Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dual Multilayer Extension Actuator for High Extension and High Compression Force Applications

Soft robotic actuators possess several unique characteristics, such as being generally compliant and lightweight, making them suitable for safe human interaction to be deployed in various industries. However, they are often designed for an intended purpose, making them impractical for a different task. This paper aims to introduce a new way of utilising a new class of soft silicone actuators capable of incorporating them into applications that require both pushing and pulling. The dual multilayer extension actuator (DMEA) is compact and lightweight at 8 g, capable of an extension ratio of 300% and a high pulling force-to-weight ratio of 200 with the assistance of vacuum pressure at 30% extension ratio. The fabrication of the DMEA is described in detail and followed by characterisation tests of the DMEA compared to the FEA model. Finally, we showcase the DMEA pulling a 3D-printed arm as a potential assistive device and demonstrate the DMEA versatility by deploying the DMEA onto everyday household products like scissors and kitchen tongs.
HYPERSPECTRAL IMAGE CLASSIFICATION IN DESERT GRASSLAND BASED ON THREE-DIMENSIONAL DEEP LEARNING MODEL

Identification and classification of vegetation are the basis for grassland degradation monitoring, classification and quantification studies. Here, four deep learning models were used to classify the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) hyperspectral remote sensing images of desert grassland. VGG16 and ResNet18 achieved better image classification results for vegetation and bare soil, whereas three-dimensional (3D)-VGG16 and 3D-ResNet18, improved by 3D convolutional kernels, achieved better classification for vegetation, bare soil and small sample features in the images. The number of convolutional kernels, its size and batch size parameters of each model were optimised, and 3D-ResNet18-J had the best classification performance, with an overall classification accuracy of 97.74%. It achieved high precision and efficiency in classifying UAV hyperspectral remote sensing images of desert grassland.
Infection of Atlantic tripletail Lobotes surinamensis (Teleostei: Lobotidae) by brain metacercariae Cardiocephaloides medioconiger (Digenea: Strigeidae)

Three juvenile Atlantic tripletail Lobotes surinamensis caught opportunistically in Charleston Harbor (South Carolina, USA) and maintained in captivity for over three months displayed an altered swimming behavior. While no direct causation can be demonstrated herein, fish were infected in their brain by strigeid trematode larvae (metacercariae) of Cardiocephaloides medioconiger, which were identified via ITS2 and 28S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing. Histology showed nonencysted metacercariae within the brain ventricle between the optic tectum and tegmentum, causing distortion of tegmental parenchyma. Aggregates of mononuclear inflammatory cells were in the ventricle adjacent to metacercariae. Metacercarial infection by Cardiocephaloides medioconiger has been reported from the brain and eyes of only two other fish species from the northern US Atlantic coast: the grey mullet Mugil cephalus and silverside Menidia menidia, but this identification is problematic and needs molecular verification. Atlantic tripletail is a new report as a second intermediate host for C. medioconiger and South Carolina is a new locality. Cardiocephaloides species in general have a low host specificity and infection by C. medioconiger could propagate to other fishes and affect neighboring natural ecosystems.
HETEROSIS STUDIES FOR GRAIN YIELD AND ITS COMPONENT TRAITS IN SINGLE CROSSHYBRIDS OF MAIZE (Zea Mays L.)

A line × tester set was obtained by crossing 15 inbred lines with 3 testers in maize. Forty five F1`s along with 18 parents (15 lines and 3 testers) and two standard checks were evaluated in Randomized Block Design with three replications for eleven characters during kharif, 2011. Out of 45 crosses, 42 crosses over better parent and 28 crosses over standard check (DHM 117) significantly out yielded for grain yield. The crosses 5050 × BML 10, 3511 × BML 7, 1234 × BML 10, 1234 × BML 13 and 5050 × BML 7 had high mean performance and standard heterosis over check DHM 117 for grain yield per plant and other yield contributing characters like number of kernels per row, 100-kernel weight, number of kernel rows per ear, ear girth and ear length. Thus these crosses possess high heterosis which can be exploited commercially for higher yield in maize.
Towards a VR Evaluation Suite for Tactile Displays in Telerobotic Space Missions

Research and development of telerobotic systems supplemented by haptic feedback for future planetary exploration missions has gained significant importance in the past decade. Major space agencies endeavor to deploy such systems before sending humans to the surface of unknown or unexplored celestial bodies. Astronauts control these telerobotic systems from remote locations, such as an orbital space station. Haptic feedback for teleoperating the robots in outer space is extremely important, not only to improve user immersion and task performance, but also to improve our understanding of surface properties. At the same time, for spaceflight, making use of compact, light-weight and robust devices are preferred for precise tactile feedback from telemanipulation tasks. In this paper, we introduce “ViESTac”, a first attempt to develop a generic VR suite to be able to evaluate and compare fingertip-wearable tactile devices. Applications of such a suite include, but are not limited to allowing teleoperators to judiciously choose suitable tactile devices for a particular task. To account for the wide variety of existing fingertip-wearable tactile devices and their display capabilities, the suite contains a set of virtual scenarios to investigate different tactile properties of virtual objects. It also dedicates a virtual scenario to evaluate how tactile feedback may govern the accuracy of human positioning in standard tasks. This proposed suite is advocated by a pilot study with 13 participants and two distinct state-of-the-art tactile devices. Results of the study clearly indicate that the virtual suite can successfully cater to the need of evaluating and comparing fingertip-wearable tactile devices.
Anomalous Diffusion of Polyelectrolyte Segments on Supported Charged Lipid Bilayers

This work provides mesoscale models for the anomalous diffusion of a polymer chain on a heterogeneous surface with rearranging randomly distributed adsorption sites. Both the “bead-spring” model and oxDNA model were simulated on supported lipid bilayer membranes with various molar fractions of charged lipids, using Brownian dynamics method. Our simulation results demonstrate that “bead-spring” chains exhibit sub-diffusion on charged lipid bilayers which agrees with previous experimental observations for short-time dynamics of DNA segments on membranes. In addition, the non-Gaussian diffusive behaviors of DNA segments have not been observed in our simulations. However, a simulated 17 base pairs double stranded DNA, using oxDNA model, performs normal diffusion on supported cationic lipid bilayers. Due to the number of positively charged lipids attracted by short DNA is small, the energy landscape that the short DNA experiences during diffusion is not as heterogeneous as that experienced by long DNA chains, which results in normal diffusion rather than sub-diffusion for short DNA.
Triviality of Stickelberger Ideals of Conductor p

Let p be an odd prime number, G = F × , and SG the classical Stickelberger ideal of the group ring Z(G). For each subgroup H of G, we defined in (4) a Stickelberger ideal SH of Z(H )a s aH-part of SG. We prove that if SH is "nontrivial", then the relative class number h − of the p-cyclotomic field is divisible "too often" by some prime number. This implies that SH is nontrivial quite rarely. We also give an application of the triviality of SH for a normal integral basis problem.
Towards a Universal Model of Dielectric Breakdown

We present a microscopic breakdown (BD) model in which chemical bonds are weakened by carrier injection and trapping into pre-existing structural defects (precursors) and by the electric field. The model goes much beyond the existing ones by consistently explaining the role of both current (a weakness of the E model) and temperature (a weakness of the power-law model), along with the role of the electric field. It also explains the non-Arrhenius temperature dependence of BD. It suggests a new comprehensive physics-based framework (with tight connections to material properties) reconciling the many breakdown theories proposed so far (E, power-law, 1/E,…) within a more universal breakdown model.
Measuring water retention in undisturbed samples of stony soils

: Stony soils have been increasingly used for agriculture production; however, little is known about their hydraulic properties due to problems, such as sample deformation and hydraulic continuity between samples and suction devices when the sampling and measurements are accomplished with traditional techniques. In this study, the traditional ring sampling technique was replaced by the sampling of undisturbed soil blocks coated with paraffin wax to preserve their structure. A saturated paste of fine-grained mineral particles was used to ensure contact and hydraulic continuity between samples and suction devices (sand table and ceramic plates). This allowed us to determine 30 water retention curves for three stony soils with coarse particle contents (> 2 mm) ranging from zero to 69 %. The van Genuchten model was fitted to the measured retention data and the root mean square errors were between 0.0034 and 0.0331 m 3 m –3 , with no outliers or odd behavior in the retention curves. These results showed that consistent water retention curves for stony soils can be determined with the technique proposed. Fine-grained minerals sandwiched between the surface of suctions sources and sampled blocks improve hydraulic continuity between them. These techniques can be applied to determine water retention properties in structured soil samples with coarse particles where it is unfeasible to collect structured soil samples with metal sampling rings.
Dopamine-Dependent Ketamine Modulation of Glutamatergic Synaptic Plasticity in the Prelimbic Cortex of Adult Rats Exposed to Acute Stress

Traumatic stress is the main environmental risk factor for the development of psychiatric disorders. We have previously shown that acute footshock (FS) stress in male rats induces rapid and long-lasting functional and structural changes in the prefrontal cortex (PFC), which are partly reversed by acute subanesthetic ketamine. Here, we asked if acute FS may also induce any changes in glutamatergic synaptic plasticity in the PFC 24 h after stress exposure and whether ketamine administration 6 h after stress may have any effect. We found that the induction of long-term potentiation (LTP) in PFC slices of both control and FS animals is dependent on dopamine and that dopamine-dependent LTP is reduced by ketamine. We also found selective changes in ionotropic glutamate receptor subunit expression, phosphorylation, and localization at synaptic membranes induced by both acute stress and ketamine. Although more studies are needed to understand the effects of acute stress and ketamine on PFC glutamatergic plasticity, this first report suggests a restoring effect of acute ketamine, supporting the potential benefit of ketamine in limiting the impact of acute traumatic stress.
On the reported experimental evidence for the quasi‐Fermi level split in quantum‐dot intermediate‐band solar cells

The reported experimental evidence for the quasi‐Fermi level split in quantum‐dot intermediate‐band solar cells is carefully examined. It is shown that the separation of the quasi‐Fermi level of the intermediate band from that of the conduction band is not consistent with the experimental results of the quantum efficiency and the luminescence intensity of the InAs/GaAs cells. The fact that the electroluminescence spectrum is too wide, extending much further than we expect on the basis of the measured quantum efficiency in the direction of increasing photon energies, indicates that the temperature of the optically active regions of the cell during the electroluminescence measurements is considerably higher than room temperature. The best agreement with the experimental results is achieved with a temperature of about 525 K. This temperature rise is probably a result of the heating effect of the relatively high forward current used in the luminescence experiments. It is argued that the lack of a quasi‐Fermi level split in this case is associated with the absence of a gap in the emission/absorption spectrum of sub‐bandgap photons. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Prediction of Ingestion Through Turbine Rim Seals—Part I: Rotationally Induced Ingress

The mainstream flow past the stationary nozzle guide vanes and rotating turbine blades in a gas turbine creates an unsteady nonaxisymmetric variation in pressure in the annulus, radially outward of the rim seal. The ingress and egress occur through those parts of the seal clearance where the external pressure is higher and lower, respectively, than that in the wheel-space; this nonaxisymmetric type of ingestion is referred to here as externally induced (EI) ingress. Another cause of ingress is that the rotating air inside the wheel-space creates a radial gradient of pressure so that the pressure inside the wheel-space can be less than that outside; this creates rotationally induced (RI) ingress, which—unlike EI ingress—can occur, even if the flow in the annulus is axisymmetric. Although the EI ingress is usually dominant in a turbine, there are conditions under which both EI and RI ingress are significant, these cases are referred to as combined ingress. In Part I of this two-part paper, the so-called orifice equations are derived for compressible and incompressible swirling flows, and the incompressible equations are solved analytically for the RI ingress. The resulting algebraic expressions show how the nondimensional ingress and egress vary with Θ0, which is the ratio of the flow rate of sealing air to the flow rate necessary to prevent ingress. It is shown that e, the sealing effectiveness, depends principally on Θ0, and the predicted values of e are in mainly in good agreement with the available experimental data.
Effects of Aqueous Saffron Extract on Glucoregulation as Well as Hepatic Agt and TNF-α Gene Expression in Rats Subjected to Sub-Chronic Stress

Background: Stress and saffron seem to affect glucoregulation mechanisms and insulin resistance in different ways. Impacts of the aqueous saffron extract were investigated on serum glucose levels, serum insulin levels, the homeostatic model assessment of β-cell function (HOMA-B), the homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), adrenal weight, and hepatic gene expression of angiotensinogen (Agt) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in rats under sub-chronic stress. Materials and Methods: Forty-two male rats were divided into six groups: control, restraint stress (6h/day for seven days), saffron (30 and 60 mg/kg) treatments for seven days, and post-stress saffron (30 and 60 mg/kg) treatments for seven days. The serum glucose and insulin levels, hepatic gene expressions of Agt and TNF-α, HOMA-IR, HOMA-B, and adrenal gland weight were measured. Results: One-week recovery following sub-chronic stress led to non-significant hyperglycemia, hyperinsulinemia, and insulin resistance. The hepatic Agt and TNF-α mRNA levels increased significantly in this group. Saffron administration led to enhanced hepatic Agt mRNA in the non-stressed subjects. In addition, serum glucose levels, insulin resistance, and hepatic Agt gene expression significantly increased in stress-saffron groups. The hepatic TNF-α gene expression was reduced only in the stress-saffron 60 group. Conclusion: Saffron treatment after sub-chronic stress not only did not improve glucose tolerance but also enhanced insulin resistance. It indicated the interaction of saffron and sub-chronic stress to promote renin-angiotensin system activity. In addition, the saffron treatment decreased TNF-α gene expression after sub-chronic stress. The synergistic stimulating effect of saffron and sub-chronic stress on gene expression of hepatic Agt led to insulin resistance and hyperglycemia.
A look into the Severi varieties of curves in higher codimension

We show some non-emptiness results for the Severi varieties of nodal curves with fixed geometric genus in $\textbf{P}^n, n > 2$. For $n = 3$, we also fix a vector bundle $E$ of rank 2 and look at the variety $V_\delta(E)$ parameterizing sections of $E$ whose 0-locus is nodal, with fixed geometric genus. We establish some basic facts about $V_\delta(E)$ and prove some (almost sharp) non-obstructedness results for these varieties.
Winter Sports Injuries in Elite Female Athletes: A Narrative Review

There is a lack of reviews covering the topic of the parallel high prevalence of injuries in female winter sport elite athletes. We aimed to review the data on incidence and patterns of injuries in female athletes participating in official competitions of winter sports. We conducted a comprehensive literature search on epidemiological data and etiological information on alpine skiing, snowboarding, ski jumping and cross-country skiing. The most common location of injury was the knee among skiers and ski jumpers and the incidence of severe ACL events was 7.6 per 100 ski racers per season (95% CI 6.6 to 8.9) in female alpine skiers. Snowboarders and cross-country skiers were more affected in the ankle and the foot. The most common cause was contact trauma with stagnant objects. The injury risk factors include training volume, knee pre-injuries, the period of the season and the technical equipment. Females are at greater risk of suffering from overuse injuries during the competitive season, as opposed to male athletes who are more likely to suffer from traumatic injuries. Our findings can be used to inform coaches and athletes and to guide future injury prevention plans.
A 10-Yr Climatology Relating the Locations of Reported Tornadoes to the Quadrants of Upper-Level Jet Streaks

Abstract Observations and numerical model simulations associate rising motions below the right-entrance and left-exit quadrants of an upper-level straight jet streak with the development of convection and severe weather. The occurrence of tornadoes in relation to the jet quadrants is investigated for the continental United States for the spring months of 1990–99. Tornadoes occurred primarily within the two exit quadrants, with the left-exit quadrant favored over the right-exit quadrant. While fewer tornadoes were located below the two entrance quadrants, the right-entrance quadrant was favored over the left-entrance quadrant. For those days on which many tornadoes occurred (“outbreak” days), a greater percentage of tornadoes occurred below the left-exit and right-entrance quadrants than for those days on which only a few tornadoes were reported. Composite diagrams are presented to clarify the relationship between the quadrants of a jet streak, severe weather, and synoptic features such as low pressure cen.
BANDWIDTH OPTIMIZATION USING CBO AND ECBO

In this paper two recently developed meta-heuristic optimization methods, known as Colliding Bodies Optimization (CBO) and Enhanced Colliding Bodies Optimization (ECBO), are used for optimum nodal ordering to minimize bandwidth of sparse matrices. The CBO is a simple optimization algorithm which is inspired by a collision between two objects in one-dimension. Each agent is modeled as a body with a specified velocity and mass. A collision happens between pairs of bodies and the new positions of the colliding bodies are updated based on the collision laws. The enhanced colliding bodies optimization (ECBO) utilizes memory to save some best so-far-solution to improve the performance of the CBO without increasing the computational cost. This algorithm utilizes a mechanism to escape from local optima. The bandwidth of some graph matrices, which have equivalent pattern to structural matrices, is minimized using these approaches. Comparison of the obtained results with those of some existing methods shows the robustness of these two new meta-heuristic algorithms for bandwidth optimization.
Updraft and Downdraft Cores in TOGA COARE: Why So Many Buoyant Downdraft Cores?

Abstract An examination of the properties of updraft and downdraft cores using Electra data from TOGA COARE shows that they have diameters and vertical velocities similar to cores observed over other parts of the tropical and subtropical oceans. As in previous studies, a core is defined as having vertical velocity of the same sign and greater than an absolute value of 1 m s−1 for at least 500 m. A requirement that the core contain either cloud or precipitation throughout is added, but this should not affect the results significantly. Since the Electra was equipped with the Ophir III radiometric temperature sensor, it was also possible to make estimates of core buoyancies. As in TAMEX and EMEX, where core temperatures were estimated using the modified side-looking Barnes radiometer on the NOAA P3s, a significant fraction of both updraft and downdraft cores had apparent virtual temperatures greater than their environments. In fact, the average virtual temperature deviation from the environment for downdraft.
Effect of the mixture of oleaster (E. angustifolia L.) and black cumin (Nigella sativa) flours as functional compounds on the quality characteristics of toast bread

Abstract The present study was conducted to evaluate the addition of a mixture of oleaster (OL; E. angustifolia L.) and black cumin (BC; Nigella sativa) flours on the quality characteristics of toast bread. The concentration of OL and BC mixture (1:1 w/w ratio) was 0 (T1), 1.5% (T2), 2% (T3), and 2.5% (T4) of total flour content. The bread samples containing the mixture of OL and BC flours had more protein content (8.49%–9.65%) than the control (6.81%; p < .05). The highest phenolic compounds and DPPH free radical scavenging capacity were observed in T4 and T3 samples, respectively. The OL and BC flours decreased the brightness, yellowness, and chroma and increased the redness compared to the control. The mixed flour concentration influenced the bread's hardness and chewiness. Adding OL and BC flours increased the calcium content in the bread (467.65–600.41 ppm) compared to the control (363.9 ppm; p < .05). The OL and BC flour mixture created a more compact texture in the bread samples. In the sensory evaluation, there was not a significant difference between the overall acceptability of the bread containing the mixture of OL and BC flours and the control (p > .05). Finally, it is recommended to utilize a mixture of 2% of OL and BC flours in toast bread to improve its nutritional properties.
Super Bowl LI Advertisers Strategic Playbook: Brand Promotion Working Overtime

The magnitude of the Super Bowl has prompted advertisers to produce content as grand as the sporting event itself (Veksner, 2015, p. 130). The 2017 game was particularly unique with the historic face-off between the Atlanta Falcons and New England Patriots (Bergman, 2017; Breech; 2017). This paper examined brand promotion during Super Bowl LI by analyzing appeals, creative strategies, and tactics in television commercials and social media as well as consumer affect from USA Today’s Ad Meter rankings. Results indicate that advertisers made great efforts to feature appeals and strategic messaging during the game to fit each promotional platform.