Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Unimodal Learning Enhances Crossmodal Learning in Robotic Audio-Visual Tracking

Crossmodal sensory integration is a fundamental feature of the brain that aids in forming an coherent and unified representation of observed events in the world. Spatiotemporally correlated sensory stimuli brought about by rich sensorimotor experiences drive the development of crossmodal integration, with neuroplasticity as its underlying mechanism. Bayesian causal inference framework dictates a weighted combination of stimulus estimates to achieve optimal crossmodal integration, but assumes knowledge of the underlying stimulus noise distributions. We present a Hebbianlike correlation learning-based model that continuously adapts crossmodal combinations in response to dynamic changes in noisy sensory stimuli but does not require a priori knowledge of sensory noise. The model correlates sensory cues within a single modality as well as across modalities to independently update modality-specific neural weights. This model is instantiated as a neural circuit that continuously learns the best possible weights required for a weighted combination of noisy low-level auditory and visual spatial target direction cues. The combined sensory information is directly mapped to wheel velocities that orient a non-holonomic robotic agent towards a moving audio-visual target. Simulation results demonstrate that unimodal learning enhances crossmodal learning and improves both the overall accuracy and precision of multisensory orientation response.
Finite frequency H∞ control of singularly perturbed Euler‐Lagrange systems: An artificial delay approach

In this paper, we show that small artificial delays in the feedback loops operating in different time scales may stabilize singularly perturbed systems (SPSs). An artificial delay approach is proposed for the robust stabilization and L2‐gain analysis of SPSs in the finite frequency domain. A two‐time‐scale delayed static output feedback controller is designed, in which the controller gains are formulated via a linear matrix inequality (LMI) algorithm. A distinctive feature of the proposed algorithm is setting controller parameters as free variables, which increases the degrees of freedom in controller design and leads to more flexibility in solving LMIs. Moreover, the proposed method is further extended to analyze the finite frequency system specifications of SPSs. The L2‐gain performance analysis is conducted for parameter‐independent subsystems in their dominant frequency ranges, and the disturbance attenuation level of the original high‐order system is then estimated. Finally, the efficiency of the proposed design method is verified in an active suspension system subject to multiple finite frequency disturbance.
On the in-plane deformability of cross-plied unidirectional prepreg

The work presented herein aims to investigate the in-plane properties of cross-plied unidirectional prepreg using the bias extension method. The study considers different generations of carbon fibre/epoxy material systems, and testing is performed at elevated temperatures to enhance the deformability. Using digital image correlation, the specimen deformation and fibre rotation is captured during testing. The study shows that most cross-plied unidirectional material deforms at different characteristic length scales as deformation continues: first seemingly continuous and later in the form of bands. Further, the different type of prepreg materials investigated behaves differently; for one type the pin-jointed net theory fit well, enabling simple estimation of the resulting fibre angle, while for the other two it did not. Different loading speeds and temperatures are investigated in order to pinpoint their influence on the deformability.
Dental Anatomical Features and Caries: A Relationship to be Investigated

Dental caries is a multifactor disease affecting a significant number of people through - out the world. However, in recent decades the widespread availability of fluoride and other preventive measures have resulted in a decline in the prevalence of caries among children and young adults. Currently, it is accepted that most carious dental lesions are restricted to specific anatomical sites. The aim of this chapter is to review the influence of dental anatomy on dental caries development while taking into account recent findings in cariology. Occlusal fissures in the first permanent molar are generally the first sites in the permanent dentition to develop caries. An increased risk of caries is also found in proximal contacting surfaces between two adjacent teeth. Moreover, a partially erupted tooth, which does not participate in mastication, is also at risk for caries since it may pro vide a more favorable environment for bacterial accumulation than a fully erupted tooth. Bacterial biofilm on the tooth is frequently a high risk caries environment. Understanding anatomical dental features is of great importance for guiding oral health hygiene and preventive measures. Finally, the development of dental disorders plays an important role in dental caries risk.
UvA-DARE ( Digital Academic Repository ) Reading for meaning The effects of Developmental Education on motivation and achievement in reading informative texts in primary

Content-oriented reading interventions that focus on the integration of motivational enhancement and strategy instruction have been found to have positive effects. Developmental education (DE) in the Netherlands is an innovative content-oriented approach in which reading is an integral part of an inquiry-oriented curriculum. Reading for meaning is a central pursuit, and strategy instruction is functionally integrated. This study differs from previous studies in three aspects. Firstly, instead of interventions, two types of existing practices were compared: the DE approach and a textbook-driven programmatic instruction approach (PI). Secondly, this study accounted for classroom influences by conducting multilevel analyses. Thirdly, control variables, i.e. ethnic background, home language, SES, non-verbal IQ, gender, vocabulary and decoding skills, were taken into account. The effects of both approaches were investigated in terms of reading comprehension, knowledge of reading strategies and reading motivation. In a pretest–posttest natural two-group design, tests and questionnaires were administered to 570 grade 4 students in 24 schools. The outcomes that resulted from the DE approach were as good as those from the PI approach. These results are discussed in relation to previous studies that have reported better outcomes of content-oriented reading approaches than traditional and strategy reading approaches.
Microwave Oscillator Ultrasound Receivers

We propose and demonstrate a miniature microwave device capable of detecting wide-band ultrasound without the use of piezo materials. By the nature of the transduction mechanism, the scheme naturally implements orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM): each device can be assigned its own microwave band, mitigating electrical cross-talk between adjacent sensor elements for future imaging array systems. Furthermore, the entire array could be addressed with a single electrical connection, since addressing is in the frequency, rather than spatial, domain. We anticipate that the convenience afforded by this fully electronic platform will enable its use as a low cost and versatile solution in cases where high sensitivity is required over a large portion of the acoustic spectrum.
Multiyear heterotrophic soil respiration: Evaluation of a coupled CO2 transport and carbon turnover model

Modelling of soil respiration plays an important role in the prediction of climate change. Soil respiration is usually divided in a fraction originating from root respiration and a heterotrophic fraction originating from microbial decomposition of soil organic carbon. This paper reports on the coupling of an one-dimensional water, heat and CO2 flux model (SOILCO2) with a pool concept of carbon turnover (RothC) for the prediction of soil heterotrophic respiration. In order to test this coupled model, it was applied to a bare soil experimental plot located in Bornim, Germany. Soil temperature and soil water content measurements were used for comparison with the respective model predictions. An 8 years data set of CO2 efflux measurements, covering a broad range of atmospheric conditions, was used to evaluate the model. In a first step we quantified the improvement of the CO2 efflux prediction due to the coupling of the flux model with a pool concept of carbon turnover. The humus pool decomposition rate constant and its soil water content dependent reduction were derived from the first 5 years of CO2 efflux measurements using inverse modelling. The following 3 years of measurements were used to validate the model. The overall model performance of CO2 efflux predictions was acceptable with the measured and simulated mean daily respiration being 0.861 and 0.868 g C m−2 d−1, respectively, and a mean absolute difference between modelled and measured rates of 0.21 g C m−2 d−1. The inverse estimation of the humus decomposition rate constant resulted in a value of 0.04 year−1, which is higher than the default value in RothC. This is attributed to the agricultural practice during the
Inflation, Exchange Rates and PPP in a Multivariate Panel Co-Integration Model

New multivariate panel cointegration methods are used to analyze nominal exchange rates and prices in four major economies in Europe: France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom for the post-Bretton Woods period. We test for purchasing power parity (PPP) between these four countries and find that the theoretical PPP relationship does not hold. However, the estimated unrestricted relationship is found to be remarkably close to the theoretical one (1, −1.5, 0.9 instead of 1, −1,1). Relevant asymptotic results are stated, proved, and evaluated using Monte Carlo simulations. The asymptotic results are general and may hence be used in similar empirical contexts using the same model structure. Parametric bootstrap inference is used in order to deal with test size distortions. Copyright Royal Economic Society 2008
Rotational splitting of helioseismic modes influenced by a magnetic atmosphere

In the present paper the splitting of sectoral (m =l) helioseismic eigenmodes (f -a ndp-modes) is studied in the presence of a magnetic atmosphere. The solar interior is in a steady state, with sub-photospheric plasma flow along the equator representing solar rotation. The Cartesian geometry employed restricts the present study to sectoral modes, m =l . W e work withl 50, which guarantees that the modes do not deeply penetrate into the solar interior and therefore experience an approximately uniform rotation. Potentially observable eects are predicted and developments of the model to aid detections are discussed.
The Impact of Flexible Benefits Plan on Organization Commitment and Intention to Quit

In the past decade, the employee benefits industry has undergone considerable change with regard to the types of benefits available at the workplace. Plan sponsors have experimented with a variety of strategies to developing creative ways to tailor their benefit plans to the varying needs of employees. One approach set up is the flexible benefits plans. Thus, the focus of this paper is to develop economic study, test the relationship between benefits plan (traditional and flexible) as independent variables and organization commitment, employees’ intention to quit as dependent variables on one side, on the other side we test these relationship according to the employees’ demographic characteristics as control variables, with data from a sample of BHP company in Algeria and in headquarters in Australia, a total of 330 respondents were randomly selected as the sample of the study, data was analyzed by (IBM SPSS statistics 20), the study is divided into two parts. In the first part, our result prove that both of traditional benefits plan and flexible benefits plan are related with organization commitment and intention to quit, but the workers under flexible benefits plan demonstrated a higher commitment and lower intention to quit than traditional plan. The second part, the results also show that the demographics characteristics can play important role in the determining of employees’ behavior, we prove that there is different in term of commitment and intention to quit among employees according to the differences in the demographic characteristics. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014. v5n8p136
Generation of True Random Numbers based on Radioactive Decay

Unpredictable random numbers are a prerequisite for the safety of many cryptographic applications. Truly random numbers can only be generated using observations of a stochastic physical process. This paper presents a true random number generator (TRNG) based on radioactive decay. Decay events of a Thorium dioxide sample are detected with a Geiger-Müller tube and transformed into a random bit stream on a Raspberry Pi single-board computer. A random bit is generated from each decay event, hence the efficiency of the TRNG is 100 %. On average, the system produces a random bit every 90 ms. The entropy of the generated bit stream is optimal with 1 bit per bit, the serial correlation coefficient is close to zero. A set of statistical tests for randomness were applied to show that the system produces high quality random numbers.
The Disparity between the Tourism Education/Training and the Needs of the Tourism and Hospitality Industry Manpower Needs

Generally tourism and hospitality courses/qualifications equip the holder with skills and knowledge for the tourism and hospitality industry in a holistic approach. However, the current literature evaluation on the hospitality and tourism education and training denotes a number of differences from the tourism and hospitality manpower needs. This bolsters the industrialists’ outcry that the tourism and hospitality programmes/courses are not addressing the needs of both the tourism sector and the hospitality sector within the Tourism and Hospitality industry, especially in Zimbabwe. This paper probes the misunderstanding of the current situation concerning tourism and hospitality graduates, hospitality skills, travel/ tourism skills and both areas’ competencies and career development within the combined discipline. Literature points out that for the implementation of curricula there is a need to connect with industries and make the best use of the social resources which will contribute to students’ career development and the evaluation of curricula bolsters partnership between the tourism industry and academic institutions thus leading to a systems approach. The findings show that our tourism operators know what they want, and it is only a matter of communicating that to the educational institutions so we can churn out more highly trained and skilled waiters, chefs and front desk managers, to name a few. The tourism industry in the region believes that courses offered by regional institutions are not tailored to meet the vast needs of the industry. In conclusion the challenge is that the curricula content does not reconcile with human capital skills and competences needed by the hospitality and tourism industrialists. It is therefore recommended that the hospitality and tourism curricula development should incorporate all relevant stakeholders within the tourism and hospitality industry in order to bridge theory and practice . Keywords: Travel, Tourism, Hospitality, career, skills and competencies
FIRE REGIMES AT THE TRANSITION BETWEEN MIXEDWOOD AND CONIFEROUS BOREAL FOREST IN NORTHWESTERN QUEBEC

Fire history was reconstructed for an area of 15 000 km 2 located in the transition zone between the mixed and coniferous forests in Quebec's southern boreal forest. We used aerial photographs, archives, and dendroecological data (315 sites) to reconstruct a stand initiation map for the area. The cumulative distribution of burnt area in relation to time since fire suggests that the fire frequency has decreased drastically since the end of the Little Ice Age (about 1850) in the entire region. However, a large part of the area was burned between 1910 and 1920 during intensive colonization and when the climate was very conducive to fire. For the period 1920-1945, large fires have mainly been concentrated in the more populated southern area, while few fires have been observed in the virgin coniferous forest in the north. Despite slight differences between the south and the north, fire cycles or the average number of years since fire are not significantly different. Since 1945, there have been far more fires in the south, but the mean fire size was smaller than in the north. These results suggest that the transition between the mixed and coniferous forests observed in the southern boreal forest cannot be explained by a difference in fire frequency, at least during the last 300 years. As climatic factors and species potential distribution did not vary significantly from south to north, we suggest that the transition from mixedwood to coniferous forests is mainly controlled by fire size and severity. Smaller and less severe fires would favor species associated with the mixedwood forests as many need survivors to reinvade burnt areas. The abundance of deciduous species in mixedwood forests, together with the presence of more lakes that can act as firebreaks, may contribute to decreases in fire size and severity. The transition between the two vegetation zones could be related to the initial setting following the vegetation invasion of the area during the Holocene. In this context, the limit of vegetation zones in systems controlled by disturbance regimes such as fires may not have reached a balance with current climatic conditions. Historical legacies and strong positive feedback between disturbance regimes and com- position may filter and delay the responses to changes in climate.
Fast and Effective Robustness Certification

We present a new method and system, called DeepZ, for certifying neural network robustness based on abstract interpretation. Compared to state-of-the-art automated verifiers for neural networks, DeepZ: (i) handles ReLU, Tanh and Sigmoid activation functions, (ii) supports feedforward and convolutional architectures, (iii) is significantly more scalable and precise, and (iv) and is sound with respect to floating point arithmetic. These benefits are due to carefully designed approximations tailored to the setting of neural networks. As an example, DeepZ achieves a verification accuracy of 97% on a large network with 88,500 hidden units under $L_{\infty}$ attack with $\epsilon = 0.1$ with an average runtime of 133 seconds.
Globalization Shuffles Cards of the World Pack: In Which Direction is the Global Economic-Political Balance Shifting?

The article offers forecasts of the geopolitical and geo-economic development of the world in the forthcoming decades. One of the main accusations directed toward globalization is that it deepens the gap between the developed and developing countries dooming them to eternal backwardness. The article demonstrates that the actual situation is very different. It is shown that this is due to the globalization that the developing countries are generally growing much faster than the developed states, the World System core starts weakening and its periphery begins to strengthen. At the same time there is a continuing divergence between the main bulk of developing countries and the group of the poorest developing states. The article also explains why the globalization was bound to lead to the explosive rise of many developing countries and the relative weakening of the developed economies. In the forthcoming decades this trend is likely to continue (although, of course, not without certain interruptions). It is also demonstrated that this convergence constitutes a necessary condition for the next technological breakthrough. This has important implications for the hegemony debates. A rather popular theory of hegemony cycles implies that the eclipse of the global hegemony of the United States should be followed by the emergence of a new global hegemon. This generates the dichotomy of the two main current points of view—either the United States will continue the global leadership in the forthcoming decades, or it will be replaced by China in this capacity. We do not find the study of the future within this dichotomy fruitful. We believe that in a direct connection with the development of globalization processes the hegemony cycle pattern is likely to come to its end, which will lead to the World System reconfiguration and the emergence of its new structure that will allow the World System to continue its further development without a hegemon.
Trophic structure of hydrothermal vent communities at Myojin Knoll and Nikko Seamount in the northwestern Pacific : Implications for photosynthesis-derived food supply

To investigate and compare the trophic structures of hydrothermal vent communities at different depths, the carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios of dominant species were analyzed in the communities at Myojin Knoll (1,220–1,360 m) in the Izu-Ogasawara Arc and the Nikko Seamount (380–550 m) in the North Mariana Arc. At the Myojin knoll, a barnacle, Ashinkailepas seepiophila had high δ15N value, which suggested to be derived from photosynthetic products. Similarly, at Nikko Seamount, a polynoid polychaete, Gandulfus yunohana, a xanthid crab, Alvinocaaris sp. , and Symphurus thermophilus had high δ15N values. These animals, too, are suggested to consume photosynthetic products. The range of δ13C values at Myojin Knoll was wider than that at Nikko Seamount. The difference between the ranges of these values suggest that different chemical environments between the two vent sites influence the components and distribution of chemoautotrophic bacteria found at each site, leading to different faunal
Assessing contributions to panevaporation trends in Haihe River Basin, China

[1] In many places around the world, panevaporation has been detected to decrease with the increase in temperature, which is known as the “panevaporation paradox. ” An example of the paradox was found in the Haihe River Basin from 1957 to 2001. To explain the mechanism of the paradox, an approach to quantify the contributions of climate factors to the panevaporation trend has been proposed, in which the individual contribution was defined as the product of the partial derivative and slope of the trend for the concerned variables. Four variables, including temperature, wind speed, solar radiation, and vapor pressure, were selected based on the Penman-Monteith method to assess their individual contribution to the panevaporation trend. The results showed that an increase in temperature resulted in the increase of panevaporation, but this effect had been offset by an increase in vapor pressure and decrease in wind speed and solar radiation. Wind speed was the dominant factor contributing to panevaporation decreases in the Haihe River Basin.