Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A3C-DO: A Regional Resource Scheduling Framework Based on Deep Reinforcement Learning in Edge Scenario

Currently, huge amounts of data are produced by edge device. Considering the heavy burden of network bandwidth and the service delay requirements of delay-sensitive applications, processing the data at network edge is a great choice. However, edge devices such as smart wearables, connected and autonomous vehicles usually have several limitations on computational capacity and energy which will influence the quality of service. As an effective and efficient strategy, offloading is widely used to address this issue. But when facing device heterogeneity problem and task complexity increase, service quality degradation and resource utility decrease often occur due to unreasonable task distribution. Since conventional simplex offloading strategies show limited performance in complex environment, we are motivated to design a dynamic regional resource scheduling framework which is able to work effectively taking different indexes into consideration. Thus, in this article we first propose a double offloading framework to simulate the offloading process in real edge scenario which consists of different edge servers and devices. Then we formulate the offloading as a Markov Decision Process (MDP) and utilize a deep reinforcement learning (DRL) algorithm named asynchronous advantage actor-critic (A3C) as the offloading decision making strategy to balance the workload of edge servers and finally reduce the overhead in terms of energy and time. Comparison experiments for local computing and wide-used DRL algorithm DQN are conducted in a comprehensive benchmark and the results show that our work performs much better on self-adjusting and overhead reduction.
Effect of temperature on virulence of Rhizoctonia solani and other Rhizoctonia on potato.

Pathogenicity of 47 isolates from various geographical locations and host plants representing 11 of the 12 known anastomosis groups of Rhizoctonia solani and 12 isolates representing other multinucleate and binucleate species of Rhizoctonia was determined on sprouts and roots of emrging potato plants at 10, 15.5, and 21.1 C. Isolates of R. solani AG-3 killed significantly more sprouts than any other group. Isolates of most groups killed no sprouts. Whereas isolates of R. solani AG-3 and AG-5 damaged sprouts significantly more than other groups, most damage to roots was caused by isolates of R. solani AG-8 and AG-3 (.)
Fine structure and cytochemistry of the endothelial cells and rodlet cells in the bulbus arteriosus in species of Cichlidae (Teleostei)

The ultrastructure of endothelial cells and rodlet cells in the bulbus arteriosus of specimens representing six genera of Cichlidae is described. The former are very closely packed by membrane–bound and mainly electron–dense inclusion bodies (0.3–0.7μm). In Apistogramma ramirezi I observed numerous subendothelial rodlet cells throughout the entire length of the bulbus arteriosus. These cells penetrate the endothelium and connect to the latter by desmosomes and tight junctions. The luminal part of the cell contains numerous vesicles and tubules (width 50–100 nm), whereas the basal part is occupied by a number of membrane–bound, club–like inclusions (length ≤ 5 μm). Between these two layers there occurs a layer of small, elongated mitochondria. Peripherally, these cells consist of a filamentous wall, except in the apical area. The endothelial and rodlet cell inclusion bodies do not react with phosphotungstic acid (pH 1) or Sudan black B stain. The endothelial cells react strongly with periodic acid–Schiff (PAS) stain, whereas the rodlet cells are only moderately coloured by this stain. The present results are discussed and compared with those reported previously for endothelial/ endocardial cells and rodlet cells in bony fish.
Context and genesis of the Lebanese amberiferous palaeoenvironments at the Jurassic-Cretaceous transition

The Lebanese amber is still the oldest for Gondwanaland and its fauna is relatively well studied; as to date about 180 taxa have been described from this material. Nevertheless, the formation of the different Lebanese amberiferous outcrops is not yet clearly understood. We propose a new hypothesis and interpretation for the formation of amber deposits in the Late Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous Lebanese sediments. We thus evoke the evolution of the stratigraphy and the geodynamical context that lead to the amber deposition. Indeed, tectonic complexity of what is now a part of the Middle East area existed since the Precambrian times and is still modeling its geology. We redefine as well Lebanon during the formation of its amber deposits, but we do not conclude on the real age of this amber.
Similarity-Based Unsupervised Deep Transfer Learning for Remote Sensing Image Retrieval

In the field of content-based remote sensing (RS) image retrieval, convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have been demonstrating overwhelming superiority among other methods in terms of performance. CNNs are basically trained in a supervised way, requiring a larger number of labeled samples. However, scarcity of labeled images is very prevalent in the RS community. Moreover, CNN-based approaches have other disadvantages such as cumbersome networks and high-dimensional features. To address these issues, we apply unsupervised transfer learning to CNN training—we transform similarity learning into deep ordinal classification with the help of several CNN experts pretrained over large-scale-labeled everyday image sets, which jointly determine image similarities and provide pseudolabels for classification. Our proposed method ends up with a brand-new lightweight model called similarity-based Siamese CNN (SBS-CNN), which can be trained from scratch with completely unlabeled RS images, and whose resulting features are compact. Furthermore, the existing CNNs are generally coupled with the cross-entropy loss, entirely ignoring the interclass semantic relationship. To overcome this shortcoming, a novel loss function called weighted Wasserstein ordinal loss is constructed to take into account the ordinal relationship among categories, thus more effectively navigating parameter updates during training. Extensive experiments have been carried out over publicly available RS data sets, and it turns out that our SBS-CNN outperforms existing CNN-based approaches.
Microbial methane cycling in the bed of a chalk river: oxidation has the potential to match methanogenesis enhanced by warming

SUMMARY 1. Many rivers are oversaturated in methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) relative to the atmosphere, but we know little about the biological controls on the balance between these two important greenhouse gases and how they might respond to warming. 2. We characterise the potential response to temperature in the biological production of CO2 and CH4 and the subsequent microbial oxidation of that CH4, that is the sink and source components of the CH4 cycle, in contrasting river bed sediments: fine sediments, which are largely anoxic, and oxic, coarse gravels. 3. In the fine sediments, anaerobic production of both CH4 and CO2 increased with temperature, with apparent activation energies for each being 0.51 eV and 0.24 eV, respectively. The difference between the two resulted in a 4% increase in the ratio of CH4:CO2 production for a 1 °C increase in temperature. 4. In the coarse gravels, microbial CH4 oxidation showed no response to temperature at CH4 concentrations characteristic of these gravel beds (30–200 nmol CH4 L 1 ), due to strong substrate limitation. In contrast, at higher (although still rate limiting) CH4 concentrations, more characteristic of the fine sediment patches (2–4 lmol CH4 L 1 ), CH4 oxidation exhibited an increasingly strong response to temperature, eventually exceeding that for CH4 production. 5. In the fine sediment, the surface layers had a CH4 oxidation capacity over 100 times greater than the gravels and the kinetic response to differing pore water CH4 concentrations meant CH4 was oxidised some 2000 times faster in the fine sediment patches compared with the coarse gravels. 6. The calculated kinetic and temperature responses showed that with warming, methanogenesis is unlikely to outstrip methanotrophy and the ratio of CO2 to CH4 emitted could be conserved. Consequently, any changes in the efflux ratio of CH4 to CO2 are unlikely to be due to the incapacity of methanotrophy to respond to CH4 production, but rather to a physical bypassing of the methanotrophic community (e.g. through ebullition or transport via plant stems) or contraction of the oxic layer.
Water relations between shrubs and grasses in semi-arid Argentina

Abstract The two-layer hypothesis argues that in shrublands shrubs take up most of the water from the lower layers of the soil whereas grasses take up most of the water from the upper layers of the soil. We tested two predictions from this hypothesis in a shrubland of central semi-arid Argentina: (1) the correlation between plant water potential and soil water potential in the upper layers is stronger for grasses than for shrubs and (2) rooting depth is greater for shrubs than for grasses. The apparent pattern of water use by the deciduous shrub ( Prosopis caldenia ) and the two perennial grasses ( Stipa tenuis and Piptochaetium napostaense ) under study was consistent with the two-layer hypothesis whereas the evergreen shrub ( Condalia microphylla ) did not support this model. Our results suggest that the pattern of water use by grasses and shrubs in shrublands may be dependent upon strategies to counteract water stress and the phenological patterns developed by species within each life form.
Seven new species of Trichodorus (Diphtherophorina, Trichodoridae) from Spain, an apparent centre of speciation

During a survey for Trichodoridae in cultivated and natural environments, mainly from southern Spain, 7 new Trichodorus species were found. Four of them, T. andalusicus n. sp. , T. asturanus n. sp. , T. silvestris n. sp. and T. parasilvestris n. sp. , belong to the T. lusitanicus morpho-species group characterised in the male by the slightly ventrally curved spicules with a mid-blade constriction with bristles, and in the female by well developed, rounded triangular to quadrangular, vaginal sclerotised pieces. They were mainly differentiated based upon differences in body length, onchiostyle length, spicule shape and number of ventromedian cervical papillae in the male, and size and shape of the vaginal sclerotised pieces in the female. The presence of the T. lusitanicus morpho-species group with 8 species, apparently endemic to the Iberian Peninsula, could point to a recent speciation event. Additionally, 3 new species, T. onubensis n. sp. , T. iliplaensis n. sp. and T. paragiennensis n. sp. , more closely resembling the morpho-species group of T. sparsus, to which the Spanish species T. giennensis also belongs, were identified. They were differentiated based on body length, length of onchiostyle and position of the secretory-excretory pore and, in the male, by length and shape of the spicules and number of ventromedian cervical papillae and in the female by the vaginal sclerotised pieces. Molecular support to differentiate the new species using the D2-D3 expansion segments of 28S rDNA is also provided. In addition, a new population of T. variabilis from Greece was studied as well as T. lusitanicus type specimens, and a population of T. giennensis and T. lusitanicus were also sequenced.
Lightweight tubular fiberboard: Effect of hole diameters and number on panel properties

Special tubular fiberboard with a density of 550 kg/m3 was manufactured using the round rods for cre-ation of the holes. Physicomechanical properties of tubular fiberboard (6, 8, 10, 12 mm) with various hole diameters and number of hole (0, 1, 2 and 3 in a constant cross section) were evaluated. The surface lay-ers density, especially on top of the holes, considerably elevated with increasing the hole diameter. This did create higher bending properties as well as higher internal bond and surface soundness. The structure of webs between the holes, when the holes’ number increases, were predominant factor influencing the panel properties. Weak and loose web structure were obtained by increasing the holes’ number from 1 to 3 within a constant cross section (50 mm × 16 mm) that was due to the less transferred fiber during pressing in the webs’ sections. A corresponding comparison of panel properties with those in American and Euro-pean standards presents that the minimum requirements according to most of the standards were obtained
Variability of lake surface water temperature: a case study during El Nino and La Nina events over the Himalayan lake region

ABSTRACT Lake surface water temperature (LSWT) is sensitive to long-term changes in thermal structure of lakes. This paper investigates the association of LSWT with meteorological parameters and its impact during El Nino and La Nina events over the Himalayan lake region, using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite data from 2001 to 2017. The observed daytime rates of change of LSWT was −0.05°C/year whereas it was +0.01°C/year for nighttime. The cooling of lake during daytime could be attributed to increase in rainfall and decrease in solar radiation, whereas increase in nighttime LSWT is due to increasing lowest temperature. The variability in LSWT with respect to meteorological variables during El Nino Southern Oscillation period was highest for cold phase than warm phase. There was only 1% increase in LSWT in the El Nino years (2002 and 2009), due to decreased rainfall by 95% and 56% respectively. On the other hand, the LSWT decreased in strong La Nina years of 2007 (2%) and 2010 (6%) due to the drastically increased rainfall, decreased maximum temperature and solar radiation. The correlation revealed that, in addition to the increase in temperature, the LSWT warming is consistent with the decrease in rainfall and increase in solar radiation.
LARGE-SCALE DISTURBANCE AND THE STRUCTURE OF MARINE SYSTEMS: FISHERY IMPACTS ON GEORGES BANK

Georges Bank, a shallow submarine plateau located off the New England coast, has supported valuable commercial fisheries for several centuries. The region is characterized by high levels of primary productivity and, historically, high levels of fish production. Within the last four decades Georges Bank has been subjected to major perturbations that have profoundly altered levels of catch, abundance, and species composition. The arrival of distant water fleets during the early 1960s resulted in dramatic increases in effective fishing effort and the subsequent commercial collapse of several fish populations. Total fish biomass is estimated to have declined by >50% on Georges Bank during the period of operation of the distant water fleets. The implementation of extended jurisdiction (the 200-mile [370.4-km] limit) in 1977 was followed by modernization and increased capacity of the domestic fleet, resulting in a second perturbation to the system that resulted in further declines in groundfish populations to h.
Executive Functions and Impulsivity Are Genetically Distinct and Independently Predict Psychopathology: Results From Two Adult Twin Studies

Laboratory executive function (EF) constructs, such as response inhibition, are often conceptually linked with self-report measures of impulsivity, yet their empirical correlations are low. We examined, in two twin studies (ns = 749 and 761 individuals with EF data), the phenotypic and genetic overlap of three EF latent variables (a Common EF factor predicting response inhibition, working memory updating, and mental set-shifting tasks and Updating- and Shifting-Specific factors) with five impulsivity dimensions (negative and positive urgency, lack of premeditation and perseverance, and sensation seeking). In both samples, impulsivity dimensions were only modestly correlated phenotypically (rs = −.20–.11) and genetically (rAs = −.44–.04) with Common EF. In both samples, Common EF and multiple impulsivity dimensions, particularly negative urgency, independently predicted Externalizing psychopathology, and multiple impulsivity dimensions but not Common EF predicted Internalizing psychopathology. These results suggest that EFs and self-reported impulsivity tap different aspects of control that are both relevant for psychopathology.
Experimental validation of thermophoretic and bend nanoparticle loss for a regulatory prescribed aircraft nvPM sampling system

Abstract Aircraft gas turbine engines produce ultrafine PM which has been linked to local-air-quality and environmental concerns. Regulatory sampling and measurement standards were recently introduced by ICAO to mitigate these emission of nonvolatile PM (nvPM). Currently, reported nvPM emissions can significantly under-represent engine exit concentrations due to particle loss. A System-Loss-Tool (SLT) has been proposed to correct for particle loss in the standard sampling and measurement system permitting an estimation of engine exit concentrations for airport environment inventories. Thermophoretic and bend particle loss mechanisms are predicted in the SLT using expressions derived from the literature, which are not in all cases empirically validated to conditions representative of aircraft nvPM exhaust sampling methodologies. In this study, thermophoretic (Tgas≤910 °C) and coiling-induced (≤3960°) particle loss were measured using sampling variables relevant to aerospace certification. Experiments were performed using laboratory generated solid particles (fractal graphite, cubical salt and spherical silica) bounding the upper and lower limits of aircraft soot morphology (i.e., particle effective density, mass-mobility exponent, primary-particle-size). These were aerodynamically classified using a Cambustion Aerodynamic-Aerosol-Classifier (AAC) at electrical-mobility diameters ranging from 30 to 140 nm. The AAC was shown to efficiently classify salt and silica particles, producing monomodal distributions ≥25 nm electrical-mobility GMD, whilst classifying fractal graphite >40 nm electrical-mobility GMD (calculated as da≥20 nm) albeit generally displaying larger GSD’s. Thermophoretic loss at ΔTgas of 0–880 K correlated well with the SLT for non-fractal particles with losses ≤39.2% measured, with higher depositions observed for graphite (4.1%) considered insignificant compared to overall measurement uncertainty. Coiling a 25 m sample line in compliance with ICAO standards induced negligible additional particle loss at flowrates relevant of aircraft exhaust sampling, in agreement with SLT-predicted bend losses. However, additional losses were witnessed at lower flowrates (≤13% at 30 nm), attributed to secondary flow diffusion loss induced by the coiling. Copyright © 2020 American Association for Aerosol Research
Análise da influência de diferentes tamanhos e composições de amostras no ajuste de uma relação hipsométrica para Eucalyptus grandis

The adjustment of hypsometric relations using data from forest inventory aiming at the estimation of individual tree volumes is a common task in Brazilian forestry companies. This study used a data set of 481 trees of Eucalyptus grandis from a forest inventory. Simulation was carried out varying sample sizes from 6 to 204 sample-trees. For each sample size it was run 10,000 simulations for each size samples selected randomly. This study aimed at evaluating the effect of sample size and structure on the precision of a previously chosen hypsometric model which had, as independent variables, the Diameter at Breast Height (DBH) and the tree age. It was also evaluated the effect of these covariates on the tree heights estimates. It was concluded that a sample with at least 27 trees could more precisely estimate tree height when compared to smaller samples. In addition, sample sizes containing more than 27 trees did not shown significant improving on the precision of the height estimates. For the hipysometric model, the variable DBH was more valuable to estimate the tree height than the covariate age. For the trees with larger DBH, the variable age showed to be more influent.
THE EFFECT OF CONSPECIFICS ON OVIPOSITION SITE SELECTION AND OVIPOSITION BEHAVIOUR IN AEDES TOGOI (THEOBOLD) (DIPTERA: CULICIDAE)

Abstract Two opposing hypotheses are tested regarding the choice of oviposition sites by female Aedes togoi (Theobold) mosquitoes: (i) conspecific avoidance—females discriminate against sites harboring conspecifics to reduce intraspecific competition for their offspring and (ii) conspecific attraction—females prefer sites with conspecifics because their presence indicates suitable conditions for larvae. Under laboratory conditions, A. togoi females laid many more eggs on rearing water (LRW) containing conspecific larvae, their waste, bacteria, and food supplements than on rearing water alone (RM). In another experiment, females showed an oviposition preference for LRW sites that were devoid of A. togoi eggs compared with those harboring 50 (0.3 eggs/mL) conspecific eggs. Further, it was discovered that females laid their eggs at several sites rather than at a single suitable site. Possible reasons for such choices are discussed. Résumé Nous avons éprouvé deux hypothèses contraires au sujet du choix d’un site de ponte chez les femelles d’Aedes togoi (Theobold) : (i) la fuite des individus conspécifiques—les femelles évitent les sites occupés par des conspécifiques de façon à réduire la compétition intraspécifique chez leurs rejetons et (ii) l’attirance pour les individus conspécifiques—les femelles préfèrent les sites déjà occupés par des conspécifiques parce que leur présence est indicatrice de conditions favorables pour les larves. Dans des conditions de laboratoire, des femelles d’A. togoi ont pondu beaucoup plus d’oeufs dans de l’eau d’élevage (LRW) contenant des larves conspécifiques, leurs excréments, leurs bactéries et leurs suppléments alimentaires que dans de l’eau d’élevage pure (RM). Au cours d’une autre expérience, les femelles ont manifesté des préférences pour les sites LRW ne contenant pas d’oeufs d’A. togoi plutôt que pour les sites contenant déjà 50 (0,3 oeufs/mL) oeufs conspécifiques. De plus, nous avons constaté que les femelles pondaient leurs oeufs à plusieurs endroits plutôt qu’à un seul site favorable. Nous examinons les raisons possibles de ces comportements multiples, propres à équilibrer les risques. [Traduit par la Rédaction]
BBC Sex-for-Grades-Report: Nigeria Tertiary Institutions ‘Crisis Management Strategies and Stakeholders’ Reactions

Studies have already acknowledged sexual scandals as public relations nightmares of higher institutions of learning. Therefore, we examined the crisis management strategies of Nigerian tertiary institutions and stakeholders’ reactions after the British Broadcasting Corporation’s sex-for-grades report. Adopting qualitative research, we analysed 13 available press releases of institutions retrieved from some institutions’ websites and sampled opinions of 20 stakeholders comprising parents, students and lecturers through a depth interview. We used Coombs’ theory of crisis response strategies: denial, diminish, rebuild and bolstering as thematic categories. We discovered that the institutions mostly used denial with diminish response strategy to blame societal decadence, scapegoat female students for and downplayed the severity of sexual harassment incidence by the institutions. More so, all the stakeholders distrust the credibility of local media in the reportage of sexual harassment cases. However, female students feel aggrieved that school administrations and national government neglected them for failing to outlaw sexual harassment and severely punish offenders. Therefore, we recommend that considering stakeholders’ perception of sexual harassment incidence in Nigerian ivory tower, Nigerian higher educational institutions should not adopt denial response strategy for sex scandal cases.