Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Computer Simulation of Temperature Distribution during Cooling of the Thermally Insulated Room

This paper is devoted to modelling of temperature distribution and its time evolution in rooms with specific thermal insulation and heat transfer for different external conditions. The simulation results should help to design the room architecture and wall materials to reduce energy losses due to heating or cooling, and to increase the inside thermal comfort. For this purpose, a methodological procedure using real data processing in the COMSOL Multiphysics modelling environment and spatial visualization of temperature evolution is proposed. This paper describes a mathematical model for simulation of the temperature evolution inside a space with thermally insulated walls under selected outside conditions. Computer simulations are then used to assess the temperature distribution inside the room and the heat flow through the room walls. Results of the simulations are used for subsequent determination of the time needed for the desired decrease of air temperature inside the tested room during its cooling due to the low ambient temperature, which is related to the thermal stability of the building, specific heat capacity, and thickness of the thermal insulation. Under the studied conditions, the time to reach the temperature drops by 20 percent in a room with windows was from 1.4 to 1.8 times lower than that in the room without windows. The proposed methodology shows the flexibility of computer modelling in the design of insulated building systems. The mesh density testing was performed by comparing the air temperature evolution in the model of the selected mesh density and the model with its maximum value enabled by the size of computer memory. The maximum temperature deviation calculated for the mesh of the presented model was 0.57%.
Degree attainment, ethnicity and gender: a literature review

The aim of this literature review is to inform the project on degree attainment, ethnicity and gender undertaken by the Higher Education Academy and the Equality Challenge Unit. For the purposes of the review, attainment is defined with regard to the class of honours awarded to students on their completion of first degrees at UK higher education institutions. The first part of the review therefore provides a discussion of this index of attainment as a point of reference for the rest of the discussion. The role of gender as a predictor of attainment has been considered for nearly 50 years, and so this topic is dealt with in the second part. The role of ethnicity has only been considered more recently, and this will be dealt with in the third part of the review. The final part offers conclusions regarding the role of gender and ethnicity as predictors of academic attainment.
High resolution spectroscopy of ROSAT discovered weak line T Tauri stars near Lupus

We present high-resolution optical echelle spectroscopy for a large fraction of the Li-rich late-type stars recently discovered in the vicinity of the Lupus dark clouds. Our results confirm the high Li i l6708 equivalent widths previously estimated from medium-resolution spectra, thus adding strength to the conclusion that the large majority of these stars are still in the pre-main-sequence phase of their evolution, contrary to claims from other authors that many of them might be zero-age main-sequence stars. We present a statistical approach to derive a mean distance for the sample, and find that it is consistent with, or slightly lower than, the Hipparcos distance of the Lupus star-forming region. The radial velocities measured for part of these stars are consistent with those observed for the Lupus starforming region, while stars outside the dark clouds show a mean difference of the order of 3 km s. The projected rotational velocities show a lack of slow rotators, which is interpreted as a consequence of the X-ray selection of the sample. The Li-rich stars in Lupus studied in this work yield a fairly `clean' sample of very young stars, while in other starforming regions a larger fraction of older zero-age main-sequence stars has been found among ROSAT-discovered Li-rich stars. We argue that this fact reflects the relation of these stars with the Gould Belt.
Using the Graphic Narrative to Stimulate Mezirow’s Transformative Learning Theory in Learners

This article describes a bounded action research case study that examines how reading and discussing a graphic narrative (March Book Two, a comic autobiography of John Lewis’s life as a civil rights activist) enabled transformations in a group of seven adult student participants at a Canadian postsecondary institution. Data primarily gathered from photocopies of student work, including reflective journal entries, postsemester interviews, and the primary researcher’s daily reflexive and reflective research journal entries, were evaluated with Kitchenham and Chasteauneuf’s framework of assessing transformative learning with critical reflection types such as objective and subjective reframing of assumptions. The authors found that both the participants and the primary researcher engaged in a number of shifts, including engaging in systemic critical self-reflection of and on assumptions.
Cyclooxygenase-2 Activity Regulates Recruitment of VEGF-Secreting Ly6Chigh Monocytes in Ventilator-Induced Lung Injury

Mechanical ventilation is usually required for saving lives in critically ill patients; however, it can cause ventilator-induced lung injury (VILI). As VEGF-secreting Ly6Chigh monocytes are involved in VILI pathogenesis, we investigated whether cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) activity regulates the recruitment of VEGF-secreting Ly6Chigh monocytes during VILI. The clinically relevant two-hit mouse model of VILI, which involves the intravenous injection of lipopolysaccharide prior to high tidal volume (HTV)-mechanical ventilation, was used in this study. To investigate the role of COX-2 in the recruitment of VEGF-secreting Ly6Chigh monocytes during VILI, celecoxib, which is a clinical COX-2 inhibitor, was administered 1 h prior to HTV-mechanical ventilation. Pulmonary vascular permeability and leakage, inflammatory leukocyte infiltration, and lung oxygenation levels were measured to assess the severity of VILI. HTV-mechanical ventilation significantly increased the recruitment of COX-2-expressing Ly6Chigh, but not Ly6Clow, monocytes. Celecoxib significantly diminished the recruitment of Ly6Chigh monocytes, attenuated the levels of VEGF and total protein in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, and restored pulmonary oxygenation during VILI. Our findings demonstrate that COX-2 activity is important in the recruitment of VEGF-secreting Ly6Chigh monocytes, which are involved in VILI pathogenesis, and indicate that the suppression of COX-2 activity might be a useful strategy in mitigating VILI.
MRI metrics at the epicenter of spinal cord injury are correlated with the stepping process in rhesus monkeys

Clinical evaluations of long-term outcomes in the early-stage spinal cord injury (SCI) focus on macroscopic motor performance and are limited in their prognostic precision. This study was designed to investigate the sensitivity of the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) indexes to the data-driven gait process after SCI. Ten adult female rhesus monkeys were subjected to thoracic SCI. Kinematics-based gait examinations were performed at 1 (early stage) and 12 (chronic stage) months post-SCI. The proportion of stepping (PS) and gait stability (GS) were calculated as the outcome measures. MRI metrics, which were derived from structural imaging (spinal cord cross-sectional area, SCA) and diffusion tensor imaging (fractional anisotropy, FA; axial diffusivity, λ//), were acquired in the early stage and compared with functional outcomes by using correlation analysis and stepwise multivariable linear regression. Residual tissue SCA at the injury epicenter and residual tissue FA/remote normal-like tissue FA were correlated with the early-stage PS and GS. The extent of lesion site λ///residual tissue λ// in the early stage after SCI was correlated with the chronic-stage GS. The ratios of lesion site λ// to residual tissue λ// and early-stage GS were predictive of the improvement in the PS at follow-up. Similarly, the ratios of lesion site λ// to residual tissue λ// and early-stage PS best predicted chronic GS recovery. Our findings demonstrate the predictive power of MRI combined with the early data-driven gait indexes for long-term outcomes. Such an approach may help clinicians to predict functional recovery accurately.
Original Contributions to the Chemical Composition, Microbicidal, Virulence-Arresting and Antibiotic-Enhancing Activity of Essential Oils from Four Coniferous Species

This study aimed to establish the essential oil (EO) composition from young shoots of Picea abies, Larix decidua, Pseudotsuga menziesii, and Pinus nigra harvested from Romania and evaluate their antimicrobial and anti-virulence activity, as well as potential synergies with currently used antibiotics. The samples’ EO average content varied between 0.62% and 1.02% (mL/100 g plant). The mono- and sesquiterpene hydrocarbons were dominant in the composition of the studied EOs. The antimicrobial activity revealed that the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values for the tested EOs and some pure compounds known for their antimicrobial activity ranged from 6.25 to 100 µL/mL. The most intensive antimicrobial effect was obtained for the Pinus nigra EO, which exhibited the best synergistic effect with some antibiotics against Staphylococcus aureus strains (i.e., oxacillin, tetracycline, erythromycin and gentamycin). The subinhibitory concentrations (sMIC) of the coniferous EOs inhibited the expression of soluble virulence factors (DN-ase, lipase, lecithinase, hemolysins, caseinase and siderophore-like), their efficiency being similar to that of the tested pure compounds, and inhibited the rhl gene expression in Pseudomonas aeruginosa, suggesting their virulence-arresting drug potential.
Effect of Cultural and Biological Treatments in Managing Clubroot Disease of Cabbage in Sidhuwa, Nepal

The Plasmodiophora brassicae Woronin is an important soil pathogen that attacks brassicaceae family of plants. The ability of pathogen to survive in soil for many years as a resting structure even in the absence of suitable host has increased its threat by making it more devastating. Lower effectiveness of treatments applied so far and failure to completely eradicate the disease once it enters the field has posed more problems. The study was conducted at a disease infected field in Sidhuwa, Dhankuta. It was focused on the effectiveness of different cultural and biological treatments against clubroot disease under field conditions. The treatments; lime, combination of lime and vermicompost, Effective Microorganisms (EM) solution and Trichoderma viride were arranged in Randomized Complete Block Design and replicated four times. The yield and yield attributing parameters and clubroot scale were recorded at the time of harvest. Values like Disease Incidence, Disease Severity Index and Disease Control Percentage were calculated based on clubroot scale value. The treatments showed no significant influence on vegetative parameters of the plants and on disease incidence. However, the combined treatment of lime and vermicompost was found to be most effective regarding disease severity and disease control i.e. the least Disease Severity Index (31.25%) and highest Disease Control Percentage (50.94%) compared to the control were obtained from the combined treatment of lime and vermicompost. Effective Microorganisms showed the highest disease severity. The combination of lime and vermicompost used as a treatment yielded highest marketable head weight (1.779 kg) and head diameter (19.90 cm). Int. J. Appl. Sci. Biotechnol. Vol 7(1): 96-101
Raman microscopy investigation of beryllium materials

We report for the first time on the ability of Raman microscopy to give information on the structure and composition of Be related samples mimicking plasma facing materials that will be found in ITER. For that purpose, we investigate two types of material. First: Be, W, Be1W9, and Be5W5 deposits containing a few percents of D or N, and second: a Mo mirror exposed to plasma in the main JET chamber (in the framework of the first mirror test in JET with ITER-like wall). We performed atomic quantifications using ion beam analysis for the first samples. We also did atomic force microscopy. We found defect induced Raman bands in Be, Be1W9, and Be5W5 deposits. Molybdenum oxide has been identified showing an enhancement due to a resonance effect in the UV domain.
Exploring the space density of X-ray selected cataclysmic variables

The space density of the various classes of cataclysmic variables (CVs) has up to now only been weakly constrained, due to the small number of objects in complete X-ray flux-limited samples and the difficulty in deriving precise distances to CVs. The former limitation still exists. Here the impact of Gaia parallaxes and implied distances on the space density of X-ray-selected complete, flux-limited samples is studied. These samples have been described in the literature: Those of non-magnetic CVs are based on ROSAT (RBS – ROSAT Bright Survey & NEP – North Ecliptic Pole) and that of the intermediate polars (IPs) stems from Swift/BAT. All CVs appear to be rarer than previously thought, although the new values are all within the errors of past studies. Upper limits at 90% confidence for the space densities of non-magnetic CVs are ρRBS < 1.1 × 10−6 pc−3 and ρRBS+NEP < 5.1 × 10−6 pc−3 for an assumed scale height of h = 260 pc and ρIPs < 1.3 × 10−7 pc−3 for the long-period IPs at a scale height of 120 pc. Most of the distances to the IPs have previously been under-estimated. The upper limits to the space densities are only valid in cases where CVs do not have lower X-ray luminosities than the lowest-luminosity member of the sample. These results require confirmation using larger sample sizes, soon to be established through sensitive X-ray all-sky surveys to be performed with eROSITA on the Spektrum-X-Gamma mission.
Monetary policy and speculative stock markets

Financial market interactions can lead to large and persistent booms and recessions. Instability is an inherent threat to economies with speculative financial markets. A central bank's interest rate setting can amplify the expectation feedback in the financial market and this can lead to unstable dynamics and excess volatility. The paper suggests that policy institutions may be well-advised to handle tools like asset price targeting with care since such instruments might add a structural link between asset prices and macroeconomic aggregates. Neither stock prices nor indices are a good indicator to base decisions on.
Measuring the Effects of Unconventional Monetary Policy on Asset Prices

I adapt the methods of Gurkaynak, Sack, and Swanson (2005) to estimate two dimensions of monetary policy during the 2009-2015 zero lower bound period in the U.S. I show that, after a suitable rotation, these two dimensions can be interpreted as "forward guidance" and "large-scale asset purchases" (LSAPs). I estimate the sizes of the forward guidance and LSAP components of each FOMC announcement between January 2009 and June 2015, and show that those estimates correspond closely to identifiable features of major FOMC announcements over that period. Forward guidance has relatively small effects on the longest-maturity Treasury yields and essentially no effect on corporate bond yields, while LSAPs have large effects on those yields but essentially no effect on short-term Treasuries. Both types of policies have significant effects on medium-term Treasury yields, stock prices, and exchange rates.
Multi-Criteria Decision Making for Sustainability and Value Assessment in Early PSS Design

Sustainability is increasingly recognized as a key innovation capability in the organization. However, it is not always evident for manufacturers how sustainability targets shall be “mixed and matched” with more traditional objectives—such as quality, time, cost, and performances—when designing and developing solutions. The emergence of “servitization” and product-service systems (PSS) further emphasizes the need for making thoughtful trade-offs between technical aspects, business strategies, and environmental benefits of a design. The objective of this paper is to investigate how multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) models shall be applied to down-select PSS concepts from a value perspective, by considering sustainability as one of the attributes of a design contributing to the overall value of a solution. Emerging from the findings of a multiple case study in the aerospace and construction sector, the paper presents a five-step iterative process to support decision making for sustainable PSS design, which was further applied to design an electrical load carrier. The findings show that the proposed approach creates a “hub” where argumentations related to “value” and “sustainability” of PSS solution concepts can be systematically captured in a way that supports the discussion on the appropriate quantification strategy.
The cardinality of the set of invariant means on a locally compact topological semigroup

For a large class of locally compact topological semigroups, which include all non-compact, a-compact and locally compact topological groups as a very special case, we show that the cardinality of the set of all invariant means on the space of weakly uniformly continuous functions is either 0 or &#x3E; 2’; where c denotes the cardinality of continuum. Compositio Mathematica 54 (1985) 41-49. O 1985 Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, Dordrecht. Printed in The Netherlands.
The Potential Role of Short Food Supply Chains in Strengthening Periurban Agriculture in Spain: The Cases of Madrid and Barcelona

Periurban agriculture is being hit by the effects of the globalized food system, as well as by concrete aspects of urban sprawl. Nonetheless, proximity to the main markets provides an opportunity to sustain agriculture in highly urbanized areas. In this sense, an increasing number of local initiatives is arising within the context of Short Food Supply Chains (SFSCs). The economic impact of these initiatives, however, is limited by problems and inefficiencies that hinder their capacity to scale up. The present paper sets forth the results of a research project developed in Madrid and Cataluña. The study is based upon documentary and empirical research addressing the main problems periurban farmers are facing in relation to local food distribution. Among other factors, these refer to regulatory barriers, logistics, competition and dealing with consumers’ preferences. We conducted a questionnaire with a representative group of farmers from each region in three towns presenting different demographic sizes along with another questionnaire extended to the owners of small grocery stores, who play a vital role in the supply of fresh food in these municipalities. Our research demonstrates that most of the problems arising when dealing with SFSCS can be solved by introducing new forms of cooperation among the different agents of the food chain.
Simulations of freshwater lens recharge and salt/freshwater interfaces using the HYDRUS and SWI2 packages for MODFLOW

Abstract The paper presents an evaluation of the combined use of the HYDRUS and SWI2 packages for MODFLOW as a potential tool for modeling recharge in coastal aquifers subject to saltwater intrusion. The HYDRUS package for MODFLOW solves numerically the one-dimensional form of the Richards equation describing water flow in variablysaturated media. The code computes groundwater recharge to or capillary rise from the groundwater table while considering weather, vegetation, and soil hydraulic property data. The SWI2 package represents in a simplified way variable-density flow associated with saltwater intrusion in coastal aquifers. Combining these two packages within the MODFLOW framework provides a more accurate description of vadose zone processes in subsurface systems with shallow aquifers, which strongly depend upon infiltration. The two packages were applied to a two-dimensional problem of recharge of a freshwater lens in a sandy peninsula, which is a typical geomorphologic form along the Baltic and the North Sea coasts, among other places. Results highlighted the sensitivity of calculated recharge rates to the temporal resolution of weather data. Using daily values of precipitation and potential evapotranspiration produced average recharge rates more than 20% larger than those obtained with weekly or monthly averaged weather data, leading to different trends in the evolution of freshwater-saltwater interfaces. Root water uptake significantly influenced both the recharge rate and the position of the freshwater-saltwater interface. The results were less sensitive to changes in soil hydraulic parameters, which in our study were found to affect average yearly recharge rates by up to 13%.
ALADDIN: Asymmetric Centralized Training for Distributed Deep Learning

To speed up the training of massive deep neural network (DNN) models, distributed training has been widely studied. In general, a centralized training, a type of distributed training, suffers from the communication bottleneck between a parameter server (PS) and workers. On the other hand, a decentralized training suffers from increased parameter variance among workers that causes slower model convergence. Addressing this dilemma, in this work, we propose a novel centralized training algorithm, ALADDIN, employing "asymmetric" communication between PS and workers for the PS bottleneck problem and novel updating strategies for both local and global parameters to mitigate the increased variance problem. Through a convergence analysis, we show that the convergence rate of ALADDIN is O(1 ønk ) on the non-convex problem, where n is the number of workers and k is the number of training iterations. The empirical evaluation using ResNet-50 and VGG-16 models demonstrates that (1) ALADDIN shows significantly better training throughput with up to 191% and 34% improvement compared to a synchronous algorithm and the state-of-the-art decentralized algorithm, respectively, (2) models trained by ALADDIN converge to the accuracies, comparable to those of the synchronous algorithm, within the shortest time, and (3) the convergence of ALADDIN is robust under various heterogeneous environments.
Aalborg Universitet The Devil Dwells in the Tails A Quantile Regressions Approach to Firm Growth

This paper explores firm growth rate distribution in a Gibrat’s Law context. It is novel in two respects. First, rather than limiting the analysis to a focus on the conditional mean, we investigate the entire shape of the distribution. Second, we show that differences in the firm growth rate process between large and small firms are highly circumstantial and depend on the industry dynamics. The data used include more than 9,000 Danish manufacturing, services and construction firms. We provide robust evidence indicating that firm growth studies should concentrate less on explaining means and instead focus on other parts of the firm growth rate distribution. T. Reichstein (B) Department of Innovation and Organizational Economics, DRUID, Copenhagen Business School, Kilevej 14A, 2000 Frederiksberg, Denmark e-mail: tr.ino@cbs.dk T. Reichstein CEREBEM, BEM Bordeaux Management School, Talence, France M. S. Dahl Department of Business Studies, DRUID, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark e-mail: md@business.aau. dk B. Ebersberger Management Center Innsbruck (MCI), Innsbruck, Austria e-mail: bernd.ebersberger@mci.edu M. B. Jensen Department of Marketing and Statistics, Aarhus School of Business, Aarhus, Denmark e-mail: mbj@asb.dk T. Reichstein et al.