Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Conceptual astronomy. II. Replicating conceptual gains, probing attitude changes across three semesters

We report on a long-term, large-scale study of a one-semester, conceptually based, introductory astronomy course with data from more than 400 students over three semesters at the University of New Mexico. Using traditional and alternative assessment tools developed for the project, we examined the pre- and postcourse results for Fall 1994, Spring 1995, and Fall 1995. We find our results are robust: novice students show large, positive gains on assessments of conceptual understanding and connected understanding of the knowledge structure of astronomy. We find no relationship between course achievement and completion of prior courses in science or math; we do find a small to moderate relationship between students’ science self-image and course achievement. Also, we detect little change over each semester in students’ mildly positive incoming attitudes about astronomy and science.
CUSUM of Squares‐Based Tests for a Change in Persistence

Abstract. Using standardized cumulative sums of squared sub‐sample residuals, we propose a new ratio‐based test of the null hypothesis that a time series exhibits no change in its persistence structure [specifically that it displays constant I(1) behaviour] against the alternative of a change in persistence from trend stationarity to difference stationarity, or vice versa. Neither the direction nor location of any possible change under the alternative hypothesis need be assumed known. A key feature of our proposed test which distinguishes it from extant tests for persistence change [certain of which test the null hypothesis of constant I(0) behaviour while others, like our proposed test, test the null hypothesis of constant I(1) behaviour] is that it displays no tendency to spuriously over‐reject when applied to series which, although not constant I(1) series, do not display a change in persistence [specifically are constant I(0) processes]. Moreover, where our ratio test correctly rejects the null of no persistence change, the tail in which the rejection occurs can also be used to identify the direction of change since, even in relatively small samples, the test almost never rejects in the right [left] tail when there is a change from I(0) to I(1) [I(1) to I(0)]. Again this useful property is not shared by existing tests. As a by‐product of our analysis, we also propose breakpoint estimators which are consistent where the timing of the change in persistence is unknown.
School Principals’ Self-Efficacy beliefs for Technology Integration in Moroccan Public Schools

An essential and prima facie component for effective technology integration in education and management of schools is the sense of - efficacy of the school principal. This promising, but largely unexplored avenue in research was the aim of this study that employed a quantitative method design using The Principal Sense of Efficacy Scale (PSES) (Tchannen-Moran & Gareis, 2004) to measure school principals’ sense of efficacy and Level of technology integration for assessing the various levels of technology integration (LoTi) Moersch (1999) to measure school principals’ level of technology integration. 167 school principals working in different regions of Morocco formed the population concerned. Findings of the study demonstrated that Moroccan school principals have a moderate sense of efficacy at (PSES) scale and low sense of efficacy at the sub-scales wherein Moral –efficacy (M = 24.40, SD = 3.96), management –efficacy (M = 30.72, SD = 3.60) and finally instructional efficacy levels (M= 28.85, SD = 4.14). These significant differences in descriptive statistics reached significance in the inferential analyses as well.
The growth of ice crystals in a supercooled water cloud

Equations are derived for the growth rate of ice crystals in the form of thin plates and prismatic columns suspended in a supercooled water cloud of given temperature. The effect of the fall motion of the crystal on its development is discussed - in particular a criterion is derived for the transition from polyhedral to dendritic growth. Ice crystals grown in supercooled water clouds produced in large cold chambers reveal a double change of habit in the temperature range 0°C to −40°C. Experimental determinations of the growth rates of plate crystals growing at −2.5°C and prisms at −5°C are in fairly good agreement with the theory.
Regime Transitions and Heteroclinic Connections in a Barotropic Atmosphere

By interpreting transitions between atmospheric flow regimes as a deterministic rather than a stochastic phenomenon, new insight is gained into the phase-space characteristics of these transitions. The identification of regimes with steady states should be extended with the association of transitions with nearby heteroclinic connections between steady states, as known from the theory of dynamical systems. In the context of a moderately complex barotropic model of the Northern Hemisphere, which possesses regime behavior, steady states are found that correspond with regimes, and heteroclinic connections are approximated using a new algorithm based on adjoint modeling techniques. A 200-yr dataset generated by the model is shown to possess spatial preferences in its transitional behavior that match well with the approximated heteroclinic connections.
Mometasone/Indacaterol/Glycopyrronium (MF/IND/GLY) and MF/IND at Different MF Strengths versus Fluticasone Propionate/Salmeterol Xinafoate (FLU/SAL) and FLU/SAL+ Tiotropium in Patients with Asthma

Background Once-daily, single-inhaler mometasone furoate/indacaterol acetate/glycopyrronium bromide (MF/IND/GLY, an ICS/LABA/LAMA) and MF/IND (an ICS/LABA) via Breezhaler® have been approved for the maintenance treatment of patients with asthma inadequately controlled with medium-or high-dose ICS or medium-or high-dose ICS/LABA treatment. Objective Once-daily (o.d.) formulations of MF/IND/GLY and MF/IND at different MF dose strengths have been compared with twice-daily (b.i.d.) fluticasone propionate/salmeterol xinafoate (FLU/SAL), and b.i. d. FLU/SAL+ o.d. tiotropium (TIO) in the PALLADIUM, IRIDIUM and ARGON studies. Methods The similarity in study design and consistent outcomes in these studies prompted the pooling of data in this review to better characterise these novel once-daily controller formulations. Results Pooled data from PALLADIUM and IRIDIUM studies showed comparable or greater efficacy with o.d. MF/IND formulations versus b.i. d. FLU/SAL. The o.d. MF/IND/GLY was superior to b.i. d. FLU/SAL in the IRIDIUM study, and similar to, if not more efficacious than b.i. d. FLU/SAL + o.d. TIO in the ARGON study. Conclusion These formulations therefore provide novel once-daily treatment options for patients across asthma severity and flexibility for clinicians to step-up or step-down the treatment using the same device and formulations.
The Mediation of Care and Overprotection between Parent-Adolescent Conflicts and Adolescents’ Psychological Difficulties during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Which Role for Fathers?

Background: There is evidence of a significant raise in youths’ emotional and behavioral difficulties during the pandemic. Only a few studies have addressed parent-adolescent conflict, and none investigated the possible mediating effect of parenting in the association between conflicts with parents and adolescents’ symptoms. This study aimed at investigating youths’ psychological symptoms during the pandemic, focusing on the predicting effect of parent-adolescent conflict. The mediating role of care and overprotection was also explored, considering whether adolescent gender moderated this mediation. Methods: 195 adolescents aged 14–18 years participated in an online longitudinal study. Perceived conflict with parents and parenting dimensions (Parental Bonding Instrument; PBI) were assessed at baseline (2021). Self-reported psychological difficulties (Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire; SDQ) were collected at baseline and after one year (2022). Results: A significantly severer symptomatology was found in adolescents having a conflictual relationship with one or both parents. Major conflicts with parents correlated with lower care and greater overprotection in mothers and fathers. However, parental overprotection and maternal care were not mediators of the relationship between conflict and youths' difficulties. The only exception was represented by paternal care that fully mediated this relationship in both adolescent males and females. Conclusions: Although further investigations are needed to overcome limitations due to the small sample, findings extend our insight into the impact of parent-adolescent conflict, highlighting the role of fathers’ care and the need to maximize their involvement in clinical interventions.
Measurement of the rates of reaction of the ground and metastable excited states of O2+, NO+ and O+ with atmospheric gases at thermal energy

Thermal-energy reaction rate coefficients and product ion distributions have been measured for reactions of both the ground state and metastable electronic states of O2+, NO+ and O+ with several neutral species, using a selected-ion flow tube. In general the excited-ion reaction rates are fast, frequently approaching the Langevin limit. Collisional quenching occurs for the reactions of NO+* with N2, O2 and H2 and the quenching rates have been determined. The ion source also provided a substantial yield of doubly charged O2 permitting some measurements of reaction rates of O22+.
Extreme value theory-based calibration for the fusion of multiple features in high-resolution satellite scene classification

This article presents a hierarchical classification method for high-resolution satellite imagery incorporating extreme value theory (EVT)-based normalization to calibrate multiple-feature scores. First, a simple linear iterative clustering algorithm is used to over-segment an image to build a superpixel representation of the scene. Then, each superpixel is characterized by three different visual descriptors. Finally, a two-phase classification model is proposed for achieving classification of the scene: (1) in the first phase, a support vector machine (SVM) with histogram intersection kernel is applied to each feature channel to obtain raw soft probability; and (2) in the second phase, the derived soft outputs are multiplied to build a product space for score-level fusion. The fused scores are subsequently further calibrated using the EVT and fed to an L1-regularized L2-loss SVM to obtain the final result. Experimental analysis on high-resolution satellite scenes shows that the proposed method achieves promising classification results and outperforms other competitive methods.
Velocity functions of galaxies and clusters of galaxies.

We construct velocity functions of field galaxies and clusters of galaxies which are number densities as functions of the circular velocities of the systems. The circular velocities are obtained from data of H I 21 cm line width and/or stellar velocity dispersion for galaxies, and from an X-ray temperature function for clusters of galaxies. It is found that elliptical and S0 galaxies dominate at the high-velocity end of the galaxy velocity function in contrast to the field luminosity function in which spiral galaxies dominate at the high-luminosity end. The galaxy and cluster velocity functions almost form a single, continuous function, but for a small gap at the boundary. This may imply that galaxies and clusters of galaxies consist of a single population, in a dynamical sense
Responses of Free-Living Planktonic Bacterial Communities to Experimental Acidification and Warming

Climate change driven by human activities encompasses the increase in atmospheric CO2 concentration and sea-surface temperature. Little is known regarding the synergistic effects of these phenomena on bacterial communities in oligotrophic marine ecosystems that are expected to be particularly vulnerable. Here, we studied bacterial community composition changes based on 16S rRNA sequencing at two fractions (0.1–0.2 and >0.2 μm) during a 10- day fully factorial mesocosm experiment in the eastern Mediterranean where the pH decreased by ~0.3 units and temperature increased by ~3 °C to project possible future changes in surface waters. The bacterial community experienced significant taxonomic differences driven by the combined effect of time and treatment; a community shift one day after the manipulations was noticed, followed by a similar state between all mesocosms at the third day, and mild shifts later on, which were remarkable mainly under sole acidification. The abundance of Synechococcus increased in response to warming, while the SAR11 clade immediately benefited from the combined acidification and warming. The effect of the acidification itself had a more persistent impact on community composition. This study highlights the importance of studying climate change consequences on ecosystem functioning both separately and simultaneously, considering the ambient environmental parameters.
Kernel density estimation for linear processes

In this paper we provide a detailed characterization of the asymptotic behavior of kernel density estimators for one-sided linear processes. The conjecture that asymptotic normality for the kernel density estimator holds under short-range dependence is proved under minimal assumptions on bandwidths. We also depict the dichotomous and trichotomous phenomena for various choices of bandwidths when the process is long-range dependent.
Magnetohydrodynamic waves in non-uniform flows I: a variational approach

The interaction of magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) waves in a non- uniform, time-dependent background plasma flow is investigated using Lagrangian field theory methods. The analysis uses Lagrangian maps, in which the position of the fluid element x ∗ is expressed as a vector sum of the position vector x of the background plasma fluid element plus a Lagrangian displacement ξ(x ,t ) due to the waves. Linear, non-Wentzel-Kramer-Brillouin (WKB) wave interaction equations are obtained by expansion of the Lagrangian out to second order in ξ and ∆S, where ∆S is the Lagrangian entropy perturbation. The characteristic manifolds of the waves are determined by consideration of the Cauchy problem for the wave interaction equations. The manifolds correspond to the usual MHD waves modes, namely the Alfvwaves, the fast and slow magnetoacoustic waves and the entropy wave. The relationships between the characteristic manifolds, and the ray equations of geometrical MHD optics are developed using the theory of Cauchy characteristics for first-order partial differential equations. The first-order differential equations describing the singular manifolds are the dispersion equations for the MHD ei- genmodes, where the wave vector k = ∇φ and frequency ω = −φt correspond to the characteristic manifolds φ(x ,t )= constant. The form of the characteristic manifolds for both time-dependent and steady MHD flows are developed. The bi- characteristics for steady MHD waves in a steady background flow are related to the group velocity surface and Mach cone for the waves, and determine when the flow is elliptic, hyperbolic, or of mixed hyperbolic-elliptic type. The wave interaction equations are decomposed into coupled equations for the compressible and incompressible perturbations.
Benzodiazepines and Mood Stabilizers in Schizophrenia Patients Treated with Oral versus Long-Acting Injectable Antipsychotics—An Observational Study

Schizophrenia is a chronic, invalidating, and polymorphic disease, characterized by relapses and remission periods. The main treatment option in schizophrenia are antipsychotics, administered as an oral or as a long-acting injectable (LAI) formulation. Although international guidelines rarely recommend it, mood stabilizers (MS) and/or benzodiazepines (BZD) are frequently prescribed as adjunctive therapy in schizophrenia patients for various reasons. This is an observational, cross-sectional study including stabilized schizophrenia patients. A total of 315 patients were enrolled. Of these, 77 patients (24.44%) were stabilized on LAIs and 238 (75.56%) patients on oral antipsychotics (OAP). Eighty-four patients (26.66%) had concomitant treatment with MS and 119 patients (37.77%) had concomitant benzodiazepine treatment. No statistical significance was observed in MS or BZD use between LAIs and OAPs. In total, 136 patients (43.17%) were stabilized on antipsychotic monotherapy. Our study shows that the long-term use of benzodiazepines and mood stabilizers remains elevated among stabilized schizophrenia patients, regardless of the antipsychotic formulation (oral or LAI). Patients receiving second-generation LAI antipsychotics (SGA-LAI) seem to be more likely to be stabilized on monotherapy compared to those receiving oral antipsychotics. Further randomized controlled trials are necessary in order to clarify the benefits of the current drug polypharmacy trends.
Enhanced Recovery after Surgery (ERAS) Program for Patients with Peritoneal Surface Malignancies Undergoing Cytoreductive Surgery with or without HIPEC: A Systematic Review and a Meta-Analysis

Simple Summary Cytoreductive surgery and Hyperthermic IntraPEritoneal Chemotherapy (HIPEC) represent a promising treatment strategy for the management of selected cases of peritoneal cancer, but it’s still burdened by significant morbidity and prolonged hospital stay. Herein, the review of the impact of ERAS program on length of stay, postoperative complications and readmission rate in patients undergoing cytoreductive surgery with or without HIPEC for peritoneal surface malignancies. Abstract Enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) program refers to a multimodal intervention to reduce the length of stay and postoperative complications; it has been effective in different kinds of major surgery including colorectal, gynaecologic and gastric cancer surgery. Its impact in terms of safety and efficacy in the treatment of peritoneal surface malignancies is still unclear. A systematic review and a meta-analysis were conducted to evaluate the effect of ERAS after cytoreductive surgery with or without HIPEC for peritoneal metastases. MEDLINE, PubMed, EMBASE, Google Scholar and Cochrane Database were searched from January 2010 and December 2021. Single and double-cohort studies about ERAS application in the treatment of peritoneal cancer were considered. Outcomes included the postoperative length of stay (LOS), postoperative morbidity and mortality rates and the early readmission rate. Twenty-four studies involving 5131 patients were considered, 7 about ERAS in cytoreductive surgery (CRS) + HIPEC and 17 about cytoreductive alone; the case histories of two Italian referral centers in the management of peritoneal cancer were included. ERAS adoption reduced the LOS (−3.17, 95% CrI −4.68 to −1.69 in CRS + HIPEC and −1.65, 95% CrI −2.32 to –1.06 in CRS alone in the meta-analysis including 6 and 17 studies respectively. Non negligible lower postoperative morbidity was also in the meta-analysis including the case histories of two Italian referral centers. Implementation of an ERAS protocol may reduce LOS, postoperative complications after CRS with or without HIPEC compared to conventional recovery.
The Chlorophyll Fluorescence Parameter Fv/Fm Correlates with Loss of Grain Yield after Severe Drought in Three Wheat Genotypes Grown at Two CO2 Concentrations

Three genotypes of wheat grown at two CO2 concentrations were used in a drought experiment, where water was withheld from the pots at anthesis until stomatal conductance (gs) dropped below 10% of the control and photosynthesis (A) approached zero. The genotypes had different leaf area (Gladius < LM19 < LM62) and while photosynthesis and shoot growth were boosted by elevated CO2, the water use and drying rate were more determined by canopy size than by stomatal density and conductance. The genotypes responded differently regarding number of fertile tillers, seeds per spike and 1000 kernel weight and, surprisingly, the largest genotype (LM62) with high water use showed the lowest relative decrease in grain yield. The maximum photochemical efficiency of photosystem II (Fv/Fm) was only affected on the last day of the drought when the stomata were almost closed although some variation in A was still seen between the genotypes. A close correlation was found between Fv/Fm and % loss of grain yield. It indicates that the precise final physiological stress level measured by Fv/Fm at anthesis/early kernel filling could effectively predict percentage final yield loss, and LM62 was slightly less stressed than the other genotypes, due to only a small discrepancy in finalising the drying period. Therefore, Fv/Fm can be used as a proxy for estimating the yield performance of wheat after severe drought at anthesis.
The characterizations of constant slope surfaces and Bertrand curves

In this paper, we give some characterizations of constant slope surfaces and Bertrand curves in Euclidean 3-space. We find parametrization of constant slope surfaces for spherical images of tangent indicatrix, principal normal indicatrix, binormal indicatrix and the Darboux indicatrix of a space curve. Furthermore, we investigate Bertrand curves corresponding to constant parameter curves of constant slope surfaces.
The Sizes of Spine Curvatures of Children That Practice Selected Sports

(1) Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate the shape of the spine curves in the cervical, thoracic and lumbar sections of children that practice selected sports. (2) Methods: The body posture of the examined children was assessed using the digital photography method, i.e., the Moiré method. Selected parameters characterizing the curvature of the spine (the Alpha, Beta and Gamma angles, the size of kyphosis in the thoracic spine and the size of lordosis in the lumbar spine) were analyzed. (3) Results: The study of the body posture using the Moiré method allowed for the assessment of the angles that determine the size of the spine’s curvature. The analysis of differences among the groups included in the study (football, swimming, biathlon/taekwondo, volleyball) was carried out on the basis of one-dimensional models that take into account the distributions of individual parameters. On the basis of the Alpha, Beta and Gamma angles, it was possible to calculate the size of kyphosis in the thoracic section and the size of lordosis in the lumbar spine. There was a statistically significant difference in the size of the Alpha, Beta and Gamma parameters among the groups. (4) Conclusions: Most of the respondents had the correct body posture in the sagittal plane, regardless of the type of sport they practiced. Our results did not allow us to unequivocally state whether practicing various sports and having different training loads resulting from these sports have a negative or positive effect on the size of the anterior–posterior curvatures of the spine.
A clarification of nonexistence problems with the superposition method

The purpose of this paper is to clarify the question of nonexistence of solutions for the superposition method in acoustic radiation and scattering problems. Recently a number of authors have implemented this method and have claimed that nonexistence or nonuniqueness difficulties do not arise. Numerical evidence appears to support this view. However, this paper shows that the superposition method is a discrete approximation to an equation that does suffer from nonexistence of its solution at certain frequencies. Nonexistence of solutions is demonstrated with some numerical examples and an improved method is discussed.