Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fabrication, Validation, and Stability Analysis of Melaleuca alternifolia Oil-in-water Microemulsion for Improved Transdermal Application

Aim: The aim of the study was to develop oil-in-water microemulsion (ME) system for Melaleuca alternifolia for targeting skin disorders. Materials and Methods: The formulation of ME system was done through the water titration method, which involved various oils, water, surfactants, and cosurfactants. The existence zones of ME were determined by constructing ternary phase diagrams, where surfactants and cosurfactants (Smix) were taken in different ratios along with different combinations of oil and Smix. Quantitative estimation of tea tree oil (TTO) was performed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry followed by total terpenoid estimation, and thereafter, solubility studies of TTO were performed using various excipients. TTO-ME was fabricated and characterized using modern characterization techniques (DLS, transmission electron microscopy, and Fourier transform infrared) along with statistical validation and in vitro drug release assessment. Results and Discussion: The optimized TTO loaded MEs (TTO ME) showed the particle size range between 32 and 160 nm with poly dispersibility index of 0.297 and zeta potential of −3.19 mv with almost spherical morphology. The optimized formulation showed the sustained release of the therapeutic compound and was found to be stable at room temperature for 1 year, suggesting being a promising formulation against dermal infections. Conclusion: TTO was successfully loaded in thermodynamically stable ME system which enhanced its permeation through the transdermal route. Therefore, a novel drug delivery system was introduced, which can be studied on various in vitro and in vivo models further to establish its better therapeutic efficacy for various skin disorders.
Brief intervention: The ASSIST-linked brief intervention for hazardous and harmful substance use.

This manual is a companion to â? ~The Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST): manual for use in primary careâ? T 1 and is based on â? ~Brief Intervention for Substance Use: Guidelines for Use in Primary Care. Draft Version 1.1 for Field Testingâ? T2. The purpose of this manual is to explain the theoretical basis and evidence for the effectiveness of brief interventions and to assist primary health care workers in conducting a simple brief intervention for clients whose substance use is putting them at risk. Together with the companion manual 1, this manual presents a comprehensive approach to screening and brief intervention which is tailored to the specific circumstances of primary care and is designed to improve the health of populations and client groups as well as of individuals. This manual describes: â? ¢ the rationale for brief intervention in primary care; â? ¢ a model of behaviour change; â? ¢ the components of brief interventions that work; â? ¢ principles of motivational interviewing and essential skills; â? ¢ how to link the ASSIST screening procedure with a brief intervention; â? ¢ how to give feedback to clients; â? ¢ how to conduct brief intervention for people at moderate risk; â? ¢ examples of ASSIST-linked brief interventions; â? ¢ how to help clients who inject drugs; â? ¢ how to address multiple substance use; â? ¢ how to give longer or recurrent interventions. Although the manual is particularly aimed at primary health care workers, it may also be useful for others who work with high-risk clients or clients who are more likely to engage in drug use such as hospital physicians and nurses, midwives and obstetricians, social workers, prison workers and community correction workers.
Large eddy simulation study of flow field characteristics of a combustor with two coaxial swirlers

The cold and reaction flow fields of a combustor with two coaxial swirlers are investigated by means of large eddy simulation. Effective data processing methods such as proper orthogonal decomposition and fast Fourier transform are employed for analysis. The complex flow phenomena such as swirling jet, shear layer, recirculation zone, and precession vortex core are observed and their characteristics are analyzed. The dynamics of the flame and its interactions with the complex swirling flows and large-scale eddies are characterized. The precession vortex core structures and its influences on the combustion process are emphatically explored. It is found that the outer shear layer produces spiral precession vortex core cantilever structures and the change of structural characteristics of the PVC determines the pressure pulsation frequency of the combustor. The results also indicate precession vortex core accelerates the mixing of unburned and burned mixture, leading to the ignition. The principal structures are studied by determining the highest energy modes via proper orthogonal decomposition. The modes are classified according to energy size. By means of proper orthogonal decomposition four-decomposition method, the vortexes of different energy and scales in swirling flow field are classified and analyzed in detail, the flow field is reconstructed, and the large-scale coherent structures and small energy flow structures are obtained. A spectral map of the turbulent kinetic energy density exhibits the −5/3 slope given by the Kolmogorov–Obukhov law. Based on the analysis of the vortex structures and their evolution, and the analysis of the transports and distributions of flow field characteristic parameters, a novel unsteady swirling flow combustion organization mechanism is proposed. It is found that combustion mainly occurs in low-energy small-scale vortexes, releasing a large amount of heat. High-temperature gas enters the recirculation zone and continues to provide energy for the precession vortex cores.
Pelletization of Sunflower Seed Husks: Evaluating and Optimizing Energy Consumption and Physical Properties by Response Surface Methodology (RSM)

Pelletization is a significant approach for the efficient utilization of biomass energy. Sunflower seed husk is a common solid waste in the process of oil production. The novelty of this study was to determine the parameters during production of a novel pellet made from sunflower seed husk. The energy consumption (W) and physical properties (bulk density (BD) and mechanical durability (DU)) of the novel pellet were evaluated and optimized at the laboratory by using a pelletizer and response surface methodology (RSM) under a controlled moisture content (4%–14%), compression pressure (100–200 MPa), and die temperature (70–170 °C). The results show that the variables of temperature, pressure, and moisture content of raw material are positively correlated with BD and DU. Increasing the temperature and moisture content of raw materials can effectively reduce W, while increasing the pressure has an adverse effect on W. The optimum conditions of temperature (150 °C), pressure (180 MPa), and moisture content (12%) led to a BD of 1117.44 kg/m3, DU of 98.8%, and W of 25.3 kJ/kg in the lab. Overall, although the nitrogen content was slightly high, the novel manufactured pellets had excellent performance based on ISO 17225 (International Organization for Standardization of 17225, Geneva, Switzerland, 2016). Thus, sunflower seed husk could be considered as a potential feedstock for biomass pelletization.
The study of viscosity-temperature dependence and activation energy for palm oil and soybean oil

In fluid transport, precise knowledge or estimation of fluids behaviour is very necessary, for mass flow and heat transfer computations. In this study, physicochemical analysis of palm oil and soybean oil were conducted, in addition to an equation modeling the relationship between the energy (Ea) and the pre-exponential factor (A). Later, two other parameters; the Arrhenius temperature (T) and Arrhenius activation temperature (T*) were introduced to buttress the veracity of the model used. The model is very useful in engineering since it would make for the estimation of the missing parameter value and its derivatives. The goodness of the result is strongly reinforced by the regression coefficient. The results indicate that the model which best fits the major defining parameters are logarithmic in nature. All the parameters studied showed that the two oil samples are good feedstock for biodiesel production and confirms their relevance in electric voltage transformers.Keywords: Physicochemical, Viscosity, Arrhenius Parameters, Equation Modeling, Temperature, Vegetable Oil
Strength of Zerodur for mirror applications: follow-up

Zerodur® is a well-known glass-ceramic used for optical components because of its unequalled dimensional stability under thermal environment. In particular it has been used since decades in Thales Alenia Space’s optical payloads for space telescopes, especially for mirrors. The drawback of Zerodur® is however its quite low strength, but the relatively small size of mirrors in the past had made it unnecessary to further investigate this aspect, although elementary tests have always shown higher failure strength. As performance of space telescopes is increasing, the size of mirrors increases accordingly, and an optimization of the design is necessary, mainly for mass saving. Therefore the question of the effective strength of Zerodur® has become a real issue. Thales Alenia Space has investigated the application of the Weibull law and associated size effects on Zerodur® in 2014, under CNES funding, through a thorough test campaign with a high number of samples (300) of various types. That test campaign demonstrated a strength in fast fracture higher than 40 MPa ([1], [2]) for the tested surface finish, thus allowing much more versatility in the designs than the previously accepted strength limit (10 MPa). Another concern had however been raised: glasses are known to be susceptible to sub-critical crack growth, i.e. slow propagation of cracks under loads below fracture toughness, thus reducing fast fracture strength capabilities (since failure is linked to sudden propagation of those cracks). Taking into account data from literature, no effect was expected on Zerodur® in the conditions of use for space applications, but the very high variability of data made those computations not reliable enough. A dedicated test campaign was therefore defined in order to assess this effect and its consequences in conditions as representative as possible of real conditions. In this paper we show the outcome of this test campaign: the effect of subcritical crack growth is confirmed to be negligible and the minimum strength of 40 MPa is confirmed. In time, Zerodur® strength seems to even increase but this phenomenon was not investigated in the study.
Study on estimation of creep behaviour of concrete at early age considering temperature effect

Clarifying the creep behaviour of concrete at early age not only improves the accuracy of temperature stress analysis but also contributes to prediction accuracy and control measures in cracks caused by thermal stress. However, most past researches on creep behaviour were investigated after 28 days. Currently, it is difficult to accurately perceive the creep behaviour of concrete at an early age in the test method of creep which is generally carried out. Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate the creep behaviour of concrete at early age and to establish a convenient test method to estimate the creep behaviour. Therefore, in this study, experiments were carried out for concrete at early age within one week. As the result of the experiments, it was shown that the creep strain is proportional to the load stress of concrete at an early age and the strain of specific creep decreases as the loaded age increases. In addition, based on the experimental results, an estimation equation for creep strain at early age was proposed. Within the scope of this experimental result, it was confirmed that the estimation equation proposed in this study accurately represented the creep behaviour of concrete at early age.
A critical analysis of the provision for oral health promotion in South African health policy development

The rhetoric of primary health care, health promotion and health service integration is ubiquitous in health policy development in post-apartheid South Africa. However the form in which oral health promotion elements have actually been incorporated into other areas of health care in South Africa and the extent to which they have been implemented, remains unclear. The central aim of this research was to critically analyse oral health promotion elements in health policies in South Africa and determine the extent to which they have been implemented. The study set out to test the hypothesis that oral health promotion is fully integrated into South African health policy and practice.
Neuroimaging correlates of cognitive functioning in cerebrovascular disease

Cerebral white matter lesions (WMLs) are related to cognitive deficits, probably due to a disruption of frontalesubcortical circuits. We explored thalamic diffusion differences related to white matter lesions (WMLs) and their association with cognitive function in middle-aged individuals. Ninety-six participants from the Barcelona-AsIA Neuropsychology Study were included. Participants were classified into groups based on low grade and high grade of periventricular hyperintensities (PVHs) and deep white matter hyperintensities (DWMHs). Tract-Based Spatial Statistics was used to study thalamic diffusion differences between groups. Mean fractional anisotropy (FA) values in significant areas were calculated for each subject and correlated with cognitive performance. Participants with high-grade PVHs and DWMHs showed lower FA thalamic values compared to those with low-grade PVHs and DWMHs, respectively. Decreased FA thalamic values in high-grade DWMHs, but not high-grade PVH, were related to lower levels of performance in psychomotor speed, verbal fluency, and visuospatial skills. Thalamic diffusion differences are related to lower cognitive function only in participants with high-grade DWMHs. These results support the hypothesis that frontoesubcortical disruption is associated with cognitive function only in DWMHs. 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Characterization of small PRESAGE® samples for measurements near the dosimeter edges

Measurements near the edges of PRESAGE® 3D dosimeters will be important for validating the electron return effect (ERE) that can occur at tissue-air interfaces during radiotherapy treatment delivered with the Elekta MR-linac. We investigate and characterize the spatially non-uniform response of small samples of PRESAGE® to radiation in a conventional linac. We develop a correction to compensate for these non-uniformities and obtain dose values near the dosimeter edges. Five samples from the same batch were uniformly irradiated in a water tank with a broad beam. The non-uniform response of the samples to radiation was investigated and a radial dose-correction function was generated from each sample to obtain a correction image. We then applied these correction images to another sample from the same batch, irradiated with four beams in an inhomogeneous medium, and compared this with the relevant simulated data. Additionally, we irradiated samples after physically removed their edges (axially and top and bottom edges). Higher sensitivity to radiation was observed at the edges (~6mm) of the samples in comparison with the central region. Applying the dose correction function improved agreement between simulations and measurements, but only partial correction was possible. A uniform response was observed on the samples with the edges removed, which we propose as the best option to measure dose at the edges of PRESAGE® samples.
Comparative analysis of smoothing filters in confocal microscopy images

Confocal microscopy is a widely used tool in the biomedical area, allowing to obtain 3D images with a high spatial resolution. Despite having advantages over conventional microscopy, the analysis of cellular images through confocal microscopy is a complicated process due to the very low S/N, so the use of filters is necessary to reduce noise. However, this step normally affects the quality of the edges, making them more diffuse. In addition, images acquired in confocal microscopy are affected by distortions introduced by lenses and the acquisition system. Therefore, it is possible to improve the edges definition by eliminating distortions. This is done by means of deconvolution methods such as the Wiener filter. Furthermore, in recent years a new generation of smoothing filters have been developed that seek to reduce Gaussian-type noise, without losing edges. However, a study has not been carried out to determine if these filters can be used in the elimination of noise in confocal microscopy, which are contaminated with Poisson noise. Therefore, in this work we present a comparative study of ten filters for the elimination of noise in confocal microscopy: median, anisotropic diffusion, bilateral, propagated, improved propagated, Rudin-Osher-Fatemi (ROF), TVL1, non-local means, K-SVD, and Wavelet 'A trous' and Haar filters, with and without preprocessing images with the Wiener filter, taking as criteria the noise reduction and the conservation of edges.
Analytical Hierarchy Process for Regional Development Priority in Maluku Province, Indonesia

Maluku is one of the provinces of the eastern part of Indonesia, consisting of 11 regencies. The Maluku branch of Statistics Indonesia reported in 2018 that in 2013–2018 the number of poor people in Maluku's rural areas increased by 1,970. Concurrently, the number of poor people in urban areas decreased by around 6,070 people. This fact showed that development in Maluku Province hadn't been implemented effectively and equally. This study aimed to determine the development priority in Maluku Province using the Analytical Hierarchy Process method. The determination of priorities was based on three aspects in the human development index concept, namely education, health, and economy. Data from Statistics Indonesia on life expectancy, mean years of schooling, expected years of schooling, and per capita expenditure were the indicators were used as the indicators in this study. The results showed that there were 10 regencies with a high level of priority, with the exception being Ambon City, which had a low-level priority. Classification of regencies showed that there was a disparity between them. These findings can help to inform future development designs in Maluku Province.
Antecedents of augmented reality experiences: potential tourists to Shangri-La Potatso National Park, China

ABSTRACT Smartphone technology has the potential to change the nature of a tourists’ experience in a protected area. A smartphone running an augmented reality (AR) app may contribute to the protection of national parks while enhancing a visitor’s experience. This paper examined potential visitors’ to Potatso National Park, Shangri- La, China, their preferences for seven such AR experiences and the effect of visitors’ acceptance of technology on the perceived value of visiting the park. An online questionnaire (n = 323) identified results and provided insights for enhancement of national park experiences using AR.
Ensuring material availability by portfolio models and supplier relationship management in after sales service business

Author: Laura Luukkainen Title: Ensuring material availability by portfolio models and relationship management in after sales service business Faculty: School of Business Major: Supply Management Year: 2019 Master’s Thesis: LUT University, 85 pages, 9 figures, 7 tables Examiners: Professor Anni-Kaisa Kähkönen Post-doctoral researcher Sirpa Multaharju
"Are they ready? Will they cope?" : an exploration of the journey from pre-school to school for children with additional support needs who had their school entry delayed

Working as an educational psychologist in a Scottish local authority the author shared concerns raised by her colleagues and education authority about delaying school entry, particularly for children with additional support needs. An argument put forward to justify delaying school entry was that children were too young to start school, particularly when considered in relation to the UK’s international neighbours. The author carried out an initial literature review to establish what evidence there was of an ‘optimal school starting age. ’ This review suggested that there was no one optimal age. Differences have been found in children’s attainment and progress by age but these reduce as they move through primary school. In international studies a factor driving decisions to delay school entry is the models of school readiness held by parents and teachers. The author found very little research on delaying school entry in a UK context. International studies were found not to seek or include children’s views. The empirical study therefore aimed to: explore how the decision making process for delaying school entry operated and if it was influenced by participants models of school readiness; develop and trial a methodology to capture delayed entry children’s perspective and explore the experiences of these children and their families in nursery and during their first year of school. A qualitative case study approach was used to explore the decision making process for six children and their families and the experiences of five children and their families. Techniques from the mosaic methodology (Clark and Moss, 2001) were adapted to capture the children’s voices. The study found that participants held different models of school readiness, in line with other international research, and this influenced their decision to retain. Participants reported a range of positive and negative outcomes of delayed school entry and identified factors that had been supportive in managing the children’s transitions. Children’s perspectives were captured and offered a unique insight into the children’s views. In conclusion it is suggested that it is more helpful to adopt an interactionist (Meisels, 1998) approach to school readiness. A moderated system is needed to support decision-making that also follows up longer-term outcomes. The methodology to gather children’s views offered a way for children with additional support needs to express their own views, future applications of this are explored.
Return on Education in Two Major Vietnamese Cities

To maintain its sustainable productivity growth, Vietnam needs to upgrade its education system. Although studies have examined the return on schooling in Vietnam, none have focused on Hanoi (the capital) or Ho Chi Minh (the biggest economy), which differ markedly from the rest of the country in terms of their levels of education and development. We address this gap in the literature using an extended version of the classic Mincerian human capital equation and data from the latest Vietnam Household Living Standard Survey (2016). The Heckman two-stage method is used to address selection bias. In the two cities, there is no wage premium for people with a general education. Thus, workers need to earn at least a vocational degree to increase their wages significantly over those of people with a general education. In general, Ho Chi Minh offers higher salaries (4.45%) and tends to reward experience, whereas Hanoi pays more for an additional year of education (1.95%). Therefore, Vietnam should promote vocational education and develop a more open, flexible system that is less dependent on credential hiring, especially in the public sector. Lastly, we highlight the need to study returns on sustainable education in specific economic regions in Vietnam.