Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Singlemode-Multimode-Singlemode Fiber Structures for Sensing Applications—A Review

A singlemode-multimode-singlemode (SMS) fiber structure consists of a short section of multimode fiber fusion- spliced between two SMS fibers. The mechanism underpinning the operation of an SMS fiber structure is multimode interference and associated self-imaging. SMS structures can be used in a variety of optical fiber systems but are most commonly used as sensors for a variety of parameters, ranging from macro-world measurands such as temperature, strain, vibration, flow rate, RI and humidity to the micro-world with measurands such as proteins, pathogens, DNA and specific molecules. While traditional SMS structures employ a short section of standard multimode fiber, a large number of structures have been investigated and demonstrated over the last decade involving the replacement of the multimode fiber section with alternatives such as a hollow core fiber or a tapered fiber. The objective of replacing the multimode fiber has most often been to allow sensing of different measurands or to improve sensitivity. In this paper, several different categories of SMS fiber structures, including traditional SMS, modified SMS and tapered SMS fiber structures are discussed with some theoretical underpinning and reviews of a wide variety of sensing examples and recent advances. The paper then summarizes and compares the performances of a variety of sensors which have been published under a number of headings. The paper concludes by considering the challenges faced by SMS based sensing schemes in terms of their deployment in real world applications and discusses possible future developments of SMS fiber sensors.
A corresponding-states treatment for the viscosity of polar fluids

The extended corresponding states viscosity model of a previous study has been modified to extend it to polar fluids. In addition to the Pitzer's acentric factor for nonpolar fluids used in that work, an association parameter for hydrogen-bonding compounds and a viscosity acentric factor for polar compounds are employed. Extensive comparisons with experimental data for more than thirty substances including highly branched alkanes, naphthenes, and polar and hydrogen-bonding compounds show an average absolute deviation between experimental values and predicted values of less than 6%. Comparisons with other highly recommended methods based on the same conditions show that this model is better than others in both accuracy and applicability, and it applies over the entire fluid density range from dilute gas to dense liquid.
The Implementation of School Literacy Movement for Children in Elementary School

This study aims at describing the implementation of School Literacy Movement for Children (Gerakan Literasi Sastra Anak/GLSA) through habituation, development, and instructional acticities at SD Kauman 1, SD Anak SALEH and SD Laboratorium UM. The implementation of GLSA in each school is so unique that they are worth-studying. This is is a phenomenological qualitative approach employing multicases design. Data are gathered through direct observation by researcher, in-depth interview with related stakeholders of GLSA such as principlas, teachers, students, parents as well as documentary study. After assesing their validity, the data are then analysed by condensing the data, displaying the data and withdrawing conclusion. Based on data analyisis, it is found out that on habituation stage, the GLSA is carried out through: (1) morning story of “Sapa Mentari”, (2) pachelathon and conversation, (3) setting up literate environment and infrastructure (library, reading corner and wall magazine), (4) selecting reading resources for children, (5) involving public and (6) “Genam 45”. On development stage, GLSA is carried out by: (1) story telling, (2) literacy show, (3) literacy sack, (4) DEAR practice, (5) independent reading. For instructional stage, the activities of GLSA are: (1) creative teaching and learning process in the form of writing science comic, (2) reading for comprehension, and (3) balance reading practice.
Pattern Recognition of Optical Fiber Vibration Signal of the Submarine Cable for Its Safety

Submarine cables are the main sources of power supply for oil rigs; in this regard, they must be assessed and effectively secured. Monitoring of the environment of submarine cables is rare, and cable faults generally require interventions. This article develops the detection and recognition of shock events on submarine cables using the vibration signals of its optical fiber sensor. The vibration signals from the optical fiber are detected by means of phase-sensitive optical time-domain reflectometry ( $\Phi $ -OTDR). An effective fiber vibration pattern recognition scheme based on the time-frequency-domain characteristics (TFDC) and Support vector machine (SVM) is proposed. The scheme uses the TFDC for the recognition of the fiber vibrations, and the SVM to determine the magnitude of the event. Three different groups of data are collected and processed in real-time. Experimental results from multiple tests carried out on data samples show that the proposed method is valid and reliable for recognizing and determining the magnitude of events on the submarine cable.
Gaussian‐Type Functions for Polyatomic Systems. II

The use of a linear combination of Gaussian‐type orbitals (CGTO), instead of an individual Gaussian‐type orbital (GTO), as a unit of basis functions for large‐scale molecular calculations, is discussed. A systematic construction of the CGTO basis functions is attempted and the results for the atoms from Li through Ar are reported.
Neutron Imaging of Water Transport in Polymer-Electrolyte Membranes and Membrane-Electrode Assemblies

Neutron imaging was been widely used to study the water distribution in proton exchange membrane fuel cell flow fields and gas diffusion layer. However, due to the limitation of spatial resolution, there has been little focus on the water transport process in the membrane and catalyst layer. Here we report on measurements made on thick membranes under saturation gradients which show no “jump condition” and on thick cathode catalyst layers to understand the water transport issues in a nonprecious metal catalyst. Finally, we speculate on the possibility of obtaining neutron images with ~1 μm spatial resolution.
Stochastic Energy Management of Electric Bus Charging Stations With Renewable Energy Integration and B2G Capabilities

In this paper, the stochastic energy management of electric bus charging stations (EBCSs) is investigated, where the photovoltaic (PV) with integrated battery energy storage systems (BESS) and bus-to-grid (B2G) capabilities of electric buses (EBs) are included for cost-effective charging of EBs. Also, the day-ahead dynamic prices are derived to mitigate charging impacts on power distribution systems. This problem is formulated as a distributionally robust Markov decision process (DRMDP) with uncertain transition probabilities and costs to address the impacts of random bus loads with inaccurate probability density function estimation. An event-based ambiguity set with combined statistical distance and moment information is developed to achieve minimax-regret criteria for less-conservative and robust solutions. To facilitate practical applications with reduced computational complexity, a heuristic regret function is proposed, based on which the dynamic prices are derived. Case studies based on EB data from St. Albert Transit and IEEE test feeders indicate that the proposed method can minimize EB charging cost with mitigated impacts on power distribution systems.
Resource-Optimal Fault-Tolerant Scheduler Design for Task Graphs Using Supervisory Control

Real-time control applications are highly parallelizable and can be used to effectively harness the capacity of a given computing platform when appropriately scheduled. Given a multicore platform for executing a set of parallelizable applications, it is necessary to ensure proper functioning of the system even in the presence of transient processor faults. However, most existing scheduling approaches for parallel applications have been heuristic schemes which are often based only on the satisfaction of a set of sufficiency conditions and cannot take into consideration of all necessary schedulability requirements. Consequently, such schemes lead to suboptimal usage of resources resulting in higher design costs. Formal model-based safe design methodologies such as supervisory control are often desirable in the design of correct-by-construction fault-tolerant schedulers. This article proposes a supervisory control-based fault-tolerant scheduler synthesis scheme for real-time tasks modeled as precedence-constrained task graphs, executing on multicores. Further, we devise search strategies to obtain schedules that 1) maximize fault-tolerance and 2) minimize peak-power (MPP) dissipation. Conducted experiments using real-world benchmarks reveal the efficacy of our scheme.
Surface-mediated reactions. 3. Hydrohalogenation of alkenes

The use of appropriately prepared silica gel and alumina has been found to mediate the addition of hydrogen halides to alkynes. The technique has been rendered even more convenient by the use of various organic and inorganic acid halides that react in the presence of silica gel or alumina to generate hydrogen halides in situ. Treatment in this fashion of 1-propynylbenzene (1), which underwent no reaction in CH 2 Cl 2 solution saturated with HCl, readily afforded the syn addition product, alkenyl chloride (E)-4a. On extended treatment (E)-4a underwent subsequent isomerization to the thermodynamically more stable Z isomer. Thus either isomer of 4a could be obtained in good yield depending on the reaction conditions. In a similar way bromides (E)-and (Z)-4b were obtained without competing formation of the radical products (E)- and (Z)-5, which occured in solution. In contrast with solution-phase hydroiodination of alkyne 1,which slowly afforded iodide (E)-4c, surface-mediated addition readily afforded (E)-4c, followed by isomerization to the Z isomer. E⇄Z equilibration of the alkenyl halides 4 was shown to involve, at least in part, addition-elimination via the gem-dihalides 13. Analogous behavior was exhibited by the phenylalkynes 2 and 3 on surface-mediated hydrohalogenation. Surface-mediated addition of HBr and HI to the internal alkylalkyne 14 afforded principally the anti addition products (Z)-15b,c . Treatment of the terminal alkynes 17 and 22 with (COBr) 2 over alumina gave the dibromides 20 and 24/25, respectively, whereas use of acetyl bromide as the HBr precursor afforded the alkenyl bromides 18b and 23
Homogeneous climate regions in Pakistan

In this study, monthly average meteorological data and spatial coordinates are supposed to influence the climate variation. The geographical coordinates are transformed by using the Lambert projection method and are combined with the meteorological data. The complete data is standardised with zero mean and unit variance to remove the effect of different measurement scales. Various clustering methods are used to aggregate data, which are close in space and have similar climate. In our case, medoids clustering algorithm provides good separation and aggregation properties and if Lambert coordinates are used.
Magnesium salts as compounds of the preparation of magnesium oxide from Tunisian natural brines

Magnesium oxide is one of the most important magnesium compounds used in industry. The production of MgO is often done from calcined magnesium carbonate or from natural magnesium saline solutions (sea water and brines). In the case of these solutions, magnesium oxide is precipitated after the addition of a strong base (eg. Ammonia). Magnesium hydroxide is calcined after its separation from the excess resulting from the strong base through filtration. Thus, magnesia qualities may differ depending on several physical parameters and particularly on the nature of the compound. Consequently, two different compounds were selected: magnesium chloride and magnesium sulphate which can be recovered from Tunisian natural brines. Three physical factors were considered: calcination temperatures, precipitation temperatures and calcination time of Mg(OH)2. The decomposition of Mg(OH)2 was investigated by DTA/TGA. Mass losses vary in the range (23.0%-29.9%). Starting decomposition temperatures are between 362°C and 385°C. The MgO produced from MgSO4 under 1000°C within 48 hours of calcination time and with 40°C as a reaction temperature for Mg(OH)2 shows a good crystallinity and is of a cristallyte size of 86.3 nm and has a specific surface area equal to 16.87 m2g-1. Finally, morphological differences between MgO agglomerates at different temperatures were observed by SEM. Consequently, magnesium sulphate as precursor for preparing MgO is selected.
Corporate Audit Mechanisms and Financial Reporting Quality of Listed Consumer Goods Manufacturing Companies in Nigeria

The study investigated the relationship between corporate audit mechanisms and financial reporting quality of listed consumer goods manufacturing companies in Nigeria. The study utilized a sample of thirteen listed manufacturing companies in the consumer goods sector for a period of seven years (2012-2018). The Ordinary Least Square multiple regression technique was employed in the analysis of a pool of panel data obtained from the published annual reports of the sampled firms. The study found that external audit attribute (audit fee) and audit committee attribute (membership tenure) have significant relationship with financial reporting quality (earnings management, reporting timeliness, accounting conservatism and value relevance) of the sampled firms at 95% confidence level. The implication is that variation in reporting quality is significantly predicted by the audit mechanisms. The study concludes that corporate audit mechanisms (audit fee and audit committee tenure) have significant impact on the financial reporting quality of listed consumer goods manufacturing companies in Nigeria. Based on the findings, it was recommended among others, that compensation for external auditors should include upward review of the audit fee annually and the provision of necessary resources both financial and otherwise to enhance quality financial reporting. Keywords: Audit, Corporate Audit Mechanism, Financial reporting Quality, Audit committee DOI: 10.7176/RJFA/11-22-04 Publication date: November 30 th 2020
Ultra-trace determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons using solid-phase extraction coupled with HPLC based on graphene-functionalized silica gel composites

A graphene (Gr) functionalized silica gel (Gr–SiO2) sorbent was prepared and used as a new sorbent for solid-phase extraction (SPE) of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) including naphthalene, acenaphthylene, fluorene, phenanthrene, fluoranthene, and pyrene. The analytes were separated and detected by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with a UV detector. Factors affecting the extraction efficiency including the eluent type and its volume, adsorbent amount, sample volume, sample pH and flow rate were optimized. Under the optimized conditions, the present method showed a wide linear range (0.01–600 μg L−1), acceptable repeatability of the extraction (RSDs of 1.7–8.2%, n = 3) and satisfactory detection limits (0.0029–0.052 μg L−1). The recovery studies using this new sorbent were performed by three consecutive extraction steps of water and milk samples at three spiked levels. The average recoveries of the analytes in environmental water and milk samples were 89.0–115.4%, which demonstrated the applicability of the developed method.
Scheduling Spark Tasks With Data Skew and Deadline Constraints

Data skew has an essential impact on the performance of big data processing. Spark task scheduling with data skew and deadline constraints is considered to minimize the total rental cost in this paper. A modified scheduling architecture is developed in terms of the unique characteristics of the considered problem. A mathematical model is constructed, and a Spark task scheduling algorithm is proposed considering both the data skew and deadline constraints. The algorithm consists of three components: stage sequencing, task scheduling, and scheduling adjustment. Strategies for each of the components are presented. The parameters and components of the proposed algorithm are calibrated over many random instances. The calibrated algorithm is compared to two existing algorithms for similar problems over classical scientific workflow applications. Experimental results show that the proposed algorithm outperforms the compared algorithms statistically.
Buck–Boost Three-Level Semi-Dual-Bridge Resonant Isolated DC–DC Converter

The semi-dual-bridge resonant isolated dc–dc converter (SDBRC), as a class of emerging topologies, is suitable for the application situation that requires only the unidirectional power transfer while a wide buck–boost voltage conversion range. In this article, a three-level SDBRC is proposed. Its operation principle is analyzed, and the transfer power and voltage conversion ratio as the functions of the two phase shifts are derived. Furthermore, a coordinated control rule of the two phase shifts is proposed, which ensures the monotonicity between the phase shifts and the average output power over the entire power/voltage range. The voltage stress of the power devices of the proposed topology is reduced to half of the power supply voltage; therefore, the cost and ON-state loss of the power switches are effectively reduced. The detailed simulation and experimental results validate the correctness and feasibility of the proposed topology and its modulation strategy.
Comparison of Three Chromatographic Systems for Determination of Organic Acids in Wine

Three chromatographic systems: ion exchange chromatography, ion exclusion chromatography and reversed phase chromatography, have been used for the simultaneous determination of organic acids in wine. The common organic acids were separated using all three chromatographic systems. When an ion exchange column (TSKgel 1C Anion-PW) was used, organic acids and inorganic anions (CI^- and SO_4^2-) in wine were determined simultaneously without interference. The sharp peaks were obtained when an ion exclusion column (TSKgel OApak-A) was employed. A rapid separation of organic acids has been achieved, within about 7 min, when a reversed phase column (Zorbax ODS) was used. In ion exclusion and reversed phase systems combined with UV detection, however, other organic compounds which have ultraviolet absorption at 210 nm interfered with the determination of organic acids when practical wine samples were analyzed. IC is an obvious alternative for determination of organic acids in wine.
Classification of companies into stock exchange quotation markets using network metrics

The classification of a company into the relevant quotation market is an essential part of stock market efficiency. The aim of the article is to predict the classification of enterprises into the two types of quotation markets on the Warsaw Stock Exchange (i.e. the main one and NewConnect) by means of network measures of the company’s participation in interlocking directorates’ networks. The research was carried out on a network of enterprises established on the basis of their relationships through shared board directors. This network included 460 companies listed on the main exchange, and 442 companies in the NewConnect markets of the Warsaw Stock Exchange respectively (a total of 902 entities) at the end of 2014. The aim of the study is to classify the companies into the appropriate quotation market on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, i.e. the main market (WSE) or NewConnect (NC)
Investigation of Defense and Vegetative Growth Related Traits of Recombinant Inbred Lines of Brassica rapa

Brassica rapa is one of the most valuable vegetable crops worldwide. Cultivated varieties of B. rapa exhibit diverse developmental and morphological appearances, which includes important vegetables, oilseeds, and fodder crops. In this study, various phenotypes of recombinant inbred lines (RILs) of B. rapa were investigated, including their responses to five different pathogenic Botrytis cinerea isolates, responses to aphid and thrips during flowering stages, days to flowering, and plant heights. Responses of 113 RILs to five different B. cinerea isolates showed variations, suggesting that genetic factors controlling resistance or tolerance against each isolate were dependent on isolate/genotype pairs. Correlation analysis was performed to understand the nature of genetic factors and the relationship among these phenotypes. Although high levels of correlation were not detected between phenotypes assessed in this study, statistically significant correlation was detected for several combinations. Significant positive correlations were found for different B. cinerea isolates, supporting that certain levels of commonality could exist in genetic components controlling resistance against different B. cinerea isolates. Based on correlation analysis using numbers of insects counted on plants, it was speculated that genetic factors responsible for aphid tolerance or repellence might be also involved in the response against thrips. Relationship between vegetative growth and tolerance against B. cinereal or insects is rather more complicated. However, it was observed that shorter plants appeared to have a certain level of tolerance or repellence against both aphids and thrips. Data presented in this study could be used to assist further genetic studies and breeding efforts to obtain Botritis and insect resistance for B. rapa.
Taking Advantage of the Electronic Excited States of [60]-Fullerenes

The optical, electrochemical and excited state properties of C60 fullerene and its derivatives, combined with their peculiar structural features, have made them ideal modules for the construction of complex architectures which feature light induced processes. Here are described three selected classes of such systems investigated in our group by taking advantage of some intrinsic excited state properties of C60 fullerenes such as fluorescence, triplet lifetimes, or sensitized singlet oxygen luminescence. Fullerene hybrid assemblies with Cu(I), Ru(II), and Re(I) complexes undergo ultrafast photoinduced electron transfer (PET) upon excitation of the metal-to-ligand-charge-transfer (MLCT) excited states of the metal-complexed moiety. In the case of the Cu(I) system, occurrence of PET by fullerene excitation depends on the specific functionalization of the carbon sphere. Fullerodendrimers equipped with oligophenylenevinylene moieties and showing enhanced or reduced PET as a function of dendrimer structure and .
Static and dynamic contact angles of water on photoresist

Fluid management issues in an immersion lithography system include the retention of the liquid (i.e., prevention of residual liquid on the wafer) and the possible entrainment of gas bubbles within the immersion fluid. Three key parameters strongly influence the control of fluid within the lens gap: the static liquid/resist contact angle, the contact angle hysteresis, and the dynamic contact angle characteristics. This article presents a comprehensive set of data for these parameters on silicon wafers coated with six different photoresists and describes the experimental apparatus and data reduction techniques used to collect the data. Measurements for six candidate photoresists, one with a top-coat, indicate that air entrainment due to contact line motion is highly unlikely for typical immersion lithography systems. However, significant contact angle hysteresis does exist that may lead to meniscus failure and to the deposition of droplets at low to moderate wafer velocities. In addition, the receding dynamic contact angle can approach zero on some surfaces, leading to liquid film deposition.