Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Forest refugia revisited: nSSRs and cpDNA sequences support historical isolation in a wide‐spread African tree with high colonization capacity, Milicia excelsa (Moraceae)

The impact of the Pleistocene climate oscillations on the structure of biodiversity in tropical regions remains poorly understood. In this study, the forest refuge theory is examined at the molecular level in Milicia excelsa, a dioecious tree with a continuous range throughout tropical Africa. Eight nuclear microsatellites (nSSRs) and two sequences and one microsatellite from chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) showed a deep divide between samples from Benin and those from Lower Guinea. This suggests that these populations were isolated in separate geographical regions, probably for several glacial cycles of the Pleistocene, and that the nuclear gene pools were not homogenized despite M. excelsa’s wind‐pollination syndrome. The divide could also be related to seed dispersal patterns, which should be largely determined by the migration behaviour of M. excelsa’s main seed disperser, the frugivorous bat Eidolon helvum. Within Lower Guinea, a north–south divide, observed with both marker types despite weak genetic structure (nSSRs: FST = 0.035, cpDNA: GST = 0.506), suggested the existence of separate Pleistocene refugia in Cameroon and the Gabon/Congo region. We inferred a pollen‐to‐seed dispersal distance ratio of c. 1.8, consistent with wide‐ranging gene dispersal by both wind and bats. Simulations in an Approximate Bayesian Computation framework suggested low nSSR and cpDNA mutation rates, but imprecise estimates of other demographic parameters, probably due to a substantial gene flow between the Lower Guinean gene pools. The decline of genetic diversity detected in some Gabonese populations could be a consequence of the relatively recent establishment of a closed canopy forest, which could negatively affect M. excelsa’s reproductive system.
A FACS valid 3D dynamic action unit database with applications to 3D dynamic morphable facial modeling

This paper presents the first dynamic 3D FACS data set for facial expression research, containing 10 subjects performing between 19 and 97 different AUs both individually and in combination. In total the corpus contains 519 AU sequences. The peak expression frame of each sequence has been manually FACS coded by certified FACS experts. This provides a ground truth for 3D FACS based AU recognition systems. In order to use this data, we describe the first framework for building dynamic 3D morphable models. This includes a novel Active Appearance Model (AAM) based 3D facial registration and mesh correspondence scheme. The approach overcomes limitations in existing methods that require facial markers or are prone to optical flow drift. We provide the first quantitative assessment of such 3D facial mesh registration techniques and show how our proposed method provides more reliable correspondence.
Slip Distribution of the 7 September 1999 Athens Earthquake Inferred from an Empirical Green's Function Study

The source process during the 7 September 1999 Athens (Greece) earth- quake is investigated using broadband seismograms recorded at regional distances. Source time functions are estimated through an empirical Green's function approach, and their shapes are inverted to reveal the spatial and temporal distribution of fault slip. The resulting slip-distribution pattern implies that about 50% of the total slip occurred at a depth greater than the hypocentral depth, indicating downward rupture propagation whereas 25% of the total slip was concentrated at a shallower patch. Forward calculations of the displacement field at the surface show that the shallower slip patch is possibly responsible for the asymmetry observed in the displacement field and it may have contributed significantly to the distribution of damage.
Carbon outcomes of major land‐cover transitions in SE Asia: great uncertainties and REDD+ policy implications

Policy makers across the tropics propose that carbon finance could provide incentives for forest frontier communities to transition away from swidden agriculture (slash‐and‐burn or shifting cultivation) to other systems that potentially reduce emissions and/or increase carbon sequestration. However, there is little certainty regarding the carbon outcomes of many key land‐use transitions at the center of current policy debates. Our meta‐analysis of over 250 studies reporting above‐ and below‐ground carbon estimates for different land‐use types indicates great uncertainty in the net total ecosystem carbon changes that can be expected from many transitions, including the replacement of various types of swidden agriculture with oil palm, rubber, or some other types of agroforestry systems. These transitions are underway throughout Southeast Asia, and are at the heart of REDD+ debates. Exceptions of unambiguous carbon outcomes are the abandonment of any type of agriculture to allow forest regeneration (a certain positive carbon outcome) and expansion of agriculture into mature forest (a certain negative carbon outcome). With respect to swiddening, our meta‐analysis supports a reassessment of policies that encourage land‐cover conversion away from these [especially long‐fallow] systems to other more cash‐crop‐oriented systems producing ambiguous carbon stock changes – including oil palm and rubber. In some instances, lengthening fallow periods of an existing swidden system may produce substantial carbon benefits, as would conversion from intensely cultivated lands to high‐biomass plantations and some other types of agroforestry. More field studies are needed to provide better data of above‐ and below‐ground carbon stocks before informed recommendations or policy decisions can be made regarding which land‐use regimes optimize or increase carbon sequestration. As some transitions may negatively impact other ecosystem services, food security, and local livelihoods, the entire carbon and noncarbon benefit stream should also be taken into account before prescribing transitions with ambiguous carbon benefits.
Continuous profiles and within-day variations of metabolites and hormones in cows fed diets varying in alimentary supplies before short-term feed deprivation.

We investigated continuous profiles and within-day variations of some metabolites and hormones in four nonpregnant, nonlactating cows fed hay-based diets in two equal meals. Diets supplied either too much or too little N (approximately 1.3 or .8 times the maintenance requirements) and NE1 (approximately 1.2 or .8 times). Continuous collection of ruminal liquor, blood, and urine samples was performed for 42 consecutive hours, the last 16 h covering a period without feed. For twice-daily feeding, nitrogenous and energetic underfeeding decreased average ruminal propionate and the insulin:growth hormone ratio. However, only the energetic underfeeding increased plasma 3-methylhistidine and urinary excretion of 3-methylhistidine, and decreased body weight and ruminal acetate, butyrate, and total VFA. Conversely, only the nitrogenous underfeeding decreased glycemia. Whatever the dietary level, the 42-h patterns of metabolites and hormones were mainly affected by the time from the last meal. An energy deficit progressively took place during feed deprivation and the nocturnal interprandial period but not during the diurnal interprandial period. During the feed deprivation and nocturnal periods, glycemia was maintained despite a shortage in ruminal propionate. We conclude that in twice-daily fed cattle 1) the dietary supply of energy is the main trigger for an energy deficit and the subsequent muscle protein mobilization; 2) the nocturnal interprandial period may be considered as short-term feed deprivation; 3) the diurnal patterns of metabolites and hormones are not affected by the nitrogenous and(or) energetic supplies of the diet.
L-SHADE with competing strategies applied to CEC2015 learning-based test suite

Successful adaptive variant of differential evolution, the Success-history based parameter adaptation of Differential Evolution using linear population size reduction algorithm (L-SHADE), was improved. Adaptive mechanisms used in the algorithm were joined with adaptive mechanism proposed for competitive differential evolution algorithm. Four strategies, including the original one and strategies with exponential crossover, compete in the new LSHADE44 algorithm. The proposed algorithm is applied to the benchmark set defined for Learning-based case of Special Session and Competitions on Real-Parameter Single Objective Optimization on CEC2016. According to preliminary experiments, the proposed algorithm with competing strategies outperformed the original L-SHADE in the most of the test problems.
Inconsistent echocardiographic grading of aortic stenosis: is the left ventricular outflow tract important?

Objective Discrepancy in the echocardiographic severity grading of aortic stenosis (AS) based on current guidelines has been reported. We sought to investigate the left ventricular outflow tract diameter (LVOTd) as a source of inconsistencies, and to explore hypothetical alternatives for discrepancy improvement. Design Retrospective echocardiographic cross-sectional analysis. Setting From 2000 to 2010, we identified all AS patients with left ventricular EF ≥50%, mean gradient (MG) ≥20 mm Hg, aortic valve area (AVA) ≤2.5 cm2, <moderate (2+) aortic regurgitation; and divided them into three groups: patients with ‘small ’ LVOTd 1.7–1.9 cm, ‘average’ LVOTd 2.0–2.2 cm and ‘large’ LVOTd ≥2.3 cm. In each group, inconsistency of data for classification of severity of AS was assessed and alternative thresholds explored. Results Of 9488 total patients, 58% were men, LVOTd 2.18±0.19 cm, peak velocity (Vmax) 3.9±0.8 m/s, MG 37±16 mm Hg, and AVA 1.09±0.34 cm2. Small LVOTd patients were older women (91%) with worse systemic haemodynamics and more prevalent paradoxical low-flow, compared with average and large LVOTd patients (all parameters p <0.001). Despite clinically similar MG and Vmax across all groups, mean AVA ranged from 0.88 to 1.25 cm2 (p <0.001), classifying small LVOTd patients as severe, average LVOTd as moderate-severe and large LVOTd as moderate. For patients with large, average and small LVOTd, an AVA of 1 cm2 corresponded to MG of 42, 35 and 29 mm Hg, Vmax of 4.1, 3.8 and 3.5 m/s and dimensionless index (DI) of 0.22, 0.29 and 0.36, respectively. An AVA cut-off of 0.8 cm2 reduced severe AS inconsistency from 48% to 26% for small LVOTd patients. An AVA cut-off of 0.9 cm2 reduced severe AS inconsistency from 37% to 26% for average LVOTd patients. The current AVA cut-off of 1 cm2 was consistent for large LVOTd patients. Conclusions The LVOTd is associated with significant inconsistencies in AS assessment by current guidelines. For patients with normal EF and normal flow, current guideline definition of severe AS is most consistent for patients with large LVOTd, but not so for patients with average or small LVOTd in whom lower AVA cut-offs should be further studied. The DI cut-off for severe AS is highly variable depending on the LVOTd and guideline revision of this threshold should be considered.
Eidetic Systems

The vast majority of state produced by a typical computer is generated, consumed, then lost forever. We argue that a computer system should instead provide the ability to recall any past state that existed on the computer, and further, that it should be able to provide the lineage of any byte in a current or past state. We call a system with this ability an eidetic computer system. To preserve all prior state efficiently, we observe and leverage the synergy between deterministic replay and information flow. By dividing the system into groups of replaying processes and tracking dependencies among groups, we enable the analysis of information flow among groups, make it possible for one group to regenerate the data needed by another, and permit the replay of subsets of processes rather than of the entire system. We use model-based compression and deduplicated file recording to reduce the space overhead of deterministic replay. We also develop a variety of linkage functions to analyze the lineage of state, and we apply these functions via retrospective binary analysis. In this paper we present Arnold, the first practical eidetic computing platform. Preliminary data from several weeks of continuous use on our workstations shows that Arnold's storage requirements for 4 or more years of usage can be satisfied by adding a 4 TB hard drive to the system. Further, the performance overhead on almost all workloads we measured was under 8%. We show that Arnold can reconstruct prior state and answer lineage queries, including backward queries (on what did this item depend? ) and forward queries (what other state did this item affect? ).
Employee Motivation: The Key to Effective Organizational Management in Nigeria.

This article explores the indispensability of employee motivation in effective organizational management. In the style of a qualitative research, the paper x-rays, exhaustively, the merits, efficacy and relevance of motivation in the success of organizational management. It also identifies and explains the factors that affect employee motivation, the benefits of employee motivation in Nigerian organizations, some theories of motivation and the significantlink between effective organizational management and employee motivation in Nigerian organizations, both the public and the private. For the fact that employee motivation is an intricate and sophisticated subject, once applied in the right way an organization is bound to achieve a long-lasting success. However, if ignored an organization will fizzle out in the game. For Nigerian managers to have an understanding of employee motivation, they must know the concept of motivation, organizational management, differences in individual needs and the variety of motivational factors and the changes in priorities of these factors overtime. The necessity of this work is situated in it provision of solutions to Nigerian employees' redundant attitude to work and its consequences.
On the correlation of Internet flow characteristics

Previous studies of Internet traffic have shown that a very small percentage of flows consume most of the network bandwidth. It is important to understand the characteristics of such flows for traffic monitoring and modeling purposes. Several prior researchers have characterized such flows using different classification schemes: by size as elephant and mice; by duration as tortoise and dragonfly; and by burstiness as alpha and beta traffic. However, it is not clear how these different definitions of flows are related to each other. In our work, we study these “heavy-hitter” flows in four orthogonal dimensions, namely size, duration, rate and burstiness, and examine how they are correlated. This paper makes three contributions: First, we systematically characterize prior definitions for the properties of such heavy-hitter traffic. Second, we show that there are strong correlations between some combinations of size, rate and burstiness. Finally, we show that these correlations can be explained by transport and application-level protocol mechanisms.
Mixtape

In this work, we explore the increasing demand for novel user interfaces to navigate large media collections. We implement a geometric data structure to store and retrieve item-to-item similarity information and propose a novel navigation framework that uses vector operations and real-time user feedback to direct the outcome. The framework is scalable to large media collections and is suitable for computationally constrained devices. In particular, we implement this framework in the domain of music. To evaluate the effectiveness of the navigation process, we propose an automatic evaluation framework, based on synthetic user profiles, which allows us to quickly simulate and compare navigation paths using different algorithms and datasets. Moreover, we perform a real user study. To do that, we developed and launched Mixtape, a simple web application that allows users to create playlists by providing real-time feedback through liking and skipping patterns.
Enhanced production of matrix metalloproteinases and activation of matrix metalloproteinase 2 (gelatinase A) in human gastric carcinomas

We examined the production and tissue localization of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases (TIMPs) in gastric carcinoma tissues. MMP‐I (tissue collagenase), MMP‐9 (gelatinase B) and TIMP‐2 were immunolocalized in carcinoma cells and MMP‐2 (gelatinase A) on tumor cell membranes, whereas no or little immunostaining for MMP‐3 (stromelysin‐1) and TIMP‐I was seen in carcinoma cells. Stromal cells in carcinoma tissue were also positively stained for these MMPs and TIMPs. MMP‐2 immunostaining was observed exclusively on advanced gastric carcinoma cells and correlated with vascular invasion by tumor cells. Sandwich enzyme immunoassays revealed enhanced production of MMP‐1, MMP‐2, MMP‐3, MMP‐9 and TIMP‐I by carcinoma tissues. Gelatinolytic activities were significantly higher in carcinoma samples than in normal controls. Using gelatin zymography, active forms of MMP‐2 and MMP‐9 were more frequently detected in carcinoma tissue, and the activation rate of the zymogen of MMP‐2 (proMMP‐2), but not that of proMMP‐9, correlated well with degree of local invasion and lymphatic permeation. Our data indicate an enhanced production of 4 MMPs in gastric carcinoma tissue and suggest that activation of pro‐MMP‐2 may be a key step for spreading of gastric carcinoma cells. © 1996 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE RISK FACTORS AMONG RURAL KAZAKH POPULATION

ABSTRACT Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) have remained a leading cause of mortality in Kazakhstan. The objectives of the present study were to estimate the prevalence of CVD risk factors (RFs) among the Kazakh population, and their ability to identify those CVD RFs. We interviewed 611 subjects aged 25–65 years using a structured self-administered questionnaire from April to July, 2008. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated to determine associations between CVD RFs and its correlations, such as socioeconomic status and level of knowledge of CVD RFs through a logistic regression model. Mean age of the respondents was 43.2 years, and 49.8% were male. Tobacco smoking, overweight (body mass index ≥ 25.0), hypertension (systolic blood pressure ≥ 140 mm Hg and diastolic blood pressure ≥ 90 mm Hg), and alcohol drinking were identified as important CVD RFs. Risk of overweight was greatest among the population aged 45–54 years, with an OR of 5.3 (95% CI=3.1–9.2). The overweight population was significantly associated with higher income (OR=1.6, 95% CI=1.1–2.4) and knowledge of RF (OR=1.7, 95% CI=1.2–2.4), with p<0.05. Only 25.0% of respondents had good knowledge about CVD RFs. Alcohol drinking was inversely related to the level of knowledge about CVD RFs (OR=0.7, 95% CI=0.5–0.9). We concluded that CVD RFs were very high among the Kazakh population, although their level of knowledge to identify those RFs was very low. Increasing knowledge about CVD RFs through awareness campaign activities can reduce CVD-related morbidity and mortality and ensure a better quality of life for the Kazakh population.
Finding partial orders from unordered 0-1 data

In applications such as paleontology and medical genetics the 0-1 data has an underlying unknown order (the ages of the fossil sites, the locations of markers in the genome). The order might be total or partial: for example, two sites in different parts of the globe might be ecologically incomparable, or the ordering of certain markers might be different in different subgroups of the data. We consider the following problem. Given a table over a set of 0-1 variables, find a partial order for the rows minimizing a score function and being as specific as possible. The score function can be, e.g., the number of changes from 1 to 0 in a column (for paleontology) or the likelihood of the marker sequence (for genomic data). Our solution for this task first constructs small totally ordered fragments of the partial order, then finds good orientations for the fragments, and finally uses a simple and efficient heuristic method for finding a partial order that corresponds well with the collection of fragments. We describe the method, discuss its properties, and give empirical results on paleontological data demonstrating the usefulness of the method. In the application the use of the method highlighted some previously unknown properties of the data and pointed out probable errors in the data.
Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Antibodies in Residents of New South Wales, Australia, after the First Pandemic Wave in the 2009 Southern Hemisphere Winter

Background The first wave of pandemic influenza A(H1N1)2009 (pH1N1) reached New South Wales (NSW), Australia in May 2009, and led to high rates of influenza-related hospital admission of infants and young to middle-aged adults, but no increase in influenza-related or all-cause mortality. Methodology/Principal Findings To assess the population rate of pH1N1 infection in NSW residents, pH1N1-specific haemagglutination inhibition (HI) antibody prevalence was measured in specimens collected opportunistically before (2007–2008; 474 specimens) and after (August–September 2009; 1247 specimens) the 2009 winter, and before the introduction of the pH1N1 monovalent vaccine. Age- and geographically-weighted population changes in seroprevalence were calculated. HI antibodies against four recent seasonal influenza A viruses were measured to assess cross-reactions. Pre- and post-pandemic pH1N1 seroprevalences were 12.8%, and 28.4%, respectively, with an estimated overall infection rate of 15.6%. pH1N1 antibody prevalence increased significantly - 20.6% overall - in people born since 1944 (26.9% in those born between 1975 and 1997) but not in those born in or before 1944. People born before 1925 had a significantly higher pH1N1 seroprevalence than any other age-group, and against any seasonal influenza A virus. Sydney residents had a significantly greater change in prevalence of antibodies against pH1N1 than other NSW residents (19.3% vs 9.6%). Conclusions/Significance Based on increases in the pH1N1 antibody prevalence before and after the first pandemic wave, 16% of NSW residents were infected by pH1N1 in 2009; the highest infection rates (27%) were among adolescents and young adults. Past exposure to the antigenically similar influenza A/H1N1(1918) is the likely basis for a very high prevalence (49%) of prepandemic cross-reacting pH1N1 antibody and sparing from pH1N1 infection among people over 85 years. Unless pre-season vaccine uptake is high, there are likely to be at least moderate rates including some life-threatening cases of pH1N1 infection among young people during subsequent winters.