Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Rectifiability of Measures with Locally Uniform Cube Density

The conjecture that Radon measures in Euclidean space with positive finite density are rectifiable was a central problem in Geometric Measure Theory for fifty years. This conjecture was positively resolved by Preiss in 1986, using methods entirely dependent on the symmetry of the Euclidean unit ball. Since then, due to reasons of isometric immersion of metric spaces into l∞ and the uncommon nature of the sup norm even in finite dimensions, a popular model problem for generalising this result to non‐Euclidean spaces has been the study of 2‐uniform measures in l∞3 . The rectifiability or otherwise of these measures has been a well‐known question.
Assessment of Line-Generalization Algorithms Using Characteristic Points

Line generalization, used to reduce scale in mapping, caricatures an original line by retaining points essential to its shape—called characteristic, or critical, points—and discarding others. This study describes experiments utilizing base lines of perceptually selected critical points to evaluate three common line-generalization algorithms: nth-point elimination, a perpendicular routine, and the Douglas algorithm. Base-line correspondence to computer generalizations was measured by graphical overlay, areal offset, commonly held points, and mean number of times respondents judged particular points to be critical. Visual comparison of an original line and its computer generalization followed. The Douglas algorithm's line generalizations proved more faithful to original lines than those of perpendicular point selection and nth-point elimination.
On Surface Waves and Deformations in a Pre-stressed Incompressible Elastic Solid

The propagation of infinitesimal surface waves on a half-space of incompressible isotropic elastic material subject to a general pure homogeneous pre-strain is considered. The secular equation for propagation along a principal axis of the pre-strain is obtained for a general strain-energy function, and conditions which ensure stability of the underlying pre-strain are derived
Quantifying Continental Crust Thickness Using the Machine Learning Method

Crustal thickness plays a key role in many geological processes. However, it remains challenging to quantify crustal thickness in the geological past. Here we propose an Extremely Randomized Trees algorithm‐based machine learning model to recover crustal thickness of old geological regions. The model is trained using major oxide and trace element compositions of 1,480 young intermediate to felsic rocks from global arcs and collisional orogens and geophysical measurements of crustal thickness. The model provides better estimations of crustal thickness than the commonly used methods based on Sr/Y and (La/Yb)N when applied to the testing data. The validity of this model is further demonstrated by its applications to the Kohistan–Ladakh, Gangdese and Talkeetna arcs, where paleocrustal thicknesses have been well constrained. We then use this model to construct the Mesozoic crustal thickness evolution of the Erguna Block in the southeast of the Mongol–Okhotsk suture belt. The closure time of the suture zone is still debated. Our results suggest that the crustal thickness of the Erguna Block increased from 43 ± 9 km at 210 Ma to 62 ± 7 km at 180 Ma, remained constant between 180 and 150 Ma, and then thinned to 36 ± 4 km at 120 Ma. These results suggest that the Mongol–Okhotsk Ocean closed in the Early–Middle Jurassic and the thickened crust was stretched during the Cretaceous. We show that the thick crust and compression‐extension transition seem to be favorable for the formation of porphyry copper deposits in the Erguna Block during the Late Jurassic.
Gradient Projection Algorithms and Software for Arbitrary Rotation Criteria in Factor Analysis

Almost all modern rotation of factor loadings is based on optimizing a criterion, for example, the quartimax criterion for quartimax rotation. Recent advancements in numerical methods have led to general orthogonal and oblique algorithms for optimizing essentially any rotation criterion. All that is required for a specific application is a definition of the criterion and its gradient. The authors present the implementations of gradient projection algorithms, both orthogonal and oblique, as well as a catalogue of rotation criteria and corresponding gradients. Software for these is downloadable and free; a specific version is given for each of the computing environments used most by statisticians. Examples of rotation methods are presented by applying them to a loading matrix from Wehmeyer and Palmer.
Hyperparameter Optimization of a Convolutional Neural Network Model for Pipe Burst Location in Water Distribution Networks

The current paper presents a hyper parameterization optimization process for a convolutional neural network (CNN) applied to pipe burst locations in water distribution networks (WDN). The hyper parameterization process of the CNN includes the early stopping termination criteria, dataset size, dataset normalization, training set batch size, optimizer learning rate regularization, and model structure. The study was applied using a case study of a real WDN. Obtained results indicate that the ideal model parameters consist of a CNN with a convolutional 1D layer (using 32 filters, a kernel size of 3 and strides equal to 1) for a maximum of 5000 epochs using a total of 250 datasets (using data normalization between 0 and 1 and tolerance equal to max noise) and a batch size of 500 samples per epoch step, optimized with Adam using learning rate regularization. This model was evaluated for distinct measurement noise levels and pipe burst locations. Results indicate that the parameterized model can provide a pipe burst search area with more or less dispersion depending on both the proximity of pressure sensors to the burst or the noise measurement level.
Discovery and seismological interpretation of low-amplitude modes in the pulsating DO white dwarf PG 1707+427 (V817 herculis)

We report the discovery of low-amplitude pulsation modes in the faint variable DO white dwarf PG 1707+427 (V817 Her). With the large aperture of the CFHT, enough modes were uncovered to allow us to derive a preliminary asteroseismological estimate of the mass of the star of approximately 0.7 M ⊙ . This assumes that the modes observed have a spherical harmonic index l=1
Optimization of Extrusion Treatments, Quality Assessments, and Kinetics Degradation of Enzyme Activities during Storage of Rice Bran

Over the years, extrusion has been a multi-step thermal technique that has proven to be the most effective process to stabilize rice bran (RB). This study aimed to investigate the effects of extrusion treatment and temperature (15, 25, and 40 °C) on the storage stability, lipid oxidation, peroxidase, and peroxide values, free fatty acids, fatty acid composition, and protein variations of RB over 60 days. The study offers novel insights into the changes in RB’s protein and amino acid compositions during extrusion and storage, which has not been extensively explored in prior research. After extrusion processing, peroxidase activity (POD) and lipase activity (LPS) were significantly reduced. However, peroxide value (PV), free fatty acids (FFA), and malondialdehyde content (MDA) observed a significantly increased by 0.64 mEqO2/kg, 8.3 mg/100 g, and 0.0005 μmol/L respectively. The storage stability of RB after extrusion shows that the POD, LPS, FFA, PV, and MDA were positively correlated with storage duration and temperature. The oleic acid/linoleic acid ratio in processed RB by extrusion had no significant changes during storage. The total and essential/non-essential amino acid ratios showed a downward trend of 5.26% and 8.76%, respectively. The first-order kinetics was the best-fitting model to describe the enzymatic inactivation and degradation of extruded RB during storage. The extrusion treatment did not affect the crude protein and the essential subunits of protein. Overall, the optimized extrusion procedure exhibited promising results in stabilizing the RB.
Antibacterial Activity and Cytocompatibility of Electrospun PLGA Scaffolds Surface-Modified by Pulsed DC Magnetron Co-Sputtering of Copper and Titanium

Biocompatible poly(lactide-co-glycolide) scaffolds fabricated via electrospinning are having promising properties as implants for the regeneration of fast-growing tissues, which are able to degrade in the body. The hereby-presented research work investigates the surface modification of these scaffolds in order to improve antibacterial properties of this type of scaffolds, as it can increase their application possibilities in medicine. Therefore, the scaffolds were surface-modified by means of pulsed direct current magnetron co-sputtering of copper and titanium targets in an inert atmosphere of argon. In order to obtain different amounts of copper and titanium in the resulting coatings, three different surface-modified scaffold samples were produced by changing the magnetron sputtering process parameters. The success of the antibacterial properties’ improvement was tested with the methicillin-resistant bacterium Staphylococcus aureus. In addition, the resulting cell toxicity of the surface modification by copper and titanium was examined using mouse embryonic and human gingival fibroblasts. As a result, the scaffold samples surface-modified with the highest copper to titanium ratio show the best antibacterial properties and no toxicity against mouse fibroblasts, but have a toxic effect to human gingival fibroblasts. The scaffold samples with the lowest copper to titanium ratio display no antibacterial effect and toxicity. The optimal poly(lactide-co-glycolide) scaffold sample is surface-modified with a medium ratio of copper and titanium that has antibacterial properties and is non-toxic to both cell cultures.
Differential and Cultivar-Dependent Antioxidant Response of Whole and Fresh-Cut Carrots of Different Root Colors to Postharvest UV-C Radiation

Fresh-cut produce have become widely popular, increasing vegetable consumption in many parts of the word. However, they are more perishable than unprocessed fresh vegetables, requiring cold storage to preserve their quality and palatability. In addition to cold storage, UV radiation has been used experimentally to try to increase nutritional quality and postharvest shelf life, revealing increased antioxidant levels in some fruits and vegetables, including orange carrots. Carrot is one of the main whole and fresh-cut vegetables worldwide. In addition to orange carrots, other root color phenotypes (e.g., purple, yellow, red) are becoming increasingly popular in some markets. The effect of the UV radiation and cold storage has not been explored in these root phenotypes. This study investigated the effect of postharvest UV-C radiation in whole and fresh-cut (sliced and shredded) roots of two purple, one yellow, and one orange-rooted cultivar, with regard to changes in concentration of total phenolics (TP) and hydroxycinnamic acids (HA), chlorogenic acid (CGA), total and individual anthocyanins, antioxidant capacity (by DPPH and ABTS), and superficial color appearance, monitoring such changes during cold storage. Results revealed that the UV-C radiation, the fresh-cut processing, and the cold storage influenced the content of antioxidant compounds and activities to varying extents, depending on the carrot cultivar, the degree of processing, and the phytochemical compound analyzed. UV-C radiation increased antioxidant capacity up to 2.1, 3.8, 2.5-folds; TP up to 2.0, 2.2, and 2.1-folds; and CGA up to 3.2, 6.6, and 2.5-folds, relative to UV-C untreated controls, for orange, yellow, and purple carrots, respectively. Anthocyanin levels were not significantly modified by the UV-C in both purple carrots evaluated. A moderate increase in tissue browning was found in some fresh-cut processed UV-C treated samples of yellow and purple but not orange roots. These data suggest variable potential for increasing functional value by UV-C radiation in different carrot root colors.
Acupuncture for Chronic Prostatitis or Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome: An Updated Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background Chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS) is a complex male dysfunction, mostly seen in young and middle-aged men with a history of more than 3 months. As a traditional therapy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, acupuncture has been proven an effective method to treat CP/CPPS in recent years. Though some meta-analyses on acupuncture for chronic prostatitis were published in 2018 and 2019, most of the included studies were low in quality according to the JADAD score (JADAD < 4). The conclusions of acupuncture for CP/CPPS remain indefinite. Purpose This review aims to evaluate the efficacy of acupuncture for CP/CPPS by including high-quality literature only (JADAD ≥ 4) to provide a reliable basis for clinical applications and research. Method Nine electronic databases were searched from inception to March 1, 2022, and only randomized controlled trials (RCT) with high-quality (JADAD ≥ 4) were included. Data were analyzed using Review Manager 5.3. and was verified through trial sequential analysis (TSA). We carried out a sensitivity analysis for the heterogeneity (I2 ≥ 50%). Publication bias was explored using a funnel plot. Result Ten RCTs (11 trials) of high-quality methodology involving 798 patients were included. Meta-analysis showed that compared to sham acupuncture (SAT) and western medicine (WM), acupuncture (AT) played superior roles for CP/CPPS patients in pain score, NIH-CPSI score, quality of life score, urinary symptom, and efficacy rate. As for the adverse effects, 4 RCTs described mild hematoma and pain in AT and SAT groups, while specific symptoms including nausea, abdominal pain, dizziness, and low blood pressure were reported in WM groups. Conclusion This meta-analysis indicated that acupuncture has measurable benefits on CP/CPPS, and security has also been ensured. However, this meta-analysis only included 10 RCTs; thus, RCTs with a larger sample size and longer-term observation are required to verify the effectiveness of acupuncture further in the future.
The Community Cost of Maintaining Gastrostomies in Pediatric Patients

Background: The use of gastrostomies in children is increasing and their need for long-term management following insertion presents a potentially significant financial and resource challenge to local healthcare systems. Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the yearly cost of maintaining a gastrostomy in a pediatric patient. Methods: A retrospective, bottom-up cost-analysis was conducted in a cohort of 180 patients with gastrostomies aged 0–19 years. One in 5 patients were randomly selected for individual cost analysis (n = 36). Their electronic health record was interrogated from the period of March 1, 2019–March 1, 2020. Costs included in the analysis were staff contact time from the community nursing and nutrition teams, and equipment costs. Results: The mean cost of maintaining a pediatric gastrostomy across all ages was £709.87 (SD 403.18) per year. Mean annual cost varied by age, underlying diagnosis, and gastrostomy device, but this variation was only statistically significant for the type of device, with Mic-Key buttons having a mean annual cost of £834.66 (SD 307.85), Mini buttons £799.06 (SD 395.01), and percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy tubes £279.34 (SD 297.45; P = 0.004). Conclusion: The mean cost of maintaining a gastrostomy in a pediatric patient is just over £700 per year. The cost is the highest as a child enters adulthood. Button devices have higher maintenance costs compared with percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy tubes.
Eigenmode analysis of optical switches in LiNbO/sub 3/-theory and experiments

The alternating electrode voltage directional coupler is analyzed by using the orthogonal symmetric and antisymmetric eigenmodes of a parallel waveguide structure. Then, conventional coupled-mode theory can be applied without modification of coupling constants. Lateral and longitudinal symmetry of electrodes and waveguides is assumed. In particular, a specific Ti:LiNbO/sub 3/ coupler is considered. It is found that the orthogonal eigenmode description leads to a different explanation of the operational principle of the so-called Delta beta coupler, as compared to conventional analysis in terms of nonorthogonal individual guide modes. >
Patterns of Renal Dysfunction and Profile of Kidney Biopsies in Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant Recipients

Introduction: Post hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT), kidney can be subjected to injury by various causes. Of these, graft versus host disease (GvHD) affecting the kidney is an under-recognized entity with no clear guidelines on its diagnosis, clinicopathological manifestations, and outcomes. Material and Methods: Out of 2,930 patients who underwent HSCT at our center between 2005 and 2020, kidney biopsy was performed in 19 allogenic and 5 autologous recipients. Results: The mean age of the cohort at transplant was 33.2 ± 7 years, and 15 (62%) were males. Median time to kidney biopsy from HSCT was 14 (IQR, 9–30) months. Aplastic anemia was the most common underlying hematological disease (54.2%). All 19 allogenic recipients were classified based on clinicopathological manifestations into either thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA, 12/19 [63%]) or nephrotic syndrome (NS, 7/19 [37%]) pattern. Glomerular tuft “mesangiolysis” was the dominant pattern of injury noted in 9/12 cases of TMA pattern. There was a predominance of acute microangiopathic changes restricted primarily to the glomerular compartment. Of the 7 patients with NS pattern, membranous nephropathy was seen in 4 (57%) and minimal change disease in 3 (43%) patients. Thirty-nine percent (7/18) stained positive for C4d which was predominantly glomerular. Allogenic recipients who did not receive immunosuppression (IS) for renal disease had a lower eGFR at biopsy, a longer latency between withdrawal of GvHD prophylaxis and biopsy, and were significantly at a higher risk of kidney failure (IS: 2/11, 18.1% vs. no IS: 2/6, 33.3%, p = 0.04). “Associated extra-renal GvHD” occurred in 11/19 (57.9%) allogenic recipients. Patients with “associated extra-renal GvHD” had significantly more deaths (6/11, 60% vs. 0, p = 0.02) but comparable renal outcomes. Conclusion: Renal GvHD can present with or without “associated extra-renal GvHD” after a prolonged period of withdrawal of GvHD prophylaxis, requiring careful diagnostic vigilance and consideration of IS.
Islamic Banking Financial Inclusion and Tax Revenue in OIC Countries: To What Extent do They Correlate?

Tax revenue of Organization of Islamic Cooperation (henceforth OIC) countries has not reached the global average, and so has the financial inclusion. Notwithstanding this fact, few researchers have addressed the effect of financial inclusion on tax revenue in the context of Islamic finance while it is undeniably having significant connection to the real sector. Drawing on this crucial issue, the present study calls into the possible effect of Islamic banking financial inclusion on tax revenue in eleven countries of OIC membership consisting of Indonesia, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates in the period of 2013 to 2019. The data were analyzed under the procedure of panel data regression using fixed effect model. The result depicted that Islamic banking financial inclusion, in terms of financial access and financial usage, had no significant effect on tax revenue of the OIC countries. This result is reasonable, since Islamic banking financial inclusion still requires massive promotion particularly by the OIC countries included in this study. Hence, this study leaves an implication for OIC countries to foster Islamic banking financial inclusion as a crucial effort to increase the tax revenue, in which Islamic banks play a promising role for sharia-compliance-based financial transactions in the recent years.
From Passion to Abyss: The Mental Health of Athletes during COVID-19 Lockdown

The outbreak and pandemic of COVID-19 forced people into extreme isolation and social distancing, with significant limitations on various activity sectors, including sports. This study aimed to assess the psychological health status of athletes during sports lockdown. Additionally, we intend to verify the mediating role of sleep disorders in stress perception and subjective happiness. Our sample was composed of 1492 Portuguese athletes from eight different team sports. During sports lockdown, athletes were found to have high stress levels and low subjective happiness levels and experience sleep disorders. Finally, these results conclude that sports lockdowns harm athletes’ psychological health and well-being. Pay cuts to athletes are an extra stress factor that exacerbate these adverse effects on psychological health. Finally, sleep is a mediator variable between stress perception and subjective happiness levels. This study’s significant contributions, limitations, and future directions are discussed in the conclusion.
A patch test for mesh alignment effects in localized failure

Computation of failure mechanisms is of paramount importance for engineers assessing safety of structures. However, computation of failure loads and mechanisms presents numerical difficulties leading to wrong answers, especially in the case where failure consists in localization of plastic deformation or damage in localized zones. Here, the results depend on factors like mesh alignment and element distortion. The paper addresses the problem of designing a suitable patch test to assess element performance under localized failure. It will be shown how predictions of this test provide a reliable answer to the question of whether a particular element will or will not be suitable for such failure computations.
Exciton freeze-out and thermally activated relaxation at local potential fluctuations in thick AlxGa1−xN layers

AlxGa1−xN layers with 0.05⩽x⩽0.25 were studied using spectrally and time resolved cathodoluminescence (CL). Continuous wave spectra were taken at temperatures ranging from 5 to 300 K. The near-band-edge peak emission energy exhibits an s-shaped temperature dependence characteristic of disordered systems. This effect is quantitatively explained within a model of potential fluctuations caused by alloy disorder. An s-shape temperature dependence has been observed in other alloy systems including InGaN, however, no systematic study exists for AlGaN. In this work, the s-shape temperature dependence is systematically analyzed as a function of aluminum content and quantitatively correlated with a model of alloy disorder. The shift in the luminescence peak position with respect to the usual temperature dependence of the band gap has been quantified by −σE2/kBT, where σE is the standard deviation of the potential fluctuations. Its dependence on aluminum concentration, x, was found to systematically increase from 7.
Texture: a ray tracing program for the photovoltaic community

Increased interest in light-trapping techniques to enhance the output current of silicon solar cells has led to a variety of surface texturing designs. Unfortunately, the inability to quantify and eliminate some of the photon loss mechanisms have not allowed textured cells to reach their full potential. Texture, a Monte Carlo ray-tracing program which is capable of addressing the above issues, has been written. The program has a convenient user interface and a variety of output modes. Different material systems, such as GaAs, InP, and thin films on textured glass, can also be modeled by Texture. It is shown that the output of the Texture program compares quite favorably with results of other researchers under the same assumptions. The program also provides additional quantitative information about photon losses due to the sides of the cell, grid absorption, and imperfect back-surface reflectance. Output results show that tetrahedrons are more effective light-trapping structures than tilted pyramids (40.87 mA compared to 40.37 mA). <<ETX>>