Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Does Foreign Direct Investment Affect Wage Inequality? An Empirical Investigation

We use a panel of more than 100 countries for the period 1980 to 2002 to analyse the relationship between inward foreign direct investment (FDI) and wage inequality. We particularly check whether this relationship is non-linear, in line with a theoretical discussion. We find that the effect of FDI differs according to the level of development: we depict two different patterns, one for OECD (developed) and one for non-OECD (developing) countries. Results suggest the presence of a non linear effect in developing countries; wage inequality increases with FDI inward stock but this effect diminishes with further increases in FDI. For developed countries, wage inequality decreases with FDI inward stock and there is no robust evidence to show that this effect is non-linear.
Excitation and visibility of high-degree modes in stars

ABSTRA C T Observational evidence for excitation of non-radial modes in stars is confronted with the results of linear stability surveys for stellar models. We consider various types of pulsators on the upper main sequence as well as stars in the Cepheid strip. Our stability survey covers the whole range of spherical harmonic degrees, ‘, where instability is found. There is fair agreement between the theoretical instability strip and the location of z Oph stars, but the observed and calculated periods do not agree in some stars. We suggest that either pulsation is not responsible for the z Oph phenomenon or else there are serious errors in mode identification in these cases. We do not find instability at long periods for early B-type stars, supporting the idea that pulsation is not responsible for the periodic variations in Be stars. The agreement between the observed and calculated periods of high-degree modes in d Sct stars is not very satisfactory. This is attributed to problems in mode identification. We discuss unstable modes of high degree in Cepheid models as a possible mechanism for the low-amplitude radial velocities seen in some stars within the instability strip. We find, however, that the observed periods are at least a factor of 2 longer than the calculated periods. Finally, we discuss the possibility of observing modes of high degree photometrically. We suggest that a large number of high-degree modes may become detectable by future space-borne photometric missions. The confusion arising from these modes may greatly reduce the value of such observations for asteroseismology. However, they will be very important in studying the mechanism of mode selection.
Base station antenna array with calibration structure

The introduction of 5G technologies is pushing research in mobile communications to millimeter waves. However, sub-6 GHz frequency range as a part of the 5G standard provides excellent wave propagation properties and more capacity due to new usable frequency ranges. This paper introduces a design for picocell base station 2×2 antenna array with integrated signal injection network for transceiver calibration. Operation frequency range is from 2 to 6 GHz. The antenna array with calibration board has better than −6.3 dB active reflection coefficient and efficiency higher than −3 dB. Calibration network provides 29 dB coupling.
Advances on Sensors Based on Carbon Nanotubes

Carbon nanotubes have been attracting considerable interest among material scientists, physicists, chemists, and engineers for almost 30 years. Owing to their high aspect ratio, coupled with remarkable mechanical, electronic, and thermal properties, carbon nanotubes have found application in diverse fields. In this review, we will cover the work on carbon nanotubes used for sensing applications. In particular, we will see examples where carbon nanotubes act as main players in devices sensing biomolecules, gas, light or pressure changes. Furthermore, we will discuss how to improve the performance of carbon nanotube-based sensors after proper modification.
Parabens: The love - hate molecule

OPEN ACCESS Parabens are the esters of para-hydroxybenzoic acid [1], mimicking oestrogen, the hormone which makes a woman a woman; women love it and men hate it. However, with an excess use of this compound, even women can develop cancers of oestrogen responsive organs. Michelle ScottLynch says ‘Parabens are irst introduced in the 1950s as a type of preservative which prolong shelf life in many health and beauty products by preventing the growth of mould and bacteria within them. Common parabens include methylparaben (E number E218), ethylparaben (E214), propylparaben (E216), butylparaben and heptylparaben (E209). Less common parabens include isobutylparaben, isopropylparaben, benzylparaben and their sodium salts; all of them are synthetic chemicals. It is well known fact that too much oestrogen can trigger an increase in breast cell division and growth of tumours. Because parabens are found in a wide variety of foods, beverages, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and other personal care products, parabens exposure occurs when these products are swallowed or absorbed through the skin, according to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
NautDB : Towards a Hybrid Runtime for Processing Compiled Queries

Goal: to integrate specialization techniques from the OS community hybrid runtimes and DB community compiled queries for high-performance querying on big data. •Certain abstractions improve generality, but get in the way of performance at exascale computing. • In specific cases, give up flexibility and generality in exchange for performance. •We prototype NautDB: specialized using a hybrid runtime kernel (based on the Nautilus Aerokernel [1]) and executing pre-compiled building-blocks. •We demonstrate performance benefits in certain cases, while maintaining a simple interface for users. Specialized Hybrid Runtimes [1] •Kernel + Runtime run in ring 0 (unikernel-like) =⇒ fewer context switches •Partition physical resources between general purpose OS and hybrid runtime [2] =⇒ can call general purpose OS where needed. •Unikernel-inspired design gives programmer fine-grained control over . •Not time-shared =⇒ No context-switches or thread-migration •Avoid interrupts =⇒ Faster and more predictable •Single address space =⇒ Huge page-sizes (1Gb) =⇒ No TLB misses •Memory allocation =⇒ Specialize allocator for workload/application (see Fig. 1) Compiled Query Processing [4, 3] •DB engine is specialized for a particular query •Can be pre-compiled or JIT-compiled •Smaller code =⇒ less i-cache misses and branches •Specialized data structures •Combine code for multiple operators (pipeline) =⇒ optimizations within operators and less func calls •Specialize code for hardware without blow up in code size •The DB-programmer writes compiled code in the unikernel, giving them unfettered access HW. •Compose operators within a block =⇒ avoid function-call overhead. •Control HW =⇒ NUMA-aware code. Figure 1: The custom allocator outperforms the highly optimized allocator of linux for smaller sizes by more than an order of magnitude. This demonstrates the potential of specialization—the behaviour of a component can be fine-tuned to workload characteristics. Hypothesis Executing compiled queries in a hybrid runtime can improve performance within parameter ranges that benefit from a particular specialization and leads to more predictable performance.
Realization of stable ferromagnetic order in a topological insulator: Codoping-enhanced magnetism in 4 f transition metal doped B i 2 S e 3

The quantum anomalous Hall effect (QAHE) originates from a combination of the spin-orbital coupling and the breaking of time-reversal symmetry due to intrinsic ferromagnetic ordering and was recently observed in Cr and V doped magnetic topological insulators (TIs). However, it was only observed at extremely low temperatures due to the low ferromagnetic Curie temperature and the tiny magnetically induced gap. To fully understand the mechanism of the ferromagnetic ordering, thereby improving the ferromagnetism, we investigated $4f$ transition metal doped $\mathrm{B}{\mathrm{i}}_{2}\mathrm{S}{\mathrm{e}}_{3}$, using density functional theory approaches. We predict that Eu and Sm can introduce stable long-range ferromagnetic states in $\mathrm{B}{\mathrm{i}}_{2}\mathrm{S}{\mathrm{e}}_{3}$, with large magnetic moments and low impurity disorders. Additionally, codoping is proposed to tune the Fermi level into the gap, which simultaneously improves the magnetic moment and the incorporation of magnetic ions. Our findings, thus, offer a step in facilitating the realization of QAHE in TI systems.
Can formate dehydrogenase from Candida boidinii catalytically reduce carbon dioxide, bicarbonate, or carbonate to formate?

Formate dehydrogenase from Candida boidinii (CbFDH) reversibly catalyzes formate to carbon dioxide with the redox couple NAD+/NADH. There have been many studies on CbFDH-catalyzed oxidation of formate to carbon dioxide in the presence of NAD+. On the other hand, there are few studies on the detailed mechanism of the carbon dioxide reduction to formate catalyzed by CbFDH in the presence of NADH. In addition, it is not clear whether CbFDH can reduce carbon dioxide, bicarbonate or carbonate to formate. In this study, formate production with CbFDH in the presence of NADH was investigated in solutions with different ratios of carbon dioxide, bicarbonate and carbonate. The reaction rate of formate production with CbFDH increased in proportion to the concentration of carbon dioxide in the reaction solution. On the other hand, the formate production with CbFDH was suppressed in proportion to the concentration of bicarbonate or carbonate in the reaction solution. Thus, CbFDH was found to catalytically reduce only carbon dioxide to formate among the three types of carbonate species.
TwiFly: A Data Analysis Framework for Twitter

Over the last decade, there have been many changes in the field of political analysis at a global level. Through social networking platforms, millions of people have the opportunity to express their opinion and capture their thoughts at any time, leaving their digital footprint. As such, massive datasets are now available, which can be used by analysts to gain useful insights on the current political climate and identify political tendencies. In this paper, we present TwiFly, a framework built for analyzing Twitter data. TwiFly accepts a number of accounts to be monitored for a specific time-frame and visualizes in real time useful extracted information. As a proof of concept, we present the application of our platform to the most recent elections of Greece, gaining useful insights on the election results.
Synchronization of fractional-order Lü chaotic oscillators for voice encryption

In this paper, the encryption improvement via modulation of the fractional order chaotic oscillators state variables, is presented. A network of N-coupled fractional order Lu chaotic oscillators, is synchronized. A voice message is encrypted via additive encryption, by using a state variable of the synchronized network. The selected state variable is modulated and used to encrypt the message again. The results are compared.
Silenced Women : Gender Representation and Narrative Technique in Naughty Dog's Video Game The Last of Us

Considerable research has been devoted to the analysis of Naughty Dog's video game The Last of Us, especially concerning the relationship between the protagonists, Ellie and Joel. However, little to no attention has been given to the narrative technique used and its effect on gender representation. The analysis of elements present in the game, such as clothing, in-game model designs, camera angles and narrative tropes, prove that even though women are not represented according to gender stereotypes, they are ultimately silenced and disempowered by the narrative itself.
SVenX: A highly parallelized pipeline for structural variation detection using linked read whole genome sequencing data

Genomic rearrangements larger than 50 bp are called structural variants. As a group, they affect the phenotypic diversity among humans and have been associated with many human disorders including neurodevelopmental disorder and cancer. Recent advances in whole genome sequencing (WGS) technologies have made it possible to identify many more disease-causing genetic variants relevant in clinical diagnostics and sometimes affecting treatment. Numerous approaches have been proposed to detect structural variants, but to acquire and filter out the most significant information from the multitude of called variants in the sequencing data has shown to be a challenge. Another obstacle is the high computational cost of data analyses and difficulties in configuring and operating the softwares and databases. Here, we present SVenX, a highly automated and parallelized pipeline that analyzes and call structural variants using linked read WGS data. It performs variant calling using three different approaches, as well as annotation of variants and variant filtering. We also introduce a new tool, SVGenT, that reanalyzes the called structural variants by performing de novo assembly using the aligned reads at the identified breakpoint junctions. By comparing assembled contigs and analyzing the read coverage between the breakpoint junctions, SVGenT improves both variant and genotype classification and the breakpoint localization. (Less)
Phylogenetic Diversity of Sequences of Cyanophage for g20 Gene from Napahai Wetland in China

So far a large number of researches have shown that the cyanophages have a higher diversity in the marine and freshwater environment, but the report about the genetic diversity of cyanophages in wetland is little seen. In order to understand the genetic diversity of bacteriophage communities in Napahai wetland, the conserved structural gene (g20) of bacteriophage was amplified with the primers. The goal was to use this gene as a proxy to infer genetic richness in natural cyanophage communities and determine if sequences were more similar in Napahai wetland.In this study the distribution of g20 sequences were similar with paddy cyanophage sequences came from various regions through phylogenetic analysis. It indicated that the cyanophages in Napahai wetland had a rich diversity. Keywords-phylogenetic diversity; cyanophages g20 gene; Napahai wetland.
M2868 - ERVASTI 9781781001264 PRINT.indd

This book is about the attitudes to the welfare state of ordinary people in almost thirty European countries. It addresses the subject from a comparative perspective, exploiting the signifi cantly improved availability of data provided by the 2008 European Social Survey (ESS). A comparative perspective enables us to target our interest not only at the variations between individuals and social groups, but also at the diff erences between countries. Indeed, we seek to combine analyses at the micro level (variations between individuals, groups, etc.) with analyses at the macro level (between countries). With regard to country diff erences, the book embodies the notion of diff erent welfare models or ‘welfare regimes’ across Europe (in a slightly geographically enlarged format), but also examines other country diff erences. The book is linked to analyses of policy challenges and policy change in modern welfare state theory and addresses, inter alia, new social risks and perceptions of risk, challenges linked to changing family structures, and the more general impact of immigration and heterogeneity. In so doing, the book will hopefully be of relevance not only to scholars and others interested in research on political attitudes or welfare attitudes, but also to those interested in the changes in modern welfare policy. Public attitudes to welfare is not an entirely new fi eld of research, and national surveys on welfare state attitudes were fi rst conducted in the 1970s. Nevertheless, in a complete overview of Englishlanguage literature concerning public support for the welfare state, Shapiro and Young (1989) were able to list only 186 relevant worldwide references prior to 1989. Most of these early studies were based on single country and crosssectional surveys, most of them were rather explorative in design, and few of them had any relationship with broader theories concerning welfare states and welfare state change. The lack of adequate data constituted a serious constraint, and in the absence of data about attitudes, theories concerning the welfare state – or concerning the impact of social change – frequently had to rely more
Curiosity-Driven Development of Tool Use Precursors : a Computational Model

Studies of child development of tool use precursors show successive but overlapping phases of qualitatively different types of behaviours. We hypothesize that two mechanisms in particular play a role in the structuring of these phases: the intrinsic motivation to explore and the representation used to encode sensorimotor experience. Previous models showed how curiosity-driven learning mechanisms could allow the emergence of developmental trajectories. We build upon those models and present the HACOB (Hierarchical Active Curiosity-driven mOdel Babbling) architecture that actively chooses which sensorimotor model to train in a hierarchy of models representing the environmental structure. We study this architecture using a simulated robotic arm interacting with objects in a 2D environment. We show that overlapping phases of behaviours are autonomously emerging in hierarchical models using active model babbling. To our knowledge, this is the first model of curiosity-driven development of simple tool use and of the self-organization of overlapping phases of behaviours. In particular, our model explains why and how intrinsically motivated exploration of non-optimal methods to solve certain sensorimotor problems can be useful to discover how to solve other sensorimotor problems, in accordance with Siegler’s overlapping waves theory, by scaffolding the learning of increasingly complex affordances in the environment.
Clinical significance of histologic subtyping of malignant pleural mesothelioma

Malignant mesothelioma (MM) is uncommon, but very aggressive tumor arising from the mesothelial cells of pleura, pericardium, peritoneum, and tunica vaginalis. Despite multimodality treatments 5-year survival is only 5% after the diagnosis. Histology and TNM staging system are still the best prognostic factors. Furthermore, histologic subtype of MM determines the clinical management of the patients. According to the 2015 WHO classification, MM is divided into diffuse, localized and well differentiated papillary mesothelioma. Major histologic subtypes of diffuse MM, namely epithelioid, biphasic and sarcomatoid, have different prognosis. However, in the last decade it has become evident that more detailed subclassification and histologic/cytological characterization of MM have prognostic and perhaps predictive implications. In this review, major histologic subtypes and cytological features of MM are presented and their relation with prognosis and predictive biomarkers is discussed.
Inflation Expectations, Consumption and the Lower Bound: Micro Evidence from a Large Euro Area Survey

This paper exploits a very large multi-country survey of consumers to investigate empirically the relationship between inflation expectations and consumer spending. We document that for the Euro Area and almost all of its constituent countries this relationship is generally positive: a higher expected change in inflation is associated with an increase in the probability that a given consumer will make major purchases. Moreover, in line with the predictions of macroeconomic theory, the impact is stronger when the lower bound on nominal interest rates is binding. Also, using the estimated spending probabilities from our micro-level analysis, we indirectly estimate the impact of a gradual increase in inflation expectations on aggregate private consumption. We find the effects to be economically relevant, especially when the lower bound is binding.
Only Human A review by Bjørn Kjos-Hanssen

Introduction A victorious yet tragic hero. A genius but ominously an augur of the end of human dominance. Such characterizations come to mind regarding Alan Mathison Turing (1912– 1954) after reading the The Turing Guide. It is a 500-page compilation of articles bymany authors, written for “general readers,” which strikes a balance between focusing on Turing himself and on the collection of topics he was involved in. The driving force behind the book is philosopher Jack Copeland, who has written many books and articles about Turing and participates in sixteen of the forty-two chapters of the Guide. Officially, the author list is Copeland, Bowen, Sprevak, Wilson, “and others. ” The chapters are lightly cross-referenced but are largely independent. The book is solidly proofread: I got to page 55 before finding the first error (“during the did decades”). Turing’s appeal in the popular imagination may stem from checking several boxes: he is viewed as a genius and
Tunneling dynamics of two interacting one-dimensional particles

We present one-dimensional simulation results for the cold atom tunneling experiments by the Heidelberg group [G. Z\"urn {\em{et al.}}, Phys. Rev. Lett. {\bf{108}}, 075303 (2012) and G. Z\"urn {\em{et al.}}, Phys. Rev. Lett. {\bf{111}}, 175302 (2013)] on one or two $^6$Li atoms confined by a potential that consists of an approximately harmonic optical trap plus a linear magnetic field gradient. At the non-interacting particle level, we find that the WKB (Wentzel-Kramers-Brillouin) approximation may not be used as a reliable tool to extract the trapping potential parameters from the experimentally measured tunneling data. We use our numerical calculations along with the experimental tunneling rates for the non-interacting system to reparameterize the trapping potential. The reparameterized trapping potentials serve as input for our simulations of two interacting particles. For two interacting (distinguishable) atoms on the upper branch, we reproduce the experimentally measured tunneling rates, which vary over several orders of magnitude, fairly well. For infinitely strong interaction strength, we compare the time dynamics with that of two identical fermions and discuss the implications of fermionization on the dynamics. For two attractively-interacting atoms on the molecular branch, we find that single-particle tunneling dominates for weakly-attractive interactions while pair tunneling dominates for strongly-attractive interactions. Our first set of calculations yields qualitative but not quantitative agreement with the experimentally measured tunneling rates. We obtain quantitative agreement with the experimentally measured tunneling rates if we allow for a weakened radial confinement.
Teleworking in the Context of the Covid-19 Crisis

This article aims to analyze the implementation of teleworking as a security practice to face the crisis resulting from the Covid-19 disease. The present paper provides both theoretical and practical results. From a theoretical standpoint, the Baruch and Nicholson approach is extended with environmental, safety, and legal factors that explain telework. From a practical perspective, a database of companies that have introduced telework as a measure to face coronavirus in a crisis context has been obtained. In short, the Covid-19 crisis demonstrates how teleworking has been used by companies to ensure their employees’ safety and to provide continuity to economic activity. Consequently, safety factors are relevant in the study of teleworking and should be considered in further research.