Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Crystallographic investigation and characterization of the interaction between presynaptic voltage-gated calcium channels and snare proteins

Voltage-gated calcium channels (Cay) have functions ranging from regulating release of hormones and neurotransmitters, generating cardiac action potentials, and excitation-contraction coupling. At nerve terminals, Nand P/Qtype Cavs convert the action potential into a Ca 2signal that in turn triggers neurotransmitter release. Neurotransmitter release requires several components, such as SNARE proteins. SNAREs, as well as many other presynaptic proteins, can interact with Cavs and inhibit them by increasing their inactivation. The interaction is localized in the intracellular loop between domains II and III of the CL 1 subunit, in a domain termed ‘synprint’ (synaptic protein interaction site). In this study, we tried to solve the structure of the synprint site by crystallography. To date, long needle-shape crystals were obtained; however, the quality of these crystals was not good enough for X-ray diffraction. in addition, isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) was used to determine the interaction between SNARE protein syntaxinlA and the synprint site. It turned out that not any binding was detected, suggesting that the interaction between SNARE proteins and the presynaptic Cas, if at all present, is weak.
An Investigation Into the Design of Learning Analytic Dashboards (LAD) for the Enhancement of Motivation, Engagement and Achievements in an E-Learning Environment

The current scenario of higher education reflects an increased permeation of digital technology, with this integration has influenced both learning and teaching practices. One of the main impacts has been in the advancement of Learning Management Systems (LMS). By facilitating synchronous and asynchronous communication and interactions linked to a virtual environment, LMSs have become integral to higher education. Learning Analytic Dashboards (LAD) are the digital platforms used by educational institutions for collecting, measuring, analysing and reporting data concerning learners and their activities and achievements. Related to that, as an area of research and development, learning Analytics is a rapidly growing field of LMS and of particular significance to LAD design. Many universities are utilising LADs, but guidelines to support effective design underpinned by research are limited. This study aims to assess the role of LAD design in optimising learning by influencing factors such as student motivation, engagement and achievement. The significance of this study is that it will offer novel insights on principles that should be adopted while designing LADs capable of leading students towards better learning experience and performance. Based on implications from previous studies as well as an empirical investigation on the need for such tools, this study will develop a prototype of a LAD that befits with student-facing demands.
Stress and confinement during the COVID 19 pandemic: Statistical study of the situation in Morocco (March - May 2020)

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in unprecedented restrictions on people's daily lives worldwide in an effort to contain the virus. These restrictions can lead to psychological symptoms such as anxiety, stress, and depression, as well as other side effects on public health. Home confinement, the most widely chosen virus containment measure, can have immediate and long-term impacts on people's mental health and quality of life. It has been associated with depression symptoms, anxiety, and stress during crisis situations, and some chronic illnesses have been observed in the early stages of the pandemic. Stress is a common reaction to catastrophic or emergency situations, and while some geographies have confirmed the effects of isolation due to epidemics, information on stress response and control during a pandemic lockdown is limited. Quarantine can be an unpleasant experience due to separation from loved ones, loss of freedom, uncertainty about illness, and boredom. This can lead to potential psychological impacts of confinement during the COVID-19 pandemic, which may be associated with serious side effects such as heart problems, diabetes, and hypertension. This study aims to assess the impact of confinement on the quality of life of people in Morocco, taking into account differences due to socio-demographic conditions such as gender, age, place of residence, and income level. The study will examine symptoms and/or associated diseases during a three-month period from March to May 2020.
Transported Probability Density Function for the Numerical Simulation of Flames characteristic of Fire

La simulation de scenarios d’incendie necessite de modeliser de nombreux processus complexe, particulierement la combustion gazeuse d’hydrocarbure incluant la production de suie et les transferts radiatifs dans un ecoulement turbulent. La nature turbulente de l’ecoulement fait apparaitre des interactions qui doivent etre prises en compte entre ces processus. L’objectif de cette these est d’implementer une methode de transport de la fonction de densite de probabilite afin de modeliser ces interactions de maniere precise. En conjonction avec un modele de flammelettes, le modele de Lindstedt et un modele a large-bande k-correle, l’equation de transport de la PDF jointe de composition est resolue avec la methode des Champs Eulerien Stochastiques. Le modele est valide en simulant 12 flammes turbulentes recouvrant une large gamme de nombre de Reynolds et de propension a former de la suie par les combustibles. Dans un second temps, les effets des interactions rayonnement-turbulence (TRI) sur l’emission de la suie sont etudies en details, montrant que la TRI tend a augmenter l’emission radiative de la suie a cause des fluctuations de temperature, mais que cette augmentation est plus faible pour des nombres de Reynolds eleves ou des quantites de suie plus elevees. Ceci est du a la correlation negative entre le coefficient d’absorption des suies et la fonction de Planck. Finalement, l’influence de la correlation entre la fraction de melange et le parametre de non-adiabaticite est etudiee sur une flamme d’ethylene, montrant qu’elle a peu d’effet sur la structure moyenne de flamme mais tend a limiter les fluctuations de temperature et les pertes radiatives.
Evaluating the genetic effects of sex hormone on the development of mental traits: a polygenic score analysis and genome-wide genetic interaction analysis in the UK Biobank cohort

Objective: To evaluate the genetic effects of sex hormone on the development of mental traits.Methods: The SNPs significantly associated with sex hormone traits were driven from a two-stage genome-wide association study (GWAS). Four sex hormone were selected in this study, including sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), testosterone, bioavailable testosterone and estradiol. The polygenic risk scores (PRS) of sex hormone traits were calculated from individual-level genotype data of the UK Biobank cohort. We then used logistic and linear regression models to assess the associations between individual PRS of sex hormone traits and the frequency of alcohol consumption, anxiety, intelligence and so on. Finally, genome-wide genetic interaction study (GWGIS) was performed to detect novel candidate genes interacting with the sex hormone on the development of fluid intelligence and the frequency of smoking and alcohol consumption by PLINK2.0. Results: We observed positive associations between SHBG and the frequency of alcohol consumption (b=0.01, p=3.84×10–11) in males and females. In addition, estradiol was positively associated with the frequency of alcohol consumption (b=0.01, p=1,96×10–8), fluid intelligence (b=0.01, p=1.90×10–2) and the frequency of smoking (b=0.01, p=1.77×10–2) in males. Moreover, SHBG was associated with the frequency of alcohol consumption (b=0.01, p=2.60×10–3), fluid intelligence (b=0.01, p=4.25×10–2) and anxiety (b=-0.01, p=3.79×10–2) in females. Finally, GWGIS identified one significant loci, Tenascin R (TNR) (rs34633780, p=3.45×10–8) interacting with total testosterone for fluid intelligence.Conclusion: Our study results support the genetic effects of sex hormone on the development of intelligence and the frequency of alcohol consumption.
A Literature Review of Location-Aware Computing Policies: Taxonomy and Empirical Analysis in Mobile Environment

Location-aware computing systems implementation has the challenge of maintaining its consistency due to frequent disconnections in the mobile environment. Many other exciting issues associated with this domain provide a fertile ground for many mobile database researchers to tackle. This work contributes by taking up-to-date literature on current location-aware mobile data management practices. The paper includes taxonomy for caching, map-matching, and location privacy protection with spatial-temporal queries, unlike other review papers, which only address a specific aspect of location-dependent data management. First, an in-depth analysis of state-of-the-art and classified literature is presented, taking into account the domain of application models and approaches for evaluation. Secondly, it provides a theoretical and analytical investigation of location-conscious computing approaches available in the literature, examining the merit and demerit of each method and the evolving processes between them. Finally, the paper highlighted the outstanding opportunities for future research directions.
Development of a Photo Oxidation/Reduction Electrode in Photocatalytic Study

Catalysis has been a thrust area in materials research and MOFs have shown potential to make strong in-road in catalytic applications. Many of these MOFs reportedly have shown photosensitivity and since photocatalysis constitute one of the most intriguing areas of research within the domain of catalysis, it would be worth an effort to probe their effectiveness as photocatalyst. Although, the success or failure of any MOF compound as photocatalyst would largely depend on their ability to remain stable under aqueous and/or organic medium on prolonged exposure. Transparent conducting oxide (TCO) thin film is a recent concept. Harnessing solar energy has been a thrust area and gaining momentum continually. Various methods, products and technologies have been developed towards this direction and our present research endeavor and motivation is mainly sourced from the issue on harnessing solar energy in photo degradation. In this work, two contemporary metal organic frameworks (MOFs) i.e. MOF-5 (ZnBDC) and MIL-53(Fe) (or, Fe-BDC) were synthesized using microwave synthesis technique and characterized. Transparent conducting oxide (TCO) thin films were fabricated by sol-gel and spin coating techniques. MOF films (Zn-BDC) were grown onto TCO. Improvisations were also made in TCO matrix by using Al and Pb as doping agents. The doping percentage as well as the number of cycles of coating was varied so as to get the most suitable TCO.The performance study of MOFs and ZnO as photocatalyst were carried out in degradation of ammonia. When used directly, MOFs had shown a better degradation percentage (ca. 60%) as compared to ZnO and that could be attributed to their very high specific surface area as compared to ZnO. Meanwhile, TCO films of various combinations when tested for their electrical conductivity are met with limited success and further work is going on towards achieving the targeted results
Demonstration of improved plant growth and biomass production by At1g73160 promoter-controlled root-preferential expression of the AtGA20ox gene

Background: Overexpression of the GA20 oxidase gene has been a recent trend for improving plant growth and biomass. Constitutive expression of GA20ox has successfully improved plant growth and biomass in several plant species. However, the constitutive expression of this gene causes side-effects, such as reduced leaf size and stem diameters. To avoid these effects, different tissue-specific promoters were identified and employed for GA20ox overexpression. In this study, we demonstrated the potential of At1g, a root-preferential promoter, for GA20ox expression to enhance plant biomass in tobacco and Melia azedarach.Results: We examined the utility of the At1g promoter to drive the expression of a GUS (β-1,4-glucuronidase) reporter and the GA20ox gene in tobacco and Melia azedarach. Histochemical GUS assays in tobacco showed that At1g was a root-preferential promoter whose expression was particularly strong in root tips. The ectopic expression of the AtGA20ox gene under the control of the At1g promoter showed improved plant growth and biomass of both tobacco and M. azedarach transgenic plants compared to wild-type (WT) control plants. Stem length as well as stem and root fresh weights increased by up to 1.5-3 fold in transgenic tobacco and 2-fold in transgenic M. azedarach. Both tobacco and M. azedarach transgenic plants showed increases in the root xylem width and xylem over phloem ratio by 50%–100% compared to WT plants. Importantly, no significant differences in the leaf shape or size were observed between the At1g::AtGA20ox transgenic and WT plants. Moreover, transgenic M. azedarach showed a 135% increase in stem diameter although no change was found in transgenic tobacco.Conclusions: These results demonstrate the great utility of the At1g promoter for driving the AtGA20ox gene to induce growth and biomass improvements in woody plants and potentially some other plant species.
An Exploratory Study of the Role and Identity of Alternative Media in Hong Kong: The Cases of Radical HK and WK News

Este articulo explora el rol y la autopercepcion de los medios de los medios de comunicacion alternativos en Hong Kong. Estudios anteriores han demostrado que los medios alternativos tienen un papel crucial en los movimientos sociales y como agentes contrapublicos de la sociedad civil. Aun asi, es poca la atencion que se ha prestado a la autopercepcion de tales medios alternativos en el Este asiatico; en particular, a su identidad, a su potencial influencia en la agenda de los noticiarios convencionales y a su papel en la visualizacion de grupos marginados. Nuestros dos estudios de caso, basados en entrevistas en profundidad, se ocupan de medios de comunicacion alternativos centrados fundamentalmente en las luchas de la clase trabajadora: WK News y Radical HK . El presente estudio contribuye al campo de los estudios los medios y la comunicacion politica, y posee implicaciones para las personas que participan en la sociedad civil y en los medios de comunicacion.
Fast High-Resolution Multi-Elemental Mapping of Phosphate Pellets Using Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy

Recent years have seen a growing trend towards analytical techniques capable of conducting spatially resolved analyses of surfaces for industrial, nanotechnology, geological and biomedical applications. Depending on the application, spatially resolved measurements are required to provide a better understanding of the sample surface composition with significant advantages over conventional bulk analyses. The recent developments of the LIBS technique and its simplicity of use have allowed the development of systems capable of performing multi-element imaging analyses of major and trace elements with ~50 μm (or lower) spatial resolution at fast acquisition speeds up to kHz per pixel. LIBS technology enables systematic and selective ways based on the physics of atomic emission spectroscopy (AES). Complex structures are revealed by LIBS imaging at ultrafast speed. This paper presents results on laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) performing fast high-resolution multi-elemental mappings of Phosphate samples. Phosphate Pellets samples were laser scanned at a repetition rate of 1 kHz with a spatial resolution of 50 μm, using the Mission: Coriosity platform from ELEMISSION Inc. The elemental mappings of the 10 mm2 surfaces for 6 elements were obtained, revealing high levels of detail and complexity in the elements distributions. Advanced graphical algorithms allow direct visualization of the distribution of several elements on the same image. In particular, LIBS imaging has been used for multi-elements surface mapping of Phosphate Pellets, and show specific clustering composition, indicating that line intensity of a given analyte element is not only related to that analyte, but also to other elements present in the samples. This last statement has been verified using multivariate approach for calibration and prediction of elemental concentration in Phosphate Pellets.
Sunlight and vitamin D in the prevention of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) infection and mortality in the United States

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by the most recently discovered coronavirus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). This study aims to investigate associations between sunlight and vitamin D, using latitude as an indicator, with COVID-19 cases and related deaths in the United States. General regression and Chi-square test were used to examine the associations between latitude and COVID-19 cases and deaths. The analyses indicated that latitudes were marginally associated with cases (p = 0.0792) and deaths (p = 0.0599), with an increase of 2491 cases and 189 deaths of the total numbers in the mainland of US for every unit of increase of the latitude. When the states were classified into high latitude (>N 370) and low latitude (<N 370) groups, both the cases (702 vs 255 cases/100k population) and deaths (43 vs 11 deaths/100k population) were significantly different (p < 0.001) between the two categories. The results suggested that sunlight and vitamin D, with latitude as an indicator, might be associated with decreased risks for both COVID-19 cases and deaths. These findings warranted urgent needs of large cohort, clinical and pre-clinical studies to assess the impact of VD on the prevention of COVID-19.
The OCAI Textual Measure of Organizational Culture

This document outlines a text-based firm-level measure of organizational culture, parsing information from 214,910 annual 10-K filings of publicly-listed US firms over the period 1994-2017. We utilize the Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI) to construct a dictionary of the culture-related keywords and use the bag-of-words model to measure organizational culture. Given that the measure is developed from the OCAI, it captures the various dimensions that firms consider to be important in measuring their internal culture. We undertake a series of construct validation tests to demonstrate the construct validity of the OCAI textual measure of organizational culture.
Aile Okul Algısı ve Katılımı Ölçeği: Bir Geçerlik ve Güvenirlik Çalışması

Calismada aile okul algisi ve katilimi olcegi gelistirmek amaclanmaktadir. Calismaya 56 maddelik 5’li Likert tipinde madde havuzu olusturularak baslanilmistir. Olcek hakkinda 3 uzman gorusu alindiktan sonra 20 ebeveyne pilot uygulama yapilmis ve 46 maddelik taslak olcek ogrenci ailelerine uygulanmak uzere hazir hale getirilmistir. Olcek Turkiye’nin 4 bolgesinden (Karadeniz, Ege, Marmara ve Ic Anadolu) uygun durum orneklemesi yolu ile secilen 319 ebeveyne uygulanilmistir. Acimlayici faktor analizi sonucunda 26 sorudan olusan olcegin 4 boyutta (okul algisi, ogrenci gelisimi, veli gelisimi, okul katilimi) toplandigi gorulmustur. Toplam Cronbach’s Alpha katsayisi 0.907 bulunan olcegin faktorlerinin α degerleri 0.723 ile 0.866 arasinda degismektedir. Calisma grubundan edinilen verilerin yeterlilik duzeyini belirlemek icin Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) testi, verilerin fazla degiskenli normal dagilimdan geldigini gostermek icin de Bartlett’s testi yapilmistir (KMO= .891; Bartlett testi degeri x2=3890.110; sd=325, p=.000). Her bir maddenin anlamli oldugu %27’lik ust ve alt grup puanlarina yapilan bagimsiz t-testi sonucunda gorulmustur. Testler sonucu gecerli ve guvenilir 26 maddeden olusan 4 faktorlu olcek elde edilmistir. Ailelerin okul algi ve katilimlarinin demografik ozelliklerine gore degiskenlik gosterme durumlarini belirlemek amacli kullanilabilir.
The role of interactions in atom interferometry with Bose-Condensed atoms

In recent years, atom interferometry has become established as an indispensable tool in both fundamental and applied physics. With present state-of-the-art devices based on thermal atoms reaching limits imposed by the momentum spread of the initial atomic wavepacket, it seems natural to ask whether colder sources such as Bose-Einstein conden­ sates may prove beneficial in advancing the precision of interferometric measurements. The thesis at hand aims to inform this question, specifically by examining the role played by atomic interactions in interferometers based on Bose-condensed atoms. Interactions can have both advantageous and deleterious consequences in the context of atom inter­ ferometry. They provide a means to control the momentum width of the condensate, and facilitate the generation of nonclassical squeezed states which may enhance the phase sensitivity beyond the shot noise limit. Conversely, the condensate self-interaction causes mean-field shifts, multimode excitations and phase diffusion which can erode both the precision and the accuracy of an interferometric measurement. The question of when and in which systems the detrimental effects of interactions outweigh the advantages of using Bose-Einstein condensates is an important one, and warrants investigation. This thesis presents experimental studies into the role of interactions in both internaland external-state atom interferometers. As a foundation for these investigations, we de­ scribe the design and construction of an apparatus for creating Bose-Einstein condensates of the two stable rubidium isotopes in an optical trap. By sympathetic cooling with a 87Rb reservoir, we are able to produce condensates of 85Rb in which the interactions may be adjusted by means of a magnetic Feshbach resonance. The apparatus is compact and ver­ satile, as demonstrated by rudimentary experiments on spinor condensate dynamics and
Theoretical calculations of solvation 12-Crown-4 (12CN4) in aqueous solution and its experimental interaction with nano CuSO4

Theoretical study of the electronic structure, and nonlinear optical properties (NLO) analysis of 12-crown-4were done using Density Functional Theory (DFT) evaluations at the B3LYP/6-311G (d,p) level of theory. The optimized structure is nonlinear compound as indicated from the dihedral angles were presented. The calculated EHOMO and ELUMO energies of 12-Crown-4 (12CN4) can be used to explain the charge transfer in 12-Crown-4 (12CN4) and to calculated the global properties; the chemical hardness (η), softness (S) and electronegativity (χ). The NLO parameters: static dipole moment (µ), polarizability (α), anisotropy polarizability (Δα) and first order hyperpolarizability (βtot) of the 12-Crown-4 (12CN4) have been calculated at the same level of theory.The molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) and electrostatic potential (ESP) for the title molecule were investigated and analyzed. Also the electronic absorption spectra were measured in ethanol and water solvents and the assignment of the observed bands has been discussed by time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) calculations. The correspondences between calculated and experimental transitions energies are satisfactory. From the experimental conductance measurements, the association thermodynamic parameters (KA, ∆GA, ∆HA and ∆SA) and complex formation thermodynamic parameters (Kf, ∆Gf, ∆Hf and ∆Sf) for nano-CuSO4 in presence of 12-crown-4 (12CN4) as chelating agent in 10% ethanol – water solvents at different temperatures (298.15, 303.15, 308.15 and 313.15K) were applied and calculated.