Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
PERTURBATION APPROACH TO THE DIFFRACTION OF ELECTROMAGNETIC WAVES BY ARBITRARILY SHAPED DIELECTRIC OBSTACLES

A perturbation method is developed to consider the problem of the diffraction of electromagnetic waves by an arbitrarily shaped dielectric obstacle whose boundary may be expressed in the general form, in spherical coordinates, ${r}_{p}={r}_{0}[1+\ensuremath{\delta}{f}_{1}(\ensuremath{\theta}, \ensuremath{\varphi})+{\ensuremath{\delta}}^{2}{f}_{2}(\ensuremath{\theta}, \ensuremath{\varphi})+\ensuremath{\cdots}]$ where ${r}_{0}$ is the radius of an unperturbed sphere and ${f}_{n}(\ensuremath{\theta}, \ensuremath{\varphi})$ are arbitrary, single-valued and analytic functions. $\ensuremath{\delta}$ is chosen such that $\ensuremath{\Sigma}\stackrel{\ensuremath{\infty}}{n=1}|{\ensuremath{\delta}}^{n}{f}_{n}(\ensuremath{\theta}, \ensuremath{\varphi})|l1, 0\ensuremath{\le}\ensuremath{\theta}\ensuremath{\le}\ensuremath{\pi}, 0\ensuremath{\le}\ensuremath{\varphi}\ensuremath{\le}2\ensuremath{\pi}. $ Detailed analysis is carried out to the first order in $\ensuremath{\delta}$. Procedures to obtain higher order terms are also indicated. The perturbation solutions are valid for the near zone region of the obstacle as well as for the far zone region and they are applicable for all frequencies. Possible applications of this perturbation technique to elementary-particle scattering problems and other electromagnetic scattering problems are noted.
Utilization of Antibiotics for Hospitalized Patients with Severe Coronavirus Disease 2019 in Al-Madinah Al-Munawara, Saudi Arabia: A Retrospective Study

Background Most patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) with severe Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia receive antibacterial antibiotics with little evidence of bacterial infections. Objective This study was designed to review the profiles of patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia requiring intensive care, the rate of bacterial coinfection, the antibiotics used, and their relation to patient outcomes (death or recovery). Methods This was a retrospective study that reviewed the medical records of all patients with confirmed COVID-19 (n = 120) severe pneumonia admitted directly from the emergency room to the intensive care unit, at a public hospital during the period from May 2020 to April 2021. The data collected included patients’ demographic and laboratory data, comorbidities, antibiotic treatment, and their outcome. Descriptive statistics, bivariate inferential analysis tests (chi-square and unpaired T-Tests) and multivariable binary logistic regression were performed. Results The mean age of the patients was 56.8 ± 16.5 years old, and among them, 74 (62.7%) were males. Of the included patients, 92 (77.0%) had comorbidities, 76 (63.3%) required mechanical ventilation and 30 (25%) died. All patients received empirical antibiotics for suspected bacterial coinfection. The most common antibiotics used were azithromycin (n = 97, 8%) and imipenem (n = 83, 9%). Ninety patients (75%) were on two empirical antibiotics. Early positive cultures for pathogens were found only in four patients (3.3%), whereas 36 (30%) patients had positive cultures 5–10 days after admission. The most frequently isolated pathogens were Acinetobacter baumannii (n = 16) and coagulase-negative Staphylococci (n = 14). In bivariate analysis empirical treatment with azithromycin resulted in a significantly lower mortality rate (p = 0.023), meanwhile mechanical ventilation, days of stay in intensive care unit, morbidities (e.g., lung disease), linezolid and, vancomycin use associated with mortality (p< 0.05). The adjusted logistic regression, controlling for age and gender, revealed that azithromycin antibiotic was more likely protective from mortality (OR= 0.22, 95%CI 0.06-0.85, p=0.028. However, patients with lung diseases and under mechanical ventilation were 35.21 and 19.57 more likely to die (95%CI =2.84-436.70, p=0.006; 95%CI=2.66-143.85, p=0.003, respectively). Conclusion Bacterial coinfection with severe COVID-19 pneumonia requiring intensive care was unlikely. The benefit of Azithromycin over other antibiotics could be attributed to its anti-inflammatory properties rather than its antibacterial effect.
Temperature dependence of transient and steady-state gate currents in HfO2 capacitors

The authors investigated the temperature dependence of transient and steady-state gate currents in HfO2 capacitors from 300to75K. They show that transient currents measured on very thin (5nm) HfO2 layers keep a power-law time dependence when temperature decreases to 75K, with only a small reduction in the current amplitude. Instead, the static gate leakage strongly decreases when temperature is reduced, also showing a change in the conduction mechanism. These results clearly demonstrate that transient currents in HfO2 dielectrics do not depend on the steady-state conduction mechanisms and are an issue that must be considered even at low temperatures.
The interactive role of subsynoptic scale jet streak and planetary boundary layer processes in organizing an isolated convective complex

Abstract Mesoscale model simulations with and without diurnal planetary boundary layer heat flux are compared to a detailed surface analysis for a case of an isolated tornadic convective complex development. The case study, 3-4 June 1980, is of particular interest because of the development of several destructive tornadic storms within the Grand Island, Nebraska metropolitan area during a period of relatively weak synoptic scale forcing. This type of case presents an opportunity for the mesoscale numerical simulation of the subtle interactions between an upper tropospheric jet stream and surface diabatic heating. Model simulations runwith and without diurnal surface sensible heating show marked differences in processes both within and above the planetary boundary layer (PBL). The results of the simulations indicate that the evolution of the subsynoptic scale low pressure system and its accompanying low level jet streak, areas of moisture convergence, and regions of convective instability are influenced by.
Blind deconvolution using an improved L0 sparse representation

In this paper, we present a method for single image blind deconvolution. Many common forms of blind deconvolution methods need to previously generate a salient image, while the paper presents a novel L0 sparse expression to directly solve the ill-positioned problem. It has no need to filter the blurred image as a restoration step and can use the gradient information as a fidelity term during optimization. The key to blind deconvolution problem is to estimate an accurate kernel. First, based on L2 sparse expression using gradient operator as a prior, the kernel can be estimated roughly and efficiently in the frequency domain. We adopt the multi-scale scheme which can estimate blur kernel from coarser level to finer level. After the estimation of this level’s kernel, L0 sparse representation is employed as the fidelity term during restoration. After derivation, L0 norm can be approximately converted to a sum term and L1 norm term which can be addressed by the Split-Bregman method. By using the estimated blur kernel and the TV deconvolution model, the final restoration image is obtained. Experimental results show that the proposed method is fast and can accurately reconstruct the kernel, especially when the blur is motion blur, defocus blur or the superposition of the two. The restored image is of higher quality than that of some of the art algorithms.
The simulation smoother for time series models

SUMMARY Recently suggested procedures for simulating from the posterior density of states given a Gaussian state space time series are refined and extended. We introduce and study the simulation smoother, which draws from the multivariate posterior distribution of the disturbances of the model, so avoiding the degeneracies inherent in state samplers. The technique is important in Gibbs sampling with non-Gaussian time series models, and for performing Bayesian analysis of Gaussian time series.
A Retrospective Review of Decision to Delivery Time Interval for Foetal Distress at a Central Hospital

Purpose The aim of this study was to describe the trajectory of emergency caesarean deliveries for foetal distress at Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital (CHBAH). Patients and Methods A retrospective, contextual, descriptive study, using consecutive convenience sampling was done reviewing all the records of emergency caesarean deliveries for foetal distress at CHBAH in February 2019 until a minimum sample size of 385 was reached. Results During the study period, a total of 617 caesarean deliveries were done, of which 572 (92.7%) were emergencies. Foetal distress accounted for 395 (69.1%) of the emergency caesarean deliveries. No emergency caesarean delivery for foetal distress conformed to the 30-minute DDI and the mean (SD) DDI was 411 (291) minutes. The mean (SD) 5-minute and 10-minute Apgar scores were 8.4 (1.6) and 9.6 (1.3), respectively. There was a significant difference between the type of anaesthetic (general or neuraxial), with those receiving general anaesthesia having shorter anaesthetic start to cut time (p=0.0110). However, those delivered following neuraxial anaesthesia had better 5-minute (p=0.0002) and 10-minute (p=0.0175) Apgar scores. Conclusion This study showed that a DDI of 30-minutes, was not achieved at CHBAH during the study period. Most babies diagnosed with foetal distress pre-delivery had 5-minute and 10-minute Apgar scores inconsistent with this diagnosis. This over-diagnosis of foetal distress in some cases could have led to delays in delivery of babies who had actual foetal distress and where a 30-minute DDI could have improved outcome.
Therapeutic uses of psychedelics for eating disorders and body dysmorphic disorder

Background: Clinical use of psychedelics has gained considerable attention, with promising benefits across a range of mental disorders. Current pharmacological and psychotherapeutic treatments for body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) and eating disorders (EDs) have limited efficacy. As such, other treatment options such as psychedelic-assisted therapies are being explored in these clinical groups. Aims: This systematic review evaluates evidence related to the therapeutic potential of psychedelics in individuals diagnosed with BDD and EDs. Methods: Following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines, we conducted a systematic review of all study designs published to the end of February 2022 that identified changes in ED/BDD symptom severity from psychedelics using validated measures to assess symptom changes. Results: Our search detected a total of 372 studies, of which five met inclusion criteria (two exploratory studies, two case reports, and one prospective study). These were included in the data evaluation. Effects of psychedelics on BDD and various ED symptoms were identified mostly through thematic analyses and self-reports. Conclusions: Our findings highlight that more research is needed to determine the safety and efficacy of psychedelics in BDD and EDs and we suggest avenues for future exploration.
The value relevance of mandatory sustainability reporting assurance

Sustainability reporting assurance (SRA) ensures the credibility of sustainability information disclosed by companies. This practice has continued to evolve, particularly within regulatory frameworks. The SRA is widespread among the largest French and South African companies because of the requirements of GRENELLE II and KING III laws. The increased regulation of SRA and the increased rate of obtaining assurance motivated us to conduct our study. This study examines the impact of mandatory SRA on firm value. We run a fixed-effects ordinary least squares (OLS) panel model to test our hypothesis for the 2007–2018 period on a sample of 88 South African listed companies on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) and 83 French listed companies on the SBF120 index. We use Tobin’s Q to measure firm value. Our results show a significant positive association between mandatory SRA and firm value. This finding implies that SRA regulations positively affect investors’ perceptions of firm performance, particularly firm value, for two reasons. First, mandatory SRA may strengthen firm legitimacy and establish a good reputation. Second, the adoption of SRA regulations plays an important role in reducing asymmetric information between various actors and solving agency problems between managers and shareholders. Regulators may be interested in the findings when considering current and future assurance requirements for sustainability reporting, and shareholders when considering SRA as an investment choice criterion.
Self-adjoint differential vector-operators and matrix Hilbert spaces I

In the current work a generalization of the famous Weyl-Kodaira inversion formulas for the case of self-adjoint differential vector-operators is proved. A formula for spectral resolutions over an analytical defining set of solutions is discussed. The article is the first part of the planned two-part survey on the structural spectral theory of self-adjoint differential vector-operators in matrix Hilbert spaces.
First survey on Knowledge, attitude and practices about parasitic diseases among the population in the center of Morocco

Leishmaniasis is a disease caused by infection by a leishmania-like flagellated protozoan whose only vector is an insect, Diptera, the sandfly. It is still a public health problem in several countries, notably in Morocco, where this pathology is widespread and is prevalent in sporadic or endemic forms. In order to determine the knowledge of the population in terms of leishmaniasis, its vector and means of transmission of the disease, we carried out a survey during the year 2017 with the consulting population at the level of all Health Centers (H/C )(45 Health Centers ). The descriptive results are presented as percentages and numbers. The chi-square test was used to test the association between the variables. Values ​​of p <0.05 were considered significant. The calculation of chi² (X²) and the p-value are carried out using the software R. The grouping of responses shows a lack of knowledge of leishmaniasis and phlebotomy by a large majority of the population (97% and 95%, respectively), whereas there is no correlation between the socio-economic level of the population and this lack of knowledge (chi2 = 2.8, p> 0.05), nor between the socio-economic level and the knowledge of the risk related to insects (chi-2 = 6.4, p> 0.05). These data show the extent of the perception problems with parasitic diseases, particularly leishmaniasis and also the lack of awareness of the population against this scourge. Indeed, these data can be used to define measures to be taken to limit or even eradicate exposure, and subsequently risk.
Granulomatous Inflammation and Pericarditis Induced by Silk Granuloma Related to Previous Surgical Ligation of Patent Ductus Arteriosus in a Dog

Simple Summary The present report describes granulomatous inflammation and pericarditis induced by silk granuloma related to a previous surgical ligation of patent ductus arteriosus in a dog. Surgical ligation of patent ductus arteriosus is usually accomplished by tying two pliable, heavy, non-absorbable suture ligatures using materials such as silk. In veterinary medicine, silk granuloma formation associated with patent ductus arteriosus closure has been rarely reported. To our knowledge, this is the first case report describing the clinical symptoms caused by granulomatous inflammation related to the surgical ligation of a patent ductus arteriosus in a dog. Abstract Surgical ligation of a patent ductus arteriosus is regarded as a standard treatment approach with a low complication rate if performed by experienced surgeons, and it has been performed successfully for decades in dogs. However, there are no reports describing the clinical symptoms related to granulomatous inflammation after the surgical ligation of the patent ductus arteriosus. This report describes the clinical symptoms caused by granulomatous inflammation and subacute pericarditis in a dog that had undergone the surgical closure of a patent ductus arteriosus 2 years previously. Exploratory thoracotomy was performed for subtotal pericardiectomy, and a biopsy was performed to obtain specimens for histopathological examination and culture tests. The clinical symptoms were relieved after surgery. The persistent leukocytosis improved with steroid administration. This case illustrates that the granulomatous inflammatory response associated with silk suture granuloma is a rare postoperative complication of ductal ligation. In such cases, pericardiectomy can help relieve the clinical symptoms.
Synthesis and in vitro cytotoxicity of mPEG-SH modified gold nanorods

Plasmon-resonant gold nanorods show great potential as an agent for contrast-enhanced biomedical imaging or for phototherapeutics. This is primarily due to the high molar extinction coefficient at the absorption maximum and the dependence of the wavelength of the absorption maximum on the aspect ratio, which is tunable in the near-infrared (NIR) during synthesis. Although gold nanorods can be produced in high-yield through the seed-mediated growth technique, the presence of residual cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), a stabilizing surfactant required for nanorod growth, interferes with cell function and causes cytotoxicity. To overcome this potential obstacle to in vivo use, we synthesized gold nanorods and conjugated them to a methoxy (polyethylene glycol)-thiol (mPEG (5000)-SH). This approach yielded mPEG-SH modified gold nanorods with optical and morphometric properties that were similar to raw (CTAB) nanorods. Both the CTAB and mPEG-SH nanorods were tested for cytotoxicity against the HL-60 human leukemia cell line by trypan blue exclusion, and the mPEG-SH modified gold nanorods were also tested against a rat insulinoma (RIN-38) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCCVII) cell line. Cells incubated for 24 h with the mPEG-SH modified nanorods had little change in cell viability compared to cells incubated with vehicle alone. This was in contrast to cytotoxicity of CTAB nanorods on HL-60 cells. These results suggest that mPEG-SH modified gold nanorods are better suited for cell loading protocols and injection into animals and facilitate their use for imaging and phototherapeutic purposes.
A Relativistic Model of Pulsar Polarization

The rotating vector model of pulsar polarization of Radhakrishnan and Cooke (1969) is extended here to include first-order special relativistic effects. The model predicts that the centroid of the position angle curve arrives later than the centroid of the intensity profile by 4r/c, where r is the emission radius. Application of the model to pulsars with well ordered position-angle swings and periods between 0.06 and 3.7 s give emission radii of not more than 2000 km for 0.43 and 1.4 GHz. Symmetry-breaking effects of the corotation velocity may help explain a general asymmetry found in pulsar intensity profiles and may strongly affect the intensity profiles of short-period pulsars. 66 refs.
Social Determinants of Mental, Physical, and Oral Health of Middle-Aged and Older African Americans in South Los Angeles

Background. A growing body of research suggests that financial difficulties could weaken the protective effects of socioeconomic status (SES) indicators, including education and income, on the health status of marginalized communities, such as African Americans. Aim. We investigated the separate and joint effects of education, income, and financial difficulties on mental, physical, and oral self-rated health (SRH) outcomes in African American middle-aged and older adults. Methods. This cross-sectional study enrolled 150 middle-aged and older African Americans residing in South Los Angeles. Data on demographic factors (age and gender), socioeconomic characteristics (education, income, and financial difficulties), and self-rated health (mental, physical, and oral health) were collected. Three linear regression models were used to analyze the data. Results. Higher education and income were associated with a lower level of financial strain in a bivariate analysis. However, according to multivariable models, only financial difficulties were associated with poor mental, physical, and oral health. As similar patterns emerged for all three health outcomes, the risk associated with financial difficulties seems robust. Conclusions. According to our multivariable models, financial strain is a more salient social determinant of health within African American communities than education and income in economically constrained urban environments such as South Los Angeles. While education and income lose some protective effects, financial strain continues to deteriorate the health of African American communities across domains.
STUDENTS WEBINAR PROJECT: AN AUTHENTIC ASSESMENT OF SPEAKING SKILL

This paper reports on one of the best practices in assessing students' speaking skills in the pandemic era. Given that speaking is a productive skill that should be assessed through authentic assessment, the teacher decided to assign students to create a students webinar project as part of their final exam. This project requires students to conduct real-life webinars where the organizer, speaker and audience are students themselves. To describe a related project the researcher combined qualitative and quantitative methods including peer feedback, interviews, self-reflection, and a learning satisfaction survey. Once implemented, it can be concluded that this project can be used as an alternative authentic assessment model that can be applied in the classroom that focuses on developing students' public speaking skills. This students webinar project is recommended not only because it can be used as an alternative assessment model but also encourages students to work together in teams and encourages them to work creatively, creating something new to work better. Another important thing obtained in the implementation is feedback from students, which is the main factor that can make them feel satisfied and motivate them to study effectively.
Correlation between Socioeconomic Level and Oral Health Related Quality of Life in Egyptian Schoolchildren: An Observational Cross-sectional Study

AIM: This observational and cross-sectional study aimed to assess the orthodontic treatment need, oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL), and self-esteem in relation to socioeconomic level as well as investigate the incidence of malocclusion and orthodontic treatment need in Egyptian school children. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Three hundred and twenty-four schoolchildren from governmental, private, and international schools representing different socioeconomic levels ranging from 11 to 14 years were recruited. Self-esteem and OHRQoL were measured using validated questionnaires. Clinical examination was used to assess the orthodontic treatment need represented by the index of orthodontic treatment need (IOTN) score as well as Angle’s classification of occlusion. RESULTS: International schools showed the lowest total IOTN scores than governmental and private schools (p = 0.031). Governmental scores showed the statistically significantly highest mean CPQ11-14 score (Worst OHR-QOL) followed by private schools then international schools (p = 0.035). There was no statistically significant difference between Angle’s classes of malocclusion as well as self-esteem between the three different socioeconomic level groups. CONCLUSION: Lower socioeconomic status (SES) was associated with higher orthodontic treatment need according to the total IOTN score and worst OHRQoL. Socioeconomic status did not affect the distribution of malocclusion according to Angle’s classification nor did it affect self-esteem.