Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Testing the EPRI reactivity depletion decrement uncertainty methods

An EPRI study[1], published in 2011, used measured flux map data (taken over 44 operational cycles of the Catawba and McGuire nuclear power plants) to determine fuel assembly reactivity decrements versus burnup. The analytical techniques used to infer measured assembly reactivities required perturbation calculations using 3D nodal diffusion core models. Subsequently, questions have arisen within the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) as to potential uncertainties in measured assembly reactivity decrements that might have arisen from approximations of the 2-group nodal methods and perturbation techniques employed. Subsequently, Gunow[2] used full-core, multi-group, neutron transport models to replace the nodal diffusion core models, and he demonstrated that measured reactivity decrements were independent of the core model. In this thesis, two cycles of the BEAVRS PWR reactor benchmark are used to test the EPRI methodology, now including testing of not only the nodal core diffusion model, but also the perturbation technique itself. By changing the perturbation technique from assembly reactivity to assembly-average fuel temperature, it is demonstrated that measured reactivity decrements are almost independent of the perturbation technique with a level of precision greater then the 250 pcm reactivity decrement uncertainty assigned in the EPRI study. These new results demonstrate that the reactivity decrements and uncertainties derived by nodal diffusion and burnup perturbation in the original EPRI study hold up to further scrutiny, and they remain credible for licensing application of burnup credit in Spent Fuel Pool (SFP) criticality analysis. Thesis Supervisor: Kord Smith Title: KEPCO Professor of the Practice of Nuclear Science and Engineering Thesis Reader: Benoit Forget Title: Professor of Nuclear Science and Engineering
Effect of Mechanical Pruning on Olive Yield in a High-Density Olive Orchard: An Account of 14 Years

In Portugal, the study of mechanical pruning in olive orchards began in 1997. Trials were carried out in traditional orchards, and the obtained results revealed that mechanical pruning can contribute to the reduction in pruning costs without a reduction in yield. In 2005, the authors started an evaluation of mechanical pruning in high-density olive orchards. The trial was organised in a randomised, complete block design, with three replications. Four treatments were compared: T1—manual pruning, using chain saws in 2005, 2010, 2014, and 2017; T2—mechanical pruning, topping, and hedging (two sides) in 2014 and 2017, followed by manual pruning complement; T3—mechanical pruning, topping in 2005, topping and hedging (west side) in 2008 and 2012, topping and hedging (east side) in 2010, 2014 and 2017, summer topping in July 2015, and hedging (west side) in winter 2016; T4—mechanical pruning, topping in 2005, topping and hedging (two sides) in 2010, 2014, and 2017, and summer topping in July 2015. The average yield per tree for each treatment was evaluated. In the first period (5 years), no significant differences were found between treatments. In the second period (4 years), a greater frequency of mechanical pruning (T3) showed a lower yield, with significant differences with treatment T2. In the third period of 5 years, a greater pruning severity reduced the olive yield (2014). Manual pruning complement after mechanical pruning (T2) did not increase olive yield; however, the average yield over this period of time was similar. The olive yield was maintained over a period of 14 years by only applying mechanical pruning, without manual pruning complement inside the canopy.
Dielectric properties of Raphia Fiber from Epidermis of young Raphia Vinifera leaflet

There are materials that could serve useful purpose(s) in many fields, but they are left unutilized due to lack of both the knowledge on their useful properties and availability of values as per such properties. Notably, the knowledge of dielectric properties of some materials of plant origin is lacking whereas such is necessary for industrial, agricultural, electrical, electronics, biophysical and medical applications as well as other uses of a material. In this research, Raphia Vinifera is a material of choice. The experimental determination and computation of some dielectric properties of Raphia fiber from epidemis of young leaflets of Raphia Vinifera is explored. The properties considered for determination were dielectric permittivity, loss angle and dissipation factor. A Schering Bridge arrangement was employed, with a fixed thickness and varying areas of sample at various select frequencies. The values of the investigated properties recorded for our research sample trended towards being dependent of frequency. At frequency values above 1 kHz, the values of the properties determined decreased with increase in frequency. The values compared favorably with those of the already known and commonly used dielectric materials. The preliminary investigation showed that Raphia Vinifera would have usefulness in the electrical and electronic industries as raw material for the production of capacitor among other uses.
Innovative Cell and Platelet Rich Plasma Therapies for Diabetic Foot Ulcer Treatment: The Allogeneic Approach

Cutaneous chronic wounds are a major global health burden in continuous growth, because of population aging and the higher incidence of chronic diseases, such as diabetes. Different treatments have been proposed: biological, surgical, and physical. However, most of these treatments are palliative and none of them can be considered fully satisfactory. During a spontaneous wound healing, endogenous regeneration mechanisms and resident cell activity are triggered by the released platelet content. Activated stem and progenitor cells are key factors for ulcer healing, and they can be either recruited to the wound site from the tissue itself (resident cells) or from elsewhere. Transplant of skin substitutes, and of stem cells derived from tissues such as bone marrow or adipose tissue, together with platelet-rich plasma (PRP) treatments have been proposed as therapeutic options, and they represent the today most promising tools to promote ulcer healing in diabetes. Although stem cells can directly participate to skin repair, they primarily contribute to the tissue remodeling by releasing biomolecules and microvesicles able to stimulate the endogenous regeneration mechanisms. Stem cells and PRP can be obtained from patients as autologous preparations. However, in the diabetic condition, poor cell number, reduced cell activity or impaired PRP efficacy may limit their use. Administration of allogeneic preparations from healthy and/or younger donors is regarded with increasing interest to overcome such limitation. This review summarizes the results obtained when these innovative treatments were adopted in preclinical animal models of diabetes and in diabetic patients, with a focus on allogeneic preparations.
Downregulation of MTAP promotes Tumor Growth and Metastasis by regulating ODC Activity in Breast Cancer

5'-Methylthioadenosine phosphorylase (MTAP) is a key enzyme in the methionine salvage pathway and has been reported to suppress tumorigenesis. The MTAP gene is located at 9p21, a chromosome region often deleted in breast cancer (BC). However, the clinical and biological significance of MTAP in BC is still unclear. Here, we reported that MTAP was frequently downregulated in 41% (35/85) of primary BCs and 89% (8/9) of BC cell lines. Low expression of MTAP was significantly correlated with a poor survival of BC patients (P=0.0334). Functional studies showed that MTAP was able to suppress both in vitro and in vivo tumorigenic ability of BC cells, including migration, invasion, angiogenesis, tumor growth and metastasis in nude mice with orthotopic xenograft tumor of BC. Mechanistically, we found that downregulation of MTAP could increase the polyamine levels by activating ornithine decarboxylase (ODC). By treating the MTAP-repressing BC cells with specific ODC inhibitor Difluoromethylornithine (DFMO) or treating the MTAP-overexpressing BC cells with additional putrescine, metastasis-promoting or -suppressing phenotype of these MTAP-manipulated cells was significantly reversed, respectively. Taken together, our data suggested that MTAP has a critical metastasis-suppressive role by tightly regulating ODC activity in BC cells, which may serve as a prominent novel therapeutic target for advanced breast cancer treatment.
Clinical Considerations for Immunoparesis in Multiple Myeloma

Simple Summary Immunoparesis in multiple myeloma is defined as the suppression of one or more of the uninvolved immunoglobulins, AKA, polyclonal immunoglobulin. The extent of immunoparesis is an independent prognostic factor in patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma. Myeloma patients with suppressed uninvolved immunoglobulins at diagnosis have shorter median overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS). This review article summarizes immunoparesis in myeloma patients, contributing factors, its impact on myeloma progression, general outcomes, and infectious complications. Abstract Multiple myeloma is a relatively common clonal plasma cell disorder, comprising 17% of hematologic malignancies. One of the hallmark features of this disease is immunoparesis, which is characterized by the suppression of immunoglobulin polyclonality. Though not entirely elucidated, the mechanism behind this process can be attributed to the changes in the tumor microenvironment. All treating clinicians must consider potential complications related to immunoparesis in the management of multiple myeloma. Though not explicitly described in large data series, the increased risk of infection in multiple myeloma is likely, at least in part, due to immunoglobulin suppression. Additionally, the presence of immunoparesis serves as a prognostic factor, conveying poorer survival and a higher risk of relapse. Even in the era of novel agents, these findings are preserved, and immunoglobulin recovery also serves as a sign of improved outcome following autologous HSCT. Though not within the diagnostic criteria for multiple myeloma, the presence and degree of immunoparesis should be at diagnosis for prognostication, and immunoglobulin recovery should be tracked following myeloablative therapy and autologous HSCT.
On self-similar behaviour of the hysteresis loops in pitching motions

Abstract A new similarity parameter has been used for analyzing the unsteady aerodynamic behaviour of vehicles undergoing sinusoidal pitching motion. If this parameter is identical for two unsteady manoeuvres with different reduced frequencies and oscillation amplitudes, the corresponding hysteresis loops of the force and moment collapse on each other. To support and verify this, extensive unsteady wind tunnel tests have been conducted on a standard model, which is a well known fighter type configuration. The acquired data were used to train a certain type of neural network, called the Generalised Regression Neural Network (GRNN), to reduce the number of wind tunnel runs. The scheme, once proved to give the correct results for various conditions, was applied to extend the experimental data to other conditions that have not been tested in the tunnel. Both the predicted and acquired tunnel data were used to show the performance of the similarity parameter.
COVID-19 Vaccination Is Safe among Mast Cell Disorder Patients, under Adequate Premedication

Reported cases of anaphylaxis following COVID-19 vaccination raised concerns about the safety of these vaccines, namely in patients suffering from clonal mast cell (MC) disorders—a heterogenous group of disorders in which patients may be prone to anaphylaxis caused by vaccination. This study aimed to assess the safety of COVID-19 vaccines in patients with clonal MC disorders. We performed an ambidirectional cohort study with 30 clonal MC disorder patients (n = 26 in the prospective arm and n = 4 in the retrospective arm), that were submitted to COVID-19 vaccination. Among these, 11 (37%) were males, and median age at vaccination date was 41 years (range: 5y to 76y). One patient had prior history of anaphylaxis following vaccination. Those in the prospective arm received a premedication protocol including H1- and H2-antihistamines and montelukast, while those in the retrospective arm did not premedicate. Overall, patients received a total of 81 doses, 73 under premedication and 8 without premedication. No MC activation symptoms were reported. COVID-19 vaccination seems to be safe in patients with clonal mast cell disorders, including those with prior anaphylaxis following vaccination. Robust premedication protocols may allow for vaccination in ambulatory settings.
Comprehensive analysis of GEO-KOMPSAT-2A and FengYun satellite-based precipitation estimates across Northeast Asia

ABSTRACT Geostationary meteorological satellites provide precipitation estimates with a high spatio-temporal resolution, which is important for near real-time precipitation monitoring. This study systematically evaluated geostationary orbit (GEO) satellite-based quantitative precipitation estimates (QPEs) from Chinese Fengyun-2 G (FY-2 G), Fengyun-4A (FY-4A), and South Korean Geo-KOMPSAT-2A (GK-2A) across Northeast Asia in 2020. Compared against ground-based rainfall gauges at a 6-hourly scale, FY-2 G provided the highest accuracy in the China region with a high correlation coefficient (R = 0.53) and a low bias (−0.26 mm) due to the ground calibration process in FY-2 G. Conversely, GK-2A provided more accurate precipitation estimates for South Korea and Japan stations. FY-4A QPE generally showed a large positive bias throughout different seasons, although it provided satisfactory R and categorical statistics. FY-based QPEs slightly overestimated summer precipitation, especially over South Korea and Japan region, while GK-2A tended to underestimate summer precipitation. All examined QPEs showed poor accuracy during the winter season due to the frozen particles and ice clouds. Intensity analysis revealed that FY-based QPEs tended to overestimate the occurrence of no rain and heavy rain cases, whereas GK-2A underestimated no rain and heavy rain cases and overestimated light rain occurrence. It is also found that all examined QPEs captured the temporal variation of precipitation during storm events, while FY-based products overestimated heavy precipitation peaks and GK-2A underestimated peak precipitation. The findings in the study provided valuable information to further improve current infrared precipitation retrieval algorithms.
Learning to Dislike Your Opponents: Political Socialization in the Era of Polarization

Early socialization research dating to the 1960s showed that children could have a partisan identity without expressing polarized evaluations of political leaders and institutions. We provide an update to the socialization literature by showing that adolescents today are just as polarized as adults. We compare our findings to a landmark 1980 socialization study and show that distrust in the opposing party has risen sharply among adolescents. We go on to show that the onset of polarization in childhood is predicted by parental influence; adolescents who share their parents’ identity and whose parents are more polarized are apt to voice polarized views.
Association between of polymorphism rs1801133 in MTHFR gene and diabetes mellitus type II for Iraqi patients

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a clinical syndrome caused by metabolic problems. Recently, researchers have recently concentrated their efforts on identifying additional risk variables, like as homocysteine (Hcy), a non-independent vascular risk factor linked to insulin resistance in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Aimed our current study to association between of polymorphism rs1801133 in MTHFR gene and diabetes mellitus type II for Iraqi patients. Samples of blood were collected from Iraqi with T2DM (50 patenits) from auditors to specialized laboratories and consulting clinics in Baquba District / Diyala Governorate, Iraq, as well as 21 healthy participants, and their ages ranged (35-54 years). Genotyping was performed by PCR/SNP (specific primers), risk score for T2DM was determined by Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (HWE). (HWE) was analyzed in T2DM patients and healthy participants, and it was discovered that the MTHFR (rs1801133) genotypes were in agreement with the equilibrium, with no clear differences (p>1.020-0.298) between the observed and expected genotype frequencies. When rs1801133 genotype and allele frequencies were compared in T2DM patients and healthy participants, it was shown that there were no significant differences in these frequencies.
Targeted-Capture Next-Generation Sequencing in Diagnosis Approach of Pediatric Cholestasis

Background: Cholestasis is a frequent and severe condition during childhood. Genetic cholestatic diseases represent up to 25% of pediatric cholestasis. Molecular analysis by targeted-capture next generation sequencing (NGS) has recently emerged as an efficient diagnostic tool. The objective of this study is to evaluate the use of NGS in children with cholestasis. Methods: Children presenting cholestasis were included between 2015 and 2020. Molecular sequencing was performed by targeted capture of a panel of 34 genes involved in cholestasis and jaundice. Patients were classified into three categories: certain diagnosis; suggested diagnosis (when genotype was consistent with phenotype for conditions without any available OMIM or ORPHANET-number); uncertain diagnosis (when clinical and para-clinical findings were not consistent enough with molecular findings). Results: A certain diagnosis was established in 169 patients among the 602 included (28.1%). Molecular studies led to a suggested diagnosis in 40 patients (6.6%) and to an uncertain diagnosis in 21 patients (3.5%). In 372 children (61.7%), no molecular defect was identified. Conclusions: NGS is a useful diagnostic tool in pediatric cholestasis, providing a certain diagnosis in 28.1% of the patients included in this study. In the remaining patients, especially those with variants of uncertain significance, the imputability of the variants requires further investigations.
Ultrasonographic Evaluation of Ulnar Neuropathy Around the Elbow in Diabetes Mellitus

Objective: We evaluated the usefulness of ultrasonography for subclinical ulnar neuropathy at the elbow (UNE) in patients with diabetes.Methods: Ultrasonography of the ulnar nerve was performed on 140 limbs in 73 patients with diabetes mellitus at 8 standardized sites proximal and distal to the medial epicondyle (1-cm intervals). The ulnar nerve cross-sectional area (CSA) at each site was analysed according to the presence of electrophysiological diabetic polyneuropathy (DPN) or UNE (UNE_e). Results: Fifty-nine limbs were electrophysiologically normal, 22 limbs had UNE, 39 limbs had DPN, and 20 limbs had DPN and UNE_e. In patients without DPN, the maximal CSA, swelling ratio, and CSAs were greater in the UNE_e group than in the normal group (p < 0.01). No significant differences were noted between the DPN and DPN+UNE_e groups regarding the CSAs, maximal CSA, and swelling ratio.Conclusion: Ultrasonography of ulnar nerve swelling is helpful for diagnosing subclinical UNE in patients with diabetes.
A hybrid drift-diffusion-TLM method for analysis of traveling-wave photodetectors

High speed and high output saturation current photodetectors are key components of broadband optical communication systems, ultra-fast mea¬ surement systems, radio-over-fiber networks, and photonic local oscil¬ lators, used for generation of high-power mm-wave signals. Travelingwave photodetectors (TWPDs), having broad bandwidth and high powerhandling capability, are excellent candidates for such applications. The traveling-wave photodetector combines an optical and radio fre¬ quency (RF) waveguide on the same multilayered structure. It has a coplanar geometry, making it easy to integrate with the embedding microwave circuit. Since the TWPD is an electrically distributed device, matched to the output microwave circuit, its bandwidth is not RC time constant lim¬ ited. Instead, it is limited by the velocity mismatch between the optical and RF waves and optical and RF losses. Therefore, accurate electromag¬ netic (EM) analysis of the TWPD is essential to their successful design and analysis. To date, most of the analyses of TWPDs, as reported in the open literature, are based on the equivalent-circuit and transmissionline models. These models are linked to spécifie photodetector's geometry and, often, do not compare well with the experiments. In this project, a hybrid drift-diffusion (DD)-transmission-line matrix (TLM) method for rigorous analysis of TWPDs is developed. The method is a combination of a two dimensional (2-D) semiconductor and three dimensional (3-D) full-wave EM simulators. The semiconductor analysis is based on the time-domain DD method. The set of DD equations contains the Poisson equation and the carrier transport equations, obtained by splitting the Boltzmann transport equa¬ tion (BTE) into its first two moments. The DD model assumes that the carrier temperature is equal to the semiconductor lattice temperature. Therefore, the carrier velocity is dependent on the electric field only. In comparison to other, more rigorous techniques for numerical modeling of semiconductor devices, the DD method is a relatively simple technique with better convergence of the algorithm and shorter computational times. Therefore, it is more suitable for use by a design engineer.
An Analysis of Genetic Variability and Population Structure in Wheat Germplasm Using Microsatellite and Gene-Based Markers

Knowledge of the natural patterns of genetic variation and their evolutionary basis is required for sustainable management and conservation of wheat germplasm. In the current study, the genetic diversity and population structure of 100 individuals from four Triticum and Aegilops species (including T. aestivum, Ae. tauschii, Ae. cylindrica, and Ae. crassa) were investigated using two gene-based markers (start codon targeted (SCoT) polymorphism and CAAT-box derived polymorphism (CBDP)) and simple-sequence repeats (SSRs). The SCoT, CBDP, and SSR markers yielded 76, 116, and 48 polymorphism fragments, respectively. The CBDP marker had greater efficiency than the SCoT and SSR markers due to its higher polymorphism content information (PIC), resolving power (Rp), and marker index (MI). Based on an analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) performed using all marker systems and combined data, there was a higher distribution of genetic variation within species than among them. Ae. cylindrica and Ae. tauschii had the highest values for all genetic variation parameters. A cluster analysis using each marker system and combined data showed that the SSR marker had greater efficiency in grouping of tested accessions, such that the results of principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) and population structure confirmed the obtained clustering patterns. Hence, combining the SCoT and CBDP markers with polymorphic SSR markers may be useful in genetic fingerprinting and fine mapping and for association analysis in wheat and its germplasm for various agronomic traits or tolerance mechanisms to environmental stresses.