Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Mechanical Behavior of a Hard-Setting Luvisol Soil as Influenced by Soil Water and Effective Confining Stress

A series of experiments were carried out using a triaxial system modified for unsaturated soil testing to investigate the mechanical behavior of a luvisol soil under varying soil water and effective confining stress levels. Mechanical properties and deviatoric stress-strain relationships of the soil were also established. The specimens were prepared under laboratory conditions where the inter-particle cementation bonds were allowed to form to their natural state. An unsaturated soil mechanics approach was used to define critical state relations for the soil. All specimens attained a critical-state under continuous shearing as a function of the level of effective confining stress. The results demonstrate that brittle / ductile behavior of unsaturated soils and their tendency to dilate / compact at failure are both controlled by soil water and effective confining stress levels. An exponential model used to fit the deviatoric stress - axial strain test data accurately predicted the trends. Soil water significantly influenced the shear strength and internal angle of friction (φ′) and hence the mechanical behavior of the luvisol soil. The regression equation developed showed that φ′ have quadratic relationships with soil water with an asymptotic surface (transitional stage). Hence, in soil tillage the transitional range (w.c. 5 - 9% d.b.) could be taken as a useful guide (soil friable state) towards understanding soil behavior upon loading when machinery and equipment traverses agricultural fields. Numerous researchers have placed great emphasis in performing tillage operations when soils are at the friable states hence minimizing compaction.
Applicability of Microfinance for Adaptation to Sea Level Rise Impacts

The aim of this study is to study the applicability of hypothetical microfinance for household adaptation to sea level rise impacts at community level. The study examines two hypothesis: 1) microfinance can (cannot) be applied as an adaptive measure to the impacts of sea level rise; 2) whether or not the factors of risk perceptions, attitudes, social references, microfinance conditions, government supports, and demographic influence an individual participation to a designed microfinance. The study sites are six vulnerable coastal villages located in the Gulf of Thailand. A designed microfinance for adaptation to sea level rise impacts is assumed in hypothetical market and tested with residents in the villages. Acceptance analysis, Pearson correlation, and stepwise regression analysis are used to test the hypothesis of the study. The study results reveal that microfinance can be applied for household adaptation to sea level rise impacts at community level. However, there are some correlated factors that affect individual participation to the designed microfinance. The likelihood of successful implementation of microfinance for the adaptation purposes is depended on how those factors affecting participation are properly addressed by implementer.
THERMODYNAMIC MODELLING OF DIESEL ENGINE PROCESSES FOR PREDICTING ENGINE PERFORMANCE

Development of new engines demands both sophisticated hardware and time to arrive at optimum designs in view of increasingly stringent emission regulations and fuel economy. The researchers are focusing on computational studies. The paper deals with the modelling of diesel engine processes considering heat losses, and variable specific heats using double-Wiebe function for the heat release. High speed diesel fuel C10.8H18. 7 is considered for calculations. Fuel injection timing, engine speed, inlet charge pressure and exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) are observed to be pertinent parameters affecting diesel engine performance. Numerical experiments are performed on MS Excel platform and heat release (both premixed and diffusion phases), in-cylinder pressure and temperature histories are predicted. It was found that early injection timing leads to higher levels of pressure and temperature in the cylinder. However, with the increase in EGR levels, lower in-cylinder pressures and temperatures are obtained.
Large magnetoresistance in nonmagnetic π -conjugated semiconductor thin film devices

Following the recent observation of large magnetoresistance at room temperature in polyfluorene sandwich devices, we have performed a comprehensive magnetoresistance study on a set of organic semiconductor sandwich devices made from different pi-conjugated polymers and small molecules. The study includes a range of materials that show greatly different chemical structure, mobility, and spin-orbit coupling strength. We study both hole and electron transporters at temperatures ranging from 10 K to 300 K. We observe large negative or positive magnetoresistance (up to 10% at 300 K and 10 mT) depending on material and device operating conditions. We discuss our results in the framework of known magnetoresistance mechanisms and find that none of the existing models can explain our results.
Upper Tithonian ammonites (Himalayitidae Spath, 1925 and Neocomitidae Salfeld, 1921) from Charens (Drôme, France)

Abstract This contribution focuses on the Perisphinctoidea ammonite taxa from the Upper Tithonian at Charens (Drôme, south-east France). Emphasis is laid on five genera that belong to the families Himalayitidae and Neocomitidae. We document the precise vertical range of the index-species Micracanthoceras microcanthum, and a comparative ontogenetic- biometric analysis sheds new light on its range of variation and dimorphism as compared to the bestknown Spanish populations. As herein understood, the lower boundary of the M. microcanthum Zone (base of the Upper Tithonian) is fixed at the FAD of its index species. The faunal assemblages and species distribution of the P. andreaei Zone are rather similar to those described at the key-section of Le Chouet as confirmed by the co-occurrence of the genera Protacanthodiscus, Boughdiriella and Pratumidiscus. New palaeontological evidence supports the view that the basal Neocomitidae Busnardoiceras busnardoi was derived from Protacanthodiscus andreaei in the upper part of the P. andreaei Zone.
NEW APPROACHES FOR IN VITRO PROPAGATION OF OIL-BEARING ROSE

GinovA, A. and v. KondAKovA, 2013. new approaches for in vitro propagation of oil-bearing rose. Bulg. J. Agric. Sci., 19: 1198-1203 This research was undertaken to overcome two essential problems, which arise during the process of micropropagation of Rosa damascena Mill. f. trigintipetala dieck. - in vitro rooting and top necrosis. These problems decrease application of in vitro technologies for mass production of oil – bearing rose plants. The nodal segments from young, active growing shoots were cultured on MS medium with 0.5 mg l -1 BA for shoot induc tion. Then they are transferred on proliferation medium including QL, 0.5 mg l -1 BA, 0.1 mg l -1 iBA, 0.1 mg l -1 GA 3 , 0.1 g l -1 FeEddHA. in this study was tested 3 media (MS, QL, WPM) with different combination of hormones for induction of roots. The combination of ½ QL macro salt, QL micro salt and vitamins, 20 g l -1 sucrose, 0.4 mg l -1 iBA, 0.4 mg l -1 iAA, 250 mg l -1 meso – inositol and 250 mg l -1 casein hydrolizate (liquid medium) was the most suitable treatment for rooting. The shoots, which developed roots, are 90%. it was used a temporary immersion bioreactor system R iTA® for optimize the micropropagation system. it was very effective for overcome the problem with necrosis because factors, which provoke it, were eliminated. In this article, we report for first time potential capacity of bioreactor system “RITA” for propagation of recalcitrant species as Rosa damascenа Mill.
Transpiration, intercellular carbon dioxide concentration and carbon-isotope discrimination of 24 wild species differing in relative growth rate

Various aspects of the water economy were investigated for a range of herbaceous species varying in relative growth rate. Plants were grown in a growth chamber with a non-limiting supply of water and nutrients, and the rate of transpiration, short-term intercellular CO2 concentration and longterm carbon isotope discrimination (∆) in the leaves were determined. No correlation was found between the relative growth rate of these species, and the transpiration rate per unit leaf area, the intercellular CO2 concentration and the 13 C-discrimination. There was a positive correlation, however, with the rate of water uptake per unit root weight. From these observations we infer that the previously observed differences in photosynthetic nitrogen-use efficiency, the rate of photosynthesis per unit leaf nitrogen, can not be explained by variation in intercellular CO2 concentration. These data were also used to analyse correlations between ∆ and both growth parameters and chemical composition. Apart from parameters related to the water economy, ∆ only correlated (positively) with the fractional biomass allocation to the roots (root weight ratio) and the specific root length (root length divided by root weight), and not with any other investigated growth parameters.
ICTP as a Diagnostic Marker of Bone Resorption and Its Relation to Disease Progression and Treatment Response in Multiple Myeloma

1 MD Clinical Pathology, Professor of Clinical Pathology, Clinical Pathology Dept, Ain Shams University 2 MD Clinical Pathology, Lecturer of Clinical Pathology, Clinical Pathology Dept, Ain Shams University Corresponding Author Gehan Mostafa Hamed 67 El Nasr St, Sheraton Heliopolis, Cairo, Egypt Email: gehanzeina@yahoo.com Mobile no.: 00202 01224954542 Abstract Aim: To assess the significance of collagen type I carboxy terminal telopeptide (ICTP) as a diagnostic marker of osteolysis, as well as its relation to disease progression and response to treatment in multiple myeloma (MM). Subject and methods: ICTP was measured in 40 newly diagnosed MM patients (including 22 patients with osteolytic lesion), and 20 ageand sexmatched controls. Patients were followed up for detection of their response to treatment. Results: The median and IQR levels of ICTP were significantly elevated in MM patients compared with controls (0.65 [0.15-0.8] ng/mL versus 0.05 [0.04-0.07] ng/mL, p<0.001), with significant higher median levels among patients with osteolytic lesion compared with myeloma patients without osteolytic lesion (0.7 [0.65 – 1.0] ng/mL versus 0.1 [0.1 -0.2] ng/mL, p<0.001). According to ROC curve analysis, ICTP at a cutoff 0.3 ng/mL could detect osteolytic lesion with high sensitivity and specificity. ICTP was positively correlated with markers of renal impairment, hypercalcemia, anemia, thrombocytopenia and poor prognostic factors; lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), C reactive protein (CRP), hypoalbuminaemia, and β2-microglobulin (β2M) (p<0.05). Using logistic regression analysis, ICTP was found to be a significant predictor of osteolysis. Moreover, initial ICTP levels were higher in progressive/relapsed myeloma patients compared with responsive/stable patients (p<0.001). Conclusion: We suggest that ICTP is a reliable marker that can be used in the diagnosis and prediction of osteolytic lesion and prediction of treatment response in MM.
Prevalence of Urinary Incontinence in the Elderly in Banpru Municipality, Hat Yai District, Songkhla Province, Thailand

Objective: To study the prevalence of urinary incontinence in the elderly, the impacts of urinary incontinence, and the reasons why elderly people with urinary incontinence do not seek treatment from a doctors, and to study self-management when urinary incontinence occurs. Material and Method: This was a cross-sectional descriptive study. Interviews were performed with 300 residents aged 60 and above residing in subdistricts 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9 of Banpru municipality, Hat Yai district, Songkhla province. The questionnaire was modified from the International Consultation on Incontinence Modular Questionnaire and tested for content validity and reliability. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-square test and Fisher’s exact test. Results: It was found that 23 of the 300 subjects interviewed (8.0%) had urinary incontinence. Fifteen female (65.0%) and 8 male (35.0%). Almost half of the patients (48.0%) were between 70 and 79 years old. The most common type of urinary incontinence was stress incontinence (13 persons: 57.0%). The most common impact of their urinary incontinence was givenas boredom (20 persons: 87.0%). Only 2 had seen a doctor (8.0%). Twenty-one said they were afraid to go out to see their doctor because they thought this symptom was an effect of aging (91.0%) and took no action when urinary incontinence occurred. Conclusions: The prevalence of urinary in continence in people aged 60 and above was 8.0%. Just eight percent of those suffering from incontinence had consulted a doctor, while the rest did not because they thought that urinary incontinence was a characteristic of aging. Therefore, the dissemination of knowledge about urinary incontinence will increase awareness and understanding of this symptom in the elderly.
Contribution of the Dosage of Nt-ProBNP in the Assessment of Pulmonary Embolism Severity in Black African Community

Abstract Objective: To determine the role of NT-proBNP in the assessment of the severity of pulmonary embolism. Patients and methods: The study was performed at Atinkanmey, a private hospital of Cotonou. It is a retrospective, analytical and transversal study, over a period of 3 years (1 January 2009 to 31 December 2011). The study included 35 patients ≤75 years followed for pulmonary embolism with whom the NT-proBNP dosage was performed. NT-proBNP was compared to other severity criteria such as low blood pressure, tachycardia, Pulmonary Embolism Severity Index, the right ventricular trombosis and dilatation of the right cavities associated with PAH. Results: NT-proBNP is lower than 1000ng /L in 27 patients (77.1%) and higher than 1000ng/L in 8 patients. The sensitivity of NT-proBNP is low compared to severity criteria studied. It varies from 33% to 50%. The specificity is improved and reached 100% when the NT-proBNP is compared to dilation of the right cavities. The best negative predictive value is obtained with low blood pressure (92.6%). The best positive predictive value (PPV) was found by comparing the NT-proBNP to dilatation of the right cavities. Conclusion: The rise of NT-proBNP is not always associated with the presence of gravity criteria studied. Normality seems more associated with lack of dilation of the right cavities.
Insights into the growth of newly formed particles in a subtropical urban environment

Abstract. The role of different chemical compounds, particularly organics, involved in the new particle formation (NPF) and its consequent growth are not fully understood. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the chemical composition of aerosol particles during NPF events in an urban subtropical environment. Aerosol chemical composition was measured along with particle number size distribution (PNSD) and several other air quality parameters at five sites across an urban subtropical environment. An Aerodyne compact Time-of-Flight Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (c-ToF-AMS) and a TSI Scanning Mobility Particle Sizer (SMPS) measured aerosol chemical composition (particles above 50 nm in vacuum aerodynamic diameter) and PNSD (particles within 9–414 nm in mobility diameter), respectively. Five NPF events, with growth rates in the range 3.3–4.6 nm, were detected at two of the sites. The NPF events happened on relatively warmer days with lower condensation sink (CS). Temporal percent fractions of organics increased after the particles grew enough to have a significant contribution to particle volume, while the mass fraction of ammonium and sulfate decreased. This uncovered the important role of organics in the growth of newly formed particles. Three organic markers, factors f43, f44 and f57, were calculated and the f44 vs. f43 trends were compared between nucleation and non-nucleation days. K-means cluster analysis was performed on f44 vs. f43 data and it was found that they follow different patterns on nucleation days compared to non-nucleation days, whereby f43 decreased for vehicle-emission-generated particles, while both f44 and f43 decreased for NPF-generated particles. It was found for the first time that vehicle-generated and newly formed particles cluster in different locations on f44 vs. f43 plot, and this finding can be potentially used as a tool for source apportionment of measured particles.
Effect of interleukin-1 β on cell proliferation

Nilkaeo, A. Effect of interleukin-1β on cell proliferation Songklanakarin J. Sci. Technol. , 2003, 25(5) : 607-614 Interleukin-1 (IL-1), a pro-inflammatory cytokine, has been undergoing clinical evaluation for its anti-neoplastic activity in potentiating the immune response. However, direct effects of this cytokine on cell proliferation in some cancer cells are not well understood. In this study, nonradioactive MTT proliferation assays were employed to investigate the role IL-1 in regulation of proliferation in 5 cell lines. Recombinant human IL-1β treatment resulted in inhibition of cell proliferation as well as the induction of cytotoxicity compared to the untreated control groups (p<0.05) in Jar, MCF-7, and HEL cell lines, whereas proliferation of Caco-2 cells was not affected. Furthermore, its stimulatory effect was observed in KB cell line. The findings in this study indicated that IL-1 has both inhibitory and stimulatory effects on cell growth and would provide more insight into the better administration of this cytokine in immunotherapy.
Fiscal Policy Multipliers in the EU During the Credit Crisis: A DSGE Analysis

This paper uses a multi region DSGE model with collateral constrained households and residential investment to examine the effectiveness of fiscal policy stimulus measures in a credit crisis. The paper explores alternative scenarios which differ by the type of budgetary measure, its length, the degree of monetary accommodation and the level of international coordination. It is found that an increase in households facing credit constraints and the fact that the zero lower bound on nominal interest rates has become binding both increase the effectiveness of temporary fiscal stimulus measures.
A simulation study on the effect of AEB on injuries on 50% occupants

The paper presents a simulation study on the effects of varied crash speed (due to pre-crash deployment of Automated Braking System) on the injuries sustained by vehicle occupants in a subsequent crash. The methodology used for the study, has been previously outlined (1), showing the effects of altered pre-crash conditions due to emergency braking. The present study focuses on exploring the adaptability potentials of existing state-of-the-art restraint systems to protect occupants even better under different collision conditions created by deployment of AEB. In the simulation study, a generic passenger vehicle (d-class) is exposed to a reference 56 km/h USNCAP Full Width Frontal test preceded by emergency braking of about 0.8g derived from vehicle testing. In order to investigate the effect of collision speed on the efficiency of occupant protection, a crash pulse scaling method was developed and accordingly applied. This allowed to investigate the case at every random crash speed below 56 km/h. All simulations are performed in MADYMO (a multibody, numerical solver) and use 3 different 50%-ile occupant models: Active Human Model (AHM), Hybrid III and THOR. The results show significant capacities of a DOE optimized safety system in reducing AIS 2+ injury risk for the varied collision speed, especially in the range of 25-40 km/h delta V. The introduction of adaptability of restraint system settings to the varied collision speeds (different than specified by test protocols) resulted in significant improvement of occupant protection. It is thus anticipated that introduction of further system adaptations to the other crash condition parameters will have similar or even more pronounced beneficial effect. Further studies will be focused on adapting restraint systems to varied occupants parameters (size, BMI, age), occupant out of position and also collision conditions e.g. crash angle or crash severity based on predictive detection and classification of collision participants.
Personality, self-estimated intelligence, and uses of music: A Spanish replication and extension using structural equation modeling.

This study replicates and extends a recent study on personality, intelligence and uses of music [Chamorro-Premuzic, T. , & Furnham, A. (2007). Personality and music: Can traits explain how people use music in everyday life? British Journal of Psychology, 98, 175–185] using Spanish participants and structural equation modeling. Data from 245 university students showed that, in line with our hypotheses, individuals higher in Neuroticism were more likely to use music for emotional regulation (influencing their mood states), those higher in Extraversion were more likely to use music as background to other activities, and those higher in Openness were more likely to experience music in a cognitive or intellectual way. As predicted, self-estimates of intelligence were also linked to cognitive use of music, though not when individual differences were considered. On other hand, contrasting with initial predictions, Extraversion was positively rather than negatively linked to emotional use of music. Small incremental effects of gender (over personality) were also found on the emotional use of music. Results are discussed in regards to previous findings on personality traits as determinants of uses of music.
Density waves and star formation in grand-design spirals

Context. H II regions in the arms of spiral galaxies are indicators of recent star-forming processes. They may have been caused by the passage of the density wave or simply been created by other means near the arms. The study of these regions may give us clues to clarify the controversy about the existence of a triggering scenario, as proposed in the density-wave theory. Aims. If the passage of the density wave contributes significantly to the formation of H II regions in the arms of grand-design spirals, we can find a relationship in their position relative to the arms. Methods. Using Hα direct imaging, we characterize the H II regions from a sample of three grand-design galaxies: NGC 5457, NGC 628, and NGC 6946. Broad-band images in R and I were used to determine the position of the arms. The H II regions found to be associated with arms were selected for the study. The age and star formation rate of these H II regions was obtained using measurements on the Hα line. The distance between the current position of the selected H II regions and the position they would have if they had been created in the centre of the arm was calculated. A parameter, T , which measures whether a region was created in the arm or in the disc, was defined. Results. With the help of the T parameter we determine that the majority of regions were formed some time after the passage of the density wave, and the regions are located behind the zone they should have occupied (in the direction of the rotation of the galaxy) had they been formed in the centre of the arm. Moreover, the relative efficiency of the star formation rate between arm and interarm was calculated for all the galaxies. Conclusions. The large number of regions created after the passage of the arm may be explained by the effect of the density wave, which helps to create the star-forming regions after its passage. There is clear evidence of triggering for NGC 5457 and a co-rotation radius is proposed. A more modest triggering seems to exist for NGC 628, and insignificant evidence of triggering is found for NGC 6946.