Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Benefit segmentation of potential wellbeing tourists

The purpose of this study is to segment tourists according to the benefits they seek from a tourism destination. These segments are examined in order to find attractive segments for local wellbeing products. Segmentation in the context of wellbeing and wellness provides companies information on what kind of tourists are most interested in buying wellbeing products and contributes to the existing segmentation theory by using data driven segmentation in a situation where traditionally common-sense segmentation is used. The literature surrounding benefit segmentation in tourism is reviewed in order to find the benefits tourists might think of as important. The results of K-means cluster analysis show that tourists in the Savonlinna region, Finland, can be divided into four segments. The segments differ from each other in the benefits they seek and in interest in wellbeing holidays, but are quite similar regarding to their socio-demographic factors. This study shows that data-driven segmentation can be used to find markets for a certain product instead of a priori segmentation. The results also show that benefits sought have a strong influence on customer behavior but little in common with socio-economic factors, which proves the usefulness of benefit segmentation in tourism. Based on the results, tourism companies can find the most suitable segments for their offerings.
A Cross-National Study of Corporate Governance and Employment Contracts

Corporate governance (CG) can be seen to operate through a double agency relationship: one between the shareholders and corporate management, and another between the corporate management and the firm's employees. The CG and labour management of firms are closely related. A particularly productive way to study how CG affects and is affected by the employment relationship has been to compare CG across countries. The contributions of this paper to that literature are threefold. (1) An integration of aspects of the labour management literature in the CG debate. (2) Based on a sample of about 1000 firms from 31 countries, we find evidence of complementarities between the CG and the labour management of firms. Extreme cases, in general, outperform mixed cases. (3) Firm differences within countries are more important than scholars have assumed so far. We present the results of the study and implications for future research and for practice.
Key feature extraction for probabilistic categorization of human motion patterns

Mimesis is a hypothesis that human intelligence originated where motion recognition and motion generation interact through imitation. We previously proposed the mathematical model of mimesis using hidden Markov models (HMM) and constructed the proto symbol space from parameters of each HMM. The proto symbol space included only 10 motion patterns. No attention was paid on the relationship between behavior pattern and parts of body. It is common that a human observer pays an attention to the relationship between the parts of body and the behaviors recognizing performer's behavior pattern. In this paper, we discuss key feature extraction from a rich database of behavior patterns based on probabilistic categorization among HMMs. The method is also applied to extract body parts that characterize behavior patterns
An evolutionary conserved element is essential for somite and adjacent mesenchymal expression of the Hoxa1 gene

The murine Hoxa1 gene is a member of the vertebrate Hox complex and plays a role in defining the body plan during development. At day 8.0–9.0 post coitus, Hoxa1 transcripts are detected extensively throughout the embryo in the neural tube, adjacent mesenchyme, paraxial mesoderm, somites and gut epithelium; expression extends from the most caudal region of the embryo to the rhombomere 3/4 border. This spatiotemporal expression of Hoxa1 mRNA is critical for normal embryonic development. We have previously identified a 10 bp element, called CE2, which is located approximately 3 kilobases 3′ of the Hoxa1 coding region in the RAIDR5 enhancer, and which binds to an approximately 170 kd protein in retinoic acid treated P19 embryonal carcinoma cells. CE2 elements were also identified 3′ of the murine Hoxb1 gene, the chicken Hoxb1 gene and the human Hoxa1 gene. To examine the role of this CE2 element in regulating Hoxa1 expression in vivo, transgenic mice were generated which express a Hoxa1 β‐galactosidase reporter gene that contains a mutation in the CE2 element. Relative to transgenic mice bearing a wild type CE2 element, the mutant CE2 construct recapitulated rhombomeric, neural, and gut epithelium expression but failed to show β‐galactosidase expression in somites and adjacent mesenchymal tissue. Gel shift analysis showed that binding activity similar to that detected in extracts prepared from retinoic acid treated P19 cells was present in nuclear extracts prepared from day 9.0 embryos. However, an additional binding complex not detected in P19 cells was also observed. These results indicate that in transgenic animals, the evolutionary conserved CE2 element is a somite and adjacent mesenchymal enhancer of Hoxa1 expression. Dev. Dyn. 1998;211:97–108. © 1998 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Hedging strategies for wind renewable generation in electricity markets

Due to the increasing concern over the environmental impact and sustainability of conventional fossil-fueled power plants, renewable energy sources are becoming an important part of the generation mix in many electricity markets. In particular, wind power has taken an active role in the Spanish system by participating both in the day-ahead spot market and in the base-load energy auctions organized every three months to cover a percentage of the demand of the distribution companies. In this framework, besides the inherent variability and unpredictability of the wind power, wind producers face also the market price uncertainty. This paper presents a general overview of the problems faced by a wind producer participating in an electricity market, and it compares two formulations (LP and MILP) of a two-stage stochastic model to solve the problem of coordinating the joint operation of a wind farm and a supporting hydro pumped-storage unit.
A Nonlinear Analytical Optimization Method for Standard Cell Placement of VLSI Circuits

We present an analytical method to perform VLSI standard cell placement. We have developed a placement engine based on analytical methods that makes use of non-linear programming. At first we cluster a net list to reduce the number of cells. In the second step we perform quadratic optimization on the reduced net list. Finally we use conjugate gradient method for solving non-linear equations for the problem. The framework of our tool, Kapees2, is scalable and generates high quality results. We obtain results for IBM version 2 benchmarks which show promising results. Our placer outperforms Capo, Amoeba, NTUPlace3 and feng shui by 7%, 12%, 2% and 1%, respectively.
Activity Theory as a Theoretical Framework for Health Self-Quantification: A Systematic Review of Empirical Studies

Background Self-quantification (SQ) is a way of working in which, by using tracking tools, people aim to collect, manage, and reflect on personal health data to gain a better understanding of their own body, health behavior, and interaction with the world around them. However, health SQ lacks a formal framework for describing the self-quantifiers’ activities and their contextual components or constructs to pursue these health related goals. Establishing such framework is important because it is the first step to operationalize health SQ fully. This may in turn help to achieve the aims of health professionals and researchers who seek to make or study changes in the self-quantifiers’ health systematically. Objective The aim of this study was to review studies on health SQ in order to answer the following questions: What are the general features of the work and the particular activities that self-quantifiers perform to achieve their health objectives? What constructs of health SQ have been identified in the scientific literature? How have these studies described such constructs? How would it be possible to model these constructs theoretically to characterize the work of health SQ? Methods A systematic review of peer-reviewed literature was conducted. A total of 26 empirical studies were included. The content of these studies was thematically analyzed using Activity Theory as an organizing framework. Results The literature provided varying descriptions of health SQ as data-driven and objective-oriented work mediated by SQ tools. From the literature, we identified two types of SQ work: work on data (ie, data management activities) and work with data (ie, health management activities). Using Activity Theory, these activities could be characterized into 6 constructs: users, tracking tools, health objectives, division of work, community or group setting, and SQ plan and rules. We could not find a reference to any single study that accounted for all these activities and constructs of health SQ activity. Conclusions A Health Self-Quantification Activity Framework is presented, which shows SQ tool use in context, in relation to the goals, plans, and competence of the user. This makes it easier to analyze issues affecting SQ activity, and thereby makes it more feasible to address them. This review makes two significant contributions to research in this field: it explores health SQ work and its constructs thoroughly and it adapts Activity Theory to describe health SQ activity systematically.
Whatever Happened to "Asian Values"?

The discourse contrasting the defects of “Western” individualism and democracy with the virtues of “Asian” communitarianism and good governance, which blossomed during East and Southeast Asia’s economic boom, has withered since the financial bust of 1997–98. Economic crisis seems to be a particularly effective form of ideological critique. “Asian values,” adieu? The most prominent contributions to the discussion of “Asian values” were made by East and Southeast Asian government officials and their critics in journals such as Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, and the Journal of Democracy. This debate received international attention because the assertion that Asian cultural particularity justified the rejection of liberal democracy was matched by impressive economic results. Countries in other regions had earlier employed similar particularistic cultural arguments, but without much success. For example, several sub-Saharan African dictators in the 1970s asserted that their rule accorded with “African traditions,” but obvious economic failings undercut their claims. In East and Southeast Asia, by contrast, three decades as the world’s fastest-growing region made the “Asian challenge” much more interesting than anti-Western positions of the past. “Asian authoritarians,” the Economist wrote in 1992, “argue from a position of economic and social success. ” The recent financial crisis in the region, however, has undermined the international prestige of “Asian values. ” Having been forced onto the defensive, senior Singaporean government official Tommy Koh no longer attempted to convince an international audience of the merits of Mark R. Thompson is professor of political science at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg and a visiting scholar at the University of California–Berkeley. He has written on dictatorship and democratization in Asia and Eastern Europe and is author of The Anti-Marcos Struggle: Personalistic Rule and Democratic Transition in the Philippines (1995).
Identification and Classification of Intermittent Demand Patterns

Intermittent demand is often defined as random demand with a large proportion of zero values. However, the terms 'intermittent demand', 'lumpy demand' and 'erratic demand' are used interchangeably in the literature. There is also a widely held misconception that low demand items are, by definition, intermittent in nature. In this paper, we show that the term intermittent demand includes at least three distinct sub-groups of demand patterns that we call lumpy, limited and erratic. We define the three distinct demand patterns and provide a step-by-step method for classifying items as members of each demand pattern. We provide examples of each demand pattern using inventory data from the US Navy. Finally, we discuss some preliminary strategies for dealing with each distinct demand pattern.
The qSafe Project – Developing a Model-based Tool for Current Practice in Functional Safety Analysis

Functional safety analysis (FSA), that is checking whether a designed artifact will perform safely even under the presence of failing components, has gained significant importance in different areas, including aeronautic and automotive systems. The same applies to failure-modes-andeffects analysis (FMEA) and fault-tree analysis (FTA) as the major contributing processes. FSA is laborand timeconsuming as well as error-prone, and would benefit from computer-based tool-support. Work on qualitative-modelbased systems has developed principled solutions, particularly to FMEA, but not made the step to industrial practice. Rather than novel technical contributions, this paper discusses reasons for this fact and describes the qSafe project, which aims at overcoming the obstacles and at making a major step towards tools that can support current practice.
The De Novo Q167K Mutation in the POU1F1 Gene Leads to Combined Pituitary Hormone Deficiency in an Italian Patient

The POU1F1 gene encodes a transcription factor that is important for the development and differentiation of the cells producing GH, prolactin, and TSH in the anterior pituitary gland. Patients with POU1F1 mutations show a combined pituitary hormone deficiency with low or absent levels of GH, prolactin, and TSH. Fourteen mutations have been reported in the POU1F1 gene up to now. These genetic lesions can be inherited either in an autosomal dominant or an autosomal recessive mode. We report on the first Italian patient, a girl, affected by combined pituitary hormone deficiency. The patient was found to be positive for congenital hypothyroidism (with low TSH levels) at neonatal screening. Substitutive therapy was started, but subsequent growth was very poor, although psychomotor development was substantially normal. Hospitalized at 10 mo she showed hypotonic crises, growth retardation, delayed bone age, and facial dysmorphism. In addition to congenital hypothyroidism, GH and prolactin deficiencies were found. Mutation DNA analysis of the patient's POU1F1 gene identified the novel Q167K amino acid change at the heterozygous level. The highly conserved Q167 residue is located in the POU-specific domain. No mutation was detected in the other allele. DNA analysis in the proband's parents did not identify this amino acid substitution, suggesting a de novo genetic lesion. From these data it can be hypothesized that the Q167K mutation has a dominant negative effect.
3D Hand-Object Pose Estimation from Depth with Convolutional Neural Networks

Estimating the 3D pose of a hand interacting with an object is a challenging task, harder than hand-only pose estimation as the object can cause heavy occlusion on the hand. We present a two stage discriminative approach using convolutional neural networks (CNN). The first stage classifies and segments the object pixels from a depth image containing the hand and object. This processed image is used to aid the second stage in estimating hand-object pose as it contains information regarding the object location and object occlusion. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first attempt at discriminative one shot hand-object pose estimation. We show that this approach outperforms the current state-of-theart and that the inclusion of a segmentation stage to learned discriminative single stage systems improves their performance.
Elites' and Voters' Attitudes towards Austerity Policies and their Consequences in Greece and Portugal

This article analyses the attitudes of the political elite and voters in Greece and Portugal vis-à-vis the Troika bailouts, austerity policies and the attribution of responsibilities for the crisis. Using both elite and mass surveys with similar questions, the article explores to what extent the elites and voters share similar attitudes, what might explain possible differences between these two groups and between the two countries and what this information can tell us about the quality of political representation in Greece and Portugal. The differences between the countries are explained mainly by the severity of the crisis and austerity policies in each country, but also by the diversity of political conditions.
Analysis on gas and oil export intensity changes of MENA countries: recent changes and drivers

Based on the methodology employed by Bhattacharyya and Blake (Analysis of oil export dependence of MENA countries: drivers, trends and prospects. Energy Policy, 38, 2, 1098–1107, 2010), this article analyses the oil and gas export intensities of the Middle Eastern and North African economies, using the decomposition method to identify factors of the intensity changes. We update Bhattacharyya and Blake's (2010) results in several ways. First, this article employs the Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index method, which does not allow for the existence of unexplained residuals, for the decomposition. Second, one of the main oil exporters, Oman, is newly included in the analysis. Third, we extend the decomposition analysis to ‘gas’ export intensities for Algeria and Qatar, the current leading gas exporters. Finally, all the results are updated using the most recently available data (∼2011).
Managing Demand Risk in Tactical Supply Chain Planning for a Global Consumer Electronics Company

We consider the problem of managing demand risk in tactical supply chain planning for a particular global consumer electronics company. The company follows a deterministic replenishment‐and‐planning process despite considerable demand uncertainty. As a possible way to formally address uncertainty, we provide two risk measures, “demand‐at‐risk” (DaR) and “inventory‐at‐risk” (IaR) and two linear programming models to help manage demand uncertainty. The first model is deterministic and can be used to allocate the replenishment schedule from the plants among the customers as per the existing process. The other model is stochastic and can be used to determine the “ideal” replenishment request from the plants under demand uncertainty. The gap between the output of the two models as regards requested replenishment and the values of the risk measures can be used by the company to reallocate capacity among different products and to thus manage demand/inventory risk.
Development of social, environmental, and economic indicators for a small/medium enterprise

Purpose - A growing number of companies are measuring the sustainability performance of their businesses. Some companies are using pre-existing sustainability indicator systems to assess their performance. Other companies are looking beyond measurement of impacts to create their own system of indicators to measure sustainability. Formulating relevant indicators of sustainability performance is a difficult task for any organization, but especially for small/medium enterprises (SMEs) that often lack financial, knowledge, and labor resources. The purpose of this paper is to consider two different sustainability assessment approaches undertaken by a single case study company, a start-up SME. Design/methodology/approach - The authors developed a method for an SME, Ecologic Designs, Inc., a self-identified green business that reclaims materials to make bags and accessories, to create its own sustainability indicators without outside expert help. This research chronicles the struggles and triumphs of the SME in measuring its sustainability performance using a pre-existing system and then using the developed method. Findings - The SME's managers applied the developed method to create, select, and weight sustainability indicators to help answer a strategic planning decision – where to locate operations and facilities in an expanding supply chain. Originality/value - The paper describes the struggles and triumphs of a start-up SME in measuring its sustainability performance using a pre-existing system and then using the developed method.
Updated standardized endpoint definitions for transcatheter aortic valve implantation: the Valve Academic Research Consortium-2 consensus document (VARC-2).

OBJECTIVES The aim of the current Valve Academic Research Consortium (VARC)-2 initiative was to revisit the selection and definitions of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) clinical endpoints to make them more suitable to the present and future needs of clinical trials. In addition, this document is intended to expand the understanding of patient risk stratification and case selection. BACKGROUND A recent study confirmed that VARC definitions have already been incorporated into clinical and research practice and represent a new standard for consistency in reporting clinical outcomes of patients with symptomatic severe aortic stenosis (AS) undergoing TAVI. However, as the clinical experience with this technology has matured and expanded, certain definitions have become unsuitable or ambiguous. METHODS AND RESULTS Two in-person meetings (held in September 2011 in Washington, DC, USA, and in February 2012 in Rotterdam, Netherlands) involving VARC study group members, independent experts (including surgeons, interventional and non-interventional cardiologists, imaging specialists, neurologists, geriatric specialists, and clinical trialists), the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and industry representatives, provided much of the substantive discussion from which this VARC-2 consensus manuscript was derived. This document provides an overview of risk assessment and patient stratification that need to be considered for accurate patient inclusion in studies. Working groups were assigned to define the following clinical endpoints: mortality, stroke, myocardial infarction, bleeding complications, acute kidney injury, vascular complications, conduction disturbances and arrhythmias, and a miscellaneous category including relevant complications not previously categorized. Furthermore, comprehensive echocardiographic recommendations are provided for the evaluation of prosthetic valve (dys)function. Definitions for the quality of life assessments are also reported. These endpoints formed the basis for several recommended composite endpoints. CONCLUSIONS This VARC-2 document has provided further standardization of endpoint definitions for studies evaluating the use of TAVI, which will lead to improved comparability and interpretability of the study results, supplying an increasingly growing body of evidence with respect to TAVI and/or surgical aortic valve replacement. This initiative and document can furthermore be used as a model during current endeavours of applying definitions to other transcatheter valve therapies (for example, mitral valve repair).