Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Vehicle-Following Control Based on Deep Reinforcement Learning

Intelligent vehicle-following control presents a great challenge in autonomous driving. In vehicle-intensive roads of city environments, frequent starting and stopping of vehicles is one of the important cause of front-end collision accidents. Therefore, this paper proposes a subsection proximal policy optimization method (Subsection-PPO), which divides the vehicle-following process into the start–stop and steady stages and provides control at different stages with two different actor networks. It improves security in the vehicle-following control using the proximal policy optimization algorithm. To improve the training efficiency and reduce the variance of advantage function, the weighted importance sampling method is employed instead of the importance sampling method to estimate the data distribution. Finally, based on the TORCS simulation engine, the advantages and robustness of the method in vehicle-following control is verified. The results show that compared with other deep learning learning, the Subsection-PPO algorithm has better algorithm efficiency and higher safety than PPO and DDPG in vehicle-following control.
Free vibration analysis of graded porous circular micro/nanoplates with various boundary conditions based on the nonlocal elasticity theory

In this article, the free vibrations of graded porous circular nanoplates subjected to various boundary conditions have been investigated. It is assumed that the performance of graded porous materials varies continuously in the whole thickness, and two cosine forms of non‐uniform porosity distribution along its thickness are considered. In order to capture the size effect, the Eringen's nonlocal elastic theory is applied. Then, Mindlin plate theory, combined with Hamilton's principle, is utilized to derive the governing equations of motion. Various types of boundary conditions are assumed for the plate with a combination of clamped, simply supported and free edges. Finally, the governing equations of motion are solved numerically using the shooting technique. The effects of various factors such as porosity coefficient, porosity distribution pattern, thickness‐diameter ratio, and the nonlocal scale effect and boundary conditions on the natural frequencies of grade porous circular nanoplates are discussed in detail.
Profitability of using irrigation in forage cactus-sorghum intercropping for farmers in semi-arid environment

ABSTRACT Irrigation plays a fundamental role in advancing agricultural frontiers and increasing crop productivity, especially in semi-arid environments, because they exhibit high spatiotemporal rainfall variation. This practice is suggested even for adapted crops, such as forage cactus (Opuntia sp.), sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), and single or intercropping systems. In this study, aimed to evaluate the profitability of using irrigation in a single and intercropping forage cactus-sorghum system in a semi-arid region. The experimental design was in randomized blocks in a 5 × 3 factorial arrangement: five drip irrigation depths (0, 25, 50, 75, and 100% of the reference evapotranspiration - ET0) and three cropping systems (single forage cactus, single sorghum, and intercropping forage cactus-sorghum), with four replicates. The 0% ET0 treatment corresponded to rainfed conditions at a depth of 355 mm. A cycle of forage cactus and two sorghum cultivars (plant and regrowth) was conducted between November 2014 and November 2015. It was verified that the highest costs for implantation of the crop systems in irrigated conditions are due to the acquisition of irrigation and input systems, representing 85.3% of the effective operational cost. The single sorghum and forage cactus-sorghum systems provided the highest fresh matter productivity (62,013.05 and 60,075.36 kg ha-1, respectively). Based on economic indicators, the adoption of irrigation depths (25, 50, 75, and 100% ET0) promoted profits for the systems (single and intercropping) from the second year of implementation.
On the design of a stable adaptive filter

A problem of designing a stable adaptive filter (AF) for generating a state estimate in high dimensional systems is addressed. The procedure is essentially based on imposing additional constraints on the location of the eigenvalues of the filter's transition matrix and on minimizing the prediction error. It is shown that under mild conditions, detectability is a necessary and sufficient condition for stability of the AF. Different simple structures for the gain matrix and suitable parametrizations for the parameters to be adjusted in the filter gain are proposed in order to satisfy the imposed constraints. Numerical results are presented which show the effectiveness of the proposed approach.
Modeling the cross power spectrum of the Sunyaev-Zel’dovich and X-ray surveys

The thermal Sunyaev-Zel’dovich (tSZ) effect and X-ray emission from galaxy clusters have been used extensively to constrain cosmological parameters. These constraints are highly sensitive to the relations between cluster masses and observables (tSZ and X-ray fluxes). The cross-correlation of tSZ and X-ray data is thus a powerful tool, in addition of tSZ and X-ray based analysis, for testing our modeling of both tSZ and X-ray emission from galaxy clusters. We chose to explore this cross-correlation because both emissions trace the hot gas in galaxy clusters and thus constitute one of the easiest correlations that can be studied. We present a complete modeling of the cross-correlation between tSZ effect and X-ray emission from galaxy clusters and focus on the dependencies with cluster scaling laws and cosmological parameters. We show that current knowledge of cosmological parameters and scaling-law parameters leads to uncertainties of 48% on the overall normalization of the tSZ-X cross-correlation power spectrum. We present the expected signal-to-noise ratio for the tSZ-X cross-correlation angular power spectrum and consider the sensitivity of actual tSZ and X-ray surveys from Planck-like data and ROSAT. We demonstrate that this signal-to-noise can reach 31.5 in a realistic situation, leading to a constraint on the amplitude of tSZ-X cross-correlation up to 3.2%, which is ten times better than actual modeling limitations. Consequently, using it in addition to other probes of cosmological parameters and scaling relations, we show that the tSZ-X is a powerful probe that constrains the cosmological parameters of scaling relations.
Hydrostatic Chandra X-ray analysis of SPT-selected galaxy clusters – I. Evolution of profiles and core properties

We analyse Chandra X-ray Observatory observations of a set of galaxy clusters selected by the South Pole Telescope using a new publicly-available forward-modelling projection code, MBProj2, assuming hydrostatic equilibrium. By fitting a powerlaw plus constant entropy model we find no evidence for a central entropy floor in the lowest-entropy systems. A model of the underlying central entropy distribution shows a narrow peak close to zero entropy which accounts for 60 per cent of the systems, and a second broader peak around 130 keV cm^2. We look for evolution over the 0.28 to 1.2 redshift range of the sample in density, pressure, entropy and cooling time at 0.015 R_500 and at 10 kpc radius. By modelling the evolution of the central quantities with a simple model, we find no evidence for a non-zero slope with redshift. In addition, a non-parametric sliding median shows no significant change. The fraction of cool-core clusters with central cooling times below 2 Gyr is consistent above and below z=0.6 (~30-40 per cent). Both by comparing the median thermodynamic profiles, centrally biased towards cool cores, in two redshift bins, and by modelling the evolution of the unbiased average profile as a function of redshift, we find no significant evolution beyond self-similar scaling in any of our examined quantities. Our average modelled radial density, entropy and cooling-time profiles appear as powerlaws with breaks around 0.2 R_500. The dispersion in these quantities rises inwards of this radius to around 0.4 dex, although some of this scatter can be fit by a bimodal model.
Permeation of Ternary Mixture Containing H2S, CO2 and CH4 in Aquivion® Perfluorosulfonic Acid (PFSA) Ionomer Membranes

Aquivion® E87-12S Perfluorosulfonated acid ionomer material (PFSA) has been studied as a membrane technology for natural gas sweetening from CO2, H2S due to its interesting chemical and mechanical stability and good separation performance for polar compounds in humid environments. In the present work, permeation of the H2S/CO2/CH4 ternary mixture in this short-side PFSA chain was investigated at pressures up to 10 bar, temperatures up to 50 °C, and in a range of relative humidity (RH) from 20% to 90%. The results obtained confirm the strong dependence of Aquivion® on water activity and temperature, and its ability to separate gases based on their water solubility without substantial differences between pure and mixed gas experiments. Indeed, even when tested in ternary mixture, the permeation behavior remains similar to that observed for pure components and binary mixtures. In particular, the permeability of H2S is higher than that of CO2 and methane CH4, reaching values of 500 Barrer at 50 °C and 80% RH, against 450 and 23 Barrer for the other two gases respectively. Additionally, when tested at higher pressures of up to 10 bar under humid conditions, the membrane properties remained largely unchanged, thus confirming the overall stability and durability of Aquivion® E87-12S in acid environments.
Fluctuation assisted spreading of a fluid filled elastic blister

In this theoretical and numerical study, we show how spatially extended fluctuations can influence and dominate the dynamics of a fluid filled elastic blister as it deforms onto a pre-wetted solid substrate. To describe the blister dynamics, we develop a stochastic elastohydrodynamic framework that couples the viscous flow, the elastic bending of the interface and the noise from the environment. We deploy a scaling analysis to find the elastohydrodynamic spreading law $\hat{R}\sim \hat{t}^{1/11}$ , where $\hat{R}$ is the spreading radius and $\hat{t}$ is time, a direct analogue to the capillary spreading of drops, while the inclusion of noise in our model highlights that the dynamics speeds up significantly $\hat{R}\sim \hat{t}^{1/6}$ as local changes in curvature at the spreading front enhance the peeling of the elastic interface from the substrate. These fluctuations have a pronounced influence on the shape of the deforming blister and lead to the formation of a precursor film similar to a perfectly wetting droplet. Moreover, our analysis identifies a distinct criterion for the transition between the deterministic and the stochastic spreading regime, which is further illustrated by numerical simulations.
Effect of COVID-19 vaccines for the treatment of people with post-COVID-19 condition: a rapid review

Background: Vaccination for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has demonstrated reduced risk of hospitalisation and death against more recent variants of COVID-19. Some studies suggested improvements in patients with post-COVID-19 condition (PCC) following vaccination. We systematically explored available evidence on the effect of COVID-19 vaccines for the treatment of people with PCC. Methods: We conducted a rapid review of the literature following systematic approaches. We searched Medline (OVID), EMBASE (Elsevier), ClinicalTrials.gov, and the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) for randomised trials, non-randomised trials, controlled before-after studies, and interrupted time-series studies of the effect of COVID-19 vaccines for treating people with PCC. Two independent review authors screened citations. Two review authors extracted data independently. We had planned to assess the risk of bias and use the GRADE approach (Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation) to assess the certainty of evidence if there were completed studies. Results: We identified two ongoing randomised controlled trials. Both trials examine the effectiveness of therapeutic vaccines on PCC. The anticipated completion date of the CIMAvax-EGFA trial is January 2023, and the completion date of the COVID-19 mRNA vaccine trial is not stated. Conclusions: There is currently an absence of high‐quality evidence evaluating the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines for treating people with post-COVID-19 condition. The absence of published studies and only two ongoing trials highlight the need for additional studies on the effectiveness of vaccines for PCC. We recommend that researchers consider PCC as per the definition provided by the World Health Organization and use the available core outcome set for PCC in deciding which outcomes to measure and report in the trials. PROPSERO registration: CRD42022330821 (20/06/2022)
Hemoxygenase-1 Promotes Head and Neck Cancer Cell Viability

Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is a remarkably heterogeneous disease with around 50% mortality, a fact that has prompted researchers to try new approaches to improve patient survival. Hemoxygenase-1 (HO-1) is the rate-limiting step for heme degradation into carbon monoxide, free iron and biliverdin. We have previously reported that HO-1 protein is upregulated in human HNSCC samples and that it is localized in the cytoplasmic and nuclear compartments; additionally, we have demonstrated that HO-1 nuclear localization is associated with malignant progression. In this work, by using pharmacological and genetic experimental approaches, we begin to elucidate the mechanisms through which HO-1 plays a role in HNSCC. We found that high HO-1 mRNA was associated with decreased patient survival in early stages of HNSCC. In vitro experiments have shown that full-length HO-1 localizes in the cytoplasm, and that, depending on its enzymatic activity, it increases cell viability and promotes cell cycle progression. Instead, HO-1 does not alter migration capacity. Furthermore, we show that C-terminal truncated HO-1 localizes into the nucleus, increases cell viability and promotes cell cycle progression. In conclusion, we herein demonstrate that HO-1 displays protumor activities in HNSCC that depend, at least in part, on the nuclear localization of HO-1.
Estimation of Platelet Count and Bleeding Time of Mice Treated with Musa paradisiaca var. sapientum (L.) Kuntze Extract

Objective The aim of this study was to estimate the platelet count and bleeding time on peripheral blood smear of mice tail wound using Musa paradisiaca var. sapientum (L.) Kuntze (ambonese banana stem extract). Design Randomized post-test-only control group design. Materials and Methods Twenty-four male mice (Mus Musculus) were randomly divided into 4 groups. A negative control group was treated with carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), a positive control group (K+) treated aspirin 100 mg/kg body weight, group P1 treated with aspirin 100 mg/kg body weight and tranexamic acid 50 mg/kg body weight, and group P2 treated with 30% of ambonese banana stem extract (ABSE). The mean and standard deviation data of platelet counts and bleeding time were analyzed by one-way ANOVA statistical software. Results and Discussion Tranexamic acid had no significant effect on platelets count compared to CMC group (p = 0.871), but administration of aspirin resulted in low platelets count significantly (p = 0.003). The platelet counts of ABSE and CMC groups were not significant different (p = 0.937). Aspirin has significantly shown prolonged bleeding time than CMC, tranexamic acid, and ABSE groups. However, there was no difference between the tranexamic acid and ABSE groups (p=0.934). The bleeding time of tranexamic acid and ABSE groups was similar, although the platelet count in the ABSE group was lower than in the CMC group. Conclusion This study proved that ambonese banana stem extract has a potency to shorten the bleeding time in mice tail wound without interfering to platelet count.
Heterogeneous dynamics during yielding of glasses: Effect of aging

Molecular dynamics computer simulations of a binary Lennard–Jones glass under shear are presented. The mechanical response of glassy states having different thermal histories is investigated by imposing a wide range of external shear rates, at different temperatures. The stress-strain relations exhibit an overshoot at a strain of around 0.1, marking the yielding of the glass sample and the onset of plastic flow. The amplitude of the overshoot shows a logarithmic behavior with respect to a dimensionless variable, given by the age of the sample times the shear rate. Dynamical heterogeneities having finite lifetimes, in the form of shear bands, are observed as the glass deforms under shear. By quantifying the spatial fluctuations of particle mobility, we demonstrate that such shearbanding occurs only under specific combinations of imposed shear-rate, age of glass, and ambient temperature.
Powassan Virus Induces Structural Changes in Human Neuronal Cells In Vitro and Murine Neurons In Vivo

Powassan virus (POWV) is a tick-borne flavivirus (TBFV) that can cause severe encephalitis in humans with a case–fatality rate as high as 11%. Patients who survive severe encephalitic disease can develop long-term neurological sequelae that can be debilitating and life-long. In this study, we have sought to characterize a primary human fetal brain neural stem cell system (hNSC), which can be differentiated into neuron and astrocyte co-cultures, to serve as a translational in vitro system for infection with POWV and a comparative mosquito-borne flavivirus (MBFV), West Nile virus (WNV). We found that both viruses are able to infect both cell types in the co-culture and that WNV elicits a strong inflammatory response characterized by increased cytokines IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, TNF-α and IL-1β and activation of apoptosis pathways. POWV infection resulted in fewer cytokine responses, as well as less detectable apoptosis, while neurons infected with POWV exhibited structural aberrations forming in the dendrites. These anomalies are consistent with previous findings in which tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) infected murine primary neurons formed laminal membrane structures (LMS). Furthermore, these structural aberrations are also recapitulated in brain tissue from infected mice. Our findings indicate that POWV is capable of infecting human primary neurons and astrocytes without causing apparent widespread apoptosis, while forming punctate structures reminiscent with LMS in primary human neurons and in vivo.
Experimental and Numerical Investigations on the Mixing Process of Supercritical Jet Injected into a Supersonic Crossflow

The mixing process and distribution characteristics of a supercritical endothermic hydrocarbon fuel (EHF) jet injected into a supersonic crossflow were investigated by experimental and numerical methods, respectively. The schlieren system and acetone planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF) optical system were used to capture the flow-field structural characteristics and instantaneous plume. The mixture and real gas models were employed to calculate the interaction of a transverse jet and supersonic crossflow and reveal a good accuracy with the experimental results. The mixing efficiency and total pressure loss were analyzed based on the numerical results. The results indicate that the supercritical-state EHF directly changes to a gaseous state as it enters the supersonic crossflow from the injector. The EHF jet plume boundary increases with the increasing momentum flux ratio (q). As the streamwise and spanwise distance increases, the traverse heights and expand width increase, and the EHF jet plume presents a semicircle shape in the cross-sectional plane. With the increase in the traverse direction, the concentration distribution shows a fast and then slow power exponential decreasing law; the highest concentration point starts from the near-wall region and rises in the transverse direction with the flow distance increasing. For the same injection condition, the higher the inflow Mach number, the higher the mixing efficiency. For the same Ma, the mixing efficiency is better for the case with low injection pressure and high injection temperature. The total pressure loss is greater in the higher Ma, and high injection pressure conditions cause greater total pressure loss.
Magnetically superior and easy to handle L10-FePt nanocrystals

We report synthesis of monodisperse L10-FePt nanocrystals that are not only superior in magnetism but also easy to handle through being dispersible in solvents. Thanks to a thick SiO2 coating, the thermal treatment needed to form the L10 structure can be done even at 900°C without inducing coalescence and coarsening. The protecting shell was thereafter removed in a specific way that enabled us to recover the L10-FePt nanocrystals in a water dispersion. The SiO2-coated nanocrystals show a high coercivity of 18.5kOe at room temperature in spite of their core size of only 6.5nm in diameter, and the hysteresis loop of the water-dispersed nanocrystals, which were frozen under an external field, was almost rectangular indicating that their magnetic and structural orientation could be attained.We report synthesis of monodisperse L10-FePt nanocrystals that are not only superior in magnetism but also easy to handle through being dispersible in solvents. Thanks to a thick SiO2 coating, the thermal treatment needed to form the L10 structure can be done even at 900°C without inducing coalescence and coarsening. The protecting shell was thereafter removed in a specific way that enabled us to recover the L10-FePt nanocrystals in a water dispersion. The SiO2-coated nanocrystals show a high coercivity of 18.5kOe at room temperature in spite of their core size of only 6.5nm in diameter, and the hysteresis loop of the water-dispersed nanocrystals, which were frozen under an external field, was almost rectangular indicating that their magnetic and structural orientation could be attained.
Impact of the Covid-19 Outbreak on Stocks in Hong Kong, Macau and North America - An Empirical Analysis Based on the Hospitality Industry

The WHO declared the Covid-19 outbreak a "public health emergency" in early 2020, deeming it a serious threat to the global economy. This study builds industry indices for North America and Hong Kong and Macau using weighted averages of nine well-known listed companies in North America and fourteen companies in Hong Kong and Macau with Asian representation. Based on the event study method, the impact of the Covid-19 epidemic on the stock returns of listed companies in the global hospitality industry was examined. In terms of empirical results, Covid-19 has a significant positive impact on Hong Kong and Macau hospitality industry returns, whereas Covid-19 has a significant negative impact on North American hospitality industry returns. As a consequence, the magnitude of the decline can be attributed primarily to the measures taken to control the Covid-19 pandemic. In the face of emergencies, regulators and investors can make informed decisions by studying the impact of the epidemic on capital markets.
Chandra Observations of the Open Cluster NGC 2516

Our analysis of Chandra X-Ray Observatory data for the open cluster NGC 2516, sometimes referred to as "the southern Pleiades," has yielded over 150 X-ray detections in both High-Resolution Camera and Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrometer images of the central region of the cluster. We identify some of the new X-ray sources with photometric cluster members and compare these new Chandra results with those of ROSAT. To date, 82 detected X-ray sources (42% of surveyed cluster members) are tentatively identified as cluster members. We also discuss the X-ray properties of late-type members in comparison with those of corresponding stellar types in the more metal-rich, approximately coeval Pleiades Cluster.