Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The McCree-de Wit-Penning de Vries-Thornley Respiration Paradigms: 30 Years Later

Abstract To grow, an organism must respire substrates to produce C-skeleton intermediates, usable energy (i.e. ATP), and reducing power [i.e. NAD(P)H] to support biosynthesis and related processes such as active transport of substrates. Respiration is also needed—mainly as a supplier of ATP—to maintain existing biomass in a functional state. As a result, quantifying links between respiration, growth, and maintenance are needed to assess potential plant productivity, to understand plant responses to environmental factors, and as the basis of cost-benefit analyses of alternative uses of photosynthate. Beginning 30 years ago, and continuing for about 5 years, rapid advances were made in understanding and quantifying relationships between respiration and the processes it supports. Progress has continued since then, though often as refinements rather than novel advances. The simplest framework (i.e. paradigm) for relating respiration to other processes divides respiration into growth and maintenance fractions. This often involves a combination of empiricism and mechanism. A three-component framework (growth, maintenance and wastage) has also been considered, although quantifying wastage (theoretically or empirically) remains problematic. The more general and flexible framework, called the general paradigm (GP, herein), relates respiration to any number of individual processes that it supports. The most important processes (from C and energy balance perspectives) identified to date that require respiration are: biosynthesis of new structural biomass, translocation of photosynthate from sources to sinks, uptake of ions from the soil solution, assimilation of N (including N 2 ) and S into organic compounds, protein turnover, and cellular ion-gradient maintenance. In addition, some part of respiration may be associated with wastage (e.g. futile cycles and mitochondrial electron transport uncoupled from oxidative phosphorylation). Most importantly, the GP can (semi-)mechanistically relate respiration to underlying physiology and biochemistry. The GP is more complicated than other approaches to describing or modelling respiration because it is more realistic, complete and mechanistic. This review describes a history of the GP and its present state. Future research questions are suggested.
Factors Influencing Electronic Government Adoption: Perspectives Of Less Frequent Internet Users Of Pakistan

Abstract : Much literature on electronic government services research could be found on adoptability issues from government and service provider’s point of view. Many studies have looked into adoptability factors from user perspectives and majority captured adoptability perspectives of frequent Internet users, the ones who use Internet applications for more than 10 hours a week. On the contrary the perspectives of majority of Pakistani users which use Internet applications for less than 10 hours per week are never inquired. This paper tries to fill this gap by looking into electronic government adoptability perspectives and expectations of such Internet users of Pakistan which are much greater in numbers than others. An amended UTAUT model with all its moderators is used in this study and the results demonstrate that performance level, ease of effort and social influence strongly effect behavioral intention of users in using electronic government services in Pakistan. The individual’s behavioral intention along with presence of appropriate facilitating conditions triggers use behavior of users. The results show that only gender moderates majority of UTAUT relationships and accordingly a modified UTAUT model is presented. The paper provides certain insights for people making policies and academicians for performing further research while it stresses for service proliferation with special attention towards female population.
How Robust are Estimated Equilibrium Exchange Rates? A Panel BEER Approach

This paper is concerned with the robustness of equilibrium exchange rate estimations based on the BEER approach for a set of both industrial and emerging countries. The robustness is studied in four directions, successively. First, we investigate the impact of using alternative proxies for relative productivity. Second, we analyze the impact of estimating the equilibrium equation on one single panel covering G20 countries, or separately for G7 and non-G7 countries. Third, we measure the influence of the choice of the numeraire on the derivation of bilateral equilibrium rates. Finally, we study the temporal robustness of the estimations by dropping one or two years from the estimation period. Our main conclusion is that BEER estimations are quite robust to these successive tests, although at one point of time misalignments can differ by several percentage points depending on the methodology. The choice of the productivity proxy is the most sensible one, followed by the country sample. In contrast, the choice of the numeraire and the time sample have a relatively limited impact on estimated misalignments.
Gender and Racial Differences in the Cardiovascular Risk Factors among Overweight and Obese Rural Adults, Kuching and Samarahan Division, Sarawak, Malaysia

Objective. This study aimed to determine whether gender and ethnic differences had an effect on cardiovascular risk factors in overweight and obese rural adults in Sarawak. Design and Setting. This was a cross-sectional study conducted in rural communities in Kuching and Samarahan division, Malaysia. Data was obtained using a set of questionnaire (sociodemographic data and physical activity), measurement of blood pressure, height, weight (body mass index, BMI), body fat percentage, fasting blood sugar, and lipid profile from three ethnic groups—Iban, Malay, and Bidayuh. Analysis of data was done using SPSS version 23.0. Results. A total of 155 respondents participated in the study (81.6% response rate). The levels of physical activity, BMI status, body fat, hypercholesterolemia, and hyperglycemia were similar across the three ethnic groups and both females and males. Iban and Bidayuh had significant higher Atherogenic Index of Plasma (AIP) when compared to the Malay (Bidayuh OR = 0.30, 95% CI 0.12, 0.78; Iban OR = 0.29, 95% CI 0.12, 0.69). Conclusions. The relationship between cardiovascular risk factors varied according to ethnic groups and gender. A better understanding of these differences would help in the design and implementation of intervention programme for the prevention of cardiovascular disease.
A study of the effects of compiler-controlled speculation on instruction and data caches

Compiler-controlled speculation has been shown to be effective in increasing instruction level parallelism (ILP) found in non-numeric programs. However, it is not clear the extent to which speculatively scheduled code may affect the instruction and data caches. In particular, the amount of time spent resolving cache misses may be significant enough to prevent the more aggressive speculation models from attaining their best potential performance results. The objective of this paper is to quantify these effects using aggressive speculation models. <<ETX>>
The Argentine labour market in a financially globalized world

Argentina's experience in recent decades as regards employment generation and wages has been very disappointing, and has had clear consequences for income distribution and other social indicators. This study examines the evolution of the labour market, with special emphasis on the 1990s, and also addresses the notable changes that have been taking place in recent years after the crisis of the convertibility regime. In general terms, it finds that the evolution observed in the labour market and income distribution is very closely linked with macroeconomic performance, both in previous phases and in the recent recovery stage. It examines in particular the negative effects of the experiences of trade openness and exchange rate appreciation in the late 1970s and the 1990s, which are in stark contrast with the present situation, especially in terms of employment generation.
The MPTP Story

The identification of MPTP, a relatively simple compound which causes selective degeneration of the substantia nigra after systemic administration, has had an a significant impact on the understanding and treatment of Parkinson’s disease (PD) over the last 30 years. This article is prefaced by the intriguing “medical detective story” that lead to the discovery of the biological effects of MPTP in humans. The steps that lead to the unraveling its mechanism of action and their impact on research into pathways underlying nigrostriatal degeneration are reviewed. The impact of the animal models that have been developed utilizing MPTP is also described with a focus on the translational implications of MPTP-related research. These include use of MAO-B inhibitors aimed at neuroprotection in PD and the importance of a stable primate model for PD which was utilized to better understand the circuitry of the basal ganglia, and the identification of the subthalamic nucleus as a target for deep brain stimulation. Finally, the results of a broad range of epidemiologic studies aimed as assessing the impact of environmental factors in PD that have been inspired by MPTP are summarized, including the discovery of other neurotoxicants (rotenone and paraquat) with parkinsonogenic effects. Overall, this article attempts to describe how the discovery of this nigral neurotoxicant began, where it is currently, and what the future may hold.
Connectivity properties of secure wireless sensor networks

We address the problem of connectivity in Secure Wireless Sensor Networks (SWSN) using random pre-distribution of keys. We propose a geometric random model for SWSNs. Under this new and realistic model, we describe how to design secure and connected networks using a small constant number of keys per sensor. Extensive simulations support the above stated result and demonstrate how connectivity can be guaranteed for a wide interval of practical network sizes and sensor communication ranges.
Genotypes on the move: some things old and some things new shape the genetics of colonization during species invasions

When we set a species loose outside of its historical range, we create opportunities to test fundamental questions about how populations establish, adapt, disperse, and ultimately define range boundaries. A particularly controversial issue here is how genetic variation among and within populations contributes to the dynamics of species distributions. In this issue of Molecular Ecology, Rosenthal and colleagues (2008) seize an opportunity to examine how multiple introductions create genetically distinct establishment events and how these are incorporated into invasive spread. Their findings suggest that a particular recombinant lineage of Brachypodium sylvaticum may be responsible for most of the recent expansion of this invader, highlighting the potential importance of genetic novelty and historical context for colonization success.
72a. Documentation with data gloves

The human hands form very unique and versatile parts of the body. They explore the environment via tactile and haptic feedback, they manipulate the environment and they communicate with interlocutors. The movements of the hands thus provide the receptive observer with information about the current sensory information state, the current actions or the communicative intent of a subject. Scientific observations of the communicative function of manual gestures are what we are interested in within this chapter.
Sulfonated Polyaniline Coated Mercury Film Electrodes for Voltammetric Analysis of Metals in Water

Denise Alves FungaroInstitute for Energy and Nuclear Research – Center of Environmental Chemistry - Travessa R, 400 -CEP 05508-900 - Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil. E-mail: dfungaro@net.ipen. brReceived: 19 November 2001 / Accepted: 26 November 2001 / Published: 26 November 2001Abstract: The electrochemical polymerization of 2-aminobenzenesulfonic acid with andwithout aniline has been carried by cyclic potencial sweep in sulfuric acid solution at theglassy carbon electrode. The polymer and copolymer formed have been characterizedvoltammetrically. The sulfonated polyaniline coated mercury thin-film electrodes have beenevaluated for use with anodic stripping voltammetry. The electrodes were tested andcompared with a conventional thin-film mercury electrode. Calibration plots showedlinearity up to 10
SamikshaUmbra: Contribution and Performance Assessment of Software Maintenance Professionals by Mining Software Repositories

Contribution and performance assessment is an established practice in organization with its sphere of influence spanning process, policy, people (client) and personnel (employee). Multiple roles in organization (for e.g. employees, project manager, hr manager etc.) view contribution and performance assessment with different perspectives and objectives. However, despite its ability to ensure growth and affluence of organization existing contribution and performance assessment practices are marred with flaws and imperfections. The objective of this work is to serve wide-ranged requirements of software maintenance professionals (in context of contribution and performance assessment) in organization by application of variegated approaches (tools, techniques, models etc.) on software repositories (Issue Tracking System, Version Control System, Source Code Repositories etc.). We study pain-points of practitioners (in context of contribution and performance assessment) and present solution approach by mining software repositories. We implement the approach on real-world data and gather insights from practitioners to validate and improve our research. In this paper, 'SamikshaUmbra' (research umbrella that circumscribe related research threads) we present approach to meet stated research objectives and viable research directions.
Generalized multiple description vector quantization

Packet-based data communication systems suffer from packet loss under high network traffic conditions. As a result, the receiver is often left with an incomplete description of the requested data. Multiple description source coding addresses the problem of minimizing the expected distortion caused by packet loss. An equivalent problem is that of source coding for data transmission over multiple channels where each channel has some probability of breaking down. Recent work in practical multiple description coding explores the design of multiple description scalar and vector quantizers for the case of two channels or packets. This paper presents a new practical algorithm, based on a ternary tree structure, for the design of both fixed- and variable-rate multiple description vector quantizers for an arbitrary number of channels. Experimental results achieved by codes designed with this algorithm show that they perform well under a wide range of packet loss scenarios.
Axiom, Anguish, and Amazement: How Autistic Traits Modulate Emotional Mental Imagery

Individuals differ in their ability to feel their own and others’ internal states, with those that have more autistic and less empathic traits clustering at the clinical end of the spectrum. However, when we consider semantic competence, this group could compensate with a higher capacity to imagine the meaning of words referring to emotions. This is indeed what we found when we asked people with different levels of autistic and empathic traits to rate the degree of imageability of various kinds of words. But this was not the whole story. Individuals with marked autistic traits demonstrated outstanding ability to imagine theoretical concepts, i.e., concepts that are commonly grasped linguistically through their definitions. This distinctive characteristic was so pronounced that, using tree-based predictive models, it was possible to accurately predict participants’ inclination to manifest autistic traits, as well as their adherence to autistic profiles – including whether they fell above or below the diagnostic threshold – from their imageability ratings. We speculate that this quasi-perceptual ability to imagine theoretical concepts represents a specific cognitive pattern that, while hindering social interaction, may favor problem solving in abstract, non-socially related tasks. This would allow people with marked autistic traits to make use of perceptual, possibly visuo-spatial, information for “higher” cognitive processing.
Physically Guiding Touch Screen Interaction with Public Displays

This paper presents a novel approach on guiding people how to interact with touch screen based public displays. In our approach, we apply an additional layer of transparent plastic employing different shapes of laser cut holes that is placed on top of the public display. The holes restrict the touch screen input area, and provide a physical guidance to the user on interactive elements on the screen. This enables interaction styles with the screen that are not practical in the unguided case. Moreover, the guiding plastic layer can easily be replaced with another one with altering pattern. This provides opportunities to apply different interaction templates e.g. according to the display's location or users.
When gossip meets consensus : convergence in correlated random WSNs

We study the convergence of consensus algorithms in wireless sensor networks with random topologies where the instantaneous links exist with a given probability and are allowed to be spatially correlated. Aiming at minimizing the convergence time of the algorithm, we adopt an optimization criterion based on the spectral radius of a positive semidefinite matrix for which we derive closed-form expressions. The general formulations allow the computation of the optimum parameters ensuring almost sure convergence to a consensus under these topology conditions. We show that the expressions derived for consensus algorithms can be particularized for gossip algorithms, particularly for the broadcast gossip algorithm and for the pair-wise gossip algorithm.
Counter-Intuition and Scalar Masses

The Bousso-Polchinski mechanism for discretely fine-tuning the cosmological constant favors a large bare negative cosmological constant. I argue (using generalizations of results of Klebanov and Tseytlin) that a similar mechanism for fine-tuning the scalar masses to small values favors a large bare negative (i.e. tachyonic) scalar mass. I comment briefly on the related issue of the role of low energy supersymmetry in string theory.
Time Dependent Solvers on Distributed Memory Computers Time Dependent Solvers on Distributed Memory Computers

In this paper we consider the most time consuming kernels and their corresponding parallel performance for the solution of time dependent partial diierential equations (PDEs). In particular, we discuss both explicit as well as implicit methods. For the explicit methods, we focus on the parallelization of the spatial operator applied to the solution vector. The issues and performance of this operation is illustrated in the context of a complete 2D Euler/Navier-Stokes solver. For implicit schemes, we focus on the performance of several Krylov solvers used in the solution of the linear systems that must be solved at each iteration. As in the explicit case, one of the principal kernels for Krylov methods is the application of a vector to a spatial operator (the matrix). In both explicit and implicit codes, parallelization is accomplished by splitting the computational domain and assigning subdomains to diierent processors. Each processor updates only those points that fall within its domain. In addition to the update points, each processor contains a set of points that it needs from other processors in order to perform the updates. Applying the spatial operator to the solution proceeds by communicating the points needed for the updates followed by the actual updates. Performance results are given on a distributed virtual shared multiprocessor and a network of workstations for the explicit schemes and on a distributed MIMD machine for the linear solvers that may be implemented in implicit schemes.
Viewpoints in the Smart Home Product Line

In product lines for systems engineering a number of different viewpoints on the modeled system have to maintained, comprising both software-related viewpoints and domain-specific views on hardware and environment. A major engineering challenge is to maintain model transformations and code generators working on these viewpoints. This paper proposes an engineering approach that explicitly describes the relation between viewpoints. We use these descriptions to better modularize transformations and thus improve the maintainability of MDD tool chains. This is shown within a smart home case study, which combines building automation and software engineering.
The Implications of British Macroeconomic Policy in the 1930s for Long Run Growth Performance

The paper provides a synthesis of recent research relating to supply side policy in the 1930s in a period when government sought to raise prices given sticky wages. We argue that as a politically constrained strategy to limit rises in unemployment this made sense. A bargaining model approach suggests, however, that this had a harmful impact on productivity growth by stifling competitive pressure and retarding rationalization of old industries.
Timeout Adaptive Consensus : Improving Performance through Adaptation

Algorithms for solving distributed system problems, such as consensus, often use timeouts as a mean to achieve progress, even if encapsulated in failure detection services. They are designed in a way that safety is always preserved despite timeouts being too small or too large. A “reasonable” timeout value is usually selected, such that the run-time performance is acceptable in the normal case. In this paper we transform a fixed timeout consensus protocol into a timeout adaptive protocol, showing how this can be done in a structured way and demonstrating the performance improvements that we achieve. Our results are particularly significant in networking environments subject to uncertain or varying end-to-end delays, such as wireless environments with several nodes contending for medium access. With the timeout adaptive solution the number of transmitted broadcasts per consensus execution is always kept small, despite the number of involved processes. In addition, the overall protocol latency is also improved when comparing to the static version.
Trade Policy 2006

The global momentum in favour of trade liberalisation has slowed down; and there is more liberalisation-scepticism post-Washington Consensus. Chances are that the Doha Round will either collapse or deliver a very modest result. Both outcomes will leave the WTO in very serious trouble. For the WTO to have future relevance, its members must restore a market-access focus, and arrest crippling UN-style decision making. But its days as a major vehicle for liberalisation are probably over. PTAs, however, are not a serious alternative. Nearly all are bitty sectoral deals rather than comprehensive WTO-plus agreements. They distract attention from unilateral reforms and the WTO; and they are undermining non-discriminatory multilateral rules. The silver lining is that liberalisation is likely to come from a different route: from unilateral example-setting and competitive emulation. China is now the unilateral engine of freer trade, and this will reverberate elsewhere, especially in its Asian neighbourhood. That, not trade negotiations, is more important to Asiaâ€™s unfolding transformation of the global economy. Multilateralism, especially a workable WTO, has its rightful place. But only if its means and ends are suitably modest and realistic.