Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Rare and CP-Violating K and B Decays in the Littlest Higgs Model with T-Parity

We calculate the most interesting rare and CP-violating K and B decays in the Littlest Higgs model with T-parity. We give a collection of Feynman rules including v 2 =f 2 contributions that are presented here for the first time and could turn out to be useful also for applications outside flavour physics. We adopt a modelindependent parameterization of rare decays in terms of the gauge independent functions Xi; Yi; Zi (i = K;d;s), which is in particular useful for the study of the breaking of the universality between K, Bd and Bs systems through non-MFV interactions. Performing the calculation in the unitary and ’t Hooft-Feynman gauge, we find that the final result contains a divergence which signals some sensitivity to the ultraviolet completion of the theory. Including an estimate of this contribution, we calculate the branching ratios for the decays K + ! � + �¯ �, KL ! � 0 �¯, Bs;d ! � + � − , B ! Xs;d�¯ �, KL ! � 0 ` + ` − and B ! Xs;d` + ` − , paying particular
Diminished 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 activity is associated with decreased weight and weight gain across the first year of life.

CONTEXT Low birth weight is associated with adverse metabolic outcome in adulthood. Exposure to glucocorticoid (GC) excess in utero is associated with decreased birth weight, but the prospective longitudinal relationship between GC metabolism and growth has not been examined. OBJECTIVE We have hypothesized that changes in GC metabolism leading to increased availability may impair growth. DESIGN This was a prospective, longitudinal study with clinical measurements and 24-hour urinary steroid metabolite analysis at 1, 4, 12, 26, and 52 weeks after delivery in mothers and their babies. SETTING The study was conducted with observations and samples collected in the volunteers' own homes. PARTICIPANTS Healthy mothers and newborn babies/infants participated in the study. INTERVENTIONS There were no interventions. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Urinary steroid metabolite excretion quantified by gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy across the first year of life in relation to change in weight was measured. RESULTS The total production of the GC metabolites quantified increased across the first year of life. Markers of 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 activity increased from the age of 3 months as did those of 5α-reductase activity. After correcting for confounding variables, low markers of 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 activity was associated with reduced absolute weight and decreased weight gain over the first year of life. In the mothers, 5α-reductase activity was low at birth and progressively increased to normal over the first 6 months postpartum. CONCLUSIONS Increased GC exposure as a consequence of reduced 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 activity is likely to be a critical determinant of growth in early life. This not only highlights the central role of GCs and their metabolism, but also emphasizes the need for detailed longitudinal analyses.
Markov Chain Monte Carlo Methods and the Label Switching Problem in Bayesian Mixture Modeling

In the past ten years there has been a dramatic increase of in terest in the Bayesian analysis of finite mixture models. This is primarily because of the emergence of Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods. While MCMC provides a convenient way to draw inference from compli cated statistical models, there are many, perhaps underappreciated, problems associated with the MCMC analysis of mixtures. The problems are mainly caused by the nonidentifiability of the components under symmetric priors, which leads to so-called label switching in the MCMC output. This means that ergodic averages of component specific quantities will be identical and thus useless for inference. We review the solutions to the label switching problem, such as artificial identifiability constraints, relabelling algorithms and label invariant loss functions. We also review various MCMC sampling schemes that have been suggested for mixture models and discuss posterior sensitivity to prior specification.
Neutral motions in the polar thermosphere for northward interplanetary magnetic field

On 24th November, 1982, The North-South (Bz) component of the Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF) became positive for a period of about 11 hours reaching a relatively large and steady value of---25 nT. During this rare occurrence, the Dynamics Explorer-2 (DE-2) spacecraft was in a configura- tion that enabled the dynamics of both ionic and neutral species of the high-latitude F-region to be measured simultaneously along the track of the polar-orbiting satellite. Results from two Northern (winter) polar passes of DE-2, extracted from a larger data set, are shown to illustrate the response of the neutral F-region to ion drag forcing arising from a configuration of ion convection characteristic of strongly northward IMF. The measured neutral winds differ appreciably from those more commonly observed for periods of southward IMFo The multi- cellular ion drift pattern associated with positive Bz is observed to drive a similar but less structured and weaker neutral wind configuration in the winter polar cap. Major features of the ion drift pattern are mimicked by the neutral circulation but smaller-scale and more irregular structures of ion flow are not. This is ascribed to the relatively long time constant (few hours) for momentum exchange between the ion and neutral gases. The results demonstrate that sunward flow of neutral gas can be established and maintained by ion drag in the central polar cap for positive Bz. of the geometrical dependence of the high-latitude ion convec- tion pattern on the orientation of the Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF) (Heppner, 1972; Crooker, 1979; Heelis, 1984; Reiff and Burch, 1984). It has been shown that the sign of the IMF By (East-West) component is related to asymmetries in the twin-cell convection system observed for a negative Bz (North- South) component (Heppner, 1972; Heelis, 1984). For periods of positive Bz, the ion convection pattern becomes more com- plex as the auroral oval contracts and more highly structured ion flow is observed, particularly on the nightside of the solar terminator. General features associated with positive Bz include a multi-cellular convection pattern at high latitudes (Zanetti et al., 1984), pronounced sunward ion flow in the central polar
Discovery of four gravitational lensing systems by clusters in the SDSS DR6

We report the discovery of 4 new strong lensing systems by visual inspection of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey images of galaxy clusters in Data Release 6 (SDSS DR6). Two of them show Einstein rings, and the others show tangential giant arcs. These arcs or rings have large angle separations (>8'') from the bright central galaxies and show blue color compared to the red cluster galaxies. In addition, we also found 4 probable and 4 possible lenses by galaxy clusters.
Effects of simple long-term respiratory care strategies in older men with COPD

ABSTRACT Objective: To evaluate a 24-month supervised, community-based maintenance exercise program after 3 months of pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) in comparison with a 27-month physical activity counseling program, in terms of the effects on maximal muscle strength, muscle power output, and exercise capacity, in individuals with COPD. Methods: Sixty-three men with moderate-to-severe COPD were recruited from two previous studies. Of those 63 participants, 31 were offered 3 months of PR followed by a 24-month supervised maintenance exercise program (24MME group) and 32 were offered a 27-month physical activity counseling program (27MPAC group). Measurements at 3 months and at the end of the study period included maximal strength of the upper and lower limbs, power output of the lower limbs, six-minute walk distance (6MWD), and quality of life. Results: At 27 months, the improvements in maximal strength of the upper and lower limbs were greater in the 24MME group than in the 27MPAC group (37.6 ± 28.3% and 28.4 ± 13.3%, respectively, vs. 8.8 ± 16% and 13.6 ± 16.4%, respectively; p < 0.05), as was the improvement in power output of the lower limbs (24.6 ± 18.4% vs. −2.3 ± 28.5%; p < 0.01). The increase in the 6MWD after 3 months was also greater in the 24MME group than in the 27MPAC group (33.2 ± 36.6 m vs. 2.9 ± 34.7 m; p < 0.05), although there were no differences between the two groups in terms of the Δ6MWD at 27 months (vs. baseline). Conclusions: A supervised, community-based maintenance program is a successful long-term strategy to preserve the benefits of PR on peripheral muscle function and exercise capacity in individuals with COPD. However, physical activity counseling can maintain maximal muscle strength and exercise capacity in such individuals.
Expression of tumour necrosis factor receptors by bronchoalveolar cells in hypersensitivity pneumonitis

Tumour necrosis factor receptors (TNFR) and the Fas receptor (FasR) have been implicated in the pathogenesis of interstitial lung diseases. The current authors examined the expression of TNFR-1, TNFR-2 and FasR by bronchoalveolar cells in hypersensitivity pneumonitis (HP). Cell surface receptor expression on bronchoalveolar lavage cells was analysed by immunocytochemistry in 11 HP patients, 11 idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) patients and 10 controls. TNFR-1, TNFR-2 and FasR were expressed on a higher percentage of alveolar macrophages (AM) in HP compared with controls and IPF patients. TNFR-2 and FasR expression on lymphocytes was also higher in HP than in controls and in IPF. TNFR-1, TNFR-2 and FasR expression correlated positively with the percentage of lymphocytes, and negatively with the percentage of AM in HP. Expression of TNFR-1 on AM and TNFR-2 on lymphocytes correlated with the percentage of neutrophils in HP. In conclusion, this study shows evidence of altered expression of tumour necrosis factor superfamily receptors in hypersensitivity pneumonitis.
Occlusion Coherence: Detecting and Localizing Occluded Faces

The presence of occluders significantly impacts object recognition accuracy. However, occlusion is typically treated as an unstructured source of noise and explicit models for occluders have lagged behind those for object appearance and shape. In this paper we describe a hierarchical deformable part model for face detection and landmark localization that explicitly models part occlusion. The proposed model structure makes it possible to augment positive training data with large numbers of synthetically occluded instances. This allows us to easily incorporate the statistics of occlusion patterns in a discriminatively trained model. We test the model on several benchmarks for landmark localization and detection including challenging new data sets featuring significant occlusion. We find that the addition of an explicit occlusion model yields a detection system that outperforms existing approaches for occluded instances while maintaining competitive accuracy in detection and landmark localization for unoccluded instances.
Permian‐triassic carbon‐isotope anomaly in Greenland and in the southern Alps

A carbon isotopic study of selected samples of apparently continuous Permian‐Triassic boundary sections from Jameson Land (Greenland) and from the Southern Alps (Italy) revealed a negative δ1 3C shift by 2–3‰. In the Greenland record the geochemical event is possibly isochronous with the δl 3C shift reported from other localities, where it occurs in the latest Permian. In the section studied from Northern Italy, the event is slightly younger and straddles the Permian‐Triassic boundary. The δ1 3C change occurred within a few hundred thousand years, but within less than a million years. The worldwide recorded carbon isotopic event documents a change in the global carbon cycle. We suggest that the δ1 3 C decrease reflects a reduction in the transfer of organic matter from the production sites (oceans and continents) to the sedimentary reservoir.
Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change Methane Fluxes Between Terrestrial Ecosystems and the Atmosphere at Northern High Latitudes During the Past Century : A Retrospective Analysis with a Process-Based Biogeochemistry Model

We develop and use a new version of the Terrestrial Ecosystem Model (TEM) to study how rates of methane (CH4) emissions and consumption in high-latitude soils of the Northern Hemisphere have changed over the past century in response to observed changes in the region’s climate. We estimate that the net emissions of CH4 (emissions minus consumption) from these soils have increased by an average 0.08 Tg CH4 yr –1 during the 20 century. Our estimate of the annual net emission rate at the end of the century for the region is 51 Tg CH4 yr . Russia, Canada, and Alaska are the major CH4 regional sources to the atmosphere; responsible for 64%, 11%, and 7% of these net emissions, respectively. Our simulations indicate that large inter-annual variability in net CH4 emissions occurred over the last century. If CH4 emissions from the soils of the pan-Arctic region respond to future climate changes as our simulations suggest they have responded to observed climate changes over the 20 century, a large increase in high latitude CH4 emissions is likely and could lead to a major positive feedback to the climate system.
Improved Subspace-Based Single-Channel Speech Enhancement Using Generalized Super-Gaussian Priors

Traditional single-channel subspace-based schemes for speech enhancement rely mostly on linear minimum mean-square error estimators, which are globally optimal only if the Karhunen-Loeacuteve transform (KLT) coefficients of the noise and speech processes are Gaussian distributed. We derive in this paper subspace-based nonlinear estimators assuming that the speech KLT coefficients are distributed according to a generalized super-Gaussian distribution which has as special cases the Laplacian and the two-sided Gamma distribution. As with the traditional linear estimators, the derived estimators are functions of the a priori signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) in the subspaces spanned by the KLT transform vectors. We propose a scheme for estimating these a priori SNRs, which is in fact a generalization of the "decision-directed" approach which is well-known from short-time Fourier transform (STFT)-based enhancement schemes. We show that the proposed a priori SNR estimation scheme leads to a significant reduction of the residual noise level, a conclusion which is confirmed in extensive objective speech quality evaluations as well as subjective tests. We also show that the derived estimators based on the super-Gaussian KLT coefficient distribution lead to improvements for different noise sources and levels as compared to when a Gaussian assumption is imposed
The shell structure of the Recent Patellogastropoda (Mollusca: Gastropoda)

ABSTRACT The shell microstructure of 44 species belonging to 19 genera and 5 families of Patellogastropoda was observed by scanning electron microscopy on the basis of material mainly from the Northwest Pacific. As a result, 17 microstructures of prismatic, crossed, and lamellar structures were recognized. The comparison among species revealed 20 shell structure groups which are defined by microstructures and shell layer arrangement. The relations between taxa and shell structural composition indicate that the Recent patellogastropods generally have distinctive and stable shell structures at the genus level. This high level of consistency provides a firm basis for the application of shell structural characters to identify fossil patellogastropods. However, the evolutionary process of microstructures and homology across different shell layers are mostly ambiguous in the absence of robust phylogeny and undoubted positional criteria for comparison. More studies from phylogenetic, ontogenetic and mineralogical viewpoints should be undertaken to discuss the process of shell structure diversification in patellogastropods.
"Islands of Innovation" and "School-Wide Implementations" : Two Patterns of ICT-Based Pedagogical Innovations in Schools

The study reported here is a secondary analysis of data collected in 10 schools as part of Israel's participation in two international studies: IEA's SITES Module 2, focusing on innovative pedagogical practices at the classroom level, and the OECD/CERI case studies of ICT and organizational innovation, focusing on ICT-related innovations at the school system level. We identify and analyze two patterns of ICT-based curricular innovations: "islands of innovation" and "school-wide implementations. " In the analysis of both patterns we focus on (a) the levels and domains of innovation reached in schools; (b) the communication agents and school variables affecting the diffusion of the innovation; and (c) the role of internal and external factors affecting the diffusion of the innovation. In the discussion we elaborate the potential value of sustainable islands of innovation models as agents of innovation, and the similarities and differences between both patterns of ICT implementation in schools.
Zeolite Soil Application Method Affects Inorganic Nitrogen, Moisture, and Corn Growth

Adoption of new management techniques that improve soil water storage and soil N plant availability yet limit N leaching may help improve environmental quality. A benchtop study was conducted to determine the influence of a single urea fertilizer rate (224 kg N ha−1) applied with band or fully mixed zeolite (clinoptilolite) application rates (up to 90 Mg ha−1) on NH4-N and NO3-N concentrations in a Portneuf silt loam (coarse-silty, mixed, mesic, durinodic Xeric Haplocalcid). Two additional greenhouse experiments were carried out to test the soil moisture status and corn (Zea mays L.) growth in a Wolverine sand (mixed, frigid Xeric Torripsamment). Mixing urea fertilizer into silt loam soil resulted in greater urea mineralization as compared with band application of fertilizer + zeolite, and the mixed zeolite was more effective at sorbing and protecting NH4-N against nitrification. Increasing the rate of mixed zeolite into sandy soil increased the soil moisture content, and mixed zeolite soils contained 1.3% more soil moisture as compared with band zeolite applications. After 6 weeks of corn growth in amended sandy soil, zeolite application at 22 Mg ha−1 seemed to increase corn weight compared with controls. However, increasing zeolite rate up to 90 Mg ha−1 caused a decrease in corn weight, likely caused by the elevated zeolite Na content (3%). Fully mixing zeolite into soil reduced the rate of nitrification likely because of NH4+ adsorption in the zeolite mineral lattice. Thus, mixing zeolite into soil may reduce the leaching of inorganic N. Mixing may also improve the soil water status, although initial leaching of zeolite-borne Na may be necessary before growing crops.
An Overview of Historical and Contemporary Seismicity in Central Utah

Abstract We describe the seismicity of central Utah using a recently revised catalog of earthquakes (M ≤ 5.2) based on regional seismic monitoring by the University of Utah from 1981 through mid-2006. Natural seismicity in central Utah, including 16 shocks of M ≥ 5.0 since 1850, occurs chiefly within a roughly 100-km-wide zone forming part of the Intermountain seismic belt. The seismic belt follows the north-northeasterly-trending Basin and Range—Colorado Plateau transition in the northern half of the study area but swings westward south of ~39° N. , tracking with the eastern (foreland) part of the ancestral Sevier thrust belt. In the eastern part of the study area, an arcuate belt of intensely clustered mining seismicity (M ≤ 4.2) is associated with underground extraction in the Wasatch Plateau—Book Cliffs coalfields. The correlation of background seismicity with geologic structure in the study area is well known to be problematic; in this study, focal-depth resolution is handicapped by an average station spacing of 40–50 km. Although less than 10% of the natural earthquakes in the catalog have well-constrained focal depths, there are evident variations in maximum focal depths, with the deepest foci (15–25 km) occurring beneath the Basin and Range—Colorado Plateau transition, notably beneath the Wasatch Plateau. Normal- to strike-slip earthquake focal mechanisms predominantly reflect WNW—ESE extension across the transition. In at least two localities, focal mechanisms indicate normal faulting in the upper crust that contrasts with oblique to pure strike-slip faulting in subjacent lower crust. Two new observations in the study area warrant future attention. First, there is an unusually high average b-value (slope of earthquake frequency vs. magnitude) of 1.10 ± 0.07 for independent mainshocks in the northern subregion of the main seismic belt that is significantly higher than the average value of 0.79 ± 0.04 in the southern part; the latter is more consistent with the historical earthquake record. Second, the spatial distribution of earthquake swarm sequences, often associated with the movement of hydrothermal or magmatic fluid, shows a significant concentration of such sequences in an east-northeast-trending zone along the northern margin of the Marysvale volcanic field (just north of the axis of the Cove Fort transverse structure).
Maintaining Credibility When Communicating Uncertainty: The Role of Communication Format

Research into risk communication has commonly highlighted the disparity between the meaning intended by the communicator and what is understood by the recipient. Such miscommunications will have implications for perceived trust and expertise of the communicator, but it is not known whether this differs according to the communication format. We examined the effect of using verbal, numerical and mixed communication formats on perceptions of credibility and correctness, as well as whether they influenced a decision to evacuate, both before and after an ‘erroneous’ prediction (i.e. an ‘unlikely’ event occurs, or a ‘likely’ event does not occur). We observed no effect of communication format on any of the measures pre-outcome, but found the numerical format was perceived as less incorrect, as well as more credible than the other formats after an ‘erroneous’ prediction, but only when low probability expressions were used. Our findings suggest numbers should be used in consequential risk communications.