A "Quantal Regret" Method for Structural Econometrics in Repeated Games

We suggest a general method for inferring players' values from their actions in repeated games. The method extends and improves upon the recent suggestion of (Nekipelov et al., EC 2015) and is based on the assumption that players are more likely to exhibit sequences of actions that have lower regret. We evaluate this "quantal regret" method on two different datasets from experiments of repeated games with controlled player values: those of (Selten and Chmura, AER 2008) on a variety of two-player 2x2 games and our own experiment on ad-auctions (Noti et al., WWW 2014). We find that the quantal regret method is consistently and significantly more precise than either "classic" econometric methods that are based on Nash equilibria, or the "min-regret" method of (Nekipelov et al., EC 2015)

Extra-adrenal glucocorticoid synthesis in the intestinal epithelium: more than a drop in the ocean?

Glucocorticoids (GC) are lipophilic hormones commonly used as therapeutics in acute and chronic inflammatory disorders such as inflammatory bowel disease due to their attributed anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive actions. Although the adrenal glands are the major source of endogenous GC, there is increasing evidence for the production of extra-adrenal GC in the brain, thymus, skin, vasculature, and the intestine. However, the physiological relevance of extra-adrenal-produced GC remains still ambiguous. Therefore, this review attracts attention to discuss possible biological benefits of extra-adrenal-synthesized GC, especially focusing on the impact of locally synthesized GC in the regulation of intestinal immune response

ERA: A Framework for Economic Resource Allocation for the Cloud

Cloud computing has reached significant maturity from a systems perspective, but currently deployed solutions rely on rather basic economics mechanisms that yield suboptimal allocation of the costly hardware resources. In this paper we present Economic Resource Allocation (ERA), a complete framework for scheduling and pricing cloud resources, aimed at increasing the efficiency of cloud resources usage by allocating resources according to economic principles. The ERA architecture carefully abstracts the underlying cloud infrastructure, enabling the development of scheduling and pricing algorithms independently of the concrete lower-level cloud infrastructure and independently of its concerns. Specifically, ERA is designed as a flexible layer that can sit on top of any cloud system and interfaces with both the cloud resource manager and with the users who reserve resources to run their jobs. The jobs are scheduled based on prices that are dynamically calculated according to the predicted demand. Additionally, ERA provides a key internal API to pluggable algorithmic modules that include scheduling, pricing and demand prediction. We provide a proof-of-concept software and demonstrate the effectiveness of the architecture by testing ERA over both public and private cloud systems -- Azure Batch of Microsoft and Hadoop/YARN. A broader intent of our work is to foster collaborations between economics and system communities. To that end, we have developed a simulation platform via which economics and system experts can test their algorithmic implementations

The Shelhigh No-React® bovine internal mammary artery: a questionable alternative conduit in coronary bypass surgery?

Background: Increasing age and comorbidities among patients undergoing coronary artery bypass surgery (CABG) stimulates the exhaustive research for alternative grafts. No-React® treatment should render the tissue resistant against degeneration and reduce early inflammatory response. The aim of the present study was an invasive assessment of the patency of No-React® bovine internal mammary artery (NRIMA grafts) used as bypass conduit in CABG surgery. Patients and methods: Nineteen NRIMA grafts were used in 17 patients (2.9%) out of a total of 572 patients undergoing CABG surgery within a 12-month period. All intraoperative data were assessed and in-hospital outcome was analysed. Follow-up examination was performed 7.0±4.0 months after initial surgery, including clinical status and coronary angiography to assess patency of the NRIMA grafts. Results: Average perioperative flow of all NRIMA grafts was 71±60ml/min. One patient died in hospital due to a multi-organ failure. Four patients refused invasive assessment. Follow-up was complete in 12 patients with overall 13 NRIMA grafts. Nine NRIMA grafts (69.2%) were used for the right coronary system, two NRIMA grafts (15.4%) on the LAD and two on the circumflex artery. Graft patency was 23.1% and was independent of the intraoperative flow measurement. Conclusions: NRIMA grafts show a very low patency and cannot be recommended as coronary bypass graft conduits. Patency was independent of the perioperative flow, assessed by Doppler ultrasound. Because of this unsatisfying observation, this type of graft should be utilised as a last resource conduit and used only to revascularise less important target vessels, such as the end branches of the right coronary arter

Mid- and late-Holocene vegetation and fire history at Biviere di Gela, a coastal lake in southern Sicily, Italy

The vegetation and fire history of few coastal sites has been investigated in the Mediterranean region so far. We present the first paleoecological reconstruction from coastal Sicily, the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. We analysed pollen and charcoal in the sediments of Biviere di Gela, a lake (lagoon) on the south coast of Sicily. Our data suggest that the area became afforested after a marine transgression at ca. 7200 cal b.p. (5250 b.c.). Build-up of forest and shrublands took ca. 200-300years, mainly with the deciduous trees Quercus, Ostrya and Fraxinus. Juniperus expanded ca. 6900 cal b.p. (4950 b.c.), but declined again 6600 cal b.p. (4650 b.c.). Afterwards, evergreen trees (Q. ilex-type and Olea) became dominant in the forest and Pistacia shrublands were established. Forest and shrubland reached a maximum ca. 7000-5000 cal b.p. (5050-3050 b.c.); subsequently forest declined in response to human impact, which was probably exacerbated by a general trend towards a more arid climate. During the Neolithic, fire was used to open the landscape, significantly reducing several arboreal taxa (Q. ilex, Fraxinus, Juniperus) and promoting herbs and shrubs (Achillea, Cichorioideae, Brassicaceae, Ephedra). Final forest disruption occurred around 2600 cal b.p. (650 b.c.) with the onset of the historically documented Greek colonization. We conclude that the open maquis and garrigue vegetation of today is primarily the consequence of intensive land-use over millennia. Under natural or near-natural conditions arboreal taxa such as Q. ilex, Olea and Pistacia would be far more important than they are today, even under the hot and rather dry coastal conditions of southern Sicil

PENERAPAN METODE KONSTRUKTIVISME DALAM PEMBELAJARAN TARI PADA SISWA/SISWI SLTA

Tulisan ini merupakan sebuah rancangan dalam menerapkan metode konstruktivisme sebagai wacana pengetahuan bagi guru yang ingin mengajar tari pada Sekolah Menengah Tngkat Atas. Hal ini bertujuan untuk meningkatkan minat siswa/sisiwi dalam belajar tari. Berdasarkan fakta lapangan, terjadi penurunan minat karena pengaruh teknologi dan informasi, sehingga tari (tari tradisional) dianggap ketinggalan zaman oleh siswa/sisiwi sementara siswa/siswi tidak diberikan pemahaman tentang nilai, etika dan estetika tari yang melekat di dalamnya

Single-Molecule Fluorescence Detection of a Synthetic Heparan Sulfate Disaccharide

The first single-molecule fluorescence detection of a structurally-defined synthetic carbohydrate is reported: a heparan sulfate (HS) disaccharide fragment labeled with Alexa488. Single molecules have been measured whilst freely diffusing in solution and controlled encapsulation in surface-tethered lipid vesicles has allowed extended observations of carbohydrate molecules down to the single-molecule level. The diverse and dynamic nature of HS–protein interactions means that new tools to investigate pure HS fragments at the molecular level would significantly enhance our understanding of HS. This work is a proof-of-principle demonstration of the feasibility of single-molecule studies of synthetic carbohydrates which offers a new approach to the study of pure glycosaminoglycan (GAG) fragments

Lyophilisation of influenza, rabies and Marburg lentiviral pseudotype viruses for the development and distribution of a neutralisation-assay based diagnostic kit

Pseudotype viruses (PVs) are chimeric, replication-deficient virions that mimic wild-type virus entry mechanisms and can be safely employed in neutralisation assays, bypassing the need for high biosafety requirements and performing comparably to established serological assays. However, PV supernatant necessitates -80°C long-term storage and cold-chain maintenance during transport, which limits the scope of dissemination and application throughout resource-limited laboratories. We therefore investigated the effects of lyophilisation on influenza, rabies and Marburg PV stability, with a view to developing a pseudotype virus neutralisation assay (PVNA) based kit suitable for affordable global distribution. Infectivity of each PV was calculated after lyophilisation and immediate reconstitution, as well as subsequent to incubation of freeze-dried pellets at varying temperatures, humidities and timepoints. Integrity of glycoprotein structure following treatment was also assessed by employing lyophilised PVs in downstream PVNAs. In the presence of 0.5M sucrose-PBS cryoprotectant, each freeze-dried pseudotype was stably stored for 4 weeks at up to 37°C and could be neutralised to the same potency as unlyophilised PVs when employed in PVNAs. These results confirm the viability of a freeze-dried PVNA-based kit, which could significantly facilitate low-cost serology for a wide portfolio of emerging infectious viruses

Copyright’s Law of Dissemination

Intellectual property law generally rests on the assumption that markets will bring about an ideal allocation of resources. Nonetheless, United States copyright law remains riddled with regimes that bypass or restructure normal market licensing between copyright owners and distributors such as streaming services, radio stations, and libraries. This Article provides the first comprehensive account of this “law of dissemination,” examining how a range of seemingly unrelated judicial doctrines, statutory safe harbors, and regulatory institutions together affect the relationship between copyright owners and the entities that disseminate creative works to the public. While these regimes are often treated as unintelligible historical relics, they reflect an important and underexplored aspect of copyright’s policy agenda. This Article argues that copyright has a particular set of policy concerns related to the dissemination of creative works for the public’s consumption, enjoyment, and personal use. In particular, four interrelated goals are reflected to varying degrees in copyright’s many dissemination-regulating institutions: (1) facilitating exchanges in transaction cost-heavy contexts, (2) enabling more efficient and expansive public access to existing creative works, (3) reducing barriers to entry for innovative forms of distribution in concentrated markets, and (4) furthering distributive justice priorities. Identifying these four goals and examining how they permeate the copyright system is a necessary first step in remedying many of the problems currently faced by copyright’s law of dissemination, particularly its increasingly outmoded, piecemeal, and inconsistent regulatory design. By diagnosing these challenges and their potential roots, this Article provides grounding for assessing how copyright law can be reimagined to fit a world of almost entirely digital dissemination