Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
THE EFFECTS OF SCHOOL ACCOUNTABILITY RATINGS ON STUDENTS AND SCHOOLS

At the state and federal level, school accountability standards have become an unavoidable part of the education landscape in the United States over the past several decades. By providing information about school quality these systems are meant to help families make informed choices between schools, and to aid administrators in understanding where effective education practices are being implemented and where there is room for improvement. This paper uses data from Texas from 1998-2011 to estimate the effect of rating differences between schools on family enrollment choices and school achievement gains. If rating information about school quality is correlated with unobserved school characteristics, it is necessary to use a credible research design when identifying the causal effect of rating information. The structure of the rating assignment system in Texas allows for the use of a fuzzy regression discontinuity design to estimate the causal effects of a rating downgrade independent of unobserved school quality characteristics. I propose a conceptual framework to be tested with student level micro data for the relationship between ratings and the family school choice decision. A key component of this model is the heterogeneous effect of school rating information by school and student type. I have yet to estimate the effects on the school choice decision, but in the school response dimension, I find that being downgraded to the lowest level results in increased test score gains the following year, while downgrades from higher rating levels result in little and possibly negative effects on future test scores.
Detection of Greedy Individual and Colluding MAC Layer Attackers

Selfish behavior at the Medium Access (MAC) Layer can have devastating side effects on the performance of wireless networks, with effects similar to those of Denial of Service (DoS) attacks. In this paper we consider the problem of detection and prevention of node misbehavior at the MAC layer, focusing on the back-off manipulation by selfish nodes. We propose an algorithm that ensures honest behavior of non-colluding participants. Furthermore, we analyze the problem of colluding selfish nodes, casting the problem within a minimax robust detection framework, providing a detection rule of optimum performance for the worst-case attack. Finally, we compare the effects of colluding attackers with a single attacker in terms of the detection delay. Although our approach is general and can serve as a guideline for the design of any probabilistic distributed MAC protocol, we focus our analysis on the IEEE 802.11 MAC.
serpent, a GATA-like transcription factor gene, induces fat-cell development in Drosophila melanogaster.

The GATA-like transcription factor gene serpent is necessary for embryonic fat-cell differentiation in Drosophila (Sam, S., Leise, W. and Hoshizaki, D. K. (1996) Mech. Dev. 60, 197-205) and has been proposed to function in a cell-fate choice between fat cell and somatic gonadal precursors (Moore, L. A., Broihier, H. T., Van Doren, M. and Lehmann, R. (1998) Development 125, 837-44; Riechmann, V. , Irion, U. , Wilson, R. , Grosskortenhaus, R. and Leptin, M. (1997) Development 124, 2915-22). Here, we report that deregulated expression of serpent in the mesoderm induces the formation of ectopic fat cells and prevents the migration and coalescence of the somatic gonadal precursors. The ectopic fat cells do not arise from hyperproliferation of the primary fat-cell clusters but they do associate with the endogenous fat cells to form a fat body that is expanded in both the dorsal/ventral and anterior/posterior axes. Misexpression of serpent also affects the differentiation of muscle cells. Few body-wall muscle precursors are specified and there is a loss of most body-wall muscle fibers. The precursors of the visceral mesoderm are also absent and concomitantly the visceral muscle is absent. We suggest that the ectopic fat cells might originate from cells that have the potential, but do not normally, differentiate into fat cells or from cells that have acquired a fat-cell fate. In light of our results, we discuss the role of serpent in fat-cell specification and in cell fate choices.
Principal component analysis for interval‐valued observations

One feature of contemporary datasets is that instead of the single point value in the p‐dimensional space ℜp seen in classical data, the data may take interval values thus producing hypercubes in ℜp. This paper studies the vertices principal components methodology for interval‐valued data; and provides enhancements to allow for so‐called ‘trivial’ intervals, and generalized weight functions. It also introduces the concept of vertex contributions to the underlying principal components, a concept not possible for classical data, but one which provides a visualization method that further aids in the interpretation of the methodology. The method is illustrated in a dataset using measurements of facial characteristics obtained from a study of face recognition patterns for surveillance purposes. A comparison with analyses in which classical surrogates replace the intervals, shows how the symbolic analysis gives more informative conclusions. A second example illustrates how the method can be applied even when the number of parameters exceeds the number of observations, as well as how uncertainty data can be accommodated. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Statistical Analysis and Data Mining 4: 229–246 2011
Patterns of clinical remission in select categories of juvenile idiopathic arthritis.

OBJECTIVE To characterize disease activity patterns in a large cohort of children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), by applying newly developed preliminary definitions of inactive disease, clinical remission on medication, and clinical remission off medication. METHODS Children with persistent or extended oligoarthritis, polyarthritis (either rheumatoid factor [RF] positive or RF negative), or systemic JIA who had been followed up for a period of at least 4 years were evaluated for episodes of inactive disease, clinical remission on medication, and clinical remission off medication. Descriptive statistics, correlation analyses, and survival analyses were performed. RESULTS Four hundred thirty-seven children met the criteria for review. Three hundred ninety-one patients (89%) experienced a total of 878 episodes of inactive disease, with a median episode length of 12.7 months. Two hundred twenty-eight episodes of inactive disease (26%) resulted in clinical remission off medication; it was equally as likely that episodes of inactive disease would or would not follow a period of clinical remission on medication. Thirty-six percent of episodes of clinical remission off medication persisted for at least 2 years, and only 6% of such episodes persisted for 5 years. RF-positive patients were the least likely to achieve clinical remission off medication (5%), and patients with persistent oligoarticular JIA were the most likely (68%). Among patients with persistent oligoarticular JIA, most of the disease course was characterized by inactive disease; in most other patients the majority of the disease course involved active disease. CONCLUSION Using newly developed preliminary criteria for inactive disease, clinical remission on medication, and clinical remission off medication, we observed that only one-fourth of 878 episodes of inactive disease resulted in clinical remission off medication during followup of at least 4 years. Only a small proportion of episodes of clinical remission off medication were sustained for >5 years. These results highlight the critical need for therapies that have the ability to induce sustained remission of JIA.
Clinically Apparent and Occult Metastasized Seminoma: Almost Indistinguishable on the Transcriptional Level

PURPOSE The aim of the present study was to examine the biological differences between seminomas with occult and clinically apparent metastases at the time of diagnosis of the primary tumor to gain insight into the biology of these tumors and facilitate the identification of novel predictors of seminoma metastasis. MATERIALS AND METHODS Total RNA including small RNAs was isolated from testicular tumors of patients with pure seminoma presenting with lymphogenic metastasis (n = 5, clinical stage IIb/c) and occult metastasis (n = 5, clinical stage I). The regulation of biological processes was examined (1) throughout the mRNA transcriptome (whole genome microarrays, 8×60 K Array, Agilent with 4 samples/group) and (2) the miRNA transcriptome employing small RNA next generation sequencing (SOLID, Life Technologies with 5 samples/group). Protein coding genes (mRNAs) and small RNAs showing a significant (≥2-fold) difference between the groups were identified. Finally (3), we examined 95 candidate miRNAs in 36 apparent metastasized and another 5 occult metastasized seminoma using logistic regression analysis. RESULTS Among 19,596 genes, on average 12,894 mRNAs appeared expressed (65.8%, SD+/-2.4; range, 62.0-69.3%) and 16.99×106/13.94×106 small RNA reads were identified for apparent/occult metastasized seminoma. These reads on average convert into 9,901/9,675 small RNAs including 422/404 mature microRNAs. None of these mRNAs/small RNAs met our selection criteria for candidate genes. From 95 candidate miRNAs 44 appeared expressed, with 3 of them showing weak but significant (p = 0.05) differences among both groups. CONCLUSIONS Occult and apparent metastasized seminomas are biologically almost indistinguishable and probably represent no separate tumor entities. These findings may simplify future research on seminoma metastasis.
Similarity/Dissimilarity Analysis of Protein Sequences Based on a New Spectrum-Like Graphical Representation

Sequence comparison is one of the foundations in bioinformatics, which can be used to study evolutionary relations among the sequences. In this study, a 2D spectrum-like graphical representation of protein sequences is presented based on the hydrophobicity scale of amino acids. The frequencies of amplitudes of 4-subsequences are adopted to characterize a spectrum-like graph, and a 17D vector is used as the descriptor of protein sequence. The Ç 2 value of compatibility test is performed. New similarity analysis approach is illustrated on the all protein sequences, which are encoded by the mitochondrion genome of 20 different species. Finally, comparison with the ClustalW method shows the utility of our method.
Yale University Department of Computer Science Building Certified Libraries for PCC : Dynamic Storage Allocation

Proof-Carrying Code (PCC) allows a code producer to provide to a host a program along with its formal safety proof. The proof attests a certain safety policy enforced by the code, and can be mechanically checked by the host. While this language-based approach to code certification is very general in principle, existing PCC systems have only focused on programs whose safety proofs can be automatically generated. As a result, many low-level system libraries (e.g., memory management) have not yet been handled. In this paper, we explore a complementary approach in which general properties and program correctness are semi-automatically certified. In particular, we introduce a low-level language CAP for building certified programs and present a certified library for dynamic storage allocation. Building Certified Libraries for PCC: Dynamic Storage Allocation Dachuan Yu Nadeem A. Hamid Zhong Shao Department of Computer Science, Yale University New Haven, CT 06520-8285, U.S.A. {yu,hamid-nadeem,shao}@cs.yale. edu Technical Report YALEU/DCS/TR-1247 May 6, 2003 Abstract. Proof-Carrying Code (PCC) allows a code producer to provide to a host a program along with its formal safety proof. The proof attests a certain safety policy enforced by the code, and can be mechanically checked by the host. While this language-based approach to code certification is very general in principle, existing PCC systems have only focused on programs whose safety proofs can be automatically generated. As a result, many low-level system libraries (e.g., memory management) have not yet been handled. In this paper, we explore a complementary approach in which general properties and program correctness are semiautomatically certified. In particular, we introduce a low-level language CAP for building certified programs and present a certified library for dynamic storage allocation. Proof-Carrying Code (PCC) allows a code producer to provide to a host a program along with its formal safety proof. The proof attests a certain safety policy enforced by the code, and can be mechanically checked by the host. While this language-based approach to code certification is very general in principle, existing PCC systems have only focused on programs whose safety proofs can be automatically generated. As a result, many low-level system libraries (e.g., memory management) have not yet been handled. In this paper, we explore a complementary approach in which general properties and program correctness are semiautomatically certified. In particular, we introduce a low-level language CAP for building certified programs and present a certified library for dynamic storage allocation.
A cognitive based driver's steering behavior modeling

This paper introduces an integrated computational model of driver steering behavior in turns. This model uses a cognitive architecture to explain how the driver can acquire information in his/her visual field and also how the driver manipulates its environment. The cognitive architecture incorporates an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) as the basis of the underlying control mechanism. The proposed model can be considered as a hybrid connectionist-symbolic cognitive architecture. In order to demonstrate the abilities of this model a simulation environment is developed through which driver behaviors data is collected and used for the purpose of training, validation and verification check of the model. The simulation results easily approve that the model's behavior is almost perfectly aligned with that of the human driver.
A methodology for multi-band class E RF PA design

This paper presents a simple methodology for the design of a highly efficient PA in the context of multiradio devices. This PA belongs to the radiofrequency reconfigurable part within a transmitter. Our goal is to improve the PA efficiency over the bandwidth. The method is based on the extraction of the transistor's non-linear output parameters and the optimisation of a given class E topology to an ideal impedance load. Herein, the method is illustrated by an integrated design using between 2 and 4 GHz and the results of the simulations (in terms of efficiency) agree well with the transient simulation and the S-Parameters optimisation. Considerations are given for the complete development of this design and the interest for future multiband front end designs.
Monotonicity of the value function for a two-dimensional optimal stopping problem

We consider a pair (X,Y) of stochastic processes satisfying the equation dX=a(X)YdB driven by a Brownian motion and study the monotonicity and continuity in y of the value function v(x,y)=sup τ E x,y [e −qτ g(X τ )] , where the supremum is taken over stopping times with respect to the filtration generated by (X,Y) . Our results can successfully be applied to pricing American options where X is the discounted price of an asset while Y is given by a stochastic volatility model such as those proposed by Heston or Hull and White. The main method of proof is based on time-change and coupling.
A QUANTITATIVE GENETIC ANALYSIS OF THERMAL SENSITIVITY IN THE LOCOMOTOR PERFORMANCE CURVE OF APHIDIUS ERVI

The thermal sensitivity of locomotor performance in Aphidius ervi, a parasitic hymenopteran, conforms to the “jack‐of‐all‐trades is master of none” model of specialist‐generalist trade‐offs. Performance breadth and maximal performance at the phenotypic level are negatively correlated in both sexes. A strong, negative genetic correlation was found for males, but not for females. In males, the broad‐sense heritability of performance breadth was about 0.16, and that of maximum walking velocity was about 0.29. Neither heritability was significantly different from zero in females. The broad‐sense heritability of body mass was about 0.3 in females and 0.6 in males, with a strong negative genetic correlation between size and maximum velocity in males only. These data provide the first quantitative genetic analysis of performance curves in eukaryotic animals, and one of the few demonstrations of the specialist‐generalist trade‐off that underlies much theory in evolutionary ecology.
Dieting in food-rich environments. Nonconscious mechanisms of failure and succes.

Overweight is a serious health issue in most Western societies, and many peo-ple are highly motivated to diet. However, in our food-rich environments, mostdieting efforts are doomed to fail. The present chapter provides a new, socialpsychological perspective on this issue. In particular, we present research on thenonconscious processes by which attractive environmental food cues lead tofailures of dieting. Based on the recent goal-conflict model of eating, we showhow attractive food cues, such as the sight or smell of good food, trigger in di-eters a hedonic orientation towards food. This hedonic orientation in turn in-hibits the conflicting goal of dieting, and thus facilitates overeating. However,based on recent advances in research on nonconscious goal pursuit, we alsopresent research showing how external cues can be used as goal primes to facil-itate dieting success. Specifically, re-activating the dieting goal when one is con-fronted with attractive food, either by internal learned mechanisms or by goalprimes subtly positioned in the environment, can offset the influence of attrac-tive food cues and contribute to healthier choices among dieters. This perspec-tive on dieting behavior provides important practical implications for how suc-cessful self-regulation can be enhanced, and we will discuss ideas for both indi-vidual strategies as well as structural changes that can be derived from this re-search. Key words: self-regulation, overweight, goal conflict, dieting, nonconsciousprocesses
The K -theory presheaf of spectra

Some applications are displayed: these include a Galois cohomological descent spectral sequence for the etale K–theory of a scheme (where the Galois group is the Grothendieck fundamental group), and the Morel–Voevodsky description of Thomason–Trobaugh K–theory as Nisnevich K–theory in nonnegative degrees. The is also a spectrum-level description of Voevodsky’s periodicity operator for Nisnevich K–theory.
Management of paediatric procedure-related cancer pain

Paediatric malignancy is not always painful in its own right; however, young patients with cancer undergo numerous painful procedures for diagnosis, therapy and supportive care, including limbar puncture, bone marrow aspiration and biopsy. Children with cancer consider painful procedures to be the most difficult part of their illness and the frequent repetition of procedures does not desensitize them to the distress. This review provides a brief overview of the state of the art with regard to procedure-related pain in children, and presents some methods and strategies for assessing it and managing it effectively. The first section briefly identifies the dimensions of procedure-related pain and describes the most commonly used methods for its assessment. This followed by an examination of the pharmacological strategies for pain management, including local anaesthesia, conscious sedation and general anaesthesia. In the next section, psychological interventions for the management of procedure-related pain, such as preparation, cognitive– behavioural therapy and hypnosis, are reviewed. The review concludes with recommendations for clinical practice.
The Legal Construction of Hyper-Dependence and Hyper-Precarity in Migrant Work Relations

The two key concepts developed in this article, 'hyper-dependence' and 'hyper-precarity', are aimed at drawing attention to the constitutive role of immigration law in shaping certain vulnerabilities in migrants' work relations. Immigration law is not merely concerned with controlling the entry and exit of migrants, but also creates personal legal statuses - some highly precarious - that shape their employment and residence in the host state. The two 'hyper' concepts seek to elucidate the most problematic features of Temporary Migrant Worker Programmes (TMWPs) currently found in a number of advanced industrialized, liberal democratic countries. Hyper-dependence refers to a particular tie of migrant workers to their employers as a requirement of their legal status. Hyper-precarity refers to the tenuous nature, in law and practice, of these workers' entitlements to employment protection, social rights, and transition to more secure residence status. In some circumstances both hyper-dependence and hyper-precarity can combine to give rise to extremely exploitative situations for migrants at work. This article explores possible normative constraints on states' design and implementation of TMWPs. It identifies two genres of normative interventions that may respond to the legal construction of hyper-precarity and hyper-dependence: first, the international human rights framework, and second, the discourse against forms of exploitation that could be regarded as 'unfree labour'. However, it is argued that neither of the discourses poses a fundamental challenge to host states' powers to create the precarious statuses of non-citizens admitted into their territory, nor do they tackle the complex realities of migrants' work relations on a continuum of exploitation.
2T1M-Based Double Memristive Crossbar Architecture for In-Memory Computing

The recent discovery of the memristor has renewed the interest for fast arithmetic operations via high-radix numeric systems. In this direction, a conceptual solution for high-radix memristive arithmetic logic units (ALUs) was recently published. The latter combines CMOS circuitry for data processing and a reconfigurable “segmented” crossbar memory block. In this paper we build upon such a conceptual design and propose a 3D extension of the classic crossbar topology via 2T1M cross-points which still permits the parallel creation of partial products for faster multiplication with lower circuit complexity. Furthermore, we present a binary to high-radix data conversion circuit to complement the stateprogramming module of the previous work. A simulation-based validation of read/write multi-level memory operations from/to the 2T1M 3D memristive crossbar was performed using SPICE and a thresholdtype switching model of a bipolar voltage-controlled memristor. Such realization of in-memory computations could lead to faster arithmetic algorithms in future memristive ALUs.