Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Model-mapping based Voice Conversion System - A Novel Approach to Improve Voice Similarity and Naturalness using Model-based Speech Synthesis Techniques

In this paper we present a novel voice conversion application in which no any knowledge of source speakers is available, but only sufficient utterances from a target speaker and a number of other speakers are in hand. Our approach consists in two separate stages. At the training stage, we estimate a speaker dependent (SD) Gaussian mixture model (GMM) for the target speaker and additionally, we also estimate a speaker independent (SI) GMM by using the data from a number of speakers other than the source speaker. A mapping correlation between the SD and the SI model is maintained during the training process in terms of each phone label. At the conversion stage, we use the SI GMM to recognize each input frame and find the closest Gaussian mixture for it. Next, according to a mapping list, the counterpart Gaussian of the SD GMM is obtained and then used to generate a parameter vector for each frame vector. Finally all the generated vectors are concatenated to synthesize speech of the target speaker. By using the proposed model-mapping approach, we can not only avoid the over-fitting problem by keeping the number of mixtures of the SI GMM to a fixed value, but also simultaneously improve voice quality in terms of similarity and naturalness by increasing the number of mixtures of the SD GMM. Experiments showed the effectiveness of this method.
Benchmarking the Canadian value-added wood products sector : competitive factors that contribute to its success

In recent years, there has been considerable interest in the secondary wood manufacturing sector across Canada. Strengthening and facilitating the secondary wood manufacturing or value-added sector is seen as the next step to creating a more sustainable economy across Canada. This research considered all secondary wood manufacturers across Canada and has provided standardized information for the entire sector as a benchmark. In order to evaluate the competitive position of the Canadian secondary wood manufacturers, two steps were undertaken. First, factors that have determined success in other sectors were identified. Secondly, the sector's current business environments and their emphasis on the factors that contribute to success were evaluated. The majority of businesses in this sector are small to medium enterprises (SMEs) and have common concerns that effect SMEs. Problems obtaining financing for expansion, market research, expanding to new markets, and upgrading employees' skills are examples. There is also opportunity for increasing efficiencies through lean manufacturing and optimizing supply chains. These types of initiatives will require education and training. Logistic regression analysis found that being a member of an industry association greatly increased the probability of a business being profitable. Industry associations are likely an effective conduit for the required training and education.
COST PROPERTIES AND OPTIMAL NETWORK CONFIGURATION OF ITALIAN LOCAL PUBLIC TRANSPORT FIRMS

This paper analyses the cost structure of a sample of Italian local public transport (LPT) companies operating in medium and large urban centres. The main focus is to identify the proper network configuration for the LPT service, by verifying the presence and the extent of scale and density economies. Technological characteristics of public transit systems are analysed by estimating both variable and total cost function models, which consider three alternative supply-oriented output measures and includes firm-specific fixed effects. The evidence is remarkably robust across the different specifications and shows the presence of short-run and long-run economies of scale, as well as of economies of network density, for both the average sample firm and for operators belonging to the highest percentile (large-sized companies). This suggests that, from a technological point of view, a proper LPT network design should at least include a large urban centre and should be extended so as to embrace the intercity service too, while a regulatory policy aimed at fragmenting the served area in various sub-networks would imply an efficiency loss.
The World Input-Output Database (WIOD): Construction, Challenges and Applications

This paper describes the construction and contents of a new database to analyze the effects of globalization on socio-economic and environmental trends at the industry, country and global level. This database called WIOD (World Input-Output Database) is constructed by linking national supply and use tables with statistics on international trade. In this way it is feasible to estimate e.g. the use of Chinese paint in German cars bought by Japanese consumers. This international input-output table is firmly grounded in national accounts statistics and complemented with additional socio-economic accounts on the use of various types of labour (by skill level) and capital (ICT and non-ICT assets). It also includes various environmental indicators such as energy use and greenhouse-gas emission. The database will include the major economies in the world covering about 90% of world GDP and provide time series from 1995 onwards. We discuss the methods and datasources used in construction. In addition we give illustrative applications in the area of outsourcing and its impact on global trends in trade and emissions of greenhouse gases. The database is currently being constructed by a consortium of eleven research institutes in the WIOD-project (www.wiod.net) and the paper reports on the first phase of this project.
Corporate Social Responsibility Practices of Commercial Banks in Bangladesh: A Case Study on Southeast Bank Ltd.

This paper explores how private commercial banks practices Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in Bangladesh in conserved the case of Southeast Bank Ltd. In keeping with global movement, CSR is being seen as the source of new competition edge for the banking sectors of Bangladesh. Banks’ of Bangladesh practices CSR to not only improve community relations but also as source of significant commercial benefit. Southeast Bank Ltd. practices CSR under the rules and regulation of Bangladesh Bank. The study based on annual report of 2012 of Southeast Bank Ltd. This study shows that Southeast Bank expenses BDT36.85 million in the year 2012 in the area of education, health, community development, environmental issue, art and culture, sports etc. Nevertheless, bank expenses highest amount in education sector through scholarship program in Bangladesh whereby school, college and university education tuition and expenses have fully paid for unconditionally. The study can help banking manger’s understand what should be done for the benefits of customers and the community for sustainability.
How Open Are Public Procurement Markets?

This paper uses different sources of data to assess the relative level of openness of the public procurement markets of major trading nations, with a specific focus on the European Union (EU). The data reveal a picture that is very different from what is commonly argued to be the case by policymakers in the EU. The divergence between discourse and reality is in part a reflection of the absence of appropriate data on government sourcing patterns, suggesting greater effort is needed to both compile more accurate statistics and to take into account basic economic factors such as the size of economies.
A Note on the Efficiency and Effectiveness of Outsider Assistance Programs in Rural versus Non-Rural States

Although numerous countries have developed policies and programs to encourage entrepreneurial behavior in rural areas, there have been few attempts to compare the performance of entrepreneurial development programs in rural versus non rural settings. The existing literature led us to expect that such programs will be more efficient and effective in urban areas. However, in this study, virtually no significant relationships were found between urban and rural states—defined by the proportion of the population living in non-metropolitan counties—on the variables used to measure the performance of an entrepreneurship development program. This suggests that the need for special programs tailored to rural entrepreneurs deserves further, more critical, evaluation.
Specific protein binding to the simian virus 40 enhancer in vitro

HeLa cell nuclear extracts and wild-type or mutated simian virus 40 enhancer DNA were used in DNase I footprinting experiments to study the interaction of putative trans-acting factors with the multiple enhancer motifs. We show that these nuclear extracts contain proteins that bind to these motifs. Because point mutations which are detrimental to the activity of a particular enhancer motif in vivo specifically prevent protection of that motif against DNase I digestion in vivo, we suggest that the bound proteins correspond to trans-acting factors involved in enhancement of transcription. Using mutants in which the two domains A and B of the simian virus 40 enhancer are either separated by insertion of DNA fragments or inverted with respect to their natural orientation, we also demonstrate that the trans-acting factors bind independently to the two domains.
Investigation of the effect of agency costs on firm performance of listed firms in Tehran Stock Exchange

This study examines the impact of agency costs on firm performance of listed firms in Tehran Stock Exchange. With this aim, main hypothesis and six sub-hypothesis have been designed and tested, with the selection of 73 firms listed in Tehran Stock Exchange during the 5-years period, 2006 to 2010. In this study, three criteria were used including operating expenses to sales ratio , asset turnover to sales ratio and Q- Tobin ratio to measure agency costs and two criteria such as return on assets and return on capital were implemented to measure firm performance. Results of statistical analysis showed that there is a significant relationship between agency costs and firm performance indicating that there are some evidences about verification agency theory in Tehran Stock Exchange. Normal 0 false false false RU X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Обычная таблица"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0cm; mso-para-margin-right:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0cm; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;}
Rehabilitation of the sarcoma patient‐enhancing the recovery and functioning of patients undergoing management for extremity soft tissue sarcomas

Although relatively rare, soft tissue sarcomas cause significant morbidity and mortality due to their advanced stage at initial diagnosis. Rehabilitation and surgical outcomes have traditionally focused on physical parameters to assess function and recovery, emphasizing return to ambulation, activities of daily living (ADLs) and community re‐integration. Assessments of functional impairment and other quality‐of‐life parameters are necessary to better understand the experience of the patient with extremity soft tissue sarcoma and thereby improve outcomes. J. Surg. Oncol. 2015 111:615–621. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Restructuring the small‐scale retail sector in Singapore

Focuses on the small‐scale retail sector in Singapore. After reviewing the literature on small‐scale retailing, it discusses the measures undertaken by governments in European countries and Japan to help the small retailer. The various schemes and action plans undertaken by the Singapore Government to restructure the retail sector under the Retail Sector Development Plan are discussed and evaluated. The Retail Sector Development Plan is found to have limited access. It is recommended that the Government should introduce schemes to encourage marginally performing businesses to exit from the retail sector so that it can be more efficient and competitive.
Towards Voice and Query Data-based Non-invasive Screening for Laryngeal Disorders

Topic of the research is exploration and fusion of non-invasive measurements for an accurate detection of pathological larynx. Measurements for human subject encompass results of a specific survey and information extracted by openSMILE toolkit from several audio recordings of sustained phonation (vowel /a/). Clinical diagnosis, assigned by medical specialist, is a target attribute for binary classification into healthy and pathological cases. Random forest (RF) is used here as a base-learner and also as a meta-learner for decision-level fusion. Fusion combines decisions from ensemble of 5 RF classifiers built on 3 variants of audio recording data (raw and after two types of voice activity detection) and 2 variants of questionnaire (with 9 and 26 questions) data. Out-of-bag equal error rate (EER) was found to be higher for audio data and lower for query, but each variant was outperformed by the fusion where the lowest EER of 4.8% was achieved. Finally, due to noteworthy performance of the query data, 22 association rules (11 healthy + 11 pathological) using 17 questions were obtained for comprehensible insights. Key–Words: ensemble methods, random forest, affinity analysis, voice activity detection, voice pathology detection
Drivers of manufacturing performance in medium and large scale firms in Ethiopia (evidence from Addis Ababa and its periphery)

ii ACKNOWLEDGEMNT . iii LIST OF APPENDICES . viii LIST OF TABLES . ix LIST OF FIGURES . xi ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS . xii CHAPTER 1: ORIENTATION . 1 1.
Closed-form expression of axial ratio for circularly polarized patch antenna with perturbation segments

We present a simple and accurate closed-form expression to compute the axial ratio of a single feed patch antenna with perturbation segments. The closed-form expression is derived from the antenna input impedance obtained from an equivalent circuit representing the resonant behaviors of two degenerated modes in the antenna. Using this equation, the axial ratio can be predicted by the input impedance, which can be simply measured using a network analyzer instead of measuring the fields in an antenna chamber. We checked the validity of derived equation by comparing to full-wave simulation data of a GPS L1 band antenna. The results show that a good agreement with an error less than 0.13% and 0.3% in the prediction of center frequency and bandwidth of axial ratio.
Innovating within the system: the simulation model of external influences on open innovation process

Innovation research has been widely concerned with defining the process of new product development and factors influencing innovativeness. On the other hand, the open innovation research also started to look at what are the environments where openness brings higher benefits. In this paper, we introduce the system dynamics simulation model to analyse how such external factors as markets for technology, IPR and appropriability regime as well as speed of market reactions and user needs changes are influencing innovative output of the firms inside one industry. The results show that, e.g., average speed of market and rather high IPR protection level increase amount of technologies introduced to the market. Additionally, the market speed change has a positive impact on new products introduction to the market; however after increasing to the certain point, the market speed becomes too high for product development to cope with, demonstrating the need for balance.
A sample identification and tracking system for biobanks

The discovery of biomarkers and the underlying causes of diseases are enabled through the analysis of biological samples and data stored in biobanks. Biological samples and their associated data are expensive to collect and maintain, and it is important to store and manage them efficiently. During processing, samples and data go through a number of procedures and techniques, which are often in different locations and by individuals with different access permissions. It is essential to maintain the link between the samples and their associated data throughout the processes they undergo. This paper presents a novel system of tracking samples and data from collection through processing to storage and retrieval, which is based on Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology. This system ensures the security and reliability of sample data as well as location-independent recording and updating of sample data, as they move along the workflow.
Effects of a Dobutamine‐induced Increase in Splanchnic Blood Flow on Hepatic Metabolic Activity in Patients with Septic Shock

Background: Septic shock leads to increased splanchnic blood flow (Qspl) and oxygen consumption (VO2 spl). The increased Qspl, however, may not match the splanchnic oxygen demand, resulting in hepatic dysfunction. This concept of ongoing tissue hypoxia that can be relieved by increasing splanchnic oxygen delivery (DO2 spl), however, was challenged because most of the elevated VO2 spl was attributed to increased hepatic glucose production (HGP) resulting from increased substrate delivery. Therefore the authors tested the hypothesis that a dobutamine‐induced increase in Qspl and DO2 spl leads to increased VO sub 2 spl associated with accelerated HGP in patients with septic shock. Methods: Twelve patients with hyperdynamic septic shock in whom blood pressure had been stabilized (mean arterial pressure greater or equal to 70 mmHg) with volume resuscitation and norepinephrine received dobutamine to obtain a 20% increase in cardiac index (CI). Qspl, DO2 spl, and VO sub 2 spl were assessed using the steady‐state indocyanine green clearance technique with correction for hepatic dye extraction, and HGP was determined from the plasma appearance rate of stable, non‐radioactive‐labeled glucose using a primed‐constant infusion approach. Results: Although the increase in CI resulted in a similar increase in Qspl (from 0.91 +/‐ 0.21 to 1.21 +/‐ 0.34 l [center dot] min sup ‐1 [center dot] m2; P < 0.001) producing a parallel increase of DO2 spl (from 141 +/‐ 33 to 182 +/‐ 44 ml [center dot] min sup ‐1 [center dot] m2; P < 0.001), there was no effect on VO2 spl (73 +/‐ 16 and 82 +/‐ 21 ml [center dot] min sup ‐1 [center dot] m2, respectively). Hepatic glucose production decreased from 5.1 +/‐ 1.6 to 3.6 +/‐ 0.9 mg [center dot] kg sup ‐1 [center dot] min sup ‐1 (P < 0.001). Conclusions: In the patients with septic shock in whom blood pressure had been stabilized with volume resuscitation and norepinephrine, no delivery‐dependency of VO2 spl could be detected. Oxygen consumption was not related to the accelerated HGP either, and thus the concept that HGP dominates VO2 spl must be questioned in well‐resuscitated patients with septic shock.
Nonlinear Spectral Mixture Analysis by Determining Per-Pixel Endmember Sets

Nonlinear spectral mixture analysis is important when the light suffers multiple interactions among distinct materials. Few attempts have been conducted to incorporate spatial information to improve the performance of nonlinear unmixing algorithms. In this letter, local windows are adopted in the preliminary classification map to search the relevant endmembers for each pixel. Virtual endmembers, resulting from the relevant endmembers, represent the multiple-scattering effects in each pixel, and the corresponding abundances are estimated based on a modified bilinear model. Experiments on simulated and real hyperspectral images demonstrate that the proposed method provides a competitive or even better performance over some existing algorithms.
Molecular hybridization versus isoelectric focusing to determine TEM-type beta-lactamases in gram-negative bacteria

Isoelectric focusing and molecular hybridization with a TEM DNA probe were used to screen for TEM beta-lactamase in 328 bacterial isolates representing 11 gram-negative genera. The TEM enzyme was detected in 50% of isolates, and nine additional types of beta-lactamase could be identified in 36.9% of isolates. The TEM gene was detected in 53.6% of isolates. The results obtained by both methods were concordant in 92.7% of the entire sample. In situ colony hybridization with a specific probe therefore appears to be a convenient method to screen rapidly for the presence of homologous genetic sequences among a large number of isolates. Positive hybridization was observed for 16 isolates in which no TEM beta-lactamase was detected by isoelectric focusing. The significance of this hybridization remains to be determined.
The CLARION Cognitive Architecture Toward a Comprehensive Theory of the Mind

Toward a Comprehensive Theory of the Mind Ron Sun Abstract This chapter presents a hybrid cognitive architecture CLARION, which is significantly different from most existing cognitive architectures in several important respects. CLARION is hybrid in that it (a) combines connectionist and symbolic representations, (b) combines implicit and explicit psychological processes, and (c) combines cognition (in the narrow sense) and other psychological processes. Overall, CLARION is a modularly structured cognitive architecture consisting of a number of functional subsystems. It also has a dual representational structure, with both implicit and explicit representations. CLARION has been successful in capturing a variety of psychological processes in a variety of task domains based on its structuring of functional modules.
Drum roll: increasing bandwidth through passive impedance modulation

Skilled drummers can play drum rolls at frequencies well in excess of human motor control bandwidths, by allowing the drumstick to bounce passively against the drum head at least twice for each hand stroke. We present experimental evidence that drummers modulate grasp force to control the effective stiffness of the drumstick which in turn determines the bounce frequency. To confirm this explanation, we constructed a simple, single-joint robot that emulates the human drumming technique. McKibben "artificial muscle" pneumatic actuators were paired in an agonist-antagonist configuration, resulting in a slow robot with variable passive impedance. The robot can execute drum rolls across a frequency range comparable to human drumming (bounce interval=40-160 ms). The results demonstrate that modulation of passive impedance can permit a low bandwidth robot to execute certain types of fast manipulation tasks.
A systems-based framework for understanding complex metabolic and cardiovascular disorders Published, JLR Papers in Press, November 24, 2008.

Common forms of metabolic and cardiovascular diseases involve the interplay of numerous genes as well as important environmental factors. Traditional biochemical and genetic approaches generally attempt to dissect these diseases one gene at a time, for example, by analysis of Mendelian forms or genetically engineered experimental organisms. But, it is also important to understand how the genes interact with each other and the environment, and how these interactions change in disease states. Technological advances, such as the development of expression arrays that allow quantification of all transcript levels in a cell or tissue, have made it feasible to globally monitor molecular phenotypes that underlie disease states. By applying statistical methods, relationships between DNA variation, gene expression patterns, and diseases can be modeled.