Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Learning by Interacting : Comparing the Effectiveness of an Interactive Tutorial with a Standard Electronic Book Interface

Advances in Internet technologies have led Universities to utilise the Internet for delivery of on-line course related material. On-line learning materials are mostly developed as interactive multimedia and are implemented for web delivery. The use of interactive learning has becoming an important component of the on-line teaching and learning experience. These components of the learning experience seem to be successful and well liked by students, but there is little evaluative and experimental evidence to justify the additional resources required to develop interactive learning materials, as opposed to simply providing existing lecture notes on-line, in an electronic book format.This study performed a summative design-evaluation of two types of interfaces, an electronic book and an interactive tutorial. The experiment compared the effectiveness of using the interfaces for webbased computing teaching at tertiary level and determined user reactions to each interface. User preferences were also recorded in this study. User performance data from content tutorials and a preference survey were recorded and analysed using two statistical inference tests. Analysis of these data showed that students achieved improved results when using an on-line interactive tutorial in comparison to an electronic book. In the survey, students responded in favour of the interactive tutorial.
Modelling of evaporation processes over tilted slopes by means of 3D GRASS raster

The purpose of the present work is to create a tool able to simplify the analysis of atmospheric phenomena in lower atmosphere; with specific application to up-slope winds on sloping terrain and the evaporation of water vapor from the vegetation. Models of atmospheric processes occurring close to the ground and GIS display a point of contact since most of the input variables of lower atmosphere phenomena are distributed on the land surface and the latter display have a strong interaction with the boundary condition; the land cover and variables like local slope, irradiance and exposition have in fact a large influence on the evolution of the wind and the evaporation processes. On the other hand, the intrinsic 3D character of such phenomena has so far prevented the development of atmospheric models within a GIS environment, since no tools for the management and elaboration of 3D data were available. The recent introduction of the 3D raster management modules in GRASS allowed implementation of a model for the evaluation of wind profiles and humidity distribution along a sloping terrain. This model exploits the power of the 3D GRASS map algebra (r3.mapcalc) to implement a simplified model generalizing Prandtl (1942) model for slope winds to take into account humidity and evaporation processes on the soil, in order to obtain wind velocity and virtual potential temperature profiles. Both this variables depends on direction and modulus of the slope normal therefore a method to evaluate the normal vector to the surface and the distance of a given point from the surface has been developed. Two applications to both an ideal valley and a real one, with validation of the model results, are presented.
The urban politics of ruins: new imaginations of postmodern Monrovia

1. M M Bakhtin, Rabelais and his World, H Iswolsky (trans), Cambridge: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1968, p 29. 2. Paul Rabinow (ed), Michel Foucault: Essential Works, Vol. 3; Power, Baltimore: Penguin Books, 2000, p 241. 3. This echoes Cathy’s O’Neil’s characterization of models as ‘values in code’. Cathy O’Neil, Weapons of Math Destruction, London: Penguin, 2017. 4. Ahmed Kabel and Robert Phillipson, ‘Structural Violence and Hope in Catastrophic Times: From Camus’ The Plague to Covid-19’, Race & Class, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1177/ 0306396820974180. 5. A nuanced rendering of Nietzsche’s original formulation. See Friedrich Nietzsche, The Gay Science, London: Penguin, 1974, p 182. 6. Franz Fanon, Les Damnés de la Terre, Paris: La Découverte, 2002, p 76, (my translation). 7. Theodor Adorno, Negative Dialectics, London: Routledge, 1973, pp 17–18. 8. Franz Fanon, Black Skin, White Masks, London: Pluto Press, 2008, p 184.
Variable Stiffness Actuators: A Port-Based Power-Flow Analysis

Variable stiffness actuators realize a novel class of actuators, which are capable of changing the apparent output stiffness independently of the output position. This is mechanically achieved by the internal introduction of a number of elastic elements and a number of actuated degrees of freedom (DOFs), which determine how the elastic elements are sensed at the output. During the nominal behavior of these actuators, the power flow from the internal actuated DOFs can be such that energy is undesirably stored in the elastic elements because of the specific kinematic structure of the actuator. In this study, we focus on the analysis of the power flow in variable stiffness actuators. More specifically, the analysis is restricted to the kinematic structure of the actuators, in order to show the influence of the topological structure on the power flow, rather than on the realization choices. We define a measure that indicates the ratio between the total amount of power that is injected by the internal actuated DOFs and the power that is captured by the internal elastic elements which, therefore, cannot be used to do work on the load. In order to define the power-flow ratio, we exploit a generic port-based model of variable stiffness actuators, which highlights the kinematic properties of the design and the power flows in the actuator structure.
Color image encryption algorithm based on Tangent-Delay Ellipse Reflecting Cavity map System

Chaotic encryption has presently become the focus of the information security field. The article presents the main theory of TD-ERCS, and proposes a new algorithm to improve the security of image encryption based on TD-ERCS. According to the sort permutation and the binary XOR operation from the TD-ERCS chaotic series, it can achieve image encryption. This encryption algorithm is a reversible algorithm, and it can achieve the original image in the rule inverse process of the encryption algorithm. Finally, through computer simulation, the experiment results show that the new chaotic encryption algorithm based on TD-ERCS is valid and has higher security.
LOGICAL DEPTH AS A MEASURE OF BIOLOGICAL ORGANIZATION AND ITS RELATION TO ALGORITHMIC COMPLEXITY

Although the complexity of biological systems and subsystems like DNA and various transcription and translation pathways is of interest in itself, organization is of fundamental importance to understanding biological systems. It would be convenient to have a general definition of organization applicable to biological systems. I propose that C.H. Bennett’s notion of logical depth is a suitable candidate. I discuss the problems with using complexity measures alone, and then the relations between logical depth and algorithmic complexity. Last, I give some examples in which depth gives a better measure of what might naively be taken to be complexity in biological systems by many biologists,,and then argue that this must be augmented by consideration of dynamical processes.
“ Dark Areas of Ignorance ” Revisited Comparing International Affairs Knowledge in Switzerland and the United States

This study tests the hypothesis that cross-national differences in public awareness of international affairs are attributable to differences in the supply of international news and citizens’ demand for information. Simultaneously, the authors compared the level of news coverage accorded specific “target” subjects in major Swiss and U.S. news organizations and the level of attentiveness to news among Swiss and U.S. citizens. The authors’ results revealed that Swiss media provided more hard international news than U.S. media, that Swiss citizens reported higher levels of news exposure, and that the Swiss were also considerably more informed than the americans on questions of hard news. Using a multilevel model, the authors further demonstrate that the effects of news on knowledge are stronger in Switzerland and that the greater availability of international news has the effect of reducing the knowledge gap between more and less attentive Swiss.
Heart Retransplant Recipients Have Better Survival With Concurrent Kidney Transplant Than With Heart Retransplant Alone

Background Heart retransplant (HRT) recipients represent a growing number of transplant patients. The impact of concurrent kidney transplants (KTs) in this population has not been well studied. We tested the hypothesis that recipients of HRT with concurrent KT (HRT‐KT) would have worse survival than recipients of HRT alone. Methods and Results A retrospective analysis of the United Network of Organ Sharing database was performed for all patients undergoing HRT from 1987 to 2011. There were 1660 HRT patients, of which 116 (7%) received concurrent KT. Those who received HRT‐KT had older age, longer wait‐list time, worse kidney function, and more known diabetes. Survival among recipients of HRT‐KT was significantly better than that of recipients of HRT alone (P=0.005). A subgroup of 323 HRT patients with severe kidney dysfunction (estimated glomerular filtration rate <30 mL/min per 1.73 m2 or on dialysis) was studied in more detail, and 76 (24%) received concurrent KT. Those on dialysis at the time of HRT had better survival with versus without concurrent KT (P<0.0001). On multivariable analysis, concurrent KT was independently associated with better outcomes for all patients with HRT and for the subgroup of patients with severe kidney dysfunction. Conclusions Recipients of HRT‐KT have better survival than recipients of HRT alone. Further research is needed to determine which HRT patients may benefit the most from concurrent KT.
A Theory of Disagreement in Repeated Games with Renegotiation

This paper develops the concept of contractual equilibrium for repeated games with transferable utility, whereby the players negotiate cooperatively over their continuation strategies at the start of each period. Players may disagree in the negotiation phase, and continuation play may be suboptimal under disagreement. Under agreement, play is jointly optimal in the continuation game, and the players split the surplus (according to fixed bargaining weights) relative to what they would have attained under disagreement. Contractual equilibrium outcomes also arise from subgame perfect equilibria in a class of models with noncooperative bargaining, under some assumptions on the endogenous meaning of cheap-talk messages. Contractual equilibria exist for all discount factors, and for any given discount factor all contractual equilibria attain the same aggregate utility. Patient players attain efficiency under simple sufficient conditions; necessary and sufficient conditions are also provided. The allocation of bargaining power can dramatically affect aggregate utility. The theory extends naturally to games with more than two players, imperfect public monitoring, and heterogeneous discount factors. JEL: C71 , C72 , C73 , C78 ∗We thank seminar participants at Collegio Carlo Alberto, Columbia, Florida International, the International Food Policy Research Institute, Penn, Toronto, UCLA, UCSD, UC Davis, USC, USC Marshall School of Business, Western Ontario, the 2009 NBER Organizational Economics Working Group Meeting (especially Sylvain Chassang), the Third World Congress of the Game Theory Society, the 2008 Southwest Economic Theory Conference, and the 2008 Stony Brook Workshop on Recent Advances in Repeated Games, for valuable comments and suggestions. Jacob Johnson and Jong-Myun Moon provided excellent research assistance. Both authors: Dept. of Economics, 9500 Gilman Dr. #0508, La Jolla, CA 92093–0508. Miller thanks Yale University and the Cowles Foundation for Research in Economics for hospitality and financial support, and Partha Dasgupta for inspiration to pursue this topic. Watson thanks the National Science Foundation (SES-0095207) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Southwest Fisheries Science Center), and the Cowles Foundation at Yale for financial support and hospitality.
The Ionic and Hydrophobic Interactions Are Required for the Auto Activation of Cysteine Proteases of Plasmodium falciparum

The Plasmodium falciparum cysteine proteases falcipain-2 and falcipain-3 are major hemoglobinases and potential antimalarial drug targets. Our previous studies demonstrated that these enzymes are equipped with specific domains for specific functions. Structural and functional analysis of falcipains showed that they have unique domains including a refolding domain and a hemoglobin binding domain. As with many proteases, falcipain-2 and falcipain-3 are synthesized as inactive zymogens. However, it is not known how these enzymes get activated for hemoglobin hydrolysis. In this study, we are presenting the first evidence that salt bridges and hydrophobic interactions are required for the auto activation of cysteine proteases of P.falciparum. To investigate the mechanism of activation of these enzymes, we expressed the wild type protein as well as different mutants in E.coli. Refolding was assessed by circular dichroism. Both CD and trans activation data showed that the wild type enzymes and mutants are rich in secondary structures with similar folds. Our study revealed that prodomain-mature domain of falcipain-2 and falcipain-3 interacts via salt bridges and hydrophobic interactions. We mutated specific residues of falcipain-2 and falcipain-3, and evaluated their ability to undergo auto processing. Mutagenesis result showed that two salt bridges (Arg 185 - Glu 221, Glu 210 - Lys 403) in falcipain-2, and one salt bridge (Arg 202-Glu 238) in falcipain-3, play crucial roles in the activation of these enzymes. Further study revealed that hydrophobic interactions present both in falcipain-2 (Phe214, Trp449 Trp 453) and falcipain-3 (Phe 231 Trp 457 Trp 461) also play important roles in the activation of these enzymes. Our results revealed the interactions involved in auto processing of two major hemoglobinases of malaria parasite.
IrcamCorpusTools: an Extensible Platform for Spoken Corpora Exploitation

Corpus based methods are increasingly used for speech technology applications and for the development of theoretical or computer models of spoken languages. These usages range from unit selection speech synthesis to statistical modeling of speech phenomena like prosody or expressivity. In all cases, these usages require a wide range of tools for corpus creation, labeling, symbolic and acoustic analysis, storage and query. However, if a variety of tools exists for each of these individual tasks, they are rarely integrated into a single platform made available to a large community of researchers. In this paper, we propose IrcamCorpusTools, an open and easily extensible platform for analysis, query and visualization of speech corpora. It is already used for unit selection speech synthesis, for prosody and expressivity studies, and to exploit various corpora of spoken French or other languages.
IMPACT OF SUBSTANCE ABUSE COMORBIDITY ON PSYCHOPATHOLOGY AND PATTERN OF REMISSION IN MANIA

This prospective study was conducted to assess the prevalence of substance abuse comorbidity and its impact on psycho pathology and pattern of remission in mania. Hundred consecutive inpatients with a diagnosis of manic episode were followed up for three months using structured clinical interview schedule for DSM III R (SCID-P), DSM IIIR check list for mania. Bech-Rafaelsan Mania Rating Scale and a questionnaire concerning sociodemographic and clinical profile. The prevalence of substance abuse comorbidity was 52%. Substance abusers were significantly younger, had early age of onset of mood disorder, unmarried, unemployed, had more dysphoric and irritate mood states and grandiose and persecutory delusions. Risk factor analysis showed substance abuse as being consistently associated with poor outcome in mania.
Spectral classification of the mass donors in the high-mass X-ray binaries EXO 1722-363 and OAO 1657-415

Aims. We report near-infrared (NIR) observations of the mass donors of the eclipsing high-mass X-ray binary (HMXB) systems EXO 1722-363 and OAO 1657-415 in order to derive their accurate spectral classifications. Methods. ESO/VLT observations of the targets with the NIR spectrometer ISAAC were compared with several published NIR spectral atlases of O and B supergiants, an identification of each object's spectral characteristics was made, enabling the refinement of spectral classification of the mass donors. Results. We determined that EXO 1722-363 was of spectral type B0–B1Ia, positioned at a distance $8. 0_{\rm -2.0}^{+2.5}$ kpc with a progenitor mass in the range 30–40 $M_{\odot}$. Luminosity calculations imply that L X ~ 10 35 –10 37 erg s -1 for this distance range. We conclude that EXO 1722-363 shares many of the properties associated with other X-ray binary B-type supergiant donors. We found that OAO 1657-415 correlates closely with the spectra of a class of transitional objects, the Ofpe/WNL stars, an intermediate evolutionary stage between massive O type stars leaving the main sequence and evolving into Wolf-Rayets. Due to the wide range in luminosity displayed by Ofpe/WNL stars, (log$(L/L_{\odot})$ ~ 5.3–6.2) distance determinations are problematic. For OAO 1657-415 we report a distance of 4.4 ≤ d ≤ 12 kpc, implying an X-ray luminosity of 1.5 $\times$ 10 36 ≤ L X ≤ 10 37 erg s -1 . We have used our new classification of OAO 1657-415 to explain the physical processes responsible for its unique position within the Corbet diagram. Ofpe/WNL stars demonstrate a high rate of mass-loss through a dense stellar wind combined with a low terminal velocity. This combination of wind properties leads to a high accretion rate and transfer of angular momentum to the neutron star in this system. We believe this in turn leads to a smaller instantaneous equilibrium spin period with respect to normal OB supergiants.
Application of H 2 -based Sliding Mode Control for an Active Magnetic Bearing System

Abstract — In this paper, application of Sliding Mode Control (SMC) technique for an Active Magnetic Bearing (AMB) system with varying rotor speed is considered. The gyroscopic effect and mass imbalance inherited in the system is proportional to rotor speed in which this nonlinearity effect causes high system instability as the rotor speed increases. Transformation of the AMB dynamic model into regular system shows that these gyroscopic effect and imbalance lie in the mismatched part of the system. A H 2 -based sliding surface is designed which bound the mismatched parts. The solution of the surface parameter is obtained using Linear Matrix Inequality (LMI). The performance of the controller applied to the AMB model is demonstrated through simulation works under various system conditions. Keywords — Active Magnetic Bearing (AMB), Sliding Mode Control (SMC), Linear Matrix Inequality (LMI), mismatched uncertainty and imbalance. I. I NTRODUCTION LIDING Mode Control (SMC) has received great attention in recent years because of its robustness against uncertainties present in system [1], [2] ,[3] and [4]. SMC is a nonlinear control technique that is applicable to a wide range of dynamic system including the linear, nonlinear, multi-input/multi-output, discrete-time and large scale systems. There are many approaches have been reported and considered in the design process of the sliding-mode control law, such that the system is robust or even insensitive to parametric uncertainties and disturbance. In the practical application of SMC, the controller has also been successfully adapted in many forms and applied in numerous real-world applications such as robot manipulator [5], active suspension system [6], magnetic suspension system and magnetic bearings [7][8]. AMB system however is an advance mechatronic system in which it is open loop unstable and inherent high nonlinearity effect. Thus the system requires feedback gain such that the closed-loop system is stable and able to meet required system
WHITE PAPER : WP 014 eGaN ® FETs in Wireless Power Transfer Systems

Many of the wireless energy transfer solutions have targeted portable device charging that require features such as low profile, high efficiency, robustness to changing operating conditions and, in some cases, light weight. These requirements translate into designs that need to be efficient and able to operate without a bulky heatsink. Furthermore the design must be able to operate over a wide range of coupling and load variations. There are a few amplifier topologies that can be considered such as the voltage mode class-D, current mode class-D and class-E. The class-E has become the choice for many wireless energy solutions as it can operate with very high conversion efficiency.
Fascin Regulates the Migration of Subventricular Zone-Derived Neuroblasts in the Postnatal Brain

After birth, stem cells in the subventricular zone (SVZ) generate neuroblasts that migrate along the rostral migratory stream (RMS) to become interneurons in the olfactory bulb (OB). This migration is a fundamental event controlling the proper integration of new neurons in a pre-existing synaptic network. Many regulators of neuroblast migration have been identified; however, still very little is known about the intracellular molecular mechanisms controlling this process. Here, we show that the actin-bundling protein fascin is highly upregulated in mouse SVZ-derived migratory neuroblasts. Fascin-1ko mice display an abnormal RMS and a smaller OB. Bromodeoxyuridine labeling experiments show that lack of fascin significantly impairs neuroblast migration, but does not appear to affect cell proliferation. Moreover, fascin depletion substantially alters the polarized morphology of rat neuroblasts. Protein kinase C (PKC)-dependent phosphorylation of fascin on Ser39 regulates its actin-bundling activity. In vivo postnatal electroporation of phosphomimetic (S39D) or nonphosphorylatable (S39A) fascin variants followed by time-lapse imaging of brain slices demonstrates that the phospho-dependent modulation of fascin activity ensures efficient neuroblast migration. Finally, fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy studies in rat neuroblasts reveal that the interaction between fascin and PKC can be modulated by cannabinoid signaling, which controls neuroblast migration in vivo. We conclude that fascin, whose upregulation appears to mark the transition to the migratory neuroblast stage, is a crucial regulator of neuroblast motility. We propose that a tightly regulated phospho/dephospho-fascin cycle modulated by extracellular signals is required for the polarized morphology and migration in neuroblasts, thus contributing to efficient neurogenesis.