Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Field Validation of N-STaR for Rice Produced on Silt Loam Soils in Arkansas

To facilitate the incorporation and understanding of the Nitrogen Soil Test for Rice (N-STaR), field validation studies were implemented to evaluate the ability of N-STaR to predict the field-specific N rates required to maximize rice yield on silt loam soils in Arkansas. Before flooding, soil samples to a 45-cm depth were taken and analyzed by N-STaR, a direct steam distillation procedure. These field trials compared N rates from three calibration curves, developed to predict 90, 95, and 100% relative grain yield (RGY), with the standard recommendation for rice (Oryza sativa L.) grown on silt loam soils (168 kg N ha⁻¹). Nitrogen fertilizer rates predicted from the three calibration curves ranged from 22 to 252 kg N ha⁻¹. Rice grain yields fertilized with N rates from the N-STaR 90% RGY curve were equal to or greater than the standard recommendation for nine of the 14 sites. Grain yields for rice receiving the N-STaR 95% RGY N rates were equal to or greater than the standard recommendation for 13 of the 14 sites. Similarly, rice yields obtained from the N-STaR 100% RGY curve were equal to or greater than the standard N rate at all of the study sites. Despite visual differences in rice height and color, there were little to no differences in rice yield. These results indicate the importance of field-scale demonstration trials of the N-STaR technology to educate producers, consultants, and extension personnel before full release of this soil-based N test for rice grown on silt loam soils.
Relating MRI changes to motor deficit after ischemic stroke by segmentation of functional motor pathways.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Infarct size on T2-weighted MRI correlates only modestly with outcome, particularly for small strokes. This may be largely because of differences in the locations of infarcts and consequently in the functional pathways that are damaged. To test this hypothesis quantitatively, we developed a "mask" of the corticospinal pathway to determine whether the extent of stroke intersection with the pathway would be more closely related to clinical motor deficit and axonal injury in the descending motor pathways than total stroke lesion volume. METHODS Eighteen patients were studied > or =1 month after first ischemic stroke that caused a motor deficit by use of brain T2-weighted imaging, MR spectroscopic (MRS) measurements of the neuronal marker compound N-acetyl aspartate in the posterior limb of the internal capsule, and motor impairment and disability measures. A corticospinal mask based on neuroanatomic landmarks was generated from a subset of the MRI data. The maximum proportion of the cross-sectional area of this mask occupied by stroke was determined for each patient after all brain images were transformed into a common stereotaxic brain space. RESULTS There was a significant linear relationship between the maximum proportional cross-sectional area of the corticospinal mask occupied by stroke and motor deficit (r(2)=0.82, P<0.001), whereas the relationship between the total stroke volume and motor deficit was better described by a cubic curve (r(2)=0.76, P<0.001). Inspection of the data plots showed that the total stroke volume discriminated poorly between smaller strokes with regard to the extent of associated motor deficit, whereas the maximum proportion of the mask cross-sectional area occupied by stroke appeared to be a more discriminatory marker of motor deficit and also N-acetyl aspartate reduction. CONCLUSIONS Segmentation of functional motor pathways on MRI allows estimation of the extent of damage specifically to that pathway by the stroke lesion. The extent of stroke intersection with the motor pathways was more linearly related to the magnitude of motor deficit than total lesion volume and appeared to be a better discriminator between small strokes with regard to motor deficit. This emphasizes the importance of the anatomic relationship of the infarct to local structures in determining functional impairment. Prospective studies are necessary to assess whether this approach would allow improved early estimation of prognosis after stroke.
Performance Characteristics of Hedge Funds and Commodity Funds: Natural vs. Spurious Biases

Abstract It is well known that the pro forma performance of a sample of investment funds contains biases. These biases are documented in Brown, Goetzmann, Ibbotson, and Ross (1992) using mutual funds as subjects. The organization structure of hedge funds, as private and often offshore vehicles, makes data collection a much more onerous task, amplifying the impact of performance measurement biases. Theis paper reviews these biases in hedge funds. We also propose using funds-of-hedge funds to measure aggregate hedge fund performance, based on the idea that the investment experience of hedge fund investors can be used to estimate the performance of hedge funds.
Stress and female reproductive function: A study of daily variations in cortisol, gonadotrophins, and gonadal steroids in a rural Mayan population

We report here on a longitudinal study of stress and women's reproduction in a small Kaqchikel Mayan community in rural Guatemala. Current understanding of the effects of stress on the reproductive axis in women is mostly derived from clinical studies of individual stressors. Little is known, however, about the cumulative effects of “real life” stress. Cortisol increases in response to a broad variety of individual stressors (Tilbrook et al., 2002). In this article, we evaluate the association between daily fluctuations in women's urinary cortisol and reproductive hormones: estrone conjugates (E1C), pregnandiol glucuronide (PdG), luteinizing hormone (LH), and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH). To assess the association between daily changes in cortisol levels and changes in the profiles of the reproductive hormones, we used a random coefficients model based on polynomial regression. The sample includes 92 menstrual cycles provided by 24 participants over a year‐long prospective study. Increases in urinary cortisol levels were associated with significant increases in gonadotrophin and progestin levels during the follicular phase. Also, in a time window between days 4 and 10 after ovulation, increased cortisol levels were associated with significantly lower progestin levels. These results are significant because untimely increases in gonadotrophins and low midluteal progesterone levels have previously been reported to impinge on the ovulatory and luteinization processes and to reduce the chances of successful implantation (Ferin, 1999; Baird et al., 1999). Future research should consider the possibility that stress may affect fecundability and implantation without necessarily causing amenorrhoea or oligomenorrhoea. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 16:523–532, 2004. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
A New Silesaurid from the Upper Ntawere Formation of Zambia (Middle Triassic) Demonstrates the Rapid Diversification of Silesauridae (Avemetatarsalia, Dinosauriformes)

ABSTRACT Recent discoveries have shown that non-dinosaurian dinosauromorphs were morphologically diverse, globally distributed, and have a stratigraphic range extending into the Upper Triassic. Silesauridae, the sister group to Dinosauria, contains at least seven species. Here we describe Lutungutali sitwensis, gen. et sp. nov., the first silesaurid from the upper portion of the Ntawere Formation of the Luangwa Basin, Zambia. The upper Ntawere Formation has been correlated with subzone C of the Cynognathus Assemblage Zone of the Karoo Basin in South Africa and the Lifua Member of the Manda beds in the Ruhuhu Basin in Tanzania, both of which are considered Anisian in age and the latter has yielded the silesaurid Asilisaurus kongwe. The results of our phylogenetic analysis, including a new pelvic character, allies Lutungutali with Upper Triassic silesaurids such as Silesaurus, Sacisaurus, and Eucoelophysis rather than with the possibly coeval Asilisaurus. The Zambian silesaurid shares a laterally oriented brevis fossa on the ilium and a transversely thin ischium in cross-section with Upper Triassic forms. Silesaurids were more diverse during their early evolution in the Anisian than previously suspected. Lutungutali and Asilisaurus are the two oldest known members of the bird-line archosaurs represented by body fossils. Together they show that a subclade of bird-line archosaurs was diversifying soon after its origin, building further support for the rapid diversification of Archosauria in the wake of the Permo-Triassic extinction. SUPPLEMENTAL DATA—Supplemental materials are available for this article for free at www.tandfonline. com/UJVP
A Spitzer IRS Low-Resolution Spectroscopic Search for Buried AGNs in Nearby Ultraluminous Infrared Galaxies: A Constraint on Geometry between Energy Sources and Dust

We present the results of Spitzer Infrared Spectrograph low-resolution infrared 5-35 μm spectroscopy of nearby ultraluminous infrared galaxies (ULIRGs) at z < 0.15. We focus on the search for the signatures of buried active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in the complete sample of ULIRGs classified optically as non-Seyferts (LINERs or H II regions). In addition to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) emission features at 6.2, 7.7, and 11.3 μm, the conventional tool of starburst-AGN separation, we use the optical depths of the 9.7 and 18 μm silicate dust absorption features to infer the geometry of energy sources and dust at the nuclei of these ULIRGs, namely, whether the energy sources are spatially well mixed with dust (a normal starburst) or are more centrally concentrated than the dust (a buried AGN). Infrared spectra of at least 30%, and possibly 50%, of the observed optical non-Seyfert ULIRGs are naturally explained by emission consisting of (1) energetically insignificant, modestly obscured (AV < 20-30 mag) PAH-emitting normal starbursts and (2) energetically dominant, highly dust-obscured, centrally concentrated energy sources with no PAH emission. We interpret the latter component as a buried AGN. The fraction of ULIRGs showing some buried AGN signatures is higher in LINER ULIRGs than in H II region ULIRGs. Most of the luminous buried AGN candidates are found in ULIRGs with cool far-infrared colors. Where the absorption-corrected intrinsic AGN luminosities are derivable with little uncertainty, they are found to be of the order of 1012 L☉, accounting for the bulk of the ULIRGs' luminosities. The 5-35 μm spectroscopic starburst/AGN classifications are generally consistent with our previous classifications based on 3-4 μm spectra for the same sample.
Relationships Between Leadership and Success in Different Types of Project Complexities

We investigate the moderating effect of project complexity on the relationship between leadership competences of project managers and their success in projects. Building on existing studies in leadership and project management, we assess the impact of emotional (EQ), intellectual (IQ), and managerial (MQ) leadership competences on project success in different types of project complexities. A cross-sectional survey using the leadership dimensions questionnaire and project results questions yielded 119 responses, which were assessed for their type and level of complexity, measured as complexity of fact, faith, and interaction. Analysis was done through factor analysis and moderated hierarchical regression analysis. Results show that EQ and MQ are correlated with project success, but are differently moderated by complexity. The relationship between EQ and project success is moderated by complexity of faith. The relationship between MQ and project success is moderated by complexity of fact and faith. Complexity of interaction has a direct effect on project success. Analysis of variance and nonparametric tests showed the means and medians of EQ, IQ, MQ; complexities of faith, fact, and interaction do not significantly vary across different project types. This suggests using these three complexity types as a common language to research and learning across different project types.
Tumor size predicts the biological behavior and influence of operative modalities in hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND/AIMS The aim of this study was to evaluate the significance of tumor size as a predictor of a tumor's biological behavior and to determine the optimal corresponding operative modalities. METHODOLOGY The present study retrospectively evaluated the clinicopathological characteristics and prognostic outcomes of 278 hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients who underwent liver resection (n = 176) or liver transplantation (n = 102; 92 of them were grafts from a living donor) between 1995 and 2007, based on tumor size. RESULTS The incidence of vascular invasion and high-grade histology increased with tumor size. Liver resection and transplantation were comparable in patients with tumors < or = 2cm in size. In 2.1-5 cm sized tumors, transplantation resulted in better overall survival (p = 0.011) and disease-free survival (DFS) (p = 0.001). In 5.1-10 cm sized tumors, liver resection led to insignificantly improved overall survival (99 versus 59 months; p = 0.130), but significantly improved DFS (94 versus 25 months; p = 0.006). In > 10 cm sized tumors, both groups showed similarly poor survival. Lastly, in patients with tumors < 5 cm in size and good hepatic function (Child's A or B), transplantation improved overall survival (p = 0.241) and DFS (p = 0.007) rates to an insignificant degree. CONCLUSIONS Tumor size can be a predictable surrogate of biological behavior in the preoperative period. When tumor size is 2.1-5 cm, transplantation should be considered first, irrespective of the underlying liver condition. In patients with tumors 5.1-10 cm in size, liver resection is preferred.
Electrical and optical properties of in-doped CdTe after Cd-rich annealing

Electrical and optical properties of the conductive n-type skin layer prepared in high-resistivity CdTe:In by annealing at 400-600/spl deg/C under Cd-rich overpressure were investigated. Slightly compensated donor level with the concentration N/sub D//spl ap/1.3/spl times/10/sup 16/ cm/sup -3/ and ionization energy E/sub D//spl ap/10 meV was evaluated from the Hall effect measurement. The electron mobility reached a maximum of 1/spl times/10/sup 4/ cm/sup 2//Vs at 35 K after annealing at 600/spl deg/C. Purification of the n-type layer was found out by photoluminescence measurement, where a reduction of the intensities of the emission lines related to alkali and silver acceptors was observed. The emission line at 1.584 eV, which is usually expected to characterize high-resistivity material, was detected in as-grown high-resistivity samples as well as in the conductive n-type layer.
Measuring Shear Wave Splitting Using the Silver and Chan Method

Seismic shear waves emitted by earthquakes can be modelled as plane (transverse) waves. When entering an anisotropic medium they can be split into two orthogonal components moving at different speeds. This splitting occurs along an axis, the fast direction, that is determined by the ambient tectonic stress. Shear wave splitting is thus a commonly used tool for examining tectonic stress in the Earth’s interior. A common technique used to measure shear wave splitting is the Silver and Chan (1991) method. However, there is little literature assessing the robustness of this method, particularly for its use with local earthquakes, and the quality of results can vary. We present here a comprehensive analysis of the Silver and Chan method comprising theoretical derivations and statistical tests of the assumptions behind this method. We then produce an automated grading system calibrated against an expert manual grader using multiple linear regression. We find that there are errors in the derivation of certain equations in the Silver and Chan method and that it produces biased estimates of the errors. Further, the assumptions used to generate the errors do not hold. However, for high quality results (earthquake events where the signal is strong and the earthquake geometry is optimal), the standard errors are representative of the spread in the parameter estimates. Also, we find that our automated grading method produces grades that match the manual grades, and is able to identify mistakes in the manual grades by detecting substantial inconsistencies with the automated grades.
A 100m-range 10-frame/s 340×96-pixel time-of-flight depth sensor in 0.18μm CMOS

This paper introduces a high-performance optical depth sensor in a 0. 18μm CMOS technology. At the core of the sensor, macro pixels consisting of 6×2 single-photon detectors enable accurate and selective time-of-flight measurements by taking advantage of temporal and spatial correlations of photons. An array of 32 high-throughput time-to-digital converters allows for the digitization of time-of-flight data with a resolution of 208ps within a range of 853ns, thus resolving distances up to 128 meters. Quantitative characterization of the chip sensor is reported. Depth map data acquired in a real-world situation illustrates the effectiveness of the approach in a road traffic environment.
Nano- and microstructuring of graphene using UV-NIL

In this work we demonstrate for the first time the micro- and nanostructuring of graphene by means of UV-nanoimprint lithography. Exfoliated graphene on SiO2 substrates, as well as graphene deposited by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) on polycrystalline nickel and copper, and transferred CVD graphene on dielectric substrates, were used to demonstrate that our technique is suitable for large-area patterning (2 × 2 cm2) of graphene on various types of substrates. The demonstrated fabrication procedure of micrometer as well as nanometer-sized graphene structures with feature sizes down to 20 nm by a wafer-scale process opens up an avenue for the low-cost and high-throughput manufacturing of graphene-based optical and electronic applications. The processed graphene films show electron mobilities of up to 4.6 × 103 cm2 V −1 s−1, which confirms them to exhibit state-of-the-art electronic quality with respect to the current literature.
Zinc and cadmium plasma and erythrocyte levels in prostatic carcinoma, BPH, urological malignancies, and inflammations

Zinc and cadmium in both serum and erythrocytes from patients with prostatic carcinoma of different histologies, BPH, other urological tumors, and pyelonephritis were analyzed by atomic absorption spectrometry. The variance of the results obtained was very high for each group. No significant differences in the Zn or Cd concentration in either the blood plasma or the erythrocytes could be found between any of the different groups of patients. There were also no trends to be seen in the concentrations of these elements in human blood over a period of months. We conclude that the concentration of Zn and Cd in serum or erythrocytes are not an index for the diagnosis or therapy of prostatic carcinoma, BPH, urological malignancy, or inflammations.
Civilization in spite of ourselves.

Welcome to the special issue, Dynamics of Civilizations. This issue was not planned in the usual sense. Rather it self-organized beginning with a cluster of articles that arrived in the editorial office in finished form around the same time. The Editorial Board then issued a call for papers on relatively short notice to complete a special issue. Our authors were ready with three topic areas: spatial distribution of settlements, human ecology, and authoritarian behavior. We should take a few moments to consider the broader implications of each area. The United Nations (1997) projected a modest increase in the number of people living in cities of 1 million people or more in most continents by 2013, although a large surge was anticipated in Asia amounting to 2.5 times the 1993 level. One would anticipate a sudden impact on the infrastructure of growing cities and regions as a result, including transportation and industrial employment (Guastello, 1999). The studies in this issue on the spatial distribution of settlements show where the large population centers are likely to appear (Sambrook, 2008) and how they might spread (Gligor & Gligor, 2008). The growth of urban centers appears to be more closely tied to fractal percolation than the principle of central places. Cities offer a large variety of interactions among agents, i.e., trade. Increasing the complexity of trade accommodates the participation of more agents, but greater disparities in the distribution of wealth can result (Epstein & Axtell, 1996). It thus remains to be seen how increased urbanization will affect the distributions of wealth, education, and access to health care. In the early 1990s it was already understood that poor nations had bifurcated again into countries that were experiencing growth in their Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and those that were stagnant. According to simulations by Lucas (1988), a globalized economy would make rich nations richer and poor nations poorer. The United Nations (1997) reported the growing divergence of national GDP, although it was not yet possible to assess any impact of the GATT treaty of 1995. The studies in this issue describe two bifurcation systems inherent in predator-prey dynamics are relevant to social welfare. Basener, Brooks, Radin, and Wiandt (2008) found a bifurcation where a population’s utilization of resources promotes the extinction of the population, and thus might explain the disappearance of societies that flourished long ago
Lherzolite Nodules in Basalts from British Columbia, Canada

Lherzolite nodules in basaltic rocks from three localities in British Columbia include metamorphic tectonites and crystal cumulates. Chemical analyses show that trace element concentrations and distribution coefficients differ from suite to suite. Distribution of iron and magnesium between coexisting phases is regular and characteristic of each suite. Distribution of iron and magnesium between spinel and olivine indicates temperatures of last equilibration of approximately 840 °C for the cumulate nodules from Nicola Lake, 1085 °C for the tectonite nodules from Jacques Lake, and in excess of 1600 °C for the tectonite nodules from Castle Rock. The fabric of the tectonites is ( girdle) with the γ-maximum perpendicular to the plane of layering or foliation.
Drainage area and the variation of channel geometry downstream

Recent geomorphological studies tend to deal with small basins. The understanding of small basin dynamics provides important information for the understanding of large basin dynamics assuming that the extrapolation of small basin data to larger basins is valid. This work tests the validity of this extrapolation of data with reference to channel geometry. An analysis of the variation of channel width downstream reveals that the value b =0.5 (W = aQb) is a ‘good’ average. However, the use of a one-line model consisting of a simple power function incurs a loss of a considerable amount of relevant information concerning the channel form and hence the channel processes. It has been shown that the –b– value for small basins and very big basins is lower than the one for the intermediate basins.