Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ultrasonographic Renal Length and Parenchymal Thickness in Normal Sudanese Population

This study was intended to measure the ultrasound normative values of renal length and parenchymal thickness in adult Sudanese population in order to establish their reference value for Sudanese population while no recorded reference value in literature for them. Ultrasonographic kidney measurements were performed on 77 adult patients without known kidney lesions. Measurements included length and parenchymal thickness. The effect of age, gender, site (left and right side) and height was statistically analyzed. All normal patient was included in this study while any renal disease were excluded. This study was include (35) males and (42) females. The mean renal lengths were (10.15± 0.78) and (10.33± 0.80) cm for the right and left kidney respectively. The mean parenchymal thicknesses were (1.4714± 0.33cm) for the right kidney and (1.7169± 0.36cm) for the left kidney. These result were correlated with age, gender, site, and height which showed that there is no significant difference between right and left renal length, but there was significant difference between right and left parenchymal thicknesses. The significant effect of age was found only in left renal length. The significant effect of gender was noted only in the right parenchymal thicknesses. No significant difference among height groups for renal length, but there was significant difference in right parenchymal thickness. The study concluded that normal value of left renal length was affected with age and normal parenchymal thickness was affected with site (left or right). The right parenchymal thickness was affected with gender and height. Establishment of normal renal values of renal length and parenchymal thickness in Sudanese population will help us in evaluation of patients with chronic renal disease.
On the Role of Cell Surface Chondroitin Sulfates and Their Core Proteins in Breast Cancer Metastasis

Breast cancer is the most common cancer diagnosis among women worldwide (Jemal et al., 2011). Significant numbers of women present with advanced metastatic breast cancer despite major improvements in population screening and health awareness (Breast Cancer Facts & Figures 2009-2010, 2009; Autier et al., 2011). Metastatic spread leads to the poor prognosis and incurring low survival rates of patients presenting with advanced stage breast cancer or tumor recurrence. Therefore, effective therapies targeting metastatic spread should be designed to prevent the devastating consequences of breast cancer progression. In this regard, novel pro-metastatic molecules must be identified and their functional roles in the progression of the disease need to be addressed. Cell–cell and cell–matrix adhesions have a profound role in the hematogenous phase of cancer metastasis. Tumor-associated glycans participate in these cell–cell and cell–matrix adhesions and their expression is associated with the metastatic potential of tumor cells and the prognosis of cancer patients (Hakomori, 1996; Couldrey and Green, 2000; Gorelik et al., 2001; Kawaguchi, 2005; Korourian et al., 2008). We have been studying the role carbohydrates play in breast cancer metastasis (MonzaviKarbassi et al., 2005; Carcel-Trullols et al., 2006; Monzavi-Karbassi et al., 2007). A large body of evidence indicates that P-selectin expressed on endothelial cells and platelets plays a crucial role during hematogenous metastasis (Borsig et al., 2001; Kohler et al., 2010). In a murine model of breast cancer we observed that the expression of carbohydrates that react with the P-selectin receptor plays a major role in metastasis (Monzavi-Karbassi et al., 2005). This evidence indicates that P-selectin-mediated interaction of breast cancer cells with platelets is a relevant cellular adhesion mechanism that participates in establishing distant metastases. A novel finding in our work is the observation that chondroitin sulfate glycosaminoglycans (CS-GAGs) can serve as P-selectin ligands on breast cancer cells. This observation links CS-GAGs to P-selectin binding in defining the metastatic phenotype dependent on the interaction of cancer cells with platelets (Monzavi-Karbassi et al., 2007). Therefore, CS-GAGs can be targeted for development of novel anti-metastatic therapies.
An overview on life cycle inventory leads to green manufacturing: Methods and modifications

Green manufacturing requires methods to measure and compare the environmental impacts of products throughout its entire life cycle. Life cycle inventory (LCI) is a tool for green manufacturing which deals with the compilation and quantification of the inputs (i.e. raw materials) and outputs (emissions) for a given product throughout its life cycle. The three main classifications of LCI are: Process oriented modeling, Input output analysis and Hybrid method. In this paper, literatures on methodological evolution of LCI methods are reviewed and the advantages and limitations and applicability of these methods are also presented. Finally, conclusions are drawn, combined with development scope of these inventory compiling methods in green manufacturing.
FOURFOLD MICROPHONES AREA FOR ACOUSTIC SOURCE LOCALIZATION

In this paper we present a fourfold microphones area for source localization. The area consists of four shotgun microphones arranged at an angle of 90 between them. The distance between the microphone’s capsules can be changed in a range of 10 ÷ 20 cm. This is needed to study the phase differences between the acoustic signals captured for a given bandwidth. Experimental results based on spectrum and autocorrelation measurements have shown that this area can be used in domestic applications or for wildlife areas intruder detection.
A survey of constraint qualifications with second-order properties in nonlinear optimization

In this paper we discuss recent developments in firstand second-order constraint qualifications that imply second-order optimality conditions. In the first-order case, we are particularly interested in conditions that ensure the validity of second-order necessary optimality conditions that can be checked with a single Lagrange multiplier and defined in terms of positive semidefiniteness on a subspace, due to its connections with global convergence of second-order algorithms. In the second-order case, we discuss necessary and sufficient conditions to ensure the validity of second-order optimality conditions.
Effect of Feature Extraction Techniques on the Performance of Speaker Identification

In this paper, the effect of features extracted on the performance of speaker identification engine is investigated. Vector Quantization (VQ) is implemented and used as identification engine. Three type of speech features, Mel Frequency Cepstral Coefficients (MFCC), Perceptual Linear Predictive (PLP), and Relative Spectral Technique- Perceptual Linear Predictive (RASTA-PLP) are extracted and used for the classification problem. One word per speaker is used within the train phase and the identification rate is calculated for each feature extraction technique. The calculation is repeated using various word of different spoken time, and the paper specifies the feature extraction technique that fits with the Vector Quantization (VQ) recognition engine. 
Background anger in youth sport: A perfect storm?

Angry adult behavior at youth sport events is documented in scholarly literature (Kidman, McKenzie, & McKenzie, 1999), popular press sport parent books (Murpf^, 1999), and the media (Abrams, 2006). Background anger (BA) involves the presence of an angry verbal, nonverbal, or physical interaction between two or more people that does not directly involve the observer (Cummings, 1987). Sustained exposure to BA is distressingfor children and may result in long-term health consequences (Grych & Fincham, ¡990), but little is known about how BA infiuences the sport experience and performance of children. Given recent interest in the behavior of youth sport parents, this paper adapts the BA construct to youth sport to further understanding of the infiuence of angry parent behaviors on children. Evidence that coaches, parents, and children frequently observe background anger in some youth sport environments is presented and implications for future research and educational intervention are discussed
Ecologically diverse and distinct neighbourhoods trigger persistent phenotypic consequences, and amine metabolic profiling detects them

Global change triggers rapid alterations in the composition and diversity of plant communities which may change ecosystem functioning. Do changes in community diversity also change traits persistently, that is does coexistence with numerous or functionally or phylogenetically distinct species trigger, in a given focal species, trait shifts that persist? We studied the grass Dactylis glomerata. Dactylis was grown in experimental plots with different species compositions for 5 years, sampled, cloned and grown in a common garden. We studied amines, regulators integrating growth responses of organisms to their environment. We found that the mean levels and variances of most amines depended on the diversity of the source community, notably the species richness and the phylogenetic and functional distinctness from Dactylis, unbiased by species identity or biomass shifts. Synthesis. Our results suggest that different levels of ambient diversity can, within a few years, select for different genotypes which have different compositions of growth regulators. Our study also suggests that a plant species can evolve in response to the diversity or distinctness of the surrounding plant community. Evolutionary changes of plant phenotypes might mediate an impact of past biological diversity on present ecosystem functioning.
EVALUATION OF ANTIFUNGAL ACTIVITY OF SELECTED LACTIC ACID BACTERIA STRAINS AGAINST SPOILAGE MOULD PENICI LL IUM EXPANSUM

Various spoilage fungi that contaminate fruits, vegetables and other food commodities produce economic losses as well as harmful effects on human and animal health caused by ingestion of mycotoxins The public concern about the use of chemical fungicides during cultivation and storage of fruits and vegetable determined the search for new strains of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) able to control the fungal growth of mycotoxigenic species. The effect of 8 LAB strains have been assayed on the growth of Penicillium expansum isolated from infected apples. Interaction between LAB strains and selected spoilage fungi was tested by overlay assay method. Discrete spots of liquid cultures of tested LAB strains were placed on MRS agar and after incubation, overlaid with soft PDA containing fungal propagules. Data concerning the evolution of the diameters of clear visible inhibition zones of fungal growth around the LAB strain spots were monitored for 10 days. A number of 5 strains have shown antifungal activity with clear inhibition zone developed at 5 days, the effect of 2 strains being sustained until the 10 day of monitoring. P. expansum spores were cultivated with 3 efficient LAB strains on PD liquid medium and monitored for 17 days. The inhibition of spore forming lasted for 2 strains until the end of monitoring period and for the other strain until the end of the first week. Completely sporulated mycelium with powdery aspect was evidenced in control flask with pure culture of P. expansum after 5 days. Probably chemical interactions appeared between fungus and LAB strains that changed the color of culture media towards reddish-brown comparatively to control. The results could be used in biotechnological methods for the control of spoilage fungi with application in fruits preservation.
FORMULATION AND EVALUATION OF FAST DISSOLVING ORAL FILMS CONTAINING LOSARTAN POTASSIUM.

The fast dissolving oral film were prepared using different polymers like PVA, PVP, HPMC, Carbopol, Pectin and Tragacanth by solvent casting method. The fast Dissolving oral film evaluated for folding endurance, swelling index, surface pH, in vitro disintegration time, drug content, drug polymer compatibility by FTIR Study, Scanning electron microscopy and in vitro drug release. The physical appearance and folding endurance properties were found to be good and electron microscopy shows that films are clear, colourless with smooth surface without any scratches . The average folding endurance time within the range of 112 to 208.The drug content showed uniform mixing of drug in all prepared fast dissolving films. The invitro drug release showed 78 to 96 % drug release within 5 minutes. Drug release obeys the first order kinetics. The prepared films were stable. Hence it can be inferred that the fast dissolving oral film of losartan potassium may produce the rapid action thereby improving bioavailability and enhance the absorption by avoiding the first pass effect.
Simulation in ENT- Is There a Place For It?

Airway emergencies are a common presentation in the emergency department, with the incidence reported to range between 2% and 14.8% Kovacs et al. [1]. In the vast majority of cases, ‘difficult airway’ presentations are managed successfully by emergency medicine doctors Wong et al. [2]. While anaesthetic staff on the whole manage the remainder, surgical doctors (especially those working within ENT surgery) are often involved in cases that require invasive interventions such as tracheostomy or surgical cricothyroidotomy Awad et al. [3]. Furthermore, it is often the most junior member of the ENT team is first to attend to those patients requiring emergency on-call airway services; frequently without immediate senior supervision or support.
The Screening Effect of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act

Prior research shows that the PSLRA increased the significance of merit-related factors, such as the presence of an accounting restatement or insider selling, in determining the incidence and outcomes of securities fraud class actions. (Johnson, Nelson, and Pritchard, 2007). This result, however, is consistent with two possible hypotheses. First, the PSLRA may have reduced solely the incidence of non-meritorious litigation. Second, the PSLRA may have changed the definition of merit, effectively precluding claims that would have survived and produced a settlement pre-PSLRA. This paper tests these alternative hypotheses. We find that pre-PSLRA claims that settled for nuisance value would be less likely to be filed under the PSLRA regime. We also find, however, that pre-PSLRA non-nuisance claims would be less likely to be filed post-PSLRA period. The latter result, which we refer to as the screening effect, is particularly pronounced for claims lacking obvious hard evidence indicia of fraud (an accounting restatement or an SEC investigation). This screening effect is stronger if the claims also lacked evidence of abnormal insider trading. By contrast, we find that pre-PSLRA claims with hard evidence or abnormal insider trading would be no less likely to be filed in the post-PSLRA period. We also examine the likelihood of settlement for pre-PSRLA claims if they had been filed in the post-PSLRA period, and find a similar screening effect for case outcomes. We conclude that Congress effectively changed the definition of merit in adopting the PSLRA, discouraging suits that would have produced a non-nuisance outcome prior to the law's enactment.
Bifurcation analysis of the behavior of partially wetting liquids on a rotating cylinder

We discuss the behavior of partially wetting liquids on a rotating cylinder using a model that takes into account the effects of gravity, viscosity, rotation, surface tension, and wettability. Such a system can be considered as a prototype for many other systems where the interplay of spatial heterogeneity and a lateral driving force in the proximity of a first- or second-order phase transition results in intricate behavior. So does a partially wetting drop on a rotating cylinder undergo a depinning transition as the rotation speed is increased, whereas for ideally wetting liquids, the behavior only changes quantitatively. We analyze the bifurcations that occur when the rotation speed is increased for several values of the equilibrium contact angle of the partially wetting liquids. This allows us to discuss how the entire bifurcation structure and the flow behavior it encodes change with changing wettability. We employ various numerical continuation techniques that allow us to track stable/unstable steady.
Variational approach to low-frequency kinetic-MHD in the current coupling scheme

Hybrid kinetic-MHD models describe the interaction of an MHD bulk fluid with an ensemble of hot particles, which obeys a kinetic equation. In this work we apply Hamilton’s variational principle to formulate new current-coupling kinetic-MHD models in the low-frequency approximation (i.e. large Larmor frequency limit). More particularly, we formulate current-coupling schemes, in which energetic particle dynamics are expressed in either guiding center or gyrocenter coordinates. When guiding center theory is used to model the hot particles, we show how energy conservation requires corrections to the standard magnetization term. On the other hand, charge and momentum conservation in gyrokinetic-MHD lead to extra terms in the usual definition of the hot current density as well as modifications to conventional gyrocenter dynamics. All these new features arise naturally from the underlying variational structure of the proposed models.
Entry and Exit in Hub-Spoke Networks

We offer an explanation for why regional carriers may not survive in hub-spoke networks. When a regional carrier and a hub operator compete in a spoke market, both will suffer losses in that market. But if the hub operator exists in the spoke market, its profits in connecting markets will fall. As long as the number of such markets is large enough, it is a dominant strategy for the hub operator not to exit from the spoke market. The regional carrier is then forced to exit, assuming fixed costs are not sunk.
High performance enzymatic synthesis of oleyl oleate using immobilised lipase from Candida antartica

High performance enzymatic synthesis of oleyl oleate, a liquid wax ester was carried out by lipase-catalysed esterification of oleic acid and oleyl alcohol. Various reaction parameters were optimised to obtain high yield of oleyl oleate. The optimum condition to produce oleyl oleate was reaction time; 5 min, organic solvents of log P ≥ 3.5, temperature; 40-50oC, amount of enzyme; 0.2-0.4 g and molar ratio of oleyl alcohol to oleic acid; 2:1. The operational stability of enzyme was maintained at >90% yield up to 9 cycles. Analysis of the yield of the product showed that at optimum conditions, >95% liquid wax esters were produced.
Incorporating Speaker Normalizing Capabilities to an End-to-End Speech Recognition System

Speaker normalization is one of the crucial aspects of an Automatic speech recognition system (ASR). Speaker normalization is employed to reduce the performance drop in ASR due to speaker variabilities. Traditional speaker normalization meth-ods are mostly linear transforms over the input data estimated per speaker, such transforms would be efﬁcient with sufﬁcient data. In practical scenarios, only a single utterance from the test speaker is accessible. The present study explores speaker normalization methods for end-to-end speech recognition systems that could efﬁciently be performed even when single ut-terance from the unseen speaker is available. In this work, it is hypothesized that by suitably providing information about the speaker’s identity while training an end-to-end neural network, the capability to normalize the speaker variability could be incorporated into an ASR system. The efﬁciency of these normalization methods depends on the representation used for un-seen speakers. In this work, the identity of the training speaker is represented in two different ways viz. i) by using a one-hot speaker code, ii) a weighted combination of all the training speakers identities. The unseen speakers from the test set are represented using a weighted combination of training speakers representations. Both the approaches have reduced the word error rate (WER) by 0.6, 1.3% WSJ corpus.
LOW-COST INTEGRATED NAVIGATION SYSTEMS FOR AUTONOMOUS UNDERWATER VEHICLES

This article presents nonlinear observers for estimation of position, velocity and attitude (PVA) of vehicles moving in six degrees of freedom. Several observers for attitude estimation on SO(3) are reviewed. Furthermore, it is demonstrated how the attitude observers can be used in cascade or feedback interconnections to estimate PVA. The integration filters are based on the direct filter representation as opposed to classical inertial navigation systems that use indirect filters (error state formulations). The presented methods have small computational footprints and they are good alternatives to classical Kalman filter representations. In addition, the nonlinear integration filters have global stability properties and robustness guarantees.
High Temperature Processing of Secondary Metallurgical Resources

Bottom ash, slag, fly ash and flue dusts are solid wastes or by-products from thermal waste processing or pyrometallurgical process operations. They bear potential environmental risks due to the presence or accumulation of certain heavy metals and hazardous elements. On the other hand they have potential economic value, being secondary resources containing various valuable metals. Research activities of high temperature processing of various secondary resources at Delft University of Technology are introduced. Three cases are discussed in detail: the vitrification of solid waste and incineration residues and the thermodynamics of the vitrified slag; zinc recovery from zinc ferrite-bearing industrial residues; and the vanadium recovery from the fly ash in heavy oil fuelled power plants. A recipe-based combined waste processing concept is introduced for the industrial waste management. An example is given for ferrovanadium production from Basic Oxygen Furnace (BOF) flue dust and the fly ash from heavy oil fuelled power plant. In addition, the future perspectives of the high temperature processing of secondary resources are addressed.
Self Compacting Concrete using Nano-Silica and its Influence on Strength and Durability

Self-compacting concrete (SCC) is also considered as a concrete which can be placed and compacted under its own weight with little or no vibration without segregation or bleeding. The use of SCC with its improving productions techniques is increasing every day in concrete production. Recently, nano particles have been gaining increasing attention and have been applied in many fields to fabricate new materials with novel functions due to their unique physical and chemical properties In this work 40Mpa self-compacting concrete is developed using modified Nan-Su method of mix design.Slump flow, J-Ring, V-funnel tests are conducted to justify the fresh properties of SCC and are checked against EFNARC (2005) specifications. Specimens of dimensions 150x150x150mm were cast without nano silica and with two different grades of nano silicawhich is in colloidal state with 16% and 30% nano content are added in different percentages(1%, 1.5% and 2% by weight of cement) to SCC. To justify the compressive strength for 7and28days, specimens are tested under axial compression. Durability propertieswere also studied by immersing the specimensin5% HCl and5% H 2 SO 4 . Sorptivity test has also been conducted.Test results indicate that use of Nano Silica in concrete has improved the performance of concrete in strength as well as in durability aspect.