Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The IARA Model Proved Effective in Emotional Literacy, Characters Strengths Awareness, and Cohesion among Italian Children

Literature highlights how education in the twenty-first century begins to advocate multiple new concepts, such as new technology, new pedagogies, interdisciplinary curricula, open learning, etc. Among these concepts, the recognition and awareness about one’s character strengths are demonstrated to improve emotional management and individual/group’s quality of life. We studied three fifth-grade Italian classes using an emerging educational model called IARA to verify if it can truly improve emotional literacy, characters strengths awareness, and cohesion in ten-years children. To demonstrate its efficacy, we used Bloom’s Taxonomy and Sociogrammatic study. We proved that the IARA could be an efficient model to improve one’s character strengths and class milieu awareness.
Battery and Abuse in the Elderly: A Forensic Analysis

Elder abuse is a recognized social problem in the United States. First labeled as "granny battering" and originally studied under the umbrella of family violence, maltreatment of the elderly has received more funding and research in recent years. Multiple aspects of elder abuse have been examined in the literature including measures for detection, assessment, and documentation. Although studies have examined the circumstances surrounding abuse as well as theories of causation and characteristics of the abuser and the abused, studies of the relationship between the abuser and the abused are less well documented. The purpose of this research was to examine the abuser relationship, family or non-family, and types of abuse (physical, financial, sexual) in the elderly through evaluation of prosecuted cases of elder abuse in order to identify relationships which may inform nursing science in early prevention and intervention strategies in a vulnerable elderly population. Specifically, this research aimed to answer the question "What is the relationship between type of abuser (family, non-family) and type of abuse in cases prosecuted through the San Diego District Attorney's Office? " Statistical analysis demonstrated significance in abuser-abused relationship, type of abuse, and demographic age/gender predictors of financial and physical abuse. No statistical significance was found for sexual abuse. This study informs future nursing research in health outcomes for vulnerable elders, nursing curriculum, and health policy in an aging population. Copyright © 2010 by Amy Y. Carney All Rights Reserved DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to all of the elders whose cases I evaluated and researched for this study. Your stories have touched me deeply, and have made me want to do more on behalf of you and others caught up in the nightmare of elder abuse. In addition I dedicate this work to all of the nurses, social workers, Adult Protective Services personnel, law enforcement officers, elder abuse investigators and attorneys of the San Diego District Attorney's Office, as well as countless others who work with the elder population in the effort to keep them safe. Your work may not always be known, but it should be.
Influence of Atmospheric Aerosols on Evapotranspiration over a Semiarid Region in Northeast Brazil

Abstract The knowledge of atmospheric aerosol characteristics at regional and local scales, their temporal changes and interrelations with meteorological variables are of great importance because can modify the global radiative energy balance. This study was carried out to evaluate the influence of aerosols on evapotranspiration over a semiarid region in Northeast Brazil. Aerosol optical depth, global solar radiation, air temperature, air relative humidity, and wind speed were measured in the Research National Center of Semiarid, located at Petrolina, Pernambuco State, Brazil, along two consecutive years. A multivariate model was calibrated and validated for estimating the global solar radiation (Rglobal) based on the aerosol optical depths (AOD) and extraterrestrial solar radiation (R0). Estimates of the reference evapotranspiration (ET0) were obtained by using the FAO standard Penman-Monteith method. Results confirmed that larger aerosol optical depth tends to decrease both Rglobal and ET0. Otherwise, ticker aerosol optical depth tends to absorb less radiation, increasing the ET0. For the semiarid region in Northeast Brazil, most of ET0 deviations were smaller than ±4%. However, higher deviations were also observed, contributing jointly to around 30%, which may result in relevant consequences on the irrigation management, water balance, agroclimatic zoning, among other activities based on the ET0 estimates.
Controllable Kerr Nonlinearity in a Degenerate V-Type Inhomogeneously Broadening Atomic Medium Aided By a Magnetic Field

We propose a degenerate V-type inhomogeneously broadening atomic model for Kerr nonlinear control under the support of an external magnetic field. The magnetic field is used as a control knob to convert the medium from transparency to absorption at the resonance center. It is shown that the magnitude and sign of the Kerr nonlinearity index are manipulated by the magnetic field. Especially, we can easily convert the Kerr nonlinearity index from the positive peak into a negative peak, and from zero value can be transferred to enhanced positive or negative peaks simply only by changing the direction or strength of the magnetic field. In addition, the Kerr nonlinearity index under the influence of the temperature, the intensity, and detuning of the control field is also considered. The proposed model can be useful for applications in optical switching and nonlinear optical devices as well as possible experimental implementations.
Two-way bioinvasion: tracking the neritic non-native cyclopoid copepods Dioithona oculata and Oithona davisae (Oithonidae) in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea

Accelerated anthropogenic changes in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea (EMS) have facilitated the introduction, spread and establishment of invasive copepod species in this region. Here, we report the introduction of two non-native cyclopoid copepods Dioithona oculata and Oithona davisae for the first time in the Israeli coastal waters and describe their temporal variability. The species were identified by morphological characteristics, DNA barcoding and phylogenetic inference. Molecular identification and phylogenetic analysis supported the taxonomical identification, nevertheless, showed cryptic speciation within D. oculata, separating the Western Pacific and EMS clades. In the Israeli coastal waters, D. oculata presented a temporally restricted occurrence, appearing from September 2019 to December 2019 (30.0±0.7 – 21.0±1.1 °C) and October 2020 (28.0±0.7 °C). The highest abundances of D. oculata occurred in the autumn (October 2019 and 2020), when the water temperature reached 28.0 °C (7 and 10 ind. m-3, respectively). The lowest abundance occurred in December 2019 (0.35 ind. m-3), when the water temperature decreased to 21.0 °C, indicating that the thermal affinity of D. oculata for warm-temperate conditions, for reproduction and the maintenance of viable populations, has persisted in the introduced range. In contrast, O. davisae appeared almost all year around (17.0±0.5 – 28.0±0.7 °C). This species demonstrated peaks in abundance both in October 2019 and October 2020, when the water temperature reached 28.0 °C (406 and 92 ind. m-3), as well as when the temperature decreased to 17.0 °C (31 ind. m-3, February 2020), confirming its wide eurythermal tolerance. Based on our findings and previous observations, we suggest that D. oculata may have invaded the EMS through the Suez Canal and is now at the onset of its spread in the Mediterranean Sea, whereas O. davisae has been introduced via shipping, likely from the Northeast Atlantic, widely spreading and successfully establishing viable populations across the entire Mediterranean Sea, until the coastal Levantine Sea.
Chelsea

Duke University, Durham, NC Ph.D. in Economics, in progress, exp. 2018 Fields: Urban Economics, Public Economics Field Paper: “House Prices and Crime Risk: Evidence from the United Kingdom” Dissertation Prospectus: “The New Markets Tax Credit and Local Economic Outcomes” Committee: Christopher Timmins, Patrick Bayer, Peter Arcidiacono, Juan Carlos Suarez Serrato M.A. in Economics, 2014 Brown University, Providence, RI B.S. in Applied Math and Economics, 2012 Honors: Magna Cum Laude, Departmental Honors Thesis: “School Assignment and Housing Values: Evidence from Wake County, North Carolina” Awards: Royce Sport and Society Fellow, Academic All-American
Lithium‐ion battery state‐of‐charge estimation of an order‐reduced physics‐based model in electric vehicles considering erroneous initialization

Intelligent battery management systems (BMSs) require immediate and precise state of charge (SoC) estimation of the lithium‐ion cell for efficient use in electric vehicles (EVs). To solve the problem of real‐time SoC estimation for physics‐based lithium‐ion cell models in BMSs, rigorous physics‐based models are required to be reasonably order‐reduced. In this paper, an improved order‐reduced physics‐based model is proposed and validated with experimental data. Next, state equations of the reduced model are established by adopting finite difference approaches. Moreover, three reduced model‐based estimators including the extended Kalman filter (EKF), the uniform reaching law sliding‐mode observer (SMO‐URL), and the exponential reaching law sliding‐mode observer (SMO‐ERL) are developed to estimate battery SoC by using input current and external measured voltage. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed SoC estimation algorithms, their performances are evaluated and compared via experimentation under the hybrid pulse power characteristic (HPPC) test. The results show that the proposed order‐reduced model‐based SMO‐ERL algorithm has faster convergence ability and higher estimation accuracy compared with the other two algorithms under incorrect SoC initial conditions.
Scalable computing in Java with PCJ Library. Improved collective operations

Machine learning and Big Data workloads are becoming as important as traditional HPC ones. AI and Big Data users tend to use new programming languages such as Python, Julia, or Java, while the HPC community is still dominated by C/C++ or Fortran. Hence, there is a need for new programming libraries and languages that will integrate diﬀerent applications and allow them to run on large computer infrastructure. Since modest computers are multinode and multicore, parallel execution is an additional challenge here. For that purpose, we have developed the PCJ library, which introduces parallel programming capabilities to Java using the Partitioned Global Address Space model. It does not modify language nor running environment (JVM). The PCJ library allows for easy development of parallel code and runs it on laptops, workstations, supercomputers, and the cloud. This paper presents an overview of the PCJ library and its usage in parallelizing selected workloads, including HPC, AI, and Big Data. The performance and scalability are presented. We present recent addition to the PCJ library, which are collective operations. The collective operations signiﬁcantly reduce the number of lines of code to write, ensuring good performance.
Numerical Analysis of the Structural Resistance and Stability of Masonry Walls with an AAC Thermal Break Layer

Since energy efficiency has become the main priority in the design of buildings, load-bearing walls in modern masonry constructions nowadays include thermal break elements at the floor–wall junction to mitigate thermal bridges. The structural stability of these bearing walls is consequently affected. In the present paper, a numerical study of the resistance and stability of such composite masonry walls, including AAC thermal break layers, is presented. A finite element mesoscopic model is successfully calibrated with respect to recent experimental results at small and medium scale, in terms of resistance and stiffness under vertical load with or without eccentricity. The model is then used to extend the numerical models to larger-scale masonry walls made of composite masonry, with the aim of investigating the consequences of thermal elements on global resistance and stability. The results confirm that the resistance of composite walls is governed by the masonry layer with the lowest resistance value, except for walls with very large slenderness and loaded eccentrically: composite walls with low slenderness or loaded by a vertical load with limited eccentricities are failing due to the crushing of the AAC layer, while the walls characterized by large slenderness ratios and loaded eccentrically tend to experience buckling failure in the main clay masonry layer.
Sport events and social capital in conflict-affected country: a case study of National Unity Day in South Sudan

ABSTRACT In South Sudan, most conflicts take the form of ethnic conflicts. This paper examines the social capital of athletes who participated in National Unity Day (NUD) – 9-day annual national sport events under the theme ‘Peace and Unity’. The paper looks at whether the athletes’ perceptions and behaviours have been changed through NUD and aims to deepen our understanding of the impact of social capital on social cohesion through sports. The paper shows that it is important to strengthen social capital such as ‘trust and cooperative norms’ in relation to other ethnic groups and governments in order to improve awareness of conflict and provide a foundation of social cohesion. Another finding is that NUD became a place where the athletes came to recognise the importance of peace and unity embodied by the event, which allows athletes to interact with different tribes including those who have hostility towards.
A Collection of Multimodal Melanoma Data

Computer-aided diagnosis, prognosis and therapy systems have been of great interest for a number of years. The availability of big volumes of data and of powerful computational resources have allowed artificial intelligence approaches to emerge in melanoma related studies. However, for such approaches to have good predictive performances data availability is of crucial importance. Melanoma related imaging, biological and clinical data can be found partially and scattered in various repositories. Thus, in this work, we assemble in a web accessible database, named ebioMelDB, the widest collection of clinical and dermoscopy images accompanied with patient clinical data and the widest collection of RNA-Seq gene expression data accompanied with patient clinical data. The database organization allows users to select the data that are appropriate for their application of interest (diagnosis, prognosis and therapy). Keywords: melanoma database, integrated data, dermoscopy, imaging, RNA-Seq, clinical data.
Two Benzene Rings with a Boron Atom Comprise the Core Structure of 2-APB Responsible for the Anti-Oxidative and Protective Effect on the Ischemia/Reperfusion-Induced Rat Heart Injury

To identify the core structure of 2-aminoethoxydiphenyl borate (2-APB) responsible for the anti-oxidative and protective effect on the ischemia/reperfusion (I/R)-induced heart injury, various 2-APB analogues were analyzed, and several antioxidant assays were performed. Cell viability was determined using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. Myocardial infarct size was quantified using triphenyl tetrazolium chloride (TTC) staining. The levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and cleaved-caspase-3 protein were evaluated as an indicator for the anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic effect, respectively. Our data show that 2-APB, diphenylborinic anhydride (DPBA) and 3-(diphenylphosphino)-1-propylamine (DP3A) all exerted the anti-oxidative activity, but only 2-APB and DPBA can scavenge H2O2. 2-APB and DPBA can potently inhibit hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)- and hypoxanthine/xanthine oxidase (HX/XOD)-induced increases in intracellular H2O2 and H9c2 cell death. 2-APB and DPBA were able to decrease the I/R-induced adult rat cardiomyocytes death, myocardial infarct size, and the levels of malondialdehyde (MDA) and creatine kinase-MB (CK-MB). Our results suggest that the two benzene rings with a boron atom comprise the core structure of 2-APB responsible for the anti-oxidative effect mediated through the reaction with H2O2 and generation of phenolic compounds, which in turn reduced the I/R-induced oxidative stress and injury in the rat heart.
Manual Correction of Voxel Misclassifications in Mesiotemporal Structures Does Not Alter Brain–Behavioral Results in an Episodic Memory Task

Voxel-based morphometry (VBM) is an established method for assessing grey matter volumes across the brain. The quality of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and the chosen data preprocessing steps can affect the outcome of VBM analyses. We recognized a lack of publicly available and commonly used protocols, which indicates that standardized and optimized preprocessing protocols are needed. This paper focuses on the time- and resource-consuming manual correction of misclassifications of grey matter voxels in cortical structures important in Alzheimer’s dementia. A total of 126 individuals, including 63 patients with very early Alzheimer’s disease and 63 cognitively normal participants, received thorough neuropsychological testing and 3-Tesla MRI. Automated preprocessing of T1 MPRAGE images was performed, and misclassifications of grey matter voxels were manually identified and corrected. In a second run, the manual correction step was skipped. Multiple regression analyses using DARTEL in SPM8 were then conducted with the manually corrected and uncorrected sample, respectively. Manual correction of voxel misclassifications did not have a major impact on the correlation between episodic memory performance and structural brain imaging results. We conclude that, although performing all preprocessing steps remains the gold standard, skipping manual correction of voxel misclassifications is permitted when investigating populations on the Alzheimer’s disease spectrum.
Validation of the Spanish Version of the Lucidity and Consciousness in Dreams Scale

Lucid dreaming, a specific phenomenon of dream consciousness, refers to the experience being aware that one is dreaming. The primary aim of this research was to validate a Spanish version of the Lucidity and Consciousness in Dreams scale (LuCiD). A secondary aim was to explore whether meditation experience and mindfulness trait were related to LuCiD scores. Data from 367 Spanish men (34.6%) and women (65.4%) who completed LuCiD, the Five Facets of Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ), and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) were examined. From the total sample, 40.3% indicated some experience with formal meditation (meditators), while 59.7% did not have any meditation experience (non-meditators). A random subsample of 101 participants, who completed LuCiD for a second time after a period of 10–15days, was used for test–retest reliability analysis. The LuCiD scale comprises 28 items distributed across eight factors: insight, control, thought, realism, memory, dissociation, negative emotion, and positive emotion. Factor structure, reliability by both internal consistency and test–retest reliability, and construct and concurrent validity were tested. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) confirmed the original eight-factor model, showing goodness of fit in contrast to a single-factor model. Item 15 was deleted from the Dissociation factor as it performed poorly (i.e., skewness and kurtosis, non-normal distribution of responses, and corrected item–total correlation under 0.40). The scale showed adequate values of internal consistency (between α=0.65 for Memory and α=0.83 for Positive Emotion) and test–retest reliability by significant Pearson correlations (p<0.001) for each factor. The scores of meditators were higher for the LuCiD scale Insight and Dissociation factors, in contrast to those of non-meditators. The Observing facet of mindfulness was positively associated with all LuCiD factors, except Realism and Positive Emotion, and the Acting with Awareness facet showed a negative correlation with the LuCiD factor Realism. Finally, positive and negative affects was associated with the LuCiD factors Positive Emotion and Negative Emotion. This study provides a valid and reliable measure for exploring lucidity and consciousness in dreams for a Spanish population, Moreover, the results suggest a relationship with meditation experience, mindfulness trait, and positive and negative affect.
Organic Remains in Early Christian Egyptian Metal Vessels: Investigation with Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy and Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry

Organic remains preserved on eight copper alloy artifacts of the Byzantine Collection of the Benaki Museum with an Egyptian provenance were investigated, implementing a multi-analytical approach combining microscopy-FTIR and GC/MS. The transmission spectra of powder samples provided important information on the vessels regarding inorganic and organic components. In the latter case, subsequent extractions with a range of solvents allowed discrimination of components with different polarities and provided data on the suitability of the solvents for the acquisition of more informative spectra. GC/MS was implemented for the detailed characterization of the compounds present in the samples because of the complex nature of the residues preserved. A wide range of fatty acid oxidation products was identified, including a series of α, ω-dicarboxylic acids typical of such remains. In addition, vicinal dihydroxy-docosanoic and dihydroxy-eicosanoic acid, oxidation products of erucic and gondoic acid, respectively, were detected. Both are found in abundance in oils from plants belonging to the Brassicaceae family and imply their multiple uses in medieval Egypt.
Research on Precipitation Forecast Based on LSTM–CP Combined Model

The tremendous progress made in the field of deep learning allows us to accurately predict precipitation and avoid major and long-term disruptions to the entire socio-economic system caused by floods. This paper presents an LSTM–CP combined model formed by the Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) network and Chebyshev polynomial (CP) as applied to the precipitation forecast of Yibin City. Firstly, the data are fed into the LSTM network to extract the time-series features. Then, the sequence features obtained are input into the BP (Back Propagation) neural network with CP as the excitation function. Finally, the prediction results are obtained. By theoretical analysis and experimental comparison, the LSTM–CP combined model proposed in this paper has fewer parameters, shorter running time, and relatively smaller prediction error than the LSTM network. Meanwhile, compared with the SVR model, ARIMA model, and MLP model, the prediction accuracy of the LSTM–CP combination model is significantly improved, which can aid relevant departments in making disaster response measures in advance to reduce disaster losses and promote sustainable development by providing them data support.