Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Train–Network Interactions and Stability Evaluation in High-Speed Railways—Part II: Influential Factors and Verifications

Low-frequency oscillation (LFO), harmonic resonance, and harmonic instability phenomena in high-speed railways (HSRs) result from the interactions between multiple electric trains and the traction network. A train–network interaction system and a unified impedance-based model are therefore presented to reveal the mechanism of these three phenomena in Part I of the two-part paper. Part II of the paper presents and compares the detailed simulation and experiment results to investigate the available possible influential factors, verifications, and discussions of the three phenomena. The influential factors include the following: 1) four-quadrant converter (4QC) parameters involving the control parameters of the current controller (CC), the voltage controller (VC), and the phase-locked loop (PLL); 2) network parameters involving the utility power system, traction transformer, primary/secondary supply lines, catenary lines, and autotransformers (ATs); and 3) different numbers and positions of trains and railway lines will also be considered and discussed. In order to validate the theoretical results, the time-domain simulation and experiment system have been conducted. Finally, the differences and the relations among the three phenomena are discussed.
Development of an Immunochromatographic Strip Test for the Rapid Detection of Alternariol Monomethyl Ether in Fruit

A rapid, portable, and semi-quantitative immunochromatographic strip was developed for rapid and visual detection of alternariol monomethyl ether (AME). For this purpose, the anti-AME monoclonal antibody (mAb) was prepared and identified. AME coupled to bovine serum albumin (BSA) via methyl 4-bromobutanoate was prepared as immunogen. The recoveries of AME in spiked cherry and orange fruits determined by competitive ELISA were 86.1% and 80.7%, respectively. A colloidal gold nanoparticle (CGN) and CGNs-mAb conjugate were synthesized, and on this basis, a competitive colloidal gold immunochromatographic strip was developed and applied to the detection of AME toxin in fruit samples. The intensity of red density of the test line (T line) is inversely proportional to AME concentration in the range 0.1–10 ng/mL. The visual limit of detection (LOD) of AME was found to be about 10 ng/mL. The semi-quantitative detection can be completed in 10 min. Moreover, the immunochromatographic strip has lower cross-reactivity with AME analogues, and it has a good stability performance (following 3 months of storage). Hence, the colloidal gold immunochromatographic strip could be used as a semi-quantitative tool for the on-site, rapid, and visual detection of AME in fruit.
Does more education mean less disability in people with dementia? A large cross-sectional study in Taiwan

Background WHO Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 (WHODAS 2.0) is a feasible tool for assessing functional disability and analysing the risk of institutionalisation among elderly patients with dementia. However, the data for the effect of education on disability status in patients with dementia is lacking. The aim of this large-scale, population-based study was to analyse the effect of education on the disability status of elderly Taiwanese patients with dementia by using WHODAS 2.0. Methods From the Taiwan Data Bank of Persons with Disability, we enrolled 7698 disabled elderly (older than 65 years) patients diagnosed with dementia between July 2012 and January 2014. According to their education status, we categorised these patients with and without formal education (3849 patients each). We controlled for the demographic variables through propensity score matching. The standardised scores of these patients in the six domains of WHODAS 2.0 were evaluated by certified interviewers. Student’s t-test was used for comparing the WHODAS 2.0 scores of patients with dementia in the two aforementioned groups. Poisson regression was applied for analysing the association among all the investigated variables. Results Patients with formal education had low disability status in the domains of getting along and social participation than did patients without formal education. Poisson regression revealed that standardised scores in all domains of WHODAS 2.0—except self-care—were associated with education status. Conclusions This study revealed lower disability status in the WHODAS 2.0 domains of getting along and social participation for patients with dementia with formal education compared with those without formal education. For patients with disability and dementia without formal education, community intervention of social participation should be implemented to maintain better social interaction ability.
Facial Expression Recognition Using Weighted Mixture Deep Neural Network Based on Double-Channel Facial Images

Facial expression recognition (FER) is a significant task for the machines to understand the emotional changes in human beings. However, accurate hand-crafted features that are highly related to changes in expression are difficult to extract because of the influences of individual difference and variations in emotional intensity. Therefore, features that can accurately describe the changes in facial expressions are urgently required. Method: A weighted mixture deep neural network (WMDNN) is proposed to automatically extract the features that are effective for FER tasks. Several pre-processing approaches, such as face detection, rotation rectification, and data augmentation, are implemented to restrict the regions for FER. Two channels of facial images, including facial grayscale images and their corresponding local binary pattern (LBP) facial images, are processed by WMDNN. Expression-related features of facial grayscale images are extracted by fine-tuning a partial VGG16 network, the parameters of which are initialized using VGG16 model trained on ImageNet database. Features of LBP facial images are extracted by a shallow convolutional neural network (CNN) built based on DeepID. The outputs of both channels are fused in a weighted manner. The result of final recognition is calculated using softmax classification. Results: Experimental results indicate that the proposed algorithm can recognize six basic facial expressions (happiness, sadness, anger, disgust, fear, and surprise) with high accuracy. The average recognition accuracies for benchmarking data sets “CK+,” “JAFFE,” and “Oulu-CASIA” are 0.970, 0.922, and 0.923, respectively. Conclusions: The proposed FER method outperforms the state-of-the-art FER methods based on the hand-crafted features or deep networks using one channel. Compared with the deep networks that use multiple channels, our proposed network can achieve comparable performance with easier procedures. Fine-tuning is effective to FER tasks with a well pre-trained model if sufficient samples cannot be collected.
Improved forward wave propagation and adjoint-based sensitivity kernel calculations using a numerically stable finite-element PML

In recent years, the application of time-domain adjoint methods to improve large, complex underground tomographic models at the regional scale has led to new challenges for the numerical simulation of forward or adjoint elastic wave propagation problems. An important challenge is to design an efficient infinite-domain truncation method suitable for accurately truncating an infinite domain governed by the second-order elastic wave equation written in displacement and computed based on a finite-element (FE) method. In this paper, we make several steps towards this goal. First, we make the 2-D convolution formulation of the complex-frequency-shifted unsplit-field perfectly matched layer (CFS-UPML) derived in previous work more flexible by providing a new treatment to analytically remove singular parameters in the formulation. We also extend this new formulation to 3-D. Furthermore, we derive the auxiliary differential equation (ADE) form of CFS-UPML, which allows for extension to higher order time schemes and is easier to implement. Secondly, we rigorously derive the CFS-UPML formulation for time-domain adjoint elastic wave problems, which to our knowledge has never been done before. Thirdly, in the case of classical low-order FE methods, we show numerically that we achieve long-time stability for both forward and adjoint problems both for the convolution and the ADE formulations. In the case of higher order Legendre spectral-element methods, we show that weak numerical instabilities can appear in both formulations, in particular if very small mesh elements are present inside the absorbing layer, but we explain how these instabilities can be delayed as much as needed by using a stretching factor to reach numerical stability in practice for applications. Fourthly, in the case of adjoint problems with perfectly matched absorbing layers we introduce a computationally efficient boundary storage strategy by saving information along the interface between the CFS-UPML and the main domain only, thus avoiding the need to solve a backward wave propagation problem inside the CFS-UPML, which is known to be highly ill-posed. Finally, by providing several examples we show numerically that our formulation is efficient at absorbing acoustic waves for normal to near-grazing incident body waves as well as surface waves.
The human right to communicate: A survey of available services in Saudi Arabia

Abstract Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states: “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression. ” However, people with communication disabilities may be more likely to lose the right to express their opinions as a consequence of their atypical communication methods; hence they may be denied a basic human right. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the availability of speech-language pathology services in Saudi Arabia’s public-health sector. The data were collected using a telephone survey. The results found a shortage of and an uneven distribution of health-based speech-language pathology services. Of the 196 major governmental hospitals surveyed, 29 were identified as having speech-language pathology services, which were distributed over 7 of Saudi Arabia’s 13 Administrative Regions. Obtaining accurate information regarding the availability of these services is an important first step in informing policy development and aiding health-service planners to train more professional staff, expand services methodically and use existing resources effectively to meet the rights of people with communication disabilities.
Comparison of Random Forest, k-Nearest Neighbor, and Support Vector Machine Classifiers for Land Cover Classification Using Sentinel-2 Imagery

In previous classification studies, three non-parametric classifiers, Random Forest (RF), k-Nearest Neighbor (kNN), and Support Vector Machine (SVM), were reported as the foremost classifiers at producing high accuracies. However, only a few studies have compared the performances of these classifiers with different training sample sizes for the same remote sensing images, particularly the Sentinel-2 Multispectral Imager (MSI). In this study, we examined and compared the performances of the RF, kNN, and SVM classifiers for land use/cover classification using Sentinel-2 image data. An area of 30 × 30 km2 within the Red River Delta of Vietnam with six land use/cover types was classified using 14 different training sample sizes, including balanced and imbalanced, from 50 to over 1250 pixels/class. All classification results showed a high overall accuracy (OA) ranging from 90% to 95%. Among the three classifiers and 14 sub-datasets, SVM produced the highest OA with the least sensitivity to the training sample sizes, followed consecutively by RF and kNN. In relation to the sample size, all three classifiers showed a similar and high OA (over 93.85%) when the training sample size was large enough, i.e., greater than 750 pixels/class or representing an area of approximately 0.25% of the total study area. The high accuracy was achieved with both imbalanced and balanced datasets.
Clear cell carcinomas of the ovary and kidney: clarity through genomics

Clear cell ovarian carcinoma (CCOC) and clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) both feature clear cytoplasm, owing to the accumulation of cytoplasmic glycogen. Genomic studies have demonstrated several mutational similarities between these two diseases, including frequent alterations in the chromatin remodelling SWI–SNF and cellular proliferation phosphoinositide 3‐kinase–mammalian target of rapamycin pathways, as well as a shared hypoxia‐like mRNA expression signature. Although many targeted treatment options have been approved for advanced‐stage ccRCC, CCOC patients are still treated with conventional platinum and taxane chemotherapy, to which they are resistant. To determine the extent of similarity between these malignancies, we performed unsupervised clustering of mRNA expression data from these cancers. This review highlights the similarities and differences between these two clear cell carcinomas to facilitate knowledge translation within future research efforts. Copyright © 2018 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Study of viscoelastic properties of nanocomposites of SiO2–acrylonitrile–butadiene–styrene

Nanocomposites of acrylonitrile–butadiene–styrene (ABS) and nanosilica with different nanoparticle sizes and various loadings are prepared. Rheological experiments such as frequency sweep, strain sweep, and rotational test are performed to investigate the influence of nanoparticle loading and size on the viscoelastic properties of the nanocomposites. The results show that nanocomposites with higher filler loading and smaller particle size have both higher storage and loss moduli. Moreover, the results indicate that the storage modulus is more sensitive than loss modulus to filler loading and nanoparticle size. The smaller nanoparticles and higher filler loadings lead to the enhancement of nanoparticle surface area so that the viscoelastic properties are intensified through increase of polymer chain adsorption on nanoparticle, and creation of a network structure in the nanocomposites. The network structure causes changes to the rheological behavior of the nanocomposite such as solid-like behavior in the low-frequency region and reduction of the Newtonian region. The scanning electron microscopy micrographs revealed that the particle aggregates increase with particle size reduction and increasing nanoparticle content. We also used a nonlinear optimization to obtain the parameters of a multimode Maxwell model for low nanofiller content ABS/SiO2 nanocomposites and found the relaxation times of the polymer chains increased with increasing nanoparticle content. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013
Patient No-Show Predictive Model Development using Multiple Data Sources for an Effective Overbooking Approach

Summary Background: Patient no-shows in outpatient delivery systems remain problematic. The negative impacts include underutilized medical resources, increased healthcare costs, decreased access to care, and reduced clinic efficiency and provider productivity. Objective: To develop an evidence-based predictive model for patient no-shows, and thus improve overbooking approaches in outpatient settings to reduce the negative impact of no-shows. Methods: Ten years of retrospective data were extracted from a scheduling system and an electronic health record system from a single general pediatrics clinic, consisting of 7,988 distinct patients and 104,799 visits along with variables regarding appointment characteristics, patient demographics, and insurance information. Descriptive statistics were used to explore the impact of variables on show or no-show status. Logistic regression was used to develop a no-show predictive model, which was then used to construct an algorithm to determine the no-show threshold that calculates a predicted show/no-show status. This approach aims to overbook an appointment where a scheduled patient is predicted to be a no-show. The approach was compared with two commonly-used overbooking approaches to demonstrate the effectiveness in terms of patient wait time, physician idle time, overtime and total cost. Results: From the training dataset, the optimal error rate is 10.6% with a no-show threshold being 0.74. This threshold successfully predicts the validation dataset with an error rate of 13.9%. The proposed overbooking approach demonstrated a significant reduction of at least 6% on patient waiting, 27% on overtime, and 3% on total costs compared to other common flat-overbooking methods. Conclusions: This paper demonstrates an alternative way to accommodate overbooking, accounting for the prediction of an individual patient’s show/no-show status. The predictive no-show model leads to a dynamic overbooking policy that could improve patient waiting, overtime, and total costs in a clinic day while maintaining a full scheduling capacity. Citation: Huang Y, Hanauer D.A. Patient no-show predictive model development using multiple data sources for an effective overbooking approach. Appl Clin Inf 2014; 5: 836–860 http://dx.doi. org/10.4338/ACI-2014-04-RA-0026
Age and the experience of strong self-conscious emotion

ABSTRACT Objectives: It remains unclear whether there are age-related changes in the experience of strong self-conscious emotion, such as shame, guilt, pride and embarrassment. Because shame and guilt figure prominently in the aetiology of depressive symptoms and other mental health problems, a better understanding of how age affects the strong experience of these two negative self-conscious emotions is of particular importance. Methods: Thirty younger, 30 middle-aged and 30 older adults were compared on standardised cognitive assessments, in addition to an interview-based measure that assessed whether there are age differences in the likelihood of strongly experiencing four different types of self-conscious emotion within the past five years (shame, guilt, embarrassment and pride). Results: The three groups did not differ in their likelihood of reporting an event that strongly elicited the positive self-conscious emotion of pride. However, older adults were more likely to report sources of pride that were other (as opposed to self) focused. Older adults were also less likely to report experiencing events that elicited all three negative self-conscious emotions, in particular, shame. Conclusions: Strong negative self-conscious emotion, and in particular shame, appears to be experienced less by older than younger adults.
Histopathologic Alterations Associated with Global Gene Expression Due to Chronic Dietary TCDD Exposure in Juvenile Zebrafish

The goal of this project was to investigate the effects and possible developmental disease implication of chronic dietary TCDD exposure on global gene expression anchored to histopathologic analysis in juvenile zebrafish by functional genomic, histopathologic and analytic chemistry methods. Specifically, juvenile zebrafish were fed Biodiet starter with TCDD added at 0, 0.1, 1, 10 and 100 ppb, and fish were sampled following 0, 7, 14, 28 and 42 d after initiation of the exposure. TCDD accumulated in a dose- and time-dependent manner and 100 ppb TCDD caused TCDD accumulation in female (15.49 ppb) and male (18.04 ppb) fish at 28 d post exposure. Dietary TCDD caused multiple lesions in liver, kidney, intestine and ovary of zebrafish and functional dysregulation such as depletion of glycogen in liver, retrobulbar edema, degeneration of nasal neurosensory epithelium, underdevelopment of intestine, and diminution in the fraction of ovarian follicles containing vitellogenic oocytes. Importantly, lesions in nasal epithelium and evidence of endocrine disruption based on alternatively spliced vasa transcripts are two novel and significant results of this study. Microarray gene expression analysis comparing vehicle control to dietary TCDD revealed dysregulated genes involved in pathways associated with cardiac necrosis/cell death, cardiac fibrosis, renal necrosis/cell death and liver necrosis/cell death. These baseline toxicological effects provide evidence for the potential mechanisms of developmental dysfunctions induced by TCDD and vasa as a biomarker for ovarian developmental disruption.
Increased Lymphatic Vessels in Patients with Encapsulating Peritoneal Sclerosis

♦ Background: The angiogenic response is partly involved in the progression of encapsulating peritoneal sclerosis (EPS). However, the details of the angiogenic response, especially for lymphatic vessels in patients with EPS, remain unclear. In addition, because of technical limitations, morphology studies reported to date have examined only the parietal peritoneum. The morphologies of parietal and visceral lymphatic vessels in patients with EPS both need to be analyzed. ♦ Methods: We examined peritoneal samples from 18 patients with EPS who underwent enterolysis of the visceral peritoneum and compared them with samples from 17 autopsy cases (controls). To examine the angiogenic response, we performed immunohistochemistry for the endothelial markers CD34 (blood vessels) and podoplanin (lymphatic vessels) and for the cell proliferation marker Ki-67. Immunogold electron microscopy analysis for podoplanin was also performed. In 7 of 18 cases, we compared differences in the angiogenic response of the parietal and visceral peritoneal membranes. ♦ Results: Angiogenic responses were more frequent in the compact zone than in regenerated layers. The number of capillaries positive for anti-CD34 and anti-podoplanin monoclonal antibodies per unit area of visceral peritoneal tissue was, respectively, 41.1 ± 29.3/mm2 in EPS patients and 2.7 ± 4.4/mm2 in controls (p ≤ 0.01) and 48.1 ± 43.9/mm2 in EPS patients and 4.1 ± 5.4/mm2 in controls (p ≤ 0.01). The percentage of capillaries positive for anti-Ki-67, CD34, and podoplanin was 4.6% in EPS patients (p ≤ 0.01) and 0.8% in controls (p = 0.09). The immunogold electron microscopy analysis revealed that podoplanin was localized to endothelial cells with anchoring filaments, a specific feature of lymphatic vessels. Furthermore, compared with parietal peritoneal membrane, visceral peritoneal membrane had a more prominent podoplanin-positive capillary profile, but not a prominent CD34-positive capillary profile. In addition, fibroblast-like cells double-positive for podoplanin and smooth muscle actin were markedly increased in the degenerated layer, as previously reported. ♦ Conclusions: Our study demonstrated that lymphatic vessels are increased in the visceral peritoneum of patients with EPS.