Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Coup-Proo fing and Military Ine fficiencies: An Experiment

Coup-proofing occurs when a leader arranges his military to prevent military leaders from overthrowing him. However, coup-proofing often has the additional effect of lowering the military's effectiveness in conflict. Coup-proofing is discussed in the context of the Nouri al-Maliki's regime in Iraq before two formal models are presented. The first model shows when coups are possible, leaders select military commanders with lower ability but higher loyalty. The second model shows that when coups are possible, leaders rotate their military commanders to prevent any one commander from becoming too powerful. The paper then presents experimental tests of the models. The results of these laboratory experiments show that leaders are more likely to select loyal commanders or rotate their commanders under the coup treatment relative to groups with no leadership turnover or with leadership turnover according elections. Thus, when faced with the possibility of a coup, leaders intentionally lower their military effectiveness. This paper captures the dynamics behind a fundamental inefficiency introduced into groups when leadership is valuable, delegation is necessary, and powerful subordinates can remove the leader from office.
Pushing the Limits of Monte Carlo Simulations for the 3 d Ising Model

While the 3d Ising model has defied analytic solution, various numerical methods like Monte Carlo, MCRG and series expansion have provided precise information about the phase transition. Using Monte Carlo simulation that employs the Wolff cluster flipping algorithm with both 32-bit and 53-bit random number generators and data analysis with histogram reweighting and quadruple precision arithmetic, we have investigated the critical behavior of the simple cubic Ising Model, with lattice sizes ranging from 16 to 1024. By analyzing data with cross correlations between various thermodynamic quantities obtained from the same data pool, e.g. logarithmic derivatives of magnetization and derivatives of magnetization cumulants, we have obtained the critical inverse temperature Kc = 0.221 654 626(5) and the critical exponent of the correlation length ν = 0.629 912(86) with precision that exceeds all previous Monte Carlo estimates.
Use of Game Development in Computer Science and Software Engineering Education

This chapter presents the results of a literature survey on the use of game development in software engineering (SE) and computer science (CS) education. Games and game development has been used in recent years to increase motivation, engagement and learning, and to promote doing career in software and computers. The authors of this chapter wanted to get a bird’s eye perspective on how game development has been used in the recent years to teach other things than just game development. The literature survey includes research articles from the period 2004 to 2012, and it investigates among other things in what context game development has being used, the subjects and topics taught through game development, and what tools and frameworks being used for game development to learn SE and CS. Further, this chapter includes a description of how game development was used in our software architecture course at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, and the gained experiences from running this course. Finally, we come with our recommendations for choosing an appropriate game development framework for teaching SE and CS.
Research on Data Synchronization Technology of Embedded MobileDatabase

This paper stresses on the Management algorithm of Client Cache in Embedded Mobile Database, and mainly extends on three aspects: the Replacement Algorithm, Prefetching Algorithm, and non-consistency of data. The Cache Management of mobile device is based on the mobile database running on multi-disk broadcast environment, which is characterized as not requiring upload channel. In this case, the client can continuously receive expected data stream without sending requests to the server. On the other hand, according to client access requests, the server can attempt to broadcast the data item in sequence so as to make different data items broadcast at different frequencies.
Design and Processing Performance of a Pilot-Scale Parboiling Unit

Abstract. A partially-automated parboiling unit (PU) that can process approximately 2 kg of rough rice per cycle was recently developed and is described. The system components include a stainless steel tank (40-cm long; 20-cm internal diameter), a water-circulation pump, a hot-water supply tank, a steam regulator, four cylindrical sample containers, and a computer interface. The processing performance of the PU was evaluated using rough rice of the long-grain cultivar CL151 obtained from two growing locations. Sample size and location of the sample containers in the tank were the variables considered in the performance tests. The processing conditions were: soaking at 70°C and 138 kPa g (20 psi g ) for 2 h; steaming at 120°C and 69 kPa g (10 psi g ) for 10 min; and gentle drying at 26°C and 65% relative humidity until a moisture content of ~12% was attained. The quality attributes of the parboiled product were compared with those obtained by a laboratory-scale parboiling procedure that employed autoclave steaming. Differences in the percentage of deformed kernels were observed due to the effect of sample size and location of the sample containers in the tank. Milling yields and milled kernel color were minimally affected. In general, the quality attributes of parboiled rice obtained by the PU were either similar or better than those of the product obtained by autoclave steaming. Automated process operations (soaking, draining, and steaming), small sample size requirements, and good reproducibility are some key features that make the PU a valuable tool for rice parboiling and general processing research.
Herschel/HIFI observations of ionised carbon in the β Pictoris debris disk

Context. The dusty debris disk around the 20 Myr old main-sequence A-star Pictoris is known to contain gas. Evidence points towards a secondary origin of the gas as opposed to being a direct remnant from the initial protoplanetary disk, although the dominant gas production mechanism is so far not identified. The origin of the observed overabundance of C and O compared with solar abundances of metallic elements such as Na and Fe is also unclear. Aims. Our goal is to constrain the spatial distribution of C in the disk, and thereby the gas origin and its abundance pattern. Methods. We used the HIFI instrument on board the Herschel Space Observatory to observe and spectrally resolve Cii emission at 158 m from the Pic debris disk. Assuming a disk in Keplerian rotation and a model for the line emission from the disk, we used the spectrally resolved line profile to constrain the spatial distribution of the gas. Results. We detect the Cii 158 m emission. Modelling the shape of the emission line shows that most of the gas is located at about 100 AU or beyond. We estimate a total C gas mass of 1:3 +1:3 0:5 10 2 M (central 90% confidence interval). The data suggest that more gas is located on the south-west side of the disk than on the north-east side. The shape of the emission line is consistent with the hypothesis of a well mixed gas (constant C/Fe ratio throughout the disk). Assuming instead a spatial profile expected from a simplified accretion disk model, we found it to give a significantly poorer fit to the observations. Conclusions. Since the bulk of the gas is found outside 30 AU, we argue that the cometary objects known as “falling evaporating bodies” are probably not the dominant source of gas; production from grain-grain collisions or photodesorption seems more likely. The incompatibility of the observations with a simplified accretion disk model might favour a preferential depletion explanation for the overabundance of C and O, although it is unclear how much this conclusion is a ected by the simplifications made. More stringent constraints on the spatial distribution will be available from ALMA observations of Ci emission at 609 m.
Mechanical properties of mammalian cells in suspension measured by electro-deformation

We describe a planar, micro-fabricated device for generating fringing non-uniform electric fields. We used it to measure the mechanical properties of individual mammalian cells in suspension by deforming them in time-varying, non-uniform electric fields. Electrical stresses generated by the planar microelectrodes were used to trap and stretch cells, while cell deformation was observed using optical microscopy. Two distinct cell types were compared after fitting strain data with a three-parameter ‘standard linear solid’ model of visco-elasticity, and with a two-parameter power-law method. Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells were approximately twice as stiff as U937 human promonocytes, and CHO cells displayed an elastic behaviour with recovery of initial shape, while U937 strain data bore witness to plastic deformation. Our results demonstrate that electrical stresses generated by micro-fabricated electrodes permit mechanical characterization of distinct mammalian cell types.
Sapiens: Proposta de Interface Persuasiva para a Redução de Consumo Elétrico

O proposito deste trabalho e contribuir para a compreensao do novo cenario na educacao ubiqua por meio da adocao de Tecnologias Persuasivas. Neste estudo discutimos o potencial da utilizacao de interfaces persuasivas como ferramenta de auxilio na aprendizagem ubiqua. Apresentamos uma proposta de interface persuasiva que integra um sistema de gestao de equipamentos eletricos domesticos, que nomeou-se Sapiens. Um estudo preliminar foi realizado para o aprendizado do uso logico-racional de recursos da energia eletrica residencial. Os resultados obtidos sugerem que, mediante a interacao com o sistema, produziu-se uma mudanca no comportamento dos sujeitos participantes para um uso mais eficiente da energia eletrica.
Explotación de información aplicada a la caracterización de patrones socio-económicos de la población estudiantil de carreras de Ciencias Económicas

Laura Cecilia Díaz1, 2, Sebastian Martins2, 3, José María Las Heras4, Ramón GarcíaMartínez2 1. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba 2. Grupo de Investigación en Sistemas de Información. Universidad Nacional de Lanús 3. Doctorado en Ciencias Informáticas Facultad de Informática. Universidad Nacional de La Plata 4. Facultad de Ciencias Económicas. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba laura.diaz@unc.edu. ar, smartins089@gmail.com, lasherasasociados@hotmail.com, rgm1960@yahoo.com
Dynamic Network Energy Management via Proximal Message Passing

We consider a network of devices, such as generators, fixed loads, deferrable loads, and storage devices, each with its owndynamic constraints and objective, connected by AC and DC lines. The problem is to minimize the total network objective subject tothe device and line constraints, over a given time horizon. This is a large optimization problem, with variables for consumptionor generation for each device, power flow for each line, and voltage phase angles at AC buses, in each time period. In this paperwe develop a decentralized method for solving this problem called proximal message passing. The method is iterative: At each step,each device exchanges simple messages with its neighbors in the network and then solves its own optimization problem, minimizing itsown objective function, augmented by a term determined by the messages it has received. We show that this message passing methodconverges to a solution when the device objective and constraints are convex. The method is completely decentralized, and needs noglobal coordination other than synchronizing iterations; the problems to be solved by each device can typically be solved extremelyefficiently and in parallel. The method is fast enough that even a serial implementation can solve substantial problems inreasonable time frames. We report results for several numerical experiments, demonstrating the method's speed and scaling,including the solution of a problem instance with over 10 million variables in under 50 minutes for a serial implementation;with decentralized computing, the solve time would be less than one second.
Statistical physics of random searches

We apply the theory of random walks to quantitatively describe the general problem of how to search efficiently for randomly located objects that can only be detected in the limited vicinity of a searcher who typically has a finite degree of "free will" to move and search at will. We illustrate Levy flight search processes by comparison to Brownian random walks and discuss experimental observations of Levy ights in the special case of biological organisms that search for food sites. We review recent findings indicating that an inverse square probability density distribution P() ~ -2 of step lengths can lead to optimal searches. Finally we survey the explanations put forth to account for these surprising findings.
TCGA-Assembler : Pipeline for TCGA Data Downloading , Assembling , and Processing

The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) project generates large-scale multi-platform genomics data across thousands of patients and dozens of cancers. We develop TCGA-Assembler, a pipeline that automates and streamlines acquisition, assembly and processing of public TCGA data. TCGA-Assembler is the first open-source tool for retrieving and processing TCGA public data. It is user-friendly, freely available, highly customizable, and requires minimum user oversight.
Segmentation of dynamic PET images using cluster analysis

Quantitative PET studies can provide in-vivo measurements of dynamic physiological and biochemical processes in humans. A limitation of PET is its inability to provide precise anatomic localisation due to relatively poor spatial resolution when compared to MR imaging. Manual placement of regions of interest (ROIs) is commonly used in the clinical and research settings in analysis of PET datasets. However, this approach is operator dependent and time-consuming. Semi- or fully-automated ROI delineation (or segmentation) methods offer advantages by reducing operator error and subjectivity and thereby improving reproducibility. In this work, the authors describe an approach to automatically segment dynamic PET images using cluster analysis, and they validate their approach with a simulated phantom study and asses its performance in segmentation of dynamic lung data. The authors' preliminary results suggest that cluster analysis can be used to automatically segment tissues in dynamic PET studies and has the potential to replace manual ROI delineation.
Herschel : the first science highlights Special feature L etter to the E ditor Galactic cold cores : Herschel study of first Planck detections

Context. We present the first results from the project Galactic cold cores, where the cold interstellar clouds detected by the Planck satellite are studied with Herschel photometric observations. The final Planck catalogue is expected to contain several thousand sources. The Herschel observations during the science demonstration phase provided the first glimpse into the nature of these sources. Aims. The main goal of the project is to derive the physical properties of the cold core population revealed by Planck. We examine three fields and confirm the Planck detections with Herschel data, which we also use to establish the evolutionary stage of the identified cores. Methods. We study the morphology and spectral energy distribution of the sources using the combined wavelength coverage of Planck and Herschel. The dust colour temperatures and emissivity indices are determined. The masses of the cores are determined with distance estimates which are taken from the literature and are confirmed by kinematic and extinction information. Results. The observations reveal extended regions of cold dust with dust colour temperatures down to Tdust ∼ 11 K. The fields represent different evolutionary stages ranging from a quiescent, cold filament in Musca to regions of active star formation in Cepheus. Conclusions. The Herschel observations confirm that the all-sky survey of Planck is capable of making a large number of new cold core detections. Our results suggest that many of the sources may already have left the pre-stellar phase or are at least closely associated with active star formation. High-resolution Herschel observations are needed to establish the true nature of the Planck detections.
Models of alien species richness show moderate predictive accuracy and poor transferability

Robust predictions of alien species richness are useful to assess global biodiversity change. Nevertheless, the capacity to predict spatial patterns of alien species richness remains largely unassessed. Using 22 data sets of alien species richness from diverse taxonomic groups and covering various parts of the world, we evaluated whether different statistical models were able to provide useful predictions of absolute and relative alien species richness, as a function of explanatory variables representing geographical, environmental and socio-economic factors. Five state-of-the-art count data modelling techniques were used and compared: Poisson and negative binomial generalised linear models (GLMs), multivariate adaptive regression splines (MARS), random forests (RF) and boosted regression trees (BRT). We found that predictions of absolute alien species richness had a low to moderate accuracy in the region where the models were developed and a consistently poor accuracy in new regions. Predictions of relative richness performed in a superior manner in both geographical settings, but still were not good. Flexible tree ensembles-type techniques (RF and BRT) were shown to be significantly better in modelling alien species richness than parametric linear models (such as GLM), despite the latter being more commonly applied for this purpose. Importantly, the poor spatial transferability of models also warrants caution in assuming the generality of the relationships they identify, e.g. by applying projections under future scenario conditions. Ultimately, our results strongly suggest that predictability of spatial variation in richness of alien species richness is limited. The somewhat more robust ability to rank regions according to the number of aliens they have (i.e. relative richness), suggests that models of aliens species richness may be useful for prioritising and comparing regions, but not for predicting exact species numbers.
LIPOPROTEIN PATTERNAS A FUNCTIONOF TOTAL TRIGLYCERIDE CONCENTRATIONOF SERUM

The occasional occurrence of lactescent or milky serum in patients with certain diseases caused interest and speculation at least as long ago as 1799 when Mariet described turbid sera in some patients with diabetic acidosis (1). The lightscattering fat particles or chylomicrons causing lactescence are present in modest numbers after a fat meal but become scarce in normal postabsorptive sera. In certain pathological states, however, chylomicrons occur in excessive numbers, giving rise to a characteristic milky appearance of the sera. In a previous study, lactescence was reported to be directly proportional to the total triglyceride concentration in serum (2). Turbidity was invariably present when total triglyceride fatty acid concentration exceeded 20 mEq per L. As triglyceride concentration increased further, a progressively greater proportion of cholesterol and phospholipids also occurred in the particulate lipid fraction which could be readily removed by flotation of unaltered serum at moderate speeds in the ultracentrifuge. Serum lipids are now known to exist in a spectrum of lipoproteins of varying density, from very low density particulate chylomicrons composed chiefly of triglycerides, through various classes of low density lipoproteins relatively rich in cholesterol, to high density lipoproteins in which phospholipids are prominent (3). Interest in various classes of low density lipoproteins has been stimulated because of their possible role in the etiology of coronary arterial disease (4). Studies from this laboratory (5-7) have shown serum triglyceride concentration to
RISK AVERSION, UNCERTAINTY AVERSION, AND VARIATION AVERSION IN APPLIED COMMODITY PRICE ANALYSIS

Standard models of hedging behavior assume that either hedgers wish to minimize net price variation or they wish to balance variation versus profits. These models treat variation as risk and fail to distinguish between variation that is random and variation that is not random over time. Newer models of decision making differentiate between random and nonrandom variation somewhat, but they inadequately distinguish variation from risk. This paper reviews the distinctions among variation, uncertainty, and risk and calculates optimal hedge ratios for two models addressing the distinction. Empirical optimal hedge ratios typically decline toward zero when variation aversion is included in the models. These results may help explain why hedgers commonly hedge less than recommended by the standard models.
Image Inpainting using KNN in DCT Domain and Compression to get an optimized output

This paper work has major focus on images which have cracks and minor distortions in them. This prevents any compression technique to give the best output. Hence there is a need to first remove those distortions from the images before applying compression. A system is proposed, in which KNearest Neighbor Algorithm is implemented after the DCT Step, to remove the distortions before compressing it. The neighboring color of the distorted part can be used to merge with the damaged part. So basically, less color intensities have to be stored to save the same image without the distorted part which will result in more optimized compression ratio. It will be greatly valuable for viewer perspective.
Distributed File Recovery on the Lustre Distributed File System

With the advancement of cloud-computing technologies and the growth in distributed software applications, a great deal of research that has been focused on the concepts and implementations of distributed file systems to support these application. Since its inception in 1999 by Peter Braam at Carnegie Mellon University, the Lustre distributed file system has gained both the technical, as well as financial interest of some of the largest technology entities, including Oracle, Seagate, Intel, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and OpenSFS. With this immense backing, Lustre has been incorporated in over 60% of the TOP100 high performance computers in the world and is slated to significantly increase this market share. Although the Lustre file system itself has seen a sharp increase in research since its infancy, support for many of the fields surrounding the file system has been greatly lacking. Primary among these deficiencies is file recovery on the Lustre file system. This paper attempts to fill this gap and provides a simplified solution which is then developed into a distributed solution that can scale to meet the needs and requirements of various sizes of Lustre file system deployments. While this paper focuses on the Lustre file system, the concepts and solution provided in this paper can be used on any similar metadata-based distributed file system. Although this paper does not provide an implementation of this solution, a complete solution architecture is provided, enabling further research and implementation.