Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Lessons Not Learnt: From the Collapse of Long-Term Capital Management to the Subprime Crisis

The subprime crisis was largely unanticipated as the efficient market hypothesis held sway and the Gaussian techniques used to rate Collateralised Debt Obligations were assumed to have diversified risk and reduced systemic risk. However, as this paper argues, many of the shortcomings stemming from these assumptions, together with the consequent economic policy of ‘light regulation’, were clearly revealed by the collapse of Long-Term Capital Management in 1998. This nearly brought about the collapse of the US banking system and gave a clear practical demonstration that the economy is non-ergodic. The paper discusses the collapse of Long-Term Capital Management and shows how the lessons derived from that crisis were not learnt. It also highlights the dangers of assuming that uncertainty can simply be treated as risk, as the Post-Keynesians have long argued. Furthermore, it argues, following Akerlof (2007), that case studies can be just as, or indeed more revealing than, econometric testing. Nigel Allington is Professor of International Finance, Ecole de Management, Grenoble, France and Associate Member, Cambridge Centre for Economic Public Policy (CCEPP), University of Cambridge; John McCombie is Director of CCEPP, University of Cambridge and Fellow in Economics, Downing College, Cambridge and Maureen Pike is Principal Lecturer, School of Business, Oxford Brookes University and Associate Member, CCEPP, University of Cambridge. ¶ Corresponding author; e-mail jslm2@cam.ac. uk.
Financial Development Analysis of Economic Growth in ASEAN

This study aims to analyze the effect of domestic credit to private sector, bank overhead cost to total assets, stock prices volatility and loand net bank to GDP on economic growth in ASEAN, research countries include Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam during the period 2001-2020 by applying the panel equation analysis method. An important finding in this study is that domestic credit to the private sector has a negative and significant impact on economic growth in ASEAN, while bank overhead costs to total assets affect economic growth positively and significantly in ASEAN. Furthermore, stock price volatility affects economic growth negatively and is significantly influenced in ASEAN and net bank loans to GDP affects economic growth positively and significantly in ASEAN. This study recommends that policy makers need to seek appropriate economic strategies to increase economic growth from the aspect of financial development.
ON OMEGA CONTEXT FREE LANGUAGES WHICH ARE BOREL SETS OF INFINITE RANK

This paper is a continuation of the study of topological properties of omega context free languages (ω-CFL). We proved in [Topological Properties of Omega Context Free Languages, Theoretical Computer Science, Volume 262 (1-2), 2001, p. 669697] that the class of ω-CFL exhausts the finite ranks of the Borel hierarchy, and in [Borel Hierarchy and Omega Context Free Languages, Theoretical Computer Science, to appear] that there exist some ω-CFL which are analytic but non Borel sets. We prove here that there exist some omega context free languages which are Borel sets of infinite (but not finite) rank, giving additional answer to questions of Lescow and Thomas [Logical specifications of infinite computations, In:”A Decade of Concurrency” (J. W. de Bakker et al., eds), Springer LNCS 803 (1994), 583-621].
An Empirical Test of Cause and Effect Relationships among Measures in Balanced Scorecard (BSC): Evidence from Multivariate Granger Causality

Article history: Background: Few performance measurement systems (PMS) are in use today such as Balanced Scorecard (BSC), Performance Prism and Performance Pyramid. The most widely adopted PMS is the BSC which is framework that translate the organization's strategy into a set of achievable performance indicators. The uniqueness of BSC that differentiates it from other PMS is strategy map that has a unidirectional causality following the bottom top approach. However, BSC holds shortfall despite its apparent popularity. The criticisms on the causality in BSC have been widely discussed whether they are based on the statistical tested, logical or assumptions. Well-developed causal models are valuable for improving business performance, predicting and decision making to foresee how action affects future performance. Therefore, the relationship between measures should have notion of causality. Objective: To find out whether cause and effect relationship in BSC at the research site exists or not using statistical analysis test of causality. In seeking empirical evidence of causality linkages in BSC, a theoretical framework which consist of ten (10) propositions based on the Service Profit Chain (SPC) theory were developed and tested using the econometric causality analysis; Granger causality test on the 45 time series data point extracted from the Business Performance Review report. Prior conducting Granger causality test, the unit root tests were conducted individually onto performance measures to check the nature of the data in terms of the stationary data level. Results: Results of the study show insufficiency of well-established causality models as only 40% of the causal linkages were supported by the data and the study suggests existence of bidirectional causality between employee engagement and revenue which demonstrates a significant dynamic relationship. Unidirectional causality significantly existed from revenue to customer satisfaction and from customer growth to revenue. Conclusion: The findings are based on a single case study of telecommunication industry in Malaysia. Therefore, the generalization to others companies demands caution and more data are needed to analyze in foreseeing the long term effects. The study contributes to the extant literature on the areas of PMS by analyzing the cause and effect relationships among measures through Econometrics statistical analysis in the context of BSC environment.
Incidence of infections associated with the use of invasive devices in an ICU after application of the Improvement Science Method

Objective: To reduce the incidence density of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI), and catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) in the intensive care unit (ICU) using the Improvement Science method. Methods: This was a single-center retrospective cohort study. A collaborative quality improvement team developed and implemented local changes to HAI-related processes and protocols. Pre-intervention, intervention, and post-intervention periods were compared. The study was conducted at the Adult ICU of a hospital in southern Brazil. Variables were analyzed using interrupted time series analysis with segmented linear regression, simple correlation, and hypothesis testing. Results: There was a reduction in the incidence density of all infections. VAP was reduced from 27.2% to 7.2% (p < 0.001), CLABSI from 3.0% to 0.9% (p = 0.017), and CAUTI from 8.3% to 1.8% (p < 0.001). The ICU stay was also reduced from 6.7 to 6 days (p = 0.018). Conclusion: There was an improvement in all the evaluated parameters. Ongoing monitoring of related indicators and adherence to implemented measures are essential to sustain improvements. Applying the Improvement Science methodology can reduce the incidence of HAIs in the ICU.
Inventory and analysis of rangeland resources of the state land block on Parker Mountain, Utah

High altitude color infrared (CIR) photography was interpreted to provide an 1:24,000 overlay to U.S.G.S. topographic maps. The inventory and analysis of rangeland resources was augmented by the digital analysis of LANDSAT MSS data. Available geology, soils, and precipitation maps were used to sort out areas of confusion on the CIR photography. The map overlay from photo interpretation was also prepared with reference to print maps developed from LANDSAT MSS data. The resulting map overlay has a high degree of interpretive and spatial accuracy. An unacceptable level of confusion between the several sagebrush types in the MSS mapping was largely corrected by introducing ancillary data. Boundaries from geology, soils, and precipitation maps, as well as field observations, were digitized and pixel classes were adjusted according to the location of pixels with particular spectral signatures with respect to such boundaries. The resulting map, with six major cover classes, has an overall accuracy of 89%. Overall accuracy was 74% when these six classes were expanded to 20 classes.
Responses of Planetary Waves to Global Warming: Implications from CMIP3 4×CO2 Experiments

Abstract The planetary wave response to global warming with single forcing of greenhouse gases (GHGs) is investigated in this study by using a total of 11 model results that anticipated CMIP3 4×CO2 experiments. It is shown that the amplitudes of the planetary wave fluxes over Siberia, the Eastern North Pacific, and the North Atlantic decrease by approximately –10% to –30% in the warming context. In particular, the vertical wave flux over the Eastern North Pacific significantly decreases by –28.6%. The weakening of the planetary waves is partly associated with the decreased land-sea thermal contrast, which may be caused by the radiation effect of CO2 and the different surface heat capacities of land and sea. The present work provides a clear understanding of the responses of planetary waves to GHGs forcing.
Estimation and modeling of forest attributes across large spatial scales using BiomeBGC, high-resolution imagery, LiDAR data, and inventory data.

BiomeBGC (BBGC) is a mechanistic model that is used to estimate the state and fluxes of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and water (H2O) into and out of an ecosystem. BBGC is actively used in institutions around the globe and its most recent release is version 4.2. As mentioned above, the 3 primary biogeochemical cycles represented in BBGC are the C, N, and H2O cycles. In conjunction with these cycles, BBGC models the physical processes of radiation and water disposition. BBGC partitions incoming radiation and precipitation and treats the excess/unused portions as outflows. The primary physiological processes modeled by BBGC are photosynthesis, evapotranspiration, respiration (autotrophic and heterotrophic), decomposition, the final allocation of photosynthetic assimilate, and mortality. To model these processes, BBGC first models the phenology of the systems based on the input meteorological data. This description of BBGC below will attempt to follow the order and structure of BBGC as it is implemented to best represent the flow of information through the model system. A general discussion of the model flow and required inputs will be given first, followed by a broad outline of the model processes and assumptions. BBGC will be compared to Forest Gap Models and Growth and Yield Models. Lastly, a detailed description of each of the BBGC’s processes will be presented (Peter Thornton’s thesis was an essential reference in understanding this model (Thornton 1998)). 1: General Model Flow Figure 1 shows the general flow of the BBGC model. The first step in any BBGC model run is a spinup to bring the model into equilibrium. It is common for ecosystem models to require a steady state initial condition so as to insure that there is a balance between input and output fluxes and that the system has equilibrated to the environmental and site forcings (Thornton and Rosenbloom 2005). In the current version of BBGC, this means that the difference between the annual average daily soil carbon stocks must be less than a specified spinup tolerance value (SPINUP_TOLERANCE = 0.0005 kg/m/yr).
Human blood-labyrinth barrier model to study the effects of cytokines and inflammation

Hearing loss is one of the 10 leading causes of disability worldwide. No drug therapies are currently available to protect or restore hearing. Inner ear auditory hair cells and the blood-labyrinth barrier (BLB) are critical for normal hearing, and the BLB between the systemic circulation and stria vascularis is crucial for maintaining cochlear and vestibular homeostasis. BLB defects are associated with inner ear diseases that lead to hearing loss, including vascular malformations, inflammation, and Meniere’s disease (MD). Antibodies against proteins in the inner ear and cytokines in the cochlea, including IL-1α, TNF-α, and NF-kβ, are detected in the blood of more than half of MD patients. There is also emerging evidence of inner ear inflammation in some diseases, including MD, progressive sensorineural hearing loss, otosclerosis, and sudden deafness. Here, we examined the effects of TNF-α, IL6, and LPS on human stria vascularis-derived primary endothelial cells cultured together with pericytes in a Transwell system. By measuring trans-endothelial electrical resistance, we found that TNF-α causes the most significant disruption of the endothelial barrier. IL6 had a moderate influence on the barrier, whereas LPS had a minimal impact on barrier integrity. The prominent effect of TNF-α on the barrier was confirmed in the expression of the major junctional genes responsible for forming the tight endothelial monolayer, the decreased expression of ZO1 and OCL. We further tested permeability using 2 μg of daptomycin (1,619 Da), which does not pass the BLB under normal conditions, by measuring its passage through the barrier by HPLC. Treatment with TNF-α resulted in higher permeability in treated samples compared to controls. LPS-treated cells behaved similarly to the untreated cells and did not show differences in permeability compared to control. The endothelial damage caused by TNF-α was confirmed by decreased expression of an essential endothelial proteoglycan, syndecan1. These results allowed us to create an inflammatory environment model that increased BLB permeability in culture and mimicked an inflammatory state within the stria vascularis.
Development in ambient backscatter communications

Backscatter communication (BackCom), the underlying technology for modern‐day Radio Frequency Identification, has been studied as a promising solution for future ultra‐low power Internet‐of‐Things (IoT) applications. Its development has pushed the performance boundaries significantly, in terms of communication distance, data transmission rate, and power consumption. An up‐to‐date review of one branch of BackCom systems, namely Ambient BackCom, which utilises the already available ambient signals, instead of a dedicated radio frequency carrier in most of the BackCom works, to establish BackCom links is conducted. This further reduces the cost and complexity of the system and opens an opportunity for mass deployment.
Recent Progresses on Vanadium Sulfide Cathodes for Aqueous Zinc-Ion Batteries

Aqueous zinc-ion batteries are considered one of the promising large-scale energy storage devices of the future because of their high energy density, simple preparation process, efficient and safe discharge process, abundant zinc reserves, and low cost. However, the development of cathode materials with high capacity and stable structure has become one of the key elements to further development of aqueous zinc-ion batteries. Vanadium-based compounds, as one of the cathode materials for aqueous zinc-ion batteries, have various structures and high reversible capacities. Among them, vanadium-based sulfides have higher academic ability, better electrochemical activity, lower ion diffusion potential barrier, and a faster ion diffusion rate. As a result, vanadium-based sulfides have received extensive attention and research. In this review, we summarize the recent progress of vanadium-based sulfides applied in aqueous zinc-ion batteries, highlighting their effective strategies for designing optimized electrochemical performance and the underlying electrochemical mechanisms. Finally, an overview is provided of current vanadium-based sulfides and their prospects, and other perspectives on vanadium-based sulfide cathode materials for aqueous zinc-ion batteries are also discussed.
Role Mining Data for RBAC Programming Challenge

RBAC and role mining. Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) is a security policy framework for controlling user access to resources based on roles [4, 14]. It is extremely important for reducing the cost of policy administration, especially in large organizations. An ANSI standard was created for RBAC [5, 1]. Role mining is the problem of analyzing given user-permission relation, to determine a set of roles with user-role relation and permission-role relation, such that the RBAC policy grants the same permissions as given [3].
Violent and antisocial behaviours among young adolescents in Australian communities

This paper presents an analysis of factors associated with violent and antisocial behaviours among young Australians aged 10–14 years and examines the relationship between these behaviours and alcohol consumption. This paper was commissioned by the Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth (ARACY) to inform the development of strategies aimed at preventing violent and antisocial behaviours among young people. The paper, which was prepared for ARACY by the Centre for Adolescent Health, presents an analysis of factors associated with violent and antisocial behaviours among young Australians aged 10–14 years. The focus is on identifying factors that either increase or reduce the likelihood of young people engaging in violent and antisocial behaviours. The data for the analysis come from the 2006 Healthy Neighbourhoods Project. In this project more than 8000 Year 6 and Year 8 students in 30 communities across Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia were surveyed about attitudes, experiences and behaviours relevant to their health and wellbeing. Communities were randomly selected to take part in the survey after having been stratified according to socioeconomic status and urban/rural location. Students from 15 urban areas and 15 rural areas took part. While the age of young people surveyed ranged from 10–14 years, 80% were aged 11 or 12 years. As well as the prevalence of factors associated with violent and antisocial behaviour, the analysis also examines the relationship between these behaviours and alcohol consumption. Data are provided on the proportion of young people surveyed who have consumed alcohol, and the levels and frequency of alcohol consumption according to gender and the student’s year level.
Pre-epidemic mortality rates for common Phytophthora ramorum host tree species in California

Understanding the impacts of Phytophthora ramorum on forests will require knowledge of pre-disease distribution, abundance, and rates of change for affected species. This study estimated pre-epidemic mortality rates for nine common host tree species: bigleaf maple (Acer macrophyllum), California bay laurel (Umbellularia californica), California black oak (Quercus kelloggii), canyon live oak (Quercus chrysolepis), coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia), Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), madrone (Arbutus menziesii), coastal redwood (Sequoia sempervirens), and tanoak (Lithocarpus densiflorus) using inventory data from 1981 to 1984 and 1991 to 1994 statewide inventories of private (and some public) forest land. Mortality rates that were developed represent the average annual mortality for trees that were at least 12.5 cm in diameter at 1.4 m above the ground (dbh) at the time of the first (1981-1984) inventory. Natural mortality for all trees was estimated at 0.5 percent of trees per year, with rates for individual host species ranging from 0.1 to 0.6 percent. Overall, growth exceeded natural mortality and harvest for most host species between 1981 to 1984 and 1991 to 1994. Tanoak, the most numerous tree species in the quarantined counties, increased in volume and number of trees by more than 15 percent over the decade.
Multi source Interferometry Synthetic Aperture Radar for monitoring existing bridges: a case study

Bridge maintenance and safety are key goals for transportation management companies, considering that several vulnerability sources can affect these assets. Although necessary and hardly replaceable, traditional surveillance techniques represent time‐ and cost‐consuming activities that cannot be widely employed on the entire infrastructural portfolio. Hence, innovative techniques could be exploited, among which the use of Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR). InSAR is a well‐known remote sensing technique that allows to reconstruct the displacement time‐series of persistent scatterers (PS) on the Earth's surface. The current available PS time series present different levels of spatial accuracy and temporal frequency, which depend on satellite data source. On this base, the paper deals with the evaluation of displacement scenarios for existing RC bridges, by means of two different popular satellite time‐series datasets: Sentinel‐1 and COSMO‐SkyMed. In detail, the analysis of the interferometric products provides different out‐comes, which are discussed in this paper. Pros and cons are provided with reference to a real‐life case study, showing differences in terms of geometry, resolution, and displacement results.
Post-COVID craft education Reflections on a virtual artisan woodblock studio exchange between Australia and India

This paper presents a hybrid model of teaching and learning that proposes new possibilities for exchanging tangible and intangible cross-cultural knowledge in textile craft education. The paper aims to demonstrate how online platforms can be used creatively to disseminate traditional craft knowledge and skills in new ways. The discussion centres on a unique virtual global studio between fashion and textile undergraduate students at the University of Technology Sydney and on an artisanal woodblock print studio, Tharangini, based in Bengaluru (Bangalore), India. The hybrid workshop was an adaptation of the studio in response to travel restrictions caused by the pandemic. The author argues that while the internet cannot replace the immersive cultural experience of studying in another country, digital platforms have a place alongside teaching to offer otherwise impossible opportunities. This paper explores a methodology for disseminating craft knowledge and skills across cultures through a combination of online and in-house practicum. Classes were structured around weekly Zoom sessions with Director Padmini Govind, where sustainable approaches to print production were disseminated through a suite of commissioned films and hand-carved woodblocks to explore on campus. The results show how this unique adaptation allowed students to interact with the artisan craft of woodblock printing in rich and varied ways, and it proposes that this novel hybrid model can be creatively adapted to future craft education in the 2020s.