Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Unrestricted mixed data sampling (MIDAS): MIDAS regressions with unrestricted lag polynomials

Mixed data sampling (MIDAS) regressions allow us to estimate dynamic equations that explain a low frequency variable by high frequency variables and their lags. When the difference in sampling frequencies between the regressand and the regressors is large, distributed lag functions are typically employed to model dynamics avoiding parameter proliferation. In macroeconomic applications, however, differences in sampling frequencies are often small. In such a case, it might not be necessary to employ distributed lag functions. We discuss the pros and cons of unrestricted lag polynomials in MIDAS regressions. We derive unrestricted‐MIDAS (U‐MIDAS) regressions from linear high frequency models, discuss identification issues and show that their parameters can be estimated by ordinary least squares. In Monte Carlo experiments, we compare U‐MIDAS with MIDAS with functional distributed lags estimated by non‐linear least squares. We show that U‐MIDAS performs better than MIDAS for small differences in sampling frequencies. However, with large differing sampling frequencies, distributed lag functions outperform unrestricted polynomials. The good performance of U‐MIDAS for small differences in frequency is confirmed in empirical applications on nowcasting and short‐term forecasting euro area and US gross domestic product growth by using monthly indicators.
Parametric Study on Bone Screw Designs for Holding Power

Pullout tests of bone screws have been performed on cadaver bones, animal bones or synthetic bones. These materials have been proven to be poor models from experimental observation, giving results with too much variability or difference. The finite element method was used in this study to evaluate the holding power for bone screws subject to the changes of outer diameter, inner diameter, pitch and radiuses of tip and bottom round corner. The displacement control mode was used in a way that 1 mm displacement was applied on the flatness region of bone screw head and the reaction force was then recorded to simulate the ability of pullout force. Numerical results showed that the patterns of tip corner on the bone screw were a deciding factor on the pullout force of bone screw. This study was significant for establishing a good bone-screw FEM model and suggesting important threaded parameters in selecting or manufacturing a bone screw to increase its holding power.
Assessment of Seeding Effects in Snowpack Augmentation Programs: Ice Nucleation and Scavenging of Seeding Aerosols

Abstract Trace chemical analysis techniques have been used in a series of cloud-seeding experiments in the central Sierra Nevada with the ultimate purpose of distinguishing whether the submicron-sized aerosol particles used for seeding are removed by nucleation or by scavenging in snowfall. The research programs used submicron-sized seeding aerosols with different nucleating characteristics. When winter storms were seeded with silver iodide in the Lake Tahoe and Lake Almanor watersheds, positive correlations were observed between silver concentrations and precipitation amounts in both catchment areas.This is considered to be evidence that the AgI aerosols are not being removed in the snowfall entirely by scavenging processes. When two separate aerosols of silver iodide and indium sesquioxide were released simultaneously from the same ground locations during winter snowstorms in the Lake Almanor watershed, it was found that considerably more of the ice-nucleating aerosol particles (AgI) were removed by the.
Oscillator strengths of transitions in the beryllium sequence

Configuration interaction wavefunctions have been used to evaluate absorption oscillator strengths, using both the length and velocity forms, for transitions between the 1s22s2p and 1s22p2 states: 3P0 to 3Pe; 1P0 to 1De; 1P0 to 1Se. It is found that the length values stabilize fairly quickly while the corresponding velocity values are more sensitive. Both L-shell and K-L inter-shell correlations are considered. The latter make small changes to length values, but alter velocity values by up to 10%. All-external configurations are important for neutral beryllium and to some extent for B II also. The 1s22p2 1S state of neutral beryllium appears to be about 0.01 a.u. above the Be+ 2s threshold. The calculations of Burke (1972) for the 1s22s2 1S to 1s22s2p1P0 transition are extended, and compared with the accurate calculations of Sims and Whitten (1973). Agreement to within 2% is achieved.
Detection of Equine Papillomaviruses and Gamma-Herpesviruses in Equine Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) seriously compromises the health and welfare of affected horses. Although robust evidence points to equine papillomavirus type 2 (EcPV2) causing genital lesions, the etiopathogenesis of equine SCC is still poorly understood. We screened a series of SCCs from the head-and-neck (HN), (peri-)ocular and genital region, and site-matched controls for the presence of EcPV2-5 and herpesvirus DNA using type-specific EcPV PCR, and consensus nested herpesvirus PCR followed by sequencing. EcPV2 DNA was detected in 45.5% of HN lesions, 8.3% of (peri-)ocular SCCs, and 100% of genital tumors, whilst control samples from tumor-free horses except one tested EcPV-negative. Two HNSCCs harbored EcPV5, and an ocular lesion EcPV4 DNA. Herpesvirus DNA was detected in 63.6%, 66.6%, 47.2%, and 14.2% of horses with HN, ocular, penile, and vulvar SCCs, respectively, and mainly identified as equine herpesvirus 2 (EHV2), 5 (EHV5) or asinine herpesvirus 5 (AsHV5) DNA. In the tumor-free control group, 9.6% of oral secretions, 46.6% of ocular swabs, 47% of penile samples, and 14.2% of vaginal swabs scored positive for these herpesvirus types. This work further highlights the role of EcPV2 as an oncovirus and is the first to provide information on the prevalence of (gamma-)herpesviruses in equine SCCs.
Dynamics of a deformable mirror actuator

The electromechanical equations governing the motion of the surface of a deformable mirror, due to the activation of a piezoelectric or electrostrictive actuator mechanically located between the mirror surface and the mirror substrate, are derived in terms of the fundamental electromechanical parameters of the mirror-actuator configuration. The equations of motion are solved in the frequency domain and the solutions show reasonable agreement with experimental data such as Bode plots, which characterize the frequency dependence of the amplitude and phase of the mirror surface motion, and with frequency-dependent impedance measurements. Time-domain solutions are used to construct time histories of an actuator under a step-voltage input.
Primary and additional treatment preference in aggressive retinopathy of prematurity and type 1 retinopathy of prematurity

Objective This study aimed to evaluate the preference for antivascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) versus laser ablation therapy as primary and additional treatment in aggressive retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) and type 1 ROP. Methods This multicentre retrospective study was conducted at nine medical centres across South Korea. A total of 94 preterm infants with ROP who underwent primary treatment between January 2020 and December 2021 were enrolled. All eyes were classified as having type 1 ROP or aggressive ROP. Data on the zone, primary treatment chosen, injection dose, presence of reactivation and additional treatment were collected and analysed. Results Seventy infants (131 eyes) with type 1 ROP and 24 infants (45 eyes) with aggressive ROP were included. Anti-VEGF injection was selected as the primary treatment in 74.05% of the infants with type 1 ROP and 88.89% with aggressive ROP. Anti-VEGF injection was selected as the ROP was located in zone I or posterior zone II, and laser ablation was selected when it was located in zone II. The anti-VEGF injection doses varied and tended to be higher in the aggressive ROP group. Infants with aggressive ROP were 2.08 times more likely to require additional treatment than those with type 1 ROP. When ROP reactivation occurred, laser therapy was preferred as an additional treatment. Conclusion In Korea, the preference for anti-VEGF therapy or laser therapy differed according to ROP subtype, zone and primary or secondary treatment. These findings suggest that ROP treatment are considered according to ROP subtype, location and reactivation.
Stochastic Finite Elements for a Beam on a Random Foundation with Uncertain Damping Under a Moving Force

Abstract An infinitely long beam on an elastic foundation is subjected to a constant force which is moving with a constant speed along it. The beam rests on a random foundation the stiffness of which is a random function of the length co-ordinate. The coefficient of viscous damping is also a random variable. The steady state vibration is analyzed. It appears that a stochastic stationary process occurs, viewed by an observer moving together with the moving force. A stochastic finite element analysis by means of the first order perturbation and first order second-moment method provides an evaluation of the variance of the deflection and of the bending moment of the beam. The effects of several parameters and of various types of correlation functions are investigated. It is shown that the randomness of the foundation is of greater importance than the uncertainty in the damping. The dynamic and stochastic effects increase with increasing speed of the movement of the force in the subcritical domain, but decrease in the supercritical domain. The coefficient of variation of the deflection of the beam is larger than that of the bending moment at the point of application of the moving force.
General and Case-Specific Approval of Coercion in Psychiatry in the Public Opinion

Background: Psychiatric patients are subjected to considerable stigmatization, in particular, because they are considered aggressive, uncontrollable, and dangerous. This stigmatization might influence the approval of coercive measures in psychiatry by the public and healthcare professionals and might have an influence on the clinical practice of coercive measures. We examined whether the general approval of coercive measures for psychiatric patients with dangerous behaviors differs from case-specific approval. Method: We conducted a representative survey of the general population (n = 2207) in the canton of Basel-Stadt, Switzerland. In total, 1107 participants assessed a case vignette depicting a fictitious character with a mental illness and indicated whether they would accept coercive measures (involuntary hospitalization, involuntary medication, and seclusion) for the person in the vignette. It was explicitly stated that within the last month, the fictitious character displayed no dangerous behavior (Vignette ND) or dangerous behavior (Vignette D). Another 1100 participants were asked whether they would approve coercive measures (involuntary hospitalization, involuntary medication, and seclusion) for psychiatric patients with dangerous behavior in general (General D), i.e., without having received or referring to a specific case vignette. Findings: The logistic regression model containing all variables explained 45% of the variance in approval of any type of coercive measures. Assessment of case vignettes without dangerous behavior (Vignette ND) was associated with significantly reduced approval of coercive measures compared to assessment of a case vignette with dangerousness (Vignette D), while approval for coercive measures in a person with mental health disorder with dangerous behavior in general (General D) was significantly higher than for the case vignette with dangerousness. Conclusions: The general approval of coercive measures for people with mental disorders seems to differ depending on if the respondents are asked to give a general assessment or to examine a specific and detailed clinical case vignette, indicating an increased role of stigmatization when asking about generalized assessments. This may contribute to diverging findings on the acceptance of coercive measures in the literature and should be considered when designing future studies.
The effects of eccentricity on torque and load in Taylor-vortex flow

This paper extends two earlier papers in which DiPrima & Stuart calculated first (1972b) the critical Taylor number to order ε2, where the eccentricity ε is proportional to the displacement of the axes of the circular cylinders, and second (1975) the torque and load to order ε associated with nonlinear effects of Taylor vortices. In the latter paper, it was shown that to order ε the torque arising from the Taylor vortices is identical with that for the concentric problem, which was first calculated, by a perturbation method, by Davey (1962). This deficiency is remedied in the present paper, where the calculation is taken to order ε2. It is found that, as ε rises, the torque associated with the Taylor vortices falls slightly when we keep constant the percentage elevation of the Taylor number above the ε-dependent critical value. This result is in accordance with experimental observations by Vohr (1967, 1968). In addition, results of calculations of the pressure field developed by the Taylor-vortex flow in association with the eccentric geometry are presented; this is larger than in the concentric case owing to a Reynolds lubrication effect. Also given are the associated components of the load on the inner cylinder, but only for Taylor numbers close to the critical value. One additional observation by Vohr, for cylinders with a mean ratio of the gap to the inner radius of 0·099, was that the maximum Taylor-vortex strength with ε = 0·475 occurred some 50° downstream of the maximum gap for a 20% elevation of the Taylor number above the critical value. Calculations in the two earlier papers (1972b, 1975) gave 90 and 76°, respectively, for that angle. Note that in the 1975 paper a geometrical correction of order ε was included. Here, with an additional modification of order ε due to the flow, this result is improved to 49° by the extended analysis presented, although the ‘small’ parameters are somewhat outside the range for which perturbation theory is expected to be valid.
Direct optimization of dynamic systems described by differential‐algebraic equations

This paper presents a method for the optimization of dynamic systems described by index‐1 differential‐algebraic equations (DAE). The class of problems addressed include optimal control problems and parameter identification problems. Here, the controls are parameterized using piecewise constant inputs on a grid in the time interval of interest. In addition, the DAE are approximated using a Rosenbrock–Wanner (ROW) method. In this way the infinite‐dimensional optimal control problem is transformed into a finite‐dimensional nonlinear programming problem (NLP). The NLP is solved using a sequential quadratic programming (QP) technique that minimizes the L∞ exact penalty function, using only strictly convex QP subproblems. This paper shows that the ROW method discretization of the DAE leads to (i) a relatively small NLP problem and (ii) an efficient technique for evaluating the function, constraints and gradients associated with the NLP problem. This paper also investigates a state mesh refinement technique that ensures a sufficiently accurate representation of the optimal state trajectory. Two nontrivial examples are used to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A spectral domain method for remotely probing stratified media

The problem of remotely probing a stratified, lossless, dielectric medium is formulated using the spectral domain method of probing. The response of the medium to a spectrum of plane waves incident at various angles is used to invert the unknown profile. For TE polarization, the electric field satisfies a Helmholtz equation. The inverse problem is solved by means of a new representation for the wave function. The principal step in this inversion is solving a second kind Fredholm equation which is very amenable to numerical computations. Several examples are presented including some which indicate that the method can be used with experimentally obtained data. When the fields exhibit a surface wave behavior, a unique inversion can be obtained only if information about the magnetic field is also available. In this case, the inversion is accomplished by a two-step procedure which employs a formula of Jost and Kohn. Some examples are presented, and an approach which greatly shortens the computations without greatly deteriorating the results is discussed.
Trends and Sex Differences in Hospitalizations and Mortality in Parkinson’s Disease in Spain (2010–2019): A Nationwide Population-Based Study

The incidence of hospitalizations of Parkinson´s disease (PD) in Spain suffered a steady rise from 1997 to 2012. However, data on the trends during the following decade (2010–2019) are lacking. Hospital admissions with a primary and secondary diagnosis of PD were selected using the Spanish National Hospital Discharge Database (SNHDD) for the period 2010–2019. The primary endpoint was the incidence of hospitalizations and in-hospital mortality, stratified in biannual periods. The incidence of PD hospitalizations increased progressively over time from 81.25 cases in 2010–2011 to 94.82 cases in 2018–2019 per 100,000 inhabitants. Male sex, age and comorbidity also increased progressively in PD inpatients. PD as a comorbid condition presented a higher increment (annual percentage of change, APC +1.71%, p < 0.05) than PD as the main reason of hospitalization (APC +1.26%, p < 0.05). In the multivariate regression model, factors associated with mortality were male sex (OR = 1.15, 95% CI 1.01–1.35), age (>80 years, OR = 12.76, 95% CI 3.96–29.64) and comorbidity (Charlson index ≥ 2, OR 1.77, 95% CI 1.69–1.85). Adjusted mortality by age, sex, comorbidity and diagnostic position remained stable. In conclusion, PD hospitalizations in Spain have increased, with a parallel increment in mean age, male sex and higher comorbidities. However, adjusted mortality remains unchanged. The burden of this disease may increase the complexity and costs of hospital care in the future.
Black Holes and Galaxy Environment in Cosmological Simulations

Understanding the formation and evolution of galaxies is one of the primary research goals of astronomy today. Galaxies are observed to have a range of masses, colours and morphologies, and various processes, including feedback, have been proposed to explain these differences. Some of these processes are related to the environment in which a galaxy resides. In this Thesis I present the results of three projects I have undertaken to help increase our understanding of galaxy formation. The first was to investigate the different methods of structure detection used in simulations. Placing an identical subhalo at different radii inside a larger halo demonstrated that subhalo mass recovery is radially dependent. Subhaloes closer to the centre of a halo are recovered smaller than haloes near the edge, but their peak circular velocity is less affected. The second project set about investigating different ways of measuring galaxy environment. Observationally galaxy environment is most commonly measured through nearest neighbours or fixed apertures, and these have different relationships to the underlying dark matter haloes. Fixed aperture measures are sensitive to halo mass and best probe the `large-scale environment' external to a halo. Meanwhile nearest neighbour measures are insensitive to halo mass and best probe the `local environment' internal to a halo. The final project involved implementing the Accretion Disc Particle (ADP) model of black hole growth within a cosmological, large volume simulation, including cooling, star formation and feedback. Comparing this method with a modified Bondi-Hoyle model allows for the investigation of how accretion rates affect feedback and galaxy properties. ADP suffers from the limited resolution of large-scale simulations and produces unphysically large accretion discs. Both models can reproduce the local black hole scaling relations, but produce black hole mass functions that do not agree with observations.
EFFECTIVE MASSES FOR DONOR BINDING ENERGIES IN QUANTUM WELL SYSTEMS

The donor ionization energies in a quantum well and quantum dot with finite and infinite barriers are estimated for different well dimensions. Using the effective mass (EM) approximation, calculations are presented with constant effective mass and position dependent effective masses that are different for finite and infinite cases. Our results reduce to an approximate form used by X. H. Qi et al., Phys. Rev. B58 (1998) 10578 in the finite barrier model and that of L. E. Oliveira and L. M. Falicov, Phys. Rev. B34 (1986) 8676 in the infinite barrier case. Results are presented by taking the GaAs quantum well as an example. The use of constant effective mass of 0.067m0 is justified for well dimensions ≥a* where a* is an effective Bohr radius which is about 100 A. While Qi et al. found a maximum of 22% variation in the binding energies due to mass variation, we obtained nearly 100% variation when mass variations are included correctly.
Identification of Volatile Organic Liquids by Combining an Array of Fiber-Optic Sensors and Machine Learning

In this paper, we report an array of fiber-optic sensors based on the Fabry–Perot interference principle and machine learning-based analyses for identifying volatile organic liquids (VOLs). Three optical fiber tip sensors with different surfaces were included in the array of sensors to improve the accuracy for identifying liquids: an intrinsic (unmodified) flat cleaved endface, a hydrophobic-coated endface, and a hydrophilic-coated endface. The time-transient responses of evaporating droplets from the optical fiber tip sensors were monitored and collected following the controlled immersion tests of 11 different organic liquids. A continuous wavelet transform was used to convert the time-transient response signal into images. These images were then utilized to train convolution neural networks for classification (identification of VOLs). We show that diversity in the information collected using the array of three sensors helps machine learning-based methods perform significantly better. We explore different pipelines for combining the information from the array of sensors within a machine learning framework and their effect on the robustness of models. The results showed that the machine learning-based methods achieved high accuracy in their classification of different liquids based on their droplet evaporation time-transient events.
Effectiveness of a Lifestyle Change Program on Insulin Resistance in Yaquis Indigenous Populations in Sonora, Mexico: PREVISY

To evaluate the effectiveness of the healthy lifestyle promotion program for Yaquis (PREVISY) on insulin resistance in the short- and medium-term periods in adults who are overweight/obese and have an increased risk for diabetes. Using a translational research design, an intervention program was implemented in a sample of 93 Yaqui adult subjects. The effectiveness of PREVISY was evaluated by comparing the levels of Homeostasis Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) and the Triglycerides-Glucose Index (TyG index) at 6 and 12 months using a paired t-test. Results: In the subjects who completed the program, a decrease in the HOMA-IR index (∆ = −0.91 and ∆ = −1.29, p ≤ 0.05) and the TyG index (∆ = −0.24 y ∆ = −0.20, p ≤ 0.05) was observed in the short- and medium-term period, respectively. Subjects with body weight loss ≥ 10% showed decreased levels of HOMA-IR (∆ = −3.32 and ∆ = −4.89, p ≤ 0.05) and the TyG index (∆ = −0.80 and ∆ = −0.60, p ≤ 0.05) at 6 and 12 months, respectively. A stronger benefit of the program was found in subjects with obesity (vs. overweight) and with high and very high risk of diabetes (vs. moderate risk) in IR markers (p ≤ 0.05). The PREVISY program demonstrated its effectiveness in the improvement of some markers of insulin resistance in Yaqui adults at risk of diabetes.