Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Graded Matching for Large Observational Studies

Abstract Observational studies of causal effects often use multivariate matching to control imbalances in measured covariates. For instance, using network optimization, one may seek the closest possible pairing for key covariates among all matches that balance a propensity score and finely balance a nominal covariate, perhaps one with many categories. This is all straightforward when matching thousands of individuals, but requires some adjustments when matching tens or hundreds of thousands of individuals. In various senses, a sparser network—one with fewer edges—permits optimization in larger samples. The question is: What is the best way to make the network sparse for matching? A network that is too sparse will eliminate from consideration possible pairings that it should consider. A network that is not sparse enough will waste computation considering pairings that do not deserve serious consideration. We propose a new graded strategy in which potential pairings are graded, with a preference for higher grade pairings. We try to match with pairs of the best grade, incorporating progressively lower grade pairs only to the degree they are needed. In effect, only sparse networks are built, stored and optimized. Two examples are discussed, a small example with 1567 matched pairs from clinical medicine, and a slightly larger example with 22,111 matched pairs from economics. The method is implemented in an R package RBestMatch available at https://github.com/ruoqiyu/RBestMatch. Supplementary materials for this article are available online.
Upgrading low value-added activities in global value chains: a functional specialisation approach

ABSTRACT This paper aims to identify patterns of functional specialisation (FS) in global value chains (GVCs) and determinants of upgrading them for selected Central Eastern European (CEE) economies. By combing the World Input-Output Database with data on occupations, we reveal a new FS pattern among subgroups of CEEs. Poland and Slovakia have an unfavourable GVC position and specialise in low value-added fabrication function. In contrast, other CEEs have competitive advantages in high value-added tasks: the Baltic countries and Slovenia in management services, the Czech Republic and Slovenia in R&D. We identify upgrading factors for different types of FS in GVCs. The wages convergence of CEEs with developed economies, and strong GVC backward linkages support the path to higher value-added in almost all business functions. Higher GDP per capita and lower economic distance to Germany allow CEEs to escape from ‘factory economies' status and also generate higher value-added in R&D activities.
Evaluation of polyherbal formulation in broilers fed high energy diet: Implications on zootechnical parameters, fat accretion, and serum L-carnitine levels

Objective: The current broiler trial was planned to assess the effects of Kolin Plus™, a polyherbal formulation (PHF), on performance, protein and fat accretion, and serum L-carnitine (LC) levels in broilers fed a high-energy diet (HED). Materials and Methods: A total of 500 1-day-old Cobb 430 male chicks were assigned to 5 treatment groups consisting of 10 replicates, with 10 birds in each replicate (n = 100). Group G1 was a negative control fed HED, and group G2, a positive control supplemented with synthetic choline chloride (SCC) 1,500 gm/ton in HED. Groups G3, G4, and G5 were supplemented with PHF in HED at 400, 500, and 750 gm/ton feed, respectively (PHF400, PHF500, and PHF750). Results: The PHF produced a dose-dependent numerical improvement in body weight, feed conversion ratio, livability, and the European Production Index. There were no changes in carcass nitrogen and protein accretion, whereas a statistically significant decrease (p < 0.05) in carcass fat and fat accretion was observed in the SCC and PHF groups. Moreover, PHF showed a significant increase in serum LC levels. Conclusion: Kolin Plus™ improves performance parameters akin to SCC by improving fat metabolism and mobilization by enhancing serum LC levels and restoring normal fat accretion.
DTP/SiO2 Assisted Synthesis of New Benzimidazole-Thiazole Conjugates Targeting Antitubercular and Antioxidant Activities

Abstract A series of new substituted benzimidazole-thiazoles (9a–l) have been designed and synthesized using 2-aminothiazole as a starting material by using molecular hybridization approach. The newly synthesized compounds were characterized by 1H NMR, 13C NMR and HRMS analyses. The compounds (9a–l) were evaluated for their in vitro antitubercular activity against Mtb (MTCC 300) strain. Among the screened compounds 9a, 9b, 9c and 9d have displayed promising antitubercular activity with MIC 7.55, 4.60, 15.39 and 28.38 μg/mL, respectively. All the compounds were further evaluated for their DPPH radical scavenging activity. The compounds 9a, 9b and 9d were exhibited excellent radical scavenging activity. In addition to this, single crystal structure of compound 9a was also studied. Furthermore, the high potency of these molecules was supported by ADME properties prediction as well as molecular docking study to gain an insight into the binding mode and affinity toward mycobacterial InhA. Graphical Abstract
USING THE PLANAR 3-RRR PARALLEL MANIPULATOR FOR REHABILITATION OF HUMAN HAND

This paper presents the 3-RRR parallel manipulator used to the rehabilitation of the fingers and wrist of the human hand, which has to justify the large amount of people who suffered any type of brain injury and/or accidents that limit the movements of the hand. This structure should allow the achievement of movement rehabilitation/ recovery of the fingers and wrist according to the kinesiology of the hand. So first robotic structures applied to rehabilitation of the hand and kinesiology/size of the finger and wrist are presented. Then the mathematical model of the finger and your workspace are presented. Following the proposed structure is described in this paper. Finally graphic simulations and experimental tests are presented showing the feasibility of applying the robotic structure proposal.
A DFT-Based Descriptor to Predict the Water Vapor Corrosion Resistance of Rare-Earth Monosilicates

Rare-earth monosilicates are used as environmental barrier coatings (EBCs) due to their excellent water vapor corrosion resistance. However, existing experimental studies on the water vapor corrosion behavior of rare-earth monosilicates are discrepant and even contradictory. Previous theoretical investigations on water vapor corrosion resistance mainly focus on a Mulliken analysis of Si-O bonds in the monosilicates. In this study, the structural and electronic properties of rare-earth monosilicates have been studied by density functional theory (DFT) calculations, and a descriptor correlated to the corrosion resistance has been developed. The maximum isosurface value of the valence band maximum (VBMFmax) can be used to predict the water vapor corrosion resistance of RE2SiO5. The results show that RE2SiO5 with a smaller VBMFmax may have better water vapor corrosion resistance.
Social Engineering Attacks Prevention: A Systematic Literature Review

Social engineering is an attack on information security for accessing systems or networks. Social engineering attacks occur when victims do not recognize methods, models, and frameworks to prevent them. The current research explains user studies, constructs, evaluation, concepts, frameworks, models, and methods to prevent social engineering attacks. Unfortunately, there is no specific previous research on preventing social engineering attacks that effectively and systematically analyze it. Current prevention methods, models, and frameworks of social engineering attacks include health campaigns, human as security sensor frameworks, user-centric frameworks, and user vulnerability models. The human as a security sensor framework needs guidance that will explore cybersecurity as super-recognizers, likely policing act for a secure system. This paper intends to critically and rigorously review prior literature on the prevention methods, models, and frameworks of social engineering attacks. We conducted a systematic literature review based on Bryman & Bell’s literature review method. From the review, we found the protocol to effectively prevent social engineering attacks, such as health campaigns, the vulnerability of social engineering victims, and co-utile protocol, which can manage information sharing on a social network. We present this systematic literature review to recommend ways to prevent social engineering attacks.
An Examination of Online Learning Security Requirements Within a Virtual Learning Environment of an Irish University

As the adoption of e-learning and need for lifelong learning increases, it is vital the administrator of a virtual learning environment continually ensures reliable and secure data. This case study engaged in the initial steps of analysing the use and security needs of a virtual learning service within a university of Ireland. The university provided two virtual learning services which were comparatively analysed, from a security and data protection perspective. In addition, survey results obtained from the university user community for one of the e-learning services were examined. Findings from the study were presented as user security requirements and recommendations, when planning future security initiatives of the e-learning services within the university. SECURITY REQUIREMENTS ii
PIM - Szemelyes információszervezés

In English the acronym PIM stands for Personal Information Management. This is a new area of knowledge concerning a number of disciplines, so there are more and more monographs and other publications dealing with this topic, nevertheless, till now no overview was bom about it in Hungarian. The essay attempts to make up for this deficiency, offering an initial theoretical systematisation from the point of libraries, as well as a series of practical solutions, presenting services with an innovative approach. In an ideal case of information management, the required information is available at an adequate place and time, in the form and quality we require, and in an easily accessible way. The article explores the birth of the concept and its preliminaries, and enumerates the related basic principles. It discusses, among others, the state of PIM abroad and in Hungary, presents certain hardware tools, and lists the various fields of PIM. It focuses on services which are important for librarians, and introduces the figure of the personal information trainer.
Schisandra rubriflora Fruit and Leaves as Promising New Materials of High Biological Potential: Lignan Profiling and Effect-Directed Analysis

The effect-directed detection (EDD) of Schisandra rubriflora fruit and leaves extracts was performed to assess their pharmacological properties. The EDD comprised TLC—direct bioautography against Bacillus subtilis, a DPPH assay, as well as α-glucosidase, lipase, tyrosinase, and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibition assays. The leaf extracts showed stronger antioxidant activity than the fruit extract as well as inhibition of tyrosinase and lipase. The fruit extract was found to be extremely active against B. subtilis and to inhibit α-glucosidase and AChE slightly more than the leaf extracts. UHPLC–MS/MS analysis was carried out for the bioactive fractions and pointed to the possible anti-dementia properties of the dibenzocyclooctadiene lignans found in the upper TLC fractions. Gomisin N (518 mg/100 g DW), schisanhenol (454 mg/100 g DW), gomisin G (197 mg/100 g DW), schisandrin A (167 mg/100 g DW), and gomisin O (150 mg/100 g DW) were the quantitatively dominant compounds in the fruit extract. In total, twenty-one lignans were found in the bioactive fractions.
An automatic method of above-water iceberg 3-D profiling based on autonomous surface craft (ASC) using surface images and LIDAR

This thesis reports on a novel method to build a 3-D model of the above-water portion of icebergs using surface imaging. The goal is to work towards the automation of iceberg surveys, allowing an Autonomous Surface Craft (ASC) to acquire shape and size information. After collecting data and images, the core software algorithm is made up of three parts: occluding contour finding, volume intersection, and parameter estimation. A software module is designed that could be used on the ASC to perform automatic and fast processing of above-water surface image data to determine iceberg shape and size measurement and determination. The resolution of the method is calculated using data from the iceberg database of the Program of Energy Research and Development (PERD). The method was investigated using data from field trials conducted through the summer of 2014 by surveying 8 icebergs during 3 expeditions. The results were analyzed to determine iceberg characteristics. Limitations of this method are addressed including its accuracy. Surface imaging system and LIDAR system are developed to profile the above-water iceberg in 2015.
Institutional sources of technological knowledge: a community perspective on nanotechnology emergence

Although the cottage industry of neoinstitutional research gained its momentum through a conceptual architecture that was centred on a bifurcation of technological/material forces and cultural dynamics, current research in this genre has begun to re-examine the utility of such distinctions. One of the downsides of such a conceptual distinction is that the institutional approach to technology is anachronistic, treating it as an exogenous force. Even though early work by Woodward and others usefully contributed to our understanding of organizations by highlighting how different technologies correlate with various organizational forms, recent scholarship has enhanced our more functional understanding of technology by highlighting processes of coevolution and structuration. In this chapter, we draw on such social constructionist developments in the study of technology to reanimate institutional analysis. More specifically, drawing on the case of the development of nanotube intellectual property, we focus on how technological knowledge production is embedded in community cultures. Our arguments and evidence suggest that there are distinctive community cultures around intensive versus extensive knowledge-generating patents, highlighting how an approach that appreciates the interactive dynamics of technology and culture can yield important insights into the institutional dynamics of technology development.
An Analysis on Quality of Service Enhancement in Long Term Evolution Networks: Past, Present and Future

The standard for wireless mobile communication system has been set higher since the introduction of Long Term Evolution (LTE) system by Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). Marketed as part of the 4G wireless technology, LTE offers an outstanding connectivity with high throughput, low latency and improved spectral efficiency. LTE possesses a Quality of Service (QoS) framework to ensure satisfying user- perceived end-to-end performance according to demand. QoS parameters are highly variable according to application, user and service differentiation. Therefore, to satisfy QoS requirements, various studies have proposed algorithms fitting for their specific traffic scenarios. This paper covers a survey of proposed algorithms in QoS framework of LTE system.
Inkjet-Printed Phospholipid Bilayers on Titanium Oxide Surfaces: Towards Functional Membrane Biointerfaces

Functional biointerfaces hold broad significance for designing cell-responsive medical implants and sensor devices. Solid-supported phospholipid bilayers are a promising class of biological materials to build bioinspired thin-film coatings, as they can facilitate interactions with cell membranes. However, it remains challenging to fabricate lipid bilayers on medically relevant materials such as titanium oxide surfaces. There are also limitations in existing bilayer printing capabilities since most approaches are restricted to either deposition alone or to fixed microarray patterning. By combining advances in lipid surface chemistry and on-demand inkjet printing, we demonstrate the direct deposition and patterning of covalently tethered lipid bilayer membranes on titanium oxide surfaces, in ambient conditions and without any surface pretreatment process. The deposition conditions were evaluated by quartz crystal microbalance-dissipation (QCM-D) measurements, with corresponding resonance frequency (Δf) and energy dissipation (ΔD) shifts of around −25 Hz and <1 × 10−6, respectively, that indicated successful bilayer printing. The resulting printed phospholipid bilayers are stable in air and do not collapse following dehydration; through rehydration, the bilayers regain their functional properties, such as lateral mobility (>1 µm2/s diffusion coefficient), according to fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) measurements. By taking advantage of the lipid bilayer patterned architectures and the unique features of titanium oxide’s photoactivity, we further show how patterned cell culture arrays can be fabricated. Looking forward, this work presents new capabilities to achieve stable lipid bilayer patterns that can potentially be translated into implantable biomedical devices.
Research and Implement on Intelligent Scheduling of Coal Ash Delivering

The coal ash sales process in our country is cumbersome, inefficient, lack of effective management and vehicle guidance policy, which leads to frequent traffic jams, ash loss, monitoring difficult and other issues, this paper presents a valid intelligent scheduling strategy for coal ash shipping to design and implement a new coal ash sales system, which proposes a good solution to the problem of coal ash vehicle indiscriminate disorderly, chaotic management
Polymer/Silica Hybrid Waveguide Thermo-Optic VOA Covering O-Band

In this paper, a polymer/silica hybrid waveguide thermo-optic variable optical attenuator (VOA), covering the O-band, is demonstrated. The switch is fabricated by simple and low-cost direct ultraviolet (UV) lithography. The multimode interferences (MMIs) used in the Mach–Zehnder interferometer (MZI)-VOA are well optimized to realize low loss and large bandwidth. The VOA shows an extinction ratio (ER) of 18.64 dB at 1310 nm, with a power consumption of 8.72 mW. The attenuation is larger than 6.99 dB over the O-band. The rise and fall time of the VOA are 184 μs and 180 μs, respectively.
Highly fruitful nasal cannula: An innovative use of high flow nasal cannula (HFNC) and a lesson

Recurrent respiratory papillomatosis (RRP) is a benign disease of viral origin that spreads throughout the respiratory tract and is notorious owing to its recalcitrant nature. [1] Patients with RRP frequently present to the operation room (OR) for microlaryngoscopic excision, laser debulking, endoscopic stripping, or tracheostomy. We hereby came up with an innovative ventilatory management of a patient with RRP. Informed and written consent for publishing this case has been obtained from the patient's mother.
The Effects of In-vehicle Automation and Reliability on Driver Situation Awareness and Trust

MA, RUIQI. The Effect of In-Vehicle Automation and Reliability on Driver Situation Awareness and Trust. (Under the direction of Dr David B. Kaber). The cognitive construct of situation awareness (SA) has not been well developed in the domain of driving. The objective of this study was to define a new transactional model of SA in various driving behaviors and activities, as influenced by automation and invehicle device use. Specifically, this study investigated the implications of adaptive cruise control (ACC) and cellular phone use in driving on a direct and objective measure of SA; investigate the effect of varying reliability of in-vehicle automation (navigation aids) on driver SA and trust; and assess differences in human trust in a human aid versus an automation aid in a simulated driving task. Twenty participants drove a virtual car and performed a freeway driving task (Experiment A) as well as a suburb navigation task (Experiment B). In the freeway driving, participants were required to drive using ACC or manual control modes, and received navigation information from one of two sources: a human or in-vehicle automation aid via cell phone or separate display screen, respectively. During the navigation driving, participants were required to drive through the suburban area following all traffic signs and directions from the navigation aid under different levels of information reliability (100%, 80% and 60%). A control condition was also used in which aids only presented a telemarketing survey and participants navigated using a map. Driver SA was assessed at the end of each experiment using a SA global assessment technique. Driver workload was collected at the same time using the NASATLX. Driver trust in the navigation aid information was measured using a subjective survey of initial subject trust expectations as well as a subjective rating at the close of each trial (end of
Changes in the Second Ventilatory Threshold Following Individualised versus Standardised Exercise Prescription among Physically Inactive Adults: A Randomised Trial

The second ventilatory threshold (VT2) is established as an important indicator of exercise intensity tolerance. A higher VT2 allows for greater duration of higher intensity exercise participation and subsequently greater reductions in cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. This study aimed to compare the efficacy of standardised and individualised exercise prescription on VT2 among physically inactive adults. Forty-nine physically inactive male and female participants (48.6 ± 11.5 years) were recruited and randomised into a 12-week standardised (n = 25) or individualised (n = 24) exercise prescription intervention. The exercise intensity for the standardised and individualised groups was prescribed as a percentage of heart rate reserve (HRR) or relative to the first ventilatory threshold (VT1) and VT2, respectively. Participants were required to complete a maximal graded exercise test at pre-and post-intervention to determine VT1 and VT2. Participants were categorised as responders to the intervention if an absolute VT2 change of at least 1.9% was attained. Thirty-eight participants were included in the analysis. A significant difference in VT2 change was found between individualised (pre vs. post: 70.6% vs. 78.7% maximum oxygen uptake (VO2max)) and standardised (pre vs. post: 72.5% vs. 72.3% VO2max) exercise groups. Individualised exercise prescription was significantly more efficacious (p = 0.04) in eliciting a positive response in VT2 (15/19, 79%) when compared to the standardised exercise group (9/19, 47%). Individualised exercise prescription appears to be more efficacious than standardised exercise prescription in eliciting a positive VT2 change among physically inactive adults. Increasing VT2 allows for greater tolerance to higher exercise intensities and therefore greater cardiovascular health outcomes.