Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Crustal Structure in Southeastern Norway from Seismic Refraction Measurements

Abstract : A seismic refraction profile was carried out in Southeastern Norway in 1969 as a part of the Trans-Scandinavian Seismic Project. The explosions were also recorded at NORSAR. The data suggests a three layered crust with seismic velocities of 6.2, 6.55 and 7.1-7.3 km/sec. The upper mantle velocity of 8.20 km/sec agrees with values found previously in Scandinavia. The mean depths to the discontinuities within the crust were determined to be 17 and 26 km. The depth to the Moho discontinuity varies from about 32 km in the southern part of the profile to 41 km in the central part of the profile. Under NORSAR, the depth to Moho varied from 31.5 km in the central part to 38 km under the C-ring. A linear relationship can be observed between the depth of the mantle and the surface elevation and between the depth of the mantle and the Bouguer anomaly. The density contrast between the crust and mantle was determined to be 0.50 g/cu cm. (Author)
Role of probiotics in preventing Clostridioides difficile infection in older adults: an integrative review

Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) is the leading cause of healthcare-associated diarrhea. This infection can particularly affect older adults, the most susceptible to CDI. Currently, the standard therapeutic measure is antibiotic therapy, which in turn increases the risk of recurrence of the infection by its collateral damage to the patient’s microbiota. Probiotics are live microorganisms capable of maintaining balance in the intestinal microbiota. This study aims to perform an integrative review of the protective benefit of probiotics in CDI and diarrhea associated with C. difficile. The PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases, the 10-year time cutoff, and the Prism Flow diagram were used for data collection. We observed no consensus among the studies; however, three of the seven evaluated studies demonstrated that the use of probiotics in older adults could contribute to reducing the incidence of hospital-onset CDI. We also found that the studies evaluated a wide variety of microorganisms, particularly Saccharomyces boulardii, associated with beneficial effects. More research is needed to understand the successful use of probiotics in the prevention of CDI in hospitalized older adults receiving antibiotics.
The Impact of Estimated Energy and Protein Balances on Extrauterine Growth in Preterm Infants

Background: Nutritional support of preterm infants remains a field of debate in the literature and clinical practice varies significantly. Adequate nutrition should promote growth and aim for optimal later neurodevelopment. However, it is often impaired by prematurity-associated morbidity and the physiologic immaturity of preterm infants. This study assessed the impact of energy and macronutrient provision on growth velocity and outcome and explored differences attributed to the heterogeneity of the preterm population. Methods: We retrospectively collected clinical and nutritional data from neonates hospitalized in two separate Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs). Estimated energy and protein balance were calculated based on the ESPGHAN guidelines and their association with the growth outcome was explored. Growth assessment was based on somatometry Delta (Δ) z-scores at discharge. Results: In total, 174 neonates were included in the study. By day 14, most preterm infants were exclusively enterally fed, whereas there were infants in the <28 and 28–31+6 subgroups fed exclusively parenterally. Energy balance was positive for all gestational age (GA) subgroups except for those born <28 weeks. Protein balance was consistently positive for extremely premature but negative for late preterms. Cumulative substrates provisions were strong predictors of a positive energy or protein balance in the <34 weeks GA preterms on days 14 (ROC analyses, p < 0.001) and 7 (p < 0.05). A higher GA (p = 0.013) and enteral nutrition (p = 0.005) were additional predictors of a positive energy balance. All GA subgroups had a negative Δ z-score of weight at discharge. In the <34 GA subcohorts, a positive protein balance on day 14 (p = 0.009) and a short time to regain birth weight (exp(B) 3.1 (p = 0.004)) were independently associated with a positive Δ z-score of weight at discharge. Conclusions: Early achievement of a positive energy and protein balance, based on the ESPGHAN guidelines, is crucial to ensure optimal postnatal growth and prevent extrauterine growth restriction, a relatively common occurrence in preterm infants.
The Emergence of Motorcycle in Urban Transportation in Nigeria and its Implication on Traffic Safety

Nigeria has been branded a country with an unenviable record of road traffic accidents in the world. The contribution of road transport to the Gross Domestic product of the country has been adversely affected as a result of loses suffered from road traffic accidents and its attendant loss of property and human life. The crisis that engulfed the process of urban mobility in Nigeria in the early 80's arising from the collapse of government organized urban mass transit subsequently made commuting in most urban centres a difficult task, this made the introduction of alternative approach of easing the movement of urban commuters imperative. The dimension and pattern of road traffic accident has been adversely affected with the emergence of non motorized vehicle particularly motorcycle as an alternative in the process of ameliorating the difficulties encountered by urban commuters. The situation with road accident phenomenon in the country requires urgent attention more so that the operation of non motorized vehicle in urban commuting has changed the trend of road traffic accident in terms of its magnitude, pattern, nature and frequency to a dangerous level in the country. This to a large extent has brought the emergence of a new dimension to road traffic accident fatality. The increasing wave of road traffic accident is a corollary of the uncoordinated process and nonchalant attitude of motorcycle operators in complying conscientiously with traffic management and control measures of the country. This paper will bring to focus the magnitude and the spatial pattern of motorcycle accidents in the country with its attendant implication on traffic safety. Adequate attempt will be made to evaluate the magnitude of motorcycle accident mortality in terms of gender and age indices coupled with the evaluation of the spatial variations among the states of the federation in Nigeria. While, consideration will be given to the attendant negative consequences of the increasing magnitude of road traffic accidents as it affects the 36 states of the Federation. Some of the major contentious issues negating the effective and smooth operation of non motorized vehicle in consonance with composite nature of vehicular traffic in Nigerian urban centres will be examined with the desire to evolve a sustainable transport policy. For the covering abstract see ITRD E135582.
Methionine Restriction Increases Insulin Sensitivity in Type-2 Diabetes via miRNA Activation

Methionine Restriction (MR) causes a higher level of circulating and hepatic fibroblastic growth factor 21 (FGF21). This leads to metabolic phenotypes, including increased energy expenditure, insulin sensitivity, and extended lifespan. Previous studies on obese mice have concluded that dietary MR in a high-fat regimen prevents hyperglycemia and improves glucose homeostasis, thus preventing type-2 diabetes, a multifactorial metabolic disease characterized by high blood glucose levels and cell insulin resistance. Recent experiments have shown that cells’ response to dietary MR includes changes in methylation of DNA promoters that activate or repress microRNAs (miRNAs), which are small endogenous nucleotide sequences and contain 18-22 base pairs that control gene expression for lipid metabolism. Considering that the disruption of miRNA levels affects insulin resistance, miRNA potentially plays a role in MR to increase insulin sensitivity for type-2 diabetes. In this paper, we investigate the mechanism of MR influencing the expression level of miRNA-15b to promote insulin sensitivity in obese organisms. Using our in-vitro model, we measured the expression of miRNA-15b in adipocytes cultured in MR and control conditions. Additionally, we compared insulin sensitivity and free fatty acid (FFA) metabolite levels between obese mice on control and MR diets. Taken together, we were able to verify the positive effects of MR in reducing hepatic fatty acid production, decreasing blood glucose levels, and increasing insulin sensitivity. However, miRNA-15b downregulates cells’ insulin signaling pathway and insulin sensitivity. Therefore, we proposed potential influences of MR on other miRNAs in reducing lipid cell differentiation and enhancing insulin sensitivity for future investigation.
Nutritive evaluation of pulse chunies available in India by rumen simulation technique (Rusitec)

Chunies of pulses viz. black gram (Vigna mungo, BGC), bengal gram (Cicer arietinum, BnGC), red gram (Cajanus cajan, RGC) and green gram (Vigna radiata, RGC) were analyzed for their proximate composition. Degradability of dry matter was studied by Rusitec method. The degradability after 48 h of incubation corroborated to the values obtained with standard method. BGC (206.57) and GGC (232.29) are good protein supplements (g/kg DM) and BnGC (406.87) and RGC (309.68) are high in fiber content (g/kg DM). After 48 h of incubation, IVDMD (%) varied significantly from 50.06 (RGC) to 77.81 (BGC). The gas production ranged from 630.00 (BGC) to 1685.00 (BnGC) ml. The effective degradability of DM was higher in BGC and GGC than other chunies. It was concluded that nutritive value of BGC and GGC were better compared to BnGC and RGC and may be a good protein source for ruminants.
A 12-to-1 V Quad-Output Switched-Capacitor Buck Converter With Shared DC Capacitors

This article presents a 12-to-1 V quad-output switched-capacitor buck (SCB) converter with shared dc capacitors (<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$C_{\mathrm {DC}}\text{s}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>). First, we proposed single-output SCB achieving a high efficiency, with small switch area and small inductor volume under several-ampere conditions. Each single-output SCB has two <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$C_{\mathrm {DC}}\text{s}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>. Second, based on the single-output SCB, we proposed multiple-output SCB converter that shares the two <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$C_{\mathrm {DC}}\text{s}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> among the channels. The <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$C_{\mathrm {DC}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>-sharing improves the power density and efficiency under unequal-load conditions. Third, we eliminate cross-regulation in a conventional energy-store-device-sharing topology through current mode (CM) control. Besides, we use a capacitor-sourced gate drive scheme that is highly compatible with the SCB, removing the bootstrap and gate drive supply voltage generation circuits. Fabricated in a 180-nm BCD process, this design achieves a measured peak efficiency of 90.4%, and 48 mA/mm3 power density with 85% efficiency. To our best knowledge, this is one of the first 12-to-1 V integrated hybrid converter with multiple outputs reported.
Influence of Spoil Type on Afforestation Success and Hydrochemical Function on a Surface Coal Mine in Eastern Kentucky

OF THESIS INFLUENCE OF SPOIL TYPE ON AFFORESTATION SUCCESS AND HYDROCHEMICAL FUNCTION ON A SURFACE COAL MINE IN EASTERN KENTUCKY Surface coal mining in Appalachia has contributed to a suite of ecological impacts, both terrestrial and aquatic. Conventional reclamation in Appalachia leads to the development of hay/pasture systems dominated by nonnative grasses and legumes, with soils that are chemically and physically unfavorable to native tree growth. Several studies have shown that more weathered minespoils provide a better growth medium than unweathered spoils in Appalachia. Spoil segregation plots were constructed on Bent Mountain in Pike County, KY, to compare the suitability of three mine spoil types (BROWN weathered sandstone, GRAY unweathered sandstone, and MIXED sandstones and shales). In 2013 (after nine growing seasons) volume of planted trees was 50x higher on BROWN than on GRAY. In addition, natural colonization of unplanted groundcover and tree species was much more extensive on BROWN than GRAY or MIXED. Most water chemical parameters were similar across spoil types; however, water chemistry on all plots appears to have stabilized after nine growing seasons. Finally, rapidly developing forest on BROWN appears to be influencing water budgeting on the site, leading to lower discharge during summer months. These results indicate that BROWN weathered spoils provide a better growth medium than GRAY unweathered spoils for native trees.
A Dataset for Metaphor Detection in Early Medieval Hebrew Poetry

There is a large volume of late antique and medieval Hebrew texts. They represent a crucial linguistic and cultural bridge between Biblical and modern Hebrew. Poetry is prominent in these texts and one of its main characteristics is the frequent use of metaphor. Distinguishing figurative and literal language use is a major task for scholars of the Humanities, especially in the fields of literature, linguistics, and hermeneutics. This paper presents a new, challenging dataset of late antique and medieval Hebrew poetry with expert annotations of metaphor, as well as some baseline results, which we hope will facilitate further research in this area.
LibEMG: An Open Source Library to Facilitate the Exploration of Myoelectric Control

Myoelectric control has been used predominantly in the field of prosthetics, but is an increasingly promising hands-free input modality for emerging consumer markets such as mixed reality. Developing robust machine learning-enabled EMG control systems, however, has historically required substantial domain expertise. This has presented a significant barrier to entry for researchers, impeded progress in EMG-based interaction design, and contributed to the perception that such systems lack the robustness and intuitiveness required for real-world use. To overcome these challenges, we present LibEMG, an open-source Python library for performing offline EMG analyses and developing online EMG-based interactions. By abstracting the challenges and nuances surrounding myoelectric control, including hardware interfacing, data acquisition, feature extraction/selection, classification, post-processing, and evaluation, we eliminate many of the significant barriers limiting the exploration of this technology. Combining expertise from the prosthetics and human-computer interaction communities into a shared library, extensive examples, and documentation, we provide researchers with an accessible tool to accelerate research and improve reproducibility in myoelectric control. In doing so, we aim to facilitate the exploration of this technology, particularly outside prosthesis control, to unlock its potential as a widely applicable hands-free input modality. Documentation: https://libemg.github. io/libemg/.
Biological growth and synthetic fabrication of structurally colored materials

Nature’s light manipulation strategies—in particular those at the origin of bright iridescent colors—have fascinated humans for centuries. In recent decades, insights into the fundamental concepts and physics underlying biological light-matter interactions have enabled a cascade of attempts to copy nature’s optical strategies in synthetic structurally colored materials. However, despite rapid advances in bioinspired materials that emulate and exceed nature’s light manipulation abilities, we tend to create these materials via methods that have little in common with the processes used by biology. In this review, we compare the processes that enable the formation of biological photonic structures with the procedures employed by scientists and engineers to fabricate biologically inspired photonic materials. This comparison allows us to reflect upon the broader strategies employed in synthetic processes and to identify biological strategies which, if incorporated into the human palette of fabrication approaches, could significantly advance our abilities to control material structure in three dimensions across all relevant length scales.
Familial chylomicronemia syndrome: A comprehensive clinical and genetic approach

The familial chylomicronemia syndrome (FCS) is characterized by very high levels of circulating triglycerides. FCS is caused by lipoprotein lipase (LPL) deficiency resulting from homozygous or biallelic loss-of-function variants in the LPL or other related genes. Here, we report a case of severe hypertriglyceridemia refractory to conventional therapy in a male patient diagnosed at 33 years of age. LPL activity was below 20%. During the clinical course, the patient developed severe acute pancreatitis in addition to other complications. Two heterozygous variants (c.984G>A and c.1139+6T>C) which had not been previously reported in the major databases were identified in the LPL gene. Treatment with volanesorsen was proposed based on its approved indication as an adjunct to diet in adult patients with confirmed FCS and at high risk for pancreatitis. Volanesorsen was effective and well-tolerated, and the patient did not experience abdominal pain or any other manifestations. The assessment of genetic characterization is essential to guide treatment decisions during follow-up, in addition to the patient’s history, their comorbidities and clinical stigmas.
Martian Dune Fields: Aeolian Activity, Morphology, Sediment Pathways, and Provenance

Although aeolian landforms are pervasive on Mars, evidence for contemporary activity has been limited. The next major campaign for the Mars Exploration Rover “Opportunity” is the investigation of the ~20−kilometer−diameter Endeavour crater, ~6 km to southeast of the rover’s position as of December 2010. We present evidence from orbital images that eight aeolian bedforms (~14,000 m) in Endeavour crater have been active within the past decade (20012009), at a spatial scale that should be directly observable by Opportunity from the crater rim. Two dunes appear to show translational migration (~10−20 m), but all dunes indicate erosion to be the dominant process with up to 100% sediment removal. Thermophysical properties of these dunes are consistent with very fine to fine sand-sizes, the particle sizes most easily moved by the martian atmosphere. The dunes that show the most surface change have a rippled appearance without well-defined slip faces. Based on their morphology (elliptical-shape), we classify them as dome dunes. Mesoscale atmospheric modeling is employed to provide insight into the atmospheric forcing of this aeolian system. The major wind regimes from modeling are consistent with observations of wind streaks, sand streamers, ripples, and slip faces of regional dune fields although modeled wind speeds are insufficient to move sand. The translation and erosion of these dunes constitutes the largest contemporary movement of sand-sized sediment reported on Mars to date and demonstrates that Endeavour crater has been subject to wind profiles exceeding the threshold velocity at the surface (daily/seasonally and/or episodically) in the recent past.
Effect of a Local Anesthetic Injection Kit on Pain Relief and Postoperative Recovery After Transumbilical Single-Incision Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy

Purpose This study was conducted to explore whether incisional infiltration using a local anesthetic injection kit could better relieve postoperative pain and enhance the quality of recovery compared with ultrasound-guided rectus sheath block (RSB) or conventional local anesthetic infiltration in patients undergoing transumbilical single-incision laparoscopic cholecystectomy (SILC). Patients and Methods A total of 60 patients undergoing SILC with American Society of Anesthesiology functional status scores of I-II were randomized into the rectus sheath block group (RSB group), conventional local wound infiltration group (LAI-I group) and incisional infiltration using a local anesthetic injection kit group (LAI-II group). The primary outcomes were the patient-controlled intravenous analgesia (PCIA) demand frequency within 48 hours after the operation and postoperative pain measured by a visual analog scale (VAS) at 2 h, 4 h, 8 h, 24 h, and 48 h after surgery. Secondary outcomes were the total procedure times, cumulative consumption of anesthetic drugs, duration of surgery, duration and awaking time of anesthesia, early recovery indicator and side effects. Results The PCIA demand frequency in LAI-II group was significantly lower compared with patients in the RSB and LAI-I group (both P < 0.001). Moreover, the total procedure times in LAI-I and LAI-II group was significantly shorter than that in the RSB group (P < 0.001, respectively), but it was comparable between LAI-I and LAI-II group (P = 0.471). Though lower at 2h and 4h postoperative in LAI-II group, pain scores at each time point had no statistical differences among three groups. There were no significant differences among three groups for other outcomes as well. Conclusion The effect of ultrasound-guided RSB and conventional local anesthetic infiltration in SILC patients were found to be similar in terms of relieving postoperative pain and promoting recovery. Incisional infiltration using a local anesthetic injection kit can significantly reduce the demand frequency of PCIA, which serves as a rescue analgesic.
A Nationwide Digital Multidisciplinary Intervention Aimed at Promoting Pneumococcal Vaccination in Immunocompromised Patients

Immunocompromised patients (IPs) are at high risk for infections, some of which are vaccine-preventable. The Israeli Ministry of Health recommends pneumococcal conjugate vaccine 13 (PCV13) and pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine 23 (PPSV23) for IP, but vaccine coverage is suboptimal. We assessed the project’s effectiveness in improving the pneumococcal vaccination rate among IP. An automated population-based registry of IP was developed and validated at Maccabi Healthcare Services, an Israeli health maintenance organization serving over 2.6 million members. Included were transplant recipients, patients with asplenia, HIV or advanced kidney disease; or those receiving immunosuppressive therapy. A personalized electronic medical record alert was activated reminding clinicians to consider vaccination during IP encounters. Later, IP were invited to get vaccinated via their electronic patient health record. Pre- and post-intervention vaccination rates were compared. Between October 2019 and October 2021, overall PCV13 vaccination rates among 32,637 IP went up from 11.9% (n = 3882) to 52% (n = 16,955) (p < 0.0001). The PPSV23 vaccination rate went up from 39.4% (12,857) to 57.1% (18,652) (p < 0.0001). In conclusion, implementation of targeted automated patient- and clinician-facing alerts, a remarkable increase in pneumococcal vaccine uptake was observed among IP. The outlined approach may be applied to increase vaccination uptake in large health organizations.