Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Machine Learning for Better Models for Predicting Bond Prices

Bond prices are a reflection of extremely complex market interactions and policies, making prediction of future prices difficult. This task becomes even more challenging due to the dearth of relevant information, and accuracy is not the only consideration--in trading situations, time is of the essence. Thus, machine learning in the context of bond price predictions should be both fast and accurate. In this course project, we use a dataset describing the previous 10 trades of a large number of bonds among other relevant descriptive metrics to predict future bond prices. Each of 762,678 bonds in the dataset is described by a total of 61 attributes, including a ground truth trade price. We evaluate the performance of various supervised learning algorithms for regression followed by ensemble methods, with feature and model selection considerations being treated in detail. We further evaluate all methods on both accuracy and speed. Finally, we propose a novel hybrid time-series aided machine learning method that could be applied to such datasets in future work.
Population growth and regional economy: an empirical analysis of business formation and job

This study investigates the effects of the components of population change - net migration and natural increase - on business starts and job generation in the retail sector of regional economies between 1975 and 1980. Results suggest that population growth has a strong positive impact on the retail sector in metropolitan core, suburban, non-metropolitan adjacent and rural counties in the USA. In the main, net migration had a greater impact on business starts than natural increase, although this pattern did not hold in every county group. By contrast, natural increase had a greater impact on job generation among existing retail businesses; this pattern was found to be consistent in each of the four types of counties studied.
Impact of Uniaxial Strain on Random Telegraph Noise in High- $k$ /Metal Gate pMOSFETs

The random telegraph noise (RTN) characteristics of high-k (HK)/metal gate (MG) pMOSFETs with uniaxial compressive strain have been investigated. The configuration-coordinate diagram and band diagram are both established by extracting trap parameters, including capture and emission time, activation energy for capture and emission, trap energy level, and trap location in gate dielectric. Through a comparison of RTN results and gate-leakage current density (JG) between HK/MG pMOSFETs with and without uniaxial compressive strain in channel, it is found that the trap position from the insulator/semiconductor interface is reduced in the uniaxial compressive strained HK/MG pMOSFETs. This is reasonably attributed to the strain-increased tunneling barrier height and out-of-plane effective mass, which brings about the reduction in the tunneling attenuation length. Meanwhile, it can also be demonstrated by the lower JG in uniaxial compressive strained HK/MG pMOSFETs.
On the Use of Distributional Mis-specification Checks in Limited Dependent Variable Models

A unified approach to testing for distributional misspecification in parametric limited dependent variable models is described and discussed. The approach involves examining the significance of certain moment-type expressions. A form of the test statistic may be obtained as nR(superscript)2 from a simple least squares regression. The procedure is sufficiently general to subsume several tests already described in the literature for particular limited dependent variable models, but to have a wider applicability. Two practical examples, binary choice and duration analysis, are provided both to motivate the procedure and to illustrate the implementation of the methodology. Copyright 1989 by Royal Economic Society.
CBFM-based p-FFT method: A new algorithm for solving large-scale finite periodic arrays scattering problems

In this paper, a novel p-FFT method based on characteristic basis function method (CBFM) has been proposed and implemented to solve electromagnetic scattering by large scaled finite periodic arrays. The CBFs can be constructed by solving the integral equations associated with one unit cell at plane wave incidence from different incident angles and with different polarizations. Then, the unit cell can be considered as an element in solving the whole array problem. When characterizing an array of a very large number of unit cells with a large number of CBFs per unit cell, the resultant linear equation system is too large to be directly solved. The p-FFT method can be integrated by utilizing the CBFs to accelerate the solution to large scale array problems and to reduce memory requirements. The proposed method can be used to solve both 2D and 3D array problems. Numerical examples are shown to demonstrate the high accuracy and efficiency of the proposed new method. Large scale array problems are considered at the end of the paper.
Examining the Link between Entrepreneurial Orientation and Learning Processes in Small and Medium‐Sized Enterprises

The present study unravels how small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) learn and determines the role that entrepreneurial orientation (EO) plays in how they learn. Adopting a multilevel perspective on learning and the unique role of the management team in SMEs, the study empirically examines the “feed‐forward” learning process initiated by the intuition and interpretation of individual managers, advanced by integration on the management team level, and brought to the organizational level by institutionalization. It also identifies firm‐level EO as an antecedent to this process on all three organizational levels, highlighting the relevance of innovativeness, proactiveness, and risk‐taking with respect to learning in SMEs.
US aggregate demand for clothing and shoes: effects of non-durable expenditures, price and demographic changes

The main objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of the changes in total non-durables expenditures, prices and US demographics on demand for different clothing categories and shoes in a time-series framework. The basis for the demand model was the almost ideal demand system model. Demographic variables included in the model were age distribution of US population (median age and variance) and proportion of non-white population to the total US population. The results indicate that total non-durable expenditures and price variables are significantly related to consumers’ non-durable budget allocations for clothing categories and shoes. The results of the study also show that, among the demographic variables examined in the study, the median age and non-white population were significant variables affecting US aggregate non-durable expenditure allocation on men's and boy's clothing and shoes. All the demand elasticities with respect to total expenditures, own, cross-price and demographics were also estimated.
Motion Planning of Intelligent Explorer for Asteroid Exploration Mission

In-situ observations of minor bodies like asteroids or comets are scientifically very important because their sizes are too small to have high internal pressures and temperatures, which means they should hold the early chemistry of the solar system. In recent years, some rendezvous or sample-return missions to small body have received a lot of attention in the world. To date, the missions of NEAR (Farquhar, 2001), Deep Space 1 (Rayman et al., 2000), Deep Impact (Chiu et al., 2000), and Stardust (Atkins, et al., 2000) have been successfully performed, while MUSES-C (Kawaguchi et al., 2000) and Rosetta (Wittmann, et al. 1999) are currently in operation. NEAR spacecraft was successfully put into the orbit of the asteroid 433 Eros in February 2000. After precise remote-sensing observations, NEAR spacecraft succeeded in hard-landing on the surface of EROS in February 2001. In Japan, meanwhile, ISAS (Institute of Space and Astronautical Science) launched an asteroid sample and return spacecraft MUSES-C toward a near Earth asteroid 1998SF36 in 2003 and performed soft landing on the asteroid in 2005. In deep space missions, ground based operation is very limited due to the communication delay and low bit-rate communication. Therefore, autonomy is required for deep space exploration. On the other hand, because little information on the target asteroid is known in advance, robotics technology is used for the spacecraft to approach, rendezvous with, and land on the asteroid safely. Various kinds of advanced and intelligent robotics technologies (Kubota et al. 2001) have been developed and used for navigation and guidance of the explorer to touch down and collect samples. This chapter describes the outline of the sample return mission MUSES-C, descent and touch-down scenario, vision based navigation scheme, sensor based motion planning, autonomous functions, and flight results in detail. This chapter is structured as follows. Section 2 describes the mission purpose and the configuration of MUSES-C spacecraft. In Section 3, navigation sensors are explained. In Section 4 discusses the strategy for autonomous approach and landing. Autonomous descent scheme based on navigation sensors is introduced. In Section 5, a vision based navigation scheme is presented. In Section 6, flight results in MUSES-C mission is presented. Finally, Section 7 is for discussions and conclusions.
Automated in vivo delineation of lumen wall using intravascular ultrasound imaging

This paper presents a novel methodology for automated detection and extraction of the lumen wall from Intravascular Ultrasound (IVUS) frames. IVUS is an in-vivo pull back imaging technique and provides a sequential frame of images for diagnosis of atherosclerotic heart disease. The detection and segmentation of lumen wall is necessary for predicting the arterial wall blockage. Lumen wall is recognized and segmented with the help of seed refinement and random walks algorithms, in tunica and lumen area. The proposed methodology was tested on 147 frames of 13 patients. Proposed method achieves significant performances for automated lumen wall detection and extraction as compared with existing literature.
A reconfigurable MAC architecture implemented with mixed-Vt standard cell library

In this paper, a 32-bit reconfigurable multiplication- accumulation architecture, which can execute flexibly one 32times32, two 16times16 or four 8times8 two's complement multiply- accumulation, is proposed and demonstrated. It is based on the modified Booth encoding scheme and designed with techniques of reducing sign-extension bits, removing one extra partial product row and adjusting the positions of hot signals but with elegant modifications. It is implemented with a 130nm mixed-Vt CMOS standard cell library and shows saving of area and power consumption by approximately 16% and 14% respectively as compared to the previous design.
Why was Unemployment in Postwar Britain So Low

This paper takes a fresh look at the low unemployment in postwar Britain, which is seen as exceptional rather than the norm. During the 1950s and 1960s low unemployment was reconciled with stable inflation through the exercise of wage restraint. Yet the postwar settlement which underpinned this wage restraint also allowed the entrenchment of restrictive practices, which inevitably slowed the growth of productivity and the feasible real wage, thus contributing to Britain's relative economic decline. Copyright 1994 by Blackwell Publishing Ltd and the Board of Trustees of the Bulletin of Economic Research
Ischaemic injury to femoral head induces apoptotic and oncotic cell death

Aims: The mechanism of cell death in ischaemic osteonecrosis of the femoral head is not clear. Therefore, this study was designed to clarify the mode of cell death following ischaemic osteonecrosis of the femoral head in an established pig model. Methods: Morphological assessment, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase‐mediated dUTP nick end‐labelling (TUNEL) assay, detection of DNA laddering and transmission electron microscopy studies were performed to determine whether apoptosis is one of the pathways of cell death following ischaemic osteonecrosis of the femoral head. Results: Mode of cell death was investigated from 2 to 14 days following the surgical induction of ischaemia. Ischaemic femoral heads showed morphological evidence of cell death by oncotic and apoptotic pathways in earlier stages of osteonecrosis. TUNEL positive cells were seen from 2 to 14 days following the induction of ischaemia. DNA samples obtained from ischaemic femoral heads following the induction of ischaemia showed nucleosomal ladders indicating apoptotic cell death. Electron micrographs also showed morphological changes associated with apoptosis. Conclusions: This study demonstrates that oncosis is not the sole mechanism of cell death following ischaemic injury of the femoral head. Both apoptosis and oncosis are involved as a result of ischaemic injury to the femoral head.
Studies of the association between alcohol consumption and coronary atherosclerosis

Objective—Moderate alcohol consumption is associated with reduced cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. Whether this protection is based on a lesser degree of coronary atherosclerosis has not been established. Methods and Results—We studied 1676 men and 465 women consecutively undergoing coronary angiography. A score (ATS) was calculated by summing the percent lumen narrowing of all main vessels; alcohol consumption was quantitated by questionnaire. In univariate analysis, ATS was significantly (P 0.001) associated with male sex, age, familial CVD, smoking, diabetes, hypertension, and serum cholesterol levels; alcohol consumption was associated with less frequent diabetes (P 0.001) and lower ATS (P 0.02). By multivariate analysis, alcohol intake was associated with lower ATS (P 0.01) independently of the other risk factors; the estimated effect size was comparable to that associated with a 1-mmol decrement in serum cholesterol. Over a median follow-up of 93 months, 37 women and 194 men died from a cardiac cause. By Cox analysis, positive predictors for cardiac mortality were male sex (hazard ratio [HR], 1.7; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.1 to 2.6]), age (HR, 2.1; 95% CI, 1.8 to 2.5 per decade) and diabetes (HR, 1.7; 95% CI, 1.2 to 2.4), whereas alcohol consumption was the only negative predictor (HR, 0.84; 95% CI, 0.71 to 1.00). Conclusions—In a selected high-risk population, moderate alcohol consumption was independently associated with less coronary atherosclerosis and lower risk for cardiac mortality. (Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 2006;26:1607-1612.)
Behaviour Based Fuzzy Flocking Systems

In this paper, we present an approach to design a flocking algorithm by using fuzzy logic. The design of three basic behaviours in a flocking algorithm is discussed. They are alignment behaviour, separation behaviour, and cohesion behaviour. Navigation control component is used in the design of cohesion behaviour. To avoid becoming crowding or collision, an adaptive navigation gain is used. This gain changes with the number of neighbours. The flocking stability is analyzed and stability conditions are acquired from the stability analysis. These stability conditions can be used as constraints on the design of fuzzy logic control functions. Simulations of 200 agents with double integrator dynamics are given. The three behaviours are evaluated through different performances.
Developing ideas and concepts in teamwork research: where do we go from here?

Purpose – This editorial seeks to explore changes in both teamwork and developments in teamwork research over the last decade.Design/methodology/approach – The editorial review importantly focuses on the key debates that emerge from the papers covered in this special issue.Findings – A review of the papers in this special issue, as well as historical analysis of teamwork research, indicate that while traditionally, analysis of teamwork was embedded in a manufacturing archetype, much of the contemporary research on teamwork is centred on service sector work where issues of cultural diversity, customer service, and lack of normative integration or task interdependence are increasingly apparent. This editorial suggests that we need to take account of the expansion of the service sector when attempting to conceptualise teamwork and the challenges that collective forms of working in such an environment bring.Originality/value – This editorial and the special issue more generally provide an important contributi.
RELIGEOUS ASPECTS OF FINANCE PROMISES: EVIDENCE FROM PAKISTAN

Most of research on Islamic finance focuses on Islamic finance instruments. Little research considers understanding of the market for Islamic finance. Thus, this research investigated and explored Pakistani-based Islamic finance providers and compares performance of Pakistani Islamic and conventional banks. Th study empirically investigated differences in performance between Pakistani Islamic and conventional banks by financial ratios. The Poisson distribution modeling technique was used to analyze the data. The results provided support for the superior efficiency of Islamic banks in Pakistan.
Sustainable human capital: product innovation and employee partnerships in technology firms

Purpose – To date, sustainability in technology firms has focused on improving outputs while maintaining the same inputs. The purpose of this paper is to propose a six‐stage model for enhancing inputs as well as outputs, named sustainable human capital. The paper extends traditional views of individuals as human capital, measured as formal education and direct experience to incorporate more holistic and humanistic views of informal education and indirectly related experience. This allows technology firms, whose lifeblood is innovation, to increase employee satisfaction and performance, quality and quantity of technology firm innovation, and societal well‐being in the form of sustainable products and services.Design/methodology/approach – This paper extends concepts in innovation management to build a holistic model of employees as sustainable human capital. By bridging theory and practice, this paper provides a framework for knowledge‐building partnerships and, thus, relational wealth, or the value create.
EXTL2, a Member of the EXT Family of Tumor Suppressors, Controls Glycosaminoglycan Biosynthesis in a Xylose Kinase-dependent Manner*

Background: EXTL2 is one of three EXT-like genes homologous to the tumor suppressor EXT gene family members and encodes an N-acetylhexosaminyltransferase. Results: EXTL2 terminated polymerization of glycosaminoglycan (GAG) chains by transferring an N-acetylglucosamine residue to the phosphorylated tetrasaccharide linkage region. Conclusion: EXTL2 controlled GAG biosynthesis in a xylose kinase-dependent manner. Significance: Lack of EXTL2 causes GAG overproduction associated with pathological processes. Mutant alleles of EXT1 or EXT2, two members of the EXT gene family, are causative agents in hereditary multiple exostoses, and their gene products function together as a polymerase in the biosynthesis of heparan sulfate. EXTL2, one of three EXT-like genes in the human genome that are homologous to EXT1 and EXT2, encodes a transferase that adds not only GlcNAc but also N-acetylgalactosamine to the glycosaminoglycan (GAG)-protein linkage region via an α1,4-linkage. However, both the role of EXTL2 in the biosynthesis of GAGs and the biological significance of EXTL2 remain unclear. Here we show that EXTL2 transfers a GlcNAc residue to the tetrasaccharide linkage region that is phosphorylated by a xylose kinase 1 (FAM20B) and thereby terminates chain elongation. We isolated an oligosaccharide from the mouse liver, which was not detected in EXTL2 knock-out mice. Based on structural analysis by a combination of glycosidase digestion and 500-MHz 1H NMR spectroscopy, the oligosaccharide was found to be GlcNAcα1-4GlcUAβ1–3Galβ1–3Galβ1–4Xyl(2-O-phosphate), which was considered to be a biosynthetic intermediate of an immature GAG chain. Indeed, EXTL2 specifically transferred a GlcNAc residue to a phosphorylated linkage tetrasaccharide, GlcUAβ1–3Galβ1–3Galβ1–4Xyl(2-O-phosphate). Remarkably, the phosphorylated linkage pentasaccharide generated by EXTL2 was not used as an acceptor for heparan sulfate or chondroitin sulfate polymerases. Moreover, production of GAGs was significantly higher in EXTL2 knock-out mice than in wild-type mice. These results indicate that EXTL2 functions to suppress GAG biosynthesis that is enhanced by a xylose kinase and that the EXTL2-dependent mechanism that regulates GAG biosynthesis might be a “quality control system” for proteoglycans.
MADE IN THE WORLD: THE GLOBAL SPREAD OF PRODUCTION

We are moving rapidly into an age of transnational manufacturing, where things made in one country are shipped across national borders for further work, storage, sales, repair, remanufacture, recycle, or disposal; but our laws, policies, and management practices are slow in adjusting to this reality. They are often based on inaccurate premises. This article examines these premises and suggests what they imply for management of manufacturing. First, a common view is that manufacturing investment in the industrialized nations is declining and shifting to the developing countries. This is not true. Investment in manufacturing in both industrialized and developing nations is increasing and, in absolute value, there is a lot more investment in industrialized countries than in developing countries. Second, a related view argued by many is that manufacturing does not have a bright future in the rich countries. I argue that manufacturers can thrive in the industrialized countries if they learn how to add more value for the end users. They must go beyond productivity improvement to producing more technologically advanced and customized products, responding faster to changing customer demands, and appending more services to their products. Doing all this is easier in the industrialized countries because the needed skills and infrastructure are more readily available there. Third, another potentially misleading notion is related to why companies invest in manufacturing abroad. Access to low‐cost production is not the main motivation in most cases; rather it is access to market. Superior global manufacturers use their foreign factories for much more: to serve their worldwide customers better, preempt competitors, work with sophisticated suppliers, collect critical marketing, technological, and competitive intelligence, and attract talented individuals into the company. They build integrated global production networks, not collections of disjointed factories that are spread internationally. Thus their investment in manufacturing abroad is not a substitute for investment at home, it is a complement. Building and managing such integrated global factor networks is the next challenge in manufacturing.
Exploring comparative international accounting history

Accounting historians have long recognised accounting’s international scope but have typically concentrated their research endeavours on region‐ or country‐specific studies, or on investigating the diffusion of accounting ideas, techniques and institutions from one country to others. Much potential exists to study the development of accounting from a comparative international perspective, mirroring the attention paid over the past two decades to the comparative study of international accounting practices and standards. This paper proposes a definition of comparative international accounting history (CIAH) and examines the nature and scope of studies within this genre. The CIAH approach is exemplified through an exploratory comparative study of agrarian accounting in Britain and Australia in the latter half of the nineteenth century. In the light of this study, the paper evaluates the potential of CIAH to contribute to an understanding of accounting’s past and provide insights into accounting’s present and future.