Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Bell pepper cultivation under different irrigation strategies in soil with and without mulching

ABSTRACT This study aimed to evaluate productive, physiological and phytotechnical characteristics of bell pepper under different irrigation strategies, in soil with mulch (polyethylene film, black on bottom, white on top) and without mulching. The experimental design was of randomized blocks with four replicates, arranged in split plot scheme; plots consisted of treatments with and without mulching, and in the subplots ten irrigation strategies = 1) 125% of crop evapotranspiration (ETc); 2) 100% of ETc; 3) 75% of ETc; 4) 50% of ETc, both in vegetative phase (FI) and production phase (FII); 5) regulated deficit irrigation (RDI); with 50% of ETc in FI and 100% of ETc in FII; 6) RDI with 100% of ETc in FI and 50% of ETc in FII; 7) RDI with 75% of ETc in FI and 100% of ETc in FII; 8) RDI with 100% of ETc in FI and 75% of ETc in FII; 9) RDI with 125% of ETc in FI and 75% of ETc in FII; 10) RDI with 75% of ETc in FI and 125% of ETc in FII. Two phytotechnical and one physiological evaluations were done during the phases of development and production. Moreover, we determined productivity and water-use efficiency 90 days after seedling transplanting. Plants maintained quantum efficiency and chlorophyll a content close to the ideal. Mulching provided higher number of fruits in comparison to plants grown in bare soil. Diameter, mass and length of the fruits as well as peel thickness were higher at the first two harvests. Irrigation at 50% of ETc in mulched soil provided higher productivity using less water, increasing water-use efficiency.
Hydrolysis of aceto-hydroxamic acid under UREX+ conditions

Aceto-hydroxamic acid (AHA) is used as a stripping agent In the UREX process. While extraction yields of uranium remain high upon addition of AHA, hexavalent plutonium and neptunium are rapidly reduced to the pentavalent state while the tetravalent species and removed from the product stream. However, under acidic conditions, aceto-hydroxamic acid undergoes hydrolytic degradation. In this study, the kinetics of the hydrolysis of aceto-hydroxamic acid in nitric and perchloric acid media was investigated at several temperatures. The decrease of the concentration of AHA was determined via its ferric complex using UV-Vis spectroscopy. The data obtained were analyzed using the method of initial rates. The data follow the pseudo-first order reaction model. Gamma irradiation of AHA/HNO{sub 3} solutions with 33 kGy/s caused two-fold faster degradation of AHA. The rate equation and thermodynamic data will be presented for the hydrolysis reaction with respect to the concentrations of aceto-hydroxamic acid, nitrate and hydronium ions, and radiation dose. (authors)
Aminophylline for improving acute kidney injury in pediatric patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Objectives: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality. Whether aminophylline administration can prevent or treat AKI among pediatric patients are not clear. This meta-analysis aimed to assess the efficacy and effectiveness of aminophylline for pediatric AKI. Methods: We carried out a systematic search of six databases: PubMed, EMBASE/Excerpta Medica, Scopus, Cochrane library, and Google Scholar from January 1995 up till May 2019. Summary measures of risk ratios and standard mean difference were calculated using the random effects model. Results: We identified seven papers containing data on aminophylline use in children with AKI. Meta-analysis of single-arm studies indicated no statistically significant difference in mean rate of serum creatinine clearance (−0.39 [−0.80–1.58], P = 0.52), mean urine output (1.99 [−1.43–5.42]; P = 0.25), or mean blood urea nitrogen levels (0.83 [−1.86–3.03], P = 0.54) before and after aminophylline administration. However, among double-arm studies, aminophylline administration in the intervention arm significantly reduced the serum creatinine level as compared to control arm (mean diff = −34 [−55.18–−12.83]; P = 0.002). Mean urine output (−112.68 [−27.43–48.9], P = 0.17), incidence of AKI (RR = 1.05 [0.80–1.37], P = 0.72), and mortality rates (RR = 0.79 [0.42–1.47], P = 0.45) were found to be statistically insignificant. Conclusions: Aminophylline administration in children with AKI reduces serum creatinine level without significant adverse effects or effect on the incidence of AKI, urine output, or mortality. Further, large-scale well-planned randomized controlled trials are needed to evaluate its use and its potential long-term effects.
The Prospect of Molecular Epidemiology of Brucella Species in Iran

Human brucellosis and its prevalence are directly correlated with the presence of animal infections in various regions. The infections associated with Brucella species have been reported in numerous animals. The incidence of these infections has recently increased in the endemic regions in Iran, including Zagros areas and the northeast of the country. Therefore, there have been difficulties in the diagnosis of the infectious cases since there is the possibility of encountering resistant strains. Furthermore, the spread of immerging strains is among the challenges that rapidly affect animals, even vaccinated livestock. Antibiotic-resistant strains are important in livestock since drug resistance may rapidly spread to humans. Therefore, continuous investigation is required in the case of drug resistance or immerging strains. Conventional typing procedures are no longer used due to several difficulties. Identifying the type of Brucella could provide adequate data on epidemiological surveillance, investigation of the infection outbreaks, tracking the diseases, identifying the immerging types, reviewing the success rate of eradicating the infections, and examining the outbreaks in the endemic areas. The reports regarding the application of molecular typing methods are still under development. Extensive research has been focused on the typing of brucellosis, proposing controversial results and aiming to improve the applied procedures. This review aimed to assess the ability of the introduced molecular methods and their status for identification and typing procedures. In addition, the frequency and distribution of Brucella species and subspecies have been investigated.
Association between Bone Mineral Density and Severity of Chronic Kidney Disease

Objective We sought to evaluate the association between femoral neck (FN) and lumbar spine (LS) bone mineral densities (BMDs) with severity of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and prevalence of osteopenia or osteoporosis (OP) among the CKD group. Methods Cross-sectional data from 11050 participants aged ≥20 years from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) were analyzed. Specifically, Pearson correlation was applied to analyze the relationship between BMD and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). General linear models (GLMs) were adjusted for potential confounders and used to analyze mean BMD, based on CKD and CKD stages. Results FN BMD was positively correlated with the eGFR in the total and male CKD, but not in the female CKD population. LS BMD was not significantly associated with eGFR. After controlling for partial correlations, FN T-score was positively correlated with the eGFR in the total at-risk population. According to FN BMD, OP prevalence was positively associated with CKD stage. However, according to LS BMD, there was no significant association between OP and CKD stage. Conclusion Our results may explain the higher prevalence of hip fracture, relative to that of the spine, among CKD patients and generate meaningful insights to guide care, prevention, and treatment regimens for CKD patients. However, the fact that this was a cross-sectional study may limit the possibility of drawing concrete conclusions. Nevertheless, these findings open up a new frontier for further studies to uncover the higher decrease of FN BMD compared to LS BMD among CKD cases.
Epidemiological Patterns of Skin Disease in Saudi Arabia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background Large epidemiological studies on patterns of skin diseases in Saudi Arabia are scarce. Therefore, this systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted to gather available epidemiologic data describing the pattern of skin diseases in different geographical areas in Saudi Arabia. Methods A comprehensive literature search of articles was conducted in PubMed, SCOPUS, and Web of Science through October 2019. We included all published cross-sectional studies that provided data on relevant incidence or prevalence of skin disease in Saudi Arabia. The risk of bias within the included cross-sectional studies was assessed using the Hoy tool for the prevalence studies. All statistical analysis was performed using the Comprehensive Meta-analysis software. Results The present meta-analysis included 14 studies that reported the frequency of the skin disease patterns in different regions in Saudi Arabia with a total sample size of 30436 patients with an overall low risk of bias. The diseases of skin appendages and dermatitis were the most commonly reported skin diseases in Saudi Arabia (24.8% (95% CI, 24.3–25.3) and 24% (95% CI, 23.6%–24.6%), respectively). Skin infection represented about 18.5% (95% CI, 18.1%–19%), while the papulosquamous disorders represented 5.3% (95% CI, 5%–5.6%) of the skin diseases in Saudi Arabia. Skin cancers were pooled from only two studies. Basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma were the most common malignant neoplasm in Saudi Arabia (51.4% and 22.5% of the malignant neoplasm, respectively), while malignant melanoma represents only 3.8% of the malignant skin cancer. Conclusion Adnexal disorders and dermatitis are the most common skin disease in Saudi Arabia, followed by skin infection and pigmentary disorders. While skin cancer is more frequent than other countries, awareness campaigns should be initiated to increase knowledge about the harmful effect of long-term sun exposure.
COVID-19 relief food distribution: impact and lessons for Uganda

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to cause uncertainty to Uganda's food security among underprivileged households. The Corona virus Response Team inaugurated a relief food distribution campaign, ensuing from the countrywide COVID-19 lockdown to counter the rising food insecurities in many urban and rural poor households. However, the relief response campaign has received a lot of critics from both rural and urban communities who were planned as the beneficiaries. Three months into the COVID-19 pandemic the population reports; delays in the distribution, poor quality supplies, arrests and continued restrictions, slow paced distribution among household, and a negative impact on the health care system. As a learning from the current experience, we recommend; a multisectoral engagement, better planning, a decentralized food distribution, and formulation of clear food distribution guidelines to guide the future responses. Use of mobile cash transfers to reach out to the food insecure households can support local economies and lower the cost on middlemen and interrelated corruption.
150 years of research on Vierordt’s law - Fechner’s fault?

150 years ago, the physiologist Karl Vierordt discovered one type of systematic errors in time perception – an overestimation of long durations and underestimation of short durations, now known as Vierordt’s law. Here we review the original study in its historical context and ask whether Vierordt’s law is a result of an unnatural experimental randomization protocol. Using iterative Bayesian updating, we simulated the original results with astonishing accuracy. To validate whether the experimental protocol matters, we compared duration reproduction from two sequences with the same sampled distribution and found that trial-wise variation determines the reproduction error. We conclude that Vierordt’s law is caused by an unnatural yet widely used experimental protocol. One Sentence Summary Probabilistic modeling reveals that a classical perceptual error - Vierordt’s law - is caused by an unnatural yet widely used experimental protocol.
An Easy-to-Use Machine Learning Model to Predict the Prognosis of Patients With COVID-19: Retrospective Cohort Study

Background Prioritizing patients in need of intensive care is necessary to reduce the mortality rate during the COVID-19 pandemic. Although several scoring methods have been introduced, many require laboratory or radiographic findings that are not always easily available. Objective The purpose of this study was to develop a machine learning model that predicts the need for intensive care for patients with COVID-19 using easily obtainable characteristics—baseline demographics, comorbidities, and symptoms. Methods A retrospective study was performed using a nationwide cohort in South Korea. Patients admitted to 100 hospitals from January 25, 2020, to June 3, 2020, were included. Patient information was collected retrospectively by the attending physicians in each hospital and uploaded to an online case report form. Variables that could be easily provided were extracted. The variables were age, sex, smoking history, body temperature, comorbidities, activities of daily living, and symptoms. The primary outcome was the need for intensive care, defined as admission to the intensive care unit, use of extracorporeal life support, mechanical ventilation, vasopressors, or death within 30 days of hospitalization. Patients admitted until March 20, 2020, were included in the derivation group to develop prediction models using an automated machine learning technique. The models were externally validated in patients admitted after March 21, 2020. The machine learning model with the best discrimination performance was selected and compared against the CURB-65 (confusion, urea, respiratory rate, blood pressure, and 65 years of age or older) score using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC). Results A total of 4787 patients were included in the analysis, of which 3294 were assigned to the derivation group and 1493 to the validation group. Among the 4787 patients, 460 (9.6%) patients needed intensive care. Of the 55 machine learning models developed, the XGBoost model revealed the highest discrimination performance. The AUC of the XGBoost model was 0.897 (95% CI 0.877-0.917) for the derivation group and 0.885 (95% CI 0.855-0.915) for the validation group. Both the AUCs were superior to those of CURB-65, which were 0.836 (95% CI 0.825-0.847) and 0.843 (95% CI 0.829-0.857), respectively. Conclusions We developed a machine learning model comprising simple patient-provided characteristics, which can efficiently predict the need for intensive care among patients with COVID-19.
High-grade spheno-orbital meningioma in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus: Two case reports and literature review

Background: Spheno-orbital meningiomas (SOMs) are often benign. The association of meningioma and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is rarely discussed in the literature. Here, we report two patients with high-grade, SOMs with a prolonged history of SLE and review the literature. Case Description: The first case is a 52-year-old female patient with a 15-year history of SLE diagnosis who was referred to our center with a 1-year history of proptosis and excessive tearing of the left eye. This patient was operated for the left SOM with histopathological diagnosis of the World Health Organization (WHO) Grade III rhabdoid meningioma. The second case is a 36-year-old female patient with a 12-year history of SLE diagnosis who presented to our clinic with a 5-year-history of progressive right eye proptosis and occasional headaches. She was operated for the right SOM with histopathological diagnosis of the WHO Grade II chordoid meningioma. Conclusion: Rhabdoid and chordoid SOMs are uncommon and no previous report discussed their occurrence in patients with SLE. The association of high-grade meningiomas and SLE deserves further exploration.
Metode Penelitian Pendidikan: Penelitian Kuantitatif, Penelitian Kualitatif, Penelitian Tindakan Kelas

Masalah praktis dalam bidang pendidikan yang memerlukan solusi sangatlah bevariasi, yaitu terkait dengan proses belajar mengajar, prestasi belajar siswa , pendekatan, strategi, dan teknik dalam pengajaran yang masih perlu ditingkatkan. Penelitian adalah salah satu cara ilmiah untuk menemukan strategi baru, atau media pembelajaran seperti bahan ajar yang lebih sesuai kebutuhan anak didik. Masalah teoritis dalam bidang pendidikan terkait pengembangan teori, yaitu misalnya adanya teori hasil penelitian yang perlu diuji untuk menyesuaikan dengan karakteristik anak didik yang terus berkembang, atau untuk menyesuaikan kelompok anak didik yang berbeda, adanya teori temuan penelitian yang saling bertentangan sehingga perlu diverifikasi mana yang lebih benar, dsb. Hasil penelitian untuk pengembangan teori bisa memperkaya, merevisi, atau bahkan mengganti teori yang ada.Secara singkat bisa disimpulkan bahwa penelitian pendidikan bertujuan untuk menemukan ilmu pengetahuan (teori, metode, atau media) pembelajaran yang bisa dimanfaatkan untuk menyelesaikan masalah dan mengembangkan kualitas pendidikan.
A spectroscopic investigation of the thermal decomposition of cellulose and alginic acid

The combustion and pyrolysis of biomass impacts directly on a number of areas such as, energy production, public health, environmental protection and feedstock for chemical production. This study investigated the thermal decomposition of two structurally similar polysaccharides – cellulose and alginic acid, arguably being the two largest sources of biomass on land and from the sea respectively. Despite the similarity in the two materials and applications, reviewing literature of the combustion and pyrolysis mechanisms of the two materials showed a relatively well-established framework of knowledge for cellulose, although there is still some lack of agreement in some areas. This contrasted with the almost total absence of any information on the thermal behaviour of alginic acid. The aim of the work reported in this thesis was to use the structural similarities and the mechanistic framework for cellulose to conduct a comparative investigation of the two materials. Taking advantage of high throughput multivariate algorithms to process complex spectroscopic data produced by TGA-FTIR, a method was developed to identify infrared active volatile species generated above a detectable threshold during the thermal degradation process. The ability to plot an evolution profile of a selected compound in time- and/or temperature domain significantly enhanced the capabilities of a standard TGA-FTIR system for mechanistic investigations. With the technique established, the two materials were analysed under different heating rates (5, 10, 30, 60°C/min) under nitrogen and again under 10% oxygen in nitrogen. A reconstruction of the cellulose decomposition pathway was carried out using the data obtained from this work. Compared to the methods available in the scientific literature, the current method was a simpler and more efficient technique for providing information related to the thermal degradation behaviours of the sample materials. The application of the method to alginic acid revealed for the first time that this material responded differently and more sensitively to the presence of oxygen than did cellulose. Its decomposition pathway has a number of distinctive steps, in contrast to cellulose. To complement the analysis of the volatiles, the surface of charred residues of the two materials were also analysed by using attenuated total reflectance (ATR) infrared spectroscopy. This information was also used to deduce the combustion chemistry for the two materials.
Biochemical studies on the protective effect of honey against doxorubicin-induced toxicity in BALB/C mice

Objective: Doxorubicin-mediated chemotherapy has been linked in cancer patients with acute toxic manifestations. This study aimed to assess the protective effect of natural honey against doxorubicin-induced toxicity in mice. Methods: Forty male BALB/C mice were divided randomly and equally into four groups of ten mice. Group I was on a normal diet and served as the control. Group II received only honey to investigate its antitoxic effects (oral administration at 10 g/kg for 10 days). Group III was injected with a single dose of doxorubicin (10 mg/kg i.p.). Group IV received both doxorubicin and honey. On day 11, blood was taken from the various groups of mice and the quantitative and qualitative changes were observed in the white blood cells. The levels of hepatic, renal, and cardiac toxicity biomarkers including aspartate aminotransaminase (AST), alanine aminotransaminase (ALT), blood nitrogen urea (BUN), serum creatinine, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and creatinine kinase (CK) were also assessed. Results: This study revealed that doxorubicin caused acute toxicity, including weight loss, depletion of white blood cells, and altered liver, kidney, and cardiac parameters (P < 0.05). White blood cells in the blood picture from the doxorubicin-injected mice exhibited toxicological changes, including abnormal morphology, disorganized nuclei, dispersed chromatin strands, and granules. The consumption of honey improved the liver, kidney, and heart biomarkers of toxicity in doxorubicin-injected mice (P < 0.05). Honey reduced the levels of ALT, AST, BUN, serum creatinine, LDH, and CK in doxorubicin-injected mice (P < 0.05). Conclusion: The findings suggest that the consumption of natural honey can alleviate doxorubicin-induced toxicity in cancer patients.
Microglial Hyperreactivity Evolved to Immunosuppression in the Hippocampus of a Mouse Model of Accelerated Aging and Alzheimer’s Disease Traits

Neuroinflammation is a risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). We sought to study the glial derangement in AD using diverse experimental models and human brain tissue. Besides classical pro-inflammatory cytokines, we analyzed chitinase 3 like 1 (CHI3L1 or YKL40) and triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells 2 (TREM2) that are increasingly being associated with astrogliosis and microgliosis in AD, respectively. The SAMP8 mouse model of accelerated aging and AD traits showed elevated pro-inflammatory cytokines and activated microglia phenotype. Furthermore, 6-month-old SAMP8 showed an exacerbated inflammatory response to peripheral lipopolysaccharide in the hippocampus and null responsiveness at the advanced age (for this strain) of 12 months. Gene expression of TREM2 was increased in the hippocampus of transgenic 5XFAD mice and in the cingulate cortex of autosomal dominant AD patients, and to a lesser extent in aged SAMP8 mice and sporadic early-onset AD patients. However, gene expression of CHI3L1 was increased in mice but not in human AD brain samples. The results support the relevance of microglia activation in the pathways leading to neurodegeneration and suggest diverse neuroinflammatory responses according to the AD process. Therefore, the SAMP8 mouse model with marked alterations in the dynamics of microglia activation and senescence may provide a complementary approach to transgenic mouse models for the study of the neuroinflammatory mechanisms underlying AD risk and progression.
Neutron Cross section Covariances in the Resonance region: 50,53Cr, 54,57Fe and 60Ni

We evaluated covariances in the neutron resonance region for capture and elastic scattering cross sections on minor structural materials, {sup 50,53}Cr, {sup 54,57}Fe and {sup 60}Ni. Use was made of the recently developed covariance formalism based on kernel approximation along with data in the Atlas of Neutron Resonances. Our results of most interest for advanced fuel cycle applications, elastic scattering cross section uncertainties at energies around 100 keV, are on the level of about 7-10%.