Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The influence of exercise on the energy requirements of adult males in the UK

Energy expenditure was measured over 10 d using the doubly-labelled water (DLW) and activity diary methods in summer and winter in subjects with ‘light’ occupations but leisure activities which ranged from ‘non-active’ to ‘very active’. The basal metabolic rate (BMR) and the energy cost of activities were determined by indirect calorimetry. The Department of Health (1991) predicted BMR for the group (6·89 (SD 0·30) MJ/d; n 18) was not significantly different from the measured value (7·17 (SD 0·70) MJ/d; n 18). The range of DLW-derived expenditure values within the group was BMR X 1·41 to 2·41. The largest seasonal change within individuals was BMR X 0·5. The energy expenditure of the group as a whole was lower in winter (BMR X 1·88; SD 0·33; n 9) than summer (BMR X 2·01; SD 0·30; n 9) though the difference was not statistically significant. The average summer and winter DLW-derived expenditure was BMR X 1·96 (SD 0·31; n 17). The activity diary estimate of expenditure was BMR X 1·79 (SD 0·32; n 17). In a subset of the group who were representative of the most active 26% of all adult males in the UK, the DLW-derived expenditure was BMR X 2·08 (SD 0·24; n 11). This is higher than the highest Department of Health (1991) estimate of BMR X 1·6 for individuals in light occupations. The measured energy costs of low-intensity activities were similar to those presented in the Department of Health (1991) report but the value determined for running (BMR X 13·08; SD 2·4; n 6) was higher than the highest value in the report (BMR X 6 to 8). The results indicate that the recent Department of Health (1991) reference values for energy may underestimate the expenditure of a significant proportion of the UK population largely because the energy costs of activity used in the report to calculate expenditure do not accurately reflect those achieved during active leisure in individuals who take regular exercise.
The Influence of Green Supply Chain Integration on Firm Performance: A Contingency and Configuration Perspective

This study investigates the impacts of three dimensions of green supply chain integration (GSCI) on operational and financial performance, from both a contingency and a configuration perspective. From the contingency perspective, we used hierarchical regression to determine the impacts of individual GSCI dimensions (green internal, customer and supplier integration) and their interactions on firm performance. From the configuration perspective, we used cluster analysis to develop patterns of GSCI, which were analyzed in terms of GSCI strength and balance. Analysis of variance was used to examine the relationship between GSCI pattern and firm performance. We used data collected from manufacturing firms in Shanxi, Shandong, Beijing, Guangdong and Jiangsu to test hypotheses. The findings from both the contingency and configuration perspective indicate that GSCI was related to both operational and financial performance. Furthermore, the interaction between green internal integration and green customer integration was positively related to both operational and financial performance, while the interaction between green internal integration and green supplier integration was negatively related to financial performance. The interaction between green customer integration and green supplier integration was positively related to financial performance.
DISSIMILATION OF AROMATIC COMPOUNDS made in a Gilford model

The range of aromatic compounds that support the growth of Alcaligenes eutrophus has been determined, and the pathways used for the dissimilation of these substrates have been explored, largely by enzymatic analyses. The ,B-ketoadipate pathway operates in the dissimilation of benzoate and p-hydroxybenzoate; the gentisate pathway, in the dissimilation of m-hydroxybenzoate; and the meta cleavage pathway, in the dissimilation of phenol and p-cresol. L-Tryptophan is oxidized via anthranilate; but the metabolic fate of anthranilate was not established. The metabolism of the three stereoisomers of muconic acid was also examined.
PASTORI project defines the future ITS services portfolio

The combination of advanced ICT and more precise positioning provided by satellite systems will drive the development of new service solutions that are based e.g. on real-time location, actual kilometres driven, object or user identification and electronic transactions. The greatest challenges facing developers of ITS services are the lack of working business models, the ambiguity and complexity of value networks, fixed standard practices through regulation or long history, as well as a lack of risk-allowing approaches that should be facilitated. The market is looking for open implementation solutions based on true user needs. The objective of the PASTORI project is to take the first step to meet the aforementioned challenges. The project will deliver the necessary functional specifications and business models, drawing from concrete pilot services and proof-of-concepts, including e.g. safety and emergency services, insurance and taxation, and services based on mobility pricing.
Characteristics of Erwinia amylovora bacteriophage and its possible role in the epidemology of fire blight.

Bacteriophage (S1) of Erwinia amylovora, isolated from soil at the base of fire-blight-infected trees, was characterized by small, clear plaques on E. amylovora strain PR1 and hazy plaques of the same size on a closely related, yellow, saprophytic bacterium, Y, which was isolated together with PR1 from the diseased trees. Phage S1 plated with optimal efficiency at 10C on PR1 and at 28C on Y was relatively unstable to storage at temperatures typical of summer and to ultraviolet (UV) irradiation, and lysogenized Y but not PR1. Pathogenicity tests in pear slices demonstrated that symptom development was (i) delayed when mixtures of either PR1 and phage S1 or PR1 and Y were inoculated, (ii) delayed when a culture of a phage-resistant mutant of PR1 was inoculated, and (iii) prevented from appearing at all when PR1 and the lysogenic form of Y, Y (S1), were inoculated together. Strain Y was easily lysogenized and Y (S1) released phage spontaneously and after UV irradiation. It is suggested that the yellow saprop.
Intrinsic fluctuations can reduce trail-to-trail variability in fNIRS signal

Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is emerging brain imaging technique. The trail-to-trail variability in fNIRS signal may reduce the signal analysis performance. However, the source of the trail-to-trail variability remains unknown. Previous functional magnetic resonance image (fMRI) study suggested that the trail-to-trail variability can be attributed to intrinsic low frequency fluctuation in fMRI signal. The intrinsic low frequency fluctuation is known to reflect temporal correlations in signal changes between widely separated brain regions during both the resting state and active state. Meanwhile, recent fNIRS studies confirm that the intrinsic fluctuation can be robustly detected by functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). In this paper, we investigate the relationship between trail-to-trail variability and the intrinsic hemodynamic fluctuations in the fNIRS signal. The result suggests that the intrinsic frequency significantly contribute to the trail-to-trail variability in fNIRS signal.
Chinese Numeral Recognition Using Gabor and SVM

Handwritten character recognition has received extensive attention in academic and production fields. The recognition system can be either on-line or off-line. Off-line handwriting recognition is the subfield of Optical Character Recognition . In this paper, We introduce the fundamental principles of Chinese handwritten numerals, including digital image preprocessing, segmentation, features extraction and pattern recognition. The numerals are recognized by SVM classifiers, and their results are combined to form final results. A Novel approach is proposed for recognizing Handwritten Chinese numerals using direction feature extraction approach combined with Gabor and SVM It has been proved that the performance of the system is satisfactory, when both gabor and SVM are used rather than SVM alone. Experimental result shows that our proposed approach are efficient and effective with a recognition rate and accuracy of 95.44%.
Incorporating multiple SVMs for active feedback in image retrieval using unlabeled data

Active learning with support vector machine(SVM) selects most informative unlabeled images for user labeling, however small training samples affect its performance. To improve active learning and use more unlabeled data, we propose a new algorithm training three SVMs separately on the color, texture and shape features of labeled images with three different kernel functions according to the features' distinct statistical properties. Different algorithms are used in the selection of disagreement and agreement samples from unlabeled data and also in the calculation of their confidence degrees. The lowest confident disagreement samples are returned to user to label and added to the training data set with the highest confident agreement samples. Experimental results verify the high effectiveness of our method in image retrieval.
A case study of using multiple choice questions, supported by ICT, in an introductory physics course for engineers

We study the impact of the strategy of using Multiple Choice Questions, MCQ, in reading tests, self-evaluation tests and Peer Instruction (PI) classes, supported by Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), on the motivation of first year engineer students to study and learn physics. We analyze the answers to conceptual MCQ given pre and after discussion in PI classes, and the students' responses to similar MCQ in grading tests. We compare the gain in the Force Concept Inventory, FCI, with that of the previous year. The strategies implemented in this course were new for the students and are still not common practice in our faculty.
Compressible integral equation formulations towards general fast direct solvers

The challenge of deriving a surface integral equation formulation that will be inherently compressible, for the purpose of designing general fast direct solvers, is addressed. Preliminary attempts to develop generalized equivalence and generalized source formulation-based solvers are presented. The limitations arising from these newly introduced generalized formulations on the direct solvers' accuracy for geometries of general shape are discussed towards further extensions.
Fingerprint verification methods using delaunay triangulations

This paper presents a modification for robust minutiae based fingerprint verification methods that use Delaunay triangulations. The purpose of this modification is to decrease the number of comparison operations and the error rates within the matching process, by doing a full analysis of the Delaunay triangles. From this full analysis, a modified method was proposed. The identified minutiae represent nodes of a coZnnected graph composed of triangles. With this technique, the minimum angle over all triangulations is maximized, which gives local stability to the constructed structures against rotation and translation variations. Geometric thresholds and minutiae data were used to characterize the triangulations created from input and template fingerprint images. The effectiveness of the proposed modification is confirmed with calculations of False Acceptance Rate (FAR), False Rejected Rate (FRR) and Equal Error Rate (EER) over FVC2002 databases compared to other approaches results.
Acupuncture and Trager psychophysical integration in the treatment of wheelchair user's shoulder pain in individuals with spinal cord injury.

OBJECTIVE To determine the effectiveness of acupuncture and Trager Psychophysical Integration (a form of manual therapy) in decreasing chronic shoulder pain in wheelchair users with spinal cord injury (SCI). DESIGN A prospective clinical trial, with subjects randomized to acupuncture or Trager treatment condition. Subjects served as their own controls by including a 5-week pretreatment baseline period and a 5-week posttreatment follow-up period. SETTING Rehabilitation hospital research department. PARTICIPANTS Eighteen subjects with chronic SCI and chronic shoulder pain who used manual wheelchairs as their primary means of mobility. INTERVENTION Ten acupuncture or 10 Trager treatments over a 5-week period. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Changes in performance-corrected Wheelchair User's Shoulder Pain Index (PC-WUSPI) scores during baseline, treatment, and follow-up periods were assessed by using analysis of variance. RESULTS The mean PC-WUSPI score +/- standard deviation of the 18 subjects at entry was 48.9 +/- 24.6 (range, 8.0-94). No significant change in mean PC-WUSPI scores occurred during the pretreatment baseline period. Mean PC-WUSPI scores decreased significantly during the treatment period in both the acupuncture (53.4%; 23.3 points) and Trager (53.8%; 21.7 points) treatment groups. The reduced PC-WUSPI scores were maintained in both groups throughout the 5-week posttreatment follow-up period. CONCLUSION Acupuncture and Trager are both effective treatments for reducing chronic shoulder pain associated with functional activities in persons with SCI.
How Do Start-Up Firms Finance Their Assets? Evidence from the Kauffman Firm Surveys

Using Kauffman Firm Surveys of U.S. start-up firms, we find that about 25% of firms report 100% equity financing of their initial assets. For the remaining 75%, we analyze their sources of credit, which we separate into three groups — trade, personal, and business credit. In addition, we examine which firm and owner characteristics explain a start-up’s decisions to use credit and, conditional upon using credit, what type to use. We find that, at start-up, the majority of firms (55%) rely upon personal credit, but that a sizable fraction of firms also use business (44%) and trade (24%) credit. As firms develop, they decrease the use of personal and increase the use of business credit. Firms are more likely to use credit at start-up when they are larger, more profitable, more liquid, have more tangible assets; and when their primary owner has more experience and more education. Black-owned firms are less likely to use credit. Among credit-users, larger firms are more likely to use trade and business credit but less likely to use personal credit; corporations and firms with more current and tangible assets are more likely to use trade and business credit but are less likely to use personal credit; firms with better credit scores are more likely to use business credit; multi-owned firms are more likely to use business credit but are less likely to use personal credit; owners with more prior start-ups are less likely, while female owners are more likely to use personal credit.
No . 0805 Railway Reforms : Do They Influence Operating Efficiency ?

This paper considers railway operations in 23 European countries during 19952001, where a series of reform initiatives were launched by the European Commission, and analyses whether these reform initiatives improved the operating efficiency of the railways. Efficiency is measured using Multi-directional Efficiency Analysis, which enables investigation of how railway reforms affect the inefficiencies of specific cost drivers. The main findings are that the reform initiatives generally improve operating efficiency but potentially differently for different cost drivers. Specifically, the paper provides clear empirical evidence that accounting separation is important for improving operating efficiency for both material and staff costs, whereas other reforms only influenced one of these factors.
CS 229-Project Final Report : Automatic earthquake detection from distributed acoustic sensing ( DAS ) array data

We attempt to automatically detect earthquake events in distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) data via a supervised learning approach. Detecting earthquakes with different magnitudes could potentially provide the ability of predicting major catastrophic events. Introduction Distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) is an emerging technology used to record seismic data that employs fiber optic cables as a probing system. By measuring the backscattered energy of a pulsing laser transmitted down a fiber optic cable, it is possible to measure the strain rate occurring within different sections of the cable [1]. DAS recording systems have been shown to measure data comparable with conventional geophones [2] and have been successfully used in exploration and earthquake seismology settings [3, 4]. Recently, a DAS array has been deployed beneath Stanford campus using existing telecommunication fiber optic cables. The data recorded from this array have the potential for near-surface imaging of the subsurface and early-warning earthquake monitoring. In order to accurately detect earthquakes for early warning we must extract earthquake signals from the surrounding urban and ambient noise that is constantly recorded by our DAS array. Therefore, in addition to classifying earthquake signals, we also attempted to classify urban and ambient noise present in the array dataset with the end goal of classifying each sample or windows of samples as one of these three types of signal. To perform this classification, we used a supervised learning approach, in which we train a classifier on labeled training data that consists of the processed amplitudes from our DAS array and their corresponding type of signal. Therefore, in our application we aimed to separate the signal into three classes, namely, ambient noise, urban noise, and earthquake signal. We first attempted this classification process using a single sample from our amplitude data (i.e., our feature is a scalar) with Gaussian Naive Bayes, softmax and kernelized support vector machine (SVM) supervised learning models. We found that using this feature space, our estimated models classified nearly all samples as ambient noise (the most dominant class) and not a single earthquake was detected. To improve the performance of our classifier, we then changed the feature space to overlapping windows of amplitude data. We found that using this feature space, we improved the precision and accuracy of the machine learning algorithms.
Assessment of enzyme detection tests useful in identification of campylobacteria

Twenty-one type or other reference strains, each representing a different Campylobacter, Helicobacter, or Arcobacter taxon, and a reference strain of Staphylococcus aureus were used to assess the reproducibility of nine enzyme detection tests used in the identification of campylobacters. For five of the tests (alkaline phosphatase, DNase, and H2S production, indoxyl acetate hydrolysis, and nitrate reduction), more than one procedure was employed to determine the most suitable method. Alkaline phosphatase test results were better defined and more reproducible if read after 1 h of incubation. Detection of DNase was fully reproducible with each method (except with Helicobacter pylori), but reactions were generally weaker than those of other DNase-producing organisms. Both procedures for determining H2S production were irreproducible for the same strains. The reproducibility of indoxyl acetate hydrolysis was improved by using disks impregnated with 25 microliters of substrate. Reduction of nitrate was best determined by Cook's plate method. Results for the other tests examined (catalase, oxidase, and urease production and hippurate hydrolysis) were both pertinent and fully reproducible for all strains.
The effects of a 2-year physical education program (SPARK) on physical activity and fitness in elementary school students. Sports, Play and Active Recreation for Kids.

OBJECTIVES This study evaluated a health-related physical education program for fourth- and fifth-grade students designed to increase physical activity during physical education classes and outside of school. METHODS Seven schools were assigned to three conditions in a quasi-experimental design. Health-related physical education was taught by physical education specialists or trained classroom teachers. Students from these classes were compared with those in control classes. Analyses were conducted on 955 students with complete data. RESULTS Students spent more minutes per week being physically active in specialist-led (40 min) and teacher-led (33 min) physical education classes than in control classes (18 min; P < .001). After 2 years, girls in the specialist-led condition were superior to girls in the control condition on abdominal strength and endurance (P < .001) and cardiorespiratory endurance (P < .001). There were no effects on physical activity outside of school. CONCLUSIONS A health-related physical education curriculum can provide students with substantially more physical activity during physical education classes. Improved physical education classes can potentially benefit 97% of elementary school students.
A model to forecast financial failure, in non financial galician SMES

We are concerned with providing more empirical evidence on forecast failure, developing forecast models, and examining the impact of events such as audit reports. A joint consideration of classic financial ratios and relevant external indicators leads us to build a basic prediction model focused in non-financial Galician SMEs. Explanatory variables are relevant financial indicators from the viewpoint of the financial logic and financial failure theory. The paper explores three mathematical models: discriminant analysis, Logit, and linear multivariate regression. We conclude that, even though they both offer high explanatory and predictive abilities, Logit and MDA models should be used and interpreted jointly.
Experimental toxoplasmosis in hypoiodemic mice

The hypothesis, that hypoiodemia of goats causes such a compromise of the immune system, which during subsequent Toxoplasma gondii infections results in clinically more pronounced signs of toxoplasmosis, was verifying in laboratory mouse. Hypoiodemic mice (fed by wheat and supplied by water), normoiodemic mice (fed by wheat and supplied by water containing 1.25 mg KI/l) and the majority of standard mice (fed by commercial grain mixture containing 0.83 mg I/kg) were experimentally infected with T. gondii oocysts or tachyzoites. The susceptibility to acute T. gondii infection was evaluated according to mortality rate. As a criterion of cell-mediated immune function has been chosen the spleen-lym- phocyte transformation test (LTT). We observed no difference in LTT between hypoiodemic and normoiodemic mice infected with T. gondii oocysts or tachyzoites and no difference in mortality of both infected groups. Four days after the exposure to 100 tachyzoites of T. gondii (K24 strain), all experimentally infected groups of mice showed statistically sig- nificant decrease ( P = 0.004) in spleen cells responsiveness to stimulation by all mitogens used - as compared to non-infected standard mice group. Reduced responsiveness of cells was probably caused by T. gondii infection itself - the relation to iodine deficiency has not been found.
Concatenated prime codes and quadratic prime codes

From both construct formula view and finite field model view, the relationship between concatenated prime codes and quadratic prime codes has been studied in this paper. As a result, two new methods of constructing frequency hopping (FH) sequences are derived, designated as exchange and time shift, which are still generalized and combined. Finally, one application of the novel methods to the general quadratic prime codes is presented and more new families of FH sequences are generated with properties unchanged.