Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
On the development of a knowledge base for recommended practices in biomaterials and bioproducts selection: a CBR approach

This work presents a case-based reasoning (CBR) approach in Knowledge Base (KB) development. The selection of biomaterials/bioproducts is used as an exemplar to the practices recommended for transforming formalism and knowledge modeling to a suitable decision aid. It is proved that the proposed structuring of the knowledge Base can successfully cope with target-specific but inherently wide-focused queries through a dialectic tradeoff between input and inferred features. The framework can be easily adapted to other application domains, the complexity of which necessitates the dialectics/synergy between formalism-oriented knowledge modeling and content-oriented case based reasoning.
Resident Tissue Leukocytes: Underappreciated Guards of the Body

Inflammatory reactions occurring in different milieu follow common phases with major highlights being local changes in vascular permeability and influx of inflammatory leukocytes that eliminate the source of inflammation while subsequent resolution is completed by tissue repair. The main inflammatory cells consist of blood-derived neutrophils and macrophages that arrive to the inflammatory site in response to a chemotactic signal. However, their arrival to the loci is initiated by a special set of leukocytes already present in various places of the body such as skin or body cavities that are called tissue or resident leukocytes. The cells consist of mast cells, macrophages and lymphocytes. Although the presence of resident leukocytes is commonly recognized their actual involvement in subsequent stages of inflammation is underappreciated while the cells are critical for all phases of the reaction. The current mini-review describes the role of resident leukocytes in the initiation, the course, and the termination of exemplary acute inflammatory reaction, namely zymosan-induced peritonitis. Additionally, facts on human resident peritoneal leukocytes are presented and discussed.
Restricting foreign investment: Estimating the costs of Canada's foreign property rule

International portfolio investment of Canadian pension funds is restricted to 20 per cent of the value of assets. This policy increases non-diversiable risk in portfolio returns, which entails costs for pension plan beneciaries. We provide new estimates of the cost of this policy by comparing performance of mutual funds that are constrained by the limit and those that are not. We further examine the eects of an increase in the limit, from 10 to 20 per cent, during the early 1990s. The evidence suggests the policy has had a signicant negative eect on riskadjusted returns to retirement savings in Canada. Our estimates imply that a movement in the limit from 20 per cent to 30 percent would increase average annual returns by 0.31 per cent, which corresponds to an increase of 9.9 per cent in terminal portfolio wealth over a 20-year period.
Global Currency Rivalry: Can the Euro Ever Challenge the Dollar?

Author(s): Cohen, Benjamin J. | Abstract: I am indebted to David Andrews, Iain Begg, Randall Henning, and Thomas Willett for helpful comments.Can the euro ever truly challenge the dollar? The purpose of this lecture is to explore prospects for the euro as an international currency. My assessment, which will disappoint many, is deeply skeptical. The euro will of course dominate monetary relations within the European region and may even extend its influence to some neighboring areas, such as the Mediterranean littoral or sub-Saharan Africa – what the European Central Bank, the ECB (2001), calls the "Euro-time zone. " As Wyplosz remarks: "This is the euro’s turf" (1999: 89). But elsewhere, for the foreseeable future, Europe’s new money is fated to remain a distant second to the greenback, however much many Europeans would prefer otherwise.
Thermoelectric power and resistivity of Nd 1 ÿ x Ca x Ba 2 Cu

The structural and transport properties of Nd1ÿxCaxBa2Cu3Oy (x  0:0, 0.03, 0.06, and 0.10) and Nd1ÿxLaxBa2Cu3Oy (x nominally 0.0, 0.05, 0.10, and 0.15) have been studied by X-ray powder diraction, electrical resistivity, and thermoelectric power measurements. In both series, the aand b-axis lattice parameters decrease with increasing doping while the c-axis lattice parameter increases. The transport properties suggest improved metallic behaviour with increasing Ca doping in contrast to La doping. An anomalous sharp peak in the thermoelectric power close to Tc was observed, which depended on the doping content. We analysed the thermoelectric power as a function of temperature with a two-band model with an additional linear T term. An excellent agreement between model and data was obtained. Ó 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. PACS: 74.72. -h; 74.72. Jt; 74.25. Fy; 74.62. Dh
Hypothermia at Birth and its Associated Complications in Newborns: a Follow up Study

Hypothermia is one of the main causes of neonatal mortality in developing countries. The aim of this prospective study was to determine the relationship between hypothermia at birth and the risk of mortality or morbidity among neonates born in Imam Hospital in Tehran, Iran. During a one-year period, body temperature was taken from all newborns using a low-reading rectal thermometer, immediately after their admission into the Neonatal ward of the above hospital. A temperature less than 36.5°C was considered as hypothermia. A questionnaire was filled for each subject. Using logistic regression the risk of development of respiratory distress in the first six hours of birth, hypoglycemia, metabolic acidosis, hyperbilirubinemia, scleroderma, pulmonary hemorrhage, Disseminated Intravascular Coagulopathy (DIC) in the first three days of birth were assessed and compared with the hypothermic and normothermic newborn infants. Nine hundred and forty neonates were enrolled into the study. A significant relationship was found between hypothermia and respiratory distress in the first six hours of birth and death, as well as with jaundice, hypoglycemia and metabolic acidosis in the first three days of birth (P=0.0001). Logistic regression showed that, regardless of weight and gestational age, hypothermia at birth alone could increase the risk of neonatal death (OR=3.64, CI=1.85-7.18), Respiratory distress (OR=2.12, CI=1.53-2.93), metabolic acidosis (OR=2.83, CI=1.74-4.59) and jaundice (OR=2.01, CI=1.45-2.79). Neonatal hypothermia at birth increases mortality as well as significant morbidity and hospitalization period.
A Practical Method of Nonprobabilistic Reliability and Parameter Sensitivity Analysis Based on Space-Filling Design

Using the convex model approach, the bounds of uncertain variables are only required rather than the precise probability distributions, based on which it can be made possible to conduct the reliability analysis for many complex engineering problems with limited information. In this paper, three types of convex model including interval, ellipsoid, and multiellipsoid convex uncertainty model are investigated, and a uniform model of nonprobabilistic reliability analysis is built. In the reliability analysis process, an effective space-filling design is introduced to generate representative samples of uncertainty space so as to reduce the computational cost and provide an accurate depiction of possible model outcome. Finally, Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient is used to perform parameters global sensitivity analysis. Three numerical examples are investigated to demonstrate the feasibility and accuracy of the presented method.
Hand Detection and Gesture Recognition in Real-Time Using Haar-Classification and Convolutional Neural Networks

Over the past few years, with the development of hardware and software, Human-Computer Interaction(HCI) has evolved from the use of keyboard and mouse to a more gesture-based approach to make the computer function according to your own will. Gesture Recognition has been used successfully in various applications like gaming (Xbox Kinect), recognizing sign languages and many others. The use case for the gesture recognition problem is very vast and therefore is being worked on continuously.
Edge hole direct tunneling in off-state ultrathin gate oxide p-channel MOSFETs

This paper examines the edge direct tunneling (EDT) of hole from p+ polysilicon to underlying p-type drain extension in off-state p-channel MOSFETs having ultrathin gate oxide thicknesses (1.2-2.2 nm). It is found that for thinner oxide thicknesses, hole EDT is more pronounced over the conventional GIDL and gate-to-channel tunneling, and as a result, the induced gate and drain leakage is better measured per unit gate width. A physical model accounting for heavy and light hole's subbands in the quantized accumulation polysilicon surface is built explicitly. This model consistently reproduces EDT I-V and the tunneling path size extracted falls adequately within the gate-to-drain overlap region. The ultimate oxide thickness limit due to EDT is projected as well.
The Impact of Product Innovativeness on the Link between Development Speed and New Product Profitability

A review of the literature reveals that the relationship between development speed and new product profitability is not as strong and straightforward as conventional wisdom suggests. A number of studies show positive results, others show mixed results, and some present no evidence of a relationship. In other words, the valence of the link between development speed and new product profitability is unclear at this time. Therefore, this study investigates whether or not speeding new products to market has positive or negative effects on new product profitability. Prior research shows that product innovativeness influences both development speed and new product profitability. This raises the question of whether increasing speed is equally successful in improving profitability across new products that differ in their degree of innovativeness. Therefore, this study also investigates the moderating effect of product innovativeness on the relationship between development speed and new product profitability. The results from a survey-based study of 233 manufacturers of industrial products in the Netherlands reveal an inverted U-shaped relationship between development speed and new product profitability. The findings also show that the optimal point is different for two new product types—product improvements and line additions—that vary in their innovativeness. These results provide an onset for the development of a decision tool that helps managers to determine how much to spend on accelerating the development of individual new products and how they should allocate that spending across products in their new product portfolio.
Real Time Hybrid Face and Gesture Detection System Using Open CV

Gesture based interaction systems are becoming more and more popular both at workplace and home. The projects intends to develop a system that can recognize hand gestures which can be used as an input command to interact with the PC which can be applied to picture gallery browsing. One of the key areas that needs to be looked at while developing such systems is the image processing stage. Since it would be very hard to produce an algorithm that can recognize gestures in the time allocated, within my project, I plan to design and implement a system that can perform general image processing of the user image captured in real time. Most of my work will be based on image processing techniques. My expected outcome will be an algorithm that can detect skin regions of the image user image captured and detect contours around the detected skin regions. In order to manage my project I will be using Waterfall model as the system development methodology. Microsoft Visual C++ will be used for the implementation of the code developed with combination with the OpenCV library. I feel that if I successfully meet my targets then I will have contributed towards the future of natural gesture based interfaces, if only in a minimal way.
THE ANATOMY AND TAXONOMY OF CETIOSAURUS (SAURISCHIA, SAUROPODA) FROM THE MIDDLE JURASSIC OF ENGLAND

Abstract The Middle Jurassic sauropod Cetiosaurus is significant both historically and in terms of its potential phylogenetic relationships. The anatomy and taxonomy of this form are poorly understood because inadequate diagnoses have allowed the proliferation of species names and the referral of very fragmentary specimens. A review of Cetiosaurus species indicates that all, except C. oxoniensis, are unavailable or nomina dubia. The current type species, C. medius, can no longer be regarded as a valid taxon. Previous suggestions that Cardiodon is a senior subjective synonym of Cetiosaurus cannot be sustained because the two forms do not share any autapomorphies. It is proposed that the generic name Cetiosaurus be retained, with C. oxoniensis as the new type species. The most complete specimen of C. oxoniensis (a partial skeleton from Bletchingdon Station, Oxfordshire) is redescribed and compared with other sauropods. Cetiosaurus is rediagnosed on the basis of autapomorphies, including: (1) ‘pyramid’-shaped neural spines in posterior cervical and anterior dorsal vertebrae; (2) loss of the spinodiapophyseal lamina on all dorsal vertebrae; (3) anterior chevrons with anteroposteriorly compressed distal shafts; (4) distal caudal centra have a ‘tongue’-like projection at the dorsal midline of their articular ends; and (5) a distinct triangular hollow on the lateral surface of the ilium at the base of the pubic process.
On Being Mad, Sad, and Very Young

Up to 85% of young children in industrialized societies have tantrums. Anger peaks early in these outbursts, then declines. Distress/sadness behaviors remain relatively constant across the tantrum, but comfort-seeking accelerates toward the end, perhaps disinhibited by the anger decline. Distress always outlasts anger and can elicit parental comfort-giving, thus repairing social bonds broken by the child’s anger. Developmentally, tantrums become common around 18 months, perhaps reflecting the emergence of a neurodevelopmental program that anticipates struggles around weaning and independent mobility, as in contemporary forager/village cultures. Such a program might involve left hemisphere anger generation and right hemisphere distress. Mean tantrum frequencies range from 1–9/week, decreasing with age. Tantrum prevalence drops below 50% around 5–6 years. Tantrums may lengthen with age, perhaps morphing into adult anger episodes with a variable residue of distress. Tantrum severity increases in many medical and psychopathological conditions; roughly half of child psychiatry admissions involve severe tantrums.
Mesozoic history of the Fairway‐Aotea Basin: Implications for the early stages of Gondwana fragmentation

The Fairway Ridge is a buried continental structure that separates the Fairway Basin from the New Caledonia Basin. The proposed Cretaceous age of the Fairway Basin has remained highly hypothetical to date. Deep offshore petroleum exploration wells revealed well‐dated Mesozoic carbonaceous sedimentary rocks in the Taranaki Basin at the southern end of the Aotea Basin. In this paper we use geophysical data to confirm the continuity of the 2000 km long Fairway‐Aotea Basin connecting New Caledonia to New Zealand and prove its early Late Cretaceous age. Analysis of seismic reflection profiles together with newly compiled gravity and magnetic maps reveals Late Cretaceous NE–SW trending lineaments projecting northeastward from major Tasman Sea fracture zones and the Bellona Trough, which demonstrate that the opening of the Fairway‐Aotea Basin predates the opening of the Tasman Sea. This result combined with observations of the Mesozoic regional geology suggests that the Lord Howe, Fairway, and Norfolk ridges are part of a remnant late Early Cretaceous continental arc, which was fragmented into three pieces by the late Early to early Late Cretaceous. This event might be contemporaneous with a plate motion change between the Gondwana and Pacific plates and/or the arrival of the Hikurangi plateau in the subduction zone around 105 Ma, which caused the cessation of subduction along this plate boundary. We interpret either of those two events as being possible trigger events for the post–Early Cretaceous fragmentation of the eastern Gondwana margin in a slab retreat process.
Adaptive strategies by Southern Ocean phytoplankton to lessen iron limitation: Uptake of organically complexed iron and reduced cellular iron requirements

We report results of laboratory studies examining the effect of low levels of iron (Fe) availability on the intracellular Fe concentrations and specific growth rates in Southern Ocean diatoms (Fragilariopsis kerguelensis, Eucampia antarctica, Proboscia inermis, and Thalassiosira antarctica) and Phaeocystis antarctica. All species grew on Fe complexed to the siderophore desferrioxamine B (DFB). Concentrations of DFB up to 100‐fold in excess of Fe were required to limit growth rates by ≥ 50%. Southern Ocean phytoplankton also grew on Fe complexed by ≥ 10‐fold excess concentrations of the siderophores ferrichrome, enterobactin, or aerobactin, whereas the temperate coastal diatoms Thalassiosira weissflogii and Thalassiosira pseudonana did not. Intracellular Fe concentrations and Fe : C ratios of all Southern Ocean species were exceptionally low and decreased with decreasing Fe availability. However, large diatoms had significantly lower cell‐volume‐normalized Fe content and Fe : C ratios than Phaeocystis. Short‐term Fe uptake and extracellular Fe(II) production measurements provided evidence that Phaeocystis possesses a reductive Fe transport pathway. Our findings demonstrate that the large‐diatom Fe requirements are at least 2‐fold lower than currently reported for oceanic algal species and suggest that bioreduction may enable resident phytoplankton to directly use Fe bound to strong organic ligands.
Innovation in the Public Sector: A Review of the New Norwegian Policy for Public Sector Innovation

This thesis explores innovation in the public sector at a sectoral-level as there is a perceived need for a more comprehensive public innovation approach – both theoretical and practical – in which the focus is shifted from individual innovations at an organizational level towards innovations at an aggregated level, i.e. system innovation. The purpose is to review the new Norwegian innovation policy for the public sector and subsequently discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the policy. In order to do this, an analytical framework is assembled and applied through a textual analysis of three selected policy documents which constitute the new innovation policy. The analytical framework combines the multi-level perspective from innovation studies with transition management and concepts from the literature on public sector innovation. The key point of the framework is the notion of how co-evolving developments at different levels of aggregation cause societal change. Thus, if one wants to manage system changes in desired directions, this should be done at all of the analytical levels and in the interactions between them. The analysis of the three policy documents shows that there are developments at all of the three analytical levels from a multi-level perspective, which in turn may imply system changes. The operational part of the policy, however, has a slight bias towards facilitating structures on the expense of measures aimed directly at system innovation. The current design of the policy gives the municipalities the role as innovators whereas the national level is given the role merely as a facilitator. As the policy mainly focuses on facilitating innovations at a local level, innovations at a system-level (i.e. the Norwegian public sector as a whole) are not sufficiently addressed in the policy. In turn, this may hamper one of the overall objectives of the policy which is to find solutions across the entire Norwegian public sector. The policy is also believed to have potential. One of the strengths that is pointed to is the promotion of networked governance throughout the policy. Among other things, this approach makes it possible to tap into resources throughout the public sector, as well as from outside the sector, as a wide range of actors (e.g. users or other social groups) is included in the innovation processes under this governance paradigm. Also, networked governance might represent the “next practice” which is called for in the policy.
Laser Engineered Net Shaping ( LENSTM ) Process : Optimization of Surface Finish and Microstructural Properties

Rapid prototyping (RP) has revolutionized the approach to fabricating geometrically complex hardware from a CAD solid model . The various RP techniques allow component designers to directly fabricate conceptual models in plastics and polymer coated metals; however, each of the techniques requires additional processes, e.g. investment casting, to allow the fabrication of functional metallic hardware. This limitation has provided the impetus for further development of solid freeform fabrication technologies which enable fabrication of functional metallic hardware directly from the CAD solid model. The Laser Engineered Net Shaping (LENSm) process holds promise in satisfying this need. This newly emerging technology possesses the capability to fabricate fully dense components with good dimensional accuracy and with unique material properties. Relatively complex geometrical shapes have been fabricated using this technology. In continuing to develop the LENSTM process, further advancements are required. The functional dependence of the component surface finish and microstructural characteristics on process parameters including powder size and size distribution are being evaluated. A set of statistically designed experiments is being used to sort through the various process parameters and identify significant process variables for improving surface finish and achieving optimum material microstructural properties.
Spatial patterns of NDVI in response to precipitation and temperature in the central Great Plains

The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI ) has proven to be a robust indicator of terrestrial vegetation productivity. Among climatic factors, precipitation and temperature strongly influence both temporal and spatial patterns of NDVI. We examined spatial responses of NDVI to precipitation and temperature during a 9-year period (1989-1997) in Kansas. Biweekly climate maps (precipitation and temperature) were constructed by interpolation of weather station measurements. Maps of biweekly growing season (March to October) NDVI were constructed for Kansas using National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) NDVI images. Average precipitation is a strong predictor of the major east-west NDVI gradient. Deviation from average precipitation explained most of the year-to-year variation in spatial patterns. NDVI and precipitation covaried in the same direction (both positive or both negative) for 60-95% of the total land area. Minimum and average temperatures were positively correlated with NDVI, but temperature deviation from average was generally not correlated with NDVI deviation from average. Our results demonstrate that precipitation is a strong predictor of regional spatial patterns of NDVI and, by inference, patterns of productivity.