Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Is the sky the limit? High-rise buildings and office rents

Modern central business districts are characterized by high-rise office buildings, but their presence cannot be explained by standard urban economic models only. We aim to explore the impact of other forces that explain the presence of tall buildings, by examining the existence of a building height premium. We find that Dutch firms are willing to pay on average about 4% more for a building that is 10m taller, implying a substantial premium associated with tall buildings. This premium is thought to be due to a combination of a within-building agglomeration economies, a landmark and a view effect. Given functional form assumptions on the agglomeration effect, the results suggest that the sum of the landmark and view effect is about 2.8–5.5% of the rent for a building that is five times the average height.
Re-Optimization MVPP Using Common Subexpression for Materialized View Selection

— A Data Warehouses is a repository of information integrated from source data. Information stored in data warehouse is the form of materialized in order to provide the better performance for answering the queries. Deciding which appropriated views to be materialized is one of important problem. In order to achieve this requirement, the constructing search space close to optimal is a necessary task. It will provide effective result for selecting view to be materialized. In this paper we have proposed an approach to re-optimize Multiple View Processing Plan (MVPP) by using global common subexpressions. The merged queries which have query processing cost not close to optimal would be rewritten. The experiment shows that our approach can help to improve the total query processing cost of MVPP and sum of query processing cost and materialized view maintenance cost is reduced as well after views are selected to be materialized.
Automatic generalized phase abstraction for formal verification

A standard approach to improving circuit performance is to use an N-phase design style where combinational logic is interspersed freely between level sensitive latches controlled by separate clocks. Unfortunately, the use of an N-phase design style will increase the number of state variables by a factor of N, making formal verification many orders of magnitude harder. Previous approaches to solving this problem restrict the kind of designs that can be handled severely and construct an abstracted netlist with fewer state variables by a syntactic analysis that requires the user to identify clocks. We extend the current state of the art by introducing a phase abstraction algorithm that (1) poses no restrictions on the design style that can be used, that (2) avoids an error prone syntactic analysis, that (3) requires no input from users, and that (4) can be integrated into any model checker without requiring HDL code analysis.
Virtual evolution for visual search in natural images results in behavioral receptive fields with inhibitory surrounds

Abstract The neural mechanisms driving perception and saccades during search use information about the target but are also based on an inhibitory surround not present in the target luminance profile (e.g., Eckstein et al., 2007). Here, we ask whether these inhibitory surrounds might reflect a strategy that the brain has adapted to optimize the search for targets in natural scenes. To test this hypothesis, we sought to estimate the best linear template (behavioral receptive field), built from linear combinations of Gabor channels representing V1 simple cells in search for an additive Gaussian target embedded in natural images. Statistically nonstationary and non-Gaussian properties of natural scenes preclude calculation of the best linear template from analytic expressions and require an iterative optimization method such as a virtual evolution via a genetic algorithm. Evolved linear receptive fields built from linear combinations of Gabor functions include substantial inhibitory surround, larger than those found in humans performing target search in white noise. The inhibitory surrounds were robust to changes in the contrast of the signal, generalized to a larger calibrated natural image data set, and tasks in which the signal occluded other objects in the image. We show that channel nonlinearities can have strong effects on the observed linear behavioral receptive field but preserve the inhibitory surrounds. Together, the results suggest that the apparent suboptimality of inhibitory surrounds in human behavioral receptive fields when searching for a target in white noise might reflect a strategy to optimize detection of signals in natural scenes. Finally, we contend that optimized linear detection of spatially compact signals in natural images might be a new possible hypothesis, distinct from decorrelation of visual input and sparse representations (e.g., Graham et al., 2006), to explain the evolution of center–surround organization of receptive fields in early vision.
A 100Mphoton/s time-resolved mini-silicon photomultiplier with on-chip fluorescence lifetime estimation in 0.13μm CMOS imaging technology

Time-correlated single photon counting (TCSPC) is a technique whereby low-light signals are recorded with picosecond timing resolution relative to a synchronized optical impulse excitation, in order to extract the characteristic fluorescence decay constant, or lifetime [1]. Typical TCSPC apparatus includes a pulsed optical source, a discrete detector such as an avalanche photodiode (APD) or photomultiplier tube (PMT), external time-to-digital conversion (TDC) hardware and a PC to compute the decay constant, resulting in a bulky, expensive and power-hungry acquisition system. A major limitation of this approach is the restrictively low photon count limit of 1-to-5% of the excitation rate, which is necessary in order to avoid distortion due to photon `pile-up' caused by both long detector dead-time and the inability of the TDC hardware to process more than one event per excitation period. As such, promising applications of TCSPC including cell cytometry, confocal microscopy, high throughput screening (HTS), and functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) are severely limited by peak acquisition rates of 1MHz. Although 100MHz has been achieved [2], the approach used is restricted to fluorescent dyes with lifetimes less than 2ns. Recent advances in single-photon avalanche diodes (SPADs) and on-chip TDCs manufactured in standard CMOS processes have enabled TCSPC measurements to be performed by an imaging array [3]; however such devices produce data at over 25Gb/s, have low fill factors of ~2% and pixel update rates are limited. Time-gated lifetime sensing significantly reduces the data bandwidth and processing time [4,5], but is photon inefficient and still limited by pile-up.
Loss of MeCP2 in aminergic neurons causes cell-autonomous defects in neurotransmitter synthesis and specific behavioral abnormalities

Rett syndrome (RTT) is characterized by specific motor, cognitive, and behavioral deficits. Because several of these abnormalities occur in other disease states associated with alterations in aminergic neurotransmitters, we investigated the contribution of such alterations to RTT pathogenesis. We found that both individuals with RTT and Mecp2-null mice have lower-than-normal levels of aminergic metabolites and content. Deleting Mecp2 from either TH-positive dopaminergic and noradrenergic neurons or PET1-positive serotonergic neurons in mice decreased corresponding neurotransmitter concentration and specific phenotypes, likely through MeCP2 regulation of rate-limiting enzymes involved in aminergic neurotransmitter production. These data support a cell-autonomous, MeCP2-dependent mechanism for the regulation of aminergic neurotransmitter synthesis contributing to unique behavioral phenotypes.
Outcome Knowledge, Regret, and Omission Bias

Subjects made or evaluated decisions in hypothetical scenarios. We manipulated knowledge about the outcome and act vs omission in four cases. In case 1 (production processes), acts (changing the process) were considered better than omissions when the decision maker did not know the outcome or knew that it was better than the status quo. Acts were considered worse than omissions once the decision maker learned that the foregone option would have led to an even better outcome. In case 2 (medical treatment), act vs omission again interacted with gain vs loss (relative to the status quo) unless the outcome of the foregone option was known, in which case act vs omission interacted with better vs worse (of the two options). In case 3 (fetal testing), subjects tolerated less risk of miscarriage when a potential for regret was present (because the test with the risk of miscarriage, although better, might miss disorders that another test would detect). This effect was greater for actions than omissions. In case 4 (vaccination), subjects showed less tolerance of vaccine risk when the decision maker would know about the outcome of vaccination or nonvaccination. Thus, the bias toward omission (not vaccinating) is greater when potential regret is present, and potential regret is greater when knowledge of outcomes is expected.
Entrepreneurial Culture and Economic Growth: Revisiting McClelland's Thesis

We reestimate McClelland's (1961) thesis on entrepreneurial culture and economic development. McClelland found a strong positive correlation between measures of need for achievement ("N" achievement) imagery in school textbooks and the subsequent rate of economic growth. Benchmarking our findings against generally accepted empirical growth models, we find no support for his thesis. This leads us to rethink the relationship between entrepreneurial culture and economic growth. Copyright © 2008 American Journal of Economics and Sociology, Inc.
Chapitre 2 / La décentralisation, la structure du financement et les jeux de transfert de l'impopularité en France

L’etude des relations financieres et fiscales intergouvernementales constitue une branche dynamique de la science politique et de l’economie dans les pays anglo-saxons a structure federale, matiere largement meconnue dans les pays unitaires comme la France. Apres en avoir presente l’objet et quelques grands questionnements et apports, on soulignera l’ampleur des decalages entre modeles theoriques de repartition des competences et responsabilites fiscales, et realites empiriques : les gouvernements infranationaux sont incapables de couvrir leurs depenses par des revenus autonomes, ce qui implique des transferts verticaux, qui erodent les responsabilites fiscales ; la repartition des competences entre les niveaux de gouvernement est floue. Ces phenomenes nourrissent des comportements de transfert de blâme entre les elites de differents niveaux. Ce chapitre le montre a partir d’une relecture de trente annees de relations financieres intergouvernementales en France. Il souligne au final que la decentralisation a pu creer un terreau favorable au developpement de comportements opportunistes, de la part des elites tant centrales que locales, et presente une etude des reformes recentes des finances et de la fiscalite locales, reformes qui s’efforcent de reguler a ces compromis inflationnistes.
Influence of CD4 or CD8 deficiency on collagen‐induced arthritis

The role of T cells in the mouse collagen‐induced arthritis (CIA) model for rheumatoid arthritis is not clarified, and different results have been reported concerning the role of CD4 and CD8 T cells. To address this issue, we have investigated B10.Q mice deficient for CD4 or CD8. The mice lacking CD4 were found to be less susceptible to disease, but not completely resistant, whereas the CD8 deficiency had no significant impact on the disease. No difference in the development of late occurring relapses was noted. Interestingly, the CD4‐deficient mice had a severely reduced response to the glycosylated form of the immunodominant type II collagen (CII) 256–270 peptide whereas the response to the non‐glycosylated peptide was not significantly different. Furthermore, CD4‐deficient mice had lower antibody responses to CII, explaining the lower disease susceptibility. In comparison with previously reported results, it is apparent that the lack of CD4 molecules has a different impact on CIA if present on different genetic backgrounds, findings that could possibly be related to the occurrence of different disease pathways of CIA in different mouse strains.
Pancreatic cancer cells surviving gemcitabine treatment express markers of stem cell differentiation and epithelial-mesenchymal transition.

Objective response rates to standard chemotherapeutic regimens remain low in pancreatic cancer. Subpopulations of cells have been identified in various solid tumors which express stem cell-associated markers and are associated with increased resistance against radiochemotherapy. We investigated the expression of stem cell genes and markers of epithelial-mesenchymal transition in pancreatic cancer cells that survived high concentrations of gemcitabine treatment. Capan-1 and Panc-1 cells were continuously incubated with 1 and 10 µM gemcitabine. Surviving cells were collected after 1, 3 and 6 days. Expression of PDX-1, SHH, CD24, CD44, CD133, EpCAM, CBX7, OCT4, SNAIL, SLUG, TWIST, Ki-67, E-cadherin, β-catenin and vimentin were quantified by qPCR or immunocytochemistry. Migration was assessed by wound‑healing assay. SHH was knocked down using RNA interference. Five primary pancreatic cancer cell lines were used to validate the qPCR results. All investigated genes were upregulated after 6 days of gemcitabine incubation. Highest relative expression levels were observed for OCT4 (13.4-fold), CD24 (47.3-fold) and EpCAM (15.9-fold) in Capan-1 and PDX-1 (13.3‑fold), SHH (24.1-fold), CD44 (17.4-fold), CD133 (20.2-fold) and SLUG (15.2-fold) in Panc-1 cells. Distinct upregulation patterns were observed in the primary cells. Migration was increased in Panc-1 cells and changes in the expression of E-cadherin and β-catenin were typical of epithelial-mesenchymal transition in both cell lines. SHH knockdown reduced IC(50) from 30.1 to 27.6 nM in Capan-1 while it strongly inhibited proli-feration in Panc-1 cells. Cells surviving high-dose gemcitabine treatment express increased levels of stem cell genes, show characteristics associated with epithelial-mesenchymal transition and retain their proliferative capacity.
Patterns of autism diagnostic assessment in Ireland

A retrospective analysis was carried out on the diagnostic assessments of 67 children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), in order to (1) examine the use of assessment instruments used to diagnose autism and whether they reflect the critical domain areas requiring assessment, (2) evaluate whether the information reported in initial assessments is such that they will facilitate subsequent evaluation of progress across developmental domains, and (3) examine the nature and type of interventions recommended. Results indicated that over one-quarter of all assessments did not include a measure of adaptive functioning and almost one-third did not include a measure of intellectual functioning. Furthermore, a substantial number of assessments did not provide enough information to evaluate progress after diagnosis across these domains. Results also suggest that children with autism rarely receive a follow-up assessment following diagnosis. The most common recommendations in relation to intervention were placeme.
Post-training support for learning technology

To examine the effects of post-training support, we studied the introduction of new gradebook software in a public high school. The school's 108 faculty members received training on the software, and approximately half of the faculty received post-training support for eight weeks. The study measured the faculty's current computer usage, usage of earlier versions of the software, and their perceived skill levels in using the software. The data suggest that the faculty members who received post-training support maintained and raised their skill levels, while unsupported faculty had their skill levels decline.
Statistical Model for MOSFET Bias Temperature Instability Component Due to Charge Trapping

Bias temperature instability (BTI) is a serious reliability concern for MOS transistors. This paper covers theoretical analysis, Monte Carlo simulation, and experimental investigation of the charge trapping component of BTI. An analytical model for both stress and recovery phases of BTI is presented. Furthermore, the model properly describes device behavior under periodic switching, also called AC-BTI or cyclostationary operation. The model is based on microscopic device physics parameters, which are shown to cause statistical variation in transistor BTI behavior. It is shown that a universal logarithmic law describes the time dependence of charge trapping in both stress and recovery phases, and that the time dependence may be separated from the temperature and bias point dependence. Analytical equations for the statistical parameters are provided. The model is compared with experimental data and Monte Carlo simulation results.
Rice ABCG43 Is Cd Inducible and Confers Cd Tolerance on Yeast

An understanding of the cadmium (Cd) transport system in rice can serve as a basis for coping with Cd-related problems in rice and human health. To identify a new gene involved in Cd transport in rice, we screened our yeast library, expressing 140 kinds of rice ATP binding cassette (ABC)-type transporters. From the screening, we found that OsABCG43/PDR5 conferred high Cd tolerance on yeast. The Cd concentration of yeast carrying OsABCG43 was similar to that of the vector control. The OsABCG43 transcript was detected both in shoots and roots. Accumulation of it was elevated by Cd treatment in the roots but not in the shoots. This study indicates that OsABCG43 is a Cd inducible-transporter gene capable of conferring Cd tolerance on yeast.
Dietary Diversity Is Positively Associated with Deviation from Expected Height in Rural Nepal123

Background: Recent research has highlighted the need for additional studies on the nutrition input required to stabilize growth. Objective: Our objective was to examine the association between dietary diversity and conditional growth in children aged 0–89 mo. Methods: We analyzed cohort data from 529 mothers and children living in a remote and food-insecure region in the mountains of Nepal. Children were aged 0–59 mo at baseline and were followed up after 9 and 29 mo. Conditional growth was calculated as the deviation from the expected height-for-age difference (HAD) trajectory based on previous measures of HAD and the pattern of growth in the population. Dietary diversity was assessed with the use of a count of the foods consumed from 7 food groups in the previous 7 d. The association between dietary diversity and conditional growth during the 2 follow-up periods (of 9 and 20 mo, respectively) was estimated with the use of ordinary least-squares regressions. Results: Prevalence of stunting and absolute height deficits was very high and increased over the course of the study. At the last measurement (age range 29–89 mo), 76.5% were stunted and the mean ± SD HAD was −11.7 ± 4.6 cm. Dietary diversity was associated positively with conditional growth in the later (May 2012–December 2013) but not the earlier (July 2011–May 2012) growth period. Children’s ages ranged from 0 to 59 mo in July 2011, 9 to 69 mo in May 2012, and 29 to 89 mo in December 2013. After adjustment, increasing the dietary diversity by one food group was associated with a 0.09 cm (95% CI: 0.00, 0.17 cm) increase in conditional growth in the second growth period. Conclusions: Increasing dietary diversity for children reduces the risk of stunting and improves growth after growth faltering. Future efforts should be directed at enabling families in food-insecure areas to feed their children a more diverse diet.
What Are the Gains from Pension Reform

This paper presents a unified analytical framework for the analysis of social security reform. It discusses reform along two dimensions: Pay-As-You-Go versus fully funded on the one hand, and actuarial versus non-actuarial on the other. Making the system more actuarial entails a trade-off between less distorted work incentives and intra-generational redistribution. Increasing the degree of funding entails a trade-off between more distorted work incentives, and redistribution in favor of future generations. If a PAYGO system already has strong actuarial elements, the additional welfare gain from making it fully funded derives from the possibility of portfolio diversification.
Evaluación de cambios en el nivel de depresión de usuarios de un programa de bienestar

Objetivo La evaluacion de impacto de un programa comunitario algunas veces se basa en tecnicas estadisticas como modelos de regresion lineal, y tiene como objetivo cuantificar su efecto sobre aspectos sociales o el bienestar general de la comunidad. No es frecuente utilizar tecnicas estadisticas con estructura de correlacion entre los sujetos evaluados que permitan modelar variables de tipo social, o sicologica. Esta estrategia de analisis incorpora mas informacion y por lo tanto debe producir resultados mas precisos. Metodos En este trabajo se muestra una evaluacion de impacto de los efectos producidos sobre el nivel de depresion de una poblacion participante de un grupo de acciones del INDER Medellin en el ano 2005, usando modelos lineales mixtos. Resultados Se identificaron variables importantes que reflejan resultados de impacto positivos, como el tiempo de intervencion y la edad. Conclusiones Participar en las actividades de bienestar del INDER contribuye a disminuir los niveles de depresion.
Microsatellite markers linked to drought resistance in rice (Oryza sativa L.)

Among the abiotic stresses, drought is a serious limiting factor that reduces rice production and yield stability in rainfed ecosystems. Conventional breeding for drought resistance is slow in attaining progress due to poor understanding of genetic control of drought resistance. Molecular markers help in identification of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) associated with drought resistance traits and their indirect selection using marker assisted selection. But QTL mapping requires genotyping of large mapping progenies demanding time and labour. Bulked segregant analysis (BSA) serves as an alternative approach for rapid identification of markers associated with drought resistance traits. BSA was carried out to identify markers linked to drought resistance using 23 recombinant inbred (RI) lines of IR20/Nootripathu, two indica ecotypes with extreme drought response. The parents were screened for polymorphism using 1206 rice microsatellite primer pairs. Out of 134 SSR polymorphic primers between parents, three primers showed polymorphism between bulks. These three primers co-segregated among the individual RI lines constituting the respective bulks. The genomic regions flanked by these markers have been reported to be associated with several drought resistance component traits and will be useful in marker assisted breeding for drought resistance in rice.