Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Analysis of Spectral Shaping on DFT-OFDM

Though widespread in wireless communication, orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing has not gained full recognition in coherent optical long-haul transmission systems. This is mainly because of its high peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR), which reduces the nonlinear tolerance and ultimately limits the maximum transmission distance. Recently, DFT-OFDM has been proposed and demonstrated as a promising algorithm for nonlinearity mitigation. In this letter, we further improve the nonlinear tolerance of OFDM by introducing spectral shaping in addition to DFT spreading. Spectral shaping spreads the signal power over some of the unmodulated subcarriers, therewith effectively reducing the PAPR. In this letter, it is shown that spectrally shaped DFT-OFDM outperforms DFT-OFDM for dispersion managed and non-managed links independent of fiber type. For fibers with lower dispersion, it is found that the gain in transmission reach due to spectral shaping is higher than for fibers with higher dispersion. Thus, spectral shaping is a powerful tool that allows us to tradeoff spectral width for transmission reach with low computational complexity.
The cold shoulder: free-ranging snowshoe hares maintain a low cost of living in cold climates

The hypothesis that cold air temperatures (Ta) constrain the metabolic diversity of high-latitude endotherms is based on the observation among birds and mammals that mean field metabolic rate (FMR) increases, whereas the variability of FMR decreases, from the warm tropics to the cold poles. However, there is a paucity of FMR measurements from above 60° latitude and below 0 °C. We measured the daily energy expenditure of a high-latitude population of free-ranging snowshoe hares (Lepus americanus Erxleben, 1777) in Yukon, Canada, in winter (Ta-mean = –16.4 °C) and in autumn (Ta-mean = 0.5 °C). Doubly labelled water measures of FMR were approximately 20% lower in winter than in autumn, and were a similar, low multiple of resting metabolic rate in both seasons (2.04 and 1.94, respectively). The mass-corrected FMR of snowshoe hares in winter was only half the value predicted by extrapolating the relationship between FMR and Ta > 0 to –16.4 °C. These results contribute to an emerging pattern of a reversal in the relationship between FMR and Ta in free-ranging mammals from negative above 0 °C to positive below 0 °C. We refer to the positive, low Ta portion of this relationship as the cold shoulder, and suggest that it may reflect the general necessity for free-ranging mammals to use behavioural and (or) physiological means to conserve energy during long winters when cold conditions coincide with resource scarcity.
Marine reserve effects on fishery profit

Some studies suggest that fishery yields can be higher with reserves than under conventional management. However, the economic performance of fisheries depends on economic profit, not fish yield. The predictions of higher yields with reserves rely on intensive fishing pressures between reserves; the exorbitant costs of harvesting low-density populations erode profits. We incorporated this effect into a bioeconomic model to evaluate the economic performance of reserve-based management. Our results indicate that reserves can still benefit fisheries, even those targeting species that are expensive to harvest. However, in contrast to studies focused on yield, only a moderate proportion of the coast in reserves (with moderate harvest pressures outside reserves) is required to maximize profit. Furthermore, reserve area and harvest intensity can be traded off with little impact on profits, allowing for management flexibility while still providing higher profit than attainable under conventional management. Ecology Letters (2008) 11: 370–379
Benthic biomass size spectra in shelf and deep-sea sediments

The biomass distributions of marine benthic meta- zoans (meio- to macro-fauna, 1 µg-32 mg wet weight) across three contrasting sites were investigated to test the hy- pothesis that allometry can consistently explain observed trends in biomass spectra. Biomass (and abundance) size spectra were determined from observations made at the Faroe-Shetland Channel (FSC) in the Northeast Atlantic (water depth 1600 m), the Fladen Ground (FG) in the North Sea (150 m), and the hypoxic Oman Margin (OM) in the Arabian Sea (500 m). Observed biomass increased with body size as a power law at FG (scaling exponent, bD 0:16) and FSC (bD 0:32), but less convincingly at OM (bD 0:12 but not significantly different from 0). A simple model was con- structed to represent the same 16 metazoan size classes used for the observed spectra, all reliant on a common detrital food pool, and allowing the three key processes of ingestion, respi- ration and mortality to scale with body size. A micro-genetic algorithm was used to fit the model to observations at the sites. The model accurately reproduces the observed scal- ing without needing to include the effects of local influences such as hypoxia. Our results suggest that the size-scaling of mortality and ingestion are dominant factors determining the distribution of biomass across the meio- to macrofaunal size range in contrasting marine sediment communities. Both the observations and the model results are broadly in agree- ment with the "metabolic theory of ecology" in predicting a quarter power scaling of biomass across geometric body size classes.
Attention-Based Multimodal Fusion for Video Description

Current methods for video description are based on encoder-decoder sentence generation using recurrent neural networks (RNNs). Recent work has demonstrated the advantages of integrating temporal attention mechanisms into these models, in which the decoder network predicts each word in the description by selectively giving more weight to encoded features from specific time frames. Such methods typically use two different types of features: image features (from an object classification model), and motion features (from an action recognition model), combined by naive concatenation in the model input. Because different feature modalities may carry task-relevant information at different times, fusing them by naive concatenation may limit the model's ability to dynamically determine the relevance of each type of feature to different parts of the description. In this paper, we incorporate audio features in addition to the image and motion features. To fuse these three modalities, we introduce a multimodal attention model that can selectively utilize features from different modalities for each word in the output description. Combining our new multimodal attention model with standard temporal attention outperforms state-of-the-art methods on two standard datasets: YouTube2Text and MSR-VTT.
A three-electrode distributed Bragg reflector laser with 22 nm wavelength tuning range

A large wavelength tuning range is demonstrated for a three-electrode distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) laser by applying both forward and reverse bias to the passive Bragg section. In the reverse direction the tuning towards longer wavelengths is mainly attributed to electrical heating. By also using the phase tuning section, all wavelengths within a range of 22.1 nm can be reached with a side-mode suppression better than 25 dB and with an output power exceeding 4.4 mW. <<ETX>>
Soil physical characteristics of peat soils

Drainage and intensive use of fens lead to alterations in the physical characteristics of peat soils. This was demonstrated using parameters of water balance (available water capacity) and the evaluated unsaturated hydraulic conductivity. Deriving the distribution of the pore size from the water retention curve was flawed because of shrinkage due to drainage, especially at high soil water potentials. These errors became greater as the peat was less influenced by soil-genetic processes. The water retention curves (desorption) evaluated in the field and the laboratory satisfactorily corresponded. However, the wetting- and drainage-curves obtained in the field differed up to 30 vol.-% water content at same soil water potentials. These differences were largely due to a wetting inhibition.
Self‐selection vs learning: evidence from Indian exporting firms

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to study whether exporting firms outperform non-exporting firms along a number of performance characteristics. It also examines whether the differences in performance characteristics are due to the self-selection of better firms into exporting or because the firms that start exporting for some unknown reason experience productivity growth. Design/methodology/approach - The dataset comprised a panel of Indian manufacturing firms for a period of 17 years from 1990 to 2006. Findings - Exporters were found to systematically outperform non-exporters over a number of characteristics. Also, evidence was found of “self-selection”, that is, firms that are more productive enter the export market. There was some evidence of learning, that is exporting firms experience an increase in productivity. Originality/value - This is the first paper to look at the issue of self-selection vs learning for exporting firms using a dataset from India.
Effects of Consonant-Vowel Transitions in Speech Stimuli on Cortical Auditory Evoked Potentials in Adults

We examined the neural activation to consonant-vowel transitions by cortical auditory evoked potentials (AEPs). The aim was to show whether cortical response patterns to speech stimuli contain components due to one of the temporal features, the voice-onset time (VOT). In seven normal-hearing adults, the cortical responses to four different monosyllabic words were opposed to the cortical responses to noise stimuli with the same temporal envelope as the speech stimuli. Significant hemispheric asymmetries were found for speech but not in noise evoked potentials. The difference signals between the AEPs to speech and corresponding noise stimuli revealed a significant negative component, which correlated with the VOT. The hemispheric asymmetries can be referred to rapid spectral changes. The correlation with the VOT indicates that the significant component in the difference signal reflects the perception of the acoustic change within the consonant-vowel transition. Thus, at the level of automatic processing, the characteristics of speech evoked potentials appear to be determined primarily by temporal aspects of the eliciting stimuli.
A 1600 year multiproxy record of paleoclimatic change from varved sediments in Lake Xiaolongwan, northeastern China

[1] A multiproxy record from Lake Xiaolongwan, northeastern China, reveals distinct stratigraphical patterns in organic carbon, total nitrogen, organic carbon isotope, nitrogen isotope, clastic content and dinocyst concentration, over the past 1600 years. High atomic C/N ratios in the sediment suggest that a large amount of organic matter in the sediments is derived from vascular plants and soil in the catchment. Based on the good agreement between cyclical variations of δ13Corg in the sediments and the spring drought index from historical documents, we interpret that the variation of δ13Corg in the sediments is an indicator of humidity or precipitation in the study area. Several notable drought periods with heavier δ13Corg occurred during AD 490–570, AD 780–990, AD 1360–1450, AD 1590–1670 and the last 150 years. These century-scale drought episodes correspond to solar activity. It suggests that solar forcing plays an important role for the δ13Corg variation in the sediments through driving the changes in humidity/vapor pressure deficit. Dinocyst concentration is high during most of the Medieval Warm Period, and low during the European Dark Age and the Little Ice Age. The increase in dinocyst concentration is generally synchronous with decrease of δ15N value. The δ15N values in the studied lake are most likely influenced by the duration and intensification of lake overturn, which regulates the amount of depleted δ15N nutrients (dissolved organic nitrogen and ammonium) and dinoflagellate blooms.
Obstetricians' and midwives' attitudes toward cesarean section.

BACKGROUND The cesarean section rate has increased worldwide over the past 20 years; in Italy, it is now more than 35 percent. Although clinical factors are important, the attitudes of health practitioners toward cesarean section need further investigation to correctly identify facilitators and barriers to changes. The objective of this study was to explore the attitudes toward cesarean section of midwives and obstetricians who worked in the same geographical area. METHODS Face-to-face structured interviews using an adaptation of the Survey of Clinicians' Views on Caesarean Section, an anonymous questionnaire with 35 open and closed answers on practitioners' views on cesarean section, were conducted. The questionnaire was given to the entire group of midwives and obstetricians working in Modena, a northern Italian district. RESULTS Of 262 eligible practitioners, 248 were interviewed (response rate 94.6%). The midwives' attitudes toward cesarean section differed from those of the obstetricians. Sixty-five percent of midwives considered the rates of cesarean section in their hospitals to be too high compared with 34 percent of obstetricians (p < 0.001). Midwives were also less inclined to believe that cesarean section provides benefits to the mother (p = 0.02) or that it is indicated by previous cesarean delivery (p < 0.001). No differences were observed between male and female obstetricians. CONCLUSIONS In this survey, the attitudes toward cesarean section were correlated more with professional role than with gender. This information can help policy makers to shape interventions aimed at providing better care for pregnant and childbearing women.
Titanium nitride as a plasmonic material for visible and near-infrared wavelengths

: The search for alternative plasmonic materials with improved optical properties, easier fabrication and integration capabilities over those of the traditional materials such as silver and gold could ultimately lead to real-life applications for plasmonics and metamaterials. In this work, we show that titanium nitride could perform as an alternative plasmonic material in the visible and near-infrared regions. We demonstrate the excitation of surface-plasmon-polaritons on titanium nitride thin ﬁlms and discuss the performance of various plasmonic and metamaterial structures with titanium nitride as the plasmonic component. We also show that titanium nitride could provide performance that is comparable to that of gold for plasmonic applications and can signiﬁcantly outperform gold and silver for transformation-optics and some metamaterial applications in the visible and near-infrared regions.
Validation of Tissue Microarray Technology in Ovarian Cancer: Results from the Nurses' Health Study

Background: Tissue microarrays (TMAs) allow high-throughput evaluation of protein expression from archived tissue samples. We identified characteristics specific to ovarian cancer that may influence TMA interpretation. Methods: TMAs were constructed using triplicate core samples from 174 epithelial ovarian cancers. Stains for p53, Ki-67, estrogen receptor-α, progesterone receptor, Her-2, WT-1, cytokeratin 7, and cytokeratin 20 were evaluated by intraclass correlation coefficients, Spearman correlation coefficients, the effect of sample age, and tumor histology on the ability to score the cores, and inter-rater reliability. Results: The interclass correlation coefficient and the mean Spearman correlation coefficients among 3 cores were ≥0.91 and 0.87, respectively. Tissue age and tumor histology were not predictive of an inability to evaluate stains, but borderline tumors had a 2 to 4-fold increase in the risk of having uninterpretable cores over invasive tumors. There was moderate to substantial concordance between the two pathologists for estrogen receptor-α [Cohen's Kappa (κ), 0.79] and Ki-67 (κ, 0.52). The prevalence of positive staining cells by histologic type was comparable with previous studies. Conclusion: TMA is a valid method for evaluating antigen expression in invasive ovarian cancer but should be used with caution for borderline tumors. We suggest several methods of quality control based on intercore comparisons and show that some antigens may be affected by age of the samples. (Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2008;17(11):3043–50)
The physical volcanology of Mars

The physical volcanology of Mars is reviewed, with particular attention given to the diversity of volcanic landforms, the implied styles of eruption associated with the construction of these landforms, the inferred internal structure of the volcanoes, and the influence that the eruptions have had on the Martian environment (both local and global in scale). Volcanism in the central highlands appears to have been explosive in character, while most of the constructional activity in the northern plains was effusive. Highlands volcanism appears to be relatively old compared to that in the northern hemisphere. There is evidence for the existence of large magma chambers and very high effusion rate eruptions on Mars. Tectonic deformation associated with volcanic constructs is primarily a consequence of loading and magma transport, while deformation in the volcanic plains reflects stresses associated with Tharsis and major impact basins.
Individual differences in toddlers’ social understanding and prosocial behavior: disposition or socialization?

We examined how individual differences in social understanding contribute to variability in early-appearing prosocial behavior. Moreover, potential sources of variability in social understanding were explored and examined as additional possible predictors of prosocial behavior. Using a multi-method approach with both observed and parent-report measures, 325 children aged 18–30 months were administered measures of social understanding (e.g., use of emotion words; self-understanding), prosocial behavior (in separate tasks measuring instrumental helping, empathic helping, and sharing, as well as parent-reported prosociality at home), temperament (fearfulness, shyness, and social fear), and parental socialization of prosocial behavior in the family. Individual differences in social understanding predicted variability in empathic helping and parent-reported prosociality, but not instrumental helping or sharing. Parental socialization of prosocial behavior was positively associated with toddlers’ social understanding, prosocial behavior at home, and instrumental helping in the lab, and negatively associated with sharing (possibly reflecting parents’ increased efforts to encourage children who were less likely to share). Further, socialization moderated the association between social understanding and prosocial behavior, such that social understanding was less predictive of prosocial behavior among children whose parents took a more active role in socializing their prosociality. None of the dimensions of temperament was associated with either social understanding or prosocial behavior. Parental socialization of prosocial behavior is thus an important source of variability in children’s early prosociality, acting in concert with early differences in social understanding, with different patterns of influence for different subtypes of prosocial behavior.
ANABRANCHING RIVERS: THEIR CAUSE, CHARACTER AND CLASSIFICATION

Anabranching rivers consist of multiple channels separated by vegetated semi-permanent alluvial islands excised from existing floodplain or formed by within-channel or deltaic accretion. These rivers occupy a wide range of environments from low to high energy, however, their existence has never been adequately explained. They occur concurrently with other types of channel pattern, although specific requirements include a flood-dominated flow regime and banks that are resistant to erosion, with some systems characterized by mechanisms to block or constrict channels, thereby triggering avulsion. The fundamental advantage of an anabranching river is that, by constructing a semi-permanent system of multiple channels, it can concentrate stream flow and maximize bed-sediment transport (work per unit area of the bed) under conditions where there is little or no opportunity to increase gradient. On the basis of stream energy, sediment size and morphological characteristics, six types of anabranching river are recognized; types 1–3 are lower energy and types 4–6 are higher energy systems. Type 1 are cohesive sediment rivers (commonly termed anastomosing) with low w/d ratio channels that exhibit little or no lateral migration. They are divisible into three subtypes based on vegetative and sedimentary environment. Type 2 are sand-dominated, island-forming rivers, and type 3 are mixed-load laterally active meandering rivers. Type 4 are sand-dominated, ridge-forming rivers characterized by long, parallel, channel-dividing ridges. Type 5 are gravel-dominated, laterally active systems that interface between meandering and braiding in mountainous regions. Type 6 are gravel-dominated, stable systems that occur as non-migrating channels in small, relatively steep basins. Anabranching rivers represent a relatively uncommon but widespread and distinctive group that, because of particular sedimentary, energy-gradient and other hydraulic conditions, operate most effectively as a system of multiple channels separated by vegetated floodplain islands or alluvial ridges.
Modeling atmospheric stable water isotopes and the potential for constraining cloud processes and stratosphere‐troposphere water exchange

[1] Stable water isotope tracers (HDO and H218O) are incorporated into the ModelE version of the Goddard Institute for Space Studies Atmospheric (GISS) General Circulation Model (GCM). Details of the moist convective parameterisation, cloud phase, background ozone, isotope kinetics and vertical resolution are varied and we examine their impacts, particularly in the upper troposphere (UT) and lower stratosphere. We find that isotopes in precipitation, except in Antarctica, are largely unaffected by these changes and thus are not a useful metric for evaluating model skill above the lower troposphere. Simulated isotopic entry values into the stratosphere over all experiments range between −750 and −600‰ for HDO, and −130 to −90‰ for H218O, demonstrating that the mixing processes simulated by the model can explain a significant part of the observed offset from pure Rayleigh distillation. Isotope fields are shown to be sensitive to the parameterisation of cloud physics and representation of UT processes and therefore may be useful in constraining modeled cloud physics and mechanisms of stratosphere-troposphere water vapour exchange.
Microcalorimetric Study of Glucose Permeation in Microbial Cells

A microcalorimetric method for measuring the influence of extracellular glucose concentration on the rate of catabolism is described. This method has been applied to anaerobically growing cultures of Zymomonas mobilis and of a respiratory-deficient (“petite”) mutant of Saccharomyces cerevisiae (strain YFa). The Michaelian kinetics recorded with both organisms were apparently related to glucose transport. With Z. mobilis, it was found that, in the range of glucose concentrations at which this organism was growing exponentially, cell activity was limited by the maximal rate of the catabolic enzymes; at lower concentrations, glucose transport was the rate controlling step. The metabolic activity of yeast always depended on external glucose concentration; when this was lowered under a threshold, a change of kinetics took place. The microcalorimetric method described seems to be widely applicable to kinetic studies of the permeation of metabolizable substrates in microorganisms.