Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ripple control signal interference due to a lightly loaded rural distribution line

Amplification of ripple control voltages on lightly loaded distribution lines can cause interference to consumer equipment, necessitating a method of modifying the line parameters in an effort to alleviate the problem. The techniques and assumptions used in modelling the parameters and distributed load of a particular rural distribution line in the North Canterbury Electric Power Board supply system are presented, to allow the use of a general purpose linear interactive network simulation computer program to assist in analysing the problem. Results of the computer simulations are compared to actual test values. The most satisfactory method of solving the problem was decided by considering these results along with equipment costs and other electrical characteristics of the line. It was recommended that power factor correction capacitors be connected to the secondaries of several distribution transformers along the line.
Bumpy Patches: Analgesic Effects of Particle Pressure in Sports Injury Treatment

Physical analgesia has been used for the treatment of sports injuries. We previously developed a special patch (bumpy patch, BP) that adds pressure to the pain area, demonstrating its analgesic effects in various sports injuries. In this study, we further veri ed acute and chronic analgesic effects of the BP in 28 subjects (14–44 years of age, 15 males and 13 females) with various pain sites and histories of pain (knee, shoulder, low back, elbow and other joints; 6 months to 3 days). First, the trigger area with muscle induration or tenderness was identi ed in each subject by palpation, and each subject evaluated the degree of pain using the numerical rating scale (NRS). Then the BPs were applied to completely cover the pain area. The BP treatment was repeated at 2 to 3-day interval until all subjects reported no pain (NRS = 0), and the differences between preand post-treatment NRS values were compared for each treatment as the measure of the analgesic effect. Signi cant analgesic effects were observed in the rst and second BP treatments (P = 0.000774 and 0.00149, respectively). The third BP treatment also reduced the pain intensity, but the difference was not statistically signi cant (P = 0.3734). Some subjects reported mobilization of the pain area after the BP treatment, which was discussed in relation to the potential analgesic mechanism of the BP. These results indicate that the BP has acute and chronic analgesic effects and can be used for the treatment of sports injuries.
MEMS components for front end of direct conversion receiver architecture

The new MEMS technology has made a major impact on design of RF components. The results that were not possible with current IC technology are made possible with MEMS technology. Researchers are working to replace the off-chip components with on-chip components so as to achieve a single chip receiver. The high Q inductors and capacitors required for designing RF components are the bottleneck in achieving the single chip receiver. The main advantage of direct conversion architecture is fewer components are required for implementations, but there are certain design issues that must be taken care for these implementations to be successfully achieved. In this paper, MEMS components used within RF systems is analysed. The VCO is the most difficult block of RF front-end design having large impact on system performance; so stringent requirements are imposed on VCO phase noise performance. A typical range of MEMS component values are used to design and implementation the VCO.
Do Water Contamination Reports Influence Water Use Practices on Feedlot Farms and Rural Households in Southern Alberta?

This article explores the extent to which water contamination reports influence water use practices of feedlot operators and their households in southern Alberta. An in–person survey was conducted with 33 feedlot farm families living in the Lethbridge Northern Irrigation District. The analyses reveal that there are variations in operators’ knowledge of local water contamination reports and the ways in which these reports influence water use practices. For example, while 88% of participants were aware of reports that the South Saskatchewan River Basin has a very high level of pesticide residues, only 24% said that this has always influenced the way they use their water for domestic use. While this study provides insight into understanding the relationship between water contamination reports and water use practices of feedlot farm families, it also serves as a starting point for a more extensive socioeconomic and health survey focused on this population.
Coupled-cavity effects in FM semiconductor lasers

Numerical simulations of frequency modulated (FM) external cavity semiconductor lasers have been performed and a range of dynamic and spectral phenomena observed. It is shown that FM lasing action can be suppressed due to changes in the FM modulation frequency. Coupled cavity effects are seen to be significant in the development of a broad spectral emission associated with experimentally observed coherence collapse in such a configuration.
Statistically-Based Tolerances of Steel Frame Columns Out-Of-Plumbs

Statistically based mathematical model of post-erectional columns out-of-plumb was taken as the basis for the formulation of rational criteria for control of skeletons of steel halls. The results of statistical analysis of a set of post-erectional measurements of out-of-plumb columns of 33 halls steel skeletons – with different: geometry, structure and destination were used. Current and selected previous recommendations by standards of out-of-plumb tolerance of columns halls were subjected to critical analysis. The results obtained were compared with the results of the earlier analysis of the standard recommendations of the steel columns of multistory building frames.
100 mV–1.2 V fully-integrated DC–DC converters for thermal energy harvesting

Two fully-integrated DC/DC converters for energy harvesting applications are presented. The startup-voltages of the converters are, respectively, 140 and 100 mV, the output voltage exceeds 1.2 V, with a power efficiency of about 20%. The architectures for boosting such extremely low voltages are based on an ultra-low-voltage oscillator cross connected to a capacitive converter. The overall circuits do not require any external components and can be fully integrated in a standard complementary metal oxide semiconductor low-voltage technology. The converters have been designed in United Microelectronics Corporation 180 nm process.
The effect of a single, early-life administration of a probiotic on piglet growth performance and faecal microbiota until weaning

Abstract The establishment and maintenance of a balanced gut microbiota in early life play a pivotal role in pigs. This study aims to evaluate the effect of the administration of a single early-life probiotic on piglet faecal microbiota and growth performance until weaning. Forty-eight hours after birth (d0), 820 piglets were allocated into 4 groups (205 piglets/16 litters/group) and orally inoculated as follows: 1) Control (CO: 4 mL of pure water); 2) Saccharomyces (SA: 4 mL containing a total of 1 × 1010 CFU of Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. boulardii CNCM-1079; 3) Enterococcus (EF: 4 mL containing a total of 1 × 1010 CFU of Enterococcus faecium lactiferm WS200); 4) a mix of the two probiotics at the same doses (SAEF). At d7 and d18, the piglets were weighed, and faeces from the piglets (18 piglets/group from 6 sows/group) and their mothers were analysed for a microbial profile by sequencing the v3-v4 regions of the 16S rRNA gene. Data were arranged in a 2x2 factorial design. The probiotic supplement improved piglet ADG in the periods d7-d18 (p < .0001) and d0-d18 (p < .05). From d7 to d18, the SA group tended to have lower mortality than the CO group (p = .08). The probiotic supplement significantly affected the microbial beta diversity at d7 (p < .05). The SA probiotic favoured the colonisation of Erysipelatoclostridium and Christensenella, and the EF probiotic the colonisation of Lachnospiraceae. These results highlighted that the administration of a single early-life probiotic supplement could improve piglet performance and shape the faecal microbial profile. Highlights A single dose of E. faecium or S. cerevisiae improved piglet performance in the pre-weaning period. The early administration of probiotics shaped the faecal microbial profile of the piglets and contributed to improved growth performance.
Patterns of allergic rhinitis among adults in Qassim region, Saudi Arabia: a cross sectional study

Introduction developing and developed countries have a high prevalence of allergic rhinitis (AR). Severe AR has negative impacts on sleep, quality of life, and work performance. The study aimed to identify the patterns of AR among patients attending the ears nose and throat Unit (ENT) clinic at King Saud Hospital, Qassim, Saudi Arabia. Methods this study was a cross-sectional study conducted at the ENT clinic of King Saudi Hospital, Unaizah City, Qassim region, Saudi Arabia. We examined outpatients diagnosed with AR using an interview questionnaire and clinical examination. Results the sample included 455 patients. Of these, 23.7% were 21-30 years old, 65.7% had a family history of AR, 57.8% had no general symptoms, 75.6% reported runny nose as the most common nasal symptom, and 35.4% reported no complications. Dust was the most common trigger of AR (82.4%), 49.2% reported allergic symptoms in all seasons, 96% of patients have inferior turbinate hypertrophy, and oral histamine was the most commonly used treatment (33.2%). Conclusion perineal AR and inferior turbinate hypertrophy were very common findings comparing to previous studies, further studies to assess the risk factors are highly recommended.
Optimal Control for Nonlinear Systems Driven by a Known Exogenous Signal

We consider optimal control problems for continuous-time systems with time-dependent dynamics, in which the time-dependence arises from the presence of a <italic>known</italic> exogenous signal. The problem has been elegantly solved in the case of <italic>linear</italic> input-affine systems, for which it has been shown that the solution has a remarkable structure: It is given by the sum of two contributions; a state feedback, which coincides with the <italic>unperturbed</italic> optimal control law, and a <italic>purely feedforward</italic> term in charge of compensating the effect of the exogenous signal. The objective of this article is to extend the above result to <italic>nonlinear</italic> input-affine systems. It is shown that, while some of the relevant features of the linear case indeed rely heavily on <italic>linearity</italic> and are not preserved in the nonlinear setting, several structural claims can be proved also in the nonlinear case.
Field Test Evaluation of Conservation Retrofits of Low-Income, Single-Family Buildings in Wisconsin: Blower-Door-Directed Infiltration Reduction Procedure, Field Test Implementation and Results

A blower-door-directed infiltration retrofit procedure was field tested on 18 homes in south central Wisconsin. The procedure, developed by the Wisconsin Energy Conservation Corporation, includes recommended retrofit techniques as well as criteria for estimating the amount of cost-effective work to be performed on a house. A recommended expenditure level and target air leakage reduction, in air changes per hour at 50 Pascal (ACH50), are determined from the initial leakage rate measured. The procedure produced an average 16% reduction in air leakage rate. For the 7 houses recommended for retrofit, 89% of the targeted reductions were accomplished with 76% of the recommended expenditures. The average cost of retrofits per house was reduced by a factor of four compared with previous programs. The average payback period for recommended retrofits was 4.4 years, based on predicted energy savings computed from achieved air leakage reductions. Although exceptions occurred, the procedure's 8 ACH50 minimum initial leakage rate for advising retrofits to be performed appeared a good choice, based on cost-effective air leakage reduction. Houses with initial rates of 7 ACH50 or below consistently required substantially higher costs to achieve significant air leakage reductions. No statistically significant average annual energy savings was detected as a result of the infiltration retrofits. Average measured savings were -27 therm per year, indicating an increase in energy use, with a 90% confidence interval of 36 therm. Measured savings for individual houses varied widely in both positive and negative directions, indicating that factors not considered affected the results. Large individual confidence intervals indicate a need to increase the accuracy of such measurements as well as understand the factors which may cause such disparity. Recommendations for the procedure include more extensive training of retrofit crews, checks for minimum air exchange rates to insure air quality, and addition of the basic cost of determining the initial leakage rate to the recommended expenditure level. Recommendations for the field test of the procedure include increasing the number of houses in the sample, more timely examination of metered data to detect anomalies, and the monitoring of indoor air temperature. Though not appropriate in a field test of a procedure, further investigation into the effects of air leakage rate reductions on heating loads needs to be performed.
A Fair Comparison Between OMA and NOMA For Cell-Free Massive MIMO Systems

—Non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) can improve the performance of cell-free massive MIMO systems by reducing the effects of pilot contamination. To assess NOMA performance most of the literature compares it with orthogonal multiple access (OMA). However, these works comparisons are unfair. From the authors’ perspective, a fair comparison should consider the same number of users and pilots for NOMA and OMA. In this work, we evaluate these multiple access schemes under our envisioned fair terms. Our results show that NOMA provides gains of user spectral efﬁciency (SE) and aggregate sum-rate superior to OMA in normal and stressed scenarios.
Evaluating the Influence of Window Types on the Natural Ventilation Performance of Residential Buildings in Hong Kong

Abstract Unlike cold climate regions, where natural ventilation is not preferred during winter, natural ventilation is always preferred in Hong Kong for cooling because of the subtropical climate. It also provides better indoor environment quality and energy conservation. Natural ventilation performance of a residential unit is affected by internal as well as external factors. External factors are often subject to constraints beyond the control of site planners and architects. Internal factors include opening configurations and window types, which site planners and architects are free to design the way they deem proper. However, little information is available about their precise impact. An earlier study by the authors on opening configurations identified the best and the worst out of twelve configurations. The best was with cross ventilation and the worst was with single-sided ventilation. In this study, the focus is on the influence of window types. CFD simulations were performed based on the best and worst opening configurations, different building orientations, and varying wind conditions, to evaluate the influence of different window types on natural ventilation performance using the mean age of air (MAA) as the criteria. Four window types were studied: side hung, top hung, full end-slider, and half end-slider windows. Evaluation results indicate that for cross-opening configurations natural ventilation performance was better with full end slider and side hung type windows. For single-sided opening configurations, side hung windows performed much better than the other three types. It can be concluded that better natural ventilation performance can be achieved by the use of side hung windows.
Health Problems of Garbage Collectors in Istanbul

Diseases from poisonous gases and micro-organisms in the air near garbage dumps and poisoning by polluted underground water and soil may result in serious health problems. The object of this study was to determine the negative impact of their occupation on full-time garbage collectors and to determine the microbiologic flora of their immediate environment. This study was performed with 228 selected individuals who worked daily in 5 dif ferent garbage collection units in several districts of Istanbul. The level of exposure to microbiologic flora was studied using a Merck Air Sampler MAS 100, and total bacteria, yeast and mildew concentrations per square metre and minute (cfu/m2/min) were calculated. Respiratory functions of all individuals in the study were evaluated with a computerised spirometer (MIR spiro bank). Aspergillus and Penicillium spp. were the com monest species detected followed by Candida spp. , My celia sterilia, Rhizopus spp. and Mucorspp. The study of respiratory functions showed that the FVC%, FEV1%, PEF% and FEF25-75% of the garbage collectors were below 80% compared to non-collectors: OR = 2.89 (95% CI 1.14-7.30) in FVC%, OR = 2.89 (95% CI 1.41-5.92) in PEF%, OR = 2.46 (95% CI 1.33-4.56) in FEF25-75% and OR = 4.48 (95% CI 1.90-10.58) in FEV1%. A long expirium period and ronchus symptoms were detected in 11 col lectors (31.4%) and 4 drivers (11.4%) out of 32 collectors and 35 drivers whose respiratory function tests gave low values. Clinical findings between the two groups were statistically significant (p < 0.05), OR = 4.06 (95% CI 1.13- 14.46). The exposure to airborne microbes could pro duce respiratory disorders, gastroenteritis, dermatitis and many other complaints.
Effect of conservation agriculture practices on weed management in okra under rice- okra-green manure cropping system

Rice is major crop in Kerala and it grows both as transplanted wetland rice and also upland rice. Weeds are the main constraints in upland rice. Chemical herbicides are generally used for weed control but the excessive use of herbicides causes ecological imbalance (Liu et al.,2015). In this situation, conservation agriculture practices are gaining importance for environmental sustainability. Conservation agriculture (CA) is an approach to manage agro-ecosystems for improved and sustained productivity, increased profits and food security while preserving and enhancing the resource base, and which emphasize minimum soil disturbance, permanent soil cover and diversified crop rotation. CA techniques like green manuring, mulching etc. can effectively control the weeds (Navas et al. 2017). Yadav et al. (2018) reported that among two types of tillage in rice field, conventional tillage with 100% residue incorporation registered higher total weed density of 89-168 weeds/m2 and weed biomass of 9.6–183 g/m2 on dry weight basis over no-tillage with 100% residue retention which recorded 75-161 weed/m2 and 8-155 g/m2 on dry weight basis. So minimum soil disturbance can reduce the weed population. Crop diversification reduces the weeds than monocropping so a rice vegetable based cropping systems helps the farmers to diverse the weed population. But the impact studies on conservation agriculture-based resource conserving techniques on weed management in the said cropping systems are lacking. So the study is proposed with an objective for developing cost effective, eco-friendly resource conservation technologies for upland rice based cropping system. Therefore, in the present study the effect of conservation agriculture practices on weed management in okra (lady finger) in riceokra-green manure cropping system was carried out.
Breast-conserving treatment in oncoplastic times: indications, cosmesis, and quality of life

Breast-conserving treatment was established as an oncologically safe procedure for breast cancer. However, the cosmetic outcomes of breast-conserving treatments are often unsatisfactory. In this scenario, oncoplastic breast-conserving surgery incorporated plastic surgery concepts and techniques into the oncological treatment in order to ensure better cosmesis, thus increasing the indications for breast-conserving treatment. At the same time, oncoplastic breast-conserving surgery is usually presented as a generic term, which should be evaluated taking many aspects into account: indication, patient selection, the surgery itself, cosmetic quality, and quality of life — data that are still scarce in the literature.
A MODEL FOR ENGINEERING FACULTY DEVELOPMENT

Since its inception in 1992, the NSF-sponsored Southeastern University and College Coalition for Engineering Education (SUCCEED) has successfully induced large numbers of engineering faculty members to participate in instructional development programs and to adopt proven but (in engineering) non-traditional instructional methods. This paper briefly reviews the events in engineering education that led to the formation of SUCCEED, outlines the coalition’s faculty development program structure, summarizes the program assessment data, and discusses possible implications for reform of engineering education.
Interference Analysis in Non-Poisson Networks Under Spatially Correlated Shadowing

Spatial correlations that appear in mobile wireless networks, such as the correlations of node locations and shadowing effects, significantly affect the characteristics of interference, which may degrade the performance of various wireless network systems. In this paper, we theoretically analyze the statistical and temporal characteristics of interference in a network where the node locations and shadowing are spatially correlated. We model the correlation of the node locations by two types of non-Poisson point processes: determinantal point processes (DPPs) for modeling repulsiveness and doubly Poisson cluster processes (DPCPs) for modeling attractiveness. Furthermore, we consider Gudmundson's model for the spatial correlation of shadowing. Using this model and assuming an i.i. d. mobility of nodes, we analyze the variance along with the spatial and temporal correlations of interference. Since the exact expressions are in non-analytical forms, we derive their simple closed-form asymptotic formulas when the variance of the shadowing is large. The results show a readable relationship between the characteristics of interference and various system parameters. This relationship can be used for realistic modeling and better understanding of various wireless network systems under spatially correlated shadowing. Moreover, we discuss various numerical examples and demonstrate that the obtained asymptotic expressions achieve tight approximation.
Novel single-phase five-level voltage-source inverter for the shunt active power filter

To achieve five-level pulse width modulation (PWM) operation, a single-phase voltage-source inverter is proposed. A shunt active power filter based on the proposed inverter is implemented to achieve harmonics elimination, reactive power compensation and dc-link voltage regulation. Whereas eight power switches are used in the conventional five-level inverter, only six power switches are needed in the proposed inverter. The proposed voltage-source inverter achieves five-level PWM operation without clamping diodes and flying capacitors. The proposed inverter functions as a controllable current source to supply the necessary active power for compensating for inverter losses, to suppress the current harmonics and to compensate for the reactive power drawn by the non-linear loads. The current commands are tracked using the hysteresis current controller. Simulation and experiments based on a laboratory prototype are carried out to verify the effectiveness of the proposed topology and its control scheme.