Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Development and evaluation of acu-magnetic therapeutic knee brace for symptomatic knee osteoarthritis relief in the elderly

Abstract Degenerative knee osteoarthritis (KOA) is the most common form of arthritis with a high prevalence in general population, especially among the elderly. This study aims to design and develop a new acu-magnetic therapeutic knee brace (KB) applying acupuncture point stimulation by magnetic approach to relieve symptomatic KOA, and to evaluate its effectiveness on knee function via a randomized controlled trial (RCT). The embedded magnetic padding in the KB were positioned at the six determined acupuncture points along the four main meridians of the lower limb. A total of 52 subjects with KOA aged 60–80 years old participated in RCT study. They were randomly allocated to an experimental KB group (18 subjects), a sham KB group (17 subjects) and a control group (17 subjects). The results indicated that the intervention of the experimental acu-magnetic KB significantly relieved the subjects’ knee stiffness and pain feeling, and improved the physical function, balance ability and knee range of motion after a six-week continuous treatment. No significant changes on the tested parameters were found in the control group, but it is worth noting that the sham group also presented positive results in the first two weeks of wear trial. In general, the designed KB could be used as one of optional nonpharmacological approaches to relieve KOA in the elderly users in daily care. The built-in magnetic padding of KB would not only exert stimulation at acupoints but also could potentially activate their surrounding nerve endings to improve knee joint function. In addition, the designed acu-magnetic KB also demonstrated superior characteristics in magnetic flux permeability, tactile comfort, and washability in use.
Methods of Available Potassium Assessment in Selected Soils of Kwara State, Nigeria

Responses to potassium (K) by potted Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) were determined in soils taken from four Local Government Areas in Kwara State and regressed with K extracted with five laboratory methods. Results showed that without K application, dry-matter yields were relatively high and responses to 15 kg, 30 kg and 60 kg K ha -1 were negative and not significant in the soils derived from basement complex and sandstones. When dry matter yields without K application were less than 9.00 g/pot, there were no significant responses to K application and responses were significant only when they were more than 9%. Potassium extracted with N NH 4 OAc pH 7.0 gave the best indication of dry matter yields when K was not applied, with the equation, Y = 0.005X + 3.1902, r = 0.1622. Significant responses were obtained in soil testing with less than 15 kg K ha-1 with this method. Furthermore, K extracted with hot N HNO 3 was almost equal with a higher value in virtually all soils to exchangeable K extracted with N NH 4 OAc and could be used in place of this extractant as it also accounts for the replenishable form of K in soil. Keywords : A-value, extractants, K status, % K response, Sorghum, uptake
Comparison of the Views of Classical Fiqh Ulama and Contemporary Fiqh Ulama on the Use of Zakat Maal for the Development of Educational and Da'wah Institutions

Nowadays, zakat paid by muzakki is channeled through an educational empowerment model, including scholarships for poor children. In addition to scholarships, the empowerment model also improved, zakat funds are also used for the development of Educational and Da'wah Institutions, including for schools, campuses, dormitories, and mosques. In At-Taubah 60, there is no mention of the Board of Education and Da'wah included in the asnaf who are entitled to receive zakat. Thus, the question arises as to how the legal position of the use of zakat funds for the benefit of the development of educational institutions and da'wah, whether the law is allowed according to sharia or not. This study used a qualitative library research method. The conclusion of this article states that zakat funds are allowed for the construction of educational and da’wah institutions, by using the reason for the "generality of interpretation" of the word sabilillah ( في سبيل الله ) in At-Taubah: 60 as one of the parties entitled to receive zakat. If the zakat funds for asnaf sabilillah still use the classical meaning, which means only for war, then the scope will be very narrow. In addition, at this time, jihad, which means war on the battlefield no longer exists, because it is considered a violation of human rights, and even if this kind of war is still being financed by the state.
The High School Competencies Scale (H-Comp Scale): A First Validation Study

Researchers widely explored non-intellective study factors because they play a central role in academic performance and are potentially more modifiable than intellective ones. The scientific literature suggests that the non-intellective factors can be classified into three main areas: self-concept, which refers to self-esteem and efficacy, motivation and emotional reactions; the area of study, related to study dedication and operative skills; and the area of relationships, comprising those with family, fellow students and teachers. Basing on these findings, the C-Comp Scale has been developed and tested in the past, addressed to college students. This study aimed to adapt and test a new version of this questionnaire on high school students. Methods. A pilot study was conducted on 364 Italian high school students to adapt and test the new version of the questionnaire, called the H-Comp Scale. The following study, conducted on 792 Italian high school students, provided further evidence of its reliability, structural validity, and concurrent validity with general self-efficacy, academic self-efficacy, social self-efficacy, and academic performance. Results. The H-Comp Scale showed to possess excellent reliability and structural and concurrent validity. The final version is composed of twelve subscales, aggregated in three areas, with just 48 items: Study (Intrinsic Motivation, Extrinsic Motivation, Time Management, Study Dedication), Self (Learning Assessment, General Self-Esteem, Self-Efficacy, Reaction to Failures, Emotional Control), and Relationships (Family Relationships, Fellow Student Relationships, Teacher Relationships). Conclusions. The H-Comp Scale would be a useful and easy-to-use instrument to support school counselors, tutors, teachers, and researchers in exploring different types of non-intellective variables, to better project educational intervention aimed to improve high school students’ academic performance and satisfaction.
Interface Theory vs Gibson: An Ontological Defense of the Ecological Approach

ABSTRACT Interface theory is the hypothesis that inferential, representational theories of perception entail that fitness, not truth, dictates the evolution of perceptual systems. They show, with simulations, that “veridical” perceptual mappings (ones that preserve at least some of the structure of the world) are routinely out-competed by “non-veridical” interfaces (ones that make no attempt to preserve that structure). They therefore take particular aim at the direct perception, ecological approach to perception and work to show that such a system, even if technically an option, would never be selected for by evolution. This paper defends the ecological approach from this novel, existential attack by showing that the ecological hypothesis is so different in kind to the inferential, representational view of perception that it simply falls outside the scope of interface theory’s critiques; ecological psychology remains a viable scientific endeavor. This analysis will show that, far from being a radical new approach to perception, interface theory is simply a clear and elegant formalization of mainstream representational psychology, and any implications interface theory may have belong solely to that branch of science.
A framework for digital preservation of Indigenous knowledge system (IKS) in repositories in South Africa

Purpose The purpose of this study is to assess the digital preservation policies and plans for long-term digital preservation in selected repositories in South Africa, with a view to develop a digital preservation framework for the preservation of Indigenous knowledge system (IKS) in South Africa. Design/methodology/approach Through the multiple case study research design, data was obtained from eight respondents in four Indigenous Knowledge Systems Documentation Centers (IKSDCs) in institutions that are part of the National Recordal Systems (NRS) initiative across four provinces in South Africa using in-depth face-to-face interviews. Data collected was also supplemented with the content analysis of several policy documents in South Africa. Findings The findings reveal that there are no digital preservation policies in place in the institutions, especially long-term digital preservation for IKS. However, some of the institutions are formulating policies that will include the management of IKS collected in the institutions. This study also reveals that digital curation, policy formulation and disaster preparedness plans to some extent are measures said to be in place for the digital preservation of IKS. Research limitations/implications This study focuses mainly on the NRS initiative in South Africa. Indigenous Knowledge (IK) related to traditional medicine, traditional plants and food are currently being digitized at the IKSDCs by IK recorders. This study will help in ensuring that the South African Government’s effort and investment in digitizing IKS and making them accessible online is not wasted. This study will help mitigate the risk of damage and alteration over time, either deliberately or in error. Originality/value This study fills a gap in the literature on the digitization and digital preservation of IKS from the context of the NRS project in South Africa. Very few studies have been carried out on the digital preservation of IKS in Africa. This study also proposed a framework for the digital preservation of IKS in South Africa.
Current advances in microbial production of 1,3‐propanediol

1,3‐Propanediol (1,3‐PDO), an important chemical raw material, has attracted much attention due to its wide use as a monomer of biodegradable polyester materials. Production of 1,3‐PDO from renewable resources, through microbial fermentation, has the advantage of requiring only mild conditions. The process also demonstrates industrial safety and is environmentally friendly. In this review, we have summarized and commented on current progress in screening and breeding strains for 1,3‐PDO production, especially from glycerol or glucose. Advanced strategies, including metabolic engineering, fermentation process optimization, and construction of a microbial consortium system, are introduced and discussed. Current challenges and prospects for more efficient and economical bio‐based 1,3‐PDO production are examined in the context of its industrial application. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd
Fundamental Understanding of Tea Growth and Modeling of Precise Tea Shoot Picking Based on 3-D Coordinate Instrument

Tea is a popular beverage worldwide and also has great medical value. A fundamental understanding of tea shoot growth and a precision picking model should be established to realize mechanized picking of tea shoots with a small product loss. Accordingly, the terminal bud length (Lbud), tea stem length (Lstem), terminal bud angle (αbud), tea stem angle (αstem), and growth time (t) were considered as the key growth parameters; the sum of the vertical lengths of the terminal bud and stem (ξ), the picking radius (r), and the vertical length of the stem (Zstem) were considered as the picking indexes of the tea shoots. The variations in growth parameters with time were investigated using a 3-D coordinate instrument, and the relationships between the growth parameters and the picking indexes were established using an artificial neural network (ANN). The results indicated that the tea growth cycles for periods P1, P2, P3, P4, P5, and P6 were 14, 7, 6, 4, 4, and 6 d, respectively. A growth cycle diagram of the tea growth was established. Moreover, a 5-2-12-3 ANN model was developed. The best prediction of ξ, r, and Zstem was found with 16 training epochs. The MSE value was 0.0923 × 10−4, and the R values for the training, test, and validation data were 0.99976, 0.99871, and 0.99857, respectively, indicating that the established ANN model demonstrates excellent performance in predicting the picking indexes of tea shoots.
A Deep Dive into the Impact of COVID-19 on Software Development

The COVID-19 pandemic is considered as the most crucial global health calamity of the century. It has impacted different business sectors around the world and software development is not an exception. This study investigates the impact of COVID-19 on software projects and software development professionals. We conducted a mining software repository study based on 100 GitHub projects developed in Java using ten different metrics. Next, we surveyed 279 software development professionals for better understanding the impact of COVID-19 on daily activities and wellbeing. We identified 12 observations related to productivity, code quality, and wellbeing. Our findings highlight that the impact of COVID-19 is not binary (reduce productivity versus increase productivity) but rather a spectrum. For many of our observations, substantial proportions of respondents have differing opinions from each other. We believe that more research is needed to uncover specific conditions that cause certain outcomes to be more prevalent.
Processes of consumer socialization: study of single-father households

Purpose Despite years of research into consumer socialization, little research examines men’s roles in consumer socialization processes. The purpose of this paper is to attend to this gap and to investigate consumer socialization processes in single-father households. Design/methodology/approach To study consumer socialization processes, this paper develops its insights using grounded theory, deploying qualitative data to develop theory. The data include long interviews with both fathers and their children used to understand the processes of consumer socialization. Findings This paper finds six socialization processes: entrustment, entrainment, education, emprise, estrangement and elevation. These processes emerge based on different types of household resource gaps or aspects of men’s gender identity. Research limitations/implications The main implications are to study the roles played by cultural context and family type in socialization processes. Studies could examine whether the processes uncovered here occur in other family settings, as well as whether they vary based on children’s age and gender. Practical implications Household brands, products and services could target resource-scarce households using appeals that portray offerings as a means to develop children’s responsibilities, independence and involvement in household management. Marketers could also use advertising appeals that depict playful product usage and learning situations or more broadly position brands as identity brands making them more appealing to men who are striving to be better fathers. Originality/value This paper uniquely identifies a number of previously uncovered consumer socialization processes, as well as factors that influence them.
Genetic polymorphisms of 16 X-STR loci in the Hani population from Southwest China

Abstract X chromosomal short tandem repeats (X-STRs) have the characteristics of both autosomal and uniparental genetic markers and have been shown to be particularly useful in forensic casework. However, relevant research or reports have not focused on X-STRs in the Hani population. To investigate the genetic variation and forensic efficiency of 16 X-STR loci in the Hani ethnic minority, we calculated the allele frequencies and forensic parameters of 451 (116 males and 335 females) unrelated healthy Hani individuals from Yunnan Province, Southwest China. All these loci are highly polymorphic in Hani individuals in Yunnan Province except DXS6800. The combined power of discrimination in males (PDM) and power of discrimination in females (PDF) were found to be 0.999 999 998 433 993 and 0.999 999 999 999 998, respectively. Furthermore, a population genetic structure investigation between the Yunnan Hani population and another 18 populations was performed using a principal component analysis, multidimensional scaling plot and neighbouring-joining phylogenetic tree and the findings illustrated that neighbouring populations and different nationalities in the same area appeared to have a closer evolutionary relationship. This study provides the first batch of X chromosome genetic polymorphism data of the Hani population in Yunnan Province, Southwest China and enriches the reference database of the Chinese minority population. Key points This is the first study of X-STR in the Hani population. We calculated the allele frequencies and forensic parameters of 451 unrelated healthy Hani individuals from Yunnan Province, Southwest China. All these loci are highly polymorphic in Hani individuals in Yunnan Province except DXS6800. The genetic relationship between the Hani and other 18 nationalities was analyzed. This study provides the first batch of X chromosome genetic polymorphism data of the Hani population in Yunnan Province, Southwest China and enriches the reference database of the Chinese minority population.
Fluid Dynamic Approaches for Prediction of Spray Drift from Ground Pesticide Applications: A Review

Spray drifts have been studied by mathematical models and computer simulations as an essential complement to lab and field tests, among which are fluid dynamic approaches that help to understand the transport of spray droplets in a turbulent atmosphere and their potential impacts to the environment. From earlier fluid mechanical models to highly computational models, scientific advancement has led to a more realistic prediction of spray drift, but the current literature lacks reviews showing the trends and limitations of the existing approaches. This paper is to review the literature on fluid-mechanical-based modelling of spray drift resulting from ground spray applications. Consequently, it provides comprehensive understanding of the transition and development of fluid dynamic approaches and the future directions in this research field.
Tasks, Automation, and the Rise in US Wage Inequality

We document that between 50% and 70% of changes in the U.S. wage structure over the last four decades are accounted for by relative wage declines of worker groups specialized in routine tasks in industries experiencing rapid automation. We develop a conceptual framework where tasks across industries are allocated to different types of labor and capital. Automation technologies expand the set of tasks performed by capital, displacing certain worker groups from jobs for which they have comparative advantage. This framework yields a simple equation linking wage changes of a demographic group to the task displacement it experiences. We report robust evidence in favor of this relationship and show that regression models incorporating task displacement explain much of the changes in education wage differentials between 1980 and 2016. The negative relationship between wage changes and task displacement is unaffected when we control for changes in market power, deunionization, and other forms of capital deepening and technology unrelated to automation. We also propose a methodology for evaluating the full general equilibrium effects of automation, which incorporate induced changes in industry composition and ripple effects due to task reallocation across different groups. Our quantitative evaluation explains how major changes in wage inequality can go hand‐in‐hand with modest productivity gains.
Producer Gas Composition and NOx Emissions from a Pilot-Scale Biomass Gasification and Combustion System Using Feedstock with Controlled Nitrogen Content

This study is focused on the effects of nitrogen content in biomass feedstock on the producer gas composition and the flue gas NOx emissions from a pilot-scale gasification and combustion system. Biomass gasification has the potential to produce carbon neutral energy by using renewable resources. When the biomass-derived gas is burned, NOx emissions are a critical factor that can limit the use of the system. In this study, tests were conducted in a pilot-scale fluidized-bed gasifier using biomass feedstock with different nitrogen contents varying from 0.14 to 1.75 wt %. The producer gas from the gasifier undergoes a gas cleaning phase before its combustion in a burner. The producer gas and the exhaust flue gas were analyzed. Results show that there is a direct and proportional relationship between nitrogen in biomass, ammonia in the producer gas, and NOx emissions in the flue gas. Additionally, NOx emissions do not vary noticeably with the overall equivalence ratio in the burner but vary significantly wit.
Insights from a faculty learning community on translingual community-engaged pedagogy at a Hispanic serving institution

Abstract Despite emerging scholarship on translanguaging pedagogies and the potential Faculty Learning Communities (FLC) have on shifting pedagogical beliefs, there are limited studies that explore the impact a faculty learning community has on educators’ perceptions and reflections on translanguaging as a teaching and learning tool in higher education. The authors explore educators’ perceptions and enactment of translanguaging practices across disciplines in the context of a FLC on translingual community-engaged pedagogies. Through semi-structured interviews and written reflections, the authors used thematic analysis to investigate how the FLC impacted faculty participants’ critical reflection on their practice from the perspective of translanguaging as a pedagogical tool. While faculty participants questioned the implementation of translanguaging pedagogies, they acknowledged students’ language experiences as they grappled with linguistically inclusive approaches to teaching and learning. Teaching and research implications for embracing translanguaging pedagogies across academic disciplines are identified.
Differential Effects of WRAP53 Transcript Variants on the Biological Behaviours of Human Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Cells

Background: The WD40-encoding RNA antisense to p53 (WRAP53) gene, an antisense gene of TP53, has 3 different transcriptional start sites that yield 3 transcript variants. One of these variants WRAP53-1β encodes a WD repeat-containing protein WRAP53β, whereas WRAP53-1α is a noncoding RNA that regulates p53 mRNA levels. These variants are involved in the progression of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, how the different transcript variants regulate NSCLC cell behaviours is to be elucidated.Methods: Wild-type p53 NSCLC A549 cells and p53-mutated H1975 cells were transfected with WRAP53-1α and WRAP53-1β siRNAs, and their behaviours were examined colony formation, cell viability, apoptosis, cell cycle, wound healing, and cell invasion assays.Results: WRAP53-1α knockdown increased the mRNA and protein levels of p53, whereas depletion of WRAP53-1β had no effect on p53 expression. WRAP53-1α knockdown suppressed colony formation and proliferation of A549 cells, but had the opposite effects on H1975 cells. However, WRAP53-1β knockdown promoted A549 cell growth. Depletion of WRAP53-1α and WRAP53-1β promoted apoptosis in A549 but not H1975 cells. WRAP53-1α knockdown increased the proportion of A549 but not H1975 cells at the G0/G1 phase. However, WRAP53-1β knockdown decreased the proportion of cells at the G0/G1 phase in A549 cells. Depletion of WRAP53-1α suppressed A549 cell migration and invasion, and promoted H1975 cell migration and invasion. However, depletion of WRAP53-1β had the opposite effects.Conclusions: The 2 WRAP53 transcript variants exerted opposite functions in NSCLC cells and regulated NSCLC cell behaviours in a p53-dependent manner.