Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Analysis of Phase-Shift DFB lasers using the dynamic transfer-matrix-method

A time domain model based on matricial techniques is used to study the large-signal dynamics in an asymmetric three Phase-Shift DFB laser structure, which has been optimized in a previous work of the authors near threshold and been referred as being potentially stable for single longitudinal mode operation in the high power regime. These models, generally designated as dynamic transfer-matrix models, are very flexible and are indispensable for a proper evaluation of the device performance.
Regular Expression Filtering on Multiple q-Grams

Regular expression matching is essential in network and big-data applications; however, it still has a serious performance bottleneck. The state-of-the-art schemes use a multi-pattern exact stringmatching algorithm as a filtering module placed before a heavy regular expression engine. We design a new approximate string-matching filter using multiple q-grams; this filter not only achieves better space compactness, but it also has higher throughput than the existing filters. key words: regular expression, string matching, q-gram, intrusion detection, deep packet inspection
Will haptic feedback speed up medical imaging? An application to radiation treatment planning

Haptic technology enables us to incorporate the sense of touch into computer applications, providing an additional input/output channel. The purpose of this study was to examine if haptic feedback can help physicians and other practitioners to interact with medical imaging and treatment planning systems. A haptic application for outlining target areas (a key task in radiation therapy treatment planning) was implemented and then evaluated via a controlled experiment with ten subjects. Even though the sample size was small, and the application only a prototype, results showed that haptic feedback can significantly increase (p<0.05) the speed of outlining target volumes and organs at risk. No significant differences were found regarding precision or perceived usability. This promising result warrants further development of a full haptic application for this task. Improvements to the usability of the application as well as to the forces generated have been implemented and an experiment with more subjects is planned.
Do Asia-Pacific stock prices follow a random walk? A regime-switching perspective

This article tests for stock market efficiency among 12 Asia-Pacific countries. A novel approach is applied where unit-root tests of real stock prices are embedded within a Markov regime-switching framework. Although standard univariate unit-root tests provide little support for stock price mean reversion, we find that each country is characterized by two stationary regimes with different speeds of adjustment. Further analysis suggests that the recent global financial crisis is associated with a shift in regimes, where the aftermath of the crisis is more likely associated with a faster speed of mean-reversion.
Template-Free Construction of Rhyming Poems with Thematic Cohesion

Existing poetry generation systems usually focus on particular features of poetry (such as rhythm, rhyme, metaphor) and speciﬁc techniques to achieve them. They often resort to template-base solutions, in which it is not always clear how many of the alleged features of the outputs were already present in the template employed. The present paper considers two speciﬁc features – thematic consistency, and enjambment – and presents an ngram based construction method that achieves these features without the use of templates. The construction procedure is not intended to produce poetry of high quality, only to achieve the features considered speciﬁcally in its de-sign. A set of metrics is deﬁned to capture these features in quantitative terms, and the metrics are applied to system outputs and to samples of both human and computer generated poetry. The results of these tests are discussed in terms of the danger of to ignoring certain features when designing construction procedures but valuing them during evaluation even if they arise from hard-wiring in the resources or serendipitous emergence, and the fundamental need for poets to develop a personal voice – fundamental for human poets and inconsistent with the application of Turing tests.
Determinants of Self-Management Among Diabetic Patients

Diabetes self-management (DSM) is a complex behavior and various factors influence it. Despite continual recommendations to DSM, implementation of this behavior still remains a major health problem for diabetic patients. Identifying effective factors in DSM is useful to promote health in diabetic patients. The purpose of this study was to test the effects of individual and environmental factors on DSM. Path analysis was used to examine both one-way direct and indirect effects of 7 constructs and 3 demographic factors on DSM in this population (N = 396). Data were collected from a convenience sample of 104 (26.3%) males and 292 (73.7%) females with a median age 53 years. The final model provided a good fit to the data explaining 25% of the variance in DSM. Illness perception and provider–patient communication were the most effective factors in DSM. Knowledge and self-efficacy affected DSM indirectly via illness perception. The results of this study showed that effective DSM interventions should be designed to change illness perception and patient–provider communication, especially in patients with low duration of diabetes and low level of education.
Political Influence and the Banking Sector: Evidence from Korea

This paper uses panel data to compare the performance of Korean banks with and without effective government control of the appointment of chief operating officers. A privatization programme succeeded in spreading ownership of banks widely among the public, but government retention of an ownership stake in an institution meant de facto control by government. Despite charging lower loan rates, banks controlled by government experience higher bad loans ratios. This is in line with expectations of regulatory forbearance and government protection for recipients of political loans. Banks controlled by government are less efficient than privately controlled banks and bad loan variables are higher at banks with lower efficiency scores.
A Segmentation of U.S. Consumers on Attitudes Relating to Terrorism, and their Communication Preferences; Findings from a National Survey of Attitudes of U.S. Residents about Terrorism

In the light of lessons learned from recent disasters (The London Subway Bombings, and Hurricane Katrina), it has become clear that government and private organizations need to be prepared to communicate effectively with consumers before, during and after a disaster in order to minimize harm to consumers and to the nation. Findings from a national survey of attitudes of U.S. Residents about terrorism provides information for the development of such communications. Using "Predictive Segmentation" this study demonstrates that consumers can be grouped based on their general attitudes and values in such a way that their diversity can be captured in a simple framework of six segments reflecting striking differences with respect to their level of concern over potential terrorist attacks. The segments were named as follows: "Fear Tethered, "Principled & Self-Disciplined," "Intelligentsia," "Predestinarians," "Optimistic & Self-Reliant," and "Uncommitted C'est la vie. " Each of these segments differ on their preferences for information should an attack happen, and on their preferred source of news. Based on their information needs and media behavior, some preliminary guidance is offered for the development of communication strategies for each segment.
Benefit Segmentation: A Review of Its Applications to Travel and Tourism Research

Abstract In travel and tourism, the diversity of products and customers has justified the intensive use of segmentation strategies as strategic weapons in an increasingly competitive environment. Among these techniques, benefit segmentation has had extensive use in travel and tourism research, and seems to have received wide approval by academics and practitioners alike. This method involves the segmentation of a market based on the benefits sought in a product rather than simply grouping consumers on traditional factors such as demographic, socioeconomic, or geographic characteristics. However, the definitions and the research methodologies involved in applying benefit segmentation have varied, justifying the need for a state of the art of its current developments and applications in travel and tourism research. This article reviews the basic principles underpinning benefit segmentation, its applications to travel and tourism, and the methodological issues associated with segment identification. It concludes with the identification of the main challenges, issues, potential advantages and disadvantages of using benefit segmentation in travel and tourism marketing and research.
Clinical and cytogenetic analyses in uveal melanoma.

PURPOSE Uveal melanoma is one of the most frequently occurring primary intraocular malignancies in the Western world. Cytogenetically these tumors are characterized by typical chromosomal losses and gains, such as loss of 1p, 3, and 6q and gain of 6p and 8q. Whereas most studies focus on known aberrations, in this one, cytogenetic changes were characterized and correlated with clinical and histopathologic parameters. METHODS Karyotypes of 74 primary uveal melanomas were analyzed with respect to the presence or absence of chromosomal gains and losses. In the analysis, classic clinical and histopathologic parameters were analyzed together with the chromosomal aberrations. RESULTS At a median follow-up of 43 months, 34 patients had died or had metastatic disease. Clonal chromosomal abnormalities were present in 59 tumors. The most frequent chromosomal abnormalities involved chromosome 8 (53%); loss of chromosome 3, p-arm (41%) and q-arm (42%); partial loss of chromosome 1, p-arm (24%); and abnormalities in chromosome 6 that resulted in gain of 6p (18%) and/or loss of 6q (28%). Less-frequent aberrations were abnormalities in chromosome 16, in particular loss of chromosome 16 q-arm (16%). In the univariate analysis, loss of chromosome 3, largest tumor diameter, gain in 8q, and mixed/epithelioid cell type in the tumor compared with tumors without these chromosomal changes or with a spindle cell type was associated with decreased disease-free survival. When corrected for confounding variables, significance of gain of 8q and cell type was decreased, whereas the significance of loss of chromosome 3p or 3q and largest tumor diameter remained the same. CONCLUSIONS Monosomy 3 and largest tumor diameter are the most significant in determining survival of patients with uveal melanoma. Abnormalities in the q-arm of chromosome 16 are relatively common in uveal melanoma, but are not associated with survival or other cytogenetic or histopathologic parameters.
A cost-benefit analysis of relocating a polluting factory

This study examines the economic viability of relocating polluting industrial factories from densely populated residential areas to designated industrial zones. This solution requires a significant economic investment consisting of relocating and remediating costs. This solution has a direct financial benefit, due to the alternative value of the land on which the factory currently stands, as it can be converted to more attractive uses. In many cases, this direct benefit does not cover the costs, therefore it is not economically feasible to transfer the plant. However, it is possible that relocating a factory in these cases is economically feasible from a national perspective, as the factory's current location may cause a decline in nearby property values, while relocating it may result in an increase in property values. Nevertheless, in these cases, government intervention may be required. This paper presents a case study for such a situation – analysing the case of the Ta'as Magen factory, a severely polluted site located in the heart of Israel's main metropolitan area. This analysis reveals that the indirect benefits of relocating the factory and remediating the site are considerably greater than the direct benefits, and outweigh all required costs.
Capital Structure Differences among Large Asian Companies

This article reviews prior research regarding influences on capital structure and reports the results of an empirical study of the capital structures of large Asian companies. Variations with regard to the country, industry, and size of a company are examined for the first time for a sample as large as four hundred and seventy-four companies located in twenty Asian countries. The results of this study indicate that while size does not seem to be a significant influence, both country and industry are significant factors influencing capital structure in Asia. Multinational and diversified companies, therefore, must take these differences into account in developing and setting capital structure, financing, subsidiary evaluation, and management policies for their Asian operations. Bankers, other creditors, and investors also must recognize national differences in debt ratios in order to assess credit and investment risks accurately.
Workplace Partnership and Employee Voice in the UK: Comparative Case Studies of Union Strategy and Worker Experience

This article addresses the role of ‘employee voice’ in workplace partnership. Drawing on two organizational case studies from the UK’s aerospace sector, it analyses employee experiences of two key dimensions of worker participation in partnership environments: joint consultation and union representation. Specifically, it investigates what consultation and union representation actually mean for employees in the context of different union responses to employer-driven partnership agendas. The article finds predominantly negative patterns of employee experience and attributes this partly to management control strategies and the short-termist dynamic of British manufacturing capital.
Minimum rms bandwidth of M time-limited signals with specified code or correlation matrix

The minimum rms (root-mean-square) bandwidth of M real equi-energy time-limited signals is derived for the case of either a specified code or a specified correlation matrix. The minimum bandwidth depends only on the nonzero characteristic roots of the correlation matrix, or equivalently, of a matrix derived from column properties of the code. The optimum waveforms depend additionally on the characteristic vectors of the respective matrix and are given by linear combinations of a time-limited fundamental sine wave and its harmonics. An upper bound on the minimum rms bandwidth is approximately proportional to the rank of either matrix. Applications to several codes and correlation matrices are given, including some best binary group codes, which indicate a worthwhile saving of bandwidth for the optimum waveforms as compared with conventional waveforms. The energy concentration of these optimum rms waveforms compares very favorably with that of the time-truncated prolate spheroidal wave functions, which concentrate most energy in an assigned frequency band. Furthermore, the optimum rms waveforms are easier to generate and process.
Classification of breast masses by ultrasonic Nakagami imaging: a feasibility study

Ultrasound is an important clinical tool in noninvasive diagnoses of breast cancer. The Nakagami statistical parameter estimated from the ultrasonic backscattered envelope has been demonstrated to be useful in complementing conventional B-mode scans when classifying breast masses. However, the shadowing effect caused by certain high-attenuation tumors in the B-mode image makes the tumor contour unclear, and thus it is more difficult to choose an appropriate region of interest from which to collect tumor data for estimating the Nakagami parameter. This study explored the feasibility of using the Nakagami parametric image to overcome the shadowing effect for visualizing the properties of breast masses. Experiments were performed on a breast-mimicking phantom and on some typical clinical cases for cysts, fat and tumors (fibroadenoma) (n = 18) in order to explore the performance of the Nakagami image under ideal and practical conditions. The experimental results showed that the Nakagami image pixels (i.e. the local Nakagami parameter) in the cyst, tumor and fat are 0.21 ± 0.01, 0.65 ± 0.05 and 0.98 ± 0.07, respectively, for six independent phantom measurements, and 0.14 ± 0.03, 0.67 ± 0.11 and 0.89 ± 0.08, respectively, for clinical experiments. This suggests that the Nakagami image is able to classify various breast masses (p < 0.005) although the clinical results from tumors of different cases have a larger variance that may be caused by the complexity of real breast tissues. In particular, unlike the B-mode image, the Nakagami image is not subject to significant shadowing effects, making it useful to complement the B-mode image to describe the tumor contour for identifying the tumor-related region when the shadowing effect is stronger or a low system gain is used.
Abnormal regional homogeneity of drug-naı¨ve obsessive-compulsive patients

To explore the possible abnormal resting-state activity in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), the regional homogeneity (ReHo) of 22 pairs of patients and well-matched healthy controls was calculated. Compared with controls, the patients showed higher ReHo in the left anterior cingulate cortex, but lower ReHo in the left inferior temporal gyrus. These findings supported the abnormal resting-state brain activity in drug-naïve OCD patients. No significant correlations between ReHo value and four clinical characteristics were found, suggesting that abnormal ReHo might be trait-related in OCD.
Military Expenditures and Economic Growth in Less Developed Countries: An Augmented Model and Further Evidence

A study of the impact of military expenditures on economic growth and development examines the differences in the results of previous studies which led to contradictory conclusions. The authors find that these differences are due to sample variations, specificational choices, and the different time periods examined. The data indicate that there is no consistent, statistically significant connection between military spending and economic growth. Augmentation of the models suggests that military expenditures neither help nor hurt economic growth to any significant extent. 2 tables.
TRENDS OF THE DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION ON INTELLECTUAL CAPITAL IN ANNUAL STATEMENTS IN LITHUANIAN ENTERPRISES

Even though the disclosure of data on the intellectual capital of an enterprise is not currently mandatory in financial statements yet more and more enterprises both in Lithuania and abroad supply their annual statements with information on their intellectual capital. That is why the object of this research is the disclosure of information on intellectual capital in annual statements of Lithuanian enterprises while the aim is the discovery of the trends of disclosure of information on intellectual capital as well as a comparison of the obtained results with the data of previous research (Vaskelienė et al., 2008) based on conducting annual reports of Lithuanian joint stock enterprises of the years 2009 to 2012. This research employs the content analysis method and methods of generalization and synthesis of academic writings. The present research reveals that the decrease of information on intellectual capital for external information users disclosed by Lithuanian joint stock enterprises and changes in the disclosure structure were observed in the years 2009 to 2012. It was likely impacted by the decrease of the list of mandatory annual statements, i.e. since 2007 onwards, Lithuanian joint stock enterprises have not been obliged to present annual statements (prospectuses). DOI: http://dx.doi. org/10.5755/j01.em. 18.3. 4270
Evaluating the Association of Common Variants of the SLC44A4 Gene with Ulcerative Colitis Susceptibility in the Han Chinese Population.

OBJECTIVE The SLC44A4 gene was recently reported to be associated with ulcerative colitis (UC) susceptibility in the Indian and Japanese populations. The aim of our study was to investigate the association of common variants within the SLC44A4 gene and the susceptibility to UC among the Han Chinese. METHODS We examined 16 tag single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within the SLC44A4 gene in a Han Chinese population that consisted of 311 UC patients and 675 healthy controls; both SNP and haplotypic association analyses were performed. RESULTS We found that rs2736428 was significantly associated with UC risk (allelic p = 0.0004), and the CT and TT genotypes of rs2736428 had a higher distribution compared with the CC genotypes (genotypic p = 0.001), suggesting that the T allele was a risk allele (odds ratio = 1.45, 95% confidence interval = 1.18-1.78). Moreover, one haplotype block that included rs2736428 was found to be strongly associated with UC risk as well (global p < 0.001). CONCLUSION Our results provide further supportive evidence for an important role of the SLC44A4 gene in the pathogenesis of UC.
Screening for Primary Hypertension in Children and Adolescents: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement*

DESCRIPTION Update of the 2003 U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendation on screening for high blood pressure in children and adolescents. METHODS The USPSTF reviewed the evidence on screening and diagnostic accuracy of screening tests for blood pressure in children and adolescents, the effectiveness and harms of treatment of screen-detected primary childhood hypertension, and the association of hypertension with markers of cardiovascular disease in childhood and adulthood. POPULATION This recommendation applies to children and adolescents who do not have symptoms of hypertension. RECOMMENDATION The USPSTF concludes that the current evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms of screening for primary hypertension in asymptomatic children and adolescents to prevent subsequent cardiovascular disease in childhood or adulthood.
Caspase activation during spontaneous and radiation‐induced apoptosis in the murine intestine

The aim of this study was to characterize the activation of caspase‐3 along the crypt/villus axis in the normal and irradiated intestine and to compare active caspase‐3 expression with existing apoptosis detection techniques. Small and large intestine were removed from mice at various time points after exposure to 8 Gy γ‐radiation. Positive apoptotic cells stained with an antibody against active caspase‐3, haematoxylin and eosin (H&E) or TUNEL were scored in histological sections of small and large intestinal crypts and villi. In the control intestine, active caspase‐3 expression was rarely observed; however, expression was markedly increased following exposure to radiation and was predominantly confined to apoptotic bodies. Measurement of apoptosis in intestinal crypts using active caspase‐3 expression gave similar results to apoptosis detected from H&E‐stained sections. In the normal villus, active caspase‐3 expression was observed infrequently and did not significantly increase following radiation, consistent with a lack of apoptotic body formation from H&E sections. This study indicates that caspase‐3 is activated in intestinal crypts but not in villi following γ‐radiation. Active caspase‐3 detection compared favourably with existing immunological techniques, suggesting that it is a suitable alternative method for apoptosis quantification. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.