Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Hydrodynamic limit of granular gases to pressureless Euler in dimension 1

We investigate the behavior of granular gases in the limit of small Knudsen number, that is very frequent collisions. We deal with the strongly inelastic case, in one dimension of space and velocity. We are able to prove the convergence toward the pressureless Euler system. The proof relies on dispersive relations at the kinetic level, which leads to the so-called Oleinik property at the limit.
Impacts of the 2017 flash drought in the US Northern plains informed by satellite-based evapotranspiration and solar-induced fluorescence

Drought is increasing in frequency and severity, exacerbating food and water security risks in an era of continued global warming and human population growth. Here, we analyzed a severe summer drought affecting the US Northern Plains region in 2017. We examined the spatial pattern and seasonal progression of vegetation productivity and water use in the region using satellite-based estimates of field-scale (30 m) cropland evapotranspiration (ET), county level annual crop production statistics, and GOME-2 satellite observations of solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF). The cropland ET record shows strong potential to track seasonal cropland water demands spatially, with strong correspondence to regional climate variables in the Northern Plains. The GOME-2 SIF record shows significant but limited correlations with finer scale climate variability due to the coarse sensor footprint, but captured an anomalous regional productivity decline coincident with drought related decreases in crop production and ET. The drought contributed to an overall 25% reduction in cropland ET, 6% decrease in crop production, and 11% reduction in SIF productivity over the region from April to September in 2017 relative to the longer (2008–2017) satellite record. More severely impacted agricultural areas indicated by the US Drought Monitor exceptional drought (D4) category represented 11% of the region and showed much larger anomalous ET (20%–81%) and productivity (11%–73%) declines. The regional pattern of drought impacts indicated more severe productivity and ET reductions in the north central and southern counties with extensive agriculture, and less impact in the western counties of the Northern Plains. This study provides a multiscale assessment of drought related impacts on regional productivity and ET over a crop intensive region, emphasizing the use of global satellite observations capable of informing regional to global scale water and food security assessments.
Effect of Municipal Solid Waste Compost on Soil Chemical Properties and Growth Performance of Cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) Seedlings at the Nursery in Ghana

Aims: Availability of nutrients-rich topsoil for nursing cocoa seedlings is becoming limited and poor growth of cocoa seedlings in the nurseries has been ascribed to the use of unsuitable potting media. Experiments were conducted to investigate the suitability of compost in improving soil chemical properties and boost the growth of cocoa seedlings at the nursery. Study Design: The experiment was laid out in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with four replications. Place and Duration of Study: The experiment was carried out at the main nursery of Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana, New Tafo-Akim, between September, 2014 and June 2015. Methodology: Polybags were filled with soil obtained from an old cocoa plot (K6O2) at Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana. The soil has been classified as Rhodic-Lixic Ferrasol. Three soil: compost mixtures treatments, that is, 90:10, 80:20 and 70:30% w/w were tested. A Standard foliar fertilizer and unamended soil were included as treated and untreated controls. Seedlings were raised from mixed hybrid cocoa and assessed at bi-monthly intervals for six months for growth. Pre and post treatments soil analyses were carried out using standard laboratory procedures. Results: Initial soil analyses showed that OC (1.18%), Ca (5.60 cmol kg-1), P (14.23 mg kg-1) and pH (5.63) were below the critical values required for good cocoa growth. The 70:30 soil: compost treatment produced significantly (P = .05) tallest plant (41.9 cm) with the unamended control the shortest (30.7 cm) at the end of the study. Residual pH (6.98), OC (2.30%), P (14.23 mg kg-1) and Ca (13.02 cmol kg-1) were significantly (P = .05) higher under the same treatment compared to the unamended control; pH (5.36), OC (1.04%), P (11.65 mg kg-1) and Ca (5.60 cmol kg-1). Conclusion: Less fertile soils could be improved with the addition of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) compost for raising good quality cocoa seedlings at the nursery in Ghana.
Understanding the Use and Perceived Impact of a Medical Podcast: Qualitative Study

Background Although podcasts are increasingly being produced for medical education, their use and perceived impact in informal educational settings are understudied. Objective This study aimed to explore how and why physicians and medical learners listen to The Rounds Table (TRT), a medical podcast, as well as to determine the podcast’s perceived impact on learning and practice. Methods Web-based podcast analytics were used to collect TRT usage statistics. A total of 17 medical TRT listeners were then identified and interviewed through purposive and convenience sampling, using a semistructured guide and a thematic analysis, until theoretical sufficiency was achieved. Results The following four themes related to podcast listenership were identified: (1) participants thought that TRT increased efficiency, allowing them to multitask, predominantly using mobile listening platforms; (2) participants listened to the podcast for both education and entertainment, or “edutainment”; (3) participants thought that the podcast helped them keep up to date with medical literature; and (4) participants considered TRT to have an indirect effect on learning and clinical practice by increasing overall knowledge. Conclusions Our results highlight how a medical podcast, designed for continuing professional development, is often used informally to promote learning. These findings enhance our understanding of how and why listeners engage with a medical podcast, which may be used to inform the development and evaluation of other podcasts.
Statistical Distribution Analysis of Sender-Jump Receiver-Wait Rendezvous in Cognitive Radio

Cognitive radio technology has shown tremendous potential through its spectrum access mechanism for reducing spectrum paucity. With the vacant spectrum, two nodes require consensus for common channel in an apposite time. However, in a non-centralized distributed communication system, the task of attaining one common channel for two nodes is not tractable. In this letter, we attend to a well-known technique for rendezvous in such a cognitive radio network and analytically characterize the performance. The statistical distribution of rendezvous time to obtain common channel is analyzed and a closed form expression is derived. Using the distribution, we further analyze the mean and maximum rendezvous times and moreover propose an improvement in the considered technique. The theoretical analyses are verified using Monte–Carlo simulations and our results show a very precise match between the two.
Evaluation of sulfur source and dose on the nutritional state and production of piatã forage

Sulfur deficiency in soils has become a worldwide concern for agricultural production. This study aimed to evaluate the concequence of variable sulfur source and dosing on the nutritional status and production of Piatã forage in a dystrophic Ultisol. The experiment was arranged in a completely randomized block design with four replications. The 4 x 5 factorial treatments consisted of four sulfur sources (elemental sulfur pastilles [ESPA], gypsum [GY], gypsite [GI], and elemental sulfur powder [ESPO]) and five sulfur doses (0, 50, 100, 150. and 200 mg kg-1). The sulfur applications resulted in similar maximum shoot dry mass (SDM) production (16.66 to 17.69 g pot-1) with all sources. However, Piatã grass achieved maximum production in the treatments with 112 mg kg-1 of GI, 118 mg kg-1 of GY and ESPA, and 146 mg kg-1 of ESPO. The number of tillers, the leaf:stem ratio, and SPAD increased with increasing sulfur dose. The greatest increments of root dry mass (RDM) and of the tiller number were obtained with the ESPO source. Macronutrient concentrations in shoot dry mass tissue were in the order K > N > Ca > P > S > Mg. Low sulfur supply resulted in decreased Piatã grass growth with all sulfur sources tested. Differential responses were found with applications of different sulfur sources for SDM, RDM, and tillers number. The sources did not alter the leaf:stem ratio or SPAD index.
Audit Pricing Determinants in the Jordanian Banking Sector: Transaction Cost Perspective

The study aimed to investigate the relationship between TC and audit pricing after controlling other determinants. It redounds on how the control variables (firm size, firm financial performance, firm capital structure, and firm complexity) will impact audit pricing. Moreover, it aimed to understand the need to reduce the TC and how this will impact audit pricing. In addition to content analysis, the study relied on a quantitative approach to examine the impact of TC on audit pricing. This approach includes numeric data collection and the research’s tendency to use mathematical models as the methodology of data analysis for the period between 2007and 2016. The study revealed that interest expenses and other expenses have reflected a statistically significant impact on audit pricing. The aforementioned expenses are expected to have a high impact on audit pricing as these require extra effort from the auditor, which leads the latter to imposing high audit pricing. The study indicated that bank size is the main determinant of audit pricing and that it has a statistically positive significant impact on audit pricing, In terms of the effect of financial performance on both audit pricing and TC, the study indicated that financial performance affect both audit pricing and TC negatively. Moreover, the study revealed that the negative significance of receivables can be attributed to the same reason as that of capital structure as a strong control over receivables showed the importance of internal control that could decrease audit pricing, Finally, the study concluded that the variables found to highly affect audit pricing-interest expense as a direct TC and other expenses as indirect TC-should be added to the audit pricing model. Besides, firm size, capital structure and complexity could be taken in consideration as control variables for examining both TC and audit pricing.
Sparse optimization models with robust sketching and applications

Author(s): Pham, Vu | Advisor(s): El Ghaoui, Laurent | Abstract: Sparse machine learning has recently emerged as powerful tool to obtain models of high-dimensional data with high degree of interpretability, at low computational cost. The approach has been successfully used in many areas, such as signal and image processing. In sparse learning classification, for example, the prediction accuracy or some other classical measure of performance is not the sole concern: we also wish to be able to better understand which few features are relevant as markers for classification. Furthermore, many of sparse learning tasks in practice, including cross-validation, parameter search, or leave-one-out analysis, involve multiple instances of similar problems, each instance sharing a large part of learning data with the others. In this thesis, we introduce a robust framework for solving these multiple sparse regressions in the form of square-root LASSO problems, based on a sketch of the learning data that uses low-rank approximations. Our approach allows a dramatic reduction in computational effort, while not sacrificing—sometimes even improving—the statistical performance.We present our technique by first studying sparse optimization with applications in different domain of interests, from text analytics to system design, and then developing theories for robust solutions for sparse regression in multi-instance setting. We also provide comparisons with other heuristics to obtain sparse models in various applications. In more detail, our central contributions from this thesis include:- Identifying key tasks in domains of interests under real-world setting,- Suggesting models that are suitable for these tasks along the axes of computational complexity and model understandability,- Exploiting problem structures when working with multiple instances to robustly improve computation while maintaining high learning performance, and- Proposing applications of our robust solutions in high-dimensional setting.
A Meta-Assessment of an Institution's Administrative Assessment Processes

Many institutions establish assessment teams to assist faculty in developing their knowledge of and confidence in conducting academic program assessment, and some extend these teams to address administrative and student affairs assessment as well. These teams may function as more formal distributed leadership models, as described by Spillane (2006), or they may be less formal groups with little or no leadership roles. Regardless of their level of formality, these teams are often used to implement other resources such as rubrics, peer review, and feedback, but the effectiveness of these resources and processes is not commonly reviewed through an intentionally designed programmatic assessment process. Programmatic assessment allows institutions to look at the impact of multiple resources and processes in place to determine which most positively impact assessment practices at institutions of higher education. This study implemented a programmatic assessment to help one large, public southeastern institution answer questions about the effectiveness of the processes and resources in place in support of administrative and student affairs assessment. Determining the most appropriate processes and resources is especially important in case of institutional consolidation or merger. Study findings corroborate the positive effects of peer review, rubrics, and feedback and provide baseline data for the institution to begin a decision making process and determine, based on evidence collected, which resources and processes should be continued or modified as it proceeds with a consolidation. INDEX WORDS: Distributed leadership, Programmatic assessment, Student affairs assessment, Institutional consolidation, Institutional merger, Assessment team A META-ASSESSMENT OF AN INSTITUTION’S ADMINISTRATIVE ASSESSMENT PROCESSES by
Texture-Based Metallurgical Phase Identification in Structural Steels: A Supervised Machine Learning Approach

Automatic identification of metallurgical phases based on thresholding methods in microstructural images may not be possible when the pixel intensities associated with the metallurgical phases overlap and, hence, are indistinguishable. To circumvent this problem, additional visual information about the metallurgical phases, referred to as textural features, are considered in this study. Mathematically, textural features are the second order statistics of an image domain and can be distinct for each metallurgical phase. Textural features are evaluated from the gray level co-occurrence matrix (GLCM) of each metallurgical phase (ferrite, pearlite, and martensite) present in heat-treated ASTM A36 steels in this study. The dataset of textural features and pixel intensities generated for the metallurgical phases is used to train supervised machine learning classifiers, which are subsequently employed to predict the metallurgical phases in the microstructure. Naïve Bayes (NB), k-nearest neighbor (K-NN), linear discriminant analysis (LDA), and decision tree (DT) classifiers are the four classifiers employed in this study. The performances of all four classifiers were assessed prior to their deployment, and the classification accuracy was found to be >97%. The proposed technique has two unique advantages: (1) unlike pixel intensity-based methods, the proposed method does not misclassify the grain boundaries as a metallurgical phase, and (2) the proposed method does not require the end-user to input the number of phases present in the microstructure.
The aerodynamic development of the new Porsche Cayenne

With significantly enhanced performance, the third generation of the Porsche Cayenne is even more closely oriented towards the principles of sports cars. In addition to improving the driving-dynamic characteristics, the aim of the development was to lower the drag as a contribution towards the reduction of fuel consumption and emissions. Increasing performance and a simultaneous reduction of drag are conflicting objectives, which led to a number of aerodynamic challenges during the development of the new Cayenne. In addition to detailed aerodynamic optimisations, the solution for the new Cayenne consisted of an extended adaptive aerodynamic concept, which enables a compromise between fuel consumption, performance, and comfort depending on the driving condition. The first part of the concept comprises an extended air flap system that, for the first time, enables complete closing of all cooling air inlets in the front end. The second part of the concept is reserved for the top-of-the-range V8 Turbo model and consists of a multifunctional deployable roof spoiler that adapts to the aerodynamic characteristics of the relevant driving condition and features an air-brake function as a highlight.
Congenital Ptosis Correction with an Expanded Polytetrafluoroethylene (GORE-TEX) sling: Comparative Study Between Crawford and Fox Techniques

Background: Frontalis suspension is the procedure of choice for surgical management of congenital ptosis associated with poor elevator function. Objective: The aim of the work was to compare the results of two different frontalis suspension surgery techniques, i.e., the Crawford and Fox techniques, using GORE-TEX for the correction of congenital ptosis with poor levator function. Patients and Methods: fifty eyelids of 30 patients with severe ptosis and poor levator function (≤ 4 mm) were randomly divided into two groups: Group A included 26 eyelids of 16 patients corrected with the Crawford technique, and Group B included 24 eyelids of 14 patients corrected with the Fox technique. The results were evaluated and statistically compared. Results: at the end of the follow-up period (18 months postoperatively), most of the patients in both groups (80.8% of group A, 79.2% of group B) achieved good to excellent cosmetic results. The intergroup difference was not statistically significant (P < 0.05). Regarding contour, Group A was 96.2 %, and Group B was 95.8 %. Regarding symmetry, Group A was 88.5%, and Group B was 79.2%. Conclusion: considering the use of the same sling material (GORE-TEX suture), the Crawford and Fox techniques are both safe and effective with comparable results in the correction of severe ptosis with poor levator function.
Investigational Monoclonal Antibodies in the Treatment of Multiple Myeloma: A Systematic Review of Agents under Clinical Development

Background: Immunotherapy for multiple myeloma (MM) has been the focus in recent years due to its myeloma-specific immune responses. We reviewed the literature on non-Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) to highlight future perspectives. We searched PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane Library and ClinicalTrials.gov to include phase I/II clinical trials. Data from 39 studies (1906 patients) were included. Of all the agents, Isatuximab (Isa, anti-CD38) and F50067 (anti-CXCR4) were the only mAbs to produce encouraging results as monotherapy with overall response rates (ORRs) of 66.7% and 32% respectively. Isa showed activity when used in combination with lenalidomide (Len) and dexamethasone (Dex), producing a clinical benefit rate (CBR) of 83%. Additionally, Isa used in combination with pomalidomide (Pom) and Dex resulted in a CBR of 73%. Indatuximab Ravtansine (anti-CD138 antibody-drug conjugate) produced an ORR of 78% and 79% when used in combination with Len-Dex and Pom-Dex, respectively. Conclusions: Combination therapy using mAbs such as indatuximab, pembrolizumab, lorvotuzumab, siltuximab or dacetuzumab with chemotherapy agents produced better outcomes as compared to monotherapies. Further clinical trials investigating mAbs targeting CD38 used in combination therapy are warranted.
Deep Competitiveness

and significant policy initiatives, whereas other similarly situated states did not. The answer was in some ways profoundly simple: States in which there was a broad and highly developed consensus about the need to act did more, and did it better, than states where consensus was less broad and less developed. In short, a widely shared understanding of the need to act, coupled with the right analysis of the problem, matters. That lesson is relevant today at the national level. Even with the numerous reports, books, editorials, conferences, and hearings highlighting the “gathering storm” of global competitiveness, many leaders are seemingly still not completely convinced. Indeed, the prevailing mood in many quarters and among much of the economic policy punditry is one of complacency. For these skeptics, the case simply has not been made that the United States faces a significant competitiveness challenge. For example, in reference to reports citing a shortage of U.S. graduates in sciR O B E R T D. AT K I N S O N
Synergistic protection of matrine and lycopene against lipopolysaccharide-induced acute lung injury in mice

Acute lung injury (ALI) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality globally, and is characterized by widespread inflammation in the lungs. Increased production of reactive oxygen species is hypothesized to be associated with ALI. Matrine and lycopene are active products present in traditional Chinese medicine. Matrine is an effective inhibitor of inflammation, whereas lycopene decreases lipid peroxidation. Therefore, it was hypothesized that combinatorial treatment with matrine and lycopene may provide synergistic protection against ALI. In the present study, mice were treated with dexamethasone (DEX; 5 mg/kg), matrine (25 mg/kg), lycopene (100 mg/kg), and matrine (25 mg/kg) + lycopene (100 mg/kg) for 7 days prior to injury induction using lipopolysaccharide (LPS; 5 mg/kg) for 6 h. Lung tissues were collected following the sacrifice of the mice and hematoxylin and eosin staining was used for histological analysis. Malondialdehyde (MDA), glutathione (GSH) and myeloperoxidas (MPO) levels were examined by respective kits. The expressions of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) were evaluated by ELISA. The expressions of IκBα and NF-κB p65 were examined by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction, western blotting and immunohistochemistry. The results indicated that the combined treatment exhibited a similar effect to DEX, both of which attenuated lung structural injuries, downregulated the expressions of IL-6, TNF-α, MPO and MDA, and upregulated that of GSH. Furthermore, the combined treatment and DEX inhibited NF-κB p65 activation. The present study revealed that combined treatment with matrine and lycopene exhibited protective effects on an LPS-induced mouse model of ALI, suggesting that they may serve as a potential alternative to glucocorticoid therapy for ALI.