Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Context‐aware trajectory prediction for autonomous driving in heterogeneous environments

The prediction of surrounding agent trajectories in heterogeneous traffic environments remains a challenging task for autonomous driving due to several critical issues, such as understanding social interactions among agents and the environment, handling multiclass traffic movements, and generating feasible trajectories in accordance with real‐world rules, all of which hinder prediction accuracy. To address these issues, a new multimodal trajectory prediction framework based on the transformer network is presented in this study. A hierarchical‐structured context‐aware module, inspired by human perceptual logic, is proposed to capture contextual information within the scene. An efficient linear global attention mechanism is also proposed to reduce the computation and memory load of the transformer framework. Additionally, this study introduces a novel auxiliary loss to penalize infeasible off‐road predictions. Empirical results on the Lyft l5kit data set demonstrate the state‐of‐the‐art performance of the proposed model, which substantially enhances the accuracy and feasibility of prediction outcomes. The proposed model also possesses a unique feature, effectively dealing with missing input observations. This study underscores the importance of comprehending social interactions among agents and the environment, handling multiclass traffic movements, and generating feasible trajectories adhering to real‐world rules in autonomous driving.
Impact of Ovarian Endometrioma and Surgery on Reproductive Outcomes: A Single-Center Spanish Cohort Study

Anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) and antral follicular count (AFC) decrease in women with ovarian endometrioma (OMA) and in vitro fertilization (IVF). In addition, these parameters drop even further when women with OMA undergo surgery. In this study, the primary aim was to compare the reproductive variables in IVF-treated women with and without endometriosis. The secondary aim was to explore if the reproductive variables were modified by endometrioma surgery. In this retrospective study, 244 women undergoing IVF were enrolled at the Hospital Universitario La Paz (Madrid, Spain). Women were categorized as OMA not surgically treated (OMA; n = 124), OMA with surgery (OMA + S; n = 55), and women with infertility issues not related to OMA (control; n = 65). Demographic and clinical variables, including age, body mass index (BMI), and reproductive (AMH, AFC, number of extracted oocytes, and transferred embryos) and obstetrical data (biochemical pregnancy and fetal heart rate at 6 weeks) were collected. Adjusted logistic regression models were built to evaluate reproductive and pregnancy outcomes. The models showed that women with OMA (with and without surgery) had significantly decreased levels of AMH and AFC and numbers of cycles and C + D embryos. Women with OMA + S had similar rates of pregnancy to women in the control group. However, women with OMA had lower biochemical pregnancy than controls (aOR = 0.08 [0.01; 0.50]; p-value = 0.025). OMA surgery seems to improve pregnancy outcomes, at least until 6 weeks of gestation. However, it is important to counsel the patients about surgery expectations due to the fact that endometrioma itself reduces the quality of oocytes.
Clinical Presentation and Severity of SARS-CoV-2 Infection Compared to Respiratory Syncytial Virus and Other Viral Respiratory Infections in Children Less than Two Years of Age

The spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and the implementation of restrictive measures led to a dramatic reduction in respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) occurrence together with rare and mild bronchiolitis induced by SARS-CoV-2. We described the respiratory picture of SARS-CoV-2 infection and evaluated the frequency and the severity of SARS-CoV-2 bronchiolitis comparing it with other respiratory viral infections in children less than two years of age. The severity of respiratory involvement was evaluated based on the need for oxygen therapy, intravenous hydration, and the length of hospital stay. A total of 138 children hospitalized for respiratory symptoms were enrolled: 60 with SARS-CoV-2 and 78 with RSV. In the group of SARS-CoV-2-infected children, 13/60 (21%) received a diagnosis of co-infection. Among the enrolled children, 87/138 (63%) received a diagnosis of bronchiolitis. The comparative evaluation showed a higher risk of the need for oxygen therapy and intravenous hydration in children with RSV infection and co-infection compared to children with SARS-CoV-2 infection. In the children with a diagnosis of bronchiolitis, no differences in the main outcomes among the groups were observed. Although children with SARS-CoV-2 infection have less severe respiratory effects than adults, the pediatrician should pay attention to bronchiolitis due to SARS-CoV-2, which could have a severe clinical course in younger children.
The Time-Mean Flow and Variability in a Nonlinear Model of the Atmosphere with Tropical Diabatic Forcing.

Abstract The response to steady tropical diabatic forcing in a nonlinear model of the atmosphere is analyzed. For sufficiently small diabatic heating, upper tropospheric anticyclones develop along the equator to the west of the heating, as predicted by linear theory. For sufficiently large diabatic heating, the anticyclones shift eastward to the same longitude as the heating (nonlinear response). The structure of the nonlinear response agrees more favorably with the observations than does the linear response. Inclusion of strong tropospheric dissipation causes the weaker diabatic forcing to produce the structural characteristics of the nonlinear response. Analysis of the time-mean vorticity budget reveals that the relative magnitude of the steady nonlinear flux divergence is substantially larger for the strong forcing as compared to the weak forcing. This appears to be the mechanism responsible for the marked difference between the two responses. Significant differences in the extratropical response exist.
Reliability analysis and optimal structure of series-parallel phased-mission systems subject to fault-level coverage

ABSTRACT Many practical systems have multiple consecutive and non-overlapping phases of operations during their mission and are generally referred to as phased-mission systems (PMSs). This article considers a general type of PMS consisting of subsystems connected in series, where each subsystem contains components with different capacities. The components within the same subsystem are divided into several disjoint work-sharing groups (WSGs). The capacity of each WSG is equal to the summation of the capacities of its working components, and the capacity of each subsystem is equal to the capacity of the WSG with the maximum capacity. The system capacity is bottlenecked by the capacity of the subsystem with the minimum capacity. The system survives the mission only if its capacity meets the predetermined mission demand in all phases. Such PMSs can be commonly found in the power transmission and telecommunication industries. A universal generating function–based method is first proposed for the reliability analysis of the capacitated series-parallel PMSs with the consideration of imperfect fault coverage. As different partitions of the WSGs inside a subsystem can lead to different system reliabilities, the optimal structure that maximizes the system reliability is investigated. Examples are presented to illustrate the proposed reliability evaluation method and optimization procedure.
The lens capsule significantly affects the viscoelastic properties of the lens as quantified by optical coherence elastography

The crystalline lens is a transparent, biconvex structure that has its curvature and refractive power modulated to focus light onto the retina. This intrinsic morphological adjustment of the lens to fulfill changing visual demands is achieved by the coordinated interaction between the lens and its suspension system, which includes the lens capsule. Thus, characterizing the influence of the lens capsule on the whole lens’s biomechanical properties is important for understanding the physiological process of accommodation and early diagnosis and treatment of lenticular diseases. In this study, we assessed the viscoelastic properties of the lens using phase-sensitive optical coherence elastography (PhS-OCE) coupled with acoustic radiation force (ARF) excitation. The elastic wave propagation induced by ARF excitation, which was focused on the surface of the lens, was tracked with phase-sensitive optical coherence tomography. Experiments were conducted on eight freshly excised porcine lenses before and after the capsular bag was dissected away. Results showed that the group velocity of the surface elastic wave, V , in the lens with the capsule intact ( V = 2.55 ± 0.23 m / s ) was significantly higher (p < 0.001) than after the capsule was removed ( V = 1.19 ± 0.25 m / s ). Similarly, the viscoelastic assessment using a model that utilizes the dispersion of a surface wave showed that both Young’s modulus, E, and shear viscosity coefficient, η, of the encapsulated lens ( E = 8.14 ± 1.10 k P a , η = 0.89 ± 0.093 P a ∙ s ) were significantly higher than that of the decapsulated lens ( E = 3.10 ± 0.43 k P a , η = 0.28 ± 0.021 P a ∙ s ). These findings, together with the geometrical change upon removal of the capsule, indicate that the capsule plays a critical role in determining the viscoelastic properties of the crystalline lens.
Fire exposure index as a tool for guiding prevention and management

Protected Areas (PA) in Brazil have legal instruments for the conservation and protection of fauna and flora. The Sustainable Use Reserves (SURs) category have mechanisms to ensure the security of traditional lifestyles. Despite the existence of mechanisms and information that contribute to the protection of forest areas, threats to its conservation such as deforestation, fires, and climate extremes are increasing. Fires represent a major threat to many sustainable development goals, such as climate, health and food security, especially for people who depend on forest resources. This study covers two SURs, the Tapajós National Forest (FLONA Tapajós) and the Tapajós-Arapiuns Extractive Reserve (RESEX Tapajós-Arapiuns) located in Pará State, Brazilian Amazon, where deforestation, fires and land conflicts have escalated during the last decade. This research aimed to analyze environmental and land management data to construct a Fire Exposure Index (FEI), identify the pressure exerted on SURs and a tool to guide strategic planning since exposure is a component of vulnerability, therefore also of risk. The index is composed of four dimensions: fire, landscape, climate and territorial management. We analyzed the spatio-temporal dynamics between 2003 and 2020 to determine the Fire Exposure Index in 2020. The results indicate where and how interactions occur in priority areas, with regard to fire, landscape, climate and territorial management. High values of FEI (above 0.8) were mainly distributed around the northern and southeastern part of FLONA Tapajós in approximately 1,300 km2, an area occupied by a high density of roads and agricultural expansion, which may affect the interior of the SURs. In the RESEX Tapajós-Arapiuns, the area with high FEI occur along the banks of the Arapiuns and Tapajós rivers, covering an area of about 330 km2, where most of the riverside communities live. The methodology developed in this research is potentially replicable for other protected areas in Brazil and in the world to support understanding and the development of management strategies to deal with fire threats. The additional format of communicating the results of this research to society and decision makers was conceived as a dashboard to facilitate its use.
Exciton-polariton dynamics of the single site-controlled quantum dot-nanocavity in the coexisting strong-weak coupling regime

Deterministic positioning single site-controlled high symmetric InGaAs quantum dots (QDs) in (111)B-oriented GaAs photonic crystal cavities with nanometer-scale accuracy provides an idea component for building integrated quantum photonic circuits. However, it has been a long-standing challenge of improving cavity Q-factors in such systems. Here, by optimizing the trade-off between the cavity loss and QD spectral quality, we demonstrate our site-controlled QD-nanocavity system operating in the intermediate coupling regime mediated by phonon scattering, with the dynamic coexistence of strong and weak coupling. The cavity-exciton detuning-dependent micro-photoluminescence spectrum reveals concurrence of a trend of exciton-polariton mode avoided crossing, as a signature of Rabi doublet of the strongly coupled system. Meanwhile, a trend of keeping constant or slight blue shift of coupled exciton–cavity mode(CM) energy across zero-detuning is ascribed to the formation of collective states mediated by phonon-assisted coupling, and their rare partial out-of-synchronization linewidth-narrowing is linked to their coexisting strong-weak coupling regime. We further reveal the pump power-dependent anti-bunching photon statistical dynamics of this coexisting strong-weak coupled system and the optical features of strongly confined exciton-polaritons, and dark-exciton-like states. These observations demonstrate the potential capabilities of site-controlled QD-cavity systems as deterministic quantum nodes for on-chip quantum information processing and provide guidelines for future device optimization for achieving the strong coupling regime.
Limonene, a Monoterpene, Mitigates Rotenone-Induced Dopaminergic Neurodegeneration by Modulating Neuroinflammation, Hippo Signaling and Apoptosis in Rats

Rotenone (ROT) is a naturally derived pesticide and a well-known environmental neurotoxin associated with induction of Parkinson’s disease (PD). Limonene (LMN), a naturally occurring monoterpene, is found ubiquitously in citrus fruits and peels. There is enormous interest in finding novel therapeutic agents that can cure or halt the progressive degeneration in PD; therefore, the main aim of this study is to investigate the potential neuroprotective effects of LMN employing a rodent model of PD measuring parameters of oxidative stress, neuro-inflammation, and apoptosis to elucidate the underlying mechanisms. PD in experimental rats was induced by intraperitoneal injection of ROT (2.5 mg/kg) five days a week for a total of 28 days. The rats were treated with LMN (50 mg/kg, orally) along with intraperitoneal injection of ROT (2.5 mg/kg) for the same duration as in ROT-administered rats. ROT injections induced a significant loss of dopaminergic (DA) neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc) and DA striatal fibers following activation of glial cells (astrocytes and microglia). ROT treatment enhanced oxidative stress, altered NF-κB/MAPK signaling and motor dysfunction, and enhanced the levels/expressions of inflammatory mediators and proinflammatory cytokines in the brain. There was a concomitant mitochondrial dysfunction followed by the activation of the Hippo signaling and intrinsic pathway of apoptosis as well as altered mTOR signaling in the brain of ROT-injected rats. Oral treatment with LMN corrected the majority of the biochemical, pathological, and molecular parameters altered following ROT injections. Our study findings demonstrate the efficacy of LMN in providing protection against ROT-induced neurodegeneration.
1000 Days of COVID-19: A Gender-Based Long-Term Investigation into Attitudes With Regards to Vaccination

The coronavirus pandemic has undoubtedly been one of the major recent events that have affected our society at the global level. During this period, unprecedented measures have been imposed worldwide by authorities in an effort to contain the spread of the disease. These measures have led to a worldwide debate among the public, occurring not least within the forum of social media, tapping into pre-existing trends of skepticism, such as vaccine hesitancy. At the same time, it has become apparent that the pandemic affected women and men differently. With these two themes in view, the paper aims to analyze using a data-driven approach the evolution of opinions with regards to vaccination against COVID-19 throughout the entire duration of the pandemic from the point of view of gender. For this analysis, approximately 1,500,000 short user-contributed texts have been retrieved from the popular microblogging platform Twitter, posted between 30 January 2020 and 30 November 2022. Using a machine learning approach, several classifiers have been trained to identify the likely gender (female or male) of the author, as well as the stance of the specific post towards the COVID-19 vaccines (neutral, in favor, or against), achieving 85.69% and 93.64% weighted accuracy measures for each problem, respectively. Based on this analysis, it can be observed that most tweets exhibit a neutral stance, while the number of tweets in favor of vaccination is greater than the number of tweets opposing vaccination, with the distribution varying across time in response to specific events. The subject matter of the tweets varied more between stances than between genders, suggesting that there is no significant difference between the contents of tweets posted by females and males. We also find that while the overall engagement on Twitter with the topic of vaccination against COVID-19 is on the wane, there has been a rise in the number of against tweets continuing into the present.
Vortex formation in a non-uniform self-gravitating dusty magnetoplasma

Abstract The dynamics of low-frequency, short-wavelength electrostatic (SWES) drift waves in a self-gravitating, non-uniform, collisional dusty magnetoplasma with equilibrium dust-velocity gradients is studied in the present work. By employing the dust continuity and momentum equations to describe the dust dynamics and Boltzmann distribution for the electrons and ions, we have derived a new set of nonlinear mode coupling equations. In the linear limit, it is found that SWES drift waves are subjected to dissipative instability in the presence of an equilibrium dust sheared flow and self-gravitation effect. On the other hand, in the nonlinear case, it is shown that possible stationary solutions of the nonlinear equations are dipolar vortices.
Dynamical behavior of Josephson vortices in Bi-2212

We have found periodic oscillations in the flux flow resistance of Josephson vortices along the c-axis of Bi-2212 single crystals. The resistance oscillates periodically with increasing parallel magnetic fields above about 6 kOe, independent of the magnitude of the field and temperature. The constant period of the oscillations and the dynamical behaviors of Josephson vortices suggest vortex states and a new application to the precise magnetic field sensors in Tesla order.
Wrinkle to fold transition: influence of the substrate response

Spatially confined rigid membranes reorganize their morphology in response to imposed constraints. Slight compression of a rigid membrane resting on a soft foundation creates a regular pattern of sinusoidal wrinkles with a broad spatial distribution of energy. For larger compression, the deformation energy is progressively localized in small regions which ultimately develop sharp folds. We review the influence of the substrate on this wrinkle to fold transition by considering two models based on purely viscous and purely elastic foundations. We analyze and contrast the physics and mathematics of both systems.
Impact of Acute Coronary Syndrome on Clinical Outcomes in Patients With Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura

Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) is a life-threatening clinical syndrome characterized by microangiopathy and a variable degree of end-organ ischemic damage. Cardiac involvement has been recognized as a major cause of mortality in these patients. In this study, we queried the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) for all patients hospitalized with thrombotic microangiopathy from 2002 to 2017, who also received plasma exchange (PLEX) during the same admission. A total of 6,214 patients with TTP were identified. We stratified patients based on whether or not they had acute coronary syndrome (ACS) during admission. ACS was documented in 6.3% of patients. Compared with patients without ACS, those with ACS were relatively older (odds ratio [OR], 1.03; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.02-1.03) and had a relatively higher prevalence of heart failure (OR, 2.02; 95% CI, 1.53-2.67) and coronary artery disease (OR, 2.69; 95% CI, 2.03-3.57). Certain complications were more prevalent in the ACS group including acute cerebrovascular accident (OR, 3.33; 95% CI, 2.94-3.78), acute heart failure (OR, 1.91; 95% CI, 1.67-2.19), acute kidney injury (OR, 1.76; 95% CI, 1.59-1.95), cardiogenic shock (OR, 2.15; 95% CI, 1.72-2.69), and respiratory failure (OR, 1.48; 95% CI, 1.32-1.66). Despite wider utilization of therapeutic plasmapheresis and improved supportive management of patients with TTP, associated morbidity and mortality remain significant. We demonstrate from this large retrospective cohort that ACS is an independent predictor of higher morbidity and mortality in TTP patients.
QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE KHOKHLOV–ZABOLOTSKAYA–KUZNETSOV (KZK) EQUATION

The Khokhlov–Zabolotskaya–Kuznetzov (KZK) equation is considered as a model of nonlinear acoustic which describes the nonlinear propagation of a finite-amplitude focused sound beam which is essentially one-directional, in the thermo-viscous medium.1,7,8 The aim of this paper is the study of the existence, uniqueness, stability, regularity, continuous dependence on the initial value and blow-up of solution of the KZK equation in Sobolev spaces Hs of periodic on x functions and with mean value zero. Existence of shock waves for the model with zero viscosity is proved using S. Alinhac's method.2 Global existence in time of the beam's propagation in viscous media is established for small enough initial data. Existence result is proved by two methods: first by the fractional step method in the particular case ℝ3 and s = 3 to justify the numerical results of Thierry Le Polles25 and second for the general case ℝn and s > [n/2] + 1 by the approach used in Refs. 12 and 13 for the Kadomtsev–Petviashvili (KP) equation.
Examining the effect of social influence on student performance through network autocorrelation models

The paper investigates the link between student relations and their performances at university. A social influence mechanism is hypothesized as individuals adjusting their own behaviors to those of others with whom they are connected. This contribution explores the effect of peers on a real network formed by a cohort of students enrolled at a graduate level in an Italian University. Specifically, by adopting a network effects model, the relation between interpersonal networks and university performance is evaluated assuming that student performance is related to the performance of the other students belonging to the same group. By controlling for individual covariates, the network results show informal contacts, based on mutual interests and goals, are related to performance, while formal groups formed temporarily by the instructor have no such effect.