Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Pre-Induction Cervical Ripening Using a Transcervical Foley Catheter Combined with ISMN Vaginal Tablets for Vaginal Birth after Previous Caesarean Section (VBAC)—A Comparative Study

Objective: To compare the effectiveness, safety and client acceptability of concurrent application of transcervical Foley catheter with vaginal ISMN-sustained release (SR) 60 mg tablet versus transcervical Foley catheter alone for pre-induction cervical ripening in women who are undergoing Vaginal birth after C-section (VBAC). Method: A prospective single blind randomized control study was carried out including 110 pregnant women who had unfavorable cervix (MBS less than 6) at 40 weeks and 3 days of gestation. The two groups received either the trans-cervical foley catheter with a vaginal ISMN 60 mg sustained release (SR) tablet on 40 weeks and 3 days (Treatment arm 1, n = 57), or trans-cervical Foley alone on 40 weeks and 3 days (Treatment arm 2, n = 53). Results: At 40 weeks + 3 days gestation, the mean age, mean parity and the mean modified Bishop Score (MBS) were comparable among the two treatment groups. Majority (n = 98, 89.1%) remained without spontaneously establishing labour at 24 hours of intervention. The difference in mean MBS at 40 weeks + 4 days (24-hours following the intervention) in the two groups was statistically not significant (P > 0.05). The group who received concurrent ISMN vaginal tablets achieved a higher number of successful VBACs (n = 33, 62.3%) over the group who received the Foley catheter only method (n = 29, 50.9%), however, not statistically significant (P > 0.05). Conclusions: The concurrent use of vaginal ISMN tablets (60 mg SR) with a transcervical Foley catheter failed to show higher effectiveness compared to a transcervical Foley catheter alone as an induction method. How to cite this paper: Liyanapatabandi, D. , Karunasinghe, J., Ziard, M.H. , Prathapan, R. and Wickramasinghe, S.I. (2021) Pre-Induction Cervical Ripening Using a Transcervical Foley Catheter Combined with ISMN Vaginal Tablets for Vaginal Birth after Previous Caesarean Section (VBAC)—A Comparative Study. Open Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, 11, 1524-1542. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojog.2021. 1111144 Received: September 3, 2021 Accepted: November 15, 2021 Published: November 18, 2021 Copyright © 2021 by author(s) and Scientific Research Publishing Inc. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution International License (CC BY 4.0). http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
A Look at the Ways in Which Universities Offer Common Civil-Mechanical Engineering Courses

Civil and mechanical engineering share the areas of solid and fluid mechanics. Many undergraduate and graduate courses belong to these two vast educational areas. These course include: Engineering Mechanics-Statics, Engineering Mechanics-Dynamics, Strength of Materials, Fluid Mechanics, Basics of the Finite Element Methods, and Numerical Methods in Engineering at the undergraduate level. They also include: Advanced Mechanics of Solids, Elasticity, Plasticity, Experimental Stress Analysis, Fracture Mechanics, Advanced Dynamics, Finite Element Methods, Numerical Engineering Analysis, Plates and Shells, and NonDestructive Testing at the graduate level. Universities and colleges differ in the ways in which they offer these courses. It is important to understand the manner in which these courses are offered by various universities. This paper deals with this topic. The paper analyses five categories in this regard. Some universities offer such common courses as pure civil engineering courses while others offer them through their mechanical engineering departments. Other universities offer such courses jointly between their civil and mechanical engineering departments. In the fourth category, some universities offer such courses to their civil engineering students through their civil engineering departments while at the same time offer the same courses to their mechanical engineering students through their mechanical engineering departments. This turns to be the least common among all five categories. Nonetheless, it is the best way to offer such courses from an educational point of view. In the fifth category, neither the civil engineering department nor the mechanical engineering department offers these common courses. Rather, different departments offer these courses at many universities. This turns to be the most popular among all five categories. Nonetheless, It is the least beneficial way of offering such courses from an educational point of view.
Scattering from a cylindrical waveguide with rectangular corrugations

Electromagnetic scattering from a circular cylindrical waveguide with rectangular corrugations is considered in this paper. An analysis method based on dyadic Green's functions and Fourier transforms is used to get the field in terms of modal currents induced on the corrugation openings. The fields are expressed through a series of modal eigenfunctions in the corrugations, and are integrated to get the unknown expansion coefficients. This analysis method can easily be extended to find the dispersion relations of the corrugated waveguide. The series solution obtained is analytic and suitable for numerical computation. Numerical results are presented to illustrate the scattering behavior of a corrugated cylindrical waveguide in terms of frequency and waveguide geometry.
The perceived importance of technical competence to project managers in the defense acquisition community

Numerous studies have identified attributes which are associated with effective project managers. One of the more frequently cited attributes is technical competence. This study surveyed 228 project managers from the government sector of the defense aerospace community to determine the importance of technical competence to project managers. More importantly, this study examined the influence of several personal and situational factors on the perceived importance of technical competence. The factors included: the experience level of the project manager, the amount of technical education completed by the project manager, the level of technology employed in the project, the phase of the project, and the caliber of the project team. This study determined the perceived importance of technical competence did not vary by level of experience, though project managers who possessed more technical education perceived technical competence to be more important. With regard to the situational factors, the level of technology did not influence the perceived importance of technical competence. However, technical competence was perceived to be more important during earlier phases of the acquisition process. Further, technical competence was perceived to be more important for managers of extremely good teams and mediocre teams than it was to managers of reasonably good teams.
Hands-on instructional strategies for the 21 st century

This paper examines various research-based hands-on instructional strategies for the 21st century that can be used across the curriculum. Among the strategies discussed and examined are nonlinguistic organizers, cooperative learning; learning styles and technology-based examples such as the use of wiki. Instruction must facilitate students learning skills deemed necessary for thriving, not only surviving, in the 21st century: critical thinking, collaboration, creativity, adaptability and global awareness. While this paper cannot cover all examples of instructional strategies necessary for the 21st century where technology is an integral part of our lives and information doubles every 72 hours; the authors endeavor to cover selected research-based effective instructional strategies.
Spectral Element Method Simulation of Linear and Nonlinear Electromagnetic Field in Semiconductor Nanostructures

Spectral Element Method Simulation of Linear and Nonlinear Electromagnetic Field in Semiconductor Nanostructures by Ma Luo Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Duke University Date:_______________________ Approved: ___________________________ Qing Huo Liu, Supervisor ___________________________ William T. Joines ___________________________ Jungsang Kim ___________________________ Yaroslav A. Urzhumov ___________________________ Pei Zhong An abstract of a dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering in the Graduate School of Duke University 2013 Copyright by Ma Luo 2013
Teaching Memristors to EE Undergraduate Students

Generations of electrical engineers have learned that there are three fundamental passive two-terminal circuit elements: resistor, capacitor, and inductor. Nevertheless, this apparently immovable situation changed in 2008 when Nature published an article on the memristor, which was proved to be the fourth fundamental circuit element. Since then, researchers have devoted time and effort to find how this device may pos- sibly change the future of electronics. It is time then to intro- duce the memristor in EE undergraduate courses, but how? The great majority of works on memristor published so far have been aimed at experienced researchers and not at young students. The goal of this paper is providing an original point of view on this issue and describing a simple approach to memristor which is suitable to be used in EE undergraduate courses.
Design of return signal simulator for SAR ground-based test and calibration

Ground-based test and calibration of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) is a very complex program. It needs a practical method and technique to provide a full return signal simulation over the range of in-orbit operating conditions before launch for such a program. Compared with conventional ground-based test methods, the Return Signal Simulator (RSS) is more effective for full system validation and makes test program and procedure greatly simplified. Based upon signal processing of SAR, an advanced RSS system is designed. By using chirp regeneration method, the RSS can achieve 1-10ms time delay between SAR transmitting and simulated signal return, which will realize round trip path delay simulation for various orbit height; By using digital synthesizing method, various target return signal can be simulated. So the RSS system can make prelaunch performance of SAR well known, and this will be very helpful for radiometric calibration after launch. This paper will give detailed description on the RSS system design with its means of testing and calibrating of satellite SAR.
AN EFFICIENT CAR LIKE-MOBILE ROBOT DESIGN Wael M El-Medany, Member of IEEE and IEEE Communications Society,

This paper presents the hardware design and implementation of a car-like mobile robot that work in an efficient way. The robot is programmed to avoid colliding with obstacles in its way by the aid of ultrasonic sensors. It will change its path if the connected sensors detect an obstacle. After passing the obstacle, the robot will continue on its original path. The system was designed using VHDL in a high level design method. All parts of the design have been simulated and implemented using Xilinx tools. The system was tested in both simulation level using ModelSim and hardware level using Xilinx Spartan 3 AN development board.
Modulating eating behavior with transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS): A systematic literature review on the impact of eating behavior traits

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is becoming an increasingly popular technique for altering eating behaviors. Recent research suggests a possible eating behavior trait‐dependent effect of tDCS. However, studies recruit participant populations with heterogeneous trait characteristics, including “healthy” individuals who do not present with eating behavior traits suggesting susceptibility to overconsumption. The present review considers the effects of tDCS across eating‐related measures and explores whether a trait‐dependent effect is evident across the literature. A literature search identified 28 articles using sham‐controlled tDCS to modify eating‐related measures. Random effects meta‐analyses were performed, with subgroup analyses to identify differences between “healthy” and trait groups. Trivial overall effects (g = −0.12 to 0.09) of active versus sham tDCS were found. Subgroup analyses showed a more consistent effect for trait groups, with small and moderate effect size (g = −1.03 to 0.60), suggesting tDCS is dependent on participants' eating behavior traits. Larger effect sizes were found for those displaying traits associated with study outcomes (e.g., heightened food cravings). “Healthy” individuals appear to be unresponsive to stimulation. Based on this meta data, future work should recruit those with eating behavior trait susceptibilities to overconsumption, focusing on those who present with traits associated with the outcome of interest.
Optical integrated circuits

The notorious implication of integrated optics in the nowadays communication systems makes more interesting the development of optical integrated devices and circuits. The evolution of the communication systems was sustained by the integrated optics and it is obvious that the actual interests in the optical communications are also transferred and adapted to integrated optics. The presentation of actual state-of-the-art in this field is a good opportunity both for an evaluation on the above mentioned evolution and for discerning the actual trends and their perspectives. These trends, guided by applicative goals, have to be discussed not only from the theoretical point of view but also from a practical one.
Health Patterns among Migrant and Non-Migrant Middle- and Older-Aged Individuals in Europe—Analyses Based on Share 2004–2017

Introduction: European populations are becoming older and more diverse. Little is known about the health differences between the migrant and non-migrant elderly in Europe. The aim of this paper was to analyse changes in the health patterns of middle- and older-aged migrant and non-migrant populations in Europe from 2004 to 2017, with a specific focus on differences in age and gender. We analysed changes in the health patterns of older migrants and non-migrants in European countries from 2004 to 2017. Method: Based on data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (6 waves; 2004–2017; n = 233,117) we analysed three health indicators (physical functioning, depressive symptoms, and self-rated health). Logistic regression models for complex samples were calculated. Interaction terms (wave * migrant * gender * age) were used to analyse gender and age differences and the change over time. Results: Middle- and older-aged migrants in Europe showed significantly higher rates of depressive symptoms, lower self-rated health, and a higher proportion of limitations on general activities compared to non-migrants. However, different time trends were observed. An increasing health gap was identified in the physical functioning of older males. Narrowing health gaps over time were observed in women. Discussion: An increasing health gap in physical functioning in men is evidence of cumulative disadvantage. In women, evidence points towards the hypothesis of aging-as-leveler. These different results highlight the need for specific interventions focused on healthy ageing in elderly migrant men.
An Effectual Routing Protocol for In-Network Aggregation in Wireless Sensor Networks

The aggregation technique is used to limit the communication cost thereby extending the lifetime of the network. In this work, an alternate is made to resolve how the routing protocol is structured to improve an information-fusion. Heavy traffic occurs and nodes may get failed when multiple sensor nodes detect multiple events. The proposed INASDR (In-Network Aggregation Sensor Data Routing) algorithm minimizes the cost and also saves the resource consumption by constructing the dynamic routes in case of node failure and eliminates the redundant data. The performance of the INASDR compared to three other known routing protocols: The Data Routing for In-Network Aggregation (DRINA), the Information Fusion-based Role Assignment (InFRA) and Shortest Path Tree (SPT) algorithms. Objective: The proposed INASDR algorithm and correlate its performance with other three algorithm. INASDR exceeds other three whereas DRINA and InFRA exceeds SPT in the case of longer event duration alone. INASDR technique achieves 5 to 8% more energy consumption variation when compared to the existing system.This new INASDR Protocol is then compared to the SPT, and DRINA. The Simulation results give that the INASDR will efficiently and effectively minimizes the network delay. The proposed algorithm will outperform the other three algorithms with respect to minimal waiting time.
Game Data Science

This book is aimed at giving readers an introduction to the practical side of game data science and thus can be used a textbook for game analytics or game user research class or as a reference to self learners and enthusiasts. Game data science is a term that we use to denote a process composed of methods and techniques by which an analyst or a data scientist can make sense of data to allow decision makers in a game company to make informed decisions. This process involves: statistical analysis, visualization, abstraction of low-level data, machine learning and sequence data modeling. The book introduces different methods borrowing from different fields including human computer interaction, machine learning, and data science, focusing on methods and techniques used by both industry and researchers within the field of games. The book examples and case studies specifically focus on gameplay log data. The book takes a practical stance on the subject by discussing theoretical foundation, practical approaches, and delves deeply into the different techniques proposed and used through labs, examples, and comprehensive surveys of various case studies from both industry and academia. Topics range from simple approaches to more advanced ones. No prior knowledge is required. The book is developed to be self contained and can be used as a good way to introduce the reader to data science and how it is applied to the filed of games.
An extended dynamic thermal model of a permanent magnet excited synchronous motor

: The purpose of this paper is to develop a dynamic thermal model of a permanent magnet excited synchronous motor (PMSM). The model estimates the temperature at specific points of the machine during operation. The model is implemented using thermal network theory, whose parameters are determined by means of analytical approaches. Usually thermal models are initialized and referenced to room temperature. However, this can lead to incorrect results, if the simulations are performed when the electrical machine operates under “warm” conditions. An approach is developed and dis-cussed in this paper, which captures the model in critical states of the machine. The model gives feedback by online measured quantities to estimate the initial temperature. The paper provides an extended dynamic thermal model, which leads to a more accurate and more efficient thermal estimation.
A Review of the Construction and Performance Analysis of a Haptic Feedback Glove

Construction of a hand glove with haptic feedback actuators attached to every finger is proposed. The actuators are to be individually controlled by a wearable microcontroller system. The input to the microcontroller is to be given over a communication link. Another microcontroller is to be employed to send visual cues to the user by means of transducers like LEDs. Both the systems have to act in synchronism to provide simultaneous visual and haptic feedback and guidance to the user's fingers. It is also proposed to employ this glove to teach Indian music.
Static Analysis is not enough: The Role of Architecture and Design in Software Assurance | NIST

Static analysis testing of software source code is necessary but not sufficient. Of the nearly 1000 CWEs, 40 percent can be introduced in the architecture and design phase of the development life cycle. 2 By their very nature, architectural and design flaws are difficult to find via static analysis. Furthermore, fixes to architectural and design errors can be complex, can inject additional defects, and can alert adversaries to the existence of these weak- nesses. Moreover design flaws can obscure coding bugs that static analysis might otherwise detect, as demonstrated by the Heartbleed vulnerability. 3 This paper describes the techniques that architects and designers can employ to minimize the implementation of architectural and design flaws. "Software design errors are like space explosions. They are seldom heard and hard to spot. You do not see them coming but when they hit, they hit with more energy than they did when initi- ated. Once found, you spend the rest of the project dodging their debris. Spend your time and attention in the design phase. Knock out design flaws while they are small; do not wait until they are death stars. (1)"
The Rise and Fall of Invasive ISP Surveillance

Nothing in society poses as grave a threat to privacy as the Internet Service Provider (ISP). ISPs carry their users' conversations, secrets, relationships, acts, and omissions. Until the very recent past, they had left most of these alone because they had lacked the tools to spy invasively, but with recent advances in eavesdropping technology, they can now spy on people in unprecedented ways. Meanwhile, advertisers and copyright owners have been tempting them to put their users' secrets up for sale, and judging from a recent flurry of reports, ISPs are giving in to the temptation and experimenting with new forms of spying. This is only the leading edge of a coming storm of unprecedented and invasive ISP surveillance. This Article proposes an innovative new theory of communications privacy to help policymakers strike the proper balance between user privacy and ISP need. We cannot simply ban aggressive monitoring, because ISPs have legitimate reasons for scrutinizing communications on an Internet teeming with threats. Using this new theory, policymakers will be able to distinguish between an ISP's legitimate needs and mere desires.In addition, this Article injects privacy into the network neutrality debate - a debate about who gets to control innovation on the Internet. Despite the thousands of pages that have already been written about the topic, nobody has recognized that we already enjoy mandatory network neutrality in the form of expansive wiretapping laws. The recognition of this idea will flip the status quo and reinvigorate a stagnant debate by introducing privacy and personal autonomy into a discussion that has only ever been about economics and innovation.
SYSTEM RELIABILITY ANALYSIS OF SLENDER NETWORK ARCH BRIDGES

In principle, the reliability of complex structural systems can be accurately pre- dicted through Monte Carlo simulation. This method has several attractive features for struc- tural system reliability, the most important being that the system failure criterion is usually relatively easy to check almost irrespective of the complexity of the system. However, the computational cost involved in the simulation may be prohibitive for highly reliable structural systems. Network arched bridges are in their design slender structures which by their efficient configuration can carry loads several times higher than for more traditional tie arched bridg- es with vertical hangers. These bridges are seen as an attractive structure due to their slen- derness which also might make them vulnerable to global system buckling. The buckling reliability of network arch bridges are therefore investigated with emphasis on geometric un- certainties