Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Error Analysis of Multirate Leapfrog-Type Methods for Second-Order Semilinear Odes

This code was used for the numerical experiments in the preprint (CRC Preprint 2021/26; URL: https://www.waves.kit.edu/downloads/CRC1173_Preprint_2021-26.pdf) and in the paper "Error analysis of multirate leapfrog-type methods for second-order semilinear odes" by C. Carle and M. Hochbruck.
ACEIs or ARBs are safe in patients with COVID-19 results of a prospective study on a hospital based cohort

For more than 15 months COVID-19 pandemics has been devastating the entire globe, with about 145 million confirmed cases, causing more than 3 million deaths and leaving a proportion of affected people with long lasting or permanent disability [1]. After binding to ACE 2 surface receptor which is widely represented in the respiratory epithelial cells, Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) enters the pulmonary alveoli and may evoke a complex catastrophic immune reaction, the so-called cytokine storm, in about one fifth of infected patients, which ultimately leads to the systemic involvement of multiple organs, particularly muscles, heart and kidney [2]. This heavy burden is particularly frequent in elderly patients in whom case fatality rate may exceed 20% [3,4]. Elderly patients are more often hypertensive [5] and on treatment with Renin Angiotensin System (RAS) inhibitors, namely Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors (ACEIs) and Angiotensin Receptor Inhibitors (ARBs). These drugs may increase the expression of ACE2 receptors which in turn could promote SARS-CoV-2 entry into the cell. As a consequence, the overall increased severity of COVID-19 in older patients might derive at least in part by the use of RAS inhibitors. To address this issue we conducted a prospective study in consecutive Covid 19 patients presenting at the Emergency Department of a Community Hospital with the aim of comparing clinical outcome in hypertensive patients taking ACEIs or ARBS as compared to hypertensive patients taking other drugs. Materials and Methods
The Role of Formal Social Support to Students in the Context of the Social Dimension of Higher Education / Uloga formalne socijalne podrške studentima u kontekstu socijalne dimenzije visokoga obrazovanja

This paper aims to present the development of the social dimension of higher education and the importance of developing social support through competent and professional counselling for students. The establishment of the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) and the social dimension of higher education dedicated to student support, ensued from the acknowledged need to advance higher education in the European Union. Along with different measures of student support (such as financial aid, streamlined administrative requirements for admission, institutional support in housing, transportation, food, and health care), social support services, such as guidance and counselling, equally represent a significant aspect of the social dimension. Dedicated institutional structures provide formal social support such as student counselling centres, which offer individual or group counselling and support students in overcoming the challenges of the academic experience. Finally, the activities concerning the social dimension of higher education focus on vulnerable groups, as well as the role and the importance of further developing counselling support at higher education institutions in Croatia. Keywords: counselling, higher education system; students --- Cilj je rada prikazati razvoj socijalne dimenzije visokoga obrazovanja te važnost razvoja socijalne podrske kroz strucno i profesionalno savjetovanje namijenjeno studentima. Svijest o potrebi unaprjeđenja visokoga obrazovanja u Europskoj uniji vodila je utemeljenju jedinstvenoga podrucja europskoga obrazovanja tzv. EHEA (European High Educatian Area) i unutar njega, posebnoga podrucja koje se bavi podrskom studiranju kroz tzv. socijalnu dimenziju visokoga obrazovanja. Uz razlicite mjere pomoci studentima u vidu financijskih potpora, jednostavnijih i olaksanih administrativnih pravila upisa, institucijske podrske u vidu stanovanja, prijevoza, hrane i zdravstvene pomoci. Važan dio te socijalne dimenzije odnosi se na usluge pružanja socijalne podrske u smislu usmjeravanja i savjetovanja. Formalna socijalna podrska ostvaruje se preko specijaliziranih institucionalnih usluga kao sto su studentska savjetovalista koja nude usluge individualnoga ili grupnoga savjetovanja i pomagana studentima u prevladavanju izazova na koje nailaze u akademskom životu. Zakljucno rad kroz socijalnu dimenziju visokoga obrazovanja stavlja fokus na ranjive skupine te ulogu i važnost daljnjega razvoja savjetovalisne podrske na visokim ucilistima u Hrvatskoj. Kljucne rijeci: savjetovanje; studenti; sustav visokoga obrazovanja
Factor Investment: Evaluating Persistence Effect for Investment Performance and Sustainability Exposure

This research includes two separate studies. The first study is devoted to evaluating the persistence effect by analyzing performances of portfolios ranked based on previous performances under various factor models. The result shows that the shorter the holding period, the stronger the predictability and that the Multi-factor model has the highest explaining power for the excess return regarding the underlying factors. The second study is devoted to exploring how sustainable investing influences alpha by introducing a new sustainable factor to reflect the premium due to exposure to sin industries. The study result shows that there is no significant alpha associated with sustainable investing and that there is no significant return differential between funds that have high/low exposure to the sustainable factor.
Accuracy-Risk Trade-Off Due to Social Learning in Crowd-Sourced Financial Predictions

A critical question relevant to the increasing importance of crowd-sourced-based finance is how to optimize collective information processing and decision-making. Here, we investigate an often under-studied aspect of the performance of online traders: beyond focusing on just accuracy, what gives rise to the trade-off between risk and accuracy at the collective level? Answers to this question will lead to designing and deploying more effective crowd-sourced financial platforms and to minimizing issues stemming from risk such as implied volatility. To investigate this trade-off, we conducted a large online Wisdom of the Crowd study where 2037 participants predicted the prices of real financial assets (S&P 500, WTI Oil and Gold prices). Using the data collected, we modeled the belief update process of participants using models inspired by Bayesian models of cognition. We show that subsets of predictions chosen based on their belief update strategies lie on a Pareto frontier between accuracy and risk, mediated by social learning. We also observe that social learning led to superior accuracy during one of our rounds that occurred during the high market uncertainty of the Brexit vote.
Monotonicity in inverse scattering for Maxwell's equations

A recent area of research in inverse scattering theory has been the study of monotonicity relations for the eigenvalues of far field operators and their use in shape reconstruction for inverse scattering problems. We develop such monotonicity relations for an electromagnetic inverse scattering problem governed by Maxwell's equations, and we apply them to establish novel rigorous characterizations of the shape of scattering objects in terms of the corresponding far field operators. Along the way we establish the existence of electromagnetic fields that have arbitrarily large energy in some prescribed region, while at the same time having arbitrarily small energy in some other prescribed region. These localized vector wave functions not only play an important role in the proofs of the novel monotonicity based shape characterizations but they are also of independent interest. We conclude with some simple numerical demonstrations of our theoretical results.
Rhizospheric rhizobia with potential as biofertilizers from Cuban rice cultivars

Rice biofertilization with Rhizobium increases the growth and yield of the crop. However, evidence for this has not been observed in Cuban rice cultivars. This research aimed to typify two Rhizobium isolates, considering the use of different carbon sources, their tolerance to stress conditions, and the ability to promote the growth and development of rice. Two Rhizobium sp. isolates (Rpr11 and 5P1) were used and their facility to grow on different carbon sources, pH, and salinity levels was determined. The effect of the inoculation of these bacteria on the growth and yield of rice was evaluated under controlled, greenhouse, and field conditions. Both isolates grew on mannitol, glycerol, maltose, and fructose at the highest concentrations of NaCl (1.0, 1.5 and 2.0%). The isolate 5P1 grew at all evaluated pH levels, especially at pH 5.0 and pH 8.0. The inoculation of both isolates increased the plant biomass and the potassium content. The plants inoculated with 5P1 had the highest contents of nitrogen, total chlorophyll, carbohydrates and proteins, and grain yield. This study is the first in Cuba that shows the beneficial effect of Rhizobium inoculation on the physiology and yield of rice.
Development of Wearable Heart Sound Collection Device

In recent years, the mortality rate of cardiovascular diseases and the younger generation have attracted people's attention. At the same time, there is an increasing demand for devices that can monitor the physiological parameters of the heart. In this research, a wearable devices was designed and developed for heart sound collection. Microphones wrapped in urethane resin holders were directly fixed on the vest for heart sound collection. The device has received many positive reviews in terms of comfort. The cumulative contribution rate of the two common factors (material factor and clothing design factor) obtained through factor analysis was 75.371%, which was the main factor affecting the experience of using the device. Finally, the heart sounds of 11 healthy young people were collected and input into the completed convolutional neural network for detection, and an accuracy rate of 71.3% was obtained. Therefore, it can be concluded that the device improves the user experience and has a good effect on heart sound collection and detection.
An extract of hops (Humulus lupulus L.) modulates gut peptide hormone secretion and reduces energy intake in healthy weight men: a randomised, cross-over clinical trial

Background: Gastrointestinal enteroendocrine cells express a range of chemosensory receptors involved in detecting the chemical composition of food during digestion. These receptors, including bitter taste receptors (T2Rs), may play an important role in regulating gut function and appetite. Objective: To establish the ability of Amarasate(R), a bitter supercritical CO2 extract of hops (Humulus lupulus L.) to modify acute energy intake, appetite and hormonal responses and establish a site of action. Design: Nineteen healthy-weight (BMI = 23.5 {+/-} 0.3 kg/m2) male volunteers completed a randomised three-treatment, double blind, cross-over study with a 1 week washout between treatments. Overnight-fasted participants were cannulated and provided with a standardised 2 MJ breakfast meal. Treatments comprised a vehicle control (Placebo) or hops extract administered in either quick release (Gastric) or delayed release (Duodenal) capsules. Ad libitum energy intake was recorded at an outcome lunch (1200 h) and afternoon snack (1400 h), with blood samples taken and subjective ratings of appetite, gastrointestinal discomfort, vitality, meal palatability and mood assessed throughout the day. Results: Compared with placebo, both gastric and duodenal treatments significantly reduced total ad libitum energy intake by 911 {+/-} 308 kJ and 944 {+/-} 309 kJ, respectively. Both gastric and duodenal treatments significantly increased pre-meal ghrelin and post-prandial CCK, GLP-1 and PYY responses while reducing postprandial insulin, GIP and PP secretion with no significant impact on glycemia. In addition, gastric and duodenal treatments produced small but significant changes in measures of gastrointestinal discomfort, vitality and mood, with mild-moderate adverse GI symptoms reported in the gastric treatment only. However, no significant treatment effects were observed for any subjective measures of appetite or meal palatability. Conclusion: Both gastric and duodenal delivery of Amarasate modulate the release of hormones involved in appetite and glycaemic regulation, providing a potential bitter brake on energy intake in healthy-weight men.
Biochemical features of organic extractives from Eucalyptus and Corymbia woods using ethanol as a solvent

The objective of this study is to evaluate chemical characteristics, as well as antioxidant and antibacterial activities of organic compounds extracted from three Eucalyptus woods and Corymbia maculate wood using ethanol as a solvent. To obtain the ethanolic extracts, 15 g of a powdered wood sample was mixed with 150 mL of ethyl alcohol 99 % PA by constant mechanical stirring, which was further magnetically mixed at 60 oC for 24 h. The extractives were analyzed by means of percent yield, Fourier-transform infrared spectrum, inhibitory index (measured after antimicrobial tests), antioxidant activity, and condensed tannins content. The Eucalyptus dunnii extract showed the highest percent yield. The infrared spectra of all the extractives presented similar profiles, with remarkable bands ascribed to the presence of lipophilic extracts, sterols, fatty acids, and other hydroxylated substances, such as carbohydrates and phenolic compounds. In all cases, the higher the concentration of the extractive was, the higher the antioxidant activity was. The antioxidant activity of Eucalyptus saligna extract stood out since overcame that of the positive control (ascorbic acid). Regarding the condensed tannins content, that extract from Eucalyptus grandis excelled
Edible film formation and properties from different protein sources and orange coating application

Protein films were made from whey protein, soy protein and egg white protein to determine film water vapor permeability (WVP) and appearance. The optimum pH to form whey protein (WP), soy protein (SP) and egg white protein (EWP)-based films was 6.5-7.5, 7.0-7.4 and 12, respectively. To increase film moisture barrier, WP and SP solutions were heated for 30 min at 90°C and EWP solutions at 45°C followed by the addition of glycerol as plasticizer at 25-35% content (dry weight basis). Protein films were dried at either 70 or 80°C for 2-3 hours. Glycerol content (GC), protein type and drying temperature influenced film WVP. Increasing the GC improves protein molecules movement and increases permeability; while increasing drying temperature causes protein denaturation, which induces tight networks and reduces film permeability. EWP films imparted the highest WVP followed by SP and WP films, respectively. All films showed transparency and the gradient of yellowish appearance depended on protein type and drying temperature. WP coating application on oranges reduced weight loss and respiration rates. These results indicate that different protein types can be formed to provide different properties for coating application on fruit and vegetables. Protein edible coatings have potential to extend shelf-life of fruit and vegetables.
Synthesis of (E,Z)-α-,(Z,Z)-α-, and (Z)-β-farnesene

The three farnesenes (E,Z)-or-, (Z,Z)-or-, and (2)-P- were synthesized from (cis) (2)-nerolidol by dehydration with phosphoryl chloride in pyridine. The i.r. , u.v. , N.M. R. , and mass spectra of the six possible α- and β-farnesenes are compared as well as their behaviour on g.1. c. on several liquid phases. The α-farnesene which predominates in apples was confirmed as being (E,E)-α-farnesene and the minor isomer, previously thought to be (E,Z)-α-farnesene, was shown to be (Z,E)-α- farnesene.
Efficacy and safety of the combination nifuratel-nystatin and clindamycin-clotrimazole, in the treatment of bacterial vaginosis. Randomized controlled clinical trial

Introduction: Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is the most frequent gynecological infection in women of reproductive age, thus driving the search for effective and safe treatments. Objective: To compare the efficacy and safety of the combination nifuratel-nystatin and clindamycinclotrimazole, in the treatment of bacterial vaginosis. Materials and Methods: Randomized controlled clinical trial in 147 single women (18 to 39 years old), non-pregnant and sexually active, with a diagnosis of BV according to the Amsel clinical criteria and the Nugent score; between 2016 and 2018. In a highly complex private clinic in Armenia, Colombia. Women were randomized into two groups: "A" (73 participants: nifuratel (500 mg) - nystatin (100,000 IU) and "B" (74 participants: clindamycin (100 mg) - clotrimazole (200 mg)); both groups were treated with vaginal ovules, "A" for six days and "B" for three days. All participants were followed-up for clinical and microbiological healing at 7 and 30 days, respectively, after completion of treatment, the STATA® 14.0 program was used. Results: The mean age of women was 28.35±5.79 years. The clinical cure rate with the nifuratelnystatin combination was 93.15%, and that of clindamycin-clotrimazole 97.29%, (p=0.123). The microbiological cure rate with the nifuratel-nystatin combination was 87.67%, and that of clindamycin-clotrimazole 93.24%, (p=0.102). Regarding safety, there were also no significant differences between the two groups (p=0.144); Mild adverse reactions were observed. Recurrence in group "A" was 12.32% compared to 6.75% in group "B" (p>0.05). Conclusions: In this study, the combinations nifuratel (500 mg) -nystatin (100,000 IU) and clindamycin (100 mg)-clotrimazole (200 mg), reported that both are equally effective and safe options in the treatment of BV. It is necessary to evaluate the effect and safety of other combinations in order to implement timely interventions. Keywords: Vaginosis; Bacterial; Efficacy; Safety; Nifuratel; Nystatin; Clindamycin; Clotrimazole.
Effects of Plyometric and Short Sprint with Change-of-Direction Training in Male U17 Soccer Players

This project investigated the effect of adding 8 weeks of bi-weekly plyometric and short sprint with change-of-direction (PSSCoD) training into standard training for elite youth soccer players from Tunisia. A training group (n = 18; age: 16.6 ± 0.5 years; body mass: 63.2 ± 4.8 kg; stature: 1.73 ± 0.07 m; body fat: 11.2 ± 1.7%), and control group (n = 16; age: 16.6 ± 0.5 years; body mass: 63.6 ± 4.3 kg; height: 1.73 ± 0.06 m; body fat: 11.6 ± 1.5%) participated. The pre- and post-intervention measures were squat-jump (SJ), countermovement jump (CMJ), standing long jump (SLJ), 5 m and 20 m sprint, change-of-direction ability (4 × 5 m sprint test (S 4 × 5 m)), repeated sprint ability (RSA), and static balance (stork balance test). The training group displayed superior jump (all p < 0.05; d > 0.49), sprint (p < 0.05; d > 0.52), change-of-direction ability (p < 0.01; d = 0.78), RSA (p < 0.01; d > 0.70), and static balance (p < 0.05; d > 0.49) improvements. Adding bi-weekly PSSCoD improves the athletic performance of young soccer players.
Effects of Plurilingual Teaching on Grammatical Development in Early Foreign‐Language Learning

This article reports two intervention studies testing the effects of plurilingual teaching on grammatical development among primary-school students learning English as a foreign language (FL). In a pre– posttest control-group design, more than 200 9–10-year old majority language German and minority language students received plurilingual FL teaching (intervention group) or regular FL-only teaching (control group). Study 1 on the acquisition of wh -questions showed that systematic cross-linguistic comparisons of the FL with the majority language and minority languages facilitate acquisition of object questions. In Study 2 on passives, the intervention and the control groups both demonstrated comparable gains. We suggest that plurilingual teaching has advantages when the majority language differs from the target language (Study 1) yet not when a phenomenon is comparable across languages (Study 2). In neither study did learners show generalization to related grammatical phenomena. Finally, majority language and minority language students did not perform differently, which suggests that plurilingual FL teaching is suitable for all FL learners. These findings demonstrate that plurilingual FL teaching facilitates grammatical development by increasing learners’ awareness of cross-linguistic similarities and differences.
Optimal Taxation of Intermediate Goods in A Partially Automated Society

Recent automating technologies have sparked discussions on “robot taxes,” aimed to dissuade the displacement of labor and to generate revenue to redistribute to displaced laborers. Implementing such taxes is challenging, however, in part because of the difficulty in clearly separating which technologies substitute for labor from those which complement it. Modeling automating technologies as intermediate goods, I consider the optimal tax policy in this environment. As in standard models, non-linear labor taxes are assigned without the knowledge of a laborer’s type. Additionally, due to tax avoidance concerns and arbitrage opportunities, intermediate goods are uniformly and linearly taxed without the knowledge of their complementarity or substitutability with labor. Despite the potential for automating technologies to be complementary to workers, I find that the optimal tax regime includes a strictly positive tax on these intermediate goods. I discuss the implications of these findings for the robustness of robot-tax policy proposals.
Bilinear Parameterization for Non-Separable Singular Value Penalties

Low rank inducing penalties have been proven to successfully uncover fundamental structures considered in computer vision and machine learning; however, such methods generally lead to non-convex optimization problems. Since the resulting objective is non-convex one often resorts to using standard splitting schemes such as Alternating Direction Methods of Multipliers (ADMM), or other subgradient methods, which exhibit slow convergence in the neighbourhood of a local minimum. We propose a method using second order methods, in particular the variable projection method (VarPro), by replacing the nonconvex penalties with a surrogate capable of converting the original objectives to differentiable equivalents. In this way we benefit from faster convergence.The bilinear framework is compatible with a large family of regularizers, and we demonstrate the benefits of our approach on real datasets for rigid and non-rigid structure from motion. The qualitative difference in reconstructions show that many popular non-convex objectives enjoy an advantage in transitioning to the proposed framework.1