Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Flood risks factors and their prevalence in some selected local government areas of Jigawa State, Nigeria

Flood in Auyo and Miga local government areas is worrisome. The location of large parts of the study area is lying on the northern bank of Hadejia River, and many communities are at risk of flood hazard. This study is aimed at assessing flood risk factors in the vulnerable communities of Auyo and Miga LGAs, Jigawa State of Nigeria. A sample size of 666 respondents were drawn for self-administered questionnaire, 601 were fully completed. Data collected were analyzed descriptively for Relative importance index (RII). Findings revealed that, the current trend in the frequency of flood was on the increase, and the year 2012 (59%) and 2018 (61%) marked the worst with floods occurring four times. The major causes of flood were heavy rains (with RII of 4.890), overflow of river/stream with RII of 4.866, rainstorm, (with RII of 4.890), long period of rainfall (with RII of 4.805), steep side channels (4.785 of RII) and mystical beliefs (RII of 3.86). Man-made major factors were discovered to include; deforestation (with RII of 4.389) and lack of flood embankment, (RII of 4.316). Others were: poor waste disposal (RII of 3.915), lack of drainage network (with RII of 3.840), and development and infrastructure in flood-prone areas with RII of 3.733. It is recommended that, proper embankment protection and water regulatory outlets should be made available. Delineate flood risk zones before carrying out construction activities, or rather impose resettlement outside the flood prone areas.
A Review of Microalgae- and Cyanobacteria-Based Biodegradation of Organic Pollutants

This review proposes a new bioremediation method based on the diverse functionalities of algae. A greenway for cleansing wastewater is more ecologically friendly and environmentally sustainable than prior methods with other bacteria. New bioremediation technology employing algae and cyanobacteria for the removal of a wide range of organic contaminants is reasonable and has great potential. The prevalence of organic contaminants in aquatic habitats may endanger the health and well-being of several marine creatures. Agriculture, industry, and household trash are just a few of the human-caused sources of organic pollutants that contaminate waterways around the world. Before wastewater can be released into waterways, it must be cleaned. Algae-based wastewater treatment systems are becoming increasingly popular because of their environmental sustainability and lack of secondary pollutants. According to the kind of pollutant, the physicochemical properties of wastewater, and the algal species, algae and cyanobacteria can absorb and accumulate a wide spectrum of organic pollutants at different rates. In addition, phytoremediation is a cost-effective alternative to conventional treatments for degrading organic contaminants. Phycoremediationally produced algal biomass may also be an important part of the bioenergy value chain. This article focuses on microalgae and cyanobacteria species, which may remove many organic contaminants from water systems.
Impact of defected ground structures on the bandwidth of quarter wave impedance transformers and branch line hybrids

In this article, impedance transformers and branch line hybrids are selected to demonstrate the impact of defected ground structures on the operational bandwidth of microwave circuits. Three different branch line hybrids are studied with simulations and laboratory measurements, these are; a standard branch line hybrid, one using tapered lines and another one using both tapered lines and DGS. Based on these results, an optimum design in terms of location, size and number of DGS was proposed to achieve the widest operational bandwidth. Simulation and measured results demonstrate that correct usage of DGS and tapered lines can enhance the bandwidth of a narrowband microwave circuit. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J RF and Microwave CAE 26:311–316, 2016.
Fabrication and modeling of composite-collector heterojunction bipolar transistors

This thesis is concerned with processing and modeling aspects of heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBTs) with composite-collectors. HBTs with InGaAs/InP composite collectors were designed, fabricated and measured. Their dc characteristics are compared with those of a device which was structurally similar but with a conventional n-InGaAs collector. The measured data for both devices can be well-described by an analytical model. The model indicates the need to ensure that the InGaAs layer in the composite collector exceed a critical thickness if the current gain is to be preserved. It is also shown that the spacer layer between the emitter and base, which was used to prevent zinc diffusion into the emitter, must be considered in the model if the collector current is to be correctly predicted. The comparison of the experimental data also suggests that surface recombination is not a dominant base recombination current in the devices studied.
Data-Driven Decisions in Smart Cities: A Digital Transformation Case Study

The relationship between big data analytics (BDA) and smart cities (SCs) has been addressed in several articles. However, few articles have investigated the influence of exploiting BDA in data-driven decision-making from an empirical perspective in a case study context. Accordingly, we aim to tackle this scarcity of case-study research addressing the interrelationships between SCs, BDA, and decision-making. Filling this gap will shed light on the challenges and design principles that should be considered in designing a BDA artifact in the domain of smart cities. We analyze a case study of a digital transformation project in Egypt. Results show a tangible positive effect of utilizing data analytics in support of the decision-making process.
AKR1B10, One of the Triggers of Cytokine Storm in SARS-CoV2 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome

Preventing the cytokine storm observed in COVID-19 is a crucial goal for reducing the occurrence of severe acute respiratory failure and improving outcomes. Here, we identify Aldo-Keto Reductase 1B10 (AKR1B10) as a key enzyme involved in the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines. The analysis of transcriptomic data from lung samples of patients who died from COVID-19 demonstrates an increased expression of the gene encoding AKR1B10. Measurements of the AKR1B10 protein in sera from hospitalised COVID-19 patients suggests a significant link between AKR1B10 levels and the severity of the disease. In macrophages and lung cells, the over-expression of AKR1B10 induces the expression of the pro-inflammatory cytokines Interleukin-6 (IL-6), Interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and Tumor Necrosis Factor a (TNFα), supporting the biological plausibility of an AKR1B10 involvement in the COVID-19-related cytokine storm. When macrophages were stressed by lipopolysaccharides (LPS) exposure and treated by Zopolrestat, an AKR1B10 inhibitor, the LPS-induced production of IL-6, IL-1β, and TNFα is significantly reduced, reinforcing the hypothesis that the pro-inflammatory expression of cytokines is AKR1B10-dependant. Finally, we also show that AKR1B10 can be secreted and transferred via extracellular vesicles between different cell types, suggesting that this protein may also contribute to the multi-organ systemic impact of COVID-19. These experiments highlight a relationship between AKR1B10 production and severe forms of COVID-19. Our data indicate that AKR1B10 participates in the activation of cytokines production and suggest that modulation of AKR1B10 activity might be an actionable pharmacological target in COVID-19 management.
Individuals Matter: Dilemmas and Solutions in Conservation and Animal Welfare Practices in Zoos

Simple Summary Reaching conservation objectives while upholding individual animal welfare standards presents a significant challenge for zoos, especially if some individual animal interests conflict with their conservation mission. However, the compassionate conservation movement offers a potential solution for facing such challenges by advocating for the consideration of individual animal interests as central to conservation decision making. Our objective is therefore to determine to what extent zoological parks recognize the intrinsic value of zoo animals, beyond being members of species or ecosystems, and how this recognition manifests. Through discourse analysis, interviews, and relevant printed sources, we analyze the discourses, or concepts and categorizations, by which actors—experts in the conservation, animal rights, welfare, and zoo fields—give meaning to zoo practices. We demonstrate ways in which these discourses shape the captivity, breeding, and culling practices of individual zoo animals in the name of conservation. We found that people justifying these practices within zoos fail to recognize the intrinsic value of individual animals beyond being members of species. However, within the zoo, welfare practices and education objectives increasingly focus on fulfilling individual animal interests. Abstract Compassionate conservation advocates for minimizing individual suffering in conservation practice and adheres to the principle “individuals matter”—intrinsically, in and of themselves. Our objective is to determine the extent to which, and how, zoos recognize the intrinsic value of wild individuals beyond their status as members of species or ecosystems. We analyzed discourses surrounding the Smithsonian National Zoo in the U.S.A. , the zoos of the Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle in France, and the Seoul Grand Park Zoo in South Korea. Using existing literature on zoos, conservation, animal welfare, and rights, we distilled two discourses (justificatory and abolitionist). Through interviews with professionals in the zoo, conservation, welfare, and animal rights communities, we demonstrate how actors frame individual zoo animals as (1) sentient persons, (2) reproductive components, and (3) species ambassadors. Our analysis shows how actors’ views shape three zoo practices related to ex situ conservation: (1) captivity, (2) captive breeding, and (3) culling. This analysis revealed two significant findings. First, actors representing the justificatory discourse fail to frame animals as intrinsically valuable individuals. Second, within the constraints of the zoo, the intrinsic value of individual animals is recognized through welfare practices and education focused on fulfilling animal interests.
Robust 3D Channel Prediction for Doubly Dispersive Channels in LTE Downlink

The third generation partnership project (3GPP) long term evolution (LTE) uses high performance strategies such as adaptive link adaptation, multiuser resource scheduling and adaptive MIMO precoding to enhance effective utilization of the availably radio resources. These processes require the transmitter to have an accurate knowledge of the channel state information (CSI). This is typically provided via feedback from the receiver. Due to processing and feedback delays, the CSI used at the transmitter is outdated leading to performance degradation causing a decrease in the overall system capacity. Channel prediction is a useful technique to mitigate the problem of channel aging caused by the feedback delay of the CSI. In this paper, we derive a three dimensional minimum mean square error (3D-MMSE) channel prediction algorithm which utilizes the time, frequency and spatial correlations. We then study the performance of the proposed algorithm in fast fading channels. The simulation results show that our predictor achieves a low mean square error (MSE) performance but is however accompanied by a high computational complexity. We then present a reduced complexity approximate 3D-MMSE (A3D-MMSE) algorithm which uses separate prediction filters for the temporal and spatial correlations. Simulation results indicate that our proposed algorithm offers comparable performance to the full complexity 3D-MMSE algorithm.
Sensory perception of surfaces quality - Industrial practices and prospects

In this paper we carry out a critical analysis of the industrial practices used by the partner firms to control a product's aspect. The group of partners represents many different sectors of activity such as: luxury goods industry, furniture industry, medical equipment (prosthesis), plastic injection and watch-making industry. These practices deal with the identification of aspect anomalies, the evaluation of anomalies severity as well as the decisions about the product's conformity. We will show that current practices do not allow us to decrease the variability of the results frequently observed, because the subjectivity often associated with this kind of control is not eliminated using such methods. In every sector studied, we find the same dissatisfaction about the results obtained. We will then present our approach to sharply decrease this variability. This approach, tested in a famous Swiss watch-making company, is based on sensory analysis concepts. This approach is original due to the breakdown of the visual-control process into three sub-processes: the detection of aspect anomalies, the evaluation of those anomalies and the conformity decision. This approach also includes a metrological organisation and some tools which allow us to measure the efficiency reached. The paper will show how our approach succeeds in meeting the different aims of the partner company group and proposes an initial structured approach for a generic metrological organisation adapted to control the variability during the surface quality control by humans.
Cooperative Communication in Clustered Wireless Sensor Network Based on LDPC Codes

In this paper, considering a clustered wireless sensor network, we propose a cooperative transmission scheme based on virtual multiple antennas combining with advanced channel coding (such as low density parity check codes), and give the system performance under different conditions through simulation. The whole transmission can be divided into two stages: at the first stage, cluster head broadcasts the information and other sensors listen, which we call it intracluster broadcasting phase, at the second stage, sensors that can correctly decode the received information participate in the cooperative transmission, which we call it intercluster transmission phase. Then we minimize the overall energy consumption by adjusting the power allocation between these two transmission phase. Compared with the research so far, we apply advanced channel coding at each sensor node, which makes the system performance much better.
Age, technology prior experience and ease of use: Who's doing what?

Designers often assume that their users will have some digital technological prior experience. We examined these levels of prior experience by surveying frequency and ease of technology use with a range of technology products. 362 people participated as part of a UK nationwide larger survey of people's capabilities and characteristics to inform product design. We found that frequency and self-reported ease of use are indeed correlated for all of the products. Furthermore, both frequency and ease of use declined significantly with age for most of the products. In fact, 29% of the over 65s had never or rarely used any of the products, except for digital TV. We conclude that interfaces need to be designed carefully to avoid implicit assumptions about users' previous technology use.
Functional substitutability of native herbivores by livestock for soil carbon depends on microbial decomposers

Grazing by large mammalian herbivores impacts climate as it can favor the size and stability of a large carbon (C) pool in soil. As native herbivores in the world’s grasslands, steppes, and savannas are progressively being displaced by livestock, it is important to ask whether livestock can emulate the functional roles of their native counterparts. While livestock and native herbivores can have remarkable similarity in their traits, they can differ greatly in their impacts on vegetation composition which can affect soil-C. It is uncertain how their similarities and differences impact soil-C via their influence on microbial decomposers. We test competing alternative hypotheses with a replicated, long-term, landscape-level, grazing-exclusion experiment to ask whether livestock in the Trans-Himalayan ecosystem of northern India can match decadal-scale (2005-2016) soil-C stocks under native herbivores. We evaluate multiple lines of evidence from 17 variables that influence soil-C (quantity and quality of C-input from plants, microbial biomass and metabolism, microbial community composition, veterinary antibiotics in soil), and asses their inter-relationships. Livestock and native herbivores differed in their effects on several soil microbial processes. Microbial carbon use efficiency (CUE) was 19% lower in soils under livestock. Compared to native herbivores, areas used by livestock contained 1.5 kg C m−2 less soil-C. Structural equation models showed that alongside effects arising from plants, livestock alter soil microbial communities which is detrimental for CUE, and ultimately also for soil-C. Supporting evidence pointed toward a link between veterinary antibiotics used on livestock, microbial communities, and soil-C. Overcoming the challenges of sequestrating antibiotics to minimize their potential impacts on climate, alongside microbial rewilding under livestock, may reconcile the conflicting demands from food-security and ecosystem services. Conservation of native herbivores and better management of livestock is crucial for soil-C stewardship to envision and achieve natural climate solutions.
LPS Administration Impacts Glial Immune Programs by Alternative Splicing

We performed transcriptome analysis in the hippocampus 24 h after lipopolysaccharide (LPS) administration. We observed glial-specific genes, comprised of two-thirds of all differentially expressed genes (DEGs). We found microglial DEGs that were the most numerous in LPS group. On the contrary, differential alternative splicing (DAS) analysis revealed the most numerous DAS events in astrocytes. Besides, we observed distinct major isoform switching in the Ptbp1 gene, with skipping of exon 8 in LPS group. Ptbp1 usually considered a pluripotency sustaining agent in brain embryonic development, according to the previous studies. Analyzing the splicing tune-up upon LPS exposure, we came to a supposition that the short Ptbp1 isoform de-represses immune-specific response by Ptbp1 adjusted splicing architecture. Additionally, the Ptbp3 (NOD1) immune-specific splicing factor has apparently been de-repressed by the Ptbp1 short isoform in glial cells. Notably, both the Ptbp1 and Ptbp3 genes express primarily in microglial/endothelial brain cells. We also report immune-related genes, altering their major isoforms upon LPS exposure. The results revealed immune modulating role of alternative splicing in brain.
Intermediate Distribution Alignment and Its Application Into Mechanical Fault Transfer Diagnosis

Domain adaptation has been widely used for knowledge transfer. However, the aligning targets of the existing domain adaptation mechanisms dynamically vary during the training, which leads to the loss oscillation, slow convergence, and poor robustness. To overcome this main problem, a novel domain adaptation mechanism named intermediate distribution alignment (IDA) is proposed. For implementing the end-to-end diagnostic tasks, a feature extractor based on deep convolutional neural network with wide first-layer kernel is first built to fit the posterior distributions of source and target domains. Then through the KL divergence, IDA maps the learned features from the source and target domains into a specific intermediate distribution. It is proved theoretically that IDA can align the prior distributions of two domains. The proposed IDA mechanism is successfully applied to the fault transfer diagnosis of planetary gearboxes without labeled target-domain samples. The comparative results show that the proposed IDA mechanism has higher diagnostic performance than the typical domain adaptation mechanisms.
Role of Urinary Kidney Stress Biomarkers for Early Recognition of Subclinical Acute Kidney Injury in Critically Ill COVID-19 Patients

A high proportion of critically ill patients with COVID-19 develop acute kidney injury (AKI) and die. The early recognition of subclinical AKI could contribute to AKI prevention. Therefore, this study was aimed at exploring the role of the urinary biomarkers NGAL and [TIMP-2] × [IGFBP7] for the early detection of AKI in this population. This prospective, longitudinal cohort study included critically ill COVID-19 patients without AKI at study entry. Urine samples were collected on admission to critical care areas for determination of NGAL and [TIMP-2] × [IGFBP7] concentrations. The demographic information, comorbidities, clinical, and laboratory data were recorded. The study outcomes were the development of AKI and mortality during hospitalization. Of the 51 individuals that were studied, 25 developed AKI during hospitalization (49%). Of those, 12 had persistent AKI (23.5%). The risk factors for AKI were male gender (HR = 7.57, 95% CI: 1.28–44.8; p = 0.026) and [TIMP-2] × [IGFBP7] ≥ 0.2 (ng/mL)2/1000 (HR = 7.23, 95% CI: 0.99–52.4; p = 0.050). Mortality during hospitalization was significantly higher in the group with AKI than in the group without AKI (p = 0.004). Persistent AKI was a risk factor for mortality (HR = 7.42, 95% CI: 1.04–53.04; p = 0.046). AKI was frequent in critically ill COVID-19 patients. The combination of [TIMP-2] × [IGFBP7] together with clinical information, were useful for the identification of subclinical AKI in critically ill COVID-19 patients. The role of additional biomarkers and their possible combinations for detection of AKI in ritically ill COVID-19 patients remains to be explored in large clinical trials.
Odnos socijalnih vještina, depresivnih simptoma i školskog uspjeha kod srednjoškolaca

Cilj istraživanja bio je ispitati odnos socijalnih vjestina, skolskog uspjeha i depresivnih simptoma kod srednjoskolaca. Nastojalo se utvrditi postoji li povezanost između navedene tri varijable te djeluju li spol, skolski uspjeh i njihova interakcija na socijalne vjestine i depresivne simptome. Istraživanje je provedeno na uzorku od 182 sudionika drugog, treceg i cetvrtog razreda Prirodoslovno-matematicke gimnazije u Osijeku tijekom svibnja i lipnja 2013. godine. 101 sudionik bio je ženskog, a 81 muskog spola. U istraživanju je za mjerenje socijalnih vjestina koristen Upitnik socijalnih vjestina (SSQ; Social Skills Questionnaire; Gresham i Elliot, 1990), za mjerenje depresivnih simptoma Skala depresivnosti za djecu (CDI; Children Depression Inventory; Kovacs, 1985), a od sudionika se tražilo i da navedu opci uspjeh na kraju prethodno zavrsenog razreda sto je predstavljalo mjeru skolskog uspjeha. Rezultati su pokazali statisticki znacajnu negativnu povezanost između socijalnih vjestina i depresivnih simptoma kao i između depresivnih simptoma i skolskog uspjeha. Povezanost socijalnih vjestina i skolskog uspjeha nije se pokazala statisticki znacajnom. Složenom analizom varijance utvrđen je statisticki znacajan glavni efekt skolskog uspjeha na socijalne vjestine, odlicni ucenici imali su razvijenije socijalne vjestine od vrlo dobrih. Glavni efekt spola i interakcije spola i skolskog uspjeha na socijalne vjestine nije se pokazao statisticki znacajnim kao ni glavni efekt spola, skolskog uspjeha te njihove interakcije na depresivne simptome.