Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Data augmentation and deep neural networks for the classification of Pakistani racial speakers recognition

Speech emotion recognition (SER) systems have evolved into an important method for recognizing a person in several applications, including e-commerce, everyday interactions, law enforcement, and forensics. The SER system’s efficiency depends on the length of the audio samples used for testing and training. However, the different suggested models successfully obtained relatively high accuracy in this study. Moreover, the degree of SER efficiency is not yet optimum due to the limited database, resulting in overfitting and skewing samples. Therefore, the proposed approach presents a data augmentation method that shifts the pitch, uses multiple window sizes, stretches the time, and adds white noise to the original audio. In addition, a deep model is further evaluated to generate a new paradigm for SER. The data augmentation approach increased the limited amount of data from the Pakistani racial speaker speech dataset in the proposed system. The seven-layer framework was employed to provide the most optimal performance in terms of accuracy compared to other multilayer approaches. The seven-layer method is used in existing works to achieve a very high level of accuracy. The suggested system achieved 97.32% accuracy with a 0.032% loss in the 75%:25% splitting ratio. In addition, more than 500 augmentation data samples were added. Therefore, the proposed approach results show that deep neural networks with data augmentation can enhance the SER performance on the Pakistani racial speech dataset.
Tools Detecting and/or Measuring Ethical Leadership: A Systematic Literature Review

The paper includes a Systematic Literature Review of the tools for detecting and/or measuring Ethical Leadership in the business world published between 2000 and 2020. The review attempts to explore, analyze and synthesize the most recent evidence from the field with the aim to summarize and integrate knowledge regarding Ethical Leadership. Our goal is to build a documentation framework for further research and future design of a more concise and accurate tool covering all possible aspects of Ethical Leadership. We choose the Systematic Literature Review method because it is structured and minimizes subjectivity when selecting and analyzing data. Our work addresses researchers/scholars, postgraduate students, PhD candidates, and private and public sector officials who need scientific evidence to support decision-making and/or policy designing.
Structured additive quantile regression with applications to modelling undernutrition and obesity of children

Quantile regression allows to model the complete conditional distribution of a response variable - expressed by its quantiles - depending on covariates, and thereby extends classical regression models which mainly address the conditional mean of a response variable. The present thesis introduces the generic model class of structured additive quantile regression. This model class combines quantile regression with a structured additive predictor and thereby enables a variety of covariate effects to be flexibly modelled. Among other components, the structured additive predictor comprises smooth non-linear effects of continuous covariates and individual-specific effects which are particularly important in longitudinal data settings. Furthermore, this thesis gives an extensive overview of existing approaches for parameter estimation in structured additive quantile regression models. These approaches are structured into distribution-free and distribution-based approaches as well as related model classes. Each approach is systematically discussed with regard to the four previously defined criteria, (i) which different components of the generic predictor can be estimated, (ii) which properties can be attributed to the estimators, (iii) if variable selection is possible, and, finally, (iv) if software is available for practical applications. The main methodological development of this thesis is a boosting algorithm which is presented as an alternative estimation approach for structured additive quantile regression. The discussion of this innovative approach with respect to the four criteria points out that quantile boosting involves great advantages regarding almost all criteria - in particular regarding variable selection. In addition, the results of several simulation studies provide a practical comparison of boosting with alternative estimation approaches. From the beginning of this thesis, the development of structured additive quantile regression is motivated by two relevant applications from the field of epidemiology: the investigation of risk factors for child undernutrition in India (by a cross-sectional study) and for child overweight and obesity in Germany (by a birth cohort study). In both applications, extreme quantiles of the response variables are modelled by structured additive quantile regression and estimated by quantile boosting. The results are described and discussed in detail.
Possibilities to form a modern reserve of supporting of a frequency in integrated power systems based on storage batteries for automatic adjustment of frequency and power

The paper considers the question creation of an effective system of adjustment of frequency and power using modern energy storage systems based on high-capacity accumulator batteries. Within the framework of the research, different types of frequency and power regulators were considered. The authors proposed an approach to the implementation of the adjustment system with the help of battery energy storage. There were performed comparative calculations of different adjustment systems and was demonstrated the advantage of the suggested approach. The research was performed by numerical simulation of the automatic system of adjustment of frequency and power with emergency imbalance. The efficiency of regulation was determined by the analysis of accepted indicators of regulation quality, namely, the maximum frequency deviation and the duration of the transient process. It was found that the use of the high-speed battery energy storage units in the automatic adjustment system of frequency and power demonstrates the best indicators of frequency stabilization, which satisfy the normative requirements established in the power system. The conducted analysis of the energy and economic indicators has shown the absolute advantage of using battery energy storage systems in both technological and economical terms over other variants of regulators. Keywords: frequency, regulation, power, speed, power system, battery energy storage systems
Méthodes primales-duales régularisées pour l'optimisation non linéaire avec contraintes

Cette these s’inscrit dans le cadre de la conception, l’analyse et la mise en œuvre d’algorithmes efficaces et fiables pour la resolution de problemes d’optimisation non lineaire avec contraintes. Nous presentons trois nouveaux algorithmes fortement primaux-duaux pour resoudre ces problemes. La premiere caracteristique de ces algorithmes est que le controle des iteres s’effectue dans l’espace primal-dual tout au long du processus de la minimisation, d’ou l’appellation “fortement primaux-duaux”. En particulier, la globalisation est effectuee par une methode de recherche lineaire qui utilise une fonction de merite primale-duale. La deuxieme caracteristique est l’introduction d’une regularisation naturelle du systeme lineaire qui est resolu a chaque iteration pour calculer une direction de descente. Ceci permet a nos algorithmes de bien se comporter pour resoudre les problemes degeneres pour lesquels la jacobienne des contraintes n’est pas de plein rang. La troisieme caracteristique est que le parametre de penalisation est autorise a augmenter au cours des iterations internes, alors qu’il est generalement maintenu constant. Cela permet de reduire le nombre d’iterations internes. Une etude theorique detaillee incluant l’analyse de convergence globale des iterations internes et externes, ainsi qu’une analyse asymptotique a ete presentee pour chaque algorithme. En particulier, nous montrons qu’ils jouissent d’un taux de convergence rapide, superlineaire ou quadratique. Ces algorithmes sont implementes dans un nouveau solveur d’optimisation non lineaire qui est appele SPDOPT. Les bonnes performances de ce solveur ont ete montrees en effectuant des comparaisons avec les codes de references IPOPT, ALGENCAN et LANCELOT sur une large collection de problemes.
The cognitive performance in the Phototest is predictor of biological markers of Alzheimer's disease

The abnormal cerebrospinal fluid levels of biomarkers, such as β‐amyloid and phosphorylated tau (pTau), support the biological diagnosis of Alzheimer Disease (AD) independently of its clinical stage. However, this invasive exam cannot be extensively applied and requires previous sound clinical screen that can be based on brief, well validated cognitive tests, such as the Phototest.
Topological photonics in metamaterials

Abstract. Originally a pure mathematical concept, topology has been vigorously developed in various physical systems in recent years, and underlies many interesting phenomena such as the quantum Hall effect and quantum spin Hall effect. Its widespread influence in physics led the award of the 2016 Nobel Prize in Physics to this field. Topological photonics further expands the research field of topology to classical wave systems and holds promise for novel devices and applications, e.g., topological quantum computation and topological lasers. Here, we review recent developments in topological photonics but focus mainly on their realizations based on metamaterials. Through artificially designed resonant units, metamaterials provide vast degrees of freedom for realizing various topological states, e.g., the Weyl point, nodal line, Dirac point, topological insulator, and even the Yang monopole and Weyl surface in higher-dimensional synthetic spaces, wherein each specific topological nontrivial state endows novel metamaterial responses that originate from the feature of some high-energy physics.
Perceived stress and hair cortisol concentration in a study of Mexican and Icelandic women

Hair cortisol concentration (HCC) represent a potential biomarker of chronic psychological stress. Previous studies exploring the association between perceived stress and HCC have been limited to relatively small and selected populations. We collected hair samples from 881 women from the Mexican Teachers’ Cohort (MTC) and 398 women from the Icelandic SAGA pilot-cohort following identical protocols. HCC was quantified using liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. The self-reported Perceived Stress Scale (PSS, 10 and 4 item, range 0–40 and 0–16) was used to assess psychological stress. We conducted multivariable linear regression analyses to assess the association between perceived stress and log-transformed HCC in the combined sample and in each cohort separately. MTC participants had slightly higher HCC and PSS scores than SAGA participants (median HCC 6.0pg/mg vs. 4.7pg/mg and mean PSS-10 score 12.4 vs. 11.7, respectively). After adjusting for sociodemographic factors and health behaviors, we observed a 1.4% (95% CI 0.6, 2.1) increase in HCC for each unit increase in the PSS-10 score in the combined sample. Furthermore, PSS-10 quintiles were associated with a 24.3% (95% CI 8.4, 42.6, mean logHCC 1.8 vs 1.6) increase in HCC when comparing the highest to the lowest quintile, after multivariable adjustment. Similar results were obtained when we analyzed each cohort separately and when using the PSS-4. Despite relatively small absolute differences, an association between perceived stress and HCC was found in a sample of women from two diverse geographical and cultural backgrounds supporting the hypothesis that HCC is a viable biomarker in studies of chronic psychological stress.
Funnels of Unfreedom: Time-Spaces of Recruitment and (Im)Mobility in the Trajectories of Trafficked Migrant Fishers

The recruitment and deployment of migrant fishers in distant waters (DW) fisheries has emerged as a significant site for the production of unfree labor relations. We trace the recruitment and deployment geographies of migrant fishers from the Philippines to the vessel, conceptualizing the time-spaces of the journey as a significant site for producing unfree labor. We argue that labor brokerage not only establishes the conditions of the labor contract and financialization of migration in the migrants’ home country but is also an ongoing process that intensifies unfreedom through the journey to deployment across multiple sites and temporalities. We conceptualize this movement into exploitative laboring situations as “funnels of unfreedom. ” The production of unfreedom through the geographies of recruitment, harboring, and transportation to the destination is one strategy by which DW fleets can reduce costs. The relevance of this discussion extends to other sectors where complex labor brokerage geographies constrain migrant worker choices and fortify unfreedom in labor relations.
When a 17-Year-Old Girl Is Diagnosed with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis: A Case Study from the Swedish Health Care System—A Parent Perspective

This case study presents different strategies that were explored by the patient’s mother (who is a researcher in music and medicine) when her 17-year-old daughter was diagnosed with ME (Myalgic Encephalomyelitis), also known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS). ME is not widely recognized in the Global as well as the Swedish population at large, and within healthcare, there are no standardized recommended treatments, partly due to the lack of published evidence-based studies. This case study aims to provide insights into how the Swedish healthcare system works, how different clinics and hospitals within it operate and interconnect; and how these contribute to health outcomes after 15 months of treatment.
Multiplier properties for the \(AP\)-Henstock integral

In this paper, we investigate some properties of the \(AP\)-Henstock integral on a compact set and prove that the product of an \(AP\)-Henstock integrable function and a function of bounded variation is \(AP\)-Henstock integrable. Furthermore, we prove that the product of an \(AP\)-Henstock integrable function and a regulated function is also \(AP\)-Henstock integrable. We also define the \(AP\)-Henstock integral on an unbounded interval, investigate some properties, and show similar multiplier properties.
Impact of Laser Intensity Noise on Dual-Comb Absolute Ranging Precision

Noise in mode-locked lasers has been a central issue for dual-comb metrological applications. In this work, we investigate the laser intensity noise on dual-comb absolute ranging precision. Two different dual-comb schemes based on linear optical sampling (LOS) and nonlinear asynchronous optical sampling (ASOPS) have been constructed. In the LOS scheme, the ranging precision deteriorates with the increase in laser relative intensity noise (RIN). This effect can be corrected by implementing a balanced photo-detection (BPD). In the ASOPS scheme, the experiment shows that the conversion from laser RIN to dual-comb ranging precision is negligible, making a balanced detection unnecessary for ranging precision improvement. The different manners of RIN’s impact on absolute ranging precision are attributed to the distinct cross-correlation signal patterns and the underlying time-of-flight (TOF) extraction algorithms.
Nanopore Sequencing for De Novo Bacterial Genome Assembly and Search for Single-Nucleotide Polymorphism

Nanopore sequencing (ONT) is a new and rapidly developing method for determining nucleotide sequences in DNA and RNA. It serves the ability to obtain long reads of thousands of nucleotides without assembly and amplification during sequencing compared to next-generation sequencing. Nanopore sequencing can help for determination of genetic changes leading to antibiotics resistance. This study presents the application of ONT technology in the assembly of an E. coli genome characterized by a deletion of the tolC gene and known single-nucleotide variations leading to antibiotic resistance, in the absence of a reference genome. We performed benchmark studies to determine minimum coverage depth to obtain a complete genome, depending on the quality of the ONT data. A comparison of existing programs was carried out. It was shown that the Flye program demonstrates plausible assembly results relative to others (Shasta, Canu, and Necat). The required coverage depth for successful assembly strongly depends on the size of reads. When using high-quality samples with an average read length of 8 Kbp or more, the coverage depth of 30× is sufficient to assemble the complete genome de novo and reliably determine single-nucleotide variations in it. For samples with shorter reads with mean lengths of 2 Kbp, a higher coverage depth of 50× is required. Avoiding of mechanical mixing is obligatory for samples preparation. Nanopore sequencing can be used alone to determine antibiotics-resistant genetic features of bacterial strains.
Relativistic Two-Photon Matrix Elements for Attosecond Delays

The theory of one-photon ionization and two-photon above-threshold ionization is formulated for applications to heavy atoms in attosecond science by using Dirac–Fock formalism. A direct comparison of Wigner–Smith–Eisenbud delays for photoionization is made with delays from the Reconstruction of Attosecond Beating By Interference of Two-photon Transitions (RABBIT) method. Photoionization by an attosecond pulse train, consisting of monochromatic fields in the extreme ultraviolet range, is computed with many-body effects at the level of the relativistic random phase approximation (RRPA). Subsequent absorption and emission processes of infrared laser photons in RABBIT are evaluated by using static ionic potentials as well as asymptotic properties of relativistic Coulomb functions. As expected, light elements, such as argon, show negligible relativistic effects, whereas heavier elements, such a krypton and xenon, exhibit delays that depend on the fine-structure of the ionic target. The relativistic effects are notably close to ionization thresholds and Cooper minima with differences in fine-structure delays predicted to be as large as tens of attoseconds. The separability of relativistic RABBIT delays into a Wigner–Smith–Eisenbud delay and a universal continuum–continuum delay is studied with reasonable separability found for photoelectrons emitted along the laser polarization axis in agreement with prior non-relativistic results.
English language learning in patients suffering from mental disorders: A different concept of self-stigma

Background: There are increasing challenges related to mental health in the public health system, and almost 80% of mental illnesses are reported in low- and middle-income countries. The stigma associated with mental illness leads to reduced access to health services, inadequate treatment, and poor outcomes. This paper, drawing on Norton1 conceptualization of language investment, investigates the effect of English language learning on self-stigma among patients suffering from mental disorders. Methods: An experimental design with a pre-post test format and a six-month follow-up with English language instruction and a control group was used for this study. A total of 52 adults with mental illness diagnoses from a center for patients suffering from mental disorders in Isfahan, Iran, participated in this study. Data were collected using an English language proficiency test and the Self-Stigma of Mental Illness Scale (SSMIS), a self-report questionnaire to assess the internalization of stigmatic views. Results: The analysis indicated that the experimental group showed significant improvements in being empowered with higher levels of English language proficiency and stigma reduction (P<0.01). The findings of this study provide theoretical support for Norton’s model of investment and demonstrate its applicability among people with mental problems. Furthermore, the study provides evidence that it is feasible to implement successful English language teaching among patients with mental illness, which has received insufficient attention in academic studies. Conclusion: Policymakers, psychiatrists, doctors, and people dealing with mental diseases can use English language instruction to reduce stigma and promote a non-stigmatizing attitude among people with mental illnesses. The current study contributes to our understanding of English language teaching in the medical field. Results of the study support the use of second-language teaching to reduce stigma among people suffering from mental illnesses.
A Versatile New Approach to Bridgehead Nitrogen Bearing Benzimidazolo-Quinazoline Hybrids: Facile 1,4-Dipolar Cycloaddition of Benzyne and N-(1H-Benzo[d]Imidazol-2-yl)-1-Phenylmethanimines

Abstract The development of versatile new routes to bridgehead nitrogen-bearing polycyclic aromatic systems having privileged scaffolds is a synthetic challenge for organic chemists. An efficient synthesis of benzo[4,5]imidazo[1,2-a]quinazoline derivatives bearing bridgehead nitrogen by the reaction of benzo[d]imidazol-2-amines, aldehydes, and ortho-silyl aryltriflate via 1,4-dipolar cycloaddition is reported under the optimized reaction conditions. The methodology provides easy access to fused benzimidazolo-quinazolines by sequential C–N and C–C bond formation through a one-pot reaction. Graphical Abstract
Antagonistic effect of Leuconostoc mesenteroides on grapevine crown gall and fire blight

ABSTRACT Grapevine crown gall, caused by Allorhizobium vitis (A. vitis) and fire blight, caused by Erwinia amylovora (E. amylovora) of rosaceous plants, have been recognized as serious bacterial diseases and responsible for major crop losses in grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.), pear (Pyrus communis L.) and apple (Malus domestica Borkh.) worldwide. To develop an effective biocontrol method against the two bacterial pathogens, lactic acid bacteria (LAB) isolated from agricultural irrigation canals were tested as biocontrol agents. Thirty-two bacterial isolates were screened for their in vitro antagonistic activity. Four isolates (MS-1, MS-2, MS-3, and MS-4), identified by partial sequencing of 16S rRNA as Leuconostoc mesenteroides subsp. Jonggajibkimchii, were found to significantly inhibit the growth of A. vitis and E. amylovora in vitro. The biocontrol efficiency of these strains was tested against E. amylovora on immature pear fruits under laboratory conditions, and against A. vitis in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) and kalanchoe (Kalanchoe daigremontiana) plants, under greenhouse conditions. Results showed that all selected antagonists were able to suppress fire blight disease on immature pear fruits. On tomato plants, the MS-1 and MS-2 strains were able to reduce the A. vitis infection by 82% and 99%, respectively. Similarly, the MS-2 strain reduced gall formation on kalanchoe plants by 99%. We concluded that Leuconostoc mesenteroides subsp. Jonggajibkimchii strains could serve as a potential biocontrol agent against fire blight and grapevine crown gall diseases.