Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Automatic Classification of Volumes of Water Using Swallow Sounds from Cervical Auscultation

The signatures of swallowing vary depending on the volume of bolus swallowed. Among existing instrumental methods, cervical auscultation (CA) captures the acoustic signatures of the swallow sound. Although many features present in the literature can characterize volumes of swallow using CA, they require manual annotations of the different components in the sound. In this work, a rich set of acoustic features, the ComParE 2016 acoustic feature set (OS) is used to investigate whether several temporal, spectral, vocal and source features and their functionals provide cues for volume classification. Experiments are performed with CA data from 56 subjects, with dry swallow and swallows of 2ml, 5ml, and 10ml of water. Three types of classification namely, dry-vs-2ml, dry-vs-5ml and dry-vs-10ml are performed separately to analyze characteristic features. Experiments reveal that OS, which does not require annotations, performs better than the baseline features that require annotation. Within OS, the features unrelated to voice source yield a better performance than the features related to voice source. In this subset of features, MFCC, RASTA filtered audio spectrum and RMS energy are found to be consistently the top performing features across all three types of classifications.
Evaluating a method for eliciting children's voice about educational support with children with speech, language and communication needs

This article reports the development and evaluation of a toolkit-based approach to eliciting children's experiences of educational support, where the children in question experience speech and communication needs. The ? Your Voice Your Choice? approach was evaluated using a cross-case analysis methodology, which represents a novel approach to critical examination of the effectiveness of such resources. We explored seven case studies within a critical realist framework. We found that the toolkit was effective at supporting most (although not all) of the children with speech and communication needs to explore their school learning and support experiences through a scaffolded emotion-based ? dialogue? , which was corroborated by observations and other data sources. The toolkit facilitated access to children's voice as they revealed how they felt across a number of relational, learning and support areas, which could be used by services to focus provision and consider how to better support children's social and emotional needs.
Titanium-Anthraquinone Material as a New Design Approach for Electrodes in Aqueous Rechargeable Batteries

The need for expanded energy storage motivates material development for scalable aqueous secondary batteries. The combination of transition metals with redox-active organics represents a new approach to functional material design. Here, we detail the synthesis of titanium(IV) 1,8-dihydroxyanthraquinone (Ti(1,8-DHAQ)2) as a novel redox-active material and demonstrate its use as a negative electrode in an aqueous battery. This one-pot synthesis results in amorphous micron-scale particles with titanium binding directly to the carbonyl feature as evidenced by scanning electron microscopy and infrared spectroscopy. When assembled in a coin cell with a lithium manganese oxide positive electrode, the active material can be electrochemically cycled with a charge density of 40 mAh/g at 1.1 V. This represents a new method of creating simple and scalable electrodes using metal-organic materials for versatile energy storage applications.
On rainbow antimagic coloring of some special graph

Let G = (V, E) be a connected and simple graphs with vertex set V and edge set E. A coloring of graph G is rainbow connected if there is a rainbow path that connects each two vertices of graph G. The minimum k such that G has a rainbow-connected using k colors of the edges of G is the rainbow connection number rc(G) of G. A graph with a bijective mapping f : E → {1, 2, …, |E|}. The sums of each paired vertex has distinct value, defined as ∑ e ∈E(v)f(e). Thus, the function of G clearly an antimagic labeling if the sums of each paired vertex has distinct value. It is clear that rainbow antimagic connection number is the smallest number of colors which are needed to make G rainbow connected, denoted by rcA (G). A bijection function f : E → {1, 2, …, |E|} is called a rainbow antimagic labeling if there is a rainbow path between every pair of vertices and for each edge e = uv ∈ E(G), the weight w(e) = f(u) + f(v). A graph G is rainbow antimagic if G has a rainbow antimagic labeling. In this paper, we will analyze the rainbow antimagic coloring of related book graph.
Deep genetic divergence and paraphyly in cryptic species of Mugil fishes (Actinopterygii: Mugilidae)

Morphological conservatism among closely related species often results in incongruent taxonomic classification between studies, leading to disagreements about the inferred evolutionary history of the species. This is the case in Mugil fishes, where extreme morphologic conservatism contrasts with wide distributions and high genetic divergence. To understand how these morphologically similar species evolved, it is necessary to 1) test whether taxonomically recognized species are independently evolving lineages, and 2) evaluate the timing and geographic context of the diversification of these lineages. Based on three mitochondrial genes and fossil data, we estimated a comprehensive time-calibrated phylogeny for 13 out of the 16 valid species of Mugil and tested the monophyly of each species. Our results indicate that the diversification of Mugil began nearly 30 MYA, during a period of large temperature fluctuations. Mugil cephalus, M. curema and M. rubrioculus all form relatively old groups (between 5 and 10 MYA) and form paraphyletic entities. Our study reinforces the general finding that morphologically and ecologically similar species may have long and independent evolutionary histories, which must be considered when assessing the evolution and conservation of such ecologically and economically important species.
Drought and Ecological Flows in the Lower Guadiana River Basin (Southwest Iberian Peninsula)

Drought temporal characterization is a fundamental instrument in water resource management and planning of basins with dry-summer Mediterranean climate and with a significant seasonal and interannual variability of precipitation regime. This is the case for the Lower Guadiana Basin, where the river is the border between Spain and Portugal (Algarve-Baixo Alentejo-Andalucía Euroregion). For this transboundary basin, a description and evaluation of hydrological drought events was made using the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) with monthly precipitation time series of Spanish and Portuguese climatic stations in the study area. The results showed the occurrence of global cycles of about 25–30 years with predominance of moderate and severe drought events. It was observed that the current requirements of ecological flows in strategic water bodies were not satisfied in some months of October to April of years characterized by severe drought events occurring in the period from 1946 to 2015. Therefore, the characterization of the ecological status of the temporary streams that were predominant in this basin should be a priority in the next hydrologic plans in order to identify the relationships between actual flow regimes and habitat attributes, thereby improving environmental flows assessments, which will enable integrated water resource management.
Deregulation as a Source of China’s Economic Growth

We develop a simple two-sector neoclassical growth model in which the upstream sector produces intermediate goods, and the downstream sector produces final goods with outputs from the upstream. While the downstream sector features perfect competition, firms in the upstream sector engage in Cournot competition and charge a markup. We show that the deregulation and the introduction of competition in the upstream goods sector not only increases the productivity in the sector but also has a substantial spillover effect on the productivity of the downstream sector and factor prices. We calibrate the model to the Chinese economy and use the calibrated model to quantitatively evaluate the extent to which the deregulation in the upstream market in China from 1998 to 2006 can account for the rapid economic growth and the high and rising returns to capital in China over the same period. Our quantitative experiments show that the deregulation in the upstream sector can account for a significant share of economic growth in China during the study period. In addition, our model delivers implications that are consistent with several other relevant observations in China during the same period.
Role for dual-specificity phosphatases on mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling in adipocytes

Obesity and diabetes are major public health concerns that contribute to cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and stroke. It is now widely accepted that chronic inflammation is an important element of pathogenic mechanisms linking obesity to diabetes. Moreover, clinical and experimental evidence has established the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway as a pivotal mediator during inflammatory stress in coupling obesity to insulin resistance (IR). While numerous studies have examined the upstream kinase activation of MAPKs, few have examined mechanisms that dephosphorylate, and thus, deactivate these pathways, potentially affording protection against adipose tissue (AT) inflammation and obesity-induced IR. Data presented in this dissertation demonstrate that several MAPK-specific dual-specificity phosphatases (DUSPs) are induced in AT under conditions of genetic and diet-induced obesity that is associated with increased inflammation and IR. While AT is composed of multiple cell types, evidence suggests an essential role for preadipocytes (PAs) and adipocytes (ADs) in the development of AT inflammation and IR. Therefore, we further report phenotypic differences in DUSP expression where four of the ten MAPK-specific DUSPs are more abundant in PAs compared to ADs while two of the ten DUSPs are more abundant in ADs compared to PAs, suggesting a regulatory role for these phosphatases that is cell type specific. Moreover, phenotypic differences were observed regarding MAPK signaling and DUSP expression in PAs and ADs exposed to TNFalpha-mediated inflammatory stress, where ERK, JNK, and p38 phosphorylation was markedly elevated and transient in PAs while ERK and JNK phosphorylation was prolonged in ADs concomitant with the phenotypic differences in inducible DUSPs. As induction of DUSPs in PAs kinetically mirrored MAPK dephosphorylation, we further show that de novo mRNA synthesis was essential for MAPK dephosphorylation, suggesting a role for inducible DUSPs in the modulation of MAPK signaling. Based on these data, we present empirical evidence that DUSP knockdown markedly increased the magnitude and duration of ERK, JNK, and p38 phosphorylation in response to inflammatory stress, subsequently elevating MAPK-dependent pro-inflammatory cytokine and chemokine gene expression. Collectively, these findings demonstrate an essential role for DUSPs in the timely modulation of MAPK signaling, highlighting prospective therapeutic targets linking obesity with metabolic inflammatory diseases.
How/Should We Generalize?

In Carl Kaestle's 1992 essay “Standards of Evidence,” generalization is how we know when we know. Kaestle sketches a model of increasing certainty in historical claims as they are developed and refined at increasing scales of research, from local to international. A historical claim might originate in the study of a particular place or case, but to know that the claims were true, the historian needed to move from the microlevel view to a more macro one, perhaps at the national rather than local level. Once tested and refined through comparison with other cases, possibly smoothing some of the rougher edges in the process, the claim could then be transferred beyond national borders. When a historical claim is polished enough to fit other contexts, we know it is true. Kaestle illustrates this increasing certainty through increasing scale with reference to the history of literacy and, more specifically, to scholarship on how Western European and US industrialization shaped literacy rates. Bringing studies from various locales into connection, and then comparing these cases with the national context, Kaestle summarizes that it was the commercial processes of urbanization, rather than industrialization itself, that helped produce rising literacy in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. Generalization at greater scale becomes not only the means through which to claim the value of historical work, but the basis for constructing historical knowledge in the first place.
Physiological and antioxidant changes in sunflower seeds under water restriction

Abstract: Seed vigor may be determinant for field performance, especially under water restriction conditions. Sunflower is a crop subject to these conditions in the field and, therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the physiological and antioxidant changes in sunflower seeds under water restriction. Two lots of sunflower seeds (cv. Hélio 253) with different vigor levels were used. After initial characterization, seeds were placed to germinate under water potentials of 0.0, -0.2, -0.4, -0.6 and -0.8 MPa and evaluated by tests of germination, first germination count, shoot length and primary root length. The activities of the antioxidant enzymes SOD, CAT, POX and APX were also evaluated at 0, 2, 4 and 6 days after sowing. Water restriction led to a decrease in germination and slower seedling growth, regardless of seed vigor level. SOD activity was similar in the two lots, with reduction in activity four days after sowing. CAT activity was affected differently during germination in the two lots, and it was generally higher in the most vigorous lot. In higher vigor seeds, there was lower POX activity in water restriction treatments compared to the control. In general, seeds of lower vigor have lower capacity for activation of antioxidant enzymes, especially peroxidases.
Efficiency measurement for hierarchical situations

Abstract The measurement and monitoring of the efficiency of processes in organisations has become an important undertaking in today’s competitive environment. A fundamental tool for this undertaking is data envelopment analysis (DEA). The conventional setting for DEA views the decision-making unit (DMU) (school, hospital etc.) as a black box with inputs entering and outputs leaving. The current paper looks at a problem setting somewhat related to a multistage situation but pertaining to a particular form of hierarchical structure. Specifically, we examine a set of electric power units that act as sub-units or sub-DMUs, operating under the framework of set of power plants that play the role of DMUs. We develop a DEA-like methodology that evaluates, in a two-stage manner, both the efficiencies of the sub-units and of the aggregates of those sub-units (the plants). In so doing, the approach attempts to have the projected values of plant-level inputs and outputs match up with the corresponding aggregate values of the sub-unit projections, as is the case prior to projection to the frontier. Since such projections may in fact not match up as described, we introduce a goal-DEA methodology to minimise the extent of any failure to achieve this match up.
Stable isotope analysis for assessing the intercrop movement of Microplitis mediator, a larval endoparasitoid of Helicoverpa armigera

Methods to trace source habitats and movement of parasitic natural enemies in agroecosystems are limited. This study demonstrates that stable carbon isotope analysis offers a valuable new method for revealing the movement of Microplitis mediator (Haliday) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), a larval endoparasitoid of Helicoverpa armigera Hübner (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), between C3 and C4 plants. Results indicate that M. mediator with δ13C values of lower than −22‰ originate from a C3 plant, whereas those with δ13C values of higher than −19‰ develop on a C4 plant.
Logical probability, uncertainty, investment decisions - Did Keynes’s logical theory of probability have impact on economic thinking?

The authors of this paper set out to answer the question of whether Keynes’s logical theory of probability had an impact on his own economic thinking. The authors review criticisms that had been expressed previously; then, with regard to the applicability of the classical concept of probability to economics, they introduce the foundations of Keynes’s logical theory of probability and the difficulties involved in its practical application. This is followed by an examination – within the Keynesian conceptual framework – of the role of uncertainty. The next sections are given over to an analysis of the role of “animal spirits”, and of expectations, with a discussion of investment decisions made from positions of uncertainty. This train of thought focuses on the dilemma of whether there was continuity or a break, over time, in the role of probability in economics within the Keynesian conceptual framework. After this, the authors outline the competing 20th century interpretations of probability embodied by the rearticulated version of relative frequency theory on the one hand, and the evolution of probability theory outside the economics paradigm on the other. The authors conclude with their assertation that probability theory did have a considerable impact on Keynes’s thinking on economic theory. JEL codes: D81, D84, D92
Empirical Likelihood Inference for Generalized Partially Linear Models with Longitudinal Data

In this article, we propose a generalized empirical likelihood inference for the parametric component in semiparametric generalized partially linear models with longitudinal data. Based on the extended score vector, a generalized empirical likelihood ratios function is defined, which integrates the within-cluster correlation meanwhile avoids direct estimating the nuisance parameters in the correlation matrix. We show that the proposed statistics are asymptotically Chi-squared under some suitable conditions, and hence it can be used to construct the confidence region of parameters. In addition, the maximum empirical likelihood estimates of parameters and the corresponding asymptotic normality are obtained. Simulation studies demonstrate the performance of the proposed method.
Molecular cloning, sequence characteristics, and tissue expression analysis of glucagon receptor gene in Bama minipig

Abstract: Recent studies have shown that the glucagon receptor (GCGR) plays an important role in the development of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Both pigs and humans exhibit significantly similar behaviors in their glucose and lipid metabolism. In this study, the obtained Bama minipig GCGR coding sequence was 1437 bp encoding 479 amino acids (AA), which demonstrated higher sequence homology with humans than other species. It showed the highest expression profile in the liver, followed by the lung and kidney. In addition, the three-dimensional structure analysis showed that the porcine GCGR protein also had a classic sevenfold transmembrane region and a stalk region at the N-terminus for ligand binding. The stalk region of GCGR possessed five AA variations. The ligand binding pocket of GCGR has one AA variation in the key region, none of which affected the glucagon binding verified by the crystal structure mutagenesis in humans. There was no variation found in the region of membrane anchoring, hydrophobic bond, salt bridge, and hydrogen bond. However, the Gly40Ser mutation in mice resulted in major diseases, meaning that pigs are more suitable for the evaluation of GCGR-related drugs than mice.
Immunoelectophoretic Identification of Jelly Coat Ligands Bound by the Cortical Granule Lectin from Xenopus laevis Eggs

The formation of the fertilization layer in the Xenopus laevis egg fertilization envelope involves a lectin‐ligand interaction and establishes a block to polyspermy in the extracellular matrix of the egg. The cortical granule lectin participating in the formation of the fertilization layer has been isolated but its ligand has not. We identified three jelly coat ligands bound by the cortical granule lectin using immunoelectrophoretic analyses. Two antigens were detected with anti‐jelly serum and a third was identified using anti‐envelope serum. All three antigenic ligands were associated with the innermost jelly coat layer, J1, and two of the three antigenic ligands contained sulfate. One or more of these jelly coat ligands may function in establishing a block to polyspermy at fertilization in Xenopus laevis.
Jambolan nectar: physical and chemical properties due to formulation ingredients

The objective of this work was to evaluate the influence of different proportions of jambolan pulp, sugar and water on the physical and chemical characteristics to obtain information that allows the use of jambolan and, consequently, the evaluation of these fruits. Six jambolan nectar formulations were established through Simplex design. Ingredients significantly affected luminosity (32,14-34,24), apparent viscosity (7.8-73.8 cP), total soluble solids (8.87-26.43 °Brix), titratable acidity (0.55 -0.83g citric acid 100g -1 ) and the TSS / TA ratio (16.05-34.96) in jambolan nectars. Jambolan nectar with 55g 100g -1 of jambolan pulp, 15g 100g -1 of sugar and 30g 100g -1 of water has the highest desirability in relation to physical and physicochemical properties, 85.1% DPPH inhibition, 10526.12 μg TE mL -1 and 27014.25 μmol TE mL -1 by ABTS and ORAC method, respectively. It could be concluded that it is possible to produce jambolan nectar which can increase the possibilities of applying fruit as an ingredient in the food industry.
Corporate Governance and Working Capital Policy: An Unobserved Influence

Abstract This study examines the effect of corporate governance on working capital policy; Aggressive and Conservative of 103 firms listed on Nigeria and Ghana Stock Exchange from 2012 to 2016. This study used a panel data of nonfinancial companies listed on Nigeria and Ghana stock exchange for the period 2012–2016. Data extracted from the annual financial report. Companies with missing data were dropped given a total of 103 companies from both countries (Nigeria and Ghana) with total observation of 510. We discovered that corporate governance on implemented aggressive/conservative working capital policy by firms produced a mixed result. Aggressive working capital policy implementation calls for strict control mechanism to ensure less investment in current assets. Therefore, there is strong corporate governance influence on working capital management of firms that operate aggressive working policy than firms which have implemented conservative working capital policy.
Experimental study of the flux Law of flat ceramic membranes under different pressures

The flux performance of ceramic membranes is the basis for their efficient use. To study ceramic membrane flux variation, different filtration operating conditions were tested and the functional relationship between the membrane’s clean water flux and the operating pressure within a given range obtained. The membrane’s critical pressure and flux were determined by using pressure increments, and the flux variation law under different pressures determined experimentally. Analysis of the flux law and the membrane parameters enabled establishment of the flux model of filtration process and a model of flux stabilization after the deposition layer formed. The applicability of the model was proved by comparing and verifying the experimental data.