Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Effects of Air Pollution on Asthma in Latino and African American Children

Author(s): Nishimura, Katherine Keiko | Advisor(s): Burchard, Esteban G. | Abstract: Asthma is the most common chronic disease among children. Despite the high prevalence of asthma, there is no cure and its etiology is poorly understood. Of all racial/ethnic groups, African Americans and Puerto Ricans have the highest rates of asthma in the US. Asthma is a multifaceted disease, with genetic, social and environmental risk factors. Outdoor air pollution is a known risk factor, associated with asthma exacerbations and emergency room hospitalizations. US minorities often live in neighborhoods that are disproportionately exposed to higher levels of air pollution, yet few studies are conducted in minority groups. The objective of this dissertation was to evaluate the effects of air pollution on asthma in Latinos and African Americans. This work utilized data from two parallel case-control studies: the Genes-environments and Admixture in Latino Americans (GALA II) and the Study of African Americans, Asthma, Genes and Environments (SAGE II). Children were recruited from five urban regions in the US, and were assigned estimates of air pollution exposure to five common pollutants for each year of their lives.The first chapter describes the associations between early-life air pollution exposures and the subsequent risk for developing childhood asthma. Early-life exposure to NO2, a traffic-related pollutant, was associated with an increased risk for subsequent asthma. The second chapter describes the association between recent air pollution exposures and lung function in children with asthma. Exposure to SO2 and coarse particulate matter, both industrial-related pollutants, were associated with poorer lung function. Significant effect modification by race/ethnicity was also detected. The third chapter describes the variation in total IgE and atopy prevalence and outlines the associations between early-life air pollution exposures and the risk for developing non-atopic asthma. Ozone exposure in the first year of life was found to be associated with an increased risk for developing non-atopic asthma.In summary, our findings suggest that air pollution impacts numerous aspects of asthma risk and morbidity. Gaining a better understanding of these associations could potentially prevent a substantial proportion of current and future asthma disparities. Replication of these findings is needed in addition populations and regions.
The effect of small-scale topography on patterns of endemism within islands

Topography influences evolutionary and ecological processes by isolating populations and enhancing habitat diversity. While the effects of large-scale topography on patterns of species richness and endemism are increasingly well documented, the direct effect of local topography on endemism is less understood. This study compares different aspects of topographic isolation, namely the isolating effect of deep barrancos (ravines) and the effect of increasing isolation with elevation in influencing patterns of plant endemism within a topographically diverse oceanic island (La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain). We collected plant presence–absence data from 75 plots in 8 barrancos on the northern coast of La Palma, spanning an elevation gradient from 95 to 674m a.s. l. Using mixed-effects models, we assessed the effect of barranco depth and elevation on the percentage of single-island endemics, multi-island endemics, and archipelago endemics. We found that percent endemism was not significantly correlated with barranco depth and correlated negatively with elevation within barrancos (rather than the expected positive relationship). The topographic barriers associated with the deep island barrancos thus appear insufficient to drive speciation through isolation in oceanic island plants. The decrease in endemism with elevation contradicts findings by previous broader-scale studies and it may reflect local influences, such as high habitat heterogeneity at low elevations.
Quantification of Some Trace Elements in the Scalp Hair of Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Jeddah - Saudi Arabia

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is recognized as one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in the world (1). The prevalence of DM in the Saudi population is high; 90% of diabetics suffer from type 2 DM. In Saudi Arabia, almost one Saudi in four beyond the age of 30 years has DM. It is estimated to be 40%–50% in 2020 (2,3). In Saudi Arabia, obesity has become one of the most common health problems affecting people of both sexes and all age groups. DM and obesity have a complex relationship, with type 2 DM strongly associated with obesity. The risk of type 2 DM increases fourfold in obese patients (4). Overweight and obesity affect more than 75% of the total population in Saudi Arabia. The risks of DM, hypertension, and dyslipidemia increase from a body mass index (BMI) of about 21.0 kg/m2, thereby reducing life expectancy and greatly increasing health and socioeconomic burden. Available data suggest that the trace metal status is altered in obese humans and animals (4,5).
Dry Deep Soil Mixing Soil-Cement column panels as bottom struts for excavation support: Revising of design methodology in Scandinavia

Deep Soil Mixing is an often-applied technique in the reinforcement of embankments, but little has been done to investigate and understand its behavior when used in excavation projects. The present research presents a database of the results of previous studies on the Deep Soil Mixing technique in Scandinavian soils. An expression that can estimate the improved soil strength when a specific binder content and binder ratio is mixed with the soil is proposed and its pertinence is tested with two full-scale tests. The proposed mathematical expression to predict the improved strength yields a good representation of the available data. The full-scale tests, in which a braced steel sheet pile wall interacts with panels of DSM overlapping columns are used for back-calculating the improved soil strength and stiffness properties. It is observed that the weighted average procedure for calculating properties should be used with care and that the loading conditions affect the strength and stiffness that the improved soil can develop. The drained analysis with a fixed friction angle and a cohesion intercept estimated from the undrained shear strength is the suggested design procedure to assess deep excavations involving improved materials.
Prediction of Dansgaard‐Oeschger Events From Greenland Dust Records

The Dansgaard‐Oeschger cycles of the last glacial period are attributed to changes in the Atlantic overturning circulation. An outstanding problem is whether these are driven by a self‐sustained oscillation of the Earth system, by stochastic perturbations in terms of freshwater discharges into the ocean or extremes in atmospheric dynamics, or by another driver. Their complex temporal pattern suggests that the transitions in between cold (stadial) and warm (interstadial) phases are noise induced and thus unpredictable. Here, evidence is presented that this is unlikely because the transitions can be predicted to a certain degree within a few hundred years after stadial onset from consistent trends in Greenland dust proxies. These trends could be a manifestation of the climate system reorganizing at a specific timescale. What physically determines these highly variable timescales remains unexplained. Nevertheless, constraining the dynamics underlying these abrupt climate changes is an important step to uncover their causes.
Progress and Challenges in Quantifying Wildfire Smoke Emissions, Their Properties, Transport, and Atmospheric Impacts

Wildfire is a natural and integral ecosystem process that is necessary to maintain species composition, structure, and ecosystem function. Extreme fires have been increasing over the last decades, which have a substantial impact on air quality, human health, the environment, and climate systems. Smoke aerosols can be transported over large distances, acting as pollutants that affect adjacent and distant downwind communities and environments. Fire emissions are a complicated mixture of trace gases and aerosols, many of which are short‐lived and chemically reactive, and this mixture affects atmospheric composition in complex ways that are not completely understood. We present a review of the current state of knowledge of smoke aerosol emissions originating from wildfires. Satellite observations, from both passive and active instruments, are critical to providing the ability to view the large‐scale influence of fire, smoke, and their impacts. Progress in the development of fire emission estimates to regional and global chemical transport models has advanced, although significant challenges remain, such as connecting ecosystems and fuels burned with dependent atmospheric chemistry. Knowledge of the impact of smoke on radiation, clouds, and precipitation has progressed and is an essential topical research area. However, current measurements and parameterizations are not adequate to describe the impacts on clouds of smoke particles (e.g., CNN, INP) from fire emissions in the range of representative environmental conditions necessary to advance science or modeling. We conclude by providing recommendations to the community that we believe will advance the science and understanding of the impact of fire smoke emissions on human and environmental health, as well as feedback with climate systems.
Additions and corrections to the knowledge of the foliicolous lichen flora of Costa Rica. The genus Fellhanera , with notes on Bacidia pauciseptata

This further contribution to the knowledge of the foliicolous lichen flora of Costa Rica provides a detailed account on the genus Fellhanera. In total, 25 species and five undescribed taxa are treated. Ten species are described as new: Fellhanera angustispora sp.n. , F. dictyospora sp.n. , F. dispersa sp.n. , F. emarginata sp.n. , F. pilomarginata sp.n. , F. longispora sp.n. , F. muhlei sp.n. , F. montana sp.n. , F. verrucifera sp.n. , and F. viridis sp.n. New combinations are F. pauciseptata (R. Sant.) R. Lucking comb.n. [Bas. : Bacidia pauciseptata R. Sant. ] and F. rubida (Mull. Arg.) R. Lucking comb.n. [Bas. : Patellaria rubida Mull. Arg. ]. F. dominicana (Vain.) Vezda is placed into synonymy with F. fuscatula (Mull. Arg.) Vezda, whose type has 7-septate ascospores, and the name F. subfuscatula R. Lucking sp.n. is introduced for the taxon with 5-septate ascospores formerly known as F. fuscatula. F. misionensis Ferraro & R. Lucking ined. and F. sublecanorina (Nyl.) Vezda are reported for the first time from Costa Rica. The formerly invalidly published names F. farinosa nom. nud. and F. pilosa nom. nud. are considered to be synonyms of F. fuscatula (Mull. Arg.) Vezda and F. rhapidophylli (Rehm) Vezda, respectively. Specimens identified as F. tuckeri nom. nud. belong to F. rhapidophylli as well. F. buxi is excluded from the foliicolous lichen flora of Costa Rica. A keys is provided to the complex group of species of Fellhanera with brownish apothecia and 3-septate ascospores. Infrageneric relationships within Fellhanera are briefly discussed, and notes on the ecology of the species are provided.
Reach‐scale changes in channel geometry and dynamics due to the coastal backwater effect: the lower Trinity River, Texas

In this paper we use multiple field surveys spanning several decades to systematically evaluate the geomorphic consequences of a change in flow hydraulics from uniform flow to backwater flow for the lower Trinity River in east Texas, USA. Spatial changes in lateral migration rate, channel geometry, and point bar size correspond to two distinct geomorphic zones. Within the upstream uniform flow reach, the river channel is defined by fully developed point bars and a high rate of lateral channel migration. This zone transitions where the median channel bottom elevation drops below sea level. At this point flow is affected by the backwater influence of the Trinity Bay water surface elevation, as opposed to being bed slope control dominated. The change in hydraulics within the backwater zone is reflected in the channel morphology, which is characterized by smaller point bars, narrower and more symmetrical cross‐sectional channel geometry, lower channel migration rates, and little to no bend deformation or cutoffs. Studying the connection between channel geometry, river bend kinematics, sediment transport, and fluid mechanics in each zone provides a deeper understanding of the relationship between channel shape and river mechanics. © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
190Pt-186Os geochronometer reveals open system behaviour of 190Pt-4He isotope system

Platinum Group Minerals are typically dated using the 187Re-187Os and 190Pt-186Os isotope systems and more recently using the 190Pt-4He geochronometer. The 187Re-187Os and 190Pt-186Os compositions of Pt-alloys from the Kondyor Zoned Ultramafic Complex (ZUC) analysed here reveal overprinting for both geochronometers except in one alloy exhibiting the most unradiogenic 187Os/188Os and most radiogenic 186Os/188Os signatures. These signatures argue for an Early Triassic mineralisation, when silicate melts/fluids derived from the partial melting of an Archean mantle crystallised to form the Kondyor ZUC while the 190Pt-4He chronometer supports an Early Cretaceous mineralisation. We propose that Kondyor ZUC represents the root of an alkaline picritic volcano that constitutes the remnants of an Early Triassic island arc formed during the subduction of the Mongol-Okhotsk ocean seafloor under the Siberia craton. After the Early Cretaceous collision of Siberia with the Mongolia-North China continent, the exhumation of deep-seated structures - such as the Kondyor ZUC - allowed these massifs to cool down below the closure temperatures of the Pt-He and K-Ar, Rb-Sr isotope systems, explaining their Early to Late Cretaceous ages for the Kondyor ZUC.
Performance analysis of DCO-OFDM over precoded massive MIMO VLC channel

Visible light communication (VLC) has emerged as a viable supplement to existing RF based communication systems. To enhance the achievable rate of VLC systems, the use of massive arrays of light emitting diodes (LEDs) and photodetectors (PDs) have been recently proposed, resulting in a massive multiple input multiple output (m-MIMO) VLC system. Furthermore, orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDM) has been explored for mitigating the inter-symbol interference due to limited modulation-bandwidth of the LED, and reflections from walls. One of the drawbacks of m-MIMO over VLC channels is the ill-conditioned nature of the VLC channel. To mitigate this, a zero-forcing successive interference cancellation (ZF-SIC) receiver with SVD (singular-value decomposition-based index precoding has been proposed recently. In this work, we propose and analyze the performance of minimum mean squared error (MMSE) based receiver for DC-biased O-OFDM (DCO-OFDM) for a m-MIMO VLC channel. Simulations performed over various m-MIMO VLC channels indicate that the derived analytical expressions for BER closely match with the simulated BER. Furthermore, MMSE-SIC is found to outperform ZF-SIC, which makes the proposed receiver viable for potential VLC deployments.
Eastward Propagating Second Harmonic Poloidal Waves Triggered by Temporary Outward Gradient of Proton Phase Space Density: Van Allen Probe A Observation

Two wave packets of second harmonic poloidal Pc 4 waves with a wave frequency of ~7 mHz were detected by Van Allen Probe A at a radial distance of ~5.8 RE and magnetic local time of 13 hr near the magnetic equator, where plasmaspheric refilling was in progress. Proton butterfly distributions with energy dispersions were also measured at the same time; the proton fluxes at 10–30 keV oscillated with the same frequency as the Pc 4 waves. Using the ion sounding technique, we find that the Pc 4 waves propagated eastward with an azimuthal wave number (m number) of ~220 and ~260 for each wave packet, respectively. Such eastward propagating high‐m (m > 100) waves were seldom reported in previous studies. The condition of drift‐bounce resonance is well satisfied for the estimated m numbers in both events. Proton phase space density was also examined to understand the wave excitation mechanism. We obtained temporal variations of the energy and radial gradient of the proton phase space density and find that temporal intensification of the radial gradient can generate the two wave packets. The cold electron density around the spacecraft apogee was >100 cm−3 in the present events, and hence the eigenfrequency of the Pc 4 waves became lower. This causes the increase of the m number which satisfies the resonance condition of drift‐bounce resonance for 10–30 keV protons and meets the condition for destabilization due to gyrokinetic effect.
Origin of the Fule Pb–Zn deposit, Yunnan Province, SW China: insight from in situ S isotope analysis by NanoSIMS

Abstract The Sichuan–Yunnan–Guizhou (SYG) Pb–Zn metallogenic province is one of the most productive areas of Pb–Zn resources in China. The Fule deposit occurs in Permian carbonate and contains Pb–Zn reserves exceeding 1 Mt. To investigate the sulphur source, in situ S isotopic analysis of sphalerite and pyrite was carried out using nanoscale secondary-ion mass spectrometry. The results show that the δ34S values of the sulphide minerals range from +16.1‰ to +23.0‰, higher than that of marine sulphates hosted in Permian carbonate rocks (+11‰), but similar to that of sulphates over a broader area (+12.9‰ to +25.9‰). The sulphates in the regional rocks could therefore represent an important source of S for the Fule deposit via thermochemical sulphate reduction. The S source of the Fule deposit is different from those of most other Pb–Zn deposits in the SYG Pb–Zn mineralization province, which were mainly derived from the ore-bearing strata. The δ34S values of the early to late generations and some single sulphide crystals from the cores to rims show a slight increasing trend, implying that partial Rayleigh fractionation took place in the Fule deposit. It is suggested that the Fule sulphide precipitation resulted from the mixing of a metalliferous fluid with a H2S-rich fluid derived from the regional strata. Combining the geology, mineralogy and S isotope results with previous Pb isotope studies, it is suggested that the Fule deposit should be attributed to a Mississippi Valley type deposit.
Scalar Simulation and Parameterization of Water Table Dynamics in Tropical Peatlands

Peatlands cover many low‐lying areas in the tropics. Tropical peatlands are intriguing systems because of their tight coupling between hydrology and carbon storage: They accumulate carbon over thousands of years because of waterlogging, and they remain waterlogged after growing into domed shapes because peat restricts drainage. This feedback between waterlogging and landscape morphology generates landforms with special hydrologic properties that enable simplifications of standard watershed models. In natural tropical peatlands, the water table is always near the surface and infiltration is almost immediate. In addition, water table fluctuations relative to the peat surface are remarkably uniform across tropical peatlands because these peatlands acquire shapes with a uniform topographic wetness index. In this paper, we show that because of these distinctive properties, simple hydrologic models that represent the hydraulic state of a catchment by a scalar quantity that describes total water storage are useful and physically meaningful in tropical peatlands. We demonstrate how to efficiently derive hillslope‐scale parameterizations of transmissivity and specific yield as functions of water table height for a tropical peatland from water table, rainfall, and topographic data. Our findings suggest that natural tropical peatland subcatchments could be usefully modeled as single hydrologic response units for river flow and flood forecasting.
First record of Tricoloured Munia (Lonchura malacca) for Nicaragua

We report the first published record of Tricolored Munia (Lonchura malacca) for Nicaragua, thus adding to our knowledge of its distribution in the New World. Escaped cage birds have established multi-focal feral populations, thereby expediting the species’ range expansion in Mesoamerica from Honduras, El Salvador, Costa Rica and Panama to northwestern South America (Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador) and northward to Mexico and the United States of America. Tricoulored Munia has the potential of becoming a major agricultural pest in Latin America and elsewhere in the Western Hemisphere and thus its populations and movements should be closely monitored.
Changes of serum PPARγ level in migraine patients

Objective To investigate the PPARγ level in serum and its relationship with migraine and clinical implications. Methods Hundred and five patients with migraine were divided into two main groups: attack period group(n=47) and attack free period group(n=58). According to the patients with or without aura symptoms patients were further divided into four subgroups. One hundred cases of healthy were taken as control. The serum levels of PPARγ were measured using enzyme-linked immunoassay(ELISA). Results The PPARγ levels in patients with migraine during headache attack period were significantly lower than those during headache free period and healthy control group(P0.01). The PPARγ levels in headache free period had no significant difference to healthy control group(P0.05). Conclusions Migraine inflammatory cells immune activation may be associated with lower PPARγ, and participate in the onset of migraine. The PPARγ level reduction is one of the underlying mechanisms of migraine pathogenesis.
A Novel Finding

Background: Dyspepsia is not uncommon in patients undergoing ablation of atrial fibrillation (AF). The purpose of this study was to investigate the change in gastric myoelectrical activity and its relationship to the outcome after ablation by electrogastrography (EGG). Methods and Results: The study prospectively enrolled 32 patients: 16 patients (Group 1) had AF and 16 (Group 2) had paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia. The myoelectricity-like signals of the gastrointestinal tract were recorded using EGG before, immediately, and 3 months after ablation. Both fasting and postprandial abnormal gastric wave percentages increased immediately after ablation in Group 1 when compared with before ablation. Increased fasting (12.8±15.2% vs. 22.3±21.0%, P=0.04) and postprandial (10.4±6.2% vs. 21.2±14.5%, P=0.01) bradygastria percentages were noted immediately after ablation in Group 1 when compared with before ablation. These findings were not observed in Group 2. The normal gastric wave percentage returned to baseline 3 months after procedure. In total, 4 (25%) patients in Group 1 had a recurrence of AF after a follow-up of 18±3 months; those without recurrence had a significantly higher percentage of postprandial abnormal gastric waves immediately after ablation when compared with recurrence. Conclusions: Transient gastric dysrhythmias with bradygastria does occur in AF patients after ablation, which may indicate periesophageal vagal plexus damage after ablation. Careful application of radiofrequency energy to prevent esophageal injury is important. (Circ J 2013; 77: 2014–2023)