Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
PERIODIC TRANSMISSION OF CIRCULAR BINARY FRESNEL ZONE PLATES WITH ETCHING DEPTH AND SUBSTRATE

Based on the scattering theory and the Green function method, a dynamical theory is given for calculating the difiraction of deeply-etched gratings with a stratifled structure substrate. The key of our method is that the patterned grating structure is considered as a perturbation to the unpatterned stratifled structure rather than to vacuum. Using the flrst-order Born approximation and in the Fresnel difiraction region, we obtain a simple analytical expression, which can be used to calculating the scattering intensity of deeply-etched circular binary Fresnel zone plates with a stratifled substrate (MDECBFZPs). The numerical results show that the focusing intensity at the foci of the MDCBFZP changes periodically with the etching depth and the thickness of the substrate fllm. Our results are in good agreement with FDTD simulations.
Applying thermophysics for wind turbine drivetrain fault diagnosis using SCADA data

Cost-effective wind turbine (WT) diagnosis using supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) data is a promising technology for future intelligent wind farm operation and management. This study presents a thermophysics-based method for WT drivetrain fault diagnosis. A synthesised thermal model is formed by incorporating thermal mechanisms of the drivetrain into a WT system model. Applications of the model are demonstrated in case studies of the gearbox and generator comparing simulation results and SCADA data analysis. The results show non-linearity of the gearbox oil temperature rise with wind speed/output power that can effectively indicate gearbox efficiency degradation, which may be attributed to gear transmission problems such as gear teeth wear. Electrical generator faults such as ventilation failure and winding voltage unbalance will cause changes to heat transfer and result in temperature changes that can be used for diagnosis purposes. This is shown by different patterns of stator winding temperature associated with power generation, while the simulation reveals the thermal mechanism. The method can be applied to diagnose some failure modes which are hard to identify from vibration analysis. The developed thermal model can play a central role for the purpose of fault diagnosis, by deriving relationships between various SCADA signals and revealing changes in the thermophysics of WT operation.
AN OVERVIEW ON THE ADOPTION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF ACTIVITY - BASED COSTING IN PRACTICE

In recent years activity - based costing has attracted the interest of both academics and management accountants since its emergence. Researchers and academics believe that activity - based costing (ABC) is a new managerial accounting technique which could enhance the business orientation of managerial accounting and help business decisions and taking control in an increasingly sophisticated way (Jarvenpaa, 2007). Despite the great interest coming from researchers, companies seem to be reluctant to adopt ABC. A great number of surveys show that the dissemination of ABC has not been as intense as expected. The objective of this paper is to examine how ABC was adopted and implemented worldwide and within Romanian companies; what were the major challenges identified when adopting and implementing ABC; what are the main advantages and disadvantages of such a cost system. To achieve this objective we begin with the analysis of the existing literature in the field and previous studies made at international level, followed by a questionnaire - based empirical study and analysis of ABC implementation within Romanian companies.
Impacts of the SURE Standing Disaster Assistance Program on Producer Risk Management and Crop Insurance Programs

This research investigates the potential effects of the row crop provisions of the standing disaster assistance program (SURE) in the 2008 Farm Bill. Results suggest little impact on producer crop insurance purchase decisions, though the program does seem to provide an incentive for mid-level coverage. Payments under the program should be expected to differ considerably across geographic regions and levels of diversification, with the program providing the greatest benefit to undiversified producers in more risky production regions.
BLAS-on-flash: An Efficient Alternative for Large Scale ML Training and Inference?

Code Release Many large-scale machine learning training and inference tasks are memory-bound rather than compute-bound. That is, on large data sets, the working set of these algorithms does not fit in memory for jobs that could run overnight on a few multi-core processors. This often forces an expensive redesign of the algorithm for distributed platforms such as parameter servers and Spark. We propose an inexpensive and efficient alternative based on the observation that many ML tasks admit algorithms that can be programmed with linear algebra subroutines. A library that supports BLAS and sparseBLAS interface on large SSD-resident matrices can enable multi-threaded code to scale to industrial scale datasets on a single workstation. We demonstrate that not only can such a library provide near in-memory performance for BLAS, but can also be used to write implementations of complex algorithms such as eigensolvers that outperform in-memory (ARPACK) and distributed (Spark) counterparts. Existing multi-threaded in-memory code can link to our library with minor changes and scale to hundreds of gigabytes of training or inference data at near in-memory processing speeds. We demonstrate this with two industrial scale use cases arising in ranking and relevance pipelines: training large scale topic models and inference for extreme multi-label learning. This suggests that our approach could be an efficient alternative to expensive distributed big-data systems for scaling up structurally complex machine learning tasks.
Generative morphology as psycholinguistics

This chapter commences by introducing the central notion of competence performance linking models and explaining their relevance to morphology. Special focus is given to the theory of Distributed Morphology. The chapter then talks about applying competence performance linking models to a specific morphological question: Is there is any difference between affixation and compounding in Chinese, and more to the point, how to tell? Next, the chapter analyzes three sources of new evidence bearing on the question, each requiring its own linking model: two traditionally "linguistic" and one traditionally "psycholinguistic". Interdisciplinary interaction can only be improved through mutual respect and education. The undeniable importance of rote memory in word knowledge has long obliged generative morphologists to keep abreast of psycholinguistic findings, and (de)composition has long played a central role in the study of lexical access.Keywords: competence performance linking models; distributed morphology; generative linguistics; mentalistic hypotheses; psycholinguistics; rote memory
Geochemistry of Some Tertiary and Early Cretaceous Basaltic Exposures around Gulf of Suez (Emphasis on Significance of High Field Strength Elements and their Ratios), Egypt

The significance of Nb, Zr, Y, Ti, and REE and the use of their ratios in the Tertiary and Early Cretaceous basalts of Egypt have not been previously noted. The study deals with three basaltic occurrences around Gulf of Suez representing two episodes . Tertiary basalt of Abu Zenima and Ehamer areas show within plate continental /oceanic transition setting and tholeiitic. Early Cretaceous basalt of Abu Darag area are alkaline and within plate continental. In terms of high field strength elements and REE abundances and their ratios, some geochemical constraints has been revealed : 1The Y/Nb, Zr/Y, Zr/Nb and LREE/HREE of Tertiary basalts are more comparable but differ than the Early Cretaceous one suggesting two mantle sources;2-K2O, Na2O,Nb, Zr, La/Sm and LREE/HREE of the Early Cretaceous basalt are higher than those of Tertiary one suggesting enriched mantle source or small degree of partial melting at greeter depth;3The chemical weathering has increased LOI, MgO and K2O and decreased CaO from the marginal part of the Abu Darag basaltic dyke, upper part of Abu Zenima flow and Ehamer dyke, 4The Early Cretaceous basalt shows a greeter crustal contamination than Tertiary one as indicated from, higher K2O/P2O5 , Rb and Th and Lower Zr/Nb, and TiO2/ P2O5 than Tertiary
Male resource defence mating system test in primates ? An experimental test in wild capuchin monkeys

Ecological models of mating systems provide a theoretical framework to predict the effect of the defendability of both breeding resources and mating partners on mating patterns. In resource-based mating systems, male control over breeding resources is tightly linked to female mating preference. To date, few field studies have experimentally investigated the relationship between male resource control and female mating preference in mammals due to difficulties in manipulating ecological factors (e.g., food contestability). We tested the within-group male resource defense hypothesis experimentally in a wild population of black capuchin monkeys (Sapajus nigritus) in Iguazú National Park, Argentina. Sapajus spp. represent an ideal study model as, in contrast to most primates, they have been previously argued to be characterized by female mate choice and a resource-based mating system in which within-group resource monopolization by high-ranking males drives female mating preference for those males. Here, we examined whether females (N = 12) showed a weaker preference for alpha males during mating seasons in which food distribution was experimentally manipulated to be less defendable relative to those in which it was highly defendable. Results did not support the within-group male resource defense hypothesis, as female sexual preferences for alpha males did not vary based on food defendability. We discuss possible reasons for our results, including the possibility of other direct and indirect benefits females receive in exercising mate choice, the potential lack of tolerance over food directed towards females by alpha males, and phylogenetic constraints.
Privacy Preserving and Storage Optimization on Cloud

An increasing amount of data is being stored in cloud-based storage services and this trend is expected to grow in the coming years. Data deduplication becomes more and more a necessity for cloud storage providers. Cloud storage services commonly use duplication, which is useful in storing only a unique file or block by eliminating duplicate copies of data. Deduplication is helpful in saving network bandwidth and storage space which is an advantage to the users or clients in cloud. The proposed scheme in this paper not only the reduces the cloud storage capacity but also improves the speed of data deduplication. To protect confidentiality of sensitive data while supporting deduplication the encryption technique has been proposed to encrypt the data before outsourcing.
How does non-standard employment affect workers?: A consideration of the evidence

Non-standard employment is an increasingly significant component of labour arrangements. A long-running debate concerns the consequences of this form of employment with opponents arguing that it disadvantages workers. Although considerable research has occurred, the findings are largely inconsistent and inconclusive. This paper explores recent studies and the matters that need to be addressed in order to develop a more comprehensive explanation. It proposes a need to broaden the agenda to explore the processes and contexts leading to the introduction of non-standard employment.
An Image Highlights Removal Method with Polarization Principle

The existing highlight detection and removal methods usually depend on color or some geometrical information. These methods cannot be used when highlight region degrades texture details of object surface. In this paper, we propose a novel, simple and effective method to solve this problem. In our method, we utilize dark channel to automatically detect highlight region. Then, based on polarization information of highlight region, specular refection component is removed. Our experimental results and comparison with other methods show that our method can effectively remove the highlight regions of the target image, and restore image texture details on the highlight regions under natural environment.
Optimisation of Kernels Preparation Conditions Involved in the Press Extraction of Shea ( Vitellaria paradoxa Gaertner F.) Butter

In this study, different conditions of press extraction of shea butter were optimised. Response Surface Methodology (RSM) using the Doehlert experimental design has been employed in the optimisation. The independent variables considered were roasting time (0-60 min), roasting temperature (50-300°C), cooking time (0-300 min) and cooling time (0 -60 min). Four-second order polynomial models were generated. The models were well described the responses: extraction yield, acid value, peroxide value and Lovibond red colour of the process with satisfactory fits in terms of absolute average deviation and coefficient of determination. The optimum conditions were found to be 10-15 min roasting time, 160-225°C roasting temperature, 140-275 min cooking time and 30-40 min of cooling time. The optimum responses were 45.7% extraction yield, 19.3 acid value, 5.4 peroxide value and 1.6 Lovibond red colour. The statistical relation between the four independent variables and the process responses was well described.
Electoral Competition Through Issue Selection

Politics must address multiple problems simultaneously. In an ideal world, political competition would force parties to adopt priorities that reflect the voters' true concerns. In reality, parties can run their campaigns in such a way as to manipulate voters' priorities. This phenomenon, known as priming, may allow parties to underinvest in solving the issues that they intend to mute. We develop a model of endogenous issue ownership in which two vote-seeking parties (a) invest in policy quality to increase the value of their platform and (b) choose a communication strategy to prime voters. We identify novel feedback between communication and investment. In particular, we find that stronger priming effects can constrain parties to invest more resources in all issues. We also identify the conditions under which parties prefer to focus on their �historical issues� or to engage in �issue stealing. �
Secure Forensic Report Retrieval Application using Cipher Text-Policy Attribute-Based Encryption

In cryptography, confidentiality, authenticity and anonymity are studied for long, and to provide security is the reason for all modern cryptographic research. Attribute based view has developed gradually by the requirements of security in a distributed setting. Attribute based encryption have been developed to give a fine grained access control on the data and at present attribute-based systems have wide range of applications in new decentralized settings. When the list of users may not be known prior, attribute based encryption mechanism is useful in these settings. In these settings, all users may possess some credentials or attributes, and these are used to determine access control and also to provide some degree of anonymity with respect to the user’s identity. Cipher text policy attribute based encryption is a scheme that gives a way to separate the credentials or attributes from the access policy and combine them at a later stage to provide secure access to protected data. We have proposed similar application for secure forensic data report retrieval where the setup algorithm first generates keys using the attributes of the users, the forensic analyst defines a set of attributes to encrypt the report and store the report in temporary storage. The receivers such as policeman, relatives, doctor will have to possess the defined set of attributes to decrypt the report.
On some developments of the Erdős–Ginzburg–Ziv Theorem II

Let S be a sequence of elements from the cyclic group Zm. We say S is zsf (zero-sum free) if there does not exist an m-term subsequence of S whose sum is zero. Denote by g(m, k) the least integer such that every sequence S with at least k distinct elements and length g(m, k) must contain an m-term subsequence whose sum is zero. Furthermore, denote by E(m, s) the set of all equivalence classes of zsf sequences with length s, up to order and affine transformation, that are not a proper subsequence of another zsf sequence. In this paper, we first find for a sequence S of sufficient length, |S| ≥ 2m − b 4 c − 2, necessary and sufficient conditions in terms of a system of inequalities over the integers for S to be zsf. Among the consequences, we determine g(m, k) for large m, namely g(m, k) = 2m− b k 2−2k+5 4 c provided m ≥ k − 2k − 3, which in turn resolves two conjectures of the first and fourth authors. Next, using independent methods, we evaluate g(m, 5) for every m ≥ 5. We conclude with the list of E(m, s) for every m and s satisfying 2m− 2 ≥ s ≥ max{2m− 8, 2m− b 4 c − 2}.
Appraisal of Criteria for Prequalification of Subcontractor in Construction Projects in Nigeria

The dependence of general contractor on subcontractors to execute specialized portion of construction work makes the success of construction projects highly susceptible to the performance of sub-contracting organizations’. The purpose of this paper is to appraise the criteria for prequalifying subcontractors in construction project and evaluate the level of application of these criteria by the consultants’ during the subcontractors’ evaluation with a view to determining the effects of subcontractors’ selection and quality. Data were obtained with the aid of well-structured questionnaire and were administered to clients, contractors and consultants’ in Ondo and Ekiti state. A total of 100 questionnaires were administered in Ondo and Ekiti State out of which 74 were recovered and 73 were suitable for analysis. The data were analyzed using statistical method namely descriptive statistic. Mean item score and severity index was used for analysis. Historical data was analyzed using correlation and regression. The result indicates that technical capability and ability to deliver project within schedule time are mostly important amongst other criteria for pre-qualifying subcontractors. Result also indicate that ability to deliver projects within scheduled time and ability to deliver projects within scheduled budget are mostly important amongst others for the application of pre-qualifying criteria. The result also indicates there is a great correlation in completion time and cost of project in the delivery of sub-contractors jobs at the level of significance of < 0.00. Conclusively prequalification of subcontractor should not be neglected or be seen as a waste of time as this will help the construction projects a great deal in good and prompt subcontract jobs.
Electromagnetic Radiation causes cancer: the implications for breast cancer.

Breast cancer is a serious problem for women and also a risk for men. In assessing the risk of breast cancer associated with exposure to electromagnetic fields and radiation (EMF & EMR) this review approaches the problem primarily from both the whole-body point of view. Our minds control many body functions through the central nervous system and through mediating a wide range of hormones. This includes melatonin, which is a highly potent free radical scavenger. Hence melatonin protects cells from cancer and it strengthens the immune system. EMR is shown to influence the brain, reduce the output of key hormones (e.g. Melatonin and Thyrotropin), and to impair the immune system. Thus EMR is carcinogenic. Alteration of cellular calcium ions is a well-established biological effect of EMR exposure. Calcium ion influx is associated with the survival of damaged cells, and thus increases cancer risk. Calcium ion efflux is associated with enhanced cell death (apoptosis) of damaged cells, and hence enhances neurodegenerative diseases. Calcium ion efflux is also related to impairment of the immune system, and to alteration of reaction times and brain EEG rhythms. German research has proven that human brains detect and use the Schumann Resonances (SR) for timing synchronization. Altering the intensity and frequency of the SR changes human reaction times and circadian rhythms. A large body of research shows that there is an optimal intensity of SR, with increases and decreases in natural EMR being associated with a wide range of adverse neurological and cardiac health effects, and breast cancer. This research proves that sensitive and vulnerable human beings are made ill and can die when the natural EMR changes. The mean ELF intensity level of the SR is about 0.1 pW/cm. This is 2 billion times lower than internationally recommended public health guidelines for ELF exposure. Cell line and animal exposure experiments, and epidemiological studies of populations who are occupationally and residentially exposed to EMR reveal significant hormonal, neurological, cardiac and cancer effects. A series of laboratory experiments involving breast cancer prone rats exposed to 50/60Hz exposure down to 0.1μT EMF, produced dose response relationships with the size and number of mammary tumors, with melatonin reduction and with reduced T lymphocytes. They also show a significant increase in proto oncogene activity. Occupational and residential studies of human populations show significant increases in breast cancer across the EMR spectrum, especially for premenopausal women and for positive estrogen receptor breast cancer. Since cell phones pose a very high risk it is recommended that all EMR exposures, especially cell phone exposure, be minimized.
Comparative Studies of DC-DC Boost Convertor and SEPIC Convertor for Global Maximum Power Point Tracking Technique in a PV Array under Partial Shaded Condition

This thesis portray a validation and design of a Maximum Power Point tracking (MPPT) capable of tracking the true global Maximum Power point (GMPP) in the present of other local maxima. The proposed system tracks Maximum Power point (MPP) without the use of costly components such as single concreters and microprocessors thereby the compactness of the system. In this paper we are using DC-DC Boost convertor and SEPIC Convertor and perform comparison between both. This paper also discusses about an improved technique for tracking global maximum power point of photovoltaic arrays that has better performance under partial shading conditions. The first stage in this method is to find out global maximum power point among the local maxima. Once the global maximum power point is found then by adjusting the duty ratio, the voltage corresponding to maximum power can be found out. The control is then transferred to perturb and observe algorithm stage. This technique could be applied for both stand alone and grid connected PV system. A comparison study between a SEPIC converter and a buck boost converter with the above mentioned algorithm has also been carried out in order to verify the performance of both the converters. Modified algorithm has been simulated using MATLAB/Simulink and results are obtained. Partial shading condition was modelled in MATLAB/Simscape and analyzed the solar array characteristics under various shading conditions. From the simulation results it was found that the SEPIC converter is much more efficient and is highly suitable for photo voltaic applications.