Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Comparative Metagenome Survey of the Fecal Microbiota of a Breast- and a Plant-Fed Asian Elephant Reveals an Unexpectedly High Diversity of Glycoside Hydrolase Family Enzymes

A phylogenetic and metagenomic study of elephant feces samples (derived from a three-weeks-old and a six-years-old Asian elephant) was conducted in order to describe the microbiota inhabiting this large land-living animal. The microbial diversity was examined via 16S rRNA gene analysis. We generated more than 44,000 GS-FLX+454 reads for each animal. For the baby elephant, 380 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were identified at 97% sequence identity level; in the six-years-old animal, close to 3,000 OTUs were identified, suggesting high microbial diversity in the older animal. In both animals most OTUs belonged to Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes. Additionally, for the baby elephant a high number of Proteobacteria was detected. A metagenomic sequencing approach using Illumina technology resulted in the generation of 1.1 Gbp assembled DNA in contigs with a maximum size of 0.6 Mbp. A KEGG pathway analysis suggested high metabolic diversity regarding the use of polymers and aromatic and non-aromatic compounds. In line with the high phylogenetic diversity, a surprising and not previously described biodiversity of glycoside hydrolase (GH) genes was found. Enzymes of 84 GH families were detected. Polysaccharide utilization loci (PULs), which are found in Bacteroidetes, were highly abundant in the dataset; some of these comprised cellulase genes. Furthermore the highest coverage for GH5 and GH9 family enzymes was detected for Bacteroidetes, suggesting that bacteria of this phylum are mainly responsible for the degradation of cellulose in the Asian elephant. Altogether, this study delivers insight into the biomass conversion by one of the largest plant-fed and land-living animals.
Simulated Extragalactic Observations with a Cryogenic Imaging Spectrophotometer

In this paper we explore the application of cryogenic imaging spectrophotometers. Prototypes of this new class of detector, such as superconducting tunnel junctions (STJs) and transition edge sensors (TESs), currently deliver low-resolution imaging spectrophotometry with high quantum efficiency (70%–100%) and no read noise over a wide bandpass in the visible to near-infrared. In order to demonstrate their utility and the differences in observing strategy needed to maximize their scientific return, we present simulated observations of a deep extragalactic field. Using a simple analytic technique, we can estimate both the galaxy redshift and spectral type more accurately than is possible with current broadband techniques. From our simulated observations and a subsequent discussion of the expected migration path for this new technology, we illustrate the power and promise of these devices.
Incidence, characteristics and outcomes of patients with severe community acquired-MRSA pneumonia

We evaluated the published data for the incidence, characteristics and outcomes of patients with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) due to methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The estimated incidence of MRSA CAP is 0.51–0.64 cases per 100,000. We identified 74 articles reporting data on 114 patients. Influenza like symptoms was reported in 41% of patients. Pneumonia improved in 59 (54.1%) out of 109 patients; 49 (44.5%) out of 110 patients died. The duration of hospitalisation was 38.1±24.9 and 8.3±11.7 days, respectively. The duration of intensive care unit (ICU) stay was 18.9±13.6 and 6.8±9.7 days, respectively. 76 strains carried the Panton–Valentine leukocidin gene. The univariate analysis showed that multi-organ failure (p<0.001), leukopenia (p<0.001), admission to ICU (p<0.001), mechanical ventilation (p<0.001), use of aminoglycosides after culture results (p<0.001), shock (p = 0.001), acute respiratory distress syndrome (p = 0.001), influenza like symptoms (p = 0.008), disseminated intravascular coagulation (p = 0.042) and rash (p = 0.04) were the factors associated with death.
MICdb: database of prokaryotic microsatellites

The MICdb (Microsatellites Database) (http://www.cdfd.org.in/micas) is a comprehensive relational database of non-redundant microsatellites extracted from fully sequenced prokaryotic genomes. The current version (1.0) of the database has been compiled from 83 genomes belonging to different phylogenetic groups. This database has been linked to MICAS, the web-based Microstatellite Analysis Server. MICAS provides a user-friendly front-end to systematically extract data on microsatellite tracts from genomes. The database contains the following information pertaining to the microsatellites: the regions (coding/non-coding, if coding, their GenBank annotations) containing microsatellite tracts; the frequencies of their occurrences, the size and the number of repeating motifs; and the sequences of the tracts. MICAS also provides an interface to Autoprimer, a primer design program to automatically design primers for selected microsatellite loci.
Word Embedding Calculus in Meaningful Ultradense Subspaces

We decompose a standard embedding space into interpretable orthogonal sub-spaces and a “remainder” subspace. We consider four interpretable subspaces in this paper: polarity, concreteness, frequency and part-of-speech (POS) sub-spaces. We introduce a new calculus for subspaces that supports operations like “ − 1 × hate = love ” and “give me a neutral word for greasy ” (i.e., oleaginous ). This calculus extends analogy computations like “ king − man + woman = queen ”. For the tasks of Antonym Classiﬁcation and POS Tagging our method outperforms the state of the art. We create test sets for Morphological Analogies and for the new task of Polarity Spectrum Creation.
Frequency Uncertainty for Optically Referenced Femtosecond Laser Frequency Combs

We present measurements and analysis of the currently known relative frequency uncertainty of femtosecond laser frequency combs (FLFCs) based on Kerr-lens mode-locked Ti:sapphire lasers. Broadband frequency combs generated directly from the laser oscillator, as well as octave-spanning combs generated with nonlinear optical fiber are compared. The relative frequency uncertainty introduced by an optically referenced FLFC is measured for both its optical and microwave outputs. We find that the relative frequency uncertainty of the optical and microwave outputs of the FLFC can be as low as 8times10-20 and 1.7times10-18, with a confidence level of 95%, respectively. Photo-detection of the optical pulse train introduces a small amount of excess noise, which degrades the stability and subsequent relative frequency uncertainty limit of the microwave output to 2.6times10-17
Low-Frequency Variability in the Midlatitude Baroclinic Atmosphere Induced by an Oceanic Thermal Front

This study examines the flow induced by an east–west-oriented oceanic thermal front in a highly idealized baroclinic model. Previous work showed that thermal fronts could produce energetic midlatitude jets in an equivalent-barotropic atmosphere and that barotropic instabilities of this jet had dominant periods of 25–30 and 65–75 days. The present study extends this work to a two-mode baroclinic free atmosphere. The baroclinic jet produced in this case is subject to both barotropic and baroclinic instabilities. A barotropic symmetric instability propagates westward with periods of roughly 30 days and is similar to those found in the equivalent-barotropic model. A baroclinic instability results in standing-dipole anomalies and oscillates with a period of 6–8 months. A mixed barotropic–baroclinic instability results in anomalies that propagate northward, perpendicular to the jet, with a period of 2–3 months. The later anomalies are reminiscent of the 70-day oscillation found over the North Atlantic in observed fields. The atmospheric flow has two distinct states: the flow in the high-energy state exhibits two large gyres and a strong eastward jet; its antisymmetric component is dominant. The low-energy flow is characterized by small gyres and a weak jet. The model’s dynamics depends on the layer-depth ratio. When the model is nearly equivalent-barotropic, symmetric oscillatory modes dominate. As the two layers become nearly equal, antisymmetric oscillatory modes become significant and the mean energy of the flow increases. When the oceanic thermal front’s strength T * is weak (T * 1.5°C), the flow is steady. For intermediate values of the strength (1.5°C T * 3°C), several oscillatory instabilities set in. As the frontal strength increases further (T * 3°C), the flow becomes more turbulent. These results all depend on the atmospheric model’s horizontal resolution being sufficiently high.
Culture and the Physical Environment

Westerners' perceptions tend to focus on salient foreground objects, whereas Asians are more inclined to focus on contexts. We hypothesized that such culturally specific patterns of attention may be afforded by the perceptual environment of each culture. In order to test this hypothesis, we randomly sampled pictures of scenes from small, medium, and large cities in Japan and the United States. Using both subjective and objective measures, Study 1 demonstrated that Japanese scenes were more ambiguous and contained more elements than American scenes. Japanese scenes thus may encourage perception of the context more than American scenes. In Study 2, pictures of locations in cities were presented as primes, and participants' subsequent patterns of attention were measured. Both Japanese and American participants primed with Japanese scenes attended more to contextual information than did those primed with American scenes. These results provide evidence that culturally characteristic environments may afford distinctive patterns of perception.
Protective effects of Artemisia arborescens essential oil on oestroprogestative treatment induced hepatotoxicity

BACKGROUND Currently, natural products have been shown to exhibit interesting biological and pharmacological activities and are used as chemotherapeutic agents. The purpose of this study, conducted on Wistar rats, was to evaluate the beneficial effects of Artemisia arborescens oil on oestroprogestative treatment induced damage on liver. MATERIALS/METHODS A total of 36 Wistar rats were divided into 4 groups; a control group (n = 9), a group of rats who received oestroprogestative treatment by intraperitoneal injection (n = 9), a group pre-treated with Artemisia arborescens then injected with oestroprogestative treatment (n = 9), and a group pre-treated with Artemisia arborescens (n = 9). To minimize the handling stress, animals from each group were sacrificed rapidly by decapitation. Blood serum was obtained by centrifugation and the livers were removed, cleaned of fat, and stored at -80℃ until use. RESULTS In the current study, oestroprogestative poisoning resulted in oxidative stress, which was demonstrated by 1) a significant increase of lipid peroxidation level in hepatic tissue 2) increased levels of serum transaminases (aspartate amino transferase and serum alanine amino transferase), alkaline phosphatase, glycemia and triglycerides and a decrease in the level of cholesterol 3) alteration of hepatic architecture. Pre-administration of Artemisia arborescens oil was found to alleviate oestroprogestative treatment induced damage by lowering lipid peroxidation level and by increasing activity of catalase, superoxide-dismutase, and glutathione-peroxidase in liver and by reducing disruption of biochemical parameters. CONCLUSION Therefore, the results obtained in this study confirmed that Artemisia essential oil protects against oestroprogestative administration induced hepatotoxicity by restoration of liver activities.
Calpain-6, a Target Molecule of Glucocorticoids, Regulates Osteoclastic Bone Resorption via Cytoskeletal Organization and Microtubule Acetylation

Glucocorticoids (GCs) inhibit the resorptive capacity of the osteoclast by disrupting its cytoskeleton. We find that calpain‐6 (Capn6), a unique, nonproteolytic member of its family, is suppressed 12‐fold by dexamethasone (DEX) in the bone‐degrading cell. While Capn6 abundance parallels commitment of naive bone marrow macrophages (BMMs) to the osteoclast phenotype, its excess or deletion does not affect the cell's differentiation. On the other hand, Capn6 localizes to the sealing zone, and its overexpression promotes osteoclast spreading and large actin ring formation, eventuating in stimulated bone degradation. Conversely, Capn6 knockdown impairs cytoskeletal organization and the cell's resorptive capacity. Capn6 complexes with tubulin, and its absence inhibits microtubule acetylation and stability in the osteoclast. Knockdown of Capn6 also reduces β3‐integrin subunit protein, another essential regulator of osteoclast cytoskeletal function. Reflecting Capn6 as a target molecule of GCs, microtubule stability and acetylation, as well as the expression of β3‐integrin protein, are similarly suppressed in DEX‐treated osteoclasts. Moreover, overexpression of Capn6 rescues GC‐mediated disruption of osteoclast cytoskeleton. Thus Capn6 promotes cytoskeletal organization and microtubule stability in osteoclasts, and its inhibition may mediate the resorption‐arresting properties of GCs. © 2011 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.
Hardness and Algorithms for Local Register Allocation

We study the problem of local register allocation (LRA): assign pseudo-registers to actual registers in a basic block so as to minimize the spill cost. Our version of LRA does not allow instruction scheduling, but only the insertion of spill code. We assume that the spill cost depends only on the number and type of load and store operations, but not on their position. Although LRA has been intensively studied, very little was known about it. LRA could be solved exactly by an algorithm that took exponential time and space. On the other hand, LRA was not known to be NP-hard. LRA could be solved by heuristics, but the relative performance of those heuristics was unclear. In this paper, (cid:15) We prove
RFM Variables Revisited Using Quantile Regression

We revisit well-known variables for database marketing/CRM and relationship marketing using a new methodology: Binary Bayesian Quantile regression. This method allows for a more thorough investigation of the relationship between the response variable and the covariates. The main conclusion is that taking intentions as a proxy for real churn behavior yields biased results because the effects are differentially inflated across quantiles. Moreover, effects are shown to differ relative to the median effect resulting in even more inaccurate information for marketing decision making. This study clearly demonstrates that marketing practitioners can benefit from using quantile regression and shows the importance of obtaining and analyzing real observed behavior.
Euscorpius Occasional Publications in Scorpiology

Euscorpius is the first research publication completely devoted to scorpions (Arachnida: Scorpiones). Euscorpius takes advantage of the rapidly evolving medium of quick online publication, at the same time maintaining high research standards for the burgeoning field of scorpion science (scorpiology). Euscorpius is an expedient and viable medium for the publication of serious papers in scorpiology, including (but not limited to): systematics, evolution, ecology, biogeography, and general biology of scorpions. Review papers, descriptions of new taxa, faunistic surveys, lists of museum collections, and book reviews are welcome. Derivatio Nominis The name Euscorpius Thorell, 1876 refers to the most common genus of scorpions in the Mediterranean region and southern Europe (family Euscorpiidae). does not accept online texts as published work (Article 9.8); however, it accepts CD-ROM publications (Article 8). Euscorpius is produced in two identical versions: online (ISSN 1536-9307) and CD-ROM (ISSN 1536-9293). Only copies distributed on a CD-ROM from Euscorpius are considered published work in compliance with the ICZN, i.e. for the purposes of new names and new nomenclatural acts. All Euscorpius publications are distributed on a CD-ROM medium to the following museums/libraries: Summary The ecological function of scorpion fluorescence under ultraviolet light is unknown. In fact, no response of any organism to scorpion fluorescence has been documented. To determine whether or not some potential prey, specifically aerial insects, respond to scorpion fluorescence, I compared the number of aerial insects captured on sticky traps containing fluorescent scorpions to the number captured on traps containing non-fluorescent scorpions during both full and new moons. The results show that aerial insects avoid fluorescing scorpions during the full moon, when fluorescence is at its peak, but not during the new moon when it is weakest. Avoidance of fluorescing scorpions by potential prey is likely to reduce the scorpions' prey capture rate. This apparent cost of fluorescence highlights the likelihood that fluorescence has a positive function which maintains the trait in spite of this cost.
The Relationship between Self-compassion and Other-focused Concern among College Undergraduates, Community Adults, and Practicing Meditators

The present study examined the link between self-compassion and concern for the well-being of others. Other-focused concern variables included compassion for humanity, empathetic concern, perspective taking, personal distress, altruism and forgiveness. Participants included 384 college undergraduates, 400 community adults, and 172 practicing meditators. Among all participant groups, higher levels of self-compassion were significantly linked to more perspective taking, less personal distress, and greater forgiveness. Self-compassion was linked to compassion for humanity, empathetic concern, and altruism among community adults and meditators but not college undergraduates. The strength of the association between self-compassion and other-focused concern also varied according to participant group and gender. The strongest links tended to be found among meditators, while women tended to show weaker associations than men.
Network Impact of P2P-TV Zapping

I Strong increase of audio/video services in the Internet . wide distribution by expensive CDN infrastructure . local distribution by residential operators I Alternative with P2P-TV applications . different from usual file sharing P2P : hard time constraints . P2P-TV overlay depend on content and user behavior I IPTV user behaviors are zapping or steady [Cha & all, IMC’08] . most previous P2P-TV analysis works focus on steady state . our work focuses on transient state and zapping behavior
Can retention forestry help conserve biodiversity? A meta-analysis

Industrial forestry typically leads to a simplified forest structure and altered species composition. Retention of trees at harvest was introduced about 25 years ago to mitigate negative impacts on biodiversity, mainly from clearcutting, and is now widely practiced in boreal and temperate regions. Despite numerous studies on response of flora and fauna to retention, no comprehensive review has summarized its effects on biodiversity in comparison to clearcuts as well as un-harvested forests. Using a systematic review protocol, we completed a meta-analysis of 78 studies including 944 comparisons of biodiversity between retention cuts and either clearcuts or un-harvested forests, with the main objective of assessing whether retention forestry helps, at least in the short term, to moderate the negative effects of clearcutting on flora and fauna. Retention cuts supported higher richness and a greater abundance of forest species than clearcuts as well as higher richness and abundance of open-habitat species than un-harvested forests. For all species taken together (i.e. forest species, open-habitat species, generalist species and unclassified species), richness was higher in retention cuts than in clearcuts. Retention cuts had negative impacts on some species compared to un-harvested forest, indicating that certain forest-interior species may not survive in retention cuts. Similarly, retention cuts were less suitable for some open-habitat species compared with clearcuts. Positive effects of retention cuts on richness of forest species increased with proportion of retained trees and time since harvest, but there were not enough data to analyse possible threshold effects, that is, levels at which effects on biodiversity diminish. Spatial arrangement of the trees (aggregated vs. dispersed) had no effect on either forest species or open-habitat species, although limited data may have hindered our capacity to identify responses. Results for different comparisons were largely consistent among taxonomic groups for forest and open-habitat species, respectively. Synthesis and applications. Our meta-analysis provides support for wider use of retention forestry since it moderates negative harvesting impacts on biodiversity. Hence, it is a promising approach for integrating biodiversity conservation and production forestry, although identifying optimal solutions between these two goals may need further attention. Nevertheless, retention forestry will not substitute for conservation actions targeting certain highly specialized species associated with forest-interior or open-habitat conditions. Our meta-analysis provides support for wider use of retention forestry since it moderates negative harvesting impacts on biodiversity. Hence, it is a promising approach for integrating biodiversity conservation and production forestry, although identifying optimal solutions between these two goals may need further attention. Nevertheless, retention forestry will not substitute for conservation actions targeting certain highly specialized species associated with forest-interior or open-habitat conditions.
Targeted Subsidies and Private Market Participation: An Assessment of Fertilizer Demand in Nigeria:

Though input vouchers are being publicized as a mechanism to simultaneously target subsidies and develop demand in private markets, limited empirical evidence of their effect on private input demand exists. Few empirical studies, if any, exist on the effect of targeted subsidies on private input demand in Nigeria or West Africa . Consequently this study begins to fill this gap by estimating the effect of a targeted input subsidy on farmer participation in the private fertilizer market in Nigeria. Using a double hurdle model and a control function approach, this study explores the effect of increasing access to subsidized fertilizer on farmer participation in the private fertilizer market in Kano, Nigeria. The study finds evidence that farmers who received subsidized fertilizer in 2009 tended to have less assets than their counterparts who did not. Within this context, although receiving subsidized fertilizer did not appear to increase the probability of participating in the private fertilizer market, it did increase the quantity of fertilizer purchased from the private market once the decision to participate had been made. It appears that one benefit of the voucher program was that it developed links between rural farmers and input suppliers. Furthermore, where private fertilizer markets are weak, results indicate that there could be significant gains from the temporary use of voucher programs to create links between input suppliers and farmers.
The Effectiveness Mandala Therapy On Coping Stress

Mandala as therapeutic intervention commonly used by ordinary people and therapists to reduce psychological stress. However, in Indonesia particularly in Medan, there is no scientificalevidence-based on empirical research of itis in treatment related to coping stress. This wasan explanatory study that examined the effectiveness of Mandala coloring therapy in thereduction of stress level. The stress level was measured by the Perceived Stress Scale at baseline and after coloring. A sample of 32 adult participants assigned to coloring a Mandala pattern in three times experimental condition. Results findings suggest that structured coloring of Mandala pattern induce a relaxed state that decreased stress level. Keyword : stress, coping stress, coloring therapy