Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Assessment of Human Gait Speed and Energy Expenditure Using a Single Triaxial Accelerometer

Assessing people's everyday life physical activity by accelerometry has gained a large role in the medical, sports and psychology science research in recent years. Walking is the most common everyday life activity and walking speed can be used as an indicator for human physical activity profile. Energy expenditure is on the other hand often used as a dimension while assessing human activity and is strongly related to people's walking speed. We propose an algorithm, which predicts the gait speed based on body accelerations measured on the right side hip by a tri-axial accelerometer. Based on the gait speed the activity is classified and the energy expenditure is estimated. After applying the algorithm to free living track data (both indoor and outdoor), the results show a good agreement between actual and estimated gait speed and energy expenditure.
Poaching is more than an Enforcement Problem

Today record levels of funding are being invested in enforcement and antipoaching measures to tackle the “war on poaching,” but many species are on the path to extinction. In our view, intensifying enforcement effort is crucial, but will ultimately prove an inadequate long‐term strategy with which to conserve high‐value species. This is because: regulatory approaches are being overwhelmed by the drivers of poaching and trade, financial incentives for poaching are increasing due to rising prices and growing relative poverty between areas of supply and centers of demand, and aggressive enforcement of trade controls, in particular bans, can increase profits and lead to the involvement of organized criminals with the capacity to operate even under increased enforcement effort. With prices for high‐value wildlife rising, we argue that interventions need to go beyond regulation and that new and bold strategies are needed urgently. In the immediate future, we should incentivize and build capacity within local communities to conserve wildlife. In the medium term, we should drive prices down by reexamining sustainable off‐take mechanisms such as regulated trade, ranching and wildlife farming, using economic levers such as taxation to fund conservation efforts, and in the long‐term reduce demand through social marketing programs.
Complex Systems: Phenomenology, Modeling, Analysis

In this paper a short overview on complex systems and their basic features, as well as the models and mathematical tools developed for their analysis, is given. This review is formed according to the related experience, activity and scientific interests of the author, namely focused on mainly in nonlinear time series analysis and statistics and their applications on different physical systems. In particular, rough outlines are given concerning the phenomenology of complex systems, e.g. far from equilibrium thermodynamics and Tsallis statistics, power law scaling, multi-fractality, low dimensional chaos, SOC, strange kinetics and anomalous diffusion and turbulent intermittency. In addition, a non-complete list of models, based on equations or agent based, is briefly described such as Kuramoto – Sivashinsky equation, cubic complex Ginzburg-Landau Equation, reaction-diffusion Equation, fractional equations, cellular automata, complex networks and artificial neural networks. A more extended review is provided concerning the nonlinear time series analysis complex systems, describing tools like mutual information, flatness coefficient, structure functions, Tsallis q-triplet, correlation dimension and Lyapunov exponents in the reconstructed phase space, which can provide valuable information for the complex system’s dynamics. Finally, applications of nonlinear time series analysis on various physical systems, such as earthquakes, Earth’s magnetosphere, solar plasma and solar wind, plastic deformation of materials, epilepsy, economical indices and DNA structure, are provided.
International Journal of Current Research in

The allelopathic effects of Strychnos nux-vomica L. on seed germination and seedling growth of medicinal plant Solanum trilobatum L. Leaf and bark aqueous extracts of Strychnos nux-vomica at 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25% concentrations were applied to effect their determine on seed germination and seedling growth of test plant under laboratory conditions. Germination and seedling growth tests were performed as CRD (Completely Randomized Design) with 3 replications. The aqueous extracts from leaf and bark had inhibitory effect on seed germination of Solanum trilobatum. The results showed that the extracts brought about considerable inhibition in the germination of Solanum trilobatum seeds and in the growth of its root length and shoot length. The allelopathic effect of leaf and bark extracts of Strychnos nux-vomica decreased the seed germination of Solanum trilobatum with increase in the extracts concentration. The extracts also inhibited the root length, shoot length and dry weight of Solanum trilobatum seedlings with increase in the extracts concentration compared with control treatments. Aqueous extract of leaves shows the higher inhibition while bark shows the minimum effect on Solanum trilobatum. These result revealed that the inhibitory effect potency be due to the presence of the allelochemicals in the extract of Strychnos nuxvomica from the present investigation. Strychnos nux-vomica leaf extracts were more detrimental than stem bark extracts. The evidence obtained could be used in the progress of bioherbicide for future in the field. Accepted: 15 September 2016 Available Online: 06 October 2016
Optimal Monetary and Macroprudential Policies for Financial Stability in a Commodity-Exporting Economy

We develop a model of analysing the optimal combination of macroprudential and monetary policies in a small open commodity-exporting economy. Unlike a closed economy, where monetary and macroprudential policies tend to be substitutes, in a small open economy the optimal policy mix depends on the specifics of shocks and economic structure. Monetary and macroprudential policies tend to complement each other when the degree of pass-through of credit spreads into marginal costs and prices are sufficiently high, or when a credit boom is caused by a commodity boom, a fraction of consumers lacks access to financial markets, and the government follows a fiscal policy rule. The two policies are substitutes when the complementarity between domestic and imported production inputs is sufficiently high.
THE IMPACTS OF TARIFF-RATE IMPORT QUOTAS ON MARKET ACCESS

The utilization of tariff-rate quotas (TRQs) for enhancing market access is a key component of global agricultural trade negotiations. We identify factors affecting the performance of TRQs in terms of improving market access. The analysis covers individual TRQs notified by 28 WTO member countries from 1995 through 2000. Our results show that reducing in-quota tariffs will significantly improve market access while the market access effect of any reduction in overquota tariffs is marginal. We also find that the empirical ranking of the efficiency of alternative TRQ administration methods differs from the theoretical ranking. JEL no. F13, Q17, Q18.
Self-Portrayals of GI Junior Fellows

: Software and software-controlled technical systems play an increasing role in our daily lives. In cyber-physical systems, which connect the physical and the digital world, software does not only influence how we perceive and interact with our environment but software also makes decisions that influence our behavior. Therefore, the ability of software systems to explain their behavior and decisions will become an important property that will be crucial for their acceptance in our society. We call software systems with this ability explainable software systems . In the past, we have worked on methods and tools to design explainable software systems. In this article, we highlight some of our work on how to design explain-ablesoftwaresystems.Morespecifically,wedescribeanar-chitectural framework for designing self-explainable software systems, which is based on the MAPE-loop for self-adaptive systems. Afterward, we show that explainabil-ity is also important for tools that are used by engineers during the development of software systems. We show examples from the area of requirements engineering where we use techniques from natural language processing and neural networks to help engineers comprehend the complex information structures embedded in system requirements.
A Novel Nonlinearity Correction Algorithm for FMCW Radar Systems for Optimal Range Accuracy and Improved Multitarget Detection Capability

Frequency-modulated continuous wave (FMCW) radars are an important class of radar systems, and they are quite popular because of their simpler architecture and lower cost. A fundamental problem in FMCW radars is the nonlinearity of the voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO), which results in a range of measurement errors, problems in multitarget detection, and degradation in synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images. In this paper, we first introduce a novel upsampling theory, then propose new algorithms to improve range accuracy and multitarget detection capability. These improvements are demonstrated both by simulations and actual lab experiments on a 2.4 GHz radar system. There are several techniques reported in the literature for VCO nonlinearity correction, but what makes the proposed approach different is that we focus on real-time processing on low-cost hardware and optimize the design subject to this constraint. We first developed an optimal upsampling theory which is based on almost-causal finite impulse response (FIR) filters. Compared to the sinc-based noncausal interpolation-based upsamplers, the proposed approach is based on using interpolation filters with few number of coefficients. Furthermore, interpolators are trained for a specific class of signals rather than a highly general signal set. Therefore, the proposed approach can be implemented on lower-cost hardware and perform quite well compared to more expensive systems.
Enhancing Play-out Performance for Internet Video-conferencing

The high transmission delay and packet loss conditions of the Internet environment have caused jerky video playout and poor quality for real-time video communication. This research proposes a video play-out agent that employs the techniques of dynamic video frames reconstruction and virtual video play-out to enhance the playout performance of Internet video-conferencing. The video play-out agent consists of three main components, namely, buffering mechanism, dynamic video frames reconstruction mechanism and play-out controller. The buffering mechanism stores incoming video frames in buffers. The dynamic video frames reconstruction mechanism is used for reconstructing intermediate frames based on two successive received frames to reduce the jerky effects. The play-out controller uses virtual video play-out mechanism to play back previously received video frames to give users the perception of uninterrupted video transmission.
Fluctuation of Protein Nitrogen Level in Tubers of Helianthus tuberosus L. Caused by Varying Levels of Nitrogen Fertilisation

The effect of nitrogen fertilisation against potassium and phosphorus fertilisation on the total and true protein content in tubers of Helianthus tuberosus L. was examined. Two cultivars of the test plant (Albik and Rubik) were cultivated for 3 years in a field experiment on slightly acidic soil with a granulometric composition of loamy sand. The experimental objects were: 1) control – no fertilisation; 2) PK fertilisation at kg ha; 52.4 – P and 149.4 – K and (against PK fertilisation) four levels of nitrogen fertilisation: 50, 100, 150 and 200 kg ha. The total protein in tubers was calculated by multiplying the nitrogen content determined by the Kjeldahl method by 6.25, while the true protein content was determined by the Bernstein method. The protein content in tubers of the Jerusalem artichoke cultivars under study was significantly affected by their genetic features. The Rubik cultivar was found to contain significantly more of both forms of protein than the Albik cultivar. Irrespective of the cultivar, phosphorus and potassium fertilisation increased the total protein content compared with the control. The application of nitrogen at a dose as low as 50 kg ha increased the content of both forms of protein.
Toward the probabilistic forecasting of high‐latitude GPS phase scintillation

The phase scintillation index was obtained from L1 GPS data collected with the Canadian High Arctic Ionospheric Network (CHAIN) during years of extended solar minimum 2008–2010. Phase scintillation occurs predominantly on the dayside in the cusp and in the nightside auroral oval. We set forth a probabilistic forecast method of phase scintillation in the cusp based on the arrival time of either solar wind corotating interaction regions (CIRs) or interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICMEs). CIRs on the leading edge of high‐speed streams (HSS) from coronal holes are known to cause recurrent geomagnetic and ionospheric disturbances that can be forecast one or several solar rotations in advance. Superposed epoch analysis of phase scintillation occurrence showed a sharp increase in scintillation occurrence just after the arrival of high‐speed solar wind and a peak associated with weak to moderate CMEs during the solar minimum. Cumulative probability distribution functions for the phase scintillation occurrence in the cusp are obtained from statistical data for days before and after CIR and ICME arrivals. The probability curves are also specified for low and high (below and above median) values of various solar wind plasma parameters. The initial results are used to demonstrate a forecasting technique on two example periods of CIRs and ICMEs.
California bearing ratio tests of enzyme-treated sedimentary residual soil show no improvement

Environmental concerns have significantly influenced the construction industry regarding the identification and use of environmentally sustainable construction materials. In this context, enzymes (organic materials) have been introduced recently for ground improvement projects such as pavements and embankments. The present experimental study was carried out in order to evaluate the compressive strength of a sedimentary residual soil treated with three different types of enzymes, as assessed through a California bearing ratio (CBR) test. Controlled untreated and treated soil samples containing four dosages (the recommended dose and two, five and 10 times the recommended dose) were prepared, sealed and cured for four months. Following the curing period, samples were soaked in water for four days before the CBR tests were administered. These tests showed no improvement in the soil is compressive strength; in other words, samples prepared even at higher dosages did not exhibit any improvement. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy tests were carried out on three enzymes in order to study the functional groups present in them. Furthermore, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) tests were executed for untreated and treated soil samples to determine if any chemical reaction took place between the soil and the enzymes. Neither of the tests (XRD nor FESEM) revealed any change. In fact, the XRD patterns and FESEM images for untreated and treated soil samples were indistinguishable.
Development of Accelerated Life Test

This paper summarizes the development of accelerated life test types, model, statistical method and its progress. To the mechatronic component whose failure mechanism is related to various operational stresses, the best way is to exploit variable stress accelerated life test (ALT), obtain the likelihood function with failure accumulative method, and then calculate the normal life on the basis of the parameter evaluation. Directing to the parameter evaluation difficulties of multiple parameters, the optimization method is widely used based on genetic algorithm.
AC 2011-611: ENHANCING THE SAFETY, SECURITY, AND CONVE-NIENCE FEATURES OF AN AUTOMOTIVE VIA A CELLULAR INTER-FACE

James O. Everly is an Associate Professor in Electronic and Computing Systems at the University of Cincinnati’s College of Engineering and Applied Science. He received a BSEE and MSEE from The Ohio State University in 1969 and 1970, respectively. He is a Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and a registered professional engineer in the state of Ohio. He is a member of the IEEE Cincinnati Section, and in 1997 he received the IEEE Professional Achievement Award. He has held several research and management positions in industry working for such companies as Battelle’s Columbus Laboratories, Rockwell International, and Claspan Corporation. He joined the University of Cincinnati in 1985.
Why Do (Some) Mergers Fail

This paper presents a model that incorporates product market competition into the standard neoclassical framework. The model explains why value-maximizing firms conduct mergers that in effect undermine shareholder value. In a Cournot setting, this paper demonstrates a prisoners’ dilemma for merging firms in a merger wave. Empirically, this paper identifies a negative relation between the performance of horizontal mergers and the clusteredness of horizontal M&A activities, which is consistent with the theory. Moreover, this relation is independent of the method of payment and increasing in acquirer’s managerial ownership, which rules out the alternative interpretations from existing theories. Finally, this relation is weaker for concentrated or durable-goods industries, which further supports the product market competition explanation of this paper.
A computer program for the design and analysis of low-speed airfoils, supplement

Three new options were incorporated into an existing computer program for the design and analysis of low speed airfoils. These options permit the analysis of airfoils having variable chord (variable geometry), a boundary layer displacement iteration, and the analysis of the effect of single roughness elements. All three options are described in detail and are included in the FORTRAN IV computer program.
Genetic diversity estimates of "Pinus pinaster" in the Iberian Peninsula: a comparison of allozymes and quantitative traits

Uno de los principales componentes de los programas de conservacion genetica es el uso de marcadores moleculares para la estimacion de la diversidad genetica. A pesar de ello, la variacion observada en marcadores moleculares esta debilmente correlacionada con la variacion adaptativa, lo que limita seriamente la aplicacion de estos estudios en el desarrollo de politicas de conservacion. En este trabajo, se compara la distribucion de la diversidad genetica de Pinus pinaster Ait. en la Peninsula Iberica obtenida con marcadores moleculares (isoenzimas) y caracteres cuantitativos (altura, forma del fuste y supervivencia). El estudio incluye siete poblaciones marginales. Estas, muestran valores de diversidad similares a los de poblaciones centrales proximas lo que sugiere una gran importancia de los procesos historicos regionales frente a efectos relacionados con el tamano efectivo poblacional. La correlacion de los marcadores moleculares utilizados con los caracteres cuantitativos medidos en los ensayos de campo es debil, aunque significativa. Esta correlacion podria explicarse considerando efectos selectivos en respuesta a gradientes ambientales que afectan a su vez el tamano efectivo de las poblaciones.
Swift follow-up of the gravitational wave source GW150914

The Advanced LIGO observatory recently reported the first direct detection of gravitational waves (GW) which triggered ALIGO on 2015 September 14. We report on observations taken with the Swift satellite two days after the trigger. No new X-ray, optical, UV or hard X-ray sources were detected in our observations, which were focussed on nearby galaxies in the GW error region and covered 4.7 square degrees ( 2% of the probability in the rapidly-available GW error region; 0.3% of the probability from the final GW error region, which was produced several months after the trigger). We describe the rapid Swift response and automated analysis of the X-ray telescope and UV/Optical Telescope data, and note the importance to electromagnetic follow up of early notification of the progenitor details inferred from GW analysis.
Long-term ecosystem stability in an Early Miocene estuary

The question of ecosystem stability is central to ecology and paleoecology and is of particular importance for estuaries, which are environmentally highly variable, considered as geologically short lived, and among the most degraded modern ecosystems of our planet. Understanding their ecological dynamics over geological time scales requires paleontological data in a sequence stratigraphic framework, which allows evaluation of paleocommunity dynamics in an environmental context. A 445-m-thick estuarine succession in a satellite basin of the Vienna Basin (Austria) shows continuous sedimentation over 700 k.y. and can be divided into two transgressive systems tracts and a highstand systems tract. In contrast to expectations, no major physical disturbances of the ecosystem involving abrupt changes in diversity and biofacies composition occurred at fl surfaces and at the sequence boundary. Accommodation space remained remarkably constant over the depositional history of the basin, and all changes between depositional environments were therefore more or less gradational. Biotic change along the studied succession can be described as a gradual faunal replacement in response to habitat tracking, a process also reported for some normal marine shelf environments. Benthic assemblages in the estuarine succession were strongly dominated by a few taxa and developed along two indirect gradients, water depth and hydrodynamic energy. These gradients show subtle long-term trends, corresponding to the sequence stratigraphic architecture. Tectonics affected the sequence architecture in this particular marginal marine setting: it controlled accommodation space and sedimentary input, and provided stable boundary conditions over hundreds of thousands of years. Our study demonstrates for the fi rst time that estuaries, which are under great environmental pressure today, are resilient to natural environmental perturbations and can persist over geological time scales.
Antagonistic Stiffness Characteristics in Robotic Linkage Systems

This paper is a study on isolated word recognition by independent speaker, we propose DTW speech recognition system by modified dynamic averaging method as reference pattern. 57 city names are selected as recognition vocabulary and 2th LPC cepstrum coefficients are used as the feature parameter. In this paper, besides recognition experiment using modified dynamic averaging method as reference pattern, we perform recognition experiments using causal method, dynamic averaging method, linear averaging method and clustering method with the same data in the same conditions for comparison with it. Through the experiment result, it is proved that recogntion rate by DTW using modified dynamic averaging method is the best as 97.6 percent.