Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
HEALTH SYSTEMS IN THE EUROPEAN UNION. AN OVERVIEW

An analysis of the existing healthcare systems of the EU Member states shows a significant degree of diversity while all were in spired by the two major healthcare system models known as the Beveridge and the Bismarck models. The EU healthcare systems vary according to the financing of the system, to the proportion of the private healthcare sector in the overall system, the coverage of the insurance package, the more or less freedom to choose the service provider, the presence of guidance mechanisms towards a certain type of care etc. The Romanian healthcare system has suffered a series of transformations since 1989, a process that is still ongoing and which is to be related to the struggle for democratization and modernisation of Romania society.
A transcriptome for the early-branching fern Botrychium lunaria enables fine-grained resolution of population structure

Ferns are the second most dominant group of land plants after angiosperms. Extant species occupy an extensive range of habitats and contribute significantly to ecosystem functioning. Despite the importance of ferns, most taxa are poorly covered by genomic resources. The genus Botrychium belongs to the family Ophioglossaceae, one of the earliest divergent lineages of vascular plants, and has a cosmopolitan distribution with 35 species, half of which are polyploids. Here, we establish a transcriptome for Botrychium lunaria, a diploid species with an extremely large genome with a 1C value of 12.10 pg. We assembled 25,701 high-quality transcripts with an average length of 1,332 bp based on deep RNA-sequencing of a single individual. We sequenced an additional 11 transcriptomes of individuals from two populations in Switzerland, including the population of the reference individual. Based on read mapping to reference transcript sequences, we identified 374,510 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) segregating among individuals for an average density of 14 SNPs per kb. The transcriptome-wide markers provided unprecedented resolution of the population genetic structure revealing substantial variation in heterozygosity among individuals. We also constructed a phylogenomic tree of 90 taxa representing all fern orders to ascertain the placement of the genus Botrychium. The high-quality transcriptomic resources enable powerful population and phylogenomic studies in an important group of ferns. Significance statement Ferns pose substantial puzzles in terms of lifestyles, genome organization and population structure. Progress has been significantly hampered by the lack of genomic resources. Here, we present a transcriptome for Botrychium lunaria, a phylogenetically early-branching fern with an extremely large genome. We show that the new transcriptome improves phylogenetic resolution among early-branching ferns. Based on an additional 11 transcriptomes of the same species, we identify unexpected variation in population-level heterozygosity.
In vitro efficacy of five commercially available herbal preparations used in the treatment of typhoid fever in Bamenda Municipality, Cameroon

Typhoid fever is an infectious disease that has been a public health concern for millennia. The use of herbal preparations is getting popularity, with an estimated 80% of the world’s population still depending on it for the management of various diseases including typhoid fever. However, data concerning their quality, safety and efficacy is not readily available. Our aim was to determine the in vitro efficacy of some commercially available herbal preparations used in the treatment of typhoid fever in Bamenda Municipality. Five herbal preparations indicated for the treatment of typhoid fever (coded P1 to P5) were bought from various outlets of the herbal producers and serial dilutions made and screened for their activities against clinical isolates of Salmonella Typhi and Salmonella Paratyphi using the agar well diffusion and dilution methods. The bacterial growth inhibition zone diameters of the herbal preparations were measured with a transparent ruler and compared with those of some standard antibiotics (ciprofloxacin and ceftriaxone). Two of the herbal preparations (P1 & P2) showed inhibition zone diameters against S. Typhi (20 and 14 mm respectively) while the rest (P3, P4 & P5) were inactive. P1 showed minimal activity on S. Paratyphi while the rest of the herbal preparations (P2, P3, P4 and P5) were inactive at all tested concentrations. The difference between the value of the inhibition zone diameters of the herbal preparations and that of the standard antibiotics on both S. Typhi and S. Paratyphi was statistically significant (p<0.05). It was found out that most of the herbal preparations showed no activity against the tested bacterial isolates contrary to their label bogus claims. Keywords : Antibacterial activity, Typhoid fever, Herbal preparations, in vitro, Bamenda-Cameroon.
Dendritic normalisation improves learning in sparsely connected artificial neural networks

Artificial neural networks, taking inspiration from biological neurons, have become an invaluable tool for machine learning applications. Recent studies have developed techniques to effectively tune the connectivity of sparsely-connected artificial neural networks, which have the potential to be more computationally efficient than their fully-connected counterparts and more closely resemble the architectures of biological systems. We here present a normalisation, based on the biophysical behaviour of neuronal dendrites receiving distributed synaptic inputs, that divides the weight of an artificial neuron’s afferent contacts by their number. We apply this dendritic normalisation to various sparsely-connected feedforward network architectures, as well as simple recurrent and self-organised networks with spatially extended units. The learning performance is significantly increased, providing an improvement over other widely-used normalisations in sparse networks. The results are two-fold, being both a practical advance in machine learning and an insight into how the structure of neuronal dendritic arbours may contribute to computation.
Life history, distribution and seasonal movements of a threatened South African endemic seabream, Chrysoblephus gibbiceps

The red stumpnose Chrysoblephus gibbiceps (Sparidae) is a South African endemic seabream that has been severely depleted by fishing. A total of 678 C. gibbiceps were sampled by line and trawl fishing for a study of their morphology, age, growth, reproduction and diet. In addition, catch records from three time-periods since 1897 were interrogated for distribution patterns and movement behaviour. The sex ratio was 1.5:1 in favour of males. The length–weight relationship, W = 9.32 × 10−5 LF2.811, indicates hypoallometric growth. The bulbous head of large males is a secondary sexual characteristic. A von Bertalanffy growth model was fitted to age data obtained using otolith analyses: LF = 429.9 × (1 – e−0.113(t – (−3.799)). The maximum recorded age was 48 years, which is among the highest in seabreams, though the species matures after only 3 years. The gonadosomatic index (GSI) of ripe females (4.5%) was comparatively low, and the two-month-long early-summer spawning season was short compared with that of other sympatric seabreams. The very low GSI of ripe males (1.6%) suggests courtship battles and polygamy. The species feeds over low-profile reefs and consolidated sediments. The principal prey are ophiuroids. Although its trophic level is 3.7, C. gibbiceps has a low-nutrition diet. Historical and current catch data confirm a distribution from Cape Point (southeastern Atlantic) to southern KwaZulu-Natal Province (western Indian Ocean). There is evidence for localised migratory patterns, now partly lost due to severe population depletion. Whereas protogyny and resident behaviour have been suggested as traits that render seabreams vulnerable to fishing pressure, C. gibbiceps is a shoaling gonochorist that has collapsed due to fishing.
Detection of Biofilm Production Capability and icaA/D Genes Among Staphylococci Isolates from Shiraz, Iran

Background: Biofilm formation capacity is recognized as an important virulence factor in staphylococci that makes the organisms more resistant to antibiotics and host defenses. Objectives: This study aimed to determine the biofilm producing ability and presence of icaA/D genes in staphylococcal isolates obtained from different clinical specimens. Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on a total of 151 staphylococcal isolates (79 Staphylococcus aureus and 72 S. epidermidis) obtained from different clinical specimens from February to August 2013 in Shiraz, Southwest of Iran. Slime production ability was evaluated using the both phenotypic (by cultivation of staphylococcal isolates on Congo red agar (CRA)) and genotypic (detection of the presence of icaA/D genes by PCR) methods. Results: Overall, of the 79 S. aureus isolates tested with CRA method, 64.7% of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) isolates, and 46.7% of methicillin-sensitive S. aureus (MSSA) isolates were able to produce biofilm. The relative frequency of biofilm producing S. epidermidis isolates was 70.8% that was significantly higher than that of S. aureus isolates. The most common source of biofilm producing isolates in both S. aureus and S. epidermidis isolates was endotracheal tube (ETT) with 100% biofilm formation. Moreover, the presence of icaA/D genes was detected in 63.3% and 81.9% of S. aureus and S. epidermidis isolates, respectively. Conclusions: The remarkable rates of biofilm production ability among clinically isolated staphylococci emphasize the necessity of more effective infections control policies to prevent biofilm formation on medical devices and hospital environmental surfaces.
Design of a 50-Gb/s Hybrid Integrated Si-Photonic Optical Link in 16-nm FinFET

This article presents an electro-absorption modulator (EAM)-based single-mode (SM) 50-Gb/s non return to zero (NRZ) Si-photonic optical link in a 16-nm FinFET. The EAM device is modeled to include its electrical and optical properties. The transmitter (TX) uses T-coil based over-peaking to improve modulation efficiency and relax transimpedance amplifier’s (TIA’s) bandwidth and noise requirement. The receiver (RX) uses a three-stage TIA with T-coils to improve bandwidth. The link sensitivity is −10.9-dBm optical modulation amplitude (OMA) at bit error rate (BER) < 10−12 with 2-dB link margin at 50 Gb/s. The combined power efficiency of the RX, TX, and clocking is 3.16 pJ/bit and the external laser consumes 1.15 pJ/bit with 10% wall-plug efficiency.
First-principles study of electronic and diffusion properties of intrinsic defects in 4H-SiC

As a wide bandgap semiconductor, SiC holds great importance for high temperature and high power devices. It is known that the intrinsic defects play key roles in determining the overall electronic properties of semiconductors; however, a comprehensive understanding of the intrinsic defect properties in the prototype 4H-SiC is still lacking. In this study, we have systematically investigated the electronic properties and kinetic behaviors of intrinsic point defects and defect complexes in 4H-SiC using advanced hybrid functional calculations. Our results show that all the point defects in 4H-SiC have relatively high formation energies, i.e., low defect concentrations even at high growth temperatures. Interestingly, it is found that the migration barriers are very high for vacancies (>3 eV) but relatively low for interstitial defects (∼1 eV) in SiC. Meanwhile, the diffusion energy barriers of defects strongly depend on their charge states due to the charge-state-dependent local environments. Furthermore, we find that VSi in SiC, a key defect for quantum spin manipulation, is unstable compared to the spin-unpolarized VC–CSi complex in terms of the total energy (under p-type conditions). Fortunately, the transformation barrier from VSi to VC–CSi is as high as 4 eV, which indicates that VSi could be stable at room (or not very high) temperature.
Sociodemographic Factors’ Association with Community-Dwelling Older Adults’ Psychosocial Wellbeing: The Greek Context

This cross-sectional study aimed to examine the associations of sex, age, marital status, education attainment, religious involvement, perceived health, and income with psychosocial domains of wellbeing assessed using the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15), Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS), and Spiritual Wellbeing Scale (SWBS). In total, 356 community-dwelling older adults from Greece, aged 65 years and above, completed a sociodemographic survey and psychosocial self-reported questionnaires. Bivariate and stepwise regression analyses helped to determine the sociodemographic factors’ associations with their wellbeing. These background predictors together explained a significant part of the variance in scores on all psychosocial domains: 31% for GDS-15, 44% for SHS, 63% for SWLS, and 58% for SWBS. After controlling for other sociodemographic factors, both being healthy and attending church were related to better outcomes in the domains of happiness, life satisfaction, and spiritual wellbeing. Higher income was related to better outcomes on all domains of wellbeing, while higher educational attainment was related to worse outcomes on all domains of wellbeing. Marital status was positively related to depression only. Thus, successful aging approaches may benefit from a deeper understanding of wellbeing and its predictors, which are essential to improve older adults’ psychosocial wellness.
Marital Quality: A Conceptual Review

The quality of marriage gain the attention of researchers for a long time. Various studies have been done, by placing the marital quality as an independent variable or dependent variable. Although research on marital quality has been done for a long time with a wide range of variables, conceptually, the results are not quite satisfactory. This article aimed to describe literature review on the concept of marital quality. The literature search results define quality of marriage as the level of excellence in marriage based on certain characteristics. These particular characteristics or criteria may vary from region to region. The criteria for the quality of marriage may also differ from one period to another. The dimensions of marital quality vary widely, which can be distinguished into intrapersonal and interpersonal dimensions. Meanwhile, factors affecting the quality of marriage are differentiated into internal factors and factors related to the conjugal relationships.
Effects of dietary inclusion of Opuntia ficus-indica on the glycemia and productive performance in lactating sows

Sows with increased blood glucose during late gestation may have decreased feed intake in lactation. Supplying dietary fibre to the sow reportedly modulates blood glucose and improves feed intake. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of dietary inclusion of cactus ( Opuntia ficus-indica ) on the regulation of blood glucose and productive performance in lactating sows. Data from 52 hybrid sows were analysed. The sows were divided into two groups, namely a control group (CG), that is, sows fed conventionally; and an experimental group (EG), that is, sows fed commercial feed plus cacti. Blood glucose in late gestation, and feed intake, milk production and milk quality, development of the piglet, energy balance, post-weaning body weight balance and the interval from weaning to oestrus were recorded. Preprandial blood glucose was 55.9 mg per dL in EG and 71.4 in CG. Sows on EG had greater daily feed intake and lower negative energy balance (5.4 kg/day and -2.8 MJ/day) than those on CG (4.5 kg/day and -9.4 MJ/day). Sows fed EG produced more milk (8.6 L/day) than those on CG (8.1 L/day). The quality of milk produced and the weaning weight of piglets were similar for the two groups. Body weight balance after weaning was greater for sows fed EG, 3.5% versus -1.5% in those fed CG. The weaning to oestrus interval was 0.6 days less for sows fed EG than those fed CG. Feeding cactus to lactating sows regulated blood glucose, which improved most of their productive indicators. Keywords : cactus, dietary fibre, energy balance, hypophagia, piglet
Exposure of the Common Eastern Bumble Bee, Bombus impatiens (Cresson), to Sub-lethal Doses of Acetamiprid and Propiconazole in Wild Blueberry

ABSTRACT Studies on the outcomes of pesticide exposure on bumble bees have traditionally evaluated the pesticides individually. Poorly known is the effect of simultaneous exposure to multiple pesticides, which has high likelihood in agricultural landscapes. Four experiments were conducted to determine if simultaneous exposure to sub-lethal doses of the insecticide Assail® (30% acetamiprid) and the fungicide Orbit® or Tilt® (41.8% propiconazole) would cause detrimental effects on survival and colony productivity of the common eastern bumble bee, Bombus impatiens (Cresson) (Hymenoptera: Apidae). Survival of workers exposed to propiconazole was marginally reduced (Experiment 1), whereas gyne production increased in colonies exposed to acetamiprid (Experiment 2). There was a trend for fewer larvae and workers in colonies exposed to acetamiprid and a mixture of acetamiprid and propiconazole (Experiment 3). Higher wax moth infestations and densities were observed in colonies exposed to the mixture of acetamiprid and propiconazole (Experiment 4). In conclusion, exposure to the two pesticides resulted in variable outcomes in B. impatiens. Synergy between acetamiprid and propiconazole was explained as an indirect effect of enhanced wax worm infestation. We found an increased level of wax worm infestation in colonies exposed to a mixture of Assail and Tilt compared to colonies not exposed to Assail or Tilt (control) or exposed only to Assail. While this study does not provide evidence that B. impatiens are at high risk when simultaneously exposed to field rates of these two pesticides, we suggest that wild blueberry growers practice integrated pest management as a means of reducing any amount of risk to these important bumble bees.
Cognitive Appraising Factors in Perceived Career Development of Factory Workers

Factory workers constitute an unavoidable group in manufacturing organizations. Focusing on their career needs is salient in achieving result-oriented outcomes. Hence, the study that examined cognitive appraising factors of meaning in life, work value orientation, work-based identity to predict career development factors among factory employees in manufacturing industries. The survey involved a sample size of 306 and utilized structured questionnaires for data collections. Three hypotheses were tested and confirmed. All the factors significantly predicted career development (R= .70, R2= .48, F= 92.06; p<.05). It was concluded that the cognitive appraising factors are important in perception of career development. It implied that many factory workers consider the need for career development as largely based on their cognitive appraising factors. It was recommended that management in manufacturing organizations to consider interventions that incorporate career development factors as growth needs of employees with due consideration of the relevant cognitive appraising factors.
Increase of Miscanthus Cultivation with New Roles in Materials Production—A Review

Recent changes in the EU green aims can help to overcome economic obstacles in the slow upscaling of Miscanthus cultivation. Using Miscanthus can permanently fix CO 2 within building materials thereby aiding the EU climate goals with the increased use of regrowing materials, as well as carbon fixation. Economic obstacles in the slow upscaling of Miscanthus cultivation are targeted by recent changes in the greening aims in the EU. Miscanthus can fulfill a valuable dual function in aiding the EU climate goals by achieving permanent CO 2 fixation within building materials. In contrast to energetic use, persistent applications create stable markets allowing for a reduced risk in the establishment of long term cultured perennial crops. However, the development of different building materials requires an understanding of the combination of the biological and technical aspects. This work presents an overview of the development of the general aspects for the agricultural product Miscanthus and the scientifically reported developments of Miscanthus used as feedstock in polymers, particle boards, and cementitious materials. While the product performance can be evaluated, the understanding of the influence by the input biomass as a main contributor to the product performance needs to be reinforced to be successful with a goal-oriented development of Miscanthus based products. The key feedstock parameters governing the technical performance of the materials are identified and the knowledge gaps are described.
Low band gap polymers for solar cells: The influence of chemical structure on electronic structure, interfacial properties and self-organization of thin films

vii Acknowledgments . ix Chapter 1 Introduction . 1 Chapter 2 Surfaces, interfaces and thin films of organic semiconductors.5 2.1. Electronic structure of conductive surface . 5 2.2. Interfaces of organic semiconductors . 8 2.2.1. Interaction at interfaces of organic semiconductors . 8 2.2.2. Models for description of interfaces made by organic semiconductors . 11 The Schottky-Mott rule . 11 The Induced Density of Interface States (IDIS) model . 14 Integer Charge Transfer (ICT) model. 16 Application of ICT model to multilayer systems . 20 2.3. Thin films of organic semiconductors . 23 2.3.1. Thin films of conjugated polymers . 23 2.3.2. Thin films of conjugated polymer/PCBM blends . 25 2.3. 3. Thin films of fullerene C60 . 27 Chapter 3 Experimental methods . 30 3.1. Photoelectron spectroscopy (PES) . 30 3.1. 1. Principles of photoelectron spectroscopy . 30 3.1. 2. Short theory of photoemission process . 34 3.1. 3. Interpretation of XPS spectra . 36 3.1. 4. Ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS) . 42 3.1. 5. Experimental equipment . 45 3.2. Near edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) . 47 3.2.1. Principles of NEXAFS and its application . 47
The long-wave potential-vorticity dynamics of coastal fronts

This paper studies the propagation of free, long waves on a potential vorticity front in the presence of a vertical coast, using a $1{\textstyle \frac{1}{2}}$-layer, quasi-geostrophic model with piecewise-constant potential vorticity. The coastal boundary induces flow through image vorticity and a Kelvin wave, either of which can reinforce or oppose the Rossby wave dynamics at the front. The behaviour of the front depends strongly on the relative strengths of these three mechanisms, which are explicit in our model. The richest behaviour, which includes kink solitons (under-compressive shocks) and compound-wave structures, occurs in the regime where vortical effects are dominant. The evolution of the front is described by a fully nonlinear finite-amplitude equation including first-order dispersive effects, which is related to the modified Korteweg–de Vries equation. The different behaviours are classified using the canonical example of the Riemann problem, which we analyse using El’s technique of ‘dispersive shock-fitting’. Contour-dynamic simulations show that the dispersive long-wave theory captures the behaviour of the full quasi-geostrophic system to a high degree of accuracy.