Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Selenium Alleviated Oxidative Stress-Mediated Complex Poisoning Mechanism in Lead-Treated Chicken Kidneys: Inflammation, Heat Shock Response, and Autophagy

Lead (Pb) is a toxic environmental contaminant, and exerts renal toxicity. It is known that selenium (Se) performs antagonistic effect on Pb poisoning. However, biological events during the process were not well understood in chicken kidneys. The purpose of this research was to investigate mitigative mechanism of Se on Pb poisoning from point of view of oxidative stress, inflammation, heat shock response, and autophagy in chicken kidneys. One hundred and eighty male Hyline chickens (7-day-old) were randomly divided into the control group (offering standard diet and potable water), the Se group (offering Na2SeO3-added standard diet and potable water), the Pb group (offering standard diet and (CH3OO)2Pb-added potable water), and the Pb+Se group (offering Na2SeO3-added standard diet and (CH3OO)2Pb-added potable water). On 30th, 60th, and 90th days, kidneys were removed to perform the studies of histological structure, oxidative stress indicators, cytokines, heat shock proteins, and autophagy in the chicken kidneys. The experimental results indicated that Pb poisoning changed renal histological structure; decreased catalase, glutathione-s-transferase, and total antioxidative capacity activities; increased hydrogen peroxide content; induced mRNA and protein expression of heat shock proteins; inhibited interleukin (IL)-2 mRNA expression, and induced IL-4 and IL-12β mRNA expression; inhibited mammalian target of rapamycin mRNA and protein expression, and induced autophagy-related gene mRNA and protein expression in the chicken kidneys. Supplement of Se mitigated the above changes caused by Pb. In conclusion, Pb induced oxidative stress, inflammation, heat shock response, and autophagy and Se administration alleviated Pb poisoning through mitigating oxidative stress in the chicken kidneys.
Analyzing Sentiments and Diffusion Characteristics of COVID-19 Vaccine Misinformation Topics in Social Media

This study presents a data analytics framework that aims to analyze topics and sentiments associated with COVID-19 vaccine misinformation in social media. A total of 40,359 tweets related to COVID-19 vaccination were collected between January 2021 and March 2021. Misinformation was detected using multiple predictive machine learning models. Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) topic model was used to identify dominant topics in COVID-19 vaccine misinformation. Sentiment orientation of misinformation was analyzed using a lexicon-based approach. An independent-samples t-test was performed to compare the number of replies, retweets, and likes of misinformation with different sentiment orientations. Based on the data sample, the results show that COVID-19 vaccine misinformation included 21 major topics. Across all misinformation topics, the average number of replies, retweets, and likes of tweets with negative sentiment was 2.26, 2.68, and 3.29 times higher, respectively, than those with positive sentiment.
One-Year Postfracture Mortality Rate in Older Adults With Hip Fractures Relative to Other Lower Extremity Fractures: Retrospective Cohort Study

Background Hip fracture in older adults is tied to increased mortality risk. Deconvolution of the mortality risk specific to hip fracture from that of various other fracture types has not been performed in recent hip fracture studies but is critical to determining current unmet needs for therapeutic intervention. Objective This study examined whether hip fracture increases the 1-year postfracture mortality rate relative to several other fracture types and determined whether dementia or type 2 diabetes (T2D) exacerbates postfracture mortality risk. Methods TriNetX Diamond Network data were used to identify patients with a single event of fracture of the hip, the upper humerus, or several regions near and distal to the hip occurring from 60 to 89 years of age from 2010 to 2019. Propensity score matching, Kaplan-Meier, and hazard ratio analyses were performed for all fracture groupings relative to hip fracture. One-year postfracture mortality rates in elderly populations with dementia or T2D were established. Results One-year mortality rates following hip fracture consistently exceeded all other lower extremity fracture groupings as well as the upper humerus. Survival probabilities were significantly lower in the hip fracture groups, even after propensity score matching was performed on cohorts for a variety of broad categories of characteristics. Dementia in younger elderly cohorts acted synergistically with hip fracture to exacerbate the 1-year mortality risk. T2D did not exacerbate the 1-year mortality risk beyond mere additive effects. Conclusions Elderly patients with hip fracture have a significantly decreased survival probability. Greatly increased 1-year mortality rates following hip fracture may arise from differences in bone quality, bone density, trauma, concomitant fractures, postfracture treatments or diagnoses, restoration of prefracture mobility, or a combination thereof. The synergistic effect of dementia may suggest detrimental mechanistic or behavioral combinations for these 2 comorbidities. Renewed efforts should focus on modulating the mechanisms behind this heightened mortality risk, with particular attention to mobility and comorbid dementia.
Towards a pedagogy of work‐based learning: perceptions of work‐based learning in foundation degrees

One of the features of foundation degrees (FDs) is the incorporation of work‐based learning (WBL) into the curriculum. WBL is seen as an important part of vocational programmes and is described by Foundation Degrees Forward (FDF) as a potentially radical approach to connecting work with learning. The Quality Assurance Agency (QAA), in its benchmark for FDs, stated that WBL is an integral part of FDs that enables learners to take appropriate roles in the workplace in order to learn and apply skills they have learned on the programme. This paper presents findings of a large evaluation study of the development and delivery of FDs at Kingston University in south‐west London, UK. As part of this evaluation data were sought from FD course directors and from students about WBL in their particular programmes. Findings from the evaluation showed variation in course directors' and students' understanding of WBL with emphasis on ‘work‐based’ and little emphasis on ‘learning’. As a result, a variety of diverse models of WBL are being used. The findings from this evaluative study are compared with the literature on models and definitions of WBL, as well as the literature on how students on vocational programmes learn. Conclusions are drawn about the use of WBL in vocationally‐orientated programmes, the consequences of mixed understandings and interpretations of WBL, and a pedagogy of WBL is proposed.
Annual Yield Analysis of Solar Tower Power Plants with Greenius

An existing software tool for annual performance calculation of concentrating solar power and other renewable energy plants has been extended to enable the simulation of solar tower power plants. The methodology used is shown and a demonstrative example of a 50 MWe tower plant in southern Spain is given. The influence of design power and latitude on solar field layout is discussed. Furthermore, a comparison of the tower plant with a 50 MWe parabolic trough and a Linear Fresnel plant at the same site is given.
Research regarding an Afterburning System from a Cogeneration Power Plant on Gas Fuel

The global efficiency increase for cogeneration with gas turbines depends on the heat utilization from the burned gases of the turbo-engine, and it is achieved with a reutilization boiler. Introducing afterburning not only increases the efficiency of the cogeneration but it also increases the flexibility of the turbo-generator, boiler and afterburning assembly. An afterburning installation has been tested at different working regimes with the turbo-generator and the boiler measuring pollutant emissions. Data was processed and the optimal regime, i.e. minimum emissions, was obtained. A numerical model for the burning process was developed and the concordance with the experimental data was analysed. Copyright , Manchester University Press.
Intermodulation noise related to THD in dynamic nonlinear wide-band amplifiers

In this work it is shown that the power of the intermodulation noise of a wide-band amplifier with dynamic nonlinearities can be estimated by the total harmonic distortion (THD) with a sinusoid input signal of appropriate amplitude and frequency. The THD is, as opposed to the intermodulation noise, easy to measure and use as a design parameter.
On Blast Pressure Analysis Due to a Partially Confined Explosion: III. Afterburning Effect

This paper aims at extending our understanding with regard to some characteristics of an interior explosion within a room with limited venting. An interior explosion may be the result of an ammunition storage explosion, or an explosive charge as part of a terrorist action or a warhead explosion that follows its penetration into a closed space in a military action. Full scale experiments have been performed with a TNT charge detonated at the center of a single room sized space with rigid boundaries. The room has a limited size opening for venting at the ceiling. Numerical simulations of the problem have been performed using AUTODYN Ver. 12.1 and compared with the experimental measurements. Some deviations between the measured pressure and the predicted pressure motivated the present study in an attempt to study the effect of the additional energy released due to the burning of the detonation products reacting with the surrounding oxygen. The study that is described in this paper enhanced our understanding. Incorporation of this effect considerably improved the predictions. The present study clarified when, how and to what extent the afterburning should be introduced in the analysis.
Yield gap analysis of chickpea (Cicer arietinum) through front line demonstration on farmer's fields

The present study was carried out at Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Umaria to know the yield gap between improved package and practices (IP) under Front Line Demonstration (FLD) and farmer’s practice (FP) of chickpea crop under limited irrigation conditions. The study found, the yield of chickpea in IP under limited irrigated conditions ranges from 11.20 to 12.53 q/ha whereas in FP it ranges between 8.20 to 9.30 q/ha. The per cent increase in yield with IP over FP was recorded in the range of 34.7 to 36.5. The extension gap and technological index were ranging between 3.0-3.23 q/ha and 30.3-37.7 per cent, respectively. The trend of technology gap reflected the farmer’s cooperation in carrying out demonstrations with encouraging results in subsequent years. The cost benefit ratio was 2.25 to 2.42 under demonstration, while it was 1.88 to 1.97 under FP plots. By conducting front line demonstration of proven technologies, yield potential of chickpea crop could be enhanced to a great extent with increase in the income level of the farming community.
Investigation of current-gain temperature dependence in silicon transistors

This paper presents the results of an investigation of the factors influencing transistor current-gain temperature dependence. Phase one of the investigation demonstrated experimentally that current-gain temperature dependence is an inverse log function of the average active base resistivity. Devices were found to be less temperature sensitive with lighter base doping levels. Phase two of the investigation experimentally demonstrated current-gain temperature dependence to be an inverse exponential function of the emitter doping level. This large temperature dependence is shown to be a possible consequence of an emitter band-gap decrease, presumably caused by the large number of dislocations and lattice deformations at high doping levels. Using the predicted techniques, several runs of epitaxial planar devices were fabricated which had practically no current-gain temperature dependence, and suffered no noticeable loss in other parameters. Current-gain temperature dependence is also thought to be one of the contributors to hot-spot formation and secondary breakdown. To determine if secondary-breakdown capability had been increased, these temperature-insensitive devices were tested to forward secondary breakdown and compared to standard products of the same geometry. The temperature-independent devices were able to withstand a 40-percent increase in operating power before the onset of secondary breakdown. This increase in capability is thought to be the result of less tendency toward hot-spot formation due to decreased thermal regenerative action.
Epidemiology of Orthopaedic Injuries in Cases of Road Traffic Accidents

Background: Road traffic accidents are on the rise due to rapid urbanization, motorization, lack of appropriate road engineering, poor awareness levels, non existent injury prevention programs, and poor enforcement of traffic laws. From mild to severe injuries, a road traffic accident can have a significant social and economic impact on the individual, family and the society. It is believed that the outcome of this study should help in identifying risk factors, set priorities for prevention and aid in management of cases. Materials and Methods: This study is a cross sectional prospective study conducted over a period of 6 months Results: One hundred and twenty seven RTA victims were studied during the period. The most commonly affected age group was 21-40 years. Men were more involved in RTAs than women. Most common fracture was tibial fracture and most common fractures were seen in people who drove motorcycles. Accidents were most commonly seen during the time period of 6pm to 6am. Conclusion: Computerised trauma registry is needed urgently to highlight risk factors, circumstances, chain of events leading to accidents. Strict licensure procedure should be followed and minimum level of education should be imparted especially to younger age groups. Doing so will be helpful in policy making and health management in India.
Input-and-Measurement Event-Triggered Output-Feedback Chattering Reduction Control for MEMS Gyroscopes

This article presents an input-and-measurement event-triggered output-feedback chattering reduction control for microelectromechanical system (MEMS) gyroscopes. To realize online estimation with decreased communication burden along sensor-to-control channel, a switching threshold-based sampler is embedded to achieve an intermittent measurement-based extended state observer (IMESO) capable of synchronously observing unavailable velocity states and disturbances, meanwhile, a mathematical presentation reflecting the interaction between design parameters and upper boundary of estimation errors is deduced to make argument tuning easy. Next, an event-triggered output-feedback control rule is developed in the controller-to-actuator channel to obtain a discrete control signal with less occupation on communication resources without inducing Zeno phenomena. Besides, to enforce system profiles evolve within the predefined performance boundaries with reduced chattering, a tracking differentiator (TD)-based prescribed performance control (TDPPC) is proposed, where the time differentiation of the preselected envelopes can be managed with smooth transient, and a balance between system performance and sampling cost can be ensured. Finally, a sigmoid function-based TD (STD), rather than dynamic surface control, is utilized to overcome the complexity explosion. Comparison simulations are performed to show the superiorities and effectiveness of the established controller.
The Self-Induced Unsteadiness of Tip Leakage Vortex and Its Effect on Compressor Stall Inception

The self-induced unsteadiness of tip leakage vortex (TLV), which appears in a compressor rotor working in a range of operating points on its characteristics, from wide-open throttle all the way to the stall limit, is investigated experimentally. The research aims are twofold, to clarify the three modes in TLV development process through experimental evidences and to explore the effect of this in-blade TLV unsteadiness on stall inception. In the first half of the paper, in order to detect the unsteadiness and ensure its existence in the experimental environment (not just in computational results), phase-locked Mean and Root-Mean-Square (RMS) contours are used to track the time-averaged trajectories of the TLV, while a power spectral density (PSD) analysis provides a means to identify the magnitude and the frequency of the oscillation. With all of the above, the three modes of the TLV development, which are steady, in-blade unsteady and cross-blade unsteady TLV, can be clearly demonstrated. In the second half of this paper, various tip jet injections are applied to test the effects of the unsteady TLV on stall inception. It is found that a spike stall precursor is originated from circumferential locations where the strongest unsteady TLV are. At those locations, tip jet injections that are designated to directly alter the characteristics of TLV improve the stall margin effectively. Further, the injections are arranged over the rotor tip in difference axial locations and switched on at different points of compressor characteristic, demonstrating that if the injection misses the tip vortices or interferes with TLV too late, little or even no improvement in stall margin can be gained. These results show that the unsteady TLV are closely related to spike stall inception in this single rotor, which implies that the initiation of compressor stall could be manipulated by properly altering the characteristics of TLV unsteadiness.Copyright © 2007 by ASME
Psychological profile of pet owners in Isfahan, Iran

This study aimed to compare the psychological profile of pet owners with the ones who didn’t own any pets. The research method was a casual-comparative study. Pet owners and people without pets were included in this research which was done in Iran in February 2017. One hundred and sixty people were selected in this sample in a nonrandom available sampling method and matched in terms of demographic characteristics. Eighty people, pet owners, were referred to the veterinary clinics and 80 didn’t own any pets. They were assessed by a psychological signs inventory. The result of ANOVA indicated that pet owners and those without any pets were indifferent in the characteristics of anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, hostility, paranoid, interpersonal sensitivity, and psychosis, while those without any pets, statistically had a higher average in somatization and depression than the pet owners and it could be justified by corrective emotional experience, displacement, and sublimation in the pet owner. This statistic can be based on the fact that pet owners use these animals as an object for thrilling topics which is a factor to decrease their psychological stress and increase their physical health.
IMPROVING COMPETITIVE POSITIONING IN THE AEROSPACE INDUSTRY: A CASE STUDY OF DUTCH PARTICIPATION IN THE F‐35 LIGHTNING II (JSF) PROGRAMME

In Defence and Peace Economics, Volume 17 (2006), we reported the interim results of our study on the economic effects for the Dutch aerospace industry of participation in the development and production phases of the F‐35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) programme (recently been renamed as the F‐35 Lightning II). This article is based on recent data from interviews with Dutch industry, conducted in 2006. The main contributions, compared with our interim results, are: (1) a more reliable estimation of expected turnover and employment effects; (2) numerous examples of knowledge development by participation in the F‐35 programme; and (3) the perspectives of the main contractors – Lockheed Martin, Pratt & Whitney and Rolls‐Royce – on knowledge development by Dutch companies. Our results indicate that Dutch participation in the F‐35 programme contributes to a substantial increase in turnover, knowledge‐intensive employment, powerful technological development and an improved long‐term positioning in the global aerospace industry.
Unraveling the Spatiotemporal Distribution of VPS13A in the Mouse Brain

Loss-of-function mutations in the human vacuolar protein sorting the 13 homolog A (VPS13A) gene cause Chorea-acanthocytosis (ChAc), with selective degeneration of the striatum as the main neuropathologic feature. Very little is known about the VPS13A expression in the brain. The main objective of this work was to assess, for the first time, the spatiotemporal distribution of VPS13A in the mouse brain. We found VPS13A expression present in neurons already in the embryonic stage, with stable levels until adulthood. VPS13A mRNA and protein distributions were similar in the adult mouse brain. We found a widespread VPS13A distribution, with the strongest expression profiles in the pons, hippocampus, and cerebellum. Interestingly, expression was weak in the basal ganglia. VPS13A staining was positive in glutamatergic, GABAergic, and cholinergic neurons, but rarely in glial cells. At the cellular level, VPS13A was mainly located in the soma and neurites, co-localizing with both the endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria. However, it was not enriched in dendritic spines or the synaptosomal fraction of cortical neurons. In vivo pharmacological modulation of the glutamatergic, dopaminergic or cholinergic systems did not modulate VPS13A concentration in the hippocampus, cerebral cortex, or striatum. These results indicate that VPS13A has remarkable stability in neuronal cells. Understanding the distinct expression pattern of VPS13A can provide relevant information to unravel pathophysiological hallmarks of ChAc.
Doing more to Teach Teamwork than Telling Students to Sink or Swim

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Groundwater quality around new cement factory, Ibese, Ogun State, Southwest Nigeria

-1 . The chloride concentration was found to be higher than World Health Organization (WHO) recommended limit of 250 mgL -1 in drinking water in majority of the samples. The suitability of the water for irrigation was established using sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) which ranges from 2.61 to 11.56. Concentration of heavy metals (Lead (Pb), Manganese (Mn), Nickel (Ni) and cadmium (Cd)) was determined using atomic absorption spectrophotometer and most of them are below detection limit of the instrument. It was concluded that the alkalinity was as a result of water-rock reaction, and treatment to remove high chloride concentration is required before consumption. The establishment of Dangote cement factory in the area should facilitate the provision of potable water for the inhabitants by the company as part of community service.