprise, innovation and creativity. We champion UK business at home and abroad. We invest heavily in world-class science and technology. We protect the rights of working people and consumers. And we stand up for fair and open markets in the UK, Europe and the world. The ESRC is the UK's largest funding agency for research and postgraduate training relating to social and economic issues. It provides independent, high-quality, relevant research to business, the public sector and Government. The ESRC invests more than £76 million every year in social science and at any time is supporting some 2,000 researchers in academic institutions and research policy institutes. It also funds postgraduate training within the social sciences to nurture the researchers of tomorrow. Foreword The persistence of the productivity gap with our main competitors is a key issue in UK economic policy-making. In order to understand this problem better, the DTI and the ESRC asked Professor Michael Porter, of the Institute of Strategy and Competitiveness at Harvard Business School, to investigate the current state of UK competitiveness. Professor Porter points to the UK's recent success in raising prosperity. He demonstrates the UK's strengths in terms of science and engineering, its supportive market framework, and its improved macroeconomic environment. However, he highlights continued weaknesses in terms of skills, clusters of interconnected companies and innovation. The most valuable message is that the UK needs a new conception of competitiveness. In the past, the UK has been very successful in implementing key market-based reforms: deregulation, privatisation and competition. But these aspects of industrial policy are now running into diminishing returns. Professor Porter argues that the UK now needs an approach focussed on improving skills, stimulating innovation and fostering enterprise. It is only by building such capacity, that we will be able to move to the next stage of improving competitiveness and achieve sustained higher levels of prosperity. In addition to his policy recommendations, Professor Porter has set out an ambitious research agenda for the UK. Both the DTI and ESRC are committed to improving the state of knowledge about the UK economy in order to provide a robust evidence base for future policy development. Much of this work will be carried out through AIM, …
Interactive Verification of Call-by-Value Functional Programs

A mechanized proof of total correctness enables one to verify a program with utmost confidence. Yet, setting up a methodology for reasoning formally on nontrivial code written in a generalpurpose language has appeared to be a highly challenging task. In this paper, we propose a framework for modular verification of purely functional code. By embedding the syntax and semantics of a call-by-value functional language in a proof assistant, we are able to specify programs through lemmas describing their big-step behaviour, and to verify programs through proofs of such lemmas. Our framework imposes no restriction on the code, apart from its purity, and from a logical perspective is as expressive as the theorem prover being used. The practical result of this work is a technology for proving total correctness of pure Caml programs using the Coq proof assistant. We have applied our approach to fully specify and verify OCaml’s list library as well as a bytecode compiler and interpreter for mini-ML.
TASK A-1: Motivations Behind Electronic Road Pricing. What is the Driving Force Behind the Worldwide Rise in Tolling? A Review of Innovative Road Pricing from Across the Globe

This report examines the motivations behind and objectives of various road pricing initiatives. Through a series of case studies, it looks at the forces behind the growing shift in transportation policy to electronic pricing. Following the case studies, a synthesis of common motivational themes behind the implementation of electronic road pricing is presented. The case studies focus on facility congestion tolls, cordon tolls, weight-distance truck tolls, mileage-based user fees, and electronic roadway tolling.
Implementation of Content Based Video Classification Using Hidden Markov Model

The video classification algorithm is designed based on Hidden Markov Model (HMM) by targeting mobile applications. The DM3730 processor on Beagle Board-xM is chosen for the implementation as this type of processors are suitable for the design requirements of many mobile devices. To solve the dimensionality problem of video content representation, key frame extraction, wavelet transform and clustering are applied. The feature set is derived based on the color and edge information in the video. A symbol sequence is generated through Clustering process based on feature vectors derived from the video. This is used as an input to the HMM. A separate HMM is used for each class and decisions are made on the outputs of HMM classifiers for assigning corresponding class label to unknown video. The algorithm is tested on three different genres of videos such as sports, news and cartoon and achieved the classification accuracy of 92%.
Network connectivity based power-aware routing algorithm for Mobile Ad Hoc Networks

Mobile Ad Hoc Network (MANET) is a decentralised network, which consists of mobile nodes. In this paper, we propose an efficient routing algorithm for the MANETs. Here, we use two metrics namely minimum total transmission power and network connectivity over the network. The proposed work has been simulated using.Net and has compared with the existing algorithms such as DSR, Minimum Total Transmission Power Routing (MTPR) and Min-Max Battery Cost Routing (MMBCR). The simulation results have proved that the proposed model has reached at top position in terms of the number of nodes with zero-remaining energy and throughput. If the mobility of the node is 25 m/s, then the proposed model, MTPR model, MMBCR model and AODV model have transmitted 68%, 50%, 59% and 62% of the data packets, respectively. At 700 s, the number of nodes with zero-remaining energy in the proposed model is 5, whereas in the AODV model, MTPR model and MMBCR model the number of nodes with zero-remaining energy was 39, 22 and 7, respectively.
Centralized Scheme for Joint Relay Selection and Channel Access in Partially-Sensed Cognitive Radio Cooperative Networks

In cognitive radio (CR) cooperative networks, the applicable relay scheduling and channel access directly affect the system. However, in practical system, the CR sensor is bound to sensing error. This may lead to low system performance and interfering with primary users. In this paper, we present a learning based centralized scheme for joint relay scheduling and channel access scheme in CR cooperative networks. Specifically, we formulate the joint relay scheduling and channel access problem as a partially observable Markov decision process (POMDP) system, where the most likely channel state is derived by a learning process. The optimal policy is derived by solving the problem. Extensive simulation results show the effectiveness of our proposed scheme.
Signal integrity: Efficient, physics-based via modeling: Integration of striplines

In the first article of this series, principles and methods of physics-based via modeling were discussed. It was shown how the electromagnetic behavior of vias can be captured by an equivalent circuit based modeling approach that describes all relevant full-wave effects. In this follow-up article, the authors present an approach to integrate striplines into the physics-based via model. The striplines can be located at any layer of the stackup and they may constitute both single and multiconductor transmission lines. The integration of striplines extends the via representation to a full, efficient interconnect model of, for instance, printed circuit board signal links. An intuitive integration approach at a circuit simulator level and application examples are discussed in this article as well.
Hyperspectral Image Classification Using Graph Clustering Methods

Author(s): Meng, Z; Merkurjev, E; Koniges, A; Bertozzi, AL | Abstract: © 2017 IPOL a the authors CC-BY-NC-SA. Hyperspectral imagery is a challenging modality due to the dimension of the pixels which can range from hundreds to over a thousand frequencies depending on the sensor. Most methods in the literature reduce the dimension of the data using a method such as principal component analysis, however this procedure can lose information. More recently methods have been developed to address classification of large datasets in high dimensions. This paper presents two classes of graph-based classification methods for hyperspectral imagery. Using the full dimensionality of the data, we consider a similarity graph based on pairwise comparisons of pixels. The graph is segmented using a pseudospectral algorithm for graph clustering that requires information about the eigenfunctions of the graph Laplacian but does not require computation of the full graph. We develop a parallel version of the Nystrom extension method to randomly sample the graph to construct a low rank approximation of the graph Laplacian. With at most a few hundred eigenfunctions, we can implement the clustering method designed to solve a variational problem for a graph-cut-based semi-supervised or unsupervised classification problem. We implement OpenMP directive-based parallelism in our algorithms and show performance improvement and strong, almost ideal, scaling behavior. The method can handle very large datasets including a video sequence with over a million pixels, and the problem of segmenting a data set into a pre-determined number of classes.
Estimation by Least Squares and by Maximum Likelihood

Although statements to the contrary are often made, application of the principle of least squares is not limited to situations in which p is normally distributed. The GaussMarkov theorem is to the effect that, among unbiased estimates which are linear functions of the observations, those yielded by least squares have minimum variance, and the independence of this property from any assumption regarding the form of distribution is just one of the striking characteristics of the principle of least squares. The principle of maximum likelihood, on the other hand, requires for its application a knowledge of the probability distribution of p. Under this principle one estimates the parameters a, , so that, were the estimates the true values, the probability of the total set of observations of p would be maximum. This principle has great intuitive appeal, is probably the oldest existing rule of estimate, and has been widely used in practical applications under the name of "the most probable value. " If the pi's are normally distributed about P1 with or0 independent of Pi, the principle of maximum likelihood yields the same estimate as does least squares, and Gauss is said to have derived least squares from this application. In recent years, the principle of maximum likelihood has been strongly advanced under the influence of the teachings of Sir Ronald Fisher, who in a renowned paper of 1922 and in later writings [1] outlined a comprehensive and unified system of mathematical statistics as well as a philosophy of statistical inference that has had profound and wide development. Neyman [2] in a fundamental paper in 1949 defined a family of estimates,
Educational Needs of Southern Forest Landowners

South-central United States forest landowners were surveyed to determine their forestry-related educational needs and appropriate methods for promoting effective programs covering desired topics. The majority of respondents had not participated in past educational programs because they were unaware of their existence. Therefore, forestry professionals and university Extension personnel should inform and encourage nonindustrial private forest (NIPF) landowners to take advantage of available opportunities. They should also use tax rolls to develop forest landowner databases. Once developed, newsletters, pamphlets, brochures, or letters should be mailed to increase forest landowner knowledge and awareness of forestry-related educational programs and activities.
THE IMPACT OF FOREIGN INVESTMENT FLOWS ON CROATIAN ECONOMY - A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

The aim of this paper is to analyze and compare foreign investment trends in the countries of the last wave of accession to the European Union. The analysis is made on the basis of foreign direct investment and foreign debt fl ows in those countries for the period 1989-2006. The comparative analyses of both fl ows suggest that there was a wide difference in effi ciency of those fl ows, which is partly explained by the character of foreign direct investment (Greenfi eld versus equity investments). The main conclusion of the paper is that regardless of the volume of infl ows, the national investment policy might have considerable impact on the real growth of the economy.
Islamic credit card users' satisfaction : a comparative study

Customer satisfaction (CS) is critical to success in banking. However, there is little agreement on which antecedents can be employed to achieve it. Moreover, in the context of Islamic banking, religiosity plays a major role in affecting customers’ choice of bank and banking satisfaction. In response, this thesis developed an Islamic religiosity scale measurement and an integrated model of customer satisfaction for Islamic credit-card users. In particular, this thesis sought to investigate the role of religiosity and antecedents of Islamic credit-card users’ satisfaction. Furthermore, it presented and discussed empirical findings from mixed methods approach employing semi-structured interviews of seven respondents and an online survey of 560 credit-card users in Malaysia. The study used confirmatory and structural equation modelling to examine the survey data. The findings of this thesis largely support the hypothesised relationships proposed in the theoretical model. Specifically, the results revealed that the functional service quality (FSQ), technical service quality (TSQ) and the religious and ethical service quality (RESQ) are crucial and differ in affecting customer satisfaction. The results also provide strong evidence that religiosity moderates between the antecedents and customer satisfaction. Most importantly, Shari’ah compliance and ethical dimensions (constructs in RESQ) are necessary determinants of Islamic credit-card users’ satisfaction. This thesis contributes to the existing theoretical and practical knowledge by providing, for the first time, an Islamic religiosity scale measurement. Secondly, evidence is presented that religiosity plays a significant contribution towards the customer satisfaction model. Thirdly, the integration of FSQ, TSQ and RESQ creates a comprehensive Islamic customer satisfaction model. Fourthly, since the integrated model involves religious factors (i.e. Shari’ah compliance), religiosity contributes to the variation of customer satisfaction. The inclusion of Shari’ah compliance, ethical dimensions, technology and communication as first order constructs and FSQ, TSQ and RESQ as second order constructs contribute to the body of customer satisfaction and Islamic banking literature. The findings imply the need for the banks to lever on the key antecedents of customer satisfaction, which include Shari’ah compliance and ethical dimensions. Keywords: Islamic Banking, Islamic Credit Cards, Customer Satisfaction, Religiosity, Functional Service Quality, Technical Service Quality, Religious and Ethical Service Quality, Shari’ah Compliance
Gap analysis on expectation of service quality in the outsourcing strategy of property maintenance and management context

In this paper an investigation and analysis of expectation gaps on service quality for property maintenance and management (PMM) outsourcing strategy are reported. In particular, the proposed OUTQUAL model with 13 identified service quality criteria was put forward and divided into two sub criteria for each to examine the expectation gaps of service providers and clients towards the significance of each sub criteria. Result shows small gaps between the expectations of both service provider and client groups and depict the extent of improvement needed by service provider to fully achieve service quality level expected by the client in PMM outsource services delivery.
Flip-chip bonded 0.85-μm bottom-emitting vertical-cavity laser array on an AlGaAs substrate

We report high-performance 0.85-/spl mu/m bottom-emitting vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) on an AlGaAs substrate with 2.1 mA threshold current density 4.2 mW maximum output power, 11.7% power conversion efficiency and a maximum operating temperature of 130/spl deg/C. We also demonstrate a flip-chip bonded 0.85-/spl mu/m bottom-emitting VCSEL array, and confirm all pixels across the 8/spl times/8 VCSEL array operate at a f/sub 3/ dB bandwidth of 2.6 GHz at only 4.2 mA.
Implementation of the IDEFICS intervention across European countries: perceptions of parents and relationship with BMI

The primary aim of the present study was to obtain insight into parents' perception of the IDEFICS intervention at the school or preschool/kindergarten and community levels and whether they received specific materials related to the intervention. The secondary aim was to analyse whether parents who reported higher levels of exposure to the IDEFICS intervention had children with more favourable changes in body mass index (BMI) z‐scores between baseline and after 2 years of intervention.
Robust strategy planning for UAV with LTL specifications

This paper presents a high level strategy planning framework for the UAV, in which the strategy planning problem under uncertain conditions is abstracted into Markov Decision Processes with uncertain parameters, and the mission requirements are specified using Linear Temporal Logic Language. The objective is to compute a robust satisfying policy to maximize the robustness to the uncertainty while satisfying the desired requirements of system performance or the mission specification. The info-gap decision model is used to describe the uncertain parameters of MDP, i.e., the transition probability, and thus we propose a new model as Info-gap based MDPs (IMDPs). The LTL formula of mission specifications is converted to Deterministic Rabin Automaton (DRA). A product IMDP is constructed by combing the IMDP with DRA in the form of Cartesian product. Based on robust dynamic programming, we propose a robust satisfying policy generation algorithm to solve the product IMDP. An example of UAV high level strategy planning is given to verify our algorithm and the resulting policy can maximize the robustness while satisfying the mission specifications.