Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The SDHD:p.H102R Variant Is Frequent in Russian Patients with Head and Neck Paragangliomas and Associated with Loss of 11p15.5 Region and Hypermethylation of H19-DMR

Head and neck paragangliomas (HNPGLs) are rare neuroendocrine neoplasms derived from the parasympathetic paraganglia of the head and neck. At least 30% of HNPGLs are linked to germline mutations, predominantly in SDHx genes. In this study, we analyzed an extended cohort of Russian patients with HNPGLs using whole-exome sequencing and found a highly frequent missense variant p.H102R in the SDHD gene. We determined this variant in 34% of the SDHD mutation carriers. This variant was associated with somatic loss of the gene wild-type allele. Data from the B allele frequency method and microsatellite and microdeletion analysis indicated evident LOH at the 11p15.5 region and potential loss of the whole of chromosome 11. We found hypermethylation of H19-DMR in all tumors, whereas differential methylation of KvDMR was mostly retained. These findings do not support the paternal transmission of SDHD:p.H102R but are in agreement with the Hensen model. Using targeted sequencing, we also studied the variant frequency in a control cohort; we found SDHD:p.H102R in 1.9% of cases, allowing us to classify this variant as pathogenic. The immunohistochemistry of SDHB showed that the SDHD:p.H102R mutation, even in combination with wild-type allele loss, does not always lead to SDH deficiency. The obtained results demonstrate the frequent variant associated with HNPGLs in a Russian population and support its pathogenicity. Our findings help with understanding the mechanism of tumorigenesis and are also important for the development of cost-effective genetic screening programs.
Redshift asymmetries in systems of galaxies and the missing mass

Redshift asymmetries were used to study contamination by optical companions in binary galaxy samples, with Karachentsev's sample found to be relatively free of these contaminants. Redshift asymmetries were also used to study the dynamical state of groups and clusters of galaxies, revealing that groups are composed of an expanding population. With regard to clusters, a massive central binary dominates the Coma Cluster, making it dynamically unstable, noting that other rich clusters have similar massive cores and are largely unbound. Coma Cluster models with much missing mass were found to be improbable. This missing mass problem exmined in detail, with attention focussed on Karachentsev's binary galaxies, rotation curves of spiral galaxies, dwarf companions of the Milky Way Galaxy, the dynamically unstable state of galaxy groups and clusters, and the cosmic virial theorem. The cosmological density parameter was estimated at 0.02, concluding that galaxies, and clusters of galaxies are not missing mass in large enough amounts to close the universe. 118 references
Improved small sample inference in the mixed linear model: Bartlett correction and adjusted likelihood

The mixed linear model is a popular method for analysing unbalanced repeated measurement data. The classical statistical tests for parameters in this model are based on asymptotic theory that is unreliable in the small samples that are often encountered in practice. For testing a given fixed effect parameter with a small sample, we develop and investigate refined likelihood ratio (LR) tests. The refinements considered are the Bartlett correction and use of the Cox–Reid adjusted likelihood; these are examined separately and in combination. We illustrate the various LR tests on an actual data set and compare them in two simulation studies. The conventional LR test yields type I error rates that are higher than nominal. The adjusted LR test yields rates that are lower than nominal, with absolute accuracy similar to that of the conventional LR test in the first simulation study and better in the second. The Bartlett correction substantially improves the accuracy of the type I error rates with either the conventional or the adjusted LR test. In many cases, error rates that are very close to nominal are achieved with the refined methods.
Statistical Characteristics of Raindrop Size Distribution in Southwest Monsoon Season

Abstract Raindrop size distribution (DSD) parameters are retrieved from dual-frequency (UHF and VHF) wind profiler measurements made at Gadanki, India, in a summer monsoon season. The convoluted UHF spectra are first corrected for vertical air motion and spectral broadening (using VHF measurements) and later are used for deriving DSD parameters. Two distinctly different case studies, a mesoscale convective system and a pure stratiform precipitation system, have been considered for a detailed study. DSD parameters obtained in these case studies reveal systematic variations of DSD from case to case and also from one rain regime to another within the same precipitating system. A statistical study has been carried out using the profiler data collected during the passage of 16 rain events. The retrieved DSD profiles are divided into separate rain regimes (stratiform and convection), based on reflectivity, to examine salient microphysical characteristics and the vertical variability of DSD in different precipit.
Posttraumatic Stress, Alcohol Use, and Alcohol Use Motives among Non-Hispanic Black/African American College Students: The Role of Emotion Regulation

Abstract Objective The associations between posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom severity, alcohol use, and alcohol use motives are well-established. Emotion regulation difficulties have been implicated in the association between PTSD symptoms and alcohol use. A dearth of empirical work, however, has examined these associations among Black/African American college students, a population with high prevalence of exposure to potentially traumatic events, PTSD symptomatology, and alcohol-related consequences. Methods This study examined PTSD symptoms, emotion regulation difficulties, and alcohol use severity and motives among a sample of Black/African American trauma-exposed college students (N = 282; 77.4% identified as female; M age = 22.36, SD = 4.71). Results PTSD symptom severity was related to alcohol use and coping and conformity motives for alcohol use through heightened emotion regulation difficulties. Findings were significant above and beyond the effects of trauma load (i.e., number of potentially traumatic event types experienced). Conclusions This study extends past work to an understudied population and contributes to groundwork for culturally informed interventions.
SeaWiFS-2: an ocean color data continuity mission to address climate change

Existing ocean color sensors are near or beyond the end of their mission lives and there will likely be a gap in climate quality Environmental Data Records (EDRs) until planned missions are launched. GeoEye's OrbView2 satellite with the SeaWiFS sensor has provided a 11+ year climatology of global chlorophyll a and other EDRs important for climate change and global warming studies. Upcoming sensors will not provide sufficient accuracy to provide continuity for the EDR time series and global monitoring. A 'stop-gap' mission is required, and we propose using the existing spare SeaWiFS sensor and a dedicated mission.
On the Statistical Properties of SGoF Multitesting Method

In this paper we establish the statistical properties of SGoF multitesting method under a mixture model. It is assumed that the available set of p-values is statistically independent. Special attention is paid to the huge dimension problem in which the number of tests goes to infinity. Formulae for the power and the rate of false discoveries/non-discoveries of SGoF are given, so the role of the gamma-parameter of SGoF is understood. The existing connection between SGoF and a test of significance for the proportion of non-true nulls below gamma is explored. This connection suggests a possible modification of SGoF which may improve the power of the method. Simulation studies and a real data illustration are included.
Encounter rate by turbulent shear of particles similar in diameter to the Kolmogorov scale

To clarify the rate at which particles similar in size to the smallest eddies in a turbulent fluid encounter one another via turbulent shear, 3-D video motion analysis was used to make direct measurements of relative velocities between closely spaced, near-neutrally buoyant, 700-μm mean diameter, polystyrene latex spheres suspended in an oscillating-grid turbulence tank . Smallest eddy size, termed the Kolmogorov scale, X, was estimated as (v 3/e)°u where v is fluid viscosity and a is the dissipation rate of turbulent kinetic energy . For runs made in water, the effective particle diameter examined was z 3-6 times larger than X . To measure relative velocities for particles just smaller than the Kolmogorov scale, the viscosity of the suspending fluid was increased = 25 times by the addition of Methocel, a commercially available, methyl cellulose synthetic gum used for fluid thickening . For runs made in Methocel, effective sphere diameter was = 0.2-0.5 times the Kolmogorov scale . Turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rate was estimated by traversing the measuring volume of a laser-Doppler velocimeter fiberoptic probe through the fluid at speeds high relative to the fluctuating fluid velocities in the tank . Resulting time series were used in analogy with instantaneous spatial series to calculate root-mean-square fluctuating velocities and integral length scales of turbulence, which in turn served as input for calculation of e . By examining the relationship between Reynolds number based on relative velocity between particles and particle separation distance relative to A, two competing hypotheses were tested . The first, that turbulent eddying motions control relative velocity between closely spaced particles, was accepted for particles both slightly larger and slightly smaller than the Kolmogorov scale (0 .05 < p < 0.10). The second, that viscous forces control relative velocity between particles, was strongly rejected in both cases (p = 0.004). The finding contradicts earlier assumptions and assertions that viscosity dominates small-scale particle interactions for sizes near the Kolmogorov scale, and it indicates that relative velocities between particles are greater than previously thought . Relative to biological mechanisms of particle encounter, turbulence therefore plays a role greater than is presently assumed in effecting encounter among particles and also between particles and organisms .
Min-Max Optimization for MIMO Radar Waveform Design With Improved Power Efficiency

Transmit waveform design with power efficiency constraint is a prominent problem for colocated multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) radar. Though there are extensive relevant works in the literature, the existing peak-to-average-power ratio (PAR) constraint is insufficient in controlling the transmit power uniformity and the conventional constant modulus (CM) is imposed on both waveform temporal and spatial dimensions, resulting in an unnecessary loss of degrees of freedom. Thereby, we introduce an individual antenna power control (IAPC) scheme with a new peak-to-valley-power-ratio (PVR) constraint to flexibly control the transmit power uniformity along the spatial dimension. We then devise two min-max waveform designs for shaped transmit beampattern synthesis. To tackle the resultant non-convex problems, we propose a surrogate primal alternating direction method of multipliers (SP-ADMM) to approximately solve a surrogate primal subproblem for PVR projection since the standard ADMM is unable to tackle the intricate primal problems directly. We theoretically prove the convergence behavior of the SP-ADMM. Finally, experiments verify the effectiveness and improved performance of the developed methods against their counterparts, especially in the metric of sidelobe level.
Does Quality of Care (QoC) Perception Influence the Quality of Life (QoL) in Women with Endometriosis? Results from an Italian Nationwide Survey during Covid Pandemic

(1) Background: Endometriosis is a chronic and progressive illness that generates a slew of issues, lowering the quality of life of women. The purpose of this study was to look at the quality of life in women with endometriosis and how it relates to the quality of care. (2) Methods: This study is an online survey performed in Italy during the COVID pandemic using the Italian version of the Health Questionnaire SF-36 and a questionnaire for assessing the quality of care received. (3) Results: 1052 women with a self-reported diagnosis of endometriosis participated in the survey. The mean levels of Physical Component Summary (PCS) and Mental Component Summary (MCS) were 38.89 ± 10.55 and 34.59 ± 11.17, respectively. A total of 77% of women judged the services they received positively, and 51% considered the coordination between healthcare professionals to be satisfactory. The satisfaction index mean was 23.11 ± 4.80. PCS was positively related to Occupation, high educational level, physical activity, and health care satisfaction. MCS was positively related to higher age, physical activity, and health care satisfaction. (4) Conclusions: The study indicated that satisfaction with health care was a significant predictor of QoL in women with endometriosis, for both physical and mental health.
Acoustic Impedance of Rectangular Tubes

An expression for the acoustic impedance of a section of infinite parallel planes is derived. Measured values of the impedance of long narrow rectangular tubes show good agreement with this theory when an appropriate end correction is used. The theory compares favorably with impedance measurements on short rectangular tubes or slits even when the effective length of the slit is 3.7 times the geometric length.
Outage Probability Analysis of LR-FHSS in Satellite IoT Networks

Long-range frequency-hopping spread spectrum (LR-FHSS) is a promising solution for long-range and dense deployment of Internet of Things (IoT) networks since it can provide a significant capacity improvement compared to the conventional Aloha-based chirp spread spectrum (CSS). In this letter, we present an analytical approach for deriving the outage probability of LR-FHSS in a satellite-based IoT network taking into account the noise, channel fading impairments, and more importantly, the capture effect. The obtained analytical expressions are validated with computer simulations and show that for a typical target outage probability of 10−2, exploiting LR-FHSS in the considered system model can serve up to 60, 000 and 120, 000 end devices per hour for 48 bytes of information using two specified data rates in the North America region. These numbers present significant capacity increases over the conventional low-power long-range (LoRa) network.
Research on Observability of Non-Maneuvering Target Tracking Based on Multiple Observers Range-only

Analysis on observability of tracking system is the premise and basis of target tracking. Only if the observable condition is fulfilled could the system have correct solution and the effective tracking of target could be realized. Aiming at the nonlinear characteristic of non-maneuvering target tracking system based on multiple observers range-only, the observable condition of judging for this system could be obtained and the correctness of the conclusion is verified by simulation.
Multiple choice bifurcations as a source of unpredictability in dynamical systems

Most of the nonlinear systems are characterized by the coexistence of at least two attractors in some regions of the phase space. In this Brief Report, we present an example of a system which exhibits types of bifurcations in which multiple coexisting attractors are created or destroyed simultaneously. The main feature of these bifurcations is that they lead to unpredictable behavior of trajectories when a system parameter is slowly varied through the bifurcation point.
Quadratic division algebras

In this paper we shall investigate the structure of quadratic division algebras over an arbitrary field of characteristic not two. It is shown first that a quadratic algebra may be decomposed into a copy of the field and a skew-commutative algebra with a bilinear form. The standard theory of quadratic forms then rules out the existence of quadratic division algebras over some fields and imposes limitations on its structure over others. It is proved that no quadratic division algebra of order 3 exists over any field, and all quadratic division algebras of order 4 over an arbitrary field F are found in terms of the structure of the quadratic forms over F. If D is a finitely generated quadratic division algebra in which every two elements not in the same subalgebra of order 2 generate a subalgebra of order 4, it is shown that D has order 2", and the multiplication table of the skew-commutative algebra associated with such an algebra of order 8 is determined in terms of eight parameters. This gives a new class of division algebras of order 8 over any (formally) real field, and shows that any quadratic division algebra of order 4 over a real closed field may be embedded in a quadratic division algebra of order 8.
A consistency result in general censoring models

In this paper we prove a consistency result for sieved maximum likelihood estimators of the density in general random censoring models with covariates. The proof is based on the method of functional estimation. The estimation error is decomposed in a deterministic approximation error and the stochastic estimation error. The main part of the proof is to establish a uniform law of large numbers for the conditional log-likelihood functional, by using results and techniques from empirical process theory.
Numerical studies of physiological pulsatile flow through constricted tube

A detailed analysis on the characteristics of laminar flow over a bell‐shaped stenosis for a physiological pulsatile flow is presented in this study. In order to have a good understanding of the physiological pulsatile flow, a comparison of the numerical solutions to three types of pulsatile flows, including a physiological flow, an equivalent pulsatile flow and a pure sinusoidal flow, are made in this work. The comparison shows that the flow behavior cannot be properly estimated if the equivalent or simple pulsatile inlet flow is used in the study of flow fields through stenosed arteries instead of actual physiological one. Then the physiological pulsatile flow is further studied by considering the effect of constriction ratio of stenosis, Womersley number and Reynolds number on the flow behavior through stenosed arteries. The analysis shows that the variation of these flow parameters puts significant impacts on the pulsatile flow field for the physiological flow.
Prices and Sensitivities of Barrier and First-Touch Digital Options in Levy-Driven Models

We present a fast and accurate FFT-based method of computing the prices and sensitivities of barrier options and first-touch digital options on stocks whose log-price follows a Levy process. The numerical results obtained via our approach are demonstrated to be in good agreement with the results obtained using other (sometimes fundamentally different) approaches that exist in the literature. However, our method is computationally much faster (often, dozens of times faster). Moreover, our technique has the advantage that its application does not entail a detailed analysis of the underlying Levy process: one only needs an explicit analytic formula for the characteristic exponent of the process. Thus our algorithm is very easy to implement in practice. Finally, our method yields accurate results for a wide range of values of the spot price, including those that are very close to the barrier, regardless of whether the maturity period of the option is long or short.
The Role of Long Noncoding RNA (lncRNAs) Biomarkers in Renal Cell Carcinoma

Renal cell carcinoma is one of the common cancers whose incidence and mortality are continuously growing worldwide. Initially, this type of tumour is usually asymptomatic. Due to the lack of reliable diagnostic markers, one-third of ccRCC patients already have distant metastases at the time of diagnosis. This underlines the importance of establishing biomarkers that would enable the prediction of the disease’s course and the risk of metastasis. LncRNA, which modulates genes at the epigenetic, transcriptional, and post-transcriptional levels, appears promising. The actions of lncRNA involve sponging and sequestering target miRNAs, thus affecting numerous biological processes. Studies have confirmed the involvement of RNAs in various diseases, including RCC. In this review, we focused on MALAT1 (a marker of serious pathological changes and a factor in the promotion of tumorigenesis), RCAT1 (tumour promoter in RCC), DUXAP9 (a plausible marker of localized ccRCC), TCL6 (exerting tumour-suppressive effects in renal cancer), LINC00342 (acting as an oncogene), AGAP2 Antisense1 (plausible predictor of RCC progression), DLEU2 (factor promoting tumours growth via the regulation of epithelial-mesenchymal transition), NNT-AS1 (sponge of miR-22 contributing to tumour progression), LINC00460 (favouring ccRCC development and progression) and Lnc-LSG1 (a factor that may stimulate ccRCC metastasis).
Gamification Techniques in Teaching and Learning Exploratory Courses in Technology and Livelihood Education: A Phenomenological Study

The traditional teaching method has been employed in the educational system for a long time and requires no active engagement from the students, making lessons challenging to comprehend. The use of gamification techniques in learning, on the other hand, removes the formalities of learning and allows learners to learn while having fun. This qualitative phenomenological study aimed to investigate the students' perspective on using gamification techniques in teaching and learning exploratory courses in Technology and Livelihood Education. The study explored the game experiences of 7 participants who experienced and were affected by using gamification techniques in education. This study used the Modified Stevick-Colaizzi-Keen phenomenological method of data analysis to examine the participants' transcripts. Analysis of the data gathered during the interviews developed four themes: 1) Connect Building relationships; 2) Change: Traditional schooling is too formal and Boring; 3) Captivate: Learning is fun when it is linked to memorable experience; 4) Compete: To compete and be recognized. Findings from the study recommended the following: a) educational institutions should consider including the use of gamification techniques in their curriculum to provide students with appropriate learning opportunities; b) researchers and developers can create more engaging resources for students' enjoyment and learning; c) school administrators should consider enrolling teachers in professional development seminars and training linked to gamification approaches; d) future scholars can choose to perform a qualitative and quantitative study on their subject areas to add to the body of knowledge in this understudied field, and e) future study collaborations on the application of gamification approach in teaching and learning can be done with educators from other countries. Keywords: Gamification Techniques; Games; TLE; Exploratory Courses