Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Perceived health and comfort in relation to energy use and building characteristics

Within the European research project Health Optimisation Protocol for Energy-efficient Building (HOPE), 96 apartment buildings and 64 office buildings (of which approximately 75% have been designed to be energy-efficient) were investigated. The building characteristics were assessed according to a checklist during a walk-through survey. Occupant questionnaires were used to determine satisfaction about comfort (thermal visual, acoustical and indoor air quality (IAQ)) and their health (Sick Building Syndrome and allergies). Building-averaged collected data are compared, looking for correlations between building characteristics on one hand, and perceived comfort and health on the other hand. Strong correlations are found between perceived IAQ, thermal, acoustic and lighting comfort, confirming results from other studies. Significant correlations between the perceived comfort and building related symptoms were also found, comfortable and healthier buildings being well distinct from uncomfortable ones. Differences of perceived comfort or health between low- and high-energy buildings show that it is possible to design buildings that are healthy, comfortable and energy efficient. Le projet de recherche européen HOPE a servi de cadre à une enquête qui a porté sur 96 immeubles d'habitation et 64 immeubles de bureaux (dont environ 75% avaient été conçus pour être économes en énergie). Les caractéristiques de ces immeubles ont été évaluées en fonction d'une liste de contrôle au cours d'une étude sur le terrain. Les questionnaires remplis par les occupants ont servi à déterminer leur satisfaction en ce qui concerne le confort (confort thermique, visuel, acoustique et IAQ) et aussi leur santé (syndrome du bâtiment malade et allergies). Les données recueillies ont servi à calculer une moyenne pour les bâtiments et ont été comparées; il s'agissait d'établir des corrélations entre les caractéristiques des bâtiments d'une part et, d'autre part, le confort perçu et la santé. On a constaté de fortes corrélations entre la qualité de l'air intérieur perçu, le confort thermique, acoustique et l'éclairage, ce qui a confirmé les résultats obtenus lors d'autres études. On a également constaté des corrélations significatives entre le confort perçu et des symptômes liés aux bâtiments, des bâtiments plus confortables et plus sains étant bien distincts des bâtiments sans confort. Les différences de confort perçu ou de santé entre bâtiments à faible et à haut rendement énergétique montrent qu'il est possible de concevoir des bâtiments qui sont sains, confortables et efficaces sur le plan de l'énergie. Mots clés: évaluation des bâtiments, confort, efficacité énergétique, environnement intérieur, perception de l'occupant, satisfaction
Learning to Generalize Compositionally by Transferring Across Semantic Parsing Tasks

Neural network models often generalize poorly to mismatched domains or distributions. In NLP, this issue arises in particular when models are expected to generalize compositionally, that is, to novel combinations of familiar words and constructions. We investigate learning representations that facilitate transfer learning from one compositional task to another: the representation and the task-specific layers of the models are strategically trained differently on a pre-finetuning task such that they generalize well on mismatched splits that require compositionality. We apply this method to semantic parsing, using three very different datasets, COGS, GeoQuery and SCAN, used alternately as the pre-finetuning and target task. Our method significantly improves compositional generalization over baselines on the test set of the target task, which is held out during fine-tuning. Ablation studies characterize the utility of the major steps in the proposed algorithm and support our hypothesis.
A Spectroscopic Angle on Central Engine Size Scales in Accreting Neutron Stars

Analyses of absorption from disk winds and atmospheres in accreting compact objects typically treat the central emitting regions in these systems as point sources relative to the absorber. This assumption breaks down if the absorbing gas is located within a few × 1000 GM/c 2, in which case a small component of the absorber’s Keplerian motion contributes to the velocity width of absorption lines. Here, we demonstrate how this velocity-broadening effect can be used to constrain the sizes of central engines in accreting compact objects via a simple geometric relationship, and develop a method for modeling this effect. We apply this method to the Chandra/HETG spectra of three ultracompact and short-period neutron star X-ray binaries in which evidence of gravitationally redshifted absorption, owing to an inner-disk atmosphere, has recently been reported. The significance of the redshift is above 5σ for XTE J1710−281 (this work) and 4U 1916−053, and is inconsistent with various estimates of the relative radial velocity of each binary. For our most sensitive spectrum (XTE J1710−281), we obtain a 1σ upper bound of 310 km s−1 on the magnitude of this geometric effect and a central engine of size R CE < 60 GM/c 2 (or < 90 GM/c 2 at the 3σ level). These initial constraints compare favorably to those obtained via microlensing in quasars and approach the sensitivity of constraints via relativistic reflection in neutron stars. This sensitivity will increase with further exposures, as well as the launch of future microcalorimeter and grating missions.
Optical orthogonal frequency division multiplexing using frequency/time domain filtering for high spectral efficiency up to 1 bit/s/Hz

Summary form only given. We have proposed a novel optical orthogonal frequency division multiplexing technique that can overcome the spectral efficiency limitation of the conventional WDM system. This scheme permits substantial overlapping of the spectrum and can achieve the spectral efficiency up to 1 bit/s/Hz in principle. For demultiplexing, we used a newly developed optical discrete Fourier transformer (DFT) instead of electrical digital processing, which is impossible to apply in the optical frequency range. The optical DFT was realized by using a set of delay lines, a phase shifter and a coupler in the frequency domain and bit synchronization and an optical gate in the time domain. In experimental demonstration of this scheme, error-free operation was obtained with a 0.8 bit/s/Hz of spectral efficiency.
Regret Minimization Experience Replay in Off-Policy Reinforcement Learning

In reinforcement learning, experience replay stores past samples for further reuse. Prioritized sampling is a promising technique to better utilize these samples. Previous criteria of prioritization include TD error, recentness and corrective feedback, which are mostly heuristically designed. In this work, we start from the regret minimization objective, and obtain an optimal prioritization strategy for Bellman update that can directly maximize the return of the policy. The theory suggests that data with higher hindsight TD error, better on-policiness and more accurate Q value should be assigned with higher weights during sampling. Thus most previous criteria only consider this strategy partially. We not only provide theoretical justifications for previous criteria, but also propose two new methods to compute the prioritization weight, namely ReMERN and ReMERT. ReMERN learns an error network, while ReMERT exploits the temporal ordering of states. Both methods outperform previous prioritized sampling algorithms in challenging RL benchmarks, including MuJoCo, Atari and Meta-World.
Security Analysis of Vendor Implementations of the OPC UA Protocol for Industrial Control Systems

The OPC UA protocol is an upcoming de-facto standard for building Industry 4.0 processes in Europe, and one of the few industrial protocols that promises security features to prevent attackers from manipulating and damaging critical infrastructures. Despite the importance of the protocol, challenges in the adoption of OPC UA's security features by product vendors, libraries implementing the standard, and end-users were not investigated so far. In this work, we systematically investigate 48 publicly available artifacts consisting of products and libraries for OPC UA and show that 38 out of the 48 artifacts have one (or more) security issues. We show that 7 OPC UA artifacts do not support the security features of the protocol at all. In addition, 31 artifacts that partially feature OPC UA security rely on incomplete libraries and come with misleading instructions. Consequently, relying on those products and libraries will result in vulnerable implementations of OPC UA security features. To verify our analysis, we design, implement, and demonstrate attacks in which the attacker can steal credentials exchanged between victims, eavesdrop on process information, manipulate the physical process through sensor values and actuator commands, and prevent the detection of anomalies.
Water Quality Assessment of Ex-Mining Lakes in Perak, Malaysia as Alternative Source of Water Supply

This study investigated the water quality of some of the ex-mining lakes in Perak State of Malaysia for possible use as alternative to water supply and compared them to water quality of some of the rivers used for intake of water treatment. A total of twelve (12) water samples were collected for analyses from selected sampling sites. These samples were analyzed for physico-chemical properties, heavy metals concentrations, and organic pollutants concentrations. The analyzed results indicated that average temperature varied from 28.1 oC to 34.1 oC, pH 6.2 to 9.0, EC 55 to 400 μs/cm ,turbidity 5.6 to 74.2 NTU, DO 3.21 to 9.56 mg/l, TDS 36.8 to 268 mg/l, F- 0.017 to 0.182 mg/l, Cl- 0.483 to 3.339 mg/l, Br- 0 to 0.392 mg/l, SO42- 0.051 to 15.307 mg/l, Mg 0.833 to 1.466 mg/l, Na 0.669 to 3.668 mg/l, and Ca 2.85 to 26.77 mg/l. Heavy metals concentrations (mg/l) were: Zn 0.04 to 0.057, Pb 0.019 to 0.075, Cd not detected, Ni 0.013 to 0.105, As not detected to 0.004, and Cu not detected while COD 4 to 51 mg/l. Analyses revealed that all the water samples were turbid and containing slightly high concentration of Pb. Generally, they had common water quality problem. Further work should carry out more tests on other water quality parameters particularly on heavy metals, chemical and biological pollutants at different seasons.
Training-intensity Distribution on Middle- and Long-distance Runners: A Systematic Review

Abstract Training-intensity distribution (TID) is considered the key factor to optimize performance in endurance sports. This systematic review aimed to: I) characterize the TID typically used by middle-and long-distance runners; II) compare the effect of different types of TID on endurance performance and its physiological determinants; III) determine the extent to which different TID quantification methods can calculate same TID outcomes from a given training program. The keywords and search strategy identified 20 articles in the research databases. These articles demonstrated differences in the quantification of the different training-intensity zones among quantification methods (i. e. session-rating of perceived exertion, heart rate, blood lactate, race pace, and running speed). The studies that used greater volumes of low-intensity training such as those characterized by pyramidal and polarized TID approaches, reported greater improvements in endurance performance than those which used a threshold TID. Thus, it seems that the combination of high-volume at low-intensity (≥ 70% of overall training volume) and low-volume at threshold and high-intensity interval training (≤ 30%) is necessary to optimize endurance training adaptations in middle-and long-distance runners. Moreover, monitoring training via multiple mechanisms that systematically encompasses objective and subjective TID quantification methods can help coaches/researches to make better decisions.
Higher prevalence of stunting and poor growth outcomes in HIV-exposed uninfected than HIV-unexposed infants in Kenya

Background: With the growing population of HIV-exposed uninfected (HEU) children globally, it is important to determine population-level growth differences between HEU and HIV-unexposed uninfected (HUU) children. Methods: We analyzed data from a population-level survey enrolling mother–infant pairs attending 6-week and 9-month immunizations in 140 clinics across Kenya. Weight-for-age (WAZ), length-for-age (LAZ), head circumference-for-age (HCAZ) z-scores and underweight (WAZ < −2), stunting (LAZ < −2), and microcephaly (HCAZ < −2), were compared between HEU and HUU. Correlates of growth faltering and poor growth were assessed using generalized Poisson and linear regression models. Results: Among 2457 infants, 456 (19%) were HEU. Among mothers living with HIV, 64% received antiretroviral therapy (ART) and 22% were on antiretroviral prophylaxis during pregnancy. At 9 months, 72% of HEU and 98% of HUU were breastfeeding. At 6 weeks, HEU had lower mean WAZ (−0.41 vs. −0.09; P < 0.001) and LAZ (−0.99 vs. −0.31; P = 0.001) than HUU. Stunting was higher in HEU than HUU at 6 weeks (34% vs. 18%, P < 0.001) and 9 months (20% vs. 10%, P < 0.001). In multivariable analyses, HEU had lower mean LAZ at 6 weeks (−0.67, 95% confidence interval [CI]: −1.07, −0.26) and 9 months (−0.57, 95% CI: −0.92, −0.21) and HEU had higher stunting prevalence (week-6 adjusted prevalence ratio [aPR]: 1.88, 95% CI: 1.35, 2.63; month-9 aPR: 2.10, 95% CI: 1.41, 3.13). HEU had lower mean head circumference (−0.49, 95% CI: −0.91, −0.07) and higher prevalence of microcephaly (aPR: 2.21, 95% CI: 1.11, 4.41) at 9 months. Conclusion: Despite high maternal ART coverage, HEU had poorer growth than HUU in this large population-level comparison. Optimizing breastfeeding practices in HEU may be useful to improve growth.
Numerical Simulation on Backwater Downstream of Aerators in Spillway Tunnel with Ultra-Low Frounde Number Flow

The backtracking of flow occurs easily in cavity of aeration step in spillway tunnel with a gentle bottom slope and ultra-low Frounde number, and this influences the intake of air, so combined with the spillway tunnel of Chang heba Hydropower Station, four bodily form of aeration steps are chosen to be studied by both numerical simulation and model test based on κ-ε turbulence model, they are continuous aeration step, U-type aeration step + local steep slope, continuous aeration step + circular arc type steep slope and continuous aeration step + ogee curve steep slope, the results show that, the downstream bottom slope of aeration step with suitable ogee curve or circular arcs can efficiently inhibit the backtracking of flow in continuous aeration step, and can efficiently eliminate hydrops in cavity and in the same time can improve the efficiency of aeration. Usually, the results of bottom slope with an ogee curve are better than that with a circular arc.
Oral and Verbal Praxis in Impaired Language Learners

In the context of language descriptions, the terms oral and verbal praxis refer to volitional movements for performing oral gestures and movements for speech. These movements involve programming articulators and rapid sequences of muscle firings that are required for speech sound productions. A growing body of research has highlighted the links between oral motor kinematics and language production skills in both typically developing (TD) children and children with developmental language disorders, including Specific Language Impairment (SLI). Yet, there have been limited attempts to assess the link between non-linguistic and linguistic development. In the present study, we investigated oral and verbal praxis behaviors in children with SLI. Fifteen children with SLI formed a clinical group and 15 children with typical development who were matched to the clinical group for chronological age, gender, and socio-economic status formed the TD group. We assessed participants in both groups for their language abilities with age-appropriate standardized language tests. To investigate oral and verbal praxis behaviors, we administered the Assessment Protocol for Oral Motor, Oral Praxis and Verbal Praxis Skills to the two groups. We used the non-parametric Mann–Whitney U test to compare the two groups with respect to oral and verbal praxis measures; and we found a significant difference between isolated and sequential movements in the oral praxis section in two age subgroups of these groups (p ≤ .05). Spearman’s correlations revealed a strong correlation between core language scores and sequential movements in the younger children with SLI and in TD children. These results showed co-morbidity between SLI and poor oral motor skills, suggesting that SLI is not just a language disorder, but a group of co-morbid conditions that include oral motor and verbal praxis difficulties.
Guide to Network Defense and Countermeasures

GUIDE TO NETWORK DEFENSE AND COUNTERMEASURES provides a thorough guide to perimeter defense fundamentals, including intrusion detection and firewalls. This trusted text also covers more advanced topics such as security policies, network address translation (NAT), packet filtering and analysis, proxy servers, virtual private networks (VPN), and network traffic signatures. Thoroughly updated, the new third edition reflects the latest technology, trends, and techniques including virtualization, VMware, IPv6, and ICMPv6 structure, making it easier for current and aspiring professionals to stay on the cutting edge and one step ahead of potential security threats. A clear writing style and numerous screenshots and illustrations make even complex technical material easier to understand, while tips, activities, and projects throughout the text allow you to hone your skills by applying what you learn. Perfect for students and professionals alike in this high-demand, fast-growing field, GUIDE TO NETWORK DEFENSE AND COUNTERMEASURES, Third Edition, is a must-have resource for success as a network security professional.
Relationship of tissue dimensions and three captive bolt placements on cadaver heads from mature swine (Sus scrofa domesticus) > 200 kg body weight.

Three penetrating captive bolt (PCB) placements were tested on cadaver heads from swine with estimated body weight (BW) >200 kg (sows = 232.9 ± 4.1 kg; boars = 229.3 ± 2.6 kg). The objectives were to determine tissue depth, cross-sectional brain area, visible brain damage (BD), regions of BD, and bolt-brain contact; and determine relationships between external head dimensions and tissue depth at each placement. A Jarvis PAS - Type P 0.25R PCB with a Long Stunning Rod Nosepiece Assembly and 3.5 gr power loads was used at the following placements on heads from 111 sows and 46 boars after storage at 2-4° C for approximately 62 h before treatment: FRONTAL (F) - 3.5 cm superior to the optic orbits at midline, TEMPORAL (T) - at the depression posterior to the lateral canthus of the eye within the plane between the lateral canthus and the base of the ear, or BEHIND EAR (BE) - directly caudal to the pinna of the ear on the same plane as the eyes and targeting the middle of the opposite eye. For sows, the bolt path was in the plane of the brain for 42/42 (100%, 95% CI: 91.6-100.0%) F heads, 39/40 (97.5%, 95% CI: 86.8-99.9%) T heads, and 34/39 (87.5%, 95% CI: 72.6-95.7%) BE heads; for the heads that could reliably be assessed for BD damage was detected in 25/26 (96.2%, 95% CI: 80.4-99.9%) F heads, 24/35 (68.6%, 95% CI: 50.7-83.2%) T heads, and 5/40 (12.5%, 95% CI: 4.2-26.8%) BE heads. For boars, the bolt path was in the plane of the brain for 17/17 (100.0%, 95% CI: 80.5-100.0%) F heads, 18/18 (100.0%, 95% CI: 81.5-100.0%) T heads, and 14/14 (100.0%, 95% CI: 76.8-100.0%) BE heads; damage was detected in 11/12 (91.7%, 95% CI: 61.5-99.8%) F heads, 2/15 (13.3%, 95% CI: 1.7-40.5%) T heads, and 7/14 (50.0%, 95% CI: 23.0-77.0%) BE heads. Tissue depth was reported as mean ± standard error followed by 95% one-sided upper reference limit (URL). For sows, total tissue thickness was different (P < 0.05) between placements (F: 52.7 ± 1.0 mm, URL: 64.1 mm; T: 69.8 ± 1.4 mm, URL: 83.9 mm; BE: 89.3 ± 1.5 mm, URL: 103.4 mm). In boars, total tissue thickness was different (P < 0.05) between placements (F: 41.2 ± 2.1 mm, URL: 56.3 mm; T: 73.2 ± 1.5 mm, URL: 83.4 mm; BE: 90.9 ± 3.5 mm, URL: 113.5 mm). For swine > 200 kg BW, F placement may be more effective than T or BE due to less soft tissue thickness, which may reduce concussive force. The brain was within the plane of bolt travel for 100% of F heads with brain damage for 96.2% and 91.7% of F sow and boar heads, respectively.
Rheumatic disease and fatigue: Participants’ experiences of an activity-pacing group

Abstract Background Fatigue is a common symptom of inflammatory rheumatic disease and has a great impact on everyday life. Activity-pacing is proposed as an intervention to increase participation in meaningful activities. Aims To explore participants’ experiences with an activity-pacing group, how participants perceived self-managing everyday life after group attendance, and their reflections on unmet needs that could enhance self-management of everyday life with fatigue. Materials and methods Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 participants who had attended an activity-pacing group. Thematic analyses were conducted. Findings Prior to group attendance, the participants expressed an awareness of their lack of knowledge of fatigue. Through group attendance, they increased their understanding of fatigue and their ability to apply strategies to better manage everyday life. Participants found it difficult to balance their energy use and realised that implementing activity-pacing strategies takes time. Therefore, they requested follow-up sessions with the activity-pacing group. They also desire that rheumatologists pay more attention to and acknowledge fatigue. Conclusions and significance Enhancing the understanding of fatigue and how to manage everyday life with fatigue, appears to be important. Group interventions led by occupational therapists and with a focus on activity-pacing may be a suitable approach. Follow-up sessions are recommended.
Lions and brown bears colonised North America in multiple synchronous waves of dispersal across the Bering Land Bridge.

The Bering Land Bridge connecting North America and Eurasia was periodically exposed and inundated by oscillating sea levels during the Pleistocene glacial cycles. This land connection allowed the intermittent dispersal of animals, including humans, between Western Beringia (far north-east Asia) and Eastern Beringia (north-west North America), changing the faunal community composition of both continents. The Pleistocene glacial cycles also had profound impacts on temperature, precipitation, and vegetation, impacting faunal community structure and demography. While these palaeoenvironmental impacts have been studied in many large herbivores from Beringia (e.g., bison, mammoths, horses), the Pleistocene population dynamics of the diverse guild of carnivorans present in the region are less well understood, due to their lower abundances. In this study, we analyse mitochondrial genome data from ancient brown bears (Ursus arctos; n = 103) and lions (Panthera spp.; n = 39), two megafaunal carnivorans that dispersed into North America during the Pleistocene. Our results reveal striking synchronicity in the population dynamics of Beringian lions and brown bears, with multiple waves of dispersal across the Bering Land Bridge coinciding with glacial periods of low sea levels, as well as synchronous local extinctions in Eastern Beringia during Marine Isotope Stage 3. The evolutionary histories of these two taxa underscore the crucial biogeographic role of the Bering Land Bridge in the distribution, turnover, and maintenance of megafaunal populations in North America.