Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Scalable Byzantine Fault Tolerance Algorithm Based on a Tree Topology Network

The consortium chain is the main form of application of blockchain technology in the actual industry, and its consensus mechanism mostly adopts the practical Byzantine fault tolerance (PBFT) algorithm. The traditional PBFT algorithm is only suitable for small-scale local area networks, but in large-scale wide area network environments, its scalability bottleneck has a serious impact on the performance of the system. Therefore, in this paper, a scalable Byzantine fault tolerance algorithm based on a tree topology network is proposed (STBFT), which can take different steps to reach consensus according to the abnormal situation of the system. First, the STBFT algorithm divides the consensus nodes into different layers and groups based on the tree topology network structure, which transforms from global consensus to local consensus and drastically reduces communication consumption. Then, the division method of the group is based on a verifiable random function (VRF), with the purpose of preventing targeted attacks and colluding Byzantine nodes from affecting the normal consensus of the system. Finally, a feedback mechanism is proposed for the first time to reduce the influence of Byzantine failure on hierarchical network systems. The simulation results show that the proposed algorithm reduces the communication complexity and improves the fault tolerance of the system, and the scalability of the tree topology network structure can be better applied in large-scale scenarios such as IoT and health care.
Characteristic Failure Sequence Analysis of IGBT Bonding Wire

Insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) is the core device in power electronic equipment, and it is also the device with the highest failure rate. Therefore, it is very important to study the aging and failure mechanism of IGBT bonding wire for system safety evaluation. Based on the actual structure of IGBT and the established multi physical field coupling model of electro-thermal-stress of IGBT power module, this paper studies the influence of the aging number and position of bonding wire on the thermal-stress characteristics of IGBT chip. The results show that the falling off of bonding wire is the main aging mode of bonding wire, which will also bring about the junction temperature fluctuation of IGBT chip. On this basis, the aging position and sequence of IGBT bonding wires are analyzed, and the aging process is more consistent with the actual situation.
Feasibility of MRI-US registration in oropharynx for transoral robotic surgery

Trans-Oral Robotic Surgery (TORS) is an alternative surgery technique used to treat head-and-neck cancer. Compared with conventional surgery, robot assistance allows surgeons to operate within areas with restricted access, such as the oropharynx, reducing the operative morbidity, risk of reconstructive surgery and improving patient outcomes. TORS is a challenging procedure, and intra-operative Ultrasound (US) has the potential to improve anatomy visualization to lessen the cognitive load on surgeons. To date, only intra-oral US has been used in exploratory studies, but intra-oral US can interfere with robot tools. In this study, we assess the feasibility of using transcervical 3D US with TORS: we propose to place the US probe on the patient’s neck to evaluate oropharyngeal anatomy intra-operatively. We also perform the first feasibility study of image registration between transcervical 3D US and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) for the oropharynx. We collected 3D US and MRI data from five healthy volunteers and four patients with oropharyngeal cancer, and we use a semi-automatic MRI-US registration algorithm to estimate an affine transformation between the two image spaces. The average Target Registration Error (TRE) is 8.26 ± 7.41mm for healthy volunteers and 9.63 ± 5.91mm for patients, and our case studies show that image quality is the key factor for good registration. Our work shows that 3D transcervical US has the clinical potential to enable intraoperative oropharynx imaging and interventional MR guidance during TORS.
Spinal Pain, Chronic Health Conditions and Health Behaviors: Data from the 2016–2018 National Health Interview Survey

Spinal pain and chronic health conditions are highly prevalent, burdensome, and costly conditions, both in the United States and globally. Using cross-sectional data from the 2016 through 2018 National Health Interview Survey (n = 26,926), we explored associations between spinal pain and chronic health conditions and investigated the influence that a set of confounders may have on the associations between spinal pain and chronic health conditions. Variance estimation method was used to compute weighted descriptive statistics and measures of associations with multinomial logistic regression models. All four chronic health conditions significantly increased the prevalence odds of spinal pain; cardiovascular conditions by 58%, hypertension by 40%, diabetes by 25% and obesity by 34%, controlling for all the confounders. For all chronic health conditions, tobacco use (45–50%), being insufficiently active (17–20%), sleep problems (180–184%), cognitive impairment (90–100%), and mental health conditions (68–80%) significantly increased the prevalence odds of spinal pain compared to cases without spinal pain. These findings provide evidence to support research on the prevention and treatment of non-musculoskeletal conditions with approaches of spinal pain management.
Analysis of Wave Propagation in Inhomogeneous Optical Fibers Using a Variational Method

The variational method is used to determine the propagation characteristics of an optical fiber consisting of a core with an arbitrary refractive-index distribution and a uniform cladding. The problem is first translated into a variational problem; the factional is computed upon the TEM-approximation basis. The variational problem is then solved by using the Rayleigh-Ritz method. The computed propagation characteristics are presented for refractive-index distributions of practical interest. The single-mode condition for a quadratic self-focusing fiber is obtained as v < 3.53 where v denotes the conventionally used normalized frequency; this result agrees with the numerical analysis by Dil and Blok. The obtained characteristic equations for the simplest case (uniform core case) are compared with analytic solutions to ensure the validity of the analysis.
Visual Parameter Space Exploration in Time and Space

Computational models, such as simulations, are central to a wide range of fields in science and industry. Those models take input parameters and produce some output. To fully exploit their utility, relations between parameters and outputs must be understood. These include, for example, which parameter setting produces the best result (optimization) or which ranges of parameter settings produce a wide variety of results (sensitivity). Such tasks are often difficult to achieve for various reasons, for example, the size of the parameter space, and supported with visual analytics. In this paper, we survey visual parameter space exploration (VPSE) systems involving spatial and temporal data. We focus on interactive visualizations and user interfaces. Through thematic analysis of the surveyed papers, we identify common workflow steps and approaches to support them. We also identify topics for future work that will help enable VPSE on a greater variety of computational models.
A New Method to Calculate the Vertical Derivatives of Total Field Magnetic Anomaly

The vertical derivative of the total field magnetic anomaly(TMA) plays an important role in the interpretation process of magnetic objects.Owing to the filter characteristics of vertical derivative operator in frequency domain,the conversion of vertical derivative is inherently unstable and any high-frequency noise presented in the surveying data gets strongly magnified in the transformed map in such a way to mask any useful signal.Based on the harmonic properties of the vertical integral and derivatives of TMA,an algorithm is presented to perform calculation of vertical derivatives using both frequency and space domain transformations.The effectiveness of the suggested techniques has been illustrated by synthetic sphere magnetic model whose TMA's first and second vertical derivative expressions are deduced when the geomagnetic direction is different from magnetization direction.The conclusion indicates that the presented vertical derivatives calculation method provides better results and allows a lower degrading of the signal-to-noise ratio than the standard Fourier method.
Assessment of BMP7, SMAD4, and CDH1 Expression Profile and Regulatory miRNA-542-3p in Eutopic and Ectopic Endometrium of Women with Endometriosis

Alterations in the expression of numerous genes and the miRNAs that are recognized as their regulators in the endometrial cells of women with endometriosis may disrupt the intracellular signaling pathways associated with epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT). So far, the functional role of BMP7 in endometrial physiology has been confirmed, especially in the context of fertility, but the role of the activation of a specific mechanism operating through the BMP–SMAD–CDH1 axis in the formation of endometrial lesions remains unexplored. The aim of this study was to evaluate the expression profile of miR-542-3p and the EMT markers (BMP7, SMAD4, CDH1) in matched eutopic endometrium (EUE) and ectopic endometrium (ECE) samples from women with endometriosis in relation to healthy women. The levels of expression of the studied genes and miRNA in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) obtained from women diagnosed with endometriosis and those without the disease were also evaluated. Fifty-four patients (n = 54: with endometriosis—n = 29 and without endometriosis—n = 25) were included in the study. A comparative analysis of the relative mean expression values (RQ) of the studied mRNA and miRNA assessed by RT-qPCR demonstrated downregulation of BMP7, SMAD4, and CDH1 expression in ectopic lesions and upregulation in the eutopic endometrium compared with the control group. In the eutopic tissue of women with endometriosis, miR-542-3p expression was similar to that of the control but significantly lower than in endometrial lesions. We also confirmed a trend towards a negative correlation between miR-542-3p and BMP7 in ectopic tissue, and in PBMC, a significant negative correlation of miR-542-3p with further BMP signaling genes, i.e., SMAD4 and CDH1, was observed. These results indicate that the miRNA selected by us may be a potential negative regulator of BMP7-SMAD4-CDH1 signaling associated with EMT. The different patterns of BMP7, SMAD4, and CDH1 gene expression in ECE, EUE, and the control endometrium observed by us suggests the loss of the endometrial epithelium phenotype in women with endometriosis and demonstrates their involvement in the pathogenesis and pathomechanism of this disease.
Label-Free Detection of T4 Polynucleotide Kinase Activity and Inhibition via Malachite Green Aptamer Generated from Ligation-Triggered Transcription

Polynucleotide kinase (PNK) is a key enzyme that is necessary for ligation-based DNA repair. The activity assay and inhibitor screening for PNK may contribute to the prediction and improvement of tumor treatment sensitivity, respectively. Herein, we developed a simple, low-background, and label-free method for both T4 PNK activity detection and inhibitor screening by combining a designed ligation-triggered T7 transcriptional amplification system and a crafty light-up malachite green aptamer. Moreover, this method successfully detected PNK activity in the complex biological matrix with satisfactory outcomes, indicating its great potential in clinical practice.
A Compact Slotted Antenna with Two Parallel Stubs of Vertical Open-ended in Nature for Application in Wireless Communication

An antenna fed by the transmission line of microstrip in nature with slotted characteristics having two parallel stubs of open-ended in nature which are emerged simultaneously from the inner edge of the middle top portion of the ground plane of rectangular slotted in nature is proposed in this paper. The antenna which is proposed is comparatively having smaller physical structure of size 24×28 mm2 which produces two simultaneous resonances at 1.81 GHz and 5.91 GHz respectively which are essentially operating bands of DCS/PCS and WLAN systems. Both the resonating bands exhibiting the percentage bandwidths of 9.94 and 8.75 respectively. The peak gains at the two resonating frequencies are 3 dBi and 3.5 dBi respectively, which are sufficient for the application of DCS/PCS and WLAN. The antenna which is proposed stable patterns of radiation and gain which is appropriate in nature.
Community Detection in Complex Networks Using Immune Discrete Differential Evolution Algorithm

Aimed at the existing problem of community detection in complex networks, a novel immune discrete differential evolution(IDDE) is proposed in the framework of standard differential evolution. In the proposed method, the initial population is generated through label propagation, and the discrete differential evolution strategy is utilized to ensure the global searching ability of the IDDE; meanwhile, the high-frequency clonal selection mutation operation is applied to excellent individuals of the population to improve the local exploitation ability and the convergence performance of the IDDE. Artificial networks and several real networks are employed to test the performance of the IDDE, and the testing results show that the IDDE achieves better searching ability and stronger robustness, and that it can detect the community structure in complex networks effectively.
Translation and adaptation of the stroke-specific quality of life scale into Swahili

Background Stroke care requires a patient-centred, evidence-based and culturally appropriate approach for better patient clinical outcomes. Quality of life necessitates precise measuring using health-related quality measures that are self-reported and language appropriate. However, most of the self-reported measures were devised in Europe and therefore not considered contextually appropriate in other settings, more so in Africa. Objectives Our study aimed to produce a Swahili version by translating and adapting the stroke-specific quality of life (SSQOL) scale among people with stroke in Kenya. Method We used a questionnaire translation and cross-cultural adaptation. The pre-validation sample of 36 adult participants was drawn from 40 registered people with stroke, from the Stroke Association of Kenya (SAoK). Quantitative data were collected using both English and Swahili versions of the SSQOL scale. The mean, standard deviation (s.d.) and overall scores were calculated and are presented in tables. Results The back translation revealed a few inconsistencies. Minor semantic and equivalence alterations were done in the vision, mood, self-care, upper extremity function and mobility domains by the expert review committee. Respondents indicated that all questions were well-understood and captured. The stroke onset mean age was 53.69 years and the standard deviation was 14.05. Conclusion The translated version of the Swahili SSQOL questionnaire is comprehensible and well-adapted to the Swahili-speaking population. Clinical implication The SSQOL has the potential to be a useful outcome measure for use in Swahili-speaking patients with stroke.
Fabrication of Naturally Derived Chitosan and Ilmenite Sand-Based TiO2/Fe2O3/Fe-N-Doped Graphitic Carbon Composite for Photocatalytic Degradation of Methylene Blue under Sunlight

Fabrication of chitosan and ilmenite sand-based novel photocatalysts through the catalytic graphitization of chitosan is reported. Nanocomposites consisted of TiO2, Fe2O3 and Fe nanoparticles dispersed on a nitrogen-doped graphitic carbon framework. The surface area, pore volume and macropore structure of the carbon matrix is disturbed by the heterogeneously distributed nanoparticles. The extent of graphitization expanded with increasing metal loading as indicated by variation in the ID/IG ratio. The nanomaterial’s surface consists of Fe3+ and Ti4+, and graphitic, pyridinic and pyrrolic nitrogen were found in the carbon matrix. The band gap values of the composites varied in the 2.06–2.26 eV range. The photocatalytic activity of the synthesized nanomaterials was determined, and the highest rate constant for the photodegradation of methylene blue under sunlight was 4.4 × 10−3 min−1, which resulted with 10 mg/L MB and 25 mg of the best-performing catalyst. The rate constant rose with increasing concentrations of persulfate added to the medium. The rate constant greatly diminished with the addition of isopropyl alcohol as it scavenged hydroxyl radicals. The presence of co-pollutants including Pb2+, rhodamine B, PO43− and Cl− curtailed the rate of reaction. The activity reduced with an increasing number of uses of the catalyst.
Design of a Novel Ultra-Low Power Time-Domain Temperature Sensor

This paper proposed a novel ultra-low power time-domain temperature sensor. It consists of two current generators including one constant-with-temperature (CWT) current reference generator, relaxation oscillator, separation circuit and digital circuit system. Both of current generators are used to drive the oscillator to produce a signal whose high level duration is complementary to absolute temperature, and low level duration is temperature-independent. The separation circuit is used to separate the high level duration and low level duration. The digital circuit system can quantify the separation circuit output and make a subtraction, and therefore obtain digitized temperature information. The temperature sensor is designed using a standard 0. 18μm CMOS process. The simulation results show that it can measure temperature from 0°C to 60°C The power consumption of the complete system is 86.79 nW at 25°C The maximum conversion speed is 52 Sa/s under 1V voltage supply.
A Comparative Study on Outcomes of Retrograde Intrarenal Surgery (RIRS), Mini Percutaneous Nephrolithotomy (PCNL), and Extracorporeal Shock Wave Lithotripsy (ESWL) for Lower Pole Renal Calculi of < 1.5 cm

Background: Percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL), established in the 1970s, has replaced open surgery for large stones. Extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL), once the preferred first-line treatment for small-to-medium-sized renal stones, has a questionable charm owing to patient reluctance for repeated treatments and hospitalizations since ESWL has a reduced stone-free rate (SFR). Flexible ureterorenoscopy, also referred to as RIRS, originally applied in the management of lower pole stones resistant to ESWL, is increasingly being used as a primary modality to manage lower pole stones, and it may potentially achieve higher SFR than ESWL and lower morbidity than PCNL for patients with low-volume stone diseases. Objectives: Observations were made to compare ESWL, mini PCNL, and RIRS in managing lower pole renal calculi of < 1.5 cm. Methods: This observational study encompassed all patients with lower pole renal stones with < 1.5 cm diameter and < 1000 HU density who underwent mini PCNL, RIRS, or ESWL from January 2020 to July 2021. There were 40, 60, and 60 patients in the RIRS, mini PCNL, and ESWL groups, respectively, for all of whom preoperative CT urogram was performed. The patients were informed of the procedures, and their informed consent was obtained. The stone-free rates of the three modalities were compared, and the outcomes were statistically analyzed. Results: The mean stone sizes in the present study were 12.99 × 3.56 mm in mini PCNL, 10.62 × 2.51 mm in RIRS, and 10.93 × 3.13 mm in ESWL. The mini PCNL group's SFR was significantly higher than those of other groups: 59 (98.3%) in mini PCNL, 34 (85%) in RIRS, and 46 (76.7%) in ESWL (P = 0.002). Out of the 60 patients in the mini PCNL group, only one (1.7%) required an ancillary procedure, while only six (10%) out of 40 patients in the RIRS group and 11 (18.33%) out of 60 patients in the ESWL group required the ancillary procedure (P = 0.031). Conclusions: For lower pole renal calculi < 1.5 cm, mini PCNL has the highest SFR, followed by RIRS and ESWL, in sequence. The ancillary procedure rate was 18.33% in the ESWL group, which was higher than those of mini PCNL (1.7%) and RIRS (10%).
Awareness of Mobile Operating System Privacy Among Computer Science Students

Digital privacy awareness has become a priority in the area of computer science, especially among young Saudi Arabian adults. The purpose of this study is to assess Saudi Arabian computer science students’ awareness of mobile operating system privacy. This study involved sixty-six computer science students at universities across Saudi Arabia who filled out an online questionnaire that contained twenty-six questions about mobile privacy and it was divided into five sections: browsers, accounts and passwords, applications and permissions, public networks, and information protection. The survey shows that while computer science students are informed about the possible risks of personal information being disclosed through their mobile devices, more than half of them are still willing to share personal details through applications that require private or sensitive information. Based on this study, although there is a decent amount of mobile privacy awareness among Saudi Arabian computer science students, there is still a serious need to improve it by raising awareness of the dangers of mobile devices and the risks involved in disclosing private information, and by presenting information in a more interactive format.
Baroclinic stability under non-hydrostatic conditions

Eady's model for the stability of a thermal wind in an inviscid, stratified, rotating system is modified to allow for deviations from hydrostatic equilibrium. The stability properties of the flow are uniquely determined by two parameters: the Richardson number Ri, and the ratio of the aspect ratio to the Rossby number δ. The latter parameter may be taken as a measure of the deviations from hydrostatic equilibrium (δ = 0 in Eady's model). It is found that such deviations decrease the growth rates of all three kinds of instability which can occur in this problem: ‘geostrophic’ baroclinic instability, symmetric instability, and Kelvin–Helmholtz instability. The unstable wavelengths for ‘geostrophic’ and Kelvin–Helmholtz instability are increased for finite values of δ, while the unstable wavelengths for symmetric instability are unaffected. The ‘non-hydrostatic’ effects (δ ≠ 0) are significant for symmetric and Kelvin–Helmholtz instability when δ [gsim ] 1, but not for ‘geostrophic’ instability unless δ [Gt ] 1. Consequently, the first two types of instability tend to be suppressed relative to ‘geostrophic’ instability by ‘non-hydrostatic’ conditions. Figure 3 summarizes the different instability régimes that can occur. In laboratory experiments symmetric instability can be studied best when δ [lsim ] 1, while Kelvin–Helmholtz instability can be studied best when δ [Lt ] 1.
A Graphical Tool for Computing Opacities for ICF Applications

Abstract A graphical tool (JATBASE) and an object-oriented atomic database have been developed to apply to the opacity calculations and spectrum analysis for supporting the inertial confinement fusion (ICF) applications. The computing of large-scale atomic data, spectrum analysis, and equation of state (EOS) and opacities is integrated into a single platform. The distributed common object request broker architecture (CORBA) is used as the computing framework. Java technology is used extensively by the graphical user interface tool to construct a portal for users to access and use the data. The tool has been used in many ICF applications and provides quick and on-the-fly calculations for designing spectroscopy experiments.