Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Eco-physiological adaptation of dominant tree species at two contrasting karst habitats in southwestern China

The purpose of this study was to investigate the eco-physiological adaptation of indigenous woody species to their habitats in karst areas of southwestern China. Two contrasting forest habitats were studied: a degraded habitat in Daxiagu and a well-developed habitat in Tianlongshan, and the eco-physiological characteristics of the trees were measured for three growth seasons. Photosynthetic rate (Pn), stomatal conductance (gs), and transpiration rate (Tr) of the tree species in Daxiagu were 2-3 times higher than those in Tianlongshan under ambient conditions. However, this habitat effect was not significant when measurements were taken under controlled conditions. Under controlled conditions, Pn, gs, and Tr of the deciduous species were markedly higher than those for the evergreen species. Habitat had no significant effect on water use efficiency (WUE) or photochemical characteristics of PSII. The stomatal sensitivity of woody species in the degraded habitat was much higher than that in the well-developed habitat. Similarly, the leaf total nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) contents expressed on the basis of either dry mass or leaf area were also much higher in Daxiagu than they were in Tianlongshan. The mass-based leaf total N content of deciduous species was much higher than that of evergreen species, while leaf area-based total N and P contents of evergreens were significantly higher than those of deciduous species. The photosynthetic nitrogen- and phosphorus-use efficiencies (PNUE and PPUE) of deciduous species were much higher than those of evergreens. Further, the PPUE of the woody species in Tianlongshan was much higher than that of the woody species in Daxiagu. The results from three growth seasons imply that the tree species were able to adapt well to their growth habitats. Furthermore, it seems that so-called “temporary drought stress” may not occur, or may not be severe for most woody plants in karst areas of southwestern China.
Lipopolysaccharide and dose of nicotine determine the effects of nicotine on murine bone marrow-derived dendritic cells

The reported effects of nicotine on dendritic cells (DCs) are controversial. To investigate the factors which determine the effects of nicotine on DCs, immature dendritic cells (imDCs) induced from murine bone marrow were treated with different doses of nicotine with or without lipopolysaccharides (LPS). The morphology and expression of the co-stimulatory molecules CD80, CD86, CD40 and CD54 were observed and determined by microscopy and flow cytometry, respectively. The results showed that, firstly, nicotine treatment promoted the development of DC precursors into imDCs with a semi-mature phenotype revealed by a higher expression of CD11c and more branched projections. Secondly, lower doses of nicotine (16.5 ng/ml), but not higher (200 μg/ml), up-regulated the expression of the co-stimulatory molecules CD80, CD40 and CD54 on imDCs. Co-administration of LPS and nicotine revealed differential effects on co-stimulatory molecule expression on imDCs. Thirdly and importantly, treatment with lower doses of nicotine (16.5 ng/ml) did not augment expression of the CD80, CD86, CD40 and CD54 molecules in mature DCs. Fourthly and interestingly, high doses of nicotine (more than 165 μg/ml) revealed pro-apoptotic activity but lower doses of nicotine (16.5–0.165 ng/ml) achieved an anti-apoptotic effect on imDCs. All data presented here indicate that the controversial effects of nicotine on DCs may be due to the LPS of the nicotinic environment and the dose of nicotine used.
A new NOMA approach for fair power allocation

A non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) approach to user signal power allocation called Fair-NOMA is introduced. Fair-NOMA is the application of NOMA in such a way that two mobile users have the opportunity to always achieve at least the information capacity they can achieve by using orthogonal multiple access (OMA), regardless of the user selection criteria, making it suitable for implementation using any current or future scheduling paradigms. Given this condition, the bounds of the power allocation coefficients are derived as functions of the channel gains of the two mobile users. The NOMA power allocation is analyzed for two scheduled users that are selected randomly with i.i. d. channel gains. The capacity improvements made by each user and the sum capacity improvement are derived.
A cup product in the Galois cohomology of number fields

This paper is devoted to the consideration of a certain cup product in the Galois cohomology of an algebraic number field with restricted ramification. Let n be a positive integer, let K be a number field containing the group μn of nth roots of unity, and let S be a finite set of primes including those above n and all real archimedean places. Let GK,S denote the Galois group of the maximal extension of K unramified outside S (inside a fixed algebraic closure of K). We consider the cup product H(GK,S, μn)⊗H(GK,S, μn)→ H(GK,S, μ⊗2 n ). ()
Optical and Material Properties of Colloidal Semiconductor Nanocrystals

Optical and Material Properties of Colloidal Semiconductor Nanocrystals Vanessa Margaret Huxter Doctor of Philosophy Graduate Department of Chemistry University of Toronto 2009 This thesis presents an exploration of the photophysics of colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals using both linear and non-linear optical measurement techniques. These optical methodologies are used to follow population dynamics in both singly and multiply excited nanocrystal systems as well as determine material properties of the ensemble. Topics covered in the thesis include, the identification and characterization of bulk-like nanocrystals, study of the fine structure states of the lowest energy exciton, single and multiexciton population dynamics, acoustic phonon modes, elasticity and surface stress properties of a colloidal ensemble in solution. Through linear spectroscopy, the properties of both quantum confined and bulk-like colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals are compared. The identification of a model system of bulk-like nanocrystals with a non-standard absorption profile serves to resolve an ambiguity in literature concerning their characterization. The remainder of the thesis is focused on the size-dependent properties of quantum confined CdSe colloidal nanocrystals. The population dynamics and material properties of these systems are studied using a nonlinear optical technique called transient grating. A third order transient grating measurement with a cross-polarized configuration, which follows the relaxation within the fine structure levels of the lowest energy exciton state, is demonstrated and used to compare systems with different crystal field splittings. Transient grating experiments performed with specific polarization sequences allow for selective observation of
The Impact of Borderline Personality Disorder on Process Group Outcome among Women with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Related to Childhood Abuse

Abstract The outcome of a 12-week interpersonal process group therapy for women with postraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) related to childhood sexual abuse with and without borderline personality disorder (BPD) was assessed by comparing three naturally occurring treatment conditions: groups that did not have any members with borderline personality disorder (BPD-) (n = 18), groups in which at least one member carried the diagnosis (BPD+)(n = 16), and a 12-week waitlist (WL) (n = 15). PTSD, anger, depression, and other symptoms were significantly reduced in the BPD- groups. However, the BPD+ and WL conditions did not show any pre- to posttreatment improvements. Furthermore, the BPD+ condition showed a significant worsening on measures of anger. Analyses within the BPD+ condition indicated that women with and without the diagnosis experienced equal posttreatment increases in anger problems. These latter results suggest the presence of an anger “contagion” effect. That is, women without BPD did well in the BPD- groups but showed increased anger similar to the BPD+ women when treated in groups with them. Implications for client-treatment matching considerations in PTSD group therapy are discussed.
A WIDE-FIELD STUDY OF THE z ∼ 0.8 CLUSTER RX J0152.7−1357: THE ROLE OF ENVIRONMENT IN THE FORMATION OF THE RED SEQUENCE

We present the first results from the largest spectroscopic survey to date of an intermediate redshift galaxy cluster, the z = 0.834 cluster RX J0152.7−1357. We use the colors of galaxies, assembled from a D ∼ 12 Mpc region centered on the cluster, to investigate the properties of the red sequence as a function of density and clustercentric radius. Our wide-field multislit survey with a low-dispersion prism in the Inamori Magellan Areal Camera and Spectrograph at the 6.5 m Baade telescope allowed us to identify 475 new members of the cluster and its surrounding large-scale structure with a redshift accuracy of σz/(1 + z) ≈ 1% and a contamination rate of ∼2% for galaxies with i′ <23.75 mag. We combine these new members with the 279 previously known spectroscopic members to give a total of 754 galaxies from which we obtain a mass-limited sample of 300 galaxies with stellar masses M>4 × 1010 M☉ (log M/M☉>10.6). We find that the red galaxy fraction is 93 ± 3% in the two merging cores of the cluster and declines to a level of 64 ± 3% at projected clustercentric radii R ≳ 3 Mpc. At these large projected distances, the correlation between clustercentric radius and local density is nonexistent. This allows an assessment of the influence of the local environment on galaxy evolution, as opposed to mechanisms that operate on cluster scales (e.g., harassment, ram-pressure stripping). Even beyond R>3 Mpc we find an increasing fraction of red galaxies with increasing local density. The red galaxy fraction at the highest local densities in two large groups at R>3 Mpc matches the red galaxy fraction found in the two cores. Strikingly, galaxies at intermediate densities at R>3 Mpc, that are not obvious members of groups, also show signs of an enhanced red galaxy fraction. Our results point to such intermediate-density regions and the groups in the outskirts of the cluster, as sites where the local environment influences the transition of galaxies onto the red sequence.
Are we Underestimating the Real Burden of Malnutrition? An Experience From Community-Based Study

Background: Since the inception of childhood nutritional programs in India, underweight has been taken to judge the nutritional status of children; but is it a true indicator of overall prevalence of malnutrition in a community? Objective: To estimate the overall prevalence of malnutrition by using Composite Index of Anthropometric Failure (CIAF) and to assess its usefulness over various conventional anthropometric indicators among under 5 children residing in Agra city. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional, community-based study was conducted among under 5 years age children, from June 2012 to July 2013 in an urban slum of Agra. Nutritional status was assessed using anthropometry and clinical examination, and classified as per World Health Organization (WHO) 2006 Growth Standards and CIAF. Results: Of the 458 children studied, 42.8% were underweight, 41.9% had stunting, while 22.7% had wasting. However, 60.04% of children were found to be malnourished as per the CIAF. Unlike three conventional anthropometric indicators of malnutrition, CIAF was observed to have a much consistent association with morbidity like diarrhea episodes in past 3 months (odds ratio (OR) = 2.09), acute respiratory tract infection (ARI) episode in past 3 months (OR = 1.58), and any illness requiring hospitalization (OR = 1.29). Conclusion: The CIAF should supplement the conventional indices of malnourishment, to provide a single, aggregated figure of actual number of undernourished children in a given population.
Timing of first embryonic cleavage is a positive indicator of the in vitro developmental potential of porcine embryos derived from in vitro fertilization, somatic cell nuclear transfer and parthenogenesis

Evidence in many species has suggested that those embryos that cleave earliest after fertilization are more developmentally competent than those that cleave relatively later after fertilization. Herein we document this phenomenon in porcine in vitro‐fertilized (IVF), somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT), and parthenogenetic (PA) embryos. In vitro‐matured pig oocytes were used to generate IVF, SCNT, and PA embryos. At 24 hr post‐activation (or insemination; hpa/hpi), embryos were visually assessed, and cleaved embryos were moved into a new culture well. This process was repeated at 30 and 48 hpa/hpi. All embryos were allowed to develop 7 days in culture. For IVF embryos, 39.9%, 24.6%, and 10.5% of fast‐, intermediate‐, or slow‐cleaving embryos, respectively, developed into blastocysts by day 7. For SCNT embryos, 31.8% of fast‐, 5.7% of intermediate‐, and 2.9% of late‐cleaving embryos achieved the blastocyst stage of development. For PA embryos, the percentages of those cleaved embryos that developed to blastocyst were 59.3%, 36.7%, and 7.5% for early‐, intermediate‐, and late‐cleaving embryos, respectively. Using RNA collected from early‐, intermediate‐, and late‐cleaving embryos, real‐time PCR was performed to assess the transcript levels of 14 different genes of widely varied function. The qPCR results suggest that maternal mRNA degradation may not proceed in an appropriate pattern in slow‐cleaving embryos. These findings (1) confirm that, as observed in other species, earlier‐cleaving porcine embryos are more successful at developing in culture than are slower‐cleaving embryos, and (2) implicate mechanisms of maternal transcript destruction as potential determinants of oocyte/embryo quality. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 79: 197–207, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Ensemble Registration: Combining Groupwise Registration and Segmentation

We investigate incorporating structural information from segmentation into a groupwise registration framework. Previous work by Petrovic et al., using MR brain images, showed that using tissue fractions to help construct an intensity reference image gives better results than just using intensity images alone. In their work, a Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM) was fitted to the 1D intensity histogram, then used to construct tissue fraction images for each example. The mean fraction images were then used to create an artificial intensity reference for the registration. By using only the mean, this discarded much of the structural information. We retain all this information, and augment each intensity image with its set of tissue fraction images (and also intensity gradient images) to form an image ensemble for each example. We then perform groupwise registration using these ensembles of images. This groupwise ensemble registration is applied to the same real-world dataset as used by Petrovic et al. Ground-truth labels enable quantitative evaluation to be performed. It is shown that ensemble registration gives quantitatively better results than the algorithm of Petrovic et al., and that the best results are achieved when more than one of the three types of images (intensity, tissue fraction and gradient) are included as an ensemble.
A study of university timetabling that blends graph coloring with the satisfaction of various essential and preferential conditions

Constructing a satisfactory conflict-free semester-long timetable of courses and creating a similarly satisfactory conflict-free timetable for end-of-semester final examinations are two closely related and often difficultproblems that colleges and universities face each semester. We discuss the relevance of such timetabling problems as a natural and practical application of graph coloring, and develop a mathematical and computational model for solving university timetabling problems using techniques of graph coloring that incorporates the satisfaction of both “essential” timetabling conditions (i.e., conditions or constraints that must be satisfied in order to produce a legal or feasible timetable) as well as suggested “preferential” timetabling conditions (i.e., additional conditions or constraints that need not necessarily be satisfied to produce a legal or legitimate timetable, but if satisfied may very well produce a more “acceptable” timetable for students and/or faculty members). We discuss in detail the step-by-step process that is taken to implement our timetabling-by-graph-coloring procedure, from the assembling of university course data, to creating a course conflict graph based on the assembled data, to coloring the conflict graph, to transforming this coloring to a conflict-free timetable, to finally assigning courses to classrooms. Once a conflict-free timetable of courses has been constructed, we present ways in which such a course timetable for a particular semester can be used to construct a conflict-free timetable of final examinations. Our model also considers a number of sociological scheduling concerns and preferences addressed by university registrars, faculty, staff, and students. Computational results, obtained by the author using actual data provided by Rice University and the University of St. Thomas, are documented.
Global Warming and the Weakening of the Tropical Circulation

Abstract This study examines the response of the tropical atmospheric and oceanic circulation to increasing greenhouse gases using a coordinated set of twenty-first-century climate model experiments performed for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report (AR4). The strength of the atmospheric overturning circulation decreases as the climate warms in all IPCC AR4 models, in a manner consistent with the thermodynamic scaling arguments of Held and Soden. The weakening occurs preferentially in the zonally asymmetric (i.e., Walker) rather than zonal-mean (i.e., Hadley) component of the tropical circulation and is shown to induce substantial changes to the thermal structure and circulation of the tropical oceans. Evidence suggests that the overall circulation weakens by decreasing the frequency of strong updrafts and increasing the frequency of weak updrafts, although the robustness of this behavior across all models cannot be confirmed because of the lack of data. As the cli.
An online thermal-constrained task scheduler for 3D multi-core processors

Hotspots occur frequently in 3D multi-core processors (3D-MCPs) and they can adversely impact system reliability and lifetime. Moreover, frequent occurrences of hotspots lead to more dynamic voltage and frequency scaling (DVFS), resulting in degraded throughput. Therefore, a new thermal-constrained task scheduler based on thermal-pattern-aware voltage assignment (TPAVA) is proposed in this paper. By analyzing temperature profiles of different voltage assignments, TPAVA pre-emptively assigns different operating-voltage levels to cores for reducing temperature increase in 3D-MCPs. Moreover, the proposed task scheduler integrates a vertical-grouping voltage scaling (VGVS) strategy that considers thermal correlation in 3D-MCPs. Experimental results show that, compared with two previous methods, the proposed task scheduler can respectively lower hotspot occurrences by 47.13% and 53.91%, and improve throughput by 6.50% and 32.06%. As a result, TPAVA and VGVS are effectively for reducing occurrences of hotspots and optimizing throughput for 3D-MCPs under thermal constraints.
Inflationary Cosmology in Modified Gravity Theories

We review inflationary cosmology in modified gravity such as R2 gravity with its extensions in order to generalize the Starobinsky inflation model. In particular, we explore inflation realized by three kinds of effects: modification of gravity, the quantum anomaly, and the R2 term in loop quantum cosmology. It is explicitly demonstrated that in these inflationary models, the spectral index of scalar modes of the density perturbations and the tensor-to-scalar ratio can be consistent with the Planck results. Bounce cosmology in F(R) gravity is also explained.
Tensile response of braided structures: a review

Braiding is a highly versatile and cost-effective method of producing structures that has been successfully used for numerous applications ranging from ropes, composites, biomedical uses, insulation to sports and recreation activities, and the list of applications of braided structures is ever-increasing. The prediction of tensile property is a pre-requisite for the success of deployment of braided structures in these applications. This paper reviews the key parameters that control the tensile properties of biaxial and triaxial braided structures along with the models developed for these braids by various researchers with different fields of interest. In general, the tensile properties of braided structures are strongly dependent upon their architecture and the kinematics and mechanics involved in the braid formation. Furthermore, various approaches and methodologies have also been presented for the tensile models of braids consisting of an elastic core and multi-layered structures.
CHO cell expression, long‐term stability, and primate pharmacokinetics and brain uptake of an IgG–paroxonase‐1 fusion protein

Paraoxonase (PON)‐1 is the most potent human organophosphatase known, but recombinant forms of human PON1 have been difficult to produce owing to poor secretion by host cells. In the present investigation, human PON1 is re‐engineered as an IgG–PON1 fusion protein. The 355 amino acid human PON1 is fused to the carboxyl terminus of the heavy chain of a chimeric monoclonal antibody (MAb) against the human insulin receptor (HIR), and this fusion protein is designated HIRMAb–PON1. The HIRMAb part of the fusion protein enables brain penetration of the PON1, which was considered important, because organophosphate toxicity causes death via a central nervous system site of action. A high producing line of stably transfected Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells secreting the HIRMAb–PON1 fusion protein in the absence of serum or lipid acceptors was cloned. The bioreactor generated fusion protein was purified to homogeneity with low impurities by protein A affinity chromatography and anion exchange chromatography. The HIRMAb–PON1 fusion protein was stable as a sterile liquid formulation stored at 4°C for at least 1 year. The plasma pharmacokinetics (PK) of the HIRMAb–PON1 fusion protein was evaluated in Rhesus monkeys, which is the first PK evaluation of a recombinant PON1 protein. The fusion protein was rapidly removed from blood, primarily by the liver. The blood–brain barrier permeation of the HIRMAb–PON1 fusion protein was high and comparable to other HIRMAb fusion proteins. Re‐engineering human PON1 as the HIRMAb fusion protein allows for production of a stable, field‐deployable formulation of the enzyme that is brain‐penetrating. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2011; 108:186–196. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.