Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluating the Mobility of Nanorods in Electric Fields

The mobility of a nonspherical particle is a function of both particle shape and orientation. In turn, the higher magnitude of electric field causes nonspherical particles to align more along the field direction, increasing their mobility or decreasing their mobility diameter. In previous works, Li et al. developed a general theory for the orientation-averaged mobility and the dynamic shape factor applicable to any axially symmetric particles in an electric field, and applied it to the specific cases of nanowires and doublets of spheres. In this work, the theory for a nanowire is compared with experimental results of gold nanorods with known shape determined by TEM images. We compare the experimental measured mobility sizes with the theoretical predicted mobility in the continuum, free molecular, and the transition regime. The mobility size shift trends in the electric fields based on our model, expressed both in the free molecular regime and in the transition regime, are in good agreement with the experimental results. For rods of dimension: width dr = 17 nm and length Lr = 270 nm, where one length scale is smaller than the mean free path and one larger, the results clearly show that the flow regime of a slender rod is mostly controlled by the diameter of the rod (i.e., the smallest dimension). In this case, the free molecule transport properties best represented our nanorod. Combining both theory and experiment we show how, by evaluating the mobility as a function of applied electric field, we can extract both rod length and diameter. Copyright 2013 American Association for Aerosol Research
Boundary conditions for molecular dynamics simulations of water transport through nanotubes

This article compares both new and commonly used boundary conditions for generating pressure-driven water flows through carbon nanotubes in molecular dynamics simulations. Three systems are considered: (1) a finite carbon nanotube membrane with streamwise periodicity and ‘gravity’-type Gaussian forcing, (2) a non-periodic finite carbon nanotube membrane with reservoir pressure control, and (3) an infinite carbon nanotube with periodicity and ‘gravity’-type uniform forcing. Comparison between these focuses on the flow behaviour, in particular the mass flow rate and pressure gradient along the carbon nanotube, as well as the radial distribution of water density inside the carbon nanotube. Similar flow behaviour is observed in both membrane systems, with the level of user input required for such simulations found to be largely dependent on the state controllers selected for use in the reservoirs. While System 1 is simple to implement in common molecular dynamics codes, System 2 is more complicated, and the selection of control parameters is less straightforward. A large pressure difference is required between the water reservoirs in these systems to compensate for large pressure losses sustained at the entrance and exit of the nanotube. Despite a simple set-up and a dramatic increase in computational efficiency, the infinite length carbon nanotube in System 3 does not account for these significant inlet and outlet effects, meaning that a much smaller pressure gradient is required to achieve a specified mass flow rate. The infinite tube set-up also restricts natural flow development along the carbon nanotube due to the explicit control of the fluid. Observation of radial density profiles suggests that this results in over-constraint of the water molecules in the tube.
Ecological Impact Assessment and Limnological Characterization in the Intertidal Region of Calabar River Using Benthic Macroinvertebrates as Bioindicator Organisms

A study on ecological impact assessment and limnological characterization of Calabar River using benthic macroinvertebrates as bioindicators organisms was conducted from August, 2012 to January, 2013. Surface water and benthic samples were collected from two different stations along the intertidal region of the river. The mean value of surface water temperature was 28.0±0.71 °C; pH, 8.20±0.35; dissolved oxygen, 4.30±0.4 mg/L; biochemical oxygen demand, 2.30±0.26 mg/L; conductivity, 281.8±89.5 mg/L; There were significant differences (p <0.05) in the mean values of conductivity in the sampling stations. Three phyla of benthic macroinvertebrates were encountered in the River. The first Phylum, Arthropoda was represented by five genera and four species. The second Phylum, Annelida was represented by only one genus, Capitella (Polychaeta). The third Phylum, Mollusca was represented by seven species of gastropods. Pachymelania fusca dominated the benthic macroinvertebrate with a total relative abundance of 50.0% by number while Hemigrapsus species and Capitella species were the least abundant, 0.13% by number. All the benthic macroinvertebrate fauna recorded were pollution-tolerant and clean water species. This could influence the distribution and abundance of benthic macroinvertebrates in the intertidal region of Calabar River and that the river could also be under pollutional stress because the benthic macroinvertebrate observed were pollution-tolerant and clean water species.
RECOVERY OF THE BIOLOGICAL ACTIVE COMPOUNDS OF Musa Sp. THROUGH MICROWAVE ASSISTED EXTRACTION

The objective of this research was to identify the recovery of the biological active compound of Musa sp. thru microwave assisted extraction (MAE) system. Antioxidant activity and phenolic compound were investigated on the effect of temperature, microwave power, irradiation time and solid to liquid ratio. The extraction process was carried out using only distilled water as an extracting agent. The result showed that, at 70oC fresh Musa sp. extracted 45% higher antioxidant compared to the dried Musa sp. 500 W was the best power of MAE to extract antioxidant and phenolic compound of ripe Musa sp. , while for unripe Musa sp. 800 W was the best. The best irradiation time was 90 s, where it extracted almost 90% antioxidant activity of ripe and unripe Musa sp. Almost 480 mg GA/100 g FW of total phenolic content was extracted on the unripe peel. Solid to liquid ratio of 3 : 60 was the best parameter to extract antioxidant and phenolic content of ripe and unripe Musa sp. Overall, antioxidant and phenolic compound were significantly higher in the unripe peel, followed by ripe peel, unripe pulp and ripe pulp.
Distributed and boundary model predictive control for the heat equation

We consider a model predictive control (MPC) scheme without stabilizing terminal constraints applied to the linear heat equation. We apply a method to analyze minimal stabilizing optimization horizons based on an exponential controllability condition. While the method is known to yield conservative quantitative results for concrete examples, our analysis shows that it precisely determines qualitative changes in the horizon for changing parameters and changing problem structures. Particularly, it is able to explain numerically observed differences in the stability behavior of MPC for distributed and for boundary control (© 2012 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Diversity management: Managing migrant construction workers on construction sites in Singapore

It is not sustainable for construction projects in Singapore to rely merely on a Singaporean workforce due to the low participation rate of indigenous workers. A typical construction site in Singapore thus comprises migrant workers from several countries. This gives rise to the need for diversity management on construction sites to ensure social sustainability. The aim of this research is to examine styles that project managers adopt when managing multi-cultural migrant workers in construction projects. The specific objectives are to: investigate the socially sustainable managerial practices adopted by project managers when dealing with migrant construction workers from China, India and Thailand; and identify if there are any differences in management practices when dealing with migrant construction workers from different countries. The research method is questionnaire survey, and data were collected from project managers who had managed migrant workers in Singapore. In-depth interviews were also conducted to confirm the statistical results. The research found that project managers tend to use task-oriented more than relation-oriented management style to achieve social sustainability. The management practices that are significantly implemented include requiring workers to be punctual, giving assertive instructions, providing close supervision and enforcing rules so that social sustainability can be maintained on construction sites.
Spectropolarimetry of magnetic stars - VI. Longitudinal field, crossover and quadratic field: New measurements

New determinations of the mean longitudinal magnetic field, of the crossover, and of the mean quadratic magnetic field of Ap stars are presented. They are based on spectra recorded simultaneously in both circular polarizations at ESO with the CASPEC spectrograph fed by the 3.6 m telescope. This paper discusses 95 observations of 44 stars. A major result of this study is the discovery that HD 137509 has a predominantly quadrupolar magnetic field, a strucuture previously found in only a couple of stars. Improvement or revision of the determination of the rotation period has been achieved for 3 stars. The stars studied in this work include 14 rapidly oscillating Ap stars (for 6 of which no previous attempt to detect a magnetic field had ever been made) and 21 Ap stars with spectral lines resolved into their magnetically split components when observed at high enough dispersion in unpolarized light (for 9 of these stars, no determination of the longitudinal field had been performed before). The observations discussed in this paper have been performed between 1989 and 1994, a period during which CASPEC and its Zeeman analyzer have progressively undergone various configuration changes. The results reported here demonstrate that the polarimetric performance of the instrument has remained unaltered through these modifications. Thanks to the latter, the achieved resolving power was increased, which resulted in improved magnetic measurement accuracies.
Social Interactions among Preschool Children

To obtain information on the potential benefits of integration, this study investigated the nature and extent of social interactions among preschool children at different developmental levels. Communicative and parallel play interactions of mildly, moderately, severely, and nonhandicapped children were observed during free play across two time periods. The results revealed that (a) nonhandicapped and mildly handicapped children interacted with each other more frequently than expected on the basis of availability, and they interacted with moderately and severely handicapped children less frequently than expected; (b) moderately and severely handicapped children interacted with all four developmental groups as expected by the criterion of availability; and (c) whenever this pattern of interaction changed over time, it was typically in the direction of enhancing the differences noted in the first statement. These findings are discussed in terms of the potential value of integrated programs for children of varying developmental levels.
Rising trend of cardiovascular diseases among South-Western Nigerian female patients

Background: Developing countries though faced with increasing burden of cardiovascular disease have the least contribution in articles published on cardiovascular research. There is a paucity of report on the trend of cardiovascular diseases particularly no report is available on the trend in Nigerian female patients. The aim of this study is to determine the trend of cardiovascular diseases and the gender effect. Materials and Methods: A retrospective analysis of medical admission in a public, secondary health center over a 5-year period (1997–2001) was carried out. Results: Of the 2474 patients, 37.0% with a mean age of 54.9 (14.6) years had cardiovascular diseases, 51.3% were females. Mean duration of hospital stay was 11.8 (9.1) days, range 1–90 days. This was a significant steady rise in the trend of cardiovascular disease which was higher among females (P = 0.003). Hypertension and hypertension-related complications constituted the bulk of cardiovascular diseases. Overall mortality was 155 (17%) for cardiovascular diseases although not significantly different gender wise was higher in males (86, 55.5%), P = 0.063. Conclusion: Targeted research and control of cardiovascular diseases among women may enhance the control of the menace of cardiovascular diseases.
Simplification or elaboration? The Effects of Two Types of Text Modifications on Foreign Language Reading Comprehension

Linguistic simplification of written texts can increase their comprehensibility for non-native speakers, but reduce their utility for language learning in other ways, e.g. through the removal of linguistic items that learners do not know but need to learn. A study was conducted to test the hypothesis that some elaborative modifications observed in oral foreigner talk discourse, where redundancy and explicitness compensate for unknown linguistic items, offer a potential alternative approach to written text modification. 13 reading passages were presented to 483 Japanese college students in one of three forms: native baseline, simplified or elaborated. Comprehension, assessed by 30 multiple-choice test items, was highest among subjects reading the simplified version, but not significantly better than among those reading the elaborated version. The type of modifications to the texts interacted significantly with the kind of task used to assess comprehension: replication, synthesis or inference, suggesting that different kinds of text modification facilitate different levels of comprehension.
Numerical Assessment of turbulence effect on Forces, Spray parameters, and secondary impact in wedge water entry problem using k-ε method

The present paper focuses on the assessment of turbulent effects on the impact force, spray, and secondary impact force of the wedge water entry. For this purpose, a finite element based finite volume method code coupled with volume of fluid has been developed. The k-e method has also been implemented to model the turbulence effects. The developed code is validated against experimental data with good accordance and is then used to model the water entry of wedges with deadrise angles ranging from 10 to 60 degrees at different velocities of 1 and 2 m/s with laminar and turbulent assumptions. Subsequently, the resulting forces and free surfaces are compared for three critical instances of “Peak”, “Hollow”, and “2nd impact”. It is illustrated that turbulence has negligible effects on the force and free surface in the main water entry process. However, turbulent effects rise up to 14.23% for the secondary impact forces.
Skill Acquisition : Compilation of Weak-Method Problem Solutions

Cognitive skills are encoded by a set of productions, which are organized according to a hierarchical goal structure. People solve problems in new domains by applying weak problem-solving procedures to declarative knowledge they have about this domain. From these initial problem solutions, production rules are compiled that are specific to that domain and that use of the knowledge. Numerous experimental results may be predicted from this conception of skill organization and skill acquisition. These include predictions about transfer among skills, differential improvement on problem types, effects of working memory limitations, and applications to instruction. The theory implies that all varieties of skill acquisition, including those typically regarded as inductive, conform to this characterization.
Comparative Studies on the Performances of Some Plant Cakes and Synthetic Chemicals Against Nematodes in Tea in Bangladesh

A comparative study was undertaken to evaluate the performances of plant cakes and synthetic chemicals against nematodes infesting tea at Bangladesh Tea Research Institute (BTRI) during March 2012 to June 2012. The indigenous plants i.e. Bishkatali (Polygonum hydropiper), Mahogani (Swietenia mahagoni) and Neem (Azadirachta indica) and synthetic chemicals i.e. Carbofuran (Furadan 5G), Fipronil (Goolee 3GR) and Rynaxypyr (Ferterra 0.4G) were considered as treatments. The dose of tested plant cakes @ 50g/pot and synthetic chemicals i.e. Furadan 5G @ 35g/pot, Fipronil 3GR @ 35g/pot and Rynaxapyr 0.4G 15g/pot were used in this experiment. Soil samples are regularly collected at weekly interval and samples were analyzed for nematode count at Entomology Laboratory through Baermann funnel method. Result revealed that all the treatments had showed the toxic effect on nematodes and significantly reduced nematode population from the soil. The nematode population in the soil treated with Rynaxypyr 0.4G was the lowest due to the highest mortality of nematodes (85.80%) followed by Fipronil 3G (82.00%), and Carbofuran 5G (81.71%) which was satisfactory. Among the plant cakes, Mahogani cake showed the highest (79.89%) mortality of nematodes in the treated soil. The cakes of Bishkatali (74.82%) and Neem (71.57%) also reduced the nematode population significantly. Rynaxapyr and Mahagani Cake can be used as soil treatments for the management of nematodes to get nematode free soil or safe soil with less nematode for establishing tea nursery. Crude plant cakes of P. hydropeper, S. mahagoni and A. indica can effectively be utilized beside the use of chemical nematicides as safer nematicidal products in integrated pest management of nematodes in tea in Bangladesh.
Validity and Reliability of Thai Versions of Questionnaires Measuring Leisure-time Physical Activity, Exercise-Related Self-Efficacy, Outcome Expectations and Self-Regulation

Abstract: This study examined the validity and reliability of Thai versions of questionnaires measuring leisure-time physical activity, exercise-related self-efficacy, outcome expectations and self-regulation. Three steps were used: translation, back-translation and expert committee confirmation; test-retest reliability; and exploratory factor analysis. Twenty-nine female bilingual Thai undergraduate students participated in the test-retest procedure, and 364 Thai female undergraduate students participated in the exploratory factor analysis. The Thai versions of the questionnaires have acceptable test-retest reliability, concurrent validity; construct validity, and internal consistency reliability. The questionnaires have suitable psychometric properties and can be used to assess their stated topics in Thai female undergraduate students. These results also provide validation of these constructs in a non-North American sample. In this study we found that these valid and reliable measures of these constructs are useful for conducting research and interventions that target health behaviour changes in Thai population. Health practitioners such as nurses can use these constructs to try to effect changes in physical activity behaviour among Thai people, and future research on the use of these questionnaires is warranted.
A “Two-Level Social Capital Analysis” of the Role of Online Communication in Civic Activism: Lessons From the Role of Facebook in the Sunflower Movement

In this article, we propose a “two-level social capital analysis” for the study of the role of online communication in new, contemporary forms of civic activism. We assess the applicability and value of the proposed analytical framework in a small-scale study of the role of Facebook in Taiwan’s Sunflower Movement. The case study showcases that the proposed two-level social capital analysis can offer depth and nuance in the analysis of the role of online and social media platforms such as Facebook in civic activism by unpacking the attributes of online social capital and untangling their links to offline activism undertaken within complex, both online and offline, forces and actors. At the same time, we acknowledge the need for further evaluation of the proposed analytical framework, and we note lessons that future research should take into account.
Effect of feed form, pellet diameter and enzymes supplementation on carcass characteristics, meat quality, blood plasma constituents and stress indicators of broilers

Abstract. Four hundred-twenty broilers were used in a factorial design (4×3) in which four feed forms (mash vs. pellet diet with diameter of 2 mm, 3 mm and 3.5 mm, respectively) and three enzymes treatments (unsupplemented, phytase, phytase+multi-enzyme) were used. Each treatment was replicated five times (7 broiler/replicate). Feed form had no effects on most of carcass traits and physical characteristics of meat, but pellet diets decreased the relative weight of gizzard and caecum length. Feeding 3.5 mm pellet diets increased abdominal fat compared to that of broilers fed mash diets. Pellet with 3 mm diameter increased and decreased respectively meat fat and moisture. Pellets with 3.5 mm diameter increased meat ash compared to broilers fed mash diet. Levels of plasma glucose and alanine aminotransferase of broilers fed 2 mm pellet, cholesterol of broilers fed 3 mm pellet and albumin/globulin ratio, monocytes and red blood cells of broilers fed 3.5 mm pellet were significantly higher than those of broilers fed mash diet. Haemoglobin, phagocytic activity, heterophils and heterophils/lymphocyte ratio were higher in groups fed mash diets and 2 mm pellet. Packed cell volume and phagocytic index were the highest in group fed mash diets. Phytase or multi-enzyme+phytase increased carcass yield, total edible parts and decreased inedible parts compared to broilers fed diet without enzyme supplementation. Enzyme supplementations significantly and similarly increased plasma glucose, total protein, triglycerides, red blood cells and phagocytic activity and decreased phagocytic index in comparison to the control group. However, phytase alone decreased cholesterol and increased monocytes by contrast with the control group. Multi-enzymes+phytase induced greater effect on white blood cells than phytase alone.
Performance Evaluation of Viscoelastic and Friction Passive Damping Systems in Vibration Control of Tall Buildings

This paper provides a comparison of the maximum inter-story drifts and tip acceleration of both a 16 and 30 stories building each with different structural systems; hybrid R.C moment frame with shear walls and hybrid steel frame with shear walls and X bracing which are equipped by passive dampers. Each of the building models were analyzed as fully non-linear structures for variety of dampers placements and subjected to a total of 4 different earthquake excitations. Three-dimensional (3D) finite-element models have been developed in the (FE) code LUSAS to predict the effects of passive damping on the vibrating structures. The manuscript tries to presents a rational comparison for determining dynamic response of seismic-excited high-rise buildings installed with friction and viscoelastic dampers in the cut outs of shear walls in order to capture their advantages in creating efficient damping systems. The results have shown that it is possible to achieve seismic mitigation, under all earthquake excitations, for all the structures considered in this study, by using appropriate damper types suitably located within the structure.