Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An auto-zero charge preamplifier with “cold” discharge mechanism for ionising radiation sensors

A circuit technique is presented which eliminates the offset error in the output voltage of low-noise charge preamplifiers for ionising radiation sensors. Offset cancellation is obtained actively through a negative feedback path whose “error” variable is the offset itself. As a result the output voltage offset is automatically eliminated with no trimming, irrespective of the bias point of the input transistor and the dark current of the sensor. Using the proposed technique in a low-noise charge preamplifier for germanium detectors we obtained an output voltage offset ≪ 1 mV against an original offset of −291 mV. The output offset of these preamplifiers is typically in the range of - 500 mV to +100 mV, as mainly dictated by the bias voltage of the gate of the input Field Effect Transistor (FET). The noise of the preamplifier is unaffected by the offset cancellation circuit. In addition, an optional resistor permits reduction of the the fall time of the preamplifier by a factor of 1 to 10, while leaving unchanged the noise and the sensitivity of the charge preamplifier. This helps reduce the pileup at high count rates.
Flavihumibacter cheonanensis sp. nov., isolated from sediment of a shallow stream.

A Gram-reaction-positive, rod-shaped, strictly aerobic and non-motile bacterial strain, designated WS16(T), was isolated from the sediment of a shallow stream located in Cheonan, Korea. The strain grew optimally at 28 °C, at pH 7.0 and in the absence of NaCl. Phylogenetic trees based on 16S rRNA gene sequences suggested that the isolate belonged to the genus Flavihumibacter of the phylum Bacteroidetes. Comparative 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis showed that strain WS16(T) was related most closely to Flavihumibacter petaseus T41(T) (96.8 % similarity). The isolate contained MK-7 as the predominant menaquinone and iso-C15 : 0, iso-C15 : 1 and iso-C17 : 0 3-OH as the major fatty acids. The genomic DNA G+C content of the isolate was 45.9 mol%. The results of a polyphasic taxonomic approach indicated that strain WS16(T) represents a novel species of the genus Flavihumibacter, for which the name Flavihumibacter cheonanensis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is WS16(T) ( = KACC 17467(T) = JCM 19322(T)).
Test Plan and Results Supporting Advancement of RFC 2679 on the Standards Track

This memo provides the supporting test plan and results to advance RFC 2679 on one-way delay metrics along the Standards Track, following the process in RFC 6576. Observing that the metric definitions themselves should be the primary focus rather than the implementations of metrics, this memo describes the test procedures to evaluate specific metric requirement clauses to determine if the requirement has been interpreted and implemented as intended. Two completely independent implementations have been tested against the key specifications of RFC 2679. This memo also provides direct input for development of a revision of RFC 2679. This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is published for informational purposes.
Masculinized dominant females in a cooperatively breeding species

The molecular mechanisms underlying complex social behaviours such as dominance are largely unknown. Studying the cooperatively breeding African cichlid Neolamprologus pulcher, we show that dominant females were similar to dominant males in dominance behaviour, high testosterone levels and brain arginine vasotocin expression (a neuropeptide involved in vertebrate territorial, reproductive and social behaviours) compared to subordinate helpers, but had lower levels of 11‐ketotestosterone than males. Furthermore, brain gene expression profiles of dominant females were most similar to those of the males (independent of social rank). Dominant breeder females are masculinized at the molecular and hormonal level while being at the same time reproductively competent, suggesting a modular organization of molecular and endocrine functions, allowing for sex‐specific regulation.
Critical Role of the Proline-rich Region in Huntingtin for Aggregation and Cytotoxicity in Yeast*

Nine neurodegenerative diseases, such as Huntington, are caused by a polyglutamine (poly(Q)) expansion in otherwise unrelated proteins. Although poly(Q) expansion causes aggregation of the affected proteins, the protein context might determine the selective neuronal vulnerability found in each disease. Here we have report that, although expression of Huntingtin derivatives with a pathological poly(Q) expansion are innocuous in yeast, deletion of the flanking proline-rich region alters the shape and number of poly(Q) inclusions and unmasks toxic properties. Strikingly, deletion of Hsp104 increases the size of inclusions formed by expanded poly(Q) lacking the proline-rich region and abolishes toxicity. Overexpression of the chaperones Hsp104 or Hsp70 rescues growth defects in affected cells without resolving inclusions. However, aggregates formed by nontoxic Huntingtin derivatives or by toxic derivatives cured by chaperones are physically distinct from aggregates formed by toxic proteins. This study identifies the proline-rich region in Huntingtin as a profound cis-acting modulator of expanded poly(Q) toxicity and distinguishes between aggregates of toxic or non-toxic proteins.
Mechanisms of Collagen Network Organization in Response to Tissue/Organ Damage

Fibrosis is a part of the wound-healing response to tissue damage and characterized by excessive accumulation of mainly type I collagen-containing extracellular matrices (ECMs). Transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) is a profibrogenic master cytokine responsible for promoting differentiation of tissue-resident fibroblasts into myofibro‐ blasts, upregulation of ECM production, and downregulation of ECM degradation. The formation of ECM is an essential response in wound healing. Fibronectin is an ECM glycoprotein substantially expressed during tissue repair. Based on in vitro findings, it has been widely accepted that collagen network organization was exclusively fibronec‐ tin matrix dependent. Unexpectedly, our fibronectin conditional knockout mouse models have demonstrated a fibronectin-independent mechanism of collagen fibril formation following injury and identified TGF-β signaling and type V collagen as essential elements for collagen fibrillogenesis. Interestingly, the targeting of the TGF-β signaling alone, as proposed in some recent antifibrotic therapies of chronic fibrotic diseases, is not sufficient to completely prevent liver fibrosis. In this chapter, we focus on the present knowledge of the mechanisms of the collagen network organization following tissue/organ damage and pathological processes of chronic fibrotic diseases. receptor; LAP, latency associated protein; LLC, large latent complex; LOX, lysyl oxidase; LTBP, latent TGF-β-binding protein; MMP, matrix metalloproteinase; OB, obliterative bronchiolitis; SLRPs, small leucine-rich proteoglycans/proteins; TGF-β, transforming growth factor-β; TSP-1, Thrombospondin-1; TRI, TGF-β type I receptor; TRII, TGF-β type II receptor; TMLC, mink lung cell line; PAI-1, plasminogen activator inhibitor-1.
Intertemporal Asset Pricing with Heterogeneous Beliefs

Abstract We examine the behaviour of the interest rate, asset prices, and asset holdings in an economy with heterogeneous, rationally updated beliefs about the expected rate of production growth. The equilibrium interest rate is a weighted average of the interest rates that would prevail in economies populated by homogeneous agents with the beliefs of the respective agents in the heterogeneous model. The weights are given by the fractions of total wealth held. Financial innovation affects the dynamics of allocations and prices but preserves the aggregate output process and the structure of equilibrium: asset prices also display the wealth-weighted average characterization. Journal of Economic Literature Classification Numbers: C60, D52, D91, G12.
Do States Play Welfare Games

Abstract This paper uses a panel of state-level annual data from 1983 to 1994 for each of the contiguous United States and the District of Columbia, to explore the degree to which states simultaneously set welfare benefits. Using instrumental variables estimation, we find substantial empirical evidence that is supportive of the notion of welfare competition. Furthermore, we find that state responses to neighbor benefit decreases tend to be significantly larger in magnitude as their responses to neighbor benefit increases. Our results, therefore, have potential implications for public policy in the wake of the increased decentralization of welfare policy associated with the welfare reform of 1996.
The Determinants of Social Well-being, Economic Development, and Development Index in the Third World Countries

This study examines the relationship between social well-being and economic development in Third World countries, thus, involving human resources, economic, social, and technological factors. An attempt is made to answer the following question: What factors contribute to the formation of social well-being and economic development? The patterns of development theory are used to help answer this question. Secondary data were collected from various sources. The sample involved 103 countries from the Third World. The study used hierarchical regression and recursive path analysis as statistical methods. Results suggest that more than 66, 64, and 67 percent of the variance in social well-being, economic development, and development index, respectively, is explained by total population, population growth rate, percent of urban population, total exports, health indicators, and energy consumption per capita. This study suggests that there is more support for patterns of development analysis of structural change. Findings in this research demonstrate that social well-being in Third World countries is responsive to changes in the structure of population policy, technique of international trade, investment in social infrastructure, and improvements in energy efficiency.
Price discovery in the presence of boundedly rational agents

In this paper we propose a sequential model of security trading which, compared to existing models, is extended along the notions of (Simon, H.A., A behavioral model of rational choice. Quart. J. Econ., 1955, 64, 99–118; Rubinstein, A., Modeling Bounded Rationality, Zeuthen Lecture Book Series, 1998 (MIT Press: Cambridge, MA), and Odean, T. , Do investors trade too much? Am. Econ. Rev., 1999, 89(5), 1279–1298) by adding boundedly rational traders. Our results indicate that both momentum and mean-reversion in asset prices can be attributed to the presence of agents who are subject to systematic errors in the process of forecasting the liquidation value of a risky security. The length of the momentum period is inversely related to both the amount of information-based trading in the market and the rate at which asset specific information is learned by boundedly rational agents. Furthermore, the model allows explicitly to establish a link between the component of the bid–ask spread that can be explained by bounded rationality and both momentum and reversal.
Syncope in congestive heart failure.

A 50-year-old male was found on the street confused. He had little recollection about the event but thought he might have passed out. Recently he has had progressive exertional dyspnea and fatigue but no other specific complaints. He was admitted to the hospital for further evaluation and treatment. Physical examination revealed blood pressure of 120/80 without orthostatic changes. Carotid massage was negative. The lungs were clear. Cardiac examination revealed an S3 gallop. There was no peripheral oedema. ECG showed normal sinus rhythm and a left bundle branch block. Chest x-ray showed an enlarged heart and vascular redistribution. The echocardiogram showed a left ventricular ejection fraction of 35%. Coronary angiography revealed normal coronary arteries. Electrophysiology study was negative for inducible ventricular arrhythmias. This review addresses issues regarding the assessment and management of patients such as this with systolic heart failure and syncope.
Predictive ability of earnings and dividend yield: an empirical evaluation of New Zealand stocks

A number of recent studies in the USA have shown that in the long term, dividend yields are able to explain the stock returns to some extent. Earnings yield has also been often used by practitioners to forecast stock returns. The present paper examines the predictability of stock returns in the New Zealand stock market utilizing the three-month lagged dividend yield and earnings yield models. The study finds that both the three-month lagged dividend and earnings yield models have indeed some predictive power. Neither the regression nor the t-test used in the study reject the null that the models have some explanatory power.
Private equity and corporate governance: managing Brazilian SMEs

Purpose – This paper aims to identify the effectiveness of private equity and venture capital (PE/VC) funds in promoting best practices of corporate governance in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) committed to PE/VC partnerships, in an institutional environment characterized by ownership concentration, lack of support for minorities' shareholder rights, and limited outside sources of finance for SMEs. Design/methodology/approach – Based on the literature related to similar work and context as in Eastern Europe and South Africa and best corporate governance practices developed for Brazil, the authors developed a list of aspects associated to practices related to SMEs. This list was submitted to 15 specialists, and the resulting compilation produced a list of 49 items that were submitted to a sample of 78 respondents to evaluate the relative importance of each item. Finally, a survey comprised of 70 entrepreneurs and managers of SMEs with investments from PE/VC funds evaluated the situation of their compa.
Analytical and learning-based spectrum sensing time optimisation in cognitive radio systems

In this study, the average throughput maximisation of a secondary user (SU) by optimising its spectrum sensing time is formulated, assuming that a priori knowledge of the presence and absence probabilities of the primary users (PUs) is available. The energy consumed to find a transmission opportunity is evaluated, and a discussion on the impacts of the number of PUs on SU throughput and consumed energy are presented. To avoid the challenges associated with the analytical method, as a second solution, a systematic adaptive neural network-based sensing time optimisation approach is also proposed. The proposed scheme is able to find the optimum value of the channel sensing time without any prior knowledge or assumption about the wireless environment. The structure, performance and cooperation of the artificial neural networks used in the proposed method are explained in detail, and a set of illustrative simulation results is presented to validate the analytical results as well as the performance of the proposed learning-based optimisation scheme.
How to learn the many unwritten "rules of the game" of the academic discourse: a hybrid approach based on critiques and cases to support scientific writing

We present the computational and composition theoretical bases for the design of a collaborative writing tool, based on the critiquing approach, to assist non-native novice researchers in understanding and production of the structure of scientific papers. This critiquing tool is embedded in a suite named AMADEUS that caters for various needs of non-native English users to produce a first draft of a paper, relying on the reuse of contextualized linguistic material as input for the user. Our emphasis is on the architecture and methodology to build the linguistic resources for the critiquing tool. Though originally targeted at non-native authors, the critiquing tool may also be useful for novice native English writers and as a teaching resource for English for Academic Purposes practitioners.
Dissecting the Roles of MicroRNAs in Coronary Heart Disease via Integrative Genomic Analyses

Objective— The roles of microRNAs (miRNAs) in coronary heart disease (CHD) have not been well characterized. This study sought to systematically characterize the complex genomic architecture of CHD by integrating whole blood miRNA and mRNA expression with genetic variation in 186 CHD cases and 186 controls. Approach and Results— At false discovery rate <0.2, 15 miRNAs were differentially expressed between CHD cases and controls. To explore regulatory mechanisms, we integrated miRNA and mRNA expression with genome-wide genotype data to investigate miRNA and mRNA associations and relationships of genetic variation with miRNAs. We identified a large number of correlated miRNA–mRNA pairs and genetic loci that seem to regulate miRNA levels. Subsequently, we explored the relationships of these complex molecular associations with CHD status. We identified a large difference in miRNA–mRNA associations between CHD cases and controls, as demonstrated by a significantly higher proportion of inversely correlated miRNA–mRNA pairs in cases versus controls (80% versus 30%; P<1×10−16), suggesting a genome-wide shift in the regulatory structure of the transcriptome in CHD. The differentially coexpressed miRNA–mRNA pairs showed enrichment for CHD risk genetic variants affecting both miRNA and mRNA expression levels, implicating a putatively causal role in CHD. Furthermore, 3 miRNAs (miR-1275, miR-365a-3p, and miR-150-5p) were associated with an mRNA coexpression module that was causally linked to CHD and reflected the dysregulation of B-cell centered immune function. Conclusions— Our results provide novel evidence that miRNAs are important regulators of biological processes involved in CHD via genetic control and via their tight coexpression with mRNAs.
Energy crises and cooperation: Do international institutions matter?

ENERGY CRISES AND COOPERATION: DO INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTIONS MATTER? Vessela P. Chakarova Old Dominion University, 2010 Director: Dr. Kurt Taylor Gaubatz The risk of an oil supply disruption still exists. Oil reserves are increasingly concentrated in a handful of unreliable regimes, plagued by piracy and terrorism. Natural disasters and chokepoint incidents have increased in frequency. In addition, oil is expected to remain a significant part of the energy mix up until 2030. By that time Europe will be importing 90% of its oil. Thus, oil supply security will become an increasingly important feature of European politics. One way to counter the noxious consequences of an oil disruption is to cooperate. International cooperation is a critical factor in any type of crisis, however, it is especially important when it comes to a finite, highly concentrated and critical commodity like oil. The lack of coordination might lead to scrambling and oil hoarding, which dramatically exacerbate the crisis. Yet cooperation in the oil issue-area has been the subject of only a few studies, none of which provides a systematic and comprehensive analysis. They are also limited in their scope and findings. This dissertation aims to partially fill this lacuna. It employs a structured focused comparison to study European consumer countries' cooperation in times of oil supply shortages. There have been fifteen such crises since the Second World War, three of which with dramatic consequences for the world economy. The analysis evaluates European cooperative efforts in seven of these cases, starting with the Abadan crisis in 1951. The cases are selected on the basis of their magnitude and economic impact. In particular, I look at intergovernmental negotiations within existing international bodies prior to, during and immediately after the crisis. The findings suggest that institutions are more likely to facilitate interstate cooperation in the presence of a strong leader (a hegemon) a role, which in the case of the oil issue-area was assumed by the US until the early 1970s. Copyright, 2010, by Vessela P. Chakarova, All Rights Reserved. This dissertation is dedicated to my parents Valkana Chakarova and Plamen Chakarov with much gratitude.
Risky Human Capital Formation Requires Siamese Twins

Based on the OLG-model and the two-bracket labor tax system by Nielsen and Sorensen (1997), we model an economy, where human capital formation is liable to idiosyncratic risk. We show that, compared to a standard Eaton and Rosen (1980) world, extending the instruments available for the government to progressive taxation and education subsidies generalizes the “Siamese Twins”-result by Bovenberg and Jacobs (2005) to the case of risky labor income. Hereby, progressivity is a superior instrument for insurance, and education subsidies are again used in order to alleviate efficiency losses.
The effect of taxes on labor supply in the underground economy

This paper uses micro data from a randomized survey carried out in the metropolitan area of Quebec City, Canada, to analyze the decision to evade taxes and work in the 'underground' economy. The results indicate that taxes distort labor-market activities away from the regular sector to the underground sector but the distortion is small for the average worker. The distortion is large, however, for particular groups of the population such as welfare claimants. Copyright 1994 by American Economic Association.
Achievable Rates for Embedded Bidirectional Relaying in a Cellular Downlink

In this work we provide an achievable rate region for the cellular downlink with three users where two users want to communicate with each other. Due to the side information from the prior uplink, gains are achievable by combining bidirectional and classical broadcast channel coding strategies. A coding theorem for the bidirectional broadcast channel with random state non-causally known at the encoder is generalized to continuous alphabets and applied to Gaussian channels with an average power constraint. The single-user capacities are achievable if one decoder additionally knows the channel state. Accordingly, we see that a more comprehensive view on the information flow in a multi-user network can lead to a larger achievable rate region.