Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Experience with the detection of faulty composite insulators on high-voltage power lines by the electric field measurement method

Hydro-Quebec's experience with polymer insulators began in 1977. A sixteen km section of a 735 kV transmission line near Quebec City was then re-insulated with 282 composite insulators of three different makes in equal proportions. The objective was to study them under real service conditions in order to evaluate their performance and to assess the relative merits of each make. This experimentation was later extended to some other lines and/or voltage levels and has continued up to now. During all these years, various methods of testing composite insulators in-service have been experimented with and early in the 1990s, the first device developed at IREQ for the in-situ testing of porcelain insulators by the electric field method was modified and adapted for use on composite suspension insulators. This paper presents a few cases of insulators having a particularly dangerous type of failure mode and found on the lines by the use of the electric field method. Some background information on the detection of defects by this method is also given and some of the experiments done in the laboratory on composite insulators to define the limits of the method are described.
Investigation of Cylinder Deactivation (CDA) Strategies on Part Load Conditions

Many efforts have been invested to improve the fuel efficiency of vehicles mainly for the local consumers. One of the main techniques to have better fuel efficiency is cylinder deactivation system. In this paper, the main research area is focus on the investigation of cylinder deactivation (CDA) technology on common engine part load conditions within common Malaysian driving condition. CDA mostly being applied on multi cylinders engines. It has the advantage in improving fuel consumption by reducing pumping losses at part load engine conditions. Here, the application of CDA on 1.6 liter four cylinders gasoline engine is studied. One-dimensional (1-D) engine modeling is performed to investigate the effect of intake and exhaust valve strategy on engine performance with CDA. The 1-D engine model is constructed starts from the air-box cleaner up to exhaust system according to the 1.6 liter actual engine geometries. The model is simulated at various engine speeds with full load condition. The simulated results show that the constructed model is well correlated to measured data. This correlated model is then used to investigate the effect of valves timing configurations on engine performance. The model is then used to determine the optimum intake and exhaust valve lift and timing for CDA application at part load conditions. Also, the effects on the in-cylinder combustion as well as pumping losses are presented. The study shows that the effects of valves strategies are very significant on the engine performance. Pumping losses is found to be reduced, thus improving fuel consumption and engine thermal efficiency.
Double Overt-Leaf Shaped CPW-Fed Four Port UWB MIMO Antenna

This paper presents a 4 × 4 multi-input multi-output antenna array for ultra-wideband applications. The single element of the array is comprised of a modified co-planar waveguide-fed double overt-leaf shaped patch radiator. The co-planar ground is optimized to achieve maximum impedance matching in the operating frequency band. The results show that the single antenna element offers an impedance bandwidth of 13.2 GHz starting from 3.2 GHz to 16.7 GHz. It is also observed from the results that the antenna offers good radiation characteristics and acceptable gain for the frequency band of interest. Furthermore, a 4 × 4 MIMO array is designed by utilizing the polarization diversity technique. To improve the isolation performance among antenna elements, a fan-shaped decoupler is introduced on the other side of the substrate, which ensures minimum isolation of 20 dB. Moreover, the proposed MIMO array operates in the frequency range of 2.75–16.05 GHz. The proposed MIMO array is fabricated and measured for the validation of simulation results, and it is observed that both the results are well in agreement.
Some Reflections on the StormyMarriage of Science , Would-Be Science , and “ Pseudo-science ”

I AM A LONG-TIME READER OF, and occasional contributor to, the Behavior Therapist. I have been delighted to read several of the recent special issues in tBT addressing important questions and future trends in the field that will affect us all. First of all, I want to applaud the editorial staff for doing such a great service to all of us ABCT members. A recent special issue of tBT (Codd, 2018b) dealt with the problem of “pseudo-scientific” therapies in clinical practice, with the bulk of the commentaries addressing the problem of resistance to the use of empirically supported therapies in community-based mental health practices (Codd, 2018a). I left the special series feeling uneasy about the rather black-and-white portrayal of these issues. I believe there are a variety of additional perspectives available to us that make these problems far less cut and dried than one might be led to believe. First, we need to remember that there is an important symbiotic relationship between “pseudoscience,” in all of its many forms, and paradigmatic, mainstream science. One cannot have a healthy science without regular intrusions from the realm of “pseudoscientific” because, ultimately, most breakthrough innovations in science initially come from outside the established scientific paradigm.
Single Amino Acid Change Mutation in the Hydrophobic Core of the N-terminal Domain of P22 TSP affects the Proteins Stability

The emergence of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has significantly shifted the attention of researchers to critically investigate most viruses to understand specific characteristics that impart their virulence. For instance, the SARS-CoV-2 has undergone several mutations, with some variants classified as “variants of concern”, e.g., the Omicron and Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 are known for their rapid transmission and antigenicity due to mutation in the Spike protein. P22 bacteriophage is a bacterial virus that has a tailspike protein (TSP) that performs similar functions as the Spike protein of SARS-COV-2. We previously carried out a site-directed mutagenesis of the P22 TSP to bear disruptive mutations in the hydrophobic core of the N-terminal Domain (NTD), then partially characterized the properties of the mutant TSPs. In this process, the valine patch (triple valine residues that formed a hydrophobic core) was replaced with charged amino acids (Asp or lysine) or hydrophobic amino acids (Leucine or isoleucine). Some of the mutant TSPs characterized showed significant differences in migration in both native and SDS-PAGE. Mutants with such disruptive mutation are known to show non-native properties, and as expected, most of these mutants obtained showed significantly different properties from the WT P22 TSP. In this work, we further characterized these mutant species by computational and in vitro assays to demonstrate the validity of our previous inference that the valine patch is a critical player in the stability of the N-terminal domain of the P22 TSP.
Tensile properties of geosynthetics after installation damage

In this paper, data from field installation trials of geosynthetics and laboratory tests are presented and analysed. The influence of several factors was assessed, namely nominal strength and type of geosynthetic, soil, compaction energy and method used to induce installation damage. Visual observations using a scanning electron microscope were performed. From the data collected, reduction factors for installation damage were derived using tensile strength values (traditional approach) and stiffness modulus (for 2% strain). Relative to the stiffness approach, the results obtained indicate that the traditional approach can be conservative. The reduction factors, determined using the traditional approach, were also compared with interval estimates from the literature. To contribute to supporting a shift from a factor of safety approach to a limit state design, bias statistics to correct the deterministic predictions were determined from the results. Different correlations were also established to enable usi.
STUDENTS' PERCEPTIONS OF LANGUAGE COURSES OFFERED FULLY ONLINE OR THROUGH BLENDED LEARNING

As a response to continuous changes in the needs of the learners, institutions of tertiary education offer multiple types of online programmes, including also language programmes. The rash to develop such online programmes without examining the perceptions of the learners, as one of the main stakeholders, may lead to failure. Is the choice of the specific type of distance learning motivated? Is there a rational behind the decision of the institutions? Do universities conduct any kind of research prior to offering any type of online language courses? The current research project is divided into two phases. The results of Phase I are presented in this work. After a review of previous studies on the topic, the article presents the results of a survey on language courses which were offered fully online throughout four semesters at the University of Nicosia. Phase II of this project will be carried out next academic year and will focus on language courses offered through blended learning. The results of the two phases will be compared and recommendations regarding the course design will be made.
Is Co-Management Still Feasible to Advance the Sustainability of Small-Scale African Inland Fisheries? Assessing Stakeholders’ Perspectives in Zambia

Co-management has been promoted as an alternative approach to the governance of small-scale inland fisheries resources and has been implemented in many African countries. It has, however, not proven to be a simple solution to improve their governance; hence, most African inland fisheries are still experiencing unsustainable overexploitation of their resources. As such, there is a need for reassessing the application of governance strategies for co-management that should strive to strengthen the participation of stakeholders, primarily the local fishers, as they are fundamental in the governance of fisheries resources. Therefore, this study set out to explore the prospects of a co-management governance approach at a Lake Itezhi-Tezhi small-scale fishery in Zambia. Focus group discussions with fishers and semi-structured interviews with other stakeholders were used to collect data. This study revealed that the stakeholders perceive co-management as a feasible approach to governance of the Lake Itezhi-Tezhi fishery. However, the feasibility of the co-management arrangement would be dependent mostly on the stakeholders’ ability to address most of the ‘key conditions’ criteria highlighted in the study. This study also identified the need to establish a fisheries policy to provide guidelines for the co-management, coming with decentralisation of power and authority to the local fishers.
Fire Physics - Promises, Problems, And Progress

The use of wanted fire leads necessarily to unwanted fires, which are fought by the fire services, designed against by the fire engineers, and observed and explained by the fire sciences. This paper explores the current position of one of those sciences fire physics, defined as the study of the physical mechanisms by which fire is initiated, grows throughout a system, and is extinguished. The motivations for pursuing given technical areas are examined (promises), the tasks to be performed are described (problems) and the accomplishments to date are summarized (progress). The field of Fire Physics is broken into four broad categories: I. ) Fluid Dynamics, II. ) Diffusion Flames, III. ) Flame Spread and IV. ) Compartment Modeling. An inclusive list of topics within each category is presented. Space constraints prohibit a more comprehensive review, however reference is made to many competent reviews already available. Due to the author's linguistic limitations, the English language literature is emphasized.
Determining Representative Volume Elements of Asphalt Concrete Mixtures without Damage

This study presents a simple method to define the representative volume elements (RVEs) of asphalt concrete mixtures without damage. Three currently used asphalt concrete mixtures (two dense-graded Superpave® mixtures with different nominal maximum aggregate sizes of 9.5 and 12.5 mm and one stone matrix asphalt mixture with a nominal maximum aggregate size of 19.0 mm) were selected and evaluated. To address the significant heterogeneity of asphalt concrete mixtures properly in defining RVEs, several geometrical factors, such as area fraction, gradation, orientation, and the distribution of aggregate particles in asphalt concrete mixtures, were all considered together by using two-dimensional images of actual asphalt concrete inner structures produced by digital-image processing. Geometrically defined RVEs were then supported by finite element simulations to check whether effective nondamage material properties obtained from the RVEs, such as the linear viscoelastic dynamic modulus, were representative of the corresponding bulk asphalt concrete mixture. Analysis results indicated that typical dense-graded Superpave asphalt concrete mixtures can be characterized by their effective non-damage properties with an approximate RVE size of 50 mm. However, the properties of stone matrix asphalt mixtures, which contain larger aggregates, should be measured on a larger scale for improved accuracy. Findings from this study were generally consistent with results of other studies performed on the basis of extensive laboratory tests, which implies that the simple geometrical–numerical method here can be a potentially efficient approach to define the RVEs of asphalt mixtures with much less time and effort.
A Neurofuzzy Algorithm-Based Advanced Bilateral Controller for Telerobot Systems

The advanced bilateral control algorithm, which can enlarge a reflected force by combining force reflection and compli- ance control, greatly enhances workability in teleoperation. In this scheme the maximum boundaries of a compliance controller and a force reflection gain guaranteeing stability and good task performance greatly depend upon characteristics of a slave arm, a master arm, and an environment. These characteristics, however, are generally unknown in teleoperation. It is, therefore, very difficult to determine such maximum boundary of the gain. The paper presented a novel method for design of an advanced bilateral controller. The factors affecting task performance and stability in the advanced bilateral controller were analyzed and a design guideline was presented. The neurofuzzy compliance model (NFCM)-based bilateral control proposed herein is an algorithm designed to automa ti- cally determine the suitable compliance for a given task or environment. The NFCM, composed of a fuzzy logic controller (FLC) and a rule -learning mechanism, is used as a compliance controller. The FLC generates compliant motions according to contact forces. The rule-learning mechanism, which is based upon the reinforcement learning algorithm, trains the rule-base of the FLC until the given task is done successfully. Since the scheme allows the use of large force reflection gain, it can assure good task performance. Moreover, the scheme does not require any priori knowledge on a slave arm dynamics, a slave arm controller and an environment, and thus, it can be easily applied to the control of any telerobot systems. Through a series of experiments effectiveness of the pro- posed algorithm has been verified.
Early Introduction of Multi-Allergen Mixture for Prevention of Food Allergy: Pilot Study

The incidence and prevalence of food allergy (FA) is increasing. While several studies have established the safety and efficacy of early introduction of single allergens in infants for the prevention of FA, the exact dose, frequency, and number of allergens that can be safely introduced to infants, particularly in those at high or low risk of atopy, are still unclear. This 1-year pilot study evaluated the safety of the early introduction of single foods (milk, egg, or peanut) vs. two foods (milk/egg, egg/peanut, milk/peanut) vs. multiple foods (milk/egg/peanut/cashew/almond/shrimp/walnut/wheat/salmon/hazelnut at low, medium, or high doses) vs. no early introduction in 180 infants between 4–6 months of age. At the end of the study, they were evaluated for plasma biomarkers associated with food reactivity via standardized blood tests. Two to four years after the start of the study, participants were evaluated by standardized food challenges. The serving sizes for the single, double, and low dose mixtures were 300 mg total protein per day. The serving sizes for the medium and high dose mixtures were 900 mg and 3000 mg total protein, respectively. Equal parts of each protein were used for double or mixture foods. All infants were breastfed until at least six months of age. The results demonstrate that infants at either high or low risk for atopy were able to tolerate the early introduction of multiple allergenic foods with no increases in any safety issues, including eczema, FA, or food protein induced enterocolitis. The mixtures of foods at either low, medium, or high doses demonstrated trends for improvement in food challenge reactivity and plasma biomarkers compared to single and double food introductions. The results of this study suggest that the early introduction of foods, particularly simultaneous mixtures of many allergenic foods, may be safe and efficacious for preventing FA and can occur safely. These results need to be confirmed by larger randomized controlled studies.
Discussion on the concept of 'Criticality'

This study investigates the concept of ‘criticality’ from two perspectives: an empirical study conducted in beginners’ Japanese language courses at a British University and a theoretical study based on Critical Pedagogy and Critical Thinking. Skepticism was identified as a fundamental nature of criticality and it can be developed to some extent in the grammar based courses. It is implied that beginners’ language studies can be located under the roof of higher education aiming at criticality development.
Prediction of acoustic noise from variable speed induction motors: deterministic vs. statistical approaches

The traditional approach for the prediction of noise radiated from induction motors is usually based on a deterministic approach in which the motor is modeled using finite element and/or boundary element methods (FEM/BEM). A great deal of structural details have to be modeled using the deterministic approach. While these deterministic methods have been shown to provide reasonable estimates of the radiated acoustic noise at low frequencies (usually well below 2 kHz) and for small motors, the demands on computing memory and time render calculations at high frequencies and for large motors almost impossible to make. In this paper, a statistical method especially suited for calculations at high frequencies is introduced. The statistical approach does not require the same amount of details to be modeled as in the FEM/BEM because only the averaged noise within a given frequency band is sought. Furthermore, it utilizes the analytical results obtained from simple structural elements that make up the motor structure. Results demonstrate the feasibility of the method, its ability to discern the contribution of various components of a motor to the overall radiated noise and substantial savings in the computational effort compared with FEM/BEM.
C7

THE UNDERGROUND UTILITIES SHOWN HAVE BEEN LOCATED FROM FIELD SURVEY INFORMATION AND EXISTING DRAWINGS. THE SURVEYOR MAKES NO GUARANTEE THAT THE UNDERGROUND UTILITIES SHOWN COMPRISE ALL SUCH UTILITIES IN THE AREA, EITHER IN SERVICE OR ABANDONED. THE SURVEYOR FURTHER DOES NOT GUARANTEE THAT THE UNDERGROUND UTILITIES SHOWN ARE IN THE EXACT LOCATION INDICATED ALTHOUGH HE DOES CERTIFY THAT THEY ARE LOCATED AS ACCURATELY AS POSSIBLE FROM INFORMATION AVAILABLE. THE SURVEYOR HAS NOT PHYSICALLY LOCATED THE UNDERGROUND UTILITIES. GEOTECHNICAL REPORT:
Influence of Ribavirin on Mumps Virus Population Diversity

Frequent mumps outbreaks in vaccinated populations and the occurrence of neurological complications (e.g., aseptic meningitis or encephalitis) in patients with mumps indicate the need for the development of more efficient vaccines as well as specific antiviral therapies. RNA viruses are genetically highly heterogeneous populations that exist on the edge of an error threshold, such that additional increases in mutational burden can lead to extinction of the virus population. Deliberate modulation of their natural mutation rate is being exploited as an antiviral strategy and a possibility for rational vaccine design. The aim of this study was to examine the ability of ribavirin, a broad-spectrum antiviral agent, to introduce mutations in the mumps virus (MuV) genome and to investigate if resistance develops during long-term in vitro exposure to ribavirin. An increase in MuV population heterogeneity in the presence of ribavirin has been observed after one passage in cell culture, as well as a bias toward C-to-U and G-to-A transitions, which have previously been defined as ribavirin-related. At higher ribavirin concentration, MuV loses its infectivity during serial passaging and does not recover. At low ribavirin concentration, serial passaging leads to a more significant increase in population diversity and a stronger bias towards ribavirin-related transitions, independently of viral strain or cell culture. In these conditions, the virus retains its initial growth capacity, without development of resistance at a whole-virus population level.