Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Radiographic Reference Intervals for Cardiac Size in Common Mynahs (Acridotheres tristis)

Abstract: Cardiovascular diseases in the common mynah (Acridotheres tristis) often go undiagnosed due to limitations with the physical examination and common concurrent illnesses. The aim of this study was to establish accurate reference intervals for cardiac size based on radiographs for this species. All birds were considered healthy based on physical examination. High-quality ventrodorsal radiographic images were obtained from 34 healthy common mynah birds. The cardiac width (CW), thoracic width, distance between third and fourth ribs, synsacral width, coracoid width, and distance between clavicular bones were evaluated on the ventrodorsal radiographic images. Additionally, the ratio between the CW and these anatomical indices were measured. In order to evaluate the correlation between CW and the radiographic indices, a linear regression model was used. The mean ± SD for CW in the 34 birds was 16.1 ± 0.9 mm (95% confidence interval: 14.1–18 mm). Significant moderate correlation was found for CW with thoracic width (R 2 = 0.37; P < 0.001), coracoid width (R 2 = 0.25; P = 0.002), and the distance between the third and fourth ribs (R 2 = 0.34; P < 0.001). The radiographic reference intervals calculated in this study can be used to evaluate cardiac size in the common mynah bird.
The population dynamics of the Red-footed Falcon (Falco vespertinus) on the southwestern limit of its breeding range

Abstract The western boundary of the Palearctic range of the Red-footed Falcon (Falco vespertinus) is located in the Carpathian Basin, with significant breeding areas in the northern part of Serbia, Voivodina Province. The size of the breeding population has been estimated and surveyed several times since the middle of the last century. The number of breeding pairs showed considerable variation, while estimates suggested a declining trend in the population size, though the dynamics of the Red-footed Falcon population was less known. This motivated us to perform censuses every year from 2000 until 2009. During that period, the number of confirmed breeding pairs varied from 61 to 179. We found that the number of breeding pairs decreased significantly (˃ 40%) after a 3-4 year of increase. The number of breeding sites and the extent of the distribution area changed in proportion to the increase or decrease of the population size. However, the change in population size was unrelated to the general proportion of pairs breeding in colonies (87–96%) and those breeding solitarily (4–13%).
Enlargeable metrics on nonspin manifolds

We show that an enlargeable Riemannian metric on a (possibly nonspin) manifold cannot have uniformly positive scalar curvature. This extends a well-known result of Gromov and Lawson to the nonspin setting. We also prove that every noncompact manifold admits a nonenlargeable metric. In proving the first result, we use the main result of the recent paper by Schoen and Yau on minimal hypersurfaces to obstruct positive scalar curvature in arbitrary dimensions. More concretely, we use this to study nonzero degree maps f from a manifold X to the product of the k-sphere with the n-k dimensional torus, with k=1,2,3. When X is a closed oriented manifold endowed with a metric g of positive scalar curvature and the map f is (possibly area) contracting, we prove inequalities relating the lower bound of the scalar curvature of g and the contracting factor of the map f.
Critical $\mathrm{L}^p$-differentiability of $\mathrm{BV}^{\mathbb{A}}$-maps and canceling operators

We give a generalization of Dorronsoro’s Theorem [20] on critical L–Taylor expansions for BV–maps on R, i.e., we characterize homogeneous linear differential operators A of k–th order such that Du has j–th order L–Taylor expansion a.e. for all u ∈ BVAloc (here j = 1, . . . , k, with an appropriate convention if j ≥ n). The space BVAloc, a single framework covering BV, BD, and BV, consists of those locally integrable maps u such that Au is a Radon measure on R. For j = 1, . ,min{k, n− 1}, we show that the L–differentiability property above is equivalent with Van Schaftingen’s elliptic and canceling condition for A [51]. For j = n, . , k, ellipticity is necessary, but cancellation is not. To complete the characterization, we determine the class of elliptic operators A such that the estimate ‖Du‖L∞ 6 C‖Au‖L1 (1) holds for all vector fields u ∈ C∞c . Surprisingly, the (computable) condition on A such that (1) holds is strictly weaker than cancellation. The results on L–differentiability can be formulated as sharp pointwise regularity results for overdetermined elliptic systems Au = μ, where μ is a Radon measure, thereby giving a variant for the limit case p = 1 of a Theorem of Calderón and Zygmund in [13] which was not covered before.
Clausal and phrasal coordination in recent American English

Abstract Several studies have shown that there is considerable cross-genre variation as regards what linguistic units tend to be coordinated by and. While literate, expository writing favors coordination of phrasal units such as noun phrases, coordinated units are more often clausal (e.g., main or subordinate clauses) in speech-related texts. This difference has been attested in studies that focus exclusively on coordination as well as in macro-level studies of co-variation among a large number of linguistic features. However, this register differentiation has increased over time: studies of Early and Late Modern English point to less pronounced differences among registers than those attested in the present-day language. This study fills a gap in research by considering data on coordination by and from the middle of the 20th century, a period that does not belong fully to either Late Modern or Present-Day English, and the late 20th and early 21st century, and thus ties diachronic and synchronic research on register variation in coordination together. We also examine language from films and television in order to complement historical findings for speech-related language with data on registers that arose in the 20th century.
Variational problems with percolation: rigid spin systems

In this paper we describe the asymptotic behavior of rigid spin lattice energies by exhibiting a continuous interfacial limit energy as scaling to zero the lattice spacing. The limit is not trivial below a percolation threshold: it can be characterized by two phases separated by an interface. The macroscopic surface tension at this interface is defined through a first-passage percolation formula, related to the chemical distance on the square lattice. We also show a continuity result, that is the homogenization of rigid spin system is a limit case of the elliptic random homogenization.
Effects of black soldier fly larvae as protein or fat sources on apparent nutrient digestibility, fecal microbiota, and metabolic profiles in beagle dogs

Black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae (BSFL) act as a biological system converting organic waste into protein and fat with great potential application as pet food. To evaluate the feasibility of BSFL as a protein and fat source, 20 healthy beagle dogs were fed three dietary treatments for 65 days, including (1) a basal diet group (CON group), (2) a basal diet that replaced 20% chicken meal with defatted black soldier fly larvae protein group (DBP group), and (3) a basal diet that replaced 8% mixed oil with black soldier fly larvae fat group (BF group). This study demonstrated that the serum biochemical parameters among the three groups were within the normal range. No difference (p > 0.05) was observed in body weight, body condition score, or antioxidant capacity among the three groups. The mean IFN-γ level in the BF group was lower than that in the CON group, but there was no significant difference (p > 0.05). Compared with the CON group, the DBP group had decreasing (p < 0.05) apparent crude protein and organic matter digestibility. Furthermore, the DBP group had decreasing (p < 0.05) fecal propionate, butyrate, total short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), isobutyrate, isovalerate, and total branched-chain fatty acids (BCFAs) and increased (p < 0.05) fecal pH. Nevertheless, there was no difference (p > 0.05) in SCFAs or BCFAs between the CON and BF groups. The fecal microbiota revealed that Lachnoclostridium, Clostridioides, Blautia, and Enterococcus were significantly enriched in the DBP group, and Terrisporobacter and Ralstonia were significantly enriched in the BF group. The fecal metabolome showed that the DBP group significantly influenced 18 metabolic pathways. Integrating biological and statistical correlation analysis on differential fecal microbiota and metabolites between the CON and DBP groups found that Lachnoclostridium, Clostridioides, and Enterococcus were positively associated with biotin. In addition, Lachnoclostridium, Clostridioides, Blautia, and Enterococcus were positively associated with niacinamide, phenylalanine acid, fumaric acid, and citrulline and negatively associated with cadavrine, putrescine, saccharopine, and butyrate. In all, 20% DBP restrained the apparent CP and OM digestibility, thereby affecting hindgut microbial metabolism. In contrast, 8% BF in the dog diet showed no adverse effects on body condition, apparent nutrient digestibility, fecal microbiota, or metabolic profiles. Our findings are conducive to opening a new avenue for the exploitation of DBP and BF as protein and fat resources in dog food.
Generalized Fourier Integral Operator Methods for Hyperbolic Equations with Singularities

Abstract This paper addresses linear hyperbolic partial differential equations and pseudodifferential equations with strongly singular coefficients and data, modelled as members of algebras of generalized functions. We employ the recently developed theory of generalized Fourier integral operators to construct parametrices for the solutions and to describe propagation of singularities in this setting. As required tools, the construction of generalized solutions to eikonal and transport equations is given and results on the microlocal regularity of the kernels of generalized Fourier integral operators are obtained.
AGO2a but not AGO2b mediates antiviral defense against infection of wild-type cucumber mosaic virus in tomato

Evolutionarily conserved antiviral RNA interference (RNAi) mediates a primary antiviral innate immunity preventing the infection of broad spectrum viruses in plants. However, the detailed mechanism in plants is still largely unknown, especially in important agricultural crops including tomato. On the other aspect, varieties of pathogenic viruses evolve to possess Viral Suppressor of RNA silencing (VSR) to suppress antiviral RNAi in host. Due to the prevalence of VSR, it is still skeptical that antiviral RNAi truly functions to prevent the invasion of natural wildtype viruses in plants and animals. In the research, it is for the first time we applied CRISPR-Cas9 to generate ago2a, ago2b or ago2ab mutants for two differentiated Solanum lycopersicum AGO2, one key effector in antiviral RNAi. We found that AGO2a but not AGO2b was significantly induced to inhibit the propagation of not only VSR-deficient Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) but also wildtype CMV-Fny in tomato, however, both AGO2a and AGO2b did not regulate disease induction after the infection of either virus. Our findings firstly reveal a prominent role of AGO2a in antiviral RNAi innate immunity in tomato and demonstrate that antiviral RNAi evolves to defend the infection of natural wildtype CMV-Fny in tomato, however AGO2a-mediated antiviral RNAi does not play major roles in promoting tolerance of tomato plants to CMV infection for maintaining health.
Physiological adaptation of sulfate reducing bacteria in syntrophic partnership with anaerobic methanotrophic archaea

Sulfate-coupled anaerobic oxidation of methane (AOM) is performed by multicellular consortia of anaerobic methanotrophic archaea (ANME) in obligate syntrophic partnership with sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB). Diverse ANME and SRB clades co-associate but the physiological basis for their adaptation and diversification is not well understood. In this work, we explore the metabolic adaptation of four syntrophic SRB clades (HotSeep-1, Seep-SRB2, Seep-SRB1a and Seep-SRB1g) from a phylogenomics perspective, tracing the evolution of conserved proteins in the syntrophic SRB clades, and comparing the genomes of syntrophic SRB to their nearest evolutionary neighbors in the phylum Desulfobacterota. We note several examples of gain, loss or biochemical adaptation of proteins within pathways involved in extracellular electron transfer, electron transport chain, nutrient sharing, biofilm formation and cell adhesion. We demonstrate that the metabolic adaptations in each of these syntrophic clades are unique, suggesting that they have independently evolved, converging to a syntrophic partnership with ANME. Within the clades we also investigated the specialization of different syntrophic SRB species to partnerships with different ANME clades, using metagenomic sequences obtained from ANME and SRB partners in individual consortia after fluorescent-sorting of cell aggregates from anaerobic sediments. In one instance of metabolic adaptation to different partnerships, we show that Seep-SRB1a partners of ANME-2c appear to lack nutritional auxotrophies, while the related Seep-SRB1a partners of a different methanotrophic archaeal lineage, ANME-2a, are missing the cobalamin synthesis pathway, suggesting that the Seep-SRB1a partners of ANME-2a may have a nutritional dependence on its partner. Together, our paired genomic analysis of AOM consortia highlights the specific adaptation and diversification of syntrophic SRB clades linked to their associated ANME lineages.
Stochastic analysis of emergence of evolutionary cyclic behavior in population dynamics with transfer

Horizontal gene transfer consists in exchanging genetic materials between microorganisms during their lives. This is a major mechanism of bacterial evolution and is believed to be of main importance in antibiotics resistance. We consider a stochastic model for the evolution of a discrete population structured by a trait taking finitely many values, with density-dependent competition. Traits are vertically inherited unless a mutation occurs, and can also be horizontally transferred by unilateral conjugation with frequency dependent rate. Our goal is to analyze the trade-off between natural evolution to higher birth rates and transfer, which drives the population towards lower birth rates. Simulations show that evolutionary outcomes include evolutionary suicide or cyclic re-emergence of small populations with well-adapted traits. We focus on a parameter scaling where individual mutations are rare but the global mutation rate tends to infinity. This implies that negligible sub-populations may have a strong contribution to evolution. Our main result quantifies the asymptotic dynamics of subpopulation sizes on a logarithmic scale. We characterize the possible evolutionary outcomes with explicit criteria on the model parameters. An important ingredient for the proofs lies in comparisons of the stochastic population process with linear or logistic birth-death processes with immigration. For the latter processes, we derive several results of independent interest.
Stellar Remnants in Galactic Nuclei: Mass Segregation

The study of how stars distribute themselves around a massive black hole (MBH) in the center of a galaxy is an important prerequisite for the understanding of many galactic-center processes. These include the observed overabundance of point X-ray sources at the Galactic center and the prediction of rates and characteristics of tidal disruptions of extended stars by the MBH and of inspirals of compact stars into the MBH, the latter being events of high importance for the future space-borne gravitational wave interferometer LISA. In relatively small galactic nuclei hosting MBHs with masses in the range 105-107 M☉, the single most important dynamical process is two-body relaxation. It induces the formation of a steep density cusp around the MBH and strong mass segregation, as more massive stars lose energy to lighter ones and drift to the central regions. Using a spherical stellar dynamical Monte Carlo code, we simulate the long-term relaxational evolution of galactic nucleus models with a spectrum of stellar masses. Our focus is the concentration of stellar black holes to the immediate vicinity of the MBH. We quantify this mass segregation for a variety of galactic nucleus models and discuss its astrophysical implications. Special attention is given to models developed to match the conditions in the Milky Way nucleus; we examine the presence of compact objects in connection to recent high-resolution X-ray observations.
Improving IT Integration for Higher Education Institutional Performance : Towards a Contextualised IT-Institutional Alignment Model

The integration of information technology (IT) into service delivery is currently seen as an innovative strategy to support the modernising of universities worldwide. However, in some institutions in developing countries, including Rwanda, IT has failed to add the intended value to university services, despite huge associated investments in IT. Consequently, ITorganisational alignment continues to be a primary concern for university managers. This alignment is viewed in terms of its strategic, socio-cultural, and technological dimensions. For effective IT-institutional alignment, several antecedents (alignment practices) for creating an appropriate fit between IT and organisations have been suggested in the literature. However, several studies exploring IT alignment focused mainly on general business companies, and similar research with an emphasis on higher education institutions is still scarce. Therefore, the aim of this research was twofold: firstly, it attempted to understand the process of IT integration into universities; and secondly, to propose a contextual model for IT-institutional alignment within a higher education context. A design science research methodology (DSRM) was applied in this research, using surveys and case studies as research strategies. Preliminary findings at the exploration phase of this research indicated a strong misalignment between IT and the university services caused by the lack of clearly defined alignment practices. Furthermore, as the research main outcome, an IT-Institutional Alignment Model (ITIAM) was proposed after reaching an understanding of the current state and challenges related to IT integration into teaching, learning, research and university administration. This model includes 44 alignment practices, related to both technical and non-technical dimensions. These alignment practices were clustered under six categories: (1) Communication, (2) Structure/Governance, (3) Technology Scope, (4) Competence/Value Measurement, (5) Skills, and (6) Partnership. Alignment practices related to institutional structure and governance, skills and communication were found to have a strong positive influence on the institutional performance, as compared to those related to competence and value measurement, partnership, and technology scope. Based on the research findings, the proposed ITIAM, which was iteratively tested and evaluated using case study institutions, was found to be a relevant tool for guiding the implementation of IT systems towards the improvement of institutional performance. Hence, this thesis makes a theoretical contribution by applying the concept of IT alignment within a higher education context and by documenting the empirically tested contextual alignment practices as conveyed in the ITIAM Model. Additionally, as a practical implication, the results can serve as a reference for an effective IT integration process in university services and for how to improve performance through effective use of IT in teaching, learning, research and educational management.
Application of Conformal Meshless RBF Coupled with Coordinate Transformation for Arbitrary Waveguide Analysis

Meshless methods have attracted much attention in recent decades. A novel conformal meshless method based on radial basis function (RBF) coupled with coordinate transformation technique is proposed for arbitrary waveguide analysis. The proposed meshless method is a truly meshless integration-free method and it can overcome many drawbacks that are inherent in the traditional element-free Galerkin method. Our proposed method is validated by an equilateral triangular waveguide, elliptical waveguides, and truncated circular waveguides. Good agreements between the simulated and the published results have been obtained.
Decision-making support for choosing among different component origins

Context: The amount of software in solutions provided in various domains is continuously growing. These solutions are a mix of hardware and software solutions, often referred to as software-intensive systems. Companies seek alternatives to improve the software development process to avoid delays or cost overruns related to software development. Component origins such as in-house, outsourcing, Components OffThe-Shelf (COTS) or Open Source Software (OSS) are gaining popularity, therefore, leading to the decision to choose among component origins. Objective: The overall goal of this thesis is to support decisionmaking for selecting component origins. Following a decision-making process including all the key decision-making activities is crucial in making decisions. Therefore, the objective of the thesis is to support the decision-makers to create a decision-making process based on their context. In addition, the objective is to improve the decision-making process by incorporating research results and decision-makers’ opinion and knowledge in practice. Method: We identified the factors that influence the choice to select among different component origins through a systematic literature review using an Snowballing (SB) strategy and a Database (DB) search. We extended the investigation and conducted a case survey of 22 cases. Using design science, we developed solutions including a process-line to support decision-makers, a Bayesian synthesis process to integrate the evidence from literature into practice and a Knowledge Translation (KT) framework to facilitate the implementation of research results in practice. Results: In-house development and alternative component origins (outsourcing, COTS, and OSS) are being used for software development. Several factors such as time, cost and license implications influence the selection of component origins. Solutions have been proposed to support the decision-making. However, these solutions consider only a subset of factors identified in the literature. According to the case survey, the solutions proposed in literature are not aligned with practice. In practice, the decisions are mostly based on opinions. The design objective to support decision-makers with the decision-making process is identified. Therefore, we propose a process-line to address the design objective. In addition, to make the decision-making more informed
IRS Assisted Wireless Powered Communication: Active or Passive?

This paper addresses an active intelligent reflecting surface (IRS) to a wireless powered communication network (WPCN) to mitigate the double path loss observed in a passive IRS. The active IRS-assisted WPCN collects the data from a power-hungry device that harvests the energy in the wireless power transfer (WPT) phase and sends its data by using the harvested energy in the subsequent wireless information transfer (WIT) phase, which are boosted by the active IRS. We optimize the AIRS reflections in WPT and WIT phases and time allocation to optimize the achievable rate, which is shown to outperform the counterpart assisted by a passive IRS.