Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Two‐component mixtures of normal, gamma, and Gumbel distributions for hydrological applications

Whether mixtures of distributions are employed as a flexible modeling device to estimate densities or are used to model data thought to arise from several populations, they provide an efficient tool to approximate a distribution. Indeed, mixtures of distributions can model multiple modes, different types of skewness, etc., but they can also be employed to classify observations from heterogeneous data sets. In this paper, we study mixtures of distributions with normal, gamma, and Gumbel components. Moving away from the standard normal setting, gamma mixtures are developed in order to model strictly positive hydrological data and Gumbel mixtures for extreme variates. Since the data analyzed can exhibit dependency through time, we treat both the independent and dependent cases, where the latter is modeled through a Markov process. A fairly unified approach is adopted for the different distributions and the problem is treated from the Bayesian perspective, which enables us to use marginal densities to automatically compare the adequacy of the different models for a given data set. This model‐selection framework allows us to formally test the relevance of using mixture models by computing the marginal likelihoods of single distribution models and to verify the presence of a persistence in the time series by comparing independent and identically distributed (IID) and Markovian mixture models.
Application of Standardized Regression Coefficient in Meta-Analysis

The lack of consistent presentation of results in published studies on the association between a quantitative explanatory variable and a quantitative dependent variable has been a long-term issue in evaluating the reported findings. Studies are analyzed and reported in a variety of ways. The main purpose of this review is to illustrate the procedures in summarizing and synthesizing research results from multivariate models with a quantitative outcome variable. The review summarizes the application of the standardized regression coefficient as an effect size index in the context of meta-analysis and describe how it can be estimated and converted from data presented in original research articles. An example of synthesis is provided using research articles on the association between childhood body mass index and carotid intima-media thickness in adult life. Finally, the paper shares practical recommendations for meta-analysts wanting to use the standardized regression coefficient in pooling findings.
Europium (II)-Doped CaF2 Nanocrystals in Sol-Gel Derived Glass-Ceramic: Luminescence and EPR Spectroscopy Investigations

The remarkable properties of Eu2+-activated phosphors, related to the broad and intense luminescence of Eu2+ ions, showed a high potential for a wide range of optical-related applications. Oxy-fluoride glass-ceramic containing Europium (II)-doped CaF2 nanocrystals embedded in silica matrix were produced in two steps: glass-ceramization in air at 800° with Eu3+-doped CaF2 nanocrystals embedded followed by Eu3+ to Eu2+ reduction during annealing in reducing atmosphere. The broad, blue luminescence band at 425 nm and with the long, weak tail in the visible range is assigned to the d → f type transition of the Eu2+ located inside the CaF2 nanocrystals in substitutional and perturbed sites, respectively; the photoluminescence quantum yield was about 0.76. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Electron paramagnetic spectroscopy confirmed the presence of Eu2+ inside the CaF2 nanocrystals. Thermoluminescence curves recorded after X-ray irradiation of un-doped and Eu2+-doped glass-ceramics showed a single dominant glow peak at 85 °C related to the recombination between F centers and Eu2+ related hole within the CaF2 nanocrystals. The applicability of the procedure can be tested to obtain an oxy-fluoride glass-ceramic doped with other divalent ions such as Sm2+, Yb2+, as nanophosphors for radiation detector or photonics-related applications.
Research and Development of Ankle–Foot Orthoses: A Review

The ankle joint is one of the important joints of the human body to maintain the ability to walk. Diseases such as stroke and ankle osteoarthritis could weaken the body’s ability to control joints, causing people’s gait to be out of balance. Ankle–foot orthoses can assist users with neuro/muscular or ankle injuries to restore their natural gait. Currently, passive ankle–foot orthoses are mostly designed to fix the ankle joint and provide support for walking. With the development of materials, sensing, and control science, semi-active orthoses that release mechanical energy to assist walking when needed and can store the energy generated by body movement in elastic units, as well as active ankle–foot orthoses that use external energy to transmit enhanced torque to the ankle, have received increasing attention. This article reviews the development process of ankle–foot orthoses and proposes that the integration of new ankle–foot orthoses with rehabilitation technologies such as monitoring or myoelectric stimulation will play an important role in reducing the walking energy consumption of patients in the study of human-in-the-loop models and promoting neuro/muscular rehabilitation.
Chitosan/Hyaluronic Acid/MicroRNA-21 Nanoparticle-Coated Smooth Titanium Surfaces Promote the Functionality of Human Gingival Fibroblasts

Purpose Forming a compact biological seal between the gingiva and the implant interface around the percutaneous parts of an implant is one of the key issues in preventing peri-implantitis. Methods In this study, since microRNA-21 (miR-21) has been approved to promote fibroblast proliferation and collagen formation in skin fibrosis, we prepared miR-21-loaded chitosan (CS)/tripolyphosphate (TPP)/hyaluronic acid (HA) nanoparticles (CTH NPs) and cross-linked them to smooth Ti surfaces with 0.2% gel solution for reverse transfection, after which isolated human gingival fibroblasts were cultured on the miR-21-functionalized Ti substrates. Results An optimal CS:TPP:HA ratio (1:0.15:0.1) and N/P ratio (20:1) were chosen to produce appropriate nanoparticles. Finally, the CTH/miR-21 nanoparticle-coated smooth Ti surfaces demonstrated increased fibroblast adhesion, proliferation and expression of extracellular matrix-related genes along with similar cytotoxicity and cell spreading on the miR-21-functionalized Ti surface and the unmodified smooth Ti surface. Conclusion The chitosan-based nanoparticles might be an efficient nonviral miRNA vector to form a stable biological seal in percutaneous areas of Ti for clinical use.
Integrated Transcriptome and Targeted Metabolite Analysis Reveal miRNA-mRNA Networks in Low-Light-Induced Lotus Flower Bud Abortion

Most Nelumbo nucifera (lotus) flower buds were aborted during the growing season, notably in low-light environments. How lotus produces so many aborted flower buds is largely unknown. An integrated transcriptome and targeted metabolite analysis was performed to reveal the genetic regulatory networks underlying lotus flower bud abortion. A total of 233 miRNAs and 25,351 genes were identified in lotus flower buds, including 68 novel miRNAs and 1108 novel genes. Further enrichment analysis indicated that sugar signaling plays a potential central role in regulating lotus flower bud abortion. Targeted metabolite analysis showed that trehalose levels declined the most in the aborting flower buds. A potential regulatory network centered on miR156 governs lotus flower bud abortion, involving multiple miRNA-mRNA pairs related to cell integrity, cell proliferation and expansion, and DNA repair. Genetic analysis showed that miRNA156-5p-overexpressing lotus showed aggravated flower bud abortion phenotypes. Trehalose-6-P synthase 1 (TPS1), which is required for trehalose synthase, had a negative regulatory effect on miR156 expression. TPS1-overexpression lotus showed significantly decreased flower bud abortion rates both in normal-light and low-light environments. Our study establishes a possible genetic basis for how lotus produces so many aborted flower buds, facilitating genetic improvement of lotus’ shade tolerance.
Facial expression of pain: Sex differences in the discrimination of varying intensities.

It has been proposed that women are better than men at recognizing emotions and pain experienced by others. They have also been shown to be more sensitive to variations in pain expressions. The objective of the present study was to explore the perceptual basis of these sexual differences by comparing the visual information used by men and women to discriminate between different intensities of pain facial expressions. Using the data-driven Bubbles method, we were able to corroborate the woman advantage in the discrimination of pain intensities that did not appear to be explained by variations in empathic tendencies. In terms of visual strategies, our results do not indicate any qualitative differences in the facial regions used by men and women. However, they suggest that women rely on larger regions of the face that seems to completely mediate their advantage. This utilization of larger clusters could indicate either that women integrate simultaneously and more efficiently information coming from different areas of the face or that they are more flexible in the utilization of the information present in these clusters. Women would then opt for a more holistic or flexible processing of the facial information, while men would rely on a specific yet rigid integration strategy. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).
Gambling with our climate futures: On the temporal structure of negative emissions

This paper considers negative emissions—the deliberate removal of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere by human intervention—as a future-oriented imaginary of connected social and technological order. It does so in order to examine how expectations around the development and use of negative emission technologies are managed with the help of integrated assessment models (IAMs). By treating this family of models as a case study for drawing out historical associations between the terminology of risk saturating the discourse of net-zero emissions and the modern conception of the future as an unexplored territory to be profitably colonized, the paper argues that integrated assessment modeling, as a praxis of forecast, structure and organize our experience of the future through standards of risk management and utility maximization. It concludes that to consider risk as a means of navigating between possible futures is to engage with practices that are enacted in the name of a particular understanding of how one ought to act in the face of deep uncertainty. Aside from epistemic questions of how to treat various kinds of uncertainties inherent to IAMs, of pressing concern are thus also normative questions of how its representation of environmental hazards in terms of risk are distinctively writing the contours of our contemporary forms of responsibility toward nature, each other, as well as future generations.
COVID-19 pandemic: disease impact on nervous system, cognitive functioning and mental health

Introduction and purpose:COVID-19, as an unknown disease until 2019, has posed and continues to pose a great challenge to the world of science and the people facing it. The purpose of this article is to present the possible consequences of experiencing COVID-19 disease and the pandemic itself in light of mental health and the organism functioning in the cognitive area, taking into account the impact of COVID-19 on the nervous system.State of knowledge (brief description):Coronaviruses are enveloped, positive single-stranded large RNA viruses. COVID-19 is a disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus – its first case was reported in 2019 in Wuhan, China. Human coronaviruses can exhibit neuroinvasive, neurotropic and neurovirulent, SARS-CoV-2 also. In addition to symptoms and complications in the respiratory system, symptoms and complications are also encountered in the nervous system area; cognitive functioning may also be impaired. The pandemic as a phenomenon in itself and the outbreak of COVID-19 can carry very serious consequences from the mental health field. Among these are the problem of social isolation and its consequences or the impact of the disease and pandemic on well-being. Unfortunately, the time that has elapsed since the first cases of the disease and the amount of research does not allow a clear determination of the complications and consequences of the pandemic, but certain trends and phenomena are regularly studied and described.Summary:Existing research and the state of the art strongly underscore that COVID-19 and its pandemic could impinge on the mental health of people around the world. Changes in the nervous system and cognitive functioning are also observed as a result of contracting COVID-19. Science currently has no clear answers as to how long certain complications will persist and exactly what their genesis is – further research is recommended to explain them as precisely as possible.
Multiparameter Sensor Based on DCF Composite Tapered Structure Cascaded LPFGs for the Simultaneous Measurement of Refractive Index, Temperature, and Axial Strain

In this article, a fiber optic sensor based on double-cladding fiber (DCF) composite tapered structure cascaded long-period fiber gratings (LPFGs) for measuring refractive index (RI), temperature, and axial strain is designed. The two ends of a Section of DCF are, respectively, fused with single-mode fiber (SMF) and LPFG1 to form two up-tapers, and then the DCF is formed into a down-taper. Another end of LPFG1 is cascaded with LPFG2, and the center wavelengths of the two LPFGs are different. LPFG1, LPFG2, and tapered DCF generate three resonance peaks, namely, dip1, dip2, and dip3, respectively, whose sensitivity in response to different parameters is different. When external parameters change, the dips will have spectral shifts. The experimental results indicate that, when the RI is changed within 1.3355–1.3715, the sensitivity of dip1, dip2, and dip3 is –52.12, – 132.58, and 37.61 nm/RIU, respectively. When the temperature varies from 30 °C to 80 °C, the sensitivity of dip1, dip2, and dip3 is 74.05, 98.02, and 26.33 pm/°C in turn, respectively. When the axial sensitivity of dip1, dip2, and dip3 is – 1.95, – 2.58, and –3.24 pm/ $\mu \varepsilon $ , respectively. The resolutions for RI, temperature, and axial strain are 0.0005 RIU, 1.3375 °C, and $14.0886 \mu \varepsilon $ , respectively. The three parameters can be monitored simultaneously using the coefficient sensitivity matrix. The designed sensor has high repeatability and good linearity, and it is practical in the field of multiparameter detection.
EFFECTS OF SALINITY AND ZINC ON PROFILIN GENE (PRF1) EXPRESSION, GROWTH AND PEROXIDASE ACTIVITY OF WATERMELON PLANT.

As sessile plants have developed adaptive strategies to cope with environmental stress. The understanding of plants responses to their external environment is of importance with respect to basic research. It is also an attractive target for improving the performance of crop plants under stress conditions. This investigation showed that PRF1 expression in watermelon calli exposed to salinity was reduced, in contrast, the PRF1 expression was increased by zinc. Calli fresh weight exposed to 150 mM NaCl and 800  M ZnSO 4 . 7H 2 O were decreased by 69% and 76%, respectively. Peroxidase activity was increased in salinity and zinc stressed calli. At 150 mM NaCl-stressed calli had a peroxidase activity 2.3 times higher than unstressed calli.
PROSPECTS FOR DETECTING C II EMISSION DURING THE EPOCH OF REIONIZATION

We produce simulations of the atomic C ii line emission in large sky fields in order to determine the current and future prospects for mapping this line during the high-redshift epoch of reionization. We calculate the C ii line intensity, redshift evolution, and spatial fluctuations using observational relations between C ii emission and the galaxy star formation rate over the frequency range 200–300 GHz. We estimate an averaged intensity of I C II = ( 4 ± 2 ) × 10 2 Jy sr − 1 ? > in the redshift range z ∼ 5.3 – 8.5 ? > . Observations of the C ii emission in this frequency range will suffer contamination from emission lines at lower redshifts, in particular CO rotational lines. Using simulations, we estimated the CO contamination to be I CO ≈ 10 3 Jy sr − 1 ? > (originating from galaxies at z < 2.5 ? > ). Using detailed simulations of the C ii and CO emission across a range of redshifts, we generate maps as a function of angle and frequency, fully taking into account this resolution and light-cone effects. In order to reduce the foreground contamination, we find that we should mask galaxies below redshifts ∼2.5 with a CO(J:2–1) to CO(J:6–5) line flux density higher than 5 × 10 − 22 W m − 2 ? > or an AB magnitude lower than m K = 22 ? > . We estimate that the additional continuum contamination originating in emission from stars and in dust, free–free, free–bound, and two-photon emission in the interstellar medium is of the order of 10 5 Jy sr − 1 ? > , which is well above the expected C ii signal. We also consider the possibility of cross-correlating foreground lines with galaxy surveys in order to probe the intensity of the foregrounds. Finally, we discuss the expected constraints from two experiments capable of measuring the expected C ii power spectrum.
Behavioural Risk for HIV, Hepatitis B, and Hepatitis C Infections among a Population of Drug Users and Injectors across Four Regions in Ghana

Background Blood borne infections such as HIV, Hepatitis B (HBV), and Hepatitis C (HCV) are of great importance to governments and their implementing partners, especially among people who use drugs (PWUD) and people who inject drugs (PWID). Prevalence and determinants of HIV, HBV, and HCV among PWUD and PWID in Ghana are not well established, the significance of this study. Method This assessment was a cross-sectional study implemented via the respondent driven sampling approach. A team of community advisory boards that comprised former users, current users, and civil society organizations were constituted to help in the implementation of the study. The study was conducted in four regions in Ghana. The assessment was based on a representation of populations of PWID and PWUD from the four regions. Efforts were made by the team to ensure adequate representation of women where feasible. A quantitative questionnaire was developed and used to obtain information on the respondents' sociodemographics, sexual behavior, substance use, and biological characteristics. The prevalence of HIV, HBV, and HCV among PWID and PWUD was determined using blood samples. First response and oral quick test for confirmation of HIV positivity were carried out, while SD bioline was used to test for the presence of HBV and HBC. Data were analyzed using the Bayesian generalized linear model via the binomial family of distributions under the logit link function with weak Cauchy and Normal distribution as prior. Results A total of 323 PWUD and PWID participants were interviewed across four regions of Ghana. The overall median age of the respondents was 36 (28, 43) years. The prevalence of HIV, HBV, and HCV infection in the study was 2.5%, 4.6%, and 5.9%, respectively. The prevalence of HIV, HBV, and HCV among drug users was 2.5% (95% CI: 0.7%–4.2%), 4.1% (95% CI: 1.8%–6.2%), and 6.7% (95% CI: 3.9%–9.4%), respectively. Most drug injectors and users started using and injecting drugs at ages less than 20 years and between 20 and 29 years, respectively. Drug users who identified themselves as part of the general population were 66% less likely to be tested HIV positive (POR = 0.34, CrI: 0.12–0.81) compared to sex workers. Part time employment respondents had fivefold odds (POR = 5.50, CrI: 1.20–16.16) of being HBV positive as against full-time employment. Conclusion Most of the injectors and users started drugs at an early age. Drug users and injectors are at higher risk of these infections because of associated risky sexual behaviors and risky injection practices. Harm reduction programs to help addicts who are willing to quit the practice are recommended.
Deactivation of Enterococcus Faecalis Bacteria by an Atmospheric Cold Plasma Brush

An atmospheric cold plasma brush suitable for large area and low-temperature plasma-based sterilization is designed and used to treat enterococcus faecalis bacteria. The results show that the efficiency of the inactivation process by helium plasma is dependent on applied power and exposure time. After plasma treatments, the cell structure and morphology changes can be observed by scanning electron microscopy. Optical emission measurements indicate that reactive species such as O and OH play a significant role in the sterilization process.
An Inexact Uzawa Algorithm for Generalized Saddle-Point Problems and Its Convergence

We propose an inexact Uzawa algorithm with two variable relaxation parameters for solving the generalized saddle-point system. The saddle-point problems can be found in a wide class of applications, such as the augmented Lagrangian formulation of the constrained minimization, the mixed finite element method, the mortar domain decomposition method and the discretization of elliptic and parabolic interface problems. The two variable parameters can be updated at each iteration, requiring no a priori estimates on the spectrum of two preconditioned subsystems involved. The convergence and convergence rate of the algorithm are analysed. Both symmetric and nonsymmetric saddle-point systems are discussed, and numerical experiments are presented to demonstrate the robustness and effectiveness of the algorithm.
WorkingPaper No. 54 Can a standardized aptitude test roma case studyin Switzerland predict training successof apprentices? Evidencef

Prior research has produced ambiguous support for theories on the nature and construction of Human Resource Management (HRM) systems. This ambiguity may be a function of the inherent limitations of the methodologies used in previous studies. We resume efforts by using a configurational methodology to analyze high performing HRM systems of 374 UK based firms. We reveal the multi-dimensional nature of successful and unsuccessful HRM systems. By providing a typology for comparing the interdependencies among vital and peripheral functions, we are able to describe and explain competitive advantages that rest in the orchestrating themes and integrative mechanisms of HRM systems.
Motion Recovery from Image Sequences: Discrete Viewpoint vs. Differential Viewpoint*

K e y w o r d s : op t i ca l flow, ep ipo la r cons t ra in t , m o t i o n e s t ima t ion . * Research is supported by ARO under the MURI grant DAAH04-96-1-0341, "An Integrated Approach to Intelligent Systems".
Mixture Component Clustering for Efﬁcient Speaker Veriﬁcation

In speaker veriﬁcation (SV) systems based on a support vector machine (SVM) using Gaussian mixture model (GMM) supervectors, a large portion of the test-stage computational load is the calculation of the a posteriori probabilities of the feature vectors for the given universal background model (UBM). Furthermore, the calculation of the sufﬁcient statistics for the mean also contributes substantially to computational load. In this paper, we propose several methods to cluster the GMM-UBM mixture components in order to reduce the computational load and speed up the veriﬁcation. In the adaptation stage, we compare the feature vectors to the clusters and calculate the a posteriori probabilities and update the statistics exclusively for mixture components belonging to appropriate clusters. Our results, demomstrate that (on average) we can, reduce the number of a posteriori probability calculations by a factor up to 2 . 8 × without loss in accuracy.