Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Lockdown effects of the COVID-19 on the spatio-temporal distribution of air pollution in Beijing, China

To prevent the spread of COVID-19, China enacted a series of strict policies, which reduced anthropogenic ac- tivities to a near standstill. This provided a precious window to explore its effects on the spatio-temporal distribution of air pollution in Beijing, China. In this study, continuous wavelet transforms and spatial interpolation methods were used to explore the spatiotemporal variations in air pollutants and their lockdown effects. The results indicate that except O 3 , the annual average concentration of NO 2 , PM 2.5 and SO 2 showed a decreasing trend during 2016 and 2019; NO 2 , PM 2.5 and SO 2 show a trend of “ low in summer and high in winter ” ; the diurnal variation of NO 2 concentration was mainly related to the rush hours of traffic volume, with the first peak at the morning peak (7:00), and then accumulating gradually to second peak (22:00). The continuous wavelet analysis shows that PM2.5, SO 2 and NO 2 had four primary periods, while O 3 only had two primary periods. The high NO 2 concentration areas were mainly in Dongcheng, Xicheng, Chaoyang and Fengtai, while the low con- centration areas were located in the northern areas, such as Miyun and Huairou; the PM 2.5 concentration decreased from south to north; this characteristic presented more obviously in winter. Compared to the pre- lockdown, NO 2 and SO 2 decreased considerably during lockdown, whereas PM 2.5 and O 3 increased dramatically. The contribution rates of transportation activities to the NO 2 , O 3 , PM 2.5 and SO 2 were estimated be 9.4 % ~ 17.2 %, (cid:0) 76.4 % ~ (cid:0) 42.9 %, (cid:0) 39.5 % ~ – 22.8 % and 5.7 % ~ 43.7 %, respectively; the contribution rates of industrial activities were 19.9 % ~ 26.7 %, 7.8 % ~ 30.9 %, 1.6 % ~ 36.2 % and (cid:0) 10.5 % ~ 15.9 %, respec- tively. Considering meteorological factors, we inferred that pauses in anthropogenic activities indeed help improving air pollution, but it is difficult to offset the impact of extreme weather. These findings can enhance our understanding on the sources of air pollution, and can therefore provide insights on urban air pollution mitigation.
Solar Disinfection as a Water Treatment Technology

Javier Marugán, Stefanos Giannakis, Kevin G. McGuigan and Inmaculada Polo-López Department of Chemical and Environmental Technology, ESCET, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Móstoles, Madrid, Spain Departamento de Ingeniería Civil: Hidráulica, Energía y Medio Ambiente, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain Department of Physiology & Medical Physics, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI), Dublin 2, Ireland Plataforma Solar de Almería – CIEMAT, Tabernas (Almería), Spain
Who’s bad? : molecular identification reveals seasonal dynamics of toxic and non-toxic freshwater cyanobacteria

Microcystin concentrations in two Dutch lakes with an important Planktothrix component were related to the dynamics of cyanobacterial genotypes and biovolumes. Genotype composition was analyzed by using DGGE profiling of the intergenic transcribed spacer region of the rrn operon (rRNA-ITS), and biovolumes were measured by using microscopy. In Lake Tjeukemeer, microcystins were present throughout summer (maximum concentration 30 μg/l) while cyanobacterial diversity was low and very constant. The dominant phototroph was P. agardhii. In contrast, Lake Klinckenberg showed a high microcystin peak (up to 140 μg/l) of short duration. In this lake, cyanobacterial diversity was higher and very dynamic with apparent genotype successions. Several genotypes derived from DGGE field profiles matched with genotypes from cultures isolated from field samples. The microcystin peak measured in Lake Klinckenberg could be confidently linked to a bloom of P. rubescens, since microscopic and genotypic analysis showed identity of bloom samples and a toxin-producing P. rubescens culture. Toxin-producing genotypes were detected in the microbial community before they reached densities at which they were detected by using microscopy. Cyanobacterial biovolumes provided additional insights in bloom dynamics. In both lakes, the microcystin content per cell was highest at the onset of the blooms. Our results suggest that while genotypic characterization of a lake can be valuable for detection of toxic organisms, for some lakes a monitoring of algal biomass has sufficient predictive value for an assessment of toxin production.
Tropical cyclones in a warmer climate

Tropical cyclones are among the most devastating of natural disasters, frequently causing loss of human life and serious economic damage. This is because of ocean storm surges in coastal regions, destructive winds and flash floods resulting from excessive precipitation. The annual cost for the USA has been estimated at US$ 5-10 billion but, after the extensive damage caused during the active 2005 hurricane season, including hurricane Katrina, with damage estimated at some US$ 85 billion, the fi gure is likely to increase.
Length-weight relationship and relative condition factor of white bream, Blicca bjoerkna (L., 1758), from Lake Ladik, Turkey

Length-weight relationship (LWR) and relative condition factor (Kn) of totally 434 white bream, Blicca bjoerkna (L., 1758) specimens, monthly collected in Lake Ladik between November 2009 and October 2010, were examined. Length-length relationships (LLRs) were also determined. The slopes of LWRs of females and males did not differ statistically in the same season, while they differed among the seasons. The positive allometric growth was observed in both sexes. The mean Kn values of females and males were not statistically different within season except in spring. The mean Kn showed an increase according to length classes. All LLRs were highly significant.
Effectiveness of a Self-Guided Web-Based Cannabis Treatment Program: Randomized Controlled Trial

Background Self-help strategies offer a promising way to address problems with access to and stigma associated with face-to-face drug and alcohol treatment, and the Internet provides an excellent delivery mode for such strategies. To date, no study has tested the effectiveness of a fully self-guided web-based treatment for cannabis use and related problems. Objectives The current study was a two-armed randomized controlled trial aimed at testing the effectiveness of Reduce Your Use, a fully self-guided web-based treatment program for cannabis use disorder consisting of 6 modules based on cognitive, motivational, and behavioral principles. Methods 225 individuals who wanted to cease or reduce their cannabis use were recruited using both online and offline advertising methods and were randomly assigned to receive: (1) the web-based intervention, or (2) a control condition consisting of 6 modules of web-based educational information on cannabis. Assessments of cannabis use, dependence symptoms, and abuse symptoms were conducted through online questionnaires at baseline, and at 6-week and 3-month follow-ups. Two sets of data analyses were undertaken—complier average causal effect (CACE) modeling and intention to treat (ITT). Results Two thirds (149) of the participants completed the 6-week postintervention assessment, while 122 (54%) completed the 3-month follow-up assessment. Participants in the intervention group completed an average of 3.5 of the 6 modules. The CACE analysis revealed that at 6 weeks, the experimental group reported significantly fewer days of cannabis use during the past month (P=.02), significantly lower past-month quantity of cannabis use (P=.01), and significantly fewer symptoms of cannabis abuse (P=.047) relative to controls. Cannabis dependence symptoms (number and severity) and past-month abstinence did not differ significantly between groups (Ps>.05). Findings at 3 months were similar, except that the experimental group reported significantly fewer and less severe cannabis dependence symptoms (Ps<.05), and past-month quantity of cannabis consumed no longer differed significantly between groups (P=.16). ITT analyses yielded similar outcomes. Conclusion Findings suggest that web-based interventions may be an effective means of treating uncomplicated cannabis use and related problems and reducing the public health burden of cannabis use disorders. Trial registration ACTRN12609000856213, Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry.
New York City Cab Drivers ’ Labor Supply Revisited : Reference-Dependent Preferences with Rational-Expectations Targets for Hours and Income †

1912 In the absence of large income effects, a neoclassical model of labor supply predicts a positive wage elasticity of hours. However, Camerer et al. (1997) collected data on the daily labor supply of New York City cab drivers who, unlike most workers in modern economies, are free to choose their own hours, and found a strongly negative elasticity of hours with respect to their closest analog of a wage, realized earnings per hour. In Camerer et al.’s dataset, realized earnings per hour (which they call the “wage”) is uncorrelated across days but positively serially correlated within a day, so that high earnings early in a day signal higher earnings later that day, and a neoclassical model predicts a positive elasticity even though realized earnings per hour is not precisely a wage. If instead realized earnings per hour is serially uncorrelated within a day, as Farber (2005) shows is roughly true in his dataset (see, however, our analysis in Section IIC), then a driver with high early earnings experiences a small change in income but no change in expected wage, and a neoclassical model predicts an elasticity near zero. A neoclassical model could explain Camerer et al.’s New York City Cab Drivers’ Labor Supply Revisited: Reference-Dependent Preferences with RationalExpectations Targets for Hours and Income
A multi-scale model for coupling strands with shear-dependent liquid

We propose a framework for simulating the complex dynamics of strands interacting with compressible, shear-dependent liquids, such as oil paint, mud, cream, melted chocolate, and pasta sauce. Our framework contains three main components: the strands modeled as discrete rods, the bulk liquid represented as a continuum (material point method), and a reduced-dimensional flow of liquid on the surface of the strands with detailed elastoviscoplastic behavior. These three components are tightly coupled together. To enable discrete strands interacting with continuum-based liquid, we develop models that account for the volume change of the liquid as it passes through strands and the momentum exchange between the strands and the liquid. We also develop an extended constraint-based collision handling method that supports cohesion between strands. Furthermore, we present a principled method to preserve the total momentum of a strand and its surface flow, as well as an analytic plastic flow approach for Herschel-Bulkley fluid that enables stable semi-implicit integration at larger time steps. We explore a series of challenging scenarios, involving splashing, shaking, and agitating the liquid which causes the strands to stick together and become entangled.
Epstein-Barr Virus, Beta-Catenin, and E-cadherin in Gastric Carcinomas

Activated beta-catenin is suggested to inhibit NF-kappaB activation, and we previously demonstrated that NF-kappaB nuclear positivity was more frequent in Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-infected gastric carcinomas. It is controversial that beta-catenin and E-cadherin are prognostic markers in gastric carcinomas. To define a relationship between beta-catenin and EBV, and the prognostic value of beta-catenin and E-cadherin, we analyzed in situ hybridization for EBV-encoded small RNAs, beta-catenin, and E-cadherin immunohistochemistry, and clinicophatological features in 111 gastric carcinomas. EBV infection was detected in seven carcinomas (6.3%); none of seven showed beta-catenin nuclear accumulation, and five out of seven revealed beta-catenin membranous loss or cytoplamic expression. Eighty cases (72.1%) showed beta-catenin alteration; i.e., loss of membrane staining in 65 (58.6%), cytoplasmic expression in 35 (31.5%), and nuclear accumulation in 15 (13.5%). E-cadherin alteration was observed in 34 cases (30.6%) and correlated with beta-catenin alteration. On multivariate analysis, the combined immunoexpression group of beta-catenin nuclear accumulation/ E-cadherin alteration and the advanced TNM cancer stage group showed poor patient's survival (p<0.05). In conclusion, beta-catenin activation through nuclear accumulation hardly occurred in EBV-infected gastric carcinomas. The combined immunoexpression pattern of beta-catenin and E-cadherin can be used as a prognostic marker in gastric carcinomas.
Utilisation des bactériophages comme thérapie lors d'une infection à Pseudomonas aeruginosa dans le cadre de la mucoviscidose : efficacité et innocuité

Face au phenomene de multi-resistance aux antibiotiques des souches de Pseudomonas aeruginosa chez les patients atteints de mucoviscidose, de nouvelles approches doivent etre envisagees. L'utilisation des bacteriophages pour cibler les bacteries semble etre l'une des plus prometteuses. L'efficacite de la phagotherapie semble demontree par son utilisation en Europe de l'Est depuis des decennies et par les recents resultats obtenus sur des modeles experimentaux. Cependant, la possibilite de son utilisation chez des patients atteints de mucoviscidose n'a pas encore fait l'objet d'etudes approfondies. Nous avons demontre l'efficacite des bacteriophages in vivo, lors d'une infection pulmonaire letale provoquee par une souche clinique de P. aeruginosa, mais aussi in vitro, pour reduire un biofilm forme par P. aeruginosa. Nous avons aussi etudie la reponse inflammatoire induite par les bacteriophages, dans differents modeles in vitro et in vivo, qui s'est revelee quasiment negligeable. Nous avons egalement mis au point la technique de mesure de difference de potentiel nasale chez la souris pour etudier le transport ionique transepithelial, parametre fondamental de la mucoviscidose. Les mesures obtenues en presence de bacteriophages ne different pas significativement par rapport aux normes prealablement definies. Enfin, nous avons mis au point une methode permettant d'evaluer la capacite des bacteriophages a infecter des bacteries au sein d'expectorations de patients atteints de mucoviscidose. Nous apportons ainsi des resultats scientifiques concrets qui permettront de mieux apprehender les conditions necessaires au developpement de futurs essais cliniques chez ces patients.
Velocity structure of uppermost mantle beneath North China from Pn tomography and its implications

Abstract20301 Pn arrival time data are collected from the seismological bulletins of both national and regional seismic networks. Pn travel time residuals are tomographically inverted for the Pn velocity structure of uppermost mantle beneath North China. The result indicates that the average Pn velocity in North China is 7.92 km/s, and the velocity varies laterally from −0.21 to +0.29 km/s around the average. The approximately NNE trending high and low velocity regions arrange alternatively west-eastward. From west to east we can see high velocity in the middle Ordos region, the Shanxi graben low, the Jizhong depression high, the west Shandong uplift and Bohai Sea low, and the high velocity region to the east of the Tanlu fault. In the southern boundary zone of the North China block, except for the high velocity in the Qingling Mountains region, the velocity is generally lower than the average. Obvious velocity anisotropy is seen in the Datong Cenozoic volcanic region, with the fast velocity direction in NNE-SSW. Notable velocity anisotropy is also seen around the Bay of Bohai Sea, and the fast velocity directions seem to show a rotation pattern, possibly indicating a flow-like deformation in the uppermost mantle there. The Pn velocity variations show a reversed correlation with the Earth”s heat flow. The low Pn velocity regions generally show high heat flow, e.g., the Shanxi graben and Bohai Sea region. While the high Pn velocity regions usually manifest low heat flow, e.g., the region of Jizhong depression. This indicates that the Pn velocity variation in the study region is mainly aroused by the regional temperature difference in the uppermost mantle. Strong earthquakes in the crust tend to occur in the region with the abnormal low Pn velocity, or in the transition zone between high and low Pn velocity regions. The earthquakes in the low velocity region are shallower, while that in the transition zone are deeper.
Factors Determining Youth's Recreational Behaviour and its Effects on Body Mass Index (BMI)

Youth require recreational activities to enhance their physical and mental health. This study seeks to identify the determinants of youth’s recreational behaviour and effects to their body mass index by built environmental factors. A pilot study was carried out to determine the physical activity, the sedentary behaviour, accessibility and safety of recreational park, and its association with youth body weight index. Respondents comprise of 30 youth aged between 15 to 16 years, randomly selected from a few secondary schools in Subang Jaya, Selangor. Physical activity and sedentary behaviour were measured using the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Adolescents (PAQ-A) and the Adolescent Sedentary Activity Questionnaire (ASAQ). Body mass index (BMI) on the other hand, was computed by measuring the height and weight of the respondents. Accessibility and safety of recreational park were also assessed. The findings reveal that almost half of the respondents have a normal BMI, while 33.3% were severely thin and 20.0% were overweight and obese. For physical activity, most of the respondents stated that they play futsal on both weekday (60.0%) and weekend (46.7%). For sedentary behaviour, watching television is the best choice for respondents to spend their leisure time, about 100.0% on weekday and 86.7% on weekend. There is a modest relationship between BMI and youth who play futsal. Two factors were identified as the reasons for not going to the park which are lack of playing facilities and perception of safety and crime. This study demonstrates the need of youth to be healthy and physically active by playing sport at the park as their recreational activities. Support in terms of proximity of the parks from their home and the provision of sufficient facilities influence youth’s recreational activities.
THE IMPORTANCE OF TRANSPORT IMPACTS ON LAND USE IN STRATEGIC PLANNING

The impacts of transport policy on the directions and magnitude of land use change are difficult to identify or measure, and clear causal relationships are almost impossible to define. Furthermore, the study of such effects falls distinctly between the remits of land use and transport planning. However, successful co-ordination of land use and transport strategies, in pursuit of urban policy objectives, requires estimation and analysis of these impacts. This paper examines current practice in the assessment of transport impacts on land use. A sample of planners from local and central government in Britain, universities and consultancies was selected and interviewed on the following topics: (1) whether transport impacts on land use are considered in the planning process; (2) what methods are used to forecast such impacts; and (3) the impacts on policy decisions, i.e. the practical value and importance of assessing transport impacts on land use. Comparative research was also undertaken on a sample of planners in the U.S. where recent environmental and transport planning legislation is forcing metropolitan area planners to consider transport and land use together. The results show that the level of consideration of transport impacts on land use varies between different agencies, and between departments within authorities. Interest seems to vary according to the dominant policy objectives of the agency, as well as perceptions of the scale of transport-induced land use changes. There is no consistent methodology, and little widespread use of integrated land-use and transport models, despite such models being available. Scepticism concerning the modelling of land use change seems to exceed that for modelling transport changes alone. Among the planners in the U.K. there is widespread reliance on the structure plan system to 'control' the effects of transport on land use. In the U.S., opportunities for integrating study of transport impacts on land use into the planning system are in danger of being missed. (A)
Competing Models for the Timing of Cryogenian Glaciation: Evidence From the Kingston Peak Formation, Southeastern California

The Neoproterozoic (~750-635 Ma) Kingston Peak Formation, southeastern California, is a coarse-grained siliciclastic interval, with laterally extensive carbonate marker horizons, deposited in extensional basins between two regionally extensive carbonate intervals. Thirty sections measured and two geologic maps produced show a wedge-shaped geometry unique to extensional settings and clarify the conformable relationship between the coarse-grained deposits and the overlying Noonday Dolomite. Carbonate intervals were sampled extensively to determine the value of chemostratigraphic correlation in this interval. A newly mapped regional unconformity near the base of the formation serves to separate the overlying tectonic sequence of the Kingston Peak Formation from the underlying deposits related to the platformal Beck Spring Dolomite. A glacigenic influence is inferred based on the presence of striated clasts in one of several basins, facilitating global correlation with similar coarse-grained deposits thought to record the Earth's most severe ice age.The Kingston Peak Formation provides a rare example of ancient glacial successions in which the relationship between the sedimentary packaging in vertical and lateral dimensions is apparent in outcrop. This allows the influence on stratigraphic development by the series of tectonic and climate events to be reconstructed without relying on regional or global correlation. These relations show the progressive development of extensional basins from northwest to southeast in the Death Valley region. The exceptional exposure in this region reveals bounding synsedimentary faults allowing tectonic and climate influence on coarse-grained facies to be resolved as well as the lateral persistence and stacking of course grained units. Through-going carbonate marker beds recording regional sea level rise provide timelines allowing the reconstruction and relative timing of climate and rifting events. These relations identify that the Kingston Peak Formation records a complicated regional history in which the record of rifting and climate are intimately related through fault subsidence and the creation of accommodation space. The availability of accommodation space from tectonism biases the sedimentary record of climate change. Glacial deposits are not necessarily uniquely timed with glacial conditions, but with preservational conditions. This interplay between tectonism and related coarse-grained deposits obscures both the timing and extent of similar coarse-grained deposits related to glaciation.
Measuring educational efficiency and its determinants in Spain with parametric distance functions

The aim of this paper is to measure educational efficiency in Spanish regions using data at student level from PISA 2006. For this purpose, we use a parametric output distance function to implement the methodology developed by Battese and Coelli (1995). The use of this framework allows us to obtain significant conclusions. Thus, in Spain regional educational policies seems to matter since Andalusia, Catalonia and the regions that do not participate in PISA 2006 with an extended sample are the most inefficient regions. We also conclude that the peer group effect is a crucial variable to increase students’ test scores. However class size or school ownership has no effect on efficiency results.