Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Smartphone-based individual indoor spatiotemporal behavior analysis

In recent years, the smart city concept and development have attracted a great amount of interests worldwide. One of the bases of the functioning of smart city is the sensing and understanding of elements of cities. People are the dominant component of cities and therefore individual spatiotemporal behavior analysis is the key of such sensing and is important to the development of smart cities. Individual spatiotemporal behavior analysis has been hampered by data collection techniques, which seriously limit the development of theoretical research and application. One challenge of individual spatiotemporal behavior data acquisition is to collect indoor location information. With the development of smartphone and indoor positioning techniques, indoor location of individual private persons can be obtained by smartphones. Moreover, the built-in sensors of the smartphone can be used to detect individuals' behaviors. Therefore, smartphone is becoming the ideal terminal device for individual spatiotemporal behavior data collection. This article discusses the application of smartphone for individual spatiotemporal behavior analysis. It reviews the advances of indoor positioning technology and provides an example of individual spatiotemporal behavior analysis using smartphone, and also addresses the significance and existing problems of smartphone-based individual spatiotemporal behavior analysis. Based on the individual spatiotemporal behavior data collected by smartphones, we can analyze in real time the spatial distribution and behavior patterns of urban residents, which can provide the data for smart city planning, design, and development applications, such as smart transportation, smart security, and smart city management. Based on a large amount of individual spatiotemporal behavior data, we can analyze the space-time characteristics of urban functions,which provide the basis for the construction of smart cities.
CT image reconstruction of coal rock three-dimensional fractures and body fractal dimension under triaxial compression test

The conventional triaxial compression test is conducted on coal specimens,then the destroyed coal specimens are taken to perform CT scanning test,and thus the spatial distributions of fracture within the coal specimens are obtained by importing processed CT images into Mimics10.01. In addition,the body fractal dimension of coal specimens is preliminarily analyzed by self-compiled Matlab program.The results show that under triaxial compression condition,compression and shear failures prevail in coal specimens,and coal specimens exhibit a specific mechanical mechanism with varying confining pressure.The spatial distribution of coal three-dimensional fractures reconstructed by Mimics10.01 indicates that the connectivity rate and bulk density of shear failure plane of coal specimens tend to increase with the confining pressure.And the calculated results of body fractal dimension suggest that the more serious damage inside coal rock,the lower the fractal dimension value.
Young EFL Learners’ Difficulties in Getting English Input after Class: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis

Input plays a significant role in second language acquisition, however, young EFL learners’ input at school is limited. Numbers of studies regarding the improvement of classroom teaching have been carried out, and this research will put focus on children’s English input beyond the classroom, mainly at home. In-depth interviews were conducted to examine the experiences and perceptions of three families (three primary school students and their parents), and interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) was used to explore Chinese young EFL learners’ difficulties in attaining input at home. The findings were that these families mainly encountered three difficulties, which included absence of English guidance at home, strong dependence on school and dilemma in English material selection.
Novel Complementary Resonator for Dielectric Characterization of Substrates Based on Permittivity and Thickness

This article presents a novel complementary resonator featuring high sensitivity, low fabrication cost, and improved performance. The proposed structure consists of a complementary concentric square and circular ring resonator (CCSCRR) with multiple splits to enhance the inductance of the resonator. The proposed CCSCRR is coupled to a microstrip transmission line (MTL) with an impedance of $50 \Omega $ to create a high-sensitivity sensor. The lumped element equivalent circuit is employed to explain the sensor’s operating principle. The geometric parameters of the CCSCRR are optimized to resonate at 15 GHz, and the optimized sensor is fabricated on 0.762-mm-thick dielectric substrate AD250 ( $\varepsilon _{r}$ = 2.5 ± 0.04). Dielectric materials with relative permittivity ranging from 2.5 to 10.2 and thickness from 0.508 to 1.905 mm are employed to investigate the properties of the proposed sensor and to carry out its calibration. Based on the measured resonant frequencies of the CCSCRR sensor when loaded with different materials under test (MUTs), an inverse regression model is constructed to predict the permittivity of the MUT. Comparisons with the state-of-the-art microwave devices show that the proposed design is superior in terms of sensitivity, dielectric characterization reliability, and the applicability scope in terms of the MUT’s thickness and permittivity.
Antibacterial Efficiency of Tanacetum vulgare Essential Oil against ESKAPE Pathogens and Synergisms with Antibiotics

Medicinal plants with multiple targets of action have become one of the most promising solutions in the fight against multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacterial infections. Tanacetum vulgare (Tansy) is one of the medicinal plants with antibacterial qualities that deserve to be studied. Thus, this research takes a closer look at tansy extract’s composition and antibacterial properties, aiming to highlight its potential against clinically relevant bacterial strains. In this respect, the antibacterial test was performed against several drug-resistant pathogenic strains, and we correlated them with the main isolated compounds, demonstrating the therapeutic properties of the extract. The essential oil was extracted via hydrodistillation, and its composition was characterized via gas chromatography. The main isolated compounds known for their antibacterial effects were α-Thujone, β-Thujone, Eucalyptol, Sabinene, Chrysanthenon, Camphor, Linalool oxide acetate, cis-Carveol, trans-Carveyl acetate, and Germacrene. The evaluation of the antibacterial activity was carried out using the Kirby–Bauer and binary microdilution methods on Gram-positive and Gram-negative MDR strains belonging to the ESKAPE group (i.e., Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Enterobacter spp.). Tansy essential oil showed MIC values ranging from 62.5 to 500 μg/mL against the tested strains. Synergistic activity with different classes of antibiotics (penicillins, cephalosporins, carbapenems, monobactams, aminoglycosides, and quinolones) has also been noted. The obtained results demonstrate that tansy essential oil represents a promising lead for developing new antimicrobials active against MDR alone or in combination with antibiotics.
Length-Weight Relationships of 22 commercial fish from Margarita Island, Venezuela

Length-Weight Rela onships (LWR) were calculated for 22 commercial fish species caught by the ar sanal fishing fleet of Margarita Island, Venezuela. A total of 1,610 specimens were analysed, distributed in the following species: Lagocephalus laevigatus, Sphyraena guachancho, S. barracuda, Lutjanus purpureus, L. analis, L. griseus, Rhomboplites aurorubens, Lachnolaimus maximus, Priacanthus arenatus, Scomberomorus cavalla, S. brasiliensis, Euthynnus alle eratus, Auxis thazard, Sarda sarda, Thunnus atlan! cus, Rachycentron canadum, Caranx hippos, C. crysos, Selene setapinnis, Alec! s ciliaris, Trachinotus carolinus and Elops saurus. These length-weight rela onships can be used to improve fish sta s cs because of difficulty in obtaining weight of the fish in field.
Contributions of Slab Fluid, Mantle Wedge and Crust to the Origin of Quaternary Lavas in the NE Japan Arc

Quaternary lavas from the NE Japan arc show geochemical evidence of mixing between mantle-derived basalts and crustal melts at the magmatic front, whereas significant crustal signals are not detected in the rear-arc lavas. The along-arc chemical variations in lavas from the magmatic front are attributable almost entirely to geochemical variations in the crustal melts that were mixed with a common mantle-derived basalt. The mantle-derived basalts have slightly enriched Sr–Pb and depleted Nd isotopic compositions relative to the rear-arc lavas, but the variation is less pronounced if crustal contributions are eliminated. Therefore, the source mantle compositions and slab-derived fluxes are relatively uniform, both across and along the arc. Despite this, incompatible element concentrations are significantly higher in the rear-arc basalts. We examine an open-system, fluid-fluxed melting model, assuming that depleted mid-ocean ridge basalt (MORB)-source mantle melted by the addition of fluids derived from subducted oceanic crust (MORB) and sediment (SED) hybrids at mixing proportions of 7% and 3% SED in the frontal- and rear-arc sources, respectively. The results reproduce the chemical variations found across the NE Japan arc with the conditions: 0.2% fluid flux with degree of melting F ¼ 3% at 2 GPa in the garnet peridotite field for the rear arc, and 0.7% fluid flux with F ¼ 20% at 1 GPa in the spinel peridotite field beneath the magmatic front. The chemical process operating in the mantle wedge requires: (1) various SED–MORB hybrid slab fluid sources; (2) variable amounts of fluid; (3) a common depleted mantle source; (4) different melting parameters to explain across-arc chemical variations.
The Use of Isoflurane and Adjunctive Magnesium Chloride Provides Fast, Effective Anaesthetization of Octopus vulgaris

Simple Summary Anaesthetising invertebrates is a welfare issue, but because there are so many different invertebrates (97% of all animal species), it is of the utmost importance to work out the most appropriate way to anaesthetise each group or even particular species of animals. In order to reduce stress and pain to the animals, clinical anaesthetics offer a standardised approach, given their known and well-studied effects at both system and cellular levels. Here, we show that the clinical anaesthetic isoflurane (1%), often used by veterinarians, can anaesthetise octopuses quickly and efficiently when used in conjunction with 1% magnesium chloride, which acts as a muscle relaxant. Recovery is equally quick, and the whole process from anaesthetisation to recovery is completed in 30 to 35 min, minimising animal stress. Abstract A wide variety of substances have been used to anaesthetise invertebrates, but many are not anaesthetics and merely incapacitate animals rather than preventing pain. In essence, the role of an ideal general anaesthetic is to act as a muscle relaxant, an analgesic, an anaesthetic, and an amnesic. To achieve all these properties with a single substance is difficult, and various adjuvants usually need to be administered, resulting in a cocktail of drugs. In a clinical setting, the vast majority of patients are unaware of surgery being carried out and have no memory of it, so they can claim to have felt no pain, but this is much more difficult to demonstrate in invertebrates. Here, we show that 1% MgCl2, a muscle relaxant, is a useful adjuvant for the clinical anaesthetic isoflurane on Octopus vulgaris when applied alone in seawater for 10 min before the clinical anaesthetic. After this, full anaesthesia can be achieved in 5 min using 1% isoflurane insufflated into the saline still containing MgCl2. Full recovery takes place rapidly in about 10 to 15 min. The depth of anaesthesia was monitored using changes in respiratory rate, chromatophore pattern, and withdrawal movements of the arms and siphon. This methodology reduces stress on the animal and minimises the quantity of anaesthetic used.
Traditional Food Business Surviving Strategy during the Covid-19 Pandemic in Indonesia: A Case Study of a Small Traditional food business-Pempek MINIAMPERA

The Business owner is facing the same problem and looking for a solution to survive in the Covid-19 Pandemic situation. The massive movement from traditional to digital done by many businesses to hang on. The movement becomes the only one make sense strategy in this situation. Nevertheless, the problem is not all of the business types suitable for being digital. Moreover, many small businesses and traditional businesses do not have enough resources to become digital. Refuse to death, some traditional small businesses in Indonesia, trying to find out the other solution. Could the business survive or slowly dying to death? What is the survival strategy that uses in traditional business? Using a case study on a small traditional food business, namely Pempek MINIAMPERA, this research aims to determine how this business could survive during the pandemic? The shocking finding from the MINIAMPERA is that the business is not moving their activity to digital but could create maximum profit at a stable rate. This research provides the detail of the survival innovation strategy implemented by MINIAMPERA that called as personal neighborhood selling approach strategy. Because of the research done in the traditional food business, the strategy may be different and not suitable for other kinds of business and different countries with different cultures from Indonesia. © IEOM Society International.
EEG study on anticipation of difficulty for upcoming auditory task

The intricate workings of the human brain, which utilizes acquired information from the environment to anticipate future challenges, still lack comprehensive understanding. To understand the mechanism, this study investigated the effects on electroencephalographic (EEG) signals of the process of anticipation of difficulty in auditory tasks. We designed a similarity problem in which human participants were first presented with two tones, followed by a questioning tone, and were asked to answer which of the first two tones was similar to the questioning tone. We analyzed EEG signals recorded during the presentation of the second of the first two tones, a period during which we assumed the participants were anticipating the upcoming problem. By manipulating the similarity of the first two tones in terms of two attributes (position and frequency), we eliminated other effects on the EEG signals caused by the tone difference and attributes, and extracted the brain activity related to the anticipation of the task difficulty. We found event-related potentials (P2, P3, and N4) and frequency bands (theta, alpha, and beta) in the prefrontal regions, alpha band in the EEG signals were significantly correlated with task difficulty. These results demonstrated the reliability of EEG to evaluate the anticipation of difficulty.
EPSAC Predictive Control Applied to Path Tracking of Wheeled Mobile Robots

: This paper presents the application of the Extended Prediction Self-Adaptive Control (EPSAC) to the path tracking problem of wheeled mobile robots (WMRs). The main complexity of the control problem is that a WMR is a MIMO (multiple-input and multiple-output) system, being also nonsquare, nonlinear, and with input constraints. EPSAC, which belongs to the class of Model-based Predictive Controllers (MPC), is an interesting option to overcome such difficulties because its main properties are: (i) the control performance can be improved when the future reference trajectory is previously known as in the case of WMR, (ii) it has the ability to deal with constraints during the calculation of the control law in a fairly straightforward way, and (iii) with proper tuning in nonlinear models, a sub-optimal solution closer to nonlinear MPC can be obtained if compared to the conventional linear MPC. Simulations and experiments on a real robot have shown improved performance regarding trajectory tracking associated with reduced computational cost if compared to other MPCs applied to WMR proposed in literature.
Quantifying the seaward effect of closing a major surge barrier during storms

Rego, J., Dillingh, D. , Verlaan, M. , Plieger, R. , and Groeneweg, J., 2011. Quantifying the seaward effect of closing a major surge barrier during storms. Journal of Coastal Research, SI 64 (Proceedings of the 11th International Coastal Symposium), pg – pg. Szczecin, Poland, ISSN 0749-0208 We examined how peak water levels along the northern Dutch coast are affected by the closing of a surge barrier near the mouth of the River Ems. The Ems Barrier, located in northwest Germany near Emden, was put into operation in 2002. Previous modeling studies indicated that closing the Ems Barrier results in higher highwater levels seaward of the barrier, as compared to an open barrier situation, but disagree on the magnitude of this effect. We performed a detailed hindcast of the “All Saints” storm (of 1 N ovember 2006), and improved the model used in operational forecast. Simulated water levels using the Dutch Continental Shelf, the “Zuidelijke Noordzee” and the “Kuststrook-fijn” models matched well with observations, under (observed) closed barrier conditions. The total water levels from simulations with a hypothetical open barrier were computed and the differences determined for different locations seaward of the barrier. Tests were made to evaluate the sensitivity to different model aspects which contributed to the disagreement between earlier studies. The grid schematization and bathymetry of the River Ems were upgraded with recent, very detailed data, allowing for realistic simulations of hypothetical open-barrier conditions. The model representation of the Delfzijl breakwater was also improved. The new model schematization yields '=0.138±0.007 m at Delfzijl, which is consistent with the results of BAW (2007) for a closing barrier. At Nieuwe Statenzijl, the new model schematization yields '=0.194±0.014 m.
Examining the influence of L2 grit and English proficiency on learning approaches: a mediation analysis through expectancy of success and perceived task difficulty

Abstract Approaches to learning a second/foreign language can be affected by such individual differences as personality traits, motivational variables, and task difficulty. Personality traits have been proven to influence academic achievement, but their effects on motivation and language learning approaches remain unanswered. The first purpose of the study aims to investigate whether L2 grit predicts university students’ learning approaches and how far expectancy of success and task difficulty perception mediate the relationship between L2 grit and the learning approaches. This study also examines the extent to which English proficiency has an indirect effect on the learning approaches. Five hundred eighty-six EFL university students taking English courses in Taiwan participated in the study. The structural model showed that perseverance of effort directly, strongly, and positively predicted deep strategies, and the mediation analysis revealed a partially mediated effect of expectancy of success. By contrast, consistency of interest directly and negatively predicted surface strategies, and the mediation analysis revealed a partially mediated effect of task difficulty perception. Students’ English proficiency has an indirect effect on surface strategies through the mediation of expectancy of success.
A New Fifth Order Variable Step Size Block Backward Differentiation Formula with Off-Step Points for the Numerical Solution of Stiff Ordinary Differential Equations

A new fully implicit two point variable step size based on block backward differentiation formula with two off-step points for the numerical integration of first order stiff ordinary differential equations in initial value problems is proposed. The methods are derived by introducing three different values of the step size ratio to the existing fifth order 2-point block backward differentiation formula with off-step points for solving stiff ordinary differential equations. The methods approximate two solutions values with two off-step points simultaneously at each step of the integration in block. The order, error constant, and consistency of the methods are presented. The stability analysis of the methods indicates that the methods are both zero and A-stable. The proposed methods are implemented in Microsoft Dev C++ compiler using Newton’s iteration and the numerical comparison of results with existing algorithm of the same order shows that the proposed methods are better in terms of accuracy and compete with 3DIBBDF in terms of computation time. Hence, the proposed methods serve as alternative solver for stiff ODEs.
Anti-lipidemic and protein restoration potential of Monodora myristica (Gaertn.) in rats fed with cassava containing crude oil

Consumption of cassava meal affected by crude oil has significant effects on lipid and protein metabolism. The hepatoprotective action of spices is mostly attributed to the suppression of lipid oxidation and protein breakdown. This study examined the protein restoration and anti-lipidemic potential of Monodora myristica (Gaertn.) in rats fed with cassava contaminated with crude oil. The research involved 36 albino rats separated into six groups (n = 6). Group 1 (control) consumed cassava without crude oil. Group 2 received cassava with crude oil. Groups 3, 4, and 5 fed on cassava with crude oil and various extracts of M. myristica, i.e., aqueous, ethanol, and diethyl ether, respectively. Group 6 received non-ionic synthetic surfactant Tween 80. The experiment relied on standard methods. Blood serum and liver obtained from the rats of Group 2 showed a significant (p < 0.05) increase in total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol, triacylglycerol, and malondialdehyde, as well as a decrease in total protein, albumin, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. The groups that received M. myristica extracts showed a significant increase (p < 0.05) in total protein, albumin, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. They also had lower total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol, triacylglycerol, and malondialdehyde as compared to Group 2, which dieted on cassava contaminated with crude oil without additives. In this research, crude oil-contaminated cassava affected proteins and lipids in rats. Diethyl ether extract of M. myristica demonstrated the best anti-lipidemic and protein restoration.
Geothermal Energy Utilization in the United States of America

Geothermal energy is used for electric power generation and direct utilization in the United States. The present installed capacity (gross) for electric power generation is 3,087 MWe with about 2,024 MWe net delivering power to the gird producing approximately 16,600 GWh per year for a 94% net capacity factor. Geothermal electric power plants are located in Alaska, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Wyoming. The direct utilization of geothermal energy including the heating of pools and spas, greenhouses and aquaculture facilities, space heating and district heating, snow melting, agricultural drying, industrial applications and ground-source heat pumps. The installed capacity is approximately 12,610 MWt and the annual energy use is about 56,550 TJ or 15,700 GWh. The largest application is ground-source (geothermal) heat pumps (84% of the energy use). The largest direct-use (excluding geothermal heat pumps) is fish farming (34%), spa and swimming pool heating (28%), and space and district heating (23%). The energy savings from all geothermal use is about 48.5 million barrels (7.3 million tonnes) of equivalent fuel oil per year and reduces air pollution by about 6.65 million tonnes of carbon annually (compared to fuel oil).