Multivariate Bernoulli distribution

In this paper, we consider the multivariate Bernoulli distribution as a model to estimate the structure of graphs with binary nodes. This distribution is discussed in the framework of the exponential family, and its statistical properties regarding independence of the nodes are demonstrated. Importantly the model can estimate not only the main effects and pairwise interactions among the nodes but also is capable of modeling higher order interactions, allowing for the existence of complex clique effects. We compare the multivariate Bernoulli model with existing graphical inference models - the Ising model and the multivariate Gaussian model, where only the pairwise interactions are considered. On the other hand, the multivariate Bernoulli distribution has an interesting property in that independence and uncorrelatedness of the component random variables are equivalent. Both the marginal and conditional distributions of a subset of variables in the multivariate Bernoulli distribution still follow the multivariate Bernoulli distribution. Furthermore, the multivariate Bernoulli logistic model is developed under generalized linear model theory by utilizing the canonical link function in order to include covariate information on the nodes, edges and cliques. We also consider variable selection techniques such as LASSO in the logistic model to impose sparsity structure on the graph. Finally, we discuss extending the smoothing spline ANOVA approach to the multivariate Bernoulli logistic model to enable estimation of non-linear effects of the predictor variables.Comment: Published in at http://dx.doi.org/10.3150/12-BEJSP10 the Bernoulli (http://isi.cbs.nl/bernoulli/) by the International Statistical Institute/Bernoulli Society (http://isi.cbs.nl/BS/bshome.htm

Demolish or refurbish – Environmental benefits of housing conservation

Climate change and energy efficiency are some of the most pressing issues facing China today. With its economic growth since 1978, the government has struggled to contain environmental damages and social unrest related to the economy’s rapid transformation. With the rapid growth in population and urbanization the demand for housing has escalated and traditional housing has been under threat of demolition to make way for new construction. Traditional housing is generally considered wasteful in its use of land and/or energy, and is often demolished for more intensive and more energy-efficient housing, despite the resulting loss of embodied energy and urban amenity. A research project was undertaken to study the environmental performance of traditional housing in Hangzhou. The project looks into analyzing and comparing embodied energy and CO2 for seven dwellings. In addition indoor climate data were recorded and collected in the form of hourly temperature and humidity readings for one year in six local houses and in a modern unit as a control for one year. The research results reveal that there is little difference in environmental performance between traditional and conventional modern construction and the value of conservation rather than demolition as a strategic development for the construction industry

Energy and economic analysis of environmental upgrading of existing office buildings

Over many decades, buildings have been recognised as a significant area contributing to the negative impacts on the environment over their lifecycle, accelerating climate change. In return, climate change also impacts on buildings with extreme heatwaves occurring more frequently and raising the earth’s temperature. The operation phase is the most extended period over a building’s lifespan. In this period, office buildings consume most energy and emit the highest amount of greenhouse gas pollution into the environment. Building upgrading to improve energy efficiency seems to be the best way to cut pollution as the existing building stock is massive. The paper presents an economic analysis of energy efficiency upgrade of buildings with a focus of office buildings. The paper identifies upgrading activities that are commonly undertaken to upgrade energy efficiency of office buildings and a case study of three office buildings in Sydney, Australia has been used to analyse the results. The upgrading activities can improve the energy performance of the case study buildings from 3 stars to 5 stars NABERS energy rating in compliance with the mandatory requirement in the Australian government’s energy policy. With the potential increase in energy price, energy efficiency upgrading will become more affordable, but currently, most of them, except solar panels and motion sensors show a negative return and would not be undertaken if they did not also contribute to higher rental income and an increased life span of the building. The upgrading discussed in the paper represent a potentially attractive alternative to demolition and building anew

The Lives and Lessons of Richmond Nonagerians and Centenarians

Capstone presentation for the University of Richmond SSIR (Sophomore Scholars in Residence) Program.https://scholarship.richmond.edu/ssir-presentations-2017/1005/thumbnail.jp

The Circuit: An Original Television Series

Between good and evil there\u27s a whole lot of gray: Welcome to The Circuit. A shady private security firm recruits criminals straight out of prison and sells its services to the highest bidder, saint and sinner alike (mostly sinners). Through the trials and tribulations of a diverse ensemble cast, the show explores some of my absolute favorite themes in storytelling: gray morality, found families, and unlikely heroes. Follow our gritty and guarded lead Shaye as she struggles to tame a group of talented and contentious ex-cons under the shadow of her ambitious and manipulative father, all the while struggling to maintain her integrity in a world where nobody\u27s the good guy. This thesis is an original television drama series, and consists of two full episodes as well as thirteen episode synopses for season one. It is also a work in progress, so feedback is welcome

Ordres contradictoires et coordination destructive: le malaise iranien

The concept of ‘mode of coordination’ captures the way economy is embedded in social relationships and influences the integration of society through an ‘instituted process.’ Three main typical or ideal modes of coordination have been identified in the literature, namely the market, the bureaucratic and the ethical (reciprocity) modes of coordination (Polanyi 1944, [1957] 1968, Lindblom 1977, and Kornai, 1984, 1992). Our purpose is to introduce another type of coordination that we name ‘destructive mode of coordination’. It is social organisation through intimidation, threat and the use of coercive means. This type of coordination has almost been entirely neglected in the literature, although it has existed since ancient times in different forms and varieties. A typical recent illustration is the social order under the Islamic Republic of Iran. Iran is not the sole example in the Middle East; many others can be cited in that region as well as in Africa and Latin America. Destructive coordination also describes sectoral logic of the Military Industrial Complex in developed market economies like the United States, and in Post Socialist economies such as Russia and China. Historically, colonialism, the ‘primitive accumulation of capital’, and the Stalinist regime from 1933 to1938 may be invoked as examples from the recent past. Looting tribes and pirate colonies in the past and present provide other illustrations. Although I will refer to all these evidences, my main focus will be Iran since the 1979 revolution

Developing a hybrid model of prediction and classification algorithms for building energy consumption

Artificial intelligence algorithms have been applied separately or integrally for prediction, classification or optimization of buildings energy consumption. However, there is a salient gap in the literature on the investigation of hybrid objective function development for energy optimization problems including qualitative and quantitative datasets in their constructs. To tackle this challenge, this paper presents a hybrid objective function of machine learning algorithms in optimizing energy consumption of residential buildings through considering both continuous and discrete parameters of energy simultaneously. To do this, a comprehensive dataset including significant parameters of building envelop, building design layout and HVAC was established, Artificial Neural Network as a prediction and Decision Tree as a classification algorithm were employed via cross-training ensemble equation to create the hybrid function and the model was finally validated via the weighted average of the error decomposed for the performance. The developed model could effectively enhance the accuracy of the objective functions used in the building energy prediction and optimization problems. Furthermore, the results of this novel approach resolved the inclusion issue of both continuous and discrete parameters of energy in a unified objective function without threatening the integrity and consistency of the building energy datasets

Tissue specific induction of p62/sqstm1 by farnesoid X receptor

Background: Farnesoid X Receptor (FXR) is a member of the nuclear receptor superfamily and is a ligand-activated transcription factor essential for maintaining liver and intestinal homeostasis. FXR is protective against carcinogenesis and inflammation in liver and intestine as demonstrated by the development of inflammation and tumors in the liver and intestine of FXR knock-out mice. However, mechanisms for the protective effects of FXR are not completely understood. This study reports a novel role of FXR in regulating expression of Sqstm1, which encodes for p62 protein. p62 plays an important role in maintaining cellular homeostasis through selective autophagy and activating signal transduction pathways, such as NF-κB to support cell survival and caspase-8 to initiate apoptosis. FXR regulation of Sqstm1 may serve as a protective mechanism. Methods and Results: This study showed that FXR bound to the Sqstm1 gene in both mouse livers and ileums as determined by chromatin immunoprecipitation. In addition, FXR activation enhanced transcriptional activation of Sqstm1 in vitro. However, wild-type mice treated with GW4064, a synthetic FXR ligand, showed that FXR activation induced mRNA and protein expression of Sqstm1/p62 in ileum, but not in liver. Interestingly, FXR-transgenic mice showed induced mRNA expression of Sqstm1 in both liver and ileum compared to wild-type mice. Conclusions: Our current study has identified a novel role of FXR in regulating the expression of p62, a key factor in protein degradation and cell signaling. Regulation of p62 by FXR indicates tissue-specific and gene-dosage effects. Furthermore, FXR-mediated induction of p62 may implicate a protective mechanism of FXR. © 2012 Williams et al