Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A 72-fs-Total-Integrated-Jitter Two-Core Fractional-N Digital PLL With Digital Period Averaging Calibration on Frequency Quadrupler and True-in-Phase Combiner

This work presents a low-jitter and low out-of-band noise two-core fractional-<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$N$ </tex-math></inline-formula> digital bang-bang phase-locked loop (PLL). Two novel techniques are introduced to efficiently suppress the quantization noise (QN) of the digitally controlled oscillator (DCO) and to achieve an optimal trade between power consumption and PLL noise. The digital period averaging technique, working in background of the main system, enables the use of a low-power XOR-based quadrupler for clocking <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\Delta \Sigma $ </tex-math></inline-formula> modulator dithering the DCO tuning word. The true-in-phase combiner circuit implements a digitally assisted power combination of two PLL outputs, to optimally reduce the impact of the PLL noise sources. The prototype, implemented in a standard 28-nm CMOS process, has a core area of 0.47 mm2 and synthesizes frequencies from 8.5 to 10.5 GHz while dissipating 36 mW. The measured rms jitter (integrated from 1 kHz to 100 MHz and including spurs) is 72 fs for near-integer channels, with a worst case fractional spur of −59.7 dBc, while the measured out-of-band noise is −140.7 dBc/Hz at a 10-MHz offset.
Persistent Symptoms and Sequelae After Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Infection Not Requiring Hospitalization: Results From Testing Denmark, a Danish Cross-sectional Survey

Abstract Background Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection is associated with persistent symptoms (“long COVID”). We assessed the burden of long COVID among nonhospitalized adults with polymerase chain reaction (PCR)–confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection. Methods In the fall of 2020, a cross-sectional survey was performed in the adult Danish general population. This included a self-administered point-of-care test for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies, the Short Form Health Survey (SF-12), and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)–associated symptom questions. Nonhospitalized respondents with a positive SARS-CoV-2 PCR test ≥12 weeks before the survey (cases) were matched (1:10) to seronegative controls on age, sex, and body mass index. Propensity score–weighted odds ratios (ORs) and ORs for risk factors were estimated for each health outcome. Results In total, 742 cases and 7420 controls were included. The attributable risk of at least 1 long-COVID symptom was 25.0 per 100 cases (95% confidence interval [CI], 22.2–27.4). Compared to controls, cases reported worse general health (OR, 5.9 [95% CI, 5.0–7.0]) and had higher odds for a broad range of symptoms, particularly loss of taste (OR, 11.8 [95% CI, 9.5–14.6]) and smell (OR, 11.2 [95% CI, 9.1–13.9]). Physical and Mental Component Summary scores were also significantly reduced with differences of −2.5 (95% CI, −3.1 to −1.8) and −2.0 (95% CI, −2.7 to −1.2), respectively. Female sex and severity of initial infection were major risk factors for long COVID. Conclusions Nonhospitalized SARS-CoV-2 PCR–positive individuals had significantly reduced physical and mental health, and 1 in 4 reported persistence of at least 1 long-COVID symptom.
DEVELOPING AN ONTOLOGY OF MULTIPLE PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF COMPUTATIONAL THINKING EDUCATION

This paper proposes the design of an ontology of multiple programming languages and give three examples to show the methodology. Our ontology aims to summarize the core of computational thinking logic by elaborating the concepts of three object-oriented programming languages in the industry: Python, Java, and C#. Therefore, the construction of the ontology lies not only on these three programming languages but also on their common concepts. This kind of ontology design facilitates the ontology extension and merging when concepts of other programming languages are added in the future. This ontology could be used to not only provide a guideline for any research work focusing on computational thinking education but also describe the common concept of visual programming tools and existing programming languages. Based on this ontology, an adaptive tutoring system intended to provide learners with personalized programming exercises, is under development.
Surface Modification of Steel Slag Aggregate for Engineering Application in Asphalt Mixture

The proper disposal of steel slag has always been a great challenge for the metallurgical industry in China and around the world. In this work, the steel slag aggregate (SSA) was surface pretreated (PSSA) and applied into asphalt mixture. The adhesive behavior between the bitumen and five different types of aggregates (i.e., limestone, diorite, diabase, SSA, PSSA) were evaluated based on the contact angle and binder bond strength tests. The pavement performance of three asphalt mixtures which contain normal aggregate, SSA and PSSA respectively, was analyzed by Marshall stability test, wheel-tracking rutting test, low-temperature bending creep test and water sensitivity test. The results showed that surface modification can improve the surface properties of SSA, reduce its contact angle with bitumen, and eventually lead to the improvement of adhesion between them. In addition to the satisfied low-temperature properties, PSSA was found to significantly improve the anti-rutting property and reduce the water sensitivity of asphalt mixture. This work is expected to promote an alternative application for recycling of SSA in pavement engineering.
The L1448 Molecular Jet

We have obtained near-infrared images of the L1448 molecular outflow in the J, H, and K bands and through a 1% passband filter centered on the 2.122 μm v=1-0 S(1) line of molecular hydrogen. We report the discovery of a highly collimated, clumpy, and bipolar molecular hydrogen jet associated with the L1448 molecular outflow. We estimate that the total H 2 luminosity of the L1448 outflow is about 0.2 L ○. Most of the line emission in the northern outflow lobe arises from a narrow, curving filament consisting of a chain of knots. Some H 2 knots and the bow-shaped emission regions protruding several arcseconds to the west of the filament may be shocks associated with CP- and SiO-emitting bullets seen in millimeter-wave observations
Distribution-free approach to the evaluation of reliability of complex systems

In the industrial community it is well known that the failure rate of the manufactured units vary with time due to a variety of causes, namely, engineering design, manufacturing process, maintenance and quality inspection procedures and various assignable and non-assignable factors. Such failure rates invariably exhibit changes in both level and slope and at times exhibit periodic patterns as well. Therefore it would be quite inappropriate and erroneous to analyze such stochastic series of observations using the usual failure distribution approach. Since such data can be construed as time series, we suggest in this paper the time series techniques including the Kalman filter for their analysis. Other advantages of using the latter techniques are that the periodicities, if any, can be taken into account and short-term forecasts can be made which otherwise would not have been possible.
Pycnonuclear Reactions in Dense Matter near Solidification

Rates of nuclear fusion reactions in dense matter and their enhancement due to electron screening and internuclear many-body correlation are calculated by explicitly taking into account dielectric functions of relativistic and nonrelativistic electrons, screening potentials based on the Monte Carlo simulations, and interaction free energies in dense electron-screened binary-ionic-mixture fluids. Pycnonuclear reactions are predicted near fluid-solid transitions at high densities, where the total reaction rates in fluid and solid phases take on comparable values that are virtually independent of the temperature. Analytic expressions for the reaction rates are presented and are applied to dense carbon-oxygen matter in the white dwarf interiors near ignition conditions and to dense proton-deuteron matter in giant planets and brown dwarfs. Possibility of a laboratory detection of pycnonuclear reactions in ultrahigh-pressure metallic hydrogen near solidification is explored.
Simulating Time Harmonic Flows with the Regularized L-BGK Method

A recent improvement of the lattice BGK model, based on a regularization of the precollision distribution function, is applied to three dimensional Womersley flow. The accuracy and the stability of the model are essentially improved by using this regularization. A good agreement with analytical Womersley solution is presented, as well as an improvement of the accuracy over standard L-BGK. Numerical stability of the scheme for a range of Reynolds and Womersley numbers is also presented, demonstrating an enhancement of the stability range of L-BGK for this type of flows.
Collegiate Athletes Engaging in Activism: Perceptions of Social Justice Causes and Support from Significant Social Agents

Recently, collegiate athletes have used their platform to promote positive social change. Some possibilities for the increase of activism is athletes’ perceptions of societal issues and support from key social agents. However, these perceptions have been largely unexplored. The current study aimed to address those gaps by investigating collegiate athletes’ perceptions and investigating if various demographic characteristics influence the likelihood of activism engagement. Participants (n = 4,473) completed self-report scales on social justice causes and perceived support. For this sample, athletes who identified as male, Black, and More than One Race engaged in activism at a higher rate than expected and a majority of participants viewed all social issues as social justice causes. In terms of support, athletes viewed higher levels of general support than instrumental support and approval for engaging in activism and rated parents, friends, and teammates as most supportive in all three support categories. Activists, compared to non-activists, were more likely to view social issues as social justice related and rated most social agents as more approving of their own activism. Findings indicate that perceptions of social issues and support from social agents, especially non-sport social agents, might be one reason for collegiate athletes’ participation in activism.
RUC-Net: A Residual-Unet-Based Convolutional Neural Network for Pixel-Level Pavement Crack Segmentation

Automatic crack detection is always a challenging task due to the inherent complex backgrounds, uneven illumination, irregular patterns, and various types of noise interference. In this paper, we proposed a U-shaped encoder–decoder semantic segmentation network combining Unet and Resnet for pixel-level pavement crack image segmentation, which is called RUC-Net. We introduced the spatial-channel squeeze and excitation (scSE) attention module to improve the detection effect and used the focal loss function to deal with the class imbalance problem in the pavement crack segmentation task. We evaluated our methods using three public datasets, CFD, Crack500, and DeepCrack, and all achieved superior results to those of FCN, Unet, and SegNet. In addition, taking the CFD dataset as an example, we performed ablation studies and compared the differences of various scSE modules and their combinations in improving the performance of crack detection.
Reflective active-matrix LCD: D-ILA

We have developed the direct-drive image light amplifier (D- ILA), a reflective mode liquid crystal device for multimedia projection systems. Utilizing a single crystal silicon based reflective LCD with a homeotropic liquid crystal alignment, the D-ILA device produces bright, high resolution and high- contrast images from a small diagonal display area.
Anger toward God and well-being in Ukrainian war refugees: the serial mediating influence of faith maturity and decisional forgiveness

ABSTRACT Experiencing war arouses feelings of injustice, which in turn can activate angry feelings towards God. The purpose of the present study was to assess the relationship between anger towards God, faith maturity, interpersonal decisional forgiveness, psychological well-being and spiritual well-being among war refugees from Ukraine who arrived in Poland and Germany. Data from paper-and-pencil surveys were collected from 243 religious people aged 18–68 years, 82% of whom were women. Structural equation modelling (SEM) showed that anger towards God is a negative predictor of faith maturity, forgiveness and well-being (including a psychological and spiritual component as a second-order variable). In addition, positive relationships were observed between faith maturity, forgiveness and well-being. Finally, faith maturity and forgiveness serially (and forgiveness also as a simple mediator) mediated the relationship of anger towards God and well-being. The results help to explain why people who feel anger towards God are still able to experience well-being, suggesting that faith maturity may inhibit angry feelings towards God through more frequent decisions to forgive abusers.
Semi-softening and hardening mechanical system for smart vibration generators

Eight different nonlinear systems are considered in order to overcome the main drawback of existing vibration generator, the narrow bandwidth problem. Based on the static and dynamic analysis of these systems, the typical nonlinear softening and hardening Duffing oscillator systems have been selected for further consideration. The limitations of the selected systems are presented here. The softening system becomes unstable when the forcing amplitude exceeds the critical value, and the response amplitudes of the hardening system will be reduced by the extra stiffness introduced by the nonlinear term. Therefore, a mechanical system, which exhibits the dynamic characteristics of the softening system at the low force level while showing as the hardening with the increasing forcing, is proposed. With the assistance of the numerical method, it can be observed that the frequency response curves (FRCs) of the system will lean to left hand side of the linear resonance frequency when the forcing amplitude is comparatively low, and lean to the right when the input force can burst the energy barrier. More dynamic behaviors are discussed. According to the analysis, the proposed nonlinear system can be the solution to the narrow bandwidth problem.
Exploring the potential of the novel imidazole‐4,5‐dicarboxyamide chemical exchange saturation transfer scaffold for pH and perfusion imaging

Here, we describe and assess the potential of 14 newly synthesized imidazole‐4,5‐dicarboxyamides (I45DCs) for pH and perfusion imaging. A number of these aromatic compounds possess large labile proton chemical shifts (up to 7.7 ppm from water) because of their intramolecular hydrogen bonds and a second labile proton to allow for chemical exchange saturation transfer (CEST) signal ratio‐based pH measurements. We have found that the contrast produced is strong for a wide range of substitutions and that the inflection points in the CEST signal ratio versus pH plots used to generate concentration‐independent pH maps can be adjusted based on these subsitutions to tune the pH range that can be measured. These I45DC CEST agents have advantages over the triiodobenzenes currently employed for tumor and kidney pH mapping, both preclinically and in initial human studies. Finally, as CEST MRI combined with exogenous contrast has the potential to detect functional changes in the kidneys, we evaluated our highest performing anionic compound (I45DC‐diGlu) on a unilateral urinary obstruction mouse model and observed lower contrast uptake in the obstructed kidney compared with the unobstructed kidney and that the unobstructed kidney displayed a pH of ~ 6.5 while the obstructed kidney had elevated pH and an increased range in pH values. Based on this, we conclude that the I45DCs have excellent imaging properties and hold promise for a variety of medical imaging applications, particularly renal imaging.
Ionomer dynamics and the sticky Rouse modela)

Linear viscoelastic (LVE) and dielectric relaxation spectroscopic (DRS) responses were examined for polyester ionomers based on polyethers and sulfonated phthalates with sodium counterions. For these ionomers, LVE shows both glassy and polymer relaxations increasingly delayed with increase of ionic content. DRS shows an α-relaxation process associated with the glass transition, followed by a ∼100× slower α2-relaxation process associated with ion rearrangements, before electrode polarization. A detailed comparison between LVE and DRS reveals that the α2 relaxation in DRS corresponds to a characteristic modulus of kT per ionic group, strongly suggesting that the molecular origin of the α2 relaxation is the dissociation/association of ion pairs from/into the ionic clusters. Based on this molecular picture, we can predict satisfactorily the LVE of the samples using a sticky Rouse model by setting the α2 relaxation time as the lifetime of ionic associations. For ionomers based on poly(ethylene oxide), the association energy is 8–13 kJ/mol, causing only a short delay of the terminal relaxation beyond the delay in the glassy relaxation. In contrast, for ionomers based on the weaker solvating poly(tetramethylene oxide), the delay spans nine decades of frequency, analogous to a highly entangled polymer, yielding an association energy of 58 kJ/mol.Linear viscoelastic (LVE) and dielectric relaxation spectroscopic (DRS) responses were examined for polyester ionomers based on polyethers and sulfonated phthalates with sodium counterions. For these ionomers, LVE shows both glassy and polymer relaxations increasingly delayed with increase of ionic content. DRS shows an α-relaxation process associated with the glass transition, followed by a ∼100× slower α2-relaxation process associated with ion rearrangements, before electrode polarization. A detailed comparison between LVE and DRS reveals that the α2 relaxation in DRS corresponds to a characteristic modulus of kT per ionic group, strongly suggesting that the molecular origin of the α2 relaxation is the dissociation/association of ion pairs from/into the ionic clusters. Based on this molecular picture, we can predict satisfactorily the LVE of the samples using a sticky Rouse model by setting the α2 relaxation time as the lifetime of ionic associations. For ionomers based on poly(ethylene oxide), the asso.
Effects of CYP3A43 Expression on Cell Proliferation and Migration of Lung Adenocarcinoma and Its Clinical Significance

The cytochrome P450s (CYP450s) include key oxidative enzymes involved in the metabolism of various carcinogens and anticancer drugs. Bioinformatic studies have demonstrated the association of CYP3A43 with liver cancer and ovarian cancer. However, the biological function of CYP3A43 in tumor progression remains unclear. To further reveal the role of CYP3A43 in tumor progression, we first analyzed the data from the UALCAN database and found that CYP3A43 was negatively correlated to the cancer staging and lymph node metastasis of lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD). We established stable CYP3A43-knockdown LUAD H1299 cell line and found that its knockdown enhanced cell proliferation, colony formation, and migration in vitro, and promoted the growth of tumor xenograft in vivo. Interestingly, when CYP3A43 was ectopically-expressed in the LUAD cell lines, decreased cell proliferation and ERK1/2 phosphorylation level were observed. Lastly, we also identified CYP3A43 co-expressed genes in LUAD from LinkedOmics database followed by GO and KEGG analyses. In conclusion, our results indicate the unprecedented role of CYP3A43 in the suppression of LUAD and provide new possibilities for targeted therapy of this life-threatening disease.
A variant of guanidine-IV riboswitches exhibits evidence of a distinct ligand specificity

ABSTRACT Riboswitches are regulatory RNAs that specifically bind a small molecule or ion. Like metabolite-binding proteins, riboswitches can evolve new ligand specificities, and some examples of this phenomenon have been validated. As part of work based on comparative genomics to discover novel riboswitches, we encountered a candidate riboswitch with striking similarities to the recently identified guanidine-IV riboswitch. This candidate riboswitch, the Gd4v motif, is predicted in four distinct bacterial phyla, thus almost as widespread as the guanidine-IV riboswitch. Bioinformatic and experimental analysis suggest that the Gd4v motif is a riboswitch that binds a ligand other than guanidine. It is found associated with gene classes that differ from genes regulated by confirmed guanidine riboswitches. In inline-probing assays, we showed that free guanidine binds only weakly to one of the tested sequences of the variant. Further tested compounds did not show binding, attenuation of transcription termination, or activation of a genetic reporter construct. We characterized an N-acetyltransferase frequently associated with the Gd4v motif and compared its substrate preference to an N-acetyltransferase that occurs under control of guanidine-IV riboswitches. The substrates of this Gd4v-motif-associated enzyme did not show activity for Gd4v RNA binding or transcription termination. Hence, the ligand of the candidate riboswitch motif remains unidentified. The variant RNA motif is predominantly found in gut metagenome sequences, hinting at a ligand that is highly relevant in this environment. This finding is a first step to determining the identity of this unknown ligand, and understanding how guanidine-IV-riboswitch-like structures can evolve to bind different ligands.
Evolutionary model of flexible exponential function to characterize decay pattern of OCT signal in turbid tissues

Conventional analyses of OCT signal measurements resolve the signal decay profile in terms of single discrete exponential function with distinct exponential model. In symmetrical medium, mono-exponential decay function can appear to provide a well fit to OCT signal decay data, but the assuption of symmetrical components is essentially arbitrary and is often erroneous. Actually, the real biological samples such as tissue contained more complex components and are more heterogeneous. To avoid the shortages of mono-exponential decay function fitting to OCT signal decay data from heterogeneous biological tissues, a novel model of flexible exponential function has been developed. The main idea of the flexible exponential function modle is based on the assuption that heterogeneous biological tissue can be considered as a multi-layered tissue. Each layer is symmetric and the OCT signal decay profile in each layer obeies to a distinct single exponential function. If we can find out all the distinct single exponential function for each layer, the total flexible exponential function is determined by summing up all the single exponential functions. As pilot studies on the practical application of flexibleexponential decay model for monitoring and quantifying the diffusion of different analytes in turbid biological tissues in vivo by using OCT system, we demonstrate an experiment of monitoring of glucose diffusion in agar gel. In addition, the flexible-exponential decay model can provide a direct measure of the heterogeneity of the sample, and the analysis of turbid tissues OCT map using the flexible-exponential decay model can reveal subtle tissue differences that other models fail to show.