Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effect of Intake of Extra Virgin Olive Oil on Mortality in a South Italian Cohort with and without NAFLD

Background: Extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) is the main source of seasoning fat in the Mediterranean diet and it is one of the components with known protective factors on chronic-degenerative disease. We aimed to evaluate the effect of a medium-high level of oil consumption on mortality in a cohort with good adherence to the Mediterranean diet. Methods: A total of 2754 subjects who had completed the food questionnaire in the Multicenter Italian study on Cholelithiasis (MICOL) cohort were included in the study. EVOO consumption was categorized in four levels (<20 g/die, 21–30 g/die, 31–40 g/die, >40 g/die). We performed a flexible parametric survival model to assess mortality by EVOO consumption level adjusted for some covariates. We also performed the analysis on subjects with and without non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) to evaluate the effects of oil in this more fragile sub-cohort. Results: We found a statistically significant negative effect on mortality for the whole sample when EVOO consumption was used, both as a continuous variable and when categorized. The protective effect was stronger in the sub-cohort with NAFLD, especially for the highest levels of EVOO consumption (HR = 0.58 with p < 0.05). Conclusions: Our study has shown a protective effect of EVOO consumption towards all causes of mortality. Despite the higher caloric intake, the protective power is greater for a consumption >40 g/day in both the overall cohort and the sub-cohorts with and without NAFLD.
RADIOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT OF THE VASCULAR COMPLICATIONS OF COVID-19 IN CORRELATION WITH D-DIMER LEVEL

: Background : The COVID-19 pandemic causes primarily respiratory disease as well as non-respiratory complications such as thromboembolic complications with D-dimer elevation, which lead to multisystem organ dysfunction and respiratory failure. Aim of the work : To determine the value of radiological assessment of vascular complications in COVID-19 infections and its relation to D-dimer levels as important tools for early diagnosis and proper management of these patients. Patients & Methods: The study included 100 patients diagnosed as COVID-19 positive with embolic manifestations depending on their symptoms, signs, and laboratory assessment, which included D-dimer levels. They underwent radiological assessment of their vascular complications, including CT, MRI, and CT angiography. Results: Among 100 COVID-positive patients with thromboembolic symptoms, 55 had evidence of pulmonary embolism, 13 had strokes, 4 had mesenteric arterial occlusion and 28 patients had no radiological evidence of vascular manifestations. D-dimer levels were increased (0.50 mcg/mL or greater) in 70 percent of positive COVID patients, including 89% of those with pulmonary embolism, 84% of those with stroke, 75% of mesenteric thrombosis cases, and in 7 patients (25% of those with symptoms suggestive of vascular thrombosis without radiological imaging of thromboembolic manifestations), with a sensitivity of 88.6%, specificity of 75%, positive predictive value of 90.9%, and negative predictive value of 70%. Conclusion: This study confirmed that D-dimer elevation in COVID-positive patients is highly suggestive of thromboembolic complications, especially pulmonary, cranial, and abdominal embolisms, and that confirmation by proper radiological evaluation is mandatory for the diagnosis of these findings and proper management of their complications.
Atmospheric atomic sulfur ion reactions

The apparent observation of atomic sulfur ions below 86 km in the ionosphere stimulates an interest in their possible production and loss processes. Toward this end we have measured the following reactions at 300°K: S+ + NO → NO+ + S, for k = 4.2 × 10−10 cm³ sec−1, and S+ + O2 → SO+ + O, for k = 1.6 × 10−11 cm³ sec−1. The very fast loss rates for S+ in the D region implied by these reactions, especially by the second reaction, put a very severe burden on any possible S+ production source. As yet, no reasonable S+ source has been proposed.
A Wolﬀ -Parkinson-White (WPW) Electrocardiographic Pattern in Asymptomatic Patient – State-of-the-Art-Review

A comprehensive approach to asymptomatic adults with Wolﬀ -Parkinson-White (WPW) pattern discovered incidentally on routine electrocardiography (ECG) is debatable. The objective of this review article is to update the most recent evidence on the management of young patients with asymptomatic WPW patterns. A substantial proportion of adults with WPW patterns on ECG may remain asymptomatic but the lifetime risk for fatal arrhythmias still exists. The inherent properties of the accessory pathway determine the risk of sudden cardiac death. A low-risk pathway is considered when the pre-excitation is intermittent on ambulatory monitoring or when it disappears completely or abruptly during exercise testing. On the other hand, a high-risk pathway in EP study is suggested by the presence of the shortest pre-excited RR interval (SPERRI) during atrial ﬁ brillation of ≤ 250 ms or accessory pathway eﬀ ective refractory period (APERP) ≤ 240 ms. The cardiac evaluation may thus be considered in asymptomatic patients with WPW to determine the individual risk for future symptomatic arrhythmia. A shared-decision making must be performed before oﬀ ering catheter ablation whose procedural success rate is high.
Multivariate analysis of the status of e-government development in Zambia

This article presents the results of a research that was done in Zambia aimed at assessing the readiness and willingness of different stakeholders (citizens and businesses) to engage in e-Government. Since e-Government is a multi-dimensional phenomenon, its analysis and measurement also call for a multivariate approach. The study utilizes a Mixed Methods Research (MMR) approach to assess both the institutional and individual readiness to adopt e-Government. Restricted factor analysis identified 8 factors explaining totally 23% variance in the proposed regression model. Spearman's rho was used to measure construct validity. The results show that there is a lot that needs to be done if successful e-Government development is to be achieved in Zambia. The study also shows that a pragmatic approach, commensurate to the local context, should be employed in the design of the different e-Government interventions in Zambia.
The Impact of Renewable Energy Consumption and Public Capital Expenditure on Poverty Reduction in Nigeria

Poverty has been an important issue of discussion in underdeveloped countries and has been of crucial concern to many stakeholders across the globe. This article examines the extent to which renewable energy consumption and public capital expenditure impact the poverty rate in Nigeria over the period 2003 - 2019. We employed cointegration and Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) bounds model for our analysis. Our results revealed that renewable energy consumption significantly escalates poverty in the short run. Public capital expenditure, economic growth, and governance quality substantially reduce Nigeria's poverty. The long-run analysis reveals that renewable energy consumption significantly elevates Nigeria's poverty rate in the long run. Moreso, economic growth and quality of governance reduce the poverty rate substantially, whereas public capital expenditure does not significantly reduce the poverty rate in Nigeria in the long run. The Nigerian government was recommended to adopt modern renewable sources through a public-private partnership and promote good governance, especially in the efficient and appropriate implementation of public capital expenditures.
Geographies of conservation I

Extinction has long been a central concern in biodiversity conservation. Today, de-extinction offers interesting possibilities of restoring charismatic species and ecosystem function, but also risks and costs. Most de-extinction depends on genetic engineering and synthetic biology. These technologies are also proposed for use in ‘gene tweaking’ in wild species to enhance their chance of survival. Within conservation, the resulting debates pit an optimistic world of high-tech ‘precision conservation’ against a more conventional vision of biodiversity conservation achieved primarily through protected areas. De-extinction is a fashionable idea that brings the complex debates about the ethics and wisdom of genetic engineering to a central position within conservation science
Estimation of Sustainable Yield of Some Rivers in Trinidad

A scenic and mountainous area of ancient tropical rainforest in the Caribbean Island of Trinidad has considerable potential for eco-tourism. However, it does not have significant groundwater resources, and its ecologically sensitive nature precludes the construction of impoundment reservoirs. Therefore, the sustainable yield, i.e., 7-day 20-year low flow ~7Q20! minus instream flow, of its rivers is one of the critical factors affecting the area's carrying capacity for eco-tourism. Unfortunately, hydrologic data for the watersheds in this area are either unavailable or insufficient for independently estimating the aforementioned sustainable yield by the conventional methods. Therefore, a hydrologic similarity method was used to obtain 7Q20 of the ungauged rivers. Further, the instream flow was estimated, in the absence of any local criterion, by instream flow incremental methodology. This paper describes the application of these two method- ologies and presents the results, which indicated that owing to the presence of a hydraulic threshold for the commencement of habitat stress, the sustainable yield should not exceed 20-30% of 7Q20. It is believed that this technical note would be of interest to practicing hydrologic engineers, whose work may sometimes relate to an area where rainfall and stream flow data are sparse, discontinuous, and nonconcurrent, and the criteria for instream flow are not yet developed.
The Finite Difference Time Domain Method for Electromagnetics

Fundamental Concepts Scattered Field FDTD Formulation FDTD Basics Basic Applications Coupling Effects Waveguide Aperture Coupling Lossy Dielectric Scattering Special Capabilities Far Zone Transformation Frequency Dependent Materials Surface Impedance Subcellular Extensions Nonlinear Loads and Materials Visualization Advanced Applications Far Zone Scattering Antennas Gyrotropic Media Mathematical Basis of FDTD and Alternate Methods Difference Equations in General Stability, Dispersion, Accuracy Outer Radiation Boundary Conditions Alternate Formulations Appendix A: Other Coordinate Systems and Reduced Dimensions Appendix B: FORTRAN Listings
Community Based Networks and 5G Wi-Fi

This paper argues on why Community Based Networks should be recognized as potential 5G providers using 5G Wi-Fi. The argument is hinged on findings in a research to understand why Community Based Networks deploy telecom and Broadband infrastructure. The study was a qualitative study carried out inductively using Grounded Theory. Six cases were investigated. Two Community Based Network Mobilization Models were identified. The findings indicate that 5G Wi-Fi deployment by Community Based Networks is possible if policy initiatives and the 5G Wi-Fi standards are developed to facilitate the causal factors of the identified models
AFRICAN GOVERNANCE AND DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE A G D I Working Paper

This study investigates the relationship between social trust and intelligence. The extreme bound analysis of Levine and Renelt is employed to directly assess the strength of the nexus. The findings confirm the positive and robust nexus between social trust and intelligence. We have contributed to the literature by confirming that the previously established positive linkage between intelligence and trust is not statistically fragile. In fact the nexus withstands further empirical scrutiny with more robust empirical strategies.
Research on stability of slope at right inlet diversion tunnel of Wudongde Hydropower Station

Based on detailed study on engineering geological conditions, a combined research method of engineering geological analysis evaluation method,limit equilibrium method and numerical calculation method on global is applied to analyse the local stability of the slope at right inlet diversion tunnel of Wudongde Hydropower Station. The results show that global stability is well, 3D distinct element simulation results show that, artificial slope deformation dominated by a small amount of rebound deformation and deformation characteristics without highlighting. Based on the boundary condition analysis of block may be formed after excavation, block instability mode was proposed. Starting with block stability influencing factors, block stability engineering geological evaluation standards has been established. Block stability was evaluated by these standard, 3D rigid limit equilibrium method was used to analyze the stability of the potential failure block in inlet slope, results show that most block was basically stable. Based on global and local stability research result, reinforcement measures were put forward for the slope.
BURIAL AND MATURATION HISTORY OF THE HEGLIG FIELD AREA, MUGLAD BASIN, SUDAN

The NW‐SE trending Muglad Basin (SW Sudan) is one of a number of Mesozoic basins which together make up the Central African Rift System. Three phases of rifting occurred during the Cretaceous and Tertiary, resulting in the deposition of at least 13 km of sediments in this basin. Commercial hydrocarbons are sourced from the Barremian‐Neocomian Sharaf Formation and the Aptian‐Albian Abu Gabra Formation.
MIT Open Access

Boundary-engineering in nanostructures has the potential to dramatically impact the development of materials for high-efficiency conversion of thermal energy directly into electricity. In particular, nanostructuring of semiconductors can lead to strong suppression of heat transport with little degradation of electrical conductivity. Although this combination of material properties is promising for thermoelectric materials, it remains largely unexplored. In this work, we introduce a novel concept, the directional phonon suppression function, to unravel boundary-dominated heat transport in unprecedented detail. Using a combination of density functional theory and the Boltzmann transport equation, we compute this quantity for nanoporous silicon materials. We first compute the thermal conductivity for the case with aligned circular pores, confirming a significant thermal transport degradation with respect to the bulk. Then, by analyzing the information on the directionality of phonon suppression in this system, we identify a new structure of rectangular pores with the same porosity that enables a four-fold decrease in thermal transport with respect to the circular pores. Our results illustrate the utility of the directional phonon suppression function, enabling new avenues for systematic thermal conductivity minimization and potentially accelerating the engineering of next-generation thermoelectric devices.
Enhancing Semi Supervised Clustering Algorithm for High Dimensional Data

: Semi-supervised clustering employs limited supervision in the form of labeled instances or pairwise instance constraints to aid unsupervised clustering and often significantly improves the clustering performance. Despite the vast amount of expert knowledge spent on this problem, most existing work is not designed for handling high-dimensional sparse data. This paper thus fills this crucial void by developing a Semi-supervised Clustering method based on spherical KMeans via featureprojection (SCREEN). Specifically, we formulate the problem of constraint-guided feature projection, which can be nicely integrated with semi-supervised clustering algorithms and has the ability to effectively reduce data dimension. Indeed, our experimental results on several real-world data sets show that the SCREEN methods can effectively deal with high-dimensional data and provides an appealing clustering performance. Clustering which tries to group a set of points into clusters such that points in the same cluster are more similar to each other than points in different clusters, under a particular similarity metric. In the generative clustering model, a parametric form of data generation is assumed and the goal in the maximum likelihood formulation is to find the parameters that maximize the probability (likelihood) of generation of the data. In the most general formulation, the number of clusters k is also considered to be an unknown parameter.
An Extensive Survey on Co-Resident Attack in Dynamic Cloud Computing

: Cloud computing provides many advantages in scalability and cost efficiency, it also affected a number of security risks. This paper improved the co-resident attack, where malicious users aim to co-locate their virtual machines (VMs) on the same server and extract private information from the virtual machine. Most of the previous work has discussed hoe to mitigate the thread of co-resident attack. However the presented solution is impractical for the cloud platforms security problems. The problem from a different perspective and how to minimize the attacker’s of co-locating their VMs in same server. Specially introduce security scheme policies of VM allocation policies. Our analysis shows the deploying three policies, the cloud provider decreases the attacker’s possibility of achieving co-location by having a policy, where each policy is selected with a certain probability. These solutions do not require any changes to underlying infrastructure. Here it can be implemented in network analyzer tool and cloud sim tool.
Evaluating hydrometric networks for prediction in ungauged basins: a new methodology and its application to England and Wales

Flow estimates for ungauged catchments are often derived through regionalisation methods, which enable data transfer from a pool of hydrologically similar catchments with existing gauging stations (i.e., pooling-groups). This paper presents a methodology for indexing the utility of gauged catchments within widely used pooling-group methodologies for high and low flow estimation; this methodology is then used as the basis for a network evaluation strategy. The utility of monitoring stations is assessed using catchment properties and a parallel, but independent, appraisal of the quality of gauging station data, which considers hydrometric performance, anthropogenic disturbances and record length. Results from the application of the method to a national network of over 1,100 gauging stations in England and Wales are presented. First, the method is used to appraise the fitness-for-purpose of the network for regionalisation. The method is then used to identify gauges which monitor catchments with high potential for regionalisation, but which are deficient in terms of data quality – where upgrades in hydrometric performance would yield the greatest benefits. Finally, gauging stations with limited value for regionalisation, given the pooling-group criteria employed, are identified. Alongside a wider review of other uses of the network, this analysis could inform a judicious approach to network rationalisation.
The Impact of Global Warming on Ocean-Atmosphere Feedback Strength at the Tropical Indian Ocean

With the scientific and financial support from APN, the participants of the project performed kinds of activities based on the proposed research program. The participants of the project conducted research activities in order to reveal the variability of air-sea interaction feedback strength under different projects, such as current and global warming scenarios. The results from the research activities had been published in the peer-reviewed journal and some of the results been cited by IPCC AR5. This project also held a workshop with the purpose of enhancing the internal communication among project staffs, specifically for the discussion of disseminating the project outcome into the public as well as the police makers. The representative from the Monsoon Onset Monitoring and its Social Economy Impact (MOMSEI) project, pilot project of Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission /Sub-Commission for the Western Pacific (IOC/WESTPAC), agreed to cooperate with this project and invited the project leader to join the relevant scientific activities for better spreading the project outcome to different research groups as well as potential scientific users. This project also contributes to enhance the international marine cooperation between China and Maldives, Indonesia. The new project, titled as “The Java Upwelling dynamic and the relevant ecosystem variation (JUV)”, resulted from this project was supported for the next few years by SOA for better understanding the local climate variability over tropical Indian Ocean region, which will also give relative contribution to International Indian Ocean Expedition – 2 programs.
A Process-Based Model of New Venture Creation : Toward Modelling a Practical Application of Extant Theory using SADT Diagrams

Although the field of entrepreneurship abounds in studies attempting to explain the creation of new ventures from an array of theoretical perspectives, the answer to the critical question regarding “how” the process unfolds over time remains unsolved. The main goal of this paper is to demonstrate the importance of integrating an engineering point of view with the new business creation process in order to find the answer. This study will dig deeper into the issue by proposing the use of SADT (Structured Analysis and Design Technique) for modelling the “road map” that could assist entrepreneurs in dealing with uncertainties in a systematic and comprehensive way.
Elevational gradients do not signiﬁcantly alter soil microbial respiration and temperature sensitivity in a subtropical forest

Soil carbon (C) cycling plays critical role in regulating global C budget and atmosphere CO2 concentration. The ongoing global warming potentially accelerates soil C loss induced by microbial respiration (MR) and makes soil a large C source to atmosphere. Quantifying the drivers of MR and its response to rising temperature (also called temperature sensitivity, Q10) is a high priority in order to improve the modelling and prediction of terrestrial C cycle under global warming. In this study, we applied a standardized soil sampling along 9 gradients from 400 m to 1100 m in a subtropical forest in South China, and conducted the incubation experiment at the same temperature ranges (from 10 ° C to 25 ° C) to measure MR and Q10, then the measured MR was adjusted by the ﬁeld temperature of sampling site. Our objectives were to examine the response of MR and Q10 to the environmental change induced by elevational gradients in the subtropical forest, and then quantify their main drivers. We totally collected 54 abiotic and biotic factors relative to the MR and Q10. Our results showed that the incubated MR increased from low to high elevation. However, signiﬁcantly elevational trend of the adjusted MR was not examined after adjusted by the ﬁeld temperature of sampling sites, due to the tradeoﬀ between increasing soil C concentration and declining temperature as elevation increased. We further found that the 9 elevational gradients did not cause signiﬁcant change of Q10. The variation of Q10 was negatively dominated by soil C quality. Since climate warming is predicted faster at high elevation than that at low elevation, C loss from high elevation might be accelerated in the future and need more attentions in the further studies
Arsenic Inhibits DNA Mismatch Repair by Promoting EGFR Arsenic Inhibits DNA Mismatch Repair by Promoting EGFR Expression and PCNA Phosphorylation Expression and PCNA Phosphorylation

Background: Exposure to arsenic is linked to increased risk of human cancer. Results: Arsenic-treated cells have higher levels of EGFR and tyrosine-phosphorylated PCNA and reduced mismatch repair activity. Conclusion: The carcinogenic effect of arsenic may be mediated by its ability to promote EGFR-dependent PCNA phosphorylation, thereby inhibiting mismatch repair. Significance: Arsenic-stimulated posttranslational modification of PCNA represents a novel mechanism of action for non-genotoxic