Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Image Segmentation based Quality Analysis of Agricultural Products using Emboss Filter and Hough Transform in Spatial Domain

Very few technologies developed less than 30 years ago have permeated our lives as much as the image processing. Development in the field of image processing especially in its field image segmentation which is used to extract regions of interest has proven wonders in various applications like Signature verification, Face recognition, Thumb impression verification, Automatic character recognition, Industrial machine vision for assembly and inspection etc. But the potential of image segmentation in the field of agriculture is yet to be exploited for the daily use. In this paper efforts are focused on the role of image segmentation in the field of agriculture to analyze the fruit quality on the basis of its color, size and weight. In the proposed algorithm, the desired conclusions/analysis can be made by comparing various inputs received (color, size, weight) with predefined parameters, which can be further used for grading, packaging and chopping of fruits in agriculture. (Researcher. 2009;1(5):62-68). (ISSN: 1553-9865).
Evolution of HTS rf SQUIDs

I present the evolution of rf-SQUIDs towards modern planar thin film devices. My main objective is to describe our own planar HTS rf washer SQUIDs and their operation with coplanar resonators and multiturn flux transformers. This publication is dedicated to the memory of J.E. Zimmerman, whose ideas have guided us through the development of rf SQUID planar technology.
GGE Biplot analysis of genotype Ã environment interaction in chickpea genotypes

The objective of this study was to explore the effect of genotype (G) and genotype × environment interaction (GEI) on grain yield of 20 chickpea genotypes under two different rainfed and irrigated environments for 4 consecutive growing seasons (2008-2011). Yield data were analyzed using the GGE biplot method. According to the results of combined analysis of variance, genotype × environment interaction was highly significant at 1% probability level, where G and GEI captured 68% of total variability. The first two principal components (PC1 and PC2) explained 68% of the total GGE variation, with PC1 and PC2 explaining 40.5 and 27.5 respectively. The first megaenvironment contains environments E1, E3, E4 and E6, with genotype G17 (X96TH41K4) being the winner; the second mega environment contains environments E5, E7 and E8, with genotype G12 (X96TH46) being the winner. The environment of E2 makes up another mega-environment, with G19 (FLIP-82-115) the winner. Mean performance and stability of genotypes indicated that genotypes G4, G16 and G20 were highly stable with high grain yield.
Information Flow Analysis Based on Program Simplification

Deductive veriﬁcation is a popular approach to language-based information ﬂow analysis, however, the existing methods need non-standard veriﬁcation setups that hamper the prospects for automation. We propose a uniform framework, wherein information ﬂow analysis is realized by deductive veriﬁcation of a single, unmodiﬁed program with lightweight postconditions and invariants. We perform symbolic execution-based veriﬁcation, during which sound program transformation generates a simpliﬁed program being bisimilar to the target program with respect to low variables. The process maintains a sound used variable set that indicates whether the resulting program is secure.
SLIDING MODEL VARIABLE STRUCTURE CONTROL FOR MICRO-GRAVITY ENVIRONMENT GROUND SIMULATION TEST SYSTEM

A novel spatial microgravity simulation system is proposed for big and middle experimental objects with complex movement. The equipments combine machine transmission、 motor drive and air-bearing to realize three-dimension spatial microgravity simulation. Level pane adopts air suspending, upright adopts motor drive, by reducer，ball screw and guide pole. Force feedback control aim gravity real timely as controller. Friction non-linearity of machine system and outside disturbance are considered. Variable Structure controller is employed to reduce disturbance and uncertainty. The experimental result shows that test equipment has light weight, convenience using and higher precision, and compensates non-linearity infection for grasping of robotic manipulator, has important engineering value to three-dimension spatial microgravity simulation.
NVP: A Network Virtualization Proxy for Software Defined Networking

The combination of Network Function Virtualization (NFV) and Software Defined Networking (SDN) can improve the control and utilization of network resources. However, this issue still requires proper solutions to virtualize large-scale networks, which would allow the use of SDN and Virtualization in real environments. Thus, this paper proposes a virtualization architecture for SDN that relies on a proxy-based approach. The NVP (Network Virtualization Proxy) is a virtualization proxy that intercepts messages exchanged between controllers and switches SDN enabling network virtualization. An implementation of the proposal was developed as a proof of concept and load testing was performed showing that the solution can provide network virtualization in a scalable manner, using less than 2.5 MB of memory to manage 100 switches performing simultaneous requests, whereas FlowVisor requires more than 200 MB.
The joint characterization of discrete and continuous ‘waiting times’ through their reciprocal relationships

Abstract Let us suppose there is an event C (occurrence of a given defect or disease) that is part of a group of events we are interested in, and whose probability of occurrence in that group is known. The distribution of the waiting times for the r 1-th event in that group, given that we expect r events C, and the distribution of the number of events in the group that are not events C, given that we waited for a length y waiting for the r 1-th event in the group (given that we expected r events C) are derived based on very mild assumptions. Relations of the distributions obtained with known distributions, their expression as mixtures and a limiting case are also studied. Cases where r 1 < r and r 1 > are studied in detail, since they correspond to two different situations of interest, the one in which the event C is one of the rarest ones in its group, is not easy to identify or its occurrence r times kills or disables the observation unit, or the case in which it may be rather common in the group and easy to identify. Examples of application in epidemiology, industry, transportation and agriculture are used for illustration.
Space‐time modelling of blue ling for fisheries stock management

Fishery catch data offer a rich potential source of information for management, if modelling can separate out the effects of fishing effort, species behaviour and population abundance. Here, we model catch data from the blue ling fishery off the northwest coast of Scotland, using generalised additive mixed models with a space time interaction represented via a novel tensor product of a soap film smooth of space with a penalized regression spline of time. The use of soap film smoothers avoids imposing correspondences between spatially adjacent areas that are in fact separated by the stock boundary. The comparison of the performance of the soap film smooth for space–time with that of a thin plate regression spline based on root mean squared prediction errors and k‐means cross‐validation suggests that in this application, the former is better overall and in particular for modelling local changes. Further, a model with continuous space‐year interaction performed better compared with one with an additive space‐year effect. After model selection, checking and validation, there is evidence for increasing blue ling abundance from 2000–2010 in some spatial locations. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
An Investigation into Examination-Type Preferences of Primary School Students in Relation to Various Variables

Purpose : Many teachers make assessment and evaluation without taking into account the preferences of the students. However, for a qualified assessment and evaluation activity, it is very important to take into account the individual differences, individual needs, and choice of exam types when determining the type of exam. This study seekeds to determine examination-type preferences of 4th grade primary school students and whether these differed depending on gender, and the location of the school, and to reveal the reasons of students’ preferences related to examination types. Methods: The study group of this relational research model was composed of 208 4th grade students. Convenience sampling was used to determine the study group. In this study, “Examination-Type Preference Questionnaire” was used to determine the examination types preferred by students while “Interview Form” was employed to find out the causes of their examination-type preferences. To collect the data of the study, quantitative and qualitative research methods were applied. Findings: It was determined that students preferred multiple choice tests most whereas they preferred written examinations least. It was also determined that there was no significant relationship between examination types preferred and gender of students, and location of the school. Implications for Research and Practice: Studies that will make use of other variables should be carried out related to examination-type preferences. In addition, a similar study on a larger sample can be used to determine alternative assessment and assessment competencies of classroom teachers.
Pro-Christian humor and the online carnival

Humor that takes as its comedic object the beliefs, practices, and culture of Christianity has flourished in the digital age via journalistic satire, video sharing, and social network websites. Theory of the comic's use as a moderator between the sacred and the profane provide by Conrad Hyers, and the carnivalesque literary theory of Mikhail Bakhtin, reminds us that humor made at the expense of elements of Christian doctrine and culture can serve to reify and strengthen Christianity in the United States, a conclusion justified by textual analysis of three websites featuring this material. The analysis supports that an essential rule for successfully blending humor and religion together is to avoid directly leveling the humor at God or at Christianity as a valid religion but rather restricting the ludic treatment to church practices, church culture, and individual behavior. Comments made by readers reveal that a majority approve of the ludic turn, but vehement dissent shows a strong tension between the ludic and the presupposition that religion must remain sacrosanct and solemn. The specific mechanisms that lead from humor at the expense of Christianity to bolstering of Christian belief include inducing humility, providing reflection on one's beliefs and attitudes, offering corrective (termed parabolic) lessons regarding sin and folly, boosting the salience of Christian practices and beliefs, inoculation, and a negative reaction to perceived sacrilege that inspires recommittment to core beliefs. Christian humor is increasingly available and popular, and is fast becoming a constructive alternative mode through which Christians can address, explore, and consider their faith. Degree Type Dissertation Degree Name Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Graduate Group Communication First Advisor John L. Jackson
A 1.62GS/s Time-Interleaved SAR ADC with fully digital background mismatch calibration achieving interleaving spurs below 70dBFS

Today’s applications such as broadband satellite receivers, cable TVs, and software-defined radios require highly efficient ADCs with high sampling rates and high resolutions. Time-interleaved ADC (TIADC) is a popular architecture used to achieve this goal. However, this structure suffers from mismatches between the sub-converters, which cause errors on the output signal and more significantly, decrease the SFDR. These mismatches can be a severe limitation in applications such as satellite reception where both narrowband and wideband signals are used. This paper introduces digital derivative-based estimation of timing mismatches. Gain, offset and skew mismatch calibrations are performed entirely in the digital domain through equalization. Recently, multi-GS/s designs using mixed signal techniques to reduce the effects of mismatches have been published [1-3]. Mixed calibration techniques exhibit good performance but they require additional development time. This prototype, done in 40nm CMOS technology, implements a 1.62GS/s 12-channel 9-bit TIADC with embedded digital background mismatch calibration. It demonstrates the efficiency of a generalizable and scalable co-design methodology where the analog core is designed without special care for the mismatches. The mismatches are suppressed by a separately designed digital background mismatch calibration unit. Over the range 0-750MHz, the on-chip implementation of this architecture has interleaving spurs below 70 dBFS and a SNDR higher than 48dB for a power consumption of 93mW. The
Analysis by finite element calculations of light scattering in laser- textured AZO films for PV thin-film solar cells

In the thin-film photovoltaic industry, to achieve a high light scattering in one or more of the cell interfaces is one of the strategies that allow an enhancement of light absorption inside the cell and, therefore, a better device behavior and efficiency. Although chemical etching is the standard method to texture surfaces for that scattering improvement, laser light has shown as a new way for texturizing different materials, maintaining a good control of the final topography with a unique, clean, and quite precise process. In this work AZO films with different texture parameters are fabricated. The typical parameters used to characterize them, as the root mean square roughness or the haze factor, are discussed and, for deeper understanding of the scattering mechanisms, the light behavior in the films is simulated using a finite element method code. This method gives information about the light intensity in each point of the system, allowing the precise characterization of the scattering behavior near the film surface, and it can be used as well to calculate a simulated haze factor that can be compared with experimental measurements. A discussion of the validation of the numerical code, based in a comprehensive comparison with experimental data is included. © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. Peer-review under responsibility of The European Materials Research Society (E-MRS).
A Comparison of Selected Secondary Electronic Travel Aids with a Primary Mobility System

This study examines the performance of participants who are blind and have light perception or less when using a secondary electronic travel aid (ETA) and their primary mobility system (e.g., cane, vs. their performance with a cane, alone). The secondary devices studied were the Miniguide US™ and the K Sonar Device™ * . The participants’ performance was measured by their ability to detect obstacles on the vertical and horizontal planes; detect drop-offs and curbs; detect and avoid overhead obstructions, and determine natural and man-made landmarks that could possibly be used for orientation. In addition, the variable “speed of execution” was measured. Increased or decreased efficacy between the participants’ performance with their primary system alone and their performance using both their primary mobility system and one of the two secondary electronic travel aids in conjunction were measured.
Substrate Integrated Waveguide Frequency-Agile Slot Antenna and its Multibeam Application

A new technique for designing the substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) frequency-agile slot antenna is presented in this paper. Similar to the metallic waveguide counterpart, the SIW is a uniconductor guided-wave structure and inherently di-cult in the electronically tunable applications. To solve this problem, a single slot etched on the top conductor layer of a conventional antenna is instead of two slots to construct an isolated area, which is convenient for the DC bias. The electric length of slots can then be adjusted through two shunt varactors welded near the center of slot. As such, a SIW frequency-agile slot antenna is realized and fabricated to cover the frequency of 2:30 » 2:74GHz with difierent bias voltages. Experiments verify our theory analysis and design process. Then, a frequency-agile multibeam antenna is developed to cover several frequency bands while switching between four difierent radiation patterns pointing at difierent spatial locations for each frequency. It presents an excellent candidate for software and cognitive radio system applications.
Synopsis: Market access, welfare, and nutrition: Evidence from Ethiopia

We estimate the impact of improved market access on household well-being and nutrition using a quasi-experimental setting in Ethiopia. We find that households in remote areas consume substantially less than households nearer to markets, they are more food insecure, and their school enrollment rates are lower. Although their diets are also less diverse, we find no significant differences in anthropometric measures. Part of these welfare differences can be attributed to lower household agricultural production in remote areas. But agricultural production differences alone do not account for all of the differences in household consumption levels for remote households. An additional contributing factor is the deteriorating terms of trade for remote households that negatively affect both the size of the agricultural surplus that these households market and the quantity of food items that they purchase. Reducing transaction costs associated with poor rural infrastructure can pay important dividends as it facilitates households’ abilities to transform marketed surpluses into consumption goods and into healthier, more diverse diets.
ELECTRO-THERMAL SIMULATION USING A CIRCUIT SIMULATOR AND A MODIFIED SPICE3 SEMICONDUCTOR MODEL LIBRARY

The paper presents a model library containing semiconductor and thermal models. It was implemented at the Fraunhofer Institute using an object-oriented approach. Semiconductor models support electro-thermal simulation by calculating power dissipation and Jacobian entries. Electric models got an additional thermal pin with device temperature and power dissipation as pin variables. The library is designed for use with several simulators. The simulation results show a good correspondence with measured data.
Two distinct halo populations in the solar neighborhood - III. Evidence from stellar ages and orbital parameters

Context. In Papers I and II of this series, we have found clear indications of the existence of two distinct populations of stars in the solar neighborhood belonging to the metal-rich end of the halo metallicity distribution function. Based on high-resolution, high S/N spectra, it is possible to distinguish between “high-alpha” and “low-alpha” components using the [α/Fe] versus [Fe/H] diagram. Aims. Precise relative ages and orbital parameters are determined for 67 halo and 16 thick-disk stars having metallicities in the range −1.4 < [Fe/H]< −0.4 to better understand the context of the two halo populations in the formation and evolution of the Galaxy. Methods. Ages are derived by comparing the positions of stars in the logTeff–log g diagram with isochrones from the Y 2 models interpolated to the exact [Fe/H] and [α/Fe] values of each star. The stellar parameters have been adopted from the preceding spectroscopic analyses, but possible systematic errors in Teff and log g are considered and corrected. With space velocities from Paper I as initial conditions, orbital integrations have been carried out using a detailed, observationally constrained Milky Way model including a bar and spiral arms. Results. The “high-alpha” halo stars have ages 2–3 Gyr larger than the “low-alpha” ones, with some probability that the thick-disk stars have ages intermediate between these two halo components. The orbital parameters show very distinct differences between the “high-alpha” and “low-alpha” halo stars. The “low-alpha” ones have rmax’s to 30–40 kpc, zmax’s to ≈18 kpc, and emax’s clumped at values greater than 0.85, while the “high-alpha” ones, rmax’s to about 16 kpc, zmax’s to 6–8 kpc, and emax values more or less uniformly distributed over 0.4–1.0. Conclusions. A dual in situ-plus-accretion formation scenario best explains the existence and characteristics of these two metal-rich halo populations, but one remaining defect is that this model is not consistent regarding the rmax’s obtained for the in situ “high-alpha” component; the predicted values are too small. It appears that ω Cen may have contributed in a significant way to the existence of the “low-alpha” component; recent models, including dynamical friction and tidal stripping, have produced results consistent with the present mass and orbital characteristics of ω Cen, while at the same time including extremes in the orbital parameters as great as those of the “low-alpha” component.
Molecular characterization and transcriptome profiling of expansin genes isolated from Calotropis procera fibers

The Calotropis procera seed fibers provide an excellent model system to study the genes involved in fiber elongation, fineness and strength. Expansins constitute one of the important gene families involved in plant cell expansion and other cell wall modification processes. Four homologs of Expansin A gene i.e. CpEXPA 1, CpEXPA 2, CpEXPA 3 and CpEXPA 4 were isolated from the cDNA library obtained from fast growing Calotropis procera fibers. These homologs represented typical Expansin A family. Each of them had two conserved domains including GH45 like domain and the putative polysaccharide binding domain. The deduced amino acid sequences of the homologs indicated three conserved motifs: i) eight cysteine residues at N-terminus, ii) four tryptophan residues at C-terminus and iii) a Histidine-Phenylalanine-Aspartate motif in the center of the sequence. The presence of N-terminal signal peptide consisting of hydrophobic amino acids and a transmembrane region in all these expansin isoforms suggests their cotranslational insertion into the endoplasmic reticulum and then transportation to the cell wall by secretory pathway. The relative quantification of the four expansins in root, stem, fiber and leave tissues indicated that the transcripts of CpEXPA1 , CpEXPA2, CpEXPA3 and CpEXPA4 are variably transcribed in these tissues. The lowest transcription of all the four Expansin A isoforms was observed in elongating roots indicating that root tissue might be having specific expansins other than those confined to air grown organs.