Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Improving Fractional Snow Cover Retrieval From Passive Microwave Data Using a Radiative Transfer Model and Machine Learning Method

Optical sensors are subject to cloud obscuration and sunlight dependence, resulting in large proportions of missing snow cover information. Microwave sensors are a good alternative to snow cover monitoring in all weather conditions. Thus far, few studies in the literature have directly derived the fractional snow cover (FSC) from passive microwave data, and none have considered the relationship between FSC and brightness temperature (TB). This study first explores the FSC–TB relationship with a radiation transfer model, exhibiting that no generic function can properly describe the nonlinear and complex FSC–TB relationship. Therefore, a new algorithm based on machine learning method was designed to improve FSC retrieval from TB data, considering other auxiliary information, including soil property, land surface, and geography information. Benchmarked against the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) reference FSC, our FSC retrieval model performed well with an average correlation coefficient of 0.70, the mean absolute error ranging from 0.15 to 0.17, and the root-mean-square error ranging from 0.19 to 0.21. The generated FSC maps reasonably characterized the seasonal dynamics and spatial distribution patterns of snow cover; time series analysis with three AmeriFlux stations observation indicated effective capture of snowpack evolution process by the generated FSC. In addition, the verification of snow mapping capability using snow depth measurements from 13 521 stations indicates that it was relatively stable with overall accuracy greater than 0.88. For precise monitoring of snow cover extent in all weather conditions, particularly for subpixel snow cover areas, the development of the FSC estimation scheme with TB data should be extensively encouraged and implemented.
External involvement and firm performance: is time-to-market of new products a missing link?

External involvement in new product development (NPD) has received increasing attention from both academicians and practitioners in recent years. While external involvement has been studied extensively, the academic understanding on how external involvement influences firm performance and the role of time-to-market of new products is still very limited. Drawing on the literature on innovation search and knowledge-based view, we develop a conceptual framework in which external involvement is linked to time-to-market of new products and firm performance. We tested this model using data collected from 176 manufacturing companies in China. The results indicate that both customer and supplier involvement can contribute to the reduction of time-to-market of new products. We also show that time-to-market of new products completely mediates the relationships between two types of external involvement and two dimensions of firm performance. These findings have important implications for research and practice in both the external involvement and the NPD areas.
Epidemiology of personality disorders in individuals with gender dysphoria

Purpose of review Prevalence estimates of personality disorders (PD) in individuals with gender dysphoria (GD) are variable and heterogeneous, as psychiatric comorbidity and long-term follow-up data from gender-diverse samples are still limited. This review aims to assess prevalence rates across age groups and discuss potential reasons for variability in PD prevalence estimates among transgender people. Recent findings International epidemiological data from several countries indicate that the best available estimates of the prevalence of any PD diagnosis in transgender youth are around 20% for adolescents and tend to increase to nearly 50% in trans-adults. The paucity of available data on personality dysfunction in children and adolescents with GD precluded us from definitive conclusions on the trends of emerging PDs in this population. Estimates of PD prevalence in transgender and gender-diverse people seem to be highly affected by methodological characteristics of the studies with no universally agreed reference standards for this population. Summary The review of epidemiological studies on PD among gender-diverse people highlights the need for using more standardized study methodologies to make findings comparable. Nevertheless, international epidemiological data seem to support the link association between the development of PD and GD.
Media Trust and Persuasion

This study examines the effect of media use on media trust and persuasion using a large-scale randomized field experiment, which was conducted in collaboration with the nation's most trusted media outlet. By randomly increasing the capacity for viewing its TV programs, we found that this treatment increased support for government policies by increasing program viewing time, which is, as we demonstrate, biased in favor of the government. Furthermore, we determined that the effect is driven mostly by those who trusted the outlet more than other broadcasters and that their levels of trust in the outlet were even *increased* by our treatment, which we call *endogenous persuasion*. By contrast, we did not discover heterogeneous effects with respect to political preferences. To better understand the mechanism underlying these findings, we developed a model of endogenous persuasion.
The relationship between dual mode cavity cross-coupling and waveguide polarizers

Cross-coupling in dual-mode cavity filters may be obtained by introducing an asymmetry within the cavity cross section at an angle of 45/spl deg/ to the two orthogonal modes. This paper presents a novel formula relating the resulting cross coupling coefficient between the orthogonal resonances to the polarization of a waveguide polarizer. Previous theories for such polarizers may then be applied directly to the dual mode filter situation. Formulas enabling the dimensions of the asymmetries for required coupling coefficients are presented for square and circular waveguide cross sections. >
Quantitative Classification of Neighbourhoods: The Neighbourhoods of New Single-family Homes in the Portland Metropolitan Area

This paper develops a quantitative method for classifying neighbourhood types and applies the characterization method to the neighbourhoods of new single-family homes in the Portland, Oregon, metropolitan area. The study first measures a set of 21 urban form attributes in neighbourhoods that contain newly constructed single-family homes. Factor analysis is then used to identify a small set of dimensions that capture essential differences in urban form. Finally, these factor scores are used as input to a cluster analysis to identify distinct neighbourhood types. The results demonstrate that most new single-family homes in Portland are built in new suburban neighbourhoods, but a substantial portion of single-family construction is occurring in traditional and neo-traditional urban neighbourhoods.
‘I had to work through what people would think of me’: negotiating ‘problematic single motherhood’ as a solo or single adoptive mum

ABSTRACT This article considers how five single mothers, who used adoption or donor conception to bring children into their lives, negotiate a persistent and pervasive discourse of ‘problematic single motherhood’ in their interview talk. Tactics of intersubjectivity (Bucholtz & Hall [2005]. Identity and interaction: A sociocultural linguistic approach. Discourse Studies, 7(4–5), 585–614. ), especially the overlapping strategies of distinction, authorisation and illegitimation, are shown to be particularly salient for these parents, as they work to legitimise their routes to motherhood by distancing themselves from widely stigmatised positions such as young motherhood, working-class motherhood and unplanned motherhood. I argue that these single women’s intersubjective positioning serves to protect them against stigma and discrimination, but often relies on the reproduction of other polarising and discriminatory discourses, which feed into idealised constructions of mothers as responsible, middle-class, and appropriately aged citizens. Overall, the analysis suggests that it is difficult for these single mothers to challenge the multiple and intersecting discriminatory discourses, ideals and stereotypes that converge in exclusionary and limiting constructions of single motherhood, whilst maintaining a recognisably legitimate social position for themselves.
Bond behaviour of normal‐ and high‐strength recycled aggregate concrete

The effect of concrete grade on the bond between 12 mm diameter deformed steel bars and recycled aggregate concrete (RAC) has been investigated with the help of 45 pullout tests with concentric rebar placement for coarse recycled concrete aggregate (RCA) replacement levels of 25, 50, 75 and 100%. For all the three concrete grades, the measured bond‐slip relationships indicate similar mechanisms of bond resistance in the RAC and the natural aggregate (NA) concrete. The most accurate and least conservative predictions of the measured bond strengths were obtained from the local bond‐slip model in the fib Model Code for Concrete Structures 2010. Bond strength normalized to fc(3/4) resulted in an improved match with test data and increased with an increase in the RCA replacement levels and decreased with an increase in compressive strength. An attempt to explain this behaviour has been sought in terms of brittleness index, an analogous parameter from rock mechanics. An empirical bond stress versus slip relationship has been proposed for the 12 mm diameter bar and it is conservatively suggested that similar anchorage lengths for this bar in all three concrete grades can be adopted for the RAC and the NA concretes.
Perceived Stress and Resilience among Nurses Working in a Selected Hospital at Mangalore

Abstract Objective A minimum amount of stress is essential for a successful life. When it goes beyond the limit, it affects overall well-being. There is a need to modify the environment, feelings, and physical factors of an individual to promote resilience. This study aimed to assess and find the relationship between perceived stress and resilience among nurses working in a selected hospital. Materials and Methods The investigators used the descriptive correlation design and, through the nonprobability sampling method, selected 65 nurses. Data was collected using the demographic variables, perceived stress scale, and the Connor–Davidson resilience scale. Results and Discussion The investigators found a moderate level of stress (61.5%) with intermediate resilience (73.8%) among the nurses and noted a weak correlation between perceived stress and resilience (calculated value is 0.226 and the p-value is 0.071). There was an association found between the frequency of night duty, education level, and perceived stress. Conclusion Our study showed that most of the nurses had a moderate level of stress with intermediate resilience. The unmarried nurses were more resilient, with a moderate level of stress than the married.
In-Season Body Composition Effects in Professional Women Soccer Players

This study aimed to analyze anthropometric and body composition effects in professional soccer women players across the early and mid-competitive 2019/20 season. Seventeen players (age, height, body mass, and body mass index of 22.7 ± 6.3 years, 167.5 ± 5.6 cm, 60.7 ± 6.6 kg and 21.6 ± 0.2 kg/m2) from a Portuguese BPI League team participated in this study. The participants completed ≥80% of 57 training sessions and 13 matches. They were assessed at three points (before the start of the season (A1), after two months (A2), and after four months (A3)) using the following variables: body fat mass (BFM), soft lean mass (SLM), fat-free mass (FFM), intracellular water (ICW), extracellular water (ECW), total body water (TBW), and phase angle (PhA, 50 Khz), through InBody S10. Nutritional intake was determined through a questionnaire. Repeated measures ANCOVA and effect sizes (ES) were used with p < 0.05. The main results occurred between A1 and A2 for BFM (−21.7%, ES = 1.58), SLM (3.7%, ES = 1.24), FFM (4%, ES = 1.34), ICW (4.2%, ES = 1.41), TBW (3.7%, ES = 1.04). Furthermore, there were significant results between A1 and A3 for FFM (4.8%, ES = 1.51), ICW (5%, ES = 1.68), and PhA (10.4%, ES = 6.64). The results showed that the water parameters improved over time, which led to healthy hydration statuses. The training load structure provided sufficient stimulus for appropriate physical fitness development, without causing negative disturbances in the water compartments.
Where humid and arid meet: Sedimentology of coastal siliciclastic successions deposited in apparently contrasting climates

Deciphering the palaeoenvironmental and palaeoclimatic setting of ancient successions that include deposits typical of different climates can be challenging. This is the case in the Late Jurassic succession cropping out in eastern Spain (South‐Iberian and western Maestrazgo basins), where deposits characteristic of both arid to semiarid and humid to subhumid settings have been identified through a detailed analysis of eight stratigraphic sections. These sections comprise shallow marine carbonates changing upward and laterally to a predominantly siliciclastic coastal and alluvial succession, including abundant dinosaur remains. Deposition of coastal and alluvial sediments occurred in flood plains, ephemeral and perennial fluvial channels, aeolian dunes, deltas, distributary mouth‐bars and associated distributary channels, and shallow water bodies influenced by both fresh and marine waters. Some of these deposits, notably those of aeolian and ephemeral fluvial origin, are characteristic of arid to semiarid climates. However, there are also abundant deposits that can be demonstrably shown to have a coeval origin, which are indicative of permanent water courses: (i) sediments of seasonal discharge fluvial channels with perennial to semi‐perennial flow, displaying subcritical and supercritical flow sedimentary structures; (ii) deltaic sediments deposited in permanent freshwater bodies; and (iii) abundant plant and dinosaur remains, especially of herbivorous dinosaurs, which required the presence of permanent water sources and abundant vegetation. These apparently contrasting sedimentary features indicate that deposition occurred under a seasonal climate controlled by monsoonal‐type precipitation. These deposits are analogous to those observed nowadays in the Lençóis Maranhenses National Park (north‐east Brazil), where a subhumid tropical climate with a seasonal precipitation pattern prevails. Thus, this study shows that only through careful facies analysis and interpretation of depositional processes that can be shown to be occurring concurrently in neighbouring and related depositional systems can the detailed palaeoenvironmental and palaeoclimatic setting of complex coastal sedimentary successions be confidently reconstructed in detail.
Relative Humidity: A Control Valve of the Steam Engine Climate

In the words of Heinrich Hertz in 1885, the Earth is a “gigantic steam engine”. On average, of the planet’s cross section exposed to sunlight, 72 % belong to the global ocean. With a delay of only 2-3 months, most of the heat absorbed there is released by evaporation rather than by thermal radiation. Water vapour is the dominating “greenhouse gas” of the marine troposphere with a typical relative humidity (RH) of 80 % at the surface. Observing the heat transport across the ocean surface permits insight in the powerhouse of the “steam engine”, controlled by the RH at the surface, a quantity that is often considered the “Cinderella” among the climate data. RH of the troposphere also controls cloud formation that is equally fundamental as challenging for climate research. As a precise and perfectly consistent thermodynamic basis for the description of such processes, the new oceanographic standard TEOS-10 was introduced by UNESCO/IOC in 2010 and IUGG in 2011. Its equations cover all thermodynamic properties of liquid water, seawater, ice and humid air, as well as their mutual equilibria and phase transitions. For harmonisation of the inconsistent RH definitions of humid air between meteorology and climatology, the relative fugacity has been defined as a physically more reasonable RH substitute that does not rely on the approximation of ideal gases. Doi: 10.28991/HEF-2021-02-02-06 Full Text: PDF
Imaging α-GalCer–Activated iNKT Cells in a Hepatic Metastatic Environment

Activating hepatic iNKT cells with α-GalCer has no effect on established colorectal tumors. However, prophylactic repeated dosing reduces liver metastases via enhancement of iNKT-cell responses, highlighting a potential therapeutic strategy for colorectal cancer patients with high metastatic risk. Patients with colorectal cancer frequently develop liver metastases after, and perhaps as a consequence of, lifesaving surgical resection of the primary tumor. This creates a potential opportunity for prophylactic metastatic treatment with novel immunostimulatory molecules. Here, we used state-of-the-art intravital imaging of an experimental liver metastasis model to visualize the early behavior and function of invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells stimulated with α-galactosylceramide (α-GalCer). Intravenous α-GalCer prior to tumor cell seeding in the liver significantly inhibited tumor growth. However, some seeding tumor cells survived. A multiple dosing regimen reduced tumor burden and prolonged the life of mice, whereas tumors returned within 5 days after a single dose of α-GalCer. With multiple doses of α-GalCer, iNKT cells increased in number and granularity (as did NK cells). As a result, the total number of contacts and time in contact with tumors increased substantially. In the absence of iNKT cells, the beneficial effect of α-GalCer was lost. Robust cytokine production dissipated over time. Repeated therapy, even after cytokine dissipation, led to reduced tumor burden and prolonged survival. Serial transplantation of tumors exposed to α-GalCer–activated iNKT cells did not induce greater resistance, suggesting no obvious epigenetic or genetic immunoediting in tumors exposed to activated iNKT cells. Very few tumor cells expressed CD1d in this model, and as such, adding monomers of CD1d–α-GalCer further reduced tumor growth. The data suggest early and repeated stimulation of iNKT cells with α-GalCer could have direct therapeutic benefit for patients with colorectal cancer who develop metastatic liver disease.
Bioaccumulation of heavy metals in two wet retention ponds

Metal accumulation in stormwater ponds may contaminate the inhabiting fauna, thus jeopardizing their ecosystem servicing function. We evaluated bioaccumulation of metals in natural fauna and caged mussel indicator organisms in two wet retention ponds. Mussel cages were distributed throughout the ponds to detect bioaccumulation gradients and obtain a time-integrated measure of metal bioavailability. We further investigated if sediment metal concentrations correlate with those in the fauna and mussels. Metal concentrations in the fauna tended to be higher in the ponds than in a reference lake, but statistical significance was only shown for Cu. Positive correlations were found for some metals in fauna and sediment. Sediment metal concentrations in one pond decreased from inlet to outlet while no gradients were observed in the mussels in either pond. These findings indicate that metal accumulation in the examined ponds currently does not pose a threat to their habitat function.
Effect of salinity stress on the antioxidant defence systems of two varieties of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L.)

Osmotic stress, oxidative stress and oxidation of essential macromolecules are common consequences of salinity stress that limit plant growth and productivity. Plants are known to evolve several strategies such as upsurge of antioxidant defence systems (ADS) and accumulation of osmolytes, so as to thrive under such conditions. In the present study, the effect of salinity stress (using irrigation method) on ADS of two cultivars (IT-99 and IT-288) of cowpea was examined. Plant samples (roots, young leaves and matured leaves) were harvested on day 21 of treatment with saline solution (100 – 400 mM NaCl). Antioxidant markers and osmolytes levels were quantified and compared with the controls (0.0 mM NaCl). The activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase, peroxidase and ascorbate peroxidase significantly increased (p<0.05) in the leaves, except for IT-288 where catalase activity significantly decreased (p<0.05) when compared to the control. On the contrary, catalase and peroxidase activities significantly decreased (p<0.05) in the roots of both cultivars. Largely, ascorbate, glutathione (GSH) and tocopherols levels increased as salinity increases, except for GSH in roots of IT-99, and leaves of IT-288. The amount of flavonoids detected in the same tissue were not significantly (p>0.05) different in all the salinity levels investigated. The level of proline increased at moderate salinity levels in all samples and at high salinity in roots of IT-99 and mature leaves of IT-288. For IT-99, levels of glycinebetaine significantly increased (p<0.05) at high salinity, but significantly decreased at similar levels in IT-288. H2O2 levels significantly increased in the roots but decreased (p<0.05) in leaves samples. Malondialdehyde concentration generally increased significantly (p<0.05) when compared with control. The findings of these study suggest that both cultivars were induced to express higher antioxidant activity and to a certain extent synthesis of more osmolytes.
A Note on the Cumulative Effects of Daily Wind Power Encounters on the Relative Acceptance of Increasing the Wind Power Capacity Offshore and Onshore.

An increasing number of studies suggest that the cumulative impacts of wind turbine encounters might have a negative impact on the acceptance of onshore wind power development. In many countries offshore wind resources are seen as the new wind energy resource, though the offshore cost of energy is markedly higher compared to onshore. In the present paper it is tested if the cumulative effect of wind turbines makes people favour offshore wind turbine development to onshore development. The results suggest that the cumulative effects from wind turbine encounters have weak effects on the relative attitude towards more onshore and offshore wind power development. This suggests that increasing onshore wind power development does not make people favour offshore wind power development to a higher extent.
Life-Cycle Energy Use and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory for Water Treatment Systems

Given the rising concerns over scarce energy resources and global climate change, life-cycle inventories focusing on energy use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions were developed for the City of Toronto municipal water treatment system (WTS). Three processes within the facility use phase of the life cycle were considered: Chemical production, transportation of materials, and water treatment plant operation. The impacts of chemical manufacturing were estimated using the economic input-output life-cycle assessment model, while the inventories for transportation and operational environmental effects were based on data from the GHGenius model and regionally averaged data. Operational burdens, 60% of which are attributed to on-site pumping, accounted for 94% of total energy use and 90% of GHG emissions. By contrast, transportation-related energy use and emissions were deemed insignificant. The normalized energy use of the studied WTS was found to be between 2.3 and 2.5 MJ∕ m3 of water treated. Water conservatio.