Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Aerodynamic Prediction of Time Duration to Becoming Infected with Coronavirus in a Public Place

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused panic and chaos that modern society has never seen before. Despite their paramount importance, the transmission routes of coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 remain unclear and a point of contention between the various sectors. Recent studies strongly suggest that COVID-19 could be transmitted via air in inadequately ventilated environments. The present study investigates the possibility of the aerosol transmission of coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 and illustrates the associated environmental conditions. The main objective of the current work is to accurately predict the time duration of getting an infection while sharing an indoor space with a patient of COVID-19 or similar viruses. We conducted a 3D computational fluid dynamics (CFD)-based investigation of indoor airflow and the associated aerosol transport in a restaurant setting, where likely cases of airflow-induced infection of COVID-19 caused by asymptomatic individuals were reported in Guangzhou, China. The Eulerian–Eulerian flow model coupled with the k-Ɛ turbulence approach was employed to resolve complex indoor processes, including human respiration activities, such as breathing, speaking, and sneezing. The predicted results suggest that 10 minutes are enough to become infected with COVID-19 when sharing a Table with coronavirus patients. The results also showed that although changing the ventilation rate will improve the quality of air within closed spaces, it will not be enough to protect a person from COVID-19. This model may be suitable for future engineering analyses aimed at reshaping public spaces and indoor common areas to face the spread of aerosols and droplets that may contain pathogens.
Metazoan parasite community as a potential biological indicator in juveniles of the starry smooth-hound Mustelus asterias Cloquet, 1819 (Carcharhiniformes Triakidae)

The starry smooth-hound Mustelus asterias is a near-threatened coastal shark in Europe, whose parasitofauna is largely unknown. We studied metazoan parasites of 20 immature sharks (13 males and seven females) from the English Channel and we examined their relationships with host condition and their use as host bioindicators. All the sharks were parasitized by one to six metazoan taxa among the twelve recorded in the whole sampling (one trematode, six cestodes and two nematodes trophically-transmitted; one monogenean, one copepod and one myxosporean on gills), with a mean abundance of 30.5 ± 21.4 parasites per fish (myxosporeans not included). The three major taxa were in decreasing order: the nematode Acanthocheilus rotundatus (prevalence: 75%, Confidence Interval 53–89%), the cestode Eutetrarhynchus sp. (70%, CI 48–85%), and the monogenean Erpocotyle laevis (60%, CI 39–78%). The gill copepod Kroyeria lineata and the gut nematode Proleptus obtusus were identified as significant pathogens. Parasite community differed between males and females despite their immature stage, suggesting early spatial sex-segregation, with E. laevis, Eutetrarhynchus sp. and Anthobothrium sp. proposed as tags. We discuss results in terms of host fitness loss and information given by parasites on diet ecology and stock discrimination. We recommend incorporating parasitology in further research to improve shark conservation and management.
Molecular detection of three Coleopteran species found in stored rice from some provinces in Iraq

Insect pest infestations on stored rice cause both quantitatively and qualitatively significant damage and this affects the economy and food security of the country . The samples were collected from different geographic regions which represented by some of the provinces in Iraq; ( Mosul, Baghdad, Saladin, Diyala and Dhi Qar). The current study showed three main beetles that infect stored rice: Oryzaephilus surinamensis, Tribolium castaneum and Sitophilus oryzae. showed the highest abundance of Oryzaephilus surinamensis in all stores that investigated , while S. oryzae was the less abundant. The genetic relationships among the local species were studied using molecular techniques. The study was performed using a phylogenetic tree, with the diagnosis confirmed using sequencing of mtDNA COI and 16s rRNA genes. The results showed differences in the nitrogenous base sequences of both genes when comparing the local sample with the reference sequences that published in NCBI as well, there was genetic diversity of species within and between in different provinces appeared in the form ofsubstitution mutations. The tree of genetic relationships between local species was drawn and the results were compared with the standard samples.
An Expanded Landscape of Unusually Short RNAs in 11 Samples from Six Eukaryotic Organisms

Small RNA sequencing (sRNA-Seq) approaches unveiled sequences derived from longer non-coding RNAs, such as transfer RNA (tRNA) and ribosomal RNA (rRNA) fragments, known as tRFs and rRFs, respectively. However, rRNAs and RNAs shorter than 16 nt are often depleted from library preparations/sequencing analyses, although they may be functional. Here, we sought to obtain a complete repertoire of small RNAs by sequencing the total RNA from 11 samples of 6 different eukaryotic organisms, from yeasts to human, in an extended 8- to 30-nt window of RNA length. The 8- to 15-nt window essentially contained fragments of longer non-coding RNAs, such as microRNAs, PIWI-associated RNAs (piRNAs), small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs), tRNAs and rRNAs. Notably, unusually short RNAs < 16 nt were more abundant than those >16 nt in bilaterian organisms. A new RT-qPCR method confirmed that two unusually short rRFs of 12 and 13 nt were more overly abundant (~3-log difference) than two microRNAs. We propose to not deplete rRNA and to reduce the lower threshold of RNA length to include unusually short RNAs in sRNA-Seq analyses and datasets, as their abundance and diversity support their potential role and importance as biomarkers of disease and/or mediators of cellular function.
Bearing Properties of CFRP Composite Laminates Containing Spread-Tow Thin-Plies

With the development of spread-tow, thin-ply technology, ultra-thin composite laminates could be produced. Composite bolted joints are commonly used on aircraft’s load-bearing structures and are considered the main cause of stress concentration. The aim of this research is to investigate the bolted joint behavior of composite laminates that combine thin-plies and conventional thick-plies in a predetermined stacking sequence. The impact of thin-ply placement within the stack on bearing strength, including the onset of damages, is examined. The work involves mechanical tests and fractographic activities to understand the damage mechanisms of the plies and their interactions, and its reflections on the bearing load capacity of the joint for double-lap bolted joints. The results showed an improvement in the bearing strength of up to 19% by inserting the thin-plies inside the laminate. The visual examination of the specimens showed a bearing damage mode for all the tested specimens. The computed tomography scans showed damage mechanisms that mostly occurred with the normal plies, rather than breaking the thin-plies. For the specimens of traditional plies, delaminations were noticed at most of the interfaces. For the one with a block of thin-plies in the middle, all the delaminations were forced to the surface layers with an extra large size. Forspecimens with distributed thin-plies, a higher number of smaller delaminations was recognized.
LabVIEW Virtual Instrument Development Platform and Its Analysis of Application

LabVIEW, virtual instrumentation technology, LabVIEW FPGA preview system and their characteristics are expounded. Various kinds of strongpoint and its application of LabVIEW virtual instrument development platform are studied and discussed in detail, so as to effectively enrich and perfect LabVIEW virtual instrument development platform and further explore the application of this fine exoteric development platform, which enable them to be widely applied in various fields of the social living.
Evaluation Method of Performance Characteristic of Eddy Current Retarder

In order to know the performance characteristic of eddy current(retarder,a comprehen-)sive evaluation method of performance characteristic of eddy current retarder was studied.Based on the introduction of structure and working principle of the eddy current retarder,the performance characteristic and requirement of eddy current retarder were analyzed.Five performance characteristic evaluation parameters(the average braking moment,thermal decline coefficient,braking efficiency,braking efficiency per unit mass,product price) which were regarded as performance evaluation indexes of eddy current retarder used in vehicle were put forward.A weighted comprehensive evaluation to the five parameters of eddy current retarder was performed by means of the value analysis method.The examp1es cited in this paper prove that the method is intuitionally comparable in evaluating the performance of different retarders and the results obtained are valid and authentic.
The DARPA Subterranean Challenge: A Synopsis of the Circuits Stage

Complex underground environments present significant challenges for the autonomy, perception, networking, and mobility of robots operating in time-sensitive disaster response scenarios. In 2017, DARPA created the Subterranean Challenge to stimulate innovation and investment in solutions that can rapidly map, navigate, and search complex environments, including human-made tunnel systems, urban underground, and natural cave networks. The program is hosting a series of evaluations, namely, the three Circuit Events and the Final Event, which assess each competing team’s approaches in representative subterranean environments. This paper provides an overview of the program and the results from the Circuits Stage of the competition
Design of Proactive Interaction for In-Vehicle Robots Based on Transparency

Based on the transparency theory, this study investigates the appropriate amount of transparency information expressed by the in-vehicle robot under two channels of voice and visual in a proactive interaction scenario. The experiments are to test and evaluate different transparency levels and combinations of information in different channels of the in-vehicle robot, based on a driving simulator to collect subjective and objective data, which focuses on users’ safety, usability, trust, and emotion dimensions under driving conditions. The results show that appropriate transparency expression is able to improve drivers’ driving control and subjective evaluation and that drivers need a different amount of transparency information in different types of tasks.
Practical interference mitigation for Wi-Fi systems

Wi-Fi's popularity is also its Achilles' heel since in the dense deployments of multiple Wi-Fi networks typical in urban environments, concurrent transmissions interfere. The advent of networked devices with multiple antennas allows new ways to improve Wi-Fi's performance: a host can align the phases of the signals either received at or transmitted from its antennas so as to either maximize the power of the signal of interest through beamforming or minimize the power of interference through nulling. Theory predicts that these techniques should enable concurrent transmissions by proximal sender-receiver pairs, thus improving capacity. Yet practical challenges remain. Hardware platform limitations can prevent precise measurement of the wireless channel, or limit the accuracy of beamforming and nulling. The interaction between nulling and Wi-Fi's OFDM modulation, which transmits tranches of a packet's bits on distinct subcarriers, is subtle and can sacrifice the capacity gain expected from nulling. And in deployments where Wi-Fi networks are independently administered, APs must efficiently share channel measurements and coordinate their transmissions to null effectively. In this thesis, I design and experimentally evaluate beamforming and nulling techniques for use in Wi-Fi networks that address the aforementioned practical challenges. My contributions include: - Cone of Silence (CoS): a system that allows a Wi-Fi AP equipped with a phased-array antenna but only a single 802.11g radio to mitigate interference from senders other than its intended one, thus boosting throughput; - Cooperative Power Allocation (COPA): a system that efficiently shares channel measurements and coordinates transmissions between independent APs, and cooperatively allocates power so as to render received power across OFDM subcarriers flat at each AP's receiver, thus boosting throughput; - Power Allocation for Distributed MIMO (PADM): a system that leverages intelligent power allocation to mitigate inter-stream interference in distributed MIMO wireless networks, thus boosting throughput.
Soft Multi-Directional Force Sensor for Underwater Robotic Application

Tactile information is crucial for recognizing physical interactions, manipulation of an object, and motion planning for a robotic gripper; however, concurrent tactile technologies have certain limitations over directional force sensing. In particular, they are expensive, difficult to fabricate, and mostly unsuitable for underwater use. Here, we present a facile and cost-effective synthesis technique of a flexible multi-directional force sensing system, which is also favorable to be utilized in underwater environments. We made use of four flex sensors within a silicone-made hemispherical shell structure. Each sensor was placed 90° apart and aligned with the curve of the hemispherical shape. If the force is applied on the top of the hemisphere, all the flex sensors would bend uniformly and yield nearly identical readings. When force is applied from a different direction, a set of flex sensors would characterize distinctive output patterns to localize the point of contact as well as the direction and magnitude of the force. The deformation of the fabricated soft sensor due to applied force was simulated numerically and compared with the experimental results. The fabricated sensor was experimentally calibrated and tested for characterization including an underwater demonstration. This study would widen the scope of identification of multi-directional force sensing, especially for underwater soft robotic applications.
Current Advancements and Future Road Map to Develop ASSURED Microfluidic Biosensors for Infectious and Non-Infectious Diseases

Better diagnostics are always essential for the treatment and prevention of a disease. Existing technologies for detecting infectious and non-infectious diseases are mostly tedious, expensive, and do not meet the World Health Organization’s (WHO) ASSURED (affordable, sensitive, specific, user-friendly, rapid and robust, equipment-free, and deliverable to end user) criteria. Hence, more accurate, sensitive, and faster diagnostic technologies that meet the ASSURED criteria are highly required for timely and evidenced-based treatment. Presently, the diagnostics industry is finding interest in microfluidics-based biosensors, as this integration comprises all qualities, such as reduction in the size of the equipment, rapid turnaround time, possibility of parallel multiple analysis or multiplexing, etc. Microfluidics deal with the manipulation/analysis of fluid within micrometer-sized channels. Biosensors comprise biomolecules immobilized on a physicochemical transducer for the detection of a specific analyte. In this review article, we provide an outline of the history of microfluidics, current practices in the selection of materials in microfluidics, and how and where microfluidics-based biosensors have been used for the diagnosis of infectious and non-infectious diseases. Our inclination in this review article is toward the employment of microfluidics-based biosensors for the improvement of already existing/traditional methods in order to reduce efforts without compromising the accuracy of the diagnostic test. This article also suggests the possible improvements required in microfluidic chip-based biosensors in order to meet the ASSURED criteria.
Investigating Students’ Performance and Motivation in Computer Programming through a Gamified Recommender System

Abstract In this study, a personalized gamified recommender system was developed to help secondary-school students in Saudi Arabia learn computer programming. This recommender system supports those students by providing personalized recommendations to address their weaknesses and increase their motivation toward computer programming. A total of 60 female secondary-school students participated in this empirical study and were divided in to an intervention and comparison group. Due to the distance learning directives imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the whole study was conducted online. Data were collected through a post-test to measure student performance. In addition, a learning motivation questionnaire was distributed to all the study participants to measure their motivation toward learning programming. The Instructional Materials Motivation Survey questionnaire was distributed to the experimental group to measure their level of motivation after using the recommender system. The results showed that the personalized gamified recommender system positively affected the students’ performance in the intervention group and enhanced their motivation toward learning computer programming.
Research on Short Video Marketing Model in the New Media Era

In the new media era, with the rapid development of mobile Internet technology and the high popularity of mobile terminal equipment, the marketing positions of various industries have also shifted. Short videos have quickly gained many mobile users by simplifying content production, fragmented dissemination, cross-platform dissemination, and intense interaction. Some brand merchants and users have seen the dividends brought by the development of short videos. They have entered the short video platform one after another, resulting in a new marketing model based on corporate marketing, online celebrity marketing, and user marketing. However, behind the short video marketing, there are also problems such as content homogeneity, irregular product source channels, and incomplete product features, which need to be solved urgently
Comprehensive Self-Healing Evaluation of Asphalt Concrete Containing Encapsulated Rejuvenator

Ultraviolet radiation, oxidation, temperature, moisture, and traffic loads produce degradation and brittleness in the asphalt pavement. Microcracks develop into macrocracks, which eventually lead to pavement failure. Although asphalt has an inherent capacity for self-healing, it is constricted. As a result, damages build beyond the ability of asphalt to repair themselves. This research employs the in-situ crack healing method of encapsulated rejuvenator technology to enhance the insufficient self-healing capability of roads. This allows the extrinsically induced healing in asphalt to assist it in recovering from damage sustained during service life. Optical microscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, and the compressive load test of capsules were done to characterise their properties. We measured the self-healing behaviour of encapsulated rejuvenator-induced asphalt utilising the three-point bending beam tests on unaged, short-term aged and long-term aged asphalt beams. The rate of oil release before and after healing was quantified using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The results of these tests were utilised to explain the link between healing time, temperature, asphalt ageing, and healing level. Overall, it was determined that the encapsulated rejuvenator was acceptable for mending asphalt mixes because it increased healing temperature and duration, resulting in an up to 80% healing index.
The next phase in the implementation of value-based healthcare: Adding patient-relevant cost drivers to existing outcome measure sets

ABSTRACT Healthcare expenditure is increasing worldwide and value-based healthcare (VBHC) was introduced as a strategy to improve outcomes and prevent further rises in costs. Monitoring outcomes and costs forms the basis for the implementation of VBHC. Through the efforts already made in the area of outcome monitoring, providers have gained insight into their performance allowing for increasing patient value (PV), defined as patient-relevant outcomes divided by costs of healthcare delivery. However, diminished outcome variation in many benchmarks and the lack of connection between clinical outcomes and costs in clinical practise warrant the debate on the sustainability of current outcome monitoring practises. Cost parameters are currently scarcely incorporated in routine outcome monitoring and adding cost parameters would therefore yield improvement potential of PV. In this viewpoint, we discuss currently used methods for costs calculation within the scope of VBHC and propose a novel, patient-centred and less labour-intensive approach we believe can be used in conjunction with clinical outcome monitoring. That is, the selection of disease/treatment-specific cost drivers and their structural embedment in routine clinical outcome monitoring.
A Robust Kalman Filter-Based Approach for SoC Estimation of Lithium-Ion Batteries in Smart Homes

Battery energy systems are playing significant roles in smart homes, e.g., absorbing the uncertainty of solar energy from root-top photovoltaic, supplying energy during a power outage, and responding to dynamic electricity prices. For the safe and economic operation of batteries, an optimal battery-management system (BMS) is required. One of the most important features of a BMS is state-of-charge (SoC) estimation. This article presents a robust central-difference Kalman filter (CDKF) method for the SoC estimation of on-site lithium-ion batteries in smart homes. The state-space equations of the battery are derived based on the equivalent circuit model. The battery model includes two RC subnetworks to represent the fast and slow transient responses of the terminal voltage. Moreover, the model includes the nonlinear relationship between the open-circuit voltage (OCV) and SoC. The proposed robust CDKF method can accurately estimate the SoC in the presence of the time-varying model uncertainties and measurement noises. Being able to cope with model uncertainties and measurement noises is essential, since they can lead to inaccurate SoC estimations. An experiment test bench is developed, and various experiments are conducted to extract the battery model parameters. The experimental results show that the proposed method can more accurately estimate SoC compared with other Kalman filter-based methods. The proposed method can be used in optimal BMSs to promote battery performance and decrease battery operational costs in smart homes.
How Seventh-Grade Students Experience the Complexity of Socioscientific Issues Through Decision Making on the Autonomous Vehicle Issue

This study investigates what perspectives younger students considered and how they experienced the complexity of multiple perspectives about autonomous vehicle issues. Over the course of 6 weeks, 28 seventh-grade Korean students participated in role-play and group discussion to understand different perspectives on the issue. We qualitatively analyzed students’ positions toward these issues before and after the class and their perspectives in group decision making. The results indicate that students showed anxiety toward artificial intelligence systems, thus opposing it. They also explained where their concerns about the new technology arose to justify their views and opposition. We also found different patterns when students experienced uneasiness and conflicts in a group decision-making process. The patterns can be classified as (1) exploring multiple perspectives for decision making and (2) experiencing conflicts in working toward group consensus. Implementations for incorporating diverse perspectives into teaching strategies are discussed.