Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Nano Reinforcements in Surface Coatings and Composite Interphases

Nano reinforcements have aroused considerable attentions from both material science and engineering application points of view because of their extraordinary mechanical properties and electronic structures. The use of nanoclays, carbon nanotube networks in surface coatings and composite interphases is leading to rapidly growing unique areas of nanotechnology, especially in integrating mechanical and electrical functionality on the nanoscale. A more comprehensive understanding of the role of nano reinforcements on material surface defect repairing and the realization of functional composite interphase is a significant research focus. Most solid materials have surface defects. In brittle materials such as glass and ceramics, a fundamental mechanism of failure is the spreading of surface defects. Surface defects of brittle materials cause actual tensile strength much lower than the ultimate theoretical strength. The surface defects normally on the nanoscale providing extra stress at the tip of the cracks can lead to stress-corrosion cracking at low stress level. Generally, polymer coatings are always applied to various fibres to protect them from mechanical damage during handling. Such coatings also act as a diffusion barrier to moisture reaching the fibre surface from the surrounding environment. Healing nanoscale surface flaws and enhance materials’ lifetime by coating, therefore, are important for many traditional materials for wide use in aggressive environments. The mechanical ‘healing’ effect was viewed as a disappearance of the severe surface flaws because of an increase of the crack tip radius, the flaw filled by coatings being either elliptical than sharp. Reinforcement with nanomaterials in coatings is a topic of significant current interest. The molecular dynamics simulations show that the stress concentration at the notch tip is significantly reduced due to the presence of the nanoparticles (Tyagi et al., 2004). These results point to a simple means of fabricating systems that can self-heal, where nanoparticles dispersed in a polymer matrix can migrate to a crack generated at the interface between the polymer and a glassy layer (Gupta et al., 2006). Fundamentally, optimised mechanical structure and nanostructured surface are motivated by the grace and efficiency of natural materials, in a biomimetics approach. It is evolved in these materials, as shown in Fig. 1 (left), that multiscale structures (i.e. bones) and skin coverings with flexible multilayer of overlapping tough scales (vertebrates, i.e. fishes) provide a protective layer against physical/chemical attack. The nanometer size of mineral particles, composed of insoluble protein keratin and minerals, ensures optimum strength and maximum tolerance of flaws (Gao et al., 2003). As the
Hands-free vibrotactile feedback for object selection tasks in virtual reality

Interactions between humans and virtual environments rely on timely and consistent sensory feedback, including haptic feedback. However, many questions remain open concerning the spatial location of haptics on the user's body in VR. We studied how simple vibrotactile collision feedback on two less studied locations, the temples, and the wrist, affects an object picking task in a VR environment. We compared visual feedback to three visual-haptic conditions, providing haptic feedback on the participants' (N=16) wrists, temples or simultaneously on both locations. The results indicate that for continuous, hand-based object selection, the wrist is a more promising feedback location than the temples. Further, even a suboptimal feedback location may be better than no haptic collision feedback at all.
High‐Frequency Exchange Rate Forecasting

Predictability of exchange rate movement is of great interest to both practitioners and regulators. We examine the predictability of exchange rate movement in the high-frequency domain. To this end, we apply a model designed for modelling high-frequency and irregularly spaced data, the autoregressive conditional multinomial–autoregressive conditional duration (ACM–ACD) model. Studying three pairs of currencies, we find strong predictability in the high-frequency quote change data, with the rate of correct predictions varying from 54 to 70%. We demonstrate that filtering the data, by increasing the threshold of mid-quote price change, in combination with dynamic learning, can improve forecasting performance.
Effects of osthole on bone regeneration in the mid-palatal suture of rats during rapid maxillary expansion

This study aimed at evaluating the effects of osthole on the mid-palatal suture remodeling during rapid maxillary expansion (RME). Rats were randomly separated into three groups: control, expansion only (EO), and expansion plus osthole (OST) groups. An orthodontic appliance was set on rat molars of EO and OST groups and rats in OST group were administrated with osthole (20 mg/kg/day). The suture width and bone volume changes were observed by micro-computed tomography (microCT) and hematoxylin and eosin (HE) staining. Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and Nel-like molecule-1 (NELL-1) expression were also examined for the assessment of bone formation in the suture. The mid-palatal suture was expanded by the force, but there were no statistically significant differences (P > 0.05) in the width between EO and OST groups. Bone volume of the mid-palatal suture decreased during RME, but increased in the OST group on day 10 compared with EO group. Moreover, ALP and NELL-1 expression of OST group were more than that of the other two groups (P < 0.05). Our data suggest that osthole may be a potential agent to accelerate bone formation of the mid-palatal suture during RME.
Branched structures and affine and projective bundles on Riemann surfaces

A classification for analytic branched G-structures on a Riemann surface M is provided by means of a map (G into the moduli spaces of flat G-bundles on M. (G = GA(1, C) or PL(1, C). ) Conditions are determined under which ZG is injective and these conditions are related to the total branching order of the G-structures. A decomposition of the space of analytic branched G-structures into a disjoint union of analytic varieties is exhibited and it is shown that ? G is is fact holomorphic on each such variety.
Domestic Water Supply and Health of Households in the Three Residential Densities in Osogbo, Osun State, Nigeria.

This paper examines the health effects of domestic water supply in the three residential density areas, in Osogbo, Osun State, Nigeria. Having converted Osogbo representative map into digital format, it was divided into 245 equal grids. One of every two grids was selected and 10% of the households in each selected grid were systematically chosen for questionnaire administration. The study revealed that, smaller percentage (23.8%) of respondents in the high residential density have access to public tap and private well in their houses. Also, incidence of diarrhea (23.3%), stomach ache (20.2%) and typhoid(14.8%) is higher than the other two residential densities. The chi square result obtained in each residential density (low = X2 = 27.259; p = 0.007; medium = X2= 15.411; p = 0.115; high = X2 = 19.240; p = 0.008) indicated that there is a significant relationship between water sources and ill health in the three residential densities in osogbo. Keywords : Water Supply, Domestic, ill health, Environment, density. Ethiopian Journal of Environmental Studies of Management Vol. 1 (2) 2008: pp. 35-43
Compressing tries for storing dictionaries

A technique for compressing static dictionaries using trie structures is described. The goal is to achieve reasonable compression of such dictionaries while preserving the ability to travel both up and down in the resulting trie. An investigation is conducted of the tradeoffs necessary to accomplish this. The utility of trie structures thus constructed is discussed. <<ETX>>
Becoming “Urban” or Remaining “Rural”: The Views of Turkish Rural-to-Urban Migrants on the “Integration” Question

The mass migration from rural areas to larger cities in the Third World and the rapid social changes entailed by this transformation have attracted the attention of social and political scientists since the 1950s. The problematic issue of the “integration” of rural migrants into the urban society and the changes this transformation has brought about have long been among the most studied questions. Yet they still call for more research to increase our understanding of the phenomenon, particularly in our era, which is witnessing radical shifts from earlier times in terms of social, economic, and technological characteristics. The question of “integration to what? ” becomes important in political and practical terms. In the 1950s, when mass migration to cities started, the answer to this question seemed quite clear. The cities were the places of the modernizing elites, especially in the case of Ankara, the capital of the modern Turkish Republic. As in other Third World countries, the modernizing bureaucratic and military elites of the early republic, who had assumed the role of transforming the society into a modern, Western one, regarded the city as an effective means for the acculturation of its inhabitants to modern–Western values and ways of life. The modernization theory, which maintains a dichotomy between rural and urban, supported this idea.
High‐Frequency Attenuation in the Lake Van Region, Eastern Turkey

We provide a complete description of the characteristics of excitation and attenuation of the ground motion in the Lake Van region (eastern Turkey) using a data set that includes three‐component seismograms from the 23 October 2011 M w 7.1 Van earthquake, as well as its aftershocks. Regional attenuation and source scaling are parameterized to describe the observed ground motions as a function of distance, frequency, and magnitude. Peak ground velocities are measured in selected narrow frequency bands from 0.25 to 12.5 Hz; observed peaks are regressed to define a piecewise linear regional attenuation function, a set of excitation terms, and a set of site response terms. Results are modeled through random vibration theory (see Cartwright and Longuet‐Higgins, 1956). In the log–log space, the regional crustal attenuation is modeled with a bilinear geometrical spreading ! [Graphic][1] characterized by a crossover distance at 40 km: ! [Graphic][2] fits our results at short distances ( r is better at larger distances (40< r <200 km). A frequency‐dependent quality factor, Q ( f )=100( f / f ref)0.43 (in which f ref=1.0 Hz), is coupled to the geometrical spreading. Because of the inherent trade‐off of the excitation/attenuation parameters (Δ σ and κ ), their specific values strongly depend on the choice made for the stress drop of the smaller earthquakes. After choosing a Brune stress drop Δ σ Brune=4 MPa at M w=3.5, we were able to define (1) an effective high frequency, distance‐ and magnitude‐independent roll‐off spectral parameter, κ eff=0.03 s and (2) a size‐dependent stress‐drop parameter, which increases with moment magnitude, from Δ σ Brune=4 MPa at M w 3.5 to Δ σ Brune=20 MPa at M w 7.1. The set of parameters mentioned here may be used in order to predict the earthquake‐induced ground motions expected from future earthquakes in the region surrounding Lake Van. [1]: /embed/inline-graphic-1.gif [2]: /embed/inline-graphic-2.gif [3]: /embed/inline-graphic-3.gif
Simulation of Engine Internal Flows Using Digital Physics

Simulation of Engine Internal Flows Using Digital Physics — This paper presents simulations of engine intake port and cylinder flows performed using PowerFLOW software. The numerical technique behind PowerFLOW, called Digital Physics, is based on statistical kinetic theory and it is numerically stable, so diver- gence does not occur during calculations. Digital Physics uses large numbers of computational cells with a simple turbulence model, giving grid-independence and high levels of accuracy. In addition, the technique is explicit in time, and so a transient simulation is always obtained. The paper outlines the numerical technique and presents details of an engine port and cylinder simulation.
Temperature effects on export production in the open ocean

A pelagic food web model was formulated with the goal of developing a quantitative understanding of the relationship between total production, export production, and environmental variables in marine ecosystems. The model assumes that primary production is partitioned through both large and small phytoplankton and that the food web adjusts to changes in the rate of allochthonous nutrient inputs in a way that maximizes stability, i.e., the ability of the system to return to steady state following a perturbation. The results of the modeling exercise indicate that ef ratios, defined as new production/total production = export production/total production, are relatively insensitive to total production rates at temperatures greater than ∼25°C and lie in the range 0.1‐0.2. At moderate to high total production rates, ef ratios are insensitive to total production and negatively correlated with temperature. The maximum ef ratios are ∼0.67 at high rates of production and temperatures of 0°−10°C. At temperatures less than ∼20°C, there is a transition from low ef ratios to relatively high ef ratios as total production increases from low to moderate values. This transition accounts for the hyperbolic relationship often presumed to exist between ef ratios and total production. At low rates of production the model predicts a negative correlation between production and ef ratios, a result consistent with data collected at station ALOHA (22°45′N, 158°W) in the North Pacific subtropical gyre. The predictions of the model are in excellent agreement with results reported from the Joint Global Ocean Flux Study (JGOFS) and from other field work. In these studies, there is virtually no correlation between total production and ef ratios, but temperature alone accounts for 86% of the variance in the ef ratios. Model predictions of the absolute and relative abundance of autotrophic and heterotrophic microorganisms are in excellent agreement with data reported from field studies. Combining the ef ratio model with estimates of ocean temperature and photosynthetic rates derived from satellite data indicates that export production on a global scale is ∼20% of net photosynthesis. The results of the model have important implications for the impact of climate change on export production, particularly with respect to temperature effects.
Rationale for Inclusion of J-PAKE in ISO / IEC 11770-4

2. J-PAKE has been proved secure under the Decisional Di e-Hellman (DDH) assumption in the random oracle model [2]. The original SPEKE paper has no security proofs. However, in an IACR ePrint manuscript [3], it has been reported that SPEKE can be proved secure under a new Decision Inverted-Additive Di e-Hellman (DIADH) assumption in the random oracle model. In terms of proofs, J-PAKE has two theoretical advantages
Domestic cooking skills-what are they?

Debate about the state of contemporary domestic cooking skills has intensified in recent years. World-wide, pre-prepared foods and modern technologies are seen as having brought about changes to people’s abilities to cook. Some experts argue that domestic cooking skills are in decline, others that they are undergoing a transition. Empirically gathered knowledge about domestic cooking however, is scant and lacks theoretical perspective. The concept of ‘cooking skills’ is rarely defined and usually interpreted as a straightforward set of practical techniques or tasks. As a result, debate has tended to remain speculative and difficult to develop. This paper draws on the findings of a qualitative study of thirty cooks, living in England. It aimed to provide a systematically researched ‘way of thinking’ about domestic cooking, including cooking skills. The fieldwork for the study took place between 1997 and 1999. The findings of the study revealed that useful insight into people’s cooking practices and approaches came from interpreting cooking skills as complex (consisting of mechanical, perceptual, conceptual, academic and planning skills) and ‘person-centred’. This interpretation throws new light on current debate by showing, for example, how ‘cooking skills’ can be seen as specifically domestic and that, rather than be viewed as in decline, domestic cooking skills can be seen as constant and unchanging. It also provides additional insight into another finding of the study that, when domestic cooking is examined closely and from the perspective of the cooks’ cooking abilities and knowledge, it is difficult to see ‘cooking from scratch’ and ‘cooking with preprepared foods’ as two clearly discernible concepts and practices. Background to the study Concerns about domestic cooking
Electrical characterisation of PVD germanium resistors with rapid melt growth (RMG) process

This paper presents the electrical characterisation of germanium stripe resistors produced by Physical Vapour Deposition using a Rapid Melt Growth process with either single or multiple micro-crucible materials. Electrical measurement of single germanium stripe resistors were obtained using a Greek cross test structure whereas four-terminal aluminium rail test structures were used for germanium stripe arrays. The electrical characterisation was conducted under dark conditions. Results showed only a slight reduction in germanium sheet resistance compared to that of as-deposited material even after a high temperature (980 °C) crystal growth process. It is believed that the measurements were compromised by contact and leakage current issues. As a result, the electrical characteristics of crystallised germanium could not be investigated properly and the relationship to Raman measurement was not established.
LABOR TURNOVER COSTS AND THE CYCLICAL BEHAVIOR OF VACANCIES AND UNEMPLOYMENT

This paper extends the Diamond-Mortensen-Pissarides (DMP) matching model with endogenous job destruction by introducing postmatch labor turnover costs. We consider training and separation costs that create heterogeneity among workers. In particular, there are two types of employed workers: (i) new entrants who need training in order to become fully productive, and (ii) incumbents who are fully productive and whose departure from the firm imposes costs on it. We find that our calibrated model, relative to the standard DMP model, comes closer to the data regarding the volatility of vacancies and unemployment without introducing unrealistic sensitivity to policy changes. Moreover, our extended model nearly reproduces the downward-sloping Beveridge curve, which is unusual when endogenous job destruction exists in this type of model.
Heuristic dispatching rule to maximize TDD and IDD performance

Although mean flow time and tardiness have been used for a long time as indicators in both manufacturing plants and academic research on dispatching rules, according to Theory of Constraints (TOC), neither indicator properly measures deviation from production plans. TOC claims that using throughput dollar-day (TDD) and inventory dollar-day (IDD) can induce the factory to take appropriate actions for the organization as a whole, and that these can be applied to replace various key performance indices used by most factories. However, no one has studied dispatching rules based on TDD and IDD performance indicators. The study addresses two interesting issues. (1) If TDD and IDD are used as performance indicators, do those dispatching rules that yield a better performance in tardiness and mean flow time still yield satisfactory results in terms of TDD and IDD performance? (2) Does a dispatching rule exist to outperform the current dispatching rules in terms of TDD and IDD performance? First, a TDD/IDD-based heuristic dispatching rule is developed to answer these questions. Second, a computational experiment is performed, involving six simulation examples, to compare the proposed TDD/IDD-based heuristic-dispatching rule with the currently used dispatching rules. Five dispatching rules, shortest processing time, earliest due date, total profit, minimum slack and apparent tardiness cost, are adopted herein. The results demonstrate that the developed TDD/IDD-based heuristic dispatching rule is feasible and outperforms the selected dispatching rules in terms of TDD and IDD.
Relatedness affects the density, distribution and phenotype of colonisers in four sessile marine invertebrates

Genetic diversity has emerged as an important source of variation in the ecological properties of populations, but there are few studies of genetic diversity effects on colonisation processes. This relative scarcity of studies is surprising given the influence of colonisation on species coexistence, invasion, and population persistence. Here, we manipulated relatedness in experimental populations of colonising larvae in four sessile marine invertebrates. We then examined the influence of coloniser relatedness on the number, spatial arrangement and phenotype of colonisers following permanent settlement. Overall, relatedness influenced colonisation in all four species, but the effects of relatedness on colonisation differed among species. The variable responses of species to manipulations of relatedness likely reflect differences in intensity of inter- and intra-specific competition among adults, as well as the differential consequences of larval behaviours for each species. Relatedness appears to play an underappreciated role in the colonisation process, and we recommend that future studies of genetic diversity effects consider not only adult stages – the focus of most work to date – but also the importance of genetic diversity in early life history stages.
Building on Success: The Diffusion of e-Government in the American States

The purpose of this study is to determine what factors encourage the diffusion of Internet technology, or e-government, in the American states. Different dimensions of digital technology are examined by investigating the spread of both e-service and e-democracy. A longitudinal mixed linear model is used to test the direct effects of states' political, economic, demographic, and ideological factors on the states' efforts to adopt Internet technology over the first seven years of the new millennium. The results indicate that the adoption of Internet technology is a cumulative process; a state's preexisting digitalization is continuously built on progress in expanding the governmental digital services and outreach. States whose leaders are engaged in professional networks are more likely to adopt e-government. Institutionally powerful governors also encourage the adoption of on-line technology. The study concludes that the spread of Internet technology in providing services and expanding outreach fits the explanatory analysis of noncontroversial policies that are diffused by a process of emulation. Executive power, leadership, and professional networks reinforce this pattern of emulation.
The Optimal Monetary and Fiscal Policy Mix in a Financially Heterogeneous Monetary Union

Recent work on financial frictions in New Keynesian models suggest that there is a sizable spread between the risk-less interest rate and the borrowing rate. We analyze the optimal policy mix of monetary and fiscal authorities in a currency union with a country-specific credit spread by introducing a cost channel differential. The cost channel decreases the efficiency of monetary policy and increases the need for fiscal stabilization. We show that the importance of fiscal policy in stabilizing shocks increases, when there is a gap in the inflation differential due to a relative shock, an idiosyncratic shock or a credit spread differential. The welfare losses will be increasing (decreasing) in the size of the cost channel, if the nominal interest rate is a demand- (supply-) side instrument.