Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Mortgage Prepayment Behavior in a Market with Arms Only

A study on the prepayment behavior of Hong Kong mortgage loans is conducted. With all of the loans as adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs), we nd that 1) Pre-payment speeds up and then slows down as the mortgage seasons; 2) Prepayment speeds up as the rate markup decreases; 3) Prepayment speeds up as the interest rate increases; 4) Prepayment speeds up when the prootability ratio of the banks (the prime-HIBOR spread) is higher; 5) Prepayment speeds up as the price of the property market falls; 6) Prepayment speed is faster for loans with a lower loan-to-value ratio; 7) Prepayment exhibits a seasonal pattern: people tend to prepay in the summer. We thank Charles Huang for providing the data and his many suggestions. We also thank Shirley Leung for her research assistance. Send correspondence to:
The Correlation Between Personality And Individual Entrepreneurial Orientation: A Recommendation For Entrepreneurial Education

This paper reports correlation measures between personality traits and individual entrepreneurial orientation (IEO). The participants are Bina Nusantara University students in the age range of 18-26 years old. Personality traits are measured using the Lumina Spark model, a psychometric instrument that uses the Big Five personality model as its cornerstone and a Jungian lens to inform the model. IEO is measured using an inventory measuring Risk-taking, Proactiveness, and Innovativeness. The results show that there is a significant correlation between all personality traits and all IEO dimensions. Various correlational patterns, from moderate to strong (r = .28 to .71 , p<.01) are studied more closely leading to the suggestion that it is conceivable to develop a comprehensive Entrepreneurial Education programme, one that embraces all aspects of personality, and more specifically, to better accommodate some personality traits that have only moderate correlation to IEO.
Modeling the calcium spike as a threshold triggered fixed waveform for synchronous inputs in the fluctuation regime

Modeling the layer 5 pyramidal neuron as a system of three connected isopotential compartments, the soma, proximal, and distal compartment, with calcium spike dynamics in the distal compartment following first order kinetics, we are able to reproduce in-vitro experimental results which demonstrate the involvement of calcium spikes in action potentials generation. To explore how calcium spikes affect the neuronal output in-vivo, we emulate in-vivo like conditions by embedding the neuron model in a regime of low background fluctuations with occasional large synchronous inputs. In such a regime, a full calcium spike is only triggered by the synchronous events in a threshold like manner and has a stereotypical waveform. Hence, in such a regime, we are able to replace the calcium dynamics with a simpler threshold triggered current of fixed waveform, which is amenable to analytical treatment. We obtain analytically the mean somatic membrane potential excursion due to a calcium spike being triggered while in the fluctuating regime. Our analytical form that accounts for the covariance between conductances and the membrane potential shows a better agreement with simulation results than a naive first order approximation.
Expedient permanent PSD reduction table as mitigation method to protect radio services

Up to now, EMC assessment of PLC modems has been based either on CISPR/I/PLT/89/CD[1] or on CISPR/I/PLT/257/CD[2]. Both CDs dealt with the concept of defining test methods and limits. Besides, CISPR/I/301/CD[3] introduced to a new concept of adding mitigation elements, as notching and power management, to the EMC assessment. Thus, a new table with frequency bands for permanent PSD reduction was created. This table is mostly in line with the table shown inside the HomePlug AV Specification[4]. The aim of this paper is to discuss this aspect from PLC point of view: We give some background information concerning the usage of this frequency band in Europe. Furthermore, the differences between the two tables are discussed, as well as the theoretical and estimated impact on the performance loss.
Evolution of Massive Black Hole Triples. I. Equal-Mass Binary-Single Systems

We present the results of N-body simulations of dynamical evolution of triple massive black hole (BH) systems in galactic nuclei. We found that in most cases two of the three BHs merge through gravitational wave (GW) radiation in a timescale much shorter than the Hubble time before ejecting one BH through a slingshot. In order for a binary BH to merge before ejecting the third one, it has to become highly eccentric, since the GW timescale would be much longer than the Hubble time unless the eccentricity is very high. We found that two mechanisms drive the increase of the eccentricity of the binary. One is the strong binary-single BH interaction, which results in the thermalization of the eccentricity. The second is the Kozai mechanism, which drives the cyclic change of the inclination and eccentricity of the inner binary of a stable hierarchical triple system. Our result implies that many supermassive BHs are binaries.
The Secrecy Capacity of the Wiretap Channel with Rate-limited Feedback

This paper studies the problem of secure communication over a wiretap channel p(y, z|x) with a secure feedback link of rate Rf , where X is the channel input, and Y and Z are channel outputs observed by the legitimate receiver and the eavesdropper, respectively. It is shown that the secrecy capacity, the maximum data rate of reliable communication while the intended message is not revealed to the eavesdropper, is upper bounded as Cs(Rf ) ≤ max p(x) min{I(X; Y ), I(X; Y |Z) + Rf}. The proof of the bound crucially depends on a recursive argument which is used to obtain the single-letter characterization. This upper bound is shown to be tight for the class of physically degraded wiretap channels. A capacity-achieving coding scheme is presented for this case, in which the receiver securely feeds back fresh randomness with rate Rf , generated independent of the received channel output symbols. The transmitter then uses this shared randomness as a secret key on top of Wyner’s coding scheme for wiretap channels without feedback. Hence, when a feedback link is available, the receiver should allocate all resources to convey a new key rather than sending back the channel output.
Risk Measure Based Robust Bidding Strategy for Arbitrage Using a Wind Farm and Energy Storage

This paper proposes the use of a risk measure based robust optimization bidding strategy for dispatching a wind farm in combination with energy storage. Through coordination with energy storage devices, variable wind generators can be utilized as dispatchable energy producers in the deregulated electricity market. The total profit from sale of electricity can be increased by exploiting arbitrage opportunities available due to the inter-temporal variation of electricity prices in the day ahead market. A case study is presented to show that as the forecast error in electricity price increases, the robust optimization based bidding strategy has an increasing probability of yielding better economic performance than a deterministic optimization based bidding strategy. The uncertainty set for robust optimization is selected based on the coherent risk measure conditional value at risk (CVaR). Uncertainties in electricity price forecasting and wind power forecasting are considered. The resulting robust optimization based bidding strategy is evaluated using Monte Carlo simulation for different choices of uncertainty sets.
Initial results of rover localization and topographic mapping for the 2003 mars exploration rover mission

This paper presents the initial results of lander and rover localization and topographic mapping of the MER 2003 mission (by Sol 225 for Spirit and Sol 206 for Opportunity). The Spirit rover has traversed a distance of 3.2 km (actual distance traveled instead of odometry) and Opportunity at 1.2 km. We localized the landers in the Gusev Crater and on the Meridiani Planum using two-way Doppler radio positioning technology and cartographic triangulations through landmarks visible in both orbital and ground images. Additional high-resolution orbital images were taken to verify the determined lander positions. Visual odometry and bundleadjustment technologies were applied to overcome wheel slippages, azimuthal angle drift and other navigation errors (as large as 21 percent). We generated timely topographic products including 68 orthophoto maps and 3D Digital Terrain Models, eight horizontal rover traverse maps, vertical traverse profiles up to Sol 214 for Spirit and Sol 62 for
Rapid Amygdala Gamma Oscillations in Response to Eye Gaze

Background The eye gaze of other individuals conveys important social information and can trigger multiple psychological activities; some of which, such as emotional reactions and attention orienting, occur very rapidly. Although some neuroscientific evidence has suggested that the amygdala may be involved in such rapid gaze processing, no evidence has been reported concerning the speed at which the amygdala responds to eye gaze. Methodology/Principal Findings To investigate this issue, we recorded electrical activity within the amygdala of six subjects using intracranial electrodes. Subjects observed images of eyes and mosaics pointing in averted and straight directions. The amygdala showed higher gamma-band oscillations for eye gaze than for mosaics, which peaked at 200 ms regardless of the direction of the gaze. Conclusion These results indicate that the human amygdala rapidly processes eye gaze.
ECHO: Efficient Certificate Updating Scheme by Vehicle-to-Vehicle Communications

Roadside Units (RSUs) aided certificate service is a promising approach for ensuring security and privacy preservation in vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs). In existing approaches, a vehicle can update certificate only when it passes by RSUs, however, this is impractical in many scenarios. Consequently, if there are no RSUs on the original driving trip, drivers have to adjust routes which means wasting time and money (oil). More seriously, traffic jams may occur nearby RSUs. In this paper, we propose ECHO, an efficient certificate updating scheme by Vehicle-to-Vehicle communications. In ECHO, by adopting the geographic routing protocols, a vehicle cannot only send the certificate request to immobile RSUs but also inform an RSU where the response message should be sent back. Thereafter, two strategies, estimating locations and employing intersection buffer unit, are studied. ECHO would not leak the trace of vehicles. Furthermore, academic analysis demonstrates that our scheme can guarantee vehicles to update certificate successfully even they are far from RSUs.
Stuttgart Uncertainty modeling using efficient fuzzy arithmetic based on sparse grids : applications to dynamic systems

Fuzzy arithmetic provides a powerful tool to introduce uncertainty into mathematical models. With Zadeh’s extension principle, one can obtain a fuzzy-valued extension of any objective function. An efficient and accurate approach to compute expensive multivariate functions of fuzzy numbers is given by fuzzy arithmetic based on sparse grids. In this paper, we illustrate the general applicability of this new method by computing two dynamic systems subjected to uncertain parameters as well as uncertain initial conditions. The first model consists of a system of delay differential equations simulating the periodic outbreak of a disease. In the second model, we consider a multibody mechanism described by an algebraic differential equation system.
Passive stability and control of quadrupedal bounding with a flexible torso

This paper studies the stability and control of passively generated bounding motions for a class of quadrupedal template models that incorporate compliant elements in their segmented torso and legs. First, the existence of self-stable cyclic bounding gaits in the presence of torso flexibility is examined. Based on numerical studies of the associated Poincaré return map in a dimensionless context, it is deduced that self-stable bounding gaits can indeed be generated through appropriate combinations of the stiffness of the torso and the stiffness of the legs. Next, the implications of this result to control design are discussed, and a hybrid controller is proposed that enhances the stability of the passively generated bounding gaits.
DNA Damage Protecting Activity and Free Radical Scavenging Activity of Anthocyanins from Red Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) Bran

There is increasing interest in natural food colorants like carotenoids and anthocyanins with functional properties. Red sorghum bran is known as a rich source for anthocyanins. The anthocyanin contents extracted from red sorghum bran were evaluated by biochemical analysis. Among the three solvent system used, the acidified methanol extract showed a highest anthocyanin content (4.7 mg/g of sorghum bran) followed by methanol (1.95 mg/g) and acetone (1 mg/g). Similarly, the highest total flavonoids (143 mg/g) and total phenolic contents (0.93 mg/g) were obtained in acidified methanol extracts than methanol and acetone extracts. To study the health benefits of anthocyanin from red sorghum bran, the total antioxidant activity was evaluated by biochemical and molecular methods. The highest antioxidant activity was observed in acidified methanol extracts of anthocyanin in dose-dependent manner. The antioxidant activity of the red sorghum bran was directly related to the total anthocyanin found in red sorghum bran.
Intel vs AMD: Matrix multiplication performance

Matrix-Matrix multiplication (MMM) is widely used algorithm in today's computations and researches. Many techniques exist to speed up its execution. In this paper, we analyze the performance of MMM varying matrix size in order to determine its behavior and the region where it provides the best performance. We also determine the best speedup and efficiency in parallel implementation for different CPU architectures since cache architecture and organization is very important for MMM performance. Intel i7 and AMD Opteron CPUs are used as an environment. Several achieved results are expected, but there are also many unexpected. Superlinear speedup (speedup greater than the number of used threads) and the efficiency greater than 100% are achieved for each parallel implementation only on AMD Opteron. We observe regions with performance discrepancy for speed, speedup, and efficiency for both CPUs.
SMS-Based Mobile Botnet Detection Module

As the use of Android mobile phones grows, botnets are increasingly targeting smartphone features, which calls for further research on mobile botnet detection. Short Message Service (SMS) has become increasingly targeted by a number of malicious applications ("apps") that have the ability to abuse SMS features in order to send spam, to transfer command and control (C&C) instructions, to distribute malicious applications via URLs embedded in text messages, to send text messages to premium-rate numbers, and to exploit smartphones. In this paper, we propose a SMS- based mobile botnet detection module that employs unsupervised learning techniques, using clustering algorithms to group SMS messages into four classes and to classify reported text messages to one of those four classes. The module also uses a robust and efficient behavioural profiling analysis to detect whether there is any correlation between cluster outputs and alerts from reported profiles. Rule- based correlations are used to label SMS messages as either normal or malicious.
Synthesizing "Verification Aware" Models: Why and How?

Design-for-verification (DFV) methodology i.e., exporting designer's intent to verification tools has been quite effective in improving verification efforts. The authors take one step further in improving the verification efforts, by separating the design optimized for performance, area and power from the design optimized for correctness, thereby reducing the verification burden. The authors propose a new paradigm synthesis-for-verification (SFV) which involves synthesizing "verification-aware" designs that are more suitable for functional verification. SFV methodology should be applied along with DFV methodology to obtain the full benefit of verification efforts. Note, this SFV paradigm requires support only from automated synthesis approaches, e.g. high level synthesis (HLS), and can be easily automated. This is in contrast to DFV methodology, which requires designers' reliable insights. As part of SFV methodology, the authors first identify the effect of various design entities on the performance of model checkers. By guiding the use of such entities in existing behavioral synthesis techniques, the authors propose to obtain "verification friendly" models that are relatively easier to model check. The authors demonstrate effectiveness of such a paradigm using existing industry tools and designs
SE-RAY-IR improvements : an advanced illumination approach for infrared rendering of outdoor scenes

SE-RAY-IR is the physical ray tracing software from OKTAL Synthetic Environment that constitutes the core of the CHORALE workbench for the French Ministry of Defense. It enables the computation of high realistic images in visible and infrared spectrum based on complex scenarios. Its physical model takes into account the thermal emission of materials, the contribution of sky irradiance without occlusions, diffuse and multiple specular reflections.
Demonstration of plug-and-play cognitive radio network emulation testbed

In this demonstration, we present the capabilities of a comprehensive cognitive radio system, CREATE-NEST. We provide hardware demonstration of a Cognitive Radio nEtworking ArchiTecturE (CREATE) over the Network Emulator Simulator Testbed (NEST). CREATE is a distributed and scalable network architecture operating without a common control channel and is equipped with cross-layer design functionalities. NEST provides plug-and-play cognitive network implementation with software-defined radios (SDRs). In this demonstration, we use eight USRP N210 radios, each running full network protocol stack and communicating with each other over multiple hops and different frequency bands. Instead of over-the-air transmissions, NEST uses RFnest (Radio Frequency Network Emulator Simulator Tool) to generate the air environment by changing channel properties digitally. We demonstrate the capability of cognitive network nodes to discover local neighborhood, sense the spectrum, estimate channels, dynamically access the spectrum, select channels, route traffic, and avoid congestion, primary users and RF interferers. We present different topology and mobility scenarios and show the cognitive radio performance (throughput, delay, energy, and overhead) with interactive GUI.
REMI: defect prediction for efficient API testing

Quality assurance for common APIs is important since the the reliability of APIs affects the quality of other systems using the APIs. Testing is a common practice to ensure the quality of APIs, but it is a challenging and laborious task especially for industrial projects. Due to a large number of APIs with tight time constraints and limited resources, it is hard to write enough test cases for all APIs. To address these challenges, we present a novel technique, REMI that predicts high risk APIs in terms of producing potential bugs. REMI allows developers to write more test cases for the high risk APIs. We evaluate REMI on a real-world industrial project, Tizen-wearable, and apply REMI to the API development process at Samsung Electronics. Our evaluation results show that REMI predicts the bug-prone APIs with reasonable accuracy (0.681 f-measure on average). The results also show that applying REMI to the Tizen-wearable development process increases the number of bugs detected, and reduces the resources required for executing test cases.
Coordinate-free formulation of a 3-2-1 wire-based tracking device using Cayley-Menger determinants

This paper deals with the problem of estimating the pose of a rigid moving object by measuring the length of six wires attached to it. Among all possible locations for the attachments on the moving object, the "3-2-1" configuration exhibits the highest number of favorable properties. A closed-form coordinate-free solution to the forward kinematics of this particular configuration is given in terms of Cayley-Menger determinants. The proposed formulation is mathematically more tractable compared to previous ones because all terms are determinants with geometric meaning. This accommodates a more thorough investigation of the properties of the device and leads to formulas whose numerical conditioning is independent from the chosen reference frames.
A Probabilistic Fitness Measure for Deformable Template Models

Methods for automatic image interpretation based on the use of deformable template models have proved very successful. Whatever deformable template scheme is used, one of the basic requirements is a method for assessing the likelihood that a particular model instance is the correct interpretation of a given image. We describe a Bayesian 'fitness' measure which combines the likelihood of the model shape with the evidential support in a principled way. Image search is carried out by minimising the fitness measure using multi-scale quasi-Newtonian optimisation. We have previously compared the performance of different fitness measures. Here we give results for the new method and show that, by making optimal use of the image evidence, it achieves more accurate interpretation than the best of the methods we have previously tested.
Non-homogeneous resizing of complex models

Resizing of 3D models can be very useful when creating new models or placing models inside different scenes. However, uniform scaling is limited in its applicability while straightforward non-uniform scaling can destroy features and lead to serious visual artifacts. Our goal is to define a method that protects model features and structures during resizing. We observe that typically, during scaling some parts of the models are more vulnerable than others, undergoing undesirable deformation. We automatically detect vulnerable regions and carry this information to a protective grid defined around the object, defining a vulnerability map. The 3D model is then resized by a space-deformation technique which scales the grid non-homogeneously while respecting this map. Using space-deformation allows processing of common models of man-made objects that consist of multiple components and contain non-manifold structures. We show that our technique resizes models while suppressing undesirable distortion, creating models that preserve the structure and features of the original ones.
A sub-kpc-scale binary active galactic nucleus with double narrow-line regions

We present the kinematic properties of a type-2 Quasi stellar object (QSO), SDSS J132323.33−015941.9 at z ∼ 0.35, based on the analysis of Very Large Telescope integral field spectroscopy and Hubble Space Telescope (HST) imaging, which suggest that the target is a binary active galactic nucleus (AGN) with double narrow-line regions. The QSO features double-peaked emission lines ([O III] and Hβ) which can be decomposed into two kinematic components. The flux-weighted centroids of the blue and red components are separated by ∼0.2 arcsec (0.8 kpc in projection) and coincide with the location of the two stellar cores detected in theHST broad-band images, implying that both stellar cores host an active black hole. The line-of-sight velocity of the blue component is comparable to the luminosity-weighted velocity of stars in the host galaxy, while the red component is redshifted by ∼240 km s −1 , consistent with typical velocity offsets of two cores in a late stage of a galaxy merger. If confirmed, the target is one of the rare cases of sub-kpc-scale binary AGNs, providing a test-bed for understanding the binary AGN population.