Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Arabic Sign Language Recognition using Faster R-CNN

Deafness does not restrict its negative effect on the person’s hearing, but rather on all aspect of their daily life. Moreover, hearing people aggravated the issue through their reluctance to learn sign language. This resulted in a constant need for human translators to assist deaf person which represents a real obstacle for their social life. Therefore, automatic sign language translation emerged as an urgent need for the community. The availability and the widespread use of mobile phones equipped with digital cameras promoted the design of image-based Arabic Sign Language (ArSL) recognition systems. In this work, we introduce a new ArSL recognition system that is able to localize and recognize the alphabet of the Arabic sign language using a Faster Region-based Convolutional Neural Network (R-CNN). Specifically, faster R-CNN is designed to extract and map the image features, and learn the position of the hand in a given image. Additionally, the proposed approach alleviates both challenges; the choice of the relevant features used to encode the sign visual descriptors, and the segmentation task intended to determine the hand region. For the implementation and the assessment of the proposed Faster R-CNN based sign recognition system, we exploited VGG-16 and ResNet-18 models, and we collected a real ArSL image dataset. The proposed approach yielded 93% accuracy and confirmed the robustness of the proposed model against drastic background variations in the captured scenes.
Calorimetric probe measurements for a high voltage pulsed substrate (PBII) in a HiPIMS process

The combination of high-power impulse magentron sputtering (HiPIMS) and plasma based ion implantation (PBII) gives a versatile system which allows successive and simultaneous coating, doping or cleaning of a substrate surface in a single process. The delay between HiPIMS and PBII pulse is a critical parameter for the synchronization of the pulses as it defines at what time during the HiPIMS period the high voltage is applied to the substrate. To investigate the effect of this parameter on the energy flux towards the PBII substrate, VI-probe and calorimetric probe measurements were performed illustrating the effect of the delay for different PBII pulse durations and PBII voltages. The calorimetric measurements were performed utilizing a grid setup which allowed us to derive conclusions even when using a detector that is not at the PBII voltage. A maximum of electrical power and energy flux was observed for delay times significantly longer than the duration of the HiPIMS pulse. The investigation of different PBII pulse durations and PBII voltages confirmed that these parameters affect the absolute values of the energy flux and electrical power but do not significantly affect the transport of the ions as the PBII potential is shielded by a sheath.
Italexit and the Impact of Immigrants from Italy on the Italian Labor Market

Considering the recent debates regarding Brexit and the potential negative effects of immigrants on Italian labor market, the main aim of this paper is to assess the impact of immigrants from Italy on the labor market of this country using econometric techniques. Based on these results, one answer regarding the potential exit of Italy from the EU (Italexit) because of the immigration issue is provided. According to a Johansen co-integration test, there was not any long-run relationship between the number of EU immigrants from Italy and the variation of unemployment rate in the period from 1990 to 2019. The estimations based on Bayesian ridge regressions indicated that the number of EU immigrants did not affect labor cost index in business economy, manufacturing or industry, construction and services in the period 2001–2019. The variation in employed immigrants from Italy in the period 2008–2019 depends on changes in risk of poverty or social exclusion, housing cost overburden rate, exports of goods and services, inflation and tax rate on low wage earners and adult participation in learning.
Benefit of Adjuvant Chemotherapy After Radical Cystectomy for Treatment of Urothelial Carcinoma of the Bladder in the Elderly –An International Multicenter Study

BACKGROUND: Radical cystectomy (RC) is the standard treatment for muscle invasive bladder cancer, but approximately half of all patients will ultimately succumb to disease progression despite apparent cure with extirpative surgery. Elderly patients are at especially high risk of advanced disease and may benefit from perioperative systemic therapy. OBJECTIVE: To assess the real-world benefit of adjuvant chemotherapy (AC) in patients ≥75 years old. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed patients who underwent RC for non-metastatic urothelial carcinoma of the bladder (UCB) from 12 participating international medical institutions. Kaplan-Meier survival curves and Cox regression models were used to assess the association between age groups, administration of AC and oncological outcome parameters such as recurrence-free survival (RFS), cancer-specific survival (CSS) and overall survival (OS). RESULTS: 4,335 patients were included in the analyses, of which 820 (18.9%) were ≥75 years old. These elderly patients had a higher rate of adverse pathologic features. In an univariable subgroup analysis in patients ≥75 years with lymph node metastasis, 5-year OS was significantly higher in patients who had received AC (41% vs. 30.9%, p = 0.02). In a multivariable Cox model that was adjusted for several established outcome predictors, there was a significant favorable association between the administration of AC in elderly patients and OS, but no RFS or CSS. CONCLUSION: In this large observational study, the administration of AC was associated with improved OS, but not RFS or CSS, in elderly patients treated with RC for UCB. This is of clinical importance, as elderly patients are more likely to have adverse pathologic features and experience worse survival outcomes. Treatment of UCB should include both a multidisciplinary approach and a geriatric evaluation to identify patients who are most likely to tolerate and benefit from AC.
The Effect of Pain and Swelling Related to Third Molars on Oral Health-Related Quality of Life

Objective: To evaluate the effect of pain and swelling related to third molars on patients' quality of life prior to third molar surgery. Material and Methods: The effects on quality of life with reference to oral health of 246 healthy patients seeking treatment of third molars were analyzed using the 14-item Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP) questionnaire before surgery. The patients' sociodemographic characteristics, medical and dental history, reasons for third molar removal were recorded. Adverse effects of pain and swelling on oral health-related quality of life were recorded. Results: The mean age of the patients included in the study was 23.15 years, with maximum male patients and the mean OHIP-14 score of 8.01 ± 7.51. About 36.97% of patients reported that their chief complaint was pain/swelling due to third molar infection, and 27.9% of subjects reported one or more of the 14 OHIP items. The odds of reporting for age with ≥25 years was approximately 2 times greater than age with ≤25 years (OR=1.56, 95% CI: 1.01-2.57) and tooth loss due to traumatic history (OR=3.14, 95% CI: 2.12-6.54). Conclusion: Adverse influences on quality of life were seen in a significant number of patients seeking third molar removal. The probabilities increased by 3-fold for patients who had experienced pain or swelling than asymptomatic individuals.
Extending Winding Function Theory to Incorporate Secondary Effects in the Design of Induction Machines and Drives

High-performance electric drive applications necessitate a high fidelity model to predict the terminal characteristics of machines in the design stage to fulfill a system-level evaluation together with the converters. This article interprets winding function theory (WFT) from the field perspective and incorporates secondary effects, such as slotting and iron nonlinearity into it to accurately predict the main flux linkage in induction machines. The method is centered on resolving the magnetic scalar potential on the two sides of the air gap and computes the flux linkage via a winding function. Its performance is benchmarked against 2-D finite-element analysis (FEA) and the state-of-the-art magnetic equivalent circuit (MEC) method. Flux linkage and torque results indicate that the relative error is within 3.1% even in a highly saturated region when comparing to FEA, while MEC using the same circuit network may present a 20% error.
Suicidio: el impacto del Covid-19 en la salud mental

Suicide is a serious public health problem in Mexico and the world. The World Health Organization indicates that each year approximately 800 thousand people die by this means. Of multifactorial origin, the risk factors for suicide include biological, psychological, social and cultural elements, with an emphasis on mental disorders and life crises. It is precisely in these two areas that Covid-19 pandemic has had an impact on the general population, on those who have tested positive for this virus and on health personnel. Despite the fact that it is still too early to safely recognize the deep footprint of the pandemic in different areas, and in particular, in self-caused death, it is undeniable that the health crisis has revealed the urgent need to reflect on solidarity, the principle of sociability, subsidiarity and the vulnerability of the human being.
Supermacroporous hydrophobic affinity sorbents for penicillin acylase purification

ABSTRACT Penicillin acylase (PA, EC 3.5.1.11) is used as a raw material in the production of semi-synthetic penicillins. Although there are many methods for PA purification, affinity chromatography is advantageous as it provides efficient one step purification. In this study, poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) based cryogel column containing hydrophobic N-methacryloyl-L-tryptophan (MATrp) functional monomer as a ligand was prepared. Interaction of MATrp with amino acids in PA structure is the basis of hydrophobic interaction chromatography in this study. PHEMA and PHEMATrp cryogel columns were characterized by surface area measurements, infrared spectroscopy, swelling tests, elemental analysis and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Initial PA concentration, pH, effect of temperature, amount of ligand, flow rate, ionic strength and time on PA adsorption on PHEMATrp cryogel were investigated. Optimum pH was determined as 5.0 for PA adsorption and maximum adsorption capacity was obtained as 6.40 mg/g. It was observed that adsorption capacity increased with the increasing of temperature. Also, PA adsorption increased up to 0.25 M salt concentration and decreased in higher salt concentrations. Data obtained in this affinity system suggests that hydrophobic interactions are dominant. In the last stage of the study, PA was purified from Penicillium chrysogenum with 76.3% yield and 332.3 purification factor.
Recurrence risk factors in elderly patients with stage II colorectal cancer

Background: We investigated the risk factors for recurrence in high risk stage II colorectal cancer patients over 75 years old. Methods: This study included 79 patients who underwent primary colorectal surgery at Minami Kyousai Hospital from January 2015 to June 2019. The inclusion criteria were as follows: (1) age over 75 years old, (2) histologically confirmed stage II colorectal adenocarcinoma after curative surgery, and (3) no other active malignancy. A Cox proportional hazards model was used to identify the risk factors for recurrence. Results: The recurrence free survival rates at 1, 2, and 3 years after surgery were 92.6%, 78.8%, and 61.9%. The risk factors for recurrence were tumor location and lymph-node dissection. Conclusion: This study revealed that left-sided colorectal cancer and under D2 dissection are risk factors for recurrence of stage II colorectal cancer in the elderly. Patients with these risk factors should be considered for adjuvant chemotherapy.
Anti-Bacterial Coating of Chrysanthemum Extract on Bamboo Fabric for Healthcare Applications

Healthcare is a serious business which is not only influenced by practicing medical professionals. Good hygiene is an aid to health, comfort and social interactions. With the increasing threat from new strains of bacteria and viruses growing problems. Textiles being vulnerable to microorganisms attack would cause many cross infections and allergic reactions. The number of bio-functional textiles with an antimicrobial activity has increased considerably over the last few years. The awareness of health and hygiene for consumers has increased the demand for antimicrobial textiles. Antimicrobial finish on fabrics can minimize the transfer of microorganisms onto the wearer by creating a physical barrier. The optimized conditions of chrysanthemum herbal extracts can be applied on the bamboo fabric by padding method with cross linking agent pomegranate. The antibacterial activity is assessed in herbal treated and untreated samples by the standard AATCC 147 qualitative and AATCC 100 quantitative antimicrobial tests against both bacteria . The results showed that the maximum zone of inhibition is found in 2 hr herbal treated fabric with the mordant pomegranate in the material liquor ratio of 1:20 against staphylococcus and E. coli bacteria. Good antimicrobial property is achieved in the selected herb against staphylococcus (+ve gram) bacteria and E. coli (-ve gram) bacteria and equal zone of inhibition is found against antibiotic.The application of herbal extract on fabrics lasts up to 11 washes in both pad treated fabrics. The present study is an effective method of controlling the spreading of disease through the medicated textiles.
Jacobian Consistency of a Smoothing Function for the Weighted Second-Order Cone Complementarity Problem

In this paper, a weighted second-order cone (SOC) complementarity function and its smoothing function are presented. Then, we derive the computable formula for the Jacobian of the smoothing function and show its Jacobian consistency. Also, we estimate the distance between the subgradient of the weighted SOC complementarity function and the gradient of its smoothing function. These results will be critical to achieve the rapid convergence of smoothing methods for weighted SOC complementarity problems.
Institutional Conditions for Strengthening the Position of Organic Farming as a Component of Sustainable Development

In recent years, the development of organic farming has slowed down, especially in the European Union. This is a factor of importance for sustainable development prospects of the agricultural sector. Although the European Union places more and more emphasis on environmental goals set under the Common Agricultural Policy, two-thirds of the agricultural budget in the 2014-2020 financial perspective are allocated to support conventional farming. In 2014-2018, some member countries witnessed stagnation or decline in the area of organic farmland. This means that in the context of market imperfections – and in the absence of valuation of public goods – microeconomic costs incurred by organic farmers continue to exceed the benefits they reap. The level of support must be high enough to stimulate the development of organic farming in the long run. Therefore, it is recommended that the future support mechanism provide financial encouragement for organic farming, revise the principles for granting payments, tighten the system, and minimize the amount of payments decoupled from production volumes.
Combined intravitreal ranibizumab and posterior subtenon triamcinolone acetonide injections for patients with diabetic macular edema refractory to intravitreal ranibizumab monotherapy

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to compare the efficacy of intravitreal ranibizumab (IVR) alone and concurrent IVR with posterior subtenon triamcinolone acetonide (PSTA) injection for patients with diabetic macular edema (DME) refractory to IVR monotherapy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We enrolled 43 eyes of 43 patients with DME who received at least three times of IVR, which resulted in poor anatomical responses, with central foveal thickness (CFT) reduction <10% and postinjection CFT >300 μm. All the eyes received initial 3 monthly then pro re nata (PRN) IVR 0.5-mg injections. Twenty eyes continued PRN injections and 23 eyes received combined IVR 0.5 mg and PSTA 40 mg with at least 1-year follow-up. Best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and CFT were recorded from 1-month to 1-year follow-up. RESULTS: Following switch to combined therapy, the mean BCVA significantly improved from 0.61 ± 0.32 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution (logMAR) to 0.45±0.39 logMAR at 6 month (P = 0.003), 0.43±0.35 logMAR at 9 months (P < 0.001), and 0.48±0.45 logMAR at 1 year (P = 0.03). In eyes with IVR alone, no significant VA improvement was noted throughout the year. Significantly better BCVA was noted in the combined group at 6-month, 9-month, and 1-year follow-up compared to IVR-alone group. The timing of combined therapy showed a significant association with 1-year BCVA (t = 3.25, P = 0.018). CONCLUSION: Concurrent IVR and PSTA resulted in significantly better visual outcomes in 1-year follow-up for those refractory to preceding ranibizumab monotherapy for DME. Early addition of PSTA predicted a better visual outcome.
Fractional-Order Nonsingular Terminal Sliding Mode Tension Control for the Deployment of Space Tethered Satellite

In this article, a novel fractional-order nonsingular terminal sliding mode (FONTSM) control scheme is developed, which guarantees the desired deployment performance of space tethered satellite (STS) system. The presented control scheme is to stabilize the underactuated deployment mission with only tension regulation. Based on the underactuated model, a practicable integer-order nonsingular terminal sliding mode (IONTSM) controller is designed to realize the deployment of the STS system, with the finite-time stability. Then, to improve the deployment performance, the fractional-order calculus is introduced to raise the FONTSM controller, whose Mittag-Leffler-based uniform ultimate boundedness is proved to ensure the finite-time convergence and steady-state performance. In the FONTSM controller, a fractional-order disturbance observer and a fractional-order adaptive compensation law are proposed, to eliminate the adverse impacts of external disturbances and input saturation, respectively. Moreover, compared to the reported fractional-order sliding mode control strategy of the STS system, a better deployment performance can be obtained by the IONTSM and FONTSM controllers in this work. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed controllers is verified by groups of deployment simulations of the STS system.
Scanning electron microscopy observations of pollen morphology in common vetch (Vicia sativa) subspecies

Abstract Common vetch (Vicia sativa) is an important forage and green manure crop that is widely cultivated around the world. However, the large number of subspecies and accessions of common vetch has made taxonomic research on this species difficult. Pollen morphology data can provide important evidence in the study of plant phylogeny. Therefore, in this research, light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy were used to observe seven morphological traits of pollens from 22 common vetch accessions, and residual maximum likelihood and pattern analysis was conducted. The results showed that the pollen grains of the 22 accessions were all monad pollen and the polar view revealed three-lobed circular and triangular shapes, while the equatorial view mainly revealed an oblate shape; only one accession showed an oblate spherical shape. All accessions were 3-zonocolporate and the colpus length extended close to the poles. The polar axis length was (19.39 ± 0.97)–(42.12 ± 0.76) μm and the equatorial axis length was (35.97 ± 1.27)–(45.25 ± 0.81) μm. We found that qualitative traits of pollen shape, aperture polar view and ornamentation were highly stable. Among them, polar axis length, equatorial axis length and colpus length and width had significant differences among the accessions. The ratios of the equatorial and polar axes had significant differences among the subspecies. This trait information could be used for the classification and identification of common vetch accessions and subspecies.
Effects of Music Therapy on Cognitive function and Agitation, Anxiety and Depression in Dementia Elderly: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Objectives: This study aimed to identify the effects of music therapy on cognitive function, agitation, anxiety and depression in the elderly with dementia. Method: A comprehensive literature search was performed on PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, Web of Science, Google scholar and PsycINFO, for the period 2010 to 2019. In the meta-analysis, the standardized mean difference (Hedges' g) and 95% confidence interval were calculated as summary measure, and the random effect model and inverse variance method were applied using the RevMan 5.4 program. A total of 13 studies were included; all were determined to be acceptable, based on the Cochrane collaboration's tool for assessing risk of bias. Results: The effect size (Hedges' g) was 0.31 (95% CI: -0.02, 0.65) for cognition and -0.03 (95% CI: -0.17, 0.11) for agitation behavior as the primary outcomes, and 0.61 (95% CI: -1.17, -0.05) for anxiety and -0.44(95% CI: -0.88, 0.00) for depression as the secondary outcomes. Subgroup analysis by type of music intervention revealed that combined music therapy has a significantly increasing beneficial effect on cognition of dementia patients (g=0.45[95% CI: 0.03, 0.87]). Conclusion: Music therapy was determined to exert beneficial effects in reducing anxiety and depression, and combined music therapy demonstrated improved cognitive functions in elderly patients with dementia.