Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Logic of Insurgent Electoral Violence

Competitive elections are essential to establishing the political legitimacy of democratizing regimes. We argue that insurgents undermine the state’s mandate through electoral violence. We study insurgent violence during elections using newly declassified microdata on the conflict in Afghanistan. Our data track insurgent activity by hour to within meters of attack locations. Our results suggest that insurgents carefully calibrate their production of violence during elections to avoid harming civilians. Leveraging a novel instrumental variables approach, we find that violence depresses voting. Collectively, the results suggest insurgents try to depress turnout while avoiding backlash from harming civilians. Counterfactual exercises provide potentially actionable insights for safeguarding at-risk elections and enhancing electoral legitimacy in emerging democracies. (JEL D72, D74, O17)
Effect of Phleomycin on Polyoma Virus Synthesis in Mouse Embryo Cells

The addition of phleomycin (25 μg) to primary mouse embryo cells infected with polyoma virus was found to cause 96% inhibition of the synthesis of infectious virus. When ribonucleic acid and protein synthesis was investigated in these cells by use of isotope incorporation, it was found that neither was inhibited drastically. Immunofluorescent staining studies with the use of antibody directed to the viral structural proteins showed that proteins were synthesized in the presence of the antibiotic. However, when deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) synthesis was investigated, it was found that DNA synthesis in uninfected cells was completely inhibited within the initial 10 hr of phleomycin addition, whereas DNA synthesis in infected cells proceeded at a reduced rate. Selective DNA extraction (Hirt method) of phleomycin-treated infected cells demonstrated that synthesized viral DNA was salt-extractable, similar to that in infected control cells lacking phleomycin. This extracted DNA was further fractionated by ethidium bromide-cesium chloride density gradient equilibrium centrifugation. The phleomycin-treated preparations revealed twice as much component II (circular nicked and linear) as component I (supercoiled) DNA, whereas the DNA from normally infected control cells showed the reverse picture. It was also demonstrated that viral particles synthesized in the presence of phleomycin did not contain component I DNA. This packaged DNA was found to consist of fragments of both the host and viral types. Cells that were prelabeled with 3H-thymidine and then treated with phleomycin demonstrated host DNA degradation. However, fragments formed from prelabeled host DNA were not encapsidated into viral particles.
Differential LC ladder LNA with proposed third-order active notch filter for UWB band group1

A proposed third-order active notch filter was developed for a LC ladder Low Noise Amplifier (LNA) applied for UWB band group1 in standard 0.13 µm CMOS technology. The notch filter eliminated interfering signal at 5.85 GHz and improved third-order input intercept point (IIP3) by 4.7 dB under interferences of 802.11a test. The measured maximum power gain was 15.87 dB at 4488MHz, minimum NF was 3.19 dB at 3960MHz that performs FOM of 1.3 (/mW) and measured P1dB was −16.82 dBm at 4488 MHz.
Cable properties of cat spinal motoneurones measured by combining voltage clamp, current clamp and intracellular staining.

1. Spinal alpha‐motoneurones were injected with horseradish peroxidase after measuring their voltage response to a brief current pulse and their current response to a small voltage step. 2. The morphology of each motoneurone was reconstructed from serial sections. The diameters and lengths of dendritic segments were used to build a compartmental model of each neurone's electrotonic structure. The specific resistivity of the membrane (Rm) was assumed to be constant throughout the dendrites, but it was lowered for the somatic membrane by the introduction of a somatic shunt resistance. 3. The specific resistances of the somatic and dendritic membrane were adjusted in the compartmental model until the responses of the model to the same current and voltage steps as those used in the experiment gave the best fits to the recorded transients. Satisfactory fits were obtained for six out of seven motoneurones. Dendritic Rm varied from 7 to 35 k omega cm2 and somatic Rm varied from 100 to 420 omega cm2. The dendritic Rm was 100‐300 times the somatic Rm for different neurones. 4. The calculated dendritic Rm was used to determine the geometric profile of the equivalent dendritic cable. This was found to be an approximately uniform cylinder for about 0.5 lambda and thereafter to taper rapidly to a final termination at 2‐3 lambda from the soma. 5. The results indicate that motoneurone dendrites are more electrically compact than was hitherto believed. The different Rm values for somatic and dendritic membrane, and the tapering of the dendritic cable, means that the cable model developed by Rall (1959, 1964) must be revised to take account of these spatial and electrical non‐uniformities.
Feasibility of oxaliplatin and infusional fluorouracil/leucovorin (FOLFOX4) for Japanese patients with unresectable metastatic colorectal cancer.

BACKGROUND A combination of oxaliplatin and infusional fluorouracil/leucovorin (FOLFOX4) is one of the standard regimens for palliative and adjuvant chemotherapy for colorectal cancer. However, the feasibility of FOLFOX4 for Japanese patients has not been determined. We conducted this prospective study to evaluate the feasibility of FOLFOX4. METHODS Previously treated or untreated patients with unresectable metastatic colorectal cancer were enrolled. The primary endpoint was the rate of completion which was defined as completion of the first 4 cycles with relative dose-intensity of oxaliplatin of 80% or higher. RESULTS Of the 32 enrolled patients, 31 received FOLFOX4. Twenty-four patients (75%) had received prior chemotherapy. The rate of completion of the first four cycles was 87% (27/31; 95% CI, 70.2-96.4%). With the median number of cycles of nine (range, 1-26), grade 3 or 4 hematological toxicity and non-hematological toxicity were seen in 12 (39%) and 5 (16%) patients, respectively. Grade 1 or 2 sensory neuropathy was seen in 28 patients (90%), but no grade 3 or 4 neuropathy was seen. Grade 1 or 2 allergic reaction was seen in five patients (16%). One patient developed fatal interstitial pneumonitis and died of respiratory failure. Objective response rate was 28.6% (6/21; 95% CI, 11.3-52.2%) in the patients with measurable lesions. Median progression-free survival was 6.5 months (95% CI, 4.6-8.5 months) in all patients. CONCLUSIONS The completion rate of the first four cycles was as high as expected with manageable toxicity, although fatal pneumonitis developed in one case. FOLFOX4 is feasible for Japanese patients.
Foreign direct investment in Vietnam : its determinants and impact on Vietnam's economic development

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) benefits the recipient country in a number of ways: it provides additional capital resources to finance investment activities in the country; and it often transfers new technologies, management and marketing skills into the host country. In many developing countries, special incentive measures to attract FDI have been granted by the host governments to foreign investors. Recognising the important role of FDI in economic development, Vietnam provides investment incentives with fewer requirements to foreign investors, allows foreigners to invest in any sector of the Vietnamese economy, and does not limit participation of foreign investors. After ten years of implementing modest investment policies, Vietnam has gained favourable initial results. FDI has increased rapidly since 1992. The rapid economic growth and import-substitution policies have been the most important factors attracting FDI flow into Vietnam. FDI has already made a significant contribution to Vietnam's economic development, and has become an important source of capital for the country's economy. However, the government policy that gives state-owned enterprises privileges over private ones, and policies of protectionism are distorting FDI away from taking advantage of Vietnam's low-cost labour. Moreover, the country's foreign investment legal systems are incomplete and constantly being modified; in the process of implementation, there is a gap between legislation and practice. This has had negative effects on FDI inflow to Vietnam, and limited benefits from FDI that Vietnam could have had in recent years. Thus, Vietnam has to improve, and adjust to become more attractive to foreign investors. The main guideline for further reform is that FD I can be made more effective by giving domestic and foreign investors the same treatment
A Traveling-Wave-Based Methodology for Wide-Area Fault Location in Multiterminal DC Systems

While in many applications, multiterminal dc (MTDC) systems are potentially appropriate substitutes for their ac counterparts, their protection problems still require more attention. This paper proposes a novel traveling-wave-based methodology for fault location in MTDC systems. The traveling-wave principle, along with two graph theory-based lemmas, is deployed to locate the fault by sectionalizing the graph representation of the MTDC system. Accordingly, the system of equations relating the fault inception time, fault point, and first arrival time at different converter locations would be derived and solved. The method merely needs the first surge arrival times, thereby eliminating the practical problems in relation to identifying subsequent traveling waves. More important, it successfully determines the fault location, regardless of the network topology complexity, that is, the number of its meshes and radial lines. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the method, it is applied to some complicated MTDC systems containing meshes and radial lines. Numerous simulation studies carried out for different conditions verify high accuracy, robustness against fault impedance, and noise immunity of the proposed method.
Active microelectronic chip devices which utilize controlled electrophoretic fields for multiplex DNA hybridization and other genomic applications

Microelectronic DNA chip devices that contain planar arrays of microelectrodes have been developed for multiplex DNA hybridization and a variety of genomic research and DNA diagnostic applications. These devices are able to produce almost any desired electric field configuration on their surface. This ability to produce well‐defined electric fields allows charged molecules (DNA, RNA, proteins, enzymes, antibodies, nanobeads, and even micron scale semiconductor devices) to be electrophoretically transported to or from any microlocation on the planar surface of the device. Of key importance to the device function is the permeation layer which overcoats the microelectrodes. The permeation layer is generally a porous hydrogel material that allows water molecules and small ions (Na+, CI−, etc.) to freely contact the microelectrode surface, but impedes the transport of the larger analytes (oligonucleotides, DNA, RNA, proteins, etc.). The permeation layer prevents the destruction of DNA at the active microelectrode surface, ameliorates the adverse effects of electrolysis products on the sensitive hybridization reactions, and serves as a porous support structure for attaching DNA probes and other molecules to the array. In order to maintain rapid transport of DNA molecules, facilitate hybriziation, and work within constrained current and voltage ranges, low conductance buffers and various electronic pulsing scenarios have also been developed. These active microelectronic array devices allow electrophoretic fields to be used to carry out accelerated DNA hybridization reactions and to improve selectivity for single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), short tandem repeat (STR), and point mutation analysis.
Aminoglycoside-Modifying Enzymes Among Clinical Isolates of Acinetobacter calcoaceticus subsp. anitratus (Herellea vaginicola): Explanation for High-Level Aminoglycoside Resistance

Acinetobacter calcoaceticus subsp. anitratus (Herellea vaginicola) is an important cause of nosocomial infection in our hospital where A. calcoaceticus subsp. anitratus is the most frequently isolated gram-negative species resistant to one or more of the aminoglycoside antibiotics. Of 167 strains tested for susceptibility to aminoglycosides, only 6 strains were found that were resistant to ≥128 μg of kanamycin per ml; all others were susceptible to ≤32 μg/ml. Five of these six strains were found to produce aminoglycoside-modifying enzymes. Two strains produced a phosphotransferase which mediates resistance to kanamycin and neomycin; three strains produced an acetyltransferase which mediates resistance to kanamycin, tobramycin, and amikacin (minimal inhibitory concentration ≥ 128 μg/ml for each drug). No strain with lower level resistance to kanamycin, tobramycin, or amikacin had enzyme activity. Fourteen strains resistant to gentamicin failed to show significant enzymatic modification of that antibiotic. Although agarose gel electrophoresis of deoxyribonucleic acid preparations from the enzyme-producing strains showed plasmid bands in all, no transfer of aminoglycoside resistance could be achieved, nor was it cured by exposure to novobiocin, ethidium bromide, acridine orange, heat, or prolonged storage. Resistance to mercuric chloride, present in 2 of 60 strains, was lost by 1 strain after exposure to novobiocin, and the loss of resistance was associated with an apparent deletion of plasmid deoxyribonucleic acid.
AMP‐activated protein kinase inhibits TREK channels

AMP‐activated protein kinase (AMPK) is a serine/threonine kinase activated by conditions that increase the AMP : ATP ratio. In carotid body glomus cells, AMPK is thought to link changes in arterial O2 with activation of glomus cells by inhibition of unidentified background K+ channels. Modulation by AMPK of individual background K+ channels has not been described. Here, we characterize effects of activated AMPK on recombinant TASK‐1, TASK‐3, TREK‐1 and TREK‐2 background K+ channels expressed in HEK293 cells. We found that TREK‐1 and TREK‐2 channels but not TASK‐1 or TASK‐3 channels are inhibited by AMPK. AMPK‐mediated inhibition of TREK involves key serine residues in the C‐terminus that are also known to be important for PKA and PKC channel modulation; inhibition of TREK‐1 requires Ser‐300 and Ser‐333 and inhibition of TREK‐2 requires Ser‐326 and Ser‐359. Metabolic inhibition by sodium azide can also inhibit both TREK and TASK channels. The effects of azide on TREK occlude subsequent channel inhibition by AMPK and are attenuated by expression of a dominant negative catalytic subunit of AMPK (dnAMPK), suggesting that metabolic stress modulates TREK channels by an AMPK mechanism. By contrast, inhibition of TASK channels by azide was unaffected by expression of dnAMPK, suggesting an AMPK‐independent mechanism. In addition, prolonged exposure (6–7 min) to hypoxia (= 11 ± 1 mmHg) inhibits TREK channels and this response was blocked by expression of dnAMPK. Our results identify a novel modulation of TREK channels by AMPK and indicate that select residues in the C‐terminus of TREK are points of convergence for multiple signalling cascades including AMPK, PKA and PKC. To the extent that carotid body O2 sensitivity is dependent on AMPK, our finding that TREK‐1 and TREK‐2 channels are inhibited by AMPK suggests that TREK channels may represent the AMPK‐inhibited background K+ channels that mediate activation of glomus cells by hypoxia.
Protectionism through excise taxation in a unionised international duopoly

This paper analyses the unilateral incentives for a Leviathan government of using specific excise duties under the destination principle in the presence of strategic product markets. In a Cournot-Nash international duopoly sector with unionised labour markets and unit-elastic product demand curves, the paper shows that a marginal increase in the excise tax rate raises domestic production, firm's profits and union's utility and lowers imports, provided that the foreign firm is sufficiently larger than the home firm. By adding a competitive export sector to the model, the paper shows that the Leviathan is likely to choose a higher tax rate, if the degree of foreign penetration is sufficiently high and the size of the Cournot-Nash import sector is sufficiently small, which is consistent with using tax policy as a strategic competition device. Finally, the paper shows that excise taxes may emerge in a political equilibrium in which domestic unions and firms in the import sector lobby the government for protection.
End-to-End System for Bacteria Habitat Extraction

We introduce an end-to-end system capable of named-entity detection, normalization and relation extraction for extracting information about bacteria and their habitats from biomedical literature. Our system is based on deep learning, CRF classifiers and vector space models. We train and evaluate the system on the BioNLP 2016 Shared Task Bacteria Biotope data. The official evaluation shows that the joint performance of our entity detection and relation extraction models outperforms the winning team of the Shared Task by 19pp on F1-score, establishing a new top score for the task. We also achieve state-of-the-art results in the normalization task. Our system is open source and freely available at https://github.com/TurkuNLP/BHE.
Performance evaluation of the zero‐multipole summation method in modern molecular dynamics software

The zero‐multiple summation method (ZMM) is a cutoff‐based method for calculating electrostatic interactions in molecular dynamics simulations, utilizing an electrostatic neutralization principle as a physical basis. Since the accuracies of the ZMM have been revealed to be sufficient in previous studies, it is highly desirable to clarify its practical performance. In this paper, the performance of the ZMM is compared with that of the smooth particle mesh Ewald method (SPME), where the both methods are implemented in molecular dynamics software package GROMACS. Extensive performance comparisons against a highly optimized, parameter‐tuned SPME implementation are performed for various‐sized water systems and two protein–water systems. We analyze in detail the dependence of the performance on the potential parameters and the number of CPU cores. Even though the ZMM uses a larger cutoff distance than the SPME does, the performance of the ZMM is comparable to or better than that of the SPME. This is because the ZMM does not require a time‐consuming electrostatic convolution and because the ZMM gains short neighbor‐list distances due to the smooth damping feature of the pairwise potential function near the cutoff length. We found, in particular, that the ZMM with quadrupole or octupole cancellation and no damping factor is an excellent candidate for the fast calculation of electrostatic interactions. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Spoken Term Detection of Zero-Resource Language using Machine Learning

In this paper, we propose a spoken term detection method for detection of terms in zero-resource languages. The proposed method uses the classifier (the speech comparator) trained by a machine learning method combined with the dynamic time warping method. The advantage of the proposed method is that the classifier can be trained using a large language resource that is different from the target language. We exploited the random forest as a classifier, and carried out an experiment of the spoken term detection from Kaqchikel speech. As a result, the proposed method showed better detection performance compared with the method based on the Euclidean distance.
Characterization of a novel cell-surface protein expressed on human sperm.

BACKGROUND Precise sperm-oocyte interaction is a critical event for successful fertilization. However, the identity of molecules involved in this process in humans remains largely unknown. This report describes the identification and characterization of a novel cell-surface protein and its potential role in human sperm-oocyte interaction. METHODS AND RESULTS We previously identified an orphan guanylyl cyclase receptor (mouse GC-G) highly enriched in mouse testis and involved in sperm activation. By using a comparative genomic approach, we found the homologue gene in human (hGC-G) composed of 21 exons, spanning a minimum of 48 kb on chromosome 10q25. Real-time RT-PCR analysis revealed hGC-G mRNA selectively expressed in testis but with low or no expression in all other tissues examined. Compared with mGC-G, the hGC-G transcript contains three 1-bp deletions and two in-frame termination codons, which results in a short putative receptor-like polypeptide. Western blot analysis with an anti-hGC-G-specific antibody confirmed the protein expression of hGC-G in human sperm lysate. Flow cytometry and confocal immunofluorescence analysis demonstrated the localization of hGC-G protein on the acrosome cap and equatorial segment of mature human sperm. In addition, an integrin-binding Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD) motif was found in the extracellular domain of hGC-G. Pre-incubation of the hGC-G RGD peptide with zona pellucida-free oocytes greatly decreased the binding of human sperm to hamster oocytes, which suggests a role for hGC-G role in sperm-oocyte interaction. CONCLUSIONS hGC-G is a novel surface protein on human sperm and potentially mediates sperm-oocyte interaction through its RGD-containing motif.
Critical reflections on the theory and practice of social sustainability in the built environment – a meta-analysis

ABSTRACT This article presents a critical reflection on the theory and practice of social sustainability in the built environment, identifies areas of agreement and disagreement, explores theoretical and conceptual gaps and challenges, and suggests practical implications for future research and urban policy. It argues that despite revisionist approaches which challenge the tripartite structure of sustainable development, social dimension of sustainability remains an essential valid pillar. Utilising a qualitative meta-analysis methodology for undertaking critical analysis of previous research and publications on the topic, key themes of theory and practice of social sustainability are identified and critically examined. Accordingly, 10 key formative characteristics of social sustainability and their research and policy implications are introduced. The article concludes with institutional observations for policy-makers to achieve greater success in addressing largely underestimated dimensions of social sustainability in urban settings.