Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Annual Cycle of White-Crowned Sparrows (Zonotrichia leucophrys nuttalli) in Coastal California

The basic unit of temporal organization in long-lived animals is the annual cycle, In birds this includes most prominently the periods of winter maintenance, reproduction, molt, and migration or dispersal. To attain maximal, or at least adequate, fitness, all of these essential processes must occur and be timed in individuals and populations so that conflicting demands for time and energy are minimized and they must exploit as well as possible the cyclic variations of the environment. The structure of the annual cycle thus represents evolutionary tendencies toward optimization, including, for instance, the length of the reproductive period, the pattern and duration of molt, and the proclivity for migration. Although much can be learned about the adaptive basis of the annual cycle by intensive investigation of individual taxa or geographic populations, much more can be learned by comparisons of taxonomic or geographic variants. Through nearly four decades of research, beginning with the pioneering investigations by Blanchard (summarized by DeWolfe 196S), the annual cycles of the crowned sparrows, Zonotrichia spp. , have been analyzed especially thoroughly in this context. It is paradoxical that certain aspects of the annual cycle and general biology are least well known in the form of Zonotrichia Zeucophrys that is most readily accessible from urban and academic centers. 2. 1. nuttalli, hereafter called Nuttall’ s Sparrow, is the only nonmigratory form of Zonotrichia in North America, and is thus of particular interest in a comparative context. Nuttall’ s Sparrow inhabits the narrow coastal fog zone of California between about 34” and 40” N latitude. We report below the results of a five-year investigation of the cycles of reproduction and molt in Nuttall’ s Sparrows on Point Reyes, near the middle of their latitudinal range.
Molecular Evolution of Broadly Neutralizing Llama Antibodies to the CD4-Binding Site of HIV-1

To date, no immunization of humans or animals has elicited broadly neutralizing sera able to prevent HIV-1 transmission; however, elicitation of broad and potent heavy chain only antibodies (HCAb) has previously been reported in llamas. In this study, the anti-HIV immune responses in immunized llamas were studied via deep sequencing analysis using broadly neutralizing monoclonal HCAbs as a guides. Distinct neutralizing antibody lineages were identified in each animal, including two defined by novel antibodies (as variable regions called VHH) identified by robotic screening of over 6000 clones. The combined application of five VHH against viruses from clades A, B, C and CRF_AG resulted in neutralization as potent as any of the VHH individually and a predicted 100% coverage with a median IC50 of 0.17 µg/ml for the panel of 60 viruses tested. Molecular analysis of the VHH repertoires of two sets of immunized animals showed that each neutralizing lineage was only observed following immunization, demonstrating that they were elicited de novo. Our results show that immunization can induce potent and broadly neutralizing antibodies in llamas with features similar to human antibodies and provide a framework to analyze the effectiveness of immunization protocols.
HF radar polar patch formation revisited: summer and winter variations in dayside plasma structuring

Abstract. Three intervals of polar patch formation, as observed by the CUTLASS Finland HF coherent radar, are presented. Simultaneous observations from a vertical ionosonde located at Longyearbyen on Svalbard, situated in the dayside convection throat region, allow for F-region plasma structuring, leading to polar cap patch formation to be determined. Solar wind and interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) precursors of polar patch formation are investigated with MFI and SWE measurements from the Wind spacecraft. We find that in the cases studied polar cap patches are formed in response to changes in the orientation of the IMF, especially in the By component. The resultant changes in the dayside convection pattern alter the source of plasma drifting through the convection throat region into the polar cap. When the convection flow is directed predominantly polewards, high density sub-auroral or mid-latitude plasma enters the polar cap; when flow is directed zonally, low density plasma entrained in the convection return flow replaces it. This mechanism can act to significantly structure the plasma density at sub-auroral or mid-latitudes as well as in the polar cap. In winter months, polar patches appear to be produced by depletions in an otherwise high plasma density tongue of ionisation. In summer months, patches are enhancements of an otherwise low density tongue of ionisation. Key words. Ionosphere (ionospheric irregularities; plasma convection; polar ionosphere)
Quasar induced galaxy formation: a new paradigm?

Aims. We discuss observational evidence that quasars play a key role in the formation of galaxies, starting from the detailed study of the quasar HE0450−2958 and extending the discussion to a series of converging evidence that radio jets may trigger galaxy formation. Methods. We use mid infrared imaging with VISIR at the ESO-VLT to model the mid to far infrared energy distribution of the system and the stellar population of the companion galaxy using optical VLT-FORS spectroscopy. The results are combined with optical, CO, radio continuum imaging from ancillary data. Results. The direct detection with VISIR of the 7 kpc distant companion galaxy of HE0450−2958 allows us to spatially separate the sites of quasar and star formation activity in this composite system made of two ultra-luminous infrared galaxies (ULIRGs), where the quasar generates the bulk of the mid infrared light and the companion galaxy powered by star formation dominates in the far infrared. No host galaxy has yet been detected for this quasar, but the companion galaxy stellar mass would bring HE0450−2958 in the local MBH–M bulge � relation if it were to merge with the QSO. This is bound to happen because of their close distance (7 kpc) and low relative velocity (∼60–200 km s −1 ). We conclude that we may be witnessing the building of the MBH–M bulge � relation, or at least of a major – – – –
Production , Manufacturing and Logistics A two-echelon inventory model with lost sales

This paper considers a single-item, two-echelon, continuous-review inventory model. A number of retailers have their stock replenished from a central warehouse. The warehouse in turn replenishes stock from an external supplier. The demand processes on the retailers are independent Poisson. Demand not met at a retailer is lost. The order quantity from each retailer on the warehouse and from the warehouse on the supplier takes the same fixed value Q, an exogenous variable determined by packaging and handling constraints. Retailer i follows a (Q,Ri) control policy. The warehouse operates an (SQ, (S 1)Q) policy, with non-negative integer S. If the warehouse is in stock then the lead time for retailer i is the fixed transportation time Li from the warehouse to that retailer. Otherwise retailer orders are met, after a delay, on a first-come first-served basis. The lead time on a warehouse order is fixed. Two further assumptions are made: that each retailer may only have one order outstanding at any time and that the transportation time from the warehouse to a retailer is not less than the warehouse lead time. The performance measures of interest are the average total stock in the system and the fraction of demand met in the retailers. Procedures for determining these performance measures and optimising the behaviour of the system are developed. 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Research Conducted by the United States on the Early Ocean Life History of Pacific Salmon

Research on juvenile Pacific salmon in coastal U.S. waters began almost 50 years ago in Southeast Alaska, and has continued somewhat sporadically since then. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), through its various laboratories in Alaska and along the West Coast of the United States, has done much of the research on the early life history of many Pacific salmon stocks in all habitats of U.S. waters, including their period of residence in coastal and oceanic waters. In addition, several of the leading universities in this region (University of Washington, Oregon State University, University of Alaska) have contributed greatly to our knowledge of salmon in their early ocean residency. Much of the early research was done using fine-mesh purse seines, but recently surface fine-mesh trawl nets and gill nets have been used more widely. A large number of programs are actively sampling in coastal waters at the present time, and the geographic and temporal coverage is the most complete it has ever been. In this paper, we provide a brief overview of many of the studies that have been done, synthesize their major findings, and discuss some of the areas where we believe future efforts should be concentrated.
TQM and firms performance: An EFQM excellence model research based survey

The purpose of this article is to develop an instrument for measuring TQM implementation following the European Foundation for Quality Management Excellence Model and to provide empirical evidence on the relationship between management practices and measures of business performance in the model. To this end, the study employs survey data collected from Spanish manufacturing and service firms. Confirmatory factor analysis is used to test the psychometric properties of the measurement scales and the hypothesized relationships between total quality management practices and organizational performance are examined using structural equation modeling. The findings of the research indicate that the adoption of the TQM practices suggested in the EFQM Excellence Model allows firms to outperform their competitors in the results criteria included in the Model. Therefore, this paper provides a valuable benchmarking data for firms as it substantiates the EFQM Enabler’s contribution to the attainment of competitive advantage.
Topic prominence in L2 acquisition

This study investigated the topic-prominent characteristics of the interlanguage development of native speakers of Chinese learning English as a foreign language (EFL). Two groups of Chinese EFL learners – an intermediate group and an advanced group – were recruited to complete two production tasks: a written Chinese-to-English translation task and an oral story-retelling task. The findings showed that Chinese EFL learners at each proficiency level transferred Chinese topic-prominent structures to their target language production at a varying degree. The topic-prominent constructions in the learners’ production, based on a hierarchy of difficulty, were placed on two slightly different Gradation Zones, one for written production and the other for oral production. Gradation Zones were a generalized reflection of how discourse and pragmatic relations in topic-prominent Chinese were gradually reanalyzed as syntactic relations with the development of learners’ English proficiency level. There was a tendency for topic-prominent features to decrease and subject-prominent features to increase as EFL learners’ proficiency level progressed. It was also argued that sources of these topic-prominent properties in interlanguage were an interaction of factors, including degree of markedness, perceptual saliency, second language (L2) input, and language production task type.
Analysis of global properties of shapes

With increasing amounts of data describing 3D geometry at scales small and large, shape analysis is becoming increasingly important in fields ranging from computer graphics to robotics to computational biology. While a great deal of research exists on local shape analysis, less work has been done on global shape analysis. This thesis aims to advance global shape analysis in three directions: symmetry-aware mesh processing, part decomposition of 3D models, and analysis of 3D scenes. First, we propose a pipeline for making mesh processing algorithms “symmetry-aware”, using large-scale symmetries to aid the processing of 3D meshes. Our pipeline can be used to emphasize the symmetries of a mesh, establish correspondences between symmetric features of a mesh, and decompose a mesh into symmetric parts and asymmetric residuals. We make technical contributions towards two of the main steps in this pipeline: a method for symmetrizing the geometry of an object, and a method for remeshing an object to have a symmetric triangulation. We offer several applications of this pipeline: modeling, beautification, attribute transfer, and simplification of approximately symmetric surfaces. Second, we conduct several investigations into part decomposition of 3D meshes. We propose a hierarchical mesh segmentation method as a basis for consistently segmenting a set of meshes. We show how our method of consistent segmentation can be used for the more specific applications of symmetric segmentation and segmentation transfer. Then, we propose a probabilistic version of mesh segmentation, which we call a “partition function”, that aims to estimate the likelihood that a given mesh edge is on a segmentation boundary. We describe several methods of computing this structure, and demonstrate its robustness to noise, tessellation, and pose and intra-class shape variation. We demonstrate the utility of the partition function for mesh visualization, segmentation, deformation, and registration. Third, we develop a system for object recognition in 3D scenes, and test it on a large point cloud representing a city. We make technical contributions towards three key steps of our system: localizing objects, segmenting them from the background, and extracting features that describe them. We conduct an extensive evaluation of the system: we perform quantitative evaluation on a point cloud consisting of about 100 million points, with about 1000 objects of interest belonging to 16 classes. We evaluate our system as a whole, as well as each individual step, trying several alternatives for each component.
Combining Morphology and Genetics in Resolving Taxonomy–A Systematic Revision of Spined Loaches (Genus Cobitis; Cypriniformes, Actinopterygii) in the Adriatic Watershed

Taxonomic investigation of spined loaches from Dalmatia and Herzegovina was conducted on specimens from 14 localities. The results of the detailed morphological investigations were combined with genetic data (based on one mitochondrial and two nuclear genes) in order to resolve the taxonomic status of each Cobitis population. Among the investigated features of external morphology, the appearance of spots on the caudal fin base turned out to have the greatest diagnostic value. Furthermore, the number of branched fin rays enabled the discrimination of several species. No morphometric character alone could ensure determination of any Cobitis species. Nevertheless, groups of populations that are more similar in their body shapes correspond to mitochondrial phylogenetic lineages. Based on molecular genetic markers, Dalmatian and Herzegovinian spined loaches form independent lineages inside the Adriatic phylogenetic group. Mitochondrial DNA phylogenetic reconstruction revealed six monophyletic lineages, corresponding to six species distributed in the investigated area. The population distributed in Mostarsko blato karstic field in Bosnia and Herzegovina is described as a new species based on a unique combination of morphological characters: a single triangular Canestrini scale; usually 51/2 branched anal fin rays, 61/2 branched dorsal fin rays, 14 branched caudal fin rays; no spots in the surface pigmentation layer on the caudal fin base; scales on the body very small.
Unsilencing the silent South African HIV-positive RESEARCHER: An HIV-positive researcher’s reflection on negotiating insider- outsider positionalities whilst conducting a HIV study in eThekwini, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

The research study that informed this article’s discussion, critically interrogates an HIV-infected research team’s positionality whilst conducting a mixed-methods’ study on HIV-positive patients’ experiences of the public ART programme at four ARV clinics in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It primarily utilises the principal investigator’s (PI) narrative to explore insider/outsider positionality, reflexivity, bracketing and participatory action research through exposure of feelings, emotions, challenges, engagements, relationships and observations. The fluid positionality of the HIV-positive research team presented both challenges and opportunities. However, the opportunities for more HIV-infected researchers to engage in HIV-related research to assist with destigmatising HIV, close research gaps and the creation of a trustworthy research environment to achieve an ethical and reliable health science study, far outweigh the challenges. Further, such research can improve patients’ support and healthcare, healthcare workers’ perceptions of patients, and provide a guide for policymakers to better understand the recipients of HIV policies. Lastly, the term ‘HIV reflexivity’ is coined as a result.
HALO GAS AND GALAXY DISK KINEMATICS DERIVED FROM OBSERVATIONS AND ΛCDM SIMULATIONS OF Mg ii ABSORPTION-SELECTED GALAXIES AT INTERMEDIATE REDSHIFT

We obtained ESI/Keck rotation curves of 10 Mg ii absorption-selected galaxies (0.3 ⩽ z ⩽ 1.0) for which we have WFPC-2/HST images and high-resolution HIRES/Keck and UVES/VLT quasar spectra of the Mg ii absorption profiles. We perform a kinematic comparison of these galaxies and their associated halo Mg ii absorption. For all 10 galaxies, the majority of the absorption velocities lie in the range of the observed galaxy rotation velocities. In 7/10 cases, the absorption velocities reside fully to one side of the galaxy systemic velocity and usually align with one arm of the rotation curve. In all cases, a constant rotating thick-disk model poorly reproduces the full spread of observed Mg ii absorption velocities when reasonably realistic parameters are employed. In 2/10 cases, the galaxy kinematics, star formation surface densities, and absorption kinematics have a resemblance to those of high-redshift galaxies showing strong outflows. We find that Mg ii absorption velocity spread and optical depth distribution may be dependent on galaxy inclination. To further aid in the spatial–kinematic relationships of the data, we apply quasar absorption-line techniques to a galaxy (vc = 180 km s−1) embedded in ΛCDM simulations. In the simulations, Mg ii absorption selects metal-enriched “halo” gas out to ∼100 kpc from the galaxy, tidal streams, filaments, and small satellite galaxies. Within the limitations inherent in the simulations, the majority of the simulated Mg ii absorption arises in the filaments and tidal streams and is infalling toward the galaxy with velocities between −200 km s-1 ⩽ vr ⩽ −180 km s−1. The Mg ii absorption velocity offset distribution (relative to the simulated galaxy) spans ∼200 km s−1 with the lowest frequency of detecting Mg ii at the galaxy systematic velocity.
Peer Feedback in Synchronous Writing Environments: A Case Study in French

This paper reports on a case study which investigates the interaction patterns among participants in a synchronous writing environment on a Local Area Network (LAN). The focus is on peer feedback, either in the form of social or cognitive acknowledgement. The data were collected from 12 students of a French foreign language class who, for one semester, spent 1 hour of class instruction using Aspects, a synchronous writing environment for the Macintosh. The results suggest that students do provide cognitive and social acknowledgement to their peers in networked writing environments. Students who provide the most social and cognitive acknowledgement are also the highest contributors, although their second language skills are not necessarily superior within their group.
Distributed multi-robot coverage using micro aerial vehicles

In this paper we present a solution to the problem of positioning a team of Micro Aerial Vehicles for a surveillance task in an environment of arbitrary and unknown morphology. The problem is addressed taking into account physical and environmental constraints like limited sensor capabilities and obstacle avoidance. The goal is to maximize the area monitored by the team, by identifying the best configuration of the team members. The proposed method is a distributed extension of our previous work based on the Cognitive Adaptive Optimization (CAO) algorithm. This distributed and scalable approach allows us to obtain coordinated and safe trajectories to accomplish the task in 3D environments. The different formulation of the problem considered in this paper allows also dealing with communication constraints. We provide extensive experimental results using data collected by a team of aerial robots and compare the efficiency of the distributed and centralized approach.
Physicians' Characteristics Associated with Exploring Suicide Risk among Patients with Depression: A French Panel Survey of General Practitioners

Background General practitioners (GPs) have a key role to play in suicide prevention, but the rates at which they question patients with depression about suicidal thoughts and plans are rather low. Little is known about GPs' characteristics associated with such inquiries. Our objectives were to describe GPs' attitudes, perceived barriers, and self-reported practices in this questioning of these patients and to analyze factors associated with these practices. Methodology This cross-sectional survey was conducted among participants in a panel of randomly selected French GPs (1249/1431 participated: 87.3%). GPs were interviewed with a standardized questionnaire covering their professional and personal characteristics, attitudes, and practices in exploring the suicide risk of their patients with depression. We built a suicide inquiry score by summing the responses to 5 items and used a multiple linear regression analysis to explore the characteristics associated with this score. Principal Findings Most GPs reported inquiring about the presence of suicidal ideation often or very often; less than 30% reported that they frequently explored signs of a specific suicide plan. The mean suicide inquiry score was 12.4 (SD, 2.9; range, 5–20). False ideas, such as thinking that patients who report suicidal ideas do not often commit suicide, were frequent (42.3%). Previous continuing medical education on suicide, participation in a formal mental health network, and patients who committed suicide in the past 5 years were associated with a higher score. Reluctance to question patients about suicide and perception of insufficient skill were associated with a lower score. Conclusions/Significance This study showed great variability in French GPs' practices in exploring suicide risk in patients with depression. Interventions aiming at improving GPs' initial training and continuing medical education in suicide and/or depression, and their collaboration with mental health specialists should be developed, and their impacts assessed.
Interleukin-1 injected into mammalian brain stimulates astrogliosis and neovascularization

Interleukin-1 (IL-1), a protein produced by mononuclear phagocytes, helps to initiate the inflammatory response through its action upon a diverse population of cells. Recently this immunomodulator has been detected at sites of traumatized brain. As reported here, recombinant forms of IL-1 injected into the cerebral cortex of adult rats elicit not only astrogliosis but also new blood vessel growth. These responses are typical of brain injury and suggest that IL-1-secreting inflammatory cells may mediate wound healing in the CNS.