Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Optical diffraction tomography for assessing single cell models in angular light scattering

Angularly resolved light scattering (ALS) has become a useful tool for assessing the size and refractive index of biological scatterers at cellular and organelle length scales. Sizing organelle populations with ALS relies on Mie scattering theory models, which require significant assumptions about the object, including spherical scatterers and a homogeneous medium. These assumptions may incur greater error at the single cell level, where there are fewer scatterers to be averaged over. We investigate the validity of these assumptions using 3D refractive index (RI) tomograms measured via optical diffraction tomography (ODT). We compute the angular scattering on digitally manipulated tomograms with increasingly strong model assumptions, including RI-matched immersion media, homogeneous cytosol, and spherical organelles. We also compare the tomogram-computed angular scattering to experimental measurements of angular scattering from the same cells to ensure that the ODT-based approach accurately models angular scattering. We show that enforced RI-matching with the immersion medium and a homogeneous cytosol significantly affects the angular scattering intensity shape, suggesting that these assumptions can reduce the accuracy of size distribution estimates.
Validating an Ultrasonographical Assessment Tool for Predicting Difficult Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy in a Tertiary Care Hospital

Background: Laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) is the preferred treatment option in non-complicated symptomatic cholelithiasis. In some cases, the surgery might be complicated by different factors resulting in difficult LC. Ultrasound remains the first-line modality for diagnosing symptomatic cholelithiasis; however, its role in predicting difficult LC remains unclear. The aim of this study was to validate an ultrasonographic scoring system in predicting difficult LC. Methods: We prospectively enrolled patients undergoing LC in a tertiary care unit over six months. All adult (≥18 years) patients undergoing LC for symptomatic cholelithiasis were included. Patients were excluded if they refused to consent, and those who underwent cholecystectomy for indications other than cholelithiasis. Patients were stratified into two groups based on intra-operative difficulty (easy LC and difficult LC) and were compared. Our primary outcome was radiologic difficulty among these groups. Univariate analysis and kappa statistics were performed. Results: We identified 68 patients with an overall mean (SD) age of 42.2 (12.3) years, a mean (SD) weight of 74.1 (10.9) kg, and 73.5% were female. Of the study cohort, 52 patients had easy LC and 16 patients experienced difficult LC. Amongst the total, 14.7% suffered from diabetes mellitus, 29.4% had hypertension, 7.4% had a known ischemic heart disease, and 63% had a body mass index (BMI) ≥30 kg/m2 with no statistically significant difference between the two groups. On the Chi-square test, there was no statistical difference between the two groups in terms of ultrasonographic difficulty (p>0.05). However, we found a Kappa value of -0.127 (p=0.275) corresponding to a strong disagreement between the intraoperative and ultrasonographic difficulty. Conclusion: Despite its role in diagnosing cholelithiasis, an ultrasonographic assessment did not have a role in predicting difficult LC according to the present study. Further studies are required to develop a scoring system for predicting difficult LC based on clinical, laboratory, and ultrasonographic assessment.
Differential Impact of Emotional and Contextual Factors Associated with COVID-19 on Adolescent Mental Health

Background During the confinement, there was an increase in the incidence of mental disorders such as depression and anxiety. In this regard, affectivity is of particular interest, as emotions play a fundamental role in overall mental health. The literature on COVID-19 in this population has often focused on the analysis of risk factors for mental health, while less attention has been paid to protective factors. In this paper, we propose an inclusive model of risk and protective factors for adolescent mental health through the indirect effect of negative and positive affect. Methods This was a cross-sectional study with a Spanish community sample of 477 adolescents (Mage = 16.23, range:14 to 20 years old; 43.4% were boys; response rate: 100%). We measured the perceived hardness of confinement, worrying about contagion, quality of relationships at home, pleasant activities, affect (positive and negative), and mental health. Results The results revealed a positive relationship between the perceived hardness of confinement and worrying about contagion with mental health, through the indirect effect of negative affect, and a positive relationship between home relationships and pleasant activities with mental health through an indirect effect of positive affect. Conclusion Our results suggest that different types of emotions generated by the various contextual variables associated with COVID-19 may have a differential impact on mental health. These findings support the inclusive model of risk and protective factors for adolescent mental health. Practical implications, future studies, and limitations are discussed.
Multi-Scale Systems and Conceptual Model on Freezing Rain and Snow Storm over Southern China during January-February 2008

In this paper,the freezing rain and snow storm in Southern China during January and February 2008 which brought the severe damage have been investigated.There were four stages in this disastrous weather process,and the second stage(18-21 Jan) among them was the most severe one during which the freezing rain occurred in southern China very frequently.The paper concentrates on multi-scale systems,especially on the ones during the second stage.The results show that the freezing rain and snow storm were associated with the multi-scale systems and their interaction: 1) The long period anomaly of the atmospheric circulation was the important reason,for example,middle latitude Blocking High Pressure(BHP) was located near west Siberia for more than 20 days and also,the West Pacific Subtropical High(WPSH) extended to the north and west of its normal position.There was a trough between BHP and WPSH which is very favorite to southward invading of cold air from North China.2) The deep systems in middle latitude from lower to upper troposphere can be found clearly,even at 200 hPa.Moreover,the thermal trough was behind the trough in geopotential height.It means that the trough in geopotential height will develop and maintain.3) The Trough(disturbances) in South Branch(TSB) of westerlies stayed for the long period and was very active.The southwest current ahead the TSB can transport very rich moisture to China continent.Cold-dry air from north and warm-moist air from south converged to each other and then the favorite environment of snowfall and freezing rain could appear.4) Base on the mentioned above,the quasi-stationary front formed along the Yangtze River and in South China.This kind of quasi-stationary front can hardly be found during wintertime.The position of the stationary front was,to some extent,similar to that of Meiyu front in the summer,however,the baroclinity of the former was stronger than that of the later.5) The stratification characteristics,inversion layer,warm nose,temperature and dew-point temperature at ground surface have also been analyzed in the period,especially in the second stage during freezing rain and snow storm.The formation of freezing rain was very sensitive to the mentioned-above key influencing factors. 6) Based on the results,one kind of the conceptual model of multi-scale systems for sustaining freezing rain and snow storm has been proposed.
Response of Jupiter's inner magnetosphere to the solar wind derived from extreme ultraviolet monitoring of the Io plasma torus

Because Jupiter's magnetosphere is huge and is rotationally dominated, solar wind influence on its inner part has been thought to be negligible. Meanwhile, dawn‐dusk asymmetric features of this region have been reported. Presence of dawn‐to‐dusk electric field is one of the leading explanations of the asymmetry; however, the physical process of generating such an intense electric field still remains unclear. Here we present long and continuous monitoring of the extreme ultraviolet emissions from the Io plasma torus in Jupiter's inner magnetosphere made by the Hisaki satellite between December 2013 and March 2014. We found five occasions where the dusk/dawn brightness ratio was enhanced above 2.5 in response to rapid increase of the solar wind dynamic pressure. The enhancement is achieved as the dusk region brightens and the dawn region dims. The observation indicates that dawn‐to‐dusk electric field in the inner magnetosphere is enhanced under compressed conditions.
New Wireless Beacon Deployment for Maximum Coverage Efficiency in Indoor Localization

In large-scale deployments of indoor positioning systems (IPSs), a major practical challenge is determining the placement of a minimal number of beacons to ensure full localization coverage. In this letter, we propose a theoretically optimal design for the deployment of wireless sensors in localization applications. First, we mathematically derive the maximum coverage efficiency of $\frac{2}{\pi \sqrt{3}} \approx 0.37$ for the unique localization of any arbitrary region, where localization of a single point can be achieved by using two or three fixed-range beacons. We then propose a novel beacon placement structure according to the kagome lattice that achieves this maximum efficiency. Compared with recent existing methods, our proposed kagome beacon placement significantly reduces the required number of beacons by more than 15% when applied to randomly generated regions. Importantly, it does so while incurring a substantially lower computational complexity. The results of this letter are promising for pico- and femto-cell deployments with applications in localization of advanced industrial automation, health monitoring in complex infrastructure, and adaptive urban development in smart cities.
New N-Terminal Fatty-Acid-Modified Melittin Analogs with Potent Biological Activity

Melittin, a natural antimicrobial peptide, has broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity. This has resulted in it gaining increasing attention as a potential antibiotic alternative; however, its practical use has been limited by its weak antimicrobial activity, high hemolytic activity, and low proteolytic stability. In this study, N-terminal fatty acid conjugation was used to develop new melittin-derived lipopeptides (MDLs) to improve the characteristics of melittin. Our results showed that compared with native melittin, the antimicrobial activity of MDLs was increased by 2 to 16 times, and the stability of these MDLs against trypsin and pepsin degradation was increased by 50 to 80%. However, the hemolytic activity of the MDLs decreased when the length of the carbon chain of fatty acids exceeded 10. Among the MDLs, the newly designed analog Mel-C8 showed optimal antimicrobial activity and protease stability. The antimicrobial mechanism studied revealed that the MDLs showed a rapid bactericidal effect by interacting with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or lipoteichoic acid (LTA) and penetrating the bacterial cell membrane. In conclusion, we designed and synthesized a new class of MDLs with potent antimicrobial activity, high proteolytic stability, and low hemolytic activity through N-terminal fatty acid conjugation.
Assessment of Physicians’ Willingness to Work with Patients Not Yet Diagnosed with COVID-19 in a Romanian Sample

Background: The risk to physicians who worked with patients without confirmed COVID-19 testing during the pandemic has been little studied. However, they were at high risk. Methods: In the summer of 2020, 1285 Romanian physicians participated in a single-center study. Participants (mean age = 48.21 years; 302 males and 982 females, all specialties) completed a series of single-item measures adapted from previous studies on work ethics and responsibility. This study used Mann–Whitney comparisons between physicians who reported that they knowingly had direct contact with COVID patients and those who did not regarding their willingness to work. Results: Compared with their colleagues, physicians who reported not knowingly having direct contact with COVID patients reported less access to protective equipment, less overall willingness to respond when asked to work with infected patients, more likely to work out of fear of losing their jobs, and fear of legal repercussions. They received less training in the use of protective equipment. Conclusions: Physicians who worked with patients not yet diagnosed with COVID-19 were significantly less willing to work. The perception of invisible risk may explain the observed differences.
Identifying the Risk Factors for Orbital Complications in Isolated Sphenoid Rhinosinusitis

Background and Objectives: Isolated sphenoid rhinosinusitis may have devastating consequences such as orbital complications due to its anatomical contiguity with vital structures. This study aimed to identify patients with isolated sphenoid inflammatory diseases at high risk for developing orbital complications and requiring aggressive management through investigation of the clinical and computed tomography (CT) characteristics of patients with isolated sphenoid rhinosinusitis. Materials and Methods: The medical records of patients who underwent endoscopic sinus surgery between 2005 and 2022 were retrospectively reviewed. Patients with isolated sphenoid rhinosinusitis were identified based on a manual review of the clinical and histopathological findings. Participants’ clinical and CT features were reviewed. Results: Among the 118 patients with isolated sphenoid rhinosinusitis, 15 (12.7%) developed orbital complications, including diplopia, extraocular motility limitation, ptosis, and visual impairment. Headaches and facial pain occurred significantly more frequently in patients with orbital complications than in those without orbital complications (p < 0.001). Patients with diabetes mellitus or malignant neoplasms were more likely to develop orbital complications than those without these comorbidities (p < 0.05). Bony dehiscence on CT images was significantly more common in patients with orbital complications than in those without. In the regression analysis, diabetes mellitus (OR, 4.62), malignant neoplasm (OR, 4.32), and bony dehiscence (OR, 4.87) were significant predictors of orbital complications (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Headaches and facial pain are the most common symptoms of isolated sphenoid rhinosinusitis. Orbital complications of isolated sphenoid rhinosinusitis are more common in patients with comorbidities such as diabetes mellitus or malignancy or in those with bony dehiscence on CT images.
Origin of transform faults in back‐arc basins: examples from Western Pacific marginal seas

Transform faults in back‐arc basins are the key to revealing the evolution of marginal seas. Four marginal basins in the Western Pacific, i.e. the South China Sea (SCS), Okinawa Trough (OT), West Philippine Basin (WPB) and Shikoku‐Parece Vela Basin (SPVB), were studied to redefine the strikes and spatial distribution of transform faults or fracture zones. Based on high‐resolution tectonomorphology, gravity and magnetic anomalies, pattern of magnetic lineations, seismic profiles, geometry of basins and palaeomagnetic data, together with analyses of regional geological setting, plate reconstruction and geodynamic analysis, this paper suggests that all the transform faults in the four marginal basins are in general NNE‐trending. Moreover, by comparing with the contemporary structural framework of the East Asian Continental Margin, we propose new models concerning marginal seas spreading and have revised the previous Cenozoic plate reconstruction models related to the East Asian Continental Margin and the Western Pacific marginal seas. There are three possible origins of these NNE‐trending transform faults. 1. Inheriting the orientation of the strike‐slip faults at the rifting continental margin (e.g. the SCS and OT). The real strike of transform faults should not be NW but NNE. The large‐scale NNE‐trending dextral strike‐slip faults distributed in the continental shelf of the SCS control a series of pull‐apart basins of the SCS. Due to a higher degree of pull‐apart, oceanic crust began to open. Then they evolved into the NNE‐trending transform faults in the SCS and could also be regarded as a natural extension of the NNE‐trending strike‐slip faults in the South China Block (SCB). The geodynamic mechanism of the OT is similar to that of the SCS. Consequently, transform faults of the OT should also be NNE‐trending, which is not perpendicular to the spreading axis but instead displays oblique spreading. 2. Izu‐Bonin‐Mariana (IBM) Trench retreat to the NNE and NE. Subduction rollback to the NE and NNE produced the NE‐ and NNE‐striking horizontal tensile stress, resulting in the rifting of the Kyushu‐Palau Ridge (KPR), controlling the spreading of the SPVB and forming the NE‐ and NNE‐trending transform faults. This also involves oblique spreading. 3. The later overall rotation of the Philippine Sea Plate (PSP). Since 25 Ma, the WPB has rotated clockwise about 40°. Therefore the NW‐ and NNW‐trending transform faults that formed at the later spreading stage have rotated to be the near‐N–S‐ or NNE‐striking faults. These transform faults are almost perpendicular to the spreading axis. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Effects of ketamine on rat social behavior as analyzed by DeepLabCut and SimBA deep learning algorithms

Traditional methods of rat social behavior assessment are extremely time-consuming and susceptible to the subjective biases. In contrast, novel digital techniques allow for rapid and objective measurements. This study sought to assess the feasibility of implementing a digital workflow to compare the effects of (R,S)-ketamine and a veterinary ketamine preparation Vetoquinol (both at 20 mg/kg) on the social behaviors of rat pairs. Historical and novel videos were used to train the DeepLabCut neural network. The numerical data generated by DeepLabCut from 14 video samples, representing various body parts in time and space were subjected to the Simple Behavioral Analysis (SimBA) toolkit, to build classifiers for 12 distinct social and non-social behaviors. To validate the workflow, previously annotated by the trained observer historical videos were analyzed with SimBA classifiers, and regression analysis of the total time of social interactions yielded R 2 = 0.75, slope 1.04; p < 0.001 (N = 101). Remarkable similarities between human and computer annotations allowed for using the digital workflow to analyze 24 novel videos of rats treated with vehicle and ketamine preparations. Digital workflow revealed similarities in the reduction of social behavior by both compounds, and no substantial differences between them. However, the digital workflow also demonstrated ketamine-induced increases in self-grooming, increased transitions from social contacts to self-grooming, and no effects on adjacent lying time. This study confirms and extends the utility of deep learning in analyzing rat social behavior and highlights its efficiency and objectivity. It provides a faster and objective alternative to human workflow.
Crustal and tectonic structure of Northern Mozambique inferred by 2D gravity modeling

The northern region of Mozambique has a complex geological history, with an evolution that spans from the Precambrian Era to the Phanerozoic Era. In this work, we have integrated gravity and geothermal data to delineate the geotectonic evolution of the region, by estimating the thickness of the crust and the lithosphere through which was essential to generate a representative crustal model. It was necessary to complement the knowledge of structural geometry and tectonic evolution of the region. The data used in this study are the Bouguer and geoid anomalies, topography data, and radiogenic heat. These data were pre-processed, topography and geoid anomaly data were filtered by low-pass filter in the frequency and harmonic domains to remove undesirable effects associated with the sources. The data were used to estimate the thickness of the crust and lithosphere, as well as to determine the mean density distribution within the mantle. This was achieved by using a one-dimensional approach, considering the principle of local isostatic compensation, associated with equations governing the distribution of temperature in the crust. The Bouguer anomaly was used to generate a representative crustal 2D model of this region. The results showed that the crust is thinner in Nampula and Cabo Delgado provinces, with thickness ranging from 27 to 31 km, whereas in Niassa varies between 33 and 39 km. The analysis of lithospheric thickness indicates that the provinces of Nampula and Cabo Delgado present a thinning of the lithosphere, with values ranging from 150 to 165 km. Rather than Niassa province which exhibits a thicker lithosphere, ranging from 165 to 195 km. The obtained results underwent a comparative analysis with prior investigations, unveiling a noteworthy concurrence among these findings.
The Effect of Financial Rewards, Job Market Considerations, Personality, Social Values, and Professional Training on Career Selection as Public Accountant

This study aims to obtain empirical evidence regarding the effect of financial rewards, labor market considerations, personality, social values, and professional training on career choices as public accountants by accounting students in Semarang City. The population in this study were 8th semester accounting students at the University of 17 August 1945 Semarang (UNTAG), Dian Nuswantoro University (UDINUS), and Diponegoro University (UNDIP). The sampling technique used is purposive sampling. The data used are primary data obtained by distributing questionnaires. Respondents in this study amounted to 188 people. The analytical tool used is multiple linear regression with IBM SPSS version 23. The results show that financial rewards and social values have a positive and significant effect on career choice as a public accountant. Furthermore, l labor market considerations, personality, and professional training have no effect on career choice as a public accountant.
Balancing Privacy and Accuracy: Exploring the Impact of Data Anonymization on Deep Learning Models in Computer Vision

Computer vision has become indispensable in various applications, including autonomous driving, medical imaging, security and surveillance, robotics, and pattern recognition. In recent years, the quality of training data has emerged as a critical factor for ensuring effectiveness in real-world scenarios. However, the increasing stringency of privacy regulations in various regions necessitates careful handling of collected images for computer vision. Personal information within images is typically anonymized by applying anonymization patterns to remove it. Empirical findings underscore the significant influence of data quality on the training of deep learning models. Striking the right balance between privacy and recognition performance becomes paramount. Therefore, it is essential to understand how the anonymization of image datasets affects deep learning model performance. In this paper, we thoroughly analyze the effects of different anonymization techniques on the performance of deep learning-based models in computer vision tasks, with a particular emphasis on presenting a model-centric perspective, such as the type of deep learning model and the number of parameters. We aim to provide valuable insights and guidelines for selecting the optimal level of anonymization that strikes a balance between recognition accuracy and privacy protection.