Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Performance of layered UHPFRC under static and dynamics loads: effects of steel fibers, coarse aggregates and layered structures

The bond relationship between the concrete matrix and steel fiber is a significant factor affecting the performance of UHPFRC. In this chapter, the pullout performances of hooked-end steel fibers embedded in Ultra-High Performance Concrete (UHPC) matrix under various inclination angles are systematically investigated. Pullout load-slip curves are obtained, and experimental observations including complete fiber pullout, fiber breakage and matrix failure are analyzed in detail. The effects of the pullout angle are studied quantitatively by parameter calculations and mechanism analysis. Moreover, a new analytical model for evaluating the snubbing and spalling effects of the hooked-end steel fiber is proposed and validated. It is shown that the influences of the inclination angle on the peak pullout load vary with different fiber diameters and embedded lengths, which are also associated with the occurrences of the fiber breakage and the matrix failure. In addition, optical microscope and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations at mesoscale are performed for the further analysis.
Interaction between an inclined gravity current and a pycnocline in a two-layer stratification

A series of laboratory experiments were conducted to investigate the characteristics of a dense gravity current flowing down an inclined slope into a quiescent two-layer stratification. The presence of the pycnocline causes the gravity current to split and intrude into the ambient at two distinct levels of neutral buoyancy, as opposed to the classical description of gravity currents in stratified media as being either a pure underflow or interflow. The splitting behaviour is observed to be dependent on the Richardson number ($Ri_{\unicode[STIX]{x1D70C}}$) of the gravity current, formulated as the ratio of the excess density and the ambient stratification. For low $Ri_{\unicode[STIX]{x1D70C}}$, underflow is more dominant, while at higher $Ri_{\unicode[STIX]{x1D70C}}$ interflow is more dominant. As $Ri_{\unicode[STIX]{x1D70C}}$ increases, however, we find that the splitting behaviour eventually becomes independent of $Ri_{\unicode[STIX]{x1D70C}}$. Additionally, we have also identified two different types of waves that form on the pycnocline in response to the intrusion of the gravity current. An underflow-dominated regime causes a pycnocline displacement where the speed of the wave crest is locked to the gravity current, whereas an interflow-dominated regime launches an internal wave that moves much faster than the gravity current head or interfacial intrusion.
Control of a Modular Multilevel Matrix Converter for Unified Power Flow Controller Applications

The modular multilevel matrix converter has been proposed as a suitable option for high power applications such as flexible AC transmission systems. Among flexible AC transmission systems, the unified power flow controller stands out as the most versatile device. However, the application of the modular multilevel matrix converter has not been thoroughly analyzed for unified power flow controller applications due to the sophisticated control systems that are needed when its ports operate at equal frequencies. In this context, this paper presents a cascaded control structure for a modular multilevel matrix converter based unified power flow controller. The control is implemented in a decoupled reference frame, and it features proportional-integral external controllers and internal proportional multi-resonant controllers. Additionally, the input port of the modular multilevel matrix converter is regulated in grid-feeding mode, and the output port is regulated in grid-forming mode to provide power flow compensation. The effectiveness of the proposed vector control system is demonstrated through simulation studies and experimental validation tests conducted with a 27-cell 5 kW prototype.
Experiences of Study Exchange Program in Australia from Asian Nursing Students` Perspectives

Exchange programs are an important educational activity for student nurses. Each year, eight student nurses from a Taiwan University are chosen to go to Brisbane, Australia for one month as part of an exchange program. At the nursing exchange program, they not only attended labs, tutorials, simulations, lectures, and workshops, but also visited hospitals and aged care facilities. An explorative and descriptive approach was used to examine the experiences of eight student nurses. Four categories emerged from the analysis: 1) “Help from friendly environment,” 2) “having eye-opening experiences,” 3) “feeling home sick,” and 4) “feeling culture shock. ” Although several studies have found similar findings, no recent studies discussing the experiences of Asian students in exchange programs in Western countries were found. The findings provide potential insight into the Asian students’ experiences of exchange programs in Western countries. Nurse educators can consider these perspectives in planning educational exchange program in the future and inform future potential participants what to expect during the program.
Sustainable Urban form and challenges of open space utilization, Akure, Nigeria as a case study

ABSTRACT Sustainable urbanism is a global issue with a plethora of publications both theoretical and practical. This has been spurred by the encroachment on green open space in the form of development and by extension sprawl. This is now seen as the main cause of risk of chronic diseases in cities, since city dwellers spend much of their time outdoors. Loss of use of green open space has been found to be directly related to residents’ behavior and socio-economic situations. Increased contact with nature, can also increase a sense of community, and can also help to reduce socio-economic inequalities. Since green open spaces are mostly not fully utilized as resources, this paper explores the practical form of encroachment on green open space with adjoining negative consequences on sustainable management in Akure. It, therefore, assesses the rate and extent of urban sprawl using remote sensing and geographic information system techniques, while assessing its health with socio-economic implication on the people. The paper concludes with suggestions on sustainable urbanism to help in governance in the use of green open space as a resource for promoting a healthy environment.
Novel Reconfigurable Negative Group Delay Circuits With Independent Group Delay and Transmission Loss/Gain Control

A novel reconfigurable negative group delay (NGD) circuit based on branch-line coupler is proposed in this article. It consists of two branch-line couplers that are connected by two varactors with different capacitance values. By simply adjusting the capacitance values, both the transmission gain/loss and group delay (GD) values of the proposed circuit can be independently adjusted as desired. Full theoretical analysis has been given to verify the reconfigurable NGD responses. To compensate for the transmission loss, an active NGD circuit is also proposed by inserting two simple amplifiers in the transmission paths. The active circuit can also achieve independent transmission gain/loss and GD by tuning the amplifiers’ gain with fixed capacitance value. Passive and active prototypes were designed, fabricated, and tested to demonstrate the proposed techniques. The experimental results show that NGD of the proposed passive circuit can be adjusted from 0 to −90 ns, while the gain varies from −14 to −53 dB. The GD of active circuit can also be adjusted from 0 to −80 ns, while the gain varies from 17 to −18 dB. These experimental results agree well with simulations.
Continuous blood glucose monitoring and dietary intake in a cohort of children with spinal muscular atrophy type II

Previous studies have documented metabolic abnormalities in individuals with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). This study investigated the impact of diet and fasting on blood glucose levels using a continuous blood glucose monitor (CGM) in conjunction with detailed food diaries in a small cohort (N=8) of children with SMA type II. Children ages 9 to 16 years, without any previous diabetes diagnoses or interventions, participated in the study. The study was completed in two parts; a one-time outpatient visit and a 4day at-home portion. During the outpatient visit, fasting insulin, fasting glucose, and hemoglobin A1c (HgA1c) laboratory tests were obtained and the CGM was inserted. Anthropometric measurements including height, weight, triceps skin fold, and assessment of body composition using bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) were collected. Following the outpatient visit, participants tracked dietary intake and maintained the CGM for 4 days at home. For 1 day of the study, participants consumed a prescribed specialized diet comprised of 45.6% of total caloric intake from carbohydrates and adequate fiber intake (26.4g). Data analysis was both descriptive and exploratory. Seven of 8 participants were overfat according to BIA analysis. Although not statistically significant, blood glucose variation decreased 0.50 mg/dL for every gram of fiber consumed. Upon visual analysis, dietary intervention seemed to have a moderating effect on blood glucose levels of participants with varying metabolic control, as indicated by homeostatic model assessment for insulin resistance calculations. Additionally,
Student Enthusiasm as a Key Determinant of Their Performance

This paper investigates students enthusiasm and their performance over the programme they were given using 400 observations of new students from faculty of management and social sciences Using OLS motivation the results indicate that number of peers positively influence their performance while change of student programme by university management negatively affect their performance We therefore recommend a free will option to be given to students to choose any programme of their choice and as well move with peers that will positively impact on their performance
Carbon Information Disclosure Practice in Indonesia: A Comprehensive Study from Manufacturing and Mining Industry

This research aims to provide an overview about the carbon information practice in Indonesia, particularly in manufacturing and mining industry. The sample of this research was the manufacturing companies and mining companies which listed in SRI-KEHATI Index and participated in SRA Award. This research examined the important factors to support the carbon information practice. Using the multiple analysis regression, this research has found the internal factors and the external factors to support the company’s management disclose their carbon information. The variables in this research are environmental management system, the institutional ownership, stakeholder’s pressure, the company’s sustainability profile, and the company’s size as the independent variables. This research found that the environmental management system and the company’s size are the important factors that support the companies to disclose their carbon emissions disclosure. The result of this research can give the biggest contribution to develop the practice of carbon information disclosure for the companies in Indonesia. Keywords—carbon information disclosure, company’s sustainability profile, company’s size, environmental management system, institutional ownership, stakeholder’s pressure.
Moderating Effects of Learning Climate on the Impact of RN Staffing on Medication Errors

Background—Despite increasing recognition of the significance of learning from errors, little is known about how learning climate contributes to error reduction. Objectives—To investigate whether learning climate moderates the relationship between errorproducing conditions and medication errors. Method—A cross-sectional descriptive study was done using data from 279 nursing units in 146 randomly selected hospitals in the United States. Error-producing conditions included work environment factors (work dynamics and nurse mix), team factors (communication with physicians and nurses’ expertise), personal factors (nurses’ education and experience), patient factors (age, health status, and previous hospitalization), and medication-related support services. Poisson models with random effects were used with the nursing unit as the unit of analysis. Results—A significant negative relationship was found between learning climate and medication errors. It also moderated the relationship between nurse mix and medication errors: When learning climate was negative, having more registered nurses was associated with fewer medication errors, and this relationship trended towards significance. However, no relationship was found between nurse mix and medication errors at either positive or average levels of learning climate. Learning climate did not moderate the relationship between work dynamics and medication errors. Discussion—The way nurse mix affects medication errors depends on the level of learning climate. Nursing units with fewer registered nurses and frequent medication errors should examine their learning climate. Future research should be focused on the role of learning climate as related to the relationships between nurse mix and medication errors.
On Implementing Optimal Energy Management for EREV Using Distance Constrained Adaptive Real-Time Dynamic Programming

Extended range electric vehicles (EREVs) operate both as an electric vehicle (EV) and as a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV). As a hybrid, the on-board range extender (REx) system provides additional energy to increase the feasible driving range. In this paper, we evaluate an experimental research EREV based on the 2016 Chevrolet Camaro platform for optimal energy management control. We use model-in-loop and software-in-loop environments to validate the data-driven power loss model of the research vehicle. A discussion on the limitations of conventional energy management control algorithms is presented. We then propose our algorithm derived from adaptive real-time dynamic programming (ARTDP) with a distance constraint for energy consumption optimization. To achieve a near real-time functionality, the algorithm recomputes optimal parameters by monitoring the energy storage system’s (ESS) state of charge deviations from the previously computed optimal trajectory. The proposed algorithm is adaptable to variability resulting from driving behavior or system limitations while maintaining the target driving range. The net energy consumption evaluation shows a maximum improvement of 9.8% over the conventional charge depleting/charge sustaining (CD/CS) algorithm used in EREVs. Thus, our proposed algorithm shows adaptability and fault tolerance while being close to the global optimal solution.
THE USE OF POWERPOINT AS MEDIA OF LANGUAGE TEACHING ON STUDENTS’ SPEAKING SKILL

Purpose of the study: Powerpoint is one of the communication tools which used to presenting learning material, and this article aims to know the use of PowerPoint as media that can improve students’ speaking skill. Methodology: The researcher uses the Pre-experimental method one group Pretest-Posttest design by regulating pretest to measure the subordinate variable, test treatment, and regulating posttest. Main Findings: The result shows that posttest frequency is higher than pretest frequency by compering median 12.6> 12.2. it means that PowerPoint provides video, audio, animation, slideshow, etc. can improve students’ speaking skills. Applications of this study: The population in this research are all of the students of MA Al-Asyhar Bungah Gresik with 20 social learners and 23 science learners class. Novelty/Originality of this study: Media makes the students more understand, the instructor must prepare the exciting material, by using interesting media it helps students more understand. Because the use of media will stimulate students' understanding, the teacher can use interested and straightforward media which can make them focus on the material.
Morphological and phylogenetic studies of Pleopunctum gen. nov. (Phaeoseptaceae, Pleosporales) from China

A new hyphomycete genus, Pleopunctum, is introduced to accommodate two new species, P. ellipsoideum sp. nov. (type species) and P. pseudoellipsoideum sp. nov., collected from decaying wood in Guizhou Province, China. The genus is characterized by macronematous, mononematous conidiophores, monoblastic conidiogenous cells and muriform, oval to ellipsoidal conidia often with a hyaline, elliptical to globose basal cell. Phylogenetic analyses of combined LSU, SSU, ITS and TEF1α sequence data of 55 taxa were carried out to infer their phylogenetic relationships. The new taxa formed a well-supported subclade in the family Phaeoseptaceae and basal to Lignosphaeria and Thyridaria macrostomoides. Divergence time estimation based on LSU, SSU and TEF1α sequence data was performed to provide additional evidence for the establishment of Phaeoseptaceae, which diverged approximately 88 MYA.
A Comparison of Streamflow and Baseflow Responses to Land-Use Change and the Variation in Climate Parameters Using SWAT

Alteration of land use and climate change are among the main variables affecting watershed hydrology. Characterizing the impacts of climate variation and land use alteration on water resources is essential in managing watersheds. Thus, in this research, streamflow and baseflow responses to climate and land use variation were modeled in two watersheds, the Upper West Branch DuPage River (UWBDR) watershed in Illinois and Walzem Creek watershed in Texas. The variations in streamflow and baseflow were evaluated using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) hydrological model. The alteration in land use between 1992 and 2011 was evaluated using transition matrix analysis. The non-parametric Mann–Kendall test was adopted to investigate changes in meteorological data for 1980–2017. Our results indicate that the baseflow accounted for almost 55.3% and 33.3% of the annual streamflow in the UWBDR and Walzem Creek watersheds, respectively. The contribution of both land use alteration and climate variability on the flow variation is higher in the UWBDR watershed. In Walzem Creek, the alteration in streamflow and baseflow appears to be driven by the effect of urbanization more than that of climate variability. The results reported herein are compared with results reported in recent work by the authors in order to provide necessary information for water resources management planning, as well as soil and water conservation, and to broaden the current understanding of hydrological components variation in different climate regions.
Degenerate equations in a diffusion–precipitation model for clogging porous media

In this article, we consider diffusive transport of a reactive substance in a saturated porous medium including variable porosity. Thereby, the evolution of the microstructure is caused by precipitation of the transported substance. We are particularly interested in analysing the model when the equations degenerate due to clogging. Introducing an appropriate weighted function space, we are able to handle the degeneracy and obtain analytical results for the transport equation. Also the decay behaviour of this solution with respect to the porosity is investigated. There a restriction on the decay order is assumed, that is, besides low initial concentration also dense precipitation leads to possible high decay. We obtain nonnegativity and boundedness for the weak solution to the transport equation. Moreover, we study an ordinary differential equation (ODE) describing the change of porosity. Thereby, the control of an appropriate weighted norm of the gradient of the porosity is crucial for the analysis of the transport equation. In order to obtain global in time solutions to the overall coupled system, we apply a fixed point argument. The problem is solved for substantially degenerating hydrodynamic parameters.
Acidic pH reduces Vibrio cholerae motility in mucus by weakening flagellar motor torque

Intestinal mucus is the first line of defense against intestinal pathogens. It acts as a physical barrier between the epithelial tissues and luminal microbes. Enteropathogens, such as Vibrio cholerae, must compromise or circumvent the mucus barrier to establish a successful infection. We investigated how motile V. cholerae is able to penetrate mucus using single cell tracking in unprocessed porcine intestinal mucus. We found that changes in pH within the range of what has been measured in the human small intestine indirectly affect V. cholerae flagellar motor torque, and consequently, mucus penetration. Microrheological measurements indicate that the viscoelasticity of mucus does not change substantially within the physiological pH range and that commercially available mucins do not form gels when rehydrated. Finally, we found that besides the reduction in motor torque, El Tor and Classical biotypes have different responses to acidic pH. For El Tor, acidic pH promotes surface attachment that is mediated by activation of the mannose-sensitive haemagglutinin (MshA) pilus without a measurable change in the total cellular concentration of the secondary messenger cyclic dimeric guanosine monophosphate (c-di-GMP). Overall, our results support that the high torque of V. cholerae flagellar motor is critical for mucus penetration and that the pH gradient in the small intestine is likely an important factor in determining the preferred site of infection. Author summary The diarrheal disease cholera is still a burden for populations in developing countries with poor sanitation. To develop effective vaccines and prevention strategies against Vibrio cholerae, we must understand the initial steps of infection leading to the colonization of the small intestine. To infect the host and deliver the cholera toxin, V. cholerae has to penetrate the mucus layer protecting the intestinal tissues. However, V. cholerae’s interactions with intestinal mucus has not been extensively investigated. In this report, we demonstrate using single cell tracking that V. cholerae is able to penetrate native intestinal mucus using flagellar motility. In addition, we found that a strong motor torque is required for mucus penetration and, that torque is weakened in acidic environments even though the motor is powered by a sodium potential. This finding has important implications for understanding the dynamics of infection because pH varies significantly along the small intestine, between individuals, and between species. Blocking mucus penetration by interfering with V. cholerae’s flagellar motility, reinforcing the mucosa, controlling intestinal pH, or manipulating the intestinal microbiome, will offer new strategies to fight cholera.