Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Colonization of a ‘Lost World’: Encrustation Patterns in Modern Subtropical Brachiopod Assemblages

Abstract The encrustation of Paleozoic rhynchonelliform brachiopods has been studied for decades, but modern brachiopods have not received similar scrutiny. The discovery of abundant subtropical brachiopods from the Southeast Brazilian Bight provides an unprecedented opportunity to assess epibiont abundance, diversity, and encrustation patterns in modern brachiopod assemblages. Across the outer shelf, encrustation frequencies vary among taxa, from mean values of 0.45% for Platidia to 9.3% for Argyrotheca. Encrustation frequencies for Bouchardia increase from 1.6% on the outer shelf to 84% on the inner shelf. Larger valves are encrusted more frequently, and epibionts preferentially colonize valve interiors. Increased encrustation on the inner shelf may reflect the greater surface area of larger hosts, longer exposure of dead shells, water-mass characteristics, sedimentation rates, productivity, or other factors that vary with depth. Inner-shelf brachiopods exhibit encrustation frequencies comparable to those reported for epifaunal bivalves. The epibiont fauna is dominated by bryozoans and serpulids, with minor roles played by spirorbids, bivalves, barnacles, foraminifera, algae, and other taxa. Epibiont abundance at each site is highly variable, but sites are similar in rank importance of epibiont taxa. A different suite of epibionts colonized Paleozoic brachiopods, but similar patterns of encrustation have been observed, including preferential settlement according to valve morphology. These results provide a baseline for evaluating the encrustation of modern bivalves and ancient brachiopods, and may elucidate the macroevolutionary history of epibionts and their relationship to their hosts.
Learning Lyapunov-Stable Polynomial Dynamical Systems Through Imitation

Imitation learning is a paradigm to address complex motion planning problems by learning a policy to imitate an expert's behavior. However, relying solely on the expert's data might lead to unsafe actions when the robot deviates from the demonstrated trajectories. Stability guarantees have previously been provided utilizing nonlinear dynamical systems, acting as high-level motion planners, in conjunction with the Lyapunov stability theorem. Yet, these methods are prone to inaccurate policies, high computational cost, sample inefficiency, or quasi stability when replicating complex and highly nonlinear trajectories. To mitigate this problem, we present an approach for learning a globally stable nonlinear dynamical system as a motion planning policy. We model the nonlinear dynamical system as a parametric polynomial and learn the polynomial's coefficients jointly with a Lyapunov candidate. To showcase its success, we compare our method against the state of the art in simulation and conduct real-world experiments with the Kinova Gen3 Lite manipulator arm. Our experiments demonstrate the sample efficiency and reproduction accuracy of our method for various expert trajectories, while remaining stable in the face of perturbations.
Leveraging Word Guessing Games to Assess the Intelligence of Large Language Models

The automatic evaluation of LLM-based agent intelligence is critical in developing advanced LLM-based agents. Although considerable effort has been devoted to developing human-annotated evaluation datasets, such as AlpacaEval, existing techniques are costly, time-consuming, and lack adaptability. In this paper, inspired by the popular language game ``Who is Spy'', we propose to use the word guessing game to assess the intelligence performance of LLMs. Given a word, the LLM is asked to describe the word and determine its identity (spy or not) based on its and other players' descriptions. Ideally, an advanced agent should possess the ability to accurately describe a given word using an aggressive description while concurrently maximizing confusion in the conservative description, enhancing its participation in the game. To this end, we first develop DEEP to evaluate LLMs' expression and disguising abilities. DEEP requires LLM to describe a word in aggressive and conservative modes. We then introduce SpyGame, an interactive multi-agent framework designed to assess LLMs' intelligence through participation in a competitive language-based board game. Incorporating multi-agent interaction, SpyGame requires the target LLM to possess linguistic skills and strategic thinking, providing a more comprehensive evaluation of LLMs' human-like cognitive abilities and adaptability in complex communication situations. The proposed evaluation framework is very easy to implement. We collected words from multiple sources, domains, and languages and used the proposed evaluation framework to conduct experiments. Extensive experiments demonstrate that the proposed DEEP and SpyGame effectively evaluate the capabilities of various LLMs, capturing their ability to adapt to novel situations and engage in strategic communication.
Can ChatGPT advance software testing intelligence? An experience report on metamorphic testing

While ChatGPT is a well-known artificial intelligence chatbot being used to answer human's questions, one may want to discover its potential in advancing software testing. We examine the capability of ChatGPT in advancing the intelligence of software testing through a case study on metamorphic testing (MT), a state-of-the-art software testing technique. We ask ChatGPT to generate candidates of metamorphic relations (MRs), which are basically necessary properties of the object program and which traditionally require human intelligence to identify. These MR candidates are then evaluated in terms of correctness by domain experts. We show that ChatGPT can be used to generate new correct MRs to test several software systems. Having said that, the majority of MR candidates are either defined vaguely or incorrect, especially for systems that have never been tested with MT. ChatGPT can be used to advance software testing intelligence by proposing MR candidates that can be later adopted for implementing tests; but human intelligence should still inevitably be involved to justify and rectify their correctness.
A Survey of Methods for Estimating Hurst Exponent of Time Sequence

The Hurst exponent is a significant indicator for characterizing the self-similarity and long-term memory properties of time sequences. It has wide applications in physics, technologies, engineering, mathematics, statistics, economics, psychology and so on. Currently, available methods for estimating the Hurst exponent of time sequences can be divided into different categories: time-domain methods and spectrum-domain methods based on the representation of time sequence, linear regression methods and Bayesian methods based on parameter estimation methods. Although various methods are discussed in literature, there are still some deficiencies: the descriptions of the estimation algorithms are just mathematics-oriented and the pseudo-codes are missing; the effectiveness and accuracy of the estimation algorithms are not clear; the classification of estimation methods is not considered and there is a lack of guidance for selecting the estimation methods. In this work, the emphasis is put on thirteen dominant methods for estimating the Hurst exponent. For the purpose of decreasing the difficulty of implementing the estimation methods with computer programs, the mathematical principles are discussed briefly and the pseudo-codes of algorithms are presented with necessary details. It is expected that the survey could help the researchers to select, implement and apply the estimation algorithms of interest in practical situations in an easy way.
Core and Halo Properties in Multi-Field Wave Dark Matter

In this work, we compute multi-field core and halo properties in wave Dark Matter models. We focus on the case where Dark Matter consists of two light (real) scalars, interacting gravitationally. As in the single-field Ultra Light Dark Matter (ULDM) case, the scalar field behaves as a coherent BEC with a definite ground state (at fixed total mass), often referred to in the literature as a gravitational soliton. We establish an efficient algorithm to find the ground and excited states of such two-field systems. We then use simulations to investigate the gravitational collapse and virialization, starting from different initial conditions, into solitons and surrounding halo. As in the single-field case, a virialized halo forms with a gravitational soliton (ground state) at the center. We find some evidence for an empirical relation between the soliton mass and energy and those of the host halo. We use this to then find a numerical relation between the properties of the two. Finally, we use this to address the issue of alleviating some of the tensions that single-field ULDM has with observational data, in particular, the issue of how a galaxy's core and radius are related. We find that if galaxies of different masses have similar percentages of the two species, then the core-radius scaling tension is not addressed. However, if the lighter species is more abundant in lighter galaxies, then the tension can be alleviated.
Comparative study on biomass of the natural Kandelia candel forest and its plantation in the coastal area of east Fujian Province.

Fuding Municipality in east part of Fujian Province is the northernmost part for natural distribution of mangrove forest in China,which plays an important role in mangrove study.The biomass and its distribution law of Kandelia candel forests in Fuding,costal area of Fujian Province with different origins were studied by applying standard plant method and harvesting method.The results showed that the total biomass of the natural K.candel forests was 58.305 t/hm2 with the aboveground biomass for 32.919 t/hm2 and the underground part for 25.386 t/hm2.Whereas the total biomass of K.candel plantation in the same area was 25.359 t/hm2,among which the aboveground part was 14.711 t/hm2 and the underground part was 10.648 t/hm2 respectively.The study on the biomass distribution showed that the order by the biomass allocation for K.candel population was: twigs stems staple roots leaves mid roots stump fiber roots flowers.The characteristics of biomass of K.candel forest or plantation and the organ distribution explained its adaptability to high latitude habitat.
Examination of the 3 x 2 Achievement Goal Model in Recreational Sport : Associations with Perceived Benefits of Sport Participation

Collegiate recreational sports facilitate critical achievement-oriented activities that contribute to student development on college campuses. Achievement goal theory serves as a framework for understanding the motivation that guides one’s behavior towards desired achievement-related outcomes (LeUnes, 2008). The 3x2 achievement goal model postulates six distinct goals (task-approach, task-avoidance, self-approach, self-avoidance, other-approach, other-avoidance; Elliot, Murayama, & Pekrun, 2011). As achievement goals have been associated with both positive and negative outcomes of sport (Gucciardi, Mahoney, Jalleh, Donovan, & Parkes, 2012; Kavussanu, White, Jowett, & England, 2011), further investigation through a more precise measure of achievement goals is warranted. Therefore, the current study sought to examine the relationships between achievement goals and perceived benefits of recreational sport participation, using the 3x2 model. A questionnaire was administered to 907 recreational sport participants at a post-secondary institution in the United States. Using structural equation modeling, the researchers found the task-approach goal to have a positive, significant relationship with perceived benefits of recreational sport participation (i.e., social, intellectual, fitness). Conversely, all other achievement goals indicated a non-significant relationship with perceived benefits. The findings demonstrate the utility of the 3x2 achievement goal model in recreational sport and help inform intentional programming and staff practices to enhance student development.
Digital Kenyon

The ability of Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis to regulate their cytoplasmic pH is well studied in cell suspensions but is poorly understood in individual adherent cells and bioﬁlms. We observed the cytoplasmic pH of individual cells using ratiometric pHluorin. A standard curve equating the ﬂuorescence ratio with pH was obtained by perfusion at a range of external pH 5.0 to 9.0, with uncouplers that collapse the transmembrane pH difference. Adherent cells were acid stressed by switching the perfusion medium from pH 7.5 to pH 5.5. The E. coli cytoplasmic pH fell to a value that varied among individual cells (range of pH 6.2 to 6.8), but a majority of cells recovered (to pH 7.0 to 7.5) within 2 min. In an E. coli bioﬁlm, cells shifted from pH 7.5 to pH 5.5 failed to recover cytoplasmic pH. Following a smaller shift (from pH 7.5 to pH 6.0), most bioﬁlm cells recovered fully, although the pH decreased further than that of isolated adherent cells, and recovery took longer (7 min or longer). Some bioﬁlm cells began to recover pH and then failed, a response not seen in isolated cells. B. subtilis cells were acid shifted from pH 7.5 to pH 6.0. In B. subtilis , unlike the case with E. coli , cytoplasmic pH showed no “overshoot” but fell to a level that was maintained. This level of cytoplasmic pH post-acid shift varied among individual B. subtilis cells (range of
What a Whole Slide Image Can Tell? Subtype-guided Masked Transformer for Pathological Image Captioning

Pathological captioning of Whole Slide Images (WSIs), though is essential in computer-aided pathological diagnosis, has rarely been studied due to the limitations in datasets and model training efficacy. In this paper, we propose a new paradigm Subtype-guided Masked Transformer (SGMT) for pathological captioning based on Transformers, which treats a WSI as a sequence of sparse patches and generates an overall caption sentence from the sequence. An accompanying subtype prediction is introduced into SGMT to guide the training process and enhance the captioning accuracy. We also present an Asymmetric Masked Mechansim approach to tackle the large size constraint of pathological image captioning, where the numbers of sequencing patches in SGMT are sampled differently in the training and inferring phases, respectively. Experiments on the PatchGastricADC22 dataset demonstrate that our approach effectively adapts to the task with a transformer-based model and achieves superior performance than traditional RNN-based methods. Our codes are to be made available for further research and development.
Esthetic Management of Anterior Teeth Utilizing Two Micro Abrasion Treatments: Randomized Clinical Trial

Introduction: Hypomineralized, discolored enamel is a common defect affecting permanent teeth of children and young adults, microabrasion is one of the commonly used conservative treatments to such a defect. Objective: To compare the efficacy of enamel microabrasion using Opalsture (6.6%HCL) and Antivet (21%HF). Materials and methods: 24 participants free from any systemic disease aged from 9years to 18years old were included in the study those participants were suffering from stained hypomineralized teeth having the following inclusion criteria: Teeth with Degree 1(mild) hypomineralization according to the Wetzel and Reckel scale, were consent for treatment and caries-free teeth. Before treatment base line data were recorded regarding teeth sensitivity through 10points verbal rating scale and visual analog scale(VAS) and documentation was made by photographs. Participants were randomly allocated either to the Opalustre group where patients in this group were treated using (Opalustre, Ultradent Products, USA), or the Antivet group where patients in this group were treated using (Antivet-Dental Continental, México). Teeth sensitivity then was assessed immediately after procedure, 1month and 3months and documentation was made by photographs, the patient satisfaction was assessed by 5points lickert scale. Results: Teeth sensitivity was significantly the highest post-operative immediately as it was(1.67 ± 1.72) and (0.42 ± 0.67) regarding Opalustre and Antivet respectively. Opalustre group (1.67 ± 1.72) was significantly higher than Antivet (0.42 ± 0.67) immediately postoperative. Comparing patient satisfaction in both groups, Opalustre group (2.42 ± 0.67) was significantly lower using Lickert scale than the Antivet group. Conclusion: According to the results of current study, Antivet is a promising product in management of discolored enamel.
Variation in crossover frequency of EMIC waves in plasmasphere estimated from ion cyclotron whistler waves observed by Van Allen Probe A

We report variations in the propagation of the H+ band ion cyclotron whistlers observed by Van Allen Probe A. Ion cyclotron whistlers are one of the EMIC (electromagnetic ion cyclotron) waves generated by mode conversion from lightning whistlers. Crossover frequency is an important frequency for the ion cyclotron whistlers, which is a function of the variations in the local heavy‐ion composition. We surveyed waveform data obtained by the Electric and Magnetic Field Instrument and Integrated Science instrument and found that 3461 H+ band ion cyclotron whistlers were observed from 572 km to 5992 km in altitude. The main finding is that the crossover frequencies of the observed events decreased with increasing altitude. These results support the hypothesis that the total heavy‐ion density decreases with increasing altitude. Furthermore, in 96% of all observed events, the crossover frequencies exceeded 0.5fH+ , which suggests that the EMIC dispersion relation contains a frequency gap of around 0.5fH+ .
An Assessment of the Sea Turtles and Their Marine and Terrestrial Habitats at Saipan, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands

An estimated 169 individual Chelonia mydas were observed via 238 sightings over 28 marine surveys covering roughly 54% of Saipan’s outer reef and shoreline perimeter. No other sea turtle species were sighted. Sixty percent of the turtles were classified as juveniles, 22% as juvenile/adults, and 12% appeared to be of adult size. A disproportionate number of turtles (60%) were located along relatively uninhabited east coast sites where access to humans is limited but topographically complex benthos and a variety of food resources is apparent. Two species of seagrass and at least 29 species of algae noted as green turtle forage in other regions of the world were identified at Saipan in this and previous surveys. Turtle nesting activity was limited, with 15 crawls and 6 nests recorded throughout the 1999 nesting season.
Experimental generation of cordierite-or garnet-bearing granitic liquids from a pelitic composition

High-pressure experimental melting studies on a pelitic composition with 2 and 5 percent by weight of added water demonstrate that cordierite, quartz, biotite, sillimanite, and plagioclase are important residual phases coexisting with granitic liquid at 4 kb and are joined by garnet at 7 kb. At 10 kb, garnet quartz, biotite, sillimanite, and plagioclase constitute the residuum coexisting with granitic liquid. Compositions of residual phases and their Mg-Fe partition relationships compare closely with phases from cordierite- and garnet-bearing granitic rocks in eastern Australia and strongly support geochemical arguments that this particular granitic suite is derived by partial melting of pelitic sediments. Thus, the cordierite-bearing granitic rocks were probably derived by partial melting of pelite at >25-km depth, whereas the garnet-bearing granites were derived at ≿25-km depth.
The twofold aspect of climate change on navigation: the search for new maritime routes and the challenge of reducing the carbon footprint of ships

SUMMARY Climate Change (CC) is going to affect maritime transportation. Since a relevant anthropogenic contribution to CC has been assessed, also the implication holds: maritime transportation is one of the human activities contributing to the CC. Thus, the maritime sector should be involved in both CC adaptation and mitigation actions. This transcription of the same titled talk given on Nov.24, 2014 on occasion of the International Workshop "Maritime and Security Implications of Climate Change", hosted in Venice by the naval school "F. Morosini" of the Italian Navy, briefly considers CC evidence relevant to the maritime transportation and the available mitigation options for the industry, in view of the statements of the major international organizations and the existing legal framework. Related presentation can be downloaded from http://www.marina.
Amygdala response to emotional stimuli without awareness

Over the past two decades, evidence has accumulated that the human amygdala exerts some of its functions also when the observer is not aware of the content, or even presence, of the triggering emotional stimulus. Nevertheless, there is as of yet no consensus on the limits and conditions that affect the extent of amygdala’s response without focused attention or awareness. Here we review past and recent studies on this subject, examining neuroimaging literature on healthy participants as well as brain-damaged patients
Survey of Irrigation Methods in California

This report discusses a statewide survey of irrigation methods conducted in California during 2002. The purpose of the study was to collect information on irrigation methods to determine which methods were used by growers to irrigate their crops in 2001. Reliable information on irrigation methods is an important factor for planning future water demand by agriculture irrigation based on trends. To conduct the survey, one-page survey form was developed to collect irrigated land (acres) by crop and irrigation method. Then a questionnaire was mailed out to 10,000 of the estimated 80,000 growers in California by the California Department of Food and Agriculture. The results from comparing earlier studies with 2001 indicated that the amount of land irrigated by drip irrigation method has increased by about 33%, while the amount of land irrigated by surface methods has decreased by about 31%. The area planted to orchards and vineyards has increased, while that planted to field crops has declined. The largest increase in sprinkler use has been in vegetable crops, an increase of 19% since 1972. The 1991 and 2001 statewide surveys exclude rice acreage.