Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
On The Demand for Expressing Emotions

People communicate in economic interactions either aiming to alter material outcomes or because they derive direct satisfaction from expressing. We focus on the latter noninstrumental motivation and find that this less researched aspect of expression has important economic implications. In particular, we experimentally study ex‐post verbal expression in a modified Power‐ to‐Take game and document people’s willingness to pay for this kind of expression possibility. Our experiment contributes to previous studies discussing the role of mood‐emotional states. We find that purely expressive as well as reciprocal motives are both non‐trivial components of the valuation for noninstrumental expression. We demonstrate that expression possibilities have important impacts on welfare beyond what our standard economic view predicts. (JEL D03, D83, C91, C78)
Capsule-Negative Staphylococcus aureus Induces Chronic Experimental Mastitis in Mice

ABSTRACT Staphylococcus aureus capsular polysaccharides (CP) have been shown to enhance staphylococcal virulence in numerous animal models of infection. Although serotype 5 CP (CP5) and CP8 predominate among S. aureus isolates from humans, most staphylococcal isolates from bovines with mastitis in Argentina are capsule negative. This study was designed to evaluate the effects of CP5 and CP8 expression on the pathogenesis of experimental murine mastitis. Lactating mice were challenged by the intramammary route with one of three isogenic S. aureus strains producing CP5, CP8, or no capsule. Significantly greater numbers of acapsular mutant cells were recovered from the infected glands 12 days after bacterial challenge compared with the encapsulated strains. Histopathological analyses revealed greater polymorphonuclear and mononuclear leukocyte infiltration and congestion in the mammary glands of mice infected with the encapsulated strains compared with the acapsular mutant, and the serotype 5 strain elicited more inflammation than the serotype 8 strain. In vitro experiments revealed that the acapsular S. aureus strain was internalized by MAC-T bovine epithelial cells in significantly greater numbers than the CP5- or CP8-producing strain. Taken together, the results suggest that S. aureus lacking a capsule was able to persist in the murine mammary gland, whereas encapsulated strains elicited more inflammation and were eliminated faster. Loss of CP5 or CP8 expression may enhance the persistence of staphylococci in the mammary glands of chronically infected hosts.
Limb-state feedback from ensembles of simultaneously recorded dorsal root ganglion neurons

Functional electrical stimulation (FES) holds great potential for restoring motor functions after brain and spinal cord injury. Currently, most FES systems are under simple finite state control, using external sensors which tend to be bulky, uncomfortable and prone to failure. Sensory nerve signals offer an interesting alternative, with the possibility of continuous feedback control. To test feasibility, we recorded from ensembles of sensory neurons with microelectrode arrays implanted in the dorsal root ganglion (DRG) of walking cats. Limb position and velocity variables were estimated accurately (average R2 values >0.5) over a range of walking speeds (0.1–0.5 m s−1) using a linear combination of firing rates from 10 or more neurons. We tested the feasibility of sensory control of intraspinal FES by recording from DRG neurons during hindlimb movements evoked by intraspinal microstimulation of the lumbar spinal cord in an anesthetized cat. Although electrical stimulation generated artifacts, this problem was overcome by detecting and eliminating events that occurred synchronously across the array of microelectrodes. The sensory responses to limb movement could then be measured and decoded to generate an accurate estimate of the limb state. Multichannel afferent recordings may thus provide FES systems with the feedback needed for adaptive control and perturbation compensation, though long-term stability remains a challenge.
Hedging in the Freight Futures Market

Price risks are everywhere, and a profusion of derivative instruments have been created to hedge them. The BIFFEX Baltic Freight Index futures contract, based on an index of ocean shipping costs for a set of standard routes, is one of the more unusual. An important problem with such a futures contract based on a nonstorable service is that there is no arbitrage trade to enforce cost of carry pricing. This allows considerable basis risk in the contract. In this article, Kavussanos and Nomikos examine the hedging characteristics of the BIFFEX contract within a GARCH framework that takes account of cointegration between the spot and futures markets. They find that allowing for time variation in the hedge ratio does improve hedge performance, but basis risk remains very large compared with other futures markets. A recent change in the contract, to use a narrower index, appears to have reduced the problem somewhat, but not enough to produce much increase in trading activity so far.
Social experiments in sustainable consumption: an evidence-based approach with potential for engaging low-income communities

This paper considers the potential of Global Action Plan UK's (GAP) facilitated team-based approach to changing consumption practices for working with low-income communities. It outlines the two dominant approaches for encouraging sustainable consumption in UK policy: attitude–behaviour connection models (A–Bc) and consumer motivation theories. It then contrasts these with GAP's group-based approach and presents quantitative evidence for its effectiveness in reducing waste and electricity consumption. We suggest that three features of GAP's approach (i) measurement and feedback, (ii) contextualised knowledge production, and (iii) a supportive social context are critical to its success because they enable individuals to expose their taken-for-granted routines and behaviours to reflexive scrutiny in a trusted community. We argue that these factors make GAP's approach sensitive to the needs of low-income communities, but that such innovative social experiments require more support to build on their experiences, expand in size, and maintain a focus on both sustainable consumption and inequality.
Likelihood Evidence on the Asset Returns Puzzle

Standard equilibrium models are unable to replicate the average return on equity and the risk-free rate during 1889-1978, the well-known asset returns puzzle. The present paper, motivated by the excess of outliers in the data, proposes a normal-scale mixture stochastic process for output that is compatible with leptokurtosis. Using formal likelihood-based methods, it is shown that observed asset returns are compatible with posterior distributions implied by the model. Copyright 2005, Wiley-Blackwell.
Integrating LiDAR and flood simulation models in determining exposure and vulnerability of buildings to extreme rainfall-induced flood hazards

LiDAR-derived Digital Terrain and Surface Models (DTM/DSM) and flood simulation models were used to determine exposure and vulnerability of building to various flood hazard scenarios caused by extreme rainfall events in a river basin in Mindanao, Philippines. The methodology consist of (i.) generating a database of buildings from the DTM and DSM; (ii.) generation of flood depth and hazard maps through the use of a flood simulation model; and (iii.) spatial overlay analysis utilizing the building database and flood maps to determine a building's exposure and vulnerability. This study highlights the importance of combining high spatial information from LiDAR with simulation model to generate informative maps showing the exposure and vulnerability of buildings to flooding.
A Fast Greedy Sparse Method of Current Sources Reconstruction for Ventricular Torsion Detection

A fast greedy sparse (FGS) method of cardiac equivalent current sources reconstruction is developed for non-invasive detection and quantitative analysis of individual left ventricular torsion. The cardiac magnetic field inverse problem is solved based on a distributed source model. The analysis of real 61-channel magnetocardiogram (MCG) data demonstrates that one or two dominant current source with larger strength can be identified efficiently by the FGS algorithm. Then, the left ventricle torsion during systole is examined on the basis of x, y and z coordination curves and angle change of reconstructed dominant current sources. The advantages of this method are non-invasive, visible, with higher sensitivity and resolution. It may enable the clinical detection of cardiac systolic and ejection dysfunction.
The Role of ICT in the Global Investment Cycle

Most macroeconomic forecasters underestimated global investment during the late 1990s. One potential reason was that the models they were using were insufficiently disaggregated. In this paper, an empirical model is estimated whose out-of-sample forecasts largely predicted the global investment boom of the late 1990s. The main factor behind the improved model performance is the distinction between investment in ICT assets and investment in other assets, using disaggregated investment data provided by the OECD. In line with previous studies on US and UK investment performance, ICT investment is estimated to be much more responsive to changes in the real user cost of capital. In particular, panel and seemingly unrelated regression (SUR) estimates suggest very strong relative price effects on ICT investment for all G7 countries and Australia. The data also allow an examination of the effects of possible deflator mismeasurement; but within our framework, the measurement of investment using harmonised, rather than national, deflators is not found to have a material impact on forecasting performance.
Generating high quality impervious cover data.

Nonpoint source pollution (NPS) from urban or suburban areas is rapidly increasing as the population increases in the United States. Research in recent years has consistently shown a strong relationship between the percentage of impervious cover in a drainage basin and the health of the receiving stream. In this paper, we quantify the amount of impervious cover within 56 14-digit hydrologic unit codes (HUCs) in Frederick County, Maryland, USA. This test data set will help in the development of region-wide impervious cover estimation methodologies. The software, sampling and analysis systems were developed to yield accurate and reproducible results. Digital orthophoto quarter quadrangles (DOQQ) from the U.S. Geological Survey were chosen as the basic media for the analysis. Ground features were identified and categorized by human analysts with the help of Geographic Information System (GIS) software and a prototype "cover tool" extension.
The Strategic Implications of Asset and Liability Allocation in the Turkish Banking Industry

This study aims to analyze whether banks' deviation from the mainstream in terms of asset and liability allocation enables them to perform better than their competition. Overall, deviation in the liability structure seems to have a significant impact on performance. In a second regression, the results obtained from the analysis of liability allocation are further examined by focusing on the effects of the deposit base on bank performance. Our analysis brings out the significance of liability allocation and of the effect of deposit strategies as a primary source of funding. The major difference of this study from the existing literature is that we focus primarily on both asset and liability allocation strategies of banks, and we further analyze the components of the liability structure to evaluate the impact of liability deviation on the banking strategy.
Psychological state and quality of life in patients having behavioral treatment (biofeedback) for intractable constipation

OBJECTIVE:Behavioral techniques, including biofeedback, improve symptoms in a majority of patients with intractable idiopathic constipation. However, it is unknown whether there is also improvement in patients’ psychological well-being and quality of life (QOL). It is also unknown whether psychological or QOL factors can be used to predict the response to treatment. We aimed to assess these factors prospectively.METHODS:Thirty-one consecutive patients (median age 36 yr) receiving biofeedback retraining for idiopathic constipation were studied. A bowel symptom record, the General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28) (n = 31) and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (n = 20), both psychological measures, and the Short Form-36 (SF-36) (n = 22), a generic QOL measure, were recorded before and after treatment.RESULTS:Twenty-two of the patients felt subjectively symptomatically improved. When considering all patients, treatment resulted in decreased depression (p < 0.05), anxiety (p < 0.05), and somatic symptoms (p < 0.01) (psychological measures: GHQ-28), and improved general health (p < 0.05) and vitality (p < 0.05) (QOL measures: SF-36). Patients who improved symptomatically showed significantly higher scores on the GHQ-28 and SF-36, in contrast to the unchanged scores in patients who did not symptomatically improve. Pretreatment GHQ-28 did not predict who would benefit from treatment, but patients in whom pain, emotional problems, or low vitality interfered with daily living (SF-36 pain subscales) were significantly (p < 0.05) less likely to respond to treatment.CONCLUSIONS:The symptomatic improvement produced by biofeedback in constipated patients is associated with improved psychological state and QOL. Some of the psychological morbidity in these patients is reversible. QOL parameters may be useful for predicting a likely response to treatment.
The impact of local surface changes in Borneo on atmospheric composition at wider spatial scales: coastal processes, land-use change and air quality

We present results from the OP3 campaign in Sabah during 2008 that allow us to study the impact of local emission changes over Borneo on atmospheric composition at the regional and wider scale. OP3 constituent data provide an important constraint on model performance. Treatment of boundary layer processes is highlighted as an important area of model uncertainty. Model studies of land-use change confirm earlier work, indicating that further changes to intensive oil palm agriculture in South East Asia, and the tropics in general, could have important impacts on air quality, with the biggest factor being the concomitant changes in NOx emissions. With the model scenarios used here, local increases in ozone of around 50 per cent could occur. We also report measurements of short-lived brominated compounds around Sabah suggesting that oceanic (and, especially, coastal) emission sources dominate locally. The concentration of bromine in short-lived halocarbons measured at the surface during OP3 amounted to about 7 ppt, setting an upper limit on the amount of these species that can reach the lower stratosphere.
The Effects of Cash Flow Uncertainty and Working Capital on Non-Cash Flow Shock Returns

According to the findings of Elton et al. (1999) study, the stock return consists of several components which among them is the cash flow shock return. This means that in prior research, stock return variable were investigated regardless of cash flow shocks. This study investigated the influence of cash flow uncertainty and working capital on non-cash flow shock returns. In this regard, data were gathered from a sample of companies listed on Tehran Stock Exchange from 2004 to 2013. The research hypotheses were examined by multiple regressions. The research results showed that there is a significant relationship between working capital and non-cash flow shock returns. In addition, there is no significant relationship between cash flow uncertainty and non-cash flow shock returns.
Tissue Transglutaminase and Its Substrates in Bone

Tissue transglutaminase (tTG) is an intra‐ and extracellular, protein‐cross‐linking enzyme that has been implicated in apoptosis, matrix stabilization, and cell attachment in a variety of tissues. This study provides in vivo evidence in bone of TG activity, its tissue localization, and identification of its substrates. In microplate‐ and blotting‐based activity assays using biotinylated primary amine as a probe, we show TG activity in protein extracts from the mineralized compartment of intramembranous rat bone. Avidin affinity purification of bone extract labeled with biotinylated primary amine in the presence of tTG, in conjunction with Western blotting, permitted identification of three major noncollagenous TG substrates in bone: osteopontin (OPN), bone sialoprotein (BSP), and α2 HS‐glycoprotein (AHSG), of which the latter two are novel substrates. Cross‐linking and labeling of purified proteins confirmed their ability to serve as TG substrates, because they readily incorporated biotinylated primary amine and formed large protein aggregates in the presence of tTG. All three proteins were also identified in the high molecular weight complexes extractable from the mineralized compartment of bone. Two‐dimensional (2D) gel electrophoretic analysis combined with Western blotting indicated that the proteins are not cross‐linked to each other, but form distinct homotypic polymers. In the extracellular matrix of bone, tTG and isopeptide bonds were localized by immunohistochemistry in the osteoid and in the pericellular matrix surrounding osteocytes. At the cellular level, osteoblasts and osteocytes were immunostained for tTG. Collectively, these data suggest a role for tTG and its covalently cross‐linked substrates in cell adhesion and possibly also in bone matrix maturation and calcification.
The Number of Distinct Basic Values and Their Structure Assessed by PVQ–40

According to the theory of basic human values (Schwartz, 1992), values form a circular motivational continuum. The original publication and most subsequent research partitioned this continuum into 10 values. In theory, however, it could be partitioned into a larger number of more narrowly defined values. We use multidimensional scaling (MDS) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) of data from the Portrait Values Questionnaire in Poland (N = 10,439) to assess a finer partitioning of values. MDS confirmed the circular motivational continuum of 10 values, with benevolence and universalism reversing positions. CFA discriminated 15 hypothesized values: 2 subtypes of universalism (protecting the environment and societal concern), 2 of achievement (ambition and showing success), 2 of self-direction (autonomy of action and autonomy of thought), 2 of security (national security and personal security), and 2 of tradition (tradition and humility), plus stimulation, hedonism, power, conformity, and benevolence. These 15 values were also distinguishable in the MDS projection.
Optimal number of fleet maintenance contract with policy limit cost

In this paper, we study a two-dimensional maintenance contract for a fleet of trucks such as dump truck operated in a mining industry. The trucks are sold with a two-dimensional warranty. The warranty and the maintenance contract are characterized by two parameters (i.e. age and usage limits) which define a 2-dimensional region. The maintenance service contracts studied is the one which offers policy limit cost to protect a service provider (an agent) from over claim and to pursue the owner to do maintenance under specified cost inhouse. This in turn gives benefit for both the owner of the trucks and the agent of service contract. The decision problem for an agent is to determine the optimal price for each options offered and for the owner is to select the best contract option. We use a Nash game theory formulation in order to obtain a win-win solution — i.e. the optimal price for the agent and the optimal option for the owner.
Histone H1t is not replaced by H1.1 or H1.2 in pachytene spermatocytes or spermatids of H1t-deficient mice

The linker histone gene H1t is exclusively expressed in the mammalian testis. In former experiments we have shown that H1.1 and H1.2 histone gene expression is significantly enhanced in testis of adult H1t deficient mice. In this report we have quantified the mRNA of different H1 genes in 9-day- and 20-day-old wild type and H1t knock out mice. In addition, we have analysed the distribution of H1.1 and H1.2 protein by immunofluorescent staining in spread male germ cells. The aim of this work was to answer the question whether H1t can be replaced during spermatogenesis by H1.1 or H1.2. In our experiments we could not detect elevated levels of H1.1 or H1.2 in pachytene spermatocytes or haploid cells of H1t deficient testis. Therefore, in these cells, H1t seems not to be replaced by H1.1 or H1.2.
Long-Term Radio Monitoring of SN 1993J

We present our extensive observations of the radio emission from supernova (SN) 1993J, in M81 (NGC 3031), made with the Very Large Array, at 90, 20, 6, 3.6, 2, 1.2, and 0.7 cm, as well as numerous measurements from other telescopes and at other wavelengths. The combined data set constitutes probably the most detailed set of measurements ever established for any SN outside of the Local Group in any wavelength range. The radio emission evolves regularly in both time and frequency, and the usual interpretation in terms of shock interaction with a circumstellar medium (CSM) formed by a pre-supernova stellar wind describes the observations rather well. However, (1) The highest frequency measurements at 85-110 GHz at early times (<40 days) are not well fitted by the parameterization which describes the centimeter wavelength measurements. (2) At midcentimeter wavelengths there is often deviation from the fitted radio light curves. (3) At a time ~3100 days after shock breakout, the decline rate of the radio emission steepens from (t+ β) β ∼ − 0.7 to –2.7 without change in the spectral index (ν+ α; α ∼ − 0.81); however, this decline is best described not as a power-law, but as an exponential decay with an e-folding time of ~1100 days. (4) The best overall fit to all of the data is a model including both nonthermal synchrotron self-absorption (SSA) and thermal free-free absorbing (FFA) components at early times, evolving to a constant spectral index, optically thin decline rate until the break. (5) The radio and X-ray light curves display quite similar behavior and both suggest a sudden increase in the supernova progenitor mass-loss rate occurred at ~8000 yr prior to shock breakout.
Proprioceptive Interaction: The User's Muscles as Input and Output Device

In my research, I investigate how users might interact with devices smaller than mobile or wearable devices. I argue that to achieve the intended minimal form-factor such devices will leverage the user's body as an input and output device. Users will not interact with the device but instead will interact through one of their limbs, which they share with the computer as the interface. I present four research prototypes, all of which actuate the user's limbs by means of electrical muscle stimulation and are perceived through the user's proprioceptive senses.