Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Kinematics-based end-effector path control of a mobile manipulator system on an uneven terrain using a two-stage Support Vector Machine

SUMMARY A mobile manipulator system (MMS) consists of a robotic arm mounted on a mobile platform that is used in rescue and relief, space exploration, warehouse automation, etc. As the total system has 14 Degrees of Freedom (DOF), it does not have a closed-form inverse kinematics (IK) solution. A learning-based method is proposed, which uses the forward kinematics data to learn the IK relation for motion of an MMS on a rough terrain, using a one-class support vector machine (SVM) framework. Once trained, the model estimates the joint probability distribution of the MMS configuration and end-effector position. This distribution is used to find the MMS configuration for a given desired end-effector path. Past research using a Kohonen Self organizing map (KSOM) neural network-based open-loop control method has shown that the MMS deviates from its desired path while moving on an uneven terrain due to unknown disturbances such as wheel slip, slide, and terrain deformation. Therefore, a new sequential two-stage SVM-based end-effector path-tracking control scheme is proposed to control the end-effector path. In this scheme, the error in the end-effector path is continuously tracked with the help of a Microsoft Kinect 2.0 (Microsoft Regional Sales, Singapore 119968) and is sent as a feedback to the controller. Once the error reaches a threshold value, the error correction step of the controller gets activated to correct the error until the desired accuracy is reached. The effectiveness of the proposed approach is proved through extensive simulations and experiments conducted on 3D terrain in which it is shown that the end effector can follow the desired path with an average experimental error of around 2 cm between the desired and final corrected path.
Adaptation of the Loneliness at Work Scale for the portuguese population

O presente estudo pretende adaptar a Escala de Solidao no Trabalho (Wright, Burt,& Strongman, 2006) a populacao portuguesa, bem como determinar se existe validadeconvergente entre a solidao no trabalho, satisfacao no trabalho e solidao e, ainda,investigar se as variaveis de satisfacao no trabalho sao preditoras das componentes daEscala de Solidao no Trabalho. Foi realizado um questionario online ao qual responderam172 trabalhadores a tempo inteiro. Para adaptar a Escala de Solidao no Trabalho foirealizada uma analise fatorial exploratoria. Todas as variaveis foram correlacionadas,com o objetivo de verificar a sua validade convergente. Foram feitas regressoes linearesmultiplas para determinar se as variaveis da satisfacao no trabalho predizem as subescalasprivacao emocional e companheirismo social. A Escala de Solidao no Trabalhoapresentou resultados satisfatorios de fiabilidade. Os niveis de validade convergenteforam expressivos entre todas as variaveis e as componentes da Escala de Solidao noTrabalho. A privacao emocional foi predita pelas variaveis de satisfacao no trabalho,enquanto que a predicao do companheirismo social foi apenas parcialmente confirmadapelas mesmas. Concluiu-se que a versao adaptada da Escala de Solidao no Trabalho medede forma fiavel e valida a solidao no contexto de trabalho para a populacao portuguesa.
Energy-Efficient Algorithms and Access Schemes for Small Cell Networks

Energy-Efficient Algorithms and Access Schemes for Small Cell Networks Haluk Celebi Dense deployment of small base stations (SBSs) brings new challenges such as growing energy consumption, increased carbon footprint, higher inter-cell interference, and complications in handover management. These challenges can be dealt with by taking advantage of sleep/idle mode capabilities of SBSs, and exploiting the delay tolerance of data applications, as well as utilizing information derived from the statistical distributions of SBSs and user equipment (UE)-SBS associations. This dissertation focuses on the formulation of mathematical models and proposes energy efficient algorithms for small cell networks (SCN). It is shown that delay tolerance of some data applications can be taken advantage of to save energy in SCN. This dissertation introduces practical models to study the performance of delayed access to SCNs. Operational states of SBS are modeled as a Markov chain and their probability distributions are analyzed. Also, it argues that SCN can be operated to save energy during low traffic periods by taking advantage of user equipments’ (UEs) delay tolerance in SCN while providing high access probability within bounded transmission range. Dense deployment of SCNs cause an increase in overlapping SBS coverage areas, allowing UEs to establish communication with multiple SBSs. A new load metric as a function of the number of SBSs in UE’s communication range is defined, and its statistics are rigorously analyzed. Energy saving algorithms based on aforementioned load metric are developed and their efficiencies are compared. Besides, UE’s delay tolerance allows establishing communication with close-by SBSs that are either in fully active mode or in sleeping mode. Improvements in coverage probability and bitrate are analyzed by considering different delay tolerance values for UEs. Key parameters such as UE’s communication range are optimized with respect to SBS density and delay tolerance. The fundamental problem of local versus remote edge/fog computing and its inherent tradeoffs are studied from a queuing perspective taking into account user/SBS density, server capacity and latency constraints. The task offloading problem is cast as an M/M/1(c) queue in which CPU intensive tasks arrive according to Poisson process and receive service subject to a tolerable delay. The higher the proportion of locally computed tasks, the less traffic SCN handles between edge processor and UE. Therefore, low utilization of SCN can be interperted as increased spectral efficiency due to low interference and close UE-SBS distance. Tradeoff between delay dependent SCN utilization and spectral efficiency is evaluated at high and low traffic loads.
Technical Report 21: Expanding opportunities for postabortion care at the community level through private nurse-midwives in Kenya. Final report.

This report documents the Primary Providers Training in Reproductive Health project postabortion care (PAC) pilot initiative in Kenya. It focuses on the design processes of implementation results and experiences in strengthening private nurse-midwives capacity to provide high quality PAC services. It is noted that the pilot initiative had six components including pre-intervention components and intervention components. The activities implemented were needs assessment advocacy activities for policy support strengthening the capacity of public health nurses to support and supervise private nurse-midwives training of private nurse-midwives systematic follow-ups for trained private nurse-midwives and a seminar to disseminate results. Overall the initiative demonstrated that trained nurse-midwives could successfully provide safe quality PAC services using manual vacuum aspiration at the community level. Moreover it highlighted several factors relevant to the continued expansion of PAC services through private nurse-midwives.
Exploring a perceived competency profile for comserve nurses in South Africa

Orientation: Human resource development as a function or sub-function of human resource management can assist clinical practice environment to reach their main goal of delivering quality patient care. This can be achieved by directing education, training and development initiatives towards this goal. To achieve this, human resource development in conjunction with nursing stakeholders can conduct a learning needs analysis to determine the knowledge, skills and attitudes required from prospective comserve nurses to enable them to deliver quality patient care when entering the CPE. Research purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the perceptions held by nurse educators and final-year nursing students concerning the knowledge, skills and attitudes needed by comserve nurses for delivering quality patient care when entering the clinical practice environment. Motivation for this study: A gap exists in research regarding the specific competencies (knowledge, skills and attitudes) needed by comserve nurses for delivering quality patient care when entering the clinical practice environment. Research approach, design and method: A qualitative research approach using exploratory and descriptive strategies was followed. Semi-structured individual interviews were conducted with two populations, namely nurse educators (n=23) and final-year nursing students (n=19). Data were collected at nursing education institutions in a province of South Africa. A deductive thematic analysis was performed to analyse the data. Three predetermined main themes, namely Knowledge, Skills and Attitudes were used in the analysis. Main findings: Results of both populations revealed that the main theme knowledge consists of theoretical, practical and holistic knowledge, cultural diversity and code of conduct. The main theme skills revealed interpersonal, cognitive, management, administrative, practical and personal skills and lastly the main theme attitudes consisted of being positive, caring,
A meta-analysis of c-Met expression in head and neck cancer

The prognostic role of c-Met expression in head and neck cancer patients were controversial among different studies. Thus, we performed a meta-analysis to evaluate the relationships between c-Met expression and survival and clinical parameters of head and neck cancer patients. The databases PubMed and Embase were searched. Summary hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated to analyze the correlations between c-Met expression and overall survival (OS), and disease-free survival (DFS). Furthermore odds ratios (ORs) and 95% CIs were used to describe the relationships between c-Met expression and different clinicophathological parameters. A total of 2,417 patients from 19 studies were enrolled in the final analysis. The results showed that c-Met expression was significantly associated with OS (HR: 1.65; 95% CI: 1.20–2.27, P = 0.002) while not DFS (HR: 1.48, 95% CI: 0.99–2.20, P = 0.055). And c-Met expression was associated with the N stage of head and neck cancer patients (OR: 2.11; 95% CI: 1.12–3.96, P = 0.02). These results suggested that c-Met expression was a risk factor for head and neck cancer; increased c-Met expression could be a predictor of a poorer prognosis for the patients.
Preschool Mathematics Performance and Executive Function: Rural-Urban Comparisons across Time

ABSTRACT This longitudinal study examined the relationship between executive function (EF) and mathematics with rural and urban preschool children. A panel of direct and indirect EF measures were used to compare how well individual measures, as well as analytic approaches, predicted both numeracy and geometry skill. One hundred eighteen children, ages 39 to 68 months, were given EF and mathematics assessments twice, approximately six months apart, concurrent to their teachers completing an indirect assessment of EF for each child. Results suggest: (1) the child’s age determines if a panel of direct EF measures is a better predictor of numeracy and geometry skills than a single EF measure, (2) geometry and numeracy skill are influenced differently by contextual factors, and (3) the EF-geometry link may develop about six months later than the EF-numeracy connection. As the relationship between preschool age EF and mathematics is better understood, efforts can be made to improve the aspects of EF connected to mathematics skill, which may aid in performance.
Elicitation study investigating hand and foot gesture interaction for immersive maps in augmented reality

ABSTRACT Immersive maps in augmented reality (AR) are virtual maps that plausibly blend with the physical environment, such that the user perceives them as a part of the real world. While immersive maps can offer unprecedented engaging experiences, the way to perform panning, zooming and other basic map interaction is not obvious. This limitation may hamper widespread adoption of immersive maps. We therefore conducted an elicitation study to identify commonly suggested hand and foot gestures for interacting with large immersive AR maps placed on the floor. Study participants were shown simulations of interaction operations, and asked to design gestures to trigger these operations. We selected interaction with hand gestures because they are natural and familiar from interacting with touchscreens. Foot gestures were included because the users’ feet touch immersive maps placed on the floor. Eighteen participants designed hand and foot gestures for panning, rotating, zooming, changing the height of the map, creating a point marker, and selecting a point marker. The most agreed-on hand gesture was for zooming, consisting of grabbing with both hands, then separating or bringing the hands together. Our study participants suggested numerous other inspirational hand and foot gestures, which can guide the further development of interactive immersive maps. Because user preference does not necessarily align with performance, it is important to evaluate the efficiency, accuracy, ease of learning, and physical fatigue for these gestures in follow-up studies.
Comprehension of Spatial Metaphors After Right Hemisphere Stroke: A Case Report

Abstract Studying how spatial information interacts with figurative language processing in right-hemisphere (RH) stroke patients is a relatively neglected area of research. The goal of the present case study was to establish whether an ischemic lesion in the right temporo-parietal region causing spatial neglect would affect comprehension of sentence-level spatial metaphors, since some evidence indicates the crucial role of the RH in metaphor processing. The patient under study showed some degree of cognitive impairment (e.g., in spatial and verbal working memory, executive control, visuo-spatial matching skills). However, his comprehension of spatial metaphors was preserved. This case illustrates that RH damage does not necessarily affect comprehension of sentence-level spatial metaphors.
HUBUNGAN TINGKAT KEPUASAN PELAYANAN DENGAN KEBERHASILAN PESERTA PELATIHAN TEKNIS BAGI PENYULUH PERTANIAN

Kepuasan peserta merupakan salah satu faktor yang harus diwujudkan oleh suatu lembaga pelatihan khususnya dalam rangka untuk menjaga keberlanjutannya. Penyelenggara pelatihan memiliki urgensi untuk dapat melakukan evaluasi secara terus menerus terhadap pelatihan yang telah diadakan, sebagai bentuk upaya untuk memperbaiki layanannya. Oleh karena itu, tujuan dari studi ini adalah untuk menganalisis hubungan tingkat kepuasan pelayanan dengan keberhasilan teknis bagi penyuluh pertanian di Balai Pelatihan Pertanian Jambi. Studi ini menggunakan pendekatan kuantitatif dengan data cross section , dimana responden dalam studi ini adalah penyuluh pertanian yang mengikuti pelatihan teknis di Balai Pelatihan Pertanian Jambi dari bulan Januari hingga Juni 2019. Statistika deskriptif, dependent t test dan uji korelasi Spearman digunakan untuk menjawab tujuan studi ini. Tingkat kepuasan peserta terhadap pelatihan teknis bagi penyuluh pertanian didapatkan hasil baik dengan rata-rata persentase sebesar 81.34%. Hasil dependent t test menunjukkan bahwa terdapat perbedaan antara pre-test dan post-test pada taraf nyata 5%. Kondisi tersebut mengindikasikan bahwa terdapat peningkatan pengetahuan pada peserta pelatihan setelah mengikuti pelatihan tersebut. Selain itu, hasil korelasi spearman menunjukkan bahwa hanya hubungan positif antara tingkat kepuasan materi dengan keberhasilan signifikan secara statistik pada taraf nyata 10%. Hasil tersebut mengindikasikan bahwa materi yang dikemas dalam pelatihan harus lebih disesuaikan lagi terhadap kebutuhan dari peserta pelatihan. Dengan kata lain, penyelenggara pelatihan perlu melakukan identifikasi kebutuhan pelatihan secara sistematis dengan mengedepankan kebutuhan khsusnya bagi peserta pelatihan. Dengan tingginya tingkat kepuasan peserta pelatihan terhadap materi pelatihan diharapkan dapat meningkatkan motivasi peserta pelatihan untuk meningkatkan keberhasilannya. Kata Kunci: evaluasi, keberhasilan, kepuasan, pelatihan
When a Sense of “We” Is Lost: Investigating the Consequences of a Lost Common Identity Among Druze in Israel

Research shows that inclusive identities are effective for improving intergroup relations. Little work, however, asked what happens once a sense of common identity is formed, but then lost. Given increasing diversity and integration attempts that might fail, this question is realistic and timely. We studied a religious minority in Israel, Arab-Druze (N = 178), constituting 1.6% of the population. Druze have always had strong common ties with the Jewish majority, particularly younger Druze who serve in the Israeli army. We surveyed Druze in the aftermath of the nationality bill, which was considered by many to be highly exclusionary toward non-Jews. Drawing on research on minority exclusion, we expected that for younger Druze, a sense of common identity loss will predict radical forms of action. This was supported by our cross-sectional data and remained stable after controlling for more classic predictors of violent and nonviolent action.
Restorative Therapies after Stroke: Drugs, Devices, and Robotics

Abstract Restorative therapies aim to improve outcome by salvaging threatened brain, as with reperfusion or neuroprotective drugs and also by promoting plasticity within surviving neural tissue. Restorative therapies typically have a therapeutic time window measured in days and weeks and so have the potential to be assessed by a large fraction of patients with a new stroke. Examples of such brain repair therapies include growth factors, cell-based therapies, and devices. Positive clinical trials have been reported in human studies for several classes of restorative therapy after stroke. These include robotics, constrain-induced movement therapy (CIMT), and pharmacological therapy, such as levodopa and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. In addition, several forms of noninvasive cortical stimulation, such as rapid transcranial magnetic stimulation, transcranial direct current stimulation, and theta-burst stimulation, have shown promise in early phase studies. The current review gives a glimpse of the existing strategies, those on the anvil of implementation and those with a hope of launch in near future.
Impact of Deficit Irrigation on Shallow Saline Groundwater Contribution and Sunflower Productivity in the Imperial Valley, California

Yield and production functions of sunflower (Helianthus annuus) were evaluated under full and deficit irrigation practices with the presence of shallow saline groundwater in a semi-arid region in the Imperial Valley of southern California, USA. A growing degree day (GDD) model was utilized to estimate the various growth stages and schedule irrigation events throughout the growing season. The crop was germinated and established using overhead irrigation prior to the use of a subsurface drip irrigation (SDI) system for the remainder of the growing season. Four irrigation treatments were implemented: full irrigation (100% full sunflower crop evapotranspiration, ETC), two reduced irrigation scenarios (95% ETC and 80% ETC), and a deficit irrigation scenario (65% ETC). The salinity of the irrigation water (EC) (Colorado River water) was nearly constant at 1.13 dS·m−1 during the growing season. The depth to groundwater and groundwater salinity (ECGW) were continuously monitored in five 3 m deep observation wells. Depth to groundwater fluctuated slightly under the full and reduced irrigation treatments, but drastically increased under deficit irrigation, particularly toward the end of the growing season. Estimates of ECGW ranged from 7.34 to 12.62 dS·m−1. The distribution of soil electrical conductivity (ECS) and soil matric potential were monitored within the active root zone (120 cm) at selected locations in each of the four treatments. By the end of the experiment, soil salinity (ECS) across soil depths ranged from 1.80 to 6.18 dS·m−1. The estimated groundwater contribution to crop evapotranspiration was 9.03 cm or approximately 16.3% of the ETC of the fully irrigated crop. The relative yields were 91.8%, 82.4%, and 83.5% for the reduced (95% and 80% ETC) and deficit (65% ETC) treatments, respectively, while the production function using applied irrigation water (IW) was: yield = 0.0188 × (IW)2 − 15.504 × IW + 4856.8. Yield reduction in response to water stress was attributed to a significant reduction in both seed weight and the number of seed produced resulting in overall average yields of 2048.9, 1879.9, 1688.1, and 1710.3 kg·ha−1 for the full, both reduced, and deficit treatments, respectively. The yield response factor, ky, was 0.63 with R2 = 0.745 and the irrigation water use efficiencies (IWUE) were 3.70, 3.57, 3.81, and 4.75 kg·ha−1·mm−1 for the full, reduced, and deficit treatments, respectively. Our results indicate that sunflowers can sustain the implemented 35% deficit irrigation with root water uptake from shallow groundwater in arid regions with a less than 20% reduction in yield.
Attribution analysis of climatic and multiple anthropogenic causes of runoff change in the Loess Plateau—A case‐study of the Jing River Basin

Over the past five decades, under the joint influence of climate change and human activity, river runoff in most areas of Loess Plateau showed a significant declining trend, which poses a great threat to ecological security and land degradation and soil erosion control. To identify the key factors controlling this decline and quantify the contribution rates of the multiple factors, a runoff simulation was established based on the Soil Water Assessment Tool (SWAT), and the influence of climatic and anthropogenic factors on runoff change was calculated by comparing the results of the simulation based on different modeling scenarios. First, the impact of climatic factors on runoff change was gradually decreasing over time, and the anthropogenic factors’ impact was increasing based on the runoff observations. Second, the SWAT model proved to be reliable and acceptable for both the calibration and the validation periods, with R 2 and Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency values both above . 8. Third, the influence of climatic factors decreases from 85.70% to 42.43% but that of anthropogenic factors increases from 14.3% to 57.57% in different subperiods. Among the anthropogenic factors, the influence of the direct factor (water withdrawal) is growing the fastest, and the influence of indirect factors is increasing continuously. Therefore, future ecological management and water‐related planning in Loess Plateau should consider the importance of human activity and the relationship between humans and the Earth. Finally, a range of comprehensive countermeasures are proposed to assist with sustainable watershed management in the Loess Plateau.
Tek Başına Olmayı Tercih Etme Ölçeği: Türkçe Formunun Geçerlik ve Güvenirlik Çalışması

Bu calismada, Burger (1995) tarafindan gelistirilmis olan Tek Basina Olmayi Tercih Etme Olceginin Turkceye cevrilmesi ve universite ogrencilerinden elde edilen veri setlerinin gecerlik ve guvenirliginin arastirilmasi amaclanmistir. Olcegin gecerlik ve guvenirlik calismalari iki farkli katilimci grup uzerinde yurutulmustur. Ilk grup 245 (%24.1 erkek, %75.9 kadin), ikinci grup 470 (%30.2 erkek, %69.8 kadin) universite ogrencisinden olusmaktadir. Iki katilimci grubu uzerinde gerceklestirilen dogrulayici faktor analizi sonuclarina gore, olcegin Turkce Formu orijinal olcek calismasinda oldugu gibi 12 maddeden ve tek faktorden olusmaktadir. Gerceklestirilen guvenirlik calisma-larina gore ise, olcegin Turkce Formu kabul edilebilir duzey-lerde ic-tutarlik katsayilarina ve testi yarilama guvenirlik dege-rine sahiptir.