Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The milker-killer dilemma in spatially structured predator-prey interactions

Consumers can often exploit their resources' potential for growth or regeneration. For example, predators can reduce predation pressure to allow prey density to increase. However, in a well-mixed environment such 'prudent predators' are vulnerable to selfish mutants. In a spatially structured environment, selfish mutants do not have a global effect, and more prudent local exploitation strategies may evolve. Gilpin investigated how group selection may affect predation rate. In this article, we intend to investigate how within-group and between-group selection will affect dispersal strategies of the predators. If a single predator clone exploits a prey patch, the clone would increase the total number of dispersing progeny by partial dispersal before extinction of the prey (the 'milker strategy'), because then the prey population reaches higher numbers and persists for a prolonged period. However, if the prey patch is coexploited by many clones, a mutant cannot increase the interaction time, and dispersal before extinction of the prey is not favoured (the 'killer strategy'). Thus, optimal exploitation strategies depend on the number of foundresses. This number will depend on the exploitation strategies that are prevalent in the predator population at large, and therefore there is 'ecogenetical feedback'. Assuming a simple ecological setting, we investigate how ecology and evolution interact to determine ESS dispersal.
Diabetes mellitus in Tuberculosis Oxidative Stress in Sickle Cell Anaemia Childhood Diabetic Ketoacidosis Haemostatis in Hypertension Research and Publication Ethics Prostate Carcinoma Bone scan in Breast Cancer Exercise and Basal Insulin levels Rheumatic Heart Diseases Paediatric Cytopathology

Background: Diarrhoeal disease is the second leading cause of morbidity and mortality in developing countries requiring urgent attention. Many of the conventional anti-diarrhoeal drugs cause serious adverse effects, hence the need to screen various plants for their medicinal values becomes imperative. Objective: To investigate the anti-diarrhoeal activity of ethanolic stem bark extract of Newbouldia laevis in castor-oil induced diarrhoea in rats. Methods: The stem bark of Newbouldia laevis collected from Abeokuta, Ogun State, was air-dried, ground, macerated in 90% ethanol and concentrated to dryness in a water bath and then reconstituted using distilled water. Fifty (50) albino rats of both sexes used for the study were divided into two groups: A and B with twenty-five (25) rats per group. Group A was used for the gastro-intestinal motility test using charcoal meal while Group B was used for castor-oil induced diarrhoea test and the number of stool pellets was counted over an hour period. Results: The extract (250-1000mg/kg) showed significant (p = 0.0399) anti-diarrhoeal activity by decreasing the distance of the gastrointestinal movement of charcoal meal in the treated rats and also inhibited the severity of diarrhoea induced by castor-oil in a dose-dependent manner when compared with the control (distilled water). This activity could be attributed to phytochemicals like flavonoids and tannins present in Newbouldia laevis. Conclusion: The results showed that stem bark extract of Newbouldia laevis possesses a significant anti-diarrhoeal property and this supports the traditional use of the plant in the treatment of diarrhoea.
difNLR: Generalized Logistic Regression Models for DIF and DDF Detection

Differential item functioning (DIF) and differential distractor functioning (DDF) are important topics in psychometrics, pointing to potential unfairness in items with respect to minorities or different social groups. Various methods have been proposed to detect these issues. The difNLR R package extends DIF methods currently provided in other packages by offering approaches based on generalized logistic regression models that account for possible guessing or inattention, and by providing methods to detect DIF and DDF among ordinal and nominal data. In the current paper, we describe implementation of the main functions of the difNLR package, from data generation, through the model fitting and hypothesis testing, to graphical representation of the results. Finally, we provide a real data example to bring the concepts together.
Sex specific genetic and environmental trends for birth weight in indigenous Nguni conservation cattle herd of Zimbabwe

Best linear unbiased predictors (BLUP) of breeding values for additive direct and additive maternal genetic effects were estimated from pedigree birth weight (BWT) records 4272 in indigenous Nguni cattle born between 1988 and 1997. Data was partitioned according to sex and breeding values for direct additive and maternal additive were estimated using a univariate animal model. Estimates of sex specific genetic trends for direct and maternal effects were obtained by averaging corresponding breeding values for partitioned data for animals born in a given year, and regressing these averages on their year of birth. The regression of average direct breeding values on year for males and females was –0.0236 kg/yr and –0.1263 kg/yr, respectively, and the regression of average maternal breeding values on year of birth were -0.0355 kg/yr and –0.0173 kg/yr for males and females, respectively. Environmental trends observed a positive trend for both sexes but was non significant. Estimation of sex specific variance components had no significant influence on the direction and magnitude of genetic trends and indication of homogeneity of variance by sex for birth weight in this population. Key words: Variance components, sex, trends, birth, Nguni.
COMMENTS ON THE SKELETAL ANATOMY OF THE TRIASSIC REPTILE

This paper integrates the osteological description of the holotype of the pistosauroid eusauropterygian Bobosaurus forojuliensis (lower Carnian, NE Italy), which was first described by Dalla Vecchia (2006), mainly showing in detail the various skeletal elements and by the use of colour photographs. Furthermore, comparisons with the corresponding bones of the other non-plesiosaurian pistosauroids are done, mainly with Yunguisaurus liae and Wangosaurus brevirostris from the upper Ladinian of China, which were still unknown at the time of the first publication of Bobosaurus forojuliensis. The referred specimen MFSN 27854 might belong to a taxon closer to the nothosauroid Simosaurus than to Bobosaurus forojuliensis and should be prudently excluded from the apodigm of the latter.
PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING AND LARVICIDAL EFFECT EVALUATION OF AZADIRACHTA INDICA (L) LEAF EXTRACT ON DERMESTES MACULATUS (DE GEER, 1774) INFESTATION OF SMOKED CLARIAS GARIEPINUS (BURCHELL, 1822)

Dermestes maculatus is a major pest of stored fish in Nigeria, fish is preserved with highly persistent synthetic chemicals. There have been an increasing effort at developing plant-based toxicants that are environmentally friendly. Therefore, this study was conducted to screen the leaf extract of Azadirachta indica for phytochemical constituents. The efficacy of the methanolic leaf extract of the plant against D. maculatus was also evaluated. The leaves of A. indica were obtained, processed and taken to laboratory for methanolic extraction. Phytochemical screening was carried out to identify saponins, flavonoids, alkaloids, tannins, steroids, cardiac glycosides, glycosides, triterpenes and carbohydrates using standard procedure. Both clean and infested samples of smoke-dried Clarias gariepinus were purchased from Sabon Gari Market, Zaria. The infested samples were used as initial source of D. maculatus larvae. Range finding test was carried out prior to the bioassay. During the bioassay, clean un-infested fish samples were weighed and introduced into kilner jars and respective dosages of 0.2g, 0.4g, 0.6g and 0.8g of extract were added. Another set of fish samples without the extract were maintained as control. The experiment was arranged in Completely Randomized Design with three replicates. Fifteen larvae of D. maculatus were introduced into both treated and control containers and covered. Mortality was recorded after 24, 48, 72 and 96 hours. Data obtained revealed an increase in mortality with increasing dose and time. Mortality ranged from 1.67 to 11.00. Therefore, leaf extract of A. indica should be incorporated in the development of larvicide against D. maculatus.
Response of Bt cotton to high density planting and nitrogen levels through fertigation

An experiment during kharif-rabi season of 2016-17 to 2018-19. The experiment was laid out in a split plot design with three replication. The results revealed that significantly maximum seed cotton yield and stalk yield were recorded when sowing of crop at narrow row spacing of S1 (30-60-30 cm x 30 cm) over wider row spacing during individual years and on pooled data basis, which was found statistically at par with S2 (i.e. 30-90-30 cm x 30 cm) during individual years as well as in pooled results. Significantly maximum plant population and plant height were noted when crop was sown at closer paired row spacing of S1 (30-60-30 cm x 30 cm) during individual years and in pooled results, accordingly. Bt cotton sown at wider spacing of 120cm x 45cm (S4) recorded maximum sympodial branches, Least number of monopodial branches per plant, maximum number of bolls and boll weight during individual years and on pooled data basis Fertilizing the crop with 125% RDN through fertigation (N3) in eight equal splits at 15 days interval produced significantly superior in all growth, yield attributes and yield parameters.
Hydraulic Injection‐Induced Velocity Changes Revealed by Surface Wave Coda and Polarization Data at a Shale Play Site in Southwest China

We investigated temporal variations of seismic wave velocity associated with hydraulic fracturing using Green's functions computed from ambient noise data. In October and November of 2014, we set up a broadband array at a shale play site inside the Sichuan basin where a pilot horizontal drilling and hydraulic injections were conducted. We first computed cross‐correlation functions using continuous data recorded by 21 three‐component broadband sensors deployed around the treatment well. We then employed a running window correlation‐based coda wave interferometry technique to measure apparent velocity changes from the daily Green's functions of all the station pairs in the frequency range of 1 to 3 Hz. We found significant velocity changes right after the hydraulic fracturing, which exhibited a clear direction‐dependent pattern. S wave velocity along raypaths parallel to the well trajectory showed a clear increase while those perpendicular exhibited a small decrease. The anisotropic changes in seismic velocity observed here were also confirmed from surface wave horizontal particle motion data. By comparing our observations with normal stress changes calculated with a half‐space elastic model, we speculate that stress changes induced by the hydraulic fracturing were likely to be responsible for the observed anisotropic changes in seismic velocity. Our results suggest that time‐lapse seismic imaging with ambient noise data provides a promising probe for monitoring geomechanical changes related to exploitation of unconventional oil and gas resources.
Co-funded by the CEBAMA

Cement-based materials are key materials used in repositories of low, intermediate and high-level waste in any host-rock concept. These materials are used as waste forms, liners, seals as well as structural components. The CEBAMA project (2014-2019) has been an initiative granted by the European Commission under the Horizon 2020 Research and Training Programme of the European Atomic Energy Community (EURATOM), focused on the study of cementitious materials. The project has addressed key issues of relevance for long-term safety and key scientific questions related to the use of cement-based materials in nuclear waste disposal applications. This publication presents the advances resulting from the research undertaken in the CEBAMA project, with special emphasis on their contribution to decrease uncertainties in the Safety Case and the Performance Assessment of radioactive waste repositories. The analysis is presented in three different axes, in coincidence with the lines of research of the project: degradation of cement-based materials and its impact on cement/clay interfaces; retention of safety relevant radionuclides and toxicants on cement-based materials and modelling advances in cementitious related systems. The research investigations have provided important new insights on process understanding and model developments which have significantly decreased the level of uncertainty.
Addition of polyester in soil affects litter decomposition rates but not microarthropod communities

Microplastics are defined as plastic particles that are <5mm. Manufactured in the production of many commercial products, microplastics have become an environmental threat for many organisms. Microplastics can be highly abundant in soil, and given their size, can interact with soil microarthropods. But how microplastics affect soil-dwelling organisms (mites and collembolans) and their role in ecosystem services such as decomposition is largely unknown. We studied the effects of polypropylene and polyester microfibers of two different lengths (2–3mm and 5–6mm) on microarthropod communities and decomposition rates in a sandy soil. Microplastic addition showed no effects on soil microarthropod communities for the groups Oribatida (abundance and species richness), Prostigmata, Astigmata and Mesostigmata, Collembola, nor other invertebrates present in the soil samples (abundance). The addition of microplastics in the soil did affect litter decomposition rates for litterbags on the soil surface; higher mass loss (i.e. decomposition) was found in polyester treatments compared to control and polypropylene treatments, regardless of the length of the fibers. However, no significant differences were found on feeding rates measured by bait-lamina sticks. Permanova results for microarthropod community structure among treatments were not significant, although non-metric multidimensional scaling analysis (NMDS) found that communities were less similar to one another in polypropylene addition treatments compared to polyester addition and to control treatments. This study is the first to test the effects of microplastics on soil microarthropod communities, and we find no direct negative effects of microplastic addition.
Antioxidant and antimicrobial properties of honey, propolis and bee bread of stingless bee (Geniotrigona thoracica)

Stingless bee (Geniotrigona thoracica) honey is stored in cerumen pots and it has been made from wax combined with propolis. Stingless bee propolis is resin that is collected by foraging worker from plants while bee bread is the pollen that has been stored in wax combs by bee’s colony. The aim of this study is to determine antioxidant properties of honey, propolis, and bee bread of stingless bee and their antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus spp. , Bacillus spp. , Listeria spp. , Pseudomonas spp. , Salmonella spp. , and Escherichia coli. The physical properties of these samples were significantly different (p<0.05) on color and pH value. There were significant differences (p<0.05) on moisture, ash, protein, reducing sugar and vitamin C content among samples. Based on antioxidant properties, there were also significant difference (p<0.05) between the three different samples. Propolis showed the highest amount of antioxidant content compared to honey and bee bread. Propolis and honey shared the highest total phenolic content (TPC) level which was 5.86±0.01 mg GAE/100g for propolis and 5.47±0.26 mg GAE/100g for honey. On the other hand, DPPH radical scavenging analysis indicated that propolis had the highest value which was 88.8±0.43%, followed by bee bread (59.38±0.64) and honey (57.60±1.20). FRAP assay also showed the highest value in propolis (38.88±0.81 μmol/g). Honey, propolis and bee bread showed different effect of antimicrobial activity (p<0.05) against five bacteria including Staphylococcus spp. , Bacillus spp. , Listeria spp. , Salmonella spp. , and Escherichia coli except Pseudomonas spp. (p>0.05). This indicated that different product of stingless bee showed different beneficial properties.
Nanoinsecticidal Efficacy of Ag/Ni Bimetallic Nanoparticles (BMNPs) on Lymphatic Filariasis Vector

Aims: Nanoparticles are gradually gaining wide scientific interest due to their various applications in catalysis, magnetism, medicine, optics, as antibacterial and nanolarvicidal agents. This research aimed at evaluating the larvicidal activity of green synthesized Ag/Ni BMNPs from the aqueous root extract of Borassus aethiopum as the stabilizing agent as well as their spectroscopic investigation using UV-Visible and FT-IR spectroscopy. Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted in Gombe State University between August and December, 2019. Methodology: In this study, Ag/Ni hybrid bimetallic nanoparticles was synthesized using an ecofriendly method from the secondary metabolites of Borassus aethiopum acting as the reducing agent. Original Research Article Lamayi et al.;AJRID, 5(2): 14-21, 2020; Article no.AJRID. 61080 15 Results: Optical measurements using UV-Vis showed the maximum absorption wavelength at 410nm while the FT-IR result for the root extract showed peaks at 3443.26cm1 , 2929.48 cm1 , 1651.28 cm -1 , and 1080.12 cm -1 corresponding to OH stretch, sp 3 C-H stretch, C=C stretch and CO-C stretching respectively. These were replaced in the spectra of the BMNPs with the absence and appearance of some others indicating that they were involved in the capping process. The lethal concentration (LC50) was found to be 5.730, 13.585 and 15.735 mg/L for 1 , 2 and 3/4 instars respectively. Also, the lethal concentration (LC90) was found to be 88.444, 195.689 and 236.889 mg/L for 1, 2 and 3/4 instars respectively. Conclusion: The larvicidal bioassay result showed a dose-dependent mortality rates against Culex quinquefasciatus larvae which suggest they can be developed to control the insect population.
P141 Periodic breathing in preterm infants before and after hospital discharge

Abstract Introduction Preterm infants have immature respiratory control that can manifest as periodic breathing (PB). We aimed to investigate the relationship between time spent in PB before and after hospital discharge. Methods Preterm infants born between 28-32 weeks gestational age were studied during daytime sleep in the supine position for 2-4 hours at 32-36 weeks post menstrual age (PMA) (N=40), 36-40 weeks PMA (N=27), 3 months (N=20) and 6 months (N=26) corrected age (CA). The amount of PB was determined as percentage of total sleep time (TST) spent in PB (%TSTPB). Infants were grouped into below and above the median (8.5%TSTPB) at 32-36 weeks and compared to 36-40 weeks, 3 and 6 months with Mann-Whitney U tests. Results %TSTPB was not different between 32-36 weeks PMA (median 8.5%; IQR 1.5, 15.0) and at 36-40 weeks PMA (6.6% (0.9, 15.1), and then decreased at 3 (0.4%; 0.0, 2.0) and 6 months CA (0%; 0.0, 1.1). Infants who were above the median %TSTPB at 32-36 weeks PMA spent more time in PB at 36-40 weeks PMA [18.05% (7.7, 23.9) vs 2.1% (0.6, 6.4)] and 6 months CA [0.9% (0.0, 3.3) vs 0.0% (0.0, 0.0)]. Conclusions Percentage sleep time spent in PB did not decrease as preterm infants approached term CA, when they were ready to be discharged home. Preterm infants who had higher amounts of PB at 32-36 weeks PMA continued to have higher amounts of PB at term CA and their PB persisted up to 6 months CA.
Warm Middle Miocene Indian Ocean Bottom Water Temperatures: Comparison of Clumped Isotope and Mg/Ca‐Based Estimates

The middle Miocene is an important analogue for potential future warm climates. However, few independent deep ocean temperature records exist, though these are important for climate model validation and estimates of changes in ice volume. Existing records, all based on the foraminiferal Mg/Ca proxy, suggest that bottom water temperatures were 5–8°C warmer than present. In order to improve confidence in these bottom water temperature reconstructions, we generated a new record using carbonate clumped isotopes (Δ47) and compared our results with Mg/Ca‐based estimates for the Indian Ocean at ODP Site 761. Our results indicate temperatures of 11.0 ± 1.7°C during the middle Miocene Climatic Optimum (MCO, 14.7–17 Ma) and 8.1 ± 1.9°C after the middle Miocene Climate Transition (MCT, 13.0–14.7 Ma), values 6 to 9°C warmer than present. Our record also indicates cooling across the MCT of 2.9 ± 2.5°C (uncertainties 95% confidence level). The Mg/Ca record derived from the same samples indicates temperatures well within uncertainty of Δ47. As the two proxies are affected by different non‐thermal biases, the good agreement provides confidence in these reconstructed temperatures. Our Δ47 temperature record implies a ~0.6‰ seawater δ18O change over the MCT, in good agreement with previously published values from other sites. Our data furthermore confirm overall high seawater δ18O values across the middle Miocene, at face value suggesting ice volumes exceeding present‐day despite the warm bottom water temperatures. This finding suggests previously underappreciated additional influences on seawater δ18O and/or a decoupling of ice volume and ocean temperature.
Prevalência de Hemosporideos em três localidades do Estado do Tocantins, Brasil

Os parasitas exercem uma serie de efeitos em seus hospedeiros influenciando em sua ecologia, processos evolutivos e conservacao. Sao amplamente utilizados como modelos ecologicos afetando a dinâmica temporal e espacial de muitas populacoes naturais e comunidades de aves. Informacoes sobre a prevalencia de Plasmodium spp. /Haemoproteus spp. em aves do Cerrado sao escassos e suas relacoes com o processo de alteracoes produzidas pelo ser humano, como a urbanizacao, raramente estudados. A urbanizacao promove modificacoes na biota que podem influenciar diretamente na relacao parasito – hospedeiro, criando condicoes para o surgimento de novas doencas em aves silvestres. No presente estudo analisamos esfregacos sanguineos de aves silvestres provenientes da area urbana de Palmas e de duas unidades de conservacao do estado do Tocantins visando comparar a prevalencia de Plasmodium spp. /Haemoproteus spp. entre estes ambientes e testar a hipotese de que aves silvestres de ambientes urbanizados teriam uma menor prevalencia de haemosporidas que aquelas de ambientes naturais. Foram analisadas 680 amostras, pertencentes a 94 especies de aves, 302 obtidas na area urbana e 378 nas unidades de conservacao. A prevalencia de Plasmodium spp. /Haemoproteus spp. foi considerada elevada 26,15% e nao diferiu entre a area urbana e as areas protegidas. Entretanto, a prevalencia geral foi significativamente mais elevada no periodo de chuvas. A ausencia de diferencas na prevalencia de Plasmodium spp. /Haemoproteus spp. entre os ambientes pode estar relacionada a diferentes fatores como as especificidades da relacao parasita/hospedeiro ou a presenca de certos hospedeiros, necessitando ser melhor investigada.
Post-Processing a Conceptual Rainfall-Runoff Model with an LSTM

Machine learning is becoming an increasingly important part of streamﬂow forecasting, but as these models to date lack a physical basis, there is a potential that they may produce values that are not realistic. We tested a simple post-processing strategy that uses the outputs from a calibrated conceptual model (the Sacramento Soil Moisture Accounting Model with Snow-17; SAC-SMA) as inputs into a a Long Short Term Memory Network (LSTM). Overall, the SAC-SMA model was improved substantially, while post-processing oﬀered only minor improvements relative to the standalone LSTM. SAC-SMA performance was improved in catchments with more snow. The standalone LSTM was improved in terms of long-term bias, which is likely because the LSTM is not constrained by conservation principles.