Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Sulfur Degassing From Volcanoes: Source Conditions, Surveillance, Plume Chemistry and Earth System Impacts

Despite its relatively minor abundance in magmas (compared with H2O and CO2), sulfur degassing from volcanoes is of tremendous significance. It can exert substantial influence on magmatic evolution (potentially capable of triggering eruptions); represents one of the most convenient opportunities for volcano monitoring and hazard assessment; and can result in major impacts on the atmosphere, climate and terrestrial ecosystems at a range of spatial and temporal scales. The complex behavior of sulfur in magmas owes much to its multiple valence states (−II, 0, IV, VI), speciation (e.g., S2, H2S, SO2, OCS and SO3 in the gas phase; S2−, SO42− and SO32− in the melt; and non-volatile solid phases such as pyrrhotite and anhydrite), and variation in stable isotopic composition (32S, 33S, 34S and 36S; e.g., Metrich and Mandeville 2010). Sulfur chemistry in the atmosphere is similarly rich involving gaseous and condensed phases and invoking complex homogeneous and heterogeneous chemical reactions. Sulfur degassing from volcanoes and geothermal areas is also important since a variety of microorganisms thrive based on the redox chemistry of sulfur: by reducing sulfur, thiosulfate, sulfite and sulfate to H2S, or oxidizing sulfur and H2S to sulfate (e.g., Takano et al. 1997; Amend and Shock 2001; Shock et al. 2010). Understanding volcanic sulfur degassing thus provides vital insights into magmatic, volcanic and hydrothermal processes; the impacts of volcanism on the Earth system; and biogeochemical cycles. Here, we review the causes of variability in sulfur abundance and speciation in different geodynamic contexts; the measurement of sulfur emissions from volcanoes; links between subsurface processes and surface observations; sulfur chemistry in volcanic plumes; and the consequences of sulfur degassing for climate and the environment. ### Geodynamics and the geochemical behavior of sulfur The …
Measuring Bilateral Spillover and Testing Contagion on Sovereign Bond Markets in Europe

The global financial crisis rapidly spread across borders and financial markets, and also distressed EU bond markets. The crisis did not hit all markets in the same way. We measure the strength and direction of linkages between 16 EU sovereign bond markets using a factor-augmented version of the VAR model in Diebold and Yilmaz (2009). We then provide a novel test for contagion by applying the multivariate structural break test of Qu and Perron (2007) on this FAVAR detecting significant sudden changes in shock transmission. Results indicate substantial spillover, especially between EMU countries, with Belgium, Italy and Spain being key markets during the financial crisis. Contagion has been a rather rare phenomenon limited to a few well defined moments of uncertainty on financial assistance packages for Greece, Ireland and Portugal. Most of the frequent surges in market co-movement are driven by larger shocks rather than by contagion.
The mantle transition zone beneath West Antarctica: Seismic evidence for hydration and thermal upwellings

Although prior work suggests that a mantle plume is associated with Cenozoic rifting and volcanism in West Antarctica, the existence of a plume remains conjectural. Here we use P wave receiver functions (PRFs) from the Antarctic POLENET array to estimate mantle transition zone thickness, which is sensitive to temperature perturbations, throughout previously unstudied parts of West Antarctica. We obtain over 8000 high‐quality PRFs using an iterative, time domain deconvolution method filtered with a Gaussian width of 0.5 and 1.0, corresponding to frequencies less than ∼0.24 and ∼0.48 Hz, respectively. Single‐station and common conversion point stacks, migrated to depth using the AK135 velocity model, indicate that mantle transition zone thickness throughout most of West Antarctica does not differ significantly from the global average, except in two locations; one small region exhibits a vertically thinned (210 ± 15 km) transition zone beneath the Ruppert Coast of Marie Byrd Land and another laterally broader region shows slight, vertical thinning (225 ± 25 km) beneath the Bentley Subglacial Trench. We also observe the 520 discontinuity and a prominent negative peak above the mantle transition zone throughout much of West Antarctica. These results suggest that the mantle transition zone may be hotter than average in two places, possibly due to upwelling from the lower mantle, but not broadly across West Antarctica. Furthermore, we propose that the transition zone may be hydrated due to >100 million years of subduction beneath the region during the early Mesozoic.
Prior Season Crop Type Masks for Winter Wheat Yield Forecasting: A US Case Study

Monitoring and forecasting crop yields is a critical component of understanding and better addressing global food security challenges. Detailed spatial information on crop-type distribution is fundamental for in-season crop condition monitoring and yields forecasting over large agricultural areas, as it enables the extraction of crop-specific signals. Yet, the availability of such data within the growing season is often limited. Within this context, this study seeks to develop a practical approach to extract a crop-specific signal for yield forecasting in cases where crop rotations are prevalent, and detailed in-season information on crop type distribution is not available. We investigated the possibility of accurately forecasting winter wheat yields by using a counter-intuitive approach, which coarsens the spatial resolution of out-of-date detailed winter wheat masks and uses them in combination with easily accessibly coarse spatial resolution remotely sensed time series data. The main idea is to explore an optimal spatial resolution at which crop type changes will be negligible due to crop rotation (so a previous seasons’ mask, which is more readily available can be used) and an informative signal can be extracted, so it can be correlated to crop yields. The study was carried out in the United States of America (USA) and utilized multiple years of NASA Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data, US Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) detailed wheat masks, and a regression-based winter wheat yield model. The results indicate that, in places where crop rotations were prevalent, coarsening the spatial scale of a crop type mask from the previous season resulted in a constant per-pixel wheat proportion over multiple seasons. This enables the consistent extraction of a crop-specific vegetation index time series that can be used for in-season monitoring and yield estimation over multiple years using a single mask. In the case of the USA, using a moderate resolution crop type mask from a previous season aggregated to 5 km resolution, resulted in a 0.7% tradeoff in accuracy relative to the control case where annually-updated detailed crop-type masks were available. These findings suggest that when detailed in-season data is not available, winter wheat yield can be accurately forecasted (within 10%) prior to harvest using a single, prior season crop mask and coarse resolution Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) time series data.
Seasonal differences in endocrine and ovarian patterns of Bos taurus indicus (Nelore) heifers estrous cycles Diferenças sazonais no padrão endócrino e ovariano do ciclo estral de novilhas Bos taurus indicus (Nelore)

Estrous cycle of eight Nelore heifers were evaluated during different seasons of the year (autumn n=11; winter n=8; spring n=9 and summer n=9) with daily count and measurement of follicles ≥3mm, blood was collected every 12h for LH and progesterone (P4), and after estrous every 3h for LH peak. Five ovariectomized heifers were injected with 17β-estradiol (2μg/kg) every season and blood samples collected every 3h (for 30h) thereafter for LH quantification. The monthly percent body weight difference (Δ%) did not vary among seasons. P4 concentration was higher (p<0.01) and follicle number lower during autumn and summer compared to winter and spring. During winter there were more estrous cycles with three and during summer only cycles with two follicular waves (p<0.01). As LH secretion did not vary despite P4 concentration and as there was negative correlation between higher P4 values and daily percentile variation of photoperiod (Δ%, p<0.01; r= -0.45) it is possible to suppose that there is seasonal variation on luteal cell sensitivity to LH. In the ovariectomized Nelore heifers, the LH basal concentration (without estradiol stimulus, p=0.02) and the LH response to estradiol (p<0.01) were lower during summer, leading to the hypothesis that there is seasonal variation of hypothalamic sensitivity to estradiol. According to the present experiment there are suggestions of seasonal reproduction in Nelore heifers.
CLASH-VLT: Environment-driven evolution of galaxies in the z=0.209 cluster Abell 209

The analysis of galaxy properties and the relations among them and the environment, can be used to investigate the physical processes driving galaxy evolution. We study the cluster A209 by using the CLASH-VLT spectroscopic data combined with Subaru photometry, yielding to 1916 cluster members down to a stellar mass of 10^{8.6} Msun. We determine: i) the stellar mass function of star-forming and passive galaxies; ii) the intra-cluster light and its properties; iii) the orbits of low- and high-mass passive galaxies; and iv) the mass-size relation of ETGs. The stellar mass function of the star-forming galaxies does not depend on the environment, while the slope found for passive galaxies becomes flatter in the densest region. The color distribution of the intra-cluster light is consistent with the color of passive members. The analysis of the dynamical orbits shows that low-mass passive galaxies have tangential orbits, avoiding small pericenters around the BCG. The mass-size relation of low-mass passive ETGs is flatter than that of high mass galaxies, and its slope is consistent with that of field star-forming galaxies. Low-mass galaxies are also more compact within the scale radius of 0.65 Mpc. The ratio between stellar and number density profiles shows a mass segregation in the center. The comparative analysis of the stellar and total density profiles indicates that this effect is due to dynamical friction. Our results are consistent with a scenario in which the "environmental quenching" of low-mass galaxies is due to mechanisms such as harassment out to R200, starvation and ram-pressure stripping at smaller radii, as supported by the analysis of the mass function, of the dynamical orbits and of the mass-size relation of passive early-types in different regions. Our analyses support the idea that the intra-cluster light is formed through the tidal disruption of subgiant galaxies.
The Good, the Bad, and the Useless: Multilevel Emissions Policy and the Effectiveness of Commonly Used Federal Transfers

Transfers following simple criteria often aid the mitigation of transboundary environmental externalities. This paper assesses the effectiveness of a uniform federal emissions price combined with simple federal transfer criteria. To do so, we develop a general equilibrium model in which state and federal policies coexist. To ensure the consent of all states, federal policy must make all states better off relative to the decentralized outcome. By considering transfer shares equal to Decentralized Emission Share (DES) levels, equality and juste retour transfers, we demonstrate that the degree of wealth heterogeneity and the states’ reaction to the federal transfer hamper the success of federal policy. Under equality and DES transfers, there is an effective federal minimum emissions price at which the richest state faces the largest cost of the federal policy and at which it receives a social welfare function weight of one. Such cases make the richest state a benevolent hegemon.
CEREBRAL CORRELATES OF MULTIMODAL POINTING: AN FMRI STUDY OF PROSODIC FOCUS, SYNTACTIC EXTRACTION, DIGITAL- AND OCULAR- POINTING

Deixis or pointing plays a crucial role in language acquisition and speech communication and can be conveyed in several modalities. The aim of this paper is to explore the cerebral substrate of multimodal pointing actions. We present an fMRI study of pointing including: 1) index finger pointing, 2) eye pointing, 3) prosodic focus production, 4) syntactic extraction (during speech production). Fifteen subjects were examined while they gave digital, ocular and oral responses inside the 3T imager. Results of a random effect group analysis show that digital and prosodic pointings recruit the parietal lobe bilaterally, while ocular and syntactic pointings do not. A grammaticalization process is suggested to explain the lack of parietal activation in the syntactic condition. Further analyses are carried out on the link between digital and prosodic parietal activations.
Robust Inference with Binary Data VICTORIA-FESER ,

In this paper robustness properties of the maximum likelihood estimator (MLE) and several robust estimators for the logistic regression model when the responses are binary are analysed. It is found that the MLE and the classical Rao's score test can be misleading in the presence of model misspecification which in the context of logistic regression means either misclassification's errors in the responses, or extreme data points in the design space. A general framework for robust estimation and testing is presented and a robust estimator as well as a robust testing procedure are presented. It is shown that they are less influenced by model misspecifications than their classical counterparts. They are finally applied to the analysis of binary data from a study on breastfeeding. VICTORIA-FESER, Maria-Pia. Robust Inference with Binary Data. Psychometrika, 2002, vol.
Computer assisted semen analysis of deccani ram semen presevability at 5ºC

To investigate the preservability of Deccani ram semen in three different extenders - SC (Sodium Citrate), T (Tris), C (Coconut milk) egg yolk extenders after dilution and chilling (5oC) at 1, 24 and 48 hr. of storage. Eight Deccani adult rams (aged 2-4 years) were selected and ejaculate from each ram was divided into 3 aliquots and diluted with SC, T and C extenders (final concentration - 400 million spermatozoa/0.2 ml semen) and stored at 5oC. Semen evaluation was done by computer assisted semen analyser (CASA). Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used to test the significance difference between extenders. S: Sodium citrate (SC) and Tris (T) - Egg yolk extender was significantly (P 0.05) was observed between SC and T. Sperm kinematics assessment by CASA revealed Sodium citrate-based egg-yolk extender (SC) as better extender for preservation of Deccani Ram semen upto 48 hr. of storage as compared to T and C.
Heat Transfer for a Turbine Blade With Nonaxisymmetric Endwall Contouring vortical secondary flows that are present near the endwall of an axial gas

turbine blade are responsible for high heat transfer rates and high aerodynamic losses. The application of nonaxisymmetric, three-dimensional contouring to the endwall surface has been shown to reduce the strength of the vortical flows and decrease total pressure losses when compared with a flat endwall. The reduction in secondary flow strength with nonaxisymmetric contouring might also be expected to reduce endwall heat transfer. In this study, measurements of endwall heat transfer were taken for a low-pressure turbine blade geometry with both flat and three-dimensional contoured endwalls. Endwall oil flow visualization indicated a reduction in the passage vortex strength for the contoured endwall geometry. Heat transfer levels were reduced by 20% in regions of high heat transfer with the contoured endwall, as compared with the flat endwall. The heat transfer benefit of the endwall contour was not affected by changes in the cascade Reynolds number. DOI: 10.1115/1.4000542 A fundamental issue in the design of gas turbine engines is the detrimental effects of vortical flows that are present near the junction of the airfoil and its endwall. These flows, generally termed secondary flows, increase aerodynamic losses through the turbine leading to lower overall engine efficiency. Furthermore, the vortical flows result in high heat transfer rates due to mean flow distortion and high turbulence levels. For highly loaded parts such as the low-pressure turbine blade in this study, part durability can be significantly impacted by high heat transfer. It is obvious that reducing or eliminating the effects of the secondary flows would result in appreciable benefits in an engine, and thus, much research has been conducted to understand these flows and control them. Past research has shown that three-dimensional modifications to the endwall surface, generally referred to as nonaxisymmetric contouring, are an effective method of reducing or eliminating secondary flows. The peaks and valleys in the endwall locally decrease or increase the static pressure, respectively, which can reduce the pressure gradient between adjacent airfoils that strengthens secondary flows. Weaker secondary flows result in lower aerodynamic losses, as has been documented by many researchers. However, few studies have considered the effect of nonaxisymmetric contouring on endwall heat transfer, and thus, the overall benefit of contouring in an engine is not completely understood as of yet. This paper discusses the effect of nonaxisymmetric contouring on the endwall heat transfer for a low-pressure turbine blade. The effect of varying the cascade Reynolds number for both the flat and contoured endwalls is also considered.
Histidine-based copper tetrapeptides as enantioselective catalysts for aldol reactions

Copper(ii)-peptides are widely used as industrial catalysts such as in the aerobic oxidation of organic molecules, formation of new C–H bonds and in the azide–alkyne cycloaddition reaction. The length of peptides and the effect of adding copper metal into peptides were questioned in their field of applications. Five novel histidine-based tetrapeptides with the sequences HAAD (P1), HAFD (P2), HAVD (P3), AGHD (P4) and PGHD (P5) were synthesized using the solid phase peptide scheme and analysed with high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) with percentage purities as high as 99.5%. All the peptides were positively charged (+1) and the molecular weight calculated from m/z values of MS results coincided with the theoretical molecular weight of the peptides. Copper(ii)-peptides derived from these peptides and copper(ii) acetate monohydrate (CuP1–CuP5) in a 1 : 2 ratio was synthesised, purified and characterised by ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-Vis), ultraviolet-fluorescence spectroscopy (fluorescence) and fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), circular dichroism spectroscopy (CD) and optical rotation polarimetry. It provided the necessary information on the secondary structure and the successful binding of copper(ii) to the specific amino acids, hence leading to the putative geometry of copper(ii)-peptides and the difference in the chirality of amino acids, peptides and copper(ii)-peptides. The catalytic activities of the synthesised complexes were evaluated. CuP1 & CuP3 catalysed both the asymmetric aldol reactions with high enantioselectivity of p-nitrobenzaldehyde with cyclohexanone (% ee = 87.3 & 80.3, respectively) and of p-anisaldehyde with cyclohexanone (% ee = 95.5 & 90.9, respectively).
Spatially resolved lifetimes in EFG and string ribbon silicon after gettering and hydrogenation steps

Lifetime improvement in EFG and string ribbon silicon by gettering or defect passivation has been investigated by photoconductance decay. But in contrast to former studies measurements have been carried out in a spatially resolved way. In this way the mapping techniques have been found to be indespensable for an accurate study of processing steps' impact on material quality. This is due to very strong lifetime variations that have been measured throughout the wafer (between <1/spl mu/s and >300/spl mu/s), and because areas of the same starting quality have turned out to react very differently on applied processing steps. Consequently the results of integral measurements strongly depend on the nature of the areas incorporated in the specific sample. A statistical evaluation of the mapped lifetimes gives an impression of the uncertainties inherent to integral measurements.
Food‐web connectance and predator interference dampen the paradox of enrichment

Classic consumer-resource models with hyperbolic functional responses predict that enrichment increases the average biomasses of the species, but eventually leads to species' extinction due to accelerated oscillations ("paradox of enrichment"). However, empirical studies have stressed the complexity of natural food webs and the dominance of sigmoid or predator-interference functional responses, which may dampen population oscillations due to enrichment. Using analytical and numerical methods, we study enrichment effects on simple consumer-resource pairs and complex food webs with hyperbolic Holling type II (hereafter: type II), sigmoid Holling type III (hereafter: type III) and Beddington-De Angelis predator-interference functional responses (hereafter: BDA). Consumer-resource systems with a type III or BDA functional response are highly robust against accelerated oscillations due to enrichment, and the "paradox of enrichment" is resolved under certain parameter combinations. Subsequently, we simulated complex food webs with empirically-corroborated body-size structures of consumers that are ten times larger than their average resource. Our analyses demonstrate positive connectance-stability relationships with BDA or type III functional responses. Moreover, increasing connectance of these food webs also increases the robustness against enrichment in models with a BDA functional response. These results suggest that the well-known destabilising effects of connectance and enrichment found in classic models with type II functional responses may be inverted into stabilising effects in more realistic food-web models that are based on empirically-corroborated body-size structures and BDA or type III functional responses.