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Tunisian Arabic (ISO 693-3: aeb) is a distinct linguistic variety native to Tunisia, initially stemmed from the Arabic language and enriched by a multitude of historical influences. This research introduces the "Normalized Orthography for Tunisian Arabic" (NOTA), an adaptation of CODA* guidelines tailored for transcribing Tunisian Arabic using the Arabic script for language resource development purposes, with an emphasis on user-friendliness and consistency. The updated standard seeks to address challenges related to accurately representing the unique characteristics of Tunisian phonology and morphology. This will be achieved by rectifying problems arising from transcriptions based on resemblances to Modern Standard Arabic., Comment: Final Report for the Derja Association

Detecting out-of-distribution (OOD) data is a critical challenge in machine learning due to model overconfidence, often without awareness of their epistemological limits. We hypothesize that ``neural collapse'', a phenomenon affecting in-distribution data for models trained beyond loss convergence, also influences OOD data. To benefit from this interplay, we introduce NECO, a novel post-hoc method for OOD detection, which leverages the geometric properties of ``neural collapse'' and of principal component spaces to identify OOD data. Our extensive experiments demonstrate that NECO achieves state-of-the-art results on both small and large-scale OOD detection tasks while exhibiting strong generalization capabilities across different network architectures. Furthermore, we provide a theoretical explanation for the effectiveness of our method in OOD detection. Code is available at https://gitlab.com/drti/neco, Comment: Accepted to ICLR2024

This paper uses a sample of 7235 banks from 160 countries between 2000 and 2016 to investigate the link between corruption, lending and bank performance. It considers both country- and bank-level corruption. The study finds that while corruption increases bank lending, it has an adverse impact on bank profits and risks (credit, solvency and distance to default). Corporate lending is found to be most influenced by corruption. Bank-level corruption influences bank performance in both developed and developing countries as whereas country-level corruption has a lesser effect on lending in developing countries. The study also finds that greater bank competition, market concentration and improved regulatory environments reduce the effect of corruption on bank lending and performance. Policy makers should focus on enhancing regulatory rules and institutions in order to deal with the adverse impact of corruption on bank performance.

Higher education is considered as an engine for development and growth in the knowledge society, because of its benefits to boost research, knowledge and technological innovation. This paper examines the relation between innovation, higher education and economic growth during the 1996-2014 period in the case of developed and developing countries. The cointegration relationship between series was examined by using panel cointegration test developed by Pedroni (1999, 2004) and Kao (1999). As a result of the empirical analysis, cointegration relationship between the series was determined. The results provide also evidence of a positive effect of innovation in tertiary education on economic growth., La educación superior está considerada como un motor de desarrollo y crecimiento en la sociedad del conocimiento, debido a sus beneficios para impulsar la investigación, el conocimiento y la innovación tecnológica. Este documento examina la relación entre la innovación, la educación superior y el crecimiento económico durante el período 1996-2014 en el caso de los países desarrollados y en desarrollo. La relación de cointegración entre series se examinó mediante el uso de la prueba de cointegración de panel desarrollada por Pedroni (1999, 2004) y Kao (1999). Como resultado del análisis empírico, se determinó la relación de cointegración entre las series. Los resultados también proporcionan evidencia de un efecto positivo de la innovación en la educación terciaria sobre el crecimiento económico.

Higher education is considered as an engine for development and growth in the knowledge society, because of its benefits to boost research, knowledge and technological innovation. This paper examines the relation between innovation, higher education and economic growth during the 1996-2014 period in the case of developed and developing countries. The cointegration relationship between series was examined by using panel cointegration test developed by Pedroni (1999, 2004) and Kao (1999). As a result of the empirical analysis, cointegration relationship between the series was determined. The results provide also evidence of a positive effect of innovation in tertiary education on economic growth., La educación superior está considerada como un motor de desarrollo y crecimiento en la sociedad del conocimiento, debido a sus beneficios para impulsar la investigación, el conocimiento y la innovación tecnológica. Este documento examina la relación entre la innovación, la educación superior y el crecimiento económico durante el período 1996-2014 en el caso de los países desarrollados y en desarrollo. La relación de cointegración entre series se examinó mediante el uso de la prueba de cointegración de panel desarrollada por Pedroni (1999, 2004) y Kao (1999). Como resultado del análisis empírico, se determinó la relación de cointegración entre las series. Los resultados también proporcionan evidencia de un efecto positivo de la innovación en la educación terciaria sobre el crecimiento económico.

Graph databases (GDB) have recently been arisen to overcome the limits of traditional databases for storing and managing data with graph-like structure. Today, they represent a requirement for many applications that manage graph-like data, like social networks. Most of the techniques, applied to optimize queries in graph databases, have been used in traditional databases, distribution systems... or they are inspired from graph theory. However, their reuse in graph databases should take care of the main characteristics of graph databases, such as dynamic structure, highly interconnected data, and ability to efficiently access data relationships. In this paper, we survey the query optimization techniques in graph databases. In particular, we focus on the features they have introduced to improve querying graph-like data.

This paper, which has only a documentary base, tries to give an overview of the current status of the teaching of Spanish in Tunisian universities. We have emphasized the relationship between academic training and the labor market, in order to highlight both the achievements of the departments of Spanish on the employability of their graduates, and its shortcomings when it refers to the quality of training and its relevance to the demands of the labor market., En la presente comunicación, que tiene tan solo un carácter documental, intentaremos dar una idea general sobre la situación actual de la enseñanza del español en la universidad tunecina. Haremos especial hincapié en la relación que existe entre la formación académica y el mercado laboral y ello, con el fin de resaltar, tanto los logros de los departamentos de español en materia de la empleabilidad de sus diplomados, como de sus deficiencias en lo que se refiere a la calidad de la formación y su adecuación a las exigencias del mercado de trabajo.

This paper, which has only a documentary base, tries to give an overview of the current status of the teaching of Spanish in Tunisian universities. We have emphasized the relationship between academic training and the labor market, in order to highlight both the achievements of the departments of Spanish on the employability of their graduates, and its shortcomings when it refers to the quality of training and its relevance to the demands of the labor market., En la presente comunicación, que tiene tan solo un carácter documental, intentaremos dar una idea general sobre la situación actual de la enseñanza del español en la universidad tunecina. Haremos especial hincapié en la relación que existe entre la formación académica y el mercado laboral y ello, con el fin de resaltar, tanto los logros de los departamentos de español en materia de la empleabilidad de sus diplomados, como de sus deficiencias en lo que se refiere a la calidad de la formación y su adecuación a las exigencias del mercado de trabajo.

This paper gives the definition of Transparent Neural Network "TNN" for the simulation of the globallocal vision and its application to the segmentation of administrative document image. We have developed and have adapted a recognition method which models the contextual effects reported from studies in experimental psychology. Then, we evaluated and tested the TNN and the multi-layer perceptron "MLP", which showed its effectiveness in the field of the recognition, in order to show that the TNN is clearer for the user and more powerful on the level of the recognition. Indeed, the TNN is the only system which makes it possible to recognize the document and its structure., Comment: 17 pages, International Journal of Artificial Intelligence & Applications (IJAIA), Vol. 4, No. 5, September 2013

We present in this paper an intelligent video data visualization tool, based on semantic classification, for retrieving and exploring a large scale corpus of videos. Our work is based on semantic classification resulting from semantic analysis of video. The obtained classes will be projected in the visualization space. The graph is represented by nodes and edges, the nodes are the keyframes of video documents and the edges are the relation between documents and the classes of documents. Finally, we construct the user's profile, based on the interaction with the system, to render the system more adequate to its references., Comment: graphics

In this study, we are interested to polymorphism of three genetic markers (GM Allotypes, HLA Classe II and mtDNA) in three Berber isolates (Chenini-Douiret, Matmata and Sened) localed in the South of Tunisia. Our objective is to evaluate the genetic impact of the invasions which Tunisia has knew after the Berber settlement by considering genetic diversity of these three isolates and by comparing these Berber populations to other North-African populations. Results obtained for the three systems are in agreement and show that, in spite of their geographical proximity and the great resemblance of their language, the three Berber populations of the South of Tunisia are genetically very differentiated. This differentiation could be due to the effect of their isolation and their endogamy. Berber of Chenini-Douiret, very little diversified and genetically very divergent whatever the marker studied, could be considered as an isolate. When we compared these Berber groups with other North-African populations, the Berber populations of the South of Tunisia appear more heterogeneous than those of Morocco and Algeria. In addition to the effect of the genetic drift, this diversity can reflect unequal genetic contributions of European, sub-Saharan and/or middle-Eastern components that took place during prehistory history. Thus, the Tunisian population, like the North-African populations is a mosaic of populations., Dans cette étude, nous nous sommes intéressés au polymorphisme de trois marqueurs génétiques (Allotypes GM, HLA Classe II et ADNmt) au sein de trois isolats berbères (Chenini-Douiret, Matmata et Sened) localisés dans le Sud tunisien. Notre objectif est d�évaluer l�impact génétique des invasions qu�a connues la Tunisie après son peuplement berbère en estimant la diversité génétique de ces trois isolats et en comparant ces populations berbères à d�autres populations nord-africaines. Les résultats obtenus pour les trois systèmes sont conformes entre eux et montrent que, malgré leur proximité géographique et la communauté linguistique, les trois populations berbères du Sud tunisien sont génétiquement très différenciées entre elles. Cette différenciation pourrait être due à l'effet de leur isolement et de leur endogamie, conduisant à leur divergence rapide les unes des autres. Les Berbères de Chenini-Douiret, très peu diversifiés et très divergents du point de vue génétique quel que soit le marqueur étudié, constituent un isolat. Lorsque l�on compare ces groupes berbères avec d�autres populations nord-africaines, les populations berbères du Sud tunisien apparaissent plus hétérogènes que celles du Maroc et d�Algérie. Outre l�effet de la dérive génétique, cette diversité peut refléter des contributions génétiques inégales d�origines européenne, sub-saharienne et/ou moyen-orientale ayant eu lieu au cours de la préhistoire et de l�histoire. Ainsi, la population tunisienne, à l�instar de la population nord-africaine dans son ensemble, est en réalité une mosaïque de populations.

The Merguellil catchment (central Tunisia), which is typical of the Mediterranean situation, has undergone rapid hydrological changes over the last decades. The most visible signs are a marked decrease in surface runoff in the upstream catchment and a complete change in the recharge processes of the Kairouan aquifer downstream. Fluctuations in rainfall have had a limited hydrological impact. Much more important have been the consequences of human activities, such as soil and water conservation works, small and large dams, and pumping for irrigation. Several independent investigations of the catchment were implemented, based on hydrodynamics, thermal surveys, and geochemistry including isotopes. These helped to identify the different terms of the regional water balance and to characterize their changes over time. However, major uncertainties remain and our results may contradict previous interpretations or calculations. Conservation works, now covering more than a quarter of the upstream catchment, drastically reduce the runoff production from rain events of less than 40 mm. Wadi Merguellil now ends in the big El Haouareb Reservoir, which loses more than half of its water by infiltration through karstic fissures and 30% by evaporation, the rest being pumped or released. El Haouareb Dam was built in 1989 and the reservoir has often dried up in the last decade. The major modifications in groundwater flow resulting from construction of the dam are observed in the geochemical tracers in the first seven kilometres downstream from it. Temperature measurements confirmed the recent invasion of new water. The rest of the Kairouan plain aquifer retains the signature of older recharge, but the whole aquifer is affected by the decrease in the water table (about 1 m per year), the consequence of the ever increasing pumping for irrigation.

The Merguellil catchment (central Tunisia), which is typical of the Mediterranean situation, has undergone rapid hydrological changes over the last decades. The most visible signs are a marked decrease in surface runoff in the upstream catchment and a complete change in the recharge processes of the Kairouan aquifer downstream. Fluctuations in rainfall have had a limited hydrological impact. Much more important have been the consequences of human activities, such as soil and water conservation works, small and large dams, and pumping for irrigation. Several independent investigations of the catchment were implemented, based on hydrodynamics, thermal surveys, and geochemistry including isotopes. These helped to identify the different terms of the regional water balance and to characterize their changes over time. However, major uncertainties remain and our results may contradict previous interpretations or calculations. Conservation works, now covering more than a quarter of the upstream catchment, drastically reduce the runoff production from rain events of less than 40 mm. Wadi Merguellil now ends in the big El Haouareb Reservoir, which loses more than half of its water by infiltration through karstic fissures and 30% by evaporation, the rest being pumped or released. El Haouareb Dam was built in 1989 and the reservoir has often dried up in the last decade. The major modifications in groundwater flow resulting from construction of the dam are observed in the geochemical tracers in the first seven kilometres downstream from it. Temperature measurements confirmed the recent invasion of new water. The rest of the Kairouan plain aquifer retains the signature of older recharge, but the whole aquifer is affected by the decrease in the water table (about 1 m per year), the consequence of the ever increasing pumping for irrigation.