Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
European sovereign debt crisis and linkage of long-term government bond yields

Based on the robust cross-correlation function approach developed by Hong (2001), this paper investigates the causality-in-mean and the causality-in-variance of long-term bond yields in seven countries including “PIIGS” (Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece, and Spain), Germany, and France. A main contribution of the study is to assess the impacts of the recent European sovereign debt crisis on relationships of the bond yields. We find some evidence of the mean spillover effects, especially from Portugal and France before the crisis and from Portugal and Italy after the crisis. In contrast, the variance spillover effects from Germany interestingly strengthened through the debt crisis in particular despite the apparent lack of its mean transmission effects, whilst major sources of volatility spillover effects had been Portugal and France prior to the crisis.
Workshops without Walls: Broadening Access to Science around the World

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Astrobiology Institute (NAI) conducted two “Workshops Without Walls” during 2010 that enabled global scientific exchange—with no travel required. The second of these was on the topic “Molecular Paleontology and Resurrection: Rewinding the Tape of Life. ” Scientists from diverse disciplines and locations around the world were joined through an integrated suite of collaborative technologies to exchange information on the latest developments in this area of origin of life research. Through social media outlets and popular science blogs, participation in the workshop was broadened to include educators, science writers, and members of the general public. In total, over 560 people from 31 US states and 30 other nations were registered. Among the scientific disciplines represented were geochemistry, biochemistry, molecular biology and evolution, and microbial ecology. We present this workshop as a case study in how interdisciplinary collaborative research may be fostered, with substantial public engagement, without sustaining the deleterious environmental and economic impacts of travel.
Legal aspects of the hydraulic fracturing method

In recent months the possibility of extracting shale gas by way of the hydraulic fracturing method in Poland as well as across EU territory has been widely discussed. The European Parliament is to decide whether to ban this method. There are various legal, ecological and economical aspects influencing European legislators. It is hard not to notice how strongly the anti- and pro- hydraulic fracturing lobbies are connected with business. At the moment there are no specific regulations that relate directly to this extraction method, neither in the EU as a whole nor in Poland. However, in Poland a new Geological and Mining Act is supposed to come into force on 1 st January 2012, which will regulate natural gas extraction with a view to ensure proper extraction of shale gas in the near future. This article is aimed at showing Polish regulations, both planned and currently in force, as well as the relevant EU law in respect of shale gas extraction. The author would like to emphasize the need to create one coherent legislative regime which would enable entrepreneurs to commence extraction by way of hydraulic fracturing without creating a danger for the environment.
Eukaryotic promoter recognition by binding sites for transcription factors

A method for identification of eukaryotic promoters by localization of binding sites for transcription factors has been suggested. The binding sites for a range of transcription factors have been found to be distributed unevenly. Based on these distributions, we have constructed a weight matrix of binding site localization. On the basis of the weight matrix we have, in turn, designed an algorithm for promoter recognition. To increase the accuracy of the method, we have developed a routine that breaks any promoter sample into subsamples. The method to be reported on allows much better recognition accuracy than does the approach based on detection of the TATA box. In particular, the overprediction error is three times lower following our method. The program FunSiteP recognizes promoters from newly uncovered sequences and tentatively identifies the functional class the promoters must belong to. We have introduced the notion of 'regulatory potential' for the degree to which any region of the sequences is similar to the real eukaryotic promoter. By making use of the potential, we have revealed putative transcription start sites and extended regions of transcription regulation.
Project ownership: implications on success measurement

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to discuss measurement of project success in an ownership perspective.Design/methodology/approach – The research is based on a case study of owner structures in 11 projects. For each case, an analysis was made of which stakeholder that held six different roles related to project ownership. Multiple sources of information are used, including archives, interviews and observations.Findings – Results from the study indicate that owner responsibilities are not always concentrated to one individual stakeholder in a project. While a traditional owner can be identified for some projects, it is a more complex picture for many other projects.Research implications/limitations – This paper has primarily analysed project ownership on a macro level, between organisations. Challenges related to identifying owners can to a certain extent also be found on a micro level, within the most involved organisations, but this has not been the aim of the research.Practical implications – Meas.
Application of the Global Reporting Initiative Sustainability Reporting Framework in Greece

The purpose of this paper is to study corporate social responsibility reporting in Greece. Several aspects of corporate social responsibility and reporting are discussed with a particular focus on the Global Reporting Initiative Sustainability Reporting Framework. Its state, trends and evolution are outlined and the country reporting index as well as the region reporting index are introduced. The case of Greek companies and the diffusion of the aforementioned reporting framework in Greece are examined. In addition, corporate social responsibility reports issued by 35 Greek companies in 2011 are analysed with respect to the performance indicators used.
The socio‐political context of zero tolerance policing strategies

This paper commences with the recognition that so‐called zero tolerance policing strategies have been implemented and sustained ‐ both in the USA and Britain ‐ in response to a very widespread public demand. It is argued that dismissing this support as part of a reactionary political backlash fails to address some very legitimate public concerns. Consequently, this paper considers the socio‐political circumstances that have provided the conditions for this popular support in terms of the notion of postmodern politics, whereby political demands and subsequent strategies are introduced that appeal to a wide range of interest groups, and which cross over the traditional liberal/conservative divide. Examples are cited, from New York City in the USA, to various geographical locations in Britain, in order to support the argument that zero tolerance‐style policing needs to be driven by the concerns of the particular community in order to receive widespread legitimacy.
Disparate effects of improving aerobic exercise capacity and quality of life after cardiac rehabilitation in young and elderly coronary patients.

PURPOSE Although cardiopulmonary exercise variables predict prognosis, functional capacity, and quality of life (QoL) in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD), these variables have not been assessed fully before and after exercise training in elderly with CAD. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the impact of formal Phase II cardiac rehabilitation and exercise training programs on cardiopulmonary variables and QoL in elderly and younger CAD patients. METHODS The authors analyzed consecutive patients before and after Phase II cardiac rehabilitation and exercise training programs, and compared exercise cardiopulmonary data and data from validated questionnaires assessing QoL (MOS SF-36) and function in 125 younger patients (< 55 years; mean 48 +/- 6 years) and 57 elderly (> 70 years; mean 78 +/- 3 years). RESULTS At baseline, elderly patients had lower estimated aerobic exercise capacity (-27%; P < 0.001), peak oxygen consumption (VO2) (-19%; P < 0.01), and anaerobic threshold (-10%; P < 0.05), as well as total function scores (-11%; P < 0.01) and total QoL scores (-5%; P = 0.06). Commonly used prediction equations greatly overestimated aerobic exercise capacity compared with precise measurements using cardiopulmonary testing both before (+23% and +12% in younger and elderly patients, respectively) and after the exercise training programs (+51% and +31% in younger and elderly patients, respectively), and more so in younger compared with older patients. After rehabilitation, the elderly had significant improvements in estimated aerobic exercise capacity (+32%; P < 0.0001), peak VO2 (+13%; P < 0.0001), anaerobic threshold (+11%; P = 0.03), total function scores (+27%; P < 0.0001), and total QoL scores (+20%; P < 0.0001). Although younger patients had greater improvements in estimated aerobic exercise capacity (+44% versus +32%; P = 0.08), peak VO2 (+18% versus +13%; P < 0.01), and anaerobic threshold (+17% versus +11%; P = 0.07), the elderly had statistically greater improvements in both function scores (+27% versus +20%; P = 0.02), and total QoL scores (+20% versus +14%; P = 0.03). CONCLUSIONS These data confirm the benefits of precisely determining aerobic exercise capacity by cardiopulmonary function, especially to determine the benefits of an exercise training program. In addition, these data using cardiopulmonary exercise tests and validated assessments of quality of life demonstrate the disparate effects of cardiac rehabilitation programs on improvements in aerobic exercise capacity and QoL in young and elderly with CAD.
Rab11-family interacting proteins define spatially and temporally distinct regions within the dynamic Rab11a-dependent recycling system

The Rab11-family interacting proteins (Rab11-FIPs) facilitate Rab11-dependent vesicle recycling, yet it is unknown how these effectors cooperate with each other during recycling. It is found that Rab11-FIPs exhibit selective cooperation along dynamic tubular compartments to fill distinct spatiotemporal roles during recycling.
Assessment of insulin secretion in relation to insulin resistance

Purpose of reviewIn healthy individuals, upregulation of insulin secretion compensates for insulin resistance so that normal glucose tolerance is maintained. Thus insulin secretion should be evaluated in relation to insulin sensitivity, as failure to account for insulin resistance may prevent the detection of β-cell defects. Numerous studies have considered this problem, but how insulin secretion is regulated by insulin sensitivity and how insulin secretion should be quantitatively expressed to account for sensitivity are issues still under debate. This review will discuss these concepts and the aspects that should be considered for an appropriate solution to the problem. Recent findingsWhile the historical paradigm of a specific hyperbolic relationship between some particular insulin secretion and insulin sensitivity indices has recently been confirmed, it has been suggested that this paradigm is not applicable to all the indices. It has also been suggested that for some relevant insulin secretion indices this relationship may not exist. Thus, the classical insulin secretion index that accounts for sensitivity, the so-called disposition index, should be used cautiously, as it presupposes a hyperbolic relationship. Furthermore, it has been pointed out that the assessment of this relationship requires independency of the indices. SummaryThe assessment of insulin secretion in relation to insulin sensitivity is important in the study of glycemic control but requires appropriate methods and cautious interpretations. Blind application of principles that are valid for specific insulin secretion and sensitivity indices may produce false results.
Women's Status in South Korea: Tradition and Change

The Republic of Korea (ROK) has experienced very rapid industrial growth and economic modernization since the end of the Korean War. Although the society's material change has been substantial, behavioral adjustments to the economic developments have occurred slowly and have sometimes been justified by tradition. Thus, inequities in women's opportunities are maintained through an elaborate system of role relationships that are rooted in and rationalized by Confucian customs; they are socially mandated and often legally condoned. However, despite the cultural limits on behavioral change, a women's rights movement has developed in the ROK over the past several years, and it is addressing issues of equity and worker exploitation-two universal concerns of modernized societies. The interaction of tradition with the calls for change issued by this women's rights movement is the focus of this study.
Regulation of immunity and disease resistance by commensal microbes and chromatin modifications during zebrafish development

How fish larvae are protected from infection before the maturation of adaptive immunity, a process which may take up to several weeks in most species, has long been a matter of speculation. Using a germ-free model, we show that colonization by commensals in newly hatched zebrafish primes neutrophils and induces several genes encoding proinflammatory and antiviral mediators, increasing the resistance of larvae to viral infection. Commensal microbe recognition was found to be mediated mainly through a TLR/MyD88 signaling pathway, and professional phagocytes were identified as the source of these immune mediators. However, the induction of proinflammatory and antiviral genes, but not of antimicrobial effector genes, also required the covalent modification of histone H3 at gene promoters. Interestingly, chromatin modifications were not altered by commensal microbes or hatching. Taken together, our results demonstrate that gene-specific chromatin modifications are associated with the protection of zebrafish larvae against infectious agents before adaptive immunity has developed and prevent pathologies associated with excessive inflammation during development.
Creating a safe and pleasant shopping environment: a retailer’s view

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse how retailers view the links between security problems, investments in formal and informal surveillance, the sense of security felt among customers and employees, and the competitiveness of the store. Design/methodology/approach – The study utilizes elements of the theory of Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) in its theoretical approach. Thus, surveillance investments are divided into formal and informal surveillance investments. The theoretical model is tested using structural equation modelling (SEM) with data collected among grocery store retailers. Findings – The study shows that security problems have a positive impact on investments in formal surveillance but no impact on investments in informal surveillance. Furthermore, retailers perceive that formal surveillance investments have a negative impact on the sense of security felt among customers and employees, whereas informal surveillance investments have a positive impact. In addi.
The Danish National Multicenter Schizophrenia Project: Assessment of Psychotic Patients for dynamic Psychotherapy (APPP)

Clinicians need guidance in selecting schizophrenic patients for individual psychodynamic psychotherapy. The purpose of the present study was to investigate whether a 17-item questionnaire (APPP) for quantification of suitability for psychotherapy could predict continuance, adherence and outcome from individual dynamic psychotherapy with patients with schizophrenic psychoses. Therapists rated 72 first-episode patients with schizophrenic psychoses in the initial interview. The scores were then correlated to the course of therapy and change in symptoms. APPP was tested to have good psychometric characteristics and had a satisfactory interrater reliability ((ICC,2)=0.70), when four raters scored eight videotaped interviews with eight different patients. The scale scores were highly correlated to "therapeutic alliance" measured by the Working Alliance Inventory (WAI) and the Active Engagement Scale (AES). APPP suitability gave a good early prediction of adherence to therapy (continued in therapy at least 12 months and a satisfactory number of sessions), but had no predictive value of symptomatic improvement or improved social function after 1 year.
Development of standing assistive walker for domestic use

This paper proposes a robotic walker with a standing or sitting assistance function. Although many assistance devices in previous works are specialized in only standing assistance or walking assistance, users need standing, walking and sitting assistance continuously from the same device. Our system focuses on domestic use for people who need nursing in their daily life such as elderly people. To realize an assistive robotic system for “a real world usage,” we design it considering safety, practicality and low cost. Our developed assistive system consists of a powered walker and a standing assistance manipulator. Its size is small enough for using in a narrow room such as a bathroom. Furthermore, when proposed robotic walker assists a standing motion, it uses not only an actuator for lifting up direction but also actuators of a powered walker for stabilizing its user. This means our proposed walker realizes both standing and walking assistance with minimum actuators and its cost is practically low. The performance of our proposed system is verified by experiments using our prototype with elderly or handicapped subjects.
Research on Chinese energy consumption network between industrial sectors

This paper develops an energy consumption network model with Chinese-2007 input-output table and the data of industrial sector energy consumption. The network characteristics and influencing factors on industrial scale are analyzed with the social network analysis and stepwise regression method. The results show that the energy consumption network might be characterized by close linkages however it isn't scale-free. The sequencing result of in-strength and out-strength shows that the energy consumption of General equipment manufacturing and Electrical equipment manufacturing can't be ignored for they are key sectors of indirect energy consumption. The structure parameters of the energy consumption network between industrial sectors have promoting effect on industrial scale.
An On-Line Time Warping Algorithm for Tracking Musical Performances

Dynamic time warping is not suitable for on-line applications because it requires complete knowledge of both series before the alignment of the first elements can be computed. We present a novel online time warping algorithm which has linear time and space costs, and performs incremental alignment of two series as one is received in real time. This algorithm is applied to the alignment of audio signals in order to track musical performances.
Modeling of the wind turbine with a doubly fed induction generator for grid integration studies

Due to its many advantages such as the improved power quality, high energy efficiency and controllability, etc. the variable speed wind turbine using a doubly fed induction generator (DFIG) is becoming a popular concept and thus the modeling of the DFIG based wind turbine becomes an interesting research topic. Fundamental frequency models have been presented but these models are often complex with significant numerical overhead as the power converter block consisting of power control, rotor side and grid side converter control and DC link are often simulated in detail. This paper develops a simple DFIG wind turbine model in which the power converter is simulated as a controlled voltage source, regulating the rotor current to meet the command of real and reactive power production. This model has the form of traditional generator model and hence is easy to integrate into the power system simulation tool such as PSS/E. As an example, the interaction between the Arklow Bank Wind Farm and the Irish National Grid was simulated using the proposed model. The model performance and accuracy was also compared with the detailed model developed by DIgSILENT. Considering the simplification adopted for the model development, the limitation and applicability of the model were also discussed in this paper.
On information and communication technology and production cost in construction industry: evidence from the Netherlands

The interplay between information and communication technology (ICT) and the competitiveness of construction firms is considered. More specifically, the question is whether firms that invest in information and communication technology have a production cost advantage. The economics literature hypothesizes that ICT brings about a production cost advantage, as ICT brings flexibility and improves the planning, organization and control of work. To test this proposition for the construction industry, a production cost function allowing for the inclusion of ICT is formulated. Using statistical nearest-neighbour matching methods it is possible to identify the effect of ICT on production costs thereby controlling for economic moderators. Data from a sample of Dutch construction firms reveal that those firms that installed ICT capital do have a production cost advantage. The results indicate further that firms need a minimum level of ICT capital to fully benefit from its production cost advantage.