Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Comment

Dynamic factor models (DFMs) are now a standard tool for forecasting, now-casting, and construction of economic indexes. Along with their close cousin factor-augmented vector factoraugmented vector (FAVARs), DFMs are also increasingly used for estimation of structural impulse response functions. The starting point for DFMs is that a small number of latent factors explain the dynamic co-movements of many economic time series. For example, a typical empirical DFM of the U.S. macroeconomy might have 4–8 factors and 200 + variables. Through the restrictions of the DFM, information in a very large number of predictors can be harnessed to produce internally consistent forecasts across horizons for multiple variables. (For a review of DFMs and their applications in macroeconomics, see Stock and Watson 2016.) Despite the very many empirical papers and professional applications that use DFMs, the literature on whether there is exploitable common variation beyond that contained in the first few factors is limited. Once one contemplates using a large number of factors as predictors, one must move beyond the ordinary least-square (OLS) methods that are the mainstay of forecasting with estimated factors: a large number of factors as predictors means a large number of coefficients and therefore a potentially large amount of estimation variability in the forecast. One is therefore driven to methods that allow for bias in regression coefficients but reduce their variance to obtain forecasts with lower mean squared error (MSE) than the OLS forecast. The article by Marine Carrasco and Barbara Rossi is a welcome and stimulating contribution to this small literature that looks for additional exploitable structure in the higher factors. Their approach is to use generalized shrinkage methods, in which the shrinkage for the coefficient on a given factor depends on the eigenvalue of the data matrix associated with that factor. They also discuss nonshrinkage methods in which weights can go outside [0,1], although my discussion only focuses on methods with a shrinkage interpretation. The shrinkage methods I focus on here, ridge regression and the Landweber– Fridman (LF) method, are invariant to linear transformations of the data matrix; this invariance is a property that makes sense in macro applications that is not shared by some other highdimensional methods in the machine learning literature, such as LASSO and common tree methods. A feature of shrinkage methods is that they have one or more tuning parameters, which are somewhat subtle to estimate because they cannot be chosen directly to maximize the fit of the model to the data. Similar to Cheng and Hansen (2015), Carrasco and Rossi estimate the parameter using either generalized cross-validation or by minimizing Mallows’ (1973) CL criterion, both of which have interpretations of minimizing the empirical forecast risk.
Development of Breeding Materials of Transgenic Tomato Plants with a Truncated Replicase Gene of Cucumber Mosaic Virus for Resistance to the Virus

Tomato plants were transformed with a truncated replicase gene encoded by RNA 2 of cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) strain GT, subgroup II. The truncated replicase gene does not retain a C-terminal region of the gene that contains the GDD amino acid motif and the NTP binding motif. These motifs are considered to correspond to active and/or recognition domains of RNA-dependent RNA polymerase. Upon transformation via Agrobacterium tumefaciens, 137 individual transgenic lines were obtained. Each transgenic line was evaluated for resistance to CMV. About 10 % of the transgenic lines were highly resistant and the remaining 90 % showed a moderate resistance or were susceptible. The 15 lines were selected as resistant lines. Chenopodium amaranticolor was used to analyze the multiplication of CMV in the symptom-less plants. Among the selected lines, three lines did not appear to show any multiplication of CMV in both inoculated and non-inoculated leaves. Based on transgene amplification by PCR and the kanamycin resistance assay, the T1 progeny of the selected lines harbored the transgene. Several resistant lines of the T1 generation were resistant to viral inoculation. These resistant lines could become suitable breeding materials for resistance to CMV.
Microsporogenesis and Anther Differentiation in Juglans regia L.: A Developmental Basis for Heterodichogamy in Walnut

Anther differentiation, microsporogenesis, and pollen development were examined in the heterodichogamous, deciduous tree, Juglans regia. Six clones were chosen on the basis of a well-documented phenological history with three pairs, one protandrous and one protogynous clone each, representing early, midseason, and late leafing/bloom dates. Protandrous and protogynous clones differed in the phenological pattern of anther development. By midsummer, each clone attained the full extent of anther differentiation that it would achieve until breaking dormancy the following season. Each protandrous clone, regardless of its relative leafing or bloom date, entered dormancy with anthers differentiated to the extent that an identifiable epidermal layer, endothecium, middle layers, tapetum, and sporogenous tissue were present. All protogynous clones, by contrast, had relatively undifferentiated anthers entering dormancy. On resumption of flower development the following year, staminate flower differentiation in each protandrous clone resumed well before any changes were evident in the primordial anthers of the paired protogynous clone. Thus, protandry in J. regia is associated with a greater degree of staminate flower development during the season prior to anthesis as well as an earlier resumption of staminate flower differentiation.
Immunodeficiency in Protein Kinase Cβ-Deficient Mice

Cross-linking of the antigen receptor on lymphocytes by antigens or antibodies to the receptor results in activation of enzymes of the protein kinase C (PKC) family. Mice homozygous for a targeted disruption of the gene encoding the PKC-βI and PKC-βII isoforms develop an immunodeficiency characterized by impaired humoral immune responses and reduced cellular responses of B cells, which is similar to X-linked immunodeficiency in mice. Thus PKC-βI and PKC-βII play an important role in B cell activation and may be functionally linked to Bruton's tyrosine kinase in antigen receptor-mediated signal transduction.
Introduction to the Practice of Statistics

I am also disturbed that the methods of acceptance sampling are not fully integrated in the text. No doubt there are more applications of acceptance sampling in manufacturing; however, all purchasing decisions do include the notion of incoming as well as outgoing quality. There is also a dearth of end-of-chapter exercises, and capability studies are not included. I believe that the author has made a very good attempt to introduce a new book in the curriculum of business administration programs. A great deal more work remains to be done to produce a much better text. In particular, decision rules for QC charts include probability-based methods other than the control limits. One can see these methods easily by using such software as Minitab, SAS, and NWA Quality Analyst.
Multivariate Geostatistics

Chapter 9, covering the comparison of proportions from several samples, has new sections on logit models for ordered outcomes and on the effect of randomness, in which Bayesian methods are discussed. Chapter 10, on combining evidence from fourfold tables, has new material on meta-analysis and largesparse data structures. Much of the remainder of the book is new. Chapter 11 explores logistic regression and includes polytomous logistic regression. Chapter 12 covers Poisson regression, including a discussion of overdispersion. Chapter 13, on the analysis of data from matched samples, was formerly Chapter 8 in the 2E. It is followed by a chapter on regression methods for matched samples, which includes parametric modeling and conditional logistic regression. Chapters 15 and 16 are also new. Chapter 15, “Analysis of Correlated Binary Data,” provides methods for longitudinal data, and Chapter 16, “Missing Data,” considers situations in which the data are incomplete. Chapters 17–19, on misclassi cation, measurement of interrater agreement, and standardization of rates, are assembled from the last four chapters of the 2E. Each chapter contains some new material. Upgrading a book originally based on a desk calculator to a book that is appropriate for the modern computing environment obviously would be a challenge for any new authors. The authors have not attempted to complete the entire task. There is no direct application of statistical software, such as SAS or S-PLUS, in this book. Nevertheless, anyone who still uses the 2E would surely want a copy of this new edition. Likewise, persons who regularly encounter this type of data would certainly want this book available as one of their desktop references.
Recent Publications in JSS

Wolfgang Hartman, SAS Institute Balasubramanian Narasimhan, Stanford U. Susan Holmes, Stanford U. Arnold J. Stromberg, U. Kentucky Kurt Hornik, Wirtschaftsuniversität Anthony Rossini, U. of Washington Wien, Austria Luke Tierney, U. of Minnesota Mortaza Jamshidian, California State Frederic Udina, U. of Pompeu U. –Fullerton Fabra, Spain Roger Koenker, U. of Illinois Webster West, U. South Carolina Sharon Lohr, Arizona State U. Yingnian Wu, UCLA George Michailides, U. Michigan
In vitro morphogenesis of Syngonanthus mucugensis Giul: subsp. mucugensis

Syngonanthus mucugensis Giul. subsp. mucugensis e uma herbacea com grande potencial de utilizacao no comercio de flores secas ornamentais. A ocorrencia restrita ao municipio de Mucuge-BA, Brasil, associado a exploracao extrativista tem levado essa especie ao risco de extincao. Neste estudo, objetivou-se avaliar o potencial organogenico de tres diferentes tipos de explantes de S. mucugensis subsp. mucugensis visando ao desenvolvimento de um metodo alternativo para a sua propagacao. A capacidade morfogenica de caule, folha e raiz foi testada utilizando o meio de cultura Murashige e Skoog com metade da concentracao salina e diferentes concentracoes dos reguladores de crescimento benzilaminopurina - BAP (0,00; 2,22 e 4,44 µM) e acido naftaleno acetico - ANA (0,00; 1,34 e 2,68 µM). Os eventos morfoanatomicos que levaram a formacao dos brotos foram descritos. O caule demonstrou ser a melhor fonte de explante, apresentando 58,75% de regeneracao de brotos via organogenese direta, em meio livre de regulador de crescimento; e 32,18 e 47,55% de regeneracao de brotos por organogenese indireta na presenca de 2,22 e 4,44 µM de BAP, respectivamente. Para folha, foi obtida a formacao de calos sem regeneracao de brotos, nao sendo observada morfogenese, quando se utilizou raiz como explante. As analises histologicas mostraram que a regeneracao de brotos em S. mucugensis subsp. mucugensis ocorreu tanto por via indireta, pela diferenciacao do tecido calogenico desorganizado, quanto por via direta pela retomada da atividade meristematica em celulas maduras diferenciadas e proliferacao de gemas pre existentes.
A mutant of Arabidopsis which is defective in seed development and storage protein accumulation is a new abi3 allele

Summary In order to investigate the role of the plant hormones gibberellin (GA) and abscisic acid (ABA) in seed development and germination the GA biosynthetic inhibitor, Uniconazol, was used to isolate mutants with abnormal germination profiles. In one of these mutants, the ability to germinate on Uniconazol is due to a mutation in the ABI3 gene. However, unlike the previously reported abi3 mutant, this line displays an array of seed-specific developmental defects. The accumulation of seed reserve proteins is dramatically reduced due to reduced levels of the storage protein mRNA. The embryos remain green throughout development and are desiccation intolerant. However, immature seeds are completely non-dormant and grow normally. These results suggest the ABI3 gene is essential for the synthesis of seed storage proteins and for the protection of the embryo during desiccation.
Identification of the Modified Structure of Arginine Residues in Proteins with 3-Deoxyglucosone, a Maillard Reaction Intermediate

The major compounds formed from the Nα-benzoylarginine amide (BzArgNH2) and 3-deoxyglucosone (3DG) reaction system were purified by reversed-phase HPLC. The major product was identified as R-4-imidazolone (I); R = 2-(4-benzoylamino-5-pentamide)amino-5-(2,3,4-trihydroxybutyl) as described in a previous paper (ref. 10). Intermediate products to the formation of compound I were identified as R-4(5H)-imidazolone (II), R-4(5-hydroxy)-imidazolone (III), and R-4-dihydroxyl-2-imidazoline (IV). Periodical changes in the amounts of compounds I, II, III, and IV suggest the formation of compound I via compound II by dehydration and oxidation from the BzArgNH2-3DG reaction system to be the major pathway, the formation of compound I via compound III being the other pathway.
Microhabitat Utilisation, Diet Composition, Intraguild Predation, and Diel Periodicity in Five Sympatric Species of Desert Arachnids: a Wolf Spider (Hogna carolinensis), Tarantula Spider (Aphonopelma steindachneri), Solifuge (Eremobates palpisetulosus), Giant Whipscorpion (Mastigoproctus giganteus),

This study investigated microhabitat utilisation (soil and vegetation type), diet composition, intraguild predation, and diel periodicy in five sympatric species of arachnids at Persimmon Gap in Big Bend National Park (BBNP): a tarantula (Aphonopelma steindachneri), wolf spider (Hogna carolinensis), solifuge (Eremobates palpisetulosus), giant whipscorpion (Mastigoproctus giganteus), and scorpion (Diplocentrus bigbendensis). A total of 1389 arachnids were collected during early spring to later summer 2002. For all species, females were larger than males. There were nonrandom associations of all species of arachnids across soil types. Over 41% of all arachnid species were found on sand loam soils (soil hardness: 7–8.9 kg cm ), followed by 25.3% on clay loam (9–11 kg cm ), 17.8% on silt loam (3.5–6.5 kg cm ), 9.9% on adobe (36–39 kg cm ), and 5.6% on sand (0.6–2.2 kg cm ). A significantly greater proportion of whipscorpions and scorpions were found on harder adobe soils as compared with the spiders and solifuges. A total of 663 arachnids (47.8%) were found in areas dominated by mixed scrub. No differences in diet were found between sexes for any arachnid species. Prey items found in the chelicerae indicate that these animals are generalist predators and feed on a variety of grounddwelling arthropods. Beetles comprised between 11 and 31% of the prey items, followed by orthopterans (7–23%), caterpillars (Lepidoptera, 1–30%), hemipterans (2–7%), and cockroaches (0–6%). For arachnid prey, values were: spiders (7–18%), scorpions (4–8%), and solifuges (6–15%), showing intraguild predation among these arachnids. Values for Levins’ measurement of trophic niche breadth were: 0.4583 (A. steindachneri), 0.4424 (H. carolinensis), 0.4288 (E. palpisetulosus), 0.4508 (M. giganteus), and 0.3887 (D. bigbendensis). All arachnid species showed pronounced nocturnal activity patterns. Levins’ indices for temporal niche breadth were: 0.5821 (A. steindachneri), 0.5521 (H. carolinensis), 0.4983 (E. palpisetulosus), 0.4637 (M. giganteus), and 0.5057 (D. bigbendensis). The results indicate that soil hardness is an important factor in determining the distribution of these arachnids, and that they are potential competitors for food and shelter sites at Persimmon Gap in BBNP, and take part in intraguild predation.
Rejoinder

We thank Drs. Hodges, Wilke, and Holan for their generously thoughtful discussions of our analysis. We found their perspectives on model complexity particularly stimulating and begin our rejoinder with a discussion of this important topic, while agreeing wholeheartedly that this is an area that is especially deserving of further research. We then discuss three other issues that were raised: spatial structure, accounting for complex survey design, and Bayesian computation.
Comment

The basic gene-level model considered by Scharpf et al. is embodied in their equation (1). Prior specification for the parameters is then given in the rest of the section. The basic priors are for the mean and variance/covariance parameters, along with the discordance/concordance indicator. There is a tremendous amount of structure that has been imposed on this model through the use of the normal likelihood, hyperparameters, and prior distributions. There are hence many model outputs that can be derived from the posterior distribution; we would argue that other functionals of the parameters should be explored for their utility. We have given one such example in Section 2, but there are many other functions that could be considered. We reiterate that fitting such hierarchical models requires proper assessment of goodness of fit as described in Section 3. Goodness of fit for high-dimensional models in genomics has not been been given much attention in the literature. We feel that analogies with multiple testing could have a role here. Finally, for the purposes of gene selection in this setting, a decision-theoretic framework should be adopted. Having such a framework would allow the analyst to state explicitly the tradeoffs in selecting genes based on the combination of level of differential expression versus concordance. One such decisiontheoretic framework has been proposed recently by Sarkar, Zhou, and Ghosh (2008) for the multiple testing problem. ADDITIONAL REFERENCES
A New Fat Fossorial Frog (Microhylidae: Cophylinae: Rhombophryne) from the Rainforest of the Forêt d'Ambre Special Reserve, Northern Madagascar

Abstract Recent surveys of the herpetofauna in the rainforest of the Forêt d'Ambre Special Reserve, northern Madagascar, revealed a distinctive fossorial microhylid anuran species of the genus Rhombophryne. The new species is characterized by medium size (snout–vent length up to 49 mm in males), a stout body, short legs, and tuberculate skin on dorsal surfaces. It is most similar and closely related to R. testudo from the Sambirano region, but differs mainly by the absence of barbels on the lower lip, a different advertisement call, and a pairwise total sequence divergence of 8.5% the mitochondrial 16S RNA gene. We consider this species to be at particular risk from a conservation perspective because it appears to be endemic to a relatively small area of lowland transitional forest heavily altered by human activities. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature criteria, its threat status is classified as “Endangered. ”
A horizon scanning assessment of current and potential future threats to migratory shorebirds

We review the conservation issues facing migratory shorebird populations that breed in temperate regions and use wetlands in the non-breeding season. Shorebirds are excellent model organisms for understanding ecological, behavioural and evolutionary processes and are often used as indicators of wetland health. A global team of experienced shorebird researchers identified 45 issues facing these shorebird populations, and divided them into three categories (natural, current anthropogenic and future issues). The natural issues included megatsunamis, volcanoes and regional climate changes, while current anthropogenic threats encompassed agricultural intensification, conversion of tidal flats and coastal wetlands by human infrastructure developments and eutrophication of coastal systems. Possible future threats to shorebirds include microplastics, new means of recreation and infectious diseases. We suggest that this review process be broadened to other taxa to aid the identification and ranking of current and future conservation actions.
CRYO SEM EXAMINATION OF GEMMA FORMATION IN VITTARIA GRAMINIFOLIA

Production of gemmae by gametophytes of Vittaria entails regularity of pattern relevant to systematic comparisons and unusual cellular differentiation relevant to studies of cellular morphogenesis. Cryo SEM allows critical three dimensional analysis of these delicate structures. In Vittaria graminifolia, gemmifer cells initiated by the apical meristem typically support two gemma pairs with the terminal gemma of each pair oriented at right angles to the subterminal gemma. Mature gemmae consist of a uniseriate filament offour body cells with rhizoid primordial cells at each end. Cellular differentiation during gemma production includes growth from specific, localized areas, constricted connections between cells, reorientation of the polarity of cell growth, temporary suppression of cell growth and division, abscission between cells, and deposition of surface material on mature gemmae.
Comment

Professor Harville’s article combines a clear review of modelbased prediction with a presentation of an interesting class of applications to sports statistics. He has made major contributions to both areas over a long and illustrious career. I have always appreciated his “nondenominational” approach, which welcomes both Bayesians (including those of an “empirical” persuasion) and frequentists into its fold. I find myself in agreement with nearly everything in his article, so in my comments I will just expand on some of his points and go off on a few tangents of my own.
Book Reviews

This section will review those books whose content and level reflect the general editorial policy of Technometrics. Publishers should send books for review to Ejaz Ahmed, Department of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Windsor, Windsor, ON N9B 3P4 (techeditor@uwindsor.ca). The opinions expressed in this section are those of the reviewers. These opinions do not represent positions of the reviewer’s organization and may not reflect those of the editors or the sponsoring societies. Listed prices reflect information provided by the publisher and may not be current. The book purchase programs of the American Society for Quality can provide some of these books at reduced prices for members. For information, contact the American Society for Quality at 1-800-248-1946.