Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Econometric Analysis of the Impact of Taxes on Private Investment in Sub-Sahara Africa

This study examines the impact of taxation and other macroeconomic factors on private investment in sub-Saharan Africa, taking the case of East African Community (EAC) and Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries. By estimating a dynamic neo-classical investment model for developing countries using One-Step Difference GMM, the empirical results indicate that corporate income tax (CIT) and Value Added Tax (VAT) have significant and negative effect on private investment. The results also show that real interest rate is an important factor that explains the level of private investment in the EAC and SADC countries. Credit to private sector, though found to be statistically significant, the results suggests its effect is unexplainably negative and inconsistent with economic theories. The study finds no evidence, however, on the impact of personal income taxes, real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate, nominal exchange rate and inflation rate on private investment. On the policy front, the study findings indicate that, governments from the two economic blocs need to consider lowering the corporate income tax and VAT tax rates if they are to promote and attract more private investments. Lowering interest rates through the monetary policy channel is also recommended to make their economies more attractive to potential investors.
Multi-granularity opinion comparison on Chinese and English reviews: a case study in IT product domain

To help manufacturers and customers to obtain the different opinions about a product from various regions or countries via E-commerce websites, it is useful to conduct comparison on reviews written in different languages. This paper focuses on this problem by combining document-level and aspect-level sentiment mining on reviews of the same type of products in two different languages. The main findings show that while reviews in both languages have some common satisfied or unsatisfied aspects, they differ in significant ways. For example, Chinese users are more likely to express positive feelings, while English users have more obvious brand preferences. In addition, Chinese and English users’ most satisfied and unsatisfied aspects are different. Thus, different product design and marketing strategies are necessary. It should be further noted that our study methodology is language independent, and it could be applied potentially to cross-language review mining of other languages.
Career Technical Education and Labor Market Outcomes

Career technical education (CTE) programs at community colleges are increasingly seen as an attractive alternative to four-year colleges, yet little systematic evidence exists on the returns to specific certificates and degrees. We estimate returns to CTE programs using administrative data from the California Community College system linked to earnings records. We employ estimation approaches, including individual fixed effects and individual-specific trends, and find average returns to CTE certificate and degrees that range from 14 to 45 percent. The largest returns are for programs in the healthcare sector; estimated returns in non-health related programs range from 15 to 23 percent.
Comparison of hot water and methanol extraction combined with ultrasonic pretreatment on antioxidant properties of two pigmented rice cultivars

F U L L P A P E R Comparison of hot water and methanol extraction combined with ultrasonic pretreatment on antioxidant properties of two pigmented rice cultivars Tobgay, U. , *Boonyanuphong, P. and Meunprasertdee, P. Department of Food Sciences and Nutrition, Faculty of Science and Technology, Prince of Songkla University Pattani Campus, 94000 Thailand Instrument Center, Faculty of Science and Technology, Prince of Songkla University, Pattani Campus, 94000, Thailand
Synchronization of a Dual-Mass Vibrating System with Two Exciters

From the perspective of theoretical derivation, numerical simulation, and engineering application, the vibratory synchronization characteristics of a dual-mass vibrating system driven by two exciters, were studied. The differential motion equations of the total system were calculated using Lagrange’s equations, and the responses of the vibrating system in the steady state were derived by Laplace transform. The synchronization criterion between two exciters was deduced by using the averaging method. Based on the Hamilton principle, the stability criterion of the vibrating system in synchronous states is given. According to the theoretical results, the coupling characteristics between two exciters such as synchronization and stability were analyzed numerically. Some analyses of the numerical simulation of the system were carried out, which fully support the theoretical results. The rotational speed of two exciters, their phase difference, responses, and difference of responses of two rigid bodies were studied quantitatively in the subresonant state and super-resonant state of the system. This paper presents a practical example of vibratory synchronization of a dual-mass system driven by two exciters in engineering.
The effect of asymmetry of the loading cycle on heat dissipation in metal structures

The paper is devoted to the experimental study of heat generation processes in various metallic materials under high-cycle loading with different values of asymmetry and amplitudes of cycles. Tests were performed on flat, smooth specimens subjected to cyclic stretching with increasing amplitude. Change in thermal radiation detected by an infrared detector, by the value of the thermal sensitivity of the device NETD was taken for the beginning of a metal sample self-heating. The stresses corresponding to the beginning of self-heating, are called critical. It has been established that Smith and Haigh diagrams of critical stresses of the onset of self-heating are similar to the same diagrams of ultimate fatigue stresses.
Cytologia 71(4): 345–351, 2006

Cytogenetic mechanism of Wolbachia-induced cytoplasmic incompatibility is investigated in the uzifly, Exorista sorbillans, a parasitoid of silkworm, Bombyx mori. The results revealed the condensation of chromatin to form the paternal pronucleus upon the sperm entering in to the egg, and subsequently condensed paternal and maternal pronuclei fused to form the diploid zygote in compatible crosses. In fertilized eggs from incompatible crosses, only the maternal pronucleus had individual chromosomes. The uncondensed paternal pronucleus scattered near maternal pronucleus, and in some eggs reappear as a diffused tangled chromatin mass and tend to get fragmented during the first mitotic division. Moreover, the abnormalities in the first mitotic division extend with the fragmentation and nonorientation of chromosomes on equatorial plane of first metaphase plate. The initiation of chromosome separation in late metaphase was an indication of beginning of anaphase in compatible crosses. In case of incompatible crosses, the chromosome separation had not occurred even at late metaphase/early anaphase leading the failure of development of viable embryo. However, abnormal behavior of paternal chromatin does not interfere with mitotic division of maternal chromosomes. The mechanism is discussed with applied strategy for the management of uzifly, Exorista sorbillans.
Lactic Acid Bacteria Isolation and Determination of Their Silage Fermentation Capabilities

Yuksek kaliteli yem kullanimi, hayvansal uretimi artiran en onemli konularin basinda gelmektedir. Yemin kit oldugu veya iklimsel nedenlerden dolayi kaliteli taze yem elde edilmesinin mumkun olmadigi donemlerde, silolanmis yemler ruminant beslenmesinde hayati bir oneme sahiptir. Laktik asit bakterileri (LAB), silaj icerisinde arzu edilen fermentasyonun saglanmasinda en onemli rolu ustlenmektedir. Bu calismada, Turkiye’de farkli ekolojilerde yetisen yem bitkileri uzerinden LAB izolasyonu yapilmis, izolatlarin fermentatif ozellikleri belirlenmis ve silaj kalitesini gelistirebilecek izolatlarin secimi yapilmistir. Bu amacla, 39-1516 m rakimli bolgelerdeki farkli ekolojilerden yem bitkileri toplanmis ve ayni zamanda silajlari yapilmis ve LAB bu materyallerden izole edilmistir. Tum izolatlarin toplam asit uretim kapasiteleri belirlenmis ve CaCO3 iceren besi yerinde olusan transparan alan dikkate alinarak, en yuksek oranda asit ureten 70 adet izolat secilmistir. Daha sonra, Malt Extract Agar (MRS broth besi yerinde gelistirilen izolatlarin, besi yeri icerisindeki laktik asit (LA) uretim miktarlari belirlenmis ve en yuksek LA ureten 10 izolat secilmistir. Ayrica, bu 10 izolatin morfolojik, fizyolojik ve biyokimyasal ozellikleri incelenmis ve BIOLOG kiti kullanilarak tanimlamalari yapilmistir. Secilen umit var izolatlar daha sonraki inokulasyon calismalarinda kullanilmak uzere stok solusyonda saklanmistir.
3D-integrated ultra-low volume passive microfluidics with Fully-Depleted Silicon-On- Insulator Ion Sensitive Field Effect Transistors for Multi-parameter Wearable Sweat Analyzers

Wearable systems could offer noninvasive and real-time solutions for monitoring of biomarkers in human sweat as an alternative to blood testing. Recent studies have demonstrated that the concentration of certain biomarkers in sweat can be directly correlated to their concentrations in blood, making sweat a trusted biofluid candidate for non-invasive diagnostics. We introduce a fully on-chip integrated wearable sweat sensing system to track biochemical information at the surface of the skin in real time. This system heterogeneously integrates, on a single silicon chip, state-of-the-art ultra-thin body (UTB) fully-depleted silicon-on-insulator (FD-SOI) ISFET sensors with a biocompatible microfluidic interface, to deliver a “Lab-on-skin” sensing platform. A full process for the fabrication of this system is proposed in this work and demonstrated by standard semiconductor fabrication procedures. The system is capable of collecting small volumes of sweat from the skin of a human, and posteriorly passively driving the biofluid, by capillary action, to a set of functionalized ISFETs for analysis of pH level and Na and K concentrations. Drop-casted Ion Sensing Membranes (ISM) on the different sets of sensors on the same substrate enables multi-parameter analysis on the same chip, with small and controlled cross-sensitivities, while a miniaturized Quasi-Reference Electrode (QRE) sets a stable analyte potential, avoiding the use of a cumbersome external Reference Electrode (RE). The progresses on Lab-on-Skin technology reported here can lead to autonomous wearable systems enabling real-time continuous monitoring of the sweat composition, with applications ranging from medicine to lifestyle behavioral engineering and sports.
Asymmetric Laplace-Normal Mixture Model for Wind Shear Data

In design and developmentsof products and processes,innumerable uncertainties are faced by engineers in the ordinary run of research projects and its implementation. Variety of statistical techniques are employed by themto deal with the uncertainties inherent in measured information . While much of the classical statistical analysis is based on Gaussian distributional assumptions, statistical modelling with the Laplace distributions has increasingly gained importance in many applied fields. Wind shear is known to be an important factor affecting the safety of aircraft during take-off and landing period. A mixture model with Laplace and Normal distributions fitted to the data obtained from a civil airline is reviewed. A useful alternative to the above mixture model with asymmetric Laplace distribution, a skewed version of symmetric Laplace distribution is proposed. The parameter estimationfor the Laplace-Normal mixture is also considered.
Micro-Macro Limit of a Nonlocal Generalized Aw-Rascle Type Model

We introduce a Follow-the-Leader approximation of a non-local generalized Aw-Rascle-Zhang (GARZ) model for traffic flow. We prove the convergence to weak solutions of the corresponding macroscopic equations deriving $L ∞$ and BV estimates. We also provide numerical simulations illustrating the micro-macro convergence and we investigate numerically the non-local to local limit for both the microscopic and macroscopic models.
Electric Field Measurement Using Multiple-Loaded Linear Scatterers

Modulated scatterer techniques (MST) based on 1D and 2D arrays of small loaded linear scatterers have been used extensively for rapid electric field distribution measurements at microwave frequencies [1]. In most applications, a compact array of closely-spaced small loaded dipoles is used in order to construct a representative map of the electric field of interest. The performance of the MST-based electric field measurement system depends on many factors. As stated in [2], “Six basic factors that can have an impact on measurement system performances are as follows: 1) dynamic range, 2) interelement mutual coupling, 3) interaction between the MST array and test antenna, 4) parasitic signals (modulated and/or unmodulated), 5) dispersion of element scattering characteristics, and 6) probe correction. ” These factors impose many tradeoff considerations that need to be resolved on perapplication basis. For instance, the interelement mutual coupling combined with the fact that the utilized elements are commonly small scatterers (i.e., short dipoles) can adversely impact the system sensitivity, and hence reduce the overall system dynamic range. On the other hand, using stronger (loaded) scatterers can enhance the sensitivity when effective probe correction and compensation techniques are employed. Such a tradeoff was investigated in [3] where it was articulated that “For practical reasons, instead of trying to build noninterfering (and therefore more complicated and perhaps less sensitive) sensors, one can use common sensors (simpler, inexpensive, and possibly more sensitive) and include them in the reconstruction formulism itself. ” In line with this concept, we propose a new method for electric field distribution measurement based on utilizing multiple loaded linear scatterers (MLS) instead of the conventional arrays of discrete elements. It will be shown that, by utilizing a linear scatterer loaded at multiple discrete locations over its length, the electric field of interest can be reconstructed accurately from scattered field measurements taken under distinct modulation states. The feasibility of the proposed method for electric field distribution measurement is demonstrated via numerical simulations.
Neural Embeddings for Nearest Neighbor Search Under Edit Distance

The edit distance between two sequences is an important metric with many applications. The drawback, however, is the high computational cost of many basic problems involving this notion, such as the nearest neighbor search. A natural approach to overcoming this issue is to embed the sequences into a vector space such that the geometric distance in the target space approximates the edit distance in the original space. However, the known edit distance embedding algorithms, such as Chakraborty et al. (2016), construct embeddings that are data-independent, i.e., do not exploit any structure of embedded sets of strings. In this paper we propose an alternative approach, which learns the embedding function according to the data distribution. Our experiments show that the new algorithm has much better empirical performance than prior data-independent methods.
Emotion Combination in Social Media Comments as Features for Sarcasm Detection

Emotions or mood play a signicant part in social media users’ interactions. is, in turn, has lled these platforms with opinionated content. Due to the nature of the data, the variety of platforms, and dynamic online user behavior, approaches to make beer use of this data face many issues. It remains a challenge to properly obtain a reliable emotional status from a user when posting a comment. Sarcasm is one of the behavioral factors that adds diculty to this task. Sarcastic expressions have an impact on both emotional expression and perception. e lack of explicit labels presents an additional challenge. is work introduces a methodology that explores the overlap of emotions in a text as an inherent characteristic of sarcastic expressions. To obtain such emotion labels, we leveraged a semi-supervised emotion-detection system trained using Facebook reactions and comments. Textual information was converted into a graph from which linguistic paerns were extracted and used as features. is paern extraction method enabled multi-lingual usage and represented context in expressions more eciently. More than 1 million English and Chinese comments from over 62,000 public Facebook page posts have been collected and processed; experiments conducted show acceptable performance metrics.
A CRITICAL REVIEW ON SYNTHETIC PATHWAY OF BENZOFURANS

“ B enzofuran” a heterocyclic moiety which act as a lead molecule for several biologically active compounds. Besides, benzofuran derivatives show several activities like anti-tubercular, anti-tumor, anti plasmodial, cytotoxic and herbicidal. So, they found a variety of applications in manufacturing drugs as pharmacological agents and used in other fields of agriculture and organic chemistry. They are present as natural products which were isolated from Machilus glaucescens, Krameria ramosissima and Zanthoxylum ailanthoidol. One of such natural benzofuran derivative namely Napthofurans which have profound biological activities and represent a major class of heterocyclic compounds. The present literature reviews that the synthesis of different benzofuran derivatives and their biological activities in present day life. inhibitors antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, were synthesized with high proportions. 2-dibenzofuranol was iodinised by iodine monochloride followed by palladium– copper catalyzed Sonagashira-coupling of 1-iododibenzofuran-2-ol with various alkyl and aryl acetylenes to give benzofurans derivatives. When screened for in vitro anti-mycobacterial activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv,Out of all synthesized compounds, Compound 2-(4-methoxy-2-methyl phenyl)-3 H -benzofuro[3,2- e ]benzofuran ( 7c ) was found to have more MIC 3.12 μg/mL and have a good range of therapeutic activity with less cytotoxicity.
Using Destination Image and Place Attachment to Explore Support for Tourism Development: The Case of Tourism Versus Non-tourism Employees in EILAT

Apart from the economic motive, little attention has been given to factors such as destination image and place attachment in explaining how potential differences in intentional behavior (support for tourism, intention to recommend) develop between tourism employees and non-tourism employees in a community. This study, conducted in the remote resort of Eilat, explores whether these resident groups’ representations of and attachment to their place shape their intentional behavior toward tourism, and tests the explanatory ability of the two factors to account for potential differences in groups’ intentional behavior. Findings suggest that the relationships between: (a) place attachment and destination image, (b) place attachment and intention to recommend, and (c) between destination image and intention to recommend, vary across the two groups. The study contributes to tourism theory by empirically validating the role of image and attachment as antecedent of such differentiation. Additional implications to tourism theory and practice are discussed.
NeuroImage: Clinical Neocortical morphometry in Huntington's disease: Indication of the coexistence of abnormal neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative processes

is an inherited, autosomal dominant disorder that is characteristically thought of as a degenerative disorder. Despite cellular and molecular grounds suggesting HD could also impact normal development, there has been scarce systems-level data obtained from in vivo human studies supporting this hypoth- esis. Sulcus-specific morphometry analysis may help disentangle the contribution of coexisting neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental processes, but such an approach has never been used in HD. Here, we investigated cortical sulcal depth, related to degenerative process, as well as cortical sulcal length, related to developmental process, in early-stage HD and age-matched healthy controls. This morphometric analysis re- vealed significant differences in the HD participants compared with the healthy controls bilaterally in the central and intra-parietal sulcus, but also in the left intermediate frontal sulcus and calcarine fissure. As the primary visual cortex is not connected to the striatum, the latter result adds to the increasing in vivo evidence for primary cortical degeneration in HD. Those sulcal measures that differed between HD and healthy populations were mainly atrophy-related, showing shallower sulci in HD. Conversely, the sulcal morphometry also revealed a crucial difference in the imprint of the Sylvian fissure that could not be related to loss of grey matter volume: an absence of asymmetry in the length of this fissure in HD. Strong asymmetry in that cortical region is typically observed in healthy development. As the formation of the Sylvian fissure appears early in utero , and marked asymmetry is specifically found in this area of the neocortex in newborns, this novel finding likely indicates the foetal timing of a disease-specific, genetic interplay with neurodevelopment.
Iterative Decoding of LDPC-Based Product Codes and FPGA-Based Performance Evaluation

Low-density parity-check (LDPC) codes have the potential for applications in future high throughput optical communications due to their significant error correction capability and the parallel decoding. However, they are not able to satisfy the very low bit error rate (BER) requirement due to the error floor phenomenon. In this paper, we propose a low-complexity iterative decoding scheme for product codes consisting of very high rate outer codes and LDPC codes. The outer codes aim at eliminating the residual error floor of LDPC codes with quite low implementation costs. Furthermore, considering the long simulation time of computer simulation for evaluating very low BER, the hardware platform is built to accelerate the evaluation of the proposed iterative decoding methods. Simultaneously, the fixed-point effects of the decoding algorithms are also be evaluated. The experimental results show that the iterative decoding of the product codes can achieve a quite low bit error rate. The evaluation using field programmable gate array (FPGA) also proves that product codes with LDPC codes and high-rate algebraic codes can achieve a good trade-off between complexity and throughput.