Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Genomic diversity of SARS-CoV-2 in Coronavirus Disease 2019 patients

Abstract Background A novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) has infected more than 75,000 individuals and spread to over 20 countries. It is still unclear how fast the virus evolved and how the virus interacts with other microorganisms in the lung. Methods We have conducted metatranscriptome sequencing for the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid of eight SARS-CoV-2 patients, 25 community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) patients, and 20 healthy controls. Results The median number of intra-host variants was 1-4 in SARS-CoV-2 infected patients, which ranged between 0 and 51 in different samples. The distribution of variants on genes was similar to those observed in the population data (110 sequences). However, very few intra-host variants were observed in the population as polymorphism, implying either a bottleneck or purifying selection involved in the transmission of the virus, or a consequence of the limited diversity represented in the current polymorphism data. Although current evidence did not support the transmission of intra-host variants in a person-to-person spread, the risk should not be overlooked. The microbiota in SARS-CoV-2 infected patients was similar to those in CAP, either dominated by the pathogens or with elevated levels of oral and upper respiratory commensal bacteria. Conclusion SARS-CoV-2 evolves in vivo after infection, which may affect its virulence, infectivity, and transmissibility. Although how the intra-host variant spreads in the population is still elusive, it is necessary to strengthen the surveillance of the viral evolution in the population and associated clinical changes.
Describing the Process and Tools Adopted to Cocreate a Smartphone App for Obesity Prevention in Childhood: Mixed Method Study

Background Childhood obesity prevention is a public health priority in industrialized countries. The Reggio Emilia Local Health Authority has implemented a program involving primary and secondary prevention as well as the care of obese children. There are many health-promoting mobile apps, but few are targeted to children and very few are sponsored by public health agencies. Objective The goal of the research was to describe the process and tools adopted to cocreate a mobile app sponsored by the Reggio Emilia Local Health Authority to be installed in parents’ phones aimed at promoting child health and preventing obesity. Methods After stakeholder mapping, a consulting committee including relevant actors, stakeholders, and users was formed. Key persons for childhood obesity prevention were interviewed, focus groups with parents and pediatricians were conducted, and community reporting storytelling was collected. The results of these activities were presented to the consulting committee in order to define the functionalities and contents of the mobile app. Results Three key trends emerged from community reporting: being active, playing, and being outdoors; time for oneself, family, and friends; and the pressures of life and work and not having time to be active and socialize. In focus groups, interviews, and labs, mothers showed a positive attitude toward using an app to manage their children's weight, while pediatricians expressed concerns that the app could increase their workload. When these findings were explored by the consulting committee, four key themes were extracted: strong relationships with peers, family members, and the community; access to safe outdoor spaces; children’s need for age-appropriate independence; and professional support should be nonjudgmental and stigma-free. It should be a dialogue that promotes family autonomy. The app functions related to these needs include the following: (1) newsletter with anticipatory guidance, recipes, and vaccination and well-child visit reminders; (2) regional map indicating where physical activity can be done; (3) information on how to manage emergencies (eg, falls, burns, fever); (4) module for reinforcing the counseling intervention conducted by pediatricians for overweight children; and (5) a function to build a balanced daily diet. Conclusions The pilot study we conducted showed that cocreation in health promotion is feasible, with the consulting committee being the key co-governance and cocreation tool. The involvement of stakeholders in this committee made it possible to expand the number of persons and institutions actively contributing to the project.
Contrasting sources and processes of particulate species in haze days with low and high relative humidity in wintertime Beijing

Abstract. Although there are many studies of particulate matter (PM) pollution in Beijing, the sources and processes of secondary PM species during haze periods remain unclear. Limited studies have investigated the PM formation in highly polluted environments under low- and high-relative-humidity (RH) conditions. Herein, we present a systematic comparison of species in submicron particles (PM 1 ) in wintertime Beijing (29 December 2014 to 28 February 2015) for clean periods and pollution periods under low- and high-RH conditions. PM 1 species were measured with an aerosol chemical species monitor (ACSM) and an Aethalometer. Sources and processes for organic aerosol (OA) were resolved by positive matrix factorization (PMF) with a multilinear engine 2 (ME-2). The comparisons for clean, low-RH pollution and high-RH pollution periods are made from three different aspects, namely (a) mass concentration, (b) mass fraction and (c) growth rate in diurnal profiles. OA is the dominant component of PM 1 , with an average mass concentration of 56.7 µ g m −3 (46 %) during high-RH pollution and 67.7 µ g m −3 (54 %) during low-RH pollution periods. Sulfate had higher concentration and mass fraction during high-RH pollution periods, while nitrate had higher concentration and mass fraction during low-RH pollution periods. The diurnal variations of nitrate and oxygenated organic aerosol (OOA) showed a daytime increase in their concentrations during all three types of periods. Nitrate had similar growth rates during low-RH (0.40 µ g m −3 h −1 ) and high-RH (0.55 µ g m −3 h −1 ) pollution periods. OOA had a higher growth rate during low-RH pollution periods (1.0 µ g m −3 h −1 ) than during high-RH pollution periods (0.40 µ g m −3 h −1 ). In contrast, sulfate had a decreasing trend during low-RH pollution periods, while it increased significantly with a growth rate of 0.81 µ g m −3 h −1 during high-RH pollution periods. These distinctions in mass concentrations, mass fractions and daytime growth rates may be explained by the difference in the formation processes affected by meteorological conditions. In particular, photochemical oxidation and aqueous-phase processes may both produce sulfate and nitrate. The relative importance of the two pathways, however, differs under different meteorological conditions. Additional OOA formation under high-RH (> 70 %) conditions suggests aqueous-related formation pathways. This study provides a general picture of the haze formation in Beijing under different meteorological conditions.
The Pathway to Improving Human and Economic Development: Girls' Secondary Education, Governance, and Education Expenditures

Abstract:An extensive field of research identifies girls' secondary education as central to improving human and economic development. Despite improvements in girls' secondary education enrollment, there are still over 34 million female adolescents out of school—the majority in developing nations. While gender equity in education has improved, girls still lag behind boys in secondary education enrollments. Building on existing research, we argue that the failures of education spending in creating equitable access to secondary education are due to a lack of governance. We contend that strong governance has the potential to increase the effectiveness of education expenditures at improving female secondary education relative to males. Using two-way fixed effects models for a sample of 105 low and middle-income nations from 1997 to 2012, we examine how the interaction between four measures of governance and education expenditures impact gender equity in secondary education. Our findings suggest that governance increases the effectiveness of education expenditures in improving girls' secondary education enrollment compared to males.
Mutual Fund Advisory Misconduct: Investor Flows and Company Reactions

We evaluate the economic consequences of mutual fund advisory misconduct from 2000 to 2015. An average of 31.25% reduction in monthly fund flows occurs in one year after the misconduct. The effect is more pronounced in funds facing strong investor monitoring. Although all types of misconduct have negative effects on sentiment-driven flows, only disclosure-related misconduct has negative effects on fundamental-driven flows. To respond, mutual funds raise marketing expenditures, reduce contractual incentives, impose stricter investment restrictions, hold more liquid assets, and replace malfeasant advisory firms subsequently. These measures alleviate the adverse effects of misconduct on investor flows. Overall, our study highlights the significant impact of misconduct on mutual fund flows and responsive policies in the mutual fund industry.
Bunching to Maximize Tax Credits: Evidence from Kinks in the US Tax Schedule

We document bunching at tax kinks using a panel of 258 million income tax returns in the United States from 1996 to 2014. During this period, bunching grew by 700%. While most bunchers are self-employed, a substantial number of wage earners also bunch by misreporting income. The vast majority of bunching occurs at kinks maximizing tax credits, particularly at the kink that maximizes taxpayer refunds. Many taxpayers follow the refund-maximizing kink from year to year, selectively maximizing the appropriate tax credit(s). We argue that this behavior is incompatible with recently developed methods for identifying elasticities via bunching patterns.
The excitation of waves on a flexible panel in a uniform flow

The wave–bearing behaviour of a finite flexible plate in a uniform flow is studied when a source of continuous oscillatory excitation is present. The method of numerical simulation is employed so that any prescription of response is avoided. A series of numerical experiments is carried out and analysed using methods similar to those applicable to a physical experiment. It is found that the plate can respond at frequencies other than that of the driver; these frequencies may either be present in the start–up procedure or be generated by wave conversions at the panel edges. At early times in the response evolution, two types of behaviour are evident. These may be separately characterized as response to low–frequency excitation and response to high–frequency excitation. The former is dominated by spatially growing waves and the latter by absolute stability. The long–time behaviour of the flexible panel shows disturbance amplitude growth at all locations for flow speeds that approach zero in the limit of an infinitely long flexible plate. For parameters corresponding to a realistic flexible panel, the long–time growth of the deformation is found to be attributable to a combination of low–frequency unstable waves which are capable of convecting wall energy and thus disturbance growth to all parts of the flexible panel; the mechanism for this features repeated wave conversions at the panel ends. This convective mechanism predominates despite the presence of an absolute instability found in the system studied here. In the later stages of the flexible–panel response, the line excitation is largely insignificant. An attempt is made to reconcile the observations of the present numerical experiments with the predictions of hydroelastic boundary–value studies of an infinitely long flexible plate and the rigorous structural–acoustics approach to the problem in which causality is a key element.
In vitro Plant Regeneration in Cleopatra (Citrus reshni Hort. ex Tan.) by Direct Organogenesis

Maximum shoot regeneration (87.85%) and number of shoots per explant in the epicotyl segments having longitudinal cut in Citrus reshni var. Cleopatra were obtained on MT medium supplemented with BAP (2 mg/l) + NAA (0.2 mg/l). Maximum shoot length (5.10 cm), average leaf number per shoot (12), leaf length (2.12 cm) and width (1.5 cm) in Cleopatra were obtained on MT medium supplemented with BAP (2 mg/l) + NAA (0.2 mg/l). The maximum in vitro rooting (78.88 %) in the excised shoots occurred in liquid medium on MS supplemented with BAP (0.5 mg/l) + NAA (0.5 mg/l). Plant Tissue Cult. & Biotech. 28(2): 251-260, 2018 (December)
A zebrafish model of Mycobacterium kansasii infection reveals large extracellular cord formation.

Mycobacterium kansasii is a slow-growing non-tuberculous mycobacteria responsible for co-infections particularly in patients with human immunodeficiency virus. To date, our knowledge of M. kansasii infection has been hampered due to the lack of an effective animal model to study pathogenesis. Here, we show the zebrafish embryo is permissive to M. kansasii infection, causing a chronic infection and forming granulomas. Upon macrophage depletion, we identified M. kansasii forms extracellular cords, resulting in acute infection and rapid larval death. These findings highlight the feasibility of zebrafish to study M. kansasii pathogenesis, and for the first time identify extracellular cords in this species.
The ERA5-Land soil temperature bias in permafrost regions

Abstract. ERA5-Land (ERA5L) is a reanalysis product derived by running the land component of ERA5 at increased resolution. This study evaluates ERA5L soil temperature in permafrost regions based on observations and published permafrost products. We find that ERA5L overestimates soil temperature in northern Canada and Alaska but underestimates it in mid–low latitudes, leading to an average bias of −0.08 ∘ C. The warm bias of ERA5L soil is stronger in winter than in other seasons. As calculated from its soil temperature, ERA5L overestimates active-layer thickness and underestimates near-surface ( m) permafrost area. This is thought to be due in part to the shallow soil column and coarse vertical discretization of the land surface model and to warmer simulated soil. The soil temperature bias in permafrost regions correlates well with the bias in air temperature and with maximum snow height. A review of the ERA5L snow parameterization and a simulation example both point to a low bias in ERA5L snow density as a possible cause for the warm bias in soil temperature. The apparent disagreement of station-based and areal evaluation techniques highlights challenges in our ability to test permafrost simulation models. While global reanalyses are important drivers for permafrost simulation, we conclude that ERA5L soil data are not well suited for informing permafrost research and decision making directly. To address this, future soil temperature products in reanalyses will require permafrost-specific alterations to their land surface models.
Behavioral and neural auditory thresholds in a frog

Abstract Vocalizations play a critical role in mate recognition and mate choice in a number of taxa, especially, but not limited to, orthopterans, frogs, and birds. But receivers can only recognize and prefer sounds that they can hear. Thus a fundamental question linking neurobiology and sexual selection asks—what is the threshold for detecting acoustic sexual displays? In this study, we use 3 methods to assess such thresholds in túngara frogs: behavioral responses, auditory brainstem responses, and multiunit electrophysiological recordings from the midbrain. We show that thresholds are lowest for multiunit recordings (ca. 45 dB SPL), and then for behavioral responses (ca. 61 dB SPL), with auditory brainstem responses exhibiting the highest thresholds (ca. 71 dB SPL). We discuss why these estimates differ and why, as with other studies, it is unlikely that they should be the same. Although all of these studies estimate thresholds they are not measuring the same thresholds; behavioral thresholds are based on signal salience whereas the 2 neural assays estimate physiological thresholds. All 3 estimates, however, make it clear that to have an appreciation for detection and salience of acoustic signals we must listen to those signals through the ears of the receivers.
Circuit Model of Vertical Double-Circuit Transmission Tower and Line for Lightning Surge Analysis Considering TEM-mode Formation

The electromagnetic fields, which are produced by lightning currents flowing into a transmission tower and into overhead ground wires, spherically expand with time, and propagate as non-transverse electromagnetic (TEM) waves at least within the round trip time of the traveling wave along the tower. In this paper, a distributed-parameter line model of a vertical double-circuit transmission tower with an overhead line struck by lightning is composed considering the non-TEM characteristics. The surge impedances of the tower, ground wires, and phase conductors increase with time and reach their TEM-mode or steady state values with time constants determined from the configuration. In addition, the significant wave attenuation along the tower is included in the circuit model according to the propagation characteristic determined by the tower configuration. The virtual inductive grounding impedance or damping circuits for approximately representing the wave attenuation is no longer needed. The proposed model is applied to four types of transmission towers. Waveforms of voltages across insulator strings computed by the finite-difference time-domain method, which are regarded as the reference, are well reproduced by the proposed model. Computation efficiency is drastically improved by the proposed model comparing to the numerical electromagnetic field analysis.
Asian summer monsoon anticyclone: trends and variability

Abstract. The Asian summer monsoon anticyclone (ASMA) has been a topic of intensive research in recent times regarding its variability in dynamics, chemistry and radiation. This work explores the spatial variability and the trends of the ASMA using observational and reanalysis data sets. Our analysis indicates that the spatial extent and magnitude of the ASMA is greater during July and August than in June and September. The decadal variability of the anticyclone is very large at the edges of the anticyclone compared with the core region. Significant decadal variability is observed in the northeastern and southwestern parts of the ASMA with reference to the 1951–1960 period. The strength of the ASMA shows a drastic increase in zonal wind anomalies in terms of temporal variation. Furthermore, our results show that the extent of the anticyclone is greater during the active phase of the monsoon, strong monsoon years, and La Niña events. Significant warming with strong westerlies is observed exactly over the Tibetan Plateau from the surface to the tropopause during the abovementioned periods. Our results support the existence of transport process over the Tibetan Plateau and the Indian region during active, strong monsoon years and during strong La Niña years. Therefore, it is recommended that the different phases of the monsoon be taken into account when interpreting the variability of pollutants and trace gases in the anticyclone.
The affiliative role of empathy in everyday interpersonal interactions

Empathy theoretically serves an affiliative interpersonal function by satisfying motives for intimacy and union with others. Accordingly, empathy is expected to vary depending on the situation. Inconsistent empirical support for empathy’s affiliative role may be because of methodology focused on individual differences in empathy or differences between controlled experimental conditions, which fail to capture its dynamic and interpersonal nature. To address these shortcomings, we used ecological momentary assessment to establish typical patterns of empathy across everyday interactions. Associations among empathy, affect, and interpersonal behaviour of self and interaction partner were examined in a student sample (N = 330), then replicated in a preregistered community sample (N = 279). Multilevel structural equation modelling was used to distinguish individual differences in empathy from interaction-level effects. Results show that people are more empathetic during positively valenced interactions with others perceived as warm and when expressing warmth. By confirming the typically affiliative role of empathy, existing research to the contrary can be best understood as exceptions to the norm.
The Desirability of Social Confidence in Initial, Opposite-Sex Interactions.

OBJECTIVE We investigated whether men's social confidence in an initial, opposite-sex chatting context can be improved through a video tutorial and the extent to which being perceived as socially confident results in being seen as more romantically desirable and worthy of future contact. METHOD Women chatted with men who had received or not received a tutorial on how to handle speed-dating chats (Study 1: N = 129; Study 2: N = 60) or with male targets selected for having high versus moderate confidence in handling initial, opposite-sex encounters (Study 3: N = 46). RESULTS Tutorial-trained men felt more confident going into the chats and they, as well as male targets selected for their confidence, were perceived by female chat partners to be higher in social confidence, status, and dominance. However, only perceptions of social confidence were further associated with being perceived as more romantically desirable (as a short-term mate) and worthy of future contact. CONCLUSIONS Findings indicate that social confidence is trainable and that other-perceived social confidence can impact the outcomes of social interactions.
Financial Stability and Interest‐Rate Policy: A Quantitative Assessment of Costs and Benefit

Should monetary policy use its short‐term policy rate to stabilize the growth in household credit and housing prices with the aim of promoting financial stability? We ask this question for the case of Canada. We find that, to a first approximation, the answer is no. Resume. Stabilite financiere et politique de taux d’interet: evaluation quantitative des couts et des avantages. Afin de favoriser la stabilite financiere, la politique monetaire devrait‐elle utiliser son taux directeur a court terme pour equilibrer la croissance de l’endettement des menages et du prix des logements ? Nous posons cette question pour le Canada. Dans une premiere approximation, notre reponse est negative.