Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Uncertainties in grid-based estimates of stellar mass and radius - SCEPtER: Stellar CharactEristics Pisa Estimation gRid

Context. The availability of high-quality astero-seismological data provided by satellite missions stimulated the development of several grid-based estimation techniques to determine the stellar masses and radii. Some aspects of the systematic and statistical errors a ecting these techniques have still not been investigated well. Aims. We study the impact on mass and radius determination of the uncertainty in the input physics, in the mixing-length value, in the initial helium abundance, and in the microscopic di usion e ciency adopted in stellar model computations. Methods. We consider stars with mass in the range [0.8 - 1.1] M and evolutionary stages from the zero-age main sequence to the central hydrogen exhaustion. To recover the stellar parameters, a maximum-likelihood technique was employed by comparing the observations constraints to a precomputed grid of stellar models. Synthetic grids with perturbed input were adopted to estimate the systematic errors arising from the current uncertainty in model computations. Results. We found that the statistical error components, owing to the current typical uncertainty in the observations, are nearly constant in all cases at about 4.5% and 2.2% on mass and radius determination, respectively. The systematic bias on mass and radius determination due to a variation of 1 in Y= Z is 2:3% and 1:1%; the one due to a change of 0:24 in the value of the mixinglength ml is 2:1% and 1:0%; the one due to a variation of 5% in the radiative opacity is 1:0% and 0:45%. An important bias source is to neglect microscopic di usion, which accounts for errors of about 3.7% and 1.5% on mass and radius. The cumulative e ects of the considered uncertainty sources can produce biased estimates of stellar characteristics. Comparison of the results of our technique with other grid techniques shows that the systematic biases induced by the di erences in the estimation grids are generally greater than the statistical errors involved.
The Public Management Reform: from Theory to Practice. The Role of Cultural Factors.

In recent years, the failure of models based on rules and procedures fostered the development of new paradigms of Public Management, which are still the object of a heated interdisciplinary discussion. A growing number of scholars have debated the role of performance measurement, transparency, and accountability in strengthening the link between public administration and citizens. Moreover, the belief that more trust and satisfaction could lead to better governance has persuaded a growing number of Nations to shift from a pure efficiency orientation to a more extensive customer-centered one. Anyway, the transition to a new management model is not problemless at any level of Public Administration and the cultural systems of public organizations seem to have an important role. The paper aims to define the conceptual frame of new paradigms of Public Administration, and to underline the difficulties and the peculiarities in accomplishing those models both at political, and operational level.
The role of empathy for adolescents' cyberbullying behaviour

The negative relationship between empathy and aggressive behaviour has been demonstrated in meta-analyses (e.g., Jolliffe & Farrington 2004). On the basis of these findings it was hypothesized that a lack of empathic responsiveness may also be a characteristic of cyber bullies. In the present study 2,070 students of Luxembourg secondary schools completed an online survey that included a German version of the Cyberbullying questionnaire (Smith et al. 2008) and a newly developed empathy scale. ANOVAs indicated significant differences between cyber bullies and non-cyber bullies. Most importantly, it was observed that cyber bullies demonstrated less empathic responsiveness than non-bullies. The findings confirm and substantially extend the research on the relationship between empathy and aggressive behaviour. From an educational point of view the findings suggest that training of empathy skills might be an important tool in decreasing cyberbullying.
Iridescent structurally based coloration of eyespots correlates with mating success in the peacock

Gaudy plumage coloration is a widespread ornamental trait in birds and thought to be sexually selected. Although much attention has been devoted to structural coloration reflecting in UV, the signaling function of structural colors lacking UV reflectance and those that exhibit iridescence coloration are poorly documented. The train of the peacock (Pavo cristatus), a classical example of a sexually selected trait, is composed of iridescent structurally colored eyespots not reflecting in UV. Until today, the role played by the structural color of the eyespots in female mate choice has never been investigated using spectrometry. We measured eyespot coloration from a stationary angle (static coloration) and the change in coloration resulting from different angles (iridescent coloration). We assessed coloration with reflectance spectrometry, and we analyzed reflectance spectra using 2 methods. First, we extracted the reflectance spectra shape descriptors hue, brightness, and chroma. Second, we computed color and brightness contrasts signaled by eyespot feathers, taking peafowl color visual sensitivity into account. Iridescence was estimated by the maximal change for all parameters. Brightness was correlated with male mating success. The maximal change in color contrast was correlated with both the frequency of male visitation by females and male mating success. These results suggest that peahens can use both static and dynamic (i.e., iridescent) aspects of plumage structural coloration as signals to detect and choose their mates.
Parametric and Nonparametric Bayesian Models for Ecological Inference in 2 ◊ 2 Tables

The ecological inference problem arises when making inferences about individual behavior from aggregate data. Such a situation is frequently encountered in the social sciences and epidemiology. In this article, we propose a Bayesian approach based on data augmentation. We formulate ecological inference in 2◊2 tables as a missing data problem where only the weighted average of two unknown variables is observed. This framework directly incorporates the deterministic bounds, which contain all information available from the data, and allow researchers to incorporate the individual-level data whenever available. Within this general framework, we first develop a parametric model. We show that through the use of an EM algorithm, the model can formally quantify the eect of missing information on parameter estimation. This is an important diagnostic for evaluating the degree of aggregation eects. Next, we introduce a nonparametric model using a Dirichlet process prior to relax the distributional assumption of the parametric model. Through simulations and an empirical application, we evaluate the relative performance of our models in various situations. We demonstrate that in typical ecological inference problems, the fraction of missing information often exceeds 50 percent. We also find that the nonparametric model generally outperforms the parametric model, although the latter gives reasonable in-sample predictions when the bounds are informative. C-code, along with an R interface, is publicly available for implementing our Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithms to
Quantum computational and vibrational spectroscopic analysis on Methyl 3-(2-(acetamidomethyl)-1-(phenylsulfonyl)indolin-3-yl)propanoate

The complete vibration analysis of the fundamental modes of methyl 3-(2-(acetamidomethyl)-1- (phenylsulfonyl)indolin-3-yl)propanoate was carried out using the experimental FTIR and FT-Raman data and quantum chemical studies. The equilibrium geometry, harmonic vibrational wavenumbers of the compound were studied with the help of DFT method adopting 6-31G(d,p) and 6-311++G(d,p) basis sets. The theoretical results were interpreted with the IR and Raman spectral values. The value of Mulliken atomic charges, HOMO–LUMO energy gap were calculated. The intramolecular contacts were interpreted using natural bond orbital (NBO) and natural localized molecular orbital (NLMO) analysis to ascertain the charge distribution. The Molecular electrostatic potential studies were calculated for the compound to observe the electron densed region. Important non-linear properties such as electric dipole moment and first hyperpolarizability of the compound were computed using B3LYP quantum chemical calculations.
Fuzzy Diagnostics of AD Subject Using Whole Brain Atrophy Patterns

To assess capability of k-mean and fuzzy clustering method (FCM) in diagnosing Alzheimer's disease (AD) subjects using longitudinal whole brain atrophy percentage calculated via Magnetic Resonance Images (MRI). We included 60 subjects (30 AD and 30 controls) in this study and measured their whole brain atrophy percentage. Discriminative power of this measure is statistically analyzed and it is used as a feature in classifying subject using k-mean and FCM. It is revealed that FCM has higher specificity besides k-mean but the same sensitivity. Accuracies of both systems are remarkable. Pattern recognition algorithms even by unsupervised learning methods can help us to diagnose AD with considerable accuracy.
Aerosol surface area concentration: a governing factor in new particle formation in Beijing

Abstract. The predominating role of aerosol Fuchs surface area, AFuchs, in determining the occurrence of new particle formation (NPF) events in Beijing was elucidated in this study. The analysis was based on a field campaign from 12 March to 6 April 2016 in Beijing, during which aerosol size distributions down to ∼ 1 nm and sulfuric acid concentrations were simultaneously monitored. The 26 days were classified into 11 typical NPF days, 2 undefined days, and 13 non-event days. A dimensionless factor, LΓ, characterized by the relative ratio of the coagulation scavenging rate over the condensational growth rate (Kuang et al., 2010), was applied in this work to reveal the governing factors for NPF events in Beijing. The three parameters determining LΓ are sulfuric acid concentration, the growth enhancement factor characterized by contribution of other gaseous precursors to particle growth, Γ, and AFuchs. Different from other atmospheric environments, such as in Boulder and Hyytiala, the daily-maximum sulfuric acid concentration and Γ in Beijing varied in a narrow range with geometric standard deviations of 1.40 and 1.31, respectively. A positive correlation between the estimated new particle formation rate, J1.5, and sulfuric acid concentration was found with a mean fitted exponent of 2.4. However, the maximum sulfuric acid concentrations on NPF days were not significantly higher (even lower, sometimes) than those on non-event days, indicating that the abundance of sulfuric acid in Beijing was high enough to initiate nucleation, but may not necessarily lead to NPF events. Instead, AFuchs in Beijing varied greatly among days with a geometric standard deviation of 2.56, whereas the variabilities of AFuchs in Tecamac, Atlanta, and Boulder were reported to be much smaller. In addition, there was a good correlation between AFuchs and LΓ in Beijing (R2 = 0.88). Therefore, it was AFuchs that fundamentally determined the occurrence of NPF events. Among 11 observed NPF events, 10 events occurred when AFuchs was smaller than 200 µm2 cm−3. NPF events were suppressed due to the coagulation scavenging when AFuchs was greater than 200 µm2 cm−3. Measured AFuchs in Beijing had a good correlation with its PM2.5 mass concentration (R2 = 0.85) since AFuchs in Beijing was mainly determined by particles in the size range of 50–500 nm that also contribute to the PM2.5 mass concentration.
Marital strategies for managing exposure to HIV in rural Malawi

From early in the epidemic, the ABC of AIDS prevention has been the focus of advocacy efforts in Africa. While some evidence has been collected that testifies to changes in sexual practice in response to HIV/AIDS (Gregson, Zhuwau, Anderson, and Chandiwana 1998; Bloom et al. 2000), the tone in the literature is rather pessimistic with the vulnerability of women often taking center stage. Without trying to understate the magnitude of the problem, this paper highlights agency rather than helplessness. The central premise is that behavioral responses to the HIV/AIDS epidemic will go beyond the advice promoted in advocacy programs. These alternative strategies are expected because the rigorous application of the ABC is either not very realistic (e.g. abstinence or condom use within marriage), or beyond the control of the individual (e.g. faithfulness of the partner, and, for women often also the enforcement of condom use). The lifethreatening character of AIDS and the absence of a cure are plain and unmistakable incentives. Spousal communication is one documented practice for sensitizing partners to lead less risky sexual lives and for evaluating one’s own exposure to HIV (Gregson et al. 1998; Zulu and Chepngeno 2003). Strategies for selecting low risk marriage partners and the divorce of spouses that are believed to bring HIV into the household are other avenues for limiting risk. The latter have been identified in predominantly qualitative research (e.g. Mukiza-Gapere and Ntozi 1995; Schatz 2003; Watkins 2004; Smith and Watkins 2005). Simulations suggest that (some of) these strategies could indeed be
Morphological and Molecular Identification and PCR Amplification to Determine the Toxigenic Potential of Fusarium graminearum Species Complex (FGSC) Isolated from Wild Grasses in Iran

In order to explore biodiversity of Fusarium species associated with the inflorescences of gramineus weeds, heads and inflorescences were collected from wild grasses in west of Iran. Sixty samples, mostly from infected spikes were collected from different sites of western Iran. Nine species from 9 tribes of the Poaceae family were identified based on pollen morphology using light microscopy and scanning electron microscope. Sixty Fusarium isolates were obtained from diseased spikes and identified into five species F. graminearum (40%), F. asiaticum (20%), F. acuminatum (20%), F. equiseti (10%), and F. proliferatum (10%). The identification of the members of F. Graminearum Species Complex (FGSC) was confirmed molecularly using Fg16F/Fg16R primers. F. asiaticum isolates were distinguished from other FGSC using Fg6CTPSf177/Fg16R primers. The phylogenetic trees based on Translation Elongation Factor-1α (TEF-1α) dataset clearly separated all morphological taxa. PCR-based detection of mycotoxin-synthesis-pathway gene was also used to determine the potential to produce trichothecenes (DON and NIV). Among 60 tested isolates, 16 isolates (27%) belonged to DON chemotype and 10 isolates (17%) were NIV chemotype. These results show that DON was the most common chemotype in western Iran. To our knowledge, this is the first report on molecular identification of Fusarium species isolated from poaceous wild grasses in Iran.
Shifting the Focus from Paradigms to Goals: A New Approach Towards Defining and Assessing Wellbeing

GDP as an indicator is relatively recent. It was introduced seventy years ago and like many other institutions it is an issue of the historical period in which it was created in the years between the Great Depression and World War II. The adoption of the GDP as an indicator is not a neutral choice, but rather the logical consequence of a well-defined theoretical paradigm in which GDP appears the essential tool apt to promote well-being and development. Since then, however, times have changed, new problems have emerged and new theories and approaches have been developed to address them. Starting from these considerations the paper examines the problems connected with adopting an indicator as an absolute measure of progress. Indicators, in fact, are not neutral: they are the result of a specific economic approach; hence they are biased in nature and contribute to define policies that are implemented. After reviewing the main theories and indicators introduced by literature in the last sixty years, we propose to adopt a different approach according to which progress is measured against stated goals and not in absolute terms. Subsequently, we present an example of this approach by introducing a new indicator (ICSES – Index of Competitiveness and Social and Environmental Sustainability) to measure the performance of EU countries vis-a-vis the goals explicitly stated by the European Union.
Objective Test Methods for Waveguide Audio Synthesis

OBJECTIVE TEST METHODS FOR WAVEGUIDE AUDIO SYNTHESIS Steve G. Wood School of Technology Master of Science Acoustic Physical Modeling has emerged as a newer musical synthesis technique. The most common form of physical modeling synthesis in both industry and academia is digital waveguide synthesis. Commercially available for the past thirteen years, the top synthesizer manufacturers have chosen to include physical modeling synthesis in their top of the line models. In the area of audio quality testing, the most common tests have traditionally been group listening tests. While these tests are subjective and can be expensive and timeconsuming, the results are validated by the groups’ proper quality standards. Research has been conducted to evaluate objective testing procedures in order to find alternative methods for testing audio quality. This research has resulted in various standards approved by the International Telecommunication Union. Tests have proven the reliability of these objective test methods in the areas of telephony as well as various codecs, including MP3. The objective of this research is to determine whether objective test measurements can be used reliably in the area of acoustic physical modeling synthesis, specifically digital waveguide synthesis. Both the Perceptual Audio Quality Measure (PAQM) and Noise-To-Mask Ratio (NMR) objective tests will be performed on the Karplus-Strong algorithm form of Digital Waveguide synthesis. A corresponding listening test based on the Mean Opinion Score (MOS) will also be conducted, and the results from the objective and subjective tests will be compared. The results will show that more research and work needs to be done in this area, as neither the PAQM nor NMR algorithms sufficiently matched the output of the subjective listening tests. Recommendations will be made for future work.
ASSESSMENT OF STRENGTH PROPERTIES OF CASSAVA PEEL ASH-CONCRETE

Basic conventional building materials like cement and aggregates are becoming increasingly expensive due to high cost incurred in their processes, production and transportation. The utilization of locally available materials such as cassava peel ash that can either reduce or replace the conventional ones is being considered. This paper investigated the effect of partial replacement of cassava peel ash with ordinary Portland cement at 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25%. The cassava peel ash was obtained by calcinations of cassava peel to 7000 c temperature. Cube samples of size 150 x 150 x 150 were prepared for concrete grade 30 and cured in water for 7, 14, 28, 90, 120 and 180 days after which they were subjected to compressive strength, tensile strength, durability, porosity, water absorption, slump, compact factor and shrinkage tests. The results showed that partial replacement of 10 and 15% gave compressive strength comparable to the control with 0% replacement and optimum replacement is 10%. It was discovered that the cassava peel ash contains all the main chemical constituents of cement though in lower percentage compared with OPC which shows that it can serve as a suitable replacement if the right percentage is used. However, its durability and sulphric acid resistance improved considerably at 10% replacement of cement with cassava peel ash. The study recommends that concrete made with cassava peel ash can be used for light construction works where high strength is not major requirement but where durability is a major concern.
Procedural pain: epidemiology, effects, predictive factors

Résumé : En dépit d’une prise de conscience récente, les douleurs liées aux soins sont très fréquentes et sous-évaluées, en particulier dans les populations fragiles (âges extrêmes, troubles de la conscience, de la communication.). Il est difficile, à partir des études publiées, de définir des facteurs de risques « universels » pour ces douleurs. La mémoire d’un geste est corrélée au pic d’intensité douloureuse ressentie au cours du geste. La mise en place de protocoles antalgiques et leur évaluation restent insuffisantes, y compris chez l’enfant. La prévention de ces douleurs nécessite une plus grande sensibilisation des personnels soignants et le développement de protocoles antalgiques efficaces.
Fourier transform for paragroups and its application to the depth two case

We prove that the flatness condition in Ocneanu's paragroup theory for graphs with depth two is equivalent to existence of the multiplicative unitaries in the theory of Baaj-Skandalis by using "Fourier transform" introduced by A. Ocneanu. Moreover, from two Kac algebras dual to each other, we construct a subfactor as a crossed product by a Kac algebra action, with the string algebra construction.
Targeting Drought-Tolerant Maize Varieties in Southern Africa: A Geospatial Crop Modeling Approach Using Big Data

Maize is a major staple food crop in southern Africa and stress tolerant improved varieties have the potential to increase productivity, enhance livelihoods and reduce food insecurity. This study uses big data in refining the geospatial targeting of new drought-tolerant (DT) maize varieties in Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Results indicate that more than 1.0 million hectares (Mha) of maize in the study countries is exposed to a seasonal drought frequency exceeding 20% while an additional 1.6 Mha experience a drought occurrence of 10–20%. Spatial modeling indicates that new DT varieties could give a yield advantage of 5–40% over the commercial check variety across drought environments while crop management and input costs are kept equal. Results indicate a huge potential for DT maize seed production and marketing in the study countries. The study demonstrates how big data and analytical tools enhance the targeting and uptake of new agricultural technologies for boosting rural livelihoods, agribusiness development and food security in developing countries.
Study of Contraceptives Used in Unwanted Pregnancies

هديكچ همدقم : گلماح ي لكشم هتساوخان ي ناهج ي م ي هك دشاب رب گدنز ي نانز اهن رد و اـهنآ هداوناخ ، ـي ـمتجا ت عا أت ث ي تـسا راذـگر . زا فدـه ناوارف نييعت رضاح شهوژپ ي هوحن و ي شور زا هدافتسا اه ي پ ي گش ي ر ي رادراب زا ي مناخ رد گلماـح اب اه ي هتـساوخان ي هـب هدـننك هـعجارم تشادهب زكارم ي نامرد ي لاس رد نادمه رهش 1385 تسا هدوب . يسررب شور : شهوژپ رضاح صوت عون زا ي ف ي لحت ي ل ي يم دشاب رب هك يور 900 گلماح اب نيعجارم زا رفن ي تشادهب زكارم هب هتساوخان ي نامرد ي لاس رد نادمه رهش 1385 تفرگ تروص . يفداصت تروص هب يريگ هنومن هداس ماجنا دش . عمج رازبا همانشـسرپ تاـعلاطا يروآ دوب . هداد اه يرامآ رازفا مرنزا هدافتسا اب SPSS ب و ه گراك ي ر ي صوت رامآ ي ف ي ، نومزآ ياه ك ريوكسا يا و تست يت زجت ي لحت و ه ي ل دش . جياتن : هتفاي ساسا رب ،اه 9 / 93 % شهوژپ ياهدحاو زا شور زا ياه پ ي گش ي ر ي رادراب زا ي يم هدافتسا هدرك دنا . اش ي ع رت ي اهشور ن ي دروم ـب هدافتسا ه ترت ـي اهـشور لماـش ب ي نوـمروه ي 1 / 38 % ، بط ي ـع ي 9 / 31 % ، مودـناك 8 / 19 % ، ـش ي هدر ي 4 / 4 % ، IUD 6 / 3 % ، ژروا سـنا ي 9 / 1 % و ر ي مت ي ك 4 / 0 % هدوب دنا . رتمهم ي م دراوم ن تسكش هب رجن رد اهشور زا هدافتسا ي پ ي گش ي ر ي رادراب زا ي د زا ي اهدحاو هاگد ي لماـش شهوژپ و مظنمان هدافتسا تسردان رد زا ناگدننك هدافتسا اهشور ي نومروه ي و مودـناك ، زا ناگدـننك هدافتـسا رد لرـتنك مدـع IUD رد هابتـشا و هبساحم رات ي ر شور رد خ ي مت ي تسا هدوب ك . هجيتن يريگ : اهدحاو رثكا ي رادراب زا تظفاحم نمض شهوژپ ي رادراب ، ي اه ي هتساوخان دندوب هدرك هبرجت ار . شزومآ موزل رتشيب ياه شور زا بسانم هدافتسا صوصخ رد يم ساسحا يرادراب زا يريگشيپ ياه ددرگ .