Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Comparative Analysis of the Incidence of Selected Sexually Transmitted Bacterial Infections in Poland in 2010–2015: A Retrospective Cohort Study

Sexually transmitted infections are common infectious diseases. The main aim of this study was to perform a comparative analysis of the incidence of bacterial sexually transmitted infections in 2010–2015 in Poland, taking into account the administrative division of the country into provinces. This was a retrospective study. The analysed data came from the Centre for Health Information Systems of the Ministry of Health and constituted information being the epidemiological surveillance system in Poland. The analysis included data on the incidence of primary and secondary syphilis, gonorrhoea and non-gonococcal urethritis and genital infections. The overall incidence rates were disproportionately lower than European rates and those presented in studies from other countries. Young people, between 20 and 29 years of age, were the key groups at the highest risk of infection. The incidence rate of primary and secondary syphilis was lower in Poland than in Europe or America, but some regions, such as Mazovia and Lodz provinces, were found to have a higher incidence rate than other European rates. The reported incidence of gonorrhoea in Poland was also significantly lower compared with other countries, with a significantly higher number of infections in males than in females, and this was also one of the highest rates in EU countries. During the study period, the number of non-gonococcal genital infections systematically decreased, while in other countries of the European region, the incidence was among the highest of all sexually transmitted infections.
Multi-decision pressure compensation robot massage control system based on stereo vision imaging

In view of the problem that traditional collaborative robots mostly work according to the prescribed path through teaching or offline programming cannot obtain the feedback information of the robot in real time, resulting in low intelligence. A multi-decision pressure compensation robot massage control system based on stereo vision imaging is proposed. It could reduce the execution time and positioning error of the robot when conducting human body positioning massage, and perform force compensation based on the massage pressure feedback in real time to improve the level of human-computer interaction. Firstly, hand-eye calibration is carried out through binocular vision sensor and collaborative robot, and the robot positioning control is realized by using high-precision real-time point cloud generated by structured light compensation. The massage pressure is fed back through the pressure sensor on the massage end which the massage force is trimmed to ensure the safety and comfort during the massage process. In the visual working range, the experimental data shows that the depth positioning error is within 0.277mm and the accuracy of the robot massage in the appropriate pressure range can reach 97.35%, which effectively solves the problems in robot massage and increases the standard of human-computer interaction and the immersive experience which is made innovations in the direction of stereo imaging technology and medical treatment.
Adolescents’ Perspectives on the Drivers of Obesity Using a Group Model Building Approach: A South African Perspective

Overweight and obesity increase the risk of a range of poor physiological and psychosocial health outcomes. Previous work with well-defined cohorts has explored the determinants of obesity and employed various methods and measures; however, less is known on the broader societal drivers, beyond individual-level influences, using a systems framework with adolescents. The aim of this study was to explore the drivers of obesity from adolescents’ perspectives using a systems approach through group model building in four South African schools. Group model building was used to generate 4 causal loop diagrams with 62 adolescents aged 16–18 years. These maps were merged into one final map, and the main themes were identified: (i) physical activity and social media use; (ii) physical activity, health-related morbidity, and socio-economic status; (iii) accessibility of unhealthy food and energy intake/body weight; (iv) psychological distress, body weight, and weight-related bullying; and (v) parental involvement and unhealthy food intake. Our study identified meaningful policy-relevant insights into the drivers of adolescent obesity, as described by the young people themselves in a South African context. This approach, both the process of construction and the final visualization, provides a basis for taking a novel approach to prevention and intervention recommendations for adolescent obesity.
Intraspecific Relationships and Nest Mound Shape Are Affected by Habitat Features in Introduced Populations of the Red Wood Ant Formica paralugubris

Simple Summary Red wood ants (Formica rufa goup) are dominant ant species widespread in the Eurasian continent. These species have a strong ecological impact on the habitats they dwell in, being top-ranked predators. One of the most striking features of these ants is represented by the large nest mounds they build. In this study, we investigated how nest mound shape and colony organization of imported populations of Formica paralugubris varied in three different habitat types. We found that nest mounds differed in size, number and shape in the three habitats. In all the three sites, nests were connected by trails of workers, but the size of these nest-networks differed. We also investigated the pattern of intraspecific aggression among ants from different nests, and we showed that aggressiveness was higher within each population than between separate populations, a finding in line with a ‘nasty neighbor’ behavior. Abstract Ants belonging to the Formica rufa group build large nest mounds, which aid their survival during severe winters. We investigated whether different environmental features of the habitats affected the nest mound shape and the population structure. We assessed the shape of all the nest mounds and mapped inter-nest trails connecting mounds for three imported populations of Formica paralugubris in three forest habitats: fir-dominated, beech-dominated, and a mixture of fir and beech. Single-nest mounds were averagely smaller and flatter in the beech-dominated forest, probably because of lighter building materials. Nonetheless, by summing the volumes of all interconnected nests, the size was similar among all three sites. In fir- and beech-dominated forests, large nests were also central in the networks, suggesting a central place foraging model with these nests as reference. We finally performed aggression tests, and found that aggressiveness was significantly higher among nests belonging to the same population than between populations. The results highlight the plasticity of the species to adapt nest and colony structure to different environments. Additionally, it appears that none of these populations is unicolonial, as observed in various alpine sites, there and the observed patterns of aggression are coherent with the ‘nasty neighbor’ effect.
Wideband Open-Ended Ridge Gap Waveguide Antenna Elements for 1-D and 2-D Wide-Angle Scanning Phased Arrays at 100 GHz

A new antenna element type based on the open-ended ridge gap waveguide (RGW) is proposed for phased array applications. This element type is of a particular interest at high millimeter-wave frequencies (<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\geq$</tex-math></inline-formula> 100 GHz) owing to a contactless design alleviating active beam-steering electronic integration. The key challenge addressed here is a realization of a wide fractional bandwidth and a wide scan range with high radiation efficiency. We demonstrate a relatively simple wideband impedance matching network comprised of an aperture stepped ridge segment and a single-pin RGW section. Furthermore, the <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$E$</tex-math></inline-formula>- and <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$H$</tex-math></inline-formula>-plane grooves are added that effectively suppress antenna elements’ mutual coupling. Results demonstrate a wide-angle beam steering (<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\geq \text{50}^\circ$</tex-math></inline-formula>) over <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\geq {20\%}$</tex-math></inline-formula> fractional bandwidth at the <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$W$</tex-math></inline-formula>-band with <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\geq {89\%}$</tex-math></inline-formula> radiation efficiency that significantly outperforms the existing solutions at these frequencies. An experimental prototype of a 1 × 19 <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$W$</tex-math></inline-formula>-band array validates the proposed design concept through the embedded element pattern measurements.
VenomPred: A Machine Learning Based Platform for Molecular Toxicity Predictions

The use of in silico toxicity prediction methods plays an important role in the selection of lead compounds and in ADMET studies since in vitro and in vivo methods are often limited by ethics, time, budget and other resources. In this context, we present our new web tool VenomPred, a user-friendly platform for evaluating the potential mutagenic, hepatotoxic, carcinogenic and estrogenic effects of small molecules. VenomPred platform employs several in-house Machine Learning (ML) models developed with datasets derived from VEGA QSAR, a software that includes a comprehensive collection of different toxicity models and has been used as a reference for building and evaluating our ML models. The results showed that our models achieved equal or better performance than those obtained with the reference models included in VEGA QSAR. In order to improve the predictive performance of our platform, we adopted a consensus approach combining the results of different ML models, which was able to predict chemical toxicity better than the single models. This improved method was thus implemented in the VenomPred platform, a freely accessible webserver that takes the SMILES (Simplified Molecular-Input Line-Entry System) strings of the compounds as input and sends the prediction results providing a probability score about their potential toxicity.
Dynamic Modeling and Control Law Design of a Fuel-electric Hybrid Multi-rotor UAV

In this paper, the design of control law for a new concept fuel-electric hybrid multi-rotor UAV with lift/attitude control separation is investigated. The remarkable feature of the UAV is that it has a large proportion of fuel weight. Firstly, based on the quasi-coordinate Lagrangian equation and sloshing equivalent model using the multi-mass-spring analogy, the non-linear dynamic model of the UAV considering the fuel slosh dynamics is established. Compared with the existing multi-rotor modeling method, it is more intuitive and accurate to describe the non-linear coupling process of sloshing and UAV's motion degrees of freedom. Secondly, the attitude control law is designed based on the finite-time sliding mode observer and cascaded continuous sliding mode controller to eliminate the adverse effects of fuel sloshing and mass changing, and only using the measurable angles. Furthermore, aiming at the problem of power redundancy of the altitude channel, a memoryless non-linear altitude authority assignment controller based on vertical acceleration is proposed for improving the control performance. Finally, the simulation results of the waypoint flight illustrate the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed control strategy.
Situation -Aware Security for Wireless Ad Hoc Networks

Newly emerging ad hoc networking technology has enormous potential benefit for many mission-critical applications. However, providing adequate security required for the target applications presents many new challenges due to the unique nature of ad hoc environments. Complete decentralization and the absence of any support infrastructure in ad hoc environments effectively eliminates the possibility of the direct application of known security service designs from wired networks and infrastructure-based wireless networks. In this thesis, we investigate the environmental challenges posed by ad hoc environments and their effects on security service designs. Interactions between environmental factors, network properties and the quality of the security service are captured in a newly proposed concept called the "Situation". Based on the understanding of situations, we provide design guidelines for "Situation-Aware Security" services where a security service is viewed as a best-effort service whose quality must be continuously monitored and quantified. The measurement of the varying quality of a security service is then conveyed to the end users to aid their decisions on appropriate usage of the provided security service. Based on this situation-aware security paradigm, we present two types of security services, security-aware routing for quantifiably secure route discovery and situation-aware key management that provides end users with the best-achievable authentication service with intuitive metrics to measure the provided quality of authentication.
Identification of the Postulated Initiating Events of Accidents of a CPS-Based Liquid Metal Divertor for the EU DEMO Fusion Reactor

Abstract A preliminary but systematic safety analysis of a liquid metal divertor (LMD) for the EU DEMO performed by means of the Functional Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FFMEA) is presented. This methodology is suitable for the analysis of the LMD, which is undergoing preconceptual design. In fact, the FFMEA compensates for the lack of detailed design information by postulating the loss of a system function, rather than a specific component failure. The implementation of the FFMEA led to a better understanding of the safety and operational issues associated with the system and to the identification of a list of postulated initiating events (PIEs), i.e., the most challenging conditions for the plant. The PIEs, together with their possible consequences, represent an input for future quantitative safety analyses. Due to the early design stage of the LMD and the iterative nature of the methodology, this list will evolve alongside the design detail and with improvements in the understanding of phenomena driving reactor behavior. The study highlighted some safety-relevant issues, e.g., those related to materials compatibility and system modularity, to be addressed in the perspective of a safety-driven design evolution.
Application of the detailed balance model to thermoradiative cells based on a p-type two-dimensional indium selenide semiconductor

Thermoradiative (TR) cells are energy conversion devices that convert low-temperature waste heat to electricity. TR cells work on the same principles as photovoltaics, but they produce a reverse bias voltage due to higher cell temperature than the environment temperature. Depending on the energy gap of the material, temperature difference would generate electrical energy by electron-hole pair recombination. In this work, we propose a two-dimensional (2D) InSe for applications in the TR cells. The electronic properties of 2D InSe are obtained by using first-principles calculations. Then, the calculated energy gap is used to estimate output power density and efficiency according to the Shockley-Queisser framework through a detailed balance model adapted with the TR cells. Using a heat source at = 1000 K and the ambient temperature = 300 K, an ideal TR cell of 2D InSe at the maximum power point can achieve output power density and efficiency up to 0.061 W/m2 and 4.41%, respectively, with an energy gap of 1.43 eV. However, sub-bandgap and non-radiative losses will degenerate the cell's performance significantly.
Kelakai Sebagai Antianemia

Kelakai adalah salah satu tumbuhan jenis paku-pakuan. Kelakai termasuk tumbuhan yang mudah ditemukan di daerah tanah gambut seperti di Kalimantan Tengah. Berdasarkan hasil penelitian tahun 2005 yang dilakukan oleh Hayinah, dkk, Jurusan Budidaya Pertanian, Universitas Lambung Mangkurat, Banjarbaru, kandungan zat besi yang terdapat di dalam kelakai yaitu 291,32 mg per 100 g. Kekurangan darah atau anemia adalah keadaan dimana rendahnya hemoglobin yang dapat menyebabkan produksi eritrosit rendah. Inti molekul hemoglobin adalah zat besi (Fe). Sehingga, kekurangan zat besi menjadi salah satu faktor penyebab anemia. Hal ini akan menyebabkan berbagai gejala anemia seperti mudah letih, lesu, wajah pucat, pusing, daya tahan tubuh menurun, dan detak jantung lebih cepat. Adanya zat besi pada kelakai dapat meningkatkan kadar hemoglobin dalam tubuh sehingga membantu mengurangi gejala penderita anemia. Metode yang digunakan dalam penulisan karya tulis ini adalah deskriftif. Penulis hanya menganalisis fakta-fakta yang sudah ada dalam kehidupan sehari-hari masyarakat sekitar tentang cara mengatasi anemia dengan memanfaatkan tumbuhan kelakai.
Design of Ship Course-Keeping Autopilot using a Sine Function-Based Nonlinear Feedback Technique

Course keeping for ships is the core of automatic navigation in sea transportation. Much work has concentrated on developing novel control strategies for closed loop systems. We have turned our attention the other way to improve the control performance of marine autopilots in this work by “modulating” the control error using a sine function while the construction of the controller is not changed. The nonlinear feedback signal thus obtained is sent to the controller to replace the control error itself, which used to be the deviation between the output response and the reference input of the system. Such a control scheme is called “nonlinear feedback control” hereafter. Theoretical analysis by using a describing function and robust control theory shows that the same control quality is guaranteed with minor control actions for the nonlinear feedback scheme. Simulation experiments were carried out for the ship Yulong of Dalian Maritime University. It is shown that the method postulated in this paper has advantages of safety and energy saving in navigation; the maximum initial rudder angle is reduced by 31·2% with satisfactory control effect.
Prognostic and health management for engineering systems: a review of the data-driven approach and algorithms

Prognostics and health management (PHM) has become an important component of many engineering systems and products, where algorithms are used to detect anomalies, diagnose faults and predict remaining useful lifetime (RUL). PHM can provide many advantages to users and maintainers. Although primary goals are to ensure the safety, provide state of the health and estimate RUL of the components and systems, there are also financial benefits such as operational and maintenance cost reductions and extended lifetime. This study aims at reviewing the current status of algorithms and methods used to underpin different existing PHM approaches. The focus is on providing a structured and comprehensive classification of the existing state-of-the-art PHM approaches, data-driven approaches and algorithms.
Power factor correction (PFC) converters feeding brushless DC motor drive

This paper presents a comprehensive study of power factor correction (PFC) converters for feeding brushless DC (BLDC) motor drive. This work explores various configurations of PFC converters which are classified into five different categories of non-isolated, bridgeless (BL) non-isolated, isolated, BL-isolated PFC converters and integrated and high quality rectifiersfor feeding BLDC motor drive. A comprehensive study of these PFC convertersis presented with focus on application potential, design and control aspects, components selection, cost of overall system, efficiency issues, power quality and the future trends. The proposed converters have been designed for achieving an improved power quality operation with low amount of total harmonic distortion (THD) of supply current at AC mains for a wide range of speed control at varying supply voltages. Keywords: Brushless DC (BLDC)Motor, Discontinuous Conduction Mode (DCM), Power Factor Correction (PFC), Power Quality, Voltage Source Inverter (VSI)
Multiagent Reinforcement-Learning-Aided Service Function Chain Deployment for Internet of Things

Nowadays, the compelling applications of the Internet of Things (IoT) bring unexpected economic benefits to our daily lives. But at the same time, it also poses huge challenges to service providers. Diverse proprietary hardware (i.e., firewall and code conversion) have to be deployed in networks for meeting different applications’ requirements. Recently, network functions virtualization (NFV) is considered a promising technique. In the NFV-enabled architecture, network services can be implemented via a set of orderly virtual network functions (VNFs) on standardized compute nodes, which is termed service function chains (SFCs). However, with the explosion of IoT applications, embedding multiple SFCs in a shared NFV-enabled infrastructure becomes a challenging problem. Centralized schemes suffer from the scalability and private issue, while distributed schemes suffer from the nonconvergence problem. In this article, we propose a hybrid intelligent control architecture, which adopts the centralized training and distributed execution paradigm. A centralized critic is introduced to ease the training process of the distributed network nodes. Besides, considering the competitive behavior of users, we formulate the resource allocation problem as a multiuser competition game model. Based on this, we proposed a multiagent reinforcement learning-based SFCs deployment algorithm.
Quantitative MRI findings indicate diffuse white matter damage in Susac Syndrome

Background Susac Syndrome (SuS) is an autoimmune endotheliopathy impacting the brain, retina and cochlea that can clinically mimic multiple sclerosis (MS). Objective To evaluate non-lesional white matter demyelination changes in SuS compared to MS and healthy controls (HC) using quantitative MRI. Methods 3T MRI including myelin water imaging and diffusion basis spectrum imaging were acquired for 7 SuS, 10 MS and 10 HC participants. Non-lesional white matter was analyzed in the corpus callosum (CC) and normal appearing white matter (NAWM). Groups were compared using ANCOVA with Tukey correction. Results SuS CC myelin water fraction (mean 0.092) was lower than MS(0.11, p = 0.01) and HC(0.11, p = 0.04). Another myelin marker, radial diffusivity, was increased in SuS CC(0.27μm2/ms) compared to HC(0.21μm2/ms, p = 0.008) and MS(0.23μm2/ms, p = 0.05). Fractional anisotropy was lower in SuS CC(0.82) than HC(0.86, p = 0.04). Fiber fraction (reflecting axons) did not differ from HC or MS. In NAWM, radial diffusivity and apparent diffusion coefficient were significantly increased in SuS compared to HC(p < 0.001 for both measures) and MS(p = 0.003, p < 0.001 respectively). Conclusions Our results provided evidence of myelin damage in SuS, particularly in the CC, and more extensive microstructural injury in NAWM, supporting the hypothesis that there are widespread microstructural changes in SuS syndrome including diffuse demyelination.