276 research outputs found
Sustainable Transportation: The Constraints of An Italian Public University
In Italy most Universities are located in the City Centre, often in ancient buildings that are part of the architectural heritage. During the years they developed campuses in peripheral areas, or even in other cities of the region, thus the concept of âshuttleâ takes on a special meaning. The sustainable transportation concerns two main issues: the commuting and the connection between the campuses. In both cases Universities in urban or city centre setting must rely on the services offered by the Municipality to all residents for mobility, and to their sustainable policies, that anyway are required by law. Even though the main problems and solutions do not depend directly on the Universitiesâ policies, the study highlighted some good practices have been produced
Score-Driven Modeling with Jumps: An Application to S&P500 Returns and Options
We introduce a novel score-driven model with two sources of shock, allowing for both time-varying volatility and jumps. A theoretical investigation is performed which yields sufficient conditions to ensure stationarity and ergodicity. We extend the model to consider a time-varying jump intensity. Both an in-sample and an out-of-sample analysis based on the S&P500 time series show that the proposed methodology provides excellent agreement with observed returns, outperforming more standard Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heteroskedasticity (GARCH) specifications with jumps. Finally, we apply our models to option pricing via risk neutralization. Results show this novel approach produces reliable implied volatility surfaces.
Supplementary Materials including proofs, the derivation of the conditional Fisher information, and two figures showing additional empirical results are available
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The relationship between gaze and information pickup during action observation: implications for motor skill (re)learning
This thesis was submitted for the award of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University LondonThe aim of the present thesis was to investigate the relationship between individualsâ allocation of overt visual attention during action observation and their consequent pickup of information. Four interrelated studies were conducted to achieve this. In Study 1 we examined the effects of visual guidance â colour highlighting of relevant aspects of the action â on observational learning of the golf swing. The results showed that the visual guides facilitated novicesâ intake of information pertaining to the modelâs posture, which was reflected in faster learning. In the remaining studies, transcranial magnetic stimulation and eye tracking data were acquired concurrently to measure the interaction between gaze behaviour and motor resonance â a neurophysiological index of the motor systemâs engagement with a viewed action, and thus a correlate of information extraction. In Study 2, we directed observersâ gaze to distinct locations of the display while they viewed thumb adduction/abduction movements. The results showed that, by directing gaze to a location that maximised the amount of thumb motion across the fovea, motor resonance was maximised relative to a free viewing condition. In Study 3 we examined the link between gaze and motor resonance during the observation of transitive actions. Participants viewed reach-to-grasp actions with natural gaze, or while looking at a target- or an effector- based visual guide. The results showed that the effector-based guide disrupted natural gaze behaviour, and this was associated with a reversal of the motor resonance response. In Study 4 we showed novice and skilled golfers videos of the golf swing and of a reach-grasp-lift action. The results revealed that, for both actions, the extent of motor resonance was related to the location of participantsâ fixations. The present work provides the first evidence of a relationship between gaze and motor resonance and highlights the importance of appropriate gaze behaviour for observational learning
Modeling extreme events: time-varying extreme tail shape*
We propose a dynamic semi-parametric framework to study time variation in tail parameters. The framework builds on the Generalized Pareto Distribution (GPD) for modeling peaks over thresholds as in Extreme Value Theory, but casts the model in a conditional framework to allow for time-variation in the tail parameters. We establish parameter regions for stationarity and ergodicity and for the existence of (unconditional) moments and consider conditions for consistency and asymptotic normality of the maximum likelihood estimator for the deterministic parameters in the model. Two empirical datasets illustrate the usefulness of the approach: daily U.S. equity returns, and 15-minute euro area sovereign bond yield changes
Preserved Extra-Foveal Processing of Object Semantics in Alzheimerâs Disease
Alzheimerâs disease (AD) patients underperform on a range of tasks requiring semantic processing, but it is unclear whether this impairment is due to a generalised loss of semantic knowledge or to issues in accessing and selecting such information from memory. The objective of this eye-tracking visual search study was to determine whether semantic expectancy mechanisms known to support object recognition in healthy adults are preserved in AD patients. Furthermore, as AD patients are often reported to be impaired in accessing information in extra-foveal vision, we investigated whether that was also the case in our study. Twenty AD patients and 20 age-matched controls searched for a target object among an array of distractors presented extra-foveally. The distractors were either semantically related or unrelated to the target (e.g., a car in an array with other vehicles or kitchen items). Results showed that semantically related objects were detected with more difficulty than semantically unrelated objects by both groups, but more markedly by the AD group. Participants looked earlier and for longer at the critical objects when these were semantically unrelated to the distractors. Our findings show that AD patients can process the semantics of objects and access it in extra-foveal vision. This suggests that their impairments in semantic processing may reflect difficulties in accessing semantic information rather than a generalised loss of semantic memory
Homeotic proteins participate in the function of human-DNA replication origins
Recent evidence points to homeotic proteins as actors in the crosstalk between development and DNA replication. The present work demonstrates that HOXC13, previously identified as a new member of human DNA replicative complexes, is a stable component of early replicating chromatin in living cells: it displays a slow nuclear dynamics due to its anchoring to the DNA minor groove via the arginine-5 residue of the homeodomain. HOXC13 binds in vivo to the lamin B2 origin in a cell-cycle-dependent manner consistent with origin function; the interaction maps with nucleotide precision within the replicative complex. HOXC13 displays in vitro affinity for other replicative complex proteins; it interacts also in vivo with the same proteins in a cell-cycle-dependent fashion. Chromatin-structure modifying treatments, disturbing origin function, reduce also HOXC13âorigin interaction. The described interactions are not restricted to a single origin nor to a single homeotic protein (also HOXC10 binds the lamin B2 origin in vivo). Thus, HOX complexes probably contribute in a general, structure-dependent manner, to origin identification and assembly of replicative complexes thereon, in presence of specific chromatin configurations
Confining Metal-Halide Perovskites in Nanoporous Thin Films
Controlling size and shape of semiconducting nanocrystals advances
nanoelectronics and photonics. Quantum confined, inexpensive, solution derived
metal halide perovskites offer narrow band, color-pure emitters as integral
parts of next-generation displays and optoelectronic devices. We use nanoporous
silicon and alumina thin films as templates for the growth of perovskite
nanocrystallites directly within device-relevant architectures without the use
of colloidal stabilization. We find significantly blue shifted
photoluminescence emission by reducing the pore size; normally
infrared-emitting materials become visibly red, green-emitting materials cyan
and blue. Confining perovskite nanocrystals within porous oxide thin films
drastically increases photoluminescence stability as the templates auspiciously
serve as encapsulation. We quantify the template-induced size of the perovskite
crystals in nanoporous silicon with microfocus high-energy X-ray depth
profiling in transmission geometry, verifying the growth of perovskite
nanocrystals throughout the entire thickness of the nanoporous films.
Low-voltage electroluminescent diodes with narrow, blue-shifted emission
fabricated from nanocrystalline perovskites grown in embedded nanoporous
alumina thin films substantiate our general concept for next generation
photonic devices
A pilot project for energy retrofit of educational buildings - The engineering campus of the University of LâAquila
The engineering campus of the University of LâAquila represents a complex use case in the context of energy efficiency, mainly due to its size, the high thermal power, the hybrid hydronic and ventilation system, the absence of a roomâs thermal control, and the progressive obsolescence of the heating plant.
An in-depth recognition and study of the campusâ HVAC system made it possible to assess the main energy inefficiencies and define interventions to improve its performance.
The energy retrofit, carried out by the Universityâs âEnergy Commission Workgroupâ, highlighted the main criticalities and potentials of the HVAC system providing viable paths for energy optimization. Among them, one of the hypothesized interventions concerned the thermal regulation of the heating plant, which is, to date, substantially absent.
This work presents the results of a Pilot Project to quantitatively evaluate the effectiveness of the closed-loop control on a thermal system. Two classrooms in the Engineering Campus, similar in geometry, orientation, and occupancy, were selected. One of them has been equipped with a control system. The results of the monitoring campaign showed that the proposed system achieved more than 30% energy savings over a three-month trial period
What works for wellbeing? A systematic review of wellbeing outcomes for music and singing in adults
Aims: The role of arts and music in supporting subjective wellbeing (SWB) is increasingly recognised. Robust evidence is needed to support policy and practice. This article reports on the first of four reviews of Culture, Sport and Wellbeing (CSW) commissioned by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)-funded What Works Centre for Wellbeing (https://whatworkswellbeing.org/). Objective: To identify SWB outcomes for music and singing in adults. Methods: Comprehensive literature searches were conducted in PsychInfo, Medline, ERIC, Arts and Humanities, Social Science and Science Citation Indexes, Scopus, PILOTS and CINAHL databases. From 5,397 records identified, 61 relevant records were assessed using GRADE and CERQual schema. Results: A wide range of wellbeing measures was used, with no consistency in how SWB was measured across the studies. A wide range of activities was reported, most commonly music listening and regular group singing. Music has been associated with reduced anxiety in young adults, enhanced mood and purpose in adults and mental wellbeing, quality of life, self-awareness and coping in people with diagnosed health conditions. Music and singing have been shown to be effective in enhancing morale and reducing risk of depression in older people. Few studies address SWB in people with dementia. While there are a few studies of music with marginalised communities, participants in community choirs tend to be female, white and relatively well educated. Research challenges include recruiting participants with baseline wellbeing scores that are low enough to record any significant or noteworthy change following a music or singing intervention. Conclusions: There is reliable evidence for positive effects of music and singing on wellbeing in adults. There remains a need for research with sub-groups who are at greater risk of lower levels of wellbeing, and on the processes by which wellbeing outcomes are, or are not, achieved
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