Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
0 TWO HYBRID ANECHOIC WIND TUNNELS 2 . 1 The Virginia Tech Stability Tunnel

The concept of the hybrid anechoic wind tunnel is explained. Two such wind tunnels, the Virginia Tech Stability Wind Tunnel and the Poul la Cour Tunnel, currently under construction, are described in detail. These represent, respectively, hybrid anechoic facilities developed by retrofitting an existing aerodynamic wind tunnel, and designed from scratch. Some operational details of this type of wind tunnel are explained. Design considerations for both new and retrofitted facilities are described, from overall test section configuration to material properties of Kevlar cloth used to form acoustic windows. Finally, examples of an airfoil experiment are shown.
THEORETICAL AND NUMERICAL STUDY ON THERMAL PROPERTIES OF FIBROUS INSULATION MATERIALS

In this work, the heat transfer coupling the heat conduction with the thermal radiation for two types of porous fibrous structures, including the randomly distributed fibrous media (RDFM) and directionally distributed fibrous media (DDFM), is theoretically and numerically investigated. The theoretical models and the Rossland approximation are respectively used to study the conductive thermal conductivity (CTC) and the radiative thermal conductivity (RTC) that implement with the aid of the Finite Volume Method (FVM) and Discrete Ordinate Method (DOM), respectively. The modeling results reveal that, for CTC of fibrous materials in the case of RDFM, the Random model and Hamilton model show the good agreements with the numerical method. Whereas, in the case of DDFM, the preceding models cannot predict the conductive thermal conductivity precisely. To overcome this issue, we propose a new model that take the fiber orientation, fiber length and thermal conductivity ratio of fiber and matrix phase into account. The proposed model enables to predict the conductive thermal conductivity precisely in DDFM. In addition, it is found that the CTC decreases exponentially with angle between the heat flux direction and fiber orientation. Since CTC is determined, the combined conductive and radiative thermal conductivity (CRTC) is calculated by theoretical model added with Rossland approximation as well as numerical method that is FVM combined with DOM. The results show that besides cases where material’s optical thick is very small, the CRTC calculated by two methods show good agreement with each other, indicating the validity that the two methods used in predicting the CRTC of fibrous media.
Comparison of DE strategies for Gray-Level MultiLevel Thresholding

In this paper we investigate the impact of different mutation strategies in differential evolution applied to the problem of gray-level multilevel thresholding. Four different strategies are compared, namely rand/1, best/1, rand to best/1, and current to best/1. These strategies are tested on four standard test images taken from literature. The quality of segmented images was compared on the basis of the PSNR metric, which showed that the best performing strategy was current to best/1 based on the mean PSNR value, but in the case of best result found, the rand/1 strategy performed best. When comparing the mean and best objective values, the best/1 strategy outperformed the others.
Alternative Performance Measurement for Road Management Agencies Using Data Envelopment Analysis Method

Performance assessment is the most important phase i n each organization cycle to determine whether the organization has been functioning in accordance to the fund amental purpose of the organization existence. This is also true for the National Road Implementation Agencies (BBPJN/BPJ N) as the technical supporting units of the Directo ra e General of Bina Marga Ministry of Public Works that are responsible for the maintenance and functionin g of the national roads in Indonesia. As public institution, currently BBPJNs and BPJNs are accountable for their per formances and to be assessed in accordance to governme nt assessment mechanism using Performance Report of Government Institution LAKIP. Departing from some w eakness on the current mechanism, this paper is to discuss the development a performance assessment model usin g DEA (Data Envelopment Analysis) approach as a compl ementary model to the existing performance measureme nt odel. Using DEA approach, relative efficiency am ongst road agencies can be compared, which will then can be utilized as the basis for decision by the Direct orate General of Bina Marga on BBPJN/BPJN’s future workplan and budgeti ng.
Embedded and Direct Metacognitive Strategy Instruction and its Effects on the Metacognitive Awareness of Tertiary Level Malaysian ESL Listeners

Lay Huah Goh Faculty of Education and Languages, HELP University Malaysia ABSTRACT This small-scale quasi-experimental study compared the effects of metacognitive strategy instruction using two pedagogical approaches on the metacognitive awareness of Malaysian ESL listeners. Embedded and direct strategy instruction was delivered using the Metacognitive Pedagogical Sequence and Cognitive Academic Language Learning Approach instructional models respectively. 45 tertiary level students were randomly selected and assigned to two treatment groups to receive metacognitive instruction over a training period of five weeks. Paired-samples t-test results on participants‟ metacognitive awareness, as measured using the Metacognitive Awareness Listening Questionnaire (MALQ) were inclusive despite significant improvements in their IELTS listening scores. No significant development was recorded in the overall MALQ scores but there were significant changes in three out of the five metacognitive awareness factors. Results further layered according to participants‟ listening proficiency levels (low, intermediate and high) to examine if differences existed among the listening levels similarly showed no significant difference. These results suggest that ESL listeners‟ metacognitive awareness may not be easily developed with strategy instruction, regardless of the instructional approaches.
Research on Visualization Technology of Urban Traffic Based on Big Data

As the research object, it is based on the urban traffic data visualization. Firstly, this paper analyzes the basic frame of data visualization, including the process and core elements of data visualization, and discusses the traffic data visualization method for the low dimensional data and multidimensional data visualization methods. The data visualization system was realized using the Web front-end technology and the practical case to test validation, and showing the effect on the big city traffic data visualization.
Comparison of two litre polyethylene glycol plus bisacodyl versus four litre polyethylene glycol as preparation for colonoscopy in colon disease : a systemic review and meta-analysis

Aim: The aim of this study is to gauge the efficacy and outcomes of Polyethylene glycol split 2-L PEG plus bisacodyl versus standard 4-L PEG solution in colonoscopic procedures. Methods: All appropriate articles were scrutinized and assessed. Articles not relevant to this study had been omitted simply because it hadn’t satisfied the inclusion standards. The literature search was carried out by subsequent phrases such as low-volume polyethylene glycol as well as Bisacodyl and 4 L or standard-volume polyethylene glycol and colonoscopy procedure. Results: Forest’s plot showed equal bowel preparation efficacy (measured by Ottawa score) of the 2 L PEG + bisacodyl and 4 L PEG. Forest plot showed quality of bowel preparation of 2 L PEG + bisacodyl and 4 L PEG for (A) excellent, (B) successful, (C) poor. 2 L PEG + bisacodyl groups had excellent bowel preparation outcome but the same successful and poorer bowel preparation outcome with 4 L PEG groups. Results of Forest’s plot revealed more people in 4 L PEG groups rather try another regimen next time than in 2 L PEG + bisacodyl. Forest’s plot justified there were no differences in adenoma detection rate with 2 L PEG + bisacodyl and 4 L PEG. Conclusion: Patient consciousness and medico’s guidance could seriously help to decide on the variety of bowel preparation modality and positively participate in the research to get more detailed legitimate outcomes.
An Automated Tool for Evaluating Hardware Trojans and Detection Methods

The growing concern for hardware security has spawned numerous trojan detection methods. Due to the complexity of integrated circuits (ICs), detection methods developed thus far have only been successful for specific trojans. This makes it difficult to compare hardware trojans and the performance of detection methods. In this paper, a systematic and automated approach to analyzing the characteristics of trojans and detection methods is presented. Universal adoption of the techniques in this system will aid in collaboration and standardization in the field. It will also provide a centralized database of existing hardware trojans and detection methods. A discussion of the automated tool design is given including a case study to demonstrate its usefulness.
DRAGON FRUIT ( PITAYA ) DISEASES IN THAILAND : INCIDENCE AND MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES

An important aspect of dragon fruit production is the outbreak of diseases, especially in the tropical and subtropical regions. This study was conducted to investigate the distribution and identification of dragon fruit diseases in various locations in Thailand. Diseased plants were collected during October 2012 to September 2014 to observe the prevalence of dragon fruit diseases in Chanthaburi, Rayong, Ratchaburi and Nakon Ratchasima. Through the survey, three diseases (anthracnose, fruit rot and stem canker) with their respective incidences were identified and recorded. The highest disease incidence in anthracnose on stem, anthracnose on fruit, fruit rot and stem canker were recorded 23.4%, 22.5%, 13.5% and 58.2%, respectively. Identification was based on morphology and molecular characteristics and pathogenicity test. The different symptoms of diseases were isolated on potato dextrose agar (PDA) and the causal agents were identified as Bipolaris cactivora which causes fruit rot, Colletotrichum gloeosporioides and C. truncatum causes anthracnose on stem and fruit as well as Neoscytalidium dimidiatum causes stem canker. The stem canker disease, which is considered a new disease, was found in dragon fruit plantations. This is the first report of dragon fruit diseases caused by C. truncatum and N. dimidiatum in Thailand.
Adjusting for Sample Bias in VAA Datasets : Can it be done and does it matter ?

Data generated from VAAs on the political orientations of users have increasingly been used in place of survey data to explain political phenomena such as voter behaviour and the ideological positioning of party supporters. However, the use of VAA-generated data in this way is controversial due to the issue of sample bias. This paper explores the relative merits of three different methods to deal with this bias: raking, propensity score adjustment and entropy balancing. It applies these methods to a dataset generated from the EUVox VAA in Spain deployed in the run-up to the 2014 elections for the European Parliament. Data from the 2009 European Elections Survey are used as a reference sample. I find that none of the three methods can adequately compensate for sample bias, probably because of the rather small number of common items used to balance the two samples. However, by drawing on another instance of the EUVox VAA, this time from England, the paper goes on to argue that meaningful research using VAA-generated data can be carried out, even if this data is not fully representative.
Influence of the Electrical Conductivity of Dielectric Fluid on WEDM Machinability

In wire-electrical discharge machining (WEDM), The dielectric plays an important role as the working fluid. During machining, the melted material by heat is dispersed into dielectric. The presence of minute metal particles (gap debris) contaminates dielectric fluid. It affects the material removal rate and properties of the machined surface because it exists in the spark gap between work and electrode. This work deals with the effect of the electrical conductivity of a dielectric fluid on the metal removal rate and surface quality by WEDM. The specimens are three types of sintered carbides and a low-carbon steel. Experimental results show that increasing the fraction of cobalt in carbides improves the metal removal rate, but the surface quality is degraded as a greater quantity of solidified metal deposits on the eroded surface. Lower electrical conductivity of the dielectric results in a higher metal removal rate as spark gap reduced. The debris, the surface characteristics of material and wire electrode were also analyzed through scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and surface roughness tester.
ASSESSMENT OF FAULT RUPTURE DISPLACEMENTS FOR EFFLUENT OUTFALL TUNNEL , SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

The Sanitation Districts of Los Angeles County are planning to add a third effluent outfall tunnel to the two existing tunnels transporting effluent from their Joint Water Pollution Control Plant to the existing ocean outfalls. The JWPCP Effluent Outfall Tunnel is located within a seismically active geologic portion of Southern California. The proposed tunnel alignment crosses the active Palos Verdes Fault Zone (PVFZ) and the Cabrillo Faults Zone. Consequently, the evaluation of the potential for permanent ground displacement due to surface or near surface fault rupture is a significant component of the tunnel design. In support of selecting a fault rupture displacement for use in the design of the proposed tunnel, Deterministic and Probabilistic Fault Displacement Hazards Assessments were conducted, as well as extensive review of geologic evidence and geophysical data to identify likely locations and relative distribution of anticipated major displacements. The fault rupture assessment also considered slip partitioning and distribution along the primary splays of the PVFZ that cross the tunnel alignment. To assist in selecting the design option for various locations along the tunnel alignment, four fault displacement hazard categories were developed based on interpretation of available geologic data and the estimated maximum displacements expected at different sections of the tunnel alignment. 1 Fugro, 4820 McGrath Street, Suite 100, Ventura, CA 93003; (email: jkocijan@fugro.com) 2 Fugro, 1777 Botelho Dr., Suite 262, Walnut Creek, CA 94596; (email: afernandez@fugro.com) 3 Fugro, 4820 McGrath Street, Suite 100, Ventura, CA 93003; (email: phogan@fugro.com) Kocijan, J., Fernandez, A. , and Hogan, P. Assessment of Fault Rupture Displacements for Effluent Outfall Tunnel, Southern California. Proceedings of the 11th National Conference in Earthquake Engineering, Earthquake Engineering Research Institute, Los Angeles, CA. 2018. Eleventh U.S. National Conference on Earthquake Engineering Integrating Science, Engineering & Policy
Spinal Epidural Abscess in Immunocompetent Child : A Case Report and Review of Literature

Spinal epidural abscess (SEA) is uncommon and rare condition in immunocompetent population and even more rare in pediatric group. The incidence of spinal epidural abscess appears to be increasing and comprises up to 2 per 10,000 hospital admissions. The presentation is variable and diagnosis can be easily missed on first visit. The diagnosis is established by history, clinical examination finding, increased inflammatory markers and neurological imaging. Surgical decompression and drainage in combination with antibiotic for four to six weeks are the typical treatment for SEA. An alternative treatment with parenteral antibiotic only is an alternative treatment. We reported an 11-year-old girl presented fever, chest and back pain she was found to have unsteady gait and lower extremity weakness. Spinal MRI showed heterogeneous enhancing collection in the posterior epidural space from the level of T2 vertebra to T10 vertebra. She was treated with antibiotic for 6 weeks without complications.
A potential virulence factor involved in fungal pathogenicity : serine-like protease activity of nematophagous fungus

Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Bio-Resource, Yunnan University, Kunming, 650091, Yunnan, P.R. of China Department of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, P.R. of China Environment and plant protection institute, State Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Tropical Crops, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Haikou, 571101, Hainan, P.R. of China
01 12 00 7 v 3 2 A pr 2 00 2 Distinguishing separable and entangled states

We show how to design families of operational criteria that distinguish entangled from separable quantum states. The simplest of these tests corresponds to the well-known Peres-Horodecki positive partial transpose (PPT) criterion, and the more complicated tests are strictly stronger. The new criteria are tractable due to powerful computational and theoretical methods for the class of convex optimization problems known as semidefinite programs. We successfully applied the results to many low-dimensional states from the literature where the PPT test fails. As a byproduct of the criteria, we provide an explicit construction of the corresponding entanglement witnesses.
Equilibrium and Thermodynamic Studies for Adsorption of 1 , 4-Benzoquinone by Fly Ash

Fly ash, an industrial waste from thermal power plants, was used for the adsorptive removal of 1,4benzoquinone, one of the oxidation intermediates generated in AOPs. Effect of fly ash dosage and solution pH was investigated. The highest 1,4-benzoquinone uptake occurred at pH 7.0. Neutral and alkaline conditions were more favourable for the adsorptive removal of 1,4-benzoquinone. Isotherm data at 288, 298 and 308 K were simulated by Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin, Redlich-Peterson, Koble-Corrigan and DubininRadushkevich isotherm models. Both the Koble-Corrigan and Dubinin-Radushkevich isotherms can predict equilibrium adsorption behaviour better at different reaction temperatures. The reaction enthalpy was 29.42 kJ/mol and the entropy achieved 164.52 J/mol·K. The change of Gibbs free energy achieved -19.48 kJ/mol at 298 K. The above indicates that the sorption process was spontaneous and endothermic. This also reveals that, fly ash has the potential for the adsorptive removal of 1,4-benzoquinone. 2015 pp. 865-869 Vol. 14 ISSN: 0972-6268 No. 4 Nature Environment and Pollution Technology An International Quarterly Scientific Journal Original Research Paper Nat. Env. & Poll. Tech. Website: www.neptjournal. com Received: 03-12-2014 Accepted: 19-01-2015
A rule-based framework for developing context-aware systems for smart spaces

Context-aware computing is a mobile computing paradigm that helps designing and implementing next generation smart applications, where personalized devices interact with users in smart environments. Development of such applications are inherently complex due to these applications adapt to changing contextual information and they often run on resource-bounded devices. Most of the existing context-aware development frameworks are centralized, adopt clientserver architecture, and do not consider resource limitations of context-aware devices. This thesis presents a systematic framework to modelling and implementation of multi-agent context-aware rule-based systems on resource-constrained devices, which includes a lightweight efficient rule engine and a wide range of user preferences to reduce the number of rules while inferring personalized contexts. This shows rules can be reduced in order to optimize the inference engine execution speed, and ultimately to reduce total execution time and execution cost. The use of the proposed framework is illustrated using five different case scenarios considering different smart environment domains.
Smart Finite Elements: An application of Machine Learning to Reduced-Order Modeling of Multi-Scale Problems

To design structures using state-of-the-art materials like composites and metamaterials, we need predictive tools that are capable of taking into account the phenomena occurring at different length scales. However, the upscaling of nonlinear mesoscale behavior to perform system-level predictions is intractable when using conventional modeling techniques. Other methods like multiscale finite elements are capable of solving arbitrary problems, but they tend to be computationally expensive because they rely on detailed models of the element's internal displacement field. We propose a method that utilizes machine learning to generate a direct relationship between the element's state and its forces, skipping altogether the complex and unnecessary task of finding its internal displacements. To generate our model, we choose an existing finite element formulation, extract data from an instance of that element, and feed that data to the machine learning algorithm. The result is an approximated model of the element that can be used in the same context. Unlike most data-driven techniques applied to individual elements, our method is not tied to any particular machine learning algorithm, and it does not impose any restriction on the solver of choice. In addition, we guarantee that our elements are physically accurate by enforcing frame indifference and conservation of linear and angular momentum. Our results indicate that this can considerably reduce the error of the method and the computational cost of producing and solving the model. Committee: • Prof. Julian J. Rimoli – School of Aerospace Engineering • Prof. Massimo Ruzzene – School of Aerospace Engineering • Prof. Claudio Vinicius Di Leo – School of Aerospace Engineering • Prof. Evangelos Theodorou – School of Aerospace Engineering • Prof. Arash Yavari – School of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Protein kinase D up-regulates transcription of VEGF receptor-2 in endothelial cells by suppressing nuclear localization of the transcription factor AP2β

Vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF) signals primarily through its cognate receptor VEGF receptor-2 (VEGFR-2) to control vasculogenesis and angiogenesis, key physiological processes in cardiovascular disease and cancer. In human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs), knockdown of protein kinase D-1 (PKD1) or PKD2 down-regulates VEGFR-2 expression and inhibits VEGF-induced cell proliferation and migration. However, how PKD regulates VEGF signaling is unclear. Previous bioinformatics analyses have identified binding sites for the transcription factor activating enhancer-binding protein 2 (AP2) in the VEGFR-2 promoter. Using ChIP analyses, here we found that PKD knockdown in HUVECs increases binding of AP2β to the VEGFR-2 promoter. Luciferase reporter assays with serial deletions of AP2-binding sites within the VEGFR-2 promoter revealed that its transcriptional activity negatively correlates with the number of these sites. Next we demonstrated that AP2β up-regulation decreases VEGFR-2 expression and that loss of AP2β enhances VEGFR-2 expression in HUVECs. In vivo experiments confirmed increased VEGFR-2 immunostaining in the spinal cord of AP2β knockout mouse embryos. Mechanistically, we observed that PKD phosphorylates AP2β at Ser258 and Ser277 and suppresses its nuclear accumulation. Inhibition of PKD activity with a pan-PKD inhibitor increased AP2β nuclear localization, and overexpression of both WT and constitutively active PKD1 or PKD2 reduced AP2β nuclear localization through a Ser258- and Ser277-dependent mechanism. Furthermore, substitution of Ser277 in AP2β increased its binding to the VEGFR-2 promoter. Our findings uncover evidence of a molecular pathway that regulates VEGFR-2 expression, insights that may shed light on the etiology of diseases associated with aberrant VEGF/VEGFR signaling.