Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effects of muscle relaxation training vs. conventional nursing on the depression, anxiety and life quality of patients with breast cancer

Background Muscle relaxation training is a method of gradually relaxing the whole body by consciously controlling the process of muscle contraction and relaxation, which is mostly used to improve the physical and mental health of breast cancer patients and improve the quality of life of patients. We conducted a systematic review to compare the effects of muscle relaxation training and conventional nursing on the psychological health and quality of life (QoL) of breast cancer patients. The results of this study provide a basis for nursing program selection of breast cancer patients. Methods The PubMed, EMbase, Web of Science, The Cochrane Library, China national knowledge infrastructure (CNKI), WanFang Data, (China Biology Medicine disc) CBM, and WWW.CQVIP. COM (VIP) databases were searched to retrieve articles on randomized controlled trials (RCTs) or quasi-RCTs on the effects of muscle relaxation training on the mental health and QoL of breast cancer patients. The search period ran from the establishment of the databases to August 31st, 2021. Two researchers independently screened the literature, extracted the data, and The Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions assessed the risk of bias in the included studies. Stata 15.0 software was then used for the meta-analysis. Results Funnel plots were analyzed by E Egger’s test and Begg’s test. The results of the test (P>0.05) showed that the possibility of publication bias was small. A total of 13 RCTs and quasi-RCTs, comprising 1,355 patients, were included in the meta-analysis. The results for the outcome measures were as follows: level of depression [weighted mean difference (WMD) =–9.31, 95% confidence interval (CI): –11.96 to –6.65, level of anxiety (WMD =–8.96, 95% CI: –10.06 to −7.86)], and QoL (WMD =13.13, 95% CI: 7.24, 19.02). The results showed that muscle relaxation training can significantly reduce depression and anxiety in breast cancer patients, improve their quality of life, and can be used as the first choice for breast cancer patients to improve negative emotions. Discussion Muscle relaxation training significantly reduced the depression and anxiety of breast cancer patients, improved their QoL, and brought about both psychological and QoL improvements.
Optimal Backstepping Controller Design for Prosthetic Knee Joint

The mobility of people who have had a lower limb amputated is slower, less stable, and needs more metabolic energy than the movement of physically fit, also, often have difficulty moving on uneven terrain and stairs. In most cases, these problems may be traced back to the usage of controllers for an above-knee prosthesis, which enhances movement and more quality of life for millions of individuals who have lost lower limbs. In this work addresses the dynamic modeling and parameter identification of the lower limb, and the control of a 2-DOF joint prosthetic, because the uncertainty, high nonlinearity, problems with imbalance, and external perturbations, which can occur during movement. Backstepping control algorithm based on the Lyapunov theory was used, this is to ensure system stability with enhanced dynamic performance. The Bat algorithms optimization technique was used to fine-tune these design parameters to improve the performance of the proposed controller. From the results, found that the quantitative comparison between the present study and the related articles previously published which used sliding mode observer control, showed reasonable agreement. To comparison between convolution Backstepping control and optimal Backstepping control with Bat algorithms, at the control action consumptions. It was found that the position error of the prosthetic knee is enhanced by 9% at joint1 and 7.4% at joint2, respectively. Therefore, the results are considered satisfactory for such biomedical systems.
Major Anthropogenic Interactions Determining the Conservation Status of Endemic Mammals of Eastern Africa

Africa, as a continent of diversity, harbors many cosmopolitan and endemic mammals, 17 of the world’s 20 orders of terrestrial mammals. The Horn of Africa alone harbors nearly 220 mammalian species, including many threatened species. Mammals, particularly endemics ones, are threatened by anthropogenic challenges impacting their abundance, the number of reproductive individuals, and geographic ranges. Human population, in Eastern Africa, has been growing fast, and political and civil unrest aggravate human impacts on the environment. In particular, this study focused on identifying factors that are influencing the conservation status of endemic mammals of Eastern Africa using a multinomial logistic regression model. Agricultural expansion and deforestation threatened vulnerable (AOR: 2.650, p < 0.05 ) and critically endangered species (AOR: 4.763, p < 0.05 ) more than any other factors. Habitat loss persists as a major factor when critically endangered species (AOR: 3.520, p < 0.05 ) are compared to near threatened species. Collectively, threatened species are mainly impacted by habitat loss (AOR: 2.678, p < 0.05 ), agricultural expansion, and deforestation (AOR: 2.376, p < 0.05 ). In the next 50 years, threats to biodiversity are likely to grow as human populations increase. There is no a generalized global model to measure the intensity of agricultural expansion, habitat loss, hunting, and human settlement in the protected areas. Attempts should be made to develop conservation strategies that aim to articulate an array of several conservation threats together across space and time.
WeChat and the Sharing of News in Networked China

Abstract This article takes a close look at news sharing on the immensely popular Chinese instant messaging app WeChat. The study is an example of how an affordances perspective can be useful for understanding a key concept of digital journalism, namely news sharing. Most research on news sharing focuses on its antecedents or consequences; in contrast, this study demonstrates how a focus on the affordances of WeChat can illuminate ways in which news sharing on social media in China works. It also explores how the interplay of the platform’s owner, Tencent’s commercial logics and the technology company’s relations with the state may have shaped WeChat’s news sharing through the lens of the political economy of communication. By analysing the platform’s nuanced interface design and its possible implications, the study finds that the affordances of WeChat can both enable and constrain users’ participation in news distribution.
Improvement of the Control of a Grid Connected Photovoltaic System Based on Synergetic and Sliding Mode Controllers Using a Reinforcement Learning Deep Deterministic Policy Gradient Agent

This article presents the control of a grid connected PV (GC-PV) array system, starting from a benchmark. The control structure used in this article was a cascade-type structure, in which PI or synergetic (SYN) controllers were used for the inner control loop of id and iq currents and PI or sliding mode control (SMC) controllers were used for the outer control loop of the udcvoltage from the DC intermediate circuit. This paper presents the mathematical model of the PV array together with the main component blocks: simulated inputs for the PV array; the PV array itself; the MPPT algorithm; the DC-DC boost converter; the voltage and current measurements for the DC intermediate circuit; the load and connection to power grid; the DC-AC converter; and the power grid. It also presents the stages of building and training the reinforcement learning (RL) agent. To improve the performance of the control system for the GC-PV array system without using controllers with a more complicated mathematical description, the advantages provided by the RL agent on process controls could also be used. This technique does not require exact knowledge of the mathematical model of the controlled system or the type of uncertainties. The improvement in the control system performance for the GC-PV array system, both when using simple PI-type controllers or complex SMC- and SYN-type controllers, was achieved using an RL agent based on the Deep Deterministic Policy Gradient (DDPG). The variant of DDPG used in this study was the Twin-Delayed (TD3). The improvement in performance of the control system were obtained by using the correction command signals provided by the trained RL agent, which were added to the command signals ud, uq and idref. The parametric robustness of the proposed control system based on SMC and SYN controllers for the GC-PV array system was proven in the case of a variation of 30% caused by the three-phase load. Moreover, the results of the numerical simulations are shown comparatively and the validation of the synthesis of the proposed control system was obtained. This was achieved by comparing the proposed system with a software benchmark for the control of a GC-PV array system performed in MATLAB Simulink. The numerical simulations proved the superiority of the performance of control systems that use the RL-TD3 agent.
Digital surface model generation from high-resolution satellite stereo imagery based on structural similarity

Abstract In this study, we proposed an automatic approach to extract DSMs from VHR satellite imagery. This study aims to apply the histogram of orientated phase congruency (HOPC) descriptor and SIFT-Flow algorithm to match multi-view VHR satellite images densely and extract detailed DSMs competitive with ones generated from Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) point clouds. The HOPC descriptor relies on detecting features by calculating the phase congruency model, which allows the image features to be highly robust against illumination changes. Moreover, we developed an automatic algorithm to extract precise and homogenously distributed tie-points and subsequently conduct bias correction of the Rational Polynomial Coefficients (RPC). We tested our proposed algorithm on four WorldViw-3 datasets captured from different viewpoints, and compared the results with the DSMs obtained by the Semi-Global Matching (SGM) algorithm. The experimental results indicated the proficiency of our proposed method in generating accurate and reliable DSMs using VHR satellite data.
ZT-BDS: A Secure Blockchain-based Zero-trust Data Storage Scheme in 6G Edge IoT

With the rapid development of 6G communication technology, data security of the Internet of Things (IoT) has become a key challenge. This paper first analyzes the security issues and risks of IoT data storage in 6G, and then constructs a blockchain-based zero-trust data storage scheme (ZT-BDS) in 6G edge IoT to ensure data security. Under this framework, an improved scratch-off puzzle based on Proof of Recoverability (PoR) is firstly constructed to realize distributed IoT data storage, which can reduce resource consumption compared with other existing schemes. Secondly, the accumulator is used to replace the Merkle trees to store IoT data in the blockchain. Since the accumulator can provide not only membership proof, but also non-membership proof, the proposed blockchain-based data storage scheme is more secure. Thirdly, PoW is replaced by an improved PoR scheme as the consensus protocol. On the one hand, PoR can verify the integrity of data, which will further enhance the security of IoT data; on the other hand, the proposed PoR is composed of polynomial commitment, which can reduce bandwidth with the aid of the aggregation function of polynomial commitment. Experimental comparisons show that our scheme has better bandwidth and storage capacity.
Telework and Worker Health and Well-Being: A Review and Recommendations for Research and Practice

Telework (also referred to as telecommuting or remote work), is defined as working outside of the conventional office setting, such as within one’s home or in a remote office location, often using a form of information communication technology to communicate with others (supervisors, coworkers, subordinates, customers, etc.) and to perform work tasks. Remote work increased over the last decade and tremendously in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this article is to review and critically evaluate the existing research about telework and worker health and well-being. In addition, we review and evaluate how engaging in this flexible form of work impacts worker health and well-being. Specifically, we performed a literature search on the empirical literature related to teleworking and worker health and well-being, and reviewed articles published after the year 2000 based on the extent to which they had been discussed in prior reviews. Next, we developed a conceptual framework based on our review of the empirical literature. Our model explains the process by which telework may affect worker health and well-being in reference to individual, work/life/family, organizational, and macro level factors. These components are explained in depth, followed by methodological and fundamental recommendations intended to guide future research, policies, and practices to maximize the benefits and minimize the harms associated with telework, and offer recommendations for future research.
NOTA CIENTÍFICA CRIOPRESERVAÇÃO DE CALOS DE ARROZ CRYOPRESERVATION OF RICE CALLUS

de BAP e incubou-se em fotoperiodo de 16 h. Avaliou-se a regeneracao aos trinta e quarenta e cinco dias de incubacao, os parâmetros foram: crescimento dos calos, numero de gemas/calo, numero de calos com broto e numero de brotos/calo. Na proliferacao os calos da Testemunha criopreservado oxidaram, porem, na regeneracao, aos trinta dias, apresentaram maior tamanho e numero de gemas, e aos quarenta e cinco dias maior numero de brotos que os demais tratamentos. Conclui-se que a criopreservacao pode ser empregada em calos de sementes de arroz, nao afetando sua capacidade regenerativa. Palavras-chave: Calos; regeneracao; Oryza sativa. ABSTRACT Cryopreservation is a technique that allows maintaining long-term germoplasma using ultra-reduced temperature. The objective of this study was to evaluate the regeneration seeds callus of rice cryopreservated. Seeds of rice BRS-7 TAIM, were peeled and desinfested for establishment in vitro, distributed in flasks containing MS (Murashige & Skoog, 1962) 2,5 mg dm-3 of 2,4 D for induction of callus and maintained the temperature of ±25 oC in the darkness. After twelve days the calluses were cryopreservated in liquid nitrogen for one hour, thawed 37o C and put back in the middle of cultivation for proliferation. It was used fifty callus by treatment: Test, Test cryopreservated, Glycerol 500 g dm-3 and Glycerol 500 g dm-3 cryopreservated. The evaluation of the proliferation was accomplished to the thirty days being observed the size and coloration of the callus. The material was transferred for middle of regeneration MS 10 mg dm-3 sucrose, 0,5 mg dm-3 of ANA and 2,0 mg dm -3 of BAP and it was incubated in fotoperiodo of 16 h. The evaluation of the regeneration was accomplished to the thirty and forty five days of incubation, the parameters were: growth of the callus, sprout and callus number, number of callus with sprout and sprout/callus number. In the proliferation the callus of the treatment Test cryopreservated rusted, however it was observed in the regeneration, to the thirty days, that the same ones presented such adult and number of sprout, and to the forty five days adult number of sprouts than the other treatments. It is ended that the cryopreservation technique can be used in callus of seeds of rice, not affecting the regenerative capacity.
Characterisation of Lactobacillus plantarum of Dairy-Product Origin for Probiotic Chèvre Cheese Production

Probiotics are increasingly used as functional food ingredients. The objectives of this study were to isolate and characterise probiotic bacteria from dairy and fermented foods and to use a selected strain for the production of probiotic chèvre cheese. Tolerance to acid (pH 2.0) and bile salt (0.4% (w/v)) were first investigated, and then other probiotic properties were determined. Out of 241 isolates, 35 showed high tolerance to acid and bile salt, and 6 were chosen for further characterisation. They were Lactobacillus plantarum and L. fermentum, and possessed antibacterial activities against foodborne pathogens such as Bacillus cereus, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella enterica and Escherichia coli O157:H7. L. plantarum (isolate AD73) showed the highest percentage of adhesion (81.74 ± 0.16%) and was nontoxic to Caco-2 cells at a concentration of 108 CFU/mL. This isolate was therefore selected for the production of probiotic chèvre cheese from goat’s milk and was prepared in a lyophilised form with a concentration of probiotic culture of 8.6 log CFU/g. The cheese had a shelf life of 8 days. On the expiry date, the probiotic, the starter and the yeast contents were 7.56 ± 0.05, 7.81 ± 0.03 and 5.64 log CFU/g, respectively. The level of the probiotics in this chèvre cheese was still sufficiently high to warrant its being a probiotic cheese.
A tribute to Expansion of Concrete through Reaction between Cement and Aggregate""

Tests have demonstrated that excessive expansion of concrete may occur through chemical reactions between cements of relatively high alkali content and certain mineral constituents in some aggregates, such as certain types of shales, cherts, and impure limestones found along the coast of California between Monterey Bay on the north and Los Angeles County on the south. A new test procedure is described in this paper through which it is possible, in a comparatively short time, to develop the deleterious characteristics of cement-aggregate combinations similar to those reported in the California study. The procedure consist of curing the specimens in sealed containers at normal temperatures.
Towards the improved robustness of acoustic cooperative localization

In this thesis, the relationship between packet loss and the accuracy of an autonomous surface craft’s trajectory estimate is explored. In experimental conditions, it is common to lose subframes of acoustic packets, or even entire packets during transmission. Since packets are often used to encode localization information of and range measurements to the sender, lost packets result in poorer navigation of the receiving vehicle. Trajectory estimates, computed using nonlinear least squares optimization, are computed for a variety of client node/server code configurations, and for a series of packet transmission success rates in one of those configurations. Though it is possible for a vehicle to receive some subset of the total number of frames in a packet, partial packets are not usable in current methods. This thesis proposes a method of preparing acoustic packets containing navigation information, so that each frame of a packet is independently useful to a receiver. It is shown in this work that in incorporating navigation information from partially received packets as well, a more accurate trajectory estimate of a non-GPS-aided vehicle is achieved. Thesis Supervisor: John J. Leonard Title: Samuel C. Collins Professor of Mechanical and Ocean Engineering
Bacterial Diversity and Dominant Spoilage Microorganisms in Fresh-Cut Broccoli

Different cutting types not only affect the quality and bioactive substances of broccoli but may produce wounding stress that influences the quantity and diversity of microorganisms and finally leads to safety concerns. In this study, three different fresh-cutting types (floret (F), quarterly cut floret (QF) and shredded floret (FS)) and four storage stages (0, 1, 2 and 3 day(s)) were designed to detect the bacterial diversity in broccoli. Results showed that the quantity and growth of microorganisms in fresh-cut broccoli were positively correlated with the intensity of fresh-cut damage, and the 97 strains isolated using 16S rRNA gene sequences were mainly classified into four phyla: Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes. The predominant phylum was Proteobacteria, dominated by Pseudomonas spp. and Acinetobacter spp. Four representative strains of different species were selected to analyze their spoilage potential on fresh-cut broccoli. Pseudomonas spp. had great impacts on the corruption of broccoli, which affected fresh-cut broccoli by metabolizing to produce nitrite and consuming nutrition. Moreover, Comamonas spp. and Acinetobacter spp. also affected the quality of broccoli, but received little attention previously. This study provides a reference for precise bacteriostasis and preservation of fresh-cut vegetables such as broccoli.
Emergent barriers to the lean healthcare journey: baronies, tribalism and scepticism

Abstract Healthcare systems are essential service organizations for citizens. However, the increasing demand for healthcare provisions and limited resources are challenging the public healthcare system to its limit. To respond to these constraints, healthcare managers and practitioners have worked together to adapt industrial practices of process improvements, such as lean production, to healthcare operations. Although the implementation of lean has gained considerable traction in the complex healthcare ecosystem and provided several benefits, its journey has been and continues to be challenged by contextual barriers not encountered in manufacturing settings. Amongst these barriers, the literature identifies professionalism, implementation fidelity, and the need for evidence-based research as being the most disruptive to lean implementation. These emergent barriers have impacted on the implementation and sustainability of lean in healthcare, and scholars have called for empirical studies to provide an in-depth understanding of these issues to fill this knowledge gap. This study responds to this call by empirically investigating the impact of these barriers in practice by using an exploratory case study in three emergency areas of a public healthcare system. Thirty-seven semi-structured interviews were conducted with nurses, physicians, coordinators, and lean management specialists involved in lean improvement projects. Two key concepts of value destruction and balanced centricity were identified as being crucial to understanding the impact of these emergent barriers. Research propositions are provided that identify baronies, tribalism and scepticism as being the main elements that constrain the implementation and sustainability of lean in healthcare.
Aero engines of the future

One hundred and two years ago, after the Wright brothers had just attempted another unsuccessful flight, they predicted that it would be another 50 years before manned flight was achieved. Only two years later and 100 years ago this year, Orville Wright achieved the first powered flight at Kitty Hawk in North Carolina, illustrating just how difficult it is to predict the future and at the same time launching the pioneering age of aviation.