Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
CLAY MINERALOGY EFFECT ON RAIN INFILTRATION, SEAL FORMATION AND SOIL LOSSES

The effect of clay mineralogy on seal formation, infiltration rate (IR) and soil loss was studied on 19 cultivated soils from South Africa (SA) using a laboratory rainfall simulator. Two soil treatments were applied: control and spreading phosphogypsum (PG) at the rate of 5 mg ha-1. The IR and soil losses were compared with the same parameters of smectitic soils from Israel. Based on the final IR values the SA soils were divided into two groups: (1) stable soils, in which the final IRs of untreated and PG treated soils were >8 and >18 mm h-1, respectively; and (2) dispersive soils, in which the final IRs were <4.5 and >12.5 mm h-1, respectively. The final IRs of the SA dispersive soils were similar to those of the smectitic soils from Israel. The soil loss rates of the SA dispersive soils were higher than those of the stable soils. However, the soil loss rates of the smectitic soils from Israel were significantly higher than those of the SA dispersive soils. It was suggested that soils in which either kaolinite or illite clay predominated, but that contained small amounts of smectite, were dispersive and as susceptible to seal formation as smectitic soils. However, the smectitic soils were more erodible than-the soils that contained only small amounts of smectites. Conversely, soils that do not contain smectite are more stable, less erodible, and less susceptible to seal formation.
A role for CD1d‐restricted NKT cells in injury‐associated T cell suppression

Natural killer T (NKT) cells are known to modulate T cell responses during autoimmunity, tolerance, and antitumor immunity; however, their potential role in regulating the immune response to injury has not been reported. Using a murine model of burn injury, we investigated whether CD1d‐restricted NKT cells played a role in the T cell suppression that occurs early after injury. A functional role for CD1d stimulation of NKT cells in the injury‐related immune suppression was demonstrated by experiments in which the suppression of antigen (Ag)‐specific delayed‐type hypersensitivity and in vitro T cell‐proliferative responses were prevented if mice were given anti‐CD1d monoclonal antibody (mAb) systemically just before injury. The CD1d‐NKT cell‐dependent suppression of the T cell response after injury occurred in the absence of quantitative changes in NKT cells themselves or CD1d+ Ag‐presenting cells. We observed that elevated production of the immunosuppressive cytokine interleukin (IL)‐4 correlated with burn‐induced immune dysfunction, and we found that NKT cells but not conventional T cells were the source of IL‐4 early after injury. Lastly, we observed that the injury‐induced production of NKT cell‐derived IL‐4 could be blocked by systemic treatment of burn‐injured mice with anti‐CD1d mAb. Together, our results reveal a novel mechanism involving CD1d stimulation of NKT cells in the onset of T cell suppression that occurs subsequent to injury.
Late cretaceous plesiosaurs from northern Patagonia, Argentina

During the Late Campanian‐Danian interval the South Atlantic Ocean invaded a large part of Patagonia in different events making an archipelago. Plesiosaurs from northern Patagonia of Late Campanian‐Early Maastrichtian age were found in the Allen Formation. The sedimentology and faunal content, mainly at the Pellegrini Lake, suggest marginal marine environments, such as coastal plains, lagoons or estuaries. Toward the end of the Maastrichtian a new relative sea‐level rise occurred, and the plesiosaurs are recorded in sediments of deeper marine environments of inner or middle platform.
Visible and near-infrared multispectral analysis of geochemically measured rock fragments at the Opportunity landing site in Meridiani Planum

[1] We have used visible and near-infrared Panoramic Camera (Pancam) spectral data acquired by the Opportunity rover to analyze 15 rock fragments at the Meridiani Planum landing site. These spectral results were then compared to geochemistry measurements made by the in situ instruments Mossbauer (MB) and Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) to determine the feasibility of mineralogic characterization from Pancam data. Our results suggest that dust and alteration rinds coat many rock fragments, which limits our ability to adequately measure the mineralogy of some rocks from Pancam spectra relative to the different field of view and penetration depths of MB and APXS. Viewing and lighting geometry, along with sampling size, also complicate the spectral characterization of the rocks. Rock fragments with the same geochemistry of sulfate-rich outcrops have similar spectra, although the sulfate-rich composition cannot be ascertained based upon Pancam spectra alone. FeNi meteorites have spectral characteristics, particularly ferric oxide coatings, that generally differentiate them from other rocks at the landing site. Stony meteorites and impact fragments with unknown compositions have a diverse range of spectral properties and are not well constrained nor diagnostic in Pancam data. Bounce Rock, with its unique basalt composition, is easily differentiated in the Pancam data from all other rock types at Meridiani Planum. Our Pancam analyses of small pebbles adjacent to these 15 rock fragments suggests that other rock types may exist at the landing site but have not yet been geochemically measured.
Hierarchical annealing for synthesis of binary porous media images

The introduction of a hierarchical annealing algorithm addresses the very large computational costs associated with simulated annealing for the synthesis of binary porous media images. In real-world examples, the large configuration space of such models has led to disappointing performance of annealing approaches. We demonstrate orders-of-magnitude improvement compared to existing results, and discuss the inherent computational difficulties encountered with these types of approaches.
Neuron number in the entorhinal cortex and CA1 in preclinical Alzheimer disease.

OBJECTIVES To determine whether nondemented subjects with pathological evidence of preclinical Alzheimer disease (AD) demonstrate neuronal loss in the entorhinal cortex and hippocampus, and whether the onset of cognitive deficits in AD coincides with the onset of neuronal degeneration. METHODS Preclinical AD cases have been defined by the absence of cognitive decline but with neuropathological evidence of AD. The hippocampus and entorhinal cortex were examined in 13 nondemented cases (Clinical Dementia Rating [CDR] 0) with healthy brains, 4 cases with preclinical AD, 8 cases with very mild symptomatic AD (CDR 0.5), and 4 cases with severe AD (CDR 3, hippocampus only). The volume and number of neurons were determined stereologically in 2 areas that are vulnerable to AD--the entorhinal cortex (as a whole and layer II alone) and hippocampal field CA1. RESULTS There was no significant decrease in neuron number or volume with age in the healthy nondemented group and little or none between the healthy and preclinical AD groups. Substantial decreases were found in the very mild AD group in neuron number (35% in the entorhinal cortex, 50% in layer II, and 46% in CA1) and volume (28% in the entorhinal cortex, 21% in layer II, and 29% in CA1). Greater decrements were observed in CA1 in the severe AD group. CONCLUSIONS There is little or no neuronal loss in aging or preclinical AD but substantial loss in very mild AD. The findings indicate that AD results in clinical deficits only when it produces significant neuronal loss.
Why Is Interprovincial Trade Down and International Trade Up

The drop in the share of interprovincial exports in GDP can be fully explained by several factors: the reductions in Canadian tariffs that have opened up the domestic market to foreign competition; the slower growth of that market compared with the U.S.; and relatively low increases in the prices of goods traded interprovincially. Those concerned about the weakening of the Canadian internal market should take some comfort that, except for the relatively small increases in the prices of interprovincial exports, these factors should have run their course and are unlikely to cause any further declines in the share of interprovincial exports in GDP. Even more encouraging, there is some evidence the AIT has helped to increase interprovincial exports. The jump in international exports can be fully explained by improved Canadian labor costs relative to the U.S., reductions in tariffs paid on U.S. imports from Canada almost entirely as a result of the FTA/NAFTA, and, most importantly, the U.S.’s prodigious growing appetite for imports, some of which may be unsustainable given the recent magnitude of the U.S. current account deficit. The increase in Canada’s international exports, remarkable as it was, would have been even larger if it had not been for the decline in their price relative to the price of GDP.
The Effect of State Policies on the Market for Private Non-Group Health Insurance

In the 1990s, several states adopted community rating to improve perceived inefficiencies in their nongroup health insurance markets. Using data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation, Lo Sasso and Lurie find that community rating was associated with older, unhealthier individuals being more likely to be covered by nongroup health insurance. By contrast, among younger, healthier individuals, community rating was associated with a reduction in the likelihood of being covered by nongroup insurance. Conversely, they find that community rating was associated with a rise in uninsurance rates for younger, healthier individuals and a reduction in uninsurance rates for older, unhealthier individuals. The results suggest that the enrollees as a group were sicker after community rating was implemented. The authors also find evidence of insurers trying to alter their products to regain a measure of risk selection ability after community rating eliminated medical underwriting as a market segmentation tool. They find that HMO penetration in the nongroup market increased disproportionately in states that implemented community rating relative to states that did not.
Carbon monoxide concentrations and their relation to concentrations of total reactive oxidized nitrogen at two rural U.S. sites

Concentrations of CO and NOy (total reactive oxidized nitrogen species) were measured simultaneously with many other atmospheric parameters, including SO2 concentration and wind direction, during three field studies (two rural and one suburban). The CO concentrations at the two rural sites can be described approximately by lognormal distributions, with the Scotia, Pennsylvania, site exhibiting higher levels (geometric mean, 214 parts per billion by volume (ppbv); standard deviation of the logarithms, 0.143) than Niwot Ridge, Colorado (geometric mean, 121 ppbv; standard deviation of the logarithms, 0.175). As expected, measurements made at Niwot Ridge when the wind was from the east, the direction of the principal nearby urban area, exhibited the highest CO levels. At Scotia, power-plant-dominated air parcels could be identified by larger [SO2] to [NOy] ratios and were characterized by smaller [CO] to [NOy] ratios. Simultaneous measurements of [CO] and [NOy] allowed the identification of air parcels that arrived at Niwot Ridge and Boulder (the suburban site) without significant recent anthropogenic input. The CO levels in these parcels were consistent with the tropospheric background concentration of CO at 40°N latitude: approximately 84 ppbv in late summer and 127 ppbv in early spring. The [CO] to [NOy] ratios observed in the Boulder suburban study provide a test for, and are consistent with, available emission inventories for these pollutants. At Niwot Ridge in east winds the observed ratios are consistent with the ratios expected from emission inventories, modified by photochemical transformation on time scales that are reasonable for transport from the location of emission to the measurement site. However, the rural data sets were not able to provide stringent tests of emission inventories.
Long-term erythemal UV at Abisko and Helsinki estimated using total ozone, sunshine duration, and snow depth

A method for estimating past UV radiation levels using measurements of total ozone, sunshine duration and snow depth was applied to Abisko, northern Sweden, and Helsinki, southern Finland. The method has earlier been applied to Sodankyla (Finland) and Davos (Switzerland). The performance of the method was, as in earlier studies, found to be satisfactory with, for instance, a seasonal correlation coefficient as compared to measurements of the order of 95%. By extending the available ozone time series into the past using climatological values of the total ozone column, we were able to make UV estimates all the way back to the early 20th century at both stations. Both at Abisko and Helsinki, the produced time series of estimated daily erythemal UV doses shows increases over the last few decades partly due to the diminution of the total ozone column, and partly due to variations in the sunshine duration. Over the period 1950-1999, a statistically significant increasing trend of 2.2%/decade was found for Abisko, whereas for Helsinki, a trend of 4.2%/decade (also statistically significant) was found for the period 1979-1999.
Normal Insulin-Receptor cDNA Sequence in Pima Indians With NIDDM

Pima Indians have served as a model of non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM). Within this population, inherited insulin resistance is a primary determinant of abnormal glucose metabolism. The insulin receptor is regarded as a “candidate gene” that could potentially be defective in Pima Indians or other populations with NIDDM. To directly address the question of potential insulin-receptor genetic defects in Pima Indians, we isolated and sequenced insulin-receptor cDNA from two Pima Indians with NIDDM. Small amounts of lymphoblast RNA were used to generate first-strand cDNA, which was then amplified via the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). In this way, seven overlapping segments of insulin-receptor cDNA were obtained. With the exception of the alternatively spliced 36-base pair exon 11, which is not expressed in lymphoblasts, the complete coding region of the mature proreceptor was examined with a combination of direct sequencing and sequencing of subcloned PCR segments. The nucleotide sequence in both subjects was identical to previously published insulin-receptor cDNA sequences obtained from healthy subjects. These data indicate that abnormalities of insulin binding and receptor function that have been previously observed in vitro with fresh and cultured cells from Pima Indians may be consequences of the diabetic milieu and/or genetic abnormalities in molecules that interact with the insulin receptor.
Saltwater Intrusion and Recirculation of Seawater at a Coastal Boundary

AbstractNumerical experiments were performed to investigate saltwater intrusion and recirculation of seawater at a coastal boundary. A field-scale two-dimensional cross section was simulated in which freshwater inflow occurred at an upgradient boundary, and saltwater inflow, freshwater outflow, and recirculated seawater outflow occurred at a downgradient boundary. The upgradient boundary is a specified-flux boundary with a zero (i.e., freshwater) concentration, and the downgradient boundary is a specified-head boundary with a specified (i.e., saltwater) concentration. This problem was solved numerically using SEAWAT for two conditions; i.e., first for the uncoupled condition in which the fluid density is constant, and thus, the flow and transport equations are uncoupled in a constant-density flowfield, and then for the coupled condition in which the fluid density is a function of the concentration of total dissolved solids, and thus, the flow and transport equations are coupled in a variable-density flowf.
The Wealth Effect in Empirical Life-Cycle Aggregate Consumption Equations

This article presents an empirical model of U.S. consumer spending that relates consumption to labor income and household wealth. This specification is consistent with the life-cycle hypothesis of saving first popularized in the 1960s by Ando, Modigliani, and their cohorts. 1 My analysis here extends the previous research in several directions. First, I examine the dynamic relationship between consumption, income, and wealth using cointegration and error correction methodology. In previous research, the traditional life-cycle model has often been examined using either levels or first differences of these variables. While the use of differences does avoid the pitfall of spurious correlation due to common trending series, it tends to lead to the omission of the long-run equilibrium (cointegrating) relationships that may exist among levels of these variables. In fact, Gali (1990) goes so far as to present a theoretical life-cycle model that generates a common trend in aggregate consumption, labor income, and wealth. Therefore, my empirical work here tests for the presence of a long-run equilibrium (cointegrating) relationship between the level of aggregate consumer spending and its economic determinants such as labor income and wealth. I then examine the short-run dynamic relationship among these variables using an error correction specification proposed in Davidson et al. (1978). The present article investigates whether wealth has predictive content for future consumption. If it does, then changes in wealth may lead to changes in
An Integrated Numerical Model for the Design of Coastal Protection Structures

In the present work, an integrated coastal engineering numerical model is presented. The model simulates the linear wave propagation, wave-induced circulation, and sediment transport and bed morphology evolution. It consists of three main modules: WAVE_L, WICIR, and SEDTR. The nearshore wave transformation module WAVE_L (WAVE_Linear) is based on the hyperbolic-type mild slope equation and is valid for a compound linear wave field near coastal structures where the waves are subjected to the combined effects of shoaling, refraction, diffraction, reflection (total and partial), and breaking. Radiation stress components (calculated from WAVE_L) drive the depth averaged circulation module WICIR (Wave Induced CIRculation) for the description of the nearshore wave-induced currents. Sediment transport and bed morphology evolution in the nearshore, surf, and swash zone are simulated by the SEDTR (SEDiment TRansport) module. The model is tested against experimental data to study the effect of representative coastal protection structures and is applied to a real case study of a coastal engineering project in North Greece, producing accurate and consistent results for a versatile range of layouts.
Anomaly detection in ECG time signals via deep long short-term memory networks

Electrocardiography (ECG) signals are widely used to gauge the health of the human heart, and the resulting time series signal is often analyzed manually by a medical professional to detect any arrhythmia that the patient may have suffered. Much work has been done to automate the process of analyzing ECG signals, but most of the research involves extensive preprocessing of the ECG data to derive vectorized features and subsequently designing a classifier to discriminate between healthy ECG signals and those indicative of an Arrhythmia. This approach requires knowledge and data of the different types of Arrhythmia for training. However, the heart is a complex organ and there are many different and new types of Arrhythmia that can occur which were not part of the original training set. Thus, it may be more prudent to adopt an anomaly detection approach towards analyzing ECG signals. In this paper, we utilize a deep recurrent neural network architecture with Long Short Term Memory (LSTM) units to develop a predictive model for healthy ECG signals. We further utilize the probability distribution of the prediction errors from these recurrent models to indicate normal or abnormal behavior. An added advantage of using LSTM networks is that the ECG signal can be directly fed into the network without any elaborate preprocessing as required by other techniques. Also, no prior information about abnormal signals is needed by the networks as they were trained only on normal data. We have used the MIT-BIH Arrhythmia Database to obtain ECG time series data for both normal periods and for periods during four different types of Arrhythmias, namely Premature Ventricular Contraction (PVC), Atrial Premature Contraction (APC), Paced Beats (PB) and Ventricular Couplet (VC). Results are promising and indicate that Deep LSTM models may be viable for detecting anomalies in ECG signals.
Prediagnostic circulating parathyroid hormone concentration and colorectal cancer in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition cohort.

BACKGROUND Parathyroid hormone (PTH) has been proposed to play a promoting role in carcinogenesis. However, no epidemiologic studies have yet directly investigated its role in colorectal cancer (CRC). METHODS A case-control study nested within the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition cohort was conducted with 1,214 incident, sporadic CRC cases matched to 1,214 controls. Circulating prediagnostic PTH and 25-hydroxy vitamin D [25(OH)D] concentrations were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. Detailed dietary and lifestyle questionnaire data were collected at baseline. Multivariable conditional logistic regression was used to estimate the incidence rate ratio (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) for the association between circulating PTH and CRC risk. RESULTS In multivariate analyses [including adjustment for 25(OH)D concentration] with a priori defined cutoff points, high levels of serum PTH (≥65 ng/L) compared with medium PTH levels of 30-65 ng/L were associated with increased CRC risk (RR = 1.41, 95% CI: 1.03-1.93). In analyses by sex, the CRC risk was 1.77 (95% CI: 1.14-2.75) and 1.15 (95% CI: 0.73-1.84) in men and women, respectively (P(heterogeneity) = 0.01). In subgroup analyses by anatomical subsite, the risk for colon cancer was RR = 1.56, 95% CI: 1.03-2.34, and for rectal cancer RR = 1.20, 95% CI: 0.72-2.01 (P(heterogeneity) = 0.21). Effect modification by various risk factors was examined. CONCLUSIONS The results of this study suggest that high serum PTH levels may be associated with incident, sporadic CRC in Western European populations, and in particular among men. IMPACT To our knowledge, this is the first study on PTH and CRC. The role of PTH in carcinogenesis needs to be further investigated.