Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Influence of dye class on the comparison of direct contact and vacuum membrane distillation applied to remediation of dyeing wastewater

Abstract This work investigated the influence of dye class on permeate flux and color rejection by comparing direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) and vacuum membrane distillation (VMD) applied to remediation of dyeing wastewater. The same operating system at the feed side was used and the driving force of each configuration was determined. Reactive and disperse dye solutions were considered, and a commercial membrane was employed. Final color rejection > 90.79% was obtained, and water was recovered at the permeate side (final normalized permeate flux up to 38.92 kg m−2day−1kPa−1). VMD showed higher normalized permeate flux when compared to DCMD. However, the performance according to dye class depended on MD configuration. Reactive dye resulted in higher permeate flux than the disperse dye solution in DCMD. Contrarily, disperse dye solution showed higher permeate flux in VMD. The formation of a concentration boundary layer at the permeate membrane interface was suggested with disperse dye solution in DCMD, decreasing thus the driving force. In VMD, the boundary effect is negligible with disperse dye solution. This result implies that the VMD performance in the textile industry may depend more on driving force rather than the dye class of the dyeing bath.
The Effects of Acute Exercise on Retroactive Memory Interference

Purpose: Retroactive interference involves the disruption of previously encoded information from newly learned information and thus may impair the consolidation of long-term memory. The objective of this study was to evaluate whether acute exercise can attenuate retroactive memory interference. Design: Three experimental studies were employed. Experiment 1 employed a between-subject randomized control trial (RCT) involving moderate-intensity walking (15 minutes). Experiment 2 employed a between-subject RCT involving high-intensity jogging (15 minutes). Experiment 3 employed a within-subject RCT involving moderate-intensity walking (15 minutes). Setting: University setting. Participants: One hundred twelve young adults. Measures: After exercise, memory interference was evaluated from an episodic word-list memory task, involving the recall of 2 word lists. Results: The pooled effect size (standard difference in means: −0.35; 95% confidence interval: −0.64 to −0.06) across the 3 experiments was statistically significant (P = .01). Conclusion: We provide suggestive evidence that acute, short-duration exercise may help attenuate a retroactive memory interference effect. Implications of these findings for exercise to improve memory and attenuate memory decay are discussed.
Effect of Remote Ischemic Preconditioning Conducted in Living Liver Donors on Postoperative Liver Function in Donors and Recipients Following Liver Transplantation: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

OBJECTIVE This study aimed to assess the effects of remote ischemic preconditioning (RIPC) on liver function in donors and recipients after living donor liver transplantation (LDLT). BACKGROUND Ischemia reperfusion injury (IRI) is known to be associated with graft dysfunction after liver transplantation. RIPC is used to lessen the harmful effects of IRI. METHODS A total of 148 donors were randomly assigned to RIPC (n = 75) and control (n = 73) groups. RIPC involves 3 cycles of 5-minute inflation of a blood pressure cuff to 200 mm Hg to the upper arm, followed by 5-minute reperfusion with cuff deflation. The primary aim was to assess postoperative liver function in donors and recipients and the incidence of early allograft dysfunction and graft failure in recipients. RESULTS RIPC was not associated with any differences in postoperative aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase levels after living donor hepatectomy, and it did not decrease the incidence of delayed graft hepatic function (6.7% vs 0.0%, P = 0.074) in donors. AST level on postoperative day 1 [217.0 (158.0, 288.0) vs 259.5 (182.0, 340.0), P = 0.033] and maximal AST level within 7 postoperative days [244.0 (167.0, 334.0) vs 296.0 (206.0, 395.5), P = 0.029) were significantly lower in recipients who received a preconditioned graft. No differences were found in the incidence of early allograft dysfunction (4.1% vs 5.6%, P = 0.955) or graft failure (1.4% vs 5.6%, P = 0.346) among recipients. CONCLUSIONS RIPC did not improve liver function in living donor hepatectomy. However, RIPC performed in liver donors may be beneficial for postoperative liver function in recipients after living donor liver transplantation.
Trigeminal Aδ- and C-afferent supply of lamina I neurons in the trigeminocervical complex.

Nociceptive trigeminal afferents innervating craniofacial area, e.g. facial skin and cranial meninges, project to a broad region in the medullary and upper cervical dorsal horn designated as the trigeminocervical complex. Lamina I neurons in the trigeminocervical complex integrate and relay peripheral inputs, thus playing a key role in both cranial nociception and primary headache syndromes. Because of the technically challenging nature of recording, the long-range trigeminal afferent inputs to the medullary and cervical lamina I neurons were not intensively studied so far. Therefore, we have developed an ex vivo brainstem-cervical cord preparation with attached trigeminal nerve for the visually-guided whole-cell recordings from the medullary and cervical lamina I neurons. Two-thirds of recorded neurons generated intrinsic rhythmic discharges. The stimulation of the trigeminal nerve produced a complex effect; it interrupted the rhythmic discharge for hundreds of milliseconds but, if the neuron was silenced by a hyperpolarizing current injection, could elicit a discharge. The monosynaptic inputs from the trigeminal Aδ-, high-threshold-Aδ-, low-threshold-C- and C-afferents were recorded in the medullary neurons, as well as in the cervical neurons located in the segments C1-C2 and, to lesser degree, in C3-C4. This pattern of supply was consistent with our labelling experiments showing extensive cervical projections of trigeminal afferents. Excitatory inputs were mediated, although not exclusively, via AMPA/kainate and NMDA receptors, while inhibitory inputs via both GABA and glycine receptors. In conclusion, the trigeminocervical lamina I neurons receive a complex pattern of long-range mono- and polysynaptic inputs from a variety of the trigeminal nociceptive afferents.
A novel environmental enrichment device improved broiler performance without sacrificing bird physiological or environmental quality measures.

Modern commercial broilers have been genetically selected for fast growth and heavy breast muscling, contributing to a top-heavy phenotype and increased leg lameness. A quick-growing phenotype coupled with poor leg health fosters inactivity. The objective of this study was to stimulate broiler movement using novel environmental enrichment and determine the impact of movement on production, leg health, and environmental parameters. A total of 1,200 Ross 308 broilers were housed in 40 pens with 30 birds/pen for 6 wk in 2 separate rooms (laser enrichment or control). Each enrichment device was mounted above 2 adjoining pens, projected 2 independent, randomly moving laser beams at the floor to stimulate innate predatory behavior, and was active 4 times daily in 4-min periods. Performance outcomes were calculated by pen and averaged per bird for each performance period and overall days 0 to 42. A total of 70 randomly selected focal birds were examined for breast blisters and footpad dermatitis each week and euthanized on day 42 for tibia quality measures. Air quality and litter moisture were sampled by week. Laser-enriched pens had greater average bird feed intake in starter (P < 0.001), grower (P = 0.004), finisher periods (P = 0.004), and overall days 0 to 42 (0.19 kg/bird; P = 0.0003). Average bird weight gain was also increased in enriched pens in each performance period: starter (P = 0.043), grower (P = 0.001), finisher (P < 0.001), and overall days 0 to 42 (0.24 kg/bird; P < 0.001). Enriched pens had improved feed conversion ratio (FCR) vs. control with a decrease of 3 FCR points in the grower (P = 0.031), 18 points in the finisher (P < 0.001), and 7 points overall (P < 0.001). Enriched pens had higher ADG during starter (P = 0.048), finisher (P < 0.001), and overall (5.7 g/bird/d; P < 0.001). No differences were found in breast blister, footpad dermatitis, tibia, air, or litter quality measures (P > 0.05). In summary, a novel enrichment device based on bird visual feeding and predatory instincts positively affected performance through decreased FCR and increased ADG without sacrificing external animal-based measures, tibia quality, or air or litter quality.
The overlooked significance of plasma volume for successful adaptation to high altitude in Sherpa and Andean natives

In contrast to Andean natives, high-altitude Tibetans present with a lower hemoglobin concentration that correlates with reproductive success and exercise capacity. Decades of physiological and genomic research have assumed that the lower hemoglobin concentration in Himalayan natives results from a blunted erythropoietic response to hypoxia (i.e., no increase in total hemoglobin mass). In contrast, herein we test the hypothesis that the lower hemoglobin concentration is the result of greater plasma volume, rather than an absence of increased hemoglobin production. We assessed hemoglobin mass, plasma volume and blood volume in lowlanders at sea level, lowlanders acclimatized to high altitude, Himalayan Sherpa, and Andean Quechua, and explored the functional relevance of volumetric hematological measures to exercise capacity. Hemoglobin mass was highest in Andeans, but also was elevated in Sherpa compared with lowlanders. Sherpa demonstrated a larger plasma volume than Andeans, resulting in a comparable total blood volume at a lower hemoglobin concentration. Hemoglobin mass was positively related to exercise capacity in lowlanders at sea level and in Sherpa at high altitude, but not in Andean natives. Collectively, our findings demonstrate a unique adaptation in Sherpa that reorientates attention away from hemoglobin concentration and toward a paradigm where hemoglobin mass and plasma volume may represent phenotypes with adaptive significance at high altitude.
Negative Self-Perception and Self-Attitude of Sexuality Is a Risk Factor for Patient Dissatisfaction Following Penile Surgery with Small Intestinal Submucosa Grafting for the Treatment of Severe Peyronie’s Disease

Objective: To assess patient satisfaction with surgical outcome, body related self-perceptions, self-attitudes of sexuality, and health related quality of life after penile surgery with small intestinal submucosa (SIS) grafting for the treatment of severe Peyronie’s disease (PD). Material and methods: This retrospective study included 82 patients, who were treated with SIS grafting for severe PD between 2009 and 2013 at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf. Patients were asked to complete standardized questionnaires including the International Index of Erectile Function Erectile Function domain (IIEF-EF), Short-Form (SF)-8 Health Survey, and Frankfurt Body Concept Scale-Sexuality (FKKS-SEX). Results: Follow-up was available in 58 (69.9%) patients. SIS grafting resulted in subjective straightening of the penis in 53 (91.3%) patients. After a mean follow-up of 28.9 ± 16.5 months, 24 (41.4%) patients were satisfied or very satisfied with surgical outcome. Postoperatively, the mean FKKS-SEX was 23.5 ± 5.9. In total, 36 (62.1%), 18 (31%), and four (6.9%) patients had FKKS-SEX scores corresponding to positive, neutral, and negative self-perception and self-attitude of sexuality, respectively. The mean postoperative SF-8 was 15.2 ± 6.4. Compared to the mean for German controls, patients achieved lower mean scores in the domains social functioning (50.4 ± 7.1), mental health (49.5 ± 9.2), and emotional roles (48.5 ± 6.8). Subjective shortening of the penis (Odds ratio (OR): 2.0), negative body related self-perceptions, and self-attitudes of sexuality (OR: 3.6) as well as IIEF-EF score (OR: 0.9) were risk factors for patient dissatisfaction (p-values ≤ 0.02). Conclusion: A relevant number of patients is not satisfied with surgical outcome after SIS grafting for the treatment of severe PD. Subjective shortening of the penis, negative body related self-perceptions, and self-attitudes of sexuality as well as IIEF-EF score were risk factors for patient dissatisfaction.
Discrete analyses of protein dynamics

Abstract Protein structures are highly dynamic macromolecules. This dynamics is often analysed through experimental and/or computational methods only for an isolated or a limited number of proteins. Here, we explore large-scale protein dynamics simulation to observe dynamics of local protein conformations using different perspectives. We analysed molecular dynamics to investigate protein flexibility locally, using classical approaches such as RMSf, solvent accessibility, but also innovative approaches such as local entropy. First, we focussed on classical secondary structures and analysed specifically how β-strand, β–turns, and bends evolve during molecular simulations. We underlined interesting specific bias between β–turns and bends, which are considered as the same category, while their dynamics show differences. Second, we used a structural alphabet that is able to approximate every part of the protein structures conformations, namely protein blocks (PBs) to analyse (i) how each initial local protein conformations evolve during dynamics and (ii) if some exchange can exist among these PBs. Interestingly, the results are largely complex than simple regular/rigid and coil/flexible exchange. Abbreviations N eq number of equivalent PB Protein Blocks PDB Protein DataBank RMSf root mean square fluctuations Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma
The Filamentary Radio Lobes of the Seyfert–Starburst Composite Galaxy NGC 3079

We present results from multifrequency polarization-sensitive Very Large Array observations of the Seyfert–starburst composite galaxy NGC 3079. Our sensitive radio observations reveal a plethora of radio “filaments” comprising the radio lobes in this galaxy. We analyze the origin of these radio filaments in the context of existing Chandra X-ray and HST emission-line data. We do not find a one-to-one correlation of the radio filaments with the emission-line filaments. The northeastern lobe is highly polarized with polarization fractions ∼33% at 5 GHz. The magnetic fields are aligned with the linear extents of the optically thin filaments, as observed in our, as well as other, observations in the literature. Our rotation measure images show evidence for rotation measure inversion in the northeastern lobe. Our data best fit a model where the cosmic rays follow the magnetic field lines generated as a result of the dynamo mechanism. There could be additional effects like shock acceleration that might also be playing a role. We speculate that the peculiar radio lobe morphology is a result of an interplay between both the superwinds and the active galactic nucleus jet that are present in the galaxy. The jet, in fact, might be playing a major role in providing the relativistic electron population that is present in the radio lobes.
Microstate Counting via Bethe Ans\"{a}tze in the 4d ${\cal N}=1$ Superconformal Index

We study the superconfomal index of four-dimensional toric quiver gauge theories using a Bethe Ansatz approach recently applied by Benini and Milan. Relying on a particular set of solutions to the corresponding Bethe Ansatz equations we evaluate the superconformal index in the large $N$ limit, thus avoiding to take any Cardy-like limit. We present explicit results for theories arising as a stack of $N$ D3 branes at the tip of toric Calabi-Yau cones: the conifold theory, the suspended pinch point gauge theory, the first del Pezzo theory and $Y^{p,q}$ quiver gauge theories. For a suitable choice of the chemical potentials of the theory we find agreement with predictions made for the same theories in the Cardy-like limit. However, for other regions of the domain of chemical potentials the superconformal index is modified and consequently the associated black hole entropy receives corrections. We work out explicitly the simple case of the conifold theory.
Can redshift errors bias measurements of the Hubble Constant?

Redshifts have been so easy to measure for so long that we tend to neglect the fact that they too have uncertainties and are susceptible to systematic error. As we strive to measure cosmological parameters to better than 1 per cent it is worth reviewing the accuracy of our redshift measurements. Surprisingly small systematic redshift errors, as low as 10−4, can have a significant impact on the cosmological parameters we infer, such as H0. Here, we investigate an extensive (but not exhaustive) list of ways in which redshift estimation can go systematically astray. We review common theoretical errors, such as adding redshifts instead of multiplying by (1 + z); using v = cz; and using only cosmological redshift in the estimates of luminosity and angular diameter distances. We consider potential observational errors, such as rest wavelength precision, air to vacuum conversion, and spectrograph wavelength calibration. Finally, we explore physical effects, such as peculiar velocity corrections, galaxy internal velocities, gravitational redshifts, and overcorrecting within a bulk flow. We conclude that it would be quite easy for small systematic redshift errors to have infiltrated our data and be impacting our cosmological results. While it is unlikely that these errors are large enough to resolve the current H0 tension, it remains possible, and redshift accuracy may become a limiting factor in near future experiments. With the enormous efforts going into calibrating the vertical axis of our plots (standard candles, rulers, clocks, and sirens) we argue that it is now worth paying a little more attention to the horizontal axis (redshifts).
On Fractional Fragility Rates of Graph Classes

We consider, for every positive integer $a$, probability distributions on subsets of vertices of a graph with the property that every vertex belongs to the random set sampled from this distribution with probability at most $1/a$. Among other results, we prove that for every positive integer $a$ and every planar graph $G$, there exists such a probability distribution with the additional property that for any set $X$ in the support of the distribution, the graph $G-X$ has component-size at most $(\Delta(G)-1)^{a+O(\sqrt{a})}$, or treedepth at most $O(a^3\log_2(a))$. We also provide nearly-matching lower bounds.
Embedding planetesimals into white dwarf discs from large distances

The discovery of the intact minor planet embedded in the debris disc orbiting SDSS J1228+1040 raises questions about the dynamical history of the system. Further, the recent passage of the potentially interstellar object 1I/’Oumuamua within the Solar system has re-ignited interest in minor body flux through exoplanetary systems. Here, we utilize the new analytical formalism from Grishin et al. (2019) to estimate the rate at which the gaseous components of typical white dwarf discs trap an exo-planetesimal. We compare the types of captured orbits which arise from planetesimals originating from the interstellar medium, exo-Kuiper belts, and exo-Oort clouds. We find that the rate of interstellar medium injection is negligible, whereas capture of both exo-Kuiper and exo-Oort cloud planetesimals is viable, but strongly size-dependent. For a gaseous disc which extends much beyond its Roche limit, capture is more probable than disruption at the Roche limit. We find that the capture probability linearly increases with the radial extent of the disc. Even in systems without minor planets, capture of smaller bodies will change the disc size distribution and potentially its temporal variability. Our formalism is general enough to be applied to future discoveries of embedded planetesimals in white dwarf debris discs.
Strain-engineered higher-order topological phases for spin-
32
 Luttinger fermions

Recently, the notion of topological phases of matter has been extended to higher-order incarnations, supporting gapless modes on even lower dimensional boundaries, such as corners and hinges. We here identify a collection of cubic spin-$\frac{3}{2}$ fermions with biquadratic touching of Kramers degenerate valence and conduction bands as a platform to strain-engineer higher-order topological (HOT) phases: external uniaxial strain gives birth to a HOT Dirac semimetal or an insulator, depending on its sign, featuring topological hinge modes in the strain direction. The insulator in fact exhibits mixed topology, and in addition supports edge modes on orthogonal planes. These outcomes are germane when the external strain is applied along one of the ${C}_{4v}$ or coordinate axes, as well as ${C}_{3v}$ or body-diagonal, directions. Our findings place HgTe, gray-Sn, 227 pyrochlore iridates and half-Heusler compounds at the frontier of strain-engineered electronic HOT phases.
Light scalars with lepton number to solve the 
(g−2)e
 anomaly

Scalars that carry lepton number can help mediate would-be lepton-number-violating processes, such as neutrinoless double $\beta$ decay or lepton-scattering-mediated nucleon-antinucleon conversion. Here we show that such new scalars can also solve the anomaly in precision determinations of the fine-structure constant $\alpha$ from atom interferometry and from the electron's anomalous magnetic moment, $a_e \equiv (g-2)_e/2$, by reducing $|a_e|$. Study of the phenomenological constraints on these solutions favor a doubly-charged scalar with mass below the GeV scale. Significant constraints arise from the measurement of the parity-violating asymmetry in Moller scattering, and we consider the implications of the next-generation MOLLER experiment at Jefferson Laboratory and of an improved $a_e$ measurement.
Climate-driven statistical models as effective predictors of local dengue incidence in Costa Rica: A Generalized Additive Model and Random Forest approach

Climate has been an important factor in shaping the distribution and incidence of dengue cases in tropical and subtropical countries. In Costa Rica, a tropical country with distinctive micro-climates, dengue has been endemic since its introduction in 1993, inflicting substantial economic, social, and public health repercussions. Using the number of dengue reported cases and climate data from 2007-2017, we fitted a prediction model applying a Generalized Additive Model (GAM) and Random Forest (RF) approach, which allowed us to retrospectively predict the relative risk of dengue in five climatological diverse municipalities around the country.