Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Inverse Electromagnetic Scattering Problems by a Doubly Periodic Structure

Consider the problem of scattering of electromagnetic waves by a doubly periodic structure. The medium above the structure is assumed to be inhomogeneous characterized completely by an index of refraction. Below the structure is a perfect conductor or an imperfect conductor partially coated with a dielectric. Having established the well-posedness of the direct problem by the variational approach, we prove the uniqueness of the inverse problem, that is, the unique determination of the doubly periodic grating with its physical property and the index of refraction from a knowledge of the scattered near field by a countably infinite number of incident quasi-periodic electromagnetic waves. A key ingredient in our proofs is a novel mixed reciprocity relation derived in this paper.
Evaluation of RNA concentration as an indicator of growth in young-of-the-year winter flounder Pseudopleuronectes americanus and tautog Tautoga onitis

White muscle tissue RNA concentration was evaluated as an indirect measure of fish growth. Young-of-the-year winter flounder Pseudopleuronectes americanus and tautog Tautoga onitis were grown in short-term caging experiments conducted during 1994 and 1995 within 3 geographically distinct estuarine systems in the NE of the USA: the Hammonasset River along the Connecticut coast of Long Island Sound, the Navesink River located in the Hudson-Raritan Bay estu- ary in northern New Jersey, and Great Bay-Little Egg Harbor estuary in southern New Jersey. Fish were caged in each of 5 habitat types including: eelgrass, macroalgae, unvegetated areas adjacent to eelgrass, unvegetated areas adjacent to macroalgae, and tidal marsh creeks. White muscle tissue RNA concentration (µg per mg wet tissue wt) was measured in winter flounder and tautog recovered from the cages and compared to instantaneous growth rate measurements of these same fish. RNA concentration was significantly correlated with growth rate measured as length (r = 0.83) and weight (r = 0.79) in winter flounder and length (r = 0.69) and weight (r = 0.73) in tautog. In most cases, estu- ary- and habitat-specific differences in growth rate, as determined by RNA concentration, were sim- ilar to those determined by measuring instantaneous growth. These results validate the use of RNA concentration as an indirect measure of growth in young-of-the-year winter flounder and tautog.
Homology and volume of hyperbolic $3$-orbifolds, and enumeration of arithmetic groups

— Borel’s theorem that volumes of arithmetic hyperbolic 3orbifolds form a discrete set raises the problem of enumerating those arithmetic hyperbolic 3-orbifolds whose volume is subject to a given upper bound. A key step is bounding the rank of a certain elementary abelian 2-group associated with such an orbifold O. This rank is bounded above by the dimension of H1(O;Z2). Joint work of mine with Marc Culler and others gives good bounxds for the dimension of H1(M ;Z2), where M is a hyperbolic 3-manifold whose volume has a suitable upper bound. I will report on progress on the problem of extending results of this kind to orbifolds. (1) Department of Mathematics, Statistics, and Computer Science (M/C 249), University of Illinois at Chicago, 851 S. Morgan St., Chicago, IL 60607-7045 shalen@math.uic. edu Partially supported by NSF grant DMS-1207720
Auditorium Cave: oldest known cave art in the world

Introduction The Bhimbetka rock art site complex south of Bhopal, central India, is topographically dominated by a series of prominent quartzite towers. Being located on a hilltop, they are visible from a distance of many kilometres. These residual structures range in height to about 23 m. Undercutting through weathering has facilitated the formation of hundreds of shelters, and some of the towers feature horizontal walk-through caves at ground level. Some of these cave systems have three or more entrances. The largest of them is located in Auditorium Rock, the highest point of the range, peaking at 619 m above mean sea level. This rock tower forms the natural focus of the site complex, and it contains the most spacious of the caves and shelters. Auditorium Cave, with its Gothic vaults and soaring arches, has a temple-like ambience. This is attributable to both the sizes and layout of the passages. In plan view, the cave resembles a right-angled cross, the four branches of which are roughly aligned with the cardinal compass points (Figure 1). The ‘stem’ of this cross, the longer passage, points to the east, and it opens to the natural main entrance. Where it meets the much shorter, three other passages, a room of up to 16 m height has been formed. Here, precisely in the natural focus of this layout, is a large boulder resting on the remains of some earlier rock falls. With the cave floor being fairly level, the boulder is clearly visible from all four entrances. It thus resembles a naturally formed altar or pulpit. The boulder’s side facing the cave’s eastern passage bears a flat, near-vertical panel that is positioned square to that passage. That distinctive panel is the most central and the most focal feature of the entire cave. As the cave itself may in turn be considered the central element of the Bhimbetka complex, it would not be surprising if this distinctive spatial and topographical focus might have been experienced even by early people occupying this site. In recognition of the boulder’s centrality, Indian archaeologists have named it the ‘Chief’s Rock’, or ‘King’s Rock’. There is no evidence of ritual use justifying such a name, but I have retained it in recognition of the pronounced spatial arrangement of the site’s features, and the apparently realistic possibility that its early occupants perceived this
Design challenges in cross-national VAAs: the case of the EU Profiler

This paper analyses the design of the EU Profiler, the first truly cross–national VAA. We assess the convergent validity and scaling reliability of the low–dimensional models that are used to represent differences between parties and users. Convergent validity of the party positions in the EU Profiler is moderate to high, but scaling reliability is low for most of the issue dimensions included. We examine whether these problems are related to the EU Profiler's cross–national nature. The EU Profiler integrates the positions of parties from all over Europe into one pan–European model, even though students of European politics emphasise that there are structural differences between party competition in Central and Eastern Europe and Western Europe. We find that the EU Profiler performs better in terms of scaling reliability in Western European party systems than in Central and Eastern European party systems. In addition, there are substantive differences between individual countries.
The influence of a ten week Tai Chi program with seniors

Background: Physical activity can help to restore physical functioning loss due to disuse and chronic illness as well as aging. Objective: There were two main aims in this study. (1) To assess the impact of a brief 10-week Tai Chi program on health-related quality of life, functional mobility, and balance performance; (2) To examine the feasibility of a ten week Tai Chi exercise program in a retirement center. Methods: Fifteen healthy voluntary elder residents (aged 76.8 ± 9.3 years) took place in this study. The participants were tested with the Timed Up-and-Go, One-Leg Stance, Functional Reach as well as self-reported Health Related Quality of Life (EQ-5D). The duration of this Tai Chi program was 10 weeks, with two 1 hour sessions on Monday and Wednesday mornings 9 a.m., resulting in a total of 20 hours of Tai Chi class. Results: As a result of the pre and post-test concerning the Health Related Quality of Life – there was higher amount of self-care, more activities, less pain and less anxiety/depression after the ten week Tai Chi program. Comparing the pre and post-intervention Health Related Quality of Life results, significant improvements were observed for anxiety/depression and the subjective health-related quality of life scale (EQ-VAS) (p < .05). Further analysis showed that the training-induced changes in Timed Up-and-Go as well as One-Leg Stance test following the intervention were significant (p < .05). Conclusions: A 10-week Tai Chi program had beneficial effects on subjective health-related quality of life, functional mobility, and balance performance among the participants of this study.
Broken rice in feeds for laying Japanese quails

This study evaluated the effect, on productive performance and on egg quality, of replacing corn with broken rice in the feed of 64-148 day-old Japanese quails. The experiment was conducted in a randomized complete block design with five treatments consisting of five inclusion levels of broken rice (0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100%) with eight replicates of eight birds each. No significant differences were observed in productive performance variables across treatments (P > 0.05, all). Regarding egg quality, no significant differences were observed in yolk percentage, specific gravity, or Haugh unit across treatments (P > 0.05 for all parameters). However, yolk color index was negatively affected by dietary rice husk levels (Y = 4.080 - 0.0293X, R² = 98.56%; P < 0.05). Thus, corn can be replaced with up to 100% broken rice in diets for laying Japanese quails without losses in productive performance or egg quality, but corn replacement with broken rice affects yolk color.
Mechanism of Cathodic Prevention of Carbon Steel in Concrete

vii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION . 1 1.1 Background . 1 1.2 Objective. 2 1.3 Approach . 3 CHAPTER 2: CORROSION AND ITS CONTROL IN CONCRETE . 4 2.1 Chloride Attack of Reinforced Concrete . 4 2.2 Chloride Threshold Dependency on Polarization Potential . 5 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY . 7 3.1 Test Specimens Preparation . 7 3.2 Polarization Levels . 11 3.3 Wetting Conditions . 11 3.4 Electrical Connections . 12 3.5 Laboratory Environment . 14 3.6 Polarization Measurements . 15 3.7 EIS Tests . 16 3.8 Exposure Termination . 16 3.9 pH Measurements of Concrete Pore Water . 17 3.10 Concrete Chloride Ion Concentration Measurements . 21 CHAPTER 4: EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS AND DISCUSSION . 22 4.1 Activation Sequence . 22 4.2 Nominal Interfacial pH . 24 4.3 Interfacial Chloride Ion Concentration . 29 4.4 Visual Observations of Corrosion Damage . 33 4.5 Summary Remarks on Extrinsic vs Intrinsic Mechanisms . 34 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS . 35
Towards a model of relationship development for hospitality practice

An emphasis on customer loyalty within the service sector has led to the development of the relationship marketing paradigm. Whilst relationships between buyers and sellers are complex, there are multiple models proffered by academics that contribute to an understanding of the determinants of relationship development. This article reviews previous studies explaining how developing customer loyalty was initially linked to customer satisfaction, but is now firmly focussed on developing relationships with customers. Through an examination of a series of relationship development models, the article identifies the antecedents of relationship development and discusses each in terms of its suitability for hospitality provision. It has been found that the Key Mediating Variable (KMV) model is the most appropriate model for a hospitality context, subject to the addition of a minor modification to reflect the importance of advocacy or positive word of mouth communication. The authors present a modified model of relationship development that is appropriate for the development of customer loyalty within the hospitality sector. This will assist academics and hospitality operators to understand the manner in which relationships are developed and how best to treat guests in order to achieve repeat business and to facilitate positive word of mouth communication.
Effect of Amaranth addition on the nutritional composition and consumer acceptability of extruded provitamin A-biofortified maize snacks

The objective of this study was to determine the effect of adding Amaranth leaf powder on the nutrient content and consumer acceptability of extruded provitamin A-biofortified (PVA) maize snacks. Flours of four varieties of PVA maize were composited with Amaranth leaf powder at 0, 1 and 3% (w/w) substitution of, respectively, and extruded into snacks. The ash content of the snacks increased from 0.53 g/100 g-0.58 g/100 g to 0.650 g/100g-89 g/100 g and protein content increased from 9.12 g/100 g-10.94 g/100 g when Amaranth was increased from 0% to 3%. Similarly, lysine content increased from 0.10 g/100 g to 0.17 g/100 g, whilst methionine increased from 0.14 g/100 g to 0.19 g/100 g. The provitamin A content of the snacks ranged from 1.29 µg/g to 1.40 µg/g at 0% Amaranth and 1.54 µg/g to 1.78 µg/g at 3% Amaranth. The acceptability of the snacks decreased with increasing Amaranth concentration, only a very small proportion (2-8%) of the panel liked the snacks extremely. PVA maize with added Amaranth leaf powder has a potential for use in nutritious and healthy extruded snacks, but the consumer acceptability of the snacks should be improved.
Impact of Yeast Derived Nucleotides Supplementation on Intestinal Health of Japanese Quail

The impact of supplementing yeast derived nucleotid es on intestinal morphology was studied over a period of 6 weeks in Japanese quail. In this trial, 3 day old Japanese quail chicks were randoml y distributed in completely randomized design into 4 treatment groups each with 3 replicates of 10 Japanese quails. The Japanese quai ls of treatment groups T 1 T2, T 3 and T 4 were provided feed containing 0, 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5 per cent nucleotide respectively. At the end of experiment, two quails from each replicate were randomly selected and slaughtered. A fter evisceration the length of the intestine from duodenum to end of the cloaca was measured and a sample of two cm from proximal jejunum was collected to study the histological changes in the cross section of intest ine. The results indicated that nucleotide supplementation showed significant (P<0.01) effect on intestinal morphology of Japanese quail. Villous he ight and villous crypt ratio were highest and duodenal crypt was lowest at 0.5 per cent level of nucleotide supplementation whereas relative intesti nal length was maximum at 1.0 per cent level of nucleotide supplementation. It is concluded that dietary supplementation of nucleotid es at 0.5 per cent level may improve the intestinal health in birds and ulti mately the production performance.
RNA interference: A novel tool for plant disease management

Plant diseases pose a huge threat to crop production globally. Variations in their genomes cause selection to favor those who can survive pesticides and Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) crops. Though plant breeding has been the classical means of manipulating the plant genome to develop resistant cultivar for controlling plant diseases, the advent of genetic engineering provides an entirely new approach being pursued to render plants resistant to fungi, bacteria, viruses and nematodes. RNA interference (RNAi) technology has emerged to be a promising therapeutic weapon to mitigate the inherent risks such as the use of a specific transgene, marker gene, or gene control sequences associated with development of traditional transgenics. Silencing specific genes by RNAi is a desirable natural solution to this problem as disease resistant transgenic plants can be produced within a regulatory framework. Recent studies have been successful in producing potent silencing effects by using target doublestranded RNAs through an effective vector system. Transgenic plants expressing RNAi vectors, as well as, dsRNA containing crop sprays have been successful for efficient control of plant pathogens affecting economically important crop species. The present paper discusses strategies and applications of this novel technology in plant disease management for sustainable agriculture production. Keywords : Plant disease, RNA interference, transgene, management African Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 12(18), pp. 2303-2312
The Associations between SCM Collaboration, New Product Development, and Organizational Culture

Although many prior studies have investigated the relationship between supply chain and new product development (NPD), the causal relationship between them has not been clearly established. Therefore, this study investigated systematically over the entire process of supply chain management (SCM) from trust to NPD capability, including not only the associations between trust, commitment, collaboration, supply chain quality, and NPD capability, but also the impact of organizational culture in the context of supply chain. In particular, this study examined the mediating effect of commitment on the relationship between trust and collaboration of channel members. In addition, it studies the moderating effect of organizational culture on the relationship between collaboration, supply chain quality, and NPD capability. Using a questionnaire survey, 112 usable responses are obtained. PLS (partial least square) is employed to assess the relationships among related constructs. The results of the data analysis show that (1) commitment mediates the link between trust and collaboration (2) supply chain quality is positively associated with NPD capability, and (3) organizational culture significantly moderates the association between collaboration and supply chain quality, yet it does not the relationship SC quality and NPD capability. Finally, the implications of the results are discussed, and directions for future research are suggested.
Private Profits and Public Benefits - How not to Reform the Patent System

The need for a reform of the US patent system has been widely expressed, both by scientists and practitioners. There are widespread complaints about the quality of granted patents, especially the lack of “clearly drawn property lines”, to the extent that some refer to the patent system as “failed”. I present a model that includes the three pillars of current patent systems: legislation, patent and trademark o! ces and courts. I show that many of the contemplated (or demanded) reform steps, such as increasing the level of scrutiny exerted by the PTOs or increasing fees for patenting, may actually decrease the average quality of patent applications in relevant cases. Further, we find that the competitive setting plays a central role in determining whether courts can correct errors made by the PTOs, which raises empirically relevant questions.
Determining the Nature of Late Gunn–Peterson Troughs with Galaxy Surveys

Recent observations have discovered long (up to ∼110 Mpc/h), opaque Gunn–Peterson troughs in the z ∼ 5.5 Lyα forest, which are challenging to explain with conventional models of the post-reionization intergalactic medium. Here, we demonstrate that observations of the galaxy populations in the vicinity of the deepest troughs can distinguish two competing models for these features: deep voids where the ionizing background is weak due to fluctuations in the mean free path of ionizing photons would show a deficit of galaxies, while residual temperature variations from extended, inhomogeneous reionization would show an overdensity of galaxies. We use large (∼550 Mpc/h) semi-numerical simulations of these competing explanations to predict the galaxy populations in the largest of the known troughs at z ∼ 5.7. We quantify the strong correlation of Lyα effective optical depth and galaxy surface density in both models, and estimate the degree to which realistic surveys can measure such a correlation. While a spectroscopic galaxy survey is ideal, we also show that a relatively inexpensive narrowband survey of Lyα-emitting galaxies is ∼90% likely to distinguish between the competing models.
Comparison of compression force & compressed breast thickness of Full-Field Digital Mammography and Combined FFDM plus Digital Breast Tomosynthesis when additional views considered

Poster: "ECR 2017 / C-3043 / Comparison of compression force & compressed breast thickness of Full-Field Digital Mammography and Combined FFDM plus Digital Breast Tomosynthesis when additional views considered" by: "C. S. Y. Lo, L. H. Y. Sinn, K. Wong, P. W. T. Lam, E. Y. W. Chan, M. W. M. Law, W. M. W. Lam; Hong Kong/HK"
Phase noise measurement of external cavity diode lasers and implications for optomechanical sideband cooling of GHz mechanical modes

Cavity-optomechanical cooling via radiation pressure dynamical backaction enables ground-state cooling of mechanical oscillators, provided the laser exhibits sufficiently low phase noise. In this paper, we investigate and measure the excess phase noise of widely tunable external cavity diode lasers, which have been used in a range of recent nano-optomechanical experiments, including ground-state cooling. We report significant excess frequency noise, with peak values of the order of 107 rad2 Hz near 3.5 GHz, attributed to the diode lasers' relaxation oscillations. The measurements reveal that even at GHz frequencies diode lasers do not exhibit quantum-limited performance. The associated excess backaction can preclude ground-state cooling even in state-of-the-art nano-optomechanical systems and can, moreover, lead to noise-induced sideband asymmetries.
None-of-These Bias in Stated Choice Experiments

We conduct a within-sample test of hypothetical bias and parameter equality between a hypothetical stated choice (SC) experiment using pictures and a real choice (RC) experiments using products. With exception of the none-of-these alternative-specific dummy, we cannot reject parameter equality between the two datasets. However, when we estimate the models separately with no parameter restrictions, the SC experiment gave WTP estimates that were approximately 50 percent higher and marginal WTP estimates that were almost two times as high as the corresponding estimates from the RC experiment. However, even though the monetary value of the WTP disparity was large, the disparity between the WTP estimates from the two data sets was not statistically significant.
Modeling in Economics and in the Theory of Consciousness on the Basis of Generalized Measurements

The standard approach to modeling of systems involving subjects (economic subjects, in particular) is based both on the information on their structure and the phenomenological assumptions on their properties. The alternative approach used in the physical theory is based on the analysis of group properties of a set of measurements of the observed system. The aim of the present paper was to study the possibilities of its use for modeling in economics. It has been shown that in the general case the quantum mechanical formalism of the theory of selective measurements is required for that. A proprietor's refusal or consent for the offered transaction is considered as a result of elementary economic measurement. The algebra of such measurements has been constructed. The economic analogs of the elementary slit experiments in physics have been created. The proposed approach can be also used for consciousness modeling.
Changes in approaches to learning over three years of university undergraduate study

This study aimed to evaluate and compare approaches to learning by a longitudinal cohort of undergraduate students as they progressed from their first to third years of study in anatomy and physiology. The Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST) was completed at the beginning and end of their first year of university study, and in their final semester. At first year, a surface learning approach predominated; however, at third year, students showed a significant increase in their use of deep and strategic learning approaches compared to first year, although surface learning approaches were retained. The extent to which third-year students took both strategic and deep approaches to learning was positively correlated with their performance on assessment. As students progress through a three-year science degree, they develop deeper and more strategic learning approaches, and assessment and teaching styles probably promote these approaches to learning.