Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Development Status of Selective Laser Melting Technology (SLM)

With the development of manufacturing technology, traditional manufacturing methods can no longer meet the needs of modern society. Additive manufacturing technology (AM) is a new type, which bases on the principle of layered manufacturing and uses the method of accumulating materials layer by layer to directly manufacture digital models into solid parts. In recent years, AM has been greatly developed and applied. Selective Laser Melting technology (SLM) is a very widely used technology in AM. SLM uses a high-energy laser beam to scan the metal powder on a predetermined path. It first melts the metal powder completely, then after cooling, the melted metal powder solidfies into a part. This article first describes the characteristics and equipment development of SLM technology, then summarizes the application of SLM technology, finally discusses the shortcomings of SLM technology.
Potential Non-Invasive Technique for Accessing Plant Water Contents Using a Radar System

Sap flow measurements of trees are today the most common method to determine evapotranspiration at the tree and the forest/crop canopy level. They provide independent measurements for flux comparisons and model validation. The most common approach to measure the sap flow is based on intrusive solutions with heaters and thermal sensors. This sap flow sensor technology is not very reliable for more than one season crop; it is intrusive and not adequate for low diameter trunk trees. The non-invasive methods comprise mostly Radio-frequency (RF) technologies, typically using satellite or air-born sources. This system can monitor large fields but cannot measure sap levels of a single plant (precision agriculture). This article studies the hypothesis to use of RF signals attenuation principle to detect variations in the quantity of water present in a single plant. This article presents a well-defined experience to measure water content in leaves, by means of high gains RF antennas, spectrometer, and a robotic arm. Moreover, a similar concept is studied with an off-the-shelf radar solution—for the automotive industry—to detect changes in the water presence in a single plant and leaf. The conclusions indicate a novel potential application of this technology to precision agriculture as the experiments data is directly related to the sap flow variations in plant.
Evaluation of Prompt Gamma-ray Data and Nuclear Structure of Niobium-94 with Statistical Model Calculations

Precise knowledge of prompt γ-ray intensities following neutron capture is critical for elemental and isotopic analyses, homeland security, modeling nuclear reactors, etc. A recently-developed database of prompt γ-ray production cross sections and nuclear structure information in the form of a decay scheme, called the Evaluated Gamma-ray Activation File (EGAF), is under revision. Statistical model calculations are useful for checking the consistency of the decay scheme, providing insight on its completeness and accuracy. Furthermore, these statistical model calculations are necessary to estimate the contribution of continuum γ-rays, which cannot be experimentally resolved due to the high density of excited states in mediumand heavy-mass nuclei. Decay-scheme improvements in EGAF lead to improvements to other databases (Evaluated Nuclear Structure Data File, Reference Input Parameter Library) that are ultimately used in nuclear-reaction models to generate the Evaluated Nuclear Data File (ENDF). Gamma-ray transitions following neutron capture in Nb have been studied at the cold-neutron beam facility at the Budapest Research Reactor. Measurements have been performed using a coaxial HPGe detector with Compton suppression. Partial γ-ray production capture cross sections at a neutron velocity of 2200 m/s have been deduced relative to that of the 255.9-keV transition after cold-neutron capture by Nb. With the measurement of a niobium chloride target, this partial cross
Evolution of pectin-synthesis-relevant galacturonosyltransferase gene family and its expression during cotton fiber development

Background: Pectin is a key substance involved in cell wall development, and the galacturonosyltransferases (GAUTs) gene family is a critical participant in the pectin synthesis pathway. Systematic and comprehensive research on GAUTs has not been performed in cotton. Analysis of the evolution and expression patterns of the GAUT gene family in different cotton species is needed to increase knowledge of the function of pectin in cotton fiber development. Results: In this study, we have identified 131 GAUT genes in the genomes of four Gossypium species (G. raimondii, G. barbadense, G. hirsutum, and G. arboreum), and classified them as GAUT-A, GAUT-B and GAUT-C, which coding probable galacturonosyltransferases. Among them, the GAUT genes encode proteins GAUT1 to GAUT15. All GAUT proteins except for GAUT7 contain a conserved glycosyl transferase family 8 domain (H-DN-A-SVV-S-V-H-T-F). The conserved sequence of GAUT7 is PLN (phospholamban) 02769 domain. According to cis-elemet analysis, GAUT genes transcript levels may be regulated by hormones such as JA, GA, SA, ABA, Me-JA, and IAA. The evolution and transcription patterns of the GAUT gene family in different cotton species and the transcript levels in upland cotton lines with different fiber strength were analyzed. Peak transcript level of GhGAUT genes have been observed before 15 DPA. In the six materials with high fiber strength, the transcription of GhGAUT genes were concentrated from 10 to 15 DPA; while the highest transcript levels in low fiber strength materials were detected between 5 and 10 DPA. These results lays the foundation for future research on gene function during cotton fiber development. Conclusions: The GAUT gene family may affect cotton fiber development, including fiber elongation and fiber thickening. In the low strength fiber lines, GAUTs mainly participate in fiber elongation, whereas their major effect on cotton with high strength fiber is related to both elongation and thickening.
Effects of Late Conversion from Twice-Daily to Once-Daily Slow Release Tacrolimus on the Insulin Resistance Indexes in Kidney Transplant Patients

The use of tacrolimus (Tac) may be involved in the development of new-onset diabetes after transplantation (NODAT) in a dose-related manner. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of a standard twice-daily formulation of Tac (TacBID) vs. the once-daily slow-release formulation (TacOD) on the basal insulin resistance indexes (Homa and McAuley), and related metabolic parameters, in a cohort of kidney transplant patients. We retrospectively evaluated 20 stable renal transplant recipients who were switched from TacBID to TacOD. Blood levels of Tac were analyzed at one-month intervals from 6 months before to 8 months after conversion. Moreover, Homa and McAuley indexes, C-peptide, insulin, HbA1c, uric acid, triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol serum levels and their associations with Tac levels were evaluated. We observed a significant decrease in Tac exposure (8.5 ± 2 ng/mL, CV 0.23 vs. 6.1 ± 1.9 ng/mL, CV 0.31, TacBID vs. TacOD periods, p < 0.001) and no significant changes in Homa (1.42 ± 0.4 vs. 1.8 ± 0.7, p > 0.05) and McAuley indexes (7.12 ± 1 vs. 7.58 ± 1.4, p > 0.05). Similarly, blood levels of glucose, insulin, HbA1c, lipids, and uric acid were unchanged between the two periods, while C-peptide resulted significantly lower after conversion to TacOD. These data suggest that in kidney transplant recipients, reduced Tac exposure has no significant effects on basal insulin sensitivity indexes and metabolic parameters.
Research on Distracted Driving Identification of Truck Drivers Based on Simulated Driving Experiment

Trucks drivers may be distracted during long-distance transportation, which may threaten the safety of themselves and surrounding vehicles. In this regard, this article first investigates the types of distracted driving that frequently occur in China and select typical distracted driving behaviors to carry out the simulated driving experiment and collect driving performance data. The independent sample T-test was used to select the distracted driving identification indicators. An integrated distracted driving identification model based on Binary Logistic Regression and Fisher discriminant analysis was established. The accuracy of the integrated model in identifying the driver’s distracted driving state is 94.79%. This research can provide a basis for the driver assistance systems that reflect the degree of driver distraction.
Bridging chemical- and bio-catalysis: high-value liquid transportation fuel production from renewable agricultural residues

Catalytic conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to high-value transportation petrol, jet and diesel fuels is of great importance to develop versatile renewable energy and boost the rural economy, thus it is receiving worldwide attention. However, the state-of-the-art processes still suffer from a low efficiency in yield and productivity, which hinders the progress of its commercialization. Thus, it is essential to explore the consolidated catalytic reaction and refinery process. Here we report an advanced approach/process that could continuously produce long-chain (C5–C15) ketones from lignocellulosic biomass in a cascade mode by integrating several bio- and chemical catalysis reactions/processes, which exhibits a high efficiency and stable conversion rate. This technology consolidated the acetone–butanol–ethanol (ABE) fermentation, palladium catalyzed alkylation and in situ product recovery, allowing the catalytic reaction to proceed consistently and smoothly. The remarkable conversion properties are mainly attributed to the excellent compatible linkage of chemical catalysis with biosynthesis and process design to stabilize the Pd catalytic reaction. This validated strategy for the rational process design and integration of chemical- and bio-catalysis offers great demonstration in producing high-value transportation biofuels derived from agricultural residues.
Research on the restoring force model of an assembled beam-column joint with ring-grooved rivets

To establish the restoring force model of a kind of prefabricated beam-column joints with ring-grooved bolts, the dimensionless skeleton curves and the stiffness degradation law of the joint are obtained by the regression analysis. Therein, the skeleton curves are a trilinear model divided into elastic, reinforcing and degradation stages. The calculated skeleton curves and restoring force model are in good agreement with the experimental skeleton and hysteretic curves. The result shows the restoring model can express the stiffness degradation characteristics of the joint well, as well as provide a theoretical basis for the nonlinear dynamic analysis of structures.
Performances, kinetics and mechanisms of catalytic oxidative desulfurization from oils

Ultra-deep desulfurization technologies are critical for cleaner oils and consequent better air quality. Earlier efforts in this field focused on specific catalysts and their catalytic efficiencies, while current interest has shifted to the differences between homogenous and heterogeneous catalysis systems applied in catalytic oxidation desulfurization (ODS) as well as their advantages and disadvantages. In this review, catalysts using various supports were described and their catalytic activities in total oxidation of sulfur compounds were evaluated and commented meanwhile, taking hydroperoxide as oxidant. Then, the effects of reaction parameters on catalyst activities and the kinetics and mechanisms that were used for ODS from oils were reviewed. Under the same conditions, heterogeneous catalysts performed better than homogeneous catalysts. Leaching of active components, existence of N-containing compounds and excessive reaction temperature would deactivate catalysts in ODS. Besides, power-law kinetics equations, Langmuir–Hinshelwood mechanism, and “nucleophilic attack” reaction mechanism” will provide in-depth analysis of desulfurization process and catalysts deactivation. Future research needs on ODS are proposed including the development of novel carrier materials, the optimization of acid sites distribution and the better understanding of deep reaction mechanisms.
Path-Integral-Based Reinforcement Learning Algorithm for Goal-Directed Locomotion of Snake-Shaped Robot

This paper proposes a goal-directed locomotion method for a snake-shaped robot in 3D complex environment based on path-integral reinforcement learning. This method uses a model-free online Q-learning algorithm to evaluate action strategies and optimize decision-making through repeated “exploration-learning-utilization” processes to complete snake-shaped robot goal-directed locomotion in 3D complex environment. The proper locomotion control parameters such as joint angles and screw-drive velocities can be learned by path-integral reinforcement learning, and the learned parameters were successfully transferred to the snake-shaped robot. Simulation results show that the planned path can avoid all obstacles and reach the destination smoothly and swiftly.
Diverse Hedge Funds

Hedge fund teams with heterogeneous educational backgrounds, academic specializations, work experiences, genders, and races, outperform homogeneous teams after adjusting for risk and fund characteristics. An event study of manager team transitions, instrumental variable regressions, and an analysis of managers who simultaneously operate solo- and team-managed funds address endogeneity concerns. Diverse teams deliver superior returns by arbitraging more stock anomalies, avoiding behavioral biases, and minimizing downside risks. Moreover, diversity allows hedge funds to circumvent capacity constraints and generate persistent performance. Our results suggest that diversity adds value in asset management.
Volatile Organic Compounds in Breads Prepared with Different Sourdoughs

Sourdough is an old example of a natural starter composed of a mixture of flour, water, and metabolites and is produced by naturally occurring lactic acid bacteria and yeasts that influence bread aroma. In this work, four types of sourdough were used to prepare bread: one sourdough with yeast beer and three with bacteria and yeasts. The physicochemical parameters (pH, moisture, water activity, and organic acids) of the bread and sourdoughs were assessed. Lactic, acetic, and succinic acids were found in considerable amounts in sourdoughs and the corresponding breads. The fermentation quotient (molar ratio between lactic and acetic acid) ranged from 0.39 to 3.4 in sourdoughs. Lactic acid was prevalent in all types of bread and showed the highest value in bread made from sourdough with a 1.5 bacteria/yeast ratio (8722.24 mg/kg). Moreover, volatile organic compounds were identified in bread samples. Alcohols, aldehydes, and acetic acid were mainly found. The alcohol concentration ranged from 140.88 to 401.20 ng/g. Aldehydes ranged from 185.01 to 454.95 ng/g, and acetic acid ranged from 91.40 to 173.81 ng/g. Bread prepared from sourdough with a 1.5 bacteria/yeast ratio showed a considerable amount of alcohols and acetic acid.
Effectiveness of incentives offered by mobile phone app to encourage cycling: A long‐term study

Reduction of car use is one of the most effective ways to tackle congestion-related problems. Using positive incentives to stimulate bicycle use is one possibility to reduce car use. Cycling is a sustainable transport mode that uses little space and is healthy. There is evidence that positive incentives may be more effective than punishing travellers for undesir-able behaviour, and the emergence of mobile applications for delivering interventions has opened up new opportunities for inﬂuencing travellers. So far, few studies have focused on exploring the effectiveness of positive incentives on long-term behavioural change. We used the SMART app to deliver positive incentives to more than 6000 travellers in the Dutch region of Twente. The app automatically tracks users and provides incentives such as challenges with rewards, feedback, and messages. This study covers the period from March 2017 to June 2018, in which more than 1000 SMART users participated in monthly challenges. We evaluated the effects of the challenges and rewards and found that the challenges did encourage cycling and reduced car use in the short term. There is also some evidence for behavioural change over a longer time period.
Carbon-Based Nanomaterials for Delivery of Biologicals and Therapeutics: A Cutting-Edge Technology

After hydrogen and oxygen, carbon is the third most abundant component present in the cosmos with excellent characteristic features of binding to itself and nearly all elements. Since ancient times, carbon-based materials such as graphite, charcoal, and carbon black have been utilized for writing and drawing materials. As these materials possess excellent chemical, mechanical, electrical, and thermal features, they have been readily engineered into carbon-based nanomaterials (CNMs) such as carbon nanotubes, graphene oxide, graphene quantum dots, nanodiamonds, fullerenes, carbon nano-onions, and so forth. These materials are now widely explored in biomedical applications. Thus, the emergence of CNMs has opened up a gateway for the detection, delivery, and treatment of a multitude of diseases. They are being actively researched for applications within tissue engineering, as vaccine vectors, and for the delivery of therapeutics to the immune system. This review focuses on the recent advances in various types of CNMs, their fabrication techniques, and their application in the delivery of therapeutics both in vitro and in vivo. The review also focuses on the toxicity concern of the CNMs and the possible remedies to tackle the toxicity issues. Concluding remarks emphasize all the CNMs discussed in the review over their possible biomedical applications, while the future perspectives section discusses the approaches to bring CNMs into the mainstream of clinical trials and their therapeutic applications.
Thermal Stability Changes in Telomeric G-Quadruplex Structures Due to N6-Methyladenine Modification

N6-methyladenine modification (m6dA) has recently been identified in eukaryote genomic DNA. The methylation destabilizes the duplex structure when the adenine forms a Watson–Crick base pair, whereas the methylation on a terminal unpaired adenine stabilizes the duplex structure by increasing the stacking interaction. In this study, the effects of m6dA modification on the thermal stability of four distinct telomeric G-quadruplex (G4) structures were investigated. The m6dA-modified telomeric oligonucleotide d[AGGG(TTAGGG)3] that forms a basket-type G4 in Na+, d[(TTAGGG)4TT] that forms a hybrid-type G4 in K+ (Form-2), d[AAAGGG(TTAGGG)3AA] that forms a hybrid-type G4 in K+ (Form-1), and d[GGG(TTAGGG)3T] that forms a basket-type G4 with two G-tetrads in K+ (Form-3) were analyzed. Circular dichroism melting analysis demonstrated that (1) A7- and A19-methylation destabilized the basket-type G4 structure that formed in Na+, whereas A13-methylation stabilized the structure; (2) A15-methylation stabilized the Form-2 G4 structure; (3) A15- and A21-methylations stabilized the Form-1 G4 structure; and (4) A12-methylation stabilized the Form-3 G4 structure. These results suggest that m6dA modifications may affect the thermal stability of human telomeric G4 structures in regulating the biological functions.
Climatology of migrating and non-migrating tides observed by three meteor radars in the southern equatorial region

Abstract. We present a study of migrating and non-migrating tidal winds observed simultaneously by three meteor radars situated in the southern equatorial region. The radars are located at Cariri (7.4° S, 36.5° W), Brazil, Kototabang (0.2° S, 100.3° E), Indonesia and Darwin (12.3° S, 130.8° E), Australia. Harmonic analysis was used to obtain amplitudes and phases for diurnal and semidiurnal solar migrating and non-migrating tides between 80 and 100 km altitude during the period 2005 to 2008. They include the important tidal components of diurnal westward-propagating zonal wavenumber 1 (DW1), diurnal eastward-propagating zonal wavenumber 3 (DE3), semidiurnal westward-propagating zonal wavenumber 2 (SW2), and semidiurnal eastward-propagating zonal wavenumber 2 (SE2). In addition, we also present a climatology of these wind tides and analyze the reliability of the fitting through the reference to Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model (WACCM) winds. The analysis suggests that the migrating tides could be well fitted by the three different radars, but the non-migrating tides might be overestimated. The results based on observations were also compared with the Climatological Tidal Model of the Thermosphere (CTMT). In general, climatic features between observations and model migrating tides were satisfactory in both wind components. However, the features of the DW1, DE3 and SW2 amplitudes in both wind components were slightly different from the results of the CTMT models. This result is probably because tides could be enhanced by the 2006 northern hemisphere stratospheric sudden warming (NH-SSW) event.
Enhancing methylene blue sorption on spotted golden thistle stalks by soft chemical pretreatments

Abstract Soft chemical treatments of dried stalks of the spotted golden thistle yielded novel sorbents; both the stiff nature and mass of the raw material were preserved. For minimal environment impact, the solution concentrations of the tested reagents were optimized at ambient temperature. The sorbents obtained were tested for the removal of methylene blue. The approach used kinetics and equilibrium studies. NaOH (0.1 mol L−1) treatment was efficient and afforded two new materials with seriously improved sorption features: the equilibrium time was reduced from 17–19 h to 10–12 h whilst, maximal sorption capacity increases from 65 to 100 and 112 mg g−1 i.e., enhancements of 54 and 72%. The Avrami model followed by the pseudo second-order model, best fitted the kinetic data. The isotherms were of Hmx type and were satisfactorily fitted to the Redlich-Peterson model. The Langmuir, Tóth, and Sips models were suitable to describe the H type isotherms relating to limited data ranges. Microanalysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), SEM coupled to energy dispersive X-ray, and attenuated total reflectance infrared spectroscopy showed an increase of the lignocellulosic content and the strengthening of the interactions between the dye and the sorbent. However, zeta potential measurements showed that the charge of the surface became almost inexistent after the pretreatment.