Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Context-sensitive Communication in Hospitals: A User Interface Evaluation and Redesign of Ascom Wireless IP-DECT Phones

A variety of issues related to communication is a common phenomenon in current hospital settings. Sharing information by contacting colleagues, medical attendants, investigatory facilities and other resources, results in many communication events. This generates interruptions from mobile communication devices, which is a big concern for many physicians. In general, wireless phones are not currently widely in use at Norwegian hospitals, due to suspicions of increased interruption rates. Only a few staff members carry a wireless phone. Before introducing such devices as standard equipment, usability and user satisfaction are important factors, and have to be accounted for. The fact that such devices could introduce unnecessary interruptions is a motivation for developing a context sensitive solution. Observations and interviews from a study carried out by the first author, regarding the use of wireless phones at a hospital in Norway, showed that users were unsatisfied with the phones user interfaces. This kept them from using the full functionality of the system. This article presents an evaluation of the existing user interface of two wireless phones intended for hospital use, and suggests an improved user interface, which also intends to support context-sensitive communication. The new interfaces were considered an improvement compared to the old interfaces.
Stochastic volatility demand systems

ABSTRACT We address the estimation of stochastic volatility demand systems. In particular, we relax the homoscedasticity assumption and instead assume that the covariance matrix of the errors of demand systems is time-varying. Since most economic and financial time series are nonlinear, we achieve superior modeling using parametric nonlinear demand systems in which the unconditional variance is constant but the conditional variance, like the conditional mean, is also a random variable depending on current and past information. We also prove an important practical result of invariance of the maximum likelihood estimator with respect to the choice of equation eliminated from a singular demand system. An empirical application is provided, using the BEKK specification to model the conditional covariance matrix of the errors of the basic translog demand system.
A Low-Profile Wideband LTCC Integrated Circularly Polarized Helical Antenna Array for Millimeter-Wave Applications

A low-profile wideband low-temperature cofired ceramic integrated circularly polarized helical antenna array for millimeter-wave applications is presented. The major consideration of the antenna element design is to achieve good circular polarization and wide bandwidth when the helix has just about one turn which is beneficial for low profile. The turn is composed of 6  1/5-turn horizontal segments with straight-edge connections implemented by via holes. A 2  2 helical antenna array with a dimension of 25  15  1.316 (0.15λ0, is the wavelength at 35 GHz) mm is also designed. The simulated results show that the proposed helical antenna array has a wide impedance bandwidth from 26.5 to 40 GHz for |S11| < –13 dB and AR < 3 dB. The proposed antenna array was also measured and good agreement is achieved between the simulated and measured results.
Genomic Structure and Expression of the Sea Urchin Soluble Guanylyl Cyclase β Subunit Gene

Abstract We obtained the full-length cDNA and genomic DNA clones of HpGCS-β1 encoding the β subunit of soluble guanylyl cyclase (soluble GC), which is expressed in the testis and ovary of the sea urchin Hemicentrotus pulcherrimus. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction analysis demonstrated that the HpGCS-β1 transcript was detected in unfertilized eggs as well as in the testis and ovary. The open reading frame predicted a protein of 604 amino acids with a putative cyclase catalytic domain conserved in membrane GCs and adenylyl cyclases. 105His, 78Cys, and 122Cys, important amino acids for heme-binding in the β1 subunit of soluble GCs in vertebrates, were conserved in the corresponding positions of HpGCS-β1. The HpGCS-β1 gene consisted of 8 exons and had a span of 26 kbp. A comparison of genomic structure of the HpGCS-β1 gene with that of the soluble GC β1 subunit gene (OlGCS-β1) of the medaka fish indicated that exon 4 in the HpGCS-β1 gene corresponds to exons 4 to 9 in the OlGCS-β1 gene.
Heterogeneity of variance amongst swine herds for backfat.

An animal model and DFREML were used to estimate genetic and residual (co)variance components for backfat depth in different herds and for herds grouped by different levels of intraherd backfat variance. Estimates of genetic variance ranged from 1.39 to 9.78 and estimates of residual variance ranged from . 88 to 7.05. Additive genetic and residual variances were clearly heterogeneous across herds and SD groups. The genetic component of variance in the high group was more than four times greater than that in the low group. Heritability estimates for backfat ranged from . 35 to . 73 across herds. Heritability estimates between high, medium and low SD groups were not significantly different. The extent of heterogeneity was such that a potential influence on sire evaluation would be expected. Estimates of genetic correlations between SD groups indicate that sires would be ranked differently in different SD groups and that genetic by SD group interactions did exist.
The Beta-Gompertz Distribution

En este articulo, se introduce una version generalizada en cuatro parametros de la distribucion de Gompertz denominada como la distribucion Beta- Gompertz (BG). Esta incluye algunas distribuciones de duracion de vida bien conocidas como la Beta exponencial y distribuciones Gompertz generalizadas como casos especiales. Esta nueva distribucion es flexible y puede ser usada de manera efectiva en datos de sobrevida y problemas de confiabilidad. Su funcion de tasa de falla puede ser decreciente, creciente o en forma de banera dependiendo de sus parametros. Algunas propiedades matematicas de la distribucion como expresiones en forma cerrada para la densidad, funcion de distribucion, funcion de riesgo, momentos k-esimos, funcion generadora de momentos, entropia de Shannon y cuantiles son presentados. Se discute la estimacion maximo verosimil de los parametros desconocidos del nuevo modelo para la muestra completa y se obtiene una expresion para la matriz de informacion. Con el fin de mostrar la flexibilidad de esta distribucion, se presenta una aplicacion con datos reales. Al final, un estudio de simulacion es desarrollado.
Gompertz and Logistic Models to the Productive Traits of Sunn Hemp

Studies on growth models for productive character of sunn hemp are important to know the behavior of the culture. Therefore, the objective of this research was to adjust non-linear models, Gompertz and Logistic, in the description of productive traits of sunn hemp in two sowing periods. Two uniformity trials were performed. The evaluations began on October the 29 th 2014 and December the 16 th 2014, totaling 94 and 76 evaluation days for periods 1 and 2, respectively. After the emergence of the seeds of sunn hemp, for first period from 7 days after sowing, and from 2 to 13 days after sowing, on each day, they were collected randomly four plants. The traits: fresh matter leaf, stem, root, shoot, and total, and dry matter leaf, stem, root, shoot, and total. For both models the confidence interval was calculated of parameters a , b and c . The adjustment quality of the Gompertz and Logistic models was verified by the determination coefficient , the Akaike information criteria, residual standard deviation, mean absolute deviation, mean absolute percentage error and mean prediction error. The Gompertz model when compared between the sowing periods through the confidence interval of the parameters, for the productive traits, differs. The same result was found for the Logistic model. The growth models of Gompertz and Logistic presented good adjustment quality.
Intergranular Pressure Solution in Nacl: Grain-To-Grain Contact Experiments under the Optical Microscope

Intergranular Pressure Solution (IPS) is an important geologic lithification, compaction and deformation mechanism in a wide variety of crustal rocks. Experimental studies of IPS in quartz aggregates have not been very successful due to the low rate of IPS, and IPS experiments performed using wet halite as a rock analogue (Spiers and Schutjens, 1990; Hickman and Evans, 1991) have left uncertainty about the detailed IPS mechanism and grain contact structure/wetting in this material. The present study reports four contact dissolution experiments performed under the optical microscope to study the mechanism and kinetics of IPS at single halite/halite and halite/glass contacts loaded under brine (room temperature). Normal constant contact forces in the range 1. 0 to 2. 6 N were applied in the presence of NaCl-saturated brine, exerting stresses of 0. 8 to 7. 4 MPa. Time-dependent mass removal and convergence were observed at all contacts. In all cases, loading of the contact (or increasing the load on the contact) led to instantaneous formation of a rough contact morphology, composed of a crystallographically-controlled pattern of islands and channels with a length scale of several micrometers. This nonequilibrium microstructure evolved with time to an optically flat contact face while contact broadening and convergence continued. The smoothing/convergence process must therefore have involved diffusion of mass out of the contact, and expulsion of brine, through a connected brine phase within the contact. Whether a fine-scale rough structure persisted in contacts which evolved to optical flatness is not known, though post-test SEM (Scanning Electron Microscopy) observations suggest that it may have. If so, its amplitude was less than 500 nm. Measurements of dissolution rates enabled comparison with a model for IPS. The analysis suggests that solute diffusion through the contact boundary was probably rate-controlling, with the contact structure and effective diffusivity varying with contact force and on-going convergence. The results agree broadly with those of previous compaction creep experiments performed using wet halite powder. Discrepancies with other workers results for single-contact dissolution experiments can be explained in terms of differences in experimental configuration and competition between driving forces.
Tackling Blended Learning at the Department of English in Kosovska Mitrovica

The introduction of the blended learning approach at the University of Pristina in Kosovska Mitrovica was organized within the Tempus BLATT project (530266-TEMPUS-1-2012-XKTEMPUS-JPCR). The primary goals of going hybrid at the Department of English Language and Literature in Kosovska Mitrovica are to ensure the continuity of learning at a displaced university, as well as to facilitate student-centered learning. The aim of this paper is twofold. Primarily, it will describe the process of piloting a blended course at the Department and outline the supplemental model of blended learning. It will provide the step-by-step account of how the implementation was accomplished, giving emphasis on the learning platform, coupled with a discussion on the challenges and possible solutions. Secondly, the paper will present the results of the preand postcourse analysis.
Asthma and Mediterranean diet

Asthma is one of the most common chronic disease in childhood, imposing a huge burden on the patient, their family and society. There is evidence that its prevalence has increased over the last decades and is still increasing, despite there being some indications that the increase in prevalence may have plateaued in some countries in the last few years. It has been hypothesized that this increase is a consequence of changes in environmental and/or behavioral factors, namely the modification in dietary habits. A recent number of investigations agree that adherence to a Mediterranean dietary pattern can be associated with a decreased risk of current asthma symptoms. Although this evidence is promising, further research is needed.
Business failure prediction using statistical techniques: A review

Accurate business failure prediction models would be extremely valuable to many industry sectors, particularly in financial investment and lending. The potential value of such models has been recently emphasised by the extremely costly failure of high profile businesses in both Australia and overseas, such as HIH (Australia) and Enron (USA). Consequently, there has been a significant increase in interest in business failure prediction from both industry and academia. Statistical business failure prediction models attempt to predict the failure or success of a business. Discriminant and logit analyses are the most popular approaches, and there are also a large number of alternatives. In this paper, the various techniques used in previous studies are presented and reviewed, including two alternative techniques that have produced promising results, namely survival analysis and decision trees.
Using the Phase Space to Design Complexity - Design Methodology for Distributed Control of Architectural Robotic Elements

Architecture that is responsive, adaptive, or interactive can contain active architectural elements or robotic sensor-actuator systems. The consideration of architectural robotic elements that utilize distributed control and distributed communication allows for self-organization, emergence, and evolution on site in real-time. The potential complexity of behaviors in such architectural robotic systems requires design methodology able to encompass a range of possible outcomes, rather than a single solution. We present an approach of adopting an aspect of complexity science and applying it to the realm of computational design in architecture, specifically by considering the phase space and related concepts. We consider the scale and predictability of certain design characteristics, and originate the concept of a formation space extension to the phase space, for design to deal directly with materializations left by robot swarms or elements, rather than robots' internal states. We detail a case study examination of design methodology using the formation space concept for assessment and decision-making in the design of active architectural artifacts.
Secure Data Encryption Through a Combination of AES, RSA and HMAC

Secure file transfer based upon well-designed file encryption and authorization systems expend considerable effort to protect passwords and other credentials from being stolen. Transferring and storing passwords in plaintext form leaves them at risk of exposure to attackers, eavesdroppers and spyware. In order to avoid such exposure, powerful encryption/authentication systems use various mechanisms to minimize the possibility that unencrypted credentials will be exposed, as well as be sure that any authentication data that does get transmitted and stored will be of minimal use to an attacker. In this paper we proposed a method to protect data transferring by three hybrid encryption techniques: symmetric AES algorithm used to encrypt files, asymmetric RSA used to encrypt AES password and HMAC to encrypt symmetric password and/or data to ensure a secure transmitting between server-client or client-client from verifying in-between client and server and make it hard to attack by common attacked methods.
In vitro drug-herb interaction potential of African medicinal plant products used by Type II diabetics

In Africa, use of medicinal plants for the treatment of diabetes is very common. However, efficacy on co-administering of medicinal plants with therapeutic drugs hasn‟t been fully determined, especially for African medicinal plants. The current study focused on assessing the in vitro modulation effects of three popular African medicinal plants, namely: Aloe ferox, Sutherlandia frutescens and Prunus africana (including five commercial preparations containing these medicinal plants) on two of the most important anti-diabetic drug metabolising enzymes, Cytochrome P450 (CYP450) 2C9 and CYP3A4 and a key drug efflux transporter, P-glycoprotein (P-gp). Vivid ® microsome-based screening kits were used to assess inhibitory potency of plants preparations on CYP2C9 and CYP3A4 enzymes activities. The study showed that P. africana was a more potent inhibitor of CYP2C9 and CYP3A4 activity than the corresponding positive controls Ginkgo biloba and St. John‟s wort, which are known to cause clinically significant drug-herb interactions. S. frutescens leaf extract demonstrated potent to moderate inhibition on both the tested CYP activities, while its commercial products (Promune ® and Probetix ® ) possessed moderate to mild inhibitory effects on the activities of both CYPs. Potent inhibitory effect on CYP2C9 and CYP3A4 was seen with Aloe Ferox ® . Prosit ® and Aloes powder ® showed potent to moderate inhibition on CYP2C9 activity and moderate to mild inhibition on CYP3A4 activity. In addition to CYP450 activity, the present study also investigated the effects of the selected medicinal plant products on the activity of the main drug efflux protein, P-gp. A screening assay was specifically developed to assess the potential for herbal remedies to interact with P-gp mediated drug absorption. The assay is based on the principle of the reversal of drug resistance in modified Caco-2 cells specifically altered to express high
Competitive Abilities of Sparse Grass Species: Means of Persistence or Cause of Abundance

Sparse species have chronically small local population sizes, even though they occur in several habitats over a wide geographic range. Greenhouse de Wit replacement series with seven species of sparse and common perennial grasses of tallgrass prairie were performed with seedlings and tiller fragments for 5, 10, and 15, mo. As younger and older seedlings, sparse grasses overyielded and were advantaged by the interaction with common grasses. The common grasses underyielded and were disadvantaged in mixture with sparse grasses. As tillers, the interaction was less antagonistic, and both common and sparse grasses either overyielded or were unaffected by the interaction. Seedlings of sparse species were largest when planted in low proportion, surrounded by individuals of a common grass. Because the sparse species are not disadvantaged by interactions with their common neighbors, their competitive abilities are not implicated as a cause of their local rarity. Rather, the good competitive abilities of these spar.
Does Marijuana Decriminalization Make the Roads More Dangerous

Does Marijuana Decriminalization Make the Roads More Dangerous? Daehyeon Kim Department of Sociology, BYU Master of Science As the movement to decriminalize marijuana has gained more support throughout the United States, as of early 2017, 21 states have decriminalized the possession of a small amount of marijuana for personal recreational use, and more states are expected to decriminalize marijuana (GOVERNING 2017). Despite this strong move toward decriminalizing marijuana, however, the consequences of implementing such a policy are still very much unknown. One of the concerns regarding this movement to decriminalize marijuana is its potential impact on road safety (Schrader 2015; Roberts 2017; Halsey 2016). Although there are a few studies that have examined the association between marijuana use and availability and traffic fatalities, these studies are correlational in nature and show divergent outcomes (Anderson et al. 2011; Anderson and Ree 2014). Furthermore, these studies do not examine the impact of decriminalizing marijuana on road safety. In order to fill this gap, my research investigates the causal association between marijuana decriminalization and traffic fatalities by using the synthetic control method, pioneered by Abadie et al. (2010). This study estimates the causal effects of 2009 Massachusetts’s marijuana decriminalization on Massachusetts’ total traffic fatalities by comparing Massachusetts’s trends in total traffic fatalities and its synthetic counterpart. The results of this study show a temporary increase in the number of total traffic fatalities in Massachusetts compared to its synthetic counterpart between 2009 and 2012, suggesting marijuana decriminalization’s detrimental effect on road safety. Future studies should consider investigating the heterogeneous effects of marijuana decriminalization on traffic fatalities based on age groups, gender, and residential density and the causal mechanism between marijuana decriminalization and traffic fatalities.
Quadrupole and octupole collectivity and cluster structures in neon isotopes

The lowest positive- and negative-parity bands of Ne20 and neutron-rich even-even Ne isotopes are investigated using a theoretical framework based on energy density functionals. Starting from a self-consistent relativistic Hartree-Bogoliubov calculation of axially symmetric and reflection-asymmetric deformation energy surfaces, the collective symmetry-conserving states are built using projection techniques and the generator coordinate method. Overall a good agreement with the experimental excitation energies and transition rates is obtained. In particular, the model provides an accurate description of the excitation spectra and transition probabilities in Ne20. The contribution of cluster configurations to the low-energy states is discussed, as well as the transitional character of the ground state. The analysis is extended to Ne22 and the shape-coexisting isotope Ne24, and to the drip-line nuclei Ne32 and Ne34. The role of valence neutrons in the formation of molecular-type bonds between clusters is discussed.
A New Design of Three-Legged Robot of Mechanical and Control System

A new type of three-legged robot design scheme is proposed and the movement control of it is studied in this paper. Spatial crank rocker mechanism (RSSR) is used to will the motor rotation into a leg swinging in mechanical design. Advanced reduced instruction-set computer machines (ARM) chip, wireless communication module and magnetic encoder are used in controller design. Proportional and differential (PD) closed loop control arithmetic is used to realize the control of the robot. The robot realizes the movement of straight walk, curve walk, turning in situ, jumping and so on. It has a broad application prospect.