Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A comprehensive study of open clusters Czernik 14, Haffner 14, Haffner 17 and King 10 using multicolour photometry and Gaia DR2 astrometry

This paper presents an investigation into the four open clusters Czernik 14, Haffner 14, Haffner 17 and King 10, located near the Perseus arm of the Milky Way, using the Gaia DR2, 2MASS, WISE, APASS and Pan-STARRS1 data sets. We find normal interstellar extinction in 12 photometric bands for these clusters. Using Gaia DR2 proper motion data, the numbers of likely cluster members are found to be 225, 353, 350 and 395 for Czernik 14, Haffner 14, Haffner 17 and King 10, respectively. Radii are determined as 3.5, 3.7, 6.2 and 5.7 arcmin for Czernik 14, Haffner 14, Haffner 17 and King 10, respectively. Mean proper motions in RA and Dec. are estimated as (−0.42 ± 0.02, −0.38 ± 0.01), (−1.82 ± 0.009, 1.73 ± 0.008), (−1.17 ± 0.007, 1.88 ± 0.006) and (−2.75 ± 0.008, −2.04 ± 0.006) mas yr−1 for Czernik 14, Haffner 14, Haffner 17 and King 10, respectively. The comparison of observed colour–magnitude diagrams with solar metallicity isochrones leads to ages of 570 ± 60, 320 ± 35, 90 ± 10 and 45 ± 5 Myr for these clusters. The distances of 2.9 ± 0.1, 4.8 ± 0.4, 3.6 ± 0.1 and 3.8 ± 0.1 kpc determined using parallax are similar to the values derived by the isochrone-fitting method. Mass function slopes are found to be in good agreement with the Salpeter value. The total masses are derived as 348, 595, 763 and 1088 M⊙ for Czernik 14, Haffner 14, Haffner 17 and King 10, respectively. Evidence for the existence of a mass-segregation effect is observed in each cluster. Using the Galactic potential model, Galactic orbits are derived for the clusters. It is found that all four clusters follow a circular path around the Galactic Centre.
GASP XXIV. The History of Abruptly Quenched Galaxies in Clusters

The study of cluster post-starburst galaxies gives useful insights on the physical processes quenching the star formation in the most massive environments. Exploiting the Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer data of the GAs Stripping Phenomena in galaxies project, we characterize the quenching history of eight local cluster galaxies that were selected for not showing emission lines in their fiber spectra. We inspect the integrated colors, the Hβ rest-frame equivalent widths (EW), star-formation histories (SFHs), and luminosity-weighted age (LWA) maps finding no signs of current star formation throughout the disks of these early-spiral/S0 galaxies. All of them have been passive for at least 20 Myr, but their SF declined on different timescales. In most of them, the outskirts reached undetectable SFRs before the inner regions (“outside-in quenching”). Our sample includes three post-star-forming galaxies, two passive galaxies, and three galaxies with intermediate properties. The first population shows blue colors, deep Hβ in absorption (EW ≫ 2.8 Å), young ages (8.8 < log(LWA (yr)) < 9.2). Two of these galaxies show signs of a central SF enhancement before quenching. Passive galaxies have instead red colors, EW(Hβ) < 2.8 Å, ages in the range 9.2 < log(LWA (yr)) < 10. Finally, the other galaxies are most likely in transition between a post-star-forming and passive phase, as they quenched in an intermediate epoch and have not lost all of the star-forming features yet. The outside-in quenching, the morphology, and kinematics of the stellar component, along with the position of these galaxies within massive clusters (σcl = 550–950 km s − 1 ) point to a scenario in which ram pressure stripping has removed the gas, leading to quenching. Only the three most massive galaxies might alternatively have entered the clusters already quenched. These galaxies are therefore at the final stage of the rapid evolution galaxies undergo when they enter the cluster environment.
Excluded Volume Model for Quarkyonic Matter: 3-Flavor Baryon-Quark Mixture

The single flavor excluded volume model based on the effective size of baryons reproduces the hard-soft density evolution of equation of state (EoS) required by the recent studies of GW170817. This phenomenological model basically realizes the concept of Quarkyonic matter which is introduced from large $N_{c}$ gauge theory for dense matter. Enhanced nucleon interactions and dynamically generated quark degrees of freedom can reproduce the hard-soft evolution of EoS. In this paper, we extend the excluded volume model to three flavor system by considering electromagnetic charge and possible $\beta$-equilibrium in order to obtain a proper description for the hard-soft behavior of the EoS inferred from the gravitational waves observations.
Spiky CMB distortions from primordial bubbles

Primordial bubbles that possibly nucleate through quantum tunneling during inflation in a multi-dimensional potential might have left some relic detectable at the present time. These bubbles turn into black holes during the radiation era, which may account for the LIGO black holes, supermassive black holes, and may play an important role in dark matter. Typically, these black holes are surrounded by an energy deficit in the form of a spherical sound wave packet propagating outwards. In this work we study how this perturbation of the cosmic plasma dissipates before the time of recombination, leading to spectral distortions in CMB . We find that there may exist some rare regions on the last scattering surface containing huge black holes, which have produced potentially detectable point-like signals of μ-type distortion.
Chandra Observations of NGC 7212: Large-scale Extended Hard X-Ray Emission

Recent observations of nearby Compton thick (CT) active galactic nuclei (AGNs) with Chandra have resolved hard (>3 keV) X-ray emission extending out from the central supermassive black hole to kiloparsec scales, challenging the long-held belief that the characteristic hard X-ray continuum and fluorescent Fe K lines originate in the inner ∼parsec due to the excitation of obscuring material. In this paper we present the results of the most recent Chandra ACIS-S observations of NGC 7212, a CT AGN in a compact group of interacting galaxies, with a total effective exposure of ∼150 ks. We find ∼20% of the observed emission is found outside of the central kiloparsec, with ∼17% associated with the soft X-rays, and ∼3% with hard X-ray continuum and Fe K line. This emission is extended both along the ionization cone and in the cross-cone direction up to ∼3.8 kpc scales. The spectrum of NGC 7212 is best represented by a mixture of thermal and photoionization models that indicate the presence of complex gas interactions. These observations are consistent with what is observed in other CT AGN (e.g., ESO 428–G014, NGC 1068), providing further evidence that this may be a common phenomenon. High-resolution observations of extended CT AGN provide an especially valuable environment for understanding how AGN feedback impacts host galaxies on galactic scales.
Zero-Shot Cross-Lingual Transfer with Meta Learning

Learning what to share between tasks has been a topic of great importance recently, as strategic sharing of knowledge has been shown to improve downstream task performance. This is particularly important for multilingual applications, as most languages in the world are under-resourced. Here, we consider the setting of training models on multiple different languages at the same time, when little or no data is available for languages other than English. We show that this challenging setup can be approached using meta-learning, where, in addition to training a source language model, another model learns to select which training instances are the most beneficial to the first. We experiment using standard supervised, zero-shot cross-lingual, as well as few-shot cross-lingual settings for different natural language understanding tasks (natural language inference, question answering). Our extensive experimental setup demonstrates the consistent effectiveness of meta-learning for a total of 15 languages. We improve upon the state-of-the-art for zero-shot and few-shot NLI (on MultiNLI and XNLI) and QA (on the MLQA dataset). A comprehensive error analysis indicates that the correlation of typological features between languages can partly explain when parameter sharing learned via meta-learning is beneficial.
Modeling of the Physiology of D . hansenii using Population-Based Search Methods for Parameter Estimation

This work tackled the problem of finding a mathematical model for the physiology of the yeast Debaryomyces hansenii, under certain conditions. Nine alternative physiological models were developed and formulated as nonlinear systems of ordinary differential equations, describing the temporal rate of change of the concentrations of eight substances of interest, as a function of a number of parameters. The estimation of the parameters of these models was accomplished by fitting them to experimental data consisting of time courses for the concentrations of the aforementioned substances. The resulting optimization problem aimed at minimizing an objective function consisting of the sum of squared differences between the models’ predictions and the experimental data, with certain constraints. Two populationbased stochastic algorithms were proposed to solve it – a genetic algorithm (GA) and particle swarm optimization (PSO). The performance of these two algorithms was tested on one model and one data group, using different settings for their operating parameters. It was found that the PSO, with a high local acceleration constant, was superior to the GA. The PSO was then used to estimate the parameters of all the models for each data group. It was found that the best objective function values obtained for every model except one were statistically equivalent to the variability of the experimental data. The concentrations predicted by the models generally agreed very well with their experimental counterparts, with the exception of glycerol and, in some instances, ethanol. Model 1D was found to be the best model, and it was possible to provide an interpretation for the variation of its parameters from one data group to the other, and formulate a testable hypothesis for the phenomena that took place, in terms of the different physiological pathways leading to biomass growth on the two data groups.
Revocation Protocol for Group Signatures in VANETs: A Secure Construction

Vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) enable wireless communication between vehicles and roadside infrastructure to provide a safer and more efficient driving environment. However, due to VANETs wireless nature, vehicles are exposed to several security attacks when they join the network. In order to protect VANETs against misbehaviours, one of the vital security requirements is to revoke the misbehaved vehicles from the network. Some existing revocation protocols have been proposed to enhance security in VANETs. However, most of the protocols do not efficiently address revocation issues associated with group signature-based schemes. In this paper, we address the problem by constructing a revocation protocol particularly for group signatures in VANETs. We show that this protocol can be securely and efficiently solve the issue of revocation in group signature schemes. The theoretical analysis and simulation results demonstrate our work is secure against adversaries and achieves performance efficiency and scalability.
A revision of the extant species of Theodoxus (Gastropoda, Neritidae) in Asia, with the description of three new species

Asia contains a high species diversity of the freshwater gastropod genusTheodoxus. Recent molecular and morphological reviews of this diversity have uncovered a number of yet undescribed species while suggesting the urgent revision of several others. Moreover, some of these studies have indicated a number of species previously not recorded for this continent. Despite the advancements, a taxonomic revision and an update on the distribution ofTheodoxusspp. in Asia is still pending. Here, we construct the most robust phylogeny ofTheodoxusup to now and review original descriptions, type material, recent taxonomic revisions, compendia, and species lists to provide a comprehensive checklist of all known extant AsianTheodoxusspp. Our checklist also provides descriptions for three recently discovered and yet undescribed species (Theodoxus gururSands & Glöer,sp. nov.,Theodoxus wesselinghiSands & Glöer,sp. nov., andTheodoxus wilkeiSands & Glöer,sp. nov.), as well as shows the need to synonymise several previously described morphospecies. The present revision recognizes 14 extantTheodoxusspp. for Asia. Some of these species are widespread, while others are endemic to just a single location. Based on the revised and new distribution data, we provide updates and new assessments of species conservation statuses.
Endogenous retroviruses drive KRAB zinc-finger family protein expression for tumor suppression

Numerous genes are aberrantly expressed in tumors, but its cause remains unclear. Human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs) are repetitive elements in the genome and have a potential to work as enhancers modulating adjacent genes. Since numerous HERVs are activated epigenetically in tumors, their activation could alter gene expression globally in tumors and change the tumor characteristics. Here, we show the HERV activation in tumors is associated with the upregulation of hundreds of transcriptional suppressors, Krüppel-associated box domain-containing zinc-finger family proteins (KZFPs). KZFP genes are preferentially encoded nearby the activated HERVs in tumors and transcriptionally regulated by the adjacent HERVs. Increased HERV and KZFP expression in tumors was associated with better disease conditions. Many KZFPs could suppress the progressive characteristics of cancer cells by downregulating genes related to the cell cycle and cell-matrix adhesion. Our data suggest that HERV activation in tumors drives the concerted expression of KZFP genes for tumor suppression.
Non-penetrating phaco-deep sclerectomy with SkGel implantation — long-term observations

INTRODUCTION. The aim of this study is to present the efficacy and safety of non-penetrating phaco-deep sclerectomy (PDS) with implantation of an absorbable sodium hyaluronate implant (SkGel/Corneal). MATERIALS AND METHODS. In a prospective case series study 219 procedures were performed on 176 subjects receiving PDS with SkGel implantation. Indications were uncontrolled primary-open angle glaucoma (POAG) and operable cataract. Data collected included best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), intraocular pressure (IOP), and number of hypotensive medications. Follow-up examinations were performed one and seven days after procedure, then one, three, and six months after, and thereafter every six months. Complete and qualified success (without and with hypotensive medications) was assessed for IOP ≤ 18 mm Hg and IOP ≤ 12 mm Hg. RESULTS . The mean follow-up was 48.3 } 12.8 months. At 24 months, mean IOP decreased from 19.9 ± 5.0 mm Hg to 13.4 ± 3.1 mm Hg ( P < 0.001) (31.8% reduction) and to 13.3 ± 2.7 mm Hg ( P = 0.003) and after 60 months (33.2% reduction). At the 24-month follow-up, the average number of anti-glaucoma medications was reduced from 2.3 ± 0.8 to 0.62 ± 0.88 (p < 0.001). Complete and qualified success rates for IOP ≤ 18 mm Hg were 70.1% and 93.0%, respectively. Goniopuncture (23.8%), suturolysis (20.1%), and needling (18.3%) were performed. The most common complication was transient hypotony (36.07%). CONCLUSIONS. PDS with SkGel leads to an effective decrease in IOP over a long-term follow-up. The profile of the complications indicates that it is a safe procedure.
Oral health-related quality of life in well-controlled diabetic patients of Modinagar city: A cross-sectional study

Background: Diabetes mellitus is a chronic metabolic disease, which is characterized by elevated levels of glucose in the blood. According to the International Diabetes Federation, around 366 million people are currently estimated to have diabetes. Aim: The aim of the study was to find out the association of oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) with diabetes among controlled diabetic patients of Modinagar city. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study with a sample of 163 respondents was conducted in a private hospital in Modinagar city, to assess the OHRQoL in a well-controlled diabetic patient. OHRQoL was estimated by the oral health impact profile-20 questionnaire. In addition, general health questionnaire (GHQ) – a 12-item questionnaire was included in this study to distinguish the impact of diabetes on general health of the patient. The analysis was performed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences 21.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). Logistic regression was used to determine the association between OHRQoL and diabetes. Correlation between OHQoRL and GHQ was analyzed using Spearman's rho. P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The study results showed that 93 patients (57.4%) had good and 69 patients (42.5%) had low OHRQoL. The study also found out a statistically significant association of OHRQoL with diabetes in case of age of the participants (2.375 [1.094–2.528], P = 0.029**), educational level (0.511 [0.268–0.974], P = 0.041**), and frequency of toothbrushing (0.446 [0.208–0.957], P = 0.038**), whereas its association with smoking status (0.527 [0.235–1.182]), duration of disease (0.757 [0.343–1.671]), and mouth dryness (0.692 [0.316–1.513]) was statistically nonsignificant. There was a highly significant correlation between the OHRQoL and general health of the participants (Spearman's rho [r (162) =0.996], whereP < 0.05). Conclusion: There is a good correlation between OHRQoL and general health among controlled diabetic patients. The association between diabetes and OHRQoL is confined only to some of the variables. The study findings emphasize the importance of oral health in maintaining the overall health of diabetic patients.
Access to public dental care services by differently abled children in Bengaluru City: A cross-sectional study

Background: Oral health is an important aspect of health for all children and is all the more important for differently abled who face unique challenges during routine dental care. Aim: To assess and compare the perceptions of dental health officers and parents of differentially abled children regarding architectural, geographical, organizational, and communicational accessibility of the public dental services. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 100 parents of differently abled children and 15 dental health officers working in government hospitals under the Department of Health and Family Welfare, Government of Karnataka, from June to October 2017, in Bengaluru city. Differently abled children with locomotor, speech and hearing, and visual and cognitive disabilities aged 6–12 years were included. A structured self-administered questionnaire was used to evaluate the perceptions regarding architectural, geographical, organizational, and communicational accessibility of the public dental services. Descriptive and analytical statistics was done. A P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Higher proportion of dental health officers compared to parents of differentially abled children had a positive perception regarding architectural, geographical, organizational, and communicational accessibility of public dental services. Finding a dentist willing to treat was the most difficult barrier according to the parents of differently abled children (52.6%) and dental health officers (46.66%). Conclusion: A higher proportion of dental health officers compared to parents of differentially abled children had a positive perception regarding architectural, geographical, organizational, and communicational accessibility of the public dental services.
Clinical application of 18F-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose positron emission tomography-computed tomography for cancer cells in lung cancer

Purpose: One of the most important tools used in the diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer in patients with or suspected of having lung cancer is positron emission tomography-computed tomography XS(PET-CT). The popularity of this method is rapidly increasing. Material and Review Method: We searched papers on the topic of the recognition of cancer cells in lung cancer using18F-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (FDG) PET-CT using keywords such as18F-FDG PET-CT and lung cancer, 18F-FDG PET-CT imaging in oncology, cancer and nuclear medicine, diagnosis of lung cancer and imaging, molecular imaging in cancer, false-positive18F-FDG PET-CT scans and oncology, application of18F-FDG PET-CT in staging and metabolic activity assessment of cancer, and PET-CT imaging method. Results: In this review, we found the following results: 1.Due to the high diagnostic sensitivity of PET-CT scans, it is possible to reject malignancy in pulmonary cells using this method 2. PET-CT scans decrease the number of unnecessary procedures. 3. According to the findings of this review study, high sensitivity in PET-CT is the major advantage compared to other methods used to rule out the possibility of malignancy of lung cells; it is necessary but not sufficient. Conclusions: Regarding the imaging of abnormal pulmonary cells using PET-CT, except for a few exceptions, if the result of a PET-CT scan is negative, these abnormalities can confidently be considered to be benign. These exceptions include nonsolid and small (<1 cm) pulmonary nodules. Until all metastases in the pulmonary cells are imaged and detected by PET-CT, no drug regimen should be started. Finally, lymph node tumor metastasis cannot be ruled out solely based on a negative result of PET-CT imaging with these abnormalities, and to confirm it, aggressive staging should be performed in most patients before mediastinal metastasis is confirmed or rejected.
Comparative efficacy of intralesional placental extract and intralesional triamcinolone acetonide in the management of OSMF

Context: Oral submucous fibrosis (OSMF) is characterized by excessive collagen production in the submucosa leading to progressive fibrosis of the oral mucosa and atrophic changes of the epithelium. Aim: To clinically evaluate the efficacy of intralesional injections of placental extract (2ml) in comparison to intralesional injections of triamcinolone acetonide (40mg/ml; 1ml) in the management of OSMF patients. Methodology: This randomized, parallel-group, single-blinded outcome-based study, consisted of 40 diagnosed cases of OSMF. The patients were divided into two groups of 20 each in placental extract group and triamcinolone acetonide group. Patients were administered test medications weekly in respective groups by intralesional mode for a period of 10 weeks. Parameters taken into consideration and compared weekly were burning sensation, pain, mouth opening, tongue protrusion, and cheek flexibility. Result: The data so obtained was tabulated and subjected to statistical analysis using Chi-square test, Mann–Whitney test, Wilcoxon ranked test, and t-test by means of SPSS version 20 software to reach conclusive results. There was significant improvement in burning sensation, pain, mouth opening, tongue protrusion, and cheek flexibility in both groups. Better and faster improvement in tongue protrusion and cheek flexibility was achieved in triamcinolone group as against placental extract group. Conclusion: The intralesional triamcinolone acetonide was found to be a superior intralesional drug in comparison to placental extract.