Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Intelligent mobile robot path planning with fuzzy system approaches

The path planning problem for intelligent mobile robots involves two main subproblems, i.e., the repesentation of task environment including obstacles and the development of a strategy to determine a collision-free route. New approaches are developed to solve these subproblems. The first subproblem is solved using the fuzzy system approach where obstacles are represented by fuzzy half planes. The other subproblem is overcome through the use of a strategy selector, which chooses the best strategy among a few, to be used for determination of a collision-free route. This approach is able to draw on the strengths of different strategies under different situations. Based on the fuzzy approach for world representation, two existing strategies are modified for the dynamic enviornment case. Simulation examples are used to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed approaches. <<ETX>>
Numerical and Experimental Analysis of Wood Tensile Strength Perpendicular to the Grain

The Brazilian Code ABNT NBR 7190 (1997) is currently under review process and one of the proposals is the change and add of some test procedures. Several specimen geometric configurations and test conditions have been evaluated by the study committee CE-02:126.10. The aim of this paper was the analysis of the tensile strength perpendicular to the grain through the current Brazilian Code and from an adaptation of ISO 13910 (2005). Pine and Indian Cedar were used and simplified relationships were proposed. Numerical simulations were performed to identify the stress distributions in the specimens. The results obtained by ISO 13910 (2005) did not differ statistically for the two species. Brazilian standard method cedar had a higher strength value than pine. The simplified ratios obtained ranged between 0,017 and 0,123. The numerical simulations of ISO 13910 (2005) specimens showed predominant failure by tension in the lower fiber due to stress concentration.
Linear programming based optimal power flow using second order sensitivities

For electric railway traction in Sweden, a system of 130 kV transmission lines connected parallel to the contact lines is being built. Within this system, the generation costs differ only slightly between different nodes with power injections. In order to optimize the power flow in the system, an extended optimal power flow algorithm based on successive linear programming, has been developed. To improve the convergence, a method based on a second order sensitivity approximation of the active power losses of the total system is applied. Numerical examples are given to show the enhanced convergence properties. >
CEModule: A Computation Efficient Module for Lightweight Convolutional Neural Networks

Lightweight convolutional neural networks (CNNs) rely heavily on the design of lightweight convolutional modules (LCMs). For an LCM, lightweight design based on repetitive feature maps (LoR) is currently one of the most effective approaches. An LoR mainly involves an extraction of feature maps from convolutional layers (CE) and feature map regeneration through cheap operations (RO). However, existing LoR approaches carry out lightweight improvements only from the aspect of RO but ignore the problems of poor generalization, low stability, and high computation workload incurred in the CE part. To alleviate these problems, this article introduces the concept of key features from a CNN model interpretation perspective. Subsequently, it presents a novel LCM, namely CEModule, focusing on the CE part. CEModule increases the number of key features to maintain a high level of accuracy in classification. In the meantime, CEModule employs a group convolution strategy to reduce floating-point operations (FLOPs) incurred in the training process. Finally, this article brings forth a dynamic adaptation algorithm ( $\alpha $ -DAM) to enhance the generalization of CEModule-enabled lightweight CNN models, including the developed CENet in dealing with datasets of different scales. Compared with the state-of-the-art results, CEModule reduces FLOPs by up to 54% on CIFAR-10 while maintaining a similar level of accuracy in classification. On ImageNet, CENet increases accuracy by 1.2% following the same FLOPs and training strategies.
Complex waveguide filter topologies employing inductive windows and dielectric objects

This study presents novel topologies for implementing bandpass elliptic filters employing waveguide structures composed of inductive windows and dielectric objects. Cavities operating in dual mode are obtained by placing a dielectric post inside a cavity. By combining dual mode with single mode cavities, several useful filter responses implementing transmission zeros can be synthesised. The first proposed structure is a three-pole filter with one transmission zero, using a physically asymmetric configuration with two waveguide cavities and one dielectric post. The second proposed structure implements a four-pole filter with one transmission zero, employing a physically symmetric configuration with one dielectric post and three waveguide cavities. The third structure implements two transmission zeros in a four-pole filter, also employing a symmetric structure, but now with two dielectric posts and two cavities. Important aspects on sensitivity issues of the new structures, as well as on synthesis techniques, needed to obtain the required topologies, are introduced. This includes several alternatives to implement a transfer function, using physically symmetric or asymmetric structures. Finally, a transversal filter with one dual-mode cavity using a dielectric post has been manufactured and tested with good results. This is the first time that this type of filters is experimentally demonstrated.
Gain enhancement of antennas over finite ground plane covered by a dielectric sheet

In the paper the problem of gain enhancement for radiating elements between two finite plane reflectors, one of which is a partial reflector and the other a perfect conductor, is investigated. The problem is studied numerically using the method of moments and the effect of different parameters is investigated. It is shown that, as is similar to infinite structures, the antenna gain can be increased with finite size reflectors. Furthermore, for finite structures, the gain enhancement can be made larger than that of infinite structures. However, for optimum gain enhancement, the structure parameters must be selected with care
Preferred Offloading Modalities for Management of Diabetic Foot Ulcers in Private Clinical Settings: A Survey of Australian Podiatrists

Background Diabetic peripheral neuropathy is a common complication of diabetes mellitus. Neuropathy predisposes patients to diabetic foot ulcers (DFU) due to the loss of protective sensation and associated deformities. Management of foot ulcers are multifactorial, but pressure offloading can be considered as one of the most important aspects of management. According to IWGDF Guidelines, non-removable knee-high offloading devices are recommended as the 1st line of treatment for these ulcers. However, this is a very underutilised treatment modality. This study aimed to evaluate the practitioner preferred offloading modalities and reasons for their preference. Methods This project was approved by the university’s human research ethics committee. An online survey was distributed amongst Australian podiatrist via an industry related social media group. The survey collected simple demographical information, management strategies, preferred offloading modalities for the management of diabetic foot ulcers and reasons for their preferred method. Results Sixty-three podiatrists completed the survey with the majority practicing in private clinics. All practitioners treat diabetic foot ulcers regularly with most participants treating up to ten ulcer cases per week and 14% of participants treating more than 20 ulcers per week. Contrary to the IWGDF guidelines, standard therapeutic footwear was the most preferred method of management for the treatment of diabetic foot ulcers, with ease of use reported as the main reason for practitioners using this modality. Non-compliance to the use of non-removable knee-high offloading devices include perceived patient non-compliance and poor tolerance. Conclusion This study shows that practitioners’ offloading strategies do not adhere to the IWGDF guidelines. The reasons for not adhering to the guidelines seems to be a clinical practicality rather than evidence-based practice. Reasons for choosing a management strategy is multi-factorial (not just reducing plantar pressures). Further studies may be required to evaluate the effectiveness of therapeutic footwear in ulcer healing, taking into consideration other factors such as practitioner and patient preference, clinical practicality, and access to support. Based on the findings, this study provides suggestions on how to overcome the barriers that prevent podiatrist from adhering to the recommendations of the IWGDF when selecting offloading devices in general clinical practice.
Library decision making informed by customer values

“Customer value” is a much used and, in a number of cases, a misunderstood term, with emphasis placed on a priori categories of what provides value for the customer, rather than an effort to understand value from a customer perspective. The research presented in this thesis spans more than ten years in two academic library services, (one in Australia and the other in the United Kingdom), using a methodology that does not use pre-determined value dimensions but, rather, dimensions identified by the customers themselves. This action research was carried out with different customer segments in the university libraries to identify customer values and irritations. By longitudinal tracking of student satisfaction in the UK university, changes in customer satisfaction were noted and related to interventions agreed by library management based on the research data gathered. The thesis answers four specific research questions. By focussing on customer-defined dimensions of “value” and the concept of “customer irritation”, through use of the Customer Value Discovery methodology, this research has been able to identify a set of core academic library customer values that traditional library benchmarking instruments have not previously highlighted. The attendant results of the application of the methodology to discern these values, and their use to inform subsequent change management processes, show that customer satisfaction is improved if changes are made to services and resources to both deliver customer-defined values and reduce customer-defined irritations.
Proton-induced dielectric breakdown of power MOSFETs

Proton-induced dielectric breakdown of vertical power metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs) is reported for the first time and compared to the heavy-ion-induced gate rupture response. Power MOSFETs from five variants were fabricated with nominal gate oxide thicknesses of 30, 50, 70, 100, and 150 nm. Devices from each variant were characterized to several heavy ion beams as previously reported; and then other devices from each variant were subsequently characterized to 200 MeV protons, as reported here. In addition, a limited characterization was performed using 44 MeV protons. Employing a similar test methodology, failure thresholds for the onset of proton-induced dielectric breakdown were determined for each gate oxide variant. The measured proton-induced dielectric breakdown thresholds induced by 200 and 44 MeV protons are compared to the measured heavy-ion induced failure thresholds.
Full Bayes Before-and-After Evaluation of Traffic Safety Improvements in City of Edmonton, Canada

The objective of this study was to evaluate the safety performance of a sample of intersections that had been improved with the implementation of certain safety countermeasures targeting right-turn collisions in the city of Edmonton, Canada. A full Bayes approach was used to determine the effectiveness of the improvements by employing a before-and-after design with matched (yoked) comparison groups. Three linear intervention models were considered: a multivariate model that modeled treatment effects as a gradual change, a similar model with the addition of a jump treatment effect, and a univariate model that specifically analyzed right-turn collisions. The results indicated that the safety improvement program was effective; up to 40% of right-turn collisions were reduced. Despite the small sample size, these reductions were statistically significant. The results show the usefulness of the full Bayes technique in performing before-and-after evaluations of traffic treatment programs and in eliminating the need for a reference population and also in allowing for additional types of analysis, including multivariate analysis (modeling collisions of different types and severities at the same time), temporal effects (for both treatment and long-term trends), and greater freedom in the selection of error structure.
Bayesian Estimation of The Ex-Gaussian Distribution

Fitting of the exponential modified Gaussian distribution to model reaction times and drawing conclusions from its estimated parameter values is one of the most popular method used in psychology. This paper aims to develop a Bayesian approach to estimate the parameters of the ex-Gaussian distribution. Since the chosen priors yield to posterior densities that are not of known form and that they are not always log-concave, we suggest to use the adaptive rejection Metropolis sampling method. Applications on simulated data and on real data are provided to compare this method to the standard maximum likelihood estimation method as well as the quantile maximum likelihood estimation. Results shows the effectiveness of the proposed Bayesian method by computing the root mean square error of the estimated parameters using the three methods.
Environmental factors structuring diatom assemblages in thermo-mineral springs of Sardinia, Italy

Thermal springs provide natural laboratories to test the responses of biological communities to various stressors. To date, little is known about how water temperature and chemistry influence the microalgal assemblages in these ecosystems, especially in the circum-Mediterranean area. In this study, we assessed the environmental drivers of benthic diatom assemblages collected from different substrates in 8 thermo-mineral springs of Sardinia, Italy, with a focus on temperature and conductivity. A total of 205 diatom species (67 genera) were found, of which 12 (8 genera) were centric and 193 (59 genera) were pennate. Composition of diatom assemblages was associated with temperature, pH, conductivity, bicarbonates (HCO3−), and sulfates (SO42−). Multivariate analyses also confirmed differences in species composition, richness, diversity, and evenness of diatom assemblages from groups of springs distinguished by temperature and conductivity gradients. We found higher species richness, diversity, and evenness in hyperthermal (water temperature = 52.7−71.5°C) and medium-mineral springs (conductivity = 590−1193 µS/cm). Our results indicate that thermal springs are not always inhospitable environments for diatoms. Springs with high water temperatures hosted rich and diverse diatom assemblages, likely thanks to their ecotonal nature and a combination of multiple local factors.
Using System Dynamics to Inform Scenario Planning: A Case Study

Developing strategy and policy requires some understanding of both the present and the future, but operational environmental change can makes these two vastly different. Defining that which is predetermined and that which is not about the future can provide clarity and decrease the space along which the present system might evolve into its future state. Scenario planning is an approach for exploring these different possible futures. The development of scenarios is about surfacing mental models, testing them, and learning. However, the literature on scenario planning offers little in the way of guidance about how this can be done. System dynamics offers a formal process for surfacing, testing and informing mental models. This paper presents and investigates the use of system dynamics to inform scenario planning. It did this by applying the two approaches to a not-forprofit organisation. While scenarios and a dynamic model were developed, the effectiveness of this application of the approaches is questionable. The dynamic model did address issues that remained unanswered by the scenario planning approach. However, it only addressed one small part of the system explored by the scenarios. System dynamics has the ability to explore systems on a range of different scales, suggesting that this particular application may not have reaped the full benefit from integrating these approaches. Word count: 4,959 (excluding references)
Claiming the future of enterprise education

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to highlight the importance of enterprise educators working collectively to develop a unique scholarship of teaching. The authors argue that the time is right for educators in this domain to secure the future of enterprise education. Acknowledging the debate between "entrepreneurship education" and "enterprise education," the authors set out to develop a unification model through which educators can act collectively to demonstrate the leadership required to secure the autonomy of the domain. Design/methodology/approach The authors bring several pertinent ideas (pedagogical content knowledge, heutagogy and academagogy) to the attention of academics/researchers involved in the design, development and delivery of enterprise education. The innovative approach to combine these ideas with prevailing thinking in this domain has facilitated a model for collective action. Findings It is at the level of the shared philosophical positions that the authors can best cooperate to shape the future direction of enterprise education. The authors argue against dwelling upon how the authors differ in terms of context and process issues. Such matters can only fragment the theory and practice of enterprise education. The authors need to develop greater appreciation of shared philosophical positions and leverage this understanding into a unique scholarship of teaching, specific to enterprise education. Practical implications – As enterprise education becomes more global, it is also likely to become more attractive to business schools that long for a new positioning tool in the increasingly overcrowded markets that they compete in. Originality/value This paper encourages enterprise educators to reflect upon the knowledge they hold of their own practice, and that of other enterprise educators.
Design of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Autopilot based on Freescale Qorivva 32-bit Microcontroller

Unmanned Arial Vehicle (UAV) is typically a low-cost aircraft designed to execute missions that are expensive or dangerous to be executed using its contrary . i.e. manned aircraft. Autopilot acts as the brain of the UAV along with the eyes and ears (sensors). Autopilot has two major components, system software and hardware. Freescale's MPC5644A is selected as the main embedded controller. Qorivva MPC564xA family is a 32-bit Power Architecture® microcontroller solution designed primarily for engines and advanced transmissions. The selected microcontroller is highly suitable for Autopilot application because of high performance and on-chip integrated resources. Design and development started from a bare board, initialization, configuration and peripheral interface development is followed. A Ground Control Station (GCS) is also developed using National Instrument's Lab Windows CVI (Integrated Development Environment) for constant monitoring of UAV health and mission plan upload. Testing of the Autopilot software is accomplished by Hardware-in-loop simulation. Design of the Guidance and Control Algorithm is not included in this research, open-source Algorithm is currently used and can be replaced by customized algorithms in future research. (Abbasi A, Al-Saggaf UM, Munawar K. Design of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Autopilot based on Freescale Qorivva 32-bit Microcontroller. Life Sci J 2014;11(11):874-878). (ISSN:1097-8135). http://www.lifesciencesite. com. 157
INFLUENCE OF THE GEOMETRICAL CONFIGURATION FACTORS ON THE RADIATION HEAT EXCHANGE CALCULATIONS IN NIGHT SKY RADIATORS

In the present work an effort will be made to apply radiation exchange calculations which account for radiation configuration factors in a flat plate night sky radiator with a cover partly transparent at long wave-lengths when the sky radiation must be taken into account. The objective of the analysis will be to estimate the influence of the radiation configuration factors on the radiation exchange between the sky radiator and the sky within and outside the 8–14 μm atmospheric window band. An application of a general set of equations to the radiation heat exchange in a flat plate sky radiator and a comparison of the values calculated with other methods which do not account for radiation configuration factors will be presented.
Patient-reported outcome measures for knowledge transfer and behaviour modification interventions in type 2 diabetes—the INDICA study: a multiarm cluster randomised controlled trial

Objective This study assesses the effectiveness of different interventions of knowledge transfer and behaviour modification to improve type 2 diabetes mellitus patients’ (T2DM) reported outcomes measures (PROMs) in the long-term. Design: open, community-based pragmatic, multicentre, controlled trial with random allocation by clusters to usual care (UC) or to one of the three interventions. Participants A total of 2334 patients with uncomplicated T2DM and 211 healthcare professionals were included of 32 primary care centres. Setting Primary Care Centers in Canary Islands (Spain). Intervention The intervention for patients (PTI) included an educational group programme, logs and a web-based platform for monitoring and automated short message service (SMS). The intervention for professionals (PFI) included an educational programme, a decision support tool embedded into the electronic clinical record and periodic feedback about patients’ results. A third group received both PTI and PFI (combined intervention, CBI). Outcome measure Cognitive-attitudinal, behavioural, affective and health-related quality of life (HQoL) variables. Results Compared with UC at 24 months, the PTI group significantly improved knowledge (p=0.005), self-empowerment (p=0.002), adherence to dietary recommendations (p<0.001) and distress (p=0.01). The PFI group improved at 24 months in distress (p=0.03) and at 12 months there were improvements in depression (p=0.003), anxiety (p=0.05), HQoL (p=0.005) and self-empowerment (p<0.001). The CBI group improved at 24 months in self-empowerment (p=0.008) and adherence to dietary recommendations (p=0.004) and at 12 months in knowledge (p=0.008), depression (p=0.006), anxiety (p=0.003), distress (p=0.01), HQoL (p<0.001) and neuropathic symptoms (p=0.02). Statistically significant improvements were also observed at 24 months in the proportion of patients who quit smoking for PTI and CBI (41.5% in PTI and 42.3% in CBI vs 21.2% in the UC group). Conclusions Assessed interventions to improve PROMs in T2DM attain effectiveness for knowledge, self-empowerment, distress, diet adherence and tobacco cessation. PTI produced the most lasting benefits. Trial registration number ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01657227 (6 August 2012) https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01657227.