Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Preparation and Characterization of Polyhydroxybutyrate/Polycaprolactone Nanocomposites

Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB)/polycaprolactone (PCL)/stearate Mg-Al layered double hydroxide (LDH) nanocomposites were prepared via solution casting intercalation method. Coprecipitation method was used to prepare the anionic clay Mg-Al LDH from nitrate salt solution. Modification of nitrate anions by stearate anions between the LDH layers via ion exchange reaction. FTIR spectra showed the presence of carboxylic acid (COOH) group which indicates that stearate anions were successfully intercalated into the Mg-Al LDH. The formation of nanocomposites only involves physical interaction as there are no new functional groups or new bonding formed. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) indicated that the mixtures of nanocomposites are intercalated and exfoliated types. XRD results showed increasing of basal spacing from 8.66 to 32.97 Å in modified stearate Mg-Al LDH, and TEM results revealed that the stearate Mg-Al LDH layers are homogeneously distributed in the PHB/PCL polymer blends matrix. Enhancement in 300% elongation at break and 66% tensile strength in the presence of 1.0 wt % of the stearate Mg-Al LDH as compare with PHB/PCL blends. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) proved that clay improves compatibility between polymer matrix and the best ratio 80PHB/20PCL/1stearate Mg-Al LDH surface is well dispersed and stretched before it breaks.
Do People Purchase a Robot Because of Its Coolness?

The purpose of this study is to verify the research model that coolness and perceived usefulness are effective predictor variables, attitude is mediating variable, and purchase intention is criterion variable. In total, 41 respondents with no prior exposure robot JIBO completed the on-line survey after watching the scenario movie of explaining its usage. Coolness and perceived usefulness is significant predictor for attitude, and attitude has positive impact on purchase intention. Based on the results, a "cool" product is more likely to arouse potential consumer's purchase intention directly and indirectly in the market. Theoretical and practical implications were discussed in detail.
Methods for estimating uncertainty in factor analytic solutions

Abstract. The EPA PMF (Environmental Protection Agency positive matrix factorization) version 5.0 and the underlying multilinear engine-executable ME-2 contain three methods for estimating uncertainty in factor analytic models: classical bootstrap (BS), displacement of factor elements (DISP), and bootstrap enhanced by displacement of factor elements (BS-DISP). The goal of these methods is to capture the uncertainty of PMF analyses due to random errors and rotational ambiguity. It is shown that the three methods complement each other: depending on characteristics of the data set, one method may provide better results than the other two. Results are presented using synthetic data sets, including interpretation of diagnostics, and recommendations are given for parameters to report when documenting uncertainty estimates from EPA PMF or ME-2 applications.
Performance per power optimum cache architecture for embedded applications, a design space exploration

In very deep submicron technologies, limiting the growing on-chip power consumption in memories is a major challenge for embedded system designers. Embedded processors that contain cache memories open an opportunity for the low-power research community to model the impact of cache energy consumption and throughput gains. Power consumption is as important as performance in battery-powered embedded systems and in future, embedded processors are to process more computation-intensive applications with limited power budgets. Therefore, power consumption of theses processors will become more critical. According to the high contribution of memory access power in total power consumption of embedded systems, memory architecture of embedded systems strongly influences the system design objectives. Therefore, the embedded system designer requires a comprehensive design space exploration for memory architecture. In this paper we explore the design space of cache in embedded processors to find out the cache sizes which have the optimum performance/power consumption in embedded applications.
A wearable augmented reality system using positioning infrastructures and a pedometer

This paper describes a wearable augmented reality systemusing positioning infrastructures and a pedometer. Torealize augmented reality systems, the position and orientationof user's viewpoint should be obtained in real time. Theproposed system measures the orientation of user's viewpointby an inertial sensor and the user's position using positioninginfrastructures in environments and a pedometer.The system specifies the user's position using the positionID received from RFID tags or IrDA markers which are thecomponents of positioning infrastructures. When the usergoes away from them, the user's position is alternatively estimatedby using a pedometer. We have developed a navigationsystem using the proposed techniques and have proventhe feasibility of the system with experiments.
Ambient intelligence: visualizing the future

As technologies in the area of storage, connectivity and displays are rapidly evolving and business development is pointing to the direction of the experience economy, the vision of Ambient Intelligence is positioning the human needs central to technology development. Equipped with a special research instrument called HomeLab, scenarios of Ambient Intelligence are implemented and tested. As two examples of bringing real user experiences through display technology into the digital home, research on creating the feeling of immersion and the feeling of being connected, are discussed. Results from this work indicate that visual displays can indeed be used beyond simple information rendering but can actually play an important role in creating user experiences.
Staff Engagement and Camper Outcomes at a Low Ropes Course

The purpose of this study was to explore potential relationships between staff engagement scores and camper outcomes at a low ropes course for youth with serious illnesses. Two measures were created for this study: the Participant Adventure Outcomes Scale measured campers’ personal challenge and teamwork, and the Staff Engagement Observation Rubric was completed by low ropes course facilitators on “auxiliary staff” including volunteers and counselors not directly responsible for facilitating the low ropes course. Results showed no relationships between camper outcomes and auxiliary staff engagement. Implications for the measures and programming are discussed.
Detection of contaminant plumes released from landfills

Contaminant leaks released from landfills are a significant threat to groundwater quality. The groundwater detection monitoring systems installed in the vicinity of such facilities are vital. In this study the detection probability of a contaminant plume released from a landfill has been investigated by means of both a simulation and an analytical model for both homogeneous and heterogeneous aquifer conditions. The results of the two models are compared for homogeneous aquifer conditions to illustrate the errors that might be encountered with the simulation model. For heterogeneous aquifer conditions contaminant transport is modelled by an analytical model using effective (macro) dispersivities. The results of the analysis show that the simulation model gives the concentration values correctly over most of the plume length for homogeneous aquifer conditions, and that the detection probability of a contaminant plume at given monitoring well locations match quite well. For heterogeneous aquifer conditions the approximating analytical model based on effective (macro) dispersivities yields the average concentration distribution satisfactorily. However, it is insufficient in monitoring system design since the discrepancy between the detection probabilities of contaminant plumes at given monitoring well locations computed by the two models is significant, particularly with high dispersivity and heterogeneity.
Logan graphical analysis for quantitative evaluation of calcium channel activity in the pituitary gland using manganese-enhanced MRI (MEMRI)

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to quantitatively evaluate Ca-channel activity in the pituitary gland (Pit) using manganese-enhanced MRI (MEMRI) and Logan graphical analysis (LGA). LGA is an algorithm already widely used with positron emission tomography (PET) for the quantitative analysis of reversible processes such as ligands binding temporarily to neuroreceptors [1]. When adapted to MRI studies where a contrast agent is used as a tracer that enters tissue reversibly, LGA states that there is a certain time t* after tracer administration where a plot of ∫Ct/Ct versus ∫Cp/Ct becomes linear (Ct and Cp are the concentrations of the tracer in tissue and arterial plasma, respectively). As an example, for a two-compartment model, the slope of the linear relationship provides direct information about the inflow and outflow constants of the particular tracer from plasma to tissue. Since manganese ions (Mn2+) can enter excitable cells through Ca2+ channels, Mn2+ ions have been used as a MRI contrast agent for both functional and anatomical studies [2]. However, because the blood brain barrier (BBB) hinders the passage of Mn ions into brain tissue when using manganeseenhanced techniques such as AIM-MEMRI [3], the BBB must be artificially disrupted so that neural activity can be observed. On the other hand, it is well known that Mn2+ ions can enter the central nervous system in circumventricular organs such as the Pit because the BBB is nonexistent or leaky. In this study, the Mn2+ concentrations in the posterior pituitary gland (PPit) were measured with rapidly acquired T1-maps before and after contrast agent injection [4, 5]. The Ca2+-channel activity was varied by administration of excitatory (Glutamate) and inhibitory (Verapamil) agents and the difference in channel activity was evaluated using LGA.
Encapsulated Mulberry Fruit Extract Alleviates Changes in an Animal Model of Menopause with Metabolic Syndrome

Currently, the therapeutic strategy against metabolic syndrome and its complications is required due to the increasing prevalence and its impact. Due to the benefits of both mulberry fruit extract and encapsulation technology, we hypothesized that encapsulated mulberry fruit extract (MME) could improve metabolic parameters and its complication risk in postmenopausal metabolic syndrome. To test this hypothesis, female Wistar rats were induced experimental menopause with metabolic syndrome by bilateral ovariectomy (OVX) and high-carbohydrate high-fat (HCHF) diet. Then, they were orally given MME at doses of 10, 50, and 250 mg/kg BW for 8 weeks and the parameters, such as percentage of body weight gain, total cholesterol, triglycerides, HDL-C, LDL-C, atherogenic index, fasting blood glucose, plasma glucose area under the curve, serum angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE), oxidative stress status, histology, and protein expression of PPAR-γ, TNF-α, and NF-κB in adipose tissues were determined. MME improved body weight gain, adiposity index, glucose intolerance, lipid profiles, atherogenic index, ACE, oxidative stress status, and protein expression of TNF-α and NF-κB. Moreover, MME attenuated adipocyte hypertrophy and enhanced PPAR-γ expression. Taken altogether, MME decreased metabolic syndrome and its complication via the increased PPAR-γ expression. Therefore, MME is the potential candidate for improving metabolic syndrome and its related complications. However, further research in clinical trial is still necessary.
A Taste of Sound Reasoning in Faust

We address the question of what software verification can do for the audio community by showcasing some preliminary design ideas and tools for a new framework dedicated to the formal reasoning about Faust programs. We use as a foundation one of the strongest current proof assistants, namely Coq combined with SSReflect. We illustrate the practical impact of our approach via a use case, namely the proof that the implementation of a simple low-pass filter written in the Faust audio programming language indeed meets one of its specification properties. The paper thus serves three purposes: (1) to provide a gentle introduction to the use of formal tools to the audio community, (2) to put forward programming and formal reasoning paradigms we think are well suited to the audio domain and (3) to illustrate this approach on a simple yet practical audio signal processing example, a low-pass filter.
Research of Top-N Frequent Closed Itemsets Mining Algorithm

A mining top-n frequent closed itemsets of length no less than min_l algorithm is introduced by this paper, where n is the desired number of frequent closed itemsets to be mined, and min_l is the minimal length of each itemset. An efficient algorithm, called TFP, is developed for mining such itemsets without mins_support. Starting at min_support=0 and by making use of the length constraint and the properties of top-n frequent closed itemsets, min_support can be raised effectively and FP-Tree can be pruned dynamically both during and after the construction of the tree using our two proposed methods: the closed node count and descendant_sum. Moreover, mining is further speeded up by employing a bottom-up combined FP-Tree traversing strategy, a set of search space pruning methods, a fast 2-level hash-indexed result tree, and a novel closed itemset verification scheme. Our extensive performance study shows that TFP has high performance and linear scalability in terms of the database size.
Invasion of Prosopis juliflora ( SW . ) DC and Rural Livelihoods

Prosopis juliflora, an evergreen tree/bush, is one of the most invasive species in arid and semi arid areas. Since its introduction to Middle Awash area of Ethiopia (late 1970s), it has invaded a huge amount of grasslands, rangelands and farmlands. These lands are life supporting for Afar pastoralists through provision of pastures and ecological goods. The invasion of P. juliflora made livestock rearing difficult; which ultimatly affects the Afar pastoral livelihoods. Despite this fact, research in the areas is scanty. And hence a study was conducted to investigate the effect of P. juliflora invasion on grazing lands, livestock rearing and Afar pastoral livelihoods in Middle Awash area in the year 2007. Group discussion and questionaire survey of totally 142 households in 6 villages were used for data collection. The result showed that 74% of the respondents knew the bush for the past twenty years; and 84% of the total surveyed households rated it as undesirable for the community. However, abundance driven utilization of the bush was found on fuelwood, for fencing homesteads and barn construction. A quarter of the surveyed households used mesquite as means of income. Age of household head and change in livestock asset are significant variables to influence a household to use mesquite as source of income. P. juliflora was blamed to inhibit mobility by invading 1/2 to 2/3 of grazing lands, occupying settlement areas and blocking paths. The invasion interferred with pastoral tradition and institutions (84% of respondents) and the thorn was accused for being poisonous both for the people and their livestock. The invasion further undermined multipurpose trees/bushes, grass availability and under canopy growth. Acacia nilotica, A. senegal, A. tortilis, Andropogon canaliculatus, Cadaba rotundifolia, Chrysopogon plumulosus, Cymbopogon pospischilii, Eragrostis cylindriflore, Salvadora persica and Terapogon cenchriformis are the most affected plant species by the invasion. All these factors affected the livestock assets and productivity of the basin causing 80% livestock loss as compared to ten years ago and more than 85% perceived milk yield reduction. Each household lost 6.5 small stock and 7 cattle due to health hazards caused by P. juliflora pod. As a result households engaged in to crop cultivation, share cropping, formal employment, casual labor and small trade as risk management strategies. Age of household head, level of education, change in livestock asset and perceived size of grazing land invasion are significant variables to affect household decision toward using the strategies. Thus, the invasion has affected the livestock assets of the basin which in turn increases ecological vulnerability of the pastoralists in that fragile ecosystem.
Hybrid Scheduling Scheme for Real Time Systems

Systems as asymmetric multiprocessor platforms are considered power-efficient multiprocessor architectures, efficient task partitioning (assignment) and play a crucial role in achieving more energy efficiency at these multiprocessor platforms. This paper addresses the problem of energy-aware static partitioning of periodic real time tasks on heterogeneous multiprocessor platforms. A hybrid approach of Particle Swarm Optimization variant and priority assignment based Min-Min algorithm for task partitioning is proposed. The proposed approach aims to minimize the overall energy consumption, meanwhile avoid deadline violations. An energy-aware cost function is proposed to be considered in the proposed approach. Extensive simulated experiments and comparisons with related approaches are conducted in order to validate the effectiveness of the proposed technique. The achieved results demonstrate that the proposed partitioning scheme significantly outperforms in terms of the number of executed iterations to accomplish a specific task in addition to the energy savings.
Delay Optimum And Area Optimal Mapping Of k-LUT Based FPGA Circuits

The paper presents several improvements to our synthesis platform Xsynth that was developed targeting advanced logic synthesis and technological mapping for k-LUT based FPGAs. Having implemented an efficient exhaustive k-feasible cone generator it was targeted delay optimum mapping and optimal area. Implemented algorithm can use common unit-delay model and, the more general, the edge-delay model. The last model allows arbitrary delay values assignments to each branch of a circuit net. Such arbitrary delay values my reflect estimates of placement and routing delays. Powerful heuristics targeting minimal area (number of used LUTs in the mapped network) allow determinations of delay minimum solutions but having low used area.
A Hybrid Cryptographic and Digital Watermarking Technique for Securing Digital Images based on a Generated Symmetric Key

high increase in the transmission of digital data over secured and unsecured communications channels poses a lot of security and privacy concerns to both the transmitter and the receiver. Many operations engaged today in urban and warfare, be they for construction, monitory of plants, high voltage lines, military, police, fire service, intelligence etc. engages the use of surveillance systems that transmit sensitive data to and fro the command centre to the remote areas and this data in transmission needs to be secured. In this paper, we proposed a hybrid cryptographic and digital watermarking technique for securing digital images based on a Generated Symmetric Key. The cryptographic encryption technique made use of both pixel displacement and pixel encryption in securing the images that are to be stored or transmitted across secured and unsecured communications. The digital watermarking technique was used to authenticate the image. The programming and implementation was done using MATLAB.
Pooling of continuous features provides a unifying account of crowding

Visual crowding refers to phenomena in which the perception of a peripheral target is strongly affected by nearby flankers. Observers often report seeing the stimuli as “jumbled up,” or otherwise confuse the target with the flankers. Theories of visual crowding contend over which aspect of the stimulus gets confused in peripheral vision. Attempts to test these theories have led to seemingly conflicting results, with some experiments suggesting that the mechanism underlying crowding operates on unbound features like color or orientation (Parkes, Lund, Angelucci, Solomon, & Morgan, 2001), while others suggest it “jumbles up” more complex features, or even objects like letters (Korte, 1923). Many of these theories operate on discrete features of the display items, such as the orientation of each line or the identity of each item. By contrast, here we examine the predictions of the Texture Tiling Model, which operates on continuous feature measurements (Balas, Nakano, & Rosenholtz, 2009). We show that the main effects of three studies from the crowding literature are consistent with the predictions of Texture Tiling Model. This suggests that many of the stimulus-specific curiosities surrounding crowding are the inherent result of the informativeness of a rich set of image statistics for the particular tasks.
Learning from 3D Puzzles to Inform Future Interactions with Deformable Mobile Interfaces

Nowadays, an increasing number of people use ensembles of differently sized mobile devices to accomplish different tasks. With advances in display and input technologies, such as flexible and deformable OLED and E-ink displays, we can close the gap between different form factors and offer devices that can be deformed and transformed for different purposes. In this paper, we explore 3D puzzles in terms of interaction and engineering principles to inform future deformable mobile interfaces. 3D puzzles offer unique transformations between 2D and 3D shapes. These puzzles are designed to stimulate exploration of many shapes and the transformations between them. We think that our exploration can help to inform future directions for deformable mobile interfaces.
Improved prediction of tone components for F0 contour generation of Mandarin speech based on the tone nucleus model

Improved prediction of tone components was realized in our method for synthesizing sentence fundamental frequency (F0) contours of Mandarin speech. The method is based on representing a sentence logarithmic F0 contour as a superposition of tone components on phrase components as in the case of generation process model (F0 model). The tone components are realized by concatenating their fragments at tone nuclei predicted by a corpus-based method, while the phrase components are generated by rules under the F0 model framework. In the original method, tone components are assumed to have similar shapes as F0 contours at tone nuclei. This is based on the assumption that the phrase components are almost flat throughout an utterance. However, this is not the case especially for phrase component initials. To cope with this problem, parameters representing tone components of tone nuclei are modified. Also, predicted parameters in earlier processes are used for the prediction of following processes. Result of the listening test conducted for synthetic speech with the generated F0 contours by our methods and also by the HMM-based method confirmed the advantage of ours, especially the improved version.
Se p 20 06 The Transit Light Curve ( TLC ) Project . II . Two Transits of the Exoplanet OGLE-TR-111 b

As part of our ongoing effort to measure exoplanet sizes and transit times with greater accuracy, we present I band observations of two transits of OGLETR-111b. The photometry has an accuracy of 0.15-0.20% and a cadence of 1– 2 minutes. We derive a planetary radius of RP = 1.067±0.054 RJup and a stellar radius of RS = 0.831 ± 0.031 R⊙. The uncertainties are dominated by errors in the photometry, rather than by systematic errors arising from uncertainties in the limb darkening function or the stellar mass. Both the stellar radius and the planetary radius are in agreement with theoretical expectations. The transit times are accurate to within 30 seconds, and allow us to refine the estimate of the mean orbital period: 4.0144479± 0.0000041 days. Subject headings: planetary systems — stars: individual (OGLE-TR-111) — techniques: photometric