Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Floristic, edaphic and structural characteristics of flooded and unflooded forests in the lower Rio Purús region of central Amazonia, Brazil

Despite a natural history interest in the early 1900s, relatively little ecological research has been carried out in the Rio Purus basin of central Amazonia, Brazil. Here we describe a new study area in the region of Lago Uauacu with an emphasis on the climate, forest structure and composition, and soil characteristics between adjacent unflooded (terra firme) and seasonally inundated forests; situated within both the white-water (varzea) and black-water (igapo) drainage systems that dominate the landscape. The climate was found to be typical of that of the central Amazon. Varzea forest soils had high concentrations of nutrients, while terra firme and igapo soils were comparatively nutrient-poor. Terra firme forests were the most floristically diverse forest type, whereas varzea was intermediate, and igapo the most species-poor. The Lecythidaceae was the most important family in terra firme while the Euphorbiaceae was the most important in both varzea and igapo. There were significant differences between forest types in terms of number of saplings, canopy cover and understorey density. In contrasting our results with other published information, we conclude that the Lago Uauacu region consists of a typical central Amazonian forest macro-mosaic, but is a unique area with high conservation value due to the intimate juxtaposition of terra firme, varzea and igapo forests.
Challenges to Neuroscience and Public Policy Derived from New Trends and Patterns of Inhalant Misuse

Use of inhalants (solvents, aerosols, gases, and nitrites) is a worldwide practice, mainly among children and adolescents in whom toxic effects are more detrimental than in adults. Inhalant misuse is increasing among young adults linked to new and more attractive presentations; it is more common among those coming from poor communities with high violence and delinquency levels, and also among street children and adolescents. Voluntary inhalant misuse is more frequent among males, but the gender gap is narrowing. The risk of developing dependence is well established, especially if inhalant misuse begins at an early age. Suicidality and comorbidity with psychiatric disorders are also common. Regular users are more likely to show deviant behavior, school truancy, and lower school grades. Family history of antisocial behavior has also been reported. Abuse of nitrites is associated with a higher risk of HIV. In general, abuse of inhalants increases the risk of morbidity and mortality. In spite of this evidence, these substances have received less attention than other misused drugs. This review shows results from epidemiology, psychosocial, and treatment research to draw attention to gaps of knowledge that require the involvement of neurosciences and clinical research and to propose policy options.
Understanding plant rooting patterns in semi-arid systems: an integrated model analysis of climate, soil type and plant biomass

Aim A consistent set of root characteristics for herbaceous plants growing in water-limited environments has been developed based on compilations of global root databases, but an overall analysis of why these characteristics occur is still missing. The central question in this study is whether an ecohydrological model which assumes that rooting strategies reflect maximization of transpiration can predict the variations in rooting strategies of plants in dry environments. Location Arid ecosystems across the globe. Methods A model was used to explore interactions between plant biomass, root–shoot allocation, root distribution, rainfall, soil type and water use by plants. Results Model analyses showed that the predicted shifts in rooting depth and root–shoot allocation due to changes in rainfall, soil type and plant biomass were quite similar to observed shifts. The model predicted that soil type, annual rainfall and plant biomass each had strong effects on the rooting strategies that optimize transpiration, but also that these factors have strong interactive effects. The process by which plants compete for water availability (soil evaporation or drainage) especially affected the depth distribution of roots in the soil, whereas the availability of rainfall mainly affected the optimal root–shoot allocation strategy.Main conclusions The empirically observed key patterns in rooting characteristics of herbaceous plant species in arid environments could be explained in this theoretical study by using the concept of hydrological optimality, represented here by the maximization of transpiration.
Adjuvant concurrent docetaxel, epirubicin and cyclophosphamide chemotherapy in breast cancer: The TEC regimen. A retrospective analysis

Background: The use of taxanes and anthracyclines in the adjuvant treatment of primary breast cancer is well established, with benefit in both disease free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS). Several studies demonstrated that the addition of taxanes to anthracycline-based chemotherapy improves the outcome in either concurrent or sequential schedule. Nowadays, the TAC regimen (docetaxel, doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide) is a standard treatment in both node-positive and high-risk node-negative early breast cancer. Doxorubicin and epirubicin are equivalent, but at similar doses epirubicin appears to have a better side effects profile than doxorubicin in terms of myelosuppression and cardiotoxicity. We conducted a retrospective study to establish the role of TEC (epirubicin) regimen in adjuvant setting. Methods: Preor post-menopausal women, with stage I-III breast cancer, PS ECOG 0-2 and normal left ventricular ejection fraction, were eligible. TEC chemotherapy at median doses of docetaxel 75 mg/m2, epirubicin 60 mg/m2 and cyclophosphamide 500 mg/m2 was administered IV on day 1 every three weeks for 6 cycles. The primary endpoint was toxicity; secondary endpoints were DFS and OS. Results: Thirty-three consecutive female patients were retrospectively enrolled. The median age was 57 years old. Eighty eight percentage of patients completed the treatment plan. In 21.2% of cases a dose reduction was performed and these patients needed a chemotherapy interval prolongation. The main side effects were neutropenia G3-4 (21.2%; 95% CI, 9.8-37.5), allergic reaction G3 to docetaxel (6.1%; 95% CI, 1.0-18.6) and febrile neutropenia (3.0%; 95% CI, 0.1-14.0), while cardiotoxicity was absent (95% CI, 0-8.7%). Globally, the percentage of any other severe side effect was very low and no one toxic death was seen. The 3-year DFS and OS were 89.9% (95% CI, 79.0-100) and 93.8% (95% CI, 85.6-100), respectively. Conclusions: As compared to TAC treatment, TEC regimen with epirubicin 60 mg/m2 is feasible and well tolerated adjuvant chemotherapy in breast cancer, with acceptable and manageable toxicity.
Molecular characterization of giloe (Tinospora cordifolia Willd. Miers ex Hook. F. and Thoms.) accessions using start codon targeted (SCoT) markers.

Twenty one accessions collected from the wild habitats of the two states (Delhi and Uttar Pradesh) of the India were studied using Start Codon Targeted (SCoT) markers. Total thirty-five SCoT primers were screened to study the diversity, out of which nineteen primers could amplify reproducible bands. These primers were selected for molecular characterization of twenty-one giloe accessions, which produced a total of 102 bands (5.3 bands per primer), of which 90 (87.02%) were polymorphic. The resolving power (Rp) of the SCoT primers ranged from 0.95 (SCoT7) to 5.14 (SCoT 31) with an average of 2.6 per primer. Polymorphism information content (PIC) ranged from 0.19 (SCoT -13 and SCoT15) to 0.49 (SCoT -13 and SCoT -22) with an average of value of 0.35 per primer. Estimation of Jaccard’s coefficient of genetic similarity among Giloe accessions was ranging from 1.0 (between IC-281960 and IC-281963) to 0.68 (between IC 281966 and IC-281959). Such a range in genetic similarity suggests that the Giloe accessions were genetically diverse. The UPGMA cluster analysis revealed two distinct sub-clusters in the dendrogram. In cluster1 eight accessions were grouping together whereas in cluster2 thirteen accessions were grouped. The principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) was carried out with 102 amplicons and first 3 axes explained 87.56% (axis176.06%, axis2-7.53% and axis33.96%) of total variation. The genetic diversity explained by gene targeted markers shows that SCoT marker can be very effective for characterization of genetic diversity in medicinal plant like giloe.
Understanding the role of water during ionic liquid pretreatment of lignocellulose: co-solvent or anti-solvent?

Biomass pretreatment with certain ionic liquids (IL) can be highly effective at generating a substrate that can be easily saccharified into fermentable sugars with high yields. In order to improve overall process economics, using mixtures of these ILs with water are more favored over the use of anhydrous IL; however, the solvent property of IL–water mixtures and correlations between cellulose digestibility, cellulose solvation and lignin depolymerization during IL–water pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass are not well understood. We investigated pretreatment of switchgrass with mixtures of 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate, [C2mim][OAc], and water at 160 °C. Results indicate that the chemical composition and crystallinity of the pretreated biomass, and the corresponding lignin dissolution and depolymerization, were dependent on [C2mim][OAc] concentration that correlated strongly with cellulose digestibility. In addition, the hydrogen bond basicity of the [C2mim][OAc]–water mixtures was found to be a good indicator of cellulose dissolution, lignin depolymerization, and sugar yields. Molecular dynamics simulations provided molecular level explanations on cellulose Iβ dissolution at different [C2mim][OAc]–water loadings. The knowledge gained from this study provides a better understanding of the duality of water as a co-solvent/anti-solvent in dissolving cellulose and serves as a design basis for the targeted design of IL–water mixtures that are effective at biomass pretreatment.
Do Women Entrepreneurs Play a Role in Reducing Poverty? A Case in Kenya

This paper has examined the economic role of women entrepreneurs in poverty reduction in Kenya. A case study was carried out among women entrepreneurs at the Maasai market within Nairobi City’s Central Business District. From the target population of 664, 15% were sampled for this study, through stratified and purposive sampling techniques. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected by use of questionnaires and interviews, hence analyzed concurrently. The study showed that the economic activities carried out by the respondents were similar in nature and included selling of African artifacts, clothing and ornaments. Most respondents (95%) used readily available raw materials to make their products for sale. Majority of the respondents (83%) agreed that the businesses had made them improve their economic status. The businesses contributed to the promotion of tourism, employment and export trade. The study concludes that women entrepreneurs play a major role in poverty reduction in Kenya.
Response of Soil Mesofauna to Different Afforested Types in the North of Iran

The study was carried out to examine the response of soil mesofauna to different afforested types in the North of Iran. In the present work, we study the mesofauna biodiversity in 20-year-old plantations with species of Alder (Alnus subcordata C. A. Mey.), Poplar (Populus deltoids Marsh.), Maple (Acer velutinum Bioss.), Cypress (Cupressus sempervirens L. var. horizontalis) and the adjacent mixed natural forest. Soil samples were collected at two different depths (0 - 10 and 10 - 20 cm), and characterized with respect to mesofauna abundance and biomass, bulk density, moisture content, pH, total organic carbon and total nitrogen. Shannon - Wiener (diversity), Simpson (evenness) and Margalef (richness) indices were employed to calculate of mesofauna biodiversity. Data showed that afforested stands significantly affected mesofauna biodiversity and soil characteristics. The average of soil mesofauna abundance and biomass were consistently higher in Alder stand than in the other tree plantations, while they were lowest in Cypress plantation. In general, soil mesofauna biodiversity (for both of abundance and biomass) were decreased in Alder, Maple, Natural forest, Poplar and Cypress, respectively. Most of biodiversity indices were significantly higher in 0 - 10 cm than in 10 - 20 cm depth for abundance and biomass of soil mesofauna. The Principal Component Analysis (PCA) results suggest that the mesofauna distribution is regulated by total nitrogen and bulk density. The present paper emphasizes the point that forestation using native broad-leaf species consistent
Leaf litter production and decomposition in a poplar short‐rotation coppice exposed to free air CO2 enrichment (POPFACE)

The capacity of forest ecosystems to sequester C in the soil relies on the net balance between litter production above, as well as, below ground, and decomposition processes. Nitrogen mineralization and its availability for plant growth and microbial activity often control the speed of both processes. Litter production, decomposition and N mineralization are strongly interdependent. Thus, their responses to global environmental changes (i.e. elevated CO2, climate, N deposition, etc.) cannot be fully understood if they are studied in isolation. In the present experiment, we investigated litter fall, litter decomposition and N dynamics in decomposing litter of three Populus spp. , in the second and third growing season of a short rotation coppice under FACE. Elevated CO2 did not affect annual litter production but slightly retarded litter fall in the third growing season. In all species, elevated CO2 lowered N concentration, resulting in a reduction of N input to the soil via litter fall, but did not affect lignin concentrations. Litter decomposition was studied in bags incubated in situ both in control and FACE plots. Litter lost between 15% and 18% of the original mass during the eight months of field incubation. On average, litter produced under elevated CO2 attained higher residual mass than control litter. On the other end, when litter was incubated in FACE plots it exhibited higher decay rates. These responses were strongly species‐specific. All litter increased their N content during decomposition, indicating immobilization of N from external sources. Independent of the initial quality, litter incubated on FACE soils immobilized less N, possibly as a result of lower N availability in the soil. Indeed, our results refer to a short‐term decomposition experiment. However, according to a longer‐term model extrapolation of our results, we anticipate that in Mediterranean climate, under elevated atmospheric CO2, soil organic C pool of forest ecosystems may initially display faster turnover, but soil N availability will eventually limit the process.
Effect of tofacitinib on patient-reported outcomes in patients with active psoriatic arthritis and an inadequate response to tumour necrosis factor inhibitors in the phase III, randomised controlled trial: OPAL Beyond

Objectives Tofacitinib is an oral Janus kinase inhibitor for treatment of psoriatic arthritis (PsA). Patient-reported outcomes (PROs) were evaluated in patients with PsA with inadequate responses to tumour necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFi-IR) in a 6-month, phase III randomised controlled trial (OPAL Beyond [NCT01882439]). Methods Patients (N=394) received tofacitinib 5 or 10 mg twice daily or placebo (advancing to tofacitinib 5 or 10 mg twice daily at month 3). Least squares mean changes from baseline and percentages of patients reporting improvements ≥minimum clinically important differences and scores ≥normative values were determined in Patient Global Assessment of disease activity (PtGA), Pain, Patient Global Joint and Skin Assessment (PGJS), Short Form-36 Health Survey version 2 (SF-36v2), Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Fatigue (FACIT-Fatigue), EuroQol 5-Dimensions-3-level (EQ-5D-3L), EQ-VAS and Ankylosing Spondylitis Quality of Life (ASQoL). Nominal p values are without multiple comparison adjustments. Results At month 3, PtGA, Pain, PGJS, SF-36v2 Physical Component Summary (PCS), physical functioning (PF), bodily pain (BP), vitality and social functioning (SF) domains, FACIT-Fatigue Total score, EQ-5D-3L pain/discomfort, EQ-VAS and ASQoL scores exceeded placebo with both tofacitinib doses (role physical [RP] with 10 mg twice daily only; p≤0.05). Patients reporting improvements ≥MCID (%) in PtGA, PGJS, Pain, ASQoL and SF-36v2 PCS, PF, RP, BP, SF (both tofacitinib doses) exceeded placebo (p≤0.05). Conclusion TNFi-IR patients with PsA receiving tofacitinib reported statistically and clinically meaningful improvements in PROs versus placebo over 3 months, which were maintained to month 6. Despite lower baseline scores, these improvements were similar to the csDMARD-IR TNFi-naive OPAL Broaden trial.
Mixed language queries in online searches: A study of intra-sentential code-switching from a qualitative perspective

Purpose With the increasing number of online multilingual resources, cross-language information retrieval (CLIR) has drawn much attention from the information retrieval (IR) research community. However, few studies have examined how and why multilingual searchers seek information in two or more languages, specifically how they switch and mix language in queries to get satisfying results. The purpose of this paper is to focus on Chinese–English bilinguals’ intra-sentential code-switching behaviors in online searches. The scenarios and reasons of code-switching, factors that may affect code-switching, the patterns of mixed language query formulation and reformulation and how current IR systems and other search tools can facilitate such information needs were examined. Design/methodology/approach In-depth semi-structured interviews were used as the research method. In total, 30 participants were recruited based on their English proficiency, location and profession, using a purposive sampling method. Findings Four scenarios and four reasons for using Chinese–English mixed language queries to cover information needs were identified, and results suggest that linguistic and cultural/social factors are of equivalent importance in code-switching behaviors. English terms and Chinese terms in queries play different roles in searches, and mixed language queries are irreplaceable by either single language queries or other search facilitating features. Findings also suggest current search engines and tools need greater emphasis in the user interface and more user education is required. Originality/value This study presents a qualitative analysis of bilinguals’ code-switching behaviors in online searches. Findings are expected to advance the theoretical understanding of bilingual users’ search strategies and interactions with IR systems, and provide insights for designing more effective IR systems and tools to discover multilingual online resources, including cross-language controlled vocabularies, personalized CLIR tools and mixed language query assistants.
Rectangular-Normalized Superpixel Entropy Index for Image Quality Assessment

Image quality assessment (IQA) is a fundamental problem in image processing that aims to measure the objective quality of a distorted image. Traditional full-reference (FR) IQA methods use fixed-size sliding windows to obtain structure information but ignore the variable spatial configuration information. In order to better measure the multi-scale objects, we propose a novel IQA method, named RSEI, based on the perspective of the variable receptive field and information entropy. First, we find that consistence relationship exists between the information fidelity and human visual of individuals. Thus, we reproduce the human visual system (HVS) to semantically divide the image into multiple patches via rectangular-normalized superpixel segmentation. Then the weights of each image patches are adaptively calculated via their information volume. We verify the effectiveness of RSEI by applying it to data from the TID2008 database and denoise algorithms. Experiments show that RSEI outperforms some state-of-the-art IQA algorithms, including visual information fidelity (VIF) and weighted average deep image quality measure (WaDIQaM).
Peripheral disease contributes significantly to the level of disease activity in axial spondyloarthritis

Objective Spondyloarthritis (SpA) can encompass axial, peripheral and extra-articular disease manifestations. Patients are classified as axial or peripheral SpA depending on the presence or absence of current back pain, independently of the other disease manifestations. Therefore, we aimed to assess the percentage of patients with axial SpA with peripheral disease and how this peripheral disease contributes to the overall disease activity. Methods Prevalence and disease activity of peripheral disease manifestations were assessed in a real-life observational cohort of 314 patients with the clinical diagnosis of SpA and fulfilling the Assessment of SpondyloArthritis international Society (ASAS) criteria. Results Of the 314 patients fulfilling the ASAS criteria, 230 fulfilled the axial and 84 the peripheral SpA criteria. Of the 230 patients with axial SpA, 49% had purely axial disease without peripheral disease manifestations whereas 51% had combined axial (back pain) and peripheral (arthritis, enthesitis and/or dactylitis) disease. The latter group had the highest disease activity in comparison with pure axial SpA as well as with peripheral SpA. Conclusion Half of the patients classified as axial SpA according to the ASAS criteria also have peripheral disease manifestations such as arthritis, enthesitis and/or dactylitis. These peripheral disease manifestations contribute significantly to overall disease activity.
Really should we pruning after model be totally trained? Pruning based on a small amount of training

Pre-training of models in pruning algorithms plays an important role in pruning decision-making. We find that excessive pre-training is not necessary for pruning algorithms. According to this idea, we propose a pruning algorithm---Incremental pruning based on less training (IPLT). Compared with the traditional pruning algorithm based on a large number of pre-training, IPLT has competitive compression effect than the traditional pruning algorithm under the same simple pruning strategy. On the premise of ensuring accuracy, IPLT can achieve 8x-9x compression for VGG-19 on CIFAR-10 and only needs to pre-train few epochs. For VGG-19 on CIFAR-10, we can not only achieve 10 times test acceleration, but also about 10 times training acceleration. At present, the research mainly focuses on the compression and acceleration in the application stage of the model, while the compression and acceleration in the training stage are few. We newly proposed a pruning algorithm that can compress and accelerate in the training stage. It is novel to consider the amount of pre-training required by pruning algorithm. Our results have implications: Too much pre-training may be not necessary for pruning algorithms.