Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Postcolonial and decolonial dialogues

The traditions of thought associated with postcolonialism and decoloniality are long-standing and diverse. Postcolonialism emerged as an intellectual movement consolidating and developing around the ideas of Edward W Said, Homi K Bhabha and Gayatri C Spivak. While much work in the area of postcolonial studies has directly addressed issues of the material, of the socio-economic, there has also been a tendency for it to remain firmly in the realm of the cultural. In contrast, the modernity/coloniality school emerged from the work of, among others, the sociologists Anibal Quijano and María Lugones, and the philosopher and semiotician, Walter D Mignolo. It was strongly linked to world-systems theory from the outset as well as to scholarly work in development and underdevelopment theory and the Frankfurt School critical social theory tradition. As well as a disciplinary difference, there is also a difference in geographical ‘origin’ and remit; that is, the geographical locations from where the scholars within the particular fields hail and the geographical focus of their studies. Postcolonialism emerged as a consequence of the work of diasporic scholars from the Middle East and South Asia and, for the most part, refers back to those locations and their imperial interlocutors (Europe and the West). Decoloniality similarly emerged from the work of diasporic scholars from South America and, for the most part, refers back to those locations and their imperial interlocutors— again, primarily to Europe although addressing a much longer time frame. Whereas postcolonialism refers mainly to the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, decoloniality starts with the earlier European incursions upon the lands that came to be known as the Americas from the fifteenth century onwards. Postcolonial and decolonial arguments have been most successful in their challenge to the insularity of historical narratives and historiographical traditions emanating from Europe. This has been particularly so in the context of demonstrating the parochial character of arguments about the endogenous European origins of modernity in favour of arguments that suggest the necessity of considering the emergence of the modern world in the broader histories of colonialism, empire, and enslavement. However, there has been little work, thus far, bringing together the various trajectories of these fields. This piece—necessarily selective and incomplete—is one contribution to this larger project of what I call ‘connected sociologies’. In it, I examine the traditions of postcolonialism and decolonial thinking and discuss their radical potential in unsettling and reconstituting standard processes of knowledge production. Postcolonial Studies, 2014, Vol. 17, No. 2, 115–121
Importance of antibiotic production in antagonism of selected Streptomyces species to two soil-borne plant pathogens.

Antagonism of ten Streptomyces spp. , five of which produce antibiotics, to the plant pathogens Rhizoctonia solani and Phytophthora megasperma var. sojae was studied. Antibiotic activity was detected in culture for the five antibiotic producers. S. griseus, S. hygroscopicus var. geldanus, and S. noursei produced wide zones of inhibition to R. solani and P. megasperma var. sojae. Similar activity was found for S. reticuli var. protomycicus to P. megasperma var. sojae. S. cellulosae reduced Rhizoctonia root rot on pea when sterile soil was infested simultaneously with the antagonist and R. solani. S. hygroscopicus gave almost complete disease control when the streptomycete was added 7 days prior to infesting the soil with R. solani. Several of the Streptomyces spp. reduced Phytophthora root rot on soybean when the streptomycetes were added to soil at the same time as P. megasperma var. sojae or 7 days prior to adding the pathogen. S. herbaricolor and S. coeruleofuscus gave the most consistent control. No relationship was found between reported antibiotic activity or antagonism on agar media and reduction in disease severity. Only S. hygroscopicus var. geldanus gave both control of Rhizoctonia root rot and large zones of inhibition on agar media when the streptomycetes were preincubated in soil for 7 days.
Commercial Trends in Off-chip Communication

N-Phenylsulfonyl-N'-pyrimidinylureas and -N'-triazinylureas of the general formula and the salts of these compounds with amines, alkali metal bases and alkaline earth metal bases or with quaternary ammonium bases, have good selective herbicidal and plant growth regulating properties when applied pre- and postemergence. In the formula R1 is hydrogen, halogen, nitro, C1-C4haloalkyl, C1-C4alkyl, C1-C4alkoxy, C2-C5alkenyl or C1-C4alkoxycarbonyl, R2 is C1-C3alkyl or C1-C3alkoxy, each unsubstituted or substituted by 1 to 3 halogen atoms, R3 is halogen, hydrogen, -NR4R5, C1-C3alkyl, unsubstituted or substituted by 1 to 3 halogen atoms or C1-C4alkoxy, or is C1-C3alkoxy, unsubstituted or substituted by methoxy, ethoxy, or 1 to 3 halogen atoms, R4 is hydrogen or methyl, R5 is hydrogen, C1-C2alkyl or methoxy, A is C1-C4alkylene or C2-C4alkenylene, each unsubstituted or substituted by C1-C4alkyl, m is 0 or 1, E is nitrogen or the methine group, X is oxygen, sulfur, -SO- or -SO2-, and Q is hydroxyl, cyano or radicals selected from the group consisting of 5- or 6-membered heterocyclic rings and fused homologues, amines, acetals, esters, ketones, phenyls, sulfonic acid and carboxylic acids, which radicals may be further substituted and have functional structures.
MEASURING RACIAL PREJUDICE IN A MULTIRACIAL WORLD: NEW METHODS AND NEW CONSTRUCTS

This chapter argues for the use of new methods to assess racial prejudice because existing methods only provide a piecemeal understanding of the phenomenon, leading to an under-assessment of key constructs (e.g., ingroup favoritism, outgroup derogation) and provide no precision to assess new constructs, such as generalized outgroup derogation (negativity directed at all outgroups equally) and selective outgroup derogation (negativity directed at a specific outgroup or specific outgroups). The use of new response options, multiple targets, and multiple perceivers integrated into a single instrument is encouraged. The multidimensional architecture of the proposed instrument will allow researchers to uncover new constructs (e.g., selective or generalized outgroup derogation) and improve the assessment of existing constructs (e.g., ingroup favoritism, outgroup derogation) associated with racial prejudice. This chapter concludes by arguing that the methodological and theoretical clarity offered by these new methods in a single instrument will supplement and advance our understanding of racial prejudice, and that the approach is equally applicable to both the child and adult literatures.
MonoPHY: Mono-stream-based device-free WLAN localization via physical layer information

Device-free (DF) indoor localization has grasped great attention recently as a value-added service to the already installed WiFi infrastructure as it allows the tracking of entities that do not carry any devices nor participate actively in the localization process. Current approaches, however, require a relatively large number of wireless streams, i.e. transmitter-receiver pairs, which is not available in many typical scenarios, such as home monitoring. In this paper, we introduce MonoPHY as an accurate mono-stream device-free WLAN localization system. MonoPHY leverages the physical layer information of WiFi networks supported by the IEEE 802.11n standard to provide accurate DF localization with only one stream. In particular, MonoPHY leverages both the low-level Channel State Information and the MIMO information to capture the human effect on signal strength. Experimental evaluation in a typical apartment, with a side-by-side comparison with the state-of-the-art, shows that MonoPHY can achieve an accuracy of 1.36m. This corresponds to at least 48% enhancement in median distance error over the state-of-the-art DF localization systems using a single stream only.
On Directed Covering and Domination Problems

In this paper, we study covering and domination problems on directed graphs. Although undirected Vertex Cover and Edge Dominating Set are well-studied classical graph problems, the directed versions have not been studied much due to the lack of clear definitions. We give natural definitions for Directed r-In (Out) Vertex Cover and Directed (p,q)-Edge Dominating Set as directed generations of Vertex Cover and Edge Dominating Set. For these problems, we show that (1) Directed r-In (Out) Vertex Cover and Directed (p,q)-Edge Dominating Set are NP-complete on planar directed acyclic graphs except when r=1 or (p,q)=(0,0), (2) if r>=2, Directed r-In (Out) Vertex Cover is W[2]-hard and (c*ln k)-inapproximable on directed acyclic graphs, (3) if either p or q is greater than 1, Directed (p,q)-Edge Dominating Set is W[2]-hard and (c*ln k)-inapproximable on directed acyclic graphs, (4) all problems can be solved in polynomial time on trees, and (5) Directed (0,1),(1,0),(1,1)-Edge Dominating Set are fixed-parameter tractable in general graphs. The first result implies that (directed) r-Dominating Set on directed line graphs is NP-complete even if r=1.
Evolutionary Radiation Pattern of Novel Protein Phosphatases Revealed by Analysis of Protein Data from the Completely Sequenced Genomes of Humans, Green Algae, and Higher Plants1[W][OA]

In addition to the major serine/threonine-specific phosphoprotein phosphatase, Mg2+-dependent phosphoprotein phosphatase, and protein tyrosine phosphatase families, there are novel protein phosphatases, including enzymes with aspartic acid-based catalysis and subfamilies of protein tyrosine phosphatases, whose evolutionary history and representation in plants is poorly characterized. We have searched the protein data sets encoded by the well-finished nuclear genomes of the higher plants Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) and Oryza sativa, and the latest draft data sets from the tree Populus trichocarpa and the green algae Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and Ostreococcus tauri, for homologs to several classes of novel protein phosphatases. The Arabidopsis proteins, in combination with previously published data, provide a complete inventory of known types of protein phosphatases in this organism. Phylogenetic analysis of these proteins reveals a pattern of evolution where a diverse set of protein phosphatases was present early in the history of eukaryotes, and the division of plant and animal evolution resulted in two distinct sets of protein phosphatases. The green algae occupy an intermediate position, and show similarity to both plants and animals, depending on the protein. Of specific interest are the lack of cell division cycle (CDC) phosphatases CDC25 and CDC14, and the seeming adaptation of CDC14 as a protein interaction domain in higher plants. In addition, there is a dramatic increase in proteins containing RNA polymerase C-terminal domain phosphatase-like catalytic domains in the higher plants. Expression analysis of Arabidopsis phosphatase genes differentially amplified in plants (specifically the C-terminal domain phosphatase-like phosphatases) shows patterns of tissue-specific expression with a statistically significant number of correlated genes encoding putative signal transduction proteins.
Native-speaker Teachers of English in Hong Kong

This article considers the role of native-speaker English language teachers in Hong Kong. Part 1 examines the concept of native-speaker and offers five criteria which determine whether a person can be classed as native-speaker or not. Changing attitudes to the place of native-speakers in English language teaching, and the relative merits of native-speaker and non-native-speaker teachers of English are next discussed. The situation of English language teachers in Hong Kong is outlined, with attention to the attitudes of local non-native-speaker teachers of English. The second part of the article then focuses on the use of native-speaker English teachers in Hong Kong, with particular reference to a project known as the Expatriates English Teachers Scheme (EETS). This is critically examined and the reactions from the local teaching profession are given. The attitude of the Hong Kong Education Department is also reviewed, from the evidence of a series of Reports by the Government's Education Commission over t.
Planning for People, Not Buildings

The almost exclusive orientation of American planners to the physical aspects of planning is stressed, and the historical development in America of this bias described. The influence of the class and professional background of planners in producing the cultural prejudice in their attitudes and efforts is also brought out. It is argued that economic, social and cultural relationships have a more significant effect on behaviour than does the physical environment, and that it is the former which should be, therefore, the chief concern of the planner. Consequently it is necessary to discover the needs of the specific group of people affected. The problem of allocating resources between competing groups is discussed, and the importance of planning for choice is stressed.
Dynamic Bayesian Networks for Audio-Visual Speech Recognition

The use of visual features in audio-visual speech recognition (AVSR) is justified by both the speech generation mechanism, which is essentially bimodal in audio and visual representation, and by the need for features that are invariant to acoustic noise perturbation. As a result, current AVSR systems demonstrate significant accuracy improvements in environments affected by acoustic noise. In this paper, we describe the use of two statistical models for audio-visual integration, the coupled HMM (CHMM) and the factorial HMM (FHMM), and compare the performance of these models with the existing models used in speaker dependent audio-visual isolated word recognition. The statistical properties of both the CHMM and FHMM allow to model the state asynchrony of the audio and visual observation sequences while preserving their natural correlation over time. In our experiments, the CHMM performs best overall, outperforming all the existing models and the FHMM.
Illusion of Surface Changes Induced by Tactile and Visual Touch Feedback

The work presented here aims to enrich material perception when touching interactive surfaces. This is realized through simulating changes in the perception of various material properties, such as softness and bendability. The thereby created perceptual illusions of surface changes are induced using electrotactile stimuli and texture projection as touch/pressure feedback. A metal plate with an embedded electrode was used to provide the user with electrotactile stimuli when touching the surface with a finger that is also equipped with an electrode. The distortion of material textures projected on the touched surface was used to visually simulate surface deformations. We show through an experiment that both, electrotactile and visual feedback can induce the illusion of surface deformation when provided separately. When tactile and visual touch feedback is presented at the same time, the perception of surface changes does not increase compared to just using one feedback modality only.
A review of career interventions from an educational perspective: Have investigations shed any light?

Despite widespread acknowledgement of the importance of career development programs to assist students in their complex transition from school to work, very few specific career education interventions have been objectively evaluated. The aim of this paper is to highlight what the authors consider to be a conspicuous shortfall in the career development literature to date, that is, reports of methodologically sound career intervention studies carried out in actual high school settings. International trends in the world of work are briefly discussed in association with the repercussions these changes are producing for today's youth. The major portion of this article is devoted to a comprehensive review of career intervention studies with particular attention paid to the methodological and theoretical issues that resonate from this review process. Recommendations for future research are proposed.
Experimental evidence of the relative effectiveness of problem-based learning for knowledge acquisition and retention

This study investigated the effects of problem-based learning (PBL) on knowledge acquisition and knowledge retention in a controlled experiment in a lab setting. Eighty-eight first-year psychology students were randomly assigned to either a PBL condition, a lecture condition, or a self-study condition. All participants had the opportunity to study the same text. Their knowledge acquisition was tested on both an immediate post-test and a delayed post-test, one week later. The results showed beneficial effects for the PBL group on the immediate and the delayed test compared to the lecture group. There were no differences between knowledge acquisition scores for the self-study condition and either of the other conditions. Moreover, no differences on knowledge retention were shown, because the decline in performance over time was equal in all conditions. In conclusion, the present study provides experimentally based evidence of the disadvantageous effects of instruction through lectures compared to PBL.
The Common Place of Law: Stories from Everyday Life

This study explores the different ways people view the law. It identifies three common narratives: one is based on the idea of the law as magisterial and remote; another views the law as a game with rules that can be manipulated to one's advantage; and a third narrative describes the law as an arbitrary power to be actively resisted. Drawing on more than 400 extensive case studies, the text presents individual experiences interwoven with an analysis that charts a coherent theory of legality. It depicts the institution as it is lived: strange and familiar, imperfect and ordinary, and at the centre of daily life.
Incorporating User Expectations and Behavior into the Measurement of Search Effectiveness

Information retrieval systems aim to help users satisfy information needs. We argue that the goal of the person using the system, and the pattern of behavior that they exhibit as they proceed to attain that goal, should be incorporated into the methods and techniques used to evaluate the effectiveness of IR systems, so that the resulting effectiveness scores have a useful interpretation that corresponds to the users’ search experience. In particular, we investigate the role of search task complexity, and show that it has a direct bearing on the number of relevant answer documents sought by users in response to an information need, suggesting that useful effectiveness metrics must be goal sensitive. We further suggest that user behavior while scanning results listings is affected by the rate at which their goal is being realized, and hence that appropriate effectiveness metrics must be adaptive to the presence (or not) of relevant documents in the ranking. In response to these two observations, we present a new effectiveness metric, INST, that has both of the desired properties: INST employs a parameter T, a direct measure of the user’s search goal that adjusts the top-weightedness of the evaluation score; moreover, as progress towards the target T is made, the modeled user behavior is adapted, to reflect the remaining expectations. INST is experimentally compared to previous effectiveness metrics, including Average Precision (AP), Normalized Discounted Cumulative Gain (NDCG), and Rank-Biased Precision (RBP), demonstrating our claims as to INST’s usefulness. Like RBP, INST is a weighted-precision metric, meaning that each score can be accompanied by a residual that quantifies the extent of the score uncertainty caused by unjudged documents. As part of our experimentation, we use crowd-sourced data and score residuals to demonstrate that a wide range of queries arise for even quite specific information needs, and that these variant queries introduce significant levels of residual uncertainty into typical experimental evaluations. These causes of variability have wide-reaching implications for experiment design, and for the construction of test collections.
Examination of the effects of external load, velocity, and center of gravity on weight estimation using a lifting linkage

Having an accurate measurement of the weight of a vehicle payload is important, when moving material. An accurate knowledge of the payload can increase efficiency during material transportation, by ensuring the maximum payload is being moved. Many existing weight measurement systems exist but are often costly, add significant weight, or increase operating time. An improved dynamic weight measurement system to estimate the weight of a payload inside of a container is proposed in this research. Using pressure transducers and angle sensors on a lifting linkage, the weight of a payload is calculated in constant motion, which minimizes any time loss due to measurements. A math model was developed, and the results were simulated to determine the major contributing factors that affect the pressure. An experimental setup was used to test the effects that pressure has on three variables: velocity, center of gravity, and weight. The results showed that each of the experimental variables could be independently varied and had an effect on the cylinder pressure.