Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A State-Space Approach to Estimate and Test Multifactor Cox-Ingersoll-Ross Models of the Term Structure

The objective of this paper is to estimate and test multifactor versions of the Cox-Ingersoll-Ross (CIR) model of the nominal term structure of interest rates. The proposed state-space approach integrates time-series and cross-sectional aspects of the CIR model, is consistent with the underlying economic model, and can use information from all available points of the term structure. We recover estimates of the underlying factors that are consistent with the assumptions about the stochastic processes and compare them with factors obtained from standard factor analysis. We perform thorough diagnostic checking and thereby provide new evidence regarding conclusions about the adequacy of the CIR model. We present empirical results for U.S. Treasury market data. Although the specification of multifactor CIR models is sufficiently flexible for the shape of the term structure, we find strong evidence against the adequacy of the CIR model.
The RPF Model for Calculating the Equity Market Risk Premium and Explaining the Value of the S&P with Two Variables

This article presents a remarkably simple Risk Premium Factor Model that explains S&P Index levels from 1960 to the present with considerable accuracy using only the risk-free rate, S&P 500 operating earnings, and a small number of simplifying assumptions. Instead of a fixed Equity Risk Premium, the model employs a new approach for estimating the Equity Risk Premium called the Risk Premium Factor, or “RPF. ” The RPF, which is consistent with the theory of loss aversion associated with Kahneman and Tversky's “prospect theory,” calculates the general market risk premium as a direct function of the level of interest rates—that is, falling when interest rates are low and rising when they are high—thereby amplifying the effects of changes in interest rates on stock prices. The RFP model suggests that the decline in U.S. risk-free rates since the early 1980s has accounted for more than half of the growth in the S&P 500 since then.
Automatic task-based profile representation for content-based recommendation

This paper proposes task-oriented content-based recommendation for cross service recommendation. The proposed method has two features: one is that task-based features are automatically mined from the web, second is that it estimates user's intention on task, which means "what user wants to do" and "what problem user has" by task-based profile representation. We evaluate improvement of recommendation accuracy by user evaluation, in which we collect ratings on variety of contents i.e. mobile web content, TV programs, restaurants, sightseeing spots, and hotels from 1,859 people and conduct cross validation. In an experiment, the combination of task-based profile representation and term-based representation yields a 17.7% improvement in MAE Mean Absolute Error compared to term-based profile representation only or domain content category based profile representation only.
(In)tangible resources as antecedents of a company's competitive advantage and performance*

The paper’s purpose is to add to the body of knowledge on the antecedents of a company’s competitive advantage and performance by developing and testing a conceptual model. By using structural equation modelling the model is tested on a sample of 182 Slovenian companies. The results show that a cost advantage is positively affected by financial resources and customer capital, while a differentiation advantage is positively affected by financial resources and all three components of intellectual capital. In addition, both forms of competitive advantage positively influence a company’s performance. The results offer important theoretical implications in fields such as resource-based theory and customer relationship management as well as important practical implications for managers.
Evaluation of histological and biomechanical properties on engineered meniscus tissues using sonication decellularization

Sonication decellularization treatment requires proper evaluations on its ability to decellularize meniscus tissue efficiently. This study was done to evaluate the histological and biomechanical properties within meniscus scaffolds. Van Gieson staining was done to evaluate the efficiency of cell removal in meniscus tissues. The consequences of treatment on viscoelastic properties are vital for scaffolds quality and were properly investigated. Picrosirius red and Safranin-O/Fast green staining was carried out to detect extracellular matrix materials (ECM). Sonication decellularization treatment has the ability to demonstrated complete nuclei removal compare to control samples as well as maintaining viscoelastic properties, namely stiffness, compression and residual force. Thus, sonication decellularization treatment had successfully produced and prepared a meniscus bioscaffold candidate in which its biomechanical strength is sustained through protection of ECM properties.
Do Democracies Make Inferior Counterinsurgents? Reassessing Democracy's Impact on War Outcomes and Duration

Abstract A core proposition from decades of research on internal wars asserts that democracies, with their casualty-averse publics, accountable leaders, and free media, are uniquely prone to losing counterinsurgency (COIN) wars. Yet one should question this finding, for two reasons. First, existing studies overwhelmingly adopt no-variance research designs that only examine democracies, leaving them unable to assess their performance relative to autocracies. Second, these studies do not control for confounding factors that bias causal estimates. Democracies, for example, typically fight wars of choice as external occupiers, while most autocracies face homegrown insurgencies, a function in part of divergent levels of state capacity possessed by democratic and autocratic combatants. This study corrects for both problems using a new dataset of insurgencies (1800–2005) and matching to test whether democracies experience significantly higher rates of defeat and shorter wars. No relationship between democracy and war outcomes or duration is found once regime type is varied and inferential threats are addressed.
Do Saving Incentives Work?

American Saving Rates have recently fallen to their lowest levels since 1950. After averaging roughly 8 percent in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, the net national saving rate fell to about 4.5 percent in the 1980s and has fallen below 2 percent since 1990. The personal saving rate has also declined, from an average of 7 percent between 1950 and 1980 to an average of 4.6 percent since 1990. These declines have raised concerns that the economy may be unable to finance investment and sustain growth over the long run and that a significant fraction of the baby-boom generation may not be saving adequately for retirement.
Hepatitis C virus particles of different density in the blood of chronically infected immunocompetent and immunodeficient patients: Implications for virus clearance by antibody

The purpose of this study was to analyse the influence of the humoral immune response on the generation and clearance of hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA containing particles in the blood of chronically infected patients. Blood samples were fractionated by sequential flotation ultracentrifugation and HCV RNA was recovered in three fractions: low density of < 1.063 g/ml, intermediate density of 1.063–1.21 g/ml, and high density of > 1.21 g/ml. Serum low‐density lipoproteins co‐fractionated with the low‐density particles, and high‐density lipoproteins co‐fractionated with the intermediate‐density particles. Immunoglobulins were found exclusively in the high‐density fractions. In patients with congenital immunodeficiencies, with no or low serum antibodies to the virus, mean HCV RNA titres were equal in each fraction, at approximately 105 IU/ml. In antibody‐positive, immunocompetent patients, however, virus titres in the low‐density fraction and those in the high‐density fraction were reduced or absent in most patients, suggesting that virus particles in these fractions are subject to antibody‐mediated clearance. Particles of intermediate density were approximately equal in titre in both patient groups, suggesting that these particles are neither generated by, nor cleared, as a result of the humoral immune response. Immunoprecipitation experiments indicated that particles of intermediate density were not complexed with either high‐density lipoprotein or immunoglobulins. Elucidation of the mechanisms by which these particles are generated and maintained in the blood may provide valuable insight into the mechanism of virus persistence. J. Med. Virol. 68:335–342, 2002. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Detection and Genotyping of Oocysts of Cryptosporidium parvum by Real-Time PCR and Melting Curve Analysis

ABSTRACT Several real-time PCR procedures for the detection and genotyping of oocysts of Cryptosporidium parvum were evaluated. A 40-cycle amplification of a 157-bp fragment from the C. parvum β-tubulin gene detected individual oocysts which were introduced into the reaction mixture by micromanipulation. SYBR Green I melting curve analysis was used to confirm the specificity of the method when DNA extracted from fecal samples spiked with oocysts was analyzed. Because C. parvum isolates infecting humans comprise two distinct genotypes, designated type 1 and type 2, real-time PCR methods for discriminating C. parvum genotypes were developed. The first method used the same β-tubulin amplification primers and two fluorescently labeled antisense oligonucleotide probes spanning a 49-bp polymorphic sequence diagnostic for C. parvum type 1 and type 2. The second genotyping method used SYBR Green I fluorescence and targeted a polymorphic coding region within the GP900/poly(T) gene. Both methods discriminated between type 1 and type 2 C. parvum on the basis of melting curve analysis. To our knowledge, this is the first report describing the application of melting curve analysis for genotyping of C. parvum oocysts.
On measuring average growth rate

This study investigates the difference in average growth rates obtained from two commonly used methods. It is analytically shown that the difference lies on the dichotomy of constant and time-varying growth that can be converted to the dichotomy of trend stationary (TS) and difference stationary (DS) processes. For TS processes the two methods would yield the same results whereas they differ in case of integrated processes. It is also proven that the OLS residuals of a log-linear trend model of an integrated series will be always a random walk, in which case the differenced model that yields the same result as geometric mean is appropriate. The findings are illustrated on the real GDPs of OECD countries.
New development concerning the effect of work overload on employees

Downsizing is a process to make a company more efficient and costeffective by eliminating nonvalue‐added work processes and people. Unfortunately, it has become a common business practice in today’s firms in order to stay competitive and strong. The practice, however, can be disastrous if the company does not treat the human aspect of the process. During and after downsizing the workforce may suffer from what is known as the “survivor syndrome”. This article addresses the work overload felt by employees in the aftermath of a downsizing. Afirm’s effective management of downsizing is intricately related to the possible strategies of alleviating work overload and addressing employees’ concerns. This relationship is especially important between the organisation and the employees during and after the change. The success or failure of downsizing relies on the remaining workforce.
ICI mitigation with CFO compensation for OFDM in mobile-to-mobile channel

In mobile-to-mobile channels, the Doppler shift is affected by mobile terminal velocities of the transmitter and the receiver end. Hence, the Doppler frequency becomes very high if both terminals move very fast. In this condition, the channel will change rapidly and cause large inter-carrier-interference (ICI) in OFDM system. A channel estimation technique using piece-wise linear approximation has previously been developed for ICI mitigation technique employing frequency-domain-equalizer (FEQ). Unfortunately, this channel estimation technique is limited by normalized maximum Doppler shift of 0.2, below which a negligible error results. In this paper, the carrier-frequency offset (CFO) compensation technique is proposed to improve this ICI mitigation technique, so that linear channel estimation still works well although normalized maximum Doppler shift is larger than 0.2. The CFO compensation frequency f<inf>0</inf> that should be added depends on transmitter Doppler shift f<inf>d</inf> and has an optimal value, i.e. f<inf>0</inf> = 0.55f<inf>d</inf> for mobile-to-fixed channels and f<inf>0</inf> = 0.6f<inf>d1</inf> for mobile-to-mobile channels. The channel estimation using linear approximation technique can be applied with negligible error up to normalized Doppler spread f<inf>d</inf> = 0.4 (100 % higher than systems without CFO compensation) and the sum f<inf>dT</inf> = f<inf>d1</inf> + f<inf>d2</inf> higher than 0.4 for mobile-to-mobile channels that is inversely proportional to the ratio a = f<inf>d2</inf> / f<inf>d1</inf>. Furthermore, assuming f<inf>d1</inf> ≥ f<inf>d2</inf> for mobile-to-mobile channel, the BER performance increases significantly if CFO compensation is applied.
Kinetic analysis of the phosphorylation‐dependent interactions of synapsin I with rat brain synaptic vesicles

1 Synapsin I, a major synaptic vesicle (SV)‐associated phosphoprotein, is involved in the regulation of neurotransmitter release and synapse formation. By binding to both phospholipid and protein components of SV with high affinity and in a phosphorylation‐dependent fashion, synapsin I is believed to cluster SV and to attach them to the actin‐based cytoskeleton of the nerve terminal. 2 In the present study we have investigated the kinetic aspects of synapsin I–SV interactions and the mechanisms of their modulation by ionic strength and site‐specific phosphorylation, using fluorescence resonance energy transfer between suitable fluorophores linked to synapsin I and to the membrane bilayer. 3 The binding of synapsin I to the phospholipid and protein components of SV has fast kinetics: mean time constants ranged between 1 and 4 s for association and 9 and 11s for ionic strength‐induced dissociation at 20°C. The interaction with the phospholipid component consists predominantly of a hydrophobic binding with the core of the membrane which may account for the membrane stabilizing effect of synapsin I. 4 Phosphorylation of synapsin I by either SV‐associated or purified exogenous Ca2+/calmodulin‐dependent protein kinase II (CaMPKII) inhibited the association rate and the binding to SV at steady state by acting on the ionic strength‐sensitive component of the binding. When dephosphorylated synapsin I was previously bound to SV, exposure of SV to Ca2+/calmodulin in the presence of ATP triggered a prompt dissociation of synapsin I with a time constant similar to that of ionic strength‐induced dissociation. 5 In conclusion, the reversible interactions between synapsin I and SV are highly regulated by site‐specific phosphorylation and have kinetics of the same order of magnitude as the kinetics of SV recycling determined in mammalian neurons under comparable temperature conditions. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that synapsin I associates with, and dissociates from, SV during the exo–endocytotic cycle. The on‐vesicle phosphorylation of synapsin I by the SV‐associated CaMPKII, and the subsequent dissociation of the protein from the vesicle membrane, though not involved in mediating exocytosis of primed vesicles evoked by a single stimulus, may represent a prompt and efficient mechanism for the modulation of neurotransmitter release and presynaptic plasticity.
Are All CEOs above Average? An Empirical Analysis of Compensation Peer Groups and Pay Design

Companies can potentially use compensation peer groups to inflate pay by choosing peers that are larger, choosing a high target pay percentile, or choosing peer firms with high pay. Although peers are largely selected based on characteristics that reflect the labor market for managerial talent, we find that peer groups are constructed in a manner that biases compensation upward, particularly in firms outside the Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500. Pay increases close only about one-third of the gap between the pay of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and the peer group, however, suggesting that boards exercise discretion in adjusting compensation. Preliminary evidence suggests that increased disclosure has reduced the biases in peer group choice.
Creating value through user experience: a case study in the metals and engineering industry

This paper explores how three Finnish companies perceive and approach user experience. User experience was perceived both as a management tool within the company and a source of differentiation in the market. The two main challenges were creating a solid value argumentation for user experience, and showing the link between user experience and the monetary value it can create for the customer. The proposed solution to overcome the challenges includes four phases: 1) identifying the current position in turning user experience into a value proposition; 2) understanding the customers’ business models; 3) crafting the value proposition by showing long-term tangible and intangible impacts and using the supplier’s internal knowledge of users when selling; 4) communicating the value of user experience more effectively by improving the competence and trust of the sales personnel in user experience. In addition, a conceptual framework for linking user experience and customer value is presented.
Effect of Pipelining and Multiplexing in Estimating HTTP/2.0 Web Object Sizes

HTTP response size is a well-known side channel attack. With the deployment of HTTP/2.0, response size estimation attacks are generally dismissed with the argument that pipelining and response multiplexing prevent eavesdroppers from finding out response sizes. Yet the impact that pipelining and response multiplexing actually have in estimating HTTP response sizes has not been adequately investigated. In this paper we set out to help understand the effect of pipelining and response multiplexing in estimating the size of web objects on the Internet. We conduct an experiment that collects HTTP response sizes and TLS record sizes from 10k popular web sites. We gather evidence on and discuss reasons for the limited amount of pipelining and response multiplexing used on the Internet today: only 29% of the HTTP2 web objects we observe are pipelined and only 5% multiplexed. We also provide worst case results under different attack assumptions and show how effective a simple model for estimating response sizes from TLS record sizes can be. Our conclusion is that pipelining and especially response multiplexing can yield, as expected, a perceivable increase in relative object size estimation error yet the limited extent of multiplexing observed on the Internet today and the relative simplicity of attacks to the current pipelining mechanisms hinder their ability to help prevent web object size estimation.
Facilitative plasma membrane transporters function during ER transit

Although biochemical studies suggested a high permeability of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane for small molecules, proteomics identified few specialized ER transporters. To test functionality of transporters during ER passage, we tested whether glucose transporters (GLUTs, SGLTs) destined for the plasma membrane are active during ER transit. HepG2 cells were characterized by low‐affinity ER transport activity, suggesting that ER uptake is protein mediated. The much‐reduced capacity of HEK293T cells to take up glucose across the plasma membrane correlated with low ER transport. Ectopic expression of GLUT1, ‐2, ‐4, or ‐9 induced GLUT isoform‐specific ER transport activity in HEK293T cells. In contrast, the Na+‐glucose cotransporter SGLT1 mediated efficient plasma membrane glucose transport but no detectable ER uptake, probably because of lack of a sufficient sodium gradient across the ER membrane. In conclusion, we demonstrate that GLUTs are sufficient for mediating ER glucose transport en route to the plasma membrane. Because of the low volume of the ER, trace amounts of these uniporters contribute to ER solute import during ER transit, while uniporters and cation‐coupled transporters carry out export from the ER, together potentially explaining the low selectivity of ER transport. Expression levels and residence time of transporters in the ER, as well as their coupling mechanisms, could be key determinants of ER permeability. —Takanaga, H. , Frommer, W. B. Facilitative plasma membrane transporters function during ER transit.
SVM Evaluation for Brain Computer Interface Systems

A Support Vector Machine (SVM) classification method for data acquired by EEG registration for brain/computer interface systems is here proposed. The aim of this work is to evaluate the SVM performances in the recognition of a human mental task, among others. Such methodology could be very useful in important applications for disabled people. A prerequisite has been the developing of a system capable to recognize and classify the following four tasks: thinking to move the right hand, thinking to move the left hand, performing a simple mathematical operation, and thinking to a nursery rhyme. The data set exploited in the training and testing phases has been acquired by means of 61 EEG electrodes and consists of several time series. These time data sets were then transformed into the frequency domain, in order to obtain the power frequency spectrum. In such a way, for every electrode, 128 frequency channels were obtained. Finally, the SVM algorithm was used and evaluated to get the proposed classification.
Security Price Reaction to Qualitative Forecast Infor Mation

This study extends previous studies on the infor Mation content of voluntary quantitative forecasts by examining a sample of Australian qualitative forecasts. Content analysis was used to classify these forecasts into four categories. The direction of the share price revision was consistent with the direction of the qualitative forecast for all categories, but only unfavourable and qualified favourable qualitative forecasts were associated with statistically significant and marginally significant price revisions respectively.
Financial Distress Prediction Using Neural Networks

This exploratory research examines and models the financial distress prediction using neural network approach. The study is based on financial ratios. Nine different neural network models are constructed to test the predictive capability of the models by considering: (1) the impact of time varying information structure prior the distressed situation using first, independent annual financial ratios (four models)and second, different panel data sets (three models) and, (2) the influence of time varying probability estimates of financial distress in panel data sets (two models). Results support that it is not necessary to have complex architecture in neural models to predict firm's financial distress. Besides more the predictability horizon is shorter and the input information structure is most recent, more the predictive capability of the neural model is better.