Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The artificial night sky brightness mapped from DMSP satellite Operational Linescan System measurements

ABSTRA C T We present a method to map the artificial sky brightness across large territories in astronomical photometric bands with a resolution of approximately 1 km. This is of use in quantifying the situation regarding night sky pollution, recognizing potential astronomical sites and allowing future monitoring of trends. The artificial sky brightness present in the chosen direction at a given position on the surface of the Earth is obtained by the integration of the contributions produced by every surface area in the surroundings. Each contribution is computed via detailed models for the propagation in the atmosphere of the upward light flux emitted by the area. The light flux is measured with top-of-atmosphere radiometric observations made by the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) Operational Linescan System. We have applied the described method to Europe, obtaining maps of artificial sky brightness in the V and B bands.
Neuropsychological Assessment and Intervention in Residential Substance Use Disorder Treatment

With persistent and chronic use of alcohol and drugs, structural and functional changes occur in the brain, contributing to the development and maintenance of substance use disorder (SUD). The cyclic nature of addiction is increasingly understood in a neuroscientific framework. Influential theories describe allostatic changes that occur over time as the initial highly rewarding effects of substances subsequently lead to reduced capacity of prefrontal brain regions to exert effective self-regulation, while an increasingly reactive amygdala-striatum system becomes progressively more vulnerable to substance-cues, stress, negative affect, and compulsive substance use (Koob & Volkow, 2016; Noël, Brevers, & Bechara, 2013; Volkow & Morales, 2015). The resulting cognitive deficits are one of the most commonly reported risk factors for dropout from addiction treatment (Brorson, Ajo Arnevik, Rand-Hendriksen, & Duckert, 2013). Recently it has been proposed that interventions designed to improve cognition may bolster SUD treatment outcomes and increase the likelihood of long-term recovery from addiction (Verdejo-García, 2016). This thesis aimed to investigate the potential for neuropsychological screening and cognitive training interventions to improve SUD treatment outcomes. The first study of this thesis (Chapter 2) assessed cognitive functioning in an SUD sample in residential treatment (N = 128), with findings indicating that almost half (43.8%) were identified as cognitively impaired, compared to 16.2% of controls (N = 37). History of head injury was a significant determinant of cognitive impairment and cognitive impairment was associated with higher levels of psychological distress. Study two evaluated a cognitive remediation intervention developed to specifically target executive dysfunction and delivered within residential SUD treatment – in an all-female sample inclusive of those with comorbidities including psychiatric diagnoses and history of head injury (Chapter 3). A threemonth follow-up was included to assess outcomes over time (Chapter 4). Lastly, the relationships between executive functions (EFs) and emotion regulation were investigated
Discourse particles, interaction and enunciative approach

This paper aims to provide a new perspective on the study of discourse particles by analyzing some elements of metaoperational grammar as a starting point. Specifically, the approach will be focused on the application of three fundamental criteria for the enunciative analysis of utterances (information, the utterer’s attitudes, and reference to the speaker). This perspective will help to explore the explanatory potential of this grammatical approach in the study of discourse particles in the Spanish language.
Pacing and resynchronization therapy A new electrocardiogram algorithm for diagnosing loss of ventricular capture during cardiac resynchronisation therapy

CLINICAL RESEARCH Pacing and resynchronization therapy
New quantitative evidence of extreme warmth in the Pliocene Arctic

The most recent geologic interval characterized by warm temperatures similar to those projected for the end of this century occurred about 3.3 to 3.0 Ma, during the mid-Piacenzian Age of the Pliocene Epoch. Climate reconstructions of this warm period are integral to both understanding past warm climate equilibria and to predicting responses to today’s transient climate. The Arctic Ocean is of particular interest because in this region climate proxies are rare, and climate models struggle to predict climate sensitivity and the response of sea ice. In order to provide the first quantitative climate data from this region during this interval, sea surface temperatures (SST) were estimated from Ocean Drilling Program Sites 907 and 909 in the Nordic Seas and from Site 911 in the Arctic Ocean based on Mg/Ca of Neogloboquadrina pachyderma (sin) and alkenone unsaturation indices. Evidence of much warmer than modern conditions in the Arctic Ocean during the mid-Piacenzian with temperatures as high as 18°C is presented. In addition, SST anomalies (mid-Piacenzian minus modern) increase with latitude across the North Atlantic and into the Arctic, extending and confirming a reduced mid-Piacenzian pole-to-equator temperature gradient. The agreement between proxies and with previously documented qualitative assessments of intense warming in this region corroborate a poleward transport of heat and an at least seasonally ice-free Arctic, conditions that may serve as a possible analog to future climate if the current rate of Arctic sea-ice reduction continues.
A “Man is Known by the Company He Keeps” SocioEthological and Psychological Correlates of Male Friendship

The summary paper argues that the phenomenon of male alliance (friendship) emerges as a consequence of mutual preference demonstrated by male individuals both human and animal, and such preference can be empirically captured. Friendly relations between men are built on two different foundations: (1) the principle of biological and social similarity and (2) the principle of psychological complementarity of the alliance members. Friendship is predominantly formed between boys and men of the same ethnic (racial) origin, similar age, behavior, and common social background. By contrast, psychologically friends are selected based on the complementarity of their main temperament and character traits, such as ergonicity/ sthenicity, emotionality, neophobia/ neophilia, extraversion/ introversion, dependence/ independence of behavior, and dominance/submissiveness. These principles trigger the following key effects: a person is more likely to develop an individual preference and find a friend in childhood, and the number of potential friends is very
Effect of modifications in rules in competition on participation of male youth goalkeepers in soccer

The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of modifications in field size, number of players, and goal size on the goalkeeper's actions in competition in male youth soccer (n = 4) (under-12). A quasi-experimental design was implemented to measure the effects of the changes in the number of players per team (8-a-side vs. 5-a-side), goal size (6 × 2 m vs. 3 × 2 m), and field size (58 × 38 m vs. 38 × 20 m) on the offensive and defensive technical and tactical actions of the goalkeeper. Four male under-12 goalkeepers (age = 11.33 ± 0.6 years, average weekly training = 2.45 ± 0.3 h, and years of experience = 4.8 ± 0.9 years) were analyzed in three tournaments (8-a-side; 5-a-side; 8-a-side). The dependent variables were: defensive and offensive technical actions taken by the goalkeepers and the way their actions were carried out. The results show that in the 5-a-side soccer matches, goalkeepers carried out more defensive actions (8-a-side: 31.2 ± 3.8; 5-a-side: 77.75 ± 5.0; 8-a-side: 39.5 ± 6.0; F2,6 = 111,218, p = .000, η2 = .974; ES .998) and offensive actions (8-a-side: 58.0 ± 7.1; 5-a-side: 84.0 ± 13.5; 8-a-side: 58.1 ± 9.2; F2,6 = 16,257, p = .004, η2 = .844; ES .996) than in 8-a-side soccer matches. The reduction in field size, number of players, and goal size resulted in under-12 goalkeepers having more interaction and more variability in their actions. This information could help the different stakeholders to adapt or design the youth soccer competition rules in a way that allows goalkeepers to have more experiences.
The relationship between services quality and customer satisfaction among Jordanian healthcare sector

Article history: Received: September 17, 2018 Received in revised format: September 21, 2018 Accepted: October 4, 2018 Available online: October 4, 2018 The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of the application of service quality on patient satisfaction in Jordanian hospitals using the SERVQUAL model. The study uses samples from Al Hussein Military Hospital in Jordan, where 350 questionnaires were distributed to the admitted patients. The study implements structural equation modeling to examine the effects of the SERVQUAL components; namely tangible, reliable, assurance, empathy and responsiveness on customer satisfaction. The results show that quality of service dimensions affected patient satisfaction. Moreover, the SERVQUAL model also appeared as an appropriate tool for assessing the quality of hospital medical services.
Low Power and Low Voltage MOSFETs with Variable Threshold Voltage Controlled by Back-Bias

We have studied the characteristic trade-offs in low power and low voltage MOSFETs from the viewpoint of back-gate control and body effect factor. Previously reported MOSFET structures are classified into four categories in terms of back-gate structures. It is shown that a MOSFET with a fixed back-bias has only a limited current drive at low voltage irrespective of device structures, while current drive of a dynamic threshold MOSFET with body tied to gate is more enhanced with increasing body effect factor. We have proposed a new dynamic threshold MOSFET, electrically induced body (EIB) DTMOS, which has a very large body effect factor at low threshold voltage and high current drive at low supply voltage. key words: MOSFET, low power, low voltage, variable thresh-
Interferometric Measurements of Variable 340 GHz Linear Polarization in Sagittarius A*

Using the Submillimeter Array, we have made the first high angular resolution measurements of the linear polarization of Sagittarius A* at submillimeter wavelengths and the first detection of intraday variability in its linear polarization. We detected linear polarization at 340 GHz (880 μm) at several epochs. At the typical resolution of 1. ″4 × 2. ″2, the expected contamination from the surrounding (partially polarized) dust emission is negligible. We found that both the polarization fraction and the position angle are variable, with the polarization fraction dropping from 8.5% to 2.3% over 3 days. This is the first significant measurement of variability in the linear polarization fraction in this source. We also found variability in the polarization and total intensity within single nights, although the relationship between the two is not clear from these data. The simultaneous 332 and 342 GHz position angles are the same, setting a 1 σ rotation measure (RM) upper limit of 7 × 105 rad m-2. From position angle variations and comparison of "quiescent" position angles observed here and at 230 GHz, we infer that the RM is a few times 105 rad m-2, a factor of a few below our direct detection limit. A generalized model of the RM produced in the accretion flow suggests that the accretion rate at small radii must be low, below 10-6-10-7 M☉ yr-1 depending on the radial density and temperature profiles, but in all cases below the gas capture rate inferred from X-ray observations.
Experimental f-Value and Isotopic Structure for the Ni I Line Blended with [O I] at 6300 Å

We have measured the oscillator strength of the Ni I line at 6300.34 Å, which is known to be blended with the forbidden line [O I] λ6300 used for the determination of the oxygen abundance in cool stars. We also give wavelengths of the two isotopic line components of 58Ni and 60Ni derived from the asymmetric laboratory line profile. These two line components of Ni I have to be considered when calculating a line profile of the 6300 Å feature observed in stellar and solar spectra. We also discuss the labeling of the energy levels involved in the Ni I line since level mixing makes the theoretical predictions uncertain.
Weight-codings in a genetic algorithm for the multi-constraint knapsack problem

This paper presents different variants of weight-coding in a genetic algorithm (GA) for solving the multi-constraint knapsack problem (MKP). In this coding, a chromosome is a vector of weights associated with the items of the MKP. The phenotype is obtained by using the weights to generate a modified version of the original problem and applying a decoding heuristic to it. Four techniques of biasing the original problem with weights are discussed. Two well working decoding heuristics, one based on surrogate relaxation and the other based on Lagrangian relaxation, are introduced. The different weight-coding variants are experimentally compared to each other using a steady-state GA. Furthermore, the influence of the biasing strength, a strategy parameter of the codings, is investigated. In general, the GA found solutions being substantially better than those obtained by applying heuristics to the MKP directly.
Effects of footwear designed to boost energy return on running economy icompared to traditional running

Running economy is a reflection of the amount of inspired oxygen required to maintain a given velocity 10 and is considered a determining factor for running performance. Athletic footwear has been advocated as a mechanism by which running economy can be enhanced. New commercially available footwear has been developed in order to increase energy return, although their efficacy has not been investigated. This study aimed to examine the effects of energy return footwear on running economy in relation to conventional running shoes. Twelve AQ2 male runners completed 6-min steady-state runs in 15 conventional and energy return footwear. Overall, VO2, heart rate, respiratory exchange ratio, shoe comfort and rating of perceived exertion were assessed. Moreover, participants subjectively indicated which shoe condition they preferred for running. Differences in shoe comfort and physiological parameters were examined using Wilcoxon signed-rank tests, whilst shoe preferences were tested using a chi-square analysis. The results showed that VO2 and respiratory exchange ratio were signifi20 cantly lower, and shoe comfort was significantly greater, in the energy return footwear. Given the relationship between running economy and running performance, these observations indicate that the energy return footwear may be associated with enhanced running performance in comparison to conventional shoes. ARTICLE HISTORY Accepted 25 August 2015
For Personal Use. Only Reproduce with Permission from the Lancet Publishing Group. Problems of Reporting Genetic Associations with Complex Outcomes

REVIEW The post-genome era has been responsible for a flood of new data submitted for publication. Journals are littered with studies reporting an association between genetic variation and disease-related outcomes. With several million single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) catalogued in the human genome, the number of possible genetic associations that can be tested is limited only by the rate at which laboratories can type these polymorphisms. For such data to be useful, procedures are needed that will distinguish between real and spurious associations and will collate the mass of data for any given polymorphism or outcome. Researchers recognise that few published reports of significant associations can be replicated unequivocally. 1–3 A typical example is the initial positive associations between the G460W polymorphism of alpha-adducin and hypertension, 4–6 which have not been replicated by others. 7–13 This uncertainty is a general occurrence. As Cardon and Bell state, 14 it is " impossible to consider the veracity of a new report of complex disease association in the light of past knowledge, because so few 'real' associations are known ". This situation has led some commentators to question the value of genetic association studies, suggesting that they should be restricted to the study of polymorphisms that have been shown to have a direct effect on gene function. 15 In the first part of this article, we discuss some of the possible explanations why findings from so many genetic association studies are inconsistent, and then we propose strategies for dealing with the problem. Is the association study strategy futile? Can any association study ever be expected to detect genetic determinants of a complex disease? Several researchers have argued that attempts to locate disease genes must account for the complexity of biological and social pathways to disease and the context dependency of the effect of many risk factors. 16,17 In short, the assertion here is that genes do not generally act in a simple additive manner, but through complex networks involving gene-gene and gene-environment interactions, so that association approaches will always be hopelessly simplistic and reductionist. However, although many interaction effects will doubtless exist that can affect power to detect average genetic effects and ability to replicate associations, important additive effects of genes can be expected, simply because much of the rationale for searching for complex disease genes is based on the presence of parent-offspring resemblance for the trait which is not caused by shared environment. The …
Fibre integrity and diffusivity of the pyramidal tract and motor cortex within and adjacent to brain tumour in patients with or without neurological deficits.

BACKGROUND Assessment of the relationship between preoperative neurological deficits and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) parameters in patients with brain tumour within/adjacent to pyramidal tract and motor cortex. Evaluation of the difference in fractional anisotropy (FA) and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values in patients with low and high grade gliomas. MATERIAL AND METHODS 20 patients with supratentorial brain tumours were divided into two groups: I with preoperative neurological deficits and II without preoperative neurological deficits. 8/20 tumours were classified as low grade gliomas, 10/20 as high grade gliomas and 2/10 as metastases. All MR examinations were performed on a 3T scanner. FA and ADC values were calculated for a precentral gyrus (PCG), a posterior limb of the internal capsule (PLIC) and a pyramidal tract (PT) ipsilateral and contralateral to the tumour side. These values were compared between patients with and without preoperative neurological deficits, with low and high grade gliomas. RESULTS A statistical analysis revealed significant differences between patients with and without preoperative neurological deficits in PCGs and PTs ipsilateral to the tumour side. Separate analysis conducted in the group with preoperative neurological deficits showed significant statistical differences only in terms of FA values comparing ipsilateral and contralateral tumour side. No statistically significant difference was observed comparing FA and ADC values ipsilateral and contralateral to the tumour side in the group without preoperative neurological deficits and between patients with low and high grade gliomas. CONCLUSIONS There is a relation between FA and ADC values and preoperative deficits in patients with brain tumour adjacent/within the main white matter tracts. Tumour relation to the white matter tracts is more important than the glioma WHO grade.
New Methods of Measuring Opinion Leadership: A Systematic, Interdisciplinary Literature Analysis

Opinion leadership research has changed with the development of new online communication environments. Consequently, the already diverse methods of measuring opinion leadership have expanded further. With the help of a systematic literature analysis of 410 articles published in the past 20 years, I collected, organized, and compared traditional and new methods. The analysis identifies three major methods: traditional methods of self-assessment, assessment by others, and the new method of algorithmic assessment. Algorithmic assessment is already used by 37% of all analyzed studies and 74% of the studies researching opinion leadership online. It comprises four main criteria serving as indicators for opinion leadership: contacts, activity, feedback, and citation/imitation. A comparison with traditional methods shows that different types of opinion leaders are identified with the new algorithmic assessment and the construct has split into multiple dimensions.
Accounting for Consumer Heterogeneity in Preferences over GM Foods: An Application of the Latent Market Segmentation Model

Understanding consumer heterogeneity in preferences over GM foods is one of the most vital components of the policy discussions over labelling and market segmentation. The paper presents an application of the latent segmentation (LS) model as an alternative approach to accounting for preference heterogeneity in the demand for GM foods. The model is applied to a data set obtained from a stated preference choice experiment study on the value of reducing the genetically modified content in the production of one commonly consumed food, namely eggs. The LS is based on the behavioural framework of McFadden (1986a) that allows for constructing an econometric model that simultaneously estimates segment membership and product choice. The model also utilises latent constructs as direct determinants of segment membership and indirect determinants of product choice as prescribed by Ben-Akiva et al. (1997). The analysis shows that the latent market segmentation model not only accounts for preference heterogeneity across individuals, but at the same time identifies segments of consumers that are characterised by common demographic and psychographic traits. This modelling approach is then compared to other more commonly used means of accounting for preference heterogeneity, the interaction effects, covariance heterogeneity and random parameters models, and is shown to outperform all alternative specifications on both econometric and policy relevance grounds.
Strong NP-Hardness Result for Regularized $L_q$-Minimization Problems with Concave Penalty Functions

In this note, we consider the regularize $L_q$-minimization problem ($q\ge 1$) with a general penalty function. We show that if the penalty function is concave but not linear in a neighborhood of zero, then the optimization problem is strongly NP-hard. This result answers the complexity of many regularized optimization problems studied in the literature. It implies that it is impossible to have a fully polynomial-time approximation scheme (FPTAS) for a large class of regularization problems unless P = NP.
A distributed minimum variance estimator for sensor networks

A distributed estimation algorithm for sensor networks is proposed. A noisy time-varying signal is jointly tracked by a network of sensor nodes, in which each node computes its estimate as a weighted sum of its own and its neighbors' measurements and estimates. The weights are adaptively updated to minimize the variance of the estimation error. Both estimation and the parameter optimization is distributed; no central coordination of the nodes is required. An upper bound of the error variance in each node is derived. This bound decreases with the number of neighboring nodes. The estimation properties of the algorithm are illustrated via computer simulations, which are intended to compare our estimator performance with distributed schemes that were proposed previously in the literature. The results of the paper allow to trading-off communication constraints, computing efforts and estimation quality for a class of distributed filtering problems.