Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Irrigation effects of cooling tower effluent on soil chemistry and alfalfa in the Rio Grande river basin

Development of alternative sources through wastewater reuse is important to meet water demands in arid regions. However, effects of wastewater irrigation on soil properties and crop performance must be evaluated before advocating its widespread use. Objectives of this study were to evaluate: (i) effects of prior evaporative disposal of saline‐sodic blowdown water (BW) on soil (fine‐loamy, mixed, and thermic Typic Calciorthods) properties in the disposal area, and (ii) effects of flood irrigation with three water qualities (control, BW 1X, and BW 2X) on soil salinity and alfalfa performance using a greenhouse soil column study (soil collected from same study area as objective (i)). Results indicated that although prior land disposal of BW had increased salinity and sodicity of soil, they were within the tolerance limits of the intended crop, alfalfa. Mass balance calculations indicated measured (15·6 Mg ha−1) and calculated (13·2 Mg ha−1) salt accumulation at the test site used for evaporative disposal were similar. Alfalfa grown using BW under greenhouse conditions produced prime quality hay and biomass yield similar to the control treatment (8·3 g column−1 vs. 10·5 g column−1 in control). Although 3·6 years equivalent of flood irrigation with BW 1X did not result in saline soil (BW 1X irrigated soils EC ranged from 2·2 to 3·5 dS m−1), BW 2X irrigation resulted in saline soils. Sodicities of irrigated soils were greater in fine textured deep soils than coarse textured surface soils (e.g., SAR of 6·1 at 0–5 cm vs. 19·5 mmol1/2 L−1/2 at 30–60 cm in BW 1X), indicating the need for high solubility Ca amendments for long‐term irrigation with BW on fine texture soils within the soil profile. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Evaluation of new model tools for meeting the targets of the EU Air Quality Directive: a case study on the studded tyre use in Sweden

Two new model tools have been developed for meeting the EU Air Quality Directive targets: SIMAIRroad (related to traffic emissions) and SIMAIRrwc (rwc standing for residential wood combustion). The models have been evaluated for different traffic situations and for residential areas with wood combustion, with promising results. The models can calculate PM10 statistics, such as mean values and 90 and 98 percentiles, that are well within ±50%. In fact, most of the results are within ±25%. Studded tyres are one important factor causing high PM10 concentrations in Swedish streets, so reducing their use would considerably improve air quality.
Faunal associations of the Middle Jurassic ammonite genus Macrocephalites in Kachchh, western India

New collections of Macrocephalitinae from the ? Upper Bathonian – Lower Callovian of Kachchh (Cutch olim) make it possible to discern six successive taxonomically distinguishable faunal associations. These are, from above, (6) M. semilaevis association, (5) M. formosus association, (4) M. dimerus association, (3) M. elephantinus association, (2) M. madagascariensis association, (1) M. triangularis association.Of these, Nos. 1, 4, and 6 formed the bases of the M. triangularis, M. dimerus, and M. semilaevis biozones respectively. The majority of the 19 nominal species and 6 genera in the literature on Kachchh may be condensed into only 6 dimorphic species of undivided Macrocephalites.
Long terminal repeats power evolution of genes and gene expression programs in mammalian oocytes and zygotes

Retrotransposons are “copy-and-paste” insertional mutagens that substantially contribute to mammalian genome content. Retrotransposons often carry long terminal repeats (LTRs) for retrovirus-like reverse transcription and integration into the genome. We report an extraordinary impact of a group of LTRs from the mammalian endogenous retrovirus-related ERVL retrotransposon class on gene expression in the germline and beyond. In mouse, we identified more than 800 LTRs from ORR1, MT, MT2, and MLT families, which resemble mobile gene-remodeling platforms that supply promoters and first exons. The LTR-mediated gene remodeling also extends to hamster, human, and bovine oocytes. The LTRs function in a stage-specific manner during the oocyte-to-embryo transition by activating transcription, altering protein-coding sequences, producing noncoding RNAs, and even supporting evolution of new protein-coding genes. These functions result, for example, in recycling processed pseudogenes into mRNAs or lncRNAs with regulatory roles. The functional potential of the studied LTRs is even higher, because we show that dormant LTR promoter activity can rescue loss of an essential upstream promoter. We also report a novel protein-coding gene evolution—D6Ertd527e—in which an MT LTR provided a promoter and the 5′ exon with a functional start codon while the bulk of the protein-coding sequence evolved through a CAG repeat expansion. Altogether, ERVL LTRs provide molecular mechanisms for stochastically scanning, rewiring, and recycling genetic information on an extraordinary scale. ERVL LTRs thus offer means for a comprehensive survey of the genome's expression potential, tightly intertwining with gene expression and evolution in the germline.
Influences of combing ridge and no-tillage on pore characteristics of soil aggregates in a rice-based cropping system

Combing Ridge and no-tillage was one of a conservation tillage matures that was beneficial to protect soil fertility and increase grain yield.Based on data obtained from actual measurements in a long-term fixed experiment field,the characteristics and distribution of pore in different particle-size soil aggregates between combing Ridge and no-tillage culture and conventional system by using technique of optical image analysis and fractal theory were studied.The results showed that the pore fractal dimension of 0.450-1.00 mm aggregates was maximum,Combing Ridge and no-tillage was 2.24. Conventional was 2.20,and the pore fractal dimension of0.450 mm aggregate was about 1.20 and had significant differences with the 0.450 mm aggregate.There were no significant differences between the 0.450 mm aggregate.There were no differences of fractal dimension in the two tillage methods,and the tillage system had no effects on the pore fractal dimension.Pore structures of arable layer had same distribution pattern:soil pore volume percentage decreased with the increasing of the aggregates particle diameter.The pore volume between 0.053-0.200 mm size of soil aggregates was maximum in the both tillage practices which were 6.34-15.4 cm3·100 g-1 and 3.59-16.3 cm3·100 g-1under ridging no-tillage and conventional tillage system respectively.The pore volume of more than 1.00 mm size of soil aggregates was minimum,which were below 0.924 cm3·100 g-1and 0.652 cm3·100 g-1under combing Ridge and no-tillage and conventional tillage system respectively.Total porosity of ridging no-tillage was 49.0 %,and 46.0 % in the conventional tillage.The distribution of pore of 1 mm aggregate size depended on the feature of aggregates itself,and tillage system had no significant effect on it.
La valeur récréative de la forêt en France : une approche par les coûts de déplacement

[paper in French] Open-access is probably the main cause of crowding on recreational sites, especially when they are attractive and close to urban areas. In this case, theory predicts equilibrium and optimum differ due to externality of congestion. Whereas Fisher and Krutilla (1972) caracterized optimum and equilibrium in monosite models, recent works on congestion in multiple sites models (Random Utility Models) only study equilibrium and the repartition of visits between sites in an empirical way. Our theoretical framework allows us to go further and derive visitation equilibrium and visitation optimum in a two sites Random Utility Model with participation. Sites differ by quality. We use a recent measure of welfare (Erlander, 2005), essential to calculate optimum. At equilibrium, we show that participation is too high and that the high quality site is too much visited. We introduce optimal taxes to resolve this issue. Because this solution does not appear very realistic in the French case, we also examine impacts of improvements of quality on welfare. An illustration is finally proposed with a multinomial logit model estimated with data on recreational fishing
Thermal modeling of shock melts in Martian meteorites: Implications for preserving Martian atmospheric signatures and crystallization of high‐pressure minerals from shock melts

The distribution of shock melts in four shergottites, having both vein and pocket geometry, has been defined and the conductive cooling time over the range 2500 °C to 900 °C calculated. Isolated 1 mm2 pockets cool in 1.17 s and cooling times increase with pocket area. An isolated vein 1 × 7 mm in Northwest Africa (NWA) 4797 cools to 900 °C in 4.5 s. Interference between thermal haloes of closely spaced shock melts decreases the thermal gradient, extending cooling times by a factor of 1.4 to 100. This is long enough to allow differential diffusion of Ar and Xe from the melt. Small pockets (1 mm2) lose 2.2% Ar and 5.2% Xe during cooling, resulting in a small change in the Ar/Xe ratio of the dissolved gas over that originally trapped. With longer cooling times there is significant fractionation of Xe from Ar and the Ar/Xe ratio increases rapidly. The largest pockets show less variation of Ar/Xe and likely preserve the original trapped gas composition. Considering all of the model calculations, even the smallest isolated pockets have cooling times greater than the duration of the pressure pulse, i.e., >0.01 s. The crystallization products of these shock melts will be unrelated to the peak shock pressure experienced by the meteorite.
Environmental Controls on Fallow Carbon Dioxide Flux in a Single‐Crop Rice Paddy, Japan

Soil organic carbon (SOC) is one of the important measures of soil fertility and sustainability in arable lands. With continuous CO2 flux measurements, this study assessed the SOC decomposition and its environmental controls at both half‐hourly and season‐long scales in a single‐crop rice (Oryza sativa L.) paddy during three fallow periods between 2004 and 2007. Measurements were made on a gray lowland soil sited in eastern Japan using the eddy covariance method. Ecosystem respiration was strongly affected by soil water content measured at 0–0·1 m depth. At 0·5 m3 m− 3 or more of soil water content, the baseline of ecosystem respiration decreased by 50% compared with that at 0·2 m3 m− 3 . The effect was quantified at half‐hourly scale using an empirical multiple regression model, together with the soil surface temperature and the time after residue incorporation. At season‐long scale, net biome production, which is equivalent to the change in the SOC pool during the fallow period, was estimated from the flux and ancillary data at 150 g C m− 2 in 2004–2005, 70 g m− 2 in 2005–2006, and 270 g C m− 2 in 2006–2007. Apparently, as much as 46 to 79% of the soil organic matter incorporated (crop residues, ratoon, and stable manure) was decomposed during the fallow period. Precipitation, or associated soil water content, was important for the carbon balance of the field at season‐long scale because of its large interannual variability and relatively low permeability of the paddy soil. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Estimating soil moisture from 6·6 GHz dual polarization, and/or satellite derived vegetation index

Abstract Eight and a half years (January 1979 to August 1987) of Scanning Multichannel Microwave Radiometer (SMMR) data taken at a frequency of 6·6 GHz for both day and night observations at both polarizations were processed, documented and used to study the relationship between brightness temperature (TB) and antecedent precipitation index (API) in a wide range of vegetation index (normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) varies from 0·2 to 0·6) in the mid-west and southern United States. In general, this study validates the model structure for soil wetness developed by Choudhury and Golus. For NDVI greater than 0·45 the resultant microwave signal is substantially affected by the vegetation. The night-time observations by both polarizations gave a better correlation between TB and API. The horizontal polarization is more sensitive to vegetation. For the least and greatest vegetated areas, nighttime observations by vertical polarization showed less scatter in the TB versus API relation. A non-linear .
Submergence and uplift of settlements in the area of Helike, Greece, from the Early Bronze Age to late antiquity

Excavations in the Helike Delta on the Gulf of Corinth have brought to light architectural remains from the Early Bronze Age (EBA), Geometric, Classical, Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine periods. Borehole results suggest that a lagoon intermittently occupied much of the delta during the Holocene. We discovered a well‐preserved EBA settlement about 1km inland from the present shore, buried under 3 to 5m of fine sediments containing marine, brackish, and freshwater microfossils. A Classical site 130m away, buried under 3m of similar sediments, may have been destroyed by the earthquake and tsunami of 373 B.C., which submerged the city of Helike. Possible tsunami evidence is noted. Although the EBA and Classical sites were both long submerged and buried by lagoonal sediments, tectonic uplift has raised both horizons above sea level. A shallow black clay layer suggests that a marsh covered the Classical and EBA sites in Byzantine times. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Biogenic structure of early sediment fabric visualized by low-temperature scanning electron microscopy

The accurate visualization of early biogenic sediment fabric is important in the search for modern analogues to relict fossil structure and, therefore, for the interpretation of past environmental conditions. Water may have a significant structural role within hydrated material and sample dehydration may be detrimental to the structural interpretation of natural sediments and their associated microbiota. Water is present in sediments as free water or in the form of bound or hydration water. Extracellular polymeric substances associated with microbial assemblages have a high content of hydration water and are distorted by dehydration. The use of low-temperature scanning electron microscopy for the visualization of water-saturated sediments and associated biogenic structures is examined. Low-temperature SEM allows samples to be examined without the removal of water that is normally associated with the preparatory procedures for traditional ambient SEM. Samples for low-temperature SEM are first frozen (cryofixed) and then examined, fully-hydrated and still frozen, at low temperature (cf.–180°C) on the stage of a specially adapted SEM. The process of low-temperature SEM for the examination of hydrated sediments is described and several examples of cohesive and mixed-flat sediments and their associated biogenic fabrics are given. Detail of the internal fabric and associated microbiota can be examined by freeze-fracture techniques to preserve the natural condition of the sediments.
Instability and Splitting of Mesoscale Rings using a Two-Layer Quasi-Geostrophic Model on an f-Plane

Abstract Asymmetric instability of a circular Gaussian ring and evolution of a ring shape in a nonlinear case are studied using a two-layer quasi-geostrophic model on an f plane. Ring behavior is classified on an F-λ plane with other parameters fixed, where F is an internal rotational Froude number associated with a two-layer model, and λ is a ratio of the rotation speed in the lower layer to that in the upper layer. In the range concerned where F 0, the mode having an azimuthal wavenumber of 2 is the fastest growing, followed by the mode of the wavenumber 3. The ring is more unstable as F increases and as λ decreases, where larger F corresponds to smaller density difference or to a larger ring size. By numerical calculations, for which an initial perturbation of the wavenumber 2 is superimposed on a ring, ring behavior is classified into four groups from the most unstable to the most stable case: (i) a ring that splits into two small rings, (ii) a ring that rapidly becomes a slender ellipse a.
Does englacial water storage drive temperate glacier surges?

Abstract Hydrological studies of surge-type and steady-flow glaciers, combined with recent space-borne synthetic aperture radar interferometry measurements of the motion of Bagley Ice Valley, Alaska, U.S.A. , during its 1993–95 surge, suggest a temperate-glacier surge hypothesis that is consistent with observational evidence and appears capable of shedding light on several aspects of surge behavior. We propose that the fundamental driver of temperate-glacier surges is englacial storage of water, combined with gravity-driven movement of stored water to the bed during winter. Whether a given glacier is surge-type is a matter not of whether, but of the degree to which, these processes occur. A surge-type glacier must have sufficient storage capacity for continued downward movement of englacially stored water during winter to finally overwhelm the constricted basal drainage system, thereby forcing pervasive failure of the subglacial till — or, alternatively, widespread and rapid basal sliding — thus initiating a surge. We further propose that the “sufficient storage capacity” requirement is most easily met by glaciers with large thickness, which are therefore likely to be long and to have, on average, low surface slopes. The average length \of the surge cycle in a given region appears to be a function of the mass balances, which, after each surge, determine the time required to restore glaciers to their pre-surge geometries. We suggest that the stochastic timing of surge onset for a particular glacier, however, is a result of the uncertainty of the meteorological conditions required to cause englacial storage of a sufficiently large volume of water.
Relationships between CCN and cloud microphysics variations in clean maritime air

Flight‐averaged CCN concentrations during the Rain in Cumulus over the Ocean (RICO) field project varied by a factor of four. This was sufficient to provide correlations with flight‐averaged total cloud droplet concentrations (Nc) and mean diameters (MD) that showed greater influence of CCN than updraft velocity (w) on Nc and especially MD. The product of CCN and w produced even stronger correlations with Nc and MD. An earlier RICO study had shown an inverse relationship of Nc and giant nuclei (GN) with large cloud droplet concentrations (NLD). These two RICO studies now show that the aerosol with the most influence on NLD (MD) is CCN. The results of the present study are similar to earlier studies in more polluted clouds that also showed more influence of CCN than GN on MD/NLD/drizzle. The present study indicates that variations in CCN concentrations even within maritime air masses modulate precipitation.
RF-CNNS: Thin Deep Learning Networks For Accelerating Traffic Signs Recognition

: Road scene analysis is a wide domain of research that aims to ameliorate the environmental perception in intelligent transportation systems, including autonomous vehicles and advanced driver-assistance systems. It also plays a crucial role in road safety improvement, by contributing to the reduction of traffic accidents' rate. Ensuring an efficient recognition of traffic signs contributes enormously to making cars safer, which in consequence helps to save more lives on roads. To ensure this recognition, many approaches are adopted, especially deep learning ones and more specifically convolutional neural networks. In effect, these networks have proven their high performances in many fields of computer vision research, including traffic sign recognition. However, although their high performances, many limitations still face their implementation, especially in real-time applications and resource-constrained environments. From this perspective, creating a certain balance between the model complexity and the classification accuracy, through a computationally efficient network, is the main objective of this study. To achieve this goal, a receptive fields architecture is adopted to preserve and optimize the connectivity between the different units of the network. Based on this architecture, two receptive field networks are proposed, with reduced complexity and enhanced generalizability. Using two public datasets, the obtained results show that the adopted approach ensures high classification accuracies and considerably accelerates the inference stage. The obtained accuracy is about 98.49%, using the Belgium traffic signs classification dataset, while the inference time is less than 500 us per image.
Foraminiferal reconstruction of mid- to late-Holocene ocean circulation and climate variability in Disko Bugt, West Greenland

Benthic foraminifera from two cores collected from Disko Bugt, a large marine embayment in West Greenland, are used to investigate hydrographic changes during the mid to late Holocene. The records document fluctuations in the West Greenland Current (WGC) linked to large-scale changes in North Atlantic circulation and, for one core, impacts of local climate changes. In particular, changes in the cold East Greenland Current (EGC) and the warm, more saline Irminger Current (IC) influence the WGC and propagate into Disko Bugt. The cores record subsurface warming associated with the `Holocene Thermal Maximum' (HTM) from c. 6 to 5 ka cal. BP. Gradual cooling of WGC from 5 ka cal. BP was interrupted by an abrupt warm interval from 3.9 to 3.5 ka cal. BP, before cooling became more prominent from 3.5 to 2 ka cal. BP. This cold period corresponds to the well-documented Northern Hemisphere cooling of the neoglacial and we interpret it as reflecting enhanced flux from the EGC and reduced IC flux to the WGC in Disko Bugt. Colder subsurface conditions from 3.5 ka cal. BP correspond to major hydrographic and climate changes elsewhere in West Greenland, reflecting the final transition from HTM to the neoglacial in this region. Relatively warm conditions identified from c. 2.0 to 1.4 ka cal. BP are followed by gradual cooling to 0.7 ka cal. BP, interrupted by a brief warm episode around 1 ka cal. BP. The late-Holocene fluctuations in WGC recorded in Disko Bugt can be linked to North Atlantic oceanographic changes identified on the East Greenland and North Icelandic shelf.
Estimating Spatial Patterns in Water Content, Matric Suction, and Hydraulic Conductivity

A relatively rapid method for surveying and estimating field-scale variability of water content, hydraulic conductivity, and matric suction using geostatistics is described. Two 660-m long transects located 8 km west of Steptoe, WA were intensively sampled at 5-m spacings for surface temperature. Soil samples were also collected to a depth of 12 cm at spacings of 20 m, and these were analyzed for sand, clay, and soil water content. The spatial variability in each property was described using spherical semivariograms. Kriging was used to estimate spatial patterns in clay and sand content along each transect at 5-m spacings. Spherical cross-semivariograms of surface temperature and water content were used along with cokriging techniques to estimate water content at 5-m spacings. The geostatistical estimates of spatial patterns in water content, clay content, and sand content were used for texture-based estimates of matric suction and hydraulic conductivity at 5-m spacings along both transects