Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Implementing BIM for conventional tunnels - a proposed methodology and case study

The topic of Building Information Modelling (BIM) adoption by public organizations has become a central subject of research, and a significant amount of BIM documents, guidelines, and standards have been created to meet different organizational purposes. Compared to the building industry, the application of BIM tools for tunnel project management is lagging far behind. This paper proposes a methodology for integrating BIM tools for conventional tunnelling. A fundamental distinction is made between the tunnel internal architectural domain and the external structural domain. For the former, BIM methodology can be applied similarly to the building industry. For the latter, it is suggested that a BIM model be built according to the essential information generated during tunnelling excavation. The proposed methodology was put to test for an actual tunneling project. A routine was established where the supervisor on behalf of the owner was responsible for gathering and reporting essential data in tabular form. Via REVIT's Application Programming Interface (API), a code was developed so that a BIM model was built and updated automatic to data insertion. Ultimately, the final BIM model allows managing up-to-date qualitative and quantitative information visually. Thus, human understanding and interpretation are enhanced for future uses, such as maintenance, future renovations and project post-analysis.
Laboratory Experiments to Evaluate the Effectiveness of Persulfate to Oxidize BTEX in Saline Environment and at Elevated Temperature Using Stable Isotopes

In this study, batch experiments were carried out to investigate the effectiveness of persulfate (PS) as an oxidant agent to remediate benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes (BTEX) in saline environments and at high water temperatures (30 °C). This hydrological setting is quite common in contaminated groundwater aquifers in Middle Eastern countries. In general, increasing the system temperature from 10 to 30 °C greatly enhanced the effectiveness of PS, and resulted in a faster oxidation rate for the target contaminants. When PS was added to the reactor at 30 °C, the targeted contaminants were almost completely oxidized over a 98-day reaction period. During the chemical oxidation of the BTEX, carbon and hydrogen isotope fractionations were monitored and utilized as potential proof of contaminant degradation. The calculated carbon-enrichment values were −1.9‰ for benzene, −1.5‰ for ethylbenzene and toluene, −0.4‰ for ρ,m-xylene, and −1.4‰ for o-xylene, while the hydrogen enrichment values were −9.5‰, −6.8‰, −2.1‰, −6.9‰, and −9.1‰, respectively. In comparison with other processes, the hydrogen and carbon isotope fractionations during the chemical oxidation by PS were smaller than the isotope fractionations resulting from sulfate reduction and denitrification. This observation demonstrates the differences in the transformation pathways and isotope fractionations when compounds undergo chemical oxidation or biodegradation. The distinct trend observed on the dual isotope plot (Δδ13C vs. Δδ2H) suggests that compound-specific isotope analysis can be utilized to monitor the chemical oxidation of BTEX by PS, and to distinguish treatment zones where PS and biodegradation technologies are applied simultaneously.
The Relevance of Return and Volatility Spillovers for Portfolio Diversification

There is a large literature on return and volatility spillovers between assets. Google scholar yields about 9,000 articles based on the search term “volatility spillover” and about 1,000 articles on the search term “return spillover”. However, the relevance of these spillovers on portfolio diversification is rarely assessed. This paper provides such an analysis and finds that spillovers are generally irrelevant for portfolio diversification, i.e. return, variance and covariance estimates are sufficient to build a portfolio and spillovers explain only a small and negligible part. The study shows that effects of spillovers on portfolio formation are fully captured by returns, correlations and variances at equal and higher frequency levels and that spillovers do not have strong portfolio implications.
Age and Lymph Nodes Examination May Be Related to the Outcome of Ovarian Clear Cell Carcinoma: A SEER Analysis

AimTo analyze and compare the demographics, treatment, and survival rates in patients with ovarian clear cell carcinoma (OCCC). MethodsWe conducted a population-based retrospective study examining the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program from 1998 to 2016. Data of 4344 women with OCCC were compared, and survival was analyzed using the Kaplan–Meier method. Factors predictive of outcome were compared using the Cox proportional hazards model.ResultsThere was no significant difference in cause specific survival (CSS) regardless of chemotherapy in stage I and stage II OCCC. In women with stage III/IV OCCC, there was an increased mortality in women without chemotherapy (5-year CSS 29.80% vs. 24.90%, p<0.001). Among stage I women younger than 60 years old, the 5-year CSS of those underwent chemotherapy was worse than that of non-chemotherapy (86.4% vs. 97.50%, p=0.002). Among these patients, omitting chemotherapy had improved CSS (HR 0.539; 95% CI 0.386-0.753), and omitting lymph nodes examination had decreased CSS (HR 1.666; 95% CI 1.230-2.256). In stage III/IV women who were 60 years or older, the 5-year CSS of those underwent chemotherapy was better than that of non-chemotherapy (32.60% vs. 24.30%, p<0.001). Among these patients, omitting chemotherapy (HR 1.769; 95% CI 1.385-2.258) and omitting lymph nodes examination (HR 1.709; 95% CI 1.371-2.130) had lower CSS.ConclusionChemotherapy has different effects in patients with OCCC at different stages and ages. Age and lymph nodes examination may be factors that affect the outcome of patients with OCCC.
Cross-Sectional Analysis of Picture Descriptions of Healthy Young and Older Adults

It is poorly understood whether and how normal aging affects different aspects of connected speech production, such as fluency, informativity, efficiency, and vocabulary use. The present study cross-sectionally investigates the effects of age on a broad variety of language production measures, using connected speech samples elicited by the two most frequently used picture description tasks. Twenty-six young (20-25 y.o.) and twenty-two older participants (55-90 y.o.) were included in this study. Speech samples were transcribed using the CLAN program and eight measures were extracted. Our results indicate that, in a picture description task, older adults produce more disruptions to fluency, but that lexical diversity, informativity, and efficiency of speech remain unaffected by age. The use of less frequent words by older adults might reflect a larger vocabulary size. These findings have implications for future studies assessing changes in connected speech production, in both healthy and clinical populations.
Suitability assessment of global, continental and national digital elevation models for geomorphological analyses in Italy

Digital elevation models (DEMs) represent a fundamental resource in geomorphological analysis. The increasing availability of open‐access DEMs over wide areas is advantageous, but requires an evaluation of DEM quality and errors. This work applies a hierarchical assessment of global, continental and national DEMs in Italy in order to explore the differences and analyze the vertical accuracy, spatial error distribution and agreement of morphometric measurements. The selected DEMs are compared with local reference data as a ground points dataset, extracted from the national geodetic network, and regional DEMs at high spatial resolution, through both a qualitative and a quantitative approach. The results identify limits and potentialities of the selected DEMs, showing accuracy and errors in height representation, also affected by the topographic characteristics of the surface, such as steep slope in mountain zones and some defects in hydromorphological derivatives that could condition the geomorphological applications.
Relation between Quality of Nursing Work Life and Organizational Commitment

Background: Nurses spend several hours a day in work environment; thus, quality of work life and organizational commitment are two important components for the staff, and dissatisfaction of these issues affects their other roles at home and community. The Work Life balance must be maintained effectively to ensure that all employees are working at their peak potential and free from stress. Aim: To assess the relation between quality of Nursing work life and organizational commitment. Research design: A descriptive correlational research design . Subjects: A representative sample 30% of total staff nurses (N= 193) . Setting : Chest Diseases Hospital, at Kuwait. Tools of data collection: included two tools; first tool Brook’s Quality of Nursing Work Life Survey; second the Organizational Commitment of the Staff Nurses Questionnaire. Results: More than half of staff nurses (57.0%) had the moderate level to the total quality of work life. Most staff nurses (86.5%) had a moderate level of total organizational commitment. There were positive fair association between total organizational commitment of the staff nurses and their work life, work design, work context, work world, and total quality of nursing work life. Also, there were positive association between total quality of nursing work life of staff nurses and their affective, continuance and normative commitment. Conclusion: The findings of this study revealed that quality of nursing work life and organizational commitment were positively correlated. Recommendation: Increase nurses’ satisfaction through competitive salaries, encourage the teamwork spirit and conduct periodical meetings to discuss their problems.
Does water stress exacerbate the impacts of heat stress on berry development of Vitis vinifera cv. Semillon vines grown in controlled environment conditions?

ABSTRACT Anecdotal evidence suggested heat stress in grapevines can be reduced if vines are fully irrigated during a heat stress but only a few cultivars have been evaluated. Accordingly, Vitis vinifera L. cv. Semillon vines were grown in controlled environments and treated to a four-day 40°C heat event with and without water stress. Berry size, sugar content, gas exchange and water potentials were measured. Results indicated water stress was relatively mild, but berry growth was reversed when exposed to the heat event and water stress added to this effect whereas control berries continued growing. Similar results occurred with the sugar accumulation process, except sugar immediately stopped accumulating but heat plus water stress reduced the amount of berry sugar further. The stress treatments also impaired photosynthesis and more so when combined with water stress. While reductions in photosynthesis were mostly a result of stomatal closure, but perhaps also non-stomatal limitations, the reduced photoassimilates, especially of the heat plus water stressed vines, contributed to the lowered sugar amounts in the berries. These data strongly supported the conclusion that water stress exacerbated the effects of heat stress. The corollary is heat stress effects on vines will be ameliorated if no water stress is present.
Volatile and Non-Volatile Chemical Compounds and Biological Power of the genus Lavandula: Case of two Moroccan Lavenders Lavandula angustifolia Mill. (Cultivated Lavander) and Lavandula pedunculata (Mill.) Cav. (Spontaneous Lavander)

This work consists of the comparison of the chemical composition, the antioxidant activity, and the antimicrobial effect of two species of the genus Lavandula essential oils (EOs) and extracts (hydroethanolic, aqueous and decocted), that were collected from the region of Ifrane in Morocco " Lavandula angustifolia and Lavandula pedunculata ". Gas chromatographic analyzes coupled with mass spectrometry of the studied EOs showed that L. angustifolia contains camphor and linalool as majority compounds with 20,17% and 12,41% respectively, while camphor (41,15%) and fenchone (15,70%) are the major compounds of L. pedunculata . The dosage of hydroethanolic, aqueous and decocted extracts showed that the content of polyphenols and flavonoids is higher in the hydroethanolic extracts of L. pedunculata , while L. angustifolia contains the highest content of tannins. The determination of the antioxidant activity was carried out using FRAP and DPPH methods, the last method revealed that the EO of L. angustifolia is less effective (IC 50 =7,98 mg/ml) than that of L. pedunculata (EC 50 =7,47 mg/ml) while, there was no great divergence concerning the IC 50 values of the hydroethanolic and decocted extracts of the two species. As for the aqueous extract, the value recorded by L. pedunculata was slightly higher than that of L. angustifolia . Finally, tests of the antimicrobial activity of EOs and extracts of the two species were carried out on six bacteria and five fungal strains whose antimicrobial power was remarkable. As a conclusion, the two Lavenders’ extracts can be considered as alternative sources of powerful natural antioxidants, antifungals and antibiotics.
Dispersion properties and beam excitation of symmetric slow waves in helix traveling wave tubes in the presence of plasma

The propagation of the hybrid slow waves in the new helix traveling wave tube, including a dielectric rod, gas plasma layer, and helix sheath is examined. It is assumed that the plasma is strongly magnetized. The dispersion relation of symmetric hybrid slow waves in this waveguide is obtained. It is shown that the frequency increases by increasing the axial wavenumber and the group velocity of slow waves reduces with increasing the dielectric constant. Moreover, by injecting the electron beam in the vacuum area in the waveguide, the symmetric hybrid slow waves are excited and the influence of various parameters on the growth rate of these waves is examined. Furthermore, therequired parameters such as plasma frequency, dielectric constant, and other geometric parameters for waveguide fabrication are expressed. According to this configuration, the allowed region for the operation of this waveguide and its growth rate and other results are obtained.
Part I: Physical Insights Into Dynamic RON Behavior and a Unique Time-Dependent Critical Stress Voltage in AlGaN/GaN HEMTs

We report a unique OFF-state drain-to-source critical stress voltage above which the dynamic performance of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs is significantly deteriorated. Physical insights are developed through detailed experiments conducted for different design variants, increased substrate bias, varying temperature, varying stress time, and experimenting buffers with lower C-doping. The surface leakage measurements on dedicated test structures and experimentation of devices realized over GaN buffer with different carbon doping reveal that the observed phenomenon is solely caused by traps present in carbon-doped GaN buffer. Surface traps have no role to play as far as they do not modulate the electric field in the GaN buffer (discussed in Part-II). Stress time, substrate temperature, substrate bias, electric-field shape, and depletion regions formed under the gate as well as field plate region were found to play a key role in governing trap-assisted transport and carrier trapping in the GaN buffer. A deeper physical insight to explain the observed phenomena and its dependency on various conditions are developed through detailed measurements, TCAD simulations, electroluminescence, and photoluminescence spectroscopy. With the help of the physical insight gained into the underlying mechanism, a novel surface passivation scheme using a p-type oxide is reported in Part-II, which helps relaxing the field distribution across the access region and buffer, and in turn improves the dynamic performance of the HEMTs. Besides, the Part-II also unifies the mechanism across different gate-stack designs and reveals the interplay between the surface and buffer, which governs the dynamic performance of these devices.
The innovative use of smartphone for sound STEM practical kit: a pilot implementation for secondary classroom

ABSTRACT Background Recent studies have highlighted the application of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) knowledge into daily life via hands-on practical works. The limitations of the existing conventional laboratory work can be potentially overcome by the implementation of the innovative use of smartphones as an experimental tool due to its effectiveness and convenience to apply anywhere and anytime. Purpose The purpose of the study was to develop and evaluate the effectiveness of a sound STEM practical kit using free mobile apps for secondary school students. This study also examined student perceptions of the implementation of the developed sound practical kit. Sample Two intact Form 2 classes of secondary school students from a mainstream school in the state of Perak, Malaysia, were chosen using the cluster sampling method as research sample. One of the classes was selected as an experimental group (n = 36 students) with the implementation of developed sound practical kit, while the other class was a comparison group (n = 30 students) employing a conventional teaching method. Methods A developmental research design according to the ASSURE (Analyse learners; State objectives; Select media and materials; Utilise media and materials; Require learner participation; and Evaluate) instructional design model and quasi-experimental were employed in this study. A set of achievement test and open-ended questions were employed as research instruments. The data were analysed using a non-parametric test that included Mann-Whitney test and Wilcoxon signed-rank test, while the students’ feedbacks and comments were analysed using Qualitative Data Analysis (QDA) software. Results The findings demonstrated a significant difference between the posttest of the comparison group and the experimental group students. Conclusions In summary, the developed sound practical kit improved students’ understanding on the topic of sound. In implication, this study indicates that the implementation of STEM practical kit using free mobile apps promotes the interactive STEM teaching and learning process in secondary education.
State failure, genocide and politicide reconsidered

State failure is highly threatening to incumbent elites, providing them motive to engage in genocide or politicide. The destruction of formal institutions may also remove political barriers to employing such atrocities. Thus, previous scholars expect state failure to increase the likelihood of genocide and politicide. However, such logic overlooks that these atrocities are government policy, which require planning and implementation. Since government institutions collapse during state failure, regime elites will possess little physical ability to commit widespread and systematic killing of their enemies. Therefore, I expect state failure to be associated with a lower likelihood of genocide and politicide. Using bivariate probit regression to handle the endogeneity between state failure and these atrocities, I find strong support for my argument in all country-years since 1946.
Synthesis of MnSe@C yolk‐shell nanospheres via a water vapor‐assisted strategy for use as anode in sodium‐ion batteries

This study introduces a simple and eco‐friendly synthetic strategy for yolk‐shell nanospheres that consist of manganese selenide yolks and carbon shells (MnSe@C) by reacting manganese salt impregnated in the porous hollow carbon nanospheres (HCNS) with H2O vapor. First, manganese salt dissolved in ethanol was impregnated into the spacious pores of the HCNS by capillary force. Then, heat treatment of the powder in the presence of H2O triggered the nucleation and crystal growth of manganese hydroxide, resulting in the formation of HCNS whose central voids are filled with multiple nanoparticles. Subsequent selenization yielded yolk‐shell nanospheres with MnSe@void@carbon configuration. MnSe@C was applied as the anode for sodium‐ion batteries (SIBs), and the following electrochemical reaction was confirmed from various analytical techniques: MnSe +2Na+ + 2e− ↔ Mn + Na2Se. MnSe@C nanospheres exhibited stable cycle performance up to 1000 cycles at 0.5 A g−1, wherein a reversible capacity of 222 mA h g−1 was delivered in the 1000th cycle. Furthermore, MnSe@C nanospheres exhibited a fair rate performance (209 mA h g−1 at 2.0 A g−1).
A Hybrid Methodology for Dental Hospital Quality Performance Gap Using HOQ and Process Analysis

A hybrid methodology is described to identify a quality gap in a dental hospital. The research case study illustrates how to implement quality improvement in a real-life context. A combination of an ethnographic, narrative, and phenomenological approach in data collection and observations within the dental hospital validates the case findings. A unique method based on systems study and Taguchi loss function is shown to reduce the service quality gap in a dental hospital. A house of quality (HOQ) combines the correlation between “patient's expectations” and the hospital's “technical” characteristics. The correlation between service quality and technical characteristics measures a patient's expectations gap. Factor analysis helps to group service and technical factors for better patient management. A strategy map correlation analysis is generated to manage the quality gap. The correlation analysis between patient expectations and the hospital's technical characteristics identify areas of immediate attention.
SARS-CoV-2 Detection Using Colorimetric Plasmonic Sensors: A Proof-of-Concept Computational Study

Traditional molecular techniques for SARS-CoV-2 viral detection are time-consuming and can exhibit a high probability of false negatives. In this work, we present a computational study of SARS-CoV-2 detection using plasmonic gold nanoparticles. The resonance wavelength of a SARS-CoV-2 virus was recently estimated to be in the near-infrared region. By engineering gold nanospheres to specifically bind with the outer surface of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, the resonance frequency can be shifted to the visible range (380 nm–700 nm). Moreover, we show that broadband absorption will emerge in the visible spectrum when the virus is partially covered with gold nanoparticles at a specific coverage percentage. This broadband absorption can be used to guide the development of an efficient and accurate colorimetric plasmon sensor for COVID-19 detection. Our observation also suggests that this technique is unaffected by the number of protein spikes present on the virus outer surface, hence can pave a potential path for a label-free COVID-19 diagnostic tool independent of the number of protein spikes.
Identification and Recovery of Valuable Bioactive Compounds from Potato Peels: A Comprehensive Review

Nowadays, the potato is one of the most cultivated and consumed food crops in the world and, in recent years, its production has experienced a sharp increase. Its industrial processing generates several by-products that are wasted and cause economic and environmental problems. Among them, potato peel stands out, representing up to 10% of the total potato residues obtained in the processing. On the other hand, these wastes, in addition to presenting antioxidant compounds, are rich in interesting chemical compounds of great value in a biorefinery model. This review summarizes the main compounds present in potato skins as well as the most used and innovative extraction methods employed for their isolation, with special emphasis on the fractions with biological activities. In addition, a sustainable biorefinery proposal focused on obtaining high added-value products with potential applications in the pharmaceutical, food, nutraceutical, or cosmetic industries is included.