Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Contactless Palmprint Recognition Using Binarized Statistical Image Features-Based Multiresolution Analysis

In recent years, palmprint recognition has gained increased interest and has been a focus of significant research as a trustworthy personal identification method. The performance of any palmprint recognition system mainly depends on the effectiveness of the utilized feature extraction approach. In this paper, we propose a three-step approach to address the challenging problem of contactless palmprint recognition: (1) a pre-processing, based on median filtering and contrast limited adaptive histogram equalization (CLAHE), is used to remove potential noise and equalize the images’ lighting; (2) a multiresolution analysis is applied to extract binarized statistical image features (BSIF) at several discrete wavelet transform (DWT) resolutions; (3) a classification stage is performed to categorize the extracted features into the corresponding class using a K-nearest neighbors (K-NN)-based classifier. The feature extraction strategy is the main contribution of this work; we used the multiresolution analysis to extract the pertinent information from several image resolutions as an alternative to the classical method based on multi-patch decomposition. The proposed approach was thoroughly assessed using two contactless palmprint databases: the Indian Institute of Technology—Delhi (IITD) and the Chinese Academy of Sciences Institute of Automatisation (CASIA). The results are impressive compared to the current state-of-the-art methods: the Rank-1 recognition rates are 98.77% and 98.10% for the IITD and CASIA databases, respectively.
Recovery of Sparse Signal and Nonconvex Minimization

In this paper, we present sufficient conditions in term of the restricted isometry property (RIP) to guarantee perfect recovery of sparse signal in the noiseless case and stable recovery in the noisy case via Lq-minimization, especially for nonconvex case 0<q<1. Using RIP condition, we present sufficient conditions to guarantee perfect recovery of sparse signal in the noiseless case and stable recovery in the noisy case via Lq-minimization.
A 60/77 GHz dual-band bandpass filter with MMIC technology

This paper presents a novel dual-band bandpass filter with two sets of stub-loaded open-loop resonator, using stepped-impedance, which results in a reduction in size. Two sets of resonators are synthesized using a doublet coupling scheme for 60/77 GHz resonance. The two passbands are flexible due to implement with two parallel transmission paths and tuning each bandwidth independently by changing even-mode resonant frequency. The fractional 3-dB bandwidths at 60 and 77 GHz are 11.4 and 8.3%, respectively. The values at 60 and 77 GHz are −2.26 and −2.63 dB and the values at 60 and 77 GHz are −24.8 and −18.5 dB, respectively. Between the two passbands, the transmission zero at 67 GHz gives nearly 22.6 dB isolation. Good performance makes this system attractive for wireless communications.
Life Satisfaction of Nurses during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Poland

Background: Health care practitioners are at highest risk of COVID-19 disease. They experience an enormous overload of work and time pressures. The objective of the study was to assess nurses’ life satisfaction. Method: The study included professionally active nurses. The research method was an author’s questionnaire and a standardized questionnaire, the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS). Results: The study group included 361 working nurses. The mean raw score and the sten score of the nurses’ responses to the statements on the SWLS questionnaire were 21.0 (SD ± 5.6, range = 5–35) and 5.73 (SD ± 1.94, range = 1–10), respectively. It was shown that lower life satisfaction was experienced by nurses aged 51 to 60 (raw score: p = 0.003, sten score: p = 0.005), as well as nurses with secondary and undergraduate nursing education (raw score: p = 0.061, sten score: p = 0.043). Nurses who had a higher self-evaluation of the level of knowledge about SARS-CoV-2 infection experienced greater life satisfaction (raw score: p = 0.008, sten score: p = 0.022). Conclusions: The majority of Polish nurses surveyed during the COVID-19 pandemic had a low or medium level of life satisfaction. The low response rate to the survey was most likely due to work overloads during the pandemic. Working in a public service profession, a nurse is exposed to stressful conditions related to protecting human health. Constant difficult and stressful situations and total fatigue experienced by nursing professionals can be the cause of a lack of motivation, occupational burnout, listlessness and mental and physical disease. Further research is necessary to assess the factors positively influencing the level of life satisfaction.
A note on breaking waves

Some simple general properties of wave breaking are deduced from the known behaviour of surface gravity waves in deep water, on the assumption that breaking occurs in association with wave groups. In particular we derive equations for the time interval, ז, between the onset of breaking of successive waves: ז ═ T/ |1 – (c⋅ cg)/c2|, and for the propagation vector cb (referred to as the ‘wave-breaking vector’) of the position at which breaking, once initiated, will proceed: cb ═ c (1 – c⋅ cg/c2)+cg. Here c is the phase velocity, and cg the group velocity, of waves of period T. Interfacial waves, internal gravity waves, inertial waves and planetary waves are considered as particular examples. The results apply not only to wave breaking, but to the movement of any property (e. g. fluid acceleration, gradient Richardson number) that is carried through a medium in association with waves. One application is to describe the distribution, in space and time, of regions of turbulent mixing, or transitional phenomena, in the oceans or atmosphere.
On the Deformation of an Elastic Particle Falling in a Viscous Fluid

The steady motion of a flexible solid particle in a quienscent unbounded viscous fluid is investigated theoretically. It is assumed that the particle is a homogeneous, isotropic elastic body obeying Hooke's law and that the undeformed particle is spherical in shape. It is further assumed that the motion of fluid obeys the Stokes equation. It is shown that for small values of the parameter α=η U 0 / G R 0 , where η is the shear viscosity of fluid, G the shear modulus of the particle and U 0 the terminal settling velocity of a rigid particle whose radius is R 0 , the particle deforms into a prolate spheroid and the deviation from a sphere is in proportion to α 2 . The effect of the deformation on the terminal settling velocity of the particle is also included in the analysis.
Ultra-processed foods: a fit-for-purpose concept for nutrition policy activities to tackle unhealthy and unsustainable diets

Abstract Modern nutrition science began approximately 100 years ago in the context of nutrient deficiency diseases. Nutrition research and policy activities were framed mostly within a reductionist paradigm in which foods were analysed as being a collection of their constituent nutrients. Today, nutrition problems extend to all forms of malnutrition as well as environmental sustainability considerations and are associated with food and dietary pattern exposures. In 2009, researchers investigating the nutrition transition in Brazil proposed that industrial food processing was a key determinant of nutrition problems. The NOVA food classification system which is based on the nature, extent and purposes of food processing was developed to operationalise this proposition. The ultra-processed food (UPF) concept within NOVA is receiving much attention in relation to nutrition research and policy activities. This commentary describes the UPF concept as being fit-for-purpose in providing guidance to inform policy activities to tackle unhealthy and unsustainable diets. There is now a substantial body of evidence linking UPF exposure with adverse population and planetary health outcomes. The UPF concept is increasingly being used in the development of food-based dietary guidelines and nutrition policy actions. It challenges many conventional nutrition research and policy activities as well as the political economy of the industrial food system. Inevitably, there are politicised debates associated with UPF and it is apparent a disproportionate number of articles claiming the concept is controversial originate from a small number of researchers with declared associations with UPF manufacturers. Prominent examples of these claims are assessed.
Deformed Zipf's law in personal donation

The power law or Zipf's law phenomena in human behaviors have been widely observed and attracted intensive attention. In this letter, a new evidence on personal donation is presented and analyzed. A sample of donation to the victims of Sichuan earthquake in 2008 demonstrates that donation distribution has a particular pattern. The upper part is governed by Zipf's law and the lower part exhibits a uniform distribution. We propose a theoretical model in which people's wealth distribution follows a power law, they are willing to donate a random part of their wealth and have preferences on some specific numbers. This model provides us not only a reasonable explanation on the empirical donation pattern but also an effective method to get access to large-scale personal-wealth distributions.
Two-dimensional optics with surface plasmon polaritons

We report the experimental realization of highly efficient optical elements built up from metal nanostructures to manipulate surface plasmon polaritons propagating along a silver/polymer interface. Mirrors, beamsplitters, and interferometers produced by electron-beam lithography are investigated. The plasmon fields are imaged by detecting the fluorescence of molecules dispersed in the polymer.
Surface-induced vibrational transition of metastable nitrogen molecules passing through a nano-slit grating

Metastable nitrogen molecules N2* (A 3Σu+) passing through a Si3N4 nano-slit grating (slit width: 50 nm) experience elastic and various inelastic processes, due to diagonal and off-diagonal interactions with the solid surface at short and intermediate distances (10-100a0), i.e. mainly interactions of the van der Waals (vW) type. These processes are observed by use of a velocity selected beam and a time-of-flight analysis combined with angular measurements of scattered metastable molecules. The main feature is the occurrence of an inelastic exothermal process identified, by both its kinetic energy gain and angular dependence, as being a vibrational transition with Δv = − 1. A semi-classical model using a calculated (vW) dispersion energy depending on the orientation of the molecule and the vibrational coordinate is proposed.
Growth-Promoting Effects of Zhenqi Granules on Finishing Pigs

Simple Summary With the ban on using antibiotics as animal growth promoters in many countries, developing alternative growth promoters is of urgent need. In this study, we investigated the growth-promoting efficacy of a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) formula Zhenqi granules (ZQ) in pigs. We show that ZQ has a significant growth-promoting effect in pigs, especially during the finishing stage. To further explore the possible mechanisms of growth promotion, transcriptomics analysis with liver and skeletal muscle tissues are performed that reveals that genes involved in collagen biosynthesis and lipid biosynthetic processes are differentially expressed in the pigs administrated with ZQ. We report for the first time that a TCM formula ZQ has significant growth promotion efficacy in pigs and reveals that it may promote animal growth by regulating skeletal myogenesis and fat deposition. Abstract Developing nonantibiotic livestock growth promoters attracts intensive interest in the post-antibiotic era. In this study, we investigated the growth-promoting efficacy of Zhenqi granules (ZQ) in pigs and further explored the possible mechanisms by transcriptomics analysis. Weaned piglets (52 days old with an average body weight of 17.92 kg) were fed with diets supplemented with different doses of ZQ (0 g/kg, 1 g/kg, and 2 g/kg) for 30 days and continued observations for an additional 32 days after removing ZQ from the diets. Compared with the control group, the average daily gain, carcass weight, average back fat thickness, and fat meat percentage of the group supplemented with 1 g/kg of ZQ showed a significant increase, and the feed/gain ratio was lower. The group supplemented with 2 g/kg of ZQ also showed a significant increase in average daily gain and average backfat thickness. A transcriptomics analysis revealed that the supplementation of ZQ at 1 g/kg upregulated the expression of genes related to collagen biosynthesis and lipid biosynthesis in skeletal muscle and liver. This effect was primarily through upregulating the mRNA levels of structural proteins and lipid-related enzymes. This study demonstrates the growth-promoting efficacy of ZQ and provides some insights of the mechanism of growth promotion.
Asymptotic properties of model selection procedures in linear regression

In the regression analysis, there is typically a large collection of competing models available from which we want to select an appropriate one. This article is concerned with asymptotic properties of procedures for selecting linear models, which are based on certain data-dependent criteria such as Mallows’ C p , cross-validation and the generalized information criterion. We avoid the assumption of an adequate (‘correct’) model and allow the maximal model dimension to increase with the sample size. General asymptotic concepts are introduced, covering the usual ones of consistency and asymptotic optimality. The focus is on conditions for penalizing the model complexity, which are necessary to obtain the different optimality properties. For example, the consistency of a procedure is decided by the interplay between these penalties, the complexity of the class of model candidates, and some quantity describing the ability to identify ‘wrong’ (pseudo-inadequate) models. Many results known from the literature appear as special cases or are slightly modified.
Nonlinear growth of Rayleigh-Taylor instabilities and mixing in SN 1987A

The origin and development of the Rayleigh-Taylor (R-T) instability is studied using an axisymmetric two-dimensional hydrodynamic code. It is observed that mushroomlike structures appear 2000 s after the blast shock and the R-T instability starts to grow at the H/He interface. These results correlate well with the Arnett et al. (1989) data. The extent of mixing in the ejecta of SN 1987A and the relation between R-T instability and mixing are examined. 36 refs.
Ökonometrische Modelle mit raumstruktureller Autokorrelation – Eine kurze Einführung / Econometric Models with Spatial Autocorrelation – An Introductory Survey

Zusammenfassung Querschnittsdaten aus benachbarten Raumgebieten, wie in der Regionalökonomie verwendet, weisen neben Heteroskedastie oft auch gegenseitige Abhängigkeiten auf. Aufgrund des geringen Bekanntheitsgrades der Raumstrukturellen Ökonometrie wird es häufig versäumt, die wechselseitige Beeinflussung der Beobachtungen durch Modelle zu berücksichtigen, welche raumstrukturell autokorrelierte Endogene oder Fehlerterme aufweisen. Dieser Beitrag stellt deshalb nicht nur das Konzept der raumstrukturellen Autokorrelation vor, sondern zeigt als Innovation auch mögliche Konsequenzen der Nichtberücksichtigung einer tatsächlichen Interdependenzstruktur auf. Ferner werden geeignete Testverfahren für solche Prozesse dargestellt, sowie Schätzmethoden diskutiert: KQ erweist sich als nicht anwendbar, während Maximum Likelihood-Schätzer rechentechnische Probleme verursachen, so daß GMM-Verfahren vorzuziehen sind. Die Eigenschaften der erwähnten Methoden in endlichen Stichproben werden mit Hilfe von Monte Carlo-Studien verdeutlicht. Summary Cross section data originating from neighboring spatial units - frequently used in Regional Sciences - is not only affected by heteroscedasticity but is often also mutually dependent. This dependency can be taken into account by using models explicitly designed with spatially autocorrelated error terms or dependent variables. Due to lacking familiarity this field of Spatial Econometrics is often neglected. In order to improve this situation, the paper is not restricted to a survey about the most common spatial autocorrelation models: After a short introduction about the general inclusion of space into econometrics and how the concept of spatial autocorrelation works, possible consequences of not taking the interdependence structure into account are shown as a novel feature. After that, useful test statistics are mentioned and their general properties are discussed. Furthermore it is shown that OLS is not suitable when estimating such autocorrelation processes and that ML may cause computional burden. A favorable GMM methodology is therefore presented. The explanation of these topics is complemented by some Monte Carlo studies which examine the small sample properties of the tools mentioned.
The crossing number of G ▭ Cn for the graph G on six vertices

The crossing numbers of Cartesian products of paths, cycles or stars with all graphs of order at most four are known. The crossing numbers of G□Cn for some graphs G on five and six vertices and the cycle Cn are also given. In this paper, we extend these results by determining the crossing number of the Cartesian product G □ Cn, where G is a specific graph on six vertices.
A Rotation Angle Estimation Method Based on Phase of ART

Several methods which utilize the phase of Zernike moments (ZMs) to estimate the rotation angle have shown good performance in terms of accuracy. In this paper, we provides the performance comparison results of the existing rotation angle estimation methods based on ZMs and propose an extension of Revaud et al.'s method (1) which utilizes the phase of ZMs; the proposed method uses angular radial transform coefficients instead of ZMs and yields better performance than the ZMs based methods in terms of accuracy. A set of ART can describe angular variation of image more intensively than ZMs, it enables more accurate estimation of the rotation angle than ZMs. In the experiments, the proposed method outperforms ZMs based method. Comparisons were made in terms of the root mean square error vs. the coverage on MPEG-7 shape dataset.
Age and Sex: The Demographic Factors Matter in Sight Care Treatment Decision in Nepal

Even though existing philosophy advocating patients should be active partakers in treatment decision-making about their care, the literature suggests that patients require be informing but not involving. Eyesight treatment-decision of the participants involving free Eye-Care-Camp in a one-day free Eye-Care-Camp organized by Krim Samaj with the technical support of Tamnagar Chasma Ghar were considered with 91 responses. Two technical officers checked up the eye conditions. On the Treatment Decision-Making, they overwhelmingly wished to be performed by the technical officers. Near and free service was a most influencing factor for the treatment decision. Age significant result regarding eyesight care treatment-decision was appeared in the study. Although the treatment decisions of patients were autonomous up to the participation in free eye care camp, few wishes to hand over the treatment decision-making control to their technical personalities. The findings suggested that choices are not free but controlled under the technical officer, and household decision. Hidden serious eye problems not exhibited in household got the chance to disclose and the patients got the idea what to do further.
Gigapixel imaging with a novel multi-camera array microscope

The dynamics of living organisms are organized across many spatial scales. However, current cost-effective imaging systems can measure only a subset of these scales at once. We have created a scalable multi-camera array microscope (MCAM) that enables comprehensive high-resolution recording from multiple spatial scales simultaneously, ranging from structures that approach the cellular scale to large-group behavioral dynamics. By collecting data from up to 96 cameras, we computationally generate gigapixel-scale images and movies with a field of view over hundreds of square centimeters at an optical resolution of 18 µm. This allows us to observe the behavior and fine anatomical features of numerous freely moving model organisms on multiple spatial scales, including larval zebrafish, fruit flies, nematodes, carpenter ants, and slime mold. Further, the MCAM architecture allows stereoscopic tracking of the z-position of organisms using the overlapping field of view from adjacent cameras. Overall, by removing the bottlenecks imposed by single-camera image acquisition systems, the MCAM provides a powerful platform for investigating detailed biological features and behavioral processes of small model organisms across a wide range of spatial scales.
Bridging the Grade Gap: Reducing Assessment Bias in a Multi-Grader Class

Abstract Many large survey courses rely on multiple professors or teaching assistants to judge student responses to open-ended questions. Even following best practices, students with similar levels of conceptual understanding can receive widely varying assessments from different graders. We detail how this can occur and argue that it is an example of differential item functioning (or interpersonal incomparability), where graders interpret the same possible grading range differently. Using both actual assessment data from a large survey course in Comparative Politics and simulation methods, we show that the bias can be corrected by a small number of “bridging” observations across graders. We conclude by offering best practices for fair assessment in large survey courses.
Transcatheter Occlusion of Left-To-Right Shunts in Premature Infants with Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia

Introduction: Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) and atrial septal defects (ASDs) cause pulmonary overcirculation, potentially worsening bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) in premature infants. Transcatheter device occlusion of these defects is feasible and safe, though no case-controlled studies have assessed respiratory outcomes in infants with BPD. We hypothesized infants with BPD and ASDs or PDAs would experience improved respiratory outcomes following device occlusion of these lesions as compared to those who did not. Methods: We conducted a single-center, retrospective case-control study of premature infants diagnosed with BPD and either a small to large ASD or a small to moderate PDA from 2015 to 2021. The intervention group underwent transcatheter device occlusion of their defects and the control group did not. We compared changes in BPD severity over time between these two groups. Results: The control and intervention groups demonstrated comparable baseline demographics. Of the 15 patients in the intervention group, 9 underwent PDA device occlusion and 6 underwent ASD device occlusion at median postmenstrual age of 42 weeks (IQR 41–45 weeks). Despite having higher severity BPD at baseline, there was a more pronounced improvement in BPD severity in the intervention group as compared to the control group. Discussion: Premature infants with BPD and an ASD or PDA who underwent transcatheter occlusion of their lesion demonstrated a faster rate of improvement of their BPD severity as compared to a control cohort with similar lesions who did not undergo device occlusion of their lesion.
Efficient calibration for problems in option pricing

The pricing of derivatives has gained considerable importance in the finance industry and leads to challenging problems in numerical optimization. We focus on the numerical solution of a stochastic model for option prices. In particular, we are concerned with the calibration of these models to real data, which leads to large scale optimization problems. We consider the numerical solution of these optimization problems and give some indication how to reduce the complexity of these problems. Special emphasis is devoted to a multi‐layer strategy which is embedded into the optimization iteration. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)