Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Extensive Evaluation of Brand Image with Moderating Effect of Brand Engagement to Determine Brand Loyalty and Consumers’ Purchase Intention: A Study of Famous Female Apparel Brands in Pakistan

This study extensively evaluated brand image and main purpose was to find out in what way Brand Engagement will moderate the influence of Brand Image on Brand Loyalty to determine customers’ purchase intention. Current research utilized the survey method for data collection. To study the relationships between variables, the selected industry was famous female apparel brands of Pakistan, in different cities such as Lahore, Islamabad, Sialkot and Multan. The current research used questionnaire as the research instrument to interact with the sampling population. Only females were targeted to get data. Non probability sampling techniques was utilized in the study that included convenience and snowball sampling. Sample size was 300. Current research showed that brand image possesses substantial positive effect on brand loyalty and all antecedents of brand image were positively affecting the brand image. Moreover, brand loyalty has also been established to have significant positive impact on purchase intention. Brand engagement showed insignificant negative result as a moderator between brand image and brand loyalty showing that customers are not emotionally committed to the brand of their choice instead they are just becoming loyal due to other reasons. The evaluation of Brand Image has been done by incorporating many unique antecedents and the relationship of these antecedents was checked with brand image to imply better appreciation of brand image. Furthermore moderating effect of brand engagement among brand image and brand loyalty was unknown in past researches. The contribution of this research is theoretical, practical as well as contextual since we have conducted this study on a matchless framework regarding the female apparel brands in Pakistan.
Chemical and Electronic Structure at the Interface between a Sputter‐Deposited Zn(O,S) Buffer and a Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se)2 Solar Cell Absorber

The chemical and electronic structure of the interface between a sputter‐deposited Zn(O,S) buffer layer and an industrial Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se)2 (CIGSSe) absorber for thin‐film solar cells is investigated with X‐ray and UV photoelectron spectroscopy, inverse photoemission spectroscopy, and X‐ray emission spectroscopy. We find a CIGSSe absorber surface band gap of 1.61 (±0.14) eV, which is significantly increased as compared to the minimal value derived with bulk‐sensitive methods (≈1.1 eV). We find no indication for diffusion of absorber elements into the buffer layer. Surface‐ and bulk‐sensitive measurements of the buffer layer suggest the presence of S‐Zn and S‐O bonds in the Zn(O,S) layer. We find that the naturally existing downward band bending toward the CIGSSe absorber surface is increased by the formation of the interface, likely enhancing carrier separation under illumination. We also derive a flat conduction band alignment, in line with the reported high conversion efficiencies of corresponding large‐area solar cells.
Viscoelectromechanics modeling of intestine wall hyperelasticity

ABSTRACT Elastic-electroactive biological media are sensitive to both mechanical and electric forces. Their active behavior is often associated with the presence of reinforcing fibers and their excitation-contraction coupling is due to the interplay between the passive elastic tissue and the active muscular network. In this paper we focus on the theoretical framework of constitutive equations for viscous electroactive media. The approach is based on the additive decomposition of the Helmholtz free energy accompanied to the multiplicative decomposition of the deformation gradient in elastic, viscous and active parts. We describe a thermodynamically sound scenario that accounts for geometric and material nonlinearities.
A Note on Noncausality

In this note the relationship between alternative concepts of noncausality is analyzed using the tool of conditional independence among a-fields. (For the reader who is unfamiliar with this technique, the Appendix sketches the proofs and the basic technical apparatus, along with some basic motivations.) Furthermore, the relationship between the concepts of noncausality and transitivity is made explicit in order to facilitate, in econometric modelling, the use of results already obtained in sequential analysis.
Asymptotic properties of black-box identification of transfer functions

The problem of estimating the transfer function of a linear, stochastic system is considered. The transfer function is parametrized as a black box and no given order is chosen a priori. This means that the model orders may increase to infinity when the number of observed data tends to infinity. The consistency and convergence properties of the resulting transfer function estimates are investigated. Asymptotic expressions for the variances and distributions of these estimates are also derived for the case that the model orders increase. It is shown that the variance of the transfer function estimate at a certain frequency is asymptotically given by the noise-to-signal ratio at that frequency mulliplied by the model-order-to-number-of-data-points ratio.
Number of positive lymph nodes affects outcomes in parotid adenoid cystic carcinoma

Objectives Survival significance of the number of positive lymph nodes (LNs) in parotid adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) remains unknown; thus, this study aimed to determine the impact of the number of positive LNs on the prognosis of parotid ACC. Methods Patients with surgically treated parotid ACC were enrolled from the SEER database. The number of positive LNs was analyzed using three models (0 vs 1+, 0 vs 1 vs 2 vs 3 vs 4 vs 4 vs 5 vs 6+, 0/1 vs 2–4 vs 5+), its hazard ratios on disease specific survival (DSS) and overall survival (OS) were assessed using univariate and multivariate Cox analyses. Results A total of 1,689 patients were included. In all models, the number of positive LNs was independently related to DSS and OS, model 3 had the highest C-index for DSS [0.83 (95% CI: 0.81–0.85)] and OS [0.82 (95% CI: 0.80–0.84)]. Compared with the 0/1 positive LN group, the 2–4 positive LN group had an HR of 2.81 (95% CI: 1.73–4.56) for DSS and 2.36 (95% CI: 1.58–3.54) for OS. The 5+ LN group had an HR of 20.15 (95% CI: 7.50–54.18) for DSS and 14.20 (95% CI: 5.45–36.97) for OS. No overlap existed in the 95% CI of the HR. Conclusions The three prognostic categories based on the number of positive LNs (0/1 vs 2–4 vs 5+) could stratify the DSS and OS in parotid ACC without overlap.
Humoral response after a fourth dose of SARS-CoV-2 vaccine in immunocompromised patients. Results of a systematic review

Background and objective The fourth dose the COVID-19 vaccine was first proposed to immunocompromised patients. The aim of the article is to systematically review the literature and report the humoral response and outcomes after the fourth dose administration in people with impaired immune system. Methods Published studies on the humoral response, efficacy and safety of the fourth dose of the COVID-19 vaccine were analyzed in various settings of immunocompromised patients. We conducted systematic searches of PubMed, Cochrane Library and WHO COVID-19 Research Database for series published through January 31, 2023, using the search terms “fourth dose” or “second booster” or “4th dose” and “Coronavirus” or “COVID-19” or “SARS-CoV-2. ” All articles were selected according to the PRISMA guidelines. Results A total of 24 articles including 2,838 patients were comprised in the systematic review. All the studies involved immunocompromised patients, including solid organ transplant recipients, patients with autoimmune rheumatic disease, patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and patients with blood cancers or diseases. Almost all patients received BNT162b2 or mRNA-1273 as fourth dose. All the studies demonstrated the increase of antibody titers after the fourth dose, both in patients who had a serological strong response and in those who had a weak response after the third dose. No serious adverse events after the 4th dose have been reported by 13 studies. COVID-19 infection after the fourth dose ranged from 0 to 21%. Conclusion The present review highlights the importance of the fourth dose of covid-19 vaccines for immunocompromised patients. Across the included studies, a fourth dose was associated with improved seroconversion and antibody titer levels. In particular, a fourth dose was associated with increasing immunogenicity in organ transplant recipients and patients with hematological cancers, with a very low rate of serious side effects.
Structural connectivity and brain network analyses in Parkinson's disease: A cross-sectional and longitudinal study

Introduction Parkinson's disease (PD) is an idiopathic disease of the central nervous system characterized by both motor and non-motor symptoms. It is the second most common neurodegenerative disease. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can reveal underlying brain changes associated with PD. Objective In this study, structural connectivity and white matter networks were analyzed by diffusion MRI and graph theory in a cohort of patients with PD and a cohort of healthy controls (HC) obtained from the Parkinson's Progression Markers Initiative (PPMI) database in a cross-sectional analysis. Furthermore, we investigated longitudinal changes in the PD cohort over 36 months. Result Compared with the control group, participants with PD showed lower structural connectivity in several brain areas, including the corpus callosum, fornix, and uncinate fasciculus, which were also confirmed by a large effect-size. Additionally, altered connectivity between baseline and after 36 months was found in different network paths inside the white matter with a medium effect-size. Network analysis showed trends toward lower network density in PD compared with HC at baseline and after 36 months, though not significant after correction. Significant differences were observed in nodal degree and strength in several nodes. Conclusion In conclusion, altered structural and network metrics in several brain regions, such as corpus callosum, fornix, and cingulum were found in PD, compared to HC. We also report altered connectivity in the PD group after 36 months, reflecting the impact of both PD pathology and aging processes. These results indicate that structural and network metrics might yield insight into network reorganization that occurs in PD.
A GENETIC ALGORITHM APPROACH TO ACCURATE CALIBRATION OF CAMERA

A new two stage calibration method based on the close form solution and genetic algorithm was presented. In the first stage, the distortion parameters were ignored. The internal and external parameters were estimated by least square algorithm. In the second stage, the parameters estimated in the first stage were used as initial values. Taking account of the camera distortions, all parameters were optimized by genetic algorithm to get exact solutions. Because the algorithm optimized the rotation angles directly, the orthonormal constraints were easily satisfied in the present method. Moreover, the approach simplified the calibration process.
Proximity Sensors Utilizing an Evanescent Acoustic Field Formed by a Piezoelectric Bending Vibrator

A proximity sensor utilizing an evanescent acoustic field formed by flexural plate waves is proposed. When the velocity of a flexural wave propagating in a thin plate is lower than that of air, an evanescent acoustic field can be formed in the air near a major surface of the plate. When an object comes into the evanescent field, the acoustic radiation admittance of the plate can be changed. Hence, proximity sensing can be achieved by measuring the electrical admittance of the piezoelectric bending vibrator. To confirm the characteristics of the proximity sensor, some experiments were carried out using a bending vibrator consisting of a 140° rotated Y-cut LiNbO3 plate with a polarization-inverted layer. It is demonstrated that when an object approached the surface of the vibrator, the admittance at the resonances of the bending vibrator decreased drastically as the distance d between the object and the vibrator decreased.
Simplified second-order Godunov-type methods

Harten, Lax, and van Leer showed how to construct a simple approximate Riemann solution which contains only one intermediate step. This construction assumes that you have a priori bounds on the smallest and largest signal velocities in the exact Riemann solution.Here we propose a number of algorithms for obtaining these bounds. Heuristic arguments are presented to support our choice of bounds. We derive first-order schemes which use these approximate Riemann solutions and show their relationship to known finite difference schemes.Next, we use the approach of van Leer et al. [1] to construct second-order schemes based on these approximate Riemann solutions. Of particular interest is a central difference scheme requiring no upwind switches. This scheme is only slightly more complex than standard predictor–corrector finite difference schemes. Preliminary numerical results are presented which show that these schemes are nonoscillatory, have good shock resolution and produce results which are competitive with those produced by more complex second order Godunov-type schemes.
On Budgeted Optimization Problems

In this paper we give a general method to solve budgeted optimization problems in strongly polynomial time. The method can be applied to several known budgeted problems and in addition we show two new applications. The first one extends Frederickson’s and Solis-Oba’s result [10] to (poly)matroid intersections from single matroids. The second one is the budgeted version of the minimum cost circulation problem.
Association between the prudent dietary pattern and blood pressure in Chinese adults is partially mediated by body composition

High blood pressure or hypertension is one of the major risks of cardiovascular disease, which is the leading cause of death in China. This study aimed to assess the relationship between dietary patterns and blood pressure among Chinese adults. Using factor analysis of 66-item food frequency questionnaire to identify dietary patterns. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were measured according to standardized guidelines. Multivariate linear regressions were performed in 6849 Chinese adults (46.5% female) aged 21–70 years considering sociodemographic characteristics, lifestyle behaviors, and anthropometry data. The vegetable-rich pattern, animal-food pattern, and prudent dietary pattern were identified. After adjustment for potential confounders including age, gender, alcohol consumption, smoking status, energy intake, and physical activity, only prudent dietary pattern was negatively related to SBP (β = −2.30, p for trend =0.0003) and DBP (β = −1.44, p for trend =0.0006). Body mass index, waist circumstance and body fat percentage explained, respectively, 42.5%/47.8, 14.8%/17.6 and 26.0%/29.1% of the association between prudent pattern and SBP/DBP in mediation analysis. There were no association were observed between other dietary patterns and blood pressure. In conclusion, Prudent dietary pattern was associated with lower SBP and DBP among Southwest Chinese and this association was partially explained by body composition.
Passing of Nanocarriers across the Histohematic Barriers: Current Approaches for Tumor Theranostics

Over the past several decades, nanocarriers have demonstrated diagnostic and therapeutic (i.e., theranostic) potencies in translational oncology, and some agents have been further translated into clinical trials. However, the practical application of nanoparticle-based medicine in living organisms is limited by physiological barriers (blood–tissue barriers), which significantly hampers the transport of nanoparticles from the blood into the tumor tissue. This review focuses on several approaches that facilitate the translocation of nanoparticles across blood–tissue barriers (BTBs) to efficiently accumulate in the tumor. To overcome the challenge of BTBs, several methods have been proposed, including the functionalization of particle surfaces with cell-penetrating peptides (e.g., TAT, SynB1, penetratin, R8, RGD, angiopep-2), which increases the passing of particles across tissue barriers. Another promising strategy could be based either on the application of various chemical agents (e.g., efflux pump inhibitors, disruptors of tight junctions, etc.) or physical methods (e.g., magnetic field, electroporation, photoacoustic cavitation, etc.), which have been shown to further increase the permeability of barriers.
Design of Planar Absorbing Layers for Domain Truncation in FEM Applications

ABSTRACT A metal-backed layer of absorbing material offers a number of advantages for truncating the computational domain in a finite element simulation. In this paper we present design curves for the optimal selection of the parameters of the layer to achieve a specified reflection coefficient. The curves are based on one-dimensional finite element simulations of the absorbers, and the optimization is therefore a function of the sampling rate. Three types of material are considered, including the recently introduced perfectly matched uniaxial material, either homogeneous or with a quadratic material profile. Two three-dimensional applications are also presented and used to examine the validity of the design curves.
Cesium in hydrogen negative-ion sources

Experimental data on the dynamics of cesium particles in the pulsed magnetron and Penning surface-plasma ion sources are presented. Cesium escape from the source emission apertures and the cesium ion current to discharge electrodes was measured. The low value of cesium flux from the source was detected. An intense cesium ion current to the cathode (up to 0.8A∕cm2) was measured. The high value of cesium ion current to surface-plasma source cathode confirms the cesium circulation near the cathode.
Development and Validation of a Novel Prognostic Tool to Predict Recurrence of Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation after the First-Time Catheter Ablation: A Retrospective Cohort Study

There is no gold standard to tell frustrating outcomes after the catheter ablation of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF). The study aims to construct a prognostic tool. We retrospectively analyzed 315 patients with PAF who underwent first-time ablation at the Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University. The endpoint was identified as any documented relapse of atrial tachyarrhythmia lasting longer than 30 s after the three-month blanking period. Univariate Cox regression analyzed eleven preablation parameters, followed by two supervised machine learning algorithms and stepwise regression to construct a nomogram internally validated. Five factors related to ablation failure were as follows: female sex, left atrial appendage emptying flow velocity ≤31 cm/s, estimated glomerular filtration rate <65.8 mL/(min·1.73 m2), P wave duration in lead aVF ≥ 120 ms, and that in lead V1 ≥ 100 ms, which constructed a nomogram. It was correlated with the CHA2DS2-VASc score but outperformed the latter evidently in discrimination and clinical utility, not to mention its robust performances in goodness-of-fit and calibration. In addition, the nomogram-based risk stratification could effectively separate ablation outcomes. Patients at risk of relapse after PAF ablation can be recognized at baseline using the proposed five-factor nomogram.
Closed-Form Pricing of Two-Asset Barrier Options with Stochastic Covariance

Abstract Single and double barrier options on more than one underlying with stochastic volatility are usually priced via Monte Carlo simulation due to the non-existence of closed-form solutions for their value. In this paper, for a special dependence structure, the prices of some two-asset barrier derivatives, like double-digital options and correlation options can be derived analytically using generalized Fourier transforms and some conditions on the characteristic functions. We study the influence of the various parameters on these prices and show that these formulas can be easily and quickly computed. We also extend our approach to further allow for a random correlation structure.
Tree Traits and Microclimatic Conditions Determine Cooling Benefits of Urban Trees

Trees play a key role in mitigating urban heat by cooling the local environment. This study evaluated the extent to which street trees can reduce sub-canopy air temperature relative to ambient conditions (ΔT), and how ΔT relates to tree traits and microclimatic variables. Air temperature under the canopies of 10 species was recorded within residential areas in Western Sydney, Australia, during summer 2019–2020. Tree and canopy traits, namely tree height, specific leaf area, leaf dry matter content, leaf area index, crown width and the Huber value (the ratio of sapwood area to leaf area) were then measured for all species. Species differed significantly in their ΔT values, with peak cooling (maximum ΔT −3.9 °C) observed between 9–10 am and sub-canopy warming (i.e., positive ΔT values) typically occurring during afternoon and overnight. Trees with high LAI and wider canopies were associated with the greatest daytime cooling benefits and lower levels of nighttime warming. ΔT was also negatively related to windspeed and vapor pressure deficit, and positively to solar irradiance. This study provides valuable information on how tree characteristics and microclimate influence potential cooling benefits that may aid planning decisions on the use of trees to mitigate heat in urban landscapes.
Collaborative Management of Resource Allocation and Precoding for Dual-Mode Networks

A sub-6 GHz (<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\mu$</tex-math></inline-formula>Wave) and millimeter wave (mmWave) dual-mode network can deliver high data rates while maintaining dependable coverage. This article proposes a novel resource allocation and precoding algorithm based on collaborative sensing in the dual-mode network. We formulated the collaborative optimization problem of resource allocation and precoding, which maximizes the sum of data rates while meeting minimum acceptable rate requirements and ensuring proportional fairness. Considering the spatial similarity between mmWave channel and <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\mu$</tex-math></inline-formula>Wave channel, the prior information of mmWave channel predicted by <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\mu$</tex-math></inline-formula>Wave band is generated to process sensing weight (i.e., subchannel allocation weight of Markov algorithm), which realizes fast dual-mode network resource allocation. Furthermore, a low complexity two-stage precoding scheme for dual-mode networks is proposed based on <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\mu$</tex-math></inline-formula>Wave spatial information. Low-complexity analog precoding is realized in the first stage based on <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\mu$</tex-math></inline-formula>Wave spatial information. In the second stage, inspired by the correlation between minimum mean square error (MMSE) and mutual information, this paper proposes an alternating optimization algorithm to find a local weighted sum-rate (WSR) optimum with low complexity. Compared with other heuristic algorithms, simulation results demonstrate the apparent advantages of the proposed collaborative sensing optimization algorithm. Most importantly, it can be seen that we can achieve a performance that approaches an upper bound.