Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Quantifying and modeling water availability in temperate forests: a review of drought and aridity indices

Abstract: Climatic water availability is a major determinant of forest structure and composition, while drought events may severely impact forest dynamics. In recent decades, an increasing number of severe drought events has been reported in forests around the world. In the future, climate models project increasingly dry conditions in many temperate regions. Various tools have been applied to better understand the effects of drought on forests, such as dendrochronological analyses, climatic trend analyses and dynamic models. With these approaches, water availability is often summarized as a single scalar, termed a drought or aridity index. As droughts are complex phenomena, such indices are always associated with a loss of information. Many different such indices exist, and have been developed for various purposes. This review asks whether some of these indices are more suitable than others to quantify water availability in temperate forests. In a first step, the rationale and theoretical background of different drought indices are spelled out and compared among each other. Then, evaluations and intercomparisons of drought indices from the literature are reviewed. The implementation of drought indices in dynamic forest models is also discussed. Finally, two current research questions are identified: the role of dry air for physiological drought, and the suitability of various drought indices under climate change. It appears from this review that indices accounting for evaporative demand generally perform better than indices based on precipitation alone. When comparing sites with different edaphic conditions, indices accounting for soil moisture storage are more suitable. Nevertheless, results from intercomparisons show considerable divergence, and it is not possible to clearly favor one index. Furthermore, a differential response of tree species to different drought indices is often observed, although no clear pattern emerges from this comparison. More intercomparisons of indices, across climates and species, might provide valuable knowledge. Another key finding is that the properties of indices also depend on choices regarding, e.g., the calculation of evaporative demand, or the underlying water balance model. Reporting such methodological details could greatly increase the value of future evaluations of drought indices.
Action intention modulates the representation of object features in early visual cortex

The role of the early visual cortex (EVC) has been extensively studied for visual recognition but to a lesser degree to determine how action planning influences perceptual representations of objects. We used functional MRI and pattern classification methods to determine if during action planning, object features (orientation and location) could be decoded in an action-dependent way and if so, whether this was due to functional connectivity between visual and higher-level cortical areas. Sixteen participants used their right dominant hand to perform movements (Align or Open Hand) towards one of two oriented objects that were simultaneously presented and placed on either side of a fixation cross. While both movements required aiming toward target location, only Align movements required participants to precisely adjust hand orientation. Therefore, we hypothesized that if the representation of object features in the EVC is modulated by the upcoming action, we could use the pre-movement activity pattern to dissociate between object locations in both tasks, and orientations in the Align task only. We found above chance decoding accuracy between the two objects for both tasks in the calcarine sulcus corresponding to the peripheral location of the objects in the visual cortex, suggesting a task-independent (i.e. location) modulation. In contrast, we found significant decoding accuracy between the two objects for Align but not Open Hand movements in the occipital pole corresponding to central vision, and dorsal stream areas, suggesting a task-dependent (i.e. orientation) modulation. Psychophysiological interaction analysis indicated stronger functional connectivity during the planning phase of Align than Open Hand movements between EVC and sensory-motor areas in the dorsal and ventral visual stream, as well as areas that lie at the interface between the two streams. These results demonstrate that task-specific preparatory signals modulate activity not only in areas typically known to be involved in perception for action, but also in the EVC. Further, our findings suggest that object features that are relevant for successful action performance are represented in the part of the visual cortex that is best suited to process visual features in great details, such as the foveal cortex, even if the objects are viewed in the periphery.
Human perception of water appearance: 1. Clarity and colour for bathing and aesthetics

Human perception of two important visual aspects of the appearance of river and lake water, clarity and colour, was investigated from the perspective of bathing and aesthetics in New Zealand. Bankside interviews were conducted at the same time as measurements were made for clarity and colour. We found that water appearance, perceived suitability of the water for bathing, and bathing activity are closely linked, as is perception of water clarity and colour. Water is perceived as just suitable for bathing at a horizontal black disc visibility of 1.2 m (equivalent Secchi depth c. 1.5 m) with a 90 percentile of 2.2 m (equivalent Secchi depth c. 2.75 m), confirming earlier work. As might be expected, blue waters are preferred to yellow waters, and water is perceived as just suitable for bathing if the Munsell colour is greater than around 30 units (i.e., at the low end of the green-yellow range). For bathing waters, consideration of personal safety is very important; for aesthetics, surroundings are important. People's perception of visual aspects (i.e., clarity and colour) appears to have a strong influence on their rating of overall site suitability. M 94050 Received 27 September 1994; accepted 9 January 1995
Functional Anatomy, Biomechanical Performance Capabilities and Potential Niche of StW 573: an Australopithecus Skeleton (circa 3.67 Ma) From Sterkfontein Member 2, and its significance for The Last Common Ancestor of the African Apes and for Hominin Origins

StW 573, from Sterkfontein Member 2, dated ca 3.67 Ma, is by far the most complete skeleton of an australopith to date. Joint morphology is in many cases closely matched in available elements of Australopithecus anamensis (eg. proximal and distal tibial and humeral joint-surfaces) and there are also close similarities to features of the scapula, in particular, of KSD-VP-1/1 A. afarensis from Woranso-Mille. The closest similarities are, however, to the partial skeleton of StW 431 from Sterkfontein Member 4. When considered together, both StW 573 and StW 431 express an hip joint morphology quite distinct from that of A. africanus Sts14, and a proximal femur of a presumed A. africanus from Jacovec Cavern at Sterkfontein, StW 598. This, and other evidence presented herein, suggests there are two pelvic girdle morphs at Sterkfontein, supporting Clarke (2013) in his recognition of a second species, A. prometheus, containing StW 573 and StW 431. StW 573 is the first hominid skeleton where limb proportions are known unequivocally. It demonstrates that some early hominins, at the time of formation of the Laetoli footprints (3.6 Ma), were large-bodied. with hindlimbs longer than forelimbs. Modelling studies on extant primates indicate that the intermembral index (IMI) of StW 573, low for a non-human great ape, would have substantially enhanced economy of bipedal walking over medium-to-long distances, but that it was still too high for effective walking while load-carrying. It would, however, have somewhat reduced the economy of horizontal climbing, but made Gorilla-like embracing of large tree-trunks less possible. Consideration of both ethnographic evidence from modern indigenous arboreal foragers and modern degeneracy theory cautions against prescriptive interpretations of hand- and foot-function, by confirming that both human-like upright bipedalism and functional capabilities of the hand and foot can be effective in short-distance arboreal locomotion.
On the Behavior of Okun's Law across Business Cycles

Using threshold regression analysis, this paper studies how the relationship between unemployment and output, known as Okun's law, varies across business cycles measures. At the U.S. aggregate level, the results indicate the presence of strong asymmetries in the relationship characterized by three different regimes, where the sensitivity of unemployment to output decreases with economic activity for all measures of business cycles considered. For the preferred threshold variable, Okun's law is strong when the unemployment gap grows faster than 1.07 percentage points above the natural rate of unemployment, coinciding with periods of deep recessions. The sensitivity is smaller in absolute value when it grows between -0.70 and 1.07 percentage points during mild recessions, and weakens even further when the unemployment gap falls below -0.70 percentage points during periods of expansion, revealing a flattening, but also a shift, of Okun's law. The results are robust to the measure of business cycle, the specification of Okun's law, the speed of output growth, the frequency of the data and the identification of the gaps. The analysis also finds support for the nonlinear nature of Okun's law at the state and international levels.
Developments in mycotoxin analysis: an update for 2019-2020

This review summarises developments on the analysis of various matrices for mycotoxins published in the period from mid-2019 to mid-2020. Notable developments in all aspects of mycotoxin analysis, from sampling and quality assurance/quality control of analytical results, to the various detection and quantitation technologies ranging from single mycotoxin biosensors to comprehensive instrumental methods are presented and discussed. Aside from sampling and quality control, discussion of this past year’s developments is organised by detection and quantitation technology and covers chromatography with targeted or non-targeted high resolution mass spectrometry, tandem mass spectrometry, detection other than mass spectrometry, biosensors, as well as assays that use alternatives to antibodies. This critical review aims to briefly present the most important recent developments and trends in mycotoxin determination as well as to address limitations of the presented methodologies.
A Study on Determining Factors Influence Pricing Competitive for Airlines in Malaysia

The purpose of this study is to determine the factors influence pricing competitive dynamic airlines by passenger for the specific routes of Kuala Lumpur to Singapore between the Prime Carrier and Low-Cost Carrier. This research was derived in response of World’s Busiest International Air Routes report from OAG Aviation Worldwide that shows more than 30,000 flights frequency in both directions for international route Kuala Lumpur to Singapore during 12 months in 2018. This study will be understanding the influence in pricing competitive between forecast on demand, and product quality. A framework model has been proposed to determine the factors on competitive airlines pricing in Malaysia and the variables are Market Segmentation, Product Quality and Demand Forecast. This research used a quantitative data collection method to gather or to prompt information from respondents, in this case passenger who is using flights from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore. A total of 424 passengers was sampled and the set of questionnaires were distributed using the nonprobability sampling technique which is convenience sampling to obtain sample data to be analyzed. The analysis in this study was conducted using descriptive statistical analysis tools. – SPSS – version 23. Results from the multiple analysis demonstrate that product quality and demand forecast as factors influencing pricing competitive.
A consensus set of genetic vulnerabilities to ATR inhibition

The response to DNA replication stress in eukaryotes is under the control of the ataxia-telangiectasia and Rad3-related (ATR) kinase. ATR responds to single-stranded (ss) DNA to stabilize distressed DNA replication forks, modulate DNA replication firing and prevent cells with damaged DNA or incomplete DNA replication from entering into mitosis. Furthermore, inhibitors of ATR are currently in clinical development either as monotherapies or in combination with agents that perturb DNA replication. To gain a genetic view of the cellular pathways requiring ATR kinase function, we mapped genes whose mutation causes hypersensitivity to ATR inhibitors with genome-scale CRISPR/Cas9 screens. We delineate a consensus set of 117 genes enriched in DNA replication, DNA repair and cell cycle regulators that promote survival when ATR kinase activity is suppressed. We validate 14 genes from this set and report genes not previously described to modulate response to ATR inhibitors. In particular we found that the loss of the POLE3/POLE4 proteins, which are DNA polymerase e accessory subunits, results in marked hypersensitivity to ATR inhibition. We anticipate that this 117-gene set will be useful for the identification of genes involved in the regulation of genome integrity, the characterization of new biological processes involving ATR, and may reveal biomarkers of ATR inhibitor response in the clinic.
Shelf-life studies on chemically preserved sand pear (Pyrus pyrifolia cv Patharnakh) pulp

Sand pear pulp was preserved with chemical preservatives, potassium meta bisulphite- 1200 and 2000 mg/kg sodium benzoate - 1200 mg/kg and their combination - 600 mg/kg each and stored at ambient (25-35°C) as well as refrigeration (12-15°C) temperature. The physico-chemical parameters like browning, reducing sugar and ascorbic acid contents showed significant changes with type of preservative and storage. Pulp preserved with sodium benzoate (1200 mg/kg) and stored at ambient temperature got spoiled in four months. Sensory evaluation showed that sand pear pulp could be preserved up to one year at ambient temperature by adding potassium meta bisulphite alone (1200 mg/kg) or in combination with sodium benzoate (600 mg/kg each).
Firms´ Accounting Misrepresentations - Reasons, Tools and Outcomes

The paper investigates and determines the profile of misrepresenting firms by suitable accounting ratios. It moreover measures the impact of the misrepresentation on the accounting characteristics. Unlike prior literature, it splits the dataset by the reason of the managers for conducting the misrepresentation. The reason is therefore hand-collected from SEC-investigation reports and verified by further sources. This allows to identify the characteristics and quantify the impact of the misrepresentation depending on the reason for the misrepresentation. The research is conducted with statistical tests for significance and a firth logistic regression (Firth 1993). The results show that there are indeed differences in the characteristics of misrepresenting firms depending on the reason for the misrepresentation. In total three different main categories of these reasons for misrepresentations could be identified. In one category are small well-performing firms. Here data shows that the main reason for the misrepresentation is the enrichment of the managers (greed) e.g. through bonusses. In another category are small almost bankrupt firms. Here data shows that the managers typically misrepresent to avoid bankruptcy. In the third category are bigger and established firms. Here data shows a misrepresentation to handle capital market pressure e.g. through analyst forecasts. Moreover, the results suggest that depending on the reason (and consequently the category) the misrepresentation was done through different accounting components (earnings, total assets, sales, current assets, current liabilities, inventory). The results are in general in line with the positive accounting theory as defined by Watts and Zimmerman (1986) since the results underline the importance of accounting in various contracting situations e.g. in negotiating managements’ remuneration system.
PENGARUH PUPUK UREA DAN PUPUK ORGANIK SAPI TERHADAP PERTUMBUHAN DAN PRODUKSI TANAMAN PADI VARIETAS IR. 64 (Oryza sativa L)

Rice plants ( Oryza sativa L.) have long been known in Indonesia because they have a role as the main food ingredient of Indonesian society. One way to increase rice production is to determine the optimal urea fertilizer and the frequency of organic fertilizers. This study used a randomized block design (RBD) consisting of two factors and three (3) replications. The first factor: urea (N) fertilizer consists of 3 levels, namely N1 = 0 kg / ha, N2 = 100 kg / ha, N3 = 200 kg / ha. The second factor: organic fertilizer (P) which consists of 3 levels, namely: P1 = 10 tonnes / ha, P2 = 20 tonnes / ha, P3 = 30 tonnes / ha. The results of this study were that there was an interaction between urea and organic fertilizers on the height growth of rice plants in all observation variables. The highest yield for the treatment plant height (N1P1) was 72,330 cm. The highest number of leaves in the treatment (N2P3) was 6.66. The highest number of tillers in the treatment (N2 P3) was 33,553 stems. The highest production of panicle length, grain weight per clump and number of productive tillers occurred interactions where the highest yield was achieved in treatment (N2 P3), namely 30,996 cm, 43,996 grams and 20,330 pieces. The highest grain weight is 38,883 grams. The highest production plot was 2.4050 kg and the highest production per hectare was 12,158 tons/ha. Tanaman Padi ( Oryza sativa L.) telah lama dikenal di Indonesia, sebab memiliki peranan sebagai bahan pangan utama masyarakat Indonesia. Salah satu cara untuk meningkatkan produksi tanaman padi adalah menentukan pupuk urea yang optimal dan frekuensi pupuk organik. Penelitian ini menggunakan Rancangan Acak Kelompok (RAK) yang terdiri dari dua faktor dan tiga (3) ulangan. Faktor pertama : pupuk urea (N) terdiri dari 3 taraf yaitu N1= 0 kg/ha, N2= 100 kg/ha, N3 = 200 kg/ha. Faktor kedua : pupuk organik (P) yang terdiri dari 3 taraf yaitu: P1= 10 ton/ha, P2= 20 ton/ha, P3= 30 ton/ha. Hasil dari penelitian ini yaitu terdapat interaksi antara pupuk urea dan pupuk organik terhadap pertumbuhan tinggi tanaman padi pada semua variabel pengamatan. Hasil tertinggi untuk tinggi tanaman perlakuan (N1P1) yaitu 72.330 cm. Jumlah daun terbanyak pada perlakuan (N2P3) yaitu 6.66 helai. Jumlah anakan terbanyak pada perlakuan (N2 P3) yaitu 33.553 batang. Produksi panjang malai tertinggi, berat gabah per rumpun dan jumlah anakan produktif terjadi interaksi dimana hasil tertinggi dicapai pada perlakuan (N2 P3) yaitu 30.996 cm, 43.996 gram dan 20.330 buah. Berat bulir tertinggi yaitu 38.883 gram. Produksi perpetak tertinggi yaitu 2.4050 kg dan produksi per hektar tertinggi yaitu 12.158 ton/ ha.
Biology and feeding potential of Coccinella septempunctata (Linn.) against Lipaphis erysimi (Kalt) at different temperature regimes

Biology and feeding potential of Coccinella septempunctata (Linn.) were studied in laboratory on 3rd instar nymphs of mustard aphid (Lipaphis erysimi Kalt.) at two different temperature regimes. At 30Â± 20C, fecundity, oviposition period, hatchability of eggs, male and female longevity (232Â±70.46, 12.8Â±3.91, 82.87Â±6.66, 22.70 Â± 2.21and 26.60 Â± 4.45, respectively) were higher and incubation period, pre-oviposition period, total grub duration and pupal duration (2.6Â±0.51, 6.5Â±3.53, 8.7 Â± 1.63 and 5.1 Â± 1.10, respectively) were lesser in comparison to 25Â± 20C where fecundity, oviposition period, hatchability of eggs, male and female longevity, incubation period, preoviposition period, total grub duration and pupal duration were 169. 8Â±61.12, 7. 9Â±1.37, 71. 68Â±4.08, 16.2 Â± 1.31 and 21.50 Â± 1.95, 2. 9Â±0.73, 7. 7Â±2.49, 11.1 Â± 1.52 and 5.8 Â± 0.918, respectively . At 27Â± 2 0C, total mustard aphid consumption by a grub of C. septempunctata during the whole life span, was 424. 4Â±2.78 mustard aphids in comparison to 272. 64Â±1.79 mustard aphid at 23Â± 20C. Similarly an adult male and female consumed 103. 2Â±1.52 and 116.6 Â±1.46 aphids per day respectively at 27Â± 2 0C in comparison to 65.6 Â± 1.02 and 71.8 Â± 1.60 at 23Â± 20C. Thus, at both temperatures aphid consumption increased gradually till 4th instar and 30Â±20C was found to be most suitable temperature as compared to 25Â±20C for the life history of C. septempunctata. Hence, it could be concluded that C. septempunctata might play a suitable role in biointensive Integrated Pest Management programme because of better longevity and high predatory potential against the mustard aphid.
Effect of Dietary Lysine Regimens on Growth Performance and Meat Composition in Aseel Chicken

A study was designed with the objective, to evaluate the effect of dietary lysine (Lys) regimens on growth performance and meat composition of Aseel chicken. In total, 540 day old chicks, 180 from each variety, were randomly assigned to 9 experimental groups in a 3 (Varieties: Mianwali (MW), Peshawari (PW), and Lakha (LK)) × 3 (Lys regimens: L1, L2 and L3:1.35, 1.30 and 1.25%) factorial arrangement under randomized complete block design (RCBD) with sex as block. Each experimental group was replicated 6 times with 10 birds in each with average weight of 29 gram. Feed intake (FI), weight gain (WG) and feed:gain ratio (F:G) parameters of growth performance and Dry Matter (DM), Ash, Crude Protein (CP) and Ether Extract (EE) parameters of meat composition were evaluated. The results indicated better (p=0.0006) WG and (p=0.0006) F:G was observed in MW verities. Among different Lys regimens, higher and medium level in the diet improved WG (p<.0001), F:G (p<.0001) and reduced (p=0.0001) FI. Similarly increased (p<.0001; 0.0150) ash content in thigh and breast due to increased level of lysine in the early life period. Dry matter was found to be higher (p=0.0036) only in medium Lys regimen, whereas meat CP was observed to be higher (p=0.0064) in control diet. It was concluded that, 1.30% digestible Lys level regimen can be used to improve the early growth rate of Aseel chicken. Similarly, Mianwali variety due to its better early growth can be used as a meat type chicken.
Control of noncoding RNA production and histone levels by a 5′ tRNA fragment

Small RNAs derived from mature tRNAs, referred to as tRNA fragments or “tRFs”, are an emerging class of regulatory RNAs with poorly understood functions in cellular regulation. We recently identified a role for one specific tRF - 5’ tRF-Gly-GCC, or tRFGG - in repression of genes associated with the endogenous retroelement MERVL, but the mechanistic basis for this regulation was unknown. Here, we show that tRF-GG plays a role in production of a wide variety of noncoding RNAs normally synthesized in Cajal bodies. Among these noncoding RNAs, tRF-GG regulation of the U7 snRNA modulates heterochromatin-mediated transcriptional repression of MERVL elements by supporting an adequate supply of histone proteins. Importantly, the effects of inhibiting tRF-GG on histone mRNA levels, activity of a histone 3’ UTR reporter, and ultimately on MERVL regulation could all be suppressed by the U7 RNA. We show that the related RNA-binding proteins hnRNPF and H bind directly to tRF-GG, and are required for Cajal body biogenesis. Together, our data reveal a conserved mechanism for 5’ tRNA fragment control of noncoding RNA biogenesis and, consequently, in global chromatin organization.