Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Coherent decompositions of power systems signals using damped sinusoids with applications to denoising

In this paper we propose a method to decompose electric power systems signals using damped sinusoids. It is inspired in the matching pursuits algorithm. The matching pursuits algorithm has the potential of decomposing a signal into coherent components. However, it is not a trivial task to obtain a decomposition which is meaningful in physical terms, as it is desirable in the case of power systems signals. We describe enhancements to the basic matching pursuits algorithm that generate decompositions in damped sinusoids with high correlation to the actual physical phenomena. We test the effectiveness of the proposed method in a signal denoising application, where the physically meaningful components are extracted from signals corrupted by noise. From the extracted components, a version of the signals almost free from noise are obtained.
Use of SYBR Green I for rapid epifluorescence counts of marine viruses and bacteria

A new nucleic acid stain, SYBR Green I, can be used for the rapid and accurate determination of viral and bacterial abundances in diverse marine samples. We tested this stain with formalinpreserved samples of coastal water and also from depth profiles (to 800 m) from sites 19 and 190 km offshore, by filtering a few m1 onto 0.02 pm pore-size filters and staining for 15 min. Comparison of bacterial counts to those made with acridine orange (AO) and virus counts with those made by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) showed very strong correlations. Bacterial counts with A 0 and SYBR Green 1 were indistinguishable and almost perfectly correlated (r2 = 0.99). Virus counts ranged widely, from 0.03 to 15 X 10' virus ml-l. Virus counts by SYBR Green 1 were on the average higher than those made by TEM, and a SYBR Green 1 versus TEM plot yielded a regression slope of 1.28. The correlation between the two was very high with an value of 0.98. The precision of the SYBR Green I method was the same as that for TEM, with coefficients of variation of 2.9%. SYBR Green I stained viruses and bacteria are intensely stained and easy to distinguish from other particles with both older and newer generation epifluorescence microscopes. Detritus is generally not stained, unlike when the alternative dye YoPro I is used, so this approach may be suitable for sediments. SYBR Green I stained samples need no desalting or heating, can be fixed with formalin prior to filtration, the optimal staining time is 15 min (resulting in a total preparation time of less than 25 min), and counts can be easily performed at sea immediately after sampling. This method may facilitate incorporation of viral research into most aquatic microbiology laboratories.
Effect of dynamic control of fragrance output timing in networked virtual environment

In this paper, we propose dynamic control of output timing of fragrance in a networked virtual environment to improve Quality of Experience (QoE). The control changes the output timing of fragrance dynamically according to the movement speed and direction of an object which is a fragrance source. We implement the control in a remote ikebana system using olfactory and haptic media and investigate the effect of the control by QoE assessment. As a result, we demonstrate that Mean Opinion Score (MOS) in the case where the control is used is high and does not largely depend on the average movement speed and movement direction of a flower, which is a fragrance source.
A review of Delphi forecasting research in tourism

The Delphi technique is the most popular judgemental forecasting method in tourism studies, but theoretical and empirical developments in this area (especially for forecasting purposes) have been slow. This paper analyses published research on Delphi forecasting in tourism and hospitality, explores how the Delphi forecasting method has progressed over the past four decades in terms of topical areas, empirical applications, and issues of reliability and validity, and is thus expected to advance understanding of the Delphi technique, providing topical and methodological recommendations for researchers and industry practitioners for producing accurate forecasts. The literature concerning the qualitative and quantitative applications of Delphi forecasting in tourism is mainly divided into three research themes: event forecasting, forecasting tourism demand, and forecasting future trends/market conditions (the most popular application). Issues of accuracy, reliability, and validity, as well as a group of Delphi-specific characteristics, such as panel size, panel selection, consensus measures, and analysis of results, are summarized and discussed. This study also examines the accuracy of Delphi forecasts as well as exploring the role of the Delphi approach in integrating human judgement into quantitative forecasts.
Enteropathogenicity of Vibrio parahaemolyticus in the ligated rabbit ileum

The enteropathogenicity of Vibrio parahaemolyticus was investigated by contrasting the effects of whole cells, cell fragments, cell-free preparations, and media constituents injected into rabbit ileal loops. Three of 20 cultures utilized were Kanagawa-negative strains from seawater and sea fish. The remaining 17 cultures included both Kanagawa-positive and -negative strains from Japanese victims of gastroenteritis. Broth culture filtrates concentrated 10-fold by dialysis against 30% Carbowax were unreactive, whereas lyophilized filtrates, regardless of Kanagawa type, as well as all sterile broth preparations containing greater than or equal to 5% NaCl gave positive reactions in the rabbit gut. In contrast, crude lysates derived from broth cultures of Kanagawa-positive strains caused loop dilatation; lysate supernatants were unreactive. Lysates of cells washed from brain heart infusion agar were more reactive than lysates from Trypticase soy agar-grown cells. When agar-grown cell lysates prepared by disruption in saline were dialyzed against distilled water, they were devoid of gut reactivity. Reactivity was restored in dialysands resuspended in saline and in dialysates concentrated 10-fold. The agar-grown cell lysates exhibited Kanagawa-type hemolysis. Our data support the conclusion that the rabbit loop reactivity observed with lyophilized, cell-free culture filtrates may result from excessively elevated NaCl concentrations, and that a toxic factor associated with large-cell particles may be dialyzable, depends on saline for expression, and resembles the Kanagawa hemolysin.
Sustainability reporting in Austrian and German local public enterprises

Since the liberalisation of markets during the 1990s, the pressure on public sector entities to demonstrate their performance in financial and non-financial terms has increased. Compared to the private sector, accountability expectations and obligations are higher for public enterprises due to public ownership and objectives associated with the public mission. While there is a vast body of literature on public accountability in general, a research gap exists when it comes to linking the general debate of public accountability to sustainability reporting practices of public enterprises. Thus, the paper addresses the research questions about the performance of reporting practices of public enterprises with respect to public accountability and about the state of the art of sustainability reporting of public enterprises in Germany and Austria with respect to accountability. Therefore, this paper combines two research domains, social and environmental accounting research and the accountability of public enterprises. The paper reports the results of a survey, analysing the reporting practices of German and Austrian local public entities in particular. Annual reports and, if available, sustainability reports from 103 Austrian and German cities were examined.
Multiscale shape analysis using the continuous wavelet transform

We present a new approach to shape representation and analysis, which consists in treating the contour of a 2D shape as an 1D signal and analyzing it with the 1D continuous wavelet transform. Application is made to the detection of corners, natural scales and fractal behavior in 2D shapes.
Radiographic diagnosis of sacroiliitis--are sacroiliac views really better?

OBJECTIVE To determine whether detailed oblique radiographs of the sacroiliac (SI) joints provide significant diagnostic advantage to a single AP projection of the pelvis in establishing the presence and severity of sacroiliitis. METHODS Radiographs (both AP pelvis and detailed oblique projections) of 445 right SI joints and 442 left SI joints were obtained from patients with an established diagnosis of a seronegative spondyloarthropathy, and interpreted for severity. Data for the right and left SI joints were analyzed, comparing interpretations of severity based on AP pelvis projections with oblique views. RESULTS Analysis of these data showed an agreement rate between AP views and SI views of 89.7% for the right SI joint radiographs and 86.4% for the left SI joint. There was no instance in which a patient with "unequivocal abnormalities"of the SI joints on the AP pelvis was read as having "normal" SI views. Similarly, there were no cases in which "normal" SI joints on AP pelvis films were read as having unequivocal abnormalities on SI views. CONCLUSION In this group of patients with seronegative spondyloarthropathies, there was very close agreement between severity score of sacroiliitis from AP pelvis radiographs and SI joint views. We conclude that in most circumstances, the AP pelvis film will yield the diagnosis of sacroiliitis without the additional radiation exposure and expense related to specific SI joint radiographs.
Value-Added Knowledge Management for Financial Performance: The Case of an East Asian Conglomerate

Purpose - This paper aims to study the economic significance of using a blended business and knowledge strategy through the lens of conventional financial management before and after the implementation of KM initiatives in a knowledge-intensive, high-growth firm that had gone through business diversification through organic developments as well as mergers and acquisitions for over a decade. Design/methodology/approach - The economic value added (EVA) method is proposed as a measure of the effective usage of capital funding in the firm before and after its KM program. The extent of the economic impact due to the contributions of various KM strategies was analyzed singstandard financial management reporting. This enabled the derivation of follow-on KM initiatives that were consistent with the target objectives. Findings - The EVA method was found to be valid and credible in determining the net impact of various KM initiatives. This was in a form that was comprehensible to top management and KM decision-makers. Research limitations/implications - Knowledge management as a strategic imperative has gained significance over the past decade for its ability to handle the complexity of information to further create, transfer and reuse intellectual capital. More importantly, KM is seen as the key business enabler across different enterprises for its ability to enhance competitiveness and shareholder value. The EVA method used in this paper has allowed the valuation of KM initiatives. Practical implications - The emergence of KM as a blended business strategy has hence proved o be vital for the sustainability of the knowledge-driven business model that looks beyond the physical and financial into intellectual and social capital. Originality/value - The paper presents a longitudinal case study of a fairly large East Asian onglomerate. (Chosen as Outstanding Paper Award Win)
Diethyl 1,4-bis(4-nitrophenyl)-1,4-dihydro-1,2,4,5-tetrazine-3,6-dicarboxylate

The complete molecule of the title compound, C20H18N6O8, is generated by a crystallographic twofold axis. The dihedral angle between the nitrobenzene rings is 43.5 (2)°. The central six-membered ring exhibits a boat conformation. In the crystal structure, weak intermolecular C—H⋯O interactions are observed.
Motivasi Perataan Penghasilan

This study was aimed to analyze the effect of some factors towards income smoothing tendency and the influence of the income smoothing tendency towards firm value on non financial public companies at the Indonesia Stock Exchange. Those factors are debt, independent commissioners, and auditor quality. This study was performed using field research. Data were collected from Indonesian Capital Market Directories. Sample in this study is 100 non financial firms which listed at the Indonesia Stock Exchange from 1999-2005 and is derived using some criteria. This study used Partial Least Square regression technique. The result showed that income smoothing tendency was positive affected by debt. The findings refused first hypothesis. The findings might be of interest to creditors to make credit decision. The study contributed to the literature in that it has shown that income smoothing practice is driven by opportunistic management motive rather than efficiency. Managers should not exercise it because public did not care the practice.
A Sample Selection Model for Protest Non-Response Votes in Contingent Valuation Analyses

pay some money for a public good, for reasons that differ from a genuine indifference to the good. For example, some people may dislike the idea of placing monetary values to public goods like the environment or a historical monument. Some may protest against the inefficiency of the public administration in managing public funds, and refuse to pay a tax. Others may behave strategically, if they think that their answer could influence the actual level of taxation. A good survey design can effectively reduce them, but protest votes can hardly be completely removed from the dataset. The question is how to deal with them. Sometimes they are considered as true zero values, or, if the dichotomous choice method is used, as if they were below the minimum bid. Obviously, if the unwillingness to pay reflects only a protest and not a low or null valuation of the good, this procedure results in downward biased estimates of the wtp measure. It is of paramount importance that the questionnaire contains a follow up question for individuals that refuse payment, to investigate about their motivations, and interpret the responses. Alternatively, observations with protest votes are simply cut off the sample, and only the subsample with positive reservation prices is considered in the analysis. This procedure will not have any effect for the validity of the estimates only if there is no sample selection bias. Otherwise, it leads to incorrect estimates for the willingness to pay. In this paper we present a sample selection model that allows to take into account, and correct, the possible bias due to protest votes. It is shown that selection bias can sensibly affect the estimates for the willingness to pay for the public good. It will be seen that the model may present estimation problems because of flatness of the likelihood function. In some cases confidence intervals around the sample selection coefficient are too wide to give evidence of presence or absence of sample selection bias. It is argued that even in these circumstances the sample selection model with the protest votes should be preferred to the model without protest votes, since it takes into account the uncertainty about the estimates of the willingness to pay.
Register Cellular Automata in the Hyperbolic Plane

In this paper, we consider cellular automata on special grids of the hyperbolic plane: the grids are constructed on infinigons, i.e. polygons with infinitely many sides. We show that the truth of arithmetical formulas can be decided in finite time with infinite initial recursive configurations. Next, we define a new kind of cellular automata, endowed with data and more powerful operations which we call register cellular automata. This time, starting from finite configurations, it is possible to decide the truth of arithmetic formulas in linear time with respect to the size of the formula.
Measuring Group Mobility: A Topology Based Approach

In highly mobile networks, mobility based clustering schemes exploit the group mobility of nodes to form stable communication structure by grouping nodes with similar mobility pattern together. However, existing group mobility metrics cannot assess quantitatively whether a mobility model can provide the necessary degree of group mobility. In this paper, we propose a novel metric, Degree of Node Reachability (DNR), to measure the degree of group mobility from the perspective of network topology. Based on DNR, we propose r-test to quantitatively assess whether a given mobility model will fail to satisfy the required network condition. The proposed metric is validated using common mobility models. The simulation results show that our metric can capture the network topology changes and reflect the impact of underlying node mobility. In addition, r-test is shown to provide a viable means to assess the level of group mobility of a given mobility model.
Committee Assignments, Constituent Preferences, and Campaign Contributions

The authors model the behavior of a vote-maximizing legislator in order to predict interest group campaign contributions to incumbent politicians. They show that committee assignments and voter preferences affect the price a legislator requires to produce policies for any interest group. An econometric analysis of actual interest group contributions shows that these groups make significantly larger contributions to legislators on committees with jurisdiction over especially relevant policy issues and to incumbents with nonhostile constituencies. These results support the authors' theory; interest groups act as if committees matter in the determination of policy and voters' interests constrain interest group behavior. Copyright 1991 by Oxford University Press.
Glycemic control among primary care patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus in the Gaza Strip, Palestine

Aim: In this study, we aimed to assess the level of good glycemic control, to determine association between adherence to antidiabetic medications and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and to examine factors influencing good glycemic control. Materials and methods: A cross-sectional design was employed among 369 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) from four Ministry of Health health centers in 2016. A sample of 3 ml blood was taken to measure the HbA1c, and patients were asked to fill out a pretested questionnaire. Univariate and multivariate logistic regressions, to identify independent factors associated with good glycemic control, were conducted using SPSS software version 22 (IBM Corp, Armonk, NY, USA). Results: Mean [±standard deviation (SD)] of HbA1c was 8.97 (2.02) and one fifth of patients had good glycemic control (HbA1c ⩽ 7%). Factors associated with good glycemic control were: older age [odds ratio (OR) = 0.96, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.933–0.988), high medication adherence (OR: 2.757, 95% CI: 1.308–4.693), and better health literacy (OR= 2.124, 95% CI: 1.917–4.921). Duration of diabetes mellitus (DM > 7 years) was inversely related to good glycemic control (OR = 2.255, 95% CI: 1.189–4.276). Conclusion: Our study showed that glycemic control was suboptimal, and factors associated with that were: older age, high medication adherence, and better health literacy. Knowledge of these factors could be an entry toward helping patients and targeting interventions to improve glycemic control and prevent diabetes-related complications.
The Bacterial SRP Receptor, SecA and the Ribosome Use Overlapping Binding Sites on the SecY Translocon

Signal recognition particle (SRP)‐dependent protein targeting is a universally conserved process that delivers proteins to the bacterial cytoplasmic membrane or to the endoplasmic reticulum membrane in eukaryotes. Crucial during targeting is the transfer of the ribosome‐nascent chain complex (RNC) from SRP to the Sec translocon. In eukaryotes, this step is co‐ordinated by the SRβ subunit of the SRP receptor (SR), which probably senses a vacant translocon by direct interaction with the translocon. Bacteria lack the SRβ subunit and how they co‐ordinate RNC transfer is unknown. By site‐directed cross‐linking and fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) analyses, we show that FtsY, the bacterial SRα homologue, binds to the exposed C4/C5 loops of SecY, the central component of the bacterial Sec translocon. The same loops serve also as binding sites for SecA and the ribosome. The FtsY–SecY interaction involves at least the A domain of FtsY, which attributes an important function to this so far ill‐defined domain. Binding of FtsY to SecY residues, which are also used by SecA and the ribosome, probably allows FtsY to sense an available translocon and to align the incoming SRP–RNC with the protein conducting channel. Thus, the Escherichia coli FtsY encompasses the functions of both the eukaryotic SRα and SRβ subunits in one single protein.
The Response of Market Interest Rates to Discount Rate Changes

~51 S IT IS WELL-ESTABLISHED that discount rate changes of the same size can have markedly different effects on market interest rates. Studies of such effects, starting with Thornton (1982), have generally divided discount rate changes into two groups: “technical” changes, those made solely to keep the discount rate in line with market rates, and other “non-technical” changes. ’ The former generally do not have a signitIcant impact on market rates, while the latter generally do. The use of this technical/ non-technical dichotomy is predicated on the assumption that the market responds to a discount rate change based on the reasons fot’ the change. Hakkio and Pearce (1992) find that the reasons generally fall into three categories: “(1) conditions in the market for bank reserves . ; (2) movements in intermediate targets such as the money supply and the foreign exchange value of the dollar; and (3) movements in ultimate tat-gets such as inflation and economic growth. ” They observe that “changes in the rate because of type (1) factors are likely to be used to complement open market operations, while changes because of type (2) or (3) factors are more likely to be used as signals of future Fed policy. ”~ Thus, technical changes result when the opportunity cost to banks of borrowing reserves—the federal funds rate less the discount rate—is too high or low to be consistent with attaining the Fed’s operating target. Since October 1982 that target has been the level of borrowed reserves.3 Non-technical changes, on the other hand, encompass all of the other reasons the Fed might change the discount rate. Clearly a combination of the factors identified by Flakkio and Pearce can be behind a given discount rate change, so the reaction of market interest rates to discount rate changes might be more heterogeneous than the technical/non-technical dichotomy would suggest. Moreover, as the efficient markets hypothesis implies, the response of market interest rates to a discount rate change should vary with the amount of new information the discount change imparts regarding the Fed’s policy intentions or the state of the economy in general. ~