Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The diagnostic value of Astograph test for patients with chest tightness variant asthma

In this work, we aim to evaluate the diagnostic value of Astograph methacholine bronchial provocation test (AMBPT) for chest tightness variant asthma (CTVA). A total of 443 patients complained of chest tightness as the sole or major clinical manifestation were finally included in this work. The cases were divided into two groups: the CTVA group (n = 111) and the control group without asthma (n = 332). All subjects were received a series of examinations, including pulmonary ventilation function, peak expiratory flow (PEF) average daily diurnal variation rate or PEF week variation rate, AMBPT (the baseline value of forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) ≥ 70% of the expected value) as well as related-examinations of chest tightness caused by various diseases. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, Yunden index and accuracy of AMBPT for the diagnosis of CTVA were 0.8108, 0.6958, 0.4712, 0.9167, 0.5066 and 0.7246 respectively. There are high sensitivity, negative predictive value, Youden index and diagnostic accuracy of AMBPT for CTVA, whereas the specificity and positive predictive value are low, suggesting that there is a higher diagnostic value of AMBPT for CTVA with low false negative and high false positive.
Remittances and Public Spending on Education

The aim of the paper is to study the impact of remittances on public education spending in recipient countries. We build a simple theoretical framework where government intervention in education is motivated by the presence of credit constraints. On the one hand, an increase in remittances relaxes liquidity constraints, which implies a shift from public to private spending. On the other hand, remittances may allow households to send children to school rather than to the labor market. This implies an increase in the demand for educational services. In the empirical section we find confirmation of an invertedU relationship: For small (large) amounts of remittances, an increase in remittances raises (lowers) public spending on education.
Age-related differences in metacognition for memory capacity and selectivity

ABSTRACT Background: We compared two types of metacognitive monitoring in younger and older adults: metacognitive accuracy for their overall memory performance and their ability to selectively remember high-value information. Method: Participants studied words paired with point values and were asked to maximise their point score. In Experiment 1, they predicted how many words they would remember while in Experiment 2, they predicted how many points they would earn. Results: In Experiment 1, while younger adults were accurate in their predictions, older adults were overconfident in the number of words they would recall throughout the task. In Experiment 2, however, both younger and older adults were equally accurate when predicting the amount of points they would earn after some task experience. Conclusions: While younger adults may have higher metacognitive accuracy for their capacity, older adults can accurately assess their ability to selectively remember information, suggesting potentially separate metacognitive mechanisms that are differentially affected by aging.
Decolorization of Reactive black-5 Dye by UV based photocatalytic with immobilized ZnO nanoparticles onto ceramic plate surface

The textile wastewater contains components of dye and inorganic salts which are very dangerous when they are directly discharged into the water body without any prior treatment. In this study, the ability of immobilized ceramic/ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) for decolorization of Reactive black 5 dyes was investigated. A laboratory scale of rotating disc type reactor with UV-C lamp and dip coating method to immobilize nanoparticles were used in this study. Ceramic/ZnO NPs were then characterized by SEM-EDS. EDS result has shown that 82% of ZnO NPs were dispersed on the ceramic surface with maximum catalyst dosage of 5.5 mg/cm2. It was achieved after 3 cycles of impregnation process at 500°C. Photocatalytic activity of ceramic/ZnO NPs was strongly depended on pH and RB5 initial concentration. It possesses the highest photocatalytic activity (100% of decolorization efficiency) at the extreme alkaline condition and low RB5 concentration (3 mg/L) after 90 min of treatment time.
A Comparative Corpus Analysis of the Use of the Present Perfect by Thai EFL Learners and by Native Speakers

Present Perfect (PP) in English has drawn attention from researchers for decades. The use of the tense remains uncertain especially in a country like Thailand where English is taught as a foreign language. The present study makes an effort to investigate the use of present perfect among Thai EFL learners. This corpus-based study compares and contrasts how Thai EFL learners and native speakers of English construct present perfect in their writings in terms of co-occurrence patterns of indefinite time adverbials (‘just,’ ‘already,’ ‘never,’ and ‘ever’). The data were gathered from the Thai Learner English Corpus (TLEC) and the British National Corpus (BNC) representing native speaker variation. Antconc (version 3.4.3) was used to generate and provide the data for this study. The results revealed that the uses of ‘just,’ ‘already,’ ‘never,’ and ‘ever’ with the present perfect by Thai EFL learners were very limited compared with native speakers’ texts and with the absence of context in their production, connection between past and present was rarely realized. On the other hand, native speakers were found to use more diverse patterns and the data showed the sense of strong connections between past and present. As far as the native-speaker norms are concerned, the findings of this study can lead to development materials for teaching the present perfect.
Maxillary Ridge Vertical Augmentation Based on a Mixture of Xenogenic and Allogenic Bone Supported by Resorbable Membrane: One Case Report

One 60 years-old patient was scheduled for left posterior maxillary ridge augmentation due to failure of standard implants, followed by successful maxillary dental implants. We used an unproved technique consisting in a mixture of 50% allogenic and 50% xenogenic bone supported by reabsorbable membrane. No complications were found at the different stages of the treatment, and at the ending the patient showed a good level of satisfactory outcomes. Radiological evaluation demonstrated ridge augmentation able to support implant, and within the graft islands of connective and bone-like tissue was found. Within these tissues osteoclasts and osteoblast putative cells were found. Results demonstrate that the used method in addition to support implants has osteogenic and bone remodeling activity.
Higher Order Recurrent Neural Network for Language Modeling

In this thesis, we study novel neural network structures to better model long term dependency in sequential data. We propose to use more memory units to keep track of more preceding states in recurrent neural networks (RNNs), which are all recurrently fed to the hidden layers as feedback through different weighted paths. By extending the popular recurrent structure in RNNs, we provide the models with better short-term memory mechanism to learn long term dependency in sequences. Analogous to digital filters in signal processing, we call these structures as higher order RNNs (HORNNs). Similar to RNNs, HORNNs can also be learned using the back-propagation through time method. HORNNs are generally applicable to a variety of sequence modelling tasks. In this work, we have examined HORNNs for the language modeling task using two popular data sets, namely the Penn Treebank (PTB) and English text8 data sets. Experimental results have shown that the proposed HORNNs yield the state-of-the-art performance on both data sets, significantly outperforming the regular RNNs as well as the popular LSTMs.
Machining GX2CrNiMoN26-7-4 DSS Alloy: Wear Analysis of TiAlN and TiCN/Al2O3/TiN Coated Carbide Tools Behavior in Rough End Milling Operations

In the last decade, it has been common to observe a competition between coatings achieved via physical vapor deposition (PVD) and chemical vapor deposition (CVD) techniques on cutting tools used in machining processes. The tool’s substrate material can immediately condition the coating process selection. However, there are also materials capabe of adapting to any of the coating processes. Hence, the capabilities demonstrated by a given coating when created with one technique or another are usually different due to the intrinsic characteristics of each coating process, such as temperature and stress levels. In this work, to study the machining behavior of a super duplex stainless steel, PVD- and CVD-coated tungsten carbide inserts with different coatings were used in order to identify the wear mechanisms that affect each of the coatings and the workpiece’s surface quality, evaluated through different roughness parameters. The vibration level produced throughout the various tests was also registered in an attempt to associate the type of coating or insert failure with the level of vibrations generated in the CNC (Computer Numeric Control) machining spindle. This allowed us to conclude that the tools coated with TiAlN via PVD showed better wear behavior, as well as creating workpiece surfaces with less roughness. Thus, it was clear that this coating presents strong advantages in the machining of the super duplex stainless steel chosen for this work, being an innovative work due to the combination of materials used and the approach in terms of vibration analysis applied to milling.
Random Sparse Graphs with a Given Degree Sequence

Let $\mathbb{G}^{D}$ be the set of graphs $G(V,\, E)$ with $\left|V\right|=n$, and the degree sequence equal to $D=(d_{1},\, d_{2},\,\dots,\, d_{n})$. In addition, for $\frac{1}{2}<a<1$, we define the set of graphs with an almost given degree sequence $D$ as follows, \[ \mathbb{G}_{a}^{D}:=\cup\,\mathbb{G}^{\bar{D}}, \] where the union is over all degree sequences $\bar{D}$ such that, for $1\leq i\leq n$, we have $\left|d_{i}-\bar{d}_{i}\right|<d_{i}^{a}$. Now, if we chose random graphs $\mathcal{G}_{\mathbf{g}}\left(D\right)$ and $\mathcal{G}_{\mathbf{a}}\left(D\right)$ uniformly out of the sets $\mathbb{G}^{D}$ and $\mathbb{G}_{a}^{D}$, respectively, what do they look like? This has been studied when $\mathcal{G}_{\mathbf{g}}\left(D\right)$ is a dense graph, i.e. $\left|E\right|=\Theta(n^{2})$, in the sense of graphons, or when $\mathcal{G}_{\mathbf{g}}\left(D\right)$ is very sparse, i.e. $d_{n}^{2}=o(\left|E\right|)$. In the case of sparse graphs with an almost given degree sequence, we investigate this question, and give the finite tree subgraph structure of $\mathcal{G}_{\mathbf{a}}\left(D\right)$ under some mild conditions. For the random graph $\mathcal{G}_{\mathbf{g}}\left(D\right)$ with a given degree sequence, we re-derive the finite tree structure in dense and very sparse cases to give a continuous picture. Moreover, for a pair of vectors $\left(D_{1},D_{2}\right)\in\mathbb{Z}^{n_{1}}\times\mathbb{Z}^{n_{2}}$, we let $\mathcal{G}_{\mathbf{b}}\left(D_{1},D_{2}\right)$ be the random bipartite graph that is chosen uniformly out of the set $\mathbb{G}^{D_{1},D_{2}}$, where $\mathbb{G}^{D_{1},D_{2}}$ is the set of all bipartite graphs with the degree sequence $\left(D_{1},D_{2}\right)$. We are able to show the result for $\mathcal{G}_{\mathbf{b}}\left(D_{1},D_{2}\right)$ without any further conditions.
Assessment of Technical Quality of Online Video Using Visualization in Place of Experience

This paper introduces a new method to collect subjective ratings of Technical Quality (TQ) in disrupted video (DV). TQ is related to whether or not the video has disruptions such as impairments (re-buffering, perceived as freezing for a period of time followed by resumption of video playback) or failures (where the video playback stops part way through and fails to complete). The assessment method introduced in this paper avoids the confounding effects of content on TQ ratings and reduces the time and effort necessary to run experiments. Actual videos, as stimuli, are replaced with schematic representations of those videos. We ran an experiment with 37 participants to explore the viability of assessing TQ using visualizations instead of actual videos. The experiment had contrasting conditions that compared TQ ratings of actual videos, vs. schematic representations of videos. The results of the experiment showed that, with appropriate training, ratings of TQ made after viewing the visualizations only were similar to TQ ratings made after actually watching videos with corresponding impairments or failures.
Analysis and Simulation of Kinetic Model for Active Suspensions

ANALYSIS AND SIMULATION OF KINETIC MODEL FOR ACTIVE SUSPENSIONS Panon Phuworawong Old Dominion University, 2013 Director: Dr. Ruhai Zhou In this research, we study the recently proposed kinetic model for active suspen­ sions, where the active particles are assumed to be rigid rod and are driven in the sus­ pension either by their own biological/chemical forces or external electric/m agnetic fields. We first study the stability of the isotropic suspension in quiescent flow. Then we investigate the weak shear perturbation of the isotropic sta te and study some rheological properties of the suspension by explicit analytic formulas derived directly from the model. For imposed shear, we give some bifurcation diagrams of the stable states in some param etric spaces through numerical simulations. Some rheological properties are also examined. Finally, we study the spatio-tem peral structures of suspensions by taking into account the long-range particle interactions with periodic boundary conditions. A Galerkin approach is used to develop numerical method for the kinetic model equations, which projects the number density function onto the subspace of Fourier modes. Extensive numerical simulations are performed in various physical domains w ith different param eter values. Several complex physical phenomena are observed and carefully studied.
Application of an Optical Diagnostic (LII/ELS) to Measure Soot Formation Trends within Turbulent Buoyant Non-Premixed Flames

Flaring in the upstream oil and gas industry generates black carbon, which adversely affects human health and is an important positive climate forcer. Experiments were performed to investigate soot formation and oxidation within these large, flare-type, turbulent, non-premixed, buoyant flames. Simultaneous spatially-resolved auto-compensating Laser-Induced Incandescence and Elastic Light Scattering was used to measure the instantaneous soot volume fraction (fv), primary particle diameter (dp), and mean aggregate radius of gyration (Rgm1) of soot. Measurements were completed on two comparable turbulent buoyant flames emanating from a 50.8 mm diameter pipe with and without an internal turbulence-generating grid. Centreline profiles of fv, dp, and Rgm1 are presented with uncertainties obtained via Monte Carlo analysis. For the conditions investigated, internal pipe turbulence has only a minor effect on the soot formation trends within the flame, suggesting that internal turbulence is likely less important than other factors when modelling soot formation in flare flames.
Eye-Related Quackery

In 1917, Bates teamed up with Bernarr Macfadden, a well known food faddist who published the magazine Physical Culture. Together they offered a course in the Bates System of Eye Exercises for a fee that included a subscription to the magazine. This venture met with considerable success and led many people to believe in the Bates System. However, the big impact of Bates's work materialized after publication of his book. This book attracted large numbers of charlatans, quacks, and gullible followers who then published scores of unscientific books and articles of their own on the subject of vision. Extolling the Bates System, these authors urged readers to "throw away" their glasses. Some of these writers even established schools.
Reward-guided Curriculum for Robust Reinforcement Learning

We propose a novel method to develop robust action policies using an automated curriculum which seeks to improve task generalization and reduce policy brittleness. Our Reward-guided Curriculum (RgC) self-reflectively chooses what to train on in order to maximize rewards over a task domain, and is a single-policy meta-learning approach designed to augment the training of existing architectures. Experiments on multiple retro Sonic the Hedgehog video games and classical controls tasks indicate notable improvements in task generalization and robustness of the policies trained with RgC. RgC yields a more than 15% improvement over existing baselines on held-out levels in the video game tasks and boosts robustness to changes in dynamics on the controls tasks by more than 10%.
01 0 . 1 1 10 1 10 100 1000 C C D F Indegree Adventures by Disney Disney Restaurants Disney Trip Reports

DISboards is a discussion forum that provides a platform for knowledge sharing on planning and resources for Disney-related travel (Disney World, Disney Cruise Line, etc.). Since no previous work has been devoted to studying the online social networks (SNs) in the forums, we examine the SN and knowledge sharing activities in DISboards as a case study of discussion forums. Based on a large amount of data collected, we provide an in-depth study of DISboards. In particular, we analyzed SN structure, effect of SN in the forum, category characteristics and so on. We found that users with more friends are generally more active in the forum; teens are more active and constitute a significant part of the SN. We clustered the selected categories (e.g., resorts, dining, and hotels) into three groups: report, fact, discussion, and characterized their properties. Most users focus narrowly on only a few categories, while very few users participate in many categories. The development of SN should be able to attract more users to involve in the forum. We believe that the results presented in this paper are crucial in understanding SN and knowledge sharing in the forums. The paper also gives an instruction for the enhancement of SNs to incentivize users’ activeness in the forums.
Control And Numerical Simulation of Natural Convection Benchmark Type In A Cavity Heated By Laser Beam Technique Emitted From A Single Slit Diffraction

Lasers are high-intensity beams that typically have a very pure frequency or wavelength. They come in sizes ranging from approximately one-tenth the diameter of a human hair to that of a very large. There are many applications of lasers which benefit from a uniform optical intensity distribution. Laser Beam is also a thermal process which includes the visible range of the electromagnetic spectrum. According to pilot study Huygens ’ principle, we can approximate a particular wave front by assuming every point on it is a point source of light from a single slit diffraction. In this work, we based on the alternating distribution of the maximum intensity for the central zone and minimum for the secondary zones which allows us to control the dynamic and thermal field by the law of Wien. The idea is to combine the propagation of electromagnetic waves of light and the natural convection of fluids. The CFD software is used as a technique to modelling the behaviour of fluid and the thermal convection with different Rayleigh numbers. The results are presented in the form of distributions of the isotherms, the streamlines, local and average Nusselt . Thus these two processes are often classified as electro-optical-thermal processes.
Moulding Sand with Inorganic Cordis Binder for Ablation Casting

The essence of ablation casting technology consists in pouring castings in single-use moulds made from the mixture of sand and a watersoluble binder. After pouring the mould with liquid metal, while the casting is still solidifying, the mould destruction (washing out, erosion) takes place using a stream of cooling medium, which in this case is water. This paper focuses on the selection of moulding sands with hydrated sodium silicate for moulds used in the ablation casting. The research is based on the use of Cordis binder produced by the Hüttenes-Albertus Company. It is a new-generation inorganic binder based on hydrated sodium silicate. Its hardening takes place under the effect of high temperature. As part of the research, loose moulding mixtures based on the silica sand with different content of Cordis binder and special Anorgit additive were prepared. The reference material was sand mixture without the additive. The review of literature data and the results of own studies have shown that moulding sand with hydrated sodium silicate hardened by dehydration is characterized by sufficient strength properties to be used in the ablation casting process. Additionally, at the Foundry Research Institute in Krakow, preliminary semi-industrial tests were carried out on the use of Cordis sand technology in the manufacture of moulds for ablation casting. The possibility to use these sand mixtures has been confirmed in terms of both casting surface quality and sand reclamation.
Limits to Arbitrage, Overconfidence and Momentum Trading

The paper examines whether limits to arbitrage, divergence in investors’ opinion, and risk factors can explain the persistence in momentum profits. The results reveal that momentum profits: (i) are driven almost entirely by loser stocks that are difficult to short; (ii) originate from initial overvaluation brought about by excessively optimistic investors in the presence of limits to arbitrage and; (iii) cannot be explained by known risk factors. Overall, momentum profits are caused by limits to arbitrage and divergence in opinion and hence, are not easily exploitable. JEL Classification: G12, G14
The Effect of Gymnema sylvestre and Camelia sinensis on Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

GlucosCare Herbal Tea (GCT) consists of two plants namely the Gymnema sylvestre and Camellia sinensis. The leaves of these plants are used as anti-obesity, hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic and anti-oxidant agents. The present study is an open label, single-arm clinical trial involving 67 diabetic patients with glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) between 7 and 10% on oral hypoglycaemic agents only. HbA1c, serum insulin, total cholesterol, fasting blood sugar (FBS), body mass index (BMI), and blood pressure (BP) were measured at the baseline at each follow-up visit. The tea used in this study was consumed three times daily for three months with four follow-up visits at 2, 4, 8 and 12 weeks. The 64 subjects who completed this study were predominantly females (n=41) with an average age of 50 years old, Malay and employed. The primary outcome for this study is the change in HbA1c level at week-12. The secondary outcomes are the changes in insulin level, body weight, fasting blood sugar, lipid profile, waist circumference and blood pressure at week-12. At week-12, the HbA1c has significantly reduced by 1.1 (95%CI 0.84 1.37). The FBS measurements significantly reduced between each visit [F (2.8, 178.6) = 5.241; p=0.002] especially after 8 and 12 weeks of consumption. No significant changes were observed in serum insulin, total cholesterol, BMI and BP. GlucosCare Herbal Tea has been shown to have favorable effects on HbA1c and FBS in patients with uncontrolled Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus after 12 weeks. A randomize control clinical trial is recommended for future study to show the effectiveness of GlucosCare Herbal Tea. 2