Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Hard X-Ray Tails in Neutron Star Low-Mass X-Ray Binaries: BeppoSAX Observations and Possible Theoretical Explanation of the Case of GX 17+2

We report results of a new spectral analysis of two BeppoSAX observations of the Z source GX 17+2. In one of the observations, the source exhibited a power-law-like hard (>30 keV) X-ray tail, which was described in a previous work with a hybrid Comptonization model. Recent high-energy observations with INTEGRAL of a sample of low-mass X-ray binaries including both Z and atoll classes have shown that dynamical (bulk) Comptonization of soft photons is a possible alternative mechanism for producing hard X-ray tails in such systems. We start from the INTEGRAL results and exploit the broadband capability of BeppoSAX to better investigate the physical processes at work. We use GX 17+2 as a representative case. Moreover, we suggest that weakening (or disappearance) of the hard X-ray tail can be explained by increasing radiation pressure that originates at the surface of the neutron star (NS). As a result, the high radiation pressure stops the bulk inflow, and consequently, this radiation feedback from the NS surface leads to quenching of the dynamical (bulk) Comptonization.
Weighted (cid:96) 1 -minimization for generalized non-uniform sparse model

Model-based compressed sensing refers to compressed sensing with extra structure about the underlying sparse signal known a priori. Recent work has demonstrated that both for deterministic and probabilistic models imposed on the signal, this extra information can be successfully exploited to enhance recovery performance. In particular, weighted (cid:96) 1 -minimization with suitable choice of weights has been shown to improve performance in the so called non-uniform sparse model of signals. In this paper, we consider a full generalization of the non-uniform sparse model with very mild assumptions. We prove that when the measurements are obtained using a matrix with i.i. d Gaussian entries, weighted (cid:96) 1 -minimization successfully recovers the sparse signal from its measurements with overwhelming probability. We also provide a method to choose these weights for any general signal model from the non-uniform sparse class of signal models.
Invitation to the Mathematics of Fermat-Wiles

Assuming only modest knowledge of undergraduate level math, "Invitation to the Mathematics of Fermat-Wiles" presents diverse concepts required to comprehend Wiles' extraordinary proof. Furthermore, it places these concepts in their historical context. This book can be used in introduction to mathematics theories courses and in special topics courses on Fermat's last theorem. It contains themes suitable for development by students as an introduction to personal research as well as numerous exercises and problems. However, the book will also appeal to the inquiring and mathematically informed reader intrigued by the unraveling of this fascinating puzzle. It rigorously presents the concepts required to understand Wiles' proof, assuming only modest undergraduate level math. It sets the math in its historical context. It contains several themes that could be further developed by student research and numerous exercises and problems. It is written by Yves Hellegouarch, who himself made an important contribution to the proof of Fermat's last theorem.
Modelling and simulation of turbulence subject to system rotation

The present study involves a priori tests of pressure-strain and dissipation rate tensor models using data from direct numerical simulations (DNS) of fully developed turbulent channel flow with and without spanwise system rotation. Three different pressure-strain rate models are tested ranging from a simple quasi-linear model to a realizable fourth order model. The evaluations demonstrate the difficulties of developing RANS-models that accurately describe the flow for a wide range of rotation numbers. Furthermore, least-squares based tensor representations of the exact pressure-strain and dissipation rate tensors are derived point-wise in space. The relation obtained for the rapid pressure-strain rate is exact for general 2D mean flows. Hence, the corresponding distribution of the optimized coefficients show the ideal behaviour. The corresponding representations for the slow pressure-strain and dissipation rate tensors are incomplete but still optimal in a least-squares sense. On basis of the least-squares analysis it is argued that the part of the representation that is tensorially linear in the Reynolds stress anisotropy is the most important for these parts.
Proper Nacl Alleviates Osmotic Stress in Lycium Ruthenicum

Lycium ruthenicum is a salt-accumulating xerophytic species with excellent adaptability to adverse environments. Previous studies showed that a certain amount of NaCl resulted in promoting plant growth. To investigate the mechanism of Na+ to plant growth and the effect of drought stress, the growth, photosynthesis, water status and K+, Na+ transport related genes were subjected to different NaCl treatments and osmotic stress in the presence or absence of additional NaCl were assessed. Compared to the control, 50 mM NaCl strongly boosted the fresh weight, dry weight and relative growth rate of L. ruthenicum, and significantly increased the concentration of Na+, the K+ concentration in roots and stems remained stable, while which in leaves increased significantly. Furthermore, the addition of 50 mM NaCl sharply up-regulated the expression of LrSOS1 in roots, LrNHX and LrVP1 in leaves, LrHKT1 down-regulated in roots, it’s the reason why a high quantity of Na+ was accumulated in leaves under 50 mM NaCl. LrAKT1 up-regulated in roots, LrSKOR decreased first and then increased in roots, whereas LrSKOR in leaves remained stable and slightly up-regulated, thereby absorb a large amount of K+ by LrAKT1 and transport it to the leaf through LrSKOR. Moreover, external NaCl apparently alleviated the inhibition of osmotic stress in plant growth. Compared with the drought treatment, the addition of 50 mM NaCl significantly increased the Na+ and K+ content in roots, stems and leaves of L. ruthenicum, resulted in a decrease in proline content and no significant change in soluble sugar content, it is speculated that NaCl treatment could significantly improve the Na+, K+ concentration, thus enhance the osmotic regulation ability of plants, and then improve the photosynthesis and water status of L. ruthenicum.
The Holographic Fluid on the Sphere Dual to the Schwarzschild Black Hole

We consider deformation of the d+2 dimensional asymptotically flat Schwarzschild black hole spacetime with the induced metric on a d-sphere at $r=r_c$ held fixed. This is done without taking the near horizon limit. The deformation is determined so that the $\Lambda=0$ vacuum Einstein equation is satisfied and the metric is regular on the horizon. In this paper the velocity of a dual fluid $v^i$ is assumed to be a Killing field and small, and the deformed metric is obtained up to $O(v^2)$. At this order of hydrodynamic expansion the dual fluid is an ideal one. The structure of the metric is fairly different from the near horizon result of Bredberg and Strominger in arXiv:1106.3084.
Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University Performance, growth and earnings management Performance, growth and earnings management

We study the relationship between the amount of managed earnings and ﬁrms’ earnings performance and expected growth in a reporting model, where managers manipulate earnings to inﬂuence the valuation of ﬁrms’ equity while bearing a cost that is increasing and convex in the amount of managed earnings. In the unique revealing equilibrium to the model, ﬁrms with higher performance and growth over-report earnings by a larger amount because price responsiveness increases with earnings performance and growth. And earnings quality, deﬁned as the proportion of true economic earnings in total reported earnings, increases with earnings performance but decreases with earnings growth. We conduct empirical tests on a large sample and a restatement sample using different proxies for earnings management. Results from the large sample tests support our predictions while results from the restatement sample tests are mixed. Our study provides an alternative explanation to the positive relationship between discretionary accruals estimated from the Jones model and ﬁrms’ performance and growth.
A new approach to piecewise linear modeling of time series

Due to the inherent non-linearity and non-stationarity of a wide class of time series, nonlinear models have been the object of an increasing interest over the past years. Piecewise linear models, in which a linear sub-model is associated with each region of a state-space decomposition, have been proposed as an attractive alternative to threshold autoregressive models. However, it is still unclear how this type of models can be actually estimated. We show how a new combinatorial optimization approach, which we devised for the general problem of piecewise linear model estimation, can be successfully applied to piecewise linear modeling of time series. The idea is to focus on the inconsistent linear system that arises when considering a simple linear model and to partition it into a minimum number of consistent subsystems (MIN PCS). Although the resulting problem (MIN PCS) is NP-hard, satisfactory approximate solutions can be obtained using simple variants of the perceptron algorithm studied in the artificial neural network literature. Simulation results for two well-known chaotic time series are reported.
Moderating effect of maternal characteristics on the relationship between consanguineous marriage and growth quality in Turkish neonates

The ﬁndings regarding the effect of consanguineous marriage on the growth pattern of neonates, which increases the rate of recessive hereditary diseases by caus-ing a decrease in the number of homozygous loci, are controversial. In this study, the effects of consanguineous marriage on the growth pattern of neonates are dis-cussed when the effect of some maternal characteristics is controlled. Two hundred and twenty-ﬁve healthy neonates and their mothers born at the Sivas Cumhuriyet University Neonatology Clinic are examined within the scope of the study; 100 of them formed the group of relatives, and 125 of them formed the non-relatives group. The weight, height, head, and chest girth measurements of the babies were taken, and the weight and height of the mothers were measured; the information regarding the age, number of pregnancies, the number of live births, and education levels were recorded. It is observed that ﬁrst-degree cousin marriages have no de-tectable effect on the four anthropometric mean vectors of male and female neonates when the effects of maternal characteristics are controlled. In conclusion, it can be said that the strongest maternal effect on the growth level of neonates is the mother’s education level; this factor is the strongest moderator variable that controls the effect of consanguineous marriage.
State of the Scholarship PREDICTION AND ERROR-BASED LEARNING IN L2 PROCESSING AND ACQUISITION A CONCEPTUAL REVIEW

There is currently much interest in the role of prediction in language processing, both in L1 and L2. For languageacquisition researchers,this hasprompted debate ontherolethatpredictive processing may play in both L1 and L2 language learning, if any. In this conceptual review, we explore the role of prediction and prediction error as a potential learning aid. We examine different proposed prediction mechanisms and the empirical evidence for them, alongside the factors constraining prediction for both L1 and L2 speakers. We then review the evidence on the role of prediction in learning languages. We report computational modeling that underpins a number of proposals on the role of prediction in L1 and L2 learning, then lay out the empirical evidence supporting the predictions made by modeling, from research into priming and adaptation. Finally, we point out the limitations of these mechanisms in both L1 and L2 speakers.
Insulin sensitivity and fat mass in young male sedentary adults

We live in an obesogenic environment, spending a lot of time sitting neglecting physical activity. This study aims to determine the impact of a sedentary lifestyle on insulin sensitivity by comparing insulin sensitivity of healthy athletes and sedentary subjects. Twelve athletes and 12 sedentary subjects underwent a two-step hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamp test to assess insulin sensitivity and a DEXA scan to assess body fat mass. Insulin sensitivity was significantly lower in sedentary subjects (p=0.009) and fat mass negatively correlated with insulin sensitivity (r=-0.57, p=0.005). This study shows that healthy sedentary subjects have an impaired insulin metabolism compared to trained athletes.
Correlation of body mass index to random blood glucose levels of rural population

The present study was aimed to investigate the relationship between BMI and Random Blood Glucose levels of rural population. Three hundred and seventy four rural people in the age group of 20 to 55 years were randomly selected for the study comprising of 80% (299) women and 20% (75) men. The mean age, BMI, RGS, weight and height were 43.5 years, 23 kg/m 2 , 134.5 mg/dl, 56kgs and 156.5cms respectively. Majority (59%) of the people were found in normal weight category followed by overweight (21%), underweight (14%) and obese (6%) category as per BMI. The regression test revealed that only the age had a significant impact on random glucose levels where as gender, BMI, height and weight had no significant impact on random glucose levels of rural population.
Suppressed B Decays at CDF

S and B 0! J/yK 0 . We report also on masurement of the ratios of the branching ratios (BR) of the new modes to those of the B 0 -meson to the same final states: BR(B 0 ! J/yK 0 )/BR(B 0 ! J/yK 0 ) = 0.062±0.009(stat.)±0.025(sys.)±0.008(frag.)
Large electrostrain near the phase transition temperature of (Bi0.5Na0.5)TiO3-SrTiO3 ferroelectric ceramics

(1-x)(Bi0.5Na0.5)TiO3–xSrTiO3 (abbreviated as BNST100x) was prepared by a conventional ceramic fabrication process. The depolarization temperature Td, rhombohedral-tetragonal phase transition temperature TR-T, and the temperature Tm of the maximum dielectric constant were determined from the temperature dependence of the dielectric and piezoelectric properties. It is revealed that BNST100x forms a morphotropic phase boundary of rhombohedral ferroelectric and pseudocubic (tetragonal) paraelectric at x=0.26–0.28 for BNST100x, and a very large strain and normalized strain d33* of 0.29% and 488pm∕V, respectively, were obtained at x=0.28. In addition, it was clarified that the intermediate phase between TR-T (⩾Td) and Tm shows relaxor behavior.
Microbial Bioﬁlm Formation and Contamination of Dental-Unit Water Systems in General Dental Practice

Dental-unit water systems (DUWS) harbor bacterial bioﬁlms, which may serve as a haven for pathogens. The aim of this study was to investigate the microbial load of water from DUWS in general dental practices and the biofouling of DUWS tubing. Water and tube samples were taken from 55 dental surgeries in southwestern England. Contamination was determined by viable counts on environmentally selective, clinically selective, and pathogen-selective media, and biofouling was determined by using microscopic and image analysis techniques. Microbial loading ranged from 500 to 10 5 CFU z ml 2 1 ; in 95% of DUWS water samples, it exceeded European Union drinking water guidelines and in 83% it exceeded American Dental Association DUWS standards. Among visible bacteria, 68% were viable by Bac Light staining, but only 5% of this “viable by Bac Light” fraction produced colonies on agar plates. Legionella pneumophila , Mycobacterium spp. , Candida spp. , and Pseudomonas spp. were detected in one, ﬁve, two, and nine different surgeries, respectively. Presumptive oral streptococci and Fusobacterium spp. were detected in four and one surgeries, respectively, suggesting back siphonage and failure of antiretraction devices. Hepatitis B virus was never detected. Decontamination strategies (5 of 55 surgeries) signiﬁcantly and a the were rinsed in nonﬂowing to excess and assessed using the system described above. Microscopic counts of the were also carried out using an improved Neubauer counting chamber (Hawksley, London, United Kingdom) with the results compared against total plate counts. Statistical analysis. Statistical analyses were carried out using Excel (Mi- crosoft Ofﬁce) and Statgraphics (STSC Inc., Rockville, Md.). Bacterial loads in different types of water (deionized, distilled, soft, and hard) and from DUWS with different water sources (main, bottle, or tank fed) were compared using a two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) on log-transformed viable counts. Where signiﬁcant differences were indicated by ANOVA, individual groups were then compared by the least-signiﬁcant-difference method. Percentage coverage data were compared using the nonparametric Kruskal-Wallis test. Bioﬁlm and planktonic counts from the same surgeries were also analyzed for correlation using the nonparametric Kendall rank correlation analysis. Statistical signiﬁcance was as-sumed at a P value
THE INFLUENCE OF EFFECTIVE MICROORGANISMS FOR SOME OF PHYSICAL AND WATER PROPERTIES ON ARABLE-HUMUS HORIZONS OF MINERAL SOILS

The objective of the performed investigations was to recognise the influence of effective microorganisms (EM) on the basic physical and water properties of the arable-humus levels of mineral soils. The experimental soil material was obtained from arable lands: grey-brown podsolic soils and black earth. Samples for laboratory analyses were collected from a pot ex-periment established in controlled conditions. The following parameters were determined in the examined soils: texture composition, soil density, solid state density, total and drainage porosity, filtration coefficient, soil water binding potentials as well as potential and useful retention. The obtained research results revealed that the addition to the soil of live EM cultures changed most of its physical and water properties and that different doses of EM cultures exerted a different effect on soil properties, especially on porosity, filtration and water availability for plants.
Properties of the DASS-21 in a community adolescent population

Although developed for adults, the DASS-21 (Depression Anxiety Stress Scales - short version) has been utilised in many research studies with adolescent samples. Evidence as to the applicability of the DASS subscale scores to represent the distinct states of depression, anxiety and stress as experienced by adolescents is mixed, and the age at which it may be possible to differentiate these three states using the DASS-21has not yet been determined. This paper evaluated evidence for a multifactor structure in the DASS-21 in adolescents and the specificity of the three subscales for adolescents in general and at different ages.Data were from a large cross-sectional survey of 2,873 school students in Grades 6-12 (ages 12-18 years) in Australia. Confirmatory bifactor analyses testing a quadripartite factor structure were conducted for the whole sample and across gender by age groups. Internal consistency reliability of the DASS total and subscale scores were determined utilising omega coefficients. Results identified most of the variation in the items was explained by a single dominant general factor and the subscales lacked specificity across all age groups. We conclude the DASS-21 can be reliably used to measure general distress in adolescents, but the subscales fail to discriminate between the three states. Our results indicate this lack of discrimination does not reduce with increasing age. These findings caution against the use of adult theoretical models and measures within adolescent populations.
The Eﬀect of Weight Loss Program on Overweight and Obese Females Based on Protection Motivation Theory: A Randomized Control Trial

Background: It is especially true that prevalence of overweight and obesity is increasing worldwide and it is probably because of changes in diet and physical behavior pattern. Objectives: Thecurrentstudyaimedtotesttheeﬀectof weightlossprogramonoverweightandobesefemalesbasedonprotection motivation theory. Methods: A randomized clinical trial (RCT) was implemented in the form of single blind. In total, 150 females with overweight andobesitywererandomlydividedintothreegroupsincluding: 1,standardprogramgroup; 2,motivationinterviewing(MI)group and; 3, motivation interviewing (MI) and intention intervention (II) condition (50 subjects in each group). They participated in a randomizedclinicaltrial,alsoattendedaprivatenutritionclinicinGorgancity(Golestanprovince,Northof Iran)fortheﬁrsttime. A researcher-made questionnaire and participant’s sheets (including three days food recall and anthropometric traits) were used to collect data. Data were analyzed using SPSS (ver.11) and statistical tests including Kruskal-Wallis, One-way ANOVA, Friedman test, Tukey test, Paired T-test and linear regression model were employed. Results: The mean age of females was 38.45 ± 9.49 years, most of them had academic degree 46.7% (n = 70), 78.7% (n = 118) were marriedand60.7% (n=91)werehousewives. ANOVArepeatedmeasuretestshowedthatdailyenergyintakedecreasedtwo(P=0.001) and six months (P = 0.001), weight (P = 0.007) and body mass index (BMI) (0.005) after intervention. Threat appraisal statistically diﬀered six months after intervention (P = 0.001). Conclusions: Motivational interviewing resulted in decreased daily energy intake, anthropometric characteristics as well as augmented scores of coping and threat appraisal.
Assessing Land Use and Land Cover Change and Farmers’ Perceptions of Deforestation and Land Degradation in South-West C ô te d’Ivoire, West Africa

: Deforestation and land degradation remain two major economic and environmental threats in C ô te d’Ivoire. This study assessed land use and land cover (LULC) change and farmers’ perceptions of the drivers and effects of deforestation and land degradation in south-western C ô te d’Ivoire. We used remotely sensed data to determine LULC change trends, and a household survey to col-lect farmers’ perceptions of deforestation and land degradation. A total of 411 households were interviewed using a structured questionnaire and the focus group discussions involved 25 farmers. Landsat image analysis reported a drastic LULC change and a conversion of forestlands into agriculture from 1987 to 2015 at a rate of 1.44%/year and 3.44%/year for dense forests and degraded forests, respectively. The household survey revealed that the major causes of deforestation perceived by farmers included population growth (79.3%), extensive agriculture (72.9%), migration (54.2%) and logging (47.7%). Land degradation evolved, from a shortened fallow period (46.7%) and an inappropriate application of inputs (31.4%). The perceived major effects linked to deforestation encompassed land degradation (70.6%), loss of biodiversity (63.8%), global warming (56.9%) and loss of livelihood assets (54.3%). Therefore, this study recommends participatory landscape planning, reforestation and capacity building of stakeholders for sustainable intensiﬁcation of the production systems to reduce LULC challenges for enhanced productive and protective functions of remaining forests.