Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Financial sustainability of a Ukrainian university due to the COVID-19 pandemic: A calculative approach

In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, university funding in Ukraine suffered significant losses due to unprecedented quarantine measures. The challenge for universities is to diversify funding sources, develop effective approaches to minimize existing and prevent future threats to ensure their financial stabilization (sustainability) in the post-pandemic period. The paper aims to consider financial sustainability of a university (the case of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv) due to COVID-19 using the objective calculative approach on the statistical sample of data for 2011–2020. The tasks for achieving the aim are seen in determining, using regression methods, the number of lost receipts from general and special funds in the short and medium term, which will maintain a constant value of receipts at constant assets. The main idea of the paper is that financial sustainability is considered as a condition, and stabilization is considered as a process towards stability/sustainability. The modeling approach reveals a fragile list of factors for the future preventing measures of the University to sustain. It is estimated that the University’s top management should consider financial strategy in dollar terms only. The challenge is that funding in hryvnia seems to be quite increasing and linear, but indeed, funding of the University is non-linear and has a quite intensive downward trend. Thus, for the financial sustainability strategy, this fact should be crucial.The results indicate the need for a significant increase in university funding to mitigate the impact of macroeconomic instability due to various crises, including the COVID-19 pandemic. AcknowledgmentThe study is carried out under the grant funded from the National Research Fund of Ukraine within the competition Science for Human Security and Society, topic 2020.01/0265.
Unraveling Mg 〈c + a〉 slip using neural network potential

ABSTRACT Magnesium (Mg) activates 〈c + a〉 dislocation slip on the second order pyramidal slip plane. This slip mode is very complex compared to other modes including several metastable structures. Due to the complexity and very similar energies of the different structures, reliably modelling this slip mode is challenging. The problem is exacerbated when considering alloying, in which a combination of 1st order and 2nd order pyramidal slip is usually observed. Motivated by the need for a high fidelity potential for Mg alloys, we have developed first a highly accuracy potential for pure Mg. The new potential shows better agreement with density functional theory and experimental calculations than previous interatomic potentials for Mg. With the help of this new potential, we demonstrate that the basal dissociated 〈c + a〉 core is not sessile, as previously thought, and that constant stress molecular dynamics demonstrate clear preference for the 2nd order pyramidal system over the 1st order system.
Optimal design of urban drainage networks

In this paper, a general procedure for the optimal design of urban drainage networks is proposed taking into account realistic technical constraints and the management cost of the automatic flushing devices. The procedure, which is based on the utilisation of a standard genetic algorithm, is first tested with reference to a urban drainage network taken from the literature, while a second test case is considered in order to evaluate the impact of different input parameters and constraints on the optimisation problem. In particular, we evaluate: (i) the effect of considering the crown elevation of the network outlet not fixed a priori but variable in a given range; (ii) the effect of imposing that the size of the conduit downstream a node should be not smaller than the sizes of the conduits upstream; and (iii) the effect of modifying input parameters such as the peak wastewater discharge or the management unit costs.
The case of 'Yummy Yummy' - a replication of an intervention program

The current experimental study replicates and expands on the Yummy Yummy intervention study focusing on the role of observation in learning-to-write (Rijlaarsdam et al., 2008, 2009) that included 210 grade-7 students in seven classes from seven schools who were randomly assigned to one of two intervention roles: “readers” (tasked with text selection and discussion) or “observers” (tasked with observing readers to distill criteria they employ in their discussion). Effects of role condition were assessed by comparing the revisions students made in their texts, and with a questionnaire designed to assess students’ perceived learning experiences, particularly the extent of their learning during the intervention program and their explanations for their assertions. The results were consistent with the original study: revised writing products showed that observers outperformed readers, particularly in the domain of rhetoric. Additionally, observers self-reported higher levels of procedural knowledge acquisition compared to readers, while readers self-reported higher levels of declarative knowledge acquisition. The Yummy Yummy – observational learning replicated intervention program resulted in higher quality writing and had a differential impact on students' perceived learning.
Influence of Cold Spray Parameters on Bonding Mechanisms: A Review

The cold spray process is governed by the impact of high velocity feedstock particles onto a substrate without melting. Hence, the bulk material properties are retained. However, it is challenging to achieve good adhesion strength. The adhesion strength depends on factors such as the cold spray process parameters, substrate conditions, coating/substrate interactions at the interface and feedstock material properties. This review examines fundamental studies concerning the adhesion mechanisms of cold spray technology and considers the effect of cold spray input parameters such as temperature, stand-off-distance, pressure, process gas, spray angle, and traverse speed of the cold spray torch on the bonding mechanism and adhesion strength. Furthermore, the effects of substrate conditions such as temperature, hardness, roughness and material on the adhesion mechanism are highlighted. The effect of feedstock properties, such as feed rate, shape and size are summarized. Understanding the effect of these parameters is necessary to obtain the optimal input parameters that enable the best interfacial properties for a range of coating/substrate material combinations. It is expected that feedstock of spherical morphology and small particle size (<15 μm) provides optimal interfacial properties when deposited onto a mirror-finished substrate surface using high pressure cold spray. Deep insights into each parameter exposes the uncovered potential of cold spray as an additive manufacturing method.
Dynamic Boolean modelling reveals the influence of energy supply on bacterial efflux pump expression

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global health issue. One key factor contributing to AMR is the ability of bacteria to export drugs through efflux pumps, which relies on the ATP-dependent expression and interaction of several controlling genes. Recent studies have shown significant cell-to-cell ATP variability exists within clonal bacterial populations, but the contribution of intrinsic cell-to-cell ATP heterogeneity is generally overlooked in understanding efflux pumps. Here, we consider how ATP variability influences gene regulatory networks controlling expression of efflux pump genes in two bacterial species. We develop and apply a generalisable Boolean modelling framework, developed to incorporate the dependence of gene expression dynamics on available cellular energy supply. Theoretical results show differences in energy availability can cause pronounced downstream heterogeneity in efflux gene expression. Cells with higher energy availability have a superior response to stressors. Further, in the absence of stress, model bacteria develop heterogeneous pulses of efflux pump gene expression which contribute to a sustained sub-population of cells with increased efflux expression activity, potentially conferring a continuous pool of intrinsically resistant bacteria. This modelling approach thus reveals an important source of heterogeneity in cell responses to antimicrobials and sheds light on potentially targetable aspects of efflux pump-related antimicrobial resistance.
Association of Sleep, Neuropsychological Performance, and Gray Matter Volume With Glymphatic Function in Community-Dwelling Older Adults

Background and Objectives The glymphatic system, which is robustly enabled during some stages of sleep, is a fluid-transport pathway that clears cerebral waste products. Most contemporary knowledge regarding the glymphatic system is inferred from rodent experiments and human research is limited. Our objective is to explore the associations between human glymphatic function, sleep, neuropsychological performance, and cerebral gray matter volumes. Methods This cross-sectional study included individuals 60 years or older who had participated in the Integrating Systemic Data of Geriatric Medicine to Explore the Solution for Health Aging study between September 2019 and October 2020. Community-dwelling older adults were enrolled at 2 different sites. Participants with dementia, major depressive disorders, and other major organ system abnormalities were excluded. Sleep profile was accessed using questionnaires and polysomnography. Administered neuropsychological test batteries included Everyday Cognition (ECog) and the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease Neuropsychological Battery (CERAD-NB). Gray matter volumes were estimated based on MRI. Diffusion tensor imaging analysis along the perivascular space (DTI-ALPS) index was used as the MRI marker of glymphatic function. Results A total of 84 participants (mean [SD] age 73.3 [7.1] years, 47 [56.0%] women) were analyzed. Multivariate linear regression model determined that age (unstandardized β, −0.0025 [SE 0.0001]; p = 0.02), N2 sleep duration (unstandardized β, 0.0002 [SE 0.0001]; p = 0.04), and the apnea-hypopnea index (unstandardized β, −0.0011 [SE 0.0005]; p = 0.03) were independently associated with DTI-ALPS. Higher DTI-ALPS was associated with better ECog language scores (unstandardized β, −0.59 [SE 0.28]; p = 0.04) and better CERAD-NB word list learning delayed recall subtest scores (unstandardized β, 6.17 [SE 2.31]; p = 0.009) after covarying for age and education. Higher DTI-ALPS was also associated with higher gray matter volume (unstandardized β, 107.00 [SE 43.65]; p = 0.02) after controlling for age, sex, and total intracranial volume. Discussion Significant associations were identified between glymphatic function and sleep, stressing the importance of sleep for brain health. This study also revealed associations between DTI-ALPS, neuropsychological performance, and cerebral gray matter volumes, suggesting the potential of DTI-ALPS as a biomarker for cognitive disorders.
Disaster Body Handling

An analysis of body handling following death is essentially an excusion into a work situation and its activities, actors, and settings. That is, there is a social structure implicit, if not explicit, in the body handling process. It is this social structure which will be the focus of this paper. Given the taboo nature of death in the American culture, (Vernon, 1970) the general public and even various professionals are typically "protected" from the post-death activities which are carried out by "professional body handlers," i.e., morgue attendents coroners, funeral home personnel, and funeral directors. However, in a disaster situation involving mass casulties it may become necessary to include other actors, i.e., volunteers, in the body handling process. In addition, the activities of the task structure whith respect to the bodies are consideably altered in the aftermath of a disaster. The task structure is greatly elaborated and the division of labor becomes much more complex than it would be in a normal death situation.
MicroRNA-126 and VEGF enhance the function of endothelial progenitor cells in acute myocardial infarction

Previous studies have found that microRNA-126 (miR-126) overexpression can exert beneficial effects on endothelial function and angiogenesis. The role of miR-126 was previously reported to be by directly limiting the activities of negative regulators of the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) pathway, such as PI3K regulation subunit 2 (PIK3R2). The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of the miR-126/PIK3R2/VEGF axis in endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) under hypoxic conditions. An in vitro hypoxia model in EPCs was established by exposing EPCs to hypoxia (O2/N2/CO2, 1/94/5) for 72 h, before reverse transcription-quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) and western blot analyzes were used to measure miR-126 and PIK3R2 expression in EPCs. The proliferation, migration and tube-forming ability of the transfected cells were measured using MTT, Transwell and tube formation assays, respectively. miR-126 expression was found to be lower in EPCs in the hypoxia group compared with that in the control group (P<0.01). The expression of PIK3R2, a direct target gene of miR-126, was found to be higher in the hypoxia group compared with that in the control group (P<0.01). miR-126 mimic and VEGF-plasmid co-transfection improved the proliferation, migration, tube-forming ability and restored the phosphorylation of AKT in EPCs under hypoxic conditions (all P<0.01). In addition, the effects of miR-126 mimic on hypoxia-induced EPCs were reversed by PIK3R2-plasmid co-transfection, whilst the effects of VEGF-plasmid were enhanced further by co-transfection with the miR-126 mimic. In conclusion, miR-126 promoted the functions of EPCs under hypoxic conditions by negatively targeting PIK3R2, whilst the combined overexpression of miR-126 and VEGF enhanced these aforementioned effects.
Coupled vibration of tall building structures

Free vibration analysis is presented for general tall building structures, which may consist of any combination of frames, shear walls, structural cores and coupled walls. Emphasis of the analysis is placed on the coupled lateral–torsional vibration characteristic of the structures. Based on the continuum technique and D'Alembert's principle, the governing equation of free vibration and corresponding eigenvalue problem are derived. By applying the Galerkin technique, a generalized method of solution is proposed for the analysis of coupled vibration of general tall building structures. Based on the proposed method, a computation procedure is presented for predicting the natural frequencies and associated mode shapes of the structures in coupled vibration. Numerical investigation is conducted to validate the simplicity and accuracy of the proposed method. It has been shown that the proposed analysis provides an effective way, particularly at the preliminary design stage, for evaluating the vibration behaviour of tall buildings. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Precipitation, temperature and runoff analysis from 1950 to 2002 in the Yangtze basin, China / Analyse des précipitations, températures et débits de 1950 à 2002 dans le bassin du Yangtze, en Chine

Abstract Abstract Monthly precipitation and temperature trends of 51 stations in the Yangtze basin from 1950–2002 were analysed and interpolated. The Mann-Kendall trend test was applied to examine the monthly precipitation and temperature data. Significant positive and negative trends at the 90, 95 and 99% significance levels were detected. The monthly mean temperature, precipitation, summer precipitation and monthly mean runoff at Yichang, Hankou and Datong stations were analysed. The results indicate that spatial distribution of precipitation and temperature trends is different. The middle and lower Yangtze basin is dominated by upward precipitation trend but by somewhat downward temperature trend; while downward precipitation trend and upward temperature trend occur in the upper Yangtze basin. This is because increasing precipitation leads to increasing cloud coverage and, hence, results in decreasing ground surface temperature. Average monthly precipitation and temperature analysis for the upper, middle and lower Yangtze basin, respectively, further corroborate this viewpoint. Analysis of precipitation trend for these three regions and of runoff trends for the Yichang, Hankou and Datong stations indicated that runoff trends respond well to the precipitation trends. Historical flood trend analysis also shows that floods in the middle and lower Yangtze basin are in upward trend. The above findings indicate that the middle and lower Yangtze basin is likely to face more serious flood disasters. The research results help in further understanding the influence of climatic changes on floods in the Yangtze basin, providing scientific background for the flood control activities in large catchments in Asia.
The Influence of Newcastle Disease Virus Major Proteins on Virulence

The Newcastle disease virus (NDV) negative-strand RNA genome containssix genes. These genes encode nucleoprotein (NP), phosphoprotein (P),matrix protein (M), fusion protein (F), hemagglutinin-neuraminidase (HN),and RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (L) proteins. The six proteins affectthe virulence of NDV in different ways, but available information on thesix proteins is disparate and scattered across many databases and sources.A comprehensive overview of the proteins determining NDV virulence islacking. This review summarizes the virulence of NDV as a complex traitdetermined by these six different proteins.
Exergetic performance assessment of a variable‐speed R404a refrigeration system

The goal of this study is to carry out exergy analyses for an experimental variable‐speed refrigeration system working with R404a in order to determine irreversibility rates and exergetic efficiencies of system components and the overall system. For this aim, an experimental refrigeration system was designed with a frequency inverter mounted on compressor electric motor. Controlling the rotational speed of the compressor with a frequency inverter is one of the best methods to vary the capacity of the refrigeration system. The experiments were made for different compressor electric motor frequencies. The results showed that at low‐frequency values, irreversibility rates of the system decreased and exergetic efficiencies were increased. In addition, the major irreversibility occurs in the compressor by 61.47–61.83% followed by condenser by 17.00–16.52%, evaporator by 12.39–13.73% and expansion valve by 6.24–6.76% for different compressor frequencies. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Manufacture of production injection mould tooling incorporating conformal cooling channels via indirect selective laser sintering

Abstract This paper reports the results of a study designed to assess the extent to which layer manufacture processes were able to produce production quality injection mould tools. The specific layer manufacture process considered was the DTM RapidTool process. Tools produced using this process were used in industrial trials to assess productivity benefits arising from the use of conformal cooling channels and to investigate tool wear. A cost model of the injection moulding process has been developed to investigate the economic case for the use of layer-manufactured tools. It is concluded that significant productivity benefits are available through the use of conformal cooling and that the RapidTool process is economically competitive with existing production tool manufacture methods for injection mould tools which do not require significant finishing. Future developments in layer manufacture technology are expected to offer further challenges to conventional tool manufacture methods.
Simple model for power consumption in aerated vessels stirred by Rushton disc turbines

Accurate prediction of power consumption of impeller in an aerated vessel is crucial for a successful scale-up, operation, and design of reactors in general. A mechanistic model with a correlation that can accurately predict power consumption was developed. Taking into account both geometrical parameters and physical properties of the working fluids, this model reduces the number of adjustable parameters better than published empirical relations. It has the advantage of allowing the user to easily scale up agitated vessels and to evaluate power consumption even for large-scale equipment. It has been tested only for Rushton turbines, however, because it is simply based on mass balances, energy balances and continuity equations, it could also be implemented for use with other impellers with very few modifications.
The Enzymology of Cell Wall Breakdown During Malting and Mashing: An Overview

Enzymolysis of the cell walls of the starchy endosperm of barley can be considered a two-stage process: solubilization and polymer digestion. Solubilase enzymes include not only carboxypeptidase acting as an esterase, but also other enzymes, notably an early-developing xylanase. It is supposed that pentosan is primarily located on the outside of the cell wall. Nonetheless, pentosan is less efficiently degraded than β-glucan, probably because the chief xylanases are blocked by an endogenous inhibitor. Although there can be very efficient depolymerization of β-glucan, it appears that degradation is incomplete and that the primary hydrolysis products are β-linked oligosaccharides. This is likely because the exo-glucanases that hydrolyze them develop late in germination and also have a very low affinity for their substrates. The advantage of this for the brewer is that beer can be legitimately claimed as a good source of putative prebiotics.
Settling characteristics of feedlot cattle feces and manure

Increased community awareness has created pressure on feedlots to improve their environmental performance. Australian feedlot sedimentation systems which are failing currently use empirical designs. These designs could be improved by basing them on settling characteristics of Australian feedlot manure. Settling velocity distributions of fresh feces and pen manure were measured using a settling column. We found that settling velocities of fresh feces are similar to those of pen manure and that rations that used barley or greater proportions of roughage had smaller components of slow-settling solids. All samples showed distinct fast and slow settling components. Some 35 to 75% of the material settled quickly and the remainder settled so slowly that it is not practical to design sedimentation systems to retain it. The data suggest that sedimentation system design should use a maximum settling velocity of 0.003 m/s.
Low-noise automated measurement system for low-frequency current fluctuations in thin-oxide silicon structures

A description is given of the design of an automated system for low-noise measurement of low-frequency current fluctuations in thin-oxide silicon devices. The aim of these measurements is to study the current tunneling through the oxide, and to investigate its correlation with the oxide breakdown. The dedicated system is realized by integrating a personal computer commercial acquisition board with custom high-sensibility low-noise preamplifiers. <<ETX>>