Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Finance-Growth Nexus in the Framework of Democratic Construction: Empirical Evidence from Egypt

: This study examines the effect of institutions’ quality on Egypt’s relationship between financial development and economic growth. However, literature intensively explores the relationship’s shape; the proponents overlook the crucial relationship validity determinants. Thus, misleading and biased estimates results are expected due to neglecting structural aspects affecting the nature of the finance-growth nexus. Therefore, considering democratic construction to the finance-growth nexus is crucial. Among others, a specific threshold regression approach has been applied to determine institutional quality's threshold level at which financial development positively impacts economic growth. The econometric analysis aimed to verify the robustness of the threshold effect and the strength of the measures. Moreover, intensive measures are applied, whereby (i) the control variables are expressed using variables that influence the finance-growth nexus. (ii) Another alternative threshold approach is applied by finding the marginal impact of financial development associated with the quality of the institutional environment. Using different threshold regression approaches shows the importance of the democratic construction threshold on the relationship between financial development and economic growth in Egypt; this gives policymakers priority to support the endeavors of democratic construction in light of their efforts to stimulate economic growth through financial development and provides a deeper insight into the nature of the relationship between financial development and economic growth
A Class-E Power and Data Transmitter With Improved Data Rate to Carrier Frequency Ratio for Medical Implants

In this brief, a new wireless power transfer and data telemetry circuit for biomedical implants is proposed that increases the data-rate without compromising power transmission efficiency. The power and data are transferred through an inductive link driven by a class-E amplifier. In addition to the proposed modulation, this transmitter can be used for a variety of amplitude modulations such as ON-OFF keying and carrier-width modulation. Based on the suspended carrier modulation idea, the data rate to carrier frequency (DRCF) ratio is improved in the proposed transmitter. In comparison with the conventional suspended carrier transmitter, our design is more efficient and less complex. The DRCF ratio in the proposed transmitter is 50 percent. A proof-of-concept prototype of the proposed transmitter has been implemented on printed circuit board. At 1 MHz carrier frequency, the transmitter power efficiency is close to 61% for the power delivered to the load of 32.3 mW and the data rate of 0.5 Mbps.
Role of boundary objects in the coevolution of design and use: the KMP experimentation

Nowadays, it is widely recognized that an ICT tool cannot be built without know ing who will use it and what they will do with. In this perspective, Human-Computer Interaction community (Carroll 1990; Jarke, Tung Bui and Carroll 1998; Young and Barnard 1987; Young et al. 1989) developed a scenario-based approach contrasting with the traditional information system design. The scenario describes an existing or envisioned system from the perspective of one or more users and included a narration of their goals, plans and reactions (Rosson and Carroll 2002). As a result, design is founde d on the use of scenarios as a central representation for analysis and design of use. The scenario-based design appeares to be a first step in the integration of users in the design of ICT tool. However, we would like to underline in this paper a more active role of users in the design process. According to Orlikowski (2000) while a technology can be seen to have been constructed with particular materials and inscribed with developersO assumptions and know ledge about the world at a point in time, it is only when this technology is used in recurrent social practices that it can be said to structure userOs action. The use of technology in recurrent social practices must be considered because how technological properties will be used or appropriate for the moment is not inherent or predetermined. This approach leads us to dissociate the designersO world from the usersO world. In this perspective, the design project is the result of the co-evolution and the convergence of both worlds: on the one hand, the world of design and a first integration of users by scenarios; on the other hand, the world of users where innova tion is the art of interesting an increasing number of allies who will make the world of design stronger and stronger (Akrich et al. 2002). The objective of this paper is to understand the mechanisms of interaction between the world of design and that of users i.e. between loops of co-design and loops of uses. In this perspective, the success of an innova tion may be explained by the co-evolution and the convergence of these two worlds. In this process, we suggest that bounda ry objects play a key role in the convergence of these two worlds. In order to demonstrate this proposal our article will lean on a specific design research conduc ted five years ago: the Knowledge Management Platform project (KMP project). The KMP project aimed to build a semantic web service of competencies in order to enhance exchange and combination dynamics of know ledge within the Telecom cluster of Sophia Antipolis (Alpes-Maritimes, France) thanks to an interactive mapping of competencies. Indeed, this cluster had to face two main problems due to its specific multi-technological halshs-00490453, version 1 - 8 Jun 2010
Leveraging Worker Safety Perceptions to Promote Safe Performance in Airports: Investigating the Framing of Safety Standards and Worker Safety Construal

Airports are complex systems characterized by unique and unpredictable safety challenges. Analyses of safety policies and practices focusing on organizational level (e.g., safety culture and climate) may overlook the importance of individual workers’ safety perceptions. The current research highlights two factors that play important roles in shaping these perceptions: the framing of safety standards and the level of abstraction with which workers conceptualize safety. From the perspective of the individual worker, operational safety is one of many workplace goals that must be balanced and prioritized. Workers are more likely to prioritize safety when safety standards are framed in negative (proscriptive) rather than positive (prescriptive) terms. Workers who tend to conceptualize safety in more abstract terms may prioritize safety appropriately when planning future behavior (i.e., during training) but give way to other considerations (e.g., schedule, cost) when faced with pressing decisions. Workers who view safety in very concrete terms, in contrast, are more attuned to the ethical implications of their choices (i.e., the potential for harm) and are therefore more likely to put safety considerations first. These arguments are supported by an empirical field study conducted in a large aviation services organization and shown to be robust to a variety of individual and organizational factors. Recommendations for airport managers indicate how these findings may be applied to enhance the efficacy of safety messages. Specifically, managers should present safety standards in negative terms; use vivid, concrete language when discussing safety; and continually reinforce the ethical implications of workplace safety.
Trehalose-Based Nucleolipids as Nanocarriers for Autophagy Modulation: An In Vitro Study

The Autophagy Lysosomal Pathway is one of the most important mechanisms for removing dysfunctional cellular components. Increasing evidence suggests that alterations in this pathway play a pathogenic role in Parkinson’s disease, making it a point of particular vulnerability. Numerous studies have proposed nanotechnologies as a promising approach for delivering active substances within the central nervous system to treat and diagnose neurodegenerative diseases. In this context, the aim was to propose the development of a new pharmaceutical technology for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. We designed a trehalose-based nanosystem by combining both a small natural autophagy enhancer molecule named trehalose and an amphiphilic nucleolipid conjugate. To improve nucleolipid protection and cellular uptake, these conjugates were formulated by rapid mixing in either solid lipid nanoparticles (Ø = 120.4 ± 1.4 nm) or incorporated into poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) nanoparticles (Ø = 167.2 ± 2.4 nm). In vitro biological assays demonstrated a safe and an efficient cellular uptake associated with autophagy induction. Overall, these nucleolipid-based formulations represent a promising new pharmaceutical tool to deliver trehalose and restore the autophagy impaired function.
Correlations between Texture Profile Analysis and Sensory Evaluation of Cured Largemouth Bass Meat (Micropterus salmoides)

Texture is an important factor in evaluating the quality of aquatic products. To evaluate the texture properties of cured large mouth bass, edible sodium chloride (0, 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0%) was smeared to the bass meat. Texture profile analysis (TPA) and sensory evaluation were performed to evaluate the quality of the cured samples, and the correlations of the indexes in the two methods were analyzed. Two principal components were obtained from the TPA indexes and sensory evaluation indexes, and the cumulative variance contribution rates were 73.87% and 72.99%, respectively. Results from the principal component analysis showed that the main indicators that affected the TPA were gumminess and springiness, while those that affected sensory evaluation were chewiness and adhesiveness. The TPA index and sensory evaluation could be effectively improved when the sodium chloride added to the bass meat was 1%. In the correlation analysis, sensory springiness was negatively correlated with TPA hardness ( P < 0.05 , r = −0.553) but positively correlated with TPA chewiness ( P < 0.05 , r = 0.596). After stepwise regression analysis, the prediction equation between the sensory springiness and TPA hardness was obtained as SSp=5.770−0.002Ha. These results provide a basis for predicting the quality of large mouth bass cured products.
POTENTIAL OF SOME PLANT GROWTH-PROMOTING RHIZOBACTERIAL STRAINS AS BIOCONTROL AGENTS AGAINST FUSARIUM WILT DISEASE IN CUCUMBER

: Herein, three Fusarium; oxysporum strains were isolated from infected cucumber-wilt roots and showed disease severity with the percentages of 73%, 66%, and 51%. The F. oxysporum exhibited the highest wilt disease was selected to investigate the biocontrol efficacy of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria. To achieve this goal, three rhizobacterial strains were isolated and identified as Achromobacter xylosoxidans Ck2 , Bacillus haynesii Ck5, and Bacillus paramycoides Ck7. These strains showed efficacy to inhibit the growth of F. oxysporum in-vitro with percentages of 56.2±0.2, 51.3±0.3, and 46.2±0.4% for Ck2, Ck5, and Ck7, respectively. These rhizobacterial strains showed nitrogen-fixing activity assayed by acetylene reduction and phosphate-solubilizing with values of (446.9±1.6, 310.8±1.9, and 213.6±1.2 n-moles-C 2 H 4 /mL/24h) and (183.6±1.1, 192.3±1.3, and 34.29±1.2 μg mL -1 ) for Ck2, Ck5, and Ck7, respectively. Moreover, these strains showed plant growth-promoting properties including ammonia, hydrogen cyanide (HCN), siderophores, hydrolytic enzymes, and phytohormones production. Under greenhouse conditions, the rhizobacterial strains Ck2, Ck5, and Ck7, and their consortium had the efficacy to protect cumber from wilt disease caused by F. oxysporum with percentages of 67.6, 63.2, 58.7, and 75.7%, respectively. Whereas the highest growth performance and the highest wilt protection (79.1%) of F. oxysporum- infected cucumber was attained in presence of bacterial consortium under field conditions.
Efficacy and Safety of Transcutaneous Electrical Acupoint Stimulation for Postoperative Pain: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Objective This meta-analysis aims to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation (TEAS) in treating post-operative pain. Methods This meta-analysis was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42021286753). We searched PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library for relevant randomized controlled trials (RCTs) about TEAS in treating postoperative pain that were published before November 2021. The primary outcome was visual analogue scale (VAS) within 24 h after surgery. The secondary outcomes included postoperative opioid analgesic drug consumption and the occurrence of adverse reactions within the postoperative 24–72 h. Adverse reactions included dizziness, nausea, and vomiting. Continuous variables were analyzed using mean difference (MDs) or standardized mean difference (SMDs) and 95% CIs. Relative risk (RR) and 95% CI were used for dichotomous data. The data were pooled and analyzed by RevMan 5.4 and STATA15.0 software. Results Seventeen trials with 1375 participants were included. The current results suggested that application of TEAS showed obvious superiority in reducing VAS scores (SMD = −1.51, 95% CI = −2.20∼−0.82, I2 = 96%). Subgroup analysis was performed according to open surgery and minimally invasive surgery. VAS scores were decreased after surgery at 24 h (SMD = −0.84, 95% CI = −1.07∼−0.6, I2 = 96%; SMD = −0.88, 95% CI = −1.02∼−0.75, I2 = 96%). The incidence of postoperative dizziness and nausea and vomiting was significantly lower in the TEAS group within postoperative 24–72 h (RR = 0.48, 95% CI = 0.34∼0.68, I2 = 0%; RR = 0.66, 95% CI = 0.44∼1.01, I2 = 69%; and RR = 0.49, 95% CI = 0.24∼1.00, I2 = 51%). Postoperative opioid analgesics were also reduced in the TEAS group within 72 h after surgery (SMD = −2.10, 95% CI = −3.37∼−0.82, I2 = 96%). Conclusions TEAS can reduce postoperative pain as well as the incidence of dizziness, nausea, and vomiting and the number of analgesics used after surgery. TEAS is a reasonable modality to incorporate into a multimodal management approach for postoperative pain.
Students’ interactions, satisfaction and perceived progress in an online class: Empirical evidence from Babcock university Nigeria

Abstract This study examined the effect of students’ interactions on satisfaction and perceived progress in an online class; and the mediating effect of satisfaction on the relationship between students’ interactions and perceived progress. A sample survey was conducted among students from Babcock University, Nigeria, as a case study. Quantitative data was collected from 245 students (undergraduate and graduate students who attended exclusively online classes during COVID-19 lockdown) using a questionnaire (online administered). Analysis was done using structural equation modeling. Findings revealed that students’ interactions (student-student, student-teacher, and student-content) had positive effects on students’ satisfaction and perceived progress in an online class and that satisfaction significantly played a mediating role in the relationship between interactions and perceived progress. Student–teacher interaction had the highest loading on interactions which in turn had a strong positive effect on both students’ satisfaction and perceived progress.
Predicting the aerodynamically generated noise in 2D-muffles and its far-field propagation using a combined LES/LEE approach

Mufflers are commonly installed in exhaust systems to attenuate the noise emitted by e.g. a combustion engine. The energy of this engine noise is concentrated around the harmonics of the engine firing frequency. Their contribution is dominant for low to medium engine speeds. When the engine speed increases, flow noise effects become more important and can even become the dominant source of exhaust noise [1]. In this framework, expansion chambers can even become flow-excited sound generators rather than silencers.
Computational refocusing of Jones matrix polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography and investigation of defocus-induced polarization artifacts

Here we demonstrate a long-depth-of-focus imaging method using polarization sensitive optical coherence tomography (PS-OCT). This method involves a combination of Fresnel-diffraction-model-based phase sensitive computational refocusing and Jones-matrix based PS-OCT (JM-OCT). JM-OCT measures four complex OCT images corresponding to four polarization channels. These OCT images are computationally refocused as preserving the mutual phase consistency. This method is validated using a static phantom, postmortem zebrafish, and ex vivo porcine muscle samples. All the samples demonstrated successful computationally-refocused birefringence and degree-of-polarization-uniformity (DOPU) images. We found that defocusing induces polarization artifacts, i.e., incorrectly high birefringence values and low DOPU values, which are substantially mitigated by computational refocusing.
Barriers to sustainable practices in the Indonesian construction industry

The adoption of sustainable practices is essential to mitigating negative impacts associated with the global construction industry. This study investigates barriers inhibiting the transition to sustainable practices in the Indonesian construction industry. Using a questionnaire as a means of data collection, relevant data were analyzed using reliability and exploratory factor analysis. Based on the analysis, the findings suggest that there were eight underlying factors responsible for the poor awareness of sustainability and the current low level of sustainable construction practices in the Indonesian construction industry. The three most significant barriers toward sustainable practices in Indonesia are lack of knowledge and standards, poor design practices, and financial constraints. The sustainable standards practice in Indonesia is still in its infancy and immature compared to developed countries. The findings of this study are expected to provide guidance and knowledge to construction players related to barriers in sustainability practices within the Indonesian construction industry.
Low-power software configurable modulator for wireless communications

We examined a software configurable modulator with the potential to generate different modulation schemes. The modulator uses a "digital" approach unlike the "mixing" or "multiplying" approach used by conventional analog modulators. The digital approach uses the phasor combining technique to generate the modulated signal constellation. The phasor combing method is essentially to weigh and sum up two phasors, or two LO signals with different phases (e.g., in quadrature) to generate a desired phasor that represents the modulated signal on the constellation. We designed and tested 2 test modulator circuits realizing an MSK-like modulation scheme based on the design approach: one with a fixed data pattern and the other for arbitrary data patterns. Experimental results showed that, compared to a conventional modulator with similar functions, the proposed modulator has the advantages of low power consumption (∼3.6 mW excluding output buffers), high data rate (up to ∼100 Mbps), broad operating frequency range (up to ∼3 GHz), and less circuit complexity in terms of necessary accompanying circuit components for function and performance purposes. We also present the design and experimental results of a direct conversion transmitter that uses the modulator. The transmitter consists of a voltage controlled oscillator (VCO), the modulator circuit for arbitrary bit patterns, and a power amplifier (PA). The power consumption of the whole transmitter is ∼129 mW, and the output power level is ∼3 dBm. The transmitter can be used for a ZigBee-ready personal area network, or other similar wireless networks. It has the advantages of higher data rate and lower error vector magnitude (EVM) than the normal specifications for such networks. We also designed and built a board-level modulator a core modulator chip with the same architecture as the integrated modulator circuit. Control signals and bias currents can be applied off-chip by on-board circuit components. The board was tested for offset quadrature phase shift keying (OQPSK) modulation, and the minimum shift keying (MSK) function can be developed by properly designed on-board circuitry. The phasor combining approach can potentially allow a modulator to generate different modulation schemes such as QPSK, MSK, and even quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM). These modulation schemes are widely used in today's wireless communications. Therefore, the proposed modulator may be well suited for a software defined radio.
Data-Driven In-Orbit Current and Voltage Prediction Using Bi-LSTM for LEO Satellite Lithium-Ion Battery SOC Estimation

Accurate estimation of the battery system state of charge (SOC) is essential to the satellite mission design and fault management. However, it is difficult for low Earth orbit satellites to continuously monitor the battery SOC on the ground due to the noncontact duration. To estimate the battery SOC for the entire orbit, it is necessary to predict or monitor the battery data for all times. Therefore, existing studies use SOC estimation that relies on real-time onboard battery information or utilizes probability-based technique and power budget-based technique. The real-time onboard-based technique is unsuitable for mission design because the status information is not available to the ground during the noncontact duration. Probability-based and power budget-based techniques are not reliable during the noncontact duration. In this study, we propose the ground-based battery SOC estimation technique that predicts the current and voltage by using the bidirectional long short-term memory network for the noncontact duration and estimates the SOC by the unscented Kalman filter for all operating conditions. The proposed technique is tested with in-orbit data of the KOMPSAT-3A satellite, and we demonstrate its superior performance than other conventional ground-based SOC estimation techniques.
Nuclear and Mitochondrial SSU rRNA Genes Reveal Hidden Diversity of Haptophrya Endosymbionts in Freshwater Planarians and Challenge Their Traditional Classification in Astomatia

Like many other aquatic animals, freshwater planarians have also become partners of symbiotic ciliates from the class Oligohymenophorea. In the present study, we explored the hidden diversity and addressed the questionable systematic position of mouthless obligatory gut endosymbionts of freshwater planarians, using the nuclear and mitochondrial SSU rRNA genes. Although all isolated ciliates morphologically corresponded to a single species, molecular analyses suggested the existence of three genetically distinct entities: Haptophrya planariarum, Haptophrya dugesiarum nov. spec. , and Haptophrya schmidtearum nov. spec. The two former species share the same planarian host, which indicates a speciation model involving one duplication event without host switching. Such a diversification pattern was recognized also in astome ciliates inhabiting megascolecid and glossoscolecid earthworms. The present multi-gene phylogenies along with the secondary structure of the mitochondrial 16S rRNA molecule, however, challenge the traditional classification of Haptophrya within the subclass Astomatia. Haptophrya very likely evolved from an orphan scuticociliate lineage by the loss of oral apparatus and by the transformation of the thigmotactic field into an adhesive sucker. Since astomy evolved multiple times independently within the Oligohymenophorea, the loss of cell mouth cannot be used as a sole argument for the assignment of Haptophrya to the Astomatia anymore.