Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
On the Proton Conduction Pathways in Polyelectrolyte Membranes Based on Syndiotactic-Polystyrene

When functionalized by the solid-state sulfonation process, the amorphous regions of the semi-crystalline syndiotactic-polystyrene (sPS) become hydrophilic, and thus can conduct protons upon membrane hydration, which increases the interest in this material as a potential candidate for applications with proton exchange membranes. The resistance of sulfonated sPS to oxidative decomposition can be improved by doping the membrane with fullerenes. In previous work, we have described the morphology in hydrated sulfonated sPS films doped with fullerenes on different length scales as determined by small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) and the structural changes in such membranes as a function of the degree of hydration and temperature. In the current work, we report on the relationship between the morphology of hydrated domains as obtained by SANS and the proton conductivity in sulfonated sPS-fullerene composite membranes at different temperature and relative humidity (RH) conditions. Based on this combined experimental approach, clear evidence for the formation and evolution of the hydrated domains in functionalized sPS membranes has been provided and a better understanding of the hydration and conductivity pathways in this material has been obtained.
Evaluation of VDT-Induced Visual Fatigue by Automatic Detection of Blink Features

This study evaluates the progression of visual fatigue induced by visual display terminal (VDT) using automatically detected blink features. A total of 23 subjects were recruited to participate in a VDT task, during which they were required to watch a 120-min video on a laptop and answer a questionnaire every 30 min. Face video recordings were captured by a camera. The blinking and incomplete blinking images were recognized by automatic detection of the parameters of the eyes. Then, the blink features were extracted including blink number (BN), mean blink interval (Mean_BI), mean blink duration (Mean_BD), group blink number (GBN), mean group blink interval (Mean_GBI), incomplete blink number (IBN), and mean incomplete blink interval (Mean_IBI). The results showed that BN and GBN increased significantly, and that Mean_BI and Mean_GBI decreased significantly over time. Mean_BD and Mean_IBI increased and IBN decreased significantly only in the last 30 min. The blink features automatically detected in this study can be used to evaluate the progression of visual fatigue.
Analysis of Adaptive Model Success of Integrated Financial Information System through User Satisfaction in Local Governments

This research is to anayze adaptive model success of integrated financial information system through user satisfaction in local governments. The population in this study were the parties managing the regional financial information system totaling 612 people. The sampling technique uses saturated samples. The processing of data used Smart Partial Least Squares (PLS) application for the SEM Methods. The results showed that: partially, the reliability of information systems, organizational support, benefits, user behavior, has an effect on user satisfaction with the government regeny/cities in North Sumatra; partially, the reliability of information systems, organizational support, benefits, user behavior, use of the intention to the local government in North Sumatra; the user satisfaction factor affects the intention to use; Partially, the reliability of information systems, organizational support, benefits, and user behavior affects user satisfaction and its impact on intention to use in local governments in North Sumatra.
Pollen Production of Selected Grass Species in Russia and India at the Levels of Anther, Flower and Inflorescence

Grasses produce large amounts of pollen and are among the main causes of pollen allergy worldwide. Quantification of the roles of individual grass species in airborne pollen is an important task, because morphologically indistinguishable pollen grains of different species may differ in allergenicity. This requires knowledge of the pollen production of individual grass species; however, accumulated data are insufficient in this respect. Attempting to fill this gap, we studied pollen production per inflorescence in 29 grass species which are widespread in Middle Russia and India. Pollen production per inflorescence is determined by the number of grains per anther, the number of flowers in a spikelet and the number of spikelets per inflorescence, with the latter parameter being the most variable. We support the hypothesis that pollen production per inflorescence differs significantly between annual and perennial grasses. The greater pollen production of perennials can be interpreted as a tendency to guarantee cross-fertilization of species with self-incompatibility. The inferred pollen/ovule (P/O) ratios suggest the occurrence of facultative xenogamy in all annuals and obligate xenogamy in most perennials in the present dataset, though some self-incompatible annuals exist outside our sampling. Earlier data indicated that the P/O ratio of the annual cereal crop rye (Secale cereale) is higher than in any annual or perennial species sampled here. A ratio of pollen production to seed set (P/S ratio) is suggested to be another efficient parameter in reproductive biology of grasses. We highlight a need for detailed studies of reproductive biology in grasses that include both pollen and seed production. We found a correlation between pollen production per anther and anther length. A rough approximation of c. 1000 pollen grains per 1 mm of the length of an anther provides an instrument for estimates of pollen production in plant communities.
Lipid Nanomaterials for Targeted Delivery of Dermocosmetic Ingredients: Advances in Photoprotection and Skin Anti-Aging

Despite the health benefits of the sun, overexposure to solar radiation without proper precautions can cause irreversible damage to exposed skin. In the search for balance between the risks and benefits of exposure to solar radiation in human health, a technological alternative was found, the incorporation of photoprotective products in lipid nanoparticulate systems for topical application. These nanometric systems have demonstrated several advantages when used as adjuvants in photoprotection compared to chemical and/or physical sunscreens alone. The increase in the sun protection factor (SPF), photostability and UV action spectrum are parameters that have benefited from the application of these systems in order to increase the effectiveness and safety of photoprotective formulations containing organic and/or inorganic sunscreens.
Adaptative Leaf Morphology of Eurya japonica Thunb. (Ternstroemiaceae) in Serpentine Areas

Serpentine soils are known to affect plant growth and plants in these soils have morphological and anatomical modifications. Comparative leaf morphology and anatomy studies of Eurya japonica Thunb. was conducted between serpentine and inland (control) areas. Our morphological analyses revealed that the individuals in the serpentine areas had significantly smaller and thicker leaves than those in the inland areas. Our anatomical analyses showed that the smaller leaves of serpentines had decreased numbers of cells, and their thicker leaves contributed to the increased height of epidermal cells, palisade tissue, and spongy tissue. Furthermore, the stomatal size of serpentines was significantly smaller than those from the inland areas. We concluded that E. japonica adapted to the serpentine areas by decreasing leaf size due to low levels of nutrients, by thickening the leaves to store water and reducing the stomatal size to minimize water loss via gas exchange.
Influence of floating support on the dynamic characteristics of compound planetary gear set

Due to a large number of components, complex meshing relations and high requirements for assembly accuracy, the dynamic characteristic of compound planetary gear, such as vibration, impact, periodic motion and load sharing, are more easily affected by internal excitation than those of simple planetary gear set and parallel shafting gear set. To improve the load sharing behavior and the resistance of Chaos motions in the compound planetary gear set, in this work, by introducing the floating support into the center gear and planet gear, a lumpedparameter dynamic model of the compound planetary gear set is built based on the lumped parameter method and Lagrange kinematics equation. The steady response is calculated by numeric method to investigate the influence of floating support from different components on loading sharing behavior and periodic motion. The results indicate that, the increase of the floating value of all components improves the instantaneous load-sharing behavior, and single floating of planet gear reduces the load sharing behavior. To avoid the system being in quasi-periodic motion and Chaos motions under the condition of floating support, the input speed should be avoided away from the range of 3201 r/min-5069 r/min.
Variable Voltage Control of a Hybrid Energy Storage System for Firm Frequency Response in the U.K.

The National Grid in the U.K. proposed the firm frequency response (FFR) documents on recent developments regarding tendering options for active balancing mechanism units, specifically for batteries. However, frequent bipolar converting and instantaneous high power demand challenge battery lifetime and operation cost in the FFR. Combining a battery with a supercapacitor (SC) has several advantages, but the system cost may rise. Targeting the FFR service, this article presents a new variable voltage control within a semiactive battery SC hybrid scheme. In the proposed hybrid energy storage system, the dc bus voltage is controllable to improve the SC use ratio while reducing the converter's cost. A power management strategy integrating fuzzy logic with dynamic filtering method is proposed benefiting in broadening the filtering flexibility while reducing battery degradation. In addition, both the long-term simulations and scaled-down experiments are implemented to verify the proposed topology with the control strategy and power management by quantitative comparisons of battery degradations and SC use ratios.
Ancillary Data Uncertainties within the SeaDAS Uncertainty Budget for Ocean Colour Retrievals

Atmospheric corrections introduce uncertainties in bottom-of-atmosphere Ocean Colour (OC) products. In this paper, we analyse the uncertainty budget of the SeaDAS atmospheric correction algorithm. A metrological approach is followed, where each of the error sources are identified in an uncertainty tree diagram and briefly discussed. Atmospheric correction algorithms depend on ancillary variables (such as meteorological properties and column densities of gases), yet the uncertainties in these variables were not studied previously in detail. To analyse these uncertainties for the first time, the spread in the ERA5 ensemble is used as an estimate for the uncertainty in the ancillary data, which is then propagated to uncertainties in remote sensing reflectances using a Monte Carlo approach and the SeaDAS atmospheric correction algorithm. In an example data set, wind speed and relative humidity are found to be the main contributors (among the ancillary parameters) to the remote sensing reflectance uncertainties.
Pengaruh Model Pembelajaran Ditinjau dari Gaya Belajar terhadap Hasil Belajar Kelas VIII SMP Negeri 3 Gelumbang

Penelitian yang dilakukan ini merupakan penelitian eksperimen dengan desain penelitian quasi eksperimen. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mengetahui adanya pengaruh perbedaan gaya belajar dan model pembelajaran terhadap hasil belajar kelas VII SMP Negeri 3 Gelumbang. Siswa kelas 8 SMP Negeri 3 Gelumbang merupakan sampel yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini. Sampel penelitian ini berjumlah 53 siswa. Penelitian ini menggunakan uji Anova 2 jalur berbantuan aplikasi SPSS. Uji Prasyarat yang digunakan adalah Uji Shapiro Wilk dan uji Leven Statistic. Nilai Sig. yang didapat untuk uji anova 2 jalurnya adalah 0,517 > 0,05 sehingga hasil yang kita peroleh adalah : (1) tidak terdapat pengaruh yang signifikan model pembelajaran terhadap hasil belajar siswa; (2) tidak terdapat pengaruh yang signifikan gaya belajar yang digunakan siswa terhadap hasil belajar yang mereka dapatkan; (3) tidak ada interaksi antara gaya belajar dan model pembelajaran terhadap hasil belajar. Hasil yang kta dapat ini disebabkan oleh beberapa faktor seperti : (1) Intrumen yang diujikan tidak mencakup tujuan pembelajaran & (2) Instrumen yang diberikan bersifat abstrak. Penggunaan instrument yang tepat dan sesuai dapat membantu untuk penelitian lainnya.
Development of Acid-Base Online Science Literacy Test Instruments

Facing the challenges of the 21st century, it is essential for students to have basic knowledge of science. The ability of scientific literacy relates to how students conceive the environment, health, economy, and problems of modern society which are more concerned to technology, advancement, and science development. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a scientific literacy test instrument that intends to measure students' scientific literacy skills. The objectives of this study were (1) to examine the feasibility of online scientific literacy test instrument in acid-base material, (2) analyze the level of validity and reliability of online scientific literacy test instrument in acid-based material, and (3) examine the profile of students' scientific literacy skills toward the test instrument. This Research and Development (R&D) 4D model which adapted by Thiagarajan (1974) shows the feasibility and validity of the scientific literacy test instrument with score 0.414 and 0.782, respectively. The profile of students' scientific literacy skills was in good criteria of 67%. The profiles of students' scientific literacy skills of competence aspects were 66%, 63%, and 72%, respectively.
The Impact of 52-Week Single Inhaler Device Triple Therapy versus Dual Therapy on the Mortality of COPD Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

There are more single inhaler device triple therapy available for COPD patients now. However, the effect of long-term triple therapy fixed dose combination (FDC) on mortality remains unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of one-year single inhaler device triple therapy, including long-acting β2-agonists (LABAs), long-acting muscarinic receptor antagonists (LAMAs), and inhaled corticosteroids (ICSs), with dual therapies, comprised of either LABA/LAMA or ICS/LABA, on the mortality of patients with COPD. We searched the PubMed, Cochrane library, Web of Science, Embase databases, and clinical trial registry of clinicaltrials.gov and WHO ICTRP. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) compared single inhaler device triple and dual therapies for 52 weeks were selected for the meta-analysis. The primary endpoint was all-cause mortality. A total of 6 RCTs were selected for the meta-analysis, including 10,274 patients who received single inhaler device triple therapy (ICS/LABA/LAMA FDC) and 12,395 patients who received ICS/LABA or LABA/LAMA dual therapy. Risk of death was significantly lower in the ICS/LABA/LAMA FDC group compared to the LABA/LAMA group (RR = 0.69, 95% CI = 0.53–0.90, p = 0.007). There was no significant difference in mortality between the ICS/LABA/LAMA FDC and ICS/LABA therapy groups (RR = 0.94, 95% CI = 0.72–1.24, p = 0.66). In addition, patients receiving ICS/LABA/LAMA FDC therapy had less moderate or severe exacerbations compared with the dual therapy groups (RR = 0.76, 95% CI = 0.73–0.80, p < 0.001 for LABA/LAMA; RR = 0.84, 95% CI = 0.78–0.90, p < 0.001 for ICS/LABA). By contrast, the risk of pneumonia in the ICS/LABA/LAMA FDC group was higher than in the LABA/LAMA group (RR = 1.43, 95% CI = 1.21–1.68, p < 0.001). In conclusion, ICS/LABA/LAMA FDC therapy could help improve the clinical outcomes of patients with COPD. However, triple therapy could increase the risk of pneumonia in comparison with LABA/LAMA dual therapy.
The ‘gold standard’ for labour export? The role of civil society in shaping multi-level Philippine migration policies

Abstract The Philippines has received continuous praise for its ‘highly developed’ migration policies and promotes those as the ‘gold standard’ for the deployment and protection of labour migrants. These policies are obviously not negotiated exclusively within the container of the nation state. In this article, I will therefore employ an analytical framework for the politics of migration policies that is multi-stakeholder and multi-level. The multiple levels discussed will reach from the national/transnational to the regional/transregional (Association of Southeast Asian Nations – ASEAN, Colombo Process, Abu Dhabi Dialogue) and global (Global Forum on Migration and Development – GFMD, Global Compact) level. Major stakeholders addressed are the nation state(s) involved, the migration industry and migrant civil society. In particular, migrant civil society has a long tradition of engagement in the Philippines and mirrors the multiple levels of government engagement to further its advocacy. My main argument is therefore that regardless of the political regime in place, and despite internal fractions and cleavages, migrant civil society has been a constant and major contributing factor to the ‘gold standard’ of Philippine migration policies.
Human Chorionic Gonadotropin and Early Embryogenesis: Review

Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) has four major isoforms: classical hCG, hyperglycosylated hCG, free β subunit, and sulphated hCG. Classical hCG is the first molecule synthesized by the embryo. Its RNA is transcribed as early as the eight-cell stage and the blastocyst produces the protein before its implantation. This review synthetizes everything currently known on this multi-effect hormone: hCG levels, angiogenetic activity, immunological actions, and effects on miscarriages and thyroid function.
Using an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for lake management: ecological status, lake regime shift and stratification processes in a small Mediterranean karstic lake

High-resolution remote sensing imagery by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) has been used as a tool for the environmental management of natural resources. Monitoring programmes that evaluate the ecological status of water bodies according to the Water Framework Directive (WFD) involve significant costs and sampling efforts that can be reduced by using UAVs. UAV imagery was used to measure some metrics of the “macrophytes and phytobenthos” biological quality element (BQE), which is required to assess the ecological status of European lakes; e.g. the percentage cover of hydrophytes and helophytes. Eight UAV flights took place during an annual cycle (July 2016 to July 2017) in a small karstic lake located in southeast Spain. Limnolog¬ical surveys of physicochemical (temperature, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, pH) and biological (pigments) parameters were simultaneously performed to correctly interpret the UAV images. For each flight performance, an orthomosaic of georeferenced RGB images was obtained, and the different features of interest were monitored and quantified by an automated identification and classification system (the LAIC software). The UAV images allowed us to not only evaluate the lake’s ecological status by measuring macrophyte metrics, but to also detect relevant ecological events for environmental management. A gradual burial process of charophyte meadows by the proliferation of periphytic cyanobacterial was detected in an early state by UAV images. Stratification processes, such as hypolimnetic sulphur bacteria blooms or metalimnetic white colloidal layers, were also ob¬served by UAV imaging. We conclude that UAV imagery is a useful tool for environmental lake management.
Oleacein Attenuates Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Inflammation in THP-1-Derived Macrophages by the Inhibition of TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB Pathway †

It is known that plant phenolic compounds exert anti-inflammatory activity through both anti-oxidant effects and modulation of pivotal pro-inflammatory factors. Recently, Olea europaea has been studied as a natural source of bioactive molecules; however, few studies have focused on the biological effect of oleacein (OLC), the most abundant secoiridoid. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the potential anti-oxidant activity of OLC, as well as to study its anti-inflammatory effect in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated THP-1-derived macrophages. LPS brought a dramatic increase of both release and gene expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-6, IL-1β and TNF-α), as well as a decrease of anti-inflammatory ones (IL-10), the effects of which are reverted by OLC. Moreover, it reduced the levels of COX-2, NO and PGE2 elicited by LPS exposure in THP-1 macrophages. Interestingly, OLC modulated inflammatory signaling pathways through the inhibition of CD14/TLR4/CD14/MyD88 axis and the activation of NF-κB. Finally, OLC showed relevant anti-oxidant capability, assessed by abiotic assays, and reduced the intracellular amount of ROS generated by LPS exposure in THP-1 macrophages. Overall, these results suggest that the anti-oxidant activity and anti-inflammatory effect of OLC may cooperate in its protective effect against inflammatory stressors, thus being a possible alternative pharmacological strategy aimed at reducing the inflammatory process.