Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Movement patterns and underestimation of the maximum age of a Vulnerable endemic guitarfish species inferred from mark-recapture studies

Data collected from mark-recapture programmes have proven invaluable in assessing the movements and growth of numerous fishery species along the South African coastline. This short note reports on tag and recapture information on the Vulnerable endemic lesser guitarfish Acroteriobatus annulatus. This species appears to exhibit site-affinity behaviour, with an observed mean distance moved of 38.5 km (SD 121.4, range 0–726 km). The recapture of two individuals (tagged as adults; ∼100 cm total length) 6 and 12 years after tagging suggests that the maximum age for this species is likely more than double the current maximum recorded age of 7 years (estimated from vertebral ring counts). This has major implications for the management of this bycatch species (with a declining population trend), and for other guitarfish species occurring in South Africa for which the maximum age is currently unknown.
Gödel's Disjunction: The scope and limits of mathematical knowledge

The logician Kurt Gödel in 1951 established a disjunctive thesis about the scope and limits of mathematical knowledge: either the mathematical mind is not equivalent to a Turing machine (i.e., a computer), or there are absolutely undecidable mathematical problems. In the second half of the twentieth century, attempts have been made to arrive at a stronger conclusion. In particular, arguments have been produced by the philosopher J.R. Lucas and by the physicist and mathematician Roger Penrose that intend to show that the mathematical mind is more powerful than any computer. These arguments, and counterarguments to them, have not convinced the logical and philosophical community. The reason for this is an insufficiency if rigour in the debate. The contributions in this volume move the debate forward by formulating rigorous frameworks and formally spelling out and evaluating arguments that bear on Gödel's disjunction in these frameworks. The contributions in this volume have been written by world leading experts in the field.
Design and application of Type-2 fuzzy logic system based on improved ant colony algorithm

In this paper, an improved ant colony optimization (IACO) with global pheromone update is proposed based on ant colony optimization (ACO), and it is used to design interval Type-2 TSK fuzzy logic system (FLS), including parameters adjustment and rules selection. The performance of the system can be improved by obtaining the optimal parameters and reducing the redundant rules. In order to verify the feasibility of the proposed method, the intelligent FLS is applied to predict the international petroleum price and the Zhongyuan environmental protection shares price. It is proved that the IACO can improve the efficiency of the original algorithm and accelerate the convergence speed. The simulations show that both IACO and ACO are feasible and have a high performance for the design of FLS. The simulation results compared with back-propagation design (BP algorithm) show that intelligent algorithms have an advantage over the classical algorithm, the simulation result compared with without rule-selection shows that reduced redundant rules can improve the performance, and the result compared with the Type-1 FLS shows that interval Type-2 TSK FLS has a better performance than the Type-1 TSK FLS.
Large-Scale Integration of Amplicon Data Reveals Massive Diversity within Saprospirales, Mostly Originating from Saline Environments

The order Saprospirales, a group of bacteria involved in complex degradation pathways, comprises three officially described families: Saprospiraceae, Lewinellaceae, and Haliscomenobacteraceae. These collectively contain 17 genera and 31 species. The current knowledge on Saprospirales diversity is the product of traditional isolation methods, with the inherited limitations of culture-based approaches. This study utilized the extensive information available in public sequence repositories combined with recent analytical tools to evaluate the global evidence-based diversity of the Saprospirales order. Our analysis resulted in 1183 novel molecular families, 15,033 novel molecular genera, and 188 K novel molecular species. Of those, 7 novel families, 464 novel genera, and 1565 species appeared in abundances at ≥0.1%. Saprospirales were detected in various environments, such as saline water, freshwater, soil, various hosts, wastewater treatment plants, and other bioreactors. Overall, saline water was the environment showing the highest prevalence of Saprospirales, with bioreactors and wastewater treatment plants being the environments where they occurred with the highest abundance. Lewinellaceae was the family containing the majority of the most prevalent species detected, while Saprospiraceae was the family with the majority of the most abundant species found. This analysis should prime researchers to further explore, in a more targeted way, the Saprospirales proportion of microbial dark matter.
Streptococcus pneumoniae nasal carriage patterns with and without common respiratory virus detections in households in Seattle, WA, USA before and during the COVID-19 pandemic

Background Respiratory viruses might influence Streptococcus pneumoniae nasal carriage and subsequent disease risk. We estimated the association between common respiratory viruses and semiquantitative S. pneumoniae nasal carriage density in a household setting before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods From November 2019–June 2021, we enrolled participants in a remote household surveillance study of respiratory pathogens. Participants submitted weekly reports of acute respiratory illness (ARI) symptoms. Mid-turbinate or anterior nasal swabs were self-collected at enrollment, when ARI occurred, and, in the second year of the study only, from household contacts after SARS-CoV-2 was detected in a household member. Specimens were tested using multiplex reverse-transcription PCR for respiratory pathogens, including S. pneumoniae, rhinovirus, adenovirus, common human coronavirus, influenza A/B virus, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) A/B, human metapneumovirus, enterovirus, and human parainfluenza virus. We estimated differences in semiquantitative S. pneumoniae nasal carriage density, estimated by the inverse of S. pneumoniae relative cycle threshold (Crt) values, with and without viral detection for any virus and for specific respiratory viruses using linear generalized estimating equations of S. pneumoniae Crt values on virus detection adjusted for age and swab type and accounting for clustering of swabs within households. Results We collected 346 swabs from 239 individuals in 151 households that tested positive for S. pneumoniae (n = 157 with and 189 without ≥1 viruses co-detected). Difficulty breathing, cough, and runny nose were more commonly reported among individuals with specimens with viral co-detection compared to without (15%, 80% and 93% vs. 8%, 57%, and 51%, respectively) and ear pain and headache were less commonly reported (3% and 26% vs. 16% and 41%, respectively). For specific viruses among all ages, semiquantitative S. pneumoniae nasal carriage density was greater with viral co-detection for enterovirus, RSV A/B, adenovirus, rhinovirus, and common human coronavirus (P < 0.01 for each). When stratified by age, semiquantitative S. pneumoniae nasal carriage density was significantly greater with viral co-detection among children aged <5 (P = 0.002) and 5–17 years (P = 0.005), but not among adults aged 18–64 years (P = 0.29). Conclusion Detection of common respiratory viruses was associated with greater concurrent S. pneumoniae semiquantitative nasal carriage density in a household setting among children, but not adults.
Iterative learning control design with high‐order internal model for discrete‐time nonlinear systems

In this paper, a high‐order internal model (HOIM)‐based iterative learning control (ILC) scheme is proposed for discrete‐time nonlinear systems to tackle the tracking problem under iteration‐varying desired trajectories. By incorporating the HOIM that is utilized to describe the variation of desired trajectories in the iteration domain into the ILC design, it is shown that the system output can converge to the desired trajectory along the iteration axis within arbitrarily small error. Furthermore, the learning property in the presence of state disturbances and output noise is discussed under HOIM‐based ILC with an integrator in the iteration axis. Two simulation examples are given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed control method. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Effect of Board of Directors Size, Board of Directors Characteristics, Ownership Structure, and Company Size on The Quality of Sustainability Reporting Disclosures

This study aims to analyze the quality of Sustainability Reporting disclosures and test the factors that influence them. The quality of Sustainability Reporting disclosures is identified using content analysis techniques based on the GRI Standards. GRI Standards is the latest guideline launched by the Global Reporting Initiative which became effective in 2018 in Indonesia. Factors influencing the quality of Sustainability Reporting disclosures were tested using quantitative methods of multiple regression analysis. This study used 36 samples obtained through purposive sampling from infrastructure sector companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange that disclosed sustainability reporting for the 2016-2021 period. The results showed that the quality of sustainability reporting in Indonesia is still relatively low at 17.41%. This implies that voluntary sustainability reporting disclosures make companies less motivated to make in-depth disclosures. The number and characteristics of the company's board of directors have a significant influence and the ownership structure and size of the company have a significant positive influence on the quality of sustainability reporting.
Dexamethasone affects human fetal adrenal steroidogenesis and subsequent ACTH response in an ex vivo culture model

Introduction Administration of dexamethasone (DEX) has been used experimentally to suppress androgenization of external genitalia in 46,XX fetuses with congenital adrenal hyperplasia. Despite this, the prenatal biological mechanism-of-action of DEX on fetal development is not known. This study aimed to examine direct effects of DEX on human fetal adrenal (HFA) steroidogenic activity including possible effects on the subsequent response to ACTH-stimulation. Methods Human fetal adrenal (HFA) tissue from 30 fetuses (1st trimester) were cultured ex vivo with A) DEX (10 µm) for 14 days, or B) DEX (10 µm) for 10 days followed by ACTH (1 nM) for 4 days. DEX-mediated effects on HFA morphology, viability, and apoptosis (immunohistochemistry), gene expression (quantitative PCR), and steroid hormone secretion (LC-MS/MS) were investigated. Results DEX-treatment caused decreased androstenedione (p<0.05) and increased cortisol (p<0.01) secretion suggesting that direct effects on the adrenal gland may contribute to the negative feedback on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in vivo. An altered response to ACTH stimulation in HFA pre-treated with DEX included increased androgen (p<0.05) and reduced cortisol production (p<0.05), supporting clinical observations of a temporary decreased ACTH-response following prenatal DEX-treatment. Additionally, the secretion of corticosterone was decreased (p<0.0001) following ACTH-stimulation in the initially DEX-treated HFAs. Discussion The observed effects suggest that prenatal DEX-treatment can cause direct effects on HFA steroidogenesis and in the subsequent response to ACTH-stimulation. This may indicate a requirement for careful monitoring of adrenal function in prenatally DEX-treated neonates, with particular focus on their mineralocorticoid levels.
Is ball-possession style more physically demanding than counter-attacking? The influence of playing style on match performance in professional soccer

In soccer, the offensive style of play describes characteristic behavioral features of the players at team level during the offensive phase of matches. This study aimed to investigate the effect of offensive playing style (i.e., while in ball possession) on physical and technical match performance during offensive play as well as success-related factors. The sample consisted of official tracking and event data of 153 matches of the 2020/21 German Bundesliga season. For every team in every match an offensive playing style coefficient was calculated to locate teams on a continuum between ball possession and counter-attacking style. This calculation contains 11 technical and physical performance parameters and has already been validated. In addition, dependent physical (e.g., sprinting distance), technical (e.g., passes), and success-related (e.g., goals) variables were examined. A separate linear mixed model was calculated for each dependent variable. While teams with lower playing style coefficient values (= counter-attacking style) covered more high-intensity (p ≤ 0.01; R2 = 0.13) and sprinting distances per second in possession (p ≤ 0.01; R2 = 0.14), teams with higher playing style coefficient values (= ball possession style) were physically more demanded over a whole match (e.g., more accelerations (p ≤ 0.01; R2 = 0.69), decelerations (p ≤ 0.01; R2 = 0.69), high-intensity (p ≤ 0.01; R2 = 0.36), sprint distance (p = 0.03; R2 = 0.08)). Furthermore, teams with higher playing style coefficient values played more horizontal passes (p ≤ 0.01; R2 = 0.73) and revealed better passing success rates (p ≤ 0.01; R2 = 0.17). In contrast, teams with lower playing style coefficient values played more long passes (p < 0.01; R2 = 0.58). The influence of the playing style coefficient on success-related variables was smaller (p ≤ 0.36; R2 = 0.10–0.13). Concluding, offensive playing style affects physical and technical match performance, but has limited influence on success. Hence, coaches can use the findings to optimize training contents to prepare players for the physical demands of a match.
Forgotten factors in the development of dependent clauses in Swedish as a second language

This paper is concerned with the acquisition of Swedish dependent clauses. In a longitudinal study of Belgian foreign language learners of Swedish, three factors were found to be of special relevance in the learner’s successive acquisition of dependent clauses: (i) finiteness, i.e. the difference between finite and non-finite complements; (ii) complementizers, i.e. the acquisition of different complementizers (iii) dependent clause types, i.e. the acquisition and use of different types of dependent clauses. My study emphasizes the importance of acknowledging a wide array of structural factors besides internal word order, which has hitherto been the main focus in studies on the acquisition of Swedish dependent clauses.
Transcending the self to transcend suffering

Suffering is inevitable in human life. Our perspective paper theorizes on precise mechanisms for how self-transcendence—the state in which an individual looks beyond the self and adopts a larger perspective including concern for others and the world—may help people endure the experience of suffering. From an examination of empirical literature ranging from social psychology to clinical research, we propose that self-transcendence may aid the endurance of suffering along three psychological levels: (1) On the level of affect, the unique profundity and positivity of self-transcendent experiences (e.g., awe, flow, compassion) may supersede and reduce the salience of negative affect arising from suffering (e.g., fear, despair, depressive mood). (2) On the level of cognition, the larger frame of reference provided by self-transcendent thinking may contextualize one’s suffering as something comprehendible, thereby helping to resolve the challenges of making meaning from suffering (e.g., that one’s existing meaning systems are unable to explain the suffering event). (3) On the level of motivation, the drive to fulfill one’s need for self-transcendence may counterbalance the more hedonically-oriented motivations that can promote negative coping strategies in response to suffering (e.g., avoidance, substance abuse). All three mechanisms may also provoke downstream prosocial behaviors that help embed the individual into networks of social support. Altogether, by synthesizing specific mechanisms from affective, cognitive, and motivational self-transcendent processes, our paper establishes a theoretical framework for how self-transcendence may help people endure and transcend suffering, thereby elevating the conditions and experiences of our existence.
Chemical and antibacterial effects of plasma activated water: correlation with gaseous and aqueous reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, plasma sources and air flow conditions

When cold atmospheric plasma comes into contact with water and biological media, antimicrobial or antitumor effects are induced, representing great potential for applications in biomedicine and agriculture. The need to control and tune the chemical composition and biomedical effects of plasma activated water/media (PAW/PAM) is emerging. By comparing two nonthermal air plasma sources, streamer corona and transient spark, interacting with water in open and closed reactors, and by enhancing the plasma–liquid interaction by water electrospray through these discharges, we demonstrate that the plasma gaseous products strongly depend on the discharge regime, its deposited power and gas flow conditions. The streamer corona strongly leads to the formation of ozone and hydrogen peroxide, while the more energetic transient spark leads to nitrogen oxides and hydrogen peroxide. The gaseous products then determine the chemical properties of the PAW and the dominant aqueous reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (RONS). The production of hydrogen peroxide depends on water evaporation and hydroxyl radical formation, which is determined by the discharge power. A transient spark produces higher concentrations of gaseous and aqueous RONS and induces stronger antibacterial effects than a streamer corona; however, the RONS production rates per joule of deposited energy are comparable for both studied discharge regimes. The net production rate per joule of gaseous nitrogen oxides strongly correlates with that of aqueous nitrites and nitrates. The antibacterial effects of the PAW tested on Escherichia coli bacteria are determined by the aqueous RONS: in the lower power streamer corona, this is ascertained mainly by the dissolved ozone and hydrogen peroxide, and in the higher power transient spark, by the combination of hydrogen peroxide, nitrite and acidic pH, while in the transient spark in the closed reactor it is determined by the acidified nitrites present.
Hunger modulates perceptions of food health but not taste in restricted eaters

Introduction Food taste and health perceptions are of particular interest for their implications on food choice. Most in vivo food choice studies experimentally control for hunger via a set preload or fast. Methods To explore how hunger may interact with these perceptions to impact food decisions, we compared taste and health perceptions of sweet and savory obesogenic food items among hungry or satiated participants with varying restrained eating tendencies. Results In our sample of 232 adults (M BMI = 25.9; M age = 36.4 yrs), highly palatable foods were perceived as tasty but unhealthy. Tastiness ratings were high, consistent across restrained eating groups, and unassociated with hunger. Perceptions of health, however, were impacted by the interaction of restrained eating group and hunger. Amongst hungry participants only, a graded association between restrained eating group and perceptions of health emerged for both food types. Specifically, hungry and highly restrained eaters viewed sweet foods as 2.8x healthier and savory foods as 2.1x healthier than their satiated counterparts. Discussion Our data suggest that hunger predicts differential health perceptions, but not tastiness ratings, among restrained eaters. We argue that the generalization of food perception data–especially among different eater types–may be limited if the continuum of hunger level is experimentally constrained. Therefore, hunger is a critical dynamic to consider in explorations of food perceptions and eating behavior in restrained eaters.
Γ-SNE for feed-forward data visualisation

t-distributed Stochastic Neighbour Embedding (t-SNE) is one of the most popular nonlinear dimension reduction techniques used in multiple application domains. In this paper we propose a variation on the embedding neighbourhood distribution, resulting in Γ-SNE, which can construct a feed-forward mapping using an RBF network. We compare the visualizations generated by Γ-SNE with those of t-SNE and provide empirical evidence suggesting the network is capable of robust interpolation and automatic weight regularization.
Robust simultaneous finite-time control and fault detection for uncertain linear switched systems with time-varying delay

This study deals with the problem of simultaneous finite-time control and fault detection for linear switched systems with state delay and parameter uncertainties. Delay is assumed to vary in an interval with a nonzero lower bound and specified range. Uncertainties are norm-bounded time-varying and exist in the matrix of the system. Based on average dwell time approach and using delay-dependent method, new sufficient conditions are given in terms of linear matrix inequalities to design a controller/detector unit. The detector is an observer and the controller is an observer-based controller. This problem is formulated as finite-time H ∞ optimisation problem and both finite-time stability and fault detection are considered through certain performance indexes. The effectiveness of the proposed method is verified by a numerical example.
Measuring Large-Scale Structure at z ∼ 1 with the VIPERS galaxy survey

Abstract The VIMOS Public Extragalactic Redshift Survey (VIPERS) is the largest redshift survey ever conducted with the ESO telescopes. It has used the Very Large Telescope to collect nearly 100,000 redshifts from the general galaxy population at 0.5 < z < 1.2. With a combination of volume and high sampling density that is unique for these redshifts, it allows statistical measurements of galaxy clustering and related cosmological quantities to be obtained on an equal footing with classic results from local redshift surveys. At the same time, the simple magnitude-limited selection and the wealth of ancillary photometric data provide a general view of the galaxy population, its physical properties and the relation of the latter to large-scale structure. This paper presents an overview of the galaxy clustering results obtained so far, together with their cosmological implications. Most of these are based on the ∼ 55,000 galaxies forming the first public data release (PDR-1). As of January 2015, observations and data reduction are complete and the final data set of more than 90,000 redshifts is being validated and made ready for the final investigations.