Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Family Business, Resilience, and Ethnic Tourism in Yunnan, China

The expansion in commodification through tourism and the transformation of communities and heritages into destination attributes have become the centre of tourism research facing the COVID-19 crisis. Since small family businesses comprise the majority of the tourism industry, theories and practices on surviving the crisis are urgently required. This research attempts to clarify the level of business resilience during the COVID-19 lock down when business can only be conducted at home with very few visitors. It provides insights on family businesses in Yunnan, China, moving ahead with ethnic tourism against the lockdown and shutdown of tourism industry. Data were collected through in-depth interviews. The researchers invited previous research respondents who agreed to continue for online interviews. Eight interviewees were selected by purposive sampling. Although the COVID-19 crisis was unexpected, external shocks need to be taken into account for business planning. Tourism will not necessarily grow massively in the total number of visitors as the destinations have become saturated. The diversification of a tourism business facilitates the resilience of the firm by venturing into other areas of practice, including taking advantage of online platforms in selling local food and herbs, live broadcasting the local flora and fauna, teaching school children in making the traditional pickles, and other business extensions from tourism. Businesses are working together with other stakeholders in the effort of overcoming the COVID-19 crisis. Previous visitors from not only China but also overseas, who have kept in touch with the hosts in Yunnan, are becoming part of the supporting team for the business. However, there appears to be a lack of coordination in the community when businesses are isolated. There is a call for skills in using technology for online business, complementarity in the community, and policy support in the ethnic family businesses. Small family businesses in ethnic Yunnan are actively adapting and progressing despite the odds. They are resilient in times of crisis, with a strong presence of entrepreneurship, diversification of activities, re-organising resources, and digital literacy. The research sheds light on how community-based small family businesses surviving the crisis through resilience, entrepreneurship, and celebrating their ethnic cultures in tourism. Small-scale tourism closely linked with the community, family, and people may provide more promising prospects for tourism.
Development of an optical measurement system for surface depth measurements and study of focus effect on determination of steel inclusion content by EN-10247

Abstract. Surface inspections are important in steelmaking processes to characterize the final product’s quality. We present a method to measure surface depth profile using laser scattering geometry. This technique is used to analyze the focus effect on microscopic analyses of steel inclusions using the EN-10247 standard. The results presented herein offer promising new perspectives for the metal manufacturing industry through cost-effective solutions that attain quasi in-line process inspection capabilities.
Density based fuzzy support vector machine: application to diabetes dataset

In this work, we propose a deep prediction diabetes system based on a new version of the support vector machine optimization model. First, we determine three types of patients (noisy, cord, and interior) basing on specific parameters. Second, we equilibrate the clinical data sets by suppressing noisy and cord patients. Third, we determine the support vectors by solving an optimization program with a reasonable size. Our system is performed on the well-known diabetes dataset PIMA. The experimental results show that the proposed method improves the prediction accuracy and the proposed system significantly outperforms all other versions of SVM as well as literature methods of classification.
Rate-Distortion Optimization Based on Two-Pass Encoding for HEVC

Rate-distortion optimization (RDO) is a crucial technique in block-based hybrid video encoders, which determines the coding option for a certain coding unit to achieve optimal rate-distortion (R-D) performance. However, the current RDO, which is implemented into High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) test model, i.e., HM, is far from being global optimal as it ignores the interaction among coding options. Recent studies have shown that the dependent RDO methods can improve the coding efficiency of encoders by exploring the R-D dependency among coding units, but these methods do not consider the R-D characteristics of coding units. In this paper, we proposed a two-pass encoding based RDO method, which combines both the R-D dependency and R-D characteristics, to further improve the coding efficiency. First, a frame is encoded with the original HEVC scheme to obtain the R-D model of coding tree units (CTU) and the bit budget of the frame. Second, an optimal equation combines the R-D model and R-D dependency is established to adaptively determine the Lagrange multiplier and quantization parameter (QP) for each CTU. Finally, the current frame is encoded with a new scheme again. Experimental results show that compared with the original HM, the proposed method obtains R-D performance improvements of 5.3% and 5.6% on average under configurations of low-delay B and P frames, respectively.
Molecular Docking and Comparative Inhibitory Efficacy of Naturally Occurring Compounds on Vegetative Growth and Deoxynivalenol Biosynthesis in Fusarium culmorum

The fungal pathogen Fusarium culmorum causes Fusarium head blight in cereals, resulting in yield loss and contamination of the grain by type B trichothecene mycotoxins such as deoxynivalenol (DON), and its acetylated derivatives. Synthesis of trichothecenes is driven by a trichodiene synthase (TRI5) that converts farnesyl pyrophosphate (FPP) to trichodiene. In this work, 15 naturally occurring compounds that belong to the structural phenol and hydroxylated biphenyl classes were tested in vitro and in planta (durum wheat) to determine their inhibitory activity towards TRI5. In vitro analysis highlighted the fungicidal effect of these compounds when applied at 0.25 mM. Greenhouse assays showed a strong inhibitory activity of octyl gallate 5, honokiol 13 and the combination propyl gallate 4 + thymol 7 on trichothecene biosynthesis. Docking analyses were run on the 3D model of F. culmorum TRI5 containing the inorganic pyrophosphate (PPi) or FPP. Significant ligand affinities with TRI-PPi and TRI-FPP were observed for the same sites for almost all compounds, with 1 and 2 as privileged sites. Octyl gallate 5 and honokiol 13 interacted almost exclusively with sites 1 and 2, by concurrently activating strong H-bonds with common sets of amino acids. These results open new perspectives for the targeted search of naturally occurring compounds that may find practical application in the eco-friendly control of FHB in wheat.
Joint Resource, Deployment, and Caching Optimization for AR Applications in Dynamic UAV NOMA Networks

The cache-enabling unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) networks for mixture of augmented reality (AR) and normal multimedia applications are investigated, which is assisted by UAV base stations. The user association, power allocation of NOMA, deployment of UAVs and caching placement of UAVs are jointly optimized to minimize the content delivery delay. A branch and bound (BaB) based algorithm is proposed to obtain the per-slot optimization. To cope with the dynamic content requests and mobility of users in practical scenarios, the original optimization problem is transformed to a Stackelberg game. Specifically, the game is decomposed into a leader level user association sub-problem and a number of power allocation, UAV deployment and caching placement follower level sub-problems. The long-term minimization was further solved by a deep reinforcement learning (DRL) based algorithm. Simulation result shows that the content delivery delay of the proposed BaB based algorithm is much lower than benchmark algorithms, as the optimal solution in each time slot is achieved. Meanwhile, the proposed DRL based algorithm achieves a relatively low long-term content delivery delay in the dynamic environment with lower computation complexity than BaB based algorithm.
Fabrication of 3D conductive circuits: print quality evaluation of a direct ink writing process

The use of conductive inks and direct writing techniques for the fabrication of electronic circuits on complex substrates is attracting ever increasing interest. However, the existing knowledge is only focused on the electrical performances of the produced smart objects with no direct correlation with the conductive paths morphology and printing conditions. In order to evaluate the printing quality of a direct writing process using an eccentric screw dispenser, a printing device for the deposition of silver paste on 3D objects was developed. Lines of different widths were printed on flat PC + ABS substrates by means of the developed printing device and a conventional screen printing process. The developed process permitted printing lines as thin as possible with screen printing but with a better regularity of their edges. However unlike screen printed lines, the thickness of the lines was dependent on their width. Finally, the possibility to print on 3D objects was demonstrated.
Interoperability

Interoperability refers to the ability of two or more systems or components to exchange information and to use the information that has been exchanged. This article presents the major viewpoints of interoperability, with the focus on semantic interoperability. It discusses the approaches to achieving interoperability as demonstrated in standards and best practices, projects, and products in the broad domain of knowledge organization.
Calculation Model of Armature Reaction Magnetic Field of Interior Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor With Segmented Skewed Poles

In an interior permanent magnet synchronous motor (IPMSM) with segmented skewed poles, the armature reaction magnetic field (AR-MF) changes nonlinearly due to the saturation of the rotor magnetic barrier. Meanwhile, this varies under different excitation currents. As a result, it is difficult to be calculated by means of analytical methods. In this paper, the calculation model of AR-MF of IPMSM is first established by vector superposition method, without considering the saturation effect of rotor and the slotting effect of stator. In the second step, the virtual magnetic field of the rotor is introduced to quantitatively calculate the influence of local inhomogeneous saturation on the AR-MF. The latter is derived by combining both the subdomain method and equivalent magnetic circuit method. The complex relative permeance is also introduced to establish the AR-MF accounting for the stator slotting effect. To validate the AR-MF calculation method proposed, an 8-pole 48-slot IPMSM with segmented skewed poles is considered as a case study, showing a comparison by both with finite element (FE) results and the electromagnetic torque measured on a test bench. The model proposed in this paper shows high accuracy and fast computation with respect to FE analysis.
The Stroop Effect Under the Interference of Language

The Traditional Stroop effect proves that incongruent stimuli could delay people’s reaction time, this is mainly because participants’ attention was distracted by the interference factor. Based on this principle, our group reestablishes the Stroop effect, to find out the effect under the interference of language. This experiment is displayed in English through Psychopy, and after the experiment, we found out that participants who had high proficiency in English spent a longer time naming the color of the contexts. Moreover, statistics showed that people with higher proficiency in English had a lower accuracy rate. This means that the proficiency of the language would negatively influence people during the Stroop test, perfectly reflect the basic Stroop effect.
Exploring Instances of Deleuzian Rhizomatic Patterns in Students’ Writing and in Online Student Interactions

Globally, it is a standard practice to study students’ academic writing by using linear academic-writing models. This study investigated instances of Deleuzian rhizomatic patterns in students’ writing and in online student interactions at an open and distance e-learning (ODeL) institution in South Africa. A convenience sample of 13 students’ paragraph writing samples and of 370 first-year students was used. All the participants were enrolled in a level-one module, ENG1503, in the second semester of 2020. The study followed a mixed-method approach, and utilized AntConc and AntMover to analyse the students’ writing samples, as well as Microsoft Power Business Intelligence (MS Power BI) and Gephi, in order to analyse and visualise online student interactions. When students’ writing samples were analysed in terms of keywords (e.g., key themes) by using the software applications employed in this study, various rhizomatic patterns were detected in the students’ text files. For example, the key-word frequencies of key themes, such as religion and cult, showed that these two key themes were used differently at the end of each concordance spectrum, thereby underscoring their varying rhizomatic patterns of usage in students’ respective text files. Online student interactions on both myUnisa’s ODF and MS Teams were visualized rhizomatically. The findings of this study underscore the importance of investigating and analysing students’ writing – not only from linear models, but also from non-linear perspectives, such as a rhizomatic approach. Additionally, they underline the significance of leveraging the opportunities offered by students’ writing analysis technologies, such as those employed in this study.
Preoperative Elemental Diet before Laparoscopic Anterior Resection in Patients with Advanced Stenotic Rectal Cancer

Objectives: To evaluate the feasibility of our new preoperative enteral nutrition protocol using ElentalⓇ without mechanical bowel preparation (MBP) before laparoscopic anterior resection (LAR) in patients with advanced stenotic rectal cancer. Methods: Among 74 patients with advanced rectal cancer (clinical stages T3 and T4) scheduled to undergo LAR, 42 patients with stenotic rectal cancer were administered ElentalⓇ (900 kcal/day) without MBP before LAR (group S). Thirty-two patients without stenosis (group NS) did not receive preoperative nutritional support but underwent MBP. Results: Group S patients were maintained in a fasting state and received an elemental diet approximately 10 days preoperatively without severe adverse effects. The incidence of postoperative complications (Clavien-Dindo classification ≥ grade 2) was significantly lower in group S than that in group NS (adjusted odds ratio [OR]: 6.046, P = 0.008). Logistic regression analysis revealed that group NS exhibited higher risks of developing postoperative complications than those exhibited by group S (OR: 4.32, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.28-17.28, P = 0.018). Among preoperative characteristics, the clinical tumor stage indicated a significant intergroup difference. Thus, the clinical stage was selected as a covariate and adjusted in the logistic regression model to calculate a covariate-adjusted OR. Group NS exhibited a higher incidence of postoperative complications than group S (adjusted OR: 6.05, 95% CI: 1.58-28.35, P = 0.008). Conclusions: Administration of an elemental diet using ElentalⓇ without MBP before LAR is a feasible strategy in patients with advanced stenotic rectal cancer. Application of this research may encourage use of ElentalⓇ in the clinical setting.
Exercise-Mediated Browning of White Adipose Tissue: Its Significance, Mechanism and Effectiveness

As a metabolic organ, adipose tissue plays an important role in regulating metabolism. In adults, most adipose tissue is white adipose tissue (WAT), and excessive expansion of WAT will lead to obesity. It is worth noting that exercise can reduce the fat mass. There is also a lot of evidence that exercise can promote the browning of WAT, which is beneficial for metabolic homeostasis. Multiple factors, including reactive oxygen species (ROS), metabolites, nervous system, exerkines and lipolysis can facilitate exercise-mediated browning of WAT. In this review, the roles and the underlying mechanisms of exercise-mediated browning of WAT are summarized. The effects of different styles of exercise on the browning of WAT are also discussed, with the aim to propose better exercise strategies to enhance exercise-mediated browning of WAT, so as to promote metabolic health. Finally, the different reactivity of WAT at different anatomical sites to exercise-mediated browning is reviewed, which may provide potential suggestion for people with different fat loss needs.
Long Term Efficacy and Assessment of Tumor Response of Transarterial Chemoembolization in Neuroendocrine Liver Metastases: A 15-Year Monocentric Experience

Simple Summary Neuroendocrine tumors (NET) are rare tumors, with long-term survival even for patients with liver metastases. Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) is one of the most widely used treatments in this setting. The aim of the study was to assess the long-term efficacy of TACE in a large cohort of patients with NET liver metastases and to correlate imaging findings with survival. In our study including 202 patients with NET liver metastases and a mean follow-up of 8.2 years, TACE was effective to provide disease control for 26 months and a 5.3-year median overall survival (OS). Imaging responses using RECIST and mRECIST criteria were significantly correlated to OS: the median-OS was twice as long among mRECIST responders versus non-responders, with 80.5 months and 39.6 months respectively. These findings are of major importance for everyday practice as they confirm TACE’s effectiveness and usefulness of imaging evaluation to better tailor patient treatment and repeat TACE sessions whenever necessary. Abstract Background: transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) is an established treatment for neuroendocrine tumor (NET) liver metastases. The aim was to evaluate the long-term treatment efficacy of TACE for NET liver metastases, and correlate imaging response with survival. Methods: this IRB-approved, single-center, retrospective study evaluated all TACE procedures performed for NET liver metastases from 2003–2017 for imaging tumor response (RECIST and mRECIST), time to liver progression (TTLP), time to untreatable progression with TACE (TTUP), and overall survival (OS). Patient, tumor, and treatment characteristics were analyzed as prognostic factors. Survival curves according to the Kaplan–Meier method were compared by Log-rank test. Tumor responses according to RECIST and mRECIST were correlated with OS. Results: 555 TACE procedures were performed in 202 NET patients (38% grade 1, 60% grade 2) with primary tumors originating from pancreas, small bowel, and lung (39, 26, and 22% respectively). Median follow-up was 8.2 years (90–139 months). Median TTLP and TTUP were 19.3 months (95%CI 16.3–22.3) and 26.2 months (95%CI 22.3–33.1), respectively. Median OS was 5.3 years (95%CI 4.2–6.7), and was higher among mRECIST responders (80.5 months; 95%CI 64.6–89.8) than in non-responders (39.6 months; 95%CI = 32.8–60.2; p < 0.001). In multivariable analysis, age, tumor grade and liver involvement predicted worse OS, whereas administration of somatostatin analogs correlated with improved OS. Conclusion: TACE for NET liver metastases provides objective response and sustained local disease control rates. RECIST and mRECIST responses correlate with OS.
A Review on Methods and Systems for Remote Collaboration

Due to the appearance of COVID-19 in 2019, person-to-person interactions were drastically reduced. The impact of these restrictions on the economic environment was significant. For example, technical assistance for commissioning or adjusting the parameters of some complex machines/installations had to be postponed. Economic operators became interested in the possibility of remote collaboration, depending on the manufactured products and the performance of the production lines that they owned. This bibliographic research was undertaken to address these needs. The purpose of this review was to analyze the current solutions, approaches, and technologies that workers and specialists can implement to obtain a reliable remote collaboration system. This survey focuses on techniques, devices, and tools that are being used in different contexts to provide remote guidance. We present communication cues and methods being employed, the implemented technological support, and the areas that benefit from remote collaboration. We hope that our effort will be useful to those who develop such systems and people who want to learn about the existence of collaborative solutions, and that it will increase awareness about the applications and the importance of the domain. We are convinced that, with the development of communication systems, the advancement of remote support systems will be a goal for many economic operators.
On Small-Sample Inference in Multiphase Stepped Wedge Cluster Randomized Trial (MSW-CRT) With Binary Outcomes

BackgroundThe stepped wedge cluster randomized trial (SW-CRT) design is now preferred for many health- related trials because of its flexibility on resource allocation and clinical ethics concerns. However, as a necessary extension of studying multiple interventions, multiphase stepped wedge designs (MSW-CRT) have not been studied adequately. Since estimated intervention effect from Generalized estimating equations (GEE) has a population-average interpretation, valid inference methods for binary outcomes based on GEE are preferred by public health policy makers.MethodsWe form hypothesis testing of add-on effect of a second treatment based on GEE analysis in an MSW-CRT design with limited number of clusters. Four variance-correction estimators are used to adjust the bias of the sandwich estimator. Simulation studies have been used to compare the statistical power and type I error rate of these methods under different correlation matrices.Results We demonstrate that an average estimator with t(I-3) can stably maintain type I error close to the nominal level with limited sample sizes in our settings. We show that power of testing the add-on effect depends on the baseline event rate, effect sizes of two interventions and the number of clusters. Moreover, by changing the design with including more sequences, power benefit can be achieved. ConclusionsFor designing the MSW-CRT, we suggest using more sequences and checking event rate after initiating the first intervention via interim analysis. When the number of clusters is not very large in MSW-CRTs, inference can be conduct using GEE analysis with an average estimator with t(I-3) sampling distribution.
Adding Fairness to Order: Preventing Front-Running Attacks in BFT Protocols using TEEs

This paper presents Fairy: a modular system that augments any Total Order Broadcast (TOB) protocol with fairness properties, namely input (request) causality and sender obfuscation. With these properties, Fairy helps to prevent front-running attacks where an adversary can interfere with the order of requests depending on request payload and sender identity, allowing for substantial application-level consequences. Fairy leverages Trusted Execution Environments (TEEs) to implement fairness on top of a TOB-based ordering service. Fairy collocates TEEs with ordering service nodes effectively making them run as trusted proxies of actual TOB clients. TEEs help Fairy to achieve both input causality and sender obfuscation - previous related systems addressing only input causality. We evaluate Fairy on top of a recent, efficient Byzantine Fault-Tolerant (BFT) TOB protocol and compare it to state-of-the-art BFT TOB with input causality. We show that Fairy improves state-of-the-art throughput by 66% and reduces latency by 50%.