Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Perils of Nominal Targets

A monetary authority can be committed to pursuing an inflation, price-level, or nominal output target yet systematically fail to achieve the specified goal. Constrained by the zero lower bound on the policy rate, the monetary authority is unable to implement its objectives when private-sector expectations stray from the target in the first place. Low-inflation expectations become self-fulfilling, resulting in an additional Markov equilibrium in which both nominal and real variables are typically below target. Introducing a stabilization goal for long-term nominal rates anchors private-sector expectations on a unique Markov equilibrium without fully compromising the policy responses to shocks. Postlewaite for comments and suggestions. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia or the Federal Reserve System.
Manifold feature extraction for video based on locally linear embedding

Locally linear embedding (LLE) is an elegant nonlinear method for feature extraction and manifold learning, which attempt to project the original data into a lower dimensional feature space by preserving the local neighborhood structure. However, LLE algorithm fails when it is directly applied to video with multi-shot. In this paper, video manifold feature is defined firstly, and then using LLE we extract video manifold feature through adding virtual frames on an enriched set. The proposed manifold feature extraction method is applied to shot transition and video trajectories. The video manifold feature description gives a new tool for video analysis.
Is injury part of sports? A children’s rights perspective

In recent years the violation of children’s rights in sports and sports injuries have become very important research areas in their own right. There are also some studies which touch upon the significant link between the two areas. However, the research that has been undertaken dealing with the relationship between the violation of child rights and sports injuries has been very limited. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to: (a) examine the injury experiences of children who continue to receive training in volleyball as licensed athletes; (b) determine the violation of rights that have arisen in this process; and (c) explore the link between injury and violation of children’s rights. Research data were collected via in-depth interviews with 21 young volleyball players, both male and female, and data analysis was conducted using the interpretative phenomenological analysis method. This study concludes that athletes are exposed to violation of rights in various forms that lead to injury. It is hypothesized that the results of this study will be taken into consideration in policy development and training planning with regard to the violation of child rights. Hence it is believed that it will increase awareness in practice.
Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor Enhances Arteriogenesis and Ameliorates Cerebral Damage in a Mouse Model of Ischemic Stroke

Background and Purpose— Enhancing collateral artery growth is a potent therapeutic approach to treat cardiovascular ischemic disease from occlusive artery. Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) has gained attention for its ability to promote arteriogenesis, ameliorating brain damage, by the mechanisms involving monocyte upregulation. However, the recent clinical study testing its efficacy in myocardial ischemia has raised the question about its safety. We tested alternative colony-stimulating factors for their effects on collateral artery growth and brain protection. Methods— Brain hypoperfusion was produced by occluding the left common carotid artery in C57/BL6 mice. After the surgery, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, macrophage colony-stimulating factor, or GM-CSF (100 &mgr;g/kg/day) was administered daily for 5 days. The angioarchitecture for leptomeningeal anastomoses and the circle of Willis were visualized after the colony-stimulating factor treatment. Circulating blood monocytes and Mac-2-positive cells in the dorsal surface of the brain were determined. A set of animals underwent subsequent ipsilateral middle cerebral artery occlusion and infarct volume was assessed. Results— Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor as well as GM-CSF promoted leptomeningeal collateral growth after common carotid artery occlusion. Both granulocyte colony-stimulating factor and GM-CSF increased circulating blood monocytes and Mac-2-positive cells in the dorsal brain surface, suggesting the mechanisms coupled to monocyte upregulation might be shared. Infarct volume after middle cerebral artery occlusion was reduced by granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, similarly to GM-CSF. Macrophage colony-stimulating factor showed none of theses effects. Conclusions— Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor enhances collateral artery growth and reduces infarct volume in a mouse model of brain ischemia, similarly to GM-CSF.
WebParF: A Web partitioning framework for Parallel Crawlers

With the ever proliferating size and scale of the WWW [1] efficient ways of exploring content are of increasing importance. How can we efficiently retrieve information from it through crawling? And in this era of tera and multi-core processors, we ought to think of multi-threaded processes as a serving solution. So, even better how can we improve the crawling performance by using parallel crawlers that work independently? The paper devotes to the fundamental development in the field of parallel crawlers [4] highlighting the advantages and challenges arising from its design. The paper also focuses on the aspect of URL distribution among the various parallel crawling processes or threads and ordering the URLs within each distributed set of URLs. How to distribute URLs from the URL frontier to the various concurrently executing crawling process threads is an orthogonal problem. The paper provides a solution to the problem by designing a framework WebParF that partitions the URL frontier into a several URL queues while considering the various design issues.
Can the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales Short Be Shorter? Factor Structure and Measurement Invariance of DASS-21 and DASS-9 in a Greek, Non-Clinical Sample

This study focused on the factor structure, invariance, reliability, and validity of two DASS versions: DASS-21 and DASS-9. Dimensionality was examined with Exploratory and Confirmatory factor analysis in 2271 Greek adults of the non-clinical population. Sample was split in three parts and the “3-faced construct validation method” was adopted. An EFA and a Bifactor EFA model were tested in the 20% subsample for both DASS-21 and DASS-9. Then, in the 40% subsample eleven CFA models were tested for DASS-21 and six for DASS-9 (using ICM-CFA, Bifactor CFA and ESEM). Optimal DASS-21 and DASS-9 models were successfully validated in the remaining 40% subsample (i.e. in a subsample of equal power). DASS-21 and DASS-9 showed strict measurement invariance across gender. Reliability (α and ω) and AVE convergent validity were adequate for both versions. Correlation analysis based on 10 different measures revealed a predominant uniform pattern of relations, similar for both versions. Considering all findings, the Greek versions of DASS-21 and DASS-9 are invariant, reliable and show construct and convergent validity.
Scope-Aware Data Cache Analysis for WCET Estimation

Caches are widely used in modern computer systems to bridge the increasing gap between processor speed and memory access time. On the other hand, presence of caches, especially data caches, complicates the static worst case execution time (WCET) analysis. Access pattern analysis (e.g., cache miss equations) are applicable to only a specific class of programs, where all array accesses must have predictable access patterns. Abstract interpretation-based methods (must/persistence analysis) determines possible cache conflicts based on coarse-grained memory access information from address analysis, which usually leads to significantly pessimistic estimation. In this paper, we first present a refined persistence analysis method which fixes the potential underestimation problem in the original persistence analysis. Based on our new persistence analysis, we propose a framework to combine access pattern analysis and abstract interpretation for accurate data cache analysis. We capture the dynamic behavior of a memory access by computing its temporal scope (the loop iterations where a given memory block is accessed for a given data reference) during address analysis. Temporal scopes as well as loop hierarchy structure (the static scopes) are integrated and utilized to achieve a more precise abstract cache state modeling. Experimental results shows that our proposed analysis obtains up to 74% reduction in the WCET estimates compared to existing data cache analysis.
Social vulnerability and unmet preventive care needs in outpatients of two French public hospitals.

BACKGROUND Outpatients attending consultations at public hospitals may have unmet needs for preventive medical care. This study aimed to identify and assess the association between these needs, social vulnerability and mode of healthcare use. METHODS In a multicentre epidemiological study, a group of socially vulnerable outpatients, was compared with a non-vulnerable group in a sample of 1316 outpatients selected in hospital consultations, using a validated tool for detection of social vulnerability. Before the patient was seen by medical staff, investigators collected data on social characteristics, healthcare use and preventive medical care received (interventions, advice). RESULTS More than 75% of outpatients stated that they were regularly followed by a physician, usually a general practitioner, but fewer vulnerable than non-vulnerable outpatients were followed (77% vs. 89%, P < 10(-3)). For the majority of preventive interventions (vaccinations, screening for cardiovascular risk factors, gynaecological cancers), vulnerable outpatients presented a more marked shortage than non-vulnerable patients, but there was an overall shortage in both groups. When recommended preventive interventions had not been delivered, they had rarely been offered in either group. After adjustment for mode of healthcare use, the differences in preventive care received persisted to the disadvantage of vulnerable outpatients with regard to technical preventive interventions, but there was no difference between the two groups regarding advice received to reduce risk behaviours. CONCLUSION Unmet needs for preventive care primarily resulted from social inequalities in secondary access to such care. It may be necessary to set up specific interventions targeting vulnerable patients within hospital consultations.
PRISM: PRecision-Integrated Scalable Monitoring

This paper describes PRISM, a scalable monitoring service that makes imprecision a first-class abstraction for its scalable DHT-based aggregation service. Exposing imprecision is essential for both correctness in the face of network and node failures and scalability to large systems. PRISM introduces the notion of conditioned consistency that quantifies imprecision along a threedimensional vector: arithmetic imprecision (AI) bounds numeric inaccuracy, temporal imprecision (TI) bounds update delays, and network imprecision (NI) bounds uncertainty due to network and node failures. AI and TI balance precision against monitoring overhead for scalability while NI addresses the fundamental challenge of providing consistency guarantees despite failures in a large distributed system. Our implementation addresses the challenge of providing these metrics while scaling to a large numbers of nodes and attributes. By introducing a 10% AI, PRISM’s PlanetLab monitoring service, PrMon, can reduce network overheads by an order of magnitude compared to the currently-used CoMon service. And, by using NI metrics to automatically select the best of four redundant aggregation results, we can reduce the observed worst-case inaccuracy by nearly a factor of five.
A Software-Defined Storage for Workflow Applications

We present a software-defined storage architecture with two key properties: firstly, it enables external control of storage operations, and, secondly, it allows extending the storage system with new, workload specific, optimizations, all without breaking the file system abstractions. We argue that this architecture is generic, we prototype FlexStore following this architecture, we instantiate it to support workflow applications, and we report on our preliminary experience.
Patients with small duct primary sclerosing cholangitis have a favourable long term prognosis

Background: Patients with cholestatic liver function tests and histological features of primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) but a normal cholangiogram are considered to have small duct PSC. The natural history of this condition is unknown. Methods: Thirty three patients with small duct PSC were identified among patients admitted for diagnostic workup of cholestatic liver function tests in one centre in the UK (Oxford) and one centre in Norway (Oslo). A total of 260 patients with large duct PSC were compared, and prognosis in terms of death, cholangiocarcinoma, biochemical features, histological features, and symptoms analysed. Results: Mean age at diagnosis was 38 years and 39 years in small duct and large duct PSC, respectively. Mean follow up was 106 months in small duct and 105 months in large duct patients. Four patients originally considered to have small duct developed large duct PSC. Two of these underwent liver transplantation during follow up. Of the remainder who did not develop large duct PSC, two patients died during follow up: one of liver failure and the other of cardiac death unrelated to her liver disease. A total of 122 (47%) large duct patients either required liver transplantation (34 patients) or died (88 patients). Small duct patients had a significantly better survival compared with large duct patients. Among small duct patients, none developed cholangiocarcinoma compared with 28 of 260 (11%) large duct patients. Conclusions: Patients with small duct PSC seem to have a good prognosis in terms of survival and development of cholangiocarcinoma. Small duct PSC progresses to large duct PSC in a small proportion of patients.
Epidemic-Style Global Load Monitoring in Large-Scale Overlay Networks

Peer-to-peer systems are highly dynamic systems, with permanent changes in their configurations, as peers may join and leave the system with no restriction or control. This makes monitoring an important element for several applications, especially for fault management: fault detection and fault recovery. As the system may have a large number of nodes, we need a scalable algorithm, able to guarantee a fast convergence no matter what the structure of the network is. Epidemic-style or gossip-based algorithms offer solutions for various topics in large-scale distributed systems. Even though they present many advantages due to their property of continuously spreading the information across the system in a reactive and proactive fashion, several problems such as the total number of messages exchanged between peers and the number of rounds required for ensuring the convergence of the algorithm appear. In this paper we present a gossip-based algorithm for monitoring large-scale distributed systems and we analyze its efficiency in a simulated environment provided by OverSim.
The Application Of 4/3/2 Technique To Enhance Speaking Fluency Of EFL Students In Indonesia

The aims of this areticle are firstly to explore the application of 4/3/2 technique in enhancing learners’ speaking fluency and to exspose how fluency practie can help students’ improve their speaking ability. The research was conducted at a language school in Indonesia involving 20 first year students at the University of Lampung The students were divided into two teams the speaker team and the listener teams. The speaker team was given the opportunty to speak for three speaaking turns: four minutes, three minutes and two minutes. Later, the teams change roles the speakers become listeners, the listeners became speakers. The topics of the talks are determined by the group prior to the application or the actitivites. The results showed that students improve their speaking accuracy and fluency.during three speakiing turns.
Whare-map: heterogeneity in "homogeneous" warehouse-scale computers

Modern "warehouse scale computers" (WSCs) continue to be embraced as homogeneous computing platforms. However, due to frequent machine replacements and upgrades, modern WSCs are in fact composed of diverse commodity microarchitectures and machine configurations. Yet, current WSCs are architected with the assumption of homogeneity, leaving a potentially significant performance opportunity unexplored. In this paper, we expose and quantify the performance impact of the "homogeneity assumption" for modern production WSCs using industry-strength large-scale web-service workloads. In addition, we argue for, and evaluate the benefits of, a heterogeneity-aware WSC using commercial web-service production workloads including Google's web-search. We also identify key factors impacting the available performance opportunity when exploiting heterogeneity and introduce a new metric, opportunity factor, to quantify an application's sensitivity to the heterogeneity in a given WSC. To exploit heterogeneity in "homogeneous" WSCs, we propose "Whare-Map," the WSC Heterogeneity Aware Mapper that leverages already in-place continuous profiling subsystems found in production environments. When employing "Whare-Map", we observe a cluster-wide performance improvement of 15% on average over heterogeneity--oblivious job placement and up to an 80% improvement for web-service applications that are particularly sensitive to heterogeneity.
Indoor Smoke Exposure and Risk of Anthracosis

The association between indoor smoke exposure due to traditional baking (baking homemade bread) and anthracosis has rarely been investigated. The aim of the present study is to quantify such association among the Iranian population. A hospital based case-control study was carried out on 83 anthracotic cases and 155 controls (83 individuals with non-anthracotic pulmonary disorders from the pulmonary ward and 72 persons from the surgical ward without any known pulmonary disorders). The interview was performed using the “American Thoracic Society” questionnaire, comprising demographic information, occupational history, cigarette smoking, and indoor smoke exposure due to traditional baking. Multivariate analysis was performed by logistic regression. Comparison between cases and pulmonary ward controls showed that only the association between indoor smoke exposure due to traditional baking and anthracosis in women was statistically significant (OR: 4.30, 95% CI: 1.31 to 14.10). This was concluded after adjusting for other risk factors such as occupational exposure to dust, age, and education. When surgical ward controls were considered as control, after controlling for the significant risk factors, we found a significant relationship between indoor smoke exposure due to traditional baking and anthracosis (OR: 3.35, 95% CI: 1.49 to 7.55). Based on the findings from this study, it is concluded that there is an association between indoor smoke exposure and anthracosis. Women are significantly more susceptible to anthracosis than men are when exposed to smoke exposure.
Effect of the CYP3A inhibitors, diltiazem and ketoconazole, on ticagrelor pharmacokinetics in healthy volunteers

Abstract Objectives: Two open-label, two-period, crossover studies in healthy volunteers were designed to determine the pharmacokinetic interactions between ticagrelor, a P2Y12 receptor antagonist, and a moderate (diltiazem) and a strong (ketoconazole) cytochrome P450 (CYP) 3A inhibitor. Methods: Seventeen volunteers received diltiazem (240 mg once daily) for 14 days. In the second study, ketoconazole (n = 14) 200 mg twice daily was given for 10 days. A single oral 90-mg ticagrelor dose was administered on day 8 (diltiazem) or day 4 (ketoconazole). In each study, volunteers received a single 90-mg oral dose of ticagrelor before or after washout (≥14 days). Pharmacokinetic parameters for ticagrelor, AR-C124910XX (primary metabolite), diltiazem, and ketoconazole were assessed. Results: Compared with ticagrelor alone, diltiazem co-administration significantly increased the mean maximum concentration (Cmax) and mean area under the plasma concentration–time curve (AUC) for ticagrelor by 69% and 174%, respectively. Diltiazem co-administration reduced Cmax by 38% but had no significant effect on AUC for AR-C124910XX. Cmax and AUC for ticagrelor were increased by 135% and 632%, respectively, by ketoconazole co-administration, whereas these parameters were reduced by 89% and 56%, respectively, for AR-C124910XX. Diltiazem and ketoconazole pharmacokinetic parameters were not significantly affected by the presence of ticagrelor. Conclusions: These results suggest that ticagrelor can be co-administered with moderate CYP3A inhibitors. However, co-administration of strong CYP3A inhibitors with ticagrelor is not recommended.
The Politics of Voting : Using Network Analysis to Explore the Role of Status and Reciprocity in Politicians ' Voting Behavior

Introduction Previous work in the analysis of politicians' voting behavior has proposed that voting is often influenced by a combination of party, and one's relative status within a particular governing body (Cho and Fowler 2010, Clark, Pelika, and Rigby 2010, Porter et al. 2005). These papers used a variety of techniques to develop networks of politicians, with the most notable being those that used bill co-sponsorship, name occurrence in major newspaper articles and serving on committees together as the criteria for establishing “friendship” between two politicians. These studies found that the level of seniority and one's political affiliation have differing impacts on voting behavior depending on placement within the House or Senate. Furthermore, these papers suggested that the extent to which rank matters in the two governing bodies differs because of fundamental aspects of the two committees (namely the size and composition), and that network effects are more important than previously discovered social factors. In order to explore the role of status in voting behavior, we will leverage an approach advanced by Leskovec, Huttenlocher and Kleinberg (2010) that suggests that relationships among triads of individuals (in directed, dynamic graphs from social media sources) more closely reflect the theory of status than the theory of structural balance. However, this analysis of status has not been used in the political arena, nor has it looked at the emergence of status over time, as conferred by repeated voting between the same pairs. Accordingly we will compare several time delimited iterations of the House and Senate relational maps in order to observe how status and reciprocity are manifested. The research questions are as follows: