Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Debating the democratic legitimacy of the European Union

Chapter 1: Charting Crowded Territory: Debating the Democratic Legitimacy of the European Union Part I: Democracy: The Constitutional Principle of the EU Chapter 2: A Disputed Idea Becomes Law: Remarks on European Democracy as a Legal Principle Part II: What Future for Parliamentary Democracy in the EU? Chapter 3: Expanding National Parliamentary Control: Does it Enhance European Democracy? Chapter 4: The European Parliament between Policy-Making and Control Chapter 5: Constructing Parliamentary Democracy in the European Union: How Did It Happen? Chapter 6: Parliamentary Representation in a Decentred Polity Part III: The Public Sphere and Civil Society: Pre-Requisites for Democratically Legitimate Rule-Making Chapter 7: Pre-Requisites of Transnational Democracy and Mechanisms of Sustaining it: The Case of the European Union Chapter 8: The Europeanization of Protest: A Typology and Empirical Evidence Part IV: Democracy and Political Participation Chapter 9: Participatory Governance and European Democracy Chapter 10: Some Considerations on Participation in Participatory Governance Chapter 11: The Organization of Interests and Democracy in the European Union Part V: Deliberative Democracy Chapter 12: The Euro-Polity in Perspective: Some Normative Lessons from Deliberative Democracy Chapter 13: Reconceptualizing the Supremacy of European Law: A Plea for a Supranational Conflict of Laws
Extracting comprehensible rules from neural networks via genetic algorithms

A common problem in KDD (Knowledge Discovery in Databases) is the presence of noise in the data being mined. Neural networks are robust and have a good tolerance to noise, which makes them suitable for mining very noisy data. However, they have the well-known disadvantage of not discovering any high-level rule that can be used as a support for human decision making. In this work we present a method for extracting accurate, comprehensible rules from neural networks. The proposed method uses a genetic algorithm to find a good neural network topology. This topology is then passed to a rule extraction algorithm, and the quality of the extracted rules is then fed back to the genetic algorithm. The proposed system is evaluated on three public-domain data sets and the results show that the approach is valid.
Eccles' model of achievent-related choices: the case of computer science studies in Israeli high schools

Worldwide surveys indicate that the number of women studying undergraduate-level Computer Science is constantly decreasing. Based on data collected in Israel, significant differences were found in the percentages of fale high school students studying advanced-level Computer Science among different sectors. More specifically, while the percentage of fale high school students studying advanced-level Computer Science is about 50% for the Arab minority sector, the percentage of fale students studying Computer Science at the same level among the Jewish majority sector is only about 25%. This situation was investigated by using both qualitative and quantitative research tools. The paper illustrates the analysis of the data within the model of 'achievent-related choices' developed by Eccles and her colleagues.
Affordances and Constraints to E-Learning: Role of Architecture in 3D Learning Space Digital Design

While abundant research has been devoted to investigate successful learning prospects of 3D Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs), sparse research explores users’ satisfaction from buildings used within these 3DVLEs. No research depicts users’ contentment levels, preferences or requirements from 3D educational buildings’ different constructional and architectural design elements. This paper is part of an ongoing research investigating the presence of such impact of architectural features of 3D virtual educational classrooms on users’ comfort within them, by recording and categorizing higher education students’ space design propositions to enhance virtual campuses, internally and externally. This has potential to boost e-learning experiences within 3DVLEs analogous to the positive effect of physical real-life architecture on students’ learning within their respective classrooms. The second part of this paper offers an example. For, while former research also reveals that architectural colour-design of physical learning spaces directly affects students’ learning, there is no equivalent study supporting similar impact of 3D virtual learning spaces’ colour design on students in 3D VLEs, whether as affordances or constraints to the e-learning process. To fill this gap, this paper examines the various positive and negative emotions expressed by students during exposure to different colours inside 3D virtual educational buildings; in an attempt to determine best practices in digital colour-design of learning spaces inside 3D virtual worlds to enhance students’ overall e-learning experiences and satisfaction within them.
Arrangements and Amounts of Equal Minors in Totally Positive Matrices

Understanding the positive Grassmannian has been a highly significant question in mathematics for several decades. We discuss arrangements of equal minors in the totally positive Grassmannian. It was previously shown that arrangements of equals minors of largest value correspond to the simplices in Sturmfels triangulation. Here we discuss arrangements of equals minors of second largest value, and show that they correspond to the facets of Sturmfels triangulation. We then define the notion of cubical distance and obtain a general conjecture that provides a correspondence between minors of m-largest value and maximal simplices of certain cubical distance in Sturmfels triangulation. We prove this conjecture for the case m = 3, and also for certain cases in Gr(2, n).
A Stochastic Simulation Framework for the Government of Canada's Debt Strategy

Debt strategy is defined as the manner in which a government finances an excess of government expenditures over revenues and any maturing debt issued in previous periods. The author gives a thorough qualitative description of the complexities of debt strategy analysis and then demonstrates that it is, in fact, a problem in stochastic optimal control. Although this formal definition is conceptually useful, the author recommends the use of simulation to help characterize the set of strategies that a government can use to fund its borrowing requirements. He then describes in detail a stochastic simulation framework, building from previous work in Bolder (2001, 2002); this framework forms one important element in the debt strategy decision-making process employed by the Government of Canada. The primary objective in constructing this stochastic simulation framework is to learn about the nature of the risk and cost trade-offs associated with different financing strategies. To this end, the paper includes a detailed description of the model; a set of possible debt cost and risk measures, including one potentially useful conditional risk measure; illustrative results under normal stochastic conditions; an analysis of the sensitivity of the results to various key model parameters; a novel approach to stress testing; and a possible framework for selecting a financing strategy, given assumptions about government risk preferences.
Targeted Disruption of cd73/Ecto-5′-Nucleotidase Alters Thromboregulation and Augments Vascular Inflammatory Response

To investigate the role of adenosine formed extracellularly in vascular homeostasis, mice with a targeted deletion of the cd73/ecto-5′-nucleotidase were generated. Southern blot, RT-PCR, and Western blot analysis confirmed the constitutive knockout. In vivo analysis of hemodynamic parameters revealed no significant differences in systolic blood pressure, ejection fraction, or cardiac output between strains. However, basal coronary flow measured in the isolated perfused heart was significantly lower (−14%; P<0.05) in the mutant. Immunohistochemistry revealed strong CD73 expression on the endothelium of conduit vessels in wild-type (WT) mice. Time to carotid artery occlusion after ferric chloride (FeCl3) was significantly reduced by 20% in cd73−/− mice (P<0.05). Bleeding time after tail tip resection tended to be shorter in cd73−/− mice (−35%). In vivo platelet cAMP levels were 0.96±0.46 in WT versus 0.68±0.27 pmol/106 cells in cd73−/− mice (P<0.05). Under in vitro conditions, platelet aggregation in response to ADP (0.05 to 10 &mgr;mol/L) was undistinguishable between the two strains. In the cremaster model of ischemia–reperfusion, the increase in leukocyte attachment to endothelium was significantly higher in cd73−/− compared with WT littermates (WT 98% versus cd73−/− 245%; P<0.005). The constitutive adhesion of monocytes in ex vivo–perfused carotid arteries of WT mice was negligible but significantly increased in arteries of cd73−/− mice (P<0.05). Thus, our data provide the first evidence that adenosine, extracellularly formed by CD73, can modulate coronary vascular tone, inhibit platelet activation, and play an important role in leukocyte adhesion to the vascular endothelium in vivo.
Statins and influenza: can we move forward?

Currently, the 2 main strategies for control of influenza are immunization and antiviral drugs. However, despite increasing uptake of influenza vaccine among the highest risk groups—namely, the elderly and persons with underlying cardiopulmonary diseases—morbidity and mortality from influenza continues to rise in the United States [ 1 ]. This paradox has stimulated a heated debate regarding the true efficacy of influenza vaccination in older persons [ 2 , 3 ]. Some investigators suggest efficacy may be negligible in this group, and even the most optimistic proponents of immunization concede that the current licensed standard dose of inactivated vaccine is less immunogenic and protective in older persons than in young healthy persons [ 4 , 5 , 6 ]. Antiviral therapy, principally with neuraminidase inhibitors, has been shown repeatedly in placebo-controlled trials to be effective when administered to both young and old outpatients early in the course of illness [ 7 , 8 ]. Although controlled studies in inpatients are strikingly absent, one observational analysis from Toronto noted a 79% reduction in mortality in patients treated with a neuraminidase inhibitor, even when administered after the 48-hour window following symptom onset [ 9 ]. Despite availability of vaccine and antivirals, additional therapeutic measures for influenza would be welcomed. In this issue of the Journal, Vandermeer and collaborators report that statin use is associated with reduced mortality during and after hospitalization with influenza infection [ 10 ]. The investigators analyzed 30-day mortality in 3043 patients hospitalized with influenza in 10 states as part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Emerging Infections Program. After adjusting for other variables, such as age, underlying medical conditions, and influenza vaccination, they reported a striking 41% reduction in mortality (odds ratio, 0.59 [95% confidence interval, .38‐.92]) in persons on statins either prior to or during hospi
Moonlighting activity of presenilin in plants is independent of γ-secretase and evolutionarily conserved

Presenilins (PS) provide the catalytic activity for γ-secretase, which cleaves physiologically relevant substrates including Notch, ErbB4, and APP. Recent genetic studies indicated that the contribution of PS1 to mouse development includes γ-secretase-independent functions that cannot be easily explained by any of the demonstrated or hypothesized functions of this protein. To begin a nonbiased analysis of PS1 activity unencumbered by the dominant effect stemming from loss of Notch function, we characterized PS functions in the early land plant Physcomitrella patens, which lacks Notch, ErbB4, and APP. Removal of P. patens PS resulted in phenotypic abnormalities. Further assays performed to delineate the defective pathways in PS-deficient P. patens implicated improper function of the cytoskeletal network. Importantly, this characterization of a nonmetazoan PS uncovered a previously undescribed, evolutionarily conserved function (human PS1 can rescue the growth and light responses) that is γ-secretase-independent (mutants with substitutions of the catalytic aspartyl residues retain the activity). Introduction of PpPS into PS-deficient mouse embryonic fibroblasts rescues normal growth rates, demonstrating that at least some metazoan functions of PS are evolutionarily conserved.
Chemokine Receptor 2 Blockade Prevents Asthma in a Cynomolgus Monkey Model

The pathophysiology of asthma is characterized by accumulation and activation of several cell types in the lung, which correlates with coordinated production of specific cytokines and chemokines. To study the effect of selective CCR2 chemokine receptor blockade on leukocyte recruitment to the lung and on bronchial function, we used a nonhuman primate model of allergic airway disease that closely resembles human asthma. Allergic cynomolgus monkeys were treated with the antagonist anti-CCR2 (CCR2-05) monoclonal antibody and then challenged with Ascaris suum antigen; the effect of antibody treatment on macrophage and eosinophil infiltration was determined. Pulmonary function was calculated by measurement of lung resistance and dynamic compliance. Local inflammatory responses were analyzed after intradermal challenge with A. suum antigen. CCL2 up-regulation in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) was analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and in vitro CCR2-05 antagonistic activity was tested in monkey peripheral blood mononuclear cells using chemotaxis and calcium mobilization assays. The results show that neutralization of CCR2 reduces antigen-induced bronchial hyper-responsiveness and attenuates macrophage and eosinophil accumulation in the BAL of asthmatic monkeys. The results confirm that selective blockade of a single chemokine receptor involved in early stages of asthma can condition later disease stages and suggest the utility of anti-CCR2-neutralizing monoclonal antibodies in the treatment of asthma in man.
Dyadic social interaction inhibits cocaine-conditioned place preference and the associated activation of the accumbens corridor

Impaired social interaction is a hallmark symptom of many psychiatric disorders. In substance use disorders, impaired social interaction is triply harmful (a) because addicts increasingly prefer the drug of abuse to the natural reward of drug-free social interaction, thus worsening the progression of the disease by increasing their drug consumption, (b) because treatment adherence and, consequently, treatment success itself depends on the ability of the recovering addict to maintain social interaction and adhere to treatment, and (c) because socially interacting with an individual suffering from a substance use disorder may be harmful for others. Helping the addict reorient his/her behavior away from the drug of abuse toward social interaction would therefore be of considerable therapeutic benefit. This article reviews our work on the neural basis of such a reorientation from cocaine, as a prototypical drug of abuse, toward dyadic (i.e. one-to-one) social interaction and compares our findings with the effects of other potentially beneficial interventions, that is, environmental enrichment or paired housing, on the activation of the accumbens and other brain regions involved in behavior motivated by drugs of abuse or nondrug stimuli. Our experimental models are based on the conditioned place preference paradigm. As the therapeutically most promising finding, only four 15 min episodes of dyadic social interaction were able to inhibit both the subsequent reacquisition/re-expression of preference for cocaine and the neural activation associated with this behavior, that is, an increase in the expression of the immediate early gene Early Growth Response protein 1 (EGR1, Zif268) in the nucleus accumbens, basolateral and central amygdala, and the ventral tegmental area. The time spent in the cocaine-associated conditioning compartment was correlated with the density of EGR1-activated neurons not only in the medial core (AcbCm) and medial shell (AcbShm) of the nucleus accumbens, but was observed in all regions medial to the anterior commissure (‘accumbens corridor’), including (from medial to lateral), the vertical limb of the diagonal band and the medial septum (VDB+MS), the major island of Calleja and the intermediate nucleus of the lateral septum (ICjM+LSI), the AcbShm, and the AcbCm. All effects were limited to GABAergic projection neurons (called ‘medium spiny neurons’, in the accumbens), encompassing both dopamine D1 receptor-expressing and D2 receptor-expressing medium spiny neuron subtypes. Our EGR1 expression findings were mirrored in multielectrode array recordings. Finally, we have validated our paradigm in C57BL/6 mice to make use of the plethora of transgenic models available in this genus.
Improving Quality of Service Parameter Prediction with Preliminary Outlier Detection and Elimination

Wide-spread real-time applications make it necessary for service providers to guarantee QoS parameters. This requires precise forecast of network traffic. A possible method of the forecast is measuring traffic then analyzing it and fitting model to the measured data, finally predicting the observed parameter using the fitted model. The efficiency of the prediction is decreased by outlying samples (so called outliers) found in the time series data. We developed a new tool that is able to detect and eliminate the outliers from time series data. This tool is capable to handle large sets of time series data fast and efficiently. We also propose a method to predict QoS parameters using the ARIMA (Auto-Regressive Integrated Moving Average) model, which is based on a preliminary detection and elimination of outliers. We have proven that this method increases the efficiency of the prediction significantly by forecasting real measurement data.
Gender, Sexuality and Violence in Organizations: The Unspoken Forces of Organization Violations

Gender, Sexuality, Violation and Organizational Worlds Histories Locating Organizations in Social Time Recognition From Sexual Harassment, Bullying and Physical Violence to Organization Violations Theorizing Organizations and Organization Violations Enclosure Organization Violations and Institutionalization with Lorraine Green Globalization Organization Violations, Multinationals and ICTs Politics and Policy
A theory for Log-Space and NLIN versus co-NLIN

Abstract The use of Nepomnjaščiǐ's Theorem in the proofs of independence results for bounded arithmetic theories is investigated. Using this result and similar ideas, it is shown that at least one of S 1 or TLS does not prove the Matiyasevich-Robinson-Davis-Putnam Theorem. It is also established that TLS does not prove a statement that roughly means nondeterministic linear time is equal to co-nondeterministic linear time. Here S 1 is a conservative extension of the well-studied theory IΔ0 and TLS is a theory for LOGSPACE reasoning.
Metabolic Programming of MEST DNA Methylation by Intrauterine Exposure to Gestational Diabetes Mellitus

Epigenetic processes are primary candidates when searching for mechanisms that can stably modulate gene expression and metabolic pathways according to early life conditions. To test the effects of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) on the epigenome of the next generation, cord blood and placenta tissue were obtained from 88 newborns of mothers with dietetically treated GDM, 98 with insulin-dependent GDM, and 65 without GDM. Bisulfite pyrosequencing was used to compare the methylation levels of seven imprinted genes involved in prenatal and postnatal growth, four genes involved in energy metabolism, one anti-inflammatory gene, one tumor suppressor gene, one pluripotency gene, and two repetitive DNA families. The maternally imprinted MEST gene, the nonimprinted glucocorticoid receptor NR3C1 gene, and interspersed ALU repeats showed significantly decreased methylation levels (4–7 percentage points for MEST, 1–2 for NR3C1, and one for ALUs) in both GDM groups, compared with controls, in both analyzed tissues. Significantly decreased blood MEST methylation (3 percentage points) also was observed in adults with morbid obesity compared with normal-weight controls. Our results support the idea that intrauterine exposure to GDM has long-lasting effects on the epigenome of the offspring. Specifically, epigenetic malprogramming of MEST may contribute to obesity predisposition throughout life.
Evaluating the Effectiveness of Board Game Usage to Teach GSE Dynamics

When preparing students for an industrial or academic career in software engineering, educational institutions need to address the globally distributed character of the software engineering profession. As it will be difficult to have students actually participating in a real-life, multi-site, globally dispersed, industrial project and thus acquiring knowledge from experience, there is a challenge to properly prepare students for their future jobs. One way to teach the dynamics of global development is by letting students participate in a game in which these dynamics are primarily addressed. In this paper a board game is presented that can be used for such a purpose. The paper presents a description of the game and the findings from a controlled experiment to explore its learning effects.
DETECTION OF PLANAR PATCHES IN HANDHELD IMAGE SEQUENCES

Coplanarity of points can be exploited in many ways for 3D reconstruction. Automatic detection of coplanarity is not a simple task however. We present methods to detect physically present 3D planes in scenes imaged with a handheld camera. Such planes induce homographies, which provides a necessary, but not a sufficient criterion to detect them. Especially in handheld image sequences degenerate cases are abundant, where the whole image underlies the same homography. We provide methods to verify, that a homography does carry information about coplanarity and the 3D scene structure. This allows deciding, whether planes can be detected from the images or not. Different methods for both known and unknown intrinsic camera parameters are compared experimentally.
World Planning via Hindsight Optimization

In classical planning, it is assumed that all relevant aspects of the world are known at planning time. In many domains, however, the existence of certain objects or the states of certain fluents are initially unknown and must be actively discovered. Previous proposals for open world planning either employ complex and expensive knowledge representations or depend on ad hoc assumptions. In this paper, we show how hindsight optimization provides a simple and general approach to planning in open and partially observable worlds. Hindsight optimization samples multiple possible worlds that are consistent with the agent’s current knowledge, generates a plan in each, and selects the action that maximizes expected reward over these samples. We demonstrate both in simulation and on a physical robot that this simple approach is more scalable than previous methods on standard benchmarks.
Relationship between the Levels of Loneliness and Internet Addiction

Abstract The purpose of this study is to reveal the relationship between the levels of loneliness and internet addiction in teacher candidates. The research group of this study is formed with 347 teacher candidates who were attending Pedagogical Formation Program at Ankara University and Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University. In the study, two different data collection tools were used. One of them was “UCLA Loneliness Scale” and the other one is “Internet Addiction Scale”. The opinions of the teacher candidates about loneliness and internet addiction did not differ according to the variables of gender, marital status, employment, accessibility to the internet at home and online time spent daily except for studying. However, there is a positive relationship in medium level between the loneliness and internet addiction levels of teacher candidates.