Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An update on placental drug transport and its relevance to fetal drug exposure

Abstract Pregnant women are often complicated with diseases that require treatment with medication. Most drugs administered to pregnant women are off-label without the necessary dose, efficacy, and safety information. Knowledge concerning drug transfer across the placental barrier is essential for understanding fetal drug exposure and hence drug safety and efficacy to the fetus. Transporters expressed in the placenta, including adenosine triphosphate (ATP)-binding cassette efflux transporters and solute carrier uptake transporters, play important roles in determining drug transfer across the placental barrier, leading to fetal exposure to the drugs. In this review, we provide an update on placental drug transport, including in vitro cell/tissue, ex vivo human placenta perfusion, and in vivo animal studies that can be used to determine the expression and function of drug transporters in the placenta as well as placental drug transfer and fetal drug exposure. We also describe how the knowledge of placental drug transfer through passive diffusion or active transport can be combined with physiologically based pharmacokinetic modeling and simulation to predict systemic fetal drug exposure. Finally, we highlight knowledge gaps in studying placental drug transport and predicting fetal drug exposure and discuss future research directions to fill these gaps.
Creation of entanglement in a scalable spin quantum computer with long-range dipole-dipole interaction between qubits

Creation of entanglement is considered theoretically and numerically in an ensemble of spin chains with dipole-dipole interaction between the spins. The unwanted effect of the long-range dipole interaction is compensated by the optimal choice of the parameters of radio-frequency pulses implementing the protocol. The errors caused by (i) the influence of the environment, (ii) nonselective excitations (iii) influence of different spin chains on each other, (iv) displacements of qubits from their perfect locations, and (v) fluctuations of the external magnetic field are estimated analytically and calculated numerically. For the perfectly entangled state the z component M of the magnetization of the whole system is equal to zero. The errors lead to a finite value of M. If the number of qubits in the system is large, M can be detected experimentally. Using the fact that M depends differently on the parameters of the system for each kind of error, varying these parameters would allow one to experimentally determine the most significant source of errors and to optimize correspondingly the quantum computer design in order to decrease the errors and |M|. Using our approach one can benchmark the quantum computer, decrease the errors, and prepare the quantum computer for implementation ofmore » more complex quantum algorithms. « less
Impact of management’s irrational expectations on corporate tax avoidance: A mediating effect based on level of risk-taking

Frequent tax avoidance incidents have caused huge losses to corporate reputation and corporate value. Research is required on whether and how the irrational judgment of management, a powerful factor in corporate decision-making, affects corporate tax avoidance behavior. Taking all A-share listed companies from 2006 to 2020 as a sample, this paper empirically tests the relationships among management’s irrational expectations, level of corporate risk-taking, and level of corporate tax avoidance using an fixed effects regression model (FEM). The results of the three-stage regression model and Sobel test suggest that the level of corporate risk-taking plays a mediating role between managers’ irrational expectations and Corporate tax avoidance. The managers’ stockholding plays a moderating role in this process. This study also finds evidence that the irrational expectations of management lead to an increase in levels of research and development manipulation, which indirectly increases the level of corporate tax avoidance. Therefore, to control the risk caused by managers’ risky decisions, such as R&D manipulation and tax avoidance, it is necessary to lessen the effects of irrational expectations of management, and the management equity incentive plan has been identified as a reliable method in the risk reduction process.
Citizens' Readiness for Proactive Public Services: A case study from Azerbaijan

The provision of citizen-centric public services is a trending topic. In particular, proactive public service delivery is gaining momentum. Yet, this phenomenon is relatively understudied in academic research due to its novelty. Specifically, citizens' intentions and readiness to accept such services are untouched. To bridge this apparent gap, citizens' readiness for proactive public services is investigated in this paper. The goal is to define citizens' readiness for proactive public services and identify key factors influencing its uptake. To this end, existing research on public e-services and technology adoption was investigated, and a novel theoretical approach was formulated. Further, the case of the Childbirth allowance in Azerbaijan was studied; qualitative interviews and a quantitative questionnaire were conducted. Based on the results of the research, the author proposes an initial and exploratory model of citizens’ readiness for proactive public services. The model benefits academia by allowing further quantitative research on the use of specific services as well as comparative case study research from multiple countries. A few potential directions for future research are given at the end of the paper. Moreover, the results of the study could be used by government service providers to improve the delivery of proactive services.
The influence of institutional pressures on urban governance models:: A case study in a smart cross-border region in Brazil and Argentina.

Smart cities and regions have a strong focus on providing citizens and residents with a better quality of life. Relatedly, urban governance is seen as a key element in the development and management of cities and regions. In border regions, where the social, economic, and cultural dynamic is often distinct, developing cities and making them smart presents challenges that can be addressed by binational governance. This study aims to understand how binational governance works in a border region that is seeking to become smart. A qualitative and exploratory study was conducted as a single case on the Brazil-Argentina border program La Frontera. In-depth interviews and document analysis were carried out and subjected to content analysis. The research findings shed light on the internal and external actors, the political and institutional environment, and the factors influencing the binational governance establishment and functioning. A history of disputes between the countries still shapes the dynamic of the border, and the formulation of laws and public policies. Moreover, institutions and actors can influence the focus of governance, and organizations that seek to ensure cooperation and integration do not necessarily guarantee that their principles are practiced.
Evidence of Using of ICTs on Mathematics Achievement for Preschool Children: A Meta-analysis

The purpose of this study was to Meta-analyze the empirical evidence of the effectiveness of ICTs assisted teaching on preschool children's mathematical achievement. A systematic search of English-writing, peer-reviewed, and randomized controlled studies was conducted. There were 19 studies in which 3,900 participants met the study selection criteria. The results showed that ICTs had a positive and medium effect on young children's mathematics achievement (SMD=0.673), especially on reasoning (SMD=0.642) and numeracy (SMD=0.641) achievement. Under different moderating variables, such as ICTs devices type and experiment period, the effect of ICTs on preschoolers' mathematical achievement was different. Touch screen ICTs devices (SMD=0.834) and experimental periods of less than 4 weeks (SMD=0.769) had high effect levels. According to different mathematics teaching content, flexibly choose and use ICTs devices, and adjust the teaching period of ICTs using to improve the effect of mathematics teaching and children's mathematics achievement.
Touchable Cooled Graphics: Midair 3D Image with Noncontact Cooling Feedback using Ultrasound-Driven Mist Vaporization

Adding tactile feedback to a midair image realizes immersive mixed reality contents. In this study, we develop a midair 3D image with a noncontact cooling sensation using ultrasound. In this system, users can feel a cooling sensation when touching the 3D image with their bare hands. The noncontact cooling sensation is rapidly displayed by ultrasound-driven mist vaporization. In the previous ultrasound haptic-optic display, only mechanical tactile feedback e.g. vibration has been used. The cooling sensation can extend the displayable material texture of the ultrasound haptic system. In the demo, we present a 3D image of ice. Participants can touch the image freely and feel its realistic cooling sensation.
Optical Parameter Estimation for Hair and Fur using Differentiable Rendering

In this paper, we propose a parameter estimation method for Bidirectional Curve Scattering Distribution Function (BCSDF) for hair and fur using differentiable rendering. Given fiber geometries, illumination, and a target rendered image, our method jointly estimates optical parameters of BCSDF so as to match the target image taking into account indirect illumination. We develop a differentiable path-tracing renderer tailored to estimate optical parameters of BCSDF. To avoid getting stuck in a local minimum, we propose a two-stage estimation method where the first stage estimates two optical parameters affecting hair and fur’s entire appearance. Then, all the optical parameters are jointly estimated in the second stage. Experimental results substantiate that our method can automatically estimate optical parameters of hair and fur.
Exploring Citizens’ Channel Behavior in Benefit Application: Empirical Examples from Norwegian Welfare Services

After more than a decade of intense digitalization of public service delivery in Scandinavia, scholars and public organizations wonder why many citizens still prefer to use traditional communication channels to interact with government. In this paper, we explore citizens’ channel behavior when applying for public benefits from the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration (NAV). We break down the application process into separate actions to answer the research question: what causes citizens to use multiple channels in the benefit application process? Based on qualitative semi-structured interviews with frontline workers at NAV, we describe the process citizens undergo when they apply for benefits from NAV, the actions citizens perform, and the problems they experience, which cause them to contact NAV. Frontline workers are interviewed as these are knowledgeable experts on the application process who can give an aggregate account of the various problems citizens encounter. We contribute with empirical descriptions of how two benefit application processes play out in different ways and cause different channel behaviors. Analyses of this kind are important to supply new knowledge for the ongoing digitalization of public welfare service provision to enhance citizens’ ability to successfully co-produce the service. Further, we offer contributions to research practice by illustrating how citizens’ interaction with public organizations can be studied and analyzed holistically, using a process model for breaking the interaction down into parts.
Mental health of students during the Covid-19 pandemic: The effects of different parental practices

Mental health issues are a serious problem globally and have worsened since the Covid-19 pandemic. School students are experiencing high levels of stress due to the closure of schools. Students have to quickly adapt to online learning with minimal guidance during the early stage of the pandemic. Subsequently, students are allowed to go to school on a rotation basis. Therefore, a conducive home environment with support from parents plays an important role in helping students to cope with the uncertainties during the pandemic. We conducted a cross-sectional survey study where 761 high school students, aged between 13 to 18 years old were recruited in Malaysia. There was 468 female and 293 male students who participated in this study. Students’ mental health was measured using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) while parental practices were measured using the Alabama Parenting Questionnaire. Parental practices were measured separately for father and mother in terms of positive parenting, involvement, poor monitoring and corporal punishment. Pearson correlation analysis showed that all parental practices were correlated significantly with mental health issues among high school students. However, based on the multiple regression analysis, only paternal poor monitoring, maternal corporal punishment, maternal positive parenting and paternal corporal punishment significantly predicted students’ mental health with paternal poor monitoring being the strongest predictor of students’ mental health. This study supported the importance of utilizing good parental practices in order to reduce mental health issues among students.
Barriers to digital transformation in higher education institutions

Digital transformation is ubiquitous, affecting all aspects of human life and benefiting the performance of organisations. Existing literature has shown that implementing digital transformation in higher education institutions remains a challenge. HEIs are unaccustomed to the radical shifts of this transformation and the course of digital transformation in higher education faces several barriers. These barriers impede organisations from realising the potential benefits of in universities. Consequently, the barriers were categorised into contextual, social, technical, and cultural. The aim of this study is to identify and categorise the barriers to digital transformation in HEIs digital transformation. For HEIs fostering digital transformation, understanding the barriers is crucial to accomplishing it. This study has examined existing barriers that higher education institutions need to consider in their digital transformation journey. To that end, a systematic literature review was conducted on the barriers of digital transformation. We contribute in providing a basic understanding of possible barriers in order to overcome them and improve the likelihood of success.
Conceptualizing community involvement in smart urban development: the case of Tallinn

Smart cities have been widely discussed over the last decades across different disciplines. The complexity of this topic is grounded on multiple decision-makers who play an integral part in shaping this notion. Such stakeholder groups as municipal, public sector, private businesses, entrepreneurs, and city residents play an important role in smart urban development. However, there is a considerable lack of research regarding community involvement in smart cities. Even though both locals and internationals who are residing in the city shape its urban development, some stakeholder groups are oftentimes not considered when smart solutions are being developed. Therefore, it is crucial to research the phenomenon of smart cities from the social dimension highlighting the importance of neglected stakeholder groups in smart urban development. The present conceptual paper aims to advance understanding of smart cities via studying the elderly, expats, and tourists as participants of the smart city proposing the revised concept of smart cities.
Reliability Evaluation of Erasure-coded Storage Systems with Latent Errors

Large-scale storage systems employ erasure-coding redundancy schemes to protect against device failures. The adverse effect of latent sector errors on the Mean Time to Data Loss (MTTDL) and the Expected Annual Fraction of Data Loss (EAFDL) reliability metrics is evaluated. A theoretical model capturing the effect of latent errors and device failures is developed, and closed-form expressions for the metrics of interest are derived. The MTTDL and EAFDL of erasure-coded systems are obtained analytically for (i) the entire range of bit error rates; (ii) the symmetric, clustered, and declustered data placement schemes; and (iii) arbitrary device failure and rebuild time distributions under network rebuild bandwidth constraints. The range of error rates that deteriorate system reliability is derived analytically. For realistic values of sector error rates, the results obtained demonstrate that MTTDL degrades, whereas, for moderate erasure codes, EAFDL remains practically unaffected. It is demonstrated that, in the range of typical sector error rates and for very powerful erasure codes, EAFDL degrades as well. It is also shown that the declustered data placement scheme offers superior reliability.
To what extent are students’ self-perceived ICT interest, competence and autonomy associated with achievement?

Information and communications technology (ICT) is now extensively used in educational settings and its use has increased since the onset of the pandemic. However, since the first use of computers in classrooms nearly 50 years ago, the evidence for the impact of ICT on student achievement has been contradictory. Some researchers have suggested that access to high quality ICT, and familiarity and competence in the use of ICT are associated with higher student attainment, whereas others have contended the opposite. However, it has been suggested that positive attitudes to ICT may generalize to positivity toward disciplines taught using ICT. The present research empirically investigates the associations between student attainment, students’ access to ICT, use of ICT in schools, and students’ perceived interest, competence and autonomy in the use of ICT, using samples drawn from the PISA 2018 data for Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Japan and Republic of Korea. Use of ICT at home and in school was found to be consistently negatively associated with student attainment, but access to ICT resources was positively associated with attainment in two of the three jurisdictions. Students’ perception of their own competence using ICT was negatively associated with attainment in Republic of Korea, but had no significant associations in the other territories. Self-reported interest in ICT and autonomous use of ICT were both positive associated with student achievement. This suggests that student perceptions of ICT may be more important than ICT itself in raising levels of student attainment.
Modeling Adaptive Expression of Robot Learning Engagement and Exploring Its Effects on Human Teachers

Robot Learning from Demonstration (RLfD) allows non-expert users to teach a robot new skills or tasks directly through demonstrations. Although modeled after human–human learning and teaching, existing RLfD methods make robots act as passive observers without the feedback of their learning statuses in the demonstration gathering stage. To facilitate a more transparent teaching process, we propose two mechanisms of Learning Engagement, Z2O-Mode and D2O-Mode, to dynamically adapt robots’ attentional and behavioral engagement expressions to their actual learning status. Through an online user experiment with 48 participants, we find that, compared with two baselines, the two kinds of Learning Engagement can lead to users’ more accurate mental models of the robot’s learning progress, more positive perceptions of the robot, and better teaching experience. Finally, we provide implications for leveraging engagement expression to facilitate transparent human-AI (robot) communication based on our key findings.
The Quantum Cosmological Constant

We present an extension of general relativity in which the cosmological constant becomes dynamical and turns out to be conjugate to the Chern–Simons invariant of the Ashtekar connection on a spatial slicing. The latter has been proposed Soo and Smolin as a time variable for quantum gravity: the Chern–Simons time. In the quantum theory, the inverse cosmological constant and Chern–Simons time will then become conjugate operators. The “Kodama state” gets a new interpretation as a family of transition functions. These results imply an uncertainty relation between Λ and Chern–Simons time; the consequences of which will be discussed elsewhere.
Route: Roads Not Taken in UI Testing

Core features (functionalities) of an app can often be accessed and invoked in several ways, i.e., through alternative sequences of user-interface (UI) interactions. Given the manual effort of writing tests, developers often only consider the typical way of invoking features when creating the tests (i.e., the “sunny day scenario”). However, the alternative ways of invoking a feature are as likely to be faulty. These faults would go undetected without proper tests. To reduce the manual effort of creating UI tests and help developers more thoroughly examine the features of apps, we present Route, an automated tool for feature-based UI test augmentation for Android apps. Route first takes a UI test and the app under test as input. It then applies novel heuristics to find additional high-quality UI tests, consisting of both inputs and assertions, that verify the same feature as the original test in alternative ways. Application of Route on several dozen tests for popular apps on Google Play shows that for 96% of the existing tests, Route was able to generate at least one alternative test. Moreover, the fault detection effectiveness of augmented test suites in our experiments showed substantial improvements of up to 39% over the original test suites.
Virtual Exhibition Implementation of POP Display Project in Experimental Print Design Class

Today, Experimental Print Design mainly focuses on the use and manipulation of attractive sales displays and retail floor plans to engage customers and boost sales activity. Furthermore, the aesthetics of retail space enhance functionality, customer loyalty, and brand identity. The studies highlight the teaching methods for effective learning of the course. This study aims to investigate the implementation, challenges, and implications of a virtual exhibition project in Experimental Print Design Class for Visual Communication Design Students. A mixed methods research design was used to collect, analyze, and mix both quantitative and qualitative research and methods to answer the research problems of the implementation and implications of a virtual exhibition project in Experimental Print Design Class. The sample was a class with 16 students in the online class and 4 students in the onsite class for hybrid learning. The findings show three main stages namely preparation, preliminary, final artwork for exhibition as the implementation of the virtual exhibition project in Experimental Print Design class and the challenges of the course were ensuring the right material quality and addressing durability concerns. In addition, virtual exhibition implementation of POP display project in Experimental Print Design class effectively improved students' ability in the aesthetics of retail space, the impression of hierarchy targets such as color, imagery, and words on the display, concept, the idea of the assets that are presented digitally in 2D or/and 3D and examine competitors’ design work. In conclusion, based on the implication of the POP display project in the Experimental Print Design class, it was found that there was no significant difference between the online and onsite class as hybrid learning for Virtual Exhibition Project of POP display project in Experimental Print Design class. Thus, it was effective in improving the skill of Visual Merchandising to the online and onsite class as hybrid learning.