Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Characterization of Nonlinear Waveguides for All-Optical Signal Processing

Title of dissertation: CHARACTERIZATION OF NONLINEAR WAVEGUIDES FOR ALL-OPTICAL SIGNAL PROCESSING Jeremiah J. Wathen, Doctor of Philosophy, 2014 Dissertation directed by: Professor Thomas E. Murphy Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering This dissertation documents research of the optical properties of chip-based nonlinear waveguides to assess their suitability for all-optical processing in the telecommunications spectrum. Three related topics are presented: (1) enhanced continuous-wave four-wave mixing in AlGaAs waveguides; (2) a new method to characterize nonlinear refraction and loss in waveguides; and (3) the non-instantaneous optical nonlinearity of a hydrogenated amorphous silicon waveguide. For topic (1), enhancements of the continuous-wave four-wave-mixing efficiency and bandwidth are accomplished by engineering the growth and fabrication of AlGaAs waveguides. The bandgap of the core-layer alloy is tailored to suppress nonlinear absorption and the fabrication is optimized to produce small-mode-area, dispersion-engineered waveguides with sub-dB/cm propagation losses. A four-wavemixing conversion efficiency of -6.8 dB is observed in an AlGaAs waveguide that exhibits a propagation loss of 0.56 dB/cm. This conversion efficiency is among the highest reported for any passive semiconductor or glass waveguide. Another low-loss AlGaAs waveguide is featured, which is dispersion-engineered to produce a measured conversion-bandwidth of 63.8 nm with a pump wavelength of 1550 nm. For topic (2), a new technique is described for accurately measuring the ratio between the imaginary part and the real part of a waveguide’s third-order nonlinearity. Unlike most other methods, it does not depend on precise knowledge of the coupling efficiencies, the optical propagation loss, or the optical pulse shape. The method is applied to measure the nonlinear loss tangents of a GaAs waveguide, two bandgap-engineered AlGaAs waveguides, a large-area crystalline silicon waveguide, a crystalline silicon nanowire waveguide, and a hydrogenated amorphous silicon nanowire waveguide. For topic (3), pump-probe spectroscopy and continuous-wave cross-phaseand cross-amplitude-modulation measurements are used to study the optical nonlinearity of a hydrogenated amorphous silicon nanowire waveguide. The results are compared to those of a crystalline silicon waveguide of similar dimensions. The hydrogenated amorphous silicon nanowire shows essentially zero instantaneous twophoton absorption, but it displays a strong, long-lived non-instantaneous nonlinearity that is both absorptive and refractive. Power-scaling measurements show that the non-instantaneous nonlinearity of the hydrogenated amorphous silicon scales as a third-order nonlinearity. Phase-transient measurements show that the refractive component possesses the opposite sign to that expected for free-carrier dispersion. CHARACTERIZATION OF NONLINEAR WAVEGUIDES FOR ALL-OPTICAL SIGNAL PROCESSING
Data uncertinties in material flow analysis.Local case study and literature survey.

The aim of this thesis is to discuss and analyse the influenceof data uncertainties with regard to the reliability of materialflow analysis (MFA) studies. MFA, as a part of environmentalsystems analysis, is a method belonging to the research field ofindustrial ecology and more specifically industrial metabolism.As such, the method strives at giving a holistic view of thecomplex world we live in, in order to reduce negativeenvironmental impact. Among other things, MFA studies have beenproposed to be useful for priority setting and following up inmunicipalities.Serving as a starting point is a local case study of flows ofnitrogen in a Swedish municipality, Vasteras. The casestudy has been performed using the ComBoxmodel. The years studiedare 1995 and 1998. The main sectors in society emitting nitrogento water were identified as the agricultural and householdsectors. The dominating sectors emitting nitrogen to air wereidentified as the agricultural, transport and infrastructuresectors.As a basis for discussing data uncertainties qualitatively andquantitatively a literature survey was performed. 50 articles andbooks were identified as in some way or another dealing with datauncertainties in MFA. The literature survey showed that theuncertainties for results from a MFA study might vary between±30 % and a factor 10 depending on what kind of parameter isinvestigated. Only one method was found that dealt with datauncertainties in MFA in a complete way; a model developed byHedbrant and Sorme (HS model). When applying the HS model to the case study of nitrogen flowsin Vasteras, it was found that when uncertaintyintervals were calculated the possible conclusions changed. Ofthe two pair of flows compared in relation to priority setting,none of the earlier conclusions remained. Of the three flowsanalysed in relation to following up, only the flow from onepoint source supported the same conclusion when uncertainty wasconsidered.In all, it is concluded that data uncertainties in MFAanalysis are an important aspect and that further research isneeded in order to improve input data quality estimations andframeworks for determining, calculating and presenting data, datauncertainties and results from MFA studies. However, theunderlying reality remains, e.g. that management of materialflows are important for understanding and reducing the negativeenvironmental impact. Thus, MFA is one useful tool in thiswork.Keywords:data uncertainties, sensitivity analysis,Material flow analysis, MFA, method to determine datauncertainties, case study, ComBox model, nitrogenflows.
Investigation on Students’ Personal Knowledge Management and Uses of Web 2.0 Technologies in Chinese Higher Education

Due to the impacts of a frenzied expansion of colleges and universities on Chinese higher education, there has been a gap between scale expansion and education quality improvement. Therefore, increasing attentions have been focused on personal knowledge management (PKM) and its applications in improving college students’ learning performance. This study collects the primary data through a sampling technique, aiming to examine how Chinese college students use Web 2.0 technologies for PKM. The author did a preliminary analysis on the survey data and summarized the current situation and deficiencies of college students’ practice on PKM with Web 2.0 technologies. The best practices and the lessons are discussed, and several future research directions are outlined.
Penetration resistance of Lubiatowo sand in calibration chamber tests

A series of cone penetration tests with standard cone and mini-cone were performed in the calibration chamber at Gda«sk University of Technology. Medium size, double wall chamber permits full control of stress and strain acting on the soil mass. The calibration chamber houses cylindrical soil sample 53 cm in diameter and 100 cm high. Lateral and vertical stresses, as well as strain conditions can be applied independently. The results of pushed-in model piles of small diameter, dilatometer tests, standard cone and mini CPT probe were analysed to determine size and boundary eects in penetration testing for calibration chamber and model sand. Free field values of cone resistance, independent of size and boundary eects, are proposed for Lubiatowo sand.
Enhance the Security and Improve the Performance of Web Crawlers using Web Crawling Algorithms

World Wide Web (WWW) is a massive resource of information that contains data in zeta bytes. Large number of users surfing Internet for various purposes need a quick response from web. Search engines are preferable, easily available and reliable source to retrieve data very rapidly with minimum resources. Search engine uses Web Crawler to search abundant data from web. It is a program that automatically passes through hypertext structure of the web and access webpage and hyperlink within it. Web crawling is a technique that focuses on obtaining relevant and fruitful links. To make the traversing accurate and productive, a properly designed web crawling algorithm is required. Web crawler and crawling techniques are kept secret as it is a hidden formula for the success of any search engine. In this paper, we have presented various web crawling algorithms along with their pros and cons to be utilized towards web search. Also we have proposed a novel web crawling algorithm to enhance the security and improving the performance of web crawler using single threaded and multi-threaded crawling algorithms
Development of Nondestructive Detecting System for Elevator Wire Ropes using Hall-effect Sensors

Wire ropes have been widely used in industrial applications, wherever heavy weight should be carried safely or mechanical energy should be transmitted fast. Especially, wire rope failures in operating elevator may lead to extensive property damage and serious injury to nearby personnel. Hence, it is very important to inspect wire rope periodically. Failure defection of wire rope requires fundamental knowledge of wire rope construction, rope behavior, properties of fault, sensing and signal processing method. In this research, the development of a new fault detecting system incorporating Hall-effect sensors to detect flaws such as abrasion, broken wire, corrosion and deformation for aged wire ropes in elevator, is described. For using a detector as a portable instrument, several performances for implementing sensing part with Hall-effect sensor, analog signal processing unit and programs are described. Experiments and field testing results for the implemented detecting system are also given. As a result, it is verified that the detecting system has good efficiency for inspecting faults of aged wire ropes in service.
Electrochemical Biosensors Containing Pure Enzymes or Crude Extracts as Enzyme Sources for Pesticides and Phenolic Compounds with Pharmacological Property Detection and Quantification

Biosensors are chemical sensors in which the recognition system is based on a biochemical mechanism. They perform the specific component detection in a sample through an appropriate analytical signal. Enzyme-based biosensors are the most prominent biosensors because of their high specificity and selectivity; besides being an alternative to the common immunosensors, they are more expensive and present a limited binding capacity with the antigen depending on assay conditions. This chapter approaches the use of enzymes modified electrodes in amperometric biosensing application to detect and quantify pesticides and phenolic compounds with pharmacological properties, as they have been a promising analytical tool in environmental monitoring. These biosensors may be prepared from pure enzymes or their crude extracts. Pure enzyme-based biosensors present advantages as higher substrate specificity and selectivity when compared to crude extract enzymatic biosensors; nevertheless, the enzyme high costs are their drawbacks. Enzymatic crude extract biosensors show lower specificity due to the fact that they may contain more than one type of enzyme, but they may be obtained from low-cost fabrication methods. In addition, they can contain enzyme cofactors besides using the enzyme in its natural conformation.
Perturbation du transport plasmatique des hormones thyroïdiennes par les contaminants environnementaux chez les femmes Inuit en âge de procréer du Nunavik

The Inuit population of Nunavik (Northern Quebec, Canada) is highly exposed to persistent organic pollutants (POPs) through their traditional diet. Some POPs – i.e. hydroxylated metabolites of polychlorinated biphenyls (OH-PCBs), pentachlorophenol (PCP) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) compete with thyroxin (T4) for binding sites on transthyretin (TTR), a T4 transport protein found in plasma and cerebrospinal fluid. Displacement of T4 from TTR could result in decreased T4 delivery to the developing fetus, resulting in delayed growth and impaired neurodevelopment in infants. We tested the hypothesis that POPs or their metabolites decrease circulating concentrations of T4 bound to TTR (T4-TTR) in Inuit women of reproductive age. We measured the concentration of T4-TTR in plasma samples obtained from 120 Inuit women (18-39 years old) by combining
A nomogram by adding atrial fibrillation to multicenter stroke survey score to predict intracranial hemorrhage in stroke patients undergoing thrombolysis

Background: Identiﬁcation of stroke patients at risk of postthrombolysis intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) in the clinical setting is essential. However, studies in this area spare.We aimed to develop a nomogram by adding atrial fibrillation to the Multicenter Stroke Survey (MSS) score to predict the probability of ICH in acute ischemic stroke patients undergoing thrombolysis. Methods: A retrospective observational study was conducted with 287 participants from a single center (67.2% males, median age 65 years). Head computed tomography scan was performed after 24 hour to evaluate ICH occurrence, and a computed tomography scan was done immediately in case of clinical worsening. The risk factors associated with ICH were analysed. Based on multivariate logistic model, a nomogram was generated for ICH on the basis of atrial fibrillation and the MSS score. We assessed the discriminative performance by using the area under curve (AUC) of receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) and calibration of risk prediction model by using calibration plot. Results: A total of 41(14.3%) ICH events occurred.The MSS score and atrial fibrillation were independent predictors of ICH in multivariate logistic regression analysis. Discrimination of the nomogram was superior to the MSS score alone (0.794 vs 0.741; P=0.034). The model was internally validated by using bootstrap (1000 samples) with AUC-ROC of 0.795. The calibration plot showed good agreement. Conclusion: We developed and internally validated a new nomogram using the MSS score and atrial fibrillation as predictors.The nomogram is a simple and accurate tool for predicting ICH in acute ischemic stroke patients undergoing thrombolysis. Further studies are warranted to validate our findings.
Modeling of the bearing capacity of Nordic forest soil

North European forest soil is a very complicated and sensitive bed. It consists of large areas of sand and clay with embedded stones and rocks and with several root layers of significant importance, and marshland with very low bearing capacity. Furthermore, the root layers not only significantly contribute to the bearing capacity, but in thinning operations, because of tree growth rate reasons, the roots must also be protected, i.e. they must not break. Wheeled vehicles are typically more agile and maneuverable than tracked vehicles, but the drawback is that they give higher ground pressures and thus larger rutting and cause more damage to the roots. This paper presents a comparison of results from different WES-method based terrain interaction models with test data from a series of full-scale field tests. In the field tests, soil penetration and wheel rut depth (both first and multi-pass) were measured for a medium-sized forwarder with and without loading and with different tire inflation pressure. In the field tests, the ground pressure at different depths below the wheel-soil interface, as well as the soil moisture, were also measured. MATLAB was the primary modeling and analysis tool.
Improvement of the Process of Development of the Information Systems through a Proposal of Organizational Indicators to Evaluate Case Tools

It is not a mystery that the process of selection, acquisition and implementation of a CASE tool Computer Aided Software Engineering- is a complex process in an organization; basically because it is necessary to take into account not only the technical aspects from the tool but the organizational aspects from the company that is to also adopt it, since the impact of a tool it is not only the product of the properties it has, but of the characteristics of the project of development of Information Systems (IS) and of the characteristics of the organization who adopts it. This paper proposes a set of organizational indicators, with its respective variables of measurement, which by means of a ponderable method, will offer a quantitative form to compare different CASE tools, from the organizational point of view, according to the own characteristics of a developer organization of IS; considering the previous thing and the support that offers CASE tools for the development of IS; the great amount and variety of these presents in the market; the characteristics of the developer organizations of IS in Venezuela and, the strategic importance that it has the selection of a CASE tool for the development of IS, according to the necessities of the organization.
Health-Related Quality of Life in Severely Injured Trauma Patients with Positive and Negative Blood Alcohol Level on Admission

PurposeThe objectives of this study were to evaluate whether pre-injury alcohol use has an influence on an injured patient’s HR-QoL and reported problems.MethodsRetrospective analysis of 227 severely injured trauma patients (age ≥ 18 years, NISS ≥ 16) treated at Tampere University Hospital’s (TAUH) Intensive Care Unit (ICU) or High Dependence Unit (HDU) in 2013. HR-QoL was assessed with the EQ-5D questionnaire, and was further compared with index values of population norms of Finland.ResultsPatients with positive BAL expressed notably more anxiety and depression (45%) before trauma compared to both patients with negative BAL (11%) and the reference population (14%). Overall, pre-injury HR-QoL was also poorer in BAL positive patients than BAL negative patients. The amount of anxiety and depression in BAL positive patients decreased after injury. In both groups, the relative number of reported problems after injury exceeded the relative number of reported problems of the reference population in all five EQ-5D dimensions.ConclusionsPatients with positive BAL upon admission report overall lower pre-injury HR-QoL than patients with negative BAL, which is most likely explained by the alcohol’s negative effect on mental health. As reported anxiety and depression decreased one year after injury, we speculate that this may partly be explained by a possible reduction in alcohol use, which has been reported to happen in injury patients. As has previously been reported, the impact of severe injury on post-injury QoL in general is detrimental and long-lasting and overall HR-QoL remains lower than the population norm.
Mitigating primary care provider burnout with interdisciplinary dyads and shared care delivery.

RATIONALE, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES Increased incidence of chronic illnesses coupled with physician shortages have yielded strain on primary care provider (PCP) to meet care demands. Interdisciplinary providers have increasingly been embedded into primary care teams to alleviate some workload demand. Little evidence exists about the impact of interdisciplinary PCP care delivery models on provider strain in primary care. To determine the impact of interdisciplinary PCP care delivery on burnout, job satisfaction and intention to leave current position. METHODS We conducted a cross-sectional mail survey using Dillman methodology of primary care practices (e.g., internal medicine) across New York State. A random sample of interdisciplinary PCPs (physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants) (n = 333) responded. The Provider Comanagement Index (α = 0.85) was used to measure how well interdisciplinary dyads comanagement care delivery attributes (effective communication; mutual respect and trust; shared philosophy of care). Provider outcomes were measured with validated Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and Health Resources and Services Administration items for burnout, job satisfaction and intention to leave position. Descriptive statistics, logistic regression models, crude and adjusted odds ratios were calculated, controlling for participant and practice characteristics. RESULTS Almost 30% of participants reported burnout with three times the odds of intending to leave their current position within 1 year. With each unit increase in effective comanagement between interdisciplinary dyads there was 15% less burnout and 10% less odds of intention to leave position. CONCLUSION Incorporating interdisciplinary specialties in primary care appears promising to alleviate some adverse provider outcomes. Organizations contemplating delivery models to promote well-being and retention may consider comanagement. Cost effectiveness research is needed to determine financial sustainability of interdisciplinary care delivery.
Alternative Fuels Compatibility with Army Equipment Testing - Existent Gum

Abstract : Many of the materials used for tactical fuel handling equipment were designed for use with petroleum-derived fuels, such as diesel and JP-8, which typically contain 15-25% aromatics. However, emerging synthetic turbine fuels based on iso-paraffinic kerosene (IPK), synthetic paraffinic kerosene (SPK), and Hydroprocessed Esters and Fatty Acids (HEFA) typically contain no aromatics. Many of these fuels have undergone extensive testing and gained approval for use by the Air Force. As these fuels become more widely available and their use extends to ground vehicles and support equipment, their impact on current Army equipment will need to be assessed. ASTM D381 is currently used in specifications for military fuel hoses (MIL-PRF-370J) and collapsible fuel tanks (MIL-PRF-32233). This test method is used to determine if any material in contact with aviation fuels or motor gasolines causes gum contamination. This study addresses various aspects of the ASTM D381 method as a means to determine gum contamination of fuel in contact elastomeric and rubber materials.
Functionalized Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles as Delivery Systems for Doxorubicin: Drug Loading and Release

Functionalized nanoparticles have played a major role in the field of targeted therapy, owing to their ability to control the release and for the selective delivery of entrapped materials to tumours. In this work, we described the loading capacity and in vitro release kinetics of mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs), functionalized with Poly-L-Histidine and Tamoxifen. The model drug Doxorubicin (DOX) was successfully encapsulated into MSN-based systems, using the technique of solvent immersion. A post-surface grafting loading method was investigated on functionalized systems, with DOX loading content determined using HPLC. Dialysis bag diffusion was employed to investigate the release kinetics of DOX-loaded-systems at pH 7.4 and 5. The amount of DOX released from native MSNs systems over a 72 h period at pH 5 was approximately 40%; and at pH 7.4 ≈ 30%. A moderate pH dependent release behaviour was observed with both our functionalized systems: DOX@MSN-PLH and DOX@MSN-PLH-TAM; with approximately 5% of DOX released from DOX@MSN-PLH-TAM at pH 7.4 and about 9% released at pH 7.4 over 72 h. The maximal cumulated release of DOX molecules from DOX@MSN-PLH after 72 h was ≈18% at pH 7.4 and ≈23% at pH 5, respectively. The outcome of this work offers a promising contribution towards building future stimuli-responsive nano-drug delivery systems.