Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ratings, rankings and managing numbers: Professionals' perspectives on user surveys in Swedish nursing home care

Public sector services are audited, measured and ranked in order to improve quality and transparency and to prompt organizations to conform to normative definitions of quality. In Swedish eldercare, a nationwide user survey distributed by the public authorities to all eldercare users, designed to gauge user satisfaction, is a prominent example of this form of soft governance. The aim of the present study is to investigate nursing home representatives' meaning making of the user survey and its function. The findings from 24 qualitative interviews suggest that despite professional scepticism about flawed measurement procedures and tools and thus the validity of the survey results, organizations adjust the care they offer in order to improve low scores. External pressure and the risk of shame and a bad reputation may explain their willingness to let survey results guide their organizational improvements. The article concludes that practitioners may rely on their professional knowledge to dismiss the validity of normative external demands on one level but still manage such demands by making organizational changes on another level for the sake of good reviews. Moving between these levels makes it possible for respondents to be simultaneously critical and compliant. As an organization will need to appeal to external assessors of quality if it is to manage its reputation by achieving high scores, the audience's perceptions risk overriding care users' voices—the very voices the survey is intended to listen to. (Less)
Physiological and Biochemical Mechanisms of Exogenously Applied Selenium for Alleviating Destructive Impacts Induced by Salinity Stress in Bread Wheat

Salinity is a major abiotic stress that poses great obstacles to wheat production, especially in arid regions. The application of exogenous substances can enhance plant salt tolerance and increase its productivity under salinity stress. This work aimed to assess the mechanisms of selenium (Se) at different concentrations (2, 4 and 8 μM SeCl2) to mitigate hazardous impacts of salt toxicity at physiological, biochemical and agronomic levels in bread wheat. The results displayed that Se foliar application increased chlorophyll content, net photosynthetic rate, transpiration rate, stomatal conductance, relative water content, membrane stability index, excised leaf water retention, proline, total soluble sugars, Ca content, K content, antioxidant enzyme activities and non-enzymatic antioxidant compounds compared to untreated plants. On the other hand, Se application decreased the content of Na, hydrogen peroxide and superoxide contents. Accordingly, our findings recommend exogenous Se application (in particular 8 μM) to alleviate the deleterious effects induced by salinity stress and improve wheat yield attributes through enhancing antioxidant defense systems and photosynthetic capacity.
INVESTIGATION OF ANALGESIC, ANTIOXIDANT, AND CYTOTOXIC PROPERTIES OF THE ETHANOLIC EXTRACT OF STREBLUS ASPER (ROOTS)

Objective: This study evaluated the analgesic, antioxidant, and cytotoxic effects of ethanolic extract of Streblus asper roots. Methods: Analgesic activities were carried out using paw licking and writhing tests. The extract was used at doses of 250 and 500 mg/kg per orally in Swiss albino mice of body weight 25–30 g. Antioxidant properties were investigated using 1, 1-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl free-radical scavenging assay, total phenol content, total flavonoid content as well as reducing power capacity. The cytotoxic activity was determined by the Brine Shrimp lethality bioassay. Results: The ethanolic extract of S. asper roots showed a significant effect in the formalin test (p<0.01). They also exhibit the highest analgesia (p<0.01) in the acetic acid-induced writhing model as well. The extract possessed antioxidant effects in all the models. It possessed a good cytotoxic activity. Conclusion: The results suggested that S. asper root extract has a suitable analgesic, antioxidant effect as well as significant cytotoxic potential.
ECG Denoising Methodology using Intrinsic Time Scale Decomposition and Adaptive Switching Mean Filter

Electrocardiogram (ECG) is a widely employed tool for the analysis of cardiac disorders. A clean ECG is often desired for proper treatment of cardiac ailments. However, in the real scenario, ECG signals are corrupted with various noises during acquisition and transmission. In this article, an efficient ECG de-noising methodology using combined intrinsic time scale decomposition (ITD) and adaptive switching mean filter (ASMF) is proposed. The standard performance metric namely output SNR improvement measure the efficacy of the proposed technique at various signal to noise ratio (SNR). The proposed de-noising methodology is compared with other existing ECG de-noising approaches. A detail qualitative and quantitative study and analysis indicate that the proposed technique can be used as an effective tool for de-noising of ECG signals and hence can serve for better diagnostic in computer-based automated medical system. The performance of the proposed work is compared with existing ECG de-noising techniques namely wavelet soft thresholding based filter (DWT) [16], EMD with DWT technique [18], DWT with ADTF technique [19]. The effectiveness of the presented work has been evaluated in both qualitative and quantitative analysis. All the simulations are carried out using MATLAB software environment.
Photovoice as a Research Technique for Student Learning and Empowerment: A Case Study from a South Texas Border Town

Abstract Criminal justice (CJ) education often includes culminating research courses as part of its curriculum. Many of these courses follow a traditional process of considering ethics, theory, research design, quantitative and qualitative methods, and aspects of experiential learning. However, the pedagogy around engaging contemporary modes of knowledge building in CJ, especially those that critique traditional models and rely on new technologies, is lacking. This paper documents our experience using Photovoice methods to empower students as both residents and researchers to systematically assess manifestations of social disorganization in a mid-sized city along the U.S.-Mexico border. We first introduce how other disciplines have incorporated Photovoice into pedagogy, then focus on using a Photovoice study in the CJ classroom to investigate and understand social disorganization in a South Texas border town and consider influences for social action. We conclude with lessons learned and ideas for teacher-scholar-activists to engage in new modes of research pedagogy.
Application of Collision Warning Algorithm Alarm in Fishing Vessel’s Waterway

The aim of this study is to apply a collision warning algorithm for a small fishing vessel in a fishing waterway to verify its alarm operation and to validate its feasibility. For this purpose, a scenario-based real ship test was conducted, and cases extracted from real sea data (Vpass data) were applied. Moreover, zones with frequent alarms and high-risk waters were compared. First, we installed millimeter-wave communication terminals in three small fishing vessels and applied our algorithm based on two scenarios. Furthermore, we applied the collision warning algorithm by extracting two cases encountered by multiple ships from the Vpass data. The results show that the algorithm triggered alarms continuously under risky situations. This study also compares waterway risk levels as assessed by maritime risk-assessment tools (potential assessment of risk model, environment stress model, and International Association of Marine Aids to Navigation and Lighthouse Authorities Waterway Risk Assessment Program MkII) and the locations having frequent alarms based on Vpass data collected for 7 days. Not only did the eastern sea of Yeongheung Island indicate that more alarms were triggered, but we found high-risk results from the risk-level assessment, indicating that the risky zones and the frequent alarm zones were identical. Additional research is necessary to develop an algorithm based on qualitative evaluation by actual ship operators. In addition, since fishing vessels navigate differently from general navigation methods during fishing, it is necessary to develop additional algorithms for this.
Constant frequency, non-isolated multichannel LED driver based on variable inductor

National Natural Science Foundation of China, Grant/Award Number: 61876059 Abstract To obtain the required LED‐driving current, variable frequency control directly leads to large reactive circulation, and the design of the electromagnetic interference circuit is more complex. However, soft switching cannot be guaranteed by constant frequency operation under load variations. Hence, a multiplex LED‐dimming circuit based on a variable inductor is proposed that completes the constant frequency operation and realizes zero‐voltage switching to improve efficiency. The proposed circuit with a superimposed half‐bridge structure increases the number of outputs and simultaneously shares the resonant inductor so that the power density is improved and the LED‐dimming unit is simplified. The working principle of the circuit is described—it uses eight‐channel output to build an 80 Wexperimental prototype to verify the feasibility of the LED driver.
Exploring Hybrid-Multimodal Routing to Improve User Experience in Urban Trips

Millions of individuals rely on urban transportation every day to travel inside cities. However, it is not clear how route parameters (e.g., traffic conditions, waiting times) influence users when selecting a particular route option for their trips. These parameters play an important role in route recommendation systems, and most of the currently available applications omit them. This work introduces a new hybrid-multimodal routing algorithm that evaluates different routes that combine different transportation modes. Hybrid-multimodal routes are route options that might consist of more than one transportation mode. The motivation to use different transportation modes is to avoid unpleasant trip segments (e.g., traffic jams, long walks) by switching to another mode. We show that the possibility of planning a trip with different transportation modes can lead to improvement of cost, duration, and quality of experience urban trips. We outline the main research contributions of this work, as (i) an user experience model that considers time, price, active transportation (i.e., non-motorized transport) acceptability, and traffic conditions to evaluate the hybrid routes; and, (ii) a flow clustering technique to identify relevant mobility flows in low-sampled datasets for reducing the data volume and allow the execution of the analytical evaluation. (i) uses a Discrete Choice Analyses framework to model different variables and estimate a value for user experience in the trip. (ii) is a methodology to aggregate mobility flows by using Spatio-temporal Clustering and identify the most relevant of these flows using Curvature Analysis. We evaluate the proposed hybrid-multimodal routing algorithm with data from the Green and Yellow Taxis of New York, Citi Bike NYC data, and other publicly available datasets; and, different APIs, such as Uber and Google Directions. The results reveal that selecting hybrid routes can benefit passengers by saving time or reducing costs, and sometimes both, when compared to routes using a single transportation mode.
Prediction Techniques of Heart Disease and Diabetes Disease using Machine Learning

Heart disease and Diabetes disease is one of the most common diseases. These diseases are quite common nowadays so we used different attributes which can relate to these diseases well to find the better method to predict and we also used algorithms for prediction. Generally, People in IT sectors are becoming stressed due to their busy schedules and targets. So, they don’t have sufficient time to take care of their health and families. To overcome this, we have created a website named MEDCARE to collect the sensor data and to produce the result. Notwithstanding this weight is the serious issue which is making a significant effect in everybody's life. So that in this web application they can likewise see their wellbeing status by weight list (Body Mass Index). Random Forest Classifier and K Nearest Neighbour, algorithm is analyzed on data set based on risk factors. Here the trained data sets and incoming test cases are processed by a machine learning algorithm and produce the results accordingly. Perform enlightening examination on heart disease illness forecast, bosom malignancy expectation and diabetes forecast utilizing key components like Glucose levels, Blood Pressure, Skin Thickness, BMI and so forth Outwardly investigate these factors, you may have to search for the dissemination of these factors utilizing histograms. On the off chance that they neglect to screen their health status the application will inform the employee to deal with their health.
Examining the Relationship Between Racialized Poverty Segregation and Hazardous Industrial Facilities in the U.S. Over Time

Scholars interested in understanding the unequal exposure to environmental harms by race and class have often relied on urban sociological theory. Specifically, the argument that the outmigration of middle-class Whites and African Americans from America’s industrial areas, and the decline in manufacturing employment in these communities, concentrated minority poverty around industrial sites. These nested, community-level, processes have not yet been measured as such in the environmental inequality literature. This article addresses this limitation by using spatial measures of poverty segregation between and within racial groups. Multilevel models are presented that examine how the density of industrial facilities is related to the economic health of a host tract, the broader economic context of the county, and the level of poverty segregation (both within and between racial/ethnic groups). Results demonstrate a spatial separation of the economic benefits and environmental harms across the United States, a pattern that has remained consistent over time.
Thigh muscle segmentation using a hybrid FRFCM-based multi-atlas method and morphology-based interpolation algorithm

The volume of lower extremity muscles is affected by some diseases. Quantiﬁcation of thigh muscles in medical images can lead to an easier investigation of these diseases. Most of the previous works in thigh muscle segmentation are based on models and atlases that require manually segmented datasets in 3D. As manual segmentation of these muscles is a time-consuming task, in this work, only one initial slice is segmented by a new hybrid FRFCM-based multi-atlas method and other slices are segmented based on this slice. In the proposed method, after noise reduction, the muscle region is extracted from other tissues by the FRFCM method. Then, an initial slice of each dataset is segmented by a multi-atlas method. The segmented muscles in the initial slice are used to segment muscles in the other slices of each dataset. The proposed method was evaluated with 20 CT datasets. The average DSC, Precision, and Sensitivity of the method for individual muscle segmentation were 91 . 20 ± 2 . 37, 91 . 95 ± 3 . 54, and 90 . 71 ± 3 . 89, respectively. The quantitative and intuitive results of the proposed method show the better results of this method in comparison to other state-of-the-art thigh muscle segmentation techniques.
A New Stabilization Algorithm for Mechanical Systems with Underactuation Degree One based on Controlled Lagrangians

A new stabilization control algorithm based on controlled Lagrangian method for a class of mechanical systems with underactuation degree one is presented in this paper. Firstly, a desired controlled system with the Lagrangian structure and desired properties is constructed. By equating the underactuated system with the desired system, the matching condition and controller structure are determined. A sufficient condition for the matching condition to be held is derived, and from the sufficient condition desired kinetic energy, potential energy, gyroscopic forces and dissipative forces of the desired system can be solved explicitly. Compared with the existing matching conditions, to solve proposed sufficient condition at most two partial differential equations needs to be solved, and the rests are all algebraic equations, which is easier to solve. An algorithm to solve this sufficient condition is given in detail, and a nonlinear smooth feedback control law can be obtained to stabilize the underactuated systems. Finally, the novel control algorithm is applied to achieve almost global stability for a vertical takeoff and landing aircraft and to locally stabilize a Pendubot with two degrees of freedom at the highest point. Simulation results demonstrate effectiveness of the proposed method.
Physical activity and its clinical correlates in chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension

Abstract Limited data are available on physical activity (PhA) levels in chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) patients, as well as on the clinical utility of PhA measurements using questionnaires and accelerometers. We aimed to study PhA levels of CTEPH patients and their clinical correlates, and to compare PhA levels measured by the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) with measures from accelerometers. This is a cross‐sectional study (n = 50). PhA levels were measured using accelerometers and questionnaires (IPAQ). Clinical parameters evaluated were walked distance on the 6‐min‐walking test (6MWT), pulmonary vascular resistance, N‐terminal brain natriuretic peptide and quality of life (HRQoL) (Cambridge Pulmonary Hypertension Outcome Review questionnaire). Time spent in sedentary behavior was lower in self‐reported measurement (279 ± 165 min/day) compared with accelerometry (446 ± 117 min/day, p < 0.000). Accelerometer‐derived data showed that CTEPH patients spent 60% of the recorded time in sedentary behaviors and 2% in moderate‐to‐vigorous PhA (MVPA). Correlation analysis showed that MVPA was significantly correlated with 6MWT (p = 0.023) and symptom domain of HRQoL (p = 0.044). Self‐reported MVPA was significantly higher than the one registered by the accelerometer (411 ± 569 vs. 131 ± 108 min/week, p = 0.027). Bland−Altman analysis indicated poor agreement between the two methods. Our results showed that CTEPH patients spend most of their days in sedentary behaviors and only a small amount of time in MVPA. Only MVPA was associated with HRQoL and CTEPH severity. In addition, we showed a poor agreement between self‐reported and accelerometer‐derived PhA in CTEPH patients, with the former overestimating the overall PhA.
Health‐related quality of life in cutaneous T‐cell lymphoma: A cross‐sectional survey study

Summary Background Patients with cutaneous T‐cell lymphoma (CTCL) often have indolent but symptomatic disease. Objective Assessment of the health‐related quality of life (HRQoL) of patients with CTCL. Methods Cross‐sectional survey study. HRQoL was measured by Skindex‐16 and FACT‐G. Results A total of 372 responses were received; 80 incomplete/ineligible responses were excluded. A majority of respondents identified as white (87%; 250/288) and female (67%; 193/286) with a mean age of 57 ± 14 years. Most patients had early‐stage (IA–IIA) (74%; 162/203) mycosis fungoides (87%; 241/279). There were 33 (12%; 33/279) patients with Sézary syndrome. Mean itch score (visual analogue scale; VAS) was 3.2 ± 2.8, overall; 2.7 ± 2.6 for early, and 4.2 ± 2.9 for advanced disease (p = 0.008). Thirty‐eight percent (108/284) and 24% (69/284) reported head/neck and groin/genital involvement, respectively. Overall HRQoL was 46 ± 27 (Skindex‐16) and 71 ± 19 (FACT‐G), with worse HRQoL for patients with advanced versus early disease (Skindex‐16: 67 vs. 40; p=<0.001, FACT‐G: 62 vs. 76; p = 0.001). Predictors of worse HRQoL included head/neck, hand/foot or groin/genital involvement, younger age and spending >15 min daily treating CTCL. Limitations Include anonymous survey methodology, underrepresentation of certain CTCL subtypes and non‐white respondents. Conclusions Patients with CTCL, particularly those with advanced disease or involvement of the head/neck, acral or groin/genital sites, experience significant impact on HRQoL.
Optimal Tuning of Fractional Order Controllers for Dual Active Bridge-Based DC Microgrid Including Voltage Stability Assessment

In this article, three evolutionary search algorithms: particle swarm optimization (PSO), simulated annealing (SA) and genetic algorithms (GA), have been employed to determine the optimal parameter values of the fractional-order (FO)-PI controllers implemented in the dual active bridge-based (DAB) DC microgrid. The optimum strategy to obtain the parameters of these FO-PI controllers is still a major challenge for many power systems applications. The FO-PI controllers implemented in the DAB are used to control the DC link voltage to the desired value and limit the current flowing through the converter. Accordingly, the investigated control system has six parameters to be tuned simultaneously; Kp1, Ki1, λ1 for FO-PI voltage controller and Kp2, Ki2, λ2 for FO-PI current controller. Crucially, this tuning optimization process has been developed to enhance the voltage stability of a DC microgrid. By observing the frequency-domain analysis of the closed-loop and the results of the subsequent time-domain simulations, it has been demonstrated that the evolutionary algorithms have provided optimal controller gains, which ensures the voltage stability of the DC microgrid. The main contribution of the article can be considered in the successful application of evolutionary search algorithms to tune the parameters of FO-based dual loop controllers of a DC microgrid scheme whose power conditioner is a DAB topology.
Ritual stone‐built architecture and shell midden foundation: A semisubterranean structure in hyperarid Atacama Desert coast, Northern Chile

Hunter‐gatherer architectural practices are one of the main sources of data to understand the complex land use of these societies. In the hyperarid Atacama Desert coast (Northern Chile), hunter‐gatherers‐fishers developed standardized stone‐built architecture during the Late Archaic period (∼5,700–4,000 cal years BP), interpreted so far as sedentary villages or long‐term campsites. Nevertheless, the lack of site formation process studies and systematic chronostratigraphies defy such functional interpretations. To address these issues, we reconstruct the lifecycle of a recently discovered semisubterranean structure at the Zapatero site (~25°S, Taltal). Combining stratigraphy, micromorphology, faunal and lithic analysis, as well as radiocarbon dating, we evidence a broad sequence involving different processes: shell midden formation; a stone‐structure; a prepared burial pit; a burning event; a short‐term occupational episode; and the entombment of the structure. We interpret this sequence as ritualized actions related to commemorative and place‐making activities. Our work stresses the need for new research programs at the Atacama Desert coast, based on geoarchaeological approaches, to understand hunter‐gatherer‐fisher middening and architectural practices from the very materiality involved in stratigraphy‐making processes.