Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A subgrid channel model for simulating river hydraulics and floodplain inundation over large and data sparse areas

This paper presents a new computationally efficient hydraulic model for simulating the spatially distributed dynamics of water surface elevation, wave speed, and inundation extent over large data sparse domains. The numerical scheme is based on an extension of the hydraulic model LISFLOOD‐FP to include a subgrid‐scale representation of channelized flows, which allows river channels with any width below that of the grid resolution to be simulated. The scheme is shown to be numerically stable and scalable, before being applied to an 800 km reach of the river Niger in Mali. The Niger application focused on the performance of four different model structures: a model without channels (two‐dimensional (2‐D) model), a model without a floodplain (one‐dimensional (1‐D) model), a model of the main channels and floodplain (1‐D/2‐D model), and the subgrid approach developed here. Inclusion of both the channel network and the floodplain was shown to be essential, meaning that large scale models of this region, including routing models for land surface schemes, will require a floodplain component. Including subgrid‐scale channels on the floodplain changed inundation dynamics over the delta significantly and increased simulation accuracy in terms of water level, wave propagation speed, and inundation extent. Furthermore, only the subgrid model showed a consistent parameterization when calibrated against either gauge or ICESat water level data, suggesting that connectivity provided by small channels is a strong control on the hydraulics of the floodplain, or, at the very least, that low resolution gridded hydraulic models require additional connectivity to represent the delta flow dynamics.
Case Study I : Water erosion prediction at a national scale for South Africa

Different remote sensing techniques and models can be implemented in order to identify and describe different soil erosion processes, including soil detachment by sheet-rill – and gully erosion and soil transported out of the catchments composing the sediment yield. Due to limitations of scale at which techniques can be applied and processes assessed, this Section implements a multi-process and -scale approach by means of three Case Studies assessing the factors controlling: (i) sheet-rill erosion at a national scale, (ii) gully erosion in a large catchment and (iii) sediment migration for a smaller research catchment. These Case Studies will assist in the establishment of a framework provided in Section 4, emphasizing the simplicity required for application at a regional scale with proper incorporation of the most important factors contributing to sediment generation and migration, including the most feasible erosion assessment techniques and input datasets for which sufficient spatial information exists in SA. The Case Studies also provide relevant information on factor dominance and scale issues.
Highly enhanced field emission current density of copper oxide coated vertically aligned carbon nanotubes: Role of interface and electronic structure.

We report the field emission (FE) properties of Cu coated vertically aligned carbon nanotubes (VACNTs) before and after oxidation. The current density was found to be the maximum (20 mA/cm$^2$) for 3 nm thick Cu coated VACNTs after oxidation. The variation in conventionally monitored parameters like work function and field enhancement factor does not explain the experimentally determined FE current density. A critical analysis of the electronic structure reveals the importance of presence of Cu$_2$O at the interface of CuO and VACNTs, which in turn controls the current density of these films. The highly enhanced FE current density of 3 nm Cu coated VACNTs after oxidation suggests its potential as a next generation electron source in vacuum microelectronic devices.
Effect of Acetaminofen Versus Lornoxicam Admistration on Oxidative Stress in Rat Hepatic and Renal Tissues

Background and aim : The aim of study was to assess the oxidative status in rat hepatic and renal tissues after intraperitoneal administration of acetaminophen (AP) versus lornoxicam (L). Materials and Methods : For this purpose 18 Wistar Albino rats were randomly divided into 3 groups; each group consists of 6 rats. Group Control (Group C) remain untreated, comprises healthy rats. Group AP received AP (100 mg kg -1 ) and Group L received L (1.3 mg kg -1 ) intraperitoneally. Oxidative status was evaluated by MDA, SOD, GST and CAT in hepatic and renal tissues. Furthermore histopathalogical evaluation was performed in both tissues. Results : The lornoxicam received rats (Group L) showed significantly increased level of MDA and GST [(p=0.015), (p=0.048) respectively],decreased level of SOD (p=0.02)in liver tissue. Renal tissue MDA, SOD and GST activity and CAT levels were similar in groups [(p=0.168), (p=0.270), (p=0.686) respectively]. Histopathalogically Group AP and Group L more damaged than in Group C. Hepatic injury was moderate level in two groups. Minimal injury was observed in group AP. Renal injury in group L more than the Group AP. Conclusion : The results suggest that hepatotoxic effects of lornoxicam more than the AP while no remarkable difference nephrotoxicity.
Predicting Political Donations Using Data Driven Lifestyle Profiles Generated from Character N-Gram Analysis of Heterogeneous Online Sources

vii List of Abbreviations and Symbols Used . viii Acknowledgements . ix Chapter
Spin-down in a rapidly rotating cylinder container with mixed rigid and stress-free boundary conditions

A comprehensive study of the classical linear spin-down of a constant-density viscous fluid (kinematic viscosity $\unicode[STIX]{x1D708}$ ) rotating rapidly (angular velocity $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FA}$ ) inside an axisymmetric cylindrical container (radius $L$ , height $H$ ) with rigid boundaries, which follows the instantaneous small change in the boundary angular velocity at small Ekman number $E=\unicode[STIX]{x1D708}/H^{2}\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FA}\ll 1$ , was provided by Greenspan & Howard (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 17, 1963, pp. 385–404). For that problem $E^{1/2}$ Ekman layers form quickly, triggering inertial waves together with the dominant spin-down of the quasi-geostrophic (QG) interior flow on the $O(E^{-1/2}\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FA}^{-1})$ time scale. On the longer lateral viscous diffusion time scale $O(L^{2}/\unicode[STIX]{x1D708})$ , the QG flow responds to the $E^{1/3}$ sidewall shear layers. In our variant, the sidewall and top boundaries are stress-free, a set-up motivated by the study of isolated atmospheric structures such as tropical cyclones or tornadoes. Relative to the unbounded plane layer case, spin-down is reduced (enhanced) by the presence of a slippery (rigid) sidewall. This is evidenced by the QG angular velocity, $\unicode[STIX]{x1D714}^{\star }$ , evolution on the $O(L^{2}/\unicode[STIX]{x1D708})$ time scale: spatially, $\unicode[STIX]{x1D714}^{\star }$ increases (decreases) outwards from the axis for a slippery (rigid) sidewall; temporally, the long-time $(\gg L^{2}/\unicode[STIX]{x1D708})$ behaviour is dominated by an eigensolution with a decay rate slightly slower (faster) than that for an unbounded layer. In our slippery sidewall case, the $E^{1/2}\times E^{1/2}$ corner region that forms at the sidewall intersection with the rigid base is responsible for a $\ln E$ singularity within the $E^{1/3}$ layer, causing our asymptotics to apply only at values of $E$ far smaller than can be reached by our direct numerical simulation (DNS) of the linear equations governing the entire spin-down process. Instead, we solve the $E^{1/3}$ boundary layer equations for given $E$ numerically. Our hybrid asymptotic–numerical approach yields results in excellent agreement with our DNS.
European Identity and University Students: A Comparative Study of Italy and Belgium

The present study aims to explore the experience of direct beneficiaries of the Erasmus programme in the perspective of the economic, cultural, political and social contexts in which the work was carried out. The research involved 287 Erasmus students, 146 Italian and 141 Belgian, enrolled at the University of Bari (Italy) and UCL Louvain-la-Neuve (Belgium) respectively. While the economic and political conditions of two Old Member States of the EU may bear similarities, the period of mobility brings to light a range of implications for students in the two countries. With respect to cultural and civic dimensions, the findings are of particular interest: living and studying abroad contributes, regardless of nationality, to the development of personal and intercultural skills. It would also appear to influence the development of a European identity, in this case closely linked to the local political landscape.
Decreasing Dysphoric Thoughts by a Working Memory Training: A Randomized Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Trial

(WM). That is, depressed individuals are less able to remove negative information from their WM, have difficulties to shift between negative and positive information and inhibit irrelevant information. Previous findings show that working memory capacity (WMC) can be increased by training and this diminishes symptoms of psychopathology, like ADHD, and cognitive consequences of a stroke. The inclusion of game elements in a WM training showed to positively influence motivation, compliance and WM performance during and after training. The current study aimed to explore the effectiveness of a gamified WM training for dysphoria. Method: The current study explored by means of a double-blind randomized controlled trial whether a gamified WM training could reduce symptoms of depression, anxiety, and rumination in a sample of 61 dysphoric students. Participants executed the game, consisting of five WM tasks, three times a week for three weeks at home. The experimental group the tests adapted to their WMC level, to train their WMC, while the placebo group received easy versions of the tasks to prevent training WMC. Before and after the training participants’ WMC was assessed with the Spanboard Task and their psychopathology with questionnaires about depression, anxiety, and rumination. Moreover, WMC and psychopathology were compared to a healthy control group before training. Results: As expected, the dysphoric students reported more psychopathology than the healthy students. The groups did not differ in WMC. WM training resulted in a larger WMC compared to the placebo training and compared to healthy students, but not in a larger decrease of psychopathological symptoms. However, both WM and placebo training resulted in a less reported psychopathology. The number of training sessions did not moderate the effect of training on either measure. Conclusion: A gamified WM training seems to increase WMC but this did not transfer to a decrease of psychopathology. A potential explanation for this lack of effect might be that participants’ psychopathology was not severe enough to tackle it with a WM training. Another suggestion might be that WM training is not as effective for depression, anxiety and rumination, which is in line with other recent studies.
Test Study on Airtight Capability of Filter Cakes for Slurry Shield and Its Application in a Case

To learn the airproof capacity of filter cakes as opening chambers under air pressure, a series of tests were carried out. The variations of discharged water with air pressure and time were observed, and the relationship between airproof capacity of filter cakes and surrounding air pressure was analysed. The test results indicated that there were three stages as compressed air acting on filter cakes: completely not infiltration, a very small amount of infiltration, and penetration leakage. The certain air pressure between the first and second stages was called the airproofing value of filter cake. And a capillary bundle model was used to explain the mechanism of air tightness of filter cakes. In Nanjing Yangtze River Tunnel, a 5 cm thickness filter cake was formed in gravel sand, and its airproofing value was a little lower than 0.12 MPa. The air pressure used as opening chamber should be equal to the summation of water pressure in sand and airproofing value of filter cake. While the air pressure is larger than the summation, the filter cake would be gas permeable. The slurry formulation and airproofing value of filter cakes obtained in the tests were applied successfully in Nanjing Yangtze River Tunnel.
Scalable performance analysis: the Pablo performance analysis environment

Developers of application codes for massively parallel computer systems face daunting performance tuning and optimization problems that must be solved if massively parallel systems are to fulfill their promise. Recording and analyzing the dynamics of application program, system software, and hardware interactions is the key to understanding and the prerequisite to performance tuning, but this instrumentation and analysis must not unduly perturb program execution. Pablo is a performance analysis environment designed to provide unobtrusive performance data capture, analysis, and presentation across a wide variety of scalable parallel systems. Current efforts include dynamic statistical clustering to reduce the volume of data that must be captured and complete performance data immersion via head-mounted displays. <<ETX>>
Developmental expression of the POU transcription factor qBrn-2 during somitic myogenesis in quail

We prepared a specific antiserum to the qBrn-2 protein and examined the developmental distribution of this protein during quail somitic myogenesis. In contrast to its mammalian homolog N-Oct-3, qBrn-2 exhibited an impressive spatio-temporal profile in somitic myogenesis, in addition to the orthodox expression observed in the developing neural tube. In somites, qBrn-2 was expressed in the outer epithelial cells, but not in the core cells. During the somite differentiation, qBrn-2 expression was enhanced and restricted to myotome. The location of qBrn-2 expression seemed to overlap with that of myf5 and myoD in myotome. However, in cells that just began to express myf5 or myoD, qBrn-2 expression was not obvious. As embryonic development proceeded, qBrn-2 positive cells in myotome migrated dorsally and ventrally, and qBrn-2 expression was still observed at dorsal and ventral muscle masses in the forelimb. On the basis of our observations, it seems that qBrn-2 may play important roles in the determination, differentiation and migration of muscle precursor cells, in addition to its known roles in neurogenesis.
A MODIFIED ROUTE DISCOVERY APPROACH FOR DYNAMIC SOURCE ROUTING (DSR) PROTOCOL IN MOBILE AD-HOC NETWORKS

Mobile Ad-hoc networks (MANETs) involved in many applications, whether commercial or military because of their characteristics that do not depend on the infrastructure as well as the freedom movement of their elements, but in return has caused this random mobility of the nodes many of the challenges, where the routing is considered one of these challenges. There are many types of routing protocols that operate within MANET networks, which responsible for finding paths between the source and destination nodes with the modernization of these paths which are constantly changing due to the dynamic topology of the network stemming from the constant random movement of the nodes. The DSR (Dynamic Source Routing) routing protocol algorithm is one of these routing protocols which consist of two main stages; route discovery and maintenance, where the route discovery algorithm operates based on blind flooding of request messages. blind flooding is considered as the most well known broadcasting mechanism, it is inefficient in terms of communication and resource utilization, which causing increasing the probability of collisions, repeating send several copies of the same message, as well as increasing the delay. Hence, a new mechanism in route discovery stage and in caching the routes in DSR algorithm according to the node's location in the network and the direction of the broadcast is proposed for better performance especially in terms of delay as well as redundant packets rate. The implementation of proposed algorithms showed positive results in terms of delay, overhead, and improve the performance of MANETs in general. Keywords: MANET; DSR Protocol; Threshold, Broadcasting
Moving-Window Rubik's Cube Solver Gecco Competition 2009

Rubik’s Cube is a popular three-dimensional mechanical puzzle developed in the 1970’s. The aim of the puzzle is to restore a scrambled cube such that each of the six faces of the cube is a solid color. This paper proposes an evolutionary optimization solver that finds a sequence of turns which restores an arbitrarily scrambled cube with a low number of turns. The solver, called Moving Window Solver (MWS), splits search in three phases. Each phase uses different objective functions and evolutionary search operators.
Yield Response of Rice in Nigeria: A Co-Integration Analysis

To help bridge information gap in supply response studies for Nigeria and inform policy decision on how the demand-supply gap for rice in Nigeria could be bridged, the current study through the use of Johansen’s Full Information Maximum Likelihood test estimated a yield response model for Nigeria using national level data for the period 1966-2008. The results suggest that, increasing yield levels for paddy rice in Nigeria and ensuring stability requires interplay of biophysical, socio-economic and structural forces. By estimates for the current study, bridging of the demand-supply gap can be realized through initiation of measures to address inefficiencies in the supply chain to ensure appropriate transmission of price increment, promotion of local rice consumption to ensure ready market for farmers in times of increasing output, addressing soil fertility challenges through efficient use of fertilizer and regular management of fertility of rice fields, and increasing farmers access to credit to help them meet cost of relevant inputs of production. The latter suggestion could to a greater extent incite appropriate response of farmers to both price and non-price incentives in the country. Diagnostic tests conducted indicate that the residual series is normally distributed, non-serially correlated and homoscedastic.
Model-based Analysis and Synthesis Methods for Dependable Embedded Systems

The increasing complexity of distributed embedded systems, as found today in airplanes or cars, becomes more and more a critical cost-factor for their development. Model-based approaches have recently demonstrated their potential for both improving and accelerating (software) development processes. Therefore, in the project DECOS1, which aims at improving system architectures and development of distributed safety-critical embedded systems, an integrated, model-driven tool-chain is established, accompanying the system development process from design to deployment. Beside the tool-chain a powerful verification and validation framework has been developed both for checking the correct behavior of the tools and for assuring the consistency, completeness and correctness of the related metamodels and developed models. This paper gives an overview of the DECOS concepts and tool-chain and presents novel methods and tools for the analysis and synthesis of the system models.
Effects of Time on Water Uptake and Germination Characteristics of Scarified and Non Scarified Castor bean ( Ricinus communis L . ) Seeds

A study was conducted at the University of Agriculture, Makurdi, to determine water uptake at 6 and 12 hour intervals, and germination characteristics of scarified and non scarified seeds of castor bean accessions in 2008 and 2009. Two hundred seeds were selected from each accession: one hundred seeds were scarified mechanically by caruncle removal using knife (seed lot 1), one hundred seeds were not scarified (seed lot 2). Each seed lot was immersed in 10ml of distilled water contained in 9cm-diameter petridish. Thereafter, seed lots were weighed at every 6 h starting from 0 to 24 h, and at every 12 h up to 108 h. Water uptake in scarified and non scarified seeds was determined by seed mass increase, and expressed as percentage increase in mass of seeds. Germination test of two hundred seeds of each accession was done by planting seeds 2cm deep in moist sandy loam soil contained in plastic containers to determine germination characteristics . Results showed that the weight and percentage weight increase of seeds at 6 and 12 hour intervals were significantly higher in scarified seeds than in non scarified seeds. Scarified seeds attained maximum saturation at 60 h and non scarified seeds at 84 h. Scarified and non scarified seeds differed significantly in water uptake and germination characteristics at 6 and 12 hour intervals, being higher in scarified seeds. Mechanical scarification improved water uptake, germination characteristics and the planting value of seeds.
Methods and results of an automatic analysis of a complete sample of Swift-XRT observations of GRBs

We present a homogeneous X-ray analysis of all 318 gamma-ray bursts detected by the X-ray telescope (XRT) on the Swift satellite up to 2008 July 23; this represents the largest sample of X-ray GRB data published to date. In Sections 2-3, we detail the methods which the Swift-XRT team has developed to produce the enhanced positions, light curves, hardness ratios and spectra presented in this paper. Software using these methods continues to create such products for all new GRBs observed by the Swift-XRT. We also detail web-based tools allowing users to create these products for any object observed by the XRT, not just GRBs. In Sections 4-6, we present the results of our analysis of GRBs, including probability distribution functions of the temporal and spectral properties of the sample. We demonstrate evidence for a consistent underlying behaviour which can produce a range of light-curve morphologies, and attempt to interpret this behaviour in the framework of external forward shock emission. We find several difficulties, in particular that reconciliation of our data with the forward shock model requires energy injection to continue for days to weeks.
Structure of a Flat Plate Boundary Layer Subjected to Free-Stream Turbulence

The structure near the flat plate leading edge of an incompressible boundary layer subjected to free-stream turbulence is investigated using large eddy simulation (LES) with a dynamic mixed subgrid-scale model. Free-stream turbulent intensities ranging from 1.5 to 10% are investigated. The evolutions of the velocity, temperature and turbulent intensity profiles inside the boundary layer and the characteristic length scales are analyzed and compared to a laminar flat plate boundary layer. The impact of the free-stream turbulence is examined for Reynolds numbers ranging from 0 (leading edge of the flat plate) to by using two consecutive spatial LESs. Bypass transition is found to occur in the early stage of the boundary layer development for all five cases presented here. The analysis indicates that the thermal turbulent structures transfer more energy and hence generate more thermal fluctuations in their wake than the dynamic structures.