This paper describes a free energy principle that tries to explain the ability of biological systems to resist a natural tendency to disorder. It appeals to circular causality of the sort found in synergetic formulations of self-organization (e.g., the slaving principle) and models of coupled dynamical systems, using nonlinear Fokker Planck equations. Here, circular causality is induced by sepa...

The dynamics of transient disordered vortex states in Bi 2 Sr 2 CaCu 2 O 8+δ was magneto-optically traced in three experiments: (i) during continuous injection of transient vortex states while ramping up the external magnetic field, (ii) during annealing of injected transient states while keeping the external field constant, and (iii) during annealing of transient 'supercooled' disordered state...

A major challenge in neuroscience is posed by the need for relating the emerging dynamical features of brain activity with the underlying modular structure of neural connections, hierarchically organized throughout several scales. The spontaneous emergence of coherence and synchronization across such scales is crucial to neural function, while its anomalies often relate to pathological conditio...

This study examines the association between the cost of debt capital and corporate governance practices. Utilizing a unique data set of firm-level corporate governance practices that is provided by the Korea Corporate Governance Service (KCGS), this study examines whether sound corporate governance practices reduce agency costs and thus the default risk and cost of debt capital of a firm. The f...

Note: The following appendices will not appear in the Code of Federal Regulations. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Appendices to Treatment of Certain Collateralized Debt Obligations Backed Primarily by Trust Preferred Securities With Regard to Prohibitions and Restrictions on Certain Interests in, and Relationships With, Hedge Funds and Private Equity Funds—Commission Voting Summary...

The clinical laboratory services of the UK National Health Service (NHS) is the fastest growing expenditure area of the Service. The clinical chemistry services are probably the largest of the disciplines making up the clinical laboratory service regarding workforce, workload and expenditure. In the early years of the NHS there was evidence of poor analytical performance by the clinical chemist...

We study long-range interacting systems perturbed by external stochastic forces. Unlike the case of short-range systems, where stochastic forces usually act locally on each particle, here we consider perturbations by external stochastic fields. The system reaches stationary states where external forces balance dissipation on average. These states do not respect detailed balance and support non-...

0. Platitudinously, cognitive science is the science of cognition. Cognition is usually defined as something like the process of acquiring, retaining and applying knowledge. To a first approximation, therefore, cognitive science is the science of knowing. Knowing is a relation between the knower and the known. Typically, although not always, what is known involves the environment external to th...

Bureaucratic performance is a crucial determinant of economic growth, but little real-world evidence exists on how to improve it, especially in resource-constrained settings. We conducted field experiment social recognition intervention record keeping health facilities two Nigerian states, replicating the – implemented by single organization bureaucrats performing identical tasks. Social improv...