Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cattle stratified on genetic merit segregate on carcass characteristics, but there is scope for improvement1

Abstract The study objective was to quantify the ability of genetic merit for a generated carcass index to differentiate animals on primal carcass cut weights using data from 1,446 herds on 9,414 heifers and 22,413 steers with weights for 14 different primal carcass cuts (plus 3 generated groups of cuts). The carcass genetic merit index was compromised of carcass weight (positive weight), conformation (positive weight), and fat score (negative weight), each equally weighted within the index. The association analyses were undertaken using linear mixed models; models were run with or without carcass weight as a covariate. In a further series of analyses, carcass weight and carcass fat score were both included as covariates in the models. Whether the association between primal cut yield and carcass weight differed by genetic merit stratum was also investigated. Genetic merit was associated (P < 0.001) with the weight of all cuts evaluated even when adjusted to a common carcass weight (P < 0.01); when simultaneously adjusted to a common carcass weight and fat score, genetic merit was not associated with the weight of the cuberoll or the group cuts termed minced-meat. The weight of the different primal cuts increased almost linearly within increasing genetic merit, with the exception of the rump and bavette. The difference in mean primal cut weight between the very low and very high genetic merit strata, as a proportion of the overall mean weight of that cut in the entire data set, varied from 0.05 (bavette) to 0.28 (eye of round); the average was 0.17. Following adjustment for differences in carcass weight, there was no difference in cut weight between the very low and very high strata for the rump, chuck tender, and mince cut group; the remaining cuts were heavier in the higher index animals with the exception of the cuberoll and bavette, which were lighter in the very high index animals. The association between carcass weight and the weight of each of the evaluated primal cuts differed (P < 0.05) by genetic merit stratum for all cuts evaluated with the exception of the rump, striploin, and brisket as well as the group cuts of frying and mincing. With the exception of these 5 primal (group) cuts, the regression coefficients of primal cut weight on carcass weight increased consistently for all traits with increasing genetic merit stratum, other than for the fillet, cuberoll, bavette, chuck and neck, and heel and shank.
Testing Collocational Knowledge of Yemeni EFL University Students at Universiti Utara Malaysia

It is commonly acknowledged that collocations play an important role in the field of ESL/EFL acquisition. Previous seminal studies have reported students’ development of collocational knowledge and use of collocations regardless the difficulties students may encounter in learning collocations, specifically, Arab students. The present study focuses on students’ collocational knowledge, particularly, Yemeni EFL university students who were attending an Intensive English Course (IEC) at UUM/Malaysia. The data was collected from only five Yemeni students (two postgraduate and three undergraduate). Those were the only Yemeni students who were attending the IEC. All of the participants were male students. The participants’ collocational knowledge was tested by a Multiple-choice Collocational Test (MCT). The results of the statistical analysis revealed that participants’ collocational knowledge was less than the expected. Moreover, the results concluded that students’ lack of knowledge of collocations was due to the fact that collocations were not of a focus in teaching English as a foreign language in schools. The study also ended up with recommendations for future research.
Midwest Landscape as Sacred Space: Visualizing the Sociology of Religion

Abstract This article combines the reflective essay and photography to present the experience of transcendence revealed by traveling the roads of DeKalb County, Illinois. Travel is the means through which the person comes home. Because we travel only once in this conscious life, it is within that we search for the eternal principle. And the further we travel inward, the further we travel outward. In the clearing away of the self that hinders the journey, the traveler enters the sacred realm of existence.
Do shocks permanently change output? : Local persistency in economic time series

While it is recognized that output fuctuations are highly persistent over certain range, less persistent results are also found around very long horizons (Conchrane, 1988), indicating the existence of local or temporary persistency. In this paper, we study time series with local persistency. A test for stationarity against locally persistent alternative is proposed. Asymptotic distributions of the test statistic are provided under both the null and the alternative hypothesis of local persistency. Monte Carlo experiment is conducted to study the power and size of the test. An empirical application reveals that many US real economic variables may exhibit local persistency.
The formation level of the components of the reflective experience as a factor of the students’ educational success

The purpose of the article is to verify the hypotheses about an effect of the formation level of the system of reflective experie nc and some of its components on the success of students’ learning. The author has o ffered a structural-functional model of the reflective experience as an open, dynamic sy stem that integrates three components: the reflective potential, the reflectiv e competence and the procedural components of the experience. Each component perfor ms its function, which is needed for reflexivity, the general ability of the p rson to observe, analyze and manage the internal processes of his life. The refl ctive potential that is presented by the reflective resources system provides internal a ctivity by the necessary resources and information, the reflective competence manages th processes of a functioning and development of the experience’s system, the pro cedural components implement activity as a process. The results obtained by a on e-factor and two-factor schemes of the dispersion analysis, have identified the signif cance of the effect of each component of the system and the general formation l evel of the reflective experience on the educational success. It is proved that the f ormation level of the personality’s reflective competence has the most significant effe ct on the educational success through the activation of the knowledge system abou t the reflection, about the basis of the reflective activity and the advantages of it s using, about the methods of its regulation and development. It was found that a hig h level of the educational success is demonstrated by those students, who have a high formation level of the system of the abilities to predictive own activity (actively planning its internal operations, determine the prospects of own future) and actively use the strategy of “Deep processing and critical analysis of information tha t are based on a rational approach to a searching solution”. The author has shown that th e destructive effects of reflexivity depends primarily on the mobilization of the inadeq uate amount of the reflective resources, that promotes a complicating of the subj ect’s internal activity, an excessive dipping into the inner world.
Estimates of the Free-Free Optical Depth toward the Subparsec-Scale Radio Source in Centaurus A

Multifrequency, near-simultaneous VLBA observations have been used to achieve matched resolution images of the inner 8 pc of Centaurus A, including the jet, the nucleus, and the counterjet, at a spatial resolution of approximately 0.1 pc. By comparing the three images, at 2.2, 5.0, and 8.4 GHz, and assuming a constant intrinsic spectral index between 2.2 and 8.4 GHz along each line of sight, it is possible, in principle, to separate the effects of synchrotron self-absorption intrinsic to the radio source from free-free absorption, which is extrinsic. Toward the unresolved Centaurus A nucleus, the observed spectral index between 2.2 and 5.0 GHz is inverted to an extent where free-free absorption is unavoidable, α = 3.8 ±, at its peak. Toward this region the optical depth to free-free absorption is estimated to be τff = 0.9 ± 0.4 at 2.2 GHz, giving an intrinsic spectral index of α = 2.0 ± 0.5, within the bounds explainable by synchrotron self-absorption. Away from the nucleus the remainder of the bright subparsec-scale radio jet has a spectral index close to -0.7 and is not affected by free-free absorption. We adopt a simple spherical geometry for the nuclear absorber with an upper limit on its radius of 0.016 pc, giving a constraint on the electron density and temperature, nT ≳ 9.3, where ne4 is the electron density in units of 104 cm-3 and T4 is the electron temperature in units of 104 K. Assuming T4 = 1 gives a lower limit for the total mass of the absorber of 0.01 M☉. Future observations of higher resolution and sensitivity will be required to more accurately constrain the properties of the nuclear absorber and detect any absorption toward the counterjet.
Far-Field Synthesis of Sparse Arrays with Cross-polar Pattern Reduction

─ This paper presents a fully deterministic iterative algorithm for the far-field synthesis of antenna arrays with reduction of the cross-polar component. The algorithm synthesizes the excitations as well as the positions of the array elements, providing a sparse geometry. Starting from an initial set of possible positions, the proposed algorithm iteratively solves a sequence of convex optimization problems. At each iteration a suitable objective function is minimized, which allows to reduce the number of radiating elements, among those of the initial set, in presence of constraints on the far-field co-polar and cross-polar patterns. The adopted formulation leads to a second order cone problem (SOCP), which is iteratively solved with CVX, a Matlab-based modeling system developed at the Stanford University and available on the Internet. Index Terms ─ Co-polar and cross-polar patterns, farfield synthesis, geometrical synthesis, sparse arrays.
Invariant Tensors in Gauge Theories

Invariant tensors play an important role in gauge theories, for example, in dualities of N=1 gauge theories. However, for theories with fields in representations larger than the fundamental, the full set of invariant tensors is often difficult to construct. We present a new approach to the construction of these tensors, and use it to find the complete set of invariant tensors of a theory of SO(3) with fields in the symmetric tensor representation.
Instruments and Methods for the Radio Detection of High Energy Cosmic Rays - ReadingSample

Instruments and Methods for the Radio Detection of High Energy Cosmic Rays Cosmic rays at energies above & 10 eV cannot be measured directly due to the low flux. Instead, the properties of the primary cosmic ray particles (arrival direction, energy, mass) have to be reconstructed from measurements of secondary particles forming an air shower. For this, digital radio antenna arrays, like LOPES at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), are a relatively new instrument. The radio emission mainly originates from the deflection of secondary air shower electrons and positrons in the Earth’s magnetic field. The radio technique aims at achieving a similar quality in the reconstruction of air shower parameters as the established Cherenkov or fluorescence light detection methods, which in contrast to the radio technique are limited to dark, moonless nights. The present studies aim to advance the air shower radio detection in technological aspects and analysis methods. The developments are mainly applied to LOPES, but also provide a useful set of tools, which will soon be applied on the analysis of first AERA measurements. AERA is a next generation digital radio array at the Pierre Auger Observatory in Argentina. Moreover, this thesis reflects the recent progress in the understanding of the radio emission by air showers. The main results of the studies are: • A new method for time calibration with a reference beacon has been developed. It allows a time resolution of ∼ 1 ns even with large antenna arrays. This is necessary for digital radio interferometry which improves the signal-to-noise ratio and the reconstruction accuracy of the primary particle properties. This method is essential for the measurement of cosmic rays with LOPES, and is going to be applied at AERA. • A per-event comparison of lateral distributions measured with LOPES and REAS3 simulations reflects a significantly improved understanding of the radio emission mechanisms. For the first time a Monte Carlo simulation of the radio emission by air showers can in average reproduce measured data. A detailed investigation of systematic effects was performed to accurately reconstruct LOPES lateral distributions. In particular, a method has been developed to appropriately treat the influence of radio noise on measured lateral distributions. • It is shown that a conical radio wavefront fits LOPES measurements and REAS3 simulations better than a spherical wavefront, which up to now has been assumed for LOPES beamforming analyses. Furthermore, the atmospheric depth of the shower maximum Xmax can be reconstructed by determining the opening angle of the conical wavefront. However, due to the small lateral extension of LOPES of about 200m and the high radio background at KIT, the measurement uncertainty (∆Xmax ≈ 200 g/cm) is too large for a per-event reconstruction of the primary mass. This will improve at AERA, but could not be examined in detail because of a delay in the construction.
Assessing the gap between current and desirable needs in TUMS* CME Unit: participants' viewpoints

Background: Purpose: Method: Results: Conclusion: Key words: NEEDS ASSESSMENT , CONTINUES MEDICAL EDUCATION (CME) Journal of Medical Education Demographic characteristics were relevant to determine educational priorities and learning methods. For the most-preferred learning needs, the five subgroups suggested different topics. The observation suggests that the participants assess their learning needs closely related to their perceived job requirements. However, these perceived needs may not be well related to the participants, actual level of knowledge or skill Of the 3300 medical care providers who received the questionnaires, 2687 filled them out. The overall response rate was 81%. Educational needs based on the priorities in the questionnaires included required educational methods and techniques for the five subgroups and specific priorities for each subgroup. Among the most requested methods were: lectures accompanied by video (54.1%), lectures followed by questions and answers (49.3%), case presentations (37.5%), educational workshops (37.4%), education through the internet (26.4%), conventional lectures (23.9%), morning reports (16.4%), and education in the field (15.1%). A cross-sectional study was conducted to determine the perceived knowledge, and preferences of the participants. Five valid and reliable questionnaires were developed, verified by 4 CME experts, filled out during the planned programs and on receiving their temporary of final certificates by each participant in the relevant subgroup. SPSS 9.0 was used for the analysis of collected data. To determine the perceived educational priorities and effective educational methods for five groups of medical care providers with respect to their views. Summer 2004; 5(1);17-22 Given the limited resources for medical education it seems reasonable to specify the exact educational needs and make sure that these needs are met. In this respect determining priorities and appropriate educational strategies and teaching methods allows for optimum use of limited available resources.
Comparison of Phase-shifters for Multiphase Power Converters

Abstract Much interest has been shown in multiphase switching power converters. This is due to their advantages, such as a higher current capability, improved dynamic response, or reduced harmonics, which compensate for their increased component count. As a drawback, multiphase controllers become more complex than their one-phase counterparts. However, digital controllers help to solve the new problems, such as multiple driving signal generation, current sharing among phases, or phase shifting. This work focuses on the generation of multiple driving signals that are interleaved, i.e., phase shifted. Two alternative phase-shifters are proposed and compared. Both have been designed in a hardware description language, suitable for implementation in field programmable gate arrays or application-specific integrated circuits.
An investigation of Recent Deep Learning Techniques Applied to Blood Cell Image Analysis

This project has investigated the performances of Capsule Networks in comparison to Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) on white blood cell image classiﬁcation at CellaVision. The Capsule Network models that were investigated are EM Routing Capsule Networks (EMCNs) and Dynamic Routing Capsule Networks (DCNs). The models were compared with regards to convergence rate, speed, and accuracy performance on datasets with varying size and complexity. The results show that DCNs outperform the other models on small datasets with regards to accuracy and convergence rate, whereas the CNNs outperform the other models on bigger datasets with higher complexity. With regards to speed, CNNs outperform the other models on both CPU and GPU, with DCNs being very slow. EMCNs, meanwhile, give an indication of learning spatial concepts better, as they are more invariant to spatial- and noise transformations of the underlying test datasets. (Less)
Bianchi Type VI0 Inflationary Universe with Constant Deceleration Parameter and Flat Potential in General Relativity

Inflationary universe scenario with constant deceleration parameter in the presence of massless scalar field and flat potential taking Bianchi Type VI0 space time as a source is discussed. We find that the rate of expansion slows down with increase of time. It is also observed that the ratio of shear and expansion is non-zero for all values of T where at + b = T, t being cosmic time, a and b being constants. Thus the universe remains anisotropic throughout the evolution. The Higgs field is constant for large values of T when α < 2 and the Higgs field evolves slowly but the universe expands for α > 2 where α is a constant. It may be positive and negative both. The model represents decelerating and accelerating phases of universe and has Point Type singularity at T=0 (MacCallum [25]). In special case i.e. if N=0 and α > 0 then the model isotropizes at late time, N being constant of integration.
A Nonlinear Correlation Measure for Intrusion Detection

The popularity of using internet contains some risks of network attacks. It has attracted the attention of many researchers to overcome this problem. One of the effective ways that plays an important role to achieve higher security and protect networks against attacks is the use of intrusion detection systems. Intrusion detection systems are defined as security techniques that tend to detect individuals who are trying to sneak into a system without authorization. However, one technical challenge in intrusion detection systems is high rate of false positive alarms which affect their performance. To solve this problem, we propose an effective method, which can accurately find the correlation between network records. In this work, we compare the results using a linear measure and a nonlinear measure based on correlation coefficient and mutual information. Experiments on KDD Cup 99 data set show that our proposed method using the nonlinear correlation measure can not only reduce the rate of false alarms but also efficiently distinguish normal and abnormal behaviors, and provide higher detection and accuracy rate then using the linear correlation measure. Keywords-Intrusion Detection; Nonlinear correlation; Mutual Information (MI); Pearson’s Correlation coefficient;
Comparison of numerical simulation results for transport and thermodynamic properties of the solid fuels combustion products with experimental data

Comparison of calculation results of transport properties of the solid fuels combustion products was made with known experimental data. Calculation was made by means of the modified program TETRAN developed in G.M. Krzhizhanovsky Power Engineering Institute. The calculation was spent with chemical reactions and phase transformations occurring during combustion. Also ionization of products of solid fuels combustion products at high temperatures was taken into account. In the capacity of fuels various Russian coals and some other solid fuels were considered. As a result of density, viscosity and heat conductivity calculation of a gas phase of solid fuels combustion products the data has been obtained in a range of temperatures 500-20000 K. This comparison has shown good convergence of calculation results with experiment.
Examination of Pre-Service Elementary School Mathematics Teachers' Knowledge for Algebra Teaching

Article History: Received 26.02. 2017 Received in revised form 27.07. 2017 Accepted 18.08. 2017 Available online 01.10. 2017 The present study aims to analyze pre-service elementary school mathematics teachers’ knowledge for teaching algebra in the context of algebra pedagogical content knowledge. For this purpose, a valid and reliable test (Algebra Pedagogical Content Knowledge Test) of 20 questions on the basis of the conceptual framework of knowledge for teaching algebra, as built by McCrory et al. (2012), was developed and applied with 101 senior-year pre-service teachers enrolled at a state university. The results reveal that the pre-service teachers exhibit mediocre performance in terms of algebra pedagogical content knowledge. The pre-service teachers were observed to experience difficulties regarding sub-components of algebra pedagogical content knowledge, namely student recognition. They also exhibited difficulty with the “functions and their properties: linear and nonlinear” in algebra content and the “core concepts and procedures” in the domains of mathematical knowledge. © 2018 IOJES. All rights reserved
Altered expression of potassium channel genes in familial hypokalemic periodic paralysis

We analyzed the mRNA expression patterns of major potassium channel genes to determine the mechanism of hypokalemia in familial hypokalemic periodic paralysis. We used quantitative RT-PCR to examine the mRNA levels of both inward (KCNJ2, KCNJ6, and KCNJ14) and delayed rectifi er (KCNQ1 and KCNA2) potassium channel genes in skeletal muscle cells from both normal and patient groups, prior to and after exposure to 4 mM and 50 mM potassium buffers. Quantitative RT-PCR analysis revealed no changes in the mRNA levels of these genes in normal and patient cells on exposure to 4 mM potassium buffer. However, after exposure to 50 mM potassium buffer, which was used to induce depolarization, normal cells showed a signifi cant decrease in KCNJ2, KCNJ6, and KCNJ14 expression, but no change in KCNQ1 and KCNA2 expression. In contrast, patient cells showed no change in KCNJ2 and KCNJ6 expression, but an increase in KCNJ14 expression. Furthermore, KCNQ1 and KCNA2 showed decreased expression. We found that the expression levels of both inward and delayed rectifi er potassium channel genes in patient cells differ from those in normal cells. Altered potassium channel gene expression in patient cells may suggest a possible mechanism for hypokalemia in familial hypokalemic periodic paralysis.