Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Development and challenge for soil mechanics

With the development of society and economy,the range of the engineering problems that soil mechanics has to deal with is increasing;and these problems also become more and more complicated due to the interaction between soils and environments.In order to deal with these problems,the classical soil mechanics is required to be generalized and developed in depth and scope to incorporate the effects of new phenomena and new variables on soil behaviours.Based on a historical review of the development of soil mechanics,it is suggested that the classical soil mechanics faces three challenges:(1) lack of a unified,rational and theoretical framework of soil mechanics;(2) the knowledge and understanding of unsaturated soil behaviours is insufficient;(3) lack of a unified,rational and theoretical framework for multifield coupling problems of soils under multiple environmental actions.Finally,some problems beyond the scope of the classical soil mechanics are discussed.
The Influence of Biological and Aerosol Parameters of Inhaled Short-lived Radon Decay Products on Human Lung Dose

The purpose of this article is to assess the influence of biological and aerosol parameters on human lung dose with regard to a comparison with the corresponding recommended dose values of the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP). The dose conversion factor which gives the relationship between effective dose and potential alpha energy concentration of inhaled short-lived radon decay products ( 218 Po, 214 Pb, 214 BiP/ 214 Po) is calculated with a dosimetric approach. The calculations are based on a lung dose model with a structure that is related to the recently recommended ICRP respiratory tract model. Because of the short half-lives of the investigated nuclides, simplifying modifications of the model were possible. Firstly, the underlying assumptions of the model are described. Secondly, important input parameters of the model are varied to assess the uncertainty of the dose conversion factor due to the uncertainty of these parameters. The main emphasis is focussed on biological and aerosol parameter variability like variation of breathing rate and breathing mode, clearance rates, critical cells for the induction of lung cancer, particle size and dispersion of the activity size distributions. The possible range of dose conversion factors is discussed both for indoor and mine aerosol conditions in the framework of the presented dose model. The investigation shows that the dosimetric approach leads to a dose conversion convention which is a factor of more than two times higher than the recommended epidemiological values of the ICRP of 3.9 mSv.WLM -1 for the public and 5.1 mSv.WLM -1 at working places. The dosimetric results yield both for indoor and mine aerosol conditions dose conversion factors in the range of 10 mSv.WLM -1 to 15 mSv.WLM -1 depending on breathing mode.
Austenitizing Temperature Effects on the Martensitic Transformation and its Influence on Simulated Welding Residual Stresses in a Microalloyed-Steel

This study focused on the effects of different peak (austenitizing) temperatures (T p ) over the martensite start temperature (M s ) and its influence on the final residual stresses after welding simulation. For this purpose, the expansion coefficients obtained through physical (dilatometric) simulations of a high-strength low-alloy steel were considered for three peak temperatures: 1300 °C, 1150 °C, and 920 °C and a cooling rate of 25 °C/s. Aiming at clarifying the physical phenomenon behind GTAW welding, one carried out nonlinear transient thermomechanical finite-element (FE) analyses to reconstitute the welding process and simulate the subsequent formation of residual stresses in the HAZ. Once the heat source simulation was calibrated, four material models were created, one for each T p , and a fourth model considering a constant expansion coefficient, without considering the martensite transformation for comparison. A Three-bar model was evaluated to isolate the effects of T p (M s ) in the residual stresses. A composite plate model was also considered, in which the sheet HAZ was subdivided according to the reached peak temperature, and the respective material models were applied. The results show the importance of martensite transformation on the welding-induced residual stress and a clear trend of decreasing tensions with lowering the T p , especially over HAZ.
SIQR epidemical model with continuous vaccinal immunity and bilinear incidence rates

The global stability of SIQR epidemiological model with continuous vaccinal immunity and bilinear incidence rates is discussed.The reproduction number for the model is found,which determines the existence of the infective disease.By means of linearization and Liapunov-Lasalle invaicant set theorem,the stable results of various equilibriums are obtained.The joint influences of quarantine period,infected period,and vaccinal immunity on the disease are exposed.
On snowball sampling, random mappings and related problems

If a rumour is spread in a population through random contacts between its members, to how many people, on average, will the rumour be told? What can be said about the variations in the number of people who have heard the rumour? Does it matter very much whether a single person or a group of persons starts spreading the rumour? Questions such as these are discussed below, using the framework of a simple stochastic model for snowball sampling.
Adaptive sliding-mode control for stochastic Markovian jumping systems with actuator faults

This study is concerned with the fault tolerant control for stochastic Markovian jumping systems with actuator faults including loss of effectiveness, stuck, and outage. By introducing switching laws and according to the information from the adaptive scheme, a novel adaptive sliding mode controller is designed, which ensures the closed-loop system to be robustly stochastically stable in the presence of actuator faults. Moreover, the reachability of the sliding surface and the stability of the sliding mode dynamics are guaranteed in spite of actuator faults and Markovian jumping. Finally, a simulation example is given to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.
Importance of Cardiac Rehabilitation in Patients with Structural Heart Changes Secondary to Ankylosing Spondylitis: A Case Report

Patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) may present with cardiac manifestations, mainly valvular disease and dilation of the aortic root. Rehabilitation programs to improve cardiovascular capacity are important for maintaining the quality of life of these patients, which often deteriorates with disease impairments and dysfunctions when not corrected. We report a case of a 67-year-old man, diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis 20 years ago with structural cardiac changes. The patient underwent a rehabilitation program that involves stretching, aerobic and resistance exercises, and health education. In order to analyze the patient’s effort during activities of daily living and instrumental activities, we used Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion Scale. With constant rehabilitation, the patient maintained functional capacity in activities of daily living and instrumental activities over the years even with structural heart changes.
Identification of Molecular Markers Associated with COPD in non-smokers and smokers: A Bioinformatics Analysis

Background: Even though the proportional burden of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) among never-smokers is significant in both developing and developed nations, accounting for around 30% of all COPD in the community, there is little awareness of the prevalence of COPD in this population. Understanding the molecular processes that underlie COPD in nonsmokers is essential. Methods: A dataset (GSE146560) was acquired from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO). The limma and clusterProfiler software tools were used to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and conduct a functional enrichment analysis respectively. Results: In all, 10,583 DEGs were found, of which 1,065 were up-regulated and 9,518 were down-regulated. Kyoto Ency-clopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways such as neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction, taste transduction, maturity onset diabetes of the young, Hippo signaling pathway, insulin secretion, dilated cardiomyopathy, morphine addiction
Numerical Study of Different Closure Approaches for Prediction of Forced Convective Turbulent Cylindrical Cavity Flows

The present work exhibits a numerical study comparing the fluid dynamic and thermal fields of turbulent, three-dimensional forced convective cylindrical cavity flows obtained with Large Eddy Simulation (LES) and Reynolds-Averaged Navier Stokes (RANS). In the latter approach, three different closure models are employed: Reynolds Stress Model (RSM), standard k – ε and standard k - ω. It is considered a three-dimensional, incompressible, turbulent fluid flow at the steady state with ReD = 22,000 and Pr = 0.71. The main purpose is to investigate whether discrepancies are noticed in time-averaged and statistics of turbulent flows between LES and RANS predictions. Differences in time-averaged and statistical fields can be important for evaluation of convective fluxes in turbulent flows and combined convective and radiative transfer in participant media, i.e., for study of Turbulence-Radiation Interactions (TRI). The spatially-filtered and time-averaged conservation equations of mass, momentum and energy are solved with the Finite Volume Method (FVM). Results showed that time-averaged and RMS thermal fields obtained with LES and RANS presented reasonable discrepancies in regions near the cavity surfaces, which affects the convective fluxes in this region. For the highest temperature region of the cavity (near its inlet) the predictions obtained with LES and RANS are similar, which can led to similar predictions in heat exchange when thermal radiation is taken into account in optically thin participant media. For optically thick media, where local differences increase their importance, the employment of RANS is not recommended.
MaizeNet: A Deep Learning Approach for Effective Recognition of Maize Plant Leaf Diseases

The presence of various maize plant leaf diseases has significantly decreased both the quality and quantity of crop production. In order to take the appropriate steps to prevent the occurrence of plant leaf diseases, it is essential to track and recognize such infections during the planting period. However, correct recognition of numerous maize diseases is difficult to achieve because the currently employed automated solutions are operationally complicated or only effective on samples with plain backgrounds. While real-world scenarios are suffering from huge sample distortions like the effect of noise, clutter in the background, and blurring of the leaf regions that increase the complexity of the recognition procedure. To alleviate the above-listed problems, a deep learning (DL) approach called the MaizeNet is proposed for the correct localization and classification of various maize crop leaf disorders. We have presented an improved Faster-RCNN approach that utilizes the ResNet-50 model with spatial-channel attention as its base network for the computation of deep keypoints which are then localized and categorized into various classes. The proposed work is tested on a standard database named Corn Disease and Severity that contains samples from three different classes of maize plant diseases which are captured under diverse conditions such as complex background, brightness, and color and size variations. The MaizeNet model attains an average accuracy score of 97.89% along with mAP value of 0.94, which is showing the effectiveness of our approach for locating and classifying the numerous types of maize leaf infections.
Assessing Chinese Textile and Apparel Industry Business Sustainability: The Role of Organization Green Culture, Green Dynamic Capabilities, and Green Innovation in Relation to Environmental Orientation and Business Sustainability

The current study aims to evaluate the role of environmental orientation (EO) on green dynamic capabilities (GDCs), organization green culture (OGC), and green innovation (GIN) toward business sustainability (BUS) in the context of Chinese textile and apparel manufacturing firms. Natural resources-based view (NRBV) and dynamic capabilities view (DCV) were used as the theoretical lenses of the research. This study is quantitative, and a purposive sampling technique was employed to collect data from the managers working in textile and apparel manufacturing firms in China. The sample size consisted of 339 managers. Partial least-square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was employed to analyze the data. The study’s findings show that EO significantly and positively influences OGC and GDCs. However, the positive influence of EO on GIN was insignificant. Moreover, the result indicates that GIN is a significant mediator in the relationships between OGC and BUS and GDCs and BUS. The results demonstrate how the Chinese textile and apparel industry EO improves GDCs, GIN, and OGC, which, in turn, benefits achieving long-term business sustainability.
Desempeño mecánico y tribológico de baldosas cerámicas de arcilla roja recubiertas por proyección térmica a partir de alúmina

Mechanical and tribological performance of red clay ceramic tiles uncoated and coated by oxy-fuel thermal spraying process from α-Al2O3 powder was evaluated. The ceramic tile substrates were manufactured by uniaxial pressing at 30 bar pressure, and sintered at 1100°C, while alumina Sulzer-Metco 105SPFTM was used as feedstock powder to elaborate coatings with three different thicknesses. Both, the bending and the deep abrasion resistances were evaluated according to ISO 10545-4 e ISO 10545-6 standards respectively. The results obtained indicate that the deep abrasion in the ceramic tiles decreases when the thickness of alumina coating increases. On the other hand, the bending resistance of ceramic tiles coated increased between 5 and 49% regarding to those uncoated. These results contribute to the development of ceramic products with high value added, which can be used in various technological applications.
Reviewing Publicly Available Reports on Child Health Disparities in Indigenous and Remote Communities of Australia

Developing programs that ensure a safe start to life for Indigenous children can lead to better health outcomes. To create effective strategies, governments must have accurate and up-to-date information. Accordingly, we reviewed the health disparities of Australian children in Indigenous and remote communities using publicly available reports. A thorough search was performed on Australian government and other organisational websites (including the Australian Bureau of Statistics [ABS] and the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare [AIHW]), electronic databases [MEDLINE] and grey literature sites for articles, documents and project reports related to Indigenous child health outcomes. The study showed Indigenous dwellings had higher rates of crowding when compared to non-Indigenous dwellings. Smoking during pregnancy, teenage motherhood, low birth weight and infant and child mortality were higher among Indigenous and remote communities. Childhood obesity (including central obesity) and inadequate fruit consumption rates were also higher in Indigenous children, but Indigenous children from remote and very remote areas had a lower rate of obesity. Indigenous children performed better in physical activity compared to non-Indigenous children. No difference was observed in vegetable consumption rates, substance-use disorders or mental health conditions between Indigenous and non-Indigenous children. Future interventions for Indigenous children should focus on modifiable risk factors, including unhealthy housing, perinatal adverse health outcomes, childhood obesity, poor dietary intake, physical inactivity and sedentary behaviours.
Characteristics of Synaptic Function of Mesoporous Silica–Titania and Mesoporous Titania Lateral Electrode Devices

In this paper, we have fabricated non-volatile memory resistive switching (RS) devices and analyzed analog memristive characteristics using lateral electrodes with mesoporous silica–titania (meso-ST) and mesoporous titania (meso-T) layers. For the planar-type device having two parallel electrodes, current–voltage (I–V) curves and pulse-driven current changes could reveal successful long-term potentiation (LTP) along with long-term depression (LTD), respectively, by the RS active mesoporous two layers for 20~100 μm length. Through mechanism characterization using chemical analysis, non-filamental memristive behavior unlike the conventional metal electroforming was identified. Additionally, high performance of the synaptic operations could be also accomplished such that a high current of 10−6 Amp level could occur despite a wide electrode spacing and short pulse spike biases under ambient condition with moderate humidity (RH 30~50%). Moreover, it was confirmed that rectifying characteristics were observed during the I–V measurement, which was a representative feature of dual functionality of selection diode and the analog RS device for both meso-ST and meso-T devices. The memristive and synaptic functions along with the rectification property could facilitate a chance of potential implementation of the meso-ST and meso-T devices to neuromorphic electronics platform.
Development of NAVDAS-AR: formulation and initial tests of the linear problem

A 4-D implementation of an observation space variational data assimilation system is under development at the Marine Meteorology Division of the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL). The system is an extension of the current US Navy 3-D operational data assimilation system, the NRL Atmospheric Variational Data Assimilation System (NAVDAS). The new system, NAVDAS-AR, where AR stands for accelerated representer, is similar in many respects to the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) 4DVAR system. However, NAVDAS-AR is based on a weak constraint observation space, while the ECMWF system is based on a strong constraint model space. In this paper the formulation of NAVDAS-AR is described in detail and preliminary results with a perfect model assumption and comparisons with the operational NAVDAS are presented.
Applying a data-driven gender lens to air pollution policies in the ASEAN region

This report highlighted opportunities in the ASEAN region for more equitable and inclusive policymaking on air pollution – in terms of developing evidence-based policies through use of gender disaggregated data collection and analysis and in terms of the impacts of their implementation. To illuminate the unequal burdens of air pollution, the authors shared case studies in the ASEAN region of approaches that better use and disaggregate data. These case studies demonstrate how policy decisions need to be based on data that highlight the differentiated and gendered health and socio-economic impacts of air pollution and other environmental challenges. The authors also reported on previous research in the region that examines air pollution and health impacts with a gender and intersectional lens, which has been minimal to date.
COPD with Eosinophilic Inflammation is Susceptible to Particulate Air Pollution Exposure

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has been linked to air pollution exposure. Air pollution has been associated with eosinophilic inflammation of respiratory disease. The objective of this study was to determine associations between air pollution and eosinophilic inflammation in COPD. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 291 COPD patients recruited from hospitals in Taipei between January 2014 and 2021, including 147 patients with eosinophil blood count ≥ 2% and 144 patients < 2%. Land use regression (LUR) model was used to estimate exposure levels to particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter of < 10 µ m (PM 10 ), PM 2.5 ( < 10 µ m), nitrogen oxides (NO x ) and nitrogen dioxides (NO 2 ). We investigated associations of air pollution with COPD outcomes by performing a linear regression approach. A two-pollutant approach was applied to examine the associations of PM 10 or PM 2.5 with NO x or NO 2 in COPD with eosinophilic inflammation. An increase of 1 µ g m –3 in PM 10 was associated with a 0.62% (95% CI: –1.10%, –0.13%) decrease in the forced vital capacity (FVC) in COPD. An increase of 1 µ g m –3 in PM 2.5 was associated with a 0.38% (95% CI: –0.71%, –0.05%) decrease in the FVC. A 1 µ g
Maximum Entropy Analysis of Lattice QCD Data

of Dissertation Maximum Entropy Analysis of Lattice QCD Data An application of the maximum entropy method (MEM) to the analysis of lattice QCD correlation function is presented. We use state-of-the-art MEM by adopting Bryan’s method to make the algorithm more efficient. This is achieved by performing singular value decomposition on the kernel of the correlation function which reduces the search space of Q(A) = αS − L from O(103) to O(10). We employ the MEM to study excited states of a number of baryons and mesons by extracting hadronic spectral functions (SPF) from the correlation functions. The LQCD data sets were generated by the χQCD collaboration on a 20 × 32 lattice with spatial volume of (3.5 fm) covering a wide range of 26 quark masses. Several tests are performed to extensively investigate the capability and limitation of the MEM. The first excited states and ground states of N( 2 ± ), Λ( 2 ± ), Σ( 2 ± ), Ξ( 2 + ), and ∆( 2 + ) baryons, as well as π and K∗ mesons are obtained. There are data of other hadron states, however, whose excited states fail to be reliably produced by the MEM. Although we are able to study the excited states in the chiral region with the quark mass as low as 175 MeV, we do not attempt chiral extrapolation because the quality of the data are not sufficiently refined to do reliable extrapolation. The overall results are shown to be consistent with experiment and other works in LQCD and MEM.
Effects of Extreme Temperature and Precipitation Events on Daily CO2 Fluxes in the Tropics

The effects of anomalous weather conditions (such as extreme temperatures and precipitation) on CO2 flux variability in different tropical ecosystems were assessed using available reanalysis data, as well as information about daily net CO2 fluxes from the global FLUXNET database. A working hypothesis of the study suggests that the response of tropical vegetation can differ depending on local geographical conditions and intensity of temperature and precipitation anomalies. The results highlighted the large diversity of CO2 flux responses to the fluctuations of temperature and precipitation in tropical ecosystems that may differ significantly from some previously documented relationships (e.g., higher CO2 emission under the drier and hotter weather, higher CO2 uptake under colder and wetter weather conditions). They showed that heavy precipitation mainly leads to the strong intensification of mean daily CO2 release into the atmosphere at almost all stations and in all types of study biomes. For the majority of considered tropical ecosystems, the intensification of daily CO2 emission during cold and wet weather was found, whereas the ecosystems were predominantly served as CO2 sinks from the atmosphere under hot/dry conditions. Such disparate responses suggested that positive and negative temperature and precipitation anomalies influence Gross Primary Production (GPP) and Ecosystem Respiration (ER) rates differently that may result in various responses of Net Ecosystem Exchanges (NEE) of CO2 to external impacts. Their responses may also depend on various local biotic and abiotic factors, including plant canopy age and structure, plant biodiversity and plasticity, soil organic carbon and water availability, surface topography, solar radiation fluctuation, etc.