Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Surface Reactivity of Carbonaceous Nanoparticles: The Importance of Surface Pocket

The surface reactivity of carbonaceous nanoparticles is revealed from the barrier height and reaction enthalpy of hydrogen abstraction reaction by H radicals computed at the M06-2X/6–311g(d,p)//B3LYP/6-311G(d,p) level of theory. Small polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) clusters are selected as the model system of carbonaceous nanoparticles. The PAHs considered are naphthalene, pyrene, coronene, ovalene and circumcoronene. Cluster sizes range from dimer to tetramer with a parallel or crossed configuration. All results show similar values as that of monomers, but naphthalene dimers with a crossed configuration yield a lower barrier height and reaction enthalpy by ∼2 kcal/mol. A minor size dependence is noticed in the series of naphthalene clusters where a larger cluster exhibits a smaller barrier height. Larger homogeneous PAH clusters in a size range of 1.1–1.9 nm are later generated to mimic nascent soot surface. It is found that the barrier height decreases with the increase in particle size, and the averaged values are ∼2 kcal/mol lower than that of monomers. More importantly, a larger particle shows a wider spread in barrier heights, and low barrier heights are seen in the surface shallow regions (e.g., surface pockets). The lowest barrier height of ∼8.5 kcal/mol is observed at a C-H site locating in a surface pocket. A set of model systems are built to reveal the underlying mechanism of reduction in barrier height. It is shown that the reduction is caused by local interactions between the neighboring atoms and the local curvature. Further analysis on the average localized ionization potential shows that larger particles have higher reactivity, further supporting our findings from the barrier height of hydrogen abstraction reactions. Therefore, it is concluded that the surface reactivity depends on the particle size and the most reactive sites always locate at the surface pockets.
See & Eat! Using E-books to Promote Vegetable Eating Among Preschoolers: Findings From an Italian Sample

Different strategies have been developed to help parents with introducing new or disliked vegetables. Nonetheless, many parents of preschoolers struggle against children's refusal to eat vegetables. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of e-books in promoting positive attitudes toward vegetables through repeated visual exposures. A total of 61 families with preschoolers joined the See & Eat study and received an e-book about one of two vegetables chosen from a list of 24. Parents provided ratings of children's willingness to taste, intake, and liking of the chosen vegetables before and after reading the e-book; parents also evaluated their children's food fussiness and their agreement with respect to three mealtime goals of the family. Using a 2 (vegetable: target or non-target) × 2 (time: pre-test or post-test) within-subjects analysis, results from 53 families revealed a significant increase in children's willingness to taste, intake, and liking at post-test of both target and non-target vegetables. Following a two-week parent-child e-book reading intervention, children's food fussiness and parents' endorsement of positive mealtime goals slightly but significantly increased. Results suggest that e-books are effective in encouraging healthy eating among preschoolers and that the positive effect of e-book reading can generalize to other vegetables.
SEGMENTATION OF BUILDINGS BASED ON HIGH RESOLUTION PERSISTENT SCATTERER POINT CLOUDS

Integrating differential synthetic aperture radar measurements into building information modeling systems requires a mapping of these measurement points onto structural parts of the building. We use a reverse geocoding approach to project building footprints into slant-range geometry, which helps to accurately assign PS points to single building identities. By treating the deformation time series as points in a high dimensional feature space, we can use dimensional reduction and clustering techniques to extract clusters of points that show a similar movement behavior. We visualize these clusters by mapping them onto ground truth, using laser scanning point clouds. Our approach segments buildings into plausible parts.
Infestation parameters for chewing lice (Phthiraptera: Amblycera, Ischnocera) parasitising true thrushes (Aves: Passeriformes: Turdidae) in Manitoba, Canada

Abstract Seven species of Turdidae (Aves: Passeriformes) in Manitoba, Canada were examined for chewing lice (Phthiraptera) in 1993–2019: Turdus migratorius (N = 570), Catharus ustulatus (N = 135), Catharus guttatus (N = 49), Catharus minimus (N = 12), Catharus fuscescens (N = 1), Sialia sialis (N = 4), and Sialia currucoides (N = 3). Five species of lice on T. migratorius had a prevalence of 24.0% and a mean intensity of 16.7. Overall prevalence for lice on C. ustulatus, C. guttatus, and C. minimus was 25.0%–59.2%; mean intensity was 7.0–23.3. On S. sialis, the prevalence was 50.0%; mean intensity was 10.0. No lice infested C. fuscescens or S. currucoides. Infestation parameters for each louse–host combination are provided. Louse infestations were highly aggregated. Female lice were more prevalent than males, especially for Ricinus elongatus (Phthiraptera: Amblycera: Ricinidae) infesting T. migratorius (eight males; 81 females), or there was no significant deviation from 50:50. Infestation parameters were higher for adult T. migratorius than for juveniles or feathered chicks but not significantly so. Mean intensity was greater in spring than in fall. Louse abundance was lower than on hosts of similar size in Manitoba and lower than on thrushes in other studies.
A Framework for Crop Disease Detection Using Feature Fusion Method

Crop disease detection methods vary from traditional machine learning, which uses Hand-Crafted Features (HCF) to the current deep learning techniques that utilize deep features. In this study, a hybrid framework is designed for crop disease detection using feature fusion. Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) is used for high level features that are fused with HCF. Cepstral coefficients of RGB images are presented as one of the features along with the other popular HCF. The proposed hybrid model is tested on the whole leaf images and also on the image patches which have individual lesions. The experimental results give an enhanced performance with a classification accuracy of 99.93% for the whole leaf images and 99.74% for the images with individual lesions. The proposed model also shows a significant improvement in comparison to the state-of-art techniques. The improved results show the prominence of feature fusion and establish cepstral coefficients as a pertinent feature for crop disease detection.
Exploring science relevancy by gender and SES in The Bahamas: secondary Bahamian students' interests in science and attractive attributes of future careers

ABSTRACT Relevancy, or how learners perceive science and technology (S&T) as important to their current and future lives, has grown in importance internationally. The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology of The Bahamas has stated that cultivating students’ science relevancy for all students, regardless of gender (male/female), or socioeconomic factors (SES) like location (rural/urban) or type (public/private) of K-12 schooling, is vital to national development. This study presents findings from a 2018–2019 sampling of 1105 secondary students from co-educational public and private schools in both rural and urban areas among the inhabited major and minor islands of The Bahamas to explore Bahamian students’ science interests and what factors they find attractive in careers by variables of gender and SES. Using data from four batteries of the ROSE questionnaire querying students’ science interests and attributes desirable in a future career, independent sample t-tests revealed significant differences for gender and school type in both categories. Further, item level Mann–Whitney U analyses revealed nuanced significant differences in regard to gendered science interests and desired attributes of a future career with far fewer significant differences by SES factors. This baseline of science relevancy provides insight to strategies for enhancing Bahamian students’ S&T experience.
The Mediating Role of Brand Love in the Relationship Between Consumer-Based Brand Equity and Brand Loyalty: a Research on Starbucks

The present study aims to determine the mediating role of brand love in the relationship between CBBE and brand loyalty. The study makes an analysis of CBBE, brand loyalty, and brand love related to Starbucks – a global coffee house and roastery catering concept. The study population comprises customers of the Starbucks enterprises operating in the city of Mersin, Turkey, and adopts a convenience sampling method. During the data collection process, 384 customers of Starbucks stores within Mersin who were over 18 years of age were surveyed. The dependent variables of the study are "brand loyalty" and "brand love," whereas the independent variable is "CBBE". The hypotheses developed in the research model were tested through structural equation modeling (SEM). Based on the study findings, it was concluded that brand love, as well as the dimensions of CBBE of "Service Quality: Physical Quality SQ:PQ" and "Lifestyle-Congruence LC", had full mediation with brand loyalty, while "Service Quality: Staff Behavior SQ:SB", "Ideal Self-Congruence IS-C" and "Brand Identification BI" had no such mediating effect on brand loyalty. In the study, the mediating role of brand love in terms of the impact of CBBE in the service industry on brand loyalty has been examined for the first time. The research findings show that a strong bond will be established with the target audience through compatible and parallel strategies that will be implemented by the managers on the SQ:PQ and LC dimensions of CBBE and this situation will increase loyalty to the brand. As a result of the consumers' strong emotions and their increasing loyalty towards the brand, this situation will lead the businesses in the service industry to protect their market share along with having a positive impact on their sustainable competition and profitability.
Growth parameters of Poecilia latipinna (Lesueur, 1821) (Actinopterygii, Poeciilidae) – an introduced species in brackish water of Wadi Al-Bahayes (Oman)

Abstract This work is one of the first studies on the growth of Poecilia latipinna outside its natural habitat. The objective of our study was to investigate the growth parameters of the population of P. latipinna, which is an alien species in Oman (Wadi Al-Bahayes). The population structure of P. latipinna in Wadi Al-Bahayes (Oman; 23°40′47″N; 58°11′36″E) was studied in June and August 2020, using 124 fish. In the course of this study, the number of individuals of each sex, age, weight and size composition were determined. In addition, the total length–weight relationship (LRW) was calculated, as well as the von Bertalanffy growth equation. The mean growth performance (phi prime) and the condition factor were calculated. Males accounted for 37.10% and females for 62.90% of the population. The length–weight relationship and the von Bertalanffy growth equation were W = 0.0214 × L 2.7889 R2 = 0.9212, Lt = 11.46 (1 − e −0.127 (t + 2.71)) for males and Lt = 14.51 (1 − e−0.072 (t + 3.98)) for females. The mean growth performance and the condition factor were calculated as 1.22 for males and 1.18 for females and 1.54 for all specimens. The study shows that the population of the species is characterized by a wide age range. Consequently, monitoring of this alien species is highly recommended.
Foreign direct investment and corporate social responsibility: evidence from South African listed firms

Abstract This study investigates empirically the impact of inward FDI on host firm Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) performance in South Africa. The data used for the study was sourced from the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and the Public Investment Corporation Governance Survey index for a period of 3 years ranging from 2011 to 2013. The study employs Panel Corrected Standard Errors (PCSE) and Seemingly Unrelated Regression (SUR) to estimate the effect of FDI on CSR and thus addresses contemporaneous cross-correlations across the panel cross-sections as well as endogeneity between FDI and CSR. It is established from the study that FDI has a strong positive impact on firm CSR performance. When CSR is decomposed further into its major components, FDI positively impacts social and environmental components but has no impact on governance components.
Comparison of some DNA extraction methods from monovarietal must and wines

The methods applied for DNA extraction from must and wine samples with monovarietal origin are presented and discussed aiming to prove the quality of extracted DNA and its good properties for further use in molecular tests. In the present research were compared four different DNA extraction methods from must and wine samples obtained from eleven V. vinifera varieties (five grapevine varieties for white wines and six grapevine varieties for red wines, respectively). Taking into consideration the amounts of obtained DNA, the concentrations and purities of the final DNA extracts, were stood out two modified methods. For all must samples, very efficient was the second method, which allowed obtaining a mean value of 87.9 ng μl for the DNA concentration with 1.55 purity. Among the tested procedures, for monovarietal wine samples, the fourth method proved to be the most efficient which brought a mean value of 64.7 ng μl for DNA concentration with 1.66 purity. This method adequate for wine samples involves two CTAB solution treatments and the RNase treatment applied before DNA resuspension. The DNA from must and wine extracts and the DNA from leaves of the corresponding grapevine varieties were amplified with five specific microsatellite primers (VVS2, VVMD27, VVMD32, VrZAG79 and VrZAG62). The aspects of pattern profiles were analysed in parallel and proved that the extracted DNA was suitable for amplification with these specific V. vinifera primers. The two selected extraction procedures are considered good for research purposes and ensure obtaining of good-quality extracted DNA from musts and one-year old wines.
Exploring the Relationship Between Language Learning Strategies, Academic Achievement, Grade Level, and Gender

Learning efficacy can be substantially improved through the frequent use of learning strategies, whose practicality has been confirmed through extensive research. Thus, the purpose of the current study is to contribute to this wealth of research by determining whether learning strategies are significant predictors of students’ achievement in learning English as a foreign language (EFL) as well as by exploring strategy awareness and variations in strategy use by gender, grade level, and overall grade point average (GPA) among 206 high school students. The results indicated that cognitive strategies are significant positive predictors, while memory and affective strategies are significant negative predictors of students’ achievement in foreign language learning. Moreover, the findings revealed a significant impact of overall GPA and an insignificant impact of gender and grade level on the use of strategy subtypes, with the most frequently used strategies being metacognitive and the least frequently used being affective strategies. Furthermore, this research highlights the importance of incorporating strategies-based instruction methods into foreign language curriculums in the Bosnian context and also aims to raise teachers’ awareness of the importance of their application in the classroom milieu.
Adaptation of anammox bacteria to low temperature via gradual acclimation and cold shocks: distinctions in protein expression, membrane composition and activities

Anammox bacteria enable an efficient removal of nitrogen from sewage in processes involving partial nitritation and anammox (PN/A) or nitrification, partial denitrification, and anammox (N-PdN/A). In mild climates, anammox bacteria must be adapted to ≤15 °C, typically by gradual temperature decrease; however, this takes months or years. To reduce the time necessary for the adaptation, an unconventional method of ‘cold shocks’ is promising, involving hours-long exposure of anammox biomass to extremely low temperatures. We compared the efficacies of gradual temperature decrease and cold shocks to increase the metabolic activity of anammox (fed batch reactor, planktonic “Ca. Kuenenia”). We assessed the cold shock mechanism on the level of protein expression (quantitative shot-gun proteomics, LC-HRMS/MS) and structure of membrane lipids (UPLC-HRMS/MS). The shocked culture was more active (0.66±0.06 vs 0.48±0.06 kg-N/kg-VSS/d) and maintained the relative content of N-respiration proteins at levels consistent levels with the initial state, whereas the content of these proteins decreased in gradually acclimated culture. Cold shocks also induced a more efficient up-regulation of cold shock proteins (e.g. CspB, TypA, ppiD). Ladderane lipids characteristic for anammox evolved to a similar end-point in both cultures which confirms their role in anammox bacteria adaptation to cold and indicates a three-pronged adaptation mechanism involving ladderane lipids (ladderane alkyl length, introduction of shorter non-ladderane alkyls, polar headgroup). Overall, we show the outstanding potential of cold shocks for low-temperature adaptation of anammox bacteria and provide yet unreported detailed mechanisms of anammox adaptation to low temperatures. Highlights Anammox bacteria were adapted to low T by gradual acclimation and cold shocks The shocked culture was more active (0.66±0.06 vs 0.48±0.06 kg-N/kg-VSS/d) N-respiration proteins content decreased in gradually acclimated bacteria Several cold shock proteins were upregulated more efficiently by cold shocks At ↓T, anammox adjusted ladderane membrane lipid composition in three aspects Graphical abstract
Discovery and Genetic Mapping of PM1, a Powdery Mildew Resistance Gene in Cannabis sativa L.

Powdery mildew is among the most common diseases of both hemp- and marijuana-type cultivated Cannabis sativa. Despite its prevalence, no documented studies have characterized sources of natural genetic resistance in this pathosystem. Here we provide evidence for the first resistance (R) gene in C. sativa, represented by a single dominant locus that confers complete resistance to an isolate of the powdery mildew pathogen Golovinomyces ambrosiae, found in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. Linkage mapping with nearly 10,000 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers revealed that this R gene (designated PM1) is located on the distal end of the long arm of one of the largest chromosomes in the C. sativa genome. According to reference whole genome sequences and Sanger sequencing, the marker was tentatively placed in a cluster of R genes of the nucleotide-binding site (NBS) and leucine-rich repeat (LRR) protein type. PM1's dominant behavior, qualitative penetrance, and a co-segregating qPCR marker to track its inheritance were confirmed in two separate genetic backgrounds totaling 185 recombinant F1 plants. The goal of this study is to provide a foundation for the discovery and characterization of additional sources of genetic resistance to pathogens that infect C. sativa.
Input Zone-Selective Dysrhythmia in Motor Thalamus after Dopamine Depletion

The cerebral cortex, basal ganglia and motor thalamus form circuits important for purposeful movement. In Parkinsonism, basal ganglia neurons often exhibit dysrhythmic activity during, and with respect to, the slow (∼1 Hz) and beta-band (15-30 Hz) oscillations that emerge in cortex in a brain state-dependent manner. There remains, however, a pressing need to elucidate the extent to which motor thalamus activity becomes similarly dysrhythmic after dopamine depletion relevant to Parkinsonism. To address this, we recorded single-neuron and ensemble outputs in the basal ganglia-recipient zone (BZ) and cerebellar-recipient zone (CZ) of motor thalamus in anesthetized male dopamine-intact rats and 6-OHDA-lesioned rats during two brain states, respectively defined by cortical slow-wave activity and activation. Two forms of thalamic input zone-selective dysrhythmia manifested after dopamine depletion: (1) BZ neurons, but not CZ neurons, exhibited abnormal phase-shifted firing with respect to cortical slow oscillations prevalent during slow-wave activity; and (2) BZ neurons, but not CZ neurons, inappropriately synchronized their firing and engaged with the exaggerated cortical beta oscillations arising in activated states. These dysrhythmias were not accompanied by the thalamic hypoactivity predicted by canonical firing rate-based models of circuit organization in Parkinsonism. Complementary recordings of neurons in substantia nigra pars reticulata suggested that their altered activity dynamics could underpin the BZ dysrhythmias. Finally, pharmacological perturbations demonstrated that ongoing activity in the motor thalamus bolsters exaggerated beta oscillations in motor cortex. We conclude that BZ neurons are selectively primed to mediate the detrimental influences of abnormal slow and beta-band rhythms on circuit information processing in Parkinsonism. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Motor thalamus neurons mediate the influences of basal ganglia and cerebellum on the cerebral cortex to govern movement. Chronic depletion of dopamine from the basal ganglia causes some symptoms of Parkinson's disease. Here, we elucidate how dopamine depletion alters the ways motor thalamus neurons engage with two distinct oscillations emerging in cortico-basal ganglia circuits in vivo. We discovered that, after dopamine depletion, neurons in the thalamic zone receiving basal ganglia inputs are particularly prone to becoming dysrhythmic, changing the phases and/or synchronization (but not rate) of their action potential firing. This bolsters cortical dysrhythmia. Our results provide important new insights into how aberrant rhythmicity in select parts of motor thalamus could detrimentally affect neural circuit dynamics and behavior in Parkinsonism.
Elongation at Midcell in Preparation of Cell Division Requires FtsZ, but Not MreB nor PBP2 in Caulobacter crescentus

Controlled growth of the cell wall is a key prerequisite for bacterial cell division. The existing view of the canonical rod-shaped bacterial cell dictates that newborn cells first elongate throughout their side walls using the elongasome protein complex, and subsequently use the divisome to coordinate constriction of the dividing daughter cells. Interestingly, another growth phase has been observed in between elongasome-mediated elongation and constriction, during which the cell elongates from the midcell outward. This growth phase, that has been observed in Escherichia coli and Caulobacter crescentus, remains severely understudied and its mechanisms remain elusive. One pressing open question is which role the elongasome key-component MreB plays in this respect. This study quantitatively investigates this growth phase in C. crescentus and focuses on the role of both divisome and elongasome components. This growth phase is found to initiate well after MreB localizes at midcell, although it does not require its presence at this subcellular location nor the action of key elongasome components. Instead, the divisome component FtsZ seems to be required for elongation at midcell. This study thus shines more light on this growth phase in an important model organism and paves the road to more in-depth studies.