Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The results of wedge resection and partial pleurectomy in the surgical treatment of primary spontaneous pneumothorax: videothoracoscopy or axillary thoracotomy? Primer spontan pnömotoraksin cerrahi tedavisinde kama rezeksiyon ve parsiyel plevrektominin sonuçlari: Videotorakoskopi mi aksiller torakot

Background:­ In this study we compared the results of wedge resection and partial pleurectomy in primary spontaneous pneumothorax (PSP) patients treated using video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) and axillary thoracotomy approaches. Methods: Four-hundred and seventy-eight patients were treated in our clinic for PSP between January 2007 and December 2008. We performed 110 apical wedge resections with a stapler and a partial pleurectomy in 101 patients. Fortyfive of the procedures were performed with VATS (group V) and 65 with axillary thoracotomy (group T) approaches. The two groups were compared with respect to the duration of the procedure, number of stapler reload units used, duration of chest tube, requirement for postoperative narcotic analgesics, postoperative complications, need for reoperation, and recurrence rate. Student’s t-test, the chi-square test, and Fisher’s exact test were used for the statistical analysis. Results:­ There were no significant differences between groups V and T in terms of age, gender, smoking habits, pneumothorax side, surgical indications, duration of surgery, postoperative duration of chest tube, postoperative complication rate, reoperation rate, or recurrence rate. Narcotic analgesics were needed in five cases in group V and 20 cases in group T (p=0.02). The mean number of stapler reload units used during the operation was 2.7 in group V and 1.43 in group T (p<0.0001). Conclusion:­ Both methods can be safely used in PSP surgery. Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery procedures are less painful, but require more stapler reload units than axillary thoracotomy.
Trials for subjective evaluation of auditory virtual environment

It has been necessary to establish subjective measures for the performance of the virtual acoustic systems. In this paper, we report our trials to evaluate the performance of a three-dimensional sound field reproduction system based on the boundary surface control principle, the ‘Sound Cask’. First, we introduce our investigations for the experts of audio engineering in order to clarify the difference of auditory impression between the Sound Cask and conventional audio systems. Second, we report psychological and physiological experiments focusing on the advantageous points of the Sound Cask, a clear sense of reality, that were pointed out in the investigations for the experts. Finally, we discuss the issues to be considered for subjective evaluation of virtual acoustic systems for future studies.
Nodulation, gas exchanges and production of peanut cultivated with Bradyrhizobium in soils with different textures.

Nitrogen fertilization from biological source is an uncommon practice for peanut growers due to the limited results, mainly in environments with water restriction. In this study, the response of a commercial Bradyrhizobium was evaluated on the nodulation and production of peanuts grown in sandy and medium textured soils. Two experiments using different soils were carried out in the field during the dry season, in Campina Grande, Paraiba State, Brazil. Three peanut genotypes were submitted to the following treatments: 1-no nitrogen fertilization (control), 2- chemical fertilization (ammonium sulfate) and 3- inoculation with Bradyrhizobium [commercial strain BR 1405 (SEMIA 6144)]. A completely randomized 3x3 factorial design was adopted with five repetitions for both experiments. The evaluates variables were: height of the main stem, number of nodes/plant, root length, root dry weight, weight of pods/plant and number of pods/plant. In addition, gas exchanges were estimated using IRGA apparatus. Both genotypes (BRS Havana and L7 Bege) were benefited in relation to production due to an inoculation with SEMIA 6144. No physiological response was verified in genotypes or N-treatments to gas exchange, excepting for the Ci/Ca ratio in the medium textured soil experiment. BRS Havana showed low Ci/Ca ratio in Bradyrhizobium treatment, indicating that SEMIA 6144 improved the plants photosynthetic efficiency.
Genetics of steer daily and residual feed intake in two tropical beef genotypes, and relationships among intake, body composition, growth and other post-weaning measures

Genetic parameters for Brahman (BRAH) and Tropical Composite (TCOMP) cattle were estimated for steer production traits recorded at weaning (WEAN), 80 days post-weaning (POSTW), feedlot entry (ENTRY) and after ∼120 days feedlot finishing (EXIT). The TCOMP was 50% Bos indicus, African Sanga or other tropically adapted Bos taurus, and 50% non-tropically adapted Bos taurus. Data involved 2216 steers, comprising 1007 BRAH by 53 sires and 1209 TCOMP by 50 sires. Individual daily feed intake (DFI) and residual feed intake (RFI) were assessed on 680 BRAH and 783 TCOMP steers over an ~70-day feedlot test. Other traits were liveweight (LWT), average daily gain (ADG), ultrasonically scanned rump (SP8) fat depth, rib (SRIB) fat depth, M. longissimus area (SEMA) and intra-muscular fat % (SIMF), body condition score (CS), hip height (HH), flight time (FT) and serum insulin-like growth factor-I concentration (IGF-I). BRAH were significantly (P < 0.05) lighter at ENTRY and EXIT, and had lower DFI (10.8 v. 13.2 kg/day) and RFI (–0.30 v. 0.17 kg/day), greater SP8 (5.8 v. 5.1 mm) but similar SRIB at ENTRY, lower SRIB (8.2 v. 8.9 mm) but similar SP8 at EXIT, and greater HH than TCOMP. Heritabilities for DFI, RFI, LWT, ADG, scanned body composition, HH and IGF-I measures, across measurement times, were generally in the 20 to 60% range for both genotypes. Genetic variance for RFI was 0.19 (kg/day)2 in BRAH and 0.41 (kg/day)2 in TCOMP, suggesting a clear potential to genetically change RFI in both genotypes. Trait variances and genetic correlations often differed between the genotypes, supporting the use of genotype-specific parameters in genetic evaluation. The genotype differences may be associated with evolutionary changes that have occurred in B. indicus as a part of their adaptation to tropical environments. Measures with potential to be used as genetic indicators of DFI were LWT measures in BRAH and TCOMP, ADG at ENTRY in TCOMP, and SP8 and SIMF at ENTRY in BRAH. Measures with potential to be genetic indicators of RFI were HH and ADG at ENTRY in BRAH, and IGF-I in both genotypes. Taller and faster-growing BRAH steers at ENTRY had genetically lower RFI. IGF-I was negatively genetically correlated with RFI whether IGF-I was measured at POSTW, ENTRY or EXIT. SRIB fatness at EXIT was strongly positively genetically correlated with RFI in TCOMP but only lowly correlated in BRAH. Fatness at ENTRY was lowly and negatively genetically correlated with RFI. The results emphasise the need for a population-specific understanding of trait relationships and of trait differences between measurement times if genetic indicator traits are to be utilised in genetic evaluation of RFI.
Fetal Skeletal Size and Growth are Relevant Biometric Markers in Vitamin D Deficient Mothers: A North East India Prospective Cohort Study

Context: The neonatal skeletal outcomes due to maternal Vitamin D deficiency. Aims: The aim of this study is to assess the serum 25 hydroxy Vitamin D (25[OH]D) status in pregnant women and correlate with cord blood 25(OH)D levels, femur length at 34 weeks gestation, and neonatal anthropometry (birth weight, birth length, and head circumference). Settings and Design: This was prospective cohort study. Subjects and Methods: This study was carried out in 250 healthy primigravida between 18 and 40 years of age in the third trimester of gestation attending the Obstetrics and Gynaecology Department of Gauhati Medical College, Guwahati from December 2012 to December 2015. Dietary assessment of calcium and Vitamin D intake, sunlight exposure among the pregnant mothers and fetal femur length measurements were done. The neonates were followed up at birth for biometric assessment and the estimation of cord 25(OH)D. Statistical Analysis Used: Chi-square test and Pearson correlation were carried out to see the association and correlation between different variables. Statistical significance was set at the 0.05 level. Results: We found low Vitamin D levels (60%) in the majority of pregnant mothers and newborns (62.4%). The mean Vitamin D levels were 17.51 ± 2.24 ng/ml and 14.51 ± 1.8 ng/ml among the low Vitamin D maternal subjects and their new born, respectively. There was a significant association of maternal Vitamin D levels with sun exposure, dietary intake of Vitamin D, serum calcium, serum alkaline phosphatase levels, and serum parathyroid hormone in subjects with low Vitamin D. Fetal femur length and birth length were significantly shorter in mothers with low Vitamin D (P < 0.01). Conclusions: Maternal hypovitaminosis D was associated with adverse skeletal outcome in neonates.
Valley-contrasting physics in all-dielectric photonic crystals: Orbital angular momentum and topological propagation

The valley has been exploited as a binary degree of freedom to realize valley-selective Hall transport and circular dichroism in two-dimensional layered materials, in which valley-contrasting physics is indispensable in making the valley index an information carrier. In this Rapid Communication, we reveal valley-contrasting physics in all-dielectric valley photonic crystals. The link between the angular momentum of light and the valley state is discussed, and unidirectional excitation of the valley chiral bulk state is realized by sources carrying orbital angular momentum with proper chirality. Characterized by the nonzero valley Chern number, valley-dependent edge states and the resultant broadband robust transport is found in such an all-dielectric system. Our work has potential in the orbital angular momentum assisted light manipulation and the discovery of valley-protected topological states in nanophotonics and on-chip integration.
The chemerin knockout rat reveals chemerin dependence in female, but not male, experimental hypertension

Measures of the adipokine chemerin are elevated in multiple cardiovascular diseases, including hypertension, but little mechanistic work has been done to implicate chemerin as being causative in such diseases. The chemerin knockout (KO) rat was created to test the hypothesis that removal of chemerin would reduce pressure in the normal and hypertensive state. Western analyses confirmed loss of chemerin in the plasma and tissues of the KO vs. wild‐type (WT) rats. Chemerin concentration in plasma and tissues was lower in WT females than in WT males, as determined by Western analysis. Conscious male and female KO rats had modest differences in baseline measures vs. the WT that included systolic, diastolic, mean arterial and pulse pressures, and heart rate, all measured telemetrically. The mineralocorticoid deoxycorticosterone acetate (DOCA) and salt water, combined with uninephrectomy as a hypertensive stimulus, elevated mean and systolic blood pressures of the male KO higher than the male WT. By contrast, all pressures in the female KO were lower than their WT throughout DOCA‐salt treatment. These results revealed an unexpected sex difference in chemerin expression and the ability of chemerin to modify blood pressure in response to a hypertensive challenge. —Watts, S. W. , Darios, E. S. , Mullick, A. E. , Garver, H. , Saunders, T. L. , Hughes, E. D. , Filipiak, W. E. , Zeidler, M. G. , McMullen, N. , Sinal, C. J., Kumar, R. K. , Ferland, D. J., Fink, G. D. The chemerin knockout rat reveals chemerin dependence in female, but not male, experimental hypertension. FASEB J. 32, 6596–6614 (2018). www.fasebj. org
Potential feeding and spawning habitats of Atlantic bluefin tuna in the Mediterranean Sea

Atlantic bluefin tuna Thunnus thynnus (ABFT) is a fish of high market value which has recently become strongly overexploited, notably in the Mediterranean Sea. This area is an essential habitat for ABFT reproduction and growth. We present here an approach for deriving the daily mapping of potential ABFT feeding and spawning habitats based on satellite-derived sea surface temperature (SST) and chl a concentration. The feeding habitat was mainly derived from the simultaneous occurrence of oceanic fronts of temperature and chl a content while the spawn- ing habitat was mostly inferred from the heating of surface waters. Generally, higher chl a con- tents were found to be preferred for the feeding habitat and a minimum SST value was found for the spawning habitat. Both habitats were defined by the presence of relevant oceanographic fea- tures and are therefore potential and functionally-linked habitats. This approach provides, for the first time, a synoptic view of the potential ABFT habitats in the Mediterranean Sea. The model performs well in areas where both satellite data and ABFT observations are available, as 80% of presence data are in the vicinity of potential habitats. The computed monthly, seasonal and annual maps of potential feeding and spawning habitat of ABFT from 2003 to 2009 are in good agreement with current knowledge on ABFT. Overall, the habitat size of ABFT is about 6% of the Medi - terranean Sea surface. The results displayed a strong seasonality in habitat size and locations as well as high year-to-year variations (30 to 60%), particularly for the potential spawning habitat, which is key information for evaluating the utility of ABFT Marine Protected Areas in the Medi - terranean Sea.
Reining in the Red Queen: the dynamics of adaptation and extinction reexamined

Abstract One of the most enduring evolutionary metaphors is Van Valen's (1973) Red Queen. According to this metaphor, as one species in a community adapts by becoming better able to acquire and defend resources, species with which it interacts are adversely affected. If those other species do not continuously adapt to compensate for this biotically caused deterioration, they will be driven to extinction. Continuous adaptation of all species in a community prevents any single species from gaining a long-term advantage; this amounts to the Red Queen running in place. We have critically examined the assumptions on which the Red Queen metaphor was founded. We argue that the Red Queen embodies three demonstrably false assumptions: (1) evolutionary adaptation is continuous; (2) organisms are important agents of extinction; and (3) evolution is a zero-sum process in which living things divide up an unchanging quantity of resources. Changes in the selective regime need not always elicit adaptation, because most organisms function adequately under many “suboptimal” conditions and often compensate by demonstrating adaptive flexibility. Likewise, ecosystems are organized in such a way that they tend to be robust and capable of absorbing invasions and extinctions, at least up to a point. With a simple evolutionary game involving three species, we show that Red Queen dynamics (continuous adaptation by all interacting species) apply in only a very small minority of possible outcomes. Importantly, cooperation and facilitation among species enable competitors to increase ecosystem productivity and therefore to enlarge the pool and turnover of resources. The Red Queen reigns only under a few unusual circumstances.
Exploration of Technical Debt in Start-ups

Context: Software start-ups are young companies aiming to build and market software-intensive products fast with little resources. Aiming to accelerate time-to-market, start-ups often opt for ad-hoc engineering practices, make shortcuts in product engineering, and accumulate technical debt. Objective: In this paper we explore to what extent precedents, dimensions and outcomes associated with technical debt are prevalent in start-ups. Method: We apply a case survey method to identify aspects of technical debt and contextual information characterizing the engineering context in start-ups. Results: By analyzing responses from 86 start-up cases we found that start-ups accumulate most technical debt in the testing dimension, despite attempts to automate testing. Furthermore, we found that start-up team size and experience is a leading precedent for accumulating technical debt: larger teams face more challenges in keeping the debt under control. Conclusions: This study highlights the necessity to monitor levels of technical debt and to preemptively introduce practices to keep the debt under control. Adding more people to an already di cult to maintain product could amplify other precedents, such as resource shortages, communication issues and negatively a ect decisions pertaining to the use of good engineering practices.
Data from: Fragment size affects plant herbivory via predator loss

Fragmentation and resultant changes in patch size are predicted to alter species diversity and community composition, yet the consequences of these differences for species interactions are poorly understood. Theory predicts that predators are more sensitive to fragmentation than their prey, resulting in greater predator loss in small patches. Predator loss, in turn, is predicted to 1) increase herbivory rates overall, and 2) cause herbivores to shift feeding from plants that act as refugia to those that are preferred forage. We tested these predictions in an old-field community using two experiments. The first was a large-scale experiment that included hundreds of arthropod species in fragments of various sizes, and used goldenrod and switchgrass to assess herbivory. Our second experiment manipulated densities of a focal predator species and a focal prey species to determine if changes in densities, rather than other characteristics of fragments, were sufficient to cause the trends observed in the first experiment. We found that predator densities declined in small fragments whereas herbivore densities showed the opposite trend. Total herbivory mirrored herbivore densities by increasing in small patches, and this mean increase was driven by large increases in goldenrod herbivory but declines in switchgrass herbivory. Experimental manipulation of densities confirmed that herbivores preferentially feed on goldenrod, and that predators depress herbivory on goldenrod but have a negligible effect on switchgrass. Our results suggest that fragmentation alters trophic interactions by causing declines in predator densities and increases in herbivore densities, but that feeding preferences of herbivores may generate unequal impacts among plant species.
SCREENING AND PRODUCTION OF PHYTASE FROM SOME BACTERIAL GENERA

The objectives of the present study were to screen for production of phytases by some bacterial genera. Phytases were produced by E. coli, Bacillus amyloliquefaciens strain DSM 7 and Klebsiella sp. Strain ASR1 which were compared to a commercial Aspergillus phytase. The E. coli phytase was recovered from the fermentation medium with total phytase activity of 2000 units per gram lyophilized supernatant. The Bacillus amyloliquefaciens phytase was had an average activity of 0.4 units per milliliter and 24 phytase units per gram after it was lyophilized. The Klebsiella sp. Strain ASR1 phytase average yield was 7.0 units per milliliter and 88.0 FTU/g after lyophilization, while Aspergillus phytase had 5000 units of activity per gram. pH profile, temperature optima, thermostability as well as enzyme kinetics and molecular weight were investigated in the different phytases in vitro. Aspergillus, E. coli and Klebsiella phytases displayed optimal activity in acidic pH range while Bacillus phytase in neutral pH. Bacillus phytase was more resistant to heat treatment. The Km and Vmax values for E. coli phytase were higher compared to other phytases.
6 Heat Transfer in Molecular Crystals

This short review does not pretend to comprehend all available information concerning the thermal conductivity of molecular crystals, in particular, at low temperatures (below 20K). For such kind of information see, for example, Batchelder, 1977; Gorodilov et al., 2000; Jezowski et al., 1997; Ross et al., 1974; Stachowiak et al., 1994. The goal of this paper consists in presentation and generalization of the new experimental results and theoretical models, accumulated over the past 2-3 decades, to a certain extent changing existing view about the heat transfer in crystals. Quite recently, it was not doubted that high-temperature thermal conductivity of molecular crystals is proportional to the inverse temperature, Λ∝1/T. It was based on both the experimental data and assumptions being evident at first sight from which this dependence followed. In simple kinetic model, the phonon thermal conductivity can be represented as Λ=1/3Cvl, where C (the heat capacity) and v (the sound velocity) can be considered to be constant at T≥ΘD, and averaged phonon mean-free path l is inversely proportional to the temperature. More precise expression (see, for example, Berman, 1976; Slack, 1979) can be written in the form:
Physiological potential of cytokines and liver damages

Cytokines are soluble extracellular small molecular weight protein or peptide. They are produced by virtually every nucleated cell type in response to injurious stimuli to control body metabolism, infection, inflammation and tissue or neuronal damage; therefore acting as messengers between tissues and the immune system; and participating in many physiological processes through their either anti-inflammatory or pro-inflammatory characteristics. Many cytokines have multiple cellular sources and targets, as well as many natural inducers and inhibitors. In pathophysiological conditions and during the early phase of chronic liver diseases, agent like virus, bacteria, parasites, ethanol, or toxins, induce secretion of cytokines at high levels. The presence of cytokine antagonists and soluble cytokine receptors, often released in concert with their respective cytokine agonist, presents additional complexity to interpretation.
98 2 . 1 Executable Architecture Research at Old Dominion University Executable Architecture Research at Old Dominion University

Abstr3,ct. Executable Architectures allow the evaluation of system architectures not only regClrding their stalic, but also their dynamic behavIOr. H.owever, th7 5ys~ems engineering community do not agree on a common formal specification of executable architectures. To ,close this ,gap and Identify necessa.rr elements of an executable architecture , a modeling language , and a modeling formalism is tOPIC of ongoing P.hD, research. In, a~dltlOn , systems are generally defined and applied in an operational context to provide capabilities and enable mlsslO~s. To ~axlmlZe the benerlts of ex~cutable architectures. a second PhD effort introduces the idea of creating an executable context In addition to the e.ecutable architecture . The results move the validation of architectures from the current information domain into the knowledge doma in and improve the reliabimy of such validation efforts. The paper presents research and results of both doctoral research efforts and puts them into a common context of state-of-the-art of systems engineering methods supporting more agility.