Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Parallel Nest-Site Selection Algorithm for Traveling Salesman Problems

The Nest-Site Selection (NeSS) algorithm is a combinatorial optimization algorithm inspired by the nest-site selection behavior of honeybee swarms. NeSS uses a number of devoted bees committed to a nest-site, called quorum mechanism, as a stopping criterion of the algorithm instead of the maximum cycle number (MCN). It is generally reached before the MCN that is used in typical swarm intelligence algorithms. Therefore, this mechanism helps the algorithm to converge more quickly. However, there are a number of time-sensitive optimization applications that need solutions within a specific time frame. This paper thus proposes a parallel framework of the NeSS algorithm to improve the performance and efficiency of the algorithm. In the original NeSS algorithm, explorer bees, committed bees, observers, and resting bees are four types of bees that work as a separate and independent entity. The task of each bee in the original NeSS algorithm is sequential executed. In this work, the bees in the same group perform their task simultaneously. A parallel NeSS program is developed using the C language and the OpenMP library. We use the Traveling Salesman Problems (TSP), which is a classic combinatorial problem, to evaluate the scalability performance of the proposed parallel framework by varying number of processors and number of cities in the TSP.
Reactive Power Sharing Study of an Islanded Microgrid in DIgSILENT PowerFactory

In an islanded microgrid, it has been reported that owing to the nature of low reactance/resistance ratio line impedances, additional provision is usually required at the primary/secondary control level to maintain an accurate power sharing among DERs. Several microgridtheme techniques such as virtual output impedance methods and adjustable power dispatch methods have been reported but most of them had only been investigated using heavily simplified networks in first principle simulation packages such as Matlab. However, in a large-scale microgrid with many DERs, it has become increasing apparent that the nature of interaction among the DERs on, for example, power sharing performance or individual controller interaction, is becoming important to be known in advance. Hence, this work develops an inverter-based DER model suitable for microgrid studies in the DIgSILENT PowerFactory simulation environment. A power sharing study based on a fourDER islanded microgrid with adjustable virtual output impedance scheme and on the use of standard P-f and QV droop scheme is presented here to demonstrate the viability of the developed model and platform.
Functional Design of Computation Graph

Representing the control flow of a computer program as a computation graph can bring many benefits in a broad variety of domains where performance is critical. This technique is a core component of most major numerical libraries (TensorFlow, PyTorch, Theano, MXNet,.) and is successfully used to speed up and optimise many computationally-intensive tasks. However, different design choices in each of these libraries lead to noticeable differences in efficiency and in the way an end user writes efficient code. In this report, we detail the implementation and features of the computation graph support in OCaml's numerical library Owl, a recent entry in the world of scientific computing.
A Systematic Literature Review of Cloud Computing Adoption and Impacts among Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs)

Although cloud computing is one of the most significant trends in information technology acquisition today, its adoption amongst the SMEs is still behind the larger conterparts. Additionally, among those that use, many face challenges to gain benefits as what is normally claimed. More research is needed to understand the issue. The purpose of this paper is to present the findings of a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) conducted related to cloud computing adoption among SMEs, particularly focusing on the post adoption stage. SLR method was employed as this method enable the review been done in a more comprehensive and rigorous manner. A total of 39 relevant articles were reviewed and the findings indicate that most past researches on cloud computing and SMEs focused on adoption, exploring factors that affect the adoption. Very few studies looked at the post adoption stage or the impacts of cloud computing on SMEs.
Use of 3D printed insole to increase the propulsion of the forefoot for stroke patients

Hemiplegia is the most common form of stroke, after which one side of the body typically does not respond, or its strength becomes notably weakened or worse. At present, most devices used to help stroke patients on the market have only fixed ankles and lower leg positions. In this study, we designed an accessory aimed at increasing the propulsion of the patient’s forefoot. We used 3D printing technology to shape and perform a stress analysis on the materials, and applied finite elements as an analytical method. The analysis results showed that the device effectively improves the propulsive force of the forefoot and cooperates with traditional fixed ankle aids to achieve a stabilized walking capability. It also significantly reduces the manufacturing cost and meets the requirements for modifying the patient’s gait. The results indicate that the developed device can be produced and applied using 3D printing technology, particularly for people with mobility problems.
Non-parametric Prediction Interval Estimate for Uncertainty Quantification of the Prediction of Road Pavement Deterioration

Road pavements need to be efficiently maintained under budget constraints. A pavement management system supports a road administrator's decision making based on the prediction of pavement deterioration. However, the prediction of pavement deterioration is complicated and uncertain because there are many unobservable variables, and the highly accurate prediction of deterioration is difficult. For pavement administrators to use such predictions in decision making, it is necessary to quantify the reliability of prediction. This paper proposes a prediction interval estimation method by applying the bootstrap method with a reduced computational cost to the deterioration prediction model using a neural network. The proposed method is applied to the rutting depth prediction in the inspection history of road pavement surface, and the estimation accuracy of the prediction interval is verified. In the prediction model, because the inspection history is time-series data, a recurrent neural network model that extends neural networks to time series prediction is used. Verification shows that not only is the computational cost reduced but also the accuracy of the prediction interval is higher than that of the conventional method.
Impact of an In-House Pediatric Surgery Unit and Human Milk Centered Enteral Nutrition on Necrotizing Enterocolitis

The importance for mortality and morbidity of an in-house pediatric surgery unit for premature infants with necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) remains undefined. Data on 389 consecutive very low birth weight infants with a birth weight <1250 g admitted between 2009 and 2014 was retrospectively analyzed in two almost identical neonatal intensive care units. Epidemiological data (n=172 and n=217, respectively) were comparable. Incidence of NEC stage II+ was significantly higher in center 1 (15.1 versus 5.5%, n=18 versus 6). This correlated with a significantly lower rate of exclusive human milk feeding compared to center 2 (24.2 versus 59.3%). Probiotic treatment did not differ. Importantly, in case of surgery the length of removed intestine (49.9 versus 19.5 cm) and the rate of severe short-bowel syndrome (38.9 versus 0 %) were significantly higher in center 1 (no in-house pediatric surgery). Furthermore, long-term morbidity assessment revealed more impaired motoric (-4.2 versus -2.2 months, p=0.21) and psychologic (-4.3 versus -1.6 months, p=0.09) development in center 1. Mortality was similar in both centers. Conclusions. Short- and possibly also long-term morbidity of NEC is clearly associated with the presence of an on-site pediatric surgery unit. Enteral nutrition with human milk seems to be a strong protective factor against NEC.
Application of Solid-State Transformer for HVDC Transmission from Offshore Windfarm

This paper investigates the solid state transformer applied for the HVDC transmission from the offshore windfarm. The 3kHz, 5kVA transformers with some different core materials are manufactured. Dependency of the loss in the transformer to frequency is investigated. From the measurement, hysteresis loss and eddy current loss are separately considered for the higher frequency loss estimation. Copper loss is also considered by using the measured resistance at various frequencies. In this investigation, the difference of the core materials does not affect the loss largely but the copper loss does.
Comorbidity of Personality Disorder among Substance Use Disorder Patients: A Narrative Review

Comorbidity of personality disorders (PDs) and substance use disorders (SUDs) is common in clinical practice. Borderline PD and antisocial PD are particularly found to be associated with SUDs. Our review suggests that the overall prevalence of PD ranges from 10% to 14.8% in the normal population and from 34.8% to 73.0% in patients treated for addictions. Even though the types of PD seen in patients with drug and alcohol use disorder are similar, the prevalence of any PD is higher among patients with drug use disorder than alcohol use disorder. The higher comorbidity between these two conditions has been explained by a primary personality pathology followed by a secondary development of a SUD. The comorbidity with PD positively correlates with the severity of the SUD. Comorbid PD among patients with SUDs is a predictor of poor prognosis in terms of poorer treatment response and outcome. Psychotherapy is the mainstay of treatment in comorbid condition with dialectical behavioral therapy, dynamic deconstructive psychotherapy, and dual-focused schema therapy having the most evidence base. Pharmacotherapy is primarily indicated for the acute crisis management or for the treatment of other comorbid conditions such as psychosis and depression. However, the evidence is insufficient as of now to suggest one treatment over the other. Further research is required to identify more efficacious treatment approaches for this comorbidity.
Steel Surface Defect Classification Based on Discriminant Manifold Regularized Local Descriptor

Steel surface demonstrates various sorts of defects due to the production technique and environment. The appearance of defect is in much more random pattern than that of the normal texture image. Therefore, it is challenging to capture the discriminant information to categorize the defects. The defect image is out of image registration in grayscale, and thus, the local descriptor is inclined to be utilized for feature extraction. In the previous works, involving a local descriptor for categorizing the defect images, the thresholding operator participates in the hand-crafted feature extraction, such as local binary patterns and histogram of oriented gradient, leading to sub-optimal features. By introducing the learning mechanism into the construction of local descriptor, a novel algorithm named discriminant manifold regularized local descriptor (DMRLD) is proposed to conduct the defect classification task in this paper. First, the DMRLD computes the dense pixel difference vector (DPDV) to draw the local information of defect images. Then, the manifold of these DPDVs can be constructed by searching for a number of linear models to represent the feature. In order to enhance the discriminant ability of the feature, a projection on the manifold is learned for achieving a low-dimensional subspace. Finally, the manifold distance defined in the subspace can accomplish the matching task to get the category of the defect image. The proposed algorithm is first applied on the Kylberg texture dataset to evaluate the texture feature extraction performance, and then the experiments on the real steel surface defect dataset are conducted to illustrate the effectiveness of DMRLD compared with other local descriptors.
Efficiency Improvement of Isolated Bidirectional Boost Full Bridge DC-DC Converter

Meeting increasing demands of recent renewable energy systems, dc-dc converters with isolation function became widely deployed as the essential power conversion elements. Such converters may as well be required for wide input voltage range and fault tolerance as desirable features. This paper proposes efficiency improvement schemes of isolated bidirectional boost full bridge dc-dc converter which features high efficiency and stable operation with active voltage clamping snubber and active start-up assist circuit. The converter is prototyped and experimental result proves the feasibility of the proposed scheme in the output power up to 10 kW.
Improved Mechanical Properties and Energy Absorption of BCC Lattice Structures with Triply Periodic Minimal Surfaces Fabricated by SLM

The triply periodic minimal surface (TPMS) method is a novel approach for lattice design in a range of fields, such as impact protection and structural lightweighting. In this paper, we used the TPMS formula to rapidly and accurately generate the most common lattice structure, named the body centered cubic (BCC) structure, with certain volume fractions. TPMS-based and computer aided design (CAD) based BCC lattice structures with volume fractions in the range of 10–30% were fabricated by selective laser melting (SLM) technology with Ti–6Al–4V and subjected to compressive tests. The results demonstrated that local geometric features changed the volume and stress distributions, revealing that the TPMS-based samples were superior to the CAD-based ones, with elastic modulus, yield strength and compression strength increasing in the ranges of 18.9–42.2%, 19.2–29.5%, and 2–36.6%, respectively. The failure mechanism of the TPMS-based samples with a high volume fraction changed to brittle failure observed by scanning electron microscope (SEM), as their struts were more affected by the axial force and fractured on struts. It was also found that the TPMS-based samples have a favorable capacity to absorb energy, particularly with a 30% volume fraction, the energy absorbed up to 50% strain was approximately three times higher than that of the CAD-based sample with an equal volume fraction. Furthermore, the theoretic Gibson–Ashby mode was established in order to predict and design the mechanical properties of the lattice structures. In summary, these results can be used to rapidly create BCC lattice structures with superior compressive properties for engineering applications.
Sex-specific markers developed by next-generation sequencing confirmed an XX/XY sex determination system in bighead carp (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis) and silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix)

Abstract Sex-specific markers are powerful tools for identifying sex-determination system in various animals. Bighead carp (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis) and silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) are two of the most important edible fish in Asia, which have a long juvenility period that can lasts for 4–5 years. In this study, we found one sex-specific marker by next-generation sequencing together with bioinformatics analysis in bighead carp. The male-specific markers were used to perform molecular sexing in the progenies of artificial gynogenetic diploids and found all progenies (n = 160) were females. Meanwhile, around 1 : 1 sex ratio was observed in a total of 579 juvenile offspring from three other families. To further extend the male-specific region, we performed genome walking and got a male-specific sequence of 8,661 bp. Five pairs of primers were designed and could be used to efficiently distinguish males from females in bighead carp and silver carp. The development of these male-specific markers and results of their molecular sexing in different populations provide strong evidence for a sex determination system of female homogametry or male heterogametry (XX/XY) in bighead carp and silver carp. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of effective sex-specific markers in these two large carp species.
An Allosteric-Probe for Detection of Alkaline Phosphatase Activity and Its Application in Immunoassay

A fluorescence strategy for alkaline phosphatase (ALP) assay in complicated samples with high sensitivity and strong stability is developed based on an allosteric probe (AP). This probe consists of two DNA strands, a streptavidin (SA) aptamer labeled by fluorophore and its totally complementary DNA (cDNA) with a phosphate group on the 5′ end. Upon ALP introduction, the phosphate group on the cDNA is hydrolyzed, leaving the unhydrolyzed cDNA sequence for lambda exonuclease (λ exo) digestion and releasing SA aptamer for binding to SA beads, which results in fluorescence enhancement of SA beads that can be detected by flow cytometry or microscopy. We have achieved a detection limit of 0.012 U/mL with a detection range of 0.02~0.15 U/mL in buffer and human serum. These figures of merit are better than or comparable to those of other methods. Because the fluorescence signal is localized on the beads, they can be separated to remove fluorescence background from complicated biological systems. Notably, the new strategy not only applies to ALP detection with simple design, easy operation, high sensitivity, and good compatibility in complex solution, but also can be utilized in ALP-linked immunosorbent assays for the detection of a wide range of targets.
Reliability and Accuracy of a Standardized Shallow Water Running Test to Determine Cardiorespiratory Fitness

Abstract Nagle, EF, Sanders, ME, Gibbs, BB, Franklin, BA, Nagle, JA, Prins, PJ, Johnson, CD, and Robertson, RJ. Reliability and accuracy of a standardized shallow water running test to determine cardiorespiratory fitness. J Strength Cond Res 31(6): 1669–1677, 2017—A standardized fitness assessment is critical for the development of an individualized exercise prescription. Although the benefits of aquatic exercise have been well established, there remains the need for a standardized nonswimming protocol to accurately assess cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) in shallow water. The present investigation was designed to assess (a) the reliability of a standardized shallow water run (SWR) test of CRF and (b) the accuracy of a standardized SWR compared with a land-based treadmill (LTM) test. Twenty-three healthy women (20 ± 3 years), with body mass index (23.5 ± 3 kg·m−2), performed 2 shallow water peak oxygen consumption (V[Combining Dot Above]O2peak) running tests (SWRa and SWRb), and 1 V[Combining Dot Above]O2max LTM. Intraclass correlation coefficients indicated moderately strong reliability for V[Combining Dot Above]O2peak (ml·kg−1·min−1) (r = 0.73, p < 0.01), HRpeak (b·min−1) (r = 0.82; p < 0.01), and O2pulse (V[Combining Dot Above]O2 [ml·kg−1·min−1]·HR [b·min−1]) (r = 0.77, p < 0.01). Using paired t-tests and Pearson's correlations, SWR V[Combining Dot Above]O2peak and HRpeak were significantly lower than during LTM (p ⩽ 0.05) and showed moderate correlations of 0.60 and 0.58 (p < 0.001) to LTM. O2pulse was similar (p > 0.05) for the SWR and LTM tests with a moderate correlation of 0.63. A standardized SWR test as a measure of CRF is a reliable, and to some degree, valid alternative to conventional protocols and may be used by strength and conditioning professionals to measure program outcomes and monitor training progress. Furthermore, this protocol provides a water-based option for CRF assessment among healthy women and offers insight toward the development of an effective protocol that can accommodate individuals with limited mobility, or those seeking less musculoskeletal impact from traditional land-based types of training.
A preliminary study of long-term treatment with interferon gamma-1b and low-dose prednisolone in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

BACKGROUND AND METHODS Patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis have progressive scarring of the lung and usually die within four to five years after symptoms develop. Treatment with oral glucocorticoids is often ineffective. We conducted an open, randomized trial of treatment with a combination of interferon gamma-1b, which has antifibrotic properties, and an oral glucocorticoid. We studied 18 patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis who had not had responses to glucocorticoids or other immunosuppressive agents. Nine patients were treated for 12 months with oral prednisolone alone (7.5 mg daily, which could be increased to 25 to 50 mg daily), and nine with a combination of 200 microg of interferon gamma-1b (given three times per week subcutaneously) and 7.5 mg of prednisolone (given once a day). RESULTS All the patients completed the study. Lung function deteriorated in all nine patients in the group given prednisolone alone: total lung capacity decreased from a mean (+/-SD) of 66+/-8 percent of the predicted value at base line to 62+/-6 percent at 12 months. In contrast, in the group receiving interferon gamma-1b plus prednisolone, total lung capacity increased (from 70+/-6 percent of the predicted value at base line to 79+/-12 percent at 12 months, P<0.001 for the difference between the groups). In the group that received interferon gamma-1b plus prednisolone, the partial pressure of arterial oxygen at rest increased from 65+/-9 mm Hg at base line to 76+/-8 mm Hg at 12 months, whereas in the group that received prednisolone alone it decreased from 65+/-6 to 62+/-4 mm Hg (P<0.001 for the difference in the change from baseline values between the two groups); on maximal exertion, the value increased from 55+/-6 to 65+/-8 mm Hg in the group that received combined treatment and decreased from 55+/-6 mm Hg to 52+/-5 mm Hg in the group given prednisolone alone (P<0.001). The side effects of interferon gamma-1b, such as fever, chills, and muscle pain, subsided within the first 9 to 12 weeks. CONCLUSIONS In a preliminary study, 12 months of treatment with interferon gamma-1b plus prednisolone was associated with substantial improvements in the condition of patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis who had had no response to glucocorticoids.
A MEMS Variable Optical Attenuator with Ultra-Low Wavelength-Dependent Loss and Polarization-Dependent Loss

Applications in broadband optical fiber communication system need variable optical attenuators (VOAs) with low wavelength-dependent loss (WDL). Based on analysis on the dispersion of the optical system of a MEMS-based VOA, we provide a method to reduce the WDL significantly with minor revision on the end-face angle of the collimating lens. Two samples are assembled, and the measured WDL is <0.4 dB over the C-band (1.53–1.57 μm) at a 0–20 dB attenuation range. Meanwhile, the new structure helps to reduce the polarization-dependent loss (PDL) to <0.15 dB, which is only half that of conventional devices.