Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Preface to Special Issue: Proceedings from the 1st Asia-Pacific Biochar Conference, 2009, Gold Coast, Australia

Since the first formal gathering of scientists, engineers, producers, and users interested in biochar in 2007 in Terrigal, NSW, Australia, the understanding and knowledge as well as public awareness of biochar has increased tremendously. Some 107 participants from 13 countries attended this first international biochar meeting, hosted by the International Agrichar initiative (now the International Biochar initiative). The 2nd International Biochar Conference followed in Newcastle, UK, in 2008. Attendance at this event increased to over 225 attendees from 31 different countries, which is testimony to the rapidly expanding field of biochar and its roles in the urgent need to find solutions to abate climate change and in exploring alternative ways of maintaining high agricultural productivity without increasing the use of fertilisers. It was from these two international conferences that momentum in biochar research was gathering in different parts of the world, and the need became apparent to host regional conferences that addressed the needs, products, and application types characteristic for the region. This spawned the idea for hosting an Asia-Pacific Biochar conference. With the help of the Australian and New Zealand Biochar Researchers Network (ANZBRN: www.anzbiochar.org/ index.html) and the Japan Biochar association (www.geocities.jp/ yasizato/JBA.htm), planning and coordination of the event for May 2009 on the Gold Coast, Australia, commenced. This Asia-Pacific conference (www.anzbiochar.org/2009presentations. html) was matched in the Northern Hemisphere with the North American Biochar conference (http://cees.colorado.edu/ northamericanbiochar.html) in Boulder, CO, in August 2009, followed by the US Biochar 2010 Conference in June 2010 in Iowa (www.biorenew.iastate.edu/biochar2010). Organisation of the next International Biochar conference was hosted in September 2010 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (www.ibi2010.org/).
Scaffolds in vascular regeneration: current status

An ideal vascular substitute, especially in <6 mm diameter applications, is a major clinical essentiality in blood vessel replacement surgery. Blood vessels are structurally complex and functionally dynamic tissue, with minimal regeneration potential. These have composite extracellular matrix (ECM) and arrangement. The interplay between ECM components and tissue specific cells gives blood vessels their specialized functional attributes. The core of vascular tissue engineering and regeneration relies on the challenges in creating vascular conduits that match native vessels and adequately regenerate in vivo. Out of numerous vascular regeneration concerns, the relevance of ECM emphasizes much attention toward appropriate choice of scaffold material and further scaffold development strategies. The review is intended to be focused on the various approaches of scaffold materials currently in use in vascular regeneration and current state of the art. Scaffold of choice in vascular tissue engineering ranges from natural to synthetic, decellularized, and even scaffold free approach. The applicability of tubular scaffold for in vivo vascular regeneration is under active investigation. A patent conduit with an ample endothelial luminal layer that can regenerate in vivo remains an unanswered query in the field of small diameter vascular tissue engineering. Besides, scaffolds developed for vascular regeneration, should aim at providing functional substitutes for use in a regenerative approach from the laboratory bench to patient bedside.
Leaf and Root-Associated Fungal Assemblages Do Not Follow Similar Elevational Diversity Patterns

The diversity of fungi along environmental gradients has been little explored in contrast to plants and animals. Consequently, environmental factors influencing the composition of fungal assemblages are poorly understood. The aim of this study was to determine whether the diversity and composition of leaf and root-associated fungal assemblages vary with elevation and to investigate potential explanatory variables. High-throughput sequencing of the Internal Transcribed Spacer 1 region was used to explore fungal assemblages along three elevation gradients, located in French mountainous regions. Beech forest was selected as a study system to minimise the host effect. The variation in species richness and specific composition was investigated for ascomycetes and basidiomycetes assemblages with a particular focus on root-associated ectomycorrhizal fungi. The richness of fungal communities associated with leaves or roots did not significantly relate to any of the tested environmental drivers, i.e. elevation, mean temperature, precipitation or edaphic variables such as soil pH or the ratio carbon∶nitrogen. Nevertheless, the ascomycete species richness peaked at mid-temperature, illustrating a mid-domain effect model. We found that leaf and root-associated fungal assemblages did not follow similar patterns of composition with elevation. While the composition of the leaf-associated fungal assemblage correlated primarily with the mean annual temperature, the composition of root-associated fungal assemblage was explained equally by soil pH and by temperature. The ectomycorrhizal composition was also related to these variables. Our results therefore suggest that above and below-ground fungal assemblages are not controlled by the same main environmental variables. This may be due to the larger amplitude of climatic variables in the tree foliage compared to the soil environment.
Contributions to a neurophysiology of meaning: the interpretation of written messages could be an automatic stimulus-reaction mechanism before becoming conscious processing of information

Background. Even though the interpretation of natural language messages is generally conceived as the result of a conscious processing of the message content, the influence of unconscious factors is also well known. What is still insufficiently known is the way such factors work. We have tackled interpretation assuming it is a process, whose basic features are the same for the whole humankind, and employing a naturalistic approach (careful observation of phenomena in conditions the closest to “natural” ones, and precise description before and independently of data statistical analysis). Methodology. Our field research involved a random sample of 102 adults. We presented them with a complete real world-like case of written communication using unabridged message texts. We collected data (participants’ written reports on their interpretations) in controlled conditions through a specially designed questionnaire (closed and opened answers); then, we treated it through qualitative and quantitative methods. Principal Findings. We gathered some evidence that, in written message interpretation, between reading and the attribution of conscious meaning, an intermediate step could exist (we named it “disassembling”) which looks like an automatic reaction to the text words/expressions. Thus, the process of interpretation would be a discontinuous sequence of three steps having different natures: the initial “decoding” step (i.e., reading, which requires technical abilities), disassembling (the automatic reaction, an unconscious passage) and the final conscious attribution of meaning. If this is true, words and expressions would firstly function like physical stimuli, before being taken into account as symbols. Such hypothesis, once confirmed, could help explaining some links between the cultural (human communication) and the biological (stimulus-reaction mechanisms as the basis for meanings) dimension of humankind.
Enhanced dynamic wedge factors at off‐axis points in asymmetric fields

Several recent reports have described methods for calculating enhanced dynamic wedge factors (EDWFs). Many of these reports use the monitor‐unit (MU) fraction method to predict EDWFs as a function of field size. Although simple in approach MU fraction methods do not produce accurate EDWFs in large or asymmetric fields. A recently described technique, based on the MU fraction method works well for large and asymmetric fields, but only when the calculation point is in the center of the field. Other existing methods based on beam‐segment superposition do not have this limitation. These beam summation methods, however, are difficult to implement in routine clinical MU calculation schemes. In this paper, we present a simple calculation method that estimates EDWFs at off‐axis calculation points in both symmetric and asymmetric fields. Our method, which also is based on the MU fraction method, similarly uses empirically determined field‐size corrections but also applies wedged‐field profiles to estimate EDWFs that are independent of calculation‐point location and field symmetry. EDWF measurements for a variety of field sizes and calculation‐point locations for both 6‐ and 18‐MV x‐ray beams were performed to validate our calculations and those of our ADAC Pinnacle 3 Treatment Planning System. The disagreement between the calculated and measured EDWFs over the useful clinical range of field sizes and calculation‐point locations was less than 2%. The worst disagreement was 3% and occurred at a point 8.5 cm from the center of an asymmetric 25( wedged direction)×20 cm2 60°‐wedged field. Detailed comparisons of measurements with calculations and wedge factors obtained from the ADAC Pinnacle 3 Treatment Planning System will be presented. In addition, the strengths and weaknesses of this calculation method will be discussed. © 2003 American College of Medical Physics. PACS number(s): 87.53. –j, 87.66. –a
Computation of azimuthal waves and their stability in thermal convection in rotating spherical shells with application to the study of a double-Hopf bifurcation

A methodology to compute azimuthal waves, appearing in thermal convection of a pure fluid contained in a rotating spherical shell, and to study their stability is presented. It is based on continuation, Newton-Krylov, and Arnoldi methods. An application to the study of a double-Hopf bifurcation of the basic state is shown for Ekman and Prandtl numbers E=10−4 and σ=0.1, respectively, radius ratios η∈[0.32,0.35], Rayleigh numbers R∈[1.8×105,6×105], and nonslip and perfectly conducting boundary conditions. The knowledge of the bifurcation diagrams, including the unstable solutions, allows one to understand the coexistence of stable thermal Rossby waves of different azimuthal wave numbers at some parameter regions, and the origin of some new intermittent solutions found, as trajectories close to heteroclinic chains. Moreover, the structure of the eigenfunctions at the secondary bifurcations explains the existence of the amplitude and shape modulated waves.
Midlife safer sex challenges for heterosexual New Zealand women re-partnering or in casual relationships.

INTRODUCTION The rate of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) amongst midlife and older heterosexual women in New Zealand is rising. Popular culture celebrates a heightened sexuality for this population group. However, depictions of sexually savvy 'cougars' are at odds with reality for many women. International literature highlights that these women are often ill-equipped to negotiate safer sex and condom use, instead focusing on pleasing men and attributing their silence to spontaneity. The study aimed to explore barriers to safer heterosexual sex as perceived by midlife and older New Zealand women who are re-partnering or in casual relationships. METHODS This qualitative study utilised Interpretive Phenomenology Analysis, supported by the theory of gender and power, to examine the gender-normative assumptions and behaviours in women's accounts of unprotected sex. Eight single women aged 40-69 participated in individual, in-depth interviews. This exploration included eliciting women's accounts of potential information resources, such as clinical consultations. FINDINGS Analysis indicated that these women held misconceptions about STI transmission but had not sought educational material, nor discussed their sexual health with health professionals. Results highlighted women's ambivalence about prioritising safer sex, preferring to comply with partners' wishes, particularly when under the influence of alcohol. Women described valuing their own pleasure and their distaste for condom use, but data emphasised that women predominantly aligned their choices with men's preferences. CONCLUSION This study highlights that the women were both ill-informed and vulnerable with regards to sexual health. General practitioners are well placed to provide education and sexual health advice.
Doing Gender for Different Reasons: Why Gender Conformity Positively and Negatively Predicts Self-Esteem 1

Past research has shown that valuing gender conformity is associated with both positive and negative consequences for self-esteem and positive affect. The current research (women,n = 226; men, n = 175) explored these conflicting findings by separating out investing in societal gender ideals from personally valuing one's gender identity (private regard) and investigating the relationship to self-esteem, through either autonomous (behaviors that are freely chosen) or pressured (behaviors engaged in due to pressure from others or situation) motivation for gender-consistent behavior (communal behavior for women and agentic behavior for men). Confirming predictions, structural equation modeling revealed that investment in gender ideals predicted pressured but not autonomous motivation whereas private regard predicted autonomous but not pressured motivation. Additionally, autonomous motivation for gender-consistent behavior was positively associated with self-esteem whereas pressured motivation was negatively associated with self-esteem. Thus, investing or valuing one's gender identity was not shown to be costly for the self directly, but to instead influence self-esteem through motivation to enact gender-conforming behavior. Although the present research demonstrates a positive link between some aspects of gender conformity and self-esteem, we discuss how gender-conforming behavior can still have negative consequences (e.g., communal behavior in the context of male-sex-typed domains).
Targeting Mcl-1 enhances DNA replication stress sensitivity to cancer therapy

DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) are mainly repaired either by homologous recombination (HR) or by nonhomologous end-joining (NHEJ) pathways. Here, we showed that myeloid cell leukemia sequence 1 (Mcl-1) acts as a functional switch in selecting between HR and NHEJ pathways. Mcl-1 was cell cycle–regulated during HR, with its expression peaking in S/G2 phase. While endogenous Mcl-1 depletion reduced HR and enhanced NHEJ, Mcl-1 overexpression resulted in a net increase in HR over NHEJ. Mcl-1 directly interacted with the dimeric Ku protein complex via its Bcl-2 homology 1 and 3 (BH1 and BH3) domains, which are required for Mcl-1 to inhibit Ku-mediated NHEJ. Mcl-1 also promoted DNA resection mediated by the Mre11 complex and HR-dependent DSB repair. Using the Mcl-1 BH1 domain as a docking site, we identified a small molecule, MI-223, that directly bound to BH1 and blocked Mcl-1–stimulated HR DNA repair, leading to sensitization of cancer cells to hydroxyurea- or olaparib-induced DNA replication stress. Combined treatment with MI-223 and hydroxyurea or olaparib exhibited a strong synergy against lung cancer in vivo. This mechanism-driven combination of agents provides a highly attractive therapeutic strategy to improve lung cancer outcomes.
Design and rationale for RE-VERSE AD: A phase 3 study of idarucizumab, a specific reversal agent for dabigatran

Summary Idarucizumab, a Fab fragment directed against dabigatran, produced rapid and complete reversal of the anticoagulation effect of dabigatran in animals and in healthy volunteers. The Study of the REVERS al E ffects of Idarucizumab in Patients on A ctive D abigatran (RE-VERSE AD™) is a global phase 3 prospective cohort study aimed at investigating idarucizumab in dabigatran-treated patients who present with uncontrollable or life-threatening bleeding, and in those requiring urgent surgery or intervention. We describe the rationale for, and design of the trial (clinicaltrials.gov NCT02104947).
Quantitative Comparison of Spot Detection Methods in Fluorescence Microscopy

Quantitative analysis of biological image data generally involves the detection of many subresolution spots. Especially in live cell imaging, for which fluorescence microscopy is often used, the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) can be extremely low, making automated spot detection a very challenging task. In the past, many methods have been proposed to perform this task, but a thorough quantitative evaluation and comparison of these methods is lacking in the literature. In this paper, we evaluate the performance of the most frequently used detection methods for this purpose. These include seven unsupervised and two supervised methods. We perform experiments on synthetic images of three different types, for which the ground truth was available, as well as on real image data sets acquired for two different biological studies, for which we obtained expert manual annotations to compare with. The results from both types of experiments suggest that for very low SNRs ( ¿ 2), the supervised (machine learning) methods perform best overall. Of the unsupervised methods, the detectors based on the so-called h -dome transform from mathematical morphology or the multiscale variance-stabilizing transform perform comparably, and have the advantage that they do not require a cumbersome learning stage. At high SNRs ( > 5), the difference in performance of all considered detectors becomes negligible.
Stress Analysis of Wooden Structures Exposed to Elevated Temperatures

An analytical method is presented for calculating stresses and strains inside wooden structures exposed to elevated temperature. The method combines stress analysis of elasticity with thermal analysis of heat transfer and property degradation models. Finite element methods were used for the analyses. Numerical results were generated for two different types of wooden structures made of Southern Pine. Stresses and deformations were calculated for the structures exposed to different environmental loading conditions. It was found that, based on the proposed analysis, the order of thermal and mechanical loading sequence had no effect on resulting stress distributions inside the wooden struc tures.
Influence of manganese and pre-heat treatment on microstructure and mechanical properties of Al-Si alloy

The control of the shape of iron-rich phase were realized by adding manganese in melt of Al-Si alloy and pre-heat treatment. The results show that the needle-like iron phase can mostly be transformed into lumpish by adding manganese after pre-heat treatment, and the grain sizes are symmetrical. The better effect can be gained by adding less manganese after heat-treatment, and the grain size can be controlled by controlling the amount of manganese basically. The suitable amount of Mn is x(Mn)/x(Fe)=0.5~1.1(molar ratio). After the combined treatment, the tensile strength and elongation of Al-Si alloy are improved by 40~80MPa and 6%~7%, respectively.
Relative Neurotoxin Gene Expression in Clostridium botulinum Type B, Determined Using Quantitative Reverse Transcription-PCR

ABSTRACT A quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (qRT-PCR) method was developed to monitor the relative expression of the type B botulinum neurotoxin (BoNT/B) gene (cntB) in Clostridium botulinum. The levels of cntB mRNA in five type B strains were accurately monitored by using primers specific for cntB and for the reference gene encoding the 16S rRNA. The patterns and relative expression of cntB were different in the different strains. Except for one of the strains investigated, an increase in cntB expression was observed when the bacteria entered the early stationary growth phase. In the proteolytic strain C. botulinum ATCC 7949, the level of cntB mRNA was four- to fivefold higher than the corresponding levels in the other strains. This was confirmed when we quantified the production of extracellular BoNT/B by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and measured the toxicity of BoNT/B by a mouse bioassay. When the effect of exposure to air on cntB expression was investigated, no decline in the relative expression was observed in spite of an 83% reduction in the viable count based on the initial cell number. Instead, the level of cntB mRNA remained the same. When there was an increase in the sodium nitrite concentration, the bacteria needed a longer adjustment time in the medium before exponential growth occurred. In addition, there was a reduction in the expression of cntB compared to the expression of the 16S rRNA gene at higher sodium nitrite concentrations. This was most obvious in the late exponential growth phase, but at the highest sodium nitrite concentration investigated, 45 ppm, a one- to threefold decline in the cntB mRNA level was observed in all growth phases.
Characterization of epoxy resin SU-8 film using thickness-shear mode (TSM) resonator

Characterization of an organic resin (commonly known as SU-8), being investigated as waveguiding layer in the guided shear-horizontal surface acoustic wave (SH-SAW) sensor platforms, is presented. The impedance-admittance characteristics of the equivalent circuit models of both the unperturbed and coated resonators are analyzed to extract the storage modulus (G') and loss modulus (G"). The accuracy of the extracted shear modulus parameters occurs at high thickness where viscoelastic contribution is substantial. Apparently the polymer film is in a glassy state due to the high value of G' and high ratio of G' to G". Device resistance is less than 20 /spl Omega/ when the thickness of film is less than 5 /spl mu/m, beyond which viscoelastic properties significantly contribute to the frequency response. The extraction of the storage and loss moduli as a function of temperature ranging from -75/spl deg/C to 40/spl deg/C is also shown in order to study the effects of temperature on the shear modulus. Below -60/spl deg/C, both the frequency shift and R/sub 2/ (the electrical resistance arising from the SU-8 film) are less dependent on temperature, which indicates that the polymer is almost totally elastic below -60/spl deg/C. Exposure of SU-8 film to water and solutions of organic solvents such as acetone and ethanol also indicates, through frequency shift and resistance change, some degree of change in G' and G". However, stability is rapidly reached with exposure to DI water, indicating relatively lower water absorption.
Non-linear buckling analysis of tapered curved composite plates

Abstract Linear formulations are insufficient to take into account the effect of large deflections that occur after initial buckling. This effect can only be considered in the non-linear buckling analysis. In the present work, the non-linear analysis is carried out using the finite element method based on first-order shear deformation shell theories. Two non-linear shell theories, Donnel’s and Sanders’ theories, are used in the analysis. Based on the first-ply failure analysis and non-linear buckling analysis, the critical sizes and parameters of the tapered curved plates that will not fail before global buckling are determined. A parametric study that encompasses the effects of taper angle, critical length-to-height ratio, radius, radius-to-thickness ratio and geometric parameters of the plates is conducted.