Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Motorcycle Clutch Grip Strength

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the maximum grip force a user can exert on a motorcycle clutch. In a laboratory setting subjects (57 male; 34 female, 95% right-handed) were asked to exert maximum grip strength using their left hand on an actual motorcycle clutch that was instrumented with a load cell. The clutch was capable of being fixed in 5 different positions, allowing maximum grip measurements at A=5.0 cm, B=6.5 cm, C=8.0 cm, D=9.5 cm, E=11.0 cm grip spans. Average maximum grip force for females (179 N) was exerted at the 5.0 and 6.5 cm grip spans, while males exerted their highest force (334 N) at the 6.5 and 8.0 spans. For all grip spans, male subjects exerted significantly higher grip forces than female subjects (p<0.05). Additionally, females ranked 6.5 cm span (B) as the most comfortable grip span, while males ranked the 8 cm span (C) as highest for comfort. Data collected in this study can be applied to motorcycle clutch design or other lever controls that require a planar grip operated by the hands, particularly the left hand.
Mapping and Measuring Fragmentation in Global Governance Architectures: A Framework for Analysis

Over the past 20 years, world politics has become increasingly complex due to a proliferation of institutions, actors, norms, and discourses in global affairs. Lacking overarching organization and hierarchy, governance architectures, i.e. the “overarching system of public and private institutions that are valid or active in a given issue area of world politics” (Biermann et al. 2009, 15), have turned into a patchwork of institutions marked by diversity in terms of character, constituencies, scope, and subject matter resulting in institutional overlaps and gaps, contestation and synergy, integration and fragmentation. While scholars have started to study the dyadic relations among international institutions (Oberthur and Stokke 2011; Oberthur and Gehring 2006) as well as the complex interactions that occur within what Keohane and Victor (2011) have termed “regime complexes”, we currently lack a detailed understanding of the degree of fragmentation across different policy domains. Hence, to understand the contemporary architecture of global governance, improved mappings of governance structures and appropriate indicators and metrics for measuring degrees of fragmentation are urgently needed. This paper outlines a conceptual and methodological framework for mapping and measuring fragmentation in global governance architectures based on a 2-step approach. First, global governance architectures are mapped to include the key governance arrangements of an issue area. Criteria for inclusion/exclusion of governance arrangements are (a) international and transnational scope, (b) intentionality to steer the behaviour of members, (c) explicit mentioning of governance goal, and (d) identifiable governance functions. Second, four indicators are applied to measure fragmentation: institutional constellations, actor constellations, norm constellations and discourse constellations. The framework can be used to examine the structural properties of global governance architectures and thereby aid further studies on the fundamental drivers and explanatory factors underlying fragmentation of governance.
The construction of a Gossypium AD-genome-wide comprehensive reference map based on diverse data resources

The Construction of a Gossypium AD-genome-wide Comprehensive Reference Map Based on Diverse Data Resources. (May 2009) Jing Yu, B.S., Beijing Normal University, China; M.S., Cornell University Co-Chairs of Advisory Committee: Dr. Russell J. Kohel Dr. C. Wayne Smith Integration of two or more genomic maps provides a higher density of markers and greater genome coverage than can be obtained with the resources available for a single mapping study. Map integration is important in any species for which an annotated complete genome sequence is not available. For organisms currently being sequenced, a pre-sequence integrated map is essential to provide the ''backbone'' for assembly of the sequence. Map integration also facilitates the identification and resolution of discrepancies among different maps; mapping of QTLs, ESTs, and BACs; and positioning of candidate genes. However, the inconsistencies in markers and populations used in individual mapping studies limit our ability to fully integrate the available data. By concentrating on marker orders rather than marker distances, one can join together published map data to include a majority of markers with the best estimate of their order in the genome. In this study, a comprehensive reference map was constructed from 28 published cotton AD genome maps. The output reference map contains 7,424 markers and represents over 93% of the
Effect of a commercial probiotic on oxidative stress induced by high stocking density in nile tilapia fingerlings

This study examined the effect of a commercial probiotic ( Lactobacillus acidophilus ) on oxidative stress induced by different levels of stocking density in Nile tilapia fingerlings. Fish were divided into 6 groups: group1: control (90 fish/m 3 ), group 2: control (90 fish/m 3 ) with probiotic, group 3: high stocking density Ι (150 fish/m 3 ), group 4: high stocking density Ι (150 fish/m 3 ) with probiotic, group 5: high stocking density П (300 fish/m 3 ), group 6: high stocking density П (300 fish/m 3 ) with probiotic for 30 days. The results showed increase in the activities of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) by increased stocking density compared with their respective control. Activities of AST and ALT at high stocking density Ι, П with addition of probiotic decreased compared to their respective high stocking densities in liver and white muscles. The activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPX), glutathione reductase (GR) and glutathione S-transferase (GST) decreased by increasing stocking density with compared with their respective control in liver and white muscle. However, they increased significantly in high stocking density Ι, П with probiotic compared with high stocking density Ι, П. The xanthine oxidase (XO) activity and malondialdehyde (MDA) level increased by increasing stocking density compared with their respective control and decreased in high stocking density Ι, П with addition of probiotic compared with high stocking density Ι, П. The data concluded that probiotics enhanced the oxidative stress caused by high stocking density in liver and white muscles in Oreochromis niloticus .
Gaussian Kernel Density Estimation-based Background Modeling with Noise and Shadow Suppression

A multimodal nonparametric background model is proposed to detect moving objects by background subtraction. In outdoor surveillance systems, the solution to some of the problems such as illumination changes, initialization of model with moving objects, and shadows are provided. The Gaussian kernel density estimation is exploited to estimate the probability density function of background intensity and to initially classify each pixel as belonging to background or candidate foreground. Pixel’s neighbor information is considered to remove noise due to camera jitter and small motion in the scene. The Hue-Max-Min-Diff (HMMD) color information is used to detect and suppress moving cast shadows. That decreases the false positive in object detection. Experimental results demonstrate the robustness to noise and shadow and good detection performance, and it can be used in outdoor environment surveillance systems.
Comptes Rendus Mécanique

We review di ff erent models for thin structures using bending as principal mechanism to undergo large deformations. Each model consists of minimizing a fourth order energy, potentially subject to a nonconvex constraint. Equilibrium deformations are approximated using local discontinuous Galerkin finite elements.ThediscreteenergiesreliesonadiscreteHessianoperatordefinedondiscontinuousfunctionswith better approximation properties than the piecewise Hessian. Discrete gradient flows are used to drive the minimizationprocess.Theyarechosenfortheirrobustnessandabilitytopreservethenonconvexconstraint. Severalnumericalexperimentsarepresentedtoshowcasethevarietyofshapesachievablewiththesemodels.
Late Quaternary palaeo-oceanography of the Denmark Strait overflow pathway, South-East Greenland margin

Direct interaction between the atmosphere and the deep ocean basins takes place today only in the Southern Ocean near the Antarctic continent and in the northern extremity of the North Atlantic Ocean, notably in the Norwegian–Greenland Sea and Labrador Sea. Cooling and evaporation cause surface waters in the latter region to become dense and sink. At depth, further mixing occurs with Arctic water masses from adjacent polar shelves. Export of these water masses from the Norwegian–Greenland Sea (Norwegian Sea Overflow Water) to the North Atlantic basin occurs via two major gateways, the Denmark Strait system and the Faeroe– Shetland Channel and Faeroe Bank Channel system (e.g. Dickson et al. 1990; Fig.1). Deep convection in the Labrador Sea produces intermediate waters (Labrador Sea Water), which spreads across the North Atlantic. Deep waters thus formed in the North Atlantic (North Atlantic Deep Water) constitute an essential component of a global ‘conveyor’ belt extending from the North Atlantic via the Southern and Indian Oceans to the Pacific. Water masses return as a (warm) surface water flow. In the North Atlantic this is the Gulf Stream and the relatively warm and saline North Atlantic Current. Numerous palaeo-oceanographic studies have indicated that climatic changes in the North Atlantic region are closely related to changes in surface circulation and in the production of North Atlantic Deep Water. Abrupt shut-down of the ocean-overturning and subsequently of the conveyor belt is believed to represent a potential explanation for rapid climate deterioration at high latitudes, such as those that caused the Quaternary ice ages. Here it should be noted, that significant changes in deep convection in Greenland waters have also recently occurred. While in the Greenland Sea deep water formation over the last decade has drastically decreased, a strong increase of deep convection has simultaneously been observed in the Labrador Sea (Sy et al. 1997).
ffects of visual – haptic asynchronies and loading – unloading movements on ompliance perception

Spring compliance is perceived by combining the sensed force exerted by the spring with the displacement caused by the action (sensed through vision and proprioception). We investigated the effect of delay of visual and force information with respect to proprioception to understand how visual–haptic perception of compliance is achieved. First, we confirm an earlier result that force delay increases perceived compliance. Furthermore, we find that perceived compliance decreases with a delay in the visual information. These effects of delay on perceived compliance would not be present if the perceptual system would utilize all force–displacement information available during the interaction. Both delays generate a bias in compliance which is opposite in the loading and unloading phases of the interaction. To explain these findings, we propose that information during the loading phase of the spring displacement erception ugmented reality is weighted more than information obtained during unloading. We confirm this hypothesis by showing that sensitivity to compliance during loading movements is much higher than during unloading movements. Moreover, we show that visual and proprioceptive information about the hand position are used for compliance perception depending on the sensitivity to compliance. Finally, by analyzing participants’ movements we show that these two factors (loading/unloading and reliability) account for the change in perceived compliance due to visual and force delays.
The public impact of impacts: How the media play in the mass extinction debates

“Mass media” presentations of the dinosaurs and their co-inhabitants have been around for some 200 years. The question of what exterminated the dinosaurs and allowed mammals to take their leading place on Earth has a similarly lengthy history in the scientific arena and in public. However, there are amazingly few communication studies of the debates around mass extinctions and impacts. Those that do exist have picked up on the fact that these debates involve scientists from several disciplines, scientists who are often unused to reading each other’s research. Under these circumstances, more public or leading journals play a key role, not only in getting ideas out into the public arena, but in informing scientists across disciplinary boundaries. “Normal” communication processes, in which articles in peer-reviewed journals inform the scientific community and “simplified” versions may trickle out to the public via the mass media, become more complex. The dramatic impact answer to the question of the death of the dinosaurs seems to have attracted limited media attention at the time, confined to the “elite” newspapers. This paper analyzes the newspaper coverage of the death of the dinosaurs during the period from 1980 to 2008. I find that the period from 1991 to 1995 was critical in terms of changing public perceptions, insofar as they are determined/reflected in articles in general newspapers. I argue that the “Great Crash of 1994,” when Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 collided with the giant planet Jupiter, played an important role in propelling the impact scenario for the death of the dinosaurs into the (mass) public eye, and that the news value co-option was important in this process.
Aggressive PitNETs and Potential Target Therapies: A Systematic Review of Molecular and Genetic Pathways

Recently, advances in molecular biology and bioinformatics have allowed a more thorough understanding of tumorigenesis in aggressive PitNETs (pituitary neuroendocrine tumors) through the identification of specific essential genes, crucial molecular pathways, regulators, and effects of the tumoral microenvironment. Target therapies have been developed to cure oncology patients refractory to traditional treatments, introducing the concept of precision medicine. Preliminary data on PitNETs are derived from preclinical studies conducted on cell cultures, animal models, and a few case reports or small case series. This study comprehensively reviews the principal pathways involved in aggressive PitNETs, describing the potential target therapies. A search was conducted on Pubmed, Scopus, and Web of Science for English papers published between 1 January 2004, and 15 June 2023. 254 were selected, and the topics related to aggressive PitNETs were recorded and discussed in detail: epigenetic aspects, membrane proteins and receptors, metalloprotease, molecular pathways, PPRK, and the immune microenvironment. A comprehensive comprehension of the molecular mechanisms linked to PitNETs’ aggressiveness and invasiveness is crucial. Despite promising preliminary findings, additional research and clinical trials are necessary to confirm the indications and effectiveness of target therapies for PitNETs.
Recognizing bio-literacy in nature: An ethnozoological photovoice-based approach to prospective teacher

This qualitative study aims to examine the learning experiences of prospective teachers through the photovoice approach. This research employs photovoice taken by the prospective teachers to obtain main themes regarding the scientific perceptions of the students in ethnozoological bio-literacy studies. This research was conducted in three different places, mountain sites, beaches, and nature reserve tourism destinations. There were 135 prospective teachers divided into nine groups producing 675 photos. The themes include several examples of animal rehabilitation for recovery, animal breeding and increasing of endemic animal populations to natural habitat (ex-situ), habituation of animals, changes in animal behavior, and sale of economically valuable animal shells. Study findings suggest that education must consider themes that arise in the surrounding environment to individualizing their observations in ways meaningful to them and enabling them to assimilate or accommodate the experiences to their schema. Drawing on this empirical evidence, the practical implication of ethnozoological photovoice is further discussed in this study. Based on the perspective of prospective teacher by the difference photograph and difference sites (mountain, beach, and nature reserve tourism) they are found the positive or negative meaning of photograph.
Characterization of Bioethanol from Tuber of Porang Waste Fermented with Saccharomyces cerevisiae Enzyme: Effect of Fermentation Time and Yeast Ratio

The production of bioethanol from non-plant lignocellulosic materials has reached a commercial scale and is advocated as a possible solution for the decarbonization of the transport sector. Porang pulp tubers can be converted into bioethanol because they have abundant potential due to their high glucomannan content. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of fermentation time and the ratio of yeast addition on bioethanol production. The methods used are hydrolysis, fermentation and distillation methods. The hydrolysis process used 5% (v/v) HCl catalyst, the fermentation process with 6 gr sample powder tuber of waste used Saccharomyces cerevisiae bacteria with varying ratios of 2.5, 4 and 6.5 g and variations in fermentation time for 2, 4 and 6 days at 38-40˚C. The results showed that the duration of fermentation had a significant effect on the yield of bioethanol, where microorganisms have the opportunity to break down more glucose to produce bioethanol. While the ratio of the addition of yeast added to the fermentation process, the greater the ratio of the addition of yeast, the greater the bioethanol produced. Where the addition of 6.5 grams of yeast and 6 days of fermentation time, resulted in a yield of 9.889%, a bioethanol concentration of 37.599%, a refractive index of 1.3642 and a density of 1.04 g/ml.
Mechanical programmable design of soft pneumatic actuators with kirigami patterns to generate expanding, bending and twisting motions

This paper presents the influence of cuts inspired by kirigami art on the outer surface of a soft actuator with cylindrical geometry. Both the kirigami pattern and orientation were varied to achieve expanding, bending, and twisting motions. Two symmetric kirigami patterns are presented, i.e., cells and stripes, in a horizontal, vertical, and tilted configurations, respectively. We also present the tensile response of the kirigami sheets by using the finite element method (FEM). Then, we show that the soft actuator expands, bends or twists when kirigami patterns are wrapped around it. All actuators were analyzed by performing FEM simulations to evaluate the effects of kirigami patterns on the actuator performance. Among the obtained variants of the expanding and bending actuators, the striped pattern provided the best performance for both motions. We show how the number of cuts and the relationship between the gaps affect the expanding performance. For the twisting motion, we obtained two variants; we present the influence of the change of the inclination angle for both patterns, i.e., cells and stripes. The actuators that presented the best performance for each motion were built; a manufacturing process using the casting technique is described. The validation of the hardware by computer vision is presented.
Impactos na simulação atmosférica devido à mudança do uso e cobertura da terra na América do Sul - doi: 10.4025/bolgeogr.v31i2.19059

The weather and climate regional models are important tools for understanding the interactions between the biosphere and atmosphere, however its accuracy depends of realistic parameterizations of processes involving these variables. In most regional models, land cover and land use maps are not frequently updated and is outdated, influencing the results obtained from simulations of weather and climate. The land use and land cover changes modify the air temperature, precipitation, air moisture, energy balance and regional and global circulation. Consequently, the land use and land cover maps and its physical-chemical and biological properties are an important variable for numerical models of terrestrial systems. However, in majority regional weather and climate models, the land use and land cover map is not updated frequently, being out-of-date and influencing in the results of simulations. Therefore, this work has as main objective to analyze the impacts in numerical simulations of RegCM4 resulting of land use and land cover map updating used by the Biosphere Atmosphere Transfer Scheme (BATS). In addition, the update of the South America 2007 land use and land cover map used by BATS improves in 10% the simulation of precipitation, increasing from 0.84 to 0.92 the correlation coefficient (significant at p <0.05, Student’s t-test). Moreover, there is a good agreement of simulations regarding the maximum and minimum temperature, with correlation coefficients near to 0.95 and very close to the observed values.
Study of OAM Mode Identification by Electric Field Intensity Measurements at E-band

Increasing the channel capacity is important task in wireless communication to increase the data rate. Orbital angular momentum (OAM) beam can generate infinite orthogonal modes which can be utilized to increase channel capacity [1]. To use OAM beam in communication, mode discrimination is necessary. Since the individual OAM mode can be identified by its phase characteristics, the mode discrimination through phase measurement is the most accurate. But in order to reduce the complexity of the system, the field intensity-based mode identification may provide an alternative method if possible. The OAM beam has a vortex in amplitude and the center of the vortex has zero power which has the distance irrelevant characteristic. Therefore, the OAM mode identification through the intensity difference between the vortex center and other parts may be possible. We present this method through simulations and experiments using spiral phase plates (SPP).
Resolution Enhanced Optical Frequency-Modulated Continuous-Wave Ranging Enabled by Pulse-Tailoring

Fourier transform-limited spatial resolution (TLSR) is regarded as a fundamental limit in optical frequency-modulated continuous-wave (OFMCW) systems. Here, we report on a spatial resolution enhanced ranging method by using a pulse-tailored OFMCW generated by cutting the traditional OFMCW signal with optical pulse trains. Taking advantage of the narrow full-width-at-half-maximum for the auto-correlation of the pulses, a finer spatial resolution can be achieved by scanning the delay of the reference arm while taking the spectral power at the original beat frequencies. The featuring low detection bandwidth inherited from the OFMCW system is preserved. Theories and numerical modelling are firstly provided, and followed by experiments that have efficiently demonstrated a significant improvement of more than 10 times in the achieved spatial resolution compared to the theoretical TLSR in traditional OFMCW systems, even at long distance. Finally, some factors that may affect the measurements have been discussed. The testified spatial resolution enhancement is found quite appealing in various ranging scenarios.