Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Direct numerical simulation of turbulent flow over riblets

Direct numerical simulations of turbulent flows over riblet-mounted surfaces are performed to educe the mechanism of drag reduction by riblets. The computed drag on the riblet surfaces is in good agreement with the existing experimental data. The mean-velocity profiles show upward and downward shifts in the log–law for drag-decreasing and drag-increasing cases, respectively. Turbulence statistics above the riblets are computed and compared with those above a flat plate. Differences in the mean-velocity profile and turbulence quantities are found to be limited to the inner region of the boundary layer. Velocity and vorticity fluctuations as well as the Reynolds shear stresses above the riblets are reduced in drag-reducing configurations. Quadrant analysis indicates that riblets mitigate the positive Reynolds-shear-stress-producing events in drag-reducing configurations. From examination of the instantaneous flow fields, a drag reduction mechanism by riblets is proposed: riblets with small spacings reduce viscous drag by restricting the location of the streamwise vortices above the wetted surface such that only a limited area of the riblets is exposed to the downwash of high-speed fluid that the vortices induce.
Does PBL improve own apprenticeship abilities’ development and subject’s overcoming? The reality behind students’ professional success

ABSTRACT Prior research has suggested that Project Based Learning (PBL) may affect students’ performance. Nevertheless, there has been a lack of empirical studies that have examined these relationships specially, in Bachelor’s Degrees and Master’s degrees. This research empirically examines whether PBL improves Own apprenticeship abilities’ development as well as promotes Students’ subject overcoming and their Professional success using data from 65 Spanish University students. Results of this study show that using PBL methodology in lessons enhances the students’ own apprenticeship abilities’ development. These results demonstrate the power of over students’ subject overcoming and their professional success. They display that students’ subject overcoming may play a mediating role in the relationship between PBL and students’ professional success. Moreover, these results cover an existing gap in literature, since there is no empirical literature that has tried to link as a whole PBL, Own apprenticeship abilities’ development, Students’ subject’s overcoming and their Professional success.
Educational video while “waiting-to-be-seen” in a cardiology outpatient clinic promotes opt-in self-consent for biobanking of remnant clinical biospecimens: A randomized-controlled trial

Abstract Objectives: Consenting donors for remnant clinical biospecimen donation is critical for scaling research biorepositories. Opt-in, low-cost, self-consenting for donations that solely relied on clinical staff and printed materials was recently shown to yield ∼30% consent rate. We hypothesized that adding an educational video to this process would improve consent rates. Methods: Randomized patients (by clinic day) in a Cardiology clinic received either printed materials (control) or the same materials plus an educational video on donations (intervention) while waiting to be seen. Engaged patients were surveyed at the clinic checkout for an “opt-in” or “opt-out” response. The decision was documented digitally in the electronic medical record. The primary outcome of this study was the consent rate. Results: Thirty-five clinic days were randomized to intervention (18) or control (17). Three hundred and fifty-five patients were engaged, 217 in the intervention and 158 in the control. No significant demographic differences were noted between treatment groups. Following an intention-to-treat analysis, the rate of opt-in for remnant biospecimen donation was 53% for the intervention and 41% for the control group (p-value = 0.03). This represents a 62% increase in the odds of consenting (OR = 1.62, 95% CI = 1.05–2.5). Conclusion: This is the first randomized trial showing that an educational video is superior to printed materials alone when patients are self-consenting for remnant biospecimen donation. This result adds to the evidence that efficient and effective consenting processes can be integrated into clinical workflows to advance universal consenting in medical research.
The Rich Have a Slight Edge: Evidence from Comparative Data on Income-Based Inequality in Policy Congruence

Several recent studies have found unequal policy responsiveness, meaning that the policy preferences of high-income citizens are better reflected in implemented policies than the policy preferences of low-income citizens. This has been found mainly in a few studies from the US and a small number of single-country studies from Western Europe. However, there is a lack of comparative studies that stake out the terrain across a broader group of countries. We analyze survey data on the policy preferences of about 3,000 policy proposals from thirty European countries over nearly forty years, combined with information on whether each policy proposal was implemented or not. The results from the cross-country data confirm the general pattern from previous studies that policies supported by the rich are more likely to be implemented than those supported by the poor. We also test four explanations commonly found in the literature: whether unequal responsiveness is exacerbated by (a) high economic inequality, (b) the absence of campaign finance regulations, (c) low union density, and (d) low voter turnout.
Internal validation of an improved system for forensic application: a 41-plex Y-STR panel

Abstract Y-chromosome short tandem repeats (Y-STRs) have a unique role in forensic investigation. However, low–medium mutating Y-STRs cannot meet the requirements for male lineage differentiation in inbred populations, whereas rapidly mutating (RM) high-resolution Y-STRs might cause unexpected exclusion of paternal lineages. Thus, combining Y-STRs with low and high mutation rates helps to distinguish male individuals and lineages in family screening and analysis of genetic relationships. In this study, a novel 6-dye, 41-plex Y-STR panel was developed and validated, which included 17 loci from the Yfiler kit, nine RM Y-STR loci, 15 low–medium mutating Y-STR loci, and three Y-InDels. Developmental validation was performed for this panel, including size precision testing, stutter analysis, species specificity analysis, male specificity testing, sensitivity testing, concordance evaluation, polymerase chain reaction inhibitors analysis, and DNA mixture examination. The results demonstrated that the novel 41-plex Y-STR panel, developed in-house, was time efficient, accurate, and reliable. It showed good adaptability to directly amplify a variety of case-type samples. Furthermore, adding multiple Y-STR loci significantly improved the system’s ability to distinguish related males, making it highly informative for forensic applications. In addition, the data obtained were compatible with the widely used Y-STR kits, facilitating the search and construction of population databases. Moreover, the addition of Y-Indels with short amplicons improves the analyses of degraded samples. Key Points A novel multiplex comprising 41 Y-STR and 3 Y-InDel was developed for forensic application. The multiplex included rapidly mutating Y-STRs and low–medium mutating Y-STRs, which is compatible with many commonly used Y-STR kits. The multiplex is a powerful tool for distinguishing related males, familial searching, and constructing DNA databases.
How Does Social Media Influencer Credibility Blow the Promotional Horn? A Dual Mediation Model

Abstract The ability of social media influencers (SMIs) to shape their followers’ intentions to purchase the recommended brands (IPB) by creating content on social media platforms is critical. This has received little attention in influencer marketing literature. Drawing on source credibility theory, this study investigates the dual mediation of emotional attachment (EA) and influence of presumed influence (IPI) in the relationship between SMIs’ credibility and followers’ IPB in the Pakistani fashion context. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data from 346 social media users. PLS-SEM results revealed that SMIs’ credibility does have a negative influence on IPB. However, SMIs’ credibility is positively related to both EA and IPI. Furthermore, EA and IPI fully mediated the relationship between SMIs’ credibility and IPB. This research deepened knowledge about the phenomenon of followers’ emotional bonding with SMIs. This paper also offers valuable theoretical and practical implications for academics and practitioners in the fashion industry.
The Role of BDNF as a Biomarker in Cognitive and Sensory Neurodegeneration

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) has a crucial function in the central nervous system and in sensory structures including olfactory and auditory systems. Many studies have highlighted the protective effects of BDNF in the brain, showing how it can promote neuronal growth and survival and modulate synaptic plasticity. On the other hand, conflicting data about BDNF expression and functions in the cochlear and in olfactory structures have been reported. Several clinical and experimental research studies showed alterations in BDNF levels in neurodegenerative diseases affecting the central and peripheral nervous system, suggesting that BDNF can be a promising biomarker in most neurodegenerative conditions, including Alzheimer’s disease, shearing loss, or olfactory impairment. Here, we summarize current research concerning BDNF functions in brain and in sensory domains (olfaction and hearing), focusing on the effects of the BDNF/TrkB signalling pathway activation in both physiological and pathological conditions. Finally, we review significant studies highlighting the possibility to target BDNF as a biomarker in early diagnosis of sensory and cognitive neurodegeneration, opening new opportunities to develop effective therapeutic strategies aimed to counteract neurodegeneration.
Rotational Properties of Two-Component Bose Gases

We study the rotational properties of a two-component Bose gas trapped in a rotating harmonic potential, effectively in two dimensions. We first consider a completely homogeneous interaction between particles, and assume the bosons to be in the lowest Landau level. We derive analytical expressions for some wave functions and energies at low angular momenta, and use these results together with exact numerical diagonalization results to test the applicability of composite fermion (CF) trial wave functions to the system. We find that a general procedure based on CF wave functions reproduces the exact ground states and many of the excited states for sufficiently low angular momenta, and give very good approximate results at angular momenta up to the twocomponent analogy of a single vortex. Additionally, we produce very simple CF states that have remarkably high overlaps with the lowest-lying states. Finally, we briefly discuss the case of inhomogeneous interactions, pointing out the difficulties arising from this generalization.
NOTES AND CORRESPONDENCE On Potential Vorticity Flux Vectors

Dynamical, rather than kinematical, considerations indicate that a generalized potential vorticity in terms of the gradient of an arbitrary scalar function requires that the potential vorticity flux vector contain a contribution due to gravity and the pressure gradient force. It is shown that such a potential vorticity flux vector has a simpler definition in terms of the gradient of the kinetic energy rather than that of a Bernoulli function. This result is valid for multicomponent fluids. Flux vectors for a salty ocean and a moist atmosphere with hydrometeors are presented.
Changes in chemical structures and molar mass parameters of birch wood powder by ethylene diamine treatment

Abstract It is necessary to delignify wood samples and treat them with ethylene diamine (EDA) before they are dissolved in 8% (w/v) lithium chloride/N,N-dimethylacetamide (LiCl/DMAc) prior to size-exclusion chromatography (SEC) analysis. In the present study, the effects of delignifying birch wood powder 0–3 times with NaClO2 and subsequently treating it with EDA on its solubility in 8% (w/v) LiCl/DMAc and its SEC data. The neutral sugar composition of the birch powder was almost unaffected by either delignification or treatment with EDA. Treatment of the birch powder with EDA resulted in 28% solubilities in 8% (w/v) LiCl/DMAc. Approximately 11% of cellulose molecules in the birch wood powder was dissolved, and detected as a high-molar-mass (HMM) fraction in the SEC elution pattern. Each single delignification treatment increased the solubility in 8% (w/v) LiCl/DMAc to 68–74% after EDA treatment. Based on the glucose contents of the delignified samples, almost all cellulose molecules in the delignified samples were dissolved in 8% (w/v) LiCl/DMAc after EDA treatment, and detected as the HMM fractions in the SEC elution patterns. The HMM cellulose molecules in the EDA-treated birch powder had linear random-coil conformations in 1% (w/v) LiCl/DMAc. However, the SEC data suggest that there probably were some chemical linkages between the HMM cellulose molecules and lignin or NaClO2-treated lignin fragments in the HMM fractions.
Wave propagation in three-dimensional spherical sections by the Chebyshev spectral method

SUMMARY The elastic wave equation in spherical coordinates is solved by a Chebyshev spectral method. In the algorithm presented the singularities in the governing equations are avoided by centring the physical domain around the equator. The highly accurate pseudospectral (PS) derivative operators reduce the required grid size compared to ¢nite diierence (FD) algorithms. The non-staggered grid scheme allows easy extension to general material anisotropy without additional interpolations being required as in staggered FD schemes. The boundary conditions previously derived for curvilinear coordinate systems can be applied directly to the velocity vector and stress tensor in the spherical basis. The algorithm is applied to the problem of a double-couple source located in a high-velocity region at the top of the mantle (slab). The synthetic seismograms show azimuth-dependent traveltime and waveform eiects which are likely to be observable in regions where subduction takes place. Such techniques are important in modelling the full-wave characteristics of the Earth’s 3-D structure and in providing accurate reference solutions for 3-D global models.
Stability, Reliability, and Robustness of GaN Power Devices: A Review

Gallium nitride (GaN) devices are revolutionarily advancing the efficiency, frequency, and form factor of power electronics. However, the material composition, architecture, and physics of many GaN devices are significantly different from silicon and silicon carbide devices. These distinctions result in many unique stability, reliability, and robustness issues facing GaN power devices. This article reviews the current understanding of these issues, particularly those related to dynamic switching, and their impacts on system performance. Instead of delving into reliability physics, this article intends to provide power electronics’ engineers the necessary information for deploying GaN devices in the existing and emerging applications, as well as provide references for the qualification evaluations of GaN power devices. The issues covered in this article include the dynamic instability of device parameters (e.g., on-resistance, threshold voltage, and output capacitance), the device robustness in avalanche, overvoltage and short-circuit conditions, the device's switching reliability and lifetime, as well as the device's ruggedness under radiation and extreme (cryogenic and elevated) temperatures. Knowledge gaps and immediate research opportunities in the relevant fields are also discussed.
Higher-order resonant instabilities of internal gravity waves

We investigate the three-dimensional characteristics of a general class of resonant temporal instabilities of internal gravity waves, in which the disturbance comprises two infinitesimal internal gravity waves satisfying the conditions $\omega_I + \omega_{II} = n\tilde{\omega}$, with growth rates of order $(\vert \tilde{u}\vert \vert \tilde{k}\vert /N)^n$, assuming small dimensional primary-wave velocity amplitude $\vert \tilde{u} \vert$. We derive simple equations for their wave-numbers, frequency, growth rate, and energy budget. Interactions involving more than two disturbance components are shown not to represent distinct families of solutions, but rather to comprise order transitions linking together two or more ‘two-disturbance-component’ solutions of different order n. Unlike n = 1 resonant instabilities, those with n [ges ] 3 can align with the wave shear flow. We calculate the peak growth rate, spanwise wavenumber, and energy budget of shear-aligned resonance, as functions of wave frequency; they extract energy from both the wave shear and buoyancy fields.
Classification of Dive Profiles: A Comparison of Statistical Clustering Techniques and Unsupervised Artificial Neural Networks

Recent advances in technology for sampling diving behavior have enabled enormous datasets to be collected on a variety of diving animals. Methods used to analyze these data vary considerably across studies, complicating interspecific comparisons. The primary problem is that methods for analyzing large datasets of dive profiles have not been clearly defined. This study examines various algorithms for analyzing multivariate observations and assesses their suitability for classifying diving data. These include k-means and fuzzy c-means clustering techniques from the field of statistics, and Kohonen self-organizing map (SOM) and fuzzy adaptive resonance theory (ART) from the field of artificial neural networks. A Monte Carlo simulation was performed on artificially generated data, with known solutions, to test clustering performance under various conditions (i.e., well defined or overlapping groups, varying numbers of variables, varying numbers of groups, and autocorrelated or independent variables). Performance was also tested on real datasets from Adelie penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae), southern elephant seals (Mirounga leonina), and Weddell seals (Leptonychotes weddellii). K-means, fuzzy c-means, and SOM all performed equally well on the artificially generated data while fuzzy ART had misclassification rates that were twice as high. All techniques showed decreasing performance with increasing overlap among groups and increasing numbers
Renalase Prevents Renal Fibrosis by Inhibiting Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress and Down-Regulating GSK-3β/Snail Signaling

Background: Treating renal fibrosis is crucial to delaying chronic kidney disease. The glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β)/Snail pathway regulates renal fibrosis and Renalase can ameliorate renal interstitial fibrosis. However, it is not clear whether GSK-3β/Snail signaling affects Renalase action. Here, we explored the role and mechanism of GSK-3β/Snail in the anti-fibrosis action of Renalase. Materials and methods: We used mice with complete unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO) and human proximal renal tubular epithelial (HK-2) cells with transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1)-induced fibrosis to explore the role and regulatory mechanism of the GSK-3β/Snail pathway in the amelioration of renal fibrosis by Renalase. Results: In UUO mice and TGF-β1-induced fibrotic HK-2 cells, the expression of p-GSK-3β-Tyr216/p-GSK-3β-Ser9, GSK-3β and Snail was significantly increased, and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress was activated. After Renalase supplementation, fibrosis was alleviated, ER stress was inhibited and p-GSK-3β-Tyr216/p-GSK-3β-Ser9, GSK-3β and Snail were significantly down-regulated. The amelioration of renal fibrosis by Renalase and its inhibitory effect on GSK-3β/Snail were reversed by an ER stress agonist. Furthermore, when an adeno-associated virus or plasmid was used to overexpress GSK-3β, the effect of Renalase on delaying renal fibrosis was counteracted, although ER stress markers did not change. Conclusion: Renalase prevents renal fibrosis by down-regulating GSK-3β/Snail signaling through inhibition of ER stress. Exogenous Renalase may be an effective method of slowing or stopping chronic kidney disease progression.
Nano‐hydroxyapatite preparation for the remineralization of primary tooth enamel surface subjected to liquid medication: An observational study

Acid‐induced demineralization may be caused by the consumption of liquid medications routinely administered to children. Therefore, different remineralizing agents, such as fluorides and nano‐hydroxyapatite, have been added to oral care products to remineralize erosive lesions. This study was conducted to compare the effectiveness of 1% nano‐hydroxyapatite suspension and 2% sodium fluoride solution on the surface texture of primary teeth enamel previously exposed to liquid drugs.
Bioassessment of Cement Dust Pollution and its Radiation in Al-Ahsa Oasis in the Eastern Province of Kingdom Saudi Arabia

The objective of this study was to quantify the concentration of heavy metals (Mg, Cu, Pb, Fe, Zn, Cd, and Ni), in the soil, plant ( Zygophyllum decumben ) and ground beetles ( Anthia duodecimguttata) at two sampling sites. The selected sites located in the Eastern region, Saudi Arabia. The first site was around to the cement factory, in Al-Ahsa (cement site). While the second one was at 15 Km away (reference site). The obtained results showed that there were no differences in the heavy metals (MHs) concentration in soil collected from the two sites (p>0.05), except Fe that its concentration was significantly higher in the cement site. In addition, six mean differences of MHs out of seven were proven highly significant in plants and insects collected from the cement site. Mg level was the same in plants and insects collected from the two inspected sites. The concentrations of different MHs were higher in beetles than soil and plant. Only, the concentration of Zn in plant (163.59 µg/g) was higher than that recorded in soil (1.67 µg/g) and insect (80.99 µg/g). The concentration of Mg, Cu, Fe, Pb, Cd and Ni increased and accumulated by transferring from soil to plant to beetle whereas the accumulation of Zn decreased by transferring from plant to insect. The concentration of U 238 , Th 232 and K 40 (Bq/kg) in the soil collected from the cement site is significantly higher than that recorded in the soil collected from the reference site. Except Cs 137 that showed insignificant difference between the two studied sites. The concentrations of all recorded HMs and radioactivity level in the soil collected from the cement site were less than the acceptable limit.
Medication Assisted Recovery: A Social Ecological Approach to Understanding How Stigma Shapes Effective Use

Stigma is a well-documented barrier to effective individual and community response to mental illness and, in recent years, is a recognized impediment to prevention and treatment of substance use disorders (SUDs). This study uses focus group data to explore stigmatizing views of medication assisted recovery (MAR) among those in recovery and the people, organizations, and communities that surround them, with attention to implications for long-term recovery. Across groups, we find consistent themes that MAR simply trades one drug for another, MAR should be used only as a stepping-stone to full abstinence, and that long-term use of MAR indicates ineffectiveness or treatment failure. Data suggest the prevalence of these perceptions leads those in recovery and providers to see MAR as a last resort treatment, encourages individuals to discontinue MAR before they are ready, and as result increases risk of relapse and overdose.