Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Spectrum of 25 (OH) D3 Status in Urinary Tract Stone Formers in North-Eastern Nigeria

Many studies, none in northeastern part of Nigeria, investigated the association between serum/plasma vitamin D and nephrolithiasis, with no consistent result, couple with the hot weather (as high as 44oC) in most part of the year in Maiduguri and its surroundings, and assay of vitamin D today is not yet part of evaluation of urinary stone formers in Maiduguri, warrant this study to assess status of vitamin D in urinary tract stone formers in Maiduguri. Patients diagnosed with urinary tract stone disease attending Urology Clinic, University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital and consented were recruited. The first two who consented were recruited per week for a period of 24 months (1st April 2017 to 31st Match 2019) to cover the seasonal changes in weather for the year. Serum for vitamin D is stored at -20oC for batch analysis. Vitamin D was assayed by ELISA technique (Accu-Bind, 100 North Pointe Drive, Lake Forest, California 92630 USA), other parameters were analyzed weekly using autoanalyzer (Cobas C311, ISN, Roche, Germany). Result indicated 58 (36.2%) of patients had Vitamin D values below the optimal level either having deficiency/insufficiency. Forty-nine (30.6%) showed vitamin D concentration above the optimum level out of which 4 (2.5%) had hypervitaminosis D, while 53 (33.1%) patients had optimal vitamin D values. It showed 17 (10.6%) of patients had hypercalcaemia, however, out of the 114 patients with normocalcaemia, 42 (36.5%) had their values at the upper limit of normal (2.6 mmol/L). It also indicated that though 3 of the hypercalcaemic patients had vitamin D insufficiency, majority (14) are either having optimal level or above optimal vitamin D level. Excessive and prolong exposure to ultraviolet sunlight resulting in raised vitamin D synthesis and action is an important factor associated with urinary tract stone formation in this environment cannot be excluded. The high prevalence of hypercalcaemia in the study cannot be accounted for by raised vitamin D alone, therefore measurement of serum vitamin D (25(OH)D) and PTH in evaluation of urinary tract stone formers in this environment is recommended.
Pain in Hemophilia: Unexplored Role of Oxidative Stress

Hemophilia is the most common X-linked bleeding diathesis caused by the genetic deficiency of coagulation factors VIII or IX. Despite treatment advances and improvements in clinical management to prevent bleeding, management of acute and chronic pain remains to be established. Repeated bleeding of the joints leads to arthropathy, causing pain in hemophilia. However, mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis of pain in hemophilia remain underexamined. Herein, we describe the novel perspectives on the role for oxidative stress in the periphery and the central nervous system that may contribute to pain in hemophilia. Specifically, we cross examine preclinical and clinical studies that address the contribution of oxidative stress in hemophilia and related diseases that affect synovial tissue to induce acute and potentially chronic pain. This understanding would help provide potential treatable targets using antioxidants to ameliorate pain in hemophilia.
Experimental Results on Pouring and Underwater Liquid Melt Spreading and Energetic Melt-coolant Interaction

In a hypothetical light water reactor (LWR) core-melt accident with corium release from the reactor vessel, the ultimate containment integrity is contingent on coolability of the decay-heated core debris. Pouring of melt into a pool of water located in the reactor cavity is considered in several designs of existing and new LWRs as a part of severe accident (SA) management strategies. At certain conditions of melt release into the pool (e.g. large ratio of the vessel breach size to the pool depth), liquid melt can spread under water and reach a coolable configuration. Coolability of the melt depends on decay heat generated per unit area of the spread melt which is directly proportional to the terminal spread thickness of the melt layer. Thus a success of the debris bed coolability depends on the efficacy of the molten core materials spreading which is limited by rapid solidification of the melt due to melt-coolant heat transfer. Among the factors which can reduce spreading effectiveness are heat and mass losses of the liquid melt due to fragmentation, cooling and solidification in the process of melt jet pouring into the pool. Previous extensive experimental and analytical works on liquid melt spreading and solidification were focused mostly on analysis of melt spreading in case of melt release through an inclined channel. Melt spreading under water as a result of a jet pouring into a pool, has not been addressed systematically. This paper summarizes first experimental results obtained in the frame of Pouring and Underwater Liquid Melt Spreading (PULiMS) research program. The work is an extension of previously reported by Kudinov et al. [1-4] studies on debris bed formation and agglomeration (DEFOR-A) phenomena. In contrast to DEFOR-A experiments, PULiMS exploratory tests (PULiMS-E) discussed in this work have been performed with a shallow (20 cm) water pool. Up to 78 kg of high melting temperature core melt simulant materials (eutectic mixtures of the binary oxides such as Bi 2 O 3 -WO 3 and ZrO 2 -WO 3 ) is used in each test. Initial melt superheat varied from 70 up to 300oC. In the paper we discuss: (i) experimental observations of the jet pouring into a shallow pool and underwater liquid melt spreading on a flat surface; (ii) characterization of solidified melt debris; (iii) key physical processes as well as melt material properties and experimental conditions most influencing the melt spreading and solidification phenomena. Produced experimental data can be used for validation of the models for prediction of the underwater liquid melt spreading in case of melt jet pouring in a shallow water pool.
Transformation of an Office Building into a Nearly Zero Energy Building (nZEB): Implications for Thermal and Visual Comfort and Energy Performance

Directive 2010/31/EU promotes the refurbishment of existing buildings to change them into nearly zero-energy buildings (nZEBs). Within this framework, it is of crucial importance to guarantee the best trade-off between energy performance and indoor environmental quality (IEQ). The implications of a global refurbishment scenario on thermal and visual comfort are assessed in this paper pertaining to an existing office building. The retrofit actions applied to achieve the nZEB target consist of a combination of envelope and technical building systems refurbishment measures, involving both HVAC and lighting. Energy and comfort calculations were carried out through dynamic simulation using Energy Plus and DIVA, for the thermal and visual performance assessments, respectively. The results point out that energy retrofit actions on the building envelope would lead to significant improvements in the thermal performance, regarding both energy savings (−37% of the annual primary energy for heating) and thermal comfort. However, a daylighting reduction would occur with a consequent higher electricity demand for lighting (36%). The research presents a detailed approach applicable to further analyses aimed at optimizing the energy efficiency measures in order to reduce the imbalance between visual and thermal comfort and to ensure the best performance in both domains.
Jordan isomorphisms of triangular rings

We investigate Jordan isomorphisms of triangular rings and give a sufficient condition under which they are necessarily isomorphisms or anti-isomorphisms. As corollaries we obtain generalizations of two recent results: the one concerning Jordan isomorphisms of triangular matrix algebras by Beidar, Bresar and Chebotar, and the one concerning Jordan isomorphisms of nest algebras by Lu.
Organizational and Epistemic Change: The Growth of the Art Investment Field

What can studying the creation of knowledge tell us about how new technical fields emerge and develop? This paper shows how a knowledge community may be necessary to support the legitimacy of new products that undergo performance evaluation before purchase. Using historical and ethnographic data covering half a century, we review the growth of the art investment field through an epistemic cultures lens. Technical knowledge about the financial characteristics of art has been developed alongside practical knowledge about how best to structure investment ventures. Investment venture success has been determined by legitimacy as much as by profitability, given durable expectations about the evaluation and monitoring of investments. The growth of knowledge, practices and tools was thus a necessary condition for the recognition of artwork as an asset class. Crucially, the epistemic cultures approach highlights deepening knowledge, resources and professional expertise, and their development through experimentation, failures and negative knowledge. This shows accounting issues contributing to technical field legitimacy and emergence, such as the role of knowledge production, valuation practices and receptive environments, and the distinction between legitimate investments that can be valued and investment venture profitability.
Fully Automatic Video Colorization With Self-Regularization and Diversity

We present a fully automatic approach to video colorization with self-regularization and diversity. Our model contains a colorization network for video frame colorization and a refinement network for spatiotemporal color refinement. Without any labeled data, both networks can be trained with self-regularized losses defined in bilateral and temporal space. The bilateral loss enforces color consistency between neighboring pixels in a bilateral space and the temporal loss imposes constraints between corresponding pixels in two nearby frames. While video colorization is a multi-modal problem, our method uses a perceptual loss with diversity to differentiate various modes in the solution space. Perceptual experiments demonstrate that our approach outperforms state-of-the-art approaches on fully automatic video colorization.
Reliability of the Modified Ashworth and Modified Tardieu Scales with Standardized Movement Speeds in Children with Spastic Cerebral Palsy

The Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS) and Modified Tardieu Scale (MTS) are widely used to quantify spasticity. However, the reliability of their use for ankle plantar flexors has been questioned. In this study, we aimed to examine whether their reliabilities could be increased to acceptable levels for ankle plantar flexors using standardized movement speed in children with spastic cerebral palsy. The MAS and MTS scores for 92 limbs were assessed by two raters on two occasions, 1 week apart. A metronome was used to maintain the stretching velocity at 120 beats per minute. The intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) of the intra-rater reliabilities of the MAS and MTS and inter-rater reliability of the MAS were over 0.7. However, the ICCs for the inter-rater reliability of the MTS were <0.7 and >0.75 for the gastrocnemius and soleus muscles, respectively. The ICCs for the inter- and intra-rater reliabilities of the R1 angles ranged from 0.68 to 0.84, while those of the R2 angles ranged from 0.74 to 0.93. The reliabilities of the R2-R1 angles were not satisfactory. In conclusion, with a standardized movement speed, the reliability of the MAS for the ankle plantar flexors and the MTS for the soleus were satisfactory; however, that of the MTS for the gastrocnemius was not.
THE ε -STRATEGY IN VARIATIONAL ANALYSIS: ILLUSTRATION WITH THE CLOSED CONVEXIFICATION OF A FUNCTION

In this work, we concentrate our interest and eﬀorts on general variational (or optimization) problems which do not have solutions necessarily, but which do have approximate solutions (or solutions within ε > 0). We shall see how to recover all the (exact) minimizers of the relaxed version of the original problem (by closed-convexiﬁcation of the objective function) in terms of the ε -minimizers of the original problem. Applications to two approximation problems in a Hilbert space setting will be shown.
Cells as Tensegrity Structures : Architectural Basis of the Cytoskeleton

Mechanotransduction the cellular response to mechanical stress is governed by the cytoskeleton (CSK), a network composed of different types of biopolymers that mechanically stabilizes the cell and actively generates contractile forces. To carry out certain behaviors (e.g., crawling, spreading, division, invasion), cells must modify their CSK to become highly deformable, whereas in order to maintain their structural integrity when mechanically loaded, the CSK must behave like an elastic solid. Over two decades ago, a model of the cell based on tensegrity architectur was introduced. The model proposes that prestress in the CSK is critical for cell shape stability. Key to this model is the concept that this stabilizing tensile prestress results from a complementary force balance between multiple, discrete, molecular support elements, including microfilaments, intermediate filaments and microtubules in the CSK, as well as external adhesions to the extracellular matrix and to neighboring cells. In this chapter, we review progress in the area of cellular tensegrity, including the mechanistic basis of the tensegrity model, and development of theoretical formulations of this model that have led to multiple a priori predictions relating to cell mechanical behaviors which have been confirmed in experimental studies with living cells.
On the Autocorrelation of Growth Rates Evidence for Micro, Small and Large Firms from the Austrian Service Industries, 1975–2004

This paper studies the serial autocorrelation of annual growth rates in employment for selected Austrian service industries over a 30-year period using quantile regression techniques. The autocorrelation of growth rates provides important information on firms growth processes. We find that the growth patterns of micro firms are strikingly different from the growth patterns of small, medium-sized and larger firms. First, we do find a positive dependency of growth on size for growing micro firms, while this relationship is negative for the other size groups. Second, growing micro firms are subject to negative autocorrelation of annual growth rates making sustained growth a very rate occurrence, while larger growing firms usually display a positive autocorrelation suggesting that high growth episodes of larger firms stretch over a longer time horizon. This indicates that the growth of micro firms in particular is characterized by a rather lumpy growth profile. Furthermore, we find that the autocorrelation patterns are asymmetric with regard to decline and growth.
The minimum flow rate scaling of Taylor cone-jets issued from a nozzle

A minimum flow rate is required to maintain steady Taylor cone-jets issued from an electrified nozzle. This letter reports that the well-known scaling law proportional to the charge relaxation time and independent of the nozzle diameter is only applicable to lowly viscous systems. For highly viscous systems with rapid viscous diffusion, the cone-jet transitional region spans a length scale comparable to the nozzle diameter; the minimum flow rate appears to be proportional to the capillary-viscous velocity and the cross-sectional area of the nozzle, but independent of the liquid conductivity.
Optimisation of process parameter conditions for biodiesel production by reactive extraction of jatropha seeds

Biodiesel can be produced by reactive extraction of jatropha seeds to reduce the cost and processing time associated with conventional methods. In this study, the relationship between various parameters of reactive extraction of jatropha seeds is investigated. The effect of processing time, the moisture content of jatropha seeds and hexane to oil weight ratios are examined to determine the best performance for biodiesel yield. Response surface methodology was used to statistically evaluate and optimise the process parameter conditions. It was found that the biodiesel production achieved an optimum biodiesel yield of 73.7% under the following conditions: processing time of 160 min, moisture content of jatropha seeds of 1% and hexane to oil weight ratio of 7.2.
ANTIMICROBIAL AND ANTIHELMINTHIC PROPERTIES OF SHEA BUTTER

The phytochemical, antimicrobial and antihelminthic screening of the crude extract of three types of Vitellaria paradoxa (shea butter) was investigated in this study. The crude extracts were dissolved in di-methylsulfoxide. The phytochemical constituents of the crude extracts were accessed and compared. Clinical isolates under aseptic conditions were collected from the Medical Microbiology Laboratory, University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital and further morphological and biochemical tests were carried out to identify this clinical isolates as; Staphylococcus sp. , Escherichia sp. , Pseudomonas sp. , Klebsiella sp. , Streptococcus sp and Candida sp. Inoculums were prepared and adjusted to 0.5ml Mc Farland standard of each test bacterium. It was spread onto sterile Muller Hinton Agar plates so as to achieve even growth. The plates were allowed to dry and a sterile cork borer (6.0mm diameter) was used to bore wells in the agar plates. Ofloxacine and Fluconazole was used as bacteria and fungi control respectively. The crude yellow extracts exhibited inhibitory activities that were found to be higher than crude white and ivory colored extract on all the test organisms. Despite the crude yellow extract exhibited higher inhibitory activities than the other extracts; the antibacterial activity was low in 10 -1 to 10 -4 dilutions for some bacteria. The crude extracts revealed the presence of Alkaloids, flavonoids, Cardiac glycosides, saponnin, and carbohydrates. Anthraquinnone and phlobatannin were absent in the extracts. This study also revealed that shea butter has no anti-helminth effect after 24hours exposure of the eggs of Ascaris lumbricoides and Trichuris trichuria in the shea oil sample rather; the DMSO used as control killed the eggs. This calls for further investigation.
Pain, Stiffness and Functional Capacity Associated with Kinesiophobia in Patients with Knee Osteoarthritis, Hospital Nacional Hipolito

Introduction: The progressive and chronic characteristics of knee osteoarthritis imply the presence of symptoms, such as pain, stiffness, and functional capacity difficulty to varying degrees. However, associated psychosocial phenomena, such as kinesiophobia, may also arise, impeding the patient’s recovery. The aim of this study is to determine the association among pain, stiffness, functional capacity, and kinesiophobia in patients with knee osteoarthritis at Hospital Nacional Hipolito Unanue, Peru, in the first two months of 2020. Materials and methods: An observational, correlational, study was conducted on 88 patients with knee osteoarthritis who were selected by census sampling. The Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index questionnaire and the Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia were used to measure pain, stiffness, functional capacity and kinesiophobia, respectively. Pearson’s chi-square test (p < 0.01) was used for bivariate analysis. Results: The results showed a mean age of 66.38 years and a higher frequency in the female sex (68.2 %), current occupation without physical workload (56.8 %), secondary level education (40.9 %), time of illness of 1–5 years (51.1 %), bilateral lower limb involvement (68.18 %), moderate pain (51.1 %), moderate stiffness (51.1 %), functional capacity dif-ficulties (61.4 %), and a high level of kinesiophobia (60.2 %). A relationship was found between the variables of pain, stiffness, and functional capacity associated with kinesiophobia (0.000). Conclusions: Pain, stiffness, and functional capacity are associated with kinesiophobia in patients with knee osteoarthritis. The degree of symptomatology increases with the increasing level of kinesiophobia.
BIOPESTICIDE EFFICACY AGAINST MAIN PESTS, DISEASES, AND NATURAL ENEMIES OF MUNGBEAN ( VIGNA RADIATA L.)

Synthetic pesticides are not effectively controlling pests and diseases of mungbean in Indonesia. The objective of this study was to examine the inundation of various types of biopesticides in controlling the main pests and diseases, and their impact on natural enemies in mungbean. The study consisted of five treatments namely P1 = preventive biopesticide ( Trichoderma harzianum , neem seed powder ( Azadirachta indica ), Spodoptera litura Nuclear Polyhedrosis Virus, Beauveria bassiana , and galangal rhizome extract) inundation, P2 = biopesticide application based on control threshold (CT), P3 = scheduled synthetic pesticide application, P4 = synthetic pesticide application based on CT, and P5 = without control. The results showed that P1 inundation reduced the population of 11 types of mungbean pests. The P1 treatment had the same efficacy as the P3 treatment. Scheduled and inundated application of biopesticides maintained the survival of natural enemies Oxyopes sp. , Paederus sp. , Coccinella sp. , Andrallus sp. , Sycanus sp. and the parasitoids Trichogramma sp. , Telenomus sp. , and Apantheles sp. Synthetic pesticides on schedule or based on control threshold killed the entire population of natural enemies. Preventive application of biopesticides could be recommended for controlling the main pests and diseases of mungbean as well as an alternative to synthetic pesticides.
Anxiety, Depression, and Other Emotional Disorders during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Narrative Review of the Risk Factors and Risk Groups

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected many aspects of our lives, including mental health. Identifying risk factors and risk groups associated with anxiety, depression, and other emotional disorders for reasons related to the COVID-19 pandemic is highly relevant. This narrative review aims to summarize the evidence to date on risk factors for emotional disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic in order to identify the risk groups of people in need of early psychiatric and psychological assistance, point out the controversial data on the influence of risk factors on emotional disorders in COVID-19, and finally offer recommendations for alleviating symptoms of anxiety, depression, and other emotional disorders in such people. According to the current literature, being under the age of 40, being female, having contact with a COVID-infected person, and watching the news about COVID-19 for more than 3 h a day all increase the likelihood of anxiety, depression, and sleep disturbances. Healthcare workers, particularly nurses, working in the COVID-19 hot zone suffer more from sleep disorders, anxiety, and depression. It is also noted that people with a previous psychiatric history, in addition to increased risks of anxiety and depression, have an increased risk of relapse during the COVID-19 pandemic. The same is true for people who have had episodes of substance abuse in the past. Aside from socioeconomic factors, the mental wellbeing of those who have had COVID-19 is also impacted by biological factors (using anti-COVID-19 drugs, COVID-19-associated immunothrombosis and venous thromboembolism, interferon-gamma-related cytokine storm, etc.), resulting in a wide range of acute and long-term cognitive disorders. During the restricted resource time, the aforementioned risk groups should be prioritized for prevention, early identification, and proper treatment of potential emotional disorders. The risk factors that were found in this narrative review, as well as how they interact and change over time, will help understand why some studies of at-risk groups do not agree with each other, justify new preventive measures, and strengthen existing programs to keep people's mental health in check during this pandemic and other emergencies.