Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
OFDM Receiver Concept for the AeronauticalCommunications System LDACS1 to Cope withImpulsive Interference

The aim of this thesis is to introduce interference mitigation techniques and an appropriate receiver structure for the aeronautical communications system LDACS1. Due to the proliferation of electronic radio systems, unused spectrum suitable for radio transmissions is scare. This scarcity calls for concepts for allocating spectrum presently used, at least partly, by existing systems also to new systems like LDACS1. This type of spectral deployment poses particular challenges to the design of new systems. On the one hand, it is necessary to ensure that existing systems are not impaired in their functionality by the new, so-called secondary, LDACS1 system. On the other hand, LDACS1 must be designed to become robust against interference from existing systems. In order to achieve these goals, LDACS1 uses OFDM as modulation technique. OFDM is a multi-carrier modulation technique. Its ability to occupy spectrum flexibly predestines OFDM as modulation technique for secondary systems. The proposed interference mitigation algorithms are based on the so-called blanking nonlinearity. Accordingly, a threshold is defined. Any parts of a received signal with a magnitude exceeding this threshold are considered interference and are subsequently blanked. This thesis presents improvements on the blanking nonlinearity aimed at alleviating drawbacks of this method for OFDM signals. It is common knowledge that OFDM signals have a relatively high PAPR. This property makes differentiation of interference impulses from OFDM signal peaks a challenging task. Correspondingly, a poorly chosen threshold may impair the OFDM signal significantly. This thesis presents an algorithm for an adaptive blanking threshold calculation. The algorithm is based on the magnitude distribution of the received signal, and does not require any information about the interference characteristics. Another disadvantage of the blanking nonlinearity is that the entire received signal is discarded during a blanking interval despite the fact that only a fraction of the spectrum of the OFDM signal might be affected by interference. This thesis proposes a new algorithm for estimating the spectral distribution of the interference. Based on this estimate, the received signal is combined with the blanked signal, thus significantly reducing the loss of information caused by the blanking nonlinearity. Furthermore, this thesis investigates concepts for OFDM receiver structures including how the various receiver components must be adapted to interference, and how they can profit from interference mitigation. Finally, this thesis elaborates on iterative receiver structures for further improving the performance of the proposed interference mitigation. Simulations with LDACS1, involving aeronautical channel models and various impulsive interference models, confirm the beneficial influence of the proposed algorithms on performance. In conjunction with an optimized iterative OFDM receiver structure, performance degradation due to impulsive interference can be kept at minimum.
Evaluating clinical outcomes associated with ectopic pregnancies

Background: Ectopic pregnancy refers to the implantation of a fertilized ovum outside the endometrium. There is no doubt that ectopic pregnancy is a common cause of morbidity; however, the associated mortality has declined significantly over the years due to early diagnosis and timely intervention.Methods: This prospective study was conducted at Lala Ded Hospital, Srinagar from April 2016-March 2017. All the patients with ectopic pregnancies admitted through accident and emergency unit and through gynaecoloy out-patient department were included in the study. The data on several factors was analyzed like; parity, clinical presentation, risk factors, management and findings at laparotomy, to draw a valid inference. All the patients were managed as per hospital protocol and followed till discharge from the hospital. Results: The present study revealed that the commonest age group affected with ectopic pregnancies is 20-24 years with majority of patients having previous spontaneous abortion as being high risk factor associated with ectopic pregnancies followed by pelvic inflammatory disease. The most dominant clinical presentation among the study subjects was pain and the commonest site of ectopic pregnancy was ampulla region of fallopian tube. Most of the patients were successfully managed with the help of salpingectomyConclusions: We suggest that the possibility of ectopic pregnancies should not be ignored in the reproductive age group especially in patients presenting with severe abdominal pain because delayed diagnosis often halts timely intervention which in turn invite serious health consequences.
Prediction of Laser Cut Quality for Tungsten Alloy Using the Neural Network Method

The cut quality is of great importance during the laser cutting process. The quality of laser cut mainly depends on an appropriate selection of process parameters. In this paper, the effect of process parameters was analysed on the laser cut quality of an uncommon alloy, the tungsten alloy (W ≈ 92.5 % and the remainder Fe and Ni) sheet with thickness of 1 mm. This alloy has a wide application in different industrial areas, e.g. in medical applications, the automobile sectors, and the aircraft industry. This paper introduces a developed back-propagation artificial neural network (BP- ANN) model for the analysis and prediction of cut quality during the CO2 laser cutting process. In the presented study, three input process parameters were considered such as laser power, cutting speed and assist gas type, and two output parameters such as kerf width and average surface roughness. Amongst the 42 experimental results, 34 data sets were chosen for training the network, whilst the remaining 8 results were used as test data. The average prediction error was found to be 5.5 % for kerf width and 9.5 % for surface roughness. The results of the predicted kerf width and surface roughness by the BP-ANN model were compared with experimental data. Based on the results of the study, it was shown that the proposed artificial neural network model could be a useful tool for analysing and predicting surface roughness and kerf width during CO2 laser cutting processes.
An energy efficient resource allocation and transmit antenna selection scheme in mm‐wave using massive multiple‐input multiple‐output technology

The massive multiple‐input multiple‐output (MIMO) improves the reliability of transmission and capacity of the channel. Resource allocation (RA) and transmit antenna selection (TAS) can minimize the complexity in implementation and hardware costs. In this research, both the RA and the TAS of wireless communication in millimeter‐wave (mm‐wave) with massive MIMO technology are considered. Two different solutions are developed for this research such as the deep learning method for efficient resource allocation process and optimization algorithm for TAS process. Here, the RA process is done with the help of attention‐based capsule auto‐encoder (ACAE) architecture which allocates the radio resources like power, space, time and frequency to all the available users in the system. Further, battle royale optimization (BRO) algorithm is utilized to select an efficient antenna from multiple antennas at BS. This optimization algorithm optimally selects an efficient antenna so that, user equipment (UEs) can create high quality links and achieves a reduced power consumption rate of the whole architecture. The overall system performance depends on the selection of optimal antenna which in terms enhances spectral efficiency (SE), energy efficiency (EE), reliability, and diversity gain of MIMO technology. In this way, both RA and optimal antenna selection schemes are performed to maximize the overall performance of wireless communication with massive MIMO technology for 5G wireless communication applications. The implementation of the proposed methodology is evaluated on MATLAB. Finally, the efficiency of the developed method is improved with respect to the capacity, EE, and SE.
English Learning Strategies of Various Nations: A Study in Military Context Farkli Uluslarin İngilizce Öğrenme Stratejileri: Askeri Ortamda Bir

How successful learners learn English has been one of the primary interest of scientists and researchers in recent years. Therefore, this study aimed to determine what language learning strategies the military personnel from different nations used while learning English. 56 subjects from 14 different nations deployed in three different military settings in the world participated in the study. Strategies Inventory of Language Learning was used to collect data about the research. According to the result of the study, although a native speaker of a language more or less used learning strategies to be a successful language user, he\she was not much better than the others at using learning strategies in every aspect. However it can be stated that some native speakers used language learning strategies more frequently than others. Keywords: English learning strategies, learning strategies in military context, learning strategies of various nationals OZ: Son yillarda basarili Ingilizce ogrenicilerinin nasil basarili oldugu bilim adamlari ve arastirmacilarin baslica ilgi alani olmustur. Bu nedenle, bu calisma farkli uluslardan ingilizce ogrenen askeri personelin ingilizce iletisimde basarili olmak icin hangi dil ogrenme stratejilerini kullandigini belirlemeyi amaclamaktadir. Bu arastirmaya dunyanin farkli merkezlerinde gorev yapan 14 farkli ulustan 56 personel katilmistir. Denekler Belcika, Ispanya ve Turkiye'de bulunmaktadir. Arastirma hakkinda veri toplamak icin Dil Ogrenme Strateji Envanteri kullanilmistir. Arastirmanin sonuclarina gore, bir dilin dogal konusmacisi basarili bir dil ogrenicisi olmak icin az veya cok ogrenme stratejisi kullanmasina ragmen, her yonuyle ogrenme stratejilerini kullanmada digerlerinden daha basarili degildir. Ancak, bazi dogal konusmacilarin digerlerine gore daha sik ogrenme stratejileri kullandigi ifade edilebilir. Anahtar sozcukler: Ingilizce ogrenme stratejileri, askeri ortamda ogrenme stratejileri, farkli uluslarin dil ogrenme stratejileri
Sodium Alginate and Chitosan as Components Modifying the Properties of Inulin Hydrogels

The aim of the study was to investigate the influence of addition of sodium alginate (SA) and chitosan (CH) on the properties of inulin hydrogels. Inulin hydrogels (20 g/100 g) containing various additions (0.0, 0.1, 0.3, and 0.5 g/100 g) of SA and CH were produced. The hydrogels’ properties were assessed based on the volumetric gel index, microstructure, yield stress, texture, stability, and color parameters. According to the findings, the inclusion of these polysaccharides had no influence on the gelation ability of the inulin solution. The physical properties of the hydrogels containing SA or CH differed from hydrogels containing only inulin (INU). The obtained microstructural pictures revealed that the addition of SA and CH resulted in the formation of hydrogels with a more compact, smooth, and cohesive structure. Consequently, they had higher yield stress, strength, and spreadability values than INU hydrogels. The addition of chitosan in comparison with sodium alginate also had a greater effect in strengthening the structure of hydrogels, especially at the level of 0.5 g/100 g. For example, the addition of this amount of SA increased the yield stress on average from 195.0 Pa (INU) to 493.6 Pa, while the addition of CH increased it to 745.3 Pa. In the case of the strength parameter, the addition of SA increased the force from 0.24 N (INU) to 0.42 N and the addition of CH increased it to 1.29 N. In the case of spreadability this increase was from 2.89 N * s (INU) to 3.44 N * s (SA) and to 6.16 N * s (CH). Chitosan also caused an increase in the stability of inulin hydrogels, whereas such an effect was not observed with the addition of sodium alginate. The gels with the addition of SA and CH also had significantly different values of color parameters. Inulin–alginate hydrogels were characterized by higher values of the color parameter a *, lower values of the color parameter b *, and in most concentrations higher values of the color parameter L * compared to inulin–chitosan hydrogels. Based on the collected data, it can therefore be concluded that through the addition of sodium alginate and chitosan, there is a possibility to modify the properties of inulin hydrogels and, consequently, to better adapt them to the characteristics of the pro-health food products in which they will be used.
Evaluation of the use of the Capes Portal of journals from the perspective of research users in administration and accounting based on the SERVQUAL scale

Purpose: The objective of this research is to evaluate the use of the Capes Portal of Periodicals from the perspective of research users in administration and accounting, and to investigate the relationship between user satisfaction with the five dimensions of the SERVQUAL model of service evaluation. Methodology: The scale was answered by 162 researchers in the areas of accounting and administration, who were contacted via e-mail available in the publications of Qualis A2 and B1 journals in 2017. A multiple regression analysis model was used, having the level of satisfaction (ST) as a dependent variable of the model, and as independent variables, reliability (FC), responsiveness (PR), safety (SG), empathy (EP) and tangible aspects (TG), measured through the SERVQUAL scale used. The model was tested and validated for the problems of multicollinearity (Inflation Variance Test - VIF), heteroscedasticity (Breush Pagan) and functional form (Ramsey Reset). Results: The predominant profile of researchers in accounting and administration are professors with doctorates in public universities, who use the portal of journals with high frequency, although they are not entirely satisfied with the service. A significant positive relationship was found between service satisfaction and the variables of tangibility, trust, security and empathy. Responsiveness was not found to be a significant variable. Contributions of the study: It was observed that the referred platform has many advantages, but some characteristics still leave something to be desired, shown, for example, from the assessment of the tangibility that is directly related to the interface. And also the responsiveness, which is the dimension that assesses the receptivity and feedback of the entity that operates the portal, negatively impacting satisfaction, which can be explained by the lack of contact or relationship between the user and the team responsible for operations on the Capes Portal.
Performance impact of precision reduction in sparse linear systems solvers

It is well established that reduced precision arithmetic can be exploited to accelerate the solution of dense linear systems. Typical examples are mixed precision algorithms that reduce the execution time and the energy consumption of parallel solvers for dense linear systems by factorizing a matrix at a precision lower than the working precision. Much less is known about the efficiency of reduced precision in parallel solvers for sparse linear systems, and existing work focuses on single core experiments. We evaluate the benefits of using single precision arithmetic in solving a double precision sparse linear system using multiple cores. We consider both direct methods and iterative methods and we focus on using single precision for the key components of LU factorization and matrix–vector products. Our results show that the anticipated speedup of 2 over a double precision LU factorization is obtained only for the very largest of our test problems. We point out two key factors underlying the poor speedup. First, we find that single precision sparse LU factorization is prone to a severe loss of performance due to the intrusion of subnormal numbers. We identify a mechanism that allows cascading fill-ins to generate subnormal numbers and show that automatically flushing subnormals to zero avoids the performance penalties. The second factor is the lack of parallelism in the analysis and reordering phases of the solvers and the absence of floating-point arithmetic in these phases. For iterative solvers, we find that for the majority of the matrices computing or applying incomplete factorization preconditioners in single precision provides at best modest performance benefits compared with the use of double precision. We also find that using single precision for the matrix–vector product kernels provides an average speedup of 1.5 over double precision kernels. In both cases some form of refinement is needed to raise the single precision results to double precision accuracy, which will reduce performance gains.
Diagnosis and Management of Acute Left-Sided Colonic Diverticulitis: A Clinical Guideline From the American College of Physicians

DESCRIPTION The American College of Physicians (ACP) developed this guideline to provide clinical recommendations on the diagnosis and management of acute left-sided colonic diverticulitis in adults. This guideline is based on current best available evidence about benefits and harms, taken in the context of costs and patient values and preferences. METHODS The ACP Clinical Guidelines Committee (CGC) developed this guideline based on a systematic review on the use of computed tomography (CT) for the diagnosis of acute left-sided colonic diverticulitis and on management via hospitalization, antibiotic use, and interventional percutaneous abscess drainage. The systematic review evaluated outcomes that the CGC rated as critical or important. This guideline was developed using the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation) methodology. TARGET AUDIENCE AND PATIENT POPULATION The target audience is all clinicians, and the target patient population is adults with suspected or known acute left-sided colonic diverticulitis. RECOMMENDATION 1 ACP suggests that clinicians use abdominal CT imaging when there is diagnostic uncertainty in a patient with suspected acute left-sided colonic diverticulitis (conditional recommendation; low-certainty evidence). RECOMMENDATION 2 ACP suggests that clinicians manage most patients with acute uncomplicated left-sided colonic diverticulitis in an outpatient setting (conditional recommendation; low-certainty evidence). RECOMMENDATION 3 ACP suggests that clinicians initially manage select patients with acute uncomplicated left-sided colonic diverticulitis without antibiotics (conditional recommendation; low-certainty evidence).
The Role of the Self-Presence for Interactive Large Digital Displays: Gesture Interactivity and Mirrored-Self Image for Advertising Content

ABSTRACT The gesture interactivity and self-mirroring effects of large digital displays, also known as digital signage, was investigated using the self-presence theory and engagement. By extending the interactive effects of gesture and self-mirroring from the immersive environment to a large interactive display (LID), this study found the implicit mediating roles of social presence and engagement for advertising effectiveness through a 2 (gesture; non-gesture vs. gesture interactivity) x 2 (self-representation; non-self-mirroring vs. self-mirroring interactivity) between-subject design (N = 81) experiment. The results indicated that gesture interactivity enhances a feeling of self-presence, not self-mirroring, and it positively fosters psychological engagement with advertising content. In turn, the heightened engagement results in better advertising effectiveness, such as brand attitude, purchase intention, and recall.
Metabolic, Cardiac, and Hemorheological Responses to Submaximal Exercise under Light and Moderate Hypobaric Hypoxia in Healthy Men

Simple Summary The lower atmospheric partial pressure of oxygen under hypobaric hypoxia decreases oxygen saturation and arteriovenous oxygen difference. Exercise under hypoxia decreases arterial oxygen saturation, which reduces the ability to deliver oxygen to active muscles and consequently worsens aerobic capacity and exercise performance. Previous studies on metabolic and cardiac responses to submaximal exercise under hypoxia have been well documented, but information on hemorheological responses is relatively insufficient. In this regard, a review of hemorheological responses to exercise under hypoxia could provide further information on reduced aerobic capacity and exercise performance caused by acute hypoxia. We conducted a randomized crossover trial to compare the effects of acute exercise under light and moderate hypobaric hypoxia versus normoxia on metabolic parameters, cardiac function, and hemorheological properties in healthy men. The main findings of our study revealed that endurance submaximal exercise under light (596 mmHg, simulated 2000 m) and moderate (526 mmHg, simulated 3000 m) hypoxia induced greater metabolic and cardiac responses than exercise under normoxia. However, exercise under hypobaric hypoxia did not affect hemorheological properties, including erythrocyte deformability and aggregation. These results can be used as basic data for understanding hemorheological responses in light and moderate hypobaric hypoxia. Abstract We compared the effects of metabolic, cardiac, and hemorheological responses to submaximal exercise under light hypoxia (LH) and moderate hypoxia (MH) versus normoxia (N). Ten healthy men (aged 21.3 ± 1.0 years) completed 30 min submaximal exercise corresponding to 60% maximal oxygen uptake at normoxia on a cycle ergometer under normoxia (760 mmHg), light hypoxia (596 mmHg, simulated 2000 m altitude), and moderate hypoxia (526 mmHg, simulated 3000 m altitude) after a 30 min exposure in the respective environments on different days, in a random order. Metabolic parameters (oxygen saturation (SPO2), minute ventilation, oxygen uptake, carbon dioxide excretion, respiratory exchange ratio, and blood lactate), cardiac function (heart rate (HR), stroke volume, cardiac output, and ejection fraction), and hemorheological properties (erythrocyte deformability and aggregation) were measured at rest and 5, 10, 15, and 30 min after exercise. SPO2 significantly reduced as hypoxia became more severe (MH > LH > N), and blood lactate was significantly higher in the MH than in the LH and N groups. HR significantly increased in the MH and LH groups compared to the N group. There was no significant difference in hemorheological properties, including erythrocyte deformability and aggregation. Thus, submaximal exercise under light/moderate hypoxia induced greater metabolic and cardiac responses but did not affect hemorheological properties.