Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effect of okra bast fillers on biodegradation properties of poly(vinyl alcohol) composites

This paper focuses on the effect of okra bast fillers on biodegradation of poly(vinyl alcohol) composites. Fibers were obtained from okra plant stems via biological degumming and subjected to different chemical treatments such as scouring, alkalizing, maleic anhydride treatment, and vinyl acetate grafting. The fibers were ground and PVA-okra bast filler composites were produced at 20 wt% fiber load via the solution casting method. The obtained composites were tested in terms of mechanical properties and exposed to biodegradation in soil. Effects of okra bast filler addition and chemical treatments on changes in mass, breaking strength, elasticity modulus, and breaking elongation of composites upon soil biodegradation were determined. The composites can be considered for utilization in packaging and agricultural applications.
Application of Forensic DNA Phenotyping for Prediction of Eye, Hair and Skin Colour in Highly Decomposed Bodies

In the last few years, predicting externally visible characteristics (EVCs) by adopting informative DNA molecular markers has become a method in forensic genetics that has increased its value, giving rise to an interesting field called “Forensic DNA Phenotyping” (FDP). The most meaningful forensic applications of EVCs prediction are those in which, having only a DNA sample isolated from highly decomposed remains, it is essential to reconstruct the physical appearance of a person. Through this approach, we set out to evaluate 20 skeletal remains of Italian provenance in order to associate them with as many cases of missing persons as possible. To achieve the intended goal, in this work we applied the HIrisPlex-S multiplex system through the conventional short tandem repeats (STR) method to confirm the expected identity of subjects by evaluating phenotypic features. To investigate the reliability and accuracy of the DNA-based EVCs prediction, pictures of the cases were compared as they were available to researchers. Results showed an overall prediction accuracy greater than 90% for all three phenotypic features—iris, hair, and skin colour—at a probability threshold of 0.7. The experimental analysis showed inconclusive results in only two cases; this is probably due to the characteristics of subjects who had an intermediate eye and hair colour, for which the DNA-based system needs to improve the prediction accuracy.
Challenges in Unconventional Catalysis

Catalysis science and technology increased efforts recently to progress beyond conventional "thermal" catalysis and face the challenges of net-zero emissions and electrification of production. Nevertheless, a better gaps and opportunities analysis is necessary. This review analyses four emerging areas of unconventional or less-conventional catalysis which share the common aspect of using directly renewable energy sources: (i) plasma catalysis, (ii) catalysis for flow chemistry and process intensification, (iii) application of electromagnetic (EM) fields to modulate catalytic activity and (iv) nanoscale generation at the catalyst interface of a strong local EM by plasmonic effect. Plasma catalysis has demonstrated synergistic effects, where the outcome is higher than the sum of both processes alone. Still, the underlying mechanisms are complex, and synergy is not always obtained. There is a crucial need for a better understanding to (i) design catalysts tailored to the plasma environment, (ii) design plasma reactors with optimal transport of plasma species to the catalyst surface, and (iii) tune the plasma conditions so they work in optimal synergy with the catalyst. Microfluidic reactors (flow chemistry) is another emerging sector leading to the intensification of catalytic syntheses, particularly in organic chemistry. New unconventional catalysts must be designed to exploit in full the novel possibilities. With a focus on (a) continuous-flow photocatalysis, (b) electrochemical flow catalysis, (c) microwave flow catalysis and (d) ultrasound flow activation, a series of examples are discussed, with also indications on scale-up and process indus-trialisation. The third area discussed regards the effect on catalytic performances of applying oriented EM fields spanning several orders of magnitude. Under well-defined conditions, gas breakdown and, in some cases, plasma formation generates activated gas phase species. The EM field-driven chemical conversion processes depend further on structured electric/magnetic catalysts, which shape the EM field in strength and direction. Different effects influencing chemical conversion have been reported, including reduced activation energy, surface charging, hot spot generation, and selective local heating. The last topic discussed is complementary to the third, focusing on the possibility of tuning the photo-and electro-catalytic properties by creating a strong localised electrical field with a plasmonic effect. The novel possibilities of hot carriers generated by the plasmonic effect are also discussed. This review thus aims to stimulate the reader to make new, creative catalysis to address the challenges of reaching a carbon-neutral world.
Rod Ergs in Mice and Humans with Putative Null Mutations in the RDS Gene

Mutations causing autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa (RP) have been identified in RDS, the human homologue of the gene that was first identified and isolated as the cause of mouse "retinal degeneration slow" or rds (1, 2). The rds gene encodes rds/peripherin, an integral membrane glycoprotein located in outer segment disks (1, 3, 4). More than 15 distinct disease-causing mutations in the RDS gene have been reported (5). The clinical phenotypes include adRP, dominant retinitis punctata albescens, dominant butterfly shaped pigment dystrophy of the fovea and autosomal dominant macular degeneration (6). That RDS mutation can cause either RP and/or macular degeneration is consistent with the observation that the protein is expressed in both rods and cones, though its exact functional role in each photoreceptor must be different. Finally, there is an additional form of retinitis pigmentosa, digenic RP (7) that results from a combination of one mutation in RDS and one in R0M1. Neither mutation alone in a heterozygote causes degeneration.
An exploratory analysis of divergent patterns in reading progression during a tablet-based literacy program

We conducted exploratory research on divergent patterns in reading progression among early grade learners in a low-resourced community to identify key determinants of high versus low reading progress. The sample comprised 30 learners who were purposively selected from participants in a 13-month tablet-based literacy program at a peri-urban Malawi primary school to represent high and low progressing readers. We employed stepwise logistic regression to test the independent contributions of (1) a composite measure of home literacy and language environment, and (2) a direct assessment of working memory skills, to a binary measure of reading progress status, controlling for children’s age. Our results showed that children’s working memory skills uniquely predicted high versus low progress in reading over and above other known predictors of early literacy development. These findings point to the importance of working memory skills as a key determinant of reading progress in the context of a tablet-based literacy program in a developing country. As education technology programs proliferate in low-income countries, results from our study offer an evidence-based strategy for identifying and supporting learners who are at risk for non-progress in reading during a tablet-based literacy intervention.
Sexual Satisfaction Mediates the Effects of the Quality of Dyadic Sexual Communication on the Degree of Perceived Sexual Desire Discrepancy

Difficulties related to sexual desire discrepancy are among the most common complaints in people seeking help in therapy. The aims of the current study were to test a mediation model using a bootstrapping procedure where the quality of the dyadic sexual communication plays a key role in increasing or diminishing the degree of perceived sexual desire discrepancy through sexual satisfaction. An online survey was administered through social media to N = 369 participants involved in a romantic relationship, measuring the quality of dyadic sexual communication, sexual satisfaction, the degree of the perceived sexual desire discrepancy, and a series of relevant covariates. As expected, the mediation model showed that a better quality of dyadic sexual communication is related to a lower degree of perceived sexual desire discrepancy through increased sexual satisfaction (β = −0.17, SE = 0.05, [95% CI = −0.27, −0.07]). The effect held over and above the effect of the relevant covariates. The theoretical and practical implications of the present study are discussed.
A Note on Attenuant Cycles of Population Models with Periodic Carrying Capacity

In this short note, we consider attenuant cycles of population models. This study concerns the second conjecture of Cushing and Henson [A periodically forced Beverton-Holt equation, J. Diff. Eq. Appl. , 8 (2002), pp. 1119–1120], which was recently resolved affirmatively by Elaydi and Sacker [Global stability of periodic orbits of nonautonomous difference equations in population biology and the Cushing-Henson conjectures, Proc. 8th Inter. Conf. Diff. Eq., Brno, (in press)]. They showed that the periodic fluctuations in the carrying capacity always reduce the average of population densities in the Beverton-Holt equation. We extend this result and give a class of population models in which the periodic fluctuations in the carrying capacity always reduce the average of population densities.
Human perception and machine vision reveal rich latent structure in human figure drawings

For over a hundred years, children’s drawings have been used to assess children’s intellectual, emotional, and physical development, characterizing children on the basis of intuitively derived checklists to identify the presence or absence of features within children’s drawings. The current study investigates whether contemporary data science tools, including deep neural network models of vision and crowd-based similarity ratings, can reveal latent structure in human figure drawings beyond that captured by checklists, and whether such structure can aid in understanding aspects of the child’s cognitive, perceptual, and motor competencies. We introduce three new metrics derived from innovations in machine vision and crowd-sourcing of human judgments and show that they capture a wealth of information about the participant beyond that expressed by standard measures, including age, gender, motor abilities, personal/social behaviors, and communicative skills. Machine-and human-derived metrics captured somewhat different aspects of structure across drawings, and each were independently useful for predicting some participant characteristics. For example, machine embeddings seemed sensitive to the magnitude of the drawing on the page and stroke density, while human-derived embeddings appeared sensitive to the overall shape and parts of a drawing. Both metrics, however, independently explained variation on some outcome measures. Machine embeddings explained more variation than human embeddings on all subscales of the Ages and Stages Questionnaire (a parent report of developmental milestones) and on measures of grip and pinch strength, while each metric accounted for unique variance in models predicting the participant’s gender. This research thus suggests that children’s drawings may provide a richer basis for characterizing aspects of cognitive, behavioral, and motor development than previously thought.
Observation of a new turbulence-driven limit-cycle state in H-modes with lower hybrid current drive and lithium-wall conditioning in the EAST superconducting tokamak

The first high confinement H-mode plasma has been obtained in the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) with about 1 MW lower hybrid current drive after wall conditioning by lithium evaporation and real-time injection of Li powder. Following the L–H transition, a small-amplitude, low-frequency oscillation, termed a limit-cycle state, appears at the edge during the quiescent phase with good energy and particle confinement. Detailed measurements by edge Langmuir probes show modulation interaction and strong three-wave coupling between the low-frequency oscillations and high-frequency-broadband (80–500 kHz) turbulences that emerge after the L–H transition or in the inter-ELM phase. The potential fluctuations at the plasma edge are correlated with the limit-cycle oscillations, and the fluctuations in the floating potential signals at different toroidal, poloidal and radial locations are strongly correlated with each other, with nearly no phase differences poloidally and toroidally, and finite phase difference radially, thus providing strong evidence for zonal flows. The growth, saturation and disappearance of the zonal flows are strongly correlated with those of the high-frequency turbulence. And the measurements demonstrate that the energy gain of zonal flows is of the same order as the energy loss of turbulence. This strongly suggests the interactions between zonal flows and high-frequency turbulences at the pedestal during the limit-cycle state.
The predictors of death within 1 year in acute ischemic stroke patients based on machine learning

Objective To explore the predictors of death in acute ischemic stroke (AIS) patients within 1 year based on machine learning (ML) algorithms. Methods This study retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of patients hospitalized and diagnosed with AIS in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University between August 2017 and July 2019. The patients were randomly divided into training and validation sets at a ratio of 7:3, and the clinical characteristic variables of the patients were screened using univariate and multivariate logistics regression. Six ML algorithms, including logistic regression (LR), gradient boosting machine (GBM), extreme gradient boosting (XGB), random forest (RF), decision tree (DT), and naive Bayes classifier (NBC), were applied to develop models to predict death in AIS patients within 1 year. During training, a 10-fold cross-validation approach was used to validate the training set internally, and the models were interpreted using important ranking and the SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) principle. The validation set was used to externally validate the models. Ultimately, the highest-performing model was selected to build a web-based calculator. Results Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that C-reactive protein (CRP), homocysteine (HCY) levels, stroke severity (SS), and the number of stroke lesions (NOS) were independent risk factors for death within 1 year in patients with AIS. The area under the curve value of the XGB model was 0.846, which was the highest among the six ML algorithms. Therefore, we built an ML network calculator (https://mlmedicine-de-stroke-de-stroke-m5pijk.streamlitapp.com/) based on XGB to predict death in AIS patients within 1 year. Conclusions The network calculator based on the XGB model developed in this study can help clinicians make more personalized and rational clinical decisions.
Estimation of the Circulation Distribution on a Rotor Blade from Detailed Near Wake Velocities

The circulation distribution over a blade of a wind turbine model is estimated by use of a vortex model, which is matched with measured wake properties. With near wake velocities and the Biot–Savart law an optimization scheme is constructed to estimate the circulation distribution over the blade using a polynomial function series to approximate the circulation distribution. The velocities resulting from the calculated distribution are compared with the measured data, and deviations are discussed and explained. The vortex model offers insight into how the measured velocities can be separated into induced velocities of the different parts of the vortex system, such as the influence of the tip vortex. The sensitivity of the vortex model to its most uncertain parameters is tested. Finally the circulation distribution obtained with the vortex model is compared with the circulation distribution obtained through application of a blade element momentum (BEM) code. The BEM results show an underestimation of the circulation near the root and an overestimation of the circulation near the tip with respect to the vortex model results. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Experimental 4D-Var Assimilation of SYNOP Rain Gauge Data at ECMWF

AbstractFour-dimensional variational data assimilation (4D-Var) experiments with 6-hourly rain gauge accumulations observed at synoptic stations (SYNOP) around the globe have been run over several months, both at high resolution in an ECMWF operations-like framework and at lower resolution with the reference observational coverage reduced to surface pressure data only, as would be expected in early twentieth-century periods. The key aspects of the technical implementation of rain gauge data assimilation in 4D-Var are described, which include the specification of observation errors, bias correction procedures, screening, and quality control. Results from experiments indicate that the positive impact of rain gauges on forecast scores remains limited in the operations-like context because of their competition with all other observations already available. In contrast, when only synoptic station surface pressure observations are assimilated in the data-poor control experiment, the additional assimilation of r.
The vibrations of C60H60 and the unidentified infrared emission

A theoretical study is presented of the vibrations of C 60 H 60 , the saturated hydride of the soccerball molecule C 60 , and the results are compared with features in the spectrum of the unidentified infrared emission. A simple force-field model with standard constants is adopted for C 60 H 60 , and also for the laboratory species C 20 H 20 as a check. The properties of the nine active vibrations of the model of C 60 H 60 , and the distribution over frequency of all the vibrations, are given. The wavelengths of several of the active modes are found to lie within a few per cent of those of features known in the unidentified infrared emission. An outstanding characteristic of the model is the large number of modes associated with the rocking of C-H units; the number density of these modes has a broad peak between 6 and 10 μm that is not unlike the 6-9 μm plateau, the strongest feature in the unidentified infrared emission
Pattern of self-reported adverse events related to COVID-19 vaccines in Saudi Arabia: A nationwide study

Background Vaccination against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is the most effective way to end the pandemic. Any development of adverse events (AEs) from various vaccines should be reported. We therefore aimed to explore major and minor AEs among vaccinated individuals in Saudi Arabia. Methods This is a nationwide report based on the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Health (MOH) registry. It included those who received COVID-19 vaccines from 17th December 2020 to 31st December 2021. The study included spontaneous self-reported adverse effects to COVID-19 vaccines where the study participants used a governmental mobile app (Sehhaty) to report their AEs following vaccination using a checklist option that included a selection of side-effects. The primary outcome was to determine AEs reported within 14 days of vaccination which included injection site itching, pain, reaction, redness, swelling, anxiety, dizziness, fever, headache, hoarseness, itchiness, loss of consciousness, nausea, heartburn, sleep disruption, fatigue, seizures, anaphylaxis, shortness of breath, wheezing, swelling of lips, face, and throat, loss of consciousness, and admissions into the intensive care unit (ICU). Results The study included a total number of 28,031 individuals who reported 71,480 adverse events (AEs); which were further classified into minor and major adverse events including ICU admissions post vaccination. Of the reported AEs, 38,309 (53. 6%) side-effects were reported following Pfizer-BioNTech, 32,223 (45%) following Oxford-AstraZeneca, and 948 (1.3%) following Moderna. The following reported AEs were statistically significant between the different vaccine types: shortness of breath\difficulty of breathing, dizziness, fever above 39°C, headache, hoarseness, injection site reactions, itchiness, nausea, sleep disruption, fatigue, wheezing, swelling of lips/face and\or throat, and loss of consciousness (p-value < 0.05). Fever and seizure were the only statistically significant AEs amongst the number of vaccine doses received (p-value < 0.05). Ten ICU admissions were reported in the 14 days observation period post-COVID-19 vaccination with the following diagnoses: acute myocardial infarction, pneumonia, atherosclerosis, acute respiratory failure, intracranial hemorrhage, grand mal seizure, Guillain-Barré syndrome, abnormal blood gas levels, and septic shock. Conclusion This study demonstrated that the most prevalent SARS-CoV-2 vaccine side-effects among adults in Saudi Arabia were mild in nature. This information will help reduce vaccine hesitancy and encourage further mass vaccination to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, especially as booster doses are now available. Further studies are warranted to obtain a better understanding of the association between risk factors and the experiencing of side-effects post vaccination.
Radiative heating in the lower stratosphere and the distribution of ozone in a two‐dimensional model

The sensitivity of a two-dimensional model to the diabatic heating rates used in the lower stratosphere is discussed. Different radiation schemes are described; in particular a longwave scheme which allows for interaction between surface temperature, ozone amounts and the heating rates in the ozone 9·6 μm band. Near-infrared heating is also included. A model run including the new radiation schemes is compared with a control run in which radiative equilibrium is assumed in the 150–30 mb region (as in previous versions of this model) and with a run in which fixed heating rates are adopted in the same region. The temperature and ozone distributions of each run are discussed. The ozone structure is very sensitive to the scheme used and the inclusion of the new schemes improves the model's ozone distribution. The importance of the diabatic heating in determining the mean meridional circulation and the transport of trace constituents is stressed. Perturbation experiments of Haigh and Pyle are repeated in the model including the new schemes. The effect on ozone of increasing CO2 is found to have a stronger latitudinal and seasonal variation. The effect of including chlorofluorocarbons is a larger ozone depletion at all latitudes. The problems associated with assessing the uncertainties in model predictions are discussed. A simple scheme for representing cloud cover in the longwave scheme is described. The effect of inclusion of clouds on heating in the ozone 9·6 μm band, and thus on the ozone distribution, is discussed. The results of changing the effective albedo in the solar heating scheme are considered briefly.