Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Do Prices Determine Vertical Integration? Evidence from around the World∗

Despite its pertinence for policy, the role of market forces in determining firms’ integration decisions has received relatively little attention in development economics. This paper focuses on the relationship between product prices and vertical integration: while the IO literature has focused on how integration affects prices, we offer evidence that prices can affect integration. Many theories in organizational economics and industrial organization posit that integration, while costly, increases productivity. It follows from firms’ maximizing behavior that higher prices induce more integration. The reason is that at low prices, increases in revenue resulting from enhanced productivity are too small to justify the cost, whereas at high prices the revenue benefit exceeds the cost. Trade policy provides a source of exogenous price variation to assess the validity of this prediction: higher tariffs should lead to higher prices and therefore to more integration. We construct firm-level indices of vertical integration for a large set of countries and industries and exploit cross-section and time-series variation in import tariffs to examine their impact on firm boundaries. The empirical results provide strong support for the view that output prices are a key determinant of vertical integration, especially in competitive sectors. Our estimates indicate average price elasticities of vertical integration in the range 0.4-2. JEL classifications: D2, L2.
Spatial analysis of small and cottage industries in Punjab, Pakistan

This paper uses estimates of total factor productivity of small and cottage enterprises located in Punjab province of Pakistan, to identify the reasons behind idiosyncratic variations. As the firm level productivity distribution indicate considerable differences, even within the same industry defined at 3-digit ISIC level, empirical analysis is required to identify the external and internal determinants as detailed in Syverson (2011) framework. The firm level data used for the study comes from a novel dataset developed through a census of cottage and small industries of Punjab Province. The universe of the census comprises of entire rural and urban areas of Punjab. As the robustness of empirical analysis hinges on reliable estimation of productivity, we correct the baseline OLS estimates for the simultaneity bias using instrumental variables and selectivity bias through Heckman correction as suggested in Wooldridge (2002). The productivity distributions for the cottage industry, small industry and the entire small manufacturing sector were separately estimated using residuals approach. The empirical findings are helpful in identifying significance of factors operating within the firms such as educational qualifications and professional training of employees for attaining higher levels of productivity. Results also signify the external drivers of productivity differences such as energy sources, marketing channels, access to finance and agglomeration economies. The results suggest direction of policy interventions towards provision of energy, appropriate marketing channels and selective professional training for improved efficiency and competitiveness.
The Effect of Financial Ratio (Car, FDR, NPF and BOPO) on the Profitability Level in PT Bank Muamalat Indonesia TBK

Profitability Ratio is a ratio to measure the level of profit obtained by a company. One of the Islamic banks in Indonesia since 1992, namely Bank Muamalat Indonesia (BMI). Based on financial report data for 2014-2016, BMI experienced a decline in assets, causing the profitability of the bank to decline. Therefore, BMI issued new shares through HMTD (Pre-emptive Rights) to obtain fresh funds in order to meet the shortage of liquidity that had occurred to BMIs for the past 4 years. Liquidity deficiency occurs due to a decrease in the rate of return of financing that reaches 6% above the maximal stipulations set by Bank Indonesia and has an impact on decreasing BMI income or profits, known as profitability. So this study was conducted to determine what factors affect the level of profitability in BMI since the last 4 years with indicators of assessment, among others: CAR (Capital Adequate Ratio), FDR (Financing Deposit Ratio), NPF (Non Performing Financing), and BOPO (Cost Operations on Operating Income). This research is a descriptive quantitative study using BMI financial report data for 2014-2017 taken from the BMI website as a data source. Data analysis in this study is multiple regression analysis and classic assumptions with SPSS 22 and Microsoft Excel analysis tools.
A SURVEY ON TOXIC ENVIRONMENT MONITORING USING SENSORS

The level of contamination has increased with times by lot of factors like the increase in population, increased vehicle use, industrialization and urbanization which results in harmful effects on human wellbeing by directly influencing health of population exposed to it. Poor environmental conditions can lead to severe health problems. Nowadays people are affected by harmful gases in perilous environment. The important of this paper is observing harmful environmental conditions for safety applications. In this paper we detailed a survey on toxic environment monitoring based on different technologies using sensors.
Longitudinal Associations Between Grit, Academic Outcomes, and Residency Match Rates Among Pharmacy Students

Objective. To characterize Grit-S scores in pharmacy students, determine whether Grit-S scores change within individual pharmacy students and cohorts over time, and investigate the relationship between Grit-S scores, academic outcomes, and professional outcomes. Methods. A survey was conducted in fall 2016 and again in fall 2017 to determine Grit-S scores in first- through fourth-year pharmacy students. Participant demographic variables, grade point average (GPA), advanced pharmacy practice experience (APPE) ratings, and residency match results were collected. Results. Over the study period, 852 survey responses were completed by 85% of students surveyed. The mean Grit-S scores of each cohort ranged from 3.5 to 3.7 (on a 5-point scale with 5 representing the highest level of grit). Underrepresented minorities had slightly higher Grit-S scores and first-generation college students had slightly lower Grit-S scores. Two hundred eighty-seven students responded to both the 2016 and 2017 surveys. Among these paired responses, small but significant changes in individual Grit-S scores over time that varied in direction and magnitude by school year were noted. Higher Grit-S scores were not associated with higher GPA or superior APPE performance, nor were they predictive of a student matching to a postgraduate pharmacy residency. Conclusion. Significant associations between grit and measures of academic or professional achievement were not detected in this pharmacy student cohort. The presence of small but significant changes in Grit-S scores over time, in the absence of any intervention, has implications that further research should be conducted in this area.
Linear Regression in Python

Linear regression is a standard tool for analyzing the relationship between two or more variables. In this lecture, we’ll use the Python package statsmodels to estimate, interpret, and visualize linear regression models. Along the way, we’ll discuss a variety of topics, including • simple and multivariate linear regression • visualization • endogeneity and omitted variable bias • two-stage least squares As an example, we will replicate results from Acemoglu, Johnson and Robinson’s seminal paper [1]. • You can download a copy here. In the paper, the authors emphasize the importance of institutions in economic development. The main contribution is the use of settler mortality rates as a source of exogenous variation in institutional differences.
Nanogenerator-Based Self-Powered Sensors for Wearable and Implantable Electronics

Wearable and implantable electronics (WIEs) are more and more important and attractive to the public, and they have had positive influences on all aspects of our lives. As a bridge between wearable electronics and their surrounding environment and users, sensors are core components of WIEs and determine the implementation of their many functions. Although the existing sensor technology has evolved to a very advanced level with the rapid progress of advanced materials and nanotechnology, most of them still need external power supply, like batteries, which could cause problems that are difficult to track, recycle, and miniaturize, as well as possible environmental pollution and health hazards. In the past decades, based upon piezoelectric, pyroelectric, and triboelectric effect, various kinds of nanogenerators (NGs) were proposed which are capable of responding to a variety of mechanical movements, such as breeze, body drive, muscle stretch, sound/ultrasound, noise, mechanical vibration, and blood flow, and they had been widely used as self-powered sensors and micro-nanoenergy and blue energy harvesters. This review focuses on the applications of self-powered generators as implantable and wearable sensors in health monitoring, biosensor, human-computer interaction, and other fields. The existing problems and future prospects are also discussed.
Cross-index of a graph

A family of topological invariants of a connected graph associated to all trees is introduced. The member of the family associated to a tree T is called the T -cross-index, which takes a non-negative integer or infinity according to whether T is a tree basis of the graph or not. It is shown how this cross-index is independent of the other topological invariants of a connected graph such as the Euler characteristic, the crossing number and the genus.
Characterization of Efficacy and Animal Safety across Four Caprine Disbudding Methodologies

Simple Summary Disbudding of dairy goat kids is a routine, necessary, but painful husbandry procedure. Heat cautery disbudding is the industry standard since it is effective and can be rapidly performed by lay personnel on large numbers of kids. Efforts to improve welfare associated with heat cautery disbudding commonly focus on adjunct anesthesia and analgesia but there are often technical, legal, and safety barriers to routine use of these adjunct therapies in production settings. This project explores four alternative methods to heat cautery disbudding for safety, efficacy, and vocal evidence of duress during the procedure. We found that heat cautery was the most effective, was similar to the sham procedure for vocalization count during the procedure, and did not cause any serious or lasting complications. Clove oil injection, short-term topical application of caustic paste, and two cryosurgical methods were not consistently effective; additionally, the latter two created significantly more vocalization efforts. Clove oil injection was associated with several unexpected and severe complications including unintended tissue necrosis, temporary paresis, skull defects, meningitis, and death. Collectively, we did not find that any of the alternative methods of disbudding provided a feasible option over heat cautery to improve welfare associated with the disbudding process. Abstract There is a strong industry demand for technically simple and highly efficacious alternatives to heat cautery disbudding in goat kids that can be performed as a stand-alone procedure without adjunct anesthesia, and that result in improved overall welfare through reduced acute pain, reduced tissues healing interval, and a consistent safety record. The objective of this study was to consider the net effect of disbudding techniques on goat welfare by examining vocalization frequency, long-term efficacy and animal safety associated with four alternative caprine disbudding methods against sham-disbudded and heat-cautery controls. Sixty-five commercial male dairy kids were disbudded at 3–10 days of age with one of six disbudding treatments (clove oil injection, caustic paste, two cryosurgical methods, heat-cautery, and sham procedure). Heat cautery was 91% effective, caustic paste was 55% effective, and the other treatments were ineffective. Heat cautery and sham procedures resulted in similar vocalization efforts; freezing with a liquid-nitrogen cooled iron resulted in significantly greater vocalization numbers. No unintended paste transfer injuries were observed with short-term application of the caustic paste. Heat cautery resulted in numerous superficial infections but no permanent injury. Clove oil injection was associated with several unexpected and severe complications including unintended tissue necrosis, temporary paresis, skull defects, meningitis, and death. Collectively, we did not find that any of the alternative methods of disbudding provided a feasible option over heat cautery to improve welfare.
Guidance for Blind and Visually Impaired People Using Modern Technology

: Abnormalities in visual function are a devitalizing condition that has affected millions of people globally. Outwardly disabled individuals discover troubles recognizing obstacles ahead of them which makes it unsafe to navigate without a guidance of sighted person. There are plethora of challenges which are faced by a visually impaired person, but we figured out the dominant problems and tried to simplify their lives by implementing a smart cane using modernized technologies. We designed a stick that basically contains two parts. The upper part is dedicated to detect the obstacles in all the three directions using an ultrasonic sensor and provides navigation instructions via voice message. A unique feature of our project is that the language to give commands can be chosen in the favor of user. However, we opted English as the medium of communication. The second part which is mounted at the lower end helps to locate the user during emergency calls by sending a google map link along with the parameters of latitude and longitude in the form of text with the help of GPS and GSM module. This part also consist of water sensor that alerts the presence of two levels of water via buzzer. Moreover, the levels are differentiated by two various frequency values. It is an effective device and will ease the lives of blind.
Could Phototherapy Reverse Visual Deficits in Patients with Relapsing- Remitting Multiple Sclerosis?

PT, Ph.D., Medical Laser Applications, National Institute of Laser Enhanced Sciences, Cairo University Professor of ENT Surgery, Department of Medical Laser Applications, National Institute of Laser Enhanced Sciences, Cairo University, Egypt Professor of Neurology, Department of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Egypt Professor of Physical Therapy, Department of Basic Science, Faculty of Physical Therapy, Cairo University, Egypt Professor of Clinical Neurophysiology, Department of Clinical Neurophysiology, Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Egypt Assistant professor of Clinical Neurophysiology, Department of Clinical Neurophysiology, Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Egypt Clinical trial registration ID: ACTRN12612001186842 Corresponding Author Shimaa Essa Address:41 Ahmed Kasem Jodah Street, Nasr city, Cairo. Egypt Phone: 002024012024, Mobile: 00201223721631 Email: dr.shimaaessa@yahoo.com, Postal code: 11759 Abstract
Development of multipurpose metal-oxide films with nanostructured tailored morphologies and tunable properties via anodic processing of Al/Nb metal layers

Niobium oxide is now starting to replace tantalum oxide as a dielectric material in specific capacitors, being also applied to optic-electronic screens and solar-energy conversion cells since the oxide shows electrochromic and photoelectrochemical properties. In this work, we have synthesized nanosized niobium and niobium-aluminium mixed-oxide films with unique self-organized morphology and assessed their applicability to chemical sensors and capacitor dielectrics. Experimental samples were Al/Nb layers sputtered-deposited onto Si wafers and anodized at voltages 25 to 52 V, this followed by reanodizing to a more anodic voltage, which caused the growth of a porous alumina film, followed by pore-assisted oxidation of the niobium underlayer. The samples were annealed at 600800 o C to examine crystallization and phase transition effects. The films were found to consist of discrete metal-oxide nano-columns, penetrating the alumina pores, in addition to a lower solid portion that forms under the pores. The films are mainly composed of mixed Nb2O5Al2O3 (columns) and niobium suboxides (solid portion). The as anodized films show perfect dielectric behavior, while the annealing promotes formation of Nb2O5 nano-crystallites with transformation to n-type semiconductor behavior. A test sensor employing the alumina-free nanocolumnar film exhibits gas sensing properties, responding, for example, to low concentrations of ethanol (5 20 ppm) at temperatures 150 to 200 o C. Potential applications of the films are as capacitor dielectrics, gas sensing layers, films with anisotropic conductivity, nanostructured supports for catalysts and many more.
Metyrosine treatment in a woman with chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome and psychosis: a case study

Background: People with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (DS) are assumed to be especially vulnerable to developing mental illness such as psychosis. Aim: The study was established to contribute to knowledge about metyrosine medication in patients with 22q11.2 DS and psychosis. Methods: A case study was established including a woman with intellectual disability, 22q11.2 DS, and psychosis. Metyrosine medication was implemented, as conventional anti-psychotic medication was unsuccessful. Results: Effect of metyrosine medication included both psychotic symptom relief with decreased aggressive behaviour. Adjunctive milieu therapy contributed to complience. Conclusion: For patients with 22q11.2 DS and psychosis, metyrosine medication may prove effective. However, there are significant ethical dilemmas related to metyrosine medication for psychotic symptoms.
EvenDB: optimizing key-value storage for spatial locality

Applications of key-value (KV-)storage often exhibit high spatial locality, such as when many data items have identical composite key prefixes. This prevalent access pattern is underused by the ubiquitous LSM design underlying high-throughput KV-stores today. We present EvenDB, a general-purpose persistent KV-store optimized for spatially-local workloads. EvenDB combines spatial data partitioning with LSM-like batch I/O. It achieves high throughput, ensures consistency under multi-threaded access, and reduces write amplification. In experiments with real-world data from a large analytics platform, EvenDB outperforms the state-of-the-art. E.g., on a 256GB production dataset, EvenDB ingests data 4.4X faster than RocksDB and reduces write amplification by nearly 4X. In traditional YCSB workloads lacking spatial locality, EvenDB is on par with RocksDB and significantly better than other open-source solutions we explored.
Novel Methods for Video-based Respiration Monitoring of Newborn Babies

We report on the recent progress in the study of video-based respiration monitoring of babies as a part of a national project. Traditionally, vital parameters of premature babies kept in clinical incubators are continuously monitored by contact sensors that provide signals for measuring the parameters. In our previous paper [7], we presented an initial feasibility study of non-contact videobased monitoring of the respiratory rate (RR). In this paper, we propose two novel methods for RR monitoring and demonstrate their applicability by quantitative comparison to ground truth provided by a human observer.
Timing Driven Partition for Multi-FPGA Systems with TDM Awareness

Multi-FPGA system is a popular approach to achieve hardware acceleration with the scalability to accommodate large designs. To overcome the connectivity constraint between each pair of FPGAs, Time-division multiplexing (TDM) is adopted with the expense of additional delay that dominates the performance on multi-FPGA system based emulator. To the best of our knowledge, there is no prior work on partitioning for multi-FPGA system considering hardware configuration and the impact of TDM. This work proposes a partition methodology to improve timing performance for multi-FPGA system. Delay introduced by TDM is estimated and optimized using look-up table for better efficiency. Our experimental result shows 43% improvement in maximum delay while considering both hardware configuration and impact of TDM compared with cut driven partition approach.
Transforming Global Routing Report into DRC Violation Map with Convolutional Neural Network

In this paper, we have proposed a machine-learning framework to predict the DRC-violation map of a given design resulting from its detailed routing based on the congestion report resulting from its global routing. The proposed framework utilizes convolutional neural network as its core technique to train this prediction model. The training dataset is collected from 15 industrial designs using a leading commercial APR tool, and the total number of collected training samples exceed 26M. A specialized under-sampling technique is proposed to select important training samples for learning, compensate for the inaccuracy misled by a highly imbalanced training dataset, and speed up the entire training process. The experimental result demonstrates that our trained model can result in not only a significantly higher accuracy than previous related works but also a DRC violation map visually matching the actual ones closely. The average runtime of using our learned model to generate a DRC-violation map is only 3% of that of global routing, and hence our proposed framework can be viewed as a simple add-on tool to a current commercial global router that can efficiently and effectively generate a more realistic DRC-violation map without really applying detailed routing.
Mammuthus meridionalis (Nesti, 1825) from Apollonia-1 (Mygdonia Basin, Northern Greece) and its importance within the Early Pleistocene mammoth evolution in Europe

ABSTRACT In the present article, we study the mammoth remains from the late Villafranchian (Early Pleistocene) locality Apollonia-1 (Mygdonia Basin, Northern Greece). The material consists of a hemi-mandible with the m3, isolated m3/M3 and a maxilla fragment with DP2-DP3. The mandibular and dental features permit their attribution to the southern mammoth Mammuthus meridionalis (Nesti, 1825). Yet, the dental features indicate an evolutionary stage somewhat more derived than the Upper Valdarno mammoth (beginning of late Villafranchian) in terms of the higher number of plates in the DP3 and the marginally higher hypsodonty index in the M3. This is also revealed by the application of a Principal Component Analysis, where several dental features are combined. Moreover, the relatively deep mandibular corpus is a derived feature. In these aspects, the Apollonia-1 sample fits better with corresponding specimens from European localities correlated to the second part of the late Villafranchian and the Epivillafranchian. From this period, two subspecies have been proposed from Western Europe: M. m. vestinus (Azzaroli in Ambrosetti, Azzaroli, Bonadonna & Follieri, 1972) from Italian localities correlated to the Farneta Faunal Unit and M. m. depereti Coppens & Beden, 1982 from Saint-Prest (France). We propose that M. m. vestinus can be regarded a valid subspecies of the southern mammoth and that M. m. depereti is possibly a junior synonym. The results of this study are in agreement with the existing biochronological correlation of the Apollonia-1 fauna and further support the potential biostratigraphic significance of M. meridionalis within the Early Pleistocene, albeit conclusions based on limited/fragmentary sample should always be taken with caution.