Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Interaction Design for Side-scrolling Game Genre on Mobile Devices

Most smartphones and tablets normally come with special features that are unavailable in personal computers such as touch screen and various sensors (accelerometer and gyroscope). Making use of these features in mobile device games introduces players to new challenging experience as well as improves their enjoyment. This research presents masterly designed interactions for side-scrolling games on mobile devices. After thoroughly reviewing of some relevant features and gameplays, researchers have developed an interaction model for side-scrolling game. In this model, utilizing accelerometer and touch screen to form an interaction framework that helps reduce time in the creation of the side-scrolling games. Developers can apply this framework to create or polish their games; hence, it could help providing the better players’ gaming experience and enjoyment. The Udonthani Rajabhat University Running Game (UDRU Running Game) was developed by using this model and its interaction framework to validate this research work and also used as a development tutorial for other developers. The results show that applying this model to game design and development can improve players’ satisfaction and enjoyment of the players. The feedback from game developers is also contentedly positive.
The effectiveness of international environmental agreements: empirical findings from treaty-level panel data

This study empirically investigates the effectivene ss of international environmental agreements (IEA). Although there exists large numbe r of empirical studies regarding IEA effectiveness, much of those studies focus on ratif ic ion decisions and regulated environmental behaviors at country level. This appr oach, however, is limited for investigating the attributes of different treaties and identifyin g factors affecting the success of IEA. To avoid this limitation, this study develops a treaty -level panel data including 14 environmental agreements adopted and entered into force last 20 y ears. This aggregated approach enables to look further insights regarding the attributes of e ach IEA, and identify the factors significantly affecting the effectiveness of agreem nts. From our results, several treaty-specific attribute s are shown to be significant. Specifically, sanction for non-compliance is the mo st influential inducement for the effectiveness of IEA. A mechanism of financial assi stance for less-capable developing countries is also found to be positive inducement, bu mechanism of technical assistance is not significant at any statistical levels. Our resu lts also indicate that involving larger number of countries, especially large-scale fast-growing d eveloping countries such as BRICs, is another significant factor. Although this is not co mpatible with a strict sanction for non-compliance, introducing well-designed financial mechanism may be one of possible solutions for this incompatibility problem and maki ng the IEA more attractive and effective.
ANALYSIS OF THE EFFECT OF COMPANY MICRO FUNDAMENTAL FACTORS ON COMPANY VALUE IN COMPANIES LISTED IN LQ 45 INDEX

This study shows the effect of the company micro fundamental factors on the company value registered in the LQ 45 Index (2012-2016). Company value is paid by prospective investors when a company is sold. The company is projected using the Tobin's Q ratio. The company micro fundamental factors in this study are Current Ratio, Debt to Equity Ratio, Return on Assets, and Earning per Share. Current Ratio is used to measure the ability of a company to fulfill its short-term obligate ions. Debt to Equity Ratio is used to assess the debt with equity that reflects the ability of a company to fulfill its obligations. Return on Assets is used to measure the ability of company to generate profits with assets used. Earnings per share is used to measure the achievement of the management in Achieving profits for shareholders. The design of this study is panel data regression using EViews 9 program. The analysis of the data in this study is the F Test for simultaneous and correlation tests (Adjusted R-Square). In this study, Debt to Equity Ratio and Return on Assets have positive and significant effect on the company's value (Tobin's Q). Earning per Share has a negative and significant effect on company value (Tobin's Q). Current ratio has no significant negative effect on company value (Tobin's Q). Simultaneously, Current Ratio, Debt to Equity Ratio, Return on Assets, and Earning per Share has significant impact on company value (Tobin's Q) with adjusted R-Square 0.972082. T means Tobin's Q 97.2082% can be explained from the combination of the four independent variables.
Control-theoretic adaptive cache-fair scheduling of chip multiprocessor systems

In chip multiprocessor scheduling, cache memory awareness is critical. However, most existing cache-aware multiprocessor scheduling methods are static and open-loop and thus do not work well in dynamic environments. To address this challenging problem, a control-theoretic approach is presented in this paper for adaptive cache-fair multiprocessor scheduling. The adaptive cache-fair multiprocessor scheduling uses process models to estimate the shared cache size requirements and the instruction count variations of the threads running on multiprocessor cores. Then, it feeds the estimated information back to an adaptive controller. Designed from the process models, the controller decides processor cycle re-allocation through model computation to maintain the instruction counts of the multiple threads at their desired values. The effectiveness of the adaptive cache-fair multiprocessor scheduling is demonstrated through examples.
Effect of drying time and different beef muscles cuts on physicochemical and sensory characteristics of dried meat ( Jerky )

Meat products have a broad market in Ecuador; however, jerky (dry meat) is rarely known and there are no products preserved using osmotic dehydration (OD). OD improves organoleptic characteristics of meat, thus it allows to use less economically valued meat cuts. The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of drying time on three beef cuts, regarding the physicochemical characteristics (Moisture Content, Moisture:Protein Relation, MPR, and Water Activity A a) and sensory characteristics in the elaboration of jerky that was previously dehydrated by OD, employing a 60 ◦Brix hypertonic solution. OD procedure was considered to be finished when a moisture content of 55g/100g of product was achieved for all treatments. During the air drying stage, a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with factorial arrangement 3 2 was used (Time: 4h, 5h, and 6h and muscle cut: Infraspinatus, Rectus femoris , Pectoralis profundus ) at constant temperature (68.5 ◦C). Five hours drying time treatments (T2, T5 and T8) presented better results for all three muscles types on physicochemical characterization and were evaluated by 65 consumer panelists through a preference test, in which no significant difference among treatments was observed. Pectoralis profundusis considered to have lesser market value compared to the other two muscles, hence its use for this type of products is highly recommended.
Binary Software Complexity Reduction: From Artifact-to Feature-Removal

Research progress and challenges related to the automated removal of potentially exploitable, abusable, or unwanted code features from binary software are examined and discussed. While much of the prior literature on this theme has focused on elimination of artifacts —software functionalities unanticipated by the code’s original developers (e.g., bugs)—an approach for safely and automatically removing features intended by developers but unwanted by individual consumers is proposed and evaluated. Such a capability is potentially valuable in scenarios where security-sensitive organizations wish to employ general-purpose, closed-source, commercial software in specialized computing contexts where some of the software’s functionalities are unneeded. In such contexts, unwanted functionalities can constitute an unnecessary security risk, motivating their removal before deployment. Preliminary experiments using a combination of runtime tracing, machine learning, and control-ﬂow integrity enforcement indicate that automated software feature removal is feasible for simple binary programs without source code. Future work is proposed for scaling these preliminary results to larger, more complex software products.
Working with Chinese Government Data Sets: Potential Issues and Solutions

This paper will provide an overview of selected official statistics and data sets collected in the People’s Republic of China, with a particular focus on economic and financial data on mainland China. It will explore options beyond the official statistics, such as CNKI, China Data Online, and CEIC CDMNext, and discuss the strengths and weaknesses of these databases. It will also review the existing arguments surrounding the use of official Chinese statistics and how researchers need to identify any issues behind their data choices. The key takeaway is to avoid generalizing and judging the quality of Chinese data based on exceptions, but instead to approach official Chinese data with a nuanced approach.
Human development and international migration: Lessons from low- and middle-income countries

This paper analyses the relationship between human development and migration. In particular, it tests whether migration, as a function of human development, follows an inverted U-shaped curve, known as mobility transition. Understanding this relationship is important since many Western politicians have implemented socioeconomic development strategies in migrant source countries with the aim to reduce migration. Considering that previous studies have mainly concentrated on the economic factors of development, this study introduces the broader human development index, determined by income, health and education, as the main explanatory variable. Analysing the rate of migration from 111 low- and middle-income countries into the aggregate of 15 OECD countries between 2000 and 2010, the study finds strong support for the inverted U-shaped relationship between human development and migration. This indicates that development strategies aimed at reducing migration are misguided
Modelling effect of valuable resources on franchise outlet performance: Dynamic sensing capability as mediator

Background: Competitive advantage and superior firm performance depend on resources and dynamic capabilities.Aim: This study aims to provide insight into the franchising industry where research on the value-dynamic sensing capability-performance relationship as part of the resource-based theory (RBT) seems to be novel. Drawing on the RBT, this study examines how valuable resources and dynamic sensing capability impact franchise outlet performance.Setting: Based on a cross-sectional design, a sample of 224 South African franchise outlet managers and owner-operators in the fast food and retailing categories was surveyed.Methods: Hypotheses were tested using a single-level structural equation model for value, dynamic sensing capability and performance.Results: The results contribute to research on RBT in the context of franchises by providing support for the assumption that firm resources and capabilities improve performance.Conclusion: The findings are expected to provide a strong base from which franchise managers and owner-operators can strategise for competitive advantage in an emerging economy like South Africa.
Accounting for Debasements: Indivisibility or Imperfect Recognizability of Money

The widespread prevalence of debasements in medieval Europe constitutes a puzzle under standard price theory because people voluntarily exchanged heavy coins for lighter ones; the difference being kept as seigniorage. I explore two properties of commodity monies that might make holding light coins more desirable, namely indivisibility and imperfect recognizability. If the agent trades indivisible coins, there are inefficiencies arising from over production of goods when the agent uses the heavier coin. Also, when coins are imperfectly recognizable, the heavy coin faces adverse selection. I find that under some parameters, indivisibility by itself leads to positive revenue following debasements, but in a way that eliminates co&#8208;circulation of coins. While with a sufficient degree of imperfect information, debasements can generate positive revenue and also co&#8208;circulation of coins.
Talent pool exclusion: the hotel employee perspective

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the experiences of employees excluded from a talent pool and to identify what career development is provided for them. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative approach was adopted, and narrative inquiry was selected as the optimum route to obtaining detailed and rich accounts of the experiences of employees excluded from a talent pool. Fifteen in-depth interviews were conducted with eight employees and seven managers in a small hotel chain in the south of England. Findings The study shows that employees who are excluded from a talent pool feel frustration, mistrust in the organisation, have low expectations of career development and show an intention to leave the organisation. Research limitations/implications The study was conducted in a chain of hotels where talent management (TM) strategies are one of the key priorities in the organisation. The results may be different in hotels where TM strategies are less formal and talent pool segmentation is not clearly identified. Practical implications Hotel managers should consider employees who are excluded from a talent pool and build effective TM strategies and provide career development to minimise adverse reactions and improve commitment and motivation. Originality/value This research contributes to understanding talent pool exclusion and its consequences for the hotel sector. Narrative interviewing is used in this context for the first time.
Chinese investments in Latin America: An analysis of host country determinants.

Despite cultural differences and political instability, Latin America is already the second main destination of China’s outward foreign direct investment (OFDI), only behind Asia. Although natural resource-seeking has been the traditional motivation for Chinese firms doing business in Latin America, market-seeking is also becoming an increasingly important driver. The aim of this study is to investigate the influence of host country factors on the location decisions of Chinese multinational enterprises (MNEs) in Latin America. We analyzed a sample of 106 investments carried out by 52 Chinese MNEs in 10 Latin American countries between 2005 and 2017. Our findings indicate that cultural distance negatively influences location choice by Chinese MNEs, while political risk has no influence. Moreover, market-seeking motivations and good diplomatic relations between China and the host country also matter.
Evaluating Student Performance on Computer-Based versus Handwritten Exams: Evidence from a Field Experiment in the Classroom

ABSTRACT The use of course-management software such as Blackboard, Moodle, and Canvas has become ubiquitous at all levels of education in the United States. A potentially useful feature of these products is the ability for instructors to administer assessments including quizzes and tests that are flexible, easy to customize, and quick and efficient to grade. Although computer-based assessments offer clear advantages, instructors might be concerned about their effect on student performance. This article evaluates whether student performance differs between handwritten and computer-based exams through a randomized field experiment conducted in a research methods course. Overall, our findings suggest a significant improvement in student performance on computer-based exams that is driven primarily by the relative ease of producing thorough responses on the computer versus by hand.
Visual-based system for tracking of mobile robots with support of infra-red sensor

The platooning technique for means of transport uses different kind of sensors for longitudinal and lateral control. This paper describes an approach for tracking of transport means in a platooning system which calculates the distance between preceding and following vehicles using only a single digital camera with support of infra-red range finder. The key features defining the distance between two vehicles are obtained by image processing. The calculated distances by the two sensor channels are synchronized in time and fused with a weighted average algorithm. The results show that the relation between key features and distance is nonlinear and the data from different sources are reliably fused in a short computation time. This fused value is suitable for real time longitudinal control of slow speed industrial mobile robots.
E-COMMERCE ADOPTION IN PENINSULAR MALAYSIA : PERCEIVED STRATEGIC VALUE AS MODERATOR IN THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PERCEIVED BARRIERS , ORGANIZATION READINESS AND COMPETITOR PRESSURE

This research proposed a parsimony model by combined two streams of theories: technological organizational environmental framework and perceived strategic value to seek more information to explain the e-commerce adoption phenomena in Peninsular Malaysia. Three predictor variables namely: Perceived Barriers, Organization Readiness and Competitor pressure and three moderators namely: operational support, managerial productivity, and strategic decision to investigate e-Commerce adoption. A total of 1200 survey questionnaires were sent to target audiences. After 3 months, 300 datasets were returned, and 217 datasets are useful. SmartPLS and SPSS tools used to perform data analysis. Perceived Barriers is not significant for small and medium sized enterprises. Perceived strategic value does not has any influence on small sized enterprises but it has a strong influence to medium sized enterprises to adopt e-Commerce. Three research questions used to guide for the research: (i) What is the level of e-Commerce adoption, (ii) Do perceived barriers, organization readiness and competitor pressure have relationship with e-Commerce adoption and (iii) Do perceive strategic value has moderation effects on the relationship between predictor variables and dependent variable.
Chapter 4 . 1 Fluorescent nanoparticle adhesion assay : a novel method for surface p K a determination of self-assembled monolayers on silicon surfaces

Since the computer industry enables us to generate smaller and smaller structures, silicon surface chemistry is becoming increasingly important for (bio-) analytical and biological applications. For controlling the binding of charged biomacromolecules such as DNA and proteins on modified silicon surfaces, the surface pKa is an important factor. Here we present a fluorescent nanoparticle adhesion assay as a novel method to determine the surface pKa of silicon surfaces modified with weak acids or bases. This method is based upon electrostatic interactions between the modified silicon surface and fluorescent nanoparticles with an opposite charge. Silicon slides were modified with 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) and were further derivatized with succinic anhydride. Layer thickness of these surfaces was determined by ellipsometry. After incubating the surfaces with an amine-reactive fluorescent dye, fluorescence microscopy revealed that the silicon surfaces were successfully modified with amineand carboxyl-groups. Two surface pKa values were found for APTES surfaces by the fluorescent nanoparticle adhesion assay. The first surface pKa (6.55±0.73) was comparable with the surface pKa obtained by contact angle titration (7.3±0.8), and he second surface pKa (9.94±0.19) was only found by using the fluorescent nanoparticle adhesion assay. The surface pKa of the carboxyl-modified surface by the fluorescent nanoparticle adhesion assay (4.37±0.59) did not significantly differ from that found by contact angle titration (5.7±1.4). In conclusion, we have developed a novel method to determine the surface pKa of modified silicon surfaces: the fluorescent nanoparticle adhesion assay. This method may provide a useful tool for designing pH-dependent electrostatic protein and particle binding/release, and to design surfaces with a pHdependent surface charge for (bio-) analytical lab-on-a-chip devices or drug delivery purposes. Chapter 4.1 Fluorescent nanoparticle adhesion assay: a novel method for surface pKa determination of self-assembled monolayers on silicon surfaces Koen van der Maaden1 Karen Sliedregt2 Alexander Kros2 Wim Jiskoot1 Joke Bouwstra1 Langmuir, 28 (2012) 3403−3411 1Division of Drug Delivery Technology, Leiden/ Amsterdam Center for Drug Research (LACDR), Leiden University 2Department of Soft Matter Chemistry, Leiden Institute of Chemistry (LIC), Leiden University CHAPTER 4.1: Coated microneedles Fluorescent nanoparticle adhesion assay
A Child ’ s Acquisition of Polysemy : of , with , and by in Child English

The lexical category of prepositions presents a difficult “mapping problem” (Clark, 1993) for children. Prepositions are highly relational, that is, they denote relationships between entities as opposed to entities themselves, and they are highly polysemous. Their meanings can include a range of spatial, concrete, and abstract meanings (Rice, 2003). Additionally, they encode a wide range of semantic roles and grammatical functions (e.g. Lakoff, 1987; Sandra & Rice, 1995; Tyler & Evans, 2003). Given the nature of this lexical class, children may have difficulty in identifying and acquiring their various meanings and uses. This mapping problem may be particularly acute for less spatial, highly grammaticized prepositions, such as with. Though highly spatial prepositions such as in and on have grammatical usages (Rice, 2003; Schneider et al. 2015; etc.), they frequently encode core spatial concepts such as containment, tight-fit, and support to which children exhibit sensitivity at an early age (Bowerman & Choi 2003; Hespos & Spelke 2004; Casasola & Cohen, 2002). In comparison, while with may denote “spatial proximity” (Kidd & Cameron-Faulkner, 2008), with is most frequently used to denote non-spatial relationships between entities, i.e. semantic relations such as instrument or accompaniment (Kidd & CameronFaulkner, 2008), which are not concrete and perceptible in the way spatial relationships might be. Other prepositions have similar properties: of marks partitive relations, by marks agents in passive clauses, to marks the recipient, etc. How do children acquire the meanings of these kinds of prepositions that typically denote non-spatial relationships between entities and events? One way children might resolve this mapping problem is by utilizing various cues that may be available in caregiver input. In the domain of verb meaning acquisition, caregiver input frequency and usage patterns have been shown to be significant predictors of children’s verb uses. For example, input is a significant predictor of children’s verb uses (Theakston et al., 2004), verb meaning often requires information about the syntactic environments in which they occur (e.g. Gleitman, 1990, Snedeker & Gleitman, 2004, etc.), and syntactic context can be used as a cue to verb meaning by toddlers (Fisher, 1996; Fisher & Snedeker, 2002; Naigles, 1990). Different senses of polysemous verbs have been shown to strongly correlate with different argument structure probabilities (Hare et al. 2003, 2004).