Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Estimation in the Cox proportional hazards model with doubly censored and truncated data

In longitudinal studies, the proportional hazard model is often used to analyse covariate effects on the duration time, defined as the elapsed time between the first and second event. In this article, we consider the situation when the first event suffers partly interval-censoring and the second event suffers left-truncation and right-censoring. We proposed a two-step estimation procedure for estimating the regression coefficients of the proportional model. A simulation study is conducted to investigate the performance of the proposed estimator.
Determination of oceanic total precipitable water from the SSM/I

Results are presented of calibration/validation studies showing the ability of the Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I) to measure total precipitable water in the atmosphere over the ocean. Comparisons between radiosondes and the SSM/I are presented for three different algorithms. The results show the possibility of a distinct improvement in the retrieval of total precipitable water over the ocean. The global, nonlinear algorithm is more sensitive to cloud liquid water content, rain, and sea ice. The additional sensitivity is due to the screening of rain and sea ice from the dependent data and the squared term in the retrieval algorithm. Thus, it will be very important to have good screening procedures for identifying these conditions. The linear algorithm overestimates in the mid-range and underestimates at large values of total precipitable water. The explanation for this effect is probably related to the selection of the center of the water vapor line as the operating frequency of the SSM/I water vapor channel. The line center is most likely to exhibit a saturation effect at large water vapor amounts, and pressure and temperature effects can also be important, depending on the distribution of water vapor in the atmosphere. >
Increasing distances in graphs

In der vorliegenden Arbeit wird ein spezielles Set Cover Problem studiert. Es ist eng mit minimalen Schnitten in Graphen verbunden, d.h. mit Problemen, bei denen alle Wege zwischen den Knoten eines oder mehrerer gegebener Knotenpaare unterbrochen werden. Im Gegensatz dazu wird hier nur gefordert, dass die kurzesten Wege (bezuglich Einheitslangen) durchtrennt werden. Die Aufgabe besteht also darin, in einem ungerichteten Graphen den Abstand zwischen den Knoten gegebener Paare durch Entfernen einer kostenminimalen Kantenmenge um mindestens 1 zu erhohen. Das Problem wird als Blocking Shortest Paths bezeichnet. Es werden fur einige Spezialfalle polynomielle Algorithmen angegeben, und es wird gezeigt, dass das Problem in den meisten ubrigen Fallen NP-vollstandig ist. Durch diese Ergebnisse motiviert werden Ansatze zur exakten Losung mittels ganzzahliger Optimierung sowie mehrere Algorithmen zur approximativen Losung vorgestellt. Fur letztere werden bestmogliche Gutegarantien angegeben oder zumindest eng eingegrenzt. Die besprochenen Algorithmen werden an zufalligen Instanzen getestet. Erganzend werden extremale Fragen dieses Themenkreises diskutiert.
Improved selection strategy for multi‐objective evolutionary algorithms with application to water distribution optimization problems

Multi‐objective evolutionary algorithms (MOEAs) have been applied to water distribution system (WDS) optimization problems for over two decades. The selection strategy is a key component of an MOEA that determines the composition of a population, and thereby the evolutionary search process, which imitates natural selection by granting fitter individuals an increasing opportunity to reproduce. This paper proposes the convex hull contribution (CHC) selection strategy for generational MOEAs (CHCGen) as a novel selection strategy that is based on the CHC of solutions to the Pareto front in the objective space. Numerical experiments using a general MOEA framework demonstrate that the CHCGen selection strategy is able to outperform existing popular selection strategies (e.g., crowding distance, hypervolume contribution, and hybrid replacement selection). Moreover, it is illustrated that the CHCGen selection strategy is able to improve the performance of existing MOEAs such as NSGA‐II and GALAXY. The conclusions are based on the results of six bi‐objective WDS problems.
Strength and Conditioning Recommendations for Female Athletes: The Gaelic Footballer

ABSTRACT Ladies Gaelic football (LGF) is a traditional, amateur Gaelic sport played by female athletes. LGF is an invasion-based field sport involving high-intensity, intermittent match play. There is currently a paucity of research on intercounty (elite level) LGF despite a growing interest in the male version of the game. This article aims to provide strength and conditioning recommendations for LGF with particular focus on the intercounty level of play. Recommendations within this article include a needs analysis, female injury epidemiology, physical and physiological demands, female physiology, strength training, and specific conditioning guidelines based on the sport. Additional recommendations include an LGF-specific testing battery, a proposed periodization cycle, and sports-specific speed and agility development.
Multipolar molecules and multipolar fields: probing and controlling the tensorial nature of nonlinear molecular media

A general class of multipolar molecules is introduced in the context of quadratic nonlinear optics by way of extension of the more specific cases of dipolar and octupolar molecules. An adequate irreducible tensor formalism permits us to define rotationally invariant molecular features that couple to corresponding field tensor components, thereby enabling us to account for a variety of coherent and noncoherent processes such as harmonic light (hyper-Rayleigh) scattering, coherent second-harmonic generation in electrically poled media, and the recently proposed optical poling scheme. Experiments in both harmonic light scattering in solution (for some multipolar molecules) and optical poling (in Disperse Red 1–methyl methacrylate thin films) are analyzed in light of this model. A general tensorial permutation lemma of broad validity allows nonlinear light–matter interactions to be condensed in a statistical medium in compact rotationally invariant expressions: The main tensorial symmetry features for both molecular susceptibility and read–write field polarization tensors that jointly drive these interactions are clearly revealed.
Depth Transfer by an Imaging System

In many applications such as three-dimensional (3-D) data acquisition, the scanning of 3-D objects or 3-D display, it is necessary to understand how an imaging system can be used to obtain information on the structure of an object in the direction perpendicular to the image plane, i.e. depth information. In certain cases the formation of a 3-D image can be described by a theory based on optical transfer functions (OTF): the image intensity distribution is given by the 3-D convolution of the object and a 3-D point spread function (PSF); equivalently, in 3-D Fourier space the image spectrum is the product of the object spectrum and a 3-D OTF. This paper investigates the 3-D PSFs and OTFs that are associated with different pupil functions of the imaging system.
Transportation route choice model using fuzzy inference technique

Fuzzy set theory is applied to solve the problem of traffic assignment between two alternative routes on a highway network. The driver's perceived travel time on each route is treated as a fuzzy number, and his choice of route is based on an approximate reasoning model. The model consists of rules which indicate the degree of preference for each route given the approximate travel time of the two routes. Applying the model to each driver and then aggregating the individual preferences, a fuzzy network loading algorithm assigns traffic to each route. <<ETX>>
RAD51 and RAD51B Play Diverse Roles in the Repair of DNA Double Strand Breaks in Physcomitrium patens

RAD51 is involved in finding and invading homologous DNA sequences for accurate homologous recombination (HR). Its paralogs have evolved to regulate and promote RAD51 functions. The efficient gene targeting and high HR rates are unique in plants only in the moss Physcomitrium patens (P. patens). In addition to two functionally equivalent RAD51 genes (RAD1-1 and RAD51-2), other RAD51 paralogues were also identified in P. patens. For elucidation of RAD51’s involvement during DSB repair, two knockout lines were constructed, one mutated in both RAD51 genes (Pprad51-1-2) and the second with mutated RAD51B gene (Pprad51B). Both lines are equally hypersensitive to bleomycin, in contrast to their very different DSB repair efficiency. Whereas DSB repair in Pprad51-1-2 is even faster than in WT, in Pprad51B, it is slow, particularly during the second phase of repair kinetic. We interpret these results as PpRAD51-1 and -2 being true functional homologs of ancestral RAD51 involved in the homology search during HR. Absence of RAD51 redirects DSB repair to the fast NHEJ pathway and leads to a reduced 5S and 18S rDNA copy number. The exact role of the RAD51B paralog remains unclear, though it is important in damage recognition and orchestrating HR response.
Optimal local axes and symmetry assignment for charge-density refinement

In the perspective of building an expanded electron-density library based on multipolar modelling for common chemical atom types, new consistent local axes systems are proposed. Optimal symmetry constraints can consequently be applied to atoms and a large number of multipole populations can be fixed to a zero value. The introduction of symmetry constraints in the multipolar refinement of small compounds allows a reduction in the number of multipolar parameters stored in the library and required for the description of the atomic electron density. In a refinement where the symmetry constraints are not applied, the use of optimal axes enables the deviations from the local pseudo-symmetry to be highlighted. The application of symmetry constraints or restraints on multipoles is more effective when the axes are in accordance with the local geometry of the atom and can lead to improved crystallographic Rfree residuals. The new local axes systems, based on two or three atom neighbours, can also be usefully applied to the description of transition metal complexes.
Gene Therapy to Treat Osteopenia Associated With Chronic Ethanol Consumption and Aldehyde Dehydrogenase 2 Deficiency

Aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2) deficiency affects 35% to 45% of East Asians and 8% of the world population. ALDH2 is the second enzyme in the ethanol metabolism pathway. The common genetic variant ALDH2*2 allele has a glutamic acid‐to‐lysine substitution at position 487 (E487K) that reduces the enzyme activity, resulting in an accumulation of acetaldehyde after ethanol consumption. The ALDH2*2 allele is associated with increased risk of osteoporosis and hip fracture. Our prior study showed that administration of an adeno‐associated virus (AAV) serotype rh.10 gene transfer vector expressing the human ALDH2 cDNA (AAVrh.10hALDH2) before initiation of ethanol consumption prevented bone loss in ALDH2‐deficient homozygous knockin mice carrying the E487K mutation (Aldh2E487K+/+). We hypothesized that AAVrh.10hALDH2 administration after establishment of osteopenia would be able to reverse bone loss due to ALDH2 deficiency and chronic ethanol consumption. To test this hypothesis, male and female Aldh2E487K+/+ mice (n = 6) were given ethanol in the drinking water for 6 weeks to establish osteopenia and then administered AAVrh.10hALDH2 (1011 genome copies). Mice were evaluated for an additional 12 weeks. AAVrh.10hALDH2 administration after osteopenia was established corrected weight loss and locomotion phenotypes and, importantly, increased midshaft femur cortical bone thickness, the most important component of bone in the resistance to fractures, and showed a trend toward increased trabecular bone volume. AAVrh.10hALDH2 is a promising therapeutic for osteoporosis in ALDH2‐deficient individuals. © 2023 The Authors. JBMR Plus published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.
Fourier Method For Correction Of Depth-Dependent Collimator Blurring

A method is described for preprocessing projection data prior to image reconstruction in single-photon emission computed tomography. The projection data of the desired spatial distribution of emission activity is blurred by the point-response function of the collimator that is used to define the range of directions of gamma-ray photons reaching the detector. The point-response function of the collimator is not stationary, but depends on the distance from the collimator to the point. Conventional methods for deblurring collimator projection data are based on approximating the actual depth-dependent point-response function by a spatially-invariant blurring function, so that deconvolution methods can be applied independently to the data at each angle of view. The method described in this paper is based on Fourier analysis of the multi-angular data set as a whole, using special depth-dependent characteristics of the Fourier coefficients to achieve spatially-variant inverse filtering of the data in all views simultaneously. Preliminary results are presented for simulated data with a simple collimator model.
Association of GILZ with MUC2, TLR2, and TLR4 in Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn’s Disease (CD) are chronic relapsing inflammatory diseases that are caused by genetic, environmental, and immune factors. Treatment strategies are currently based on symptomatic control by immunosuppression. The glucocorticoid-induced leucine zipper (GILZ), a mediator of several effects of glucocorticoids, was recently found to be secreted by goblet cells and play a role in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). This study investigates which genes GILZ is associated with in its role in intestinal barrier functions. We examined datasets from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) and ArrayExpress profiles of the gut of healthy subjects (HSs), as well as UC and CD patients. The human colonic epithelial HT29 cell line was used for in vitro validation experiments. GILZ was significantly correlated with MUC2, TLR2, and TLR4. In particular, an inverse correlation was found between the GILZ and MUC2 in HS and patients with IBD, mostly in those with an active disease. Further, direct pairwise correlations for GILZ/TLR2 and GILZ/TLR4 were found in HSs and UC patients, but not in CD patients. Overall, our results reveal the crosstalk at the transcription level between the GILZ, MUC2, and TLRs in the mucosal barrier through common pathways, and they open up new perspectives in terms of mucosal healing in IBD patients.
Effect of a Caring-Based Training Program on Caring Behaviors of Indonesian Nurses as Perceived by Patients

Background: A caring education program is proven effective in improving nurses' behavior in several countries. This study aimed to assess the effect of the Caring-Based Training Program (CBTP) on nurses' caring behaviors of Indonesian nurses as perceived by patients. Materials and Methods: This non-equivalent control group post-test-only design was conducted on 74 patients from a public hospital in Malang district, Indonesia, in 2019. The patients who only met the inclusion criteria were recruited through convenience sampling. The Caring Behaviors Inventory-24 (CBI-24) items were utilized to measure nurses' caring behaviors as perceived by patients. Data were analyzed using frequency, mean, standard deviation, t-test, and ANOVA test at 0.05 levels of significance. Results: The overall mean score of CBI-24 for the experimental group was higher than the control group (5.48 and 5.04, respectively). According to the patient's perception, these findings indicated that the caring behavior of nurses in the experimental group was better than that in the control group. The independent t-test showed a significant difference in the nurses' caring behaviors between the experimental and control groups (p-value = 0.001). Conclusions: The study demonstrated that a CBTP could improve nurses' caring behaviors. Therefore, the developed program is essential and required by Indonesian nurses to increase their caring behaviors.
Stars in the galactic centre: sources and probes of the accretion flow

In the centre of our Galaxy lies Sgr A*, a 3.5 × 10 solar mass black hole, immersed in a star cluster with dozens of massive stars. The very low luminosity of Sgr A*, and the presence of young stars in the close proximity of a supermassive black hole, make the Galactic centre a very interesting region on its own. Moreover, its proximity allows the study of the physics of galactic nuclei with a level of detail unattainable in any other system. In this thesis, we first show that the interaction of massive stars with an accretion disc would appear as strongly variable emission in the near infra-red. Since observations have not shown this variability, we strongly constrain the current existence of such a disc in the Galactic centre. We argue however that a massive gaseous disc existed around Sgr A* only a few million years ago. The evidence for this idea comes from the presence of young massive stars in two stellar discs. We estimate the properties of the gaseous disc that gave rise to the massive stars, and we analyse the stellar orbits to constrain this scenario. A related but separate topic presented here is the role of the stellar winds expelled by the same stars in feeding Sgr A* and shaping its immediate gaseous environment. We find that a fraction of these stellar winds form cold clumps that coexist with the X-ray emitting gas, forming a two-phase medium. Only a small fraction of the gas is captured by Sgr A*, with an accretion rate strongly variable on time-scales of hundreds of years. This variability suggests that the time-averaged energy output of Sgr A* may be much larger than what is currently observed.
Sub-wavelength fluorescent polymer coatings to convert standard glass capillaries into robust microfluidic refractometric sensors

A capillary microresonator platform for label-free refractometric sensing is demonstrated by coating the interior of thick-walled silica capillaries with a sub-wavelength layer of high refractive index, dye-doped polymer. No intermediate processing, such as etching or tapering, of the capillary is required. Side illumination and detection of the polymer layer reveals a fluorescence spectrum that is periodically modulated by the presence of whispering gallery modes within the layer. The fabricated capillary resonators exhibited sensitivities to changes in internal refractive index of up to 29.44 nm/RIU, demonstrated by flowing through aqueous dilutions of glucose. Thick walled capillaries are used in order to readily allow interfacing with existing biological and chemical sensing and separation platforms such as capillary electrophoresis or gas chromatography where such capillaries are routinely used. The interior polymer coating method described here could enable the use of a wide range of materials for the design of optofluidic label-free sensors integrated with industry standard (bio)chemical analytical separation platforms.
Acoustic resonances and trapped modes in pipes and tunnels

Acoustic resonances of simple three-dimensional finite-length structures in an infinitely long cylindrical pipe are investigated numerically by solving an eigenvalue problem. To avoid unphysical reflections at the finite grid boundaries placed in the uniform cross-sections of the pipe, perfectly matched layer absorbing boundary conditions are applied in the form of the complex scaling method of atomic and molecular physics. Examples of the structures investigated are sound-hard spheres, cylinders, cavities and closed side branches. Several truly trapped modes with zero radiation loss are identified for frequencies below the first cutoff frequency of the pipe. Such trapped modes can be excited aerodynamically by coherent vortices if the frequency of the shed vortices is close to a resonant frequency. Furthermore, numerical evidence is presented for the existence of isolated embedded trapped modes for annular cavities above the first cutoff frequency and for closed side branches below the first cutoff frequency. As applications of engineering interest, the acoustic resonances are computed for a ball-type valve and around a simple model of a high-speed train in an infinitely long tunnel.
Limited predatory effects on infaunal macrobenthos community patterns in intertidal soft‐bottom of Arctic coasts

Abstract Predation shapes marine benthic communities and affects prey species population dynamics in tropic and temperate coastal systems. However, information on its magnitude in systematically understudied Arctic coastal habitats is scarce. To test predation effects on the diversity and structure of Arctic benthic communities, we conducted caging experiments in which consumers were excluded from plots at two intertidal sedimentary sites in Svalbard (Longyearbyen and Thiisbukta) for 2.5 months. Unmanipulated areas served as controls and partial (open) cages were used to estimate potential cage effects. At the end of the experiment, we took one sediment core from each plot and quantified total biomass and the number of each encountered taxon. At both sites, the experimental exclusion of predators slightly changed the species composition of communities and had negligible effects on biomass, total abundance, species richness, evenness, and Shannon Index. In addition, we found evidence for cage effects, and spatial variability in the intensity of the predation effects was identified. Our study suggests that predators have limited effects on the structure of the studied intertidal macrobenthic Arctic communities, which is different from coastal soft‐bottom ecosystems at lower latitudes.
Formally comparing topic models and human-generated qualitative coding of physician mothers’ experiences of workplace discrimination

Differences between computationally generated and human-generated themes in unstructured text are important to understand yet difficult to assess formally. In this study, we bridge these approaches through two contributions. First, we formally compare a primarily computational approach, topic modeling, to a primarily human-driven approach, qualitative thematic coding, in an impactful context: physician mothers’ experience of workplace discrimination. Second, we compare our chosen topic model to a principled alternative topic model to make explicit study design decisions meriting consideration in future research. By formally contrasting computationally generated (i.e. topic modeling) and human-generated (i.e. thematic coding) knowledge, we shed light on issues of interest to several audiences, notably computational social scientists who wish to understand study design tradeoffs, and qualitative researchers who may wish to leverage computational methods to improve the speed and reproducibility of labor-intensive coding. Although useful in other domains, we highlight the value of fast, reproducible methods to better understand experiences of workplace discrimination.
Use of square waves incident on magnetic nanoparticles to induce magnetic hyperthermia for therapeutic cancer treatment

Magnetic hyperthermia for treatment of tumors would benefit greatly from increased heating of the magnetic particles relative to the incident electromagnetic wave power. Micromagnetic simulations including thermal fluctuations show that the use of an incident square wave, as opposed to the usual sine wave, increases the normalized heat by at least 50%, with the possibility of much greater improvement for the usual case of particle ensembles that have a distribution of magnetic anisotropies, volumes, and angles to the incident radiation. It is shown that even replacement of the square wave by a limited number of harmonics is highly beneficial.