Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Voltage Sensitivity and Gating Charge in Shaker and Shab Family Potassium Channels

The members of the voltage-dependent potassium channel family subserve a variety of functions and are expected to have voltage sensors with different sensitivities. The Shaker channel of Drosophila, which underlies a transient potassium current, has a high voltage sensitivity that is conferred by a large gating charge movement, ∼13 elementary charges. A Shaker subunit's primary voltage-sensing (S4) region has seven positively charged residues. The Shab channel and its homologue Kv2.1 both carry a delayed-rectifier current, and their subunits have only five positively charged residues in S4; they would be expected to have smaller gating-charge movements and voltage sensitivities. We have characterized the gating currents and single-channel behavior of Shab channels and have estimated the charge movement in Shaker, Shab, and their rat homologues Kv1.1 and Kv2.1 by measuring the voltage dependence of open probability at very negative voltages and comparing this with the charge–voltage relationships. We find that Shab has a relatively small gating charge, ∼7.5 eo. Surprisingly, the corresponding mammalian delayed rectifier Kv2.1, which has the same complement of charged residues in the S2, S3, and S4 segments, has a gating charge of 12.5 eo, essentially equal to that of Shaker and Kv1.1. Evidence for very strong coupling between charge movement and channel opening is seen in two channel types, with the probability of voltage-independent channel openings measured to be below 10−9 in Shaker and below 4 × 10−8 in Kv2.1.
Quantitative Analyse der Auswirkungen wirtschaftspolitischer Massnahmen auf die Einkommensverteilung und das neue magische Viereck in der Schweiz

Macroeconometric policy simulation models allow for an analysis, and, above all, for a quantification of the effects different economic policies have on the various variables that represent the economy. Despite the seminal 'Lucas critique' levelled against them, these models are still widely used, especially within policy-making institutions such as, e.g., central banks. In this paper, a model constructed by the author for the Swiss economy is used to explain, and to quantify the impact of fiscal, monetary, wage and social policies on the functional and personal distribution of income on the one hand, and on the four main objectives of contemporary economic policy on the other. These are: a high GDP growth, low inflation and unemployment, and a low or zero public deficit (the latter replacing the original fourth objective codified, e.g., in the German Stability Act of 1967, which was external balance). Our approach will enable us to answer questions like: Which income group suffers most from a hike in the short term interest rate? , Should a large public spending project better be financed by increasing the VAT rate or the income tax rate? , and How much could the aggregate social security contribution rate be lowered if the formula used for calculating the alignment of retirement pensions was changed?
Demographic and Time Patterns in Layoffs and Quits

This article decomposes the monthly transition from employment to unemployment as measured by gross flow data into layoffs and quits for ten age-sex groups. It examines three patterns for each subflow over the 1967-83 periods and compares age and sex groups. It finds that layoffs are more cyclically sensitive than quits into unemployment and that trend is a more influential determinant of layoffs than business cycle factors for most males whereas the opposite is true for most females. Other researchers have not found such robust cyclical results, probably because they have not distinguished between layoffs and quits in the employment-to-unemployment transition. Policy implications are briefly discussed.
Professional Communities and the Work of High School Teaching

American high schools have never been under more pressure to reform: student populations are more diverse than ever, resources are limited, and teachers are expected to teach to high standards for all students. While many reformers look for change at the state or district level, the authors here argue that the most local contexts-schools, departments, and communities-matter the most to how well teachers perform in the classroom and how satisfied they are professionally. Their findings-based on one of the most extensive research projects ever done on secondary teaching-show that departmental cultures play a crucial role in classroom settings and expectations. In the same school, for example, social studies teachers described their students as "apathetic and unwilling to work," while English teachers described the same students as "bright, interesting, and energetic. " With wide-ranging implications for educational practice and policy, this unprecedented look into teacher communities is essential reading for educators, administrators, and all those concerned with U. S. High Schools.
Commander Trust in Autonomous Systems : the Role of Implicit Instructions and System Feedback

This research examined the role of implicit instructions and the effect of feedback on commander trust using a combination of interviews with Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) and empirical investigation. System behaviour protocols were developed following a series of SME interviews. The protocols defined commander requirements of AS behaviour to implement the implicit, explicit and intent-based components of their commands. From the interviews, it was also possible to describe the types of command that remain implicit. Through an empirical study it was identified that, in order for a commander to trust an AS effectively, it is necessary for that system both to be reliable and to provide reason-based feedback. Recommendations for the design of future ASs are made based on the research findings.
A New Method for PAR Reduction of OFDM Signal Based on Chaotic Encoder

In this paper, we propose using chaotic digital filter to encode the time domain signal xn to reduce peak-to-average power ratio (PAR) in OFDM system. The xn may have high PAR value, which is a main drawback of OFDM system. The time domain signal becomes chaotically distributed by chaotic encoding, so the PAR value can be reduced. Simulations are done for numbers of subcarriers being 16, 32, 64, 128, 256 and 512. The simulation results show that this method can greatly reduce the PAR of OFDM signal. The chaotic encoder and decoder are easy to be implemented in hardware. In addition, the code rate is equal to the original code rate. Moreover, this method is applicable to all kinds of modulation, because chaotic encoder operates on the time domain signal.
Design and implementation on software platform of emergency management system for traffic incidents

Efficient emergency response to traffic incidents is crucial for the purpose of saving lives and properties, eliminating the impact to the smooth flow of traffic. In this paper, a software platform to design and implement a computer-aided emergency management system capable of reacting to traffic incidents in due time is described. We format the information flow of handling with emergencies. This system is divided into four parts, Incident Assessment System, Plan Database System, Scene Information Display System based on GIS and Resource Allocation and Management System. Our focus is to develop a plan generated system dynamically for actions and resources adapting to a changing environment through its action plan database. Scene Information Display System based on GIS and Incident Assessment System are also discussed in details. Key challenges in system design are also addressed. Simulation results show the efficiency of the system.
Recognizing Public Value

Mark H. Moore's now classic Creating Public Value offered advice to public managers about how to create public value. But that book left a key question unresolved: how could one recognize (in an accounting sense) when public value had been created? Here, Moore closes the gap by setting forth a philosophy of performance measurement that will help public managers name, observe, and sometimes count the value they produce, whether in education, public health, safety, crime prevention, housing, or other areas. Blending case studies with theory, he argues that private sector models built on customer satisfaction and the bottom line cannot be transferred to government agencies. The Public Value Account (PVA), which Moore develops as an alternative, outlines the values that citizens want to see produced by, and reflected in, agency operations. These include the achievement of collectively defined missions, the fairness with which agencies operate, and the satisfaction of clients and other stake-holders. But strategic public managers also have to imagine and execute strategies that sustain or increase the value they create into the future. To help public managers with that task, Moore offers a Public Value Scorecard that focuses on the actions necessary to build legitimacy and support for the envisioned value, and on the innovations that have to be made in existing operational capacity. Using his scorecard, Moore evaluates the real-world management strategies of such former public managers as D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams, NYPD Commissioner William Bratton, and Commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Revenue John James.
New paradigm for search and order in EOSDIS

Through the 1980s and 1990s iterative search and retrieval was the defacto data access paradigm. For the first 10+ years of planning the EOSDIS system, this search and retrieval paradigm was accepted by managers and systems designers as the system interaction standard. Since very few data and information systems existed at the time, users accepted this paradigm and worked within its framework. In the past year, another data access paradigm has emerged and is gaining popularity among members of the EOSDIS user community. The new approach is one of discovery and navigation where the user interface shows the user everything that is available and the user simply navigates to what is needed. The authors have also seen that some of their more serious or routine users have special needs and require very flexible user interfaces to meet their special needs. To meet these new challenges, EOSDIS is developing a new information management system that will support varied paradigms needed by their user community. This approach calls for an architecture that requires different protocols and standards than previously used.
A consistent, debiased method for converting between polar and Cartesian coordinate systems

A significant problem in tracking and estimation is the consistent transformation of uncertain state estimates between Cartesian and spherical coordinate systems. For example, a radar system generates measurements in its own local spherical coordinate system. In order to combine those measurements with those from other radars, however, a tracking system typically transforms all measurements to a common Cartesian coordinate system. The most common approach is to approximate the transformation through linearization. However, this approximation can lead to biases and inconsistencies, especially when the uncertainties on the measurements are large. A number of approaches have been proposed for using higher order transformation modes, but these approaches have found only limited use due to the often enormous implementation burdens incurred by the need to derive Jacobians and Hessians. This paper expands a method for nonlinear propagation which is described in a companion paper. A discrete set of samples are used to capture the first four moments of the untransformed measurement. The transformation is then applied to each of the samples, and the mean and covariance are calculated from the result. It is shown that the performance of the algorithm is comparable to that of fourth order filters, thus ensuring consistency even when the uncertainty is large. It is not necessary to calculate any derivatives, and the algorithm can be extended to incorporate higher order information. The benefits of this algorithm are illustrated in the contexts of autonomous vehicle navigation and missile tracking.
Does a k-Space Span Limitation Affect MRI Resolution?

It is common practice to employ conceptual models for data interpretation that are continuous even for data that are discrete. Conclusions drawn from analytical Fourier transform integrals do not automatically apply for discrete data. The conventional sampling point spread function width of 1.2 pixels in MRI is a prime example of this problem. Direct calculation reveals that the k-space span limitation, expressed in terms of a simple sinc function, makes no impact on discrete data samples in the reciprocal image domain. In this article we show that it is the discretization and discrete Fourier transfor- mation that causes image distortion, rather than the limited k-space coverage. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Concepts Magn Reson Part B (Magn Reson Engineering) 29B: 55- 61, 2006
Automatic Citation Metadata Extraction Using Hidden Markov Models

Automatic citation metadata extraction is an important aspect of digital library development. The previous methods which using hidden Markov models to extract citation metadata mostly need label many training data manually. To save the high cost of labeling training data manually, this paper describes a method for citation metadata extraction using hidden Markov models. This method use unlabeled data (plain texts which we want to extract metadata) as training data. The results of experiment show that our method has good performance in precision and recall.
PENny: An Extremely Low-Cost Pressure-Sensitive Stylus for Existing Capacitive Touchscreens

By building a wired passive stylus we have added pressure sensitivity to existing capacitive touch screen devices for less than $10 in materials, about 1/10th the cost of existing solutions. The stylus makes use of the built-in audio interface that is available on most smartphones and tablets on the market today. Limitations of the device include the physical constraint of wires, the occupation of one audio input and output channel, and increased latency equal to the period of at least one audio buffer duration. The stylus has been demonstrated in two NIME applications thus far: a visual musical score drawing and a singing synthesis application.
Next generation network and regulatory challenges

The paper deals with regulatory implications, objectives and challenges related to the implementation and development of next generation networks. The separation of service and transport stratums, transition to IP networks and introduction of standardised application programme interfaces, as the three major features of the next generation networks, are elaborated from the regulatory point of view. The model of shifted stratums is used to define different groups of market players and roles, as well as changes of the existing and creation of new relevant markets next generation networks may cause. Brief overview of the activities of the Croatian regulatory authority within the Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications is included. Case study on fibre optic access network regulatory proceeding is presented.
The Balance of Payments

SUMMARY This article describes the main features of the United Kingdom Balance of Payments. The Balance of Payments essentially records one nation’s transactions with the rest of the world – relating to conventional trade in goods and services, income fl ows and the transfer in ownership of fi nancial assets across borders. The International Investment Position, or net asset position, is the part of the Balance of Payments that records net stocks of the UK’s foreign assets and liabilities. The relationship between this and investment income is also analysed. Finally, the impact of the global recession and credit crunch on recent Balance of Payments data is presented.
Analytical limits of hybrid identification using genetic markers: an empirical and simulation study in Hippolais warblers

Hybridization is known to occur in a wide range of avian species, yet the rate and persistence of hybridization on populations is often hard to assess. Genotyping using variable genetic marker sets has become a common tool to identify hybrid individuals, however assignment outputs can differ depending on the marker set used. Here, we study hybrid assignment in two sibling Hippolais warblers, where hybrid assignment has shown to differ between SSR and AFLP markers. Simulation of heterospecific individuals as well as backcrosses (typed using SSR markers) reveals a rapid loss of assignment probability in higher backcross generations. However, the characterization of F1 hybrids was clearly distinguished from both parental taxa. The differences in marker sets are not contradictory but complementary. The rate of hybridization is lower than previously expected with AFLP markers but introgression might be long-lasting. This could be either due to differences in power of the marker systems used or due to non-neutral variation covered by AFLP but not SSR markers. We call for more attention to be paid regarding the potential limits of classical marker systems to investigate hybridization and its persistence in natural systems.
CATMAID: collaborative annotation toolkit for massive amounts of image data

Summary: High-resolution, three-dimensional (3D) imaging of large biological specimens generates massive image datasets that are difficult to navigate, annotate and share effectively. Inspired by online mapping applications like GoogleMaps™, we developed a decentralized web interface that allows seamless navigation of arbitrarily large image stacks. Our interface provides means for online, collaborative annotation of the biological image data and seamless sharing of regions of interest by bookmarking. The CATMAID interface enables synchronized navigation through multiple registered datasets even at vastly different scales such as in comparisons between optical and electron microscopy. Availability: http://fly.mpi-cbg.de/catmaid Contact: tomancak@mpi-cbg.de
Smile detection using Pair-wise Distance Vector and Extreme Learning Machine

A smile is a common human facial expression used as the indicator for positive emotion. The detection of smiling has many applications, for example, controlling camera shutter when a smile is detected and measuring the degree of satisfaction during a video conference. Many feature extraction methods have been proposed for detecting a smile in the unconstrained scenarios. However, the dimensions of most existing feature descriptors are too huge, which limits their real applications. Moreover, features should be more effective to distinguish between smile face and non-smile face. Motivated by the observation that the mouth shape can effectively reflect a person's smile state, we extracted a novel and snappy set of features that form a feature vector named Pair-wise Distance Vector, which is calculated only based on few points around a mouth. After that, Extreme Learning Machine (ELM) is adopted to classify smile based on these features. The experimental results on GENKI-4K database show that our proposed method outperforms the state-of-the-art methods in terms of accuracy and dimension of features.
Investigation on the Scattering Characteristics of Gaussian Beam from Two Dimensional Dielectric Rough Surfaces Based on the Kirchhoff Approximation

The scattering characteristic of paraxial gaussian beam from two dimensional dielectric rough surfaces is studied in this paper. The modification of the Kirchhoff approximation theory for rough surface scattering by an incident gaussian beam instead of a plane wave are developed based on conventional Kirchhoff scattering theory and plane wave spectrum expansion method. The coherent and incoherent scattered intensity and cross section of two dimensional dielectric rough surfaces is derived in detail. As a application, under incidence wave length λ =1 . 06 µm, we calculate the coherent and incoherent scattered intensity and cross section of Gaussian beam scattering from plating aluminium dielectric rough surfaces change with the scattering zenith angles in different rough surface correlation length, rough surface height root mean square and other conditions. In the same scattering conditions, we compare the coherent and incoherent scattered section between the gaussian beam and plane wave to prove that our methods and programming cods is correct. The numerical results are shown
Empirical essays on the stock market impact of limited investor attention

The major goal of this thesis is to broaden and deepen the understanding on how limited investor attention affects economic aggregates in financial markets. In doing so, this thesis aims to contribute to a fundamental debate in behavioral economics: Do phenomena in individual behavior matter in that they extend to the market level? More specifically, this thesis consists of four distinct research projects. Each of the first three derives implications of limited investor attention for equilibrium outcomes at the stock-level, and then subsequently investigates their empirical validity in depth. In this way, the thesis uncovers and explains several novel patterns in turnover and return data. A fourth empirical study explores the relative performance of simple portfolio diversification strategies, whose design might be considered as meeting the needs of cognitively overloaded private investors.
Grape seed proanthocyanidins extracts promote apolipoprotein A-I mRNA expression in HepG2 cells under experimental sugar and high-sugar conditions.

OBJECTIVES In this study, we investigated the effect of grape seed proanthocyanidins extracts (GSPE), which have been proved to have anti-oxidative and anti-aging functions, on the expression of apoA-L at mRNA level of HepG2 cells in vitro under the experimental conditions of high-sugar and sugar. MATERIALS AND METHODS Cell viability was measured by sulforhodamine B (SRB). The apoA-I mRNA expression was assayed by real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Firstly, HepG2 cells were incubated in 10% inactivated newborn calf serum in Dulbecco's Modified Eagle Medium (DMEM). Next, cells were incubated with high-sugar and sugar serum-free medium, and added different concentration of GSPE (2.5, 5 and 10 microg/ml) for more than 24 hours, and thereafter, investigated whether GSPE can promote more apoA-I expression in HepG2 cells under the experimental conditions of high-sugar and sugar. RESULTS In this experiment, HepG2 cells were incubated with high-sugar and sugar serum-free medium, and HepG2 cells incubated with high-sugar medium produced less apoA-I at mRNA level. The difference was significant (p < 0.05). When HepG2 cells were incubated with GSPE at concentration of 20 microg/ml or above for about 4 hours, cell viability measured by SRB was lower than 50%. However, cell viability of HepG2 cells incubated with GSPE at concentration of 10 microg/ml or below was higher than 70%. Therefore, we chose the HepG2 cells incubated with GSPE concentration of 2.5, 5, 10 microg/ml to observe the effect of GSPE on the mRNA expression of apoA-I. After incubated with GSPE, the apoA-I expression of HepG2 cells were significantly elevated at mRNA level compared to that of high sugar control (p < 0.05). Moreover, this action of GSPE showed dose dependent, and the dose of 2.5 microg/ml was optimal. CONCLUSIONS GSPE (concentration of higher than 20 microg/ml) could inhibit HepG2 cell survival, and in HepG2 cells, endogenous apoA-I was significantly suppressed following 24h of exposure to high concentrations of glucose. Meanwhile GSPE could promote expression of apoA-L dose dependently at mRNA level when its concentration was lower than 10 microg/ml.