Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Exploration of Factors Influencing Crappie Early Life History in Three Alabama Impoundments

Abstract Although black crappie Pomoxis nigromaculatus and white crappie P. annularis represent important sport fisheries in North America, we still know little about what influences their variable recruitment. Several abiotic (e.g., water level fluctuations) and biotic (e.g., prey abundance and size structure) factors have been suggested as important to crappie recruitment, but results have not been consistent among studies. We quantified adult characteristics, larval abundance, growth, diet, and postlarval juvenile abundance of crappies in three Alabama impoundments to determine factors consistently affecting crappie life stages across systems. Although adult condition (relative weight, Wr ), fecundity, egg diameter, gonadosomatic index, and ovary weight differed among the three impoundments, the differences were not consistent with among-lake differences in chlorophyll-a concentration. Larval density was highest in the least productive system (Lake Martin), and larval production was not related to eith.
A first empirical analysis of population stability in North America using radiocarbon records

Questions regarding population stability among animals and plants are fundamental to population ecology, yet this has not been a topic studied by archeologists focusing on prehistoric human populations. This is an important knowledge gap. The fluctuation of human populations over decades to centuries – population instability – may constrain the expansion of human economies. A first step toward describing basic patterns of population stability would be to identify sizes of fluctuations through time, since smaller fluctuations are more stable than larger fluctuations. We conduct a biogeographic analysis of the long-term stability of human societies in North America using a continental scale radiocarbon dataset. Our analysis compares the stability of summed calibrated radiocarbon date probability distributions (SPDs) with subsistence strategies and modeled climate stability between 6000 and 300 BP. This coarse-grained analysis reveals general trends regarding the stability of human systems in North America that future studies may build upon. Our results demonstrate that agricultural sequences have more stable SPDs than hunter-gatherer sequences in general, but agricultural sequences also experience rare, extreme increases and decreases in SPDs not seen among hunter-gatherers. We propose that the adoption of agriculture has the unintended consequence of increasing population density and stability over most time scales, but also increases the vulnerability of populations to large, rare changes. Conversely, hunter-gatherer systems remain flexible and less vulnerable to large population changes. Climate stability may have an indirect effect on long-term population stability, and climate shocks may be buffered by other aspects of subsistence strategies prior to affecting human demography.
Sexual reproduction of soft coral, Scleronephthya gracillimum, (Alcyonacea: Nephtheidae) based on long-term collection from Jejudo Island, Korea

The soft coral Scleronephthya gracillimum (Alcyonacea: Octocorallia), a member of family Nephtheidae, is abundant in the southern part of Jejudo Island, Korea. To examine the sexual reproductive pattern, monthly collections and histological studies were conducted from June 2003 to October 2007. The sexual reproductive pattern of the genus Scleronephthya was described for the first time in the present study, which established that S. gracillimum is a gonochoric broadcaster, with the sex ratio of 1:1. The gametogenic cycle was annual, and a difference between female and male colonies was apparent, with biorhythms of 12 and 5-7 months respectively. Gametogenesis and spawning are related to seasonal factors such as seawater temperature and algal blooms. Actual spawning event occurred, and others may have taken place, when seawater temperature attained an annual peak between August and September. The actual spawning occurred in the field at 10 a.m. on September 3, 2006, 4 days before the full moon.
Virtual vs physical platform: organizational capacity and slack, strategic decision and firm performance

Purpose This study aims to examine the relationship between organizational capacity, slack resource, platform strategic choice and firm performance. It also tackles the endogenous issues regarding the strategic choice of platform types. Design/methodology/approach This study uses Heckman’s two-stage procedures to examine the relationship between the variables. The sample in this study comes from Compustat annual company and segment files. The sample used in the main analysis consists of 252 individual corporations globally and 3,528 firm-year observations from 2004–2017. Findings The empirical results suggest that: (1) firms are more likely to develop physical platforms than virtual platforms when they possess higher levels of available slack, potential slack, research and development (R&D) capacity and marketing capacity; (2) in general, firms developing physical platforms perform better than firms developing virtual platforms after the endogeneity bias are controlled; and (3) firms that choose to develop physical platforms perform better than if they had chosen to develop virtual platforms. Research limitations/implications This study contributes to the platform research literature by proposing the endogenous role of platform type choice in firm performance in the context of the retail industry. Prior conceptual and theoretical platform studies have seldom focused on the retail industry through a strategic choice perspective. Furthermore, one of the contributions of this study is the derivation of empirical support for the research’s prediction using data from actual firms carried out by global physical and virtual platform companies. This study also presents many opportunities for further explorations on the relationship between firm strategic choice and firm performance in the context of platform retail industry. Practical implications The findings of this study suggest that firms must realize that their performance is not necessarily affected by these platform type choice determinants in terms of potential slack, available slack, R&D capacity and marketing capacity. By contrast, they should pay more attention to developing physical platforms if it is possible. The study findings indicate that although virtual platforms have grown rapidly because of the development of technology, firm performance is at all times superior when firms choose to develop physical platforms. Originality/value Prior platform studies have focused on the topic of network structure, platform architecture, pricing strategy, platform leadership and platform design and governance within the context of video game industry, software industry, hardware industry and telecommunications industry. Seldom of them focus on other industries through a strategic choice perspective. Furthermore, one of the contributions of this study is the derivation of empirical support for the research’s prediction using data from actual firms carried out by global physical and virtual platform companies.
Simultaneous agronomic and molecular characterization of genotypes via the generalised procrustes analysis: an application to cucumber

Characterizing entries in a germplasm bank by molecular markers and/or agronomic attributes is a common practice, but studies that simultaneously use molecular and agronomic traits are less frequent. Generalised Procrustes Analysis (GPA) was used to determine the relationships among 41 entries of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) via the simultaneous use of 16 agronomic traits (nine qualitative variables and seven quantitative variables) and 33 random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers using a set of 11 primers. Other techniques like generalization of the simple matching coefficient, Gower's general similarity coefficient, and discretizing the quantitative variables were compared with GPA. The ordinations of cultivars using each trait individually did not fully characterize the cultivars. In fact, on the basis of the qualitative traits, only two groups were formed, with cultivars belonging to Beth-alpha and Dutch constituting a single group and the slice and gherkin types another group. The quantitative traits and also the molecular traits further separated the cultivars belonging Beth-alpha and Dutch types. The utilization of all variables together showed a greater discrimination power of genotypes. Four groups were defined which were consistent with Dutch, gherkin, slice, and Beth-alpha types. GPA was the most precise technique to cluster the entries. The final configuration was an average of the individual configurations. For other methods, those traits with more variants (but not necessarily more genetic information) had more influence on the final results. Besides, GPA allowed a deeper study of the relationships among relative ordinations of a same genotype under different types of descriptors to establish concordance between characterizations.
Population Declines and Priorities for Amphibian Conservation in Latin America

Abstract: Although dramatic amphibian population declines have been reported worldwide, our understanding of the extent of the declines in Latin America, where amphibian diversity is high, is limited to a few well‐documented studies. To better understand the geographic extent of declines, their possible causes, and the measures needed to improve Latin American scientists' ability to research the phenomenon and make effective management recommendations, we convened three regional workshops with 88 Latin American herpetologists and conservationists. Population declines are widespread in Latin America. At least 13 countries have experienced declines, and in 40 cases species are now thought to be extinct or extirpated in a country where they once occurred. Declines or extinctions have affected 30 genera and nine families of amphibians. Most declines have occurred in remote highlands, above 500 m in elevation in Central America and above 1000 m in the Andes. Most documented declines occurred in the 1980s. Of the possible causes studied to date, climate change appears to be important at one site and chytrid fungal disease has been identified at sites in three countries. Although many monitoring studies are currently underway in a variety of habitats, most studies are recent and of short duration. In a signed resolution, workshop participants called for greater collaboration and communication among scientists working in Latin America to understand the geographic extent of population declines and the distribution of possible causal factors. In situ conservation is important to protect habitats, but captive‐rearing programs for species subject to imminent extinction are also needed. Better understanding of the taxonomy and natural history of amphibians and more funding for research and monitoring are critical to developing a scientific basis for management action to arrest and reverse population declines.
Prosody or syntax? The perception of focus by Mandarin speakers

Information structure describes the way in which information is organized in a discourse to serve the purpose of communication. A core part of information structure is focus, whose main function is to indicate new information or the information that updates the common ground. In a question (e.g., ‘What did the captain put on? ’), the focus is the unknown information asked about by the wh -phrase. Prosody (prosodic prominence) and syntax (syntactic clefting) can be used to signal focus in Mandarin. However, the relative importance of these cues has not been established in speech perception. This study probes listeners’ judgements on the appropriateness of an answer to a question in Mandarin. Results show that prosodic prominence appears to be more effective than syntactic clefting as a cue for listeners to perceive where the focus is. Syntax plays an inhibitory rather than facilitatory role. This research provides the first evidence of the interaction of syntax and prosody in the perception of focus in Mandarin, and contributes to a growing body of research showing cross-linguistic differences in the weighting of prosodic and syntactic cues in the perception of focus.
The scientific contribution of Guy Magniez (1935–2014)

Guy Magniez was born on 23 August 1935 at Marey-sur-Tille, a small village in Côte-d’Or (France). He followed high school studies in Dijon and obtained his high school diploma in 1953. He was an elementary school teacher during one year before joining the University of Dijon where he passed a Bachelor’s degree in Natural Sciences in 1958. In 1959, he involved in research at the Laboratory of Geology and obtained a Master degree by submitting a research report on the microfacies of crinoidal Bajocian limestones. Once he successfully passed the Aggregation for secondary education in Natural Sciences in 1960, he integrated the Research Laboratory of Animal and General Biology at the University of Dijon under the direction of Professor Husson. He began with the organization of practical classes for first-year students and a few years later he became responsible for organizing practical classes in general biology and genetics for bachelors. At this time, Guy was in charge of breeding fruit flies for teaching purpose in Subterranean Biology 13: 55–64 (2014)
The early develoment of the duck's egg, with special reference to the origin of the primitive streak

This study deals with the development of the duck embryo from the unincubated blastoderm to the 1‐to‐3‐somite stage. In the unincubated stage the thickened posterior germ wall is the most active region mitotically, contributing cells to complete the entodermal layer. The slightly thickened ectoderm of the posterior half of the pellucid area is the precursor of the embryonic shield. During incubation this ectoderm increases in height, forming the embryonic shield. The primitive streak arises in the posterior part of the shield, where tall ectodermal cells in the midline become several‐layered and proliferate cells from their ventral surface which migrate laterally, becoming mesoderm. At first short and broad, the streak becomes longer and narrower until it attains its definitive stage.
Magnesium deficiency and febrile seizure: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

There are inconsistent data reporting magnesium is low in children with febrile seizure compared with febrile cases. Present systematic review was performed comparing the serum level of magnesium in febrile children aged 6‐72 months with and without seizure. A systematic search was performed in the relevant databases up to August 2019. Papers comparing the serum level of magnesium in febrile children with and without seizure were selected. The major outcome was serum level of magnesium. Random effect model was used to calculate the pooled standardized mean difference with 95% confidence intervals. Totally 10 papers were included. According to meta‐analysis, the serum level of magnesium significantly is lower in children with febrile seizure versus febrile ones (standardized mean difference: −0.85, 95% confidence interval = (−1.31, −0.39). According to sensitivity analysis, no significant change was observed in pooled standardized mean difference. In meta‐regression demographic characteristics matching, sample size and method of magnesium measurement showed a significant effect on between‐study variance (P = .001). Present systematic review confirmed a significant relationship between hypomagnesemia and seizure in febrile children aged 6‐72 months. It has been purposed that decreased level of magnesium may play a role in the pathogenesis of seizure in febrile children.
Behaviour is not Reliably Inferred from End-Product Structure in Caddisflies

Many animals engage in elaborate behavioural sequences in order to build structures. The ‘end-products’ (e.g., nests of birds, cases of caddisflies) of these behaviours have occasionally been used either to infer details of building behaviour or to infer that structures similar in appearance are constructed by similar behavioural sequences. However, behavioural information can be extrapolated from end-products only if there is congruence between the end-product structure and the animal's movements. Case building behaviour was studied in caddisflies (Trichoptera) to examine the relationship between end-products and behaviour. We found examples of taxa that built similar structures using different behavioural patterns, and taxa that built different structures using similar behaviours, regardless of whether these taxa were closely or distantly related. These findings question the reliability of behavioural inferences based solely on details of their associated end-products and suggest that end-product structure should be removed from the definition of animal behaviour.
Loss of miR-204-5p Promotes Tumor Proliferation, Migration, and Invasion Through Targeting YWHAZ/PI3K/AKT Pathway in Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Purpose MicroRNAs dysregulation has been confirmed in multiple malignancies. This paper reported the molecular mechanism of miR-204-5p in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Methods miR-204-5p expression in 30 ESCC tumor tissues and 10 normal tissues was downloaded from RNA-seq data. ESCC tissues/normal tissues of 97 ESCC patients were collected. TE-1 and KYSE510 cells were transfected by miR-204-5p mimic, inhibitor, siYWHAZ or their corresponding controls. The phenotype of cells was detected by CCK-8 assay, transwell experiment, and flow cytometry. Luciferase reporter gene assay and RNA-binding protein immunoprecipitation (RIP) were performed to verify the targeting relationship between miR-204-5p and YWHAZ. miR-204-5p and YWHAZ expression in tissues/cells was detected by qRT-PCR and Western blot. Xenograft tumor experiment was performed. Results miR-204-5p expression was declined in ESCC patients and cells, which was indicated the poor outcome of patients. Compared with siNC group, TE-1 cells in miR-204-5p inhibitor group had higher OD450 value, less cell percentage in G1 phase, and more cell percentage in S phase, lower apoptosis percentage, and higher migration and invasion cell numbers. Moreover, KYSE510 cells of miR-204-5p mimic group showed lower OD450 value, more cell percentage in G1 phase and less cell percentage in S phase, higher apoptosis percentage, and lower migration and invasion cell numbers than control. YWHAZ was directly inhibited by miR-204-5p. Relative to siNC group, TE-1 cells of miR-inhibitor group exhibited higher YWHAZ protein expression, higher OD450 value, less cell percentage in G1 phase and more cell percentage in S phase, lower apoptosis percentage, higher migration and invasion cell numbers, and higher p-PI3K/PI3K and p-AKT/AKT protein expression, while siYWHAZ rescued the effects of miR-inhibitor. miR-204-5p up-regulation inhibited ESCC growth in vivo. Conclusion miR-204-5p inhibits ESCC progression by targeted inhibition of YWHAZ/PI3K/AKT.
The family Phytoseiidae (Acari) in western Washington State with descriptions of three new species

Abstract Collection records of phytoseiid mites from western Washington State are reported. Twentynine species were collected from 1986–1993. The known geographic ranges of ten species were substantially extended, including one species, Amblyseius graminis (Chant) collected for the first time in the Nearctic region. Three new species are described: Amblyseius crowleyi n. sp. , Neoseiulus shanksi n. sp. and Proprioseiopsis antonellii n. sp.
The function of the crab shell powder as calcium supplementary in the treatment of rickets

Rickets is the metabolistic disease occuring from the disorders of calcification in the growing bone. It develops generally by lack of vitamin D, as well as lack of calcium intake. The most common causes of rickets are not only deficiency of vitamin D but also that of calcium intake. Investigators refer that calcium intake is essential in treatment for rickets and the use of vitamin D help to Original Article
Analytical and Numerical Groundwater Flow Solutions for the FEMME-Modeling Environment

Simple analytical and numerical solutions for confined and unconfined groundwater-surface water interaction in one and two dimensions were developed in the STRIVE package (stream river ecosystem) as part of FEMME (flexible environment for mathematically modelling the environment). Analytical and numerical solutions for interaction between one-dimensional confined and unconfined aquifers and rivers were used to study the effects of a 0.5 m sudden rise in the river water level for 24 h. Furthermore, a two-dimensional groundwater model for an unconfined aquifer was developed and coupled with a one-dimensional hydrodynamic model. This model was applied on a 1 km long reach of the Aa River, Belgium. Two different types of river water level conditions were tested. A MODFLOW model was set up for these different types of water level condition in order to compare the results with the models implemented in STRIVE. The results of the analytical solutions for confined and unconfined aquifers were in good agreement with the numerical results. The results of the two-dimensional groundwater model developed in STRIVE also showed that there is a good agreement with the MODFLOW solutions. It is concluded that the facilities of STRIVE can be used to improve the understanding of groundwater-surface water interaction and to couple the groundwater module with other modules developed for STRIVE. With these new models STRIVE proves to be a powerful example as a development and testing environment for integrated water modeling.
Braincase Redescription of Dysalotosaurus lettowvorbecki (Dinosauria, Ornithopoda) Based On Computed Tomography

ABSTRACT Computed tomography (CT) has become a major tool to elucidate the anatomy of fossil taxa, including the braincase and inner ear. However, sample size is still limited and studies have concentrated mainly on saurischian dinosaurs. Here we report on the braincase anatomy of the Upper Jurassic ornithopod Dysalotosaurus using high-resolution X-ray micro-CT (µCT). The main trunk of the vena capitis dorsalis was found between the parietal and supraoccipital, leading to a nomenclatural revision of cephalic veins and reidentification of their bony correlates. Contrary to the condition in hadrosaurid ornithischians, the posterior semicircular canal is the shortest canal in Dysalotosaurus, whereas the lateral is the longest, lying dorsal to the vestibule, as in basal archosaurs. The anteroventral inclination of the lateral semicircular canal suggests that Dysalotosaurus must have oriented its head dorsally while alert. Because the cochlea is relatively short, Dysalotosaurus had reduced ability to discriminate between high- and low-frequency sounds, as in sauropods, basal ceratopsians, and other basal archosaurs. The metotic foramen, however, was fully subdivided into a fenestra pseudorotunda and a vagus foramen, a derived character for archosaurs that is usually associated with a more refined sense of hearing. Lack of a refined capacity for discrimination of sound frequencies due to a short cochlea together with the equal-sized and thick semicircular canals represent plesiomorphic characters for Dinosauria. The middle and inner ears of Dysalotosaurus bear a mosaic of primitive and derived features, pointing to a more complex evolutionary history of these structures.