Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Baroclinic multipole evolution in shear and strain

In a two-layer quasi-geostrophic model, the evolution of a symmetric baroclinic multipole, composed of a central vortex with strength μκ in the upper layer, and A satellites with strength κ in the lower layer, is studied. This multipole is imbedded in a center-symmetric shear/strain field, either steady or time-periodic. Special attention is given to the case of the tripole (A = 2). The stability of this tripole is assessed and its oscillations in the external field are analyzed. Conditions for resonance of these oscillations are derived and transition to chaos is described.
Scattering from a rough sedimental seafloor containing shear and layering

A simple first‐order perturbation approach is presented, which directly determines the acoustic field scattered by a rough seafloor. The theory is based on the Born approximation. The seafloor is allowed to be shear‐supporting or to be layered. Scattering strengths are derived for both monostatic and bistatic scattering, and discussed with respect to their dependence on seafloor parameters and roughness spectrum. Power‐law wave‐number spectra are found to be appropriate for explaining important features of backscatter, which are the magnitude, the frequency, and grazing‐angle dependence. For grazing angles below critical, shear‐wave velocities exceeding some 350 m s−1 significantly modify the scattering strength. With respect to narrow‐band acoustic signals layering of the seafloor may be of importance. Numerical results are presented for the frequency range 10–100 kHz.
Transient Resonance Scattering and Target Identification

The article presents an overview of transient resonance scattering, emphasizing one of its most important applications—the active classification of sonar and radar targets. It discusses traditional, classical techniques such as the Watson-Sommerfeld method (WSM) to transform classical, and slowly convergent normal-mode series in the frequency domain, to rapidly convergent series in the domain of the complex generalization, λ, of the mode-order, n. In view of its analytical complexity and the advent of computers that can overcome slow convergence difficulties, the WSM is not as popular today as it once was. Its main advantage remains its ability to extract physical interpretations from the mathematical results. Resonance scattering focuses on the resonance spectral region of targets. Of these, the penetrable (ie, elastic or dielectric) ones are the subjects of main interest here, particularly those insonified/illuminated by (finite) pulses of various types. The authors describe the exact isolation and extraction of the resonances contained within the scattering cross-section of a penetrable target by subtraction of suitable, background, geometrical contributions. These backgrounds are often given by the solution for an identical, but impenetrable target. This seems to be the main usefulness of impenetrable target solutions in underwater acoustics, which, generally, are physically unrealistic idealizations. The resonances identify the target as its fingerprint. Examples are shown to illustrate various transient scattering phenomena in acoustics and electromagnetism. The article shows exactly how the broadband pulses emitted by an impulse sonar (or radar) extract a substantial number of resonances from the echoes of penetrable targets. Further, it is shown how these are actually used to identify all physical characteristics of various analyzed targets, thus, indeed identifying them. The application of a novel signal processing technique that analyzes the echoes in the joint time-frequency domain is examined. This shows much promise for target identification purposes. Many distributions of the Wigner-type were used by us to generate simulated and experimental echo-displays in time-frequency that show the advantages of the process. The present overview supplements two earlier ones [23, 48] on closely related subjects. The article includes 101 references.
Association of Cardiovascular Disease and Physical Activity Phenotypes with Falls among Midlife and Older Adults: 2018 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System

ABSTRACT Background The role of physical activity (PA) in mitigating fall risk among adults with cardiovascular disease (CVD) is unclear. Purpose We examined the associations of CVD–PA phenotypes with falls. Methods Adults ≥ 45 years (n = 295,282; N = 130,103,093) from the 2018 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System who self-reported CVD, leisure-time PA, and falls were examined. The weighted prevalence ratio (PR) of any, recurrent, and injurious falls across CVD–PA phenotypes (no CVD–PA, no CVD–no PA, CVD–PA, CVD–no PA) was estimated. Results The likelihood of any, recurrent, and injurious falls was higher across unhealthier CVD–PA phenotypes in fully adjusted models. In the total sample, no CVD–no PA (PR: 1.30; 95% CI: 1.10, 1.50), CVD–PA (PR: 1.35; 95% CI: 1.10, 1.60), and CVD–no PA (PR: 1.39; 95% CI: 1.11, 1.67) phenotypes were more likely to report injurious falls than no CVD–PA phenotype. Discussion Engaging in leisure-time PA may be an important lifestyle strategy for fall prevention in midlife and older adults who are at risk of CVD. Translations to Health Education Practice Our findings could be useful for health education in providing evidence on future fall prevention programs in adults who are at risk for CVD and falls.
Positive bias caused by residual water in reference PM10 measurements

Dry aerosol mass concentrations (PM10, PM2.5) are determined after conditioning of the filter at t =20 ± 1 °C and RH=50 ± 5% for 48 hours according to the standard protocol EN 12341. The main result of this work is that applying the standard pre-conditioning step, complete removal of adsorbed water cannot be attained. In our experiment, aerosol samples collected in Budapest between November 2008 and March 2010 using a CEN (European Committee for Standardization) gravimetric sampler (Digitel, DHA-80) were studied. Following PM10 mass concentration measurements according to the EN 12341 protocol, we repeated the gravimetric aerosol mass measurements in the laboratory using a glove box after in-situ pre-conditioning for 48 h at t =20 ± 1 °C and RH < 30%. We assumed that at this low relative humidity all the adsorbed residual water was removed, and the absolute dry mass concentrations of PM10 could be determined (referred in the following as dry PM10 concentration). The mass concentration of adsorbed residual water, defined as the difference between the results of the standard and dry PM10 measurements, varied greatly in the range of 0.05–16.9 μg m−3. Expressed relative to the absolute dry PM10 mass concentrations, the residual water content in the standard measurement procedure amounted to 4.2 ± 1.5% and 7.9 ± 0.8% in summer and winter, respectively. In winter, relative contributions of adsorbed water as high as 33.2 m/m% was found. The significant seasonal differences as well as the large variations between individual samples may depend on various factors such as the chemical composition of the samples, particle load, and the RH history of the particles before and after sample collection. This last factor is expected to exert rather significant influence on the amount of adsorbed residual water, yet it is impossible to reconstruct. These findings have severe implications on reported dry PM10 mass concentrations using the EN 12341 protocol, especially in the winter period when most limit exceedances occur.
Perceptions of General Attitudes towards Older Adults in Society: Is There a Link between Perceived Life Satisfaction, Self-Compassion, and Health-Related Quality of Life?

Negative attitudes towards aging are common in society. However, few studies have investigated how older adults perceive this phenomenon. This study investigated (a) how older adults in Sweden perceive general attitudes towards the older population and whether negative perceptions are associated with low life satisfaction, self-compassion, and health-related quality of life (HRQL), and (b) whether perceived attitudes predict life satisfaction when controlling for HRQL, self-compassion, and age. The sample comprised 698 randomly selected participants, aged 66–102 years, from the Blekinge part of the Swedish National Study on Ageing and Care. The results showed that 25.7% of the participants held negative attitudes towards older adults and reported lower life satisfaction and HRQL. Self-compassion was related to higher life satisfaction, perceived positive attitudes, and better mental HRQL. Overall, perceived attitudes, HRQL, self-compassion, and age predicted 44% of the participants’ life satisfaction. Understanding the factors that influence older adults’ life satisfaction is crucial, as health-related losses might reduce the opportunity for a successful life. Our study makes an important contribution to the field, showing that perceived attitudes explained 1.2% of the variance of life satisfaction, whereas mental and physical HRQL accounted for 18% of life satisfaction.
U.S. Traditional Public School Principals’ Sensemaking of Their Role as School Marketers

The purpose of this study was to report how principals describe their role as marketers for their school and examine how these perceptions influence the ways in which principals engage in their daily work. To investigate this phenomenon I conducted 30 interviews with 10 traditional public school principals in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Specifically, I asked: How, if at all, do principals report acting as marketers for their school? and (2) How do marketing-related activities influence principals’ traditionally thought of work? The findings of this work indicate principals believe one of their most pressing responsibilities as school leader is to market their school to parents/guardians and the local community. As a result of this belief, principals spend a significant amount of time engaging in marketing-related tasks such as promoting their school and building a brand that is recognizable to the community.
ON THE STRUCTURE OF BOK GLOBULES.

Polytropic models are constructed for Bok globules, and the calculated density distributions are used to obtain theoretical curves of Aupsilon versus radius. These curves, when compared with observations, will provide the density structure and the temperature required to prevent collapse for the globules. Also used are published values of Aupsilon versus radius for B361 and Coalsack globule 2 and it is found that B361 resembles an n = 1.75 polytrope while globule 2 resembles an n = 2.5 polytrope. Therefore, at densities of about 100,000/cu cm these two globules are centrally condensed. It can also be predicted that if their measured temperatures turn out to be no greater than about 12 K, then they are already collapsing.
Using topological constraints as context for the joint classification of image regions in a traffic environment

This paper presents an approach using context knowledge in form of topological constraints to improve the classification result for an automated scene analysis. The approach consists of an initial segmentation, in which the image is divided into a set of disjoint regions based on their respective color values and a subsequent joint classification, where the generated image regions are assigned to object classes. The classification is performed according to extracted feature measurements and context knowledge about the spatial relationships between the different object classes. The classification task is formulated as an optimization problem using a maximum a posteriori estimation rule. The classification criteria are combined using the Bayesian theorem, where feature measurements and context are coded as conditional probability density and a priori probability, respectively. A Markov random field model is used to get an analytical expression for the symbolic context knowledge. Through its associated Gibbs distribution a systematic way for designing the appropriate functional form of context is found. The optimization task is solved by applying an evolutionary algorithm. Due to a problem-related formulation of the necessary operators this has been proven to be a very efficient search strategy. The performance of the presented approach is demonstrated on synthetic and real world images, showing typical scenarios of road traffic on motorways.
Asymptotic characterizations of IOSS

We present characterizations of input-output-to-state stability (IOSS). This is a notion of detectability formulated in the input-to-state stability (ISS) framework. Equivalent properties are presented in terms of asymptotic estimates of the state variables on the basis of external information provided by input and output signals. Such results, when applied to other stability notions such as integral ISS and, DISS, provide equivalent characterizations involving asymptotic gains for the corresponding stability notions as well.
Comparative Assessment of the Quality and Potential Uses of Groundwater in a Typical Rural Settlement in Colombia

The Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations (SDGs) establish the need to guarantee quality water for all people. In numerous rural settlements of Colombia, access to clean drinking water is a formidable challenge as frequently observed when waterborne diseases arise, mainly in vulnerable populations without basic sanitation systems. The main objective of this study was to assess the quality and potential use of groundwater sampled from 17 monitored wells in a typical rural settlement in Colombia. Water quality was determined by applying a quality index and performing a principal component analysis (PCA) to determine the weights of each parameter. The results of the Phosphorus, Nitrates, Thermotolerant coliforms and pH variables exceeded regulatory limits, mainly in areas affected by anthropogenic sources with an insufficient sewage network. Coliform population and NO3 exceeded World Health Organization recommended thresholds for drinking water. Therefore, the qualities of the studied water samples were unsuitable for human consumption without prior adequate treatment and, hence, one recommendation is to regulate groundwater monitoring quality. In addition, unhealthy waste disposal practices should be abolished, while permanently controlled modern techniques should be introduced.
Classical Communication and Entanglement Cost in Preparing a Class of Multi-qubit States

Recently, several similar protocols [J. Opt. B 4 (2002) 380; Phys. Lett. A 316 (2003) 159; Phys. Lett. A 355 (2006) 285; Phys. Lett. A 336 (2005) 317] for remotely preparing a class of multi-qubit states (i.e, α|0.0〉 + β|1.1〉) were proposed, respectively. In this paper, by applying the controlled-not (CNOT) gate, a new simple protocol is proposed for remotely preparing such class of states. Compared to the previous protocols, both classical communication cost and required quantum entanglement in our protocol are remarkably reduced. Moreover, the difficulty of identifying some quantum states in our protocol is also degraded. Hence our protocol is more economical and feasible.
Maps of fo F2, hm F2, and plasma frequency above F2-layer peak in the night-time low-latitude ionosphere derived from Intercosmos-19 satellite topside sounding data

Abstract. Maps of fo F2, hm F2, and plasma frequency, fp , in the topside ionosphere at low latitudes, derived from Intercosmos-19 satellite topside sounding data, obtained from March 1979 to January 1981 and covering all longitudes, are presented for quiet geomagnetic conditions in June and December solstices at solar maximum for several local time intervals during the night. Based on these maps, features of the equatorial anomaly (EA) at different longitudes and their change during the night are considered. The maps show that averaged fo F2, hm F2, and fp longitudinal variations are rather complicated, their structure looks wave-like with quasi-periods in longitude of about 75–100°, similar to that on individual days revealed previously at low latitudes using Intercosmos-19 data. Positions of the structure extrema in certain longitude intervals are stable enough so that they are clearly seen in the maps after averaging over a large number of measurements made on different days and even in different years. Such structure seems to need at least five harmonics for its description. The maps derived from Intercosmos-19 data were compared with the maps given by the IRI model. Along with general resemblance, essential distinctions between them were found. Intercosmos-19 maps show more complicated and pronounced longitudinal structure than IRI maps. They also show that at solar maximum, in general, at night, EA is stronger and persists for a longer time (on average, until 04:00 LT) than that presented in IRI model. Besides, much stronger asymmetry between the characteristics of the EA northern and southern crests in certain longitude intervals was revealed, most evident in hm F2 maps.
The Making of the Modern Middle East: A Personal History

In the book under review here, veteran BBC journalist and “Middle East hand” Jeremy Bowen presents his readers with an array of articles reflecting his vast experience in that part of the world. The title reflects the focus of his writing, and the subtitle makes clear that it is neither a history book nor a dispassionate, chronological description of events. Rather, on offer is an impressionistic, personal view of the region, and Welsh-born Bowen is uniquely suited to serve as narrator, having covered the Middle East closely since the mid-1990s and served as BBC Middle East editor since 2005. His previous books include Six Days: How the 1967 War Shaped the Middle East and The Arab Uprisings: The People Want the Fall of the Regime.
Demonstration of two-pump fiber optical parametric amplification

We describe, for the first time to our knowledge, experimental demonstration of a pulsed optical parametric amplifier (OPA) with 12 dB maximum gain and a CW OPA with 1.5 dB maximum gain. For the pulsed OPA demonstration, the pumps consisted of a DFB laser at 1555 nm and a tunable external-cavity laser (ECL) operating at 1533.2 nm. For the CW OPA, a 12 km dispersion-shifted fiber (DSF) was used for the nonlinear gain medium because the power per pump under CW condition was only 50 mW.
Tracing basal resource use across sea‐ice, pelagic, and benthic habitats in the early Arctic spring food web with essential amino acid carbon isotopes

A rapidly warming Arctic Ocean and associated sea‐ice decline is resulting in changing sea‐ice protist communities, affecting productivity of under‐ice, pelagic, and benthic fauna. Quantifying such effects is hampered by a lack of biomarkers suitable for tracing specific basal resources (primary producers and microorganisms) through food webs. We investigate the potential of δ13C values of essential amino acids (EAAs) (δ13CEAA values) to estimate the proportional use of diverse basal resources by organisms from the under‐ice (Apherusa glacialis), pelagic (Calanus hyperboreus) and benthic habitats (sponges, sea cucumber), and the cryo‐pelagic fish Boreogadus saida. Two approaches were used: baseline δ13CEAA values, that is, the basal resource specific δ13CEAA values, and δ13CEAA fingerprints, or mean‐centred baseline δ13CEAA values. Substantial use of sub‐ice algae Melosira arctica by all studied organisms suggests that its role within Arctic food webs is greater than previously recognized. In addition, δ13CEAA fingerprints from algae‐associated bacteria were clearly traced to the sponges, with an individually variable kelp use by sea cucumbers. Although mean‐centred δ13CEAA values in A. glacialis, C. hyperboreus, and B. saida tissues were aligned with microalgae resources, they were not fully represented by the filtered pelagic‐ and sea‐ice particulate organic matter constituting the spring diatom‐dominated algal community. Under‐ice and pelagic microalgae use could only be differentiated with baseline δ13CEAA values as similar microalgae clades occur in both habitats. We suggest that δ13CEAA fingerprints combined with microalgae baseline δ13CEAA values are an insightful tool to assess the effect of ongoing changes in Arctic basal resources on their use by organisms.
A Microwave/Millimeter-Wave Shared-Aperture Antenna Based on Slow-Wave Parallel-Plate Waveguide

Since the coexistence of microwave (MW) and millimeter-wave (MMW) technologies has become the inexorable trend of emerging wireless communication systems, the corresponding antennas are required to support two frequency bands simultaneously. However, the existing MW/MMW shared-aperture antennas are facing challenges in dealing with the interference between two bands and implementing beam steering at both bands. To address these issues, a windowed slow-wave parallel-plate waveguide (WSW-PPW) is proposed as the sharing platform, on which MW and MMW antenna elements can be flexibly arranged. WSW-PPW is implemented by embedding electromagnetic bandgap (EBG) structures into a dual-layer printed PPW. At the MW band, WSW-PPW exhibits a transmission feature for feeding and also integrating MW antenna elements. At the MMW band, WSW-PPW rejects the propagation of electromagnetic waves and functions as artificial magnetic boundaries for dielectric resonator antennas, which are realized by removing subarrays of EBG structures. For demonstration, an MW/MMW shared-aperture antenna is implemented by integrating a $1\times $ 2 MW patch array and a $1\times $ 8 MMW array on this platform. Steerable beams had been independently achieved at both bands. The antenna is fabricated and experimentally verified. The measured results show a reasonable agreement with simulations.
Stacked microstrip antenna with wide bandwidth and high gain

A stacked microstrip antenna with two parasitic elements, one of which increases the impedance bandwidth and the other which enhances the gain, has been investigated experimentally. The effects of each parasitic element have been clarified as well as the characteristics of the stacked three-element antenna and the design procedure for the stacked microstrip antenna have been described.
Stability analysis of variational inequalities and nonlinear complementarity problems, via the mixed linear complementarity problem and degree theory

This paper is concerned with the mixed linear complementarity problem and the role it and its variants play in the stability analysis of the nonlinear complementarity problem and the Karush-Kuhn-Tucker system of a variational inequality problem. Under a nonsingular assumption, the mixed linear complementarity problem can be converted to the standard problem; in this case, the rich theory of the latter can be directly applied to the former. In this work, we employ degree theory to derive some sufficient conditions for the existence of a solution to the mixed linear complementarity problem in the absence of the nonsingularity property. Next, we extend this existence theory to the mixed nonlinear complementarity problem and establish a main stability result under a certain degree-theoretic assumption concerning the linearized problem. We then specialize this stability result and its consequences to the parametric variational inequality problem under the assumption of a unique set of multipliers. Finally, we consider the latter problem with the uniqueness assumption of the multipliers replaced by a convexity assumption and obtain stability results under some weak second-order conditions. In addition to the new existence results for the mixed linear complementarity problem, the main contributions of this paper in the stability category are the following: a resolution to a conjecture concerning the local solvability of a parametric variational inequality, the use of the generalized linear complementarity problem as a tool to broaden the second-order conditions, the characterization of the solution stability of the linear complementarity problem and the affine variational inequality problem in terms of the solution isolatedness under some weak hypotheses, and various stability theorems under some weak second-order conditions.