Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Expression Characteristics and Function of the RECQ Family in Pan-Cancer

Background: The genes of the RECQ DNA helicase family play a part in preserving the stability of the genome and controlling different disease mechanisms. However, the expression features of RECQs in relation to pan-cancer, their correlation with the immune microenvironment of tumors, and the landscape of prognostic power are still undisclosed. Methods: Various sequence and clinical data extracted from 33 cancers were utilized to generate a comprehensive overview of RECQs in the landscape. Afterward, we discovered variations in gene expression, potential enrichment of functions, genetic alterations, and analysis related to the immune response in tumors. Additionally, we explored the clinical characteristics and diagnostic significance of RECQs. And the important association of RECQL4 with liver hepatocellular carcinoma (LIHC) was investigated. Results: RECQs exhibited extensive mutations in different types of cancers. The expression of RECQ may be influenced by an oncogenic mutation in certain types of cancer, resulting in the observed genomic and epigenetic changes in diverse tumor formations. Furthermore, RECQs originating from tumors exhibited a significant association with the immune microenvironment of the tumor, indicating their potential as promising targets for therapy. Patient prognosis was significantly associated with the majority of genes in the RECQ family. In LIHC, RECQL4 eventually emerged as a separate prognostic determinant. Conclusions: To summarize, RECQs are essential for the regulation of the immune system in tumors, and RECQL4 serves as a prognostic indicator in LIHC. The results of our study offer fresh perspectives on RECQs from a bioinformatics perspective and emphasize the importance of RECQs in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer.
A BERT-Span model for Chinese named entity recognition in rehabilitation medicine

Background Due to various factors such as the increasing aging of the population and the upgrading of people’s health consumption needs, the demand group for rehabilitation medical care is expanding. Currently, China’s rehabilitation medical care encounters several challenges, such as inadequate awareness and a scarcity of skilled professionals. Enhancing public awareness about rehabilitation and improving the quality of rehabilitation services are particularly crucial. Named entity recognition is an essential first step in information processing as it enables the automated extraction of rehabilitation medical entities. These entities play a crucial role in subsequent tasks, including information decision systems and the construction of medical knowledge graphs. Methods In order to accomplish this objective, we construct the BERT-Span model to complete the Chinese rehabilitation medicine named entity recognition task. First, we collect rehabilitation information from multiple sources to build a corpus in the field of rehabilitation medicine, and fine-tune Bidirectional Encoder Representation from Transformers (BERT) with the rehabilitation medicine corpus. For the rehabilitation medicine corpus, we use BERT to extract the feature vectors of rehabilitation medicine entities in the text, and use the span model to complete the annotation of rehabilitation medicine entities. Result Compared to existing baseline models, our model achieved the highest F1 value for the named entity recognition task in the rehabilitation medicine corpus. The experimental results demonstrate that our method outperforms in recognizing both long medical entities and nested medical entities in rehabilitation medical texts. Conclusion The BERT-Span model can effectively identify and extract entity knowledge in the field of rehabilitation medicine in China, which supports the construction of the knowledge graph of rehabilitation medicine and the development of the decision-making system of rehabilitation medicine.
A comparative study of the human skeletal material from late first and early second millenium sites in the north-east of England

Seven cemetery populations from the Worth-East of England, ranging in date from the Anglian to the Late Medieval periods, were studied. Aspects of ageing, sexing, physical appearance, continuous traits and odontology were considered. Age, sex and stature distributions were found to differ very little between the populations, but groupings based on cranial metric and non-metric traits could be made. A study of dental pathologies showed an increase in caries, abscesses and tooth loss through time. Slight differences in the populations were discussed in relation to their temporal and spatial distributions. Pathological study of most of the sites is unfortunately incomplete at present, and the reader is referred to case studies by Calvin Wells on some of the more interesting cases from two sites (Jarrow and Monkwearmouth). The work should add a physical dimension to the archaeological interpretations of the sites which could otherwise only take into account social and cultural aspects of daily life.
Designing a Wearable EEG Device and Its Benefits for Epilepsy Patients: A Review

Epilepsy is a neurological disorder that causes repeated seizures in millions of people worldwide. Traditional Electroencephalography (EEG) systems can be cumbersome and limited to clinical settings, but they have helped diagnose and monitor epilepsy. Wearable EEG devices have transformed epilepsy management by providing real-time, non-invasive, and continuous monitoring capabilities. This review paper investigates the design considerations and technological advancements in wearable EEG devices, emphasizing their numerous benefits in treating epileptic patients and the limitation of designing wearable devices. In conclusion, the integration of multimodal data can offer a comprehensive overview of a patient's health, enabling the implementation of personalized and efficient treatment approaches.
Overage labor, intergenerational financial support, and depression among older rural residents: evidence from China

Background Depression is a major factor affecting the happiness of older rural residents. With the increasing aging of the Chinese population, overage labor is becoming more prevalent in rural areas of China. This study aimed to assess whether, and if so, how, overage labor affects depression status in older rural residents. Methods Using data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study, this study explored the association between overage labor and depression among older rural residents by using ordinary least squares and moderated mediation models. Results The results show that overage labor significantly reduced levels of depression in older rural residents. This result remained robust after using propensity score matching and double machine learning. Furthermore, the improvement of older rural residents' depression via overage labor is mainly achieved through work income, but this mediating effect is negatively moderated by intergenerational financial support. This implies that in traditional Chinese rural society, intergenerational financial support from children plays an important role in reducing depression among older rural residents. Conclusion Our findings have potential policy implications for China and other developing countries in terms of addressing issues related to aging and depression in older adults.
Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles-Poly(vinyl) Alcohol Thin Film for Generation Q-Switched Erbium-Doped Fiber Laser

The nonlinear optical property of Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles thin film synthesized by the solution casting method was investigated from the continuous wave to the Q-switching using an erbium-doped fiber laser cavity. Our laser experiment shows that ZnO nanoparticles embedded with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) allow for the generation of a stable Q-switching laser pulse, centered at 1560.08nm with a 3-dB spectral bandwidth of 0.941 nm, a pulse duration of 3.53 µs and a high pulse energy of 171 nJ. Our finding suggests that ZnO nanoparticles thin film can be a useful nonlinear optical material for laser photonics devices such as passive q-switching for applications involving high energy.
On the Sliding of Glaciers

Abstract A model is proposed to explain the sliding of any glacier whose bottom surface is at the pressure melting point. Two mechanisms are considered. One is pressure melting and the other is creep rate enhancement through stress concentrations. Neither of the mechanisms operating alone is sufficient to explain sliding. If both mechanisms operate together appreciable sliding can occur.
Numerical Simulation of Mucus Clearance inside Lung Airways

Airway mucus is difficult to clear and to improve lung function clearance of mucus is necessary. The deep coughing, chest physiotherapy, high frequency chest wall oscillation etc. are some of the best methods to clear excessive mucus from lung airways. In this article we analysed the behavior of fluid flow between parallel walls , where both walls are porous and the flow is induced by the oscillation of these walls and pressure gradient; which is applicable for clearance of mucus from lung airways. Generalized couette flow is applicable to model the oscillation of parallel walls, however the laminar flow of viscous fluid is taken under consideration. The generalized Navier-Stokes equations are applied to make various hypotheses and finite difference scheme is used to solve the problem numerically. Effect of wall oscillation, wall porosity, pressure due to porous media on mucus clearance and particle aspect ratio on the deposition of nonspherical nanoparticles are analysed graphycally after simulating the problem on MATLAB R2013a by user defind code. Simulation show an excellent agreement of unsteady flow of viscous fluid at large values of time and significant correlation between pressure gradient and porosity of walls, frequency of wall oscillation and their imapct on mucus clearance are obtained. In addion it is observed that fluid and particle velocity are increased with the enhancement of media porosity, breathing frequency and aspect ratio. The aim of this paper is to study the influence of wall movement, wall porosity, pressure on wall, wall oscillating frequency on the clearance of mucus from lung airways.
Contemporary Clinical Profile of Left-Sided Native Valve Infective Endocarditis: Influence of the Causative Microorganism

Studies focused on the clinical profile of native valve endocarditis are scarce and outdated. In addition, none of them analyzed differences depending on the causative microorganism. Our objectives are to describe the clinical profile at admission of patients with left-sided native valve infective endocarditis in a contemporary wide series of patients and to compare them among the most frequent etiologies. To do so, we conducted a prospective, observational cohort study including 569 patients with native left-sided endocarditis enrolled from 2006 to 2019. We describe the modes of presentation and the symptoms and signs at admission of these patients and compare them among the five more frequent microbiological etiologies. Coagulase-negative Staphylococci and Enterococci endocarditis patients were the oldest (71 ± 11 years), and episodes caused by Streptococci viridans were less frequently nosocomial (4%). The neurologic, cutaneous or renal modes of presentation were more typical in Staphylococcus aureus endocarditis (28%, p = 0.002), the wasting syndrome of Streptococcus viridans (49%, p < 0.001), and the cardiac in Coagulase-negative Staphylococci, Enterococci and unidentified microorganism endocarditis (45%, 49% and 56%, p < 0.001). The clinical signs agreed with the mode of presentation. In conclusion, the modes of presentation and the clinical picture at admission were tightly associated with the causative microorganism in patients with left-sided native valve endocarditis.
Long-term corrosion performance and monitoring for service life estimation of LC3 concrete systems

The performance of quenched and self-tempered (QST) steel bars embedded in concretes with Limestone calcined clay cement (LC3), fly ash (70% OPC and 30%fly ash – PFA), and traditional OPC was assessed in severe chloride environments. Additionally, the performance of commercially available, calcium nitrite-based inhibitors in the three binder systems was also evaluated. The specimens were subjected to an alternate wet-dry cycle using the ASTM G109 test method. The findings show that LC3 concrete performs better than the OPC and PFA systems with and without inhibitors. Furthermore, when the surface resistivity, ρ, is more than 37 kΩ. cm, the concrete has high ionic resistance and the macrocell current across the two rebars could not be established as described in ASTM G109 test method. This highlights the limitations of the ASTM G109 test method and the need for more sophisticated testing methods for assessing steel corrosion in highly resistive cementitious systems.
Cities without Suburbs: A Census 2010 Perspective

"Cities without Suburbs", first published in 1993, has influenced analysis of America's cities by city planners, scholars, and citizens alike. David Rusk, the former mayor of Albuquerque, argues that America must end the isolation of the central city from the suburbs if it is to solve its urban problems. Rusk's analysis, extending back to 1950, covers all metropolitan areas in the United States but focuses on the 137 largest metro areas and their principal central cities. He finds that cities that were trapped within old boundaries during the age of sprawl have suffered severe racial segregation and the emergence of an urban underclass; but cities with annexation powers - termed "elastic" by Rusk - have shared in area-wide development. The fourth edition updates Rusk's argument using the 2010 Census and the American Community Survey. It provides new material on the difference between population trends and household trends, the impact of Hispanic immigration, and the potential for city-county consolidation. The fourth edition also brings added emphasis to "elasticity mimics" - a variety of intergovernmental policies that can provide some of the benefits of regional consolidation efforts in situations where annexation and consolidation are impossible.
The Dynamic Nature of Wrack: An Investigation into Wrack Movement and Impacts on Coastal Marshes Using sUAS

This study investigates the use of small unoccupied aerial systems (sUAS) as a new remote sensing tool to identify and track the spatial distribution of wrack on coastal tidal marsh systems. We used sUAS to map the wrack movement in a Spartina alterniflora-dominated salt marsh monthly for one year including before and after Hurricane Isaias that brought strong winds, rain, and storm surge to the area of interest in August 2020. Flight parameters for each data collection mission were held constant including collection only during low tide. Wrack was visually identified and digitized in a GIS using every mission orthomosaic created from the mission images. The digitized polygons were visualized using a raster data model and a combination of all of the digitized wrack polygons. Results indicate that wrack mats deposited before and as a result of a hurricane event remained for approximately three months. Furthermore, 55% of all wrack detritus was closer than 10 m to river or stream water bodies, 64% were within 15 m, and 71% were within 20 m, indicating the spatial dependence of wrack location in a marsh system on water and water movement. However, following the passing of Isaias, the percentage of wrack closer than 10 m to a river or creek decreased to a low of 44%, which was not seen again during the year-long study. This study highlights the on-demand image collection of a sUAS for providing new insights into how quickly wrack distribution and vegetation can change over a short time.
A Polished-D-Shape SPR-Based Photonic Crystal Fiber Sensor with High Sensitivity for Measuring Refractive Index

In the correspondence, a novel polished-D-shape photonic crystal fiber sensor structure on the basis of surface plasmon resonance is proposed for measuring analyte refractive index. With the help of the finite element method, sensing performances of the structure have been analyzed through numerical simulations along with a step-by-step optimization . In this design, different capillaries are gathered and processed to form a D-shape silica structure and nano-scale gold material is coated on the flattened surface. With utilization of a thin gold film and solid silica background, the resonance effect is excited and the loss curve has red shift along with an increase in refractive index, which is applied for sensing. From the simulation and calculation results, the final sensor structure achieves the optimal performance where values of maximum and average sensitivity reach 32,000 and 12,167 nm/RIU along with a sensing coverage of refractive index from 1.26 to 1.32. Also, the proposed design obtains a range of resonant wavelength from 1810 to 2540 nm. We believe the proposed sensor can be a potential candidate for organic and biological detection and related applications.
A Scoping Review Evaluating the Current State of Gut Microbiota Research in Africa

The gut microbiota has emerged as a key human health and disease determinant. However, there is a significant knowledge gap regarding the composition, diversity, and function of the gut microbiota, specifically in the African population. This scoping review aims to examine the existing literature on gut microbiota research conducted in Africa, providing an overview of the current knowledge and identifying research gaps. A comprehensive search strategy was employed to identify relevant studies. Databases including MEDLINE (PubMed), African Index Medicus (AIM), CINAHL (EBSCOhost), Science Citation index (Web of Science), Embase (Ovid), Scopus (Elsevier), WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP), and Google Scholar were searched for relevant articles. Studies investigating the gut microbiota in African populations of all age groups were included. The initial screening included a total of 2136 articles, of which 154 were included in this scoping review. The current scoping review revealed a limited number of studies investigating diseases of public health significance in relation to the gut microbiota. Among these studies, HIV (14.3%), colorectal cancer (5.2%), and diabetes mellitus (3.9%) received the most attention. The top five countries that contributed to gut microbiota research were South Africa (16.2%), Malawi (10.4%), Egypt (9.7%), Kenya (7.1%), and Nigeria (6.5%). The high number (n = 66) of studies that did not study any specific disease in relation to the gut microbiota remains a gap that needs to be filled. This scoping review brings attention to the prevalent utilization of observational study types (38.3%) in the studies analysed and emphasizes the importance of conducting more experimental studies. Furthermore, the findings reflect the need for more disease-focused, comprehensive, and population-specific gut microbiota studies across diverse African regions and ethnic groups to better understand the factors shaping gut microbiota composition and its implications for health and disease. Such knowledge has the potential to inform targeted interventions and personalized approaches for improving health outcomes in African populations.
Disturbance Observer-Based Control to Guarantee a Sliding Mode Without Sliding Mode Control

This paper presents a novel disturbance observer (DOB)-based control method to prevent the deterioration of transient response due to disturbances. The proposed method uses sliding mode dynamics without a sliding mode control (SMC) structure and does not require an upper bound of disturbance (UBD), which is needed for SMC. The proposed DOB focuses on maintaining sliding mode dynamics while minimizing the estimation error. The sliding function and disturbance estimation error are considered simultaneously in a Lyapunov candidate function. By modifying the dynamics of the auxiliary variable in the DOB model, the proposed DOB system ensures that the states remain close to the sliding surface and preserve the desired control system characteristics. In contrast, existing DOB models focus only on disturbance estimation and suffer from control performance deterioration during transient estimation time. The proposed DOB-based control method adopts an integral sliding mode and shows better ability to maintain the sliding mode than integral SMC (ISMC).
Understanding Spatial Cognition for Designing Pedestrian Wayfinding Systems

Individuals react differently when moving in urban spaces, as their senses are distinctively activated. Their interpretations and how the built environment is perceived result in different meanings. When studying public spaces, it is of utmost importance to understand how residents and visitors construct images of the city, by perceiving and appropriating urban spaces. In particular, this is decisive when designing Pedestrian Wayfinding Systems (PWS) in urban areas. Based on spatial cognition studies, this paper identifies and explores the main aspects influencing the design of wayfinding systems. The study is structured in three main parts. First, the article reviews literature on spatial cognition and human behaviors. Second, it analyzes some reference cases considered good practices for PWS, their implementation in contemporary public spaces, and their visual and aesthetic forms of expression. Third, it develops a practical guide for designing a PWS focused on end-users. More specifically, the research aims to support the municipality of Porto in defining the tender specifications for the development of a PWS, to be included in the future Integrated Signage and Information System. Ultimately, this study proposes recommendations to improve pedestrian navigation in the urban context and help decision-makers, designers, and urban planners potentially create better wayfinding systems in the future.