Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Measurement of Economic Distance Between Blacks and Whites

This article proposes new distribution-free methods for estimating the economic distance (advantage) between one group and another, especially for interval-to-interval comparisons, which can be more informative than a single aggregative measure. Novel techniques for computing projected quantiles, smoothing of empirical cumulative distribution functions, maximum entropy methods for finding the upper bound of the richest income interval, and statistical confidence intervals are described and applied to black-white income differences in 1967 and 1979.
Onset of Convection in Liquids Subjected to Transient Heating from Below

Experimental studies have been made of the onset of natural convection in liquids subjected to heating from below while insulated above. The temperature gradient necessary for convection to start was measured with a thermopile immersed in the liquid. When the liquids were not rotating, it was found that the temperature difference between the top and bottom surfaces required to initiate convection can be related with the heat input by the formula Ra=90.7 (Ra·Nu)0.394, Ra>1700, where Ra is the Rayleigh number, and Nu is the Nusselt number, both specially defined for the transient case. Mercury and silicone oil were used in the experiments without rotation. It was found in experiments with mercury, that in the range of Taylor numbers covered, the presence of spin increased the temperature difference required to initiate convection. The Rayleigh number necessary for the onset of fluid motion in spinning mercury is plotted as a function of the Taylor number for several values of the heat flux.
Propagation characteristics of the magnetostatic surface wave in the YBCO-YIG film-layered structure

Propagation characteristics of the magnetostatic surface wave (MSSW) in a YBa/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub 7-x/ (YBCO)-yttrium iron garnet (YIG) multilayered structure are investigated. Effects of the superconductor on the MSSW are discussed with regard to the dispersion characteristics of both the phase and attenuation constants as a function of the air gap, between YIG and YBCO, taking into consideration the magnetic line-width of the YIG film. It was found that the nonreciprocity of MSSW is enhanced significantly by the superconductivity and depends on the magnetic line-width of the YIG film. To examine the effect of a YBCO on the MSSW propagation, experiments are carried out using a commercially available YIG film. Magnetic losses at low temperature are briefly discussed with experimentally observed nonreciprocity.
Micromechanical properties of silica aerogels

Aerogels are nanostructured highly porous solids that present properties which are very different from other materials, i.e., extremely low densities. In this letter, the mechanical properties of aerogels have been studied with a nondestructive microindentation technique. This technique enables the continuous measurement of load-displacement curves during loading and unloading cycles by using very small indentation loads (∼1 mN), small enough to prevent cracking of the aerogels. The samples studied show two different types of mechanical behaviors; the low-density aerogels are elastic, while the denser aerogels behave as elastoplastic materials. Young’s modulus, hardness, and the elastic parameter have been evaluated for these aerogel samples. Power function relationships have been found between these mechanical parameters and the aerogel densities.
Line profile characteristics of solar explosive event bursts

The spatial structure and temporal evolution of explosive events are explored using spectral observations of the $\ion{Si}{iv}$ 1393 A line obtained with the Solar Ultraviolet Measurements of Emitted Radiation spectrograph (SUMER). Three areas of quiet Sun near disk center, $8\arcsec\times120\arcsec$ each, were rastered with a cadence of less than 1 min for a period of over half an hour. Events were identified by a non-Gaussian excess in the blue and/or red wings of the line. We found 21 sites where events re-occur. The sites are clustered near regions of evolving network fields seen in low resolution Michelson Doppler Imager (MDI) magnetic field images. Events tend to expand and shrink across the surface with a speed $\sim 25$ km s -1 . Individual events were also seen to move at this speed across the solar surface. Consecutive events often have different line profile characteristics and sizes, suggesting changes in the structure of the accelerated plasma from event to event. In the majority of events, blue and red wing brightenings do not produce a simultaneous line intensity increase. Also, the red and blue wing emission is mostly co-spatial implying either non-directed flow or jets orientated along the line-of-sight (i.e. out from and towards the solar surface). The explosive events within a burst are in some cases separated by 3-5 min, suggesting that oscillations, which are known to have such periods, may play a role in triggering the individual events of a burst.
Tuning the graphene work function by uniaxial strain

Forming good metal/graphene contact is of significance in making graphene devices, while tuning the graphene work function is a valid approach to decrease the contact barrier and then achieve electrodes with low contact resistance. A strain device has been fabricated to apply uniaxial strain to graphene grown by chemical vapor deposition method, and Kelvin probe force microscopy was used to measure the work function of the graphene under strain. The work function of the graphene is found to increase as strain increases. By applying a uniaxial strain of 7%, the work function can be adjusted as large as 0.161 eV. Such a result can be explained by strain induced increase of the density of states in graphene.
Clusters in collision

We have determined the positions of the optical and X-ray centers in 13 rich galaxy clusters studied by Dressler. We tested the accuracy and precision of four methods for determining cluster centers: nearest-neighbor density, mean, median, and density-weighted mean; the last two proved superior. With the use of bootstrap resampling to obtain accurate confidence intervals on the positions of the centers, we have quantified the significance of the X-ray/optical offsets. Insignificant offsets were found in Abell 119, 154, 376, 400, 539, 1656, 1991, 2063, and 2634
Distributed susceptibility: A challenge to persistence theory in infectious disease models

We consider an S-I(-R) type infectious disease model where the susceptibles differ by their susceptibility to infection. This model presents several challenges. Even existence and uniqueness of solutions is non-trivial. Further it is difficult to linearize about the disease-free equilibrium in a rigorous way. This makes disease persistence a necessary alternative to linearized instability in the superthreshold case. Application of dynamical systems persistence theory faces the difficulty of finding a compact attracting set. One can work around this obstacle by using integral equations and limit equations making it the special case of a persistence theory where the state space is just a set.
3D analysis for pit evolution and pit-to-crack transition during corrosion fatigue

This paper presents a deterministic model to predict the pit evolving morphology and crack initiation life of corrosion fatigue. Based on the semi-ellipsoidal pit assumption, the thermodynamic potential including elastic energy, surface energy and electrochemical energy of the cyclically stressed solid with an evolving pit is established, from which specific parameters that control the pit evolution are introduced and their influence on the pit evolution are evaluated. The critical pit size for crack nucleation is obtained from stress intensity factor criterion and the crack nucleation life is evaluated by Faraday’s law. Meanwhile, this paper presents a numerical example to verify the proposed model and investigate the influence of cyclic load on the corrosion fatigue crack nucleation life. The corrosion pit appears approximately as a hemisphere in its early formation, and it gradually transits from semicircle to ellipsoid. The strain energy accelerates the morphology evolution of the pit, while the surface energy decelerates it. The higher the stress amplitude is, the smaller the critical pit size is and the shorter the crack initiation life is.
Association of Dietary α-Carotene and β-Carotene Intake with Low Cognitive Performance in Older Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

This study aims to examine the relationships of dietary α-carotene and β-carotene intake with cognitive function. The data were selected from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2011–2014. A total of 2009 participants were included in this analysis. Dietary α-carotene and β-carotene intake were averaged by two 24-h dietary recalls. The Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer’s Disease Word Learning subset (CERAD W-L), Animal Fluency Test (AFT), and Digit Symbol Substitution Test (DSST) were used to evaluate cognitive function. Logistic regression and restricted cubic spline models were applied to explore the associations of dietary α-carotene and β-carotene intake with cognitive performance. After adjusting for all confounding factors, compared with individuals in the lowest quartile of β-carotene dietary intake, those in the highest quartile had lower risks of both CERAD W-L decline [odds ratio (OR) = 0.63, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.44–0.90] and AFT decline (OR = 0.66, 95% CI: 0.47–0.94). In addition, the third quartile of β-carotene dietary intake had a significantly decreased risk of lower DSST (OR = 0.67, 95% CI: 0.48–0.83). Compared with the lowest quartile of α-carotene intake, the OR of AFT decline in the highest intake quartile was 0.66 (95% CI: 0.46, 0.94). For males, both dietary α-carotene and β-carotene intake were associated with a decreased risk of AFT decline (OR = 0.42, 95% CI: 0.25–0.71; OR = 0.51, 95% CI: 0.30–0.85, respectively). For females, dietary α-carotene intake was associated with a decreased risk of CERAD W-L decline (OR = 0.55, 95% CI: 0.33–0.91) and dietary β-carotene intake was associated with decreased risks of both CERAD W-L and AFT decline (OR = 0.37, 95% CI: 0.21–0.64; OR = 0.58, 95% CI: 0.37–0.91, respectively). Our results suggested that higher dietary α-carotene and β-carotene intake had inverse effects on cognitive function decline among older adults.
Metabolomic Profiling in Patients with Different Hemodynamic Subtypes of Severe Aortic Valve Stenosis

Severe aortic stenosis (AS) is a common pathological condition in an ageing population imposing significant morbidity and mortality. Based on distinct hemodynamic features, i.e., ejection fraction (EF), transvalvular gradient and stroke volume, four different AS subtypes can be distinguished: (i) normal EF and high gradient, (ii) reduced EF and high gradient, (iii) reduced EF and low gradient, and (iv) normal EF and low gradient. These subtypes differ with respect to pathophysiological mechanisms, cardiac remodeling, and prognosis. However, little is known about metabolic changes in these different hemodynamic conditions of AS. Thus, we carried out metabolomic analyses in serum samples of 40 AS patients (n = 10 per subtype) and 10 healthy blood donors (controls) using ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectroscopy. A total of 1293 biochemicals could be identified. Principal component analysis revealed different metabolic profiles in all of the subgroups of AS (All-AS) vs. controls. Out of the determined biochemicals, 48% (n = 620) were altered in All-AS vs. controls (p < 0.05). In this regard, levels of various acylcarnitines (e.g., myristoylcarnitine, fold-change 1.85, p < 0.05), ketone bodies (e.g., 3-hydroxybutyrate, fold-change 11.14, p < 0.05) as well as sugar metabolites (e.g., glucose, fold-change 1.22, p < 0.05) were predominantly increased, whereas amino acids (e.g., leucine, fold-change 0.8, p < 0.05) were mainly reduced in All-AS. Interestingly, these changes appeared to be consistent amongst all AS subtypes. Distinct differences between AS subtypes were found for metabolites belonging to hemoglobin metabolism, diacylglycerols, and dihydrosphingomyelins. These findings indicate that relevant changes in substrate utilization appear to be consistent for different hemodynamic subtypes of AS and may therefore reflect common mechanisms during AS-induced heart failure. Additionally, distinct metabolites could be identified to significantly differ between certain AS subtypes. Future studies need to define their pathophysiological implications.
Airborne multispectral detecting system for marine mammals survey

This work presents an electro-optical multispectral capability that detects and monitors marine mammals. It is a continuance of Whale Search Radar SBIR program funded by PMA-264 through NAVAIR. A lightweight, multispectral, turreted imaging system is designed for airborne and ship based platforms to detect and monitor marine mammals. The system tests were conducted over the Humpback whale breeding and calving area in Maui, Hawaii. The results of the tests and the system description are presented. The development of an automatic whale detection algorithm is discussed as well as methodology used to turn raw survey data into quantifiable data products.
High resolution CCD spectra of stars in globular clusters. VIII: The self-enrichment history of Omega Centauri

We have analyzed six stars in Omega Cen whose [Fe/H] values range from −1.25 to −2.25. The abundances of ten elements from carbon to iron have been determined. Their wide range in metallicity allow us to trace the cluster's enrichment of various elements as the iron abundance increased from 1/180 solar to 1/20 solar. As in metal-poor field stars, [O/Fe] and [α/Fe] ≃ +0.5 over the observed range of metallicity. Contrary to what is seen in field stars, but in agreement with data for other globular clusters, [Na/Fe] and [Al/Fe] ≃ +0.5 over the observed range of [Fe/H]. Thus the odd-even effect in which Na and Al follow iron does not seem to exist in globular cluster stars
Some Statistical Properties of Surface Heights Via Remote Sensing

Abstract Relationships to obtain information concerning some statistical properties of surface heights from statistical properties of the intensities in the image, via remote sensing, are presented. The expressions between variances of the intensity in the image and surface heights are derived. The association between correlation functions of the intensities in the image and surface heights is numerically analysed for studying the conditions under which inverse process is possible. The results are shown graphically in surfaces with height variations in one and two dimensions.
Novel Compact Meta-Material Tunable Quasi Elliptic Band-Pass Filter Using Microstrip to Slotline Transition

In this contribution, a compact ultra wideband band-pass filter with low insertion loss and good rejection using semi complementary split ring resonator is introduced. The 3.0 dB bandwidth is 2.9–8.2 GHz. The minimum and maximum insertion losses in passband are about 0.35 and 1.4 dB at frequencies of 5.4 GHz and 4 GHz respectively in measurement. The bandwidth is tunable via changing the upper 1.0 dB cutoff frequency from 5.0 to 9.0 GHz. The dimensions of this filter (excluding access line for connectors) are about 7.2 × 7.2 mm2. The proposed filter is classified in DGS filters group without their problems such as radiation fields from DGS and requiring specific box. In addition, this filter can be used as conventional microstrip filters in commercial and military RF boards. Low-loss and compact behaviors in most frequency of pass-band are interpreted due to the presence of simultaneously negative εeff and μeff , and then left-handed wave propagation is permitted.
A Short Derivation of the Kuhn-Tucker Conditions

The Kuhn-Tucker conditions have been used to derive many significant results in economics. However, thus far, their derivation has been a little bit troublesome. The author directly derives the Kuhn-Tucker conditions by applying a corollary of Farkas's lemma under the Mangasarian-Fromovitz constraint qualification.
Exact analytic solutions for diffusion impeded by an infinite array of partially permeable barriers

We give an exact solution for the macroscopic diffusion of particles in one dimension impeded by any set of plane, parallel partially permeable barriers. Explicit results are given for one barrier, and for an infinite system of uniformly spaced barriers, for any initial position of the particles. This model can be generalized from slits to square tubes, to cubic pores, etc., and is proposed as a convenient model, with disposable parameters, for fitting to experiment. Various convenient and physically illuminating approximations are discussed. An alternative, and sometimes more convenient, way of computing the exact solution for complicated systems of pores is also given.
Institutionalizing Voluntary Blood Donation: Explaining the Cross-National Variance in the Approval of Paid Blood or Plasma Donation in Europe

Inspired by the analytical shift toward understanding altruism from an institutional perspective, this article presents an empirical analysis of the impact of institutionalized solidarity on attitudes toward payment for blood or plasma donations, in terms of both the level of welfare provision and confidence in the welfare system. Postulating that institutionalized solidarity is intertwined with group-based solidarity, this article offers a more refined understanding of the relationship between institutional context and attitudes toward paid donation by incorporating measures of social cohesion in the analysis. Based on Eurobarometer data from 2014, the results indicate that support for cash payment for donation is lower in European countries where social spending is higher. Similarly, aggregated levels of trust in the social security system are associated with less support for payment for donation. These findings point to the importance of institutionalized solidarity for the manifestation of support for non-remunerated blood and plasma donation.
Association Between Rheumatic Autoantibodies and Immune-Related Adverse Events

Abstract Background Side effects of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), called immune-related adverse events (irAEs), closely resemble primary autoimmune or rheumatic diseases. We aimed to understand the clinical utility of rheumatic autoantibodies (rhAbs) for diagnosing irAEs. Patients and Methods Patients without pre-existing autoimmune disease (pAID) who had cancer treated with ICI(s) treatment from 1/1/2011 to 12/21/2020 and a rhAb checked were retrospectively identified. Logistic regression assessed associations between autoantibodies and irAEs, cancer outcome, and survival. Specificity, sensitivity, and positive/negative predictive values (PPV, NPV) were estimated for key rhAbs and ICI-arthritis. Kaplan-Meier analyzed objective response rate (ORR) and overall survival (OS). Results A total of 2662 patients were treated with≥1 ICIs. One hundred and thirty-five without pAID had ≥ 1 rhAb tested. Of which 70/135(52%) were female; median age at cancer diagnosis was 62 years with most common cancers: melanoma (23%) or non–small cell lung cancer (21%), 96/135 (75%) were anti-PD1/PDL1 treated. Eighty had a rhAb ordered before ICI, 96 after ICI, and 12 before and after. Eighty-two (61%) experienced an irAE, 33 (24%) with rheumatic-irAE. Pre-ICI RF showed significant association with rheumatic-irAEs (OR = 25, 95% CI, 1.52-410.86, P = .024). Pre– and post–ICI RF yielded high specificity for ICI-arthritis (93% and 78%), as did pre– and post–ICI CCP (100% and 91%). Pre–ICI RF carried 93% NPV and pre–ICI CCP had 89% PPV for ICI-arthritis. No variables were significantly correlated with ORR. Any-type irAE, rheumatic-irAE and ICI-arthritis were all associated with better OS (P = .000, P = .028, P = .019). Conclusions Pre–ICI RF was associated with higher odds of rheumatic-irAEs. IrAEs had better OS; therefore, clinical contextualization for rhAbs is critical to prevent unnecessary withholding of lifesaving ICI for fear of irAEs.
Natural Convection in Parabolic Enclosure Heated from Below

The effects of vertical parabolic walls on natural convection in a parabolic enclosure have investigated numerically in this paper. The bottom wall is heated isothermally, while the other vertical parabolic walls are maintained at constant cold temperature and the top wall is well insulated. The flow and temperature fields are studied numerically for three values (C = 0.1, 0.5, 1.0) of the parabolic equation constant. The laminar flow field is analyzed numerically by solving the steady, two-dimensional incompressible Navier-Stokes and energy equations. The Cartesian velocity components and pressure on a collocated (non-staggered) grid are used as dependent variables in the momentum equations, which discretized by finite volume method, body fitted coordinates are used to represent the complex parabolic wall geometry accurately, and grid generation technique based on elliptic partial differential equations is employed. SIMPLE algorithm is used to adjust the velocity field to satisfy the conservation of mass. The range of Rayleigh number is (10 3 ? Ra ? 10 5 ) and Prandtl number is 0.7. The results show that the heat transfer rates decrease with increase the parabolic equation constant.
Global Perspective on Tourism-Economic Growth Nexus: The Role of Tourism Market Diversification

ABSTRACT The tourism industry is well-known as a powerful driver of the economic growth of destinations. However, socio-political and financial fluctuations in the countries of origin and destination make the tourism industry more volatile and less beneficial to economic growth. The tourism market diversification (TMD) strategy supports the stabilizing of the industry and spurs the economic growth of destinations via several channels, e.g. minimizing the risk of over-dependence on one market and stabilization the number of foreign tourists and tourism receipts. We analyzed the effects of the TMD strategy on the economic growth of 75 destinations over the period 1995-2018. By applying the dynamic system GMM estimator, we found that the TMD strategy accelerates the economic growth of destinations. Our results are robust regarding different samples of countries. The growth effect of the TMD on the low and lower-middle-income groups is significantly higher than on the high and upper-middle groups.
Beam deposition model for energetic electron transport in inertial fusion: Theory and initial results

A new model is proposed for calculation of the effect of energetic electron transport in inertial fusion. Regions of large temperature gradient are approximated as sources of monoenergetic electron beams which then scatter and deposit their energy in the plasma. For short mean free path, one recovers the classical theory. In regions of high temperature gradient, the model seems to describe nonlocal heat deposition and flux inhibition in qualitatively the same way as much more cumbersome Fokker–Planck simulations. Furthermore, the model contains virtually no free parameters. Finally the effect of this nonlocal deposition and flux inhibition is calculated for laser pellets imploded with Megajoule class lasers.
An integral equation approach to the periodic steady-state problem in nonlinear circuits

The problem of efficiently determining the periodic steady-state solution of a lightly damped nonlinear circuit is treated in an integral equation context. Three relaxation algorithms are suggested for this purpose. These are compared and contrasted with the previously published time-domain methods. In a standard example, the techniques yielded equal or better results. <<ETX>>