Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
ICT APPLICATION IN TEACHING AND LEARNING PROCESSES BY TUTORS: A CASE OF TWO SELECTED TANZANIA TEACHERS COLLEGES (TCs)

3 butimba Teachers College, Tanzania. Abstract Teachers Colleges particularly in developing countries such as Tanzania have been applying Information and Communication Technology (ICT)in teaching and learning process without much consideration of the actual needs, implementation strategies and limited or poor information infrastructure towards ICT application. This paper scrutinized the extent of application of Information and Communication Technologies in Teaching and Learning processes by Tutors in teachers colleges in Mara Regions in Tanzania. A total of 46 respondents selected through simple random approach from two teachers colleges were used to solicit the information regarding ICTs application. The data regarding the study was collected mainly through questionnaire being supplemented with interview guide questions, observation and documentary review. The data were analyzed descriptively using mean, frequencies and standard deviation. The study found large extent of ICTs application by tutors although its application is not efficient despite the roles ICTs can play in education.
Effect of Peer Promoters on Changes in Adolescent Smoking Knowledge and Attitudes: A School-based Intervention Study

Background: Smoking is currently a trend among youths, with the public emergence of new smokers shifting to this group. Aim:This study aims at analyzing the effect of peer promoters as communicators on the knowledge and smoking attitudes of junior high school adolescents. Methods:The quasi-experimental and non-equivalent control group designs were used. Furthermore, the respondents included 1062 students from two junior high schools in Makassar City, Indonesia, with 473 and 589 males and females, respectively. A total of 801 respondents had paired data (pre and post-test) consisting of 334 in the intervention and 467 in the control school.Paired t-test was used to measure the difference in the pretest and post-test scores of intervention and control schools. Independent t-test was used to determine mean difference between the pretest and post-test scores between intervention and the control schools. Results:The results showed that 18.4% (n = 1062) had smoked, with subtleties of 39.4% male and 1.5% female understudies. the knowledge score increase of 0.82 (p = 0.000) and 0.22 (p = 0.004) was observed in the intervention and control schools, respectively (n = 801). The attitude score also increased by 2.23 (p = 0.080) in the intervention and 2.51 (p = 0.000) in the control school (n = 801). Differences in the knowledge and attitude scores between both schools obtained a value of p = 0.004 and 0.766, respectively. Conclusion: education by peer promoters increase knowledge and change adolescent smoking attitudes indicated the promotion of school-based smoking behavior prevention efforts with intensive peer approach
Helix and coupled-cavity traveling-wave tubes

After 28 years of considerable research and development, two types of traveling-wave tube (TWT) circuits have captured the major portion of the production business. For broad-band applications, the helix is almost exclusively used, while for high-average-power applications, such as radar transmitters, the coupled cavity circuit has gained the ascendancy. Recent advances have been stimulated and supported by the ever increasing needs of electronic countermeasures (ECM) where average power and bandwidth are of critical importance. For airborne systems where the limitations on weight and size are stringent, periodic magnetic focusing has been utilized along with special gridded electron guns which make possible simple modulation circuits. Although relatively few TWT's have been manufactured in large quantitites, there are many refined prototypes covering the frequency range from L band through Ku band at power levels of from a few hundred watts to several hundred kilowatts. Very impressive life data have now been accumulated for the TWT amplifiers currently operating in all of the communication space satellites. Although this particular application is less than 10 years old, there are hundreds of TWT's continuously transmitting in orbit today. Significant advances have been recently achieved in the maximum obtainable efficiency from a TWT designed for system use. With careful design of the electron optics and the employment of velocity tapering, efficiencies in excess of 50 percent are quite common in a practical transmitter operating in the X-band region. Broad-band dual-mode tubes are now in the development stage which permit efficient operation at two different power levels separated by as much as 7 dB. Such versatility is quite important to modern airborne countermeasure techniques. In the foreseeable future, the total TWT market will likely remain constant at the 80-million dollar level in spite of the continued erosion of the present tube applications caused by solid-state microwave devices. As power levels increase and the higher frequency bands become more popular, TWT's will remain unchallenged in many situations. No dramatic breakthroughs are predicted for this mature technology, but there will be increasing emphasis on life, reliability, and cost.
Radial force calculation and acoustic noise prediction in switched reluctance machines

The paper presents an analytical method for calculating the radial force and predicting the acoustic noise in switched reluctance machines. The main source of acoustic noise in an SRM is the radial magnetic force inducing resonant vibration with circumferential mode-shapes of the stator. An analytical relationship between radial force and radial vibration is determined, which can be used to predict the noise power level at the frequency of operation. The vibration and sound are functions of machine dimensions, material properties and rotational speed. The knowledge of the circumferential mode-shapes of vibration, the natural mode-frequencies of the stator and the frequency spectrum of the radial magnetic force can be effectively utilized to design SRMs with minimal noise through geometrical design variations. The effect of the number of stator and rotor poles on acoustic noise can also be analyzed with the model presented in this paper. Magneto-dynamic simulation by finite element software is also carried out to verify the calculation of radial force using the proposed analytical model.
Epidemiology and Natural History of Perianal Crohn's Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Population-Based Cohorts.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Perianal Crohn's disease (pCD) is a potentially severe phenotype of CD. We conducted a systematic review with meta-analysis to estimate cumulative incidence, risk factors, and outcomes of pCD in population-based cohort studies. METHODS Through a systematic literature review through March 1, 2021, we identified population-based inception cohort studies reporting cumulative incidence of perianal disease (primarily abscess and/or fistula) in patients with CD. We estimated the cumulative incidence of pCD at presentation and 1-, 5-, and 10-year follow-up, and risk factors for perianal disease and outcomes including risk of major (bowel resection, proctectomy, ostomy) and minor perianal (incision and drainage, seton placement, etc.) surgery. RESULTS In 12 population-based studies, prevalence of pCD was 18.7% (95% confidence interval [CI], 12.5%-27.0%) with 1-, 5-, and 10-year risk of perianal disease being 14.3% (95% CI, 7.9%-24.6%), 17.6% (95% CI, 11.3%-26.5%), and 18.9% (95% CI, 15.0%-23.4%), respectively. Approximately 11.5% of patients (95% CI, 6.7%-19.0%) had perianal disease at or before CD diagnosis. Colonic disease location and rectal involvement were associated with higher risk of pCD. Overall, 63.3% of patients (95% CI, 53.3-72.3) required minor perianal surgery and 6.4% of patients (95% CI, 1.8%-20.6%) required major abdominal surgery for pCD. Use of biologic therapy for pCD is common and has steadily increased throughout the years. CONCLUSIONS Approximately 1 in 5 patients with CD develops perianal disease within 10 years of CD diagnosis, including 11.5% who have perianal disease at presentation. Approximately two-thirds of patients require perianal surgery, with a smaller fraction requiring major abdominal surgery.
Electrical, electrochemical and structural studies of a chlorine-derived ionic liquid-based polymer gel electrolyte

In the present article, an ionic liquid-based polymer gel electrolyte was synthesized by using poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) (PVdF-HFP) as a host polymer. The electrolyte films were synthesized by using the solution casting technique. The as-prepared films were free-standing and transparent with good dimensional stability. Optimized electrolyte films exhibit a maximum room-temperature ionic conductivity of σ = 8.9 × 10−3 S·cm−1. The temperature dependence of the prepared polymer gel electrolytes follows the thermally activated behavior of the Vogel–Tammann–Fulcher equation. The total ionic transference number was ≈0.91 with a wider electrochemical potential window of 4.0 V for the prepared electrolyte film which contains 30 wt % of the ionic liquid. The optimized films have good potential to be used as electrolyte materials for energy storage applications.
Abiraterone-induced refractory hypokalaemia and torsades de pointes in a patient with metastatic castration-resistant prostate carcinoma: a case report

Abstract Background Abiraterone, an androgen deprivation therapy, has been used in the treatment of metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). It has been associated with increased risks of hypokalaemia and cardiac disorders. We report a case of torsades de pointes (TdP) associated with abiraterone use and refractory hypokalaemia in a man with mCRPC. Case summary A 78-year-old man with mCRPC presented to the emergency room for generalized weakness. Laboratory results revealed a potassium level of 2.2 mmol/L (3.5–5.0), magnesium level of 2.4 mg/dL (1.6–2.5), and normal kidney and hepatic functions. Initial electrocardiogram showed atrial fibrillation with rapid ventricular rate of 106 b.p.m. , frequent premature ventricular contractions, and a QTc of 634 ms. The patient had multiple episodes of TdP, became pulseless and underwent advanced cardiac life support, including defibrillation. Despite a total of 220 mEq of intravenous potassium chloride, his potassium level only improved to 2.8 mmol/L. He received spironolactone and amiloride to promote urinary potassium reabsorption in addition to hydrocortisone, in an effort to reduce abiraterone’s effect on increasing mineralocorticoid synthesis. Discussion Abiraterone has been widely used in mCRPC since its approval by the Food and Drug Adminstration in 2011. Regulatory guidelines and standardized close QTc and electrolyte monitoring in patients may help prevent fatal arrhythmias associated with abiraterone.
SST Image Processing for Mesoscale Patterns Identification

Understanding the marine environment dynamics to accordingly design computational predictive tools, represents a factor of paramount relevance to implement suitable policy plans. In this framework, mesoscale marine events are important to study and understand since human related activities, such as commercial fishery, strongly depend on this type of phenomena. Indeed, the dynamics of water masses affect the local habitats due to nutrient and organic substance transport, interfering with the fauna and flora development processes. Mesoscale events can be classified based on the presence of specific hydrodynamics features, such as water filaments, counter-currents or meanders originating from upwelling wind action stress. In this paper, a novel method to study these phenomena is proposed, based on the analysis of Sea Surface Temperature imagery captured by satellite missions (METOP, MODIS Terra/Aqua). Dedicated algorithms are presented, with the goal to detect and identify different observed scenarios based on the extraction and analysis of discriminating quantitative features. Promising results returned by the application of the proposed method to data captured within the maritime region in front of the southwestern Iberian coasts are presented.
In Time with the Beat: Entrainment in Patients with Phonological Impairment, Apraxia of Speech, and Parkinson’s Disease

In the present study, we investigated if individuals with neurogenic speech sound impairments of three types, Parkinson’s dysarthria, apraxia of speech, and aphasic phonological impairment, accommodate their speech to the natural speech rhythm of an auditory model, and if so, whether the effect is more significant after hearing metrically regular sentences as compared to those with an irregular pattern. This question builds on theories of rhythmic entrainment, assuming that sensorimotor predictions of upcoming events allow humans to synchronize their actions with an external rhythm. To investigate entrainment effects, we conducted a sentence completion task relating participants’ response latencies to the spoken rhythm of the prime heard immediately before. A further research question was if the perceived rhythm interacts with the rhythm of the participants’ own productions, i.e., the trochaic or iambic stress pattern of disyllabic target words. For a control group of healthy speakers, our study revealed evidence for entrainment when trochaic target words were preceded by regularly stressed prime sentences. Persons with Parkinson’s dysarthria showed a pattern similar to that of the healthy individuals. For the patient groups with apraxia of speech and with phonological impairment, considerably longer response latencies with differing patterns were observed. Trochaic target words were initiated with significantly shorter latencies, whereas the metrical regularity of prime sentences had no consistent impact on response latencies and did not interact with the stress pattern of the target words to be produced. The absence of an entrainment in these patients may be explained by the more severe difficulties in initiating speech at all. We discuss the results in terms of clinical implications for diagnostics and therapy in neurogenic speech disorders.
Predicting Driver Injury Severity in Single-Vehicle and Two-Vehicle Crashes with Boosted Regression Trees

The boosted regression tree model is an emerging nonparametric tree-based model that can capture nonlinear effects of both discrete and continuous variables without preprocessing data. The model is particularly advantageous to predict severe injuries, which are more difficult to classify because of their small amount compared with nonsevere injuries. The objectives of this study were to investigate driver injury severity with the boosted regression tree model and other nonparametric models—the classification and regression tree and Random Forests—and to evaluate performance of the boosted regression tree model in comparison with the classification and regression tree model. The study identified important factors affecting injury severity by using 5-year crash records for provincial highways in Ontario, Canada. The results of the boosted regression tree model showed that ejection from a vehicle and head-on collisions commonly had a strong association with driver injury severity. Results also showed that marginal effects of continuous variables including truck percentage, annual average daily traffic (AADT), driver age, and vehicle age on injury severity were nonlinear. In particular, their effects on the injuries of heavy-truck drivers had different patterns compared with the effects on passenger-car and light-truck drivers; the risk of severe injury to heavy-truck drivers increased as the truck percentage and AADT increased and the driver's age decreased. The boosted regression tree model predicted driver injury severity more accurately than the classification and regression tree model for both single-vehicle and two-vehicle crashes. Thus, it is recommended that the boosted regression tree model be applied with separate data sets for single-vehicle crashes and different types of two-vehicle crashes for more accurate prediction of crash injury severity.
Calculation of extreme wave loads on coastal highway bridges

Calculation of Extreme Wave Loads on Coastal Highway Bridges. (December 2008) Bo Meng, B.S.; M.S., Tianjin University, China Co-Chairs of Advisory Committee: Dr. Jun Jin Dr. Jun Zhang Coastal bridges are exposed to severe wave, current and wind forces during a hurricane. Most coastal bridges are not designed to resist wave loads in such extreme situations, and there are no existing analytical methods to calculate wave loads on coastal highway bridges. This study focuses on developing a new scheme to estimate the extreme wave loads on bridges for designing purpose. In order to do this, a 2D wave velocity potential model (2D Model) is set up for the deterministic analysis of wave force on bridge decks. 2D Model is a linear wave model, which has the capability of calculating wave velocity potential components in time domain based on wave parameters such as wave height, wave period and water depth, and complex structural geometries. 2D Model has Laplace equation as general equation. The free surface boundary, incoming and outgoing wave boundary conditions are linearized, decomposed first, and then solved by the finite difference method. Maximum wave forces results calculated by the linear 2D Model are compared with results from CFD software Flow3D that is using Navier Stokes theory up to the 5 order; and 2D Model is validated by comparing results with experiment data.
“A different environment for success:” a mixed-methods exploration of social participation outcomes among adolescents on the autism spectrum in an inclusive, interest-based school club

Background: Adolescents on the autism spectrum often experience challenges participating socially in inclusive education. The majority of school-based social supports focuses on social skills training, although research shows that students on the spectrum prefer activity-based social groups over social instructions. Thus, activity-based school clubs incorporating student interests may support social participation. Method: This mixed-methods study explored the preliminary social participation outcomes of adolescents on the spectrum in an inclusive Maker Club at three public schools. The quantitative phase examined longitudinal social behavior rates throughout the school club among students (n = 12). The qualitative phase interviewed six teachers in three schools (n = 6) to explore teacher perceptions of student social outcomes compared to general classrooms and program outcomes associated with the programs. Results: Mixed-effects modeling revealed increased social response rates and social reciprocity over time in both students on the spectrum and non-autistic peers without any group differences. Teachers reported that students on the spectrum engaged more socially than in general classrooms and attributed the positive outcomes to activities encouraging shared interests and the flexible social environment. Conclusions: Inclusive school clubs incorporating shared interests and joint activities among students may socially support students on the spectrum in inclusive education.
Simulation of Four-Stage Doherty Power Amplifier Structure

In order to improve the efficiency of Digital TV transmitter, we uses a new type of four-stage Doherty structure. Based on the transmission line theory and active loadpull theory, we deduce the principle of the four-stage Doherty structure, and use ADS to design a four-stage Doherty power amplifier. The simulation result shows that this four-stage Doherty PA has an efficiency of 34% at 6dB back-off (53dBm) for DVB-T OFDM 64 QAM modulated signal. The ACPR and MER obtained at 53dBm when output power are 31dBc and 28dB respectively.
Surrogate Safety Measures from Traffic Simulation Models

Safety is emerging as an area of increased attention and awareness within transportation engineering. Historically, the safety of new and innovative traffic treatments has been difficult to assess, primarily because of a lack of good predictive models of crash potential and a lack of consensus on what constitutes a safe or unsafe facility. An FHWA-sponsored research project investigated the potential to derive surrogate measures of safety from existing traffic simulation models. These surrogate measures could then be used to support evaluations of various traffic engineering alternatives, including facilities that have not yet been built and strategies that have not yet been used. Each surrogate measure is collected on the basis of the occurrence of a conflict event, which is an interaction between two vehicles in which one vehicle must take evasive action to avoid a collision. The surrogate measures that are proposed as the best are time to collision, postencroachment time, deceleration rate, maximum speed, and speed differential. Time to collision, postencroachment time, and deceleration rate can be used to measure the severity of the conflict. Maximum speed and the speed differential can be used to measure the severity of the potential collision (by use of additional information about the mass of the vehicles involved to assess momentum). After the simulation model is executed for a number of iterations, a postprocessing tool would be used to compute the statistics for the various measures and perform comparisons between design alternatives.
Aircraft Control and Simulation

List of Tables. List of Examples. Preface. 1 The Kinematics and Dynamics of Aircraft Motion. 1.1 Introduction. 1.2 Vector Kinematics. 1.3 Matrix Analysis of Kinematics. 1.4 Geodesy, Earth's Gravitation, Terrestrial Navigation. 1.5 Rigid-Body Dynamics. 1.6 Summary. 2 Modeling the Aircraft. 2.1 Introduction. 2.2 Basic Aerodynamics. 2.3 Aircraft Forces and Moments. 2.4 Static Analysis. 2.5 The Nonlinear Aircraft Model. 2.6 Linear Models and the Stability Derivatives. 2.7 Summary. 3 Modeling, Design, and Simulation Tools. 3.1 Introduction. 3.2 State-Space Models. 3.3 Transfer Function Models. 3.4 Numerical Solution of the State Equations. 3.5 Aircraft Models for Simulation. 3.6 Steady-State Flight. 3.7 Numerical Linearization. 3.8 Aircraft Dynamic Behavior. 3.9 Feedback Control. 3.10 Summary. 4 Aircraft Dynamics and Classical Control Design. 4.1 Introduction. 4.2 Aircraft Rigid-Body Modes. 4.3 The Handling-Qualities Requirements. 4.4 Stability Augmentation. 4.5 Control Augmentation Systems. 4.6 Autopilots. 4.7 Nonlinear Simulation. 4.8 Summary. 5 Modern Design Techniques. 5.1 Introduction. 5.2 Assignment of Closed-Loop Dynamics. 5.3 Linear Quadratic Regulator with Output Feedback. 5.4 Tracking a Command. 5.5 Modifying the Performance Index. 5.6 Model-Following Design. 5.7 Linear Quadratic Design with Full State Feedback. 5.8 Dynamic Inversion Design. 5.9 Summary. 6 Robustness and Multivariable Frequency-Domain Techniques. 6.1 Introduction. 6.2 Multivariable Frequency-Domain Analysis. 6.3 Robust Output-Feedback Design. 6.4 Observers and the Kalman Filter. 6.5 LQG/Loop-Transfer Recovery. 6.6 Summary. 7 Digital Control. 7.1 Introduction. 7.2 Simulation of Digital Controllers. 7.3 Discretization of Continuous Controllers. 7.4 Modified Continuous Design. 7.5 Implementation Considerations. 7.6 Summary. Appendix A F-16 Model. Appendix B Software. Index.