Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Oscillatory electro-osmotic flow through a slit channel with slipping stripes on walls

A theoretical model is presented in this paper for time-oscillating electro-osmotic flow through a plane channel bounded by two parallel plates, which are patterned with periodic stripes of distinct hydrodynamic slippage and wall potential. The flow is driven by oscillatory pressure gradient and electric field of the same frequency in the axial direction. Flows that are longitudinal or transverse to the stripes are investigated. Based on the Debye–Hückel approximation, and assuming Stokes flow, the electric potential and the velocity fields are found by the methods of eigenfunction expansion and point collocation. The phenomenological coefficients of the Onsager relations for the fluid and current fluxes are deduced as functions of the channel height, the area fraction of wall with slippage, the intrinsic slip length, the Debye parameter, the zeta potentials and the oscillation parameter. Considering several kinds of wall patterns, we extend the theoretical limits in the steady-flow regime to the oscillatory-flow regime. For a uniformly charged wall, the effective slip length obtained from the hydrodynamic problem can still be used directly in the electro-osmotic flow as if the wall were uniformly slipping. When the slipping stripes are perfectly slipping but uncharged, the presence of such stripes will always have a decreasing effect on the streaming conductance, unlike the steady case in which it gives no net effect on the flow in the limit of a very thin double layer. Furthermore, we confirm the presence of a threshold frequency, beyond which the flow will diminish significantly. The slipping fraction of the wall will always introduce a phase lag to the response and lower the threshold frequency. Increasing the wall potential in the presence of slippage can appreciably increase the streaming conductance and the phase lag.
A reevaluation of the infrared-radio correlation for spiral galaxies

The infrared radio correlation has been reexamined for a sample of 237 optically bright spiral galaxies which range from 10 to the 8th to 10 to the 11th solar luminosities in far-infrared luminosity. The slope of the correlation is not unity. A simple model in which dust heating by both star formation and the interstellar radiation field contribute to the far-infrared luminosity can account for the nonunity slope. The model differs from previous two component models, however, in that the relative contribution of the two components is independent of far-infrared color temperature, but is dependent on the far-infrared luminosity.
Ultra-low noise and exceptional uniformity of SensL C-series SiPM sensors

SensL C-Series Silicon Photomultiplier (SiPM) sensors are fabricated in a high-volume CMOS foundry to a custom SensL process, and packaged as a reflow solderable surface mount device. Advances in SiPM production have resulted in significant improvement in PDE, dark current as well as tighter breakdown voltage uniformity for the C-Series SiPM sensors. The SiPM are fabricated with a shallow P-on-N junction optimized for the detection of shorter wavelength photons, with a peak PDE of 41% at 420nm and excellent sensitivity extending to wavelengths <300nm. The dark currents have been reduced through the reduction of damage during semiconductor processing and an order of magnitude reduction has been achieved. The breakdown voltage variation has been improved through process optimization to minimize variations. With these process improvements typical dark count rates of ~30kHz/mm2 are achieved simultaneously with breakdown voltage uniformity of ±213mV demonstrated. In addition, application specific measurements of CRT (Coincidence Resolving Time) that are relevant to PET (positron emission tomography) will be shown to be 210ps at 7.5V overvoltage. In addition to device characterization work, this paper will address the wafer-level fabrication and testing, package level testing required by high volume SiPM sensor applications.
Curcumin for the treatment of COVID‐19 patients: A meta‐analysis of randomized controlled trials

Curcumin is a low‐cost and easily accessible therapeutic option for COVID‐19 patients. We aimed to conduct a meta‐analysis to assess the effect of curcumin on clinical outcomes in COVID‐19 patients. Various databases, including PubMed, the Cochrane Library and Embase were searched from inception until October 2022 for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating curcumin use in COVID‐19 patients. Results from 13 RCTs were pooled using R software version 4.1. 0. Curcumin reduced the risk of all‐cause mortality (RR 0.38; 95% CI: 0.20–0.72; moderate certainty of evidence), and patients with no recovery status (RR 0.54; 95% CI: 0.42–0.70; moderate certainty of evidence) but had no effect on the incidence of mechanical ventilation and hospitalization, and the rate of a positive viral PCR test. The results of subgroup analysis suggested a higher benefit with early administration of curcumin (within 5 days of onset of symptoms) and with the use of combination regimens. Curcumin is likely to be of benefit in mild‐to‐moderate COVID‐19 patients, but large‐scale RCTs are needed to confirm these findings. The limitations of our meta‐analysis include the small sample sizes of the included RCTs and the variable formulations of curcumin used across the studies.
Enhancement of self-Kerr nonlinearity via electromagnetically induced transparency in a five-level cascade system: an analytical approach

We propose to use a five-level cascade system to enhance self-Kerr nonlinearity under an electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) condition. Using density-matrix theory, an expression of the self-Kerr nonlinear coefficient for a weak probe light is derived. Variations of the self-Kerr coefficient with respect to the frequency and intensity of a strong coupling light are investigated. The Kerr nonlinearity is basically modified and enhanced greatly in the spectral regions corresponding to EIT transparent windows. Furthermore, the sign, slope, and magnitude of the self-Kerr coefficient can be controlled with the frequency and intensity of the coupling light. Such a controllable Kerr nonlinearity can find interesting applications in optoelectronic devices working with low light intensity at multiple frequencies.
Comparative efficacy for different age groups of psychological or psychosocial treatments on post-traumatic stress disorder: protocol for systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression analysis

Introduction It remains unknown whether psychological or psychosocial treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have comparable effects across the life span. This study aims at comparing the effects of psychological/psychosocial treatments for PTSD between different age groups of youth, early-middle adults and late adults. Methods and analysis A systematic search will be conducted among thirteen electronic databases, including Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), MEDLINE, PsycINFO, EMBASE, ERIC, PubMed, SCOPUS, Web of Science, Published International Literature on Traumatic Stress, China National Knowledge Infrastructure Database, the Wanfang database, the Chinese Scientific Journal Database (VIP Database) and ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, from inception to 15 May 2022. Electronic searches will be supplemented by a comprehensive grey literature search in Conference proceedings and trial registries. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) comparing psychological or psychosocial treatments for PTSD with control conditions in all age groups will be included. The primary outcome is the between-treatments efficacy for PTSD that refers to the outcomes of the RCTs included in the meta-analysis. Effect sizes will be calculated for all comparisons and pooled with a fixed effects model or a random effects model. Differences in the efficacy of psychological/psychosocial therapies for PTSD across the age groups will be examined by stratified analyses and meta-regression analyses. Ethics and dissemination Data used in this study will be anonymised. These data will not be used for other purposes than research. Authors who supply the data will be acknowledged. The authors declare that no conflicts of interest exist. The findings of this study will be disseminated through briefing reports, publications and presentations. Trial registration number CRD42022334305.
Experiences of, and motivations for, disclosing HIV to social and familial networks: considering the social and relational domains of HIV disclosure

Abstract For people living with HIV, decisions about when, how and who to tell about their HIV status can involve navigating complex social, legal and health domains. With a focus on disclosure to broader social and familial networks, we explored the experiences of, and motivations for, HIV (non-)disclosure among recently diagnosed people living with HIV in Australia. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 35 people diagnosed with HIV from 2016 onwards, of whom 25 completed follow-up interviews. Participants commonly reported anticipating negative responses and rejection from others when considering whether to disclose their HIV status. Some participants also took on the role of ensuring others’ wellbeing when disclosing (or not), even as they themselves needed emotional support. Finally, some participants felt it important to be open about their HIV status to raise awareness of HIV and challenge HIV-related stigma. Our findings highlight the complex relational and social contexts that shape HIV disclosure. In addition to supporting individual people living with HIV when disclosing, we argue that educational programmes that target the broader, HIV-negative population are needed to shift the social landscape in which people living with HIV disclose.
Using ICD-9 diagnostic codes for external validation of topic models derived from primary care electronic medical record clinical text data

Background/Objectives: Unsupervised topic models are often used to facilitate improved understanding of large unstructured clinical text datasets. In this study we investigated how ICD-9 diagnostic codes, collected alongside clinical text data, could be used to establish concurrent-, convergent- and discriminant-validity of learned topic models. Design/Setting: Retrospective open cohort design. Data were collected from primary care clinics located in Toronto, Canada between 01/01/2017 through 12/31/2020. Methods: We fit a non-negative matrix factorization topic model, with K = 50 latent topics/themes, to our input document term matrix (DTM). We estimated the magnitude of association between each Boolean-valued ICD-9 diagnostic code and each continuous latent topical vector. We identified ICD-9 diagnostic codes most strongly associated with each latent topical vector; and qualitatively interpreted how these codes could be used for external validation of the learned topic model. Results: The DTM consisted of 382,666 documents and 2210 words/tokens. We correlated concurrently assigned ICD-9 diagnostic codes with learned topical vectors, and observed semantic agreement for a subset of latent constructs (e.g. conditions of the breast, disorders of the female genital tract, respiratory disease, viral infection, eye/ear/nose/throat conditions, conditions of the urinary system, and dermatological conditions, etc.). Conclusions: When fitting topic models to clinical text corpora, researchers can leverage contemporaneously collected electronic medical record data to investigate the external validity of fitted latent variable models.
On the approximation of miscible displacement in porous media by a method of characteristics combined with a mixed method

A miscible displacement of one incompressible fluid by another is modeled by a coupled system of partial differential equations. The approximation of this system using a Galerkin method that makes use of a modified method of characteristics for the concentration equation combined with a mixed finite element method for the pressure equation has been analyzed in [Comput. Math. Appl. Mech. Engrg. , 47 (1984), pp. 73–92]. In this work, we prove optimal error estimates in $L^2 $ for this algorithm under milder restrictions in the time step than those required in the previous analysis.In particular, in the two-dimensional case our estimates are valid when the time and space discretization parameters are of the same order, which is a reasonable assumption in practice.
Positive solutions for systems of m‐point nonlinear boundary value problems

Abstract Positive solutions (u(t), v(t)) are sought for the nonlocal (m‐point) nonlinear system of boundary value problems, u” + λa(t)f(v) = 0, v” + λb(t)g(u) = 0, for 0 < t < 1, and satisfying, u(0) = 0, u(1) = . An application of a Guo‐Krasnosel'skii fixed point theorem yields sufficient values of λ for which such positive solutions exist.
Antiproliferative and apoptotic effects of conditioned medium released from human amniotic epithelial stem cells on breast and cervical cancer cells

Introduction Human amniotic membrane (hAM) and its cells have been proposed for several clinical applications, including cancer therapy. However, reports on the anticancer effects of human amniotic epithelial stem cells-conditioned media (hAECs-CM) are limited. This work aims to evaluate the anticancer effects of hAECs-CM on cervical cancer and breast cancer cell lines in vitro. Methods Human term placentas were gained from uncomplicated Cesarean sections from healthy donor women. After amnion peeling from the chorion, its epithelial stem cells were isolated and cultured, and its conditioned medium (CM) was collected for experiments. MTT assay was performed to assess cancer cells viability. Migration rate of cancer cells was examined via wound healing assay. Cell-cycle distribution and apoptosis were determined using flow cytometry. Results Based on MTT assay hAECs-CM was cytotoxic against cancerous cell lines in a dose-time-dependent manner. After 48 h of treatment with hAECs-CM pure, the cell viability of breast cancer cells includes MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 reached to 73.2% and 65.5%, respectively. In the same situation, HeLa cervical cancer cell line revealed the lowest viability by 47.3%. The wound-healing assay displayed an incomplete wound closure of scratched MDA-MB-231 cells and significant inhibition of cell migration after hAECs-CM treatment. The results also revealed that hAECs-CM exerted anti-proliferation activity by prompting cell cycle arrest and apoptosis of cancer cells. Conclusions: hAECs-CM is a potent candidate for inducing apoptosis and simultaneously inhibition of the proliferation and migration of cancer cells via inhibiting cell cycle blockade.
Novel fast block motion estimation using diamond‐arc‐hexagon search patterns

Abstract This work presents a novel block motion estimation (ME) approach, diamond‐arc‐hexagon search (DAHS), which uses diamond, arc, and hexagon search patterns to accomplish the fast searching process. According to the characteristic of the center‐based motion vector distribution for the real‐world video sequence, DAHS employs a small diamond pattern extended hexagon search to refine the central area search. Furthermore for estimation in large motion situations, the strategy of the large diamond‐to‐arc search can preserve good performance. Experimental results indicate that DAHS is suitable for both (quasi‐) stationary and large motion searches. DAHS outperforms the efficient three‐step (E3SS) and hexagon‐based search (HEXBS) in prediction quality, and improves the searching speed about 9% compared to E3SS. The proposed algorithm was tested using several sequences and delivered excellent performance in search speed and prediction of video quality. The DAHS can be applied to real‐time video processes, such as H.264/MPEG‐4 advanced video coding (AVC) and scalable video coding (SVC).
Evidence for Spinozan “Unbelieving” in the Right Inferior Prefrontal Cortex

Abstract Humans can think about possible states of the world without believing in them, an important capacity for high-level cognition. Here, we use fMRI and a novel “shell game” task to test two competing theories about the nature of belief and its neural basis. According to the Cartesian theory, information is first understood, then assessed for veracity, and ultimately encoded as either believed or not believed. According to the Spinozan theory, comprehension entails belief by default, such that understanding without believing requires an additional process of “unbelieving. ” Participants (n = 70) were experimentally induced to have beliefs, desires, or mere thoughts about hidden states of the shell game (e.g., believing that the dog is hidden in the upper right corner). That is, participants were induced to have specific “propositional attitudes” toward specific “propositions” in a controlled way. Consistent with the Spinozan theory, we found that thinking about a proposition without believing it is associated with increased activation of the right inferior frontal gyrus. This was true whether the hidden state was desired by the participant (because of reward) or merely thought about. These findings are consistent with a version of the Spinozan theory whereby unbelieving is an inhibitory control process. We consider potential implications of these results for the phenomena of delusional belief and wishful thinking.
Metabolic side effects in persons with schizophrenia during mid‐ to long‐term treatment with antipsychotics: a network meta‐analysis of randomized controlled trials

Metabolic side effects of antipsychotic drugs can have serious health consequences and may increase mortality. Although persons with schizophrenia often take these drugs for a long time, their mid‐ to long‐term metabolic effects have been studied little so far. This study aimed to evaluate the mid‐ to long‐term metabolic side effects of 31 antipsychotics in persons with schizophrenia by applying a random‐effects Bayesian network meta‐analysis. We searched the Cochrane Schizophrenia Group's Study‐Based Register of Trials (up to April 27, 2020) and PubMed (up to June 14, 2021). We included published and unpublished, open and blinded randomized controlled trials with a study duration >13 weeks which compared any antipsychotic in any form of administration with another antipsychotic or with placebo in participants diagnosed with schizophrenia. The primary outcome was weight gain measured in kilograms. Secondary outcomes included “number of participants with weight gain”, fasting glucose, total cholesterol, low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol, high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol, and triglycerides. We identified 137 eligible trials (with 35,007 participants) on 31 antipsychotics, with a median follow‐up of 45 weeks. Chlorpromazine produced the most weight gain (mean difference to placebo: 5.13 kg, 95% credible interval, CrI: 1.98 to 8.30), followed by clozapine (4.21 kg, 95% CrI: 3.03 to 5.42), olanzapine (3.82 kg, 95% CrI: 3.15 to 4.50), and zotepine (3.87 kg, 95% CrI: 2.14 to 5.58). The findings did not substantially change in sensitivity and network meta‐regression analyses, although enriched design, drug company sponsorship, and the use of observed case instead of intention‐to‐treat data modified the mean difference in weight gain to some extent. Antipsychotics with more weight gain were often also among the drugs with worse outcome in fasting glucose and lipid parameters. The confidence in the evidence ranged from low to moderate. In conclusion, antipsychotic drugs differ in their propensity to induce metabolic side effects in mid‐ to long‐term treatment. Given that schizophrenia is often a chronic disorder, these findings should be given more consideration than short‐term data in drug choice.
Right amygdala–right precuneus connectivity is associated with childhood trauma in major depression patients and healthy controls

Abstract The present study investigated the effect of childhood trauma (CT) on amygdala and hippocampus functional connectivity (FC) and the association with clinical presentations of major depressive disorder (MDD). Participants included 73 MDD patients (42 with moderate-to-severe CT and 31 with no or low CT) and 64 healthy controls (HC; 30 with moderate-to-severe CT and 34 with no or low CT). Seed-based whole-brain resting-state FC analyses were performed with seeds located in amygdala and hippocampus. Individuals with moderate-to-severe CT, irrespective of MDD diagnosis, had decreased right amygdala–right precuneus connectivity compared to those with no or low CT. Right amygdala–right precuneus connectivity was significantly correlated with physical and social trait anhedonia in MDD. Mediation effects of this FC on relationship between CT (specifically neglect but not abuse) and trait anhedonia in MDD were significant. MDD patients demonstrated increased right amygdala–left middle frontal gyrus FC, decreased right amygdala–right medial superior frontal gyrus (mSFG) FC and decreased right hippocampus–bilateral mSFG FC relative to HC. Findings highlight the effect of CT on right amygdala–right precuneus FC irrespective of MDD diagnosis. FC of right amygdala–right precuneus may be involved in the mechanism linking CT and depression through its association with trait anhedonia.
Toward naturalistic neuroscience: Mechanisms underlying the flattening of brain hierarchy in movie-watching compared to rest and task

Identifying the functional specialization of the brain has moved from using cognitive tasks and resting state to using ecological relevant, naturalistic movies. We leveraged a large-scale neuroimaging dataset to directly investigate the hierarchical reorganization of functional brain activity when watching naturalistic films compared to performing seven cognitive tasks and resting. A thermodynamics-inspired whole-brain model paradigm revealed the generative underlying mechanisms for changing the balance in causal interactions between brain regions in different conditions. Paradoxically, the hierarchy is flatter for movie-watching, and the level of nonreversibility is significantly smaller in comparison to both rest and tasks, where the latter in turn have the highest levels of hierarchy and nonreversibility. The underlying mechanisms were revealed by the model-based generative effective connectivity (GEC). Naturalistic films could therefore provide a fast and convenient way to measure important changes in GEC (integrating functional and anatomical connectivity) found in, for example, neuropsychiatric disorders. Overall, this study demonstrates the benefits of moving toward a more naturalistic neuroscience.
Exact Solutions of Two Ideal Cases in Grain Boundary Diffusion Problem and the Application to Sectioning Method

Exact solutions of grain boundary diffusion based on the two mathematical conditions assumed for the surface source are discussed for the purpose of application to the experiments by means of sectioning method. It is concluded that the result obtained by either of these solutions is in effect unaffected by possible deviations from the ideal condition, and one of them, the “instantaneous source” solution, is the most successful one in analyzing the problem. The expression for the solutions can be transformed to another type of expression more appropriate to the grain boundary diffusion, and some discussions and numerical evaluations of these solutions over a more extensive range of parameters than previous are given.