Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Testing for the Home Market Effect in Inter-Regional Trade in Korea

This study attempts to test the HME hypothesis in inter-regional Korean trade. For this purpose, we draw on the multi-regional model recently developed by Behrens et al. (2009). In particular, we utilize Behrens et al.â€™s (2009) simple linear filter, which allows us to separate the â€œpure HMEâ€ from â€œthe third-country effectâ€ . Our contribution includes converting the theoretical simple linear filter into an empirical framework for testing HME. We apply the empirical linear filter to inter-regional trade data of 100 manufacturing industries for 16 Korean regions. Our tests identify the presence of HME in inter-regional trade and its strength appears to be greater than that observed in the international context of earlier studies. Furthermore, important third-country effects are observed across Korean regions.
Analysis Of Wavelet Packet Based MC-CDMA With The MC-CDMA System Using HHT Transform with ber and user

Recently conventional Multi-carrier Code Division Multiple Access (MC-CDMA) techniques attract more attention of researcher's due to its high frequency spectrum efficiency and high data rate transmission. The aim of this work is to investigate the performance of multi-carrier code division multiple access (MC-CDMA) technique, which is a key technology for efficient and reliable communication due to its high frequency spectrum efficiency and high data rate transmission. This paper presents the performance of conventional MC-CDMA system, orthogonal wavelet packet based MC-CDMA system (WP-MC-CDMA), and Huang Hilbert Transformation (HHT) based MC-CDMA system. This scheme outperforms other two techniques, because this scheme is based on the knowledge of the instantaneous channel state information, or based on instantaneous imperfect channel estimates. Thus, by the knowledge of their channel gains or channel information, it can analyze the data more accurately. Hence, it is a more spectral efficient and high data rate transmission scheme compared to the conventional MC-CDMA and WP-MC-CDMA.
Long-term Morphodynamic Modelling of Coastal Evolution of the German Bight

To understand the hydrodynamics, sediment transport and morphological changes of the Jade tidal channel and the Jade Bay in the German Bight, Southern North Sea, a series of 2DH numerical morphodynamic models was set-up to simulate the morphological changes. Morphodynamic models are limited in terms of their predictive skills to reproduce mesoscale (temporal scales of years to decades, spatial scales of kilometers to tens of kilometers) erosion and deposition patterns of the Jade tidal channel due to the complex physical processes; uncertainty of topography changes and model parameterization. This paper investigates the use of a combination of model predictions and observations, which is referred to as an ‘optimization scheme’ in this study. The model predicted and observed morphological changes over a 10-year period are combined with weights inversely related to their relative errors. The updated morphological changes and updated bathymetry are achieved by minimizing the total errors of predictions and observations by using a cost function. The updated bathymetry was used as initial bathymetry for a second model simulation of the following 6-year period. The Brier Skill Scores (BSS) are adopted to assess the ability of model predictions. Preliminary results have shown that with updated initial bathymetry calculated from the optimization scheme, the model performance is improved. Success of applying optimization scheme on the morphodynamic model of Jade estuary has shown the potential of using combination of models and observations in future coastal area morphodynamic models.
Vegetation dynamics on rangelands: a critique of the current paradigms

Summary 1. Rangeland ecologists have been debating the validity of two current paradigms for the evaluation of vegetation dynamics on rangelands. This debate frequently contrasts the conventional model of continuous and reversible vegetation dynamics (range model) with a more contemporary model that can accommodate discontinuous and non-reversible vegetation change (state-and-transition model). 2. The range and the state-and-transition models are conceptually related to the equilibrium and non-equilibrium paradigms within ecology, respectively. The methodological dichotomy that has developed between the range and the state-and-transition models has fostered the perception that these two ecological paradigms are mutually exclusive. We challenge this perception and contend that both methodologies and their corresponding paradigms are non-exclusive. 3. Equilibrium and non-equilibrium ecosystems are not distinguished on the basis of unique processes or functions, but rather by the evaluation of system dynamics at various temporal and spatial scales. Consequently, ecosystems may express both equilibrium and non-equilibrium dynamics. This confirms early interpretations that ecosystems are distributed along a continuum from equilibrium to non-equilibrium states. 4. Although both equilibrium and non-equilibrium dynamics occur in numerous ecosystems, the empirical evidence is frequently confounded by (i) uncertainty regarding the appropriate evidence necessary to distinguish between paradigms; (ii) disproportionate responses among vegetation attributes to climate and grazing; (iii) comparisons among systems with varying degrees of managerial involvement; and (iv) the evaluation of vegetation dynamics at various spatial and temporal scales. 5. Synthesis and applications . This critique supports the conclusion that a paradigm shift has not taken place in rangeland ecology, but rather, the debate has forced a more comprehensive interpretation of vegetation dynamics along the entirety of the equilibrium‐non-equilibrium continuum. Therefore, the rangeland debate should be redirected from the dichotomy between paradigms to one of paradigm integration.
Understanding the fundamental dynamics of interbank networks

The global financial crisis in 2007-2009 demonstrated that systemic risk can spread all over the world through a complex web of financial linkages. In particular, interbank credit networks shape the core of the financial system, in which interconnected risk emerges from a massive number of temporal transactions between banks. However, the lack of fundamental knowledge about the dynamic nature of interbank networks makes it difficult to evaluate and control systemic risk. Here, we analyze the dynamics of real interbank networks at a daily temporal resolution. While daily networks have been flexibly changing their structure from day to day, entailing entries and exits of banks, we discover explicit dynamical patterns that have been surprisingly stable over time even amid the global financial crisis. The emergence of these dynamical patterns is accurately reproduced by a model, in which banks' demand for trading follows a random walk. The discovery of fundamental patterns in the daily evolution of interbank networks will enhance our ability to evaluate systemic risk and could contribute to the dynamic management of financial stability.
Nucleotide sequence analysis of Mx1 gene in Japanese quail

During the process of increasing production potential of poultry, other economically important traits like disease resistance are neglected and ultimately leading to decrease in quality food production. The poultry health management is important due to emergence of highly pathogenic diseases like Avian Influenza. Mx1 gene has been reported to provide resistance against avian influenza virus in chicken. Therefore, present research work was focused to identify the genetic variation of Mx1 gene in Japanese quail. Total three fragments viz. Frag-I of 185 bp (Exon 3 region), Frag-II of 161 bp (Exon 7 region) and Frag-III of 176 bp (Exon 13 region) of Mx1 gene in 170 Japanese quail birds were amplified and screened for polymorphism by PCR-SSCP technique. All the three fragments were found to be monomorphic which was confirmed by dideoxy nucleotide sequencing. Comparative analysis of Mx1 sequence of Japanese quail by MegAlign programme of DNASTAR showed 100% homology with common quail and more than 80% homology with Rhode Island Red and Silki chicken breeds.
CHARACTER LINE SCKETCHING FOR CONCEPTUAL DESIGN IN VIRTUAL REALITY

Commonly, during the aesthetic design process, stylists sketch features called character lines over a simple and “uninteresting” geometry (e.g. a car bonnet) in order to confer personality, emotional feeling and style. This work presents an original interface paradigm for character line sketching in a virtual reality environment. Taking advantage of the 3D interface, the feature path, also called leading line, can be directly sketched on the initial surface by realtime projection. Afterwards, a semi-transparent section is selected along the path in a interactive way and then the feature profile is sketched on this plane according the user’s intention. Subsequently, by moving the virtual pen forwards along the path, the character line is generated, on the contrary if the pen is moved backwards the feature is partially erased. The distance of the virtual pen from the leading line controls, in real time, the offsetting along the path of the feature which remains consistent in style and identity. Such a system has been proven to be a powerful tool for fast expression and evaluation of ideas, which can be, in subsequent design phases, integrated with detailed surfacing applications and prototyping.
A statistical framework for inferring the influence of conspecifics on movement behaviour

The movements of individuals – at almost any scale – are likely to depend on the behaviour of conspecifics. As an example, the movements of dispersing juveniles and their settling decisions may depend on the availability of mates and free territories, that is, both the presence and absence of other individuals. As another example, individuals can use the presence of conspecifics during foraging movements as an indicator of habitat quality. We develop a general statistical framework for identifying and characterizing conspecific influence on movements from tracking data acquired simultaneously from a set of potentially interacting individuals. We model conspecific attraction/repulsion through a functional response in which social behaviour is assumed to depend on proximity to other individuals. The model partitions variation in the functional response into a population component (common to all individuals), variation among individuals (modelled as random intercept‐slope) and variation within an individual's trajectory (modelled through temporal autocorrelation). We present a Bayesian approach for the estimation of the model and illustrate its use with simulated movement data generated from a number of contrasting scenarios. We then apply the method to a case study on eagle owl Bubo bubo juvenile dispersal, demonstrating that individual movements are generally influenced by the presence of conspecifics, with the level of attraction decreasing with increasing proximity to other individuals. We further show that female eagle owls are more attracted to conspecifics than males, and both males and females are more attracted to females than to males.
Metal–Organic Framework Hybrid Materials and Their Applications

The inherent porous nature and facile tunability of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) make them ideal candidates for use in multiple fields. MOF hybrid materials are derived from existing MOFs hybridized with other materials or small molecules using a variety of techniques. This led to superior performance of the new materials by combining the advantages of MOF components and others. In this review, we discuss several hybridization methods for the preparation of various MOF hybrids with representative examples from the literature. These methods include covalent modifications, noncovalent modifications, and using MOFs as templates or precursors. We also review the applications of the MOF hybrids in the fields of catalysis, drug delivery, gas storage and separation, energy storage, sensing, and others.
Megaliths, memory and the power of stones.

The distinctive character of many of the stone slabs used in the construction of megalithic monuments in western Europe suggests that these slabs may have been intended to convey memories of the places from which they were taken. The appearance of the blocks (notably their shape, size, texture and colour) will have provided visual clues to the sources of origin. Some of the sources may have been recognised by the prehistoric builders as places of special power within the landscape, and the stones may have embodied those powers of place and their associations. Memories were also conveyed through the re-use of slabs taken from earlier monuments, a practice that has been documented at chambered tombs in Iberia, France and Britain. The visual clues provided by the megalithic slabs will, however, have been compromised by their inclusion within a covering mound or cairn, a feature that sparked 19th century antiquarian debate. These issues are discussed in the light of recent excavations at the Anta da Lajinha, a small megalithic tomb in inland Portugal north of the Tagus valley.
UNIVERSITÉ DU QUÉBEC À MONTRÉAL EFFECTS OF ELEVATED CARBON DIOXIDE ON FRESHWATER PLANKTON COMMUNITY DYNAMICS A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE IN BIOLOGY BY JULIA HART

Increased precipitation and wind speeds anticipated with climate change are likely to augment the runoff of organic carbon to north temperate lakes, resulting in greater dissolved concentrations of carbon dioxide (C02) via microbial respiration. Recent ! ab experiments indicate significant effects of such co2 increases on freshwater ecosystems, especially with respect to phytoplankton community dynamics; however, little in situ work exists to substantiate these results. In a whole-ecosystem experimental manipulation of a stratified lake, we demonstrated that when epilimnetic dissolved C02 levels were doubled (pC02 raised from 700ppm to 1400ppm) both phytoplankton and zooplankton experienced signi:ficant community changes, relative to those observed in a control lake basin. Modelling of net primary productivity based on measured PAR values alongside integrated pC02 levels showed net primary productivity should have increased in the experimental basin during the course of the manipulation. An unexpected change was the large decline of phytoplankton biomass, primarily at the location of the perennially present deep chlorophyll maximum. Significant unanticipated changes in phytoplankton community composition were also observed with cyanobacteria bene:fitting the most, and normally dominant groups like chlorophytes and chrysophytes declining. These changes were attributable to changes in the trade-off between light and co2 alongside rapid increases in zooplankton biomass following co2 manipulation, resulting in large reductions in phytoplankton community biomass, despite evidence of higher levels of primary productivity. The results of this large-scale ex periment indicate that elevated dissolved C02 could have community and ecosystem impacts that are highly dependent on behavior and food web structure, in ways that could not be anticipated from smaller-scale studies.
Likelihood for Detection of Subparsec Supermassive Black Hole Binaries in Spectroscopic Surveys

Motivated by observational searches for subparsec supermassive black hole binaries (SBHBs), we develop a modular analytic model to determine the likelihood for detection of SBHBs by ongoing spectroscopic surveys. The model combines the parameterized rate of orbital evolution of SBHBs in circumbinary disks with the selection effects of spectroscopic surveys and returns a multivariate likelihood for SBHB detection. Based on this model, we find that in order to evolve into the detection window of the spectroscopic searches from larger separations in less than a Hubble time, 108 M⊙ SBHBs must, on average, experience angular momentum transport faster than that provided by a disk with accretion rate . Spectroscopic searches with yearly cadences of observations are in principle sensitive to binaries with orbital separations less than a few × 104 rg (rg = GM/c2 and M is the binary mass), and for every one SBHB in this range, there should be over 200 more gravitationally bound systems with similar properties, at larger separations. Furthermore, if spectra of all SBHBs in this separation range exhibit the active galactic nucleus–like emission lines utilized by spectroscopic searches, the projection factors imply five undetected binaries for each observed 108 M⊙ SBHB with mass ratio 0.3 and orbital separation 104 rg (and more if some fraction of SBHBs is inactive). This model can be used to infer the most likely orbital parameters for observed SBHB candidates and provide constraints on the rate of orbital evolution of SBHBs, if observed candidates are shown to be genuine binaries.
Enhancing Multisensory Environments with Design Artifacts for Tangible Interaction

Even though multisensory environments (MSE) incorporate artifacts and technology to provide sensory stimuli, most of these artifacts are non-interactive. Twenty-four children with profound developmental disabilities from three MSE institutions have been involved in a research study. A handful of interactive design artifacts, which have been developed as a tool for ideation and to enhance the use of MSE by promoting children’s engagement are presented. With these artifacts the children have shown us a vast topology of interaction and bodily engagement, showing a potential for haptic and audio interactive design fields to contribute to a more participatory MSE practice.
Evaluation of Antioxidant, Hypoglycemic and Hypolipidemic Effects of the Phytoconstituents of Cinnamomum tamala in Rats

In the present study, the antidiabetic properties of Cinnamomum tamala were investigated. The ethanol extract of the leaf of C. tamala was used for investigating its effect against diabetes using a rat model. Different doses of the ethanol extract of C. tamala was administered orally to alloxan-induced diabetic rats for 15 d and the effect of treatment on blood glucose level, glycosylated haemoglobin and peroxidation products such as thiobarbituric acid reactive substances and serum lipids were monitored. Gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy and high performance liquid chromatography techniques were used for identification and quantification of the active principles of the ethanol extract responsible for exerting antioxidant and antidiabetic effects. Oral administration of the ethanol extract of C. tamala resulted in significant decrease in the blood glucose levels, glycosylated haemoglobin, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances and serum lipids in diabetic rats under investigation. It was also observed that the oral administration of ethanol extract of C. tamala significantly decreased the levels of reduced glutathione and superoxide dismutase in the hepatic and renal tissues of alloxan-induced diabetic rats. These results provided evidence for the antidiabetic, antioxidant and antihyperlipidemic effects of the ethanol extract of C. tamala when administered orally. On the basis of these findings it can be concluded that extracts of C. tamala should be investigated further for predicting their clinical potential as a phytomedicine for treating diabetes mellitus.
Beliefs about Language Learning and Strategy Use: The Case of Iranian Non-English Majors

Beliefs about language learning and strategy use are important factors in the complex process of learning a foreign language. Although these variables have received much attention in past research, they have rarely been investigated in a general English context in an EFL setting. The present study aims to compare the frequency and pattern of strategy use and beliefs about language learning of students of Engineering, Agricultural Sciences and Theology majors. For this purpose, the BALLI (Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory) and SILL (Strategy Inventory for Language Learning) were given to 150 students. Two other variables, i.e., self-rated proficiency and length of time attending English classes were also included. The findings demonstrated that Engineering students use significantly higher number of strategies, are more motivated and find learning English easier (P < 0.05).
Survey on Online Social Networking Security

The recent increase in popularity of online social network applications raises serious concerns about the security and privacy of their users. Beyond usual vulnerabilities that threaten any distributed application over Internet, online social networks raise specific privacy concerns due to their inherent handling of personal data. In this paper we point to the centralized architecture of existing online social networks as the key privacy issue and suggest a solution that aims at avoiding any centralized control. Solution is about online social network based on a peer-to-peer architecture. In fully distributed nature, the peer-to-peer architecture inherently avoids centralized control by any potentially malicious service provider. In order to cope with the lack of trust and lack of cooperation that are akin to peer-to-peer systems and to assure basic privacy among the users of the social network, this solution leverages the trust relationships that are part of the social network application itself. Privacy in basic data access and exchange operations within the social network is achieved. Similarly, cooperation among peer nodes is enforced based on hop-by-hop trust relationships derived from hop-by-hop trust, from the social
DNA methylation inheritance in Arabidopsis: The next generation

Ons DNA, de drager van onze erfelijkheid, bestaat uit een code die is samengesteld uit vier letters; A, C, G en T. De genetica leert ons dat er mutaties in het DNA kunnen ontstaan (letter A verandert bijvoorbeeld in letter G) die het functioneren van genen beinvloeden. Onderzoek aan planten maakt duidelijk dat het functioneren van genen ook beinvloed kan worden door zogenoemde epigenetische veranderingen. Een bekend voorbeeld hiervan is de verandering van cytosine in 5-methylcytosine (de letter C), en vice versa. Men spreekt in dit geval van DNA-methylering. Een fundamentele doelstelling in de plantbiologie is het vaststellen van de stabiliteit van epigenetische veranderingen over verschillende generaties en de mate waarin deze bijdragen aan de variatie in eigenschappen (bijv. de hoogte). In dit proefschrift laten we resultaten zien van onderzoek aan een experimentele plantenpopulatie van de modelplant Arabidopsis thaliana (zandraket). Het unieke kenmerk van deze populatie is dat de planten bijna identieke DNA-sequenties hebben, maar sterke verschillen in DNA-methylatie patronen. We laten zien dat deze patronen doorgegeven worden aan de opeenvolgende generaties en effect hebben op vele belangrijke planteneigenschappen zoals bloeitijd en wortellengte. We laten ook zien dat methyleringsverschillen spontaan kunnen ontstaan in natuurlijke populaties en dat de snelheid hiervan vele malen groter is dan die van DNA-mutaties. Het feit dat veranderingen in DNA-methylatie worden overgeerfd en bijdragen aan variatie in planteneigenschappen laat zien dat erfelijke informatie verder reikt dan de vier letters waaruit ons DNA is samengesteld en levert nieuwe vraagstukken op aangaande de rol hiervan in plantenevolutie en de toepassing in agrarische teeltprogramma’s.