Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
DYNAMIC SURFACE DEFLECTION MEASUREMENTS ON RIGID PAVEMENTS COMPARED WITH THE MODEL OF AN INFINITE PLATE ON AN ELASTIC FOUNDATION

The purpose of this study was to develop relations by using the Hertz theory of an infinite plate on a dense fluid subgrade between deflections measured at the point of and away from an applied load and the strength parameters of the pavement. An evaluation procedure was to be developed based on these relations, known pavement characteristics, and dynamic response data collected with the U.S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station (WES) 16-kip vibrator. Deflection relations were established by using a computer program (PCADL) developed by the Portland Cement Association. The deflections were related to the radius of relative stiffness (l), which is a characteristic length dependent on the rigidity of the plate. Maximum stresses were predicted by using the General Dynamics Corporation's H-51 program. From these stresses, a relation was developed between the dynamic stiffness modulus, l, and the allowable single-wheel aircraft load (ASWL). Both destructive and nondestructive vibratory data were collectd on 28 different pavements. Destructive data were used to characterize the pavement material properties and then, by using conventional procedures, to predict the ASWL. Deflection basin data from the WES 16-kip vibrator were used to measure l by using the relations developed from the PCADL program. The study concluded that non-destructive test data can be used with more confidence than previously developed procedures to predict l and ASWL as a function of l.
Comparing the Clinical Characteristics and Mortality of Residential and Non-Residential Older People with COVID-19: Retrospective Observational Study

Nursing homes have accounted for a significant part of SARS-CoV-2 mortality, causing great social alarm. Using data collected from electronic medical records of 1,319,839 institutionalised and non-institutionalised persons ≥ 65 years, the present study investigated the epidemiology and differential characteristics between these two population groups. Our results showed that the form of presentation of the epidemic outbreak, as well as some risk factors, are different among the elderly institutionalised population with respect to those who are not. In addition to a twenty-fold increase in the rate of adjusted mortality among institutionalised individuals, the peak incidence was delayed by approximately three weeks. Having dementia was shown to be a risk factor for death, and, unlike the non-institutionalised group, neither obesity nor age were shown to be significantly associated with the risk of death among the institutionalised. These differential characteristics should be able to guide the actions to be taken by the health administration in the event of a similar infectious situation among institutionalised elderly people.
The Impact of Packaging Interdependent Change Requests on ProjectLead Time

In a complex product development environment with many interdependencies between concurrent design activities, changes occurring during a project can have significant knock-on consequences in due to the rework required. It is thus important to effectively manage change work as it arises, in order to minimise its impact on the project schedule. To help understand how change requests can be most effectively managed in such environments, we explore the impact of batching change requests for concurrent execution. A simulation model is developed which simulates the processing of changes in batches and allows estimation of the impact of the redesign work on the overall project duration. Our model extends state-of-the art by considering how the scope of change requests overlap, such that batching reduces not only co-ordination overheads but also the absolute amount of work that must be done. We show how the model can be used to help managers determine a change request batching policy that will be suitable for a particular product development environment, and compare our findings to other simulations in this area.
THE MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS (MDGS) AND GLOBAL POVERTY: HAVE WE REALLY FAILED?

MDGs was implemented over the period 2000-2015 by the United Nations along with 189 members states to tackle several crucial issues, namely ‘extreme poverty and hunger, universal primary education, gender equality and woman empowerment, child mortality, maternal health, HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, environmental sustainability and globally developmental partnership’ (United Nations 2014). After 2015, the MDGs which was adopted by 189 members states was evaluated by comparing between the MDGs’ targets and its results. By using archival research data, this paper argues that the MDGs have not really failed in fighting against global poverty, because the MDGs showed a global willingness to alleviate numbers of poverty and the MDGs have achieved prominent improvement.
Interpreting tree ensemble machine learning models with endoR

Tree ensemble machine learning models are increasingly used in microbiome science as they are compatible with the compositional, high-dimensional, and sparse structure of sequence-based microbiome data. While such models are often good at predicting phenotypes based on microbiome data, they only yield limited insights into how microbial taxa or genomic content may be associated. Results: We developed endoR, a method to interpret a fitted tree ensemble model. First, endoR simplifies the fitted model into a decision ensemble from which it then extracts information on the importance of individual features and their pairwise interactions and also visualizes these data as an interpretable network. Both the network and importance scores derived from endoR provide insights into how features, and interactions between them, contribute to the predictive performance of the fitted model. Adjustable regularization and bootstrapping help reduce the complexity and ensure that only essential parts of the model are retained. We assessed the performance of endoR on both simulated and real metagenomic data. We found endoR to infer true associations with more or comparable accuracy than other commonly used approaches while easing and enhancing model interpretation. Using endoR, we also confirmed published results on gut microbiome differences between cirrhotic and healthy individuals. Finally, we utilized endoR to gain insights into components of the microbiome that predict the presence of human gut methanogens, as these hydrogen-consumers are expected to interact with fermenting bacteria in a complex syntrophic network. Specifically, we analyzed a global metagenome dataset of 2203 individuals and confirmed the previously reported association between Methanobacteriaceae and Christensenellales. Additionally, we observed that Methanobacteriaceae are associated with a network of hydrogen-producing bacteria. Conclusion: Our method accurately captures how tree ensembles use features and interactions between them to predict a response. As demonstrated by our applications, the resultant visualizations and summary outputs facilitate model interpretation and enable the generation of novel hypotheses about complex systems. An implementation of endoR is available as an open-source R-package on GitHub (https://github.com/leylabmpi/endoR).
Personal and Vicarious Experiences that Shape Incarcerated Youths’ Perceptions of Injustice- Comparing Two Measures

ABSTRACT We compared the relationships between incarcerated youths’ injustice perceptions and demographic variables and personal and vicarious experiences with the justice system using indexes of injustice derived from Matza and Tyler. The two injustice frameworks represent different academic traditions in ways that raise different prospects. Matza contextualizes his formulation of injustice in group processes that emphasize shared neutralization of regulating norms because of injustice. That emphasis is absent in Tyler. Tyler’s work has led to an invariance claim across demographics that is not postulated by Matza. We analyzed data from the Florida Faith and Community-Based Delinquency Treatment Initiative. We found nonwhite youths perceived more injustice as measured by both indexes. In a boys-only subsample, younger boys perceived more injustice measured by the Tyler index. Vicarious exposure via friends’ experiences with police related to higher perceived levels of injustice only on the Matza index. We encourage researchers to be precise in their operationalizations and measurement of injustice perceptions and to consider the theoretical grounding of their research in making injustice measurement choices.
Evaluation of an Augmented Cognitive Behavioural Group Therapy for Perinatal Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The perinatal period is considered a window of vulnerability given the increased risk of psychiatric difficulties during this time, such as mood and anxiety disorders (ADs). Pre-pandemic rates of ADs in perinatal women were one in five but have since increased with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic (COVID). In addition, recent research suggests that the focus of worry has shifted during the pandemic, with perinatal women reporting significantly more COVID-specific worries. The objective of this study was to augment our current evidence-based Cognitive Behavioural Group Therapy (CBGT) for perinatal anxiety protocol by targeting intolerance of uncertainty and tailoring existing strategies to address COVID-related worry and impact. Pregnant (n = 19) and postpartum (n = 49) women were recruited from regular clinic patient flow from a university-affiliated teaching hospital between September 2020 and March 2021. Improvements in generalized anxiety symptoms, worry, intolerance of uncertainty, and mood were observed at post-treatment, maintained at 3-months, and the intervention received high ratings of treatment satisfaction. This is the first study to examine an augmented CBGT for perinatal women with GAD during the pandemic and supports the inclusion of strategies that target intolerance of uncertainty as well as specific pandemic and perinatal worry content for effective outcomes.
Doppler flow phantom failure detection by combining empirical mode decomposition and independent component analysis with short time Fourier transform

Nowadays, objective protocols and criteria for the monitoring of phantoms failures are still lacking in literature, despite their technical limitations. In such a context, the present work aims at providing an improvement of a previously proposed method for the Doppler flow phantom failures detection. Such failures were classified as low frequency oscillations, high velocity pulses and velocity drifts. The novel objective method, named EMoDICA-STFT, is based on the combined application of the Empirical Mode Decomposition (EMD), Independent Component Analysis (ICA) and Short Time Fourier Transform (STFT) techniques on Pulsed Wave (PW) Doppler spectrograms. After a first series of simulations and the determination of adaptive thresholds, phantom failures were detected on real PW spectrograms through the EMoDICA-STFT method. Data were acquired from two flow phantom models set at five flow regimes, through a single ultrasound (US) diagnostic system equipped with a linear, a convex and a phased array probe, as well as with two configuration settings. Despite the promising outcomes, further studies should be carried out on a greater number of Doppler phantoms and US systems as well as including an in-depth investigation of the proposed method uncertainty.
Low-stress PECVD amorphous silicon carbide (α-SiC) layers for biomedical application

A detailed characterization of PECVD to produce low stress amorphous silicon carbide (α-SiC) layers at high deposition rate has been done and the biomedical applications of α-SiC layers are reported in this paper. By investigating different working principles in high-frequency mode (13.56MHz) and in low frequency mode (380KHz), it is found that deposition in high-frequency mode can achieve low stress layers at high deposition rates due to the structural rearrangement from high HF power, rather than the ion bombardment effect from high LF power which results in high compressive stress for α-SiC layers. Furthermore, the effects of deposition temperature, pressure and reactant gas ratios are also investigated and then an optimal process is achieved to produce low stress α-SiC layers with high deposition rates. To characterize the PECVD α-SiC layers from optimized process, a series of wet etching experiments in KOH and HF solutions have been completed. The very low etching rates of PECVD α-SiC layers in these two solutions show the good chemical inertness and suitability for masking layers in micromachining. Moreover, cell culture tests by seeding fibroblast NIH3T3 cells on the monocrystalline SiC, low-stress PECVD α-SiC released membranes and non-released PECVD α-SiC films on silicon substrates have been done to check the feasibility of PECVD α-SiC layers as substrate materials for biomedical applications. The results indicate that PECVD α-SiC layers are good for cell culturing, especially after treated in NH4F.
Variations of Horizontal Stiffness of Laminated Rubber Bearings with Different Boundary Conditions

Base isolation is, in recent times, an accepted design philosophy as an earthquake resistant strategy for structural systems and sensitive instruments. This new design methodology appears to have considerable potential in preventing earthquake damage to structures and their internal equipment. Predicting the behavior of laminated rubber bearings, usually obtained from Haringx's theory, has been developed by many researchers. They have proposed a nonlinear, mechanical model for multilayer elastomeric bearings. However, in past theoretical and experimental studies, the effects of rotation in the bottom and top ends of bearings have been neglected. In this study, an analytical method is presented and formulated by considering the rotation of the top and bottom ends of multilayer rubber bearings, as new boundary conditions. According to these rotations, the horizontal stiffness of laminated rubber bearings, which is the one of the most important characteristics of bearings, will change. Comparisons of theoretical and experimental results show that the present analysis model has a good accuracy for analyzing laminated rubber bearings. Examples are presented to demonstrate the validity of the development method in predicting the horizontal stiffness of laminated elastomeric bearings with specified geometric parameters. The results of this study have shown that the horizontal stiffness of laminated rubber bearings will increase or decrease according different boundary conditions.
Attachment relationship with parents and Taiwanese middle-aged adult children’s filial anxiety: The mediating role of dual filial piety beliefs

Given the aging of the global population, the experience of adult children preparing to care for their aging parents is increasingly valued. In this article, I not only examined the associations between Taiwanese adult children’s attachment relationships with parents and their experience of filial anxiety but also took a psychocultural perspective to explore the mediating role of filial piety, the most representative value in the Chinese family. I collected survey data from 1305 middle-aged Taiwanese adults over 40 years old whose father or mother was alive and over 65 years old. The results from the first model for both father–child and mother–child datasets showed that secure attachment relationships with parents had a significant positive association with adults’ parental-welfare-focused filial anxiety B (FAB) but a significant negative association with their caregiver-role-focused filial anxiety A (FAA). The results from the second analysis indicated that secure attachment relationships with parents, for both father–child and mother–child datasets, had a significant positive association with adults’ endorsement of reciprocal filial piety beliefs, which significantly related to higher levels of FAB but lower levels of FAA. For both the father–child and mother–child datasets, secure attachment relationships with parents also had a significant positive association with their endorsement of authoritarian filial piety beliefs. Subsequently, their endorsement of authoritarian filial piety belief significantly related to a higher level of FAB in only the mother–child dataset. In conclusion, these findings broaden the understanding of adult children’s experience of filial anxiety that could be related to their attachment relationship with parents and their endorsement of reciprocal and authoritarian filial piety.
Cortisol and Dexamethasone Mediate Glucocorticoid Actions in the Lesser Spotted Catshark (Scyliorhinus canicula)

Simple Summary For the first time, glucocorticoid actions of corticosteroids are evidenced in vivo and ex vivo in sharks, highlighting the importance of carbohydrate metabolism in situations of high-energy expenditure in this taxonomical group. Long-term (7 days) in vivo administration of dexamethasone (DEX, a synthetic glucocorticoid) decreased 1α-hydroxycorticosterone (1α-OHB, the main corticosteroid hormone in sharks), while also modified carbohydrates metabolism in liver and white muscle. Short-term (1 to 5 h) ex vivo incubation of liver and muscle explants with cortisol (corticosteroid not present in sharks) and DEX revealed glucose secretion mediated by glucocorticoid receptors (GR), as seen by the employment of mifepristone (a GR inhibitor). Abstract Corticosteroids are hormones produced in vertebrates exerting gluco- and mineralocorticoid actions (GC and MC) mediated by specific receptors (GR and MR, respectively). In elasmobranchs, the major circulating corticosteroid is the 1α-hydroxycorticosterone (1α-OHB). This hormone acts as a MC, but to date its role as a GC has not been established. As there is no 1α-OHB standard available, here we employed a set of in vivo and ex vivo approaches to test GC actions of other corticosteroids in the lesser spotted catshark (Scyliorhinus canicula). Dexamethasone (DEX, a synthetic corticosteroid) slow-release implants decreased plasma 1α-OHB levels after 7 days, and modified carbohydrates metabolism in liver and white muscle (energy stores and metabolic enzymes). In addition, ex vivo culture of liver and white muscle explants confirmed GC actions of corticosteroids not naturally present in sharks (cortisol and DEX) by increasing glucose secretion from these tissues. Dose–response curves induced by cortisol and DEX, altogether with the use of specific GR inhibitor mifepristone, confirmed the involvement of GR mediating glucose secretion. This study highlights the influence of corticosteroids in the glucose balance of S. canicula, though the role of 1α-OHB as a GC hormone in sharks should be further confirmed.
Evidence from ERP and Eye Movements as Markers of Language Dysfunction in Dyslexia

Developmental dyslexia is a complex reading disorder involving genetic and environmental factors. After more than a century of research, its etiology remains debated. Two hypotheses are often put forward by scholars to account for the causes of dyslexia. The most common one, the linguistic hypothesis, postulates that dyslexia is due to poor phonological awareness. The alternative hypothesis considers that dyslexia is caused by visual-attentional deficits and abnormal eye movement patterns. This article reviews a series of selected event-related brain potential (ERP) and eye movement studies on the reading ability of dyslexic individuals to provide an informed state of knowledge on the etiology of dyslexia. Our purpose is to show that the two abovementioned hypotheses are not necessarily mutually exclusive, and that dyslexia should rather be considered as a multifactorial deficit.
Applying Box–Behnken Design for Formulation and Optimization of PLGA-Coffee Nanoparticles and Detecting Enhanced Antioxidant and Anticancer Activities

In an attempt to prove biological activity enhancement upon particle size reduction to the nanoscale, coffee (Cf) was chosen to be formulated into poly(lactic-co-glycolic) acid (PLGA) nanoparticles (NPs) using the single emulsion-solvent evaporation (SE-SE) method via Box–Behnken Design (BBD) to study the impact of certain process and formulation parameters on the particle size and size homogeneity, surface stability and encapsulation efficiency (EE%). The coffee-loaded PLGA (PLGA-Cf) NPs were characterized by different methods to aid in selecting the optimum formulation conditions. The desirable physicochemical characteristics involved small particle sizes with an average of 318.60 ± 5.65 nm, uniformly distributed within a narrow range (PDI of 0.074 ± 0.015), with considerable stability (Zeta Potential of −20.50 ± 0.52 mV) and the highest EE% (85.92 ± 4.01%). The antioxidant and anticancer activities of plain PLGA NPs, pure Cf and the optimum PLGA-Cf NPs, were evaluated using 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl (DPPH) and 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assays, respectively. As a result of nano-encapsulation, antioxidant activity was enhanced by 26.5%. Encapsulated Cf showed higher anticancer potency than pure Cf against different cancerous cell lines with an increase of 86.78%, 78.17%, 85.84% and 84.84% against MCF-7, A-549, HeLa and HepG-2, respectively. The in vitro release followed the Weibull release model with slow and biphasic release profile in both tested pH media, 7.4 and 5.5.
Investigation of the Radiological Risk of Farmlands and the Transfer Factor from Soil to Crops in Jalingo and Wukari L.G.A of Taraba State, Nigeria

The activity concentrations of radionuclides, absorbed dose rate, excess lifetime cancer risk, and soil-to-plant transfer factor have been evaluated in soil and crop samples from Jalingo and Wukari Local Government Area of Taraba State, Nigeria. The activity concentrations were determined with the aid of High Purity Germanium detector. The absorbed dose and excess lifetime cancer risk were evaluated and forecasted for 60 years using the ResRad off-site model. The average activity concentration of 40 K, 232 Th, and 238 U in the soil samples were 633.13, 141.15, and 71.20 Bq∙kg −1 respectively, for the Jalingo study area, and while that of the Wukari study area was; 199.21, 87.23, and 25.37 Bq∙kg −1 respectively. The average soil-to-plant transfer factors for 40 K, 232 Th, and 238 U were 0.51, 0.10, and 0.27 respectively for the Jalingo study area while that of Wukari are 0.40, 0.57, and 0.74 respectively. The mean annual effective dose equivalent for the study area is higher than the world average of 0.07 mS∙vy −1 . The excess lifetime cancer risk for the study areas has values that are higher than the safety limit. The ResRed model showed that direct radiation from the crops is the major contributor to excess cancer risk among other pathways. The radiological hazard indices reveal health risks to farmers, especially in the Jalingo area.