Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Advances in Nano-Bio-Optics: detection from Virus towards Higher sized Biostructures

In this communication were discussed Nano-Optics developments for targeted Biodetection applications. In this context, it was presented the last publications related with Antibodies-antigen interactions involucrated for Corona Virus (COVID-19) detection, as well as other approaches of non-covalent interactions for higher sized Biostructure detection based on Bioimaging generation and Optical signaling modifications. In this context it was presented the development of Lab. -on-particles and Functional Nanoparticles tuned for Biodetection. By this manner, it was discussed the potential use of targeted Nanoplatforms for light delivery applications. In this way, it was showed the importance of the control of the Nanoscale with tunable Optical properties for variable sizes of Biostructures. Moreover, in this particular topic it was introduced in Advance the theme related with the generation of Nanolasers, Biolasers and Living Lasers with potential uses within Biosciences, such as Biodetection and new Nano-Photo-thermal treatments. Thus, it was afforded to introduce different insides within from the control of Nano-Optics towards Nano-Bio-Optics for detection of different Biostructure sizes with the potential capability to detect internal Biomolecules and Biological processes. So, different themes and topics were discussed in order to stimulate Research and Development within Nano-Optics and Nano-Biophotonics for Biodetection applications. In addition it was contemplated as well developments within Nanomedicine.
A simulator study of the safety implications of cellular mobile phone use

The mobile telephone industry is growing rapidly as user costs decline and cellular networks are introduced in urban areas throughout the U.S. Well over 80,000 mobile phone units are in use in California alone. Industry representatives cite numerous safety benefits associated with mobile phone use and contend that the phones contribute no more of a distraction to drivers than car radios. Mobile phones can lead to more timely reporting of accidents, stalled vehicles, drinking drivers, and other emergency situations. Just as clearly, mobile phones could conceivably create a safety hazard by distracting drivers from the control of their vehicles. An interactive driving simulator developed by STI was used to investigate the impacts of different types of mobile phone design, use, and mounting locations on driver performance in negotiating a simulated route. Along the route drivers were required to negotiate curves, avoid obstacles, and respond to various road signs. Data on lane position and speed were collected along the routes, making it possible to compare driver performance when no task was required (the baseline case) with performance over similar segments while dialing a phone, receiving a call, or tuning a radio. Seventy-two subjects were segregated by sex, age, and past experience with mobile phone use in analyzing driver performance. This paper discusses the experimental approach, methods, and conclusions; and, with one major exception, supports the industry contentions. Keywords: Driver distraction;
Evaluation of pedestrian protection test procedure in japan - influence of upper body mass on leg impact test

This report first introduces statistical data on pedestrian accidents in Japan, with emphasis on the high frequency of head and leg injuries, and the high percentage of pedestrians who are hit from the side by vehicles. This report also describes leg impactor tests carried out as part of the pedestrian protection studies. Specifically, these tests were aimed at: (1) determining the influence of upper body mass on leg impact; and (2) at comparing the indirect measuring method (the knee-angle measuring method) and the direct measuring method (the force-measuring method). The vehicle frontal shape in terms of bumper height, bumper lead, and hood edge height was used as the main parameter. Results indicated the following: (a) The presence or absence of an upper body mass did not affect tendencies of varied measurement values, except for knee tensile force; and (b) among the leg impactor measured items, knee angle (dynamic deformation angle) and force (bending moment and shearing force) indicated different responses to the parameter under certain conditions. Therefore, it is judged inappropriate to consider knee angle and force as identical evaluation criteria. For the leg protection, however, there is no adequate index to be applied to the criteria except the knee angles and forces. For the covering abstract of the conference see IRRD 894848.
STUDY OF MONTHLY RAINFALL TRENDS IN THE UPPER AND MIDDLE CAUCA RIVER BASIN, COLOMBIA

Analyzing alterations in water availability due to natural climatic variability and climate change is important in developing adaptive responses to current and future changes in regional precipitation patterns. In order to understand these changes, spatial and temporal historic fluctuations in regional rainfall patterns must be analyzed. In this context, precipitation trends were analyzed using a non-parametric statistic Mann-Kendall test for annual, seasonal and monthly rainfall between 1975 and 2006 for 108 precipitation ground stations located in the upper and middle Cauca river basin. The results demonstrate that the significant trend of annual rainfall variation was between -9.3% (-147,3mm) and +6.5% (+128mm) per decade and the average change was -0.7% per decade for 24 stations.In the seasonal intra-annual analysis of June-JulyAugust, a period of lower intra-annual rainfall, we found the largest statistically significant decrease in seasonal rainfall, with an average of -15% per decade, in 19% (21) of the total stations. The conclusions are that the pattern of seasonal precipitation changed between 1975 and 2006 and before to compare the annual rainfall trends with geographic variables (latitude, longitude and altitude), we found that rainfall had decreased in all cases above 1500 m in altitude and in latitudes lower than 3o52’N within the Andean Mountains. These changes in precipitation will decrease the volume and availability of runoff, which will alter the water availability in the river basin. In order to design adaptation practices in future investigations, is necessary to study daily rainfall changes and its impacts on the inhabitants of the Cauca river basin.
Experimental behavior of a half-scale steel concrete composite floor system subjected to column removal scenarios

AbstractA half-scale three-bay by three-bay steel-concrete composite floor system, which represented gravity framing for a typical commercial building, was studied experimentally to evaluate its structural integrity under four separate column removal scenarios: a corner column, two edge columns, and an interior column. In each test, the load was incrementally applied in the bays that were tributary to the removed column using water in containers that were placed on top of the slab. The tests demonstrated that gravity systems for commercial buildings have a significant level of structural integrity—compared to the load redistribution capability expected for steel framing with simple shear connections—even without specific design against progressive collapse. In the corner and edge column removal scenarios, 2.9 kPa (60 psf) and 4.0 kPa (83 psf) were sustained, respectively, and these loads represent a range of 50–75% of the expected floor load. The interior column removal scenario had an unexpectedly low ca.
Development of a Method for Kinematic GPS Carrier-Phase Ambiguity Resolution Using Multiple Reference Receivers

Abstract : To perform the most precise relative positioning using GPS, it is necessary to resolve the carrier-phase integer cycle ambiguities. This process becomes increasingly difficult as the distance between the mobile and reference GPS receivers increases, due to the decorrelation of the GPS errors with distance, resulting in a practical limit on the distance over which ambiguity resolution can be performed when using a single reference receiver. This thesis proposes a novel method, called NetAdjust, which uses multiple reference receivers to reduce code and carrier-phase differential measurement errors and improve the ability to resolve carrier-phase ambiguities. The NetAdjust method is based upon an optimal linear minimum error variance estimator, and it "encapsulates" all of the network information into the measurements of a single reference receiver, so standard single-reference differential GPS processing algorithms can be used. The geometry of the reference receiver network is embedded within the error covariance matrix, and a functional form of this covariance matrix is described. The NetAdjust method was tested using two different GPS networks, an 11-receiver network covering a 400 km x 600 km region in southern Norway, and a 4-receiver network covering a 50 km x 150 km region at Holloman AFB in New Mexico. The results for L1 code, L1 phase, and widelane phase measurements are analyzed in the measurement domain and the position domain, showing improvements in RMS errors of up to 50% when using NetAdjust. Significant improvements in the ability to resolve carrier-phase ambiguities are also demonstrated for the Holloman and Norway test networks. Issues relating to development of an operational, real-time NetAdjust system are discussed. Also, a covariance analysis method is developed which can be used to predict NetAdjust effectiveness under various conditions and network configurations.
Investigation on the effects of entrained air in pipelines

The main goal of this work is the development of a computational program for the quantitative assessment of the effects of entrained air in pipeline systems with respect to their operational safety. Likewise, two specific problems are investigated. (1) The effect of entrained air in form of pockets on hydraulic transients, during pump shutdown. It can be considered the most dangerous maneuver within a pumping pipeline. The computations corresponding to this study were evaluated by using the method of characteristics. (2) The numerical simulation of fluid transients caused by the shutdown of pumps, considering air pockets located at the high points of pumping pipeline systems and a water-air bubble mixture immediately downstream of the pockets. The constitutive equations – conservation of the gas mass, of the liquid mass, and the mixture momentum – yield a set of differential equations that will be solved by the method of characteristics. For the homogeneous model presented herein the two phases or components are treated as a single pseudofluid with average properties. It is assumed that there is no relative motion or slip between the phases, as well as for the momentum equation for the mixture. In the same way to the compressibility of the gas, the liquid compressibility and the pipe wall elasticity are included in the system of equations. The equation of energy is not used due to the moderate change in temperature of the mixture during the transient. In the case of negative impacts on the safety and operability of pipeline systems resulting from air entrainment, operational remediation measures will be suggested. Hier wurden bereits zielgerechte Modellversuche ausgefuhrt und Losungsvorschlage fur bauliche und betriebliche Anderungen ausgearbeitet. Letztere sollten nunmehr wissenschaftlich vertieft und zu allgemeinen Bemessungsregeln, moglichst auf analytischer Basis, ubergefuhrt werden. Vornehmlich stehen die Bewegungsvorgange von kompakten Lufteinschlussen und Wasser-Luft-Gemischen (Zweiphasenkomponenten-Stromung) in Pumpendruckleitungen und deren Verhalten beim plotzlichen Abschalten der Pumpenaggregate im Vordergrund.
Differential absorptive capacities, ambidexterity & new product creativity : a longitudinal investigation of US high technology SMEs from the attention-based perspective

The study investigates how SMEs generate new product creativity through different means of innovation strategies and their antecedents. It examines the fundamental role of the CEO in directing a firm’s information seeking orientation, a firm’s absorptive capacities in facilitating the process of absorbing information and lastly the combination of exploitation and exploration innovations to achieve ambidexterity. To this end, to address the bottom line importance of the ambidextrous strategy, new product creativity is hypothesised to be positively related and acts as a vital bridge linking ambidexterity and financial performance. Existing literature shows limited empirical support for a firm’s ability to pursue both exploitative and explorative innovations for performance outcomes. In particular, very little is known of the ambidexterity consequence in new product creativity. Literature also lacks empirical evidence on leadership-based antecedents and understanding of how ambidexterity works in the context of SMEs. To examine the relationships, the study uses mixed methods of content analysis, econometrics and financial ratios to generate longitudinal and objective data for 148 SMEs. Seemingly Unrelated Regression is then employed to analyse and test the hypotheses. Findings show the importance of generating a high number of creative ideas by demonstrating a positive empirical link with future financial performance. It also found that given the resource impediments of SMEs, the most appropriate approach to successful new product creativity is to manage exploitation and exploration innovations sequentially. In addition, contrary to the popular view of external information driving firms’ innovation strategy, deep understanding of the firm internally may be most important. Lastly, the result proves that despite being generic in nature and having an insignificant effect in driving either exploration or exploitation separately, future focus becomes an important factor when it comes to the firm’s ability to balance innovation ambidextrously
Gender Perspectives in Adoption of Technological Practices by Fishers and Fish Farmers in Tripura

With the development of institutionalized form of income and the growing importance of fisheries in the agricultural development of Tripura, the role of women in socio-economic and cultural-political relationships has gained importance over time. Fisheries like other crops are also a function of adoption level of a technology. The study is based on a total of 180 fishers consisting 30 women and 30 men respondents that were randomly selected from each of the three major sectors, viz. aquaculture, reservoir and fish processing. For each sector, identified fisheries technologies were selected for the study. Factor analysis was carried out for identification of relationships between technologies and multiple regression analysis was performed to identify the factors that determined the adoption level. Subsector-wise analysis was also performed. The study has indicated commonality and divergence in the attitude between women and men fishers in respect of technology adoption. Thus, gender perspective is clearly visible in adoption of technological practices in Tripura.
Autoassociator structured neural network for rhythm classification of long term electrocardiogram

The authors have designed and evaluated a new Artificial Neural Network (ANN) structure, built as an autoassociator, to classify some rhythm abnormalities of a single patient. They used a standard database (BIH-MIT) for the testing phase. The network is fed to reproduce the input pattern morphology over a part of the output layer and to give the pattern class over the remaining part. The authors have defined two uncertainty criteria to reject unknown or uncertain patterns. The recognition percentages were very good for normal vs. PVB beats (99.84% normal vs. 92.96% PVB) and a little worse for normal vs. APB's (97.71% normal vs. 93.44% APB). The error the authors found was as small as 0.15% for PVB beats, and 0.91% for APB's. <<ETX>>
Implementasi data mining dengan algoritma C4.5 untuk memprediksi tingkat kelulusan mahasiswa

Graduation Information is important for Universitas Multimedia Nusantara which engaged in education. The data of graduated students from each academic year is an important part as a source of information to make a decision for BAAK (Bureau of Academic and Student Administration). With this information, a prediction can be made for students who are still active whether they can graduate on time, fast, late or drop out with the implementation of data mining. The purpose of this study is to make a prediction of students’ graduation with C4.5 algorithm as a reference for making policies and actions of academic fields (BAAK) in reducing students who graduated late and did not pass. From the research, the category of IPS semester one to semester six, gender, origin of high school, and number of credits, can predict the graduation of students with conditions quickly pass, pass on time, pass late and drop out, using data mining with C4.5 algorithm. Category of semester six is the highly influential on the predicted outcome of graduation. With the application test result, accuracy of the graduation prediction acquired is 87.5%.
The association between physical activity and hypertension among HIV positive and negative populations in rural South Africa.

Background Hypertension is a public health problem in sub-Saharan Africa, with considerable under- diagnosis, poor management, and lack of community-wide preventive strategies. Hypertension is a common condition in South Africa and is a risk factor for heart attacks, stroke, left ventricular hypertrophy, renal disease, and blindness. In this research study, we identify and examine the trend of physical activity within South Africa's HIV-positive and negative rural communities. Methods This was a secondary analysis of cross sectional survey data from the Agincourt Health and Socio-Demography Surveillance System Site (AHDSS) that were collected over a period of 10 months, from August 2010 to May 2011. All 4436 individuals participating in the AHDSS survey were included. The inclusion criteria for the survey were from aged 15 years or older, and a permanent resident according to the 2009 census. The participants were interview (approximately 45 minutes) on chronic disease risk factor [applying] a questionnaire; anthropometric measurement were taken, blood pressure (BP); point-of care analysis of lipids and glucose; and dried blood spot collections for HIV and ELISA testing were conducted. ResultsThe research findings showed a significant/strong association between hypertension and HIV in both univariate and multivariate analysis. In many developed countries, the prevalence of hypertension among HIV-positive individuals varies between 8% and 39%. A study in Kenya reported a lower prevalence of 7.4%–11.2%, compared with 22.1%– 32.2% in study. ConclusionHypertension is common in HIV-infected adults and is likely because of a combination of known risk factors, levels of physical activities/sedentary way of life, HIV-specific factors, and ART. There is a need for broad, global cohort studies to improve our knowledge and understanding of the above named subject matter, interventional studies are needed to discover new approaches in hypertension and HIV-infected individuals in South Africa and sub-Saharan Africa to avoid and manage hypertension and hypertension-related cardiovascular diseases among HIV infected persons especially in this era of epidemiologic and demographic transition in LMICs.
The spatial correlation of shadow fading in macrocellular mobile radio systems

It is conventional to refer to three distance scales of channel variation in mobile radio systems, namely multipath or fast fading, shadowing or slow fading, and range variation. Of these, the least studied has been the shadowing, which is the variation of the local mean signal strength (averaged over the fast fading) at a fixed range. The shadowing variation is statistically characterised by its distribution (approximately lognormal) and its standard deviation (5-10 dB depending on the environment and frequency). Some studies have shown that shadowing is a deterministic effect, caused by variation in the physical environment, yet very little is known about its spatial distribution or correlations. These parameters would be extremely useful for system simulation and design, leading to a better understanding of the propagation channel and to system designs of higher integrity.
Evaluation of System Development Projects

Many groups are involved in system development projects: System development management, system developers, user management, and users. All of them wish to influence the project. Influence, however, requires understanding. The process of obtaining this understanding is called project evaluation. This report will discuss project evaluation. The most important conclusions are: Evaluation should not be seen as an appendage to planning, but as a complementary activity. There are two fundamentally different kinds of project evaluation. There are two types of documents constituting the key for understanding most system development projects. In practice evaluation of system development projects requires the active participation of the system developers.
Teaching: Making a Difference

Teaching: Making a Difference has been developed to provide the pre-service teacher with new and contemporary lenses for helping them develop as future educators. It is relevant to students in undergraduate and postgraduate teacher programs. This multi-authored volume draws on the expertise of each contributor and reflects the latest contemporary research. The text is supported by a unique multi-media package designed to meet the needs of individual learners. [Book Synopsis]; Click here to view the USC Research Bank entry for the Second Edition published in 2013.
ESTIMATION OF REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES AND TOTAL ANTIOXIDANT CAPACITY IN SERUM OF IRAQI FEMALES WITH PCOS

Background: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common hormonal disorders, occurring in 5–10% of women of reproductive ages. Despite a long history of studies on PCOS, its etiology is still unknown. Oxidative stress is now recognized to play a central role in the pathophysiology of many different disorders, including PCOS. Although intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and propagation are controlled by highly complex antioxidant enzymatic and non-enzymatic systems, understanding of mechanisms that oxidative stress is important to develop strategies for the prevention and therapy of PCOS. This study showed a highly significant increase in ROS and LH values, while there was no significant difference in FSH levels for the PCOS group compared with the control group. TAC level was significantly reduced in PCOS women compared to control. In addition, the PCOS group was significantly overweight compared to the control group.