Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
‘Dual’ Gravity: Using Spatial Econometrics To Control For Multilateral Resistance

We propose a quantity-based "dual" version of the gravity equation that yields an estimating equation with both cross-sectional interdependence and spatially lagged error terms. Such an equation can be concisely estimated using spatial econometric techniques. We illustrate this methodology by applying it to the Canada-U.S. data set used previously, among others, by Anderson and van Wincoop (2003) and Feenstra (2002, 2004). Our key result is to show that controlling directly for spatial interdependence across trade flows, as suggested by theory, significantly reduces border effects because it captures "multilateral resistance". Using a spatial autoregressive moving average specification, we find that border effects between the U.S. and Canada are smaller than in previous studies : about 8 for Canadian provinces and about 1.3 for U.S. states. Yet, heterogeneous coefficient estimations reveal that there is much variation across provinces and states. (This abstract was borrowed from another version of this item.)
Building a Morphological Treebank for German from a Linguistic Database

German is a language with complex morphological processes. Its long and often ambiguous word forms present a bottleneck problem in natural language processing. As a step towards morphological analyses of high quality, this paper introduces a morphological treebank for German. It is derived from the linguistic database CELEX which is a standard resource for German morphology. We build on its refurbished, modernized and partially revised version. The derivation of the morphological trees is not trivial, especially for such cases of conversions which are morpho-semantically opaque and merely of diachronic interest. We develop solutions and present exemplary analyses. The resulting database comprises about 40,000 morphological trees of a German base vocabulary whose format and grade of detail can be chosen according to the requirements of the applications. The Perl scripts for the generation of the treebank are publicly available on github. In our discussion, we show some future directions for morphological treebanks. In particular, we aim at the combination with other reliable lexical resources such as GermaNet.
Degradation of recombinant proteins by Chinese hamster ovary host cell proteases is prevented by matriptase‐1 knockout

An increasing number of nonantibody format proteins are entering clinical development. However, one of the major hurdles for the production of nonantibody glycoproteins is host cell–related proteolytic degradation, which can drastically impact developability and timelines of pipeline projects. Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells are the preferred production host for recombinant therapeutic proteins. Using protease inhibitors, transcriptomics, and genetic knockdowns, we have identified, out of the >700 known proteases in rodents, matriptase‐1 as the major protease involved in the degradation of recombinant proteins expressed in CHO‐K1 cells. Subsequently, matriptase‐1 was deleted in CHO‐K1 cells using “transcription activator‐like effector nucleases” (TALENs) as well as zinc‐finger nucleases (ZFNs). This resulted in a superior CHO‐K1 matriptase (KO) cell line with strongly reduced or no proteolytic degradation activity toward a panel of recombinantly expressed proteins. The matriptase KO cell line was evaluated in spike‐in experiments and showed little or no degradation of proteins incubated in culture supernatant derived from the KO cells. This effect was confirmed when the same proteins were recombinantly expressed in the KO cell line. In summary, the combination of novel cell line engineering tools, next‐generation sequencing screening methods, and the recently published Chinese hamster genome has enabled the development of this novel matriptase KO CHO cell line capable of improving expression yields of intact therapeutic proteins.
Health, Work Capacity and Retirement in Sweden

Following an era of a development towards earlier retirement, there has been a reversed trend to later exit from the labor market in Sweden since the late 1990s. We investigate whether or not there are potentials, with respect to health and work capacity of the population, for extending this trend further. We use two different methods. First, the Milligan and Wise (2012) method, which calculates how much people would participate in the labor force at a constant mortality rate. Second, the Cutler et al. (2012) method, which asks how much people would participate in the labor force if they would work as much as the age group 50-54 at a particular level of health. We also provide evidence on the development of self-assessed health and health inequality in the Swedish population.
How to Reconstitute Democracy

Europeanization and globalization are frequently held to undermine national democracy. What are then the prospects for democracy in the multi-level constellation that makes up the contemporary European political order? The European debate has taken the question of democracy beyond the nation state. But can there be democracy without nation and state? The authors present three different models for how democracy can be reconstituted within the multileveled European context. It can be reconstituted at the national level, as delegated democracy with a concomitant reframing of the EU as a functional regulatory regime. Democracy can be reconstituted through establishing the EU as a multi-national state based on a common identity(ies) and solidaristic allegiance strong enough to undertake collective action. Democracy can also be reconstituted through the development of a post-national Union with an explicit cosmopolitan imprint. This entails an EU with some governmental functions, and which actively takes measures to become a regional cosmopolitan entity in a reformed world order. These are the only viable models of European democracy, as these are the only ones that can ensure equal membership in a self-governing polity. They differ however with regard to both applicability and robustness.
In Vitro Cytotoxicity and In Vivo Antimammary Tumor Effects of the Hydroethanolic Extract of Acacia seyal (Mimosaceae) Stem Bark

The present study was designed to evaluate the in vitro and in vivo antitumor effects of A. seyal hydroethanolic extract on breast cancer. The cytotoxicity of A. seyal extract was evaluated using resazurin reduction assay in 9 cell lines. Further, the protective effect of the hydroethanolic extract of A. seyal stem barks was evaluated on 7,12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene- (DMBA-) induced breast cancer rat model. Incidence, burden, volume, and histological analysis of mammary tumors were measured. The Acacia seyal extract exhibited CC50 of 100 in MCF-7 cells after 24 h. In vivo, no tumors were detected in rats from the control group, while 11 rats out of 12 (91.66%) developed mammary tumors in the DMBA-exposed group receiving only the vehicle. Acacia seyal extract significantly (p < 0.01) and in the dose-dependent manner reduced tumor incidence (3 rats out of 12 at the dose of 300 mg/kg), burden [62.1% (150 mg/kg) and 65.8% (300 mg/kg)], and mass. It protected rats against DMBA-induced breast hyperplasia, with an optimal effect at the dose of 300 mg/kg. Taken altogether, these results suggest that the hydroethanolic extract of Acacia seyal might contain phytoconstituents endowed with antitumoral properties, which could protect against the breast cancer induced in rats.
The Relationships between Annual Inequality, and Subannual Inequality and Mobility: Evidence from Germany

We study the relationships, for the case of Germany, between inequality in the annual earnings distribution, and subannual inequality and mobility during the course of the year. The study builds on an exact decomposition framework outlined in Wodon and Yitzhaki (2003), and in Yitzhaki and Wodon (2004). The study shows that inequality in the subannual monthly earnings distributions is significantly higher than in the annual earnings distribution. Further, it shows that the mobility component of the decomposition, as measured by Gini correlation coefficients, changes over the observation period. That it changes makes it difficult to predict the impact of the income accounting period on inequality in a more general context. Thus, in distributional analyses it is of paramount importance to use income data from a uniform accounting period.
Decadal trends in the seasonal-cycle amplitude of terrestrial CO2 exchange resulting from the ensemble of terrestrial biosphere models

The seasonal-cycle amplitude (SCA) of the atmosphere–ecosystem carbon dioxide (CO2) exchange rate is a useful metric of the responsiveness of the terrestrial biosphere to environmental variations. It is unclear, however, what underlying mechanisms are responsible for the observed increasing trend of SCA in atmospheric CO2 concentration. Using output data from the Multi-scale Terrestrial Model Intercomparison Project (MsTMIP), we investigated how well the SCA of atmosphere–ecosystem CO2 exchange was simulated with 15 contemporary terrestrial ecosystem models during the period 1901–2010. Also, we made attempt to evaluate the contributions of potential mechanisms such as atmospheric CO2, climate, land-use, and nitrogen deposition, through factorial experiments using different combinations of forcing data. Under contemporary conditions, the simulated global-scale SCA of the cumulative net ecosystem carbon flux of most models was comparable in magnitude with the SCA of atmospheric CO2 concentrations. Results from factorial simulation experiments showed that elevated atmospheric CO2 exerted a strong influence on the seasonality amplification. When the model considered not only climate change but also land-use and atmospheric CO2 changes, the majority of the models showed amplification trends of the SCAs of photosynthesis, respiration, and net ecosystem production (+0.19 % to +0.50 % yr−1). In the case of land-use change, it was difficult to separate the contribution of agricultural management to SCA because of inadequacies in both the data and models. The simulated amplification of SCA was approximately consistent with the observational evidence of the SCA in atmospheric CO2 concentrations. Large inter-model differences remained, however, in the simulated global tendencies and spatial patterns of CO2 exchanges. Further studies are required to identify a consistent explanation for the simulated and observed amplification trends, including their underlying mechanisms. Nevertheless, this study implied that monitoring of ecosystem seasonality would provide useful insights concerning ecosystem dynamics.
Basking Shark (Cetorhinus maximus) Movements in the Eastern North Pacific Determined Using Satellite Telemetry

To fill data gaps on movements, behaviors and habitat use both near- and offshore, two programs were initiated to deploy satellite tags on basking sharks. Basking sharks are large filter feeding sharks that are second in size only to whale sharks. Similar to many megafauna populations, available data suggest that populations are below historic levels. In the northeast Pacific Ocean, the limited information on basking sharks comes from nearshore habitats where they forage. From 2010-2011, four sharks were tagged with pop-off satellite archival tags with deployments ranging from 9-240 days. The tags provided both transmitted and archived data on habitat use and geographic movement patterns. Nearshore, sharks tended to move north in the summer and prefer shelf and slope habitat around San Diego, Point Conception and Monterey Bay. The two sharks with 180 and 240 day deployments left the coast in the summer and fall. Offshore their paths diverged and by January one shark had moved to near the tip of the Baja Peninsula, Mexico and the other to the waters near Hawaii, USA. Vertical habitat use was variable both within and among individuals and changed as sharks moved offshore. Nearshore, most time was spent in the mixed layer but sharks did spend hours in cold waters below the mixed layer. Offshore vertical movements depended on location. The shark that went to Hawaii had a distinct diel pattern, with days spent at ~450-470 m and nights at ~250-300 m and almost no time in surface waters, corresponding with the diel migration of a specific portion of the deep scattering layer. The shark that moved south along the Baja Peninsula spent progressively more time in deep water but came to the surface daily. Movement patterns and shifts in vertical habitat and use are likely linked to shifts in prey availability. Data collected indicate the potential for large-scale movements and the need for international dialogue in any recovery efforts.
Equilibrium Illusion and Evolutionary Foundation in Economic Theory

It is widely believed that equilibrium framework based on optimization and representative agent model provides a consistent framework in micro, macro, finance, and institutional economics. However, new discoveries based on non-linear nonequilibrium methodology revealed unrealistic theories and weak evidence of equilibrium economics. The self-stabilizing market and institutional convergence are far from industrial economy with nonlinear interaction and social behavior. The new science of complexity offers powerful tools for developing quantitative framework of
EXOGENOUS GLUTAMINE INCREASES LIPID ACCUMULATION IN DEVELOPING SEEDS OF CASTOR BEAN (RICINUS COMMUNIS L.) CULTURED IN VITRO

This report describes biomass production and compositional changes of developing castor seeds in response to change in the nitrogen resource (glutamine) of the medium. During the early developmental period (24-36 days after pollination), oil was found to initially accumulate in the developing seeds. Carbohydrates and oil were inversely related after glutamine provision (35 mM, in the culture medium). [U-C-14] sucrose labeling was used to investigate the effect of metabolic fluxes among different storage materials. Addition of glutamine led to a 7% increase of labeling in lipids and an inverse decrease of labeling in carbohydrates. It was postulated that changes in the glutamine concentration in the medium are likely to influence the partitioning of resources between the various storage products, especially carbohydrates and oil. These observations will contribute to a better understanding of assimilate partitioning in developing castor seeds and the development of molecular strategies to improve castor bean seed quality and plant breeding studies.
Influence of Particle Size and Alkaline Pretreatment on the Anaerobic Digestion of Corn Stover

The influence of particle size and an alkaline pretreatment on the anaerobic digestion of corn stover was studied. Four particle sizes, 0.075 to 0.25, 0.25 to 1.0, 1.0 to 5.0, and 5.0 to 20.0 mm, were used. The highest and lowest methane yields were obtained from untreated corn stover at particle sizes of 0.25 to 1.0 and 5.0 to 20.0 mm, respectively. 4% NaOH and 2% Ca(OH)2 (combined alkaline pretreatment, CAP) were then used together to pretreat corn stover at these two particle sizes, compared with 6% NaOH pretreatment (single alkaline pretreatment, SAP). The cumulative methane yields from particle sizes 0.25 to 1.0 mm after CAP, 0.25 to 1.0 mm after SAP, 5.0 to 20.0 mm after CAP, and 5.0 to 20.0 mm after SAP were 286.9, 287.0, 268.7, and 272.6 mLg-1 VS, respectively. The particle size barely influenced the final cumulative methane yield of alkali-treated corn stover. Moreover, the cumulative methane yield of the corn stover after CAP was comparable with that of the corn stover after the SAP under the same conditions. These results provide us with a promising substitute of NaOH pretreatment for corn stover bioconversion in the future.
Synchronous Mucoepidermoid Carcinoma of the Right Upper Eyelid and Right Parotid Gland in a Young Patient

Mucoepidermoid carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma are tumors found predominantly in the elderly. Most of the cases reported were from patients of more than 50 years old. In our case, it affects a young patient, a 26 year old lady who has a history of a severely burnt and scarred face since childhood. She represents a rare case of a high grade aggressive tumor involving her right eyelid and right parotid gland.
Tunable Brillouin and Raman microlasers using hybrid microbottle resonators

Abstract We realized a tunable Brillouin laser and a tunable Raman laser by using ultrahigh-quality-factor (Q) hybrid microbottle resonators. The whispering-gallery-mode microresonator-based Brillouin and Raman lasers possess unique advantages (e.g. low threshold, narrow line width, and flexible lasing wavelength region) and various potential applications. Efficient tuning of the Brillouin and Raman microresonator lasers is desirable in many cases. However, the corresponding lasing wavelength tunability is rarely reported. In this work, we realized the ultralow-threshold Brillouin and Raman lasers based on the proposed hybrid microbottle resonators with Q factors over 108. Meanwhile, by feeding the control light through the axial direction of the hybrid microbottle resonators, a Brillouin lasing wavelength tuning range of 2.68 nm and a Raman lasing wavelength tuning range of 2.32 nm are realized, which are one order of magnitude and almost once larger than those reported in the previous works, respectively. Such tunable microlasers could find significant applications in light sources, microwave photonics, and optical sensing.
Per-service security SLAs for cloud security management: model and implementation

In the cloud computing context, Service Level Agreements (SLAs) 'tailored' to specific Cloud Service Customers (CSCs) seem to be still an utopia, and things are even worse as regards the security terms to be guaranteed. In fact, existing cloud SLAs focus only on a few service terms, and Cloud Service Providers (CSPs) mainly provide uniform guarantees for all offered services and for all customers, regardless of any particular service characteristics or of customer-specific needs. This paper presents a framework that enables the adoption of a per-service SLA model, supporting the automatic implementation of cloud security SLAs tailored to the needs of each customer for specific service instances. In particular, the process and the software architecture for per-service SLA implementation are shown. A case study application, related to the provisioning of a secure web container service, is presented and discussed, to demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed solution.
The Next Big Step: Highlighting the Most Relevant Data Points for Patient Care.

How do you see developments in health technology enhancing the way patients and physicians interact? We know from our work with physicians that they appreciate the accurate data our heart health devices provide. Most people don’t take their blood pressure often enough. And many people with hypertension are completely unaware of their condition, putting them at higher risk of health problems. When doctors take blood pressure readings in their offices, they can be artificially elevated due to stress (“white coat syndrome”) and only provide a snapshot in time of that patient’s condition. By regularly monitoring, storing, tracking, and sharing data via at-home devices and apps, patients can provide their doctors with much more thorough information to inform their care. At the same time, advances in technology are making it possible to capture even more points of measurement: exercise, quality of sleep, electrocardiogram (ECG), and more. And devices are becoming increasingly accurate. As we gather and deliver volumes of accurate health data, the challenge is going to be how to triage that data so that physicians aren’t overwhelmed. As I see it, the next big step in healthcare technology is going to be how to sort and highlight the most relevant data points for patient care. That’s evident now in the growing conversation on artificial intelligence in health technology.
Rodent Model of ParkinsonÃ¢ÂÂs Disease: Unilateral or Bilateral?

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is one of the most common neurodegenerative diseases affecting the aging population worldwide. Levodopa (L-DOPA) is the gold standard of PD therapy, which is administrated for symptomatic treatment. However, long-term application of L-DOPA leads to less effectiveness and a dose-dependent side effect of dyskinesia. Therefore, to help understand the pathogenesis and clarify potential therapeutic strategies, a great effort is made for the preclinical research on experimental PD models. Since the variety of the animal models is employed in the research work of PD, a controversy has arisen over the reproducibility of experimental models to clinical Parkinsonism. The experimental paradigms are diverse, with which partial Parkinsonism features can be induced in rodents, while others may be limited. Rodent models need to be validated for further use in pathophysiological and therapeutic investigations. This review summarizes the characteristics of the commonly used experimental PD models on rodents, including both unilateral and bilateral models, which may provide useful ideas on selection the most applicable animal model on specific aims of PD research. In conclusion, bilateral models are more consistent with the natural pathogenic process of PD, although there currently exists no model completely reproducing the clinical characteristics of human patients.
Effect of Conservation Tillage on Soil Respiration, Organic Carbon, Moisture and Yield of Wheat /Maize System on North China Plain

Conservation tillage management can improve soil properties and reduces soil CO2 emission. We determined soil CO2 flux rate, soil moisture, crop yield, soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (TN), on North China Plain throughout a 3-year period. Tillage systems were: rotary tillage without crop residues (CT), rotary tillage with straw incorporated into the soil (RS), and no-tillage with crop residues used as mulch (NTS). Soil respiration was measured with a LI-8100. Soil samples were collected at 0-20cm to determine SOC and TN. Dichromate oxidation and Kjeldahl methods were used to determine SOC and TN, respectively; and the gravimetric method was used to identify soil water content. The crops were winter wheat (Triticumaestivum L.) and summer maize (Zea mays L.). During the wheat and maize growing period, NTS reduced C02 compared with CT and RS.At 0-20cm depth, NTS increased SOC stock by 17.077 and 3.82 % compared with CT and RS, respectively.NTS maintained higher TN and compared with CT and RS. At soil surface layers NTS had higher soil moisture compared with CT and RS. However the crop yields under NTS were less than those recorded under RS, but were higher than what recorded under CT. Thus, this study suggests that NTS is suitable for North China plain farmers in the short term, but further research is needed on its long term effects on soil properties, respiration, and yield.
Word Embedding Approach for Synonym Extraction of Multi-Word Terms

The acquisition of synonyms and quasi-synonyms of multi-word terms (MWTs) is a relatively new and under represented topic of research. However, dealing with MWT synonyms and semantically related terms is a challenging task, especially when MWT synonyms are single word terms (SWTs) or MWTs of different lengths. While several researches addressed synonym extraction of SWTs, few of them dealt with MWTs and fewer or none while MWTs synonyms are of variable lengths. The present research aims at introducing a new word-embedding-based approach for the automatic acquisition of synonyms of MWTs that manage length variability. We evaluate our approach on two specialized domain corpora, a French/English corpus of the wind energy domain and a French/English corpus of the breast cancer domain and show superior results compared to baseline approaches.