Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Scattering versus intrinsic attenuation in periodically layered media

The propagation of acoustic waves in a layered medium results in the energy loss due to scattering effect. The intrinsic attenuation is an additional effect which plays a very important role in seismic data inversion and reservoir characterization. In this paper we provide the theoretical and numerical study to compare both effects for a periodically layered medium. We also investigate the complex frequency roots (the organ modes) of the reflection/transmission responses.
Association of Positive Bacterial Cultures Obtained from the Throat, Anus, Ear, Bronchi and Blood in Very-Low-Birth-Weight Premature Infants with Severe Retinopathy of Prematurity—Own Observations

Background: The causative factors responsible for the development of Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP) are still unexplored. Therefore, one of the most important factors can be perinatal inflammation. Methods: This retrospective study included 114 premature infants (228 eyes) meeting a birth criteria of ≤ 32 weeks gestational age (GA) and a birth weight (BW) ≤ 1710. Examined Group (EG) n = 51 of BW 852.7 ± 255.7; GA 26.3 ± 2.0 with severe ROP treated by diode laser or anti-VEGF intravitreal injection. Control Group (CG) n = 63 of BW 1313.9 ± 284.5; GA 28.8 ± 1.6 without ROP. Microbiological bacterial and fungal cultures of the ear, anus, bronchial throat and blood were taken. Medical data and laboratory tests in correlation to 3 ROP and A-ROP were analysed. Results: Positive bacterial tests dominated in EG, 47% vs. CG, 23%. Significant correlations between positive cultures obtained from natural cavities: anus (p < 0.001), throat (p = 0.002), as well as from blood (p = 0.001) and severe ROP which requires diode laser and anti-VEGF treatment were noted. Significant inflammation markers which correlate with the development of severe ROP are Klebsiella pneumoniae (KP) (p = 0.002) and Coagulase-negative Staphylococci (CoNS) (p < 0.001). CoNS, p < 0.001; KP, p = 0.002; the remaining Maltophilia stenotrophomonas (MS); Staphylococcus aureus (SA), p = 0.005; and Enterobacter cloacae (EC), p = 0.02 were the most frequent bacteria in severe ROP. High levels of white blood cells (WBC), C-reactive protein (CRP), lymphocytes (LYM) and low thrombocytes (PLT) correlated sequentially with (Odds Ratio, OR) CoNS (2.3); MS (5.9); KP (3.1); and all positive cultures (APC) (9.5). An important correlation between the BPD—EC (4.3); intrauterine inflammation—KP (3.4); PDA—EC (3.9); and asphyxia—CoNS (3.0) was identified. Conclusions: It cannot be ruled out that positive microbiological results of blood, anal and pharyngeal cultures may become prognostic markers for the early development of ROP, which would enable early initiation of ophthalmological treatment in premature infants from the VLBW group.
Assimilation of Remotely Sensed Soil Moisture and Snow Depth Retrievals for Drought Estimation

AbstractThe accurate knowledge of soil moisture and snow conditions is important for the skillful characterization of agricultural and hydrologic droughts, which are defined as deficits of soil moisture and streamflow, respectively. This article examines the influence of remotely sensed soil moisture and snow depth retrievals toward improving estimates of drought through data assimilation. Soil moisture and snow depth retrievals from a variety of sensors (primarily passive microwave based) are assimilated separately into the Noah land surface model for the period of 1979–2011 over the continental United States, in the North American Land Data Assimilation System (NLDAS) configuration. Overall, the assimilation of soil moisture and snow datasets was found to provide marginal improvements over the open-loop configuration. Though the improvements in soil moisture fields through soil moisture data assimilation were barely at the statistically significant levels, these small improvements were found to translat.
Unintended Consequences of Youth Entrepreneurship Programs: Experimental Evidence from Rwanda

The persistently high employment share of the informal sector makes entrepreneurship a necessity for youth in many developing countries. We exploit exogenous variation in the implementation of Rwanda's ntrepreneurship education reform in secondary schools to evaluate its effect on student economic outcomes up to three years after graduation. Using a randomized controlled trial, we evaluated a three-year intensive training for entrepreneurship teachers, finding pedagogical changes as intended and increased entrepreneurial activity among students. In this paper, we tracked students following graduation and found that increased entrepreneurship persisted one year later, in 2019. Students from treated schools were six percentage points more likely to be entrepreneurs, an increase of 19 percent over the control mean. However, gains in entrepreneurship faded after three years, in 2021. Employment was six percentage points lower in the treatment group. By some measures, income and profits were lower in the treatment group, with no robust differences in these outcomes overall. Lower incomes and profits were concentrated among marginal students induced into entrepreneurship by the program. Youth entrepreneurship programs may therefore steer some participants away from their comparative advantage. Nonetheless, the program increased university enrollment, suggesting the potential for higher long run returns.
Distribution of Paleogene and Cretaceous rocks around the Nazko River belt of central British Columbia from 3-D long-offset first-arrival seismic tomography

Across the Nechako–Chilcotin plateau of British Columbia, the distribution of Cretaceous sedimentary rocks, which are considered prospective for hydrocarbon exploration, is poorly known due to the surface cover of glacial deposits and Tertiary volcanic rocks. To constrain the subsurface distribution of these Cretaceous rocks, in 2008 Geoscience BC acquired seven long, up to 14.4 km, offset vibroseis seismic reflection lines across a north-northwest-trending belt of exhumed sedimentary rocks inferred to be part of the Taylor Creek Group. P-wave velocity models, which are consistent with sonic logs from nearby wells, have been estimated using three-dimensional first-arrival tomography to depths ranging from 1 to 4 km. Igneous basement can be identified on most lines using the 5.5 km/s isovelocity contour, which locates the top of the basement to an accuracy of ∼400 m where its depth is known in exploration wells. There is no general distinction on the basis of seismic velocity between Cretaceous sedimentary.
Quartz silt in mudrocks as a key to sequence stratigraphy (Kimmeridge Clay Formation, Late Jurassic, Wessex Basin, UK)

Sequence‐stratigraphic interpretation of mudrocks is often carried out using proxy indicators for grain size or by consideration of other aspects of lithology thought to relate to sea‐level change, such as organic‐matter content. An alternative stratigraphic analysis, based on direct estimation of quartz‐silt content, was carried out on a major Late Jurassic mudrock (and oil source rock), the Kimmeridge Clay Formation of the Wessex Basin, Dorset, UK. The new data, generated by backscatter SEM, X‐ray and image analysis, show decametre‐scale stratigraphic patterns that are incompatible with many previous sequence‐stratigraphic interpretations based on gamma‐ray logs or visual lithofacies and biofacies description. Correlation with a basin‐margin section in the Boulonnais, northern France, indicates that silt‐rich intervals in basinal facies are coeval, within the limits of biostratigraphic resolution, with shallow‐water sand‐rich packages on the margin. Variation in silt content in the Kimmeridge Clay therefore appears to be a record of relative sea‐level change of at least regional extent. It is suggested that analysis of silt content offers the most reliable basis for generation of a regional sequence stratigraphy in basinal mudrocks. A revised relative sea‐level curve for the Wessex Basin Kimmeridgian and early Tithonian is presented based on this premise.
Dexrazoxane for the treatment of chemotherapy-related side effects

: For more than half a century, the different properties of dexrazoxane have captured the attention of scientists and clinicians. Presently, dexrazoxane is licensed in many parts of the world for two different indications: prevention of cardiotoxicity from anthracycline-based chemotherapy, and prevention of tissue injuries after extravasation of anthracyclines. This article reviews the historical, preclinical, and clinical background for the use of dexrazoxane for these indications.
Vertebrate extinction across Permian-Triassic boundary in Karoo Basin, South Africa: Discussion

The Permian-Triassic boundary was a time of lowered atmospheric oxygen and raised carbon dioxide pressure and massive vertebrate extinction. The levels of oxygen (12 vol%) and carbon dioxide (∼2000 ppmV) are typically tolerated by modern vertebrates and are not abnormal enough to have contributed significantly to the extinction.
Post-Operative Cognitive Dysfunction in Elderly Patients Receiving Propofol Sedation for Gastrointestinal Endoscopies: An Observational Study Utilizing Processed Electroencephalography

Background: Propofol sedation is commonly administered during gastrointestinal (GI) procedures. The Patient State Index (PSI) is a processed electroencephalography (EEG) parameter obtained with the SedLine® Sedation Monitoring system (Masimo Corporation, Irvine, CA). When used to objectively assess the patient’s level of consciousness, PSI may provide a more effective, safer titration of sedation during GI procedures. We hypothesize that having more or longer episodes of deep sedation as assessed by PSI (i.e., PSI<26) would correlate with developing new-onset or worsening post-operative cognitive dysfunction (POCD). Methods: This was a pragmatic, double-blinded observational study of 400 patients aged ≥65 years undergoing upper GI endoscopy, lower GI endoscopy, or a combined procedure utilizing propofol sedation at a tertiary-care [A1] academic medical center. The patients were monitored with the SedLine® Brain Function Monitor, software version 2 (Masimo Corporation, Irvine, CA), throughout the case, starting at baseline (i.e., before administration of propofol) and stopping at case end. We assessed the subjects’ cognitive function via an in-person interview at baseline (pre-procedure) and telephone interviews at 1, 7 (±1), and 90 days after study enrollment. Cognitive function was assessed by administering the short blessed test (SBT), which is a validated brief cognitive screening appropriate for in-person and telephone administration. Results: The correlations between the change in SBT score and the pre-defined parameters of PSI were not significant (all p-values >5%). There was a significant drop in SBT scores on day seven. Higher age was also significantly associated with a drop in SBT from baseline. Deep sedation, as evidenced by the number of times PSI was lower than 26, was not predictive of the change in SBT, nor was gender, total propofol dose, or vasoactive drug use during the procedure. Conclusions: The observed incidence of POCD after GI procedures with propofol sedation was low (1.3% at seven days and 2.95% at 90 days) and lower than at the baseline. Age was associated with a greater average decline in SBT score, although the absolute change was small (−0.067 per year of age increase). Deeper sedation, as documented by the PSI score, was not associated with a change in POCD measured with the SBT.
2D characterization of near-surface V P/V S: surface-wave dispersion inversion versus refraction tomography

The joint study of pressure (P-) and shear (S-) wave velocities (Vp and Vs ), as well as their ratio (Vp /Vs), has been used for many years at large scales but remains marginal in near-surface applications. For these applications, and are generally retrieved with seismic refraction tomography combining P and SH (shear-horizontal) waves, thus requiring two separate acquisitions. Surface-wave prospecting methods are proposed here as an alternative to SH-wave tomography in order to retrieve pseudo-2D Vs sections from typical P-wave shot gathers and assess the applicability of combined P-wave refraction tomography and surface-wave dispersion analysis to estimate Vp/Vs ratio. We carried out a simultaneous P- and surface-wave survey on a well-characterized granite-micaschists contact at Ploemeur hydrological observatory (France), supplemented with an SH-wave acquisition along the same line in order to compare Vs results obtained from SH-wave refraction tomography and surface-wave profiling. Travel-time tomography was performed with P- and SH- wave first arrivals observed along the line to retrieve Vtomo p and Vtomo s models. Windowing and stacking techniques were then used to extract evenly spaced dispersion data from P-wave shot gathers along the line. Successive 1D Monte Carlo inversions of these dispersion data were performed using fixed Vp values extracted from Vtomo p the model and no lateral constraints between two adjacent 1D inversions. The resulting 1D Vsw s models were then assembled to create a pseudo-2D Vsw s section, which appears to be correctly matching the general features observed on the section. If the pseudo-section is characterized by strong velocity incertainties in the deepest layers, it provides a more detailed description of the lateral variations in the shallow layers. Theoretical dispersion curves were also computed along the line with both and models. While the dispersion curves computed from models provide results consistent with the coherent maxima observed on dispersion images, dispersion curves computed from models are generally not fitting the observed propagation modes at low frequency. Surface-wave analysis could therefore improve models both in terms of reliability and ability to describe lateral variations. Finally, we were able to compute / sections from both and models. The two sections present similar features, but the section obtained from shows a higher lateral resolution and is consistent with the features observed on electrical resistivity tomography, thus validating our approach for retrieving Vp/Vs ratio from combined P-wave tomography and surface-wave profiling.
Nexus between Monetary Freedom, Political Stability and Exchange Rate with Sustainable Stock Market Development in Pakistan: A Comparative Analysis by ARDL and NARDL

This study scrutinizes both symmetric and asymmetric impact of monetary freedom (MF) on the sustainable stock market development (SMD) in Pakistan, in the presence of political stability and foreign exchange rate. The study uses the time series data for the period of 1992 to 2022, the study applies Non-linear Auto-regressive Distributed Lag (NARDL) and ARDL Bounds Testing for comparative analysis. Monetary freedom with sound political stability and stable foreign exchange rate do Granger Cause and significant correlation with the SMD of Pakistan. The results from ARDL Bound Testing show that MF and exchange rate has highly significant long-run impact on the SMD with coefficient values of 4.64 and 3.32. The Positive asymmetric cumulative dynamic multipliers (ACDMs) of MF have highly significant impact on SMD. Political stability has been a Positive Function of its ACDMs, while exchange rate has been a Negative Function of its respective ACDMs. The impact of exchange rate is highly significant with its Negative ACDMs coefficients of 17.42 and 16.76, denoting a long-lasting impact on the sustainable economic growth of Pakistan by strengthening the pace of stock market development. This comparative study will add revised practical credence to the existing literature on autoregressive models and will facilitate modified and improved policy-making at operational and strategic level to achieve decent economic growth under sustainable development goals (SDG).
Multiphoton In Vivo Microscopy of Embryonic Thrombopoiesis Reveals the Generation of Platelets through Budding

Platelets are generated by specialized cells called megakaryocytes (MKs). However, MK’s origin and platelet release mode have remained incompletely understood. Here, we established direct visualization of embryonic thrombopoiesis in vivo by combining multiphoton intravital microscopy (MP-IVM) with a fluorescence switch reporter mouse model under control of the platelet factor 4 promoter (Pf4CreRosa26mTmG). Using this microscopy tool, we discovered that fetal liver MKs provide higher thrombopoietic activity than yolk sac MKs. Mechanistically, fetal platelets were released from MKs either by membrane buds or the formation of proplatelets, with the former constituting the key process. In E14.5 c-Myb-deficient embryos that lack definitive hematopoiesis, MK and platelet numbers were similar to wild-type embryos, indicating the independence of embryonic thrombopoiesis from definitive hematopoiesis at this stage of development. In summary, our novel MP-IVM protocol allows the characterization of thrombopoiesis with high spatio-temporal resolution in the mouse embryo and has identified membrane budding as the main mechanism of fetal platelet production.
Joint Angles Estimation Based on Center of Force With Artificial Neural Network and Convolutional Neural Network

The current trend of assessing joint angles could be conducted through machines or deep learning (DL) relies on various input data. The development of different types of DL models using foot data may avoid finding optimal sensor positions and direct contact with human skin and can be accessible for subjects. We aimed to investigate the performance of artificial neural network (ANN) and convolutional neural network (CNN) in predicted joint angles based on center of force (CoF). Twenty subjects were required to walk on a treadmill at three gait speed modes: comfortable, fast, and running. Foot data were collected through an F-scan system during the experiment. The kinematics of the lower limb joints were recorded using a camera system. Two different types of DL approaches were applied: ANN and CNN. The DL models were trained using the input data of CoF and combination of CoF with joint angle. The two matrices of root-mean-square error (RMSE) and correlation coefficient were used to evaluate each model’s performance. The DL approaches of ANN and CNN provided the maximum RMSEs (°) of 12.56 and 14.62, while the minimum correlation coefficients were 0.9102 and 0.9354, respectively. Accordingly, DL based on ANN or CNN architecture is a promising approach that can accurately estimate joint angles even with running gait, beneficial for the sport and rehabilitation field.
Cost‐effective alternatives for mitigating Cryptosporidium risk in drinking water and enhancing ecosystem services

Under the multibarrier paradigm, water quality management barriers that mitigate risk to consumers are required at multiple points from the catchment to the tap. We present a cost‐effectiveness analysis of 13 catchment‐ and treatment‐based management alternatives for mitigating Cryptosporidium risk in the Myponga water supply catchment, South Australia. A broad range of costs and benefits are identified and valued, including setup, operation and maintenance, and opportunity costs, and benefits for ecosystem services including water quality, biodiversity, carbon sequestration, and farm production services. The results suggest that the cost‐effectiveness of investment in water quality management can be substantially enhanced by considering the costs of management and the benefits for ecosystem services, in addition to Cryptosporidium removal effectiveness. Cost‐effectiveness of investment in management alternatives is dependent upon the desired level of Cryptosporidium removal effectiveness by both the catchment and treatment barriers. The combination of a spatially targeted 25% restriction in water course access of nondairy cattle and treatment by enhanced coagulation provides the most (net) cost‐effective Cryptosporidium risk mitigation strategy. This combination may achieve 0.614 log removal at a net cost of A$0.7 million and (net) cost‐effectiveness of A$1.14 million per log removal. Additional risk mitigation can be achieved through the addition of ultraviolet irradiation treatment, higher levels of water course access restriction for cattle, and the adoption of dung beetles in the catchment. Economic valuation of a range of costs and benefits of management priorities can support cost‐effective water quality management investment decisions and inform elements of policy design such as cost‐sharing arrangements and spatial targeting.
Influence of Waste Fibers on the Total Porosity of Cementitious Composites

T he amount of water is essential to explain the shrinkage process. It is determined by the water-cement ratio, but also by the moisture content. Water in hydrated cement paste occurs in various forms: chemically bound, interlayer, adsorbed, free water and water vapor. During cement hydration, the balance between various forms of water changes. For example, the amount of physically bound water diminishes, and the moisture content changes at similar environmental conditions. Moisture changes occur first in the larger pores and then in the smaller pores. The air pores are larger than the hydration pores (capillary pores, gel pores) and have a greater effect on strength and permeability properties, while the cement hydration pores have a greater effect on shrinkage. At early ages, when composite properties are not fully developed, higher shrinkage influences the development and propagation of cracks. These (micro)cracks represent weak points and affect durability. To reduce shrinkage and bridge the cracks, fibers are added to the cementitious composite. Depending on the type and geometry, the fibers can reduce shrinkage and bridge the cracks. To reduce the environmental impact of fiber production, the use of waste fibers in cementitious composites is proposed.
NONLINEAR WAVE-INDUCED SEABED INSTABILITY AROUND COASTAL STRUCTURES

Seabed liquefaction at the toe of coastal structures is one of the most serious problems threatening their stability. Various simplified techniques have been commonly used to quantify this phenomenon, but often with shortcomings. An integrated technique, using numerical models developed by the authors, is presented to analyze the conditions and extents of seabed liquefaction and slip failure. This includes: a BEM-FEM model for the dynamic interaction among wave, structure and the seabed; a poro-elastic FEM model for the dynamic interaction between structure and the seabed; and a model for the wave-induced seabed response based on Yamamoto's analytical solution (1977). The proposed technique is applied to the seabed subject to progressive waves, around vertical seawall with/without a rubble toe as well as in the vicinity of submerged and composite breakwaters. In this work, the permeability and porewater compressibility have been found to play a key role in controlling the seabed instability. The nonlinear.