Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Milnor degree of a 3‐manifold

The Milnor degree of a 3‐manifold is an invariant that records the maximum simplicity, in terms of higher‐order linking, of any link in the 3‐sphere that can be surgered to give the manifold. This invariant is investigated in the context of torsion linking forms, nilpotent quotients of the fundamental group, Massey products and quantum invariants, and the existence of 3‐manifolds with any prescribed Milnor degree and first Betti number is established. Along the way, it is shown that the number Mrk of linearly independent Milnor invariants of degree k, for r‐component links in the 3‐sphere whose lower degree invariants vanish, is positive except in the classically known cases (when r = 1, and when r = 2 with k = 2, 4 or 6).
Beam based calibration for optical imaging device

Well calibrated optical imaging devices are needed in 3DTV. An optical imaging device, for example camera and projector, maps beams in object space into 2D points in image space. The mapping function, or lens distortion, must be calibrated in order to build the correct object-image relation. Current calibration methods try to model the distortion by analytical functions. This will easily fail when the distortion is irregular, especially near the edge of the view field. In this paper, we propose a new flexible technique to easily and accurately calibrate single or combined optical imaging devices. We directly calculate the beam¿s vector in a device-based coordinate system for each sensor pixel element without analytically modeling the lens distortion. A TFT monitor, which displays fringe patterns, is used as calibration object. The imaging device is mounted on a computer controlled shift/rotation setup and observes the monitor at few (>2) different positions. The calibration for a fringe projection system has been implemented and the results will be demonstrated and compared to classical techniques to show the improvement of the new technique.
Ultrawideband Underwater Real-Time 3-D Acoustical Imaging With Ultrasparse Arrays

Large 2-D arrays are indispensable for underwater high-resolution real-time 3-D acoustical imaging, which however must be thinned significantly to avoid an overly high cost. The existing methods have decreased the number of elements from tens of thousands to several hundreds, which is still excessive for the implementation of underwater 3-D acoustical imaging system. Reported to be able to achieve an ultralow hardware cost in other fields, the ultrawideband (UWB) technology is introduced in this paper for the purpose of underwater real-time 3-D acoustical imaging. First, this paper reveals that the UWB technology is feasible for underwater 3-D acoustical imaging. Second, by analyzing the beam-steering properties of UWB underwater 2-D arrays, this paper demonstrates that although tens of elements are enough to achieve the required resolution and sidelobe level, they cannot guarantee the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) for high imaging quality. Third, this paper proposes to employ the modulated excitation technique to increase the SNR in the underwater application. The analysis of computational load indicates that the modulated excitation technique has few influences on the implementation of underwater real-time 3-D acoustical imaging systems. At last, this paper presents a prototype of UWB underwater real-time 3-D acoustical imaging system with a 32-elements annular array, of which the performance is evaluated to verify the advantages of applying the UWB technology to underwater real-time 3-D acoustical imaging.
An introduction to heart rate variability: methodological considerations and clinical applications

Heart rate variability (HRV), the beat-to-beat variation in either heart rate or the duration of the R-R interval, has become a popular clinical and investigational tool (Task Force of the European Society of Cardiology and the North American Society of Pacing and Electrophysiology, 1996; Billman, 2011). Indeed, the term “heart rate variability” yields nearly 18,000 “hits” when placed in the pubmed search engine. These temporal fluctuations in heart rate exhibit a marked synchrony with respiration (increasing during inspiration and decreasing during expiration—the so called respiratory sinus arrhythmia) and are widely believed to reflect changes in cardiac autonomic regulation (Billman, 2011). Although the exact contributions of the parasympathetic and the sympathetic divisions of the autonomic nervous system to this variability are controversial and remain the subject of active investigation and debate, a number of time and frequency domain techniques have been developed to provide insight into cardiac autonomic regulation in both health and disease (Billman, 2011). It is the purpose of this book to provide a comprehensive assessment of the strengths and limitations of HRV techniques. Particular emphasis will be placed on the application of HRV techniques in the clinic and on the interaction between prevailing heart rate and HRV. This book contains both state-of-the art review and original research articles that have been grouped into two main sections: Methodological Considerations and Clinical Application. A brief summary of the chapters contained in each section follows below.
Teachers' summative practices and assessment for learning – tensions and synergies

This article concerns the use of assessment for learning (formative assessment) and assessment of learning (summative assessment), and how one can affect the other in either positive or negative ways. It makes a case for greater use of teachers' judgements in summative assessment, the reasons for this being found in the research that is reviewed in the first sections of the article. This research, concerning the impact of summative assessment, particularly high-stakes testing and examinations, on students' motivation for learning and on teachers and the curriculum, reveals some seriously detrimental effects. Suggestions for changes that would reduce the negative effects include making greater use of teachers' summative assessment. However, this raises other issues, about the reliability and validity of teachers' assessment. Research on ways of improving the dependability of teachers' summative assessment suggests actions that would equally support more effective use of assessment to help learning. The later sections of the article address the issues and opportunities relating to the possibility of assessment that serves both formative and summative purposes, with examples of what this means in practice, leading to the conclusion that the distinction between formative and summative purposes of assessment should be maintained, while assessment systems should be planned and implemented to enable evidence of students' ongoing learning to be used for both purposes.
Analysis of Pure Tar Substances (Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons) in the Gas Stream Using Ultraviolet Visible (UV–Vis) Spectroscopy and Multivariate Curve Resolution (MCR)

The analysis of tar, mostly characterized as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), describes a topic that has been researched for years. An online analysis of tar in the gas stream in particular is needed to characterize the tar conversion or formation in the biomass gasification process. The online analysis in the gas is carried out with ultraviolet–visible (UV–Vis) spectroscopy (190–720 nm). This online analysis is performed with a measuring cell developed by the Fraunhofer Institute for Chemical Technology (ICT). To this day, online tar measurements using UV–Vis spectroscopy have not been carried out in detail. Therefore, PAHs are analyzed as follows. The measurements are split into different steps. The first step to prove the online method is to vaporize single tar substances. These experiments show that a qualitative analysis of PAHs in the gas stream with the used measurement setup is possible. Furthermore, it is shown that the method provides very exact results, so that a differentiation of various PAHs is possible. The next step is to vaporize a PAH mixture. This step consists of vaporizing five pure substances almost simultaneously. The interpretation of the resulting data is made using a chemometric interpretation method, the multivariate curve resolution (MCR). The verification of the calculated results is the main aim of this experiment. It has been shown that the tar mixture can be analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively (in arbitrary units) in detail using the MCR. Finally it is the main goal of this paper to show the first steps in the applicability of the UV-Vis spectroscopy and the measurement setup on online tar analysis in view of characterizing the biomass gasification process. Due to that, the gasification plant (at the laboratory scale), developed and constructed by the Fraunhofer ICT, has been used to vaporize these substances. Using this gasification plant for the experiments enables the usage of the measurement setup also for the spectroscopic analysis of the tar formation during the biomass gasification.
Auricular Acupuncture and Vagal Regulation

Auricular acupuncture has been utilized in the treatment of diseases for thousands of years. Dr. Paul Nogier firstly originated the concept of an inverted fetus map on the external ear. In the present study, the relationship between the auricular acupuncture and the vagal regulation has been reviewed. It has been shown that auricular acupuncture plays a role in vagal activity of autonomic functions of cardiovascular, respiratory, and gastrointestinal systems. Mechanism studies suggested that afferent projections from especially the auricular branch of the vagus nerve (ABVN) to the nucleus of the solitary tract (NTS) form the anatomical basis for the vagal regulation of auricular acupuncture. Therefore, we proposed the “auriculovagal afferent pathway” (AVAP): both the autonomic and the central nervous system could be modified by auricular vagal stimulation via projections from the ABVN to the NTS. Auricular acupuncture is also proposed to prevent neurodegenerative diseases via vagal regulation. There is a controversy on the specificity and the efficacy of auricular acupoints for treating diseases. More clinical RCT trials on auricular acupuncture and experimental studies on the mechanism of auricular acupuncture should be further investigated.
Self-Perceptions of College Female Athletes, Exercisers, and Non-Exercisers of their Sport Comptence, Physical Conditioning, Body Attractiveness, Physical Strength, and Overall Physical Self-Worth

The purpose of this study was to further understand physical self-perception differences between athletes and exercisers, athletes and non-exercisers, and exercisers and non-exercisers and investigate the influence of each of the four subdomains (i.e., sport competence, physical conditioning, body attractiveness, and physical strength) on college females’ overall physical self-worth. The Physical Self-Perception Profile was used to survey female college students attending one Midwestern University. Self-perceptions of the subdomains of physical strength and body attractiveness were statistically significant positive predictors of female college students’ overall physical self-worth for all three groups. That is, female athletes, exercisers, and non-exercisers who perceived their body attractiveness and physical strength positively were more likely to perceive their overall physical self-worth more positively. However, no statistically significant differences were reported on the subdomain of body attractiveness among any of the three groups. Statistically significant differences were reported between athletes and exercisers, athletes and non-exercisers, and exercisers and non-exercisers on self-perceptions of their physical strength. Therefore, it was concluded that overall physical self-worth could be improved when exercise programs and sport competition focused on the development of physical
Facile Synthesis of Bimetallic Pt-Ag/Graphene Composite and Its Electro-Photo-Synergistic Catalytic Properties for Methanol Oxidation

A Pt-Ag/graphene composite (Pt-Ag/GNs) was synthesized by the facile aqueous solution method, in which Ag+ was first transformed into Ag2O under UV light irradiation, and then Ag2O, Pt2+, and graphene oxide (GO) were simultaneously reduced by formic acid. It was found that Pt-Ag bimetallic nanoparticles were highly dispersed on the surface of graphene, and their size distribution was narrow with an average diameter of 3.3 nm. Electrocatalytic properties of the Pt-Ag/GNs composite were investigated by cyclic voltammograms (CVs), chronoamperometry (CA), CO-stripping voltammograms, and electrochemical impedance spectrum (EIS) techniques. It was shown that the Pt-Ag/GNs composite has much higher catalytic activity and stability for the methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) and better tolerance toward CO poisoning when compared with Pt/GNs and the commercially available Johnson Matthey 20% Pt/C catalyst (Pt/C-JM). Furthermore, the Pt-Ag/GNs composite showed efficient electro-photo-synergistic catalysis for MOR under UV or visible light irradiation. Particularly in the presence of UV irradiation, the Pt-Ag/GNs composite exhibited an ultrahigh mass activity of 1842.4 mA·mg−1, nearly 2.0 times higher than that without light irradiation (838.3 mA·mg−1).
Basics of Surgical-Site Infection Surveillance

Abstract Surgical-site infections, the third most common class of nosocomial infections, cause substantial morbidity and mortality and increase hospital costs. Surveillance programs can lead to reductions in surgical-site infection rates of 35% to 50%. Herein, we will discuss the practical aspects of implementing a hospital-based surveillance program for surgical-site infections. We will review surveillance methods, patient populations that should be screened, and interventions that could reduce infection rates.
Tibia Bone Segmentation in X-ray Images - A Comparative Analysis

Segmentation techniques in the medical field are used to segment anatomical structures or other region of interest from medical images obtained from different modalities. This paper deals with segmentation techniques like manual thresholding, Otsu thresholding, watershed, traditional active contours and growcut in X-ray modality, for segmenting the tibia bone. This paper analyzes the performance of these algorithms on a database of 48 clinical X-ray images. The images have been obtained from different X-ray machines and vary in their resolution and dimensions. The performance of the algorithms have been measured and validated empirically. General Terms Medical imaging, machine vision, biomedical image analysis.
RECREATING THE QUANTITATIVE CLASSROOM FOR ADULT LEARNERS

Are college students "child" learners or "adult" learners? Student engagement strategies have long been used in quantitative classrooms, but the assumption of instructors has largely remained the person primarily responsible for learning is the instructor. This paper suggests college students in the business quantitative analysis course should be provided an adult learning environment. We further suggest this can be accomplished by adopting a problem-based learning approach, which in turn leads to better mastery of the subject matter and a better satisfied student.
Determinants of HIV Risk and Protective Needle-Sharing Behaviors Among Drug Injectors

Few studies have tested a broad range of theory-based determinants of injection-related risk and protective behaviors. The current study hypothesize relationships among attitudinal beliefs, normative influences, perceived self-efficacy, intentions, and performing these behaviors consistent with the theory of planned behavior and related models. The conceptual model was tested in a cross-sectional sample of 895 drug injectors recruited from street settings in the southwestern United States and who completed a face-to-face interview. Structural equation modeling results showed intention and self-efficacy most consistently predicted needle sharing and bleaching considering all other model variables. Discussion focuses on the value of using these theoretical concepts to examine needle sharing and other behaviors among injection drug users and their relevance for developing HIV-reduction interventions.
A Thousand Words Are Worth a Picture

In the experiment reported here, approximately 1,000 words were presented to 75 participants in a go/no-go lexical decision task while event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded. Partial correlations were computed for variables selected to reflect orthographic, lexical, and semantic processing, as well as for a novel measure of the visual complexity of written words. Correlations were based on the item-level ERPs at each electrode site and time slice while a false-discovery-rate correction was applied. Early effects of visual complexity were seen around 50 ms after word onset, followed by the earliest sustained orthographic effects around 100 to 150 ms, with the bulk of orthographic and lexical influences arising after 200 ms. Effects of a semantic variable (concreteness) emerged later, at around 300 ms. The overall time course of these ERP effects is in line with hierarchical, cascaded, interactive accounts of word recognition, in which fast feed-forward influences are consolidated by top-down feedback via recurrent processing loops.
Creatine kinase system in failing and nonfailing human myocardium.

BACKGROUND The creatine kinase (CK) reaction is important for rapid resynthesis of ATP when the heart increases its work. Studies defining the CK system in human failing and nonfailing myocardium are limited and in conflict. To resolve this conflict, we measured the activities of CK and its isoenzymes and the contents of creatine and CK-B in homogenates of human myocardium. METHODS AND RESULTS Myocardium was sampled from 23 subjects who underwent heart transplant, 36 subjects maintained in an intensive care unit before heart harvesting, 13 accident victims, and 2 patients undergoing heart surgery. Since the characteristics of myocardium of potential organ donors differed from those of myocardium of accident victims, data are presented for three groups: failing, donor, and control. CK activity was 7.7 +/- 1.9 and 6.0 +/- 1.4 IU/mg protein in left (LV) and right (RV) ventricles of failing, 9.4 +/- 2.5 and 10.7 +/- 2 IU/mg protein in LV and RV of donor, and 11.6 +/- 2.4 IU/mg protein in LV of control hearts. CK-MM and the mitochondrial isoenzyme activities were lower in failing and donor LV, and CK-MB activity and CK-B content were higher in failing and donor hearts. Creatine contents were 64 +/- 25 and 56 +/- 18.6 nmol/mg protein in LV and RV of failing, 96 +/- 30 and 110 +/- 24 nmol/mg protein in LV and RV of donor, and 131 +/- 28 nmol/mg protein in LV of control hearts. CONCLUSIONS In failing and nonfailing donor human myocardium, there is a combined decrease of CK activity and creatine that may impair the ability to deliver ATP to energy-consuming systems.
The Instrumental and Symbolic Functions of Attitudes toward Persons with AIDS1

Five studies explored the psychological bases of attitudes toward persons afflicted with Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). These studies examined both instrumental and symbolic bases of these attitudes. In Studies 1, 2, and 3, both instrumental factors (e.g., beliefs about the probability of one's own child contracting AIDS) and symbolic factors (general attitudes toward homosexuality) independently contributed to the prediction of attitudes toward having one's child attend classes with a nonhomosexual person having AIDS. In Study 4, only attitudes toward homosexuality (symbolic factors) and not beliefs about contagiousness related to students' expressing a desire to transfer from a class with an AIDS-infected professor. In Study 5, subjects role played the situation experienced by subjects in Study 4. A wider array of instrumental concerns was assessed. While both instrumental and symbolic factors were related to attitudes of role-playing subjects, the specific instrumental concerns of importance were related to beliefs about subjects' feeling comfortable with the professor and not the contagiousness of AIDS. Thus, these results paralleled those of Study 4. These findings are discussed with regard to their relevance for understanding the varying functions of attitudes and for understanding the stigmatization of disease victims.
Moral minds: how nature designed our universal sense of right and wrong

Why should moral educators concern themselves with emotion and emotion regulation? Emotion is foundational to cognition, when it is disordered so is cognition. Aristotle emphasised the need to cultivate one’s moral sensibilities (emotions and cognitions), shaping one’s dispositions for morality. However, if a person has been formed physiologically from experience with a reactive stress response, it will be much harder for her to cultivate other-focused moral dispositions. The personal distress that arises during interpersonal conflict will more likely dominate her attention and self-regulatory resources. It may be the case that the moral educator will need to facilitate emotion regulation as part of the educative process (e.g. meditation, deep breathing).
Assessment as a vehicle for learning: extending collaboration into testing

Tertiary educators increasingly recognize the benefits for student learning of collaboration and group work; however, it is commonly perceived that examinations should be completed without the opportunity for interaction with other learners or use of relevant resources. An alternative approach is suggested in this article, based on the sociocultural concept that learning is a fundamentally social process, and on the notion of dynamic assessment (Magnusson et al. 1997). The primary advantage of this approach is that students are given the opportunity to learn during the assessment, rather than simply being penalized for not knowing. Student feedback, both qualitative and quantitative, suggests that learning is significantly enhanced by this approach. Drawbacks include the possibilities of regressive collaboration and student ‘loafing’; however, these concerns can be addressed within the overall assessment context.
Antituberculous Activity and Toxicity of Lupulon for the Mouse.*

Summary Lupulon, a fat-soluble antibiotic derived from hops, has relatively low in vitro activity (1:40,000) as compared with other antituberculous agents. Despite this observation, lupulon (given orally or intramuscularly) was active against experimental mouse infections of M. tuberculosis. Following intramuscular administration, significantly lower numbers of acid-fast organisms occurred in lesions of treated animals. The approximate numbers relative to the control were: In the liver, 34 to 1; heart, 8 to 1; spleen, 4 to 1; and lungs, 4 to 1; but not in the kidneys. In orally treated animals the ratios were: Liver, 10 to 1; heart, 3 to 1; spleen, 10 to 1; lungs, 5 to 1, and kidneys, 2 to 1. The over-all difference was a reduction of approximately 4 to 1 by either route of administration. Lupulon given intramuscularly within its effective range produced some foci of degeneration in renal tubules. Such pathologic changes were not observed in infected animals given this antibiotic orally in effective doses. The single LD50 on intramuscular administration was 600 mg per kilo in mice; on oral application, 1,500 mg per kilo.