Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Quantifying the heart of darkness with GHALO – a multibillion particle simulation of a galactic halo

We perform a series of simulations of a Galactic mass dark matter halo at different resolutions: our largest uses over 3 billion particles and has a mass resolution of 1000 M⊙. We quantify the structural properties of the inner dark matter distribution and study how they depend on numerical resolution. We can measure the density profile to a distance of 120 pc (0.05 per cent of Rvir), where the logarithmic slope is −0.8 and −1.4 at (0.5 per cent of Rvir). We propose a new two-parameter fitting function that has a linearly varying logarithmic density gradient over the resolved radii which fits the GHALO and VL2 density profiles extremely well. Convergence in the halo shape is achieved at roughly three times the convergence radius for the density profile at which point the halo becomes more spherical due to numerical resolution. The six-dimensional phase-space profile is dominated by the presence of the substructures and does not follow a power law, except in the central few kpc which is devoid of substructure even at this resolution. The quantity, ρ/σ3, which is often used as a proxy for the six-dimensional phase-space density should be used with caution.
Sanguina nivaloides and Sanguina aurantia gen. et spp. nov. (Chlorophyta): the taxonomy, phylogeny, biogeography and ecology of two newly recognised algae causing red and orange snow

ABSTRACT Melting snowfields in polar and alpine regions often exhibit a red and orange colouration caused by microalgae. The diversity of these organisms is still poorly understood. We applied a polyphasic approach using three molecular markers and light and electron microscopy to investigate spherical cysts sampled from alpine mountains in Europe, North America and South America as well as from both polar regions. Molecular analyses revealed the presence of a single independent lineage within the Chlamydomonadales. The genus Sanguina is described, with Sanguina nivaloides as its type. It is distinguishable from other red cysts forming alga by the number of cell wall layers, cell size, cell surface morphology and habitat preference. Sanguina nivaloides is a diverse species containing a total of 18 haplotypes according to nuclear ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacer 2, with low nucleotide divergence (≤3.5%). Based on molecular data we demonstrate that it has a cosmopolitan distribution with an absence of geographical structuring, indicating an effective dispersal strategy with the cysts being transported all around the globe, including trans-equatorially. Additionally, Sanguina aurantia is described, with small spherical orange cysts often clustered by means of mucilaginous sheaths, and causing orange blooms in snow in subarctic and Arctic regions.
The Dependence of Composition, Cooling Rate and Size on the Solidification Behaviour of SnAgCu Solders

The scope of this study is to investigate the influences on the solidification of the micro structure of SnAgCu solders. It will be shown that the solidification process depends on solder composition, specimen size and manufacturing conditions. The influence of solder composition has been investigated on bulk solder ingots by varying the Ag content from 3.0 wt% to 3.8 wt% and the Cu content from 0.4 wt% to 1.5 wt%. The influence of an additional Au content was investigated on a SnAg3.0Cu0. 5Au0.14 solder. Solidification experiments with different cooling rates from 0.006 K/s to 0.6 K/s have been carried on bulk solder ingots (length 23 mm; Oslash 7 mm) of the alloys SnAg3.0Cu0. 5, SnAg3.8Cu0. 7 and SnAg3.5Cu0.4. The results will point out the influence of cooling gradients on the microstructure. In order to compare the microstructure of these large specimen with real solder joints, solidification experiments with cooling rates from 0.33 K/s to 10.9 K/s have been carried out on SnAg3.0Cu0. 5 solder balls with four different sizes (Oslash 130 mum, Oslash 270 mum, Oslash 590 mum and 0 1100 mum). Phase sizes and shapes as well as grain orientations have been investigated and compared. Experiments on directed solidification have been carried out in order to investigate the dendritic growth of beta-Sn dendrites. For that purpose a temperature gradient was generated inside the solder during solidification.
Auriculotherapy for pain management: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

OBJECTIVES Side-effects of standard pain medications can limit their use. Therefore, nonpharmacologic pain relief techniques such as auriculotherapy may play an important role in pain management. Our aim was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies evaluating auriculotherapy for pain management. DESIGN MEDLINE,(®) ISI Web of Science, CINAHL, AMED, and Cochrane Library were searched through December 2008. Randomized trials comparing auriculotherapy to sham, placebo, or standard-of-care control were included that measured outcomes of pain or medication use and were published in English. Two (2) reviewers independently assessed trial eligibility, quality, and abstracted data to a standardized form. Standardized mean differences (SMD) were calculated for studies using a pain score or analgesic requirement as a primary outcome. RESULTS Seventeen (17) studies met inclusion criteria (8 perioperative, 4 acute, and 5 chronic pain). Auriculotherapy was superior to controls for studies evaluating pain intensity (SMD, 1.56 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.85, 2.26]; 8 studies). For perioperative pain, auriculotherapy reduced analgesic use (SMD, 0.54 [95% CI: 0.30, 0.77]; 5 studies). For acute pain and chronic pain, auriculotherapy reduced pain intensity (SMD for acute pain, 1.35 [95% CI: 0.08, 2.64], 2 studies; SMD for chronic pain, 1.84 [95% CI: 0.60, 3.07], 5 studies). Removal of poor quality studies did not alter the conclusions. Significant heterogeneity existed among studies of acute and chronic pain, but not perioperative pain. CONCLUSIONS Auriculotherapy may be effective for the treatment of a variety of types of pain, especially postoperative pain. However, a more accurate estimate of the effect will require further large, well-designed trials.
Circulation Regimes and Low-Frequency Oscillations in the South Pacific Sector

Abstract The characteristics of subseasonal circulation variability over the South Pacific are examined using 10-day lowpass-filtered 700-hPa geopotential height NCEP–NCAR reanalysis data. The extent to which the variability in each season is characterized by recurrent geographically fixed circulation regimes and/or oscillatory behavior is determined. Two methods of analysis (a K-means cluster analysis and a cross-validated Gaussian mixture model) both indicate three to four geographically fixed circulation regimes in austral fall, winter, and (to some extent) spring. The spatial regime structures are found to be quite similar in each season; they resemble the so-called Pacific–South American (PSA) patterns discussed in previous studies and often referred to as PSA 1 and PSA 2. Oscillatory behavior is investigated using singular spectrum analysis. This identifies a predominantly stationary wave with a period of about 40 days and a spatial structure similar to PSA 1; it is most pronounced in winter and spr.
Density profiles in a spherical infall model with non-radial motions

A generalized version of the Spherical Infall Model (SIM) is used to study the effect of angular momentum on the final density profile of a spherical structure. The numerical method presented is able to handle a variety of initial density profiles (scale or not scale free) and no assumption of self-similar evolution is required. The realistic initial overdensity profiles used are derived by a CDM power spectrum. We show that the amount of angular momentum and the initial overdensity profile affect the slope of the final density profile at the inner regions. Thus, a larger amount of angular momentum or shallower initial overdensity profiles lead to shallower final density profiles at the inner regions. On the other hand, the slope at the outer regions is not affected by the amount of angular momentum and has an almost constant value equal to that predicted in the radial collapse case.
Designing a mobile music sharing system based on emergent properties

We are exploring the use of emergent properties of complex systems in a mobile music sharing application. In our approach, songs are treated as individual agents that act autonomously according to input (e.g. listening habits) and given rules. We introduce the concept and report on a study that was conducted to inform the design of such an application.
Correlation between Ionospheric Spatial Decorrelation and Space Weather Intensity for Safety-Critical Differential GNSS Systems

An ionospheric spatial decorrelation is one of the most dominant error factors that affects the availability of safety-critical differential global navigation satellite systems (DGNSS). This is because systems apply significant conservatism on the error source when ensuring navigation safety due to its unpredictable error characteristic. This paper investigates a correlation between GNSS-derived ionospheric spatial decorrelation and space weather intensity. The understanding of the correlation has significant advantages when modeling residual ionospheric errors without being overly pessimistic by exploiting external sources of space weather information. An ionospheric spatial decorrelation is quantified with a parameter of spatial gradient, which is an ionosphere total electron content (TEC) difference per unit distance of ionospheric pierce point (IPP). We used all pairs of stations from dense GNSS networks in the conterminous United States (CONUS) that provide an IPP separation distance of less than 100 km to obtain spatial gradient measurements under both ionospherically quiet and active conditions. Since the correlation results would be applied to safety-critical navigation applications, special attention was paid by taking into consideration all non-Gaussian tails of a spatial gradient distribution when determining spatial gradient statistics. The statistics were compared with space weather indices which are disturbance storm time (Dst) index and interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) Bz index. As a result, the ionospheric spatial decorrelation showed a significant positive correlation with both indices, especially under active ionospheric conditions. Under quiet conditions, it showed positive correlation slightly weaker than those under active conditions, and the IMF Bz showed preceding response to the spatial gradient statistics revealing the potential applicability for predicting the spatial decorrelation conditions.
A mathematical view of interior-point methods in convex optimization

This compact book, through the simplifying perspective it presents, will take a reader who knows little of interior-point methods to within sight of the research frontier, developing key ideas that were over a decade in the making by numerous interior-point method researchers. It aims at developing a thorough understanding of the most general theory for interior-point methods, a class of algorithms for convex optimization problems. The study of these algorithms has dominated the continuous optimization literature for nearly 15 years. In that time, the theory has matured tremendously, but much of the literature is difficult to understand, even for specialists. By focusing only on essential elements of the theory and emphasizing the underlying geometry, A Mathematical View of Interior-Point Methods in Convex Optimization makes the theory accessible to a wide audience, allowing them to quickly develop a fundamental understanding of the material.
Transcendentality and crossing

We discuss possible phase factors for the S-matrix of planar gauge theory, leading to modifications at four-loop order as compared to an earlier proposal. While these result in a four-loop breakdown of perturbative BMN scaling, Kotikov–Lipatov transcendentality in the universal scaling function for large-spin twist operators may be preserved. One particularly natural choice, unique up to one constant, modifies the overall contribution of all terms containing odd-zeta functions in the earlier proposed scaling function based on a trivial phase. Excitingly, we present evidence that this choice is non-perturbatively related to a recently conjectured crossing-symmetric phase factor for perturbative string theory on AdS5 × S5 once the constant is fixed to a particular value. Our proposal, if true, might therefore resolve the long-standing AdS/CFT discrepancies between gauge and string theory.
Tuning Electronic Properties of the SiC-GeC Bilayer by External Electric Field: A First-Principles Study

First-principles calculations were used to investigate the electronic properties of the SiC/GeC nanosheet (the thickness was about 8 Å). With no electric field (E-field), the SiC/GeC nanosheet was shown to have a direct bandgap of 1.90 eV. In the band structure, the valence band of the SiC/GeC nanosheet was mainly made up of C-p, while the conduction band was mainly made up of C-p, Si-p, and Ge-p, respectively. Application of the E-field to the SiC/GeC nanosheet was found to facilitate modulation of the bandgap, regularly reducing it to zero, which was linked to the direction and strength of the E-field. The major bandgap modulation was attributed to the migration of C-p, Si-p, and Ge-p orbitals around the Fermi level. Our conclusions might give some theoretical guidance for the development and application of the SiC/GeC nanosheet.
Nucleolar Structure and Function in Trypanosomatid Protozoa

The nucleolus is the conspicuous nuclear body where ribosomal RNA genes are transcribed by RNA polymerase I, pre-ribosomal RNA is processed, and ribosomal subunits are assembled. Other important functions have been attributed to the nucleolus over the years. Here we review the current knowledge about the structure and function of the nucleolus in the trypanosomatid parasites Trypanosoma brucei, Trypanosoma cruzi and Leishmania ssp. , which represent one of the earliest branching lineages among the eukaryotes. These protozoan parasites present a single nucleolus that is preserved throughout the closed nuclear division, and that seems to lack fibrillar centers. Trypanosomatids possess a relatively low number of rRNA genes, which encode rRNA molecules that contain large expansion segments, including several that are trypanosomatid-specific. Notably, the large subunit rRNA (28S-type) is fragmented into two large and four small rRNA species. Hence, compared to other organisms, the rRNA primary transcript requires additional processing steps in trypanosomatids. Accordingly, this group of parasites contains the highest number ever reported of snoRNAs that participate in rRNA processing. The number of modified rRNA nucleotides in trypanosomatids is also higher than in other organisms. Regarding the structure and biogenesis of the ribosomes, recent cryo-electron microscopy analyses have revealed several trypanosomatid-specific features that are discussed here. Additional functions of the nucleolus in trypanosomatids are also reviewed.
CRISPR/Cas9-mediated gene knockout of ARID1A promotes primary progesterone resistance by downregulating progesterone receptor B in endometrial cancer cells.

Medroxyprogesterone (MPA) is used for the conservative treatment of endometrial cancer. Unfortunately, progesterone resistance seriously affects its therapeutic effect. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the influence of deletion of AT-Rich Interactive Domain 1A (ARID1A) in progesterone resistance in Ishikawa cells. Ablation of ARID1A was conducted through the CRISPR/Cas9 technology. Acquired progesterone-resistant Ishikawa (Ishikawa-PR) cells were generated by chronic exposure of Ishikawa cells to MPA. The sensitivity of the parental Ishikawa, Ishikawa-PR and ARID1A-deficient cells to MPA and/or LY294002 was determined using the Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay and flow cytometry analysis. In addition, Western blot analysis and reversetranscription-polymerase chain reaction was performed to evaluate the mRNA and protein expression levels of ARID1A, progesterone receptor B (PRB) and P-AKT. Both Ishikawa-PR and ARID1A knockout cells showed insensitivity to MPA, downregulation of PRB and hyperphosphorylation of AKT compared to the parental Ishikawa cells. Pretreatment with LY294002 significantly enhanced the ability of MPA to suppress proliferation and to induce apoptosis in the parental and Ishikawa-PR cells via the inhibition of AKT activation and upregulation of PRB transcriptional activity. However, the PRB transcriptional activity and insensitivity to MPA were irreversible by LY294002 in ARID1A-deficient cells. Ablation of ARID1A is associated with low PRB expression, which serves an important role in primary progesterone resistance. Akt inhibition cannot rescue PRB or sensitize to MPA in ARID1A knockout cells. These findings suggest that ARID1A may be act as a reliable biomarker to predict the response for the combination of AKT inhibitor and MPA treatment.
Deep ACS Imaging of the Halo of NGC 5128: Reaching the Horizontal Branch

Using the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Wide Field Camera (WFC) of the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS), we have obtained deep (V, I) photometry of an outer halo field in NGC 5128, to a limiting magnitude of I ≃ 29. Our photometry directly reveals the core helium burning stellar population (the "red clump" or horizontal branch) in a giant E/S0 galaxy for the first time. The color-magnitude diagram displays a very wide red giant branch (RGB), an asymptotic giant branch (AGB) bump, and the red clump; no noticeable population of blue horizontal branch stars is present, confirming previous suggestions that old, very metal-poor population is not ubiquitous in the halo of this galaxy. From the upper RGB we derive the metallicity distribution, which we find to be very broad and moderately metal-rich, with average [M/H] = -0.64 and dispersion 0.49 dex. The metallicity distribution function is virtually identical to that found in other halo fields observed previously with HST, but with an enhanced metal-rich population that was partially missed in the previous surveys due to V-band incompleteness for these very red stars. Combining the metallicity-sensitive colors of the RGB stars with the metallicity- and age-sensitive features of the AGB bump and the red clump, we infer the average age of the halo stars to be ~8 Gyr. As part of our study, we present an empirical calibration of the ACS F606W and F814W filters to the standard V and I bands, achieved with ground-based observations of the same field made from the EMMI camera of the New Technology Telescope of the ESO La Silla Observatory.
Contribution of potassium channels to action potential repolarization of human embryonic stem cell‐derived cardiomyocytes

The electrophysiological properties of human pluripotent stem cell‐derived cardiomyocytes (CMs) have not yet been characterized in a syncytial context. This study systematically characterized the contributions of different repolarizing potassium currents in human embryonic stem cell‐derived CMs (hESC‐CMs) during long‐term culture as cell monolayers.
Comparing Call Graphs Ondřej Lhoták

Comparing program analysis results from different static a nd dynamic analysis tools is difficult and therefore too rare, esp ecially when it comes to qualitative comparison. Analysis results c an be strongly affected by specific details of programs being anal yzed, so quantitative evaluation should be supplemented by quali tative identification of those details. Our general aim is to develo p tools to reduce the difficulty of qualitative comparison. In this p aper, we focus on comparison of call graphs in particular. We present two complementary tools for comparing call graph s. Our main contribution is a call graph difference search tool hat ranks call graph edges by their likelihood of causing large d iff rences in the call graphs. This is complemented by a simple int eractive call graph viewer that highlights specific differences between call graphs, and allows a user to browse through them. In a sea rch for the causes of call graph differences, a user first uses the earch tool to identify which of the thousands of spurious edges to l ook at more closely, and then uses the interactive viewer to determ in in detail the root cause of a difference. We present the ranking algorithm used in the difference sear ch tool. We also report on a case study using the comparison tool s determine the most important sources of imprecision in a typ ical static call graph by comparing it to a dynamic call graph of th e same benchmark.
Cooperative Organizations as an Engine of Equitable Rural Economic Development

Cooperatives represent an alternative to large-scale corporate farms and plantations as well as to independent unaffiliated small private farms. This paper presents a comparative modeling narrative on cooperative organizational forms’ potential impact on equitable rural development. This speaks to issues of both increasing the size of the economic pie and how this income is distributed. The case is made the cooperatives can potentially generate higher rates of growth and more equitable growth, even in competitive economic environments. An important type of cooperative that is focused upon in this paper is one based on the linking of smaller farms into a cooperative. Economies of scale and scope can be captured by the cooperatives and transaction costs can be reduced. Given cooperative governance, one would also expect higher levels of x-efficiency. Overall, cooperatives can generate relatively high incomes to cooperative members, whilst remaining competitive with the traditional privately owned large farms. Critical to the success of the cooperative, is a set rules and regulations that place them on a level playing field with the privately owned farm. In addition, the implementation and practice of cooperative principles is key to the success of the cooperative farm and rural cooperatives, more generally speaking.
Growth Hormone Research Society perspective on the development of long-acting growth hormone preparations

Objective The Growth Hormone (GH) Research Society (GRS) convened a workshop to address important issues regarding trial design, efficacy, and safety of long-acting growth hormone preparations (LAGH). Participants A closed meeting of 55 international scientists with expertise in GH, including pediatric and adult endocrinologists, basic scientists, regulatory scientists, and participants from the pharmaceutical industry. Evidence Current literature was reviewed for gaps in knowledge. Expert opinion was used to suggest studies required to address potential safety and efficacy issues. Consensus process Following plenary presentations summarizing the literature, breakout groups discussed questions framed by the planning committee. Attendees reconvened after each breakout session to share group reports. A writing team compiled the breakout session reports into a draft document that was discussed and revised in an open forum on the concluding day. This was edited further and then circulated to attendees from academic institutions for review after the meeting. Participants from pharmaceutical companies did not participate in the planning, writing, or in the discussions and text revision on the final day of the workshop. Scientists from industry and regulatory agencies reviewed the manuscript to identify any factual errors. Conclusions LAGH compounds may represent an advance over daily GH injections because of increased convenience and differing phamacodynamic properties, providing the potential for improved adherence and outcomes. Better methods to assess adherence must be developed and validated. Long-term surveillance registries that include assessment of efficacy, cost-benefit, disease burden, quality of life, and safety are essential for understanding the impact of sustained exposure to LAGH preparations.