Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Performance Development of European Swimmers Across the Olympic Cycle

The aims of the study were to (1) quantify the performance development of race times and key performance indicators of European swimmers across the last Olympic cycle (from 2016 to 2021) and (2) provide reference values for long-course swimming pool events for both sexes from 50 m to 1,500 m including butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, freestyle, and individual medley. Individual events from the 2016 and 2021 European swimming championships were included. Specifically, 246 men (age: 24.2 ± 3.4 years, FINA points: 890 ± 40) and 256 women races (age: 24.2 ± 4, FINA points: 879 ± 38) of the finalists were recorded and key performance indicators and split times analyzed. Performance differences in finalists of the 2016 and 2021 European championships were determined by an independent t-test and Cohen's d effect size. Reference values were retrieved from 2021 European championship finalists and are provided for all key performance indicators. Race times improved significantly (P < 0.05) or showed moderate (d = 0.5–1) to large effect sizes (d > 1) in 14 (men) and 6 (women) out of 16 events. Improvements were primarily evident in 100 m and 200 m events for males, as well as BR and sprint events for female swimmers. While start times improved in 15 (men) and 14 (women) events, turn times remained inconclusive in both sexes. Generally, breakout distances increased. Clean swimming velocities were faster in 12 (men) and 5 (women) events. In particular, for alternating swimming strokes, i.e., backstroke and freestyle, effect sizes indicated improved swimming efficiency with an inverse relationship between reduced stroke rate and increased distance per stroke. Coaches and performance analysts may use the present reference values as comparative data for race analyses and to specifically prepare swimmers for the various race sections. Data on the performance development should be used to analyze swimmers' potential and set goals for the various events and the next Olympic cycle.
A Simple ZVT Auxiliary Circuit for Totem-Pole Bridgeless PFC Rectifier

The utilization of wide band gap devices has enabled high frequency operation of totem pole bridgeless PFC rectifier. However, most of the designs reported in the literature with frequency higher than 100 kHz operate under discontinuous conduction mode or critical mode to reduce the switching loss. This paper proposes a zero-voltage-transition (ZVT) technique for totem-pole PFC rectifier under continuous conduction mode operation which enables efficient operation at switching frequencies well above 100 kHz. A simple auxiliary circuit consisting of a small auxiliary inductor and two active switches is placed in parallel with the main input filter inductor to achieve zero-voltage-switching of the main switches. The auxiliary switches operate with zero-current-switching (ZCS) and conduct current as short resonant pulses only during the critical turn-on transition which results in very low losses in the auxiliary circuit. The timing of the auxiliary switches is adaptively controlled with respect to the grid voltage angle for optimized overall efficiency. The effectiveness of the proposed ZVT scheme has been validated through experiments based on a 2.4 kW 400 kHz hardware prototype with 98.35% peak efficiency.
The Impact of World Trade Center Related Medical Conditions on the Severity of COVID-19 Disease and Its Long-Term Sequelae

The individuals who served our country in the aftermath of the attacks on the World Trade Center (WTC) following the attacks of 11 September 2001 have, since then, been diagnosed with a number of conditions as a result of their exposures. In the present study, we sought to determine whether these conditions were risk factors for increased COVID-19 disease severity within a cohort of N = 1280 WTC responders with complete information on health outcomes prior to and following COVID-19 infection. We collected data on responders diagnosed with COVID-19, or had evidence of receiving positive SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction or antigen testing, or were asymptomatic but had IgG positive antibody testing. The presence of post-acute COVID-19 sequelae was measured using self-reported symptom severity scales. Analyses revealed that COVID-19 severity was associated with age, Black race, obstructive airway disease (OAD), as well as with worse self-reported depressive symptoms. Similarly, post-acute COVID-19 sequelae was associated with initial analysis for COVID-19 severity, upper respiratory disease (URD), gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), OAD, heart disease, and higher depressive symptoms. We conclude that increased COVID-19 illness severity and the presence of post-acute COVID-19 sequelae may be more common in WTC responders with chronic diseases than in those responders without chronic disease processes resulting from exposures at the WTC disaster.
Robust and Efficient Fault Diagnosis of mm-Wave Active Phased Arrays Using Baseband Signal

One key communication block in 5G and 6G radios is the active phased array (APA). To ensure reliable operation, efficient and timely fault diagnosis of APAs on-site is crucial. To date, fault diagnosis has relied on measurement of frequency domain radiation patterns using costly equipment and multiple strictly controlled measurement probes, which are time consuming, complex, and therefore infeasible for on-site deployment. This article proposes a novel method exploiting a deep neural network (DNN) tailored to extract the features hidden in the baseband in-phase and quadrature signals for classifying the different faults. It requires only a single probe in one measurement point for fast and accurate diagnosis of the faulty elements and components in APAs. Validation of the proposed method is done using a commercial 28 GHz APA. Accuracies of 99% and 80% have been demonstrated for single- and multi-element failure detection, respectively. Three different test scenarios are investigated: ON-OFF antenna elements, phase variations, and magnitude attenuation variations. In a low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of 4 dB, stable fault detection accuracy above 90% is maintained. This is all achieved with a detection time of milliseconds (e.g., 6 ms), showing a high potential for on-site deployment.
Characterization of Severity in Zellweger Spectrum Disorder by Clinical Findings: A Scoping Review, Meta-Analysis and Medical Chart Review

Zellweger spectrum disorder (ZSD) is a rare, debilitating genetic disorder of peroxisome biogenesis that affects multiple organ systems and presents with broad clinical heterogeneity. Although severe, intermediate, and mild forms of ZSD have been described, these designations are often arbitrary, presenting difficulty in understanding individual prognosis and treatment effectiveness. The purpose of this study is to conduct a scoping review and meta-analysis of existing literature and a medical chart review to determine if characterization of clinical findings can predict severity in ZSD. Our PubMed search for articles describing severity, clinical findings, and survival in ZSD resulted in 107 studies (representing 307 patients) that were included in the review and meta-analysis. We also collected and analyzed these same parameters from medical records of 136 ZSD individuals from our natural history study. Common clinical findings that were significantly different across severity categories included seizures, hypotonia, reduced mobility, feeding difficulties, renal cysts, adrenal insufficiency, hearing and vision loss, and a shortened lifespan. Our primary data analysis also revealed significant differences across severity categories in failure to thrive, gastroesophageal reflux, bone fractures, global developmental delay, verbal communication difficulties, and cardiac abnormalities. Univariable multinomial logistic modeling analysis of clinical findings and very long chain fatty acid (VLCFA) hexacosanoic acid (C26:0) levels showed that the number of clinical findings present among seizures, abnormal EEG, renal cysts, and cardiac abnormalities, as well as plasma C26:0 fatty acid levels could differentiate severity categories. We report the largest characterization of clinical findings in relation to overall disease severity in ZSD. This information will be useful in determining appropriate outcomes for specific subjects in clinical trials for ZSD.
Witnesses to inhumanity on shifting terrain: Embracing an ethic of discomfort for optimal learning in an international field course

This paper examines the written reflections of 30 Canadian undergraduate students who participated in an international field course focusing on migration and human rights in Mexico. It endeavors to understand how the students reconciled their thoughts and feelings about trauma and oppression in an intercultural setting. Borrowing Foucault’s ‘ethic of discomfort’, which emphasizes the proactive and transformative potential of discomfort in education, the paper extends existing scholarship in teaching and learning around study abroad and social justice by focusing on ethically complex situations in the field. The findings reveal that while preparation for unprecedented and unforeseeable scenarios during an international field course was challenging for faculty, exposing students to the realities of migration ultimately facilitated learning.
Conduit Incentives: Eliciting Cooperation from Workers Outside of Managers' Control

Can managers use monetary incentives to elicit cooperation from workers they cannot reward for their efforts? I study “conduit incentives,” an innovative incentive design, whereby managers influence bonus-ineligible workers’ effort by offering bonus-eligible employees a monetary reward for performance that critically depends on the cooperation of the bonus-ineligible workers. Motivated by the reward, bonus-eligible employees use social motivators to elicit cooperation from their ineligible colleagues. I examine an intervention in a California hospital in which a one-time bonus program aimed to improve handwashing compliance. State regulation prevented physicians from receiving bonus payments. However, because physicians’ handwashing counted toward the bonus-related goal, bonus-eligible workers used social pressure to incentivize physicians’ performance, absent any tangible benefits for the physicians. The physicians improved performance during the intervention, and their improvements persisted beyond the removal of the incentives. The response to the temporary intervention significantly predicted the persistence of the performance improvements.
The Personality Traits and P300 of Offspring of Parents With Alcohol Dependence Differ Depending on Current Risky Drinking: A Preliminary Case-Control Study

Aims The aim of this study was to investigate the personality traits, and P300 component in the offspring of parents with alcohol dependence (OPAD) currently engaged in risky drinking and those not engaged in risky drinking, and to further explore the correlates of problematic alcohol use. Methods A case-control study was conducted according to the cutoff of the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT). The frequency of the TaqIA polymorphism of the dopamine receptor D2 gene associated with alcohol dependence was compared between the two OPAD groups. Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire (TPQ), The Alcohol, Smoking, and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST), and the MINI-International Neuropsychiatric Interview (M.I.N.I.) were measured or interviewed in OPAD not engaged in risky drinking (resilient; n = 35) and those currently engaged in risky drinking (vulnerable; n = 20). P300 was measured to test the possible electrophysiological differences. The correlates of alcohol use were analyzed. Results Vulnerable OPAD showed higher novelty seeking subscale scores (NS4; 4.45 ± 2.012 vs. 3.31 ± 1.728, P < 0.05) and harm avoidance subscale scores (HA4; 5.3 ± 2.319 vs. 3.66 ± 2.461, P < 0.05) than resilient OPAD, while the total scores of each dimension showed no significant difference. OPAD engaged in risky drinking showed more tobacco use than OPAD resistant to risky drinking. OPAD with risky drinking showed a shorter P300 latency than resilient OPAD on Fz electrodes. AUDIT scores of OPAD were correlated with P300 latency. Conclusions P300 differed between OPAD with and without risky drinking and alcohol use was associated with P300 latency, indicating that P300 may be used in the early detection of vulnerable OPAD and early intervention in the future.
A study of re-ignition phenomena and arc modelling to evaluate switching performance of low-voltage switching devices

This thesis deals with the prediction, improvement and simulation of switching performance of low-voltage switching devices (LVSDs). A literature review of arc characteristics, interruption principle, switching performance and arc modelling of LVSDs has been conducted. The experimental investigations of switching tests, arc imaging measurement and arc spectra measurement are also discussed. Switching tests have been carried out with 10kA, 20kA, 55kA and 100kA test circuits using either miniature circuit breakers or moulded case circuit breakers to investigate re-ignition phenomena and re-ignition evaluators. It is found that the ratio of the recovery voltage to exit arc voltage, where the exit arc voltage is defined as the value of the arc voltage immediately prior to the current zero point, is a reliable evaluator for the prediction of re-ignition in the switching tests of LVSDs. It is also noted that there are no occurrences of instantaneous re-ignition where this voltage ratio lies in the range of 1.0 to -1.0 and there is a threshold of the voltage ratio at approximately -2.0, which can distinguish the successful interruption and instantaneous re-ignition. Arc imaging measurement has been conducted through an array of total 109 optical fibres to allow observation of the overall quenching chamber of the flexible test apparatus. This experiment reveals that arc motion fluctuation (repeat of back- and forwards-motion) in the splitter plate region leads to the instability of the arc voltage. Moreover, the arc moves further as well as more quickly in the case of the larger vent size. The well distributed vent contributes to an increase in an arc motion velocity and reduction in a total arc duration. Arc spectrum is captured by a spectrometer to calculate the arc temperature when the arc is ignited by copper wire in a narrow enclosed chamber. It is found that the arc light intensity measured by the arc imaging system is directly related to the arc temperature: the light intensity increases as the arc temperature rises. 3-D arc modelling has been implemented, based on the magnetohydrodynamics theory. Lorentz force, plasma properties depending on temperature as well as pressure, contact motion, radiation loss, arc root voltage, and external circuit are considered in this modelling. It is observed that the simulated results have a similar trend with the experimental data and it is able to predict current limitation and exit arc voltage, which are key features of switching performance.
Statistical Analysis of Water Purification (Using Vinyl Chloride) Data

Water is important to live because of its impacts on food supply and the natural environment for all living things. Approximately 0.3 percent of water resources are usable in the world. Groundwater is the principal source of drinking water but the air, sea, land, rivers, lakes, ocean, and wells are also the essential sources of water. Many statistical models have been used to analyze the water data set so that to make predictions in a better way with limited resources of water. In this paper, a new approach is offered to model the data of water purification using vinyl chloride data. Various statistical properties of the proposed model have been derived. Maximum likelihood estimation is used to estimate the model parameters. Monte Carlo simulations are used to show the consistency of parameters. Using water purification using vinyl chloride, the suggested model application is studied and compared with that of other existing models such as EGF, GF, and F. The results showed that our model provides a much better fit while modeling this data set rather than EGF, GF, and F distributions.
The Effects of Star Fruit (Averrhoa carambola Linn.) Extract on Body Mass Index, Fasting Blood Glucose, and Triglyceride Levels in Male Rats with Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

BACKGROUND: Obesity is the main risk factor of diabetes by which induces insulin resistance. Epicatechin gallate can virtually interact with sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 as same as dapagliflozin and is found in green tea and star fruits. AIM: This study aimed to investigate the effects of methanol extract of star fruit (MES) on body weight (BW), body mass index (BMI), fasting blood glucose (FBG), and triglyceride levels in male rats with obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). METHODS: Twenty-four male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to normal and high-fat diet (HFD) groups. Obesity was induced with a HFD diet for 5 weeks and followed by induction of T2DM with 230 mg/kg BW nicotinamide and 65 mg/kg BW streptozotocin injections. Twenty-one obesity and T2DM rats were randomly assigned to negative control (n = 3) and the remaining rats in the MES1-3 groups, which were given 250, 500, and 1000 mg/kg BW/day MES. Data of BW, BMI, FBG, and triglyceride levels were collected at day 1, 14, and 28 interventions. Data were statistically analyzed using parametric and non-parametric tests with p < 0.05 considered significant. RESULTS: The MES3 group (282.56 ± 10.75 g) had significantly lower mean BW than the MES2 group (331.33 ± 13.17 g, p = 0.035). The duration of MES administration significantly decreased BW (p = 0.009) and BMI (p = 0.034) compared with the negative control. The mean triglyceride levels in MES1 (93.72 ± 53.69 mg/dl, p = 0.020), MES2 (71.98 ± 35.72 mg/dl, p = 0.025), and MES3 (56.68 ± 16.37 mg/dl, p = 0.020) groups significantly lower than the control group (1042.13 ± 681.74 mg/dl) on day 14. The mean FBG levels in MES1 (437.85 ± 33.04 mg/dl) and MES2 (353 ± 33.04 mg/dl) groups were also lower than the control group (470.97 ± 33.04 mg/dl). CONCLUSION: Administrations of 250, 500, and 1000 mg/kg BW/day MES decrease BW, BMI, and triglyceride level but increase FBG level in male rats with obesity and T2DM for 14 and 28 days.
Increasing Seasonal Influenza Vaccination among University Students: A Systematic Review of Programs Using a Social Marketing Perspective

The health and economic consequences of seasonal influenza present great costs to communities. Promoting voluntary uptake of the seasonal influenza vaccine among university students, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, can deliver protective effects for both individuals and the wider community. Vaccine uptake will be greatest when more of the social marketing benchmarks are applied. This systematic review summarizes evidence from programs aiming to increase seasonal influenza vaccination among university students. Six major electronic databases for health promotion studies (PubMed, EBSCO, ProQuest, Ovid, Web of Science, and ScienceDirect) were searched in November 2021 to capture peer-reviewed studies reporting field trials that have sought to increase seasonal influenza vaccination in university student populations, without any restrictions regarding the publication period. Following PRISMA guidelines, this paper identified 12 peer-reviewed studies that were conducted in the field in the United States, Australia, and Spain. Three studies were targeted at healthcare students and the rest focused on wider university student populations. Studies were narratively summarized, evidence of social marketing principles were identified, and quantitative outcomes were meta-analyzed. The findings indicate that none of the field studies, even a self-classified social marketing study, had adopted all eight of the social marketing benchmarks in program design and implementation. The two studies that only used promotion, but not other marketing-mix and social marketing principles, reported increases in students’ intention to be vaccinated but not actual behavior. Given that change is more likely when more social benchmarks are applied, this paper identifies activities that can be included in flu vaccine programs to improve flu vaccine uptake rates. The analysis highlights a lack of field studies focusing on increasing rates of vaccination behavior as research outcomes in countries beyond the United States.
Compaction Characteristics and Minimum Void Ratio Prediction Model for Gap-Graded Soil-Rock Mixture

Gap-graded soil-rock mixtures (SRMs), composed of coarse-grained rocks and fine-grained soils particles, are very inhomogeneous materials and widely encountered in geoengineering. In geoengineering applications, it is necessary to know the compaction characteristics in order to estimate the minimum void ratio of gap-graded SRMs. In this paper, the void ratios of compacted SRMs as well as the particle breakage during vibrating compaction were investigated through a series of vibrating compaction tests. The test results show that gap-graded SRMs may reach a smaller void ratio than the SRM with a continuous gradation under some circumstances. When the particles in a gap interval play the role of filling components, the absence of them will increase the void ratio of the SRM. The particle breakage of gap-graded SRMs is more prominent than the SRM with continuous gradation on the whole, especially at the gap interval of 5–20 mm. Based on the test results, a minimum void ratio prediction model incorporating particle breakage during compaction is proposed. The developed model is evaluated by the compaction test results and its validation is discussed.
Role of Serotonin (5-HT) in GDM Prediction Considering Islet and Liver Interplay in Prediabetic Mice during Gestation

Gestational diabetes (GDM) is characterized by a glucose tolerance disorder. This may first appear during pregnancy or pre-exist before conception as a form of prediabetes, but there are few data on the pathogenesis of the latter subtype. Female New Zealand obese (NZO) mice serve as a model for this subpopulation of GDM. It was recently shown that GDM is associated with elevated urinary serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) levels, but the role of the biogenic amine in subpopulations with prediabetes remains unclear. 5-HT is synthesized in different tissues, including the islets of Langerhans during pregnancy. Furthermore, 5-HT receptors (HTRs) are expressed in tissues important for the regulation of glucose homeostasis, such as liver and pancreas. Interestingly, NZO mice showed elevated plasma and islet 5-HT concentrations as well as impaired glucose-stimulated 5-HT secretion. Incubation of isolated primary NZO islets with 5-HT revealed an inhibitory effect on insulin and glucagon secretion. In primary NZO hepatocytes, 5-HT aggravated hepatic glucose production (HGP), decreased glucose uptake (HGU), glycogen content, and modulated AKT activation as well as cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) increase, indicating 5-HT downstream modulation. Treatment with an HTR2B antagonist reduced this 5-HT-mediated deterioration of the metabolic state. With its strong effect on glucose metabolism, these data indicate that 5-HT is already a potential indicator of GDM before conception in mice.