Exploitation of Information as a Trading Characteristic: A Causality-Based Analysis of Simulated and Financial Data

In financial markets, information constitutes a crucial factor contributing to the evolution of the system, while the presence of heterogeneous investors ensures its flow among financial products. When nonlinear trading strategies prevail, the diffusion mechanism reacts accordingly. Under these conditions, information englobes behavioral traces of traders’ decisions and represents their actions. The resulting effect of information endogenization leads to the revision of traders’ positions and affects connectivity among assets. In an effort to investigate the computational dimensions of this effect, we first simulate multivariate systems including several scenarios of noise terms, and then we apply direct causality tests to analyze the information flow among their variables. Finally, empirical evidence is provided in real financial data.

Processing Fluency

This chapter presents an overview of the concept of processing fluency in aesthetic processing. In its most general form higher ease of processing, i.e., higher fluency, is said to lead to higher liking. The chapter shows that this claim is hardly tenable in aesthetics. Absolute higher fluency leads to higher liking in only a few limited settings. It is rather the experience of a relative increase in fluency, or decrease in disfluency, that affects our appreciation of aesthetic stimuli. Thus, the dynamics of visual processing and the resulting effect can help explain our reactions to aesthetic stimuli. This chapter presents three main theories that try to model these dynamics of visual processing and explain the resulting influence on our aesthetic responses.

Destabilizing Optimization of Operating Modes of the Rectification Subsystem of Low Pressure Air Separation Plant for Simultaneous Production of Nitrogen, Oxygen and Argon

The paper focuses on the problem of energy-saving control of a large low-pressure air separation plant with a turbo-expander. The plant is designed for simultaneous production of nitrogen, oxygen and argon and operates at variable performance over a time interval when the need for air separation products is repeatedly changed. The purpose of the research is to improve the efficiency of the air separation plant, in terms of minimizing energy consumption for air separation over a time interval, using destabilizing optimization algorithms for the operating modes of its rectification subsystem, the latter being the core of the proposed plant. The study introduces the author's "concept of destabilization", which consists in expanding the range of feasible solutions to the problem by replacing in its statement some constraints like equalities with inequality constraints. This is technologically equivalent to purposefully changing some parameters within acceptable limits instead of stabilizing them, which provides an additional effect over a time interval. The authors developed methods and algorithms for controlling an object over a time interval, which provide for all possible changes in the performance of various target air separation products with a linear dependence of the optimality criterion on additional control actions resulting from destabilization. A specific example demonstrates the use of destabilization control algorithms for solving the problem of optimizing the modes of the rectification subsystem of the air separation plant over a certain time interval with an estimate of the effect obtained. Using the proposed approach and making structural changes to the existing equipment of the rectification subsystem of the air separation plant, we can significantly increase the resulting effect. Destabilization can be fully applied to other complex technological objects with liquid capacities and when a change in the liquid levels is acceptable within certain limits. Further research is needed to find out how plant performance and the time of the plant constancy influence the degree of the resulting effect, as during the plant operation the need for separation products, the moments of their switching and the time of constant performance intervals repeatedly change.

The Myth of Prometheus in Plato’s Protagoras

The Polish version of the article was published in “Roczniki Humanistyczne,” vol. 58–59 (2010–2011), issue 3 Protagoras is an exceptional dialogue of Plato as it uses two modes of expression: mythos and logos. Both are used by Protagoras in Great Speech, but the first one seems to be the most important. Protagoras chose the mythical mode of expression when he described to Socrates how he makes his pupils good citizens and politicians. The famous sophist told the story about two brothers: Prometheus and Epimetheus. It is easy to notice that Protagoras identifies with the clever Prometheus. However, the attentive reader can notice that Prometheus from Protagoras’ myth made a decision with fatal consequences. He entrusts his brother Epimetheus with a too re­sponsible task. If Prometheus had been clever he should have predicted the dramatic conse­quences of his decision (see the etymology of his name). It might have been a conscious and in­tentional effort of Plato who wanted to ridicule Protagoras, the main opponent of Socrates. The resulting effect is so strong because Protagoras, who identifies with Prometheus, told the myth by himself in which Prometheus is in fact the less clever of the two brothers.

The Cultural Red Queen and the Cultural Red King

When cultural groups evolve, or adapt, at different rates, or more generally show asymmetric levels of reactivity towards each other, we can observe a cultural Red King effect. This occurs when a minority group ends up disadvantaged simply by virtue of their size. When a minority group interacts with a majority group, minority types meet out-group members much more often than majority types do by dint of the size differences between the groups. As a result the minority group will learn to interact with the majority more quickly, often leading to a bargaining disadvantage. As this chapter shows, the resulting effect is analogous to one that can occur between coevolving biological species. The chapter explores this effect and where it might matter to real-world bargaining. In addition, the chapter looks at the possibility of a cultural Red King in intersectional populations.

SELF PORTRAIT TENTANG KEHILANGAN DALAM FOTOGRAFI EKSPRESI

AbstrakMelalui foto, seseorang tidak hanya merekam secara mekanis, melainkan masih mempunyai ruang untuk menciptakan ungkapan personalnya. Penciptaan karya seni ini mengungkapkan realitas personal akan nilai di balik peristiwa kehilangan yang dialami. Self portrait (potret diri) di sini hadir sebagai pengantar atas narasi dari hal yang tersirat dalam sebuah peristiwa kehilangan yang sifatnya lebih ke non-fisik, seperti kehilangan peran, waktu, keseimbangan, dan lainnya. Usaha memvisualisasikan narasi tentang kehilangan melalui self portrait yang artistik tidak terlepas dari pemanfaatan teknik fotografi yang digunakan. Selain eksplorasi tubuh dan benda yang menjadi penanda utama, efek yang dihasilkan dari teknik fotografi seperti slow shutter speed, double exposure, open flash, zoom, reflection, flare, dan lainnya juga dimanfaatkan menjadi penanda dalam keseluruhan narasi visual tentang kehilangan yang dibangun. Hasil penciptaan karya seni ini memanfaatkan perbendaharaan bahasa foto dengan menciptakan suatu hubungan logis dari objek-objek foto yang masing-masing sudah dikaitkan dengan ide atau makna tertentu. Makna tidak hanya dihasilkan lewat pose, melainkan juga benda dan teknik yang digunakan. Beberapa teknik yang biasanya dihindari dalam pemotretan seperti overexposed, blur, shaking, dan out of focus digunakan untuk menciptakan bahasa foto yang unik dan segar. Kata kunci: self portrait, kehilangan, fotografi ekspresi AbstractSelf Portrait about Loss in Fine Art Photography. Through a photo, someone is not only recorded mechanically, but also still has space or room to create their personal expression. The result of creating this art revealed the value of personal reality behind the suffer from a loss occurence. Self portrait in this context comes as an introduction for narratives of thing that is implicit in an occurrence of loss which has non physical character, such as losing role, time, the balances, and so on. Visualizing the narratives of losing through artistic self portrait could not be separated from the use of techniques in photography. Beside the exploration of the body and the things that became a major marker, the resulting effect of the techniques of photography such as slow shutter speed, double exposure, open flash, zoom, reflection, and flare could also be used as a maker in overall visual narrative about losing that was summed up. The creation of this art applied the ‘language’ of photo by creating a logical relationship from each photo object of which was associated with certain idea or meaning. The meaning was not only generated through the pose, but also through the objects and techniques which were used. Some techniques in photography were avoided to be used such as overexposed, blur, shaking, and out of focus to create the language of photo which was unique and fresh. Keywords: self portrait, loss, fine art photography

Gender stratified adjustment of the DAS28-CRP improves inter-score agreement with the DAS28-ESR in rheumatoid arthritis

Objectives To evaluate determinants of discordance between DAS28-ESR and DAS28-CRP and resulting impact on disease activity stratification in RA. Methods Paired DAS28-ESR and DAS28-CRP readings (n = 31 074) were obtained from the British Society for Rheumatology Biologics Register for RA. Factors influencing discordance between DAS28-ESR and DAS28-CRP were evaluated alongside the resulting effect on disease activity stratification. The impact of gender adjustment to the DAS28-CRP was evaluated. Results DAS28-CRP scores were ∼0.3 lower than DAS28-ESR overall, with greatest differences for women (−0.35) and patients over 50 years old (−0.34). Mean male DAS28-CRP scores were 0.15 less than corresponding DAS28-ESR scores. Discordance between DAS28-ESR and DAS28-CRP significantly impacted disease activity stratification at low disease activity and remission thresholds (32.0% and 66.6% concordance, respectively). Adjusting DAS28-CRP scores by gender significantly (P < 0.001) improved agreement with the DAS28-ESR. Conclusion Discordance between DAS28-ESR and DAS28-CRP is greatest for women and patients over 50 years of age, and influences disease activity stratification. The proposed gender-adjusted DAS28-CRP improves inter-score agreement with DAS28-ESR, supporting more reliable disease activity stratification in treat-to-target approaches for RA.

Interaction between the variety of negative stimuli and the type of go/no-go procedure.

Two experiments were carried out in order to compare the speed of acquisition of visual simple discriminations by pigeons depending on whether the negative stimuli could vary trial by trial (varied condition) or it was always the same stimulus (constant condition). In the first experiment, the subjects were randomly assigned to the conditions and then exposed to a go/no-go procedure in which “no-go” trials were also reinforced. Subsequently, the subjects changed from one condition to the other and were exposed to a new discrimination. In the second experiment, two discriminations were arranged in the same way as in the previous experiment, but, this time, “no-go” trials were not reinforced. In Experiment 1, the acquisition was slower in the varied condition. In Experiment 2, this effect was only observed when the subjects were exposed to the varied condition in the second discrimination. These results suggest, on one hand, that the variety of negative stimuli is an important variable to be considered. And, on the other hand, that the resulting effect on acquisition might be strongly sensitive to the kind of procedure that is used.