Turbo receivers for interleave-division multiple-access systems

In this paper several turbo receivers for Interleave-Division Multiple-Access (IDMA) systems will be discussed. The multiple access system model is presented first. The optimal, Maximum A Posteriori (MAP) algorithm, is then presented. It will be shown that the use of a precoding technique at the emitter side is applicable to IDMA systems. Several low complexity Multi-User Detector (MUD), based on the Gaussian approximation, will be next discussed. It will be shown that the MUD with Probabilistic Data Association (PDA) algorithm provides faster convergence of the turbo receiver. The discussed turbo receivers will be evaluated by means of Bit Error Rate (BER) simulations and EXtrinsic Information Transfer (EXIT) charts

Intercultural communication in the student community of Nicolae Testemițanu University

Introducere. Comunicarea interculturală rămâne o necesitate importantă și o metodă de cunoaștere între studenții USMF ,,Nicolae Testemițanu”. Comunicarea interculturală se află la baza relațiilor dintre studenții comunității studențești prin simbioza creată de sistemul de valori, tradiții, obiceiuri, etc. Scopul lucrării. Prezentarea unei cercetări realizate la nivelul comunității studențești și descrierea celor mai importante aspecte ce unesc studenții din diferite țări ale lumii, care își fac studiile în instituția noastră. Material și metode. Chestionare și informații de specialitate care justifică rezultatele cercetărilor. A fost studiată literatura privind aspectele comunicării interculturale și metodele de manifestare necesare pentru o comunicare eficientă. Rezultate. Comunicarea interculturala este baza și temelia unor relații temeinice și de lungă durată. De la primele activități didactice, culturale, sportive, științifice și de divertisment colegii noștri sunt integrați în marea familie a Almei Mater, grație comunicării interculturale ce stă și la baza formării abilităților de comunicare necesare în relația medic-pacient. Asociația Studenților și Rezidenților în Medicină din Moldova (ASRMM) este unul din mediile prielnice de dezvoltare a acestor relații interumane și care îmbină plăcutul și frumosul și le pune la dispoziție diferite oportunități studenților de a se manifesta și de a trece peste barierele lingvistice și emoționale, ca fiind principalele bariere ale comunicării interculturale. Concluzii. Comunicarea interculturală este temelia relațiilor interumane în comunitatea studențească a USMF ,,Nicolae Testemițanu”. Multitudinea de activități didactice, științifice, sportive și culturale la care sunt implicați studenții anilor I-VI de studiu demonstrează necesitatea de a avea o comunicare interculturală eficientă.Background. Intercultural communication remains an important necessity and a method of getting to know each other among the students of Nicolae Testemițanu SUMPh. Intercultural communication is at the basis of the relations between the students of the student community through the symbiosis created by the system of values, traditions, customs, etc. Objective of the study. The presentation of a research carried out at the level of the student community and the description of the most important aspects that unite students from different countries of the world, who study in our institution. Material and methods. Questionnaires and specialist information justifying research results. The literature studied was on the aspects of intercultural communication and the methods of manifestation necessary for effective communication. Results. Intercultural communication is the basis and foundation of solid and long-lasting relationships. From the first didactic, cultural, sports, scientific and entertainment activities, our colleagues are integrated into the big family of Alma Mater, thanks to intercultural communication, which is also the basis of training the communication skills necessary in the doctor-patient relationship. Association of Medical Students and Residents of Moldova (AMSRM) is one of the favorable environments for the development of these interpersonal relationships, combines the pleasant with the beautiful, and provides different opportunities for students to express themselves and overcome linguistic and emotional barriers, as the main barriers to intercultural communication. Conclusion. Intercultural communication is the foundation of interpersonal relations in the student community of Nicolae Testemițanu SUMPh. The multitude of didactic, scientific, sports and cultural activities in which the students of the 1st-6th years of study are involved demonstrates the need to have effective intercultural communication

Transfer Pricing by Multinational Firms: New Evidence from Foreign Firm Ownerships

Using a firm-level panel dataset covering the universe of Danish exports between 1999 and 2006, we find robust evidence for profit shifting by multinational corporations (MNC) through transfer pricing. Our triple difference estimation method corrects for a downward bias in previous studies. The bias results from MNCs adjusting their arm's length prices to obscure the extent of their transfer price manipulations. Our identification strategy exploits the movement in export prices to a destination in response to: (1) the establishment of a foreign affiliate by an exporter to that destination, and (2) a change in the foreign corporate tax rates. Once owning an affiliate in a country with a corporate tax rate lower than in the home country, Danish multinationals reduce the unit values of their exports there between 5.7 to 9.1 percent, on average. This reduction corresponds to $141 million in underreported export revenues in year 2006, which translates into a loss in tax income equal to 3.24 percent of Danish MNCs' tax returns

Ultra-short pulse HiPIMS: a strategy to suppress arcing during reactive deposition of SiO2 thin films with enhanced mechanical and optical properties

In this contribution, based on the detailed understanding of the processes’ characteristics during reactive high-power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS), we demonstrated the deposition of silicon oxide (SiO2) thin films with improved optical and mechanical performances. A strategy for stabilizing the arc-free HiPIMS of Si target in the presence of oxygen was investigated. Arcing was suppressed by suitable pulse configurations, ensuring good process stability without using any feedback control system. It was found that arcing can be significantly alleviated when ultra-short HiPIMS pulses are applied on the target. The optical and mechanical properties of SiO2 coatings deposited at various pulsing configurations were analyzed. The coatings prepared by ultra-short pulse HiPIMS exhibited better optical and mechanical performance compared to the coatings prepared by long pulse HiPIMS. The optimized SiO2 coatings on quartz substrates exhibited an average transmittance of 98.5% in the 190–1100-nm wavelength range, hardness of 9.27 GPa, hardness/Young’s modulus ratio of 0.138, and critical adhesion load of 14.8 N. The optical and mechanical properties are correlated with the film morphology, which is inherently related to energetic conditions and process stability during film growth.D. Cristea acknowledges the structural funds’ project PRO-DD (POS-CCE, O.2.2.1., ID123, SMIS 2637,ctr. no 11/2009) for providing the CSM Instruments infrastructure used for this wo

Efficacy of cognitive bias modification interventions in anxiety and depressive disorders:a systematic review and network meta-analysis

Background: Cognitive bias modification (CBM) therapies, including attention bias modification, interpretation bias modification, or approach and avoidance training, are prototypical examples of mechanistically derived treatments, but their effectiveness is contentious. We aimed to assess the relative effectiveness of various CBM interventions for anxious and depressive symptomatology. Methods: For this systematic review and network meta-analysis, we searched PubMed, PsycINFO, Embase, and Cochrane Central Register from database inception up until Feb 7, 2020. We included randomised controlled trials of CBM versus control conditions or other forms of CBM for adults aged 18 years and older with clinical or subclinical anxiety or depression measured with a diagnostic interview or a validated clinical scale. We excluded studies comparing CBM with a non-CBM active intervention. Two researchers independently selected studies and evaluated risk of bias with the Cochrane Collaboration tool. Primary outcomes encompassed anxiety and depressive symptoms measured with validated clinical scales. We computed standardised mean differences (SMDs) with a restricted maximum likelihood random effects model. This study is registered with PROSPERO, CRD42018086113. Findings: From 2125 records we selected 85 trials, 65 (n=3897) on anxiety and 20 (n=1116) on depression. In a well connected network of anxiety trials, interpretation bias modification outperformed waitlist (SMD −0·55, 95% CI −0·91 to −0·19) and sham training (SMD −0·30, −0·50 to −0·10) for the primary outcome. Attention bias modification showed benefits only in post-hoc sensitivity analyses excluding post-traumatic stress disorder trials. Prediction intervals for all findings were large, including an SMD of 0. Networks of depression trials displayed evidence of inconsistency. Only four randomised controlled trials had low risk of bias on all six domains assessed. Interpretation: CBM interventions showed consistent but small benefits; however heterogeneity and risk of bias undermine the reliability of these findings. Larger, definitive trials for interpretation bias modification for anxiety might be warranted, but insufficient evidence precludes conclusions for depression. Funding: Romanian Ministry of Research and Innovation, The National Council for Scientific Research—The Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, Development and Innovation Funding

Characterizing psychological dimensions in non-pathological subjects through autonomic nervous system dynamics

The objective assessment of psychological traits of healthy subjects and psychiatric patients has been growing interest in clinical and bioengineering research fields during the last decade. Several experimental evidences strongly suggest that a link between Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) dynamics and specific dimensions such as anxiety, social phobia, stress, and emotional regulation might exist. Nevertheless, an extensive investigation on a wide range of psycho-cognitive scales and ANS non-invasive markers gathered from standard and non-linear analysis still needs to be addressed. In this study, we analyzed the discerning and correlation capabilities of a comprehensive set of ANS features and psycho-cognitive scales in 29 non-pathological subjects monitored during resting conditions. In particular, the state of the art of standard and non-linear analysis was performed on Heart Rate Variability, InterBreath Interval series, and InterBeat Respiration series, which were considered as monovariate and multivariate measurements. Experimental results show that each ANS feature is linked to specific psychological traits. Moreover, non-linear analysis outperforms the psychological assessment with respect to standard analysis. Considering that the current clinical practice relies only on subjective scores from interviews and questionnaires, this study provides objective tools for the assessment of psychological dimensions

Influence of the physical properties on the antibacterial and photocatalytic behavior of Ag-doped indium sulfide film deposited by spray pyrolysis

Spray pyrolysis was used to deposit indium sulfide (In2S3) films, with or without silver doping. The films are polycrystalline, and the inclusion of Ag in the In2S3 structure leads to the formation of a solid solution, with the crystallite size of the order of tens of nanometers. In2S3 films exhibit a semiconductive behavior, and the incorporation of Ag leads to an increase of the charge carrier concentration, enhancing the electrical conductivity of the films. The small polaron hopping mechanism, deduced by the fittings according to the double Jonscher variation, explains the evolution of the direct current (dc) conductivity at high temperature of the Ag-doped indium sulfide. From impedance spectroscopy, it was found that the doped film presents dielectric relaxation, and Nyquist diagrams indicate the importance of the grain and the grain boundaries’ contributions to the transport phenomena. The physical characteristics of the films have an influence on the photocatalytic performance, achieving photodegradation efficiency above 80% (85.5% in the case of Ag doping), and on the antibacterial activity. The obtained results indicate that indium sulfide films are good candidates for environmental and biological applications, confirming a multifunctional nature.Part of this work was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) in the framework of the Strategic Funding UIDB/04650/2020”. D.C. and I.G. acknowledge the structural funds project PRO-DD (POS-CCE, O.2.2.1., ID123, SMIS 2637, ctr. no 11/2009) for providing some of the infrastructure used in this work. Part of this work was supported by a grant of the Romanian Ministry of Education and Research, CNCS - UEFISCDI, project number PN-III-P1-1.1-TE-2019-1209, within PNCDI III

CoRoLa Starts Blooming – An update on the Reference Corpus of Contemporary Romanian Language

This article reports on the on-going CoRoLa project, aiming at creating a reference corpus of contemporary Romanian (from 1945 onwards), opened for online free exploitation by researchers in linguistics and language processing, teachers of Romanian, students. We invest serious efforts in persuading large publishing houses and other owners of IPR on relevant language data to join us and contribute the project with selections of their text and speech repositories. The CoRoLa project is coordinated by two Computer Science institutes of the Romanian Academy, but enjoys cooperation of and consulting from professional linguists from other institutes of the Romanian Academy. We foresee a written component of the corpus of more than 500 million word forms, and a speech component of about 300 hours of recordings. The entire collection of texts (covering all functional styles of the language) will be pre-processed and annotated at several levels, and also documented with standardized metadata. The pre-processing includes cleaning the data and harmonising the diacritics, sentence splitting and tokenization. Annotation will include morpho-lexical tagging and lemmatization in the first stage, followed by syntactic, semantic and discourse annotation in a later stage

Selectivity and efficacy of thifensulfuron-methyl with adjuvant and without in control of broadleaf weeds in winter wheat

The research was conducted in 2020-2021, in 3 different locations (Constanța, Călărași and Teleorman) and aimed to evaluate the biological activity of the herbicide Thifensulfuron-methyl 75% WG with adjuvant and without in control of broadleaf weeds in winter wheat. The experiments were placed in randomized blocks, in 4 repetitions with a plot area of 100 m2 . The floristic composition of the winter wheat fields studied has been diversified, being present: Amaranthus retroflexus, Capsella bursa – pastoris, Centaurea cyanus, Chenopodium album, Erigeron annuus, Fumaria officinalis, Galium aparine, Lamium spp., Papaver rhoeas, Polygonum convolvulus, Sinapis arvensis, Stellaria media, Veronica spp., Viola arvensis etc. Herbicides were applied in post-emergence when weeds were in the early stages of growth and development. The herbicide Thifensulfuron-methyl 75% WG with adjuvant and without was applied at the doses of 20, 30 and 40 g/ha. The adjuvant (Trend 90 EC) was applied at 250 ml/ha. The assessments made at 10, 20 and 30 days after treatments focused the density of weeds, the percentage of soil cover, selectivity and the effectiveness compared to the untreated control. The results obtained showed that the efficacy depends on the dose applied, the type of weeds and their density on square meter. The Thifensulfuron-methyl 75% WG ensured a good efficacy in controlling of broadleaf weeds in winter wheat, the best results being obtained at the higher dose and when it was applied together with Trend 90 EC. Some weed species were insufficiently controlled at the dose of 20 g/ha: shepherd's purse, cleavers, blackbindweed, lamb's quarters etc

Neurobiological Correlates of the Attitude Toward Human Empathy

Abstract: Over the last decade, integrated philosophical and neuroscientific studies of empathy have been steadily growing, because of the pivotal role that empathy plays in social cognition and ethics, as well as in the understanding of human behavior both under physiological conditions and in the presence of mental disorders. The umbrella concept of empathy embraces multi-faceted characteristics, including affective and cognitive processes, such as so-called emotional contagion and concern and perspective-taking. In this paper, we review the state-of-the-art of knowledge about the neurobiology of empathy. Specifically, we examine studies regarding empathy for pain, emotional imitation and expression and their alterations in psychopathological conditions. We also consider studies on the theory of mind (ToM) and the mirror neuron system (MNS). Finally, we propose measures of brain resting state activity as a potential neurobiological marker of proneness to be empathic.Keywords: Empathy; Mirror Neurons; Theory of Mind; Mental Disorders; Psychopathy Correlati neurobiologici della disposizione all’empatia umanaRiasssunto: Nell’ultimo decennio è cresciuto il numero delle indagini sull’empatia condotte integrando la prospettiva filosofica e quella neuroscientifica, in ragione del ruolo cardine svolto dall’empatia nella cognizione sociale e nell’etica, come pure nella comprensione del comportamento umano dal punto di vista delle condizioni fisiologiche e in presenza di disturbi mentali. La nozione di empatia funge da ombrello concettuale sotto cui ricadono caratteristiche multiformi, compresi i processi affettivi e cognitivi, come il cosiddetto contagio emotivo e l’assunzione di ruolo e di prospettiva. In questo lavoro intendiamo offrire una rassegna dello stato dell’arte delle conoscenze sulla neurobiologia dell’empatia. In particolare prenderemo in esame gli studi che vertono sull’empatia per il dolore, l’imitazione emotiva e dell’espressione e le loro alterazioni in condizioni psicopatologiche. Considereremo inoltre studi sulla teoria della mente (ToM) e sul sistema dei neuroni specchio (MNS). In sede conclusiva intendiamo proporre delle misure dell’attività cerebrale in condizioni di riposo come potenziale marcatore neurobiologico della propensione a empatizzare.Parole chiave: Empatia; Neuroni specchio; Teoria della mente; Disturbi mentali; Psicopati