Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Assessing Symptom Burden and Depression in Subjects With Chronic Respiratory Insufficiency

Objectives: Patients with chronic respiratory insufficiency suffer from advanced disease, but their overall symptom burden is poorly described. We evaluated the symptoms and screening of depression in subjects with chronic respiratory insufficiency by using the Edmonton symptom assessment system (ESAS). Methods: In this retrospective study, 226 subjects with chronic respiratory insufficiency answered the ESAS questionnaire measuring symptoms on a scale from 0 (no symptoms) to 10 (worst possible symptom), and the depression scale (DEPS) questionnaire, in which the cut-off point for depressive symptoms is 9. Results: The most severe symptoms measured with ESAS (median [interquartile range]) were shortness of breath 4.0 (1.0-7.0), dry mouth 3.0 (1.0-7.0), tiredness 3.0 (1.0-6.0), and pain on movement 3.0 (0.0-6.0). Subjects with a chronic obstructive pulmonary disease as a cause for chronic respiratory insufficiency had significantly higher scores for shortness of breath, dry mouth, and loss of appetite compared to others. Subjects with DEPS ≥9 reported significantly higher symptom scores in all ESAS categories than subjects with DEPS <9. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for ESAS depression score predicting DEPS ≥9 was 0.840 (P < .001). If the ESAS depression score was 0, there was an 89% probability of the DEPS being <9, and if the ESAS depression score was ≥4, there was an 89% probability of the DEPS being ≥9. The relation between ESAS depression score and DEPS was independent of subjects’ characteristics and other ESAS items. Conclusions: Subjects with chronic respiratory insufficiency suffer from a high symptom burden due to their advanced disease. The severity of symptoms increases with depression and 4 or more points in the depression question of ESAS should lead to a closer diagnostic evaluation of depression. Symptom-centered palliative care including psychosocial aspects should be early integrated into the treatment of respiratory insufficiency.
Energy harvesting from a backpack instrumented with piezoelectric shoulder straps

Over the past few decades the use of portable and wearable electronics has grown steadily. These devices are becoming increasingly more powerful. However, the gains that have been made in the device performance have resulted in the need for significantly higher power to operate the electronics. This issue has been further complicated due to the stagnant growth of battery technology over the past decade. In order to increase the life of these electronics, researchers have begun investigating methods of generating energy from ambient sources such that the life of the electronics can be prolonged. Recent developments in the field have led to the design of a number of mechanisms that can be used to generate electrical energy, from a variety of sources including thermal, solar, strain, inertia, etc. Many of these energy sources are available for use with humans, but their use must be carefully considered such that parasitic effects that could disrupt the user’s gait or endurance are avoided. These issues have arisen from previous attempts to integrate power harvesting mechanisms into a shoe such that the energy released during a heal strike could be harvested. This study develops a novel energy harvesting backpack that can generate electrical energy from the differential forces between the wearer and the pack. The goal of this system is to make the energy harvesting device transparent to the wearer such that his or her endurance and dexterity is not compromised. This will be accomplished by replacing the traditional strap of the backpack with one made of the piezoelectric polymer polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF). Piezoelectric materials have a structure such that an applied electrical potential results in a mechanical strain. Conversely, an applied stress results in the generation of an electrical charge, which makes the material useful for power harvesting applications. PVDF is highly flexible and has a high strength, allowing it to effectively act as the load bearing member. In order to preserve the performance of the backpack and user, the design of the pack will be held as close to existing systems as possible. This paper develops a theoretical model of the piezoelectric strap and uses experimental testing to identify its performance in this application.
Status of high current R&D Energy Recovery LINAC at Brookhaven National Laboratory

An ampere class 20 MeV superconducting Energy Recovery Linac (ERL) is under construction at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) for testing of concepts relevant for high-energy coherent electron cooling and electron-ion colliders. One of the goals is to demonstrate an electron beam with high charge per bunch ({approx} 5 nC) and low normalized emittance ({approx} 5 mm-mrad) at an energy of 20 MeV. Flexible lattice of ERL loop provides a test-bed for investigating issues of transverse and longitudinal instabilities, and diagnostics for intense CW e-beam. The superconducting 703 MHz RF photoinjector is considered as an electron source for such a facility. We will start with a straight pass (gun - 5 cell cavity - beam stop) test for the SRF Gun performance studies. Later, we will install and test a novel injection line concept for emittance preservation in a lower energy merger. In this paper we present the status and our plans for construction and commissioning of this facility.
Experimental determination of modulation power of lung tissue for particle therapy

In particle therapy of lung tumors, modulating effects on the particle beam may occur due to the microscopic structure of the lung tissue. These effects are caused by the heterogeneous nature of the lung tissue and cannot be completely taken into account during treatment planning, because these micro structures are too small to be fully resolved in the planning CT. In several publications, a new material parameter called modulation power (P mod ) was introduced to characterize the effect. For various artificial lung surrogates, this parameter was measured and published by other groups and ranges up to approximately 1000 μm. Studies investigating the influence of the modulation power on the dose distribution during irradiation are using this parameter in the rang of 100–800 μm. More precise measurements for P mod on real lung tissue have not yet been published. In this work, the modulation power of real lung tissue was measured using porcine lungs in order to produce more reliable data of P mod for real lung tissue. For this purpose, ex-vivo porcine lungs were frozen in a ventilated state and measurements in a carbon ion-beam were performed. Due to the way the lungs were prepared and transferred to a solid state, the lung structures that modulate the beam could also be examined in detail using micro CT imaging. An optimization of the established methods of measuring the modulation power, which takes better account of the typical structures within lung tissue, was developed as well.
Accidents at blackspots: Estimating the effectiveness of remedial treatment with special reference to the 'Regression-to-Mean' effect

This paper proposes to show that the Bayesian approach is particularly well-suited to analyzing accident blackspot data, and providing information on which to judge the effectiveness of remedial treatment. This method has two main advantages: (1) it focuses the user's attention on the subjective nature of certain aspects of the problem (other methods tend to ignore this), and (2) it automatically takes account of the "regression-to-mean" effect. It also answers a practical question for the traffic engineer, of whether the regression-to-mean effect is likely to be sufficiently large to be worth worrying about for sites in his area, by illustrating the problem with some typical calculations for sites in two local authority areas in the South of England.
Friction free force-reflecting type bilateral control based on twin drive system considering 2nd resonant frequency and unbalance friction

This paper proposes a new friction free bilateral system based on twin drive control system considering it’s resonant frequency. The twin drive system consists of two motors that are coupled by the differential gear. The output torque becomes a differential torque of both motors. The nonlinear friction torque of the twin drive system is easily compensated. However, this system has the resonant frequencies and the anti-resonant frequencies which are caused by the torsional vibration. This paper proposes a new three-inertial-model of twin drive system, and identifies the resonant frequencies and it’s friction torque. The proposed controller can suppress the torsional vibration without high order control design. Therefore, the operationality of bilateral teleoperation is improved by the proposed system. Fig. 1 shows the proposed vibration suppression control system. Fig. 2 show the experimental results of the proposed force-reflecting type bilateral system. Fig. 2(a) is result without vibration suppression control. Fig. 2(b) is result of two mass designed vibration suppression controller. And Fig. 2(c) is result of three mass designed vibration suppression controller with two mass observer. The conventional control method has vibration phenomenon. However, the proposed control method has no vibration phenomenon in comparison with the control method without vibration suppression control loop. From Fig. 2, the experimental results confirm that the can proposed vibration suppression control system suppresses the torsional vibration, without reducing the bandwidth of the system.
A marine forensic analysis of the RMS TITANIC

During Oceans Conference in 1994, there was a panel discussion on how the RMS Titanic met her fate on 14 April 1912. Was it a case of brittle fracture? Was there a 300-foot gash as some writers have written? Did the ship fracture in two or three pieces and, if so, why did it happen? In 1994 and again in 1998, the Discovery Channel and the RMS Titanic, Inc. Mounted expeditions to the wreck site to answer these questions. The assistance of the Marine Forensics Panel of the Society of the Naval Architects and Marine Engineers was requested to provide technical assistance for a marine forensic investigation. This paper will demonstrate the techniques that are now available for solving the riddle of famous ship losses such as the Titanic using modern technology and computer analysis.
Institutional repositories and research assessment

This study concerns the potential role of institutional repositories in supporting research assessment in universities with specific reference to the Research Assessment Exercises in the UK. After a brief look at research evaluation methods, it introduces the UK Research Assessment Exercise (RAE), focusing on its role in determining the distribution of research funding, the assessment process itself, and some concerns that have been raised by participants and observers. The study will then introduce institutional repositories and consider the ways in which they might be used to enhance the research assessment process in the UK. It will first consider the role of repositories in providing institutional support for the submission and review process. Secondly, the paper will consider the ways in which citation linking between papers in repositories might be used as the basis for generating quantitative data on research impact that could be used for assessment. Thirdly, this study will consider other ways in which repositories might be able to provide quantitative data, e.g. usage statistics or Webometric link data, which may be able to be used - together with other indicators - to support the evaluation of research.
Radially-dependent ignition process of a pulsed capacitively coupled RF argon plasma over 300 mm-diameter electrodes: multi-fold experimental diagnostics

A synergistic combination of multi-diagnostic methods are proposed to investigate temporal evolution of electrical and plasma parameters at various radial positions over 300 mm-diameter electrodes during the pre-ignition, ignition, and post-ignition phases of a pulsed capacitively coupled radio-frequency (RF) argon discharge. The electron density, n e, and the optical emission intensity (OEI) of argon at 750.4 nm at different radial positions are measured time-resolved by using a hairpin probe and an optical probe, respectively. A B-dot probe is employed to determine the waveforms of the azimuthal magnetic field at different radii, from which the waveforms of the axial current density at corresponding radial positions are derived based on Ampere’s law. Then, the time evolution of the power density at various radii can be calculated, provided that the voltage drop between the electrodes is independent of radius. Meanwhile, the time-dependent total power deposited into the reactor is calculated with the voltage and the current waveforms measured by a voltage and a current probe at the power feeding point. It was found that during pre-ignition phase, the OEI and n e cannot be measurable due to extremely low power deposition when the system exhibits pure capacitive impedance. During the ignition phase, the OEI, the power density, and the current density exhibit the most significant increase at the electrode center, while the time evolution of n e measured by the hairpin probe seems to exhibit a relatively weak radial dependence during this phase. In particular, at r ⩽ 8 cm, the OEI at every radius was observed to change with time in the same manner as the power density during the ignition phase, because the RF power is absorbed primarily by electrons, which dissipate their energy via inelastic collisions. Shortly, the profile of n e becomes edge-high during the post-ignition phase and remains thereafter until the end of the pulse-on period. Methodologically, the synergistic diagnostics lay the foundation for extensive studies on spatiotemporal evolution of plasma ignition process under broader conditions, e.g. electronegative gas, lower working gas pressure and very high driving frequency, widely used by practical etching process.
Substrate current measurements in thin SOI MOSFET's at 300 and 77 K

Measurements of impact-ionized hole current in fully depleted SOI (silicon-on-insulator) MOSFETs at room temperature and liquid nitrogen temperature are reported. The measured current exhibits properties similar to those of the substrate current in bulk transistors, except for higher drain biases when the parasitic bipolar in the device is significant. Since the body contact is effective in collecting only a small fraction of the total generated hole current, the body contact cannot be used to eliminate the bipolar action in thin SOI, at least for channel widths on the order of 10 mu m. >
Baseband pulse shaping

The use of the Gaussian pulse amplitude modulated with a sin x/x waveform for baseband pulse shaping is suggested. This produces less intersymbol interference than in the commonly used procedure employing gradual roll off in the frequency domain. Further the frequency characteristic also falls off as fast as exp (−x2) asymptotically.
Deflecting velocity rod for flow measurements in small channels

A hinged rod, when immersed in flowing water, deflects against its weight due to the hydrodynamic force of water. A relationship was derived to calculate the average flow velocity in small channels from the deflection of the rod, length and thickness of the rod, density of the rod's material, flow depth, and an experimentally determined rod's velocity coefficient. The rod's velocity coefficient was found to be invariant with flow velocity (V) and Reynolds number (R) for the range investigated in this study (V ⩽ 60 cm/s and 25,000 ⩽ R ⩽ 60,000). The calculated velocity compared very well with the measured velocity, with an average error of only 0.7%. Analysis suggested that a rectangular rod made of seasoned wood (density ⩾ 0.7) with length = 100 cm, width = 2 to 4 cm, and thickness = 3 to 5 cm will provide a simple but acceptable technique for determination of average flow velocity in small prismatic channels having a flow velocity ⩽1 m/s and flow depth ⩽45 cm with less than 5% error.
Project-based companies as learning organisations: systems theory perspective

The determination of viable approaches with which to help project-based companies ensure that learning takes place continuously is a very important issue. In this paper, we suggest that the systemic view provides an approach through which we may advance our understanding of the dynamics of project-based companies' learning, including both individual and social learning. This conceptual paper provides a description of a project-based company as a learning organisation using the systemic view. The discussion starts with an illustration of the concept of a project-based company. The essential components of the systemic view are then described. Following that, the concepts of learning organisations and of organisational learning are highlighted. Finally, the project-based company as a learning organisation is described. We conclude that project-based companies need to start looking at learning issues as systemic problems, rather than as problems that are solved from the standpoint of the individual, and therefore, to seek systems-integrated solutions. This means, for example, that project-based companies need to understand that they function as, and within, living, ongoing processes that require inputs, outputs, and feedback.
Stability of Activation Time Imaging From Single Beat Data Under Clinical Conditions

During the past years noninvasive activation time (AT) imaging from electrocardiograph^ (EGG) mapping data has been developed to a promising method. Several research programs aim at a clinical validation and application of tliis novel diagnostic tool. An important aspect is the stability of the AT imaging approach under clinical conditions where various errors may influence the inverse solution. Sources of error are the imaging (e.g., MRI scan) and modelling procedure of the anatomy and the coupling of the EGG signals with the patient's geometry. Moreover, devices in the catheter laboratory, e.g. monitors, often worsen the signal-to-noise ratio of the surface EGG signals. In addition, physiological noise (e.g., atrial activity overlaid onto the ventricular activity) strongly affects the stability of the inverse solution. In some cases it is possible to separate the target wave from the surface EGG by signal-subtraction techniques [1]. In this study we investigated the stability of the AT imaging technique in two patients suffering from the WP\Vsyndrome (Wolff-Parkinson-White), who underwent an electrophysiological study. Single beat EGG recordings
Modeling of Surface Waviness in Abrasive Waterjet Offset-Mode Turning

In this paper, surface waviness produced by turning aluminum parts with abrasive waterjet has been studied regarding changes in some process parameters. Effect of five major parameters such as water pressure, cutting head traverse speed, abrasive mass flow rate, workpiece rotational speed and depth of cut have been investigated using analysis of variances. Second order regression model presented forwaviness.The validity of the model wasconfirmed bycomparing with experimental data. It found thatabrasive mass flow rate, cutting head traverse speed and DOC are the most influencing parameters while water pressure and workpiece rotational speed show lesser effectiveness.
Field Measurement Analysis and Control Measures Evaluation of Metro Vehicle Noise Caused by Rail Corrugation

The noise caused by rail corrugation seriously affects the operation quality of metro vehicles. In this work, the rail corrugation, interior noise and wheel–rail noise of a metro line were tested, and the test results were compared with those after two kinds of treatments. The results show that rail corrugation is the main cause of the abnormal interior noise. The interior noise in many sections exceeds the limit, where clear rail corrugations from 31.5~63 mm are found. When the train passes through the rail corrugation section, the interior noise shows a clear increase, and the maximum increase is higher than 25 dB(A). After increasing the lateral stiffness of the track and rail grinding, the interior noise is reduced by 11.4 dB(A). After a long renovation time, the interior noise is effectively equal to that when the renovation was completed. The research results of this work can provide a reference for rail corrugation treatment and noise control.
MODELING UNCERTAINTY IN PROJECT SCHEDULING

Projects frequently run late and over budget because of two probabilistic phenomena: the statistics of parallel tasks and the effect of the central limit theorem on right-skewed probability distributions. These factors combine to virtually assure failure to meet the predicted timeline and budget. The best way to avoid these problems is to model project schedules stochastically. Even so, the P10 – P90 1 uncertainty range for the total timeline is often underestimated due to failure to capture dependencies between inputs. However, determining the appropriate correlation factor between each pair of tasks on a major project is practically impossible (and implementing them is sometimes literally impossible). One solution is to use a “global correlation factor. ” Although scientifically impure, such a factor is a practical way to generate overall project schedule ranges that reflect reality. Even with this approach, cost overruns are further exacerbated by the MAIMS principle: Money Allocated Is Money Spent.
Recent advances in reinforcement learning in finance

The rapid changes in the finance industry due to the increasing amount of data have revolutionized the techniques on data processing and data analysis and brought new theoretical and computational challenges. In contrast to classical stochastic control theory and other analytical approaches for solving financial decision‐making problems that heavily reply on model assumptions, new developments from reinforcement learning (RL) are able to make full use of the large amount of financial data with fewer model assumptions and to improve decisions in complex financial environments. This survey paper aims to review the recent developments and use of RL approaches in finance. We give an introduction to Markov decision processes, which is the setting for many of the commonly used RL approaches. Various algorithms are then introduced with a focus on value‐ and policy‐based methods that do not require any model assumptions. Connections are made with neural networks to extend the framework to encompass deep RL algorithms. We then discuss in detail the application of these RL algorithms in a variety of decision‐making problems in finance, including optimal execution, portfolio optimization, option pricing and hedging, market making, smart order routing, and robo‐advising. Our survey concludes by pointing out a few possible future directions for research.