Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Multivariate optimization for cloud point extraction and determination of lanthanides

A cloud point extraction (CPE) method is proposed for pre-concentration of lanthanides and subsequent determination using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP OES). Octylphenoxypolyethoxyethanol (Triton X-114) and 1-(2-thenoyl)-3,3,3-trifluoraceton (TTA) are used as surfactant and complexant of the lanthanides, respectively. A three-factor Doehlert matrix design with seven, five, and three levels is used to optimize the TTA and Triton X-114 concentration and the pH of the solution, respectively. The better conditions for pre-concentration are 0.001 to 0.005 mol L−1 TTA, 0.05 to 0.3% (m/v) Triton X-114 and pH from 5.5 to 7.0. Under these conditions, the fourteen naturally occurring lanthanide elements can be pre-concentrated together and then measured. The conditions established were pH 6.0 and 0.175 (m/v) Triton X-114 for all investigated elements; 0.005 mol L−1 TTA for Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Ho, Yb and Lu; and 0.001 mol L−1 TTA for La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Dy, Er and Tm. By using axially viewed plasma and pneumatic nebulization/aerosol desolvation, the limits of detection were 0.028, 0.099, 0.103, 0.020, 0.018, 0.014, 0.013, 0.047, 0.015, 0.009, 0.022, 0.003, 0.002 and 0.002 μg L−1 for La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb and Lu, respectively. The proposed method was applied for lanthanides determination in mineral water, river water and reference water.
A Method for Evaluating Software Communicability

Computer tools are rational artifacts determined by the cultural background of designers and users. Communicating design assumptions, choices, and goals is a complex task, subject to constant misunderstandings that lead to a wide spectrum of breakdowns in human-computer interaction. This paper presents a method to help HCI practitioners evaluate the communicability of interactive systems, not only in terms of the effectiveness of their direct messages to users but also of the afforded conversational paths that should allow breakdowns to be circumvented. The whole proposal is tied to a semiotic background within which systems are like “discourse deputies” of their designers.
Quantum dot solar cells and electrochemical doping of QD films

Quantum dots (QDs) are nano-crystal semiconductors (1-100 nm) in which charge carriers (electrons and holes) are confined in all 3 dimensions by potential barriers that cause them to behave differently from conventional bulk semiconductors. QD research in the past decade has progressed rapidly, allowing a deeper understanding of the physics behind the functioning and the effective synthesis of such materials. The wide spread opto-electronic applications of such QD semiconductors in LEDs, lasers, electrochemistry and solar cells with the potential to outperform traditional bulk semiconductors has fuelled inspired research in this field. Quantum dot solar cells (QDSC) are solution-based third generation solar cells that possess the potential to overcome the Shockley-Queisser limit using multiple exciton generation (MEG). The large Bohr radius, wide bandgap tunability and large light absorption coefficients of PbS QDs have made them the most common material used in the absorber layer of such solar cells and shall also be the material used in this thesis. PbS QDs are used in conjunction with an n-type metal oxide to form a heterojunction that enhances charge separation at the interface. ZnO and TiO2 are common metal oxides used for this purpose while different synthesis methods of the same metal has been observed to show different results. While different research groups have used different metal oxide layers, there has been no systematic study on the interaction of the metal oxide layer synthesized by different methods with the absorber layer. Such a study could help improve understanding of the heterojunction interface and shall be briefly looked into in this thesis. Another area of improvement in device performance is the depletion region across the heterojunction. Varying the doping of the n-type material affects the depletion width which has been explored in the past by adding impurity atoms to the metal oxide. However, the emergence of an alternate method to dope ZnO electrochemically has triggered an interesting novel pathway to integrate doped materials into solar cells. In this thesis, we have successfully fabricated PbS QD solar cells for the first time in TU Delft at the Synthesis lab of the Applied Sciences faculty with power conversion efficiencies exceeding 5%. Additionally, a systematic study on the absorber layer and the metal oxide layer was also carried out to optimize the device performance and set protocols for any future work. Finally, electrochemical doping of the PbS absorber layer was attempted to develop a precise doping mechanism for QD films.
Benchmarking parallel implementations of cloud type clustering from satellite data

This work is supported by the grant CyberTraining: DSE: Cross-Training of Researchers in Computing, Applied Mathematics and Atmospheric Sciences using Advanced Cyberinfrastructure Resources from the National Science Foundation (grant no. OAC–1730250). Co-author Lipi Mukherjee additionally acknowledges the NASA Earth and Space Science Fellowship Program - supported by NASA Headquarters. The hardware in the UMBC High Performance Computing Facility (HPCF) is supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation through the MRI program (grant nos. CNS–0821258, CNS–1228778, and OAC–1726023) and the SCREMS program (grant no. DMS–0821311), with additional substantial support from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). See hpcf.umbc. edu for more information on HPCF and the projects using its resources.
Breast carcinoma tissues characterization using statistics of ultrasonic backscatter

The Ultrasonix SonixTouch scanner with the special RF block was used to collect Bmode images together with appropriate RF echoes fro m the pathological and healthy breasts regions of patients with diagnosed malignan t and benign breast lesions. The RF data were processed for the statistics of the backs c ttered echo signals assessment (K distribution and effective density of scatterers – M and Nakagami distribution and its shape parameter m). The comparison of signals recorded from maligna nt and healthy tissues showed, that in 80% of examined cases the v alu s of the statistical parameters M were higher for carcinomas tissues than for healthy tissue. Beside of that in the case of benign lesions obtained results was able to disting uish the fibroadenoma from the other with probability of 75%.
Interpreting the spectral behavior of MWC 314

MWC 314 is one of the most luminous stars in the Milky Way. Its fundamental parameters are similar to those of LBVs, although no large photometric variations have been recorded. We analyzed the radial velocity (RV) variations displayed by the absorption lines from the star's atmosphere using high resolution optical spectra. The RV and profile variations of some permitted and forbidden emission lines of metallic ions and the behavior of the Balmer and HeI lines has been investigated as well. The RV of the absorption lines clearly shows a 60-day periodicity. A dense coverage of the RV curve allowed us to derive accurate orbital parameters. The RV of the FeII emission lines varies in the same way, but with a smaller amplitude. Additionally, the intensity ratio of the blue/red peaks of these emission lines correlates with the RV variations. The Balmer lines and {NII] lines display a nearly constant RV and no profile variations in phase with the orbital motion instead. The HeI-5876 \AA\ line shows a strongly variable profile with broad and blue-shifted absorption components reaching velocities of <-1000 km/s at some specific orbital phases. Our data strongly suggest that the object is a binary system composed from a supergiant B[e] star and an undetected companion. The emission lines with a non-variable RV could originate in a circumbinary region. For the FeII emission lines we propose a simple geometrical two-component model where a compact source of FeII emission, moving around the center of mass, is affected by a static extra absorption that originates from a larger area. Finally, the blue-shifted absorption in the HeI-5876 \AA\ line could be the result of density enhancements in the primary star wind flowing towards the companion that is best observed when projected over the disk of the primary star.
Equilibrium Indeterminacy under Forward-Looking Interest Rate Rules

Why is the rational expectations equilibrium locally indeterminate if the central bank raises the nominal interest rate too actively in response to a rise in expected inflation? This is because although the bank succeeds in stabilizing the expectations of the future economy, it allows the current economy to arbitrarily fluctuate. This indeterminacy expands in dimension as the forecast horizon of the rule becomes long.
The Modificatin of AIC using Denoising by Wavelet

Akaike’s Information Criterion (AIC) is a popular method for estimation the number of sources impinging on an array of sensors, which is a problem of great interest in several applications. The performance of AIC degrades under low Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) conditions due to errors in estimating the data covariance matrix from finite data. This paper explores the possibility of employing the wavelet denoising technique to arrest the degradation in the finite-data performance of AIC under low SNR. We propose the application of wavelet denoising to the noisy signal at each sensor to boost the SNR before performing estimation of the number of the sources by AIC. A comparative study of the finite data performance of AIC is presented for the undenoised and denoised data, and it is shown that denoising leads to the enhancement of the AIC method.
COMP 396 Final Report-Fall 2014 Analyzing Radiation Oncology Data for Prediction of Radiotherapy Patient Wait Time

A common cause of anxiety for radiotherapy patients is the fact that they do not know how long they will have to wait for treatment to start following preliminary scans. In this study, we attempt to provide an initial estimate of radiotherapy patient wait time based on electronic health records. For this estimate, we extracted data for six key events from the initial CT scan to the start of treatment. The effect of patients’ primary oncologist, diagnosis, age, priority, treatment season, and gender were considered in turn as potential explanatory variables and data trends for various combinations of patient factors were visualized. The oncologist, diagnosis, and priority of the patient were identified as the key factors affecting wait time. Using these factors as features, various regression algorithms were trained on part of the patient dataset and tested on the rest of the dataset. A support vector machine approach gave wait time estimates that were accurate to 3.97± 3.36 days, a substantial improvement over the default "two-week" estimate typically given to patients. Improving this estimate by adding informative features and applying the information to radiotherapy workflow scheduling will be considered in future studies.
Applying ecological knowledge to the innovative design of sustainable agroecosystems

The design of sustainable agroecosystems is crucial to meet contemporary environmental challenges such as biodiversity loss and global change. Ecological knowledge, although expected to be an important component of such an endeavour, is to date mainly used under a problem‐solving paradigm. Applying recent design theories, which highlight the differences between innovative design and problem solving, we assess the potential of using ecological knowledge in agroecosystem design in three contrasted French case studies representative of agricultural intensification world‐wide. In all cases, a design approach generated unexplored agroecosystem configurations and management alternatives. This analysis highlights that ecological science is critical for designing sustainable social‐ecological systems, because it orients the design process by identifying key ecological properties to maintain, while opening the range of management options stakeholders can explore. Synthesis and applications. Participatory design approaches of agroecosystems based on ecological knowledge might be key for planning and change: they allow a diversity of stakeholders to contribute to building solutions, thereby strengthening their sense of ownership and responsibility. Infrastructures in support of participatory design processes, set up in close relation to ecological research centres, have the potential to become new cornerstones of innovation for sustainable social‐ecological systems.
Effects of temperature, phase type and timing, location, and human density on plant phenological responses in Europe

Phenological onset dates are closely linked to temperature. In this study, we analysed a phenological dataset collected during the COST 725 Action ‘Establishing a European phenological data platform for climatological applications’, which contained more than 36000 phenological time series for Europe covering 1971–2000. We analysed the temperature response of the phenological phases, their regional differences, and the relationship between the sizes of the local temperature and phenology trends in connection with a high-resolution climate grid of Europe. As an external factor, we examined the influence of human population density on phenology. Our analyses confirm differences in behaviour between annual and perennial plants in Europe. The average temperature response of perennial plants was significantly greater (–4.2 d °C–1) than that of annual agricultural crops (–3.0 d °C–1). The correlation between temperature and phenology trends was greatest for leaf unfolding of fruit trees and deciduous trees (r = –0.63 and –0.46, respectively). The geographic coordinates (latitude and longitude) had only a modest influence on the mean onset of the groups of phases; however, inclusion of altitude improved the models for some groups.
Reversal of Equivalence Relations

Previous research has demonstrated that equivalence relations are difficult to reverse. The present study sought to determine if this difficulty is related to particular features of the training tasks. Sixty-six Dutch adults and children were employed across 7 experiments. Following the formation of two 3-term equivalence classes (A1-B1-C1, A2-B2-C2), children in Experiment 1 received reversal training followed by equivalence probes. Two reversal training procedures were compared: standard and nonstandard. In standard A-B reversal training, the subjects had to choose between the same 2 different-class comparisons as in baseline (B1 vs. B2, C1 vs. C2). This training requires different choices during the A-B tasks but not during the A-C tasks. In nonstandard A-B reversal training, the subjects had to choose between 2 same-class B and C stimuli (B1 vs. C1, B2 vs. C2). This procedure requires the subjects to make novel choices during all training tasks. Almost all subjects showed reversal of equivalence relations irrespective of the training protocol. Experiments 2-7 examined if this finding could be related to the subject's age and mental ability, the response topography, the identity and location of the experimenter, specific features of the training and testing program that were different from those in previous research (e.g., Pilgrim & Galizio, 1990), or to the subject's ability to accurately predict the probability of reinforcement. Unless the probes were introduced before the reversal training had been completed and the nonstandard protocol was used, both reversal protocols almost always produced equivalence reversal.
Impact of climate variability on the circulation of an East-Australian bay

The climate along the subtropical east coast of Australia is changing significantly. Rainfall has decreased about by 50 mm per decade and temperature increased by about 0.1 °C per decade during the last fifty years. These changes are likely to impact upon episodes of hypersalinity and the persistence of inverse circulations which are often characteristic features of the coastal zone in the subtropics. These conditions are controlled by the balance between evaporation, precipitation and freshwater discharge. In this study, we use observations and results from an ocean model to investigate the circulation pattern and water renewal of Hervey Bay, a subtropical bay off the central east coast of Australia. The investigation of this shallow coastal environment (mean depth 15 m) showed how current climate trends have impacted upon the physical characteristics of the bay. The observed hypersalinity zone and inverse circulation, which are climatological features, are caused by the high evaporation rate, solar heat fluxes and the water renewal timescales of the bay. The region therefore acts as an effective source for an accumulation of salt. Over the last two decades the outflow of this salt has increased by about 25 % in direct consequence of recent climate trends. Further the manifestation of this salt export, in form of gravity currents, has also increased in frequency and strength. With the help of Lagrangian particle techniques, we could track these plumes on their way along/down the continental shelf to depths up to 220 m, to form a 'Hervey Bay' water mass. These outflow events, when integrated over the time they occur, have a volume comparable to the volume of the bay and have broad implications for the local biology, sediment dynamics but also for pollutant transport. The study further indicates that hypersalinity conditions are more persistent and reversal of these conditions is less frequent in the last decade due to the reduced supply of freshwater.
Dipstick Urinalysis in apparently healthy Neonates in Port Harcourt

DOI: 10.15580/GJMS.2015. 3.030815042 Background: Dipstick urinalysis, which is a simple but very important diagnostic procedure in paediatric nephro-urology, provides information about multiple physicochemical properties of urine. It detects common urinary abnormalities in children which could result from a wide range of conditions. Proteinuria, haematuria and glycosuria for example may be pointers to serious underlying pathologies in the newborn. This study was undertaken to determine baseline findings on dipstick urinalysis in healthy neonate in Port Harcourt as there is paucity of such a study in our environment.
Preferences for International Redistribution: The Divide Over the Eurozone Bailouts

Why do voters agree to bear the costs of bailing out other countries? Despite the prominence of public opinion in the ongoing debate over the eurozone bailouts, voters' preferences on the topic are poorly understood. We conduct the first systematic analysis of this issue using observational and experimental survey data from Germany, the country shouldering the largest share of the EU's financial rescue fund. Testing a range of theoretical explanations, we find that individuals' own economic standing has limited explanatory power in accounting for their position on the bailouts. In contrast, social dispositions such as altruism and cosmopolitanism robustly correlate with support for the bailouts. The results indicate that the divide in public opinion over the bailouts is not drawn along distributive lines separating domestic winners and losers. Instead, the bailout debate is better understood as a foreign policy issue that pits economic nationalist sentiments versus greater cosmopolitan affinity and other-regarding concerns.
Living with Ongoing Political Trauma: The Prevalence and Impact of PTSD among Syrian Refugees

Conflicts and wars kill humanity. Nationalist or Religious wars, terrorist attacks, shock and awe war on terror, and revolutions such as the Arab upheavals, all underscored by victors “mission accomplished”: the destruction of the body, the soul, and the minds of people involved. This study addresses the prevalence and implications of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among civilians exposed to “continuous” trauma aggravated by displacement. The majority of the literature on PTSD that examines people who witnessed wars focuses mainly on veterans. Little research addresses the innocent populations caught up in an on-going political upheaval. Our case study includes 450 Syrian refugees 21 years or older living in Lebanon. The results found that 61.56% of the Syrian refugees met the criteria of full PTSD, 8.67% participants fit the criteria of partial PTSD, and 29.78% refugees did not report any symptoms of PTSD. PTSD affects the area of the brain responsible for executive function, including memory and emotional ability. Accordingly, we hypothesize that people with PTSD will be more prone to be conflictive, will have low impulse control, associated with anger and a high desire for revenge. Hence, high prevalence of PTSD among civilians feeds into the cycle of extremism and violence.
Correction to “Detection of runoff timing changes in pluvial, nival, and glacial rivers of western Canada”

[1] Changes in air temperature, precipitation, and, in some cases, glacial runoff affect the timing of river flow in watersheds of western Canada. We present a method to detect streamflow phase shifts in pluvial, nival, and glacial rivers. The Kendall-Theil robust lines yield monotonic trends in normalized sequent 5-day means of runoff in nine river basins of western Canada over the period 1960–2006. In comparison to trends in the timing of the date of annual peak flow and the center of volume, two other less robust metrics often used to infer streamflow timing changes, our approach reveals more detailed structure on the nature of these changes. For instance, our trend analyses reveal extension of the warm hydrological season in nival and glacial rivers of western Canada. This feature is marked by an earlier onset of the spring melt, decreases in summer streamflow, and a delay in the onset of enhanced autumn flows. Our method provides information on streamflow timing changes throughout the entire hydrological year, enhancing results from previous methods to assess climate change impacts on the hydrological cycle.
Abstract Submitted for the DFD11 Meeting of The American Physical Society Assessment of the Derivative-Moment Transformation method for unsteady-load estimation

Submitted for the DFD11 Meeting of The American Physical Society Assessment of the Derivative-Moment Transformation method for unsteady-load estimation ALI MOHEBBIAN, DAVID RIVAL, University of Calgary — It is often difficult, if not impossible, to measure the aerodynamic or hydrodynamic forces on a moving body. For this reason, a classical control-volume technique is typically applied to extract the unsteady forces instead. However, measuring the acceleration term within the volume of interest using PIV can be limited by optical access, reflections as well as shadows. Therefore in this study an alternative approach, termed the Derivative-Moment Transformation (DMT) method, is introduced and tested on a synthetic data set produced using numerical simulations. The test case involves the unsteady loading of a flat plate in a two-dimensional, laminar periodic gust. The results suggest that the DMT method can accurately predict the acceleration term so long as appropriate spatial and temporal resolutions are maintained. The major deficiency was found to be the determination of pressure in the wake. The effect of control-volume size was investigated suggesting that smaller domains work best by minimizing the associated error with the pressure field. When increasing the control-volume size, the number of calculations necessary for the pressure-gradient integration increases, in turn substantially increasing the error propagation. Ali Mohebbian University of Calgary Date submitted: 05 Aug 2011 Electronic form version 1.4