Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Negotiating legitimacy and belonging: Disabled students' and practitioners' experience

People with disabilities are underrepresented in health professions education and practice. Barriers for inclusion include stigma, disabling discourses, discriminatory programme design and oppressive interactions. Current understandings of this topic remain descriptive and fragmented. Existing research often includes only one profession, excludes particular types of disability and focuses on one aspect of the career journey. To expand understanding, we examined the recurrent forms of social relations that underlie the participation of disabled individuals in learning and practice contexts across five health professions.
Effects of phase modulation used for SBS suppression on phase noise in an optical fibre

Phase modulation is used for stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) suppression in fibre systems. A novel means is proposed to choose the modulation index and frequency of phase modulation. This means is based on the measurement of phase noise in fibre systems. The phase noise decreases due to SBS suppression first and then increases due to laser linewidth broadening with the modulation index. The phase noise decreases first and then exhibits fluctuations with the modulation frequency. The optimum modulation index and frequency increase with the input power. The visibility of the coherent optical field can be treated as a sign of the laser linewidth. The results provide a guide to the practical design of long-haul interferometric fibre sensing systems.
The Effect of Dietary Protein Intake on the Risk of Gestational Diabetes

Background. The results of epidemiological studies on the association between dietary protein intake and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) are controversial. Thus, this systematic review and meta-analysis of cohort studies were established to attain comprehensive findings regarding the association between dietary protein and the risk of GDM. Methods. Bibliographic databases including PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar were searched to discover papers related to dietary protein and the risk of GDM. The summary relative risks with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated through a random effect model for the analysis of the highest versus the lowest categories of dietary proteins. Results. A significantly increased risk of GDM among women who consumed the highest amount of animal protein was observed (summarized risk estimate: 1.52; 95% CI: 1.07, 2.17; I2 = 50.8%). No significant associations were identified regarding vegetable protein (summarized risk estimate:0.99, 95% CI: 0.80 to 1.23, I2 = 63.8%) and total protein (summarized risk estimate: 1.12; 95% CI: 0.88, 1.41; I2 = 35.4%). Conclusion. This review revealed that total protein intake had no relationship with the risk of GDM, while animal protein increases this risk. Further larger prospective cohort studies are required to confirm our results.
SU‐DD‐A4‐04: Registration of Prostate MRI/MRSI and CT Studies Using the Narrow Band Approach

Purpose: High‐field MR techniques makes possible to obtain high quality MRI metabolic images of the prostate to accurately identify the intra‐prostatic lesion(s). However, the use of rigid endorectal probe deforms the shape of the prostate gland and the images so obtained are not directly usable in radiation therapy planning. This work applies a narrow band deformable registration model to faithfully map the MRI information onto treatment planningCTimages.Method and Materials: The narrow band is a hybrid method combining the advantages of pixel‐based and distance‐based registration techniques, since the calculation is restricted to those points contained in a region around user‐delineated structures. The narrow band method is inherently efficient because of the use of a priori information of the meaningful contour data. The deformable mapping is described by the B‐spline model. The limited memory algorithm (L‐BFGS) was implemented to optimize a normalized cross correlation metric function. It's convergence behavior was studied by comparing final metrics obtained in 100 registrations self‐registering an MR image starting from 100 randomly initiated positions. The spatial performance of the algorithm was assessed by intentionally distorting an MRIimage and an attempt was then made to register the distorted image with the original one. The MRI‐CT mapping was carried out for two clinical cases. Results: The convergence analysis showed absence of local minima. The technique can restore an MR image from the intentionally introduced deformations with an accuracy of ∼2 mm. On clinical cases the method was capable of producing clinically sensible mapping. The whole registration procedure for a complete 3D study took less than 15 minutes on a standard PC. Conclusion: Both hypothetical tests and patient studies have indicated that narrow‐band based registration is reliable and provides a valuable tool to integrate the ER‐based MRI/MRSI information to guide prostate radiation therapy treatment.
On the Partial Equiasymptotic Stability in Functional Differential Equations

Abstract A system of functional differential equations with delay dz/dt = Z(t, zt), where Z is the vector-valued functional is considered. It is supposed that this system has a zero solution z = 0. Definitions of its partial stability, partial asymptotical stability, and partial equiasymptotical stability are given. Theorems on the partial equiasymptotical stability are formulated and proved.
Space-time segmentation using level set active contours applied to myocardial gated SPECT

This paper presents a new region based (opposed to classically pixel based) space-time segmentation method applied to gated SPECT sequences. We make the assumption that such sequences are composed of a moving (or warping) object with a constant (in first approximation) pixel value (the myocardium) on a motionless generally non-constant background. Then, the model was modified to take into account the variability in time of the myocardium value. In accordance with this definition, we define a variational criterion which involves all the frames at once providing a dependence between individual frame segmentations. The region based characteristic is implied by the explicit involvement in this criterion of the spatial domains of moving and warping objects in each frame. Then, we propose an original minimization algorithm to compute the desired segmentation of the endocardial and epicardial limits. It is based on alternate resolutions of several coupled partial derivative equations, one of which is implemented with active contours using the level set technique (thus the computed segmentation contours are necessarily closed curves (2D) or surfaces (3D)). We have tested this space-time segmentation method on two 3D clinical gated SPECT sequences.
A very large scale neighborhood search algorithm for the q-mode problem

The q-mode problem is a combinatorial optimization problem that arises in the context of partitioning a given collection of data vectors with categorical attributes. A neighborhood search algorithm is proposed for solving the q-mode problem. This algorithm is based on a very large scale neighborhood that is implicitly searched using network flow techniques. The algorithm is evaluated through a computational experiment using randomly generated instances. The results show that in general this algorithm obtains very-good-quality local optima, and that in instances with strong natural clusters the algorithm consistently finds optimal or near-optimal solutions.
Non-magnetic twin laws

Twin laws are groups that express the symmetry relationships between two simultaneously observed domain states (domain pair) and are used to determine physical properties that can distinguish between the observed domains. A tabulation is presented of all possible non-magnetic twin laws, that is, all possible symmetry groups and twinning groups of the domain pair. Additional information is provided related to determining twin laws. This includes the coset and double-coset decomposition of point groups, the indexing and point-group symmetry of domain states, permutations of domain states, and a classification of domain states.
Co-constructing ‘the’ Ummah: the mutual relations of (populist) far right and islamist politics

ABSTRACT This article explores populist-oriented far right and islamist discourse through a relational lens to examine how the category of ‘the’ people, specifically the ummah, is co-constituted. In focusing on the islamist category of ‘the’ ummah, the article examines how far right and islamist discourses work together to co-construct an antagonistic frontier. Rather than categorising distinct party families, a relational lens is employed to render visible how both islamist and far right discourses invest in an antagonistic ‘ummah’, or Muslim collective. Through a case study of far right (Party for Freedom) and islamist (Hizb ut-Tahrir) discourses that aim towards separating the Muslim from the secular and liberal Self/Other, the article examines the mutual grounding of an antagonistic frontier. Adhering to the primacy of antagonism in political identification, the article demonstrates a populist conception of ‘the’ ummah is activated and mobilised by both nationalist and islamist forms of articulation. In doing so, the article contributes to the conception and empirical discussion on prevalent forms of radical (and extremist) politics.
Adverse Selection and Climate Risk: A Response to Ouazad and Khan (2021)

We investigate whether mortgage lenders change their loan origination, approval, and securitization practices in areas affected by major hurricanes. We generally follow the methodology of Ouazad and Kahn (O&K, 2021). We also offer additional robustness analysis and investigate the effect of alternative model specifications. Using both the data as specified by O&K, and expanded and updated data, we do not find statistical evidence that lenders alter their loan origination and securitization behavior in affected areas following a major hurricane. We reproduce O&K’s original results only when adopting both their data selection and their model estimation procedures exactly. The major difference between O&K’s and our base case implementation lies in that we use the actual FHFA conventional loan limits for each county and year and in that we compare the individual loan amount to that limit more precisely. While our findings show that lenders have not transferred climate risk to mortgage insurers in the past, this could occur in the future, especially if climate risk becomes easier to estimate and/or worsens.
The β Pictoris Moving Group

Following the 1983 IRAS detection and subsequent imaging of its extensive dusty circumstellar disk, β Pictoris became the prototypical and most studied example of a potential forming planetary system. Here we report the identification of 17 star systems, each with one or more characteristics indicative of extreme youth, that are moving through space together with β Pic. This diverse set of ~12 million yr old star systems, which includes a ~35 Jupiter mass brown dwarf, and a wide assortment of dusty circumstellar disks, is the comoving, youthful group closest to Earth. Their unique combination of youth and proximity to Earth makes group members—many of which have masses similar to that of the Sun—prime candidates for imaging of warm planets and dusty circumstellar disks with ground- and space-based telescopes.
A unified framework for Lie and covariant differentiation (with application to tensor fields)

A unified framework is provided in which Lie and covariant differentiation may be considered as special cases of a new operation, called “D differentiation. ” The present article develops D differentiation of tensor fields, whereas the extension to spinor fields, called “D differentiation,” is presented in a companion article. The concept of “generalized curvature” of D differentiation is introduced, and a bundle formulation of D differentiation is obtained.
Full-Endoscopic Lumbar Foraminotomy for Foraminal Stenosis in Spondylolisthesis: Two-Year Follow-Up Results

Full-endoscopic lumbar foraminotomy (FELF) under local anesthesia has been developed as a minimally invasive alternative for lumbar foraminal stenosis. Some authors have described this technique for treating various lumbar spondylolisthesis. However, few studies have reported the outcomes of FELF for foraminal stenosis in patients with stable spondylolisthesis. This study aimed to demonstrate the specific technique and clinical outcomes of FELF for foraminal stenosis in patients with spondylolisthesis. Twenty-three consecutive patients with foraminal stenosis and stable spondylolisthesis were treated with FELF. Among them, 21 patients were followed up for 2 years. Full-endoscopic foraminal decompression via the transforaminal approach was performed by a senior surgeon. Clinical outcomes were evaluated using the visual analog pain score (VAS), Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), and modified MacNab criteria. The VAS and ODI scores significantly improved at the two-year follow-up. The global effects were excellent in six patients (28.6%), good in 13 (61.9%), and fair in two (9.5%). Therefore, all patients showed clinical improvement, with a success (excellent/good) rate of 90.5%. No significant surgical complications or signs of further instability were observed. FELF can be used for foraminal stenosis in patients with stable spondylolisthesis. A specialized surgical technique is required for foraminal decompression of spondylolisthesis.
Diagnostic test accuracy of ultrasound for sarcopenia diagnosis: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

Muscle ultrasound is an emerging tool for diagnosing sarcopenia. This review aims to summarize the current knowledge on the diagnostic test accuracy of ultrasound for the diagnosis of sarcopenia. We collected data from Ovid Medline, Embase and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials. Diagnostic test accuracy studies using muscle ultrasound to detect sarcopenia were included. Bivariate random‐effects models based on sensitivity and specificity pairs were used to calculate the pooled estimates of sensitivity, specificity and the area under the curves (AUCs) of summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC), if possible. We screened 7332 publications and included 17 studies with 2143 participants (mean age range: 52.6–82.8 years). All included studies had a high risk of bias. The study populations, reference standards and ultrasound measurement methods varied across the studies. Lower extremity muscles were commonly studied, whereas muscle thickness (MT) was the most widely measured parameter, followed by the cross‐sectional area (CSA). The MTs of the gastrocnemius, rectus femoris, tibialis anterior, soleus, rectus abdominis and geniohyoid muscles showed a moderate diagnostic accuracy for sarcopenia (SROC‐AUC 0.83, 8 studies; SROC‐AUC 0.78, 5 studies; AUC 0.82, 1 study; AUC 0.76–0.78, 2 studies; AUC 0.76, 1 study; and AUC 0.79, 1 study, respectively), whereas the MTs of vastus intermedius, quadriceps femoris and transversus abdominis muscles showed a low diagnostic accuracy (AUC 0.67–0.71, 3 studies; SROC‐AUC 0.64, 4 studies; and AUC 0.68, 1 study, respectively). The CSA of rectus femoris, biceps brachii muscles and gastrocnemius fascicle length also showed a moderate diagnostic accuracy (AUC 0.70–0.90, 3 studies; 0.81, 1 study; and 0.78–0.80, 1 study, respectively), whereas the echo intensity (EI) of rectus femoris, vastus intermedius, quadriceps femoris and biceps brachii muscles showed a low diagnostic accuracy (AUC 0.52–0.67, 2 studies; 0.48–0.50, 1 study; 0.43–0.49, 1 study; and 0.69, 1 study, respectively). The combination of CSA and EI of biceps brachii or rectus femoris muscles was better than either CSA or EI alone for diagnosing sarcopenia. Muscle ultrasound shows a low‐to‐moderate diagnostic test accuracy for sarcopenia diagnosis depending on different ultrasound parameters, measured muscles, reference standards and study populations. The combination of muscle quality indicators (e.g., EI) and muscle quantity indicators (e.g., MT) might provide better diagnostic test accuracy.
PREPARATION OF ACTIVATED CARBON FROM TIRE DERIVED PYROLYTIC CHAR FOR ADSORPTION OF TETRACYCLINE HYDROCHLORIDE

Effects of activation variables on performance of the obtained activated carbon (AC) were investigated for removal of tetracycline hydrochloride (TCH). Pyrolytic char derived from waste tire was chemically activated via two-step of KOH impregnation following by thermal treatment. According to regression analysis and fitting with second-degree polynomial equation, empirical models were developed to correlate performance of AC in TCH adsorption (percentage removal and adsorption capacity at equilibrium) with three activation variables: impregnation ratio (IR), activation temperature (T) and holding time of thermal treatment (t). The analysis of variance indicated that only T, T2 and IR2 were significant to the prediction of both percentage removal and adsorption capacity. According to the developed models, it is suggested that the pyrolytic char should be activated at IR = 6, T = 750 °C and t = 2 h to obtain the highest efficiency of TCH removal in the tested range of activation condition.
An Algorithm for Image Enhancement via Sparse Representation

This paper presents an approach of enhance images subjective visual quality, based on image sparse representation. Firstly, comparativing and analysing the performance of the current several popular image denoising methods by two kinds of different content image, and using the K-SVD, MB3D and CSR algorithm, we obtain clean images namely the images noise removing. Then, decomposing the already denoised image into both cartoon and texture component by Morphological Component Analysis (MCA ) method, and superresolution the cartoon part and enhance the contrast of the texture in image. Finally, fusion between the cartoon and the texture gain the desired image.
Mathematical modelling of scour: A review

A review is presented of mathematical modelling of scour around hydraulic and marine structures. Principal ideas, general features and procedures are given. The paper is organized in three sections: the first two sections deal with the mathematical modelling of scour around piers/piles and pipelines, respectively, the two benchmark cases, while the third section deals with the mathematical modelling of scour around other structures such as groins, breakwaters and sea walls. A section is also added to discuss potential future research areas. Over one hundred references are included in the paper
A Multiobjective Optimal Path Planning for a 1-DOF Clutched ARM

In this paper, a procedure of optimal path planning is proposed for the operation of the anthropomorphic low-cost easy-operation LARM clutched arm with only one actuator. An algorithm is proposed for path planning of the arm motion with multiobjective considerations that take into account of traveling time, energy consumption, and end-effector performance. Numerical examples and laboratory experiments are reported to show the feasibility of the proposed path planning and the efficiency of the LARM clutched arm.
Delay Optimization for Cooperative Multi-Tier Computing in Integrated Satellite-Terrestrial Networks

The integrated satellite-terrestrial network is promising to provide global broadband communication service. However, the long propagation delay of satellite-terrestrial links will lead to high communication delay when users access the Internet via satellites. In this paper, we investigate the cooperative multi-tier computing in the integrated satellite-terrestrial network, in which the computation tasks of users are processed by leveraging the cooperation of devices, edge nodes, and cloud servers. Based on the proposed three-tier computing framework, we formulate the cooperative edge-cloud offloading problem to minimize the total delay of the network. Considering the computation task is dividable, we propose the optimal task splitting strategy based on the partial offloading model, in which the closed-form solution is derived for each computation task. With the optimal task splitting strategy obtained, the original optimization problem is reformulated as the problem of the time slot allocation strategy and the computation capacity allocation strategy. Then, we further propose the cooperative edge-cloud computing strategy to optimize the delay performance of the network. Finally, numerical results are presented to demonstrate the performance of the proposed three-tier computing architecture and the offloading strategies.
Application of Nanomaterials to Enhance Polymerase Chain Reaction

Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) is one of the most common technologies used to produce millions of copies of targeted nucleic acid in vitro and has become an indispensable technique in molecular biology. However, it suffers from low efficiency and specificity problems, false positive results, and so on. Although many conditions can be optimized to increase PCR yield, such as the magnesium ion concentration, the DNA polymerases, the number of cycles, and so on, they are not all-purpose and the optimization can be case dependent. Nano-sized materials offer a possible solution to improve both the quality and productivity of PCR. In the last two decades, nanoparticles (NPs) have attracted significant attention and gradually penetrated the field of life sciences because of their unique chemical and physical properties, such as their large surface area and small size effect, which have greatly promoted developments in life science and technology. Additionally, PCR technology assisted by NPs (NanoPCR) such as gold NPs (Au NPs), quantum dots (QDs), and carbon nanotubes (CNTs), etc., have been developed to significantly improve the specificity, efficiency, and sensitivity of PCR and to accelerate the PCR reaction process. This review discusses the roles of different types of NPs used to enhance PCR and summarizes their possible mechanisms.
Simulation Study on the Structure Design of p-GaN/AlGaN/GaN HEMT-Based Ultraviolet Phototransistors

This work investigates the impacts of structural parameters on the performances of p-GaN/AlGaN/GaN HEMT-based ultraviolet (UV) phototransistors (PTs) using Silvaco Atlas. The simulation results show that a larger Al content or greater thickness for the AlGaN barrier layer can induce a higher two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) density and produce a larger photocurrent. However, they may also lead to a larger dark current due to the incomplete depletion of the GaN channel layer. The depletion conditions with various Al contents and thicknesses of the AlGaN layer are investigated in detail, and a borderline between full depletion and incomplete depletion was drawn. An optimized structure with an Al content of 0.23 and a thickness of 14 nm is achieved for UV-PT, which exhibits a high photocurrent density of 92.11 mA/mm, a low dark current density of 7.68 × 10−10 mA/mm, and a large photo-to-dark-current ratio of over 1011 at a drain voltage of 5 V. In addition, the effects of other structural parameters, such as the thickness and hole concentration of the p-GaN layer as well as the thickness of the GaN channel layer, on the performances of the UV-PTs are also studied in this work.