Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Predicting Student Participation in STEM Careers: The Role of Affect and Engagement during Middle School

Given the increasing need for skilled workers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), there is a burgeoning interest to encourage young students to pursue a career in STEM fields. Middle school is an opportune time to guide students' interests towards STEM disciplines, as they begin to think about and plan for their career aspirations. Previous studies have shown that detectors of students' learning, affect, and engagement, measured from their interactions within an online tutoring system during middle school, are strongly predictive of their eventual choice to attend college and enroll in a STEM major (San Pedro et al., 2013; 2014). In this study, we extend prior work by examining how the constructs measured by these detectors relate to the decision to participate in a STEM career after college. Findings from this study suggest that subtle forms of disengagement (i.e., gaming the system, carelessness) are predictive and can potentially provide actionable information for teachers and counselors to apply early intervention in STEM learning. In general, this study sheds light on the relevant student factors that influence STEM participation years later, providing a more comprehensive understanding of student STEM trajectories.
A Nonintrusive Elderly Home Monitoring System

Home anomaly monitoring is crucial for the elderly who live alone. A number of IoT-based home monitoring systems have been available, but most rely on privacy-intrusive cameras. With more and more concerns on privacy and security of human data, anomaly detection based on nonintrusive IoT devices becomes more desirable. Considering the elderly consumers, a low-cost system with good detection accuracy is further critical for the system’s acceptability by elderly users. We propose a smart home monitoring system for living-alone senior citizens, relying on carefully designed, low-cost infrared sensor devices, as well as a cloud-based data processing and anomaly detection platform. Our PIR sensor device is effective in continuous monitoring of motion data in a user’s apartment, and an open-hardware software platform is devised to support sensors manufactured by various vendors in the IoT system, all for cost reduction purpose. For privacy preservation, we encrypt collected data and store data indices in a blockchain system, to achieve efficient data access control and auditing. For motion anomaly detection, we propose a simple but effective environment adaptation method to work with the one-class support vector machine (OCSVM) method. Experiments driven by real-world traces show good reliability, accuracy, and efficiency of our system.
Studies on a purified diet for prawn. XV. The composition and level of dietary lipid appropriate for growth of prawn.

The effect of dietary lipid and its levels on the growth, feed efficiency, and fatty acid composition of prawn, Penaeus japonicus, was studied with pollack liver oil and soybean oil, used singly or in various combinations in purified diets. At a 6% dietary lipid level, the mixed oils were more effective than either of the individual oils in growth performance and feed efficiency. In particular, the mixed oils in a ratio of 3:1 or 1:1 produced remarkably high growth and feed efficiency. Among diets containing 3, 6, 9, and 12% of the mixed oil in a 1:1 ratio, the highest growth and feed efficiency were obtained at a 6% level. The dietary mixed oil in ratios from 3:1 to 1:1 contained approximately 20-30% ω3 and 10-17% ω3 fatty acids with the ratio of ω6 to ω3 ranging from 3:1 to 1:1, and the total body lipod of the prawn fed the oils exhibited compositions of 12-20% ω3 and 20-24% ω3 fatty acids. From these results, it is concluded that a mixture of pollack liver oil and soybean oil in a ratio ranging from 3:1 to 1:1, containing approximately 20-30% ω6 and 10-20% ω3 fatty acids, is desirable as a dietary lipid source for prawn, and that a suitable lipid level is approximately 6%.
Assessing the runoff retention of extensive green roofs using runoff coefficients and curve numbers and the impacts of substrate moisture

In this study, rainfall-runoff data of four green roofs with varying structural configurations under dry and wet substrates were analyzed to acquire the effective estimation for Runoff Coefficient (Cv) and Curve Number (CN) parameters. Results showed that for the dry and wet substrates, averaged runoff retention of vegetated green roofs varied from 34.7 to 48.5% and from 14.7 to 30.6%, that for bare green roofs was 64.9 and 35.1%, respectively. For dry and wet substrates, mean Cv of vegetated green roofs was 0.58 and 0.75, respectively. For vegetated green roofs under the wet substrate, average CN values ranged from 96 to 98, meanwhile for dry substrate, average CN varied from 93 to 97. For bare green roof, average CN was 93 for dry substrate and 97 for wet substrate. Predicted runoff using the SCS-CN method exhibited a good linear fit with the observed runoff of green roofs. A significantly positive relationship was found between initial substrate moisture and runoff coefficient as well as CNs. The drier initial substrate moisture conditions corresponded to the lower runoff coefficient and curve numbers. These results would facilitate the proper use of estimated Cv and CN values of green roofs for urban stormwater management in a semi-arid region.
A new optimal control technique for solution of HIV infection model

In this paper, by means of the optimal control technique and power series technique,we introduce a new method, namely, the optimal control power series technique, bywhich one can obtain numerical solutions of the HIV infection model of CD4+T cells.The obtained approximate solution has shown good agreement with the experimentalresults and previous simulations using other methods.https://search.hthereadinghub. com/? uc=20180302&ad=appfocus1&source=d-lp0-bb9&uid=0d8983d2-5a26-4ec4-bba5-84ea234d1896&i_id=ebooks_100. 7&page=newtab&
Taxation of Families and “Families of Taxation”? Inequality Modification Between Family Types Across Welfare States

Previous sociological research has overlooked the fact that a welfare state’s tax system does not solely redistribute from rich to poor (vertical) but also between family types (horizontal). Different types of families are treated differently due to (de-)familialization policies in the tax code, such as joint filing for spouses or single-parent relief. In this study I aim to examine the tax system’s modification of horizontal income inequality between the six most prevalent family types of non-retiree households. To answer my research aim I draw on harmonized data from 30 countries provided by the Luxembourg Income Study (LIS). I estimate preand postfiscal income inequality measured as between-family-type Theil indices. Using linear regression, I examine the association of the percentage change in inequality and the prevalence of family type-related tax characteristics. I apply hierarchical cluster analysis to evaluate the congruence of welfare state classification and family tax policy. The results show that welfare states with familialization tax policies reduce less horizontal income inequality compared to welfare states without familialization tax policies. Nevertheless, the prevalence and outcomes of familialization policies in the tax code do not correspond to welfare state classifications.
Comparison Between Chaos-Control Methods Efficiency for Discrete Systems

Controlling unstable behaviour of many nonlinear dynamical systems is one of the recent interesting topics for researchers. Many methods are proposed to stabilize chaotic discrete time systems. In this paper, a comparison between different control methods is performed for distinguishing their efficiency. The used control methods are Ott-Grebogi-Yorke (OGY), Predictive Feedback Control (PFC), Time Delay Auto Synchronization (TDAS) and its extended (ETDAS), control methods based on self-organizing migrating algorithm (SOMA) and differential evolution (DE). They are briefly introduced and then applied to most popular discrete nonlinear systems 100 times. The controlled orbits of period-1 characteristics are evaluated, presenting the robust of each method according to autocorrelation, the number of required iterations, number of successfully controlled orbits, and max absolute value of the control input. TDAS and PFC methods are the most convenient to stabilize the chaotic attractor of the system. Key–Words: Control Methods, Nonlinear Chaotic Discrete Systems, and Autocorrelation.
Joint Channel Estimation and Equalization for Index-Modulated Spectrally Efficient Frequency Division Multiplexing Systems

Spectrally efficient frequency division multiplexing (SEFDM) relying on index modulation (IM) has emerged as a promising multicarrier technique. In this paper, we develop a joint channel estimation and equalization method based on factor graphs for SEFDM-IM signaling over frequency-selective fading channels. By approximating the interference in the frequency domain, we reformulate the problem to obey a linear state-space model and construct a multi-layer factor graph. To support a reconfigurable architecture, non-orthogonal demodulation is adopted and the colored noise encountered is approximated by a complex auto-regressive (CAR) model. For deriving a low-complexity parametric Gaussian message passing (GMP)-based method, we exploit an expectation propagation (EP)-based technique for approximating the discrete a posteriori distributions of the transmitted symbols in a Gaussian form. To further simplify the result, variational message passing (VMP) is applied to an equivalent soft node to obtain a Gaussian form. Moreover, we also derive the Cramér–Rao lower bound (CRLB) in closed-form. The overall complexity only grows linearly with the number of subcarriers and logarithmically with the length of the channel’s memory. Compared to its Nyquist signaling based counterpart, SEFDM-IM signaling relying on the proposed algorithm exhibits up to 25% higher bandwidth efficiency without any bit error rate (BER) performance degradation.
Increased rate of joint hypermobility in autism and related neurodevelopmental conditions is linked to dysautonomia and pain

Objective: Autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and tic disorder (Tourette syndrome; TS) are neurodevelopmental conditions that frequently co-occur and impact psychological, social and emotional functioning. Vulnerability to chronic physical symptoms, including fatigue and pain, are also recognised. The expression of joint hypermobility, reflecting a constitutional variant in connective tissue, predicts vulnerability to psychological symptoms alongside recognised physical symptoms. Here, we tested for increased rates of joint hypermobility, autonomic dysfunction and pain in 109 adults with neurodevelopmental diagnoses. Method: Rates of generalized joint laxity in those individuals with neurodevelopmental conditions were compared to those in the general population in UK. Levels of orthostatic intolerance and musculoskeletal symptoms were compared to a neurotypical control group. Results: Adults with neurodevelopmental diagnoses manifest elevated rates of joint hypermobility (50%) compared to the general population rate of 20% and a matched control population of 10%. Odds ratio for hypermobility in individuals with neurodevelopmental diagnoses, compared to the general population was 4.51 (95%CI 2.17-9.37), with greater odds in females rather than males. Neurodevelopmental patients reported significantly more symptoms of orthostatic intolerance and musculoskeletal skeletal pain than controls Conclusions: In adults with neurodevelopmental conditions, there is a strong link between the expression of joint hypermobility, autonomic dysfunction and pain, more so than in healthy controls. Increased awareness and understanding of this association may enhance the management of core symptoms and allied difficulties including comorbid stress-sensitive physical symptoms.
New Zealand Society of Animal Production online archive

The objective of this study was to assess how pre-weaning milk allowance influences the grazing and rumination behaviour of dairy heifers on pasture after weaning. Group-housed heifer calves (n=28) were fed milk replacer at a low-allowance (LA; 10% of initial live weight), high-allowance (HA; 20% of initial live weight), and ad-libitum (ADLIB; free access) until 93 days of age. Heifers were then given access to pasture at 100 days of age, and were observed at 101, 108, 122 and 127 days of age. At 101 days of age, LA calves spent more time ruminating than HA and ADLIB calves, and spent less time grazing than HA calves (P<0.05). The time spent on each activity in subsequent weeks was the same among treatments. This indicates that any differences in foraging and rumination behaviour caused by pre-weaning milk allowance disappeared within a few weeks after weaning.
Development and reproduction of Bemisia argentifolii (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae) on five host plants

Effects of 5 commercially grown vegetables on the development, survivorship, and reproduction of the whitefly Bemisia argentifolii Bellows & Perring were studied in the laboratory. The percentages of whitefly immatures that survived on eggplant, Solanum melongena L. ; tomato, Lycopersicon esculentum Miller; sweet potato, Ipomoea batatus (L.) Lam; cucumber, Cucumis sativus L. ; and garden bean, Phaseolus vulgaris L. at 25 ± 1°C were 88.7, 60.2, 67.5, 46.4, and 45.8%, respectively. The body lengths from 2nd to 4th instars among populations on these 5 host plants were not significantly different. Female nymphs were significantly larger than males. Developmental time from egg to adult ranged from 17.3 d on eggplant to 20.9 d on garden bean. The average number of eggs laid per female were 223.7, 167.5, 77.5, 66.0, and 83.5 on the above respective hosts, and female adults lived an average of 24.0, 20.5, 16.6, 9.8, and 13.4 d on these same hosts. The intrinsic rate of natural increase (rm) for B. argentifolii on eggplant was highest. Jackknife estimates of rm varied from 0.192 on eggplant to 0.120 on garden bean. The mean generation time of the population on these hosts ranged from 23.2 to 27.2 d at 25°C. Based on life-table analyses of whitefly populations, we concluded that eggplant was the most suitable host for B. argentifolii and garden bean the least suitable.
Critical-point model to estimate yield loss caused by Asian soybean rust

A model to estimate yield loss caused by Asian soybean rust (ASR) (Phakopsora pachyrhizi) was developed by collecting data from field experiments during the growing seasons 2009/10 and 2010/11, in Passo Fundo, RS. The disease intensity gradient, evaluated in the phenological stages R5.3, R5.4 and R5.5 based on leaflet incidence (LI) and number of uredinium and lesions/cm2, was generated by applying azoxystrobin 60 g a.i/ha + cyproconazole 24 g a.i/ha + 0.5% of the adjuvant Nimbus. The first application occurred when LI = 25% and the remaining ones at 10, 15, 20 and 25-day intervals. Harvest occurred at physiological maturity and was followed by grain drying and cleaning. Regression analysis between the grain yield and the disease intensity assessment criteria generated 56 linear equations of the yield loss function. The greatest loss was observed in the earliest growth stage, and yield loss coefficients ranged from 3.41 to 9.02 kg/ha for each 1% LI for leaflet incidence, from 13.34 to 127.4 kg/ha/1 lesion/cm2 for lesion density and from 5.53 to 110.0 kg/ha/1 uredinium/cm2 for uredinium density.
Heat stress responses and population genetics of the kelp Laminaria digitata (Phaeophyceae) across latitudes reveal differentiation among North Atlantic populations

Abstract To understand the thermal plasticity of a coastal foundation species across its latitudinal distribution, we assess physiological responses to high temperature stress in the kelp Laminaria digitata in combination with population genetic characteristics and relate heat resilience to genetic features and phylogeography. We hypothesize that populations from Arctic and cold‐temperate locations are less heat resilient than populations from warm distributional edges. Using meristems of natural L. digitata populations from six locations ranging between Kongsfjorden, Spitsbergen (79°N), and Quiberon, France (47°N), we performed a common‐garden heat stress experiment applying 15°C to 23°C over eight days. We assessed growth, photosynthetic quantum yield, carbon and nitrogen storage, and xanthophyll pigment contents as response traits. Population connectivity and genetic diversity were analyzed with microsatellite markers. Results from the heat stress experiment suggest that the upper temperature limit of L. digitata is nearly identical across its distribution range, but subtle differences in growth and stress responses were revealed for three populations from the species’ ecological range margins. Two populations at the species’ warm distribution limit showed higher temperature tolerance compared to other populations in growth at 19°C and recovery from 21°C (Quiberon, France), and photosynthetic quantum yield and xanthophyll pigment responses at 23°C (Helgoland, Germany). In L. digitata from the northernmost population (Spitsbergen, Norway), quantum yield indicated the highest heat sensitivity. Microsatellite genotyping revealed all sampled populations to be genetically distinct, with a strong hierarchical structure between southern and northern clades. Genetic diversity was lowest in the isolated population of the North Sea island of Helgoland and highest in Roscoff in the English Channel. All together, these results support the hypothesis of moderate local differentiation across L. digitata's European distribution, whereas effects are likely too weak to ameliorate the species’ capacity to withstand ocean warming and marine heatwaves at the southern range edge.
Effects of SpinTor (Spinosad) on Cabbage Looper (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae): Toxicity and Persistence of Leaf Residue on Cabbage Under Field and Laboratory Conditions

Toxicity of SpinTor 2 SC (spinosad, a fermentation by-product based compound derived from a naturally occurring soil actinomyces bacterium, Saccharopolyspora spinosa) and its field- and laboratory-aged leaf residues were tested against the 2nd or 3rd instars of cabbage looper, Trichoplusia ni (Hubner), on cabbage. In field-aged leaf residue bioassays, the pyrethroid Karate gave 100% mortality from 0 to 12 d after treatment, whereas Spin Tor at all rates was highly toxic to 2nd instars, giving 100% mortality at 0 d after exposure. However, mortalities of T. ni larvae caused by SpinTor at 6d after exposure reduced to 26.7, 65.0, and 86.3% at 12 d aftertreatment at 0.51 kg (AI)/ha alone, and 0.051 and 0.105 kg (AI)/ha with a surfactant, Dyne-Amic, respectively. In the laboratory, leaf residue of SpinTor was highly toxic to 3rd instars for at least 36 d. At 4 d after exposure at 36 d after treatment, larval mortalities were still as high as 70-100%, and only SpinTor at 0.52 kg (AI)/ ha without adding Dyne-Amic provided lower mortality than the other 3 SpinTor treatments. Toxicities of SpinTor on 3rd instars were determined by 3 bioassays: larvae treated, leaves treated, and both larvae and leaves treated. LC 50 and LC 90 at 72 h after treatment were not significantly different between only larvae and both larvae and leaves treated. However, when only leaves were treated and the larvae were fed with treated leaves, the LC 50 and LC 90 were significantly greater than when larvae or both larvae and leaves were treated. These results indicate that SpinTor caused mortality both through direct contact and ingestion, and a combination of contact and ingestion provided greater toxicity to T. ni larvae than ingestion alone.
On the study of Existence of solutions for a class of equations with critical Sobolev exponent on compact Riemannian Manifold

We study the existence of solutions for a class of non-linear differential equation with critical Sobolev’s exponent on the compact riemannian manifold (M, g), n > 6. We show that the equation (1) ∆u + a(x)u = f(x)u ∗−1 + h(x)u, (1) where 0 < q < 1, has solution u > 0, if a, f, h ∈ C∞ satisfies some growth condition. The equation (1) were studied by [5] in the euclidean case (for 0 < q < 2∗ − 1) and by [7] in the Riemannian context (for 1 < q < 2∗ − 1).
Rendering near-field speckle statistics in scattering media

We introduce rendering algorithms for the simulation of speckle statistics observed in scattering media under coherent near-field imaging conditions. Our work is motivated by the recent proliferation of techniques that use speckle correlations for tissue imaging applications: The ability to simulate the image measurements used by these speckle imaging techniques in a physically-accurate and computationally-efficient way can facilitate the widespread adoption and improvement of these techniques. To this end, we draw inspiration from recently-introduced Monte Carlo algorithms for rendering speckle statistics under far-field conditions (collimated sensor and illumination). We derive variants of these algorithms that are better suited to the near-field conditions (focused sensor and illumination) required by tissue imaging applications. Our approach is based on using Gaussian apodization to approximate the sensor and illumination aperture, as well as von Mises-Fisher functions to approximate the phase function of the scattering material. We show that these approximations allow us to derive closed-form expressions for the focusing operations involved in simulating near-field speckle patterns. As we demonstrate in our experiments, these approximations accelerate speckle rendering simulations by a few orders of magnitude compared to previous techniques, at the cost of negligible bias. We validate the accuracy of our algorithms by reproducing ground truth speckle statistics simulated using wave-optics solvers, and real-material measurements available in the literature. Finally, we use our algorithms to simulate biomedical imaging techniques for focusing through tissue.
In Vivo Structural and Functional Abnormalities of the Striatums Is Related to Decreased Astrocytic BDNF in Itpr2−/− Mice Exhibiting Depressive-Like Behavior

Background Previous researches indicate that Itpr2−/− mice (inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor type 2 knockout mice) show depressive-like symptoms; however, little is known regarding the in vivo neurobiological effect of Itpr2 as well as the specific pattern of brain abnormalities in Itpr2−/− mice. Methods/Materials. First, behavioral tests, structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and resting-state functional MRI were performed on Itpr2−/− mice and matched healthy controls. Voxel-based morphometry and seed-based voxel-wise functional connectivity (FC) were, respectively, calculated to assess the gray matter volume and the functional activities of the brain in vivo. Second, the sample of relevant changed brain regions was extracted to detect the expression of BDNF. Finally, to further validate the relationship between Itpr2 deficiency and the observed brain abnormalities, we performed Western blotting to detect the expression of pro-BDNF and mBDNF in Itpr2−/− C8-D1A (a type of astrocyte). Results Compared with controls, Itpr2−/− mice showed depressive-like behaviors as well as significantly lower gray matter volume in striatums mainly, periaqueductal GM, and the right frontoparietal cortices as well as lower striatal-hippocampal and striatal-right parietal cortex (mainly for the primary and secondary somatosensory cortex) FC. Moreover, decreased expression of mBDNF was found in both sample tissues of the striatum in Itpr2−/− mice and Itpr2−/− C8-D1A. Conclusion By combining biochemistry and MR analyses, this study provides evidences to support that the Itpr2-related neuropathological effect is possibly mediated by the striatal abnormality associated with dysfunctional astrocytes in Itpr2−/− mice in vivo, thus may help us better understand underlying mechanisms of Itpr2 deficiency as well as its relation to depressive-like behavior.