Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Operating room scheduling and adaptive control using a priority first fit decreasing heuristic

Operating room (OR) scheduling is a critical factor affecting overall hospital performance. We examine OR scheduling from two perspectives. In the first perspective we propose a scheme for OR block scheduling that uses a heuristic developed for a three-machine flow shop where the three phases of the peri-operative process (pre-op, OR, and post-op) correspond to the three-machine flow shop. This approach facilitates a hospital-as-a-system perspective. The second perspective used to examine OR scheduling is adaptive control of the OR slate. Recognizing that there are many factors affecting OR throughput performance, especially preemptions from emergent and urgent cases, adaptive control of the OR slate is necessary. To realistically improve performance, adaptive control of the OR slate should incorporate constraints on how surgeries can be rescheduled. We examine the benefits from adaptive control of the OR slate that uses a priority first fit decreasing (PFFD) heuristic while incorporating constraints on OR slate rescheduling. The PFFD heuristic is a priority-driven variation of the classic FFD heuristic used in bin packing problems. We develop a scheme for OR block scheduling and our PFFD heuristic. We then demonstrate our PFFD heuristic in a simulation-based case study, and subsequently run a simulation using 1000 instances to test the performance of our PFFD heuristic in OR slate scheduling and OR slate adaptive control showing improvements in performance relative to the frequently used first-come-first-served rule.
Investment in Design and Firm Performance: The Mediating Role of Design Management*

Design management is an increasingly important concept, research into which is remarkably scarce. Although the literature suggests that design management has an effect on design effectiveness, there is no empirical support for the impact of design management on firm performance. Furthermore, few studies have quantified the contribution that design makes to company performance. The aim of this paper is to analyze the effect of design investment on company performance and how this relationship is mediated by design management skills. Structural equation modeling was used to test the research hypotheses on a data set from the Italian and Spanish ceramic tile industry. Results suggest, first, that design management enhances firm performance. Second, this research also provides empirical evidence that investing in design is positively related to design management. Third, design management plays a significant role in determining the effects of design investment on firm performance. Companies that manage design effectively and efficiently attain better performance than those that do not. Therefore, good design does not emerge by chance or by simply investing in design but rather as the result of a managed process. Additionally, a methodological contribution of the present study lies in the empirical validation of a scale to assess design management skills. Finally, some suggestions are put forward for future lines of research that would complement this study and would go beyond some of its limitations.
Studying the Impact of Deferred Debts on Bank Performance by Using Data Envelopment Analysis

Performance evaluation has always been a challenging issue in management.The evaluation of performance especially during two past decades has attracted much attention because of its importance. Today, organizations try to measure the performance comparing with other competitors to be able to reach to a level of performance keeping them in market. Banks and financial institutions are considered as the most important economic sectors performing the trades and commercial transactions by guiding and conducting the payments and getting the money to spread the markets and develop economic growth and prosperity. Due to the importance of the task, the increase of productivity is a matter of high necessity. Data envelopment analysis is a nonparametric linear programming technique for evaluating the performance of Decision Making Units (DMU) by multiple inputs and multiple outputs. In this paper, we focus on the deferred debts and impact of it’s on bank performance. So, data envelopment analysis and statistical test are to present relation between deferred debts and efficiency used. The present research is to evaluate the performance of 40 bank branches in Iran. In order to achieve the goal, the performance of bank branches will be assessed by using Data Envelopment Analysis and GAMS software during 2013-2014 and based on the researches conducted.
Level of micronutrient supplements uptake among people living with HIV/AIDS in Kayole, Nairobi County, Kenya

Micronutrients reduce morbidity and slow the rate of disease progression and thus, micronutrient supplementation in HIV is recommended. This study established the level of uptake of micronutrient supplements among people living with HIV in Kayole, Nairobi County. A cross-sectional analytical design was adopted on a comprehensive sample of 153 adults living with HIV, enrolled at Comprehensive Care Centre in Kayole Health Centre. Data is described by use of percentages while relationships are assessed using chi-square. Qualitative data from focus group discussions and key informants was transcribed and analyzed to complement the quantitative findings. Results showed that only 13.7% of the respondents were on micronutrients at the time of the study. The micronutrient supplements commonly supplemented were vitamin and mineral mix (50.3%), zinc (34%), vitamin B6 (24.2%), vitamin A (24.2%), folate (12.4%), and iron (15%). The main reason for supplementation was; those on Antiretroviral Therapy (66.7%), due to the presence of opportunistic infections (40.5%), those who had no appetite (28.1%), underweight cases (21.6%) and those on tuberculosis treatment (17.0%). The main reason for low uptake was due to stock outs at treatment centre (24.8%), the high cost of supplements (13.7%) and side effects after intake (5.9%). Adults living with HIV are aware of the importance of micronutrients and had taken micronutrient supplements at one point during the treatment period. However, uptake at the time of the study was low. This was due to lack of guidelines for supplementation, high cost of supplements, stock-outs in health facilities and side effects. This study recommends proper education and sensitization on supplementation. Standard guidelines and policies for micronutrient supplementation should be developed. A pull system should be adapted in the supply of supplements. Key words: Micronutrients, supplementation, people living with HIV, Kenya, adults.
Discovering Frequent Patterns with New Mining Procedure

Efficient algorithm to discover frequent pattern are crucial in data mining research. Finding frequent itemsets is computationally the most expensive step in association rule discovery . To address these issues we discuss popular techniques for finding frequent itemsets in efficient way. In this paper we provide the survey list of existing frequent itemsets mining techniques and proposing new procedure which having some advantages by comparing with the other algorithms. Keywords— Association rules, data mining, frequent itemsets ,FPM, minimum support. I. INTRODUCTION
A modular framework for performance-based facial animation

In recent decades, interest in capturing human face movements and identifying expressions for the purpose of generating realistic facial animations has increased in both the scientific community and the entertainment industry. We present a modular framework for testing algorithms used in performance-based facial animation. The framework includes the modules used in pipelines found in the literature as a module for creating datasets of blendshapes which are, facial models, where the vectors represent individual facial expressions, an algorithm processing module for identification of weights and, finally, a redirection module that creates a virtual face based on blendshapes. The framework uses a RGB-D camera, the RealSense F200 camera from Intel.
The Tarantula Massive Binary Monitoring: I. Observational campaign and OB-type spectroscopic binaries

ontext. Massive binaries play a crucial role in the Universe. Knowing the distributions of their orbital parameters is important for a wide range of topics from stellar feedback to binary evolution channels and from the distribution of supernova types to gravitational wave progenitors, yet no direct measurements exist outside the Milky Way. Aims. The Tarantula Massive Binary Monitoring project was designed to help fill this gap by obtaining multi-epoch radial velocity (RV) monitoring of 102 massive binaries in the 30 Doradus region. Methods. In this paper we analyze 32 FLAMES/GIRAFFE observations of 93 O- and 7 B-type binaries. We performed a Fourier analysis and obtained orbital solutions for 82 systems: 51 single-lined (SB1) and 31 double-lined (SB2) spectroscopic binaries. Results. Overall, the binary fraction and orbital properties across the 30 Doradus region are found to be similar to existing Galactic samples. This indicates that within these domains environmental effects are of second order in shaping the properties of massive binary systems. A small difference is found in the distribution of orbital periods, which is slightly flatter (in log space) in 30 Doradus than in the Galaxy, although this may be compatible within error estimates and differences in the fitting methodology. Also, orbital periods in 30 Doradus can be as short as 1.1 d, somewhat shorter than seen in Galactic samples. Equal mass binaries (q> 0.95) in 30 Doradus are all found outside NGC 2070, the central association that surrounds R136a, the very young and massive cluster at 30 Doradus’s core. Most of the differences, albeit small, are compatible with expectations from binary evolution. One outstanding exception, however, is the fact that earlier spectral types (O2–O7) tend to have shorter orbital periods than later spectral types (O9.2–O9.7). Conclusions. Our results point to a relative universality of the incidence rate of massive binaries and their orbital properties in the metallicity range from solar (Z⊙) to about half solar. This provides the first direct constraints on massive binary properties in massive star-forming galaxies at the Universe’s peak of star formation at redshifts z ~ 1 to 2 which are estimated to have Z ~ 0.5 Z⊙.
COLLISION FREE PATH PLANNING OF AN OBJECT USING MULTIPLE ROBOT MANIPULATORS

This thesis presents two algorithms for the path planning of multiple manipulator systems attempting to transform a single object without the need for a closed form inverse kinematic solution for a specific manipulator. The first algorithm is a dual quaternion Jacobian based numerical inverse kinematic method. The Jacobian is formulated to transform the change in joint space of the manipulator to the change in dual quaternion transformation space of the manipulator’s end effector. Joint space solutions are found that satisfy both the position and orientation of the end effector. The second algorithm is an adaptation of the sampling-based rapidly-exploring dense tree algorithm. The algorithm is adjusted to handle multiple manipulators cooperatively transforming a single object while avoiding environment collisions and invalid joint spaces. The tree generation algorithm forms extensions for the tree by extending the manipulators toward dual quaternion transformations of the object in the environment using the aforementioned numerical inverse kinematics algorithm. This avoids having to find random joint configurations of each manipulator that satisfy the closed link constraints caused by the grasps of each manipulator on the object. The algorithm is able to develop a path from an initial transformation to a goal transformation to the object using multiple robot manipulators. The algorithms presented are tested under a pair of simulation environments while varying the algorithm parameters as well as environment components such as the location of the manipulators as well as the presence of obstacles. Two seven degree of freedom Schunk manipulators were used for the experiments of this thesis.
Megathrust and accretionary wedge properties and behaviour in the Makran subduction zone

This work forms part of the NERC- and ESRC-funded project ‘Earthquakes without Frontiers’ and was partially supported by the NERC large grant ‘Looking inside the Continents from Space’. CP is funded by an NERC studentship. The facilities of IRIS Data Services, and specifically the IRIS Data Management Center, were used for access to waveforms, related metadata, and/or derived products used in this study. IRIS Data Services are funded through the Seismological Facilities for the Advancement of Geoscience and EarthScope (SAGE) Proposal of the National Science Foundation under Cooperative Agreement EAR-1261681.
مدلسازی تعامل تومور و سیستم ایمنی در بررسی اثر ایمونوتراپی IL-2 و شیمی درمانی با تأثیر مهاری Treg و IL-10

هدیکچ : یکشزپ ملع رد زونه وموت یعطق نامرد گرزب شلاچ نآ دشر لرتنک ای و ر ی . تسا یکینیلک تاشیامزآ فلاخرب ، يزاسلدم . دنشاب یم روموت ياه لولس اب هزرابم يارب توافتم ینامرد ياه شور زیلانآ هب رداق زیچان رایسب هنیزه و تقو اب یکیژولویب ياه ررب رد ینمیا متسیس و یناطرس ياه لولس لماعت يزاسلدم ، قیقحت نیا زا فده ینامرد یمیش و یپارتونومیا ینامرد ياه شور یس هطوبرم یکیژولویب متسیس اب لدم رتشیب يراگزاس يارب هک تسا ، زا معا ینمیا ياه لولس دشر رد يراهم ياه نیکولرتنیا Treg و
Interacting effects of wave exposure, tidal height and substratum on spatial variation in densities of mussel Perna perna plantigrades

A fine time-scale study was undertaken on the effects of wave exposure, tidal height and substratum type on mussel recruit densities on the south coast of South Africa. Prior to sampling, an exposed and a sheltered shore were identified at each of 2 sites (Diaz Cross and High Rocks) 7 km apart. Each shore was divided into 3 shore levels (termed zones) within which 3 substrata (adult mus- sels, coralline and non-coralline macroalgae) were sampled. Destructive sampling of early (<1 mm) and late (1 to 5 mm) plantigrades was performed daily over 30 d during a period of comparatively high recruitment. Recruitment was synchronised among substrata within zones, but not among zones or between sites. This suggests that larvae will settle on all substrata within a zone, but will prefer some substrata over others. They will not, however, search among zones for favoured substrata. Den- sities of early (but not late) plantigrades were consistently greater at Diaz Cross than High Rocks, indicating important differences in post-settlement mortality between sites. At both sites, densities of both recruit classes were greater on the low and mid shore than on the high shore. Generally (18 out of 20 comparisons), plantigrade densities within each zone were greater on algae than on adult mus- sels. Approximately 45% of all recruits collected were found on the foliose coralline alga Corallina, 37% on adult mussels and 18% on the rhodophyte Gelidium pristoides. Without secondary relocation from macroalgae to adult mussel beds, juveniles recruiting onto algae are likely to be lost. On low shore algae, densities of both early and late plantigrades were greater for exposed shores. Densities of plantigrades on the mussel bed and on algae on the mid and high shore were not correlated with exposure. Thus, site, substratum and zone all had significant and interacting effects on the density of recruits on both exposed and sheltered shores. The effect of wave exposure on recruitment, at least on the low shore, suggests that spatial subsidies not only in the form of food supply, but also in the form of larval transport, have a role in structuring mussel populations.
Vibration characteristics of MR cantilever sandwich beams: experimental study

The concept of vibration controllability with smart fluids within flexible structures has been of significant interest in the past two decades. Although much research has been done on structures with embedded electrorheological (ER) fluids, there has been little investigation of magnetorheological (MR) fluid adaptive structures. In particular, a body of research on the experimental work of cantilever MR beams is still lacking. This experimental study investigates the controllability of vibration characteristics of magnetorheological cantilever sandwich beams. These adaptive structures are produced by embedding an MR fluid core between two elastic layers. The structural behaviour of the MR beams can be varied by applying an external magnetic field to activate the MR fluid. The stiffness and damping structural characteristics are controlled, demonstrating vibration suppression capabilities of MR fluids as structural elements. MR beams were fabricated with two different materials for comparison purposes. Diverse excitation methods were considered as well as a range of magnetic field intensities and configurations. Moreover, the cantilever MR beams were tested in horizontal and vertical configurations. The effects of partial and full activation of the MR beams were outlined based on the results obtained. The controllability of the beam’s vibration response was observed in the form of variations in vibration amplitudes and shifts in magnitudes of the resonant natural frequency.
Oil and the asymmetric adjustment of UK output: a Markov-switching approach

This paper examines the role played by oil in influencing the growth in UK GDP. Our particular interest is the possibility that asymmetries might exist in such a relationship. Using Hamilton’s regime-switching estimation, we consider whether oil influences both the deepness and duration of the business cycle. We find that asymmetries arise insofar as positive oil price shocks are most likely to curtail the duration of the expansionary phase of the business cycle. This result is in contrast to existing studies of the oil price-macroeconomy relationship that have largely concerned the US.
A hands-on education project: antenna design for inter-CubeSat communications

CubeSat platforms have become a de facto standard for universities willing to initiate space-technology activities with students. These small satellite platforms ease the implementation of hands-on education projects and opening the apertures of new research areas. Moreover, due to the limited volume (a 10 cm cube) and power (1 W), the application of imaginative solutions is mandatory. This leads to new innovation processes in the course of CubeSat projects. In this paper, we present a hands-on education project the aim of which is the specification, design, building and measurement of an antenna for communication between nanosatellites and, in particular, CubeSats. The project lies within the framework of ETSIT-UPM innovative education activities in the area of space technology, where students play a leading role in real engineering projects.
Liberalizing Energy Price and Abatement Cost of Emissions: Evidence from Iranian Agro-Environment

Iran is one of the most energy-rich countries subsidizing energy carriers, especially in the agricultural sector, to the extent that the resulting growth is at the expense of the environment. This study tries to investigate the potential impacts of energy price reform on the agro-environment, based on the Marginal Abatement Costs (MACs) of emissions. Firstly, the energy demand function of the agricultural sector and the probable reaction of inputs and outputs to the reform were estimated. Then, using an Input Distance Function (IDF), the country and provincial-wide MAC were simulated through counterfactual reform scenarios. The results indicated that energy price reform would increase the MAC of emissions and socio-environmental benefits. However, the reform adversely affected the income of farmers. Also, the results provided detailed information both at a nationwide and provincial scale. Finally, it was recommended to implement complementary policies alongside reforms to compensate for the reduction in farmers’ income.
Third-order nonlinear optical response and photoluminescence characterization of tellurite glasses with different alkali metal oxides as network modifiers

Studies of the third-order nonlinear optical properties in TeO2-MO-R2O glasses with three different alkali metal oxides R2O (R = Li, Na, K) as network modifiers and two network intermediates MO (M = Zn, Mg) are reported. The influence of such modifiers and intermediates on the nonlinear optical properties of these glasses was investigated using the standard Z-scan and the thermally managed Z-scan techniques under femtosecond pulse excitation at 800 nm. For different modifiers and intermediates, the nonlinear refraction indices n2 of these glasses varied in the range 1.31–2.81 (×10–15 cm2/W). It was found that n2 increases as the ionic radius of both network modifiers and intermediates decreases. Furthermore, the measurements show that the contribution from thermo-optical effects to the nonlinear refraction index is negligible for all of the studied glass compositions. In addition, the effect of modifiers and intermediates in the formation of localized states in the vicinity of the optical bandgap was also.
Carbon Nanotubes and Related Structures

Carbon nanotubes have attracted the fancy of many scientists world wide. The small dimensions,strength, and the remarkable physical properties of these structures make them a unique material with a whole range of promising applications. In this review, the structural aspects, the advantages and disadvantages of different for their procedures synthesis, the qualitative and quantitative estimation of carbon nanotubes by different analytical techniques, the present status on their applications as well as the current challenges faced in the application field, national, in particular DRDO, DMSRDE status, and interest in this field, have been discussed. Defence Science Journal, 2008, 58(4), pp.437 -450 , DOI:http://dx.doi. org/10.14429/dsj.58. 1666
Genotype analysis and studies of pyrethroid resistance of the oilseed rape (Brassica napus) insect pest - pollen beetle (Meligethes aeneus)

Oilseed Brassicas are vulnerable to attack from many insects and pathogens, calling for an extensive use of pesticides to secure crop yields; this can cause increased resistance in pests. During recent years, one of the main oilseed insect pests—the pollen beetle (Meligethes aeneus), resistant to pyrethroid insecticides—has emerged in southern Sweden. This, because of its frequency and geographic range, provides an excellent source of material for analysis of genetic variation among pollen beetle populations, for study of insecticide resistance and for testing new sources of plant protection. For genotyping pollen beetles, we modified the amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) technique (chosen because it does not depend on prior sequence information when no genome information is available for pollen beetles), and applied it to 133 Swedish populations (susceptible and resistant), collected in different years, and to 14 European populations. AMOVA showed high levels of genetic variation within populations and gene flow among populations, and no evidence of expected regional and resistance-susceptibility to insecticide diversification (clear diversification by time and generations instead) for Swedish populations. European populations showed a clear pattern of regional diversification and a low level of gene flow. To identify possible point mutations associated with pollen beetles resistance to pyrethroids, the primary target sites for pyrethroids—voltage-sensitive sodium channels (VSSC) and metabolic resistance sites—Cytochrome P450, were studied using RT-PCR in resistant and susceptible insects. Two CYP450 partial cDNAs and four cDNA fragments composing VSSC domains I and II were amplified (using primers designed for homologue sequences) and sequenced showing point mutations, which can confer pyrethroid resistance.