Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Prevalence and risk factors of brain atrophy and associated confusion state among adults from three hospitals in northern Tanzania

Introduction brain atrophy is the reduction of brain volume often accompanied with cognitive changes. Despite the availability of computerized-tomography (CT) scanners in Tanzania, little is known about the magnitude of brain atrophy, its associated confusion state and the risk factors in adults. This study aimed to fill those knowledge gaps. Methods a retrospective cross-sectional hospital-based survey was conducted in northern Tanzania using a sample size of 384 CT images of adults who underwent brain CT scans in three referral hospitals. CT images were evaluated using a diagonal brain fraction (DBF) method to determine the presence of brain atrophy. Data for other covariates were also collected. Results we report a prevalence of 60.67% for brain atrophy and 35% for the associated confusion state. Association between confusion state and brain atrophy was statistically significant (χ2 = 21.954, p<0.001). Brain atrophy was prognosticated by: age (adjusted OR: 1.11; 95% CI [1.05, 1.20], p<0.001), smoking (adjusted OR: 6.97; 95% CI [2.12, 26.19], p<0.001), alcohol-consumption (adjusted OR: 11.87; 95% CI [3.44, 40.81], p<0.001), hypertension (adjusted OR: 61.21; 95 CI [15.20, 349.43], p<0.001), type-2 diabetes mellitus (adjusted OR: 15.67; 95% CI [5.32, 52.77], p<0.001) and white matter demyelination (adjusted OR: 13.45; 95% CI [4.66, 44.25], p<0.001). Conclusion there is high prevalence of brain atrophy and associated confusion state among hospitalized adults in northern Tanzania. Reported prognostic factors for brain atrophy such as age, smoking, alcohol consumption, hypertension, type-2 diabetes mellitus and white matter demyelination could help focus interventions in this area.
Coupling spectral‐bin cloud microphysics with the MOSAIC aerosol model in WRF‐Chem: Methodology and results for marine stratocumulus clouds

Aerosol‐cloud interaction processes can be represented more physically with bin cloud microphysics relative to bulk microphysical parameterizations. However, due to computational power limitations in the past, bin cloud microphysics was often run with very simple aerosol treatments. The purpose of this study is to represent better aerosol‐cloud interaction processes in the Chemistry version of Weather Research and Forecast model (WRF‐Chem) at convection‐permitting scales by coupling spectral‐bin cloud microphysics (SBM) with the MOSAIC sectional aerosol model. A flexible interface is built that exchanges cloud and aerosol information between them. The interface contains a new bin aerosol activation approach, which replaces the treatments in the original SBM. It also includes the modified aerosol resuspension and in‐cloud wet removal processes with the droplet loss tendencies and precipitation fluxes from SBM. The newly coupled system is evaluated for two marine stratocumulus cases over the Southeast Pacific Ocean with either a simplified aerosol setup or full‐chemistry. We compare the aerosol activation process in the newly coupled SBM‐MOSAIC against the SBM simulation without chemistry using a simplified aerosol setup, and the results show consistent activation rates. A longer time simulation reinforces that aerosol resuspension through cloud drop evaporation plays an important role in replenishing aerosols and impacts cloud and precipitation in marine stratocumulus clouds. Evaluation of the coupled SBM‐MOSAIC with full‐chemistry using aircraft measurements suggests that the new model works realistically for the marine stratocumulus clouds, and improves the simulation of cloud microphysical properties compared to a simulation using MOSAIC coupled with the Morrison two‐moment microphysics.
Feeding Practices of Dairy Owners in Semi-arid Region of Algeria

Background: This work aims to analyze and evaluate the feeding systems of dairy farms in order to provide a diagnosis of the constraints and potentialities of current food practices under Algerian production conditions, particularly in the semi-arid region of Sétif. Methods: The survey was carried out between 2021-2022 on 147 farms in the different agro-ecological zones of the semi-arid region of Sétif. The data were collected through personal interviews using the structured schedule. A survey was conducted to acquire information on farm structure and feeding practices. Result: Depending on the practice of grazing, two types of farms have been established: the zero-grazing system in 7.48% of farms, based on dry fodder supplemented by a large quantity of concentrated feed at 15 kg/cow/day on average, while the semi-grazing system was used in 91.40% of farms with an average of 10.2 kg/cow/day of concentrated feed distributed. The study of the current situation of dairy cow feeding systems shows that pasture, cereal straw, commercial concentrate and wheat bran were the most used feeds in the semi-arid region of Sétif. This finding requires the adoption of an adequate and precise rationing strategy to ensure good profitability of dairy farming.
Novel SCN5A frame‑shift mutation underlying in patient with idiopathic ventricular fibrillation manifested with J wave in inferior lead and prolonged S‑wave in precordial lead

Mutations in the SCN5A gene has been recognized as resulting in a series of life-threatening arrhythmias. However, it also causes idiopathic ventricular fibrillation (IVF) with J wave in inferior leads and prolonged S-wave upstroke in precordial leads, which has not been previously reported. The present study aimed to study the mechanisms of a patient with IVF manifested with J wave in inferior leads and prolonged S-wave upstroke in precordial leads. The electrocardiograms (ECG) of the proband were recorded and genetic testing was conducted. Patch-clamp and immunocytochemical studies were performed in heterologously transfected 293 cells. The VF attacks was documented in a 55-year-old male proband with syncope episodes. 12-lead ECG shown the transient J wave in the inferior leads and prolonged S-wave upstroke in precordial V1-V3 leads in the same timeframe. Genetic analysis revealed a novel 1 base deletion (G) at position 839 in exon 2 in SCN5A gene (C280S*fs61), which causes a severe truncation of the sodium channel. The functional study revealed that in 293 cells transfected with mutant channel, no sodium current could be recorded even though the immunocytochemical experiment confirmed the truncated sodium channel existed in cytosol. The kinetics of the wild-type (WT) channel were not altered when co-transfected with C280S*fs61 mutant which suggested a haploinsufficiency effect of sodium channel in the cells. The present study identified a novel C280Sfs*61 mutation that caused the ‘loss of function’ of the sodium channel by haploinsufficiency mechanism. The reduced sodium channel function in the heart may cause conduction delay that may underlie the manifestation of J wave and prolonged S-wave upstroke associated with IVF.
Non Linear Electrodynamics Contributing to a Minimum Vacuum Energy (“Cosmological Constant”) Allowed in Early Universe Cosmology

This article poses the question of a minimum cosmological constant, i.e. vacuum energy at the start of the cosmological evolution from a near singularity. We pose this comparing formalism as given by Berry (1976) as to a small time length, and compare that in its entirety to compare this value given by Berry (1976) with a minimum time length at the start of cosmological space-time evolution. Using the methodology of Zeldovich (1972) as to a problem with electron-positron pair production we also propose another upper bound to the problem of minimum time length which may be accessible to experimental inquiry. This then makes the problem of minimum time length a way of specifying a magnetic field dependence of the cosmological constant, which has major implications to answering if quintessence, i.e. a changing cosmological vacuum energy, or a constant for the “cosmological constant” problem. Our answer is an initial value for the cosmological vacuum energy 1010 - 1020 times greater than today which suggests either Quintessence, or if still a constant, a much better value for this parameter than what is suggested by traditional field theory methods. In closing we review how our construct supports work done by Corda, as to early universe models and what the implications are, as to the choices we have made.
A New Image Simulation Technique for Deep-Learning-Based Radar Target Recognition

Radar target recognition via deep learning has been an active research area recently. However, this family of methods depends on the quality of radar images and the number of training samples. Given limited training samples of poor quality, these methods will cause severe overfitting. To solve this problem, this article proposes a new method combining the physical model and deep learning. A new radar measurement simulation technique is presented. The radar measurements are first modeled by the attributed scattering center model. The target is reconstructed by the estimated model parameters. The corresponding residual is formed simultaneously. The reconstructed target and the residual are then frozen. A mask with random shape is imposed on the frequency data. The masked components are reset accordingly. The resulting data are combined and transformed from the frequency domain into the image domain. The new radar measurement can be then generated via the reimaging process of target. We aim to simulate the unforeseen disturbances during data collection. The simulated radar measurements are used to improve the learning efficiency of deep models under limited sample environments. Multiple comparative studies are performed to demonstrate the advantages of the proposed method.
On the Regularity of Operations of Ideals

Let I be a homogeneous ideal of a polynomial ring K[x1,…, xn] over a field K, and denote the Castelnuovo–Mumford regularity of I by reg(I). When I is a monomial complete intersection, it is proved that reg(Im) ≤ mreg(I) holds for any m ≥ 1. When n = 3, for any homogeneous ideals I and J of K[x1, x2, x3], one has that reg(I ⊗ J), reg(IJ) and reg(I ∩ J) are all upper bounded by reg(I) +reg(J), while reg(I + J) ≤reg(I) +reg(J) −1.
How Many Americans Work Remotely? A Survey of Surveys and Their Measurement Issues

Remote work surged during the Covid pandemic but there is disagreement about the extent of the change. To address this question, we field a new, nationally-representative survey: the Remote Life Survey (RLS). We find that in October 2020, 31.6 percent of the continuously employed workforce always worked from home (WFH) and 21.9 percent sometimes or rarely WFH, totaling 53.5 percent. We compare our results with alternative measurement approaches, with a focus on government surveys and provide estimates on the impact of four factors: (a) differences among mail versus web-based survey respondents,(b) differences in the inclusion of self-employed workers, (c) the industry mix of the sample, and (d) the exclusion of people who were already remote pre-pandemic. We find that the last explanation (d) explains the bulk of the difference in estimates between the Current Population Survey (CPS) and other measures of remote work. Policymakers and researchers who turn to the BLS-CPS data series for an estimate of remote work prevalence in the American economy should note that it might be underestimating WFH levels by up to 25 percentage points. Under our preferred estimates, we find that about half of the U.S. workforce worked remotely at least one day each week as of December 2020.
Analysis of APTT Based Clot Waveform Parameters in Various Clinical Conditions – A Study at A Tertiary Care Center

Various coagulation tests like Prothrombin Time (PT) and Activated Partial Thromboplastin Time (APTT) are estimated by automated coagulation analyzers. The newer fully automated analyzers generate clot wave forms aPTT-CWA for these parameters are derived. In this study, the objective was to analyze clot wave form characteristics morphology and its first and second derivative values in cases with abnormal APTT. ACL TOP 300 generated curves for APTT in a total 125 patients with 20 normal controls are included. First derivative, second derivative, morphology of curve: sigmoid, biphasic, prolonged pre-coagulation phase, second derivative morphology like early and late shoulder, biphasic peak, delayed deceleration were the analyzed parameters. Wave clot forms of 125 patients were included in this study. Patients (M:F - 2.2:1, mean age: 46.9 ± 20 years). A spectrum of clinical conditions was Covid (20%), liver disease (23%), polytrauma (10.4%), cardiac diseases (8.8%), sepsis/DIC (7.2%), thromboembolism (7.2%), renal diseases (6.4%), bacterial infections (4%), dengue (4%), snake bite (1.6%) and factor deficiency (1.6%). Liver and heart disease showed a significant difference in acceleration and deceleration peaks followed by sepsis, dengue, polytrauma and sepsis/DIC. Deceleration peak was prolonged in patients of Covid (p<0.05). Sepsis and liver diseases showed prolonged first derivative peak (p<0.05). CWA is very easily available on all automated coagulation analyzers. It is inexpensive with fast turn round time. Both quantitative as well as qualitative informations such as velocity, acceleration of clot formation and wave pattern details were recorded. Our study highlights importance of quantitative and qualitative CWA parameters acquired by performing APTT test for the automated analyzers.
Assessment Of Chargeback Systems In It Management

Abstract The management practice of billing cost centers or user departments for services provided by an in-house information technology center is referred to as a chargeback system. Chargeback systems have been widely advocated as method of making users responsible for the information technology costs that they incur. With the rapid pace of technological change, increasing investments, and a growing diversity of users and usage’s, the importance of effective information technology cost control has increased to management. Some organizations have adopted chargeback systems from the earliest computer applications but chargeback has remained a controversial management technique. The necessary and sufficient conditions for effectively using chargeback systems have yet to be determined. This paper examines prior research on chargeback systems focusing on its application and relevancy to the current technological environment. The extant cost management literature on allocations of support costs is introduced to the discussion. The importance of information, congestion, and incentive effects are emphasized in evaluating cost allocation systems. Considerations of capacity levels, opportunity costs, and positive and negative externalities are introduced in the debate of using or not using chargeback systems. The contingent technological and management contexts are used to develop a framework for chargeback choice and effectiveness evaluation.
Automatic knowledge acquisition from superconductivity information in literature

ABSTRACT In this study, we developed a natural language processing model for extracting information solely from the abstracts of literature on superconducting materials, with the aim of making predictions for materials science. Using a dataset of tagged documents (annotations) on superconductivity, the DyGIE++ framework was employed for the simultaneous extraction of the named entities, relations, and events. Additionally, a model was developed for classifying the subject material in the abstracts. After training with 1,000 annotated abstracts, the model extracted information, such as the material composition, superconducting transition temperature, doping information, and process information, automatically from 48,565 abstracts registered in the Scopus database since 1937. The numbers of extracted entries concerning superconducting materials and transition temperatures were 43,944 and 24,075, respectively, i.e. equivalent to the number of entries in the existing databases. Machine learning models were constructed to predict physical and chemical properties. For example, the superconducting transition temperatures were predicted for compositions, with a mean absolute error of 15 K. In addition, the doping information indicated that the superconducting transition temperature was correlated with the choice of dopant and doping site. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT
Comparison of ground insects diversity in cikaweni and canopy PPKA bodogol sukabumi tracks, west java

Nature Conservation Education Center (PPKA) Bodogol is one of the utilization zones that plays a role in preserving biodiversity. The purpose of this research was to explore the comparison of diversity and diversity index of ground insects in the Cikaweni and Canopy PPKA Bodogol, Sukabumi. The method used in this research is line transect by making a 500 m long transect line and divided into 10 plots. Each plot measures 2.5m x 2.5m, with a distance between plots of 50 m. Data processing was carried out using the Shannon-Wiener index, Eveness and similarity index. The results we got in this study found 33 individuals from 23 species of ground insects. In the Cikaweni track, the diversity value is 2.31 and the evenness index is 0.89, while in the canopy track the diversity value is 2.14 and the evenness index value is 0.93. These results indicate that both pathways belong to the moderate category without any dominating species. While the similarity index of the two tracks was 19% with only 3 species found in both tracks, namely Acheta sp. , Blattella sp. , and Euborellia annulipes, which means that both tracks have a low level of similarity.
Demystifying Regulating Active Rectifiers for Energy Harvesting Systems: A Tutorial Assisted by Verilog-A Models

In this paper the design of regulated active rectifiers (RARs) is addressed, with emphasis on energy harvesting applications. After an insightful overview of the main topologies of RARs, the analytical models are discussed and extended. Then, a data-driven comparison is carried out which, however, does not allows an absolute ranking between the different topologies. Then, a general Verilog-A model of the active rectifier is introduced and extended to simulate and compare the different regulation schemes. Unlike the data-driven comparison, the simulations based on the proposed Verilog-A models allows concluding that the PWM regulation scheme is more suitable for applications requiring an input power lower than about 1mW, whereas the Reconfigurable (1X/0X) is more effective for input power levels in the range 1mW-10mW. The adoption of the developed models allows a huge reduction of the simulation time, equal to 7X for the open loop active rectifier and about 100X for the regulated mode. The accuracy of the proposed model has been extensively verified against transistor-level simulations, showing an error lower than 5% in all conditions. The proposed model is useful during the design phase to select the rectifier topology and control scheme during the design phase and also to reduce the simulation time during pre-silicon verification on complex mixed-signal systems.
Integrated vs non-integrated treatment outcomes in dual diagnosis disorders: A systematic review

Background The incidence of dual diagnosis (DD) (i.e. substance use disorders [SUD] and co-occurring mental disorders) is widespread; however, they vary widely in permutation and combination. As a result, establishing effective and empirically supported interventions for this clinical population remains challenging. Aim This study aimed to examine current literature on the treatment outcomes for patients with DD. Method A systematic review of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) published between 2009 and 2018 was conducted for two broad intervention categories identified by the literature: non-integrated and integrated treatment. Multiple electronic databases were searched using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines (PRISMA). Results The search generated a total of 743 studies, of which 11 satisfied the inclusion criteria. These studies were thematically synthesised into two main analytical themes: ‘treatment outcomes’ and ‘reported strengths and limitations of DD treatment’. Specifically, integrated treatment held an advantage over non-integrated treatment in significantly improving psychiatric symptomatology. However, no significant benefits were found between integrated and non-integrated treatment regarding substance misuse and treatment retention. Conclusion Overall, the results provided insufficient evidence to support the enhanced efficacy of integrated or non-integrated treatment over the other in treating patients with DD. Contribution The study’s findings were used to provide recommendations to inform the clinical psychological service delivery of dual diagnosis treatment in South Africa and also to identify gaps in the literature and highlight areas for future research.
Finite Field Multiplier Architectures for Cryptographic Applications

Security issues have started to play an important role in the wireless communication and computer networks due to the migration of commerce practices to the electronic medium. The deployment of security procedures requires the implementation of cryptographic algorithms. Performance has always been one of the most critical issues of a cryptographic function, which determines its e ectiveness. Among those cryptographic algorithms are the elliptic curve cryptosystems which use the arithmetic of nite elds. Furthermore, elds of characteristic two are preferred since they provide carry-free arithmetic and at the same time a simple way to represent eld elements on current processor architectures. Multiplication is a very crucial operation in nite eld computations. In this contribution, we compare most of the multiplier architectures found in the literature to clarify the issue of choosing a suitable architecture for a speci c application. The importance of the measuring the energy consumption in addition to the conventional measures for energy-critical applications is also emphasized. A new parallel-in serial-out multiplier based on all-one polynomials (AOP) using the shifted polynomial basis of representation is presented. The proposed multiplier is area e cient for hardware realization. Low hardware complexity is advantageous for implementation in constrained environments such as smart cards. Architecture of an elliptic curve coprocessor has been developed using the proposed multiplier. The instruction set architecture has been also designed. The coprocessor has been simulated using VHDL to very the functionality. The coprocessor is capable of performing the scalar multiplication operation over elliptic curves. Point doubling and addition procedures are hardwired inside the coprocessor to allow for faster operation.
Target tracking algorithm based on attention mechanism

Inspired by Transformer, this paper proposes a new attention-based feature fusion network, which effectively combines template features and search region features using attention alone. Specifically, the method includes a contextual enhancement module based on multi-headed self-attention and a cross-feature enhancement module based on crossattention, and finally the two features are combined using the residual structure to effectively enhance the features. Experiments show that our tracker achieves very good results on the GOT-10k benchmark. It runs at approximately 45fps on the GPU, which achieves the real-time requirement.