Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
PHotometry Assisted Spectral Extraction (PHASE) and identification of SNLS supernovae

Aims: We present new extraction and identification techniques for supernova (SN) spectra developed within the Supernova Legacy Survey (SNLS) collaboration. Methods: The new spectral extraction method takes full advantage of photometric information from the Canada-France-Hawai telescope (CFHT) discovery and reference images by tracing the exact position of the supernova and the host signals on the spectrogram. When present, the host spatial profile is measured on deep multi-band reference images and is used to model the host contribution to the full (supernova + host) signal. The supernova is modelled as a Gaussian function of width equal to the seeing. A χ2 minimisation provides the flux of each component in each pixel of the 2D spectrogram. For a host-supernova separation greater than ⪆1 pixel, the two components are recovered separately and we do not use a spectral template in contrast to more standard analyses. This new procedure permits a clean extraction of the supernova separately from the host in about 70% of the 3rd year ESO/VLT spectra of the SNLS. A new supernova identification method is also proposed. It uses the SALT2 spectrophotometric template to combine the photometric and spectral data. A galaxy template is allowed for spectra for which a separate extraction of the supernova and the host was not possible. Results: These new techniques have been tested against more standard extraction and identification procedures. They permit a secure type and redshift determination in about 80% of cases. The present paper illustrates their performances on a few sample spectra. Based on observations obtained with FORS1 at the Very Large Telescope on the Cerro Paranal, operated by the European Southern Observatory, Chile (ESO Large Programmes 171.A-0486 and 176.A-0589).
Modelling Business Cycle Movements in the UK Economy

This paper models the phases of the UK business cycle using GDP data with a time-varying transition probabilities (TVTP) Markov-switching regime model and exogenous leading indicator variables. Single indicators in linear models are compared with the TVTP framework, with logistic and exponential functions used in the latter. The Markov-switching models capture the major recessions of the sample, but the use of leading indicators through the TVTP framework can improve this regime recognition. Finally, a forecast comparison shows that the TVTP models perform relatively well in predicting during the 1990s, particularly when nominal interest rates are used to generate the regime-switching probabilities. Copyright 2001 by The London School of Economics and Political Science
Students’ Reflections on Their Field Practicum: An Analysis of BSW Student Narratives

ABSTRACT This qualitative study was undertaken to explore what undergraduate students reflect on during their learning to practice social work in the field. Reflection is essential in the social work field practicum where students learn the practice of social work by doing. Seventeen BSW students’ final field practicum learning papers are analyzed. Four themes emerge that highlight the content of their reflections: situations of uncertainty, opportunities for application, tensions in action, and confrontations with others. This article presents in detail these 4 themes. Discussion includes suggestions for helping students better engage in reflective learning.
Firm Inventory Behavior and the Returns from Infrastructure Investment

Firm Inventory Behavior and the Returns from Infrastructure Investment by Chad Lynn McCauley Shirley A.B. (Stanford University) 1991 A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Economics in the GRADUATE DIVISION of the UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY Committee in charge: Professor Daniel McFadden, Chair Professor Theodore E. Keeler Professor Mark Hansen Spring 2000
Random Matrices and Chaos in Nuclear Physics

The authors review the evidence for the applicability of random--matrix theory to nuclear spectra. In analogy to systems with few degrees of freedom, one speaks of chaos (more accurately: quantum chaos) in nuclei whenever random--matrix predictions are fulfilled. An introduction into the basic concepts of random--matrix theory is followed by a survey over the extant experimental information on spectral fluctuations, including a discussion of the violation of a symmetry or invariance property. Chaos in nuclear models is discussed for the spherical shell model, for the deformed shell model, and for the interacting boson model. Evidence for chaos also comes from random--matrix ensembles patterned after the shell model such as the embedded two--body ensemble, the two--body random ensemble, and the constrained ensembles. All this evidence points to the fact that chaos is a generic property of nuclear spectra, except for the ground--state regions of strongly deformed nuclei.
Uniform Rolling-Wear-Based Robust Adaptive Control of High-Speed Trains in the Presence of Actuator Differences

Small persistent differences of slip velocities due to different actuation effectiveness of driving motors/braking units may lead to severe nonuniform rolling wear or fatigue damage of a part of actuation wheelsets after long-term operation, which would shorten service life or even endanger operational safety of the high-speed train. How to eliminate the nonuniform rolling wear/fatigue damage of actuation wheelsets using the control method is a very interesting and challenging issue. In this paper, robust adaptive observers are developed to identify uncertain dynamics of the train body and actuation wheelsets, based on which a uniform rolling-wear-based traction/braking control scheme is established. It is shown that with this controller, not only the common objective of traction/braking operation is achieved, but also actuator differences are completely compensated such that the same slip velocity (implying uniform driving load and rolling wear) is ensured for all actuation wheelsets during long-term operation. Both theoretical analysis and numerical simulations validate the effectiveness of the proposed control method.
Lattice-reduction-aided robust detection and precoding for MIMO systems with imperfect CSI

Recently, lattice-reduction (LR) has been proposed to improve the performance of linear and successive interference cancellation (SIC) detectors and precoders in MIMO systems. It is proved that LR-aided linear detectors collect the same diversity order as that exploited by the ML detector but with much lower complexity when perfect channel state information (CSI) is assumed to be available. However, in practice, CSI is always contaminated by channel estimation error and feedback quantization error. In this paper, we proposed MMSE based LR-aided robust linear and SIC detectors and MMSE based LR-aided (robust) linear precoder and (robust) Tomlinson-Harashima precoder (THP) which are capable of improving the BER performance in the context of imperfect CSI. Furthermore, we find that the performance improvement of LR-aided nonlinear method in SIC detectors at receiver is more pronounced than that in THP at transmitter.
A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Ilizarov Methods in the Treatment of Infected Nonunion of Tibia and Femur

Background Infected nonunion of tibia and femur are common in clinical practice, however, the treatment of these diseases has still been a challenge for orthopaedic surgeons. Ilizarov methods can eradicate infection, compensate bone defects and promote the bone union through progressive bone histogenesis. The objective of this systematic review was to review current available studies reporting on Ilizarov methods in the treatment of infected nonunion of tibia and femur, and to perform meta-analysis of bone and functional results and complications to evaluate the efficacy of Ilizarov methods. Methods A comprehensive literature search was performed from the SCI, PubMed, Cochrane Library; and Embase between January 1995 and August 2015. Some major data were statistically analyzed using weighted means based on the sample size in each study by SPSS 13.0, including number of patients, mean age, mean previous surgical procedures, mean bone defects, mean length of follow-up, bone union, complications per patient, external fixation time, and external fixation index(EFI). Bone results (excellent, good, fair and poor rate), functional results (excellent, good, fair and poor rate) and complications were analyzed by Stata 9.0. Findings A total of 590 patients from 24 studies were included in this systematic review. The average of bone union rate was 97.26% in all included studies. The poor rate in bone results and functional results was 8% (95%CI, 0.04–0.12; I2 = 44.1%, P = 0.065) and 10% (95%CI, 0.05–0.14; I2 = 34.7%, P = 0.121) in patients with infected nonunion of tibia and femur treated by Ilizarov methods. The rate of refracture, malunion, infectious recurrence, knee stiffness, amputation, limb edema and peroneal nerve palsy was respectively 4%, 7%, 5%, 12%, 4%, 13% and 13%. Conclusions Our systematic review showed that the patients with infected nonunion of tibia and femur treated by Ilizarov methods had a low rate of poor bone and functional results. Therefore, Ilizarov methods may be a good choice for the treatment of infected nonunion of tibia and femur.
Developmental Programming in Response to Maternal Overnutrition

Metabolic disorders have seen an increased prevalence in recent years in developed as well as developing countries. While it is clear lifestyle choices and habits have contributed to this epidemic, mounting evidence suggests the nutritional milieu during critical stages of development in early life can “program” individuals to develop the metabolic syndrome later in life. Extensive epidemiological data presents an association between maternal obesity and nutrition during pregnancy and offspring obesity, and a number of animal models have been established in order to uncover the underlying mechanisms contributing to the programming of physiological systems. It is hard to distinguish the causal factors due to the complex nature of the maternal–fetal relationship; however, in order to develop adequate prevention strategies it is vital to identify which maternal factor(s) – be it the diet, diet-induced obesity or weight gain – and at which time during early development instigate the programmed phenotype. Curtailing the onset of obesity at this early stage in life presents a promising avenue through which to stem the growing epidemic of obesity.
Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism Simultaneous Measurement of Salicylate Hydroxylation and Glutamate Release in the Penumbral Cortex following Transient Middle Cerebral Artery Occlusion in Rats

Using the microdialysis technique and laser­ Doppler flowmetry, we performed simultaneous mea­ surement of salicylate hydroxylation and glutamate re­ lease along with local CBF in the ischemic penumbral cortex of rat brain subjected to normothermic transient middle cerebral artery (MCA) occlusion. Cortical CBF fell to 24 ± 11% (mean ± SD) during ischemia and recov­ ered to 84 ± 16% during reperfusion. Extracellular gluta­ mate levels increased by 6.5-fold above baseline 10 min following MCA occlusion but subsequently returned to near baseline levels in spite of the persistent ischemia. Increase in 2,3-and 2,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid (DHBA) concentrations in the microdialysis perfusate was con-Oxygen free radical formation and subsequent lipid peroxidation have been postulated to be im­ portant steps in the pathogenesis of ischemic or hypoxic brain injury (Watson et al. There is increasing evidence that excitatory amino acids such as glutamate and aspartate play an important role in ischemic neuronal death. Large 92 firmed during both ischemia and reperfusion phase. Al­ though the temporal profile and amount of salicylate hy­ droxylation were heterogeneous among individual ani­ mals, integrated 2,3-DHBA concentrations during reperfusion were correlated positively with integrated glutamate concentrations during ischemia and negatively with mean postischemic CBF. These relationships sug­ gest a possible association of the enhanced production of 2,3-DHBA during reperfusion with larger amounts of in­ traischemic glutamate release and lower levels of post­ ischemic CBF. amounts of glutamate and/or aspartate were re­ leased into the extracellular space during both glob­ al and focal cerebral ischemia (Benveniste et al. Recent studies have begun to explore possible interactions between oxygen radicals and excitato­ ry amino acids in ischemic neuronal injury. Using rat hippocampal slices subjected to simulated tran­ sient "ischemia" by oxygen and glucose depriva­ tion, Pellegrini-Giampietro et al. (1990) reported possible induction of excitatory amino acid release
The Color-Magnitude Distribution of Field Galaxies to z~3: The Evolution and Modeling of the Blue Sequence

Using deep NIR VLT ISAAC and optical HST WFPC2 imaging in the HDF-S and MS 1054-03, we study the rest-frame UV-to-optical colors and magnitudes of galaxies to z ~ 3. Unlike the present day, there is no evidence for a red sequence at z ~ 3, but there does appear to be a well-defined CMR for blue galaxies at all redshifts, with more luminous galaxies having redder U - V colors. The slope of the blue CMR is independent of redshift δ(U - V)/δMV = -0.09 ± 0.01 and can be explained by a correlation of dust reddening with luminosity. The average color at fixed luminosity reddens strongly Δ(U - V) ≈ 0.75 from z ~ 3 to z = 0, much of which can be attributed to aging of stars. The color scatter of the blue sequence is relatively small σ(U - V) = 0.25 ± 0.03 and constant to z ~ 3, but notably asymmetrical, having a sharp blue ridge and a wing toward redder colors. We explore sets of SFHs to study the constraints placed by the shape of the scatter at z = 2-3. One particular set of models, episodic star formation, reproduces the detailed properties very well. For a two-state model with high and low star formation, the duty cycle is constrained to be >40% and the contrast in SFR between the states must be a factor >5 [or a scatter in log(SFR) of >0.35 dex around the mean]. Nevertheless, episodic models do not explain the observed tail of very red galaxies, primarily DRGs, which may have ceased star formation altogether or are more heavily obscured. Finally, the relative number density of red, luminous MV < -20.5 galaxies increases by a factor of ~6 from z = 2.7 to 0.5, as does their contribution to the total rest-frame V-band luminosity density. We are likely viewing the progressive formation of red, passively evolving galaxies.
When are the most informative components for inference also the principal components?

Which components of the singular value decomposition of a signal-plus-noise data matrix are most informative for the inferential task of detecting or estimating an embedded low-rank signal matrix? Principal component analysis ascribes greater importance to the components that capture the greatest variation, i.e., the singular vectors associated with the largest singular values. This choice is often justified by invoking the Eckart-Young theorem even though that work addresses the problem of how to best represent a signal-plus-noise matrix using a low-rank approximation and not how to best_infer_ the underlying low-rank signal component. Here we take a first-principles approach in which we start with a signal-plus-noise data matrix and show how the spectrum of the noise-only component governs whether the principal or the middle components of the singular value decomposition of the data matrix will be the informative components for inference. Simply put, if the noise spectrum is supported on a connected interval, in a sense we make precise, then the use of the principal components is justified. When the noise spectrum is supported on multiple intervals, then the middle components might be more informative than the principal components. The end result is a proper justification of the use of principal components in the setting where the noise matrix is i.i. d. Gaussian and the identification of scenarios, generically involving heterogeneous noise models such as mixtures of Gaussians, where the middle components might be more informative than the principal components so that they may be exploited to extract additional processing gain. Our results show how the blind use of principal components can lead to suboptimal or even faulty inference because of phase transitions that separate a regime where the principal components are informative from a regime where they are uninformative.
ORIGINAL RESEARCH—WOMEN’S SEXUAL HEALTH: Physiological Changes in Female Genital Sensation During Sexual Stimulation

ABSTRACT Introduction A normal sexual response in the female depends on the integrity of afferent sensory input from the genital region. So far genital sensation has been investigated only during a non-excitatory state, and the sensory physiological changes, which occur during the sexual cycle in this region, are still obscured. Aim To investigate the sensory status of the female genital region during sexual arousal and orgasm. Main Outcome Measures Genital sensory thresholds measured by Quantitative Sensory Testing (vibratory and thermal) were compared in a non-excitatory vs. excitatory state in normal sexually functioning females. Methods Eleven healthy female volunteers were recruited and attended three separate visits. During each session only one anatomical site, either clitoris or vagina was tested for either vibratory or thermal stimuli. A psychophysical method of limits was employed for threshold determination of warm or vibratory stimuli. In each session, all women were tested at baseline, immediately after arousal, after orgasm and three more measurements – 5, 10, and 20 minutes during the recovery state. Results A significant decrease in clitoral vibratory sensation threshold was observed between the baseline and the arousal phases ( P = 0.003). Comparison of vibratory sensation between baseline and following orgasm at the clitoral and vaginal region showed a significant difference ( P P = 0.6). Conclusions This is the first time that genital sensation has been measured during the excitatory phase of the female sexual cycle. This normative data may serve as a baseline for further investigations of the sensory input of the genital organs during intercourse in pathological states. Gruenwald I, Lowenstein L, Gartman I, and Vardi Y. Physiological changes in female genital sensation during sexual stimulation.
Influenza Infection Risk and Predominate Exposure Route: Uncertainty Analysis

An effective nonpharmaceutical intervention for influenza interrupts an exposure route that contributes significantly to infection risk. Herein, we use uncertainty analysis (point‐interval method) and Monte Carlo simulation to explore the magnitude of infection risk and predominant route of exposure. We utilized a previously published mathematical model of a susceptible person attending a bed‐ridden infectious person. Infection risk is sensitive to the magnitude of virus emission and contact rates. The contribution of droplet spray exposure to infection risk increases with cough frequency, and decreases with virus concentration in cough particles. We consider two infectivity scenarios: greater infectivity of virus deposited in the upper respiratory tract than virus inhaled in respirable aerosols, based on human studies; and equal infectivity in the two locations, based on studies in guinea pigs. Given that virus have equal probability of infection throughout the respiratory tract, the mean overall infection risk is 9.8 × 10−2 (95th percentile 0.78). However, when virus in the upper respiratory tract is less infectious than inhaled virus, the overall infection risk is several orders of magnitude lower. In this event, inhalation is a significant exposure route. Contact transmission is important in both infectivity scenarios. The presence of virus in only respirable particles increases the mean overall infection risk by 1–3 orders of magnitude, with inhalation contributing ≥99% of the infection risk. The analysis indicates that reduction of uncertainties in the concentration of virus in expiratory particles of different sizes, expiratory event frequency, and infectivity at different sites in the respiratory tract will clarify the predominate exposure routes for influenza.
Blast-induced phenotypic switching in cerebral vasospasm

Vasospasm of the cerebrovasculature is a common manifestation of blast-induced traumatic brain injury (bTBI) reported among combat casualties in the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. Cerebral vasospasm occurs more frequently, and with earlier onset, in bTBI patients than in patients with other TBI injury modes, such as blunt force trauma. Though vasospasm is usually associated with the presence of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), SAH is not required for vasospasm in bTBI, which suggests that the unique mechanics of blast injury could potentiate vasospasm onset, accounting for the increased incidence. Here, using theoretical and in vitro models, we show that a single rapid mechanical insult can induce vascular hypercontractility and remodeling, indicative of vasospasm initiation. We employed high-velocity stretching of engineered arterial lamellae to simulate the mechanical forces of a blast pulse on the vasculature. An hour after a simulated blast, injured tissues displayed altered intracellular calcium dynamics leading to hypersensitivity to contractile stimulus with endothelin-1. One day after simulated blast, tissues exhibited blast force dependent prolonged hypercontraction and vascular smooth muscle phenotype switching, indicative of remodeling. These results suggest that an acute, blast-like injury is sufficient to induce a hypercontraction-induced genetic switch that potentiates vascular remodeling, and cerebral vasospasm, in bTBI patients.
Role of leadership on organizational learning in private universities of Bangladesh

The study investigates the influence of leadership styles, i.e. transactional and transformational on promoting organizational learning in some selected private universities in Chittagong, Bangladesh. The study used a quantitative research design. Data have been collected from three private universities of Chittagong through a survey instrument. The study analyzed in total 147 matched completed questionnaires. The findings of the study revealed that contingent reward of transactional leadership and idealized influence and individualized consideration of transformational leadership played significant and positive influence on enhancing organizational learning. Although, findings of this research did not report any significant impact of management by exception-active and management by exception-passive as constructs of transactional leadership as well as inspirational motivation and intellectual stimulation as dimensions of transformational leadership style on organizational learning. The study extends present literature in the field by relating leadership styles and organizational learning focusing on emerging economies particularly in the context of Bangladesh.
Antimicrobial activity of Aspilia latissima (Asteraceae)

Abstract We evaluated the antimicrobial activity of Aspilia latissima - an abundant plant from the Brazilian Pantanal region - against Candida albicans, Candida parapsilosis, Candida krusei, Candida tropicalis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Enterococcus faecalis, Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. The crude extracts and fractions showed activity in all tested microorganisms. The chloroform fraction of the leaves and roots showed the most antimicrobial activity against S. aureus, with an MIC of 500 μg/mL. This fraction was submitted to bioautographic assays to characterize the activity of the compounds. Two bands from the leaves (L-A and L-B) and three bands from the roots (R-C, R-D and R-E) were bioactive. Within the root-derived bands, the terpene derivatives stigmasterol, kaurenoic acid and kaura-9(11), 16-dien-18-oic acid were identified. Antibiotic activity of A. latissima is reported for the first time.