Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Land use/land cover dynamics and perception of the local communities in Bita district, south western Ethiopia

ABSTRACT Human settlements and swift expansion of agriculture have simplified the natural ecosystems and causing the loss of copious biological diversity. The current study was conducted in Bita district, southwestern Ethiopia to examine the pattern of land use/land cover (LULC) dynamics using multispectral satellite data for the years 1973, 1986, 2000 and 2018. The remote-sensed data were processed using ERDAS imagine 2014, ArcGIS map 10.5, and ENVI software. A supervised maximum likelihood classification algorithm was employed along with the visual interpretation of satellite images to classify each Landsat image into LULC categories. Semi-structured interviews and Focus Group Discussions were employed to identify major driving forces, impacts, and periodic LULC changes. The result revealed an alarming decrease in forestland but with an increase in the cropland. During the study periods, cropland, bareland and settlement areas have augmented by over 450% each. Conversely, grasslands and forestlands have reduced by over 45% each. The local communities perceived the population growth, and the expansion of coffee plantations and other croplands as the dominant drivers of LULC changes. The respondents also observed that the decline in forest cover triggered the loss of biodiversity, soil fertility and water availability. Decision-making on issues related to natural resource conservation, utilization and participatory resource management has to involve the engagement of the local community and other stakeholders. The deterioration in ecosystem services such as lack of benefits from medicinal plants from the forest, increase land degradation, and the decrease in water availability found to be the impacts of LULC change. This calls for a proper natural resource management plan and improvement in the livelihood of the community in the study area.
Fighting the Infodemic on Two Fronts: Reducing False Beliefs Without Increasing Polarization

Actors aiming to remedy the effects of health misinformation often issue corrections focused on individual outcomes (i.e., promoting individual health behaviors) rather than societal outcomes (i.e., reducing issue polarization). Yet, for highly politicized health crises like the COVID-19 pandemic, such interventions run the risk of exacerbating societal cleavages, driving those holding opposing views further apart from one another. Interventions yielding individual benefits but causing societal harm are certainly not ideal. But is the design of such dual-focus corrections even possible? We believe this to be the case. Here, we delineate an agenda for future research that should help social scientists in identifying the characteristics of corrections that might reduce false beliefs without increasing polarization.
Global-DGMRES method for matrix equation AXB = C

In this paper, we present a new algorithm Global-DGMRES to find the Drazin inverse solution of the linear matrix equation AXB = C, where at least one of the matrices A or B is rank deficient. This method is based on oblique projection process, onto matrix Krylov subspaces. Also, we study convergence properties of this algorithm. The matrix equation AXB = C is a mathematical model for deblurring problems and the Global-DGMRES method helps us to reconstruct blurred images corresponding to this matrix equation. Moreover, by numerical results, we compare the proposed method with Global-LSMR and Global-LSQR.
A simplified space vector modulation implementation for modular multilevel converter by grouping submodules

Modulation strategy plays an important role in the good performance of modular multilevel converter (MMC). Since MMC has a special structure as well as a large number of submodules (SMs), it is almost impossible to apply the conventional multilevel space vector modulation (SVM) algorithm in it. In this study, a simpliﬁed SVM implementation method is proposed by grouping SMs. With the presented method, the high-level SVM process for MMC can be easily done by implementing multiple two-level or three-level SVM algorithm, while the complicated ofﬂine or online efforts/tasks about mapping switching states or sequences in the conventional multilevel SVM are not necessary any more. In order to improve the harmonic characteristics, the sampling time of different subunits (SUs), each of which is formed by grouping a few SMs, is staggered evenly, which helps to achieve a higher equivalent switching frequency and less low-order harmonics. Further, the capacitor voltage balance of SMs is improved by rotation strategies between SUs or inside each SU even without any capacitor voltage detecting or sorting. Since the presented method is independent of the number of SMs, it can be very easily expanded into a high-level MMC. These propositions are veriﬁed by experiment.
Infrared and Visible Image Fusion Based on Modal Feature Fusion Network and Dual Visual Decision

Infrared and visible image fusion can integrate the complementary information of infrared and visible images to realize a more accurate scene interpretation. In this paper, a novel infrared and visible image fusion framework is proposed, which is based on a modal feature fusion network (MFFN) and a dual visual decision fusion module. Firstly, the infrared and visible images are decomposed by side window filtering to obtain the modal feature components, which can emphasize the target information of the source images. Secondly, MFFN is designed to merge the modal feature components to get a modal fused image. Then, a dual visual decision fusion module is built to obtain a supplement image which can provide more visual supplementary information for the modal fused image. Lastly, the final fusion result is achieved by combining the supplement image and the modal fused image. Experimental results show that the proposed method can generate fusion results with clearer targets and richer texture details, compared with other state-of-the-art fusion methods.
Technical Note: Temporal disaggregation of spatial rainfall fields with generative adversarial networks

Abstract. Creating spatially coherent rainfall patterns with high temporal resolution from data with lower temporal resolution is necessary in many geoscientific applications. From a statistical perspective, this presents a high- dimensional, highly underdetermined problem. Recent advances in machine learning provide methods for learning such probability distributions. We test the usage of generative adversarial networks (GANs) for estimating the full probability distribution of spatial rainfall patterns with high temporal resolution, conditioned on a field of lower temporal resolution. The GAN is trained on rainfall radar data with hourly resolution. Given a new field of daily precipitation sums, it can sample scenarios of spatiotemporal patterns with sub-daily resolution. While the generated patterns do not perfectly reproduce the statistics of observations, they are visually hardly distinguishable from real patterns. Limitations that we found are that providing additional input (such as geographical information) to the GAN surprisingly leads to worse results, showing that it is not trivial to increase the amount of used input information. Additionally, while in principle the GAN should learn the probability distribution in itself, we still needed expert judgment to determine at which point the training should stop, because longer training leads to worse results.
Performance evaluation of two supplemental confirmatory assays of hepatitis C virus antibody

Background: The overall relative change in Hepatitis C virus (HCV) reporting incidences was 1.16 in China recently, which exhibited increasing trend in most provinces. Screening tests for HCV antibodies are prone to generate higher false positivity in low-risk populations. The aim of this study was to compare the performance of two HCV supplemental confirmatory assays CWT (Wantai Biological Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, Beijing, China) and RIBA HCV 3.0 SIA (RIBA 3.0). Methods: We selected 530 reactive specimens identified by two rounds of anti-HCV enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (EIA) to carry out CWT and RIBA 3.0 supplemental tests simultaneously. Then the parallel testing results were evaluated as positive, indeterminate and negative, and made comparative analysis. Results: There were 182 and 160 confirmed positive samples for CWT and RIBA 3.0 respectively, of which 128 (24.2%) cases were common positive. the positive rate of CWT (34.3%) was significantly higher than RIBA 3.0 (30.2%) (P<0.01). And the common negative and indeterminate specimens were 156 (29.4%) and 53 (10%). The remaining 193 (36.4%) specimens had inconsistent results. The 182 CWT positive specimens included 35 indeterminate specimens (22%, 35/164) and 18 negative specimens (8.7%, 18/206) of RIBA 3.0. The diagnostic results of RIBA 3.0 and CWT supplementary assays were generally consistent (kappa =0.445, P<0.01). Conclusions: This study suggested that RIBA 3.0 and CWT each had its own genetic sequences of target peptides on HCV confirmatory tests and the latter might be more applicable for China’s current HCV epidemic strains. The number of positive cases confirmed by CWT is higher than that of RIBA 3.0, which corroborates this.
The Hidden Unwelcome: How Buildings Speak and Act

A few years ago, Natalia needed to obtain a document from a town hall. Eager to be first in line, and get a trivial bureaucratic practicality over with quickly, she rolled her wheelchair to the main entrance 15 minutes before opening. Time went by, and numerous people queued behind her. When the main doors opened, she suddenly realized that, past the first door, there was a second revolving glass door. While the queue waited for her to react, she was in doubt whether her wheelchair would fit through the small, rounded passage. Once the first and second people walked past and entered the building using the revolving door, she noticed yet another door in the corner—a perfect fit for the wheelchair-sized her—but one that was locked. By now, the next few people walked by. Through a glass panel, Natalia saw a security guard inside, next to the front desk. Surely, he must have the key to open the other entrance made for people like her, who did not fit through the revolving door. However, the security guard was busy passing out advice to the ‘fit-people’ who were already inside, and did not notice the ‘un-fit’ other who remained outside. For a moment, she was consumed by the sight of dozens of people passing her. The idea of ‘getting in’ and ‘getting out’ quickly was dropped. Natalia was growing upset and decided to give the rotating door a chance. From the outside, it looked as if she was stubbornly planning to squeeze a square peg into a round hole. But maybe, if she pushed the wheelchair into the widest corner of the arched triangle. nope, wheelchair got stuck—right in the middle—and the rotating door stopped. Completely helpless and reliant on assistance, she got the guard’s attention as well as all the angry people who were now stuck behind her and could not enter the building. After much back and forth and some muted (behind glass panels) comments within the scope of curse, Natalia was finally freed from her crystal cell and could go on with her day. The handicapped-door remained locked until she asked for ‘permission’ to leave the building an hour and a half later.
Daily-life Physical Activity of Young Healthy Adults Associates with Function and Structure of the Hippocampus

Research on the impact of physical activity (PA) has shown that PA produces changes in the structure and function of a brain structure called the hippocampus. There are three main limitations in this research. First, the majority of the work has been carried out in elderly populations and as such, there is a paucity of research on the impact of PA on the brains of healthy young individuals. Second, whereas PA is typically assessed through controlled interventions, changes in the brain due to PA as performed during daily-life activities has not been explored. Finally, the hippocampus has a complex internal structure and the impact of PA on this internal structure is unclear. Here we examined how structural and functional aspects of the hip-pocampus are associated with habitual PA performed during work, leisure time and sports in the daily lives of young healthy adults. We found that PA performed during work time correlated with increased subicular volumes and with changed functional connectivity between a location in middle/posterior hippocampus and regions of the default mode network and between a location in anterior hippocampus and regions of the somatomotor network. No effects of PA performed during leisure time and sports were found. The results generalize the impact of PA to younger populations and show how PA performed in daily-life situations correlates with the precise internal structure of the hippocampus.
Consumer Choice Models and Estimation: A Review and Extension

Choice models are widely applied in psychology, economics, transportation, marketing, and operations studies. We review the existing developments on the modeling of consumers’ choices, including the attraction model, the utility‐based model, the temporal model, and the rank‐based model. The relationships among different classes of structural models are established and analyzed. Moreover, an operational data analytics (ODA) framework is presented to estimate the general consumer choice model using data. This framework, generalizing the existing estimation methods for specific structural models, strikes a delicate balance between the (likely imprecise) structural knowledge and the data. This is achieved by articulating the domain of validation through extending the structural knowledge and by formulating the data‐integration model based on the associated structural properties. We demonstrate the implementation of the ODA framework to identify the appropriate consumer choice models. The ODA estimate outperforms the existing parametric and nonparametric methods, particularly over the choice sets that are not covered in the data. We also discuss potential future research of developing ODA approaches to study the related aspects of consumer choice models.
Harvesting Vibration Energy and Wind Energy by a Bi-stable Harvester: Modeling and Experiments

In realistic environments, there often appears the concurrence of base excitation and blowing wind. Harvesting both vibration energy and wind energy by an unique harvester is attractive. In this paper, we proposed a harvester integrating bi-stability and galloping to realize this aim. The nonlinear dynamical model of the bistable energy harvester under concurrent wind and base excitations is established. The galloping effects on the responses are explored based on the established model, for both harmonic and random excitations. The corresponding experiments are conducted to validate the theoretical prediction. The experimental results are consistent with the simulation results. At a wind speed of U=2 m/s, the bandwidth of large-amplitude inter-well motion of the bi-stable energy harvester is extended by about 18.5%. The critical random excitation level for snap-through is reduced by 58% and the total output voltage at random excitation is increased by 53.4%. Thus, the harvester could scavenge the wind and vibration energies at a high efficiency. These conclusions could be helpful for improving the harvesting efficiency in the real environment.
Interactive Effects of Antimony and Silicon on Their Uptake and Accumulation by Rice Seedling in Solution Culture

Antimony(Sb)is a toxic element and silicon(Si)can alleviate metal toxicity. A solution culture experiment was carried out to investigate the effects of Si and Sb interaction on uptake and accumulation of Si and Sb by rice(Oryza sativa L.)seedling. Two forms of antimony[Sb(Ⅲ)and Sb(Ⅴ)] inhibited rice growth, with Sb(Ⅲ)being more toxic. Addition of silicon could alleviate Sb toxicity to rice seedlings.Concentrations of Si in rice roots and shoots were significantly affected by additions of Sb(Ⅲ)and Sb(Ⅴ). At 1.0 mmol·L-1 Si, adding 30μmol·L-1Sb(Ⅲ)and Sb(Ⅴ)significantly decreased Si concentrations in rice roots by 46.0% and 36.0% and in rice shoots by 52.2%and 23.5%, respectively, compared with the control. Likewise, Si addition significantly decreased concentrations of Sb in rice roots and shoots. Compared with the control, applying Si at 1.0~2.0 mmol·L-1decreased Sb concentrations in rice roots and shoots respectively by52.0%~88.4% and 24.6%~45.4% in 10 μmol·L-1Sb(Ⅲ)solution, while by 53.8%~75.5% and 34.8%~49.6% in 10 μmol·L-1 Sb(Ⅴ)solution. In addition, Si significantly reduced bio-accumulation factor and distribution ratio of Sb in rice roots and shoots. These results suggest that Si application can inhibit Sb uptake and accumulation by plants, and thus reduce Sb risk to human health.
Dual-Polarized Filtering Magnetoelectric Dipole Antenna Utilizing Intrinsic Highpass Filter Network and Integrated Lowpass Filter Network

This article presents an effective design method to integrate bandpass filtering response into an aperture-fed dual-polarized magnetoelectric dipole (ME-dipole) antenna. The antenna is composed of a traditional ME-dipole radiator and a modified aperture-coupled feeding structure. In one aspect, highpass filtering radiation response is realized by approximating the antenna radiator as a highpass filter network. In another aspect, by developing an improved aperture-coupled feeding structure with lowpass filter characteristics, the antenna obtains lowpass filtering radiation response. As a result, bandpass filtering radiation response is achieved. Since no intricate filter resonators are used, the in-band antenna gains are not degraded. The highpass/lowpass filter networks are studied and specific radiation nulls generated by the two networks are analyzed. For demonstration, a single-polarized model is presented first and its working mechanism is studied in detail. It realizes a 78.6% impedance bandwidth, flat in-band gains of 7.5–7.8 dBi, and more than 22 dB out-of-band radiation suppression level. Then, based on the same methodology, a dual-polarized antenna model i developed with 69.3% operating bandwidth, 7.1–9.3 dBi measured in-band gains, and integrated bandpass filtering radiation response.
Solid Dispersions Of Curcumin

Solid dispersions of curcumin was studied to increase its aqueous solubility. Different carrier such as HPMC, HEC, PVP, high molecular weight PEG such as 1500, 4000, 20000, poloxamers such as Cremophor and Lutrol-127 were used in the preparation. Both fusion and solvent methods were adopted for the preparation of solid dispersions. Curcumin was successfully solubilised using Cremophor and PEG 20000 to get a concentration of 18 mg/ml. Increase in rate of dissolution compared to the pure drug was observed. Release pattern may be by first order kinetics.
Group classification and analytical solutions of a radially symmetric avascular cancer model

We consider a system of partial differential equations modeling tumors. The system under consideration describes the spatial dynamics of the tumor cells, extracellular matrix, and matrix degrading enzymes. We first carry out a complete group classification of the Lie point symmetries of this model. Next, we use symmetry techniques to construct invariant solutions for it. In addition, we consider a second system of partial differential equations, coupling to the original one the concentration of oxygen, and we find several analytical solutions to this system. Most of the solutions are biologically relevant and consistent with the evolution of such tumors.
An Elliptical Cylindrical Shaped Transmitarray for Wide-Angle Multibeam Applications

A transmitarray antenna with an elliptical cylindrical shape is presented for a wide-angle multibeam radiation in this communication. The transmitarray has a cylindrical radiating aperture with an elliptical cross-section, namely, elliptical cylindrical shape. Multiple feeds can be placed on the middle horizontal plane to realize multiple beams. Inspired by a 2-D Ruze lens, the antenna shape and the phase compensation are jointly designed according to the desired maximal beam direction. Innovative methods including a feed refocusing analysis and a virtual focal length are utilized to achieve the phase compensation across the 3-D aperture for multiple beam radiations with a small scanning loss. In order to validate the proposed antenna, a prototype operating in the millimeter-wave (mm-wave) $E$ -band has been designed, fabricated, and measured. By changing the position of the feeding gain horn along the refocusing arc, the main beam of antenna can be scanned in 11 directions. The measured peak boresight realized gain is 27 dBi at 70.5 GHz and a beam coverage of ±43° with a less than 2.7 dB scanning loss is obtained.
From Glaciated Landscape to Unglaciated Seascape: Transformation of the Hambergbreen–Hambergbukta Area, SE Spitsbergen, 1900–2017

In 1900 the present Hambergbukta fjord did not exist and its basin was filled with the huge Hambergbreen glacier. The glacier then experienced progressive recession during a period of climate warming. The retreat of its front was perhaps the most spectacular expression of this recession. Eventually, a small bay named Hambergbukta appeared in 1936. By the 1950s the bay had become transformed into a new fjord 6 to 7 km long and 3 to 4 km wide. Its basin was progressively abandoned by the glacier and flooded by the sea. After 1961, the glacier surged and refilled the fjord basin with a fissured glacier tongue, and the fjord coastline became occupied by lateral ice-moraine ridges. Since 1970, the Hambergbreen glacier has undergone progressive recession again, resulting in the formation of the present-day Hambergbukta fjord. There exist significant differences in the landforms found between the northern and southern fjord coastlines: The former consists mainly of preserved lateral ice moraine ridges, whereas in the latter the ice cores have melted and low coastal plains have formed. This transformation continues to the present day. The Hamberbukta fjord has currently achieved its largest dimensions (including length), while being closed off from more inland areas by two tidewater glaciers: remnants of the Hambergbreen and Sykorabreen glaciers, the latter being a tributary glacier of the former in the 1980s.
A 32 nm single-ended single-port 7T static random access memory for low power utilization

In this paper, a seven-transistor static random access memory (SRAM) bit cell with a single bitline architecture is proposed. This cell is designed at 32 nm and is operational at 300 mV. The static noise margin for the read and hold modes is 90 mV, while the write margin is 180 mV. Monte Carlo analysis for 6σ global variations and temperature variation analysis for temperatures in the range −10 °C to 80 °C validate its performance. The cell is compared with other single-ended 5T, 6T, 7T, 8T, 9T and 10T SRAM cells and is found to be superior in performance. As the leakage current is low, the I ON /I OFF ratio is high compared with the other cells. The power consumption of the bit cell is also found to be minimal for all modes of operation. The dynamic write analysis demonstrates that the proposed cell completes the write operation in a 10 ns pulse width. Moreover, the improvement in performance is obtained for an area as low as 0.539 µm2. The area of 5T, 6T, 7T-1, 7T-2, 7T-4, 7T-5, 8T, 9T and 10T cells is greater than the 7TP bit cell area by 22.17%, 51.8%, 35.8%, 13.9%, 30.4%, 6.78%, 56.6%, 63.3% and 75.5%, respectively.