Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Formulation and evaluation of granules based on trunks barks extracts of Anogeissus leiocarpus (DC) Guill. et Perr. (Combretaceae) intended for the development of phytomedicines for the treatment of hypertension

Quality control as well as the appropriate integration of modern scientific technique and traditional knowledge are important for promoting traditional remedies. Thus, preliminary quality control studies of extracts of Anogeissus leiocarpus concluded that there was a need to improve the rheological properties. Granulation improves properties such as texture, porosity or wettability. It reduces the amount of dust during handling. Ten (10) formulations were produced, the compositions of which were varied by the content of corn starch, Polyvinylpyrolidone and magnesium stearate. All the granules were prepared by wet granulation. After the drying process, the granules were sieved through a 1.6 mm mesh screen to standardize the particle size. The dust was sieved through 1.2 mm and these particles were again granulated. All quality control tests have been carried out in accordance with the European Pharmacopoeia 6.0. The average disintegration times of the formulations prepared were all less than 10 minutes. The residual humidity of the various pellets was less than 10%. The granules formulated F2 and F3 were less friable. The granules had a good flow time. All the granules were hygroscopic. The solubility tests carried out on the formulations showed that the content of F3 tracer was greater than 85% after 45 min. Microbial controls met the standards of European Pharmacopoeia 6.0 for preparations for oral administration containing raw materials of natural origin. The F3 formulations had the best characteristics in accordance with the recommendations of the European Pharmacopoeia 6.0.
Partial Tree Search Assisted Symbol Detection for Massive MIMO Systems

In the era of the fifth generation (5G) communication networks, massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems demand even lower computation complexity and power consumption while catching up with good detection performance. In this paper, a low-complexity nonlinear detection algorithm is proposed for massive MIMO systems, which is based on partial tree search and successive interference cancellation (SIC). The proposed scheme allows us to expedite the detection process by coping with the transmit symbols group by group. As compared to vertical-Bell laboratories layered space time (V-BLAST), the major breakthrough of computation reduction lies in the fact that the partial tree search can assist the detection process to avoid the inversion of the detection matrix required in each recursion of the SIC process. Both computational complexity analysis and simulation results show that our proposed algorithm not only significantly reduces computational complexity, but also has better bit error rate (BER) performance.
VALUE CONFLICT, CONVERGENCE AND EVOLUTION – VALUES SHAPING CROSS-DISCIPLINARY DESIGN

Values are shaping and underlying our behaviour, including creative design. In cross-disciplinary design, there may be a multitude of values shaping and underlying design. So far, there is a lack of studies on values in cross-disciplinary design. This study utilizes a value lens to examine cross-disciplinary design of a learning application within which Human Computer Interaction (HCI), educational science and Information Technology (IT) specialists as well as users acted as design participants. The study reveals numerous values implicated in design. Educational science specialists emphasized a multitude of values; sometimes even conflicting ones, in their design for learners, while HCI specialists and IT specialists advocated Security and Self-Actualization values for users. Both value conflicts and convergence emerged and those were identified both between and among these designer groups as well as between designers and users. Evolution and negotiation of values was also observable. Implications for research and practice are discussed.
A review study on micro fluid chips for enhancing the oil recovery by injecting the chemical floods

Surfactant and polymer flooding are the vital techniques used in petroleum industry to enhance the oil recovery. Development and advancement in such techniques has occurred time by time to overcome the challenges of oil and gas recovery. However, micro fluid chips and its development provide a new way to understand the real time behavior of fluid flow in porous media. The essence of this study has been achieved by collecting the information from literature studies and sorted the useful information to organize the pattern of micromodels chip revolution. In this study, first precise review is conducted by the innovations of micromodel chips into timescale from 1952 till date. Second, advancement in micromodel chip technology is included based on different periods of time where micromodel chips have evolved from chip design to nano scale visualization of chips. Third, some recommendations are proposed based on evolution of micromodel chip technology that it not only requires less time but also minimizing the massive experimental setup and complications. The overall finding of this research propose that in current times some microfluidic reforms made recently has played versatile role in improving injection chemical selection and similar improvements are expected to be developed in near future.
Obfuscated Hardware Accelerators for Image Processing Filters—Application Specific and Functionally Reconfigurable Processors

Hardware accelerators are widely used as computationally-intensive cores in consumer electronics (CE) applications. However security and speed of such hardware accelerators, that are responsible for computing data-intensive tasks, play an important role in improving consumer experience in terms of safety and performance. This article presents novel low power multi-modal hardware accelerator architectures viz. application specific processor and functionally reconfigurable processor for image processing filter of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$3\times 3$ </tex-math></inline-formula> kernel matrix size. In the proposed functionally reconfigurable processor of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$3\times 3$ </tex-math></inline-formula> filter, the same design can be used for five different image processing filters - blurring, sharpening, vertical embossment, horizontal embossment and Laplace edge detection, by varying control input. Further, application specific processor designs of these five types of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$3\times 3$ </tex-math></inline-formula> filters are also presented in this article. Additionally, application specific processor architecture of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$5\times 5$ </tex-math></inline-formula> filter kernel matrix size is also reported in this article. The results confirm that the proposed hardware accelerators achieve strong security and low design cost.
Trophic strategies of the invasive Twospot livebearer (Pseudoxiphophorus bimaculatus, Teleostei: Poeciliidae) in a gradient of environmental quality in central Mexico

Pseudoxiphophorus bimaculatus is an invasive species widely spread throughout freshwater ecosystems in central Mexico, for that reason we described its trophic strategy into a gradient of environmental quality. We sampled individuals of P. bimaculatus at eight sites located in the Lerma-Chapala and Pánuco River Basins during dry season. These basins have been impacted by industrialization and urbanization processes, but are considered as water reserves in México. To evaluate the environmental quality of the river, we applied the Visual-based Habitat Assessment, the Index of Biological Integrity and the Family-level Biotic Index. We assessed the trophic guild, the diet width, the omnivory level, and the diet selectivity. We also explored the relation of trophic strategies with the habitat condition. We captured a total of 202 individuals of P. bimaculatus from 10 to 67 mm of SL, finding a total of 24 food items. The diet of P. bimaculatus was composed of terrestrial, aquatic insects and bony fish. Pseudoxiphophorus bimaculatus in some sites can feed on different trophic levels, in other it is a specialist and secondary consumer. We found that P. bimaculatus changes its diet according the alterations in the habitat structure, water quality, and biotic integrity. Moreover, this invasive species can endure changes in the trophic web and food availability.
Electrical Impedance Characterization of Bone Fractures in Presence of an Intramedullary Nail

This paper presents an electrical impedance characterization and measurement method for monitoring bone fracture healing progress after osteosynthesis, for cases applying an intramedullary nail. While existing solutions fail due to the presence of the nail, the proposed method makes active use of the nail to achieve accurate healing progress monitoring. The proposed method captures variations in the electrical impedance at the fracture site as body tissues transform from the blood (hematoma) to fully recovered intact bone during healing. The proposed method, therefore, has the potential to be used for data acquisition of bone healing and pave the way for digitized diagnosis and treatment of bone fractures.
Responding to an international crisis: The adaptability of the practice of work-integrated learning

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the practice of work-integrated learning (WIL) has been significant, with many active WIL activities pivoting to remote offerings where students engage with the workplace through online platforms from their homes The pandemic has also caused significant and ongoing disruption to the economy, likely causing less work placement opportunities for upcoming years within the context of limited institutional budgets and resourcing It is, therefore, vitally important that institutions develop diverse practices of WIL and shift away from a heavy reliance on work placements Developing diverse WIL practices across educational institutions is an important strategy to build 'institutional WIL resilience' during times of disrupted economies with limited WIL opportunities During the pandemic, the use of simulations had increased, in particular, in relation to preparing students for WIL, however, caution is needed in considering simulations as a comparable alternative to WIL © 2020 International Journal of Work-Integrated Learning All rights reserved
Coordinated Control of Air-Conditioning Loads for System Frequency Regulation

The increasing penetration of renewable generation presents challenges for system frequency regulation due to short-term power fluctuations and system inertia reductions. This article presents a coordinated control strategy for frequency regulation in which inverter air-conditioning (IAC) units are used to perform primary frequency regulation (PFR) and fixed frequency air-conditioning (FFAC) units are used to perform secondary frequency regulation (SFR). In PFR, the regulation power is provided by adjusting the setpoints of the IAC units. A random number generation method is proposed to stochastically trigger IAC units based on the frequency deviation in real time. Furthermore, a recovery method is presented to stably restore the IAC units to their initial operating states after regulation. In SFR, a constant equivalent duty ratio method is raised to keep the regulation power stable over a long instruction interval. Based on this, the transforming time interval method is presented to determine the ON/OFF status of FFAC units to provide the required regulation power. Additionally, a recovery method for FFAC units is proposed to mitigate the power rebound after regulation. The proposed control strategy achieves an improved frequency regulation effect with fewer communication demands. Dynamic simulations in a six-machine two-area system and an isolated microgrid with wind power verify the effectiveness of the proposed control strategy.
High-resolution distributed model to simulate erosion and sedimentation in a steep basin: a case study of the Akatani River Basin, Kyushu, Japan

: In this study, we developed a distributed rainfall-runoff and sedimentation model based on one-dimensional kine‐ matic wave equations. Physically-based rainfall-runoff and erosion-sediment processes were coupled and solved for each spatial grid, whilst the spatially distributed grids were connected to each other to allow for space-and-time move‐ ments of water and sediment. The model was applied to the Akatani River basin of the Chikugo River in Kyushu, Japan using a 10 m high-resolution digital elevation model and eXtended RAdar Information Network (XRAIN) data as a time-and-space distributed rainfall input of the northern Kyushu heavy rainfall event in July 2017. Our results indi‐ cate that the rainfall-runoff hydrograph and sediment flow results are in agreement with the collected field data, and elevation of the river bed after the disaster was successfully reproduced by applying a sediment theory to estimate river bed variation. In addition, we found that sediment transport results are sensitive to model spatial resolution. Our simu‐ lation model is intended for use with basins that feature steep slopes and are prone to erosion and shear strength reduction after heavy rainfall events. Hence, this model can be applied to give early warnings by identifying critical erosional areas during forecasted heavy rainfall events.
Genome of the Parasitoid Wasp Diachasma alloeum, an Emerging Model for Ecological Speciation and Transitions to Asexual Reproduction

Parasitoid wasps are among the most speciose animals, yet have relatively few available genomic resources. We report a draft genome assembly of the wasp Diachasma alloeum (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), a host-specific parasitoid of the apple maggot fly Rhagoletis pomonella (Diptera: Tephritidae) and a developing model for understanding how ecological speciation can “cascade” across trophic levels. Identification of gene content confirmed the overall quality of the draft genome, and we manually annotated ∼400 genes as part of this study, including those involved in oxidative phosphorylation, chemosensation, and reproduction. Through comparisons to model hymenopterans such as the European honeybee Apis mellifera and parasitoid wasp Nasonia vitripennis, as well as a more closely related braconid parasitoid Microplitis demolitor, we identified a proliferation of transposable elements in the genome, an expansion of chemosensory genes in D. alloeum and other parasitoid wasps, and the maintenance of several key genes with known roles in sexual reproduction and sex determination. The D. alloeum genome will provide a valuable resource for comparative genomics studies in Hymenoptera as well as specific investigations into the genomic changes associated with ecological speciation and transitions to asexuality.
Development of Fast-RCNN based Dynamic Object Detection Using an Object Motion Tracking Device in Marine Environments

In this paper, we propose an obstacle identification system and a corresponding algorithm for object motion tracking. The object motion tracking device detects only ships rather than all objects so it can be applied to unmanned surface vehicles’ operation in marine environments. When an obstacle is detected, the object motion tracking device identifies and tracks it in real-time according to its movement. Objects are recognized using the Fast-RCNN algorithm, and their positions are measured through the transformation of an image coordinate system. A gimbal control method for a camera using only the image center and distance information of objects without using the camera's focus and zoom function was proposed. The control of the gimbal was made using serial communication based on the video system control architecture protocol, and object tracking was performed by placing the detected object toward the center of the image frame. The object tracking performance of the proposed object identification system has been verified using images in a limited environment.
Structure Determination in Ordered and Disordered Solids by High-Resolution NMR Spectroscopy

Nuclear Magnetic Resonance is a potential powerful probe of structure and dynamics for a large range of materials in the solid-state. In this thesis, we show how powder samples at natural isotopic abundance can be assigned to crystal structures by using high-resolution proton and carbon-13 solid-state NMR spectra in combination with first principles calculations. Similarly, the determination of the three-dimensional structure of an organic compound in powder form and at natural isotopic abundance is presented. It is obtained by an approach that combines molecular modeling with experimental spin diffusion data of protons. Finally, temperature dependent 29Si NMR studies of the order and disorder in silicate framework materials are presented. Notably, we introduce and demonstrate the idea that Silicon-29 NMR transverse dephasing times can be used to probe dynamic processes independently of static disorder.
Discreteness and group sparsity aware detection for uplink overloaded MU-MIMO systems

This paper proposes signal detection methods for frequency domain equalization (FDE) based overloaded multiuser multiple input multiple output (MU-MIMO) systems for uplink Internet of things (IoT) environments, where a lot of IoT terminals are served by a base station having less number of antennas than that of IoT terminals. By using the fact that the transmitted signal vector has the discreteness and the group sparsity, we propose a convex discreteness and group sparsity aware (DGS) optimization problem for the signal detection. We provide an optimization algorithm for the DGS optimization on the basis of the alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM). Moreover, we extend the DGS optimization into weighted DGS (W-DGS) optimization and propose an iterative approach named iterative weighted DGS (IW-DGS), where we iteratively solve the W-DGS optimization problem with the update of the parameters in the objective function. We also discuss the computational complexity of the proposed IW-DGS and show that we can reduce the order of the complexity by using the structure of the channel matrix. Simulation results show that the symbol error rate (SER) performance of the proposed method is close to that of the oracle zero forcing (ZF) method, which perfectly knows the activity of each IoT terminal.
Adjunct N-Acetylcysteine Treatment in Hospitalized Patients With HIV-Associated Tuberculosis Dampens the Oxidative Stress in Peripheral Blood: Results From the RIPENACTB Study Trial

Tuberculosis (TB) still causes significant morbidity and mortality worldwide, especially in persons living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). This disease is hallmarked by persistent oxidative stress and systemic inflammation. N-acetylcysteine (NAC), a glutathione (GSH) precursor, has been shown in experimental models to limit Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection and disease both by suppression of the host oxidative response and through direct antimicrobial activity. In a recent phase II randomized clinical trial (RIPENACTB study), use of NAC as adjunct therapy during the first two months of anti-TB treatment was safe. Whether adjunct NAC therapy of patients with TB-HIV coinfection in the context of anti-TB treatment could directly affect pro-oxidation and systemic inflammation has not been yet formally demonstrated. To test this hypothesis, we leveraged existing data and biospecimens from the RIPENACTB trial to measure a number of surrogate markers of oxidative stress and of immune activation in peripheral blood of the participants at pre-treatment and at the day 60 of anti-TB treatment. Upon initiation of therapy, we found that the group of patients undertaking NAC exhibited significant increase in GSH levels and in total antioxidant status while displaying substantial reduction in lipid peroxidation compared to the control group. Only small changes in plasma concentrations of cytokines were noted. Pharmacological improvement of the host antioxidant status appears to be a reasonable strategy to reduce TB-associated immunopathology.
The NDVI-CV Method for Mapping Evergreen Trees in Complex Urban Areas Using Reconstructed Landsat 8 Time-Series Data

Evergreen trees play a significant role in urban ecological services, such as air purification, carbon and oxygen balance, and temperature and moisture regulation. Remote sensing represents an essential technology for obtaining spatiotemporal distribution data for evergreen trees in cities. However, highly developed subtropical cities, such as Nanjing, China, have serious land fragmentation problems, which greatly increase the difficulty of extracting evergreen trees information and reduce the extraction precision of remote-sensing methods. This paper introduces a normalized difference vegetation index coefficient of variation (NDVI-CV) method to extract evergreen trees from remote-sensing data by combining the annual minimum normalized difference vegetation index (NDVIann-min) with the CV of a Landsat 8 time-series NDVI. To obtain an intra-annual, high-resolution time-series dataset, Landsat 8 cloud-free and partially cloud-free images over a three-year period were collected and reconstructed for the study area. Considering that the characteristic growth of evergreen trees remained nearly unchanged during the phenology cycle, NDVIann-min is the optimal phenological node to separate this information from that of other vegetation types. Furthermore, the CV of time-series NDVI considers all of the phenologically critical phases; therefore, the NDVI-CV method had higher extraction accuracy. As such, the approach presented herein represents a more practical and promising method based on reasonable NDVIann-min and CV thresholds to obtain spatial distribution data for evergreen trees. The experimental verification results indicated a comparable performance since the extraction accuracy of the model was over 85%, which met the classification accuracy requirements. In a cross-validation comparison with other evergreen trees’ extraction methods, the NDVI-CV method showed higher sensitivity and stability.
Upper Zone of Growth Plate and Cartilage Matrix (UCMA) Levels in Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease

: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is an important health problem across the world affecting the adult population with an enormous social and economic burden. Calcium regulation is also affected in patients with CKD, and related to several disorders including vascular calcifications, mineral bone disorders, and cardiovascular diseases (CVD). Upper zone of growth plate and cartilage matrix (UCMA) is vitamin K-dependent protein (VKDP) and acts as a calcification inhibitor in the cardiovascular system. The molecular mechanism of UCMA action