Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Model Based Design of an Efficient CORDIC Algorithm Implementation

—Navigational tasks require the efficient computation of trigonometric functions. For the development of an electronic compass the arc tangent is to be computed for example. The electronic compass is model based design. Hardware solutions are of special interest. The CORDIC algorithm stands in the focus for the computation of trigonometric functions. It is based on shift and add operations and permits an efficient implementation in FPGA`s. The paper describes the model based design concept of the compass design. It is explained how the CORDIC algorithm works. Thereby first software solutions are compared: Approximation using the Taylor series versus the CORDIC Java implementation. Different hardware solutions of the CORDIC algorithm are analyzed. A Pipeline CORDIC processor is introduced and embedded into the electronic compass. The developed system is validated using an example.
Integrating Distributional and Lexical Information for Semantic Classification of Words using MRMF

Semantic classification of words using distributional features is usually based on the semantic similarity of words. We show on two different datasets that a trained classifier using the distributional features directly gives better results. We use Support Vector Machines (SVM) and Multi-relational Matrix Factorization (MRMF) to train classifiers. Both give similar results. However, MRMF, that was not used for semantic classification with distributional features before, can easily be extended with more matrices containing more information from different sources on the same problem. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the novel approach by including information from WordNet. Thus we show, that MRMF provides an interesting approach for building semantic classifiers that (1) gives better results than unsupervised approaches based on vector similarity, (2) gives similar results as other supervised methods and (3) can naturally be extended with other sources of information in order to improve the results.
Design and verification of analog CMOS circuits using the gm/ID-method with age-dependent degradation effects

In this paper a tool based on the gm/ID-methodology is presented to provide information on operating point-dependent degradation in integrated circuits caused by NBTI and HCI during early design stages. The advantage of the presented GMID-Tool is that it does not require any further SPICE or aging simulations after the extraction of the fest and aged small signal parameters of a single transistor. Using the GMID-Tool, the design time of an integrated circuit is reduced significantly. In addition, the GMID-Tool is process-independent and universally applicable as it takes technology specific data as input. The verification of the GMID-Tool is shown at the example of a Common-Source Amplifier and a Miller-OTA.
Multi-agent approach for service restoration of microgrid

Considering the operation of microgrids (MGs) composed of distributed generations (DGs) and loads, a service restoration model aiming at the restoration of the most load with giving priority to the important load power supply is built. On the basis of the proposed hierarchical control strategy, this paper builds up a multi-agent system (MAS) for service restoration of microgrid. Accordingly, the special functions and control strategies of each agent are discussed in detail. A simulation example of a particular microgrid based on the multi-agent system is performed to demonstrate that the efficiency and reliability of the microgrid can be improved by using MAS.
A Robust Pitch Estimation Algorithm in Noise

In this paper, we present a robust pitch estimation algorithm for noise-degraded speech. We propose a new circular average magnitude sum function (CAMSF) and a pseudo normalized correlation function (PNCF) both of which exhibit the periodicity at the pitch period of voiced speech. Exploiting the fact that CAMSF produces a peak while PNCF shows a notch, an integrated time-domain function (ITDF) is developed to enhance the pitch-harmonic-notches in presence of noise. Moreover, a frequency-frame relative smoothed noisy spectrum that acts as a harmonic spectral structure enhancer is utilized to accurately acquire a pitch-harmonic (PH) from noisy speech. We argued that employing the PH, pitch information can be effectively extracted through a variable-period impulse-train in conjunction with the proposed ITDF. It has been ascertained that the overall algorithm simulated using the Keele reference database is able to outperform some of the existing methods and well suited for a wide range of signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) upto-10 dB.
Perceptual tone-mapping operator based on multiresolution contrast decomposition

Tone-mapping operators (TMO) are used to display high dynamic range (HDR) images in low dynamic range (LDR) displays. Many computational and biologically inspired approaches have been used in the literature, being many of them based on multiresolution decompositions. In this work, a simple two stage model for TMO is presented. The first stage is a novel multiresolution contrast decomposition, which is inspired in a pyramidal contrast decomposition (Peli, 1990 Journal of the Optical Society of America7(10), 2032-2040). This novel multiresolution decomposition represents the Michelson contrast of the image at different spatial scales. This multiresolution contrast representation, applied on the intensity channel of an opponent colour decomposition, is processed by a non-linear saturating model of V1 neurons (Albrecht et al, 2002 Journal of Neurophysiology88(2) 888-913). This saturation model depends on the visual frequency, and it has been modified in order to include information from the extended Contrast Sensitivity Function (e-CSF) (Otazu et al, 2010 Journal of Vision10(12) 5). A set of HDR images in Radiance RGBE format (from CIS HDR Photographic Survey and Greg Ward database) have been used to test the model, obtaining a set of LDR images. The resulting LDR images do not show the usual halo or color modification artifacts.
Authentication and authorization mechanisms for substation automation in smart grid network

Supervisory control and data acquisition systems are used extensively to control and monitor critical infrastructure including power, gas, oil, and water. To integrate intelligent electronic devices in smart grid infrastructure, the utilities are deploying substation automation systems (SASs) and extensive communication networks, but there is growing concern about SCADA security including substation security. Although there are several solutions utilized to prevent security threats in SCADA networks, existing SCADA networks still have severe shortcomings. In this article, we propose a lightweight and efficient security solution for SASs that provides multilevel multi-factor authentication and attribute-based authorization by deploying public key certificates, and zero-knowledge protocol-based server-aided verification and access control mechanisms using attribute certificates. It can be seen that the proposed approach is efficient and robust.
Equity and Efficiency in Private and Public Education: A Nonparametric Comparison

We present a nonparametric approach for the equity and efficiency evaluation of (private and public) primary schools in Flanders. First, we use a nonparametric (Data Envelopment Analysis) model that is specially tailored to assess educational efficiency at the pupil level. The model accounts for the fact that minimal prior structure typically available for the behavior (objectives and feasibility set) under evaluation, it reckons with outlier behavior in the available data, while it corrects for ‘environmental’ characteristics that are specific to each pupil. Second, we propose first- and second-order stochastic dominance (FSD and SSD) criteria as naturally complementary aggregation criteria for comparing the performance of different school types (private and public schools) in Flanders. While FSD only accounts for (Pareto) efficiency, SSD also takes (Pigou-Dalton) equality into consideration. We find that private schools outperform public schools in terms of SSD.
IDEAL FACTORIZATION

which is impossible since the right side is even. The proof that (2, 1− √ −5) 6= (1) is similar. For another proof, complex conjugation is an operation on ideals, a 7→ a := {α : α ∈ a} that respects addition and multiplication of ideals, and (α, β) = (α, β). In particular, the conjugate of (2, 1 + √ −5) is (2, 1− √ −5), so if (2, 1 + √ −5) = (1) then (2, 1− √ −5) = (1), so the product (2, 1 + √ −5)(2, 1− √ −5) = (2) is (1)(1) = (1). But (2) 6= (1) since 2 is not a unit in Z[ √ −5]. If a | b then for some ideal c we have b = ac ⊂ a, so a ⊃ b. Divisibility implies containment. The converse may fail in some rings (see Example 8.2), but in the ring of integers of a number field it will turn out that containment implies divisibility. So it is useful to think about containment of ideals in a commutative ring as a preliminary form of
Isosurfaces and Level Sets 1.1 Introduction 1.1.1 Motivation 1.1.2 Representing Surfaces with Volumes

This chapter describes mechanisms for processing isosurfaces. The underlying philosophy is to use isosurfaces as a modeling technology that can serve as an alternative to parameterized models for a variety of important applications in visualization and computer graphics. Level-set methods [1] rely on partial di↵erential equations (PDEs) to model deforming isosurfaces. These methods have applications in a wide range of fields such as visualization [2, 3], scientific computing [4], computer graphics [5, 6], image processing [7, 8] and computer vision [9]. Several nice overviews of the technology and applications are also available [10, 4]. This chapter reviews the mathematics and numerical techniques for describing the geometry of isosurfaces and manipulating their shapes in prescribed ways. Its starts with a basic introduction to the notation and fundamental concepts and then presents the geometry of isosurfaces. We then describe the method of level sets, i.e., moving isosurfaces, and present the mathematical and numerical methods they entail. The level set method relies on an implicit representation of a surface, using a scalar function : U 7 ! < x, y, z , (1.1) where U ⇢ < 3 is the domain of the volume (and the range of the surface model). Thus, a surface S is S = {x|(x) = k}. (1.2) The choice of k is arbitrary, and is sometimes called the embedding. The surface S is sometimes referred to as an isosurface of. Notice that surfaces defined in this way divide U into a clear inside and outside—such surfaces are always closed wherever they do not 1
Linguistic Issues in GRACE (evaluation of Part-Of-Speech tagging for French)

GRACE is the first large-scale evaluation program of taggers for French. This experiment allowed to compare the assignments of Parts-of-Speech tags by various different taggers, on a common corpus of literary and journalistic texts. The evaluation relied on the acceptance by the participants of a reference formalism for morpho-syntactic description (the reference tagset) used by an expert to tag the evaluation corpus, and by the participants to provide a description (mapping table) of their own tagset. The global strategy was to make the reference tagging and tokenization of the finest grain possible. The reference tags were decomposed in Parts of Speech (main category) and lists of additional attributes, thus defining detailed syntactic patterns. The steps of the GRACE program are described, and the main adjudication issues are reported. The linguistic issues encountered during this experiment were linked to the difficulty to project relevant information about the sentence structure at the token level. Information derived from local analysis may be accepted as well as information derived from a larger context. Although the limitations of the experiment are acknowledged, the GRACE program proved to offer interesting opportunities to assess the state of the art in PoS tagging.
Factors That Contribute to a Sense of Belonging in Business Students on a Small 4-Year Public Commuter Campus in the Midwest

Institutions of higher education are increasingly focused on student outcomes such as persistence. This study investigated factors that contribute to a sense of belonging, a key contributor to persistence, in business students attending a small 4-year public commuter campus in the Midwest. A survey was administered to students in an introductory business course with a first-year experience component to examine three categories of variables: student demographics, faculty interventions, and student activities. Using logistic regression, three faculty interventions showed a significant correlation with sense of belonging: faculty encouragement, faculty empowerment, and faculty interest. These results suggest that when commuter campuses are successful in cultivating caring, positive relationships between students and faculty, their student’s sense of belonging may be enhanced and persistence improved. This is important because these factors are within the control of a commuter campus, which tends to have fewer options and more challenges in enhancing persistence than residential campuses.
Function theory of finite order on algebraic varieties. I(B)

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the theory of analytic functions of finite order on algebraic varieties. The proofs of our results are only sketched as the complete arguments will appear in a more general setting at a later time. There are two reasons for making this study. The first is that the classical theory of meromorphic functions of finite order [19] and the extensions of this theory to functions on C n , [18], [24], form a very pretty subject, and one which furnishes us with the most important examples of entire transcendental functions for use in analysis and number theory. As the natural domains of existence for functions of finite order are the algebraic varieties, it seems worthwhile to develop the theory in this setting. The second, and more important, reason is that on an affine algebraic variety A the functions of finite order give the smallest class of functions which might allow one to realize the topological Grothendieck ring KtoJ>(A). Or, to put matters another way, since A is a Stein manifold, Grauerts' proof of the Oka principle [6] gives the isomorphism
The timetable of laminar neurogenesis contributes to the specification of cortical areas in mouse isocortex

In the primate visual cortex, the birthdate of neurons in homologous layers differ on either side of the 17‐18 border suggesting that there might be different timetables of laminar histogenesis in these two areas (Dehay et al. [1993] Nature 366:464–466 and Kennedy et al. [1996] Soc. Neurosci. Abst. 22:525). Because of the potential importance of these findings for understanding mechanisms that generate areal identity, we have developed an experimental approach that makes it possible to accurately compute the timetable of laminar histogenesis from birthdating experiments. Here we report the results of an exhaustive examination of the tempo of layer production in five cortical areas of the mouse. Tritiated thymidine pulse injections were made during embryonic development and labeled neurons were examined in three frontoparietal areas (areas 3, 4, and 6) and two occipital areas (areas 17 and 18a) of the adult cortex. The correlation between the radial distribution of neurons and the intensities of labeling enabled us to reliably identify first generation neurons (i.e., those neurons that quit the cell‐cycle in the first round of mitosis after injection). For each cortical layer, the percentage of first generation neurons with respect to the total number of neurons defined a laminar labeling index. Changes of the laminar labeling index over time determined the timetable of layer formation. The onset and duration of layer formation was identical in the two occipital areas. This finding contrasted with the frontoparietal areas where there were important differences in the timing of infragranular and granular layer formation and noticeably production of layers VIa, V, and IV occurs earlier in area 3 than in area 6. The timing of laminar production of areas 17 and 18a resembles more that of area 3 than that of area 6. With respect to areas 3 and 6, area 4 shows an intermediate but significantly different timetable of layer production. These marked areal differences in the timetable of laminar histogenesis contrasted with the relative homogeneity within areas so that we have been able to demonstrate that the interareal differences are not merely the expression of known neurogenic gradients.
Sorting and the Supply and Demand of Private Education in Italy

This paper discusses reforms of Italian secondary schools’ curriculum and funding in light of theoretical considerations, of the experience of other countries, and of empirical evidence. We briefly review socio-economic views on the schooling system’s role in shaping the social structure and productive potential of new generations. The current structure of the Italian secondary school system lets the student population sort itself, on the basis of individuals’ financial and cultural background, along both vocational vs. comprehensive and public vs. private dimensions. We characterise the outcome of this sorting, and its relationship to further educational experience, with a statistical analysis of a sample of University students. Not surprisingly, we find that in Italy Catholic private schools play a different role from that of their American counterparts, which have been found to improve the performance of relatively poor students. Italian confessional and other private schools appear to cater to the needs of relatively less talented students from relatively rich family backgrounds. * For Lavoro e relazioni industriali, “Qualità del processo formativo ed esiti sul mercato del lavoro. ”
1 Skills and Geographical Economics

This paper looks at the link between human capital and geographical location for the Romanian regions based on the theoretical model developed in Redding and Schott ́s (2003) paper. Using 2013 data on the different educational attainment levels for the 42 Romanian regions, it identifies that the percentage of individuals with medium and high educational levels is affected positively by the regions ́ market access. Doubling market access would increase the percentage of individuals with medium and high educational levels between 22-25%. Moreover the econometric results show that between 45% and 59% of the spatial variation in human capital levels is explained by the market access variable. Some policy implications to overcome the costs remoteness imposes on human capital accumulation in Romania are also drawn.
Crossing the Rubicon : from psychoanalysis to cognitive therapy

In this study we describe some of the reasons that lead Aaron T Beck to move away from psychoanalysis and participate in the creation of cognitive therapy. With this aim in view, we describe the research developed by Beck between 1959 and 1962. In these studies the data that promotes the fall of the psychoanalytic explanatory hypothesis for depression began to be processed. Within this analysis we include some elements that we consider essential to understand this process of change: From Beck ́s obtaining a grant to investigate depression and his starting to work with collaborators like Marvin Hurvich and Sigmour Feshbach, whose new tools and methodologies helped Beck to test a psychoanalytic hypothesis of depression. Finally, we will include questions related to the research policies of the National Institute of Mental Health, and some commentaries about personal and institutional policy reasons that influenced Beck’s work.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Working Paper Series Learning and Optimal Monetary Policy Learning and Optimal Monetary Policy

The views in this paper are solely the responsibility of the authors and should not be interpreted as reflecting the views of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco or the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Abstract To conduct policy e¢ ciently, central banks must use available data to infer, or learn, the relevant structural relationships in the economy. However, because a central bank's policy a¤ects economic outcomes, the chosen policy may help or hinder its e¤orts to learn. This paper examines whether real-time learning allows a central bank to learn the econ-omy's underlying structure and studies the impact that learning has on the performance of optimal policies under a variety of learning environments. Our main results are as follows. First, when monetary policy is formulated as an optimal discretionary targeting rule, we …nd that the rational expectations equilibrium and the optimal policy are real-time learnable. This result is robust to a range of assumptions concerning private sector learning behavior. Second, when policy is set with discretion, learning can lead to outcomes that are better than if the model parameters are known. Finally, if the private sector is learning, then unannounced changes to the policy regime, particularly changes to the in ‡ation target, can raise policy loss considerably. In addition to the editor and three anonymous referees, we thank for comments and suggestions. We also thank Anita Todd for editorial suggestions. The views expressed in this paper do not necessarily re ‡ect those of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco or the Federal Reserve System.
Using Visual Activity Schedules for Young Children With Challenging Behavior

Young children with challenging behavior may require individualized interventions to facilitate improved outcomes. Visual activity schedules (VAS) have been well documented for improving engagement, transition, and recreation behaviors with children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and intellectual disabilities (ID). However, children exhibiting challenging behavior in inclusive preschool settings do not necessarily have an ASD or ID diagnosis. This study evaluated the use of constant time delay (CTD) to teach three children without ASD or ID to use VAS. Engagement and challenging behavior were measured in the context of A-B-A-B withdrawal designs. Children learned to use the VAS and levels of engagement and challenging behavior matched levels similar to typical peers. However, children did not generalize schedule use to novel contexts. Results suggested that CTD+VAS may be a feasible individualized intervention to increase engagement in young children with challenging behavior who do not have ASD or ID.
Implementing design diversity to achieve fault tolerance

The software faults that are particularly significant in a real-time concurrent system are identified, and the use of design diversity to prevent their occurrence is examined. Two approaches to enforced diversity, recovery-block software and multiversion software, are discussed. The recovery-block scheme combines N diverse software versions arranged (conceptually, at least) in sequential order, although the versions may also be organized to execute concurrently. The multiversion-software approach excuses all N versions in parallel, taking advantage of the redundant processors likely to be available in any system that must tolerate hardware and software faults. Although different, both approaches require sufficiently diverse development environments and that faults in the specification do not lead to similar errors. <<ETX>>