Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Activated Carbon Coconut Shell as Base of Anode Battery: A Review

Presently, there is a rapid and significant advancement in battery technology. Consequently, there is a concurrent rise in the demand for energy to fulfil every day, industrial, and transportation requirements. A promising avenue for diminishing reliance on non-renewable energy sources is the innovative conversion of waste materials into alternative energy reservoirs. In this context, the conversion of discarded coconut shells into activated carbon emerges as a valuable strategy for fabricating battery anodes. Several constituents, including activated carbon, LiOH, TiO2, and adhesives, can be employed in the production of battery anodes. The amalgamation of activated carbon with LiOH yields an electrical conductivity of 2.064 x 10-3 Sm-1, along with a specific capacitance of 4.46154 F/g for activated carbon derived from coconut shells. Alternatively, other carbon composites exhibit superior electrical conductivity, registering a value of 15.31 x 10-2 Sm-1, accompanied by a specific capacitance of 140.2 F/g. This comprehensive literature review aims to serve as a pivotal resource for selecting optimal raw materials in the synthesis of battery anodes. The result of this review substantiates that activated carbon sourced from coconut shells is one of favourable materials for crafting battery anodes.
Bridging the gap: Issues of transition and continuity from primary to secondary schools in Greece

Although Greek children’s early start with foreign languages is considered an advantage, this seems to be lost in their transition to secondary school. Learners in their first year of secondary education are usually required to repeat work covered in previous years and as a result, they often lose interest in English classes within the state school. This paper aims: (a) to explore the problems related to the lack of continuity in foreign language education between the primary and secondary sector, and (b) to suggest a scheme of teaching and learning which will take into consideration the idiosyncrasies of the Greek educational context.
COMMUNITY FLOOD DISASTER PREPAREDNESS IN FLOOD-PRONE RURAL AND URBAN COMMUNITIES IN KADUNA STATE, NIGERIA

Flood is a common disaster globally with devastating impact. Community flood disaster preparedness is neglected in developing countries, Nigeria inclusive, especially in the rural areas. This study assessed and compared the level of community flood disaster preparedness in flood-prone rural and urban communities in Kaduna State. A mixed method comparative cross-sectional study design and multistage sampling technique and data obtained from 202 household heads in each study group (rural and urban communities) using pretested structured questionnaires, focus group discussions (FGDs), key informant interviews (KIIs) and observational checklist. Multistage sampling technique was used to select the household heads for the quantitative study. Purposive sampling was used to select the community members for the FGDs, the community leaders and staff of Kaduna State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) for the KIIs. The quantitative data was analyzed using SPSS version 23.0. The qualitative data was analysed using content analysis. Majority of both the rural (99.0%) and urban (86.1%) communities were not prepared for flood disaster; 34% and 10% of the rural and urban communities respectively had flood disaster plans. Only 19.3% in the urban communities compared with 1% in the rural communities had early warning systems. There was statistically significant difference on community flood disaster preparedness between the urban and rural communities (p =0.001). Overall, the flood preparedness in both rural and urban communities was very poor, though slightly better in the urban communities. There is need for training of the communities by the relevant stakeholder such as SEMA on flood disaster preparedness.
Oversampled-Based Approach to Overcome Imbalance Data in the Classification of Apple Leaf Disease with SMOTE

Research on the detection of apple leaf disease has been developed. Various methods have been carried out to detect apple leaf disease, one of which is by processing digital images. In this study, the author proposes the Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) algorithm as a feature extractor and classifier of apple leaf images. CNN was chosen because it can apply learning and classification effective and automated image features than traditional feature extraction methods. The dataset used is Plant Pathology 2020 - FGV C7. In this dataset, it was found that the image size varies greatly from the entire dataset or often referred to as data imbalance. In this study, the oversampling technique was successfully applied to handle the uneven distribution of data (imbalanced) and achieved a good evaluation result. The oversampling approach method used is Synthetic Minority Oversampling Technique (SMOTE). The number of imbalanced images is carried out by SMOTE pre-processing to produce balanced data. The CNN algorithm is trained on training data and performance testing on test data with a ratio of 70:30 of the total data. The learning model on the network structure can achieve an accuracy of 92% with data that has been oversampled.
Phytoplankton Abundance Constrains Planktonic Energy Subsidy to Benthic Food Web

Linkages across habitats between habitats are fundamental components of ecological processes. As a major characteristic of within-lake food webs, linkage of benthic and planktonic food webs has received a great deal of attention in recent aquatic studies. However, planktonic energy subsidy to benthic consumers has been infrequently tested in experiment. In a field experiment manipulating nutrients and phytoplankton abundance, we ask how changes in phytoplankton abundance affect planktonic energy subsidy to benthic primary consumers across nutrient levels. Our results suggest that the planktonic subsidy to benthic primary consumers depends on the phytoplankton abundance. Furthermore, highly taxon-specific planktonic energy subsidy to benthic primary consumers suggests that the benthic community composition partially determines the degree of the planktonic-benthic linkage. Because shallow and eutrophic lakes distribute worldwide, and many ecological functions are mediated by planktonic-benthic linkage, it will be important to consider these findings to protection and restoration of lake ecosystems.
The association between falls and depressive symptoms among older adults: evidence from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study

Background Falls place a heavy burden on older adults and families, and there was little research on the relationship between falls and depressive symptoms among older adults in China. This study is designed to examine the association between falls and depressive symptoms in Chinese older adults. Methods This study was based on 9,539 data sets from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) in 2018. The 10-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale (CESD-10) was used to access depressive symptoms in older adults. A logistic regression model was used to calculate multivariate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for falls and depressive symptoms, adjusted for possible confounders. The Classification and regression tree (CART) demonstrates the prediction of the target variable values based on other variables. Results In this study, 9,539 older people were selected: 60–69 years old accounted for 63.0%, 70–79 years old accounted for 29.7%, and 80 years old and above accounted for 7.3%. Male accounted for 49.7% and female for 50.3%. The rate of falls among older adults was 21.4%, and the rate of depressive symptoms was 33.9%. Adjusted ORs (OR = 1.37, 95% CI: 1.23, 1.53) showed a significant association between falls and depressive symptoms among older adults. Subgroup analysis revealed that this association was statistically significant across male (OR = 1.29, 95% CI: 1.23, 1.53) and female (OR = 1.42, 95% CI: 1.23, 1.64), 60–69 aged (OR = 1.38, 95% CI: 1.19, 1.60) and 70–79 aged (OR =1.42, 95% CI: 1.16, 1.74), rural (OR = 1.42, 95% CI: 1.25, 1.61), <15,000 CNY (OR = 1.35, 95% CI: 1.19, 1.54) and more than 25,000 CNY (OR = 1.42, 95% CI: 1.09, 1.85). Additionally, The CART model showed that the probability (73.0%) of falls was highest among older adults with depressive symptoms who self-rated poor health and female gender. Conclusions This cross-sectional study demonstrated a significant association between falls and depressive symptoms in Chinese older adults. The findings provide some evidence and support for risk monitoring, screening for depressive symptoms, and early prevention in the high-risk older population.
Evaluation Of Diode Laser Effectiveness In The Disinfection Of Necrotic Primary Teeth ( An in vivo study)

Background : In recent years, diode laser has been utilized for canal disinfection, however more clinical studies are needed to examine its effect. Aim : This in vivo study was done to assess diode laser effectiveness in the disinfection of necrotic deciduous teeth root canal system. Materials and methods : A Total of 40 lower primary molars in (4-6 years old) patients need root canal therapy were selected, randomly divided into two groups (A, B). In both groups samples from root canal were collected to full working length with the help of sterile paper point for subsequent microbiological examination, then irrigation was done with 5.25% sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) in group A, while in group B NaOCl irrigation was followed by laser irradiation with zolar diode LASER (810 nm), at output power 1watt. Following canal disinfection in both groups, samples were collected and cases were followed up radiographically and clinically. Results : using 1watt 810nm Diode LASER in combination with 5.25% NaOCl did not show statistically significant difference in E. Faecalis count. Also, both groups showed successful clinical and radiographic results after 6months follow up. Conclusions: 5.25% of “NaOCl” effectively reduces E. faecalis count, and no different results was obtained when combined with 810nm, 1watt diode laser.
The Negative Impact of Insulin Resistance/Hyperinsulinemia on Chronic Heart Failure and the Potential Benefits of Its Screening and Treatment

This opinion article highlights the potential alterations caused by insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia on the cardiovascular system and their negative impact on heart failure (HF), and describes the potential benefits of an early screening with consequent prompt treatment. HF is the final event of several different cardiovascular diseases. Its incidence has been increasing over the last decades because of increased survival from ischemic heart disease thanks to improvements in its treatment (including myocardial revascularization interventions) and the increase in life span. In particular, incidence of HF with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) is significantly increasing, and patients with HFpEF often are also affected by diabetes mellitus and insulin resistance (IR), with a prevalence > 45%. Concentric left ventricular (LV) remodeling and diastolic dysfunction are the main structural abnormalities that characterize HFpEF. It is well documented in the literature that IR with chronic hyperinsulinemia, besides causing type 2 diabetes mellitus, can cause numerous cardiovascular alterations, including endothelial dysfunction and increased wall thicknesses of the left ventricle with concentric remodeling and diastolic dysfunction. Therefore, it is conceivable that IR might play a major role in the pathophysiology and the progressive worsening of HF. To date, several substances have been shown to reduce IR/hyperinsulinemia and have beneficial clinical effects in patients with HF, including SGLT2 inhibitors, metformin, and berberine. For this reason, an early screening of IR could be advisable in subjects at risk and in patients with heart failure, to promptly intervene with appropriate therapy. Future studies aimed at comparing the efficacy of the substances used both alone and in association are needed.
The Role of Riverine Bed Roughness, Egg Pocket Location, and Egg Pocket Permeability on Salmonid Redd‐Induced Hyporheic Flows

Salmon spawning activities alter streambed morphology, forming a dune‐shaped egg nest called a redd. The spawning process increases redd sediment hydraulic conductivity, KD, by removing fines, creating an egg pocket with larger sediment grains such that egg pocket hydraulic conductivity, KEP, may be higher than KD. Salmon females may create one or more egg pockets within a single redd. Although the impact of redd shape and KD on redd‐induced hyporheic fluxes has been studied, the effects of streambed roughness, R, egg pocket permeability, and egg pocket location on egg pocket hyporheic fluxes, q‾ep ${\overline{q}}_{ep}$ , (downwelling flows from the stoss side of the redd which may enter egg pockets) have not yet been quantified. This study investigates this knowledge gap with a set of numerical simulations supported by flume experiments. We simulated hyporheic flows for five egg pocket locations, five KEP values from 0.0025 to 0.02 m/s, and 12 rough streambed surfaces. Surface roughness was scaled from a measured streambed surface in two ways—only vertically (R1) and both vertically and horizontally (R2)—with scaling coefficients ranging from 0.5 to 3. The measured streambed surface had a median diameter, D50, of 1 cm and a standard deviation (σD) of 0.77 cm. The results indicate that the dimensionless flux into the egg pocket, q‾ep∗=q‾epKD ${\overline{q}}_{ep}^{\ast }=\frac{{\overline{q}}_{ep}}{{K}_{D}}$ increases noticeably with the downstream distance of egg pockets from the redd pit, and less strongly with KEP∗=KEPKD ${{K}_{EP}}^{\ast }=\frac{{K}_{EP}}{{K}_{D}}$ . The near‐surface downwelling fluxes significantly increase with R1, but only negligibly with R2, and for deeper egg pockets, q‾ep∗ ${\overline{q}}_{ep}^{\ast }$ is minimally impacted by surface roughness. Our results suggest that the typical simplification of a smooth redd surface with a single redd hydraulic conductivity provides a good representation of the interstitial flow within the redd, and the effects of surface roughness and egg pocket hydraulic conductivity on q‾ep∗ ${\overline{q}}_{ep}^{\ast }$ fall within the uncertainty of the egg pocket location.
Sources of microbial contamination in tissue culture laboratories in southwestern Nigeria

Microbial contamination is a constant problem, which often compromise development of all in vitro techniques. This study aimed at investigating the source of microbial contamination in tissue culture laboratories in southwestern Nigeria. Nineteen microbial contaminants (consisting of eleven bacteria and eight fungi) were found associated with the tissue culture plants and the laboratory environments. The bacterial contaminants includes, Pseudomonas flourescens,Escherichia coli, Proteus sp, Micrococcus spp, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, Bacillus subtilis, Corynebacterium sp and Erwinia sp. While Fungi isolates were Alterneria tenius, Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus fumigatus, Cladosporium sp,Saccharomyces sp, Fusarium oxysporum, Rizopus nigricans and Fusarium culmorum. The rate of occurrence of S. aureus, B. cereus, B. subtilis and E. coli were found to be higher (ranging from 36-46%) in human skin than in all other sampled materials. The laboratory walls and tables also harbored most of the contaminating microbes. The laboratory indoor air was found associated with all the contaminating microbes. Key words: Micro-propagation, plant tissue culture, bacterial and fungal isolates, contamination.
The effect of water sprinkling market pigs transported during summer on pig behaviour, gastrointestinal tract temperature and trailer micro-climate

THE EFFECT OF WATER SPRINKLING MARKET PIGS TRANSPORTED DURING SUMMER ON PIG BEHAVIOUR, GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT TEMPERATURE AND TRAILER MICRO-CLIMATE Jessica L. Fox Advisor: University of Guelph, 2013 Professor T. Widowski There has been little research into the use of water cooling methods for pigs during transport to slaughter under conditions of high ambient temperature. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of water sprinkling pigs before departure from the farm and before unloading at the plant on behaviour during transport, unloading and lairage using live and remote observations, and on pig gastrointestinal tract temperature (GTT) and trailer micro-climate measured by data loggers. Above 23C, the use of water sprinkling tended to decrease GTT upon arrival and significantly decreased drinking bouts during lairage. There were no detrimental effects of the water sprinkling on unloading behaviours (e.g. slips and falls) or on trailer micro-climate conditions in terms of temperature, humidity or ammonia. Water sprinkling to wet the skin of pigs can therefore be used to cool pigs during transport and lairage under high ambient temperatures.
Effects of a Web-Based Lifestyle Intervention on Physical Fitness and Health in Physically Inactive Adults: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Web-based lifestyle interventions are a new area of health research. This randomized controlled trial evaluated the effectiveness of an interactive web-based health program on physical fitness and health. N = 189 healthy adults participated in a 12-week interactive (intervention) or non-interactive (control) web-based health program. The intervention provided a web-based lifestyle intervention to promote physical activity and fitness through individualized activities as part of a fully automated, multimodal health program. The control intervention included health information. Cardiorespiratory fitness measured as maximum oxygen uptake (VO2max) was the primary outcome, while musculoskeletal fitness, physical activity and dietary behavior, and physiological health outcomes were assessed as secondary outcomes (t0: 0 months, t1: 3 months, t2: 9 months, t3: 15 months). Statistical analysis was performed with robust linear mixed models. There were significant time effects in the primary outcome (VO2max) (t0–t1: p = 0.018) and individual secondary outcomes for the interactive web-based health program, but no significant interaction effects in any of the outcomes between the interactive and non-interactive web-based health program. This study did not demonstrate the effectiveness of an interactive compared with a non-interactive web-based health program in physically inactive adults. Future research should further develop the evidence on web-based lifestyle interventions.
Explorer Matrix Completion under Interval Uncertainty

Matrix completion under interval uncertainty can be cast as a matrix completion problem with element-wise box constraints. We present an efficient alternating-direction parallel coordinate-descent method for the problem. We show that the method outperforms any other known method on a benchmark in image in-painting in terms of signal-to-noise ratio, and that it provides high-quality solutions for an instance of collaborative filtering with 100,198,805 recommendations within 5 minutes on a single personal computer.
Working in uncertainty: Organizational behavior of contingent college teachers in the Philippines

Several researchers have previously written about factors that contribute to the organizational commitment of employees. However, there are only few empirical studies on the impact of organizational commitment on organizational citizenship behavior (OCB), especially among non-permanent employees and how these behaviors have been impacted by perceived organizational support (POS). This study investigated the contextual relationships of organizational commitment and OCB, along with the mediation effect of POS on those relationships in the context of contingent teachers in Philippine state universities and colleges. A survey was conducted in selected state universities and colleges in the Philippines with contingent teachers for academic year 2019-2020 as respondents. Findings of the study showed that the targeted population generally rate their OCB higher than their organizational commitment or any of the subcategories thereof. They also rated OCB higher than the perceived support that they receive from their given organizations. Results also found that POS, although correlating with OCB, did not mediate any of associated relationships. The results indicate that contingent faculty members develop and maintain commitment to their organizations from sources other than the perceived support that they receive from their organizations.
Linearity of PIN Diode Switch in Both ON-state and OFF-state

This paper focuses on the linearity behaviour of the PIN diode, a highly desirable component for RF switches and limiters. The non-linear behaviour of the PIN diode generates intermodulation in both its ON-state and OFF-state, with the OFF-state typically exhibiting worse behaviour. Despite its importance, the effect of the impedance seen by the PIN diode in determining its linearity behaviour is often overlooked. This paper investigates the effect of impedance on the third input intercept point (IIP3) of the PIN diode in both ON-state and OFF-state, using theoretical and experimental methods. To optimize the impedance seen by the PIN diode, a wideband impedance transformer is developed using a quarter-wavelength transmission line. The experimental results demonstrate a significant improvement of up to 9 dB in IIP3 measurements, with the highest measured IIP3 in both ON-state and OFF-state reaching 87 dBm.
Similarity Analysis of Atmospheric Turbulent Intensity over Grassland Surface of Qinghai-Xizang Plateau

The variance similarities of wind velocity (\%u, v\% and \%w\%), air temperature and air humidity over the grassland surface of Qinghai-Xizang Plateau are analyzed with the data observed in the IOP of GEWEX Asian Monsoon Experiment in Qinghai-Xizang Plateau(GAME/Tibet). In addition, they are compared with the results for the land surface of HEIFE and South China sea surface. Some new concepts about the variance similarity for the high altitude area are obtained.
AsGrad: A Sharp Unified Analysis of Asynchronous-SGD Algorithms

We analyze asynchronous-type algorithms for distributed SGD in the heterogeneous setting, where each worker has its own computation and communication speeds, as well as data distribution. In these algorithms, workers compute possibly stale and stochastic gradients associated with their local data at some iteration back in history and then return those gradients to the server without synchronizing with other workers. We present a unified convergence theory for non-convex smooth functions in the heterogeneous regime. The proposed analysis provides convergence for pure asynchronous SGD and its various modifications. Moreover, our theory explains what affects the convergence rate and what can be done to improve the performance of asynchronous algorithms. In particular, we introduce a novel asynchronous method based on worker shuffling. As a by-product of our analysis, we also demonstrate convergence guarantees for gradient-type algorithms such as SGD with random reshuffling and shuffle-once mini-batch SGD. The derived rates match the best-known results for those algorithms, highlighting the tightness of our approach. Finally, our numerical evaluations support theoretical findings and show the good practical performance of our method.