Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Out of Thin Air? Astrobiology and Atmospheric Chemotrophy

The emerging understanding of microbial trace gas chemotrophy as a metabolic strategy to support energy and carbon acquisition for microbial survival and growth has significant implications in the search for past, and even extant, life beyond Earth. The use of trace gases, including hydrogen and carbon monoxide as substrates for microbial oxidation, potentially offers a viable strategy with which to support life on planetary bodies that possess a suitable atmospheric composition, such as Mars and Titan. Here, we discuss the current state of knowledge of this process and explore its potential in the field of astrobiological exploration.
Topology Optimization Design and Experiment of a Soft Pneumatic Bending Actuator for Grasping Applications

Soft pneumatic bending actuators are commonly used in robotic grasping applications and can be applied for handling both delicate and irregularly shaped objects. Because these soft pneumatic actuators are typically embedded with multiple air chambers inside soft, thin structures, their maximum payloads are usually low compared to rigid designs of similar size. This article presents a soft pneumatic bending actuator design using a topology optimization procedure that can maximize the bending capability and thus increase the allowable payload of soft grippers that consist of multiple pneumatic bending actuators. After an optimum design is obtained, multiple identical actuators are prototyped through a molding process using a silicone rubber material. Both two-fingered and three-fingered soft grippers are developed using the topology-optimized pneumatic bending actuators. Experiments, including a bending angle test, an output force test, and a payload test, are conducted in this study, and the results are compared against the test results of the commercial SRT soft pneumatic actuator. The experimental results show that the bending angle for the developed bending actuator is 111 degrees on average of 10 tests at an input pressure of 50 kPa. The output force is 9.45 N at an input pressure of 80 kPa, while the maximum payloads of the two-fingered and three-fingered grippers are 2.66kg and 5.12kg, respectively.
Characterisation of Nitinol for the Design of Tuneable Transducers

Nickel-titanium (Nitinol) is a type of shape memory alloy (SMA) which has found popularity in a wide range of engineering applications. The material possesses a number of transformation temperatures which govern its behaviour, and these can be characterised by using a thermo-analytical technique, namely differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). In order for Nitinol, and similar SMAs, to be adopted in tuneable transducer technology, the transformation behaviour must be well understood. Nitinol can exist either as cubic austenite, intermediate rhombohedral R-phase, or monoclinic martensite. The material can be switched between these phases by stress or temperature influences [1], with each phase emerging through a start to finish temperature range. In addition, the heating and cooling of Nitinol exhibits thermal hysteresis. This paper discusses the characterisation of two types of Nitinol, one being superelastic and the other shape memory. The results allow for assessment of the effectiveness of the DSC technique in extracting the material behaviour. This assessment is complemented by dynamic characterisations of two cymbal ultrasonic transducers, one constructed of each type of Nitinol. The dynamic characterisations show how the Nitinol can be used to create devices that can be actively tuned by exploiting the different properties of each material phase.
A Retrospective Review of Psychosocial Outcomes After Microprocessor Knee Prescription

ABSTRACT Introduction Microprocessor knees have been shown to improve gait biomechanics and to reduce the frequency of falls, but evidence of their influence on psychosocial health is limited. Study Design Retrospective analysis. Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the change in psychosocial outcome measures when prosthetic users change from a non–microprocessor-controlled prosthetic knee (NMPK) to a microprocessor-controlled prosthetic knee (MPK). Methods Using validated outcome measures, physical and psychological attributes of 26 MPK users were analyzed using data collected at routine appointments. Baseline data were collected using NMPK limbs first, then compared with data collected 4 weeks and 6 months after initial MPK fitting. Results A significant improvement of 13.7% in Reintegration to Normal Living Index (RNLI) scores was observed after 6 months (P = 0.001). The Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) demonstrated a 64.6% significant reduction in the presence of depression-like symptoms after 6 months of MPK use (P < 0.001), including four participants who previously scored highly enough to be diagnosed with major depressive disorder. Frequency of falls reduced significantly as well (P < 0.001). Increases in self-selected walking speed were seen in both the 2-minute walk and 6-minute walk tests. Conclusions Significant improvements were seen in all psychosocial outcome measures, indicating participants' psychosocial health improved with the prescription of an MPK despite a lack of clinically important improvements in parallel performance-based outcome measures. Clinical Relevance MPKs are well documented to reduce trips and falls, which is corroborated by this research. However, the psychosocial benefits of MPKs are not documented extensively; this study provides evidence of an improvement in psychological wellbeing in this cohort.
Electronic Dictionary as a Tool for Integration of Additional Learning Content

Electronic Dictionary as a Tool for Integration of Additional Learning Content This article discusses electronic dictionary as an element of the „Bulgarian cultural and historical heritage under the protection of UNESCO” database developed in IMI (BAS), that will be used to integrate additional learning content. The electronic dictionary is described as an easily accessible book of reference, offering information to the shape, meaning, usage and the origin of words in connection to the cultural-historical heritage sites in Bulgaria, protected by UNESCO. The dictionary targets 9–11 year old students from Bulgarian schools, who study the subjects “Man and Society” in 4 th grade and “History and Civilization” in 5 th grade.
Graph-optimisation-based self-calibration method for IMU/odometer using preintegration theory

Determination of calibration parameters is essential for the fusion performance of an inertial measurement unit (IMU) and odometer integrated navigation system. Traditional calibration methods are commonly based on the filter frame, which limits the improvement of the calibration accuracy. This paper proposes a graph-optimisation-based self-calibration method for the IMU/odometer using preintegration theory. Different from existing preintegrations, the complete IMU/odometer preintegration model is derived, which takes into consideration the effects of the scale factor of the odometer, and misalignments in the attitude and position between the IMU and odometer. Then the calibration is implemented by the graph-optimisation method. The KITTI dataset and field experimental tests are carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed method. The results illustrate that the proposed method outperforms the filter-based calibration method. Meanwhile, the performance of the proposed IMU/odometer preintegration model is optimal compared with the traditional preintegration models.
Investigating the effects of compound paralogous EPHB receptor mutations on mouse facial development

Background: Variation in facial shape may arise from the combinatorial or overlapping actions of paralogous genes. Given its many members, and overlapping expression and functions, the EPH receptor family is a compelling candidate source of craniofacial morphological variation. We performed a detailed morphometric analysis of an allelic series of E14.5 Ephb1‐3 receptor mutants to determine the effect of each paralogous receptor gene on craniofacial morphology.
Analysis of the Coupling Effect of Thermal and Traffic Loads on Cement Concrete Pavement with Voids Repaired with Polymer Grout

Under the repeated action of traffic and thermal loads, a cement concrete pavement slab may partially lose contact with its base course, and voids may develop underneath the slab. Such distress will greatly impact the pavement performance. To fill the voids and restore the base support to the slab, the technology of polymer grouting has been increasingly adopted in recent years due to its advantages of quick application and high efficiency. There is, however, a lack of research on the mechanistic responses and performance of such a repaired rigid pavement under coupled influences of thermal and traffic loads. Existing literature has mainly focused on normal cement concrete pavement structures (i.e., without polymer grouted voids). This study intends to fill the research gap by investigating the time-domain characteristics of thermal stress response of a cement concrete pavement with underlying voids filled with polymer grout, along with design traffic loads. The finite element method was adopted with a 3-dimensional nonlinear temperature field within the pavement. A program module was developed in the Abaqus FEA software environment for temperature effect analysis. It was found that under the coupling action of thermal and traffic loads, thermal stress had a greater influence on the critical slab stress at the slab corner than those at other slab locations. Through the comparative analysis before and after polymer grouting repair, the critical tensile stress at the slab corner under the vehicle and thermal loads can be effectively reduced. The polymer performance is stable after three years.
Responses to infectious disease outbreaks in supported living environments for individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders: a scoping review

Background: Individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDD) are facing unprecedented challenges due to the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic. Congregate living, and conditions associated with NDD place increased challenges during infectious disease outbreaks and there is a need to understand evidence-based response procedures. The aim was to (1) map and synthesize literature regarding emergency response protocol in supported living environments for individuals with NDD and (2) identify gaps in the literature of response protocols in supported living environments for individuals with NDD. Methods: A scoping review was conducted to understand the published literature on emergency response across supported living environments for individuals with NDD during emergency situations and infectious disease outbreaks. Results: The ten studies included in the review detailed protocols including treatment, testing, isolation, surveillance, improved cleaning, use of protective equipment, and contact with public health professionals. The environment of supported living settings, and symptoms associated with NDD impacted the spread and severity of disease. Conclusion: The research findings highlight the susceptibility, severity and impact of infectious disease outbreaks for individuals with NDD in supported living environments. This research will promote the establishment and development of appropriate care and response during emergency situations in supported living environments.
Multi-objective Robust Optimization of Injection Molding Process Parameters Based on TOPSIS

Present approaches for the robust optimization of injection molding process parameters cannot thoroughly analyze the influence of uncontrollable factors due to the lack of outer experimental runs.And they are often single-objective optimization with no comprehensive evaluation on the characteristics of molded parts.To overcome these shortcomings,a novel multi-objective robust optimization method is proposed on the basis of parameter design using inner-outer array,analysis of signal to noise ratio(SNR) and the technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution(TOPSIS). The principal process parameters that have the most significant influence on the part quality are firstly screened out by executing two-level orthogonal experiments and analysis of variance(ANOVA),and then both inner and outer orthogonal arrays can be designed by taking the errors of principal process parameters as noise factors.The quadratic polynomial models for predicting the part quality of given process parameter scheme are formulated on the basis of uniform experimental design and stepwise regression analyses,which are then utilized to efficiently compute the values of quality indices corresponding to all parameter schemes arranged according to the inner-outer array.Thus the SNR of every chosen quality index corresponding to all the parameter schemes of the inner array can be efficiently obtained,based on which the preference of all inner schemes are sorted and the most robust one can be determined.The feasibility of the proposed method is demonstrated by the robust optimization of the process parameters for the injection of a mobile phone panel.
Constructing a roadmap to measure the quality of business assessments aimed at curriculum management

Abstract Assuring the quality of education is a concern of learning institutions. To do so, it is necessary to have assertive learning management, with consistent data on students’ outcomes. This research provides associate deans and researchers, a roadmap with which to gather evidence to improve the quality of open-ended assessments. Based on statistical methods, we used our results to discuss the validity and consistency of six assessments applied in Insper—an AACSB accredited school in Brazil. The roadmap was capable of targeting aspects needing improvement, which is better than having to discard the assessments and developing new ones, and stimulating faculty awareness to consistent metrics to accurately manage the curriculum.
Assessment of breast reconstruction with DIEP flaps

Reconstruction with a Deep Inferior Epigastric Perforator (DIEP) flap is considered to be the first choice forautologous breast reconstruction. Skin and fat are transplanted from the lower abdomen to the chest were theblood vessels are reconnected through microsurgery. A total of 309 patients with unilateral DIEP flap and 23patients with expander prosthesis (EP) reconstructions were included in the present studies aimed at illustratingand optimizing breast reconstruction with the DIEP flap technique.We evaluated blood flow before and after indirect heating, as well as sensitivity to touch, cold and warmth in tenwomen with reconstructed DIEP flaps. Indirect heating caused a significant increase of blood flow in both DIEPflaps and control breasts, and all patients regained some sensation of touch, cold and warmth.Surgery time and complication rates were studied in 64 patients randomized to preoperative mapping ofperforators with computer tomography angiography (CTA) or hand-held Doppler ultrasound (US) prior to DIEPsurgery. Surgery time and complication rates were nearly the same in the two groups.We studied 301 charts of patients with DIEP flap reconstructions to elucidate the impact of smoking habits andBody mass index (BMI) on complication rates. We discovered a significantly increased rate of donor sitecomplications in former smokers but differences in BMI did not make a significant difference in complications.Fifty patients were studied to assess early differences in health care consumption and complication rates followingdelayed breast reconstruction in non-irradiated women with DIEP flap or EP. DIEP reconstruction was a morecomplex and more health care consuming operation compared to EP surgery, which was often an easier solutionfrom the start. In summary, a DIEP flap reconstruction has its advantages and these might be even more obviousin the long run when aspects of patient satisfaction and quality of life can be observed. (Less)
What Makes Women Social Cynics? An Exploratory Study

Although women are comprised almost half of the human population, still their experiences as a minority within the larger social framework, affect the affective and behavioral aspects of their personality including social cynicism. Unfortunately, social cynicism had never been empirically studied from the perspective of women, especially indigenously. By applying a qualitative approach, this study explored an indigenous understanding of social cynicism in a sample of (N=20) young adult women through a focus group discussion (n=6) and open-ended questionnaires (n=14), respectively. Five central themes emerged after the thematic analysis of the transcribed data that included gender inequality and exploitation, misrepresentation and misinformation, negative beliefs and generalizations, authority and control, and lastly, safety and security concerns. The findings showed several distinctive and indigenous themes like paternal authoritarianism, religion-based misinterpretation and sense of imminent danger while a few sub-themes were consistent with the previous literature. By exploring the construct of social cynicism in women, this study had not only broadened the limits of existing research literature on this construct but its themes could be applied for indigenous theory and scale development.
Aeroacoustic Behaviour of a 1:11 Scale Airbus Model in the Open Anechoic Wind Tunnel CEPRA 19

This paper presents the analysis of aeroacoustic experiments performed with an Airbus 1/11 scaled aircraft model in the open anechoic wind tunnel CEPRA 19. This study aimed at checking the aerodynamic condition on the wing and characterizing the airframe noise sources. The results have shown that the flight aerodynamic conditions can be well reproduced in the wind tunnel by adjusting slightly the model pitch angle for each configuration. The main noise sources have been localized using a 2D cross-shaped array of microphones. Near-field/farfield correlations have been performed in order to study the spectral shape of these sources, completed in high frequencies with the analysis of the signals of flush mounted transducers. Different behavior were exhibited between low and high frequency range, for the wing leading edge noise and in the slotted flap region. The wind tunnel data have been transposed at full scale: using a geometric scaling factor, or a one based on Amiet's model for slat noise prediction. Depending on the scaling method used, the transposed data surround the flight
The Effect of Exchange Rate and Oil Price on Volatility of Inbound and Outbound Tourism Demand

This study analyzes the volatility of inbound and outbound tourism demand and interdependence of their volatility. In addition, we analyze the effect of exchange rate and oil price on the volatility. The DCC (dynamic conditional correlation)-MGARCH (multivariate generalized autoregressive conditional heteroscedasticity) model was used to reflect their interaction and correlation over time. First, inbound and outbound tourism demand did not affect each other significantly, but were influenced only by autoregressive variables. Second, the inbound and outbound tourism demand change rates have time varying conditional variance (volatility), and there was interdependence between volatility. Third, oil prices had a significant effect on the volatility of inbound and outbound tourism demand change rate, and the exchange rate had a significant effect on the volatility of outbound demand change rate. Government and tourism industry need to consider interdependence between volatility of inbound and outbound tourism demand and appropriately respond to the change in the exchange rate and international oil price to reduce risk in tourism industry.
Prevalence and Associated Factors of Chronic Kidney Disease Among Diabetic and Hypertensive Patients at Ambo Town Public Hospitals of West Shewa Zone, Oromia Region, Ethiopia

Background: Chronic kidney disease is a global public health important disease that is associated with life threatening outcomes including renal failure and premature mortality unless diagnosed and treated promptly. Diabetes Mellitus and hypertension are the two major causes of chronic kidney disease worldwide. This study is aimed to determine prevalence and associated factors of chronic kidney disease among diabetes mellitus and hypertensive patients at Ambo town public hospitals, EthiopiaMethods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at Ambo University referral and general hospitals on 308 study participants. The participants were interviewed using interviewer administered questionnaire when they come for follow up at a chronic illness follow-up clinic. The patient charts were reviewed to retrieve information regarding medications, blood pressure, serum Creatinine and glucose level. A chronic kidney disease epidemiology collaboration equation was used to estimate Glomerular filtration rate from serum Creatinine. Data were analyzed SPSS version 23 for statistical analysis. Binary logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors associated with chronic kidney disease. Variables with a p-value below 0.2 at bivariable analysis were entered into the multivariable logistic regression model. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to examine the association between dependent and independent variable and p-value less than 0.05 was used to declare statistical significance.Results: A total of 308 diabetes mellitus and hypertensive patients were included in the study from Ambo town public hospitals. Of which 156 (50.6%) participants were female with mean (± SD) age of 47.15 ± 12.06 years. The prevalence of chronic kidney disease (stage 3–5) was 20.5% with (95% CI: 16%-25%). Long duration of hypertension (AOR=4.89, 95% CI=1.93-12.40), elevated systolic blood pressure (>140mmHG) (AOR=3.20, 95% CI=1.36-7.51), family history (AOR=3.36, 95% CI=1.56-7.24) and age greater than 55 years (AOR=2.17, 95% CI=1.09-4.31) were predictors of chronic kidney disease.Conclusion: The prevalence of chronic kidney disease was high. Older age, elevated SBP, long duration of hypertension and family history of kidney disease were independent predictors of chronic kidney disease. A preventive plan is mandatory to reduce the disease and complications in the community.
3D Acoustic Manipulation of Living Cells and Organisms Based on 2D Array

Flexible manipulation techniques for living cells and organisms are extremely useful tools for fundamental biomedical and life science research. Acoustic tweezers, which permit non-contact, label-free manipulation, are particularly suited to micromanipulation tasks as they provide a large acoustic radiation force and can be applied in various media. Here, we describe the design and fabrication of a 3 MHz, 64-element (8 8), 2D planar ultrasound array that realizes the multidimensional translation, rotation, orientation, and levitation of living cells and organisms. The focusing vortex and twin fields are generated using the holographic acoustic elements framework method. We demonstrate that the eggs and larvae of brine shrimp can be translated along a preset trajectory by controlling the central position of the vortex. By multiplexing counterclockwise vortices, clockwise vortices, and twin trap fields in a time sequence, the rotation direction of the shrimp eggs can be switched in real time, while non-spherical larvae can be reoriented. Moreover, the reflection of the acoustic beam can lift eggs and larvae from the bottom of the culture dish and further manipulate them in the vertical and horizontal directions. Additionally, we present quantitative analyses of the relationships between the shrimp-egg rotation frequency and the focal depth, topological charge of the vortex, and excitation voltage. These results indicate that acoustic tweezers based on 2D matrix arrays can realize complex and selective manipulation of living cells and organisms, thereby demonstrating their value for advancing research in the fields of cell assembly, tissue engineering, and micro-robot driving.