Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Impact of Various Channel Coding Schemes on Performance Analysis of Subcarrier Intensity-Modulated Free Space Optical Communication System

In this paper, we made a comprehensive simulative study on the performance assessment of a Subcarrier intensity-modulated Free Space Optical (FSO) Communication system. The proposed system under investigation consider a communication link between a base station and a mobile unit using light wave transmission through free space in consideration with Atmospheric turbulence effect. The FSO system implements various types of channel coding schemes such as LDPC, Turbo, Cyclic, BCH and Reed-Solomon. From MATLAB based simulated study on synthetic data transmission, it is found a quite noticeable impact on implementing different types of channel coding schemes on performance enhancement of the presently considered FSO system. The system is also capable of showing its robustness in retrieving transmitted data in spite of atmospheric turbulence effect under QAM digital modulation and BCH channel coding scheme.
The Power and Peril of Global Professionalization: The Global Knowledge Economy, The World Bank, and Higher Education

Since 1962, the World Bank has involved itself in higher education discourse and practice through the provision of loans and grants to developing nations. Initially, such involvement focused primarily on tangible infrastructure projects such as building schools and providing textbooks for students. Over time, however, the Bank has increasingly come to involve itself in less tangible projects such as policy work, technical assistance, and educational discourse – including the creation of the imaginary of the Global Knowledge Economy (GKE). Through this increased focus on higher education policy and discourse, the Bank has come to wield increasing authority over the discourse of knowledge and its means of production. In order to better elucidate the rising authority of the World Bank over higher education and discourses of knowledge production, this dissertation explores the historical development of the Bank’s work in higher education broadly, as well as in two specific countries, Morocco and Indonesia. The dissertation studies the Bank’s involvement in higher education through a critical historical method, which combines traditional historical analysis with a critical policy studies lens. Through this analysis, I argue that the authority of the World Bank over the discourse and practice of higher education and knowledge production has increased significantly through time due to the Bank’s role in the creation of a new global profession of higher education economists, and that this increased authority reveals an underlying irony in the Bank’s thinking and operations. The irony is that the Bank relies upon a fundamental belief in the power of free markets in the economic sphere, but increasingly deploys methods of centralized planning over higher education and knowledge production through these new professionals. This profession is allowed to flourish in part because the Bank and the GKE both exist within a global realm in which the global public sphere has not been clarified. This dissertation adds to the historical record of the Bank’s involvement in higher education discourse, policy and practice, while also exploring the need for more robust theories of the public sphere and for alternative views of knowledge and education at the global level. INDEX WORDS: World Bank, Higher education, History, Global knowledge economy, Morocco, Indonesia THE POWER AND PERIL OF GLOBAL PROFESSIONALIZATION: THE GLOBAL KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY, THE WORLD BANK, AND HIGHER EDUCATION
PACM : Player Archetype Change Management System in Role-Playing Games

An everlasting endeavour of interactive narrative is still the enrichment of impressive storytelling experience while preserving the variety of interaction for players. Most drama management researches usually concentrate on preserving authorial goals while still allowing some degree of interaction with players. However this approach is not geared towards fulfilling the satisfaction of audiences who do not enjoy those goals. It puts limits on alternative story arcs. Our research focuses on creating a drama management system that selects narratives that match a player’s personality and adjusts it through player’s altered characteristic during gameplay. This paper proposes PACM (Player Archetype Change Management system in roleplaying games) and a player personality model to be used with it. At any one time, PACM initiates and selects story that suits a player’s personality automatically from existing stories in a story database, using real-time monitored player’s traits. It then narrates the story.
Microfluidic Techniques for Analytes Concentration

Microfluidics has been undergoing fast development in the past two decades due to its promising applications in biotechnology, medicine, and chemistry. Towards these applications, enhancing concentration sensitivity and detection resolution are indispensable to meet the detection limits because of the dilute sample concentrations, ultra-small sample volumes and short detection lengths in microfluidic devices. A variety of microfluidic techniques for concentrating analytes have been developed. This article presents an overview of analyte concentration techniques in microfluidics. We focus on discussing the physical mechanism of each concentration technique with its representative advancements and applications. Finally, the article is concluded by highlighting and discussing advantages and disadvantages of the reviewed techniques.
Modulus p Rhythmic Tiling Canons and some implementations in Open Music visual programming language

The concept of rhythmic canons, as it has been introduced by mathematician Dan Vuza in the 1990s, is the art of filling the time axis with some finite rhythmic patterns and their translations, without onsets superposition. The musical notion have been linked with some mathematical results, and since then, its mathematical study has always followed a will of picturing every new results in the visual programming language OpenMusic, which enables mathematicians and composers to work together. In this paper we present some new results in an enriched version of rhythmic tiling canons, where some controlled superposition are allowed. This enhanced version of rhythmic tiling canons is presented at the beginning of this article, as well as main constructive results, because it is fairly recent. Then the paper focuses on the presentation of some generative transformations, building canons with the same superposition. The latter is at the heart of the study of canons allowing superposition, because they are the key of linking them back to seminal canons. In order to help composers experiment with these new canons, every constructive method has been implemented in OpenMusic as part of the MathTools environment.
Should We Do It Just Because We Can ? Methodological and Ethical Implications for Information Revelation in Online Social Networks

The massive growth in social networks presents the research with many opportunities to study issues of social behaviour and attitudes toward privacy and security in a non-intrusive manner. Subjects happily post discourse and personal information for a public audience that provides invaluable insights into attitudes, social behaviour, group interactions and similar. However, such public exposure of personal information does raise concerns for those researching identity issues, particular those around fraud and theft. An experiment demonstrates the high availability of personal information that is of value for fraudsters, and well as demonstrating issues of cyberbullying and similar. However, it does also raise issues of ethics into the validity of the methodological approach – just because the information is in the public domain, should the subject not have similar ethic rights such as the withdrawal and debriefing as a fully informed subject. This exploration is extended with another experiment that attempts to demonstrate the ease in which fraudsters can obtain information through the naivety of social network users. Therefore, while such data is invaluable to the security researcher and policy makers, the conclusion must be how far the researcher should go before the ethical considerations outweigh the value of the data.
Weak-Lensing Measurements of 42 SDSS/RASS Galaxy Clusters

We present a lensing study of 42 galaxy clusters imaged in Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) commissioning data. Cluster candidates are selected optically from SDSS imaging data and confirmed for this study by matching to X-ray sources found independently in the ROSAT All-Sky Survey (RASS). Five-color SDSS photometry is used to make accurate (Δz = 0.018) photometric redshift estimates that are used to rescale and combine the lensing measurements. The mean shear from these clusters is detected to 2 h-1 Mpc at the 7 σ level, corresponding to a mass within that radius of (4.2 ± 0.6) × 1014 h-1 M☉. The shear profile is well fitted by a power law with index -0.9 ± 0.3, consistent with that of an isothermal density profile. Clusters are divided by X-ray luminosity into two subsets, with mean LX of (0.14 ± 0.03) × 1044 and (1.0 ± 0.09) × 1044 h-2 ergs s-1. The average lensing signal is converted to a projected mass density based on fits to isothermal density profiles. From this we calculate a mean r500 (the radius at which the mean density falls to 500 times the critical density) and M(<r500). The mass contained within r500 differs substantially between the low- and high-LX bins, with (0.7 ± 0.2) × 1014 and 2.7×1014 h-1 M☉, respectively. This paper demonstrates our ability to measure ensemble cluster masses from SDSS imaging data. The full SDSS data set will include ≳1000 SDSS/RASS clusters. With this large data set we will measure the M-LX relation with high precision and put direct constraints on the mass density of the universe.
Frameworks for Proof-of-Concept Clinical Trials of Interventions That Target Fundamental Aging Processes

Therapies targeted at fundamental processes of aging may hold great promise for enhancing the health of a wide population by delaying or preventing a range of age-related diseases and conditions—a concept dubbed the “geroscience hypothesis. ” Early, proof-of-concept clinical trials will be a key step in the translation of therapies emerging from model organism and preclinical studies into clinical practice. This article summarizes the outcomes of an international meeting partly funded through the NIH R24 Geroscience Network, whose purpose was to generate concepts and frameworks for early, proof-of-concept clinical trials for therapeutic interventions that target fundamental processes of aging. The goals of proof-of-concept trials include generating preliminary signals of efficacy in an aging-related disease or outcome that will reduce the risk of conducting larger trials, contributing data and biological samples to support larger-scale research by strategic networks, and furthering a dialogue with regulatory agencies on appropriate registration indications. We describe three frameworks for proof-of-concept trials that target age-related chronic diseases, geriatric syndromes, or resilience to stressors. We propose strategic infrastructure and shared resources that could accelerate development of therapies that target fundamental aging processes.
Adaptations to Submarine Hydrothermal Environments Exemplified by the Genome of Nautilia profundicola

Submarine hydrothermal vents are model systems for the Archaean Earth environment, and some sites maintain conditions that may have favored the formation and evolution of cellular life. Vents are typified by rapid fluctuations in temperature and redox potential that impose a strong selective pressure on resident microbial communities. Nautilia profundicola strain Am-H is a moderately thermophilic, deeply-branching Epsilonproteobacterium found free-living at hydrothermal vents and is a member of the microbial mass on the dorsal surface of vent polychaete, Alvinella pompejana. Analysis of the 1.7-Mbp genome of N. profundicola uncovered adaptations to the vent environment—some unique and some shared with other Epsilonproteobacterial genomes. The major findings included: (1) a diverse suite of hydrogenases coupled to a relatively simple electron transport chain, (2) numerous stress response systems, (3) a novel predicted nitrate assimilation pathway with hydroxylamine as a key intermediate, and (4) a gene (rgy) encoding the hallmark protein for hyperthermophilic growth, reverse gyrase. Additional experiments indicated that expression of rgy in strain Am-H was induced over 100-fold with a 20°C increase above the optimal growth temperature of this bacterium and that closely related rgy genes are present and expressed in bacterial communities residing in geographically distinct thermophilic environments. N. profundicola, therefore, is a model Epsilonproteobacterium that contains all the genes necessary for life in the extreme conditions widely believed to reflect those in the Archaean biosphere—anaerobic, sulfur, H2- and CO2-rich, with fluctuating redox potentials and temperatures. In addition, reverse gyrase appears to be an important and common adaptation for mesophiles and moderate thermophiles that inhabit ecological niches characterized by rapid and frequent temperature fluctuations and, as such, can no longer be considered a unique feature of hyperthermophiles.
Multiple gene genealogies reveal recent dispersion and hybridization in the human pathogenic fungus Cryptococcus neoformans

Cryptococcus neoformans (= Filobasidiella neoformans) is a significant emerging fungal pathogen of humans. To understand the evolution of this pathogen, 34 strains were obtained from various locations around the world and fragments of four genes were sequenced from each. These strains represented all three varieties and five serotypes. The four sequenced genes are: (i) the mitochondrial large ribosomal subunit RNA; (ii) the internal transcribed spacer region of the nuclear rRNA, including ITS1, 5.8S rRNA subunit and ITS2; (iii) orotidine monophosphate pyrophosphorylase; and (iv) diphenol oxidase. Phylogenetic analyses indicated considerable divergence among lineages, which corresponded to the current classification of C. neoformans into three varieties. However, there is no apparent phylogeographic pattern. Significant incongruences were observed among gene genealogies. The analyses indicated that the major lineages in C. neoformans diverged tens of millions of years ago but have undergone recent dispersion and hybridization.
A Software Process Simulator Machine for Software Engineering Simulation Games

Develop new games without having to start from scratch has been made possible by using game engines, since they offer a number of specialized components and optimized functions which are common in games. However, one realizes that process simulation games have not taken advantage of these technologies. This paper aims to demonstrate the results of the development of a software process simulation component called Software Process Simulator Machine (SPSM), which focuses on help and motivate software process educational game development through the addressing of main generic requirements for process simulation software.
The Desalination Process Driven by Wave Energy: A Challenge for the Future

The correlation between water and energy is currently the focus of several investigations. In particular, desalination is a technological process characterized by high energy consumption; nevertheless, desalination represents the only practicable solution in several areas, where the availability of fresh water is limited but brackish water or seawater are present. These natural resources (energy and water) are essential for each other; energy system conversion needs water, and electrical energy is necessary for water treatment or transport. Several interesting aspects include the study of saline desalination as an answer to freshwater needs and the application of renewable energy (RE) devices to satisfy electrical energy requirement for the desalination process. A merge between renewable energy and desalination is beneficial in that it is a sustainable and challenging option for the future. This work investigates the possibility of using renewable energy sources to supply the desalination process. In particular, as a case study, we analyze the application of wave energy sources in the Sicilian context.
Based Design 2000 Session 3 B : IP / Core / SoC Design High Level Design and Synthesis of a Discrete Wavelet Transform Virtual Component for Image Compression

The two-dimensional Discrete Wavelet Transform (2D DWT) has become very popular as the basis of many recent image processing and compression techniques [1]. The 2D DWT has proved its efficiency in most application fields ranging from general-purpose multimedia to medical or satelite imaging. As a consequence, the forthcoming JPEG2000 standard for still image coding will feature the DWT as the first step of its compression scheme. Some applications, such as satelite imaging, require real-time on-the-fly image compression and transmission. Hardware implementation of a complete image compression scheme is a challenging benchmark for a System-on-Chip (SoC) approach, based on integrating and interfacing several blocks, or so-called Virtual Components (VC), each of which implements a given stage of the compression algorithm. In this paper, we introduce a first experiment consisting of designing a reusable 2D DWT virtual component. This component is described at the behavioral (algorithmic) level and the integration flow is based on a commercial high-level synthesis (HLS) tool.
Intergenerational Fairness During Demographic Transition

Implementing a fairness component into a standard overlapping-generations model and allowing young individuals to vote on their own pension payments, we show that they adapt the pay-as-you-go pension scheme to future demographic changes. In particular, we explain why young generations cut their retirement benefits thus partially phasing out social security during a fertility decline. Carrying out a simulation, we furthermore calculate the costs of implementing fairness into utility. From the viewpoint of an individual, these costs are reduced by equalizing generational accounts. Hence, under certain conditions policy actions based on generational accounts may be compatible with intertemporal welfare maximization.
The Truth About Organic: Sustainability, Practice, and Perception

It is an essential goal of conservation biology to find a way to sustainably meet the food needs of an exponentially increasing population without damaging the environment and the ecosystem services it provides us. The difficulty with “sustainable agriculture” is that there is much disagreement as to what it entails and how to approach it. Thus far, the organic movement has dominated practices and perceptions in the realm of alternative farming practices. Proponents of organic food production claim that it is more beneficial for the environment, as well as the humans and animals that inhabit it. However, some research has shown that organic food production can be more resource intensive and have a larger effect on the environment than conventional methods. At its conception, the organic food movement was associated with a production process that was small scale, environmentally friendly, and socially conscious; but, modern organic food production has been industrialized and now involves many of the same processes as the conventional food production system it set out to oppose. The consensus among the literature is that organic, as it is defined in any regulatory or certification system, is not inherently sustainable. The sustainability of organic depends on factors other than specific processes defined by organic legislation, including regional climate, pre-cultivation soil conditions, distribution techniques, access to fresh water, topography, and other site specific alternative farming practices used in a given organic system (zero tillage, crop diversification, closed nutrient cycling, local sourcing, these are practices not defined or prohibited in organic laws). Most scholars agree that farming techniques must be specific to land conditions, regional culture, and related factors, and that many practices must be combined with organic to achieve the highest degree of sustainability. This thesis evaluates the sustainability of organic based on environmental and social impacts in the existing policy context.
Conversational Evaluation of Personalized Solutions for Adaptive Educational Systems

Current educational systems offer many personalized features. But do they really help? Which personalization method is the best in given settings? Evaluating the personalization in an educational system is as important as designing the methods themselves. While many quantitative and qualitative methods have been explored previously, there are various rules and issues when performing experiments with participants – users. E.g. users should not interact with experimenters, but on the other hand, only post-session testing can be affected by maturation. We proposed a conversational evaluation approach in which we combine advantages of uncontrolled experiments with advantages of other methods. We describe a method for evaluation questions asked to the users in appropriate moments during their work in a web-based environment and its initial evaluation within ALEF adaptive learning framework.
Fostering Local Government Collaboration: An Empirical Analysis of Case Studies in Ohio

ABSTRACT: While the literature on collaborative governance is voluminous and growing, empirical studies that test differing explanations for the success of local government to local government collaborations across policy sectors are not common. This kind of study is important, however, because local government-to-local government collaborations may very well have distinctive dynamics, and they are likely to expand in the future as local officials work to develop broad collaborative strategies that extend across policy areas. In this article, we investigate the development and extent of goal achievement in eight cases of this type of collaboration in northeast Ohio. Our investigations illustrate the dynamics of progress for interlocal collaborations, while yielding evidence of goal achievements within four years in six of our eight cases. We also evaluate theoretically derived variables using a Boolean algebraic comparative case study approach, and find that external incentives provided by grants and mandates are consistently associated with at least some level of goal attainment. We also find that the combination of external incentives and past interactions leading to trust consistently predicts success among the cases in our sample. While our findings are preliminary and limited to northeast Ohio, they suggest that promising inter-governmental collaborations can yield benefits within reasonable periods of time.