Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Autonomy in intergovernmentalism: the role of de novo bodies in external action during the making of the EU Global Strategy

ABSTRACT Is the new intergovernmentalism well positioned to explain the inter-institutional dynamics of EU external action, as reflected by the policy-making process of the EU Global Strategy (EUGS)? This article argues that, despite the divisive and crisis-ridden dynamics in European integration and external action, de novo bodies such as the HR/VP and the EEAS have increased their autonomy in the traditionally intergovernmental EU foreign and security policies. By tracing the making of the EUGS through 39 interviews with officials from EU institutions and member states, this article argues that the increased autonomy of the HR/VP and the EEAS in external action has also facilitated the parallel convergence of initiatives in security and defence. The value of the EUGS should thus be found in the ad intra integration dynamics it has generated; particularly when, ad extra, it embodies a more troubled environment for EU external action.
Spatial Dependency in Local Resource Distributions

We investigated the spatial patterns of different classes of resources in a familiar local environment. Past psychological research investigating why humans are so prone to misunderstand random data sets has typically focused on empirical resource distributions of equal base rates and squared arrangements—such as a 10 × 10 grid with resource spots that have 50 resources/tokens in it—to compute alternation probabilities that indicate the degree of spatial aggregation, randomness, or dispersion. We propose to incorporate a new statistical methodology from the spatial ecology literature to overcome these 2 limitations. Over recent semesters, we observed and coded various resources near our university campus from both developed and natural domains, such as seats taken at a café and in a restaurant, occupied parking spots, group members of geese and cows groupings, and patterns of wilderness, wild forest, and water in the nearby Adirondack State Park. Our data collection methodology for this exploratory study included the use of resource-specific coding sheets, flying of an aerial drone to obtain video footage of the animal distributions, and extracting patterns of land use from published New York State map data. Our results extend the available statistical tools for randomness research and provide novel evidence that natural resource domains indeed show more aggregated distribution patterns than those from human-developed resource domains. We discuss our results in light of claims that our ancestral human cognitive evolution selected for specific reasoning mechanisms to detect resources that are distributed in clumps or patches in space and time.
Inacoin Cryptocurrency Analysis: An Islamic Law Perspective

The existence of money makes buying and selling activity easier than the barter system. However, the increasing globalization of the world economy demands speed accelaration, ease and security of financial transactions. The discovery of cryptocurrency provides solution for the current payment system which relies highly on the third party in conducting digital transactions. One of those cryptocurrency products is Inacoin which is originated from Indonesia. Because this cryptocurrency is a contemporary problem that cannot be concluded directly from the classical fiqh book, a thorough investigation is needed to obtain the validity of this money from Islamic perspective. This research is a qualitative research that uses multimethod of normative-empirical Islamic law perspective in discussing the aforementioned problem. This study concluded that the existence of Inacoin cannot be accepted as money since there are Islamic requirements or criteria that are not met. In addition, the use of Inacoin is mostly for trading commodity, not as money. The Inacoin trade is legitimate but unlawful, because Inacoin has fulfilled the pillars and requirements of the Al-Ṣarf, yet contradicted some Islamic principal such as maisir, gharar, and possibility of harming its user
Oil Price Shocks And Algerian Economy:, Evidence From The New Economic Model

This study aims at investigating the existence of a clear relationship between 2014 oil shock and the orientation of Algeria towards implementing more sustainable development programs. To explore this relationship, four sustainable development indicators were used, namely: gross domestic product, CO2 emissions, energy depletion, and unemployment as dependent variables. In addition to, crude oil prices as independent variable. We employ an autoregressive distributor lag (ARDL) approach to test both long and short run relationship between the study variables during the period of 1987 to 2017. The results of the study reveal the existence of an interaction between all variables. These findings can be interpreted as tangible efforts of Algerian government to integrate sustainable development programs to break total dependency to oil revenues.
Design of a NB-IoT-based wearable monitoring system

Designed a wearable guardian system based on NB-IoT (Narrow Band Intern et of Things). To achieve continuous collection of physiological indicators of users suc h as blood pressure, body temperature, ECG, heart rate, exercise and sleep by wearin g a wearable device.The collected data is transmitted to the service center through NB-Io T.The service center monitors the data and found the early symptoms of the disease.Whe n the physiological index exceeds the warning value,immediately offering medical assista nce. Realized the monitoring of vital signs of elderly people and chronically ill patients,a nd achieved the purpose of preventing and monitoring potential diseases and chronic dis eases.
Age and Educational Diversification of Hotel Employees and Its Impact on Turnover

This paper examines the increasing turnover in the hotel industry, which has a negative influence on the quality of services provided, as well as customer satisfaction. Hotel managers are forced to hire new employees in order to secure smooth hotel operations as well as replace those employees who have left for their competitors. Newly hired employees need to be instructed and trained, which has a negative influence on hotel costs. We assume that both an employee’s age and the level of education determines the quality of their performance at work, as well as their personal stability, thus having an influence on business sustainability. This paper analyzes the age and education diversification of employees in four-star and five-star hotels in Slovakia, and its impact on employee turnover. The research was undertaken in 2019, with a research sample comprising 1085 individuals employed in selected chain and independent hotels. We examined the opinions of employees from different ages and education levels about their retention and changes of employment. Statistical testing confirmed the relation between turnover and the educational level of the employees. However, the correlation between turnover and age was rejected. We analyze the different perceptions of retention and job change of employees from different age groups. The revelation of the causes as to why employees might leave a hotel could help managers change their philosophy and the processes of human resources management in favor of developing a sustainable company.
Enhancing Ontology Matching using Logic-based Reasoning

Ontologies, as formal representations of conceptualizations of domain knowledge, have proven to be very useful in real world applications like the Semantic Web. Given the increasing number of ontologies which are independently developed, but which represent overlapping domain knowledge, there is an urgent need to integrate them. Ontology matching meets this need by (semi-)automatically finding correspondences (also called mappings) between entities in given pairs of ontologies. Most ontology matching methods are based on statistics. In contrast, this thesis is devoted to enhancing ontology matching by logic-based reasoning, both for mapping generation and for mapping refinement. • Mapping generation. We first identify a number of underlying properties of various financial reporting ontologies and then formalize them into a Basic Accounting Ontology. Later we use this ontology to define concepts in the ontologies to be matched, so that reasoners can be used to infer mappings between them. This process is realized as a semantically enriched ontology matching mechanism (SEOM). • Mapping refinement. We adapt a number of logical principles from existing work to identify and remove mapping suggestions that are logically unintended. Different approaches to resolving observed incoherence, inconsistency or violations of principles are analyzed. A number of heuristics are also considered to enhance the mapping refinement process. Combining a selected set of these together, we build a logic-based mapping refinement procedure (LOMR). We show experimentally that 1) SEOM generates a set of logically consistent and accurate mapping suggestions; 2) LOMR is able to improve the quality of mapping suggestions by removing logically unintended mappings while keeping the logically sound ones.
MEMBANGUN WEB CRAWLER BERBASIS WEB SERVICE UNTUK DATA CRAWLING PADA WEBSITE GOOGLE PLAY STORE

At this time, Google Play Store is not providing API that can be used for accessing datas from applications on it’s application store. With that plenty application’s data, it could be used to make it a good research object, specially on data mining field. In this research, the system that is built is the system that can retrieve that applications’ data. For multiplatform’s purpose, web services are used for being an interface between client and server. Finally, the built system is working as expected. The system can retrive data from Google Play Store and it is suitable from requirements of data analysis stage. It can also integrated with REST web service to provide multiplatform access.
Increasing demand for transnational education in Ghana: A structural equation analysis of the causation

Abstract Transnational Education (TNE) has often been used as a measure to support the economic sustainability of the institution of higher learning involved. But in recent times, TNE has become one of the important avenues for Higher Education Institutions (HEI) to improve their International Students Portfolios without bringing the students to the HEI host-country. But the bigger question is on the demand side of transnational education; what is pushing students in developing countries to enroll in Transnational Education (TNE) Programmes, modules or academic units? This research paper used the structural equation model to analyse a surveyed sample data drawn from a TNE active students’ population of 2720 in Ghana; representing five universities in Ghana which had either an articulation or franchise TNE agreements with one or more of UK universities. The results showed a causation of both signaling and human capital development factors; however, a much stronger path relationship along the TNE Diploma acquisition, human capital development and high earnings. The research posits that the value of the TNE Diplomas in Ghana is in its ability to deliver the requisite knowledge, ability and skills to its graduates. Again, the results showed that the inherent “signals” of good education of which TNE arrangements provides, adds to its overall appeal.
Representation of exchange option prices under stochastic volatility jump-diffusion dynamics

In this article, we provide representations of European and American exchange option prices under stochastic volatility jump-diffusion (SVJD) dynamics following models by Merton [Option pricing when underlying stock returns are discontinuous. J. Financ. Econ., 1976, 3(1-2), 125–144], Heston [A closed-form solution for options with stochastic volatility with applications to bond and currency options. Rev. Financ. Stud. , 1993, 6(2), 327–343], and Bates [Jumps and stochastic volatility: Exchange rate processes implicit in Deutsche Mark options. Rev. Financ. Stud. , 1996, 9(1), 69–107]. A Radon–Nikodým derivative process is also introduced to facilitate the shift from the objective market measure to other equivalent probability measures, including the equivalent martingale measure. Under the equivalent martingale measure, we derive the integro-partial differential equation that characterizes the exchange option prices. We also derive representations of the European exchange option price using the change-of-numéraire technique proposed by Geman et al. [Changes of numéraire, changes of probability measure and option pricing. J. Appl. Probab. , 1995, 32(2), 443–458] and the Fourier inversion formula derived by Caldana and Fusai [A general closed-form spread option pricing formula. J. Bank. Finance, 2013, 37, 4893–4906], and show that these two representations are comparable. Lastly, we show that the American exchange option price can be decomposed into the price of the European exchange option and an early exercise premium.
Know Thy Beach: Values of Beach Condition Information

We estimate the value of beach condition information in the hands of the public prior to taking beach trips. We designed and administered a contingent-valuation survey to the beachgoing population of the five U.S. Gulf Coast states that features a region-wide beach condition monitoring system currently proposed by the Gulf of Mexico Coastal Ocean Observing System (GCOOS). We also test two hypothetical-bias mitigation strategies: a “budget and substitutes Q&A” treatment and a “cheap talk Q&A” treatment. We find that although respondents perceive that such a service would be beneficial, many perceive that the information provided is already available elsewhere, so the proportion of respondents willing to pay for access to the service is quite low. Nevertheless, we estimate that the aggregate value of the benefits associated with the service still exceeds the estimated cost of provision. After controlling for willingness to pay (WTP) response certainty, we find no significant treatment effects.
User's Guide to NIST Biometric Image Software (NBIS)

This report documents the biometric image software distribution developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Provided is a collection of application programs, utilities, and source code libraries. The NBIS software is organized in two categories: nonexport controlled and export controlled. The non-export controlled NBIS software is organized into five major packages: 1. PCASYS is a neural network based fingerprint pattern classification system; 2. MINDTCT is a fingerprint minutiae detector; 3. NFIQ is a neural network based fingerprint image quality algorithm, 4. AN2K7 is a reference implementation of the ANSI/NISTITL 1-2000 "Data Format for the Interchange of Fingerprint, Facial, Scar Mark & Tattoo (SMT) Information" standard; and 5. IMGTOOLS is a collection of image utilities, including encoders and decoders for Baseline and Lossless JPEG and the FBI’s WSQ specification. The export controlled NBIS software is organized into two major packages: 1. NFSEG is a fingerprint segmentation system useful for segmenting four-finger plain impressions, 2. BOZORTH3 is a minutiae based fingerprint matching system. The NFSEG and BOZORHT3 software are subject to U.S. export control laws It is our understanding that NFSEG and BOZORTH3 software fall within ECCN 3D980, which covers software associated with the development, production or use of certain equipment controlled in accordance with U.S concerns about crime control practices in specific countries. This source code is written in ANSI “C”, and has been developed to compile and execute under the Linux operating system and MAC OS-X operating system using the GNU gcc compiler and gmake utility. The source code may also be installed to run on Win32 platforms that have the Cygwin library and associated tools installed. A Reference Manual describing each program in the distribution is included at the end of this document.
THE INFLUENCE OF THE ECONOMIC CRISIS AND REFUGEE CRISIS ON EU POLITICS: THE CHALLENGES AND PROSPECTS FOR TURKEY-EU RELATIONS

This article focuses on the influence of the latest economic crisis and the Syrian refugee crisis on EU politics, increasing differentiation among the EU member states in terms of their interests and policies. It discusses the move towards further differentiated integration in the EU and its influence on Turkey - EU relations. Firstly, it explains the infl uence of the economic crisis on European politics, particularly Germany’s rising influence, the widening gap between northern and southern Europe, and Brexit referendum in the UK which led to discussions on further differentiated integration within the EU. Secondly, the article explains flexible integration models that were put forward before the economic crisis and it discusses new options for further differentiated integration after the economic crisis, refugee crisis and Brexit referendum. Lastly, the ar ticle evaluates the impact of refugee crisis on Turkey - EU relations, the revitalization of Turkey - EU relations, the rising role of Turkey as a ‘strategic partner’ of the EU and discusses the recent challenges and prospects in Turkey - EU relations.
The Autocratic Ruling Parties Dataset: Origins, Durability, and Death

How do autocratic ruling parties gain power? What predicts their durability and how they fall? This article introduces the Autocratic Ruling Parties Dataset, the first comprehensive data set on the founding origins, modes of gaining and losing power, ruling tenures, and other characteristics of autocratic ruling parties. It covers all ruling parties in the world from 1940 to 2015. Contrary to common assumptions, most ruling parties are not created by sitting dictators, but follow a range of paths to power that influence their style and duration of rule. To illustrate the data’s uses, the article confirms that ruling parties stabilize autocracies. Further, parties’ origins and histories matter, with revolutionary and foreign-imposed parties the most durable and parties empowered through elections the least durable. By recognizing ruling parties’ heterogeneity, histories, and potential autonomy from individual dictators, the data can contribute to open questions on autocratic politics, regime stability, and democratization.
Essays in Financial Economics: Empirical Corporate Finance

Essays in Financial Economics: Empirical Corporate Finance Haofei Zhang Doctor of Philosophy Graduate Department of Economics University of Toronto 2019 In this thesis, I study important firm events and their interactions with the market. First, I study the effect of information asymmetry on firm CEO turnover, and how the market responds to CEO turnover decisions. Second, I look at the relationship between corporate governance and product market competition using evidence from CEO duality. Last, I investigate effect of product market competition on the CEO turnover decisions of firms through unexpected tariff cuts. Chapter 1 is a joint work with Kose John, Xu Tian, and Yihan Liu. In this chapter, we analyze the market reaction to CEO turnover announcements in the presence of information frictions. We find that the market reaction to forced CEO turnover announcements is negatively related to the level of asymmetric information between a firm and its investors. No such relation exists for voluntary turnovers. We also find that in cases where information frictions are high, companies attempt to present forced turnover as voluntary and this behavior leads to a less negative market response. Overall, our results suggest that firms act strategically when disclosing information about CEO turnover to avoid a negative
Comparing Cardinal and Ordinal Approaches to Measuring Socioeconomic Inequalities in Health

In the last decade, a literature has evolved showing that standard measures of inequality or probit regression are not well-suited for ordinal data such as self-reported health status. Conclusions may be easily reversed via different scaling of the ordinal indicator. This problem also concerns the measurement of socioeconomic inequalities by the concentration index (CI). Using the Survey of Health, Aging and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) we compare the performance of CI against the non-parametric method introduced by Duclos and Echevin (DE) to evaluate joint health-income distributions. We find that Poland is the worst country according to all three methods of computing CI, but it is the best country according to DE dominance curves. This indicates that when applied to ordinal health indicators, the CI approach relies on quite selective information about health-income distribution and should be treated with caution.
Wireless Vital Signs Monitoring System using Visible Light Sensing (VLS)

In this paper, we present a wireless system for monitoring human vital signs like breathing and heartbeat via visible light sensing (VLS). Typical techniques for tracking heathcondition require body contact and most of these techniques are intrusive in nature. Body contact might irritate the patient’s skin and he/she might feel uncomfortable while sensors are touching their body. However, in this method, we can estimate the breathing and heartbeat rates without any body contact using a photo-detector. Vitals monitoring using VLS make use of the idea that reflected light signal off the human body received at the photo-detector will be affected by the chest motion during heartbeats and breathing. We implemented the system using off-the-shelf photo-detector and a signal acquisition system and obtained the results for different people and in different scenarios. We found out that the accuracy of our system compared to FDA approved equipment to measure heartbeats and breathing rate is 94%. This system can be used in various domains and applications in medical facilities and in residential homes. A provisional patent (US#62/639,524) has been obtained for this work.
Disentangling Tax Evasion from Inefficiency in Firms Tax Declaration: An Integrated Approach

In this article we present a new methodology to support fiscal monitoring by the Italian Revenue Agency (IRA) with the aim of improving current taxpayers fiscal compliance and fighting tax evasion within small and medium enterprises. In fact, given the methodology behind the Sector Studies (Studi di Settore - SdS) system, there is room for firms to implement tax evasion strategies by simply adjusting revenues (and costs) toward an estimated average threshold (known ex-ante), the so called "presumptive" revenues, and achieving the fiscal "congruity" status. By estimating a production function through stochastic frontier analysis we avoid estimating the average threshold know ex-ante and can combine information on firm economic efficiency with those on fiscal congruity, thus being able to disentangle underreporting of revenues due to potential firm tax evasion behaviours from underreporting due to firm inefficiencies. We apply this framework to two samples of Italian firms belonging to two Sector Studies. Our results confirm the potentiality of the approach, although more work is needed before moving to a large scale implementation for policy purposes.