Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Functional response of predatory thrips to two-spotted spider mite – influence of pesticides

A leaf disc bioassay was used to investigate the effects of abamectin and fenpropathrin on the functional response of an acarophagous thrips, Scolothrips longicornis Priesner, to eggs of Tetranychus urticae Koch at 25 ± 1°C, 60 ± 10% RH, 16:8 h (L:D). The type of the functional response differed depending on the types and doses of the pesticides used. A type II functional response was found in all pesticide-dose combinations except for females exposed to a half-labelled dose of fenpropathrin, in which a type III functional response was observed. For type II functional responses, the search rates were similar to those found in the control treatments irrespective of predator sex, pesticide and pesticide dose. No differences in handling times across treatments were observed for males but handling times were longer for females, irrespective of pesticide and dose, compared to the control treatment. The theoretical maximum number of prey attacked by the thrips was 49.67 and 23.67 eggs per day for females and males, respectively; both maxima were attained in the control treatment. These values were reduced for males exposed to full doses of either pesticide and for females exposed to both half and full doses of either pesticide. These findings suggest that the efficacy of integrated management programmes for T. urticae involving the application of S. longicornis could be decreased by application of pesticides such as fenpropathrin and abamectin, which are often used to control pests in greenhouse and field crops.
Native American Exposure to 131Iodine from Nuclear Weapons Testing in Nevada

ABSTRACT A great deal of work has been done to reconstruct doses from Nevada Test Site fallout, yet the unique exposures of Native American communities continue to be neglected. It is possible to estimate the exposures of these communities through a process of collaborative information gathering and analysis. This article builds on a previous exercise that demonstrated the substantial doses received through the consumption of contaminated game. The updated model includes new information on the deposition of 131iodine, an assessment of the neonatal thyroid doses received through breast milk, an exploration of the effect of population mobility on dose estimates, and estimates of thyroid cancer risk. All thyroid dose estimates from the rabbit exposure pathway are comparable in magnitude to National Cancer Institute comprehensive dose estimates that assume exposure to contaminated milk from backyard cows and goats. Dose estimates from the rabbit exposure pathway are larger than estimated doses from store-bought milk by an average factor of six. Taking historical population mobility patterns into account may result in slightly lower estimates of dose. The quantification of this exposure pathway is considered be an advance toward a more appropriate dose reconstruction for communities with diets high in wild game.
Inquérito sorológico da brucelose canina através da utilização de antígeno externo e interno de Brucella canis e Brucella ovis

O objetivo desse estudo foi investigar a ocorrencia da brucelose canina na cidade do Rio de Janeiro utilizando-se a tecnica deimunodifusao em gel de agarose.Antigenos externo e interno de Brucella canis e Brucella ovis foram previamente preparadose um antigeno comercial usado para diagnostico da brucelose canina foi tambem utilizado.Amostras de soro de 316 caescoletadas aleatoriamente foram examinadas.Oito amostras (2,53%) foram positivas no teste utilizando-se antigeno externo deB. canis e B. ovis e sete amostras (2,2%) foram confirmadas com o antigeno comercial.Tres amostras (0,95%) foram positivaspara todos os antigenos testados. Antigenos externo e interno devem ser usados nos testes sorologicos para diagnostico dabrucelose canina para deteccao precoce e obtencao de resultados mais precisos, respectivamente.
External Auditor Responses to Tax Risk

Both practitioners and academics are increasingly focusing their attention on the riskiness of firms’ tax planning activities. In this study, we examine how external auditors respond to tax risk, measured using the volatility of firms’ annual cash and GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) effective tax rates. Consistent with the notion that tax risk represents a source of engagement risk that is priced by external auditors, we first document a positive association between audit fees and tax risk incremental to fee premiums arising from tax aggressiveness. We also find that knowledge spillover benefits related to the provision of tax nonaudit services moderate this positive association. In supplemental tests, we provide evidence on additional auditor responses to tax risk. In particular, we document that tax risk is positively associated with both audit report lag and the likelihood of the auditor reporting a tax-related material weakness in the client’s internal controls. Our findings add to the growing literature at the intersection of corporate taxation and auditing, and to the literature distinguishing between the level and riskiness of firms’ tax avoidance strategies.
Biological Studies with Arsenic76 II. Excretion and Tissue Localization

Summary 1. Arsenic excretion was studied in man, rats, and rabbits. Less than 10% of the excreted arsenic is found in feces in any of these species; rats have by far the slowest rate of excretion. 2. Data are given for arsenic distribution in various organs in man, the rat, the rabbit, and 2 strains of mouse. 3. The degree of individual variation within each species was very great; in contrast to man and to other animals studied, the rat retains most of the injected dose in the blood for a considerable length of time. 4. The ratio of arsenic concentration in kidney, liver, and spleen of healthy inbred mice was found to be fairly constant for a given time after administration, and this ratio is suggested as a criterion for effects of various types of treatment. 5. Using this ratio as criterion, it was found that arsenic distribution is altered by the presence of transplanted tumors. 6. Factors changing arsenic distribution are discussed in relation to effects on levels of sulfhydryl-containing substances.
Adverse ecological effects of small hydropower stations in the Czech Republic: 1. Bypass plants

Adverse effects of 23 bypass- or mill stream-type small hydropower stations (SHPSs) have been studied by traditional benthological and ichthyological techniques. Four locations, if available, were distinguished for each SHPS: the natural flow sections (NFS) above and below the SHPS area, the mill stream or diversion channel bringing water to the turbine, and the reduced discharge section (RDS) of the former stream course. Most SHPSs took a high percentage of the stream discharge (turbine intake capacity was usually bigger than average yearly discharge of the stream at a given point). Despite this, the decrease in the stream-wetted area was relatively low (usually 0–30%). The changes of benthic communities did not show any distinct trend explicable by the SHPS operation. Mechanical damage of fish by turbines was found rather rarely with SHPSs. The diverting weir (which usually distributes the discharge between the RDS and the mill stream), in combination with the abstraction of water for SHPSs, was an important migration barrier for resident fish in 30% of SHPSs. Water abstraction causes succession from large-bodied fish species (adult brown trout, chub, dace, grayling, etc.) towards small-bodied fish (trout fry, minnow, bullhead, stone loach, gudgeon). Average individual weight and fish biomass decreased four times in RDSs. Fish biomass losses exhibit significant negative relationships to the ratio of turbine intake capacity and stream discharge. Several mitigation measures are suggested. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Learning Memory-Based Control for Human-Scale Bipedal Locomotion

Controlling a non-statically stable biped is a difficult problem largely due to the complex hybrid dynamics involved. Recent work has demonstrated the effectiveness of reinforcement learning (RL) for simulation-based training of neural network controllers that successfully transfer to real bipeds. The existing work, however, has primarily used simple memoryless network architectures, even though more sophisticated architectures, such as those including memory, often yield superior performance in other RL domains. In this work, we consider recurrent neural networks (RNNs) for sim-to-real biped locomotion, allowing for policies that learn to use internal memory to model important physical properties. We show that while RNNs are able to significantly outperform memoryless policies in simulation, they do not exhibit superior behavior on the real biped due to overfitting to the simulation physics unless trained using dynamics randomization to prevent overfitting; this leads to consistently better sim-to-real transfer. We also show that RNNs could use their learned memory states to perform online system identification by encoding parameters of the dynamics into memory.
Effect of pasture in oak and chestnut groves on chemical and sensorial traits of cured lard of Cinta Senese pigs

Abstract The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of pasture in oak and chestnut groves on the chemical and sensorial traits of cured lard. Thirty Cinta Senese barrows (124kg of l.w. on average) were allotted to three groups: one group (CONC) was reared outdoors in a confined area and fed commercial feedstuff. The other two groups were raised under free-range conditions on acorns (AC) or chestnuts (CH). At slaughtering (148kg of LW) the backfat was seasoned for 60 days to obtained cured lard. Results demonstrated that the lard of CH and AC respect to CONC group was the richest in MUFA (46.9 and 47.76 vs 44.78% respectively) because of the higher content of oleic acid (44.2 and 44.91 vs 42.05%, P<0.05, respectively). CH showed a higher percentage of PUFA-n3 than AC and CONC (1.18 vs 1.06 and 1.03%, P<0.05, respectively), a lower content of α-tocopherol (9.77 vs 14.46 and 13.31µ/g, P<0.05 respectively) and a higher content of γ-tocopherol (13.73 vs 6.02 and 4.32µ/g, P<0.05, respectively). As regards sensorial traits, the lard of CH and AC groups exhibited a lower value of pinkness than CONC (29.3 and 32.4 vs 49.2, P<0.05, respectively) and higher scores of yellowness (31.4 and 28.6 vs 18.6, P<0.05, respectively) and oiliness (37.0 and 33.7 vs 24.0, P<0.05, respectively). The pasture in the acorn and chestnut groves affected the chemical traits of lard, prevalently the composition of fatty acids . The consumption of acorns or chestnuts led to a higher content of oleic acid with respect to concentrate, affecting some sensorial traits of lard.
Facultative paternal investment in the polyphenic beetle Onthophagus taurus: the role of male morphology and social context

Members of a population often differ significantly in their parental investment. Such variation is generally believed to have important consequences for mating system evolution and has been suggested to play an important role in the evolution of some secondary sexual traits and displays. Recent studies suggest that individuals are able to adjust the intensity and kind of parental investment they provide according to the breeding conditions they encounter. As a consequence, between-individual variation in parental investment may depend more on external conditions than previously thought for these taxa. This may have important implications for current perspectives on the role of differential parental investment in the evolution and maintenance of certain mating systems and sexual selection regimes. Here I quantify patterns of variation in paternal investment as a function of social conditions in a species of beetle that is dimorphic for male horn morphology. I demonstrate that under certain conditions (namely, the absence of other males), paternal assistance covaries with male morphology, with horned males investing substantially more time in assisting females than hornless males. I also show that the magnitude of differences in paternal investment between male morphs varies in response to external conditions. In the presence of other males, paternal assistance was negligible for both male morphs, who instead invested substantially and equally in mate-securing behaviors. I use my findings to discuss the significance of variation in paternal assistance for onthophagine mating systems and evaluate ideas proposed to explain the evolution of alternative morphologies in the genus Onthophagus.
Two-point stress–strain-rate correlation structure and non-local eddy viscosity in turbulent flows

Abstract By analysing the Karman–Howarth equation for filtered-velocity fields in turbulent flows, we show that the two-point correlation between the filtered strain-rate and subfilter stress tensors plays a central role in the evolution of filtered-velocity correlation functions. Two-point correlation-based statistical a priori tests thus enable rigorous and physically meaningful studies of turbulence models. Using data from direct numerical simulations of isotropic and channel flow turbulence, we show that local eddy-viscosity models fail to exhibit the long tails observed in the real subfilter stress–strain-rate correlation functions. Stronger non-local correlations may be achieved by defining the eddy-viscosity model based on fractional gradients of order $0<\alpha <1$ (where $\alpha$ is the fractional gradient order) rather than the classical gradient corresponding to $\alpha =1$. Analyses of such correlation functions are presented for various orders of the fractional-gradient operators. It is found that in isotropic turbulence fractional derivative order $\alpha \sim 0.5$ yields best results, while for channel flow $\alpha \sim 0.2$ yields better results for the correlations in the streamwise direction, even well into the core channel region. In the spanwise direction, channel flow results show significantly more local interactions. The overall results confirm strong non-locality in the interactions between subfilter stresses and resolved-scale fluid deformation rates, but with non-trivial directional dependencies in non-isotropic flows. Hence, non-local operators thus exhibit interesting modelling capabilities and potential for large-eddy simulations although more developments are required, both on the theoretical and computational implementation fronts.
Efficiently estimating mean, uncertainty, and unconstrained large-scale fraction of local Universe simulations with paired fixed fields

Provided a random realization of the cosmological model, observations of our cosmic neighborhood now allow us to build simulations of the latter down to the non-linear threshold. The resulting local Universe models are thus accurate up to a given residual cosmic variance. Namely some regions and scales are apparently not constrained by the data and seem purely random. Drawing conclusions together with their uncertainties involves then statistics implying a considerable amount of computing time. By applying the constraining algorithm to paired fixed fields, this paper diverts the original techniques from their first use to efficiently disentangle and estimate uncertainties on local Universe simulations obtained with random fields. Paired fixed fields differ from random realizations in the sense that their Fourier mode amplitudes are fixed and they are exactly out of phase. Constrained paired fixed fields show that only 20% of the power spectrum on large scales (> tens of megaparsecs) is purely random. Namely 80% of it is partly constrained by the large scale / small scale data correlations. Additionally, two realizations of our local environment obtained with paired fixed fields of the same pair constitute an excellent non-biased average or quasi-linear realization of the latter, namely the equivalent of hundreds of constrained simulations. The variance between these two realizations gives the uncertainty on the achievable local Universe simulations. These two simulations will permit enhancing faster our local cosmic web understanding thanks to a drastically reduced required computational time to appreciate its modeling limits and uncertainties.
Reaction To Novel Objects in a Troop of Guinea Baboons: Approach and Manipulation

A troop of Guinea baboons living in an enclosure was exposed every day and for twelve consecutive days to a new object. The new object and the object(s) of the previous day(s) were presented simultaneously in the compound. The troop as a whole demonstrated excellent abilities to rapidly react to the new objects: 11 out of 12 new objects were discovered within a maximum of 3 min of their first presentation and were furthermore the first to be approached. An analysis conducted on data from age and sex subgroups showed the preponderant part played by juveniles and by some adult males in the discovery process and subsequent contacts with objects. The results are discussed within the conceptual frame of "cognitive mapping". In addition, the extent to which social factors (e.g. dominance) and perceptual and cognitive factors might determine the differential role of subgroups in the exploration and manipulation of objects is examined.
Coming of age in fringillid birds: heterochrony in the ontogeny of secondary sexual characters

The great variation in the timing of development of adult plumages in North American male passerine birds has in recent years provoked much theoretical interest. It has commonly been assumed that the heterochronic process involved is invariably a retardation of the development of adult plumages. On the basis of a phylogenetic analysis of the nine‐primaried oscines (Fringillidae), I suggest that the heterochronic process that has operated most frequently in North American taxa is not a retardation, but an acceleration. I also suggest that sexual dimorphism in plumage, and late plumage maturation in males, may arise as a secondary result of selection for neoteny in females with a correlated response in males, and not necessarily, as traditionally thought, as a result of selection for bright plumages in males.
Asymmetric Tri-training for Debiasing Missing-Not-At-Random Explicit Feedback

In most real-world recommender systems, the observed rating data are subject to selection bias, and the data are thus missing-not-at-random. Developing a method to facilitate the learning of a recommender with biased feedback is one of the most challenging problems, as it is widely known that naive approaches under selection bias often lead to suboptimal results. A well-established solution for the problem is using propensity scoring techniques. The propensity score is the probability of each data being observed, and unbiased performance estimation is possible by weighting each data by the inverse of its propensity. However, the performance of the propensity-based unbiased estimation approach is often affected by choice of the propensity estimation model or the high variance problem. To overcome these limitations, we propose a model-agnostic meta-learning method inspired by the asymmetric tri-training framework for unsupervised domain adaptation. The proposed method utilizes two predictors to generate data with reliable pseudo-ratings and another predictor to make the final predictions. In a theoretical analysis, a propensity-independent upper bound of the true performance metric is derived, and it is demonstrated that the proposed method can minimize this bound. We conduct comprehensive experiments using public real-world datasets. The results suggest that the previous propensity-based methods are largely affected by the choice of propensity models and the variance problem caused by the inverse propensity weighting. Moreover, we show that the proposed meta-learning method is robust to these issues and can facilitate in developing effective recommendations from biased explicit feedback.
The evolution of Malta’s tourism sector

The study aims to analyse historic developments in Malta’s tourism industry, focussing on the changing characteristics of demand and supply. The recent surge in inbound tourism appears to be largely driven by increased air connectivity to and from Malta. The advent of low-cost carriers is considered an important positive supply shock on the local sector. At the same time, the sustained shift towards stays in private accommodation can be partly explained by changing preferences, but also by capacity constraints in collective accommodation establishments. Moreover, the paper compares a number of indicators which shed light on the economic importance of tourism for the Maltese economy. It also examines the issue concerning sustainable growth of the sector and seeks to draw some policy inferences.
Morphometry and Gonad Maturity of Male Snow Crab, Chionoecetes opilio

The relationship between chela height (CH) and carapace width (CW) of male snow crab, Chionoecetes opilio, goes through three allometric stages. The "immature stage" (mostly < 34 mm CW) evolves into a "juvenile stage" (34–120 mm CW) through a "juvenile molt" defining a change in allometry marked by an angular point around 34 mm CW. Fifty percent of males reach gonad maturity, defined by the presence of spermatophores inside the vasa deferentia, at an estimated size of 34 mm CW) The third allometric stage, "morphometrically mature," is separated from the juvenile stage by a "molt to morphometric maturity" at sizes ranging from 50 to 120 mm CW. Juvenile males have smaller claws than morphometrically mature males of the same size. This secondary sexual character is justified by a specific behavior of the males holding the pereipods of the female in one chela during precopulatory embrace. Male snow crab efficiently mate in nature with intermolt multiparous females only after reaching morphometric maturity. Th.
Nutrient limitation of phytoplankton growth in Georgia nearshore waters

Nutrient enrichment experiments were conducted to investigate the utilization of dissolved organic and inorganic nitrogen by marine phytoplankton in Georgia coastal waters. Natural populations of marine phytoplankton, enriched with different concentrations of ammonium chloride and other plant nutrients, were grown under controlled temperature and irradiance conditions until the populations reached “stationary phase. ” Results showed that (1) phytoplankton are limited by DIN up to ca. 20μM, when another nutrient (phosphate or silicate) becomes limiting, (2) very little naturally-occurring DON is directly utilized for growth, (3) very little DON is indirectly made available for growth over time periods of days to ca. 1 week, and (4) trace metals and vitamins do not significantly limit phytoplankton growth.
Large-scale Turbulent Driving Regulates Star Formation in High-redshift Gas-rich Galaxies

The question of what regulates star formation is a longstanding issue. To investigate this issue, we run simulations of a kiloparsec cube section of a galaxy with three kinds of stellar feedback: the formation of H ii regions, the explosion of supernovae, and ultraviolet heating. We show that stellar feedback is sufficient to reduce the averaged star formation rate (SFR) to the level of the Schmidt–Kennicutt law in Milky Way–like galaxies but not in high-redshift gas-rich galaxies, suggesting that another type of support should be added. We investigate whether an external driving of the turbulence such as the one created by the large galactic scales could diminish the SFR at the observed level. Assuming that the Toomre parameter is close to 1 as suggested by the observations, we infer a typical turbulent forcing that we argue should be applied parallel to the plane of the galactic disk. When this forcing is applied in our simulations, the SFR within our simulations closely follows the Schmidt–Kennicutt relation. We found that the velocity dispersion is strongly anisotropic with the velocity dispersion alongside the galactic plane being up to 10 times larger than the perpendicular velocity.