Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Pushing planets into an inner cavity by a resonant chain

Context. The orbital distribution of exoplanets indicates an accumulation of super-Earth sized planets close to their host stars in compact systems. When an inward disc-driven migration scenario is assumed for their formation, these planets could have been stopped and might have been parked at an inner edge of the disc, or be pushed through the inner disc cavity by a resonant chain. This topic has not been properly and extensively studied. Aims. Using numerical simulations, we investigate the possibility that the inner planets in a resonant chain can be pushed into the disc inner cavity by outer planets. Methods. We performed hydrodynamical and N-body simulations of planetary systems embedded in their nascent disc. The inner edge of the disc was represented in two different ways, resembling either a dead zone inner edge (DZ) or a disc inner boundary (IB). The main difference lies in the steepness of the surface density profile. The innermost planet always has a mass of 10 MEarth, with additional outer planets of equal or higher mass. Results. A steeper profile is able to stop a chain of planets more efficiently than a shallower profile. The final configurations in our DZ models are usually tighter than in their IB counterparts, and therefore more prone to instability. We derive analytical expressions for the stopping conditions based on power equilibrium, and show that the final eccentricities result from torque equilibrium. For planets in thinner discs, we found, for the first time, clear signs for over-stable librations in the hydrodynamical simulations, leading to very compact systems. We also found that the popular N-body simulations may overestimate the number of planets in the disc inner cavity.
Surface properties and porosities of silica and acid-treated montmorillonite catalyst supports: influence on activities of supported ZnCl2 alkylation catalysts

A series of progressively acid-treated montmorillonite clays and a range of porous silicas are tested for their effectiveness as supports for ZnCl2 alkylation catalysts. Support materials are characterised in terms of surface areas, pore volumes and pore size distributions, in an attempt to identify surface properties important in conferring catalytic activity to supported ZnCl2. The highest catalytic activities are associated with acid-treated clay and silica supports with significant volumes in pores of diameter 10–12 nm. Supports exhibiting pore diameters below this range produce catalysts of very low activities. The fall in catalytic activity associated with larger pore diameter supports is less dramatic. Suggested mechanisms by which the catalytic activity of ZnCl2 is enhanced in pores within the critical size range are proposed.
Effect of Extraction Parameters on the Properties of Gelatin from King Weakfish (Macrodon ancylodon) Bones

Fish bones are important sources of collagen and are usually discarded by the processing industries. A response surface methodology was utilized to optimize the extraction process of gelatin from king weakfish (Macrodon ancylodon) bones submitted to alkali pre-treatment. The experimental responses were gel strength and gelatin yield, while the studied variables were sodium hydroxide concentration (2 and 4 g/100 g), maceration time (48 and 72 h) and extraction temperature (60 °C and 80 °C). An increase in extraction temperature carried out a significant (p ≤ 0.05) reduction in gelatin gel strength. The increase in the NaOH concentration during maceration increased the process yield. Extraction temperature, NaOH concentration and their interaction had a pronounced effect on process yield. High extraction temperatures resulted in higher yields, but reduced the strength of gelatin gel.
How Do We Predict Stock Returns in the Cross-Section with Machine Learning?

Stock return prediction is one of the most important themes for investors. Until now, there are many studies for the application of machine learning methods to predict stock returns in the cross-section. However, those studies focus only on differences in machine learning methods. This study investigates how the difference in problem settings such as problem definition and data preprocessing affects the performance of stock return prediction. Our results show that the performance varies depending on problem settings regardless of the prediction models. These findings indicate that not only the prediction models but also the problem settings are important for stock return prediction.
ASPIRATIONS FAILURE, DISADVANTAGE TRAPS AND INCLUSIVE REGIONAL POLICY

This paper examines the implications for regional policy of new research on the role played by a failure in the ‘capacity to aspire’ [Appadurai, A. (2004), ‘The capacity to aspire’, in Rao, V. and Walton, M. (eds), Culture and Public Action, Washington, DC: World Bank. ] in perpetuating disadvantage traps. After a brief review of the magnitude of the challenge that regional policy needs to confront, it provides a summary of the theoretical and empirical literature on poverty and aspirations failure (and the associated loss of agency, beliefs and self-efficacy). The key implication for the design of an inclusive regional policy is that it needs to address simultaneously the sources of external constraints (such as the availability of resources or adequate infrastructure) and mitigate the aspirations failure inherently linked to persistent disadvantage.
Scalings for rectangular synthetic jet trajectory in a turbulent boundary layer

Abstract Synthetic jet actuators remain coveted components in flow control applications as the convection of vortex rings induces a redistribution of the momentum in a boundary layer although the net mass flux remains zero. The ability to predict the trajectory of these vortical structures, and subsequently the jet, is critical for efficient and targeted usage of such actuators. In this investigation, a synthetic jet is issued into a zero pressure gradient turbulent boundary layer from rectangular orifices with aspect ratios 3, 6 and 12 over a range of actuation frequencies and velocity ratios, with the flow field captured through particle image velocimetry measurements. An assessment of the trajectories culminates in scaling characteristics which encapsulate the aspect ratio, the momentum ratio between the jet and the cross-flow and the Strouhal number. However, the scaling mechanism is found to be sensitive to constraints which include the interaction between successive vortex pairs and the various regions of the flow field where the degree of interaction of the jet with the cross-flow changes. By redefining the threshold between the near-field, transitioning and far-field regions and accounting for vortex interaction, we observe the relevant non-dimensional parameters describing the scaling to vary. Additionally, together with cross-flow properties, variation in the orifice dimensions and actuation parameters enable the exact form of the Strouhal number for each combination of constraints to be determined. Under conditions of no vortex interaction, synthetic jets are found to follow identical trajectories provided the ratio of total momentum between the jet and the cross-flow remains the same, irrespective of the actuation frequency or Reynolds number of the incoming flow.
Is it time for a “functional” hybrid algorithm to optimize interventional results in chronic total occlusion?

We assume many aspects of medical treatment due to lack of “hard” evidence. In this circumstance “absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. ” In interventional cardiology as elsewhere we modify our assumptions as new evidence emerges. One assumption in the treatment of the chronic total occlusion (CTO) lesion is that the presence of well-developed angiographic collaterals in vessel is adequate to prevent ischemia at rest, and in some cases, with stress. Contrary to this assumption, the classic study by Werner et al. demonstrated in 62 patients, and later in a 50-patient study by Sachdeva et al. that no matter how extensive were collaterals to a CTO, the myocardium was ischemic in many patients at rest and universally ischemic during stress. In the current issue of CCI, Kayaert et al. have extended these observations by using instantaneous wave-free ratio (iFR) and demonstrated that myocardium subtended by a CTO is universally ischemic at rest by Pd/Pa [0.47 (0.37; 0.56)] and iFR [0.33 (0.22; 0.44)]. Another assumption in current interventional practice is that post-PCI angiographic optimization alone is an acceptable single endpoint for PCI success. This assumption has been seriously affected by numerous imaging and functional studies which have demonstrated that angiography alone is insensitive to both functional and imaging findings consistent with an inadequate interventional result. Functional assessment post-PCI by FFR and iFR in non-CTO vessels has shown that as many as a third of treated vessels show an ischemic value after angiographic optimization. Thus, the treatment paradigm of “angiography alone” in non-CTO vessels is currently being seriously re-evaluated. Previous studies have shown that in non-CTO vessels, most extensively evaluated by FFR, frankly ischemic values can be improved in about a third to half of vessels by further interventions. This strategy of “functionally optimized coronary intervention” (FCI) may be particularly important as the post-PCI functional value has been associated with long-term outcomes in multiple studies. The current study has shown that PCI can normalize iFR in the entire group [median 0.93; 0.86–0.96]. However, in 30% of vessels iFR remained in the ischemic range after angiographic optimization and a treatable cause was found by pressure wire pullback in about half these vessels that allowed iFR improvement (and presumably long-term outcome improvement) with further intervention. The authors have argued on theoretical grounds for using resting diastolic index, iFR, over FFR in the CTO setting. Whether this is true or not requires actual testing. Regardless, any resting diastolic index for functional optimization is probably better than angiography alone. The strategy of functionally optimized coronary intervention in this study was performed as follows:
Effects of Climate, Plant Height, and Evolutionary Age on Geographical Patterns of Fruit Type

Fruit type is a key reproductive trait associated with plant evolution and adaptation. However, large-scale geographical patterns in fruit type composition and the mechanisms driving these patterns remain to be established. Contemporary environment, plant functional traits and evolutionary age may all influence fruit type composition, while their relative importance remains unclear. Here, using data on fruit types, plant height and distributions of 28,222 (∼ 90.1%) angiosperm species in China, we analyzed the geographical patterns in the proportion of fleshy-fruited species for all angiosperms, trees, shrubs, and herbaceous species separately, and compared the relative effects of contemporary climate, ecosystem primary productivity, plant height, and evolutionary age on these patterns. We found that the proportion of fleshy-fruited species per grid cell for all species and different growth forms all showed significant latitudinal patterns, being the highest in southeastern China. Mean plant height per grid cell and actual evapotranspiration (AET) representing ecosystem primary productivity were the strongest drivers of geographical variations in the proportion of fleshy-fruited species, but their relative importance varied between growth forms. From herbaceous species to shrubs and trees, the relative effects of mean plant height decreased. Mean genus age had significant yet consistently weaker effects on proportion of fleshy-fruited species than mean plant height and AET, and environmental temperature and precipitation contributed to those of only trees and shrubs. These results suggest that biotic and environmental factors and evolutionary age of floras jointly shape the pattern in proportion of fleshy-fruited species, and improve our understanding of the mechanisms underlying geographical variations in fruit type composition. Our study also demonstrates the need of integrating multiple biotic and abiotic factors to fully understand the drivers of large-scale patterns of plant reproductive traits.
Echo Time Dependency of Local Activity Metrics of Resting-State Functional MRI

Local activity metrics of resting-state functional MRI (RS-fMRI), such as the amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF), fractional ALFF (fALFF), regional homogeneity (ReHo), and degree centrality (DC), are widely used to detect brain abnormalities based on signal fluctuations. Although signal changes with echo time (TE) have been widely studied, the effect of TE on local activity metrics has not been investigated. RS-fMRI datasets from 12 healthy subjects with eyes open (EO) and eyes closed (EC) were obtained with a four-echo gradient-echo-planar imaging pulse sequence with the following parameters: repetition time/TE1/TE2/TE3/TE4 = 2,000/13/30.93/48.86/66.79 ms. Six representative regions were selected for simulating the spatial feature of TE dependency of local activity metrics. Moreover, whole-brain local activity metrics were calculated from each echo dataset and compared between EO and EC conditions. Dice overlap coefficient (DOC) was then employed to calculate the overlap between the T maps. We found that all the local activity metrics displayed different TE dependency characteristics, while their overall change patterns were similar: an initial large change followed by a slow variation. The T maps for local activity metrics also varied greatly with TE. For ALFF, fALFF, ReHo, and DC, the DOCs for voxels in four TE datasets were 6.87, 0.73, 5.08, and 0.93%, respectively. Collectively, these findings demonstrate that local metrics are greatly dependent on TE. Therefore, TE should be carefully considered for the optimization of data acquisition and multi-center data analysis in RS-fMRI.
Valuing the Role of Time in Urban Ecology

Cities and towns are complex ecosystems with features that can vary dramatically in space and time. Our knowledge of the spatial structure of urban land and ecological systems is expanding. These systems have been investigated across spatial scales, urban to rural gradients, networks of urban macrosystems, and global megalopolises. However, the temporal dimensions of urban ecosystems – such as those related to ecological cycles and historical legacies – are far less understood and investigated. Here, we outline the main dimensions of time that can shape how events in urban ecosystems unfold, which we categorize as: (i) time flows and duration, (ii) synchrony, lags, and delays, (iii) trends and transitions, (iv) cycles and hysteresis, (v) legacies and priming, (vi) temporal hotspots and hot moments, and (vii) stochastic vs. deterministic processes affecting our ability to forecast the future of cities and the species that live in them. First, we demonstrate the roles of these understudied dimensions by discussing exemplary studies. We then propose key future research directions for investigating how processes over time may regulate the structure and functioning of urban land and biodiversity, as well as its effects on and implications for urban ecology. Our analysis and conceptual framework highlights that several temporal dimensions of urban ecosystems – like those related to temporal hotspots/moments and stochastic vs. deterministic processes – are understudied. This offers important research opportunities to further urban ecology and a comprehensive research agenda valuing the “Urban Chronos” – the change of urban ecosystems through time.
Zirconia Nanoparticles Induce HeLa Cell Death Through Mitochondrial Apoptosis and Autophagy Pathways Mediated by ROS

Zirconia nanoparticles (ZrO2 NPs) are commonly used in the field of biomedical materials, but their antitumor activity and mechanism is unclear. Herein, we evaluated the anti-tumor activity of ZrO2 NPs and explored the anti-tumor mechanism. The results of in vitro and in vivo experiments showed that the level of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) in HeLa cells was elevated after ZrO2 NPs treatment. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) showed that after treatment with ZrO2 NPs, the mitochondria of HeLa cells were swollen, accompanied with the induction of autophagic vacuoles. In addition, flow cytometry analysis showed that the apoptotic rate of HeLa cells increased significantly by Annexin staining after treatment with ZrO2 NPs, and the mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) was reduced significantly. The proliferation of HeLa cells decreased as indicated by reduced Ki-67 labeling. In contrast, TUNEL-positive cells in tumor tissues increased after treatment with ZrO2 NPs, which is accompanied by increased expression of mitochondrial apoptotic proteins including Bax, Caspase-3, Caspase-9, and Cytochrome C (Cyt C) and increased expression of autophagy-related proteins including Atg5, Atg12, Beclin-1, and LC3-II. Treating HeLa cells with N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC) significantly reduced ROS, rate of apoptosis, MMP, and in vivo anti-tumor activity. In addition, apoptosis- and autophagy-related protein expressions were also suppressed. Based on these observations, we conclude that ZrO2 NPs induce HeLa cell death through ROS mediated mitochondrial apoptosis and autophagy.
Albert Camus – A Psychobiographical Approach in Times of Covid-19

Albert Camus (1913–1960) stands as one of the famous pioneers in the French history of existentialism. He was a novelist, political activist, essayist and editor, as well as a journalist and playwright. Although he was described as philosopher, he often denied this ascription. Through his professional and creative expressions, Camus focused on questions of existentialism, the aspect of the human fate, and meaning in life, death and suicide. These existential questions have experienced a strong revival during the Covid-19 occurrence. This psychobiographical approach aims at understanding Albert Camus' life and work in the context of the terror management theory of Becker and Wong's 4 pillars of PP2.0 theory, namely virtue, meaning, resilience and well-being. Both theories have gained importance during the pandemic. Based on the findings of the research study, implications for future research in the context of the pandemic are given. Finally, this article provides recommendations and best practices on how to approach the Covid-19 pandemic from a terror management theory and PP2.0 perspective in the light of Albert Camus' philosophy. The contribution of this psychobiography is two-fold: first, it expands psychobiographical research on Albert Camus from absurdist and existentialist theories and thereby expands the theoretical framework of psychobiographies. Second, it aims at strengthening the importance of theoretical psychobiographical investigations and their application in real-world scenarios to address complex contemporary challenges on the basis of existentialist positive psychology theories.
Registry of Compartmental Ephrin-B3 Guidance Patterns With Respect to Emerging Multimodal Midbrain Maps

Guidance errors and unrefined neural map configurations appear linked to certain neurodevelopmental conditions, including autism spectrum disorders. Deficits in specific multisensory tasks that require midbrain processing are highly predictive of cognitive and behavioral phenotypes associated with such syndromes. The lateral cortex of the inferior colliculus (LCIC) is a shell region of the mesencephalon that integrates converging information from multiple levels and modalities. Mature LCIC sensory maps are discretely-organized, mimicking its compartmental micro-organization. Intermittent modular domains receive patchy somatosensory connections, while inputs of auditory origin terminate in the encompassing extramodular matrix.Eph-ephrin signaling mechanisms instruct comparable topographic arrangements in a variety of other systems. Whether Eph-ephrin interactions also govern the assembly of LCIC multimodal maps remains unaddressed. Previously, we identified EphA4 and ephrin-B2 as key mediators, with overlapping expression patterns that align with emerging LCIC modules. Here, we implicate another member of this guidance family, ephrin-B3, and quantify its transient expression with respect to neurochemically-defined LCIC compartments. Multiple-labeling studies in GAD67-GFP knock-in mice reveal extramodular ephrin-B3 expression, complementary to that of EphA4 and ephrin-B2. This distinctive pattern sharpens over the early postnatal period (birth to P8), prior to ephrin-B3 downregulation once multimodal LCIC inputs are largely segregated (P12). Channel-specific sampling of LCIC ROIs show ephrin-B3 signal periodicities that are out-of-phase with glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD;modular marker) signal fluctuations, and match calretinin (CR) waveforms (matrix marker). Taken together, the guidance mosaic registry with emerging LCIC compartments and its interfacing afferent streams suggest a prominent role for Eph-ephrins in ordering behaviorally significant multisensory midbrain networks.
Activation of Neutrophil Granulocytes by Platelet-Activating Factor Is Impaired During Experimental Sepsis

Platelet-activating factor (PAF) is an important mediator of the systemic inflammatory response. In the case of sepsis, proper activation and function of neutrophils as the first line of cellular defense are based on a well-balanced physiological response. However, little is known about the role of PAF in cellular changes of neutrophils during sepsis. Therefore, this study investigates the reaction patterns of neutrophils induced by PAF with a focus on membrane potential (MP), intracellular pH, and cellular swelling under physiological and pathophysiological conditions and hypothesizes that the PAF-mediated response of granulocytes is altered during sepsis. The cellular response of granulocytes including MP, intracellular pH, cellular swelling, and other activation markers were analyzed by multiparametric flow cytometry. In addition, the chemotactic activity and the formation of platelet–neutrophil complexes after exposure to PAF were investigated. The changes of the (electro-)physiological response features were translationally verified in a human ex vivo whole blood model of endotoxemia as well as during polymicrobial porcine sepsis. In neutrophils from healthy human donors, PAF elicited a rapid depolarization, an intracellular alkalization, and an increase in cell size in a time- and dose-dependent manner. Mechanistically, the alkalization was dependent on sodium-proton exchanger 1 (NHE1) activity, while the change in cellular shape was sodium flux- but only partially NHE1-dependent. In a pathophysiological altered environment, the PAF-induced response of neutrophils was modulated. Acidifying the extracellular pH in vitro enhanced PAF-mediated depolarization, whereas the increases in cell size and intracellular pH were largely unaffected. Ex vivo exposure of human whole blood to lipopolysaccharide diminished the PAF-induced intracellular alkalization and the change in neutrophil size. During experimental porcine sepsis, depolarization of the MP was significantly impaired. Additionally, there was a trend for increased cellular swelling, whereas intracellular alkalization remained stable. Overall, an impaired (electro-)physiological response of neutrophils to PAF stimulation represents a cellular hallmark of those cells challenged during systemic inflammation. Furthermore, this altered response may be indicative of and causative for the development of neutrophil dysfunction during sepsis.