Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Statistical evaluation of selected methods in foundation engineering

In this paper, soil samples were collected from selected locations in Nigeria. Geotechnical properties were determined by using standard methods and evaluated statistically using total error (TE), model of selection criterion (MSC) and statistical reliability (SR). The study revealed that Al Khafaji and Andersland (4.947; 0.570 and 0.984); Nagaraji and Murthy (4.373; 0.606 and 0.983); Wroth and Wood (3.342; 0.694 and 0.980) and mathematical method (3.006, 0.732 and 0.980) are the best techniques for soil settlement determination based on MSC, TE and SR. It was concluded that Skempton, Acar et al and Azzouz et al techniques should be used only when approximate values are required. Keywords : Failed Structures, Settlement, Statistical Assessment, Consolidation
Remote sensing

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are becoming a common tool in Precision Agriculture. Combined with different sensors and devices, UAVs can be capturing high geo-referenced resolution images and enable the acquisition of real-time crop-related data. We will go through the main typologies and characteristics of UAVs, different sensors and utilities and other applications of UAVs in agriculture.
Short-Term Mineralization of Belowground Biomass of Perennial Biomass Crops after Reversion to Arable Land

Little is known about the effect of perennial biomass crops (PBCs) removal on soil C dynamics. The belowground biomass (BGB) that is composed by plant belowground organs (PBO) such as rhizomes in the herbaceous PBCs and stumps in woody PBCs should be considered, together with fine roots (FR), as a huge input of exogenous organic matter (EOM) that is incorporated into the soil at the reversion. In this study, we mimic the incorporation of BGB of PBCs through a soil-residues incubation under controlled conditions to investigate the effects of adding FR and PBO (at real field rates) on soil C and N mineralization dynamics, and to understand decomposition controlling factors. A modified RothC model version, encompassing a better description of decomposable (DEOM) and resistant (REOM) pools, was fitted to C mineralization curves of respiration measured by CO2 evolution in incubated soil to quantify partitioning factors and decomposition rates of PBCs BGB components. After 1 month, PBO showed higher mineralization rates (498 µg CO2-C gsoil−1) than FR (196 µg CO2-C gsoil−1), with black locust having the highest amount of C respired (38% of added C). The emission peak occurred within 3 days from the beginning of the experiment for PBO and after 1 day for FR. Generally, according to the modified version of RothC model, PBO had higher proportion of REOM than FR, except for black locust. The decomposition constant rates from the optimized RothC model were higher for PBO (kDEOM: 20.9 y−1, kREOM: 12.1 y−1) than FR (kDEOM: 0.4 y−1, kREOM: 0.1 y−1), indicating that FR are less decomposable than PBO. The C/N ratio is not the main controlling factor of decomposition when residue N is not a limiting factor, while the availability of easily decomposable substrates (DEOM/REOM ratio) and cell-wall composition decomposition is a strong predictor of C and N mineralization of these EOM types. The explicit inclusion of crop-specific DEOM/REOM ratios within RothC or a similar soil C model will help to improve the predictions of long-term C sequestration trajectories (half-life > 30 years) associated with PBCs cultivation, especially when dismission of such perennial cropping systems is addressed.
Study on Effective Power Infrastructure Investment through Power Grid Interconnections in East Asia

Dense cross-border power grid connections can benefit the ASEAN region through maximum use of untapped resources to generate power and stabilise power supply with low investment for power stations. This study aims to support existing initiatives--ASEAN Power Grid and Greater Mekong Subregion Power Master Plan--by quantitatively showing possible economic and environmental benefits of such power grid connections. This study selected specific routes from candidate international connection lines extracted from a FY2013 study on the same subject, and carried out preliminary planning and cost estimation for said selected routes and cross-border line per kilowatt-hour. The results indicate that although cross-border connection lines are capital intensive, the attainable benefits seem large enough to rationalise the investment. This study drew policy implications on how to resolve the remaining institutional barriers.
Empirical Study on the Relationships between Climate for Innovation and Business Performance Outcomes in Design Firms

Innovation has been widely regarded as a determinant of a firm's business performance. This paper reports on a study of "climate for innovation", which plays an important role in driving a firm's diffusion of innovation. Three major constructs underlying climate for innovation - organisational culture, leadership and team climate - are examined. A conceptual model was developed to study the relationships between such constructs and their effects on innovation diffusion outcomes, which can, in turn, influence business performance. Quantitatively, the model was assessed using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) technique, based on the data collected from a survey of Australian Architecture and Engineering Design (AED) firms. The final model derived from the analysis indicates that leadership is a key predictor of innovation diffusion outcomes, functioning indirectly through team climate and organisational culture. More importantly, the outcomes of innovation diffusion were found to predict business performance, thus highlighting the benefits of design innovation in AED firms. Finally, the model was validated through explanatory case studies of two Australian design firms using pattern matching analysis.
Pole and Segment Combination in Concentric Magnetic Gears: Vibrations and Acoustic Signature

This paper studies the influence of cogging torque and unbalanced radial magnetic forces on vibrations and acoustic noise properties in concentric magnetic gears. The study involves three physical demonstrators, each with unique properties that make them interesting study cases. The first magnetic gear have pronounced cogging torque due to the pole and segment combination. In the second magnetic gear very low cogging torque is obtained by choosing an odd number of segments, but at the expense of unbalanced radial magnetic forces. The fact that these two magnetic gears are designed to identical specifications and into the same system makes this study unique, as this yields a direct and very clear comparison of the influence of cogging torque and unbalance radial forces. The third gear is designed with a pole and segment combination that has a good balance between minimizing cogging torque and avoiding unbalanced radial forces. Acoustic and vibrational signatures are presented and the characteristics are discussed in each case. It is shown that both cogging torque and unbalanced radial forces in concentric magnetic gears dominate both acoustic and vibrational properties and it is shown how it makes the magnetic gears very sensitive to the eigenfrequencies of the system. Even though cogging torque and unbalanced radial forces are dominant, it is also shown how other excitation mechanisms such as eccentricity, segment passing frequency and pole passing frequency are clearly visible in the acoustic and vibrational signatures.
Jet vectoring using synthetic jet actuators

X-L model, a whole flow-field computing model for synthetic jet actuator, which considers the actuator cavity, the exit throat, and the external flow field as a single computational region. Based on this computing model, numerical computations were performed for a low speed primary jet vectored using different synthetic jet actuators.It is shown that the synthetic jet actuators can control the vector of a low speed primary jet effectively and the primary jet direction can be controlled by altering the working parameters and locations of actuators. When the actuator is operated in the "pull" mode, the primary jet is vectored larger comparable to that of "push" mode, and there must be an optimal distance between the actuator exit and the primary jet, for which the largest vectoring benefit can be obtained. The frequency and velocity amplitude of the synthetic jet affect the strength of the vortex.The formation of "low pressure closed circumfluence region" and the entrainment of vortexes are the main reasons for vectoring a low speed jet.
Prevalence of Pruritus and Association with Anxiety and Depression in Patients with Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

Patient-reported outcomes are important in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Pruritus is of special interest for evolving therapies with farnesoid X receptor (FXR) agonists. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of pruritus in a real-life NAFLD cohort and analyze associations with anxiety and depression. Pruritus was assessed using a visual analogue- (VAS) and 5-D itch-scale (5-D). Anxiety and depression were evaluated by Beck’s-Depression-Inventory (BDI) and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS-A, HADS-D). An optimal logistic regression model was found with a stepwise procedure to investigate variables associated with pruritus. In total, 123 NAFLD patients were recruited. VAS and 5-D were highly correlated (Spearman’s correlation coefficient 0.89). Moderate/severe pruritus was reported in 19% (VAS) and 21% (5-D) of patients. Anxiety and depression were present in 12% and 4% (HADS-A and HADS-D, respectively) and 12% (BDI) of cases. There was a significant association between VAS and BDI (p = 0.019). The final multivariate model for 5-D included diabetes mellitus (OR 4.51; p = 0.01), BDI (OR 5.98; p = 0.024), and HADS-A (OR 7.75; p = 0.011). One-fifth of NAFLD patients reported moderate or severe pruritus. 5-D was significantly associated with diabetes mellitus, depression, and anxiety. These findings should be tested in larger populations and considered in candidates for treatment with FXR agonists.
Combination Therapy Against Breast Cancer Cells by Docetaxel With Rosmarinic and Thymoquinone: An Experimental Study

Objectives: Combination therapy with powerful and new components is presented as an effective method in treating breast cancer against conventional approaches. Here, we tried to evaluate the implementation of rosmarinic and thymoquinone on the tumor growth inhibition and apoptotic induction of docetaxel on MDA-MB231 breast cancer cells. Materials and Methods: The drug interaction between rosmarinic acid, thymoquinone, and docetaxel, as the chemotherapeutic drug, was analyzed using the Chou-Talalay method along with CompuSyn. To understand the number of cell proliferation of MDA-MB231 breast cancer, a tetrazolium-based colorimetric assay (MTT assay) was investigated. DAPI and the flowcytometric assay were harnessed to evaluate the morphology and the percentage of apoptosis, respectively. Real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to recognize the association between the NF-κB pathway and program cell death signal. Results: The IC50 values for docetaxel, rosmarinic, and Thymoquinone were 2.6 ± 0.62 nM, 15.6 ± 2.4 µM, and 35.5 ± 3.4 μM, respectively. MDA-MB231 breast cancer showed combination index value following three combination recipes; rosmarinic acid + docetaxel, thymoquinone + docetaxel, rosmarinic acid + thymoquinone + docetaxel was 0.26, 0.55, and 0.08, which designated a remarkable synergistic effect. The cultivation of the tumor cells under the exposition of docetaxel and rosmarinic, as well as thymoquinone, discovered a substantial upsurge in the anti-proliferative manner of docetaxel from 60% to 82%, along with a double-fold surge in the number of dead cells. mRNA levels exhibited a noticeable decline in IκB-α as an indicator of NF-κB activation and the decline of survivin and Bcl-2 escorted by a surge in pro-apoptotic Bad mRNA levels (P<0.05). Conclusions: By considering our results, the co-administration of docetaxel, rosmarinic, and thymoquinone can be figured out as a promising adjuvant therapy besides other treatment protocols.
Multi-spectral automated rotating shadowband radiometry in the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Program

This paper discusses the work in progress to develop two RSR variants that extend this measurement technique to make measurements at multiple wavelengths. One of these instruments uses independent interference-filter/photodiode detectors to measure any seven wavelength bands chosen between 350 nm and 2.5 {micro}m, and the other uses a prism spectrograph coupled to a Charge-Coupled Device (CCD) array to measure 256 wavelength intervals from 370 nm to 1 {micro}m. These instruments provide spectrally resolved measurements of the direct-normal, total horizontal, and diffuse horizontal irradiances. These parameters of the sky-radiance function are measured using the same detector (for a given wavelength), eliminating the difficulties inherent in comparing these data when they are taken by independent detectors. The data are measured synchronously, and can be measured at intervals as short as 10 seconds if desired, though more normally data are taken at 15 second intervals and averaged over 1 to 5 minutes. Field deployment of the multiple filter instruments has begun, and twelve of these instruments will be deployed this year as part of the United States Department of Energy (DOE) Quantitative Links measurement program. In addition, further development and testing of these instruments is underway as part of the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program also sponsored by DOE.
A Bibliometric Review and Visualization Analysis in Product Development Project Management: 2012-2021

CiteSpace is used to do the visualization analysis to all the product development project literature collected in SCI-E and SSCI, with which time and space distribution, collaborative network of authors, collaborative network of institutions, co-cited journal, co-occurrence keyword knowledge maps are made to reveal the space distribution, hot topics and development trends in the field of product development project. The study results show that: American, Germany and British scholars have led this field, some Chinese scholars also produce lots of results. Hot topics includes the performance and success factors of product development, innovation management, system modelling and knowledge management of development organization. The result can promote theoretical development of the product development, which will help scholars to determine trends and direction. This paper also provides guidance and reference for firms to achieve good practice in product development.
Operationalizing Behavior Change Techniques in Conversational Agents

Departing from previous work on the use of well-established behavior change techniques in an mHealth intervention based on a conversational agent (CA), we propose in this contribution a new architecture for the design of behavior change CAs. This novel approach combines the use of an advanced natural language platform (Dialogflow) with the explicit representation, in an ontology, of how behavior change techniques can be operationalized. The integration of these two components is explained, as well as the most challenging aspect of using the advanced features of the platform in a way that allowed the agent to lead the dialogue flow, when needed. A successful proof of concept was built, which can be the basis for the development of advanced conversational agents, combining natural language tools with ontology-based knowledge representation.
Pharmacological Mechanisms of Shangke Huangshui against Skin and Soft Tissue Infection

Background Skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs) are a group of common diseases, usually caused by bacteria. Shangke Huangshui (SK) has been widely used to treat various SSTIs diseases for many years, but its mechanism is unclear. Therefore, this study was designed to investigate the anti-infective effect of SK on different skin and soft tissue infection diseases and to explore its underlying mechanism. Methods The subcutaneous abscess mouse model, the dermal ulcer rat model, and the infectious soft tissue injury rat model were established by injection of Staphylococcus aureus to evaluate the anti-inflammatory and antibacterial effects of SK. Abscess volume, local appearance score and histological changes, bacterial contents, and hydroxyproline concentration in the skin or soft tissue were analyzed. The levels of NO, TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-8 in the serum and tissue were determined by ELISA method. The mRNA expression levels of TLR2, MyD88, TAK1, NF-κB, AP-1, and other genes were measured with qRT-PCR method, and the protein expression of TLR2, MyD88, TAK1, NF-κB, and AP-1 was detected by western blot method. Results SK had an obvious therapeutic effect on skin and soft tissue infections. It reduced the volume of abscess and promoted the healing of skin ulcer, improved pathological phenomena, such as inflammatory infiltration of skin and soft tissue, reduced the levels of white blood cells and NO in the blood, decreased bacteria contents in the skin and soft tissue. Furthermore, SK decreased the mRNA expression of TLR2, MyD88, TAK1, NF-κB and AP-1, and other related genes and also downregulated the protein expression of TLR2, MyD88, TAK1, NF-κB, and AP-1. Conclusion The experiments provide evidence that SK can treat skin and soft tissue infection diseases based on its comprehensive antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effects. The therapeutic mechanism may be associated with the inhibition of TLR2/MyD88/NF-κB signaling pathway.
Kinematics Accuracy Analysis of a Fine Tuning Platform for the Large Radio Telescope

According to the high precision tracking requirements for the optomechatronics design project of the next generation large radio telescopes, a large Stewart platform is applied as the fine tuning of the tracking in this paper. The dynamic analysis of Stewart fine tuning platform is carried out. Based on this analysis, the kinematics accuracy analysis model is developed by using the relationship of the position vectors, and the kinematics accuracy results of the Stewart fine tuning platform are presented. These favorable results have shown the feasibility of applying Stewart platform in the next generation large radio telescopes.
CO2 dissociation in a packed bed DBD reactor: effect of streamer discharge

Non-thermal plasma catalysis, as a special heterogeneous catalytic reaction, needs to consider both gas discharge and catalytic reaction. Packed bed dielectric barrier discharge (PB-DBD) is widely used in non-thermal plasma catalysis, but the exact control principle of gas discharge, especially streamer discharge, is not clear. In this study, therefore, the orderly arranged dielectric rods were packed in the discharge gap of PB-DBD, and the streamer discharge behaviors were controlled by adjusting their diameter(s), quantity(ies), location(s) and dielectric constant(s). Al2O3 and ZrO2 dielectric rods with dielectric constants of about 9 and 25 were used as packing material. Pure CO2 was used as reaction gas and discharge gas. Discharge images showed that stable and controllable streamer discharges can be formed between the dielectric rod and ground electrode. The intensity, width and length of the streamer discharge can be significantly changed by optimizing the dielectric constant, diameter, packing number and position of the dielectric rod, thereby affecting the CO2 conversion efficiency. Increasing dielectric constant and the distance between the dielectric rod and ground electrode can increase the intensity of streamer discharge, thus promoting the CO2 conversion efficiency. Compared with an empty reactor, after packing 24 ZrO2 dielectric rods with a diameter of 1 mm, the CO2 conversion and energy efficiency increased from 9.58% to 20.1% and from 1.67% to 2.89%, respectively. In short, this research has important implications for plasma catalysis. This study not only reveals the synergistic characteristics between streamer discharge and CO2 dissociation, but also provides an important idea for structural optimization of PB-DBD catalyst.
Impact modelling and analysis of the compliant legged robots

The dynamics of the compliant legged robots are commonly characterized by the spring loaded inverted pendulum model. In this article, a new model is presented for the impact of the compliant legged robots. Compared with the spring loaded inverted pendulum model, the new model provides a means to take into account the factors such as the sliding of the terminal, the vibrations of the leg with distributed compliance and variation of the nonlinear contact force. The effectiveness of the model is validated by the finite element program LS-DYNA from the velocity and energy point of view. Based on the method used, the influences of the parameters, such as the incident angle, width, thickness and Young’s modulus of the flexible leg on the dynamic characteristics of the robot, are analysed. It is found that the post-impact vertical velocity of the robot decreases with the increasing incident angles, and increases approximately linearly with the width and thickness, while the variation of Young’s modulus of the flexible leg has little effects on it. The same is true of the energy loss ratio during the impact. All the parameters investigated are more intuitive than the stiffness described in the spring loaded inverted pendulum model and can be utilized directly for the optimization design and locomotion control of the compliant legged robots. In addition, the vibrations and multiple impacts can be predicted by the proposed model to reduce the energy loss.
RVPLAN: Runtime Verification of Assumptions in Automated Planning

Automated planners use a model of the system and apply state transition functions to find a sequence of actions (a plan) that successfully solves a (set of) goal(s). The model used during planning can be imprecise, either due to a mistake at design time or because the environment is dynamic and changed before or during the plan execution. In this paper we use runtime monitors to verify the assumptions of plans at runtime in order to effectively detect plan failures. This paper offers three main contributions: (a) two methods (instantiated and parameterised) to automatically synthesise runtime monitors by translating planning models (STRIPS-like) to temporal logics (Past LTL or Past FO-LTL); (b) an approach to use the resulting runtime monitors to detect failures in the plan; and (c) the RVPLAN tool, which implements (a) and (b). We illustrate the use of our work with a remote inspection running example as well as quantitative results comparing the performance of the proposed monitor generation methods in terms of property synthesis, monitor synthesis, and runtime