Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Temporal variability of climate at the US long-term ecological research (LTER) sites

We examine the temporal climate variability of 18 Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) sites in the United States including Puerto Rico and Antarctica. Annual and seasonal means of air temperature and totals of precipitation were collected from sites for the period 1957-1990 and, for some sites, for longer periods ranging up to a century. Fourteen of the sites show a positive trend in annual mean temperature during the 1957-1990 period, while 4 show a negative trend. Statistical evidence exists at some groups of sites for a step function in temperature and precipitation occurring in the 14 yr either side of 1976. Comparisons suggest that with respect to changes in time, the cli- mates of sites in the North Central part of the US tend to act in concert as one group while the climates of sites near the East Coast tend to act together as a separate group. The climates of the Antarctic sites also seem to act in a coherent manner. There is less coherence among the climates of other LTER sites. These patterns are shown in the variations of the detrended standardized 5 yr mov- ing averages of temperature and precipitation at the sites. The patterns are associated with variations in the values of teleconnective indices, particularly the North Atlantic Oscillation index for the North Central and East Coast LTER sites and the Pacific North American index for the Alaskan and Pacific Northwest group of LTER sites. The climates of some sites, such as those in the center of the country, show some evidence of 'cyclicity' but the record length is too short to make definitive statements about this. We review the variability of some ecological effects that have been documented at LTER sites as this variability relates to the described climate.
Türkiye için Alternatif Bir Anlayış: Kültürel Değerlere Duyarlı Eğitim

Bu calismanin amaci, Kulturel Degerlere Duyarli Egitim (KDDE) anlayisini literature dayali olarak kapsamli bir sekilde incelemek ve KDDE'yi Turkiye'nin sahip oldugu kulturel farkliliklar baglaminda Turkiye icin alternatif bir egitim anlayisi olarak tartismaktir. Arastirma, nitel arastirma yontemlerinden dokuman analizine dayali olarak yapilmistir. Veriler, arastirmacilar tarafindan yaklasik uc yil suren (2015-2018) ulusal ve uluslararasi alan yazin taramalari sonucu toplanmistir. Arastirmada KDDE'nin onemli temsilcilerine ait 15 makale ve 5 kitap temel veri kaynagi olarak kullanilmistir. Arastirmalar sonucunda; Turkiye Egitim Sistemi icerisinde engellilik, sosyoekonomik duzey, etnik kimlik, anadil, dini inanc gibi kulturel ve bireysel farkliliklara sahip cok sayida ogrenci bulundugu, Turkiye'de egitimde esitsizligin; cinsiyet, yasanilan yerlesim yeri (kir ya da kent), kardes sayisi, evde konusulan dil, okul turleri, okullarin devlet okulu veya ozel okul olup olmamasi, sosyoekonomik altyapi ve ogrencilerin bulundugu cografi bolgeler gibi bircok faktore bagli oldugu, Turkiye'de farkli okul ve kademelerde ogrenim goren multeci ogrenci sayisinin bir hayli fazla oldugu ve egitim sisteminde bu tur farkliliklardan dolayi bircok problem yasandigi belirlenmistir. Turkiye'nin sahip oldugu kulturel farkliliklar, cokkulturlu yapi, egitim sisteminde bulunan engelli ve multeci ogrenci sayisi, egitimde esitsizlik raporlari, herkes icin egitim ve egitimde feda edilecek tek bir fert yoktur anlayisi dogrultusunda; Turkiye'de daha kapsayici alternatif egitim anlayislarina ihtiyac oldugu soylenebilir. Ozellikle egitimde firsat esitligi ve egitimde kulturel farkliliklar baglaminda Kulturel Degerlere Duyarli Egitim anlayisi bu ihtiyaclara cevap verebilir. Bu calismanin, ozellikle benzer konularda calisma yapacak arastirmacilara, egitim programcilarina, ogretmen egitimcilerine ve egitim politikacilarina teorik anlamda kaynak teskil etmesi beklenmektedir.
A Comparison of the Effects of Simulation Training and Non-Simulation Training On Self-Efficacy in Providing Women's Health Care

A Comparison of the Effects of Simulation Training and Non-Simulation Training on Self­ Efficacy in Providing Women’s Health Care. The Veterans Administration (VA) recognizes that proficiency in the core concepts of primary care women’s health is required to provide comprehensive primary care for women. A potentially superior form of training that has been recently used for care providers is simulation. The examination of the relationship between simulation training through the Mini-Residency Course and increased self-efficacy among Women’s Health Primary Care Providers (WH-PCP) is important, as the Mini-Residency Course is designed specifically to fill knowledge gaps and enhance the participant’s knowledge and skill. A single post-test only, two group design was used for this study. The experimental group included those who completed simulation training on how to provide effective, essential healthcare to women veterans. The simulation-based training occurred July, 2012. The study gathered survey data designed to determine the level of self-efficacy of practitioners from a sample who had participated in the Mini-Residency program (Part I, or Parts I and II) and compared the levels of self-efficacy to a sample of practitioners who did not participate in simulations. Limited by a low response rate, the study sample included 23 practitioners. A self­ efficacy survey was constructed using Bandura’s self-efficacy theory. The self-efficacy score for this analysis used the mean of six discrete skill items. The reliability of this self-efficacy scale was examined using Cronbach’s alpha. Results indicated reliability at a = . 71. The results failed to demonstrate any statistically significant differences between groups. However, it was noted that a significant result ( p = .10 level) was evident in the differences in mean self-efficacy scores
Leveraging dynamics in computer vision problems: user friendly and theoretically sound tools.

of the Dissertation Leveraging Dynamics in Computer Vision Problems: User Friendly and Theoretically Sound Tools by Caglayan Dicle Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering Northeastern University, August 2016 Dr. Octavia Camps, Advisor Many Computer Vision tasks deal with data, such as video or image sequences, that are highly temporally coherent in content. Some hallmark examples may include tracking, activity recognition, video segmentation, pose estimation . etc. These temporal relations in the data are called dynamics and can be thought of the signature of a temporal signal. Dynamics can be extremely useful in distinguishing competing hypothesis and solving difficult computer vision problems. However one needs proper set of tools to benefit from dynamics of the signal. General approaches in the literature usually either discards the dynamics or underutilize it. Since videos capture tremendous amount of visual information as well, the algorithms benefit that information generally through discriminative visual features. In common cases, visual cues are discriminative enough that frameworks can distinguish competing hypothesis relying only on visual information. In many other cases, the choice of underutilized dynamics leads to fatigue in the performance. In this thesis we advocate leveraging dynamics better in computer vision problems, and exemplify several use cases where such better leveraging improve the state-of-the-art. We illustrate a set of theoretically sound tools to capture and manipulate dynamics, along with those use cases, which does not require field expertise.
Structural evolution of sheared margin basins: the role of strain partitioning. Sørvestsnaget Basin, Norwegian Barents Sea

Spatio‐temporal analysis of basins formed along sheared margins has received much less attention than those formed along orthogonally extended margins. Knowledge about the structural evolution of such basins is important for petroleum exploration but there has been a lack of studies that document these based on 3D seismic reflection data. In this study, we demonstrate how partitioning of strain during deformation of the central and southern part of the Sørvestsnaget Basin along the Senja Shear Margin, Norwegian Barents Sea, facilitated coeval shortening and extension. This is achieved through quantitative analysis of syn‐kinematic growth strata using 3D seismic data. Our results show that during Cenozoic extensional faulting, folds and thrusts developed coevally and orthogonal to sub‐orthogonal to normal faults. We attribute this strain partitioning to be a result of the right‐lateral oblique plate motions along the margin. Rotation of fold hinge‐lines and indications of hinge‐parallel extension indicate that the dominating deformation mechanism in the central and southern Sørvestsnaget Basin during opening along the Senja Shear Margin was transtensional. We also argue that interpretation of shortening structures attributed to inversion along the margin should consider that partitioning of strain may result in shortening structures that are coeval with extensional faults and not a result of a separate compressional phase.
A Monetary Explanation of the Equity Premium, Term Premium, and Risk-Free Rate Puzzles

This paper develops and estimates a monetary model that offers an explanation of some puzzling features of observed returns on equities and default-free bonds. The key feature of the model is that some assets other than money play a special role in facilitating transactions, which affects the rate of return that they offer. The model is capable of producing a low risk-free rate, a high equity premium, and an average positive relationship between maturity and term premium for default-free bonds. The model's implications for the joint distribution of asset returns, velocity, inflation, money growth, and consumption growth are also compared to the behavior of these variables in the U.S. economy.
Business Cycles with Financial Intermediation in Emerging Economies

Financial frictions coupled with shocks to the country premium have been identified as driving force in emerging market business cycles. This paper argues that sudden stops in capital inflows are not necessarily identified by shocks to the country premium, but might in some cases be due to exogenous funding constraints of domestic banks. I augment a standard small open economy business cycle model with leveraged capital importing banks that are subject to financial shocks that mimic a sudden change in investor preference for emerging market assets. Estimating the model in a Bayesian approach using Mexican data, I find that once controlling for the foreign interest rate, its role for the explanation of macroeconomic dynamics is reduced significantly. In particular over the global financial crisis, financial sector shocks have played a larger role for the explanation of investment and current account dynamics. The presented financial sector model is preferred on the basis of the marginal data density in a comparison with two popular alternative approaches to financial frictions.
IN VITRO STUDY OF THE ANTIOXIDANT POTENTIAL OF SOME TRADITIONALLY USED MEDICINAL PLANTS OF NORTH-EAST INDIA AND ASSESSMENT OF THEIR TOTAL PHENOLIC CONTENT

Summary The antioxidant activity of four traditionally used medicinal plants found in the North East region of India was determined. The methanol and aqueous extracts of the plants were evaluated for their in vitro scavenging effects on 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and the reactive oxygen species (ROS), hydroxyl ion (OH•), superoxide anion (O2 • ⎯) free radicals and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). The methanol extracts exhibited varying DPPH and H2O2 scavenging activity with Osbeckia chinensis (IC50= 12.74 ± 0.35 µg/ml) showing the highest activity against DPPH and Potentilla fulgens (IC50= 40.5 ± 1.78 µg/ml) against H2O2. The aqueous extract of Potentilla fulgens was found to be the most active in scavenging O2 • ⎯ radicals (IC50= 14.68 ± 1.07 µg/ml) while the aqueous extract of Flemingia macrophylla comparatively exhibited the highest scavenging activity
Is your fish "bent" and will it survive?

Fish, like humans, can get “bent” when exposed to rapid changes in pressure during capture. The bends, or decompression sickness, is a syndrome associated with a rapid and extensive reduction in environmental barometric pressure (Philp 1974). Because the bends is caused by the application of basic physics to living organisms, it is reasonable to expect that fish suffer bends in a manner similar to humans. Bends has been studied in humans involved in deep-sea diving, high altitude aviation, and underground engineering projects since the beginning of last century. Indeed, the early theories of Haldane and associates (Boycott et al. 1908) are still used today for modelling decompression schedules. Most of our limited understanding of the effects of the bends in fish is based on our knowledge of the bends in humans. Barotrauma is defined here as all the physical effects of rapid and extensive reduction in barometric pressure. Of the barotraumas, the bends is the most well known, but there are other types of barotraumas that affect both humans and fish. Although most of the barotrauma damage occurs internally and thus is invisible, there are some external symptoms. “Bent” fish are most likely widespread in the live reef fish trade, as most of the species that have been examined were found to suffer symptoms of decompression sickness after capture from shallow depths of 10 to 15 metres (m) (see Histopathological studies, below). To increase your understanding and awareness of “bent” fish, I will explain how fish get “bent”, describe other barotraumas in fish, and discuss some useful methods to both prevent pressure-related mortality and increase survival of fish suffering barotraumas.
Spontaneous canine transmissible venereal tumor: cell morphology and influence on P-glycoprotein expression

The present study aimed to determine P-glycoprotein expression according to TVT cell morphology in 42 dogs with confirmed TVT, classified into lymphocytoid, plasmocytoid, and mixed. The chemotherapy efficiency was investigated along with its relation to P-glycoprotein expression in tumoral cells, evaluated by immunocytochemistry, considering positive tumors more than 10% stained. Among the samples collected, 50.00% possessed plasmocytoid morphology, 18.63% lymphocytoid, and 31.37% mixed. The plasmocytoid presented greater immunoreactivity to the anti-P-glycoprotein antibody in relation to the lymphocytoid. It was observed that the plasmocytoid was less sensitive to chemotherapy. The cases that had partial clinical response in the lymphocytoid were less compared with those in the plasmocytoid. Therefore, we can infer that the plasmocytoid presents a potential drug resistance. Based on this study, it can be concluded that the plasmocytoid presents a higher frequency of partial clinical response than the lymphocytoid and mixed, possibly through its higher percentage of anti-P-glycoprotein antibody expression.
A Low Cost Outdoor Service Robot

Most service robots are simple and domestic, functioning only within Wi-Fi enabled homes. Service robots that do function outdoors are usually expensive and consequently foreign to the general public. To provide service robots to everyone, everywhere, we present Nokovic, a low cost service robot built with recycled parts based on FPGA and radio frequency control that recognizes outdoor and indoor human activity to engage with humans in any environment. By building off recycled pieces, Nokovic reduces the costs to construct the recycled robot. Nokovic also implements a novel low cost human activity recognition system that further helps to reduce the resources needed for the service robot to function anywhere. We establish our human activity recognition system by using a histogram of oriented gradients to create two shape based object classes: bikers and walkers, which our system distinguishes from. We study how our human activity recognition method compares with traditional activity recognition classifiers. Based on our design and study, we reflect on the future of low cost service robots for outdoor and indoor activities.
Effect of thermal and chemical modifications on the dimensional stability of Triplochiton scleroxylon (Obeche) wood

This study examined the dimensional stability of thermal and chemically modified Triplochiton scleroxylon (Obeche) wood. Sample planks were obtained froma local sawmill and converted to produce defect free samples of dimensions of 20 mm × 20 mm × 10 mm. wood samples were ovendried at 105°C and cooled in a desiccator to a constant weight before the treatments. Heat treatments of samples were carried out in aMuffle furnace at 160 and 200°C for 30, 60 and 120 min. Butyl acetate was used for chemical treatment. The test samples were analyzed with Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). Dimensional stability of the test samples and untreated (control)weremeasured with parameters such as anti-swelling efficiency (ASE), volumetric swelling (S), and water absorption (WA). Results showed that WA and S values decreased with increase in temperature and treatment time. At a treatment time of 120 minutes, compared with the control, lower values of 11.18 % and 9.23 % were obtained forWAat 160 and 200°C respectively. Volumetric swelling values of 7.31% and 6.06% were obtained at the same temperature and treatment time. Anti-swelling efficiency values also increased with increase in temperature and treatment time. Chemical treatment with butyl acetate produced the highest ASE of 70.41%. These results indicate that the sorption properties of T. scleroxylon wood were reduced as a result of the thermal and chemical modification treatments. Thus, it can be inferred that the treated wood will exhibit a measure of resistance to problems such as bio-deterioration and dimensional instability following ingress of water during use.
Modulation of Jupiter's plasma flow, polar currents, and auroral precipitation by solar wind-induced compressions and expansions of the magnetosphere: a simple theoretical model

Abstract. We construct a simple model of the plasma flow, magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling currents, and auroral precipitation in Jupiter's magnetosphere, and examine how they respond to compressions and expansions of the system induced by changes in solar wind dynamic pressure. The main simplifying assumption is axi-symmetry, the system being modelled principally to reflect dayside conditions. The model thus describes three magnetospheric regions, namely the middle and outer magnetosphere on closed magnetic field lines bounded by the magnetopause, together with a region of open field lines mapping to the tail. The calculations assume that the system is initially in a state of steady diffusive outflow of iogenic plasma with a particular equatorial magnetopause radius, and that the magnetopause then moves rapidly in or out due to a change in the solar wind dynamic pressure. If the change is sufficiently rapid (~2–3 h or less) the plasma angular momentum is conserved during the excursion, allowing the modified plasma angular velocity to be calculated from the radial displacement of the field lines, together with the modified magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling currents and auroral precipitation. The properties of these transient states are compared with those of the steady states to which they revert over intervals of ~1–2 days. Results are shown for rapid compressions of the system from an initially expanded state typical of a solar wind rarefaction region, illustrating the reduction in total precipitating electron power that occurs for modest compressions, followed by partial recovery in the emergent steady state. For major compressions, however, typical of the onset of a solar wind compression region, a brightened transient state occurs in which super-rotation is induced on closed field lines, resulting in a reversal in sense of the usual magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling current system. Current system reversal results in accelerated auroral electron precipitation occurring in the outer magnetosphere region rather than in the middle magnetosphere as is usual, with peak energy fluxes occurring just poleward of the boundary between the outer and middle magnetosphere. Plasma sub-corotation is then re-established as steady-state conditions re-emerge, together with the usual sense of flow of the closed field current system and renewed but weakened accelerated electron precipitation in the middle magnetosphere. Results for rapid expansions of the system from an initially compressed state typical of a solar wind compression region are also shown, illustrating the enhancement in precipitating electron power that occurs in the transient state, followed by partial reduction as steady conditions re-emerge.
Correlation of dyspeptic symptoms and endoscopic findings in diabetic patient

Objective: We aimed to demonstrate the relationship between the endoscopically increased mucosal damage and the frequency of dyspeptic symptoms in patients with diabetes. Material and Methods: The 42 diabetic patients with dyspeptic complain and 40 healthy dyspeptic people were involved in this study and evaluated with video endoscopes. Diabetic patients when compared with the control group according to the endoscopic evaluation and Glasgow Dyspepsia Symptom Scoring System no significant difference had been detected. Results: The symptoms of the diabetic group and the control group were familiar and there was no significant difference between the frequencies of the symptoms in both groups. In dyspeptic diabetic patients a weak correlation between BMI and endoscopically detected hiatal hernia was reported. However there was no relation between BMI and the other gastrointestinal symptoms. Also there was no difference between the patients with neuropathy and without neuropathy in terms of endoscopic findings and gastrointestinal symptoms. Conclusion: Endoscopic findings of diabetic patient and non-diabetic control group were compared statistically. Although gastric ulcus was significantly higher in diabetic group, there was no significant difference between two groups in terms of other endoscopic findings. Hovewer, gastric ulcus frequency in diabetic group is higher, there were no significant difference in terms of gastrointestinal symptoms, diabetic complications and glisemic control in patients with other endoscopic lesions when compared with the patients with gastric ulcus. Hiatal hernia frequency in diabetic patients was higher due to control group. In shed light on our findings, diabetic patients must be evaluated for the esophageal reflux symptoms.
TRANSFORMATION BEHAVIOUR AND MICROSTRUCTURE OF AN API X80 LINEPIPE STEEL SUBJECTED TO SIMULATED THERMOMECHANICAL PROCESSING

The transformation behaviour and microstructural characteristics of the transformation products were studied in an API X80 linepipe steel subjected to simulated controlled rolling followed by controlled cooling. Deformation dilatometry was employed to investigate the transformation characteristics of both recrystallised and heavily deformed austenite during cooling at rates from 0.1°C/s to about 100°C/s and the corresponding CCT diagrams were constructed. The transformation product microstructures were studied in detail using optical, scanning electron, and transmission electron microscopy, complemented by a quantitative image analysis. The detailed transformation and microstructural characteristics, obtained in the present work, could be used for the optimisation of thermomechanical processing schedules for API X80 and similar higher-grade linepipe steels.
Patterns in Khovanov link and chromatic graph homology

Khovanov homology of a link and chromatic graph homology are known to be isomorphic in a range of homological gradings that depend on the girth of a graph. We discuss patterns shared by these two homology theories. In particular, we improve the bounds for the homological span of chromatic homology by Helme-Guizon, Przytycki and Rong. An explicit formula for the rank of the third chromatic homology group on the main diagonal is given and used to compute the corresponding Khovanov homology group and the fourth coefficient of the Jones polynomial for links with certain diagrams.