Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Study of the Tensile Damage of 321 Stainless Steel for Solar Thermal Power Generation by Acoustic Emission

In this paper, the acoustic emission technique was used to study the signal during the tensile damage of 321 stainless steel for solar thermal power generation. It was found that the peak frequency can effectively distinguish different types of signals during the tensile test. The interference signals generated during the tensile test are effectively resolved by combining the amplitude-peak frequency distribution map and the energy-peak frequency distribution map. The amplitude-time map of the acoustic emission signal is successfully divided into three stages by using peak frequency parameter.
O VERCOMING E RRORS IN P ROCESSING N ONLINEAR M EASUREMENTS : A N EW E XTENSION FOR THE K ALMAN F ILTER

- The Predictor-Corrector Unscented Kalman filter is designed to compute the measurement update for linear or nonlinear measurements. It is backward-compatible with other Kalman filter formulations (e.g., EKF or UKF) in a sense that the filter state is described by the mean and covariance only. At a small additional cost in computational load, this filter delivers a better (sometimes, much better) accuracy than alternatives.
Onabotulinumtoxin-A Injections for the Treatment of Neurogenic Detrusor Overactivity

Introduction and Objectives. The neurogenic detrusor overactivity (NDO) represents the pathology in which the bladder detrusor overactivity can be caused by a series of neurological conditions. The burden of NDO is not all neglectable, impairing the patients’ quality of life. Currently there is no optimal medical therapy to relieve all the neuro-urological symptoms available. even if antimuscarinic agents have been used for many years with good clinical and urodynamic response, there is still limited data for tailoring the perfect antimuscarinic treatment for individual patients with NDO. High doses or combination of anticholinergics are recommended for maximizing the outcome in neurological patients, still, the incidence of adverse events is the major factor for therapy discontinuation. For patients who abort anticholinergic drugs or for unresponsive patients or for patients unwilling to assume the side effects, other types of treatments should be regarded. In recent years, Onabotulinumtoxin A has emerged as the most effective minimally invasive treatment to reduce NDO, therefore an efficient treatment alternative.
Effect of Prebiotics and Isoleucine in Chicken Broilers used in diets in order to achieve a balanced diet. Branched amino acid isoleucine is introduced as the limiting amino acid in the finisher period

Prebiotics are non digestive substances that are used as additives in poultry diets in order to stimulate the activity of the endogenous choice or reproduction of bacteria that benefit the host. They also contain short-chain carbohydrates that are indigestible by the enzymes in gut of animals (Ashraf et al. 2013). Prebiotics effectively influence on bird health promotion through growth or activity of one or certain kinds of useful bacteria in the gut (Xu et al. 2003). Most of prebiotics are non digestible carbohydrates that include various types such as: fructo oligosaccharides (FOS), glucose oligosaccharides (GOS) and mannan oligosaccharides (MOS). Mannan oligosaccharides are mostly isolated from the outer wall of Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast. These compounds mostly bind to the harmful bacterial cell wall or stimulate immune system against pathogen bacteria. Fructo oligosaccharides (FOS) are common prebiotic with special chemical structure can improve intestinal health. Some oligosaccharides such as inulin naturally nondigestible carbohydrates that easily fermented in cecum and colon (Awad et al. 2011). Nowadays improved genetic strains of broilers increases studying the essential amino acids and as we know the main objective of crude protein of diets is providing essential amino acids. The results of the amino acid requirements studies show that three amino acid, methionine, lysine and threonine, that their synthetic compound is available can be This study conducted to evaluate the effect of prebiotics (Fermacto) and isoleucine and their combination on performance and some blood parameters of broiler chickens during finisher period. At the first of experiment 300 one-day-old mixed Ross broiler chicks reared in same condition according to Ross manual guide up to 21 days old. Chicks at 21 day old were randomly allocated to 20 groups of 15 birds in a completely randomized design with 4 treatments and 5 replications. Control group were fed with the basal diet of corn-soya and wheat. In the experimental group, 0.1% of prebiotics and 0.04% isoleucine were added. Weight gain and feed intake of birds were measured and at the end of the experiment one bird from each pen were sampled and weighed and then killed. The results showed that prebiotics and isoleucine significantly (P<0.05) improved feed conversion and weight gain and serum cholesterol but it did not have any significant effect on traits such as feed, the serum amount of urea, uric acid, triglycerides, low density lipoprotein (LDL), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), very low-density lipoprotein(VLDL), LDL/HDL and serum total protein.
An assessment of Corporate Social Responsibility in Lusaka – A case of Zambia National Commercial Bank and First National Bank

This study assessed Corporate Social Responsibility (CRS) in the banking sector in Lusaka, a case of Zanaco and First National Bank. The aim was to principally establish whether the institutions in the banking sector were socially responsible and were fulfilling their side of the social contract as expected by society. A descriptive research design was used and a mixed method approach which combined both qualitative and quantitative paradigms was adopted. Data was collected from 50 participants; 10 Directors and 40 officers from different departments such as Corporate Affairs and Human Resource. Convenience and purposive sampling techniques were used to select the participants. The data was collected using a questionnaire and interviews. The qualitative data was analysed thematically and quantitative data through Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 16.0 computer software generating simple descriptive statistics in form of frequencies and graphs. The study revealed that the perceptions of CSR were diverse, but mostly influenced by the corporate cultures and prevailing circumstances. The main reasons for lack of implementation included; lack of adequate resources and not enshrining the CSR in the corporate strategic visions. It was revealed that Institutions which promoted CSR performed better than those that did not. 24% of the respondents agreed that banking institutions were generally socially responsible while the 50% were neutral and 26% disagreed, an indication that there was a lack of awareness on CSR issues. Additionally, 38% strongly agreed that CSR should be mandatory as it was a strategic issue. About 70% agreed on adherence to government regulations. However, despite the positivity and optimism that CSR brings to the corporate table, companies do not always accept their responsibilities in this area in good spirit, with a fair number of companies only adopting CSR mainly as a marketing gimmick. The study recommended strengthening of awareness about CSR through sensitisation workshops; Making CRS mandatory; introducing it as a subject in learning institutions; embedding it in strategic visions and allocating adequate resources to CSR activities. As a way of monitoring CSR and ensuring compliance, government through the Ministry of Community Development and regulatory bodies such as ZEMA could include a component of CSR in their compliance monitoring activities.
Niche Separation in Methanol Consuming Bacteria isolated from Trees and Plants

Similar organisms are consistently sampled from the same habitats. How does habitat heterogeneity determine local biological diversity? There are many ecological parameters (temperature, pH, redox substrates, resource competition, etc.) which may simultaneously determine the suitability of a particular organism, and therefore the local organismal diversity, making this a di cult question to answer. The surfaces of plants and trees constitute a large potential habitat for microbial life providing diverse, energy rich substrates but also varied environmental challenges to potential colonisers. A genetically and phenotypically diverse group of organisms was isolated from leaves, tree bark and soil by an oxic enrichment strategy providing methanol as the only electron donor. Each inoculum was dominated by a particular group, so given that they can all grow on methanol, which ecological factors determined this spatial heterogeneity? Carbon substrate useage versatility, tolerance of ultra violet radiation and dessication and coloration were investigated as potential determinants.
Effect of Increase Duration of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus on Von Willebrand Factor

Original Research Article Diabetes mellitus, more in particular type 2, is a known causative factor of endothelial activation and resulting in the secretion of von Willebrand factor. This study was carried out to know the effect of duration of type 2 diabetes mellitus on von Willebrand factor level in Hausa/Fulani. The study was a cross sectional one carried out at Specialist Hospital, Sokoto from June to December 2018. The patients were assessed, the assessments include history (a questionnaire) and clinical examination. von Willebrand factor was determined in one hundred (100) diabetic subjects and one hundred (100) non-diabetic subjects using enzyme linked immunosorbent assay method. The diabetic patients were grouped into five groups. Group A1. Treatment naïve. Group A2. on treatment for less than a year (<1yr). Group A3. on treatment for one to less than two years (1 <2yr). Group A4. on treatment for two to less than five years (2 <5yr). Group A5. On treatment for five years and above (≥ 5yr). The mean concentration of the Von Willebrand factor was significantly (p < 0.05) higher in group A5 on treatment for five years and above (≥ 5yr) (42.09±4.70ng/L) and group A2 on treatment for less than a year (<1yr) (32.80±8.40ng/L) compared the controls. This present study revealed that, as the duration of treatment of diabetes mellitus increases, the plasma levels of von Willebrand factor also increases due to activation of the endothelium in Hausa/Fulani type 2 diabetic patients. Therefore, Von Willebrand factor should be included in the routine investigations for the management of diabetic patients as an adjuvant in predicting early vascular complication of diabetes mellitus as increased in plasma levels correlate with vascular injury.
Electrochemical impedance investigation of cholesterol enriched supported films of lipids

Electrochemical methods of analysis has received a great attention in the enormously large field of Life Sciences at least because of two reasons – first of all, owing to the exclusive role of bioelectrochemical processes at fundamental levels of living matter organization, and second due to specific features of these methods. Some of their advantages as noninvasiveness, sensitivity and inexpensiveness enlarged the reputation of analytical electrochemistry and established its techniques as indispensable tools for research of broad spectrum of problems in Biosciences. Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) [1-3], on its own, has long been recognized as an extremely informative tool, especially in areas of investigation where contacts between different phases are involved. Biomembranes and their artificial analogs [4, 5] are just such kind of interfaces where the EIS accuracy and sensitivity have already said their heavy word [6]. Most promising results, however, pointing out to a plethora of practical applications, have been obtained with lipid structures deposited on rigid substrates [7, 8]. In the present work we have tried to evaluate the influence of cholesterol on the physicochemical parameters of supported liquid films of lipids, revealed by their specific impedance behavior at different frequencies. The results definitely suggest that cholesterol exert prominent condensing effect on the films, which is demonstrated via the changes in impedance parameters. This is in accordance with commonly accepted role of cholesterol in biological membranes and model systems, which is based on a large body of experimental evidences [9].
Air pollutant dispersion from a large semi-enclosed stadium in an urban area: high-resolution CFD modeling versus full-scale measurements

High-resolution CFD simulations and full-scale measurements have been performed to assess the dispersion of air pollutants (CO2) from the large semi-enclosed Amsterdam ArenA football stadium. The dispersion process is driven by natural ventilation by the urban wind flow and by buoyancy, and by the interaction between outdoor wind flow and indoor airflow which are only connected by the relatively small ventilation openings in the stadium facade. The CFD simulations are performed with the 3D Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations supplemented with the realizable k-ε model to provide closure. The full-scale measurements include reference wind speed, wind direction, and outdoor and indoor air temperature, water vapor and indoor CO2 concentration. In particular, the focus is on CFD simulations and measurements for the few hours immediately after a concert, when the stadium roof remains closed and when indoor air temperature, water vapor and CO2 concentration have reached a maximum level due to the attendants. The removal of the sources/attendants allows an assessment of the natural ventilation rate using the concentration decay method. The CFD simulations compare favorably with the measurements in terms of mean wind velocity in the main ventilation openings and in terms of the CO2 concentration decay after the concerts. The validated CFD model will in the future be used for a detailed evaluation of indoor concentration gradients and the interaction between windinduced and buoyancy-induced natural ventilation.
Truly Legendary Freedom: Funding, Incentives, and the Productivity of Scientists

How do elite scientists react to an increase in grant size and duration? We compare recipients of the most important German research prize before and after an increase (i) in its total grant size of e 1m and (ii) in its grant duration by two years using a difference-in-differences design. Scientists react to these changes by reducing their overall number of publications while increasing the number of papers in top ranked journals, but do not change the novelty of their research. Additional analysis suggests that it is the interaction of larger grant size and longer grant duration that drives these productivity effects.
Vehicle and Item Tracking Systems

This paper describes the architecture of a GPS based vehicle locating system that is able to point the position of a certain vehicle on the map and also perform reverse geocoding to provide the actual address where the vehicle is placed at a given moment in time or live. I describe a client/server architecture for this system also providing a “caching” method for faster reverse geocoding response times.
Lifestyle Disease Surveillance Using Population Search Behavior: Feasibility Study

BACKGROUND As the process of producing official health statistics for lifestyle diseases is slow, researchers have explored using Web search data as a proxy for lifestyle disease surveillance. Existing studies, however, are prone to at least one of the following issues: ad-hoc keyword selection, overfitting, insufficient predictive evaluation, lack of generalization, and failure to compare against trivial baselines. OBJECTIVE The aims of this study were to (1) employ a corrective approach improving previous methods; (2) study the key limitations in using Google Trends for lifestyle disease surveillance; and (3) test the generalizability of our methodology to other countries beyond the United States. METHODS For each of the target variables (diabetes, obesity, and exercise), prevalence rates were collected. After a rigorous keyword selection process, data from Google Trends were collected. These data were denormalized to form spatio-temporal indices. L1-regularized regression models were trained to predict prevalence rates from denormalized Google Trends indices. Models were tested on a held-out set and compared against baselines from the literature as well as a trivial last year equals this year baseline. A similar analysis was done using a multivariate spatio-temporal model where the previous year's prevalence was included as a covariate. This model was modified to create a time-lagged regression analysis framework. Finally, a hierarchical time-lagged multivariate spatio-temporal model was created to account for subnational trends in the data. The model trained on US data was, then, applied in a transfer learning framework to Canada. RESULTS In the US context, our proposed models beat the performances of the prior work, as well as the trivial baselines. In terms of the mean absolute error (MAE), the best of our proposed models yields 24% improvement (0.72-0.55; P<.001) for diabetes; 18% improvement (1.20-0.99; P=.001) for obesity, and 34% improvement (2.89-1.95; P<.001) for exercise. Our proposed across-country transfer learning framework also shows promising results with an average Spearman and Pearson correlation of 0.70 for diabetes and 0.90 and 0.91 for obesity, respectively. CONCLUSIONS Although our proposed models beat the baselines, we find the modeling of lifestyle diseases to be a challenging problem, one that requires an abundance of data as well as creative modeling strategies. In doing so, this study shows a low-to-moderate validity of Google Trends in the context of lifestyle disease surveillance, even when applying novel corrective approaches, including a proposed denormalization scheme. We envision qualitative analyses to be a more practical use of Google Trends in the context of lifestyle disease surveillance. For the quantitative analyses, the highest utility of using Google Trends is in the context of transfer learning where low-resource countries could benefit from high-resource countries by using proxy models.
Benefic Effect of Apple Vinegar Cider on Lipid Profile in Streptozotocin-Diabetic Rats

The benefic effects of vinegar have been known for more than a century and have been demonstrated in animal as well as human studies. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effects of apple cider vinegar on lipid profile, biomarkers of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases. Male albino rats were used for the present investigation. The animals were fasted overnight and diabetes mellitus (DM) was induced by a single intraperitoneal injection of freshly prepared streptozotocin (STZ) (65mg/kg) in citrate buffer. Vinegar cider was orally administrated to the diabetic rats. Control rats were injected with citrate buffer only and the animals were considered as diabetic, if their blood glucose values were above 250mg/dl on the third day after STZ injection. The treatment had started on the fourth day after STZ injection and this day was considered as the first day of treatment that was continued for 4 weeks. In the plasma of the animals we determined the total cholesterol (CT), HDL cholesterol (HDL-C), LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) and triglyceride (TG) levels, alanine amino transferase (ALT) and aspartate amino transferase (AST) activities. We evaluated also CT/HDL-C, TG/HDL-C and LDL/HDL-C ratios and the atherogenic index (AI). Our treatment significantly reduced the CT values, LDL-C levels, TG levels, CT/HDL-C ratio, TG/HDL-C ratio, LDL/HDL-C ratio, AI, ALT and AST activities but increased HDL-C levels. These results indicate that apple cider improved the serum lipid profile related to the cardiovascular risk in diabetes mellitus. [Ben Hmad H, Khlifi S, Ben Jemaa H, Gara S, Benzarti A, Aouidet A. Benefic Effect of Apple Vinegar Cider on Lipid Profile in Streptozotocin-Diabetic Rats. Life Sci J 2017;14(7):40-44]. ISSN: 1097-8135 (Print) / ISSN: 2372-613X (Online). http://www.lifesciencesite. com. 7. doi:10.7537/marslsj140717.07.
Influence of Microbial Community Composition and Organic Matter Supply on Methane Production in Anoxic Lake Sediments

Freshwater lakes are a significant site for biological methane production and its subsequent emission into the atmosphere as a potent greenhouse gas. Methane in freshwater lakes is mostly produced in anoxic sediments by archaea from the taxon Euryarchaeota. The archaea metabolize substrates derived from the decomposition of organic matter by anaerobic bacteria. This indicates that both organic matter supply and microbial community composition are drivers behind methanogenesis. However, the interaction betw e n these two factors and the extent of their role remains mostly unexplored. We sampled from Morris Lake, a mesotrophic lake situated at the University of Notre Dame Environmental Research Center, and constructed sediment incubations treated with algal a dditions and antibiotic additions in full factorial. The rates of methane and carbon dioxide were estimated and used to determine the influence of organic matter supply and microbial community composition. We hypothesized that treatments with algal additio ns and without antibiotics would have the highest production rates. Accordingly, we found a significant effect and interaction between algal additions and a lack of antibiotics. This indicates that microbial community composition and organic matter supply are significant factors in the production of methane in anoxic lake sediments, as well as being intricately dependant on each other.
NUMERICAL RANS SIMULATION OF CAVITATION IN THROTTLES

This paper provides an insight into the latest findings of a research project aiming to obtain a reliable and resource-friendly prediction of cavitation in fuel injections systems via the use of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) software. Modern diesel injection systems are characterised by fast opening and closing valves and very high pressure drops of up to 2000 bar. Due to the geometric design or rapidly changing boundary conditions, the pressure drops locally below the steam pressure which induces cavitation [1]. In regions of higher pressure values, steam condenses and the collapsing steam bubbles can erode metals over a period of time. As a result of this, the cavitation may finally cause failure of the hydraulic components [2]. The research is split into different phases, where the first phase deals extensively with preliminary investigations. Therefore, the behaviour of the Ansys CFX standard cavitation model is investigated on throttles as well as on fuel injectors. In this context, important discoveries were made and are presented in this paper. Due to their great influence the results show the significance of such preliminary examinations. They are highly recommended when starting a new simulation to avoid and distinguish bewteen numerical and geometrical errors. In this paper, attention is mainly paid to the influence of the geometry of the investigated part.