Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Pulmonary hypertension in COPD: results from the ASPIRE registry

The phenotype and outcome of severe pulmonary hypertension in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is described in small numbers, and predictors of survival are unknown. Data was retrieved for 101 consecutive, treatment-naïve cases of pulmonary hypertension in COPD. Mean±sd follow-up was 2.3±1.9 years. 59 patients with COPD and severe pulmonary hypertension, defined by catheter mean pulmonary artery pressure ≥40 mmHg, had significantly lower carbon monoxide diffusion, less severe airflow obstruction but not significantly different emphysema scores on computed tomography compared to 42 patients with mild–moderate pulmonary hypertension. 1- and 3-year survival for severe pulmonary hypertension, at 70% and 33%, respectively, was inferior to 83% and 55%, respectively, for mild–moderate pulmonary hypertension. Mixed venous oxygen saturation, carbon monoxide diffusion, World Health Organization functional class and age, but not severity of airflow obstruction, were independent predictors of outcome. Compassionate treatment with targeted therapies in 43 patients with severe pulmonary hypertension was not associated with a survival benefit, although improvement in functional class and/or fall in pulmonary vascular resistance >20% following treatment identified patients with improved survival. Standard prognostic markers in COPD have limited value in patients with pulmonary hypertension. This study identifies variables that predict outcome in this phenotype. Despite poor prognosis, our data suggest that further evaluation of targeted therapies is warranted.
Snow scattering signals in ground‐based passive microwave radiometer measurements

[1] This paper investigates the influence of snow microphysical parameters on the enhancement of ground-based passive microwave brightness temperature (TB) measurements. In addition to multispectral passive microwave observations between 20 and 150 GHz, a 35 GHz cloud radar and a 2-D video disdrometer for in situ measurements of snowfall were deployed as part of the “towards an optimal estimation-based snowfall characterization algorithm” campaign in the winter season of 2008–2009 at an Alpine environment located at 2650 m mean sea level. These observations are combined with nearby radiosonde ascents and surface standard meteorological measurements to reconstruct the atmospheric state (i.e., fields of temperature, humidity, snow, and liquid water contents) and are subsequently used as input for a microwave radiative transfer (RT) model. We investigate the sensitivity of the missing information about snow shape and snow particle size distribution (SSD) on the microwave TB measurements using the disdrometer data as a rough constraint. For an extended case study, we found that TBs at 90 and 150 GHz are significantly enhanced because of scattering of surface radiation at snow crystals and that this enhancement is clearly correlated with the radar derived snow water path (SWP < 0.2 kg m−2). RT simulations highlight the strong influence of the vertical distribution of cloud liquid water (liquid water path LWP < 0.1 kg m−2) on the TB, which in extreme cases, can fully obscure the snow scattering signal. TB variations of the same magnitude can also be caused by typical variations in SSD parameters and particle shape similar to results obtained by space-borne studies. Ground-based stations with their infrastructural capabilities in combining active and passive microwave observations have the potential to disentangle the influences of different snow shape, SSD, and SWP in snow retrievals, thus supporting current and future satellite missions.
Production of extracelluar invertase from Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain isolated from grapes

In the present study industrially important yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae was isolated from grape samples using dilution and plating technique. The wild strain was exposed to UV radiation and maintained as improved strain and named as Mutant strain. The wild strain and mutant strains were checked for the invertase production under different conditions, like pH, temperature, different carbon sources, nitrogen sources, phosphate sources. Temperature (20-70) and pH stability (4-9) of enzyme were also studied. The mutant strain should increased production of invertse than the wild type Saccharomyces cerevisiae under most of the conditions. Invertase was characterized by SDS PAGE, Native Gel Electrophoresis and gel filtration chromatogrphy and confirmed as invertase.
Rayleigh Bénard convection: dynamics and structure in the physical space

The main objective of this article is part of a research program to link the dynamics of fluid flows with the structure and its transitions in the physical spaces. As a prototype of problem and to demonstrate the main ideas, we study the two-dimensional Rayleigh-Benard convection. The analysis is based on two recently developed nonlinear theories: geometric theory for incompressible flows [10] and the bifurcation and stability theory for nonlinear dynamical systems (both finite and infinite dimensional) [9]. We have shown in [8] that the Rayleigh-Benard problem bifurcates from the basic state to an attractor A_R when the Rayleigh number R crosses the first critical Rayleigh number R_c for all physically sound boundary conditions, regardless of the multiplicity of the eigenvalue R_c for the linear problem. In this article, in addition to a classification of the bifurcated attractor A_R, the structure and its transitions of the solutions in the physical space is classified, leading to the existence and stability of two different flows structures: pure rolls and rolls separated by a cross the channel flow. It appears that the structure with rolls separated by a cross channel flow has not been carefully examined although it has been observed in other physical contexts such as the Branstator-Kushnir waves in the atmospheric dynamics [1,7].
Neurophysin in the hypothalamo-neurohypophysial system. II. Immunocytochemical studies of the ontogeny of oxytocinergic and vasopressinergic neurons

Two anti-neurophysin monoclonal antibodies (MABs), PS 36 and PS 41, described in the preceding paper (Ben-Barak, Y, J.T. Russell, M.H. Whitnall, K. Ozato, and H. Gainer (1985) J. Neurosci. 5:000–000), allowed us to specifically stain for oxytocin-associated neurophysin (NP-OT) or vasopressin-associated neurophysin (NP-AVP) in the hypothalamus of developing rats. Staining with these MABs specific for NP-OT or NP-AVP showed that both types of neurophysin appeared in cells in the developing hypothalamus as early as embryonic day (E16) and continued to increase in immunoreactivity throughout fetal life. The literature indicated that oxytocin appears in the system between E20 and E22, much later than vasopressin (E16 to E17), which we confirmed in immunocytochemical experiments using affinity-purified antisera to these hormones. Since the MABs recognize the specific prohormones as well as the specific mature neurophysins (Ben-Barak, Y., J. T. Russell, M.H. Whitnall, K. Ozato, and H. Gainer (1985) J. Neurosci. 5: 81–97), we conclude that there is a developmental delay between the synthesis of the oxytocin prohormone (pro-oxyphysin) and its processing to form oxytocin and NP-OT. The delay in prohormone processing in the oxytocin cells was correlated with a delay in immunocytochemically detectable neurites as compared to the vasopressin cells. This reduced level of axonal and dendritic immunoreactivity was still obvious in the oxytocin cells at 9 days after birth. In contrast, the clustering of cells to form adult-like hypothalamic nuclei appeared to follow similar time courses for the two types of cells. Adult-like distributions of cells staining for NP-OT and NP-AVP were already apparent in the supraoptic and paraventricular nuclei by E17.
PHYLOGENETIC ANALYSIS OF ECOMORPHOLOGICAL DIVERGENCE, COMMUNITY STRUCTURE, AND DIVERSIFICATION RATES IN DUSKY SALAMANDERS (PLETHODONTIDAE: DESMOGNATHUS)

Abstract An important dimension of adaptive radiation is the degree to which diversification rates fluctuate or remain constant through time. Focusing on plethodontid salamanders of the genus Desmognathus, we present a novel synthetic analysis of phylogeographic history, rates of ecomorphological evolution and species accumulation, and community assembly in an adaptive radiation. Dusky salamanders are highly variable in life history, body size, and ecology, with many endemic lineages in the southern Appalachian Highlands of eastern North America. Our results show that life-history evolution had important consequences for the buildup of plethodontid-salamander species richness and phenotypic disparity in eastern North America, a global hot spot of salamander biodiversity. The origin of Desmognathus species with aquatic larvae was followed by a high rate of lineage accumulation, which then gradually decreased toward the present time. The peak period of lineage accumulation in the group coincides with evolutionary partitioning of lineages with aquatic larvae into seepage, stream-edge, and stream microhabitats. Phylogenetic simulations demonstrate a strong correlation between morphology and microhabitat ecology independent of phylogenetic effects and suggest that ecomorphological changes are concentrated early in the radiation of Desmognathus. Deep phylogeographic fragmentation within many codistributed ecomorph clades suggests long-term persistence of ecomorphological features and stability of endemic lineages and communities through multiple climatic cycles. Phylogenetic analyses of community structure show that ecomorphological divergence promotes the coexistence of lineages and that repeated, independent evolution of microhabitat-associated ecomorphs has a limited role in the evolutionary assembly of Desmognathus communities. Comparing and contrasting our results to other adaptive radiations having different biogeographic histories, our results suggest that rates of diversification during adaptive radiation are intimately linked to the degree to which community structure persists over evolutionary time.
Selection Bias and Auditing Policies for Insurance Claims

Selection bias results from a discrepancy between the range of estimation of a statistical model and its range of application. This is the case for fraud risk models, which are estimated on audited claims but applied on incoming claims in the design of auditing strategies. Now audited claims are a minority within the parent sample since they are chosen after a severe selection performed by claims adjusters. This paper presents a statistical approach which counteracts selection bias without using a random auditing strategy. A two equation model on audit and fraud (a bivariate probit model with censoring) is estimated on a sample of claims where the experts are left free to take the audit decision. The expected overestimation of fraud risk derived from a single equation model is corrected. Results are rather close to those obtained with a random auditing strategy, at the expense of some instability with respect to the regression components set. Then we compare auditing policies derived from the different approaches.
UNIVERSALITY LIMITS VIA OLD STYLE ANALYSIS

Techniques from old style orthogonal polynomials have turned out to be useful in establishing universality limits for fairly general measures. We survey some of these. Orthogonal Polynomials, RandomMatrices, Unitary Ensembles, Correlation Functions, Christo¤el functions. 15B52, 60B20, 60F99, 42C05, 33C50
Effects of malate level and cassava hay in high-quality feed block on rumen ecology and digestibility of nutrients in lactating dairy cows raised under tropical condition

Four, lactating dairy cows were randomly assigned according to a 2 x 2 Factorial arrangement in a 4 x 4 Latin square design to study supplementation of malate two levels as 500 and 1,000 g and cassava hay in high-quality feed block. The treatments were as follows T1 (supplementation of high-quality feed block without cassava hay + malate at 500 g); T2 (supplementation of high-quality feed block without cassava hay + malate at 1,000 g); T3 (supplementation of high-quality feed block with cassava hay + malate at 500 g); and T4 (supplementation of high-quality feed block with cassava hay + malate at 1,000 g), respectively. The cows were offered the treatment concentrate at a ratio to milk yield at 1:2 and ruzi grass was fed ad libitum. The results have revealed that rumen fermentation and blood metabolites were similar for all treatments. The populations of protozoa and fungal zoospores were significantly different as affected by malate level and cassava hay supplementation. In conclusion, the combined use of cassava hay and malate at 1,000 g in high-quality feed block with concentrates containing high levels of cassava chip at 65% DM could highest improved rumen ecology and nutrients digestibility in lactating cows. Key words: Malate, cassava hay, high-quality feed block, rumen ecology, lactating cows.
Advanced RAIM user Algorithm Description: Integrity Support Message Processing, Fault Detection, Exclusion, and Protection Level Calculation

Advanced RAIM (ARAIM) for vertical guidance has attracted considerable attention both from integrity providers and receiver manufacturers, due to its potential to achieve worldwide coverage of vertical guidance with a reduced investment on the ground segment compared to Space-based Augmentation Systems. Several user algorithms have been published, mostly variants of solution separation and possible optimizations. These descriptions have mostly focused on the definition of the Vertical Protection Level (VPL), because that is what was needed to simulate ARAIM availability as a function of different parameters and constellation configurations. However, an ARAIM user algorithm has many more elements that need to be defined. The purpose of this work is to describe an Advanced RAIM user algorithm step-by-step including: the Integrity Support Message (ISM) processing, the fault detection and exclusion, and the Protection Level calculation – including the Horizontal Protection Level. In this description, we attempt to clarify areas that have remained undefined. We give the contents of the ISM contents, and a clarification of the interpretation of its parameters. These parameters describe both the nominal error behavior and the probability of fault of one or more satellites. The nominal error is characterized by two sets of standard deviation and maximum bias, the first one for integrity purposes and the second one, less conservative, for accuracy and continuity evaluation purposes. We show how to compute the nominal error model as a function of the ISM content, and how to determine which faults must be monitored – including which subset solutions must be computed and compared against the all-in-view solution. In this paper, we make explicit under which conditions a fault must be declared. In addition to the solution separation statistics, we show why it is prudent to include a chi-square test on the residuals as well. We also describe the actions that follow the detection of a fault or faults, and under which conditions fault exclusion can be performed. Although this is not expected to be fundamentally different than the current approaches in horizontal RAIM, there are differences that arise. As mentioned above, the Vertical Protection Level has been defined in several publications (each with small variations). In this paper we address the implementation details in both the VPL and the HPL. First, in case a large number of fault modes need to be monitored, a large number of subset solutions must be computed. We show how to efficiently compute the subset solutions. Second, the PLs that provide good availability typically require an iterative halving algorithm. We describe a method to compute a tight upper bound with very few steps. In addition, we provide the formulas for the Effective Monitor Threshold, the fault free 10-7 error bound, and the 95% bound on the accuracy. A concrete numerical example is given to facilitate the verification of the provided formulas and algorithms.
M ar 2 00 6 K-theory of hyperbolic 3-manifolds

We introduce an invariant of the hyperbolic 3-manifolds which appears in the K-theory of certain C*-algebras. Namely, such an invariant is essentially an algebraic number field K with a fixed equivalence class of ideals in the ring of integers of K. The C*-algebras in question are the crossed product C*-algebras attached to the monodromy transformation of the 3-manifolds which fiber over the circle. Our approach bridges topology with the number field theory. In particular, we conjecture a volume formula for the 3-manifolds in terms of the arithmetic of the field K.
Comparing affective responses to standardized pictures and videos: A study report

Multimedia documents such as text, images, sounds or videos elicit emotional responses of different polarity and intensity in exposed human subjects. These stimuli are stored in affective multimedia databases. The problem of emotion processing is an important issue in Human-Computer Interaction and different interdisciplinary studies particularly those related to psychology and neuroscience. Accurate prediction of users' attention and emotion has many practical applications such as the development of affective computer interfaces, multifaceted search engines, video-on-demand, Internet communication and video games. To this regard we present results of a study with N=10 participants to investigate the capability of standardized affective multimedia databases in stimulation of emotion. Each participant was exposed to picture and video stimuli with previously determined semantics and emotion. During exposure participants' physiological signals were recorded and estimated for emotion in an off-line analysis. Participants reported their emotion states after each exposure session. The a posteriori and a priori emotion values were compared. The experiment showed, among other reported results, that carefully designed video sequences induce a stronger and more accurate emotional reaction than pictures. Individual participants' differences greatly influence the intensity and polarity of experienced emotion.
Detecting age of page content

Web pages often contain objects created at different times. The information about the age of such objects may provide useful context for understanding page content and may serve many potential uses. In this paper, we describe a novel concept for detecting approximate creation dates of content elements in Web pages. Our approach is based on dynamically reconstructing page histories using data extracted from external sources - Web archives and efficiently searching inside them to detect insertion dates of content elements. We discuss various issues involving the proposed approach and demonstrate the example of an application that enhances browsing the Web by inserting annotations with temporal metadata into page content on user request.
What can I do with my body? Boys and girls facing body dissatisfaction

Abstract The aim of this study is to investigate the role of body dissatisfaction (BD) – conceived here as predicting, predicted and mediating variable – in relation to media influence, body mass index (BMI) and body modification strategies among adolescents, with particular attention to gender differences. Specifically, we investigate, through a multivariated model, the direct and mediated effect of internalization and pressure to conform to aesthetic ideals and BMI on engagement in body modification behaviours, namely eating problems, attitudes toward cosmetic surgery, body art and physical activity. A questionnaire designed to assess all these dimensions was administered to 843 Italian adolescents aged between 15 and 18 years. The findings confirm the available evidence on BD as predicted by a number of sociocultural and personal variables, and as predictive of adolescents’ bodily attitudes and behaviours. Gendered differences in behaviours considered as ‘ways out’ from discomforting feelings about physical appearance are discussed.
The Fate of the First Galaxies. III. Properties of Primordial Dwarf Galaxies and Their Impact on the Intergalactic Medium

In two previous papers, we presented simulations of the first galaxies in a representative volume of the universe. The simulations are unique because we model feedback-regulated galaxy formation, using time-dependent, spatially inhomogeneous radiative transfer coupled to hydrodynamics. Here we study the properties of simulated primordial dwarf galaxies with masses ≲2 × 108 M☉ and investigate their impact on the intergalactic medium. While many primordial galaxies are dark, about 100-500 per comoving Mpc3 are luminous but relatively faint. They form preferentially in chain structures and have low surface brightness stellar spheroids extending to 20% of the virial radius. Their interstellar medium has mean density nH ≈ 10–100 cm −3, metallicity Z ∼ 0.01–0.1 Z☉, and can sustain a multiphase structure. With large scatter, the mean efficiency of star formation scales with halo mass, ⟨ f*⟩ ∝ M2DM, independent of redshift. Because of feedback, halos smaller than a critical mass, Mcrit(z) , are devoid of most of their baryons. More interestingly, we find that dark halos have always a smaller Mcrit(z) than luminous ones. Metal enrichment of the intergalactic medium is inhomogeneous, with only a 1%-10% volume filling factor of enriched gas with [ Z/H ] > − 3.0 and 10%-50% with [ Z/H ] > − 5.0. At z ≈ 10, the fraction of stars with metallicity Z < 10−3 Z☉ is 10−6 of the total stellar mass. However, this study focuses on the effects of radiative feedback: mechanical feedback from SN explosions is only included in two of the seven simulations we have analyzed. Although detections of high-redshift dwarf galaxies with the James Webb Space Telescope will be a challenge, studies of their fossil records in the local universe are promising because of their large spatial density.
A Retrospective View of Masked Priming : Toward a Unified Account of Masked and Long-Term Repetition Priming

We propose a general, unified account of masked and long-term priming, based on the assumption that prime events create a memory resource that can be recruited to assist with subsequent target processing. This account is contrasted with the classical account of priming, in which it is assumed that a prime proactively creates a temporary change in the cognitive system (e.g., through spreading activation or opening a lexical entry) that enables more efficient or accurate encoding of a target that is related in some way to the prime. In support of the classical, abstractionist account of priming, masked priming has been dissociated from long-term priming on three different bases: (1) lack of masked priming of nonwords, (2) additivity of masked priming and word frequency, (3) masked priming is short-lived. We closely examine these dissociations and describe recent evidence that challenges each of them. These challenges serve to support the proposition that masked and long-term priming have a common basis. Moreover, we review evidence showing that the recruitment of a prime may or may not occur, depending on factors such as need for the prime resource (as determined by target processing difficulty) and validity of the prime (as determined by prime-target relatedness proportion). These novel results are readily interpreted within a retrospective account of masked priming.