Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Holocaust and memory in the global age

Can collective memories of the past shape the future? If one of the fears about a globalized society is the homogenization of culture, can it nevertheless be true that the homogenization of memory might have a positive impact on political and cultural norms? Originally published in Germany, The Holocaust and Memory in the Global Age examines the nature of collective memory in a globalized world, and how the memory of one particular event-the Holocaust-helped give rise to an emerging global consensus on human rights. Daniel Levy and Natan Sznaider show how memories of the Holocaust have been de-contextualized from the original event and offer a framework for interpreting contemporary acts of injustice such as ethnic cleansing and genocide. Representations of mass atrocities in Bosnia and Kosovo during the 1990s resonated with iconographies of the Holocaust and played a significant role in the political and military interventions in the Balkans. Subsequently, these representations have had a crucial impact on the consolidation of international human rights and related issues of transitional justice, reparations, and restitution.
CHALLENGES IN REAL-TIME IMPLEMENTATIONS OF LARGE VOCABULARY DICTATION SYSTEMS : PAST , PRESENT AND FUTURE

Practical real -time Large Vocabulary Continuous Speech Recognition (LVCSR) systems have been made possible by a combination of increases in computing power, algorithmic advances, and a set of approximations to the original computations used to obta in the initial algorithmic advances. This paper traces the progress of practical LVCSR systems from early discrete recognizers to the challenges of tomorrow, focusing on some of the computational approximations that have allowed systems that operate in hundreds of times real time in the laboratory to operate in real -time on practical, inexpensive hardware.
Large object pushing via a direct longitudinally-actuated unmanned Tri-TiltRotor

The original application of large object pushing with an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle platform is the subject of this paper. The utilization of an unmanned Tri-TiltRotor is proposed for this application, innovatively employing its direct longitudinal actuation capabilities to attain a large force exertion-capable aerial platform. Via the longitudinal tilting of the aerial vehicle's main rotors, the forward-projected force can be applied via a platform-mounted frame onto a large object, and bring it into motion. Concurrently, moment-compensation, achieved by a properly designed control synthesis exploiting the additional actuation capabilities of the platform, effectively regulates the attitude at stable hovering. Experimental results are provided, demonstrating the effectiveness of the implemented approach.
Quadratic migration of biogeography based optimization for short term hydrothermal scheduling

This paper presents an optimal dispatch of hydro and thermal power generation in a short term hydrothermal system which is solved by quadratic migration model of biogeography based optimization (QBBO). A mathematical formulation of quadratic model is delineated how species survive from one habitat to another habitat and gets annihilated. The performance ability of the proposed QBBO approach is applied to solve complex short term hydrothermal scheduling (STHTS) optimization problem. The STHTS problem has been represented as a nonconvex, nonlinear combinatorial problem considering diverse constraints. The effectiveness of QBBO approach is examined on four cascaded hydro plants and an equivalent thermal plant. The simulation results obtained with QBBO approach is compared with reported methods in literature. It is observed from the simulation studies that the obtained results using QBBO approach is better in terms of minimum total production cost and execution time as compared to other published methods recently.
THE COALESCENCE OF BUBBLES-A NUMERICAL STUDY

The dynamics of bubble coalescence is studied using a robust numerical model for a multiphase flow system with interfaces. The effects of liquid viscosity and surface tension on bubble coalescence, for which Reynolds number ranges from 10 to 100 and Bond number ranges from 5 to 50, are investigated. It is shown that the numerical model used in this study can accurately capture the complex topological changes during the coalescence. The predicted behaviour of bubble coalescence is in reasonable agreement with our experimental observation. It is found that with a high Reynolds number (low viscosity) a strong liquid jet formed behind the leading bubble inhibits the approach of the following bubble. Hence coalescence does not occur or is postponed. A lower surface tension results in an earlier coalescence because of severe stretching of the interface.
Downscaling of Daily Rainfall Occurrence over Northeast Brazil Using a Hidden Markov Model

A hidden Markov model (HMM) is used to describe daily rainfall occurrence at 10 gauge stations in the state of Ceará in northeast Brazil during the February–April wet season 1975–2002. The model assumes that rainfall occurrence is governed by a few discrete states, with Markovian daily transitions between them. Four “hidden” rainfall states are identified. One pair of the states represents wet-versus-dry conditions at all stations, while a second pair of states represents north–south gradients in rainfall occurrence. The estimated daily state-sequence is characterized by a systematic seasonal evolution, together with considerable variability on intraseasonal, interannual, and longer time scales. The first pair of states are shown to be associated with large-scale displacements of the tropical convergence zones, and with teleconnections typical of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation and the North Atlantic Oscillation. A nonhomogeneous HMM (NHMM) is then used to downscale daily precipitation occurrence at the 10 stations, using general circulation model (GCM) simulations of seasonal-mean large-scale precipitation, obtained with historical sea surface temperatures prescribed globally. Interannual variability of the GCM's large-scale precipitation simulation is well correlated with seasonal- and spatial-averaged station rainfall-occurrence data. Simulations from the NHMM are found to be able to reproduce this relationship. The GCM-NHMM simulations are also able to capture quite well interannual changes in daily rainfall occurrence and 10-day dry spell frequencies at some individual stations. It is suggested that the NHMM provides a useful tool (a) to understand the statistics of daily rainfall occurrence at the station level in terms of large-scale atmospheric patterns, and (b) to produce station-scale daily rainfall sequence scenarios for input into crop models, etc.
A Numerical Scheme for the Denoising of Electrocardiogram Signals

High quality Electrocardiogram (ECG) data is very important because this signal is generally used for the analysis of heart diseases. Wearable sensors are widely adopted for physical activity monitoring and for the provision of healthcare services, but noise always degrades the quality of these signals. In this paper, we propose a novel numerical scheme for ECG Signal denoising with low computational requirements. It is computationally cheap because it belongs to the class of Infinite Impulse Response (IIR) noise reduction algorithms. The main contribution of the proposed scheme is that it does not require a direct application of the Fast Fourier Transform. Moreover, it offers the possibility of implementation on mobile computing devices in an easy way. Experiments on real datasets have been carried out in order to test the algorithm.
Option generation in decision making: ideation beyond memory retrieval

According to prescriptive decision theories, the generation of options for choice is a central aspect of decision making. A too narrow representation of the problem may indeed limit the opportunity to evaluate promising options. However, despite the theoretical and applied significance of this topic, the cognitive processes underlying option generation are still unclear. In particular, while a cued recall account of option generation emphasizes the role of memory and executive control, other theoretical proposals stress the importance of ideation processes based on various search and thinking processes. Unfortunately, relevant behavioral evidence on the cognitive processes underlying option generation is scattered and inconclusive. In order to reach a better understanding, we carried out an individual-differences study employing a wide array of cognitive predictors, including measures of episodic memory, semantic memory, cognitive control, and ideation fluency. The criterion tasks consisted of three different poorly-structured decision-making scenarios, and the participants were asked to generate options to solve these problems. The main criterion variable of the study was the number of valid options generated, but also the diversity and the quality of generated options were examined. The results showed that option generation fluency and diversity in the context of ill-structured decision making are supported by ideation ability even after taking into account the effects of individual differences in several other aspects of cognitive functioning. Thus, ideation processes, possibly supported by search and thinking processes, seem to contribute to option generation beyond basic associative memory retrieval. The findings of the study also indicate that generating more options may have multifaceted consequences for choice, increasing the quality of the best option generated but decreasing the mean quality of the options in the generated set.
Monodromy deformation approach to the scaling limit of the Painleve first equation

The isomonodromy deformation equation for a 2x2 matrix linear ODE with a large parameter can be locally reduced to a (hyper)elliptic equation. To globalize this result, we apply the isomonodromy deformation method and obtain the modulation equations for the asymptotic algebraic curve. The method is applied to the degenerate solution of the Painleve first equation.
Unsupervised Learning by Minimal Entropy Encoding

Following basic principles of information-theoretic learning, in this paper, we propose a novel approach to data clustering, referred to as minimal entropy encoding (MEE), which is based on a set of functions (features) projecting each input onto a minimum entropy configuration (code). Inspired by traditional parsimony principles, we seek solutions in reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces and then we prove that the encoding functions are expressed in terms of kernel expansion. In order to avoid trivial solutions, the developed features must be as different as possible by means of a soft constraint on the empirical estimation of the entropy associated with the encoding functions. This leads to an unconstrained optimization problem that can be efficiently solved by conjugate gradient. We also investigate an optimization strategy based on concave-convex algorithms. The relationships with maximum margin clustering are studied, showing that MEE overcomes some of its critical issues, such as the lack of a multiclass extension and the need to face problems with a large number of constraints. A massive evaluation on several benchmarks of the proposed approach shows improvements over state-of-the-art techniques, both in terms of accuracy and computational complexity.
ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF PEPPER PRODUCTION IN OGUN STATE

This study examined the economics of pepper production in Ogun State, Nigeria. The study was based on primary data collected from 120 pepper farmers who were sampled using a multistage sampling technique. Data were collected using structured questionnaire and were analysed using descriptive statistics, budgetary analysis, stochastic production function frontier analysis and linear programming (LP). The results revealed that 85.0% of the sampled farmers were male with a mean age of 43 years and mean pepper farming experience of 11.6 years. Majority (84.2%) of the respondents were married, 66.7% were natives and 47.5% had household size of 6 to 10 members with mean household size of 8 persons. Majority (76.7%) of the respondents cultivated between 0.10ha and 1.54ha of land with a mean farm size of 1.23ha. This study also revealed that 35.0% practised intercropping and the enterprise combinations included sole pepper (62.5%) with a mean farm size of 0.93ha, pepper/maize (6.67%) with a mean farm size of 0.93ha, pepper/cassava (13.3%) with a mean farm size of 0.96ha, pepper/tomato (7.5%) with a mean farm size of 1.47ha, and pepper/maize/cassava (10.0%) with a mean farm size of 1.66ha. About 58% of the pepper farmers financed their production from personal savings. The major constraints in pepper production among the sampled farmers were inadequate viable and disease-resistant seeds (84.2%), inadequate transportation (90.8%) and inadequate access to finance/credit (90.8%). The budgetary analysis per hectare revealed that the sampled pepper farmers incurred N221,919.49 and N16,139.06 on variable and fixed cost items respectively and earned revenue of N622,847.56 as well as a profit of N251,496.09. Pepper production had a return on investment of 2.62. The mean technical efficiency, economic efficiency and allocative efficiency were 0.64, 0.40, and 0.57 respectively. The results of the LP programme recommended pepper/tomato and pepper/maize/cassava enterprises and suggested a mean farm size of 0.25ha and 0.66ha for the two enterprises respectively. The result further suggested a reduction in mean farm size cultivated by 82.99% for pepper/tomato enterprise and 60.24% for pepper/maize/cassava enterprise. The optimum plan yielded an increase of 115.47% in gross margin of pepper/tomato enterprise and 31.62% of gross margin in pepper/maize/cassava enterprise. In conclusion, pepper production was found to be profitable but substantial level of inefficiency still existed in the production process. The study recommended that policies should be implemented by the government to provide financial assistance to farmers in order to access adequate farm resources and expand the existing scale of production. Good and accessible roads should be constructed to facilitate movement of farm inputs and pepper produce.
Nonparametric estimation in models with Lévy type jumps and stochastic volatility

We introduce a nonparametric estimator of the volatility function in univariate processes with Levy type jumps and stochastic volatility when we observe the state variable at discrete times. Our results rely on the fact that it is possible to recognize the discontinuous part of the state variable from those squared increments between observations exceeding a suitable threshold. We discuss the implementation of the estimator with high-frequency data
The Business School in the Twenty-First Century: Emergent Challenges and New Business Models

Questions about the status, identity and legitimacy of business schools in the modern university system continue to stimulate debate amongst deans, educational policy makers and commentators. In this book, three world experts share their critical insights on management education and new business school models in the USA, Europe and Asia, on designing the business school of the future, and how to make it work. They look at how the business school is changing and focus in particular on emergent global challenges and innovations in curricula, professional roles, pedagogy, uses of technology and organisational delineations. Set within the context of a wider discussion about management as a profession, the authors provide a systematic, historical perspective, analysing major trends in business school models, and reviewing a wealth of current literature, to provide an informed and unique perspective that is firmly grounded in practical and experimental analysis.
Comprehensive analysis of UGT1A polymorphisms predictive for pharmacokinetics and treatment outcome in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer treated with irinotecan and cisplatin.

PURPOSE To determine whether uridine diphosphate-glucuronosyltransferase 1A1, UGT1A7, and UGT1A9 polymorphisms affect the pharmacokinetics (PK) of irinotecan and treatment outcome of Korean patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). METHODS Eighty-one patients with advanced NSCLC were treated with irinotecan (80 mg/m2) on day 1 and 8 and cisplatin (60 mg/m2) on day 1 intravenously of each 3-week cycle. Genomic DNA was extracted from peripheral blood and genotyped using direct sequencing. We analyzed the association of UGT1A genotypes with irinotecan PK and clinical outcomes. All statistical tests were two-sided. RESULTS In genotype-PK association analysis, UGT1A1*6/*6 (n = 6), UGT1A7*3/*3 (n = 6), and UGT1A9-118(dT)9/9 (n = 11) were associated with significantly lower area under the time-concentration curve (AUC) SN-38G to SN-38 (AUC(SN-38G)/AUC(SN-38)) ratio (P = .002, P = .009, and P = .001, respectively). In linkage disequilibrium analysis, the UGT1A7 variants were highly linked with the UGT1A1*6 (D' = 0.85, r2 = 0.63) and UGT1A9*22 (D' = 0.95, r2 = 0.88), which was substantiated in haplotype analysis. Patients with UGT1A1*6/*6 had lower tumor response and higher incidence of severe neutropenia. UGT1A9-118(dT)9/9 also showed a trend for high incidence of severe diarrhea, but not tumor response. In survival analysis, patients with UGT1A1*6/*6 had significantly shorter progression-free survival (P = .001) and overall survival (P = .017). CONCLUSION These findings suggest that UGT1A1*6 and UGT1A9*22 genotypes may be important for SN-38 glucuronidation and associate with irinotecan-related severe toxicity. Specifically, UGT1A1*6 might be useful for predicting tumor response and survival outcome of Korean patients with NSCLC treated with irinotecan-based chemotherapy.
User-Relatedness and Community Structure in Social Interaction Networks

With social media and the according social and ubiquitous applications finding their way into everyday life, there is a rapidly growing amount of user generated content yielding explicit and implicit network structures. We consider social activities and phenomena as proxies for user relatedness. Such activities are represented in so-called social interaction networks or evidence networks, with different degrees of explicitness. We focus on evidence networks containing relations on users, which are represented by connections between individual nodes. Explicit interaction networks are then created by specific user actions, for example, when building a friend network. On the other hand, more implicit networks capture user traces or evidences of user actions as observed in Web portals, blogs, resource sharing systems, and many other social services. These implicit networks can be applied for a broad range of analysis methods instead of using expensive gold-standard information. In this paper, we analyze different properties of a set of networks in social media. We show that there are dependencies and correlations between the networks. These allow for drawing reciprocal conclusions concerning pairs of networks, based on the assessment of structural correlations and ranking interchangeability. Additionally, we show how these inter-network correlations can be used for assessing the results of structural analysis techniques, e.g., community mining methods.
Change After Long-Term Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy

Psychoanalytic psychotherapy in clinical practice is traditionally a long-term treatment conducted by well-trained psychotherapists. However, very few studies have been published that evaluate the effects of such treatment. To redress this lack of studies, 55 individuals selected for long-term psychoanalytic psychotherapy (average, 3 years) were invited to participate in a naturalistic study. The psychotherapists had a mean of 15 years of professional experience. The 36 patients who completed psychotherapy manifested a substantial reduction in symptomatic suffering and decreased levels of character pathology, as measured by the Karolinska Psychodynamic Profile (KAPP) and the Karolinska Scales of Personality. Generally, such changes were not found in the individuals who did not engage in treatment. In the therapy group, improvements were found on eight KAPP subscales defining different aspects of character: Intimacy and Reciprocity, Frustration Tolerance, Regression in the Service of the Ego, Coping with Aggressive Affects, Conceptions of Bodily Appearance and their Significance for Self-esteem, Sexual Function, Sexual Satisfaction, and Personality Organization. The results indicate that individuals who engaged in psychotherapy improved their capacity to handle crucial aspects of life and reduced their symptomatic suffering.
Answer typing for information retrieval

Answer typing is commonly thought of as finding appropriate responses to given questions. We extend the notion of answer typing to information retrieval to ensure results contain plausible answers to queries. Identification of a large class of applicable queries is performed using a discriminative classifier, and discriminative preference ranking methods are employed for the selection of type-appropriate terms. Experimental results show that type-appropriate terms identified by the model are superior to terms most commonly associated with the query, providing strong evidence that answer typing techniques can find meaningful and appropriate terms. Further experiments show that snippets containing correct answers are ranked higher by our model than by the baseline Google search engine in those instances in which a query does indeed seek a short answer.
Losing the News: The Future of the News That Feeds Democracy

PROLOGUE: THE CRISIS 1. The Iron Core 2. Media and Democracy 3. Objectivity's Last Stand 4. Media Ethics- The Painful Balance 5. My Family's Story 6. The Curious History of the News Business 7. The Fragile First Amendment 8. The Newspaper Question 9. The New News Media 10. Preserving The Core
Every ergodic measure is uniquely maximizing

Let $M_{\phi}$ denote the set of Borel probability measures invariant under a topological action $\phi$ on a compact metrizable space $X$. For a continuous function $f:X\to\R$, a measure $\mu\in\M_{\phi}$ is called $f$-maximizing if $\int f\, d\mu = s u p\{\int f dm:m\in\M_{\phi}\}$. It is shown that if $\mu$ is any ergodic measure in $\M_{\phi}$, then there exists a continuous function whose unique maximizing measure is $\mu$. More generally, if $\mathcal E$ is a non-empty collection of ergodic measures which is weak$^*$ closed as a subset of $\M_{\phi}$, then there exists a continuous function whose set of maximizing measures is precisely the closed convex hull of $\mathcal E$. If moreover $\phi$ has the property that its entropy map is upper semi-continuous, then there exists a continuous function whose set of equilibrium states is precisely the closed convex hull of $\mathcal E$.
Rectification of a mobile multi-camera chain based on hardware pose measures

In this paper we present an image rectification method for a multi-view image set captured by a mobile and articulated camera arrangement. The cameras are located in individual modules, each module consist in a camera, a single actuator and a proprioceptive angle sensor (servomotor encoder). Each module is connected to other modules in a linear chain configuration, with the restriction that the optical axis of all cameras are coplanar. The rectification proposed is based on an initial calibration-rectification with a known pattern. Then, a continuous self-rectification is proposed by using the Kalman filtered measures of the chain actuators. The rectification technique proposed is tested with real measurements from an articulated arrangement, results shown a fast and reliable sub pixel accuracy in the rectification.