Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Electrical transport and switching in phase change materials

Phase change materials, typically composed out of Ge, Sb and Te alloys, are materials that can switch very fast between two stable states, the amorphous and the crystalline phase. The optical contrast of the two stable phases led to the application in optical data storage such as compact disks (CD), digital versatile disks (DVD) and BlurayTM disk. Due to the pronounced contrast in resistivity between the amorphous and the crystalline phase, phase change materials can also be used in electrical data storage devices. Since the two phases are stable at moderate temperatures, phase change memory is non-volatile, i.e. it does not need a power supply to sustain the information. Additionally, phase change memory is faster than the well-established Flash memory and exhibits a better cyclability and scalability. Therefore, phase change memory has become one of the most promising candidates for future nonvolatile memory applications and also a candidate to bridge the gap between fast dynamic random access memory (DRAM) and slow non-volatile memory types. A precondition for fast switching from the low conductive amorphous phase into the high conductive crystalline phase is a phenomenon called threshold switching. At a characteristic threshold field the amorphous phase becomes highly conductive entering the so called amorphous on-state. Once the phase change memory is in the high conductive amorphous on-state, a high current can flow which enables Joule heating and therefore the phase transition. In fast memory applications like DRAM, threshold switching and the transient dynamics of the amorphous on-state are very important but poorly understood at the present time. Therefore, in this work the switching behavior of phase change materials and the dynamics of the amorphous phase have been studied. Phase change bridge devices of various width and length have been produced using several phase change materials as the active component. A very fast switching material, Ge15Sb85, has been found to switch within 10ns. The pronounced differences (e.g. in crystallization temperature and crystallization speed) between the amorphous-as-deposited and amorphous-as-melt-quenched phases have been studied and explained with a differ-
Characterizing the influence of neutron fields in causing single-event effects using portable detectors

The malfunction of semiconductor devices caused by cosmic rays is known as Single Event Effects(SEEs). In the atmosphere, secondary neutrons are the dominant particles causing this effect. The neutron flux density in atmosphere is very low. For a good statistical certainty, millions of device hours are required to measure the event rate of a device in the natural environment. Event rates obtained in such testings are accurate. To reduce the cost and time of getting the event rate, a device is normally taken to artificial accelerated neutron beams to measure its sensitivity to neutrons. Comparing the flux density of the beam and the flux density of a location in the atmosphere, the real time event rate can be predicted by the event rate obtained. This testing method was standardized as the neutron accelerated soft error rate (ASER) testing in JEDEC JESD89A standard. However, several life testings indicated that the neutron flux density predictions given by the accelerated testings can have large errors. Up to a factor of 2 discrepancy was reported in the literature. One of the major error sources is the equivalence of the absolute neutron flux density in the atmosphere and in accelerated beam. This thesis proposes an alternative accelerated method of predicting the real-time neutron error rate by using proxy devices. This method can avoid the error introduced by the uncertainty in the neutron flux density. The Imaging Single Event Effect Monitor (ISEEM) is one of the proxy devices. It is the instrument originally developed by Z. Torok and his co-workers in the University of Central Lancashire. A CCD was used as the sensitive element to detect neutrons. A large amount of data sets acquired by Torok were used in this work. A re-engineered ISEEM has been developed in this work to improve ISEEM performance in life testings. Theoretical models have been developed to analyze the response of ISEEM in a wide range of neutron facilities and natural environment. The agreement of the measured and calculated cross-sections are within the error quoted by facilities. Because of the alpha contamination and primary proton direct ionization effects, performance of ISEEM in life testings appeared to be weak.
On the deployment of AQM algorithms in the internet

The active queue management algorithms for packet queueing in Internet routers have proven to be beneficial in terms of queue size and delay reduction. Before the wide deployment of the AQM in the Internet it should be checked first if it is beneficial to implement an AQM algorithm on only one router in a large network, composed of many bottlenecks and routers. It is also important to check whether an AQM algorithm implemented on several routers simultaneously can lead to undesired performance degradation, through mutual interactions of several AQM routers. In this paper we try to answer these questions using the newest traffic models designed to AQM testing and a network topology that consists of four routers and three bottleneck links. Comparing the performance of five queue management algorithms in three cases: (a) no AQM in the network, (b) AQM implemented on one router only, (c) all routers use the same AQM, we show that usage of AQM improves the average network performance, no matter if AQM is implemented on one router or on all routers. However, in some specific scenarios implementing an AQM algorithm on one router may lead to performance degradation on other, non-AQM routers.
Molecular differentiation between field lumpy skin disease isolate and Capripoxvirus vaccinal strains in Egypt 2018

Lumpy skin disease virus is a member of the Capripoxvirus genus of the Poxviridae family, which affects cattle and causes a notifiable disease with significant economic losses. It is controlled by vaccination with capripox live attenuated vaccines. The aim of the study was the isolation and identification of the lumpy skin virus field virus strain during 2018. Nodular skin lesions were collected from clinically infected lumpy skin disease cattle that were used for the virus isolation on the chorioallantoic membrane of specific pathogen free embryonated chicken eggs and Madin Darby Bovine Kidney tissue culture. Polymerase chain reaction targeting the Capripoxvirus CaPV ORF103 gene was applied on the isolated virus and three Capripoxvirus vaccinal strains (Kenyan sheep pox virus, Held goat pox virus and Ismailia lumpy skin disease virus). The amplicons of the four strains of Capripoxvirus (one isolated and three vaccinal strains) were used for sequencing. Reference capripox viruses were obtained from GenBank to create the phylogenetic tree. The virus isolated from the collected nodular skin samples on chicken eggs showed clear typical pock lesions on the chorioallantoic membrane and on tissue cultures and showed a characteristic cytopathic effect. Positive samples of the isolated strain were identified by PCR for the CaPV ORF103 gene that yielded expected amplicon sizes of 570 bp. This was confirmed through gene sequence and analysed by BLAST, and submitted to GenBank under accession number MW 546997_LSD_Aziz_LSD. The phylogenetic tree revealed that the field isolate strain of LSDV had different identity percentages ranging from 98.2–99.8% with the tested vaccinal Capripoxvirus strains in Egypt. The amino acid sequence showed only different amino acid found in the field isolate strain and not in other tested vaccinal strains, and a maximum homology (100%) of the isolated strain nucleotide sequence was with two GenBank recorded strains. We recommend maintaining the routine lumpy skin disease vaccination programme in Egypt, frequent eradication of the insect population, and further genetic studies on the genomes of this virus strain and the Capripoxvirus vaccinal strains to reach the most related and homologous vaccinal strain given the massive genome of this disease.
Regional dimensions of infant mortality in Brazil

Development can be understood from many perspectives. Among those, the one proposed by Amartya Sen states that a development policy should aim at expanding the freedom of individuals, and this goal can be achieved by the expansion of capabilities. With this conceptual framework in mind, health, more specifically infant mortality, is chosen as a measure of development and as the object of study. The Government should guarantee the provision of health services, as they consist in meritory goods. Mosley and Chen (1984) propose a theoretical framework to study infant mortality based on the proximal determinants, in which the socioeconomic factors affect the result observed indirectly. In Brazil there has been a substantial reduction of the average levels of infant mortality rates in the last decades. However, there is still a significant regional inequality. Econometric models for 1980, 1991 and 2000 are estimated including a spatial filter in order to account for the spatial dependency observed in the data. The study concludes that health infrastructure lost its explanative power for the differences in infant mortality rate among the localities. On the other hand, socioeconomic variables have become more relevant and significant. It means that future public policies must try to improve the access of the families to public facilities, reduce poverty and inequality and improve educational levels. Therefore, the family-based prevention against health problems should be stimulated, helping to avoid premature death.
Expanding Rubber Plantations in Southern China: Evidence for Hydrological Impacts

While there is increasing evidence concerning the detrimental effects of expanding rubber plantations on biodiversity and local water balances, their implications on regional hydrology remain uncertain. We studied a mesoscale watershed (100 km2) in the Xishuangbanna prefecture, Yunnan Province, China. The influence of land-cover change on streamflow recorded since 1992 was isolated from that of rainfall variability using cross-simulation matrices produced with the monthly lumped conceptual water balance model GR2M. Our results indicate a statistically significant reduction in wet and dry season streamflow from 1992 to 2002, followed by an insignificant increase until 2006. Analysis of satellite images from 1992, 2002, 2007, and 2010 shows a gradual increase in the areal percentage of rubber tree plantations at the watershed scale. However, there were marked heterogeneities in land conversions (between forest, farmland, grassland, and rubber tree plantations), and in their distribution across elevations and slopes, among the studied periods. Possible effects of this heterogeneity on hydrological processes, controlled mainly by infiltration and evapotranspiration, are discussed in light of the hydrological changes observed over the study period. We suggest pathways to improve the eco-hydrological functionalities of rubber tree plantations, particularly those enhancing dry-season base flow, and recommend how to monitor them.
Relationship between critical thinking disposition and teaching efficacy among special education integration program teachers in Malaysia

This study aims to assess the level of critical thinking disposition and teaching efficacy among the Special Education Integration Programme (SEIP) teachers in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. The level of critical thinking dispositions and teaching efficacy in the SEIP were compared based on teaching experience and gender. The study also examined the relationship between critical thinking disposition and teaching efficacy at SEIP. The research adopted a quantitative survey approach. A total of 190 primary school teachers from the SEIP in Negeri Sembilan were selected using proportional sampling method. The instrument used in this study comprised of three sections; demography, critical thinking disposition and teaching efficacy. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used in the analysis. Analysis shows that the respondents have a moderate level of critical thinking disposition (M = 2.99, S.D = 0.160) and teaching efficacy (M = 3.01 S.D. = 0.128) was at a high level. For teaching experience, the analysis s.
Elastic wave generated by granular impact on rough and erodible surfaces

The elastic waves generated by impactors hitting rough and erodible surfaces are studied. For this purpose, beads of variable materials, diameters, and velocities are dropped on (i) a smooth PMMA plate, (ii) stuck glass beads on the PMMA plate to create roughness, and (iii) the rough plate covered with layers of free particles to investigate erodible beds. The Hertz model validity to describe impacts on a smooth surface is confirmed. For rough and erodible surfaces, an empirical scaling law that relates the elastic energy to the radius Rb and normal velocity Vz of the impactor is deduced from experimental data. In addition, the radiated elastic energy is found to decrease exponentially with respect to the bed thickness. Lastly, we show that the variability of the elastic energy among shocks increases from some percents to 70% between smooth and erodible surfaces. This work is a first step to better quantify seismic emissions of rock impacts in natural environment, in particular on unconsolidated soils.
Motives of Poland's Outward Direct Investments from the Lodz Region: Results of a Direct Study

Objective : The objective of the paper is to identify motivation behind FDI followed by enterprises from the Lodz Region and to find out if these motives are similar in companies different in size, share of foreign capital and internationalisation path. Research Design & Methods : Empirical research was based on questionnaire-based interviews and in-depth interviews which covered 80% of outward direct investors from the Lodz Region. It provided grounds to assess the importance of their motives. Findings: Enterprises from the Lodz region which decided to get involved as FDIs most often pointed to market seeking motives. The significance of other motives was secondary. With several exceptions (mainly with respect to cost) the size of an enterprise, foreign capital holdings and internationalisation path did not differentiate motives that encouraged respondents to engage their resources abroad. Implications & Recommendations: The study is explorative, and its results should be understood as the starting point for further studies. Results suggest that, firstly, at the present stage of internationalisation the state should offer possible support to all operators on equal conditions. Secondly, if already some enterprises invest abroad seeking better and cheaper employees, it may be profitable for the state to take upgrade the quality of workforce and reduce its relatively high costs in Poland. Contribution & Value Added: The main input delivered by the study to the current body of knowledge about OFDI motives consists in trying to identify relationships between motives followed by the Polish direct investors and their selected characteristics (size of a firm, share of foreign capital holdings, and internationalisation path).
Feedback based on health advice via tracing bracelet and smartphone in the management of blood pressure among hypertensive patients: A community-based RCT trial in Chongqing, China

Background: Lifestyle interventions have been recognized as a line of treatment for noncommunicable diseases. This study aimed to evaluate a bespoke mHealth approach to deliver personalized feedback to improve blood pressure and weight for hypertensive patients in community settings. Methods: A total of 307 participants, 50 from each community, were expected to be in the intervention or control group. A professional health facilitator was assigned for each of the 6 communities. The primary outcomes of the study are the reduction in blood pressure and weight at baseline and postintervention. Results: Of 307 recruited, 192 participants (62.5%) completed the study (intervention: 104 and control: 88). There was no difference in attrition rates between the 2 groups (33.5% vs 41.9%, P = .291). After 6 month of intensive feedback intervention through the mHealth approach, patients had better blood pressure (133.4 ± 15.3 vs 139.7 ± 16.0) compared with control. Conclusions: People who were adherent to the intervention demonstrated a clinical benefit in weight and blood pressure.
The Cost of Bank Regulatory Capital

Basel I introduced capital requirements for undrawn commitments, but only for revolvers with an original maturity greater than one year. We use this regulatory discontinuity to estimate the impact of capital regulation on the cost and composition of credit. Following Basel I, short-term commitment fees declined relative to long-term commitments and issuance of short-term facilities increased. Our results highlight the sensitivity of credit provision to capital regulation, particularly for banks with less capital. We are able to infer that low-capital banks are willing to forego twice as much income from fees to reduce required regulatory capital by a dollar.
INVESTIGATION OF THE EFFECTS OF KIGELIA AFRICANA (LAM.) BENTH. EXTRACTS ON TM3 LEYDIG CELLS

Objective: The study reports the effects of acetone, methanol, and aqueous Kigelia africana extracts on the TM3 Leydig cells. Methods: The total phenolic contents were determined using Folin–Ciocalteu’s method. Antioxidant activity was determined using 1,1-diphenyl-2- picrylhydrazyl assay and flavonoid content assessed using quercetin as standard. Cell viability and cytotoxicity were assessed. Results: Total phenolic and flavonoid contents of the extracts were analyzed. Acetone extracts showed highest total phenolic content (105±3.65 mg gallic acid equivalent [GAE]/g) followed by methanol extracts (10.64±0.32 mg GAE/g) and, last, the water extract with the total phenolic content of 4.27±0.65 mg GAE/g. The same trend was observed with total flavonoid content where results recorded for acetone, methanol, and water extracts were 3.63 ±0.20 mg/g quercetin equivalent (QE), 0.16±0.01 mg QE/g, and 0.01±0.00 mg QE/g, respectively. The three extracts showed lower IC50 values compared to ascorbic acid (0.143±0.05 mg/ml, 0.023±0.004 mg/l, and 0.043±0.03 mg/ml for acetone, methanol, and water extracts, respectively). At 0.5 mg/ml of acetone extract, there was an increase in the testosterone production compared to the control. Conclusion: The findings of this study showed that K. africana could be recommended for use in the treatment of male infertility.
Study of THMFP in Karun River Water , Iran

Organic matters in raw water have a potential to generate harmful disinfection by-products such as trihalomethanes (THMs) during the chlorination process. The objectives of this study were to investigate the trihalomethane formation potential (THMFP) in Karun River water and to determine the effect of several factors including total organic carbon (TOC), pH, chlorine dosage, water temperature and seasonal variation. The results showed that, among all factors, TOC and water temperature have a remarkable effect on THMFP. The experimental results from batch studies indicated that increasing of pH value yielded a greater THMFP concentration for Karun River water. THMFP levels of Karun River water in summer times, when water temperature exceeded 26°C, were 1.2-1.6 times higher than in the spring and fall seasons, when water temperature was below 15°C. It was found that the measured THMFP at Karun River water in the spring and fall seasons were very rarely higher than100 μg/L.
Development and evaluation of metronidazole loaded carbopol 934P mucoadhesive microcapsules for sustained drug release at the gastric mucosa

ABSTRACT Metronidazole [1-(2-hydroxyethyl)-2-methyl-5-nitroimidazole) is a broad spectrum antimicrobial agent used for the eradication of Helicobacter pylori. Due to the short biological half-life (6 to 8 h) and bitter taste which may lead to non-compliance issue; the purpose of this study was to develop and evaluate metronidazole loaded carbopol 934P mucoadhesive microcapsules for sustained drug release at the gastric mucosa. Metronidazole mucoadhesive microcapsule was formulated by ion gelation technique using 32 factorial designs. A 32 full factorial design was used to derive a statistical equation, ANOVA analysis, contour plots and 3D response surface plots. FT-IR spectroscopy result showed interaction between the drug and polymers combined. The optimized formulation exhibited a high drug entrapment efficiency of 87. 74Â±0.01%, particle size of 845. 40Â±0.02 (μm), percentage yield of 97. 80Â±0.02%, swelling index of 102. 33Â±0.03%, % mucoadhesion after 8 h was 64. 00Â±0.01% and the drug release 52. 30Â±0.01%. The microcapsules adhered more strongly to the gastric mucous layer and could be retained in the gastric mucosa for an extended period of time consequently increasing bioavailability, improving patientâ€™s compliance and reducing dosing frequency; which is more effectively used for sustained drug release to the gastric mucosa in the treatment of upper GIT infection.
Comparing nonperturbative models of the breakup of neutron-halo nuclei

Breakup reactions of loosely bound nuclei are often used to extract structure and/or astrophysical information. Here we compare three nonperturbative reaction theories often used when analyzing breakup experiments, namely the continuum discretized coupled channel model, the time-dependent approach relying on a semiclassical approximation, and the dynamical eikonal approximation. Our test case consists of the breakup of ${}^{15}$C on Pb at 68 MeV/nucleon and 20 MeV/nucleon.
Spatiotemporal variation of net methane emissions and its causes across an ombrotrophic peatland : a site study from Southern Sweden

Methane emissions from natural wetlands are an important contributor to methane levels in the atmosphere. These emissions are highly variable in time and space, even within sites. Further understanding of this variation is vital to successfully model the overall methane emissions from wetlands. This study investigates spatial variation through measurements of 22 plots across Fajemyr bog. Manual measurements were taken in 16 plots across four sites at the bog during five days throughout November 2012. In addition 6 automatic chambers were used that measures emissions once every hour throughout the year. The emissions from these 6 automatic chambers were also used for assessing the temporal variation during the year 2012. The spatial variation was found to depend upon microtopography more than site location. Plot-specific variation was also found, which suggests that other variables also affect spatial variation. The temporal variation was generally best explained by temperature at soil depths of 20 and 50 cm, especially if daily averages were used. The importance of temporal scale became evident when correlations between net methane emissions and environmental variables changed depending on the time investigated. Yearly, seasonal and shorter timescales revealed different responses which were thought to depend on the seasonality of light and plant phenology at Fajemyr in addition to the measured variables. Shorter timescales could be used to increase the process understanding of Fajemyr. In addition, the study also reveals that the automatic chamber system poorly represents the methane emissions from hollows across the bog as emissions were lower than those measured in the manual plots. Emissions from lawns and hummocks seem to be better represented. (Less)