Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A biophysically detailed mathematical model of a single late pregnant rat myometrial cell

While premature birth is still one of the major clinical problems worldwide, theexact physiological mechanisms underlying myometrium activity during pregnancyremain unclear. In this thesis, a novel biophysically detailed model wasconstructed using available experimental data to simulate chemical, electrical andmechanical activity in a late pregnant rat uterine myocycte. The developed modelhas been used to elucidate the ionic mechanism underlying myometrium functionality,providing better insights in the function of the uterus during pregnancy. Themodel consisted of 15 membrane currents, intracellular calcium handling processcoupled with a sliding actin-myosin filament mechanical model to describe uterinebehaviour and contractile activity at the single myocyte level. Each of theionic currents were modelled using Hodgkin-Huxley-type equations. The simulatedcurrent traces and current-voltage curves were validated with experimentalrecordings and the model was further validated by the ability to produce a burstingaction potential (AP) during an external stimulus. The model replicated theeffects of estradiol during pregnancy, modulating the amplitude and activationproperties of individual Ca2+ and K+ currents, therefore altering the AP configurationto a tonic-like plateau. The model also reproduced the actions of drugsto inhibit certain channels to investigate their roles in myometrium. Sensitivityanalysis was performed to examine the model? s behaviour to changing parameters.A simple 1-D study was conducted to investigate how electrical signals propagatealong strand of cells. Although the model successfully replicated results similarto recordings seen in the experiments, limitations have to be addressed and morestudies have to be carried out to further improve the model.
Consumer perceptions of trade show effectiveness : scale development and validation within a B2C context

Purpose This paper develops and estimates a model to measure consumer perceptions of trade show effectiveness. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected at three separate B2C trade shows. Study 1 (n=47) involved field interviews with data subjected to qualitative item generation and content analysis. Study 2 data (n=147) were subjected to exploratory factor analysis and item-total correlation to identify a preliminary factor structure for the effectiveness construct and to test for reliability. In Study 3 (n=592), confirmatory factor analysis was undertaken to more rigorously test the factor structure and generalise across industries. Validity testing was also performed. Findings A three-dimensional factor structure for assessing consumer visitors’ perceptions of trade show effectiveness was produced incorporating research, operational, and entertainment components. Research limitations/implications Data were collected in Australia and results may not generalise across cultural boundaries. Practical implications The resulting measurement model may be used as a reliable post-hoc diagnostic tool to identify areas of trade show effectiveness where specific performance improvements are needed. Results indicate that exhibitors and organisers of B2C trade shows should consider effectiveness as a multidimensional phenomenon with entertainment, product / industry research, and the facilitation of purchase decision-making processes and problem resolution being key objectives for consumer attendees. These elements of effectiveness should each be addressed by exhibitors and organisers in planning their displays and events. Originality/value This is the first study to provide an empirically valid model for assessing trade show effectiveness from the consumer visitor’s perspective.
Enhancing capacity and coverage for heterogeneous cellular systems

The thesis is concerned with capacity and coverage enhancement of OFDMA heterogeneous cellular systems with a specific focus on fractional frequency reuse (FFR), femtocells and amplify-and-forward (AF) relay systems. The main aim of the thesis is to develop new mathematical analysis for the spectral efficiency and outage probability of multi-cells multi-tier systems in diverse traffic, interference and fading scenarios. In the first part of the thesis, a new unified mathematical framework for performance analysis of FFR and soft frequency reuse (SFR) schemes is developed. This leads to new exact expressions of FFR and SFR area spectral efficiency in downlink and uplink scenarios which account for a mixture of frequency reuse factors in a homogeneous cellular system. The mathematical framework is extended to include modelling and performance analysis of FFR systems with elastic data traffic. Further analysis is carried out in relation to the performance of FFR and/or SFR schemes, in terms of energy efficiency and base station cooperation. The new proposed analytical framework can lead to a better understanding and computationally efficient performance analysis of next generation heterogeneous cellular systems. Next generation cellular systems are characterized by an increase in the spatial node density to improve the spectral efficiency and coverage, especially for users at home and at the cell edges. In this regard, relays and femtocells play a major role. Therefore, relays and femocells are the focus of the second part of the thesis. Firstly, we present a new and unified spectral efficiency analysis in dual-hop fixed-gain AF relay systems over generalised interferences models. The generalised interference models are either based on the Nakagami-m fading with arbitrary distance or on spatial Poisson Point Process in case of randomly deployed heterogeneous interferers. The models have been considered separately in the open literature due to the complexity of the mathematical analysis. Secondly, the outage probability is utilised to deduce the femtocell exclusion region for FFR system and a new static resource allocation scheme is proposed for femtocells which improve the capacity.The work presented in the thesis has resulted in the publication of seven scientific papers in prestigious IEEE journals and conferences.
Managing School Plant for Effective Service Delivery in Public Secondary Schools in Rivers State of Nigeria

The paper defined public secondary schools as schools which are catered for by the Rivers State government, by providing all the necessary infrastructures for effective teaching and learning. Service delivery is the ability of making use of available educational services to achieve educational goals and set objectives. School plant refers to everything within the school premises which includes the site, buildings, equipment and all essential structures, permanent and non-permanent as well as machines and laboratory equipment and others. Management of school plant requires good leadership, effective monitoring, maintenance culture; corrective, preventive and predictive maintenance etc. Issues of maintenance of school plant was raised: overcrowding; non-delegation of tasks by the principals of schools; vandalization of school property etc. Ways of maintaining school plant for effective functionality are listed and discussed, they include parent teachers association (PTA); community stake holders; staff and students; periodic inspection and principals should not give out any part of school plant for commercial purpose. Conclusively, since public schools harbour a large population of the Nigerian children, effort should be made to effectively manage school plant for effective teaching and learning. Some recommendations were proffered, which include updating of school plant whenever the population increases. Education managers should not rest on their oars and quality control should be advocated etc.
Forced Structural Convergence in the Eurozone

The euro crisis has been a consequence of the structural divergence between the export-oriented growth models of Northern political economies and the domestic-demand oriented growth models of Southern political economies. In response to the crisis, the Monetary Union has established a regime of compulsory structural convergence on the Northern model that has asymmetrically imposed huge economic and social costs on its Southern member states. In economic terms, enforced structural transformation may perhaps work, but its distributional asymmetry that cannot be democratically legitimated undermines the regime’s political sustainability.
Factors Affecting Block Performance From The Omega OSB11 Starting Platform

i Co-Authorship . iii Dedication . iv Acknowledgements . v List of Tables . viii List of Figures . ix List of Appendices . xi List of Abbreviations, Symbols, and Nomenclature . xii Chapter 1. Introduction . 1 Background . 1 Scope . 2 References . 3 Chapter 2. Review of Literature . 5 The kick plate . 5 Equipment positioning . 8 Body position . 11 Feedback . 13 Summary . 16 References . 16 Chapter 3. The Omega OSB11 Kick Plate: One Size Fits Some. 20 Introduction . 20 Methods . 22 Results . 28 Discussion . 29
Wind turbine blade leading edge erosion : an investigation of rain droplet and hailstone impact induced damage mechanisms

Leading edge erosion of modern wind turbine blades is a growing and developing issue within the wind industry, effecting blade performance and efficiency. Little is known, researched or published on the phenomenon and there are currently no apparent full-proof material solutions for the issue. The research presented here looks to develop a fuller understanding of the issue of leading edge erosion, through first reviewing the literature (both within and outwith wind energy) on the topic to put the issues in context, and then subsequently further exploring and investigating the key damage mechanisms associated rain droplet and hailstone impact on the blade leading edge; identified as two of the most erosive types of environmental exposure. Both numerical (finite element) and experimental methods are employed to identify the key damage mechanisms associated with each form of impact in the different possible blade material coating and substrate systems. It is found that for rain exposure, surface degradation and erosion is a real risk for classical gelcoat coating systems. Whereas, for newer flexible and more erosive resistant materials, interface damage and debonding from the substrate is the most likely form of damage creation. Hailstone impact is found to pose a heightened erosive threat in comparison to rain, based on individual impact damage creation; although it is recognised that hailstorms are far more infrequent than rain showers in most regions. However, it is predicted that for extreme hailstones of sufficient mass, significant substrate composite damage could also be created through impact on the leading edge. Future work and further research development aimed at further understanding the issues of blade leading edge erosion are also identified and discussed.
The Effect of Firm's Age, Size and Growth on Its Profitability: Evidence from Jordan

This study aims at testing the effect firm's age, size and growth on its profitability based on the financial data of (22) Jordanian insurance firms that are registered in the Amman Security Exchange (ASE) during the period (2008-2017). They represent 95.2 % of insurance firms. The study relied on secondary data of insurance firms that have been published on their website and on ASE website In the study, the mean, standard deviations were used to describe the characteristics of the variables. Simple regression analysis was used to test the study's hypotheses. Simple. the skewness test of all variable is used to know if they have a normal distribution.The study shows that there is an insignificant effect of the insurance firm's age, size, and growth on its profitability. It recommends financial managers to analyze the relationship between a firm's age, size, growth, and profitability before making any decision in the fields of expanding business, renewing assets, manufacturing high-quality products and appointing new employers. In a recession period, managers should not adopt a strategy to achieve high growth in the short run, they should also reduce the size of the firm's operations. These procedures are important for these firms to maintain a balance between growth and profitability.
Architectural design criteria and their application in multi-storey residential buildings in the Klang Valley / Yong Kuan

This research focuses on certain design issues in architectural practice that have been influenced by architects, clients and the market. In practice, the design and production of buildings work in a social context comprising the profession, clients, users, architects, consultants, and contractors. The work dynamics of client-architect interactions in the market influence the conception of architectural design. The resultant design affects the quality of buildings which in turn has life-long effects on people and the environment. This research began with the question of why certain multi-storey residential buildings lack architectural design quality. The research aims to determine architectural design criteria, apply these criteria to establish the relationships between design quality and market price, and test a hypothesis i.e. architectural design quality decreases as market price decreases. It validates two hypotheses i.e. clients are more dominant than architects in making design decisions, and there is a lack of congruence of the design quality in buildings between the users to whom the architects are ethically responsible and the clients to whom the architects are accountable. A theoretical framework was developed, which then guided a mixed methods research including case studies and surveys. These methods underline non-equivalent dependable variables design, pattern-matching, replication, descriptive and inferential statistics. The determination of design criteria utilised from literature review and survey. For establishing the bivariate relationships involved case studies of eight developers, case studies of seven architectural firms, and surveys of low, medium and high cost residential buildings. The survey results analysed with t-test (p≤0.05) on criteria determination established a majority opinion of agreement (test-results>4"agree") on six design criteria, except for Feng Shui which scored 49.50% agree, 36.80% neutral and 13.7% disagree. These results established the first ever set of architectural design criteria for multi-storey residential buildings in Malaysia. The results of case studies and surveys generally established positive and significant correlation (p≤0.05), linear and causal regression, case replication, observed and predicted pattern-matching and positive hypothesis testing. The findings confirm the three hypotheses to be true. The findings of this research contribute to the body of knowledge in architecture, the profession, and practices.
Integrated Frequency Allocation and User Assignment in Multimodal Transit Networks

This paper presents an integrated solution method to the frequency-setting problem using optimization and assignment simulation. With a bilevel solution framework, an optimization problem is run at the upper level under the assumption that the total transit demand is fixed. The objective is to maximize wait time savings under the budget, fleet size, vehicle load, and policy headway constraints. At the lower level, an assignment and simulation algorithm is run; the algorithm models the demand response to the new frequency setting and transmits updated ridership and flow values to the upper level. The procedure is repeated until the improvement in the wait time savings converges. The platform is tested on the Chicago Transit Authority network in Illinois for the morning peak. The wait time savings in this experiment are converging and are found to be comparable with the results of a stand-alone frequency-setting algorithm that finds optimal solutions. Results are comparable with the optimal results of a stand-alone platform introduced in another study that modeled the demand response locally by using elasticities as opposed to networkwide modeling using assignment. The integrated platform can be used for medium-term strategic and long-term planning decisions.
Wearable sensors networks for safety applications in industrial scenarios

Industrial contexts, and in particular the port areas, are very complex systems to be monitored and controlled due to the combined presence of vehicles and people. The port areas are the gateway between navigation and terrestrial transportation and are of great importance in transport logistics. Unfortunately, the management of port areas is quite complex because the safety of the workers must be always assured. Therefore, in such a context, a centralized control system for the monitoring and the prevention of risks is of particular importance. In this thesis, a real-time control system for the monitoring of people and vehicles in industrial areas is proposed. The proposed system is based on the Internet of Things paradigm, i.e. a network of “things” (such as sensors, tag RFID, actuators etc.) which can communicate and interact with each other within a shared IP addressing range, in order to share data and contribute to the management and development of advanced applications. Specifically, the thesis is focused on the design of a wearable sensors network based on RFID technology, and specifically on WISP sensors, for assuring the safety of the workers. In this network, wearable devices that can be inserted directly on the textile have been selected. Differently from conventional sensors, wearable sensors ensure a higher level of comfort, and provide higher electromagnetic performance. Furthermore, textile materials are easily available. Microstrips are good candidates for these applications because they mainly radiate perpendicularly to the planar structure, and their ground plane allows a good shielding on the body tissues. Therefore, I have designed specific antennas for RFID, that unlike the classical microstrip antennas have the radiating surface composed of several "side by side" conductive "threads of textile". Since the microwave model does not allow the design of an antenna with these characteristics with a good approximation, a specific microwave model for coupled lines has been designed. With this model, the specific antenna for RFID has been designed, with Jeans as substrate. The particular antenna’s substrate allows direct integration into garments, but since the wearable antennas are placed very close to the human body, biological issues which may arise on the human body from the use of these sensors have been analysed. The Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) has been considered and simulations have been conducted for evaluating the effects on the human body, and especially on the head, when irradiated with the electromagnetic waves generated by the wearable antenna realized with different materials. Dosimetric effects have been evaluated in function of the distance from the body, in order to define a safe distance for placing the antenna on the human body. The SAR has been evaluated also for full patches with different textile substrates, whose surface is larger than that of the proposed model of coupled lines. Therefore, if the SAR values evaluated for the full patch are satisfying, the SAR values for the model of coupled lines will surely be acceptable.
EFFECT OF AVERAGE SPEED AND VOLUME ON MOTOR-VEHICLE ACCIDENTS ON TWO-LANE TANGENTS

THE EFFECTS OF SPEED AND VOLUME ON THE ACCIDENT RATE NEED TO BE ANALYZED IN DETAIL. THIS SHOULD PROBABLY BE UNDERTAKEN SEPARATELY FOR TANGENT SECTIONS, CURVES, AND INTERSECTIONS, AND FOR ROADS OF VARIOUS NUMBERS OF LANES. THE PRESENT STUDY IS LIMITED TO TWO-LANE TANGENTS, BUT THE METHODS USED SHOULD BE APPLICABLE ALSO TO ACCIDENT ANALYSIS UNDER BROADER CONDITIONS. ACCIDENTS ARE DIVIDED INTO THREE TYPES: SINGLE- CAR, REAR-END, AND HEAD-ON. FOR EACH TYPE, A THEORY IS DEVELOPED RELATING ACCIDENT OCCURRENCE TO SPEED AND VOLUME OF TRAFFIC. THE THEORY IS THEN COMPARED WITH ACCIDENT EXPERIENCE ON A GROUP OF CALIFORNIA ROADS SELECTED FOR UNIFORMITY IN IMPORTANT FEATURES OF HIGHWAY CONDITION AND DESIGN. /AUTHOR/
Differential effects of mindful breathing and loving kindness meditations: a component analysis study

ABSTRACT Objective Mindful breathing meditation (MBM) and loving-kindness meditation (LKM) are common components of effective mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs). This study examined the differential effects of MBM and LKM on purported therapeutic process variables and mental health outcomes via component analysis. Method The research design was a randomized controlled trial with four conditions: MBM, LKM, combined (MBM + LKM), and a relaxation control. All conditions consisted of 10-min. audio-recorded guided meditations that were self-implemented over the course of two weeks. Participants were college undergraduates (N = 52). Results Findings indicated statistically significant and very large main effects of time, regardless of condition. Statistically significant time by condition interactions were only observed for one process variable (i.e., defusion) and one mental health outcome (i.e., depression). Follow-up descriptive evaluation of between-group effect sizes indicated patterns of favorable effects for MBM and LKM over the combined and relaxation control conditions. Treatment integrity and treatment acceptability data indicated very favorable social validity across conditions. Discussion We conclude that our findings make a modest yet value-added contribution to the MBI component analysis literature, suggesting differentiated performance among isolated MBM and LKM exercises compared to combined and control conditions. Yet further research is warranted to improve upon the limitations of this study.
Neonatal Outcomes Among Survivors of Twin-twin Transfusion Syndrome After Single Fetal Demise

Twin-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) is due to unbalanced inter-twin blood flow. We aimed to evaluate neonatal outcomes among surviving co-twins of TTTS without fetal laser photocoagulation after single-twin intrauterine fetal demise (sIUFD). All patients admitted between January 2014 and December 2017 to the neonatal intensive care unit of a medical center were recruited. Moreover, a comprehensive literature review of PubMed from 1993 to 2020 was performed. Medical records of 124 patients were retrieved, including 119 from published literature and five from our institution. Seventy-three (58.8%) patients were born prematurely. In addition, twenty-four (19.3 %) patients presented with anemia at birth, and seventeen (13.7%), four (3.2%), and four (3.2%) neonates had intracranial lesions, acute kidney injury, and gastrointestinal (GI) tract dysmotility, respectively. The overall survival rate was 69.4 %. Among our cases, we found that the hemoglobin level at birth was positively correlated with the duration between co-twin intrauterine fetal demise and the delivery time of the surviving co-twins (rs=0.9, p=0.037). Conclusions: High morbidity and mortality rates were observed among co-twins of TTTS after sIUFD without laser photocoagulation. The shorter duration between diagnosis of sIUFD and surviving twin delivery resulted in more severe anemia.