Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effect of Locally Delivered Spirulina Gel on the Treatment of Stage II, Grade B Periodontitis: A Randomized Control Clinical Study.

Background and Aim: a potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory can offer improved results in periodontitis cases. The current study set out to evaluate the clinical and immunological effects of spirulina gel as a scaling and root planing adjuvant for stage II, grade B periodontitis. Methods: Two groups of forty patients with stage II, grade B periodontitis were created. Group I (control group) (n = 20) received SRP with placebo gel in the pocket. Group II (spirulina group) (n = 20) received treatment with both spirulina gel and scaling and root planing (SRP). Plaque index (PI), gingival index (GI), clinical attachment level (CAL), and probing pocket depth (PPD) were the clinical parameters that were measured at baseline, one, three, and six months following therapy. Using an enzyme-linked immunological test, the levels of interleukin 6 (IL-6) in gingival crevicular fluid were measured at baseline, 1, 3, and 6 months following treatment. Results: Both groups’ clinical and biochemical markers significantly improved. In comparison to the control group, the spirulina group had statistically significant improvements in clinical PPD, CAL, and IL-6 at 1, 3, and 6 months following therapy. Conclusions: Local drug delivery of spirulina gel adjunctive to SRP has potent anti-inflammatory in treatment of stage II, grade B periodontitis. Spirulina is promising treatment of periodontitis.
Cystatin C as A Prognostic Biomarker to Monitor Renal Function in Liver Cirrhosis: A Narrative Review

Cystatin C (CysC) is a serum protein that has been accepted as an early and precise biomarker of chronic kidney disease (CKD) that is especially useful in patients for whom creatinine (Cr) is deemed an inadequate marker. Estimates of the glomerular filtration rate using serum CysC are proposed as good predictors of renal function. This narrative review was done to review the use of CysC and its estimated glomerular filtration rate as a prognostic marker for renal function in patients diagnosed with liver cirrhosis. A review of the literature was conducted using databases including PubMed, Google Scholar, Science Direct, and Medline. Twenty-eight studies were included in the review. The discovery of CysC has revolutionized early detection and potential reversal of kidney damage in cirrhotic patients, improving outcomes significantly. Unlike Cr-based equations, CysC offers a promising alternative for detecting decreased glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and shows significant associations with various factors, supporting its reliability as a biomarker. Its role extends beyond renal function, showing potential in cardiovascular disease (CVD), mortality, kidney transplant function, and transplant failure.
Implementation of IPAS with an Inquiry Learning Model in Grade 4 Primary School

IPAS (Ilmu Pengetahuan Alam dan Sosial/Natural and Social Sciences) constitutes essential subjects in the implementation of the Merdeka Curriculum in primary schools. The primary goal of integrating IPAS is to enable students to effectively manage their natural and social environment as a whole. In light of this objective, the researcher recognized the necessity of conducting this research. The research employs a qualitative approach with a case study method conducted at one of the elementary schools in Sukoharjo District, Central Java. The respondents in this research include the school principal, fourth-grade teachers, first-grade teachers, and fourth-grade students. Data collection was carried out through interviews, observation, and documentation, followed by technical triangulation to validate the field findings. Based on the results obtained from the implementation of IPAS learning using the inquiry learning model, it is established that natural and social sciences were taught separately in the first and second semesters. The results of research conducted in the second semester reveal that IPAS learning activities on social science material have been implemented effectively in terms of planning, execution, and evaluation, with a focus on adhering to the syntax of the inquiry learning model. Obstacles to IPAS learning include educators’ lack of readiness for curriculum changes, limited training and information regarding the curriculum, a lack of skill in using technology, and classroom conditions that are not conducive. Efforts made include increasing the competence of educators through teacher working group forums, participating in training, and managing classes to ensure conducive learning activities. This research is expected to serve as a valuable reference for studying the implementation of IPAS with the inquiry learning model in the Merdeka Curriculum.
The Effects of Service Quality on Tourist Loyalty Towards Malaysian Budget Hotels

The hotel industry plays a vital role in tourism development by providing visitor accommodation facilities. This paper focuses on the effects of service quality on the budget hotel industry in Malaysia. Despite the increasing number of tourists opting for budget hotels in recent years, issues related to service quality have affected tourist satisfaction and loyalty, posing significant challenges for the budget hotel sector to maintain its business. The study analyzed the effects of service quality on tourist loyalty towards budget hotels and identified the most influential factor in service quality that affects tourist loyalty. A quantitative approach was employed in this study, and the findings indicate that the responsiveness quality dimension has the most significant effect on tourist loyalty. In contrast, assurance and reliability have no significant effects. Budget hotels must improve their service quality, specifically responsiveness, to enhance tourist loyalty and maintain their business in the highly competitive hotel industry.
Does Climate Change Cause an Upsurge in Food Prices?

Climate change is the reason behind most contemporary economic problems. The rising inflationary pressures in the food sector are one of these problems, and stable food prices are a necessity for economic development and social cohesion in societies. Therefore, this study analyzes the relationship between food prices and climate change in Nigeria by using various non-linear and quantile-based methods and data from 2008m5 to 2020m12. The empirical findings indicate that (i) there is a time- and frequency-based dependence between food prices and some explanatory variables, including climate change (i.e., temperature). (ii) At higher quantiles, temperature, oil prices, food exports, monetary expansion, global food prices, agricultural prices, and fertilizer prices stimulate food prices. (iii) The increase in food prices due to the rise in temperature and the difficulties in agriculture indicate that the heatflation phenomenon is present in Nigeria. The evidence outlines that Nigerian decisionmakers should adopt a national food security policy that considers environmental, agricultural, and monetary factors to stabilize food prices.
Detection, Attribution, and Projection of Regional Rainfall Changes on (Multi-) Decadal Time Scales: A Focus on Southeastern South America

AbstractObserved austral summertime (November through April) rainfall in southeastern South America (SESA)—including northern Argentina, Uruguay, southern Brazil, and Paraguay—has exhibited substantial low-frequency variations with a multidecadal moistening trend during the twentieth century and a subsequent decadal drying trend during the current century. Understanding the mechanisms responsible for these variations is essential for predicting long-term rainfall changes. Here with a suite of attribution experiments using a pair of high-resolution global climate models, GFDL CM2.5 and FLOR-FA, the authors investigate the causes of these regional rainfall variations. Both models reproduce the twentieth-century moistening trend, albeit with a weaker magnitude than observed, in response to the radiative forcing associated with increasing greenhouse gases. The increasing greenhouse gases drive tropical expansion; consequently, the subtropical dry branch of Hadley cell moves away from SESA, leading to the rain.
Proteomic profile of pulmonary and extra pulmonary TB samples

Introduction: Tuberculosis (TB) is a major health problem in India, so early diagnosis and treatment of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M.tb.) infection can prevent deaths from this pathogen. The secretion of proteins by M.tb. is important in diagnostic purposes for generation of therapeutic drugs and vaccines candidates for TB. The objective of this study was to identify the protein expression (biomarkers) in TB and Tuberculosis meningitis (TBM) using proteomic approach. Methods: In this study, using Sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDSPAGE), we analyzed the secretory proteins of M.tb. in serum, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples. The identified proteins were determined by Total Lab- 100 Quantity One densitometry software. Results: Our study showed that protein bands expressed in CSF samples reveals the presence of 72kD, 70kD, 44kD, 40kD & 16kD predominantly in TBM patients compared to healthy individuals. The electrophoretogram identified 97kD, 72kD, 44kD, 38kD, 29kD & 16kD predominant proteins in serum samples of TB patients. Conclusion: The detection of secretory proteins in serum and CSF samples of M.tb. in TB and TBM patients gives reliable and early diagnosis of TB and TBM. The secretory proteins can be useful as immunodiagnostic and vaccine targets which can serve as important biomarkers
Effect of Blade Slot Inclination Angle on Flow Separation in The Centrifugal Fan Impeller

: The use of slotted blades for centrifugal fan impellers improves fluid flow steadiness and reduces fan noise. The slots create a jet of fluid from the pressure side to the suction side that increases the momentum of the main flow and postpones the flow separation. In addition, these slots make the fluid movement smoother and more efficient in impeller passages. In previous research, the optimum slot location was determined at 40% from the leading edge (at diameter Ds=0.65 D Impeller ) with a 2.5 mm width. The present research concentrates on determining the optimum slot jet angle of a ten-blade backward curved centrifugal fan at the best efficiency point (BEP). Six values of slot inclination angles, namely θ S1 , θ S2 , θ S3 , θ S4 , θ S5 and θ S6 , ranging from an inward slot direction of (+60°) to an outward direction of (-80°), are simulated numerically using an unsteady Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model. The CFD results have proven the benefits of the outward slots that ranged from (θ S = -60° to -80°) on stall control of the fluid on the blade suction side compared with the inward slots. At the BEP, the computed performance of the tested fan with an outward slot inclination angle θ S6 =-80° showed a 2.6 percent efficiency improvement compared to fans with an inward slot of θ S1 =+60°. Generally, the outward slot direction has a positive effect on the boundary layer attachment on the suction side of the blade.
Valorisation of “La Palma” Volcanic Ash for Making Portland-Blended, Alkaline and Hybrid Portland–Alkaline Cements

The present work evaluates the feasibility of using volcanic fly ash (VFA) generated by the eruption of the Tajogaite volcano on the island of La Palma (Spain) in 2021, as a precursor in the preparation of cementitious materials with different Portland cement (PC) replacement levels (0%, 30%, 70% and 100%), in the absence (Blended Cement, BC) and presence of an alkaline activator (Hybrid Alkaline Cement, HAC, and Alkaline Cements, AC). Hydration kinetics (isothermal conduction calorimetry), paste mechanical strengths and reaction products were characterised by XRD, FTIR, TG/DTG and BSEM/EDX. The results obtained indicate that the strengths developed by the hybrid alkaline cements (HAC) are higher than those of the blended cements (BC), especially at the age of 2 days, where 25 MPa were obtained with the replacement of 70% PC by VFA. Alkaline cements (AC, 100% VFA) that were prepared with 8 M NaOH solution as the activator reached 40 MPa after 2 days. It was observed that in all the binders, depending on the initial composition of the binder mixture and the percentage of replacement and/or activator, VFA reacts to form cementitious gels, C-A-S-H and N-A-S-H type, which supports its use as a mineral addition to blended cement or as a precursor in the preparation of alkaline and hybrid alkaline cements.
The Integration of Artificial Intelligence into Clinical Practice

The purpose of this literature review is to provide a fundamental synopsis of current research pertaining to artificial intelligence (AI) within the domain of clinical practice. Artificial intelligence has revolutionized the field of medicine and healthcare by providing innovative solutions to complex problems. One of the most important benefits of AI in clinical practice is its ability to investigate extensive volumes of data with efficiency and precision. This has led to the development of various applications that have improved patient outcomes and reduced the workload of healthcare professionals. AI can support doctors in making more accurate diagnoses and developing personalized treatment plans. Successful examples of AI applications are outlined for a series of medical specialties like cardiology, surgery, gastroenterology, pneumology, nephrology, urology, dermatology, orthopedics, neurology, gynecology, ophthalmology, pediatrics, hematology, and critically ill patients, as well as diagnostic methods. Special reference is made to legal and ethical considerations like accuracy, informed consent, privacy issues, data security, regulatory framework, product liability, explainability, and transparency. Finally, this review closes by critically appraising AI use in clinical practice and its future perspectives. However, it is also important to approach its development and implementation cautiously to ensure ethical considerations are met.
Constraining the chronology of Pleistocene glaciations on Svalbard: Kapp Ekholm re‐visited

The Kapp Ekholm site, in central Spitsbergen, shows alternating units of glaciomarine sandy silt and diamicton representing three glacial cycles and is key in reconstructing the Late Pleistocene glacial history of Svalbard. Part of the site is reinvestigated here by focusing on re‐dating two units (B and F) interpreted as interglacial/interstadial glaciomarine deposits, in order to constrain the controversial chronology. A combination of Optical Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) on quartz, infrared stimulated luminescence with a 50 °C readout temperature (IRSL50) and post infrared‐infrared stimulated luminescence (pIR), both on feldspar, was applied. While Formation B was beyond the dateable range of OSL, IRSL50 and pIR ages lead to the conclusion that this unit represents the Last Interglacial, Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5e, and the underlying diamicton the MIS 6 glacial. Formation F yielded ages implying that the formation represents the MIS 5a interstadial and the underlying diamicton is interpreted to represent the MIS 5b stadial. This agrees with conclusions drawn concerning the Pleistocene glaciations elsewhere on Svalbard.
The ARM North Slope of Alaska (NSA) Sites

When theARMProgramembarkedon its quest to select sites for the proposed ground-based atmospheric observatories, there was a broad consensus that more than one site was needed. One site had to be in the equatorial regions, where a disproportionate share of the solar energy fueling Earth’s atmospheric general circulation is received, and the other in a polar location, where radiant energy lost to space greatly exceeds the energy received by the sun. While the latitudinal energy imbalance suggested a polar site, an Arctic location was preferred, because the Arctic plays a stronger role in the general circulation than does the Antarctic (Crowley and North 1991). As far back as 1896, the Swedish scientist Svante Arrhenius suggested that changes in Earth’s atmospheric composition would lead to faster changes in the Arctic compared to the rest of the globe (Arrhenius 1896), a process confirmed by general circulation models and now called Arctic amplification [e.g., see summary in Serreze and Barry (2011)]. The high sensitivity of the Arctic to climate change is a result of the susceptibility of the cryosphere (sea ice, land ice, and permafrost) to changes in energy fluxes and influential feedback processes. For example, over theArctic sea ice, the strong sea ice–albedo feedback amplifies the observed decline in ice extent (e.g., Wendler et al. 2010). Faster changes in the Arctic relative to lower latitudes disturb the latitudinal energy balance and, hence, the general circulation patterns in both the oceans and atmosphere, impacting the entire globe. It may be said that what happens in the Arctic does not stay in the Arctic! Low temperatures in the Arctic result in low water vapor mixing ratios in the atmosphere, low enough that additional spectral regions, such as the water vapor rotational absorption bands in Earth’s emission spectrum, become semitransparent in the cloudless atmosphere, increasing radiative energy losses from the surface (Stamnes et al. 1999). The presence of clouds in the atmosphere alters the atmospheric radiative absorption spectrum and thus has a strong influence on the surface energy budget and radiative losses to space. Most Arctic * Retired.
Improvement Marshall Properties of Hot Mix Asphalt Concrete Using Polyphosphoric Acid

Modified asphalt is considered one of the alternatives to address the problems of deficiencies in traditional asphalt concrete, as modified asphalt addresses many of the issues that appear on the pavement layers in asphalt concrete, resulting from heavy traffic and vehicles loaded with loads that exceed the design loads and the large fluctuations in the daily and seasonal temperatures of asphalt concrete. The current study examined the role of polyphosphoric acid (PPA) as a modified material for virgin asphalt when it was added in different proportions (1%, 2%, 3%, 4%) of the asphalt weight. The experimental program includes the volumetric characteristics associated with the Marshall test, the physical properties, and the FTIR spectroscopy examination of virgin asphalt and polyphosphoric acid (PPA) modified asphalt. This study showed that mixtures with modified asphalt using polyphosphoric acid (PPA) by 3% achieved the typical Marshall properties at the optimal asphalt content of 4.8%, recording a 10% decrease in the optimum asphalt content for the mixtures made with virgin (unmodified) asphalt, whose proportion was 4.9% is the optimum asphalt content. PPA is available in the local markets and is considered cheaper than polymers. It is also regarded as economical as it reduces the optimum content of asphalt.
Automated Demand Response Framework in ELNs: Decentralized Scheduling and Smart Contract

Blockchain technique, with the novelties of decentralization, smart contract, security and cooperative autonomy, is expected to play great effects on promoting the development of energy local networks (ELNs). This paper presents an automated demand response (ADR) framework for decentralized scheduling and secure peer-to-peer (P2P) trading among energy storage systems in ELNs. Different from most existing works that trade electricity over long distances and through complex meshes, this proposed work performs decentralized and automated demand response through energy sharing of P2P executors. We explore for the first time the benefits of a promising blockchain to conduct the overall ADR framework and increase the P2P trading security. To achieve decentralized scheduling without relying on a central entity, a price-incentive noncooperative game theoretic model is introduced to produce equilibrium solutions for energy storage systems. Moreover, we develop a schedulable ability evaluation system to match trading pairs involving buying and selling nodes. On this basis, a state-machine-driven smart contract mechanism is built to realize P2P trading without reliance on a trusted third party. To illustrate the implementation details of the ADR method, a distributed algorithm is designed. Case studies are provided to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method.
The Impact of Natural Resource Discoveries in Latin America and the Caribbean: A Closer Look at the Case of Bolivia

This paper studies the impact of natural resource extraction in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) from a number of angles. First, we exploit a novel dataset on the universe of giant oil and gas discoveries in the region to trace out the cyclical response of macroeconomic variables to discoveries over the short- and medium-run. Second, we use non-stationary panel data techniques to look at the long-run (trend) relationship between GDP per capita and the value of oil and gas production—our results imply that the recent fall in prices could depress GDP per capita by several percentage points. Last, we use Bolivia, which discovered huge gas reserves in the late 1990s, as a case study to apply the cross-country results and to study the impact of discoveries at the subnational level.
Gen Z: Purchase Decision on Go Green Products

This study aims to determine the effect of green brand trust and electronic word of mouth on purchasing decisions of Gen Z consumers on McDonald go green products, either partially or simultaneously. The approach used in this research is causal research. The sample consisted of 140 Gen Z respondents in the Karang Tengah Region, Tangerang City, Banten Province. The sampling technique used was purposive sampling. The data collection method was carried out using a questionnaire instrument with a Likert Summated Rating (LSR). The data analysis method was processed using SPSS Version 27. The results showed that green brand trust and electronic word of mouth had a positive and significant effect on purchasing decisions of Gen Z consumers for McDonalds go green products, both partially and simultaneously. The effect of the electronic word of the mouth variable is higher than the green brand trust variable on the purchase decision of Gen Z consumers on McDonalds go green products. Suggestions for realizing management for McDonalds marketers to increase information about McDonalds products that have gone green by holding events involving generation Z consumers in Karang Tengah, Tangerang City
Tylopilus dunensis (Boletaceae, Basidiomycota): notes on morphological, phylogenetical and distributional aspects

Tylopilus is a worldwide distributed genus of boletes with about 100 known taxa, of which at least 16 are fromBrazil and Guyana. Tylopilus dunensis, a species originally described from sand dune habitats in the state of Rio Grande doNorte in northeastern Brazil, has now been recovered in a ‘tabuleiro’ (i.e., tableland forest) from Paraíba. The main pheneticfeatures of this still poorly known species are the orange to orange-ochraceous pileus with yellowish brown margins, unchangingpileus context, the pale cream hymenophore with wide pores, the yellowish stipe, the small and narrow basidiospores, andthe long and frequent dextrinoid pseudocystidioid pleurocystidia. After the discovery of the phylloporoid tube trama in ourspecimens, we emended tube trama type of T. dunensis.