Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Note on the initial conditions within the effective field theory approach of cosmic acceleration

By using the effective field theory approach, we investigate the role of initial conditions for the dark energy or modified gravity models. In detail, we consider the constant and linear parametrization of the effective Newton constant models. First, under the adiabatic assumption, the correction from the extra scalar degree of freedom in the beyond Lambda CDM model is found to be negligible. The dominant ingredient in this setup is the primordial curvature perturbation originated from the inflation mechanism, and the energy budget of the matter components is not very crucial. Second, the isocurvature perturbation sourced by the extra scalar field is studied. For the constant and linear models of the effective Newton constant, no such kind of scalar mode exists. For the quadratic model, there is a nontrivial one. However, the amplitude of the scalar field is damped away very fast on all scales. Consequently, it could not support a reasonable structure formation. Finally, we study the importance of the setup of the scalar field starting time. By setting different turn-on times, namely, a = 10(-2) and a = 10(-7), we compare the cosmic microwave background radiation temperature, lensing deflection angle autocorrelation function, and the matter power spectrum in the constant and linear models. We find there is an order of O(1%) thorn difference in the observable spectra for constant model, while for the linear model, it is smaller than O(0.1%).
Astrophysical inputs on the SUSY dark matter annihilation detectability

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X-ray spectral properties of active galactic nuclei in the Chandra

We present a detailed X-ray spectral analysis of the sources in the 1Ms catalog of the Chandra Deep Field South (CDFS) taking advantage of optical spectroscopy and photometric redshifts for 321 extragalactic sources out of the total sample of 347 sources. As a default spectral model, we adopt a power law with slope Γ with an intrinsic redshifted absorption NH, a fixed Galactic absorption and an unresolved Fe emission line. For 82 X-ray bright sources, we are able to perform the X-ray spectral analysis leaving both Γ and NH free. The weighted mean value for the slope of the power law is � Γ �� 1.75 ± 0.02, and the distribution of best fit values shows an intrinsic dispersion of σint � 0.30. We do not find hints of a correlation between the spectral index Γ and the intrinsic absorption column density NH. We then investigate the absorption distribution for the whole sample, deriving the NH values in faint sources by fixing Γ= 1.8. We also allow for the presence of a scattered component at soft energies with the same slope of the main power law, and for a pure reflection spectrum typical of Compton-thick AGN. We detect the presence of a scattered soft component in 8 sources; we also identify 14 sources showing a reflection-dominated spectrum. The latter are referred to as Compton-thick AGN candidates. By correcting for both incompleteness and sampling-volume effects, we recover the intrinsic NH distribution representative of the whole AGN population, f (NH)dNH, from the observed one. f (NH) shows a lognormal shape, peaking around log(NH) � 23.1 and with σ � 1.1. Interestingly, such a distribution shows continuity between the population of Compton-thin and that of Compton-thick AGN. We find that the fraction of absorbed sources (with NH > 10 22 cm −2 ) in the sample is constant (at the level of about 75%) or moderately increasing with redshift. Finally, we compare the optical classification to the X-ray spectral properties, confirming that the correspondence of unabsorbed (absorbed) X-ray sources to optical type I (type II) AGN is accurate for at least 80% of the sources with spectral identification (1/3 of the total X-ray sample).
Survival and prognostic factors in patients undergoing the resection of solitary brain metastasis from non-small cell lung cancer: a retrospective cohort study

Background Neurosurgery is the standard of care for resectable solitary brain metastasis (BM) from non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), but still with a poor outcome. Postoperative whole-brain radiotherapy (WBRT) was reported to reduce local recurrence, whether it could prolong survival was uncertain. In this study, we attempted to evaluate WBRT and other prognostic for overall survival (OS) in these patients. Methods In this retrospective study, NSCLC patients with a solitary BM and controlled primary tumor who underwent neurosurgical resection were selected from the medical records database between January 2014 and December 2018. Clinical data, disease control/progression results and survival outcomes were obtained from the medical records, regular outpatient follow-up and telephone interviews. Univariable and multivariable Cox analyses of potential prognostic factors including patients’ characteristics, BM features, tissue-based parameters and postoperative treatments were conducted. OS was illustrated using Kaplan-Meier curves, and group differences were assessed using the log-rank test. The subgroup analysis compared each variable between the WBRT group and the untreated control by the hazard ratio and its 95% confidence interval (CI). Results A total of 94 patients were included, with a median OS of 812 days. Univariable analysis showed that postoperative WBRT and targeted therapy were associated with OS. Multivariable analysis demonstrated that postoperative WBRT [P<0.001, hazard ratio (HR) 0.357], chemotherapy (P=0.008, HR 0.512), targeted therapy (P<0.001, HR 0.265), and smaller tumor size (P=0.018, HR 0.553) were independent prognostic factors for prolonged OS. However, tissue-based parameters (Ki67 tumor cell proliferation index, epidermal growth factor receptor, and checkpoint levels) were identified as statistically insignificant factors. In the subgroup analysis, the beneficial effect of WBRT was only observed in patients that did not receive systematic treatments. Conclusions Postoperative WBRT and systematic treatments after solitary BM resection improve the prognosis of NSCLC patients with a controlled primary tumor. Postoperative WBRT could be considered, especially for those who not receive systematic chemotherapy or targeted therapy treatments, as they might be more likely to benefit from it.
The flare activity of Sagittarius A : New coordinated mm to X-ray observations

Context. We report new simultaneous near-infrared/sub-millimeter/X-ray observations of the Sgr A* counterpart associated with the massive 3−4 × 10 6 Mblack hole at the Galactic Center. Aims. We investigate the physical processes responsible for the variable emission from Sgr A*. Methods. The observations have been carried out using the NACO adaptive optics (AO) instrument at the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescopeand the ACIS-I instrument aboard the Chandra X-ray Observatory as well as the Submillimeter Array SMA �� on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, and the Very Large Array ��� in New Mexico. Results. We detected one moderately bright flare event in the X-ray domain and 5 events at infrared wavelengths. The X-ray flare had an excess 2−8 keV luminosity of about 33 × 10 33 erg/s. The duration of this flare was completely covered in the infrared and it was detected as a simultaneous NIR event with a time lag of ≤10 min. Simultaneous infrared/X-ray observations are available for 4 flares. All simultaneously covered flares, combined with the flare covered in 2003, indicate that the time-lag between the NIR and X-ray flare emission is very small and in agreement with a synchronous evolution. There are no simultaneous flare detections between the NIR/X-ray data and the VLA and SMA data. The excess flux densities detected in the radio and sub-millimeter domain may be linked with the flare activity observed at shorter wavelengths. Conclusions. We find that the flaring state can be explained with a synchrotron self-Compton (SSC) model involving up-scattered sub- millimeter photons from a compact source component. This model allows for NIR flux density contributions from both the synchrotron and SSC mechanisms. Indications for an exponential cutoff of the NIR/MIR synchrotron spectrum allow for a straightforward explanation of the variable and red spectral indices of NIR flares.
Higher education beyond SDG 4: China’s scholarship provision in the Global South

In international development of education, the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal four monitors the scholarships offered by Western donors to developing countries. This paper, based on a qualitative study with 43 students from 26 developing countries, examined the foreign students’ perceptions of Chinese scholarships. By looking at students’ scholarship application, university experience and post-study plans, the findings revealed a centralised multi-level scholarship system, in particular attracting post-graduate students. The language of instruction in both Chinese and English, knowledge in shared development contexts and the perceived good value for future career had a combined effect to the students’ experience. In considering education as a cultural political economic ensemble in the global context, the paper concluded that China’s scholarship and higher education practice, serving the country’s soft power and representing South-South Cooperation, contributed to the global education targets from both quantity and quality dimensions but could step further towards education for social and global justice.
Sex differences in acetylcholinesterase modulation during spatial and fear memory extinction in the amygdala; an animal study in the single prolonged stress model of PTSD

Background and purpose: Men and women show different reactions to trauma and that is believed to be the reason behind the higher prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in women. Cholinergic signaling has long been known to be involved in the processing of fear-related information and the amygdala is a critical center for fear modulation. The main goal of the current research was to find (a) whether trauma results in different learning/extinction of fear or spatial-related information among male and female rats and (b) if trauma is associated with different acetylcholinesterase (AchE) activity in the amygdala. Experimental approach: We used single prolonged stress (SPS) as a PTSD model in this study. Normal and SPS animals of both sexes were tested in contextual and spatial tasks (learning and extinction). AchE activity in the amygdala was also measured during each process. Findings / Results: Results indicated that fear and spatial learning were impaired in SPS animals. SPS animals also had deficits in fear and spatial memory extinction and the effect was significantly higher in female- SPS than in the male-SPS group. In the enzymatic tests, AchE activity was increased during the fear extinction test and incremental changes were more significant in the female-SPS group. Conclusion and implications: Collectively, these findings provided evidence that sex differences in response to trauma were at least partly related to less fear extinction potential in female subjects. It also indicated that the extinction deficit was associated with reduced cholinergic activity in the amygdala of female animals.
Interleaved Honeypot-Framing Model with Secure MAC Policies for Wireless Sensor Networks

The Wireless Medium Access Control (WMAC) protocol functions by handling various data frames in order to forward them to neighbor sensor nodes. Under this circumstance, WMAC policies need secure data communication rules and intrusion detection procedures to safeguard the data from attackers. The existing secure Medium Access Control (MAC) policies provide expected and predictable practices against channel attackers. These security policies can be easily breached by any intelligent attacks or malicious actions. The proposed Wireless Interleaved Honeypot-Framing Model (WIHFM) newly implements distributed honeypot-based security mechanisms in each sensor node to act reactively against various attackers. The proposed WIHFM creates an optimal Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) channel model, Wireless Interleaved Honeypot Frames (WIHFs), secure hash-based random frame-interleaving principles, node-centric honeypot engines, and channel-covering techniques. Compared to various existing MAC security policies, the proposed model transforms unpredictable IHFs into legitimate frame sequences against channel attackers. Additionally, introducing WIHFs is a new-fangled approach for distributed WSNs. The successful development of the proposed WIHFM ensures resilient security standards and neighbor-based intrusion alert procedures for protecting MAC frames. Particularly, the proposed wireless honeypot methodology creates a novel idea of using honeypot frame traps against open wireless channel attacks. The development of a novel wireless honeypot traps deals with various challenges such as distributed honeypot management principles (node-centric honeypot, secretly interleaved-framing principles, and interleaving/de-interleaving procedures), dynamic network backbone management principles (On Demand Acyclic Connectivity model), and distributed attack isolation policies. This effort provides an effective wireless attack-trapping solution in dynamic WSNs. The simulation results show the advantage of the proposed WIHFM over the existing techniques such as Secure Zebra MAC (SZ-MAC), Blockchain-Assisted Secure-Routing Mechanism (BASR), and the Trust-Based Node Evaluation (TBNE) procedure. The experimental section confirms the proposed model attains a 10% to 14% superior performance compared to the existing techniques.
A search for passive protoplanetary discs in the Taurus-Auriga star-forming region

We conducted a 12-month monitoring campaign of 33 T Tauri stars (TTS) in Taurus. Our goal was to monitor objects that possess a disk but have a weak Halpha line, a common accretion tracer for young stars, to determine whether they host a passive circumstellar disk. We used medium-resolution optical spectroscopy to assess the objects' accretion status and to measure the Halpha line. We found no convincing example of passive disks; only transition disk and debris disk systems in our sample are non-accreting. Among accretors, we find no example of flickering accretion, leading to an upper limit of 2.2% on the duty cycle of accretion gaps assuming that all accreting TTS experience such events. Combining literature results with our observations, we find that the reliability of traditional Halpha-based criteria to test for accretion is high but imperfect, particularly for low-mass TTS. We find a significant correlation between stellar mass and the full width at 10 per cent of the peak (W10%) of the Halpha line that does not seem to be related to variations in free-fall velocity. Finally, our data reveal a positive correlation between the Halpha equivalent width and its W10%, indicative of a systematic modulation in the line profile whereby the high-velocity wings of the line are proportionally more enhanced than its core when the line luminosity increases. We argue that this supports the hypothesis that the mass accretion rate on the central star is correlated with the Halpha W10% through a common physical mechanism.
Reliability and validity of the reactive-proactive aggression questionnaire in Chinese boxers

ABSTRACT Aggressive behavior is an important indicator that affect athletes’ mental health. Currently, there are few instruments to measure aggressive behavior in Chinese boxers. We evaluate the Chinese reactive proactive aggression questionnaire's (RPQ) construct validity, reliability, and application in a sample of boxers. 414 Chinese boxers were investigated by using cluster sampling method. We performed network analysis, criterion-related validity analysis, internal consistency reliability analysis, exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and item analysis. A two-factor model of reactive and proactive aggression suited the data from Chinese boxers well in a confirmatory factor analysis. The Chinese translation was able to accurately reproduce the factor structure of the original RPQ, and both subscales had good Cronbach's alpha values. Significant correlations between the RPQ and agreeableness scores served as proof of the RPQ concurrent validity. The Chinese version of the Reactive Proactive Aggression Questionnaire has good reliability and validity in Chinese boxers for measuring reactive and proactive aggression. Future research can evaluate Chinese boxers’ reactive and proactive aggression using the Chinese RPQ.
Non-parallel plane Rayleigh Benard convection in cylindrical geometry

This paper considers the effect of a perturbed wall in regard to the classical Benard convection problem in which the lower rigid surface is of the form z = eg(s), s = er, in axisymmetric cylindrical polar coordinates (r, φ, z). The boundary conditions at s = 0 for the linear amplitude equation are found and it is shown that these conditions are different from those which apply to the nonlinear problem investigated by Brown and Stewartson [1], representing the distribution of convection cells near the center.
Pliable polaritons: Wannier exciton-plasmon coupling in metal-semiconductor structures

Abstract Plasmonic structures are known to support the modes with sub-wavelength volumes in which the field/matter interactions are greatly enhanced. Coupling between the molecular excitations and plasmons leading to the formation of “plexcitons” has been investigated for a number of organic molecules. However, plasmon-exciton coupling in metal/semiconductor structures has not experienced the same degree of attention. In this work, we show that the “very strong coupling” regime in which the Rabi energy exceeds the exciton binding energy is attainable in semiconductor-cladded plasmonic nanoparticles and leads to the formation of Wannier exciton-plasmon polariton (WEPP), which is bound to the metal nanoparticle and characterized by dramatically smaller (by a factor of a few) excitonic radius and correspondingly higher ionization energy. This higher ionization energy, which exceeding approaches 100 meV for the CdS/Ag structures, may make room-temperature Bose-Einstein condensation and polariton lasing in plasmonic/semiconductor structures possible.
Investigation of the Pressure Coefficients Correlation Field for Low-Rise Building Roofs

The use of hyperbolic paraboloid roofing (HPRs) is increasingly common in contemporary architecture, especially for buildings with large spans, making use of tensile structures or light shells. These structures are very sensitive to wind loads because of their light weight. In particular, they tend to oscillate under wind action, generating complex pressure distributions and cable instability. Therefore, for this shape structure, the investigation of wind-pressure coefficients correlations plays a relevant role in the design of structural elements. Therefore, based on wind tunnel tests, this paper investigates the behavior of four rectangular low-rise building models with HPR when immersed in a turbulent boundary layer flow. The test results were synthesized in correlation maps of the pressure coefficients. The results were evaluated as functions of different model heights and curvatures, and considering three different angles of wind incidence (0°, 45°, and 90°).
Cyclic block designs from Skolem-type sequences

M. Colbourn and R. Mathon [45] asked: "Can Skolem's partitioning problems be generalized to yield cyclic BIBD(v; 4; 1)? ". Rosa [76] asked: \What is the format of Skolem-type sequences that leads to cyclic BIBD(v; k; λ) for k [greater than or equal to] 4? ". In this thesis, we will address these two questions. We introduce new Skolem-type sequences and then we use them to construct new cyclic BIBD(v; k; λ) for k [greater than or equal to] 3. Specifically, we use Skolem-type sequences to construct new cyclic BIBD(v; 3; λ) for all admissible orders v and λ. We use Skolem-type sequences to construct new cyclic BIBD(v; k; λ) for k [greater than or equal to] 4 and every v coprime with 6. We provide a complete set of examples of Skolem partitions that induce one cyclic BIBD(v; 4; λ) for every admissible class. We also use some known results and relative difference families to construct new cyclic BIBD(v; 4; λ) for infinite values of v. Moreover, we use Skolem-type sequences to construct cyclic, simple, and indecomposable BIBD(v; 3; 3) for every v with some possible exceptions for v = 9 and v = 24c + 9, c 4. We also construct infinitely many cyclically indecomposable but decomposable BIBD(v; 3; 4) for some orders v. Finally, we have many examples of simple and super-simple cyclic designs coming from Skolem-type sequences that produce optical orthogonal codes.
Treatment of progressive nodular histiocytosis: a case report

Background Progressive nodular histiocytosis (PNH) is an extremely rare type of non-Langerhans cell histiocytosis, characterized by the emergence of hundreds small to large cutaneous papulonodules without spontaneous remission. It can be life-threatening if pharyngeal and laryngeal mucosa were involved, just as we reported in this case. Disfigurement and disabling are common, whereas current treatment options are of limited efficacy. At present, about 20 reported cases can be found through a PubMed search, fewer with treatment options. In this article, we report a unique case of a patient diagnosed with PNH, in whom regorafenib had a remarkably curative effect. Case Presentation We present the case of a 21-year-old man who developed lesions on his face, trunk, limbs, and exceptionally in the pharyngeal and laryngeal mucosa. Immunohistochemistry showed diffuse CD68 positivity and scattered S-100 positivity, while CD1α, smooth muscle actin (SMA) and B-Raf proto-oncogene, serine/threonine kinase (BRAF) were negative. Histopathological and biochemical examinations confirmed the diagnosis of PNH. The patient underwent facial lesion resections; however, the lesions recurred rapidly within 1 month. In December 2019, treatment with a small multi-kinase inhibitor, regorafenib (120 mg daily for 3 weeks on, and 1 week off), was initiated, and the patient’s progress was monitored. After 10 days of administration, the patient’s facial lesions began to gradually alleviate, and after 1 month, the lesions in the trunk, limb, and especially the face continued to subside even further. In 2021, the regorafenib dose was subsequently adjusted to 40 mg daily, with intermittent administration. No abnormalities were observed in the routine blood tests, liver, and kidney function results during the follow-ups to date. Presently, the patient’s overall condition is good, the lesions are gradually improving, and the patient has returned to normal life and work. Conclusions This clinical report supports the future exploration of regorafenib treatment in patients with PNH.