Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Paleohydrology and 3D Facies Architecture of Ancient Point Bars, Ferron Sandstone, Notom Delta, South-Central Utah, U.S.A.

Abstract Most outcrops of fluvial deposits consist of a series of cliff exposures, either natural or manmade (e.g., roadcuts). Predictions, and especially observation of plan-form geometry, such as might be made with numerical experiments or from studies of modern rivers, are challenging to test in most ancient outcrops. This study examines ancient exhumed channel belts from the Cretaceous Notom Delta of the Ferron Sandstone Member in south-central Utah. Extensive plan-view exposures with local vertical cliff exposures allowed documentation of channel plan-form, channel-belt dimension, bar migration patterns (translation versus expansion), and cross-sectional facies architecture. Channel-fill thickness and bedding structure, documented from the cliff exposures, were used in paleohydraulic reconstructions. Approximately 270 paleocurrent directions were integrated with grain-size measurements to reconstruct the 3D facies architecture. Paleocurrent measurements are consistent within specific facies architectural units (such as unit bars) and show systematic variation at the channel-belt scale that can be used to infer channel and bar migration patterns. In this example, the migration pattern of the single-thread channel bend was interpreted to change from expansion to translation with a corresponding bend sinuosity that increased from 1.01 to 1.44. Inclined large-scale foresets are interpreted to be indicative of unit bars. Empirical equations result in estimated average channel depths from 1.7 m to 3.6 m with corresponding widths of 23 m to 89 m respectively. These empirical estimates match the dimensions measured in the field. For example, channel widths of around 50 m were measured from abandoned channel fills. Bar thickness, measured from vertical outcrops, ranges from 5.4 m to 6.3 m, which yields a narrower estimate of channel width ranging from 47 to 59 m. Integration of sediment size, bedforms type, and channel depth were used to estimate the discharge of the river, which is on the order of < 400 m3/s. This suggests that the Ferron deltas were characterized by small, steep-gradient “dirty” rivers, which is consistent with the hyperpycnal nature of linked downstream deltaic systems.
A Political Ecology Perspective of Land Degradation in the North Ethiopian Highlands

Severe environmental degradation in the north Ethiopian Highlands is among others the result of mismanagement, overpopulation and droughts. However, here, we investigate the linkages of land degradation with the historical dynamics of the political–ecological system and regional land policies. We performed semi‐structured interviews with 93 farmers in eight villages in the Tigray region (north Ethiopia) and conceptualised a political–ecological model of land tenure and degradation changes for the region. Results show that different land policies caused and still cause land degradation in several ways. Interviews reveal that the unequal character of land rights during feudal times played an important role in 19th and 20th century land degradation. In particular, poor farmers were forced to construct their farms on marginal terrains, such as steep slopes in dry areas and marshes in cold and humid areas, increasing the catchment water runoff and degradation. The interviews further suggest that after the Derg regime (1974–1991), environmental conservation strategies were successfully implemented at larger scales. Overall, feudal, Derg and contemporary land policies have all had impacts on environmental degradation and have left their fingerprints on the physical landscape of northern Ethiopia. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Impact of soil texture on air‐water interfacial areas in unsaturated sandy porous media

The gas phase partitioning tracer method was used to measure air‐water interfacial area as a function of water content for eight sandy porous media. The porous media comprised a series of sands with narrow particle size ranges, a sand with a wider particle size distribution, a sandy soil, and a loamy sandy soil. The measurement range was extended to very low water contents in an attempt to determine upper limits for air‐water interfacial areas. The measured values were compared to the normalized surface areas of the porous media. The results of the experiments showed that the magnitude of the air‐water interfacial areas increased with decreasing water saturation and approached that of the normalized surface areas. Generally, air‐water interfacial areas were larger for media with larger specific surface areas. The change in air‐water interfacial area with changing water saturation was less near saturated water contents and greater at smaller values. In addition, the change was greater for the poorly sorted media than the well‐sorted media. An empirical equation was developed to describe the observed relationship between air‐water interfacial area and water saturation. The coefficients of the equation were found to correlate to the porous medium uniformity coefficient. With this equation and associated correlations, only bulk density, specific surface area, and uniformity coefficient are needed to estimate air‐water interfacial area for a given water saturation. The equation was shown to provide a reasonable description of a literature data set.
The impact of Covid-19 and of the earlier crisis on ﬁrms’ innovation and growth: a comparative analysis

Using the results of the Survey on the Access to Finance of Enterprises (2009 to 2020 editions), this paper aims to assess the effect of Covid-19 pandemic on the probabilities of firm to innovate and grow and to compare their likelihood with that of the previous downturn. To control for a possible endogeneity bias as part of innovation decisions a Recursive Bivariate Probit Model is used. Results show that the probabilities of firms to innovate and grow are lower in 2020 (Covid-19 crisis) than in 2009 (financial crisis). The economic performance of innovative firms was also affected by the pandemic, but considerably less than the performance of non-innovative ones. Changes in the innovation patterns are also observed. Possible implications for decision-makers are derived.
Fault and fracture distribution within a tight-gas sandstone reservoir: Mesaverde Group, Mamm Creek Field, Piceance Basin, Colorado, USA

The distribution and orientation of faults, fracture intensity and seismic-reflection characteristics of the Mesaverde Group (Williams Fork and Iles formations) at Mamm Creek Field vary stratigraphically, and with lithology and depositional setting. For the Mesaverde Group, the occurrence of faults and natural fractures is important as they provide conduits for gas migration, and enhance the permeability and productivity of the tight-gas sandstones. The Upper Cretaceous Mesaverde Group represents fluvial, alluvial-plain, coastal-plain and shallow-marine depositional environments. Structural interpretations based on three-dimensional (3D) seismic-amplitude data, ant-track (algorithm that enhances seismic discontinuities) seismic attributes and curvature attributes are utilized jointly to understand the complex fault characteristics of the Williams Fork Formation. This study reveals that the lowermost lower Williams Fork Formation is characterized by NNW- and east–west-trending small-scale thrust and normal faults. Study suggests that the uppermost lower Williams Fork Formation, and the middle and upper Williams Fork formations, exhibit NNE- and east–west-trending arrays of fault splays that terminate upwards and do not appear to displace the upper Williams Fork Formation. In the uppermost Williams Fork Formation and Ohio Creek Member, NNE-trending discontinuities are displaced by east–west-trending events and the east–west-trending events dominate. Fracture analysis, based on borehole-image logs, together with ant-track and attenuation-related seismic attributes, illustrates the spatial variability of fracture intensity and lithological controls on fracture distribution. In general, higher fracture intensity occurs within the southern, southwestern and western portions of the field, and fracture intensity is greater within the fluvial sandstone deposits of the middle and upper Williams Fork formations. More than 90% of natural fractures occur in sandstones and siltstones. In situ stress analysis, based on induced-tensile fractures and borehole breakouts, indicates a NNW orientation of present-day maximum horizontal stress ( S H max ), an approximate 20° rotation (in a clockwise direction) in the orientation of S H max with depth and an abrupt stress shift below the Williams Fork Formation within the Rollins Sandstone Member.
PREDICTION OF THE STATIC FORCE CHARACTERISTIC OF ANNULAR GAPS USING ARTIFICIAL NEURAL NETWORKS

In the development phase of modern turbomachinery, a time-effective calculation of the static force characteristics of annular gap such as journal bearings and annualar seals is crucial. Simplified calculation methods such as the Reynolds differential equation and the bulk-flow model do exist, but it has been shown that even these simplified one or two-dimensional simulations may require a large amount of computing time. To address this, a neural network is presented within this paper. Using Matlab’s Deep Learning Toolbox, a suitable neural network structure is selected in preliminary tests. Subsequently, the network is trained and validated based on experimental and numerical data. Explicit care is taken to ensure that the validation is only carried out for selected operating points that have not previously been included in the training of the network. Apart from the effort of training, the neural network can predict the static force characteristics of annular gaps instantaneously, without significant uncertainties compared to the previously mentioned calculation methods.
as-The associations between postpartum serum haptoglobin concentration and metabolic status, calving difficulties, retained fetal membranes, and metritis

Measurement of serum haptoglobin (Hapto) concentrations results in only moderate reported specificity and sensitivity for the detection of metritic cows. The objec-tive of this study was to evaluate associations between different variables and haptoglobin concentrations after calving. Parity, periparturient metabolic stress indicated by β-hydroxybutyric acid (BHBA) and nonesterified fatty acids (NEFA), calving difficulties, retained fetal membranes (RFM), and acute puerperal metritis (APM) were evaluated. A total of 443 Holstein Friesian cows were enrolled in this retrospective observational study. Acute puerperal metritis was diagnosed when a cow had fetid, reddish-brown, watery vaginal discharge in combination with rectal temperature ≥39.5°C. The retention of the fetal membranes has been defined as the failure to expel the fetal membranes within 12 h after calving. Results of blood samples from 2 and 5 d in milk (DIM) were analyzed for Hapto, BHBA, and NEFA. Primiparous cows had a greater median Hapto concentration than multiparous cows at 5 DIM [primip-arous: 2.25 g/L, interquartile range (IQR) 1.45–2.50, n = 146; multiparous: 1.13 g/L, IQR 0.52–2.22, n = 302; P < 0.05]. Therefore, different Hapto thresholds based on references from literature for all cows (1.4 g/L), primiparous cows (2.49 g/L), and multiparous cows (1.4 g/L) were used for further analysis. Periparturi-ent metabolic stress indicated by elevated BHBA (≥1.2 mmol/L) at 5 DIM was associated with elevated Hapto (odds ratio 2.39–2.87) regardless of parity. In contrast, elevated NEFA (≥0.6 mmol/L) at 2 DIM was not a risk factor for elevated Hapto. Multiparous cows with assisted calving had a 2.46 times higher risk for elevated Hapto, whereas primiparous cows with assisted calving had no elevated risk for elevated Hapto at 5 DIM. Moreover, multiparous cows with RFM were 5.51 times more likely to have elevated Hapto at 5 DIM than cows without RFM. Acute puerperal metritis within the first 5 DIM was associated with elevated Hapto (odds ratio 2.74–5.01), regardless of parity. We speculate that the association of calving ease, RFM, and periparturient metabolic stress could explain the moderate sensitivity and specificity reported for the detection of metritic cows by measuring Hapto.
High grade blueschist metasomatism in a serpentinite melange, Syros, Greece

I DECLARATION.IV ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.V TABLE OF MINERAL ABBREVIATIONS . VI TABLE OF THERMODYNAMIC EXPRESSIONS.VII 1 PROJECT AIMS, THEORY AND LITERATURE . 1 1.
MAIS UM DESAFIO: governança para o desenvolvimento da Amazônia

A questão das desigualdades regionais é histórica e com raízes estruturais, no Brasil. As políticas de desenvolvimento regional, desde o século XX, alternam seu espaço de visibilidade na agenda dos governos. No caso da Amazônia especificamente, a atuação do Estado brasileiro se deu de forma experimental, resultando em um processo de desenvolvimento problemático que, apesar das potencialidades existentes, configurou um quadro socioeconômico, marcado pela exclusão de grandes contingentes populacionais e uma economia bastante incipiente. O presente artigo pretende fazer uma discussão sobre a governança para o desenvolvimento regional da Amazônia. A reflexão partiu da revisão bibliográfica e se deteve na leitura do Plano Regional de Desenvolvimento, complementando-se pelo levantamento de dados e informações, as quais possibilitaram interpretações sobre os desafios na governança do plano. Concluiu-se que há um conjunto de fatores de ordem política, econômica e social, que se somam à dimensão institucional, que se constituem em obstáculos à consecução do plano.
Nonasymptotic sequential tests for overlapping hypotheses applied to near-optimal arm identification in bandit models

Abstract In this article, we study sequential testing problems with overlapping hypotheses. We first focus on the simple problem of assessing if the mean μ of a Gaussian distribution is smaller or larger than a fixed if both answers are considered to be correct. Then, we consider probably approximately correct best arm identification in a bandit model: given K probability distributions on with means we derive the asymptotic complexity of identifying, with risk at most δ, an index such that We provide nonasymptotic bounds on the error of a parallel general likelihood ratio test, which can also be used for more general testing problems. We further propose a lower bound on the number of observations needed to identify a correct hypothesis. Those lower bounds rely on information-theoretic arguments, and specifically on two versions of a change of measure lemma (a high-level form and a low-level form) whose relative merits are discussed.
Association between oral health, social, cultural and access variables in individuals from a quilombola population

To evaluate oral health conditions and their relationship with sociocultural aspects and access to dental services in quilombolas in the municipality of Cachoeira – state of Bahia. A cross-sectional study with 128 individuals was carried out. Statistical analysis was conducted through the frequency distribution of demographic and socioeconomic variables. The association between variables and outcomes was estimated by Prevalence Ratio and respective confidence intervals. There was statistical significance (95% CI) between periodontal disease and cariogenic diet, medicinal plants, and rinsing with tea or mouthwash, as well as an association between dental caries and difficulty in accessing dental services, toothache, and edentulism. The highest prevalence of oral diseases investigated was found in adult individuals and predominantly in women, and most individuals had only elementary education and income below one minimum wage
Examining e-learning adoption intention among academic staff in higher education institutions: A developing country context

E-learning presents a significant opportunity for developing countries to rapidly increase the availability of higher education to their population. However, e-learning is not widely adopted in many developing countries such as Nigeria. This study aims to advance our understanding of the determinants of e-learning adoption by examining the factors influencing e-learning adoption intentions among academic staff in higher education institutions in Nigeria. Applying the decomposed theory of planned behavior and using sample data collected from 188 respondents, the findings of the study demonstrate that e-learning beliefs are significant factors that indirectly influence e-learning adoption. This study extends our understanding of the determinants of e-learning adoption and provides valuable cues to managers of higher education institutions that will aid their e-learning adoption efforts
High Fidelity Compressible and Incompressible Flow Simulations of an Engine Intake Pressure Distribution

In this work, we investigated the impact of compressibility of an engine intake pressure distribution at high Reynolds numbers in absence of transonic effects and under strong adverse pressure gradients on a ﬂate plate by means of computational simulations. In order to assess the compressibility effects in the vicinity and over the ﬂat plate surface, compressible and incompressible high-order Implicit Large Eddy Simulations (iLES) of the Navier-Stokes (NS) equations were performed using the Nektar++ framework. With this methodology, we were able to assert what are the physical mechanisms behind the turbulent transition processes. In addition, and crucially, what role the compressibility is playing in this ﬂow conﬁguration, in order to promote the design of improved geometries using high-order methods. Therefore, a consistent investigation of the density variation effects and boundary layer behaviours of the compressible and incompressible solutions provided the necessary understanding of the viscous driven separation that governs the ﬂow in an engine intake at moderate fan speed.
Factors Driving Past Trends in Arctic Precipitation and Their Future Changes

The Arctic is notable as a region where the greatest rate of increase in precipitation associated with global warming is anticipated. The Arctic precipitation simulated by the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 6 multimodels showed a strong increasing trend in the recent past since the 1980s as a result of the continued strengthening of greenhouse gas forcing. Meanwhile, the suppression by aerosol forcing, which dominated in earlier periods, has been leveled oﬀ. From an energetic perspective, the constraining factors of increased atmospheric radiative cooling and reduced heat transport from lower latitudes contributed equally to the recent increase in Arctic precipitation. Future Arctic precipitation will change in proportion to the temperature change, but the fractional contributions of the constraining factors will remain stable across various scenarios. The implications for the doubling of the Arctic ampliﬁcation factor of precipitation changes relative to that of temperature changes are also discussed.
Rift Basins of Interior Sudan: Petroleum Exploration and Discovery

In early 1975, Chevron Overseas Petroleum Inc. commenced what became a major petroleum exploration effort in previously unexplored interior Sudan. With the cooperation of the Sudanese government, Chevron has acquired a vast amount of geological and geophysical data during the past 12 years. These data include extensive aeromagnetic and gravity surveys, 36,040 mi (58,000 km) of seismic data, and 86 wells. This information has defined several large rift basins now recognized as a major part of the Central African rift system. The sedimentary basins of interior Sudan are characterized by thick nonmarine clastic sequences of Jurassic(? )-Cretaceous and Tertiary age. Over 45,000 ft (13,716 m) of sediment was deposited in the deepest trough and extensive basinal areas are underlain by more than 20,000 ft (6,096 m) of sedimentary rocks. The depositional sequences include thick lacustrine shales and claystones, floodplain claystones, and lacustrine, fluvial, and alluvial sandstones and conglomerates. Those lacustrine claystones deposited in a suboxic environment provide good oil-prone source rocks. Reservoir sandstones have been found in a wide variety of nonmarine sandstone facies. The extensional tectonism that formed these basins began in the Jurassic(? )-Early Cretaceous. Movement along major fault trends continued intermittently into the Miocene. This deformation resulted in a complex structural history that led to the formation of several deep fault-bounded troughs, major interbasinal highs, and complex basin flanks. This tectonism has created a wide variety of structures, many of which have become effective hydrocarbon traps. During the past eight years, several important oil discoveries have been made. Significant accumulations have been delineated in the Heglig and Unity areas, where estimated recoverable reserves are 250-300 million bbl of oil.
Interpretation of Crustal Structure from Regional Gravity Anomalies, Ouachita Mountains Area and Adjacent Gulf Coastal Plain

A gravity data base from more than 35,000 stations was used to generate a series of regional gravity maps of the Ouachita Mountains area including adjacent parts of the craton and the Gulf coastal plain. These maps were used in conjunction with information from 96 wells, data from pre-existing geophysical and geological investigations, and computer models to interpret four gravity profiles that transect the study area (approximately lat. 30-37°N, long. 91.5-99°W). These models, gravity maps, and previous investigations were then used to analyzed various regional gravity anomalies and to interpret the gross crustal structure of the region and its tectonic implications. These data suggest that variably attenuated continental crust lies beneath the Gulf coastal plain, south of the Ouachita system gravity gradient, as opposed to "typical" continental crust of the craton north of this gradient. This variation in crustal structure probably reflects the complexity of Eocambrian and early Mesozoic rifting in the area. The Arkoma basin gravity minima may result from the combined effect of a late Paleozoic foreland basin and an Eocambrian northwest-trending, rift-related basin. The Ouachita system interior zone gravity maximum varies along strike of this orogenic belt. This anomaly appears to be a good indicator of the position of the Eocambrian continental margin and associated rift zone. Gravity anomalies in the Gulf coastal plain appear to be a combined e fect of variable crustal attenuation, basins and uplifts, and mafic intrusions. Gravity maxima in the southern Oklahoma aulacogen result from uplifts and deep-seated mafic intrusions; gravity minima result from deep sedimentary basins.