Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The effects of exercise intervention using Kinect TM on healthy elderly individuals: A quasi-experimental study

Purpose: Elderly persons may benefit from regular physical exercise to maintain or improve their quality of life and health status. Low adherence to physical exercise, however, is often a problem. A new type of videogames, “exergames”, involving physical motion of the players has recently been developed and is expected to keep elderly people active. The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of a newly developed exergame on health benefits such as muscle strength and body balance of elderly people. Methods: We invited 24 healthy community-dwelling elderly persons aged 71.46 ± 4.8 years old (8 men and 16 women) volunteered for this study. We developed a new exergame program for using KinectTM (Microsoft Co., Ltd. Redmond, WA) motion sensor. A single exergame session lasted approximately 30 minutes including warm-up and cool-down sessions. The participants are asked to play the exergame 2 - 3 times per week for 2.5 months at our institute. Maximal isometric muscular strength of major muscles of lower extremities and functional balance were examined before and after the exergame intervention. Result: All participants completed 24 sessions of the exergame program. There were significant improvements in maximal isometric muscular strength of hip joint flexion, and knee joint extension and flexion, of ankle joint dorsiflexion. Also MFC, a significant difference was noted between Pre and Post values. However, there was no statistically significant improvement in the functional balance test. Conclusion: Exergame developed in this study was found to be effective in improving muscular strength of lower extremities.
ACCEPTANCE OF IRRADIATED BEEF AND ITS EFFECT ON BEEF CONSUMPTION

convenience has played a role in meat consumption. However, whether food-poisoning accidents such as E. coli illness substantially affect beef consumption remains largely unknown. Furthermore, no previous study has investigated whether beef irradiation, although effective in enhancing the safety level of beef, can increase the consumption of beef. Promotion of irradiated beef has not accomplished much in the United States. The low rate of consumer acceptance is commonly considered to be a key factor in the unsuccessfulness of efforts to promote irradiated food. Enhancing consumer acceptance can be an effective method for promoting irradiated food, and enhancement of consumer acceptance can be effective only when we understand the factors that affect consumer acceptance. Insights about the factors affecting consumer acceptance can help to better understand and exploit the market for irradiated beef. This study explores factors influencing consumer acceptance of irradiated beef and investigates whether consumption of irradiated beef can increase the total market demand for beef.
A Secure Logging Framework with Focus on Compliance

Handling log messages securely, for example, on servers or embedded devices, has often relied on cryptographic messages authentication codes (MACs) to ensure log file integrity: Any modification or deletion of a log entry will invalidate the MAC, making the tampering evident. However, organizational security requirements regarding log files have changed significantly over the decades. For example, European privacy and personal data protection laws mandate that certain information, such as IP (internet protocol) addresses, must only be stored for a certain retention period, typically seven days. Traditional log file security measures, however, do not support the delayed deletion of partial log message information for such compliance reasons. This article presents SLOPPI (secure logging with privacy protection and integrity), a three-tiered log management framework with focus on integrity management and compliance as well as optional support for encryption-based confidentiality of log messages. Keywords-log file management; secure logging; compliance; log message encryption; privacy by design.
The Equality Multiplier: How Wage Setting and Welfare Spending Make Similar Countries Diverge

The complementarity between wage setting and welfare spending can explain how almost equally rich countries differ in economic and social equality among their citizens. More wage equality increases the welfare generosity via political competition in elections. A more generous welfare state fuels wage equality via an empowerment of weak groups in the labor market. Together the two effects generate a cumulative process that adds up to a social multiplier explaining how equality multiplies. Using data on 18 OECD countries over the period 1976-2002 (determined by the availability of the generosity index of welfare spending) we test the main predictions of the model and identify a sizeable magnitude of the equality multiplier. We obtain additional support by using spending data to extend the panel up to 2007, and by applying another data set for the US over the period 1945-2001.
Ownership concentration and corporate performance on the Ghana stock exchange: A panel data analysis

Corporate governance is linked to corporate performance. The study examines the effect of ownership concentration on corporate performance on the Ghana Stock Exchange. Panel data covering a period from 2001 to 2006 for 28 firms were analyzed within the framework of both the fixed and random effects techniques. The results indicate that the effect of ownership concentration on corporate performance varies with the performance measurement variable. The results indicate a significant positive relationship between ownership concentration and return on assets and Tobin’s Q, whilst there is negative insignificant relationship with return on equity. We also document that insider system of corporate governance is practiced on the Ghana stock exchange as shareholding is highly concentrated in the hands of a few individuals or institutional investors. Other governance features such as board size, board composition and CEO duality are all essential in predicting corporate performance. The results of the study generally support existing literature on the impact of ownership concentration on corporate performance.
Analysis on the AES implementation with various granularities on different GPU architectures

The Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) is One of the most popular symmetric block cipher because it has better efficiency and security. The AES is computation intensive algorithm especially for massive transactions. The Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) is an amazing platform for accelerating AES. it has good parallel processing power. Traditional approaches for implementing AES using GPU use 16 byte per thread as a default granularity. In this paper, the AES-128 algorithm (ECB mode) is implemented on three different GPU architectures with different values of granularities (32,64 and 128 bytes/thread). Our results show that the throughput factor reaches 277 Gbps, 201 Gbps and 78 Gbps using the NVIDIA GTX 1080 (Pascal), the NVIDIA GTX TITAN X (Maxwell) and the GTX 780 (Kepler) GPU architectures.
CFHTLenS revisited: assessing concordance with Planck including astrophysical systematics

We investigate the impact of astrophysical systematics on cosmic shear cosmological parameter constraints from the Canada–France–Hawaii Telescope Lensing Survey (CFHTLenS) and the concordance with cosmic microwave background measurements by Planck. We present updated CFHTLenS cosmic shear tomography measurements extended to degree scales using a covariance calibrated by a new suite of N-body simulations. We analyse these measurements with a new model fitting pipeline, accounting for key systematic uncertainties arising from intrinsic galaxy alignments, baryonic effects in the non-linear matter power spectrum, and photometric redshift uncertainties. We examine the impact of the systematic degrees of freedom on the cosmological parameter constraints, both independently and jointly. When the systematic uncertainties are considered independently, the intrinsic alignment amplitude is the only degree of freedom that is substantially preferred by the data. When the systematic uncertainties are considered jointly, there is no consistently strong preference in favour of the more complex models. We quantify the level of concordance between the CFHTLenS and Planck data sets by employing two distinct data concordance tests, grounded in Bayesian evidence and information theory. We find that the two data concordance tests largely agree with one another and that the level of concordance between the CFHTLenS and Planck data sets is sensitive to the exact details of the systematic uncertainties included in our analysis, ranging from decisive discordance to substantial concordance as the treatment of the systematic uncertainties becomes more conservative. The least conservative scenario is the one most favoured by the cosmic shear data, but it is also the one that shows the greatest degree of discordance with Planck. The data and analysis code are publicly available at https://github.com/sjoudaki/cfhtlens_revisited.
Discrete wavelength tunable laser using microelectromechanical systems technology

A discrete wavelength tunable laser has been demonstrated using microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) technology. The laser system is formed by integrating a semiconductor laser, a single-mode optical fiber, and a MEMS mirror onto a single chip. It has overall dimensions of 1.5 mm×1 mm×0.6 mm (not including the optical fiber), and can be tuned to sweep a wavelength range of 13.5 nm within 1 ms. Unlike the conventional continuously tunable lasers, the laser system enables discrete wavelength tuning by making use of a short external cavity and weak feedback.
SCUOLA DI DOTTORATO DI SCIENZE NATURALI ED INGEGNERISTICHE DOTTORATO DI RICERCA IN NANOSCIENZE E TECNOLOGIE AVANZATE CICLO XXIX Levels of leptin and ghrelin in exhaled breath condensate (EBC) as potential markers of bronchopulmonary dysplasia in ventilated preterm newborns

in English 6 Abstract in Italian 8in Italian 8 Introduction Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia 10 Use of animal models 19 EBC (Exhaled Breath Condensate) 20 Leptin 23 Ghrelin 26 Aim 28 Methods Study design 29 Sampling of EBC in preterm newborn 30 Animal model 32 Results Statistical analysis 35 Preterm newborn 35 Animal model 36
Simulated precipitation structure of the extratropical transition of tropical cyclones

The second, or reintensification, stage of the extratropical transition (ET) of tropical cyclones occurs when a transformed tropical cyclone reintensifies if the midlatitude conditions are favorable for extratropical cyclogenesis, which is usually as part of an interaction with a midlatitude upper-level trough (e.g., DiMego and Bosart 1982, Harr and Elsberry 2000, Klein et al. 2000). Klein et al. (2000) noted in their study of 30 western North Pacific ET events that this re-intensification stage was very dependent on the details of the midlatitude circulation structure and how the transformed tropical cyclone interacted with that midlatitude circulation. In particular, poleward-moving tropical cyclones underwent a variety of re-intensification rates. Of those that did significantly re-intensify, the ability of forecast models to accurately predict the rate of intensification and future track of the storm was at times poor, with large discrepancies from forecast to forecast even by the same model (P. Harr 2000; personal communication). This led to the Harr and Elsberry (2000) hypothesis that the details of the structure of the transformed tropical cyclone has relatively little influence on the intensification processes; rather, it is the structure of the midlatitude environment that determines the rate and nature of re-intensification. If the forecast model poorly handles the timing of the transformed tropical cyclone with the midlatitude environment, a poor re-intensification forecast results. Prior studies of ET (DiMego and Bosart 1982, Sinclair 1993, Foley and Hanstrum 1994, Harr and Elsberry 2000, Harr et al. 2000) have described reintensification of the transformed tropical cyclone in terms of a Type-B development following Petterssen and Smebye (1971). In this context, low-level cyclone development occurs when an area of mid-level positive vorticity
Job Satisfaction and the Labor Market Institutions in Urban China

The determinants of worker job satisfaction are estimated using a representative survey of three major cities in China. Legally segregated migrants, floaters, earn significantly less than otherwise equivalent non-migrants but routinely report greater job satisfaction, a finding not previously reported. We confirm a positive role for membership in the communist party but find that it exists only for non-migrants suggesting a club good aspect to membership. In contrast to earlier studies, many controls mirror those found in western democracies including the "paradox of the contented female worker. "
Bio-inspired strategy for controlled dopamine polymerization in basic solutions

Polydopamine (PD) coatings, inspired by the adhesive behavior of the mussel foot, have attracted a lot of attention because of the simplicity, generalizability, and the capability for their secondary modification. However, many possible applications of PD coatings cannot be realized due to the difficulty in controlling dopamine polymerization under basic conditions. Here, we report a new method for the light-triggered control of both the onset and termination of dopamine polymerization under basic conditions. We demonstrate that dopamine polymerization in basic solutions can be efficiently inhibited by adding small quantities of sodium ascorbate (vitamin C) that reduces reactive dopamine quinone and delays dopamine polymerization. UV irradiation of this solution, however, leads to instantaneous dopamine polymerization, thereby making light-driven spatial and temporal control of dopamine polymerization under basic conditions possible. This method is inspired by the antioxidant role of vitamin C in the human body. The mechanism of the light-driven SA-controlled dopamine polymerization has been studied using spectroscopic and electroanalytical methods. By this new method we can control dopamine polymerization without changing the commonly used conditions for the formation of PD coatings, making this method compatible with all existing applications for PD coatings.
Comparison of microbiological and chemical properties of home and plant-type Uşak tarhana dough during fermentation.

The increasing demand on consumption of Uflak tarhana has promoted relevantly its industrial production. In this study, microbiological and chemical changes together with lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and yeast diversity were compared respectively, at the fermentation of home-made tarhana (HMT) and plant scale tarhana (PST) dough. The LAB, total aerobic mesophilic bacteria (TAMB) and yeast-mold counts were proportionally low at HMT than PST dough. Coliform, E. coli and S. aureus counts reduced according to the increasing of acidity at all dough samples. pH and dry-weight of the HMT dough had lower values and higher total acidity than PST. LAB diversity was higher at PST dough during all fermentation days than HMT dough where no significant diversity was detected for yeasts. These results indicated that controlled production of Uflak tarhana at plant-scale provided microbiologically safe and chemically acceptable products as well as wide LAB diversity.
Finite-Difference-Time-Domain Analysis of Optical Properties of Ordered Nano-Dots Array Fabricated with Nano Plastic Forming

The optical properties of metallic nano-dots are widely used for various optical, electrical and biomedical devices. In this paper, the optical properties of the ordered gold nano-dots array fabricated with the nano plastic forming are investigated by experiments and the finite-difference-time-domain simulation. The simulation results demonstrate that the transmittance spectra of the ordered gold nano-dots array exhibit a unique light absorption behaviour due to the localized surface plasmon resonance and a clear red shift with increasing the diameter of the nano-dot.
Vizijski sustav za praćenje pozicije čovjeka pomoću algoritma oduzimanja pozadine

This paper describes development of the vision system for human position tracking by means of background subtraction algorithm. USB camera with 640 x 480 pixel resolution is used for capturing images. The captured image passes through the background subtraction algorithm, filters and then is displayed on the user interface. The detected object (human) is marked with closed contour while his centar of mass is marked with green circle. Vision system described in this work is able to detect a position of moving human body in real-time from an image feed. Images are processed by OpenCV program library. The OpenCV library contains a lot of functions and useful classes that helps to solve computer vision problems. Source code for vision system is developed using the Visual Sudio framework with C++ programming language.
Gravitational Clock: Near Space Proof-of-Concept Prior to Deep Space Measurement of G-Part I

Motivated by the benefits of improving our knowledge of Newton's constant G, Feldman et al have recently proposed a new measurement involving a gravitational clock launched into deep space. The clock's mechanism is supposed to be the linear oscillation of a test mass falling back and forth along the length of a hole through the center of a spherical source mass. Similar devices — ones that would have remained in orbit around Earth — were proposed about 50 years ago for the same purpose. None of these proposals were ever carried out. Further back, in 1632 Galileo proposed the thought experiment of a cannonball falling into a hole through the center of Earth. Curiously, no one has yet observed the gravity-induced radial motion of a test object through the center of a massive body. Also known as a gravity-train, not a one has yet reached its antipodal destination. From this kind of gravitational clock, humans have not yet recorded a single tick. The well known reliability of Newton's and Einstein's theories of gravity may give confidence that the device will work as planned. Nevertheless, it is argued here that a less expensive apparatus — Small Low-Energy Non-Collider — ought to be built first, simply to prove that the operating principle is sound. Certain peculiar facts about Schwarzschild's interior solution are discussed here; and a novel way of interpreting gravitational effects will be presented in Part II, together adding support for the cautious advice to more thoroughly look before we leap to the outskirts of the Solar System.
Design & Development of an Effective PWS Framework for Improving the Quality and Efficiency of Search Services on the Internet

Personalized web search (PWS) has demonstrated its effectiveness in improving the quality of various search services on the Internet. However, evidences show that users’ reluctance to disclose their private information during search has become a major barrier for the wide proliferation of PWS. We study privacy protection in PWS applications that model user preferences as hierarchical user profiles. We propose a PWS framework called UPS that can adaptively generalize profiles by queries while respecting user-specified privacy requirements. Our runtime generalization aims at striking a balance between two predictive metrics that evaluate the utility of personalization and the privacy risk of exposing the generalized profile. We present two greedy algorithms, namely GreedyDP and GreedyIL, for runtime generalization. We also provide an online prediction mechanism for deciding whether personalizing a query is beneficial. Extensive experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of our framework. The experimental results also reveal that GreedyIL significantly outperforms GreedyDP in terms of efficiency. KEYWORDS: Classification and Regression Trees (CART); Chi Square Automatic Interaction Detection (CHAID); Personalized Web Search (PWS); Discriminating Power (DP)
Automatic calculation of thresholds for load dependent condition indicators by modelling of probability distribution functions – maintenance of gearboxes used in mining conveying system

Limit values for gearbox vibration-based condition indicators are key to determine in order to be able to estimate moment when object is in a need of maintenance. Further decision making process usually might utilize simple if-then-else rule using established threshold values. If diagnostic data takes the values from the Gaussian distribution, finding the decision boundaries is not difficult. Simplistically, that comes down to standard pattern recognition technique for “good condition” and “bad condition” based on probability density functions (PDFs) of diagnostic data. This situation is becoming more and more complicated when distribution is not Gaussian. Such cases require to develop much more advanced analytically solution. In this paper, we present the case of belt conveyor’s gearbox for which PDFs of diagnostic features overlap each other because of strong influence of time varying operating conditions on spectral features. New approach to automatic threshold recognition has been proposed based on modeling diagnostic features with Weibull distribution and using agglomerative clustering to distinguish classes of technical condition, which leads to determination of thresholds separating them.
Charge-orbital ordering in low-temperature structures of magnetite: GGA+U investigations

The atomic and electronic structure of magnetite $({\mathrm{Fe}}_{3}{\mathrm{O}}_{4})$ in the four possible low-temperature structures, namely, $P2∕c\ensuremath{-}Pmca$ (I), $Pmca$ (II), $Pmc{2}_{1}$ (III), and $Cc$ (IV), have been investigated by generalized gradient $\text{approximation}+\text{Hubbard}$ $U$ $(\mathrm{GGA}+U)$ electronic structure and structural optimization calculations. Charge-orbital ordering is found to exist in all the four structures. The charge-orbital ordering and hence the Verwey metal-insulator transition is shown to be driven by the on-site Fe $d$-electron correlation. The theoretical charge-orbital ordering patterns in the I, II, and III structures do not satisfy the Anderson criterion but are consistent with recent neutron and x-ray diffraction experiments. The IV $(Cc)$ structure is found to be the ground state structure. In the IV structure, the charge-orbital ordering on $3∕4$ of the tetrahedra does not satisfy the Anderson condition, while on $1∕4$ of the tetrahedra it does. The observed entropy change at the Verwey transition, which has been a long standing puzzle, is analyzed and found to be consistent with the charge-orbital orders obtained here.
Performance Estimation and Fault Diagnostics for the Starter of Auxiliary Power Unit

An electric starter provides initial power to run the Auxiliary Power Unit (APU) during the starting process. As the starter degrades, its output power declines which, as a result, affects the APU starting performance, and eventually leads to the starting failure. Therefore, a reliable starter health condition monitoring system is necessary to estimate the starter's degradation, diagnose its fault, and prevent its malfunction. Some research works have been reported in the literature for starter performance estimation and fault diagnostics, however, these prior works typically employ statistical analysis and data-driven methods, which are not physically interpretable and in some cases, are not reliable. Accordingly, the objective of this thesis is to develop a physics-based diagnostic scheme for the starter performance degradation estimation to improve fault diagnostics reliability.