Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
X-RAY SPECTROSCOPY OF POTENTIAL SMALL MAGELLANIC CLOUD TYPE Ia SUPERNOVA REMNANTS AND THEIR ENVIRONMENTS

We examine three supernova remnants in the SMC, IKT 5 (supernova remnant (SNR) 0047-73.5), IKT 25 (SNR 0104-72.3), and DEM S 128 (SNR 0103-72.4), which are designated as Type Ia in the literature due to their spectra and morphology. This is troublesome because of their asymmetry, a trait not usually associated with young Type Ia remnants. We present Chandra X-ray Observatory data on these three remnants and perform a maximum likelihood analysis on their spectra. We find that the X-ray emission is dominated by interactions with the interstellar medium. In spite of this, we find a significant Fe overabundance in all three remnants. Through examination of radio, optical, and infrared data, we conclude that these three remnants are likely not Type Ia SNRs. We detect potential point sources that may be members of the progenitor systems of both DEM S 128 and IKT 5, which could suggest these could be Fe-rich core-collapse remnants.
Numerical calculations of quasiparticle dynamics in a Fermi liquid

The problem of describing a system of many interacting particles is one of the most fundamental questions in physics. One of the central theories used in condensed matter physics to address the problem is the Fermi liquid theory developed by L. D. Landau in the 1956. The theory describes interacting fermions, and can be used to explain transport phenomena of electrons in metals and dynamics of helium three. Even when the theory is not directly applicable, it forms a basis against which other, more sophisticated theories can be compared. In this thesis the Fermi liquid theory is applied to He-He-mixtures at temperatures where the bosonic He part is superfluid, and the mechanical properties of the system are largely determined by the He component, treated as a degenerate normal Fermi liquid. The dynamics of strongly interacting liquid He can be described as a collection of quasiparticles, elementary excitations of the system, which interact only weakly. In He-He mixtures the interactions can be continuously tuned by changing the temperature and the concentration of the mixture. The scattering time of quasiparticles depends on temperature, and thus the transition from the hydrodynamic limit of continuous collisions at higher temperatures to the collisionless ballistic limit at low temperatures can be studied. This gives invaluable information on the role of the interactions in the dynamics of the system. In this work, by using the Fermi liquid theory and Boltzmann transport equation, the dynamics of helium mixture disturbed by a mechanical oscillator is described in the full temperature range. The solution necessarily is numeric, but new analytical results in the low temperature limit are obtained as well. The numerical approach enables one to study various boundary conditions thoroughly, and allows application of the theory to a specific geometry. It is shown that in order to explain the experimental observations, it is necessary to take into account the reflection of quasiparticles from the walls of the container. For suitable choice of oscillator frequency and container size, second sound resonances are observed at higher temperatures, while in the ballistic limit quasiparticle interference can be seen. The numerical results are in quantitative agreement with experiments, thus attesting the accuracy of Fermi liquid theory. In particular, the previously observed decrease of inertia of a mechanical oscillator immersed in helium at low temperatures is reproduced in the calculations, and is explained by elasticity of the fluid due to Fermi liquid interactions.
Coherent control of terahertz generation in a DC-biased semiconductor microcavity

It is shown that shaped optical pulses may be used to control coherently a novel type of terahertz pulse generation from a planar semiconductor microcavity biased by a DC electric field. The new terahertz signal is due to optical rectification arising from the time-dependent polarization associated with mode oscillations. To make short terahertz pulse trains and simultaneously coherently depopulate the quantum well of excitons, specially tailored square optical pulses with nonzero area are optimal. The coherent depopulation is a strong-coupling effect and is due to the /spl pi/ phase shift in the self-consistent field (i.e., including the local-field effect associated with the exciton resonance) in the cavity that occurs in the course of a mode oscillation.
Experimental Study Of The Turbulent FlowAround A Single Wall-mounted Prism ObstaclePlaced In A Cross-flow And An Impinging Jet

This paper describes the experimental part of an electronics cooling research project. To undertake the experiments a test rig has been designed and assembled which represents a channel made by two parallel printed circuit boards (PCBs). Different arrangements of heated prismatic bodies can be mounted on the walls of the channel simulating electronic components. These bodies are cooled combining a channel cross-flow and impinging jets issuing from the walls. The working fluid is air and the maximum Reynolds number (calculated respect to the channel height) is 13740. The test rig has been designed to take flow measurements using different experimental techniques such as hot wire anemometry (HWA), particle image velocimetry (PIV) and infrared imaging (IR). Experimental data on fluid flow features around electronic components will be used to develop and validate turbulence models that will be implemented in Computational Fluid Dynamics simulations. The presented results are two preliminary experimental studies to analyse the influence of the component height (h) and the Reynolds number on the flow structure around the component. The first study was made with the component in a cross flow without impinging jet and in the second study an impinging jet was added to the cross flow. The Reynolds numbers employed are close to those used in applications within the electronics industry. The measurement mean (U, V), rms velocity (urms, vrms) profiles in three main regions of the flow, namely, the wake, the upper and the side region have been obtained using the hot wire anemometry. From theses measurements the lateral flow separation, reattachment points and recirculation have been studied.
ARMWRESTLING EXERCISE AND SHOULDER INTERNAL ROTATION STRENGTH

The purpose of this study was to investigate the differences in shoulder internal rotation strength between winner and loser during armwrestling. Prior to the armwrestling experiment, subjects would be tested for strength of shoulder internal rotation with 45 °/sec and 60 °/sec by isokinetic dynamometer. The results showed that the strength of shoulder internal rotation at angular velocity of 45°/sec and 60°/sec had significant difference between winner and loser (P <.05). Overall the mean peak torque values of shoulder internal rotation were significantly higher in winner than in loser. However, the participants whose shoulder internal rotators had been trained might be able to reverse the situation.
The Glycemic Curve during the Oral Glucose Tolerance Test: Is It Only Indicative of Glycoregulation?

The shape of the glycemic curve during the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), interpreted in the correct context, can predict impaired glucose homeostasis. Our aim was to reveal information inherent in the 3 h glycemic trajectory that is of physiological relevance concerning the disruption of glycoregulation and complications beyond, such as components of metabolic syndrome (MS). Methods: In 1262 subjects (1035 women, 227 men) with a wide range of glucose tolerance, glycemic curves were categorized into four groups: monophasic, biphasic, triphasic, and multiphasic. The groups were then monitored in terms of anthropometry, biochemistry, and timing of the glycemic peak. Results: Most curves were monophasic (50%), then triphasic (28%), biphasic (17.5%), and multiphasic (4.5%). Men had more biphasic curves than women (33 vs. 14%, respectively), while women had more triphasic curves than men (30 vs. 19%, respectively) (p < 0.01). Monophasic curves were more frequent in people with impaired glucose regulation and MS compared to bi-, tri-, and multiphasic ones. Peak delay was the most common in monophasic curves, in which it was also most strongly associated with the deterioration of glucose tolerance and other components of MS. Conclusion: The shape of the glycemic curve is gender dependent. A monophasic curve is associated with an unfavorable metabolic profile, especially when combined with a delayed peak.
Bayesian analysis of dynamic factor models: An ex-post approach towards the rotation problem

Due to their indeterminacies, static and dynamic factor models require identifying assumptions to guarantee uniqueness of the parameter estimates. The indeterminacy of the parameter estimates with respect to orthogonal transformations is known as the rotation problem. The typical strategy in Bayesian factor analysis to solve the rotation problem is to introduce ex-ante constraints on certain model parameters via degenerate and truncated prior distributions. This strategy, however, results in posterior distributions whose shapes depend on the ordering of the variables in the data set. We propose an alternative approach where the rotation problem is solved ex-post using Procrustean postprocessing. The resulting order invariance of the posterior estimates is illustrated in a simulation study and an empirical application using a well-known data set containing 120 macroeconomic time series. Favorable properties of the ex-post approach with respect to convergence, statistical and numerical accuracy are revealed.
Experiences of Parenting Multiple Expressions of Relationally Challenging Childhood Behaviours across Contexts

This entry delves into the parenting literature and reveals the complexities, perspectives, and multiple expressions of parenting challenging childhood behavior that distress or negatively impact the parent-child relationship so that we can better understand how to support families who are struggling to cope. The entry specifically focuses on the period of transition to school for children aged five to eight years. This transition can illuminate vulnerabilities previously hidden as children attempt to navigate the demands of their unfamiliar environment, meaning that parents can experience distress and emotional challenges. The entry explores the various expressions of relationally challenging behavior and comments on the intersectionality and reciprocity of explicit and implicit expressions of affect such as frustration and anxiety. To gain context, the entry examines common antecedents associated with relationally challenging behavior, such as academic comparison, forming friendships, hidden neurodiverse development, neglect, attachment dysfunction, and family conflict. Qualitative literature enriches understanding and identifies problems such as parental distress related to social stigma and minority stress and reveals specific struggles, including stress, related to homeschooling children with special educational needs, homeschooling during the recent pandemic, single parenting, grandparenting, parenting neurodiverse children, and the triangulated tensions that exist between the parent, the child, and the school. Holding in mind these diverse and context-orientated perspectives, this entry examines research that evaluates helpfulness and illuminates deficiencies of popular structured parent programs. Lastly, the entry identifies and illuminates the need to know more about the ways in which parent programs work, and it is anticipated that this new knowledge will help practitioners to better respond to the complexities of need and expectations of families who struggle to cope with relationally challenging behavior.
Prevalence of Polyomaviruses and Herpesviruses in Moroccan Breast Cancer

Breast cancer (BC) is the most frequently diagnosed cancer and the leading cause of cancer death in women worldwide, accounting for 24.5% of total new cancer cases and 15.5% of total cancer deaths. Similarly, BC is the most common cancer among Moroccan women, comprising a noteworthy percentage of 40% of all cancers in women. Globally, 15% of cancers are attributable to infections; among them, viruses play a significant role. The present study aimed to explore the presence of a wide range of viral DNA in samples recovered from 76 Moroccan patients with BC and 12 controls using Luminex technology. The explored viruses were as follows: 10 polyomaviruses (PyVs): BKV, KIV, JCV, MCV, WUV, TSV, HPyV6, HPyV7, HPyV9, and SV40; and 5 Herpesviruses (HHVs): CMV, EBV1, EBV2, HSV1, and HSV2. Our results revealed the presence of PyVs DNA in both control (16.7%) and BC tissues (18.4%). Nonetheless, HHV DNA was detected exclusively in BC tissues (23.7%), with a predominance of Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) (21%). In conclusion, our study highlights the presence of EBV in human BC tissues, which may play an important role in its development and/or progression. Further investigations are needed to confirm the presence/co-presence of these viruses in BC.
Improving Postural Ergonomics during Human–Robot Collaboration Using Particle Swarm Optimization: A Study in Virtual Environment

Musculoskeletal disorders caused by poor work posture are a serious concern in the industry since they lead to absenteeism and medical leave from work. In the context of human–robot collaboration, this issue can be mitigated if collaborative robots support human workers to perform their tasks more ergonomically. In this work, we propose a method to optimize human posture during human–robot collaboration using the Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithm. Our approach involves assigning an appropriate location to the robot’s end-effector to minimize the distance between the optimized posture of the human and their current posture in the working space. To measure human posture, we use the Rapid Entire Body Assessment score (REBA) calculated from body joint angles captured by a Kinect camera. To validate the effectiveness of our proposed method, we conducted a user study with 20 participants in a virtual reality environment. The PSO algorithm could position the robot end-effector to the optimal position close to real time. Our results showed that our method could improve ergonomics by 66%, indicating its potential for use in human–robot collaborative applications.
Characterization of Seminal Microbiome of Infertile Idiopathic Patients Using Third-Generation Sequencing Platform

Since the first description of a commensal seminal microbiome using sequencing, less than a decade ago, interest in the composition of this microbiome and its relationship with fertility has been growing. Articles using next-generation sequencing techniques agree on the identification of the most abundant bacterial phyla. However, at the genus level, there is still no consensus on which bacteria are most abundant in human seminal plasma. This discrepancy may be due to methodological variability such as sample collection, bacterial DNA extraction methodology, which hypervariable regions of 16S rRNA gene have been amplified, or bioinformatic analysis. In the present work, seminal microbiota of 14 control samples and 42 samples of idiopathic infertile patients were characterized based on full-length sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene using MinION platform from Oxford Nanopore. These same samples had been analyzed previously using Illumina’s MiSeq sequencing platform. Comparison between the results obtained with the two platforms has been used to analyze the impact of sequencing method on the study of the seminal microbiome’s composition. Seminal microbiota observed with MinION were mainly composed of the phyla Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes and Actinobacteria, with the most abundant genera being Peptoniphilus, Finegoldia, Staphylococcus, Anaerococcus, Campylobacter, Prevotella, Streptococcus, Lactobacillus, Ezakiella and Enterococcus. This composition was similar to that found by the Illumina platform, since these 10 most abundant genera were also among the most abundant genera detected by the Nanopore platform. In both cases, the top 10 genera represented more than 70% of the classified reads. However, relative abundance of each bacterium did not correlate between these two platforms, with intraindividual variations of up to 50 percentage points in some cases. Results suggest that the effect of the sequencing platform on the characterization of seminal microbiota is not very large at the phylum level, with slightly variances in Firmicutes and Actinobacteria, but presents differences at the genus level. These differences could alter the composition and diversity of bacterial profiles or posterior analyses. This indicates the importance of conducting multi-platform studies to better characterize seminal microbioma.
Analysis of two aperture-coupled cavity-backed antennas

The feasibility and performance of an aperture-coupled cavity-fed microstrip patch antenna and an aperture-coupled cavity antenna are demonstrated using reciprocity and moment method analyses, followed by practical design guidelines and equivalent circuit models. Each antenna incorporates a thick ground plane that can be useful as a heat sink for active MMIC circuitry and as structural support for thin substrates. Prototype antennas show good experimental agreement with the analyses in each case. The resonators of the aperture-coupled cavity-fed patch antenna are optimized to achieve a prototype having a measured 2:1 bandwidth of 26%. The size of the aperture-coupled cavity antenna can be easily reduced for array applications by filling the cavity with a dielectric material.
Isolated lettuce allergy in a medical student: case report and review of the literature

Lettuce allergy is uncommon and usually attributed to lipid transfer protein (LTP) sensitization. Most LTP-sensitized patients present with heterogeneous symptoms not only to lettuce, but to a large number of other foods and pollen allergens, including peaches, apples, Platanus, and mugwort, with peach LTP being considered as the primary sensitizer. The case of a medical student with a history of lettuce allergy investigated by skin prick tests (SPTs) and oral food challenge (OFC) is presented in this report. SPTs showed sensitization exclusively to lettuce and not to any other known cross-reacting allergens, which contrasts with previous literature and highlights the uniqueness of this case. During OFC, the patient developed generalized symptoms including abdominal discomfort, bilateral tinnitus, facial flushing, generalized itching, and urticaria. No cardiopulmonary compromise was observed at the time, and the reaction was managed with oral antihistamines. More sophisticated molecular analysis is required to identify the patient’s sensitization profile; however, SPTs and OFCs remain the most practical clinical approach. Lettuce allergy deserves further attention and investigation.
Bictegravir and Metformin Drug-Drug Interaction in People with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)

A drug-drug interaction (DDI) exists between bictegravir and metformin. Bictegravir inhibits renal organic cation transporter-2, leading to increased metformin plasma concentrations. The objective of this analysis was to evaluate the clinical implications of concomitant bictegravir and metformin administration. This was a retrospective, single-center, descriptive analysis evaluating people with human immunodeficiency virus (PWH) concurrently prescribed bictegravir and metformin between February 2018–June 2020. PWH lost to follow-up or non-adherent were excluded. Data collection included: hemoglobin A1C (HgbA1C), HIV RNA viral load, CD4 cell count, serum creatinine, and lactate. Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) were assessed by provider-documented, patient-reported symptoms of gastrointestinal (GI) intolerance and hypoglycemia. Metformin dose adjustments and discontinuations were recorded. Fifty-three PWH were included (116 screened; 63 excluded). GI intolerance was reported in three PWH (5.7%). There were no documented episodes of hypoglycemia or lactic acidosis. Five PWH had metformin dose reductions (N = 3 for unspecified reasons; N = 1 for GI intolerance) or discontinuation (N = 1 unrelated to ADRs). Both diabetes and HIV control improved (HgbA1C decreased by 0.7% with virologic control in 95% of PWH). Minimal ADRs were reported in PWH receiving concurrent metformin and bictegravir. Prescribers should be aware of this potential interaction; however, no empiric metformin total daily dose adjustment appears necessary.
Environmental exposure to perchlorate, nitrate, and thiocyanate in relation to chronic kidney disease in the general US population, NHANES 2005–2016

Abstract Background: Few studies have explored the impact of perchlorate, nitrate, and thiocyanate (PNT) on kidney function. This study aimed to evaluate the association of urinary levels of PNT with renal function as well as the prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) among the general population in the United States. Methods: This analysis included data from 13,373 adults (≥20 years) from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2005 to 2016. We used multivariable linear and logistic regression, to explore the associations of urinary PNT with kidney function. Restricted cubic splines were used to assess the potentially non-linear relationships between PNT exposure and outcomes. Results: After traditional creatinine adjustment, perchlorate (P-traditional) was positively associated with estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) (adjusted β: 2.75; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.25 to 3.26; P < 0.001), and negatively associated with urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio (ACR) (adjusted β: −0.05; 95% CI: −0.07 to −0.02; P = 0.001) in adjusted models. After both traditional and covariate-adjusted creatinine adjustment, urinary nitrate and thiocyanate were positively associated with eGFR (all P values <0.05), and negatively associated with ACR (all P values <0.05); higher nitrate or thiocyanate was associated with a lower risk of CKD (all P values <0.001). Moreover, there were L-shaped non-linear associations between nitrate, thiocyanate, and outcomes. In the adjusted models, for quartiles of PNT, statistically significant dose–response associations were observed in most relationships. Most results were consistent in the stratified and sensitivity analyses. Conclusions: Exposures to PNT might be associated with kidney function, indicating a potential beneficial effect of environmental PNT exposure (especially nitrate and thiocyanate) on the human kidney.