Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Quality by Design (QbD) based process optimisation to develop functionalised particles with modified release properties using novel dry particle coating technique

Quality by Design (QbD), a current trend employed to develop and optimise various critical pharmaceutical processes, is a systematic approach based on the ethos that quality should be designed into the product itself, not just end tested after manufacture. The present work details a step-wise application of QbD principles to optimise process parameters for production of particles with modified functionalities, using dry particle coating technology. Initial risk assessment identified speed, air pressure, processing time and batch size (independent factors) as having high-to-medium impact on the dry coating process. A design of experiments (DOE) using MODDE software employed a D-optimal design to determine the effect of variations in these factors on identified responses (content uniformity, dissolution rate, particle size and intensity of Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) C = O spectrum). Results showed that batch size had the most significant effect on dissolution rate, particle size and FTIR; with an increase in batch size enhancing dissolution rate, decreasing particle size (depicting absence of coated particles) and increasing the FTIR intensity. While content uniformity was affected by various interaction terms, with speed and batch size having the highest negative effect. Optimal design space for producing functionalised particles with optimal properties required maximum air pressure (40psi), low batch size (6g), speed between 850 to 1500 rpm and processing times between 15 to 60 minutes. The validity and predictive ability of the revised model demonstrated reliability for all experiments. Overall, QbD was demonstrated to provide an expedient and cost effective tool for developing and optimising processes in the pharmaceutical industry.
Active Anti-Microbial Effects of Larch and Pine Wood on Four Bacterial Strains

Active anti-microbial effects of larch (Larix decidua Mill.) and pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) wood materials on Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Enterococcus faecium, and Bacillus subtilis were tested. The agar-diffusion test, a method used in routine diagnostics, was implemented to detect anti-microbial effects of wooden discs and filter paper discs containing methanol extracts of different wood parts. The results showed that the bark of larch had an inhibitory effect on Staphylococcus aureus, and the heart wood of pine showed a significant anti-microbial effect on the gram-positive bacteria tested (Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecium, and Bacillus subtilis). These results were confirmed by using methanol-extracts. An anti-microbial activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa was not found. Anti-bacterial effects of other parts of larch wood and of pine sapwood were also not found. The results of this study showed for the first time that certain parts of wood contain compounds that directly reduce microbial growth. These data are a further demonstration of the positive effects of specific wood species and could promote the usage of wood in hygienically sensitive areas.
Culture and Fashion Styles: do They Co-Exist in Women’s Fashion Magazines? an Explorative Investigation from New York, London and Bangkok

Although print media has recently lost its traction due to the popularity of e-reader and online medium, women’s fashion magazines seem to find their positioning and are expand internationally to capture a larger subscription. They are still widely seen in the waiting rooms of your professional offices. They still serve as a source of fashion trend, lifestyles and social tips. As I teach global marketing, I tell my students about “think global, act local” strategy adopted by corporations. Additionally, I am a travel fanatic and passionate about research in fashion. Then I began to wonder if this “think global, act local” strategy could be true in the case of women’s fashion magazines and their photographic images of fashion clothing.
A New Approach to Region Based Image Retrieval Using Shape Adaptive Discrete Wavelet Transform

In this paper, we present an efficient region-based image retrieval method, which uses multi-features color, texture and edge descriptors. In contrast to recent image retrieval methods, which use discrete wavelet transform (DWT), we propose using shape adaptive discrete wavelet transform (SA-DWT). The advantage of this method is that the number of coefficients after transformation is identical to the number of pixels in the original region. Since image data is often stored in compressed formats: JPEG 2000, MPEG 4…; constructing image histograms directly in the compressed domain, allows accelerating the retrieval operation time, and reducing computing complexities. Moreover, SA-DWT represents the best way to exploit the coefficients characteristics, and properties such as the correlation. Characterizing image regions without any conversion or modification is first addressed. Using edge descriptor to complement image region characterizing is then introduced. Experimental results show that the proposed method outperforms content based image retrieval methods and recent region based image retrieval methods
Market-driven requirements engineering processes for software products - a report on current practices

This paper reports on some preliminary results from the first stage of an interview survey, focusing on current practices and challenges in market-driven RE. The interviews are analysed based on the characteristics of market-driven RE presented in the literature. The interviews correspond largely with the literature. Identified discrepancies compared with the literature concerns the time-to-market attribute and documentation of requirements. Two major groupings among the participating companies were found. The RE processes of one of these groupings are focused on facilitating the activities fundamental in market-driven RE, e.g. the release planning activity, while the other is more document-driven. The results of the interviews also include some ideas on how market-driven RE activities may be performed. (Less)
Herschel/HIFI deepens the circumstellar NH3 enigma

Context. Circumstellar envelopes (CSEs) of a variety of evolved stars have been found to contain ammonia (NH3) in amounts that exceed predictions from conventional chemical models by many orders of magnitude. Aims. The observations reported here were performed in order to better constrain the NH3 abundance in the CSEs of four, quite diverse, oxygen-rich stars using the NH3 ortho J(K) = 1(0)-0(0) ground-state line. Methods. We used the Heterodyne Instrument for the Far Infrared aboard Herschel to observe the NH3 J(K) = 1(0)-0(0) transition near 572.5 GHz, simultaneously with the ortho-H2O J(Ka,Kc) = 1(1,0)-1(0,1) transition, toward VY CMa, OH 26.5+0.6, IRC+10420, and IK Tau. We conducted non-LTE radiative transfer modeling with the goal to derive the NH3 abundance in these objects' CSEs. For the last two stars, Very Large Array imaging of NH3 radio-wavelength inversion lines were used to provide further constraints, particularly on the spatial extent of the NH3-emitting regions. Results. We find remarkably strong NH3 emission in all of our objects with the NH3 line intensities rivaling those of the ground state H2O line. The NH3 abundances relative to H-2 are very high and range from 2 x 10(-7) to 3 x 10(-6) for the objects we have studied. Conclusions. Our observations confirm and even deepen the circumstellar NH3 enigma. While our radiative transfer modeling does not yield satisfactory fits to the observed line profiles, it does lead to abundance estimates that confirm the very high values found in earlier studies. New ways to tackle this mystery will include further Herschel observations of more NH3 lines and imaging with the Expanded Very Large Array.
Altruism and Informal Care for Dementia

Informal care is an important source of care for persons with dementia. The primary objective of this study is to explore the factors that affect the choice to provide informal care and test if altruistic attitudes change the mix of formal and informal care given to patients with dementia. Using the Aging Demographic and Memory Study dataset, we analyze how patient and caregiver characteristics affect the use of informal and formal healthcare services by dementia patients, focusing on the role of altruism. Assuming that the total care provided is an unobserved mix of informal and formal care, we use a latent class model to test if direct altruism increases the probability that informal care is included in the care plan. Greater patient need, as measured by limitations in the number of activities of daily living, and having three or more comorbid conditions decreased the probability of having only informal care, while needing supervision increased the probability of having only informal care. The direct altruism has a positive and significant marginal effect on increasing the probability of providing only informal care and decreasing the probability of being in the mix category of informal and formal category. Our model suggests that altruism in the form of caregiversi¯ pleasure from providing care increases the amount of informal care used. Although not socially inefficient, it does raise the cost of care as part of the cost is i°spenti± on caregiveri¯s pleasure. We find empirical evidence in support of this theoretical implication.
Performance Improvisation of Cantilever-type Silicon Micro Acceleration Sensors Using Stress Concentration Regions Technique

Acceleration sensors find applications in missile and competent munitions subsystems.Cantilever-type sensor's sensitivity and bandwidth are dependant on material properties of thecantilever and structure of proof mass. It is always desired to design a sensor as sensitive aspossible but also maintaining higher bandwidth. In piezoresistive (cantilever-type) accelerometers,various techniques were employed by designers to enhance their sensitivity and bandwidth.Most of these techniques are usually focused on shape and size of either cantilever or proofmass. This paper presents a concept of creating stress concentration regions (SCRs) on thecantilever for enhancing its sensitivity. Five types of structures were simulated to study thebehaviour of piezoresistive sensors with SCRs implementation. Use of SCRs results in substantialincrease in the sensitivity, which is of the order of 1.85 times the nominal sensitivity. It was aimedat maximising sensor's performance factor, which is the product of sensor bandwidth andsensitivity. This study gives new dimension to the ways of improving performance of cantilever-type inertial piezoresistive sensor.
TRACK THEIR OWN HEALTH

A new generation of patient-driven healthcare information systems (HIS) is emerging to advance traditional healthcare services and empower patient self-responsibility. Professional approaches to develop or improve HIS exist alongside evolving individual and community-shared approaches where patients take responsibility for their health data and health. Health Social Networks and the Quantified Self community are examples for such patient-driven initiatives. They inherently focus on empowering self-determination and responsibility. The success of future HIS relies – at least partially – on their engineers’ and developers’ capability to understand and use impulses from their respective target groups. The present study on self-tracking motivations aims to shed light on what drives people to track themselves. To this end, we conducted an exploratory survey with 150 self-trackers and developed a Five-Factor-Framework of Self-Tracking Motivations. The framework includes an inventory of five factors and a psychometrical scale of 19 items to measure individual drivers for self-tracking.
How project-based learning manifests itself in technology education textbooks

Abstract Project-based learning (PBL) is the recommended approach for teaching technology in South Africa. The implementation of this approach, however, is problematic since the vast majority of technology teachers are not formally trained in technology education. Consequently, many of these teachers rely on technology textbooks for guidance. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate how PBL is represented in technology textbooks. A set of criteria, identified by Thomas, capturing the uniqueness of PBL, formed the conceptual framework of this study and was used to conduct the content analysis of twelve of the most commonly used textbooks. The study engaged a combination of quantitative and qualitative research to provide insight into how project-based learning is presented, if at all, in these textbooks. It was found that PBL is poorly represented in the sampled textbooks; the criteria that require projects to be central to the curriculum and to involve learners in a constructive investigation seem to be most problematic. The study recommends that teachers involved in teaching technology deepen their understanding of PBL by studying the theory of this approach, since a proper understanding of PBL in schools is crucial to ensure that we do justice to technology education.
Top‐down and bottom‐up controls on sediment organic matter composition in an experimental seagrass ecosystem

We tested the singular and interactive effects of resource availability (light) and community composition (food chain length and herbivore species richness) on eelgrass (Zostera marina) ecosystem properties and functioning with an experimental mesocosm system. Food chain length was manipulated through the presence or absence of blue crab (Callinectes sapidus) predators, whereas grazer species richness varied across three levels (zero, two, or four crustacean species). We found important and interacting effects of bottom‐up and top‐down forcings on sediment organic matter (SOM) composition. Light increased eelgrass and algal biomass and sediment organic carbon and nitrogen content. Increasing grazer diversity generally decreased algal biomass and ecosystem production but interacted with food chain length (i.e., presence of predatory crabs) and light. Predators generally increased algal biomass and ecosystem production through a trophic cascade, which was stronger at high grazer diversity and under ambient light. SOM composition, determined with fatty acid (FA) biomarkers, was sensitive to all manipulated variables. Increasing grazer species richness often decreased the contributions of FAs derived from plant and algal sources, whereas increasing light had the opposite effect. Food chain length was generally a less important determinant of SOM composition than light, although predators did increase FAs representative of heterotrophic bacteria. Overall, resource availability and epibenthic community composition strongly influenced organic matter cycling, SOM composition, and the bacterial community in seagrass‐bed sediments.
A planetary system and a highly eccentric brown dwarf around the giant stars HIP67851 and HIP97233

Context: So far more than 60 substellar companions have been discovered around giant stars. These systems present physical and orbital properties that contrast to those detected orbiting less evolved stars. Aims: We are conducting a radial velocity survey of 166 bright giant stars in the southern hemisphere. The main goals of our project are to detect and characterize planets in close-in orbits around giant stars in order to study the effects of the host star evolution on their orbital and physical properties. Methods: We have obtained precision radial velocities for the giant stars HIP67851 and HIP97233 that have revealed periodic signals, which are most likely induced by the presence of substellar companions. Results: We present the discovery of a planetary system and an eccentric brown dwarf orbiting the giant stars HIP67851 and HIP97233, respectively. The inner planet around HIP67851 has a period of 88.8 days, a projected mass of 1.4 Mjup and an eccentricity of 0.09. After Kepler 91b, HIP67851b is the closest-in known planet orbiting a giant star. Although the orbit of the outer object is not fully constrained, it is likely a super-Jupiter. The brown dwarf around HIP97233 has an orbital period of 1058.8 days, a minimum mass of 20.0 Mjup and an eccentricity of 0.61. This is the most eccentric known brown dwarf around a giant star.
Labor Market Effects of Improved Access to Credit Among the Poor: Evidence from Cape Verde

In the context of a collective household choice model, we show that the effects of improved credit access on search intensity by the unemployed are heterogeneous across households and dependent on the within-household bargaining power of the unemployed. We find empirical support for the predictions of our model using a household survey conducted by the authors in Cape Verde. These findings have important implications for the optimal design of microfinance programs, in particular concerning the targeting of loans and the use of microfinance as an instrument to support improved labor market outcomes.
Soil biological and biochemical traits linked to nutritional status in grapevine

The purpose of this work was to study vineyards of NE Italy seeking for features associated to the soil or plant compartment that could serve as proxies to infer productivity of the grape. Soils were characterized for physicochemical properties, mineralization of organic matter by a novel patented device based on in-situ microbial degradation of buried fibers, bacterial intergenic spacer length diversity (ARISA), enzyme activities and the expression of genes involved in response to abiotic stresses. Significant differences (p<0.05) were observed among vineyards for the parameters evaluated. The groupings obtained by ARISA were coherent with those obtained by PCA of soil properties. Vineyards endowed with higher productivity had soils showing higher enzyme activities along with neutral pH, higher TOC content and appropriate C/N ratio. These soils also showed higher mineralization of organic matter determined the novel in-soil thread degradation method. Grapevines of less productive vineyards had suboptimal leaf nitrogen and sulfur contents and showed up-regulation of WRKY, SuSy, PAL and STS1 genes. Results put in evidence useful correlations with yield that can be obtained up to several months earlier than harvest time upon analyzing selected indicators. An interesting link arises unifying soil biological properties, nutritional status, molecular stress response of grapevine and its production level. Keyword: Soil biological properties, edaphic stresses, nutritional status, molecular stress response
Towards an understanding of intention to use mobile videos: Impression management, perceived facilitation, and social norms

Due to prevalent use of phablets and 3G/4G cellular networks, watching mobile videos has become increasingly popular worldwide. This study identifies multilevel psychosocial factors predicting individual intention to use mobile audiovisual services. The national telephone survey obtained a random sample of 503 respondents. The findings show variables of the theory of planned behavior (TPB; i.e., attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control) and social norms are key predictors for mobile video consumption. In the research model, impression management is significantly associated with attitude, subjective norm, and individual social norms while perceived government and operator facilitation are associated with collective social norms. The hierarchical multiple regression analysis reveals that the extended TPB model accounts for 62% variance of intention to use mobile videos.
Allometric Equations for Biomass Estimation of Woody Species and Organic Soil Carbon Stocks of Agroforestry Systems in West African : State Of Current Knowledge

Since the Kyoto Protocol, agroforestry is considered as a mitigation and adaptation tool to climate change. Agro forestry systems are nowadays the subject of many investigations all over the world. This is because of their potential for carbon sequestration and storage. The parklands are some ancient cultural systems with a wide distribution in West Africa. The contribution of these systems to climate change mitigation has to do with the organic carbon storage in soils and sequestration of atmospheric carbon. This study aims at presenting an overview of the current knowledge on soils organic carbon and allometric equations for estimating aboveground biomass in agro forestry land use systems in West Africa. Significant amounts of carbon, ranging from 0.29 to 32 MgC.ha. year, were sequestered according to specific argroforestry systems. Yet, allometric equations for many species are lacking as carbon stock in several soil types needs to be estimated. Indeed, further studies need to be undertaken therein. We therefore recommend to pursuing investigations in evaluation of soils organic carbon and in development of allometric equations in West African region based on performance criteria.
Radioisotope Power Systems for Space Applications

At the beginning of the Space Age, both propulsion and power generation in the spacecraft has been the main issue for consideration. Considerable research has been carried out on technologies by several Space Agencies to reach outer planets and generate electric power for the systems and subsystems in the spacecraft (SC). Various types of power source such as solar photovoltaic, Radioisotope power systems (RPS) have been used by Space Agencies. New technology such as reactor based, electric solar sail and electrodynamic bare tethers might be used in the future for both propulsion and power generation. Mainly, both NASA and Russian Agency worked separately using nuclear technology to obtain more efficiency in their systems for deep space exploration. Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS), is a nuclear-powered system to generate electric power to feed communication and scientific systems on a spacecraft. Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generators (RTGs), a type of Radioisotope Power System, were used in the past as electric power supplies for some navigational and meteorological missions, and most outer-planet missions. Radioisotope power systems use the natural decay of radionuclides produced by a nuclear reactor. The expensive, man-made Plutonium-238 (238Pu) is the appropriate source of energy used in RPS fueling; its long half-life (~87 years) guarantees long time missions. The limited avability of Plutonium-238 is inadequate to support scheduled NASA mission beyond 2018. After the Cold War, throughout the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons Treaty, the production and processing of these resources have been severally reduced. There is a high-priority recommendation to reestablish production to solve the severe 238Pu demand problem (National Reseach Council, 2009). The isotope initially selected for terrestrial and space power applications was Cerium-144 because it is one of the most useful fission products available from nuclear reactor (Furlog, 1999; Lange, 2008). Its short half-life (about 290 days) made Cerium-144 compatible with a possible short-time mission. However, the high radiation associated with a powerful beta/gamma emission produces several problems with the payload interaction and safety in the case of reentry orbit. The development of RTGs was assigned to The Atomic Energy Commission in 1955. The first system developed for space situation was the System for Nuclear Auxiliary Power (SNAP). The Cerium-144 fueled SNAP-1 power system was never used in space. The first flight with a RTG was SNAP-3 in 1961 delivering 11.6 kW over a 280 days period, using as fueling Polonium-210 (Po-210) isotope. Po-210 is an alpha emitter with