Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Entry and Exit of Physicians in a two-tiered public/private Health Care System

Firm turnover has recently attracted increased interest in economic research. The entry of new firms increases competition and promises efficiency gains. Moreover, changes in the market structure influence productivity growth, because firm entry usually leads to increased innovation. The health care market exhibits important differences as compared to other markets, including various forms of market failure and, as a consequence, extensive market regulation. Thus, the economic effects of entries and exits in health care markets are less obvious. The following paper studies the determinants of entry and exit decisions of physicians in the private sector of the outpatient part of the Austrian health care system. We apply a Poisson panel estimation to a data set of 2,379 local communities and 121 districts in Austria in the time period 2002 - 2008. We are particularly interested in the question how public physicians (GPs/specialists) and their private counterparts influence the entrance and exit of private physicians. We find a significantly negative effect of existing capacities, measured by both private and public physician density of the same specialty, on the entry of new private physicians. On the contrary, we find a significantly positive effect of private GPs on the entry of private specialists. Interestingly, this cooperation/network effect also works in the other direction, as a higher density of private specialists increases the probability of the market entry of private GPs. Based on the results of previous literature, we thus conclude that private physicians establish networks to cooperate in terms of mutual referrals etc. Our estimations for market exits basically confirm the entry results, as higher competitive forces positively influence the market exit of private physicians.
Absolute scale structure from motion using a refractive plate

Three-dimensional (3D) measurement methods are becoming more and more important to obtain information about the surrounding environment in many fields. Structure from Motion is one 3D measurement method using a single camera. This technique calculates the 3D reconstruction of objects from images captured by a single camera with motion. The camera motion can be estimated simultaneously as well as 3D information of objects. However, it is impossible to calculate the absolute scale of objects using Structure from Motion. Only the relative position can be obtained. In this paper, we propose a Structure from Motion method which can calculate the absolute scale of objects using refraction. Refraction occurs when light ray passes through different media. The absolute scale can be calculated using this change in light ray path. In order to generate the refraction, a refractive plate is placed in front of a camera. In a previous study we proposed a Structure from Motion method using refraction. However, the refractive plate was required to be placed perpendicular to the optical axis of the camera. In this new method, the refractive plate can be placed with any orientation in front of camera. In this aspect, the proposed method is more general than the previous one.
[Professional burnout].

Historical and Conceptual Development of Burnout, C. Maslach and W.B. Schaufeii. Part 1 Interpersonal approaches: burnout - a multidimensional perspective, C. Maslach burnout - an existential perspective, A.M. Pines burnout - a perspective from social comparison theory, B.P. Buunk and W.B. Schaufeli. Part 2 Individual approaches: in search of theory - some ruminations on the nature and etiology of burnout, M. Burisch burning out - a framework, L. Halisten conservation of resources - a general stress theory applied to burnout, S.E. Hobfoll and J. Freedy. Part 3 Organizational approachs: role of professional self-efficacy in the etiology and amelioration of burnout, C. Cherniss organizational structure, social support, and burnout, J. Winnubst impact of professional burnout on creativity and innovation, C. Noworol et al burnout, health, work stress, and organizational healthiness, T. Cox et al. Part 4 Methodological issues: measurement of burnout - a review, W.B. Schaufeli et al burnout in cross-national settings - generic and model-specific perspectives, R.T. Golembiewski et al burnout as a developmental process - consideration of models, M.P. Leiter. Part 5 Outlook: the future of burnout, W.B. Schaufeli et al.
An Application Development for Record Keeping of Police Stations in Pakistan

The Police and Police stations have its adequate importance all around the world in this era where the crime rate is very high, the situation of Pakistan is also same. Currently, the police stations in Pakistan are utilizing the old method (hard paper) of FIR registration and which requires extra effort to maintain the record of criminals and to trace someone’s record also require unnecessary time which can be saved by 10 digitizing the police stations records. Although, some police stations do use digital record keeping in Excel sheets but the Integrity problem is noticed in file based record also the access is slower for searching single record the officer/official has to go through all the records in the sheet which consumes extra time. The excel sheets can only be used by a single person at a time and also they do not have any security mechanism, anyone who has access to the computer can easily access the sensitive record. To 15 overcome these issues we have developed an application for the police station to digitize the method of FIR system and other important official records about the staff and necessary registers used by police stations
Asterixis after unilateral stroke: Lesion location of 30 patients

The author describes 30 consecutive patients with unilateral stroke who had asterixis on presentation. The lesion location was as follows: thalamus in 19 (mostly, ventrolateral nucleus), frontal lobe in six, lenticulocapsular area in one, midbrain in two, and the cerebellum in two patients. Four patients had bilateral asterixis, and two patients with cerebellar lesions had ipsilateral asterixis. The asterixis may be caused by the abnormal control of arm posture maintenance due to functional dysregulation of the brainstem–spinal tracts from the cerebello–brainstem–thalamo–frontal lobe system.
From Facts to Rules to Decisions: An Overview of the FRD-1 System

One of the central goals of knowledge discovery in databases is to produce knowledge useful for decision making. However, the form in which knowledge can be easily discovered is often different from the form in which its is most readily used for decision making. This paper describes a methodology in which knowledge is discovered in declarative form (decision rules). When it is needed for decision making, it is on-line transferred to a procedural form (a decision structure) optimized for the given decision making situation. The system FRD-1, which implements the methodology, is briefly described, and illustrated by its application to a problem in the area of construction engineering.
A trisomic transmission disequilibrium test

Certain congenital disorders that are rare in the general population are quite common in individuals with trisomic conditions. For example, complete atrioventricular septal defect occurs in about 20% of individuals with Down syndrome, an approximately 500‐fold increase in risk as compared to individuals without Down syndrome. Genetic variation on the chromosome involved in the trisomy may affect susceptibility to these trisomy‐specific disorders. That is, increased dosage of a variant may be directly involved in increasing the risk of a disorder, or it may be indirectly involved by causing up‐ or downregulation of other genes. As in standard disomic gene‐mapping, one can search for genes using linkage or association methods. Within association methods, one can consider case‐control methods or family‐based control methods such as the transmission disequilibrium test (TDT). Most gene‐mapping methods need to be substantially redesigned for use with trisomic data. In this paper, we present a “trisomic TDT”, a statistical method of testing for nonrandom transmission of alleles from parents to trisomic children. We demonstrate the method on a dataset of parent‐child trios in which the child has Down syndrome. Genet Epidemiol 26:125–131, 2004. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Action selection in growing state spaces: control of network structure growth

The dynamical processes taking place on a network depend on its topology. Influencing the growth process of a network therefore has important implications on such dynamical processes. We formulate the problem of influencing the growth of a network as a stochastic optimal control problem in which a structural cost function penalizes undesired topologies. We approximate this control problem with a restricted class of control problems that can be solved using probabilistic inference methods. To deal with the increasing problem dimensionality, we introduce an adaptive importance sampling method for approximating the optimal control. We illustrate this methodology in the context of formation of information cascades, considering the task of influencing the structure of a growing conversation thread, as in Internet forums. Using a realistic model of growing trees, we show that our approach can yield conversation threads with better structural properties than the ones observed without control.
Time Scale Hierarchies in the Functional Organization of Complex Behaviors

Traditional approaches to cognitive modelling generally portray cognitive events in terms of ‘discrete’ states (point attractor dynamics) rather than in terms of processes, thereby neglecting the time structure of cognition. In contrast, more recent approaches explicitly address this temporal dimension, but typically provide no entry points into cognitive categorization of events and experiences. With the aim to incorporate both these aspects, we propose a framework for functional architectures. Our approach is grounded in the notion that arbitrary complex (human) behaviour is decomposable into functional modes (elementary units), which we conceptualize as low-dimensional dynamical objects (structured flows on manifolds). The ensemble of modes at an agent’s disposal constitutes his/her functional repertoire. The modes may be subjected to additional dynamics (termed operational signals), in particular, instantaneous inputs, and a mechanism that sequentially selects a mode so that it temporarily dominates the functional dynamics. The inputs and selection mechanisms act on faster and slower time scales then that inherent to the modes, respectively. The dynamics across the three time scales are coupled via feedback, rendering the entire architecture autonomous. We illustrate the functional architecture in the context of serial behaviour, namely cursive handwriting. Subsequently, we investigate the possibility of recovering the contributions of functional modes and operational signals from the output, which appears to be possible only when examining the output phase flow (i.e., not from trajectories in phase space or time).
Simultaneous optimization of robot trajectory and nonlinear springs to minimize actuator torque

In this paper, we consider a robot with nonlinear springs located at each joints and acting in parallel with the actuators. We propose a method to simultaneously design the trajectory of the robot and the force/torque profiles of the springs for an optimal compensation of the gravity and inertial forces. First, we express the trajectory and force/torque profiles of the springs as a Hermite interpolation of a finite number of nodes, then we derive a closed-form solution of the optimal spring design as a function of the trajectory. As a consequence, the initial optimization problem is reduced to a trajectory optimization problem, solved with a numeric algorithm. We show an example of optimal design for a 3-Degree Of Freedom (DOF) serial manipulator. Finally, we show that the nonlinear springs calculated for this manipulator can be technically realized by a non-circular cable spool mechanism.
The civilizing process in London’s Old Bailey

Significance One of the characteristics of the modern era is the emergence of new bureaucratic and social mechanisms for the management and control of violence. Our analysis of 150 y of spoken word testimony in the English criminal justice system provides new insight into this critical process. We show how, beginning around the 1800s, trials for violent and nonviolent offenses become increasingly distinct. Driven by a shifting set of underlying signals, this long-term shift in the underlying norms of the system involves both changes in bureaucratic practice and in civil society as a whole. The jury trial is a critical point where the state and its citizens come together to define the limits of acceptable behavior. Here we present a large-scale quantitative analysis of trial transcripts from the Old Bailey that reveal a major transition in the nature of this defining moment. By coarse-graining the spoken word testimony into synonym sets and dividing the trials based on indictment, we demonstrate the emergence of semantically distinct violent and nonviolent trial genres. We show that although in the late 18th century the semantic content of trials for violent offenses is functionally indistinguishable from that for nonviolent ones, a long-term, secular trend drives the system toward increasingly clear distinctions between violent and nonviolent acts. We separate this process into the shifting patterns that drive it, determine the relative effects of bureaucratic change and broader cultural shifts, and identify the synonym sets most responsible for the eventual genre distinguishability. This work provides a new window onto the cultural and institutional changes that accompany the monopolization of violence by the state, described in qualitative historical analysis as the civilizing process.
Reuse or rewrite: Combining textual, static, and dynamic analyses to assess the cost of keeping a system up-to-date

Undocumented software systems are a common challenge for developers performing maintenance and/or reuse. The challenge is two-fold: (1) when no comments or documentation exist, it is difficult for developers to understand how a system works; (2) when no requirements exist, it is difficult to know what the system actually does. We present a method, named ReORe (Reuse or Rewrite) that assists developers in recovering requirements for a competitor system and in deciding if they should reuse parts of their existing system or rewrite it from scratch. Our method requires source code and executable for the system and assumes that requirements are preliminarily recovered. We apply ReORe to Lynx, a Web browser written in C. We provide evidence of ReORe accuracy: 56% for validation based on textual and static analysis and 94% for the final validation using dynamic analysis.
Electrostatic force microscopy studies of boron-doped diamond films

Much has been learned from electrochemical properties of boron-doped diamond (BDD) thin films synthesized using microwave plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition about the factors influencing electrochemical activity, but some characteristics are still not entirely understood, such as its electrical conductivity in relation with microscale structure. Therefore, to effectively utilize these materials, understanding both the microscopic structure and physical (electrical, in particular) properties becomes indispensable. In addition to topography using atomic force microscopy, electrostatic force microscopy (EFM) in phase mode measuring the long-range electrostatic force gradients, helps to map the electrical conductivity heterogeneity of boron-doped micro-/nanocrystalline diamond surfaces. The mapping of electrical conductivity on boron doping and bias voltage is investigated. Experimental results showed that the BDD films’ surfaces were partially rougher with contrast of conductive regions (areas much less than 1 μm^2 in diameter), which were uniformly distributed. Usually, the EFM signal is a convolution of topography and electrostatic force, and the phase contrast was increased with boron doping. At the highest boron doping level, the conductive regions exhibited quasi-metallic electrical properties. Moreover, the presence of a “positive–negative–positive” phase shift along the line section indicates the presence of “insulating–conducting–insulating” phases, although qualitative. Furthermore, the electrical properties, such as capacitance and dielectric constants at operating frequency, were quantitatively evaluated through modeling the bias-dependent phase measurements using simple and approximate geometries. It was found that decreasing grain size (or increasing the boron concentration) lowers the dielectric constant, which is attributed to the change in the crystal field caused by surface bond contraction of the nanosized crystallites. These findings are complemented and validated with scanning electron microscopy, x-ray diffraction, and “visible” Raman spectroscopy revealing their morphology, structure, and carbon-bonding configuration ( sp ^3 versus sp ^2), respectively. These results are significant in the development of electrochemical nano-/microelectrodes and diamond-based electronics.
Popularity-aware differentiated distributed stream processing on skewed streams

Real-world stream data with skewed distribution raises unique challenges to distributed stream processing systems. Existing stream workload partitioning schemes usually use a “one size fits all” design, which leverage either a shuffle grouping or a key grouping strategy for partitioning the stream workloads among multiple processing units, leading to notable problems of unsatisfied system throughput and processing latency. In this paper, we show that the key grouping based schemes result in serious load imbalance and low computation efficiency in the presence of data skewness while the shuffle grouping schemes are not scalable in terms of memory space. We argue that the key to efficient stream scheduling is the popularity of the stream data. We propose and implement a differentiated distributed stream processing system, call DStream, which assigns the popular keys using shuffle grouping while assigns unpopular ones using key grouping. We design a novel efficient and light-weighted probabilistic counting scheme for identifying the current hot keys in dynamic real-time streams. Two factors contribute to the power of this design: 1) the probabilistic counting scheme is extremely computation and memory efficient, so that it can be well integrated in processing instances in the system; 2) the scheme can adapt to the popularity changes in the dynamic stream processing environment. We implement the DStream system on top of Apache Storm. Experiment results using large-scale traces from real-world systems show that DStream achieves a 2.3× improvement in terms of processing throughput and reduces the processing latency by 64% compared to state-of-the-art designs.
Exploiting the pilot pattern orthogonality of OFDMA signals for the estimation of base stations number of antennas

In a recent work [1, 2], we proposed a GLR (Generalized Likelihood Ratio) test dedicated to the identification of OFDM systems. In the present paper, we show that the proposed technique can be extended for the estimation of the number of antennas used by a base station. This extension is made possible thanks to the orthogonality property that exhibits the pilot pattern associated to the different antennas. Thanks to a multi-hypothesis testing we show that the number of transmitting antennas is estimated using only one antenna at the receiver and without any knowledge of the pilot sequence.
Crowd-centric Requirements Engineering

Requirements engineering is a preliminary and crucial phase for the correctness and quality of software systems. Despite the agreement on the positive correlation between user involvement in requirements engineering and software success, current development methods employ a too narrow concept of that user and rely on a recruited set of users considered to be representative. Such approaches might not cater for the diversity and dynamism of the actual users and the context of software usage. This is especially true in new paradigms such as cloud and mobile computing. To overcome these limitations, we propose crowd-centric requirements engineering (CCRE) as a revised method for requirements engineering where users become primary contributors, resulting in higher-quality requirements and increased user satisfaction. CCRE relies on crowd sourcing to support a broader user involvement, and on gamification to motivate that voluntary involvement.
REEPs Are Membrane Shaping Adapter Proteins That Modulate Specific G Protein-Coupled Receptor Trafficking by Affecting ER Cargo Capacity

Receptor expression enhancing proteins (REEPs) were identified by their ability to enhance cell surface expression of a subset of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), specifically GPCRs that have proven difficult to express in heterologous cell systems. Further analysis revealed that they belong to the Yip (Ypt-interacting protein) family and that some REEP subtypes affect ER structure. Yip family comparisons have established other potential roles for REEPs, including regulation of ER-Golgi transport and processing/neuronal localization of cargo proteins. However, these other potential REEP functions and the mechanism by which they selectively enhance GPCR cell surface expression have not been clarified. By utilizing several REEP family members (REEP1, REEP2, and REEP6) and model GPCRs (α2A and α2C adrenergic receptors), we examined REEP regulation of GPCR plasma membrane expression, intracellular processing, and trafficking. Using a combination of immunolocalization and biochemical methods, we demonstrated that this REEP subset is localized primarily to ER, but not plasma membranes. Single cell analysis demonstrated that these REEPs do not specifically enhance surface expression of all GPCRs, but affect ER cargo capacity of specific GPCRs and thus their surface expression. REEP co-expression with α2 adrenergic receptors (ARs) revealed that this REEP subset interacts with and alter glycosidic processing of α2C, but not α2A ARs, demonstrating selective interaction with cargo proteins. Specifically, these REEPs enhanced expression of and interacted with minimally/non-glycosylated forms of α2C ARs. Most importantly, expression of a mutant REEP1 allele (hereditary spastic paraplegia SPG31) lacking the carboxyl terminus led to loss of this interaction. Thus specific REEP isoforms have additional intracellular functions besides altering ER structure, such as enhancing ER cargo capacity, regulating ER-Golgi processing, and interacting with select cargo proteins. Therefore, some REEPs can be further described as ER membrane shaping adapter proteins.
Chemical method for retrieval of cells encapsulated in alginate-polyethersulfone microcapsules

Abstract We present a method for retrieval of cells encapsulated in alginate-polyethersulfone (AP) microcapsules. AP microcapsules consist of alginate hydrogel core and a semi-permeable polymer membrane. Proposed method is based on chemical destruction of microcapsule structure that is, polymer membranes are removed by dissolution in 1-methyl-2-pyrrolidone subsequently the cells immobilized in the cores are released by liquefaction of alginate gel. The viability of Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells retrieved by this technique exceeds 98%, while the concentration of recovered cells reaches 98%–102% of cell concentration in suspension used for microencapsulation, which proves that proposed method allows to effectively and quantitatively retrieve encapsulated cells without compromising their viability.